Stocking Gift Card Holder

Happy Thursday!  Yes, I'm still in pain but I"m about 70% better than yesterday.  MAN I hate a sore back - it's SO frustrating!!  It's not like you feel sick or lousy per se .. you just can't DO anything!!  It broke my heart but I had to cancel my party last night.  In 6 years I have never had to do that and it REALLY upset me.  The hostess was very kind and sympathetic ... and we will still do the prarty but I felt so horrible cancelling.  I knew it was the right thing to do but ...

I took a muscle relaxant and an anti-inplamatory pill and then I went to bed ... for 14 hours.  Yes, 14!  Those pills really knock me out!  I'm moving around a bit today (probably more than I should) ..., and I shouldn't be on the computer but I can't stand doing nothing!  I know it's a common disease most of us moms have!

Right - so get on with it and get off the computer ...

Before I cancelled the party yesterday I managed to finish planning and cutting for all the projects.  This is the gift card holder I came up with.  Love it!

Here is the inside:

I used the Woodlodge DSP from the holiday mini catalogue and the new stocking punch.  The glittery top, toe & heel are the silver glimmer paper - (LOVE IT!!!) - the jingle bell and baker's twine are attached with a mini glue dot.  The stocking is attached using 2 dimensionals at the bottom of the green card stock and the top is loose so that the top piece / sentiment just tucks under it to keep it closed.  As you can see - the slot for the gift card is punched out (before the DSP is attached to the front) using the Word Window punch (if you don't own this punch you need to buy it - it's a MUST have item!)

Right - I can feel my back tightening up so I better run or I'll have to make another emergency chiro appointment (and nobody should have to see me crying in pain 2 days in a row!) 

Have a fun day - but don't overdo it ;)


Tam

Ouch

Yes, the pizza invitations won.  I need to make an emergency visit to the chiropractor this morning .... if I want to WALK today, that is.  I don't have TIME (given that I still have to design 1 project for tonights party) but I suppose if I can't walk then I can't pack the vehicle and then I can't do the party ... so I guess I gotta go!  @$^!^!^!$^@#@.  Stupid back.

Ta Da!

Happy Tuesday ... well, it is for those of you who can walk properly I'm sure it is.  Myself?  I'm hobbling around like I'm 110 years old.  All for good reason, though.  Crafting.  That ALWAYS makes it worth while :)

As promised, I spent all day ... and I'm talking ALL DAY making Alicia's birthday invitations.  I figure in total it took 8 hours.  Needless to say, I can barely walk today.  BUT LOOK HOW DARN CUTE THEY TURNED OUT??!!  Aren't these wirth 24 hours of agony?!?!  (Ask me that again around hour 20 and see what I say!)

Oh!  Look - I took a picture of the "not-as-time-consuming-as-the-first-one-I-made".  Oops - my first card / template had about another 20 minutes worth of work on it.  I had sponges, cut, crumpled and glued on about 8 little strips of paper to look like shredded cheese ... oh hang on ... I'll go take a picture of that one ... ya gotta see it ... hang on ... be right back ...

Hee hee.  Too cute :)  It is certainly not an original idea - I had lots of samples to copy off the internet.  It was more time consuming than I thought it would be (don't I say that every time I make invitations?!)  Regardless, they were fun to make.  I sued Crumb Cake, Very Vanilla and Cajun Craze for the crust, cheese, sause and pepperoni.  I use Always Artichoke for the green peppers and black for the olives.  There was a LOT of sponging, measuring, punching and cutting done ... but it's worth it for my little girl.  6 years old next Wednesday.  Sigh.

Right - I'm off to do the dishes and stretch my back ... I have a perty tomorrow night I have to plan, cut and pack for .. and then another one Saturday so lots of crafting in my future.  If you don't hear from me for a week or two ... I'm in traction!

Have a fun day - enjoy this PERFECT day :)

Tam

Crayon Resist

Happy Monday! 

Have I mentioned lately how much I LOVE Mondays?  Today has been extra great - I did my massive clean on Friday (before Craig got home) so I didn't have to do my Monday clean today.  I did my usual ... making the beds ... tidying the kitchen .... pilates ... shower / makeup ... and then I got to hit the craft room!  Today is the day I HAVE to finish Alicia's birthday invitations.  I did the template - now I'm just mass producing them.  Tune in tomorrow(ish) to see that little beauty!

In the meantime, here is a card I put together for our Stamp n' Share meeting last Wednesday:

Isn;t it cute?!  The thing I like best about it is that the spider swings *lol* ... doesn't take much to amuse me, does it?  I did a crayon resist technique on this.  You use any of your embossing folders - obviously I use the Spider Web folder for this one.  You place your Whisper White or Very Vanilla card stock on the raised side of the folder.  You then take a white crayon and rub it across the paper, pressing firmly.  Remember when we were kids and we use to put a coin under a piece of paper and then rub a pencil over top of it to make the image of the coin appear?  Same principle here.  You rub firmly so the wax of the crayon hits all the bumps from the folder.  You then take the paper off the folder and use your brayer to ink the entire piece of paper.  I used Basic Gray here.  Once the paper is the color you want you take a kleenex, paper towel, cloth or dry baby wipe and burnish the paper (ie rub it) and the spider web patterns will really pop.  For this card I use the Lucky Limeade card stock and the Perfectly Penned Sentiment.  The spider is from Batty for you.  I made little black dots (flies) from the eyes of the owl punch.  I didn't have a think black ribbon for his silk so I grabbed some embroidery thread and taped that on with sticky strip.  The spider is just taped to the thread so he swings when you move the card.  Aren't I clever?  Hee hee - love this little guy.  Yes, you guessed it - we'll be making this card using this technique at our next class ... which is Friday, October 14th.

I'm off to finish Alicia's invitations now.  Shouldn't take more than about 4 hours :)

Have a fun day!


Tam

Woo Hoo!

Almost all is right in my world again.  Craig is home!  Now, if my parents would kindly just cut their holiday down East short and come back to me everything will be "normal" again!  I don't like when my entire support system leaves me!  I tell ya, though, it sure makes me appreciate them all that much more - especially my husband.  I honestly don't know how single and/or single WORKING moms do it.  I take my hat off to each and every one of them.  It must be sooooo tough to do EVERY day.  I"m so appreciative of all he does to help around here.  Things just run so much smoother when there is help.  I know it was only 7 days but just by adding in that cleaning the litter box, taking out the garbage, doing the bed time routine EVERY night, the homework, the lessons and on an on and it REALLY starts to wear you out!  So thank you to my husband for all he does - and single moms ... well, you are my heroes!

Now - since I knew Craig would be back today and my next birthday party was pushed back 2 weeks I treated myself out to a morning of stamping.  It's so nice to be able to GO to these functions, hang with friends, eat food that is DEFINATELY not on my healthy eating plan and best of all, have someone ELSE do all the planning, purchasing, cutting, packaging, setting up and taking down!  Thanks Tamye for a fun morning out - I needed the break!  I'll post picks another day - for today I'll show you a few more of the swaps from last weekends Regionals:

This one is from Gail Lowe.  It is so over-the-top-amazing in SO many ways I can't believe she made 50 of them to GIVE AWAY!  The time and expense on this card is incredible.  It's simply beautiful :)



She used the doily background stamp in gold embossding (that alone costs a lot!)  She also embossed the envelope (larger than standard) AND the inside sheet:

The black card stock is layered on the GOLD cardstock ($$) - she made the flower using our new ScorePal (LOVE that tool!!!) and then used an antique brad in the centre (again ... $$$).  THEN she used Shmooch Smritz on it.  Just stunning.  Wow - I hang my head in shame when I compare this to my swap!

What's that you say?  What was my swap?  Well I"m glad you asked :)  I was rather proud of this one (until I saw Gail's!!)

Isn't it CUTE??!!  I think this one has to make it into the Stamp-a-stacl :)  IT just makes me happy!  I made the candy canes using the new Big Shot die in the mini catalogue (Stocking Accents) - I colored them with Real Red, glittered the white parts then popped them up with dimensionals.  The sentiments is from Word Play.  The green is Garden Green.  Cute, yes?

More you say? OK. Here's a great one from Melanie Chartier:

The sentiments is from the Hostess Set in the mini - Warmest of Wishes (go figure!)  The stockings are made with the stocking set and coordinating punch (LOVE this punch!!).  The rest is pretty straight forward ...

Here is one of the Make and Takes we made:

Here is the second one we made:

 Both use the "You are Loved" set again from the mini.  It's more than just a Valentine set, as you can see.

Well - that's it for today.  Gunna go see what the girls are up to.  Have a fun day :)


Tam



Is it over yet?

Ugh.

Is it Friday, 7:00 pm yet?  I am officially counting down the minutes until my husband comes home from his fishing trip.  a) the children are reacting very badly to him being gone - they are over emotional and acting up like CRAZY b) the floor hasn't been swept since he left (he sweeps it EVERY night after dinner) c) the carpets haven't been vaccumed since he left (he vacuums every Wed & Sun) and I'm starved for adult interaction!!!  I honestly do NOT know how single parents do it ... and WORKING, single parents ... well, they deserve a million dollars just for not going postal!

Right ... Craig just phoned ... I feel a little better now knowing that the calvalry is coming - I just feel so overwhelmed with everything!  He's such a GREAT husband - he really does at LEAST half the work around here ... the floors, the garbage, the yard ... it was an effort for me to go and pick all the ripe tomatoes today ... and clean the cats litter box!

Phew - just a few more hours.  On the bright side, I'm off in 10 minutes to take Alicia to her first Sparks meeting.  Awwww - I think I'm more excited than she is!  I'm likely dating myself here but when I was her age it wasn't called Sparks, I was a Twinkie :)  hee hee - isn't that cute?  Of course next was Brownies - I never did get into Girl Guides.  Anyway .... no time for babbling today -

I thought I would post a few of the swaps I got from Regionals on Saturday.  There are some FABULOUS cards!!

This my absolute FAVORITE - by Tamera Gadd - how freakin' adorable is this??!!  I get this new Big Shot die tomorrow - I can't WAIT to play with it!!!

Oh!  Look at the time - gotta fly - I'll post more later ...


Tam

BFF

Well HAPPY SUNDAY!!!!  (well, what's left of it anyway!)  By all accounts I should have ben horizontal hours ago but of course I started thinking about stamping and .... well ... here I still am :)

What a FABULOUS weekend of stamping I had.  I'm only just starting to come down off my high (and no, it's not from sniffing the Staz-On again!)  It was just SO MUCH FUN!!

Friday I spent all day prepping for a birthday stamping party I was doing for a 13 year old and 9 of her friends.  Naturally I left everything to the last minute (I've decided I cut down on stress if I only stress for 1 or 2 days rather than trying to get it done weeks ahead ... then I just THINK about it for weeks ahead ... and feel guilty for not DOING anything weeks ahead.  By procrastinating I save myself all kinds of stress!  Makes sense, eh?  Eat the biggest frog first, my a** Tamye ;)   ) 

But (and my faithful Blog followers know what I'm going to "say" next ....) I digress ....

SO!  Although my fabulous husband had Friday off, and my some-times-very-lovely children were at school all day I had to hide in my craft cave prepping for the party projects (rather than going for a day-time date with Craig ... or having a little afternoon delight, if ya know what I mean, wink, wink, nudge, nudge!)  Digressing again ....

Naturally, it was around 11:00 am that I realized I didn't have enought of the supplies I needed to make one of the projects.  Have no fear!  Lori & Trish to the rescue!  (HOW is it that I have a craft room HEAVING with supplies but everytime I need something for a class or party I'm short??!!  THAT will teach me for actually USING my "stuff" rather than hoarding it like I want to!  I finished prepping my projects and my card swaps for the Edmonton Regionals that was going to have me busy all day and still had a little time to relax ... and pick out what I was going to wear ... which of course I completely changed my mind about at 3:30 in the morning when I couldn't sleep because I was too flippin' excited about Regionals!!  (At the risk of digressing AGAIN, Craig didn't sleep well either as he was leaving to go fishing in BC Saturday morning and he too was a little giddy with excitement ... aren't we a pair?!)  Right - focus Tamara - focus .... back to the story ...

Saturday was just SO MUCH FUN!!   I was ready and out the door by 7:20 am (on a SATURDAY!!) and got to the Convention Centre in lots of time to register .. and stand in line.  It's one of the few places we stampers don't MIND stanind in line.  We get to (and DO) chat with anyone and everyone within ear shot.  She swap cards, oohh and aahh over them, discuss new products, techniques and on and on and on.  I MUST say a big thank you to Joan and Amy for putting up with my more-than-usual non-stop yacking throughout the day.  I can't help it!  When I get excited I talk even more than usual!!  Thanks for hanging in there girls (and not whacking me upside the head with your new Card Keepers *lol*!

The festivities lasted from 9:00 am until almost 5:00 pm.  Not gunna lie - I was BAGGED by the end of it - but in a great way :)  We saw some great demonstrations for fun project ideas from four talented stampers, got some good business tips from the Home Office staff, made some nice projects, got free products and had a LOT of fun. 

I then had the joy of driving across the city, hitting about 90 different construction zones along the way (grrrrrrr) to pick up the girls from Mom's.  Naturally she cooked us dinner (as she does ... despite the fact that her and Dad were leaving for Ottawa today and she still had a million things to do ... poor woman looked like she was gunna drop in her tracks!)  By the time I got home at 7:30 I was counting down the minutes until bed time.  By 9:30 I was horizontal and very happy ... as visions of stamping project danced in my head ...

Today was fun but equally as exhausting.  I had the birthday party at 11:00 am so had to get up and moving much earlier than I wanted to.  What a great time though.  These were some really nice, polite, fun young ladies who did an AMAZING job on their projects ... which I am finally going to show you.  When I made this card I just sat and stared at it ... lovingly ... like a mother looks at her children when they are sleeping ... all full of pride and gooshiness (yes, that's a word ... well maybe not but it should be ...)  Drum roll, please ....

Don't you just LOVE it??!!???!!  Sigh.  I love it.  Let's look at it again:

Sigh.  Yes ... it's just as lovely the second time around.  OK.  Details.  Well, I can't actually take full credit for this card.  I started of copying it from Heather Summers, consistently in the Top 10 Canadian Demonstrators for many years now - in fact I believe she was number 1 this year.  I stalk her daily on her blog at http://www.stampwithheather.typepad.com/This was her card:

I just loved it and knew the 13 year olds would too.  Of course as I started making it I realized I DON'T own the Big Shot die Heather used.  Gasp!  An item I don't own?!  Shirley not!  And yet it was true!  So I had to tweak it a little.  Heather used Crumb Cake, Elegant Eggplant and Whisteria Wonder ... I used white instead of the Crumb Cake and just LOVE the clean, crisp look to it.  I was right - the girls loved it too.  I used the 2 3/8" Scallop Circle punch with the 1 3/"4 Circle punch and the Scalloped Edge punch.  I used whisper white Taffeta ribbon and a pearl.  Sigh.  Let's look at it one more time just to make sure we drink it all in:

Collective Sigh.

OK - I could post the other projects ... but I'm now getting typers cramp and need to go to bed.  I will post the other projects, as well as my favorite swap card from Saturday in the days to come. 

That's me DONE *lol*  thanks for reading to the end XOXOX

Tam

Glitter Ball Tutorial

Happy Monday!  (well, if you aren't my youngest daughter it's a happy Monday!  I left her in a puddle of tears and shrieking this morning as her teacher pried her off me and hearded her into class.  Sigh.  It DOES get easier, doesn't it?!)

On a happier note ...
Every year around this time I have requests for instructions on how to make my contest winning "Glitter Balls". Well, you asked for it, you got it!

** Before starting, ensure that the inside of your ornament is free of dust particles. Any dust inside the ornament will keep the ink from properly coating it.

1. Add 25 drops of reinker to your ornament. If you use the large, 83 mm (3.26 inch) ornament you add 45 drops of reinker. I find that the Rich Regal reinkers are thicker than the Soft Subtle reinkers so a few more drops of the darker colors may be required. The color combinations you can make by simply changing the color of your reinker are amazing! You get a completely different look if you use, for example, the Handsome Hunter reinker (retired) with the Celery Fine Cosmo Glitter than you do if you use the Certainly Celery reinker with the Celery Fine Cosmo Glitter.

2. SLOWLY and evenly roll / twirl the ornament so that the ink coats the inside of the ornament. As the ink gets closer to the top of the ornment you want to make sure you are either over a sink, a bowl or paper towel in the event that the ink drips out. It is not necessary to ink the very top of the ornament as that is covered by the “lid” of the ornament and won’t be seen.

3. Using a small funnel pour in a generous amount of glitter (I pour in all I have!)

4. Place your finger over the opening of the ornaments and shake until the glitter coats the entire inside of the ornament. Once coated, you pour out any excess glitter back into your container and it’s ready to use for your next ornament.

5. Apply your rub on. I find snowflake images the easiest (and most forgiving) image to use. Larger images and/or phrases can be difficult to apply to the round surface. It CAN be done but it takes a lot of time and effort to get the image/phrase straight and it often puckers.

6. Attach a punched label with elastic cord and package for giving!

Once you make one of these ornaments you won’t be able to stop – they really are addictive! Have fun!!

Have a fun day :)


Tam

Christmas Fever!

Happy Sunday!!!!  I must admit, Sunday is my favorite day of the week!  Add in some cool, rainy weather and you have my idea of the perfect day :)  Fall Sundays just make me happy ... growing up Sunday was family day - we weren't always together during the day but it was an unwritten law that we were all home for dinner on Sunday.  Mom always went that extra mile ... some sort of roast, mashed potatoes, gravy and dessert.  Mmmmm.  When I was in University I would hit the library in the morning but I'd always be home by 2:00 pm so I could "watch" football with my Dad.  Actually, he watched - I would knit or crochet.  We would just be "together".  When I was older and living on my own I always found my way to St. Albert for dinner.  I usually made a day of it.  Again, I'd bring my knitting or just watch a Sunday afternoon movie and just hang out.  I LOVE this time of year AND I love Sundays.  I'm betting my girls will have the same love for them both when they are older.

So!  Rebecca still has a drippy cold so we opted to skip yoga this morning.  Worked for me ... I got head to my craft room.  Woo Hoo!  I got to make my favorite kind of cards - CHRISTMAS CARDS!!!  I cracked off 3 in about an hour.  I wanted to come up with my Stamp-a-stack cards so I can order what I need this week. 

 You've seen this one before ... check out my older post for details.

This one you've seen before but I changed the color. This time I used Island Indigo - pretty! The stamp is Something for Christmas. I used the new Snowflake embossing folder and a wooden oval frame from the craft store to get the oval in the middle. Again you can't see the shimmer on it but I used the Vanilla Shimmer Smooch Spritz - very pretty :) So quick and clean!

This one is about as simple as they come! I used Elegant Eggplant with the Merry & Type stamp set (for the ornaments) and the Word Play stamp set for the sentiment. I added Dazzling Diamonds for a little sparkle

This next one took a little tweaking before I was happy with it but I"m pretty sure I love it :) I used Not Quite Navy and Baja Breeze for the colors (thank you Color Coach ... a MUST have in your stamping upplies!!!) I embossed 2/3 of the front of the card with the Perfect Polka Dot emboss folder, used the Delightful Dozen stamp set for the sentiment (another MUST have!!!). I used Baja Breeze Seam Binding (the seam binding is the BEST ribbon for tying bows!!!) and the Snowflake Punch for the snowflake. I added the new min silver brads (from the mini catalogue) for the centre of the snowflake and the dot on the exclamation mark. Yep - love this one :)

This last one is another one of my favorites. I have a jazzier version but for a Stamp-a-stack you have to keep it quick and simple or they simply take too long! I used Very Vanilla and Early Espresso for everything. The stamp sets are Bells & Boughs (this set has taken me a year to figure out what to DO with it in order to come up with a card I liked!!) and the sentiment is from Four the Holidays (another MUST!) I used a finger dauber to distress the edges and card front a bit and used the Vanilla Seam Binding.  Three little pearls jazz it up just a bit and finish it off. I still might play with this one a bit ... maybe some tearing and/or crumpling to distress it a little more .. we'll see. I like it the way it is so I should probably leave well enough alone!

So there you have it!  See?  If you wait long enough I DO post ... and then I post a whole swack in one day!  I like to keep you guessing :) .... actually it's just the way I roll ... I'm consistently inconsistent :)  Don't you just love that about me?

Well - hope you have a fun Sunday - I'm off for my Sunday afternoon nap now ... another FABULOUS Sunday tradition around here :)


Tam

Spooky Treats

Hello!  Had you given up hope of seeing a new post anytime soon?  MAN things have managed to speed up FAST around here lately!!  Back-to-school was a little rougher than usual this year with Rebecca and her anxiety but I am beyond THRILLED to say that one week in she is 99% "better".  Yesterday you would never have guessed that a mere 7 days ago she was SO freaked out and anxious about school that even I thought she was going to throw up.  She was an absolute nervous wreck!  Yesterday was just fine.  I don't know exactly what happened to change things around (I know for SURE it wasn't due to the therapist we saw last week!!!).  I suspect it was a combination of the fantastic book I found called "What to do when you worry too much", the fact that a very nice friend she made in Grade 1 came back from Cuba and is in her class or moving her desk beside the teacher's - whatever it was I don't care - I don't dread the morning any more and she is eating breakfast again.  We still have a little work to do on her minimal-lunch eating but I'm fine with where she is right now.  It should only get better :)

Sooo .... that whole nightmare kept me busy (and underslept!).  I have also been spending time delivering orders, cleaning the mess the summer seems to have left behind and looking (and applying) for jobs.  Add to that driving the kids to and from school and wham!  1 1/2 weeks gone!  I haven't had too much time to stamp but I had to make time to prep my monthly Technique Class that was last night.  I HAD SO MUCH FUN!!  Thanks Ladies - and welcome to all my new 10-for-10 Club members - it's going to be a fun 10 months!!!

Usually when my class is over I spend an hour or so making the extra cards / treats that I prepped but last night I was dropping in my tracks.  I had been awake since about 3:00 am Friday morning and went hard all day (of course I was still designing my last project at 4:30 pm .. and the class was due to start at 7:00!)  Craig went out for the evening so the girls were up WAY too late.  Alicia lost her 2nd tooth and at 10:30 pm ... as I was putting them to bed ... Rebecca wanted to write the Tooth Fairy a quick note.  I allowed it ... then I saw what she wrote:  "Dear Tooth Fairy:  What do you do with all the teeth?  Please write back - Rebecca and Alicia".  Great.  11:15 pm and I'm drafing a letter from the Fairy herself ... and digging through every purse and pocket I can think of to scrape together $2.00 (I didn't think she would appreciate 7-11 Big Bucks!)  Needless to say .. by 11:30 I pretty much fell into bed ... damn near smothering the cat!

But I digress ... (you've come to expect that, right?  And that's why you keep coming back, right?  Reading my blog makes you feel better about your own little challenges, right? ... I'm digressing again, aren't I?)

OK, ok - here is the project I came up with at 4:30 yesterday for my class:

Once again I wrapped the Costco Swiss Delice chocolate with the It's a Wrap Holidays stamp (stamped on Avery 1" x 3" labels).  I put them in the Small Cello bags and made a topper from 3 1/2" x 3 1/2" whisper white c.s.  I used the corner rounder and then stamped the sentiments from the Wicked Cool set.  I punched out the boots with the 1 3/4" Circle and the Pumpkin Pie scallop using the 2 3/8" Scallop Circle punch.  I used snail to attach the topper.

While I like the little package the topper didn't blow my hair back so I tweaked it a little this morning (rather than after my class).  I like these much better:

Everything is the same except the sentiment (still from Wicked Cool) and the Spider (from Batty for You).  I punched the spider with the 1 1/4" circle, the pumpkin pie with the 1 3/8" Circle and then the 1 3/4" Scallop circle in black.  Much better.  These were really quick and easy.  I highly recommend them if you need to make 30 ... or 60 ... for all the kids at school.

That's it for tonight - I'm heading to bed!!!  Have a fun Sunday .... I'm trying yoga class with Rebecca ... wish me luck ... and flexibility! :)


Tam

It's Here, It's Here, It's Here!!!

Check it OUT!!!  The new Holiday Mini Catalogue is here and in effect NOW.  The link to browse through it is on the RHS .. turn your eyes to the right ever so slightly ... see it? ... ooooo ... pretty .... click on it ....

A very LARGE portion of all the items in this little beauty will be on Show and Tell at my Technique Class on Friday, September 9th.  Hope you can come!!

Happy Shopping!!!