"Behind the Seams"--New Find!

I'm so thrilled to share a fun "new find" that has been in the works for some time, but because they were for my Sister's birthdays, I had to hold off! Well, no more holding back! In seeking out a special gift this year I really wanted something that was practical and of course something they didn't already own. One of my favorite websites, Etsy.com, is ALWAYS my first stop when looking for something homemade and one of a kind! I did a search under "self inking address stamps" and came across Stamp Out Online. I worked with Stamp Out owner, Lisa (who is very nice and professional I might add!), to come up with a fun design. Once I came up with a design, Lisa sent a proof for approval and I had my stamps in just a few days!
I love the whole shape of this self-inking stamp. It's not like the usual ones I've seen and also has a protective lid so even if your little one wants to press down, it will not stamp on the inside of the lid!!! I tried it out on a few envies just to see how it stamped...PERFECT! Be sure to use the little grips on the side, it helps ensure a nice and even pressure distribution. (the pics are blurry on purpose, as much as my Sister's would love to get mail from some super hot celebrity, they certainly aren't looking for stalker mail...lol!) After I ordered the address stamps, I was thinking about getting a little something for myself...luckily Lisa was thinking along the same lines! She made me a small stamp with my website address so I could use it on the back of all my projects. I chose to go with a rubber stamp on wood block since I needed the option to use white (for dark paper) and black inks. The image really comes out nice and crisp and I barely had to press down on the cs when using Stazon ink (cause we all know how "sticky" it can be!).You know me, I can't just send the stamp...they needed to be "dressed-up" too! I made an address tag to attach with ribbon and cellophane.
Here is the back of the birthday cards with my new stamp! Something sweet, cute, and fun!OH sooooo pretty! I wanted a simple look, but something that POPPED as well. I started with the shimmer PTI cs then decided I might as well use my Dew Drop shimmer inks as well! That cupcake looks scrumptious!

Simple Engagement...

This week is FLYING by! We spent the holiday weekend in GA visiting with my twin sister and her family. She is due soon with her 2nd child and we are all getting excited to welcome Kate into the world! I only wish my family and I lived closer, the goodbyes are always hard. My oldest daughter is also beginning her new journey to Kindergarten and its bittersweet for my hubby and I. I know it will get easier, she's just the first and its new for all of us!

Anyhoo, what I really came here for tonight was to update my blog! All of my new postings were gifts and some had to be shipped, so I had to hold out and not give them away on my blog. This simple engagement card was for a dear friend who is now a Fiancee! I brought out some old goodies for this one! The quilt pattern on the bottom is from PTI-guide lines and I stamped them out on PTI-glitter cs. And fitting-for-the-occasion was my Bella bride to be! I always like the "Tiffany Blue" for wedding cards and gifts so I went along those color lines to finish out the card. OOOOH, look how SPARKLY she is! Once I color in my images with copic markers, I like to go back over them with my Spica glitter pens. These pens add a TON of sparkle with even the lightest of touches.I finally have my "Behind the Seams" feature coming up! Hopefully the fence guy (they are coming back to finish what they were "supposed" to do!) is quick tomorrow because Momma has a fun post to share:)

Pretty Princess Birthday...

...because EVERY little girl is a princess! This project was a true labor of love because it was done for my dear friend back home in Oklahoma. Her little girl, Macy, was turning 3 and having a princess party...complete with a visit from Cinderella and tea cup goodies. My gf and I decided on what colors we should use and if you recognize the colors, you know these are based off of the Disney Princesses (Belle, Cinderella, & Sleeping Beauty!). I printed off the invites and left room on the margin to stamp my SU! Pretty Princess. I filled in her dress-up outfit with my copic makers.Fun little banner I came up with. This banner was fairly long and the only place I could get the proper wall space for a photo was in my bathroom...horrible lighting, but it worked...lol Below is detail shot of each banner panel. I randomnly stamped the princess on each 6 inch piece and then matted them in coordinating colors. This is also a great project to use up those ribbon scraps. When I was putting this together I just dumped out my ribbon scraps and went to town. How the banner was displayed at Macy's party. I especially love the extra detail my gf added with the tulle as well as the BIG puffy flowers on the ends. Here I was trying to size up the pieces...this is a very large banner, although it looks deceiving in the photos! I wanted to make sure the letters weren't going to cover up too much of the princess image. The letters were cut out with my cricut.Cupcakes sticks! Cupcake stick just for the princess!Centerpiece--I attached a dowel on the back and it was displayed in a glass bottle with marbles for support.Thank you notes!Goody bags! Say what do you say?? Ready for a party??!!

Glue-Art & Paper Studio Week...project #3

A little number I'm saving for our 10 year anniversary next year! Yeah, its a bit "early" for this gift, but hey, for once in my life, I will be on time and won't be rushing for a thoughtful gift for my hubby. I figured this Luv-O-Dex Kit would be a great way for us to remember (if we can!!) all the fun times we've shared over the years! The Luv-O-Dex Kit comes with just about everything you see here, but I did use my own chipboard letters. You will have more than enough supplies to complete this great gift for your loved one! I could have gone "over-the-top" with embellishments here, however, this will be going on my beside table eventually so I didn't want to over indulge. I started by painting the entire card file in a white matte acrylic paint. Once the paint was dry I used a little Mod Podge for the patterned paper. The "reminisce" is printed off my pc in CKBecky Font. I finally figured out how to save new fonts...YEAH ME! I have several I'd like to save from Dafont.com...that's for another time though...lol Your kit will include "love prompt" cards that are pre-printed and if you choose, you can stamp on them as well. This set includes 14 prompt cards. I separated the prompt cards with red and pink divider cards (also included in your kit). Lots of Stickles usage this week (ME LIKE A LOT!).I'm not all the fantastic playing with these slide embellishments. I literally stared at the wall for an hour figuring out how I was going to incorporate it in to my design. I'm happy how it all played out...the charms are also in the kit and you could even attach these with ribbon if you like. Since I knew I wasn't going to be hanging the designs with ribbon, I simply cut off the ribbon loops that were on top of the charms. And of course, never leave the last page blank!!!! This was a cute pre-stamped card in my kit and I wanted to be sure I saved it for LAST! This gift will truly be cherished for the both of us. I think I can still keep it a surprise until next year...it's a safe bet that my hubby will never stumble on to my blog...and eh, if he does, that would be a pleasant surprise! I LOVE YOU!

Glue-Art & Paper Studio Week...project #2

I've had my Dress Form completed since I first started with Glue-Art & Paper Studio almost 2 years ago! Surely doesn't seem like its been that long! The Dress Form has held up very nicely since then, even thru my military move (you know how wonderfully gentle they are on our things!) in which I decided it would be much smarter to hand carry all my creations. I put them all in a Rubbermaid container and it stayed with me for a few months until we closed on our house! Even the girls Birthday Cupcake Stand looks as though I created it yesterday. There are other ways in which this shadow box can be used. My girls first reaction was to turn the box on its back and it made an instant cradle for their small dolls. Pretty clever eh? Also when turned on its back, it would display nicely on your workspace as a ribbon holder for your large spools! Versatile products for sure, just use your imagination ladies! I wanted to keep my design fairly simple because I love the elegance of the red/black combo as well as the pattern in the paper. I started by painting the entire box in a matte black. The paper on the inside was added next, then I added the pearl feet. I found a strand of pearls in the necklace section at Wal-Mart. When I got home I discovered the pearls were too round to support the bottom of my box so a quick solution was to use a file and make a straight-edge for them to "sit" on the box. I used E6000 glue to adhere the pearls...make sure you leave the pearls to dry for awhile...nothing worse then trying to move the box around before the glue has set!
Simple satin ribbon and bow on top!
"D" is for Dawn:) I was rummaging thru my stock of chipboard and found this italic design which I thought went well! The chipboard was left naked (no painting or adding paper over it!) so I just added a generous amount of X-mas Red Stickles over the top.

If you'd like to see some more fun projects from Glue-Art & Paper Studio you can click on the Labels Side Bar (left hand side of my blog lists) under Glue-Art & Paper Studio. You can also check out ideas from the design team HERE!

Glue-Art & Paper Studio Week...project #1

This week is dedicated to some fun projects I was fortunate enough to complete for Glue-Art & Paper Studio. If you've ever had the pleasure of working with these fun products, you know they are great quality products to work with! The owners are two fantastic ladies, Vicky and Kelli, who share a love of crafting and turned their passion into a wonderful line of unfinished wood products. Today I'm going to share my first project with the Organizer Box. Along with the wooden box, 6 chipboard inserts and a wood backing insert (the last insert for support) come with this kit. You will notice I only have 3 chipboard inserts here, but I actually glued 2 of each to one another to add more support since I knew I'd be flipping thru this organizer often. My first step was to cover the outside of the box. For those of you who love fabric, you will recognize this fun Amy Butler pattern. I trimmed just enough to overlap on the outside of the box and approx. 1/4 inch on the top so I could lay it down on the inside lip. You could probably use a number of different adhesives to attach the fabric, however my favorite is Matte Mod Podge when adhering fabric to wood. You get a very strong hold! Bottom view of the box! I didn't cover the entire bottom with fabric since no one is going to see it!To create the fabric strips for the top on the outside, I used a thin white cs (something thin like SU! whisper white) and wrapped the fabric around the edges and pushed it right on thru my sewing machine. Here is what it looks like once you get all the edges done. Don't worry about it not looking all "Martha Stewart" clean...your not going to see this side anyway....lol To adhere the strips to the fabric top, I used E6000 glue. I love this glue for its strength, but man does it smell toxic! I made a simple stamped insert to cover the inside of the box. All you need to do is cut your cs to size and decorate! Double sided sticky tape was used to adhere the inside cs.
Glimpse of the finished product. I used a generous amount of Diamond Stickles for the letters and hung them with some offray white ribbons. Like my little glass door knobs for feet? They were recycled from this Glue-Art & Paper Studio project I did last year!
The scalloped edge was created with my Fiskars Water Threading Punch and a skinny strip of SU! green galore cs. This is what my Organizer Box looks like once it's all done! And yes, this will actually stay organized...one of the few things on my desk that will stay neat:)
I just realized I posted these last few pics out of order, but just follow along! Shipping & Packing is my last label tab and this is where I keep my orders that are ready to ship after they've been packaged. Pending Orders--this is where I store orders I'm currently working on but have not yet completed.
Pending Orders in Front--these are orders that I've done samples on and I'm just awaiting final approval before the real work gets started! And finally, my finished project before I put it to use. It looks complicated, but anyone can do this! All you need is a little inspiration, some glue, fabric, and tape:)

Remind You of the Good Ole Days???

I love this little ice cream image from MFT-Here's the Scoop. It reminds me a lot of my favorite snack shop in Brooklyn, New York (Little Cupcake), which doesn't sell ice cream, but it set up very much like an old soda jerk shop. And yes, I realize the term "soda jerk" was waaaay before my time, but I actually do know what one looks like...lol Needless to say, this picture makes me want to head to my nearest Braum's (my Oklahoma Folks will know what I'm talking about!) As I was creating my cards, I couldn't decide which colors or sizes of polka dots looked best...I think the PINK one is now my FAV! My card base is PTI white and stamped with dew drops ink. The focal image was colored in with my copic makers and the sentiment is from the PTI 2nd Anniversary Set. I didn't even know I was eligible for this set until my last package arrived...nice surprise eh? Apparently, I bought MORE stamps last year than I thought:( After I colored my ice cream image, I traced a very light cool grey copic on the outside rim. I think it really makes the image "pop" and looks even more fun after cutting it out. I used foam tape to raise the image and also added some adhesive rhinestones in the corners. What to do with that last image?? Make another card?? Nah, lets try something fun and new...a TAG! I make a few baskets here and there and I think this will go perfect for an anniversary ice cream kit, or perhaps a kids birthday! Perhaps I have inspired you to take the kids out for a scoop or two?