New Year -- New Design Team Blog Hop

Hello and welcome to the CropChocolate.com DT Blog Hop!  If you have happened to stop by and wanted to start at the beginning, go to Amber's blog here http://ambaju.blogspot.com.  This blog hop will introduce each DT member!  So sit back and enjoy the ride!!

My name is Jenni Shamblin.  This is my second term on the DT.  My first 6 months was so much fun that I couldn't wait to try out again.

During the blog hop, you will find out 5 fun facts about each of the DT members.....things you may not have know (and things you may not WANT to know)!!  My 5 fun facts are:

1.  I am a closet boy band freak!  It started way back in my early days....watching the Monkees on tv.  OOO that Davey Jones!  Then I moved onto Duran Duran and New Edition (anyone remember them?).  Then as I matured (LOL) I moved onto obsess about N*Sync and eventually succumbed to the Back Street Boys.  I am embarrassed to say that One Direction is now on my ipod! 

2.   Our High School band flew from Michigan to Florida to march in the Orange Bowl Parade. It was my first time on a plane! We were on tv for about 30 seconds.   In the band were 12 sets if siblings.....of which my brother and I were one!  We marched at Disney's Epcot and also at The Magic Kingdom before taking a bus to Miami for the Orange Bowl parade.

3.  My first car was a '76 AMC Gremlin.  It was green with gold pinstriping.  Everyone called it the "green machine".  It was so rusted out the fenders were almost completely gone!  The heater didn't work and if you have ever lived in a cold climate, in the middle of January the heater is VERY important!  I used to drive to school and work with a blanket on my lap!

4.  I like un-sweet iced tea.  Try living in the south and NOT drink sweet tea!  A lot of places do now offer both sweet and un-sweet!  My Florida friends call it "Northern Tea!"

5.  I LOVE SUSHI!  I could literally eat it every day if given the opportunity!  Not the weird stuff like squid or eel, but regular stuff like tuna and salmon, shrimp tempura......yum!

We were asked to submit two different projects to be considered for the DT.  
First something that is out of the box.....something out of our normal comfort zone.  I'm not a huge mini-album maker, but I did create this one for an October Photo-a-day group I am in.  I do really love how it turned out!

Second project was to be something that reflected me as a crafter.  Well this was really and entry for both.....out of the box and reflects me as a crafter!  It shows a different type of craft I do for each letter.  I sew, cross-stitch, paper craft and crochet.  I have been a crafter since as far back as I remember.  My mother took me to a needlepoint class when I was little.  We made a couple small plastic squares.  My grandmother still had hers in her jewelry box when they went to find jewelry for her when she passed away this past February.  

Hope you enjoyed my little part in the Blog Hop, now you move on to the next super talented lady here Kathy - http://upinthenightwithkat.blogspot.com/

Please leave me some love and follow me if you don't already!!  Enjoy the rest of the hop!

January DT - ICE!

Happy New Year!!  Happy New DT!!  First month of the new DT and our theme....ICE.  Ok, I live in Florida, the only ICE I see on a regular basis is in a glass keeping my "adult beverage" cold!  But the family was luckily enough to venture to the not-so-frozen north for Thanksgiving this past year.  We took a day trip into the city.  Along with seeing Central Park, FAO Schwartz, The Plaza and later that evening the 9-11 memorial, we were able to ice skate at Rockefeller Center!  How exciting!  Checking it off the bucket list!

To start my project I had to gather my supplies and tools!  These will all play a very important role though the process.....you'll see!

First thing I did was cut the embellishments (snowflakes) and embellish them with some stickles and buttons which I stuck on with glossy accents.  This was the first time using the glossy accents to stick on the buttons, but I really like how it squirted up through the button holes and fill them in.  I'm always thinking I need to put string in there or it looks naked.....but the glossy accents filling up the holes did the trick.  Once the glossy accents and stickles were dry I could ink the edges with the TH Walnut Stain.  But with all those little nooks and crannies it made it difficult to get in there so I grabbed some mini-pom poms that I've had forever and used with the chalk that we all have had at one time or another!  I did splurge for the stick with the hemostats on the end for the pom poms and glad I did!  Ink em up and just run it along the edges.  I had to squish it in the tight corners.

Next I needed to add some depth, I cut three snowflakes.  2 at 3" and 1 at 5".  The 5" one is the bottom/base.  Next I used pop dots (little foam squares) to give them some dimension.  I used two layers of foam.  Since the snowflakes were so narrow, I had to cut the squares in 1/2 and sometimes in 1/4 to get them to not be seen.

On to the swirl.  This is from a stamp set.  I used SU White ink, let it dry then added stickles and a little bit of bling in just the right spots.  I love to follow lines either in patterns on paper or with a stamped image!

Next came my favorite part.....the eyelash fiber and the charm!  This is my first time doing this on a layout!  I just made a tag with a couple charms tied to the fiber and I liked how that turned out, so why not give it a whirl!  There are no mistakes in scrapbooking.....only new discoveries!  I've had this fiber in my possession probably since I started scrapbooking!  Goes to prove....NEVER THROW AWAY ANYTHING!!  Wrapped it around the cardstock a few times.  Opened up two jump rings (purchased in the jewelry aisle at local craft store).....one for the charm and another to wrap around all the fibers.  Remembering I had this tool kit (also from the very beginning of time when we used to pound eyelets with a hammer) and that it contained needle nose pliers!  Just the tool I needed!  Opened the jump ring for the charm, slid it on, closed the ring.  Moved on to the ring for the fibers, opened it up, wrapped it around the fibers, slid the charm on there and closed it back up.  Piece of cake!

I love how it turned out!  I used supplies and tools that I honestly forgot about and tried a new thing with the jump ring and charm!  Don't worry about trying new things, it's fun and educational!!  Have fun and keep scrapping those memories!