Saturday Project Life Blog Hop

Hello Project Lifer's! I am Artful Leigh, and I am so glad you are joining in on the fun here for the Project Lifer's Blog Hop!! Thank you to Katina Martinez for hosting and coordinating this hop! I have created a free printable for all of you containing 8 watercolor 3x4 cards in PDF format for easy printing!!! Enjoy!

Screenshot of the PDF, you can download and print. Just Click on my Right Side Bar labeled Saturday Project Life Blog Hop Printable #1








                                     

week 19 left side

week 19 right side

The Midnight core kit and some stamping, washi tape, and enamel dots. Simple and done!!




The line up for this blog hop is as follows :
Loving Life's Little Blessings
Messily Ever After
Today Kelsey Is
Earthy Scrap
Scrapping Wonders
Lekkiwood
Scrappy Leigh You are here
Mrs Crafty Adams
The Beauty of Creativity

Thank you for joining !

Sketch 5 from my free printable PDF "Sketches for Title Cards"

Catching up after a family vacation, here is my week 17 title card based on the Sketch 5 from my free printable located in the right side bar. Amy Tangerine American Crafts Thickers, and all the rest of the embellishments came from Studio Calico Project Life Kits.

Here's the Sketch!!

Week 17 right side

Week 17 left side.

The close up. Thank you for visiting today, many blessings!!

Friday Title Card Series : Week Three

For this installment of Friday Title Cards Series, we are using the week three sketch called Stack It! I think washi tape, stacked and staggered would be cute, and rub-ons, stamping etc, etc.

I LOVE the texture that stacking these die cut strips adds. All one color, and all white would also be "Clean" looking and still add the lovely texture.
 Principal of Design used: Repetition
Element of Design used: Texture, and Color

Here it is on the page for week 15. Kept the rest of the layout pretty clean and uncluttered. I  will be uploading the free printable 3x4 watercolor cards that you can print and cut out.  They are sized to exactly fit in the Project Life page protectors, with cutting lines marked. Just cut directly on the line and round the corners with the Becky Higgins Corner Rounder, and you are set.  Thank you for visiting my virtual craft room today!!

Friday Title Card Series: Using Sketch Two From My Free Printable

Using Sketch Two from my free printable sketches (right side bar) ,  I was able to make a five minute title card with a Midnight Core Kit Project Life card.

Love the look of the lines with the circles. I also love adding circular elements to a Project Life spread to soften all the straight lines. Could also add enamel dots and splatters, and circle die cuts, in odd numbers as well.

Here it is in the Week 14, 2014 Project Life book I am working on currently. Love these design B page protectors for weeks when you have lots of phone photos and not so much on the DSLR photos:)
Thank you for joining me today!!

Artful Leigh Sketches for Title Cards Free Download 1

Artful Leigh Sketches for Title Cards Free Download1


My first free download is now available to print out or just download to your computer! I am making more sketches to release each week. Thank you for visiting today and feel free to share this link to my site!!

This is just a sneak peek of the full page 8 1/2 x 11 PDF printable now available for free, link above!

Come back tomorrow for a new sketch and sample title card in the Friday Title Card Series!! Would love to have a giveaway and you guys link up your cards in the comments, if you make a new title card and share it along with a link back to this site, thank you!!!

Friday Title Card Series: Inspiration and ideas for making Pocket Page Title cards quickly!

Quick title card, for a special week. I wanted to add some texture and figured if I needed inspiration, maybe some of you do too! So why not use something I have already designed?  Threw some die cuts laying around on my desk together for this 12 minute card.

Thank you for visiting today!!

How to Organize a Project Life Station

Here is my newly organized Project Life Station in my craft room, but I have some organizational tips that would work for any area. I will highlight each section and give tips below the photos. While each person uses a different set of supplies to make their Project Life albums, there are still many common items we need to complete the task. You really can complete your pages with nothing more than a journaling pen, Project Life Core Kit, Album, and pocket pages, and those are totally beautiful!!! For my personal style, I like a few embellishments,  seven or more 4x6 photos, and lots of journaling.  After all I do have a big craft room AND 15 YEARS of collected scrapbook supplies to use up:)

Tip #1)  Before I assembled my PL station, I wrote down all the supplies I had to collect from around my room to complete a Project Life spread. I realize almost every Professional Organizer has given this tip and I ignored it! It really does help though, ha!
Tip #2) Add vertical storage whenever possible. This distressed wood/metal organizer from Target really helped to get a more functional area. I had a few mini-albums displayed here before and moved them to display elsewhere. Now I have nine cubbies of storage where there was none!!
Tip #3) Use labels that have removable adhesive or that you can erase and relabel easily. These erasable chalkboard labels from Staples (MArtha Stewart Line) work well since I change favorites often:)

Here is a little sample of the die cut pail, that holds Cropper Hopper Embellishment boxes with my most used die cuts by shape.
Tip #4) Group like items. Simple, I used what I had on hand.

My most used die cuts are: circle, flower, numbers, butterflies, days of the week, Week No., stars, and hearts. Punched in white since I have lots of ink pads to recolor if need be.
Tip #5) Smaller scale die cuts, and punches work well on the smaller canvas of a 4x6, or 3x4 Project Life card.

I had these organizers already, but moved them to this station and reorganized the contents to suit my needs right now. Added PL Inserts( smaller than 12x12)  for when I need more photo or journaling room in a week. Added all the free printable Core Kit indexes from BeckyHiggins.com for all my current kits. Labeled in the aqua folder above" PL Core Card Index" so that I don't have to search through the boxes for a specific card. This is much quicker for me.

Here is a close up of how I labeled the inserts so I could find them easier; again old Cropper Hopper Paper File Dividers.
Tip#6) Label how you search. Easy enough.  Instead of going around the room to find page protectors, now I just have this central location for my most used inserts.

I found these aqua- lidded shoeboxes at Target $4.99/ five. Now my Studio Calico PRoject Life and Card Kit papers are organized by color, since thats how I search for them!

 More of my most used supplies:(from bottom Left) Green Bucket: Embossing Stylus ( for scoring fold-overs for extra pics) craft knife, tweezers, heart punch, star punches.
Aqua Buckets: circle punches (1.75", and 1.25") and self inking circular journaling stamp
Pink Bucket: circle punch(1.5")
Sharp, Detail, and sewing scissors, another circle punch, and the Pebbles Inc / Studio Calico Large roller stamp, a Tonic arrow punch, and my Tim Holtz stapler!
Top Row: PRoject Life Mini Kits, My pink ATG, Craft-Mate cases that lock for all the Studio Calico Kit Embellishments organized by color( this is a years' worth).

Thank you for visiting and I will be posting more Project Life organization soon!!

2014 Project Life: Week one and two

Feels so good to have completed the entire 52 weeks of Project Life 2013, and now to blog the six weeks I have done for 2014!!  For week one, I used the Midnight Edition Core Kit, and one Becky Higgins blank grid card for the aqua paint splatter and life die cut ( Simon Says Stamp: Life Family Love die). There will be lots of interior design photos for the first three months of 2014, since I basically painted and redesigned the whole downstairs of our house. New curtains, new furniture, rugs, lamps, pillows and so on etc. Hopefully I can squeeze in as many family photos as I have, but this is our life right now. So I am going with it!

 Week two I used the new Coral Edition Core Kit from Becky Higgins LLC.  I love this kit, because it seems to coordinate with the photos and decor in my life right now!! Lots of journaling, and just a few embellishments like washi tape and enamel dots. Washi tape is from Studio Calico via Pebbles Inc. and the enamel dots are MME " Cut and Paste" line.

Thank you for joining me on this 2014 adventure with Project Life supplies!!

The Sparrow Painting

In taking time to be creative, and listening to the Holy Spirit, I find peace and artistry can come together. This is my first acrylic painting of a bird ever, and I was happy to give it to one of my very best friends and sister in the Lord. I was inspired by her favorite hymn "His Eye Is On The Sparrow", and Matthew 10:29-31 "Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. And even the very hairs on your head are all numbered. So don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows"

For all those in need of peace today, I pray you find it. Thank you for visiting today.

Living Room Reveal: 2014

Vintage Brass, Ivory, Driftwood Gray, and repeating circular elements were all part of the things I wanted in this room. The first inspiration piece that I fell in love with was this fabric from Braemore...

It is called Gorgeous Pearl, and I saw it on Centsational Girl's Blog. 

Once I got the fabric in, I carried it and the paint samples around to pick the furniture, and I might have even taken the whole roll into West Elm to see if it coordinated with the jute boucle rug (Platinum). Oh Yes, it did!!  Hopefully it will arrive SOON!

I made two pillows and parts of five window treatments with the four yards of  inspiration fabric.

You can see three of the new window treatments here, and I restyled the bookcase by painting existing items either Gloss White or Gold by Rustoleum. The sofa is the exact color of Benjamin Moore's Gray Owl, LOVE that warm gray!

Have two of these driftwood spheres from West Elm.

Here is my Design Notebook (Fancy I know!) Hubby thought it was funny that I made and cut out the furniture and rugs to scale,  but it helped me get a whole new layout and purchase the right size pieces. Just like the old days in Design School, man do I miss those classes!!

SOURCES: Furniture(Macy's)

                    Lamps: (Target)

                    PAint: Sherwin Williams(Paper Lantern), Trading Post Tan (No longer available, but they                          still have the formula in the computer)

                    Fabric: Braemore(Gorgeous Pearl)

                    Accessories:West Elm (Driftwood Spheres) , books(Design School), 

                    Pillows: Ivory(Pier One), White (Target)

                    RUG: on its way!! West Elm

                    Mirror,Brass end table: Homegoods

Next week I will give a Tutorial on my Custom Color Blocked 11 Foot Long Curtains, and if I can do it, you can too!! FOR $44!  I installed them on my own as well......

Look for the tutorial for these next week!! Thanks DIY peeps!!

I am linking up with Tater Tots and Jello Link Party Palooza !

Gray Paint: A Quick Laundry Room Makeover

Hi Everyone! Welcome to my quick makeover using Lowe's Olympic One Paint in the color Secret Passage! This color matches my hall bath, and I LOVE that it also covered the red paint in here in one coat. AWESOME! I added some Macbeth Contact Paper, and Homegoods baskets for clean clothes. One of my favorite things in the room is......

This free download from "Howdy Honey".  I simply Painted a frame on hand, added gray washi tape and some scrapbook paper and tada! All the colors in the room are on here, and it was free. SMILE.

My other fav in this room are the two totes from the etsy shop Molly and Lucy . Can you say " Hello chevron beauties, I must have you"? I know I did.

The Macbeth Contact paper from amazon totally matches the chevron totes, and it looks like I planned it that way:)

It looks bigger in here! IT could be that I cleaned out all items that don't have to do with laundry, or cleaning. Like why did I have extension cords, dog leashes, etc,etc.  You might have to shield your eyes for the before and after, seriously this hurt my eyes:)

Uh, yikes! That's embarrassing, but just keeping it real. Thank you so much for joining me on this makeover my whole downstairs journey:) Here is a sneak peek of what room is next......

Join me next week for my Formal Living Room reveal!!!!

Gray Table Redo: $3 DIY Chalk Paint

Easy, and quick! My fav kind of DIY project. And it only cost $3! So here is what you do:

Get a paint sample from your fav home improvement store. Mine is from Lowe's , the Olympic One brand for $2.98. I chose the Flagstone color, bonus it matches the Popcorn Bar I featured last week!!
Cut the paint to 50% by adding one part paint to one part Gesso. I emptied this whole paint sample into a Gladware container, and then filled the empty sample bottle with gesso so I got a 1 to 1 ratio.

Paint on two coats and let dry. Then sand to distress with fine grit sandpaper.

Close up of the distressing. then I waxed it with soft paste furniture wax.

It really makes this corner look bigger and brighter, and it's amazing what a lighter color will do!! Thank you for visiting today!

Before and After Niche Makeover With Gray Paint: The Popcorn Bar

The before shot shows how we used this area as a pet food storage/ bookcase / display area.

Now it is a useful Popcorn/ Movie Bar! I used Olympic One paint from Lowe's in Flagstone (insert I am so excited that this paint really did cover that dark red in just ONE COAT face!!!), and Martha Stewart Metallic Paint from Home Depot in Polished Silver. It is definitely a cleaner and brighter space now. So here's the details:

These are my vintage cameras from a trip to the antique store this summer with my kids, Mom, and sister! Great memories! The map in the background came out of the back of my Target planner that I finished using for 2013. Hello free artwork!

These are Martha Stewart Chalk Board Labels from Office Depot.

I made these labels by printing a Word document, then stamping the circle with a Papertrey Ink stamp and Hero Arts Soft Granite ink. The font is Futura Italic. I punched out around the stamped image with a coordinating size circle punch, and adhered them with my handy Scotch ATG gun.

After brainstorming about how to make this area more useful, I realized I could make a DIY chalkboard sign for listing movies we Need to watch and return, and also list the movies we want to order next. Now we have a place to write it down besides our phones,  and the basket on the above shelf holds the Netflix Movies we need to watch first. The frame is from Michael's and 10"x13" was on sale half off, so six bucks!! Whoo hoo!

Here is a final look back at the transformation. Me, the kids, and hubs all love it, and it will be useful for the daughter's high school class, and the son's college buddies. Thank you for checking out my redo!!

I am linking up to the "Link Party Palooza" at Tater Tots and Jello, one of my fav DIY, creative, and decorating blogs!! Go check out their awesomeness!

Linking up at Domestically Speaking, Remodelaholic, Six Sisters Stuff, Chic on a Shoestring, DIYShowoff , Mommy on Demand