i tried out some products by GRAFIX this week. They have some fun and unique items such as acrylic mini albums, chipboard pieces, shrink film, vellum and cling vinyl just to name a few.

first, i played with their vellums, they are a nice weight and a VERY crisp! the colors were nice and rich too. i made 2 cards…

the “thanks” card was made by folding a torn piece of vellum into the shape of a flower. then i used other small torn pieces to make the center of the flower, the stem and the leaves.

the “congrats” card was made by stamping a scroll pattern on a piece of vellum, then cutting it apart to make the strips at the top and bottom of the card. i used thin strips of black cardstock to add definition and make the hot pink of the vellum POP! rub on letters were used for the sentiment.

— stamps are from My Sentiments Exactly and the ink is from Clearsnap (ColorBox chalk ink) and the rub ons are by Reminisce.

next, i tried out some Funky Film! these fun papers are HOLOGRAPHIC! i am redecorating my 6 year old son’s room – he wants a Spiderman theme – so i thought i’d make a “C” and a door hanger for his door in colors to match. the film is easy to use, you can cut it with a paper trimmer, and it’s adhesive backed, so you just peel and stick it. i think it would be great for covering notebooks, frames, etc.

 
i painted the door hanger and letter black using acrylic paint, then added a coat of expresso dimensional pearls to get a silvery-dark grey color. next was the easy part, i just cut strips of aqua and red funky film in a variety of widths and stuck them on in no particular order or pattern. then i turned the pieces over and trimmed off any excess film using an exacto. some punched silver stars added the finishing touch.

— acrylic paint by making memories, dimensional pearls from ranger and wood door hanger and paper mache letter from Hobby Lobby.

then, i tried out the Metallic Foil – if you like BLING – you’ll love this stuff! it’s a little heavier than cardstock and you can diecut it or cut it by hand to any shape you wish. i used both techniques on these cards…

 

  
to make the monogram card, i diecut a “t” from the center of a piece of black cardstock. then i mounted the cardstock on a piece of silver metallic foil. next i rolled on the scroll design using the new Get Rollin’ tool from Clearsnap. i used a glue pad to stamp the design with, then sprinkled it with a black glittery embossing powder. after heat setting the powder, i mounted the silver foil piece on a black cardstock card.

to make the “hi” card, i adhered rhinestone flowers to pieces of red metallic foil, then cut around the flowers using scissors. i adhered a rectangle of black cardstock to the front of a white cardstock ard, then i cut out a small rectangle of silver metallic foil and mounted it to the card. next i adhered the cut out flowers, using a 3D dot to adhere one of the bottom ones. chipboard letters were used for the sentiment and i used stickles to fill in the centers of the flowers.

— stamps are by My Sentiments Exactly, Get Rollin’ tool by Clearsnap, glue pad from Superior – Palette, embossing powder from Sugarloaf, rhinestone flowers from Hobby Lobby, chipboard letters by American Crafts and Stickles by Ranger

and finally, i HAD to try the Cling Vinyl. i think i had the most fun with this product simply because of the easy of use. you just cut, peel and stick – it “clings” to acrylic, glass, metals, ceramics, plastics and probably some other things i haven’t thought of yet! you can cut it by hand or diecut it. i was lazy and diecut all my pieces in these 2 projects…

for the jar project, i didn’t use anything fancy, just a jelly jar i had on hand. i think it would make a nice teacher or co-worker gift. you could fill it with anything you liked! i just diecut flowers and stuck them on the jar – NO messy glues – LOVE it! i used small circles for the flower centers and polka dots. a piece of fabric tied around the top and some ribbons completed the project.

next, i found a frame in the kid’s summer craft clearance section. it didn’t look like much, it was just a cheap plastic frame with a coloring page insert. it was designed for kids to take the frame apart, color the insert, then stick it back in to customize their frame. i figured i could use the insert for a template to cut a piece of pattern paper to replace the color-me insert. then i diecut flowers and centers as well as a quote mark. it was quick and easy to stick them on there and it looks a LOT better than the color-me version would have! LOL!

— fabric, ribbon and frame from Hobby Lobby.

i think a lot of these projects would be great to do with your kiddos and all of the products are pretty kid friendly too. so if you want to stay inside where it is cool during the dog days of summer, you might consider making some of these things – or coming up with ideas of your own – with your kids. i think the cling vinyl would be especially fun for them since it is so easy to use and they could embellish a variety of items quickly and easily using it.