Bunches and Bits

Sunday, June 9, 2013

Duck Tape Flowers

Little K has been making all kinds of things from Duck Tape - but until recently - we never attempted making FLOWERS because they looked too complicated.

Nothing worse than getting frustrated with a project because it's more difficult than you imagined.

We finally decided to attempt one.

Much to our surprise - they are NOT as difficult to make as you might think.

After learning a few tricks (and after a few practices) you can make one in under 15 minutes.

All you need is a variety of Duck Tape, pen, cutting mat and a utility knife.

Start by wrapping the body of the pen with a thin strip of Tape. Only go as far as the cap - they fit pretty tightly and won't fit over the duck tape.

Here comes the Magic Trick....use a utility knife and cutting mat - instead of scissors - to cut the Duck Tape.

Pure genius. Can I tell you how much time I've spend trying to de-gunk the scissors after trying to cut through that sticky tape.

The tape easily releases from the cutting mat - and the knife slices through the tape like butter.

Cut the tape into 2" sections. Since the tape is approximately 2" wide - you will end up with 2' squares.

For this flower you will need:

10 squares for the center

14 squares for the outer petals

4 squares for the outer leaves

Next fold over one side of the square.

Then fold the other side of the square so you end up with a pointed top with exposed sticky tape at the bottom.

I found it's easiest to make all the "petals" at once, before you begin to attach them to the pen.

As you can see - it's not important that all the "petals" be perfect, neat or all the same. The key is to be sure there is enough sticky at the bottom.

Start attaching the petals around the stem of the pen.

I like to add the petals, one after the other, going around the pen clockwise.

I find this method makes it easier to space them evenly.

Once all the petals have been added - it will be a bit messy underneath.

The solution is to add 4 more leaf "petals" - same color as the pen stem - to cover up the messy bits.

One final step was to add some Bling to the centers.

And now we have a collection of bright Duck Tape Flower (pens) sitting by the kitchen phone. I will never again need to go searching for a pen when the phone rings.

This project was also shared recently at The Pink Elephant.

Monday, March 11, 2013

Project Life {2013}: January

I am taking on Project Life again this year.

Last year - I managed to keep up for over half of the year (even though I only posted the first few pages).

My approach this time is MORE about completing the task of documenting our every day lives (as I believe Becky Higgins intended when she created this idea of scrapbooking) - and LESS about making beautiful detailed pages. I hope to still be able to do some of that (because I do love the details), but it will be time permitting.

We have last years Album sitting out on the Bookcase - and I am surprised at how often my family picks it up to look through the pages - and the smiles that come from seeing the memories.

That is enough inspiration to keep me going.

WEEK ONE

I didn't purchase a core kit this year. My intention is to use papers that I already have - PLUS the Studio Calico monthly Project Life kit (although I'm still on the wait list).

I loved how last years album coordinated from pate to page since I used the Turquoise Core Kit, but I felt somewhat limited when it came to special events that called for a different color scheme.

Since I will be using a different collection of papers for each week - I want to keep some elements the same through out the album so it doesn't completely look like a hodge podge.

My intent is to keep some of the Flag Banner and Font used on Title Card the same each week.

Left Side Page

Right Side Page

I made a 3 X 4 filler card with various "organizing" words to highlight what went on as we took down the holiday decorations.

WEEK 2

Somehow I have lost the pictures I took of Week 2. I'll have to retake them and update this post later.

WEEK 3

Left Side

Right Side

This side was filled with Instagram pics - so the 4 X 4 slots were a perfect way to use those square format pictures without having to add a backer of filler.

It was a busy week - and I didn't have a lot of pictures to choose from, so I raided Little K's instagram feed and printed some of her pics (with photo credit of course)

WEEK 4

Left Side. I wasn't thrilled with only have a 4 X 4 slot for the Title Card, but I managed to keep the same elements as previous weeks.

I've seen several other Project Life users journaling in this "Week in Review" style. I'm not much of a daily journaler, so this recap is working out perfect for me.

I love including little "artifacts" into my Project Life, but I found out last year that the albums can get Very Fat - Very Quickly....so I'm trying to incorporate things with less texture, like the Saftey Information Card from a flight I took this week.

I was going to just take the card, but then I started feeling guilty about leaving the next passenger without this important information...so I asked the flight attendant first if it was OK (phew - apparently I could never be a thief - I had guilt written all over my face)

Friday, February 15, 2013

The Pink Elephant's Birthday Blog Hop

We are Celebrating a Birthday Today!

Thanks for stopping by.

If you are Hopping Along you should have just come from Melissa's Blog.

If this is your first stop - you can head back to The Pink Elephant and see the Fabulous Prizes that are up for grabs today and get the official Blog Hop Order.

So Here is My Project