Time for a giveaway

In honor of the upcoming National Scrapbooking Day this Saturday, May 1st, I thought we needed to have a giveaway. So, when I was out this week, I picked up two of these just released clear sets from Hero Arts - one to keep and one to give away. They are a favorite company of ours especially for card making. I just told Maura when she was here that I wanted to make more cards. I think this new set is perfect for doing that!

So... if you'd like to enter the giveaway...here is what you need to do. Leave a comment here on this post telling us your plans for National Scrapbooking Day. It doesn't matter if you are doing routine things (like me probably) or are going to celebrate in style (like Maura who is lucky enough to be going to an 8 hour crop at Captured Moments). I'll be with her in spirit as I try to squeeze in some craft time.

You have until Monday at noon EST to enter. Then we'll announce the lucky winner!

Good Luck!

Quick Simple Card

I needed a simple thinking of you type card for a neighbor and used one of my favorite older stamps. This is from a set of four flower stamps from Hero Arts. I use them a lot and just change out the sentiment to fit the occasion. I love how the black mat just pops out the image. Here's a tip for making simple cards...even if I need just one card at the time, I usually stamp out a whole 8 1/2" by 11" sheet of white cardstock with the images and then color them in all at once. I cut them all out and that way they are ready when I need them.

A Reason to Make Cards

I have many reasons to make cards. I like to send them to friends and family to celebrate different events, or just because. I swap cards with friends every month where we "ooh and aah" over each others creations. I make cards to try out a new technique or use a new stamp, paper or ink. I've made cards with my students. There really are a lot of reasons to make these little "works of art" as Sheila says.

Well, I have discovered a new reason to make cards. It's called Operation Write Home. The goal of this organization is to find cardmakers to create handmade cards to send to our military troops so that they can use them to send back home. Cardmakers can also include "hero" cards with a note of encouragement to send along with their cards. The card above is one of several "hero" cards I made to send out with my latest batch of cards. It is a Stampin Up set "Courage" and ribbon. I love the clean look of red, white and blue.
Here are a sampling of cards that I also made. I challenged myself to use 1 sheet of 12x12 cardstock, and 1 sheet of patterned paper, plus a sticker sheet, and see how many cards I could make from just those supplies. I was happily surprised to discover that I made 14 cards out of just a few supplies! I did add a bit of stamping to some of the cards.
Finally, I was in the mood for a bit of country and used these great Jillibean Soup papers to create these. I had fun trying to keep these masculine. I was thinking of the backyard - birdhouses and mowing the yard; and "down on the farm".

So next time you are looking for a reason to make cards, check out Operation Write Home, and I hope you'll join me in sending some cards to the troops!

Gift Card Holder with a note

I found this tutorial for a gift card holder that actually pops up in the inside to reveal the gift card. I thought that it would be fun to include a message instead. It would also be neat with a photo inside. Lots of possibilities to explore.

Here are the tutorials from StampTV. Be sure to check out the other videos--there are some great ideas.

I've got Mail!

Just thought I would let you all know that cute card you liked arrived in the mail today, and it's all mine! :) I have it sitting out in my craft space where I can admire it.

Thanks Sheila!

Disney Crop at Captured Moments

Can you see from the photo how much fun all the "mousekeeters" had at the crop at Captured Moments, our favorite scrapbook store? Saturday was the "Disney Crop" and we each got a pair of mouse ears to wear. Can you guess who wore theirs all day and who did not? Many of the scrapbookers had been to Disney and were working on layouts from their trip. The crop's theme was an inspiration for them to focus on that, and for those of us who had never been to Disney to think about going. It really was a fun day - thanks for another fabulous crop Tara and Tiffany!

The Backs of cards

We spend so much time and effort on the front side of our handmade cards. I think it is so important to sign the backs of our works of art. Because that is what they are when we send them out to friends and families. Sometimes other people can't tell that they are handstamped until they see those initials on the back.

Here are just a few of my favorite rubber stamps for the backs of cards:

The Paper Angel has a huge assortment just for crafters that can be easily personalized however you wish.

There are some great etsy shops such as Sweet Paperie.


Another favorite with a totally unique style of their own is Cat's Life Press.


And last but not least, is your own signature or initials in your own handwriting. Just remember to sign the backs and be proud of your efforts!

Sweet Treats from the Trip

When I arrived at Sheila's house, these were waiting in the guest room to celebrate Easter! I love the colors and the cute pillow boxes with the scallop punch and tie. Wouldn't these make great favors for a party? ...and to go along with them, hand made candy chick pops. Yummy!
Another sweet treat...on the way home, we found the Krispy Kreme donut shop in Erie, PA. We stopped by in the morning to get fresh out of the oven donuts. Let me tell you, they were delicious! I have discovered that there is nothing like a freshly made Krispy Kreme donut - they still tasted as good after the fourth one of the day (did I say that? well, it did cover breakfast, lunch and snack on the way home...) I see a Krispy Kreme layout in the future....

In Stitches

My sewing machine has sat in its box and in the closet for a long time. I find that if something is out of sight as far as my craft supplies, it is also out of mind. Or too much of a bother to set up and then tear down again. I am in the process of spring cleaning and reorganizing in the craft room, so it is the perfect time to actually set up the sewing machine on the other side of my craft table. I have a large square table and the other side is honestly Maura's side. Yes, I keep a side of my table ready for her at all times. I think it is wishful thinking! Well, I've decided that it is time to bring out the sewing machine and actually use it. I love the look of sewing on cards and scrapbook pages but never do it. So, I needed a quick card for Maura and had been wanting to do some zig zag work. Not too bad for the first try!

Skewer Mini Album

I thought that I would share with you this Skewer Mini Album that I made to commemorate afternoon tea with Maura on a previous visit. That's just another thing that we like to do when we get together and I like to make little books about each one.

This is simply help together on the spine with a bamboo skewer and a ponytail holder. I found the skewers at the grocery store. The insides were kept simple...I just printed out a photo to size and kept a bit of a white border.

Here's how to make your own:
Two pieces of cardstock cut to 6" x 11-1/2" as shown in the diagram below. I used a kraft cardstock on the outside and a patterned cardstock on the inside of mine. Score them vertically at 4-1/2", 5", 9-1/2" and 10". Adhere both pieces together making sure that they match along the score lines. Fold creases inward at the scored lines on the cardstock to form the album cover. Make a pencil mark at 1” from the top and bottom edge of the 1-1/2” flap. Make a diagonal cut from that mark to the first score line. You can either use Velcro dots or magnets to create a closure. Open the album back up and punch holes in the middle of the spine 1/2" in from the top and bottom edge. I used my Cropadile to do this.

For the inside pages, cut two 8-1/2" x 5-1/2" pieces of coordinating cardstock and fold each in half along the 8-1/2" edge (like a card). Stack the 4 pieces together to form the pages of the book and punch a hole 1/4" from the top and bottom edge at the fold. These holes should line up with the holes in the spine. Loop the ponytail holder over one end of the bamboo skewer and use a folded piece of wire to thread the rubber band through the top hole in the spine of the album and then through the top hole of the 4 inside pages. Pull the ponytail holder back through the 2nd hole of the inside pages and then through the album cover. Loop the end of the ponytail holder over the end of the bamboo skewer. You can just see the loops of the black ponytail holder on the outside of my spine.

These would also be cool using a real stick for an outdoorsy, rustic look or even using 3-4 skewers glued together to cover the whole spine. It's up to you and your creativity!

Special card for a special neighbor

I thought that I would share the birthday card I made for my neighbor. The birthday cake takes up the entire front of the card, so I needed a different way to add the sentiment. I used a torn vellum envelope so that the image would peek through and added the button for a bit of detail. The torn envelope makes for a cute pocket. She's celebrating her 75th birthday so I wanted to make it special.

Stamps: Whipper Snapper Design

Mystery Shoppers are Successful!

(edited to add an explanation...when Maura arrived in town, the first thing she told me was that we were going to be "mystery shoppers" at the local Archivers store. A trip there is one of Maura's favorite things to do since there is not one in her neck of the woods. Well, she must have talked it up to all her crafting and crop friends, because she came with 5 bags of money from 5 people who asked her to just "buy whatever". So that's exactly what we did!)

Ok, ladies....just want to let you know that Sheila and I just got back from our trip to Archivers with MANY bags! We think you are going to love the goodies we picked up for you. We tried to find all new, fun and exciting things for you, and I think we did it. We can't wait to share the bags with you when Maura gets back to New York, so daydream about what you might find in your bag!

Material Girls

Here you go...a sneak peek at the project that Sheila and I are working on. Sheila got these great kits from Paisleys and Polka Dots for us to work on together while visiting. As you can see, the kits definitely have a sewing or "material" theme to them. I am having flashbacks of home ec classes in junior and senior high school - remember those sewing projects we had? I still to this day remember the fashion show we had where we had to wear our outfits and go across the stage for the audience...one of the reasons I do not have a lot of fond memories of that time of my life.

The kits have a vintage look to them, and we are thinking about finding some old photographs to copy and put in. We have the pieces of the project done, and will share the finished projects long distance, so keep your eyes open for part two of the Material Girl project!

Crafting and Cupcakes

In between our crafting, we made time for these yesterday.

And, yes, she was very aware that I was going to post it.

Happy Easter

I thought that you might like a peek at my new crafting buddy. He was doing his best to keep me company while Maura was off visiting our mother.

Update...

There is a good reason why things have been quiet on the blog this week....Maura is on her way to visit! She has been busy wrapping up her school duties before spring break and I have been busy getting ready for her. I only have two things planned for us...Crafting and Cupcakes. I've been busy with the normal housecleaning and working on some last minute projects. I've also been pulling together some crafting projects so that we can have our very own crop! We'll work on some ideas for the blog, take lots of photos this week and share all our crafting goodies with all of you!