Altered Tool box...

Isn't she cute?? I love to alter all sorts of stuff. I have this knack for walking into stores and immediately think of how I can cover it with pretty paper! I wanted to keep this one pretty simple since I'm going to be tossing my tools in and out. The patterned paper is by Junkitz and I used sticky tape instead of modge podge. I find modge podge is too messy for paper/metal applications sometimes so the tape was best for this. I also added some nice double stitched black ribbon from Mike's and added the "tools" frame. The alphabet stamp is SU! Whimisical and I cut it out with CM oval patterns and matted it.
This is the orignial tin before altering. I found it at Joann's for 75% in their summer section and as soon as I saw it, I knew it'd be great for my tools. It even had a cute bottle cap opener attached, but I took that off...lol I have outgrown my older holder and started storing my tools in a drawer, but they were getting out of reach and I grab for them often. This was a perfect and cheap solution:)

Altered Project #3...

Here is the last one for this week! I've had some much fun altering containers and such that I'm going to do it next week...AGAIN! These will all be different items so you'll have to stop by and check them out! Now back to the Prima bottle. Whoever is the Marketing Director at Prima sure knows how to sucker us women in with the clever packaging their lovely flowers come in. I find myself re-using the packaging more than the flowers...lol Anyhoo, this is pretty straight forward on design. I simply took off all the labels on the bottle(use rubbing alcohol and a cotton ball to remove any sticky residue) and covered around the entire bottom with a "bottle band". The only adhesive I have found that works really great on this glass is the 1/8 sticky tape. It has a very strong hold for this slick working surface. The bottle is filled with chocolate nuggets and I cut a little piece of Mike's ribbon to adhere to the lid:) I used all these recycling items as give-aways for my Mommy's group this week. Just a little thank-you for them:)

Recycled project #2

How about an old Prima tin? This tin is from the Prima Hydrangea line and is made of nice and sturdy metal, with a "peek-a-boo" top! I used all the same product from the last post and also added a little shredded kraft paper on the bottom of the tin to help prevent the chocolate nuggets from sliding around. I topped off the tin with some new 5/8 inch orange ribbon from Mike's. This size ribbon is new for me and I love how elegant it ties. What a fun way to play with recyclables:)

Altering Week--Project #1

I thought it'd be fun to try something new in "altering" projects. There will be 3 new "altered" projects this week using recycled containers. I have saved container after container that my supplies come in and its time to put them to use! All posts this week use the same paper and stamp sets, so I will give the recipe in the first post only.

The first one up is using recycled "Foo-fa-la" button bags. The buttons come in these super cute snap bags and are stapled shut. To keep the design super simple AND cover up the staple holes, I made a complimentary front band. I used SU! Lavendar and American TD patterned paper for the base strip and faux stitching completes the look. For the oval I used PTI oval stamps and spooky treats and matted on a lavender oval with my CM oval cutting patterns. Where the "half-moons" are in the first stamped oval, I added some bling with my clear glitter pen and its sooo sparkly(hard to tell from the photo). To adhere to the plastic bag be sure to use a strong adhesive...my favorite is 1/8 inch sticky tape...I use it on EVERYTHING!!!
Chocolate nuggets are covered with an Avery Address label that are stamped with PTI spooky treats set. I used Versamagic Dew Drops in: Tea leaves, Mango madness, Purple Hydrangea, and Midnight black.
Let me see what you can recycle! Leave a link on your comment to share with us:)

Princess Party...

I love having little girls to decorate for! I made these invitations for Miss Anna's 1st birthday. She has BRIGHT red hair and I'm sure she's a pistol for her Mama too...lol You can check out this cutie patootie by clicking on the icon below, look for "Sweetpea Madison" on my sidebar!

This is a fairly simple layout, the only time consuming part is watercoloring the princess. I wouldn't have wanted to color her in any other medium though, because she is a rough sketch and you don't have to be soo formal with watercoloring...suits her well! I chose Bazzill "Berry Smooth" for the card base(stamped the "polka dot" bg from "Polka Dots & Paisley" set), Bazzill Black for the second layer, and stamped my image on SU! Whisper white. The princess is stamped Black Stazon and the bday info. is printed from MSWord. All the colors on the princess are watercoloring pencils except for the pink, which is done with SU! "pretty in pink" re-inker. Since she needed just a bit more sparkle, I used Diamond Stickles on her crown, heart, and wand. Perfect touch for a magical birthday:)

Tabb Tigers...

I beginning to think I should own "stock" in Tabb Tigers...lol If school districts offered it, I'd be the first to line up...wink wink! These are part of a few things I've put together for a dear friend in VA. I have her all stocked up so she can give gifts thru-out the year. Some of these items have posted before, but I like to change them up a bit every now and then. Of course, the new ones are the name tags for the PTA:) They definitely "scream" school spirit! I can't wait until my girlies are in this stage and having a ball! Of course by then, they will have nothing to do with me right??...lol

Monograms...

Because who doesn't like Monograms right?! These by far, are the easiest cards I've ever put together. Not only are they simple, but they also have a nice clean look to them.

It was also another chance to play with my new Nestability dies and even after cracking both "b" plates on my Cuttlebug, I'm STILL convinced I will buy more...lol I have read many reviews, blogs, and manufacturer guidelines on compatibilty with these dies coinciding with other machines. I'm no expert by any means, but I certainly would STRONGLY suggest you buy the Wizard die cutting machine to go with these dies. The dies themselves are very strong and are no match for the "plastic" die cutting plates on the Cuttlebug. The Wizard machine is quite pricey so that will be a long term investment in the near future.

Recipe:PTI white select for the card base, Black Stazon ink, Wild Rose set from SU!, SU! Whimsical Alpha, all other cs from CM

Hawaiian baby...

I love this Hawaiian material I used on the burp cloth and knew I had just the right patterned paper to go with it! I wanted to keep the card simple so I started off with PTI select white, added the PP(from Mike's), used Polka Dot and Paisley Dot BG,"baby" sentiment is from Heidi Swapp, added some Prima's, and threw on some Foo-Fa-La buttons. Pretty simple and clean right? The flowers do stick out a bit, but I just used a larger envelope to accomdate them.

Monkeying around...

This is a special request notebook I did for a friend. She is giving this away to a friend who loves monkey's and was just diagnosed with an illness. So hopefully this will cheer her up a bit:) After I had it all packaged and ready to go, I should have put "hang in there" as a sentiment, just wish I had thought of it earlier! This has been the most fun I've had with playing with paper and its the quickest project I've put together. It usually takes me 2 days or so before my ideas click! The notebook base is from Staples and I covered it with a Mossy Green from CM, then Bazzill Brown, and some pp(from a BIG pad). I used my Paisley BG from SU! and inked it up with Certainly Celerly(on vanilla cs) for a soft subtle background. The monkey and branch are prepackaged from Elizabeth's LSS(local scrapbook store). I used my SU! slit punch and distresser for more detail and aging. I also had the chance to break out my new Nestability dies, which I used for the sentiment cirlce(the one that is embossed) and stamped with my snap stamps. Lastly, I added MM vintage brads and Mike's ribbon. Elizabeth, I sure hope this gift lifts her spirits:)

I'm officially a "Soccer Mom"...

1. GAVE BIRTH--check
2. OWN A MINIVAN--check
3. 1st BORN STARTS HER FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL--check(hesitantly!!)

If I'm MIA in posting this week, its because I'm having to pick myself up, mop up the tears, and smack myself out of it:) My oldest, Gracie is starting pre-school, and although she is super excited, its been even harder on Mommy! I know this is her time for growth, maturing, and development but her wings still feel so "new" to me. Gracie, always know you have two wonderful loving parents who absolutely adore you! Have fun on your first day of school "button".

Baby cards...

I'm not quite sure why I'm on this baby kick...other than there are lots of women around me expecting! And as long as its not me, I'm perfectly happy to make them...lol For this sweet little boy card I used SU! Blue Bashful for the base and a second layer of Certainly Celery was a perfect combo. The PP is Provo Craft(Mon Petit line) and I purchased it at Micheals. Now, the whole concept behind my little pea pod(Papertry ink) was to have it "appear" that it was laying in a bassinet and covered with a quilt. I used my SU! slit punch to create the scallop strip for the blanket and used my Mega Scalloped punch for the pink(bazzill) bassinet base. The dot bg is from the Itty Bitty set and the quilt dots are from the bg stamp set Dots and Paisley. I tied with Mike's ribbon and added some Crystal effects to the peas to make them 3-D.
The baby girl card is pretty much the same concept as above, but with a few differences. Obivously, it being pink for a girl, which I used Pretty in Pink ink on my SU! Paisley bg and stamped on PTI white select. I also added some faux stitching around the center image. These center squares actually started out as 3x3 cards, but after putting embellishments on, I wanted to turn them into cards.

Baby bag tags...

Because I can't stop making these...lol I just had to make one for my Nephew Aidan. These cute patootie monkies were found in the gift section(you know where they keep all the cute invite cards) and I couldn't resist them! They already have the adhesive on and eyes, so just stick and peel! He already had a single bananna in his hand and I tucked some more under the other arm. CS base is CM brown and PTI select white. I raided my sitcker bin for the leaf stickers that I put on the white base. The white cs looked too stark so I rubbed SU! chocolate chip and certainly celery on for an "aged" look and distressed the edges. Karen Foster stamps were used for the names. Since I didn't think ribbon was appropriate for him, I rummaged thru my ribbon bin and found some raffia that coordinated perfectly!
Little girls are soo easy to decorate for! I only wish I had these "light bulb" moments for little boy items!! Again, raided the ol' sticker bin and had this cute 3-D lady bug to play with. Black Bazzil CS is the base and I stamped the flowers(papertrey ink) with Dew Drops Cloud white and Sunflower Yellow. I used my CM oval cutter for the name frame and added some MM red brads. The red gingham paper is from CM. The ribbon is from my stampin' buddy Michelle...its perfect!