Cupcakes x3

I'd been wanting to make some birthday cards - girly ones with cupcakes and I finally got a few minutes and  came up with these three. I used papers from a Basic Grey 6x6 paper pad I had (I love those things alot - so now I need to use them up!) Green at Heart. The cupcakes and sentiment are from Papertrey Ink Cupcake collection. I also used some dies from Papertrey as well: Cupcake Collection, Double-Ended Banner, and Mat Stack 3 and Mat Stack 3 Layerz. Oh yeah  - to make the "frosting" I stamped it using the Glue Pad and covered it in Diamond Dust glitter. It looks very cute in person I gotta say. Okay - that's all for today - have a good one!

You're so sweet

I did this card maybe a week or so ago - had plans to maybe make another and perhaps stitch a little straighter this time LOL but you know it's not driving me absolutely crazy so I think I'll leave it be. I used a few Papertrey Ink stamps and dies: Flower Fusion #12 for the flower, Polka Dot Basics for the background, Cupcake Collection for the sentiment and the Rickrack Border Die and the Flower Fusion #12 die. Have a good one!

a card and a cookie (tag)

Okay so here's a card that went with the cookies mentioned previously. Used Papertrey's Celebrations stamp set. Such a versatile set. Oh and of course the die to cut out that frame. And a little stitching going round the edge to finish it off. And a few brads.

Then of course I decided to make a tag for the gift of cookies. I got to thinking as I was cutting out said cookies that I might be able to make a "paper cookie" using my round scalloped Nestabilities dies.. and a little Glossy Accents to resemble jam. When I had that assembled I decided to brown the cookies LOL a bit with some Antique Linen Distress ink. Then I created the tag to display the cookie - using a bit of that paper I'd embossed with hearts from the previous tag. Add a little of that My Minds Eye Lost & Found paper and a bit of my handwriting (cookies make you..... Happy is on the paper). I think she'll enjoy the tag but not as much as the real cookies!

My first ever Blog Hop Challenge - PTI

ok so i decided to have a fun afternoon (translation:- making a card with some new stamps :-)) and since they're having a blog hop challenge over at Papertrey Ink it seemed like a good starting off point! The challenge is to create an interactive card and here's what I came up with.
I used the Movers & Shakers Sentiments as well as the Zipper Die, the Double-Ended Banner Die, Limitless layers Circle Collection, Mat Stack #3 die, oh and the Border Basics Medallions. I was going for a masculine card so I used Black, Fine Linen and Kraft cardstocks and inks.
Okay now I must actually go do some un-fun things. Thanks for looking!

Cooking up Cookies and Cards

Did some baking and some card making during the last week. The cookie making definitely dominated at the beginning of the week.
Here's a pic after many hours of rolling, chilling, cutting, chilling, baking.  Oh - they are Linzer cookies. An amazing recipe found years ago by my sister in a magazine. It comes from a chef that worked at the White House. We made these cookies for Christmas and they have always been a family favorite. But because they are labor intensive I'd given up making them at Christmas. For the last couple of years I've made them for my Mom (the number 1 fan of these cookies) for her birthday.







Now for years I'd made these cookies with a scalloped round cookie cutter. And yes, they are a sandwich cookie. And the topper cookie has a hole cut into it. For years I used a decorating tip - pressing it into the cookie and pulling out that center piece - it was a bit of insanity but I didn't have a very small round cookie cutter to cut out that center piece. Quite by accident I came upon this Wilton Cookie Cutter set in a store at Christmas time - I practically did a happy dance in the store - knowing I would be able to easily cut out that center hole!

So on Monday of this week I made the Linzer cookie and put it in the fridge to chill. On Tuesday, I rolled, chilled, cut, chilled, and baked the cookies. Then on Tuesday night I assembled all the cookies. In between the sandwich is raspberry jam spread onto the bottom cookie. You place the topper on then add a small amount of jam in the hole.
I was doing all this ahead of time as I needed the jam to set up so I could pack the cookies up and mail them off to my Mom - who is visiting my sister - and get them to her in time for her birthday which is Sunday. Wednesday night I packed up these delectable little treats and mailed them off on Thursday.
The new cookie cutter is slightly smaller then my original cutter so I made approximately 8 dozen Linzers. Do the math kids - 8x12x2 - yeah.. i cut out close to 200 of these rascals. But trust me when I say they are some pretty ridiculous cookies and my mom - she deserves something special. I'll be back to share a few cards tomorrow.

I turned my back for just a second

well first - don't the colors just make you think spring?
That's what I thought at least.. I was in a store looking at some new kitchen towels and I saw this and thought - how springy! And considering my bulbs are shooting up and - horrors - I'm beginning to see flowers forming... remember it's February and this shouldn't be happening and of course we're being promised a little snow tomorrow......sigh...
Regardless, some days are cold but others are decidedly not - and I'm thinking spring is just around the corner (if only in my mind).





So this patterned piece is, in reality

a countertop drying mat. I buy coordinating towels (in a solid color) and also pick up this mat. I always am using my towels on the countertop to dry the various and sundry things that don't go into the dishwasher so I figure this will be quite handy instead of said towels. It's a nice thick mat but folds easily and I'm thinking I'll be happily drying this and that over the coming months and feeling quite springy 'round my kitchen.
I get home and put it on my counter. Then I wash a few of the cat bowls and put them on top of the mat as well as the coffee maker filter holder (is that what you call that thang?) and go about the rest of my afternoon.

What do I find when I go back to this spot later in the day?
Apparently, my little Westley finds it a great spot for surveying all that is his LOL!
I immediately think - yegods.... now there is cat hair all over this mat I was drying dishes on. And then I just started to laugh my head off. Westley goes where he wants (usually in close proximity to where I am ;-)) and is so darned cute I could not be mad. I did remove him but won't be surprised to find him back there again.
Hope you're having a good day!

8th Annual Valentine Rakarama

So this year's edition I actually started last year.
Really!
 I was ahead of the game then - I'd stamped all the fortune cookies and colored them with Copics and cut them out. I had the Martha Stewart 6x6 Valentine paper pad and the cute "for my friend" ribbon. And I was thinking I'm gonna have these all done in no time flat - just the assembly was left.
And then there was a tragic event in my family and my rakarama was the last thing on my mind. But when things settled down, I packed away those little fortune cookies, ribbon and paper and thought I'm gonna make these next year. And here we are. I think it was a few Rakarama's ago that I decided to make each one different - perhaps using some of the same ingredients but changing it up on each Valentine. It allows me to challenge and entertain myself :-)! Making them all the same - well it's just not near as fun. I used the fortune cookie, ribbon, and stitching on every valentine. The Martha Stewart paper pad had a number of different patterned papers, some double sided which gave me a few more opportunities to make something different. And of course I did use some additional stamps in the backgrounds: Purple Onion Designs and Papertrey Ink stamps. And Versamark ink, clear and other embossing powders. It was a good old time for me. And I hope the recipients like their cards.
I wish there were a little easier way of displaying these cards to follow - perhaps it is just beyond my blogger capabilities. I did fool around a little with one of those mosaic makers but I just finally said enough messin around. On with the posting.

I hope you all are having a wonderful Valentine's Day. And now I must run to my oven where there is a ridiculously decadent chocolate something baking that needs my attention.

Happy Valentine's Day

to you all
and yes I'm going to be posting the 8th Annual Valentine Rakarama cards hopefully a little later today :-)

Valentine tags

so by now you must realize - I love Valentine's Day. Love sending Valentine's, love making them. Don't know quite why - maybe I just like saying to family and friends I'm thinking of them?
Well I decided I needed to make a couple of tags for a few crafty friends. We all have a 6x6 pad of My Minds Eye Lost & Found papers and a bunch of tags that need decorating. I used a Cuttlebug Embossing folder and a Sizzix Heart die. The "February" stamp is from POD's Calendar Months Set. And I stitched around the tag on my sewing machine (which wasn't entirely sure it was like all those layers but we made it through ;-)) Hope you're enjoying all my Valentine's. I have some more coming up

Conversation Hearts Valentines

When I was a little girl, probably just around the time the photo in my blog header was taken, I have a very clear memory of getting a box of conversation heart candies. I remember my Mom and I taking a bus (back in the day when no one drove - we lived in NY :-)) to see her obstetrician (my little sister :-)) and perhaps my mom got the little box of candies for me as a bribe? Maybe cos I was bein so good :-) Whatever the case, I have loved those little candies ever since.

So when I see a coversation heart stamp - it's mine! In this case, the hearts are part of the PTI Friendship Jar: Spring Fillers stamp set.


Here's what that particular stamp looks like - no conversation - just hearts. In the set there are little individual phrases you can add yourself which is rather nice - so you can pick and choose. We love choice! But there is the problem of actually stamping all those little phrases onto the hearts.








Here's how I solved that particular dilemma as I had 10 of these cards to make. I just put the block on top of the stamped heart image and then placed the little phrases in position so then I was ready to go. I colored the "blue" hearts with a Prismacolor pencil and used the MCPT technique. And the "pink" hearts were colored with a Copic marker.

The rest of the cards came together pretty quickly. I used rectangle Nestabilities to cut the window and emboss around it. I cut the Nestabilities double ended tags and stamped with a Purple Onion Design sentiment and tied it up with some ribbon.
Here's a couple more shots of the finished cards

Workin on Valentines

I'm working on Valentines for the family today and saw some great sketches over at Papertrey Ink's blog and thought that might help :-) I used a few stamps from the Friendship Jar Spring Fillers set and the Background Basics: Gingham set. I didn't have any buttons that worked so I used a Sizzix button die and I think it worked ok. The little kiss is colored using a silver Prismacolor pencil. The piece of cardstock under the gingham is actually grey and ties in the silver kiss but it isn't photographing well.  Regardless I'm pleased. One down... and a whole bunch more to go LOL Have a good one!