Floppy Diskette Ornaments--worth a second look

Ornaments are not just for holidays or trees. Take a peek at this tutorial I did 10 years ago and get make some "old fashioned" fun with floppy diskettes (yes you can order them on Amazon if you threw yours away).

These would be a fun gift to make any time of year, expecially in 2020 when we can make wise cracks like, "thinking back to olden times..." or "wish this virus would go the way of the floppy diskette."  Keep thinking, you'll come up with more.

Here are the ones from the video--they are still hanging happily in my studio today.

And for those (including myself) who like to have the printed instructions:

Floppy Diskette ornaments—“Old School” Tech hanging photo

 

Create a photo ornament from a floppy diskette and share the love while "giving green."

 

Supplies for this project:

Old floppy diskettes—all colors work well

Paper binder clips—the old style with a hole on the top makes a great hanger

Paper clips of various sizes—the colored ones jazz it up

Paper cutter or scissors and ruler

Photos that can be cut to 3” by 3”

Embellishments—get creative and use what you have. Items used in sample:

Ribbon scraps, beads, charms, Scrabble™ letters, label maker, colored safety pins, jump rings, permanent markers and stickers.

 

Steps:

1. Trim 2 photos to 3" square

 

2. Use office clip to attach photos on either side of the diskette—the same clip holds photo on both sides.           You can glue the photo down with strong dry adhesive like double stick tape or glue dots if desired

 

3. Embellish with ribbon, words, wire, gem stones, stickers, safety pins, charms, etc. There really are no rules but these designer notes may inspire you:

 

Avoid adding symmetrical embellishments, asymmetrical is always more pleasing to the eye.

Utilize the different holes on the diskette for hanging charms or tying ribbon.

Add one embellishment directly on the photo.

Use label maker or sticker to add one appropriate word as accent element

Trace a marker around the edge of the photo for a more finished look

Limit your color scheme to 3 colors or monochromatic

 

4. Bend a paper clip into the binder clip to serve as a hanger for ornament

 

Enjoy your surplus items and employ your imagination for lots of other great variations on this design.

 

Tips:

-Use a black diskette for color photos and a colored diskette for black and white photos

-Create at least one of these every time you finish a scrapbook layout while you still have the extra photos, papers, and embellishments lying around

-Thread a ribbon hanger through the hole and use flush style binder clip for attaching the photo

-Embellish further with sparkling glitter or mica powders

 

Related projects:

1. Put a magnet on the back and store/display on metal file cabinet

2. Create a series on red and green diskettes for a holiday tree--add to the effect with cassette tape “ribbon” garlands, and snowflakes from internal computer parts. Glue letters from old keyboards together for additional ornaments

3. Use a lower profile clip and secure diskette to a scrapbook page or greeting card

4. String three together for a hanging photo mobile

5. Replace photos with stamped images or recycled greeting cards

Finally I can print photos from my phone--quick, easy, and great quality

I have searched and searched and tried--oh how I've tried, to find a way to print the photos from my phone. I've finally found the best:



Here's what I love about Cannon SELPHY:
1. High Quality photos--if you've taken a decent photo with your phone then you will get a great print.

Thanks to the Cannon SELPHY I made a last minute anniversary
gift for my sweethusband by putting the 6" by 4" photo in a 5" by
7" magnetic photo frame with a print paper back-ground and a
paper butterfly attached on top.

Tip: Most phones now include a photo editor to improve your pictures or you can get an app
2. Printer price--The printer with refill paper is only $149.00, it is under $100.00 with a small sample amount of paper.
3. Photo price--the price of each print is about .31 each. Yes, it's more than taking your pictures to a retail outlet, but the advantage of not traveling to a store or having prints mailed is worth it for me.
Note: these prints are the standard 4" by 6" no crazy size tiny prints with this baby.
4. I only print the photos I need and want for a particular project. If I want to print a photo to mail in a card to my Mom I can do it in 3 minutes. That 3 minutes includes plugging in the printer, connecting to WiFi, loading paper and pressing the print button. If I'm working on a project life (scrapbook) page or a collage frame photo gift, I can print those as I need them.
5. It's light weight, less than 4 lbs. That's HUGE for me and my lifting capabilities. Especially if I want to take it to a party or crop or just to visit family.

I took this photo while my friend Bridget

was visiting and gave it to her in a "going-away"

card when she left the next day.--It's so easy 

and fun to do "instant" photos to give away

with the Cannon SELPHY.

6. Every package of paper comes with the exact about of ink needed to print that number of photos. I don't have to order paper and then order ink and then check to see if I have enough ink.
7. I can print ANY photo on my phone. That means if I get an email or text photo from family or friends, I can have a print right away.
8. It's very easy to use.

Biggest issue for me was doing the initial set-up. When you get yours, pay close attention to selecting the WiFi connection. If you want to take the printer outside of your home then you will want to set up your phone itself as the WiFi connection. The instructions explain how to do this, but make sure you follow them, and have an ink pen handy to write notes and the WiFi password. I keep my instruction book with the printer at all times. If I go over a month without using it I will forget the things I forget everywhere such as how to load paper, which side is up, etc.

If you click the link above to get your printer from Amazon I may get a tiny percentage of the sale. I only recommend products I absolutely love and 99% of time actually own. Thanks!

Finally--did something I saw on Pinterest

The original tee shirt scarf on Pinterest:
http://pinterest.com/pin/142356038193125104/

I have been using Pinterest for over a year. When it was introduced I loved the concept as I understood it--an online bulletin board. It was like a visual favorites folder. If you ever saw my favorites folder you would understand my interest in Pinterest--there are more than 30 sub-folders in my favorites folder (yikes).

I still love and use my favorites folder for research, quick links to frequent sites, and sites that I know I'll need infrequently but I want them accessible.

My version--if I were prone to retaking

photos I'd move the short loop closer to

my neck. My loops are fatter because I

want this to be more of an outdoor, cold-

weather scarf.

Pinterest inspires the artist in me. It has also become a way to understand the online community, visit new blog sites for their most popular posts, and get great ideas for projects from my studio.


One small problem with Pinterest for me:

  I SPEND TOO MUCH TIME LOOKING AT POSTS ON PINTEREST

To justify my new found interest in clicking and pinning and in lieu of the 12-step Pinterest recovery program I'm sure is forming as we read and write, I decided that I could not continue my obsession with Pinterest unless I used at least one pin per month.

My November project was the recycled tee shirt scarf. This looked fun, easy, and environmentally friendly. Of course, I had to put my own spin on it. Instead of the subtle gray on the Pinterest model, I chose to use two of my brother's worn out tee shirts in bright yellow and tie dye. I know just who I want to give this to for Christmas.


Check out my boards on Pinterest and follow them if you are so inclined. Those with obsessive personalities should consult a therapist before clicking this link. :)

https://pinterest.com/nachattin/

A Wordle for Lynn

Check out www.wordle.net and make fun word art for family and friends. My first one had to be for the marvelous Lynn Barwald. She's such a treat to know and love.

Sticky Rolls--AKA FLASH! Monkey Bread

My favorite recipe books are the ones lovingly compiled as fundraisers for churches and community groups. They include recipes for all kinds of dishes that are usually family friendly, easy, and frugal. I have a collection that includes my own books plus those from my mother’s and grandmother’s collections. Just browsing through the books takes me back to the covered dish suppers, family reunions, and holidays of my youth
. 
I went to one of these books back around 1995 when we were having guests for the weekend and I needed something to serve for breakfast. I found a recipe that was submitted by one of my cousins on the Richardson side for breakfast cinnamon buns. It looked like a modified version of Monkey Bread which I had eaten before but never made because monkey bread involved the time consuming chore of rolling small pieces of dough in a sugar cinnamon mixture.

This recipe call for breaking the dough into small pieces, but then the topping could just be poured on top of the dough
. 
Over the years I’ve stopped looking at the recipe and I just add the ingredients to fit the number of biscuits in the can. The part that never changes is how making these makes me think about my family, the novelty that biscuits come in a can, and my favorite kind of cookbook.

The view before baking

The Recipe in “you get the idea” format: 

• Use non-stick spray to coat bottom and sides of casserole dish
• Pull apart 10 canned biscuits and place pieces in dish
• Melt a stick of butter in a 2 cup glass measuring cup
• Add about a cup of brown sugar, a tablespoon of pancake syrup, teaspoon of vanilla and a teaspoon of cinnamon
• Stir topping and pour over the biscuits.
• Bake at 350 degrees until golden brown—around 15 minutes.

I don’t eat sweets in the morning anymore so we have this for dessert now served warm with whipped cream or ice cream.

  “Y’all help yourself now.” (that means bon appetite in southern English)

Gift Enclosures

Artist's Note: During the first week of September when my two newest baby grands were born I was a quite preoccupied. I created a post for the Paper Temptress Design blog that never seemed to get published. I have finished my design team term with this wonderful company and left the post on their blog to be put in as a "filler." In the meantime--I really loved this post so I'm publishing it here too.

Bold & Bashful Gift Enclosures

Set yourself up for easy gift solutions by creating sets of these cheery and fun gift card holders and explosion boxes. As a demonstration of Paper Temptress card stock versatility, I created the exact same project using two different color schemes.






There are so many gifted and talented paper artists sharing their creations online these days that it’s not hard to find clever templates. Let yourself be delighted and amazed to see how selecting Paper Temptress products can move your projects to the next level of artful presentation.






Gift Card Holders

One of my favorite designers, Eli Harlon, demonstrated the template for this gift card holder on her blog “Firllions.” I’ve been a friend and fan of Eli for about five years now and I’m tickled pink that she now lives near me in the Palm Beach area.

Explosion Gift Boxes

Split Coast Stampers offers a wonderful online community that includes new templates and instructional videos every week of the year. This explosion box from Beate Johns is a fabulous way to package jewelry, candy treats, tea bags, and other tiny treasures.

Paper Tempress Supplies for the Bashful projects:

Graystone Classic Linen Text and Cardstock

Azeala Stardreams Text

Pink Basis

Nero Black Cardstock

Rose Quartz Text



Paper Temptress Supplies for the Bold projects

Kiwi Text

Azeala Stardream text

Sparkle Mangue Text and Cover Weight

Sparkle Orange Cover Weight

'Tis the Season

Artful Tourist blog posts may be viewed chronologically and in their entirely by visiting www.artfultourist.blogspot.com .


Birthday Season, that is….Unfortunately, it’s also been sinus infection season, I’m currently fumbling in the relapse zone but this go around is destined to be my last.

Timely Gift/Late Blog Posting
I really want to make several posts so I’m skipping the regular features in hopes that I can get a few more up. My philosophy is that if I got the gift/card mailed before the birthday (I’m O for 5 so far this season) then a late blog posting will not receive a penalty flag.

Score with economic paper options
On my July frugal spending budget I bought a DCV paper pad on sale at JoAnn’s. This one was a treasure for me because it was glittered and double sided not to mention a “summer collection” of colors which fits our Florida lifestyle all year around. If you shop the major craft store sales for your scrap papers, I can’t say enough about the value in these DCV paper stacks. They’re coordinated, there is a huge variety for every season and taste, many are double sided and glittered, plus I’m enjoying how fun they are to sand to a white core.

Add new to old and stir well
For my girlfriend’s card I used double sided paper from this new stack to create a 5” square card that practically made itself when I used the pattern on the paper as my base. I added punches and recycled wording to the front and additional punches and strips to the inside. The pop-up element on the inside was also recycled from a birthday card given to me over 8 years ago.

Yes, you heard it right folks, I kept items in my studio intending to recycle them for over 8 years. Truthfully, I’d hate to count how old some of this stuff is—but if I can’t throw it out then I’m determined to put it in. Nice, there’s a new motto, “If I can’t throw it out then I must put it in.

Tool Revival-The Boxmaker
Okay, back to the photos and this short version of a blog post. (wry smile). The bottom photo is a handmade box that I created using K & Co. reversible print card stock on top and ColorMates Textured solids on the bottom. In addition to recycling elements I am on a mission to recycle tools as well. The box was made with a tool called “Aleene’s Creative Box Maker” which I purchased sometime back in the mid-nineties. You can still find it online in Marlene Watson’s site here: http://www.boxcrafting.com/ I was reminded of this tool when I saw a new scoring tool that Stampin’ Up™ is promoting. The great thing about the box maker is that you can create a perfect top and bottom for your box every time just by turning the tool over.

The note cards in the box are pre-made but purchased at a discount because the original box was damaged and one card was damaged. Again, this set has been in my “to make” area for a couple years now.

Hence my studio may not look a lot different, and I’m sure it doesn’t look a lot better; however, I am having an impact on my environment. I’m working more creatively and using fewer new items. Eventually, the results are bound to show up.

So crates…
During my rest periods for this crazy sinus plague I’ve watched more TV than usual. As you may recall, I’m just not a big fan of reality TV unless it comes from a home shopping channel. Tucked between reruns and reality TV this week I caught the 1988 film “Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventures” starring Sean Penn and Keanu Reeves. I leave you with a flick of my air guitar and their line, “party-on dude.”