Buttons, Buttons and MORE Buttons!

The button shop has been busy, busy and my creativity has been pushed to so many new levels. School buses, radios, giraffes, zebras, whimsy bugs...so many new ideas and inspirations, so many yet to create! You just never know what's going to end up on a button..lol :)

Friday, I will have the talented, Breanne Crawford here as my Guest Designer and her super scrapbooking pages along with a fun, insightful interview.

I am also guesting at the ScrapJacked blog, so this means me scrapbooking. YAY! My layout is a work in progress and I'll show it off to you sometime this week!

Okay.....now for the eye candy! This set is for my final edition of the Buttons Of The Month club. I decided to let this go to be able to focus on many more designs and custom orders in my shop. Just a few remaining subscribers are receiving these fun, colorful buttons, titled, "SUMMER GARDEN" I didn't even make myself a set..lol. It's funny I make so many buttons and never keep any for myself. I've got to work on that! I so love these :)




"Back To School" buttons. This was fun to create! The school bus was tricky, but now that I've made several, I've got it down!
A custom order for a really cool customer! These too were super tricky, but ended up being some of my favorite buttons to create!
Another custom order. This customer wanted buttons to match, Cosmo Cricket's, "GIRL FRIDAY" collection. I just bought some of that paper and LOOOVE IT...of course I didn't make any for me...lol
A spin off of my "Sex in the city" buttons.. These glow in the dark and the city lights up when in the dark. Kinda fun :)
A little boombox and some boy colors. This set is titled, "Lets Rock!"
And...I've done many things for the Fall season.



"Pumpkin Patch"
This Fall Leaf feltie would be so pretty on a sweater, or even better a scrapbooking page! I even used a button from my "Autumn Textures" button set.

Have a great afternoon!

Updates and I scrapped!

Happy Friday!


Today has been a great day from beginning to end. You know sometimes you just have those days were everything is good. Lord knows I have plenty of the other days..lol, so it was super nice to have such a neat day.

I had a great walk this morning with Duffy. We were walking and came upon 2 does and they were beautiful and uninterrupted by us. They just looked up and continued grazing. It was neat they didn't run like usual. We quietly headed on our walk around the neighborhood and the most refreshing crisp-cool breeze flowed, but the sun was warm on my face. It was a very nice way to wake up and set my day up for a good one!

I had a nice surprise visit from my mom while I was up in the studio packing orders. I hear a little voice..."Tessa!" below my window. There she was..lol. My studio is in the upper corner of our house and I can NEVER hear the door bell or phone if it's not with me. Like my little get-a-away..lol. And...for what it's worth, I usually have my Itunes bumping motivating me through my day.


We visited a bit and decided to meet up with my dad for lunch. As some of you may remember I have been really trying to lose weight. I've lost 50 lbs to date (give or take a few lbs depending on the day..lol). I am about 30-40 lbs from my goal and FEELIN' Great! I have been tracking all of my calories and exercise over at http://www.sparkpeople.com/. If you have some to lose, I would highly recommend this site. The tools for tracking progress are OUTSTANDING! My user name is "T-Dubya" over there if you want to go and be inspired by what I've been doing. However, remember this is my heart and soul over there and I have exposed myself a lot, but really how can anyone accomplish such a goal without being 100% honest? So, be kind with my before and after photos. Really it's been simple. Cutting calories, fat and carbs (but, balanced) and getting of my butt and moving. Having Duffy has been great. A few times a day, I will feel two little paws jump up on my lap, followed by a little wet nose rut on my elbow. Yes, he wants to go out for a jot around the hood :)


Oh, back to going to lunch and what my point was haha...lol. I digress!!!!!!

I always strive to make healthy choices when at restaurants and today I chose the fish tacos. Just simple grilled halibut and some black beans and rice (though I don't really like rice, so that wasn't eaten) and a few chips and salsa. I was a good girl and came right home and started entering in my food in my nutrition tracker. I hit enter, held my breath and WOWZA, 600+ calories for such a tiny meal. Grrr. Don't even get me started on the calories in my once beloved Mojito and Margarita on the rocks. No more of that for me. Not worth all of the extra calories (a mojito has 240 for ONLY 8 oz..whaa! and a margarita a whoppin' 450 for only 8 oz, and if you go to the places I do they come in those huge cups. ) I enjoyed quite a few of those over the summer last year and it's no wonder why 80 lbs. filled my stature so quickly. So, I am learning each day and learning how to "Eat to live" not "Live to eat."

Today I had what I call a "scrap attack" I saw my pile of birthday cards laying on my shelf and BAM! an idea struck. Make a layout with all of the cards. In 30 minutes....this was created!

In other news, I am sad to say that the Buttons Of The Month Club will be ending in August. It was a hard decision to come to, but I need to find balance again and allow more time for creating many new designs and button styles in the shop weekly. I have also concluded my custom designs as well once I finish up my current orders. I loved doing custom designs, but they take so much time to create and my shop sort of remains stagnant during busy custom order times. I think that I will be able to meet more of the needs of my customers with having more time to create new goodies! Maybe one day when my buttons are being manufactured, I will be able to meet the creative needs of everyone! That would be the day ;)

Here are is a recent custom design that I ADORE (created to match the Michael Miller "Tweet, Tweet" fabric) as well as some of my fall and back to school designs I have new in the shop this week. I am also creating Halloween buttons as well, *and*oh-my-they are CUTE!

Back to school buttons (the little yellow school bus was too fun to create ;) )














"The Apple Orchard" Perfect for the photos you have of picking apples during the Fall.













"Autumn Textures- a simple textured set enhanced with gold for a beautiful simple set of accent buttons.















If you would like to be showcased in a "Customer Spotlight" contact me via shoptessaann@yahoo.com with your layouts using my buttons or appliques!

And, Don't' forget to check out my "Tessa Ann's Buttons & Appliques" FLICKR page! Many have already uploaded their designs and they are sure to inspire! Thank you to everyone to has taken the time to upload their creations. Each and everyone is precious to me :)

Have a super fabulous weekend!
Tessa Ann*

Scrapbuck!

Good Monday morning, friends!

I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend. It was so hot here, but we had a great time anyway! We had a great time site seeing with Steve's family around our pretty little town, and yesterday we spent some time cooling off on the Deschutes river.

Well, it's Monday and time to get back to work! Before I do, I would love to share some scrapbooking pages and a fun site I was asked to create for this month!
I received such a great assortment of products from Scrapbuck. I was eager to dig in and create some fun pages. All of the products on my projects cost around a dollar. How cool is that? I loved working with the glittered chipboard and the alphas they sent. The patterned paper with pink, brown and yellow was super cute. I even worked in some of my buttons into the design! (subscribers, your July buttons of the month will include some of these fun buttons!)

Head over to Scrapbuck and stock up on affordable scrapbooking products. And, I can vouch they are SUPER cute and great quality :)

**If you purchase anything, enter "TESSAANN" in the notes section and a portion of the profits will be donated to The American Cancer Society. This is a charity that is personally near and dear to my heart, so thank you if you decide to head over to scrapbuck after reading this.

Okay......Now for the scrappage! Here are my ScrapBuck projects

"Cozy" Yay, Duffy finally made it into the scrapbook ;) He has taken over all of my handmade pillows and cozy's up daily in his pile of pillows. He's such a sweet old guy and I really enjoy having him! I loved the polka dotted pink, brown and yellow paper. Of course I had to cut out the flowers and outline them. Same Tessa style..lol. I added my buttons to the center (inspired by Kelly's page, of course!) The glittered chipboard piece is my favorite!
"Road Trip" My mom and sister surprised me with a fun trip to Portland just before my 30th Birthday. I had the most wonderful time going to pubs, and listening to fantastic music. My mom really knows where the good spots are..lol! Thanks MOM! (striped paper, embossed paper, flowers and "road trip" stickers are from Scrabucks. Buttons are by me!)
A sweet little "Thank You" card. The bird is a paper version of the birds I love to create in felt for my Etsy shop. The die cut paper and cute raspberry pink paper..and that adorably cute flower brad is all from my ScrapBuck goody box.


Thank you for stopping by and have a wonderful Monday!
Tessa Ann*

JULY GUEST DESIGNER- Kelly Goree!

Welcome Kelly Goree, my July Guest Designer!

I was so excited to send Kelly buttons to work with this month. Kelly has always been one of my *favorite* designers in the scrapbooking industry. I first spotted Kelly's work at Two Peas In A Bucket, and began to recognize her stunning creations for Basic Grey and many scrapbooking publications. I have always been so inspired by Kelly's scrapbooking. Her attention to detail and vibrant designs are always *pure* eye candy and when I received her projects back I was delighted to see how she put my buttons to use!

Now for the eye candy...

*I just adore how Kelly used my buttons for the center of her punched flowers. This layout is breathtaking.

A gorgeous card, so vibrant and happy! If you would like to learn how to create this card, the Fiskars website has posted a tutorial! Check it out here--- http://fiskarscrafts.com/projects/t_piecepunch.aspx

As a part of being my guest this month, Kelly was interviewed. Here is what she had to say!

1.) Tell us a little about how you got started with scrapbooking?

I started scrapbooking in early 2000 after a group of friends of mine told me I "should" and that they thought I'd really like it. I didn't believe them and couldn't see beyond making a "baby's 1st year" album, but one day found myself in Michael's scrapbooking aisle. I walked out with some Hot off the Press paper, a cheap album and some alphabet stickers...and I haven't stopped since.

2.) What led you to scrapbooking? Do you remember that *first* time you sat down to create a page? I don't remember much about creating my first page except that it was about the birth of my oldest son (the main reason I started scrapbooking) and I cut each and every picture into either a circle shape or silhouette. I was so proud of myself for my efforts, too!

3.) When you sit down to create, what are the essential items in your environment that you need to feel in the "mood" to be creative?

I generally scrap late at night with either my playlist going or the TV on. I need some kind of noise but nothing too distracting. Oh...and a diet coke. I have to have my diet coke!

4.) I feel most creative when.......my kids are sound asleep!

5.) How do you decide what you are going to journal about... and what is your favorite way to document journaling? I think it really depends on the photographs. Sometimes a photo tells its own story and very little journaling is needed beyond the date, the place, or just a little background. Sometimes the journaling "is" the page and if that's the case, I already have the story that I need just waiting to be put down on paper. I try really hard to use my handwriting for my journaling in a majority of my pages. I just feel it's such a tangible way beyond the actual words to really reach the people you're scrapbooking for or about..

6.) What did you enjoy most about working with my buttons. How were they a good fit for your project? I just adore the whimiscal nature of your buttons and how beautifully detailed they are. And after getting a batch in my hands, it surprised me that they are still quite supple so you can manipulate them with needle and thread with no fear of breaking them.

7.)Share with us your most favorite layout and why this layout is your most favorite..... Wow, that's a hard one as my favorite literally changes with each new page I create. Each one then becomes my new favorite! If forced to choose, though, I'd have to say it would be this one called "Lazy Days of SUMMER." I love the color palette in it, how it incorporates so many photos, and even includes my handwriting. But my absolute favorite touch has to be the handmade shrink plastic buttons I made that I stamped on, shrunk and adhered to my page in waves.

WOW! Look at the detail in this layout. A M A Z I N G!

Thank you so much Kelly for taking the time out of your super busy schedule to share with us your creativity!

I know I am inspired, Are you?

Leave a comment below to be eligible to receive a fun set of buttons! Please include your email address. I will randomly draw a winner by the end of the month :)

Have a wonderful, creative day friends!

Tessa Ann*

I have a FLICKR Group! First 5 to upload win a set of buttons!

*Edited to add....sorry about the link to the group not working! It's fixed and ready to go now :) Thanks to all who have uploaded their creations! Go check them out and be inspired! http://www.flickr.com/groups/1090721@N25/

***********************************************************
Well, it was time....

I've been receiving so many wonderful emails with the most inspiring creations from customers who have put their buttons and appliques to use. I am amazed at the many ways they have used their products. So......I wanted to have a little gallery to invite anyone who would like to share their projects using my buttons and appliques.

I'm SO excited to *showcase* YOUR beautiful art work!!

The 1st 5 people to upload will receive a fun set of buttons each!

Anything goes in this gallery.....scrapbooking, cardmaking, sewing projects, art projects, again...ANYTHING GOES!!

Click on the following link to sign up! http://www.flickr.com/groups/1090721@N25/

I look forward to seeing all that you have created. It truly brings me such joy to see my little creations inspiring others to create :)

Have a wonderful day.. where ever you are!
:) Tessa Ann*

Sometimes I just get the itch to play.

Plain and simple :)

To create new fresh designs to hopefully inspire others.

While I really love my current collections and love the creative process with making each one, it's always fun to have something new to look at! Sunday I set aside a few hours JUST to play with new designs. I pulled out my clay and started deciding fun new color combinations and just let my creativity take hold of me and see what I could come up with! The color combinations themselves really inspired the design. While I do have sketch books filled with ideas, I don't really plan ahead. You just never know what my mind's eye has in store each time I sit down to create.

*Summer Fruits.... A pretty pearl blue with raspberry pink, bubblegum pink, apple green...delish, right?

*Under The Cherry Tree* A whimsy version of a cherry tree with intricately hand detailed leaves. This set is so pretty :)

*I just love happy frogs! I've been wanting this set in my shop for awhile!
*A baby themed set with little yellow birds, pearly blue, pink and lemon yellow.

*Perfect for baby themes or even Easter projects. I love the little chicky breaking out of the shell..hehe!

*This set is so pretty in person. I could see the rose buttons stitched to a lovely sweater.
*Just a great assortment of rainbow colors. Simple, yet a functional set of buttons for anything you might need a button for!

I am in the process of creating some fun sets for the upcoming 4th of July holiday! I also hope to do some scrapbooking soon!! It has been so long since I've sat down to make a scrapbook page. I have little piles of product stacked in a corner of my studio that I keep adding more to with the idea of a scrapbook page. Once I pack up my orders, I may just have a few to play again and make that pile of product in to a page..lol!

Well, I hope you have some time today create or PLAY! Have a wonderful day :)

-Tessa Ann*

* We have been having some outrageous thunder and lightening storms here in Central Oregon for the last couple of weeks. While I long for the summer weather to make its presence, I really have enjoyed watching the lightening shows while I work from my studio window. Here is a pic I captured yesterday. I thought it was really cool how the blue skies where trying to break through those angry thunder clouds and provided just a wee-bit of sunshine in my window. So beautiful :)

*We enjoyed a nice visit this weekend with my family. My grandpa came to visit and oh, man...he is too cute. I adore that guy. My sis and her new beau came and stayed with us last night which was nice. I miss having her close :( But, she's loving the Salem area and if she's happy, I'm happy :D

*The button shop has been busy as usual with regular orders and custom orders. I've had such great customers who are so kind enough to share their creations with me when they use some buttons or other goodies I've created. I get a little giddy when I see them :) I guess it would be the feeling you would get as a "proud mom." hehe...my little tiny goodies that I made all from scratch in my tiny little studio..... are *truly* being enjoyed and inspiring crafters all over the world. That's pretty darn cool to me :) Who would have thought....buttons?

*I took some time out this week to design some new button collections. Sometimes regular orders keep me so busy creating that I don't carve out any time for NEW collections. New is always important. It's fun to break out my inspiration journal and review past ideas and put them to use. I had a customer request buttons to coordinate with some new scrapbooking paper lines she was working with and it was fun to use them as inspiration.

-"Bowl Full Of Cherries"

"Wonderful World"
-"Antique Rose"

-"Ebony & Ivory"

*Presentation to me is so very important when I send off an order to a customer. I want them to feel like they have received a little gift.....carefully prepared....JUST for them. I've tried many ways of packing my buttons and just recently have felt satisfied with my presentation.

*Thanks to a combination of awesome Etsy sellers, I have been able to find what I feel is a beautiful combination of colors and textures to present my buttons. I love to mix and match my papers, ribbons and trims in funky, fun color combos that match the buttons the customer ordered.

-I love mixing orange with anything. The pretty orange lace paper is vintage paper lace that I purchase from a lovely Etsy seller, Abohemianmarket.
-I'm really loving raspberry, turquoise and yellow together lately! Don't you just love those cute "Thank you for your order" stickers! Button of the month Subscribers.....I bought some special for your packages! :D I found these at www.bohtique.com

- And....my beloved Tiffany-blue and cranberry color combination. I love these colors SO much. So timeless.

-A Set of buttons all ready to ship, resting pretty in clear cello bags and adorned with my super cute logo thanks to Sugarelli....another really fantastic Etsy seller.

*Well, I better get back to work! These buttons have been flying out of my shop like hot cakes. (yay) Time to restock!

I hope everyone is well, and has a wonderful weekend!

:) Tessa Ann*

Color My World Happy- June Buttons of The Month PREVIEW

Hello! Alas, here is the June Buttons of the month! Whimsy rainbows, birds and trees in a prism of rainbow colors make this set of buttons so HAPPY and fun!

Subscribers- Your buttons are set to begin shipping tomorrow via USPS through Monday.






*****If you have not checked our Guest Designer for June, Pam Callaghan, read the post below and enjoy her beautiful scrapbooking page and card using buttons from the shop!

Welcome Pam Callaghan, our June Guest Designer!

For the month of June we have a very special guest designer!

Welcome, Pam Callaghan!
I have admired Pam's work since I discovered her scrapbooking several years ago. I got to know and appreciate Pam's work as a member of http://www.scrapbook.com/. Her amazing sense of design amazed me with each and every layout.

I sent Pam a set of my "Retro Blue Bird" and "Sweet Talk" buttons. Here is what she created!

Enjoy and BE inspired by what she has created for us! :)


I love how Pam used thread to create a bow in the center of one of the buttons! What a beautiful family and such sweet journaling.
I love how Pam used the Sweet Talk buttons on the scallops and as the "O" in "LOVE"! Very pretty :)

----------------------THE INTERVIEW---------------------------------

Here is what Pam had to say!
1.) Tell us a little about YOU and how you are involved in the scrapbooking industry?
-For me, it's all about having fun creating. Right now I am just creating for a couple companies and I am really enjoying it! I currently work with Anna Griffin and Marks Paper Company, two wonderful companies! I also do occasional QVC projects and some trade show work.

2.) What led you to scrapbooking? Do you remember that *first* time you sat down to create a page?
-My friend invited me to a scrapbook party shortly after my son was born. I did not want to go, but she called me to make sure I was coming. I really enjoyed myself! I bought my own supplies after that and I have been scrapping since!

3.) When you sit down to create, what are the essential items in your environment that you need to feel in the "mood" to be creative?
-When I scrapbook I like a soda or water and sometimes music. Occasionally I just like to scrapbook in my quiet scraproom. It all depends on the day!

4.) I feel most creative when........
-I feel most creative when my room is clean. I do clean up after each time I scrapbook, so that I not usually a problem. I also need to be relatively de-stressed to create a project.

5.) How do you decide what you are going to journal about... and what is your favorite way to document journaling?
-I like to journal in different ways. Mostly I do computer journaling because my handwriting is not the best. I like to make my journaling in different shapes or fit the amount of space there is left on my page.

6.) How are my buttons a good fit for your scrapbooking projects?
-It depends on the page. Sometimes I use a few, sometimes none. If I use them, it is usually about five or so.

7.)Share with us your most favorite layout and why this layout is your most favorite.....
-I love this page I did because it some of my favorite photo of my son and I. It also expresses how I feel about him. I like to shape my photos and I did it using one of my favorite shapes, a curve. I also made my journaling fit the curve which is something I like to do! I also like the bright colors and patterns of the paper.

Gmail disabled my email, so here is the new one.

In case you have not received a response to an email you've sent to me today, it is because google has disabled my gmail account.

Why? I have NO idea.

Just lovely. When it will return is all up to google. I am assuming it may have something to do with the rather large amount of spam I've been reporting. Either that or my account has been hacked.

Grrr...

So. I've created a temporary email in the mean time. Feel free to contact me here!

shoptessaann@yahoo.com and. please no spam..hehe :)

Custom Designs to share!

My little button factory has been busy, busy this month creating such a wide range of buttons and felt appliques for the shop, as well as some private custom orders.

I really enjoy custom work, creating those little one-of-a-kind pieces for scrapbooks, children's clothing and kit clubs. I find custom work to be so inspiring and I reach all sorts of new heights to my creative level when I am presented someone's vision.

I get requests like this one, "I would like buttons to go with my Key West photos, or buttons to go with my son's wedding with coral, kiwi and Callalillies"

It's these kinds of requests that push my creativity full force and I come up with things I never knew possible.

I thought it would be fun to share some of the custom designs I've created recently.

1.) Special set for a fun customer who has spent some time in the Florida Keys......



#2,#3.)
A special request for buttons to go with pictures from Fishing trips to No. Michigan.

Another No. Michigan embellishment....see the tiny boat and ors...very tiny ;)

#4.) More Florida Keys Deep Sea Fishing buttons......kinda like a little Nemo ;)

I've been working with a great designer at Paisley and Posies to create custom felt appliques for onesies and T's. She also creates the most fantastic Tutu's and beanies. Here are my favorites and even a few pics of them in action!

Perfectly divalicious!!!

Um, can we say ---->C U T E????????

This little Robot dude is being added to her shop next month and the photo of the little guy in it is just too darn adorable. I'll be sure to share it as soon as it's posted!

For the little rocker guy :) I had SO MUCH fun creating these felt appliques.

I also created this fun set of bird embellishments. My customer wanted something cute and colorful to add to the center of her Prima flowers.......

Here is a custom order for patriotic themed felt appliques and buttons in a distressed look.

I also did some button sets for Create My Keepsake's May Card Kit. Inspired by the colors of the papers and embellisments selected for the kit, I designed these buttons........

I hope everyone is having a great week. I am turning the BIG 30 tomorrow YIKES.........

Ciao!

Tessa Ann*