Stacked

These m&m bags have been very popular since the idea was posted on Inking Idaho. She also made a Thanksgiving version that you can see here. I thought it was such a cute idea that I wanted to try making them myself. Here is what I came up with for Valentine’s Day:

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I filled each bag with 20 m&m’s and cut off the tops of the bags with scalloped edge scissors. The stamped images were colored with Copic markers. A small loop of red embroidery floss was used to attach the tag to the ribbon:

Lots of fun and easy to make. Here are two links where you can purchase these 1″ x 8″ bags:

• http://gtbag.com ($4 per 100 bags, there is a $35 minimum total order for this site)
• http://www.clearbags.com ($20 per 500 bags, $40 minimum total order to avoid “small order fee” of an additional $3 to $7)

Many thanks to Patti Lee for helping me get these bags after the clearbags.com site was out of them for a while. Check out her blog here…she is nothing short of amazing and inspiring!

_{Supplies used:
Round stamps (love bug, strawberry, and heart) – from “Small Talk” Tailored Tins set by Paper Salon
Scalloped punch and 1-3/8″ circle punch – Stampin’ Up
Real Red, Pretty in Pink, Pixie Pink cardstock –  Stampin’ Up
Hot pink and red polka dot ribbon – Basic Narrows at Michaels}

Sweet stuff

This was my first time last year using Copic markers, which seem to be all the rage these days for coloring in stamped images. I have a lot of practicing to do to get my blending technique down, but this was a pretty good first effort. Of course, after I made this card I found out I was using the “wrong” paper and the “wrong” stamping ink with the Copic markers! Lots to learn…

The words (“You’re sweet”) are embossed with fine white embossing powder. The popsicles were cut out and attached with foam tape.

_{Supplies used:
Popsicle stamp – from Sweet Kawaii set by My Cute Stamps
“You’re sweet” stamp – Inkadinkadoo
Polka dot paper – from Baby Safari line by Little Yellow Bicycle
Pumpkin Pie, Green Galore, Summer Sun cardstock – Stampin’ Up
Scalloped border and corner rounder punches – Stampin’ Up}

Back again…

Whew, I disappeared there for a while…

Here is one of my favorite cards that I made for a friend’s birthday:

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This card was inspired by one I saw on an issue of Card Creations:

_{Supplies used:
“You are a great friend” clear stamp: Hero Arts
Soft Sky cardstock and ribbon: Stampin’ Up
Whisper White and Basic Black cardstock: Stampin’ Up
Flower punch: EK Success
Scallop border punch: Stampin’ Up}

Simple-minded

As I made this card, I kept trying to add elements, thinking that it needed something extra or it would be too plain. I found that the more things I tried, the less I liked the card. In the end, I gave in to simplicity and ended up liking the card as it is. I guess sometimes less really is more…

A closeup of the main image. The  main image and the punched circle in the middle of the “b” are attached with foam tape.

_{All supplies by Stampin’ Up:
Basic Gray and Baja Breeze cardstock and ink
“b is for birthday” – from “Party Hearty” stamp set
Patterned paper – from “Walk in the Park” designer series paper
Small corner rounder and 3/4″ circle punch}

“40 is the new 30″

Yes, that is what a few friends told my husband when he turned 40 last month. Let’s hope those friends are right, because I will be reaching that milestone in a few years…yikes!

When I started planning a surprise family dinner party for my husband, I began by creating a simple logo in Illustrator:

This logo was placed on the invitations, envelopes, favors, and correspondence.

I went with a ticket stub theme for the invitation. Here is the front of the invite:

This is what the invitation looks like when it is opened up:

The ticket stub can be removed; it is held in place by the two slit punches in the dark gray cardstock.

_{White cardstock – Fox River Select Cover, 80# Protocol White
Basic Gray cardstock – Stampin’ Up
Slit punch – Stampin’ Up}

The adults received this favor to take home as a memento of the evening:

_{Favor tins – Michaels
Cellophane bags – www.clearbags.com
Candy – My Color m&m’s (purchased at Michaels) & Hershey Kisses
Labels – Avery
Circle punch – Stampin’ Up
Light blue organdy ribbon – Michaels}

One for the guys

I was going to make cards for Father’s Day when I came across this cute, simple Top Note mini album on a blog called Stamp With Belinda. The words “quick” and “easy” caught my eye, and I was sold! I simplified Belinda’s version of the album even more by using only photos and not adding any vellum quotes.

_{Top Note die – Stampin’ Up
Sage Shadow and Chocolate Chip cardstock and ink – Stampin’ Up
To the Nines specialty designer series paper – Stampin’ Up
“Just for You” stamp – from Oval All set – Stampin’ Up
Scalloped oval, oval, small rounded corner punches – Stampin’ Up
Buttons – Petals and Paisley collection by SEI
Hemp twine}

Fold and hold

Whew, it’s been an extremely busy and exciting last couple of months, but I survived (though barely, at times!). One of my last goals for the end of the school year was to make thank you cards for my children’s teachers. I wanted to incorporate a gift card holder into the cards, so I searched the web and found a bunch of innovative examples of gift card holders. I selected this tutorial by Gina Rallo (The Art of Inking).

Here is my version of her card (yup, there goes that Stampin’ Up scalloped circle punch again!):

 

Closeup of the belly band (I used two scalloped circles to sandwich and hide the ribbon ends):

 
A view of the card opened up:

 
Closeup of the gift card slot:

 

_{Round “thanks so much” stamp (on belly band) – Riveting set by Stampin’ Up
Flower silhouette & “thanks so much” stamps – Pocket Silhouettes set by Stampin’ Up
Basic Gray, Baja Breeze, Pixie Pink and Whisper White cardstock – Stampin’ Up
Basic Gray and Baja Breeze ink – Stampin’ Up
Floral designer series paper – Walk in the Park by Stampin’ Up
Baja Breeze ribbon (belly band) – Stampin’ Up
Scalloped circle, circle, rounded corner and slot punches – Stampin’ Up}

A stitch in time

It’s been so long since I posted a sewing project. I was starting to wonder whether I should remove the words “…and the occasional sewing project” from my header. And then the month of May came…I sewed more than I ever have in my entire life! Here are the three projects I completed in May…

 

1 | vests

Every year our elementary school celebrates Multicultural Day in the spring. Each classroom selects a country to study in depth, then presents a dance and food from that country on Multicultural Day. My daughter’s kindergarten class studied Poland, as a family in our class had immigrated from there. I was quite nervous when the parent in charge of the event asked me to make vests for the girls in our class. I overcame my initial fears and went on to make a vest pattern and sew 11 black felt vests with red rickrack detail. Five moms in our class then decorated the vests with sequins, fabric glue, and a whole lot of patience. Each vest was beautiful and uniquely decorated.

 

2 | burp rags

I made a set of four burp rags for a friend expecting a baby girl in the summer. This is the first time I tried decorating burp rags with flannel and matching ribbon. Click here to see the tutorial I used.

 

3 | a skirt for my daughter

This is something I have wanted to try for a long time. A friend of mine sent me this link to a tutorial for a ribbon-edged skirt (the link for the instructions is towards the bottom of the post). These are so easy to make; I might try to make a few more for my daughters, maybe even one for myself!

An apple a day

Our school celebrated Teacher’s Appreciation Week last week. I made pocket cards with an apple theme, and my kids wrote brief messages and drew pictures on the notecards. Here is the result of our collaboration:

 

…and here are a couple more closeup shots:

_{Real Red, Old Olive, and Whisper White cardstock and ink: Stampin’ Up
Apple and flower patterned paper: Summer Picnic by Stampin’ Up
Scalloped circle, circle and round tab punches: Stampin’ Up}

Mom’s the word

For Mother’s Day, I made two mini albums — one for my mom and one for my mother-in-law. I used three 4-3/4″ square envelopes glued and connected together via the flaps to make the base of the album. Pieces of cardstock and patterned paper were then cut to cover the fronts and backs of each envelope panel. The pictures follow the sequence of how the mini album looks as you open it.

 

The envelope pockets held a Mother’s Day message and picture from each child:

 

…and the final touch on the back panel of the mini album:

 

_{Designer paper and cardstock: Groovy Blossoms by Close to My Heart
“Enjoy every moment” stamp: Hero Arts
Label and scalloped circle dies: Nestabilities
“With love” stamp: from the “Yummy” set by Stampin’ Up
Scalloped oval and oval punches: Stampin’ Up}