Deck the Halls Designer Fabric and Paper

Glad you made it back. I know you were curious to see what I did with that fun flower I made yesterday. Well, I altered a note holder and added the flower to it.

These little note boxes are easy to cover. I just cut the decorative paper to fit around the box and about an inch or so higher. You do need to have some extra on top to fold over.

Once I got the paper around the box I added a piece of ribbon. The edges meet under the flower so the ribbon has a smooth look all around!

I glued the flower in place and put the paper back inside the box! Super easy and SO quick too!

These could make great teacher gifts and they are something the kids can help you work on. This would also be a fun Stamp Camp item too! I'm going to hang onto mine and sell it at the next craft fair. I say that now but I will probably end up giving it away!!

Thank you SO much for visiting today,
Wanda

Deck the Halls Designer Fabric Flower

I bought this fabric and I've actually caught myself hoarding it! I'm trying SO hard not to hoard these things anymore! SO as I was looking on the Stampin' Up! web site I saw a flower made using the "Scallop Circle #2" Sizzix die and actually said out loud, "that flower is SO cute and I think I have that die!" I went over to the dies and sure enough there it was, hardly used at all. So the fabric meets the die and 8 scallops later I'm putting this little holiday flower together.

I took one piece of cut fabric and folded it in half and then folded that in half again and I put a pin in the center of it to hold it shut. I did this for all of them but you have to work at it one at a time. I just put two points together. The pieces were side by side and I sewed at the point. Yes, hand sewed with a needle and thread! I did this for the next two. Then for the remaining four I layered them on top and sewed them onto the bottom layer, one at a time.

I placed the adorable green button from the "Candy Cane" designer buttons pack and I sewed it on.

This is such a cute "bobble." It could be used on a hair clip, as a pin, an ornament for the tree, decorations for a Christmas gift or anything your imagination can come up with. And tomorrow I will show you what my imagination came up with. I'd show you today but I don't have it done. I've been slacking off!!! LOL Tune in tomorrow!

Thank you for visiting today,
Wanda

Quick Christmas Card!

This card was made by Sharon, a VERY creative stamper. Don't let her tell you different. She has some great ideas when stamping. The last time she was here to stamp she brought some cards she had made and this is one of them.

I am not sure if the front of the card is decorative paper, gift wrapping paper or a pre-made card front. She layered it on top of a piece of white card stock cut a bit larger than the colored image. She punched a hole in the colored top layer and centered an epoxy sticker on it. This epoxy sticker is of Santa with a bag of toys. Click on the photo to see a closer view. I just love how the tree in the large image and the Santa in the small one keep the "theme" going. I thought it was a cleaver idea and a great way to use those smaller epoxy stickers. I tend to use them on a package. Kind of boring but now I have a new use for them!!! Aren't they cute on a card.

You can make your own epoxy type stickers by stamping on card stock and adding some Crystal Effects to it. After it dries you add the tape and stick it in place. Ok, it's not so much a sticker until you put the tape on it!! I will be having a tutorial on it soon. There is a little trick to it to keep the ink from running. I will share that tip with you and you will soon be using those little stamp images in whole different way!

Thank you Sharon for letting me share your wonderful card with everyone!

And thank you SO much for visiting today,
Wanda

Little Ornaments Wheel Weekend Project

I think these little wheels are SO darn cute. I need to use them more. I did buy the "Little Ornaments" one because I just couldn't pass it up! Isn't it cute? You may need to click on the photo to see them closer!

Now these little candies would make great little gifts for anyone. Pop some in the mail box, give some to teachers and friends. They are pretty much suitable for anyone.

I don't remember what blog I saw these and I'm SO surprised at myself that I remembered them at all. I think seeing the bag of Life Savers was what triggered the memory! I wish Life Savers would trigger more memory issues. Then they would surely live up to their name!!! LOL

To make these I used the "Curly Label" punch. I was able to use scraps for these. Gotta LOVE that!! I punched the labels out. Then I scored them but I did find that you can just fold them in half without scoring and they folded just fine. I stamped the words on. These words came from the "Teeny Tiny Wishes" set. And I sponged the edges.

As I recall the label headers were stapled to the candies. I didn't really like that. I don't like seeing staples on my stamping. SO I used some Sticky Strip tape and attached them that way. It holds just as well as the staples and I didn't have to struggle with trying to keep it all straight and staple at the same time.

Once you tape the candy inside and fold the label closed you are done! SO simple and extremely quick. Though when you make a whole bag of them it doesn't seem quick. But if you look at the big picture they don't take long to make one!

Toss them in a basket at your upcoming holiday events! They are SO cute and colorful!

These would be great for a Make n Take, a Class Project and it's even something that the kids can help with!

Thank you SO much for visiting today,
Wanda

Tags til Christmas Card

It just seems like the day after Thanksgiving is the day you bring out all of your Christmas stuff and start decorating and for many of you, you begin your shopping. I stay at home as much as possible. I have gone shopping on the day after Thanksgiving a couple of times in my life. The first year after we were married I ventured out and did not enjoy the day. It was just too crowded for me. SO the next year I thought I would get groceries that day instead. I had come to the conclusion that any place that had a cash register was going to be swamped. Since then I just stay at home and dig out the Christmas tree and decorations and play Christmas music or pop in a holiday DVD. It's SO much less stressful, unless the lights are in a big knot! LOL

SO to kick of the Christmas season I have a fun card that Nancy designed. The snowman is from the "Tags til Christmas" set. This snowman is SO cute!! I have used him on several cards. You can't see it in the photo but the card has the Smooch Spray all over it. I like this set because if you don't want to use it to make tags, it still gives you the option to use it for cards! This is a great quick, simple and clean looking card. Thank you Nancy!!

Thank you all for visiting today (after your shopping!),
Wanda

Happy Thanksgiving!

I hope you all are enjoying the day. Hopefully you didn't have to work too hard preparing the meal. I spent some time cleaning off my dining room table so we could eat at it! It's always full of beading stuff! I cooked and did dishes! Now I'm relaxing and I may just fill the table full of beads again so I can make a bracelet or two. It's SO relaxing!

I have a couple of cards to share with you today. They are Thanksgiving cards from the last Shoebox swap. The next DIVA Day and Shoebox swap is coming up and the theme is Christmas cards. I can't wait for that one! I'm SO excited for Christmas. I LOVE the lights, the music, the darkness around 5 pm! And I do love the snow!

SO onto the cards! The first one (the one with the bird) was designed by Sandy. I actually put mine together wrong. The orientation is not correct on my card. The card was to be turned so the short side (the fold) was on the top. I was so in awe at the cuteness of the card I didn't pay attention when I was putting it together! I like it the way it turned out. It's such an adorable card. I SO love using that bird punch! Thank you Sandy for the fabulous card!

The next card is by Juliann. The image of this card was stamped on with VersaMark and the colors were chalked in. I forgot how much fun chalks are. I love how we used that little strip that comes off when you are done punching the scallop edge. I was SO glad I punched mine straight so my thin strip was nice and straight! Thank you Juliann for such a pretty card and the great idea on using that little strip that I usually toss!

Thank you all for visiting today, enjoy the rest of your holiday!

Wanda

Greeting Card Kids Sketch Challenge

Wow, these Wednesdays sure do sneak up on me rather quickly!! I almost forgot about the sketch. I'm TRYING to get the house cleaned up for Thanksgiving. Mostly the dining room table. It's FULL of beading stuff! And I know after I get it all put away I will not remember were I put certain beads and will be spending so much time trying to hunt them down! I think I need a better organizational system.

Anyway, onto this fun card. When I see a square card posted at SplitCoastStampers I tend to not want to play that week. But lately I have been and after making the card for today's sketch I came to the conclusion that I am no longer intimidated by square cards. Not that I will be making a lot of my cards square. It costs too much to mail them, so I will be sticking with the regular size ones. And of course at SplitCoast you do have the option of working with the card at 4-1/4" x 5-1/2". But I stuck with the size they posted and FINALLY... I no longer fear them. I just jumped right in on this one.

I thought it was fun to play with the "Polka Dot" and the "Petals-a-Plenty" embossing folders. And of course I can't forget about the most wonderful snowflakes using the "Northern Frost" die. They are just too pretty. And when you add bling to them it's even prettier!

For my layers I added the following: 1 is Whisper White card stock and the "Polka Dot" embossed paper. Layer 2 is a piece of "Deck the Halls" decorative paper. Layer 3 is a piece of Cherry Cobbler card stock. Layer 4 is a piece of Always Artichoke card stock that was embossed with the "Petals-a-Plenty" folder and layer 5 is the "Greeting Cards Kid" image on Whisper White card stock. I colored it in with a blender pen and markers.

And I topped it all off with the cute snowflakes from the "Northern Frost" die. One of my favorite dies. And of course I had to add some rhinestones to the snowflake and the tree to give it that magical touch!

I was pleased with this card when I was done. Mostly because I did not even whine when I saw it was a square card and also because I was able to make the card square!! Color me happy!

Thank you for visiting today,

Wanda

Falling Leaves Thanksgiving Gift

It's always so fun when you can recycle! I love to take jars and fill them with goodies and decorate the outsides.

I needed a quick and simple Thanksgiving gift so I took a jar I had cleaned out and thought I would play around with it. The first thing I needed to do was to see what Thanksgiving sets I had that wasn't retired. Not that it really mattered but I do try to work with the current sets as often as I can. I found the "Falling Leaves" set and thought I could have some fun with it.

The first thing I did was punched out some scallops and circles to see which ones would fit best on top of the jar. After doing that I punched them out in the colors I wanted. Here I used Pumpkin Pie, Chocolate Chip and Whisper White.

Next I stamped the leaves in Pumpkin Pie and Chocolate Chip. I cut them out with my snips. Now that was the part that took the longest and yet it really wasn't all that long to cut out 3 leaves.

I stamped the circle image from the set in Pumpkin Pie and punched it out.

I took my Pumpkin Pie ribbon and added Sticky Strip to the back of it and taped it in place around the edge of the jar lid. I stuck on my largest scallop with the Sticky Strip as well. Then I set all the layers in place. I didn't quite secure the top layer. I wanted to make sure I got the leaves where I wanted them and then I pressed down on that circle to set it in place.

I tied two pieces of ribbon around the neck of the jar, Pumpkin Pie and Chocolate Chip. I tied the bow but it didn't want to stay so I did glue it in place. I filled the jar with those cute candy pumpkins and viola! It was done! It was a quick and easy project to do and to be honest here, I thought it was a lot of fun to do it too!

Thank you SO much for visiting today,
Wanda

Paisley Prints Thanksgiving Card

Oh my, I just can't believe how my day got away from me. It was such a busy day and by the time I was able to get down to my workroom it was LATE! So my post is a little late tonight but not by much!

This beautiful card was designed by Amy from our DIVA group. I can't say it enough, they are such a great bunch of gals and SO talented.

The leaf images on the card are from the "Paisley Prints" set. Again, another set I don't have but was fortunate to get to play with it a bit. Though Amy did stamp the one leaf and had them all cut out for us!! It's SO funny, we just LOVE those cards with the cut out images set higher on the card with Dimensionals but we don't like to cut them out!!! You whine and you cut it out. You put the card together and you are SO happy with the end results. So then what was the whining all about? I don't know, I think I just like to whine about it at first!! LOL

This was a very fun card to make and I LOVE the color scheme here too. Not the usual fall colors but they sure are pretty together.

Thank you Amy for allowing me to share your fabulous creation with everyone!

I am working on some fun projects so be sure to check back.

Thank you for visiting today,
Wanda

Acetate Tissue Paper Technique Technique Page

It's about time I post another technique page and what better way to display it than with the card Sue A. made for the DIVA shoebox swap!

Her card was a big hit on DIVA Day! It's such an awesome technique too. And it's fairly easy to do. I have not tried it yet but will be after I submit this post. I plan on doing mine in blues to work it in with a Christmas/winter (maybe snowman) theme! Wish me luck! I'll just follow the instructions given to me and posted on here for you!

This is another page in the 4th set of Technique Pages. I have other techniques about ready to post soon too but I've had so many other fun things going on that I have not been able to squeeze them in. But trust me, they are coming!

Ok, onto this technique. You need the following items: tissue paper, Window Sheets, inkers, Crystal Effects and Dazzling Diamonds (optional but such a pretty touch it adds), oh and rubber gloves are nice to have too!

Pour some Crystal Effects on your Window Sheet. Drop some inker colors around the sheet. With your fingers move the Crystal Effects and inkers around on the sheet until it is covered. Add some Dazzling Diamonds if desired. Cover the Window Sheet with the tissue paper and allow to dry. You can heat set it but be careful, the base of this is a plastic Window Sheet. It's just best to let it dry naturally. That's it. It's more of a "how patient can you be" type technique, since you have to wait for it to dry. It's best to do it at night and in the morning it's ready to play with! Have fun with it. I'd LOVE to see what you do with it!

This technique will be on a 6" x 6" piece of card stock as were all of the other techniques. I am just showing a finished item using the technique.

There are still a few technique pages left for sale plus they are on CD for you to print out to hold Technique Club with. Each CD also contains a photo of the finished technique page to copy or for reference. Click here to see the sets.

edited on 11-23-10: The window sheet side is facing up. The piece was taped in place on the tissue paper side.

Thank you SO much for visiting today,
Wanda

Day of Gratitude

This is another one of those sets I had pondered over buying and didn't. And yet I got to play with it at DIVA Day! That is another fun thing about being a part of the DIVA group!

This card is such a fascinating card. It was designed by Connie. She is such a creative stamper. Her cards never cease to amaze me.

She used the Square Lattice embossing folder for the background. But here's the fun and cool thing about the card. The "flower" part was stamped first and then cut out. After that it was placed on the More Mustard layer and then dry embossed. It now looks like it's a single piece of card stock. That embossing just melded the papers together. It's SO cool! I think if you click on the photo you can get a better view of it.

This is also a great card (changing the wording of course) for a masculine card.

It's such a great Thanksgiving card! Thank you Connie for letting me share it with everyone!

Thank you SO much for visiting my web site today,
Wanda

Bells & Boughs Christmas Card

I can't believe how many pieces were cut out to create this beauty. Teresa, my downline designed this card. She is SO talented. It was her swap for DIVA Day last Sunday. She used the "Bells and Boughs" set. It's such a fun set to play with.

She cut out all the pieces and it's difficult to see in the photo but there is Crystal Effects on some of those pieces. It added such a beautiful touch to the centers of the flowers. Click on the photo for a closer view.

There are SO many fun elements to this card. The brushed gold card stock that was cut using the "Top Note" die. This piece was cut in half.

The satin and organza ribbon that is tied around the brushed silver card stock.

The background is done using the "Christmas Collage" stamp. She inked it using Real Red ink, which is the same color as the base of the card.

The images were colored in with markers. And the layers of flowers were attached using Dimensionals. It's such a pretty card and it was a BIG hit on DIVA Day!

Thank you Teresa for allowing me to share your card with everyone and for designing such a fabulous card!!

And thank you SO much for visiting today,
Wanda

Candy Cane Christmas Fabric Mittens Weekend Project

I was playing around with the "Candy Cane Christmas" fabric. I cut out 4 mittens and I cut out one piece of felt for lining for each pair of mittens. I pinned them together and hand stitched them in red.

The top part of the mitten is just a piece of white felt I cut out and glued in place. I didn't want to stitch it, stitching there would distract from the hand part of the mitten.

I took some black craft wire (it was all I had on hand) and made some loops in it. I poked a hole in the mitten and inserted the wire. I wound the wire around the paper piercing tool and squished it as flat as I could get it against the fabric. I repeated this for the other mitten. The mittens measures 4" x 3" each. With the wire the whole thing measures 8" tall by 6" wide. I'm not sure if I'm going to hang this on the tree, on the wall or give it away! Click on the photo for a closer view.

There's lots of other weekend projects (over 125) on my web site. Take a look, just click here.

Thank you SO much for visiting today,
Wanda

A Cardnial Christmas Sketch Challenge Card

This is the card I made for this weeks Sketch Challenge over at SplitCoastStampers. I am so partial to this stamp set. I have used it many times and never grow tired of it.

I did have a little trouble with the card. I wanted to use Bravo Burgundy card stock. I liked it better with the berries in the background paper but the Bravo Burgundy ribbon looked just awful on it. I switched the color over to Real Red and I was much happier with it.

SO for the base of my card, it is now Real Red. The next layer is from the "Deck the Halls" decorative paper pack. Actually all three of those layers came from that pack of paper. There's LOTS of pretties in that pack!

The bird is from "A Cardinal Christmas" set. I stamped the bird using black StazOn. I let it dry for a few minutes. I went and cut out my card stock while it was drying. It doesn't take too long to dry but I had just inked the pad and wanted to be sure it was dry before I applied my markers to it. I didn't want to smear it nor did I want black permanent ink on my Real Red marker. I colored in the leaves in using Always Artichoke and the birds beak and feet were colored in using More Mustard. I colored directly from the marker, no blender pen was used here.

The background was sponged in using a dauber sponge and Crumb Cake ink. The edges were sponged in using Chocolate Chip ink.

I attached the ribbon before I put the card together. And that is pretty much all there was to the card. I like how it has a "richness" to it.

If you have time I highly recommend you play with the layout. It was a fun one!
There is a post on SplitCoast that has a link to ALL of the sketches. Pick one and play with it. I went back to that page and I downloaded a few of them I didn't have. I keep them all in an album and when I need one I know where they are. Each week I print the sketch, cut it out and put it in my album after I'm done making it. Go have some fun! You don't have to post yours on SplitCoast if you don't want to but I think it's fun if you do! The people there are SO nice!

I look forward to getting a comment with the link to your card posted at SplitCoast!!! (Game on!!!)

Thank you SO much for visiting today.

Wanda