Category Archives: Uncategorized

Oct12

Paper-Calliope-Robins-Nest-golden-travel-altered-box-275

There was a time during the 1940s to 1970s when some families got to experience the Golden Age of Travel. These were the days of roomy planes with curtained windows and hot meals; luxurious hotels with gloved bellhops; and even wood-paneled stationwagons with kids frolicking unbuckled in the back, while adults navigated empty interstates using a map from the Amoco station.

Ok, truth be told, I don’t remember most of those either. I am not prehistoric after all!.

My altered art box reflects how I imagine some mid-century Americans families spent their holidays during this era You can read more about this altered art box, see a tutorial on how to make it and even find out what it has in common with Oprah by visiting my post at the Robin’s Nest.

Read the rest of this entry →

Oct1

Paper Calliope’s 13 Days of October

Posted on October 1, 2014 by Betsy Skagen

Paper Calliope’s 13 Days of October

Do you dare enter the halls of Paper Calliope during the month of October? Brave souls will unearth tutorials for 13 hair-raising Halloween projects ranging from scary to festive. It is sure to be spooktacular!

Sep18

Stop those dreaded pen thieves in their tracks

Posted on September 18, 2014 by Betsy Skagen

Stop those dreaded pen thieves in their tracks

“They walk among us, silently waiting for an opportunity to strike. People you would never suspect in a hundred years, capable of inflicting deep harm and intense personal suffering.

Every 38 seconds in the United States, they claim a new victim. At this very moment, they could be targeting your significant other, or your best friend, or maybe even you.” –J. Mark Powell

The most treacherous criminal in existence is the dreaded Pen Thief. Unfortunately, in my house, there’s a young criminal in the making. No pen, pencil or marker is safe from The Daughter™. Read the rest of this entry →

Sep14

Make an altered art Halloween Book

Posted on September 14, 2014 by Betsy Skagen

Make an altered art Halloween Book

With the season of ghosts and goblins fast approaching, I am thrilled to share my tutorial for an altered art Halloween mini album. You can see the entire tutorial with lots of detailed pictures of creative pages on my Robin’s Nest Design Team post.

Altering books is one of my favorite activities. With so many options available from pre-made books found at craft stores to repurposed children’s books to making books from scratch, I find making altered books almost as irresistible as sneaking Reeses’ Peanut Butter Cups out of my kids’ trick or treat bags. Please note that emphasis on almost, because, well, I really like Reeses. Read the rest of this entry →

Jul19

Held captive in the country with chipmunks, Elvis and a coin laundromat

Posted on July 19, 2014 by Betsy Skagen

Held captive in the country with chipmunks, Elvis and a coin laundromat

So right now I am sitting in my car, parked between a coin laundromat and a video rental store, where, yes, I think they still offer VHS tapes.

I drove 15 miles to a tiny town just so I could nab the laundromat’s free wifi.

Desperate times people. Read the rest of this entry →

Jul18

Making an altered art circus mini album

Posted on July 18, 2014 by Betsy Skagen

Making an altered art circus mini album

As I wrap up my month as the guest blogger for the amazing company Whisker Graphics, I took advantage of all the stripes, dots and zig zags that their products offer to create a fun mini circus album.

Anyone who visits my blog regularly knows that I love anything with a vintage circus theme, and this mini album is chock full of circusy fun. I made the album for a friend of mine who has been especially kind this last year. She is the mom of a talented youth circus performer and I thought she could add ticket stubs, photos and other mementos of her daughter’s performaces to the mini album.

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Jul7

My crafty family

Posted on July 7, 2014 by Betsy Skagen

My crafty family

You might never guess it from their job descriptions, but I am just one Crayola coming from a whole box of colorful creative types.

Accountant, homemaker, architect, physical chemist, construction engineer and web developer are some of my family member’s day job titles. However, these folks are also incredibly artistic. Well…maybe not the physical chemist… he has so many degrees behind his name and so much knowledge oozing out of his head, that he is more likely to take a spectrometer to a crayon than actually color with it.* Read the rest of this entry →

Jun27

Launch your next dinner party with these adorable place cards

Posted on June 27, 2014 by Betsy Skagen

Launch your next dinner party with these adorable place cards

These place cards are featured on the Whisker Graphics blog!

Throwing your next get-together is sure to be smooth sailing with these adorable place cards. Cute all by themselves, they would also be perfect for your all-out nautical-themed bash. Score bonus hostess-with-the-mostest points by filling the boats with nautical themed treats such as Swedish Fish.

Origami is not my thing. Trust me on this. I don’t know how someone who specializes in paper crafts can bungle origami so badly. I even have my own Tower-of-Failed-Origami that I am planning to show you sometime soon.

That’s why I picked the simplest origami boat possible for this project. Then, The Husband™ took the paper out for a test-fold before he would even let me make a single crease. Now, don’t go thinking he is some extra special crafty guy. He was just trying to protect our children’s innocence—because me + origami = a sure way for our kids to learn loud and in color exactly how sailors talk. Read the rest of this entry →

Jun20

This little birdie is soaring

Posted on June 20, 2014 by Betsy Skagen

This little birdie is soaring

This little birdie has been flying high for the last two weeks. Today, I get to finally tell you why. I am thrilled to announce that I made the international Robin’s Nest 2014 Design Team!

A worldwide manufacturer of art paper and embellishments, The Robin’s Nest handpicks select artists to create paper crafts that showcase their products.

Artists from around the world undergo a fierce competition to win a coveted spot on the design team. I must admit that I am a bit bedazzled by the amazing talent of my fellow team members and both daunted and inspired to meet the challenge of creating art of their caliber.

I am incredibly grateful to The Robin’s Nest for going out on a limb and selecting me despite (or maybe because of) my sassy and irreverent blogging style. I mean, really, what other artist is crazy enough to call their blog the love child of Tim Holtz, Jenny Lawson and Oprah Winfrey?

You can see The Robin’s Nest announcement and meet all the super-talented team members here.

Jun19

Who knew weird weather could impede art?

Posted on June 19, 2014 by Betsy Skagen

Who knew weird weather could impede art?

So, for the last several days I have not completed any new art projects. While there are several reasons for this–almost all of which are exclusively the fault of the Husband™–one factor that I cannot blame him for is a weird weather anomaly that hit Minnesota this past weekend. Read the rest of this entry →