Hello Sunshine

Hello Friends! Hope you all enjoyed the holiday weekend. It was quiet around here - good for getting some things accomplished. I told you I've been purging and reorganizing The never ending project it seems. I'm trying to think of it more as steady progress toward a final solution to this room! Anyhow my husband and I took a little drive to Ikea and purchased a shelving unit. He put it together and my daughter helped me move it into my room yesterday. I'm kind of thrilled with it. It's close to waist-high and perfectly fits my printer and big shot  (and some baskets of dies) on top and can house my Silhouette portrait, more dies, Xyron, AG Minc,  label maker, embossing folders, Project Life stuff and a little bit more. I'm still rearranging things or I'd throw in a picture. Maybe soon.

Where's the card Tracy? You knew there was one right? I had started making some cards using Papertrey Ink's Bowl of Sunshine last week when I got together with my friends June and Amy (hi girls!). I'd intended to make these my "June Dear Ones" cards - and I may still. But I wanted  to send a card to an old friend  (we'd met last week for lunch when she was passing through the 'burg.) So I decided to use one of the cards in progress. I'd already embossed the front of the card with a StampinUp! embossing folder (using a Tim HOltz diffuser plate to create that main section that's plain). I just needed to add the image that I already die cut and stamped as well as stamp the sentiment. The sentiment is from the Hello Sunshine set - also PTI). Pretty quick and easy and I like the color combo a lot. 

Okay that's all from me today - thanks so much for stopping by!

Happy Birthday Little G

Today is my little niece's birthday. She is far away from me - on the other side of the country - but I sent along some presents and a bunch of handmade things that I hope she enjoys.

Back last year before Christmas I'd made my niece an apron to wear when she baked Christmas cookies with her mom (my sister). I think I posted a photo. Regardless, at the time I'd also purchased this cupcake fabric to make her an apron for her birthday. I thought she'd love the cupcakes and it would be fun for her to have another apron made just for her. This time I created one large pocket on the front (the Christmas apron had two pockets.) I used pink ricrac to trim everything and some wide grosgrain ribbon to tie at the neck and around the waist.

And doesn't a girl need matching potholders? Of course she does. (sometimes i get started on these little brainstorms and think midway - "what was I thinking?") And since I can't do anything really simply I decided I'd need to sorta quilt these little numbers and add more ricrac. They came out pretty cute but lets just say they were more involved than the apron. (between the batting, the ricrac and some stuff that i forget what you call it but its got some properties that help keep hands from feeling the heat - made for things like potholders - you sew in a layer of that inside....). They are pretty darned cute though so in my mind - time well spent!






Now I needed a card - i chose that Penny Black set again - so appropos for my niece.

 and some tags for all the different presents - i used the Enclosed flower die from PTI to cut them out and added some die cut leaves also from PTI. I stamped them all with lots of polka dots (to coordinate with this most cute wrapping paper i had)
Oh there was a lot of curling ribbon too. All so it would be nice and pretty for this little girly girl. While I'm typing this i realized I might have a little bit of fabric leftover to make her doll an apron too... hmmmmm.....
Okay - that's all for today!

Dear Ones cards for May

Hi there friends! It's time for more "Dear Ones" cards. This month I was determined to use a set from Papertrey Ink called Topiary Trio. I had to have it months ago and yet I still hadn't used it! This is a rarity for me - when I buy - I use LOL. But for some reason this set, which I adore, kept getting pushed to the back of my stamp bin. Anyhow, I played around with the stamps and finally decided to use just one of the little topiaries (and one pretty sentiment). I used the dies to cut out the image on white cardstock as I'd decided to stamp the stem/trunk and the container and use colored cardstock for the round leafy ball (what do you call that anyway?? - i think you know what I'm talkin about!) I used my Misti to do all the stamping - and I gotta say again here that Misti was one of the best tool purchases I've ever made. Not only did I crank out the stamping parts of these cards in no time flat - i was actually talking to my friend June (HI JUNE!) while I was stamping - something I normally cannot do. I gotta be concentrating ya know what i mean? But that Misti took all of the work (and concentrating) out of the mix and I could just chat, drink coffee, and stamp. I used the Lil Inker stitched rectangles again and the patterned paper is all from the Fine Linen Pattern Pack from Papertrey Ink. Pretty simple cards but I think they look rather elegant! And perfect for the recipients. That's all for today kids! Thanks so much for stopping by.

A few things to share

I know I know - I've been awol on the blog for a little bit. I just checked and it's been a few weeks and for that I apologize. I've been busy doing various and sundry things. Lots of instagramming which is so fun, a little more craftroom purging, cardmaking and sewing, and scrapbooking. I've been trying to finish up my daughter's 1st year album (she's 24.... its about time right?) but there always seem to be distractions and other things requiring my time. I'm sure you can relate. I thought I'd share a few things I've made lately.
I made this birthday shaker card for my nephew's wife using an adorable Penny Black Stamp set. I know it seems a little... juvenile? for a grown woman but I'm tellin you the girl likes some pretty shiny sparkly stuff and I thought she'd enjoy it something to make her feel like a little kid again - and she did. (Note the little blue box bottom left colored up like a box from Tiffany - this inclusion was not lost on her. And what girl doesn't like to receive a little blue box? heck I've even saved the boxes :-))

I made this next card for a grand niece's birthday. I had ordered this adorable stamp set from Simon Says Stamp - Baby Animals. Oh the cuteness! I couldn't wait to use it to make this birthday card. Lots of masking and coloring so a lot of "work" but it was so much fun and I was very happy with the results. And so was the recipient (well her parents loved it... :-))

Finally here's another card using that same Baby Animals stamp set. When I first saw this stamp set I thought the little animals looked like finger puppets - so I figured why not follow that through and make a card. To simplify matters, I cut the hand using my Silhouette Portrait. I fussy cut the animals after coloring them with Copics. And after much deliberation I decided to leave it with no sentiment on the front - the recipient can't read anyway! (another grand niece is having a birthday... we've got babies all over the place in my husband's family!)

I shall be back to show you some more things I'm making! Lots of birthdays mean lots of cards, gifts and tags. Thanks for stopping by!