June 3, 2010

This & That Notebooks..

Hello friends. I have another notebook to share with you today. You can never have too many notebooks, right? And I just can't get over this mixy matchy/ Thrift Store Decor style that I've been creating with lately. It's all about combining lots of colors and patterns...and many different embellishments....and old and new items. But it all seems to work in some sort of quirky, eclectic, pieced together like a quilt sort of way. Now some of you may think I've just lost it and totally gone off the deep end. Please just humor me and say my stuff looks cool and we'll all be happy little campers. :)Many of you have left me comments like "You're so good at picking colors and embellishments, I could never do that!". Oh yes you can, honey. First off, you need to collect a stash of fun embellishments to chose from. You can't add cool stuff to your projects if ya ain't got any cool stuff in your stash. Take my notebook for example. In about a 3" square area, I've added a Carnival Ticket in Tilt a Whirl Teal, a Small Manila Parcel Tag, October Afternoon patterned paper, big honkin' Papertrey Vintage Buttons, Rustic Cream Twine, an angled piece of Simply Chartreuse felt that has been stitched and cut with the small scallop die, the word "notes" stamped from Take Note and a snippet of my Wrinkle Ribbon. Whew, that's a lotta stuff in one small area. But I love the collage look of it all. No rules. Just start creating.
Now let's look at the bottom part of my notebook. Here's where you'll see lots of mixy matchy colors and patterns on the patterned paper I chose. On this one notebook, I've used four patterned papers that are all different in color and motifs. One great way to get this look to work is to purchase papers from the same line from the same company. The papers from my notebook all came from just a few lines of October Afternoon's newest papers called Thrift Shop and Fly a Kite. The little 8 x 8 pads are scaled down in pattern, perfect for the notebooks. So cute, I am in love with it all. The ruler is also an October Afternoon stamp. Notice that all of the pieces are adhered to a Large Manila Parcel Tag turned upside down. I was so jazzed when I discovered that the large tags layer perfectly onto the notebook fronts. The This & That sentiment is also from Take Note.
You may have noticed in my top photo that I took a photo of my way cool notebook on some vintage fabrics......
I wanted to show you that I use the same mixy matchy process when selecting fabrics. Aren't these just wonderful vintage pieces? I love them so much. I chose a handful of fabrics for you as if I were going to create a tote bag or a quilting project. I chose colors that are similar like the blue and green tones.....but then I also added in a few quirky colors like the fabrics with the pinks and yellows and orange colors. Such a fun little mix of colors and patterns.

And here's a tip for you: When selecting patterned papers or fabrics, fan all the colors out like I've done below. Take a step back and then squint at your fabrics until it gets blurry. If one item stands out too much or is too bright or off, then you know you might want to chose another one in place of it. Scroll back up to my notebook photo and do the same thing.....squint til it's blurry and you'll notice that all the pieces are the same overall tone.
Okay, that's it for today folks. I so hope that you enjoyed my post. Now go get all mixy matchy!! And get ya some cool embellishments to add to your projects. And have fun with it! No stressing allowed.

P.S........Who's diggin' in their stash of Papertrey Vintage Buttons for THE BIG HONKIN' ONES now? I love those big ol' buttons!

P.P.S.......Why didn't someone tell me that Manila only had one "L"? I've been spelling it like vanilla with two L's all this time. Dang.

20 comments:

Rebekah said...

awesome tips!! thanks a lot.. i just love the look of your notebook.. so much to look at and take in.. a feast for the eyes!!!

Cassandra said...

You are going to need a notebook to keep track of your notebooks. Thanks for the tips on mixing patterns, you are very good at it, when I have a go it looks abit contrived and awkward, still will give it a go.

Deirdre said...

love your mix 'n match and want to get my hands on some of your vintage fabric, you can't beat the old patterns. Then I saw the link to your craft room... oh what a space and now I think I understand how you seem to get your cards and embellishments done so effortlessly.. your yummy goodies are in view!! Great to see another apron lover too. As always, thanks for sharing.

Deirdre said...

Mish,

Thought you might like to know that you were correct in how you spelt "Manilla" as in envelopes and tags. The other spelling is for the city in the Philippines.

Lynn said...

Michelle...thanks for another morning smile! Love your notebooks very, very fun!

Diane Jaquay said...

This is darling Mish, love the mixy matchy look!!

Michelle said...

You are crackin me up! I LOVE the collage look on your notepad. The tip about squinting is FABULOUS! You go girl! That's a rock star tip. THANKS..

Michelle

Cindy said...

This is way too cool and I love it! And I have a big stash of stuff that I can go through too.

mamajulie said...

Love the look of the button tied with your wrinkled ribbon. My shipment came the other day, and I can't wait to try this. For me (as with Cassandra)when I try the layered mixed patterns, it just looks messy. I keep trying, though.

Carol's Ink Spot said...

Love how you mix and match all those different papers and elements together. LOVE the Thrift Store paper! I'm sort of hoarding mine. Great post and love your notebook as usually! Have a wonderful weekend.

Heather said...

Girl..you are cracking me up. I do love the look of the mixy matchy papers. I think your new thrift store style you have adopted is fab. I like to mix things too. You are one creative woman. I didn't notice you were spelling manila wrong or I would have told ya...sorry. :)

Carol W. said...

Oh Mish that notebook is fantastic!!!! You never cease to AMAZE me! Thank you so much for the inspiration because I really need to crank out a few notebooks myself. You're the best! Enjoy the weekend.

Lorus! said...

Sorry, I can't just humor you - because I don't have to! Your mixy matchy is fabulous! I usually don't care for the thrift store, vintage type stuff, but you definitely have an eye for color. I do think keeping the tones the same helps alot!
I pick my quilt colors the same way you do and I think it helps in my paper crafting as well!
Really loving your projects!

Harriet said...

I love your style.... you are such an inspiration for me daily.... Thanks for sharing a part of you and your family with us

Anonymous said...

Mish, your stuff is ALWAYS amazing and inspiring. I am a mad woman on the hunt for vintage pillow cases these days! LOVE what I have found. Thank you for sharing your gifts & talents with us.
-Rosie

Colleen Kramer said...

Your stuff is SOOO cool.
You are so awesome.
It's so hot here in Kansas.
Must...
have...
more...
AC

Jingle said...

I love your notebook. And yah...the manila thing is confusing. Don't worry...you weren't alone! LOL!

Lynn said...

I"m lovin' your mixy/match style! I had to order the Thrift Store and Fly a Kite paper-pads after seeing your posts. I love that 8 x 8 size too.

Country Mouse said...

Manila, Manilla..it's all the same!LOL I spell it with 2 L's too!LOL Love your projects, thanks for sharing!

Joy said...

Hi Michelle, I am an avid follower of your blog and check in everyday, I have never made comments of your blog before and I thought that the time has come to start doing so. Love all your work, you are so talented and inspiring. Thank you for being apart of my life even though you don't know that. Love your notebooks, so beautiful.

Hugs

Joy

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