Archive for February, 2012

With arms wide open
Under the sunlight
Welcome to this place
I’ll show you everything
With arms wide open
Now everything has changed
I’ll show you love
I’ll show you everything

With arms wide open
With arms wide open
I’ll show you everything …oh yeah
With arms wide open..wide open
-Creed

No-no, not me! Sooooooo not me! hahahaha Those days are long gone, sadly… But I can still delight in other people’s blessings Babies, to me, are a new beginning, a new little world forming and bringing with it, the promise of a bright, new future.

This little mini-baby book is all boy! My daughter is my one and only, so her baby days were filled with pinks and purples and all those girly colors, so it was fun to venture into that other color scheme to see what I could come up with that was boyish but still sweet.

What I Used:
eCraft/eCraftshop Pro Software
eCraft Die-cuttable paper aka WorldWin CutMates
-Blue Potatoes
-Butternut Squash – Giraffe
-Creamy Butter
-Molasses Cookies – Teddy Bear
-Olive Oil
-Sea Salt – Overalls
-Spring Water – Elephant
-White Flour – Hanger
Jen Allyson ‘Designs’ SD card
Unity Stamp Itty Bitty stamp phrase
K&Company Embellishments (Walmart)
EK Success Stickers (Walmart)
Polka Dot Buttons (Walmart)
Peachy Keen ‘Funshine Shine Face Parts’ stamp set
My Mind’s Eye Vellum (Remember When…Scrapbooking, Valencia, CA)
My Mind’s Eye Antique Dots stack (Hobby Lobby)
Scotch ATG
Scor-Tape
Zig Glue Pen
Chipboard
Various Ribbons
Embroidery thread/large embroidery needle
O-Rings
Foam glue squares
Glue Dots
Unscented Baby Powder or Cornstarch
Baby Clothing Tag (Remember When…Scrapbooking, Valencia, CA)
Scissors, Craft knife, Ruler
Red Chalk – Teddy Bear cheeks
Ink pads – black, green & pearl
Twine
Printer

How I Did It:
The mini book covers were designed/created in eCraftshop Pro using just a rectangle and some circles in varying sizes. I used the template to cut the chipboard and the color cardstock covers and used some basics shapes to cut out the little sections of the book. Because I wanted to use a certain style of font, I printed the writing on the cardstock instead of using the pens in the eCraft (I did use them for the journals though). Hopefully, as more and more crafters start cutting their own embellishments, those with font creating talents will make more fonts geared towards us. I never knew that 98% of the fonts out there were hollow – great for cutting, but not for writing.

This is one of those projects where scraps reigned supreme! Because of how mini this book is, I was able to pull scraps from previous projects to avoid having to yank out a fresh FULL piece of cardstock. Especially since I am seriously coveting this particular cardstock. This stuff cuts like a dream *sigh*

The pages are simply a collection of embellishments, combined with a poem and space to jot down a few memories. This is my first time using Peachy Keen stamps and I must say, I LIKE ‘EM! Super cute, crisp clean lines and no strong odors – super important for me and my other 2 sidekicks; Asthma and Allergies. Those are 2 sidekicks that I’ve been trying to ditch for years, they just don’t seem to get the hint!

The super cute Baby clothing tag is proof that if you see something really cute, BUY IT! You may not have a need for it at that particular time, but one day – you will. I bought that little package (set of 2 tags) about 5 or 6 years ago, it was too cute to pass up. I just placed it in my ‘boy’ bin along with the velum and some other items I picked up along way. So if you were looking for a way to justify – there you have it!

I just love the expression on the teddy bear’s face! He’s quite ready to curl up with his favorite quilt for some much needed sleep. Tomorrow is a brand new day for him to lay claim to and make it his own!

Trucks just aren’t for girls, you know! lol Every now and then you gotta let the boys play with the cool toys or they get grumpy and go fishing or something along those lines.

See those letters up there… Those are stickers. So is the rattle, the onesie, the ‘sleep tight’ phrase. Just cuz its sticky doesn’t mean we have to stick it to something! Just dust the back of the sticker lightly with some unscented baby powder or corn starch and With a Rebel Yell (thank you Billy Idol), your ‘sticker’ is neutralized. Pretty cool, huh!

And no book is complete without the perfect ending… Can you tell that I’m totally in love with this stamp?!?!?! lol Its hard to see it, but I used green ink on the stamp first and did a sort of colored watermark background and then with the pearl ink, I put the message clearly in the center. Obviously my photography skills rank lower than my stamping skills! LOL I know, I know…practice, practice, practice.

What technique are you working on right now?

The Dance-Drill Team squad that my daughter is on sure does! And to get us in the mood…

“Party Rock Anthem”

PARTY ROCK
YEA
Whoa!
LET’S GO!

Party rock is in the house tonight
Everybody just have a good time
And we gonna make you lose your mind
Everybody just have a good time

Party rock is in the house tonight
Everybody just have a good time
And we gonna make you lose your mind

We just wanna see ya

Shake that!
-LMFAO

And we’ll just stop right there with those lyrics! *chuckles* I’m still trying to proclaim this a family blog..

Life used to be all chocolate and roses – that is until word got out, thanks to my daughter, that I’m ‘CraftMom’. Oh yeah…you know how it is! Suddenly the Booster Board Moms are talking in excited whispers and looking at you like you’re some super hero, complete with cape and too tight tights! You notice a dangerous twinkle in their eyes…you turn to run – no where to go! Trapped, they close in on you and say those dreaded words “We hear you’re Crafty!”

And so began my daughter’s 8th grade year…

But wouldn’t this just look super cute for their end of year banquet?!?!?! heeheeheee

What I Used:
eCraft (Pinc, Mischief)
Jen Allyson SD card (Celebrates – Cupcake Wrappers & Banner Flags)
Unity Stamps – Itty Bitty Set (Direction of Your Heart)
WorldWin CutMates Cardstock (Key Lime Pie)
Neon Pink Cardstock
Stazon Inks (Jet Black, Fuchsia Pink, Cactus Green)
Perfect Pearls (Perfect Pearl)
Sizzix Texture Plate (Hearts)
Big Shot Pro (until you get your eBosser hehehe)
Scotch Advanced Tape Glider
Adhesive Squares
Foam Squares
Tissue Paper (Black, Neon Green, Pale Green, Hot Pink, Light Pink)
Ribbon (thin black)
Small Hole Punch or other piercing tool
Paintbrush (along with a little water)
Pipe Cleaners
Plain White Party Cups, Napkins & Plates
Clear Plastic Plate
Scrap cardstock
Cupcakes (YUM!)

How I Did It:
I innocently strolled out of the kitchen and then, with the stealth only a mom could possess, I escaped to my craft room and LOCKED the door! Bwaaahaahahaaaaaaaaaa Its good to be the Queen Then I plopped in front of my Mac, fired up Mischief and POOF! My project was done…Uh huh, yeah. And then I woke up! o_O

Actually though, this project didn’t take much time to produce…its coming up with unique ideas that takes as much time as it did to give birth to my daughter and well, it sorta feels like it to! But once inspiration hits, WATCH OUT! Cuz Momma is on a mission and dinner is your problem!

First on deck was the mini banner – the eCraft being able to draw and cut at the same time really made quick work of those tiny flags. Once the little flags were cut all I had to do was hole-punch them, feed the ribbon through and my little banner was done.

Next were the cupcake wrappers – be sure to measure your pan before you start cutting these so you don’t end up with wrappers that don’t fit. Once they were all cut out, I hauled out my Big Shot (geez that thing is heavy!) and a cute ‘hearts‘ plate to add some texture to them. Thank goodness the eBossers will be shipping soon – all this hand-cranking is making me look like a lopsided Popeye with only ONE big arm! So not the look I was going for… To add a little more dimension to the wrappers, I painted random hearts with a mixture of Perfect Pearls and water. Just add water a little bit at a time until you get the desired amount of shimmer. This is one of those products that I would love to have in every color

Now on to the beverage cups – There’s nothing worse than losing track of where your cup is at a party…and was that really YOUR cup after all? Eww! We won’t have to worry about that at this party, these cups are monogrammed I used eCraftshop Pro to reduce the size of my ‘dancer’, added a rectangle and ‘joined’ them. From there I added the initials and sent the file to Mischief to cut. I used foam squares to adhere the dancers to the circles that I stamped with the compass stamp from my Itty Bitty set and then used my Scotch ATG to adhere everything to the cups.

The napkins are stamped with the same compass and then I alternated between pink and green ink for the phrase ‘Go in the Direction of your Heart’. The great thing about Stazon inks—it STAYS on! lol Water won’t make the colors run and make a mess of everything and it also helps that they’re non-toxic.

The main ‘dancer’ in the hurricane glass is just your basic cut… BUT the elements on the plate – now those are a whole other story! The dancer and the phrase layers are tissue paper. Yup, just tissue paper – you know, the stuff you use in gift bags. Add a clear plate on top and you’ve got form and a fashionable plate!

How cool is that? I cut tissue paper with my eCraft *grins* I even used Mischief to cut the rectangles of tissue paper for the flowers under the cake stand.

If you want to know how I was able to cut tissue with my eCraft – leave me a comment and let me know

Until then… What’s your preference – Cake or Frosting?

CAKE!!!!!!!!!