Envelope Trick

You've asked, I've promised and now I'll finally deliver! Here is the envie trick for my All My Love Valentine Card. So easy you'll be amazed!

The Cat's Meow

Pajama Party was a huge success! Here is how our cat chow turned out:




And of course our cat themed party cake:

11 Things I Love About You at 11

1. I love that you are still my Sunny Sunshine, my Sweet Pea and my Stinky Stinkerton.
2. I love that you give far more than you ever expect to receive.
3. I love that you don't have an I want list.
4. I love that you choose to create and make the world a better place.
5. I love that you live happy.
6. I love that you expect yourself to do well in life.
7. I love that you are willing to help me and others with just about anything.
8. I love that you desire to not only choose the right, but do the right.
9. I love that you sincerely, deeply, love your brothers and sister.
10. I love that you are completely you; wonderfully amazing, sweet, charming, smart, funny, cheerful, happy, diligent, talented, kind and beautiful.
11. I love that you made me a mother and without you our family wouldn't be.

Happy Birthday my precious Mikensee!

I LOVE

how this card turned out!



Of course something always gets lost in the digitizing of a photo, but I still love it! This is not a new color combo for me, I've used it a few times, but I really like how the dry embossing pops!

S.W.A.K.

Yet another Valentine Treat. I will post a template and I promise to also give a quick tutorial for the envelope folds on my previous 2 posts by many requests. Ü. Can you tell it's Card Class time again??!!??



The original creator of this project is Nicole Heady (a most talented and amazing artist.) I did have to create my own template so I could reproduce them and that is the one I'll post!

Love You Sweetie!

Another quick envelope valentine. . . Like Love Ewe, it's just perfect for a gift card or small valentine treats!

Love Ewe

In Dreams and In Love

there are no impossibilities.

Design Team Challenge #3: Brayered Spots with Love as the Theme.

I wish I could photograph so that you can see the details. The brayered CS shimmers and there is dimension. . .It's just impossible to tell in my crummy photo! I am also not a technique junkie so essentially, brayered spots is using 2 inks and staining CS using the brayer. I used Palette Hybrid (you're supposed to use pigment ink, but I only have 3 colors) in Boudoir Pink and Charcoal. I sprayed my sheet with tattered angels to make it shimmer, but you can't tell in the picture.

Standard Card; Stamps CTMH, Paper by Crafty Secrets, CS CTMH, Ribbon May Arts and CTMH, The Robin's Nest-Silver Bells, Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist-Iridescent Gold

What you Wanted to Know:

Over my past few posts I've had several questions:

1. Where did I get my tins and pails? www.just4funcrafts.com. Use FUNK5 as your discount code and get 5% off your order! Today and every day. This code DOES NOT Expire!
2. What is on my clear tins? Queen and Company Self Adhesive Felt Ribbon. I got mine as a gift from my secret sister. Thanks, Sis!
3. Where did I get the clear pebbles for the magnet tin? I got them from a dead plant. LOL!!! You can get them in the floral department of your local craft store!
4. What is Paper Candy? Nummy little paper goodies to dress up your cards, pages and paper projects!
5. How did I make the folio for my Thank You Card Gift Set?
Here is a picture of my template:


Those coming to my card class can bring a piece of 12X12 paper and copy it if they want to. To see the template LARGER, click on the photo!

Hope this answers all of your questions! If not, please feel free to post a comment or shoot me an email!

Make it a great day!

Thank You Note Card Gift Set

I'm getting ready for my January Card Class. . . What started out as a few simple thank you cards turned into this:



I can't take credit for the notecard idea as I saw them on another post and thought I could replicate it for my class and give them a few more simple cards along with some Valentine's project this month -- if only I could remember where I saw it so I could give credit where credit is due. . . but instead, I'll say THANK YOU!

Paper Candy - Inchie Swap

I wasn't going to get into the paper candy craze, but somehow I found myself signed up for this inchie swap and now I have to say - these are stinking fun! It is a little tedious cutting the paper, and these teeny tiny brads are a bit rough, but look at the results! Now I just can't wait to see the other 9 inchies I'll be getting back.

Over all dimesion? 1" X 1". . . yep, that's it!

It's Birthday Time Again

Mikensee is turning 11. . . already. I just can't believe it! She's been planning her party for about 6 months. In October we saw a kitty litter cake for Halloween and the theme for her party was born.

So here are the invites we made today getting ready for the big event!

Design Team Challenge #2

Before Christmas I promised the results of my design challenge number 2:

This assignment was to use stamping, make something masculine and use the color pink. I'm not sure I nailed the masculine, but this is my hubby's Valentine's card:

POCKET CARD ~ OUTSIDE FRONT


INSIDE PHOTO:


DETAIL 1:


DETAIL 2:


On another note I was the lucky recipient of a wide screen computer monitor for Christmas (thanks Mom!) BUT. . . my blog looks terrible. . . The photos are horrible and the colors are WAY OFF!!! On my little 14" monitor (which I could barely squint and see) everything looked great! Soooooo, my apologies for the bad photo editing and I'll try to do better!

On the 12th Day of Christmas

Merry Christmas Glass Pebble Magnet Tin

So I did this quick and if I were really doing it to give away I would have taken a bit more time and dolled it up just a bit more. Additionally, my rub-ons didn't want to rub on and I'm not sure why, so I should have cleaned them off and used white Staz-On and stamped something, but I SHOULD be wrapping presents or sleeping. . . ha, ha, ha.

I also didn't have any really clear pebbles. You can find them much clearer than the one I had in my craft cupboard. Other ideas would be LOVE YOU with some hearts, the receiver's name. . .Tic, Tac, Toe pieces, etc.

So How do you make it?






I hope you'll try one and post back so I can see. Hope you have a very Merry Christmas and that you enjoye my 12 Days of Christmas. It didn't turn out exaclty as I had hoped and there unfinished projects I can't wait to still do! I'll try and transpose them to Valentine's Day or Easter. . . or there is always next year, which is only 367 days away!

P.S. Everyone who has posted on my 12 Days Projects will be entered to win a little blog candy. You have until January 31st to post. Winner will be notified if they have a blog profile with email or blog links OR an email address/blog/web-site in their post! Good Luck and again, MERRY CHRISTMAS! May you and yours be blessed with the spirit of love this Christmas.

P.S. a couple of details.

To see any photo in my blog LARGER, just click on the image. This may be especially helpful for the magnet tin post with the instructions on the photo.

ALSO, regarding the blog candy. . . I will be randomly selecting a number between 1-12 and that will be the post I select the winner from. Once the number is selected from 1-12 I will randomly draw from the number of posters on that subject. Clear as mud? You can effectively enter 12 times, but you don't have to. Good Luck!

P.S. The blog candy includes one of my projects from the 12 days of Christmas and a Marvy Scalloped Circle Punch. . . I may find a few carmels hanging around too.

On the 11th Day Of Christmas

Neatly Wrapped Christmas Carmels:


Obviously not as much paper craft as kitchen craft, but I did stamp the tags and use ribbon! LOL! Not the project I had planned for today, but I forgot a design team assignment that was due (gulp) yesterday! As a result my stamping time today was used for that project which I will post AFTER CHRISTMAS as it involves a lot of pink and hearts. . . yup, Valentine's Day!

I promised my Carmel Recipe and here it is. I think I made 20 pounds this year! No joke! I made 2 pans a day for 7 days and I have 5 pieces left. I'm going to have to make another pan for my family or they may never wrap carmels again!

Soft Carmels:

1 C Butter
1 C White Sugar
1 C Brown Sugar
1 C Karo Syrup
1 C Sweetened Condensed Milk
Vanilla
Nuts (optional)

Put all ingredients in HEAVY sauce pan and stir over medium low heat for DAYS! Just kidding. . . It takes about 20 minutes per pan. DO NOT DOUBLE. Once your mixture is boiling and bubbly and smelling really, really good, you put in your candy thermometer. Cook to 238' for soft carmels, 240' for chewy carmels and 242-245 if you prefer carmels you can suck on for days. Add vanilla and stir like crazy while you pour in a butter flavor crisco greased glass pan of either 8X8 or 9X13 size. If you are adding nuts do it with the vanilla. Allow to cool at room temperature for a while. You may then refrigerate or put outside in the snow if you are lucky enough to have snow. At room temperature cut and wrap in waxed paper.

So here's a few more pictures of the carmels we'll be dolling out tomorrow! Betting you wished you lived closer!!!

Busy Day . . . Cookies for Santa

So actually, we baked the cookies yesterday and decorated today. The kids had a really good time. Like with coloring, Wyatt had a much longer attention span, but they all did great and didn't stop until the last cookie was iced. They each picked one and we put them on Santa's cookie plate, wrapped it with saran wrap and left it for the all important Christmas Eve run!

Here's a few of my favorite pics of the cookie extravaganza!

My Baby Lost a Tooth!

Say it isn't so!!! My baby (by 10 minutes), Walker, only 4 years old, lost his first baby tooth today and to make matters worse we can't even find it!!!

A month or so ago, the twins had their first dental appointment. . . no cavities, but they dentist was surprised that several of their baby teeth were already loose. Keep in mind they are PREEMIE twins, so effectively they would have only just been 4 in October! Needless to say, 2 days after their check up, Wyatt bounced up as Walker bounced down and bam, he almost knocked 3 of his teeth out. The top left front tooth was completely pointing to his throat. . . I took no photos of this. Our dentist checked him out a few days later and then about 2 weeks later he still had loose teeth. The dentist kindly filed down the teeth so that they didn't bump anymore and the top tooth set, but apparently the bottom one did not!

Here is my goof with his toothless grin. Initially he was lisping, but he's over it now!

On the 10th Day of Christmas

Joy Wall Hanging




So I'm cheating. I made this last year, but I found it on my computer and I'm taking the easy way out. With all the tutorials I've posted on covering coasters and chipboard you should get the idea! I used embossing on the JOY and inked the edges with gold metalic paint. The circles are tied together with ribbon. I made MANY last year and gave them all away! I didn't even keep one for myself!

I'm So Excited!

Kari, this post is for you (and for me so I don't forget!) I found out how to turn my blog into a book! For those of you who may think this vain, for me it is part of who I am and I want to leave it, the good, the bad and the ugly with my family when I am no longer walking with them. . .

So . . . HERE IT IS!!

BOOK YOUR BLOG

and thanks to Atalie and her friend Cara for the lead!