"Whatta You Do?"

What do you do when you are the happy recipient of bags and bags of satin ribbon scraps? That was the very question I found myself asking when at work we were accumulating bags of pretty satin ribbon cuttings daily.


I happen to work for Planetgiftbaskets.com which my twin sister owns. Because we make and ship out gorgeous gift baskets all over the world on a daily basis, these ribbon scraps tend to pile up in all different colors and styles. This is because after assembling and wrapping a gift basket we trim it out in a personalized satin ribbon before shipping.

I find myself looking at these trimmings and wondering what in the world I could do with them since it would be such a shame to throw them all away. Then I came across this awesome Youtube video by Paperdrama showing how to make these very vintage inspired satin ribbon roses! After watching the video I was off and running with making these gorgeous embellishments. I love the way these turned out and I am going to use them in so many ways. Check out the video for yourself and give this fun technique a try.


*Please pause music at bottom before watching the video.

More Creative Inspiration For You.

Please Use These In Your Art Only. No duplication for use in CD's or collage sheets for sale.

Zutter Distrezz It All Product Review.

So it looks like I have found a new toy that I have managed to fall in love with! It is the new ultra-cool distressing tool from Zutter called The Distrezz It All. This handy little distresser is from the same Zutter that makes the awesome Bind-It-All.

I have to admit I was a little wary of this product when I first began to see others using it in their Youtube videos because frankly it looked a little dangerous to me. The open design of the feed channel coupled with the high speed of the exposed blade concerned me a bit. I decided to hang back for a bit before buying to see if there would be any complaints about lopped off fingertips and what not...lol I finally conceded and ordered mine and it arrived only a few days later. Incidentally, I did find a safety disclaimer on the site since ordering mine. You can read it here.

The machine itself was a lot smaller than anticipated so that in and of itself made it seem a bit safer to maneuver. I found that although the blade is exposed it would be very difficult to lop off a finger unless you deliberately tried to stick your finger into the channel! After deciding that it was indeed a safe tool I tried it out on different thicknesses of paper and materials and WOW! I love this thing!



It made 3 or 4 simple sheets of card stock so distressed on the edges that it appeared to be many more pieces of paper. It worked on paper, card stock, cardboard and chipboard. It can be used handheld or tabletop whichever you prefer. My final conclusion is that I just love this new tool! For some reason it has not seemed to catch on at my local craft stores enough for them to begin carrying it so I had to shop around to several online stores to find the best price and it cost me around $38.00 which was not bad considering all that it does. So my recommendation would be to give this handy little dandy a try. Check out all of the technique videos on Youtube as well. You will find loads of ideas for using this tool there.

*Please remember to pause the music at the bottom of page before watching the video.

Easy Peasy Vintage Flower Technique.

Is it possible to ever have too many paper flowers for your art and crafting needs? I think not. This is why I was so excited to come across this really cool technique for making vintage inspired paper flowers than not only rival the expensive Prima Marketing brand but in my opinion they happen to look even better than them.

The video is by Julles and her Youtube Channel is Jannavilles. She has several techniques for making these and other gorgeous Prima lookalikes but these "Peony" style ones happen to be my favorite. After watching the videos please be sure to visit her Youtube channel on the link above so that you can enjoy her many other techniques.

*Please remember to pause the music at the end of the page before playing the video.

I Won A Prize....YAY!

Hi Gals, I was so excited to learn that I won a prize from the National Scrapbooking Day Challenge over on Katherine's web community called Life On The Scrap Beach. The challenge was to suggest a themed technique for a page that was a little bit more involved than normally. Katherine herself would be challenged to complete the chosen challenge as part of a "Revenge" process for all of the difficult challenges she has issued the group this year.

The suggestion that I gave was for her to complete and album layout using only one color for the entire project! This monochromatic layout could consist of all the hues and shades of that one color only.

Anyhow, my challenge was chosen and I won a beautiful prize. Enjoy the video below where I show off all the wonderful pieces I received in this cool kit.

*Please Remember To Pause Music Below Before Enjoying The Video.

One Year Already?

So here I sit this fine morning sipping my ambition also known as a cup of coffee when I happen to look over at the calender and realize that today is May 3! What's so special about May 3? Well, today is the one year anniversary of The Vintage Vignette! I can't believe it has gone so fast. I decided to do some checking and found that my Google ranking is at a 3 as well and that's not too shabby! That means that Google has graced my little blog with a number that means that folks really do like my blog (Sally Field moment) and that they feel it is informative enough to qualify me for a page ranking and that's pretty darn cool.


I have had so much fun meeting all of you over this last year and have made some really great friends through the comments and exchange of ideas for projects. I've had a blast visiting your blogs and following what you all have been up to a well. The blogosphere is such a wonderfully happy place and somewhere that I retire to at the end of each busy day for a bit of relaxation and catching up with friends.

Someone asked me why I have never changed the blog template when there is so much new stuff out there to choose from and my answer is simple. It is just that I am a weenie when it comes to change of most kinds. To me, there is something comforting in having something that you enjoy that never changes and that is why I have kept the template as is for so long. In other words, I just like it that's all.

I know that most bloggers are very generous by holding giveaways and contests in celebration of their one year anniversary but to be honest folks I'm just plain broke right now...lol No contests here cause I'm flat busted! I managed to spend X amount of dollars this month on craft and art goodies and am now suffering the consequences...hehe!

So instead of a giveaway I will offer you two free vintage images for you to use in your art. A gorgeous Victorian gal and a piece of vintage sheet music for your enjoyment.


Thank you so very much to all of you for your visits, comments, and inspiration over this past year. I look forward to another great year with you all and sharing our love of all things vintage until we "can't stands it no more!" Much love to you all. :)

Happy Earth Day.

Happy Earth Day To Everyone! Earth Day is the day when we should just stop for one moment and reflect about the natural beauty that surrounds us every day. You know, the things that are there everyday but often go unnoticed because of our busy schedules and daily obligations. For many people it could be appreciation for the mountains or a favorite garden flower.

For me it is birds. Yes, I am an official card carrying BIRD NERD and have been for many years! I have the professional binoculars, all the field guides and bird journals. I read the birders magazines and even have Cd's that identify the calls of the different species. I have the long range camera and even a birding clock that sounds off a different bird call every hour. Yes, I am a bird nerd and loving it.

The very sight of them sends a warm feeling of peace and contentment around my heart. So in celebration of Earth day I thought I would share a few photos of the birds that visit my backyard bird oasis on a daily basis.

AMERICAN GOLDFINCH

BLACK PHOEBE

AMERICAN RAVEN
CEDAR WAXWINGS

ANNA'S HUMMINGBIRD

HOUSEFINCH

EUROPEAN STARLING

How will you celebrate today?

Vintage Stationary And A Little Mel Torme' For Ya.

Aaah, the lost art of letter writing you say? Yes. You know that archaic way of communication that existed long before email, text messaging, instant messaging, web cams and virtual phones. Letter writing was regarded as an art form way back when. One could expect the average letter to contain hand printed correspondence written on beautiful paper and embellished with whatever the sender fancied such as sweet perfume, dried flowers or a tucked away treat of some kind. Give this lost art a personal revival by simply right clicking the image and printing out your own vintage stationary.



On another note I just came across this cool photo of a very, very, very young Mel Torme'! This was a first for me as I have never seen a photo of him under the age of 40! He couldn't have been more than 2o here! Mel Torme' has always been one of my favorites. He was one of those great singers with a cool style that was all his own and could not be duplicated by another. As a matter of fact he was known as "The Velvet Fog" for his smooth as silk croonings and snazzy stylings. Yet another one of the greats that will live on in our memories forever.

Free Images For Use In Your Art.

The above is a gorgeous vintage collage sheet courtesy of Flikr. They may not be used for any commercial purposes whatsoever such as for use on image Cd's or collage sheets for sale. I love the soft pinks throughout and the way the photos stand out so vividly even if the elderly woman at the bottom looks a little scary....

I thought this vintage woman was so beautiful. Look at her porcelain skin and soft features. I guess sepia tones can really bring out the beauty of a person. Please enjoy.

Vintage Satin Lollipop Flowers.

My oh my, were these fun to make! After stumbling across Arlene's video tutorial at Mybutterflykisses12 on Youtube I knew I just had to give these a try! They are made from scraps of satin fabric that you can find in the remnant bins at any fabric store. The technique requires you to burn the edges of the circles that have been cut from the satin to form the lollipop shape. There are so many ways to use these in your artwork. I made several to adorn albums and even a few to wear as brooches and hair clips...I just love them! Check out Arlene's video below to see the exact technique that will have you on your way to creating some of these babies yourself.