Ho Ho H2O?

We had a wonderful time with our family over Christmas but the return home has not been so fun. We came home to water in the basement. This is where my stamps and craft items are. Luckily, most of the things were on top of plastic totes so they weren't ruined. Half of the basement has the items that we haven't unpacked yet or didn't have room for in this house. Unfortunately there were a lot of cardboard boxes on that side. A total mess that is for sure! We are very fortunate that the damage wasn't worse than it was. On the positive side, this will give me the push to start getting rid of things that I no longer use, so that if something like this happens again we will have less to move around!

Eastern Blooms card

Stamp Set: Eastern Blooms

Paper: Whisper White, Basic Black, Real Red Designer Series paper(retired) and Real Red

Ink: Craft White and Basic Black

Accessories: Stampin' Pastels

Deer Friends Christmas tags

I was recently in a Secret Santa swap and one of the requirements was to stamp some Christmas tags for the person you were sending the package to.

Paper: Whisper White and Real Red

Ink: Stampin' Write markers: Real Read, Close to Cocoa, Chocolate Chip, Summer Sun, Glorious Green and Creamy Caramel

Stamps: Deer Friends(Hostess set) and Cute & Curly

Accessories: 1-3/8" circle punch, 1-1/4" circle punch, Curly Label Punch and Stampin' Dimensionals

Ho Ho Ho Banner

I made this banner out of felt. I used the Pennant Bigz Die and Serif Essentials Alphabet Dies for the letters.

Jingle All the Way Decor Elements

I found this cute little photo cube at Wal-Mart when I was looking for a larger frame to put my Countdown to Christmas decor elements on. This box was almost the perfect size for the small Jingle All the Way saying. I had to fold a little bit of the "L" and the dots on the "J" and "i" over to the top of the cube but since it is clear and you can still see them I think it works. The jingle bells and ribbon are from the craft department at Wal-Mart.

Snowman Glass Block Light

I have had a very dear friend for years that collects snowmen. Every year I try to come up with a craft to make her with a snowman theme. This is her gift this year. I used a glass block from the home improvement store and drilled a hole in the back (with a special diamond bit) I threaded a strand of 50 mini Christmas lights through the hole in the back. I just let them tangle up inside for a random look. I cleaned the front of the glass block off with some alcohol and let that dry. Next I mixed 1 part acrylic paint to 2 parts Mod Podge and painted that on the glass block. The snowman was painted just with acrylic paint. I sealed over the top with 2 coats of Mod Podge. I finished off the edges with some green plaid fabric..using the Mod Podge as glue.


This could easily be turned into a stamping project. Use Stazon ink or acrylic paint directly on the glass. You could also stamp on vellum and decoupage that to the glass block. The glass block comes in various sizes, so you could easily customize this to your project.

Christmas Countdown Decor Elements

This is my second attempt to create this Christmas decoration. This is the large decor elements and I think I would have been better off to go with the medium size. My first attempt failed because I did not get the image centered correctly on the acrylic that is in the frame. I tried to remove it and try it again, but it was really stuck down! I ordered another one and thought that I would try to put the acrylic piece down on the decor elements. I don't know if it was excessive static in the air or what, but the decor elements piece jumped off the table and stuck to the acrylic. I couldn't save the outside oval that was suppose to be around the image...it got too distorted. The image is not perfect but I am still pleased with how it turned out. I cut 4 x 4 inch pieces of acetate to adhere the numbers to. I just place them over a plain piece of white card stock in the clothespin to show them off a little more. This was another one of my stuck in my head projects. I just had to make it.


I did fix the tin tiles that were crooked in the picture. I didn't see them before I took the picture!

Diorama card

First, I would like to say that my water coloring does not look like a kindergartner did it in person. I don't know why this picture looks so splotchy. It is nice and even in person. Oh well, at least it looks handmade, right? I learned how to make this card from a tutorial done by Diana Gibbs on Splitcoaststampers. This type of card is really hard to photograph. The shadows made it hard to see the back layer.

Stamps: Boatloads of Love

Ink: Summer Sun, Pacific Point, Real Red, and Tempting Turquoise Classic Stampin' pads

Paper: Pacific Point, Tempting Turquoise and Whisper White card stock

Accessories: Aquapainter, watercolor paper, 1- 3/8" circle punch, 1- 1/4" circle punch and Cuttlebug Embossing folder

My Secret Santa ROCKS!

I just received my package from the Creative Stamping Friends Secret Santa Swap. I took a picture of all the goodies before I started destroying the beautiful packaging! I will try to do some individual pictures of items that you can't really see in the overall picture. I am not sure yet who my Secret Santa is but as soon as I do I will post her name. All I know right now is that she rocks!!

My Secret Santa revealed herself and it is none other then the fabulous Jane Giggy! Thanks so much, Jane! You put so much work into my package and I appreciate it so much!!!!

An oldie but goodie

After one of the wives sent homemade fudge to the whole class, Scott came home and asked me what I would be doing. I was thinking nothing...but he really wanted something to take, so I thought these would be easy and fairly inexpensive to make for 20 people. I think the Top Note Die really updates the old baggie topper idea.

Stamps: Country Living Holiday Collection
Paper: Whisper White card stock, Bordering Blue card stock
Ink: Bordering Blue card stock
Accessories: Scallop punch and medium cello bags

Last minute card

Okay, this shouldn't have been a last minute card because I knew that Clay was invited to a birthday party tonight. But, with trying to finish my Secret Santa projects, a gift for a friend that just adopted a baby and attempting to finish off my Christmas cards it became last minute! I think it took me longer to find my Just Soccer stamp set than it did to actually stamp and assemble it. Definitely not my best work but at least I have a card to put up.

Stamp set: Just Soccer
Paper: Whisper White card stock and Basic Black card stock
Ink: Basic Black Classic Stampin' pad and White Craft Stampin' pad
Accessories: White embossing powder, white twill tape and Texturz embossing plate

Can't wait to post

I have 3 projects either done or almost done that I am so anxious to post! I can't post them until I know my Secret Santa has received her package so that I don't spoil her surprise. Two are done with the Pennant Bigz Die and one is done with a Decor Elements piece. I better get stamping so I can get that box in the mail!

Christmas Card....Kind of

This is the card that I wanted to make for Christmas, but I was not able to duplicate the snowflake from the Country Living Holiday Collection. I tried using the Snowflake #2 Sizzix Die but it didn't turn out the same. I really wanted to use chipboard but I found that the Snowflake die is not a good fit for chipboard! After digging many pieces of chipboard out of the snowflake die, I decided to go with good ol' Shimmery White paper. I just got the kids' pictures back from Snapfish, so I will start sending out our cards soon. Once I think everyone has received them I will post the actual card that I sent out this year. I can't totally spoil the surprise can I?


Stamp sets: Baroque Motifs and Holiday Collection
Paper: Whisper White card stock, Riding Hood Red card stock, and Old Olive card stock
Ink: White Stazon, Riding Hood Red textured card stock and Old Olive Classic Stampin' pads
Accessories: Top Note Bigz Sizzix Die, chipboard snowflake from the Country Living Holiday Collection, and White taffeta ribbon

Christmas Tag Swap

I participated in a Christmas tag swap for Creative Stamping Friends which is a Yahoo group that I belong to. As you can see I was the letter "T" this year. I used a regular shipping tag. I don't know if the scan shows it, but I stamped the large snowflake in vanilla craft ink to try to give the tag a little more personality. I then embossed the smaller snowflakes in gold embossing powder.

The tree was done with a really fun technique with vellum. I used three colors of dye ink pads: Certainly Celery, Glorious Green and Handsome Hunter. I swiped each ink pad on the vellum starting with the lightest color (Certainly Celery). I used this color to cover most of the vellum but I did leave some white. Next, was the Glorious Green which I applied less of. Finally, I used the Handsome Hunter in just a few spots. I let the vellum air dry. I stamped the tree in the Handsome Hunter, attached it to a piece of Whisper White card stock and then cut out. The colors showed up a lot more on the white background than it did on the tag alone.

I punched out the "T" on my Big Shot with the Lollipop Uppercase Die and covered it with gold glitter from Wal-Mart....sorry Stampin' Up! doesn't have gold! I believe I used the Script Sizzlet Dies for the rest of the letters in tree( I really should write this stuff down as I go!). I covered up the ugly reinforcement ring at the top of the tag with a tab punch in Brushed Gold.

I found the funky trim online at http://www.voguefabricsstore.com/ After a lot of price research they were one of the most affordable.

Sonobe Christmas Ornament Tutorial

Start with a 3" x 3" piece of paper and fold it in half. I used the hostess Designer Series paper. You may want to use a lighter weight paper. I like the heavier paper because I don't feel like I am going to rip it when I am working with it. The holes on my ornament will be larger because thicker paper doesn't fit as tightly as lighter weight paper does.

Fold each edge of the paper in to meet the center fold.

Take the top left corner of the paper and fold it down to meet the edge of the bottom.

Take the bottom right corner and fold it up to meet the upper edge of the paper. Your paper should look like this.

Open your folds back up and you will see 2 small triangles on the top right corner and the lower left corner.

Fold the triangles under.

Take the lower right corner and tuck it under the flap that you folded the little triangle under.

Take the upper left and tuck it under. Make sure that all the paper is laying flat and does not bunch up.

Flip the paper over. Fold the lower right corner up and the upper corner down to form a square.

Fold the square in half with the points on the outside.

This is a more 3D view of what you just made. This is called a sonobe. You will need to fold 30 of these. Yes, I said 30! Once you get the hang of it the folding will go quickly. Don't rush too much because you want them to be neat.

To make the top of the ornament you will need 5 single sonobes.

3 sonobes... 2 more to go!

4 sonobes....almost there!

All five sonobes. Tuck the point from first sonobe into the flap on the last to make a ring.

Double or triple knot a piece of ribbon and feed it through the hole in the top of the ornament.

To make a set of 3 sonobes you will start with 2 individual sonobes.

Tuck a point from one sonobe into the flap of another

Complete the 3D point by tucking the point from the last into the flap on the first. Make 7 of these set of 3 sonobes.

You will have 5 points on the top of the ornament that you will attach a set of 3 sonobes to. The set of 3 sonobes will also have a point that needs to be inserted back into a flap on the top of the ornament. You can see that the green point is from the set of 3 sonobes and it will insert into the More Mustard flap that is above it. This will create a 3D point with the More Mustard, Always Artichoke and Night of Navy papers. You can almost see the complete point already even though the Always Artichoke has not been tucked in yet. I attached all my set of 3 sonobes before I started tucking the points back into the top of the ornament so I wouldn't lose my place.
Once you get all five of the set of 3 sonobes on your ornament will look like this. You will have 5 points that you will attach two set of 3 sonobes and 3 single sonobes.

This shows the first set of 3 sonobes attached to the ornament and then a single sonobe on the next point. The third point will have the other set of 3 sonobes. The fourth and fifth points will have a single sonobe. There will be one single sonobe left that will complete the ornament. It does not get attached until there are no more flaps to insert a point.

You will start to see where the points need to be tucked into the flaps from the pieces that are already there. You want to form 3D points all around the ornament. This helped me figure out where to tuck. The last sonobe will go on the bottom of the ornament once you run out of flaps to tuck in to. Hopefully where I labeled the flaps and points will help.

I wrote this tutorial from the last step back to the first, so if there is something that is a little fuzzy please let me know so that I can edit it to make it better. Thanks!

Our First Professional Pictures in Years!

The college that Scott is attending right now is putting together a yearbook which required us to go get some professional pictures taken. Yeah! We have been meaning to do this for years and we just never seem to get around to it. The last one we had taken was while we were at Fort Drum. Paige was just a few weeks old. The pictures were awful! The boys looked really uncomfortable and it was really hot in the room where the pictures were done. Maybe it took us so many years to get one done again because last time was such a bad experience. This time was quite painless. We were in and out in less than a half hour. I was worried how Paige would do because our appointment was at 8:00pm....really close to bedtime. But, I think it all went quite well and we got some good pictures. I purchased enough photos that I got the copyright release so that I could post here. Scott wasn't too happy about that!

Back home after Thanksgiving

After eating waayy too much turkey, potatoes, stuffing, and pumpkin pie we are back home after having Thanksgiving with our families. We had a wonderful visit and the weather cooperated until today when we needed to head back! We left early enough in the day that the roads weren't too slick and the snow hadn't started blowing around. I am happy to be home and I am ready to attack the pile of laundry that we brought back with us.

Once the kiddos head to bed I have to get my Christmas cards started or they won't be done until New Year's! Too bad Paige isn't quite big enough to help this year.

Sonobe Christmas Ornament

I never thought that I would figure this ornament out! I tried to follow a tutorial on splitcoast stampers but it was just not getting through my thick skull! My friend, Jeong Soo, is certified in paper folding in Korea so I begged her to help me figure it out. They came over yesterday so that her husband and son could watch a soccer game with Scott and the boys. This gave us the perfect opportunity to try this ornament. She did most of the first ornament and then on the second I did most of it. I was having a difficult time with finishing and getting the last few pieces in a ball shape. After they went home I decided that I better try another one to make sure that I understood it. It took me about 6 hours to complete it! Of course, I decided I should complete another one before bed to really get it in my head. That one went together in about an hour. Woo hoo!

This ornament is made with the Designer Series paper that is a Level 1 hostess gift. It is a little heavy, so the points are a little more open than they would be if I used a thinner paper. I used squares that were 3" x 3". Jeong Soo likes working with paper that is slightly larger so that you have more room to work the pieces in without your fingers getting in the way.

Stamps: Autumn Harvest
Paper: Old Olive card stock, Pumpkin Pie card stock, Water color paper
Ink: Black Stazon, Summer Sun Classic Stampin' pad, More Mustard Classic Stampin' pad, Pumpkin Pie Classic Stampin' pad, and Old Olive Classic Stampin' pad
Accessories: Aqua Painter and Old Olive eyelets(retired)

Friday Night Stamping

I had an idea stuck in my head for a card. Originally I was thinking Halloween for it but I think it worked for winter as well.
Stamp set: Season of Friendship
Paper: Shimmery White and Glossy White card stock
Ink: Basic Black Classic Stampin' Pad, Summer Sun Classic Stampin' Pad, More Mustard Classic Stampin' Pad, Night of Navy Classic Stampin' Pad and White Craft Ink
Accessories: 1 3/8" circle punch, stipple brush, Aqua Painter and a brayer

I started out by punching a circle in some typing paper with the 1 3/8" punch. I placed the typing paper over the glossy card stock and used the stipple brush to fill the circle in with Summer Sun. I used More Mustard on the right side of the circle for a little contrast. I then stamped the trees in Basic Black. I used the circle that I punched out and placed it over the circle of Summer Sun to mask it off for brayering. I also cut masks out of typing paper for the trees. I then loaded my brayer with Night of Navy and brayered over the glossy card stock. I went both horizontally and vertically. I then stamped the snowflakes in the White craft ink. I used my Aqua Painter (with no water) in the White Craft ink to paint the limbs of the trees. I used a cotton swab to color the snow at the base of the card. I have to make a little confession...I smudged one of the snowflakes, so I decided to run my finger through all of the snowflakes to make it look like they were falling.

Like Mother like Daughter

I was doing a little stamping tonight. I was water coloring a Thanksgiving card. Paige decided that she would like to try it out too. She kept all of her water coloring inside the pumpkin image. Not bad for a 2 year old!

Another decor elements wall hanging

I apologize for the slightly blurry picture. I took at least 7 pictures and they all blurred a little. I think the fine stems of the plant were messing with my camera some how! I used another canvas panel from www.dickblick.com I painted it in a baby blue acrylic paint. This time I made sure to completely cover the canvas with the paint. I purchased some chocolate grosgrain ribbon and those cute big buttons at Wal-Mart (unfortunately the ribbon from SU! wasn't wide enough for this project) I hot glued the ribbon to the canvas. I also hot glued the buttons onto the ribbon. I liked just the decor elements piece on the canvas but I really like it framed out in the ribbon.

Paige at gymnastics

I finally got around to taking the digital camera along with us to gymnastics. It is a little hard to take pictures when they are wanting you to participate along with your child! There are a few things that she can do independently, so I could sneak a few pictures.

I feel bad that I don't have much about Zach and Clay on here yet. Clay has an indoor soccer game and a futsal game this weekend so maybe I can get some video or pictures. Scott is coaching the futsal game though so I will be chasing the toddler. I probably will have a better chance at the indoor game. Zach's indoor soccer session doesn't start until Jan.... no sports pictures until then.