Hello Fabulous G45ers!

Happy Tuesday and welcome to another crafty day at Graphic 45! Today we're bringing you more holiday bliss with amazing home decor and gift ideas from our design team. But first we would like to wish one of our very own talented DT members, Nancy Wethington a very HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Nancy is full of talent, life, love and passion, we are honored to have such a wonderful woman on our team. Today on the blog the brilliant Sherry Cheever and Nicole Eccles have created the most amazing works of art that are guaranteed to make your heart grow three sizes today! We totally love getting the house all decked out for the holidays. It's a fun and nostalgic activity that brings back the joy of this special time of year. Let today's fabulous crafts inspire your holiday imagination! It's fun and easy to create beautiful home decor and gifts with Graphic 45 papers and embellishments. Just look at this wonderful wall hanging by Sherry Cheever! This sweet creation was made using our Christmas Emporium collection. All it takes is some nice layering, a few well-placed embellishments and some beautiful paper snowflake flowers to give the piece depth and dimension!  It is a winter wonderland of creativity!

Supplies:

Graphic 45 Papers:  Christmas Emporium:  Believe, A Christmas Carol, Happy Holidays and Tags 1Colorbox:  Graphic 45 Decades Ink Spellbinders™:  Grand Calibur®, S4-390 Create-A-Flake Three, S5-019 Labels Eight and LF-246 Grand Labels ElevenRanger Industries:  Vintage Photo and Antique Linen Distress Inks; Glue ‘n Seal Matte; Claudine Hellmuth Studio Charcoal Black Acrylic Paint; Glossy Accents; Vintage Photo Distress Stain; Mini Mister; Coffee Archival Ink
 Other: Sookwang 1” Scor-Tape; May Arts Red Bingo Numbers; idea-ology Memo Pins; White Artistic Wire; 7 Gypsies Paper Fasteners; Art Glitter Krystallos Vintage Glass Glitter; Neenah Classic Crest Solar White Cover; Mini Glass Bottle; Multi-Color Glitter; Wood Hobby Trim; Sanding Tools; Dremel; Printers Chipboard

This next elegant creation is by Nicole Eccles. It's a fantastic tussie-mussie paper bouquet. Nicole is amazing at creating vibrant and beautiful paper flowers. Tussie-Mussie might have to be one of the best words ever and it goes all the way back to medieval times! Small flower bouquets, which were typically given as gifts, were often worn or carried throughout the land. Paper flower bouquets make amazing gifts! In addition to being fabulous for the holidays, tussie mussie paper bouquets are wonderful for weddings and 1st anniversaries! After all, the traditional gift for 1st anniversaries is paper! How grand!

Supplies:

Hello G45ers!

Happy Friday and welcome to another fun-filled day here at Graphic 45. We hope you are all resting comfortably after a big Thanksgiving dinner yesterday. Or if you are in a place where Thanksgiving isn't a national holiday we hope you are enjoying this fun glide into the holiday season. Wherever you are there are lots of reasons to celebrate and feel some gratitude for the good things in your life. Since it is our mission to continue to bring you great craft inspiration during this magical time of year, today we've got some fabulous upcycled crafts from Tara Orr and Nancy Wethington. These gorgeous creations are going to knock your socks off! But first we have a winner to announce for this week's fantastic blog prize! Chosen randomly from the comments left on the Graphic 45 Facebook page this week, our winner is...

-  Suzanne Thomas

Congratulations  Suzanne Thomas! Please email us with your shipping information at info@g45papers.com to claim your prize! Big thanks to everyone who submitted comments this week. Check out the Tropical Travelogue prize from this week and remember that we have a new blog contest happening every week! There's always a chance to win something amazing here at Graphic 45!

Today is all about upcycling. What's upcycling? That's when you take an ordinary object that might have otherwise been thrown away and you turn it into something new and beautiful! It's a lot like altered art only you're giving new life to something that you might have found at a thrift store or at a garage sale. This first creation is by Tara Orr and she is the queen of finding thrift store gems and fixing them up like new. Get ready for some major inspiration! This gorgeous rocking horse is decorated in Le Cirque and makes awesome use of our Ornate Metal Door Plate and Knob Staples and Metal Button Staples! This just goes to show you what some pretty paper, some good glue and twine and a lot of care and imagination can do!

"I found another thrift store treasure!! This rocking horse was originally a cherry wood with a horrid, white yarn mane!  I just loved the playful feel to this and knew it must be altered!! i was originally going to use the Christmas Emporium collection, but decided upon the brightly coloured Le Cirque papers instead.  The tail is made from twine and attached with a Graphic 45 metal button!" -Tara Orr

Supplies:

Hello Fabulous G45ers!

Happy Wednesday and welcome to our blog today! We are so glad you're joining us because today is going to be amazing! The wonderful Nancy Wethington of our design team has created some awe-inspiring crafts for the holidays that you're sure to adore! She's even included a fun video tutorial that includes some amazing tips! So get ready to soak up some holiday bliss with these three gorgeous holiday crafts!

If you are a regular on our blog you're familiar with Nancy Wehtington's amazing crafting talents. She's also a gifted teacher! Recently Nancy taught a class on how to make the altered art box and coordinating book shown below at Mary Engelbreit's Home Companion Christmas Workshops. Here is what Mary Engelbreit has to say about Nancy: "And of course our teachers are the best. New this year, Nancy Wethington, who proved to be a worthy contender for “Teacher Of The Year,” if we held such a contest, which of course we don’t." Such glowing accolades for our beloved Nancy! Check out this gorgeous and festive Christmas Emporium altered art box that is sure to get you in the holiday spirit too!

Check out these fun and beautiful Christmas Emporium and Metal Staples jewelry creations also by Nancy. These are wonderful stocking stuffers and they're the perfect way to bring some holiday cheer to the ones you love!

Supplies:

Graphic 45 Christmas Emporium: Santa Express; Special Delivery
Graphic 45 Staples: Metal Hinges; Metal Flowers; Metal Buttons 

Other:
E6000 Adhesive
Glossy Accents
Wonder Tape
USA Art Quest Medium Mica Pieces
Tim Holtz/Idea-ology Chain and Jump Rings
May Arts Cording

Here we have a stunning and clever Christmas Tag Tree! This is a wonderful example of some very imaginative thinking! There are so many ways to turn an ordinary object into a holiday gem with a little creative thinking! This would also be a wonderful way to display your holiday cards from family and friends! Nancy even included a fun tutorial with this project so that you can create one of your very own! What fun!

"A while back, while antiquing, I found this extra large spool.  It followed me home and promptly rolled down the steps into my craft room where it has resided for 2 years. I decided it would make a good base for a primitive Christmas tree and proceeded to cover the center with Graphic 45's Christmas Emporium.  My husband drilled holes for small dowels that would fit into the larger *tree trunk* and a tree was born.  The only other thing it needed to become a Christmas tree were some Graphic 45 Christmas tags.  Very simple, but hopefully, effective." -Nancy Wethington

Supplies:

Christmas Emporium; Toyland; All I Want For Christmas; Merry and Bright; Santa Express; A Christmas Carol; 'Tis The Season; Under The Mistletoe; Joyous Noel; Special Delivery; Happy Holidays; Christmas Emporium Chipboard Die-cuts 1 & 2; Christmas Past:  Christmas Past Frames
Graphic 45 Staples: Trim Staples
Partner Products:
Cling Christmas Emporium 1 and 2
Decades Colorbox Inks: Cashmere
May Arts Ribbon
Imaginarium Chipboard Die-Cuts
My Stik Permanent Adhesive
Want2Scrap bling
Spellbinder's dies

We hope you all enjoyed today's super festive blog! Big thanks to Nancy Wethington for her fabulous work today. We will be right back here tomorrow with more inspiring crafts and good cheer to brighten your day. We hope you'll stop by and see us! Have a great day!

Happy Holiday Papercrafting!

Team Graphic 45

Hello Loyal G45ers,

To kick off this Thanksgiving week we would like to thank you all by offering a free project sheet.  This project was created for a class that Charee taught in Boston and Sydney, Australia, using our Once Upon a Springtime collection.  Join in the fun, and let's get crafty. 

 Click link to download: Download OnceUponaSpringtimeMini_PS

Once Upon a Springtime Mini: Page 1 Side 1

Once Upon a Springtime Mini: Page 1 Side 2

Once Upon a Springtime Mini: Page 2 Side 1

Once Upon a Springtime Mini: Page 2 Side 2

Once Upon a Springtime Mini: Page 3 Side 1

Once Upon a Springtime Mini: Page 3 Side 2

Once Upon a Springtime Mini: Page 4 Side 1

Once Upon a Springtime Mini: Page 4 Side 2

Once Upon a Springtime Mini: Page 5 Side 1

Once Upon a Springtime Mini: Page 5 Side 2

Once Upon a Springtime Mini: Page 6 Side 1

Once Upon a Springtime Mini: Page 6 Side 2

Happy Papercrafting!

--

Your friends at Graphic 45

Hello G45ers!

Welcome to a very special weekend post of our blog! Now is your chance to get to know Aimee Filimoehala, Director of Operations at Graphic 45 and daughter of Diane Schultz! We also have a terrific interview with Charee Filimoehala, Director of Customer Service and Design Team Coordinator! First up is the interview with Aimee. This interview was so much fun to do - read to learn about Graphic 45's mascot Henry, Aimee's theme song, and how they have fun in the office day after day!

Enjoy your read with Aimee Filimoehala, Graphic 45's Director of Operations and daughter of Owner, Diane Schultz! She gives us insight into a day in the life at Graphic 45!

Aimee, what led you to helping your mother, Diane Schultz, start Graphic 45?

When my mom designed her first line of scrapbook paper as a freelancer, it was a huge success. That’s pretty standard for any project she does. She’s always very successful. She’s so talented. In fact, the most talented artist I know! After that initial success, she saw her potential in the papercrafting industry.

At that point, back in 2008, I had been working in the mortgage industry for five years. But the industry was crashing and the banks were shutting down as we hear every day on the news. My experience was management and business, so joining Graphic 45 in the first days of its inception was kind of a natural fit. I committed and made the move back to Utah and launched Graphic 45 with my mother. Shortly after we got it off the ground and got everything moved out of my mom’s basement, we moved into an office in Portland, Oregon and started the office of Operations.

How does this job make you feel fulfilled?

It has been immensely rewarding in so many ways. I’ve gotten to travel all over the world and meet people from all over the world. Though, the best by far is getting to work with my family - my mom, Diane, and my sister, Charee. We get to have daily interaction and then take traveling adventures together. It’s a great setup.

The family that can work together! Love that!

There were kinks to work out at first, but our personalities mesh so well and it’s a really great thing.

Aimee in Singapore on one of her many Graphic 45 adventures!

What does the Director of Operations do day-to-day?

Juggling! I oversee the employees and organize the trips, shows, and classes. I make sure marketing is working out. I do Product Development. Director of Operations is a hefty title. I do a bunch of everything! And I have done everything. Not so much anymore, thanks to the company growing! We just make sure we’re making products that people love and want to buy.

How does it compare to your mortgage jobs? How much of a learning curve has it been for you?

There’s a lot of Googling to try to figure out things! I was a salesperson in my old corporate job. So it taught me a lot of marketing, managing time - so there are some similarities. As far as getting trained on all the ins and outs of this industry, I didn’t have that training. Troubleshooting is my new forte! If I don’t know how to do it, I either figure it out or hire someone who can!

What specifically do you love about this industry coming from a recession-hit industry like banking?

The biggest difference is the people! They’re amazing. Going to the trade show and interacting with our customers - they don’t seem like customers. They’re like our friends and family. We look forward to seeing them. It’s more of a relationship. When you see our customers, they give us hugs! It’s not like the hand-shaking, corporate environment I came from.

How has working with your family enriched your relationships?

All the traveling and working together on a daily basis is such a blessing. Humans work a majority of their lives just to make ends meet and make sure to pay the bills. It’s so great to spend that chunk of time with people you love, admire, and want to hang out with anyways.

Aimee in Singapore on one of her many G45 adventures!

Portland, Oregon, where your Operation Office is located, is an artist-packed, creative, amazing city. How does living in Portland influence your office atmosphere? How does it feed into Graphic 45’s daily operations?

Charee and I head the Operations office and we really wanted to open our Operations office here. Portland is amazing. The attitude of appreciating and expressing art in this community just infuses our work! It’s the perfect fit for a company like Graphic 45, because people embrace being creative in Portland. Our office is an old, restored mill that’s over 100 years old. It has that same foundation that Graphic 45 is built on. It has a unique character with a vintage feel. The majority of the tenants are architects, artists, musicians, and all different types of creative fields. We are in this building because the energy of creativity is in the air and just thrives here!

Graphic 45 doesn’t seem like an “all-work-no-play” kind of place? How do you maintain fun in the midst of business?

We definitely like to have a good time. With all the access to crafts, we occasionally have crafting nights where people who don’t work in the office come in and get to play with all the tools and crafts we have. Other manufacturers in the industry are so awesome sharing ribbons, fabric, stamps, and tools with us! I’m sure we’ll have a few crafting nights here soon in preparation for the holidays. We’ll have to have a Cookie Exchange and start getting our Christmas crafts on.

Confession: I’m the left-brained person in the office, and I even occasionally make a card! When I look at our blog at all the creations by our design team and going to the shows and seeing all the work in our booth, I have to say, I’ve learned some things! My stuff isn’t half bad anymore.

It is amazing to see what that design team can turn paper and some adhesives into!

We have some crazy creative folks on our design team. The best around!

What would your theme song be?

Instantly when Charee and I read this, I jokingly thought it was “Taking Care of Business.” I told Charee in jest, but she told me that’s totally what it was. So, there it is. My theme song! I’ve embraced it.

How is it to get to travel so much with Graphic 45? Do you love it or does it feel like a chore?

Traveling is one of the highlights of the job for sure! It’s so thrilling to meet people from all over enjoying the same products and they’re bringing them happiness and joy. It’s so incredible to see fans from Minnesota enjoying the same products as our fans in Australia. Not only is that wonderful, I get to go all these places with my family and for my JOB! Just going to places and learning about them is so enriching. I definitely don’t take it for granted. I get a lot of flack from friends and other family members about all the exotic places I get to go - I realize how amazing it is to get to experience all these journeys!

What are you thankful for in this season of gratitude?

Everything! I have a really great life with awesome family and friends. I am employed! Such a blessing coming from the banking industry. That has not been the case for so many of my friends. I get to work with my family and people I love. I’m thankful for my dog Henry. He comes to the office every single day. He is the Graphic 45 mascot and most definitely a great part of our day. I am thankful for the Jade plant on my desk. I kill these guys all the time, and I may have met my match and kept one alive!

The guy we all love, Henry, the Graphic 45 Office Mascot!

You need to knock on wood right now so it doesn’t die tomorrow!

I know!!

Anything exciting on the Graphic 45 horizon.

We have CHA releases coming up! People are going to be really excited about it. Look for some bundles of joy coming your way soon!

Next up,  get to Know Charee Filimoehala, Director of Customer Service and Design Team Coordinator! Learn how G45 chooses their amazing Design Team,Charee's childhood nickname, and about her amazing fashion sense! This is going to be a good one.

Enjoy your peek into the life of Charee Filimoehala, daughter of Diane Schultz and Director of Customer Service and Design Team Coordinator! This was a great chat with Charee!

Charee, how has working for Graphic 45 changed your life?

It’s changed my life in almost every way! I’m working harder and longer more than I’ve ever done before! Before I worked for Graphic 45 I worked in the restaurant industry. I loved working with customers and getting to know the regulars. I loved creating food. It was always fun making a masterpiece with delicious food objects.

What’s similar at Graphic 45 to the food industry?

It’s very customer-oriented. I’m Director of Customer Service. When I travel I get to interact one-on-one and that’s so wonderful. I want to be out there giving the customers what they want and what they need. Instead of daily specials and what to cook at home, I’m coming up with projects of the day and blogs of the day and helping with lines for the future. It’s different, but has the same structure!

What is your favorite part about the job?

Every time I get to see new creations from our design team, G45 followers, our manufacturers, or on YouTube. It’s so much fun to see what people are coming up with! They share on our Facebook, email us, and share on our Ning site. We feel excited that our customers are so happy with our products they want us to see what they’ve done with it!

When we get to go out and travel, one of my favorite parts of the trip is talking with the customers and owners. Hearing their input, ideas, and love for the product. It’s always fun hearing their concepts for future lines! And I love learning about people and the difference of their customs and cultures. It’s such a fun learning experience.

You help out with the design team we see on the blog all the time, how did you find such talented folks?!

I’m the Design Team Coordinator and have been in this role for about a year now. Every February, we post a “Design Team Call.” We give folks a few weeks to turn in their applications. We get a few hundred applicants a year. It takes a lot of time to go through all of these. It’s really fun to do this. We pick the top 25 and it is one of the hardest jobs I’ve ever had to do in my life. My mom and Aimee and our whole Graphic 45 office help score the top 25 designers. Then the applicants send in projects. We all get involved and spend a day going through the projects. And we all collectively decide who our design team for our next year will be.

It’s really crazy, there are so many people who are talented! We may get 35 designers who do amazing layouts, but we have to cover all the design bases. So even if you’re not chosen, you’re still crazy talented. We just have to show all the different types of design and things to design.

So it’s almost like Project Runway or some reality TV show.

I wish we had Tim Gunn from Project Runway to help us make decisions and Heidi Klum to be the bearer of bad news. Next year, we’re going to hire them. Do they do Pro Bono work?

I’ve heard you’re also quite the crafter, want to share some of your creations with us, your fans, today?

I do love crafting, but am intimidated when I see the possibilities of crafting design. But you have to dive in and go for it! I love learning individual techniques. I love to see how someone made that flower, or a technique on a card or layout. And then when I have holidays coming up I’ll add these individual things I’ve made to gift bags, cards, magnets, all sorts of things! I love the gift ideas for crafting.

Once Upon a Springtime Mini Album Created By: Charee

You work alongside with your sister, Aimee? How is it to work alongside your big sis?

It’s many things! Mostly, it’s the best anyone could ask for. She’s my best friend and my sister! And my mom is my boss! And when I have an idea I have no hesitation to share. It’s a great environment to grow in. My job has evolved tremendously in the past three years. It makes me want to work harder because it’s for my family. I’ve been a hard worker, but now there’s more purpose and meaning behind it. Plus, getting to travel with them is so great.

The downside is you feel too comfortable, so there’s room to get into tiny arguments you wouldn’t with a regular boss. Conversations like, “You do it. No, you do it!” We get away with more teasing than most. But at the end of the day, it helps you feel more bonded as a family.

Charee with Aimee and Diane at CHA!

What is the best advice anyone has ever given you?

I don’t know of one specific example, but so many people in my daily life are role models. And I incorporate that into my daily life. From growing up and seeing what a hard worker my mom is, she is such a great role model. She always made me know that anything is possible just through the way she lived her life. I can always work harder and be better! All my siblings are such hard workers and achieve all their goals and are great role models with their families and their careers.

We see pictures of the G45 ladies from events and on Facebook and you and your sister Aimee are super stylish ladies. What influences your fashion, Charee?

Traveling is a great influence on and off the clock! New York City is one of my favorite cities. Being there you are just surrounded by fashion, art, beauty. I love shopping when I travel. That’s where I get so many great finds. I love getting fashion from old movies. I love the 1920s and 1930s vintage-style fashion. Television shows from those eras certainly inspire as well.

If you were an animal, what animal would you be, Charee?

My nickname ever since I was a child has been “Bear.” It started as “Care Bear.” Then it turned into “Share Bear,” because I really liked sharing growing up. And now, the nickname is just “Bear.” I had a giant collection of bears growing up. It’s been a theme throughout my life that I continue to love and embrace. I just love that they’re cute and mostly peaceful and innocent. I love the video of the panda bear sneezing!

Oh my goodness, could Henry be any cuter in this pile of bears?! An awesome follower of G45 sent these to Charee as a gift, since she loves bears! Our customers are the best.

What is your favorite holiday? What are your favorite holiday traditions?

I love Christmas!! I love Christmas music the most. My boyfriend just gave me the new She & Him Christmas album. It’s amazing. My favorite tradition has to be going home to my Mom’s house and spending Christmas with her and the whole family. It’s the highlight of the season!

What about your job with Graphic 45 inspires you day in and day out. What do you take away from working with Graphic 45 customers and designers?

There’s always something new to see! New techniques or ways to see old things. Just learning from each other is the best. In our crafting community, we work with the nicest people so that is so inspiring to see how creative, kind, and thoughtful people can be in the industry! One of my favorite things are our blog hops. We try to never see anyone else as a rival but as a friend and mentor to look up to and learn from! That’s the most inspiring part of the job.

Finally, what would you like to say in close to us, your loyal fans?

Just thank you to everyone who supports Graphic 45 and giving me a job I love! We hope to continue bringing out the best with our products, collections, creations by our design team!

We hope you all enjoyed getting to know Aimee and Charee today. Remember that you can get weekly Graphic 45 updates, including free project sheets, tips, announcements and so much more! Sign up to receive our newsletter here:

http://www.facebook.com/Graphic45?sk=app_100265896690345

Happy Papercrafting!

Team Graphic 45

Hello G45ers!

Happy Monday to you all and thank you for joining us today! We have some big treats in store for you! We have gorgeous holiday crafts from Robin Shakoor and Gloria Stengel. Plus we have a new blog contest to announce! Yes, there are lots of reasons to smile today. Now that Thanksgiving has come and gone, everywhere you look people are gearing up for the winter holiday season. Lights are going up, store windows are adorn with decorations, and every 5th car on the road has a Christmas tree strapped to the hood. Yes, it's a beautiful time of year! Here at Graphic 45 we are big on holiday decorating and handmade gifs. Today you will see some fantastic examples of what you can create using some fun techniques and gorgeous Graphic 45 papers and embellishments. This bring us to this week's blog contest. Now that the holidays are upon us, we want to know your favorite part of the holiday season. Do you enjoy getting together with family? Do you have a favorite holiday ritual like baking cookies, singing carols, card-making, tree trimming, or other fun activities? Share your feedback with us in a blog or Facebook comment any time this week and you could win this awesome Christmas Emporium prize pack! A Christmas Emporium 12x12 paper pad, Christmas Emporium Cling Stamp set, Trim Staples and Metal Film Canister With Mini Album! A random winner will be chosen from the comments and announced on our blog this Friday, December 2nd! We can't wait to read your comments!

This first amazing bit of craft inspiration comes from Robin Shakoor. She's created this amazing holiday mini album that is both heart-warming and absolutely beautiful. Mini albums are so much fun for the holiday season. They are a great way to capture your memories year after year and they help enhance the wonder and nostalgia of the season. We all have photos from holidays past. Just imagine creating a stunning mini like Robin's to immortalize your most cherished moments! It's a lot of fun! Here is what Robin had to say about this joyful creation. She's even included some great tips on how you can create one of your very own!

"I am the Martha Stewart of Christmas at my house.  My maiden name is actually "Stewart" so I get teased quite a bit.  I made this mini album to display during the holiday season and for many years to come.  I chose this album because of the unique design of the cover.  The open design allows for lots of Graphic 45 goodness to shine through." -Robin Shakoor

The cover of my album features Santa surrounded by flowers and chipboard tags.  The album cover has diamond cut outs so I traced the shape on Core'dinations color core cardstock and cut out the diamonds.  Once I adhered the black cardstock to the base, I measured each square on the top of the cover.  I used "Merry and Bright" to create each of the squares then I adhered them on top of the black cardstock base.

Hello G45ers!

Welcome to this fabulous and festive day here at Graphic 45! Today is all about holiday home decor and gift ideas! Nancy Wethington and Tara Orr of our design team have created the most enchanting holiday crafts that are sure to inspire you! It is so fun and easy to create magical holiday crafts with Graphic 45 papers and embellishments. There are so many beautiful paper designs and fabulous embellishments. The sky's the limit when it comes to holiday creations! Today's crafts should infuse your imagination with wonderful ideas for your holiday crafting season. But first we have a winner to announce for this week's blog contest! Chosen randomly from our blog and Facebook comments, our winner is...

-Peg Ackerman

This is the great prize that Peg won this week. We have a new blog contest every week so there's always a chance to win! Yay!

Congratulations, Peg! Please email us with your shipping information at info@g45papers.com to claim your prize. Huge thanks to everyone who left us comments this week. It was deeply heart-warming to read all of your comments. They reminded us of all the simple and profound things that we have to be grateful for this year. Thank you all!

And now we're off to the land of holiday craft bliss with Nancy Wethington and Tara Orr. This first creation is by Nancy and it is a perfect example of how Graphic 45 products can turn the ordinary into something extraordinary. This clever ornament is a lot of fun to create, radiantly beautiful and super inexpensive! It's perfect for anyone on a budget! Here is what Nancy had to say about this sweet and clever craft.

"I recently found this rusty star junkin' with girlfriends and thought about creating something for Christmas.  At a cost of only $1.50, it had to come home with me! Christmas Past seemed the perfect combination with its angel images. Adding a black stripe from Le Romantique makes the golden hues of Christmas Past pop.  Creating graduating stacks of rosettes allowed me to tuck images and an Envelope Tag Staple in between.  Now it's all ready to hang on the tree or on the front door." -Nancy Wethington

Supplies:

Graphic 45 Papers:
Christmas Past: Ode To Joy; Let It Snow; Christmas Past Frames
Christmas Emporium: A Christmas Carol
Le Romantique: Celebration Graphic 45 Staples: Envelope Tag Staples
Partner Products:
Decades Colorbox Inks: Photogenic; Cashmere
Fiskars Punches: Threading Water Border Punch
Scrapbook Adhesives: EZ Runner; 3D Foam Squares
Other supplies used: Beacon 3-in-1 adhesive; Martha Stewart Score Board

Next up is this astonishingly beautiful 5x8 Altered Art Box and mini album calendar by Tara Orr. This creation is out of this world! This is a fun and majorly heart-warming craft that would be perfect for someone near and dear to you. After all, calendars are a must for most folks when the new year arrives. Why not create something that's both practical and personal for someone you love?! Tara's fabulous project is perfect inspiration for a holiday gift that is guaranteed to please. Here's what she had to say about it.

"I altered the 5x8 kraft box and inside, transformed the mini album (2 of them actually) into an calendar for my mother in law.  She's been begging me for the past few years to make her a monthly calendar with photos of the family for each of the months so I finally decided to finish this project off for her and will give to her as a Christmas gift!" -Tara Orr

Supplies:

Hello G45ers!

Happy Wednesday and welcome to our blog! While we're sure many of you are getting ready to celebrate Thanksgiving, it's also good to take a moment to get energized with some gorgeous inspiration. Today we're bringing you some stunning cards from Hilde Janbroers and Nicole Eccles. There is a fun and easy tutorial that you're sure to enjoy! The holidays are such a busy time of year but they are also one of the best times for crafting, so turn on some Johnny Mathis and let's get down to it!  We hope toady's beautiful cards help inspire your holiday creativity! First up are two marvelous cards and a fun tutorial by Hilde Janbroers using An ABC Primer! These cards are so magnificent and are great examples of what you can create in very little time! Take it away, Hilde!

With the Core'dinations cards you have a perfect base for a card. First I distressed the edges of the card.

When you have done that, you use the ink to color the edges of the paper you want to add on the cardstock. 

With the easy taperunner you add the paper onto the cardstock. Then the fun part begins! You can add some images and pieces of paper you would like to add on the card. The Graphic 45 chipboard die cuts are so fun to add as well.

It's always nice to add a bow if you want a vintage look. Together with some small embellishments you will have the perfect card for any occassion.

Supplies:

Graphic 45 papers; Bedtime Stories, School days, Calico kids

Graphic 45 An ABC Primer Chipboard Die Cuts 1 & 2

Graphic 45 colorbox decades dark cashmere

Partner products

Cardstock; Core'dinations Core Cards Darks

Core'dinations ColorCore Cardstock

May Arts ribbon

my stick glue

Other products:

Tim Holtz Alternations rosette die

American Crafts thickers

These next clever cards are by Nicole Eccles. Using our beautiful collection Christmas Emporium, Nicole made these two super sweet holiday cards. You can see some gorgeous examples of how a little layering a paper distressing can help create a fabulous vintage look. Plus never underestimate the impact of some beautiful embellishments to give your creations that extra zing! You too can create gorgeous cards for any occasion by using these simple techniques!

.

Supplies:

8 1/2 x 11 Cream Printer Cardstock

Papers:  G45 Christmas Emporium Line

    Joyous Noel

    Happy Holidays

    All I Want For Christmas

Embellishments:  G45 Christmas Emporium Chipboard Tags 2

  G45 Stickers

      G45 Chipboard Buttons    

Chipboard:  Imaginarium Designs

Dies:  Spellbinders Large Classic Inverted Scalloped Square

           Spellbinders Scalloped Rectangle

Punches:  Martha Stewart Apron Lace Border Punch

Inks:  Tim Holtz Distress Inks( Frayed Burlap)     

Other:  Silver Craft Glitter, Vintage Metal Buckle 

Adhesives:  Tombow Mono Glue Stick,

Scrapbook Adhesives 3D Foam Squares

This fabulous card is also by Nicole Eccles. Just look at how vibrant and festive it is! Plus we love her use of the Metal Button Staples. It gives some real depth and adds to the authentic vintage look!  It's so stunning!

Supplies:

8 1/2 x 11 Cream Printer Cardstock

Papers:  G45 Christmas Emporium Line

    Tis the Season

    Merry and Bright   

    Believe

Embellishments:  G45 Christmas Emporium Chipboard Tags 1

        G45 Chipboard Buttons

          G45 Metal Buttons   

         Want to Scrap Pearl Flourish

Punches:  Fiskars Scalloped Border

Inks:  Ranger Adirondack Inks (Red Pepper)

         Tim Holtz Distress Inks ( Frayed Burlap, Shabby Shutters)

Well, that's all for today. Thank you all so much for joining us and big thanks to Hilde Janbroers and Nicole Eccles for their magnificent work. Don't forget to leave your comments this week on our Facebook page for your chance to win this week's Tropical Travelogue blog prize! We wish you all a wonderful day!

With Love and Pretty Paper,

Team Graphic 45

Hello G45ers!

Diane Schultz was kind enough to give some of her time to give you, her faithful followers, an intimate profile of her life as owner/designer of Graphic 45. She told us how the company came about, how it is to work with her two beautiful daughters, honest answers about being busy and trying to stay grounded, and how to manage her annual Christmas three-tree-to-five-tree decorating!

Diane Schultz, Graphic 45 Owner/Designer Extraordinnaire!

Diane, first tell us a little about your story. How did you get the name Graphic 45? 

I'm passionate about being creative and eager to make it possible for others to find their creative voice. My background includes stints as a designer for, McCalls, Simplicity, Vogue/ Butterick, Mattel Toy Company and a host of other jobs that each, in some way, led me to what I do now. At 45 I went back to school and got my degree in graphic design— I named my company to celebrate that achievement.

What inspired you to go back to school at age 45?

I was working in the apparel market at the time. The apparel market was moving offshore and about 60% of the domestic industry had to close their doors. My six children were half grown (three in college, three still at home). I had three job offers but knew I couldn’t move my kids, so I decided to go back to school. I initially had a double major in interior design and graphic design, trying to decide which would provide the most opportunity. After a year, I realized it was graphic design. I was in school with kids that were the age of my college-aged children. It was quite intimidating at first.

One of Diane's designs when she worked for McCalls.

But, you take what’s in front of you and you do the best that you can with it. Whenever you move out of your comfort zone it’s intimidating and you think “Can I do this?” But I feel fortunate that most of my life I have seen the glass half full. Going back to school was an incredible experience. When I graduated, I did a lot of different things including freelancing and working for a book publisher. One of my freelance jobs drew me to designing scrapbook paper which was very similar to textile and apparel design.

Starting off, I was overwhelmed. But at the time, Aimee, my daughter, worked in an industry that was going away much like apparel, and she came to Utah for 6 months to help me launch the company with the understanding that the operations office would eventually run from Portland, OR. She is now our Director of Operations. And so it began!

 So, your daughter Aimee helped you in the first days of Graphic 45, what incredible qualities does she bring to your company?

Aimee is an extraordinary multi-talented woman. Grounded, with a career background in communication and finance, she balances my creative "flights of fancy". She is also one of the hardest-working, dedicated people I know. Literally, when we’re travelling, she keeps us on schedule. She keeps us grounded.

Now your other daughter, Charee, works for you as well. How did that come about?

Aimee opened our Portland office essentially by herself. Knowing we needed an operation team, Charee joined us after about 4 months. Our Portland office has grown considerably since that time. Charee is very, very creative, energetic, and really keeps us on track with the trends. People love her. Her people skills are incredible. I am truly amazed by, and grateful for both my daughters! Working Aimee and Charee (two of my six children) is the best part of the dream. We are having the journey of a lifetime learning and growing together.

What fun! What is your personal favorite part of the design process?

Like working with apparel, the design process always starts as a blank canvas. At first it’s intimidating, but eventually takes on a life of its own. With the help of an extraordinary design staff, it grows and grows to become a collection. I can’t say enough about my assistant designers and our staff, they are truly dedicated, remarkable people who are passionate about G45! Together, we get through the design process. When preparing for CHA, we cover all sorts of unique things - clocks, lamps, birdhouses, chairs. Besides the project designers that work directly with me, we have a renowned worldwide design team you see a lot on our blog. They help with particular projects and challenges. My favorite part of the process is brainstorming to create an over-the-top presentation for our CHA shows. It’s hard work - loading and unloading crates, setting up for hours. We’re always the first one to start and the last ones get done. But once we finish, and the show begins, we love it. So many fans and friends we adore come by - and that’s the part we love!

How do you get inspired for your new collections? 

Typically, a collection idea will come when we’re travelling or just having an everyday experience. Sometimes it’s playing with my grandkids, or being out in nature, or wandering in a store. I spend lots of time researching - weeks of time - before the actual designing begins. I have boxes and boxes of old magazines, books, and newspapers. I hunt the antique and consignment stores looking for things that tell a story that can help build a collection. It was the same as when I was designing clothing. It all comes from life experience, wherever you are at that moment.

Your collections really do stand out in a crowd. How does travelling specifically inspire these timeless collections?

Aimee, Charee, and I just got back from Europe doing a workshop in a picturesque castle. We spent four days in Paris before travelling to the Netherlands. The girls and I love the same things. Rather than relaxing or shopping, we spend most of our times in museums and immersing ourselves in the local history. This common passion makes travelling really fun for us and the historical context is inspiration for design.

For example, we’re just now releasing our new collection Tropical Travelogue. Our travels to Hawaii, Singapore, and Australia - three very, very different island cultures - inspired this collection. We took a lot of bits and pieces from those cultures and incorporated them into the design of this particular collection.

There is such a timeless quality to your creations - like watching a 1920s film in 2011 Technicolor. What made you fall in love with a vintage feel? Has this always been a love for you? 

I am so passionate about and touched by anything that is old. I always have been from the time I was a little girl. My mother’s mother died when she was three, she inherited and passed onto her daughters several beautiful heirlooms that had been her mother’s. I have some of her handmade blouses and hats. They’re very precious to me. My father’s mother gave me hand-embroidered baby clothes she had made for my father. She travelled a lot, and once brought me back beautiful things from China. Even as a child, I treasured those things because I knew they were old and told a story that connected me to people from my past. They gave me a sense of belonging. 

What is the magic of crafting? How does it make you feel to create something other people craft with?

I really loved working with apparel and seeing people wear things I created. But it cannot begin to compare to the thrill that comes from creating something that other people create with. It is a big part of the joy that comes when I see what the design team has created, and what our customers are making. It literally brings tears to my eyes to see something they have created... something that is SO MUCH MORE than I could have ever conceived - over the top of where I could take it. 

I’m delighted by the projects my grandchildren create with our paper. I have an 8-year old granddaughter and an 8-year old grandson, two five-year old grandsons, and a new baby grandson. Yay! I just found out I have a granddaughter on the way! My granchildren are always making things for “Grammy” with our paper collections. I have this darling little box that my grandson made for me when I went to Hawaii. He covered a pencil box and wrote “Hawaii” and “Surfboard Hawaii” on it (it can’t be opened, but oh, well...). My home is filled with treasures made by my grandchildren, children, and design team. These things are beyond precious to me.

The grandkids with Granny! What a beautiful bunch!

We often hear heart-wrenching stories from ladies at our classes. Recently in a workshop, one of the ladies in our class was saying that her sister has cancer and she was making the project to give her sister at Christmas, knowing it may be their last Christmas together.

In Australia, there was this sweet women who was shy, but wanted to take a picture with us. This friend of hers brought her over to us, and she started weeping and couldn’t stop. She was so overwhelmed. I thought my heart was going to break. We found out that her husband had passed away 6 months before, and she had immersed herself in crafting. She loved Graphic 45 paper and it had become a lifeline for her. It could have been anyone’s paper, but she needed something to help her through this traumatic time of her life. Creating is an opportunity to get through these hard times, and when they use something we’ve created, we are honored to connect with that.

You hear these stories, and it connects you to the world as a whole and you can feel like you’re making a contribution that’s worthwhile and makes people happy. When we’re creating, we’re happy.

I’m sure the G45ers would love to know, how are you getting ready for this holiday season?

All six of my children and grandchildren and daughters-in-law should be here and I have no choice but to go all out! My mother was an over-the-top Christmas person and all of her children, including me, carry on this Christmas tradition. I used to do five Christmas trees, but have cut down to three. Every room is decorated. I have decoration boxes stacked high in my garage and I keep thinking, “In a couple of weeks, I need to haul them out and start decorating.” (It takes me two weeks to decorate for Christmas.) With CHA falling at the end of January, I don’t have a chance to take them down until the end of February. They’re up for a long time, and get dusty before they come down.

A few years ago I only put up one Christmas tree, and Aimee and Charee complained, “It doesn’t even feel like Christmas! You didn’t put it all up!” Every year I think I’ll cut down, but I’m afraid of the wrath of the family. They’ll keep asking, “What happened to Frosty the Snowman?” So I keep cramming it in there.

And just for fun, If you had to watch a movie for the rest of time, what movie would it be?

I love music and I LOVE movies. So this is a hard question, but I think the answer must be To Kill a Mockingbird. It’s this old, tremendous story about character, meaning, and substance.

Finally, what makes you stay grounded day after day running such a fantastic company?

I just focus on what has to be done each day. I’ve done a lot of reading about being present in the now. I’m not really good at that, but I’m trying to be better. Trying to appreciate the part of the journey I’m experiencing right now, in this moment. Not always looking at all the deadlines that seem to drive my life. I’m trying to just appreciate small, daily moments. I’m looking at a pile of old magazines on the floor as I’m talking to you that I am in the process of going through and marking. And I’ve got all these bits and pieces and piles of wonderful images. I haven’t appreciated how pretty those piles are until I sit here for a moment and just look at them. Not getting overwhelmed and thinking “Oh I need to get through those piles.” Just simply appreciating the beauty of the pile. I am doing better at smelling the roses!

Wow. What great words on smelling the roses when life gets crazy! Thank you so much for taking time out of your busy schedule to talk to us, your loyal fans!

I am so grateful to be in this industry. This is such a team effort, I am so dependent on my daughters and my designers. We have so many great people on our staff. I have the best personal assistant. It’s not just me! I have all these wonderful people who without, I couldn’t function. Graphic 45 has been such a fabulous opportunity, my life is so full. I feel overwhelmed with gratitude for the people who support us, follow us, and share with us. It’s like a big extended family that make my life worthwhile. Thank you so much!

Remember that you can sign up for regular newletter updates from Graphic 45 by going here!

http://www.facebook.com/Graphic45?sk=app_100265896690345

You'll get free project sheets, tips, announcements and so much more in our newsletter! It's a lot of fun and a great way to stay connected to all the great stuff that's happening at Graphic 45!

Happy Papercrafting!

Team Graphic 45

Hello Wonderful G45ers!

Welcome all to another fabulous day here at the Graphic 45 blog! Today is going to be a lot of fun. We are bringing you three gorgeous layouts from our design team that display the amazing variety of creations you can make with Graphic45 products! Yuka Hino, Melanie Forbes and Nancy Wethington have created the most astonishing Layouts that are sure to dazzle you! With so many different and beautiful paper collections, the sky is the limit with Graphic 45! All you need is a little love and imagination! This first LO was created by Yuka Hino. Using our adorable collection An ABC Primer, Yuka used some terrific layering and some stunning embellishments to create this charming scene. Plus, Yuka always chooses the sweetest photos for her layouts. So the next time you capture a beautiful photograph just think of how you could incorporate it into a wonderful LO like this one!

This next wonderful layout was made by Melanie Forbes. Using our collection Renaissance Faire and lots of gorgeous Metal Staples, Melanie was able to create this timeless treasure. Having an eye for space and movement in your LOs is key. You can see how Melanie used some beautiful paper distressing to create some great textures. Plus there are some some nice areas with lots of beautiful embellishments while other areas of the LO are nice and open. This helps give your LO some marvelous focal points that make it feel lively and elegant!

Hello G45ers,

Happy Monday to you all and welcome to another week of fantastic fun here at Graphic 45! What a week we have in store for you! There will be glorious crafts from our design team, a fantastic blog prize and lots of good cheer and classic Graphic 45 style! So lets get this party started with prizes! This week's contest is going to take place on our awesome Facebook page. Just leave us a comment on Facebook any day this week and you could win this amazing Tropical Travelogue prize! That's right! Out Facebook page is a great place to connect with your fellow G45ers, get lots of inspiration and get regular updates and posts about Graphic 45! Just click "Like" on our Facebook page, leave a comment and let the fun begin! We will be choosing a random winner from Facebook and announcing them this Friday, Novemember 25th! Check out this amazing prize: Tropical Travelogue 12x12 paper pad, Chipboard Die-Cuts 1 & 2, Tropical Travelogue Stickers and Alphabet Stickers! It's the entire collection at your fingertips! How grand!

Now it's time for inspiration! Today's theme is all about creating beautiful wall hangings to brighten up your home. Our design team members Jack & Cat Curio and Gloria Stengel have made some gorgeous works of art that you are sure to adore. These wall hangings have pretty different styles so there's something for everyone to enjoy! Plus, these creations also make fantastic gift ideas for someone you love! What could be better than a beautiful and original work of art as a holiday gift?! Check out this first dazzling project by Jack & Cat Curio. Using the Core Impressions Timeless Collection, Steampunk Debutante papers and a few nicely layered embellishments, they created a unique and exquisite piece of art!

Supplies:

6x6 Artboard Graphic 45 - Core'dinations Core Impressions - Timeless Collection: Clocks Graphic 45 Steampunk Debutante Collections: Fantasy Floral, Mechanical Mind Graphic 45 Stickers, Metal Tag Staples Vintage Dictionary, Cardboard houseRanger Distress Ink: Walnut Stain, Wild Honey, Black Soot Top of FormRanger Ink - Studio by Claudine Hellmuth - Multi-Medium - Matte Tsukineko Walnut Ink Crystals Kaisercolour acrylic paint: Sea breeze Scrapbook-Adhesives 3D Foam Squares

Next up is this beautiful and adorable ABC Primer wall hanging by Gloria Stengel. Here again we see great examples of what a little clever layering can do! The vibrant leaves help create wonderful movement in this piece. It's gorgeous and easy to make! Here is what Gloria had to say about her inspiration for this darling wall hanging.

"As soon as I saw the An ABC Primer Happy Go Lucky paper I knew I wanted to make a seriers of wall hangings for our homeschool room. I decorated this one in a fall theme using Spellbinders™ die templates and Core'dinations cardstock to make all of the leaves. Once the leaves were all cut, I sanded them to give them a worn look, then layered them. The finished piece is just a little larger than 6 x 6 inches." -Gloria Stengel

Hello G45ers!

Get ready for a heaping dose of holiday cheer with today's Graphic 45 blog!  Yuka Hino, Robin Shakoor and Nancy Wethington of our design team have created the most amazing Christmas cards that are sure to make your day merry and bright! The holidays are such a fabulous time of year. It is a time that inspires creativity on so many levels. There are cards to be mailed, trees to trim, cookies to be baked, gifts to give and warm sentiments to share. As you search for that perfect gift this year remember that nothing is more heartfelt than a handmade gift or card. Today's crafts from our design team are sure to give you some fantastic ideas for your holiday crafting! This first gorgeous creation is by Yuka Hino. She used our Christmas Emporium collection along with some gorgeous Graphic 45 Staples to create this card. It's so lovely and festive!

That's all for today. We hope you all enjoyed Yuka, Nancy and Robin's wonderful cards. We want to thank them for their gorgeous work today. Thank you all for stopping by. Remember that you can post your Graphic 45 creations on our Facebook page, Ning site or website gallery anytime! We'd love to see your Graphic 45 crafts! Wishing you a warm and wonderful day!

With Love and Christmas Wishes,

Team Graphic 45

Bonjour G45ers!

Welcome to another beautiful day here at Graphic 45. Today we are dreaming of the elegance and the romance of Paris. Jane Tregenza of our design has created some phenomenal layouts that were inspired by this amazing city!  She has also included amazing tutorials for each project that you are sure to adore. What could be more inspiring than visiting a place so rich in history and style? We recently took a trip to this glorious city and today we're going to share some snapshots from our travels. Yes, it's going to be a wonderful day of gorgeous crafts and fabulous travels. All aboard as Jane Tregenza begins her journey through this classic city! 

"I love this layout of the Eiffel tower. I love using lots of layers on my work. I like to think that each time you look at it you find something else. As it has lots of layers and elements you need to be careful when following my instructions. I always measure twice and cut once!" -Jane Tregenza

Supplies:

Graphic 45
Graphic 45 Curtain Call Collection - Curtain Call G4500317
Graphic 45 Curtain Call Collection - Tour de France G4500324
Graphic 45 Curtain Call Collection – the Cinema G4500323
Graphic 45 Communique Collection – Postage G4500067
Graphic 45 Domestic Goddess Collection – Yours truly G4500124
Imaginarium designs chipboard:
Paris Title IDW0040
Eliffel Tower IDS0041
Other
2x Cream Bazzill
2x Black Bazzills
3L Photo corners
Green Tara gold sticky ribbon.
Vandoros black ribbon and Gold organza ribbon
Clock
Tim Holtz Memo pins
Bottle cap Images – Paris Passport
Making memories decorative brads
Foam tape, double sided tape and glue.

1. Cut your cream bazzill to 27.5cm x 27.5cm and tape it to the middle of your “Curtain Call” print paper.
2. Cut your black Bazzill to 25.5 cm x 25.5 cm and adhere it to the middle of your cream Bazzill.
3. Cut Postage print paper to 24.5cm x 24.5 and adhere it to your black Bazzill with photo corners.
4. You need to cut two elements from “the Cinema” print paper. The first one is the film strip with the images on it. Cut it the whole length and then trim it back to 24cm long  and mat it with black Bazzill. Cut a narrow piece of black Bazzill 4cm wide and tape it on top of the film images. Add gold sticky ribbon to the middle of the black Bazzill and in the middle. Once you have cut out this piece, cut the film strip with numbers on it, you will need to use both pieces. Mat the two pieces with black Bazzill.
5. From the sheet you will need to cut the image with the couple with the man with a sword, leaving some of the black edge on it. Cut a piece of cream Bazzill 7.5 cm x 15cm. Mat this piece with black Bazzill. Add the image of the couple to the middle of the cream Bazzill. Cut a small piece of the print paper to 2.5cm wide and 10cm long. Back tear along one edge of it, along the long side and ink. Attach it to the bottom of the image piece and wrap edges around to the back. Add black ribbon over the top and wrap a piece of organza ribbon and tie it to the front with a knot to the right side of the piece.
6. Cut a piece of yours truly to 5cm x 9cm and adhere it over the top of the couple using black photo corners.
7. Ink Paris title and Eiffel tower with black ink. Place Eiffel tower on to cream cardstock and draw around it and cut out the shape. It needs to be a little bit bigger than the chipboard shape. Glue the two together and attach it to the red print with foam tape as shown. Add clock to the middle of Eiffel Tower.

For the rest of the page:

1. You need to adhere your print paper stripe with gold sticky ribbon to the bottom of your print paper; it needs to be about 4cm up from the bottom of the print. Place two pieces of film strip with numbers on an angle running from the top of your page to the bottom attach them to each other. Once happy with the angle you can tape them down.
2. You can add your rectangle with the Eiffel tower to your page using foam tape. Use the photo of the layout for a guide for placing it.
3. Cut three Eiffel tower stamps from your Tour de France print paper and mat them with black Bazzill. Adhere them on top of the number film strip at the top of your page. The left and right one go on with tape but use foam tape on the middle one.
4. Punch a circle of black Bazzill and adhere your bottle cap disk on to it. Push it onto the memo pin. Tie a piece of organza ribbon to pin and insert into the foam tape at the top of your rectangle piece with the  Eiffel tower.
5. Check that your matted photo will fit and adhere it to your page using photo corners.
6. Add title and brads to finish.

Tip Use photo corners on your work to give it a classic look. Use lots of elements to add interest and layer elements using foam tape to add dimension.

Paris Snap Shots Layout:

"I had such a lot of photos of Paris to play with that I decide to do a whole layout using as many photos as I could. I love this print paper “Moulin Rouge” from Graphic 45’s Curtain Call I decided to use it as the background paper for my layout." -Jane Tregenza

I printed all the photos in a small size and cut them to fit the stamps which were printed on the paper. I had beautiful Eiffel tower chipboard from Imaginarium designs and used it as the centre of my layout. The page came together really well and shows 20 snap shots of Paris!

Supplies:

Graphic 45
Graphic 45 Curtain Call Collection - Moulin Rouge G4500325
Graphic 45 Curtain Call Collection - Tour de France G4500324
Graphic 45 Domestic Goddess Collection - Alphabet G4500131
Graphic 45 Curtain Call Collection - Tour de France G4500324
Graphic 45 Transatlantique Collection - Paris Post G4500090
Imaginarium designs:
Paris Title (E) IDS0041 67mmx93.5mm
Paris Title Tinies IDT0024
Eiffel Tower Large IDS0040
Alphas Lowercase IDALC0001
Alphas Uppercase IDAUC0001
Edward Ornament IDFL0012 (2 per board)
Black Bazzill
Cream Bazzill
Tim Holtz Philosophy Tags “wander”
3L photo corners
Large Epoxy Dots
Black Doodle Bug Brads
Green Tara Black sticky ribbon.
Vandoros black stitched ribbon and copper organza ribbon.
Double sided tape, foam tape and glue

1. Using Graphic 45’s Moulin Rouge as your base. Work out how many of the squares you want to cover. I left 4 squares uncovered with my photos. Cut the photos to 2.5cm x 3.6cm, + four photos 2.8 x2.8 cm for the corners. Lay your photos on the squares and move them around until you are happy with the layout. Once happy adhere them to the page.
2. Cut your black Bazzill to 22.1 cm x 22.1 cm and tape it to the middle of your print paper. It should fit nicely inside the square.  Cut your cream bazzill to 21.5cm x 21.5cm place tape in the middle of the paper and adhere it to your black Bazzill. Don’t tape down the sides as you will need to wrap ribbon around the edges later on. Add photo corners to the cream corners and stick them down.
3. Cut your Tour de France print paper to 15cm x 19cm with the stripes running down. Ink around the edges and adhere it to your cream Bazzill with the same amount of space at the top and bottom and 1cm in from the right side of the cream bazzill. Add a piece of black stitched ribbon across the top of the stripe and wrap it around to the back of the cream on the right side of the page.
4. Cut your Paris Post print paper to 9cm x 20.5cm and adhere it to the cream Bazzill over the top of the stripe and ribbon. It needs to go 1 cm in on the cream from the left side with the same amount of space at the top and bottom. . Add black brads to each corner.
5. Add some sticky ribbon across the page over the top of both print papers and wrap it around the back of the cream on both sides. Use the photo as a guide as to where to place it.

1. Cut the Eiffel tower print from your tour de France paper and mat it with black Bazzill. Add four photo corners and attach to the page as shown.
2. Ink Eiffel tower and Paris title in black. Paint the miniature title and Edward ornament with a silver paint dabber.

1. I used some alphas, which I inked with vintage photo distress ink and stamped with a French writing stamp and black ink over the top.
2. Push out the circle letters from the Domestic Goddess to spell “snap” and place an epoxy dot over the top.
3. Once the silver paint is dry, glue the tinies Paris title onto the black title.
4. Tie a ribbon through the “wander” disk and glue it to the middle of the painted Edward ornament.
5. Place all the titles and the Eiffel tower to your page and check that all the elements fit. Once you are happy, glue the Eiffel tower down to your page and glue the silver element to the Eiffel tower.  Glue title and words to your layout.

Finished!

Tip: If you have a lot of photos to fit on a page then look for print papers which have designs that let you use lots of photos. The Graphic 45 Curtain Call Collection - Moulin Rouge paper is perfect for this as the border around the page is made up of lots of little stamps which can be used as frames for your photos!

The Paris Opera House Layout:

"I was captivated with this photo, the glorious rich colours and the opulence of opera house, which was part of the great reconstruction of Paris during the second Empire initiated by Emperor Napoleon III. The Opera house was started in 1861 with the laying of a foundation stone. Legend is that the Emperor’s wife Eugenie asked the architect whether the building would be built in the Greek or Roman style to which her replied “It is in the Napoleon III style, Madame.  It was the setting for Gaston Leroux’s famous novel “the Phantom of the Opera” written in 1910.  Andrew Lloyd Webber used it as a guide for the sets of his movie based on Leroux’s book.  I decided to keep the layout simple as the photo is so beautiful. I printed the photo twice in different sizes and placed them on top of each other to make them the focus of my layout." -Jane Tregenza

Supplies:
One 4 x 6 inch photo and one 5 x 7 inch photo
Graphic 45 Print Papers
Steampunk Debutante Collection Ephemera extraordinaire  G4500262
Graphic45 communiqué Collection Postage G45000673
sheets of Black Bazzill
Tim Holt Distress ink – Vintage Photo & Black soot
Tim Holtz Embossing ink pad
Imaginarium Designs Sponging blockRanger - Queens Gold embossing powder
Making Memories Gold BradsDouble sided tape, foam tape and glue
Imaginarium Designs Chipboard:2x Paris Title IDW0040
Edward Corners IDC0008 Imaginarium Designs Custom words – Opera HouseExtra Cardboard

Instructions for Layout:

1. Use a 12x12 black bazzil as base for the layout.
2. Cut a piece of cardboard to 11 ¼ x 11 ¼
3. Cut your print paper to 11 ½ x 11 ½ and ink around the edges. Tape the cardboard piece to the back of the print paper. This will raise your print paper up a bit from the black Bazzill.
4. Mat your two photos with black Bazzill. Add more cardboard to the smaller photo on the back and add foam tape to the cardboard. This will raise the smaller photo up when it is placed on the larger photo. Now you can stick your smaller matted photo on top of the larger photo. 
5. Cut the Ephemera extraordinaire  to 6 ¼ x 8 ¼ and cut a black mat 6 ¾ x 8 ¾   adhere the black mat to the back of the print paper.  Adhere your layered photo in the middle of the print paper. Don’t stick it to your page just yet.
6. Ink one of the “Paris” titles, “opera house” titles ,  the word “the” and all four corners with black ink.
7. The second “Paris” title needs to be inked lightly with Vintage photo. I used a sponging block to add the ink to the chipboard rather than applying the ink direct from the ink pad to the chipboard. This helps me control the amount of ink I apply,  meaning  I can lightly ink the chipboard. Make sure you dry the inked title with a heat gun before embossing it. This is important as the gold powder will adhere to the whole title rather than just the stamped embossed part of the title. To finish the title I added some old French writing with gold embossed powder on top. To do this, choose a stamp with French writing or any kind of writing and use an embossing ink pad. Place the stamped title into some gold embossing powder and heat with a heat gun.
8. Once cold, glue the gold embossed title on top of the black one.  Make sure they don’t line up as you want the black title to show underneath.
9. The second “Opera House” title needs to be totally inked with embossing ink and placed in gold embossing powder. Heat and melt the powder, once it is melted and while it is hot place it back into the power and reheat. Keep repeating this until the title is built up and has a thick smooth gold finished. Glue the finished gold title to the matching black title – off set it and make sure the black title is showing underneath.

10.  You can place all the elements on the page and check that they will fit. Start by gluing the corners onto the page. Add a gold brad in the corners and through all the layers of the layout. Add the title at the top of the page. The photo can go on next. The Opera House title goes on last as it has to go over the photos and corners.

Finished!

Tip Make your photo’s the focus of your layouts. If you have fussy photos then try laying one photo on top of a larger photo. This creates a frame around your smaller photo and helps it to stand out.

Earlier this fall the Ladies of G45 stopped by Paris before heading to a weekend workshop in a castle in the Netherlands. It was a beautiful trip. Here is what Charee had to say about her glorious travel experience.

"Being my first trip to Europe I was in total awe and amazement from all the historical and grand beauty that is Paris.  We spent the days traveling on double decker tour buses, hoping off and on at all the usual spots.  The Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, Paris Opera House, and Montmartre.  Plus we took a field trip to the Palace of Versailles where we meet the most lovely women from Louisiana, Melissa.  These are memories I will hold dear to my heart for the rest of time.  To Paris!" -Charee

Diane and Aimee in front of the Eiffel Tower.

Charee strikes a pose.

Diane and Aimee outside the Louvre.

Hall of Mirrors at the Palace of Versailles.

Diane and Charee, (windy)grounds at outside of the Palace of Versailles.

We hope you have all enjoyed today's little vacation with Graphic 45! Big thanks to Jane Tregenza for today's brilliant creations and tutorials! We hope you will all join us tomorrow for more craft bliss. Don't forget to leave a blog or Facebook comment this week for your chance to win this week's blog prize. Just tell us something that you're thankful for this year! Share your gratitude and maybe win a prize! How grand! We wish you all a delightful day!

Au Revoir!

Team Graphic 45

Hello G45ers!

We're wishing you the very happiest of Mondays! Thank you all for joining us on this fabulous day. We have some gorgeous crafts to share with you today along with a new blog contest! It's going to be superb! Robin Shakoor and Melanie Forbes of our design team have created the most stunning crafts with our collection An ABC Primer. There's even a fun tutorial by Melanie Forbes! Yes, today is going to be a lot of fun. Since Thanksgiving is just around the corner we thought we'd gear this week's blog contest towards the idea of being grateful. There are so many things to be grateful for this year. Here at Graphic 45 we're grateful for another fantastic year of creativity, inspiration, and togetherness. We are so happy to have such a vibrant and wonderful crafting community that continue to inspire us with new ideas. This week we're asking you to leave us a comment letting us know about something that you're grateful for. You can leave your comments on our blog or Facebook page any time this week. A random winner will be chosen from the comments and announced this Friday, November 18th. You could win An ABC Primer 12x12 Paper Pad, Metal Hinges, 5x5 Altered Art Box and Alphabet Sticker Staples! Wow!

This first fabulous craft was created by Robin Shakoor. It's a beautiful altered photo shadowbox tray that you are going to adore! This has all the elegance and classic style that Robin is known for! You can feel the love emanating from this wonderful work of art! Here is what Robin had to say about this fabulous creation!

"I can't think of a better way to showcase photos and embellishments than in a photo shadowbox tray.  I used this 7 Gypsies tray to display my daughter's elementary school photos adorned with the An ABC Primer collection.  I used various Graphic 45 staples to give texture and dimension to each section of my tray.  I made the ornate metal door plate my focal point and layered it with a velvet flower, metal flower, die cuts and twine.  Try mixing metal with your papers and flowers on your next project.  You will be amazed at what you can create." -Robin Shakoor

Supplies:

Hello Fabulous G45ers!

A very happy Friday to you all! Welcome to our very special blog today. It's also 11/11/11 which is pretty exciting! In honor of this day wouldn't it be fun to create 11 tags, or 11 cards? Or maybe buy yourself 11 flowers? Or maybe give 11 hugs throughout the day? We love to find any excuse to get creative and be good to each other! Today we've got some craft inspiration that you are sure to love. We also have a winner to announce for this week's blog contest and 3 winners to announce from our Thank You Card Challenge! We asked you to let us know about your holiday crafting plans. We got so many amazing responses on our blog and Facebook this week. Our winner, chosen randomly, is...

-Deb Vanek

Our 3 randomly selected winners from our Thank You Card Challenge are:

-Barbie Sanchez

-Jeyatha Thangamani

-Jennifer Ferrell

Congratulations to all the winners! Please email us with your shipping information at info@g45papers.com to claim your prize!

Today is all about having fun with our Metal Film Canisters! You're going to see fantastic ways to create beautiful and clever crafts with these awesome film canisters. We've got an all-star cast of creativity as Jack & Cat Curio, Jane Tregenza and Nancy Wethington share some marvelous tips and inspiration. Check out this jolly Christmas Emporium tin by Jack & Cat Curio. Inside the tin you'll see some gorgeous ornaments that sparkle with Christmas joy. Here is what Jack & Cat had to say about this holiday gem!

"With this project we decided to put to use one of our favorite techniques glitter and double sided tape. Apply your double sided tape to your desired parts of your tin. Then apply your glitter to your tape. It’s a simple but great way to get a little shimmer.  For a two color effect with glitter, try it with a touch of polyester lace attached to the tape. Apply one color, then remove the lace from the tape, pour second color of glitter. Happy Crafting!" -Jack & Cat Curio

Supplies:

Graphic 45 Metal Film Canister With Album
8 x8 Christmas Emporium Collection: Christmas Emporium, Believe!, A Christmas Carol, Joyous Noel, Happy Holidays, Special Delivery
Christmas Emporium Chipboard Die-cuts 1
Leaky Shed Studio: XMAS Ball #1, XMAS Ball #4, XMAS Ball #5, Large Snowflake Ornament, Large Photo Ornament, Large Poinsettia Ornament
Aleene’s Clear Gel Tacky Glue, Stampendous Fran-ta’ge Silver Crushed Glass Glitter, Art Glitter Copper, Assorted ribbon and Seam binding, Crepe Paper, Vintage knob, Double sided tape
Cuttlebug, Spellbinders Nestabilities Standard Circles Large, Classic Scalloped Circles Large

Next up is this brilliant tutorial by Jane Tregneza on how to create a beautiful and educational craft that teaches kids about fractions! Wow wow wow! Plus she used An ABC Primer in this fun creation. How perfect is that?! Leave it to Jane to come up with something so clever! Check out this fantastic creation that is sure to knock your socks off as Jane explains her creative process!

"I love the new boxes and tin from Graphic 45. I have always had a fascination for boxes with things inside. I think it’s the surprise element of not knowing what’s inside that gets me every time. I also have lots of children, 5 in fact, one with a disability and one with learning difficulties which she has inherited from me!. So when I saw the tin with the album inside I decided to make an educational game which will help children with fractions or fractious fractions as I call them." -Jane Tregenza

For the outside of the tin I used an image from Bedtime Stories which I adhered to one of chipboard album circles. I inked a black clock from Imaginarium Designs and glued it to the lid. I added ribbon to the rim of the lid. A strip of the alphabet from Building Blocks adhered to the rim of the bottom of the tin finished it off nicely.

I used the album circles as a template to cut circles out of chipboard. I covered each chipboard circle with pattered papers from the new” An ABC Primer range from Graphic 45. I then worked out which  one I wanted to cut in half, quarters, eights and sixteenths. I cut the cardboard album in the tin  into circles to use as a base for each fraction set. Graphic 45 now has stamps to match each collection. I stamped images onto the chipboard album circles first. I printed  prompts onto cardstock and using the printed cardboard circle from the lid as a template, cut them out and adhered them to the cardboard album circles. I always ink my papers to get rid of the white cut edge. I am loving the new line of ink pads from Graphic 45. They work wonderfully with a sponging block, so I will have to do a tutorial on using them next time.

So now when teaching fractions your child can see how it all fits together. You could make some cards with fractions sums on them for your child to work out like ½ + ¼ + 1/8 + 2/16 = 1

When I teach I used inches. In Australia we use metric so some of my students struggle with the 8ths of an inch or  16ths of an inch measurements.  I think I will have to loan out my tin to some students to play with!

Supplies:

Building blocks
Bed Time stories
Grammar school
An ABC primer
Jumping Joan
Games and Playtime
ABC Primer 3 Stamps
Graphic 45 ink pads.
Imaginarium Designs Chipboard – Clock without Hands.

Next up is this gorgeous Metal Film Canister by Nancy Wethington. Nancy used A Proper Gentleman to give this project a more masculine look. This creation is perfect inspiration for a wonderful gift! Nancy even created a fun video tutorial for you all to enjoy! Thanks, Nancy! Here is what she had to say about this awesome piece!

"This film canister has so many possibilities. For this project I used A Proper Gentleman to decorate in a bit more manly style.  Each page reminds me of my Dad, who was indeed a proper gentleman. I left the back of each page blank so that I would have plenty of room to write stories and show photos about how much my Dad loved cars, golfing, sports in general and, of course, his family. It will make a great tribute to him and a heartfelt gift for my son at Christmas." -Nancy Wethington

Supplies:

Graphic 45 Papers: A Proper Gentleman: A Proper Gentleman; Man About Town; Dressed to the Nines;  Sporting Aristocrat; Haberdasher; Timely Point of View. Transatlantique: Meet Me In St. Louis
Graphic 45 Staples: Metal Film Canister with Album; Envelope Tags; Flower Staples

Big thanks to Jack & Cat Curio, Jane Tragenza and Nancy Wethington for their amazing work today. We hope you all got some great inspiration from today's projects. Thank you all for joining us. We will have more fabulous crafts to share with you in the days to come. We hope you have a terrific weekend!

Happy Papercrafting

Team Graphic 45

Christmas Emporium Banner in a Box — Free Downloadable Project Sheet

Dear Loyal G45ers,

We wanted to share with you, our faithful followers, an amaing holiday project! A Christmas banner in a box. Becky Olsen was kind enough to share this with us. Check our her blog by clicking here. This is great as a decoration or a gift. It's the time of year to spread cheer, we'll start here!

Download Christmas Emporium Banner in a Box Project Sheet-1

Happy Papercrafting!

Your Friends at Graphic 45

Hello G45ers!

Welcome to our wonderful Wednesday blog! Get ready to be blown away by today's brilliant works of art from our design team. Today's crafts are not only stunning, but they are going to give you some great inspiration for creating one of a kind gifts with our Metal Staples! Yes, indeed! We love to think outside the box and today's crafts embody the idea of clever and creative thinking! So get ready to be amazed as Melanie Forbes and Jack & Cat Curio show you some gorgeous ways to turn the ordinary into something extraordinary! This first wonderful project was made by Melanie Forbes. We all need cute places to store our little treasures. Melanie has made this gorgeous altered mini cupboard that is out of this world! This would make a wonderful gift for a loved one or even a special gift for yourself! With Graphic 45 papers and embellishments, the sky's the limit!

Supplies:
Communique – Pen in Hand, Communique, A Fine Specimen, Postage Staples – Metal Flowers
Colorbox G45 Decades – PhotogenicBlack GessoMod PodgeSandpaper
Tim Holtz corner and door knobs7 Gyspy door knob
Imaginarium Designs letter chipboard.Various props.
German Scraps – Distress stain rusty hinge & Smooch

Next we have two beautiful jewelery creations by Jack & Cat Curio. We recently received a marvelous package from Jack & Cat here at the Graphic 45 offices that contained some of their brilliant jewelry creations. (G45 blog writer Kelly Woessner happens to be wearing one of their amazing necklaces right now as this blog is being written!) And we can all agree that their jewelry is absolutely wonderful! Today's creations are perfect examples of Jack & Cat Curio's clever imaginations at work. With a few simple tools, some Graphic 45 paper and Metal Staples and artistic curiosity, you too can create some amazing gifts such as these! Just look at this gorgeous Ice Resin Queen Pendant! It's like something out of a fairytale!

Supplies:
G45 Papers Renaissance Faire Collection:  Renaissance Faire
G45 Staples: Metal Flowers, Metal Tags, Trim, Metal Buttons
Susan Lenart Kazmer Products: ICE Resin, Rectangular Hobnail Bezel, Bronze-Plated, Large
vintage broach, vintage trim, jump rings, jute, glass beads
3L Scrapbook Adhesives: 3D Foam Squares

Next up is this wonderful zipper-button bracelet also by Jack & Cat Curio. This lavish bracelet is so eye-catching and fun! The superb mix of soft fabric textures with the striking beauty of our Metal Staples is a real winner. Yet another example of a perfect gift that's also so much fun to create!

"A new passion of ours is incorporating fabric and textiles into our work. Love the added dimension and drama that simple ruffles can achieve." -Jack & Cat Curio

Supplies:
9 inch zipper, Muslin, vintage lace, thread
Graphic 45 - Hampton Art - Curtain Call Collection - Cling Mounted Rubber Stamps – Feather
Graphic 45 Staples Trim, Metal Buttons, Ornate Door Knob, Metal Flowers
Ranger Archival Ink-Black
American Tag Company Copper Brads

We want to thank Melanie Forbes and Jack & Cat Curio for their stupendous work today. It was such a pleasure to feature such innovative and fascinating creations! We hope you all had fun too. If you are looking for more G45 fun hop on over to Bazzill's Match Maker they have updated their system to have all of our collections.  Their Match Maker system is such a help when shopping online or just looking for the perfect cardstock.  Thank you all for joining us today. Don't forget that there is still time to leave your comment for this week's blog prize. Tell us what you're craft plans are for this holiday season and you could win this week's prize! Comments can be left here on our blog or Facebook page! Yay! Have a great day and we hope to see you back here tomorrow as we bring you more fabulous craft inspiration!

Happy Papercrafting!

Team Graphic 45

Hello Fabulous G45ers,

Welcome to this awesome Tuesday edition of the Graphic 45 blog. We have the most amazing crafts to share with you today from Nancy Wethington and Sherry Cheever. Get ready to have inspiration overload! Now that the weather is really starting to get chilly this is the perfect time to start cultivating your inspiration for winter crafting. We love the cold seasons because it gives us a glorious excuse to stay inside and be super creative. We are sure that today's amazing crafts will help give you some great ideas. All of today's creations feature our beautiful collection An ABC Primer. Today you will see some very clever ways to use this adorable and classic collection. First up are these gorgeous altered book box and pencil box by Nancy Wethington. Here is what Nancy had to say about her inspiration for these sweet craft gems!

"A jaunt with friends to Springfield IL always means a stop at a favorite store, Prairie Art Stamps. Terry has a fabulous store filled with all things Graphic 45, a wonderful stamp selection, samples and artful treasures.  While there, Terry was showing us some little chipboard boxes she just got in from USA ArtQuest.  Loved the little book box and, of course, immediately thought of An ABC Primer.  The book box is only  4" wide x 5.5" tall and has loose white papers included on the inside.  I changed them out for a tiny book I had in my stash at home. I thought the pencil box (also from Terry's store), the chipboard book and the little mini would make a cute teacher's gift with included photos of each student . . . school photos on one side of the page and a special handwritten note from each student on the opposite page. The Graphic 45 Metal Flower Staples make cute toppers for the pencils." -Nancy Wethington

Supplies:
Graphic 45 Papers:
An ABC Primer:  An ABC Primer; Games & Playtime; Grammar School; The Three R's; Bedtime Stories; Building Blocks; School Days; An ABC Primer Chipboard Die Cuts 1 & 2
Christmas Past:  Christmas Past Frames
Graphic 45 Staples: Metal Flower Staples; Metal Buttons
 

Other supplies used: Miscellaneous pencils; USA ArtQuest chipboard pencil box; USA ArtQuest chipboard book; miscellaneous miniature tablet book; Claudine Hellmuth black acrylic paint

Next we have two beautiful creations by Sherry Cheever: an altered cork-board and an altered chalkboard decorated in An ABC Primer. These stunning and super practical creations would look amazing in a kitchen or workspace. They'd also make amazing gifts for someone you love! Plus they contain inspirational messages to keep you grounded and feeling positive! It's amazing what a little dose of positivity can do for your day! Plus there's even an awesome video tutorial that Sherry has created that shows you some great techniques for recreating this vibrant craft for yourself! Enjoy the fun!

Supplies:

GRAPHIC 45 PAPER:  An ABC Primer – Calico Kids and Bedtime Stories
 GRAPHIC 45 STAPLES:  Metal Flowers, Metal Buttons
SPELLBINDERS™:  S4-328 Foliage, S4-112 Classic Ovals SM, LF-005 Grand Peony Creations, Grand Calibur
HAMPTON ART:  Studio G – Flourish Background
SCRAPBOOK ADHESIVES:  Repositionable E-Z Dots
CORE’DINATIONS:  Sand It Gadget
CLEARSNAP:  Colorbox – Chestnut Road Chalk Ink
RANGER INDUSTRIES:  Peeled Paint, Crushed Olive and Bundled Sage Distress Stains and Inks; Matte Accents; Mister; Blue Patina and Forever Green Perfect Pearls and Brush; Claudine Hellmuth Studio Charcoal Black Acrylic Paint
STUDIO 490:  Art Parts – Dress Forms and More, Leaves; Stamps – I Am My Art
MISC/OTHER:  Junk Store Bulletin Board; Hot Glue Gun; Maya Road Brown and Turquoise Leaf  and Vintage Pearl Trinket Pins; Jewelers Pliers, Proedge Matte Knife; Plaid Folk Art Vintage White Acrylic Paint; Sookwang 1” Scor-Tape; idea-ology GrungePaper; Manila Tag

And next up is Sherry Cheever's altered chalk board. We all have to leave notes for ourselves or our loved ones from time to time. Why not leave them on a beautiful hand-made altered chalkboard like this one!? Every note you leave will be like poetry!

Supplies:

GRAPHIC 45 PAPER:  An ABC Primer – Calico Kids and Bedtime Stories
GRAPHIC 45 STAPLES:  Metal Flowers, Metal Buttons
SPELLBINDERS™:  S4-328 Foliage, LF-005 Grand Peony Creations, S4-162 Labels One, Grand Calibur
HAMPTON ART:  Studio G – Flourish Background
SCRAPBOOK ADHESIVES:  Repositionable E-Z Dots
CORE’DINATIONS:  Sand It Gadget
CLEARSNAP:  Colorbox – Chestnut Roan Chalk Ink
RANGER INDUSTRIES:  Peeled Paint, Crushed Olive and Antique Linen Distress Stains; Peeled Paint and Vintage Photo Distress Inks; Matte Accents; Mister; Blue Patina and Forever Green Perfect Pearls and Brush; Claudine Hellmuth Studio Charcoal Black Acrylic Paint; Craft Sheet; Mister
STUDIO 490:  Art Parts – Dress Forms and More, Leaves; Stamps – Seriously Art
WANT2SCRAP:  Chipboard Shapes – Style C
MISC/OTHER:  Junk Store Chalkboard; Hot Glue Gun; Maya Road Brown and Turquoise Leaf  and Vintage Pearl Trinket Pins; Jewelers Pliers; Proedge Matte Knife; Plaid Folk Art Vintage White Acrylic Paint; Sookwang 1” and 1.5” Scor-Tape; idea-ology GrungePaper; Manila Tag

Well, that's all the craft fun for today. Thank you all so much for stopping by our blog today. We hope you are staying warm out there. And for our readers in the southern hemisphere, soak up some sun for all of us up here in the northern hemisphere! It's getting cold up here! We also want to thank Nancy Wethington and Sherry Cheever for their amazing craft creations. We wish you all a beautiful Tuesday!

With Love and Pretty Paper,

Team Graphic 45

Hello G45ers!

Happy Monday to you! Welcome to another fun-filled week here at Graphic 45! Today we have the most marvelous crafts to share with you from our brilliant design members Yuka Hino and Tara Orr. Plus, it's Monday and you know what that means! It's time for another Graphic 45 weekly blog contest! Yay! And the fun doesn't stop there, we also have a winner to announce from the Handmade Holiday Hop.  Let's cut to the chase and make the announcement.  The winner is . . .Chris D!

Chris D. left this comment on Nicole Eccles blog: What a wonderful Christmas shadow box! This was truly a labor of love to make - so much detail! Thanks for sharing! 

We would like to thank all the desingers, partners and hoppers for making this weekend unforgettable.  Chris D please email info@g45papers.com to claim your prize. 

As we gear up for holiday crafting we want to know about some of the projects that you have in mind for this holiday season. Are you planning something grand for a Thanksgiving centerpiece or home decor? Or perhaps you're already getting started on some Christmas crafts! Let us know what you're dreaming of for this holiday season. Leave us a blog or Facebook comment and you could win this lovely prize! A Magic of Oz 8x8 Paper Pad, a Le Cirque 8x8 Paper Pad, Ornate Metal Door Plate and Knob Staples, Kraft Envelope Album Staples and a Metal Film Canister! What fun!

It's obvious that we love to clown around here at Graphic 45. That's why today's crafts were all made with our fabulous Le Cirque collection! This fun and vibrant collection looks amazing in any craft creation! Check out this gorgeous layout by Yuka Hino! She used a template to help create the form for this wonderful LO. You can see how Yuka's wild imagination sprung to life in this adorable creation. It's an explosion of color and joy!

Supplies:
Graphic 45 Papers
Le Cirque: Le Cirque, Bohemian Floral, Magnifique, Wizards of Wonders, Extravaganza, Greatest Show on Earth, Flying High
Graphic 45 Staples: Core'dinations SigSeries G45 12x12 Asst Pack 30/PKG*, Metal Button Staples, Trim Staples, Flower Staples, Sticker Staples, Alphabet Sticker Staples
Imaginarium Designs Chipboard: Circle Border 8"
Fiskars: Postage Stamp Border Punch, Tear Edger - Deckle, The Original Orange-Handled Scissors™ (8")
Scrapbook Adhesives By 3L: MyStik™ Permanent Strips Dispenser, 3D Foam Squares - Black Small
7gypsies: Metal Charm
Tim Holtz: Corners
Ranger Industries: Stickles
Tsukineko: Ink
Acrylic Color, Sewing Machine, compasses

Next we have these two amazing Le Cirque creations by Tara Orr. The first is this jubilant tag that is sure to make you smile. It has some beautiful movement and dimensions! Tara even recycled the packaging from some Graphic 45 Staples to create the backing for this wonderful tag! It's a clever technique that's also kind to the earth!

Graphic 45 Papers

Le Cirque Collection: Greatest Show on Earth, Wizards of Wonder, Tags, Magnifique

Staples: Metal Buttons

Scrapbook Adhesives: My Stik Permanent Adhesive Roller, 3D Foam Squares, Mounting Squares

Ranger: Glossy Accents

We want to thank Yuka Hino and Tara Orr for their beautiful work today. And big thanks to all of you who stopped by our blog. We can't wait to read your blog and Facebook comments this week! And don't forget about our Thanksgiving Card Challenege!

Make a Thank You Card

Load it onto our Facebook Page

Label photo "Thank You Card Challenge"

 

Submit by November 10 at 12pm PST

On November 11, we announce 3 winners!

 

Winners will get a PRIZE PACKAGE from our Christmas Emporium Collection!

With Love and Pretty Paper,

Team Graphic 45

Hello G45ers,

Welcome to the final day of the Graphic 45/Clearsnap Handmade Holidays Blog Hop! We are so glad you are joining us!

We ve gathered designers from some of our favorite manufacturers to show you ways to create something from the heart this holiday season. This 3 day Hop includes over 60 stops with inspiration brimming from every corner. Explore all thoughtful and frugal handmade gifts you could make for the holidays, all in one place on this Hop!

To sweeten to Hop, we re offering a gift for you! For every comment you leave on the blogs in the Hop, you ll be entered to win a prize pack from one of the participating manufacturer sponsors! We will be giving away our beautiful Christmas Emporium collection along with the 5x8 Altered Art Box, Altered Art Metal Tin and a Metal Ornate Metal Door Plate.  A $75 value! Today we're featuring the blogs of our very talented design team members, Laura Denison and Nicole Eccles!

Click on over to Laura Denison's blog and Nicole Eccles' blog to discover some stupendous craft delights! You will fall in love with her amazing style. Be sure to leave a comment too for your chance to win this awesome Graphic 45 prize pack! Yay!

Laura Denison

http://www.followingthepapertrail.blogspot.com/

Nicole Eccles

http://www.nicoleeccles.com/

Visit the list of blogs below and leave a comment on each by Nov 7, 2011 at 11:59 PM PST. Each day we will be sharing a brand new list of blogs with brand new projects for you to explore, be inspired by, and create from!

Clearsnap http://clearsnap.blogspot.com
Spellbinders  http://www.spellbinderspaperarts.com/Community/Blog.aspx
Hampton Art - http://blog.hamptonart.com/
Zutter http://binditall.blogspot.com/
Graphic45 http://g45papers.typepad.com/
Donna Salazar Designs http://donnasalazar.typepad.com/
The Twinery - http://www.thetwineryblog.com/  
Authentique Paper http://authentiquepaper.blogspot.com/
Glue Arts - http://gluearts.blogspot.com/

Sabrina Alery Clearsnap http://sabrinaalery.blogspot.com/
Laura Denison Graphic 45 http://www.followingthepapertrail.blogspot.com/
Karen Taylor Donna Salazar Designs - http://creativeyearnings.blogspot.com/
Beverly Sizemore Hampton Art  http://bevscreativepath.blogspot.com/
Kazan Clark  Spellbinders http://nunutoolies.blogspot.com/
Janeen Shember Authentique Paper  http://suburbngypsy.blogspot.com/
Charlotte Jenkins Clearsnap http://suepup.blogspot.com/
Grace Hester The Twinery http://gracehester.typepad.com/
Nicole Eccles Graphic45 http://nicoleeccles.blogspot.com/
Audrey Pettit Donna Salazar Designs - http://audreypettit.wordpress.com/
Nan Paturzo Zutter http://scrappynan.blogspot.com/
Jeannie DeGruccio Authentique Paper  http://polkacabana.wordpress.com/
Tamara Tripodi - Glue Arts http://happylifecraftywife.com/

Cheers to creating gifts from the heart this holiday season!

Happy Hopping!

Team Graphic 45

Hello G45ers,

Happy Saturday and thank you all for stopping by our blog today! We're continuing the fun with the Graphic 45/Clearsnap Holiday Hop! Here's how it works. We're teaming up with our pals at Clearsnap to bring you a weekend of craft fun. Some awesome crafting companies are also joining us to bring you some craft inspiration and lots of chances to win a fabulous prize! Just click on over to the blog links listed below. Leave a comment on the blog and tell them that Graphic 45 sent you. That's all you need to do to be entered to win an awesome prize! Each company is giving away a great prize pack so the more you hop and leave your comments the more chances you have to win!

We will be giving away our beautiful Christmas Emporium collection along with the 5x8 Altered Art Box, Altered Art Metal Tin and a Metal Ornate Metal Door Plate.  A $75 value! Today we're featuring the blog of one of our very talented design team members, Gloria Stengel and Tara Orr! Go check out Gloria's blog and Tara's blog and you'll see some stupendous works of art! Leave a comment too for your chance to win!

Here's the information for Gloria Stengel's and Tara Orr's blogs.  They've got some awe-inspiring crafts that you will totally love! Hop on over to their blogs for some massive inspiration and be sure to leave a comment for your chance to win!

Gloria Stengel

http://gloriascraps.blogspot.com/

Tara Orr

http://eachmoment-onlyonce.blogspot.com/

And here is the list of today's featured blogs. Just hop on over for some amazing inspiration and be sure to leave a comment! Winners will be randomly drawn from the comments left on all of the blogs. There's also a list of some amazing design team members from these terrific companies. Click on the links to be transported to a super inspiring world! See some gorgeous crafts, learn some amazing techniques and be sure to leave a comment too! There a lots of chances to win with this fun Holiday Blog Hop! Have fun and soak up the craft bliss!

Visit the list of blogs below and leave a comment on each by Nov 7, 2011 at 11:59 PM PST. Each day we will be sharing a brand new list of blogs with brand new projects for you to explore, be inspired by, and create from!

Hello G45ers!

We're having a very special day here at Graphic 45! Starting today and going through the weekend we're participating in a huge Handmade Holiday Hop with our pals at Clearsnap! Here's how it works. Just click on over to the featured blogs during each day in the holiday hop. You will see some amazing crafts, learn about some awesome new crafting tools and get inspired by some fabulous artists! You'll also have the chance to win amazing prizes! The more often you hop and leave a comment the more chances you have to win! Wow!

We will be giving away our beautiful Christmas Emporium collection along with the 5x8 Altered Art Box, Altered Art Metal Tin and a Metal Ornate Metal Door Plate.  A $75 value! Today we're featuring the blog of one of our very talented design team members, Sherry Cheever! Go check out Sherry's blog and you'll see some stupendous works of art! Leave a comment too for your chance to win!

Sherry Cheever Graphic45  http://sherrycheever.blogs.splitcoaststampers.com/

There are lots more chances to win! Visit the blogs of these fabulous companies including Clearsnap and leave a comment saying that Graphic 45 sent you! Each company is offering a fabulous prize pack and your comment is all you need to enter to win their prize pack! The winners will be randomly drawn from the comments left on all of the blogs. There's also a list of some amazing design team members from these terrific companies. Click on the links to be transported to a super inspiring world! See some gorgeous crafts, learn some amazing techniques and be sure to leave a comment too! There a lots of chances to win with this fun Holiday Blog Hop! Have fun and soak up the craft joy!

Clearsnap http://clearsnap.blogspot.com
Spellbinders  http://www.spellbinderspaperarts.com/Community/Blog.aspx
Hampton Art - http://blog.hamptonart.com/
Zutter http://binditall.blogspot.com/
Graphic45 http://g45papers.typepad.com/
Donna Salazar Designs http://donnasalazar.typepad.com/
The Twinery - http://www.thetwineryblog.com/
Authentique Paper http://authentiquepaper.blogspot.com/
Glue Arts - http://gluearts.blogspot.com/

Hello G45ers!

Yay, it's Friday and we are so glad you are joining us for this super day of fun! It's our final day of the Graphic 45/Core'dinations blog hop and we have had such a great time. There is more excitement in store for all of you today! We have some winners to announce for this week's blog prizes! Plus we've got the most amazing crafts by Laura Denison, Melanie Forbes and Lynette Carroll of our design team. Today's wonderful creations are sure to get you in the mood for some weekend crafting. And with the holidays fast approaching there's lots to be done! So let's get started! First we want to announce our randomly chosen winners for this week's Graphic 45/Core'dinations blog prizes! Chosen from our blog and Facebook comments, the winners are...

-Sharon Gullikson

-Miss Cooper

Congratulations to this week's winners! Sharon and Miss Cooper, please email us with your shipping address at info@g45papers.com to claim your prizes. Big thanks to everyone who left us comments this week. Don't forget to check out the Core'dinations blog today too! They will be announcing winners for their blog contest as well as featuring some gorgeous projects! Get inspired and maybe win a prize! What fun! 

This first creation was made by Laura Denison and it is out of this world! This amazing piece of holiday decor showcases a fantastic paper weaving technique that's easy and very beautiful. Here is what Laura had to say about this marvelous piece.

"Create a fun and fast frame for a favorite photo or image by weaving strips of Core'dinations card stock and patterned paper along the edges of a 12 x 12 piece of card stock. Mount the center image on foam mounting squares and add embellishments.  Super fast and easy!" -Laura Denison

Supplies:

ABC Primer – Tags 1 & 2 
Core’dinations Core Impressions – Clocks & Houndstooth Core’dinations Colorcore Cardstock G45 Signature Series Heritage Kraft Core’dinations G45 Core Cards Darks  Red Rose & NightfallCore’dinations – Sander block Core’dinations Colorbox G45 Decades Ink – Photogenic Core’dinations Dust Buddy (LOVE THIS!!!!!!!) 
May Arts Ribbon

Next up is this elegant all-occasions card by Lynette Carroll. This gorgeous and super inspiring creation is another great example of what you can create when you pair up Graphic 45 and Core'dinations! Here is what Lynette had to say about this dreamy work of art.

"I wanted to create a card with the beautiful Le' Romantique Collection that could be used for more than one occasion.  The papers easily lend themselves to wedding and anniversary cards but I chose to use elements that could be used on a card that could be sent as a Thank You, Birthday or even a "Just Because" card.  Simply change the occasion for sending this card by using a rubon or stamped sentiment and tucking it into the roses".  To finish off the card I lightly brushed the centers of the roses with Frosted Lace stickles to add a "dewy" look o them." -Lynette Carroll

Supplies:

Hello G45ers!

It's another day in craft paradise as we bring you more amazing creations from our design team. We're continuing this super fun blog hop with  Core'dinations! All of today's crafts combine the vivid beauty of Graphic 45 with the stunning versatility of Core'dinations cardstock and tools. Today we are featuring crafts by Jack & Cat Curio, Yuka Hino and Jane Tregenza. You'll even learn some great techniques from Jane Tregenza. You're sure to be inspired! Core'dinations is also featuring some gorgeous Graphic 45/Core'dinations projects on their blog as well. So be sure to check that out! There's also still time to leave a blog and Facebook comments for your chance to win this week's amazing prize! You can leave a comment on the Graphic 45 blog and Facebook page as well as the Core'dinations blog and Facebook page. We will be announcing two random winners tomorrow on our blog and so will Core'dinations! So get your comments in while there is still time!

This first project was made by Jack & Cat Curio and it's guaranteed to get you in the holiday crafting spirit. Feast your eyes on this marvelous Dear Santa Ticket Holder. This sweet and vibrant creation is bursting at the seams with holiday cheer!

Supplies:

7 Gypsies - Vintage Ticket Holder
Top of Form
Graphic 45 - Christmas Emporium Collection: Believe!, Santa Express, Christmas Emporium, A Christmas Carol, Tis the Season, Special Delivery
Graphic 45 - Hampton Art - Christmas Emporium Collection - Cling Mounted Rubber Stamps - Christmas Emporium One, Two
Graphic 45 - Core'dinations Core Impressions - Timeless Collection: Clocks, Houndstooth, Le Fleur
Graphic 45 - Core'dinations Signature Series: Vanilla Lace, Triumphant Red
Core’dinations: BM Mermaid
Chalkboard Cardstock, Chalk pencil, gold glitter letters
Graphic 45 Trim, assorted ribbon
Ranger Archival Ink: Black, Olive
Ranger Distress Ink: Wild Honey, Vintage Photo, Walnut Stain, Black Soot
Ranger Distress Stain: Picket Fence
American Tags assortment
Popsicle sticks
Leaky Shed Studio: Holly and Berries, Snowflake Ornament, Glitter Snowflake Corner
Recollections Extra Fine Glitter -Silver, Art Glitter Dries Clear Glue
Tim Holtz Idea-ology: Hitch Fasteners, mini paper clips, reinforcers
Tools: Sizzix - Tim Holtz - Embossing Folders - Bingo, Spellbinders: Nested Pennants, Classic Scalloped Circles large
Cuttlebug
Scrapbook-Adhesives 3D Foam Squares, My Stik tape runner

Next we have this magical Once Upon a Springtime layout by Yuka Hino. Yuka also used the Signature Series Core'dinations/Graphic 45 Timeless collection to give this LO some extra elegance. It sparkles with beauty and warmth!

I am loving the Colorcore Cardstock pad that Graphic 45 sent me. It is a whole pad of cardstock,  made by Core’dinations as part of their  Signature Series-Graphic 45. I now no longer need to choose my cardstock as the whole pad of  plain paper matches Graphic 45 Print papers beautifully. I also received from Graphic 45 and Core’dinations a pack of their Core Impressions: Graphic 45 Timeless collection, this is an embossed pad with lots of lovely papers to go hand in hand with Graphic 45. Where to start? I decided to do a layout for my son Josh using papers from the “Proper  Gentleman” Collection.  I chose two print papers “Man about Town” and “The Sophisticate” and chose cardstock from the Graphic 45 cardstock pack to match. I found the red and black cardstock looked the best. From the pack of Core Impressions I chose the “Cream of Wheat” embossed cardstock.

Normally everyone sands this kind of cardstock but I didn’t want the distressed look to my page so I inked it using a sponging block and Graphic 45’s new ink pads from Color box. I found the colour “decades” worked well, you just tap the sponging block on the ink pad and gently rub over the cardstock until the desired colour is reached. I always work in from a side before inking in the middle, this dumps most of the ink on the edge where I want it to be darker rather an in the middle. I matted the finished cardstock on black to set it off.

I love the metal door plate and matching knob set that Graphic 45 have as part of their staples collection. I decided to use one on my layout as a representation of Josh moving from school to the work force. It also was perfect for adding the journaling.

I love all the colours in this layout and the way they set the photo off.  I don’t like a lot of fuss on my layouts and doing male layouts is always hard. I used some of Imaginarium Designs Corners to finish the page. These corners are ones that Josh himself designed so it was nice to add them to a layout on him.

Supplies:

Graphic 45 Print Papers: Man about Town, The Sophisticate, A Proper Gentleman Borders
 Core Impressions cream of wheat
Colourcore cardstock red and black
Graphic 45 colour box –DecadesImaginarium designsCorners
Brads

Thank you all for joining us today. We can't wait until tomorrow when we announce our blog prize winners! There will also be more amazing crafts from our design team. Big thanks to Jack & Cat Curio, Yuka Hino and Jane Tregenza for their wonderful work today. We wish you all a terrific Thursday! We hope to see you all again tomorrow.

Happy Papercrafting,

Team Graphic 45

Greetings G45ers!

Thank you so much for stopping by our blog today! Yes, it's another fabulous day of craft treats as we team up with Core'dinations to bring you this fabulous blog hop!  Our design team has prepared some awe-inspiring crafts for you today. And don't forget to check out the Core'dinations blog today too for more inspiration! There's also some fabulous Graphic 45/Core'dinations prizes for this week. All you need to do is a leave a blog or Facebook comment on the Graphic 45 blog and/or Facebook page as well as the Core'diantions blog and/or Facebook page. More comments equal more chances to win.  Winners announced this Friday, so comment for your chance to win an awesome prize! Well, lets get started on today's wonderful creations! We have three lovely projects today from our brilliant design team members Tara Orr, Robin Shakoor and Hilde Janbroers. Get ready to fall in love with this truly breath-taking works of art! First up is this elegant layout by Tara Orr. Here is what Tara had to say about this timeless work of art.

"While I'm not much of a cardstock gal, when I received the beautiful Timeless Collection from Core'dinations Core Impressions line, I was completely thrilled! Not only do the warm, earthy colours match seamlessly with Graphic 45 papers, the papers themselves are easily transformed into the most beautiful "patterned papers' with a little sanding. I used the beautiful filgrie pattern to frame my project and fussy cut out their beautiful vintage clocks and used as embellishments around my page." -Tara Orr

Supplies:

"I embossed the card with the Sizzix embossing folder and my Big Shot Machine. The size of the cards are a perfect fit with these embossing folders. Then I used Sand It paper to distress the card. I only added a small piece of paper on the card. The flower and chipboards will give the card the perfect vintage look." -Hilde Janbroers

Supplies:

Items used Core'dinations: Card set dark

Graphic 45:

Christmas Emporium 8x8 paperpad

Christmas Emporium Chipboard Die Cuts 1&2

Preferred product: Scrapbook Adhesive by 3L 3 dimensional foam

others

prima marketing flowers

ink

liquid pearls

sizzix embossing folder

Wow, what a fabulous day! Big thanks to Tara Orr, Robin Shakoor and Hilde Janbroers for their stunning work today.  Thank you all for stopping by today. We will be back here tomorrow morning with even more crafts, fun, smiles, pretty papers, and words of craft wisdom.

Have a great day and Happy Papercrafting!

Team Graphic 45

Hello G45ers,

Welcome to another exciting day of the Graphic 45/Core'dinations blog hop! Thank you all so much for stopping by! Halloween is officially over but the magic is still in the air. Some of us are already planning our costumes for next year! It never hurts to start planning early, right?! As the holiday season approaches there is so much to do. We thought we'd share some fabulous craft ideas, some of which include some beautiful Christmas crafts! All this week we're teaming up with Core'dinations for a fun blog hop. By visiting both our blog and the Core'dinations blog you'll see some astounding crafts that combine the elegance of Graphic 45 with the the beauty and versatility of Core'diantions products. It's an unbeatable mix of inspiration! We are offering two fabulous prizes this week and so is Core'diantions. Just leave a comment on our blog and Facebook page as well as the Core'dinations blog and Facebook page for your chance to win!

Today we've got some amazing creations from Gloria Stengel, Nicole Eccles and Nancy Wethington of our design team. You are sure to fall in love with today's superb crafts. This first project is by Gloria Stengel. It's a classic layout made with An ABC Primer and beautiful Core'dinations Timeless cardstock. It is simple but beautiful as can be. This layout is full of so much heart-warming nostalgia! Here is what Gloria had to say about it.

"This photo is of my mother, taken around 1940. My mother is one of 15 children, therefore it was rare for her to have copies of her school photos. Her family simply could not afford such luxuries with a large family, especially during the Depression." -Gloria Stengel

Supplies:

Graphic 45 PapersAn ABC Primer: Building Blocks, One Two Buckle My Shoe, Grammar School
Graphic 45 Staples: An ABC Primer Chipboard Tags 1, Black Policy Envelope
Core'dinationsColorCore Cardstock: Graphic 45 Signature Series, Core Impressions Graphic 45 Timeless Collection Sand it GadgetDust Buddy
Clearsnap: Dark Brown, Creamy Brown Fluid Chalk Ink
Scrapbook Adhesives by 3L: tape runner, foam squaresJenni Bowlin Studio: Bingo card, sticker lettersCraft supply: Twine, glue

Next up is this wonderfully fun card by Nicole Eccles. It's a winter wonrerland of Christmas inspiration with this precious creations. Just look at Nicole's clever use of layering, texture and playful embellishments! Yes, this card is sure to get you in the holiday crafting spirit!

Next we have Silhouette's amazing Limited Edition advent calendar by Nancy Wethington. Today untill November 11th Silhouette is offering a special promotinal code exclusivly for Graphic 45 followers, to receive $10 off your purchase use promo code: G45.  It is that easy! You can also see more amazing advent calendar creations on the Silhouette's Facebook page today! Here is what Nancy had to say about the inspiration behind this festive creation. There's also a video all about the making of the calendar. What fun! 

"Working with Graphic 45 paper collections and Silhouette's new Limited Edition Christmas Advent Calendar was a dream project.  I have the original QuicKutz Silhouette and know only the basics.  But with the addition of the downloadable calendar boxes, the Silhouette cut right through all my double sided Graphic 45 papers with ease.  I didn't even have to change the mat or (yellow) blade! Hope you enjoy the finished project." -Nancy Wethington

Graphic 45 Papers:
Christmas Emporium Collection:  Christmas Emporium; Toyland; Believe, All I Want For Christmas; Merry & Bright; A Christmas Carol; 'Tis The Season; Under The Mistletoe; Joyeus Noel; Special Delivery; Happy Holidays; Chipboard Diecuts 1 & 2
Le Cirque Collection:  Under The Big Top
Once Upon A Springtime: Pixie Post
Renaissance Faire: Enlightened; Florentine
Le Romantique: Key To My Heart
Playtimes Past:  Jack & Jill
Graphic 45 Staples: Metal Button Staples; Trim Staples; Metal Tag Staples
Partner Products: Decades Colorbox Ink (Cashmere); May Arts ribbon; My Stik permanent tape runner
Other Supplies Used: Silhouette Digital Craft Cutter; miscellaneous ornaments, star charm, felted mitten, Christmas trees, vintage felted candy cane; Bazzill cardstock; Scrapbook Adhesive glue dots.

Well, that's all for today. Big thanks to Gloria Stengel, Nicole Eccles and Nancy Wethington for all of their amazing work today. Be sure to check out the Core'dinations blog and Facebook for more inspiration. Don't forget to leave them comments for your chance to win this week's prize! We will be bringing you more fabulous craft ideas tomorrow too. We hope you'll stop by and see us. We hope your day is filled with warmth and smiles.

Happy Papercrafting,

Team Graphic 45