My Favorite Things

My Favorite Things

Hey there....thought it was time for another Favorite Things post.  This is the part of the show where I tell you about products that I love because I think you might love them too.  Sometimes they're crafty in nature and sometimes they're not.  Today, we're all over the map.  Haha.  (no pun intended!)

To start things off, I want to tell you about the Vagabond Sizzix electronic die-cutting machine by Tim Holtz.  Now, before you start wondering, neither Tim Holtz nor Sizzix have any idea who I am.  I'm just telling you about the Vagabond because my dear husband got it for me as a surprise for Christmas.  I was shocked.  I hadn't asked for one but he'd heard me talking about it because my bestie has one and loves hers.  Anyway, as it turns out, I love this electronic die cutting machine!  First of all, isn't it just cute?  I love that it looks like a well-traveled little suitcase!

Here's what it looks like when you open it up.  In case you want to order it online, Ellen Hutson has the Vagabond here and Two Peas has it here.

It comes with everything you need to get started, though if you plan to use wafer thin dies (like Papertrey's dies), you'll also need to buy this die adapter (it's basically a shim) which retails for about $10.  Two Peas has the Solo Thin Die Adapter HERE and Ellen Hutson has it HERE.

The thing is, I do a lot of die-cutting.  A lot.  And I have to say that it's soooo nice to just put the sandwich in the machine, slide the lever back or forth (telling it which way to crank the sandwich thru) and then push a button and watch the machine do all the work for me!  I've been super impressed with this machine.  It's very heavy duty -- it weighs 14 pounds -- and is very strong.  It cuts like buttah.  And the extra length on the platform makes it really nice when using longer border dies and such.  Tim Holtz has a demonstration video here, so you can see the Vagabond in action.

So if you're in the market for a new die cutting machine, you might want to consider this one.  Ellen Hutson also carries the extended cutting plates for the Vagabond (they're longer just like the platform).

Next up, let's talk make-up.  Now if you've been hanging around here for very long, you've probably figured out that a lot of the time, I'm a MAC make-up girl.  I love my MAC, but there are a few exceptions to that rule....one being in the mascara department.  I have fairly long eyelashes and big eyes so if I use a cruddy mascara, it's kind of obvious!  Haha.  And one pet peeve of mine, is when mascara flakes off as the day wears on.  I don't think one should ever have to look in the mirror only to find mascara crumbs on your cheeks.....but maybe that's just me.  :)  That's where Cover Girl Lash Blast Mascara comes in.  I've been using this mascara for....well, gosh....quite awhile now and I have to say that I love it.  It makes my lashes look longer and thicker and most importantly -- NO flaking!  And the best part is that you can have all of that, at a drug store price!  Score!  You can find this mascara at just about any drug store, box store, or make-up store where inexpensive brands are sold.  One word of caution though.....don't poke yourself in the eye accidentally with that "brush".  See in the picture above??  Those aren't "bristles" but actually hard plastic spikes.  They do NOT feel good when jammed into your eyeball.  Or so I've heard.  

 

Lastly, before I go, is Garrett's Popcorn in Chicago.  Yes, I know I don't live in Chicago.  I'm well aware that I live a good 8 hours away from being able to conveniently buy any of this delicious popcorn myself, but there's always the internet, right?  Whenever we go to Chicago -- even if just on a layover passing thru to somewhere else -- Garrett's is a main priority for Bartley and I.  The cashew caramel crunch is the most amazing caramel popcorn I've ever had and I say that in all sincerity.  It's just so RICH tasting without being super sugary, if that makes any sense.  We also highly recommend the cheese popcorn.  Super cheesy and delicious.

I will readily admit that to order it online, you pretty much need to take out a loan because it's rather pricey, but OH MY STARS is it fun when a box of this delicious goodness arrives on your doorstep.  I speak from experience.  A dear, DEAR, very beautiful, charming, loving, hilarious and did I mention beautiful friend sent us a cannister of Garrett's for Christmas this year (she obviously loves us a LOT) and I nearly danced a jig when I saw the logo on the outside of the box when it landed on our doorstep.  I called Bart right away at work and promised to not eat one single solitary kernel until he got home to share with me.  Bart and I are not the type to keep score with each other....about anything, really......except when it comes to Garretts Popcorn.  That's when very strict sharing rules apply.  :)

Do yourself a favor.....go take out a loan, order yourself some Garrett's Popcorn and enjoy every last morsel when it arrives.  Or better yet, run to Chicago, walk right in to any Garrett's location and enjoy every last morsel they put in your bag.  

You don't have to thank me.

This concludes today's Favorite Things post!!  Hope you've enjoyed it.

Happy weekend, dear readers...

Someone...

Someone takes up just a wee bit more room on his woobie than he did a few months back......

I still can't believe how fast he's grown sometimes.  He wasn't a tiny boy for long.  

I thought some of you might be wondering about Windsor these days.  He's doing really well....his scar is disappearing and now we're just waiting for all of his fur to grow back in (where they shaved it for his surgery) and it's hard to see in the photo, but he is making some progress in that department.  There's some light colored fur coming in on his belly now.  

He's also becoming quite the sweetie-pants.  He LOVES to look out the front door with me.  We'll go to the door and I'll squat down beside him (me on the left and him on the right) and I scooch as far to the left, away from him, as the door will allow and then I wait.  Because he sits immediately to look out the door.  But usually within a few seconds of me squatting down beside him, the little dear scoots his hiney over to the left, so that he's now leaning on me while we check out all of the happenings in the cul-de-sac.  I have to be careful that he doesn't knock me over!  Ha.  I must admit that I melt a little each time he scooches over to lean on me.  Gah.  So sweet.

He also feels the need to sit or lay on the floor RIGHT behind whoever's at the kitchen sink.  Doesn't matter if it's me or Bartley -- he does it with us both -- but he turns his back to us and the sink and sits/lays -- again leaning -- on whoever's there.  It's the funniest thing.  And he does it all. the. time.  

Now that he's maturing a bit, he's been able to stay in the studio with me some during the day instead of being in his kennel.  He either lays on his woobie or in the doorway/hall....or he sits and looks out the window, keeping an eye on the cul-de-sac.  It's funny how long he'll sit in front of the window, sometimes.  He doesn't bark or anything.  Just sits and watches.  Very observant, that one.  I love it.

Can't believe he'll be 8 months old next week.  Where does the time go?

Hope you're all having a great day.  Working on a few more projects in the studio that I'll be able to share soon.  Also working on a Favorite Things post so stay tuned for that.  I've also got a couple of fun posts coming up for you this weekend, so I hope you'll drop by!

Until then,

 

Studio Calico Daydream Believer Sneaks

Hey there!

Well, it's been a bit of a crafty whirlwind around these parts.  I've been whipping up lots of projects for Studio Calico, both for CHA using the new lines coming out (yay!) and for this month using the February Daydream Believer kits.  Lots to share in the days ahead.  For today, how about some sneaks of what's to come with the Daydream Believer kits this month?

I had lots of fun creating with Daydream Believer and the Lady Lane and Stepping Stone add-on kits.  Pockets, brads, butterflies......

Die cuts, chipboard, Mister Huey love.......

Layers, layers, layers......

Scrumptious papers, ribbons, more brads (LOVE).....

Flair, dots, and more dots......

Flowers, stamps, buttons, and more....

Journaling cards, flowers with jewel centers.....

Serious fun this month!  Can't wait to show you each of these cards in full.  Until then, wishing you a very, very happy day!

xo,

Studio Calico Sneak and a WINNER!

Hi-ya, Crew!

Today, I have a little sneak peek at one of February's Studio Calico kits -- this sneak peek was brought to you by the add-on #2, called Lady Lane.  :)  I've been having a lot of fun (a LOT) with the goodies in this month's kits.  You're in for a treat, if you're planning to get them for yourself!

I also wanted to announce the winner of a spot in Amy Tan's new Studio Calico class!

The winner is lan!

 

 

CONGRATULATIONS lan!!  Please email me your Studio Calico username, so they can get you set up with your free spot in the class!  (see left hand side bar for my email addy)

Hope you're all having a great day.  I'm working on some projects for CHA today.....so much fun new product coming soon from Studio Calico!!  They've been showing sneak peeks all week at the Studio Calico blog!  Check out the new Abroad collection here, the Take Note collection here (a personal favorite!), the Classic Calico Vol. 2 collection here, and the new Studio Calico/Hero Arts stamps here!  Be sure to leave comments on those posts, sharing your favorite product from each line, for your chance at a $50 Prize Pack! 

Have a great day, dear readers!  I'm off to craft it up in here.  Haha.

Sending a Big Thank You

Hi-ya!

So last week, during the countdown, I shared a pair of Thank You cards in reds and pinks that used this same basic layout.  I loved the layout so much that I couldn't resist using it again on another little pair of thank yous.  Now that Christmas is over, I've got a list of thank yous that I need to get in the mail and seeing as it's already the middle of January, I'd better get a move-on!

The card bases are stamper's select white card stock layered with a fun paper from the Green Boutique collection.  I used my Celebrations stamp set and coordinating die to create the fun label, and the sentiment is from Papertrey's A Big Thank You set.  Behind the Celebrations label, is a scalloped oval that was die cut with one of the new limitless layers: 2 1/4" oval dies and behind that is, of course, some aqua mist card stock that was die cut with a half & half die.  I love those dies.  Some rhinestones and a little stitching on the sewing machine finished things off.  I love how simple and yet how fun these cards are.....have you gotten your thank you notes mailed off yet?  Or are you running a bit behind in that department, like I am?

I hope these cards have inspired you to get your rear in gear, like me, and whip up some thank yous!  :)

Happy Tuesday, dear readers, 

 

{Sending a Big Thank You supplies -- click on thumbnails}

Stamper's Select White card stock	Aqua Mist card stock	New Leaf card stock	Green Boutique patterned paper	Celebrations Stamp Set	Celebrations die
Half & Half die	Limitless Layers: 2 1/4" oval die collection	Vagabond Sizzix Machine by Tim Holtz	Sizzix Solo Wafer Thin Die Adapter	Sizzix Solo Wafer Thin Die Adapter	Hero Arts citron gemstones

InLinkz.com

Studio Calico/Amy Tangerine Class Giveaway!

Well hello there, Peeps!

I'm popping in today with a fun, fun giveaway for you from Studio Calico!  The adorable and oh-so-sweet Amy Tan is teaching a new class at Studio Calico which is starting soon, and Studio Calico wants to give away a spot in that class to one of my lucky readers!  How sweet of them, right?  :)

Here's a bit of info about the class:

 

Are you ready to jumpstart the way you look at supplies?  Tired of letting your kits pile up month after month without touching them?  Ready to pull out the tools you have on hand and put them to use? Amy Tan is here to help show you how to see the Studio Calico Main kits in new ways and get those supplies onto your pages.  She’s ready to share tips and tricks on making your kit supplies stretch to create beautiful page after page.

Known for her playful and innovative pages, Amy is the perfect teacher to help you stretch your kits.  She’ll walk you through ideas for breaking open those brown paper bags and seeing your kits in a fun new way.  Amy and Studio Calico kits... what a great combination!

Amy is joined by creative powerhouses Kelly Goree, Celine Navarro, and Jen Jockisch who will all share inspiration for using ONLY the Studio Calico Main kit.  You’ll see their process for getting started on a layout, selecting which supplies to pull from the kits, and tips for using their favorite tools and techniques.

START DATE: FEBRUARY 1, 2012          

REGISTRATION ENDS: JANUARY 31, 2012                                           

PRICE: $30.00

 

All you have to do to be entered in the giveaway is to leave a comment on this post.  Maybe you could tell me what you're doing on this Monday holiday.  Or you could tell me what you're most looking forward to seeing here at the blog-o in 2012.  Or, maybe you could tell me what's for dinner at your house tonight.  :)

Contest closes on Wednesday, Jan. 19 at 9pm CST.  One winner will be randomly selected and posted here on the blog-o so keep an eye out to see if it's YOU!

Have a goodie!

(Winner will need to provide your Studio Calico username to take the class, so if you haven't already registered, you might want to do so.  Simply click "register" in the upper right hand corner of the Studio Calico home page.)

PTI January Release Projects

 

Hi-ya!

Happy Papertrey Release Day!  All of this month's new releases will be available for purchase tonight at 10pm EST at Papertrey Ink, including my new Celebrations stamp set, my Happily Ever After stamp set and my Dearest Jane patterned paper collection!

Before you make up your final wish list, I've got a few more projects to share with you, starting with this friendly little number featuring the Lace Bouquet stamp set as well as a sentiment from Script Sentiments.

 

You can also see a bit of my new Dearest Jane patterned paper peeking out from behind the berry sorbet layer.

Next up is Heather's Tag-Its #12.  

I used it to create the tag, heart and the little gray background pattern.  I also used the Winterberry dies to die cut some spring moss card stock for the leaf accent.

The "Just Married" sentiment is from Happily Ever After and the "CONGRATS" is from Celebrations.

One more.....this one featuring Melissa Bickford's Floral Fusion #12.  I pulled out the Tag-Its #10 stamp set to stamp the circle tags around the flowers and then added the flowers and button centers from Floral Fusion #12.

The sentiment is from the new Think Big Favorites #12 and I layered it over a raspberry fizz frame that was die cut with my new Celebrations die and stamped with a coordinating frame from the Celebrations stamp set.

Well that's it for me today.  Have you made your wish list and checked it twice?  

The other girls on the design team all have their final projects to share with you today, plus Nichole will have previews posted of all of this month's new releases in full!!

Nichole Heady

Betsy Veldman
Lisa Johnson
Heather Nichols
Maile Belles
Erin Lincoln
Jessica Witty
Ashley Newell
Danielle Flanders
Melissa Phillips 

Happy shopping, Dearies! 

 

Simply Jane + Celebrations & Happily Ever After - Day 5

Hi there!

It's the final day of the Papertrey Countdown which means that tomorrow is the big day when all of these new products you've been getting peeks at this week will finally be available for purchase.  For today, it's another Group Post day so all of the girls on the design team have projects to share with you, and today we're focusing on a gorgeous new stamp set designed by Nichole Heady, called Simply Jane.  It comes complete with beautiful silhouette images, a gorgeous frame and Jane Austen quotes for sentiments, and of course there is also a coordinating set of dies that will be available.

I wanted to create a friendship card so I used a couple of the new Simply Jane dies, to die cut a pretty little pair of friends....I stamped them both, one using hawaiian shores ink and the other using aqua mist ink.  I die cut the frame (another Simply Jane die) and then stamped the coordinating frame image using aqua mist ink, as well as some hawaiian shores ink just around the outer edges of the frame.  A few adhesive pearls finished off the focal point.

I have to say, I love this sentiment from Simply Jane so much.  It just makes me smile.  I trimmed off a smidge of the card front on the right side, and then die cut a strip of hawaiian shores card stock with the heart border die and adhered it to the back side of the card front, so that the scallops peek out.

Next up is a sweet little thank you note.  In keeping with the Jane Austen theme, I decided to use a bit of my new Dearest Jane patterned paper as well as a stamped library card.  The sentiment from Simply Jane fit perfectly in the space at the top of the library card.

The mat stack 5 die was used to cut out a piece of rustic cream card stock on which I stamped one of the cameo images from Simply Jane as well as the string of pearls.  The flower was cut out and adhered in her hair.  

The berry sorbet frame was die cut with the mat stack 5 die and then I stamped the gorgeous frame from Simply Jane with versamark ink before heat embossing it with clear embossing powder.  Next, I used the new limitless layers: 2.25" oval to die cut the center of the frame and adhered it over the cream layer.

The same flower that can be seen on the cameo, was heat embossed in the dark chocolate scallops along the bottom of the card.  

For this shabby chic little number, I paired up Simply Jane with my new Celebrations stamp set.

The Celebrations die and stamp set were used to create the berry sorbet layer.  Both the "HAPPY" and "Enjoy getting settled in your new home" sentiments are from Celebrations.  The frame was stamped with versamark ink and the sentiments and roses on the frame were stamped with pure poppy ink.  Behind the berry layer, I stamped the frame from Simply Jane twice, using hawaiian shores ink.  The two frames overlap each other in order to peek out around the Celebrations frame, but once you cover them with the die cut, you can't see the overlap.....all that's left is a really pretty decorative frame around the sentiments!

For the background pattern, I stamped the bouquet and bow images from Simply Jane in a repeating pattern and then inked the edges of everything with vintage touch tea dye ink.  I love how sweet this card turned out.

One more for you before I go......a bridal shower invite using both Simply Jane and my new Happily Ever After stamp set.

The card base is fine linen card stock.  I used the Simply Jane frame die to die cut both the frame as well as a bit of my new Dearest Jane patterned paper.  I stamped the coordinating frame in dark chocolate ink on the kraft die cut.  A pair of new kraft buttons were added to accent the frame.  I used another of the Simply Jane dies to die cut the bouquet image and then stamped it with the bouquet and bow, to create the perfect focal point for a bridal shower card.

The sentiments -- "You're invited to a" and "Bridal Shower" -- are both from Happily Ever After.  They were stamped on a strip of rustic cream card stock that was adhered with foam adhesive.  Behind that is a bit of kraft card stock that was die cut with the filigree border die.

I hope you've enjoyed today's projects!  Don't forget to pop over and visit each of the girls on the design team for their Simply Jane projects!

Nichole Heady

Betsy Veldman
Lisa Johnson
Heather Nichols
Maile Belles
Erin Lincoln
Jessica Witty
Ashley Newell
Danielle Flanders
Melissa Phillips 

Melissa Bickford will also have peeks for you at her newest set.

Thanks so much for being here today and for all of your sweet comments this week....I appreciate each one!

I'll be back tomorrow with the rest of my release projects!  See you soon!

 

{There is nothing... supplies -- click on thumbnails}

Aqua Mist card stock

Hawaiian Shores card stock

Heart Border Die

Vagabond Sizzix Machine by Tim Holtz

Hero Arts Pearls & Gems, neutrals

InLinkz.com

{Thank You So Much supplies}

Rustic Cream card stock	Melon Berry card stock	Berry Sorbet card stock	Dark Chocolate card stock	Library Card stamp set	Medium Scalloped Border die
Mat Stack 5 die	Vagabond Sizzix Machine by Tim Holtz	Versamark ink pad	Filigree Detail embossing powder	Melon Berry buttons

InLinkz.com

{HAPPY supplies}

Rustic Cream card stock

Aqua Mist card stock

Berry Sorbet card stock

Vagabond Sizzix Machine by Tim Holtz

Versamark ink pad

Vintage Touch Tea Dye Duo ink

InLinkz.com

{Bridal Shower supplies}

Rustic Cream card stock

Fine Linen card stock

Kraft card stock

Vagabond Sizzix Machine by Tim Holtz

Filigree Border Die

InLinkz.com

Mat Stack 5 Collection + Celebrations & Happily Ever After - Day 4

Hi there!

It's Day 4 of the Papertrey Countdown and today is the first of two Group Posts which means that all of the girls on the Design Team will have projects to share with you!  Today, we're focusing on the new Mat Stack 5 Collection stamp set designed by Nichole Heady -- a set that I adore because of it's versatility!  It also works beautifully with both of my new stamp sets this month -- Celebrations and Happily Ever After -- and I've got some fun cards to show you just what I mean!

The Mat Stack 5 Collection stamp set contains 2 full sized frames as well as quite a few smaller frame-building elements that work together to create a variety of different frames.

On this first card, I started out with a rustic cream card base.  I knew I wanted to go with a gray/yellow-y color scheme and I had some clear/gray washi tape that was just perfect for this card.  "mt" makes the washi tape....I added 3 strips of it to the top of the card, trimming the bottom edges in little flag points.  

Over that, I added a mat stack 5 die cut that was stamped with one of the new frames from the Mat Stack 5 Collection stamp set, using summer sunrise ink.  Over that, I added a flower and some leaves that were created with the Rosie Posie stamps and dies.  (Is there any other flower stamp set needed, if you have Rosie Posie?)  :)

Along the bottom of the card, I stamped the "CONGRATS" from Celebrations, as well as one of the companion sentiments -- "Rejoicing with you on your wedding day".  Don't all of the elements from these sets work together so nicely?

Next up, is a fun little card that could be used for any number of occasions....a new job, graduation, retirement...even a birthday.  I added some distressed dots patterned paper to the card base and then added a couple strips of that same clear/gray washi tape from the first card to some kraft card stock before die cutting it with the new Mega Mat Stack 5 die.

Next, I used the Mat Stack 5 die to die cut some rustic cream card stock, on which I stamped several of the frame-building images to create a smokey shadow frame.  Tucked behind that layer is a bit of kraft grosgrain ribbon (LOVE this stuff!!).

Finishing things off, are a couple of limitless layers: 2.25" oval die cuts.  The cream oval was stamped with the "HURRAY" from Celebrations as well as the "wishing you all the best" from Mat Stack 5 Collection.

One more wedding card for you today....although, really, this could be used for an anniversary as well.  A bit of Black & White Basics patterned paper was layered on the kraft card base.  A second layer of kraft card stock was added over the patterned paper, and was stamped with some more of the frame-building images from Mat Stack 5 Collection, using true black ink. The Heart Border Die was used to create the white strip of scallops along the bottom of the card.

Some true black card stock was die cut with the Happy Day die and over that, is some white card stock die cut with the limitless layers: 2.25" oval die.  The sentiment was created with a pair of sentiments from Happily Ever After -- "Much love to the" and "Happy Couple".  

Well, that's it for me today, but be sure to visit each of the girls on the design team to see their Mat Stack 5 Collection projects!  You won't want to miss a single post!

Nichole Heady

Betsy Veldman
Lisa Johnson
Heather Nichols
Maile Belles
Erin Lincoln
Jessica Witty
Ashley Newell
Danielle Flanders
Melissa Phillips 

Melissa Bickford will also have peeks for you at her newest set.

Thanks so much for visiting me today, dear friends.  I'll see you back here again tomorrow, with some more really fun Countdown projects to share with you.  I hope you'll join me!

Smooches! 

 

{Congrats supplies -- click on thumbnails}

Rustic Cream card stock

Rosie Posie stamp set

Rosie Posie die collection

Mat Stack 5 die

Vagabond Sizzix Machine by Tim Holtz

InLinkz.com

{Hurray supplies}

Rustic Cream card stock

Kraft card stock

Distressed Dots patterned paper

Mat Stack 5 die

Vagabond Sizzix Machine by Tim Holtz

InLinkz.com

{Happy Couple supplies}

Kraft card stock

Black & White Basics patterned paper

Heart Border Die

Happy Day die

Vagabond Sizzix Machine by Tim Holtz

InLinkz.com

Celebrations & Happily Ever After - Day 3

Hello there!  

We're back with day 3 of the Papertrey Countdown and I've got more fun cards to share with you today, featuring my new Celebrations and Happily Ever After stamp sets!  These sets as well as all of the other new products you're getting peeks at this week will be available for purchase at Papertrey Ink beginning on January 15 at 10pm EST.

One of the great things about the Celebrations stamp set is that so many sentiments from other stamp sets that you may already have in your crafting stash, will work in the frames!  Another great thing is that the framed sentiments can really stand on their own, not requiring much else in the way of a focal point on the card!  

On this first pair of cards, I started out with a kraft card base and added some new Dearest Jane patterned paper (more about that later in the week!) and then die cut a strip of pure poppy card stock with one of the half & half dies and stitched along the bottom edge with my sewing machine. 

The Celebrations Die was used to die cut some rustic cream card stock and I stamped one of the frame images from the Celebrations stamp set using raspberry fizz ink. Next, I stamped one of the pretty accent images, also from Celebrations, using pure poppy ink, right over the pink frame.  The "Thank you" sentiment is one from Giga Guide Lines -- many of the sentiments from that set are a perfect fit with the Celebrations die and frames!  I wanted the sentiment to pop just a bit so I stamped it on another piece of rustic cream card stock and adhered it with a bit of foam adhesive.  

Peeking out from behind the Celebrations die cut is a scalloped oval, die cut from raspberry fizz card stock, with a new die coming out this month (watch Nichole's blog for more info about that!).  I love that these framed sentiments really get to be the star of the show, thanks to the Celebrations stamp set!

Ok, so next up is a Happily Ever After card....this wedding announcement uses a different sentiment pairing than the one you saw yesterday.  I started out with a stamper's select white card stock base and ran it thru my Vagabond with the picnic plaid impression plate.

Next, I added a bit of Damask Designs patterned paper and then die cut some kraft card stock with the double ended banner die and cut off one end, stitching it to the card front.  An aqua mist button was added for one final accent.

Two white hearts were die cut using the Heart Prints die.  On one, I stamped the "Guess what!" sentiment from Happily Ever After and on the other, I stamped a heart from the Heart Prints stamp set.  Aqua mist buttons were added to each heart.  A kraft border was die cut using the filigree border die and over that is a small strip cut off of a mat stack 4 die cut, on which, I stamped the "We're getting married" sentiment, also from Happily Ever After.

One more for today....this one, using a bit of the Happily Ever After stamp set, as well as some Celebrations too!  I started out with a simply chartreuse card base and added a large paper doily from the cake decorating section at Michael's, before trimming off three edges of the doily. 

Two strips of simply chartreuse ribbon were added, both with a loop at the top.  Just over the loop, I added a simply chartreuse button that was threaded with a bit of silk ribbon.

The sentiments -- "Bride & Groom" and "So happy for you both" -- are both from the Happily Ever After stamp set.  I stamped them on the new limitless layers: 2.25" oval die cut and added a pretty accent image from Celebrations, just below the sentiments.  The sentiments were stamped with ripe avocado ink, while the accent image was stamped with versamark.  The ovals are layered on a Celebrations die cut that was stamped with one of the coordinating Celebrations frames, also using versamark ink.  

Well, I hope you've enjoyed today's Celebrations and Happily Ever After projects.  Nichole Heady and Lisa Johnson both have more featured products to share with you plus Heather Nichols and Melissa Bickford will also have peeks for you at their newest sets.

Thanks so much for your sweet comments this week about these newest additions to the Raspberry Suite line up -- I so appreciate hearing from you!

Hope you have a great day and I'll see you back here again tomorrow for more Countdown fun!

xo,

 

{Thank You supplies -- click on thumbnails}

Kraft card stock	Rustic Cream card stock	Raspberry Fizz card stock	Pure Poppy card stock	Giga Guide Lines stamp set	Half & Half die
Vagabond Sizzix Machine by Tim Holtz

InLinkz.com

{We're Getting Married! supplies}

Stamper's Select White card stock	Kraft card stock	Aqua Mist card stock	Damask Designs patterned paper	Heart Prints stamp set	Heart Prints dies
Mat Stack 4 die	Filigree Border Die	Double-Ended Banners dies	Picnic Plaid impression plate	Vagabond Sizzix Machine by Tim Holtz	Aqua Mist buttons
Rustic Jute button twine

InLinkz.com

{Bride & Groom supplies}

Stamper's Select White card stock

Simply Chartreuse card stock

Simply Chartreuse buttons

Simply Chartreuse ribbon

1/4" white silk ribbon

Versamark ink pad

InLinkz.com

Introducing Happily Ever After

Hi there!  I'm back for Day 2 of the Papertrey Countdown.  All of the new products you're getting peeks at this week will be available for purchase at Papertrey Ink beginning on January 15 at 10pm EST.  

For today, I have another new stamp set to introduce you too....Happily Ever After!  Happily Ever After is a sentiment set featuring 24 different mix and match sentiments celebrating all aspects of a wedding, from the engagement to the showers and parties leading up to the wedding, as well as sentiments for the wedding day itself!  You'll love the fun twists on sentiments that you can create to announce an engagement, create shower and party invitations, create a card for the bride & groom and even thank you cards once the wedding is over!  Happily Ever After is packed with possibilities and all for just $15!  Let's get right to today's projects, shall we?

 

On this first card, I used the new Front & Center #2 die (watch Nichole's blog for more about that this week!) to create the entire card base.  I simply ran the die thru my Vagabond once with kraft card stock and then trimmed off the sides just a smidge to make straight edges instead of diagonal, then scored and folded the die cut in half.  The "handle" hole that the die cuts out is perfect for a sentiment window, so I stamped a couple of sentiments from Happily Ever After inside the card -- "For the happy couple on your" and "Wedding Day".  A couple of pure poppy buttons were threaded together with rustic jute button twine and were added to accent the center scallop.

For the focal point, I used the Rosie Posie stamps and dies from last month's release (still can't seem to stop using them!) and layered them on a few new items.....the text patterned paper as well as some pure poppy card stock that were die cut with a couple of new oval dies!

 

Above, you can see the sentiments stamped inside the card.

Next up is a really fun engagement announcement for you!  This would be so cute to send to those important friends or family that maybe don't live close enough to be told the exciting news in person.  :)  Or heck, it'd be even more fun to give someone this card in person just so you can see their expression when they read it!!  :)

 

I decorated a cutie-patootie little kraft envelope (from Michael's) and used it as a pocket to hide the second part of the sentiment!  I used the new Celebrations die on some rustic cream card stock to create the pocket insert -- it's a PERFECT fit in these little kraft bags!  Just THINK of all the possibilities this opens up!!  The bags are super inexpensive -- just a few dollars for 25 of them!  With the Celebrations Die, you could create little pocket inserts for all sorts of occasions!  

Got a little side-tracked there.....haha....back to the card.  I die cut the kraft card stock and then stamped the ring of hearts from 2010 Love Tags with summer sunrise ink as well as one of the accent images from Celebrations (stamped twice) also with summer sunrise ink.  The "She said yes!" sentiment, from Happily Ever After, was stamped with smokey shadow ink.  A threaded button was added to the top of the pocket insert, to create a handy little "pull".

For the front of the pocket, I die cut some distressed dots patterned paper, also with the Celebrations Die and then die cut more rustic cream card stock with the scalloped limitless layers: 1 3/4" circle die and stamped it with that same hearts image from 2010 Love Tags.  I also stamped the gray hearts image in smokey shadow ink on more rustic cream card stock and then punched it out with a smaller circle punch and adhered it to the scalloped layer.  The sentiment flag was hand cut from kraft card stock and stamped with the "Guess what!" sentiment from Happily Ever After.  A smokey shadow button finished things off.

Behind the kraft pocket, I stamped a heart image from Background Basics: Hearts using smokey shadow ink.  Over that, a strip of gray patterned paper from the 2009 Bitty Dot Basics collection was added as well as more distressed dots paper that was die cut with the Heart Border die. 

All righty, one more for you today.....this one, colorful and sweet.  This would be ideal to take to a bridal shower, or even to send to a bride-to-be just because.

I started out with a berry sorbet card base and stamped it with the leaf images from Harvest Berries, using pure poppy ink.

Next, I added a bit of rustic cream card stock that was die cut with one of the Half & Half dies.  I stitched that piece to the card front, using my sewing machine and added a pure poppy button accent.  Next, I used a couple of new dies from this release (watch Nichole's blog for more info!) to die cut the scalloped layer as well as the cream oval.  The sentiment was created by stamping two of the sentiments from Happily Ever After -- "For the" and "Blushing Bride".

I hope you've enjoyed this first introduction to the Happily Ever After stamp set!  There's lots more inspiration for you to check out.....Nichole Heady is showcasing both of my new stamp sets today -- Happily Ever After as well as Celebrations!  Heather Nichols is also highlighting Happily Ever After and Ashley Newell is focusing on Celebrations so you won't want to miss any of those posts!!

Heather Nichols and Melissa Bickford will also have peeks for you at their newest sets.

Thanks so much for spending a bit of your day with me.  Tomorrow, I'll be showing you more peeks at both Celebrations and Happily Ever After!  I hope you'll join me!

Until then, take care, 

 

{For the Happy Couple supplies -- click on thumbnails}

Kraft card stock	Rustic Cream card stock	Pure Poppy card stock	Rosie Posie stamp set	Rosie Posie die collection	Vagabond Sizzix Machine by Tim Holtz
Pure Poppy buttons	Rustic Jute button twine

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{Guess What! She Said Yes! supplies}

Kraft card stock	Rustic Cream card stock	Distressed Dots patterned paper	2009 Bitty Dot Basics patterned paper	2010 Love Tags stamp set	Background Basics: Hearts stamp set
Limitless Layers: 1 3/4" Circle dies	Heart Border Die	Vagabond Sizzix Machine by Tim Holtz	Corner Chomper	Smokey Shadow buttons	Summer Sunrise buttons
Rustic Jute button twine

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{For the Blushing Bride supplies}

Berry Sorbet card stock

Rustic Cream card stock

Harvest Berries stamp set

Half & Half die

Vagabond Sizzix Machine by Tim Holtz

Pure Poppy buttons

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Introducing Celebrations

Hello there!!  Welcome to day 1 of the Papertrey Countdown!  All of the new products you'll be getting peeks at for the next 5 days, will be available for purchase at Papertrey Ink beginning on January 15.

Today, I'm thrilled to introduce you to one of the new stamp sets I have coming out this month....Celebrations.  Celebrations is a sentiment set with large celebratory words that can be paired with smaller sentiments that focus on a wide variety of occasions worth celebrating!  Also included in the set are a pair of frames designed to house the sentiments or anything else you can dream up!  There are also a couple of decorative elements included in the set, that you can use on the frames or on their own for added interest on your projects.  

And the best part, of course, is that there's also a coordinating die available, that coordinates with the frames in Celebrations.  Here's a photo of the Celebrations Die....

Now, how about we chat about today's projects?  First up is a sweet anniversary card in a springy, yet soothing color scheme.  I used the Celebrations die to die cut the frame and stamped one of the coordinating frame images using spring moss ink.  Next, I stamped the "CONGRATS" sentiment from Celebrations using aqua mist ink, followed by the "Thinking of you on your anniversary" sentiment (also from Celebrations) using hawaiian shores ink.  Behind the frame, the cane print impression plate was used on the card front.

The Rosie Posie stamp set and dies were used to create the flowers and leaves along the bottom of the card.  The largest flower was stamped in hawaiian shores ink and the two smaller flowers were stamped with aqua mist ink.  I took a pair of Copic markers and added a bit of shading to the flowers to give them a bit more depth.

Next up, I have a couple of simple birthday cards to share with you that show how easy it is to create both masculine and feminine birthday cards in a snap, using the Celebrations stamp set!! 

For this card, I started with a kraft card base and added a strip of *new* patterned paper (more on that later in the week!) as well as a couple strips of ribbon.  I layered some kraft topnotch twill ribbon on top of some smokey shadow classic grosgrain ribbon.  Kraft, dark chocolate and smokey shadow make for a really great masculine color combo!

Here, you can see that the Celebrations die was used to cut out the frame and the same frame you saw in the previous card was stamped using dark chocolate ink.  The "Celebrate" and "Wishing you the happiest of birthdays" sentiments were added with smokey shadow ink and a smokey shadow button topped things off.

 

Next up, I went for a card with another very simple layout, but a decidedly girly twist!  The card base is rustic cream and the Distressed Dots patterned paper was die cut along the bottom edge with one of the Edgers #3 dies.  I love how well this particular Edgers die coordinates with the Celebrations frames!

For this card, I stamped the second of the two frames included in Celebrations -- this one with a bit of flourish -- using raspberry fizz ink.  A couple of raspberry rhinestones were added for a bit of bling.  The "Celebrate" sentiment was stamped using summer sunrise ink and the "Wishing you the happiest of birthdays" sentiment was stamped with canyon clay ink.  A strip of raspberry fizz grosgrain ribbon finished things off.

That's it for me today, but I've got more product introductions in the days to come, so I hope you'll join me all week!

For today, be sure to visit Nichole Heady as well as Betsy Veldman and Danielle Flanders for today's featured stamp sets.

Heather Nichols and Melissa Bickford will also have peeks for you at their newest sets.

Thanks so much for stopping by!  
Have a great day, 

 

{Congrats supplies -- click on thumbnails}

Aqua Mist card stock	Rustic Cream card stock	Rosie Posie stamp set	Rosie Posie die collection	Cane Print Impression Plate	Vagabond Sizzix Machine by Tim Holtz
Big Shot die cutting machine

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{Celebrate (masculine) supplies}

Kraft card stock

Rustic Cream card stock

Vagabond Sizzix Machine by Tim Holtz

Big Shot die cutting machine

Smokey Shadow ribbon

Smokey Shadow buttons

InLinkz.com

{Celebrate (feminine) supplies}

Distressed Dots patterned paper	Rustic Cream card stock	Edgers #3 dies	Vagabond Sizzix Machine by Tim Holtz	Big Shot die cutting machine	Raspberry Fizz ribbon
Raspberry Rhinestones

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Make It Monday: Creating Background Patterns With Border Dies

Hello there!  It's my turn to share a video with you for this week's Make It Monday challenge for Papertrey Ink!  This week, it's all about using those border dies in your stash, to create really gorgeous background patterns!!

Be sure to head over to Nichole Heady's blog to add a link to your project, if you play along with the challenge.....I'd love to see what you come up with!!

 

 

A complete supply list can be found at the end of the video.

In other news, we watched the first episode of season 2 of Downton Abbey last night on PBS!  It was soooooo good!!  Did you watch it?  I'm already planning to watch it again, just so I don't miss anything....so many twists and turns!  I always love cozy Sunday nights at home with Bartley and Windsor, but this will make them even more fun for a few weeks!  ;)

Have a great day, Dearies.....see you back here tomorrow with my first countdown projects!

A Second Raspberry Suite Sneak Peek!

Hellooooo!  Back today with another peek at a second new stamp set I have coming out this month!  This sentiment set celebrating all things wedding -- from the engagement to the big day -- is the perfect addition to your crafting arsenal for making wedding projects of any kind!  I can't wait to show you this latest addition to the Raspberry Suite line-up....I think you'll be pleased with the wide variety of unique sentiment options included in this set!  Remember, the official Papertrey Countdown begins on Jan. 10 with all of this month's new products being available for purchase at Papertrey Ink beginning on January 15.

I'll see you soon, with the first projects focusing on this new set!

Raspberry Suite Sneak Peek!!

Hi-ya!  

Did you see this over at Nichole Heady's blog?  The first sneak peeks for the January Papertrey Release are starting to go up and here's a peek at a new set I have coming out this month!  It's a sentiment set with lots of combinations and the sentiments coordinate with a pair of fun frames -- good for a wide variety occasions worth celebrating!!  Oh, and you'll probably want the coordinating die as well!  *wink*

The Papertrey Countdown starts on the 10th, so stay tuned for lots of fun cards highlighting this set!

Happy Thursday,

 

*All products in the January Papertrey Release will be available for purchase beginning on January 15th.

A SC Hello

Hi-ya!

Just poppin' in to share a Studio Calico card I made recently.  This one uses some fun Autumn Press papers as well as some Memoir Collection and Classic Calico collection embellies.

I used some American Crafts Zing embossing powder to create the sentiment, for a fun little change.

I'm also beyond happy to report that Windsor got the all clear at his post-surgery follow up apmt. at the hospital today.  He can now resume all normal activities which means that I can resume all normal activities!  Haha.  We went on a very long walk as soon as we got home from the appointment, which he was very happy about and I'm quite excited about sleeping in our bed tonight.  :)  My little shadow has been following me all over the house since we got home.  Plus, he seems to be avoiding sleep at all cost.  I know he's tired from his big outing and then our walk, but I think he's afraid if he falls asleep, I might put that cone back on him or stick him back in his kennel!  Silly baby.  

Anyway, thank you oh-so-much for keeping him (and us) in your prayers these last few weeks.  We're more grateful than you know.  

{Hello supplies -- click on thumbnails}

Rustic Cream card stock	Autumn Press 6x6 patterned paper pad	Studio Calico Hooray clear stamps	Memoir Scrap Pad	Wood Veneer Asterisks	SC Buttons Chipboard Shapes
Kraft 6x12 Border Stickers	Mister Huey's Spray - overdue	Zing Chestnut Opaque	Versamark ink pad	Rustic Jute button twine

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Bit of a Catch Up

Hello, dear readers....

Thought I'd pop in with a bit of a catch up as to what's been going on here at the McVey Ranch over the last week or so -- since I haven't been spending much time in the studio getting crafty.  Instead, I've been spending lots of time in the family room with our little patient, as seen above.  Thought you might like to see what I meant, when I said they shaved a huge spot on Windsor's belly/sides for his surgery.  His other side looks the same as this one.  Plus, that shaved spot on his front leg is where his IVs were and he's got another shaved spot on a back leg where he had a pain patch giving him meds thru his skin.  I hope the poor boy's hair grows back in quickly.  He's gonna be kind of chilly walking around the neighborhood as soon as we can resume our daily walks!  You can also see the lovely black duct tape on his cone.  That would be because of the little stinker's attempts to eat the cone.  Thankfully, he's gotten to where he doesn't mess with the tape too much, but in the beginning, he just tried to eat the tape off too.  Silly puppy.  

I'm so thankful for God's perfect timing yet again......it might seem like a hassle to have to deal with all of this post-surgery mess during Christmas/New Years, but honestly it's been a huge blessing because Bart's had the time off from reffing in the evenings, thanks to the Christmas break that schools/universities take.  Him being home in the evenings has been a huge help because we've tried to let Win out of the kennel whenever we can to give him time to stretch out like you see above.  He's done lots of resting just like that, and when he decides that he's ready to jump and play, that's when he's had to go back in the kennel so he doesn't hurt his incision.  

We have a follow up appointment at the hospital with him tomorrow, and I'm hope-hope-hoping that we'll get the all clear and can lift all restrictions but we'll see.  I'm hoping but trying not to get my hopes up.....if you know what I mean.  :)  OH, how I miss sleeping in our BED though!!!  ;)  I'll keep you posted.

We also spent this last weekend with lots more family time.  Since my sister (Diann) and her husband and the littles didn't get to come for Christmas, they came the weekend after so we could celebrate Christmas and watch the littles open their gifts, and then they stayed overnight at my sister's (Grace's) house so we could celebrate my sister's (Glory's) birthday on Sunday.  Did you get all that?  There will be a test at the end of this post.  Haha.

It had been several months since we'd seen the littles so you know we soaked up as much time with them as we could!  That's Ally, above.  Can you believe (those of you that have been hanging around here awhile) that she's about to turn FOUR?!

They posed for pictures while hanging on the bannister.  :)  Malachi....he's about to turn 3.

And this little sweetie-pants......oh my.  This is Zoey and she's gotten soooo big.

There was lots of this going on, on Saturday.  Lots of presents and unwrapping and playing.  

Then, on Sunday they all came over again so we could celebrate this girl's birthday.  This is Glory, my littlest sister.  She's the baby of the family.  Well, until actual babies came along.  But you know what I mean.  :)

There was also lots of swinging on our neighbors' swing set.  We went on Saturday -- literally just walked next door as there isn't a fence between our yard and theirs.  As soon as the littles walked in the door the next day, they asked if we could go to the "park" again.  Hahaha.  

There was also lots of baby snuggling.  As you can see, the infinity scarf I made last week, happens to be a great baby cozy.  :)  Zo-zo fell asleep hanging on to it.  

I also managed to finish this cowl.  I felt very fancy that day.  Hahaha.  All in all, it's been a really great couple of weeks.  I'll let you know what the doctor says at Windsor's apmt. tomorrow.

Oh, and one more mention before I go.....

For all of you Studio Calico fans out there, be sure to check out this new class from Amy Tan!!  This looks like it's gonna be a fun one.

Hope you're all having a great day!  Let's hope Windsor gets the all clear, so I can start working upstairs in the studio again soon -- I've got a Papertrey box that should be arriving later today, that I'll be very excited to bust into!!  ;)

Have a goodie, dearies.

All Booked Up Revisited

Hello there!

It's the first of the month (AND the first of the new year!!) and that means that it's time for Papertrey's Senior Design Team Challenge.  This month, Nichole has challenged us to pull out our All Booked Up stamp sets to create some bookmarks or bookplates and a card. 

I have loved the All Booked Up stamp set ever since it came out....it's sweet bookish sentiments speaking directly to my book-lovin' little heart!  I was excited to discover that the Wine Bottle Tag Die works perfectly for creating bookmarks and not only that, but the circle that is die cut from the tag, coordinates perfectly with the tag images from the All Booked Up stamp set!  Let me show you what I mean....

Here's the wine bottle tag die and some cream card stock that I die cut using it.  See how it cuts out the wine bottle tag as well as the circle that would allow the tag to hang around the neck on a bottle?  Well, if you leave the tag flat, it makes a perfect bookmark!  And if you use that circle, you can stamp one of the circle/tag images from All Booked Up on it and use it on your bookmark!

For each bookmark, I also die cut two pieces of card stock with one of the Limitless Layers: 1 3/4" circle dies.....in this case, two dark chocolate scalloped circles.  I stamped the mat stack 3 image from All Booked Up on the bookmark.  The score line on the die cut tag, fits perfectly in the blank space from the mat stack image.  I stamped a sentiment from All Booked Up just under the mat stack image.  

One of the circle tags was stamped on the circle die cut and I layered it on one of the scalloped circles.  Then, I simply adhered the two scalloped circles together, back to back, sandwiching the bookmark in between the two layers.

At the bottom of each of the bookmarks, I added one of the smaller-scaled sentiments from All Booked Up....I love those sentiments!

 

Here's a look at the back side of the bookmark.  Another of those small sentiments was stamped on the scalloped circle on the back.

How about a card next?  I used several of the same elements as on the bookmarks, however this time I pulled out the tag sale #5 die to layer all of the focal elements on.

I stamped the same mat stack 3 image from All Booked Up on the tag sale #5 die cut and this time, added the sentiment in the blank space from that mat stack image.  Again, one of the circle images was stamped on a 1 3/4" circle die cut and layered on a limitless layers die cut.  Behind the focal point, is a strip of Dotty Biscotti patterned paper as well as a strip of dark chocolate scalloped card stock that was die cut with the Heart Border Die.  Love those tiny scallops!

Background Basics: Newsprint text was stamped along the card front with Versamark ink and heat embossed with clear embossing powder.

Well, I hope you've enjoyed today's projects!  Do you have the All Booked Up stamp set?  Feeling inspired to get it out and make something book-y with it?  Or did you just add All Booked Up to your wish list?  I'd love to hear from you!

Don't forget to visit each of the girls on the Senior Design Team for their All Booked Up projects!

Betsy Veldman
Heather Nichols
Maile Belles
Lisa Johnson

Thanks so much for visiting me today.  

And Happy New Year to you! 

 

{Bookmarks/Card supplies -- click on thumbnails}

Rustic Cream card stock	Kraft card stock	Raspberry Fizz card stock	Dotty Biscotti patterned paper	All Booked Up stamp set	Background Basics: Newsprint stamp set
Wine Bottle Tag Die	Limitless Layers: 1 3/4" Circle dies	Heart Border Die	Tag Sale #5 die	Big Shot die cutting machine	Versamark ink pad
Filigree Detail embossing powder

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SC County Fair - the Reveal

Hello there!!  It's reveal time at Studio Calico and I've got some cards to share with you that were made using the County Fair kit and add-ons.  Some really fun goodies in this month's kits....

This first card includes only items from the Main County Fair kit plus I used my new Tiny Attacher and added a bit of twine.  

This colorful little number features lots of goodies from the main plus the milk cap embellies are from add-on #3 (Shooting Gallery).  

The woodgrain paper was die cut with Papertrey's mat stack 4 die and the cream layer was die cut with the fillable frames #5 die.

The little half milk caps look like there's a staple printed on them (see the two middle caps) so I used my Tiny Attacher right over the printed staple on the two outer caps.  Don't those little milk caps make for a fun banner?

The "UR" wood veneer letters were spritzed with Mister Huey's custard spray mist and then some calico shine.

This one features more of the main kit plus a patterned paper accent from add-on #1 and the "xo ox" stamp is from add-on #3.

I used a few Papertrey dies here -- the half & half die as well as the fillable frames #4 die.

This one is another main kit only card.  The numbers were stamped with versamark ink and heat embossed with Zing opaque embossing powder in Chestnut.  

Papertrey's small scalloped border die was used on the green patterned paper on the left.  I cut apart one of the Jenni Bowlin flowers for a bit dimension on the focal point.

This card features goodies from add-on #1 (Ring Toss).  

I also used my Tiny Attacher to add the little staples accent.....um, I kind of love that thing!

 

This one is all add-on #1 (Ring Toss) plus some Mister Huey's calico shine and my sewing machine.

That rainbow paper looks sooooo pretty misted with calico shine!

Here's a fun little "hey Y'all"!  I used Papertrey's beautiful blooms dies to create the flower, a Turning a New Leaf die for the leaves and the Happy Day die for the frame.

The "hey Y'all" sentiment was stamped in versamark ink and heat embossed with Zing Chestnut embossing powder.

I added some droplets of Mister Huey's calico shine (SO pretty when dripped on cream card stock) and Dewey.

Here's a card showcasing items from add-on #3 (Shooting Gallery) plus some of the woodgrain washi tape from the County Fair main kit.  That scrumptious button is from the main kit as well.  

The flowers were simply cut from patterned paper and spritzed with calico shine before layering them together.

This card is also from add-on #3 (Shooting Gallery) with the addition of that cream/pink patterned paper from the main kit.  

I hope you've enjoyed today's projects!  Lots and lots to look at!

Thanks for sharing part of your day with me.  

Wishing you well,

 

{Supplies -- click on thumbnails}

County Fair kit	Ring Toss add-on kit	Shooting Gallery add-on kit	Corner Chomper	Tiny Attacher	Tiny Attacher Refills
Mister Huey's spray - calico shine	Mister Huey's spray - dewey	Mister Huey's spray - custard	Mat Stack 4 die	Fillable Frames #5 die	Fillable Frames #4 die
Half & Half die	Small Scalloped Border die	Beautiful Blooms II #2 dies	Happy Day die	Turning a New Leaf dies	Big Shot die cutting machine
Versamark ink pad	Zing Chestnut Opaque	Rustic Jute button twine	American Crafts Adhesive foam tab squares	Kraft card stock	Rustic Cream card stock

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Ellen Hutson SALE (+ a Pupdate)

Hi All, 

Just popping in super quick to let you know that Ellen Hutson has a great sale going on that ends TODAY (the 27th)!  20% off everything! (excluding Copics)   

They've even got this adorable Paper Heart Collection 6x6 paper pad from Crate Paper.  Love!

They also have lots of new Hero Arts stamps like this one and this one.  See the entire section of NEW items here.

And for those of you wondering how Windsor is doing, he's doing quite well.  In fact, if he could talk, I think he would tell you that he is perfectly fine and fit as a fiddle and should be allowed out of that kennel so he can run and jump and play all day long.  He doesn't quite understand what the big deal is.  :)  We gave him a sedative when having large groups of family over this weekend and he did fine with that.  They told us to start with the low dose and then give him the max dose only if needed.  Of course the low dose didn't even phase the little stinker!  But with the right amount of sedative plus his pain meds, he was pretty relaxed and was able to rest some even with a house full of people.  He's even gotten to spend several hours at a time, just laying on the floor in the family room with Bart or I sitting with him (in case he decided to jump and run!  Ha!) and I know he's loved having those breaks from the kennel.  

He's been a bit better about not chewing on the cone (or duct tape we've added to the cone where he's chewed on it).  We're aware though that it only took a few minutes for him to start chewing that cone in the first place (and that was while he was ON a sedative!), so we've only left him alone for a few minutes total since we brought him home from the hospital last week.  I'd hate to leave him alone and have him eat a hunk of plastic or tape off of the cone.  Soooo.....I'm working on my laptop in the family room with his kennel right in front of me so I can keep an eye on him.  No studio work going on for me at the moment unless Bart is home to sit with Win so I can run upstairs.  Heck, I ran upstairs to shower this morning and when I turned the water off, I heard him barking/yelping downstairs by himself.  Silly puppy.  I'm also still sleeping on the couch to make sure he doesn't chew on the crazy cone during the night.  (I can tell when he's moving around because of how noisy the cone is in the kennel!)

All in all, he's been a really good little patient.....just whiny sometimes when he decides to complain about the injustice of it all.  :)  We're extremely thankful that he's doing so well, but we're also counting the days until we can free our little jailbird from his kennel and cone!  Only 10 more days.....only 10 more days....we can DO this!  Hee.  (I miss our bed!)

Hope you all had a wonderful Christmas weekend!

much love,

Love, the McVeys

Dearest Readers,

Just wanted to post a note to wish you and yours the merriest of Christmases....from our home to yours.  We've already had the first two of several family get-togethers today and are looking forward to celebrating more in the next few days.  

We'll be nursing Windsor-puppy and snuggling our bug whenever we can and looking at him thru his kennel door the rest of the time, we'll be eating way too much good food and laughing and movie-watching, we'll be exchanging gifts and dreaming of a white Christmas (that won't be here this year), we'll be falling asleep after eating too much food and we'll be watching football, we'll be reading the Christmas story from the Bible and taking time to remember the real reason for celebrating at all, we'll be singing a carol or two and I might even squeeze in a little time sitting next to the kennel while our drugged up puppy sleeps (or doesn't, as the case may be), with one of these....

But most of all, we'll be rejoicing in the birth of our Savior and soaking up every bit of love and joy that we can.  Life is not always easy.  Life is not always neat and clean and tidy and wrapped up with a big fancy bow on top.  But life is sweet and we'll be looking for precious moments to savor with loved ones....and we're wishing the same for you.  It is our greatest wish that you would know the peace and happiness that comes from knowing Who holds the future.  

Know that we're thinking of you and wishing you much happiness, this Christmas and always.

Love,

the McVeys
Dawn, Bart & Windsor 

A Few SC Cards

Hello there!!  So first, a little card chatter, and if you stick around long enough, there'll be a PUPDATE at the bottom of this post.  ;)

I made these three cards for Studio Calico awhile back using one stamp set (You Are the Best stamp set) and one 6x6 paper pad (Memoir Collection)....Studio Calico put together PDFs with complete supply lists and instructions too.  The PDFs are gorgeous and you can print them out to keep on hand.  You can click here to download the PDFs for each card so you can recreate them for yourself!

And now for the PUPDATE:

We brought Windsor home yesterday afternoon.  According to the doctors, he's doing really well and was even making eyes at his female doctor -- I'm sure, in an effort to get some extra attention!  Silly puppy.

He looks rather pitiful with his huge incision (maybe 6" long) and shaved tummy & sides.  He's wearing a cone so he can't mess with the incision (because if he popped the incision open.....well, let's just say that would be very bad.  I'll spare you the gory details.).  Unfortunately, he's supposed to stay in his kennel pretty much 24/7 for the next two weeks, however with the cone, he can hardly move in the kennel.  I suppose, maybe that's sort of the point, but we have to squeeze the cone shut a bit, around his head, just to get him thru the kennel door and then, once he's in, he has a really hard time getting turned around so he can face the door.  Heck, it's hard for him to even lay his head down with that crazy cone on.  Poor boo.  

Today, the little stinker started trying to EAT the CONE.  Um hello, puppy.....apparently he's not aware of why he's wearing said cone in the first place.  The last thing we need is for him eat part of the cone!  So when the hospital called to check on him this morning, they suggested duct taping the seam of the cone and then spraying it with bitter apple spray to deter him from chewing on it any more.  Of course, now he's attempted to eat the black duct tape (!) and he just sniffed the spot where the bitter apple spray had been (it doesn't stick to the slick surface at all) and then licked it!  Soooo.....we'll see how this goes.  So far, we haven't left him alone at all, so we can keep an eye on him just in case.  I'd really prefer that he not ingest anything else that he's not supposed to.  ;)

He's on pain meds, of course, so that's currently helping to keep him a little bit more chilled out.  They also gave us a mild sedative which will hopefully help when we have a house full of family this weekend for Christmas.  Hopefully the meds will help keep him nice and calm.  The main thing is he can't do any sort of stretching or jumping which is why he has to stay in the kennel.  

Unfortunately, he also can't do the staircase for two weeks (we usually have the kennel upstairs in our room -- that's where he sleeps) so we've moved the kennel to the family room (he can see the Christmas tree -- *smile*).  I'll sleep down here on the couch for a couple of nights and then *hopefully* he'll be content to sleep down here by himself after that.  We'll see.  

All in all, we're THRILLED to have him home with us and on the road to recovery.  We're also rejoicing over how well he's been doing so far.  And mostly, we're so, so thankful that we have a sweet little puppy to nurse and care for this Christmas.  We certainly know what it's like to lose a beloved pet (a member of the family, really) and we're so grateful to not be going thru that again.  

We're counting our blessings for sure.

Thank you so much for keeping us in your prayers.

Wishing you all a VERY Merry Christmas!!

 

{Card Trio supplies -- click on thumbnails}

Memoir 6x6 patterned paper pad	Studio Calico - You Are the Best stamp set	Pure Poppy buttons	Hawaiian Shores buttons	Dark Chocolate buttons	New Leaf baker's twine
Chocolate Baker's Twine	Rustic Jute button twine	American Crafts Adhesive foam tab squares

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Some Studio Calico January Sneaks

Good morning, dear friends....

Today, I'm popping in quickly to share a few sneakies with you of the January Studio Calico kit!  I spent part of my afternoon yesterday, with this kit, so I've got lots more to share, but here are a few sneaks to get us started.  :)

Also I wanted to mention, in case you haven't seen it yet, Studio Calico's first online class.....

It's the Photo-a-day class with Nicole Samuels and it's just $12!  Here's some info from the website:  

"Start 2012 off by joining Studio Calico teacher and design team member Nicole Samuels for our first-ever online class. Nicole is an expert at taking a photo a day and ready to share her tips for success with you in this self-paced class. She'll cover how to get started, how to stay motivated, ideas to photograph, and what to do with all those photos you've taken.

Nicole is joined by photo a day alumni Tina Aszmus, Ali Edwards, Maggie Holmes, Elizabeth Kartchner, Laura Kurz, Kelly Purkey, and Lisa Truesdell. They're ready to share their photos and ideas to help get you started."

I hope you'll check it out.....that's quite a line-up of talented teachers and contributers!

Also, don't forget that Two Peas has free shipping on orders over $35 thru Dec. 31.  (See the shipping code above)  Annnnnnd, did you see that they got some of Crate Paper's new Valentine line -- Paper Heart -- in stock?  Ack!  I can't wait to get my hands on some of these goodies.....I love the colors!

 

In other news, my sister's "littles" -- including Baby Zoey -- are all in town this morning and staying with my parents (my sister and her hubs had a family funeral to attend) so I'm running out for a bit to see those punkins!  I haven't seen them in a few months and I miss them like crazy!!  They live about 6 hours (round trip) away from us now, so we haven't been getting to see them as much.  I'm so excited to see them for a bit today and then they'll be back New Year's weekend for a late Christmas celebration and a birthday party.  Yay!!  

We're also waiting for a phone call this morning from Windsor's doctor to let us know how he's doing this morning and when we can bring him home.  Still hoping for this afternoon.  We miss our sweet boy a ton.  I'll keep you posted.  Keep an eye on my Twitter feed for the latest updates!

xo,

Windsor Update

EDITED AGAIN (12/21 mid-day) TO ADD:  Well, I got to go visit Win today at the hospital.....sweet boy looks so pitiful.  The doctors and staff say he's doing really well, but of course, what I saw was our little (55lb) baby with very sad eyes, a huge bandage on his tummy, a cone around his neck/head and IV's in both front legs w/bandages wrapped around the IV's.  He whined and whined when he saw me....I'm sure he couldn't figure out why I didn't just bust him out of that "jail".   Part of why I went was to take some of the prescription food that he's on, because the hospital had run out of that variety, so since I was there, they wanted to go ahead and "try to get him to eat" with me by his side.  Of course, eating has never been an issue for that little boy (ha!) so he ate like a champ which they said is a really good sign.  Most dogs won't eat so soon after surgery.  We're still hopeful to bring him home tomorrow, but won't know until tomorrow morning about that.  The doctor did tell us that when we do bring him home, he'll need to pretty much be in his kennel 24/7 for TWO WEEKS (with bathroom breaks, of course) unless he freaks out being in the kennel for that much time, in which case we can let him be out with us but we'll have to keep him "still".  Needless to say, the next two weeks are likely to be a bit of a challenge (one I'm SO not complaining about, given the alternative!).  We've got about 4 days of Christmas gatherings happening at our house with one side of the family or the other so managing a recuperating puppy with a house full of people might get interesting.  Regardless, we're so happy just to be able to bring him home.  We'll get thru it.  I just feel bad for him, knowing what his life will be like for a couple of weeks.  Our active, rambunctious puppy is not likely to be too happy about his lot in life for a little while.  

Thank you for your continued prayers....I can't tell you how much we appreciate them as well as all of your sweet comments and emails.  Much love to you all.  I'll continue to edit this post with updates as I have them, so even if other posts end up above this one (I have some crafty projects to share), check back here for Win updates.  Just scroll down to this post.

xo,

EDITED (12/20 pm) TO ADD: Just heard from the surgeon....Windsor came thru the surgery just fine.  He had a pile of bits and pieces of stuff in his intestines, including part of a pine cone.  I know he's eaten parts off of toys over time -- the boy is fast, no matter how closely we watch him!  So I guess some of them just started backing up in there.  Poor baby.  Anyway, he's doing well right now and in fact, they didn't have to remove any of the intestine, itself.  Praise the Lord for no damage there.  Now we just wait and see how well he recovers, but she said maybe Thursday we could bring him home.  (And then we get to keep him still for I-don't-know-how-long!)  ;)  Grateful to have a puppy to bring home and keep still.  xo

Hello, dear readers...

Wanted to update you with the latest news on Windsor.  It appears that there's some sort of long obstruction in his intestines which requires surgery to remove it.  Apparently he's eaten something long (could be string...could be a whole lot of things, according to the dr....who knows.  She said they've pulled panty hose, underwear, even pillow cases out of dogs before!)......we won't know what he ate until they operate.  I can't even begin to fathom what he could have eaten, since we watch him like a hawk -- particularly since we've already been doing a food trial with him -- we're very cautious about what he eats plus, we know what he's capable of!  Ha.)  Whatever it is, he either ate it in the last 24-36 hours or it finally made it's way to his intestines in the last 24-36 hours.  The bottom line is that it's blocking his intestines and as the intestines work to push the object thru, they tend to bunch up around the object and therefore, the intestines can become damaged.  Damaged sections of the intestines then have to be cut out while they're doing the surgery.  

His prognosis is good because he's young and strong and best case scenario, he could be home in 36 hours.  Obviously though, with any surgery, there are a host of possible complications.  We're praying that he comes thru with flying colors and has none of those issues.  We're also praying for wisdom for the doctors and technicians that will be taking care of Win.

He is at the same surgery center where we lost Riley.  In fact, they put us in the same ROOM where we said goodbye to Riley....that was a little difficult.  They brought Windsor in to us, so we could see him one more time before the surgery and they'd already shaved big (maybe 9" square) patches on either side of his tummy.  Poor baby.  I almost lost it at that point.  It's all just a little too similar to what we've already been thru once this year.

However, I will tell you this....I know that God holds Win (and all the rest of us) in the palm of His hand.  I trust Him, come what may.  But obviously, our prayer is that our sweetie-boy would come thru the surgery with flying colors and recover quickly, so that he can live a long and healthy life.  

I have been so sick to my stomach all day today and as we waited in that room while they were doing his sonogram, the technician handed me the dr's business card.  
The tech said, "My name is Hope....I'm sorry I didn't get that written on the card for you."  So while she was out of the room, I got out a pen and wrote "Hope" on the business card, just in case we needed to know her name later and that's when I saw it.......the dr's name?  Dr. Catherine Peace.  When Bartley came into the room, I handed him the card and said, "Are there two words that stand out to you on that card?"  He looked at it a sec and said, "Hope and Peace".  I like to think the Lord was trying to tell us something in those moments as we waited.  

And so, we'll continue to wait....with hope and peace.

He should be in surgery by now, and the surgery typically takes about an hour and a half.  She should be calling as soon as the surgery is over to let us know how he did and then we'll be waiting to see how his recovery goes.  They do have visiting hours, so I might be able to go see the little puppy-head tomorrow for a bit.  You should have seen how sweet he was at the hospital, even feeling so poorly.  Sweet baby.

I would so appreciate your continued prayers for Windsor....I'll pop back in and edit this post when I have more news.

Thank you so, so much for keeping us in your prayers already today, and the days ahead.

Much love,

Joy Planter Tag

Hello again,

Today, I've got a fun little project to share with you that makes for a really sweet hostess gift.  It's that time of year when holiday parties are happening left and right and I think it's always a fun thing to take along a gift for the hostess.  Right now, poinsettias make gorgeous (and inexpensive) hostess gifts however when I went to the store to get one for a party we were attending, the poinsettias didn't look so hot, but this plant looked gorgeous!  So, we opted for this beauty.  I just wish I knew what kind of plant it is!  

Anyway, I wanted to attach some sort of gift tag, so I decided to create a sort of "floral pick" that could serve as a tag-on-a-stick!  Ha.

I used a couple of my Damask Snowflake die cuts here and topped them with a tag image from the 2011 Holiday Tags stamp set.  I used scor-tape directly on the dowel rod as well as foam adhesive (several pieces thick) on either side of the dowel, to hold it all together.  (I got this package of dowel rods ages ago at Michael's.)

I also die cut a second hawaiian shores snowflake which I adhered on the back side of the hawaiian shores snowflake you see here, and that's where I wrote my little gift tag message.  Cute and simple!  You could totally do this even this week, if you still have a party or two to attend.

I also wanted to point out that Two Peas has quite a few sales and special offers going on right now including a Year-End Clearance Sale and free shipping on purchases of $35 or more.  Just use December Shipping Code: NKFFRL

Also before I go, I have a bit of a PUPDATE for you.....I'd like to ask for your prayers, if I could.  We woke up at 3am to Windsor getting sick in his kennel (right by my side of the bed) this morning.  Got the kennel cleaned up, took him outside to go to the bathroom, brought him back in and got everyone settled down again with the lights turned off and 2 minutes later, he got sick again.  He's now gotten sick 4 times since the first time at 3am.  We've been on the phone with the veterinarian a couple of times this morning and after this last time getting sick, the vet said to bring him right in.  So....I took the puppy to the vet's office and they kept him and said they'd call after the vet has had a chance to examine him.  It felt just a little too much like the last time I drove a very sick Riley to the vet's office, earlier this year.  I'm hoping it's absolutely nothing serious. 

We've also been doing a food trial lately (that seemed to finally be going well) with Win -- it's suspected that he's either allergic to beef or grain.  Anyway, that may have nothing to do with his getting sick today......I have no idea.  But my prayer is that our sweet puppy will be fine and we'll get his tummy troubles (all of them) figured out.  

I would so appreciate your prayers this afternoon.  I'm trying not to be anxious as I wait for the dr's phone call, but I'm afraid at the moment, I'm not doing a very good job.  I keep reminding myself that I trust the Lord with Windsor's life just like I do with my own.  Praying for health for our puppy and peace while we wait to hear from the vet's office.

Thanks so much for listening and being willing to pray with us....

 

{Joy Planter Tag supplies -- click on thumbnails}

Rustic Cream card stock	Hawaiian Shores card stock	2011 Holiday Tags stamp set	Damask Snowflake Dies	Limitless Layers: 1 3/4" Circle dies	Big Shot die cutting machine
Scor-Tape	American Crafts Adhesive foam tab squares

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Christmas Cards for Neighbors' Treats

Hi-ya,

So yesterday I showed you the gift bags I whipped up for treats for our neighbors and today, I'm popping in to show you the coordinating cards I tucked into each bag.  These are simple enough that if you're running behind, you could still whip some of these up to use this holiday season!

 

Is it just me, or do you love seeing a little berry basket full of little cards and envelopes?  Makes me happy!

 

For the cards, I used the tag sale #5 die as well as a limitless layers die and a doily details die to create my focal point.  I stamped one of the images from Star of Wonder and punched it out with a 1 3/4" circle punch to top things off.

The sentiment is also from Star of Wonder and was stamped in smokey shadow ink to help tie in the gray from that super fun washi tape.  Um, I realize I'm a little late to the washi tape party, but man, is it fun to use and so darn easy too!  I just tore off a strip and added it to the card front, wrapping the right side around to the inside of the card just a bit.

Here, you can see that bit of washi tape peeking around on the inside of the card.  I stamped this pretty sentiment from Stylish Sentiments: Holiday inside the card, also in smokey shadow ink.

And since I had the washi tape out, I figured I might as well add a bit to the kraft envelopes.  Coordinating envelopes are always more fun, right?  :)  These envelopes are Papertrey's A1 kraft envelopes (3.625" x 5.125"), so the cards are a bit smaller scale to fit the envelopes.  

Here's the whole little ensemble before they got packaged up and delivered.  Fun!

Do you take little treats to your neighbors?  If not, I highly recommend it....it doesn't have to be anything major, just a little something.  It's a great way to meet your neighbors.....we met some of our neighbors this way, years ago (right after they had just moved in) and now, they're like family!

I hope you're having a great day so far.  Are you remembering to RELAX and ENJOYYYYYY the season?  :)  Christmas is in a week.  If you don't take time to enjoy the season now, you just might miss it!  

much love, sweet friends,

 

{Silent Night, Holy Night card supplies -- click on thumbnails}

Kraft card stock	Rustic Cream card stock	Hawaiian Shores card stock	New Leaf card stock	Star of Wonder stamp set	Stylish Sentiments: Holiday
Tag Sale #5 die	Limitless Layers: 1 3/4" Circle dies	Doily Details Collection dies	Big Shot die cutting machine

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Gift Packaging For Neighbors' Treats

Hello there!!  Happy Sunday!  It's been a busssssssy weekend over here.....filled with lots of Christmas-y things like Christmas parties w/church friends, delivering treats here and there, visiting my Grandmas, etc.  Lots of busy, but the good kind of busy.  I'm happy to be home now with my fuzzy slippers on, feet up, fire in the fireplace, Christmas tree lights glowing and a puppy & hubby at my side.  (Or under foot, as the case may be.....the puppy, that is.....the hubby's not under foot.)  Ha.

One of the things we love to do each year is deliver some sort of little treats to each of the neighbors in our cul-de-sac.  I had great fun this year, dressing up simple kraft gift bags to hold those gifts.  I also created little coordinating cards to tuck in to each one.  For today, I thought I'd show you those gift bags, in case you want to use the supplies in your studio to dress up some gift bags for yourself this week. 

I used one of my Damask Snowflake dies to cut out a rustic cream snowflake.  On it, I added a scalloped tag that was cut from new leaf card stock with a limitless layers die and topped it with my favorite tag from the 2011 Holiday Tags stamp set, stamped in hawaiian shores ink.

The large hawaiian shores "tag", was cut with the wine bottle tag die.  I simply cut the top, rounded portion off of the tag.  I used one of the wonderful words: holiday dies to cut out the "merry" and stamped the "& bright" from the Wonderful Words: Holiday stamp set using ripe avocado ink.

Don't they look so cute all lined up in a row?  Heeee.....

I'll be back tomorrow to show you the little coordinating cards I tucked into each gift.  We had so much fun delivering these to each of our dear neighbors.  We took Windsor along while to help us play Santa.  You should have seen him sitting patiently on each porch, while we waited for someone to come to the door at each house.  Sweet boy.  He just knew if he sat like a good boy, he'd get some lovin' as soon as someone answered the door!  

So I dug out another old skein of yarn from the closet......you know, from a past crafty project that never happened.  You don't have any supplies like that at your house, do you?  Craft supplies that you bought but never got used for one reason or another?  I'm sure I'm the only one that has stuff like that in the closet.  :)  It's ok though, because I'm finally gonna use this bright gold skein of yarn (WHY did I buy this again?  Oh yes, I think it was because I was attempting to make yarn pom-poms to put on our suitcases to make them easily identifiable in the sea of luggage at the airport.  WHY would I want yarn pom-poms -- in Kansas City Chiefs football colors, no less (red/gold) -- on my suitcase, I ask you?  Perhaps because I was planning to make Bart some suitcase pom-poms in purple and white in honor of his beloved Kansas State University Wildcats.)  Thank goodness that project never actual came to fruition!  LOL.  And now that this yarn has sat, sad and unused, in the closet for 7 or 8 years, it will now be put to good use (sort of) as I use it to learn and practice the half double crochet stitch.  I've now crocheted my way thru an entire skein of old white yarn (single crochet stitch) and crocheted my way thru an entire skein of old red yarn (double crochet stitch).  I will now half-double crochet my way thru this lovely, lovely, extremely bright gold yarn.  :)  Wish me luck!  Haha.  Never mind that I'm not making anything actually usable.  The point is, I'm practicing the stitch a millionty times over and I'm having fun "crocheting" while I'm at it!  

I also bought some scrummmmmy wool blend yarn in a gorgeous shade of winter white.  I just look at it every day.  Once in awhile I touch it to remind myself of how soft it is (in comparison to this horrible old yarn I've been using from the closet - lol!).  I keep telling myself that one day, I will make something beautiful with that winter white yarn.  One day.  Just as soon as I learn a few more crochet stitches.  If you'll excuse me now, I must run to YouTube to see if I can find a half double crochet tutorial.  :)

Wishing you a lovely finish to your Sunday evening.....and if you're on the other side of the world and it's already Monday for you, then I wish you a very happy Monday!

xoxo,

 

{Neighbor Gift Bag supplies -- click on thumbnails}

Hawaiian Shores card stock	New Leaf card stock	Rustic Cream card stock	2011 Holiday Tags stamp set	Wonderful Words: Holiday stamp set	Wonderful Words: Holiday die collection
Damask Snowflake Dies	Wine Bottle Tag Die	Limitless Layers: 1 3/4" Circle dies	Big Shot die cutting machine

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Christmas Card Mini Book

 

Is your house like mine, with Christmas cards coming in the mail just about every day right now?  I love this time of year, opening all of that happy mail....seeing pictures of family and friends on their photo cards, reading the annual "newsletters" updating us on all that's happened over the last year, seeing all of those pretty Christmas cards - some store-bought and some hand-made treasures.  I don't know about you but the older I get, the harder it is to throw some of those cards away at the end of the season.  Now obviously, you may not want to save the card from your plumber or whatever, but those cards with my Grandma's and Great-Aunts' hand-writing on them seem so much more precious to me nowadays.  It was with that in mind that I created today's project to share with you.  I've put together a SUPER simple Christmas Card Mini Book -- seriously ANYone can make this project, regardless of your crafty skill level.  You could even get the rest of the family involved in this project.  You can make this mini book as simple or as detailed as you want and the end result is a beautiful book full of Christmas card memories to look back on from year to year.  

I've saved all of my Christmas cards from last year, on a shelf in the studio for a whole year, just waiting to share this project with you and I must admit that I had so much fun looking back at last year's cards, seeing how kids have grown and remembering loved ones that we've lost since we got their card last year.  These cards are treasures.  Why not save them, tuck them away with your Christmas decorations and then pull them out each year as little memory books?  Go grab that stack of Christmas cards that have been piling up and let's get started!

All you need to create the cover is some cardboard and a couple of metal rings.  These are 1.5" rings, but you can use whatever size you need depending on how many Christmas cards you have.  Also, you don't have to use cardboard if you don't want.  I had some I've been saving, which I cut down on my paper trimmer, to 6" x 7.5".  You could easily use card stock or chipboard, even a cereal box would work.  I just wanted my cover to have a bit of thickness to it, so I went with regular old cardboard.  A crop-o-dile makes quick work of punching holes in the cardboard and all of the Christmas cards.

For my cover, I wanted to keep the cardboard color showing, so I opted to decorate it up a bit without actually covering the entire surface.  I used the 2011 Holiday Tags stamp set and a few dies here to add the little "joy" focal point and spritzed on some Mister Huey's calico shine as well as splattered on some Mister Huey's in calico white and estate green. 

The By the Numbers dies were used to cut out the 2010 for my cover, from Candy Cane Prints patterned paper and then I just stitched right thru the cardboard for an extra bit of little detail.

Inside the cover, I used some patterned papers and a bit more Mister Huey's as well as the new filigree border die.  That's the beauty of this project......the goal isn't to make it super involved and take up a lot of your time.  The goal is just to create a simple, pretty place to store those sweet Christmas cards you've been collecting, and to use up some of those supplies that you already have on hand!

In cases where you get a super cute Christmas card like this one, you simply have to save them!!  Since this one's a little pocket with a note that slides out, I didn't want to punch a hole in it.  Instead, I simply adhered the little pocket to some Sweet Symphony patterned paper.  

That card (above) has remained my favorite Christmas card from last year....that Jess....she's so cute and crafty!  Cards like that deserve to be saved and viewed again and again, don't they?  

That's the other great thing about saving your Christmas cards.  You will end up with a little inspiration book that you can pull out whenever you need Christmas card ideas.  Even the store-bought Christmas cards can provide us with color inspiration, layout inspiration and more. 

Some of our Christmas cards had little photos tucked inside.  I simply used some fun washi tape to adhere them to a piece of card stock......again, I kept things super simple on purpose.  The idea is just to have an easy (and pretty) place to store those photos so I can look back on them in the future.  I grabbed a few bits and pieces of die cuts and patterned paper that were laying around and tucked them here and there.  

You can even use washi tape to tape photos either to the inside or the back of the card they came with!

The cardboard that serves as the back cover is simply covered with patterned papers.  It's so popular it is to send photo cards these days......I love that now I've got a place to keep them all together and I can flip thru this book whenever I want.  It's already been fun to see how kids have grown and changed from last year to this year.  I've already got a book started with this year's cards and it'll be so easy to add them in as they come each day.

You can also save envelopes and tuck them into your book.......perhaps you got a really cute envelope or someone has really fun hand-writing....or maybe there's really pretty postage you want to save.  Those envelopes make a great place to tuck loose photos or other memorabilia from the season that you want to save.  Tuck those bits into your mini book so they don't get lost!

If you haven't ever made a mini book, this is a great first project.  Just think, most of the content has already been done for you -- just punch holes in those cards and you're good to go!  Add a cover and how ever many (or few!) embellishments as you want and you're done!

Wishing you all the merriest of Christmases!

Rustic Cream card stock	Kraft card stock	Pure Poppy card stock	New Leaf card stock	Candy Cane Prints patterned paper	Distressed Dots patterned paper
Sweet Symphony patterned paper	Simple Valentine patterned paper	Half & Half stamp set	Mat Stack 4 Collection stamp set	2011 Holiday Tags stamp set	By the Numbers dies
Mat Stack 4 die	Small Scalloped Border die	Half & Half die	Doily Details Collection dies	Big Shot die cutting machine	Crop-a-dile
Mister Huey's Estate Green spray mist	Mister Huey's spray - calico shine	Mister Huey's Calico White spray mist	American Crafts Adhesive 1/2" double sided tape	American Crafts Adhesive 1/2" double sided tape	Tombo Mono Multi Liquid Glue

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December Papertrey - Release in Review

Hello there!!  It's release day at Papertrey Ink!  That means that tonight at 10pm EST, all of the new products you've been getting peeks at this week will finally be available for purchase at Papertrey!  In fact, if you bop over to Nichole Heady's blog right now, you can see all of the stamp sets in full, to help you finalize your shopping/wish list.  

Each of the design team members also have posts for you this morning, showcasing all of the other sets releasing this month, that maybe you haven't gotten to see as much of yet.  

To get things started, I've got a card to show you using Heather's newest addition to the Tag-Its family.....Tag-Its #11.  Such a cutie, this one.

I used the little row of 5 hearts to create a border across the card front, by turning them diagonally and stamping them over and over again.  Just use a piece of paper laid over the card front, to serve as a guide for where to stamp the hearts and you'll get a nice straight row.  

The pretty little heart tag, "I adore you" sentiment, and the arrow are all from Tag-Its #11.  I also added a few little hearts from my Heart Border Die.  The mat stack 4 die and the new layerz mat stack 4 die were used to create the dark chocolate and aqua mist layers, and a doily details die was used to create the hawaiian shores doily.  

Next up is Melissa Bickford's Tree Tops set as well as a sentiment from the new Think Big Favorites #11 set.

I added lots of raspberry rhinestones to the solid circles on these little heart trees, to give them some extra pizzazz.  More hearts (Heart Border Die) were stitched along the bottom of this long, skinny card.  (3.5" x 6")

Ahhh.....Tremendous Treats: Valentine is next up.  I used the cloud dies to die cut the aqua mist clouds and then stamped them a few times with the "I love you" sentiment from Tremendous Treats: Valentine.  

The airplane was stamped, colored with Copics, cut out and adhered with a bit of baker's twine attached to the back.  The baker's twine is also attached to the plane's little banner, which was created with a double ended banner die and another sentiment from the set.  I curled the banner up a bit with my fingers, to give it the appearance of some movement.

And of course, more heart border die here.  :)

Next up is Melissa Bickford's Flower Fusion #11.  I die cut the tag using the tag sale #5 die and then stamped Background Basics: Newsprint on it before inking the edges with vintage touch tea dye ink.  The stem from Flower Fusion #11 was stamped on the tag using spring moss ink and then the flower was stamped on rustic cream card stock that was die cut with the new Flower Fusion #11 die.  

A little sentiment tag was hand cut and stitched to the tag.  The "Hello, friend!" sentiment is from Flower Fusion #11.  The filigree border die and the heart border die were both used to create the border behind the tag.  Have you noticed, this week, just how well the heart border die and the filigree border die work together?  So many different ways you can layer those two together!!

Ahh....now this little number is for my niece, Ally, who will be turning 4 next month!  (For those of you that have been reading my blog for awhile, can you even believe she's almost FOUR?  I know some of you probably remember when she was born!)

This card features Melissa Bickford's new Little Princess stamp set.  The flags and castle were cut with the new Little Princess die and the sentiment as well as the castle images are all from Little Princess.  I pulled out Polka Dot Basics II for the background and used the Heart Border Die to add the small scallops just under the sentiment.

Here's a gift bag I dressed up using the new Made of Snow Mini stamp set and dies, as well as the new Loopsy Daisy dies and the Filigree Border die.

I layered the snowman on a kraft tag that was cut with the tag sale #5 die and I snuck in a raspberry fizz snowflake too!  (Damask Snowflakes die)

Lastly for today is Beth Silaika's Lock & Key stamp set.  I stamped the various keys all over a piece of berry sorbet card stock and then spritzed that panel with mister huey's calico shine for some shimmer-shimmer.  :)

A regular paper doily from Michael's was added at the bottom of the card under the sentiment strip.  The Lock & Key die was used to cut out the cute little lock and it was tied to the bow with a bit of baker's twine.  The sentiment is also from Lock & Key....and of course, a few more hearts (Heart Border Die) finish off this lovey little card.  

That's it for me today, but be sure to see what all of the girls have to share with you!

Nichole Heady

Betsy Veldman
Lisa Johnson
Heather Nichols
Maile Belles
Erin Lincoln
Jessica Witty
Ashley Newell
Danielle Flanders
Melissa Phillips 

Thanks so much for visiting me today.....wishing you a very happy week!  

Happy shopping! 

 

{I Adore You card supplies -- click on thumbnails}

Rustic Cream card stock	Kraft card stock	Dark Chocolate card stock	Aqua Mist card stock	Hawaiian Shores card stock	Mat Stack 4 die
Mat Stack 4 Collection stamp set	Doily Details Collection dies	Limitless Layers: 1 3/4" Circle dies	Big Shot die cutting machine	Chocolate Baker's Twine

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{Love You Forever supplies}

Rustic Cream card stock

Kraft card stock

Raspberry Fizz card stock

Raspberry Rhinestones

Big Shot die cutting machine

American Crafts Adhesive foam tab squares

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{Be My Valentine supplies}

Rustic Cream card stock	Kraft card stock	Aqua Mist card stock	Copic Sketch Markers	Double-Ended Banners dies	Cloud 1 & 2 die collection
Big Shot die cutting machine	Pure Poppy baker's twine	American Crafts Adhesive foam tab squares

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{Hello, Friend supplies}

Rustic Cream card stock	Kraft card stock	Aqua Mist card stock	Hawaiian Shores card stock	Background Basics: Newsprint stamp set	Tag Sale #5 die
Big Shot die cutting machine	Hawaiian Shores ribbon	Rustic Jute button twine	Vintage Touch Tea Dye Duo ink

InLinkz.com

{Happy Birthday, Princess supplies}

Rustic Cream card stock	Berry Sorbet card stock	Pure Poppy card stock	Polka Dot Basics II stamp set	Big Shot die cutting machine	Corner Chomper
American Crafts Adhesive foam tab squares

InLinkz.com

{Snowman gift tag supplies}

Rustic Cream card stock	Kraft card stock	Raspberry Fizz card stock	Sweet Symphony patterned paper	Tag Sale #4 die	Damask Snowflake Dies
Big Shot die cutting machine	Pure Poppy buttons	Pure Poppy baker's twine	American Crafts Adhesive foam tab squares

InLinkz.com

{Key to My Heart supplies}

Rustic Cream card stock

Berry Sorbet card stock

Pure Poppy Ribbon

Pure Poppy baker's twine

Mister Huey's spray - calico shine

Big Shot die cutting machine

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Love & Marriage

Hello there, dear friends,

It's day 5 of the Papertrey Countdown and that brings us to one more Group Post.  This time we're focusing on another new set designed by Nichole Heady, called Love & Marriage.  I have several projects to share with you today, so let's get right to it!

(This new set as well as all of the other new products releasing this month including my Heart Border Die, will be available for purchase on December 15 (at a new time -- check Nichole's blog!) at Papertrey Ink.)

Each of the girls on the team chose a different category to focus on and for me, I chose briefcase notes or everyday notes.  Making cards with Bartley in mind are some of the most fun for me (and some of the easiest too...go figure).  It's not so hard to come up with a card when you're making it for a special someone that you know so well and love dearly.  And since today is my assigned countdown post day too, I went kind of crazy with my chosen theme and made several cards with Bart in mind.  

On this first card, I used quite a few elements from Love & Marriage, starting out with the pretty filigree border image, which I heat embossed with clear embossing powder, directly on the kraft card front.  Above that, I stamped the postmark image (also from Love & Marriage) using dark chocolate ink.  

Next, I stamped the heart image twice, once on rustic cream card stock with dark chocolate ink and once on raspberry fizz card stock with pure poppy ink.  Can you guess which heart represents Bartley and which one represents me???  Hahaha.  After cutting the hearts out, I topped them with a couple of stacked dark chocolate buttons and tucked one of the teensy tags from Love & Marriage under the button.  This one says "Love you".

To finish off the card, I stamped two sentiments from Love & Marriage in dark chocolate ink....."two hearts become one" and "you complete me".

Ahhhh....ok, so humor me for a sec with this card, will you?  I realize that I only used two sentiments and a tiny heart image from Love & Marriage, but I couldn't resist letting this pretty flowery border be the focal point of the card!!  How cute is that?

First, the Love & Marriage goodies....I LOVE that "you & me" sentiment!!  I also added the "Forever" in smokey shadow ink and the teeny heart in pure poppy ink.

And now the border.....happy sigh.  I simply took two strips of rustic cream card stock that were die cut with the new filigree border die and turned one upside down, layering the straight edge of the borders one on top of the other.  I just adhered them along the straight edge and left the filigree detail to stick out from the card just a smidge.  Pure poppy buttons threaded with happy little baker's twine x's finished off the "flowers".  

Here's a card that shows you both the filigree border die cut and the smaller filigree border image from Love & Marriage.  Obviously they're a very different scale, but they look so pretty together, don't you think?

I stamped the famous couples image in aqua mist ink and then added the "you & me" in smokey shadow just below it.  The filigree border was stamped above and below the verbage, also using aqua mist ink.

Just under the bottom border stamp, I added the filigree border die cut and topped it with a few smokey shadow buttons.  The entire aqua panel was adhered with foam adhesive for a bit of pop and the bottom corners of the card front were rounded for just a smidge more detail.

All righty, so before I go, I have one more card for you -- this one, a sweet little wedding card.  It also shows you how pretty my new Heart Border Die looks when layered over the new Filigree Border Die!

I used the mat stack 4 die and the new layerz mat stack 4 die to create the chocolate and poppy layers and added a kraft label on top, this die cut with Lisa's new Happy Day die and stamped with a coordinating label image from the Happy Day stamp set, using versamark ink.  Next, the "bride & groom" sentiment from Love & Marriage was stamped in dark chocolate ink and the "Mr & Mrs" image was stamped, cut out and adhered with a bit of foam adhesive.

Along the bottom of the card, I added a dark chocolate filigree border die cut as well as some kraft card stock that was die cut with the Heart Border Die.  I stamped the "Happily Ever After" sentiment from Love & Marriage, right along the heart border.

That's it for me today but the other girls on the Design Team have lots more Love & Marriage inspiration for you!

Nichole Heady

Betsy Veldman
Lisa Johnson
Heather Nichols
Maile Belles
Erin Lincoln
Jessica Witty
Ashley Newell
Danielle Flanders
Melissa Phillips 

Melissa Bickford and Beth Silaika will also have peeks for you at their newest sets.

Thanks so much for stopping by!  I'll be back tomorrow with my release day post!  Have you got your wish list all made out for Santa?  :)

Have a great day, 

 

 

{Two Hearts Become One supplies -- click on thumbnails}

Kraft card stock	Rustic Cream card stock	Raspberry Fizz card stock	Dark Chocolate buttons	Chocolate Baker's Twine	Filigree Detail embossing powder
American Crafts Adhesive 1/2" double sided tape	American Crafts Adhesive 1/2" double sided tape	American Crafts Adhesive foam tab squares

InLinkz.com

{You & Me Forever supplies}

Kraft card stock	Rustic Cream card stock	Raspberry Fizz card stock	Pure Poppy card stock	Pure Poppy baker's twine	Big Shot die cutting machine
Corner Chomper	American Crafts Adhesive foam tab squares	American Crafts Adhesive 1/2" double sided tape	American Crafts Adhesive 1/2" double sided tape

InLinkz.com

{You & Me supplies}

Aqua Mist card stock	Rustic Cream card stock	Big Shot die cutting machine	Corner Chomper	American Crafts Adhesive foam tab squares	American Crafts Adhesive 1/2" double sided tape
American Crafts Adhesive 1/2" double sided tape

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{Bride & Groom supplies}

Rustic Cream card stock	Kraft card stock	Pure Poppy card stock	Dark Chocolate card stock	Mat Stack 4 die	Big Shot die cutting machine
Versamark ink pad	Chocolate Baker's Twine	American Crafts Adhesive foam tab squares	American Crafts Adhesive 1/2" double sided tape	American Crafts Adhesive 1/2" double sided tape

InLinkz.com