Sassy & Sweet Notes

Poodle Gift Bag

I have this fun 1950's inspired scalloped handle gift bag featured on the Sizzix blog today! Check it out!

Campy Matchbook Notebook

I have a tutorial featured on the Sizzix blog today, featuring the Matchbook Notebook die, and lots of cute critters!

Check it out!

 

Supplies
Stamps: Whipper Snapper Designs, Cosmo Cricket, Stampin' Up!
Ink: Jet Black StazOn, Distress Inks
Paper: Fabriano 100% Cotton Cold Press Watercolor paper, Cosmo Cricket
Dies: Sizzix Matchbook Notebook
Other: Brads, Twine, Albrecht Durer 120 Watercolor Pencil Set, Niji Waterbrush, Albrecht Durer watercolor pencils, Tombow Markers

Felt Bunny Ornament

Isn't she a cutie! And to give you some size perspective, that's a half-gallon sized jar she's hanging from. Vintage mother-of-pearl buttons are an eBay purchase. *grin*

I have a tutorial featured on the Sizzix blog today! Check it out!

High Hopes Challenge: Anything That Hops

It's Tuesday, and time for a new High Hopes blog challenge! This week's challenge topic is Anything That Hops! Join us!

For my project, I made an Easter themed pencil treat box that holds four pencils. These pencil boxes are quick and easy to make, and fun to give as gifts. If you'd like to make one as well, I have a template I created a few years ago.

Pencil "Treat" Box Template

And, here are links to some of my other projects I've made using this template:

Halloween Pencil Treat Boxes

Holiday Pencil Treat Boxes

Graduation Pencil Treat Boxes

To decorate this pencil box, I chose the super cute Small Easter Bunny image. I stamped the image on watercolor paper with black StazOn ink and colored it with watercolor pencils. I added a bit of glitter to the flowers in her hat and on her bow for sparkle and shine.

Find all the details of this week's challenge on the High Hopes blog. I hope you join us!

 

Supplies
Stamp: Small Easter Bunny (High Hopes)
Ink: StazOn Black
Paper: Fabriano 100% Cotton Cold Press Watercolor paper, Neenah, We R Memory Keepers
Albrecht Durer 120 Watercolor Pencil Set
Other: Niji Waterbrush, Button, String, Ribbon, Studio G Glitter Glue, tracing wheel

Spring Milk Carton Favor Box

I have a fun spring/Easter themed milk carton tutorial featured on the Sizzix blog today! Check it out!

Impression Obsession: Designer Hop Day 3

Welcome to the third and final day of the Impression Obsession 2014 Spring Die Blog Hop! If you're a new visitor to my blog, welcome!

Some friends of ours recently adopted a new puppy, so I put together a little bag of treats to send off to the new family addition. The cookies are shaped like farm animals. Cute!

To make this treat topper I used several new dies, including Puppy Set, Small Bird Set, Leaves & Stems, Tiny Flowers. I also used previously released dies Small Grass Border, Fence Border, and Clouds. The puppy is a little difficult to see in my photos... dang it! But trust me, it's cute as can be! *grin*

Blog Hop Details:
The hop will start each day with a list of participants on the Impression Obsession Blog at 6am EST. Each day, visit the Impression Obsession blog. Then, hop along to see participating IO Design Team projects. Leave one comment on each blog you visit. The more blogs you visit (and comment on) each day, the better chance you will have to win a $25 Impression Obsession Gift Certificate!

Every day (Tuesday, March 25th – Thursday, March 27th) one of the participating blogs will be chosen randomly and a winner will be selected from comments on that blog at 10pm CT. The winner will be announced the following day on the Impression Obsession blog, along with the participating blogs for that day.

Two prizes will be awarded on the last day of the hop. One will be for Thursday’s comments and another will be chosen from all the comments left throughout the week. So, if you miss a day or time deadline your comments will still count for a chance to win a $25 Impression Obsession Gift Certificate. Both Thursday winners will be announced on the Impression Obsession blog on Friday.

All of the new dies you'll be seeing on the hop are available now! Visit the Impression Obsession website for details.

 

Today’s hop list!

Impression Obsession Blog

Anna Wight ---You Are Here---

Daniela Dobson

Dina Kowal

Ellen Taylor

Jeanne Streiff

Jenny Gropp

Kittie Caracciolo

Laura Fulcher

Vicki Garrett

Impression Obsession: Designer Hop Day 2

Welcome to day 2 (of 3) of the Impression Obsession 2014 Spring Die Blog Hop! If you're a new visitor to my blog, welcome! I hope you enjoy the projects I share, and add me to your list of inspiring craft blogs! (You'll find a subscription box in the right side navigation bar ... just scroll down a bit, and you'll see it).

I die cut the jar out of soft watercolor paper, and die cut the rest of the pieces from various colors of cardstock and patterned papers. Once all the pieces were die cut, I assembled the tag. I added a bit of cheerful hand-dyed seam binding ribbon to the top.

What could be sweeter than spring in a jar!?

To make this gift tag, I used several new dies, including Mason Jar, Rabbit Set, Small Bird Set, Leaves & Stems, Tiny Flowers. I also used previously released dies Small Grass Border and Clouds.

 

Blog Hop Details:
The hop will start each day with a list of participants on the Impression Obsession Blog at 6am EST. Each day, visit the Impression Obsession blog. Then, hop along to see participating IO Design Team projects. Leave one comment on each blog you visit. The more blogs you visit (and comment on) each day, the better chance you will have to win a $25 Impression Obsession Gift Certificate!

Every day (Tuesday, March 25th – Thursday, March 27th) one of the participating blogs will be chosen randomly and a winner will be selected from comments on that blog at 10pm CT. The winner will be announced the following day on the Impression Obsession blog, along with the participating blogs for that day.

Two prizes will be awarded on the last day of the hop. One will be for Thursday’s comments and another will be chosen from all the comments left throughout the week. So, if you miss a day or time deadline your comments will still count for a chance to win a $25 Impression Obsession Gift Certificate. Both Thursday winners will be announced on the Impression Obsession blog on Friday.

All of the new dies you'll be seeing on the hop are available now! Visit the Impression Obsession website for details.

 

Today’s hop list!

Impression Obsession Blog

Anna Wight ---You Are Here---

Daniela Dobson

Dina Kowal

Ellen Taylor

Jeanne Streiff

Jenny Gropp

Kittie Caracciolo

Laura Fulcher

Vicki Garrett

Matchbox and Bow-Tie

I have this fun matchbox project being featured on the Sizzix blog today! Check it out! Complete with fly fishing flies made by my Dad!

The Coop

How about putting a little "more" country on the country cottage house! I used the Sizzix Biz XL Country Cottage 3-D die to create a little chicken barn, complete with grain silo! I had the best time making this project!

I used some corn button embellishments to decorate the ends of the coop. I placed little brown brads on the door of the coop and the silo for door knobs. Using one of the shutter dies, I created a little sign to hang above the door... "The Coop".

I even used chickens from a couple of my Whipper Snapper cling mount sets to create some stand-up chickens for the yard! They were stamped on watercolor paper, colored, fussy cut, and a little tab at the bottom of each was slipped into a slit I made in the base of the cottage to allow them to stand upright.

When I adhered the coop onto the base, I placed it at a slight angle, allowing me a bit more room at the front of the cottage for the chickens.

I decorated the top of the coop with a cute rusty star, antique mother of pearl button, and a little handmade "fresh eggs" banner.

I created the grain silo by wrapping The Paper Loft's designer woodgrain paper around a standard cardboard tissue roll. For the top of the silo, I die cut a scalloped circle and using scissors, snipped to the center of the scalloped circle so that I could form the circle into a cone shape by overlapping some of the scallops. A healthy addition of dry Distress Glitter to everything really sparkled up the place!

I hope this little coop provides you with a bit of inspiration! I know I can't WAIT to make more fun themed cottages! I've got quite a little collection started!

 

Spring Country Cottages

I have a fun spring cottage project tutorial featured on the Sizzix blog today!

I used the Sizzix Biz XL Country Cottage 3-D die to create these little cuties!

If you'd like to see how to put these cottages together, there's a tutorial for you on the Sizzix blog.

Enjoy!!

Fun, Crafty News!

So, I hinted yesterday that I had some big, fun, crafty news to share with you ... I'm so HAPPY to share that I was recently invited to join the Sizzix Design Team!

Today is my first post on the Sizzix blog .... won't you hop over and see what I've created!?

Someone pinch me ... is this real life!?  *grin!*

The Challenge Chicks: My Furry Valentine (and Video)

If you're a stamper and you like challenges, or you're new to the idea of challenges and want to give one a whirl, I invite you to participate with The Challenge Chicks! We're a small group of friends and stampers hosting monthly challenges. Won't you join us?!

Our challenge for February 2014 is issued by Diane! She is challenging us with the topic of My Furry Valentine, and asks us to make a Valentine using a critter themed image. I love this topic because not only do I love using critter themed stamps, but I also love making little projects for critters in our immediate and extended family! 

For my project I decided to make little dog treat pouches with Valentine themed toppers. I used my Twiggy stamp on one, and a Penny Black stamp on the other. These pouches are quick, easy and FUN! to put together.

If you'd like to see other toppers I've made, here are a few links for you:
Halloween Treats
Puppy Love
Christmas Wraps for Pets - Woof!
Treat Toppers for Humans
Treat Toppers for Dogs
Treat Toppers for Furry Friends
Treat Toppers for Furry Friends Part 2

And finally, in this video I share a few more details on the products I've used to make these fun teats.

If you have trouble viewing the video here on my blog, you can also find it on my YouTube Channel.

Now, get yourself a good dose of inspiration and check out the rest of The Challenge Chicks projects:

Diane Zechman
Lydia Fiedler
Jeanne Streiff
Kelli Hull
Kelly Schirmer
Anna Wight (that's me!)

You'll find this month's challenge gallery on SplitCoastStampers using keyword CHXFEB14. We invite you to play along! Upload your project to your SplitCoastStampers gallery, add the keyword above, and your project will be automatically added to the gallery. Or join us on Facebook!

We look forward to seeing your projects!

 

Supplies
Stamp: Twiggy from Whipper Snapper Designs, Good Boy! from Penny Black
Dies: Sizzix Labels 6; Spellbinders Circle, Scalloped Circle, and Asian Accents
Paper: Crate Paper, Neenah
Ink: Black StazOn
Albrecht Durer 120 Watercolor Pencil Set
Other: Crochet Thread, Studio G Glitter Glue, Ultra Fine Diamond Dust Glitter, Darice Foam Conversation Hearts, Heart Gem, Button

The Challenge Chicks: Winter Wonderland

Welcome to a new year of Challenge Chicks challenges! If you're a stamper and you like challenges, or you're new to the idea of challenges and want to give one a whirl, I invite you to participate with The Challenge Chicks! We're a small group of friends and stampers hosting monthly challenges. Won't you join us?!

Our challenge for January 2014 is issued by me! I'm not ready to let go of winter just yet, so January is all about Winter Wonderland! For my project I used the Trophy Ice Skates die from Sizzix to create a refridgerator magnet. I adhered patterned paper to chipboard and ran the die and chipboard through my BigShot.

Once the shapes were cut, I inked the edges a bit, colored the heel and blade on each skate with markers, and embellished with laces, sparkly twigs, baubles, a tag and glittery bell. I glued two strong magnets on the back so it would have some holding power while on the fridge.

And as an added bonus for you, here are two wool felt ornaments my Mom made with the same Sizzix die while I was visiting her and Dad for Christmas. Beautiful, don't you agree!?

Now, get yourself a good dose of inspiration and check out the rest of The Challenge Chicks projects:

Diane Zechman
Lydia Fiedler
Jeanne Streiff
Kelli Hull
Kelly Schirmer
Anna Wight (that's me!)

And finally, you'll find this month's challenge gallery on SplitCoastStampers using keyword CHXJAN14 . We invite you to play along! Upload your project to your SplitCoastStampers gallery, add the keyword above, and your project will be automatically added to the gallery. Or join us on Facebook!

We look forward to seeing your projects!

 

Supplies for Magnet
Dies: Sizzix Trophy Ice Skates, Spellbinders Tag
Stamp: A Muse
Paper: American Crafts, chipboard, Neenah
Ink: Ranger Distress Ink in Brushed Corduroy, Black StazOn
ShinHan Touch Twin markers: BG7, WG9
Other: Hemp twine, Glittered decor pics, tracing wheel, bell, magnets

Supplies for Felt Ornaments
Dies: Sizzix Trophy Ice Skates, Spellbinders leaves
Other: Wool felt, button, DMC floss

Primitive Cat Wool Felt Ornaments

We've made it tradition to do craft projects while I'm visiting Mom and Dad for Christmas. This year, Mom and I decided to make wool felt ornaments using various dies and hand drawn patterns. I made a couple of primitive cats, using wool felt, embroidery thread, rusty wire, bells, and some cute mother of pearl buttons.
Even their cat Streak got in on the action. Meow! *grin*

Tags

Still working on wrapping gifts this fine Christmas Eve? Here are a few tags that perhaps will provide some inspiration!

Garden twine, a few pieces of card stock, and a wee jingle bell were used to make this tag.

I love using big gingham ribbon on packages! This tag is embellished with pine twig and pinecone die cuts from Impression Obsession, set on top of a few felt leaves. I used red glitter paper for the pinked circle layer for lots of sparkle and shine.

To dress up the bow, I added a pretty red Buttons Galore button that I topped with a snowflake gem.

This tag is dressed up with a silk poinsettia I plucked from a flower bunch. I set the flower on two felt leaves.

And finally, a simpler version using the Impression Obsession pinecone and twig dies. Quick and easy, and super cute! *grin*

Treats!

I love giving repackaged treats at Christmas. Whether homemade goodies, or store bought treats that get a little packaging facelift. This year I put together some cute packages of humorous goodies, too! Using "reindeer poop" as the inspiration, I made packages of Frosty Goat Poo. Life on the farm has lots of benefits. *grin* I chose to use cute little treat bags I picked up at Michael's that have little sheep faces printed on them. Close enough to what I needed! I added a farm fresh tag and on the backside I wrote the name of the treats.

Another style of treats I put together this year are packages of Hershey nuggets I wrapped with various printed papers, and packaged in long clear envelopes. I added tags to the top of the packages and cute bows embellished with buttons and snowflakes. I saw the idea for these treat packets on Pinterest, I believe.

I think packaging, or repackaging gifts is a fun gift to give for Christmas. Another gift I put together this year were pretty serving bowls filled with 2 dozen farm fresh eggs. I chose pretty bowls I thought our friends would like, filled them with fresh eggs, covered with clear wrap, added a pretty ribbon bow and tag, and delivered them to their homes. They were well received! This is an idea I will be tucking away for years to come.

Altered Clear Pail and Chocolates

I mentioned in my post yesterday that having fewer days between Thanksgiving and Christmas this year has put a wrinkle in my to-do list. I normally make lots of homemade treats to mail out to family and friends, but this year I wasn't really expecting to have so little extra time! So, some store-bought treats were assembled instead for packages that needed mailing. It's still all good, right!? *grin*

This is one of the containers I altered, and filled with individually wrapped chocolate nuggets. The pail is from Stampendous. I chose pretty papers from the Lost & Found Special Christmas Edition by My Minds Eye. I love that the reds on the paper are even glittered! I used a vintage red pipe cleaner, some pretty silver leaves, a holly leaf made with the Sizzix Embosslit, some cute little painted pinecones, and some red pip berries to decorate the top of the container. A pretty red gingham ribbon bow is tied to the handle.

I hope the jolly elf and his family who receive this enjoys a bit of chocolate!

Upcyled Gift Tag

I wrapped up a few holiday gifts tonight, and thought I'd share one of the gift tags I made. I started with a tag that was on a pet toy that was a super cute shape, and made of very sturdy chipboard ... perfect for altering! I covered both sides of the tag with patterned paper and used a few die cut shapes and stamps to decorate the shape. The altered project is much "cuter", and made easy enough by adding a little glue, paper, and stamps!

Here's what I started with...

Maybe you'll see something in your own holiday shopping stash that can be upcycled for holiday wrapping!

 

Supplies
Stamps: Lawn Fawn (dog), Studio G (alpha)
ShinHan Touch Twin markers
Paper: American Crafts, Neenah, BoBunny, The Stamps of Life, Dog Toy Tag
Ink: Memento Black
Dies: Scalloped Edge (Sizzix), Egg and Banner (The Stamps of Life), Dog (Lawn Fawn)
Other: Tracing Wheel, eyelet

Halloween Treats (and Video)

I finished the Halloween treat toppers! The bags are entire pound of fun gummies of all sorts!

The ghost image is from The Stamps of Life Spooky2Scare stamp set. The sentiment tag was made with small little stamps I bought at Michael's a few years ago. The topper was made with an ornate label die from Sizzix/Stephanie Barnard (cut and then scored and folded down the center), and a couple of Spellbinders circle dies.

The back of the topper has a list of creepy treats Alan and I dreamed up.

Don't they sound delish!? Each thing on the list is represented by a different kind of candy in the bag. Oooooh, gooey fun!

I also put together a basket of goodies, including one of the big candy bags, one of my Halloween Pencil Treats, and a cute little Halloween notepad I bought earlier this month. The basket is a wooden berry basket that I painted black and dressed up with holiday papers, tulle, buttons, and twine.

If you'd like to see the video I made where I share the toppers and a few other Halloween projects, here you go!

If you have trouble viewing the video here on my blog, you'll find it on my YouTube channel.

Happy, happy, HAPPY Monday...

Halloween Treats Sneak Peek

Here's a peek at some Halloween goodies I've been working on... I plan to do a quick video about these and will post more photos as well, but wanted to give a peek at the progress. Spooky-Fun!!

High Hopes Challenge: Make a Box!

The current High Hopes challenge is to make a box. I whipped up this cocoa mix and candy cane treat ensemble using a pillow box. So that I could insert the candy cane, I snipped the end flaps on the pillow box a bit shy of the end of the box so that when they were folded closed they created a hole for the candy cane to fit through. Works like a charm!

I chose to use the adorable Snowy's Cup and the Warm Winter Wishes sentiment, along w/ some holiday paper from an older paper stack called Harvest and Holiday, by Debbie Mumm for JoAnn.

Find all the details of this week's challenge on the High Hopes blog.

Supplies
Stamps: High Hopes
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black
Paper: JoAnn, Neenah
ShinHan Touch Twin markers
Other: Dress It Up button, twine, May Arts ribbon, Hobby Lobby Candy Cane charm, ClearBags.com Pillow Box

Outdoorsy Themed Mini / Journal

Now that this fun project has been received, I can share the video and not spoil the surprise!!

If you're having trouble viewing the video here on my blog, check it out on my YouTube channel.

Here are some detail photos of the journal.

The journal measures 5.5" x 6" and is bound together with a Rubicoil Binding Machine and a 14mm coil. I used various Spellbinders leaf dies as well as a couple EK Success punches for all of the leaves.

The banners were made with the Banners #2 stamp/die set, from Sizzix. The buttons (except the one of the cover) are from The Stamps of Life. I liked the matte finish, and they were the perfect size!

The patterned papers are from the Happy Camper 6x6 pad, from Echo Park. I used various colors and brands of cardstock for the folio pages. The white paper is Fabriano Medioevalis cards and small sheets.

I loved creating the pocket pages using various printed papers and leaves.

I used lots of differnent kinds of papers in the journal to add interest and places for her to clip little notes, photos, or lists. I used this die cut shape several times as a colorful divider between sections. The die is from the Majestic #2 Labels set, from Sizzix.

I thought the pages looked fun, all fanned out.

And the edges of the papers were all so different and interesting!

The leaf cluster on the front is full of color and texture!

This was a super fun project to make! *Smooches!*

 

Supplies:
Rubicoil Binding Machine
Binding Coils (4:1 Pitch, which means 4 holes per inch)
Buttons: The Stamps of Life
Dies: Majestic #2 Labels, Banners #2, MFT Feathers
Paper: Happy Camper by Echo Park, Party Day by Crate Paper, Fabriano Medioevalis

A Few New Crafties! (Video)

My previous two "haul" videos seemed to be enjoyed, so here are a few goodies I picked up on a trip to town yesterday evening...

If you're having trouble viewing the video here on my blog, you can check it out on my YouTube channel.

I'm going to be hosting another Whipper Snapper give-away here on my blog soon ... stay tuned!

Happy THURSDAY!

Easy Post-It Note Wrap (and Video)

Hi-ya! A quick and easy project to share today! It would be a perfect project for quick gift for teachers, co-workers, or even as small holiday gifts for people like your post office crew! An easy Post-It Note wrap that you can decorate and embellish with most any paper/stamp/sticker you might have in your stash.


For this wrap I used paper, chipboard, and a stamp from the Cosmo Cricket Smore Love line I picked up a couple of weeks ago. *Love it!* I was so happy to find these cute crafty goodies, since the Mr. Campy line is my very favorite Cosmo Cricket line. Smore Love is a coordinating line with Mr. Campy.

The cover is easy to make. For a 3"x3" Post-It Note stack, cut a piece of cardstock to 3 1/8" x 6 5/8", and make score lines at 3 1/8" and 3 1/2" to create the center spine. For the designer paper, I used 3"x3" squares, so there was just a thin border showing around all sides. Decorate as you'd like!

Want to watch a video of this little project being put together? Lucky for you, I made one! *grin*

If you're having trouble viewing the video here on my blog, you will find it on my YouTube channel.

Happy crafting!

Apple / Teacher Themed Thank You Gift (Video)

I put together a thank you gift for a friend, and filmed it for you. *grin*

If you're having trouble viewing the video here on my blog, you can check it out on my YouTube channel.

Happy Weekend!!

High Hopes Sneak Peek!

On Wednesday of this week, High Hopes is releasing their line of 2013 holiday images. And if you're a fan of Santa, snowmen, and penguins, you're in for a treat!

Speaking of treats, I decorated this treat packet with a fun and easy snowman tag -- one of the images in the upcoming release. The sentiment is a separate stamp, so you can leave his tummy blank, add To and From, or add a sentiment as I've done. So cute, so easy, so fun!

 

Supplies
Stamp: Snowy Tag & sentiment (High Hopes Stamps)
Ink: Memento Black
Paper: Neenah
ShinHan Touch Twin markers: PB144, BG1, BG3, BG5, BG7, CG1, CG3, CG5, GY175, Y42, Y169, R136, RP7, RP89
Other: Holly Punch (Martha Stewart), Button, string, tracing wheel, May Arts twine

Graduation Themed Pencil Treat

Here's a quick and easy graduation themed project for grads you may know! This would be easy to customize with the graduate's school colors, too!

The cute tag die is from The Stamps of life... along with the bitty scalloped circle, and sentiment, too!

Want the dimensions for the pencil box? Check out my Pencil "Treat" Box template.

 

Supplies
Stamps: MiniTags2Cut and Minis4Circles by The Stamps of Life
Ink: Strawberry and Licorice, Stephanie Barnard ColorBox
Paper: Neenah, October Afternoon, and The Stamps of Life
Dies: MiniTags2Cut by The Stamps of Life
Other: Button, May Arts ribbon and twine

Happy May Day!

Happy May, dare I say, to all of you who got SNOW today!?!

Coffee!

Coffee and tea are popular subjects these days (and not just in papercrafting), so I was excited to see The Stamps of Life release dies that coordinate with their coffee themed stamp set. I put together a few projects using the new dies, and thought I'd share them with you!

First, I made a treat packet using a glassine envelope. I put chocolate covered espresso beans inside, folded down the opening of the envelope, and added a paper band around the bag to keep it closed. I used the coffee cup die to create a small gift card that I added to the front of the treat packet. The backside of the coffee cup shaped gift card is just slipped underneath the paper band that wraps around the bag of treats. The paper band holds the coffee cup card in place, and the card helps decorate the front of the treat bag. Yummy!! Yes, please!

I also made this card, using the negative shape of the coffee cup die. Using different patterned papers with the die made this card super easy to make! The coffee die set also comes with the itty bitty coffee cup die I used on the circle charm. I cut it out in chocolate brown paper and added a cute antique button to the center.

And finally, I also made this card using the label die from the same set of dies. It's a great shape, and will come in handy for all kinds of fun projects!

And speaking of coffee .... if you're a coffee drinker, what's your favorite brand and roast?

 

Supplies:
Stamps: Coffee4Two and Coffee Dies by The Stamps of Life
Paper: Neenah, Bazzil, Cosmo Cricket, October Afternoon, and The Paper Loft
Other: bakers twine, buttons, thread, tracing wheel, glassine bag

High Hopes Challenge: Celebrate!

The current High Hopes challenge topic is Celebrate! I chose to celebrate Spring!

I used the adorable Jeepers Peepers chick to decorate a clear paint can that I filled with yellow "grass", a few pencils, and some treats.

I hope you'll join us for this week's challenge!

Find all the details on the High Hopes blog.

 

Supplies
Stamp: Jeepers Peepers by High Hopes Rubber Stamps
Ink: Memento Black
Paper: Neenah, Paper Accents, Bo Bunny
ShinHan Touch Twin markers: Y36, YR32, YR31, BR103, BR107, R2, R3
Other: Clear Paint Can, Ribbon, Paper Doily, Sizzix Flower Layers & Leaf die, Spellbinders circle and pinked circle dies

you're delightful....

Yup, you really are! I put together this card using the rest of the emboss resist panel I made the other day. A clean and simple design.

I just love how the watercolor paper absorbed the color sprays! So fun, and uncontrolled!

I packaged the card in a glassine envelope and topped it with a pretty paper doily.

I made a little white and yellow felt flower embellishment to decorate the baker's twine bow I wrapped around the envelope to keep the doily in place, and finally, I added a small tag with the recipient's name written on it.

Quick and easy!

 

Supplies:
Stamps: YouAre2Kind and Gum4Background by The Stamps of Life
Ink: VersaMark, Black StazOn, Stepanie Barnard Color Sprays in Blueberry, Sky, and Grape
Paper: Fabriano Watercolor Paper, Neenah, Bazzil
Other: bakers twine, buttons, thread, tracing wheel, Stampendous Kaleidoscope Transparent Embossing Powder, heat tool, craft mat, felt, glassine bag, Paper Doily, Sizzix Flower Layers & Leaf dies, Corner Chomper

The Challenge Chicks: It's Not Easy Being Green!

If you're a stamper and you like challenges, or you're new to the idea of challenges and want to give one a whirl, I invite you to participate with The Challenge Chicks! We're a small group of friends and stampers hosting monthly challenges. Won't you join us?!

Our challenge for March 2013 is being shared today: It's Not Easy Being Green!

I chose to re-purpose a few items and made something that gives my selected items an entirely new purpose! For my project I used the cardboard core from a roll of packing tape, a wooden lid from a jar candle, and chipboard from a box of Alan's favorite fiber bars to create this little "masculine" themed container.

I covered the packing tape core with paper from The Paper Loft. The base of the container is made from two scalloped die cut circles (adhered together) from a fiber bar box. The lid from the jar candle fit PERFECTLY inside the packing tape core.

This will be fun to fill with little chocolate goodies, or even a small gift for a birthday or Christmas!

Now get yourself a good dose of some "green" fun and check out the rest of The Challenge Chicks projects:

Diane Zechman
Lydia Fiedler
Jeanne Streiff
Kelli Hull
Kelly Schirmer
Anna Wight (that's me!)

And, finally, you'll find this month's challenge gallery on SplitCoastStampers using keyword CHXMAR13. We invite you to play along! Upload your project to your SplitCoastStampers gallery, add the keyword above, and your project will be automatically added to the gallery. Or join us on Facebook!

We look forward to seeing your projects!

 

Supplies
Paper: The Paper Loft
Ink: Ranger Brushed Corduroy
Other: Spellbinders Scalloped Circle die, tracing wheel, reclaimed lid, tape core, box chipboard

Springtime Wool Felt Flower

Over the years I've made LOTS of felt flower brooches for the Christmas holiday, usually in pretty reds, creams, or blues. But last night I thought I'd make a nice springy yellow flower pin.

I used Sizzix framelits dies to cut the flowers and leaves out of wool felt. Once cut, the layers were sewn together with needle and thread, which also holds the vintage mother of pearl button in place.

I pinned the finished flower (I sewed a lapel pin on the backside) to a tag I cut using a Sizzix Bigz tag die. The tag is a piece of printed paper adhered to thin chipboard for added support. The sentiment banner and flowers were cut using Banners #2 Framelits by Sizzix.

I think this will be a fun gift to give to a friend!

Happy FRIDAY!

PS: The little grey "flecks" you don't actually show up as grey on the flower. They're little bitty silver glitter pieces that give the entire flower and tag a pretty shimmer and shine. If I use this glitter on projects, I usually spray them AFTER they've been photographed, because the glitter always shows up in photos as grey. But, this time I forgot to wait to spray the flower until after the photos were taken. In real life, it's just sparkly. *grin*

 

Supplies
Dies: Sizzix Framelits Banners #2, Sizzix Framelits Flower Layers & Leaf, Sizzix Bigz Tag
Stamp: tinytitles2stamp by The Stamps of Life
Ink: Stephanie Barnard Colorbox "Grape"
Other: Wool Felt, Vintage button, Coats Button thread, Silver Craft Glitter Spray
Paper: Chipboard, Pattern paper scraps (source unknown)

Sunnyside Up!

Made using my Whipper Snapper cling set, Sunnyside Up!

I do love springtime, and all the cheerfulness that comes with it. And this tag is dadgum cheerful. *grin*

 

Supplies
Stamps: Sunnyside Up cling set, Whipper Snapper Designs
Ink: Memento Black, StazOn Black, Ranger Distress Ink (brown)
Paper: October Afternoon, Neenah
Other: May Arts ribbon, button, string, foam dimensional adhesive, EK Success Edger Punch, tracing wheel

Taylored Expressions February Sneak Peek: Easter Doodles

Today is Sneak Peek day for the February release for Taylored Expressions, and I'm thrilled to be joining the TE design team again for this month's release. All of the new products being showcased will be available Thursday, February 7th, at the Taylored Expressions site.

Today I'm sneak peeking the new set Easter Doodles, which is a large sized set filled with you guessed it -- doodles! And very cute doodles, too! For my project I used several images along with one of the sentiments included in the set to create this treat holder. Aren't those chicks just the cutest?!

I also used the same two chick images to create this clean and simple card, which doesn't necessarily have to be an Easter card! I used Spellbinders dies to create the green and yellow shaped layers, and chose to use some pretty yellow crocheted lace as an accent.

There's lots of fun happening today, and here's a list of designers who will give you a healthy serving of goodness!

• Carole Burrage
• Charmaine Ikach
• Jen Shults
• Kerri Michaud
• Lynnette Kauffman
• Sankari Wegman
• Shannon White
• Shelly Mercado
• Stephanie Kraft
• Tammie Edgerton
• Taylor VanBruggen
• Wanda Guess
• Anna Wight (Guest Designer)
• Nancy McKinney (Illustrator)

 

Supplies:
Stamp: Taylored Expressions Easter Doodles
Ink: Memento Black, Stampin' Up! Kiwi Kiss, Ranger's Antique Linen Distress Ink
Paper: Neenah, Paper Accents, Stampin' Up!
ShinHan Touch Twin markers: Y36, YR31, YR32, YR21, PB144, PB183
Other: May Arts Ribbon and twine, Spellbinders circle, pinked circle and scalloped circle dies, Making Memories lace, Tracing Wheel, buttons and string

The Challenge Chicks: Valentines!

If you're a stamper and you like challenges, or you're new to the idea of challenges and want to give participating a whirl, I invite you to participate with The Challenge Chicks! We're a small group of friends and stampers hosting monthly challenges. Won't you join us?!

Our challenge for February 2013 is being shared today!

This month's challenge is easy:  Valentines!

For my project, I pulled out one of my Whipper Snapper cling mount sets, Bear Hugs. Dressed up in his bowtie, he looks like he's ready for some Valentine lovin' to me!

He's stamped in Memento ink and colored with Touch Twin markers. The rose, sentiment, and speech bubble are images also found in the Bear Hugs set. It was fun to create this little scene.

And, how about a bonus project!? I wrapped a conversation candy heart treat box with card stock, added a printed paper panel, and created the tag using an image from the Stampin' Up set called Gift Givers. Pretty simple, and a whole lot cuter than the printed box!

Now get yourself a good dose of some Valentine fun and check out the rest of The Challenge Chicks projects:

Diane Zechman
Lydia Fiedler
Jeanne Streiff
Kelli Hull
Kelly Schirmer
Anna Wight (that's me!)

And, finally, you'll find this month's challenge gallery on SplitCoastStampers using keyword CHXFEB13. We invite you to play along! Upload your project to your SplitCoastStampers gallery, add the keyword above, and your project will be automatically added to the gallery. Or join us on Facebook!

We look forward to seeing your projects!

 

Supplies (Bear)
Stamps: Whipper Snapper "Bear Hugs"
Paper: Neenah, BoBunny, Bazzill
ShinHan Touch Twin markers
Ink: Memento Black, Antique Linen Distress Ink
Other: Bakers Twine, Tracing Wheel, Dress-it-Up Button, string

Supplies (Box)
Stamps: Stampin' Up! "Gift Givers"
Paper: Stampin' Up!, K&Company
ShinHan Touch Twin markers
Ink: Memento Black
Other: Stampin' Up! Scallop Circle Punch, EK Success Circle Punch, Bakers Twine, Tracing Wheel

Jar of Hearts

I have a quick and easy gift wrap for Valentine's Day to share with you today. I created a heart-filled jar tag for a bag of yummy chocolates using the recently released Hugs and Kisses stamp set, and coordinating jar die from Taylored Expressions.

I colored the image with markers, then gave the entire jar a good dose of spray adhesive and added a beautiful layer of glitter over the entire tag. I love love LOVE this technique!

 

Supplies
Stamps: Taylored Expressions Hugs & Kisses
Dies: Taylored Expressions Hugs & Kisses Jar
Ink: Memento Brown
Paper: Neenah, BoBunny
Other: ShinHan Touch Twin markers, bakers twine, red grosgrain ribbon, button, string, paper doily, Martha Stewart Crystal Glitter, Aleene's Spray Adhesive, glassine bag

More Handy Dandy Pouches!

I've finished more Handy Dandy Pouches, and have listed several of them (varying prints) in the shop.

You'll also find some cute Valentine Tissue Cozies, perfect for keeping the winter sniffles in check!

Handy Dandy Pouches

This weekend I made these CUTE little pouches!

And these sunny pouches! These two remind me of life in Eugene, Oregon!

And these funky pouches! They measure about 4.5x5.5 inches, and I had fun choosing fabrics from my stash.

I love how they turned out!

They can be used to hold any number of things that get tucked into purses... a phone, lip gunks, notepads, coupons, etc.

It's always nice to have a little "catch all" in your purse, I think!

What a handy, dandy little pouch!

I found a pattern online, and then altered it a bit so that the final product ended up being the size I wanted. Purdy darn cute, if you ask me!

Taylored Expressions January Sneak Peek: Rose Bouquet & Valentine Doodles

Today is a Sneak Peek day for the January release for Taylored Expressions, and I'm thrilled to be joining the TE design team for this month's release. All of the new stamps being showcased today will be available tomorrow, January 8th at the Taylored Expressions site.

I gave you a peek at this project yesterday, and thought I would share it in full with you today.

I stamped Rose Bouquet on Fabriano watercolor paper and painted the image with Twinkling H2O's. If you've never used Twinkling H2O's before, I encourage you to give them a try! They are little pots of pigment that are saturated with a wonderful shimmer. They apply very easily with a damp brush, and leave you with a wonderful shine.

They can be used as the primary color on your project since they are quite pigmented. With a damp brush, just pick up a little bit of color from the color pot and apply it to your image. You can add depth and dimension by adding more layers of color over already dried layers. These little pots of color create beautiful results every time!

I also have this project duo to share with you, as well! These two projects feature images from the new full size stamp set called Valentine Doodles. The set is filled with lots of cute images and sentiments perfect for, well, Valentine's Day! *grin*

Since I had so much fun making the pet themed treat toppers for Christmas, why not have some treat toppers handy for Valentine's Day, too!? I chose the cute little dog image along with the Puppy Love sentiment for my topper.

The treats inside are people dogs love to eat, and according to Daisy and Twiggy really are quite delicious. There are mailmen, policemen, dog catchers, etc. And honestly, they crack me up! Find them at Dollar Tree, and the best part is they're made in the USA!

There's lots of fun happening today, so here's a list of designers who will give you a healthy serving of goodness! Check back tomorrow, for release day happenings!

• Carole Burrage
• Charmaine Ikach
• Jen Shults
• Kerri Michaud
• Lynnette Kauffman
• Sankari Wegman
• Shannon White
• Shelly Mercado
• Stephanie Kraft
• Tammie Edgerton
• Taylor VanBruggen
• Wanda Guess
• Anna Wight (Guest Designer)

 

Supplies (Rose Bouquet)
Stamp: Taylored Expressions Rose Bouquet
Ink: StazOn Black
Paper: Fabriano Watercolor Paper, Cosmo Cricket S'More Love, Neenah
Other: Twinkling H2O's, May Arts Twine, Taylored Expressions Designer Mini Tags die, Tracing Wheel

Supplies (Puppy Love Treat Topper and Card)
Stamps: Taylored Expressions Valentine Doodles
Ink: Memento Black, Memento Sand, Ranger Antique Linen Distress
Paper: Neenah, BoBunny, Bazzill
Other: ShinHan Touch Twin markers, May Arts Twine, Spellbinders circle, pinked circle, scalloped circle and label 17 dies, Dress It Up Buttons, Tracing Wheel

Chipboard Snowman: 2012

Hope wherever you find yourself today, you're keepin' cozy!

Christmas Wrapping for Pets

Christmas is for the pets in our family, too. Here are some treats and a softie I wrapped up for Gramma's dog, Mattie. Make gifts fun to open by tucking in a small bite sized treat they can find when the gift is opened. Tearing apart tissue is lots more fun when there is a tasty morsel hidden inside!

The tags were made with a cute image by Stampendous, colored with Touch Twin markers. I used various Spellbinder dies for the layers, and my Martha Stewart holly leaf punch for the leaves.

Woof woof!

 

Supplies:
Stamp: Stampendous, Studio G (alphabet)
Ink: Memento Black, Ranger Distress Ink in Antique Linen
Paper: Neenah, October Afternoon, Paper Accents
Shinhan Touch Twin markers
Two-Way Glue Pen, Ultra Fine Glitter, Button, Martha Stewart Holly Leaf Punch, Spellbinders label, circle, and circle dies, tea dyed retail tag, bakers twine, clear treat bag

Treat Toppers for Humans

So.... you liked my treat toppers for dogs, but don't really have a need for creating dog themed goodies? How about using the same general idea and tools, but make treat toppers for humans instead!

I don't know one single person who doesn't like snowmen.

And hurray for chocolates!

 

Supplies:
Stamp: Inky Antics (snowman), Stampin' Up! (sentiment)
Ink: Memento Black, Ranger Distress Ink in Antique Linen
Paper: Neenah, October Afternoon, Paper Accents
Shinhan Touch Twin markers: PB144, PB185, R28, R3, YR23
Two-Way Glue Pen, Ultra Fine Glitter, Button, Martha Stewart Holly Leaf Punch, Spellbinders label, circle, and pinked circle dies, tea dyed retail tag, May Arts twine, clear treat bag

Treat Toppers for Dogs

I made a few stocking stuffer treats for some of our family-friend dogs. If these look familiar to you, I made similar treat toppers last year. You'll find those posts here and here.

This year, I chose to use a Penny Black image, "Good Boy!" from 2004. The image is stamped in Memento ink and colored with Shinhan Touch Twin markers.

I used papers from last year's Holiday Style paper pad by Cosmo Cricket for the die cut layers. I used a Martha Stewart punch to create the holly leaves, and added a threaded button as the holly berry.

When purchasing store-bought treats, I recommend looking for treats made in the USA or Canada. For these, I have used Sergeant's brand chews, which are made in the US.

Primitive Snowman Ornament

Check out these fatties.... *grin!*

Winter/Christmas Themed Tags

More holiday tags, and they're being featured on the Inky Antics blog today. How fun is that! Consider these a bonus project for this month's Challenge Chicks theme!

 

Supplies
Stamps: Inky Antics
Paper: Neenah, Simple Stories, Stampin' Up!
ShinHan Touch Twin Markers
Ink: Memento Black, Antique Linen Distress Ink, Gathered Twigs Distress Ink
Other: PTI tag die, twine, buttons, Tracing Wheel

The Challenge Chicks: Christmas Tags

If you're a stamper and you like challenges, or you're new to the idea of challenges and want to give participating a whirl, I invite you to participate with The Challenge Chicks! We're a small group of stampers hosting monthly challenges.

Won't you join us?! Our first monthly challenge is being shared today!

This month's challenge is timely, and easy: Christmas Tags!

I used a couple of my Whipper Snapper cling sets to create four coordinating gift tags. I'll tell ya who's great at making tags ... Danielle Lounds

I used a Sizzix die for the base of the tags, and Spellbinders pinking and standard circle dies for around the image. Old mother of pearl buttons and some punched out holly leaves add a little bit of detail to each tag. These tags will come in handy later this month!

Check out the rest of The Challenge Chicks projects:

Diane Zechman
Lydia Fiedler
Jeanne Streiff
Kelli Hull
Kelly Schirmer
Vicki Gee
Anna Wight (that's me!)

 

And, finally, you'll find this month's challenge gallery on SplitCoastStampers using keyword CHXDEC12 . We invite you to play along! Upload your project to your SplitCoastStampers gallery, add the keyword above, and your project will be automatically added to the gallery. We look forward to seeing your holiday tags!

 

PS: Please excuse the odd lighting in these photos. I have two different kinds of light bulbs in the lamps on my desk, and it's really playing games with the light sensor in my camera.

Note to self: buy new light bulbs!

 

Supplies
Stamps: Whipper Snapper "Gardening Snowman" and "Think Snow" cling sets
Paper: Neenah, October Afternoon, Paper Accents
ShinHan Touch Twin Markers
Ink: Memento Black, Antique Linen Distress Ink
Other: Sizzix tag die, Spellbinders dies, Martha Steward holly punch, string, antique mother of pearl buttons, Tracing Wheel

Tags!

Tags are so fun to make! I made these cuties using images from Inky Antics.

The images were all stamped and colored, with glitter added to some areas for extra sparkle and shine.

These tags were featured on the Inky Antics blog in October, during my guest designer series. I think they're pretty darned cute, if I do say so myself!!

I get requests from readers who want to purchase paper projects I've made. Because I try to do what I can for you, I will be posting some of my paper projects in my Etsy shop. I can't always sell my projects for various reasons, but I will do my best to keep the shop updated w/ things I can sell!

Hope you find something you love and want to have for your very own. I think these tags would be a great gift for a teacher. Wrapped in a cello bag, what a fun little gift!

Supplies
Stamps: Inky Antics
Paper: Neenah, October Afternoon, Paper Accents
ShinHan Touch Twin Markers
Ink: Memento Black
Other: Spellbinders and PTI dies, Rayon Seam Binding, Bakers Twine, antique mother of pearl buttons, Shabby White Jingle Bells, Ultra Fine Glitter, Tracing Wheel

High Hopes Challenge: Gift Card Holder

The current High Hopes challenge topic is to make a gift card holder or small gift box/bag. I chose to make a gift card holder, as I actually have a gift card on hand! I used the Small Stackable Santa image on the medalion, and tied the holder together with bakers twine.

To create the holder, I cut a piece of cardstock 3" wide x 10.75" long. Make score lines at the 1", 5", 6", 7" marks. Fold the sheet so you create a 1" flap, and a 1" mountain fold in the center of the holder. Adhere the short center piece together, leaving enough space without adhesive so you can insert the gift card slightly. Using a punch or cutting blade, remove a portion of the center fold so the gift card can slide into place.

I hope you'll join us for this week's challenge! It's not a bad time to get started (if you haven't already) on your holiday projects!

Find all the details on the High Hopes blog.

 

Supplies
Stamp: High Hopes Rubber Stamps
Ink: Memento Black, Antique Linen Distress Ink
Paper: Neenah, The Paper Loft, Paper Accents
Other: ShinHan Touch Twin markers, Bakers Twine, PTI layering circle dies, Stampin' Up! Word Windo Punch, Tracing Wheel

Country Candy Cane Ornaments

This holiday elf has been busy, busy, busy! I've posted a few new primitive candy cane ornaments in my Etsy shop!

Get um' while I've got um'!