Faerie Dust Dream's - Best of 2011

I have compiled some of my favorite postings from 2011.

Such a Creative year!

Enjoy your journey along The best of 2011 from: Me to You.

(sorry it's so long! so hard to pick my favorites!)

• Homemade iPad case and purse.
• Santa ATC's

• Princess Crown

Christmas Greetings - One last LayOut for 2011

Hop on over to The Robins Nest, to see more!


~ Michelle Cummings

Glitter makes everything better!

When people ask why I have a brace on my wrist, I tell them I have "craft-tin-nitus" which is the creative term for carpal tunnel. (:
It's been a particularly cold winter here in southern California which makes the flare ups last longer, so Christmas gifts by way of baking like I usually do, or creating any cards was out of the picture. Instead of sending out boring cards, I picked up a couple of boxes of generic cards and added a bit of glitter to each one. I really love the look and it makes the cards seem so expensive!

~ Michelle Frae Cummings

Shining Star Christmas Tree Topper

Just something I made to top my sons bedside Christmas tree.

 To see more of this topper and the full tutorial, please visit The Robins Nest blog. :)

Happy Holidays!

This month. The toy. Some Christmas music and catching up.

I apologize for the lack of posts this week. My mind is in a whirlwind daze of past activities and soon to be a new year that I have kind of shut down. Here is a recap of the month so far.

Decorated Glass Ornament using Diamond Dew Drops!

Come stop by The Robins Nest blog to see the ornament I made

using their Fiesta diamond Dew Drops!

Such a pretty decoration!

Outdoor Christmas Tree decorations made from Tomato Cages!

 So the other day I was stacking some tomato cages I scored super cheap from an estate sale, when one fell and landed upside down. I instinctively pinched the top together and knew what I wanted to do....

I secured the top prongs together with duct tape and strung Christmas lights from top to bottom to make my own outdoor tree decoration with out having to buy those ridiculously priced one at the stores.
What do you think?  :)

More Music Themed cards

 Here are some more music themed cards from my Monday craft group. These were made by the other ladies and were passed around for show and tell before we drew names from a bag to see who got which cards.

So pretty!

"Thinking of You" card

 I meet up with 4 different card/scrapbooking groups per month. This card was made for my Monday night group. We have a theme each month and are asked to make a (stamped) card to share and trade. The theme was Music. Every layer of this card was hand stamped. I doubled up the butterfly for dimension and colored it in with distress stains and a water color brush. When dry, I added some glitter glue and diamond glaze.

Such a pretty card! :)

The Personality Bears, a Holiday Memory.

A favorite Holiday memory of mine are these adorable place mats called, "The Personality Bears".

My sister and I used to fight over who got which mat for our table setting during the month of December.  

 I love all the cuteness each bear has. Now Dyllan can enjoy them like I did. :)
(There is actually a fourth mat, I just forgot it in storage. )

 Another nice thing about these mats, is if you have adult company , you can just flip the mat over for a more sophisticated setting!

I tried searching  the Internet for more information about these mats but could not find one bit of history. Anyone else have fond memories of these mats?

Mini pendant banners

Here is a cute mini pendant banner I made using glittered papers from The Robins Nest, come by their blog for more photos and to see how I made them. :)

Seaside Soiree 2011 - recap

Last Saturday, I went for the day to Seaside Soiree, hosted by Charity Wings- a non-profit crafting organization that raises money for charitable causes.

I re-joined old friendships from last year and made some new friends as well. I helped out during the morning and early afternoon and even took a class taught by Cheryl Waters!

This was my make and take for the dinner/silent auction Saturday Night.

This is what I taught last year.



Here I am with the Amazing Jen Cushman!

I wanted to make something special for the silent auction, so I hand crafted some Faerie Garden treasure and paired them with fresh thyme, oregano and rosemary to make a underwater Mermaid garden. It was a hit and sold for quite a bit!

I have been invited to come back again next year and am already dreaming up a new Mermaid herb garden and what I'll be teaching. :)

The Prettiest Car!

 Coming back from the neighborhood park, we came across this pretty little thing.  I have never seen eyelashes on a car and squealed in delight! :)

Then I found this site on line that makes and sells them.
 Car Lashes. They are available in solid colors, metal hues and you can even get crystal eye liners! They start at $26.99 and are durable for car washes and freeway driving.  I think I'm going to ask Santa for a set. :)   Too Cute!

Holiday Layout

Here is a close up of a layout I made using product from The Robins Nest!

To see the whole piece, please visit their blog here.

Festive Christmas Card Blog Hop!

I recently made this card at a craft event. My friend Jaimie taught us the technique which looks more involved than it is!

Supplies needed:

Clear acetate or thin plastic packaging, assorted alcohol inks and applicators, craft mat to work on, embossing folder and sizzix or cuttle bug, ribbon, trim, stamped greeting, embellishments and cardstock.

Basically you run the clear plastic through your machine in the embossing folder. Then you color it with assorted inks till your get the desired effect. While drying, you can stamp your greetings or images, add your special touches to them as you see fit. Then use double stick tape to adhere the plastic, painted side down onto dark cardstock. Add embellishments to the outside with clear glue dots, place your stamped design and you are done. So much fun!

Please head on over to Debra Bucklands blog for more Christmas Card inspiration!

Then when you land on The Robins Nest blog, you'll see my Iris Folded card. :)

Thanks for coming by my blog, I hope I'll see you again soon!

~ Michelle Frae Cummings

Cold winter rainy day

Yesterday before it started to drizzle, I came upon a family of quail.



This is "Puff", my uncle's cat who thinks he's a dog....and even runs like one!


Today it's rainy. They call it Humboldt fog because it's a thick steady light down pour. So glad we went mushroom hunting, yesterday. :)


I plan to stay in today to help my Aunt Kathy prepare the menu for Thanksgiving and to also work on some art projects for Thursday.
~ Michelle Cummings

Morning mushroom hunting

Hunting for chanterelle mushrooms this time of year is my favorite thing to do besides eating them!










~ Michelle Cummings

Higher and Higher

Seems like only yesterday he was begging me to come push him. Now he swings so high, that the chains make a clunking sound when they hit the top of the swing set! :)

~ Michelle Cummings

Turkey Elegance

Here is a layout I made using amazing product from The Robins Nest!

If you like what you see, please pop on over to their blog to check out how I created this beautiful page. :)

Thanks for stopping by!

Some Fall Cards to Inspire You

 The card above was made by my friend Jaime.

This is a "Gate Fold" card. See how to make one like this  here.

 The above card was made by Me. It's my first "Iris Folding", and I must say I'm addicted!

 I also made the above card with a few floral silk fall leaves and strong glue.

Lastly, this card was made by friend, Shirley.

I love how she incorporated a pretty wide ribbon in to the design. 

Just a little Something...

Click photo for close up...please

~ Michelle Cummings

Festive Christmas Card Blog Hop!

Thank you for coming by for this Christmas Card Blog Hop! For this card I decided to keep it simple. I wanted to make something that would be easy to duplicate for future Holiday cards. I stamped some watercolor paper with a vintage star stamp and water colored them in with yellow ink. Then I filled in the background with shades of red ink. Once dry, I added yellow glitter glue to the stars and made outlines/swirls with a fine tip black pen. The "Happy Holidays" was made using a photo shop program. Now my card is ready to grace my blog, be sent via e-mail or printed as a photo and mounted to a card, then mailed to family and friends. So easy!

Please continue onto Debra Buckland for some more Christmas Card inspiration!

~ Michelle Frae Cummings

Designer Crafts Connection Blog Hop - "Fall Leaves"

 This month the theme is Fall and Thanksgiving. So I took it as a opportunity to show off my crafting obsession which is coloring in stamped images. I love to play with watercolors and I was happy these leaves turned out so well. I hope you will enjoy my tutorial. :)

 I stamped some broad shaped leaf designs (Martha Stewart) with walnut distress ink onto manila folders. I chose the folders because they are thicker than card stock and can with stand the layering I would be doing.

 Next I dabbed the colors needed for painting on to a craft sheet. I used both Distress stains and full strength re-inkers. I spritzed those colors with water before I began painting. This would help the colors blend on the leaves.

 I used a paint brush with a built in water well for the painting. But you can also use a standard brush and a cup of water. I picked up color from the craft mat and painted the leaves as I imagined they might look in the fall. I live in Southern California where winters are never cold enough to turn our leaves.

 I used some of the distress stains full strength to added details of veins and color that needed to pop. When the leaves begin to dry on the manila folder, the diluted colors may fade a bit. Don't stress about that as you still have two more steps to make the leave come alive.

 I accented the maple leaves veins cinnamon stickles. Then outlined the edges with  stickles that matched the painted colors.

 I set the leaves out to dry, making sure the glitter glue has set. I refrained from using a heat tool as this would cause the painted leaves to fade even more.

 See the difference between the stickled and non stickled leaves, Almost done!

 With a fine tip I added diamond glaze to each leaf and and used my finger to spread it evenly, in between the veins, over the color and even past the outline. I set this out to completely dry. Then I carefully cut out each leaf with precision scissors. The tags below, don't do justice as these leaves are more breathtaking in person.

I enjoyed making these leaves and have added them to a layout, and thankful cards to be given to friends and family members for Thanksgiving.

* * *

Stains and inks used:

Maple leaf - Barn door and Rusty hinge stain, Mustard, Vintage photo and Marmalade re-inker.

Aspen leaf- Barn door and Forest moss stain, Mustard, Shabby shutters and Peeled paint re-inker.

Other leaf - Forest moss stain, Mustard, Shabby shutters, and Peeled paint re-inker.

I used an assortment of stickles and other craft glitter glues.