Lots of Baby

Yes, it really is me again! Thanks for sticking with me even though it's been awhile. It's been a very crazy few months here at our house. The 'highlights' include computer problems, H1N1 for the whole family, 2 rooms in our house flooding, and two visits to the ER--one for my husband's ankle and most recently for me. . . . My visit came after I was mopping my kitchen floor and woke up to find myself flat on my back with my almost 2 year old daughter running over to try to put my glasses on. After a scan it was confirmed that I 'only' had a concussion. So if you've ever wondered if housework is dangerous. . . . Now you know! ;-) Despite everything that has happened, I am happy to say that everyone (and our house) is now feeling much better!

On to the crafting. . . . Last week I was able to fill a special order for a lady who wanted to make a baby shower she was throwing for her friend really special. Here are pictures of most of the items that I made for her. You can see the master list below of all the supplies I used.

My inspiration came from the Delicate Dots Designer Series Paper (now discontinued). The gender of the baby is unknown, and I like this paper because I thought it was gender-neutral and had a delicate feel that was perfect for a baby.

This project series is also a good example of why I love Stampin Up. . . It is so easy to make coordinated projects! I started by choosing the Designer Series paper, which gave me my color pallet. Next I added the matching inks and accessories. Then it was easy to create coordinated projects that give a cohesive feeling to the party decorations.

The picture at the very top shows the nugget boxes that were the favors for each guest to take home. I used the Stampin' Up! Matchbox Big Shot die and the stamp set Matchbox Messages to make these.

This is a tin that I decorated to be part of the main table. The star is a piece of chipboard covered with Certainly Celery card stock. You can purchase these TINS from the Clearance Rack over at Stampin Up for only 99 cents each!

Inside the tin, there is an accordion 'book' that has different pockets. The accordion sits on the main table with the tags. Each of the guests can write some baby advice, a note to the mom, or anything they like. They put the tag in one of the pockets, and then after the party the accordion book with all the personalized tags goes back into the tin and makes a nice gift for the mother.

This Top Note die box was a gift for the grandmother. How thoughtful of the hostess to include a gift for her! The box holds 8 Hershey Nuggets individually wrapped with coordinating papers. The 'charm' is just two stars punched from Brushed Silver card stock and then embossed with Silver Stampin' Emboss powder three times. After embossing, I glued the stars back to back and used my paper piercing tool to poke a hole and thread the linen thread through.

Here is the frame that was also part of the main table. I left the right and left sides open for the mother to fill. She could include the shower invitation, a baby announcement, and/or baby pictures. The words are actually custom Decor Elements that are on top of the glass. I used part of a Decor Elements Sheet, spray painted it shiny silver (despite what it looks like in the picture!), and then ran it through the Big Shot using the Billboard decorative strip.

And here is a close-up. The white star is a rub-on. This could also be adapted to make a cute card layout too!

And last, here are the Food Name Cards. The flowers were made using the Trio Flower punch.

Since the length of this post is already so long, I didn't include all the creative details. If you do have questions about any of these projects, please contact me.

Stamps: Matchbox Messages

Ink: Certainly Celery and Pretty in Pink markers

Paper: Delicate Dots DSP, So Saffron Patterns DSP, Brushed Silver, Window Sheets Medium, So Saffron, Certainly Celery, Whisper White

Accessories: Whisper White 5/8" satin ribbon, linen thread, Bashful Blue 1/4" grosgrain ribbon, Certainly Celery 1/4" grosgrain ribbon, Very Vanilla 1/4" grosgrain ribbon, Certainly Celery twill ribbon, So Saffron grosgrain ribbon, 1/4" Circle punch, 1" circle punch, Trio Flower punch, Star punch, Tag Corner punch, Corner Rounder punch, Sizzix Big Shot, Matchbox die, Top Note die, Billboard die, Decor Elements Sheets, paper piercing tool, dimensionals

Way too long. . . .

Obviously it has been WAY too long since I've posted!! In an attempt to make it up at least a little, :-) I thought I would post some pictures of a couple of the things that have been keeping me busy over the last while.

This year I participated in two Holiday Boutiques--one at an elementary school and one private show. My overall best seller for this year were votive candles--the candles and glass are from Ikea. I first created these to fill a special order, and have since made quite a few more! I used the stamp set Deer Friends and lots of punches.


Stamps: Deer Friends
Ink: Chocolate Chip, Close to Cocoa, Brocade Blue, Real Red, and Old Olive
Paper: Chocolate Chip, Close to Cocoa, Brocade Blue, Real Red, and Old Olive, Whisper White
Accessories: Crystal Effects, Dazzling Diamonds Glitter, Real Red 5/8" grosgrain ribbon, Brocade Blue 5/8" grosgrain ribbon, Old Olive 5/8" grosgrain ribbon, dimensionals, scallop circle punch, 1 3/8" circle punch, 1 1/4" circle punch, and the 1" circle punch, 1/16" circle punch

Another project I did with the stamp set Deer Friends were some Martinelli bottles. I found these 'mini' bottles of sparkling apple juice at a local grocery store and knew they would be good for something. :-) I originally made these up for gifts for the members of my Stampers 25 Club, but made a few extra as well to sell. As you can see the tag part is almost the exact same as I did for the votive candles above.



Stamps: Deer Friends
Ink: Chocolate Chip, Kiwi Kiss
Paper: Chocolate Chip, Kiwi Kiss, Very Vanilla, Kiwi Kiss and Riding Hood Red Patterns Designer Series Paper
Accessories: Crystal Effects, Dazzling Diamonds Glitter, dimensionals, 1" Double-Stitched Chocolate Chip Grosgrain Ribbon, 3/4" Twill Tape, Alpine Ribbon Originals, 1 1/4" Riding Hood Red/Very Vanilla ribbon, Linen Thread, scallop circle punch, 1 3/8" circle punch, 1 1/4" circle punch, and the 1" circle punch, cutter kit

Another best seller this year were some jars that I decorated with the bulk Decor Elements. I got the taller jars (back row--hard to see in the picture) at Michael's and the smaller ones at Ikea. Sorry for the strange picture, but I can't take another one as I sold all of them. . . . :-) This will be a project I will definitely do again as they were so quick to make. We also made these jars at my Technique Club last month.

Accessories: Rose Red and Chocolate Chip Decor Elements, 1/4" Rose Red grosgrain ribbon, 1/4" Chocoloate Chip grosgrain ribbon, 1/4" Whisper White grosgrain ribbon

Check it out!

Wow, well this is an exciting day! With the new month here, there are LOTS of new promotions and products available from Stampin' Up! The picture above shows one of the new products available--Phase 2 of the Decor Elements.

Anyone who has been to my house in the past month has probably already seen this. :-) I was lucky enough to win this "Season of Thanks" Decor Element at convention from the Prize Patrol! I just had to get a shadow box frame and a garland so that I could make up the idea they showed us at convention. This was a really fast project. I added the paper to the back of the frame, filled the frame with the leaves, pine cones, and flowers, and then applied the Decor Element to the top of the glass.

So what is a Decor Element? It is self-adhesive vinyl art. (Kind of like large rub-ons.) You can apply the Decor Elements to walls, mirrors, windows, etc., or like I did above, picture frames. Very versatile! If have questions about Decor Elements, or you'd like to order this Decor Element or others, please contact me.

Other Promotions!

***Stampin' Up! is celebrating its 20th Birthday! In celebration they are offering 20% off select birthday stamp sets with a minimum $20 purchase. Click HERE or on the flyer to the right for more information.

***The birthday flyer also shows a special product offer. While supplies last, you can buy a single large-tip Aqua Painter for only $7.25.

***If you've thought about hosting a workshop, now is the time! During the month of October and November, if you host a workshop totaling $350 or more, you can choose any stamp set in the Catalog Sampler for free! This is in addition to your regular hostess benefits! Click HERE or on the Sampler at the right to see the sets that you can earn for free. Contact me today if you would like to schedule a workshop.

***Also, the Holdiay Mini Catalog is here! Click HERE or on the right to check out all the fun new products and stamp sets that will get you ready for the holidays.

Catch all that?!? Let me know if you have questions about anything! Happy October!