Bella Blvd Studio Blog

Altered Project Shares

It's been a while since we shared some altered projects, hasn't it? Well, today we have a few fun ideas to share with you. We have an altered idea binder, an altered pencil/art carrier and clipboard, and a pair of altered wooden boxes.

Altered Idea Binder, by Jennifer Edwardson.

I've always been one of those girls that would see something in a magazine and have to rip it out and tuck it away for later. Once I got married and had children, the types of things I tear out have changed to house plans and decorating ideas, etc. I've had this fun 'russel & hazel' binder for a few months now and I decided it was the perfect way to collect all my magazine pages, cut outs and layout/project ideas too!

The binding was perfectly me already; black & white, so I just needed to embellish the plain kraft cover and make a little color magic happen inside.

I used two different Bella papers on the front but left a space in between to make a word border.  I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the Quattrofina and High Five alphas, and the smallest letters were perfect to add some of my favorite words to the cover. I added 12" border stickers horizontally and one running top to bottom along the left edge to pull it all together.

Once I had the base in place, I wrapped some twine close to the spine and added a crochet flower and a couple of flags to finish it off.

I had a few different idea sections that I wanted to use this binder for so using a few more patterned papers, I created page dividers and added Chip Essentials for the tabs.

For times when I'm on the go and just want to add bits that I've taken from magazines for later, I added envelopes to the face of the page dividers so I can keep them safe until I have time to add them to a page permanently. Of course I had to pretty these up as well so I used Designer Tape, cardstock stickers, Ciao Chip and alphas too.

Supplies:
Mr. Boy: Heros, Hyper Stripe; Family Dynamix: Quadrants, Ciao Chip; Sunshine & Happiness: Alphas+Bits, Ciao Chip; Baby Boy: Baby Blue, Alphas+Bits; Too Cute to Spook: Itsy Bitsy Spider; Making The Team: Quadrants; Sophisticates: Sprinkles & Lace Oyster; Flags: Girl, Summer; Crochet Flowers: Juniper; Ciao Chip Essentials: Asparagus & Pickle Juice, Ice & Chlorine, Oyster & Oreo; Quattrofina: Spinach & Pickle Juice, Salt Water & Pacific, Milk & Oreo; High Five Alphabets: Green, Blue, Black & White; Designer Tape: Teal Stripe, Pickle Juice Dot, Jail Bird

Altered Coloring Station, by Marie-Josée Hamel.

Summer is coming and given that I have six weeks off, I will surely work on a few scrapbooking projects. However, since the best thing about summer is the nice, warm and sunny weather, I don’t want to stay inside. So I had this idea of creating a small portable coloring station that I can bring outside, on the pool deck, while I watch my daughter. 

It is very easy to carry and holds all the supplies I need to color a few stamped images using Prismacolor pencils and taltin. All I have to do is clip the pre-stamped image on my tiny clipboard and I am ready to start coloring.

I started by painting the pen holder and the tiny clipboard with acrylic paint, and then adhered paper to all surfaces to add a bit of color. I finished both with a coat of Mod Podge. When I was done, I also added a few embellishments. I am now ready to go outside to do some coloring.

Supplies:
Spring Fling and Easter Things: A Tisket A Tasket, Cute Cuts, Sunny Sunday, Alpha+Bits Stickers, Chipboard Icons

"Baby" altered wooden box, by Laura Vegas.

One of my favorite items to alter are wooden and paper mache boxes. They are so easy to cover with whatever pattern papers you like to fit your needs, and they're even more fun to fill up with memorabilia. I altered two wooden boxes, using the Baby Boy collection. These boxes would be perfect for storing little keepsakes from baby's first year. This first box is about 8 inches square, and was purchased at a craft and fabric store.

I started off by taking off the hinges from the box, and then I painted the box with white acrylic paint. I never sand my boxes, but that's a personal preference. Then I measure out the top of the lid, and the sides of the box, and cut my patterned papers to size. I used Mod Podge, and decoupage them to the box. I added another layer of Mod Podge on top of the papers as well, to give the box a nice shiny finish.

When it came to embellishing the box, I kept it pretty simple. I didn't want anything to bulky on the top of the box, since at some point, I'm sure this would end up tucked away somewhere. I cut a few banner shaped pieces from patterned paper, and added them to the top of the box. I wanted to keep a bit of dimension, so I did not decoupage those pieces, and instead just used lots of glue dots.

For once, I got smart and I made sure the hinges were on the sides of the box. This way, the box can sit on a shelf nicely. I used lots of chipboard pieces from the Chipboard Icons to embellish the top of the box. Love how one package of embellishments added so much to the project.

Supplies:
Baby Boy: Wild About You, Heaven Sent, On The Go, Borders, Chipboard Icons, Alpha+Bits Stickers

"Baby Love" altered wooden box, by Laura Vegas.

For my second wooden box, I choose a smaller version of the first box. This box is about 5 inches square, and I thought the inset area on the top of the box added a nice touch.

I covered this box the same way I did on the first box. Painting the box with white paint, measuring and cutting my patterned papers to fit, and decoupaging them onto the box using Mod Podge. The "Baby Love" sticker from the Just Write Journaling sticker sheet was the perfect size for the inside area on the top of the box. I adhered the sticker to cardstock first, and cut around it, and then adhered it using pop dots for just a touch of dimension.

Supplies:
Baby Boy: Momma's Boy, Heaven Sent, Just Write Journaling Stickers

Bella Blvd Fabric Style

Bella Blvd partnered up with Riley Blake Designs a while back, to bring some of Bella's most popular collections into the fabric world. We are excited to announce that the first collection, Sunny Happy Skies, is available for purchase, in both cottons and flannels. We have a few fabric experts and seamstress's working with the new fabrics, and designing fun projects that we will be sharing with you here!

Riley Blake Designs markets our fabrics under Stephanie Hunt as the designer. When purchasing or searching the Riley Blake website, it's actually easier & more efficient to find the Bella Blvd fabrics under "Stephanie Hunt" as the artist.

Sunny Happy Skies Pillows, by Beth Gerlach.

I made two throw pillows using the pink and blue Sunny Happy Skies fabrics. I purchased two throw pillows from a local thrift store for $1.50 each, cut the fabric off, and used the pillow form for the filling and the fabric as a pattern.  

I cut two squares of Sunny Happy Skies floral fabric, using the pillow form as a quide on the sizing, to create the main part of the pillow. 

I ripped the blue Lace fabric in 2 inch strips to get the frayed look, and then I ruffled the strips. 

I then sewed the strips diagonally on the blue square of Sunny Happy Skies floral fabric. 

I used the same idea for the pink pillow. I cut two squares of pink Sunny Happy Skies floral fabric, and I ripped strips of the pink Lace fabric. I then sewed the strips onto the Sunny Happy Skies fabric, but vertically this time.

I then sewed the two squares, for each pillow, together (putting right sides together), leaving about an 8" opening on one side. I then flipped the squares rightside out and stuffed the pillow form inside, and stitched the opening shut.

Sunny Happy Skies Fabric Lampshade, by Beth Gerlach.

I also created a ruffled lamp shade, using the same idea as the pillows. I purchased this basic white lampshade at Marshall's. Again, I ripped the yellow Sunny Happy Skies fabric in 2" strips and ruffled it. I then hot glued the ruffle onto the shade right down the center of the ruffles. It was super easy and barely took any time to make.

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{image credit: Sheridan Media}

We hope you are all having a wonderful Memorial Day weekend, and having a chance to spend it with family and friends. Today is all about commemorating the military men and woman who died to protect our nation's freedom. We celebrate their courage, their fortitude, their willingness to serve. And we salute the courage of those they have left behind — family, friends, and fellow soldiers. For the courage to persevere despite their sorrow, we stand together as a grateful nation and give thanks.

Sunshine & Happiness Altered Projects

Our Altered Project Designers have some projects to share with us today. It's fun to see how three designers can take the same collection, Sunshine & Happiness, and come up with totally different, creative ideas for using it!

"Sunshine & Happiness" altered frame, by Suzanne Sergi.
{A Winter CHA Project}

The bright colors of the Sunshine & Happiness really inspired my design. I wanted to capture a bit of happiness, and tuck it into an 8x10 frame. I included some of my favorite elements, a butterfly, simple garland, and even added in the trendy, "confetti." This frame is full of color, and will make any room just a bit brighter.

Supplies:
Sunshine & Happiness: Petal Power, Popsicle Kisses, Juicy Good Time, Happy Clouds, Borders, Cute Cuts

Paper–Pieced Owl, by Marie-Josée Hamel.

Over the last few months, I pinned quite a few paper owls on Pinterest, and last week, I decided it was time for me to create my own owl using the Sunshine and Happiness collection. You can create your owl in any size you like, with any combination of paper. Mine is about 10 x 10 inches.

I didn't use any template for the head, wings and body; I just traced them on patterned paper and cut them out. Then, I used a circle punch and a border punch to cut out pieces of paper to decorate my owl. That being said, you can use any kind of punch, as you see fit.

I used circles punched out of various patterned paper and thin strips of paper cut with scissors to mimick feathers. You can alternate the colors like I did or use the same color throughout, as you wish. Don't forget to use some nice Bella Bella Blvd buttons to create the eyes.

Supplies:
Sunshine and Happiness: Sunny Side Up; Play Date; Juicy Good Time; Popsicle Kisses; Happy Clouds; Borders; Button Market: Plaid

"Joy And Happiness" altered magnetic board, by Jennifer Edwardson.

I was so excited to sit down and work with this magnetic board. I knew I wanted it in my office/studio space, but wasn't sure how I was going to pretty it up. As soon as I sat down with the Sunshine & Happiness collection, I decided to just 'scrapbook it'. I was hesitant to leave the outer edges uncovered, but decided that with all the fun bright colors of the collection, I would 'scrapbook it' on the kraft of the frame, just like cardstock.

I covered the silver magnetic center with a full sheet of 12 x 12 paper and created grass with a strip from the Borders patterned paper. I cut out several of the images from the Cute Cuts patterned paper to embellish with, and mixed them in with a Ciao Chip border and added Ciao Chip shapes throughout.  

Using several of the cardstock stickers layered with 3D foam, I adhered magnetic strips to the back to make them into mini magnets. I covered a clothespin with stickers and a Ciao Chip flower and added a magnetic strip on the back to hold a photo or note.

After tucking a couple of flags here and there I created a title for my board with the new High 5 Alphas and the 'Happiness' title from the coordinating Sunshine & Happiness Ciao Chip. I even added some decorative tape along the left and right edges of the board to jazz it up a bit. Once I had the base complete, I chose a few of my favorite photos of Emma and Alex and adhered them with the mini magnets and some decorative tape too!

Supplies:
Sunshine & Happiness: Sunny Side Up, Borders, Cute Cuts, Alphas+Bits, Just Write Journaling Stickers, Miniatures Stickers, Chipboard Icons, Flags; Ciao Chip: Borders; Decorative Tape: Yellow Chevron, Pickle Juice Dot, Red Dot

Sunshine & Happiness: Altered Projects & Mini Albums

Happy Monday everyone! Today, we have a post filled with Sunshine & Happiness, which is what we also hope your weekend was filled with! We have a couple of altered projects to share, along with a couple of mini albums. All featuring the Sunshine & Happiness collection!

Altered Jars, by Suzanne Sergi.

I altered this garden container with the Sunshine & Happiness collection. A different packaging idea to tuck in treats to a friend, neighbor, teacher, or a family member. I covered the outside with a variety of the papers, and use one of the border stickers to layer along the bottom. Inside the container I filled two mason jars with bright gum balls. On the top of the lids, embellished each of them with one of the azzini blooms. Across the top, I created a butterfly banner for a fun detail. Finished one of the handles with a tag, and big red bow. This will be sure to brighten anyone's day!

Supplies:
Sunshine &Happiness: Petal Power, Sunny Side Up, Popsicle Kisses, Borders, Cute Cuts, Alpha+Bits Stickers, Miniature Stickers, Flags; Baby Blooms-A-Bella: Azzini

"Summer Time" mini album, by Suzanne Sergi.

The Sunshine & Happiness collection is a bold, and bright collection, that it pairs fabulous with summer photos! I decided to create a small mini of my little girl enjoying the day at a water resort. I love these photos, because it shows how much she loves playing in the water. I created a sun for the cover of the mini, and use various patterned papers to accent the rays of the sun. A few chipboard elements were used for the center, and for the title of the mini. I am loving the new flags that were introduced by Bella at CHA, and use one on the cover as a fun detail. This mini is a mix of different pages in different sizes, and shapes. A fun mini filled with Bella's whimsical patterns, and bold embellishments.

Supplies:
Sunshine & Happiness: Petal Power, Sunny Side Up, Juicy Good Time, Popsicle Kisses, Happy Clouds, Borders, Cute Cuts, Alpha+Bits Stickers, Just Write Journaling Stickers, Chipboard Icons; Spring Flings & Easter Things: Sunny Sunday, Alpha+Bits Stickers; Button Market: Masculine Mix; Flags: Summer; Designer Tape: Yellow Chevron, Red Dot, Pickle Juice Dot; Ciao Chip Versatile Elements: Stars & Hearts, Clouds; Simply Simona Chipboard Alphabets & Numbers: Saltwater, Orange; High Five Alpha Stickers: Blue

Altered Mailbox & Notecard Set, by Beth Gerlach.

This was such a quick and easy, yet cute little project. I was given the mailbox and  I made 12 little notes that fit inside a little custom box perfectly. I thought it would make a nice little gift. I used Sunshine and happiness (pretty much every pattern) and the sunshine and happiness chip along with the Alpha+Bits stickers and some of those super cute crochet flowers which I just love! I did add a splash of bling, because that's my signature!

Supplies:
Sunshine & Happiness: Sunny Side Up, Petal Power, Popsicle Kisses, Happy Clouds, Play Date, Miniatures Stickers, Just Write Journaling Stickers, Alpha+Bits Stickers; Button Market: Pink Flowers

"Yoga Camp" mini album, by Kimberly Neddo.

For this Mini Album, I chose to cover each side of the chipboard with paper. I used Mod podge and my briar roller to secure it down well. From there, I decorated each page a little differently with the beautiful patterned papers and embellishments from the Sunshine and Happiness line and the High Five Alphabets. I used a lot of pop dots for dimension through out this little book. I’ve been wanting to do something special with Olivia’s Yoga camp pictures, and this was just the perfect way to showcase them and I really love how it turned out.

Supplies:
Sunshine & Happiness: Sunny Side Up, Petal Power, Popsicle Kisses, Happy Clouds, Play Date, Miniatures Stickers, Just Write Journaling Stickers, Alpha+Bits Stickers; Ciao Chip: Trees, Stars & Hearts; Flags: Vacation; Crochet Flowers: Poppy

Altered Project Shares

Today, we have some new altered projects to share with you, along with a cute little mini album. It just so happen, that everyone was drawn to the new Baby Boy and Baby Girl collections, when they went to work on this week's projects. We hope you enjoy these great baby themed projects, any of which would be great for baby shower gifts!

Altered Baby Frame, by Marie-Josée Hamel.
Photographer: Annie B Studio

When I saw this four-picture frame, I knew it would be perfect for the new Bella Blvd baby collections. I decided to put only one picture in the frame and decorate the rest. First, I adhered paper strips around two of the smaller frames and decorated them with corner stickers (Alpha+Bits stickers). I then cut a piece of paper the same size as the center of my frame and added a chipboard accent. 

I also wanted to add tridimensional elements, such as chipboard, twine and crochet flowers. However, since there was not enough space to put them under the glass, I put all the embellishments right on the frame and onto the glass. I then cut three 4 x 6 pieces of paper and decorated them using sitckers. Tip: Use tape to adhered the pieces of paper and/or pictures to the glass to ensure they don't move.

Supplies:
Baby Boy: Baby Blue, Wild About You, On the Go, Cute Cuts, Alpha+Bits Stickers, Just Write Journaling Stickers, Chipboard Icons, Flags; Designer Tape: Teal Stripe; Crochet Flowers: Juniper

Baby Girl Diaper Cake, by Jennifer Edwardson.

I'd heard of these cakes but had never seen one before, so it was fun to create this 'sight unseen' if you will. It had been many years since I'd purchased a bag of newborn diapers, but I was excited to get started!

First, I cut (2) different sized circles from heavyweight cardstock and covered each with 'snuggly safari' and lightly sanded the edges. These became the based to build the cake onto.

Then I wrapped each diaper with fishing line and tied them tight so not to slip. Once I had them set onto the bases I tied the entire section again with fishing line.

I then chose a couple of border strips, cut them out, sanded the edges and adhered them together at ONE end. Once dry, I wrapped them around the diaper layers to cover the fishing line. Because I chose to make larger 'cake pieces', these did not meet in the center which gave me the perfect spot to add embellishment.

I precison cut some adorable shapres from the 'cute cuts' and adhered them to the front of both layers. I used a journal card to give this cake a title to welcome baby alayna and added a chip flower and some sweet flags too!

Supplies:
Baby Girl: Snuggly Safari, Borders, Cute Cuts, Miniatures Stickers, Flags

Baby Girl Mobile, by Jennifer Edwardson.

As soon as I got to sit down and play with the Baby Girl Collection I was immediately drawn to the fantastic shapes in both the Cute Cuts and the Chpboard Icons. I knew exactly what I wanted to try and create with these great pieces.

I chose a few strips from the borders sheet and sanded the edges, then adhered them together, slightly overlapping each. Once these were secure, I wrapped this whole piece around to form a circle and adhered again. I then punched (3) small holes in this piece and tied thin fishing line through each hole to create the 'hanger'.

I punched (4) holes in the bottom of this circle and added strings of different lengths using the fishing line. I punched several circles from 'pretty in pink' as well as precision cut from the 'cute cuts' paper. I punched small holes in each of these pieces and threaded then on to the fhishing line. The circles had an additional circle added to the back to keep them from shifting.

I tied 'pink flowers' buttons on the bottom to give each line weight and added a few 'miniatures' stickers to come of the circles as well! This is going to look so sweet in 'baby alayna's' room in just a few short weeks!

Supplies:
Baby Girl: Petty In Pink, Borders, Cute Cuts, Chipboard Icons, Miniatures Stickers

"Our Baby Girl" mini album, by Becky Williams.
{A Winter CHA Project}

For this mini I decided to make it a birth through first year so I included a picture from each month of her life so far. I started with cardstock cut to 12 x 6 and scored at the 4 inch mark giving me a tri-fold piece that I put together with two other such strips. I added the patterned paper backgrounds and then used some of the Designer Tapes on the edges, then added some pictures and stickers. 

Supplies:
Baby Girl: It's a Girl, Borders, Daddy's Girl, Pretty in Pink, Cute Cuts, Snuggly Safari, Sweet Dreams, Ciao Chip; We're Expecting: Miniatures Stickers, Ciao Chip; Designer Tape: Blue Gingham, Pickle Juice Dot, Yellow Chevron, Pink Stripe, Red Dot; Crochet Flowers: Daisies, Dahlia; High Five Alphabet Stickers: Green, Blue, Yellow, Black-White, Pink-Red

Altered Easter Projects

Easter is almost here! If you're anything like me, and you havn't thought about any Easter treats or Easter decor yet, then you'll want to check out today's projects. I asked our Altered Project Designers to create some fun Easter projects, focusing on the Spring Flings & Easter Things collection. And we rounded out the day, with a Spring Flings & Easter Things mini album, to document all of the Easter festivities.

Altered Easter Bucket, by Suzanne Sergi.

I loved revisiting the clear paint bucket. They are wonderful to tuck in treats, and small gifts. I thought this would be a great gift for a teacher, or neighbor. I used the Spring Flings collection to add festive Easter touches. I used the blue chevron to wrap the bottom, and a simple border from the border sheet with the perfect Easter sentiment. I added glitter to the chipboard bunny, and the border sheet for extra sparkle. Then using one of my favorite new releases from Bella was the yellow chevron tape. I used it to accent the lid of the bucket, and randomly on the sides.

Supplies:
Spring Flings & Easter Things: Egg Hunt, Borders, Cute Cuts, Miniatures, Chipboard Icons; Sunshine & Happiness: Sunny Side Up; Crochet Flowers: Daises; Designer Tape: Yellow Chevron

Altered Easter House, by Marie-Josée Hamel.

To create this project, I bought this tiny wooden house at a crafts store. I painted it with green paint and adhered paper to it using Mod Podge. I then cut rabbits, chicks and eggs out of the Egg Hunt paper and adhered them to the house using pop dots, to create dimension. I also used a bit of Spanish moss to create little nests for the eggs that I adhered to the house using Mod Podge.

Supplies:
Spring Flings and Easter Things: Egg Hunt, Sunny Sunday, Borders Cute Cuts, Alpha+Bits, Miniatures

Easter Treat Boxes, by Jennifer Edwardson.

Most holidays you will find me up until the wee hours the evening before putting last minutes touches on projects for the kids. But not this Easter! I am so excited that I got a head start on these fun gifts for my kids. 

Emma and Alex will see these fun boxes when they sit down to Easter breakfast this weekend! I used a box template to create the base and then added bits of patterned paper from Spring Flings & Easter Things.

Once the base was complete, I added precision cut pieces, stickers and chip alphas to embellish. I finished them off with crinkle cut paper in the bottom before filling each box with chocolate treats too!!

Altered Easter Gift Tins, by Jennifer Edwardson.

I am that girl who scoops up all the super savings in the days after a holiday. I love collecting pieces that I can turn into something else and tucking them away until the following year. That is exactly what I did with these gift card tins. 

My children are at ages where they LOVE to get gift cards so these are perfect for a little something special from Mommy and Daddy on Easter morning.

I liked the silver on the bottom but really needed to re-do the lid! I wrapped a pattern strip around the edge and added another pattern on top. I sanded all the edges first and then 'scrapbooked' the top using stickers, ribbon, flags, twine and a crochet flower too!

Easter Napkin Rings, by Jennifer Edwardson.

I like to add a bit of color to the dinner table on holidays but didn't want to create place cards for a small group so I decided to whip up these fun little napkin rings instead! I used a strip of patterned paper, border punched the edge and added precision cut shapes and stickers to the top to pretty them up. A very quick, easy and super cute way to use up your leftover bits from other projects!

Supplies:
Spring Flings and Easter Things; egg hunt, mom's bouquet, borders, cute cuts, alphas & bits, miniatures and flags. Ciao Chip; Simply Simona Saltwater. Sunshine & Happiness; happy clouds. Crochet Flowers; Dahlia

"Spring Spectacular" mini album, by Suzanne Sergi.
{A Winter CHA Project}

I paired the Spring Flings and Easter Things Collection with a 6x6 chipboard binder. This mini book has a linen spine, and thought it was perfect for everything spring! I am from Texas, so most holidays are spent without my family. However, about four years ago we were able to celebrate the arrival of Easter together. There is nothing better than Easter in Texas! I captured a few photos documenting our favorite Easter traditions: Easter Baskets, Easter Eggs, the Golden Egg, and we cannot have a party without a bit of confetti thrown in! So glad to have this day to reflect, and to realize how lucky we are to have one another, no matter the distance between us.

Supplies:
Spring Flings & Easter Things: Egg Hunt, A Tisket A Tasket, Mom's Bouquet, Sunny Sunday, Borders, Cute Cuts, Alpha+Bits Stickers, Just Wrote Journaling Stickers, Miniatures; Baby Girl: Flags

Baby Girl Altered Projects & A Mini Album

We ended up with an abundance of CHA projects, featuring the Baby Girl collection, that we havn't had time to share on the blog yet. So, today and tomorrow, will be all about baby girls!

"Baby Girl" altered blocks, by Beth Gerlach.

My original thought was to make regular baby blocks using the new Baby Girl line, but I wanted to think of something clever to display them. I covered each side of the blocks (purchased at The Scrapbook Store) with different patterned papers and pictures, then drilled a hole in each one. I embellished each block with dfferent Bella product and pictures. I then threaded each block onto ribbon, seperating each by knots. Since I wanted to be able to spin the blocks, I made the holes about 1/4". I then knotted the end until the knot was larger than the bottom hole so it would stay secure since the blocks were quite heavy. I cut strips of ribbons and tied them in-between block to add a little frill.

Supplies:
Baby Girl: It's A Girl, Pretty In Pink, Snuggly Safari, Sweet Dreams, Cute Cuts, Alpha's+Bits Stickers, Miniature Stickers, Flags; Crochet Flowers

Baby Girl Gift Pail, by Therese Hennessy.
{A Winter CHA Project}

Need a unique way to present a baby gift or any gift using Bella Blvd products? This is a fun and creative idea using a clear pail and adorable paper and ribbons. Punch out scallop circles for the top and a big flower to tie around the pail. What you put inside will show through – and they can use the pail after for cute little items to store. Your imagination can go far with this project … birthday, teacher gifts, Christmas, you get the idea!                    

Supplies:
Baby Girl: It’s A Girl, Daddy’s Girl, Sweet Dreams; We’re Expecting: Coming Soon

"It's A Girl" banner, by Sheri Feypel.
{A Winter CHA Project}

I love the Baby Girl collection and hardly ever get to play with pink being the Mom of boys. I went a little crazy with all of the elements of the Baby Girl line, adding stickers and flags as well as lots of pattern. I made the banner flags look sort of like pockets and folded the tops of each over the ribbon holding the banner together.

Supplies:
Baby Girl: It's A Girl, Pretty In Pink, Snuggly Safari, Sweet Dreams, Cute Cuts, Alpha's+Bits Stickers, Miniature Stickers, Flags; Button Market: Pickle Squares

"Baby Lauren" mini album, by Stephanie Hunt.
{A Winter CHA Project}

I just love creating mini books. This album is a basic chipboard, tabbed album from Maya Road with key-ring binding. I distressed the edges of just about everything throughout the entire mini that documents the day that my niece, baby Lauren, was born. A couple of the details (like her statistics) still need to be filled in, but other than that it's completed. I wanted the mini to be simple and sophisticated, really displaying photographs against the soft hues of the Baby Girl collection. I love, as time passes, how previous this mini album will become. It's always bittersweet to look back on how teeny tiny babies were when they just arrived. ;)

Supplies:
Baby Girl: It's A Girl, Pretty In Pink, Daddy's Girl, Snuggly Safari, Baby Cakes, Sweet Dreams, Borders, Cute Cuts, Alpha+Bits, Just Write Journaling, Miniatures Stickers; Sophisticates: Pink-Red High Five Alphabets, Saltwater chipboard alphabets; Designer Tapes: Pink Stripe, Pink Flowers; Crochet Flowers: Poppy

Altered Projects

Today, we have some altered projects to share from our talented Altered Project Designers. Creating projects does NOT come easily to me. So I am always excited to see what our designers have come up with, when they send their projects to my inbox. And just a head's up ... they will be back next Tuesday, with all Easter related projects ;)

Altered Easter Cupcake Stand, by Jennifer Edwardson.

I had so much fun with this project! I make cupcakes for almost any occasion and expecially for every holiday for the kids classrooms. I've got several types of cupcake carriers but I like the cardboard ones that you can toss away after use. 

I went through my decorating stash, dug out a stand and made it my own with some help from Bella :))  I adhered paper to the stand bases as well as all (3) 'plates', sanded the edges and put it all back together.

I used a couple of my favorite Big Shot dies and created all the 'wraps' for the cupcakes and the fence around the bottom using different patterns of paper. Once I had the cupcakes and fencing in place I decorated the rest using cute cuts, stickers and precision cut pieces too.

I used a strip from the 'borders' paper and precision cut out all the little bunnies and attached them to round toothpicks along with a few stickers to make little flags for the cupcakes – I love how it all came together.

I hope this inspires you to dig out your own Spring Flings and Easter Things and create some fun easter projects for your family too. Happy Easter!

Supplies: 
Spring Flings and Easter Things: Borders, Egg Hunt, Moms Bouquet, A Tisket A Tasket, Cute Cuts, Alphas+Bits, Just Write Journaling Stickers; Sophisticates: Sprinkles & Lace Brownie, Sprinkles & Lace Pickle Juice, Sprinkles & Lace Peep; Estate Sale: Hat Box

"Sunshine" altered canvas, by Suzanne Sergi.

Using a 12x12 white canvas, I created a wall hanging, using Sunshine & Happiness. I picked a recent photo of my little girl, and included it onto the canvas. I covered the canvas with the blue chevron at the top, and created fun borders along the bottom, using a scallop border die. I love creating small paper crafts such as these to brighten any room. A banner at the top, and a few punched flowers were the small details I added to this canvas.

Supplies:
Sunshine & Happiness: Petal Power, Juicy Good Time, Popsicle Kisses, Happy Clouds, Borders, Cute Cuts, Alpha+Bits Stickers, Just Write Journaling Stickers, Miniature Stickers

Altered Home Organizer, by Marie-Josée Hamel.

I always have pieces of paper in the kitchen on which I list things I need to buy and do, and I find it very annoying when my lists are misplaced or when I have to look around for a pen to write new items on my lists or scratch things that were done, so I decided to create this small home organizer. I chose the Finally Fall collection because it matches my kitchen.

To create my organizer, I bought a clipboard and a wire basket at the dollar store. For the clipboard, I kept it very simple and decided not to cover the whole surface, but just a part of it. You can cover it all if you wish, or you can paint the surface so that it matches the papers you will decide to use. You also have to cover the wire basket, which is pretty easy. All you have to do is measure all sides of it, cut your paper accordingly, and adhere it to the wire basket. I then decorated the basket with ribbon and chipboards and adhered it to the clipboard using Terrifically Tacky Tape. Use the basket to put scraps of paper for notes and pens.

I also wanted to have a special spot where I could write important things, such as appointments and birthdays. I measured the space I had left, cut a piece of chipboard and paper fitting that space, adhered them together, and put a small clip on top. I used pop dots to adhere this piece of chipboard to the clipboard. Using Word, I created a template, one sheet for each month, and cut it.

Supplies:
Finally Fall: At the Patch, Bliss, Autumn Splendor, Chipboard Icons

Baby Boy Project Inspiration

Stephanie is away this week, traveling to an event, so she will be skipping a few of her Friday posts until she returns. In the meantime, we still have lots of CHA projects to share with you. How about we start with some Baby Boy projects!

"Dream" altered wood tray, by Suzanne Sergi.
{A Winter CHA Project}

The inspiration for this project came from the tray itself. I was drawn to the grey hue, that matched perfectly with the grey in the Baby Boy Collection. I knew this would be perfect sitting on top of a dresser. A wonderful touch to a baby's nursery.

I layered different patterns of paper to the left side of the tray, nestled near the large photo of my sweet son. I wanted this project to have soft layers throughout, so I changed the photo from color, to black and white. The vellum, and white felt clouds were the soft details added to the project.

I did find this wonderful wood word that I painted with white acrylic paint. I had to include the whimsical chipboard lion to the letter "o", in the word dream. It was perfect for bringing out a bit of color on this tray.

Supplies:
Baby Boy: It's A Boy, Baby Blue, Momma's Boy, Heaven Sent, Borders, Cute Cuts, Alpha+Bits Stickers, Just Write Journaling Stickers, Chipboard Icons, Flags

Baby Boy Altered Printers Tray, by Beth Gerlach.
{A Winter CHA Project}

I've made a couple of these trays for baby gifts, leaving room for pictures to be added later. Everyone just loves them! I used a 7 Gypsy printers tray, with 12 slots. For this tray I used the Bella Baby Boy collection to create this Baby's First Year project, with a photo added from each month of the baby's first year. Bella's collections go perfectly with the white trays. These pictures are of my nephew, Ean's, first year. 

Supplies: 
Baby boy: It's a Boy, Borders, Wild About You, Momma's Boy, Heaven Sent, On the Go, Baby Blue, Ciao Chip Icons, Alpha+Bits Stickers, Miniatures Stickers, Flags; Designer Tape: Teal Stripe, Blue Gingham 

"Pieces Of You" mini album, by Diane Payne.
{A Winter CHA Project}

I really enjoyed putting together this mini album of my son when he was a baby. He was just a week old in these photos and is now 16 and driving so it was fun reminiscing. For the cover of the mini album I hung the chipboard onesie and stickers to mimic a clothesline, finishing it off with the new buttons from Button Market.

To tie it all together I punched a hole in the corner of each page and secured them with a binder ring. For the finishing touch I hung the chipboard rattle and diaper from the ring and tied coordinating ribbon in between.

For the inside pages, I used the word and phrase stickers to capture thoughts and sentiments that go along with baby photos perfectly making it a snap to complete the inside pages.

Supplies:
Baby Boy; It's a Boy, Borders, Wild About You, Momma's Boy, Heaven Sent, On the Go, Baby Blue, Ciao Chip Icons, Alpha+Bits Stickers, Miniatures Stickers; Button Market: Masculine Mix, Bursts, Tie Dye; Designer Tape: Teal Stripe

On-Going Guest Designers: Stacey Michaud, Diane Payne, and Charity Hassel

Back in September, when we were choosing our new Design Team, we had a group of talented designers that we just couldn't pass up. So we added a special team of On-going Guest Designers, that will joining us here on the blog throughout the year, along with the rest of our Design Team. Each month, we will feature two of these designers, which means they'll each be joining us three times over the next year. I'm excited to introduce you to Stacey Michaud, who is joining us for her first time on the Bella blog. And we're welcoming back Diane Payne and Charity Hassel for their second round of projects.

Hi all! My name is Stacey Michaud. I am a teacher during the day and an avid scrapbooker by night! I use the creative process to keep my sanity and record my stories. Paper serves as my muse and I love gaining inspiration from the products around me. I like to call my style clean and linear with a twist. Journaling is a must for me. I have been blessed enough to be published in Scrapbook Trends, Creating Keepsakes and Memory Makers magazine as well as several idea books!

"Winter Home", by Stacey Michaud.

I love Bella's chipboard embellishments and how they can make an impact on a project. I kept the paper usage to a minimum, focusing on some of my favorite patterns. Then I simply created a clustered grid of different chipboard and embellishments along with my photos. I am a theme-based scrapper and Bella has the perfect goodies to help me create. I hand-drew the heart to make my title standout and compliment the other hearts on the page.

Supplies: 
Spring Fling & Easter Things: Mom’s Bouquet, Sunny Sunday, Alpha & Bits Stickers; Winter Wonder: Icy, Cute Cuts, Alpha & Bits Stickers, Miniatures; Family Dynamix: Ciao Chip; Baby Blooms-A-Bella: Champagne; Simply Simona Chipboard Alphas: Orange

"Jammies Equal Joy", by Stacey Michaud.

I must admit that the adorable penguins in the Christmas Wishes collection stole my heart. I also have a love affair with banners so I figured I would pair the two to create a part of my title work. I like to scrap the every day, smaller moments such as wearing hand me down pajamas. Adding tidbits, like the calendar heading, helps me communicate my ideas. The bold colors in the collection really pop.

Supplies: 
Christmas Wishes: Trees for Sale, Borders, Star Stripe, Candlelight, Just Write Journaling Stickers, Cute Cuts, Alpha & Bits Stickers, Miniature Stickers; Sophisticates: Oyster and Oreo Chipboard, Calendars; Winter Wonder: Alpha & Bits Stickers; One Fall Day: Alpha & Bits Stickers

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Hello everyone! I’m Diane Payne, and I reside in the big state of Texas with my wonderful husband of 22 years and our two teenage children. Although I love recording the details of our life, I enjoy the creative process of scrapbooking as much as the memory keeping. I like to experiment with different techniques and incorporate photos into our home décor. I scrapbook with a variety of photo styles, including current, vintage, and Hipstamatic prints. My favorite tool for journaling is my vintage 1930's Underwood typewriter which is also used as decor in the entry way of my home.

"Play Ball!", by Diane Payne.

Stars are a shape I use frequently on my layouts and I wanted to use them to highlight the recent "family fun day" with our daughter's softball team. The Mr. Boy line had just the papers I was looking for with the star paper and color palette. To create a couple focal points, I cut a star shape out of a block of patterned paper and layered a coordinating pattern behind the cut out. I used various Quattrofina alphabet fonts and colors to make a fun title down the side of the layout!  To complete the layout I added a couple of the new Patriotic Flags behind one of the stars. I really love the bold colors and whimsical feeling of the layout ... it was just the look I was trying to achieve.

Supplies:
Mr. Boy: Connect the Dots, Hyper Stripe, Heroes, Quadrants, Alpha + Bits; Sophisticates: Quattrofina Mustard & Apricot, Quattrofina Salt Water & Pacific, Quattrofina Peep & Saffron, Miniatures Family, Miniatures Card Sentiments; Spring Flings and Easter Things: Miniatures; Button Markets: Bursts; Flags: Patriotic

"On Your Mark, Get Set, Go!", by Diane Payne.

This Easter photo of my daughter trying to hold back our son at the beginning of the Easter Egg hunt makes me laugh every time I see it. It perfectly captures her competitive nature. I used the eggs on the Cute Cuts sheet from the Spring Flings and Easter Things collection to highlight the theme of the layout. I couldn't resist sneaking in some of the new designer tapes too. I love how they are both functional and decorative. They were a great finishing touch for my small photo and journaling card.

Supplies:
Spring Flings and Easter Things: Sunny Sunday, Mom's Bouquet, Cute Cuts, Just Write Journaling Stickers, Miniatures; Sophisticates: Simply Simona Peep, Quattrofina Mustard & Apricot, Miniatures Family; Blooms-a-Bella: Rossini; Designer Tapes: Pickle Juice Dot, Yellow Chevron, Teal Stripe, Pink Flowers

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Hi everyone! My name is Charity. I am 36 years old, married to Brian for 8 years. I am the stay at home mommy of Alexander (7) and Audrey (5). I am also an RN, and work one shift a week at a local hospital. I love paper crafting and creating. It's been so fun to work on design teams, teach at my local scrapbook store and sharing this hobby with friends. I love old musicals, chocolate covered popcorn and spending time with family.

"Silly Siblings", by Charity Hassel.

A quick and easy layout. Simply layer patterned paper, border stickers and cut out the fun trees from Bella patterned paper. 

Supplies:
Spring Flings & Easter Things: A Tisket A Tasket, Alpha+Bits Stickers; Winter Wonder: Toasty; Family Dynamix: Cute Cuts, Roots, Alpha+Bits Stickers; Sophisticates: Family Miniatures Stickers

"Easter Blessings" card, by Charity Hassel.

I love how you can mix Bella's stickers, chipboard, and even different lines together to create a title for a project. Here, I used a chipboard with blessings and a sticker with Easter on it to create my own greeting.

Supplies:
Spring Flings & Easter Things: Sunny Sunday, A Tisket A Tasket, Egg Hunt, Alpha+Bits Stickers; Sophisticates: Sprinkles & Lace Brownie, Ciao Chip Essentials Apricot & Banana

Carrot Goody Box, by Charity Hassel.

I used my cricut to cut the box. Then, I cut pieces of chipboard up to decorate the front top of my carrot with scallops. I used yellow patterned paper to create stripes around the carrot box. Bella chipboard, tags and stickers were layered for flowers on the top. The green of the carrot is green raffia from a craft store.

Supplies:
Spring Flings & Easter Things: Sunny Sunday, Alpha+Bits Stickers, Just Write Journaling Stickers, Miniatures; Sophisticates: Sprinkles & Lace Apricot, Ciao Chip Essentials Apricot & Banana

Easter Basket, by Charity Hassel.

I used a circle punch to cut out a blue circle from Bella patterned paper to cover the inner part of the Bella chipboard circle- it had a greeting that didn't go with my project. Layer leaves cut from paper, chipboard, buttons and Bella tags for a fun flower.

Supplies:
Spring Flings & Easter Things: Miniatures Stickers, Just Write Journaling Stickers; Sophisticates: Sprinkles & Lace Chlorine, Ciao Chip Essentials Apricot & Banana; Winter Wonder: Ski Slopes

Spring Time Projects

Good morning everyone! Did we all survive losing an hour to Daylight Savings? You know spring is near, when it's time to move the clocks forward. And with springtime near, we figured it would be a good time to share some spring themed altered projects with you. Let's see what our Altered Project Designers have come up with for us.

"Hello Spring" altered planter box, by Jennifer Edwardson.

It is a family joke that the green thumb skipped a generation from my Mom to my daughter. So when I created this project, we laughed that these are just about the prettiest flowers I've ever 'grown' :))

I found this great set of wooden flower boxes at a local craft store. I traced the sides onto the backs of the paper and then sanded the edges of each before adhereing. I rolled some of the kids play-doh into balls and pressed it into the bottom of each pot so that the flowers would stand as I wanted them and added crinkle cut box filler on top!  

 

I've been wanting to do something fun with all the fabulous flowers in Bella's designs for quite some time and this was the perfect project !!  I went through ALL the Bella lines and used my fave's and then dressed them up with buttons, florettes made from more patterned papers, twine and stickers too.

Supplies: 
Spring Flings and Easter Things: Cute Cuts, Borders, Miniatures, Alpha & Bits, Just Write Journaling Stickers, Mom's Bouquet; Sophisticates: Ciao Chip Simply Simona Saltwater, Quattrofina Peep & Saffron; Tail Waggers & Cat Naps: Just Write Journaling Stickers; Winter Wonder: Just Write Journaling Stickers; Too Cute Too Spook: Itsy Bitsy Spider; Socialite: Cute Cuts; Plastino: Label Additions, Forget Me Knots; Hello Beautiful: Cute Cuts, Alpha & Bits, Thanks a Bunch; All Inclusive: Bookin' at the Beach; Man of the House: Distinguished 

Easter Baskets, by Marie-Josée Hamel.

Here's a cute and easy project for Easter. For the large basket, cut a 7" x 9" piece of paper. Score your piece of paper at 1½" on each side. Make vertical cuts along the scored lines to the two scored lines on either side of the long length of cardstock. Prefold all the score lines, turn the paper around and add adhesive to the four corners. Fold and assemble.

For the small baskets, cut two 5" x 5" pieces of paper and follow the same instructions. Decorate as you wish. Voilà, you now have a few treat baskets waiting to be filled with Easter goodies!

Supplies:
Spring Flings and Easter Things: A Tisket A Tasket, Mom's Bouquet, Sunny Sunday, Alpha+Bits, Miniatures, Just Write Journaling Stickers

Altered Easter Box, by Suzanne Sergi.

I altered this mini egg box with the Spring Flings & Easter Collection, to create a festive box filled with treats.

From the Egg Hunt paper, I cut out about eleven of the different eggs. I created an egg garland, by simply stitching them together with my sewing machine. Then I layered this garland in the middle of the box, and let it hang for a festive touch.

I covered the outside, and top of the box with a variety of papers from this collection, on the sides of the box, I simply painted a layer of white acrylic paint, and then dusted a coarse white glitter on top.

The last detail is tucking in a few chocolate eggs! A perfect gift for a friend, neighbor, or teacher, as we welcome the arrival of spring!

Supplies:
Spring Flings & Easter Things: Mom's Bouquet, Borders, Egg Hunt, Cute Cuts, Alpha+Bits, Miniatures

Baby Girl Inspiration

We are back today, to share some more of our Winter CHA projects with you. We hope you enjoyed the Baby Boy projects that we shared on Thursday. The great thing about these baby collections, is that the project ideas can really be used with either collection. Baby Boy and Baby Girl have many of the same pieces, just in different colors and patterns. So if you see a baby boy project that you really love, I am willing to bet that you could easily turn that same idea into a baby girl project! Today's projects, which are all about the Baby Girl collection!

"Beautiful Baby Girl", by Megan Klauer.
{A Winter CHA Project}

To be honest, I've never been a big fan of "pastel" colors which usually comes with baby themed collections. However, Stephanie has done a wonderful job of add just the right amount of bright colors to make this collection so lovable! I can't wait to use it again!

Supplies:
Baby Girl: Pretty In Pink, It's A Girl, Daddy's Girl, Cute Cuts, Borders, Chipboard Icons, Alpha+Bits, Designer Tapes: Yellow Chevron, Buttons: Red Flowers, Pink Flowers, We're Expecting: Firsts Miniature Stickers

"It's A Girl" card, by Deanna Misner.
{A Winter CHA Project}

For this fun little card, I went with a more graphic approach and featured the cute cupcake that comes with the Baby Girl Cute Cuts paper. I also trimmed a strip of the Border paper and folded it into a flag to create my sentiment.

Supplies:
Baby Girl: Baby Cakes, Cute Cuts, Borders, Snuggly Safari, Just Write Journaling Sticker

"Baby Cakes" card, by Becky Williams.
{A Winter CHA Project}

While this is a very "baby" collection the patterns and some of the elements are versatile enough to use for everyday themes as well. 

Supplies:
Baby Girl Collection: Borders, Daddy's Girl, It's a Girl, Just Write Journaling Stickers

Baby Girl Altered Paper Cake, by Suzanne Sergi.
{A Winter CHA Project}

I love creating miniature paper cakes! These are perfect as center pieces or simply as a fun seasonal accent for your kitchen. I loved the soft colors of the Baby Girl collection, and they paired beautifully rounding out this sweet altered mini cake. I created confetti frosting on top, and sprinkled it on the sides of the cake, by punching a variety of the papers!

I covered two round Kraft boxes found at my local craft store with patterned papers. On the tops I cut a circle from a coordinating paper as well. The rims are covered with white acrylic paint, and then dusted with a coarse glitter. 

To create a stand for the cake I used another top from a Kraft box, and turned it upside down.

Supplies:
Baby Girl: It's A Girl, Daddy's Girl, Pretty In Pink, Snuggly Safari, Baby Cakes, Sweet Dreams, Borders, Cute Cuts

"Baby's First Year" mini album, by Melissa Stinson.
{A Winter CHA Project}

I had a big stack of photos that I wanted to scrap from my niece's first year, so I printed them all up at 2x3 and made a mini album with them! The album is 4x6, which is a perfect size when you're using 12x12 paper as a starting point, since it's so easy to make pages right from your papers with just a couple of easy cuts.

My biggest tip for any type of mini album is to make it in stages instead of creating each page as if it's a separate layout. For example, I started this album by cutting out all the pages, then laying out all the photos, then adding extra paper and embellishment in layers, working on the same layer on all pages before moving on to the next layer. This ensures that your mini album will have a more "balanced" feeling in the end.

Supplies:
Baby Girl: It's A Girl, Daddy's Girl, Pretty In Pink, Snuggly Safari, Baby Cakes, Sweet Dreams, Borders, Cute Cuts, Alpha+Bits Stickers, Just Write Journaling Stickers, Miniatures Stickers; Crochet Flowers: Juniper, Daisies; Ciao Chip: Stars & Hearts, Simply Simona White Numbers; Baby Blooms a Bella: Rossini

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Look for a special Sunday post from us, tomorrow! We have two brand new Project Sheets to share with you, that you can download and use to create quick layouts. And we will also be announcing our big winner from our Challenge Week submissions tomorrow ;)

Baby Boy Inspiration

Today and Saturday, we are going to share some more of our Winter CHA projects with you. Are you getting excited to get our new products in your hands and onto your layouts, cards, and projects? All of our new products will start shipping to stores by the end of March. We know that you are patiently (or not so patiently, if you're like me ;)) waiting, and we are patiently waiting, so that we can get them on their way to you. So hang in there just a little bit longer! Today we are focusing on the Baby Boy collection.

"My Sweet Baby Boy", by Diane Payne.
{A Winter CHA Project}

The soft colors and whimsical animal designs of the Baby Boy line were perfect for highlighting the photo of my son taking some of his first steps through the tall grass. I arranged several of the cute animals up along the side of the layout with strips of paper and tape for a fun border.

Supplies:
Baby Boy: Baby Blue, It's a Boy, On the Go, Borders, Wild About You, Momma's Boy, Heaven Sent, Alpha+Bits Stickers, Just Write Journaling Stickers, Miniatures Stickers, Chipboard Icons; Sophisticates: Quattrofina Mustard & Apricot Alpha Stickers; Designer Tape: Yellow Chevron, Pickle Juice Dot; Button Market: Masculine Mix; Flags: Home Sweet Home

"Carson", by Stephanie Hunt.
{A Winter CHA Project}

My nephew has grown up so fast and is already five years old, but I couldn't help but pull some older photographs out when the Baby Boy products were finally printed! I loved how the green star pattern coordinating so perfectly with the colors in his outfit so I chose the paper first and ran with the embellishments. To make the new Designer Tapes appear more opaque than they actually I I mounted them to white cardstock first, and then tore the ends for a natural look. And, in efforts to keep all the attention on the photographs and that cute little face I scattered the borders, buttons and sticker elements along the outside edges of the page, keeping them playful and floating.

Supplies:
Baby Boy: On the Go, Borders, Cute Cuts, Alpha+Bits Stickers, Just Write Journaling Stickers; Designer Tape: Yellow Chevron, Blue Gingham; Button Market: Masculine Mix, Wood Mix, Bursts, Neutrals Mix, Checkers, Stars; Sophisticates: Blue High Fives Alphabets, Brownie chipboard alphabets

"Tiny Bundle" card, by Kimberly Neddo.
{A Winter CHA Project}

I’m really loving creating banners on cards. It’s a great design to work over the top of to create a fun look, and layer on top of. The Designer Tape makes the perfect border to add embellishments and a sentiment too.

Supplies:
Baby Boy: Borders, Wild About You, Alpha+Bits Stickers, Flags; Designer Tapes: Blue Gingham; Button Market: Blues

"Congrats" card, by Kathy Martin.
{A Winter CHA Project}

Boy oh boy! I'm really into this new Baby Boy line by Bella Blvd! There are so many adorable animals and baby icons like these little onesies! The minute I saw them I just knew they needed to be hung on a line! And there's no better background than some pretty white puffy clouds!

Supplies:
Baby Boy: Heaven Sent, Borders, Alpha+Bits Stickers

"ABC" altered baby boy blocks, by Suzanne Sergi.
{A Winter CHA Project}

I love being able to create home decor projects using beautiful scrapbook papers. The baby boy collection paired wonderfully with three wood blocks I had in my stash. I covered all sides with a variety of papers to create sweet ABC blocks. these were easy to alter, and on a couple of sides I used many of the embellishments from this collection to add a bit of dimension. These are perfect for a boy's nursery, or would make for a sweet baby shower gift.

Supplies:
Baby Boy: Icons, Miniatures, Alpha+Bits, On The Go, Momma's Boy, Borders, Heaven Sent, just Write Journaling Stickers, It's A Boy

"Baby Boy" mini album, by Brook Stewart.
{A Winter CHA Project}

I had done a mini album like this for my oldest boy and was just waiting for the perfect paper line to continue the tradition with my second little guy. Imagine my complete JOY when I found out Bella was coming out with baby collections! And of course, they were exactly what I was looking for!

I decorated the cover and the opposite inside pages with the Baby Boy papers and embellishments. I was able to use some chipboard on the front cover of course. Who can resist that super cute monkey?!

It documents just some tiny tidbits from each month, birth to 12 months. It’s a simple 4x6 chipboard album. I printed the standard 4x6 photos for one side of the page and mixed in color and black and white photos.

Now, this book is already pretty thick, so I didn’t want to use anything bulky on the inside pages. This is where the Alpha+Bits Sticker sheets and Miniatures come in super handy! There are SO many fun little sentiments, borders and cute little designs that I didn’t need anything else! They made the perfect little additions to each page.

I also used the new High Five Alphas in multiple colors to add the month number right over the bottom right hand corner of my photos.

Supplies:
Baby Boy: It’s a Boy, Baby Blue, Mommas Boy, Wild About You, On the Go, Heaven Sent, Borders, Cute Cuts, Alpha Bits, Ciao Chip Icons, Flags; Sophisticates: High Five Alphas in Yellow, Green, Blue, Black-White

Some Altered Project Fun

Today, we have a wide range of altered projects to share with you. We have an adorable set of altered canvases, that have been turned into wall art for a baby's room. There is a super creative little playset, made to be used with a child's favorite toys. Next up, you'll see a bright and happy framed project, to help count down the days until summer vacation. And last, but certainly not least, we have a really fun sports mini album, perfect for any young athlete. Enjoy!

Altered Baby Canvases, by Jennifer Edwardson.

I had so much fun making this sweet baby gift using one of my favorite collections, Lovey Dovey. This started out as a Valentine's project and quickly turned into wall art for a baby's room! I decided to 'scrapbook' these canvases like I would a layout, only without photos. I started by cutting a few background pieces, sanded the edges and adhered them to the 5 x 7" canvas bases.  

Then I precision cut all the Cute Cuts and added some of them to the front of the canvases, raising up a few of them using 3D foam.

I used Ciao Chip alphas for the title with a few sticker words and a Blooms a Bella flower on the elephant. I'm so happy with how they turned out!

Supplies:
Lovey Dovey: Cute Cuts, Love is in the Air, Circle of Love, Sweetheart, Bear Hugs; Simply Simona Chipboard Alphas: Peep, Saltwater; Baby Blooms a Bella: Rossini; Spring Flings and Easter Things: Miniatures

Winter Resort, by Marie-Josée Hamel.

My 7-year-old daughter loves her Littlest Pet Shop collection and has tons of animals, so I thought it would be fun to create a winter resort for her using the beautiful Winter Wonder collection.

To create the ski lodge, I altered a tiny wood house using paint and paper.

The skate rental booth is made out of a small cardboard box that I covered with paper. The skates are cut out of the Cute Cuts paper and adhered to the booth using pop dots. I used easels that I adhered to the back of the trees. This way, they can be moved around as my daughter sees fits.

The ski rack and sled display also have an easel on the back. It was pretty easy to curl the tip of the skis and the sleds; I used a pen and rolled the paper around it.

Speaking of the ski rack, did you notice the tiny ski poles? :) I cut toothpicks in two, punch tiny circles in paper, pierced them with a needle and put the toothpick pieces through them, and then created handles by rolling paper.

Supplies:
Winter Wonder: Blizzard, Toasty, Ski Slopes, Icy. Borders, Cute Cuts, Alpha+Bits, Just Write

Summer Vacation Countdown, by Sheri Feypel.

To say that we look forward to our Summer vacation would be an understatement! We live for our weeks in the North Woods, swimming, boating, tubing, wake boarding, fishing and just hanging out. It is our little paradise! I created this Summer Vacation Countdown so that the boys could see how many days til we hit the road to head Up North. I started counting how many days until we leave, and once I got past 100 I decided we would start our countdown on the last day of school.

This was so fun to create and came together rather quickly. I made a flag banner with some of the patterns from Sunshine & Happiness, created a few flags from the Designer tapes and added some of the Miniature stickers. I layered them with foam pop dots for dimension and added a few paper clips so that we could change the numbers easily.

Supplies:
Sunshine & Happiness: Happy Clouds, Play Date, Cute Cuts, Sunny Side Up, Miniatures, Flags; Designer Tape: Teal Stripe, Yellow Chevron; High Five Alphabets: Yellow, Blue; Sophisticates: Ciao Chip Trees

"Game On" mini album, by Suzanne Sergi.

With a boy that loves all sports, the Making the Team collection has our bases covered. Unfortunately, my family lives in Texas, so they are unable to see my son play. I made a quick, and fun album with a few action snapshots to share with them. This paper collection has all the traditional game colors, and one of my favorite elements are the Alpha+Bits sticker sheet. A fast, and creative way to add embellishments throughout this mini. After playing with this collection for the first time, it is safe to say this is my favorite sports line ever!

Supplies:
Making The Team: Chipboard Icons, Wall Of Fame, Fan Club, Borders, Volleyball, Football, Soccer, Cute Cuts, Alpha+Bits, Just Write Journaling Stickers; Simply Simona: Oreo Numbers; Mr Boy: Chit Chat; Super Stud: Label Additions

Challenge Week With Guest Designer Shannon Tidwell: Day Five

Hey everyone! It's Shannon Tidwell here again, for our last challenge day. We love seeing all of the projects you've been linking up for the challenges, and hope to keep seeing more and more over the next week (deadline is a week from today). Thanks so much to Bella Blvd for having me this week! It's been so fun scrapping with Bella products and sharing with you guys!

Saturday Challenge: Use Punched Circles 

For my last Challenge this week we are grabbing our trusty circle punches. Don't have one? Run, don't walk, and get one. The size I use most often is my 2" circle punch, but they are fun to combine. Remember earlier in the week when I talked about my 'bag of tricks'? My circle punch is definitely in there, as is the border I made on my first layout.

A few other ideas for your circle punch:

• Cut the circles in half and create a scalloped border around your page or photo
• Punch circles out of patterned paper and use the negative space to fill with embellishments
• Create bubbles for your title
• Punch out your photos to get rid of a noisy background or to get a lot of photos on one page

"Baby Love", by Shannon Tidwell.

To create the border simply punch circles out of the papers you want to use. Then fold the circles in half. You can mix different sizes and patterns, or keep them all the same. Then adhere one side of the circle down so that the other half sticks up. You could also create a double sided border and place the circles back to back. On this layout I chose to first create a larger scalloped border underneath the folded circle border. There are all kinds of variations you could do. Wouldn't little tiny circles be cute?!

"You & Me", by Shannon Tidwell.

On the second layout I created my own polka dot background. I actually punched the circles from a patterned paper that already had circles on it. It was just a little too busy for the layout I had in mind. So by punching out a few of the circles and then adhering them to my background I was able to create my own look. The backside of the paper had a pattern on it, so I flipped some of the circles and opted for the pattern instead. It can take a bit of time to figure out your circle placement. My biggest tip is not to try 'too' hard. You want it to look natural. Sometimes I just drop the circles on the page and let that help me figure out a natural looking placement (this is especially useful with sequins or confetti).

Thanks again for letting me hang out with you this week!  Let's see how the Bella DT used their circle punches. Ciao!

"Always My Baby", by Kimberly Neddo.
{A Winter CHA Project}

For this layout, I really wanted to showcase how versatile everything is with each other. You can see that I used 3 different flag pack designs together. The Baby Boy collection can easily be used with non-baby themed layout designs, rather than strictly boy or baby themed projects. I LOVE the colors in the Baby Blue collection. I punched out the circles from one of the Baby Boy papers, and adhered them along the bottom of my white cardstock, alternating full circles and half circles. I think it adds a fun touch!

Supplies:
Sunshine & Happiness: Popsicle Kisses, Happy clouds; Baby Boy: Mama’s Boy, Baby Blue, Alpha+Bits Stickers; Sophisticates: Black/White High Five Alpha Stickers, Yellow High Five Alpha Stickers; Flags: Text Me, Winter, Just Married

"Beautiful", by Laura Vegas.
{A Winter CHA Project}

When I saw the backside of the Pretty In Pink patterned paper, with all of the fun polka dots, I knew they needed to be punched out and used in a fun way. I started by adhering the cloud pattern paper to the center of my white cardstock background, leaving lots of room around the edges. I then tucked the punched out circles behind the cloud paper, one by one, overlapping them as I went. I love how they frame the main part of the layout.

Supplies:
Baby Girl: Pretty In Pink, Sweet Dreams, Borders, Cute Cuts, Alpha+Bits Stickers, Chipboard Icons; We're Expecting: Chipboard Icons

"Sending You Sunshine" card, by Gretchen McElveen.
{A Winter CHA Project}

I punched circles out of Sunshine & Happiness patterned paper to add some interest to this card and to play off of the "sunshine" theme a little bit. I sanded the edges of each circle before adhering it to the card. To me, sanding the edges like that helps to set it apart from the background paper. Also I adhered the sentiment and sunshine stickers to the card with foam adhesive to give the card some extra dimension.

Supplies:
Sunshine & Happiness: Borders, Popscicle Kisses, Sunny Side Up, Alpha + Bits Stickers, Just Write Journaling Stickers

Springtime Altered Canvas, by Katherine McElvain.
{A Winter CHA Project}

The idea for this canvas came from a painted art project I saw on Pinterest. I decided to create a similar piece using punched circles and buttons from Bella Blvd. The first step was to draw the vines in pencil and paint over them using black acrylic paint. 

I punched a variety of circles in three Bella Blvd colors, and placed them on top of the branches to fill the canvas. When I was satisfies with how the colors and circles were distributed I Mog Podged the circles to the canvas.

To create some variety and texture to the project I added cut out flowers to the circles, and sewed on coordinating buttons form the new Bella Button Market.

Supplies:
Sunshine and Happiness: Borders, Popsicle Kisses, Happy Clouds, Petal Power; Button Market: Bursts, Feminine Mix, Aqua Flowers, Fruit Punch

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And now, we are going to ask you to play along with our challenge! This week, we will be featuring FIVE challenges. But it's not just about showing you what we came up with. We want to see your take on our challenges too. And we have a little extra incentive to get you creating and sharing.

We will be drawing one winner, to receive a prize package of $100+ worth of Bella Blvd products!

But this is different than our regular giveaways. You will have to participate in the challenges, in order to be entered in the drawing for that prize package. If you participate in one challenge, your name will be entered in one time. If you participate in three of the challenges, your name will be entered in three times. Make sense? And how about a bonus. If you participate in all five challenges, your name will be entered in not five times, but TEN times! We really hope you'll join in on the fun with us. Just click on the button below, to link us up to your completed projects. You have until Friday, March 2nd, to get your links added on. We will then announce a winner on Saturday, March 3rd.