Melissa Frances

2012 Calendar project

 
(Supply List: 5th Avenue 6x6 paper pad (GN444) • Teardrop Chandelier Drops (GN525) • Oval resin accent: Provincial Applique (CX712) • Other, non-Melissa Frances supplies: rubber stamps and ink, sewing machine and thread, acrylic paint, scalloped chipboard piece, rhinestone heart)

Viola Mahr from Singapore designed this super shabby 2012 calendar and has graciously shared it with us. Viola says:

As you can see, I got an early start on next year's calendar. I thought it would be nice not to rush for once ... and I hope to get some special pages done for the inside. Maybe over the next few months I can do 2-3 pages each time and by the end of the year, the whole calendar will be ready for 2012.

What a great idea Viola - thanks for the inspiration!

Happy Birthday Melissa!!

Today is Melissa's Birthday and as a design team we wanted to send her greetings and wishes for a wonderful day.

There will be a birthday giveaway at the end of this post, so be sure to read through to the end ☺

Carolyn decided to make Melissa a necklace featuring our Melissa Frances Crown Jewel (BR002) as the focal point. She packaged it in a handmade fabric pouch which she tucked inside a vintage cigar tin.
 
 Evgenia's card features our 5th Avenue Collection along with the Birthday flash card.
 Emeline made a bright and cheerful card featuring our Kitchsy Kitchen papers along with our beautiful White Pick (GN517).
Our 5th Avenue Collection and cardstock combine for a simple, yet sophisticated card from Johanna. 
 Taleneted Francophone Fabienne used our "happy Aniversary" rub-on as Anniversaire is the word for Birthday in French! This card combines our Kitschy Kitchen collection with our blue/white (GN464) and Cream/white (GN466) crepe paper garlands, and our cream (GN530) and pink (GN529) pom-pom trim.
 From Sherrie here is a 5th avenue Shabby-Chic styled card.
New mom Rachel, fashioned an adorable banner on the bottom of her 5th Avenue card for Melissa.
 Melissa Phillips made Melissa an over the top vintage-shabby card combining our 5th Avenue Collection with buttons, stamps and trims. 

Now, for the giveaway! Please leave your birthday wishes below for Melissa by Sept. 2  at 11:59 PM-PST, and we'll randomly select a winner to receive a packet of some of our great products (Value, approximately $30). We will announce the winner on or before September 5th.

Old meets New

 
(Supply List: Patterned paper - 5th Avenue 6x6 paper pad (GN444), Peaceful 12x12 paper (PA147), Simone (PA329) • Stamps: Waltzingmouse You're Lovely, Eat Cake, Flourishes - Scallops and Dots • Die Templates and Machine: Spellbinders™ Mega Ovals LG, Mega Classic Scalloped Ovals, Grand Calibur)

Mona Pendleton sent us the following card which combines 3 of our current and past collections. The green paper is from our Thankful Collection, which debuted in 2008. The music paper (Octavia) is from our 5th Avenue 6x6 paper pad, and the collaged paper (Simone) on the bottom right of the card is from our Attic Treasures Collection. Way to show how versatile and inter-connected our papers can be Mona.

I love you

 
(Supply List: Patterned paper - Octavia (PA368), Lula (PA367) • 5th Avenue Ephemera Stickers (GN440) • 5th Avenue Die Cuts (GN442) • Other, non-Melissa Frances supplies: ink, ribbon, flowers, buttons, doily, black pearls, alphabet stickers)

Vicky Théroux, a Canadian currently living in Spain, emailed us this beautiful card which features our 5th Avenue Paper Collection in a starring role. We love how our ballerina sticker is the prefect accent to such a soft and pretty card.

Thanks for sharing Vicky. If you have a project featuring Melissa Frances that you would like to share with us, we invite you to email it to us at [email protected]

 

Workshop with Karin

It is officially time to introduce the newest member of the Melissa Frances team here on the MF blog!

Please join me in welcoming Karin Aguirre to our team. Karin and Melissa's relationship began in 2008 when Melissa taught a workshop that Karin attended. During class, Melissa gave her usual talk about the importance of self-breast examinations and how important it is to be your own advocate if you notice changes. Long story short, Karin went home, discovered that she had breast cancer and she and Melissa stayed in touch ever since. Read Karin's write up about it here. Melissa has wanted Karin on our team for years, and now seemed like the perfect time to finally get it done! Karin will be sharing her fabulous talent with altered projects with us with our trade show and catalog samples and from time to time here on the blog!

So without further ado, here is the Crown Workshop from Karin...Enjoy!!

Gather all your supplies.  For those of you who don't know me, I'll let you in on one of my crafting secrets. I always keep a large supply of chocolate nearby for any sugar intake needs.  Although it's not officially on the "supply" list, I highly recommend stashing some nearby. Here is the workshop Supply List: The following MF 5th Avenue 12 x 12 papers: Geraldine (PA369), Ebony (PA362), Flora (PA361) MF Pink Tissue Fringe (GN465) MF Large Flower (FF12) Gathered White Seambinding Tulle (for the top and the ties) Pink Seambinding (for the ties) Glitter Glitter pen Decorative Scissors Adhesive  gold stamp pad (optional)    I made a crown template from a piece of cardstock.    Just fold your paper in half and cut out desired shape from card stock.........   I used the "Geraldine" paper for the base of my crown....... Then, I cut a piece from the "Ebony" paper to run across the bottom......   Next, take the "Flora" paper (which, by the way, I love this paper.  Love it.)...... Anyway, cut approximately 5 of the scalloped arches and set aside for just a minute......   Print up "Queen for a Day!" or any other appropriate phrase.  I've  been known to wear the crown around the house with phrases such as "Pick up your Legos! I'm Not Your Maid"  and,  "I Have no Idea What's for Dinner"   Anyway, feel free to choose whatever phrase best fits you...... Next, I cut the phrase out with a pair of decorative scissors and used the blue part of the "Flora" paper for the background.  I used Edwardian Script in MS Word for the font.   Cut the paper to size around the phrase.   Remember that piece I told you to set aside?  Well, hopefully it didn't get buried under a bunch of papers and projects like mine did, resulting in a half hour of my life that I'll never get back........  Cut the sides on a angle to fit the phrase......   If you want to, you can edge all the sides with the gold stamp pad. Glue into place on the crown. Next, take the tissue fringe and glue to the bottom of the "Ebony" paper.......     Because I'm putting the ruffled seambinding in the middle of the fringe, I took some time to seperate out the middle.......   I placed the ruffled seambinding in the middle of the fringe and glued it into place.....   I used a pencil to trace around the arches and paper. It gives it a bit of dimension.   For the tulle on the top of the crown, gather a bunch and tie with a piece of string......     Set the tulle piece aside for a minute because we are going to glitter!  Grab your trusty glue pen and trace around the areas you want to glitter......  For the crown itself, I used glue (I like to use Aleene's QuickDry Tacky glue when applying glitter) and a small square brush to outline the edges.      I used white glitter for the front of the crown.  And silver for the edges and little dots......   Glue the tulle on the top to the back part of the crown.  Glue the seambinding and tulle on the back sides of the crown for the tie backs.  There you go!  So, see, whether you let your loved ones know that "It's My Party" or, "I Won't Be Doing Dishes Tonight!"  you will be doing it in grand style........     If you have any questions at all, please feel free to ask in the comments or email me.  I'll be happy to help you out!

Two Vintage-Shabby cards

 
(Supply List: Patterned paper - 5th Avenue 6x6 paper pad (GN444) • Oval resin accent - Provincial Applique (CX712) • Other, non-Melissa Frances supplies: paper doily, decorative scissors, sewing machine and thread, seam binding, rubber stamps and ink, ribbon flower, buttons, key)

We received these shabby styled cards from Cathy Santie who sweetly thanked us for making such beautiful papers and embellishments. Well Cathy, right back at you, thank you for showing us what you made with our products. It always gives us a thrill!

If you have a project featuring Melissa Frances products, we invite you to email us at [email protected]- who knows, your project just might make an appearance on this blog!!

 
(Supply List: Patterned Paper - Flora (PA361), Pearl (PA371) • Other, non-Melissa Frances supplies: paper doily, sewing machine and thread, seam binding, rubber stamps and ink, ribbon flower, buttons)

What time is it?

 
(Supply List: 5th Avenue 6x6 Paper Pad (GN444) • 5th Avenue Die Cuts (GN442) • Other, non-Melissa Frances products: American Craft Glitter card stock "DIVA" • American Craft Thickers "Jewelry Box Gold" • Stickles "Diamond" • Maya Road "Mixed Scallop Mini Triangle Banner Chipboard" • Plaid Folk Art Crackle Medium • Ranger UTEE FLEX • Ranger Perfect Pearl Powder • Petal Porcelain • Martha Stewart Fine Glitter • Elements Brads • Golden K "Hard Modelling Paste" • Tattered Angels "Glimmer Glaze" • Tim Holtz's Big Shot dies • Versamagic "Sea Breeze" • Brilliance "Peralscent Orchid" and "Pearlscent Olive")

Dee Wahyuni from Surabaya-Indonesia emailed us this super detailed and embellished birdhouse which features our 5th Avenue Collection and we were blown away. Way to take scrapbooking supplies off the page Dee! We love how intricate this clock is - we could spend hours examining it and dissecting each technique.

Thank you so much for sending it our way.
 

Love Always

 
(Supply List: Patterned paper - Minerva (PA372), Geraldine (PA369), Antonia (PA364) • Aqua Pom-Pom trim (GN531) • Other, non-Melissa Frances supplies - Verve Stamps, ink, Martha Stewart border punch)

Today we have a second layout to share with you from Robin Shakoor (if you didn't see her layout from yesterday, please scroll down to view it. You'll be glad you did ☺).

Wedding photos are often difficult to scrapbook but Robin makes it look easy here with this classy layout. 

One thing technique-wise which really stood out to me as I looked at this page is how Robin used the 'love always' stamp to stamp around the curve of the ornate border on the patterned paper. What a great idea - thanks for sharing Robin. 

Life is Good

 
(Supply List: Patterned paper - Flora (PA361), Pearl (PA371) • Heart resin accents - With all my heart (CX835) • Other, non-Melissa Frances supplies: Verve Stamps, ink, flower and vine)

Robin Shakoor shared the following with us:

I was recently asked to be a guest designer for Verve Stamps for July, 2011.  I knew exactly what papers I wanted to use for my projects and I chose the beautiful 5th Avenue collection. 

Thank you so much Robin, your layout is beautiful.

We'll be sharing another awesome layout from Robin tomorrow, so be sure to come back!!

Wedding set

 
(Supply List: 5th Avenue 6x6 paper pad (GN444) • Cream pearls (GN297) • Other: Die cuts, flowers, lace, Magnolia stamp)

Nancy Bourdeau from Montreal, Canada sent us these two projects along with the following message:

I just fell in love with your 5th Avenue series. My nephew is getting married this summer and I made him a little mini-album/souvenir album and a wedding card. Hope you like it!

There's no question that we like these Nancy, they're  both so pretty. I'll bet they were a much appreciated gift!