Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving to all of my wonderful readers who celebrate the holiday!!  I'll be spending the day at my in-laws with my family.....lots of great food, I'll be toting in the slow cookers, 7 of us + 5 doggies running around in the yard. We'll be watching the parade, lots of football and hopefully the fellas will let us squeeze in the movie What about Bob.  Good times.  So thankful for my family and all of you too.  

Over at the October Afternoon blog, I'm sharing this card as OA wishes you a Happy Thanksgiving.  

I'll be taking this one to my mom and dad on Friday.  Lots of fun OA paper, label, ribbon, button and the fun squirrel flash card.  Don't have a Thanksgiving stamp?  No worries, you'll be thankful you have an old typewriter nearby.  :)

I think it's always nice to take a hostess gift, even if it's just a little card or small gift.  I packaged my card up in a glassine sack and tied it up with some Fall-ish leaves.  

Very simple and took me about 5 minutes to assemble.

To keep it all together, I layered a paper doily with a confetti sack then topped it with two silk leaves.  Just staple them together and cover the staple with an enamel dot, sequin or button.  

For my little gift, I'm including a small Pumpkin Caramel Latte candle from Bath & Body. My very favorite ever...I bought all they had this season!

Okay, off to enjoy the festivities.  See you soon.

Last of the 2 Squared School Kit projects...

Hi there. Back today with the last of my projects made from my 2 Squared School Kit. I have had the most fun with this kit. I just set all the items on a tray and spent the good part of a weekend just being crafty with it. Such a fun way to spark a little creativity....limiting yourself to just a few items so you don't get overwhelmed...having a list of what you want to make....giving yourself a time frame to work within. The kit uses Studio Calico Elementary papers and stickers + there are tons of fun items from my shop. Be sure to scroll down to previous posts where I have lots of other school themed projects using this kit.

First up from today's projects are some embellished Project Life journaling cards. I set out the items below to use.
And here are my finished journaling cards. I used the Project Life blank grid journaling cards as my bases. What I love about these cards are that they don't scream teacher/apple/school. There are subtle school themed items that aren't overwhelming for my high schoolers.
I'll be reaching for these very soon when school starts back up again. Some of the photos I like to capture are of course the 1st day of school photos....but also shots of those first homework assignments, school books and papers, book bags, little snippets of homework papers. These little journaling cards will blend in so easily with my other pieces of Project Life.
Next up on my list was a notebook. If you've followed my blog long then you knew I couldn't stay away from my beloved notebooks. Here's what I set out to use. That wonderful packet of flair buttons are from my sweet friend Leena Loh. You can find her shop, Finding Nana, right here. It's packed full of the sweetest little goodies ever. And if you love Project Life inspiration be sure to check out Leena's blog. Her pages are total eye candy and filled with lots of details.
So here's my notebook. I used 2 Papertrey notebooks that were specifically designed to coordinate with my Papertrey Take Note set. The perfect size for a work bag, purse or to tuck in a drawer.
I used a Medium Manila Parcel Tag from the kit + one of the pieces of my punched tab garland that I made earlier on the top of the notebook. A few strips of Washi tape were added too.
I stitched over pieces of the Studio Calico Elementary paper after a few of the Kraft star stickers were added in a grid pattern. One of Leena's flair buttons was a perfect finishing touch to the circles on this fun patterned paper.
Notebooks are always a great teacher gift and very much anticipated from everyone who knows their on my gift list. For gift packaging I used one of the large glassine sacks from the kit. You could also use my Large Kraft Sacks or my new Waxed Paper Sacks for packaging too. I tucked in the notebook and then folded the sack around to the back, securing with some Washi tape. I used a Small Parcel Tag from the kit + some leftover patterned paper that I trimmed down to make some notched tags. I tied on some baker's twine and then secured the tags down with strips of Washi tape. Love these notebooks and may have to make some more.
And here's the last of the scraps from the 2 Squared School Kit. I had just a few pieces leftover. If you click on the link to the kit you'll see that I used almost every single piece of it. Man, that was fun!
Oh but wait. There's one more little project to show you that I almost forgot about. In the kit you'll receive a large clothespin. I used some Washi tape and wrapped it around the ends of the clothespin. Perfect width. I then added another one of Leena's flair buttons. That took all of about 1 minute to create. Perfect to go along with the notebook gift to keep papers nice and tidy. The flair buttons are perfect for this size of clothespin.
So now that I've conquered the kit I thought I would show you all the goodies I made. Card sets, notebooks, bookmarks, gift sacks, journaling cards and more! I hope you enjoyed my projects and are inspired to create a few teacher gifts of your own. We can't forget the teachers. They spend a tremendous amount of time with our kids and are a huge influence. A little gift or card to let them know you appreciate their time is worth gold to them. I hope you take a little time to remember them this coming school year. :) I've got some of the 2 Squared School Kits left in the shop....perfect if you're looking to assemble some projects quickly.
So what's next for me in the crafty department? I have this beeee-U-TeE-FuLL lineup of My Mind's Eye The Sweetest Thing papers, stamps and accessories just waiting for me. Seriously folks, this stuff is total eye candy. So pretty and soft and muted. With a little touch of vintage. I want to hoard all of it. I want to order doubles so that I can hoard all of it. But I won't. I'm going to dig in the next chance I get!
Just look at the fun accessories. The stamp set has adorable little flowers as well as the colorful brads. And the Washi tape.
The Washi tape deserves it's own photo. I couldn't make a decision so it ALL went into my cart at 2Peas. It's got a very smooth finish too and coordinates with the papers so wonderfully. Did ya get some? Here's your enabling alert!

Well, I better scoot on our of here. The girls will be home from weights soon and then we're heading to the big city for some back to school shopping. The girls have grown so much, they need new everything! I may have to trade Washi tape for new jeans. I'm praying for great deals & patience in the dressing rooms. Wish me luck!

Speaking of prayers, my family received a wonderful blessing on Monday. My dad went in for his 4 month post-op appointment. Blood work was good and his scans showed no signs of cancer. I can't tell you how wonderful it was to give my dad a hug and see the signs of relief on his face.

I'll leave you with that. Have a wonderful, crafty day my friends.

2 Squared Kit projects....

Hey everyone. I have a few projects to share with you that I made from my 2 Squared School Kit. I saved a kit for myself and set all of the contents out on a tray. Then I made a list of some school projects I might want to make.

A challenge I gave out with this kit is to use it all up so I'm gonna give it a go. I'm pulling out more of my shop items + a few supplies like twine and Washi tape to use on my projects. First up are some treat sacks for teachers. These took hardly any time at all to make so mass production would be very easy. I pulled one of the 4 x 4 pieces of patterned paper(all from Studio Calico's Elementary line) and cut it into four pieces. I grabbed some of the striped sacks from this assorted pack + some Washi tape + some Dove candies + some typed labels.

I hand cut notches into the four small squares then adhered them to my filled sacks (4 candies per sack) with various Washi tape. I stuck on the labels then finished up the sacks with machine stitching. Perfect little teacher treats.

Next up I wanted to use some of the sacks in the kit to make some confetti bags. In the kit there is a small glassine sack + a clear zipper sack + I used some smaller sacks from my Sack Assortment for Confetti. Using scrap paper, my confetti punch and my star punch, I went to work making confetti. To add some bulk I like to add Christmas snow filler + I found a few foam glitter stars to add in.
I just kept filling sacks so I could have plenty on hand. These will be fun to have on hand for future use.
Here are my creations using some of the confetti sacks + some additional items from the kit. I made a treat/card sack and a back to school card.
The sack uses a Large Kraft Sack, a piece of the 4 x 4 patterned paper and a Large White Tag from the kit. I also used a Dainty Doily, Washi tape, a piece of splattered cardstock + some word stickers and mini staples. I think I will use this sack to hold a treat or set of cards for the girls' art teacher. She is so awesome.
This is my first of the cards I'll make from the kit. The kit contents I used are the piece of patterned paper, the punched apple + the "best day ever" sentiment strip stamped from a Studio Calico stamp set. I also added Washi tape, a Dainty Doily, baker's twine and a typed label. This card will be perfect for our school secretary, Miss Becky. I always wish her a good school year & joke about how the first day of school is the best day ever. Maybe more so for me than her. :)
Finally for today's projects I made some bookmarks for my friend, the school librarian. From the kit I used a piece of 4 x 4 patterned paper cut in half, the 2 library cards, the blue label and one of the sticker selections from Studio Calico. I also dug a few pieces of the punched strips I used to make confetti from my trash can.
To hold the bookmarks I used a Medium Glassine Sack, a Small White Parcel Tag and a strip of the old book paper from the kit. I typed on the white tag with my old typewriter then tied it around the sack with baker's twine.
For the bookmarks I layered them with patterned papers, Washi tape, 2 halves of the labels which I stamped with Studio Calico stamps, a punched apple, stickers from the kit, a punched circle from the old book paper + a snippet of a Dainty Doily.
For this bookmark I stamped the word "READ" using Studio Calico's Stepping Stone Alphabet, first in the black outline and then in the solid grey. "The End" was stamped from this Studio Calico stamp set. Machine stitching keeps all the paper layers in place. You can see more of my bookmark creations at this link.
The back side of one of the papers has this adorable little boy reading a book. Since my librarian friend splits her time between the high and grade school, I thought this sweet bookmark would be fun to use for the books she reads to the little ones. I finished this one off with days of the week Washi tape, a sticker strip from the kit and then I stitched and stapled over the punched apple. Since I add a lot of stitching I like to adhere a piece of cardstock on the back of the library card so the bookmarks finish up nice and clean.
I had so much just creating and having fun. Next up I'll be making up some cards to give as little sets to the teachers. They love to get a little surprise now and then with a few chocolates thrown in. Stay tuned.

There are still some of the 2 Squared School Kits left in the shop. The first batch of kits went out this morning so if you ordered, be looking for your kit + other ordered items the first of next week. What kind of fun projects are you thinking of making with the kit, I'd love to hear?

Other news:

I just received some supply orders for some new kits coming to the shop soon. I can't wait to share with you once I get a little more organized. A new concept that I think you'll love. :)

Washi tape meets curly ribbon..

Happy Weekend! Today I have a little tutorial on how I gift wrapped some items for Jordan's graduation present. I had a mirror (which is hard to work with), some fingernail polishes and hair bands. I knew I wanted to use Washi tape on a tag and fun curly ribbon to add a festive touch. Seems every gift around here lately gets a big curly ribbon bunch stuck on top.

For the Washi tape, I wanted to use it on the tag. Tip: A lot of crafters love the idea of Washi but don't like the torn edge look. I found that by using an old tape dispenser you can get a nice clean tear with just a big of that jagged edge. It's like "controlled tearing".
I placed each of my Washi tapes in my taper dispenser and tore off the pieces I wanted to use. These were all layered onto a Large White Tag.
I set that aside and then made my curly ribbon bunch. Just cut about 18" of curly ribbon and curl with scissors.
I use my Tiny Attacher to secure the ribbons together.
Next up I wanted to personalize the tag with Jordan's name. I used Hero Arts letter stamps on a Metal Rim Tag. These are some of my favorite tags from the shop & I always keep them handy.
For the hair bands and nail polishes I tucked them inside a large glassine sack, fold over the edge, added a folded Dainty Doily and then taped on the curly ribbon piece. The layered Washi tag was topped with the metal tag and taped to the front of the sack.
I tied all this to the mirror and tucked it in with Jordan's balloon and other gifts. Very cute and festive and she loved the curly ribbon. :)

I know lots of you are new to the wonderful world of Washi tape. I've started stocking it in the shop so I'll be showing you lots of ways to use it here on the blog from time to time. If you have any questions about Washi just leave a comment and I'll edit my post with feedback.

I've just added a bunch of new Washi to the shop today. You can check it out here along with a new Sewing Notions Kit, White Woodgrain Cardstock and more. Thank you for stopping by and enjoy your weekend. And....I'm officially off the computer for the day. I'm headed out for my birthday dinner with the family. :)

Birthday Gift Wrap...washi, sacks & tags

Hey everyone. May is such a busy month for me. There are lots of birthdays, graduations and Mother's Day which means lots of fun gifts. Today I'm sharing a quick birthday gift for one of Jordan's friends.

I already had the gift sack on the left assembled and ready to go. You can read more about them in this post. In that sack I packaged up some small candy bars + an iTunes card. I had another bag of candy that I wanted to add and could have easily just tied this to the first sack with a ribbon. But I decided to make the gift even more fun so I tucked the candies into the "goodies" sack.
I then layered the two sacks on top of each other and used Washi tape to seal up the top openings of the sacks.
So now the two gift sacks are layered on top of each other which made for a fun presentation. I thought Jordan's friend would also have a fun time figuring out how to open the sacks. :)
I slipped one more tag under some strips of Washi tape for Jordan to write a little message.

And it was a hit. Jordan said that her friend said the package was so cute she didn't want to open it.....but she tore into it anyway. It's always the fun packaging that makes a gift so cute. You can find the tags and sacks I used today in my shop. Thanks for stopping by!

Washi update:

I have about a dozen new styles coming to my shop soon. I'll add them as soon as they arrive.

Goodie Bags

I have a few of the Goodie Bags left in the shop. These are grab bag style sacks packed with fun items from a de-stashing session. I thought they would be perfect for a Summer day of entertaining for the kiddos. They're packed full of stationery, tags, carnival tickets, a notebook, chipboard stickers, a Copic Spica glitter pen, ribbon, sacks and more! Invite a few little friends and let the fun begin! One customer purchased one for a gift for a little girl, great idea!

Snow Confetti Gift Sacks...

Hi there, I'm back today with more inspiration from the Lemon Lime Kits I offered in the shop recently. By request I've made up lots more of the kits and they are in the shop now right here. I've also added some assorted glassine and clear bags that you can use for confetti projects like the ones I've been doing lately. You can see the Snow Confetti Tag & Bookmark post I did for more ideas using the kit.

Here we go for today's projects. It's all about confetti gift sacks. It's like a gift for your gift. A package on top of your package. Double the fun! I used a regular paper sack for the base that can be filled with an actual gift.
Then I filled a glassine sack with these color Sixlet treats as a little bonus gift. Cute!
I stitched glassine sack shut with my sewing machine then added a strip of fun snow confetti tape that I made across both sacks. So shimmery and shiny.
Tags, button and baker's twine from the kit for embellishments....just couldn't be cuter. I might just use something like this for Jordan's graduation gifts to her friends. We will be on a mission to find something that fits inside. :)
Here I used a polka dot sack (the kits have a striped sack) to make another confetti embellished sack. A hand cut banner + more of my handmade border strips adorn the front of the sack.
I filled a little sack that comes with the kit with about a teaspoon of snow confetti, also included in the kit. I wrapped around some baker's twine, added a button and topped off the sack with a stamped embellishment from the kit. SO cute and perfect for holding cards or small gifts.
Kits are limited in quantity and I also have most of the kit items available on their own in the shop too. Lots of new tags, bookmarks, sacks....+ a few stamped cards....Bookmark Kits, Confetti Gift Sack Kits and Wrinkle Ribbon. Thanks for stopping by. Wrapping gifts has never been so much fun!! Enjoy...