It's Christmas Time!!!

A very belated Happy Thanksgiving to you all!!! I don't know how Thanksgiving came and went so quickly...but, I hope you all had an enjoyable time with family and friends!!!

This card started with the striped paper I found from American Crafts (Kissing Santa Claus). I punched out circles with my Marvy (green) circle punch...added Stickles glitter glue and wrapped them in pieces of cellophane to make them look like peppermint candies. I mounted them on pop dots and added stamps #911 (Christmas Bear), #912 (Christmas Monkey), #913 (Sweet Wishes) and #A113 (Snowflakes).

Cute Stuff Make 'n Take

Note: The link to the pattern for this project has been fixed...thanks for catching that, Wanda!!

How's your Sunday going? I wanted to share the make 'n take project we did at Cute Stuff yesterday...thanks to Lianne and all the people who braved the yucky, rainy weather to come!!! (Special hi and thanks to Tina who is visiting from Washington and stopped by!!! At least the weather is a little better today, Tina!!)

Anyway...here's the project. My son's school used this idea as the cover to their yearbook a couple of years ago and I was finally able to make it into a card:



As you pull the insert up, the design changes from black & white to full-colored.





I'll try to explain it as best I can...please feel free to email me if anything doesn't make sense. I have 4 pattern pieces that you can download here. The pattern pieces are for 1 card piece, 1 insert piece, 1 acetate piece and 1 tab piece. (As usual, for all pieces, cut along the solid lines and fold along the dotted lines). We'll start with the card piece...



Fold the card piece as shown above. Once you have made all the folds, use a Marvy (pink) oval scallop punch approximately 1/2" below the notched portion of the card. (Make sure you push the paper into the punch as far as it will go).



Next, cut out the acetate piece and center it over the backside of the punched scallop oval (You can temporarily tape it into place so it doesn't move).



Open up the card and lay it flat. You're going to stamp your image in the center of the oval opening. Stamping on acetate can be a little tricky...keep a light, steady hand...you may want to practice on a scrap piece first). Use StazOn ink to stamp on the acetate. Remove the acetate piece.



Put a strip of 3/8" double stick tape to the top edge of your insert piece...attach the stamped acetate piece to the insert. Next, fold the tab piece in half along the dotted lines. Apply double stick tape to the 2 edges as shown above (you may want to click on the picture for a better look).



Fold the tab piece over the top of the insert piece. Punch a 1/8" hold in the center of the tab and tie a ribbon through it. Stamp and color the same image on a piece of white cardstock, and punch out with the same Marvy scalloped oval punch .



For the next step, you're going to take your colored image and apply glue to the back...slip it under the acetate sheet and make sure it matches up with the black & white image stamped on the acetate. Once the 2 images are aligned, press down and adhere the white cardstock to the (striped) insert piece.



Now you'll apply double stick tape to the two 1/4" tabs. Make a small cut into each tab as indicated on the pattern piece. Remove all the tape and fold closed along pre-folded lines.



If you now take a look into the card piece, you'll see a middle panel. (The front of the card will be the side with the window punched out). Take your insert piece and insert the cardstock behind the middle panel and the acetate piece in front of the middle panel...and slide it into the card. If your insert piece slides out of the card, you may want to put a tiny ( 1/4" piece) of double stick tape on the inside, upper right corner of the card (along the foldline)...and press together.



Add a little greeting to complete your card...also, to help your insert slide a little smoother...bend your card a little as shown below:



It's a fun card to do once you get the hang of it...hope you give it a try!!! Enjoy your Sunday!!!

Playing Catch-Up

Happy Thursday!!! I've been meaning to post this project all week, but just never could find the time (Can anyone relate?) Anyway...I wanted to share the giveaway we did at J's Knicknacks this past Saturday. It's just a simple box with an acetate window holding 8 Dandelion Stamps. The lucky winner was Nicky!!!! A belated congratulations, Nicky!! Take a peek at her cute blog Ohh...Nicky!


I liked the way it turned out, so I tweaked the pattern a little bit to hold some candies. (I used Hershey's nuggets). Click here to download the pattern. Just cut along the solid lines and fold along the dotted lines. Glue a piece of acetate to the the backside of the window opening. Stamps used: Stamp Box - #B105 (Little Something) and #6003 (Flower Spray). Candy Box - #A106 (Chocolate Dipped), #922 (Merry Christmas) and #925 (Holly).



We'll be giving away another box of stamps this Saturday (11/22) at Cute Stuff!!! I'll be doing a make 'n take from 11:00 - 1:00. This will probably be my last make 'n take for the year...so, hope to see you there!!

Candy Cane Stands

Wow!! Didn't this weekend just fly by? I wanted to share the make 'n take we did on Saturday at J's...thanks to everyone who stopped by...it's always nice to see old friends and make some new ones too!!! Click here to download the pattern we used for this project.



Cut on the solid lines and fold on the dotted ones (as shown above). The piece on the left is the base and the piece on the right is the part that holds the candy cane.



For the base...use double stick tape on the small tab to assemble. For the part that holds the candy cane...form the piece into a circle...overlap the ends slightly and use scotch tape to hold it together. Flatten this piece into an oval shape.



Now apply double stick tape to the oval piece as shown above (make sure you apply the tape to the very ends (this will ensure a more stable stand).



Now tape the oval piece onto the center of the base. (Please note that one side of the base is a little longer than the other two sides...make sure this longer side is opposite the oval piece).



For the candy canes...form two candy canes into the shape of a heart. Apply a small piece of double stick tape in the two places where the candy canes touch. Also, wrap a piece of double stick tape around the two tips of the candy canes This last piece of tape holds the 2 candy canes together and also holds the ribbon in place after you tie it. (I used neon pink paper to indicate the places where you apply the double stick tape). To decorate, simply tie a ribbon around the 2 candy canes, as well as on the base. Stamp and color an image and punch it out with the punch of your choice. Punch a 1/16" hole at the top and thread a silver cord through it and tie it onto the ribbon. Then, simply slip the candy canes into the base. (You may want to put a small piece of tape on the bottom of the stand to make it a little more stable!!) Here are a few examples of the project:









Stamps used: #C109 (Sam & Max), #C110 (Maddy & Snowman), #C111 (Snowman Hi), and #C113 (Max & Tweet). Sentiment: #913 (Sweet Wishes).

Giving Thanks

Thanksgivng's almost here...it's a good time to remember the people in your life that you're thankful for. Here's a little 3" x 3" card to let them know how special they are. The outside of the card uses stamp #B111 (Giving Thanks). For the inside of the card...cut a piece that's slightly smaller than your card. Fold in half and make 2 cuts right through the fold of you piece:



Push the cut tab in the opposite direction of the fold and glue the whole thing to the inside of your card:


Then, simply mount your greeting to the front of the tab. Your card will be able to fold flat...and the greeting will pop out when you open the card:



Stamps used: #801 (Turkey) and #802 (Happy Thanksgiving). Thanks for stopping by!!!

Snowman Hi

Hi! Just a quick post to share the project of the day. I really liked the way the card turned out, so I also used the same idea and turned it into a little favor...click here for a pattern. I stamped a bunch of #C111 (Snowman Hi) and punched it out with a Marvy (blue) scalloped heart punch. I also added some background with stamp #A113 (Snowflakes). I mounted these hearts on pop dots and added glitter glue and rhinestones. I also used a Marvy (blue) snowflake punch on pink vellum and attached with double stick tape. (Finished card size: 2-1/2" x 6"). Here's a close-up:



For the favor bag...cut out the pattern on the solid lines and fold along the dotted lines. Use double stick tape on the tabs to finish. Punch a 1/8" hole on each side, thread a ribbon and tie a knot to hold the handle in place (as shown below):



Oh...I'll be doing a make 'n take this Saturday (11/15) from 10:00 - 12:00 at J's Knicknacks!!! We'll also be doing a giveaway...you'll have to be present to enter...so be sure to stop by!!!

Ladybug Hugs

Happy Monday morning!! I've been enjoying doing some non-traditional holiday cards recently...it's fun to switch things up a little here and there to keep the creative juices flowing!! I still have the holiday greeting...but decided to use some pink and gold and ladybugs for this card!!! I punched out Stamp # C114 (Christmas Hugs) with a Marvy (pink) scalloped circle punch on white cardstock...then punched out 2 more circles in coordinating papers and glued pieces onto the main white cardstock piece. Other stamps used are: #B103 (Fancy Scroll) and #5039 (2 Ladybugs). I also smeared some gold glitter glue in the 2 corners and added some gold ribbon to give it some holiday sparkle.

Merriest Christmas

Can't believe how quickly November is going!! This year the plan around our house is simplicity...slow down...do less...enjoy more!!! With that in mind...here's a card for today. Sometimes just focusing on the color combination is enough to "make" the card...keep it simple!! Stamps used: #A114 (Petey With Present), #B113 (Merriest Christmas) and #925 (Holly). Have a great weekend!!!

Miniature Clothespins

I decorated these miniature clothespins about a week ago by simply gluing on some stamped images to the clothespins. This first card uses stamp #928 (Bird With Holly...I love using rhinestones for the holly berries!!!!). But since then they've been hanging around waiting for me to do something with them..



Here I'm using the clothespin as part of a money card...click here to download a simple pattern. Just cut on the solid lines and fold on the dotted lines. Cut out a 2-1/2" x 3" piece of cardstock...fold your bill in thirds to fit the cardstock piece...punch out a scalloped circle with a Marvy (pink) punch and fold that piece in half. Fit the bill and cardstock piece between the folded circle and clip the whole thing with your clothespin. Now simply slide the money into the little holder.



This clothespin in simply clipped onto a Christmas tree branch to decorate it!! (stamp #919 - Angel Bear). Before I go...I've been getting a lot of questions about what I use to cut out my images (I know...I get carried away with cutting things out!!) Anyway...this is it:



It's a Fiskars mini detail scissors...and it's the only thing I use!!! It's really small, so it's easy to maneuver around the smallest detail. It's sharp down to the fine tip, so you can snip things perfectly. I've had this pair for probably 7-8 years and I've never had to sharpen them!!! (Boy!! Do I sound like a commercial?). Sorry, I'm not sure who carries it...but, that's what I use!! Hope that helps!!!

A Merry Little Christmas

It struck me as funny to be stamping a snowy, white Christmas card in humid, 80 degree Hawaiian weather...but, somehow it helps me to get into the holiday mood!! Hope it gives you some inspiration too!! Stamps used are #C111 (Snowman Hi), #B114 (Merry Little Christmas) and #A113 (Snowflakes). Crystal Snowflakes are from Dress It Up.