Tonight was VERY productive.  I finished off 4 sets of notepads/pens and even managed to make tags and get them all packaged up and ready for “whatever”.  I don’t know if I’ll save them for gifts or sell them.  Tough call.  On the one hand I could use the spare cash as I have to make some budget adjustments (more on that later…still finalizing a few things) and on the other I’m visiting one of our branches at work in a couple of weeks and want to make something for my peeps on the mainland – in fact, that’s what these were orginally designed for.

I made 4 different notepads using the same stamp (well, part of a stamp – I cut it in two separate pieces to get more use out of it) and assorted papers/colours.  They’re fairly easy to mass produce as long as you do one stage at a time – for example, when I did the stitching I just ran a piece of pre-cut cardstock through my sewing machine, pulled a little extra thread and did the next piece without cutting the thread – I just kept going until I had all 4 done and I snipped the threads afterwards…it does save time.

Wanna see?

Once I finished the pads and pens I made some matching tags and packaged ‘em up in cello bags with a little hand-dyed wrinkle ribbon.

I actually made these over 3 days.  On day 1 I cut the pieces of cardstock and paper, scored the cardstock, sewed the CS strips and adhered it all together.  On night 2 I stamped and coloured my images, stamped the flower pot again on patterned paper, cut out the patterned paper and glued it to the image.  I still had an ounce of energy so I beaded the pens that night too.  Tonight (day 3 if you’re still counting) I die cut the images and mats, made the tags and packaged everything up. 

I need to get to the store for more notepads.  I am trying to live without the long skinny notepads I usually make (the Michelle Wooderson style ones) but I can’t decide if these are just as cute.  They use a little more patterned paper but aren’t quite as fiddly to work with.  They’re also wider so I can use a lot more stamps with these than I can with the skinny notepads…decisions, decisions.

No, not MY new address…

My cousin and her partner recently purchased a house and moved in last week.  I made a housewarming gift for them consisting of 4 crocheted dishcloths (well, I love them and I’m hoping that her and J will love them too) and a set of 12 new address cards - 4 for S, 4 for J, and 4 for “them”.

I blurred out the address but I’m sure you can still get the feel of the cards:

The packaging for the clothes matches the cards but I still don’t have the tag finished so there’s no picture of that today.

It took hours and hours to make these – I zigzag stitched all 12 cards and it took a while to do the 12 die-cut houses too (because I was using scraps left from making the cards so I’d make a house, unload the cricut, peel off the paper, make another house, unload the cricut…you get the idea.  Plus the roof/door piece is made separately so that’s 24 load/unloads with the cricut.  Boring!)

Here’s a close up of the die cut:

I used some of the colours from the interior of their home (though the yellow wasn’t one of the colours) – the cloths are the same colour as their kitchen if I remember the paint chips I saw correctly.  I still haven’t seen the house but at least I’ll be prepared when the invitation comes!

ETA: I don’t sell at craft fairs…yet.  I sold these at work.  All 8 are gone.   Also, the BBQ went really well yesterday.  It was soooo much work but the house and garden (yard) looked great IMO and everyone had a good time.  It was so nice to see my brother and SIL – that’s twice in one year.  I usually only see them about every 2 years.  Now that the BBQ is over I’m hoping to get a little crafting time in.

Apologies in advance for the bad pictures today…no time…

I made 8 sets of beaded pens and notepads in hopes of selling them.  I’ll let you know how I do.

Here’s a quick shot of the lot before they got packaged up for sale:

And here’s what a typical package looks like (ribbons are changed out depending on the paper on the notepads):

On a sad note, Staples has ridiculously upped the cost of having something cut in the store.  It’s 500% more than it used to be for me to get a package of notepads cut.  Utterly insane!  I used to pay a dollar and now it’s a $2 admin fee plus $3 per cut.  That increases the cost of a package of notepads by 50%.  I need to find a cheaper way to do this to keep my notepads at a reasonable price point.  I wonder if there’s anywhere else in my little city that I can get this done?  Ruined my whole evening!

Well, thank goodness for my DT projects because that was the only reason I was “allowed” to do any crafting this week.  Just a few more days until the party and I can go back to my usual routine.  On the plus side, our yard (to call it a garden would imply that flowers are present) is looking quite decent and I know it’s going to be a fun day.  The weather is supposed to be nice on Sunday too so that’s a plus!

Today I’ve got a card plus a little gift ensemble suitable for a young man (okay, a boy) to share with you.  First the card:

Some quick details – I used MME L’il Robots paper and Alfy from the Tinheart Family line of stamps at PWCO.  A little stitching, a mat, and a ribbon/button embellishment and I’m good to go.

I forgot to mention on the PWCO blog a little tip that I’ll share with you today.  I wanted red accents on my robot due to my limited copic collection (just ordered 3 yellow and 1 green) so I coloured the orange dots on the PP with a red copic to tone down the colour I didn’t want and accent the one I did want. (you’ll be able to see the orange dots in a minute…)  It’s a quick way to customize your paper to the colours you want to use.  I’m always amazed that I have a zillion sheets of paper but never seem to have the right shade of green or yellow, etc. that I am looking for.

Let’s move on to the gift ensemble:

A quick 2-4-6-8 box, an altered puzzle, a handmade notebook and a gel pen – a perfect gift that costs well under $5 to make.   Here’s a slightly closer shot of the contents of the gift box:

I hope you like it.  I’ve got something else cooked up to show you but probably won’t get the pictures edited and the post written until the weekend.  Oh, I almost forgot – I took a picture of the inside (I don’t normally bother as I finish all my cards the same way):

See ya later!

ETA: I use Prismacolour pencils and Mona Lisa brand OMS when I colour with pencils.

I’ve certainly been in a colourful mood lately.  I guess my card colours are geared towards the newest papers (I’m an addict).  I’m enjoying the DeLovely paper from Cosmo Cricket.  I just have to remember to colour my images to match!

To make sure I had something to match this awesome paper, I whipped out my colouring pencils for this image.  I knew I wanted lots of shades of green and yellow and my copic collection is still about 35 markers short of where I need to be.

Behold today’s card:

This card is featured on the PWCO Blog today – I get to do free-for-all projects this month meaning I can make whatever I want instead of having to follow a sketch or use a particular project.  This will give me a chance to play with some of the PWCO products I just haven’t managed to get to yet.

I made a little something to go with the card – I haven’t made one of these little guys since um, Valentine’s day I think:

I just need to make a beaded pen to go with it, package it up all pretty and cute and I’ve got a great birthday gift for my stash.

If you haven’t checked it out already, you really should take in the details of a contest that PWCO is running this month…it’s called the Ultimate Summer Challenge and there are some great prizes to be won.   Go HERE for details.

I’ll be back tomorrow with a CAS (clean and simple) card…I think I need a little more practice with those!

For those of you that left a comment regarding happy mail, you should have received an acknowledgement email from me by now – in fact, I even sent one to somebody who didn’t leave a comment! (I’m a bit too quick when doing things…oh well!)

The envelopes are a little heavier than a standard card so I have to go to the post office and get them weighed before I mail them…give me a couple of days, okay?

Anyway, I have been spending some time in my craft room but mostly working on DT projects – if you have ever thought about being on a design team, it is quite fun but it takes up a lot more time than you might realize.  This is my first DT and I do not know how people manage to be on 3 or 4 at one time!

(BTW, if you have noticed that I am not using contractions it is because my keyboard is doing something funky on the internet at the moment and I do not have time to shut down and restart the computer if I want to get this blog post finished)

I actually had two cards to share on Friday but just did not get around to blogging them.  I will do that tomorrow (when I sound less like a robot in type!) but for now I have a card to share and I have a quick die cutting tutorial as well.   I will start with the card so you can judge whether you are interested in the tutorial:

He is SO cute.  I love Whipper Snapper stamps…they are so happy!!!

Notice how my flowers spill over the side of my die cut image?  I am going to show you how to do that (please note, I never came up with this concept myself.  I have seen it on SCS several times and I am sure there are tutorials available – I am not trying to take credit for this)

Step 1:  Align the die with the image

Step 2:  Draw pencil marks on either side of the edge of the die where you want the image to overflow (I have made my pencil lines a bit longer and more noticable for the purpose of the tutorial – normally I just make a couple of very light and short lines)

Step 3:  This is really two steps – cut from the top of where the image will overflow right over to just past the inside pencil line (you need to go just a tiny bit past this line so there is room to properly position the die).  Repeat on the bottom of the part of the image that will be outside the die.  This creates a flap of cardstock that you will slip OVER the die.  Position the die and run it through your die cutter.

Step 4:  Remove the die and erase the pencil marks.

Step 5:  Trim the excess cardstock from around the image.

Step 6:  Make a card!

I will be back tomorrow – speaking normal English and sharing a couple of cards I made using Rachelle Anne Miller stamps and the July PaperCard Kit from PWCO.

Enjoy the rest of your Sunday!

I would have posted sooner today but I had to make 8 of you (are there 8 of you out there?!) some little cards to go with your Happy Mail.

I’m doing this a little differently this time around.  Last time I didn’t limit the number of people who could “win” happy mail so the scraps got divided into the appropriate number of piles AFTER you all weighed in.  This time around I sorted the piles out and decided that I had enough scraps to make 8 decent-sized envelopes of happy mail so you get more to play with. 

As mentioned, I also stamped out a Whipper Snapper image – one of my favourites.  You get that too…plus a limited edition Kelly Bee “bookmark” (or whatever you want to do with it – it’s about 4.5X2.25″).

Here are pictures depicting the contents of three of the envelopes I’m sending out so you can get an idea of what you’re asking for:

1.  Basic Grey featuring Lemonade and some Prima flowers that I ‘experimented’ on with some homemade Glimmer Mist:

2.  I’m calling this envelope “mainly masculine”.  Jillibean Soup, Cosmo Cricket, Basic Grey, Three Bugs in a Rug and a piece of ribbon:

3.  Cosmo Cricket Garden Variety – mostly leftovers from my PaperCard Kit from PWCO

There’s another Basic Grey envelope with Kioshi and Green at Heart scraps, a second Garden Variety, a Three Bugs in a Rug envie, etc.

Before I tell you what you’ve got to do to get on the Happy Mail mailing list…here’s a HUGE close up of my bee (glitter AND fun flock):

I know you only want to be on the mailing list so you can get your inky fingers on my adorable ‘bookmark’  but I’ll throw in the stamped image and the scraps too.

Wondering how to make the list?

LEAVE  A COMMENT and make sure I get your email address so I can contact you for your snail mail address.

The first eight (8) people to comment make the list.  The envelopes will be sent out randomly – you don’t get to pick (sorry) but I’m sure you’ll enjoy your freebies all the same.

If you do make a creation using the bits and bobs I’m sending you I’d love for you to send me a picture so I can share it on my blog.

Thanks for stopping by!

I’ve been soooo busy this week that I haven’t had any time in my craft room.  I sometimes think about shutting down my blog over the summer but I just have to learn that nothing bad is going to happen if I skip a few days or a week…well, some of you might get bored and stop visiting but this is a HOBBY so I don’t want to start stressing…

I’m STILL working my way through all the materials in the July papercard kit at PWCO – it’s the only reason I have something to share with you this weekend (however, I NEED a card for tomorrow so I should get that on the blog soon.

Today’s post has a zillion pictures so hang in there, okay?

Cute?!  I think so!   But wait, there’s a surprise…

I was especiallly pleased with my stamp holder…it came out exactly as I’d pictured in my mind.  I used two different fonts in Word to create the snail mail sentiment.   A lot of stamp companies are combining fonts for their sentiments these days (we all know which company started it but many others are following their lead).  While I do love all those sentiment stamps and I think it would sometimes be easier to use a stamp (just because it’s harder to print on smaller paper and I don’t want to run a full sheet through my printer) using the computer gives you complete versatility and is practically free…how much ink does printing a word or two use?  Here’s what the stamp holder card looks like when it’s removed from the tote:

The tote was made using basic techniques.  I just calculated the size I needed to fit my envelopes (they’re a bit bigger than the cards so you should use your envie dimensions to work out the size of box you’ll need or you won’t have enough space.)  I believe the cardstock size I used was 10 1/4″ X 7 3/8″.  I used a 1″ strip of patterned paper to decorate the rim of the tote and adhered ribbon (from the papercard kit) to the inside of the box to make handles.  You’ll want two separate handles for a card holder as a central handle would make it difficult to remove the cards from the tote.

I made 4 cards and 4 lined envelopes to tuck inside the tote.  Because I knew ahead of time that I was making 4 cards with the same layout I assembled all my elements first and then put the cards together. 

…and here’s what I did with all this:

A quick shot to show what the liners look like:

and there you have it!

I used my Cricut to create the little guys on the cards.  I’m going to try to use it a little bit more though I’d rather be working on my colouring skills…

Enjoy your weekend and peek back tomorrow to see if I managed to blog my other card.

…with a PaperWorks Blog Hop.

Welcome to the July PaperWorks Blog Hop.  Today PWCO is launching their latest Rachelle Anne Miller stamp line and boy is it cute! (and RAM’s blog is worth scoping out too…check out her Etsy shop while you’re there – her illustrations are to die for.   There’s an adorable elephant I’d LOVE to have some day!  I {heart} elephants!)

If you are participating in the blog hop (and you should because there are PRIZES!) and you came from Cabio’s Blog then you are on the right track.   If you just started on this hop please start at the PWCO main blog.  I’ve got the listing of all participants a bit further down in today’s post.

I have LOTS to tell you/share with you today so sit back, relax and enjoy the ride…and don’t forget to leave a comment if you’d like a chance at winning the stamps featured during today’s hop.

I’m working with a sweet stamp called Side By Side.  First we’ll start with a picture of the stamp image:

Adorable, isn’t it?  I didn’t colour mine quite as nice as this (still working on the copic skills and need to add to my collection a little more) but I did use my copics and I also had a little fun altering the image.   The sentiment that comes with the stamp was the starting point for my card idea today.  It reads: 

Side by side or miles apart
dear friends are always close to the heart

Here’s the front panel of my card:

This is an accordion card and it has 5 panels in total.  It was a little hard to take a picture of the whole card so I’ve got some extra pictures to share today…next we have a little close up of the front plus some details on the supplies I used:

Basic Grey patterned paper, prism cardstock, copics, nesties, the flower was created from paper that I stamped and distressed and the ribbon rosette was made from wrinkle ribbon that I dyed a couple of weeks ago.  I used the same stamped paper to create the ruffled awning at the top of the card too.   (The ribbon ruffle on top and the ribbon that holds the card closed is wrinkle ribbon – you should try this technique!)   I used a stick pin to further embellish the flower and ran the sewing machine around the edges of the patterned paper before matting it with some green cardstock.

Panel 2 and 3:

I used the words “or miles apart” for this idea.  You’ll need your stamp-a-ma-jig for this and it’s a little tricky because the top of the swing set is not in a straight line…you can make your swing set as long as you’d like it to be…(get it?  my little guys are now spaced miles apart…well about 3 1/2 inches but you get the idea!)

The “extra” flower and grass was doodled by me.  More Basic Grey paper and some sponging give these panels a decorative touch (you don’t want to use anything too bulky as this card needs to fold up and these panels are on the inside).

Panel 4 and 5:

The next line in the sentiment reads “dear friends are always close to the heart”.  You can see that I altered the length of the image again – just join the end of the swing closer to the first seat and you’ve got a swing for one.  I cut out the bird and put it on a dimensional so my two little cuties are sharing a seat – can’t get much closer than that!  I drew in the bird’s legs.  Don’t look too closely unless you’re looking for a laugh!  I used a few pearls and some faux stitching on the last panel to give it some interest…again, you don’t want to use flowers (well, you do WANT to use them) or anything that will prevent the card from staying closed.

A little close up of my alteration (check out those  bird legs!):

Here’s the full card when it’s open (sorry – it was really hard to get it all in one shot):

Even after all that marathon creating, I couldn’t stop there.  I decided to make a little gift to go with the card and to make some matching packaging (by now you must know that I like my gifts coordinated!).  The illustration on the stamp inspired me to make the first (to the best of my knowledge) unofficial Rachelle Anne Miller (RAM) stuffed toys! (P.S.  I can’t sew…please don’t laugh at my wonky seams – unless you’re in need of a laugh…if so, go ahead, I won’t hear you anyway!)

The two sheets of Basic Grey patterned paper I used for this project were more than enough to make the card (with decorated panels) and the gift bag.  I’ve even got enough left to make a card or two!  There are lots of tutorials on making bags from paper.  This one didn’t come from a tutorial – I used the box in a bag template from SCS to make some wedding favours last year so I’ve got lots of practice – I just used the basic construction concept from that and added some fun details to make my bag a little more purse -like. (my sewing machine got quite the workout this week.)

The stuffed toys were made from felt.  I used a little more wrinkle ribbon for the bow just because it’s nice to match things up if you can.  The freckles are french knots and the nose and the mouth are just stitched with embroidery floss…I was copying the face on the stamped image – he’s kind of looking off to the side.  Oh, and the eyes are brads!

Here’s the card next to the gift bag (a little tissue paper would have looked good…):

If you’re still with me, just a few housekeeping items and you’ll be on your way.

To enter for a chance to win one of these new stamps, just leave a comment.  8 winners will be randomly chosen – visit each blog for more chances to win.  Here’s a complete list of the participants in today’s blog hop:

PWCO BLOG

Steph S

Cabio

Kelly <———————————– you are here!

Lisa

Silvia

Jenny

Steph J

Karen Lynn

Bella

Danielle

Sunghee

PWCO BLOG

Peggy at PWCO is offering a special this weekend:

10% off on ALL PWCO STAMPS.  Code in “PWCO stamps” on the discount section when you checkout.   Offer is good till Monday night (July 19th)

After you leave a comment, please go to Lisa’s blog to continue the blog hop.

I made this little set for my weekly PaperWorks Co DT blog post.  This month I’m working with Cosmo Cricket Garden Variety paper and coordinating embellishments as featured in the July Papercard Kit.

Except for the apple bushel I made, this project whipped up incredibly quickly and I didn’t use quite 2 6X6 sheets of patterned paper.  Pretty impressive!

Here’s my apron card (that thing in the pocket is supposed to be a seed packet – it kind of popped up while I was taking the picture and I didn’t notice…I’m going to pretend I popped it up on purpose so you could get a better look at it):

(yes, it’s really a card…the fold is on the top)  Not only did this turn out almost as I’d envisioned, I got to dust off my Cricut machine which hadn’t made it to my new craft room until this week (I don’t have a good spot to set it up in…I think I need to get DH to install a shelf for my printer so I can set the Cricut down on my countertop).  Now that the Cricut is in my craft room I might get some use out of it.

After I made the card, I made a little gardening journal and decorated a few items to go with it:

I made some journal pages in MS word and cut them down to size for the inside of the journal:

Then I packaged it all up in my handmade apple bushel (and I stamped some tissue paper with fruit and vegetable stamps to coordinate with my set):

Cute?  It only cost me about 2 bucks for the whole thing!   Now I just need to find a gardener to give it to!

Weekend starts at 5 pm…can’t wait!