How I Got Bizzy

Friday night, I learned how to make a Shabby Chic Mini Book with Jen Starr at the Bizzy B scrapbooking store. We used various products from the Tim Holtz line, including Distress Crackle Paint and a Sissix die cut in a key shape. The colour theme was pink and brown with a "vintage glam" style. We also used corrugated cardboard in a way I hadn't seen before, peeling off some of the outer layer to show the ribs underneath and then painting over top, which gave the cardboard a really cool finished look that I quite like.

Here's a picture of Jen holding her book:

and a picture of the front cover of the book I made (below). Even when you have a sample in front of you and use most of the same ingredients, the finished product always looks different for everyone, no two are exactly alike!

Saturday morning, there was a 2 hour class on the topic of Alcohol Inks, which I had never used before. They are specially designed for use on glossy paper. They dry almost instantly and there are so many colours to choose from. We finished the class with a series of tags that have a description of the technique on the back and a sample of the finished look on the front, just like they make at Ranger University!


We took a break for lunch and when we got back to the store, Tony (one of the owners) was busy mixing mocktails - non-alcoholic versions of strawberry daiquiris and pina coladas - yum! What a refreshing idea for such a lovely summer afternoon.


The afternoon class was a "Completely Distressed - Layout Master Class". We made six 8" x 8" layouts in 4 hours based on originals that Jen had created. Here's a picture of one of the ones I made, which is pretty close to Jen's original. Haven't decided what picture I'll put on it. The caption reads, "Creativity is an endless journey where we should always take the scenic route." Amen to that!

Many thanks to Jen Starr and the staff at Bizzy B for a great bunch of classes, I really learned a lot and can't wait to put the techniques to use in my own creations.