A Colorful Birthday Banner

Hi, everyone, Patricia here to share a birthday banner with you.  With just pattern paper, twine, some adhesive, and a die cutting machine or punches, it really is easy to make your own banner.  What is really best about making your own banner, is you get to pick your colors.

My daughter's birthday party theme is rainbow, so I knew I wanted bright colors.  This banner was quick to put together because I kept it simple, using lots of repeating pattern papers.  

I used the Silhouette, and stayed with one color for the circles with the cut out letters.

Then backed those green circles with another circle using a simple contrasting pattern paper in yellow. 

For the circles with the cut out hearts, I did the same thing, except instead of the green polka dot paper, I chose the pink polka dots, and repeated those throughout the banner.

I made the blue folded flowers using a border punch and a score board.  Then layered a scalloped orange polka dot circle right on top. The pink polka dot hearts were attached with foam adhesive.  I kept the banner light because it is so long.  And then the last thing to do...attaching each piece with a piece of twine.

Lily Bee Supplies:

Patterned Paper:  Lemonade - Double Dutch, Grass, Richmond Row - Victoria Park, Robin’s Egg - Buttercup, Pattern Block - Handmade

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Day 24 - A Holiday Wreath (plus a Sketch Winner!)

Hey there! Can you believe it is Christmas Eve? Insane, right? I'm suffering from a mix of elation, giddiness, and apprehension. The last because I haven't wrapped anything yet. I'm dreading the hours I'll be spending tonight. But it's all worth it in the end, right? I love this time spent with family, enjoying each other's company.

So here we are on the last day of Holiday Countdown. And today, I made a super easy wreath that can easily be adapted to other seasons and occasions.

It's basically a yarn-wrapped wreath with a patterned paper detail. Easy peasy. Wrapping the yarn around the foam wreath took me the longest. But I was watching a movie while doing it, so it was all good!

So here is what you will need:

• Foam wreath (you can get it at any craft store in varying sizes, this one is 10")
• Yarn in the colors of your choice (get the cheapest acrylic variety, not only is it super affordable, but you won't have to worry about moths eating it)
• Little pompoms
• Lily Bee Tiny Tablets
• Glue (I used quick dry wet glue)
• Scissors
• and coffee if you are working on it early in the morning (like I did) or late at night (maybe a cup of decaf then?)

The yarn wrapping part is super duper easy. I start with a little wet glue (quick dry is best), and stick a portion of the yarn to the foam wreath. Once it's dry, I just start wrapping it round and round and round, changing colors as needed. Once I reach the end, I apply more glue, hold the end bit of the yarn a bit, and it's done. This would be a super project to do with kids!

Then it starts the even more fun part! Choosing what you'll create with paper to decorate the wreath. I choose a little paper bird. I found this pattern online. It took only one sheet of our Tiny Tablet. One. I'm thinking I'll make a bunch of them and make an Easter wreath too!

Once the bird was done, I cut (freehand) two little holy leaves (out of another sheet of our Tiny Tablet), glued them to the bird's neck, and added three teeny pompoms.

To attach the bird to the wreath, I used white thread and put a stitch on top of the bird, and sewed the other end to the yarn.

Wrap a piece of ribbon around the whole wreath to hang, and wham, you are done!

Other ideas for decorating the wreath (in case you are not into birds), flowers, leaves, hearts, stars. The possibilities are endless!

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In our excitement to post our Holiday Countdown, we totally forgot to pick a winner for our last Sketch Challenge. Oops! Sorry! But we have one now.

ERICA HETTWER

Congratulations, Erica! Please email me your mailing info milesofpaper [at] gmail [dot] com.

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We'll be taking a little break to hang out with our families. But do come back on December 28 when we'll get a peek inside designer Georgia Keays' studio. We have exciting things coming up in January. New challenges, guest designers, and we'll debut our new paper lines!


THANK YOU for a great year! We here at Lily Bee want to wish you a fantastic holiday season, and a healthy new year filled with love and scrapbooking!

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Day 12: Holiday Place Cards

Hey there! Hope you having a great time with our Holiday Countdown. Looking at these gorgeous projects has gotten me in a very holiday-y mood. And I'm usually grinchy until right before Christmas. :)

When I host a more, formal sit down dinner (I'm using formal very loosely here. I haven't been formal since high school prom, and that was eons ago!) I like to have place cards. You know the rule about not having couples sitting together, and doing a mixed boy-girl-boy-girl placement? I like that. Sorry, Couples Who Like To Sit Together! But it's just a better party if we mix it up a bit, and everyone is talking to everyone. That's when those place cards come in handy. Well, there are those people who sneak in the dining room and switch seating cards. You know who you are!

I usually just do a white card folded in half, but since it's holiday time, I decided to make a mini wreath with rolled paper. You've seen them everywhere, usually slightly bigger on a wall. The little version is really fast to make and it doesn't take a lot of paper.

What you'll need:

• Lily Bee 6x6 mini paper pad (I used a combo of the Jingle, Memorandum, and This & That pads)
• quick-drying wet glue
• pop up dots
• two-inch circle punch (mine is scalloped)
• 1.5-inch circle punch
• tree punch (or other shape)
• stamping ink
• pen
• glitter
• paper cutter
• scissors

How to:

1. Cut 4 sheets of the mini pad into quarters (the squares will be 3"x3").
2. Roll each piece into a cone and glue the edge to hold its shape.
3. Cut a 4" circle (it doesn't have to be perfect) to use as a base. Cover it with glue and start to stick the cones to it.
4. Punch one 2" circle and one 1.5" circle. Glitter the edges. Punch a tree shape, add an initial or name, ink edges, layer with pop up dots. Stick it to the center of the wreath.
5. Add glue to the edge of each cone and sprinkle lots of glitter.
6. You are done!

By the way, I never ever use glitter on my projects. But this was way fun! Never mind my entire work area is covered, and my kids went to school today covered in shiny sparkley bits. I'm calling it holiday spirit.

Thanks for stopping by today! See you tomorrow for another holiday project!

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Day 8: A Do-It-Yourself Christmas Tree

I am constantly inspired by all that I see on Pinterest, and when I saw this Christmas tree made from recycled wood, I knew I could put my own spin on it using the gorgeous Jingle collection.

Here is what I made.




When I showed the project to my husband, he thought the cedar shims he had in the basement would be perfect. Sure enough, 5 minutes later he had snapped the pieces into the shape of a tree.

First I sprayed each piece of wood with Glimmer Mist, in essence "staining" each piece. As it dried I cut strips of paper to fit each piece and inked the edges with chalk ink. Then using Glitter Mod Podge (AKA my newest obsession), I attached each piece to the wood. Finally I used Elmer's Wood Glue to attach the pieces to one center wooden piece.

Here is a view from the back. I am going to hang it using one of those 3-M strips. It's super light!



Here are a few close-ups:

See how shimmery the Mod Podge is? I covered this chipboard piece with patterned paper.



I liked the rough edges of the wood, so I tore the end of the paper to match the feel of the rough wood.






And again, the final product.



Products Used:

Jingle Mistletoe
Jingle Merry & Bright
Jingle Peppermint
Jingle Tinsel
Jingle Frost
Jingle ABC Stickers

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Focus On: Home Decor

Hey everyone! Hope You had a great weekend. And if you are in the US, hope you had a great Thanksgiving, too!

For today's Focus On, we challenged some of our team members to come up with projects to decorate our homes. We love what they came up with. (Click on photos to see a bigger version.)

Fall Frame by Piradee Talvanna

Lily Bee Supplies:

Pattern Papers: Harvest Market, Memorandum

Tiny ABC Stickers: Harvest Market

Others: Maya Road Chipboard, IKEA frame, String, Pearls, Silhouette Machine

Family Hand-Prints Frame By Lisa Dickinson

Lily Bee Supplies:

Memorandum: Grapefruit, Payday, Office Blue, Whiteboard & Lemon
Tiny ABC Stickers

Mixed Media Canvases by Kay Rogers

Lily Bee Supplies:
Harvest Market 6x6 Tiny Tablet

Harvest Market ABC Stickers

Harvest Market Pumpkin Seeds

Harvest Market Peach Crisp

Memorandum Whiteboard

Memorandum Clear Stamps

Altered Bird House by Julia Stainton

Lily Bee Supplies:
6x6 Tiny Tablet: Harvest Market
Cardstock Stickers:
Harvest Market
ABC Stickers:
Harvest Market
Clear Stamps:
Heads Over Heels

Thanks for the dose of inspiration ladies!

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Shadow Box

Hello Lily Bee fans from a very rainy and cold Sydney...Katja here today showing you a project I had lots of fun doing. I've decorated a Shadow Box for my daughters room with her favorite colors blue, yellow and pink.

First up I've painted all the compartments and outside of the box with crackle paint and after letting it dry (this can take a few hours) put some darker ink over it which will settle in the cracks and give it a bit of a rustic look. I've also painted the front frame with a coat of Glimmer Glaze (you can see bits peeking out from behind the ribbon).
Next all the sides of the compartments were covered with Lily Bee This & That 'Milk Bottle' paper.
The flower in the lower right corner was created by using a 12in strip of paper, cutting all along the strip in small intervals (make sure not to cut all the way through) and then rolling the strip around the end of a thin object (I used a brush but a quilling tool would be even better). Glue the ends together and start bending the little strips over to create your flower.
Here are some close ups of the project. I hope you enjoyed this!



Lily Bee Supplies:

This & That: 'Milk Bottle' paper
Happily Lost: 'Hammock' paper
Happily Lost: 'Sun Soaked' paper
Happily Lost: 'Good Book' paper
Happily Lost: Mixed Cardstock Stickers
Stationery: 'Oatmeal'cardstock

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Sweet Home Banner Tutorial

I am in love with the banner trend. I just can't get enough. With Spring on it's way I thought I'd hurry things along and add a fun touch of spring with a banner for my home. Keep reading and I'll show you how I created it.


You'll need some supplies to get started. I've used the new Picket Fence line from Lily Bee Design. It's perfect for Spring & Summer. You can create a banner by creating your own template but I love shortcuts and here I've used a Maya Road chipboard book. Just unclip the metal rings and spread it out and you are good to go. It's not the traditional triangular style banner but I think the unique look is pretty fun.


Lily Bee Supplies Used:

Picket Fence Pattern Paper - Veranda, Cottage Garden, Porch Swing, Fresh Air
Hello Sunshine Chipboard Stickers
Domestic Bliss Rub-ons

Covering the chipboard with the patterned paper will take the most time in this project. Use a liquid adhesive to adhere to the chipboard and then sand away the edges. You can use sandpaper but a small metal file will work great for sanding the tiny notches and details.


Next, stitch the chipboard if you have a sewing machine. Yes. You CAN stitch chipboard and it looks great.


Decide on the word you're going to spell on your banner. I've chosen home and have cut it out with my Silhouette Digital Craft Cutter from Kraft cardstock. If you don't own one, trace some letters or use some purchased chipboard letters. The rub-ons from the Lily Bee Domestic Bliss line work perfectly with my theme.


To add detail to one of the pennants I've covered a little chipboard house in more Picket Fence patterned paper.


It's easy to create your own die cut flowers to coordinate with the project. I love mixing two prints together.


Crumple the petals up in your hand for dimension, arrange them and staple together.


Finish off with some fabric leaves, a button and a Lily Bee chipboard piece.


Add other embellishments throughout your project until you feel that it is finished.


Binding tape or ribbon works great for stringing your banner together. A needle makes it super easy to thread through the holes.

Here's a closeup...


And one more...


Feel free to click on the photos to enlarge them for better detail.


Take some time and paper craft for your home. You'll love being able to see your creative projects as you go about your daily life.

Happy creating!

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