Eileen Hull

Deck the halls…

15 Dec

It usually takes till about now for me to get in the holiday spirit. Today my friends Tina and Lorine and I went up to a historical wheat plantation in Leesburg where they featured wedding dresses of women who had lived there. It was beautiful weather and a great day to be there. Then we went on to lunch. We decided to go somewhere together instead of giving gifts this year. I am so blessed to have several circles of great friends and I don’t tell them enough how much I love them.

But now, back to a depressing topic… I am cleaning the basement/studio and wonder why in the world I let it get like this. I’m on a roll right now though… just in time for CHA coming up when another disaster will be created!

A couple of things… I appeared on Inspired at Home: Spotlight on Creativity Dec. 7. The show archives are up if you want to see the show.

The Sizzix blog was supposed to go live today but due to a tech problem it was delayed… hopefully tomorrow it will go up.

Last thing. I was going through some stuff and found this little angel I had gotten at a thrift store somewhere. Is it my imagination or does she look faintly annoyed? Something about the way she’s clutching that harp reminds me of my mom’s expression in the rearview mirror as she is driving my sisters and I to piano lessons as we were goofing around and being obnoxious in the back seat and generally getting on her nerves… good times…

Tomorrow night is Book Club so I will be baking today for the cookie exchange and family members that will soon be arriving. Christmas is coming!

Birth Announcement

11 Dec

My friend Joayn became a grandmother at Thanksgiving. She had gotten some stationery before Jackson was born and I asked her for a notecard. Wasn’t sure what I would do with it but thought I might somehow create a unique birth announcement for her. Actually I did two and will give the other one to Tara, Joayn’s daughter. I like how this came out and it was so easy with the help of my trusty workhorse, the Logan mat cutter!

Make sure to check out the Sizzix site on Monday and click on BLOG! I will be posting new projects, tips and techniques for working with the new ScoreBoard dies along with other Sizzix designers.

I can’t wait to see these babies in person on Saturday! I will be traveling down to Raleigh, NC where the closest Archiver’s store is. They are offering a free Make and Take Sizzix ScoreBoards gift card box. If you have an Archiver’s store in your area, boy are you lucky! Stop by and make a one…

Sizzix ScoreBoard Blog Hop #5

9 Dec

Thanks for stopping by today! I can’t wait for you to see what the fabulous ScoreBoard designers have come up with for you this time. Every Hop, I am blown away by their creativity and style and so appreciate the time they put in to working on these projects, especially during the busy holiday season.

Today we have two bloggers new to the Hop: Debra Quartermain is a designer friend from Canada who works in all kinds of mediums, but I think my my personal favorites are the projects she creates with fabric. Debra designs cuddly little creatures from felt, fabric and fleece- you just want to hug them. We also have Violette Clark here for the first time (another Canadian)! I met Violette two years ago at CHA when we had a booth next to her in the License & Design Section. We spent a lot of fun time getting to know each other. Violette is a multi-media artist and loves to work with lots of color and techniques. She has a purple house- check out her blog!

The die we are working with today is the Business Card Box. This box is quite versatile. Not only does it fit business cards but it’s the perfect size for gift cards- very handy at this time of year! Another reason I like it is because it’s so quick and easy to assemble.

I decided to do a little surgery on mine. My project is a magnetic organizer. I plan on putting it on the refrigerator next to my calendar. I am constantly looking for a pencil, paper and post-its so I can make notes and write in dates/times while talking on the phone. After I had cut out the die and trimmed the top flap off, I inserted the black matboard die-cut in the Textured Impression folder and ran it through the Big Shot. Then I sanded off the raised part of the image down to the white core. I will tell you, my arm got tired- it took a while to do! It was then inked with a light blue dye ink. I printed out labels and adhered them to the die cut tabs and threaded ribbon through the back.

Black and blue matboard were layered on top of each other with a strip of white cardstock edged with a Martha Stewart punch design in between. The Crop-o-dile was used to punch two sets of holes to thread ribbon through for a pencil holder. Foam adhesive strips were placed under the blue layer for popped up dimension. On the back, three strips of one inch magnet tape was adhered to hold the whole piece on the fridge. I added black matboard die cut flowers randomly to the background along with a narrow ribbon at the top.

I also used a couple of flowers to decorate magnet clips I had found at Ikea a while ago. This will be good for coupons.

For a look at some more cool projects, check out the blogs of my talented designer friends!

Denise Clason
Jenn Ellefson
Bonnie Bruns
Korie B
Violette Clark
Karen Burniston
Candice Windham
Debra Quartermain
Cindi Bisson
Ann Butler
Niki Meiners

18 Days till Christmas!

7 Dec

It’s winter! And we have the snow to prove it… I returned to Virginia on Saturday morning from 3 days in Kansas to a beautiful white wonderland. I am happy to report that my son is back from Iraq and he and his family are doing well! Thanks for all of your comments- I relayed them and he was touched at your concern and gratitude. Trinity is sporting the latest in ballerina attire.

Some fun events are coming up! First is another appearance on Tiffany Windsor’s Facebook LIVE: Spotlight on Creativity Monday, Dec. 7 at 10 AM with last minute holiday gift wrap ideas using my new Sizzix ScoreBoard dies. Instructions will be posted in the upcoming week for the projects featured on the show. I also have some exciting news to share so hope you can tune in.

This coming Wednesday is Blog Hop #5 and the featured die is the Business Card box (which also holds a gift card- how handy is that!). Hope you can join me at 11 AM on Dec. 9 to see the latest creations of the talented ScoreBoard designers.

Now that the craft shows are over and I am almost caught up on my orders, I finally have some creative time! Please check back here often for holiday decorating ideas, recycled projects and quick handmade gifts.

This and That

3 Dec

Crazy week here… I went down to hear my daughter sing in her Choral concert at college yesterday and was so excited to stop in this great thrift shop that’s on the way. Pulled into the parking lot and it was CLOSED 🙁 Last time I was there I found some great jars of buttons.

Tomorrow morning I fly out to see my son who got back two weeks ago from Iraq! Can’t wait to make sure he’s really here and fine.

On Monday at 10 AM I will be appearing on another Facebook LIVE show with Tiffany Windsor. Please tune in and see some ideas for last minute Christmas gift packaging as well as great tips for the holidays by other fun guests.

Sizzix ScoreBoards Blog Hop #4

25 Nov

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! I am so grateful for the fabulous designers who took the time to come up with this special project for you so close to the holiday! I am truly thankful for their friendship and willingness to share their talents.

Tonight I had a fun time over at Angela’s Happy Stamper in Reston. I taught a class using the ScoreBoard dies. I invited them to stop by the Blog Hop and also to join the Sizzix fan page where you can see the latest new products, coupons and great ideas. Also, a new feature will be added soon to the Sizzix.com site and someone you know might be participating! 🙂

OK, getting down to business, the featured die this week is the Notebook Pocket. There are so many uses for this die- it’s inspiring to see all the different ways the designers have created with it!

I decided to emboss the matboard. Now, embossed matboard is actually available for purchase BUT the price is steep. For the little time spent experimenting with this technique, it was well worth my while considering the rich textured effect that resulted.

First I laid the embossing folder sideways over a piece of white matboard and the die, roughly estimating where the folds would lie, and marked these areas lightly in pencil. Then I sandwiched the matboard inside a Sizzix embossing folder where I wanted the design to appear and rolled the die through. Some adjusting of the plates are needed to get the deeply etched effect but I think the finished product is very elegant. I added a ribbon where the pattern stops- bought at the Offray outlet up in Hagerstown, MD a few weeks ago- and what a fun road trip that was… (A big old bag of this wide green ribbon was in the clearance section for a dollar! Love it!)

Then I just had to make a card to put IN the pocket! The card base is a soft green and I used the Sizzix cake folder to emboss the design onto a small scrap of matboard which I trimmed, then bumped up from the card and accented with white ribbon.

I think this set has the look of fine letterpress. And it was done for pennies using the Sizzix embossing folders! OK, time for someone to get married- I can’t wait to give this!

Where Creativity Knocks designer Cindi Bisson sent me this cool project. That would be a fun item to have on the dinner table to get positive conversations going. Or considering what day it is, this could be a great favor for your Thanksgiving dinner too. Lay at everyone’s place with “Why I am grateful for you…” written on the front with their name… so special, such a nice thought. Thanks Cindi!

Now grab your beverage of choice and get comfy. Check out the other outrageously creative projects the ScoreBoards designers have come up with for you!

Jennifer Ellefson
Candice Windham
Denise Clason
Ann Butler
Fabrizio Martellucci
Korie B
Barbara Matthiessen
Brenda Pinnick
Karen Burniston
Bonnie Bruns

And thanks to all of you for visiting. Please stop back on December 9 to see what we do with the business card holder (which also fits gift cards!). Now on to the business of turkey eating!