Gratitude

©Michele Emerson-Roberts 2015

I practice four “Rs”: Recycle, Restyle, Revamp and Repurpose every chance I can. Making handmade paper the Arnold Grummer way is one of the best ways to do it. Most people throw away a ton of paper every year - not this gal! Look what can be created in a few minutes!

As always, with “gratitude” to Arnold and his family.

Supplies:

• Any of the Arnold Grummer™ paper making kits
• A sunny window
• Blender, strainer, cello sponges and soft towels
• Scraps of off white, tan & brown paper (think junk mail, etc.)
• Beacon ZipDry^TM Adhesive, double sided foam tape or dots
• Envelopes to fit cards (or make your own with the AG envelope template)
• Scor-pal^TM
• Scraps of ivory, light & dark olive green handmade paper, junk mail or cardstock
• 4 x 5” scrap of tissue paper
• Dies: CheeryLynn^TM # B118 Pair of Ferns
• Spellbinders^TM Grand Calibur die cutting machine
• Stamp: Impression Obsession^TM 14440E
• ColorBox^TM Chalk Charcoal Ink pad

Instructions:

1. Follow the instructions found in any of the Arnold Grummer™ paper making kits to create one or more sheets of heavy weight cream colored speckled paper. (Create more sheets if you are going to make numerous cards; one sheet will make 2 cards.)  
2. When the paper is dry, fold and tear it (you want the deckle edges) to make two pieces 5 ½ x 8 ½”.
3. Score and fold to create a 4 ¼ x 5 ½” cards.
4. Die cut one each of the ferns from the ivory, light & dark olive scrap. I used the set that curved right for the card and saved the other set for another project.
5. Stamp the “gratitude” sentiment on the piece of tissue paper with the Chalk ink.
6. When the ink is dry attach the stamped tissue paper to the lower right front of the card.
7. Add tiny pieces of foam tape to the back of the ferns, layer light over dark and attach to the top of the card.

Note: The stamp quote is from Melody Beattie and is one of my favorites. It reads: Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion into clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend.

“Hope, Trust, Love”

©Michele Emerson-Roberts 2015

When I saw this Impression Obsession™ stamp and the new dies from the Paper Cut™, I knew they would make the perfect card for a friend who is going through a rough patch in her life.

This card was made from one of the “extra sheets” of handmade paper I always make to keep on hand, but I included the ‘from scratch’ instructions in this project.

Supplies:

• Any of the Arnold Grummer™ paper making kits
• A sunny window
• Blender, strainer, cello sponges and soft towels
• Scraps of off-white, tan & brown paper (think junk mail, etc.)
• Graphic45^TM “Topography” scrap for card front liner
• Scraps of black cardstock or heavy weight hand made paper
• Envelopes to fit cards (or make your own with the AG envelope template)
• Beacon QuickGrip^TM Adhesive, double sided foam tape or dots
• Scor-pal^TM (Love the new 1/8^” version)
• Dies: The Paper Cut™ PCDIE001Tripple Fancy Tag Card making die & PCDIE002 Fancy Tag Layering die set
• Stamps: Impression Obsession^TM # D1446 “Good things” & JustRite™ small word stamps
• ColorBox^TM Charcoal ink pad
• 1/8” round hole punch
• Approx. 9” Black Rattail cord
• Scissors, Iron 

Instructions:

1. Follow the instructions found in any of the Arnold Grummer™ paper making kits to create a sheet of heavy weight cream handmade paper (think cardstock weight). Note - create more sheets if you are going to make numerous cards….. one sheet will make one card.
2. Iron the paper to make it smooth.
3. Follow the die package instructions to create the Z fold card.
4. Fold the extra right side piece under to form the “Z”.
5. Attach the piece of G45 cardstock inside this fold.
6. Stamp the sentiment and 3 words onto scrap of handmade paper.
7. Die cut the layering background pieces with the largest die from black card stock scrap.
8. Die cut the 3 words.
9. Layer the sentiment piece onto black card stock.
10. Punch two holes at the top and tie a knot through the holes with the Rattail cord.
11. Attach the layered piece to the left side of the card.
12. Layer the 3 words onto the black backing pieces and attach them to the fancy tag part of the card.
13. Hand write a note of encouragement inside the card and send it on its way.

"Grateful"

©Michele Emerson-Roberts 2015

This is the time of year that we so often reflect back on all we have to be grateful for - our country, our families, our friends and neighbors, our four legged friends, our health, our lives  and so much more! I think it would be a better world if we would do this every day. I have so much to be grateful for; I am indeed blessed.

The card looks hard but come together in a short amount of time (I created 12 cards in a couple of hours.)

Supplies:

• Any of the Arnold Grummer™ paper making kits
• A sunny window
• Blender, strainer, cello sponges and soft towels
• Scraps of off white, tan & brown paper (think junk mail, etc.)
• Beacon QuickGrip™ Adhesive, double sided foam tape or dots
• Envelopes to fit cards (or make your own with the AG envelope template)
• Scor-pal^TM (Love the new 1/8^” version)
• Sharpie® markers (2 shades each, red, green, yellow, purple, orange, brown)
• Scraps of tan chip board (I used the backside of cereal boxes)
• Dies: CheeryLynn^TM
•  # B615 (Grateful), # B600  (Thankful Harvest)
• Spellbinders^TM Grand Calibur die cutting machine

Instructions:

1. Follow the instructions found in any of the Arnold Grummer™ paper making kits to create one or more sheets of heavy weight tan speckled paper. (Create more sheets if you are going to make numerous cards; one sheet will make 2 cards.)  
2. When the paper is dry, fold and tear it to make two pieces 5 ½ x 8 ½”.
3. Score and fold to create a 4 ¼ x 5 ½” cards.
4. Die cut one cornucopia and word for each card from the tan chip board.
5. Color the word with light green, while it is still wet, color it with dark green.
6. Color one item at a time (Ex: grapes). Color with the light colored marker first, while it is still wet shade with the darker color, color again with the lighter marker to blend. Repeat these steps on each item. Refer to the sample for color and shading placement. The coloring does take a few minutes but is beautiful when finished.
7. Attach the word to the top right of the card with the QuickGrip™ adhesive.
8. Add foam tape to the back of the cornucopia basket rim and then attach it to the bottom left corner of the handmade paper card with QuickGrip™.

          NOTE: I always make extra sheets of paper to have on hand for future projects.

Check out this project how-to of mine...

 ...featured on the Bella Crafts blog!

Elk casting

©Michele Emerson-Roberts 2015

I love this time of year. Things start to slow down and become more peaceful with the cooler weather and the shorting of days. It is never too early to start on the Christmas and other gifts that are needed. This project will be a birthday gift for my favorite brother-in-law.

Supplies:
• Any of the Arnold Grummer™ paper making kits
• A sunny window
• Blender, strainer, cello sponges and soft towels
• Scraps of beige, tan, ivory paper (think junk mail, etc.)
• Elk mold (I used the back side of an antique pewter plate)
• Beacon ZipDry^TM Adhesive
• Matboard with round whole cute into it, and frame with glass (deep enough frame to allow for spacers)


Instructions:


1.    Follow the directions found in any of the Arnold Grummer™ paper making kits to create light tan slurry. 
2.    Follow the instructions for paper casting.
3.    When you have removed all of the water from the mold, allow the casting to dry.
4.    When the casting is dry, mount it onto the mounting matboard with ZipDry™ adhesive.
5.    Make sure the glass is clean, place it into the frame.
6.    Attach the spacers to the glass/frame.
7.    Place the matboard, the mounting board with the casting attached, and a back board into the frame.