What Would you do for Change?

What are your most wild imaginings? What ideas inspire you most? What would you tell yourself that would most nurture your spirit? I've created a set of 6 new journal cards to help inspire and remind you to be good to yourself.

printable journal cards for creating the life of your dreams

Adhere these into your personal day planner for an extra boost of positive energy throughout the day. Be sure to visit Le Charmed Life on Etsy to see the entire collection.

 

The Vintage Paper Pumpkin

Remember that darling little paper pumpkin I posted about last week and the template I created to help you make one of your own? I happened to be browsing Etsy the other day looking at white pumpkins when I was hit upside the head with a Shazam! moment. The thoughts went something like this: vintage, pumpkin, book pages, white.

vintage halloween paper pumpkin

With that in mind I gathered a selection of decorative pages, passages from an old book and a couple of old postcards with some handwriting and came up with my own vintage style version of this pumpkin. A new template that comes with all the pumpkin shapes you'll need to create the pumpkin shown can be found in the Le Charmed Life Boutique. Of course it will be up to you to add a stem, some curly vines at the top and a tag if you so desire. Be creative!

Vintage Mending Thread Cards

I like this box idea for holding mending thread cards. This box originally came from a blog that is no longer available. What a pity too because that place had some achingly beautiful vintage items on there. Yep, there's that word again. It was like crack cocaine for the eyes! Anyway, I'm getting off track.

thread card box - original source unknown

We may just have to break out the chip board and make a thread box of our own, eh? This will give you the opportunity to use some of those vintage papers and old book pages you've been dying to use but were waiting for the right project.

mending thread cards - click image to enlarge and download

What thread card box would be complete without some thread cards to put in it? I'm giving you some basic card shapes with a texture. That way if you want to do something with them digitally, be my guest or use your stamps and inks if you prefer that. Enjoy and let the crazy fun begin!

The White Witch of Montmartre

You have entered a world where magic is real and dreams come true.  A warm welcome to the "Grow Your Blog" participants. Leave your cares at the door, kindly step inside and rest for a spell.

via The Bohemian Gypsy on Pinterest

My name is Kellie, a throw back from a victorian age of long ago. I see myself as part gypsy, part eccentric french artist, part white witch and psychic. I offer you a few small gifts as tokens of my gratitude for your visit.

via Thius Thius
how to make a lavender terrarium

The Kell Belle Studio blog was started as a way for me to share my paper art with the world. Over the past year and a half, Kell Belle has evolved into a way for me to give back to the art community by offering tutorials, templates and inspiration for creating a variety of girlie paper crafts.

I live in the greater Seattle area with my two cats (how perfect for a witch) Flora and Phoebe. I believe my way of being of service to others is to uplift them by offering words of encouragement and ways of creating a positive and beautiful life for themselves. I too am on this path and want to share what I learn along the way.

envelope template via paper craft on Pinterest

Inspirational Idea: Use the envelope template above to create a sachet that could be filled with a little dried lavender from your terrarium. Magical uses for lavender include love potions, aphrodisiacs and healing sachets to name a few.

Perhaps you need a label for your terrarium bottle? Feel free to grab the image below. Simply click to enlarge and save.

vintage french ephemera label

My post is short and sweet so as not to take up too much of your time so I'll wish you well and bid you farewell. Please feel free to linger if you wish or e-mail me with any questions you might have.

via a smile a day on Pinterest

I'll leave you with a smile. I see great things in store for you in the year ahead. I see prosperity, good health and good friends. Au revoir for now.

Thank you to our hostess, Vicki of 2 Bags Full for organizing this blog event.

Ooh La La! Sexy French Hosiery

Ah! I feel much better this week and thankfully not quite so gritchy! How do you feel about sexy french hosiery?  Armed with a vintage advertisement, some old paper textures, a few ephemeral bits and a little imagination I came up with this french inspired, digital collage that I just love!

french hosiery digital collage ©Kell Belle Studio

The original hosiery ad (below) was found on the Free Vintage Digital Images blog and was simply too irresistible for me to pass up.  I think it's an elegant change of pace from all the tired dress form and corset collages I'm seeing out there.

1940 vintage hosiery advertisement

Wait . . . that's right! I too have jumped on the tired corset collages bandwagon.  Ha! Why reinvent the wheel?!  I've been busy with a series of boudoir collages created in that aged, vintage, french style everyone seems to love these days so look for those to hit the Le Charmed Life shop pretty soon.

Le Charmed Life

It's true, I'm addicted to new ideas. There's just something so fresh and exciting about them because they are full of possibility. So what could I be thinking with something called Le Charmed Life?

©Kell Belle Studio - Le Charmed Life banner

Well, I can tell you it's born from the "if you can't be em, join em" concept. Divine guidance seems to be leading me in this direction and it feels positively euphoric so I must be on the right track. More later.

Image Overload Remedy

Do you ever have times when you're so overwhelmed by all the ideas swirling around in your head that it actually paralyzes you into doing nothing at all? What is the cure for visual overload of great, fantastic stuff all of which you want to try your hand at making right this red hot minute?

divinely charming item from havenvintage on Etsy

I guess the key would be to detach, breathe, enjoy a zen moment and just go do something creative. It can be as simple as making a place card holder from some wire and an old door knob. It could also mean simply working on one of the many half finished projects sitting on my craft table.

The Shabby Chic Armoire

The shabby chic armoire I've been talking about for months has finally exited the nebulous realm of my thoughts and come forth in all its graphically designed French glory! Do you love it? I sure do.

graphically designed, shabby chic, French armoire

Shabby chic, also called cottage style reflects timeless, vintage quality that combines the new with the old. It is often light, airy, warm and welcoming. I see shabby chic as design with clean, crisp lines, lots of white or pastel colors, floral Victorian prints and vintage style.

prints $7 in the Kell Belle Boutique

This armoire is based on the antique French armoire and I think it fits the shabby chic style beautifully. I'll be working with this design to create displays for my paper dresses.

Note: Shabby chic French armoire is designed and copyrighted by Kell Belle Studio. It may not be reproduced or posted in any form without my written permission.

Rustic Vintage French Apothecary

Rustic, vintage and French, oh my! Three of the sexiest words in home decor together describing one gorgeous bottle! Linda of Cloth and Patina has done an excellent job arranging her photo.

altered vintage French apothecary bottle

This apothecary bottle will make an excellent storage jar for small items I use in the studio. Of course it will also make a great photo prop. Be sure to visit Cloth and Patina on Etsy for more great items like this.

Note: Image associated with this post remains the intellectual, copyrighted property of Linda and Cloth and Patina.

Treasury Tranquility

Here is a romantic, beach treasury I posted on Etsy yesterday. I simply adore it!



Hope you enjoy it.

Saying Good-Bye to Spring

I posted this treasury on Etsy today as my farewell tribute to summer but I think I'm mostly saying good-bye to spring. I know, it's only temporary and what's not to look forward to in the coming seasons?



I've never been a huge fan of fall colors although I love the season, the spiced cider, warm nights by the fire and of course all the reasons to buy CANDY! Enjoy the spring greens if only for today. ;)

Unfinished Vintage Mini Dress Form Dolls

Introducing the unfinished mini dress form doll now available for your decorating pleasure. This is the first of what I hope will be many and the beginning of a long and deeply satisfying selling relationship.

unfinished dress form doll available on Etsy

You can find this sublime creature for sale in my Etsy shoppe aka the Kell Belle Boutique for the very reasonable song of $16.00. At this price you might even start a whole orchestra! Haha!

Paper Couture XI: Vintage Padded Clothes Hangers Shabby Chic Style

I thought it might be nice to cover how to make miniature, vintage, padded clothes hangers before we begin creating paper clothes. This will help give you a pretty way to display your finished dresses.

embellish your hangers in a variety of creative ways

The padded hanger template can be resized to suit your needs if a larger size is preferred. I have designed the template so it is pretty enough for you to keep with your ACEO collection.

click image for full download resolution

Please do not redistribute, alter or publish my templates without my permission. Direct your blog readers back to Kell Belle Studio to download.

I hope you will enjoy the video tutorial. Feel free to direct me to links of your finished work. I would love to see what you create.

How to Plan Your Paper Dress Project

Planning your paper dress project does not have to be a daunting task. I touched on this topic in an earlier post and thought it was worth expanding upon.

initial theme planning

Journals are a great place to work out ideas before beginning a project so grab your favorite one and let's get started. Begin by answering a few questions. How do you feel today? Do you feel flirty and sassy? romantic and dreamy? bright and energetic?

inspiration for possible elements to include

What color is your mood? Flirty and sassy makes me think of hot pink, black polka dots, and stripes. Romantic and dreamy is creamy off whites, pale pink or dusty rose. Get the picture?

possible colors and style to cover the body

I'm in an airy, fairy kind of mood today so I'll go with pale french blues and white with splashes of corn flower yellow in a collage style theme.

madam butterfly rough sketch

Lastly, what materials will you use to complete your project? Draw a rough sketch of what you have in mind and watch as your project comes to life as you envisioned it.