Vinyl Tutorial and Updates...

You know it has been some time since you logged into your blog when you cannot remember your password and have tried every combination! As you can see, I did finally get in! The break from blogging was much needed as it's been very busy around here with company, the holidays, morning sickness, and SURPRISE news of a move in our future. I also felt with as long as I've been blogging, my posts were getting very repetitious to write out etc. Maintaining a blog requires a lot of work behind-the-scenes and although it appears they may be quick to type up and share, they can become time consuming and overwhelming. That being said, I will try my best to update regularly here on the blog as much as I do on the Jademingmei FB page. Facebook has made it very easy to post a quick pic and if you ever have any inquiries, it's a much quicker response!

We have a busy year ahead of us! Pregnancy is going well and Jack is an aspiring gymnast in the womb. We are 25 weeks along now...only 99 days to go as of today! On top of baby coming, the military has also given us our 'eviction notice' to move this summer. We were not expecting to go anywhere and felt very settled in our home so with overwhelming excitement(took a while to sink in!) and somewhat bittersweet feelings, our family is headed to Japan this summer. I know once we get there and settled, it will be a wonderful experience for not only us, but the girls and baby as well. I do plan to continue all my craftiness when we move abroad and suspect I will be seeing LOTS of Hello Kitty in my future...ha!

Anyhoo, during my blogging break I decided to start dabbling in vinyl on my Cricut. I must confess(you can too!) here that I've had this machine for several years but never used it as much as I thought I would. Quite frankly, my husband has used it more than I have and he uses to cut reflective vinyl for decals etc. If you've never used reflective vinyl, its pretty cool as it 'glows' when light reflects off of it....hubby made me an EGA(Marine Corps symbol of the eagle, globe, and anchor) for the back window of our van and I love it! For all of my latest projects I only use matte or glossy vinyl...the finish only differs for if you're using it on inside/outside projects. I certainly prefer the matte over glossy any day, but I'm learning to like both! Below I've shared a quick tutorial on my new 'Welcome' sign that I put on yesterday...yup, that quick and simple! Step 1: Before you install any vinyl, make sure you clean all surfaces of dust and dirt. I just eye-balled it here to see how placement would look before completely pressing down my transfer tape. Step 2: You can buy grid or non-grid transfer tape, but I will tell you this, go with grid! You can purchase transfer tape by the roll or sheet...I've cut mine down to 12x12 sheets(same size as my Cricut cutting mat) for easier placement...here I'm using a 12x6 cut size...cut your transfer tape to the size of your vinyl as not to waste too much! While 'Welcome' was cut and still sitting on my Cricut cutting mat, I simply laid my transfer tape over it using the grid blocks to keep it nice and straight. Since my transfer tape was 6 inches in the middle, I lined the up with the lead line in my glass window(finger pointing to it). Step 3: Press transfer tape slowly onto your door. I used a spatula from my Cricut tool kit but a CC or ruler works just as good! Once you have the bubbles worked out you can press more firmly.Step4: Time to peel off! When you go to peel back the transfer tape, be sure to pull back slowly! Step 5: Voila! I really love this gold matte vinyl! If you didn't want to put the vinyl directly on your paint, you could always opt for putting it on the window above or also your glass storm door. I had considered putting it on the storm door at first but figured since the sun never shines directly on my door, I wouldn't have to worry about fading or painting my door anytime soon.


Happy Crafting!
Dawn ;)

Baby Banner Cards...

ETA: For my dear friend Michelle and anyone else who might be interested, the letters on the banner are from the Storybook-Cricut Cartridge. I found mine on clearance at Wal-mart several months back...I'm not sure if they even carry it anymore? Punch on the card is UPPER CREST by Fiskars.


It's been a while since I've had a request for a banner, but this one is for a baby shower and then will later be displayed in the baby's room. The only requirement for the banner is that it be in a black/bubblegum pink/lime green combo.
Once I had my design determined, I just started an assembly line with stamping and embellishments. Each card matte measures 5x7 and then each top matte is a 1/4 inch smaller to allow for each border to pop in color. The background here is Damask Designs with hot pink dot accents.
I used my Cricut Expressions to cut the letters out in pink and black. Now, I had all this put together but something felt like it was missing. The black letters just weren't as defined as I'd liked them to be, so I got this crazy idea to hand draw a dotted border! Tedious?!! YES!! But so worth it! I LOVE IT! I also received my new Tag Die from Papertrey Ink that was "die-ing" to be used! Also dusted off A Little Argyle for the background.

"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:)

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!

Retirement Banner...

Another fun banner! I love the bright colors and glitter (LOTS of Stickles going on here!). I needed to make this banner small enough to fit into a glass window for display. I "think" I cut each triangle at 4 inches on the top for a perfect fit!
I used several pieces of chipboard and spread coordinating Stickles on each one. Every time I think I'm about to run out of my glitter glue, I always find new ones I've never used...still with wrapper on the lid! The reason I prefer Stickles over regular glitter and glue is because the Stickles have a nice clean finish and the glitter doesn't "flake" off. I do have several large bottles of Martha Stewart glitter just sitting around...those bottles will probably end up in my girls' craft stash...lol
The 3-D vacation stickers are from Michael's. I love the extra depth the stickers add to the over all theme. The patterned paper is from a free pack I received at Archiver's...had just enough to complete this project!

Don't Forget About Teacher's...

Last Friday was the end of my BIG girl being a baby! She is more than ready for Kindergarten and had a blast celebrating Field Day with all her classmates. I feel very blessed that she was also taught by two wonderful teacher's, Ms. Queen and Ms. Sue. I was certainly hoping they would follow us to Gracie's new school, but no such luck! I hope they both know how much WE appreciate them! These "little people" images are the same that I used in the previous posts only this time I used the 3-D clothes that come with the set! Check out the girls shoes...snazzy!
Nothing says, "I'm a big girl" like some dazzling diamonds and satin ribbon! The names are stamped out with my PTI alpha set and then I used the scalloped circle (yellow one) punch for a little color POP!I stamped all the edges with my PTI sympathy set and added the flowers. I was sporadic with the flowers stamps, no particular order and followed the same method when adding the adhesive rhinestones.
I wanted to add this quick little number on today's post as well! You know when you go the florist and they have all those "generic" cards you can add to your bouquets? Well, since this bouquet was a sympathy set for someone who lost a close family member, no "generic" card would do. I really wanted something nice and elegant so I pulled out my PTI sympathy set and cut the ovals with my nesty dies. I'd say it coordinates pretty well with the flowers eh?

Busy start to the week and a baby surprise...

So what else do you do on a Monday AND it also happens to be your birthday??!!! Welllll, you spend it at the DMV of course...LOL! I would have loved to spend my birthday any other way, but since my license expired THAT DAY, it had to be taken care of! Plus, it's the only DMV I've been to where your 2 yr. old can sit on your lap while taking the written test...she was soo good for being there almost 4 hours! Needless to say, I did pass (barely!) and I officially carry a NC license now:) I've also been trying clean up my messy craft room, but then the urge passes and I'm back to square one!

Anyhoo, on with the fun "baby surprise" I made for my sister's baby-on-the-way! And you thought I was going to say "we" had a baby surprise right?? I love making baby stuff for friends and family. I was trying to think of a neat way to keep all the baby essentials organized, yet easy to see and readily available. All four jars here were only 8 bucks at Wal-Mart. These jars come in 3 different sizes and I used the medium size.To get started I wanted some material that would match the crib bedding. I ironed the material with a little starch to stiffen it up before running thru my wizard machine. After I cut the material out, I cut another circle the same size and mod-podged it on to the cs for strength. The letters are cut with my Cricut and the added flower embellishments are from my cuttlebug and foo-fa-la buttons. The wide polka-dot ribbon is some inexpensive stuff I picked up at Wal-Mart.The medium sized jars fit all the miniatures perfectly! In another jar I also put mylicon drops, baby tylenol, teething gel etc. You could make so many wonderful gifts with jars...think about the holidays...maybe a hot chocolate set for the kids, or cookie mix for teachers? Just a quick snapshot of sis' baby bedding. Our family friend, Sharon, made this bright ensemble. I think baby Kate is going to be very excited with all the bright colors:)

Am I making Halloween Cards???...lol

I had to laugh at that comment...I only wish I had enough time in the day to try out some new Halloween stamps...lol I've been MIA on some house projects. Now, I wouldn't normally share these here, but I thought it'd be kinda fun to showcase my interior artwork as well! I'm like a modern day Martha Stewart, just without the jail time and BIG fat paycheck...lol Home Sweet Home...love the colors, but especially love the "penthouse suite" above the garage...lol Its the only room upstairs and a great place to catch an afternoon nap or just relax. Its far enough away from the other rooms so you have complete silence! If you look really close, you can see my little one running in front of the hibiscus bushes. The girls have longed for a yard after living in NYC for the last 3 years...we had an apt. on the 3rd floor there...NOT conducive for kids!
This is the main bathroom downstairs and was painted in the standard white. I knew I wanted to try a chocolate on the wall and since I've never painted before, the bathroom is small enough to make my start. I picked up the shower curtain at Penny's...can you tell its actually CURTAINS?? Ok, I will admit it, I LOVE Pottery Barn but not their prices and this striped curtain was perfect while browsing Penny's(plus the price was in my budget). I had every intention of hemming the bottoms, but after hanging them, I decided I like the height depth and went up higher with the shower rod. There is a lower rod on the inside for the liner.

ACCCKKK!! MORE STRIPES!! I'm not doing the WHOLE house in them...just 2 rooms for now...lol These particular colors were pulled from the Rooster plate above, and these colors will be incorporated in my kitchen. I found the pillows and rooster dish at Kirkland's and brought them with me to the fabric store for swatch's. The fabric samples will later be turned into curtains and a bench seat cushion. One project at a time...Martha's not into sharing her money:(


And last but not least...I was nominated for my first blog awards:) Since I was hit twice, I will just list some of my favorite blogs I love to visit!

1. Regina-she is my SU! Demo and incredibly sweet!
2. Dawn-She's like the digi-scrap queen! She made my blog banner and has the cutest set of twin girls...not that I'm bias or anything!
3. Debbie Olson-incredibly talented! She's got me hooked on soldering now...yes, that means you will soon a new project from me:)
4. Nichole Heady-She is the creator of Papertrey Ink Stamps...I own many of her creations!
5. Michelle-Because she's the one who started this madness! I met Michelle while living in NYC(we were neighbors) and happened to be over at her house one night and began browsing a SU! catty. It was all over then...lol Although we are separated by many miles(both military families) now, we still keep in touch and chat about all the new stamp gadgets out!



Sooo, if you've made it this far down the post, there will be new posts this week so stay tuned:)

Sweet Lil' Feet...

Finally getting around to framing the kiddos little feet! I'm not really sure why I chose these colors to stamp their feet in, but Gracies were done 3 years ago so I had to go based off those colors. I have stamped several copies of their feet when they were both newborns, for the sake of being able to do multiple projects with them. The frames were actually covered in blue pastels so I took the paper off and came up with more cheerful colors:) Supplies used: Carter's first foot/hand print frames(ribbon was already attached), SEI pp(fruit stand), M's ribbon, CM cs(for letters), pop bubbles for over the letters, and modpodge. This was a pretty quick project, other than going back and adding the stripes paper. I had originally done the whole frames in cherries, but decided it needed something more. I'm really pleased with how it turned out:)

Cuddly baby blanket...

I did this cuddly blanket for a friends new baby. I thought the material was fitting since they are a Navy family and they have a new son. I had done a previous prototype(on a much smaller scale!), but wanted to go for the BIG one! I'm really pleased with how it turned out. My sewing machine probably needs a tune up with all the projects I've done the last few years. She was a little squeeky tonight, but got the job done:) I'm not big on sewing anything rounded, but I can sew a mean straight stitch...lol So what do you think?