Simple Teacher Gifts...

ETA: No one got the answer correct to my "faux paux", so I had my girls pick a number and those chose #2 ISABEL Z!!! My BIG faux paus was using the APPLE for a teacher gift...swore I'd never do it, but I just couldnt pass up this cute little girl:) I thought it'd be "ok" to use this image since the apple wasn't an overkill...lol So Isabel please send me your home address via email: madscrapper24@yahoo.com and I will get your notebook out asap! Thanks girls for playing along!


Because I'm running short on time this year, I needed a simple gift for my Daughter's teacher and her aide. If you looking for something inexpensive (this works wonders if your kids have multiple teacher's) try a pocket calendar! I picked mine up at Michael's in the $ section. I don't care much for the the "cheesy" covers they use, so you can see I just make my own:). I customized each PI girl according to the teacher's hair color etc. Added some simple stitches and slipped my finish calendar back into the plastic sleeve. Just a quick post as my "list" of things to do is getting longer!


******Did anyone catch my big faux paux?????!!!!!!! If your a regular reader to my blog, you will know what it is ;). First one to get it right, gets a free custom notebook from me!!!! Just leave a comment ALONG with an email address and I will post the winner by Friday, Dec. 17th @ midnight.

Pretty Little Girls...

My plate was pretty full last week with a very sick baby and washing loads and loads of laundry. It would have been nice to open the windows up and and air the house out, but with chilly weather all the "ickies" got trapped inside! Baby girl is on the mend and we ended the week celebrating our 9th wedding anniversary at Chuck E. Cheese and grocery shopping...signs where your priorities are when you get older....lol I didn't do anything last week, not even step foot in my craft room...but I did manage to squeeze in some crafty time yesterday! I was really inspired by the new PI line from MFT after seeing Jody and Susie's blogs. Love how these girls create...their commentary isn't half bad either:).
Love this ice cream paper! It comes with several different ice cream patterns and I decided to use the pages with wording for this go-around. I colored her with my copic makers and did a little stitching around the edges. The "wish big" is from my PTI-star prints. The umbrella pergola on top of the card is made with my SU! slot punch and I trimmed off the excess on top, then tied with pink shimmer ribbon.I'm off to start my Christmas Dinner shopping. My family is coming from all over to visit with us this year. Parents will be here from OK and my two sister's, one from GA, the other from CA. We don't get to see each other as often as we'd like, so lots of late nights giggling and playing sequence are on the horizon:)

Custom Baby Frame....

Yeah! The sun is out, REALLY out today! A good day to dig out the ol' Christmas decorations and get to work. I usually start the day after Halloween ( a bit EARLY, I know!), but I like to enjoy my decorations more than just a "few" weeks. My favorite decorations are those the girls create...even the scribble scrabbled ones!

On to this pretty frame! A cute 4x6 frame for Baby Karisa. Only requests were that it be purple and not too girlie! I could have gone over the top with some sort of princess theme, but kept with a simple design. I started by painting the entire frame white. I cut 1 inch strips in purple and stamped with polka dots in a shimmer dew drop purple.
Stacked a few Prima flowers together and tied them with a Foo-fa-la creme button.
The leaves are punched with Martha Stewart-Frond punch and stamped with the "twinkle, twinkle" star from PTI's-Star Prints (I've been using this set A LOT!).
Letters cut out with my Cricut Cartridge. I added a little Star Dust Stickles on the outside sage green layer. This really helped POP the purple-on-purple theme.

"Small Gift" Ideas...

Just getting in from a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend spent with my Husband's family in VA. The ride home always seems longer than the drive up! We had an awesome time and the grand kids all love getting together to play. You can see a glimpse of the "wee ones" below:) Before we packed up last week I had a few orders to fill and a special gift to share with a dear friend. My gf's hubby arrived home from Iraq on Thanksgiving Day! So very thankful! She had mentioned they'd be getting away to a B&B for the weekend and I wanted to send a little gift they could share. They are wine enthusiasts, so this gift was pretty easy to put together!

I added the chocolates and used a few PTI sets to put the chocolates together. The tiny star and "hero" stamps are from the Star Prints set. I thought they were fitting, although her hubby would probably shy away from being called a "hero". To keep the chocolates from sliding down, I did use a little sticky tape to keep them down...although I'm sure getting them off was the least of their worries ;).A few more custom gift card holders. I really love these coffee cups! The cups and sentiments are from My Favorite things, but two different sets.Used PTI -Star Prints again! This set really is fun...can be used all year round or festive enough for any holiday!The hills are aliiiiiiiive!! I snapped this pic of the kids walking down the hill. We took family photos this weekend in several locations, but this one had to be my favorite:) I didn't get one pic of my hubby, the kids, and I together, but they photographers did so I will have to wait patiently for those! These are the youngest of the grand kids. The older group is ALL boys and 1 girl...funny how it repeated in opposite direction for the younger ones:) This photo was shot at the Battlefields in Manassas, VA...really beautiful! My two are on the left end:)

Sister Notebook...

This truly is a "sister" notebook, not only in the sentiment, but also in the flower as well! My 2 sisters are fabulous at crocheting and I asked my twin sis to make up a few flowers for me. She happily obliged and I have several different sizes to play with! I'm not sure what type of thread/yarn she used, but I love the nice sheen it has...really shines! The middle brad is a vintage type from Memory Makers I believe, but I've had it so long I can't "promise" I have the correct vendor. They are heavy duty though and hold well! What else do you need in life besides sister's and chocolate?!! I used the same DCWV Berry Market paper here as I used a few post down. Lots of fun patterns to choose from in this pack...I can't wait to conjure up some more fun items. In response to an email I received about custom orders thru Etsy...I will NOT be reserving spots on Etsy for custom orders. I'm new to Etsy and I'm happy with how it's set up right now. I will continue to do custom orders, but thru email only. This makes it easier on both myself and the customer. I have uploaded a few items into my store front that I have not posted on, so feel free to browse the new items...new Christmas tags, notebooks, and gc holders are posted.

Thank you,Dawn:)

For Their Daddy...

A neighbor friend and her 3 little girls saw Daddy off for a military deployment earlier this week and they really needed a pick me up! Deployments are never easy and around our neck of the woods it is an all too common event. The first few days are rough, but as strong as military families are, we eventually get in to a routine and await their safe returns. So one family sees Daddy off and we've got another neighbor who is expecting their Daddy home after a 7 month deployment (he should be home on Thanksgiving....how wonderful!!!). I made each child a monogrammed stationary kit so they can write their Daddy a special note. Since the girls are young the cards are prefect...not quite old enough to write full letters. The "bathroom sign" girl is from a clear set I picked up at Archiver's last year. Karen Foster snap stamps were used for "i love my daddy".Added a little sassy touch by making flower pens and then attached them with curly ribbon. It was a nice surprise for the girls when they got off the bus yesterday! Please keep these families and all our service members in your thoughts and prayers during this holiday season. They certainly need our love and support!

Gift Card Holders...

I thoroughly enjoyed the class I taught in my home yesterday. It's so nice to get together with great girlfriends to chat and craft. I love them dearly! This was the third class I've taught this year and I have to say it was by far the best. I prepared kits already pre-cut and ready to assemble which made it much easier for all of us. We chose 2 projects: holiday planners and gift card holders. Both were fitting for the season.Takes me a couple weeks to get all the supplies together so I try to find something that is appealing and easy for everyone to put together. I used this template from one of my first SU! classes several years ago. I don't have a photo link, but it's super easy. Take a piece of 8.5x11 cs and cut in half on the 8.5 side. Scor at 3, 5.5, and 8 inches and fold. I used my SU! slot punch twice on the inside and then my SU! circle punch in the middle of the 2 slot punches. Once you tape the underside, your card fits snug and secure. These sold out at the class, but I loooove the glitter on the paper. There was a scrap booking store going out of business last week so I snagged some killer deals on paper. This paper is from K & Co.

"Wish Big" is from PTI-star prints as well as the pink star underneath.Did you see the new widget??? It's my new Etsy logo:) These were the first thing I put up tonight and they sold quick! It must have been the "cheery-cherries" on my new DCWV-Berry Street Farmer's Market paper....sooo yummy! There is certainly a vintage feel to this paper so I had to try out the ragged ribbon on a few...makes me want to go berry picking?I absolutely adore the texture on this paper. The texture itself really "pops" to the eye, however to the touch, it's very smooth.Whew! You made it all the way to end...or at least I "think" you did! This Etsy venture is very new to me, I'm destined to have a few gliches along the way! If your interested in purchasing my creations and have questions about how it works on Etsy, please feel free to contact me...we'll learn together! I'm going to test the waters on how often I update the shop...shooting for weekly uploads, but more likely to be 2-3 times per month. Thank you for all the wonderful comments and emails on this new venture.

Doodlebug Birthday...

I've been quite productive on the crafting end this week. Tropical storm Ida has been wreaking havoc on us and it puts me in the perfect mood to craft and be cozy! Luckily there hasn't been any flooding on our side of town, but the the RAIN, oh my lord, I could do without anymore!!!! Great for the newly planted trees, but not so good for running errands etc. Anyhoo, here are a few cards I worked on last night. The ink I used for the polka dots is not showing up well, in fact it looks blotchy:( I promise in real life, they are a lovely shade of pastels and are perfectly ROUND! I can't resist this doodlebug ice cream paper! I made the zig-zag card first and decided I'd make a few more to share this weekend. In the spirit of trying something "new", I gathered my ribbon and sewed it directly on the card. It was a nice change from simply tying a bow...which I was getting very bored and frustrated with...lol The ribbon is trimmed on each end and I folded it underneath the card front. Since I tucked and taped the ribbon underneath the inside, I also had to add a full paper liner so the ribbon is not visible on the backside. The sentiment is from PTI's-Star Prints.
Hmmm, something went terribly wrong with my photography here...just going to blame the "blotchy" dots on the camera AND NOT the photographer! Looks like the kids stamped their fingerprints in green:)

More Pocket Notebooks...

I have a stack of 4x6 notepads on my desk that are begging to be altered (or at least this is my intetion so I don't toss them in a bin and forget about them for months)! I pulled them out last week and I've tried to do a few here and there. Having plenty of new patterened paper on hand always inspires me to create MORE! The only reason I bought this doodlebug paper last week was because I KNEW my ice cream stamp would be a perfect match. After coloring and matting my ice cream cup, I added a tad of crystal effects to the cherry on top to give it a little 3-D effect. When my oldest saw this sweet treat she said it looked good enough to "eat right off the page"! All the rectangles are cut out with my nesty dies. The sentiment "grocery list" is from my new Take Note set from PTI. To shade in the sentiment I dabbed Dew Drop-Aloe Vera ink around the edges.
My dearest friend Donna came by last week and I've sucked her into stamping as well! She loves MFT just as much as I do and had some sets I didn't own, so I stamped up a few and turned them into some sassy, coffee notebooks! I'm not a coffee/caffeine drinker, but I love the way fresh ground coffee beans smell...it's my favorite isle at the grocery store! These notebooks have a fairly simple layout so I just wanted to add a little extra flair by sewing around the borders. On the top notebook, I used the sentitment that came with the Coffee?Tea? set...the bottom sentiment is from Essential Sentiments. There is also a slight "glimmer" on the rims of the coffee cups...more crystal effects so it appears to be a fresh cup of coffee!

Basket Full of Friendship...

Some more fun 4x6 notebooks. I've been busy this week preparing for an upcoming crafting event at home this weekend. In addition to the crafts we will be making, I will also have baskets of goodies available for purchase. I fell in love with this patterned paper from a recent purchase to the scrapbook store. I don't remember the vendor because I used up the whole stash before checking! But, the pattern is so fun and whimsical...my girls said it's missing Strawberry Shortcake. Detail shot of my attempt at zig-zag sewing. It's getting easier...still a tad tricky on the corners! Just a few more notebooks added to the basket. If I have time this week, I'm hoping to fill er' up with a nice assortment of notebooks. Whatever is left over, I'm going to add to the opening of my Etsy shop next week...she's just about ready!

Mini Christmas Banners, LOOOOONG post (with pics!)...

EDITED TO ADD: Isabel asked about the edging of the snowman's hat...no pom poms here (although they'd be really cute!), just used Star Dust Stickles:) You could also use Liquid Pearls...which I have as well, just didn't think to use it until afterwards!

So what to do after Halloween? Jump into Christmas of course! Thanksgiving is in there somewhere! Actually, these banners have been in the works since late July, early August! A dear friend had asked months ago if I could give her some ideas for Christmas Banners and here are few samples I've been playing with. They are more like mini-banners, but you could also put them on a fireplace mantle (scroll down) if it's on the smaller side. Also, if you have a mirror, you could use that option...looks very classy and clean:) Tried out my new Cosmo Cricket paper along with my Cricut-First Years cartridge (lettering). The rounded squares are cut with my nesty dies. I scored this fabulous beige creme ribbon at Micheal's the other day. The ribbon is Martha Stewart and was originally 5.99 a spool...scored several for 99 cents!!! Buttons are from my own stash...they're just all dumped together now, so not sure of the manufacturer.
PTI-Made of Snow...this is the set I won for THIS entry last year...funny, it didn't even get used last year:(
One for the mantle. I'm not too sure I like all BIG letters...it's hard to read:(
On all 3 banners I cut a second layer of lettering and put Star Dust Stickles on the outer layer...yummy!

Cut out the windows and doors here with my PTI-Home for the Holidays set. The trees are paper pieced and I added some amuse twinkle stickers for the star and ornaments.
PTI-Made of Snow and Boards & Beams. See that yummy paper below?? The new paper is Rustic Snowflake and it's from their latest release! It reminds me a lot of Dutch Girl by Cosmo Cricket...absolutely LOVE IT!