Busy, busy, time of year

I finished the Christmas gift bags for Connor's class on Wednesday night and realized I never even posted the Halloween gifts I made.  I've been making Christmas cards like crazy but haven't had the chance to post them either.  I've really got to keep up with my blog...sorry!  I'm really behind again this year so it looks like nobody will be getting Christmas cards until after Christmas.  It's the thought that counts, right!  LOL.

So, without further ado, the Halloween gifts that I made for all the kids in Connor's kindergarten class.  They ended up costing me more than I thought they would once I got all the materials and candy so I scaled down a bit for the Christmas gift bags.  I bought the square test tubes from Papertrey Ink and filled them with Halloween M&Ms that I got at Sam's Club.  They held a lot more than I thought they would.  The tags were stamped with Papertrey's 2009 Halloween Tags set and tied on with some Halloween ribbon I got at Hobby Lobby.

The spiders were just punched out of black cardstock with my scalloped circle punch.  There's a York Peppermint Pattie in the middle.  His legs are made from a photo corner punch and various circle punches for his eyes and nose.  I put one spider and one test tube in a frosted bag that I had stamped in black Stazon ink with a spider and web from the Close To My Heart set Creepy Cobwebs.  (You can always click the picture to enlarge it).

I promise I'll be back with more soon!

 

  

All of the spiders once they were finished (sorry for the glare):

 

The finished treat bag:

All the loot on it's way to school:

 

Thanks for looking and have a great day,

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

I hope everyone is having a great Thanksgiving.  We're at my in-laws house in Pensacola and the boys are having a great time with their grandpa.  I was going to get up at 5:00 tomorrow morning to go to Target because there were a few things I wanted to get the boys for Christmas.  I ended up looking at Amazon and found the same things for the same price...love it!  Why get up in the dark to go to the store with the crowds and hope they have what I'm looking for when I can buy the exact same things for the same price while I sit watching TV in my slippers and pjs, plus I didn't have to pay tax or shipping.  I love the internet!

I did go out to Michaels this evening after dinner with my SIL and MIL because they were open from 5-9 and had a 25% off coupon and some good sales.  They didn't really have anything that I was looking for, unfortunately.  Figures when they have good sales, they don't have much in stock. :(

Here is the card I made for my in-laws.  I distressed the edges of the card base and added some Papertrey Autumn Abundance patterned paper and inked the edges with the Chai Blend Vintage Touch Tea Dye.  The Scarlet Jewel paper is stamped with PTI's new Turning a New Leaf set with Versamark ink.  I used PTI's Fall Elegance to stamp the swirls and pumpkins on Vintage Cream cardstock.

And the inside of the card:

Recipe
Stamps: Fall Elegance, Turning a New Leaf (Papertrey Ink)
Cardstock: Vintage Cream, Scarlet Jewel (Papertrey Ink); Goldrush (CTMH)
Patterned Paper: Autumn Abundance (PTI)
Ink: Garden Green, Goldrush (CTMH); Chai Blend Vintage Touch Tea Dye (PTI); Versamark (Tsukineko)
Tools: Edge Distresser (CTMH)

Have a great day,

Embellish Magazine Color Challenge with Owls

I'm getting this one in just under the wire.  Unfortunately I got food poisoning last night at Outback Steakhouse so I've been feeling horrible today and of course, the boys haven't been behaving themselves and Brian's at work all night. :(

I've finally had the chance to participate in one of Embellish Magazine's color challenges.  This week we had to make a card with coral, brown, and green incorporating an owl.  I have a great Close To My Heart set with owls that I haven't had the chance to use and when looking through my stash I found some CTMH patterned paper that is perfect! 

 And the inside:

Recipe
Stamps: Whooo Loves You (Close To My Heart)
Cardstock: Spring Moss, Vintage Cream (Papertrey Ink)
Patterned Paper: Twitterpated (CTMH)
Ink: Spring Moss, Sorbet, Dark Chocolate (PTI)
Accents: Sorbet Ribbon (CTMH)
Tools: Nestabilities (Spellbinders); Cuttlebug (Provocraft)

Thanks for looking,

Mojo Monday Week 111

 It's time for another Mojo Monday sketch challenge.  I've been needing a lot of birthday cards lately and my stash is out so this sketch had birthday written all over it!

I started with a Dark Chocolate (Papertrey) card base and added a layer of Vintage Cream cardstock.  Both of the patterned papers are from Basic Grey's Offbeat collection.  Using my Nestabilities I cut out a Dark Chocolate scalloped square and Vintage Cream square.  On the square I added the sentiment (Papertrey), flourishes (Close To My Heart), and chipboard dragonfly (Basic Grey).  I didn't want the flourishes to be too dark so I stamped off and got the look I wanted.  The strip of cream ribbon (PTI) and two brown brads (Making Memories) were a few finishing touches.  This is one of my favorite color combinations so I really like how the card turned out.  Hope you do too!

Recipe
Stamps: Star Prints (Papertrey Ink); Playful Flourishes (Close to my Heart)
Cardstock: Dark Chocolate, Vintage Cream (PTI)
Patterned Paper: Offbeat (Basic Grey)
Ink: Dark Chocolate, Aqua Mist (PTI)
Accents: Ribbon (PTI); Brads (Making Memories); Chipboard (Basic Grey)
Tools: Nestabilities (Spellbinders); Cuttlebug (Provocraft)

Thanks for looking,

Loonie Stampers Celebrate Char's Birthday

Good morning all!  Today I've been asked to be a part of a blog hop for Charlene, a member of the Loonie Stampers Challenge.  It's her birthday today so we have all surprised her with this blog hop!

This card didn't turn out at all like I had planned.  Funny how that happens.  I used almost all Papertrey Ink products for this one.  I started with a Ripe Avocado base and added a layer of Aqua Mist.  Along the bottom of the card I added a strip of white cardstock and some Green Tea Leaves patterned paper, then tied some white ribbon around it.  I stamped the leaves from Beautiful Blooms in Ripe Avocado and cut them out.  The Fiskars fingertip knife is awesome for doing this!  Finally, I added the sentiment and another strip of patterned paper on the inside of the card.

Recipe
Stamps: Beautiful Blooms, Birthday Basics (Papertrey Ink)
Cardstock: Ripe Avocado, Aqua Mist, White (PTI)
Patterned Paper: Green Tea Leaves Collection (PTI)
Ink: Ripe Avocado (PTI); Versafine Black (Tsukineko)
Accents: Ribbon (CTMH)   

Hunter had to get in on wishing Happy Birthday to Char too!

Check out all the Loonie Ladies:

Dee

Regan

Jewels

Maria

Wendy

And the Loonie Friends:

Ashley

Pam

Char

Steph

Becky

Carly

Dana

Jessica

Michelle

Nancy

Christie

Krissy

I hope you have a very Happy Birthday Char!!!

Have a wonderful day!!!

Papertrey Ink October Blog Hop

Hi all! I haven't made too much lately but I did get to make a card for tonight's Papertrey Ink Blog Hop. This month we were supposed to make something for the upcoming holidays so I made a card (like I ever make anything else)! I decided to use non-traditional Christmas colors. I really like the green and pink together. Sorry for the horrible photo but we just got home and I had to take a picture outside really quick before it got dark. You can always click on it to enlarge it. Hope you like it!


Recipe
Stamps: Tree Trimming Trio, Signature Christmas (Papertrey Ink)
Cardstock: Berry Sorbet, Lemon Tart, White (PTI)
Patterned Paper: Holiday Vintage Prints (PTI)
Ink: Ripe Avocado (PTI); Versafine Black (Tsukineko)
Accents: Ribbon, Buttons (PTI); Rhinestones (Kaisercraft)
Tools: Nestabilities (Spellbinders); Star Punch (Fiskars); 3D Foam Squares (CTMH); Cuttlebug (Provocraft)

Thanks for looking,

Mojo Monday Week 107

I decided to use this week's Mojo Monday sketch for my niece Olivia's 7th birthday card. I really need to get a few more girly stamp sets. I haven't really bought any since I have two boys but I still need to make cards for little girls so I think I need a few princess sets or something.

For this card I used almost all Papertrey Ink products. I started with a white card base and added a layer of Sweet Blush cardstock. The floral patterned paper is from Die Cuts With a View Glitter Stack. Using my Nestabilities I cut a circle from white cardstock and a scalloped circle from Spring Rain. The flowers are from Woman of Life and are stamped in Sweet Blush, Lavender Moon, Lemon Tart, and Spring Rain. I added some diamond Stickles to each center to match the glitter on the patterned paper. The sentiment is from Birthday Basics and the little flowers on each side from Butterfly Kisses. I had to curve the stamp in order to fit it on the circle. I love that you can do that with clear stamps! I added some PTI Lavender Moon ribbon and some Making Memories lavender and yellow brads and that was it!

Recipe
Stamps: Birthday Basics, Women of Life, Butterfly Kisses (Papertrey Ink)
Cardstock: Sweet Blush, Spring Rain, White (PTI)
Patterned Paper: Glitter Stack (Die Cuts With a View)
Ink: Sweet Blush, Lavender Moon, Lemon Tart, Spring Rain (PTI)
Accents: Ribbon (PTI); Diamond Stickles (Ranger); Brads (Making Memories)
Tools: Nestabilities (Spellbinders); Cuttlebug (Provocraft)

Thanks for looking,

I'm back!!!

Well, we've been back from Disney World for 2 1/2 weeks and I haven't even been into my craft room the whole time. We had an awesome vacation and I needed about a week to recover from it. Since we got back we've had company and I've been spending tons of time helping Connor catch up on his Kindergarten work that he missed. I don't know what happened in the past ten years since I taught here in Georgia but the things that Kindergarteners need to know now are crazy. Connor's behind because he didn't know his alphabet and numbers when he started the year. By the end of the year they need to be able to read over 250 words and right now he can read three (one being his name)! He now knows his alphabet and numbers to 50 and his printing has improved so much. I spend at least 2 hours with him on homework every day which I think is nuts. I wonder about all those kids whose parents don't help them out. They'll be so far behind by the end of the year if they don't pick things up quickly in class.

So, I've made a card for my niece's birthday and I'll post it tomorrow. Until then, have a great day!

If you wonder where I am...

...we're going to Disney World! We're off tomorrow for a week at Disney World so I won't be posting anything new. I haven't had the chance to make any cards all week because I've been planning our trip, all at the last minute. We aren't telling the boys so they're going to be so excited when they find out. I can't wait!

So, see you all next week!

You're Expecting!

I hope everyone had a good Labor Day weekend. We had a great time just hanging around the house for the most part. Last night the boys camped out in the backyard with Daddy and they loved it, so much so that they all slept in until 8:30 (the latest Hunter has EVER slept in)! I think they should sleep out there every night!!!

I made this card for a friend who I just found out is pregnant. I've had this Bella stamp for a while just waiting for a card to use it on! I used my Copics for the first time too. I love those things but I still need to get some more so I can shade them properly.


This card uses mostly Close To My Heart products. I started with a Cranberry card base and added a layer of Papertrey's Aqua Mist. The patterned paper is CTMH's Let's Get Together. I think that paper pack is my favorite because it's so bright and cheerful. I used my rectangle Nestabilities and stamped the Bella with Memento's Tuxedo Black then colored it using my Copics. The sentiment is from CTMH's Tender Tags. To finish I added a Hero Arts flower and some matching CTMH ribbon. I had to stamp the inside of the card too. The flowers are all one stamp so I just inked each part with different colored ink. I hope she likes the card!



Recipe
Stamps: Expectafellabella (Stamping Bella); Tender Tags, Delight in Everything (Close To My Heart)
Cardstock: Cranberry (Close To My Heart); White, Aqua Mist (PTI)
Patterned Paper: Let's Get Together (CTMH)
Ink: Cranberry, Buttercup, Garden Green (CTMH); Memento Tuxedo Black (Tsukineko)
Accents: Flower (Hero Arts); Garden Green Ribbon (CTMH)
Tools: Nestabilities (Spellbinders); Cuttlebug (Provocraft); Copic Markers

Thanks for looking,

Raspberry Suite Color Challenge #16

It's time for another Raspberry Suite Color Challenge. I haven't had a lot of time this week to make cards because I'm planning out trip to Disney World next week. I really left it to the last minute so I need to get at it and stay out of my craft room (very hard to do). I made this card really quickly today while the boys were taking their naps.

I started with a Dark Chocolate card base and added a layer of Kraft cardstock. On that I stamped Polka Dot Basics in Vintage Cream ink. I then stamped a tag from Autumn Tags in Summer Sunrise, cut it out, and mounted it on a Dark Chocolate scalloped circle that I cut out with my Nestabilities. I cut a strip of Dark Chocolate paper and used my Fiskars Apron Lace punch on the top and the bottom. I didn't use a wide enough strip so when I added the Summer Sunrise ribbon it didn't look exactly how I'd planned but I thought it looked kind of neat so I left it. Lastly I mounted the tag with 3D foam squared and that was it.

Recipe
Stamps: Polka Dot Basics, Autumn Tags (Papertrey Ink)
Cardstock: Kraft, Summer Sunrise, Dark Chocolate (PTI)
Ink: Summer Sunrise, Vintage Cream (PTI)
Accents: Ribbon (PTI); 3D Foam Squares (CTMH)
Tools: Apron Lace punch (Fiskars); Nestabilities (Spellbinders); Cuttlebug (Provocraft)

Have a great day,

Happily Ever After

Back in July Brian and I had the opportunity to go to Texas for our friends' wedding. We found out about it on Tuesday and on the spur of the moment decided that we would surprise them and just show up uninvited! We got in the car the next day and drove to Pensacola. We left the kids with their grandparents and spent 11 hours the next day driving to Ft. Worth. We had an awesome weekend with our friends and got to attend a beautiful wedding. Of course, I had to make a card so it had to be quick since I didn't have much time. I love the way it turned out though.

I started with Papertrey's Vintage Cream cardstock and added a layer of Ocean Tides, punched at the bottom with the Fiskars Scalloped Sentiment punch. I then ran a piece of Vintage Cream through the Cuttlebug Birds and Swirls embossing folder and used the EK Success Parisian edge punch on the bottom. I tied some Ocean Tides satin ribbon around the bottom and adhered the layers. I then used my circle Nestabilities to cut a circle out of Vintage cream and the scalloped circle out of Ocean Tides. I stamped the decorative circle from Wedding Day on the circle in Ocean Tides ink and the sentiment in Versafine Onyx Black from the same set. I added some tiny pearls and mounted the circle with 3D foam squares and that's it!

Recipe
Stamps: Wedding Day (Papertrey Ink)
Cardstock: Vintage Cream, Ocean Tides (PTI)
Ink: Versafine Onyx Black (Tsukineko); Ocean Tides (PTI)
Accents: Ribbon (PTI); Pearls (Michaels); 3D Foam Squares (CTMH)
Tools: Scalloped Sentiment punch (Fiskars); Parisian punch (EK Success); Birds and Swirls embossing folder, Cuttlebug (Provocraft)

Thanks for looking,

Loonie Stampers Celebrate Dee's Birthday!

This week's Loonie Stampers Challenge is a surprise for Dee's birthday. She didn't know that we all made birthday cards for her...how fun! So, I hope you have a wonderful day today Dee!!!

My card is designed from a TV commercial I've seen a few times. I totally can't remember what the commercial is for, but part of it has a family sitting in front of a purple wall with huge purple and white butterflies all over it. Every time I see it I think, "That would make a great card" so I finally did it. I have to say the wall looked better than my card turned out unfortunately. I guess you never know until you try!

My card base is Close To My Heart's Hydrangea cardstock and I punched out butterlfies using two different Martha Stewart punches. I used Hydrangea, Amethyst, and White Daisy for the butterflies and added some Crystal Stickles to the center of each. I adhered them and embossed the sentiment with white embossing powder. It's a pretty simple card but for some reason it took me forever. I guess it's because I just couldn't get it looking the way I wanted to so I finally gave up. Still, I love purple and butteflies so what could be better!

Happy Birthday Dee!!! I hope you were surprised. Check out the other Loonie Girls for their cards this week too:

Dee Jewels Maria Wendy Charlene Regan

And here are the other girls participating:

Roseanne

Avril

Tracey

Steph

Pam

Donelda

Deb

Ashley

Recipe
Stamps: Birthday Basics (Papertrey Ink)
Cardstock: Hydrangea, Amethyst, White Daisy (Close To My Heart)
Ink: Versafine (Tsukineko)
Accents: Crystal Stickles (Ranger); White Embossing Powder (CTMH)
Tools: Butterfly Punches (Martha Stewart)

Have a great day,

Papertrey Blog Hop and Loonie Stampers Challenge #54

It's time for another Papertrey Ink Blog Hop. I combined the blog hop with the Loonie Stampers Challenge for this week. For the blog hop we had to make a card inspired by the aspects of autumn and for the Loonie Stampers Challenge we had to use aluminum foil. So, I combined the two things and made a Halloween card with aluminum foil and it was a lot of fun!

My card started with a Close To My Heart Orange card base. I then carefully cut out a piece of aluminum foil making sure I didn't put too many creases or wrinkles in it (not an easy task). I used my Stampin Up ticket corner punch on the corners and stamped the pumpkin from Papertrey's Halloween Tags in black Stazon ink. I added a strip of orange cardstock and used my Fiskars Scalloped Sentiment punch on the edges, then added a strip of patterned paper from PTI's new Hocus Pocus paper. I used my Nestabilities to cut out a circle in white and scalloped circle in black. I stamped the spider web tag in orange and on a separate piece of paper again in Versamark then embossed it with black embossing powder. I cut the spider web out and glued it on top of the orange tag. I added some orange Offray ribbon and some of my new Kaisercraft rhinestones from PTI and I was finished. I like the way the card turned out. Maybe I'll have to make a few more aluminum foil cards in the future!

Recipe
Stamps: 2009 Halloween Tags (Papertrey Ink)
Cardstock: Orange (Close To My Heart); White, True Black (PTI)
Ink: Orange (CTMH); Versamark, Black Stazon (Tsukineko)
Accents: Rhinestones (Kaisercraft); 3D Foam Squares (CTMH); Ribbon (Offray)
Tools: Ticket Corner Punch (Stampin Up)

Thanks for looking and have a great day,

Loonie Stampers Challenge #53

I totally forgot that I participated in this week's Loonie Stampers Challenge and I haven't had the chance to upload my card. Oops! For my card, I used all Papertrey products. I started with a Kraft card base. I then took a piece of Enchanted Evening cardstock and stamped it with Background Basics: Text Style. I added a strip of Kraft cardstock and used my Scor Pal to emboss two lines on it. I tied a bit of twine around the strip, and stamped the sentiment from Star Prints. I stamped two stars from Star Prints in both Enchanted Evening and Scarlet Jewel, and added a rustic wood button to the center threaded with twine. I needed a masculine thank you card for my son to send to his grandparents so this worked out great.

Recipe
Stamps: Background Basics: Text Style, Star Prints (Papertrey Ink)
Cardstock: Enchanted Evening, Scarlet Jewel, Kraft (PTI)
Ink: Scarlet Jewel, Enchanted Evening (PTI)
Accents: Button, Twine (PTI)
Tools: Scor Pal

Thanks for looking,

Happy Birthday to Me!

Well, today is my birthday so I had to make myself a card (especially since my hubby didn't buy me one). It's taken me a couple of days to get it done because I haven't been feeling too well and I had to make 45 cupcakes for Connor's class last night. I don't think I'll ever make that many mini cupcakes again because they took forever to frost and since it's so warm here a lot of the icing melted off during the night. The icing was purple but actually changed color and was blue by the end of the day from the heat. Too funny!

I decided to make my card to participate in Dawn's Raspberry Suite Challenge. The colors this week were Raspberry, Cream, Scarlet, and Purple. Now purple is my favorite color so I have no problem using that but adding the scarlet to the mix is something I would never do on my own, but it doesn't look too bad.

I used all Papertrey Ink products on this card with a few small exceptions. I started with a Plum Pudding card base and heat embossed it with clear embossing powder and Fancy Flourishes stamp set. I then cut an oval from Vintage Cream using my Nestabilities and a scalloped oval from Raspberry Fizz. I used my paper piercer to pierce the holes for the butterfly's trail and mounted the two with 3D foam tape. The butterfly is from Butterfly Kisses and is stamped on Vintage Cream with Raspberry Fizz ink. I stamped six coordinating circles in Scarlet Jewel, cut them out, then mounted them with pop dots, then added a few pearls to the center. I cut a butterfly outline from Scarlet Jewel and mounted it behind the butterfly. The sentiment was stamped on Raspberry Fizz cardstock with Vintage Cream ink and I trimmed the rectangle with some scalloped scissors. Lastly, I added a Scarlet Jewel butterfly embellished with a few pearls.


Recipe
Stamps: Butterfly Kisses, Fancy Flourishes, Birthday Basics (Papertrey Ink)
Cardstock: Plum Pudding, Vintage Cream, Scarlet Jewel, Raspberry Fizz (PTI)
Ink: Versamark (Tsukineko); Scarlet Jewel, Raspberry Fizz, Vintage Cream (PTI)
Accents: Clear Embossing Powder, 3D Foam Tape (CTMH); Pearls (Michaels)
Tools: Paper Piercer (Making Memories); Nestabilities (Spellbinders); Cuttlebug (Provocraft); Butterfly Punch (Martha Stewart); Scalloped Scissors (Fiskars)

Have a great day,