Charlie Tamara Piper

Another special gift wrapping edition! I've got a Star Wars-loving friend with a birthday coming up, so I went with a full Chewbacca theme for the gift wrap job. Here's how I did it: The Gift Bag As usual, I turned to Google Images to find a cartoon version of Chewbacca that I really liked. I spent some time creating a grid of the image which I used to create a layered background for a gift bag. I mounted the Chewie image onto bronze glitter paper. I used some coordinating orange card stock and a stamper to create the perfect birthday wish note! I used a brown ultra fine tip Sharpie to bring out the lettering a bit more. Once the image was complete, I mounted it onto a brown gift bag. I finished the package off with some bronze ribbon that I tied into a bow on the handle. I finished the edges of the ribbon by folding each tail in half and cutting upward on a 45 degree angle to create a triangle cutout. The Card I love coordinating cards t...

A Sunday crafting session...there's no better way to spend the day in my book! I have a Batman fan of a friend who's got an upcoming birthday and I wanted to do something really special. Here's how I did it. I started by wrapping the gift itself in plain blue paper. I then searched Google Images to find some great high resolution images from the 90's era of Batman The Animated Series.  I found this super cool photo of Batman with lightening bolts behind him and loved the way he towered over the city from his perch. I played with sizing and perspective a bit until I got everything at the right size. I printed two copies on card stock and, after sandwiching two pieces of heavy card stock at the base of the photos, pasted them back to back. The picture was then placed them under paperweights to keep the hold. I then found this cool collage of Batman's foes and spent some time sizing it so that each square would be roughly 4 cm to create a checkerboard...

Curly haired folks, you get me - finding the right products to make your hair look its best can be a struggle. Curly hair requires special attention in order to hydrate and define curls in the right way.   I've tried a number of products over the years and I've come to rely on a handful of products that get the job done effectively. Here are my favorite products for giving my curls life! Shampoo and Conditioner: There are a number of great shampoos and conditioners out on the market but I come back to Mixed Chicks because it works well for the price. I don't have to use much product in order to clean my hair and give it a great conditioning. Their Sulfate-Free Shampoo gives a thorough but gentle cleansing that doesn't strip my hair of good oils. The Detangling Deep Conditioner is a must for curly hair as curls tend to get knotted and tangled pretty easily. My fingers and combs slide right through my hair when I place this conditioner in my hair.  ...