Using the swap twinchies

So, a whole year ago...yes, that's right, a YEAR ago...I hosted a swap with the fabulous group over at the Cardmaker Magazine message board. If you haven't visited and become a part of this community yet...what are you waiting for? Its the friendliest place I've found on the web!

The swap was for birthday twinchies, so that I could have the beginnings of the million or so birthday cards that it seems I need each season. So after a successful swap, with fabulous twinchies like you see below overflowing my stash...





...how many cards do you think I have made with them? That's right...none! It seems that for me, coordinating my 'style' with someone else's is a little more difficult in practice than in theory...hmm.

So, determined to use these fabulous little gems to make equally great cards, I broke into the stash and started creating...and here are the results!



Terrie added the cutest little pom pom to her birthday hat...and with this card, I figured out the best ever glue to keep my bows on! Scotch Quick Dry Adhesive, comes in a bottle, and since it is a wet glue, takes a bit to dry...but once it does, that puppy is stuck! Fabulous!



I had fun with my Martha Stewart punch carrying on the 'dots' from the party hat.



This one I was so pleased with that I took a picture before the glue holding on the buttons was dry! It does dry clear, just so you know. And though it is difficult to capture in pictures, the background for this card is white glitter paper...all over glitter!



Really, this and several of the twinchies in the swap could be used for more than just birthday cards...but I decided to stick with birthdays because those really are the cards that I need most!



In case you were wondering, this is how I am signing the back of the cards...to give credit to the twinchie designers too...that is, if they signed them!



This is one of the twinchies that wasn't signed (sadness!), but the designer actually sent me (as the hostess) extra twinchies...and even extra punched cupcakes! I had enough to make three cards!



I changed the twinchie a bit by popping up the cupcake top, then used the extra cupcakes to border the bottom...I wanted to bring in some black because of the sentiment and think that the narrow ribbon adds just the right graphic accent...what do you think?



I had enough cupcake punches to add to the inside too.



This twinchie is actually mine...I was going for graphic and bright...with the intention of using them on cards for younger boys.



And on a side note...I finally got the die for the Happy Birthday sentiment to work! It took several experiments with shims and papers until I got the right combination...whew!



This twinchie is by Rainy B. I was surprised at how difficult this twinchie was to use on a card! You wouldn't think that black, white and red would be difficult to use, would you? I actually tried several combinations, and ended up using this fabulous black glitter paper...although you can't see it in my pictures, the glitter actually reflects in multiple colors, catching the red highlights fabulously!



I added hot-fix gems (love my i-rock!) to the tag and the lower left of the card...I'm thinking on coloring them red, to match the gem on the present...but I have to purchase a red alcohol marker to do it...maybe later this week...



And to tie in the inside of the card with the twinchie, I used the same pattern of doodling around the edge...black marker dots with silver glitter dots in the corners. (Although I didn't take a good enough picture for you to see the silver glitter clearly.)

This last card qualifies for a challenge over at the Do You Stack Up challenge blog, #19 Add a Tag. They have the neatest challenges over there, you should play along! I'm glad that I'm able to play along again...its been a while!

Do you have swap stashes too? Hopefully this post will inspire you to dig them out and start creating! It was a stretch to incorporate someone else's style into my cardmaking...but a good one!

That's all for today! Hopefully I'll have time and creative inspiration to use up some more of these fabulous twinchies soon, then I guess I'd have to host another swap!

Enjoy,

Meredith

Progressive Challenge

What an interesting spring we are having! Here in New Mexico, we have enjoyed temperatures in the 80's, then snow and freezing rain, then wind ready to blow everything away, then mild weather again! What an adventure!

I've managed to squeeze some time for crafting in between end-of-school-year activities and outside improvements (garden!), and finally, after receiving the emails about this challenge for a couple of months, I've managed to take the time to participate!

The challenge is from Designed to Delight digital stamps, and on their blog here, you will find the images and the rules...and if you play along one week, the next week's image is emailed directly to you! How cool is that?

So this is the card that I pulled together, very simply,



I printed the image, colored it with pencils, inked the edge and cut it out with an oval nestabilities die. Backed it with another die in a scallop edge, then added it to the card. Since the image has a quilt in it, I used a quilt patterned paper as background...and added a ribbon bow for a homey feel.

I haven't decided on a sentiment for this one yet...I figure that I can add one later when the right occasion presents itself...do you ever do that?

Enjoy,

Meredith

I Got Crafty: Burlap Dry Erase Board

Well, I decided to have a bit of fun in the craft cave again...I should do this more often, since it ends with something nice for my home!

It started with the kitchen renovations...that story is on the other blog...here..., and no, we're not done yet...but soon, very soon...

Anyway, now that I actually have a PANTRY in my kitchen ... yeah! ... I have this great view from the dining room table ...



Well...that could use a bit of something, couldn't it?

I was sure that I had the perfect idea...here is how the conversation went...(sort of...)

Me: Hey hon, wanna hear my great idea to put here?

Dh: Sure, whatcha want to do?

Me: I'm going to get an old kitchen cabinet door, then I'm going to paint the outside green like the kitchen walls, then paint the inside part with chalkboard paint...and we can have a chalkboard for our kitchen! Won't it be great?

Dh: Chalkboard? Why chalkboard? That sounds dark. I like whiteboards better, they're so much easier to use...could we just hang a dry erase board there?

Me: (dumbfounded look...) Dry erase??? Why would I want a big ugly whiteboard there?

So...enter blogland...(Thank you, blogland!!!) In one of the fabulous linky parties out there I ran across this tutorial from Get Your Craft On, and inspiration struck!

I decided to try my hand at a tutorial-type post...so bear with me...

Gather your supplies:

Frame with glass
burlap (or fabric, or paper...whatever you want)
masking tape

I pulled out a frame from the back closet, I bought this one at Kohl's on sale...



I'm not even going to come close to admitting how long ago I purchased this...

Then pulled out the burlap, (come on, you know you have some sitting at home, ready for a project....don't you?, don't you?)

And cut a piece to extend around the cardboard backing of the frame.



I got out the extremely specialized tool then...the masking tape...and stretched the burlap around the cardboard, taping it in place to hold it down.

Now, I didn't take pictures of the in between step...but now would be a good time to clean the glass really well...before you reassemble the frame...



I did miter the corners (sloppily though) to cut down on the bulk...but as you can see, this is not a fancy job...hey, its the back...if I hadn't taken pictures, no one but me would ever have seen!

Put your glass back in the frame, put your burlap covered backing in....and flip it over to see your fabulous new dry erase board!!!



Hmm...........that's.............uhh..........well............underwhelming...............is the word that comes to mind...hmm...........

Well....now what do I do? I could cut some vinyl...or use a stencil and paint a design...or cut some fabric....or, I could take a look around what is currently my crafting passion and so is readily accessible in my craft room....stamping!

So, how about a few more supplies:

rubber stamps ( I used a fabulous one from Unity Stamp Co)
dye ink (I used Tuxedo black by Memento)
ribbon, whatever you've got that looks good with your project

After experimenting for a bit with some spare burlap I decided on a border look, rotating and repeating the stamp across the top and bottom...with the ribbon as an accent.

So let's take a look now, shall we?





Much better, yes? I left a lot of blank space...as the intention is really to use this as a memo board...but you can get as creative as you would like to to suit your project!

One last thing...the dry erase marker...I know that I could just let it sit on top of the frame...or tie it on with a ribbon...or even attach it with some velcro...my children are old enough that having the marker easily accessible is not a problem...but I didn't want to have it out...its not exactly pretty, you know?



So I tucked it away inside the cabinet door using some self-stick velcro...see? Nice and handy, but out of sight...good!

Here are the before and after views...

Before:



And now:



please try very hard to ignore the pile of dirty dishes in the sink...and on the counter...I had to take the pictures while I remembered to during the daytime...be nice!

...not exactly Ballard Designs...but better than nothing!

Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed my little tutorial!

I'm linking this post up over at Funky Junk Interiors Burlap Theme Linky and the Tatertots and Jello Weekend Wrap Up Party.


Meredith

Someone's Having a Birthday!

So, a dear friend who lives all the way up in Oregon is having a very special birthday in February. She (and her husband) will be celebrating the first anniversary of the birth of their son!

Since my youngest will be turning 12 this year, it has been a while since we've celebrated that particular birthday!

I know that little C won't particularly care about a card right now, but after going through many of my mom's things last fall, and finding adorable cards from her childhood and mine...I took the time to make a special card, just for him.

I started with the sketch from the Clean & Simple Stamping blog, FTL #125...I have the best time with their sketches...if you have not checked them out before...do...you will love it!



I also have a few ideas running around in my head for the challenge over at Do You Stack Up?, Patterns... Then I found some great papers at JoAnn's, and took it from there!



Supplies: cardstock: purple (DCWV), turquoise (Coredinations), cream (stash); patterned paper: birthday, (DCWV); ink (TPC Studio); embossing folders: dots, plaid (Sizzix), swirls, squares (Cuttlebug); gems: i-rock by imaginesce; other: sandpaper

After embossing the patterns into the turquoise patterned paper, I sanded the raised designs to add another layer of pattern...



And yes, these are some more gems that I attached using my i-rock tool...I think I'll be using these fairly often...they are just so much fun to put on! And way easier to line up than brads...while the glue is still melted, you can nudge the gem into place...be careful though, it is still hot! Ask me how I know...



The real fun for this card came when it was time to do the inside...



I just love clear stamps! I used stamps from three designers and five different sets to put this little phrase together. Please, tell me that you can read what it says??? When I showed it to my daughter and husband they both got funny looks on their faces for a minute...and after puzzling it out, they could read what it says....

To get my phrase, I laid out the stamps on my inside layer, then placed a clear block over them...I inked up the stamps, then made a test stamp on a scrap piece of paper...and am I glad that I did! The stamps are different thicknesses! Even stamps made by the same designer! So I ended up inking up the stamps in several steps...and lining them up to get what I wanted...but hey, it worked!

Stamps used: 1: Penny Black; L,W: The Paper Company Studio; small letters, happy, birthday: The Stamps of Life

Enjoy,

Meredith

Spring Fever

So, over at Cardswaps there was a swap to make Spring cards...and it took me forever to put together a design this time! But I found some adorable paper and cardstock at JoAnn's last week, so I finally got these done!

The patterned paper that I found also happens to fit the newest challenge over at Do You Stack Up? Patterns...

I thought that the butterflies with their different patterns were a good take on this challenge...but I have an idea for another card to fit it too...we'll see if I have time to put the other idea into practice later!

You have until Wednesday, so why not join in on the fun?



Supplies: butterfly paper: Me & My Big Ideas; green polka dot: DCWV, cardstock: white: stash; purple: Coredinations, stamp: StudioG, butterfly punch: Fiskars, gems: i-rock by Imaginesce, ink: TPC studios

I make thank you cards for the swap, but when I made the one extra for myself, I already have plenty of thank you cards in my stash box, so I switched out a few things and made a birthday card, since I need plenty of those still!



Here is a closer look at the details...I am really enjoying the Fiskars punches...they cut the paper nicely, the squeezable handles are very comfortable, and the seasonal designs are so cute!



And I even got to play with a new tool that I purchased last month (Happy Birthday to me!), the i-rock, a tool that applies heat-set crystals. It was awesome!



And last, but not least...do you decorate your envelopes too? I don't normally send envelopes with a swap, but for this one the hostess requested that we do...so I couldn't just send plain ones, could I?

I do like to stamp the envelopes just a bit...enough to add a little fun, but not enough to make them hard to mail...this little butterfly stamp seemed just the right touch for this set.



Enjoy,

Meredith

Think Pink

Just the quickest little post today, to post my entry for the Think Pink Challenge over at Do You Stack Up?.

I picked up the paper and cardstock from JoAnn's, then went with what started out as some simple layering, but turned into some banners and sewing!

I love the way that it turned out, lots of layers, but still easy to mail!



Enjoy,

Meredith

Seeing Gray...

So I picked up this pad of coordinating paper a bit ago...some lovely designs by Amy Butler, published by K&Company, that I thought have the loveliest color combinations. The papers are all shades of gray, green, blue, ivory and the tiniest bit of pink. The designs are mostly graphic, with strong lines and bold forms...truly striking.

My dilema came when I needed to choose a project to use these papers...what to do? I had seen projects around the web that ranged from simply framing them under glass (they are lovely enough) to various card projects...none of which appealed to me.

I finally decided to make a mini album, one just for me, full of ink and stamps and lovely colors, one designed to make me smile every time I flip through it...so I did.



I chose to make a 3" x 3" meandering maze album, it is a type of album that you make the pages from just one sheet of 12" x 12" paper...so clever! I used a combination of the instructions from a few different sites, just google meandering maze album and take a look, there are several great tutorials out there.

I love the look of distressing things, so I gave my sponges a workout inking all the edges of the pages and layers...



All the stamps I used are from Unity Stamp Company, from various Kit of the Month's...they do such a clever job of making the phrases look unique! I chose the phrases that make me happy!



The flowers I wanted to use were too bright and new from the package, so they got the ink treatmant too...it gave them the perfect gray tint to coordinate with the paper.



I pulled buttons and ribbons from my stash, and had fun choosing layers and shapes to add to the album to make it shabby enough to make me smile...



When you make the album, because of the way you fold the 12" x 12" paper, you have the option to include some pockets...I included four in my album, so that I could insert tags and include even more quotes that make me happy.

I love how it turned out, and look forward to finding more fabulous sentiment stamps that make me happy, so that I can fill up the pages!

This album was made to fit two challenges, The Gray is the New Black Challenge over at Moxie Fab World, and the No Stress, Distress! challenge over at the Do You Stack Up? challenge blog. You should play along too!

Enjoy,

Meredith