Anniversary, Valentine card and more

Life has been so hectic lately that I find myself simplifying my cards somewhat.   Which is not a bad thing,  mind you.

I had to whip up a quick anniversary card for a sweet couple at church and went with heat embossing.  I made the bow with my bow maker from the Unity Stamp Co.  I am horrible at making bows but this makes it so easy.  I love it! 

Finally, I added some adhesive glitter ribbon from American Craft and we are done.  Simple but lovely. ..... really, you could use this design for a variety of occasions.  I hope you're inspired to get your craft on!

Sympathy card with washi tape

I'm fresh out of sympathy cards and have GOT to replenish my stash.  I go through more than I care to admit because of needs that arise in my church family.

Simplicity is my theme of late and this is no exception.   The sentiment was stamped in dark green ink and comes from the Unity Stamp Co.   I used a mixture of light green washi tape and then added a 4x4 doily with a double looped twine bow and pearl gemstone.

Oh and the green striped tissue flower is from Fancy Pants designs.   This came in a freebie pack in one of my orders from Unity Stamps.  Have I ever mentioned they always give freebies with every order?   Love them.

Birthday or celebration card

This is a cute card made with stamps from the Unity Stamp Co.  The balloons are actually ornament balls turned upside down.  This came from the Unity October 2013 kit of the month.   I added some twine and a sweet tag punched with a Knockout punch.  Easy and quick!

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Wishing you a wonderful Christmas

Here's to a very Merry Christmas to you and your family.  May you have the best year ever in 2014.  God bless!

Cut cost on Glue dots

I had to run to the nearest drugstore for some adhesive and spotted these Glue  dots.  Normally,  I buy these on a roll but this package was layered with cellophane which made it easier to ..... cut them in half!   Why not?   They were the large size so perfect for saving cost, particularly since I wouldn't normally spend the drugstore price as opposed to the craft store price.   So there's your handy little crafty tip for the day.   Enjoy the savings!

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The warm heart of a 12 year old boy

It's almost official.   My one and only will be 12 years old next week.   So I guess we can go ahead and call him a12 year old?  It was a long road and a very long wait until we were blessed finally with this sweet child.   Let me quickly share with you this boys mindset.

If you're not a parent of a young child then you have no clue what the kids are nuts for right now;  rubber band bracelets, necklaces, rings. ... catch my drift?   So the kid talked dad into spending $3.00 on a bag of bands and accompanying clips on a recent trip to the store.   He comes home and proceeds to view video tutorials on how to make these by hand, without the loom that you can get that makes it easier and quicker to make these coveted pieces of art.

Before you know it, he is the proud owner of his first necklace.   Let me tell you, even the boys at school are nuts for these multicolored bands of non-latex.   Before the weeks end, he has orders from several of his peers for bracelets, rings and necklaces.   Last night he completed these orders and proudly stated that it gives him such a warm feeling in his heart to give these to his friends.   Unlike one of his classmates who is making these and selling them,  Jonah has opted to give these away for no profit and instead, realizing the joy that can be had in giving selflessly.  What an awesome lesson for this Christmas season!   I could learn a thing or two from him.

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Xbox 360 games for sale.....shipping extra

I'm listing my 11 yr olds games for sale.  Send me a message if interested.  First come first serve.

Xbox 360 games, all have some scratches but play perfectly.
$5 Indianapolis 500 Evolution
$5 Sonics ultimate Genesis collection
$15 Wwe 12
$15 WWE legends of Wrestlemania
$15 Lucha Libre AAA: Heroes del ring...
$8 Ghostbusters
$10 Ultimate Alliance/Forza 2 Motorsports 2-disc collection

How cheap am I? Let me tell ya....

So I got this offer for a free 8x8 photo book from Shutterfly.  It was a printed receipt when I checked out at Target one day.  And brilliance struck.

I'm a crafty girl and a few months back I designed a sticker to use on the cards I sell and to promote my blog.   I used an Etsy seller to print my design.   The total with shipping was $12.75 for 25 stickers.   That's .51 each.

I thought, why not use the free photo book and just upload my design and make my own stickers?   I've got a Xyron 2.5" sticker maker so it's totally doable.

I selected a 9 grid square template for the photo book.  Unfortunately, I couldn't figure out a way to copy that photo onto each grid so I had to manually place that photo into each spot.   I'm cheap, remember?   I'll do whatever it takes!   

I copied that grid onto the front side of 10 pages.   It was a free 20 page book so you only want to utilize one side of the page, although if you use for another purpose like a business card you could do a 9 grid on the back of each page with other info. ...
I had to pay $8.69 for shipping.   That's 100 stickers for me at .09 each.   Of course I'll incur some cost on the adhesive but not much.   I might even punch some holes and tie ribbon for gift tags.   The options are endless when you're cheap!

I'd love to hear your ideas on other uses for free photo books. ...

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Holiday traditions

My 11 year old and I are watching the Santa Clause 3 and enjoying a delicious mug of mint hot chocolate (Swiss Miss. ..yummy! )  The Christmas tree is up and its cold outside,  baby! 

I love this time of year because it's so full of traditions.   There were 5 kids in our family and one of my favorite traditions was getting to open one present on Christmas Eve.  We would stalk the presents all day trying to decide which one we would open.  Later, after everyone was in bed, my parents left the tree lights on and I would sneak out of bed late at night and lay on the couch staring at the twinkling lights.   I loved being all warm and cozy with just me, the beautiful tree, and lots and lots of presents reflecting those sparkly lights. 

My wish for you is that you remember the reason for the season and have a Christ-filled Christmas.

What is your favorite holiday memory or tradition?

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Recycled gift bags made with magazines

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Ok folks,  I need some honest feedback.   I've been looking for a way to package my homemade cards that I sell and came up with gift bags made out of magazines.

I've got strips of heavy cardstock to balance the bag.   My question is this:  its flimsy paper but it IS recycling.   Would you be happy to get a gift bag like this or is it too cheap looking?   Feedback please before I proceed!   This is a very basic mock up.   I appreciate your input.   Thanks so much!

Candy Christmas card

Thanks for popping in and looking at my candy jar card.   It was made with 2 stamps from theUnity Stamp Co Oct 2013 kit of the month.   I tried a couple different things with the candy jar and ultimately did a 3-d bow made with sparkly red card stock and fussy cut the jar.   I used lots of glitter glue,  white on the peppermint sticks and some green on the mistletoe.  There's ribbon around the top of the jar and also a little bit of ''dirty'' on the jar 'cause you know little hands have been all into that candy!

I used a couple scrap strips on the side and a doily on the opposite side.   With all the detail on the jar,  I kept the sentiment simple on a 2'' circle punched piece of kraft paper.   I debated about doing more with that punched circle but I'm happy with the simplicity.   What do you think?

Supplies:  American Craft red glitter adhesive tape (punched dots),  Martha Stewart red sparkly cardstock,  Unity Stamps,  Inkadinkadoo green ink,  Bic Red Mark-it pen,  K&Company green designer paper,  red gemstones

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