Sunday, December 27, 2009

Christmas Tag Tote



Hope you had a wonderful holiday! I had a great one, and must have been really nice this year because I got everything I wanted, including a new camera! I am so excited, I hope it helps with the quality of the photos I post here. (I didn't use it to take these pics). This is another project that I got the pattern for from UStamp. I think this tag tote was part of the Fall edition of UStamp. It is so easy to make and makes a great gift. I gave these to my Aunts and they loved them. I dry embossed the tags and decorated the tags with dry embossed images. I added a "To:/From:" stamp on the tags and they were done.

I am taking a couple weeks off from blogging now that the Christmas rush is through. I need a little vacation, and I am behind on the save the date cards and wedding invitations. After dry embossing all those daisies, I haven't done any more work towards putting the cards or invitations together. Hope you have a wonderful new year!

Wednesday, December 23, 2009

Gift Card/Money Holders




Happy Wednesday! Wanted to share another gift card holder I made, and a money holder. I found the pattern for the stocking gift card holder on U Stamp With Dawn & Friends Year End Blow Out. U Stamp is a site (you have to pay, I think it's $20-$25) and you get a new project every day for 1 month. All the projects use Stampin' Up products. I got the idea for the money holder from Splitcoast Stampers. I just tried to find the original picture and wasn't able to. I used punches for the ornament and then just cut the paper for the gift so it fit around the ornament. Both of these projects were quick & easy.

Monday, December 21, 2009

3x3 card & nugget box


I made a bunch of these 3x3 notecard & Hershey nugget gift boxes for Christmas gifts this year. I found the template to make the box here. For these 3x3 cards, I used the free digital Mumford Christmas image from Two Scoops Rice Designs. The digi image is available already colored or plain for you to color. I chose the blank one and colored the image with my Copic markers. I love her digital images because you can resize them. I made the image really tiny for these 3x3 cards. I wanted to be able to use a small circle punch to punch the image. Hope you're having a happy & safe Holiday week.

Sunday, December 20, 2009

Snow!




Here is a card that I made for Lisa. I made it using Stampin' Up punches. The fence posts are made using an arrow punch. The snowmen were made using the wide oval punch, the scarves are made using the word window punch, and the hats, eyes and earmuffs were made using various circle and oval punches. Their noses are part of the small star punch. I had so much fun making this card! It's the perfect time to post this card, we got a lot of snow over the weekend, as predicted! It is the most snow I have ever seen, we got over 2 feet of snow, and I spent the majority of the day shoveling. They haven't been able to keep up with treating the roads so I get a bonus day off from work tomorrow! I'm excited to have an extra day to do some holiday baking, wrap gifts and do a little more crafting before Christmas.

Friday, December 18, 2009

Sled Gift Card Holder



I have so many Christmas projects to post here and not enough days before Christmas to post them all! I guess some will have to be posted after Christmas. This is a sled gift card holder that I made for two wonderful friends of mine, Janice & Suzanne. They both helped me find extra paper for my brother's wedding invitations earlier this year, and I just wanted to send them a little something to let them know I appreciate them. I found the template for this sled gift card holder here. For the "legs" (What do you call that part!?) of the sled, I doubled up the paper to give it a little more reinforcement and to help it stand up. The poinsettia is dry embossed using a Lasting Impressions template. Hope you have a great weekend. Looks like we are going to be snowed in! We're getting our second snowfall of the month, very rare for the DC area. Usually we don't even get two snowfalls during an entire season! Tomorrow we're expecting 12-20 inches of snow!

Monday, December 14, 2009

More Inspiration


Here are the two other gift bags that came with the penguin bag I posted yesterday. After making the penguin tag and loving how it turned out, I tried recreating these two. I'm not as happy with them, I think the 2nd one is supposed to be a polar bear but I think he looks like a snowman on my card. It would be okay except I drew claws on his hands! I made both characters using various Stampin Up punches. The background of the reindeer card was made using the snowflake cuttlebug embossing template. Have a great week!

Friday, December 11, 2009

Finding Inspiration...



I was at the dollar store the other day and this little gift bag caught my eye. I thought the penguin was so cute. I thought he would make the perfect little punch character on a tag. So I bought the gift bag (turns out it was a set of 3 little bags... so more punch characters to come!) and here is the tag I made. To make the penguin, I used the Stampin Up wide oval punch and layered a white punch onto the black punch for the body. I used the Stampin Up small oval punch for his arm. His nose was made with a piece of the small star punch by Stampin Up. And the eyes are the larger hole punch from the cropodile. I used a white pen to make the highlight on his eyes. The tree was cut with my paper trimmer and the trimmings on the tree are 1/2" circles. Hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Wednesday, December 9, 2009

Lil' Gingerbread



I posted a card made with this same template a few days ago. I just love this template for making really fast, cute cards. This card was based on a sketch, it used a business sized card and envelope. The paper is American Crafts merrimint line. The red piece along the middle is just the reverse of the patterned paper. I used my Marvy circle punches for the circles behind the gingerbread man. Hope you're having a great week!

Monday, December 7, 2009

Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree



I just love this reindeer stamp by Memory Box. I just think it's so funny. The stamp has the reindeer on the rocking chair and the sentiment. It's a perfect stamp for quick easy cards. I used my nestabilities to cut the shape around the stamp. That paper is some Christmas paper I've had for a long time! I was glad to use it. I probably should have added a tree so the reindeer really could have been rockin' around the Christmas tree, but I wanted him to be the main focus of the card. Hope you have a great week!

Friday, December 4, 2009

Gingerbread Joy




This is a card I made for a sketch challenge on the Yahoo Embossing Group I belong to. I love this little gingerbread template. This was a quick card to make, I am pretty sure it took less than 10 minutes to make! The paper and template are from Lasting Impressions. The Gingerbread Joy sentiment was stamped on the Lasting Impressions paper.

Tuesday, December 1, 2009

Santa's List



This is a card I made for a 1 on 1 swap in the Yahoo Embossing Group I belong to. This is one of the new Lasting Impressions templates. I gave a little bit of dimension to the list by embossing the top and bottom curly part of the list a second time. I cut them out and adhered them to the original list using foam tape. The paper is from Lasting Impressions too.

Sunday, November 29, 2009

Elf Top Note Box



Isn't he the cutest??! He's my favorite of the top note boxes that I saw on Gretchen's blog. He's made with the Stampin Up Top note die and several Stampin Up punches. Hope you're having a great weekend!

Friday, November 27, 2009

Top Note Treat Boxes


Hi, Hope you had a nice Thanksgiving. I saw these cute little top note Santa & Mrs. Claus boxes at Gretchen's blog. She is selling the kits to make them, or just the PDF tutorial. I have almost all the supplies so I bought the tutorial for how to make them. They were pretty quick to make and I love how they look. I added some eyelets to the sides of the boxes and added ribbon for handles. I plan to put little tags or treats in the boxes and give as gifts to neighbors and friends this year.

Monday, November 23, 2009

Santa at his Workshop



I stumbled across Ellen's blog and saw her super cute Santas made from punches. I just had to try to make one of my own. This Santa at his workshop that she made was my favorite. Isn't he just the cutest? Thanks for stopping by my blog!

Sunday, November 15, 2009

Faux Alligator Wristlet



I have been looking online for gift card holder ideas. I came across this adorable wristlet on Gretchen's blog. I bought a few of her other tutorials but felt I could figure out the instructions for the wristlet on my own. I found the tutorial for how to do the faux alligator technique here. Gretchen posted on her blog that she used the Stampin Up top note die and the #2 Box die. I have the top note die but I don't have the #2 box die. I didn't want to buy the instructions only for it to tell me to use the #2 Box die that I don't have, so I figured I could come up with an alternative of my own. I wanted it to be able to hold a gift card. Mine turned out a little smaller than what her wristlets look like, but I'm still pleased with the final product. It doesn't even look like it's made from paper! This technique is easy and looks impressive. I'm thinking about giving these to co-workers with a gift card to Starbucks in them, or just putting some candy, or maybe a little kleenex package and some mints... the possibilities are endless!

The box that I made is 6"x 5"; I scored 1/2" along both 6" sides, and at 2 3/4" in from both edges on the 5" side. Cut the tabs and fold it to form the box. I also did the faux alligator technique on the edges of the box that the recipient will see. I added an eyelet to the side of the box and threaded a ribbon through. I also added a brad to the front and velcro to keep the front part of the wristlet closed. Hope you like it!

Friday, November 13, 2009

Hero Arts Challenge



I participated in the Hero Arts Challenge last week. The challenge was to create a holiday card using non-traditional colors. I got this stamp set as a gift from my friend Chrisi but had never used it until I made this card. I don't know what I was waiting for. I love this little owl. I colored the images with copic markers and the sentiment was printed on my computer. The paper is from My Mind's Eye. Hope you have a great weekend!

Monday, November 9, 2009

Free Digi Image!



This was a simple 10 minute card but I love how it turned out. All the paper was scraps that I had on my craft table. The cute mouse and pie image is a free digi image from Two Scoops Rice Designs blog. I love her stamps, they are so cute. The best part about this image is she is giving it to you both colored and black/white in case you want to color it differently. I used the pre-colored version for my card. The Happy Thanksgiving stamp I used is from A Muse.

Friday, November 6, 2009

Autumn



I better post this card before it's winter! We've had great weather here this week, sunny and not too cold but you never know how it will change fromd day to day! This was the 3rd card from the embossing class I taught at Angela's Happy Stamper. I used new Lasting Impressions paper. The bird is a new Lasting Impressions template, and the tree is an older template. The word Autumn was stamped. Happy Friday!

Tuesday, November 3, 2009

375 Daisies...




This is what 375 Daisies looks like!! I made these for my brother's save the date cards (see the pic to the right). It doesn't look that many in the picture, but trust me there are 375 there. It's actually quite a tall pile! I dry embossed them (not by hand like I normally do my embossing), but I used my cuttlebug. Then I hand cut them and then punched the pink centers with a circle punch. I am glad to be done with these! Although it really wasn't that bad. I did most of them while sitting on the couch "watching" (listening, really) to TV. Next project is the invitations. I have the final draft done and all the pieces cut. Need to print the wording for the invitation, and then dry emboss & cut out 300 daisies for the invitations.

Also, wanted to share a pic of my dog Rusty on Halloween. Bunny was too scared to get dressed up, she thought she was in trouble. And Zubie was trying to rip the costume out of my hand faster than I could get it on him. We decided he was going to dress as a good dog for Halloween this year, but he turned out to be not too convincing!

Sunday, November 1, 2009

Happy Halloween! (a day late)



I meant to post this yesterday and I just forgot. I got lots of trick or treaters and gave away all 80 of my treat bags within 1 hour! There were some great costumes. One family came up and the little boy was dressed as a fried egg and the girl was dressed as a banana. I think they were my favorite costumes of the night. Hope you had a great Halloween and got lots of trick or treaters too! I made this card using punches, and I got the idea from Heather's online Holiday Punch class.

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Another Halloween Card



I am getting so excited for Trick-Or-Treat. I love seeing the kids dressed up and passing out candy. I usually put together little treat bags (not handmade) and put a few pieces of candy in each bag. I put together 80 bags this year. In the past I think the most I've put together is 75 bags, and I'm usually running out within an hour. My house is a popular house for Trick-Or-Treating!

Here is another Halloween card I made using some of the new
Lasting Impressions templates and paper. Hope you are having a great week!

Monday, October 26, 2009

Trick or Treat



Happy Monday! This is another one of the cards I'm going to be teaching this weekend at my LSS, Angela's Happy Stamper. I used one of the new Lasting Impressions templates to make the pumpkins (love this one!), and I added some faux stitching around the outisde of the card. The trick or treat is an old Lasting Impressions template.

Saturday, October 24, 2009

Halloween Cupcake





I found the directions to make this gatefold card on You Tube. I love cards that open some way other than the normal traditional fold. It was a quick and easy card. I used one of the new Lasting Impressions templates. Hope you're having a good weekend!

Tuesday, October 20, 2009

Dry Embossed Fall Card



I'm teaching a class at my LSS, Angela's Happy Stamper at the end of this month. This is one of the cards that we're making in the class. I used a new Lasting Impressions template and some of their new paper too. I just love all their new templates, they are all so cute. It's starting to warm up here again and I am so glad! I like the cool weather, but 40 degrees in October is just too cold for Virginia! Hope you're having nice weather where you are too!

Saturday, October 17, 2009

Happy Fall!



Well it's definitely starting to feel like fall here! It's been cold and rainy for the past several days. I dry embossed this card using an old Lasting Impressions template and some of the new Lasting Impressions papers. For the blue paper, I distressed the edges of the paper using the blade of my scissors. Hope you're having a wonderful weekend!

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

Oh Deer!








Happy Wednesday! I wanted to share some cards I made for a challenge hosted by Nettie, on the Yahoo Embossing Group. She embossed the deer using a Lasting Impressions template and then mailed the deer out to the participants. We all then had to make cards using the deer that she had embossed. I love seeing all the cards and getting new ideas. The cards are always so different. She sent me enough deer to make 3 cards. She also included the little strand of pearls and the bells that I used to put around the deer's necks. Hope you are having a wonderful week. It's finally starting to feel like fall here.

Friday, October 9, 2009

Birthday Card



Hi there, hope you're having a great weekend so far. I'm happy to have a 3 day weekend with the holiday on Monday. Hope to get lots of crafting done. I'm getting close to having the daisies cut out and ready to assemble to the save the date cards (see info on the sidebar to the right!) Here is a card I made awhile ago and forgot to post. Dry embossed with Lasting Impressions templates and Lasting Impressions paper. I added a ribbon from Lasting Impressions too.

Tuesday, October 6, 2009

Kangaroo Card



Hi Everyone! I wanted to share another punch card. This is from Natasha's punch class that I took a few months ago. I just love him and how he is holding the heart in his pouch. The "Smiles" stamp is from A Muse. All the paper I used is from Stampin' Up. All the punches I used to make him are from Stampin' Up too. Hope you're having a great week!

Friday, October 2, 2009

Dress Shopping Flip Album









I signed up for UStamp with Dawn & Friends in September. It's an online "class". Each day a new project is posted with PDF instructions. They're all projects by Stampin' Up demonstrators and all the projects use Stampin' Up products but there's no requirement that you have to use Stampin' Up products when you create the projects for yourself. There have been some really cute projects and I am having fun waking up each morning to a new idea! The Fall projects are all done now, and I signed up for the Holiday version. I am looking forward to getting some ideas for Christmas projects.

One of the projects was this flip album. It's made with 3 sheets of 12x12 paper. I used Stampin' Up's chocolate chip paper to construct the album, and some Bazzil white cardstock. The letters on the front are some little plastic letters I found in Hobby Lobby's clearance isle! I added 6 of the daisies I embossed for the wedding invitations. I hated to add them because that's 6 more I need to cut out, but I think they just looked so cute! I used the scraps from the wedding invitation sample I made a couple weeks ago on the album too. Last month my mom, Kristen (future sister-in-law) and Kristen's family went dress shopping looking for a wedding dress. I wasn't able to be there since they all live in Ohio and I am in Virginia. My mom sent me all these pictures and I thought they would be perfect in this flip album! I love how this turned out. I am so pleased with it and I know Kristen will be when she receives it too. I mailed it to her earlier this week and am waiting to hear how she likes it!

Hope you have a great weekend! I have a busy one planned, with lots of crafting and the season home opener of the Capitals! I am glad Fall is here. Cooler weather & hockey season are my favorite things!

Thursday, October 1, 2009

September Iron Chef



The secret ingredient this month for the Iron Chef recipe swap was Zucchini. I love Zucchini! My category was a grilled dish. My ingredients list is a pull out from behind the directions for the recipe. The challenge for the swap was to follow a sketch and also make your card mono-chromatic. I used new papers from Lasting Impressions for my page. I love these new papers, even if they do have a little bit of white in them. I'm not sure that still counts as mono-chromatic though. Hope you're having a great week!

Friday, September 25, 2009

Same Image Card Swap

From Deb

From Koren


From Lucy


From Lidia


From Judy

From Chris

Several months ago I participated in a same image card swap. Each participant stamped an image 12 times and mailed them to the swap hostess. The swap hostess then mailed out the images to all the participants. We all made cards using the images, and each person gets back the cards that were made using their images. Hope that makes sense!
These are all the cards I received made with my cat/dog image. I've had this stamp for a long time and I don't think I had ever used it before I stamped it for this swap. I love how all the cards turned out, it really gave me some great ideas.