smarty pants bookmarks & an invitation for you (yes, you!)

Hi friends!

I am so excited to share my projects today - I have a set of valentine bookmarks, and an invitation to something special right here on the blog!

As soon as I saw the CSS "airmail" set, and the pile of books images, I knew what I wanted to create:



Hey smartie!  happy valentine's day!

I used rag doll Jake, taglines: critters, and the airmail set to create my bookish valentines.



I first stamped Jake, the selectively inked up only some of the books.  I colored, added elements from the critter set (the speech bubble and "hey smartie" sentiment) and added a notebook paper background.  Where the rag doll and the books meet made for a sloppy edge, so a printed sentiment was placed to cover that up.  For fun, they all fit perfectly inside the party favor 7 box.

NOW.  I started this blog 2 years ago.  The encouragement, friendships, and creativity that I have experienced thanks to this blog deserves to be celebrated!  And, I'm getting a little help from my favorite companies to make it extra special!

You are invited TWO (get it?  to? two? I'm so witty) my blog's 2nd birthday party!

I created a fun invite for the occasion, which perfectly sets the tone for my upcoming party!  I hope you'll come back on Saturday, February 9th and celebrate along with me!

Supplies for the invitation include:
- designer lines to create the gingham
- birch trees for the wooded background
- alpha duo for the t-w-o
- rag doll scene 1 for the adorable mushroom image on the invitation details
- taglines: critters for the tiny heart images

These designers have created things for you today too:  Lori ♥ Laurie ♥ Kim ♥ Laura ♥ CSS

Love notes {bee mine}

Because smaller is definitely cuter.



I stamped the bee, then masked the bee and the bottom half of the tiny card, and sponged blue ink over the top.  Some pink accents, a matching sentiment, and glittery wings.  Done.



Hand-stamped enveloped sealed the deal.  Stripes inside, hexes out.



Actually, smaller-bee stickers sealed the deal.  For reals.

Check out more love-note-inspiration: Kim ♥ Laurie ♥ Lori ♥ Audrey  ♥ Laura ♥ Tracy ♥ CSS


Supplies:
stamps: (from Clear and Simple stamps) taglines: critters, background basics 1, designer lines
ink: tumbled glass distress ink, melon (fresh ink)
paper: a blanc check (clear and simple)
misc: mini tri-fold 2 die

halloween treats {CSS group project}

Something about packaging up little treats makes me happy.  Mostly because they combine my love of paper, with my love of eating treats...

With Halloween right around the corner, the CSS design team is offering up our best ideas for making the holiday "no trick" and "all treat."

I've been watching way too much Food Network tv... so, when I say that I've created a "duo" of halloween treats, keep that in mind *wink*

For my first offering, I've taken snack-sized sandwich bags and filled them with yucky-looking popcorn - perfect for the year's spookiest night.  I made a kettle-corn topping for the popcorn, but dyed it green in some spots before baking the whole thing in the oven.  The kids refused to try it at first, I had to tell them to close their eyes and take a bite - hee.  Its sugary sweetness won them over in the end!

Each baggie has a topper, featuring a dressed-up critter who's yelling: "a zombie sneezed on my popcorn!"  Ew.  But for Halloween - so awesome.

I used the new comic book background, in orange, but masked out a spot to stamp the critter-in-costume (using the new "little critter dress up" set.)  Some spooky black shading completed this first treat option.

For my second treat option.... brown paper bags!  I love these!  I die-cut the "build-a-critter" owl shape twice for each treat...er.... pouch.  Then, mustaches, fangs, and mummy wraps for all!  I die-cut all of the fashion accessories (from the new "build a critter dress up dies") and glued them on, along with a set of large, beady, googly eyes.

I sewed around the edge of the treat....er.... pouch, and, before sewing it up completely, stuffed it with treats.

The kid who gets the treat will have to do this:

Yup, ripped right into my mummy (thank God I spelled that mummy and not mommy...) and found some yummy tootsie rolls and halloween lollipops.

The other designers are packaging up halloween treats for you too:

Lori ♥ Jacklyn ♥ Kim ♥ Tracy ♥ Dana ♥ Laurie ♥ Jen ♥ Laura ♥ Audrey (guest designer) ♥ Amber (style watch) ♥ CSS

typography love.

 Have you all seen the latest CSS style watch edition?  One of my favorite things to do is find a print, and translate it to a card.... and the best kinds of prints feature lettering in the coolest ways.

Here, I took inspiration from this print, and turned it into a set of handmade cards:

 So fun, right?  Owls in 3 sizes, overlapping-slightly-translucent lettering, and a stitched speech bubble.  I have in mind that the recipient of this card set can add their own word inside the speech bubble, to convey the sentiment of their choice.

Some suggestions, you say?  You don't have to twist my arm.  

Do you know how ______________ you are:

fantastic 

beautiful

smart

loved

funny

generous

adorable

OR you could go another way (but I wouldn't recommend it, hee hee):

old

obnoxious

obtuse

gullible

dumb

nerdy

See? the possibilities are endless *wink*.

So, what word would you put into the speech bubble?

Supplies
stamps: (all CSS) taglines: critters, little critters, alpha duo
ink: fresh inks: pool, mango, pear, chamomile, hero arts' soft brown
paper: pti grid cartstock, kraft, su: chocolate chip

retrosketches #28

Good Monday, all!

Today marks the kids' first full week back at school... I'm still dragging my feet to get into the routine of rush-rush-rush in the mornings... "did you brush your teeth?"  "don't forget to put your lunch into your school bag!"  "whaddayamean you don't want a sandwich?  You just watched me make it!  You're gonna eat it!"  "no, those clothes don't match together!"

Doesn't everyone with school-age children have those sweat-inducing kind of mornings? ha!

I am very happy to report that Thomas excused himself from our dinner table last night with a lispy: "maman, je veux aller à la toilette, s'il vous plait."  (mom, I'd like to go to the washroom, please.)  He looked so proud of himself, we were all beaming, and maybe even clapping.  Language does not come easy for our little guy.  We have been working with him all summer to get him ready with some basic phrases for his french kindergarten... this is..... a start :)

In crafty news, I'm happy to be joining in the retrosketches fun for the second week in a row:

That "hi y'owl" greeting cracks me right up.

The polaroid frame (by PTI) got a paisley treatment, courtesy of a new (to me) stamp set by Paper Smooches.  I colored in the paisleys and the background with copics.  I actually die-cut 5 polaroid frames and adhered them one on top of the other for a much chunkier frame.  When it was all dry, I dry-brushed a very thin layer of glaze over-top.  I like the texture and aging effect it had on the paisleys.

Inside the polaroid, I stamped an owl (and since I'd just used my CSS owl, I decided to stamp with Lawn Fawn's this time.  I believe in equal opportunity for all owls. hee hee.)  I wanted to keep the card very monochromatic, so the owl, log, and even inside of the sentiment banner, were all colored with the same 3-4 copic markers... the speech bubble was stamped in a soft brown (literally, hero arts' "soft brown shadow ink.")

I hope "y'owl" like it! *groan*

owl gift set.

Some friends of ours have welcomed the sweetest baby girl into their family, and I wanted to gift them with something handmade... and from the heart.

I used the CSS owl die to create a set of shaped thank you cards, as well as an appliqué for the front of a (sewn by me) drawstring bag.  (I love that with the same die, I could re-make this whole set with kitty shaped cards, and a kitty slapped to the front of that bag... I'm thinking halloween black cat, here, people!)

When she finishes oohing and aaahing over the bag (which is so great, all by itself - she could just stuff baby essentials in there, and pop it into her purse... she'll never be fumbling for the soother, or that 1 diaper... and my kids use theirs when we're going to doctors offices or wherever - they know whatever toys fit into their bags is what they're allowed to bring for entertainment...) - she'll find these:

A set of kraft envelopes, stamped with the matching tiny owl from the taglines: critters set.  The different sizes of critter images make this ensemble look a little more pulled together - don't you think?

The owl cards themselves were kept pretty simple... cream and brown, with a touch of pink - to match the fabric owl on the bag-front.  

 On the inside of each card, I stamped the branch image and hilariously corny sentiment from the taglines set.

I hope you've enjoyed peeking at my owl gift set!  If you'd like to whip up your own drawstring bag, click *here*  - I love Dana's site for beginner sewing projects.  I scaled down the bag dimensions, but followed her steps exactly...

Until next time...

you stole my heart.

To kick off the long weekend, here's a card that was glanced over for publication:

I used my favorite CSS set, "taglines: critters," and the PTI take 3 die (which I turned into a take 6....), as well as the hero arts houndstooth background.

Hope you enjoy a fantastic labour day weekend!

Clear and Simple Stamps design team.

who me??  Oh yeah!  I have been sitting on this big news for quite some time now *big grins*

In case you can't believe your eyes (hee), there's an official announcement on the CSS blog :)

I am so excited to be joining the Clear and Simple Stamps App team!  If you don't already subscribe to the app, you should!  It costs less than a big frothy fatty something at Starbucks, and you get to see special projects and cards that the design team makes that are not posted anywhere else.  Par example ('scuse my french), this lovely butterfly sneak peek is all you'll get to see if you don't go download the app.... I'm just sayin'....

But, not to leave you hanging with no eye candy, here's a fun card I made with some current CSS stuff:

 I combined two of my favorite sets: "sweet dreams," and "taglines: critters."  I thought it would be such a fun card to give to my Sofia for finishing the 1st grade.

I also stamped a border from "flower garden" onto some bookprint (shhh, don't tell my ex-prof that I'm ripping pages from "the complete romances of chretien de troyes..." I so hated that class...) and cut scalloped edges to frame out my focal image.

 We're only days away from revealing the NEW CSS collection - I hope you'll check back in soon!

Moving on!

I'm so thrilled to be moving on to the next round of the Gallery Idol competition!  Thank you all for your incredible support and encouragement.

hee hee.

(just in case you were wondering, I would have posted this card regardless if I made it or not.  I'm so proud of the top 20 and would have "woo-hoo-ed" no matter who made it!)


Have a great weekend, and see you on Monday with my set of masculine/feminine cards for the next round!

What's black&white with a splash of yellow?

Happy Friday!

I've been a rogue card-maker all week, not creating anything for any challenge... time to join in some fun!  I'm entering this card into the current PDCC - black and white, with a splash of mustard yellow.  (I have 2 splashes, hope that's ok!)

I'm slowly making my way through all of these CSS critters.  The bee is so cute!  I couldn't help but combine a few CSS stamps to make this "way to BEE!" card.

 I used some background sets, black distress ink, and a sponge to create these faux-washi strips.

The cute critter was cut 1x out of vellum, and 1x out of cardstock.  I purposefully cut off his wings on the cardstock layer, so that the vellum ones could take center-stage.

Thanks for popping by!




Supply list: 
Stamps used: (all CSS): taglines: critters, background basics 1, flower garden, au naturel (for the word bee), PTI: simple alphabet

card patterns #161

I needed a quick card for a birthday party Sofia was invited to this past weekend.  When I'm in a time crunch, the best place for me to start is a sketch challenge - I'm usually able to picture what's-gonna-go-where within the first 5 minutes... (but that's not always how things turn out!)

Here's the sketch from the Card Patterns blog:

And here's my take:

I figured since Clear & Simple stamps is sponsoring the challenge this week, why not play along using some of their stamps? *wink*

I started out by stamping my cute kitty (from "taglines: critters") onto a scrap of orange patterned cardstock, and cut her out.  I then stamped the kitten again onto a die-cut circle, and stamped the speech bubble nearby.  Once I masked those two elements, I stamped a woodgrain pattern (from CSS "background basics 1" set) and used some distress ink to darken up the whole circle.  I used a pattern from that same background set to create the blue+white pattern on the triangle mat.  Love it.

My favorite part of the card?  (besides miss kittie, of course...)  The swirly pattern climbing the card alongside the orange scalloped border.  It's the little things that make me happy!

I'm also entering this card into the current CAS-ual Fridays challenge: using 2 colors, opposite each other on the color wheel.  

Thanks for peeking!