Create 10 Projects (Spoiler Alert)

IT'S ALL ABOUT RIBBON THIS YEAR!

It's almost here! You don't get any 12" x 12" paper, you don't get any bows and you don't get very many extras but you do get a lot of ribbon. You do get some heavy plain card stock. And I think Anna is going to show us how to make bows again this year. 

So I usually get my materials for the classes 2 to 3 weeks ahead to cut out the stuff we will need to make projects for each class. And I usually get all that done and I put a lot of stuff together. Basically I'm in craft heaven for a month or more, then I just make a few more things here and there afterward.

Class 1: The first class was for me the show stopper. I didn't think I would like those eyelet frame looking cards but after I made a few, I fell in love with them. I just didn't like the examples that were shown. But I found other uses for them too. I like cards and card dies and I really like the way the ribbon looks on the eyelet frames..

So I also come up with my own designs occasionally and those little ornament shoes in class 9 reminded me of a pattern I already had. I had made a larger shoe pretty much like them from a free pattern I got online. I decorated it with the eyelet frame dies. You can use these eyelet frame dies and cut them into pieces for other designs. I really like them.

Class 2: I love decorative tags but I don't much care for them when they are too big. These are too big. I would not use them on gifts because they will just get thrown away. They are cute but they are just too big to use like that. I would however use them as decorations on a large tree or as a garland to decorate a window or door.

Class 3: The Creative Calendar. First let me say that I don't care to stamp and emboss anymore. I would have to be really, really bored to drag out all my stamping materials and work with it. I also don't journal and use printed calendars any more. I have a digital calendar I like and I have a little perpetual block calendar I like. But I love easels. And this one has a beautiful butterfly easel. I made five of them already!

Class 4: The Stylish Hat: Don't know what I'll do with these but they are pretty. Can't see me mailing them or who to gift them to??? But they remind me of the cloth pincushions we made a dozen years ago. You can get pretty creative with these if you want. They bring out the designer in you. So I made two of them but what I really liked was the hat box. Not so much the one that came with (I made two of those) but I wanted to make a round hat box that would hold a hat with a LOT of decorations on them. So I did.

Class 5: French Fan Dies. This was just a beautiful die set. I enjoyed decorating with the pieces and threading the ribbon through the panels. I will probably display one in a butterfly easel in my craft cabinet. They are a little flimsy to be useful but they are so pretty for display. I would not decorate the backs since they won't be seen anyway. Very pretty and easy to make.

Class 6: Treat Box Dies. Another favorite class! These are so fun to put together and decorate. I loved making them. I had the recessed frame inset figured out way beforehand. I have seen these before from other designers and I actually have a pattern for a similar box. There's nothing new under the crafty sun, just another way to decorate it! Love them!! And since we're cutting things that aren't seen in the preview shots, it seems that Anna will demonstrate how to make a ribbon and bow decoration from the large die out of ice blue foil paper. 

Class 7: Theatrical Greetings Dies. Gimmicky, overdecorated, uses too much paper. That's just my opinion. The only use I can think for these is that they would be great for a wedding card... maybe. I will try to think of another use for them later. They do remind me of the stereoscope cards and holder on Pixie Hill by Nicola Battilana. And they remind me also of the old ViewMaster toys. It's the 3D effect.

Class 8: Corset Album Dies. Oh Wow... that's all I can say about a corset photo album. Maybe as a bridal gift with getting ready with the girls pictures but anything else? I wouldn't use it as a photo album. So because it's a garment all I could think of for a good use was a sewing box. So that's what I made with my dies this class. I don't know what I'll do with the album dies if anything. It's very feminine and I like it as a sewing notions box even though I wouldn't use it as a photo album..

Class 9: Origami Ornament Dies. This was one of my favorite die sets. I loved the shoe so I had fun with that. I also have patterns of them in different sizes that I've worked with before. And I already have an angel die so another one was O.K. I did make the frames and I think they are a good idea for people who like to put their kids and grandkid's pictures on the tree. I don't do that any more but I did make two of the frames. I don't like them glued back to back because you can only see one at a time.

All in all I'm pretty happy with the projects. It's hard for me not to like anything creative or making something frilly with paper. I plan to go to every Create event that I can for as long as Anna has them. I look forward to it every year!

And now I can just enjoy watching and participating in the classes without any pressure of stress. I learned from my first Create that you will not be able to keep up and you'll miss out on some stuff if you try. And I can cut out a few more things and make them as slow as I want. Looking forward to it!!!

It's Almost Create 10 Time!!!

Are you excited? I know I am! I've dragged out my leftover papers from previous years and have organized all my stuff, cleaned off my desk, made a privacy screen for the nightly video chats with other crafters in the craft chat rooms and ~~~

I've watched all the pre cut videos at least once, some of them twice! I've paid special attention to the projects we will be making and I'm confident that I can get at least one of everything done before it all starts. This year my least favorite class has got to be that calendar in spite of it being drop dead gorgeous. I don't like to stamp and the pre-printed is just mostly all done. Add stickers, glue the box together, make a butterfly easel and you're good to go. 

You know me - I look at that big box of goodness like it's a puzzle and I can figure out how to make the projects beforehand. I follow the basic instructions that come with each set of dies and then I look at the preview pictures of all the class projects and figure out how to do it. Last year's least favorite class was the Christmas Crackers. But I really like them, it's just that it seems such of waste of expensive paper to tear them up. 

That goodie box with the diorama inset might be a little tricky but I'm pretty sure I know how to do it. I love Create and I love most everything about it but like every event, you are just not going to like every single class. I have other templates for these type boxes so... these are not new to me. To make an insert or recessed window all you do is cut a hole in the side of your box to fit the background insert and then make a rectangle background for the insert adding an inch around the background paper and make a fold 1/2" in twice. Cut your corners and bend it into a box shape with the outer lip folded back so you can glue the edges to the inside of the box.

Already I think there is a material shortage this year. I have leftover papers from the past two years but this year it looks a little light and NO 12" x 12" paper, plenty of ribbon but no bows but I think Anna is going to show how to make bows from all that ribbon. I also noticed there are not very many printed sheets but plenty of foils. Definitely not as much paper. I wish there were more stickers too. I don't like that shrinkflation has hit my beloved Create boxes but it is O.K. I won't let it ruin my day. Last year's box was packed and overflowing.

I also won't be making a few of the class projects as shown because I just don't think they are pretty. The woven ribbon class to me is a huge waste of good ribbon. I don't think the examples are very pretty so I might do a card or two a little different than shown. The last two years were over the top. It's gonna be hard to beat last year.

I make tags to put on my Christmas tree or use as bunting but I don't give my good paper away to be thrown away as a gift tag. No can do. Gift tags for real? Dollar Tree stickies for cheap and I save my good stuff for the tree. Last year's tags were more substance, more stickers and more layers. I like them more than this year's tags which I felt were a little plain by comparison.

last year's tags

this year's tags

I do not like the corset album as an album BUT, I probably will put the front and back on a little box for sewing notions or add felt pages accordion style as a needle holder for my sewing but I cannot think of any photos I would want to put in a corset album. It's underwear. An underwear album for family pictures? Naaaahhh... I will use it for sewing notions.

My favorites are the hats, fans and ornaments this year. I also like the theater card but, it uses a lot of paper and is pretty thick for a card. I might make mine with a Christmas scene instead of the examples given. I really like the shoe ornaments and wouldn't those hats look good in a miniature version for a fashion Christmas tree?

As with everything, either the price goes up or the materials are less. That's to be expected but I would rather pay more for the quality and more materials than pay less and get less but that's just me. I have a lot of leftovers from the previous two years so I'm good for a while. The Create pouches are a great way to store all that stuff!

After all is said and done, I would still do Create every year that I can and enjoy it immensely regardless of the price and quantity of materials. It's the whole experience of crafting with others and sharing your makes. I think it would be pretty hard to beat last years album. Everything after that would be a let down but... I love this craft. I'm definitely a hardcore Anna Griffin fan. 

last year's album

Oh Marie! Love Those Shoes!

I've been a big Marie Antoinette fan since way back. Love the frilly, love the girlie stuff and I love to make beautiful things. So I went gaga when I first saw these Marie Antoinette paper shoes about 14 years ago. I used Anna Griffin papers and die cuts to make mine.

First a little background. There used to be a Marie Antoinette mail art swap group on Ning 13 - 14 years ago. I was a member for a short time and really enjoyed making and trading all things Marie on that group. I think they moved to a new group hosting platform years ago but I really haven't kept up with them.

But I found the pattern again and cut out a modified version in these Anna Griffin papers and die cuts. I just brought the sides in a little at the middle and made the heel a lot shorter. You can make the shape of the upper several different ways. These are gorg! 

I remember Terri Heinz from Artful Affirmations who had a shoe swap in that group back then. I love her site and even though it's no longer being updated, the site is still up and you can go get her FREE SHOE PATTERN for her Marie Antoinette paper shoes there and cut them out yourself. She even has a video showing you how to put them together and you can also find it on her YouTube site Joyful Compass that's still up.

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So I decided to drag out my old shoe pattern and make a few little pretties. Anyone can take her pattern, (it's free) and modify it and make their own version of Marie shoes. I was inspired by Terri to make these. She gives you options for modifying them on her YouTube channel and shows you how to put them together so I'm not going to reinvent the wheel here. Just go watch Terri's video and she explains all you need to know.

I used my Anna Griffin papers and Beautiful Birthday Concentric die cuts and a few others to decorate. I think Anna Griffin is coming out with her version of these shoes soon. I also found some pretty bling at the Dollar Tree. Love those big faux jewel stickers! Go stock up on those while you can. I only found them at two out of four stores I went to! I used gold foil paper decorative die cuts I already had to make these and made some extras to cut up into shapes that fit the top of my shoe. I modified Terri's pattern a little to shape them and make them flatter but you could make them thick and put heels on them if you wanted to.

I really played around with these. They were so much fun. I made a journal with some Marie Antoinette shoes in it too! It's almost done.

I also did a freehand pattern of the shoe in the size of 2-1/4" that is cuter than anything. I made them into paper clips! They are so cute I can't hardly stand it! I will be giving that pattern to my crafty friends if anyone wants it. Get the .pdf pattern here. 

More for Less? or Less for More?

As much as I love Anna Griffin products, and you know I do! It is not the only paper crafting product I use when I paper craft. And paper crafting is not the only hobby I have. I like to mix these beautiful die cuts into my journal making. My latest purchase is the Anna Griffin Christmas Wishes card making kit for 2023. I hadn't bought one since 2019. I got it on a Black Friday sale so I didn't pay full price for it. Wasn't too sure about the pink. I'm not a Barbie pink person... which I'm sure is a sales feature for many products this year. I had to warm up to the pink and red. I think they clash but I couldn't pass up the price at the time. About a dollar a card! You can buy cards for a dollar at the Dollar Tree but not like these cards!

 

But Anna just launched a new site because her shopping cart crashed on the old site with the Create 9 after sale event which I do not participate in... ever. Just too many issues getting in and trying to purchase something with so many people doing the same. So I don't buy very much from her site. I'm still having problems getting access to some of the classes I had before.

I understand that a lot of her followers and customers complain because her beautiful layered cards cost a lot to send in the mail. They can get pretty thick with all those gorgeous layers. I know some people are charged up to four dollars a card for postage in some post offices when they make you pay parcel postage on them. It depends on the card and the postal worker. You get a different price with each card it seems. It's happened to me.

So I think the reason for the one inch false bottom in this years Christmas and Birthday boxes is because Anna is trying to please her customers by giving them a product that will go through the mail at one or two stamp rate... meaning not as thick. So this year the box highlights are card toppers. All the layers are already flattened in an appealing design so you don't have to add a lot to them. Voila - less postage! At least I think that's the reason. 

But with no explanation, I was a little shocked to find the false riser in the bottom of my box. This has never happened before, at least as far as I know so I posed the question in a group to see if anyone noticed it in their box or if this was a new thing. They noticed it and they didn't like it any more than I did. Someone remarked it was "shrinkflation". Someone else said they just took it as an extra space to put their finished cards... which happens anyway when you make them. And someone jumped on my post and turned it negative.

Sorry this is a little bit of a rant so first of all - I'm entitled to my feelings and I felt a little cheated with an extra inch of air in the box when I'm expecting a full box like before. BUT - I did not say "shady business practices", you did. Don't put words in my mouth. It's not shady business practices when you buy an Easter basket and the basket is filled with wadded up paper because you know that is presentation for a wow factor from a child, and you expect that. Either buy it or don't. I simply want to know if this was going to be a new thing or just a one off and if anyone else noticed. That's all I said about it. Whatever it is, I hope it doesn't creep into all her products.

Still love Anna products and will still buy what I like of them but when I see something I don't like, I will speak up. 99 percent of the time I'm a happy positive person who enjoys everything around me. We all have a right to question things we don't understand and say so when we don't like something. I can't control if you take it the wrong way. JMO  

P.S. I would respond in the group but my post was taken down, not by anything I said but by the person(s) who made assumptions and got nasty. You know who you are. My rant is over. 

Both Ends of the Spectrum

When it comes to hobbies, cost is not a factor... or is it? It shouldn't be if you really love what you are making. But sometimes you have priorities and have to keep it down. I have hobbies that span the spectrum. Making junk journals from recycled junk mail envelopes is at the lowest end of it, but the most satisfying for me as far as design work goes. It's the least expensive but most rewarding.

 

My biggest expense in making these is the cost of paper to print on. And the glue. I use a lot of glue. I wouldn't use anything else but Aleene's tacky glue for this job. I have a Graphics Fairy subscription for the graphics, an ink tank printer which costs next to nothing for the ink, and a few laces and ribbons from my sewing stash for decoration. Occasionally I add die cuts to embellish the journals and little charms for decoration. Sometimes I sew in fancy fabric swatches to the pages to add interest. It's the one hobby I have where I can incorporate so many of my other hobbies into it and they all come together.

My mid-range hobbies include all my knitting and crocheting. I bought all my yarn when it was on sale and very inexpensive... not at today's prices. I have enough yarn to last the rest of my life and then some. So my cost has already been paid for this hobby. I now occasionally just buy a pattern for a few bucks when needed.

I also occasionally dabble in jewelry making. I don't wear a lot of jewelry but I do love to make beads, bracelets and dangle charms. I have all the jump rings and polymer clay any true artist would ever want so that's an expense that is just pennies to maintain if I need a few supplies here and there. The same goes with sewing, painting and paper sculpting/paper clay. I already have everything I need to make projects. My room looks like a craft store. Jewelry making can get expensive if you want it to.

But without a doubt the most expensive hobby I've ever had is paper card and crafting with Anna Griffin supplies. Ask me if this makes sense... You spend thirty dollars for one die cut set to make maybe three or four cards. You pay twenty to thirty dollars on the "Anna Griffin" paper and embellishments to make them, not to mention adhesive, foam adhesive, stickers, bows... all have to be Anna Griffin to participate in the Anna Griffin groups and her web site to show your creations. You can opt in to her on site classes for about a hundred dollars a year. You used to be able to pay reasonable by the month but now you have to do it all at once by the year. 

She sells boxes of die cuts, paper and embellishments with a theme from around sixty dollars and on up to five hundred dollars for her Create events once a year where you participate in online crafting weekends making items with her products in a classroom setting with hundreds of other people you can interact with at the same time. Can't afford that? No problem. You can pay on time with an app or split your payments for her stuff through HSN, her sponsor.

Without a doubt, this is my most expensive (and not too logical) hobby. It costs a lot but without a doubt the most beautiful cards and paper gift items on the market. Nobody compares to her high quality and gorgeous richness of product. This is definitely an obsession with the beautiful craft that she does.

These cards are so beautiful that people don't throw them away. They are keepers. And as long as I can afford it, I will be making Anna Griffin cards because nothing else on the market even comes close to the beauty and quality of these products. My Anna Griffin obsession is not only beautiful gift making for others but it's a gift I give to myself whenever I can afford to.

It's a love/hate thing. The cost is prohibitive for most of us. I hate the obsession and cost but I love the beauty of the embossed die cuts. So I try to keep it down by being more selective in my purchases and using more of what I already have mixed with the low cost of journaling. In fact I try to combine a little of several hobbies into one - my journals.

Create 9 - The Last 4 Classes

Well, it was a blast and even better than last year if that's possible. And it's bittersweet. Such a good time with kindred spirits and kind, supportive friends and hard to see it come to an end. I will miss it until next year.

But I got so much done and so many beautiful things made. I know Anna would rather have us wait until it begins before we dig into that box and make stuff but I cannot wait. I could not wait last year and I could not wait this year.

The best I could do was wait to post my makes until the class was in session and try not to post before it was the right time.

But I'm not alone. A lot of us could not stay out of that box and had a lot of stuff done. I prefer to watch the demonstrations and participate in the chat instead of working for that perfect piece of card that I can't possibly get done anyway while chatting and posting on the wall. You can only do so much and sometimes you have to just choose which parts you want to do the most.

So I make stuff beforehand. I make stuff all the time year round so why not? I can't not make stuff. It's what I do and when I get that big box of crafty goodness in my house... I can do what I want. I paid for it so it's mine and it's just sitting there urging me to figure it out like a big puzzle box. 

I liked the perfume boxes a lot but it was a toss up which one was my favorite class. I liked them all this year. I'm going to make more stuff too. I've got quite a collection of foil paper now and it wants to be used.

I'm already planning on going to Create 10. It's something I must do as a gift to myself I think. It's my birthday and Christmas all rolled up into one big, beautiful, crafty present just for me.

Until next year Create! Thank you Anna for another wonderful event!