Society of Stampaholics

Read All About it - the SNR May Edition is Live

It's the second Sunday of the month which means this month's edition of Scrapbook News and Review is now available for viewing!

I have several tutorials in this issue of SNR, and there are about 200 projects and tutorials featuring tags, cards, scrapbook pages, ATC's, altered objects, etc. 

I'll be teaching a Memory Box class at SNR's online classroom on May 24 - more details to come!

You can also check out the SNR blog and The Art Studio blog.

Thanks for stopping and have a blessed day!

Deborah

If you enjoyed this post, please hit the G+ button below (listed next to the Twitter button right above the comments). I need to establish my author rank ASAP for professional reasons. Thank you so much!

New & Improved Laundry, Part II!

As a result of reading certain books as a child (The Little House series, The Swiss Family Robinson, My Side of the Mountain, etc.), I've always had a keen interest in doing things for myself. I love modern conveniences as much as the next person, but I hate being dependent upon them. I worry about all the knowledge we've lost and how we'd respond (as a nation) if the world suddenly fell apart ala Stephen King's The Stand.

So I harbor a hippie deep within myself and attempt to be as independent as I can from modern conveniences. I make my own spaghetti sauce, for example (it's really not that hard); and I used to make 80% of my clothing.  

Nearly two weeks ago, I decided to step up and make my own laundry detergent, and I am very satisfied with the results. For a fraction of the cost of Tide, Gain, and all those other over-priced detergents, I'm washing our clothes, and they look great!

I mulled over several recipes I discovered online and finally ended up sort of combining two and adding an extra ingredient just to be on the safe side. If you want to give this a shot (and I highly recommend that you do), I've included the ingredients and directions below).

S U P P L I E S

1 Fels-Naptha bar of soap (available in your laundry aisle)

1 cup Arm & Hammer Washing Soda

1 cup 20 Mule Team Borax

1 cup Oxy-Clean (safe on colors)

4.5 gallons of water

2 cooking pots 

Grater

5 gallon bucket

Paint stir stick (or stirring utensil of your choice)

Air-tight containers with lids/caps (cleaned milk jugs, detergent bottles, bleach jugs, etc.)

I N S T R U C T I O N S

1. Unwrap the Fels-Naptha and put it in the microwave for 30 seconds to soften. (Don't skip this step because this soap is very, very hard.)
2. Grate the softened Fels-Naptha. (I used my CuisineArt.)
3. Put the grated Fels-Naptha in a pot with 2 quarts of water. Heat on low until the grated soap has dissolved.
4. Bring two quarts of water to a boil in another pot.
5. Put your bucket in the sink and add 1 gallon of hot water, 2 quarts of boiling water, and the Fels-Naptha liquid. 
6. Stir thoroughly.
7. Add the Borax, Washing Powder and Oxy-Clean, mixing well.
8. Add 2.5 gallons of hot water and stir thoroughly.
9. Your brew will froth at first - this is why we put the bucket in the sink - to catch the overflow of foam. The frothing will stop and the detergent will thicken as it cools. (The consistency is like runny pudding.)

You can use your detergent immediately. The yield is 5 gallons.

Use 1/2 cup for normal loads and 1 c for heavy loads.

Shake mixture before each use. 

T I P S

• Use a funnel to fill your containers. Milk jugs are excellent containers, as are empty detergent and bleach bottles (just make sure they are completely clean).
• Hold on to the scoop from your last box of detergent. Fill it with water to see how much liquid it holds. Draw a new fill line with a Sharpie if needed.
• We didn't have a 5-gallon bucket, but I had an empty cat litter bucket that held exactly five gallons of water and fit beautifully in my sink, so I rinsed it out and used that!
• I only had one empty container when we made our detergent, so I filled it and left the rest in our kitty-litter bucket (which has an airtight lid). When I got some more milk jugs, I cleaned them and filled two. I've decided to leave the rest of the mixture in the bucket until the two milk jugs run out and then refill them. 

S A V I N G S

The cost of 1 cup of 20 Mule Team Borax is about 55 cents; 1 cup of Arm & Hammer Washing Soda is about 90 cents; and 1 cup of Oxy-Clean is about 65 cents. A bar of Fels-Naptha soap costs $1.50. So our total cost to make five gallons of detergent is about $3.60.

So 1/2 cup of our homemade detergent (per load) costs about 2 cents. 

I can live with that.

This weekend, I'm going to make some fabric softener!!!

Thanks for stopping and have a blessed day!

Deborah

Design Elements, Principles, and Color Theory Resources

Hi, all!

There's a discussion going on at the Hero Arts Flickr group about design principles and elements, so I thought I'd share my own favorite online resources here as well.

A nice reference poster for design principles to download and print.

A nice reference poster for color theory to download and print.

A nice reference poster for design elements to download and print.

Here are actual drawings that specifically illustrate these verbal definitions.

A great slideshow that provides detailed illustrations of design elements and principles.

Just for fun, an art game site.  

I think this video is about the most exciting thing I've seen in awhile! It visualizes Richard Saul Wurman’s LATCH system of organization. Very cool.

Thanks for stopping and have a blessed day!

Deborah

Flowers From The Craft's Meow Blog Hop

Hello, Hoppers!

Today marks the first of two monthly blog hops at The Craft's Meow! Today's theme is Flowers, and The Craft's Meow has tons of flower stamps from which to choose!

You should have arrived here from Clare's blog.  If you'd like to start from the beginning, just go to The Craft's Meow for a list.  Here's my card, featuring select images from the Lovely Birds stamp set:

Your next stop is at Gayatri's blog - she's made a real beauty for you!  

And don't forget to leave a comment at each stamper's blog and at The Craft's Meow, because one lucky person will be drawn from all the comments to win a stamp set of her choice! Leave your comments by 11:59 p.m., Thursday, May 9, for chances to win! 

I N S T R U C T I O N S

1. Create vertical card base and round bottom corners.
2. Stamp main image and sentiment on panel of patterned paper and adhere to card. 
3. Stamp birds using Tide Pool ink. 
4. Cut strips of patterned paper and adhere to card.
5. Color leaves, fence, and birdhouse with colored pencils; shade birds and dot eyes.
6. Stamp flowers on patterned paper, fussy cut, and adhere to card.
7. Apply gold Perfect Pearls to flower centers, then add black pearls or gems. 

T I P

When you want to fussy cut something that is very "busy" it's a good idea to stamp the image on a scrap piece of paper and color the parts you will be cutting out. This way you have a map and won't accidentally cut off something you think is a leaf when it's really a petal. (Yes, I did this three times! I restamped the image on the patterned paper, cut out the misidentified flowers, and adhered them to my card base before adhering the main piece. Next time I will make a map first!)   

S U P P L I E S

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Thanks for stopping and have a blessed day!

Deborah

If you enjoyed this post, please hit the G+ button below (listed next to the Twitter button right above the comments). I need to establish my author rank ASAP for professional reasons. Thank you so much!

 

New & Improved Laundry, Part I

What gets dirtier and dirtier, the more it cleans?

A washing machine.

It seems like an oxymoron, but it's true. My washing machine, for example, is a scandal, and I, for one, want nothing more to do with it. Unfortunately, I can't afford to send everything out to a dry cleaner (and wouldn't, even if I could - I'm a little uncomfortable with strangers folding my family's unmentionables).

So I'm stuck with our filthy washing machine.

But she's filthy no longer! Yea, verily, I say unto you, "I've cleaned that baby, and she shore do shine!"

Here's what you do for a top-loader:

1. Set the washer to its hottest water setting, longest cycle, largest load, and strongest agitation. As the machine is filling up with the water, add a quart of bleach. 
2. While you're standing there, waiting for the washer to fill, take a cloth or small dish towel and dip it into your hot water. Slosh water into the areas that surround the washer's opening. Take apart the bits where you add fabric softener and bleach and drop them into the hot water. Just keep dipping and sloshing (and scrubbing a bit) until all the grime is removed.
3. By the time you've done this, the bits you dropped into the washer will be clean and floating in the water, so just pull 'em out and reattach them. You can stop the fill process if you're worried about the machine starting to agitate while you're replacing the fabric softener dispenser.
4. Once the machine is filled and starts to agitate, let it do so for one minute, and then open the door to stop it. Let it sit like this for an hour.
5. While it's sitting there, you can continue to clean the outside of your machine with the hot water and the soap of your choice. Don't forget to remove the knobs. I also found a Magic Eraser to be very effective in removing some of the stains from the machine's interior lip.  
6. After an hour is up, shut the door, and let the machine do its full cycle.
7. Immediately upon finishing, repeat Step #1 - except this time substitute a quart of distilled white vinegar for the bleach.
8. Repeat Step #4. 

That's it! You've finished!  

Now it's my understanding that there are some other, more intensive things one can do that involve opening up the back of the machine and getting into its bowels. I'm not quite brave enough to go there yet. But when I do, I'll let you know what happened.

Thanks for stopping and have a blessed day!

Deborah

Memory Box Card: A Whale of a Birthday Card

Hello, Stampers!

It's my turn to post on the Memory Box Design Team blog, Outside the Box!

I'm quite fond of the card I made for today because it's whimsical and makes me grin.

I N S T R U C T I O N S

1. Make card base.
2. Cut white panel and adhere strips of cardstock at bottom.
3. Stamp sentiment.
4. Die cut whale and fish, and adhere to panel.
5. Draw smile on whale, dot eyes onto fish, and adhere googlie eyes.
6. Adher panel to front of card with dimensional squares. 

T I P

Okay, okay... er... Whoopsa Daisy to Place in the Seventh at Belmont.

S U P P L I E S

(All products are from Memory Box unless otherwise noted.) Cardstock; Patterned Paper: Morocco, Brioche 6x6; Stamps:Happy Birthday Special Combo; Dies: Wonderful Whale, School of Fish; Ink: Tuxedo Black pad and marker (Memento); Accents: googlie eyes   

 

If you enjoyed this post, please hit the G+ button below (listed next to the Twitter button right above the comments). I need to establish my author rank ASAP for professional reasons. Thank you so much!

Thanks for stopping and have a blessed day!

Deborah

My Card for the April CCC

I have a confession to make. 

When I designed the template for the April CCC, I thought it was somewhat uninspiring and probably impractical. I figured nobody would attempt to use the thing, preferring to select one of the other parameters instead.

So I was amazed that I not only used the template but really, really liked what I created with it. In fact, I had a hard time letting go of it - lol! Unfortunately, my picture of it is a little dark, but, trust me, it's quite light and lovely in the hand!

I N S T R U C T I O N S

1. Make card base and round corners.
2. Cut patterned paper strips and adhere to card.
3. Die cut leaves and adhere.
4. Stamp sentiment.
5. Die cut flowers, ink edges, and adhere to card with foam dimensional squares.
6. Adhere enamel dots.

T I P

Adhere the greenery along the stems and leaf centers. Once the glue has set, gently slide your thumbnail along the tips of the leaves to make them curl up and away from the card for a nice dimensional effect.

S U P P L I E S

 

Thanks for stopping and have a blessed day!

Deborah

If you enjoyed this post, please hit the G+ button below (listed next to the Twitter button right above the comments). I need to establish my author rank ASAP for professional reasons. Thank you so much!