PTI SWAP Sketch #2

So here is my card(s) for sketch #2. I haven't decided about the silver thread...I think it kind of looks like an ornament, but the card looks fine without it too...

I will probably send some thread along with the cards and let everyone make up their own mind!

All images, cardstock and ink Papertrey Ink except very vanilla from SU and silver gel pen/Encore pad.

Thanks for stopping by!

Hugs,

PTI 2009 Swap #5

So...I'm baaaaaack! Briefly, but back! Here is a card for the current PTI swap on Splitcoast. It is for Sketch #1. All images PTI....

Hugs,

PTI Secret Sister reveal box

Hello all! It has been a while! For the last month and a half I have been participating in a PTI secret sister swap on Splitcoast. I haven't been able to post any cards because I didn't want my secret sis to catch on to who I was! So here is the final reveal package...by the time she sees this it won't matter because she will soon find out it is me!

I knew right away that I wanted to use one of PTI's egg boxes. These boxes are so sturdy!

Let me tell you a little about this package :0)

I covered the outside of the box with some cool tissue paper that my DD had gotten in a present back in February. I knew the colors would be great and the flowers are similar to some of PTI's images. I lined the inside with old olive textured CS and lined the egg holes with some PTI bitty dot paper in Razzberry Fizz (thanks to my friend Carol at splitcoast!)

I knew I was going to load up some plastic Easter eggs with some goodies. I put some flowers, buttons, brads & ribbon inside and tied them with some coordinating ribbon.

My original intent was to do six eggs, but then I saw the cutest pots at target! My secret sis is allergic to smelly stuff, so I got her veggie plants instead!

I put some die cut flowers on top of the labels to make them look like cute little plants and added them to my box.

PTI's "Bloom where you're planted" seemed to fit the whole floral feel of the box. I also wanted a button "bouquet" as part of the focal point. I put primas behind the buttons so they would have more of a flower feel to them.

I am also adding some of my secret sis's favorite treats to the package. They will fit right on top of everything in the box.

Thanks so much for stopping by! I really had fun with this project!

Hugs,

Perfect Match Monday

On Mondays, Sara hosts a Perfect Match Monday color challenge featuring PTI Perfect Match colors. I had some time today to play...here are todays colors:




I decided to use butterflies on my card and I knew I wanted to make grass with the Leaf Green. Here is my creation!

Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies: PTI butterfly set (sentiment from Pond Life additions); PTI Leaf green, summer sunrise white CS; black, summer sunrise and hibiscus ink; leaf green satin ribbon, martha stewart glitter

Hugs,

It's your Birthday!

Don't you just love getting packages in the mail?? It always feels like its a special occasion to me> No matter how many times I look over my order, anticipating the new crafty goodies I have coming, there is always that joy when the box finally arrives and I can put my inky little fingers on my new stuff!

Yesterday was no exception> I placed a Papertrey order at midnight Saturday night and my stuff in THREE DAYS!!! Like a kid in the candy store I rummaged through my new goodies.

Of note is that I ordered the new Hibiscus Burst paper and ink and buttons. Can I just say that this pink is so YUMMY?! I sat still for all about 15 minutes before cracking into that pack of paper! Usually it just goes in my office to maybe be used another day, but I just HAD to create something!

This card was totally inspired my my pink and black zebra striped phone case. I used Hibiscus Burst ink, CS and button. The zebra stripes are my favorite though! I covered the whole outside og the CS with versamark and powdered it up with black embossing powder. Then i took my trusty PC scraper (you couls use a bone folder) and scraped lines of the embossing powder off to create stripes. I finished by heating up the powder to melt it into a nice shine. A little crazy, but I like it! You can't really tell that the black is shiny in this photo (camera-phone ya know?)

I added some thin polka dot ribbon and a really cool button from the HB collection. I also trimmed a wave on the edge to break up the zebra print.

I lined the inside with some white CS and stamped "go WILD" in black and hibiscus. For an added touch I even drew stripes on the "WILD".

I hope you enjoyed today's project as much as I enjoyed making it! Have a great day!

Hugs,

Day 30: Party Time!!!!

WOOOHOOOO!!!! I made it! And today is party time! Mardi Gras party that is! We are heading out to Tybee for a parade and music and just to hang out at the beach! But before I go, I had to post my 30th project!!!


This Unity butterfly reminded me of a Mardi Gras mask, so that is what I made it! I stamped it in green, yellow and purple and added lots of glittery detail, cut out the "eyes" and voila! Party mask!

I really wanted to put "Celebrate" as the sentiment, but did not have a large enough, or pretty enough font. I decided "friends" was just as appropriate, since withouth the encouragement of friends like you, I may not have made it these last 30 days!

So THANKS!!! time to go whoop it up at the beach!





Hugs,

Day 29: Good Luck!

I got my Stampin Success in the mail today and they had a St Patrick's Day card using the new heart punch. I have not bought the punch yet because I am on my personal challenge, but I do have a Creative Memories one. I thought I would give the idea a spin:



I used some of that pre-scored wild wasabi that I still have tons of and lots of other goodies I had lying around. The white scallop piece is actually the inside of the card. Unfortunately this meant the front piece was just a little too short to stay closed on its own! I solved that problem by attachine some wasabi striped ribbon to the back and bringing it around front to close the card. Oh, and that cute button in the center? That is one of the new ones from PTI--part of my valentine gift from the hubby!

Thanks for stopping by!


Hugs,

Day 28: Girl Scout Cookies

We got our GSC today. We only ordered the new kind this year. I have been sick and was desperate for some inspiration!

This cookie box was my color inspiration.

I decided to use PTI's summer sunrise and some turquoise paper that I had in my scraps. Top that off with some white craft ink and here is what you get:

Not the best inspired card, but at least the cookies were good!

Thanks for stopping by!

Hugs,

Day 27: Retro Cool

I realized today that I only made thank you cards for the children that attended E's party. I needed to make some grown up cards for the friends of the family that attended as well. But they needed something a little less cute and a lot more cool... I searched through my mounds of unused paper and came across this retro cool style:


I was immediately inspired by the shapes and colors. I used Kiwi Kiss, Tangerine Tango, Tempting Turquoise and Chocolate Chip to come up with this groovy card:


The images are from SU's Wow Flowers and Much appreciated sets. I thought the circle-starburst thing looked kinda retro and fit in with the design. I "stamped off" the ink so it would be a little more subtle.

The sentiment is stamped on Very Vanilla and matted with Chocolate Chip. I used a snippet of Tangerine Tango ribbon and a turquoise button to add some flair.

I don't think I would have typically used this color combo, but I really love how it all came together!

Thanks for stopping by today!

Hugs,

Day 26: A Little Note of Thanks

The birthday party was a success! And although not many kids showed up, we all had a very good time at the bowling alley! One plus to a small number of guests: less thank you cards to write! Here is just a small little thank you I came up with for E to fill out:
I was inspired by the flower print paper and went from there. The paper was thick enough to use as a base, and I just added some Regal Rose and Perfectly Plum behind the white sentiment piece.

I embossed a square around the white CS...and I have decided that I need to get those nestabilities!!! I think that will be one of my first purchases after my 30 days is through!

In the center of the "o" I punched a hole and used packing tape on the back as my adhesive for the glitter.

The over all size is 4x4. I think it will be just perfect for E to give to her little friends.

Thanks for stopping by!

Hugs,

Day 25: And Now For Something Completely Different!

Hello! Today is the big day! We have a birthday party to put on! In lieu of that, my project is definitely different, and definitely not a paper craft! Most birthdays for the kids I make their cake. Today is no exception. So, for my bobblehead LPS lovin girl here it is:

This cake was a little time consuming...and I am no professional...but I think in the end it turned out well. I made a square and a round cake and put them together to make a sort of "stage" for the bobbleheads. I used toys that we already had to decorate it with her theme. This is something I always do. If they don't have a particular thing, then it gets purchased as part of their birthday gift. And although my skills are lacking, I really enjoy doing this for my kiddos! Needless to say, DD loved it and we are on our way to her big shindig now!

See you tomorrow (only 5 days left)!

Hugs,

Day 24: Goodie Bags

Tomorrow is the big birthday party, and I am short on time. Here are the goodie bags we will be giving out to my DD party guests:

I used regular everyday lunch sacks that I had around the house and stamped them with the It's a Party set that I used for the invites. I also stamped "thanks" on the bags. For an added touch, I scalloped the bag edge and tied some ribbon through to close. Very quick and simple! And what's inside? Bubbles, gum, clackers, play doh, a squirt gun and a gel pen. I had to make the goodies as unisex as possible...plus we are going bowling, so it had to be fairly inexpensive!

Thanks for stopping by! I have something out of the ordinary planned for tomorrow's post!!


Hugs,

Day 23: Valentine Embellishment Gift

I made a nugget tin today as a Valentine gift for a friend of mine. It is an "embellie box".


Inside I made little boxes out of 4x4 paper and filled them with brads and flowers. I also put in a couple yards of coordinating ribbon and some clear stamps from Michael's. I wrapped a simple paper band around the outside using SU's Patterns DSP. I created a scalloped square centerpiece out of Real Red and Whisper White CS.

The heart image and sentiment are from Love You Much. I added some 5/8 red grossgrain ribbon and colored some of the image with Taken With Teal. This is a real simple little gift, but I think she will love all the surprises inside!

Happy Valentine's Day!


Hugs,

Day 22: Birthday Card for DD

Now that all the Valentine's are done and I have more time to focus, I decided to make a birthday card for my dear daughter who turns eight on Sunday. I consider her to be girly and bright and her smile warms my heart. Here is my creation:


I knew I wanted to use a rub on image from the SU Level 3 Loop to Loop for this card. I have been drawn to Baja Breeze lately and thought this paper was a nice subtle background for the front. This paper is also from the level 3 bundle. (everything is layered onto PTI white)

I decided on a rainbow theme and pulled out some primas in the appropriate colors. The centers are antiques brass brads, which I thought went well with the Chocolate rub on.

One thing I love to do with my rub ons is add color. I colored in the letters and flower to pull the rainbow theme into the sentiment. I found this technique by mistake a while back. Turns out that if you color a rub on image, there is a little bit of a clear outline around the actual image from the rub on material...so you kinda have a white "shield" around the image where the color doesn't go. I really like the effect! (you can see another example here)

I also added a green vine rub on behind the primas for a little added depth.

This card makes me smile...just like my daughter does. I hope she likes it!

Hugs,

Day 21: Three Minute Birthday Invitation

Today I was in a panic as I realized that amidst all the Valentine prep I completely forgot to make invitations for my daughter's birthday party on Monday! She loves Littlest Pet Shop and can't get enough of them. I was actually going to purchase the invites, but no store around here carries that theme. So here I am, last minute, trying to whip up an invite.

Here is what I came up with:

This design literally took like 3 minutes! It actually turned out quite perfect because the animals kinda resemble the LPS with the head-bigger-than-body look. I am so thankful I bought this "It's a Party" set forever ago before it retired! This is definitely the simplest invite ever...but my daughter loved them.


And that is all that matters....


Hugs,

Day 20: An Oldie but a Goodie

Today I am 2/3 of the way done with my 30 day non-purchase challenge! Only 10 more days and boy am I having fun!

Today is an oldie but a goodie---Nugget Tins! My eldest DD has a Valentine's party today and she made all her own Valentines--without me. My job was to make brownies ("just regular brownies please mom, no fancy stuff") Oh the horror! So I had to find another creative outlet! Each of my children's teachers will be getting these:

I had bought a slew of tins last spring intending to use them for Father's Day. Ummm, sure I was....Anyway, I'm using them now! These Hershey's Treasures have this really pretty purple foil around them. And that was the start of my color scheme.

I lined the inner edge with Raspberry tart DSP (LOVE this stuff!) and lined the bottome with Elegant Eggplant. I did not glue anything onto or inside the tin (more on that later). Each candy is wrapped with an Avery label stamped with images from PTI's Limitless Labels. Ink is Eggplant and Rose Red.

For the outside band (again no adhesive on the tin), I scalloped the edges of a strip of Rose red card stock and placed a strip of Raspberry tart in the center. I then formed it around the tin and used sticky strip to glue the ends together.

The largest flowers I had were yellow, so I dyed them with white craft ink and embossed them with white embossing powder for extra measure. I still love the way embossed flowers look.

The flower's center is three elements: a 3/4" Rose Red CS circle, a large SU Filigree brad with a SU purple rhinestone center (Round Ice collection).

The flower focal point didn't really say "Valentine's Day" to me, so I stamped a cute little tag from the Happy Heart Day set on Rose Red CS with Elegant Eggplant ink. I colored the hearts with a white gel pen. The TEACHER sentiment is from Limitless Labels and is white craft stamped on elegant eggplant. I tied the tag to the flower with linen thread. My DD name and the date are on the reverse side of the tag.

I also intend on placing a note on the inside bottom focusing on "REDUCE REUSE RECYCLE" instructing them on ways they can reuse their tins (bake a goodie, fill it up, etc). This is why I did not use any adhesive. I wanted them to be able to take apart the whole thing and reuse it as they saw fit.

As for how I did it...it was really easy. The inside of the tin has a lip that helps keep the top of the lining in place. The CS bottom is cut to fit inside snugly, therefore holding the bottom of the lining in place as well. Unfortunately, I don't remember the height measurement, but I know I cut it just slightly shorter that the height of the tin!

Thanks for stopping by!!

Hugs,

Day 19: Little Bit of This, Little Bit of That

Today's project is a little bit of a few things. It started with a sketch, continued with chipboard (and more buttons!), rallied around Nichole's "signature" announcement and commenced with a sewing mishap.

Now I usually don't blog hop and do sketch challenges, but every once in a while something catches my eye. A couple of days ago, Nichole posted a link on her blog to a CPS sketch-- which I dutifully ignored. But a lot of you out there did not. And I took notice. The CPS sketch:


I guess what caught me was the large heart image. I immediately knew I wanted to use one of my chipboard hearts for my interpretation. That led me to my next dilemma: ink. I love the way craft ink covers chipboard--I just don't have a large selection in my stock to choose from. Seriously..like maybe 5 colors! I chose retired Baroque Burgundy.

Dilemma #2: PAPER! I had no CS in this retired color. Luckily I did have some of this groovy gold/burgundy stuff lying around. Crisis averted.

So, I am off and running...ink up the chipboard, add a snazzy accent and button, punch a scallop edge. OOPS- punch doesn't work well on this groovy stuff! Get out the scissors!

Now we are rolling along....Remember that "signature" announcement? Well I thought it would be neat to add my own flair to this card and hand write my own sentiment--OOPS again! I do not have any markers to match!!! Thankfully, I remembered that somewhere in my vast stash of neglected scrapbooking materials I have some CM markers! And there is a color there! (P.S. How do ya like my sentiment???)


After all that, I finally think I am done with my card when the embellishment monster comes. Anyone else know this guy? He sits right next to your ear and says "Doesn't that {project, card, tin, page...} need something??? How about RIBBON!!!!" (or bling, or stickles, or buttons, or...) Am I the only one? Well he pounced again, and I had this ribbon....so....of course I had to use it! But tying it was no good for this card! Oh no, no, no! I had to sew it on!

So, if you look closely you can see mishap #5 (have you been counting?). Yeah, it's there. I am obviously not the sewing-on-cards queen....

After everything, I really don't think the end result is half bad. And I like the looks of my sentiment...

Thanks for reading my roller coaster ramblings....Hope your projects all have a silver lining!

Hugs,