Birthday Card(s) and Gift

Hello there!

Long time, no chat! I'm still here in my little corner of the world trying to keep up and catch up on all the stuff I need to do. After being a stay at home mom for 13 or so years, I never thought getting a part time job would throw my world into such the tizzy as it appears to have done. I think having two girls in middle school has helped keep me hopping as well. 

The job is going well, but it's definitely a busy one. I'm on the go from the moment I get there and I don't really stop until the shift is over. I can't remember if I shared that I am working as a cook/cashier in an elementary school kitchen. In my life before kids I was an elementary school teacher. However, I don't wish to go back into the classroom (I know myself~I wouldn't be able to balance mom and teacher very well at all-heck I can barely manage part time work and mom)so, this was a good alternative for me. I still have some contact with the kids, but I don't have to worry about lesson plans or grades and I am home when my kids are home. Win, win! The girls have had many after school/evening events over the past several weeks which has kept me/us on the go. Add a weekend activity or two and my crafty time is shot. But really, I know I am singing to the choir. I don't know how some of you moms handle full time jobs and kiddos and crafty time. Bless you for keeping it together better than I feel I am doing. Life is full and good, and my kids are happy. That is what matters in the end. *Ü*

I am trying to be crafty, but it's a different crafty, how's that? I have rediscovered my love of counted cross stitch. Like crocheting or knitting, it is something I can pick up when I have a minute and put down when my time is up or when my eyes refuse to stay open. So, when I have a minute that is what I have been working on. I showed you a couple of projects in my last post. Well, I have a few more items to share today, plus a couple of cards. Yay! 

Sit back, grab a cuppa whatever, this post is a little bit photo heavy. Fair warning!

A couple of months ago I came across a book from Annie's Attic called Easy Cross Stitch Cards & Tags. One of the projects on the cover was this owl. The card in the book is a Halloween swing style card, but  I have a friend whose birthday was approaching and I thought she'd like this owl on her card(and not necessarily the Boo! in the original design). She's likes to cross-stitch, too. This is stitched on perforated paper and cut out. I used lots of pop dots to give it a bit of dimension. The paper is Doodlebug, my favorite!  I was really excited to see ideas for cross stitch projects made into cards and look forward to trying to make more.

I also found a neat idea in a magazine called Just Cross Stitch. I picked this issue up at Barnes and Noble. What drew me in is the gorgeous wreath on the cover. Yeah, I actually thought I'd be able to whip that one out in time for Thanksgiving this year. Delusional much? Snort. I haven't even started stitching it. Inside though, I saw a neat Owl Candle Band and I thought my friend, who loves owls, would like this as well. Only not as a candle band. She's not a fan of candles (we have a lot in common, I'm not such fan of them either). 

It's kind of hard to take photos of stitched projects. I think the camera is great at emphasizing the holes in the paper! Click to enlarge if you like. This is also stitched on perforated paper. 

Here is my alternative to a candle band.

I found a jar at Hobby Lobby that the band would wrap around. I added a tube of cardstock.

I filled that tube with dark chocolate M & Ms.

yum

I added some tinseling fluffy stuff in fall colors to hide the tube.

And attached the band to the jar using super sticky tape. 

I got the tube idea from one of my new friends and co-workers who is a crafty gal. Her idea was to use the tube on a smaller scale as way to give money as a gift. She saw it on Pinterest, I think.

And finally, Jessica had a birthday last month. I saw a card idea I knew she would love on the Lawn Fawn blog here. I watched the video and figured I could make it, if I had the  images used. I got some help from a friend(thank you so much, sweet friend) since I didn't own the kitty and frame stamps needed (I had other stamps to do the rest) and got to work casing the card.

Jessica loved it! 

She has a cat loving friend who attended the birthday party who loved the card, too. 

So, when the friend's birthday came around, I made her one, too.

I used Distress Inks-Spun Sugar, Picked Raspberries and Squeezed Lemonade.  The frame and kitty images are from my friend(Lawn Fawn sets). The cupcake is from an old Doodlebug birthday set. The word birthday and hat are from Lawn Fawn's So Much to Say set. The letters for purr-fect are an Avery Elle letter set. The banner on Jessica's card is a heart stamp. I was in Michaels recently and came across a wooden stamp two-fer that had the banner on the friend's card. Whoo hoo! The coloring on the cat, frame and banner is done with Primacolor pencils and odorless mineral spirits. 

Whew! 

That is it from me today.

Thank you so much for stopping by and reading if you got this far.

Have a happy and creative day!

Hugs,

Jeanne