November Papertrey Blog Hop And Some Thanks

Tonight is the November Papertrey Bloghop.
This month the challenge was to create a quick & inexpensive wrap or tag that can be the perfect solution for "grab & go" gifts!
Since Hanukkah starts on December 11th this year and Emilia's favorite Hanukkah treat is gelt(chocolate coins), I decided to come up with some special packaging for it. This is what I came up with .
I started with some Raspberry Fizz Cardstock and the pillow box from The Cash or Charge My Timeless template. After I cut out the pillow box I ran it through my Cuttlebug using the Swiss Dots embossing folder. When I was done with that I added a layer of Summer Sunrise to the outside edges.
The main image is a digital image from the Pink Cat Studio called Hanukkah Lily that I colored with my Copics. I hope you all will forgive me for not using a Papertrey stamp since it is a PTI bloghop but when I saw this image I knew it would be perfect for this project. After I was done coloring Lily I matted her on a piece of Summer Sunrise Cardstock that I cut out with a rectangle scalloped Nestabilities die. Next I punched a hole in the top of the image threaded a piece of sky blue ribbon through it then attached it to the box and tied it in a bow. To finish it off I used the PTI Simple Alphabet set to spell out Happy Hanukkah on some more Summer Sunrise Cardstock then cut it out and attached it to the handle. That's it. I think these pillow boxes would be a great quick way to wrap up any small item this holiday season.
On another note since Thanksgiving is tomorrow I also wanted to take a moment say how thankful I am for everyone that has visited my blog and left such wonderful comments. It really means a lot to me to know there are people out there that enjoy my work. As always thanks for stopping by and I hope you have a great day tomorrow.

Pink Saturday and Happy Birthday Alexandra

It has been awhile since I last participated in Pink Saturday. The reason I have not been participating is because I have not been using much pink in my work lately. I finally have something pink to share with you though. Today is my niece Alexandra's 14th birthday. Where does the time go? She was suppose to be born on Christmas but decided she didn't want to wait. I can still remember the day she was born like it was yesterday. If she had waited one more day she would have been born on my dads birthday which is tomorrow but their birthdays are still only a day apart which still makes it fun to celebrate them both at the same time. Emilia got Alexandra a Signature Cocker Spaniel Webkinz but I also wanted to make her something special too so in honor of her love of Hello Kitty I came up with this.

I started by using Hibiscus Burst cardstock and Lauren Meaders Around Town Tote My Timeless Template. When I was done putting the tote together I cut out flowers from Summer Sunrise and Pink Blush cardstock using a flower image from the Cuttlebug Babyface dies. After that I randomly attached the flowers to the front and back of the tote. Next I found an image of Hello Kitty online then I resized it, printed it and cut it out. When I was done with that I colored her in with my Copics and attached her to the front of the tote with some dimensional foam. On the sides I added panels of Summer Sunrise cardstock that were run through my Cuttlebug using the swiss dots embossing folder.
Finally I added some Summer Sunrise Twill ribbon and tied it in a bow. On the back side of the ribbon I stamped Happy Birthday from the Birthday Basic set.
Inside the tote she will find this. A crocheted french barrette hair clip that I made.
That's it. I hope she likes it. I am pretty sure she will though.That's all for now.
Be sure to check out Beverly's Blog for the list of the other people that are participating in Pink Saturday today too. As always thanks for stopping by and I hope to be back soon with more things to share.

Technique Tuesday

It's time for another Technique Tuesday. This month I am going to show you how I made this card
Supplies and dimensions are at the end of the video. If you have any questions let me know. I hope you enjoy it.

Hanukkah Candle Box

First off I wanted to say thanks to all of you that left such nice comments on my last post about the vintage ornament gift card holder. I was especially happy to hear I am not the only one that is a perfectionist when it comes to making things.
Today I am sharing another Hanukkah Gift with you.
When I saw the My Timeless Template Perfect Match Box I thought it would be perfect to hold Hanukkah Candles. You could also use it to hold gelt or other small gifts as well. After I printed and cutout the template using PTI Stampers Select White Cardstock I stamped the polka dots from the Polka Dots Basic II stamp set on it with Enchanted Evening Perfect Match Ink and put the outter part of the box together. When I was done with that I ran a strip of Stampers Select White Cardstock through my Cuttlebug using the tiny dots embossing folder and wrapped it around the middle of the box creating a band. Next I stamped the Menorah image from the Mazel Tov set and embossed it with silver embossing powder, then I colored in the candles with my Copics. After that I cut the image out with an Oval Nestabilities die and matted it on a scalloped oval that I cut out from some Enchanted Evening cardstock.
I used Enchanted Evening Cardstock to create the inside box.
To finish it off I tied a piece of Silver Sheer Metallic Edge ribbon around the box and tied it in a bow.
Tomorrow night is the Papertrey November new release. I am super excited about Laurens new Homeade Template and cordinating stamp set. She was having a give away for the template on her blog this week and picked the number 7 in honor of her sons birthday. I was 1 person away from winning it and was super bummed. At least I only have another day to wait before I can buy it. I still have to wait fot the stamps to arrive but can at least start creating the houses in the meantime though.
I also wanted to let you all know that this weekend the Etsygreetings team I am a member of is having a SALE on holiday greeting cards from 40+ indie artists myself included you can check that out here. Also the EtsyChai team that I am also a member of will be having a Miracles of Hanukkah Contest & Sale from 11/15 thru 11/22. there are more detail about that here for how to play and win. That's it for now we are suppose to get another winter storm this weekend but I really hope it misses us this time. I am planning on making this months technique video tomorrow though and hope to be back to share that with you on Tuesday. Until then I hope you have a great weekend and as always thanks for stopping by.

Christmas Gift Card Ornament

What a difference a week makes. Thankfully all the snow that I shared with you in my last post is gone now. We have been back in the 70's the last couple of days too. I have been very happy about that but like I have said before when you live in Colorado wait and minute and the weather will change. At least we are enjoying the warm weather while it lasts though.
Today I am sharing with you a Christmas Gift Card Ornament.
I have been working on this project for over a week now. This is an idea I have had in my head for awhile and finally got it done. One of my biggest problems when creating is keeping things simple and not being such a perfectionist. Sometimes I wish I could change that about me because I sure would get a lot more accomplished but overall I am very happy with how this turned out.
I started by using this template and some PTI Pure Poppy Cardstock. After I cut my ornament out I ran it through my Cuttlebug using the striped embossing folder then I sprayed some homemade glimmer mist I made using Razpberry Fizz Reinker, Pearl x and water on it to make it sparkle. While it was drying I made the middle section by taking a piece of Stampers Select White Cardstock and stamping on it with an image from the PTI Retro Background Set with Versamark Ink. Then I embossed it with silver embossing powder. After that I used a green gel pen to fill in circles then I added some Martha Stewart Glitter to the insides of the diamonds. If you have not tried her glitter yet I would strongly suggest you do. I think it is great and would highly recommend it. When I was done with that piece I attached it to the middle of the ornament then I attached the red ornament to a piece of stampers select white cardstock and cut around it leaving a thin white mat. When I was done with that I tied a piece of New Leaf twill ribbon in a bow then added a PTI Vintage cream button to the middle and sewed them both on with Rustic Cream Twine.
For the back of the ornament
I cut half a piece of Pure Poppy cardstock and added it to the bottom half of the back of the ornament creating a pocket for the gift card. The Happy Holidays from the PTI Holiday Wishes Sentiment set was stamped and embossed in silver as well. A piece of Silver Shimmer Cardstock that I cut with pinking sheers and punched the holes out with my Cropadile was added to the top of the pocket. I then added another piece of new leaf twill ribbon that I made into a loop to the top of the back of the ornament so it can be hung up. Finally I machine stitched around the whole thing with silver thread That's it. I hope you like it. I will be back soon with more holiday things to share so be sure stop by again soon. Until then have a great day and thanks for stopping by.

Snow and a Hanukkah Gift

I hope this post finds you all doing well. We are currently experiencing a winter storm here and it isn't even winter yet. Oh the joys of living in Colorado. Tuesday it was a nice warm day and now we have a least a foot of snow. That's Colorado for you. Emillia is loving it though, at least someone does. I am just hoping it won't take to long to melt. It has been snowing for 2 days now though. I sure hope this is not a prelude to what winter is going to be like. For those of you that like snow I hope you enjoy the photos.
Today I also wanted to share with you another Hanukkah item.

I made the tag by doing an alcohol ink smoosh where I put 5 different colors of alcohol ink on a craft sheet, added some blending solution then took a piece of white glossy cardstock and smooshed it all over the cardstock. After that I stamped the images from the Papertrey Mazel Tov set and embossed them with silver and Denim embossing powder. I crocheted the flowers and attached them to the silver snap clips then added white buttons to the middles. I think these would make a great Hanukkah gifts.
That's it for now. I am off to try and get some more holiday things made now and hope to be back to share them with you soon. Until then I hope you have a great day and it is warm where you are!

October Papertrey Bloghop

Tonight is the October Papertrey Bloghop.
This month the theme is to share our best upcoming holiday plans for cards, gifts, wraps or whatever else we have up our sleeve! I am also incorporating this weeks color challenge from Dawntoo. Love these colors!

I have a lot of ideas for things to make this holiday season but I have not had a chance to get much made yet. It is also hard for me to think about the holidays when it is not even Halloween yet but for this challenge I thought I would go ahead and get started by sharing an idea I have had for awhile. A Hot Cocoa Holder.

I started with a piece of Kraft Carstock and the free Recipe Wrap Up My Timeless Template. Next I stamped an image from the Guidelines 2 stamp set on Raspberry Fizz cardstock with Vintage Cream Ink then I added those pieces to the outside panels of the wrap and sewed them on using a zig zag stitch. After that I stamped the cup from the Warm Happiness set on some Rustic Cream Cardstock with Raspberry Fizz Ink then I stamped the outline image on top of cup with Chocolate Ink and also masked then stamped the plate image under the cup with chocolate ink as well. Finally I used some liquid applique to add a few marshmallows to the cup then added some faux stitching around the image to finish it off.
When you open the wrap you will find this.

I lined the inside panels with New Leaf Cardstock that I ran through my Cuttlebug using the Swiss Dots embossing folder. On the pocket I stamped the sentiment from The Warm Happiness set. A package of Gourmet Hot Cocoa mix is included for the recipient. A piece of New Leaf Twill ribbon was added to tie it shut. I think these would make great gifts for friends this holiday season and would also make great stocking stuffers too. You could even add a cup filled with Marshmallows and have a complete gift. The holidays can be a very stressful time so giving a gift like this would also be a great way to help someone relax and let them know you are thinking of them this holiday season too.
That's it for now. Be sure to check back in the next few months to see more ideas I have for the holidays too. In the meantime I look forward to seeing what the others have come up with. As always thanks for stopping by and I hope you have a great night.