It's a Dog's Life

My friends who live next door have two beautiful American Bulldogs. These are the sweetest dogs, and they are spoiled just a little bit rotten!

When Mufasa (their "first born") turned one, they did what any parents of a one year old would do - had a birthday party!

And I had the honors of making the cake. I had seen a few pictures of cute cakes online and used them as inspiration to come up with Mufasa's cake.



And I couldn't go to a birthday party without a gift! So I made some doggy treats and then altered this marshmallow creme jar to put them in.



(Sorry the pictures aren't very clear.)

Here is Mufasa with his eye on the cake:


Of course, he didn't get to have any of it. But he and Maya both enjoyed the dog treats!

And here's the whole family:


Denise, Maya, Mufasa, Jorge & Marlon
Aren't they cute?

More Auction Pieces

I will eventually get through all these...I promise! Not too many more to go. (Hey...at least it's giving me something to post!)

There was a camping themed basket. Not a very easy one to come up with a paper crafting idea for. I was browsing Split Coast Stampers and got inspired.

First, I came across this. It is Jiffy Pop popcorn. I thought that would be cute. Then I saw somewhere on there something about S'mores Trail Mix. So I googled it to see what was in it. I found out it was Honey Graham's cereal, chocolate chips and marshmallows. But I thought I remembered someone using Teddy Graham's instead of the cereal, so that's what I did.

So this is what I came up with:


Just like the school paper in my last post, I've had this paper forever too. Probably from the same pack! I just covered the popcorn with it and made a tag using a scallop punch.

The trail mix is in an old peanut butter jar I had been saving. (I have lots of jars saved and stashed everywhere!) It was big enough that it held enough of the trail mix for a whole family to share.

I just used some of the paper to make a band and finished it off with a scalloped label. I decided the red lid worked just fine, so I just wrapped a green ribbon around it.
For a little more fun on the top, I did this:


And as a side note - that trail mix? Oh my word, is it so yummy! But I'll NEVER tell how much of it I ate!

Oh, and I used the mini chocolate chips instead of the regular ones. I think they were perfect.


Also, there was a "kitty" basket. And by kitty, I mean there was to be a real live kitten in that basket to be auctioned! I thought the kitty would need some treats, so I made this:

That's a Starbucks Frappuccino bottle. I made the label on my computer and attached it to the black card stock band. A paw print on the top and some cute paw print ribbon. Pretty cute, I think!

Oh - and if you live close to me and happen to be reading this....AND you happen to drink Frappuccino's - could you do me a huge favor and save me your bottles? I'll even come get them from you! And you don't even have to wash them out. Just toss them (gently) in a box or bag and I'll wash them myself! Thanks to anyone who's willing to help!
I have lots of projects I need these for, and if I drink that many of them, I'll never get the weight off that I'm trying to!

Back to School

I did this for the 'School Supply' basket, again, for the silent auction.

I have had this paper forever - it's from an old Slab stack of paper from Michael's, I think. Anyway, it was perfect for this project.

I used Mod Podge to adhere it to the clipboard. I used my Fiskars shape cutter to make the lettering in red. I adhered it to a piece of yellow, and then just cut around it. I then used the Mod Podge to adhere it and the red strip in the middle to the clipboard. I used red line tape to adhere the ribbon in the middle.

Then I attached some cork board and a stack of post it notes. I picked up the push pins at the Dollar Tree. They had a different color design on them. I removed it and added red cardstock. Then I coated it with Aleene's Paper Glaze to make the resemble the original glassy look they had.

I used the same paper to cover the notebook and to make the beaded pen. I attached the pen with some red ribbon and then tied a couple of red and yellow ribbons to the top of the clipboard.
And you can't really see it, but if you look super close, you might notice a binder clip in the top right corner, that is covered with the same paper as well.

Garden Inspired

This was another contribution to the silent auction baskets. There was a garden themed basket. I couldn't come up with much, but this is what I did.

I picked up this little notebook at the Dollar Tree. I took it apart and covered it then reassembled it.


Then I made a set of 3x3 note cards. Very simple, but I think they came out pretty cute.


I picked up a set of garden gloves (that happened to match the pinkish cards perfectly) at the Dollar Tree as well, I placed them in a small flower pot with a ribbon tied around it. I tied the cards with some ribbon and placed them in the center of the gloves. I didn't think to get a picture of it all ready to go. Too bad, because I think it looked quite cute all packaged together!

Valentine's Day

Wow - I can't believe it's been almost a month since I've posted here! I was fighting sinus junk for a while and just didn't feel much like blogging, and then I got really busy.

Oh well. I promised myself I wasn't going to feel guilty if I didn't post daily (or even weekly!) I'm going to post when I can, and hopefully at least some of you will keep coming back!

Here are a couple of quick and easy things I did for Valentine's.

I made this adorable little "flower" pot. I saw the idea here. I thought it was so adorable, I had to try it. Mine isn't quite as cute, as I didn't have the same punches or the embellishments, but I still like the way it turned out. I used Tootsie Pops and adhered them to the flowers with a glue dot.


And I made these quick little Valentine's for Ruthi to give to her friends. I opted for goldfish to curb the candy monster just a little!

My Favorite Gift

OK, so now I will post the gift I had the most fun making this year. It is actually a set of things. I forgot to take a picture of them all together, so I will have to post each picture seperately.

My Mom is in the process of redoing her kitchen with the Italian Chef theme. I knew exactly what I wanted to do.

I got these ideas from all the wonderfully talented ladies at SplitCoast Stampers.

First up: Recipe Tin



I love how this turned out. I was trying to match the colors in her kitchen. When she opened it, that was one of the first things she said was that the colors matched! I included dividers inside and a bunch of my favorite recipes. I still have more to add to her collection, but I ran out of time before Christmas!

Next: Coasters



I'm really happy with the way these came out too. I used the unglazed tumbled tiles. Then I colored them in with sharpies. I tested these, and they didn't leave a water ring, but if I spilled something like coke or coffee on them, they stained. So I sprayed them with a sealer to prevent that. I used thin sheets of cork, cut to size on the bottom of them.

Refrigerator magnet/post it note holder & beaded pen.



I used one of the acrylic frames and turned it around so the "foot" was in the front. Then I adhered magnets to the back (front!) I did this so it would hang on the refrigerator and have a little shelf for the pen. It is pictured hanging on my fridge.

Dry Erase Tile:



I used one of the ceramic tiles for this. What makes it so easy, is if you mess up, you can wipe it right off and try again. After stamping the image, I heat set it with my heat tool. Then I colored in with sharpies and heat set again. I read on SCS that to keep this image "in place" that they covered it with Crystal Effects. I didn't have any but I had some Liquid Embossing by All Night Media, and from what I can tell, it does the same thing. So I used it, and it worked perfectly.

And Next: Menu Board



I picked up this little chalkboard at Michaels. I painted the edges to match everything else. Then I stamped right on it. The image was a little too faint for my liking, so I outlined it with a silver sharpie. It made the image not be quite as crisp, but it still works. Then I attached a piece of ribbon tied to a stick of chalk. (Hey Mom, I forgot to give you the box of chalk! I'll bring it next week!)

And lastly. A Birthday Card
Her birthday was a week before Christmas. I have to admit, I pretty much copied this card exactly from a SCS'r. You can see her original card here. I just loved it so much and knew it was the perfect card.



And there are actually a couple more things that were supposed to go with this set, but time just got the best of me, and I ran out of it! So once she has the other things, I'll post them here too.

This was absolutely the gift I enjoyed making the most. I couldn't wait for her to get it. And she loved it. At least, I'm pretty sure she did. After all, she is my Mom, and she'd NEVER tell me if she didn't like something. But I can read her pretty well, and she really did seem to love it!

And hey Mom - I LOVE YOU!!!

For Baby

More Christmas gifts...these for 2 brand new babies in the family. Two of my cousins had babies - one right before Thanksgiving and the other right before Christmas. The brand new one was just a few days old when we all got together Christmas Eve. Such sweetness!

Anyway, since I couldn't go to the showers, I gave them their gifts at Christmas. Here are the things I made:

The first is for my darling cousin Lindsey, who actually lived with us for a year when she was 12 (and now she's a mommy!!!)(and I remember when she was born....I'm getting old!) Anyway, I found out she was doing baby Landon's room in a cute jungle animal theme. So I made this frame for his room with the cute little lion I got from Michael's.



And when I saw this adorable fleece, I couldn't resist getting it to make another now-sew blanket.



And my cousin Davie (Lindsey's brother) and his girlfriend Alison had a baby girl. Unfortunately, I didn't know her name when I was making her gift, so I just made a first Christmas frame.



And then these cute little onesies. The pictures aren't as clear a I wish, but you get the idea.

So Very Loved


Sweet


I used Stampin Up's So Very and Big Flower sets and stamped these with fabric paint. I think they turned out pretty cute.
I also gave her a couple of sweet baby outfits, but I didn't do anything to them, so no pics, lol!

More coming soon!

Here We Go...

OK, I'm falling crawling out from under the pile I was getting burried under! And now I can get some of the projects posted of things I made for Christmas. I'll try to get them all on here over the next few days.

For starters, here is a set I made for my MIL.

On the left is a magnet photo frame I altered to a post it note holder, complete with a pic of the kids. In the middle is a photo book I altered (and filled with pics of the kids) and a beaded pen. And lastly is an altered journal and a bookmark.

Here is what the journal looked like before:


And here's a closeup of the after.

I'm kind of wishing I had cut the scalloped circle out of white so it would have stood out a little more. But it stands out a little more in person than it does in the photo.

Lots more to come, but at least I have a start on it now!

More Hershey Tins

I really love how quick and easy these are - not to mention yummy!
I made a few more, but I didn't take pictures of them all - since they basically look the same.

I really liked the candy cane tin and wish I had picked up more of these. I didn't really have any stamps small enough to use. So I found a candy cane graphic and printed it on the labels. I like the way they came out.


Then I had a very special one to make. I have a dear sweet cousin who ADORES Elvis. I mean, he's been singing Elvis songs for as long as I can remember. (He and I are the same age.) So I made a special Elvis tin for him, using some photos I found online.
I was telling my Mom about this and she informed me that he was diabetic, so I needed a new plan. Unfortunately, I couldn't find any sugar-free candy in the right shape to hold the labels nicely. So I just did the best I could and wrapped the chocolates I found with the labels. It may not look quite as nice as the nuggets, but I'm sure he will like it.


I've been so busy making things that I haven't had much time for blogging. But once Christmas is over, I'll be sharing more of the things I made.

I hope you all have a Very Merry Christmas!!!

My First Nugget Tin!

I've been seeing these for a while now and have been wanting to make one. I saw a cute one on Wanda's blog where she used a gift card tin from Michaels. I had been looking in all the wrong places for one. Then she posted a message and told where to find them. Right up at the registers! They had been right in my face the whole time!

She used an adorable snowman tin, I really wanted one like that, so I searched every register. But to no avail. So I picked up this one and a candy cane one. The picture of the candy cane one is still on my camera. I will post it later.

Using these tins couldn't be easier, because you really don't need to do anything to them! And with using labels to go on the Hershey's Nuggets is so easy - and fun!

So here's my first one.

Then I just made a band using cardstock, to go around it and hold it together. It slides right off.

I see many more of these in my future, as they can be used for any occasion! And these Christmas tins? I plan to check Michaels right after Christmas and hope to find them marked down so I can stock up for next year!

Thanks, Coach

CJ played for Upward Basketball at our church again this year. Tonight is the awards ceremony. (We play our season early so the school can have the gym during actual basketball season.)

I've been trying to come up with something to make as a thank you gift. I made this today. (Did I mention the ceremony is tonight? Nothing like waiting until the last minute!)

I was having trouble because I wanted something fitting for a male coach. And then today, when I was looking at the team picture I realized I needed to make it for the coach and his wife! I have NO IDEA why I had not even considered that before - duh!

Anyway, I still didn't want any thing froo-froo, so this is what I came up with.


I scanned the team photo and reduced it to fit on the post-it-note holder. (Yes, they were a VERY small team - we didn't have many middle-schoolers playing this year.)

For the pen, I was going to just do the one where you slide the paper down into the barrel of the pen - I but I didn't have any of the right pens on hand. And since the gift was now for both of them, I decided the beaded pen would work just fine.

I have a bunch of these little tins left over from Christmas last year and haven't done anything with them. This one will be filled with candy - probably Hersey's Miniatures - which I will be picking up on the way to the ceremony tonight!

And the card - super quick and easy. I really didn't want white lettering, but had limited options since I couldn't find any lighter coordinating cardstock that would match. I guess it turned out ok though.

Anyway, I hope they like it!

Princess Ruthi

I'm trying to decorate my daughter's room on a limited budget. I want it to be cute but without spending a ton of money.

She has a princess theme in her room and I've been trying to come up with some cute things to do in there.

I picked up these cute wood letters as WalMart a while back. They were less than $2 each.

I painted the edges pink and then picked 5 different patterned papers to add to the fronts.

I adhered the papers with mod podge. When the top layer was still wet, I sprinkled on some glitter for a little extra sparkle.

I tied on some ribbons and added a few embellishments. I decided to keep them pretty simple.

I added the ribbon for hanging. I put them on her wall using pushpins and added the bows and the princess piece to the tops of the pins.

I think it turned out pretty cute, and really dresses up her wall.


Here's another view - you can see the sparkle of the glitter a little better in this one.


The only thing I'm not completely happy with is the way the ribbon hangs on the 'I'. It's a more narrow letter, so I don't really know what else to do with it!

By the way - Ruthi LOVES it!!

It's Fall Y'all!

Finally! The weather yesterday and today has been fabulous! Quite nippy in the mornings, and nice and cool all day. I've had our windows open and enjoying the fresh air. It's actually been cool enough that the first part of these two days, I've been wearing a sweatshirt! I love it! It's really making me want to go camping!

Anyway, it's gotten me in the mood to make something with the fall theme. And now that I've "gotten my hands dirty" again, hopefully some creativity will come back to me!

First up, I made these candy corn jars just for fun. I'll end up giving them to someone, just not sure who yet. Super simple, and self explanatory I think. The stamp was from the $1 bin at Michaels, and I just inked part of it. The papers and ribbon were some I've had around for a while, but most likely came from M's as well.


And with some of the same paper, I made these cards. This is the first time I've done 3x3 cards, and I really like this size! They will perfectly accompany the jars above. Again - the stamps I used were in the $1 bin!



That's all for now. I hope to have some time this weekend to work on some more things - if I'm not outside all weekend enjoying the cooler weather!!

Wedding Gifts

I was so upset, I wasn't able to make it to Amber (Chip's cousin)and Matt's wedding. I imagine it was absolutely beautiful, and I wanted to be there so much! But my back has been out for over a week now, and even though the chiropractic adjustments are helping, I'm still in a good bit of pain. Since Chip had to work, I would have had to make the drive myself, and it was over an hour away. I just didn't feel I could do it and then have Ruthi hanging off me and keep a smile on my face. I just wouldn't have been able to enjoy myself and would have probably been in even more pain on the way home. I hate that I had to miss it, but I did have to do what was best for me. (Wow - that sounded kinda selfish - but you know what I mean!)

Anyway, I made their wedding gift, and didn't want to wait till who knows when to give it to them, so the cousin who lives down the road from me took it for me. (Thank you Cathy!!)

With limited funds for a gift, I decided to make something. Sure, I could have spent the little bit that it cost me to buy the frame and supplies (which wasn't much, because I had most of it on hand) and bought something from their registry, but it would have been such a small 'something', that it actually made me feel cheap! Of course there was Chip's argument that people register for things they want/need and probably look forward to getting those things. I know this is true (I loved getting things from my wedding and baby registries), but I also know how much I cherish the things that were hand made or personalized, and things that were unexpected. So, I am hoping that they will like and appreciate what I made. So here it is:

I made a name frame that they can put at their front door (or anywhere they like for that matter.)


I had checked out their registry, and from what I could tell, they had a lot of neutral colored things picked out. That is why I decided to go with the browns/neutrals. It doesn't show up well in the photo, but the little heart above the name has "The" written in it.
I didn't have any stamps large enough to stamp the letters, so I printed the letters onto cardstock from MSWord and cut them out with a craft knife to make a template, in which I chalked in the color. The little square underneath says "est. 2007" using rub-on letters from TLC. The metal charms I had on hand, and everything else came from Michael's.
I wish I had taken the photo without the glass so there wouldn't be a glare, but I didn't, so oh well! This is the first name frame I've made, and I'm pretty pleased with how it came out. I plan to make one for myself now! I really do hope they like it.

**(Edited to add: You can click to see the picture larger. When I did this, I noticed that the little rhinestones in the heart appear to be colored. They are not - that is just the way the light is reflecting off them. And goodness, you can see my hands and my computer screen in the glass - LOL!)

I also made a set of 10 monogrammed note cards. I was going to make them Thank You cards, but decided against that so they can be used for other reasons as well. I used the same papers/colors as I did for the wedding card, pulling from the colors of their wedding. I know that she was going to have lavender, and I'm not sure if this is the shade, but since it doesn't have to match the wedding, I figured it didn't matter that much.



The 'N' and the little flourish in the corner are embossed with silver Super Fine Detail embossing powder by Ranger. (I love this stuff!) And though I didn't take a picture, I dressed the envelopes up just a little by stamping the same flourish on the front in the bottom left corner, and stamped an "N" on the back flap. I made a band from the black cardstock and layered a thinner band in the purple on top of that, and wrapped it around the set. Then I tied it with the same ribbon. And of course, I didn't get a picture of that either! But I hope they like these as well.

I think I've already set my all-time high for making cards this month, as I've already made over 40, and I still need to make a few more! Phew! Maybe in June I'll get to sleep again! (Yes, late at night is when I work best and get most of this stuff done - with no interruptions!)

Magnet Frames and Tissue Boxes

I can finally post the things I made for Mother's Day since both of our Mom's will be receiving them today. (And I don't think my Mom will look here before I see her!) I didn't get to go see my Mom on Mother's Day because I was in too much pain with my back. And Chip had to work, so we knew we wouldn't get to see his either, so we are seeing them both today...finally!

First up, I made these little magnet frames. They are little wooden frames I picked up at Michaels. I painted the edges and then adhered patterned paper. I added a little ribbon and a flower to the one for my MIL, and just some ribbon to my Mom's - I didn't think it needed anything else with that pattern. My mom's kitchen is in an Italian theme, so I thought that paper would be perfect. And I printed the picture in black and white so it wouldn't clash with the paper. I added some magnet tape to the backs of these so they can go on the refrigerator. I actually like these so much that I plan to make one for myself.




I picked up wooden tissue box holders at Michaels too. I covered two sides with patterned paper, and two sides with a solid color. I then attached a picture of the kids on one of the solid sides. I painted the tops to match. Then I sealed the whole thing with a spray sealer. I think these turned out pretty cute and will probably end up making one of these for myself too!

I also made each of them a set of cards, but I will post them later.

Frames

I just love making these frames. I've shown the one I made for Baby Hannah. Thought I'd share a couple more. The first one is one I made for Ruthi. It hangs in the hall, just outside her room.



This is one I made for another friend of mine for her baby boy.


I wish I had taken another picture of this one. The colors seem off - the flash washed it out a bit, and I think the blue paper behind it is throwing it off a bit too.

These are wooden frames purchased at Michael's. I painted the edges with acrylic paints, and adhered the paper to the front with spray adhesive. I sanded the paper around the edges to remove the excess. The letters are also from Michael's. I painted them and then used the a pencil eraser to paint the dots. The little wooden accents came from Michael's as well, and I hand painted them. The train was a bit of a challenge for me, because I'm not an artistic painter. I snapped a picture with my cell phone of the example in the store, and used it as a guide.
I stamped the letters in the name with foam stamps and the same acrylic paints. Added some ribbon, and the little jewels for Ruthi's, and done!
These are so much fun, and very inexpensive to make, as the frames are only $1, I think the letters were $1, and the little wooden flower and train are each 25 cents. They can be hung, but also come with a little dowel that goes in the back so they can sit on a shelf or dresser.

I originally saw the idea for these online somewhere, but can't for the life of me remember where!

Tag Books

Last summer I had the opportunity to meet some of the wonderful ladies from Paper Petal Memories at a little weekend retreat. We each brought a project for everyone to do. Karen had these adorable tag books and we could choose a boy or girl theme. She had everything cut out and ready for us - what an awesome project! I chose the girl one and completed it while we were there. As soon as I got home, I added the pictures. Since there were a few extras, she was kind enough to let me have a boy kit too. So almost a year later, I finally pulled it out and completed it too. I chose to use pictures of CJ from when he was younger to kind of go along with the one I made for Ruthi.

This is the front of the one for Ruthi.


And this the back.


Front of CJ's.


And the back!

Lingerie Shower Goodies

I posted the invitations I made for my girlfriend's lingerie shower earlier this month, and finally had the shower this weekend. Now that it's over, I can post the things I made for her.
I made a 'honeymoon' paint can filled with goodies for them to take with them. I included 3 frappucino bottles - one with homemade bath salts, one with bath gel and the third with peanut M&M's (her favorite), and two candles, all with the same papers/ribbons I used on the can. I also included some other non-altered things in the can.
I loved the rose patterned paper - not sure who makes it. The solid paper is from The Paper Company and is actually Metallic Jewel Bronze and is much prettier in person. It looks quite bland in the picture. All the ribbons are from Michael's.


I also made this candle for them. I found a great tutorial on Splitcoast Stampers and couldn't believe how easy this was! I messed up the first time, but quickly learned how to get it just right so I started on a new candle. I really love the way it turned out. I cut out a place in the top to insert a tealight so they can actually use the candle, and just replace the tealight. That idea came from Splitcoast as well.

I made these cute little favors for the guest. It is a bag of homemade bath salts. I made the topper using MSWord and just stapled them to the bags.






And this is the cake. It was very yummy if I do say so myself. It was chocolate with cream cheese and raspberry filling. The idea for decorating it came from Family Circle magazine - Sept. 1998 issue. I had this put aside knowing one day I wanted to make it. The chocolate wraps were a bit of a pain to make, and didn't turn out completely perfect, but it worked. I don't think I'll ever do it again due to the fits it gave me! But everyone liked it, and it did taste good!