It's been awhile

I'm sorry for being away from the blog for so long. I thought I would pop in real quick to explain my absence.  For the last month or so I have been dealing with the illness of my father.  In November he was in the hospital over Thanksgiving, I then moved him to a facility for him to get physical therapy before he could go home.  While he was there he got real sick and ended up going back to the hospital this time to CCU, from there he was transfered to a larger hospital in their ICU.  The first hospital he was in was only 5 minutes from home so I would go to work during the day and spend a few hours every evening with him.  The second hospital he went to is about an hour away so I was only able to get to see him every other day.  He was moved yesterday to a long term acute care facility which is about 20 minutes away.  So he will not be home for Christmas.  Things are starting to look more positive but it will be a long road to recovery for him.
This has been very hard on my mother and I have been taking alot of the burden off her.  My dad is 81 and mom is 76.  

So needless to say I have not been in my craft room for about a month and a half.  It's a good thing I made my Christmas cards early this year and  few other handmade gifts.  I'd like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a happy and healthy New Year.

Lisa

November GSS

I can't believe that I won November's GSS for Best Altered Notepad.  This came to a suprise to me and couldn't have come at a better time with everything I've been dealing with lately.  What an uplift to the spirit.  I thought I would share with you some steps I used in creating these.

These little numbers will be given to the girls in the office for Christmas.  I decided to make each one a different color and let the girls pick which color they like.

For each one I used coordinating cardstock, ink, buttons and In Bloom patterned paper.  The stamps I used are Polka Dot Basics I and Background Basics Text Style both stamped in fresh snow ink and of course the new Take Note stamp set. I did all my stamping in fresh snow first and set them aside to dry.  I then created the base for the notepad. 

These notepads I had left over from another project I did for Thanksgiving.  I'll share that with you later this week. I covered the top of the notepad with In Bloom paper and made a pocket for the inside cover.  I did this by creating a tri fold then used a circle punch.   I attached all my notepads with Scor Tape.  Once it's attached , it's not going anywhere.

For the front I cut all pieces and attached them to stampers select white cardstock.  I attached the fresh snow grosgrain ribbon with Scor Tape wrapping the top piece under then attaching it to the base.  The focal images are all stamped in the matching ink, punched out using EK Success 1 3/4" punch and matted to a piece of cardstock using the Nesties scalloped circle.  All the buttons are tied with white embroidery floss and attched with a piece of scor tape.

I really enjoyed making these and look forward to making more in the future.  A big Thank You goes out to PTI for selecting my project and thank you for stoppin in.  Have a good week.

Love these Heat Pillows

Every year I give a handmade gift as well as a store bought one.  Well after seeing a post by Nichole Heady where she featured a project making a heat pillow, I knew that this was what I was going to make all the adults in my family and a few friends. 

I bought flannel fabric in coordinating colors and followed Nichole's directions for the heat pillow and made my own little bag to store the pillow in.

I also made tags that I attached to the bag with directions on how to use the pillow.

 

I used my publisher program to created the inside of the tag, printed them on vintage cream cardstock and cut them out using the nesties scalloped long rectangle.  For the front of the tag I used some coordinating patterned paper I had in my stash.  I then scored down the middle, punched a small hole in the corner and used some vintage twine and a small safety pin to attach it to the bag.

I found this pretty paisley print and thought some of the girls would like this. Unfortuanely I didn't have alot of fabric to choose from that wasn't made for kids.   I also made a coordinating tissue case from left over fabric.

I hope my family and friends will enjoy these.  I know I'll be using mine on those cold winter nights to keep my feet warm in bed.  What I like most about these is that you don't have to plug them in. 

Well thank you for letting me share my project with you and thanks for stopping by.

Halloween Treats

I can't believe I've been away from the blog for so long.  My father has had some health issues that I've been dealing with, but he's coming along fairly well right now.  I wanted to share a couple pics from our Halloween/Birthday party.  My sister from Florida flew in with my niece to celebrate Halloween with us.  Where they live the kids go to the malls to trick or treat and she wanted her daughter to experience what it's like going door to door so she brought her up here.  Fortunately where we live the crime is pretty low.  While they were here we celebrated my sister and brother's birthdays which were in October and my niece's which was this week.  The pic below is of a cake made by a friend of my other sister.

I made treats for the kids that I had featured in a previous post and I thought that the adults needed a little treat bag of their own. 

I filled  medium size glassine bags from PTI with some goodies, punched two holes at the top and tied some ribbon to enclose them.  For the front of the bag I used the Spooky Treats II set stamped in true black on some orange zest cardstock.  I cut them out using the circle nesties die and true black cardstock cut from the scalloped die.  All the adults where excited to get their own little treat and I was happy they liked them. 

Stop back tomorrow when I'll be featuring a project I worked on earlier in October.  Thanks for stopping by.

Gift bags in a hurry

edit:  A question was asked as to how I attached the bows to the bags.  First I used my pinking sheers to give a finished look to the top of the bag then I simply used a hole punch to punch 2 holes and threaded my ribbon thru and tied in a bow.  Hope this helps! 


My sister asked me if I would make up some little bags for her that she needed in a hurry.  I only had a couple of days to work on them.  So I work a full time job and only had a couple of hours in which to get these finished.   It's not my best work but for a last minute job it worked and my sister was happy. 

I couldn't make it easy on myself and make them all the same. Oh no, I had to make each bag different.  There were 18 bags and each bag had a different image.  Thank goodness they were all for women and I knew flowers would work, so I pulled out every floral stamp I had from PTI and got to stamping.  I made these awhile ago and forgot I had taken a pic of them so I thought I would share it with you. 

October PTI Blog Hop

I'm so excited for this months blog hop. It's time to showcase our holiday plans for cards, gifts, wraps, etc.  So tonight I'm showing you some gifts bags I've been working on. I have several more to do but I wanted to have something to post for the hop.

I picked up these white gift bags at Michael's which have 13 in a bundle and I used a 40% off coupon so each bag came to about 27 cents a piece.  For these four bags I used Snowfall, Tree Trimming Trio and Vintage Ornaments & Additions stamp sets. Here's a close up of them all and I must say it's all about the glitter this year.  I just love how they sparkle and what's Christmas without a little sparkle.

Thanks for hoppin by tonight,  I can't wait to see what everyone has been designing.

Halloween Treats

I picked up these buckets awhile back at Target in their dollar spot section.  I was there the other day and picked up some red ones that I thought I could use for Christmas.  I made these little treats for my niece and nephews for Halloween.

My one nephew likes Sponge Bob and I found this candy dispense and knew it would fit perfect in his little bucket.  I use the Spooky Sweets stamp sets to created the label for the front of the buckets as well as the glassine bags and tags for the goodies inside.

I then wrapped then all in some cellophane, tied with true black saddle stitched ribbon and a pumpkin gift tag.  I hope they enjoy all their goodies as much as I did making them.

Papertrey Goodies

Just arrived today and I thought I would share with you my PTI goodies before I tear into them.



I thought it was very sweet of PTI to include a nice notepad with my order. Thanks PTI! Okay, I'm off to play.

Timeless Templates

First, I'd like to apologize for being absent from here for so long. Sometimes life just gets in the way. So with that being said I'd like to share a project that I made for my sister for her birthday. I just love the Timeless Templates. There is so much you can do with them. I made my other sister a set like this except I used the pure poppy Green Tea Leaves patterned paper.


In the Pack a Picnic box I added some bath gels and lotions. I love the accordian flower I added to the top.



The Card Couture box is filled Celestial Seasonings tea bags which are a perfect fit. I used magnetic snaps by Basic Grey to help keep the flap closed.



This is the newest template which is called Cash and Carry. I like that you get three templates in this set. In my stash I had these Folio Closures by Colorbox that I used to help keep the box closed. This box is used to house a gift card.



My only concern with this box is that the bottom was open and I was afraid that the gift card would fall out. So I added the patterned paper that wraps all the way around the box. This will ensure that card stays in place. Lauren also had an idea to make a belly band that fits around the box. I'll have to try that for my next box.



Lastly, I had to make a card to coordinate with this set. I just love to make these accordian flowers. The embossed image on the spring moss cardstock is from Cuttlebug and I added a couple of score lines at the top and the bottom.



I hope you enjoy my projects today and thanks for stopping by.

World Card Making Day 2009

For the final leg of our tour with PTI's WCMD challenge we're heading down under to Australia.



For this card I used an Orange Zest card base, stamped the large flourish from Fancy Flourishes in dark chocolate. To add an Aborigine look I used my white gell pen to add the dots around the flourish. I cut a piece of dark chocolate cardstock and punched the bottom with a Martha Stewart punch and placed it at the bottom of the flourish. I also added some white dots to the zig zag.

Well that's it for the tour, I sure did have a blast. Thank you for stopping by and joining me while we took a trip around the world.

World Card Making Day 2009

Our next stop in the PTI WCMD tour is India.



For this card I used scarlet jewel for the base and ran it through my Cuttlebug with an embossing folder. The focal image is from the Damask Designs stamped in gold but it's hard to tell in the photo. I cut the image out using the Nesties Label One die and attached it with some pop dots.

World Card Making Day 2009

Our next stop in the PTI WCMD challenge in Mexico.



For this card I used new leaf cardstock for the base. On some white fabric, I used a stamp from Backgrond Basics Star in Hibiscus Burst. Then added a piece of summer sunrise on the top and used my sewing machine to add a zig zag stitch. I took a flower from my stash and finished it off by using the Around and About stamp set in summer sunrise and the green is a Palette ink but I don't know what the color is (sorry) then took a single image from the Background Basics Star set and stamped it in Hibiscus Burst.

World Card Making Day 2009

To celebrate World Card Making Day 2009 I've decided to join the challenges over at Papertrey Ink which can be found on Nichole's Blog. We are taking a trip around the world with our first stop to Japan.



I have to be honest, I've had this card in my stash for awhile and can not remember who makes the paper. I do remember cutting out the flower from the paper and used some coordinating paper behind it and added some machine stitching. I used some pop dots to adhere the flower and to finish it off I used some Stickles in the center.

I'm excited to see where our next stop will be. Come aboard and join us. See you in our next port of call.

September GSS #4

Ok this is the last project I have for you from my entries in the September GSS. I guess I was on a roll but I have to admit that this is my favorite time of year and was so enjoying making all these projects.

I made more of this card to send to my family for Halloween. Again I just don't have the time to be making all of their cards different.



I wish that when I was making this card the orange zest cardstock was available so I had to settle for some Bazzill Basics. I used the Spooky Treats I & II set and the moon was a circle stamp from the Around and About set where I used a Stardust Gelly Roll pen in clear to add a little sparkle. I also used some true black and kraft cardstock.

I'm so glad you stopped by to check out my projects. I'll have some more to share with you soon.

September GSS #3

Today I'm sharing two more projects I entered in the September GSS. For the first card I made a few of them to send to family members to welcome in the Autumn season.



I love the Autumn Abundance paper pack. I like the fact that it can be used for fall projects or everyday projects. For this card I used the pumpkins and swirls from the Fall Elegances stamp set. You'll probably notice this card looks familiar. Well it's the same design I used for last months Blog Hop. I just changed the background papers. I also used Nichole's envelope liner template to line some kraft envelopes with the plaid paper.

For the second card I made more of these to send to my family for Thanksgiving. Unfortunately I don't have time to make every card different.



Again I used paper from the Autumn Abundance pack combined with some bitty box paper in dark chocolate and summer sunrise. For the focal image, I used some lace, punched out some circles and the stamps are also from the Fall Elegance set.

Stay tuned tomorrow when I'll have one last project from the GSS contest.

September GSS #2

Here's another entry from the September GSS.



Unfortunatley when I made this project PTI has not released the orange zest color collection. So I had to use some Bazzill Basics cardstock. I did not fold down the top of the Pack a Picnic template cause the pumpkin face won't look right. I had to make the handle a bit longer as well. I used a Martha Stewart border punch on true black cardstock. This project came together really fast.

Stop back tomorrow when I'll share a couple more porjects I entered in the GSS.
Enjoy your Sunday!

September GSS

I was so tickled that Nichole chose one of my entries from the Septemeber GSS as an Honorable Mention.



I always print out all the Timeless Templates that I purchase onto cheap cardstock and cut them out. I do this for two reasons, one cause my printer doesn't seem to print some of the templates correct and two if I want to use a dark paper I can trace the template on to it as in this case. I used true black cardstock, traced the template on to it and cut it out. I them stamped the spider web in fresh snow and assembled the template. I used the smaller Pack a Picnic for this project. As Nichole mentioned, I didn't fold down the top piece to give me more height. The tag was made from new leaf, plum pudding and kraft cardstock. I added some orange glitter and rhinestones to add a little sparkle.



For the money holder I used a piece of kraft cardstock and stamped a bunch of sentiments from both Spooky Treats I & II. I then folded it about 3/4 of the way up and stitched on both sides and added some fresh snow on to the edges. I added a trick or treat tag and ribbon to finish it off. For the glassine bag I repeated the spider web stamping it in true black. I added some orange glitter to the tag and stapled the top shut.

Tomorrow I'll share another project or two that I entered in the GSS contest. Thanks for stopping in.

With Sympathy

I just love the Autumn Abundance patterned paper by PTI. I like the fact that the different designs can be used not only for autumn but everyday projects.


Here's a sympathy card I made with the leave pattern along with the bitty box paper in dark chocolate. I used Nestabilities Labels One on the rustic cream cardstock and cut it in half, the sentiment is from the Mega Mixed Messages stamped in dark chocolate. I crimped a strip of summer sunrise to hide any seams and added a pearl on either side of the sentiment.

Well it's Sunday evening and it's time to go relax a bit to get ready for the work week. Have a good evening and thanks for stopping in.

Celebrate Just because

Here are a couple of cards I made today. The layout is the same, I just changed out the colors. I got this idea from a project that Lauren Meador did awhile back. I think it was on one of her Timeless Templates. I've been enjoying making my own patterened paper and PTI stamps makes it so easy to do.


I stamped the gridline from Guidelines One set on an angle in summer sunrise. The flowers are from the Around and About set stamped in fresh snow and summer sunrise. I used a white Gelly Roll pen for the middle of the small flowers. Here's a close up.


I used the Cuttlebug swiss dots at the bottom of the spring moss cardstock and added a couple of scor lines. The sentiment is from Damask Designs.

For my second card I used sweet blush cardstock and ink for the small flowers and fresh snow for the large ones. The sentiment is stamped in hibiscus burst. I'm not sure yet if I like the new inks from PTI. This is my first time working with them.



Well I'm going to get back to be crafty. Thanks for stopping by today.

Best Wishes

Wow, today is 9/9/09, we won't see that again in our lifetime.

Well here's another take on the same layout I did yesterday. I changed out the colors and used your basic black and white. I changed the border punch from scalloped to a sunburst. The focal image is made using the same technique and supplies. The sentiment was changed, I thought this might be nice for a wedding or anniversary card. I did add black rhinestones to some of the ends of the flourish to jazz it up a bit. What a difference just by changing the colors. Thanks for stopping in today and hopefully I won't go so long in between posts.

thanks so much

You may remember a card that looked similar to this that I entered in the August GSS. I just loved the layout and look of the card and decided to make a few more using that same layout.



For this card I used berry sorbet as the accent color. I stamped the large fancy flourish in fresh snow onto a kraft card base and inked up around all the edges. Then I cut a piece of bitty dots paper, scalloped the bottom and sewed a straight and zigzag stitch at the top and adhered it to bottom on the card after I inked up all the edges. For the focal image, the top layer is some lace that I gathered to resemble a flower and attached a button in the center. The second layer is a piece of In Bloom paper cut in a circle. For the third layer I stamped background basics text style on white cardstock and cut it out using my nesties scalloped circle. For the sentiment, I just cut a "V" at the end of a piece of white cardstock and stamped the sentiment from the mega mixed messages set in berry sorbet.

After making a few lace flowers to have in my stash, this card came together rather quickly. Stop back tomorrow when I will show you another take on this came layout. Thanks for popping in!