No. 14

There is one day left, my friends. Just one day until Valentine’s. Is everyone finished with all your holiday preparations? Any special plans for the big day?

Although I love to decorate and make sweet lovey things for Valentine’s Day, I have to admit that otherwise we don’t do too much. But I do believe eating some candy will be in order.

Speaking of sweet lovey things, I have one to share with you today that I made for this week’s special Valentine feature on the Therm O Web blog. It’s a plushy heart pillow ornament that combines some of my favorite things; fabric, stamping, and hand-stitching. I am smiling because this is my attempt at mixed-media. Fabric and lace, paint and ink, metal, beads, and a button.  I let myself get a little “free” with the stamps and paint, and finished things off with some crazy machine sewing. I even left the tails of the threads long for another touch of abandon.

Sometimes it’s just fun to go a little wild.

Have you heard? Your favorite Red and Pink products are on sale today through Valentine’s Day! Stock up on your favorite SpraynBond and HeatnBond products, along with Pink Glitter Dust and more!

Click here to see all the products and do a bit of shopping!

Thanks so much for stopping by today! I hope you all have a very sweet Valentine’s Day tomorrow!

Supplies:
Therm O Web Fabric Fuse Tape
Therm O Web Spray n’ Bond Fusible Adhesive
Therm O Web Zots Singles Large Clear Adhesive Dots
Stamps, Ink: Stampin’Up
Paint: Delta
Beaded Heart: Jolees
Floss: DMC
Other: Muslin, Lace, Button, Thread, Hemp

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XOXO

Hi Sweeties! Happy Monday!

It’s Valentine’s time! And in honor of this very special holiday, I have lots of fun lovey dovey things to share with you this week. Today’s project is an altered wooden frame I made for Authentique’s CHA booth featuring the Lovely collection.

You all know how much I like to decorate for the holidays, and altering these simple wooden frames from my local big box craft store is one of my favorite projects. The frames are fun to dress up, and fit easily into almost any nook or cranny. Better yet, they are a very inexpensive way to add some festive cheer to your home.

I fell in love with this sweet quote from Lovely’s Details 12 x 12 Stickers, and wanted it to be the highlight of the frame, so I got a bit crafty with the banner on top of the opening. Good idea for items that are too big to fit inside. Covered the frame with several patterns from the 6×6 Paper Bundle, tied a big bow around the top, and finished off with a shabby handmade flower and a tiny tag.

Thanks so much for stopping by today! Hope you all have a great day!

Supplies:
Authentique Lovely 6×6 Bundle
Authentique Lovely Details 12 x 12 Stickers
Punches: McGill, Stampin’Up
Trim: Webster’s Pages, American Crafts, Craft Supply
Buttons: vintage
Ink: Clearsnap

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Authentique Design Team

Woo hoo! Hi everyone! Today I get to share some secret happy news that I’ve been sitting on for the past couple of months!

I am SO honored and excited to say that I’ve been asked to join the Authentique Design Team! Today, three other talented new design team members, along with myself, are being introduced on the Authentique blog. Can you believe it? I have to say….I’m still in a bit of shock!

In honor of my big day today, I wanted to share a special project I made for Authentique’s CHA booth featuring their adorable Valentine line called Lovely.

You all know how much I love to make seasonal home decor projects for the holidays, and this little paper heart pillow is one of my favorite ideas for Valentine’s Day. It’s sooo easy to make a pillow from some paper and a bit of stuffing, and this little cutie looks great tucked into a basket or a bowl, propped on a stack of books, or nestled into your favorite armchair.

I adore all the patterns in the Lovely collection, and wanted to use a lot of them here, so a patchwork design was the perfect way to showcase many patterns together. It may seem a bit tricky to paper piece a more complex shape, like this heart, but I have a quick and easy tip that’s a real time saver. I first cut out my base shape from scratch paper, and then I adhere random strips and blocks of patterned papers over the base shape. Don’t worry about the edges, just make sure you cover the entire base shape completely. Turn the piece over and using the base shape as a guide, cut out your finished piece. Repeat the process on a second heart for the back of the pillow, and for a bit of extra detailing, machine stitch between each panel of paper. Adhere trim, or in this case, the edging of paper doilies, to the top heart and then stitch the two hearts together, leaving an opening to stuff the pillow before stitching closed.

After cutting off the decorative edge of several paper doilies to create the ruffled trim around my heart, I was left with just the plain inside centers. Instead of letting those go to waste, I used them to make a fun shabby flower for the center of the pillow. I simply scrunched up the doilies, stacked them together, and topped them with a few additional flower shapes I punched from patterned paper. Added the flower, along with a big bow, and finished things off with tags made of some of the adorable embellishments from Lovely’s Paper Crafting Assortment.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and a huge thank you for letting me share my happy news with you!

Supplies:

Authentique Lovely 6×6 Bundle #LOV009
Authentique Lovely Paper Crafting Assortment #LOV013
Die: Papertrey Ink
Doilies: Wilton
Trim: May Arts, Offray
Buttons: My Mind’s Eye

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Just Because Cycling Team

Hiya Sweeties! Happy Wednesday! Today is a happy day for me. I am up on the Little Yellow Bicycle blog, sharing my projects for the Just Because Cycling Team!

Some of you may remember these photos of me and my kiddos from Christmas. I know I’ve used them before, but it’s a rare occurrence in my house these days to get decent pictures of all of us together, and I wanted to do something special with them. I think this bi-fold frame is really going to dress up my front entryway table for Valentine’s Day this year.

Just Because has sooo many cute embellishments that this project was super fun to put together. The base of the frame is just two pages from a chipboard mini album. I covered the pages with patterned paper and then went to town with the goodies. Then I simply tied the two pages together with twine.

I love that this frame will work perfectly for Valentine’s Day, but I think it’s versatile enough to work throughout the rest of the year, too.

Thanks so much for stopping by today! I’ll be back soon with another project I made for the Just Because Cycling Team, or you can take a peek on the Little Yellow Bicycle blog. I would be so grateful if you all went and cheered me on! And I hope to get caught up on all my blog visits soon. Have a great day!

Supplies:

JB-134 Journaling Cards
JB-140 Fresh Verse Cardstock Stickers
JB-277 Stick Pins
JB-279 Chipboard Shapes
JB-304 6×6 Paper Pad
JB-305 Paper Crafting Kit
CBA-1007 Canvas Covered Chipboard Album

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Winterings

Hi Sweeties! Can you believe today is the last day of 2012 already? It is amazing how quickly an entire year can slip by. This year I have been very blessed from all the warm friendships, visits, and comments left by you, my wonderful bloggy friends. You all truly mean the world to me! So to all of my sweet friends, a very Happy New Year’s Eve to you! May 2013 be your best year yet!

Several weeks ago, I received a very unexpected and very happy opportunity to create a few projects for Little Yellow Bicycle featuring their adorable new winter collection, Winterings. And what a fabulous treat this has been. I know I say this every time…….but Winterings is my favorite LYB line ever!

Once all the holiday decorations come down after Christmas, the house always seems a little bare, so for my first project, I made a cheery little winter frame for my front entryway table.

Covered the front of my wooden frame with two papers from the 6×6 Paper Pad, and added a third contrasting print to the back of the opening. The large chipboard circle from the Chipboard Shapes was a perfect fit for the center of the frame. Love the extra detail it adds.

Tied a big ribbon around the top of the frame and dressed up the bow with a little banner and layered snowflakes from the Paper Crafting Kit. Tied some baker’s twine around the chipboard mittens so I could hang them from the bow, too.

Added a bit of extra pizazz to the mittens with some icy clear cuts and vellum stickers trimmed to fit the cuffs. A cardstock sticker sentiment finishes things off.

I have a couple more Winterings projects to share the rest of the week, or you can see my entire post today on the Little Yellow Bicycle blog. I would be SO grateful if you all went and cheered me on! Thank you, my friends! You all are the BEST!

Hope you have a very happy and very safe New Year’s Eve this evening. Me, I plan on staying home and drinking champagne and playing dominoes with the folks. I know, I know………

I’m pretty wild and crazy, right?

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Supplies:

Sights and Sounds of Winter Frame:
WI-140 Cardstock Stickers- Fresh Verse
WI-160 Vellum Tape Strips
WI-230 Clear Cuts
WI-279 Chipboard Shapes
WI-304 6×6 Paper Pad
WI-305 Paper Crafting Kit

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Thanksgiving Blessings

Hi Sweeties! Wishing all of my friends in the States a very joyous and blessed Thanksgiving holiday! I am so very, very grateful on this day, and every day, for all of you! Your sweet friendships mean the world to me!

I think I may just be able to pull this Thanksgiving thing off today. After stops at two different grocery stores, I did get everything I need to produce a small feast, and I even managed to make a pie yesterday afternoon. And of course, I have my home all decorated for the big day.

So in honor of the holiday, wishing you many thankful blessings, from my house to yours!

As you can see, I have many Thanksgiving turkeys, pilgrims, and Indians. Many of them are handmade treasures from my sweet kiddos when they were little. How these little things mean the world to me!

I’m back today on the SEI blog with another Berry Melody project. This time, a set of holiday tags.

Gift tags are one of my favorite holiday projects. They are always fun to put together, and I think they make a great gift idea for anybody on your gift giving list. Love giving something that is as useful as it is pretty.

For more details, including a complete supply list, be sure to check out the SEI Lifestyle Blog. And leave a comment while you are there for your chance to win an amazing prize package filled with Berry Melody goodies!

Thanks so much for stopping by everyone! Happy Thanksgiving!

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Haunted Halloween House Tour- Paige’s House

Hiya Sweeties! Happy, happy Halloween! I’m back today with one final burst of Halloween goodness with the last stop on this year’s annual Haunted Halloween House Tour. This time, we’re visiting Paige’s house.

Do come in!

Here we are in Paige’s formal living room. Love how she loaded up the fireplace with spooky critters and bones, and the mantel looked fabulous, too. The spooky tree is a project Paige made from chenille stems and bits of moss. You may recognize the acorn zombies that Joanne’s husband made for us this year.

Paige’s formal dining room.

Another creepy tree made by Paige……wire this time, with paper skeletons.

The kitchen table, set for our feast.  Joanne and I got our own paper skeletons as party favors!

Haunted paper houses lit with tea-lights hanging in the windows.

The family room.

The sun porch.

And the cutest little Halloween decoration of them all!

So that is it for this year’s Halloween House Tour! I cannot tell you how much I enjoy and look forward to this event. I think the ladies did a fabulous job with the decor this year and that we are all winners!

But seriously……….

I totally kicked their booties, didn’t I? HAHAHA!

Thanks so much for stopping by! Hope you all have a very spooktacular Halloween, wherever you are!

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We R Memory Keepers Facebook Guest Designer

I am so excited, thrilled and honored to have been chosen as a featured guest designer on Facebook today for We R Memory Keepers! I love their product lines, from their adorable papers to their fabulous crafting tools and paper punches. So when I was asked to create with their Halloween line, Black Widow, well, let’s just say I was pretty ecstatic. As many of you know by now, I simply cannot resist Halloween!

Every year for Halloween, I get a wee bit carried away with decorating for the holiday, and one of my favorite things to do is to create handmade decor pieces to add a personalized touch to my home. I’ve had this idea of creating my own spooky floral spray to decorate one of my favorite vintage baskets, and I knew as soon as I saw this paper that it would be perfect for my design.

I really love how this swag dresses up my plain basket, and better yet, I love how low-cost it was to create. I simply started with two fall glass-berry sprays from the seasonal section of my big box craft store. Wired the two sprays together end to end and then added die cut leaves I created from just two sheets of 12×12 patterned paper.

Once I had all my leaves die cut, I quickly folded each leaf in half and then adhered them to the berry spray using a bit of tacky glue at the base of each leaf. Quick and easy!

For the center of the spray, I created a simple paper bow from several 1″ strips of polka dotted patterned paper that is held in place with hot glue. Topped the bow with the cute Happy Halloween die cut embellished with stitching, a bit of trim, and flowers and brads from the Flower Brads pack.

And since We R Memory Keepers was so generous with the goodies they sent, I couldn’t resist making a creepy card from my leftover supplies.

This little cutie uses more of the adorable Black Widow patterned paper along with my favorite kraft cardstock base. I added a thin strip of paper across the top and a scalloped border across the bottom and layered the center with paper, twine, burlap, and pleated doily edging.

doncha just love that Graveyard Dust die cut? Tooo cute, right? A few simple buttons and a sentiment banner strip made from just a piece of the Bits and Bats Paper add the finishing touch.

I hope you have the chance to check out We R Memory Keepers on Facebook and “like” their page, if you haven’t already. I understand they are looking for more guest designers, so go pay them a visit! And thank you all for visiting with me! Hope you all have a fabulous weekend!
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Supplies:

Happy Halloween Swag:
Black Widow Parlor 12×12 Paper
Black Widow Cobwebs 12×12 Paper
Black Widow Bits and Bats 12×12 Paper
Black Widow Happy Halloween Die Cut
Black Widow Flower Brads
Prickley Pear Rubber Stamps Oak & Maple Leaf Die
May Arts Trim

Going Batty Card:
Black Widow Happy Halloween 12×12 Paper
Black Widow Bits and Bats 12×12 Paper
Black Widow Graveyard Dust Die Cut
The Kraft Outlet Lunch Bag Kraft Cardstock
Stampin’Up Scalloped Border Punch
Clearsnap Ink
Vintage Buttons

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Joanne’s Haunted Halloween House Tour

Hi Sweeties! Happy Saturday! Hope you all are having a wonderful weekend so far. It’s been fun busy here. Yesterday I kicked off the weekend at my friend Joanne’s house for our annual Halloween Haunted House tour. Us girls take turns hosting each other every October so we can see our houses all decorated for fall and Halloween. I so look forward to this event each year! Joanne’s house looked amazing, lunch was fabulous, and this year, we threw in a craft, too.

Of course I brought along my camera, so that I can share the house tour with you. So welcome to Joanne’s Halloween House!

This adorable Halloween tree was made by Joanne’s crafty husband. Painted branches and the ornaments are painted acorns. Kurt made all the cute little ghouls perched on the spooky sign, too. Aren’t they fabulous?

Joanne’s tablescape was absolutely beautiful! The primitive pumpkin ornaments were made by her and we each got one as party favors. We also got one of these amazing beauties made by Kurt. Now we all have our own spooky acorn tree!

Pretty spooky fabulous, huh? She’s giving me a run for my money, but I’m still determined to beat these girlies again this year! It’s my turn to host next. Wish me luck!

Thanks for stopping by, everyone! Wishing you a wonderful weekend!

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Fall Harvest

Hi everybody! Today is an exciting day for me. It’s my big day on the Little Yellow Bicycle blog, sharing projects for the Acorn Hollow Cycling Team!

As many of you know by now, fall is my very favorite season, so I was particularly excited to be able to work with the Acorn Hollow collection. I really love everything about this line from the fun patterns and awesome color combo to all the adorable little embellishments. I knew as soon as I saw the cutie pie pieces in the Chipboard Shapes set that I wanted to make a seasonal wall hanging for my home, so that’s the very first thing I did.

Aren’t those trees fun? Love the foil accents! And LOVE that owl. Just cannot resist those guys!

It was quite quick and easy to make an arrangement with the chipboard shapes, and with such great accents, the wall hanging didn’t need much else. I added a cardstock sticker border across the top with a few banner flags….

….and an easy sentiment banner made from another chipboard shape and cardstock sticker at the bottom. The fun text-print scalloped border is from the Paper Crafting Kit. It’s pre-pleated for making a quick rosette, but I love it as a simple border, too.

A bit of leaf trim. A few buttons, and a bit happy bow, and viola! Easy Peesy fall decor.

I have more projects to share during the rest of the week, or you can see them all today on the Little Yellow Bicycle blog. I would be sooooo appreciative if you could stop by there and cheer me on! Thanks, my friends! And thanks for stopping by!
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Supplies:

Fall Harvest Wall Hanging:
AH-111 Lichen Check/ Lichen Text 12×12 Paper
AH-135 Favorite Pieces Cardstock Stickers
AH-140 Fresh Verse Cardstock Stickers
AH-279 Chipboard Shapes
AH-305 Paper Crafting Kit

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