Tuesday, December 27, 2011

Ninja Moves

Hello all. Well, Christmas is now past. Did you enjoy your holidays? I made some very special memories and I'm now enjoying my break (a great benefit at my workplace!).

Today I'd like to share a new release at Bugaboo Stamps:

I actually find it amusing that Bean has been all into Ninjas lately and now Jodie has come up with some great Ninja images! Thing is, we haven't seen any ninja movies or anything! Wait...does Kung Fu Panda count as a ninja? Maybe THAT's where she's getting all her ninja questions and moves from!
Can you read my sentiment?

Well, thanks for visiting today. I hope you are able to take it easy after the holiday rush. Hopefully I'll get some crafting done. Still have lots to do for Sprout's arrival in February!

This meets the following challenges:

Saturday, December 24, 2011

Skelekinz Valentine

Hello and welcome to the weekend! Today at Catch the Bug, the new challenge this week is:

RED, BLUE, PINK & FLOWER SOFT (or Fun Flock, Glitter etc.)

With this color combo, I thought it would be great to start on a Valentines Card:


I'm using Skelekinz Balloon from Bugaboo Stamps, DP from Me & My Big Ideas, and a little sewing.


Were you wondering where my Flower Soft was? Well, here's a close up!

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Make Jingle Bell Earrings



Hello all. I've been making things to include in Bean's advent calendar - not just chocolate or activities, but small items I know she would appreciate.

Here I am sharing how to make Jingle Bell earrings:
STEP 1: What you need for EACH earring (so all this times 2):

1) Chain. From the chain cut: one piece with 3 LINKS, one piece with 5 LINKS, and one piece with 7 LINKS. Yes, you will cut off and throw away links as necessary.
2) 4 jump rings - I'm using 4mm, but you can always use larger ones
3) 3 small bells - I'm using 6mm bells (found at Hobby Lobby)
4) Fish hook ear wire

STEP 2:

1) Open jump ring (sideways method is best)
2) slip on bell
3) slip on end of first chain
4) Close jump ring
One jump ring should now have bell and links. Do this with each bell and links. You have now used 3 bells, 3 lengths of chain, 3 jump rings.

STEP 3:

1) Open the 4th and final jump ring
2) Slip on the 3 jump rings with chains and bells attached
3) Slip on ear wire
4) Close jump ring. The ring is small and I suggest using two sets of pliers for each step, so be patient when closing the final jump ring with all the other components on it.

STEP 4:

Enjoy your earrings! And just a note: Bean LOVES these.

Monday, December 19, 2011

Stampin Up Christmas 2

Hello all. Hope you had a wonderful weekend. This weekend we made tamales - which is a family tradition. It's exhausting, but well worth the work as we all sit down to "taste test" our lovely little wrapped goodies.

Today I'd like to share the last two cards made at my Stampin' Up Stamp a Stack class. So we made a total of 5 cards each of 4 different designs.

Isn't that stocking the sweetest?! And the stamp has a coordinating punch too! I don't know what color this is, but I sure like it for Christmas time.

And this is the last in traditional colors.

It's difficult to see the dimension, but the top layer is popped up to reveal the embossed red layer. These aren't necessarily my "style" but I have fun making them at the class, and I prefer sending these as opposed to store bought (which yes, I have done due to lack of planning!).

That's it for today. Thank you again for visiting!

Saturday, December 17, 2011

Polar Bear Tag

Hello and hope you're having a great weekend!

Today at Catch the Bug, the new challenge is:
BABY IT'S COLD OUTSIDE

And yes, it sure has been! For my tag, I'm using Polar Bear from Bugaboo Stamps:

The tag is cut from the George Cricut cart at 4.5" (on regular and shadow), and the "JOY" is from Opposites Attract at 1" covered with glaze. I added sewing and fuzzy ribbon as well. I hope you'll click on the pic for an up-close (I like how this simple little tag turned out).

Thanks so much for stopping by and have a wonderful weekend! Oh, and don't forget to join us this week at Catch the Bug!

This meets the following challenges:

Friday, December 16, 2011

Stampin Up Christmas 1

Hello! I recently went to a Stampin' Up Stamp a Stack class to make some Christmas cards. I do this every year to make sure I have plenty of handmade cards to send out. Here are two of the four we made:

This first one is actually quite elegant IRL. There's a pretty black ribbon next to the scalloped black DP.

I wanted to share a close up of the focal point. The background is stamped with a pretty star of words, and is topped with an embossed Joy on that see-thru paper stuff (that's the technical term).

This card features really pretty colors and a paper ribbon. Those trees are just so pretty and the off white ribbon is really soft and fuzzy.

Just showing off a little dimension here. So my DH has already claimed a few of these to send to his customers. I'll show the other two next week. Thank you for stopping by!

Tuesday, December 13, 2011

Old World Santa

Hello and happy Tuesday! Can you believe it's already the 13th of December?! That's just crazy!

Anyway, this week, Bugaboo Stamps is sponsoring the ICSketches challenge!

This challenge has two parts: layout and bingo!

When all was said and done, my first thought was: Wow, this is really busy! But I stepped back and gave it a night and took another look and actually like all that's going on. I especially enjoy the new Old World Santas stamps. The DP has little "fuzzy" areas, I added ribbon, sewing, and the snowflakes are glitter DP - so there's LOTS of texture on this one.

Here's a close up.

That's it for today. Still working on some handcrafted gifts for Bean and now that finals are over, I can finally breathe! Thanks so much for joining me today!

This meets the following challenges:

Saturday, December 10, 2011

Santa Baby

Hello and hope you are enjoying your weekend!

Today at Catch the Bug, this weeks challenge is:

SANTA BABY

And there are so many awesome Bugaboo Stamps that it was hard to pick just one. So I decided on Stocking Santa Star for my "country" card.

I call it country because of the kraft. I just feel it gives it such a western feel. This one is rather simple with added sewing and glaze on the star. Again, trying to make my cards for mailing as flat as possible and Post Office friendly.

Here he is with his shiny star. And I'm sure there are plenty of Santa cards out there, so make sure to enter this week's challenge!

This meets the following challenges:

Wednesday, December 7, 2011

Handmade Earrings

Hello all and hope you are having a GREAT weekend! (Did you notice my first sentence reads "weekend?" Well, that's because this post didn't post as it should have! There are a few that were missed for some reason. Oh well.) Today I want to share a little something I made that is now tucked into Bean's advent calendar.

She loves to wear my earrings, so I thought I'd make her a pair using jump rings and pearl chips. I made a little earring card to go along with them for "presentation." I used Frame 3 and my favorite little Penguin! I thought, why just throw these in a box when I can display them in a more fun way!

Don't they look like little grape clusters? I think she's going to really like these. And so far, Bean is REALLY enjoying her calendar. I can't wait till Sprout is out and ready to participate too.

Oh, and this weeks challenge at Just Some Lines is: Handmade Gifts!! I love, love, love making gifts for Beanie. It's one of those things I hope she looks back on some day and says "my mom was a little crazy...but she sure made some cool stuff."

Saturday, December 3, 2011

Day 3 With Bugaboo - Animal

Hello and welcome to Day 3 of the 12 Days of Christmas with Catch the Bug!

So the challenge is: use an Animal on your creation!

I'm using a Christmas Tag - Rudolph for my little money holder:

A couple days ago I shared Bean's advent calendar and this is tucked into one of the pockets.

We replaced the Lincoln for a Washington LOL! Well...she IS only 4 years old.

Thanks for stopping by today and hope you get a chance to join some of our challenges!

Friday, December 2, 2011

Day 2 at Bugaboo - Love

Hello all. Today is Day 2 of the 12 Days of Christmas at Catch the Bug which is:

Turtle Doves represent LOVE, so the challenge is to make a Love creation!

I thought using Ava Christmas - Mistletoe Fairy and some non-traditional colors would be nice for my DH's Christmas Card:

The layout is Splitcoaststampers SC70, and the sentiment is Stampin' Up's Teeny Tiny Wishes. I added a few heart brads and of course lots of sewing. Sometimes I just can't get enough thread on one card! LOL!

Unfortunately, you can't see the glitter on her wings, but I assure you it is there, along with little touches of glaze.

Thanks for joining me on Day 2. I appreciate each and every visit!!

This meets the following challenges:

Thursday, December 1, 2011

Advent Calendar

Hello all! I have a couple things to share today. 1) it's the start of the 12 Days of Christmas at Bugaboo!! That means 12 days worth of challenges based on the day.


So, today is Day 1:

So the challenge is to include a TREE on your creation. Note: the 12 Days do require a Bugaboo stamp to participate!

My other share is 2) an Advent Calendar. I really had no clue what these were for, but my husband assured me they were all the rage when he lived in Germany.

I cut 3" white felt squares, embroidered 1 - 24, and sewed them to the red felt. It really was super easy to make - but TIME consuming! I used a dowel - that's hidden on the very top along with red yarn that was in my stash.

I included a couple bolas just for fun (bolas = balls) also made of yarn (there are probably LOTS of tutorials on how to make those fuzzy little things. So needless to say, Bean loved it. I made a little puzzle to go in one of the pockets and will share other goodies as we go along.

That's it for today. I hope you get a chance to play along with us during the 12 Days at Catch the Bug!!

Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Make a Puzzle to Color

Hello and happy Wednesday. Today at Catch the Bug, it's my turn to share a tutorial. I've got something super quick and easy, and would make a great stocking stuffer...or, my plan is to include it in one of the pockets of Bean's advent calendar that I'm currently working on.

So what is it? It's a PUZZLE TO COLOR.

I included a tag that shows what the puzzle will look like put together.

1) I printed out one large image for the puzzle, one small image for the tag, mod podge, and a cereal box (I'm all for recycling).


2) Apply mod podge to printed side of cereal box - it doesn't show through once the CS with image is placed on top.


3) Place larger image on cereal box to adhere/dry. While this is drying, it's a good time to color in your tag.


4) Time to die-cut! I'm using the puzzle from Cuttlebug and a nestability for the tag.


5) Here's the puzzle, tag and bag ready to decorate with ribbon or whatever else you can come up with. A good addition would be a couple crayons but since this is going to Bean, she has plenty of markers to color up her puzzle!

Thanks for joining me today with my tutorial. Like I said: simple and fast and great for little gifts for kids.

Tuesday, November 29, 2011

A Very Little Hat

Hello all and hope you are having a wonderful day. I thought I'd share one of my latest sewing projects:

Yup, a little little hat. For whom you may ask? For our little Sprout due in February!

I got the FREE tutorial from Sew Mama Sew courtesy of Tie Dye Diva Patterns. It's supposed to fit a newborn, but if Sprout is anything like Bean, she will have a big head! As always, thanks for stopping by and have a great day!

Monday, November 28, 2011

Cake Fun

Hello and hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving!!

A great way to start off the week, a new challenge at Catch the Bug:

SILVER, BLACK & BLING

I'm using Dottie Cake which was originally meant for a birthday card for my DH but I didn't finish it in time. Is that typical of most card makers? No? Just me huh?

Dottie, from the day she came on the scene, has been one of my faves. She's so confident and sexy. I had some white with yellow flowers that I colored over using Copics, so I could match the cake. The layout is Splitcoaststampers SC330.

The shine really shows up on this one. I want to thank you for visiting and hope you have a great week!

This meets the following challenges:

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Christmas Reindeer with a Spring

Hello all. Today I'm sharing one of the new folds over at Splitcoaststampers: Side Spring Card.

I'm also using the latest challenge at Just Some Lines: Tic-Tac-Toe.

I used the Martha all around punch, glitter CS, and the Digi is Reindeer Christmas.

The sentiment is Stampin' Up's Teeny Tiny Wishes (I seem to be using that set for EVERYTHING lately). The size is perfect for a gift card too. I just couldn't resist his little smirk! Anyway, thanks so much for stopping by. I appreciate each and every visit.

Monday, November 21, 2011

Raking Leaves

Hello and hope you had a great weekend! Well, I did exactly what I said I would: housework.

Today at Catch the Bug, we (the DT) are doing a swap with Paper Pretties for their current challenge:
BLACK, GOLD and WHITE
Here's what I came up, and my first question to myself was: when did I get gold paper?!

Like the saying goes: You don't know what you've got....till you clean your room!

Isn't she so sweet?! I didn't really have a purpose for this so I was clueless on a sentiment. It's just so shiny! But I think she is absolutely lovely.

Thank you for visiting today! Can't wait till Wednesday...I'm so looking forward to time off and turkey!

Saturday, November 19, 2011

Pilgrim Girl

Hello and hope you are enjoying your weekend.

Today is the start of a new challenge at Catch the Bug:

Let's Talk Turkey
I'm using Bobblehead Thanksgiving Pilgrim Girl for my Thanksgiving card:

I colored her with Copics and added glaze to the turkey - I always like a shiny turkey! The DP is Designed2Delight Digipapers and the layout is Splitcoaststampers SC247.
I think she is just too cute. I'm also thinking this might go to Bean. So share your turkey creations with us and have a wonderful weekend!

Friday, November 18, 2011

Thanks

Hello and Happy Friday! Yay! It's the weekend. I don't know what I get so excited about. The weekends are just days to catch up on housework.

I haven't shared a Just Some Lines card in quite a while! I love this little Cat FREEBIE!!


Simple layout with a little sewing with "O'Mally" popped up on the side. We have a black cat named Sid. She's a little....playful. O'Mally is the neighbor's cat who hangs at our house. We feed him, he sleeps on the front porch, and he plays really well with Bean. He even sneaks into the house and eats from Sid's bowl.

Such a good cat O'Mally is. Bean and I always say "we should have got an orange cat." Oh don't worry, we take care of Sid just fine, but O'Mally is an awesome cat (and I'm NOT a cat person!!).

That's my story and creation for the day. Thanks so much for stopping by!

This meets the following challenges:

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