Same Design ~ Different Look

Here are a few cards I sent out this year. This was a fun project to complete. I took one template, the same sentiment stamp, a store bought snowflake and the same color scheme and created 8 different cards. They are all cohesive together yet each is individual... just like a snowflake! I like the combination of colors and elegant papers, hope you like them.


Here are just a few close up:

Christmas Card Exchange Results

Here are the cards from last Saturdays exchange. All of the ladies did a great job. I am always amazed with the creations that everyone comes up with. It is also interesting to see how different a few of the cards turned out using the same Jingle papers. Unfortunately a few of the cards got lost in the mail, but I'm certain that they were beautiful.

Here is another view of this card so you can see the detail of the 3D artwork. Very cool!

This snowman card was not only cute and filled with detail, but it smelled like hot cocoa!

This card closed by tucking the outer circle under the ribbon. So clever!

Fun With Gift Bags

I had some fun decorating a few gift bags this year. They are inexpensive and come in an array of colors. I chose a white and a craft (brown) bag for these projects because they allow the papers and stamps to be the star!

This first bag was the create and take project for last Saturday's card exchange. The ladies got to make this fun ornament bag to collect all of their cards at the end of the day. It uses some polka dot Jingle paper and the Holiday Trinket stamp set. We also incorporated a large 'E' size alphabet stamped directly on the bag then stamped a sentiment over the top from the Holiday Commentary stamp set. A couple strands of ribbon and some bling finished it off perfectly.


This next bag was the craft type or brown bag with handles. It was the perfect backdrop to some creams and twilight blues. On this I stamped some snowflakes from the Heartfelt Christmas stamp and used the same ornament as the prior bag. A simple sentiment and it's cute as can be.

This final bag is for the coffee lover! I random stamped an old wooden stamp on cardstock and adhered it to the craft bag. I liked the chocolate color with the tulip colored hearts. For the sentiment I simply stamped it on a thin strip of cardstock, then adhered it to some fat ribbon with brads. Do you like it a Latte?

Mini Glitter Albums

While I'm waiting for a few more cards from Saturday's Christmas card exchange, I have some fun glittery mini albums. You may recall me posting a CTMH TV link on my blog a few weeks ago. One of the products they focused on were the glitter rub-ons. I wanted to give it a try as soon as I finished watching the video. The first step I made was to use the glitter rub-ons on white daisy cardstock. I let them sit for a few days while the right project came along to use them on. I finally decided to make these mini albums to showcase my kids school pictures to be sent out with Christmas cards this year. I just cut the glittered image I wanted to use for each one and they were assembled in no time at all. I posted pics of each album up close for a better view.

Snowflake Inspired

Today is December 12th, the last day of Saturday Christmas Inspirations. Today is the day I am hosting my annual Christmas card exchange. I am so excited to see the creations of these talented ladies. I will post pictures of the cards as soon as I am able. I will also show the make and take project I prepared for them to create today.

Today's card is a mix of twilight blue, tulip red and soft sweet leaf green. I love how the colors came together, but my favorite item on this card has to be the snowflake. These can be found just about anywhere this time of year in the Holiday decor areas of the stores. I just cut off the string and used a glue dot to adhere it to my card. In the center I used a clear button glued to a piece of B&T paper. Look closely, the sentiment is attached with one of our fabulous glitter brads in tulip. It was a fairly simple card to put together with minimal stamping.

Photo Block with Elf Card

Last night my daughter's leadership group at her school held a craft night. The kids all get together and make a variety of crafts to give to hospice patients. They also enjoyed a break to eat some cookies and drink hot cocoa.

This was the craft that I came up with for the kids to make. I saw these wooden photo blocks in Oriental Trading and thought it would be perfect to hold a Christmas card, and then later they could place a loved ones photo in it. They turned out pretty cute and kids had fun making it. A few of the kids even changed the layout of the card to make it different.

Download and Decorate

My pictures went digital a couple years ago. I learned a lesson the hard way earlier this year which is to back up my pics on a disc or external hard drive. Rather than just a disc marked with the year I thought "why not craft it"! This also makes a great gift. I simply used B&T papers to decorate the insert. I stamped a label and attached it with brads. It is completely protected in a clear slip cover.




I also wanted to share my framed ornaments. You will remember these in an earlier post. I used light switch covers to create these frames and only showed it in the Juniper color. While teaching the class I flipped over the B&T papers to create another one in the Blush pink color. Now they are perfect for girl or boy. I placed my son and daughters school pictures in them.

Holiday Houses

I am hosting a Christmas card exchange next Saturday with my customers and other fellow consultants. This is something I have done for the past 3 years now. It is always so interesting to see the different ideas and I am always amazed by their creativity.

I finished the cards I will be exchanging a couple weeks ago and have already received cards from some customers. Next Saturday I will receive the rest of them and will post pics on the blog as soon as I can.

Now I am in the process of creating my personal cards that I will be sending to family this year. I really like all the ideas out there right now using the November stamp of the month, Around the Block. Here are a couple of cards I've come up with so far. The first one used White Daisy embossing powder to frame the bamboo colored house. It reminds me of a gingerbread house with gum drop buttons!

The second card features the house on White CS framed in black and then colored in. I kept the gum drop buttons or maybe it looks like Christmas lights too! Both cards feature the same colors of Tulip, Creme Brulee and Juniper. Hope you like them and perhaps they give you Christmas Inspiration!

Rudolf and Polka Dots

It's Monday morning and all of my company has left. I realized yesterday that I did not post a Christmas Inspiration this past Saturday. What a bad blogger I am! It has been a crazy week, but I am so grateful to have my family visit. Here is a fun card I made with Jingle papers and the Heartfelt Christmas stamp. The reindeer is really so much fun to shade with colored pencils like they did on the CTMH TV episode. Add a sparkly red rhinestone and you've got Rudolf!


I also wrapped up a gift for friends using polka dot cellophane and some ribbon. Just a fun way to dress up your gifts!

Thanksgiving Blessings

Here is a little gift I created for some dear friends of ours that we met last year. They are always so gracious and generous. They have a large family and welcome others to their home so often. Recently they held a gathering in their home and I wanted to bring something special to them as a hostess gift. I thought that this banner with "blessings" on it was perfect for Thanksgiving. It happens to match their license plates as well! They appreciated it very much, but I figure its the least I can do for such a giving family. They represent what this season is all about, giving to others.

Christmas Tags

I enjoy creating Christmas tags for my packages. I always try to make them match or coordinate and I had some fun wrapping paper from last seasons clearance section. Making tags is also a great way to use up some of those scrap papers we collect from other projects.

You are probably thinking that it's awfully early to have packages wrapped. Well, would you believe these gifts have already been opened and the recipients are playing with them right now! My nieces are visiting me this weekend and we will not see them again for the Holidays, so I thought it would be fun to have Christmas gifts early. They liked that idea too!

Spare scraps of cardstock in Cranberry, Heavenly Blue and Sweet Leaf were used to make these. The stamped sentiment if from the Just for the Holidays stamp set.

Sweet Brown Bag

Just a sweet treat to share with you today. I love all the fun projects and ideas out there using cupcakes. This is just a plain craft bag dressed up with some Bella papers, cardstock and the cupcake stamp of course.

Christmas Pillow Mug

Instead of a Christmas Card today I have this fun container. It is made from pillow boxes and some extra cardstock. You can find similar ideas on Split Coast Stampers and instructions. After assembling the container from 3 pillow boxes I added a handle creating what looks like a coffee mug. On the inside are strips of 1" pieces of cardstock bracing a circle of cardstock for a base. It won't hold anything of substantial weight, but will definetly hold smaller gifts or gift cards. The entire mug was created from a Colorbok Holiday packet of die cut boxes and tags.

Sparkle and Jingle

Have you seen the latest CTMH TV episode? If not I highly recommend it. There are some clever ideas to inspire you. I can't wait to dive into my Jingle papers and glitter rub~ons!

Merry Gifts

I won't be able to update the blog-a-rooni tomorrow so you get your Christmas inspiration a day early. Don't you love early gifts? Speaking of gifts... this card features a row of presents in classic black and white. I paired it with an unusual color combo of heavenly blue and tulip. A simple and clean card. It would be great for holding some Holiday cash or a gift card too!

Festive Frames

I saw this idea in a recent Holiday publication and wanted to give it a try. It will also be the project for my November Club. Would you believe that the base for this frame starts with a light switch cover found at your local hardware store! I found these white plastic covers for a dimmer switch/dial and thought it would be a perfect frame for any picture. They are also very inexpensive so I can create a few of them to give as gifts this Holiday season.


I covered the entire frame with some B&T paper from the Jingle paper collection leaving the center circle open. Using the existing hole I added an eyelet for strength to hold the frame with grosgrain ribbon. A few embellishments and a Holiday sentiment and it's ready to be hung on a tree or anywhere within your seasonal decor.

Just for fun I grabbed this metal frame to decorate too! This one is a little bit more pricey, but looks so elegant. It's reflective quality makes it fabulous, but not too easy to photograph. Imagine it hung from the branch of your Christmas tree with white lights dancing all around it!

What awesome projects for just a dollar and change!

A Very Happy Halloween

I woke up this morning with Michael Jackson's Billie Jean song stuck in my head. Why? Because, I was subjected to some really bad karaoke last night at the Halloween party. We had a blast though and the kids begged for candy up and down the neighborhood streets. Here is my crazy family just before heading off to the festivities. My husband and I dressed as members of the Caddy Shack famous Bushwoods golf club! So preppy we are!

My daughter the adorable detective. We nicknamed her "Shirley" Holmes.

In honor of our favorite summer movie Harry Potter, my son went as a Dementor {or death eater}. "Oooh so scary... look at those cute freckles... I mean YIKES I'm so scared"

Gotta love argyle and plaid!