Warehouse Summer trend alert!

We love it when you girls make an effort to look the part when attending our castings and we couldn’t help but notice the Summery twist on the basic model uniform while in Manchester last week. Our favourite looks spotted in the Style Studio were florals, pastels and pale denim, all bang on trend for this season and perfectly accessorised with Warehouse key pieces such as a gorgeous fringed bag...ideal for the festival season! Check out these highlights from the Manchester Style Studio and to start working on your Summer Wardrobe and to see the full image gallery go to http://www.warehouse.co.uk/

Elite model, EML 2009 Finalist (AND a native Mancunian!) Rachel shows us how to strike a pose, head to toe in Warehouse Summer must-haves!

Challenge 21 - April Showers.....

Hope your having a great week. Thank you to our players who joined us last week. We would also like to thank our wonderful guests Bree and Debbie for the fabulous cards they have created during their guest term. You girls have been awesome!

Joining us as guests for May and June are two more talented gals... Melanie Holtz from Canada and Renata van Miltenburg from The Netherlands. Welcome to the team!

This challenge the lovely Jeanette has the perfect challenge:

April Showers bring May Flowers ~ Use flowers on your project.

We have new release next Friday, 7th May :-) .... so you have plenty of time to play along with us as this challenge will remain open for two weeks.

To play our challenges you must use a Wags 'n Whiskers Rubber Stamp.... or...... Digi :-) as your main image to be entered into the prize drawing. Don't forget you can grab our gorgeous Crissy Armstrong rubber stamps at 25% off right now!

If you don't have any Wags 'n Whiskers, then it's time to go shopping. You can pick up your rubber goodness HERE.... or for almost instant gratification.... Digi's HERE.

There are also a few stores throughout the world that now carry Wags 'n Whiskers. If you would like to have them available locally, have your local stamping store contact us about wholesale opportunities.

Once again, one lovely participant will WIN a Wags 'n Whiskers Rubber Stamp of your choice.

Before I go... don't forget that if you would like to be considered for a guest spot make sure to add "DT" after your name! Keep in mind we can only choose 1 guest each week...so keep playing!

Below are the teams stunning samples to inspire you!!! Be sure to visit them at the blogs for more details on the products used on their creations.

Lisa Jane (this week's Guest)
Thank you Lisa Jane and your card is so pretty!

Jeanette

Sharon

Jacqui

Debbie

Nikki

Chris

Michelle

Christa

Karen

Lacey

Tina

Bree

Melanie

Be back later today to announce last weeks winner and also the lucky gal who will be playing along with us as guest next challenge :-)

ELITE MODEL LOOK HEADS SOUTH!

Another weekend...another casting for the EML team who will be in Southampton's West Quay centre on Saturday for our Southern England stop on the tour. 


Aspiring models will get the chance to get catwalk ready with the help of Toni&Guy and Eylure while the Warehouse Style Studio is the perfect place to practice those model poses and get expert advice from our own Elite models - whether you decide to brave the catwalk or not! For more information about what to expect on the day visit our website and looking forward to meeting you then! http://www.elitemodellook.co.uk/

The usual team will be joined this week by EML World Final runner up Emily Smith and the gorgeous Charlotte Benson who will be on hand with their catwalk tips!

WE ♥ 'I LOVE YOU'

This week's editorial crush.... ‘ I LOVE YOU’ Magazine.


The very lovely Kathi Kauder (Contributing Editor) and extremely talented photographer Sabrina Theissen stopped into Elite towers this week to take a look at the board and give us the insider info on on their upcoming projects.

I LOVE YOU is a magazine dedicated to inspiration, and it must be filling the streets with thousands of excited creatives as it just sold out its 3rd issue! And with a with a manifesto that announces 'women are beautiful... life is irregular... fashion is the display of change' we can see why it's the go-to title for in-the-know style seekers.


Look out for the next issue featuring our very own Leah De Wavrin, photographed by  Marcus Gaab and styled by Sarah Cobb - sneak previews right here! We're following the blog at http://iloveyoumagazine.blogspot.com and we think you should too.

I LOVE YOU MAGAZINE - THE MANIFESTO

WOMEN ARE BEAUTIFUL

WOMEN ARE SEXY

WOMEN ARE CLEVER AND INTELLIGENT

LIFE IS CHANGE. CHANGE IS GOOD.

FASHION IS THE DISPLAY OF CHANGE

LIFE IS IRREGULAR.

LIFE HAPPENS QUICKLY,

BUT NOT ALWAYS.

TODAY'S COMMUNICATION GETS FASTER

TODAY'S COMMUNICATION GETS

MORE PERSONAL.

FASHION HAPPENS EVERY MORNING.

THIS (MAGAZINE) IS TO HELP YOU

STAY INSPIRED.

...IS TO KEEP YOU INSPIRED AND LOVE YOU(RSELF)

I am a tease......

psst.... I am working on a new book.
I can't spill the details yet - but this picture holds the clues.
Fall 2011

Welcome Home Wednesday: custom painted doormat

Welcome Home Wednesday: custom painted doormat

Your front door can go a long way toward making a home feel welcome, and this customized doormat is the perfect first step. This one was designed for an initial but, of course you could do any design. Other easy concepts are stripes, diamonds or checkers. You can also do holiday or seasonal designs.

Materials:
family initial stencil
manila folder
yardstick
pencil
coir doormat
low-tack tape
Krylon indoor/outdoor - satin Italian olive
Krylon indoor/outdoor - satin Oxford blue
old newspapers
utility knife

1. Print a family initial (or fun words) using a bold font and enlarge the letter so that it is approximately 6" tall.

2. To make the stencil, tape the piece of paper with the letter on it to a manila folder. Trace around the letter with a permanent marker-- the ink will bleed through the paper, leaving an outline on the folder. Cut out the letter (use a utility knife to cut out the inside of the letter).

2. Tape down the letter on the mat where you want it,placing the tape on the back of the letters. Don’t forget to tape down the inside of the letters you cut out, if you need them.

3. To add stripes, apply 2 rows of tape to the doormat, 2" from the top and 1" apart. Repeat this across the bottom of the mat, using a yardstick to help get the stripes straight or making the lines slightly askew. Cut away the blue tape where the lines intersect one another.

4. Tape off the rest of the mat with old newspapers, so you will get paint only where you want it. Press down firmly on the tape before spray-painting to ensure that it has adhered to the mat.

5. Working on old newspapers and in a well-ventilated area (outside is best), stand above and at least 12" from the doormat and spray-paint the mat, being careful not to get the paint under the taped area (standing directly above the mat works best). Allow to dry, then remove tape.

Winner Challenge 19 - Grace

Oh my goodness!! I totally forgot to post the winners for the Ribbon Challenge last week!!

The random winner of a STAMP OF YOUR CHOICE is:

Random Integer Generator
Here are your random numbers:

7
Timestamp: 2010-04-27 14:37:44 UTC

Congratulations Grace!! Please email me at LaceySoLiving@bellsouth.net with your stamp choice and mailing address!!

Here is Grace's gorgeous card that she created for her granddaughter...

And our guest for our next challenge is...Lisa Jane!!

Lisa, please check your emails...I have already emailed you with the challenge information.

Here is Lisa's fantastic card! I love all of the "rain"!!

Would you like to be a guest for one of our challenges? If so, just add "DT" after her name when you post your project to the current challenge!!

In case you missed the announcement yesterday...Wags 'n Whiskers is having a sale!! Come check it out...

Wags 'n Whiskers On SALE!!!

How would you like a sale?!

To prepare for our upcoming new release on May 7th, we have decided to have a sale of some of our older images.

Right now all Wags 'n Whiskers Rubber Stamps illustrated by Crissy Armstrong are on sale 25% off!!

US/Canada Customers Click here

UK/Europe/"Rest of the World" Customers Click here

Mommy Monday: Washcloth Bath Puppets

Quick Sewing Idea: Bath Time Puppets

This project is from my book:
Creative Juice - 24 Re-crafting Projects to Make With Recycled Stuff

Bathtime just turned into an imaginative puppet show! Ordinary hand towels and felt become fun bath puppets in the shape of frogs, piglets, monsters or anything else a child can imagine.

Materials:
1 hand towel
embroidery floss
felt scraps
embroidery needle
scissors
sewing machine
permanent marker

Steps:

1. Choose a hand towel and felt in colors appropriate for each puppet.

2. Fold the towel in half end to end. Place a hand on the folded towel with your arm pointed toward the towel ends and a finger pointed toward the fold. Spread your pinky and thumb as far as possible and, with a wide stroke (approximately 1-1/2" from your hand), trace around your hand (like a hand turkey) with the marker.

3. Cut through both layers of the towel on the traced line and pin for sewing. Sew around the puppet, leaving a 1/4" seam allowance; leave the bottom part of the puppet open for your hand.

4. Clip the curves of the seam allowance to increase flexibility and turn right side out.

5. Adding features is the place to get creative. Cut circles for eyes, funny noses, floppy ears, etc. Hand-stitch with embroidery floss and add extra details with a simple satin stitch.

EML's weekend in Manchester!

When the Elite Model Look team stepped off the train in Manchester we were overwhelmed...firstly by the scale of the Trafford Centre (absolute retail HEAVEN) and secondly by the incredibly high standard of potential models that applied over the two day casting. Thanks to Samsung Diva’s, Warehouse style inspiration in the Style Studio, Toni & Guy hair excellence and Eylure lashes, we left Manchester with ten fabulous winners who we literally can’t wait to see at the next stage of the contest!

L-R Olivia, J'nae, Amy, Sarah-Jane, Leah. Charlotte, Claire

Sinead

Lauren and Ashleigh

 If you can picture yourself on the EML catwalk or even just fancy getting your photo taken in the Warehouse Style Studio make sure you come along to one of our castings...next stop Southampton! For a full list of casting dates check out our website http://www.elitemodellook.co.uk/

Pauline Van der Cruysse NEW FACE OF THE WEEK

When newly signed Pauline Van der Cruysse made it as models.com new face of the week we couldn’t wait to share with you her effortlessly cool interview...read below! Pauline has an edgy, editorial look that’s sure to translate well to the UK market and we are very excited about having this Belgian beauty in London soon.



Age:
19
Height:
1m80 (5′11″)
Place of Origin:
Oostende, Belgium
Ethnic Origin:
Belgian
Birthsign:
Aquarius
How discovered:
I was discovered by Tom Van Dorpe while I was shopping in Gent with friends
Favorite things:
Shopping, going to the movies, listening to music, fashion
Favorite music, band:
Rock – Absynthe Minded, Kings of Leon, Arctic Monkeys
Hobbies:
Running, reading, travelling, cooking
Favorite piece of clothing:
My leather jacket and my All Stars
What’s your idea of fun?
Spending time with my friends and family
Favorite modeling experience so far?
A shoot for Weekend Knack with real birds
What’s the best thing about your hometown/country?
The sea and, of course, the Belgian chocolate
Favorite artist (any kind):
I don’t really have a favorite artist
Place you would love to visit:
New York
Currently you’re obsessed with/about:
The Secret

Make it for Mom: Floating Pearl Necklace

Make It For Mom: Floating Pearl Necklace

Mother's day is just around the corner (May 9th) and a handmade floating pearl necklace is the perfect way to tell her how much you care. This necklace can be made in under 1-hour and features a magnetic claps. (Moms love magnetic clasps) For this design, I used fresh water pearls that were dyed a very soft pink. Of course you can use any thing from glass beads to gemstones. To make the bracelet, just scale down the project to fit a wrist.

Supplies:
Beading wire
Bead board
18 fresh water pearls
36 size 1 tubular crimp beads
Magnetic clasp
2 size 3 crimp beads
Round nose jewelry pliers
Flat jewelry pliers
Crimping tool
Clasp findings


Steps:
Begin by cutting the beading wire into cut into three lengths: 25, 23 ½, and 22 inches. (add inches to make a longer necklace) Place the 25inch beading wire length in one of the bead board channels.

Thread on a crimp tube, then a pearl then a crimp tube. Repeat until there are 7 pearls and 14 crimp tubes on the wire.

Adjust the center pearl so that it lies at the “0” mark of the bead board. Use flat pliers to crimp the two crimp tubes on either side of it to secure it in the center of the wire. Slide the other pearls along the wire to their desired location. Secure by crimping the crimp tubes on either side of them, as you did for the center pearl.

Place the 23 ½ inch beading wire length in a smaller channel of the bead board channels. Thread on a crimp tube, then a pearl then a crimp tube. Repeat until there are 6 pearls and 12 crimp tubes on the wire.

Slide the pearls on the wire so that they fall in between the pearls on the first wire length. Secure by crimping the crimp tubes on either side of them, as you did for the first wire length.

Repeat these steps for the 22” length of beading wire with the last 5 pearls and 10 crimp tubes.

To attach the clasp, thread one end of all three wire lengths through a size 3 crimp tube and through the loop of a magnetic clasp. Thread the wire ends back through the crimp tube. Crimp flat with the bottom portion of a crimping tool. Fold and crimp the tube by using the top portion of the crimping tool.

Trim the wires with jewelry cutter.

Keeping the wire lengths in the channels of the bead board so that the strands do not tangle, attach the other end of the magnetic clasp as you did the first end.