Quick tip

I have been busy stamping and making cards since the kids when back to school. My acrylic blocks had some how gotten inky (nope, not completely my fault) and were in need of a good cleaning. I grabbed a paper towel and a small bottle of hand sanitizer and got busy.

 All clean and shiny!

After a good cleaning I put them back into a plastic zippered bag that my window treatment came in, good way to upcycle, huh?

Thanks for stopping by!

Until later~

A shaped card

I think the little campers that are so trendy right now are so cute! I have seen several SVG files for different styles, but this one from the Silhouette store is my favorite! (You can find it HERE)

For my non-card maker friends I am going to show you how it all starts-

I start by arranging all of my papers on my mat to coincide with the design on my design software. (I prefer to use the Cricut mat with my Cameo. it works so much better for me.)

Then it is one and done- one time through the die cutter and I have all I need to build my card.

I adhere all of my pieces and embellish a little- a brad for the door knob and some pop dots, a little Bakers Twine and a couple of teeny tiny bows. 

The coordinating designer paper I used for the little curtains kind of gets lost with the other patterns.

I went back and added some outlines with a Micro tipped pen, now the curtains pop.

A few years ago I discovered some 6x6 zippered baggies and have been using them to store my scraps. I use my ATG to attach the baggie to the back side of the 6x6 paper pad. It is handy to have all of those little scraps together!! I  add coordinating cardstock to my scrap bag too.

Here is what my storage looks like. I them stand my 6x6 pads in a basket, it is so easy to grab and go.

Thanks for stopping by!!

Until later~

So much love

I have been on a scrapbook kick lately. I love that my page protectors are being filled and memories are making their way to paper. (I think this scrapping jag was brought about from my mom's sickness and passing. I have just been very sentimental lately.)
This picture was taken in March, it is of all 5 of "my" kids. I know I have mentioned before that I raised 3 before I was blessed with my own children. It was so cool that weekend to see how much each of "my" children loved each other!! I am very blessed to have each one of them and I am so proud of them.

 (The faces have been hid to protect the innocent. LOL)

As you can see, this one is not quit done- I need to get a large flower to layer on the circle. (Wouldn't you know I didn't have the right color. Oh well, I guess I need to do a little shopping. LOL) The Die cut cardstock had a large shamrock, I just covered it with other elements to make it work for this layout. 

Ready for "I Spy"?

The blue edge on the die cut- (it keeps the layers from looking "flat".)

Capital letters used within the title (tip: Mix lower case and capital letters in a fun way, I was out of lower case "e"s in this alphabet so a capital was used. I also started by placing the word love first and built my title backwards, this really helps with placement.)

a hand cut scallop

a coordinating cardstock strip punched with the Upper Crust punch

Small scrap of coordinating designer paper

5 tiny green "bling" on the corner of the photo (Tip- embellish your photos, it adds a polished look to your LO)

2 clear bling used to anchor the cardstock/designer paper layer

Inked edges (makes a smoother transition from one color to another)

yummy brown leaf ribbon

Until later~

Storage tip-kits

Over the past month or so I have been putting together some kits- mini album kits mainly. I have gathered everything needed to complete a mini album except for pictures and adhesive. (Seriously, it has been fun "shopping" in my studio!!! Who knew I had so much stuff? LOL)
Each kit contains chipboard (for the covers and pages), designer paper, coordinating cardstock, ribbon, binder rings and lots of embellishments!! Once I had everything together for my kits, I was then faced with the problem of how to store them. That is when I came up with this idea-

I have storage bags in many sizes- even some large enough to hold 12x12 kits. I also have many clothes hangers-the kind you use for slacks or skirts. And a closet in my studio- how convenient!! And now I have mini album kits hanging in that closet. (If you try this at home, just make sure you clip the hanger so it closes UNDER the zip closure on the bag- or the hanger will slip off the bag. LOL)
So, when I am ready to scrapbook Halloween I just need to grab this bag and I am all set.
Until Later~

Today is the day

Do you remember a couple of weeks ago I mentioned the card kits I was working on to take to the local Nursing Home? Well, today is the day!! I really hope that the families in our church will take part. I am sure my kids will enjoy giving their crafts and cards to the residents.

Here is one of the cards we made to take tonight.

I stamped Linear Sentiments using the L'Amore Palette ink. (Tip: I stamped the flower and then used the Extra Jumbo circle punch to punch it out. That made cutting out the flower a breeze!!) The sentiment is from Trendy Greetings. A 1/4" punch made the flower center. Super quick and easy card. Perfect for mass production. =)

Until later~

Barn Yard Birthday.

One of my goals for the year is to not make so many one of a kind cards. LOL While I have my supplies out and I am making a card- it really does not take much effort to create a second one. Doing this gives me one to send now and one for later. Oh, and they do not have to be the exact same, I just use the same basic design. Here is both a vertical and horizontal version of the same design. Another tip- I only stamp the inside sentiment as I am ready to mail them, I am finding that the same card ideas can be used for multiple occasions.

Ok, so is this not one of the cutest little birdies you have ever seen? She is from the Barn Yard Birthday set from TAC. (This is one of the stamp sets from the Wonderful Winter Wishes Promo going on until February 2, 2009. You can either click on the link or scroll to the bottom of this page for more details.)

Prismacolor Pencils and OMS were used to color the birds while the hats were colored with Glaze Gelly Pens. I love using the pens- the colors are so vibrant and shiny AND 3-D. (Tip- the Glaze Gelly Pens come with a small round cover over the tips of the pens, don't throw it away. LOL It keeps your pens from drying out when you store them. LOL) I used the Tropical Mini Brads on both cards, I think they look very festive.

Until later~