Sweet little boy cards...

Thank you for all the well wishes for my surgery. I am very sore and slow moving so I'm just taking it easy and not doing much of anything......which is the worst part because I'm not typically a lay in bed kinda person. But pain has a way of slowing you down, that's for sure!

Today I have some cards from a previous Papertrey release to share using Pine's cute Night, Night Moon stamp set. I worked assembly line fashion to assemble all the parts and pieces of my cards. Then I used Copic markers to color in the cute little, yellow duckies. These made for a cute of set of baby cards for my niece. She loved them.
Colorful but neutral enough for little boy cards.
I love the border image on the bottom of the cards. So cute and would look fantastic on envelopes too.
Well, I'm off to rest some more. Thanks again for the well wishes.

Thank you very much...

Hi friends. It's a busy here for me. I'm working on projects for this month's Papertrey release....and tomorrow I'm take a personal day to go scrapbooking. I really want to get my dad's Germany scrapbook done (or at least started) so I'm devoting an entire day to it.

In the meantime, I'd like to just say thanks. Thanks for visiting my blog. Thanks for leaving nice comments. Thanks for joining me in all my ventures of creating and discovering new things...and junking and finding vintage goodies. I know you love my stories....and I love to hear yours too. What a nice group of friends I have. Boy, could we all get into some delicious trouble if we were to get together for some stamping and junkin' fun!!

So I'll leave you with some pretty little thank you cards. Ahhh, so pretty and soft.

I used Heather's Fillable Frames #2 stamp set and coordinating die cut to create the sentiment focal point. Boy am I lovin' these Fillable Frames sets and dies. Piney, these are awesome! The stripes at the top of the card were created with Distressed Stripes in Sweet Blush ink. Patterned papers are from Basic Grey and October Afternoon. Ribbon is Spring Moss Luxe Satin.
Okay, I'm off to do so creative work. I'll catch ya later!

Crazy About Color Couture

Wow, it's July already! Happy Birthday to my dear mom. Today is also Papertrey's Senior Design Team Challenge. Today it's all about Dawn McVey's Color Couture collection of products. The Color Couture product line is all about pre-printed paper embellishments and/or printing your own papers and fun card templates. They all fit into the nifty Color Couture Binder.

When I think about the Color Couture line of products, I think about fun embellishments and great color combinations. And the best part is that most of the work has been done for you. When you're running short on time or perhaps you just need some instant inspiration, the Color Couture products are great to work with.

Today I left the stamps behind and just started cutting up fun embellishments. You can use your paper trimmer and fine tip scissors to make easy work of the pre-printed embellishments. Once I had a few embellishments ready to go, I reached for some colorful Parcel Tags, my handy dandy Papertrey dies and white felt.

For my purple tags, I cut my white felt with the Fillable Frames #5 die. I stitched the felt frame onto my tag, added some Vintage Buttons and then finished the tags off with punched elements from the Color Couture Volumes 4-6 set. These circles easily fit into my 1-3/4" circle punch.
For my green tags, I stitched on more Color Couture elements from the Volumes 4-6 set, and made white felt flowers from the largest flower from the Beautiful Blooms II #3 Die Collection. Vintage Buttons finish off the flower centers.
Once my tags were complete I took a Nugget Tin and fit it with patterned paper from the Green Boutique collection. I layered in some Saddle Stitched Ribbon that will go along with each tag.
Then I nestled in some tags and stored my tin next to some large glassine bags. I now have tags and ribbon and sacks ready for instant gift wrap.
Like for these cookies that sent home with the neighbor. I owed her a check and thought some fresh baked cookies would be even more fantastic for the little favor she did for me while in the city. The little tag and gift wrap make everything seem so much more special and thoughtful. Everyone loves a little gift now and then, right?
And the Color Couture line of products makes it so easy to create simple, creative, homemade gifty type items in no time. I highly suggest that you take some time this summer to make up a few gift tags with sacks to have on hand. Keep them in a special drawer or in your gift wrap area so you'll know where they are. That way, when you do make a batch of homemade cookies or have a few extra hand stamped cards.......and you need a little gift......you'll have just the perfect little gift wrap all ready to go. Enjoy!

To see even more inspiration using the Color Couture line of products, visit these PTI blogs:

• Nichole Heady
• Heather Nichols
• Lisa Johnson
• Betsy Veldman
• Dawn McVey

Congrats to YOU Card

This was one of my favorite projects from Papertrey's June release. I just love the colors and the design and all the fun elements.
It was a congratulations card that I sent to my friend Bevie Pearl who worked in the school system. She always tells us girls *Be sure to thank a teacher*. So, so true.
I hope she enjoyed her card. Happy Retirement BP!
Stamps are Fillable Frames #5 and matching die and All About You. Papers are from October Afternoon.

Scrapbook page topper...

Oh boy, do I love to scrapbook. I don't know why I don't fit it into my paper crafting more. I think it takes on a craft of it's own separate from the card making at times. But when I dig into my photos and scrapbooks, I am one happy camper. Months back, I had enough photos of Josey and her friend straightening Jordan's hair that I needed more than my 365 Daily Album single photo for the day.

I used some blended scrapbook methods(combining traditional scrapbook with divided page protectors where you just slip in photos) for a quick(er) layout than a full two page traditional layout.

I love scrapbooking kits. For this layout I chose a scrapbook pad and some matching embellishments from We R Memory Keepers.

Love these textured tags and borders, etc that go along with it. Makes for easy accents.
For the page protectors I chose, I only needed a topper portion since my photos were going into the other slots. I chopped a sheet of 12 x 12 paper down to fit my toppers. The decorations were mostly complete since the paper had a nice pattern to it.
I simply added some computer generated journaling and fancied up the patterns with some Papertrey stamps. For the loopy half circles, I used Pine's Mini Scrapbook Series: Tabs stamp set. A perfect fit.
Next, I took one of the pre-made tags with the butterfly image and added a strip of paper with the *good times* sentiment from the tabs set stamped on it. I also added a rainbow striped paper that I die cut with the Small Scalloped Border die. A snippet of Terracotta Tile Bitty Dot Satin Ribbon finished of the tag nicely. A perfect little accent with just a few fancifications.
The finished page blends in nicely with the look of my 365 Daily Album. The page on the right is my first page....
....and the page on the left is my second page. I added it on the next page because that's how it fit. Sure I'd rather have them side by side, but this is what works layout wise so I just rolled with it.
By the way, if you happen to zoom in on the photos, here's the story: Josey and her friend Megan wanted to straighten Jordan's oh so curly hair. She reluctantly let them and it looked adorable. Jordan hated it and made sour puss faces in every photo I took. Good times....great memories. That's why I love the scrapbooking so much. Gotta get some more scrappin' dates on my calendar. Yoohooooo........Carmen????

For the Table.....a terrific borrowed idea

Another update: The stamp set I used for the napkin tags is called Kitchen Classics from Crafty Secrets. Link is here. It's a set I dearly love.

And don't worry about cloth napkins being too pretty to use. Hey I spill food on my shirts almost daily and they wash up just fine. If you're doing something like a BBQ, give everyone a tea dowel or dish cloth for the evening. I collected cloth napkins and place mats for years..rarely used them except for special occasions. And then we were too fearful of messing up Mom's nice stuff. Get over that.....it's just fabric. It will wash. :)

Something I forgot to add: I'm so glad for the lovely comments so far. I know I digress here on the blogaroonie sometimes but all these little stories matter so much to me. Here's a tip: If your dining table or bar area (like we use for meal times) is a mess.....CLEAN IT UP. You will be doing yourself and your family such a huge favor. I know so many families that have crap piled everywhere and they end up eating in front of the tv because there's no room at the kitchen table. Take back family meal times. It's so important...so many great conversations take place at the dinner table. And have the kids set the table. Make it a ritual. If you have your utensil tray front and center (like a decoration), it might even be a fun little event. Hope you give it a try.

I have something so fun to share with you today. Amanda Soule from Soule Mama posted a fun idea that she does with her family. Thank you Amanda for letting me post your photo and share you wonderful idea. Be sure to check out Amanda's blog, she's got lots of wonderful ideas.

photo courtesy of Soule Mama Blog

She has been making her own place mats out of re-purposed curtains and fabrics that are simply adorable. There are little applique patterns on them too. They're the ones shown in the photo above. Then she has this wonderful old box that sits on her counter top that holds jars of her mixy-matchy silverware along with mixy-matchy white napkins. Each family member has their own signature napkin ring. They use the napkins for a few days or until dirty and then she washes them all up....dries in the sunshine to remove stains. I am so in love with this idea....everything from switching to cloth napkins, making place mats, purchasing some mixy-matchy old silverware....and definitely showcasing it all in an old re-purposed box of some sort.

Amanda has two posts about her table wares. You can read them here:

PART ONE

PART TWO

Here's my version of a tabletop place setting box.I am finding myself more and more inspired by handmade items and re-purposed items.

I used a wooden tray that I got at Nell Hill's a few years ago. It was sitting outside so it's been naturally weathering. It was the perfect size for my table setting pieces.
On the left I nestled three pint size mason jars into my wooden tray. Another great use for the jars!! One for forks, one for knives and one for spoons. Next up I did some experimenting and found that two old bread tins fit perfectly into my wooden tray. I was jumping up and down from this awesome discovery. One bread tin holds my hand sewn cloth napkins and the other tin is displaying some vintage silverware I found at a garage sale. I just like the look of it in there. When we have company, I sometimes put some paper napkins in there too.
I have been sewing up a storm with my vintage fabric. I've been making us sets of cloth napkins that are so much prettier than you'll find in any store. I am on the search for four different napkins rings that are unique to my family. But in the meantime I found these pewter napkin rings on Ebay. They are from Pottery Barn. I haven't figured out to put an initial on these yet so that we each know which one is our own napkin.
I keep the tray right on my counter and pull it out a bit when meal time comes around. Eric is not the most thrilled about the entire idea. He's so used to getting the silverware out of the drawer that he gets lost in the kitchen now. I simply put half the silverware back in the drawer to appease him. We're all happy now. I think if he had some camo napkins instead of pink, flowery napkins he'd like that too. I have to say it was quite a change to switch to the cloth napkins. I think Eric felt like he was wiping his dirty mouth on the curtains or something. But we're all adjusting and I love this concept!
Here's a few photos from Heather Bullard's blog that were inspiring also. I love her old wooden box that is nestled in the white serving platter. Just think outside the box as to what you can use for your utensil tray.

And here she had a great idea for giving vintage napkins as gifts....tied up with an old spoon and a nifty tag.

Speaking of napkins, I got a little napkin crazy and was sewing many more napkins that we could ever use or need. I decided that I will keep four of a kind on the napkins. I have some very nice vintage white linens that I got at an auction that I keep on hand if we have extra company. So what that means for you is that I'll be putting some of my vintage napkins up in my Etsy shop. Some are just vintage napkins that I find and most are ones that I have sewn up myself. Check them out at my Etsy shop....(very soon). Enjoy! You can see a sampling below.

These pretty ones are my faves.....they are double layered with another pink pattern on the reverse side.

These black and cream gingham napkins are so striking when paired with creamy lace and doilies. Or keep them plain for a more masculine look.

The little blue flowers on these white background napkins are so pretty. Mix and match...I love that look too. Napkins will be sold in sets of two.

So let me know what you think about this concept. It is quite a big change but to me every little piece that we can save from going in the trash makes a huge difference. I have also stopped buying paper plates. I love my glass dishes so much better anyway. I only break down and get the paper plates when we're having a huge party. Would love to hear your thoughts and if you think you might give this idea a try.

Okay....the napkins will be up in my shop later this morning along with a few other treasures. Then I'm heading to my Artsy Studio to do some creative paper crafting for some upcoming blog posts. Stay tuned. :)

At the auction with my sister...

My sister Karen and I hit the most awesome auction yesterday! It was almost 100 degrees but we stayed til the very last item sold. We kept making trips back and forth to the vehicle with all of our great finds. At the end, I ended up with a big item so we had to unpack every single item and repack. We barely fit into our seats. Our mission was to get back to my house, unpack my purchases and distribute them throughout the house and garage so that my pile didn't look so big. My sister....her pile was so big there was no disguising it. We were like Sanford and Son! In the photo below, my sister is sporting a Coca Cola drink carrier like you see at the baseball games. We had a good time with that last night while sipping on ice cold margaritas. (I hear you guys want my recipe, eh?)

Everything went really cheap. I couldn't believe the low bids. If I had a trailer, I would have went completely nuts at this auction. Below is a sign that I made Karen buy for her new shed. She's going to hang it proudly. About mid-way through the auction, I got this old wire shopping card for a buck. I had so many people stop and ask about it....I could have made a killing on these things! I scored lots of other goodies....you can see a peek at a blue jar below. I'll show you more goodies this week so stay tuned.

One of my favorite purchases was these green depression glass shakers. I always get outbid on these because they go for such a high price. Yesterday I knew they would come home with me. I was on a mishion.

I don't know what I'm going to put in them just yet but I think they look pretty snazzy with my flour and sugar jars. I have the green theme going on with the green glass measuring cup and the tin measuring cup with green wooden handle. Love.
I also got these green jar with no lid. It sparkles like new once I got it all washed up. It now holds my tea and coffee bags. Must have iced tea in the summer time. I just brought Eric a tall glass while he's tilling the garden. I love how he gulps it down and lets half of it spill down the front of his shirt. (Happy Father's Day to all the dads out there by the way)
I also got a bag full of button cards. Oh how I love these. My sister loved them too. We told the auctioneer that if he saw us in a cat fight over an item to just ignore us. He asked us mid way through the auction if we were still doing okay. Auction tip: Don't make chit chat about auction items with other auction attendees....everyone is your enemy until the biddin's over.
Okay, that's all my peeks for today. When I got home and got the mail yesterday, I had this wonderful package of Heather Bailey fabric waiting for me. I know I said I'd never buy new fabric again after all my wonderful vintage finds. I lied. I couldn't resist the beautiful colors. I ordered a purse pattern from Heather's website too. I'm hoping to have it done in time for CHA in July.
I'll leave you with one last auction tip for the day: Bring a water jug and lots of water bottles. Bring lots of ice to refill your water bottles. Bring some old tea towels to soak in cold water to put around your neck. These items were our life savers yesterday.

Good Lord it was hot standing there all day!! I got out early to plant some perennials in the flower beds this morning....but this afternoon it's all about air conditioning. Crank it up people.

Sweet Roses Card

Up for viewing today is a sweet little card made with Dawn McVey's Color Couture product line and Nichole's newest Year of Flowers: roses stamp set. Can you tell the accents that are Color Couture products? I cut out accents from Color Couture for the two leaves, the *sweet* sentiment accent piece and the scalloped accents at the bottom of the card. Having these pre-printed papers and images to cut out is so handy. And Dawn always picks the cutest color combos.
For the rose image, it's so pretty that I just couldn't cover it up much. I stamped the rose flower image onto pink 2008 Bitty Star Basics patterned paper. I used a Copic marker (RV34) to do some basic outlining of the petal images. Such an easy way to color but it adds a nice bit of shading.....looks cute with the white stars on the pink paper too. The buttons were tied onto the Color Couture tag and a Tiny Tag from my Etsy shop, which I stamped with the sentiment *roses*. Wrinkle Ribbon adds some dimension to my card. The background paper on my card is from Pine's Green Boutique collection.

Have a great weekend everyone! Eric and the girls are off to watch some softball tournaments while my sister and I are heading to an auction. Fun for all! Later friends.

Introducing Button Cuttin' Tags...

TGIF friends. Today I have something new to show you that I'll be carrying in my Etsy shop soon. Jordan helped me name them...they're called Button Cuttin' Tags. I've taken Medium Parcel Tags and embellished them with fun October Afternoon patterned papers, stitched on buttons, tiny embroidered flowers and machine stitching.

Very cute by themselves to use on cards, scrapbook pages, or to tie on a gift.
But the sole purpose of my Button Cuttin' Tags is to cut them apart to use on projects. You can see in the photo below how I've cut apart my tag into three separate pieces. You can cut those pieces into even smaller parts if you wish.
Then, you can use the cut apart pieces to embellish more Medium Parcel Tags, Small Parcel Tags, Carnival Tickets, etc. Or could use them on scrapbook pages, card fronts, etc.
I've got my Etsy shop is now refilled with all of my tags and tickets...lots of colors and sizes available.
And how about a cute project using one of the cut up pieces from my samples above? I didn't get a chance to use the cute, new teapot die from Papertrey so it's front and center on my card today. I love the fresh blue and yellow colors of the October Afternoon patterned paper. My friend Cindy from Starlit Studio has an excellent selection in her online shop HERE.
You can see from this angle in the photo below, that I took the top portion of my Button Cuttin' Tag which has the angles and the tag hole.....and placed it on a Medium Yellow Parcel Tag. This created two layers that I could thread my ribbon through for a fun look on my card.
I used Papertrey's Vintage Cream Luxe Satin Ribbon to create a pretty bow at the top of my layered tag. I also added a Tiny Tag from my Etsy shop that is layered with a tiny snippet of October Afternoon gingham paper that is stamped with the *Friend Blend* sentiment from Tea for Two Additions. Such a great little companion set for Tea for Two.
The chubby little teapot was first die cut with the new teapot die from the Tea for Two Collection. Come to mama....this die takes the Tea for Two set to a whole new level, don't you think! I colored my teapot with Copic markers to get a wonderful blended look. I then stamped my colored image with Vintage Cream ink using Polka Dot Basics II. What a cutie pie tea pot I have now. The *Thinking of You* sentiment is from Tea for Two Additions...I just stamped it onto patterned paper and then cut it apart. Oh how I love this pretty little card. Makes me want to have a tea party....and I don't even drink tea. Maybe I should start.
Know a tea drinker? I think these adorable silver plate cream and sugar sets would be a wonderful gift....along with a beautiful card and maybe a pretty doily. It's a tea party in the making. You can find these sugar and creamer sets along with teapots galore at auctions, thrift stores and on Ebay...probably Etsy too. And I like the somewhat tarnished look to them so I don't polish them up. It gives them that vintage, aged character. Jordan and I recently used our sugar and creamer for strawberries and sugar. If you think outside the box, these little gems can hold any kind of condiment or party fixins.
Enjoy!! My sister is coming for the weekend so I've got to get a movin' and shakin' around here.

Note: Look for the Button Cuttin' Tags in my Etsy shop soon......I may not get them up til Monday now since my sister is coming. We've got a good auction to hit. :)