Crafty Texan's Tidbits

2 Super Simple Valentine's cards for candy

2012-02-14T14:36:00.000-06:00

Happy Valentine's Day everyone! Last night, I pulled out the Valentine's that came with the Tootsie pops we purchased for my kindergarten daughter's class. We were in a hurry, so I just flipped them over and had her start signing her name to the back while I cooked dinner. Then I started thinking, "Wait a second, I don't even know what they say.". So I went over to the table, and flipped them over and wasn't surprised by my disappointment. I don't think half of the Valentine's out there are school age appropriate. I don't need some little boy in my 5 {or 10} year old daughter's class thinking he's "soooo smooth", or that it's "unbearable to be without him". I mean really?! Please tell me I'm not the only one who thinks this.

Off the soap box and onto the crafty fun. We decided to make something that could slip onto the lolly pops using the CTMH Art Philospohy Cricut cartridge. {They need to come up with a shorter name or I'm going to start using CTMHAPCC..wait, that's too long too. Well, it was a good idea while it lasted.} I started looking through the tags options. There are a lot of cute ones that have 2 holes, but it's Valentine's Day, so we chose the tag with a small heart cut out. Details of cuts will be at the end of the post after my signature.

I cut a sample one first, and wouldn't you know it, it was the perfect size! Don't you just love when that happens?! So I cut 12 out of pink cardstock for the girls and 12 out of blue cardstock for the boys{both colors retired CTMH I had in my stash}. I don't have time or patience to have my 5 year old write out every kid's name. Use color coding so they can just pop the gender appropriate Valentine in the bags and be done. Super simple!

Another reason I love CTMH, clear stamps so she could see where she was stamping. :)

To jazz them up a bit, Lilly stamped a little sentiment on them. She chose the little inchie stamps from a retired CTMH stamp set I use a LOT. Just stamped in black...super simple!

cute stamper alert!

Then she signed her name on the back. And sat down to start assembling them. One end went through the tag hole and the other went through the heart.

I love her little handwriting!

assembly by Lilly

For Emily's Valentine's, she chose Nerds. Because Nerds are a Wonka product we decided to do a golden ticket theme. We didn't have any yellow or gold cardstock, and Emily is all about neon, so green it was.

Emily getting it all put together.

After 4 tries, I cut the tickets out to just overlap the ends of the Nerds box. This way they are visible, but not overly so. Then we were trying to decide how to dress them up and realized she could use the hearts from Lilly's tags. You all know how I hate wasting anything, so this made me super happy! She used a pink heart for the girls, and a blue heart for the boys {except 2 that she didn't think deserved hearts..LOL}. Then she wrote her name and their name on the ticket and adhered to the Nerds box. Super Simple!

Her completed Valentine's. She likes to go by Emily Jo now. ;)

These Valentine's make me happy for 3 reasons:
1. They were free to make, using cardstock and stamps in my stash.
2. We cranked out these bad boys in less than 20 minutes from start to finish.
3. I don't feel like I wasted all that effort on something that's going to be thrown away {it's all about the candy with the kids anyways}.

Well, I hope you all have a wonderful Valentine's Day and as always, thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

Cricut cut and measurements:

Tag Valentine's:
Shift/Tag/ {6 from left on top row(pg.26)} cut @ 2 1/4"

Ticket Valentine's:
{fourth from left on bottom row (pg.64)} cut @ 1" {this is the short side}
hearts are scraps from the tag cut

I am drowning!!!

2012-02-01T10:04:00.001-06:00

I'm drowning in boxes! And paper! (so much paper!) Our household goods were delivered to our new house on Hickam AFB yesterday. Yay! It may be awhile before I post, but I have lots to say about my Pro Bowl experience this past weekend in my Outings on Oahu series, and I have my scrap stash back {squeal! Hello friend}. First, getting our family settled and feeling at home is my priority.

Thanks for stopping by and I'll see ya soon!
~Erin

It's Aloha Friday! {for Unscripted Sketches}

2012-01-25T13:10:00.003-06:00

I went to a LSS in Pearl City, right outside of Honolulu, and they had the cutest surf papers. I had to get them and this stamp made by a local Hawaiian stamp company. I just love the bright and colorful cheery vibe of this card. I used one of the surf board images cut out of the paper as my main image. Accented it with a few layered flowers and a pearl to finish it off. I just love cards that make me smile!

This week the sketch over at Unscripted Sketches was fun to play with. They always push me a little out of my comfort zone {and isn't that when we surprise ourselves?}.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

Outings on Oahu #3

2012-01-24T08:00:00.000-06:00

It was another beautiful weekend on the island! I just can't get over the weather here. I see friends on instagram post pictures of snow and fires in their fireplaces, and it's my only reminder that it's January. You really are spoiled here by 70's and 80's in January. My dad figured I'd be a weather snob, and I guess he's right. Nana nana booboo! LOL

This weekend we really relaxed quite a bit. It wasn't until Sunday night that we decided to go catch the sunset from the beach. Of course my husband couldn't pick one of the many easy to get to, closer to us beaches. He chose a beach called "Hidden beach". The road doesn't even go to it. You drive to the up most northern shore and then follow the road until it ends. Then you drive another 30 minutes off road {or hike} and you're there! easy right? LOL

It's a good thing that Eric has 4x4 on his Tundra. We had a bronco with a 6" lift and super swamper 34" tires a long time ago that we had a lot off road fun in. Going in his nice newish truck was a little nerve racking, but we made it. Although half way I yelled out "this was a terrible idea!" as I felt like my teeth were being shaken out of my mouth.

There were tons of little side paths we could have taken along the way with their own private little beach and bushes surrounding them, but we went until we didn't think his truck could go any further {did I mention this is because I wasn't driving?}. When we found our own little beach at the end of our path, I got out and kissed the ground...just kidding! It was beautiful! We were almost too late for the sunset. It takes an hour to get up there from Honolulu.

The tide started coming in, along with some storm clouds. The tide filling in the tide pools and going back out, leaving these shallow pools of beautiful blue water was breathtaking.

Eric went up on some rocks and called over to me. He had found a shallow pool, about 4 foot deep, that had a cliff beyond it. The waves were getting so big they would crash over the cliff edge into the pool. There were little crabs and things swimming all around in it. Our dog Tyson jumped in, thinking it wasn't very deep. Eric got a good laugh watching him realize how deep it was, and then make his way out of it.

The 4 foot deep pool Eric found.

Eric finding the pool.

There were tons of shells and pieces of glass that had been smoothed out from the ocean on the beach. The kids had fun going through it and finding the most colorful or perfectly shaped shells and rocks.

We only stayed for about 35 minutes because of the darkness out there and the tide coming up, but I'm glad we went.

I think it would be a great place to take a weekend and camp out there. When we go back, we will do that for sure.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

A Simple {no ink} Valentine Card

2012-01-23T15:38:00.000-06:00

I was beyond happy to get crafty again {first time since my stash was packed up back at the end of November}, and to start I had to participate in the Inspired By challenge blog. One fabulous blogger I've followed for a while started it right as I was starting to move. It's been killing me not to jump in and play along.

For this card I chose the colors of the shoes and the theme of a wedding or love to inspire me. I had bought some teal/green textured cardstock from the LSS, so I cut a rectangle, folded it in half, and cut a heart out. Then I put glue just down the fold to make it pop a little. I added the strips of pearls to frame it. I have 2 stamps, both don't have a loving statement. So I left it sentiment free. I'm kinda digging the simplicity of this card.

Inspired By inspiration photo

Another view of the card taken in direct sunlight to show the dimension more.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

Outings on Oahu #1 &2 ~ My new weekend adventures blogged

2012-01-18T21:46:00.004-06:00

WARNING: This post contains pics of happy people in a warm and sunny location! ;)

Aloha! Hey friends. We've been in Honolulu for a few weeks now, and are loving it! Our insurance agent told me yesterday that she was sorry we got here in the "crap weather", because it's been a little rainy. I just had to laugh to myself. We drove up to the North Shore this past weekend with the windows down in the rain/mist. It's still warm when it rains, and it's not a pouring kind of rain, so why complain? LOL

Our first weekend here, we went to the Haleiwa beach park. Oh my goodness! What an introduction to the North Shore! There were tons of surfers out there, but it didn't seem crowded. We saw a little strip of beach over to one side, so we thought we'd get our feet wet there. (Sidenote: the water is NOT warm. It is around 74 degrees this time of year. However, the sun is so warm that you don't feel cold after a minute or two.) When we got over there, we saw big sea turtles sunning themselves on the beach. Majestic is the only word I can use. I was in awe of them. There were 3 on the beach, and atleast 5 out in the water. They would pop their head up for air from time to time. Elijah had one right next to his legs and had no clue until I pointed it out! Here are a few pics from the day.

A turtle that swam right past Elijah.

Tyson loved swimming and playing in the water!

Surfers! Notice the arm sticking up of the guy who just wiped out. Ouch!

This past weekend Eric wanted to take us to a "secret" beach. It's a beach and surroundings they used during the filming of Lost. The Turtle Bay Resort had bought the land, torn down the houses around this little bay, but never developed the land. It's called Kawela Bay. When Eric told me about it and how you get to it, I was unsure if I wanted to go. If your hubby told you "You have to park at a fruit stand, cross over the fence that says no trespassing, and walk through the woods until you find the beach", how sure would you be?! LOL

Here we are right after entering the woods. Gorgeous canopy right?

You know, it was such a beautiful place, I almost don't want to share. I don't want too many people to find it. That's probably how the locals feel about us being there. There was one other family out there, but as you can see from the pics, they are such a little blip in the distance, it was like they weren't there.

Lilly starting her sand castle (me looking east down the beach)

One side of the bay is green forest, and the other side has 4 houses. And by houses, I mean mansions. Really! I took close ups of them, but will spare you the detail of that.

Me looking west down the beach. Could you imagine having one of those houses?!

See the little crabs? As we sat there silently enjoying the view, more of them kept popping up around us.

Standing on surfboards with a paddle, the only people out in the water. Looks like a peaceful sport.

On the way out, I had to take a couple of pics of the trees. They are so unique with their bare branches/ vines randomly hanging down nearly to the ground.

I think I remember Kate from Lost hiding from the smoke monster in these bare trees.

It has been fun exploring our new home a little more each weekend. It's neat to have so many more places to check out, and plan the weekend around family time.

Be sure to follow me on instagram if you have an iphone for daily pics of Honolulu, places around the island of Oahu, and bits of my life. My username is: erinmixon

I will hopefully get a chance to get crafty soon. I have found 2 stores online I want to visit. Hope to have some art to share soon.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

My Scrapbook series #14 {scan older pictures}

2012-01-16T08:30:00.000-06:00

Today is the last day of my scrapbook series. I hope you've enjoyed reading it as much as I haveenjoyed putting it together. Mostly, Ihope you have gotten some benefit from the techniques and tips I’ve shared overthe past 6 weeks. J

Today’s tip is to not be afraid to scan older photos. I did it for this page, and I even scanned awallet size and blew it up to an 8x10. Yes, I was afraid it would turn out wonky, but even with the scratches fromit being in and out of a wallet, and a sun damaged part, it turned out justfine.

I really think those imperfections add to the page, and nottake away from it. If you find yourselfholding the only picture you have of when you were 3 with your grandparents,and it’s a wallet size, don’t be sad. You can scrap that! You can scrapthat awesome green gingham jumper you were wearing. Most of all, you can scrap the incredible people you gotto call grandma and grandpa…. who were “Truly Grand” indeed.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

My Scrapbook series #13 {scrapping Valentines}

2012-01-12T08:30:00.000-06:00

I like to scrap the Valentines cards I get from my kiddos. Valentine's Day is THE day for love, and usually the kids bring home some cute something they made for mom at school full of sweetness. :) Thank you teachers for that!

This is one year's Valentines that I put together with some neat tips {in the captions} for making it interactive.

Use up all of those extra o's (or zeroes) and x's for a hugs and kisses title.

Cut the bottom corner off of a page protector to size so you can protect the card when you open it.

Alter more page protectors for off size papers. Use a hole punch and yarn to hold it together. It adds to the cute factor.

If they include a handmade envelope, use that too. Just adhere it to your final page like I did.

Be sure to cut a slit in your protector so you can slide the Valentines card out when you want to read it.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

My Scrapbook series #12 {take a look back}

2012-01-09T08:30:00.000-06:00

This isn't a great technique or tip, but if you ever want to see how far your scrapbook abilities have evolved, take a look back. Pull out your first page you ever did and you will be shocked. I know I was! Oh, it's a die cut, patterned scissor nightmare. It looks like I was trying to see how many different shapes I could fit on one page. And can you see the sharpie marks where I traced the templates? Oh brother! LOL

So pull out that first page you ever made, enjoy the memory of the pictures, and get a good laugh at how terrible you once were at this whole scrapbook thing. ;)

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

My Scrapbook series #11 {pull color from your photos}

2012-01-05T08:30:00.000-06:00

These photos from Elijah's 1st birthday were just random shots of him playing. They don't really have a cohesive color theme to them, which makes scrapping them kinda hard. What was I to do? Well, I pulled my color theme from the toys. Look at this layout and think if it would look as good with a white or neutral base color. I don't think it would. The green base color picks up on the green alligator toy and then everything else seems to fall into place by using the polka dot paper as well.

I also used embellishments in a fun way. He got a Rock and Roll Elmo, so I added a button that looks like a speech bubble of Elmo saying "hello". Just a cute addition to the layout with some safety pins to frame it.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

My Scrapbook series #10 {creating patterned paper}

2012-01-02T10:30:00.000-06:00

First of all, can you believe this “Big Girl” is 10today?! Happy Birthday to my Emily!

Second, this page is proof of 2 things. 1~I have little to no purple patternedpaper {say that 3 times fast!}. 2~It doesn’t matter. You see, I don’t really need to stock up onany color of patterned paper when I can make my own. I even stamped the tone on tone polka dots onthe bamboo cardstock. This is why I lovestamps so much! I can create whatever Ineed in that moment. What a fabulousthing to be able to do!

Thanks for stopping by!

~Erin

Just One Word...

2011-12-31T20:02:00.001-06:00

I have been seeing a lot of this one little word content on the blogs I follow recently. I checked it out and am going to sign up as soon as I can. It seems like such an uplifting idea to try. I'm sorry I don't have a link but you can search Ali Edwards and find it on her blog and classes list.

The idea is not to make New Years resolutions, but to choose one word to be your theme for the upcoming year. At first, the thought of choosing only one word to base a whole year on was ridiculous. I mean, have you seen my hair? I am all over the place with my own identity ie appearance, how can I choose just one word to represent myself?! LOL

Then it hit me. I guess it's more like my word chose me. So here is my one word for 2012.....listen

As a major multi tasker, I have realized I don't listen to my husband or kids like I should. More often than I'd like to admit, my kids have said "you said yes to this yesterday. Why can't I now?". It's because I wasn't listening to you yesterday. And my husband has said several times " you don't listen to me." :(. This is not how I want my family to remember me. I want and need to be present for them. They need my attention and they long for me just to pay attention and LISTEN.

But then I thought about the new adventure we are on as well. This whole moving to Hawaii thing is huge. God is blessing us with this. I need to listen for what it is I should be doing to continue to deserve it.

On a simpler note, I want to listen to my surroundings. I want to take in the sound of the ocean, the birds, the breeze. I want to listen to the people and learn the culture, and the softness of the Hawaiian accent.

So there it is. My one word for 2012. What would be your one word?

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

My Scrapbook series #9 {kid made embellishments}

2011-12-29T08:30:00.000-06:00

You work so hard on your layouts, they have to be perfect right? Wrong! Perfection isn't what it's all about. The memory is what it's all about. Things don't have to be perfect to be spectacular. Take this layout for instance. Here on the right page I stamped and colored the little monster images. And on the left page, my daughter Emily stamped and colored the images.

She went a little out of the lines, so we had to cut them and adhere them instead of having a perfect little square, but look how spectacular it is. It has her personality not only in the pictures, but in the embellishments as well. That makes this layout 1 step above perfection in my book. ;)

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

My Scrapbook series #8 {using stamps in a new way}

2011-12-26T08:30:00.000-06:00

I hope everyone had a VERY Merry Christmas! Today I want to show how I created aChristmas layout using a retro atomic style stamp as snowflakes. I just love using stamps in a new way! By stamping them in cranberry and lilac mist,and pairing them with a tone on tone snowman border stamp, it totally works fora Christmas morning layout. Isn’t Elijahjust the cutest?! He was only 1 here {he’snow 13}. Oh, and I love footed pajamas. To me there’s nothing cuter than the sight ofa little toddler moving around the house in those.

Look at your stamps again, and see that they can be used forother things than they originally were intended to be. Have fun and get crafty! J

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

My Scrapbook series #7 {let your child journal}

2011-12-22T08:30:00.000-06:00

We use our scrapbook pages to tell our story. When you scrapbook yourchild's event or special day, why not let your child tell their story by journaling their experience? In this layout Emily was only 5 years old,but I wanted to hear what spending the day with Gigi meant to her {she's 5 so I didn't expect deep thoughts}. We had gone to Dallas for a specialsoccer tournament, just for her. Emilywas so excited to see the men and women play, that she wore her socceruniform. She wanted them to know she wasa soccer girl too. ;) I used 2 pieces ofcardstock where pictures were on the pattern. There is one for her to journal, and one for me.

Now that she is almost 10, I love that I can look back at her handwriting andsee it as it was when she first learned to write and read. It’s so precious!

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

The best wood cabinet cleaner I've found!

2011-12-20T15:40:00.001-06:00

Right now I am in count down mode for my big move. Exciting stuff! Before I get to fly to Honolulu and put my toes in the sand, I'm stuck here in an empty house cleaning. But, I want my renters to feel welcome and know how much I loved this house, so its worth it. I had to take a break though because one of the cleaning products I an using blew me away. I am not being paid in any way for this, and am actually having to post this from my smart phone, since my computer is long gone. I just wanted to share for those who could benefit from it.

We have wood cabinets throughout our home. The island in the kitchen especially gets extremely cruddy from my kids. I have a cleaning schedule for my cabinets, but I've never been completely happy with the results.....until today!

I think most people are familiar with Murphy's soap. Traditionally you have to dilute it in a gallon of warm water. Then you have to sponge it on and then wipe it off. Well yesterday I found the Murphy soap spray {I've included a pic of the bottle}. I just sprayed it on, then wiped it down with a wet rag. I didn't even use warm water. The results are beyond great!

I wish I had taken a before pic of my island, but I am posting the after of both sides of my island. I also included a pic of some of the other dirty cabinets in the corner that will be cleaned next.

If we have wood cabinets in our base house in Hawaii I will be using this stuff on them for sure. And I'll be leaving the rest of this bottle for my renters, like they will actually use it. A girl can wish right? ;)

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

My Scrapbook series #6 {celebrate the small things}

2011-12-19T08:30:00.000-06:00

I have a saying that I use all of the time "It's the small things that make me happy". Isn't it true? The person who steps aside at the grocery store because they see you only have 2 things, or how every light on one road is green today, or how your hubby said "I'll miss you" on his way out the door. The small things do add up. I think we should celebrate when they happen. In this page, I did just that!

I had gone into my daughter's room and where her Hannah Montana poster was, a handmade poster was in it's place. Do you see what was in it's place? Ah, it jsut melts my heart. Those 2 fight all of the time, so to see this one good day they had...well, it had to be scrapped! I don't care that her bed isn't made in the pic, or that everything isn't in it's place, all I care about is the small {kinda huge} moment when my daughter said she loved her brother.

All of those huge life moments should be captured. The graduations and school plays are BIG days, but make sure you capture a few of those SMALL days too.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

My Scrapbook series #5 {photo clusters}

2011-12-15T08:30:00.000-06:00

Do you ever take too many pictures? No?! Wait a minute, you mean I'm the only one?! LOL Of course we all take too many pictures in these digital times. Think about it, how often do you need the 396 pictures that your memory card offers you? Okay, so you've gone overbard again. And you LOVE all of the pics you took...again. Well, just make a photo cluster.

This layout from the Close to My Heart pattern book Reflections was made for just this instance. You see I had taken some photos of my lovely youngest in our back yard on the first nice day of spring. Each one was a little part of her personality coming through, so I couldn't get rid of any of them.

The next time you're afraid you've taken too many pics AGAIN, just remember that you can use a photo cluster on your layout like I did.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

My Scrapbook series #4 {stamp a strip}

2011-12-12T08:30:00.000-06:00

Okay, I know you're asking yourself "what's stamp a strip?". Well, it's creating a border strip to use on your page or layout using stamps. We all have those little 1" or smaller stamps that come with our stamp sets. If you are like me, you use the big stamps, but hardly ever use those little accent pieces. Stamping a strip is the perfect way to use those!

What I did here on this page with those 1" stamps was like a comic book to me. This was a hilarious moment in my marriage, and the strip I stamped was like when they put "POW!" or "BOOM!" in a comic book. It's just an additional accent to add to the flavor of the memory.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

My Scrapbook series #3 {using memorabilia}

2011-12-08T08:30:00.000-06:00

Using memorabilia is something that seems obvious to use on a scrapbook page, but isn't always the easiest thing to do. {1} How do you incorporate it into the layout? {2} How do you make sure it coordinates with your color scheme? Let me show you how I did those 2 things on this layout.

The Mother's Day tea was a big deal to my daughter in Kindergarten. She wanted us to wear matching outfits and when I got there in my matching outfit hand picked by 5 year old Emily, she had a special surprise for me. This cute little flower brooch with her picture in the center. Wasn't she just adorable?! I couldn't throw it away, so I incorporated it into the layout I made of the event below.

I chose a layout from Cherish, one of the Close to My Heart pattern books,and modified it. To incorporate the brooch, I used it where a photo box was on the layout {1}. I also used a vertical picture where the journaling box was. I did this, because to tie it all together and balance it, the use of the brooch and the pic of me wearing the brooch needed to be diagonal from each other. I don't know exactly why that works, but I know that it just pleases the eye to have it that way.

Even though the majority of the layout is done in blue and white, the accent strips of orange make the brooch coordinate with the layout {2}. Using brown in my ribbon and stamped images grounds both pages, tying the layout together as well.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

My Scrapbook series #2 {printing on textured cardstock}

2011-12-05T10:00:00.000-06:00

I learned this technique from a former Close to My Heart consultant a long time ago, and I just think it gives the coolest effect. If you have a printer at home, you have to try it. I printed out the top row of photos on textured cardstock. The bottom row of photos is just printed on normal matte photo paper. I first changed the pics to a sepia tone, which is great to do if your have competing colors in your photos. You would never know by looking at this layout that Emily was wearing a silver and pink sparkly cheer costume, Lilly was wearing a navy blue with green and purple print, and Elijah was wearing a medium tone blue and brown. See, the sepia made them all cohesive. :)

After I printed them out, I sanded the edges, like I did with the rest of the cardstock. It gave an additional antique quality to the pics and set them off nicely. Wouldn't this be a great technique for old family pictures that you've scanned?!

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

My Scrapbook series #1 {embossing}

2011-12-01T10:00:00.000-06:00

I chose this layout to kick off my scrapbook tips and techniques series because I'm feeling sentimental. As of now, I am in transition from "Burk" as the locals call this little town of Burkburnett to my new home on the island of Oahu.

I made this page with the first set of pictures from the first month we lived here back in October of 2007. My kids were so excited that we just happened to move here during the centennial celebration happening at the annual Burk friendship festival. My son's grade was walking in the parade with their school float {which won}, adding to their excitement.

The technique I used on this page was tone on tone embossing. Unlike tone on tone stamping, you don't have to use the same color of embossing powder. You can, like I did here on the black, use clear embossing powder. Then the shine of the powder once heated and set will contrast with the flat tone of the cardstock. It really is a great way to add some pizazz to your page. I then embossed with silver embossing powder the same star images, cut them out, and pop dotted them to embellish the page.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

#4 Simple Yet Elegant Christmas card {done 3 ways} with a Scoring tutorial

2011-11-24T11:29:00.001-06:00

This is my 4th and final post for my Simple Yet Elegant Christmas card series, and I thought I'd finish it off with some sparkle and shine.

First, can I get a little sentimental? It's Thanksgiving today. So, Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Today is the last holiday my family and I will spend in this house. It is bitter sweet to be moving this time especially. My 5 year old daughter took her first steps here and many more memories have been made here. On Monday the movers come to pack up our things, so this is the last post from this computer until mid January when I get all of my crafty stuff and computer back. A big Thank you to everyone who follows my blog and to all who have stopped by to check me out {okay that sounds wrong..lol} until I can play in some challenges agin. I already have all of my December and most of January posts scheduled, so you can still see new stuff from me. Over the next month and a half I know I will be going through crafty challenges and blogging withdrawals for sure! :)

Okay, now onto the cards for today. As I have said, all of my cards were inspired by Susan over at the Simplicity blog. I really like the idea of finding a crafter you admire and casing {copy and stealing} their cards, but putting your own spin on it. For these cards, I found this post and loved how she "hung" her stockings on a scored line. I decided to shake it up a bit for my cards and do some different versions of it.

For the snowman card, I started out with a Crystal Blue base. After I scored my line, I sanded just the part from the line up. Then I stamped in Twilight ink, and finished it off with randomly placed sparkles. This is a great use of all of those bitty sparkles I had left over in my package after using up the larger sparkles. Can get a YAY! for finally using them?!

For my bird card, I started with a 4 1/4" square of Colonial White cardstock. I "hung" my bird cage from the scored line. I used chocolate ink and cranberry ink. Then I finished it off with 2 sizes of red sparkles.

This card started with Sweet Leaf cardstock which I sanded all of after I scored it. I used this technique to stamp my trees with a combo of Sweet Leaf and New England Ivy ink. I distressed the edges with the New England Ivy ink after that. Then I finished it off with 3 sizes of green sparkles.

Now, let me show you how I scored my line. I don't have a scoring pal or any fancy tools, so I use my paper trimmer and an embossing stylus.

It is 2 ended, and I used the fattest end. Lining my cardstock up face down on the groove of the paper trimmer where I wanted the score to go, I gently pushed my embossing stylus down into the cardstock. The embosser will follow the groove. If you press too hard, you will tear through your paper. If you score too fast, you won't stay on your line. I learned both of these when I first tried this technique, so I hope those 2 tips will help you beginners out.

See the finished product will be the opposite side with the raised score on your card front.

Well, I hope you all have a fantastic, family, food, and fun filled Thanksgiving!

Thanks for stopping by!

~Erin

Getting Crafty with paint

2011-11-22T13:10:00.001-06:00

Last week I primed some furniture for my son's room. As it was drying, it began to sprinkle. Ugh! So I drug the 2 pieces onto my back porch where they have been sitting ever since. It has either been too cold or too wet everyday to do anything else with them. Well not today! Yay...it's finally warm enough and not raining. I'm about to get the base coat put on and will be able to finish the paint treatment tomorrow. It's going to involve geometry....oh no! Mr. K from 9th grade math can tell you this may end badly. LOL. I'll be sure to post how it turns out either way. ;)

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

#3 Simple Yet Elegant card {done 2 ways}

2011-11-17T10:08:00.001-06:00

Happy Thursday morning everyone! It's week 3 of my Simple Yet Elegant Christmas cards I'm sharing during the month of November. This week I was inspired by this card by Susan from her Simplicity blog. As you can see I chose to mix it up a bit. When I started pulling stamps to create this card, I realized I am seriously lacking in the snowflake department. So much so, that I pulled a CTMH stamp called Victorian Snowflake from 2008 I think, it's long retired. I used 2 small 1" stamps from it because the 2 main images were too big for my cards. The cool thing is that when I played with it, I started to realize that it resembles some of the patterns in all of the Swedish/Nordic type of papers that are so popular this year. YAY! for happy accidents.

For the card base I used white daisy cardstock, and then stamped in outdoor denim and crystal blue. See how I used 3 in a row of the lighter blue so the sentiment would stand out. She used that method in the inspiration card as well as the row of darker on the top. And it still looks balanced because of the dark ribbon bow and the dark sentiment being on opposite corners from each other.

See my bow? Isn't it lovely? I used this "perfect bow" youtube video tutorial to make it. I always hate how lopsided my bows are that I normally go with a knot. I decided that this card needed a bow, so I went searching and found a pretty good tutorial. I think she may be left handed though, because I had to try 4 times before I could do it her way. However, the result was so good, that I am glad I pushed through. :)

I really liked this card so I tried it in white on the Die Cut Kraft cards from CTMH shown below. I just LOVE how it turned out! The small stamps I used didn't fit in the 6x6 size as well as a normal 4 1/4 x 5 1/2. I solved that issue by stamping over the edges. Don't be afraid to do that. It always looks much more polished than leaving a big border of blankness {is that a word} around the edges. Then I added the ribbon to the side scalloped flap. It's the same idea as the above card, just altered.

I leaned the card against the envelope so it would stand up for the pic.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

Getting CRAFTY on some Home Decor

2011-11-10T19:25:00.001-06:00

Last year my oldest daughter picked out these fabrics for me to redecorate her room with. Can you tell she is a little above her 9 year old age in maturity? So we picked out the fun trim to keep it young and I added in the navy gingham because I thought that would help keep the tone young as well.

I started by refinishing 2 lamp shades with the navy and cream floral last Christmas {which I photographed horribly}. I used the tan trim that was originally on the lamp shade and the navy beaded trim in the above photo to finish them off.

And LOOK at what I made today! I finished the pillows. We were having such a hard time trying to figure out the style of the pillows that we were stuck. Now with the movers coming in less than a month, I am in a crazy DIY mode. I am trying to finish all of those projects I bought things for, but never did. So very thankful that I can cross this off the DIY list!

What I found on this post at a FAB blog called Blue Sky Confections is what finally inspired me. She makes her own porch furniture pillows that are to die for!

Here's the coolest part. Are you ready for it? They are pocket pillows and the pocket is on the front! Yes, the trim I used is on the edge of the pocket top. I absolutely LOVE how simple they are to make, but that the trim on the front makes them look so much more complex. :)

Okay, so the background fabric for the headboard is just tacked on the wall behind the bed for the picture, BUT that's all that is left to do. I am so close to being done with her room that I can taste it. Do you think I can make a headboard in 3 weeks? I think I can. ;)

Tomorrow is Veteran's Day, and I am going to be off the computer spending it with my love, my hero, my veteran hubby.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

#2 Simple Yet Elegant Card with a 2nd generation stamping tutorial

2011-11-10T09:45:00.001-06:00

Here is my second card(s) for my "Simple Yet Elegant" Christmas card series I am doing every Thursday during the month of November. And it really could not be more simple to make. Love that! I whipped up 3 of these within 5 minutes, but I am only showing you the 2 I made in Cranberry and New England Ivy. I'll let you guess what color and what image I used on the 3rd one. ;)

These are one layer cards inspired by this post on the Simplicity blog. A one layer card is just ink and one layer of cardstock. You can add ribbon, pearls, or sparkles, but only can use that one layer of cardstock. It really is more difficult than it sounds. It is hard to have a beautiful card that doesn't look flat. Have I mentioned that all of my Simple Yet Elegant cards are inspired by Susan? She inspires me weekly with her style. Susan is fabulous with making one layer cards that still have a pop to them.

Let's get to how I made the cards. The dimension on these cards is brought in by the use of second generation stamping. Second generation stamping is doing just what the name suggests. You will stamp the image twice. Once on a scrap and then onto your project. The second generation stamped image will be a pale and softer version of your original color. Here is the step by step instructions on how I used the saturated version of the color in tandem with the second generation of the color.

1. I used the bracket from the Field Trip Alphabet. When I placed it on the block, I lined the block up first with the edge of my card. This way I could see through to where the bracket image would end up. This is why I absolutely love Close To My Heart stamps and blocks. I could never have done this with a traditional rubber stamp. Then I stamped the bracket twice, turning the block so they bookend, but still keeping the edge of the block lined up with the edge of the card so they will be even.

2. I inked up my center image stamp really well. See my scrap paper is right there waiting for me.

3. I stamped on my scrap paper, pressing fairly hard to remove most of the ink. I don't do this on the carrier sheet, but you can if you want your ink removed evenly.

4. I then immediately second generation stamped my image in the center of the brackets using the carrier sheet to get full coverage of the image onto my card.

5. After that, I stamped my sentiment in black, lining it up with the center of the brackets.

Here is the green card alone. I really love how rich the New England Ivy looks. Don't you?

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

#1 Simple Yet Elegant Christmas card plus tutorial

2011-11-03T11:40:00.005-05:00

The one time of year I go all crazy is my Christmas card making time. I remember a few years ago hand folding 150 square pieces to make origami Christmas trees. This year I neither have the time, nor energy to go all out, so I've been searching for some "Simple Yet Elegant" versions to recreate. This is #1 in the "Simple Yet Elegant" series I'm starting on my blog today! There will be a NEW CARD and TUTORIAL every THURSDAY for the month of NOVEMBER. See how I capitalized the main points? I needed that to remind myself that I am doing this, and to follow through. LOL

When I saw these cards on the Simplicity blog, I fell inlove with them, and knew I had to recreate them. I started by cutting the card from Colonial White cardstock. I could have used the Close to My Heart colonial white card bases, but I wanted the fold to be at the top. {However, using my plain old hole punch made punching holes difficult, so actually recommend using the traditional card bases instead of how I did it.} Using the Everlasting stamp set from Close to My Heart, I stamped the "Peace on Earth" sentiment in chocolate ink. Then I finished it off with the technique in this tutorial I put together based on her written directions. My style is more is more...I couldn't just leave it as is, so I finished it off with a small designer brad {although I think it would look fantastic without it}.

Even after shipping and tax the total per card is @ $1.78
Now exclude the reusable resources such as the stamp and ink pad, and the actual total per card is @ $1.23!

I just love when I can make something, personalize it, and give it to my loved ones for such a low cost to me! I am offering this as a 50 card kit, so check out my Shop My Kits page to order now. {Info includes the price breakdown.}

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

#1 Simple Yet Elegant card tutorial

2011-11-03T11:39:00.001-05:00

Start by cutting a scrap to 1" by 4 1/4".

This will serve as your pattern.

1. Using a mat with measurements on it {I used the CTMH versamat}, line up the left side of your pattern piece with an even number {I chose 3}. Then mark your center {mine was between the 5 and the 5 1/4 marks}.

2. Line your center mark with an even number {I chose 5}. Mark 1/2" out on either side as shown above.

3. Line your pattern up with the top 4 1/4" edge of your card front, placing the measurement marked edge towards the bottom. Place your hole punch over the top of your card front, centering on the outward 2 marks only and punch 2 holes 1" apart as shown above.

4. Place each end of the ribbon through a hole from the outside to the inside of the card. Then, pull each end back to the outside of the card through the other hole. {This can be tricky with thick ribbon, so be delicate}

One tip: I used 6 " of ribbon on the above card. I recommend using 7" instead. This will give you more room to trim your ribbon neatly.

Be sure to go to the Shop My Kits page to order your kit option!

Kicking off the fall season

2011-10-31T10:13:00.001-05:00

I think that Halloween kicks off the fall season. Here in north Texas, it's usually still warm for Halloween {I think tonight it's supposed to be in the lower 70's to upper 60's}, and there aren't many trees to be able to see leaves changing their colors. So, I need the actual holiday for a reminder that hey! it's fall ya'll.

Today I'm sharing my favorite of all time fall card I've made. I made it for my grandma a few years back. I've been thinking about her a lot this past week because her birthday was 10/24. She got this fall birthday card from me. I was so excited with how it turned out, I forgot to sign the inside. LOL I remember her calling me and saying, "I got your card today. {long pause} It wasn't signed sweetie, but I knew it was from you." Haha! Talk about a slapping your forehead moment. I guess it's a good thing none of my cousins make handmade cards.

Hope everyone has a Happy Halloween and let me be the first to welcome you to fall. :)

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

A Halloween tribute to my middle child

2011-10-29T11:48:00.001-05:00

2010 and 2009 costumes

I believe I have the coolest daughter that ever lived. She's not your typical girl. {and can I say I'm happy she's the oldest of my girls} For the past 2 years she has chosen costumes that are "non girlie" and great! In 2009, when she first strayed from the girlie costumes, she was a gangster. I remember my cousin asking me on the phone, "Like a rapper? A gangster like that?" When I said, "No, like a girl version of Al Capone .", my cousin gasped, and said, "You have the coolest kid ever." I think she was right. ;)

My daughter knows who she is and what she represents all ready. She knows that what she puts out there will reflect on her character and our family. She makes me proud to be her mom.

In 2010, she decided she wanted to be the MMA women's champ Cyborg. We bought a weight belt and made it into a champion belt after looking at images of Cyborg on google. She just pulled some play clothes out of her drawer and her much loved black converse to wear with it. We bought some make up to give her a black eye and bloody lip, and wrapped her hands with some wraps her dad uses. She posed in the above pic without any prompt from me. She's a tough girl. She wanted the black eye, because she wanted to show that you can get knocked down and still win. she knows that actually will make the victory that much sweeter.

I love my youngest Lilly, and her girliness, don't get me wrong. But I have to say I love my Emily and her witty oozing intelligence, thoughtful conscientiousness, and her "non girlie" phase she is going through.

I have the coolest daughter that ever lived.

Thanks for stopping by!

~Erin

a sweet baby card

2011-10-27T12:49:00.002-05:00

I made this card for a dear friend who just had her first child last Friday. I wanted to include a card with the gift I am sending her {she lives far away}. I go to church with her parents, so I had learned from her mom that she decorated the baby's room in purples and greens. I just love this baby stamp from Close to My heart, and was happy I could make something with it for someone special to me. :)

I used colonial white, sweet leaf, and amethyst cardstock from Close to My Heart. The doily is cut using the Art philosophy Cricut cartridge. The cutting instructions are below the 2nd pic. I sanded my sweet leaf cs and then stamped a sentiment "the sweetest gift" from the Baby love stamp in sweet leaf over it. I stamped my main image and the "celebrate" from one of the Art Philosophy package stamps in amethyst. I finished off the card with some retired organdy ribbon. It's simple and sweet, and just right for a mom of a new baby girl.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

Cricut shapes and measurements:

Amethyst cardstock:
(pg.68 banner 1) shift/3rd button from bottom right/font layer cut @ 3"

Sweet leaf cardstock:
(pg.21 circle 1) top left button cut @ 2 1/4"

Colonial white cardstock:
(pg.21 circle 1) top left button cut @ 2"

Crafty Organization

2011-10-26T12:19:00.002-05:00

First off, look what I found when I took the pic of my crafty closet! Yay! I love finding stuff in a corner that I forgot I had. Doesn't it look good on my blue {CTMH's twilight} door?!

Today, I want to share my condensed crafty closet. Space will be limited and the movers come soon {see "side note" below}, so I best get to the crafty organization now! As you can see, this hall closet holds board games, towels for the kid's bath {they have more towels, but it's towel washing day..lol}, my scrap supplies, then a bin with blankets and off season decor is on the bottom.

Let's work through the crafty stuff clockwise from the top left. The two small bins with lids hold my accessories in one, and tools in the other; my Close to My heart inks and markers in their swivel carrying case; a bin with completed cards and 3D items; a bin with handmade gifts that will be empty when those get mailed off; my paper and cardstock storage; Close to My Heart how to books; and a 3 ring binder with my alphabet stamps. {all of my adhesives, cutting supplies, and stamps are in a 6 drawer desk in my son's room}.

This is my purged and condensed papers bin. The pattern papers are up front laying on their side in their bag so I can see where my cardstock collection starts more easily.

My cardstock is individually bagged in alphabetical order. Most people color sort them, but since I use all CTMH cardstock and am very familiar with their names, this is easier for me.

Behind them I have all of the retired colors packaged together.

At the back in a Cropper Hopper to separate them, I have my chipboard organized into smaller bags, and then all of the smaller labeled bags fit into a large 12x12 bag. Behind that i have my unfinished projects. There are about 5, all in their own individual bag.

So there is my purged, condensed, and organized crafty closet. It really has made creating these past couple of weeks easier. I hope someone has gotten a tip to help organize their own crafty stash.

SIDE NOTE:
We are leaving a "real world" house and going back to base housing when we get to our new base. I am thrilled about it really. I miss living on base. Living on a military base is like living in 1950's America. When you move in, people bring you brownies and introduce themselves, offer to watch your kids at the park while you unpack, and invite you to BBQ's to meet the other neighbors. Living in a civilian house is sad. Neighbors don't talk to each other anymore. We had a home down the street catch fire this past spring, and all the neighbors were out there with hoses trying to keep it contained until the firemen got there. Although it was really great to see everyone showing support, I heard several people comment that this was the first time they talked to a neighbor, or now they knew what their neighbors look like. So yeah, base housing isn't the greatest, biggest, most beautiful house you will live in, but the small town feel from living on base more than makes up for it to me.

Just my 2 cents on one of the things that makes me happy we are a military family! :)

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

A typical day in the life of a mom {Happy Friday!}

2011-10-21T14:13:00.000-05:00

I have a sick child at home today, so my weekly challenge cards are sitting and waiting for blog posts about them. I haven't decided if I will go ahead and post late, or just start over on Monday. Hope everyone has a great Friday! I have to figure out how I'm going to see my son play in his first tennis tournament later tonight and care for my 5 year old, all while the hubs works his Air Force job. I aready had to cancel lunch with my 10 year old, which bummed me out. I asked the office to call her up so I could tell her while I waited on my youngest to get her things, so I could tell her why I wouldn't be at lunch. She said, "You were gonna have lunch with me today??"...lol. I guess I should be glad she wasn't expecting it, so she wasn't upset in the least.

I have some minimal/simple card ideas I am working on that are inspired by this blog. She makes "simple" look fabulous. Check back next week for that post.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

1 way to transform a stamp {using CPS #240}

2011-10-20T09:14:00.000-05:00

Do you have stamps that don't really suit your style? I have several people style stamps that don't fit into my modesty guidelines. yes, i know this is silly to most people...you may think, "modest stamps?", but yes, I would like for my stamps to reflect my values.

Take this stamp for instance. I love her! The facial style of these CTMH stamps are just up my alley, but her dress is too short for me. I never wear anything above my knees. So why would I send out a card with an image dressed like that?

Here is my solution. You can see a peek of it in the bottom right corner of the before image above. I paper pieced the dress. When I did this, I stamped 2 extra skirt images. Then I layered them so that the dress would be a suitable length for my style.

I had already colored my image with the blending pen using chocolate and bamboo ink. I use bamboo very lightly otherwise my girl turns greenish. {now I see that I forgot to color her legs} As you can see below, I only ran my tape runner down the center of the combined skirt so that the edges would flare a little and give the image more dimension.

I really like how my modest girl turned out, and I hope this tip helps someone to look at their stamps they may have disregarded in a new light.

Thanks for stopping by!

~Erin

A crafty knee patch {and a correction}

2011-10-19T06:46:00.003-05:00

This is Lilly modeling her knee patch on her favorite leggings. She had to wear black leggings with this dress yesterday {GASP!}, so she is very happy that her blue leggings are fixed up. I can do a tutorial if you all would like to see how I made it. It really is simple! BTW~Lilly was very pleased to be the featured model on my blog today.

CORRECTION:
I almost fell out of my chair this morning when I saw I had a comment that my word verification was on. That is just so me! Sit there and preach about something that annoys me, and then be doing that same annoying thing to my readers. I once put on facebook, "I put my foot in my mouth so often, I'm starting to develop a taste for shoe.", so this isn't the first time I did something to embarrass myself. LOL Just so you know, my word verification is off now my friends. ;)

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

Giving my {blogger} friends love

2011-10-17T08:45:00.002-05:00

Dear blogger friends,

It's Monday morning. It's my fave time of week to get on blogger and see new challenges and cute stuff from the awesome people I follow. I love to leave comments when I see things that WOW me. It is beyond frustrating when I have to go through up to 6 steps to be able to do that. It will get to the point that I give up, and that makes me sad. I want to show my love for your hard work.

So, may I suggest that you please check your settings and see how 2 things on your comments are set up.

1~ If you have word verification, turn it off. Trust me, blogger is VERY good at filtering spam. I haven't gotten any since I've had my blog.

2~ Make your comments a pop up box. When it reloads the page to make a comment, and then reloads it to very your comment, then reloads once you've confirmed that's how you want your comment to be..well, it's just excessive.

There is more you can do, but that is a good start to help your followers {like me} be able to comment easily. Come on, you put all that work into your project, don't you want to hear how AWESOME it is?! And if you ever have issues with my blog, please email me to let me know. :)

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

Smartie {Teacher} Gifts

2011-10-13T16:22:00.002-05:00

You can click on this or any pic to see larger

Today I decided to make containers I've held onto into teacher gifts. I call them Smartie Gifts because I filled them with Smarties. For some reason giving a teacher Smarties makes me giggle on the inside.

We will be moving during the month of December, so having them made now is one thing checked off my never ending list. :) First, I thought about decorating them with fall themed paper, but the Believe paper pack from Close to My heart goes with the colors of Smarties just perfectly. And, I decorated them in a winter theme instead of an out right Christmas theme, so the teacher can have it out with pens or anything she wants after Christmas break as well.

Here is the container. It is just a 2 1/2" strip of the blue polka dot paper bordered by 2- 1/2" strips of the stripe paper. Both are attached to the Holiday red cardstock scallop. When i cut the scallop, I chose fit to page and it calculated the width and ended up making a wide enough border to be able to do that. I will have all of the measurements at the end of my post. The snow flake border was cut using the same fit to page button as well. I attached it all to the container with glue dots, adding extras where the 2 ends came together on the back. I added some old CTMH cranberry ribbon to finish both the container and the card off.

The card is a 3x3 size. I stamped the image from the Cricut Art Philosophy set in Holiday Red ink, then I matted it, added a little knot of ribbon, and pop dotted it. I am big on not wasting my cardstock. I pay for it {right?} The white scalloped circle that the image is stamped on are left overs that I didn't use on my Five page, and even throwing away the polka dots left from the scallop border make me sad. Am I the only one, or is this really a problem I have?

See? When I pulled the scallop up, there were just these perfect little polka dots there waiting to become something cute!

Here's another look at the finished project.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

Cricut shapes and measurements:

Holiday Red cardstock:
Rectangle 3 (pg.64)/font cut @fit to page (on a 12x12 paper)

Blue Polka Dot Believe paper:
Circle 3 (pg.41) @ 2 1/4"

White Daisy cardstock:
Circle 3 @ 2"
Rectangle 3/font layer cut @ fit to page (on a 12x12 paper)

Mixing papers and stitching them up!

2011-10-11T14:31:00.002-05:00

click on the pic to see it larger

My baby girl turned 5 in September. She is ALL girl! Bows, lip gloss, pink, pink, pink, and LOTS of Froo froo. She is my total opposite (if you are a follower, you have seen how I am not big on froo froo..lol). I was more morning sick with her than any of my kiddos, and I know it's because she was fighting me from the beginning. ;) I just can't wait for her teenage years! Okay, so that's my humor on my precious little girl, but of course we all all love our kiddos with everything we are and we pray they turn out with the best of us in them.

This layout was made using the Creative Scrappers sketch #177. After I cut my main elements and sat them down to see how it all looked together, I was like "Bleh.. it's ok". Then I walked away. this morning I went back and thought I'd try stitching it all up with my sewing machine, and I really like how it turned out, flaws and all. So, Yay!

The Heart 2 Heart challenge this week is to use journaling on your layout about the picture. This picture was taken at a play place we took Lilly to on her birthday. I don't know if you remember, but she had broken her 3rd camera, or my 3rd camera, and I had to buy a disposable camera from CVS on the way. Oh how digital cameras have spoiled us! She kept wanting to see every pic (for photo approval..lol), but I had to tell her the pics are hidden inside and it's a surprise when we pick them up. I said all that to say when I was going through so many action shots, this one jumped out at me. She's just standing there with her lollipop and a coy(we all know better) look on her face. I thought it deserved a page of it's own.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

a close up of the embellishments

Cricut shapes and measurements:

White Daisy cardstock:

circle 3 (pg.41) cut @ 1 1/2", 1"

shift/circle3/decorative layer @ 3 1/4"

all letters in font layer @ 2"

Sophia pink floral:

circle 3 @ 3 1/4"

circle 3 @ 1 1/4"

all letters font @ 2"

Believe blue star and polka dot:

for the 5= rectangle4/font (pg.25) @ 2 3/4"

A {crafty} way to gross me out

2011-10-10T13:51:00.001-05:00

Okay, I feel the need to do a crafty PSA my friends. The past few days on pinterest I have seen a LOT of these toilet paper roll crafts. Little treat baskets made using them, gift pouches full of candy made from scoring the edges and folding them, cute table center pieces done with them, etc.

AM I THE ONLY ONE WHO IS GROSSED OUT?!

Think about it... where did they come from? And don't say they unrolled new ones, because they didn't. The whole "charm" of using them is the green factor of reusing something you normally throw away.

If anyone gives me some candy in their old toilet paper roll that they dressed up with some ribbon, paper, and glitter, be prepared to hear my blunt Texan come out. Or if I come to your house and you have them on your kitchen table full of candy corn...well, bless your heart.

Please understand I am not trying to be rude. I just have to draw the line sometimes, and this is definitely one of those times. Why don't you get the Art Philosophy cartridge and cut one of the pillow boxes out of CLEAN and pretty paper on your Cricut...atleast do one for me. ;)

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

Heart to Heart sketch

2011-10-07T09:35:00.009-05:00

At the H2H blog this week was a sketch challenge. I decided to go ahead and make my dad's bday card using it. I just have to say that when my hubs saw the card, he said, "Look. It's the Alamo."...lol. I guess the central shape does look similar to the Alamo, but I never would have seen that if he didn't say it...now that's all I see when I look at the card.

I wasn't really loving how it looked, so I sponged the edges in chocolate ink. Then I tried to outline the star with these bitty opaques, but that didn't look right. The stripes of them, however, made me happy. It almost reminds me of an old timey theatre sign. I pop dotted the main image to give some more dimension to the card. Hope you like it! And go try out the sketch if you get a chance. :)

All of the Cricut shapes and measurements are listed below my signature.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

Typeset blue and white print paper

-cut rectangle 6 @ 2 1/4" (pg.45)

Col. white cardstock

-cut rectangle 6 @ 2"

Typeset red paper

-cut shift/rectangle 6/ decorative layer @ 2"

Who says?!

2011-10-05T13:24:00.011-05:00

Who says you HAVE to make a "boy" card for boys? Think about it? They know you're a girl making the card for them. So why not make something that you love, instead of forcing yourself into this tiny little "boy" box. Okay, I am stepping off my soapbox now. ;)

I was making a card for the Mojo Monday sketch, and remembered that my brother's birthday is on Oct.7. I have to make him a card for his bday{esp. since I texted him asking for his new address..lol}. Also, I'm glad he's not on blogger, because he won't be mad I have his new upcoming age on the card.

I really love these cork stickers from Close to My Heart. The texture they give is so cool. I see a lot of these being used in the near future. Using my Cricut made it really go fast. I did have a bow, but I didn't like the thick ribbon under it, so i knotted it, and then I didn't like how bulky it was with the knot and bow, so I edited it back to just the ribbon with the knot. I pop dotted the stamped and handwritten image.

Be sure to scroll down, because I have the Cricut cuts and measurements I used below the second picture.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

Pacifica cardstock

-square4 cut @ 2 1/4 "

-shape 8 cut @ 4"

-shift/font/stocking cut @ 4 1/4"{fit to length}

Colonial White cardstock

-square 4 cut @ 2"

Dreamin' pattern paper

-shape 8 cut @ 3 3/4 "

Moving Sale!!

2011-09-28T10:19:00.005-05:00

Included in paper sale:

from CTMH= 107 full sheets, 29 half sheets, 11 specials packages, 3 sheets stickease, plus extras in albums, chipboard, and felt. K& company paper pack, 2 paper packs from Colorbox

That’s Amore-7 ½ sheets
Silhouette-1 sheet
Cherry-O-3 sheets
Majestic Blue-1 full and 2 half sheets
Jingle-5 sheets
Twitterpated-4 full and 3 half sheets
Evensong-7 full and 2 half sheets
10 sheets creative basics
Good Times-11 full and 4 half sheets
Free Spirit-6 sheets
Splendor-8 sheets
3 sheets stickease
Emporium-2 full and 2 half sheets
Game On-7 full and 9 half sheets
Boom-Di-Ada-2 full and 1 half sheet
Topstitch-5 full and 1 half sheet
Expedition-8 sheets
Stardust-5 full and 2 half sheets
Everlasting-14 sheets
Sweet Pea-1 full and 2 half sheets
Miracle-half of special package
Felicity-all minus stamp
Everyday Celebration-1 whole package and 1 half package with no stamp
Dazzling Die Cuts-6 packs at 80% complete
Serendipity-half package with no stamp
12 paper samplers, 3 have 9x12 chipboard
Partial “wonder” felt shapes
Hearts chipboard-partial
Circles chipboard-partial
9x9 accordian album
3x3 jute album
5x7 My creations journal

close up of paper sampler alphabet stickease

I'm procrastinating...

2011-09-21T16:06:00.004-05:00

See, I have all of this stuff I need to be doing to get ready for our BIG move to Hawaii, but today I redesigned my blog instead. Get my priorities right, you say? Yes mom, I promise I am going to do what I should and soon. As far as the blog is concerned, there are a few things I'll add tomorrow including a new blog button that matches, but I need to go do some real life stuff before the hubs comes home. I'd appreciate any comments or suggestions you all have.

PS~check out the sub header and that will give you an idea of where my blog is heading. ;)

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

What a {GRRRREAT} day!

2011-09-20T11:28:00.006-05:00

I just saw my Glowing layout is featured in the Challenge Me Tuesday: border strips from Practical Scrappers. Add that to getting a blog award earlier from someone I admire, and it IS a grrreat day! Hope you all have a FAB day too.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

{I'm flattered} Blog Award

2011-09-20T08:44:00.007-05:00

I got a blog award from a fabulous CTMH sister and paper magician/artist, Marie Isom. You should check out her blog Isom Crea8tions. It will inspire you. Thank you so much Marie!

The goal of the award is to spotlight up and coming bloggers who currently have less than 200 followers. The rules of the award are:

1. Thank the giver and link back to the blog who gave it to you.
2. Reveal your top 5 picks and let them know by leaving a comment on their blog.
3. Copy and paste the award onto your blog.
4. Have faith that your followers will spread the love to other bloggers.
5. And most of all, HAVE FUN!

Okay, so here goes. This is a super tough decision! I just want to say that I get a lot of inspiration from non scrapbooking blogs. Fashion, home interiors, parties, and life are the inspiration for scrappers, so why can't blogs featuring those things be as well. ;)
1. Aaron Brown {card genius}
2. Buckets of Grace {party genius}
3. Luv-a-Lot Land {scrapbook genius}
4. Rustic Rooster Interiors { interiors genius}
5. Reflections of my aRt & sOuL {"puts it all together perfectly" genius}

So now you know the up and coming blogs where I stop by often, and I thank you for stopping by!
~Erin

1 {crafty} way to cheer up your kiddos

2011-09-19T12:35:00.013-05:00

The other night my girls just were so emotional. The hubs and I tried to comfort them, but then they would say we weren't doing that right, and it would start all over. I should've had all boys..LOL. Just kidding! Because if i had all boys, I wouldn't have been able to create this fun project. So after they went to bed, I pulled out some favorite older CTMH paper, my Cricut, and the Art Philosophy cartridge. I just thought I would make them something to remind them how we had just talked about focusing on the positive. So the word "smile" came to mind. I love their smiles! Then I hung it on the wall across from their bed, so it would {hopefully} be the first thing they saw when they woke up. The next morning, they both told me how much they liked it, so I would say "score 1 for mom!". ;)

There are pics of each banner piece, just scroll down below the details. Also, you can click on the banner pic to see it larger.

"Smile" banner Recipe:
I used 2 sheets each of chocolate and colonial white cardstock, and 1 sheet sweet leaf cardstock, and cut the banner 2{on pg.29}-decorative layer @10".

For the scalloped topper I used the blue stripe, pink polka dot, and multi stripe from the cherry-o paper pack{retired}, and cut shift-banner2-decorative layer @10" also.

Then out of the red cross grain cherry-o paper, I cut the letters {art philosophy font} @ 3 1/4 ".

The flowers {on pg. 69} were cut from the same red paper using shift-font with 1@ 4 1/2", 2 @ 3 1/4", and 1 @ 2 1/2".

This came together so easily, but I really think it looks rich. I added some new CTMH paper butterflies, sparkles, and wide chocolate striped grosgrain ribbon. Linking to the H2H die cuts challenge from last week.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

Card Patterns #133 {a Roxie Happy Birthday}

2011-09-18T00:07:00.005-05:00

This week's Card patterns sketch is super fun. Thank you to their blog for always inspiring me. I just love the Roxie paper pack from CTMH. It is just a fun sassy paper to play with. I used 3 of the patterned papers from it on this card. The scalloped edge is actually the same paper as the scalloped sentiment piece. I used the new CTMH Art Philosophy Cricut cartridge to cut the scalloped oval {I think at 2 1/2"}. Then i cut out 2 banners and used the coordinating stamps that came with the package to stamp the flourishes and the Happy Birthday. I pop dotted my central image and added a few sparkles.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

Fall wall hanging fabulousness {by Denise Black}

2011-09-16T06:40:00.004-05:00

A few weeks ago I logged into blogger and when my dashboard popped up, I saw this beauty! I just love decorating for fall, and this was so classic and lovely. Don't you agree? It was made by a Close to My heart sister named Denise Black. Her blog Create with Heart is a source of inspiration for me. I really like her style and I absolutely love this project. I was super happy when she agreed to let me post her project on my blog.

I have to say that these new CTMH rub ons she used are such a high quality. There are 4 sheets. 2 are Halloween themed and 2 are fall themed. The crispness of the images is great and they come in a little book {not like the first ones who came in a plastic sleeve and were impossible to get back in there once you cut any out}. I can't wait to play with them, but don't want to mess them up by using them either...LOL. have any of you ever had that issue?

Well I hope you enjoy the eye candy as much as I did {and still do}. So go over to her blog and show some love. :)

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

Card patterns #132 {meets} One layer Wednesday

2011-09-14T12:11:00.021-05:00

I did it! My first ever one layer card. Is it my favorite card ever? Ehh, no. Is it WAY better than what I thought it would turn out? YES!

Did I manage to hold back and not go too far? Nope {checkout the awful drawn in stitches}. Lesson learned. Note to self, no more drawn in stitches....it isn't 1995 anymore. K, thanks! ;)

So it was a fabulously simple sketch at Card patterns this week. And when I saw one of my favorite blogs called Simplicity today with her One Layer Wednesday challenge, I decided the 2 could go well together. I grabbed my Close to my Heart Pair a Phrase stamp set. Oh man is this a great set! It's a double stamp, which means it comes with 2 sheets of stamps in the envelope, so there is even more to play with.

I figured it would be easier to describe my card with pics, than with just words, so here is a little masking and blending pen 4 step tutorial for you.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

1. cut a cardstock scrap to the size you want your blank space to be {mine is 1 3/4" by 3 3/4"}, and lightly trace around it with pencil onto your card base.

2. Stamp the outline of your image inside the area you've marked off.

3. Press down on your ink pad while it's closed to collect some ink in the lid. This will be where you get color for your blending pen.

4. Use the large end of the CTMH blending pen to color in your image, being sure to "clean" it between colors by drawing swirlies on a scrap paper until it draws clear.

5. With a tight hold on your mask, use a sponge {or brayer} to color your card base with ink. I left mine soft to compliment the blending pen colored images. Then erase your pencil line.

The inside sentiment, which combined says "Faith is knowledge within the heart beyond the reach of proof.". Lovely statement for sure. :)

Glowing {creative scrappers #173}

2011-09-13T09:56:00.005-05:00

Have I mentioned my favorite color is gray? It has been for a while. There's just something about how gray looks with my blond hair and fair skin that makes me happy. Yep, gray makes me happy like a sunny yellow makes most people happy. So now that gray is a trendy color, you can bet I am one super happy camper! :)

This pic is of me when i was preggos with our youngest in 2006. I have held onto this photo for probably 3 years waiting for the right way to scrap it...no pastel, cutsie froo froo here please. When i saw the Roxie paper and these rhinestone brads in the new CTMH fall 2011 Idea Book, I had to have them. Although gray isn't a color listed with this pack, it compliments it nicely.

Okay so are you ready for a happy accident? The splatter paint was just supposed to be some pearl paint mixed with water. When i used my stipple brush to mix it well, some red ink that someone {me} forgot to clean off it, mixed in and made it pink. How cool is that?! I can do pink shimmery splatter paint any day. :) Using my finger, I flick the ends of the stipple brush until i got as much coverage as i wanted. I stamped the title after that dried, but the shimmer showed through the ink, which I thought was cool too. I got the title from page 14 of the Idea Book.

The semi-circle of licorice opaques was made using the bulk ribbon spool that my hollyhock ribbon came on. I just lined it up where I wanted the circle to go, put one at each side of the pic, one in the middle, and then spaced them evenly in between the 3 original.

I really like the look of this.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

HATE {into LOVE it!}

2011-09-12T13:39:00.009-05:00

Have you ever had a layout that didn't come out at all like you had pictured in your mind? This layout for hire I was working on was one like that. I just thought it looked so bland. I hated it actually! I hated it to the point that I've held onto the order for 2 months tried to figure out how to make it better. Yes, 2 months! I can't send a dear friend who entrusted me with these gorgeous pics of her adorable girls a layout not up to par. I just couldn't. So I emailed her twice, left comments on her facebook, and sent texts just so she would know I hadn't forgotten, but was STILL working on it.

Then the CTMH typeface special came out and it was the perfect font and size to add to the title. I just googled scrapbook titles and then looked at a few bathtime categories to find a title with the word "bathtime" in it. Then I was able to make a title to fit around it. I had also ordered the new bulk chocolate stripe ribbon, which is thicker and more beautiful in person than in the idea book. Really, ribbon made my day! ;) It was a simple addition of those 2 things, but it turned my hatred for this layout into an "I love it!" moment.

This is the finished product:

And here's a close up of the title:

Isn't that face just the sweetest thing? Aww! I love my friends' kiddos. :)

Thanks for stopping by!

~Erin

Birthdays {busy, busy, busy}

2011-09-06T09:54:00.007-05:00

First, I want to thank you for the prayers already and ask for continued prayers for the fires surrounding my family members here in Texas. My family at Possum Kingdom lake seems to be out of the woods thankfully{fire is 85% contained}. They have been hit twice this year with fires and I am so thankful that only land burned and no homes on their ranch and property around it were lost {but am saddened for those just up the road who lost everything}. Also, yesterday my in laws in East Texas were evacuated from their home due to a huge fire. Thankfully only a shed was burned. The way the shed is so close to one of their buildings, the fact that it did not burn is an answered prayer for sure! I pray that all those affected by the multiple fires will have all they need provided and are able to get on their feet soon.

This time of year is so busy for our family! Between mid August and the second week of September we have no relaxing time. Our son's birthday, back to school, and our youngest daughter's birthday are all back to back. This year is a big birthday one for us. Our son turned 13 this year, our baby girl turned 5 yesterday, and our middle child and oldest daughter will turn 10 in January. It's so cheesy, but it's true when they say "I don't know where the time went". The good news is I have lots to scrapbook. ;) I ordered a bunch of the new CTMH goodies last week, and I cannot wait to get them and get some birthday goodness scrapped. It feels like all I've been doing recently has been cards {which I love}. I just miss scrapping a page or 2 or 3 or 97....lol

My Air Force hubby is on leave {vacation} this week. So I may or may not have a chance to get crafty this week {maybe while he's playing some video games, like he is right now}.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

I made the Unscripted Top 3{crafty happiness}

2011-09-03T14:25:00.005-05:00

I was so disappointed in myself, that I only was able to participate in one challenge last week. I had so much ambition, but zero follow through. LOL The GREAT thing is that the one challenge that I did pour my crafty heart into, won top 3. I am beyond excited! The challenge was totally out of my box, so this is 1000 times sweeter! Thank you to those who chose me. :)

Thank you for stopping by!
~Erin

Unscripted Sketches {using scraps of my scraps}

2011-08-31T13:23:00.009-05:00

When I saw this sketch, I really thought it would be a fast and easy way to use some scraps. Boy was I wrong! Although I love the sketch and especially love what the design team did with it, it was not at all fast for me. Math was my least favorite subject in school, and it did require some math in cutting sizes so the placement was right.

I had a bunch of little tiny strips from trying to resize everything. I thought why not use them? So I made a fringe embellishment for my stamped piece. Hey fringe on cards is trendy, so why not make my own style of fringe. :) I rolled up a bunch of glue dots and attached them to the back of my matte and went to town as shown below.

Then I stamped my sentiment and attached the entire thing with pop dots so my fringe wouldn't be squished.

Thanks for stopping by!

~Erin

{Never} afraid to be silly?

2011-08-16T08:28:00.005-05:00

{Yeah that's a cell phone picture. I repel cameras...or I guess my 4 year old does...she's broken 2 in the past year and 1/2. So try to look beyond that and let's get to the details.}

I've been slowly{and I mean s..l..o..w..l..y..} working on an album of our 10th anniversary trip. This page is the memory of our lunch in Manitou Springs. We just went into this cute little cabin looking place and they led us through the main room, around the bar, and out onto a patio with a stream running beneath the porch. It was like being in a hidden garden. We sat there alone talking, eating, and laughing. Even though it was "just" lunch, it is a wonderful tidbit of a memory from that trip.

My husband doesn't like regular pictures. He likes to do what I call "catalog poses". LOL I actually have a picture from our wedding of him with his groomsmen all pointing in different directions. He is so silly! That is why I included the picture of him. I love that although so much has changed in the 10 years we were married at that point {13 now}, that his sense of humor and his not being afraid to be silly hasn't changed.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

family {and not so fun} time

2011-08-10T12:14:00.003-05:00

I am having to take the week off from my computer and just wanted to let everyone know why. My mom is in town{YAY!} so I am having some fun family time with her and my kiddos. And I have to get some paperwork taken care of for our upcoming move{BOO}. I am excited about the move {especially the location!} but not excited about the 1000 things I have to get ready because of military requirements.

I will be back at crafting next week. I have realized that I haven't scrapped a page in forever, so I want to do some of that as well as my card challenges that I enjoy.

Hope everyone has a great rest of the week and thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

{WOOT} nerd for "Yippee!!!"

2011-08-08T09:46:00.003-05:00

..well I don't know which one is nerdier actually, so I'll say both!

I made the top ten for July on the Heart 2 Heart blog!!! I didn't even know I was in the running...lol. I really am laughing....read the post below this one, and I think you'll see the humor in it too. Yippee! :) WOOT

It's Monday, so I'll be working on all the new challenges this week today, so more posts are to come.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

"What, are ya chicken?!"

2011-08-05T09:32:00.002-05:00

...yes, yes I am. I have to admit I've been avoiding the blogging world all week because of the mojo contest. I don't know why I am so scared of card contests, but I am. So until I get over it, I guess you can call me chicken.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

Cricut Art Philosophy {cricutblog.org}

2011-08-02T16:53:00.008-05:00

ART PHILOSOPHY

(Close to My Heart Exclusive)
We are proud to announce a new partnership with Close to My Heart and our first co-branded Cricut cartridge, Art Philosophy! This cartridge will be part of a unique and exciting new bundled for all-out creativity. It will include three Close to My Heart My Acrylix® D-size stamp sets and three new Dimensional Elements assortments with your Art Philosophy cartridge.
The cartridge includes: 50 images with layers, 50 basic shapes with layers, 50 combination images, 50 labels, 50 tags, 2 full fonts, 13 – 3D images and 17 borders and several accents!

BEST WISHES TO YOU by Michele Kovack

Designed by: Michele Kovack
Cricut Machines Used: Cricut Expression
Cricut Cartridges Used: Art Philosophy (Close to My Heart Exclusive)
Other Supplies: Cardstock (cream, pink, brown, kraft), Stamps (Closet to My Heart), Ribbon (Close to My Heart), Brown Ink (Close to My Heart), Pink Ink, Twine, Pearls, Pop Dots, Acrylic Flowers, Stick Pin, Vintage Lace

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CRICUT CUTS:
Cut 8 at 2″
Cut 8 at 2″
Cut 1 at 1
Cut 1 at 1/2″

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JOY CHRISTMAS CARD by Michele Kovack

Designed by: Michele Kovack
Cricut Machines Used: Cricut Expression
Cricut Cartridges Used: Art Philosophy (Close to My Heart Exclusive)
Other Supplies: Cardstock (cream), Stamps (Closet to My Heart), Close to My Heart Inks (Green, Brown), Glitter, Glossy Accents, Vintage Trim, Twine, Rhinestones, Pop Dots, Burlap

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CRICUT CUTS:
Select Card function and cut 1 at 3 1/4″
Select Shape/Icon layer and cut 1 at 3 1/4″
Cut 2 at 3 3/4″
Cut 1 at 1″
Cut 1 at

Check out my facebook page for pics of the overlay and an example from the icon gallery in the book.

Thanks for stopping by!

~Erin

Mojo Monday 201

2011-07-27T09:06:00.007-05:00

Okay, confession time {I skipped last week's mojo because it was a contest week and I'm too chicken to enter anything}. WHew! I feel so much better having admitted that. Maybe admitting it is the first step in getting over it and hopefully soon I'll be able to join a contest.

Anywhoo, on to my card. This week I made 2 very colorful cards, so this mojo sketch card was neutral on purpose. But man oh man, do I love how it turned out. It's for a baby boy shower, gift, or congratulations.

I used the back side of the old Close to My Heart Zippidee paper, which is bamboo and desert sand. I added colonial white and black cardstocks. I black embossed the images Some people hate when it doesn't pick up completely, but I'm okay with that. I added an old acrylic tag I had that pops against the black. A couple of mocha opaques and one licorice opaque, and I call it done. :)

Thanks for stopping by!

~Erin

Gray, yellow, fabric flower, need I say more?

2011-07-26T17:59:00.004-05:00

Everyone go to Jeanette's blog ASAP and see how she made this fabric flower. I'm inlove with the thing..no really...if I could marry it, I would....LOL

http://www.jeanettelynton.com/2011/07/weeks-of-wonder-back-to-schoolso-soon.html

Heart 2 Heart {sketch #10}

2011-07-25T17:50:00.007-05:00

This week the challenge at the Heart 2 Heart blog is a sketch. I've been wanting to try this loop ribbon detail, so when i saw the stripes I was happy. I used the back of a Mayberry paper, the green leaf print from the Splendor paper. The sentiment is stamped in Olive on the back of a Love Notes journaling spot from a couple of years ago that I stamped a polka dot on and sponged the edges in honey ink. Those things have been sitting in my stash for so long, and I am glad I figured out that I could use the back now that the printed side is outdated. :) I can't even remember where the ribbon is from, but it is almost exactly the CTMH color Tulip. See the tulip bigger brad matches pretty well.

I think it's a fun and happy card.

Thanks for stopping by!

~Erin

Christmas Card Challenge 34{plaid}

2011-07-25T17:07:00.009-05:00

Today in North Texas it is a sweltering 107! You have no idea how sick of this heat I am after it being so long over 100 degrees. They have even put a counter on our local weather website of how many days over 100. I checked and today marks 35 days in a row for my area.

I decided to pretend to be cooler by making a Christmas card. The challenge over at Sparkle's Christmas card blog this week is plaid. My word link isn't working, so I am just gonna paste the link here: http://christmascardchallenges.blogspot.com/2011/07/2011-christmas-card-challenge-week-34.html

I went to my all time fave CTMH Christmas stamp and mixed it up using the plaid from the Sweetheart paper, the back of the polka dot from the Cherry-O paper, and added black. I used my blending pen with heavenly blue ink to shadow the snowman image. Then I paper pieced the bird and hat. I love paper piecing!

I have seen a lot of shade on shade stamping as added background interest, so I tried that on this card at the bottom of the blue polka dot. I think it's very subtle, but adds to the cute factor. :)

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

My take on CTMH & Cricut

2011-07-22T09:57:00.004-05:00

So I am just going to say it....I have never been a fan of the Cricut. I think a lot of the things I have seen made using one look generic, because let's face it, they are "cookie cutter" images. I am a lover of artistic creativity in your projects. I LOVE ink, stamps, and how the combo of the 2 by each user, make your project uniquely you.

This pairing of CTMH and Cricut is different. I'm not saying for everyone to run out and get a Cricut, because you don't have to. It's not like you can't create with CTMH without the Cricut now. What I am saying is to think about it. I see stamps that I love in the fall catalog and these stamps happen to be outlined in red. That outline means they coordinate with the Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge. Therefore, I am going to buy a Cricut and the cartridge package. I see it as an addition to my creativity, not a substitute for it.

If you're thinking "I don't know", then it's a no for you. I always go by that rule myself. Don't invest money in something that you're unsure of. There are plenty of people out there who are going to have this and give their reviews on it. They may even let you use it to see for yourself.
Then you can decide later to get it when you are sure.

I just see so many people that throw themselves into trends because it is trendy, not because it suits them. So my advice is to think about YOUR style, how YOU create, and if this or any other purchase you are considering fits into it or where you want your style and creativity to go. And if it does, GREAT! Have fun! Just don't spend a lot of money, especially in these hard times on something you may or may not use. That's my 2 cents.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

Heart to Heart {doilies and lace}

2011-07-21T10:39:00.006-05:00

Do you have scraps of random stamped paper left from a project that you just don't want to get rid of? I do! They are like my babies. After I put all of that work into them, I can't just throw them away! This floral and basket weave have been sitting in my stash for almost 3 years. I am so happy I finally got to use them!

This week at Heart 2 Heart the challenge was to use doilies or lace in your project. I have neither and so I thought I'd skip this week. Then I remembered the pink ribbon collection has a lace type ribbon in it. I pulled out my scraps and yay! they match. I am not big on froo froo stuff, so I wanted the flower to be the central image. I used a Wishes pattern called Simple Expressions. I moved the sentiment piece up from where it was in the pattern. To add some roughness to offset the froo froo, I distressed almost all of the edges on the card. Hope you like it! I have instructions below on how I made the flower.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

I took a 3/4" circle punched out of some scrap, applied a glue dot to the top, and then bunched the lace around it until it made a little flower. Then I did the same on the back of the circle with the opposite edge of the ribbon sticking out in a bigger circle to make the flower have more heft. I added a pink flower button with some embroidery floss, and some looped garden green ribbon to finish it off. Here's a close up:

Giveaway update

2011-07-18T13:57:00.004-05:00

The Giveaway is over and unfortunately no one jumped into the challenge. Guess I will get to play with the stuff I had set aside for you all myself. ;) I wanted to share one more card I made using the picture as inspiration. I took the colors and the painting as my guide. Super simple card, but I love the effect.

I had a problem with my OCD on things being exactly straight, so pulling up the cardstock several times made my paper warp. If I do this stripe again, it will be on a sheet of cardstock and then cut to the card size.

Have a great day and thanks for stopping by!

~Erin

Heart 2 Heart {Inspiration challenge}

2011-07-14T12:10:00.007-05:00

I absolutely LOVE this dress I got for my 4 year old from Old Navy. The pattern and colors are just perfect for me. The fact that she let me pick something for her that wasn't pink was the cherry on top!

I used the pattern for my inspiration and kind of a variation on the colors for the card....much more toned down. The pattern reminded me of this old stamp i had that has long been retired from Close to My Heart. I used crystal blue, first stamping using the back of the stamp in second generation, then using the actual stamp image over it. Then I created a mask and stamped over that in pacifica. Then I used crystal blue again around the border with a little swirl stamp i bent (love Acrylix for the flexibility!). Then using my blending pen, I colored in the flowers and dots with a combo of pear, gypsy, and sunset inks. I added a sentiment that I had masked off the "you", and added a chipboard U. I added some Bo Bunny flowers where a circle on the Wishes design was, a sparkle brad for the center, and 2 sparkles for the sentiment.

CTMH Supplies: Hooligans B&T; Lagoon and white daisy CS; Pear, Crystal blue, Pacifica, Gypsy, and Sunset ink; blue sparkles; blue glitter brad

I really love this card, which doesn't surprise me since it's inspired from a dress I really love!

Thanks for stopping by!

~Erin

Mojo Monday 199

2011-07-13T07:56:00.006-05:00

In my last post about my giveaway I talked about using the color combo. Well here is my first card for the week using that combo and the Mojo 199 sketch. I used barn red, sweetleaf, crystal blue, and sunset. The crochet flower is hand made from Lucy Marino that I bought a long time ago. I wish I had her contact info still, so I could put a link to her, because they are all fabulously made.

So this is me showing you how I translated the color challenge into a card. Now it's your turn.

Thanks for stopping by!

~Erin

GIVEAWAY~ Color combo challenge

2011-07-09T16:10:00.005-05:00

I've been doing some redecorating in my house recently. My hubby and I are opposites when it comes to design. He likes the traditional (think Victorian) and I like modern comfortable. So, I give in most of the time and case in point is our sofa. it's a burgundy corduroy chenille, rolled arms, T cushions, and it's 9 foot long. We have the matching love seat of course, because you have to have the "set" in his eyes..LOL.

Okay, so I decided to modern it up. ;) I got rid of 5 of the old pillows that were all the same pattern and kept 1. Then I added a pale blue silk pillow and a transitional embroidered paisley pillow. Now the big thing was a 4 foot square metallic painting from Pier One called Kaleidoscope. You can look it up on their website if you want (it's gorgeous!).

THE CHALLENGE~ Use the color combo from this picture to create a card and post it to my facebook page with a link to your blog by July 15. On July 16th I will draw a winner and send you some Close to My Heart goodies I have. :)

Have fun and I can't wait to see what you create!

Thanks for stopping by.

~Erin

I get my blog fixed....

2011-07-02T18:14:00.005-05:00

...and lose my camera. For those who know me personally, this is no shock. Just an average day for the girl nicknamed "grace" as a child by her sarcastic parents. LOL I will get it together, find (or purchase) a camera, and be posting soon.

Thanks for stopping by (and for your patience)!
~Erin

This and that...

2011-04-19T17:45:00.004-05:00

Well, first off, I need to say sorry for not posting in a while. I got a job outside the home and man does it interfere with my crafty fun! So please accept my apology and enjoy my post for today. :) Plus I tried to post this months ago and could not get it to post from my computer. Hopefully new computer will mean I can post more of my waiting items now. :)

One of the amazing women I work with had a birthday Friday. Well due to a few things, we celebrated it today at lunch. This ended up being perfect because I could make her a present when I went away to Round Up (the Western Hearts' annual team retreat) this past weekend. And I made this embellished frame....

I used CTMH's new paper Bliss to make the flowers. Well, I have to fess up....my wonderful friend and fellow consultant Freedom Stanford made 2 of the flowers for me. I made the center flower. I added sparkle to the leaves and put it all together. Thank you Freedom for your contribution! Debbie loved the frame. :) She cracks me up, because I put the coordinating paper in the frame to dress it up before I gave it to her, and she was saying how she can't take the paper out. Too funny! just take it out and add a 4x6 picture silly lady.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

Mojo~I miss you!

2011-01-25T16:41:00.004-06:00

This week's mojo sketch is here , and i so wanted to try this one out. Using some of my old Close to My Heart papers and stickease, I made this card for my bestie that moved away. I didn't have a pin for the bow, so I used an old charm and embroidery floss. I put an old window charm over the stickease to make it pop. The sentiment isn't straight, but that doesn't bother me so much (atleast that's what I'm telling myself). The blue polka dot ribbon is from the dollar bin at Target. I edge distressed the paper and cardstock, added a designer brad, and I was done. A fun little card for a fun little woman. :)

Thanks for stopping by!

~Erin

Nothing goes to waste here

2011-01-04T16:09:00.003-06:00

You know how you always have little odds and ends left over from your embellishments? Why let them just sit there collecting dust? I made this frame using some left over rub ons, felt shapes, and pearls. It was so easy and fast to put together. The frame only cost $3 from the discount store. Gotta love when you find a deep frame at such a great price! And since I was using left overs from other projects, I got a custom frame for $3.

All I did was glue my felt on with liquid glass, the pearls are self adhesive, and the rub ons just rub right on. ;)

Leave a comment telling me one of your favorite ways to use that last little bit of crafty stuff. i would love to hear your tips.

Thanks for stopping by!

~Erin

Simple Goodie Bags

2010-12-16T09:15:00.003-06:00

Emily and I made these goodie bags for her class last night. They were so simple and inexpensive to do! Everything was bought at the dollar store.

First, Emily stamped the names at the bottom of the bag. She used red for the girls, and green for the boys. Then she used a little 1" stamp of Santa for the boys and Rudolph for the girls. Then I cut the bags basically half way down with decorative edge scissors.

Emily then filled the bags with goodies. They had candy, a beaded necklace, and a Christmas themed item- an eraser for the boys and a lip gloss for the girls. I tied off the top with a combo of ribbon and decorative tinsel. Then we added a candy cane pen to the tied ribbon to finish them off. Emily was so proud of herself, and can't wait until tomorrow to give them away!

Thanks for stopping by!

~Erin

Heart to Heart "out of shape" challenge

2010-11-11T09:00:00.002-06:00

This week on the H2H blog, they have a challenge to create a card that is not a typical shape. It seems like this fall I keep going back to my Paper Crafts Holiday Cards magazine again and again. I saw a gingerbread man tag on page 87 that is simple and adorable.

For the card, I free handed a gingerbread man on notebook paper. Then I decided which side looked best and cut it in half. I took some brown bag cardstock and folded it in half. I took my half-gingerbread man and starting at the fold of my cardstock, I traced it. Then I flipped it over and traced the other half. This way I ensured my gingerbread man was symmetrical. When I cut it out, I had a perfect little gingerbread man shaped card. Yay! I distressed the edges a little with my Close to My Heart sanding block.

The tag in the magazine that I based my card on was done in red with white marker stitches. I like green with the brown bag, so I pulled out my Close to My heart shades of green embroidery floss. I pre-punched holes all around the perimeter with my paper piercer. Then using 2 strands of the floss, I stitched all the way around. I double layered my ribbon bow tie, and added 3 corduroy brads for buttons down the front. The eyes are antique copper brads. I originally had no mouth, because the tag had no mouth, but it really bugged me. So I used my chocolate marker to draw a little smile.

It is a simple looking card, but I like the detail of the texture. The ribbons, buttons, and stitching all added together really jazzes it up.

Thanks for stopping by!

~Erin

when paper crafting saves the day...

2010-11-09T12:26:00.005-06:00

My husband, myself, and our oldest child planned on being Ghostbusters for Halloween. I found the perfect replica patches on Ebay, saved the link, and planned to go back to order them. Well, I am a procrastinator through and through, so that never happened in time.

Then I decided I would just print up the logo image, laminate it, and make the badges myself. That's when I realized I hadn't gone to the store to get more ink for the printer. Did I mention I am a procrastinator? LOL

So, the day of the party I pulled up the image I had saved, traced it off the computer screen, and using paper piecing techniques, I traced it out onto cardstock, cut them out, and paper pieced them back together. Then I added the face and details by hand. I covered them with clear tape, added some velcro to the back, and they were good to go. I finished the 3 logo badges 1 hour before the party. Right on time, maybe even early to finish up, according to my procrastinator's brain. haha! Plus, I have 3 perfect embellishments all ready for my pages!

Here is another pic from that night. My husband is Air Force, so we used his flight suits as our uniform. I know it's a little big on my 12 year old, but I love that one day I will look at my grown son, probably towering over his dad, and remember when he was this size. :)

Elijah checking his ghost readings. ;)

Thanks for stopping by!

~Erin

Tons of cards!

2010-11-04T10:09:00.004-05:00

Well, maybe not tons, but 16. I just used one of the workshops in Close to My Heart's Wishes card book. It really was easy. My suggestion is that if you do this, you label your pieces as you are cutting them. I had a little of an old special left, called Serendipity, so I used that. The large flower on 2 of the cards is a die cut that came in the kit. Instead of using 2 cardstocks and 1 patterned paper, I used 3 patterned papers. I just turned some over, and used the monochromatic back on the cards. I also used a consultant stamp set for the sentiments. If you want it, ask me how to become a consultant. ;) To finish them off, I sponged the edges in outdoor denim and added some blue sparkles and mocha opaques. Now I have "a ton" of thank you cards ready to go whenever they are needed. Love that! I posted a few of my favorites in the collection below, so you can see them close up.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

A simple layout

2010-10-28T09:53:00.003-05:00

Hello crafty friends! Here is a simple layout I did using this sketch from Amy's 4x6 blog. I have never cut pictures down the middle to cross over pages. I have to say I was nervous, but I am very happy with the end result! I didn't have much journaling, plus I had an extra pic, so I added a vertical picture in the journaling/title space. Then I moved my title to the space above the pics. It says "My big friends". The "big" didn't show up too well in the pic, but it is the same buttercup yellow as the stars. I made this layout because some college friends of my hubby and I came to celebrate Elijah's first bday. The pics didn't fit in with presents or cake layouts, so I made a layout all by itself.

This is my tip: When you have pics that don't fit in, just use them in their own layout. It makes a cohesive layout and doesn't interrupt any other event's layout.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

Holiday Cheer card

2010-10-26T09:12:00.004-05:00

I just fell in love with a card I saw in Papercrafts and had to copy it. I loved the simplicity of all the white on the card. The texture of the circles just set it apart. I used the Close to My Heart 1 1/4" circle punch to create my circles. I added a background of Mistletoe paper and a little strip of another paper from that pack. I also used the Ms. Holiday Cheer stamp set for the sentiment. Then I added some Cranberry velvet ribbon.

Thanks for stopping by!

~Erin

I hope my mom forgives me...

2010-10-22T16:27:00.003-05:00

...for the picture on this page...heehee! Well, one of the main things I worked on my retreat was scrappping some old 4x6 pre-digital photos. This layout is of my son when he was 1 (he is now 12. hey don't judge me for being so behind..LOL) using some of those pics. I used a level 1 Rough and Tumble I had bought a while back. Elijah wore so much blue and yellow back then, the paper pack just went with so many photos! I did add some of the new green sparkles. The lightest color went really well with it.

Even thought they don't photograph as well, the green sparkles are the exact color of the "buddies" sticker. My favorite new thing is adding a few of the bitty size to accent an embellishment even more than just the larger size would do alone.

PS- After looking at all these old photos, i realized my son's "noo-noo", his security blanket, was in so many of them. It became a game of Where's Waldo to find it in all of them. I will now have to go back and do a layout dedicated to it. Ah, the cute little baby things we forget over the years, he loved that thing. So sweet!

Thanks for stopping by!

~Erin

...to the moon!

2010-10-19T14:08:00.008-05:00

I always thought that was a weird line from that old TV show, The Honeymooners. Well, it stuck in my head and ended up on a layout. More on that in a second.

This past weekend, I hosted my first retreat for friends. It was way more work than I expected with the cooking and all, but boy was it worth it! What a fabulous time. We watched movies (thank you freedom for all the great ones!), laughed, shared, encouraged each other. In the end, everyone got a lot done. Even with distractions, I was able to get 20 cards, 3 layouts, and 2 single pages done. I'd say that is a successful weekend!

Okay, back to my first layout i am going to share. I have had these pics printed of my youngest and me for over 6 months. I look at them, put them away, and never quite was able to figure out how i wanted to scrap them. I was digging through my stuff and found the Stardust paper pack and the blue was perfect. Then i saw I had about 5 stickers left over and the swirl and the rocket were in there. Ding, ding! light bulb moment...I love you to the moon. Ah, you have no idea how happy I was to finally get these on paper. The base pages being desert sand really is the perfect addition in my book. Oh, I added some red sparkles and tulip accessories. I really love it!

1 more close up of the details

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

Crackled Glass with a twist~

2010-10-11T16:00:00.007-05:00

I taught a technique class for the Close to My Heart group I am a part of last month on crackled glass. I really love this technique! It is so versatile. I will be posting examples from my display board this week, starting with this card.

I stamped, colored, and cut out my monsters. Then i went over them with 3 layers of clear embossing powder from CTMH. after they cooled for around 10 minutes, I bent them back and forth to create the cracks. To add extra dimension, I went over them with a sponge using black ink, filling in the cracks the embossing powder created. After I wiped them down with a paper towel to remove the excess ink, I added them to my card.

This is such a fun Halloween card (if I say so myself..LOL), using my new favorite accent color grey flannel! Other items used were Autumn Terracotta cardstock and ink. Black cardstock and ink. The only stamp set used was the Merry monsters set. All products used are Close to My Heart.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

This week's Christmas card challenge

2010-09-23T09:21:00.003-05:00

...is distressing of any kind. You can see the details and design team's cards here. I decided on ink distressing with new England ivy ink, the darkest color green in the Mistletoe paper pack. I used a Wishes pattern and embellished it just like the book with a tulip mini medley. I then stamped Christmas all around the edges. I think I may go back and stamp a central image, but I just love the holly paper, so I want to leave it as is for a little bit.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

Heart 2 Heart sketch

2010-09-22T12:18:00.002-05:00

Boy do i love the creativity of my CTMH sisters! Check out this blog if you want some fun challenges and SUPER eye candy!

Sometimes it's a color challenge, but this week was a sketch. I pulled out my Hello there stamp set and Olivia fall paper pack. I added a flower to my little porcupine/hedgehog character. I also stamped in second generation sunset her body and went back with a paper pieced combo of barn red and chocolate for the quills. I used the leaf stamp 3 times under the sentiment to accent it.

Thanks for stopping by!

~Erin

Mojo Monday

2010-09-21T09:54:00.003-05:00

Ah, how I've missed creating from the Mojo Monday blog! I always look at their sketches each week, but haven't had a chance to play for a while.

I got these BoBunny flowers last week and thought they would work PERFECTLY with the new CTMH paper Magnifique...and they do! I pulled out an old retired stamp and second generation stamped the thanks in pacifica ink. I added chocolate cardstock for some contrast, then finished it with new blue sparkles.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

Texture can be your embellishment!

2010-09-09T13:30:00.005-05:00

click on the picture to view this LO larger

I've been working on this LO for a while. I will pull it out, place a few embellishments on it, look at it, take them off, try some more, then give up, and put it away. The LO is slightly manly, on purpose, because it's a trip my hubby and I took, just us. I didn't want to girly it up with flowers and such. But, you see, this LO is super simple for my taste. The thing I finally realized is that it doesn't need anything else. I sanded all the edges of the paper and even the pictures. The texture I created with that technique is my embellishment. And I am quite happy with leaving it at that.

So the next time you have a LO that you can't figure out what to add, think about adding some texture. it may be all you need to make yourself happy with your creation.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

Fall 2010 Idea Book

2010-09-02T08:53:00.007-05:00

I am inlove with this catalog/idea book! The new colors are fabulous! The artwork is spectacular! The new accessories are over the top cute!!! Be sure to check it out page by page by clicking on the cover picture. If you'd like a copy, email me and I will be happy to get you one!

Thanks for stopping by!

~Erin

September "Freshman" kit

2010-09-01T15:30:00.008-05:00

This kit is for beginner scrapbookers. Create 1 layout using only 5x7, 8x10, and 4x6 photos. No cutting of pictures will make it super easy to put together.

This kit includes:

hand colored letter stickers
2 sheets of patterned paper from the Magnifique paper pack
1 sheet of colored cardstock
2 sheets of neutral cardstock
1 package of NEW blue and green sparkles

On the 5th of September, I will post instructions to create this layout in the art section of my Close to My Heart website.

Thanks for stopping by!

~Erin

September Simply Beautiful card kit

2010-09-01T10:31:00.010-05:00

Hello all. Today I am releasing several kits customized by me, for any crafting level. The first is my card kit.

Create 10 simply beautiful cards for $10! Who doesn't love beautiful, handmade cards? With this kit, you are getting to make handmade cards for $1 each!

Included in kit:

1.pre-cut, labeled pieces

2.10 yards of cocoa ribbon

3.10 stamped sentiments( 4 Happy Birthday, 4 Thank you, 2 wishing you well)

4.color instructions

5.10 white card bases and envelopes

Inlove with Hooligans!

2010-08-30T09:45:00.005-05:00

..not some crazy hooligan people, but the new paper pack from Close to My Heart. This paper that is available Sept.1, is such a FUN Halloween paper, I can't stand it!

I made this card using it and the new stamp set The Boo Crew. I used a pattern from Wishes. The green "grass" was an alteration on my part so my pumpkins would have a fun place to rest. I paper pieced the back of the green paper in orange for their mouths and added stems from it, as well as green sparkles in 3 different sizes for their eyes.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

Baby gift cube

2010-08-12T10:00:00.006-05:00

Hello blogging world! It has been so long since my last post. I am having camera issues, and what's a blog without pictures? Sad. A friend took these pics for me, so I can finally share something again. :)

I made this cube for a friend who just had a baby boy. The colors from Twitterpated matched his room perfectly...aside from the sorbet. You might remember the Mojo card I made to go along with this gift here. I covered the sorbet stripes with strips of twilight CS. Well twilight CS played a roll on the cube as well. I stamped each image 3 times. Once on patterned paper, once on chocolate CS, and once on twilight CS. Then I paper pieced each image together to create the finished image. I used my sweet leaf and crystal blue markers to color the ready alphabet stickers. I only used the first letter for each image, and matted them on twilight. I finished it off by tieing the edges together with retired twilight sassy strands. The top hinges, so she can put little items in it.

I think you can click on the images to see larger if you'd like.

Thanks for stopping by!

~Erin

The sad part of military life

2010-07-23T14:31:00.004-05:00

Bridgette holding the frame I made her.

The Air Force is a wonderful thing. It has provided my husband and I with a better life, a way to support our 3 kiddos (2 of which were born after joining), and many wonderful friends along the way.

Oh, but there is a sad side of the military life...moving. Friends move away and we move away. I always hope that I am the first to move because I just hate those goodbyes for everyone else (selfish I know).

My bestie Bridgette left for a month to visit family in Utah, and when she gets back, her hubby will have them moved to their new base. She will only be 2 hours away, so visits will be feasible, but she won't be around the corner anymore. No more come over and watch army wives, let's take the kids to the park, or just hang out.

This past Tuesday, our group of friends went out got pedicures and had a nice dinner. We gave her gifts and ended up closing down red lobster..LOL. We just stayed forever chatting and enjoying the company.

Here is almost everyone's feet with our designed toes (I've never been brave enough to do that). Like my gold $9 sandals from Kohl's? I love a good deal! ;)

I want to say thank you to everyone who came out!~and B you know I love you girl! :)

Thanks everyone for stopping by!
~Erin

Grandma's fried okra

2010-07-12T14:47:00.006-05:00

We all have those memories of our grandma's dinner table. Just the smell of one of those items will bring the memories rushing back. For me, in the top 3 is my grandma's fried okra. She didn't have the thick restaurant type of breading that most of us are used to. She had a light crispy breading that was just perfect! So today I am sharing her easy beautiful recipe. Please excuse the poor quality pics. I took them with my phone.

Ingredients for breading : corn meal, flour, salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1.Using a 4 to 1 corn meal to flour ratio, combine the above ingredients in a shallow pie dish

2. Cut your okra and wash after you cut it in a colander. This will help the breading stick.

3. Grab 2 hand fulls of okra, drop them into the breading, and shake around until they are coated evenly.

Just had to add this picture of Lilly trying to see what I was doing (on her tip toes). So sweet!

4. After heating vegetable oil over medium high heat for 3 minutes, add an even layer of okra. Be sure not to over crowd the pan. (I use a tall pot to reduce the over splatter since i have 3 kids running around me) Don't move them around too much, it will knock off breading. I cook them until they are a little more golden brown than this.

I add more oil if I have a big bunch to do. Well, I hope you all enjoy making this simple but delicious recipe. I can't tell you how excited I get when i see okra is back in season and at the store!

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

Christmas Card challenge

2010-07-01T15:54:00.004-05:00

The challenge this week is to use your favorite Christmas song to make a card. What a hard challenge for me! I ended up settling on the 12 days of Christmas. Well i got to making my card and thought it was 3 turtle doves. Thankfully my mom is here and set me straight (her and my son googling it just to make sure).

I used That's Amore papers and the Felicity stamp set (was a limited time offer from CTMH). I masked my birds to stamp the background. My sentiment ended up being too long for my card so i made a 5x7 card. Well, then i didn't like that, so i cut it down to 5x 6 1/2. I added the pearls and restrained myself from adding ribbon. I think it's pretty cute. :)

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

something old, something new...

2010-07-01T15:43:00.004-05:00

I decided to try a new challenge this week. It's the Heart to Heart challenge and the theme is anything patriotic. Well, Jeanette's Color Me Monday challenge fit that theme as well. So here is my "something old, something new".

I used a pattern from the Jingle WOTG card workshop, which I never looked at before, and quite frankly ended up loving it! I combined 2 paper packs-majestic blue and Jingle. The tulip CS and polka dot are the only things from Jingle. I also added some old outdoor denim organdy ribbon and the only thing not CTMH is the thickers letters.

I hope everyone has a fun and SAFE 4th of July and thanks for stopping by!
~Erin

Bundle of Joy

2010-07-01T15:32:00.005-05:00

I made this card using the Mojo Monday sketch this week. Seems like all of my friends are having babies...by the way, I have stopped drinking the water here ...LOL. Anywhoo, one of them had a little boy last month. I am working on a little something for his room and this card is a sneak peak into the color combo on that.

I cut strips of twilight CS and covered the sorbet stripe on this Twitterpated striped paper. I used paper piecing on the pacifier with the revers side of the pattern up top of the card (love CTMH double sided paper).

Here is a close up of the paper piecing and the double stamped images to give a little more depth. the chocolate alone wasn't doing it for me.

Thanks for stopping by!

~Erin

Melt my heart!

2010-06-28T12:53:00.004-05:00

Don't you just love your kids' smiles?! I do! My older 2 are getting to the age where they don't smile as much and that makes me so sad. How I wish being a tween meant it was still cool to smile! LOL

I made this LO totally stealing the idea from Marjorie Ann Eno's LO. Just click her name and it will take you to her blog. She is among the many who inspire. I haven't created in so long that my mojo is lacking for sure. Just looking at these amazing artists' blogs, such as her, totally get the creative juices flowing.

Thanks for stopping by!

~Erin

Supplies used: CTMH Splendor paper pack, stickease, and designer brads. Making Memories chipboard letters

5 months old LO

2010-05-01T13:13:00.005-05:00

I wanted to participate in a challenge using the new Cherry O-paques from the Summer Idea Book, so I went through some older baby pictures and found these of Lilly (when we still called her Elisabeth). She was wearing a cute cherry print sleeper. Well, when I went to my pattern books and saw Interesting Variation in Cherish, i had to use that pattern. Where the flowers are is squares of paper in the book. I decided to use the flowers from the O-paques pack instead of the cherries and I love it!

This is my first time making these flowers and I am a little unhappy with them. i think next time I will wet them, scrunch, fix them where I like them, and then let them dry so they will stay how i like them. Can you say control freak? LOL

I used the back of the tulip polka dot paper from Jingle and then used the front side for the middle layer of the flowers. Gotta love 2 sided papers!

Well, have a great National Scrap Day everyone!! And as always, thanks for stopping by!

~Erin

Summer stamps!!

2010-04-29T13:49:00.003-05:00

Can I just say i am sooo happy with the Summer Idea Book from CTMH? Okay it's my blog so I can. ;)

The new stamps and paper are so cool. There are 2 new sets for kid's events and I had to have both! This card is from the Birthday Boy stamp. It has a car, train, airplane, etc. I used the airplane for this card. i used chocolate embroidery floss to stitch the hand drawn flag that I sponged around the edges and bent the stamp to fit. Gotta love CTMH acrylix stamps for their flexibility! I also paper pieced the plane and masked it to stamp the clouds around it.

Thanks for stopping by!
~Erin