All about wreaths...

Did you like Mondays card with the autumn wreath? Well, I thought I'd show y'all a few more cards that I've made using that same little Winter Wreath that I used on Monday's card, it's sooo easy to change up into whatever season / holiday you want...

Stamps:

solid rose accents

solid leaf sprig

Halloween Stamp set

Stamps:

Garden Accents stamp set

Thankful For You sentiment

Classic Leaf petit four set

Autumn Stamp set

Stamps:

Classic Christmas petit for set

Christmas Greeting petit four stamp set

I just love how truly versatile this Winter Wreath is and it's a perfect size to coordinate with all of the darling Petit Four sets. Well that's it for me today, I'll see ya on Friday!!

The Project Corner - Kraft Gift Boxes

Hello and HAPPY FRIDAY everyone :) Today I have a fun little project to share with you. Last month a sweet friend of mine had a birthday and as part of her gift I wanted to include some buttons and other little doo-dads but wanted to dress them up a little. Who wants ugly packaging....right?? I had already made a little gift bag (can bee seen here) and little baubles would just fall out so I needed something else. I had decided to use a little cellophane bag with a  pretty ribbon treatment and when I went to get a bag from my stash, I saw this....

 



Yup, we've all seen these cheap (usually just a buck) kraft boxes in various shapes and sizes in the big box crafty stores and many of us have even purchased a few with "good intentions". There it was, staring me in the face and I had a light bulb moment! It's PERFECT to hold little bits & baubles!! Now the hard part...what the heck to do to jazz it up!!

 

 

Well, I knew her crafty space was made up of  soft girly colors so pulled out some stamps, patterned papers, cardstock, ribbon and assorted doo-dads that would match then got busy!!

 

•  I started off with a piece of celery cardstock cut to size to fit around the base of the box and stamped the DeNami Gingham background on it, then edge punched it. I attached it using my ATG
• Next I marked where the bottom edge of the lid came to and using Chrystal Lacquer, I attached the gathered tulle skirt. (was purchased this way in the ribbon dept at Hobby Lobby)
• Using another edge punch, I punched out a little piece of pink cardstock for a trim accent (zig-zag) and adhered it with Chrystal Lacquer
• to finish off the base I made a little green bow. Using a brad, I attached the bow through the front of the box

 

 

 

Now it's time to work on the lid....

• I cut a piece of celery cardstock just a bit smaller than the lid stamped it using the gingham background again then punched the corners and adhered it
• I had some patterned paper with little rulers all over it so I cut them out and glued them around the lid. I made sure to use several different ones for a more eclectic look. To cover the seams and for a little fun element, I attached a few pretty buttons

I had a hard time deciding what to do to finish the lid, After much thought and sleeping on it, I decided to go with this....

• using the same gathered tulle I used on the bottom of the box, I made a little rosette. I secured the top and underside of the rosette with a punched scalloped circle
• I stamped and fussy cut some solid leaf vines and solid leaf sprigs. After a little fussing with where I wanted them, attached them to the underside of the rosette
• next I made a little sentiment flag. I cut one from the celery and a little smaller one from white cardstocks. I stamped the white flag using the DeNami polka dot background then stamped the Hugs & Kisses sentiment. After deciding where I wanted it, I adhered it to the backside of the rosette too
• using Chrystal lacquer, I attached the whole thing to the top of the box
• to finish it off I added one more button with a little twine bow

 

 Well there you have it...a pretty box made for next to nothing! $.99 for the box, $0 for scraps of cardstock, $.35 for patterned paper, $0 for ribbon scrap, $0 for buttons in stash and $2.00 for gathered tulle. That's less than $3.50!! AND it's perfect to hold little bits and bobs.  Now I need to make one for myself!!
 
I'll see you right back here on Monday :) Have a great weekend!!!

Tips & Tricks - inspiration

Today I want to talk about inspiration. We all get inspired differently, weather it be from crafting with a friend, browsing Pinterest or blogs. There is inspiration all around us everyday. It can be a pattern or a pretty color palette, all we have to do is be open to it.

If you've followed me for long, you know that one of the things I'm known for is making my own patterned paper. I LOVE pretty patterned papers and even own a ton that I have stashed away, but it's sooo easy to just pull out a few stamps and make my own.

 

I was browsing through a local material store when I came upon something that stopped me in my tracks and had me thinking "I can do that on a card!!" The material was grey with a solid black leaf/vine type pattern all over it then there were pretty white flowers overlaying the leaf pattern.

 

I was quick to pull out my cell phone and take a picture ;)

The material has the flowers filling up the whole area, but I decided I didn't want my pattern that busy. Also, I decided to not only do black leaves, but a dark grey also for even more contrast. And besides, can you use the solid leaf vine without using the solid leaf sprig along with it?? ;) hehehe.

 

 

I have to admit that I didn't quite "nail it", but that's only because I totally hate heat embossing. :(  Had I stamped the flower in Versa-Mark and heat embossed with a white powder I would have gotten the effect I was originally going for, but ya know, it's still ok. When I first stamped the flowers they were a bright white and really popped, however, as they dried they lightened and now have even turned a grayish color. Ohh well, it still works and I'm still happy with the result and that's all that counts, right?

Stamps:

1. elegant square frame
2. love flourish
3. solid leaf vine
4. solid leaf sprig
5. polka dot butterfly

 

The next thing I have to show you is an odd place to get inspiration, but as I was saying before, it truly IS all around us in our everyday lives.

My hair brush...

 

 Here's the card I was inspired to make...



This little card turned out exactly as I had envisioned it. I just love all the layers of the flowers. 4 stamps to make one flower might seem a little excessive, but the end result was well worth it ;)

 

Stamps:

1. whimsical garden cling set
2. garden accents set
3. elegant floral set
4. whimsical oval frame
5. teeny swiss dot

You just never know where you might find some inspiration so look around and don't be afraid to take a picture for reference! I even have a little "notes" app on my phone where I jot down ideas while I'm on the go. My latest note is a pretty color palette I saw while shopping at Target that I want to try....you just never know!

 

 

 

Have you made a birthday card lately?? Then why not enter it in the random drawing I'm having right here on the Addict blog to celebrate both my and the blogs birthdays??

 

 

That's all for me today, Thanks for stopping by!!!

 

 

 

Take it on the chin and keep going...never give up on YOU!

*Blogger Note: I wrote and scheduled this post before Friday's announcement by DeNami. I'd like to congratulate Pattie on  her new position as a DeNami Design Team member and am looking forward to seeing her beautiful creations!!!


Hello everyone!! Today's subject is one of mixed emotions for me. I'm still flying high over being chosen the June sketch challenge winner over at Paper Sweeties, but at the same time am a little bummed about receiving yet another "thanks but no thanks" letter for something else.We'll get to that letter in just a minute.

It's no secret that I love entering card challenges online whenever I get a chance and that I have branched out into submitting to magazines. Most of the time when it comes to challenges and being published I feel like I'm on the outside looking in. It's almost like being in High School again and I'm the nerdy little girl in the corner reading a Stephan King novel while all the "kool kids" are hanging out in the smoking area laughing and having a great time talking about last weekends party. I see the same names winning/published over and over again...it's almost like a private club and no one else is allowed in. I'm going to let you in on a little secret, I. Don't. Care.! Okay, I do, but just a little.  I may not be one of the Kool Kids and don't have the secret password to gain entrance to the "club", but I refuse to let that hold me back! That being said, even when you know going in that you don't stand a chance you'll be chosen you still feel deflated, that's only natural. Do I get a little down...yes. Do I shed a tear or two sometimes...yes. A sweet friend mentioned to me the other day..."you know how us girls are". Sometimes I'm all girl and my feelings get the best of me, I cry, pout and even get angry, then I work through my feelings to get over it. But nothing is going to stop me from applying to design teams or submitting to challenges and magazines. My son has a tattoo that reads "To move on is to grow". I LOVE that saying. I will move on, grow and keep trying! Yes, my feelings get hurt and deflated, but I pick myself up and keep trying! Someday this nerdy girl will break through the barrier and kool kids will notice me and ask me to join in the fun!!

For about a year and a half now I've been wanting to be on a design team. There are a small handful of blogs that I have my eye on. I'm sure that ya'll can easily figure out that one of them is DeNami. I'd give my left arm and lets be real here...I'd give a leg too, lol, to be on the DeNami team. However, DeNami doesn't do an open call for their design team members, it's just by special invitation...sigh. Luckily the others I have my eye on do an open call!

 I know my work is nothing special when compared to the gals that enter the challenge that runs on the particular blog I'm referring to, however, after talking with the blogs owner and her encouraging me, I decided to heed my own advice that sometimes in life you just have to take chances and frankly, it would be good to have one application under my belt. So, last month I applied for my very first design team position. My resume is pretty lacking and I have nothing big to bring to the table. With that being said, I like to think of myself as being friendly, out going, willing to learn and very dependable. Someday those attributes will out weigh my lack of challenge wins and overall popularity, until then, I'll take it on the chin and just keep plugging along. I can't let a rejection stop me from doing something that brings such joy to my life. I LOVE creating cards and being able to share them with you. I also LOVE getting to meet such wonderful people out here in bloggy land...you gals are amazing, an inspiration and just plain ole' rock!!

Many of you know Paulina from DeNami Design runs a personal blog called Pretty Pink Posh and hosts the fun 10 Minute Craft Dash. The entries for that challenge always blow me away...there are some amazingly talented people out there and they even come from all over the world!! She had a Design Team call and as part of the application we were to tell a little about ourselves and submit 4 pieces of work that we've created in under 10 minutes. I knew back on June 11th that I wasn't picked (received my thanks but no thanks e-mail) but didn't want to talk about it until after her new DT was announced. Not sure that it matters, but it felt wrong to talk about it until then.

My 10 Minute Craft Dash Design Team card entries:

Time: (can't remember the time but it was 8-something!)
Colors: blue, green & kraft



Time: 9min 40 sec
Colors: teal, orange, golden yellow



Time: 9min 03sec
Colors: green, orange, golden yellow, teal

Time: 9min 59sec (that was a close call!)
Colors: charcoal, light grey, pink

Well there you have it, my step outside of the box. But like I said, I WILL NOT give up. When I don't win a challenge or when I receive the "no thanks" e-mail from a magazine, I may have a moment of sadness, I am only human after all, but will chalk it up to a learning experience and keep going! Don't give up on your dreams and keep doing what makes YOU happy!! Winning or losing doesn't define you, it's how you react to that win or loss that does. Take the experience and learn from it and don't be scared to put yourself out there again.

HUGS to all of us nerdy girls!

Patterned Paper Blog Hop - June 2013

Are you ready for a fun blog hop full of wonderful inspiration?? I must admit that this months hop kinda snuck up on me and I was scrambling to figure out what projects I wanted to make this past week!

When: The blog hop starts on June 9th at 6 AM, PST. However, you have until June 10th, 2013, 11:59 pm PST, to leave comments on all the blogs (to be eligible for a prize).Why: To be inspired by fun DeNami Design creations and also the chance to win mini shopping sprees on the DeNami Design website!

Prizes: We are giving away THREE $20 gift certificates to our website! We'll be giving away one gift certificate to a random participant (DT members not eligible) and then we'll also be giving away TWO gift certificates to TWO people who comment along the hop!

You should have arrived here from the very talented Tenia Nelson's blog. That gal always blows me away with her textures, dimension and color combos! If you didn't, don't worry, you can see the whole list of participant by going to the DeNami blog!

I have 2 separate things to show you today so let me apologize for the long post upfront ;)

First off, if you're like me, you have a drawer or basket full scraps of your beautiful patterned paper. I just can't seem to throw any of it away!! With that in mind, I wanted to show you a couple of ways I use mine. These cards (with the exception of the card base) were made from only scraps!!

Now that you've used up all of your scraps and don't have any patterned paper left, why not make some patterned paper of your own! If you follow me here on the Addict blog, you know I do this most often. I just love combining my DeNami stamps (especially the polka dots & Petit Four sets) to make a pretty little background.

*gasp* when editing the picture I noticed that I forgot to add my celery panel between the rose and cream colored stamped one!! Oops, too late now!!

I just love how I can make a background, then make a perfectly matching focal point!



That's it for me today, off you go to visit with the amazingly talented Tammy Hobbs!! I can't wait to see what beautiful creation she's made for us...I know whatever it is it's going to be stunning! Don't forget to leave those comments for a chance to win a DeNami gift certificate and I'll see you right back here tomorrow to kick off "wedding week"!!

Hello Friend....

I need to start this post out by apologizing to ya'll. I know I said I was getting back on track / schedule and then I go throwing everything off once again! For the May Tool Talk segment I have someone pretty awesome guest speaking and unfortunately I've had to delay her post. I went out of town unexpectedly so I couldn't post the segment last week, but promise that I will have it for you on Friday!! Wait until you see what she has to share with us...one of my favorite things ;)

Now then, let's get on with today's post, shall we???

I decided that I wanted to try to get one more entry in for the challenge over at Paper Sweeties. I recently purchased a few more stamps and couldn't wait to play with them. Paper Sweeties stamps are too adorable and they work so well with my DeNami stamps, how could I resist?

Here's the sketch we had to work with....

And here's my take on the sketch....

That's it for me today, I'm off to work on the Tool Talk post for Friday and Wednesday I will have a another fun card for you.

Fresh Florals blog hop

Well hello and welcome to another fun DeNami blog hop!!With spring in full bloom, Paulina thought we should show off some pretty little flowers this month....

When: The blog hop starts on May 19th at 6 AM, PST. However, you have until May 20th, 2013, 11:59 pm PST, to leave comments on all the blogs (to be eligible for a prize).

Why: To be inspired by fun DeNami Design creations and also the chance to win mini shopping sprees on the DeNami Design website! 

Prizes: They are giving away THREE $20 gift certificates to their website! One gift certificate to a random participant (DT members not eligible) and then TWO gift certificates to TWO people who comment along the hop! 

You should have arrived here from Deb's blog. If not, no worries, just head back to the DeNami blog for the full list of participants to get back on track.

When I saw this theme I decided right off that I didn't want to make a regular ole card. I mean, I do that all the time, right? So after a little thinking, I decided how fun it would be to make flower seed packets!

Here's what I came up with....

 Aren't these adorable? I found the template for the two small packets on the Internet and the larger one I drew in the Paint program on my computer. Just add a little ribbon or washi to the little planter boxes and these would be cute little gifts or place settings for a garden party. For the one on the right, I plan on tucking in bible verses for a few friends.

I had so much fun creating these little packets that I wanted to see if I could come up with a card using one....

And for a little surprise....

The seed packet is removable and the card is still adorable because there's a matching panel under it.

That's all I have for you today, it's time for you to go visit with Jennifer Harris
Remember to leave comments along the way to be eligible for the random drawing for the two gift certificates :)

 

a simple Mother's day project

Hi everyone! I know, I'm a little behind with this post, my calender is all screwed up but I'm slowly getting my act together. This post should have been last week and I didn't post a Tips & Tricks last Monday...I've been such a mess lately, I'll be so happy to get back on track!!

 

*GASP* can you believe Mother's Day is next weekend?!?! Holy cow, I don't even have a clue as to what to get my mom :S     I do however have a cute, fun and way easy project that you can make this weekend for your Mom (unfortunately mine wouldn't like it).

 

I've seen a little project all over Pinterest and filed it in the back of my mind because I just wasn't sure about it. Cute, yes, but would it actually work....not sure. When I decided I wanted to make a Mother's Day project for you this little project instantly came to mind. 

It was SUPER easy and guess what...IT WORKS GREAT!!! There's no difference between glass and a white board, it wipes off with just a tissue...who knew...I never even thought about something like that! I can't believe how cute this turned out. And the picture frame was way cheap; you can pick one up at your local dollar store.

 

I was originally going to use a piece of grey chevron patterned paper, but couldn't find any at my big box stores so I opted for stamping my own background instead. I'm glad I did, it turned out adorable. Who doesn't love DeNami's new houndstooth background stamp and you know how I feel about the teeny swiss dot!! I added some yummy houndstooh and floral washi tape to finish it all off.

 

For the outside I simply used some patterned paper and some DeNami red cardstock to die cut flowers and charcoal cardstock to die cut a couple of solid circles. I layered all of that with some fussy cut solid leaf vine and solid leaf sprig. I added a little piece of edge punched cardstock to hold the marker. Using foam tape and a little Chrystal lacquer I attached it all to the frame.

Well that's it for me today. If you decide to make this little project let me know, I'd LOVE to stop by your blog or photo sharing site to take a look. And if you get stuck anywhere along the way please feel free to email me and I'll be happy to help you out! 

Friends...

Good morning everyone! Today I have a card that I had originally made for a 10 minute Craft Dash over on the Pretty Pink Posh blog. After I made it I realized I screwed up...the colors were teal, pink & blue, however, the blue was supposed to be a navy blue, not just any ole blue I choose...ooops! That particuliar Craft Dash has seriously kicked my tushie. Remember when I did the little video and lost the SD card with the video and pictures of the card on it?? This is from that same challenge...wow, I should have cut my losses and ran far away after I screwed up the colors, lol, but I was a glutten for punishment and went at it again and had all those other troubles...sigh. I have the feeling that I was not meant to participate in that particular challenge!! Good thing I really like that challenge A LOT! ;)

Ohh and mentioning the 10 Minute Craft Dash, I would like to pat myself on the back and tell ya'll that I made the runner up list on the last challenge with that darling little mason jar full of flowers card! WOO-HOO!!! And guess who won...Wendy Elliot!!! You all know and love her work from being on the DeNami design team. Her card was sooooo cute!!


 When I first saw the colors I was a little scared but ya know, I love both color combos (this light blue and the navy blue) and plan on pulling them out in the future.   

This little beauty took 9 minutes, 45 seconds. I don't think I've ever stamped directly onto patterned paper before, if I have, it was only once or twice...I just can't remember, but I really like the look. I'm totally loving the layout, thinking I will have to try that again too ;)

Thanks for stopping by!!

Be sure to stop back by on Friday for a fun and easy Mother's Day project!

Better late than never, right???

Hi everyone! Well, have I got a story for you! Hmm, instead of the long drawn out version, I'll condense it a bit....My mom was in the hospital (she's fine, just a knee replacement) and I was running back and forth from work / home and hospital for a week. During all of this I managed to find time to film a little 10 minute craft dash video. Then when she got out I've was staying at my Mom's taking care of her while she's been laid up and not spending much time at home or work. In the mean time, I managed to loose the little camera card!!! I was so upset...I had pictures of the card plus another card I'd made and the video...poof, all gone. 

Of course, now that the challenge is over...I found the camera card. It was in my wallet. Why did I put it in there, what was I thinking; It's not like my mom has Internet or even a computer for that matter! I've been a mess these past couple of weeks, sigh! Well, I decided to not let all this go to waste, even though I can't enter my cards, I thought I could still share them and the video with all of you.

This is actually the 2nd card I made. I took a collection of stamping goodness with me to my Mom's house to keep me busy so I don't have a picture of the card with my phone to show the time. :(

However, this card took a total of 9 minutes, 22 seconds....not bad, right??? The patterned papers really help!

Here's my first card card along with the video I made...enjoy :)

(Since this video is late the date for Paulina's Blogging 101 posts are wrong...sorry!)

9 minutes 28 seconds!!

That's it for me today, I hope you try the 10 minute Craft Dash over at Pretty Pink Posh (Paulina just announced the latest one yesterday!) sometime, it really is a fun challenge even if I panic a bit, lol.