Amy's Flower

Jessica hasn't had the best week, darn it. She came home early on Tuesday afternoon with a fever and has been home sick ever since. It's not the flu, but most likely the same virus that laid her low a couple of weeks ago. I almost sent her to school this morning, as she was quite perky yesterday afternoon and evening, but she felt pretty puny (and looked like she felt pretty puny) when she got up. So, I erred on the side of caution and kept her home to hopefully kick the bug once and for all. Amy had a night this week, too, where I thought she was going to be parked on the other side of the couch with Jessica, but whatever was in her system seemed to be more food related than an illness. Whew.

Whenever the girls are home sick, I like to hang out with them and keep them company. This meant I had lots of extra time (in between taking care of Jessica) to work on the giraffe I've been crocheting for Amy. And, happily, I finished it yesterday! Amy was quite happy when she got home from school. She promptly named her new friend, Flower. I found the pattern for this project here. The motif used to create the doll is called African Flower, which is what inspired Amy with her not entirely original name. But hey, it's her doll.

Instead of regular worsted weight yarn, I used size 10 crochet thread from my stash. It's the type of yarn that one typically uses to crochet doilies. Most of my stash is Aunt Lydia's brand. It really wasn't too hard to put together, although in all honesty, I did mess up a few times sewing incorrect sides together. That certainly wasn't the pattern maker's fault, but operator error. LOL In the end, it was a fun project to work on. 

I'm glad Amy is happy with her new friend.

Thanks so much for stopping by.

I hope you have a great weekend!

Jeanne

Happy Birthday Card and Cross Stitch Project

How's that for a blog post title? They are not combined, but someday I do want to incorporate a mini cross stitch project onto a card.

Today I have a card to share that took some time in the creating. I saw this great kit on SVG Cuts and fell in love with the house. While I haven't had the chance to make that, a friend's birthday was coming up and I wanted to make a card for her. I kept looking at the card with the honeycomb/hexagons on the front and the fun pop up heart on the inside. I wanted to use that file because I thought the friend, who is like a grandmother to my girls, would love seeing the heart pop up when she opened the card. The only thing was, I didn't want the "bee mine" to be cut on the front panel. I figured it couldn't be too hard to "erase" that from the design. Well, in the end it wasn't too hard, but I am still so new to the Cameo and the Designer Studio program, it took me a while(and some tips from a friend) to figure out how to get it done. My instinct on what I needed to do was correct, I just thought for a while it wasn't working when it really was. I had to release the compound path (for those of you with a Cameo). Then pieces were under the main front panel and I had to move it to see them and then I could delete the portion I didn't want cut. Whew. Because it took a bit longer than I had hoped to figure that out (and I am like a dog with a bone when I want something to work the way I want it to work) I was running out of time to be able to get the card into the mail and have it arrive on time. So, it's not as embellished as much as I might have liked. Still, I'm very happy with the final project and I learned a few things along the way. All good things! Hope you like it, too.

The card is a bit larger than 5x7, but there is an envelope file that you can cut as well. I love how Mary and Leo think of everything!

I used Close To My Heart cardstock and paper for most of the design. The cardstock colors are Twilight and Baby Pink. The pattern paper is mostly from a retired line called Chantilly (I just love the colors, plus, my mom used to wear Chantilly perfume and that memory makes me smile). The polka dotted paper is from a Christmas 12x12 stack I got at Michaels. 

The Happy Birthday sentiment on the front is CTMH, aptly named Happy Birthday Script and the inside sentiment is Papertrey Ink's Birthday Basics. 

Feel free to click on the images to make them larger if you like. 

And in case you were interested, I finished stitching the counted cross stitch design I was working on. 

The magazine shows the design put together as a cushion, but I think I may frame it instead. 

The colors just make me happy. 

Thanks so much for stopping by.

Hope you have a great day!

Jeanne

I Got A New Toy!

Happy New Year! I certainly didn't mean to be quiet for a month. We enjoyed our Christmas and quietly ushered in the New Year. I decided to treat myself to a pretty big splurge and ordered myself a Silhouette Cameo and the Designer Edition of the Studio program! It arrived earlier this month. I had hoped to have been able to play with it more than I have up to now, but such is life. Today I decided it was high time to play. I took some pictures and thought you might like to see what I've been up to.

Actually, I didn't make this card today. I made a day or so after the Cameo arrived. When I downloaded files into the Designer Studio program, this showed up. I don't remember selecting it. But it could have been a freebie of the week or something. In any case, I thought it looked like a neat card, so I cut it out. I am totally impressed by how well it handles smaller and more intricate cuts(like the arrow and the Love You letters).

In checking out files that came with the Cameo in my library, I noticed the control panel file. So, today, I thought it would be fun to cut it out with some pattern paper. This is Doodlebug, one of the Valentine pads. I think it would be fun to change the paper from time to time. Easy peasy.

Before today I had never cut any vinyl. I had some vinyl in my stash with the intentions of trying it out on my Cricut, but felt a little intimidated by the thought that I would mess it up. I came across a you tube video on How to Cut Vinyl with the Cameo on Pinterest and decided to give it a go with a freebie of the day file I got from Miss Kate's Cuttables here (while it's no longer free, 50 cents is a great deal, I think).

Here's what I did with it!

This is an 8x8 frame I picked up at Hobby Lobby during the holidays. I had intended to use it for a Christmas themed project, but never got to it. Since vinyl isn't permanent I decided to put it on the glass. I trimmed a 6x6 piece of Doodlebug paper and adhered it to an 8x8 piece of CTMH glitter cardstock. 

I realize it's not centered. I was just mainly playing around to see if I could actually do this. It wasn't too terribly difficult. I had some transfer stuff (not sure what it is called), which I think you would definitely need to get the vinyl onto the glass. One part got ripped because I didn't know for sure how firm a hand I needed and I was a little too firm on that part. But like I said, this was a learning project for me. Again, I'm completely impressed at how well the machine cuts. 

Yep, this is all I got done, which may not seem like a lot for the amount of time I spent on playing. I was fiddling around with a couple of files and because I'm not sure just yet what I am doing, couldn't get them to work the way I wanted them do. I learned some things in that process. I also watched a few videos to learn some techniques. I just ran out of time to try them.

I've been working on some other yarn projects and I even am getting back into doing counted cross stitch! I'm just about done with the design I started on Christmas Day.

Here's a peek:

So, while I haven't been posting here, I have been doing some creating. I hope to get some things completed and share soon.

Thanks so much for stopping by.

I hope you have a great weekend.

*Ü*

Jeanne

Embossed Snowflakes Cards

I've been enjoying using heat embossing in my stamping recently. It's fun to revisit techniques you learned and kind of moved away from. When I saw this beauty of a card on Wizard's Hangout, I knew I wanted to play, too! I liked it in blue and decided it was so much fun, I wanted to try in pinks, too.

Oh, Wow!

I think these are about my most favorite cards so far this season. 

I'm so glad I saw the idea and was able to play.

Please follow the link above for great steps on how to create this look for yourself.

Stamps Used:

Merry and Bright

Frosted set from the workshop in the CTMH 2013 Fall/Winter Idea Book

Inks:

Outdoor Denim, Sky, Twilight,

Vineyard Berry, Hollyhock, Blush

Thanks so much for stopping by.

I hope you have a lovely day.

Jeanne

Hexagon Christmas Tree

When I saw this card I just loved the idea of using hexagon shapes to make a tree. I thought it would be super fun to use Doodlebug paper, too. I have to admit it took a little arranging and rearranging to get them lined up in a pleasing way.  Edited to add a direct link to specific card

*Ü*

I've not jumped on board the sequin bandwagon really. I like the look but am not sure it's for me. I found these neat looking flat sequins at Hobby Lobby and thought I'd give them a try. The package was 75 cents on sale...not a huge out of pocket expense to try it. I picked them up with the goober stick (not the official name) from Lifestyle Crafts and it left a residue. Sigh. 

Sentiment is from Paper Smooches Christmas Sampler. Also used Doodlebug Twine for the bow.

Thanks so much for stopping by.

Hope you have a happy day!

Colorful Trees

I saw this idea on the web somewhere, but didn't note or save where. I've been trying to find the inspiration link for a few days and I'm just not having any luck. I want to say it was Jennifer McGuire, but I can't find it on her blog. If you've seen this idea, send me the link and I'll give proper credit.

It's super easy really. You stamp your image(Warm Hearts, Paper Smooches), color it in with markers (I chose Sharpies), then cover the trees with Liquid Glass (CTMH) or Glossy Accents. My Liquid Glass had some bubbles in it, so it's not quite as smooth as I had hoped. Then I decided to use a technique I've seen my friend, Alanna, use to add score lines. I like how it set off the trees. Add your sentiment (Merry & Bright, CTMH) and you are good to go. 

Not my usual style, but fun nonetheless.

Thanks for stopping by!

I hope you have a great start to your weekend. 

Stay warm!

Whipper Snapper Penguin Ike Card

I've discovered a new to me, kind of local, scrapbook store recently. In addition to lots of scrapbooking goodies, they sell stamps (like Lawn Fawn and Paper Smooches as well as others). On a visit a few weekends ago, I got to chatting with the very nice clerk. She pointed out some new Whipper Snapper rubber mounted stamps they had just gotten in. Okay, I love Whipper Snapper images. My friend, Kathi, used to create super cute cards with them a few years ago (when she was still creating and blogging...miss your posts, Kathi!). It was hard to choose an image, but the clerk told me what she did with this Ike Penguin stamp and I decided to get it and play, too. *Ü*

Isn't he just adorable?!

The clerk at the store told me she uses chalks to color her images and what sounded like a blender pen. I have chalks and a blender pen that I haven't used in forever, so I dusted them off and got to work! It was fun, but I do think I like coloring with pencils a little bit more. ;)

Another item I picked up on this trip to the store is a Wink Of Stella pen (link added to show you what it looks like) in clear. I have heard others rave about the pen. How it adds just the right amount of shimmer with its brush tip. I put it on the ear muffs, the band connecting the muffs and his tummy. Unfortunately, the camera didn't pick it up very well. But it looks great in person. *Ü*

I used a Cuttlebug embossing folder, circle Nestabilities, a snowflake (Winter's Butterfly) stamp in Sky ink(CTMH) and some pattern paper from DCWV. 

Thanks so much for stopping by!

We are bracing for an Arctic blast, if the weatherfolk can be trusted. It's been in the 60s and sunny for several days, but with this system tomorrow the high is supposed to be 10! On Thursday, a high of 7 is forecast. Anywhere from 4-8 inches of snow is also predicted. 

Brrrrrrr!

Guess we've been spoiled a little too long.