Monday, January 25, 2016

2 MPC team members in Growing in Unity Blog Hop



Good morning and happy Monday! I was the GIU girl for Unity in early December. Starting yesterday, they're hosting a blog hop for Nov. and Dec. GIU girls and we're showcasing our favorite stamps. Our Sheryl Kemper her at MPC was a GIU girl during this time, too.
I chose to showcase what drew me to Unity in the beginning...their sentiments.   This set is from Donna Downey and it is called "She". It can be found here
I made a card with each sentiment...a total of five and you can check out my blog here
Follow along on the blog hop for a chance to be one of two winners and don't forget to comment on Unity's blog, as well.

Here is the blog order

                                                        
                                                         
  I am third in line!!!!

  Sheryl Kemper (be sure to check our team member Sheryl's beautiful work)
 Cynthia Olheiser
Unity Blog

Have a great day!

Pam

Monday, January 18, 2016

MPC Presents: Einat Kessler

 Mountain Plains Crafters is excited to introduce a new feature.  No matter the craft medium that you pursue, we all have artists and designers who we admire, who influence our art, who inspire us daily.  With that in mind, we will occasionally spotlight a featured artist and are calling it, "MPC Presents".  We're kicking off the month of January with featured artist, Einat Kessler.  Take a moment and step into her shoes as she shares what inspires her and what has shaped her, including, unexpectedly....... war.


 Several of the designers here at MPC have been following this amazing Israeli designer for years.  She's an incredible mixed media artist, self taught and has her hands full with online classes, daily tutorials and tips and tricks that make your crafty life easier.  Her work has been published too many times to count and she is a registered designer with the Craft and Hobby Association.


We posed 5 questions to Einat and I think you will find her answers interesting and inspirational!


MPC:     Einat, you're a serious mixed media artist.  What is your favorite technique?
Einat:      I don’t have one favorite technique. I like to mix materials and techniques and play. I hardly plan in advance so I always managed to be surprised from the final outcome. As long as my fingers are dirty I’m happy.

MPC:    What is the one supply you absolutely cannot live without?
Einat:     Since my creations are versatile this is a difficult question. I do mixed media and paper crafts, scrapbooking, altered art and more. It also depends on when you ask me.  A year ago I would say paper, now I’ll have to say anything metal: embellishments, DIY supplies and hardware store items.

MPC:     I love the tips, tricks and techniques that you share.  Do you have a favorite tip or shortcut?
Einat:      My best tip is never look at something in one way. There is always another way of looking at things/ If you open your mind to that kind of thinking you’ll find so many ways of creating! Another important tip that I have to share is not to be hard on yourself! You have to be happy with what you create, because it’s yours. It doesn’t have to be perfect!

MPC:     What project have you created, that means the most to you, and why? 
Einat:      I have two projects: the first one is the project I created in the summer of 2014 after the war. Living in Israel means that you’re surrounded with enemies. During the summer of 2014 we were attacked and missiles were fired on the country. We had to go to the bomb shelter a few times a day including at night. The kids slept near the door on mattresses so they’ll be able to run faster to the bomb shelter. Creating was impossible. It was difficult because I missed it but I couldn’t think about it because I was too worried for my kids, my family and my country. After it was over I sat down in my craft studio and forced myself to create something…anything..this is what I made:  



(follow this link for the video and story behind this amazing project!)

The second project is a present I created for my sister. We are very close and this is her favorite photo in the world. She says she wants to be buried with it. 



(follow this link to view the video and incredible story!)

MPC:     Looking back, over your career thus far, is there anything you know now, that you wish you knew when starting out?  Any words of wisdom?
Einat:      No…I think that whatever I learned I learned exactly when the time was right for it. Everything that I know now rests on things I learned before and you can’t know put the wagon in front of the horses. It’s like a puzzle, every piece fits in its place and not in another. I still learn today. And sometimes I find myself saying I wish I knew that earlier, but then I know that even if I knew at that point in time it wouldn’t do me any good…You only learn things that you are ready for and when you are ready for them not before.


If you're not already following Einat, we encourage you to do so.  Here are her social media links.  Tell her MPC sent you! 


 Thank you so much Einat, for sharing your heart with us today!

 


 #mountainplainscrafters #mpcrafters #einatkessler #mixedmedia #diy #cre8time #scrapbooking #cardmaking #homedecor #craft

Monday, December 21, 2015

Winner Winner

We have a winner from our Graphic 45 giveaway!!! 
As per Random.org
 we say Congratulations to Mary Holshouser.  She comments:

Please email us at mountainplainscrafters@gmail.com and leave us your mailing address.  Again...congratulations!!

Friday, December 18, 2015

MPC Graphic 45 Giveaway

HEY EVERYONE!!!  Welcome to Mountain Plains Crafters Graphic 45 Giveaway.  We at MPC have crafted up some yummy G45 goodie ideas for you using whatever G45 papers/embellishments we had on hand.  The challenge was that we had to create at least 2 projects using Graphic 45 paper, at least one die cut, and a metal embellishment on our project(s).  Everyone has cooked up some awesome projects for your viewing pleasure LOL.

And here we have a sweet little giveaway package for you to win.  A 6x6 pack of G45 French Country double sided paper and G45 Ornate Metal Keyholes.  And how do you win these?  All you have to do is comment below and tell us which is your favorite and what you think you might make.  Hop over to Graphic45's Facebook Page and tell them Mountain Plains Crafters sent you. 

The giveaway will go from December 18th thru December 20th.  A winner will be picked on Monday the 21st and announced later that evening.  Share this event with your friends...  :)   Good Luck!!
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dEb here to show you what I came up with using some fabulous Graphic 45 papers ... . My first is a Christmas / Friendship card using my favorite G45 paper EVER !! It is called Christmas Rose. I also have my metal embellishment on this project - check out my blog post to see where I got the cute metal snowflake !! I also couldn't resist putting my Limoges Gingerbread House box in the picture...



My second project uses an amazing page of perforated G45 Christmas tags.. I used a Spellbinders die for the main sentiment and inked the lacy edges which you can see peeking out from behind all those gorgeous tags. Check out my blog post HERE  to read about all of the supplies I used on both projects.and leave a comment -- I will choose 1 person to win samples of some of my favorite G45 papers.

dEb


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I already have my winter chill and am dreaming of thawing out in the Spring so I channeled warmer weather using Graphic45 Time to Flourish. And since Flourish is in the papers name, I chose Fancy Flourish from Die-namics to pair up for that delicate touch along with some time metal flower brads from Making Memories. This tag makes me just a tiny bit warmer.

For my second act, I have a Christmas gift I'll be giving to a friend. I did channel thoughts of her while making it and it reminds me of her in so many ways, it's very busy which she is! Although I have a hard time cutting the papers (they're just so pretty), G45 Typography Collection is one of my top favorites. I have SO many items on this one that I'm going to send you to my blog for the complete list of products & putting it together. The die-cut flower I cut on my Circut a while back & don't know exactly which cartridge it came from. The metal pieces, well I'll just tell you my favorite one is the Flair which is from UmWow Studio!
Paula
visit my blog: ScrapAddictsAttic

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Sheryl here to show you two projects of mine:

My first one is a nice card I made using two sheets from G45.  The background I bought loosely from someone but is from the 12x12 French Country Collection and is titled Rendezvous.  The tag and sentiment box die cuts were cut out from my own set of 6x6 French Country paper, as well as the holly leaves.  The tree stamp and sentiment are from Unity Stamp Company. Adding my MayArts velvet and crochet lace ribbon gives the card a nice vintage/victorian feel.  My bling washi tape and red pearl in the holly adds additional sparkle with the glitter background paper of the tag and gold glitter bow along with the gold snowflake washi tape.  Then I placed a christmas tree button in the corner for a little charm, and of course a metal bronze snowflake for the final pizazz.


Next...I wanted to created something for Christmas decor so I bought a cone-shaped styrofoam and wrapped it with snowflake garland that I had purchased after Christmas last year.  I hot/cool glued it every now and then to make sure it stayed in place and didn't come undone or drop or droop.  Using the same paper as above, I cut it out using my Sizzix chain die and added Candy Cane Stickles and Stardust Stickles to it.  Once it was dry, I attached it to the tree as shown but kinda puffed it up every 6 links and stuck a pin with a sequin and hot/cool glue in to keep it in.  However, taking this pic it looks like I only have two "ornaments" on my tree, but there are actually small sequins in there and large silver ones that you can't see.  And for the top of my tree, I placed a metal vintage jewel piece.
 
Sheryl


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Terri here with two projects.  First up......
I made a pretty card in the style of Simply G45 which is Graphic 45's answer to quick and easy projects.  You can sign up for their newsletter at g45papers.com and get the Simply G45 projects via email.  
You can get all the details on my project at my blog post listed below, plus shopping links if you'd like to purchase this paper.  I'm featuring G45's, "Twas the Night Before Christmas" collection.


For my 2nd project, I've created a little treat box using my Cricut Explore and the Tags, Bags, Boxes and More 2 cartridge.  I needed to use a die cut and metal so guess what?  I created a metal die cut!  Boom.  A two for one.  I used Spellbinders metal foil sheets and flower dies to mix the two.  I've also used some of my G45 border and snowflakes punched out from my paper collection.  




Visit my blog here for all the details:


Thanks for stopping by! Merry Christmas!
Terri 

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MariLynn here. The projects that I made are going to be Christmas gifts for my daughter.
I used Graphic45 ABC Primer Deluxe Edition on my projects.



More details on these projects are on my blog.

Mississippi-Mcgyver

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Pam here with my two projects using Once Upon a Springtime Classic Collection and ABC Primer Deluxe Collection
Check out my blog for the details here




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Jen here, late to the party...LOL I love Graphic 45 paper so much that I never seem to have much on hand when I need it! No Christmas here, but how about some scrapbook pages to remind you of warmer weather?


I used By The Sea and the matching die cuts to pull together some beach pages. We go to one every year so there's lots of photos to be used! More details on my blog.


Sunday, November 1, 2015

Coloring Book Blog Hop With Adornit and MPC!

It's time for another blog hop with Adornit and the design team from Mountain Plains Crafters!  Starting today at 9:00 am ET, head on over to adornit.com/blog.  The girls are showcasing the brand new coloring books from Adornit, eight to be exact!


So many beautiful images on heavy artist paper; perfect for watercolors, paint, colored pencils and more.  These would make terrific Christmas presents for anyone!  I have a friend battling cancer and she bought another brand coloring book to color and help her relax while at her numerous doctor appointments. 


She was disappointed that the tiny zen-style images made her hand cramp.  I'm serious.  You won't have that problem with Adornit.  Beautiful designs, open space for added embellishments and so much fun wrapped up in these beautiful books.  I travel with mine a lot.

In addition, someone is going to win a coloring book as well.  Exciting!  It all begins at adornit.com/blog .  Go!



#artplayaday #adornit #mpc #mountainplainscrafters #coloringbooks#coloring #art #craft #Christmas #cre8time

Thursday, October 22, 2015

Blog Hop with Adornit and Mountain Plains Crafters

Welcome to the Adornit blog hop with the Mountain Plains Crafters Design Team.  We've created a multitude of projects featuring the brand new collection of Adornit Art Play Paintables, designed by artists Carolee McMullins, Lindsday Ostrom, Stephanie Ackerman and Michele Hamilton.  




The new 12x12 Art Play Paintable sheets come in a variety of designs and themes; Halloween, Christmas, Faith based, Adventure, Critters, Folk Art and more.  





The hop begins at 8:00 am CT and is taking place at adornit.com/blog so head on over there now.  Be sure and follow the instructions to be entered to win a fabulous prize from Adornit.  Good luck and enjoy the journey!

Be sure to "like" and follow us on our Community Facebook Page to stay regularly updated on events, giveaways, crafty deals and inspiration from our design team.

Follow us on Twitter at twitter.com/mpcrafters
Follow us on Pinterest at pinterest.com/mpcrafters


#adornit #artplayaday #artplay #mountainplainscrafters #mpc #paintables #watercolor #coloredpencils #crayons #coloringbooks #relaxation #tombow #cre8time

Sunday, October 18, 2015

Upcoming hop with Adornit and MPC!

Mark your calendars for Oct. 22nd, this Thursday.  Mountain Plains Crafters is joining Adornit for a fun blog hop, featuring the brand new Art Play Paintables created by designers, Carolee McMullins, Lindsay Ostrom, Stephanie Ackerman and Michele Hamilton.

Our design team is coloring their hearts out and hope to inspire you with their wonderful creations. 

Halloween, Fall, Christmas, Scripture, Critters... just a few of the fun images we'll be showcasing.  It's all happening at the Adornit blog, plus, you'll have a chance to win!  Stay tuned.....