Cookie Treats by Karen Motz

I have a quick little treat to share with you today and it was inspired by the fantastic new Bakery Business set.

I baked some cookies yesterday and was thinking of my Bakery Business set as I was mixing the batter. Then once the cookies were baked and cool I thought it would be fun to package up a few to give to my friends. I used the diaper fold pouch tutorial on Splitcoast for the cookie holder.

The image is stamped with Memento Tuxedo Black onto Choice Snow White and cut out with circle Nestabilities. I coloured it with copics and added fun details like a glossy cherry on the cupcake and pink Tiny Twinkles for the earrings and necklace.

The patterned papers I chose for the pouches are all from the My Mind's Eye Bloom and Grow collection. To fit my cookies I started with a 7 inch square of patterned paper. The "Diet starts tomorrow..." sentiment cracks me up and it seemed like the perfect sentiment for a little cookie treat!

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Thanks for stopping by!
Karen

Movie Night Box by Karen Motz

Hubby and I are big movie watchers...the stay at home and rent 'em kinda movie watchers though. A regular weekend usually includes two movies (and they're not always great so sometimes I bail and head to my stamp room...LOL!). One thing hubby loves when watching a movie is a little popcorn to munch on, so I decided to make him a Movie Night Box.

I had this red metal container in my stash (it originally held peppermint bark, which mysteriously disappeared!) and I thought it would work perfectly with Cuppie Love Scenes and my Valentine Key Ingredients.

I started by stamping the movie image with Memento Tuxedo Black onto Choice Buttercream, then onto the heart patterned paper from my Valentine Key Ingredients. I coloured part of the image with copics and paper pieced the chairs and curtains. Then I ran my black ink pad around all the edges to give the image a little definition. I think my favourite part of this image is the little cuppie on the right...he looks so annoyed shushing the lovey couple. That would be hubby...he has a no-talking-except-during-commercials rule when he's really into a show (which means we watch movies in silence). I layered up a few papers and stitched them together then finished my panel with a sweet bow. I know I know...this box is supposed to be masculine, but really, who can resist a cute bow!

I stuffed the inside of the box with some individual packs of microwave popcorn, but of course I had to decorate them just a smidge. This was super quick and easy too...I simply wrapped each pack with one of the patterned papers, added a center strip and topped it with a covered chipboard heart (also from my Valentine Key Ingredients).

So look around your house for cute containers you can re-use in your crafting projects. I'm tickled that this red box worked out so perfectly for my vision!

Thanks for stopping by!
Karen

NOEL by Karen Motz

Happy Thanksgiving to all the US readers!!! Today is a day to spend with family and friends enjoying a wonderful meal, but tomorrow marks the official start of the Christmas Shopping season with Black Friday. So I created a project to help you get in the Christmas spirit.

I picked up these wood letters at my local craft store and I love that they stand up on their own. I gave them a few coats of white paint and once that was dry I misted each letter with Iridescent Pearls Maya Mist for a little sparkle and shimmer. To decorate the letters I used images from Wings of Joy and Holiday Wonder, both available at Taylored Expressions. I love how these two sets can mix and match.

I started by stamping the images with Memento Tuxedo Black onto Choice Snow White then I coloured them with copics. Then I started adding the little touches to really jazz up each image. The tree was decorated with Tiny Twinkles.

I coated the lights on the bird house with two layers of clear Glaze pen and added some sparkly snow to the bird house (white Liquid Applique topped with glitter before I puffed it).

The chipboard snowflake was coloured with a blue copic then I coated it with Waterfall Stickles and topped it with a button from my Whirligig pack.

The snowman received a hint of bling with a red Tiny Twinkle on his scarf.

I also made some quick paper trees to accent my word art. They were super simple...cut two triangles of the same size for each tree (my trees are 6, 5, and 4 inches tall). On one of the triangles, cut along the center line from the bottom to the mid-point. On the other triangle cut along the center line from the top to the mid-point. Then just slip them together...voila! No adhesive required and they'll fold flat for storage.

SALE ALERT!!!

Taylored Expressions is having a big sale this weekend in honour of Black Friday and Cyber Monday, the two biggest shopping days of the year! The entire store is 15% off!!!! Just use the promotional code TEBlackFriday upon checkout to receive the discount. Also, Tiny Twinkles are buy 2 get 1 FREE, JustRite products are 50% off, and there are the sweetest new TE shirts and aprons!!!

So skip the lineups and save some time, money and gas by shopping at Taylored Expressions from the comfort of your own home this weekend!

Thanks for stopping by!

Karen

Popping in with a Yummy Treat! - by Karen Motz

When I thought about what to do for my project today I knew I wanted to do something with a Christmas theme. I thought back to my childhood and remembered sitting in the family room stringing popcorn with my brothers while my dad set up the tree. Half the popcorn ended up in our tummies instead of on the tree, but we sure had a great time!

So I decided to do a popcorn themed project. It started out in my mind as a "Tree Trimming Kit" (just add needle and thread) but it evolved more as a wonderful hostess gift. You could easily personalize this by replacing the 'JOY' with a specific person's name. Wouldn't it be fun to start a family tradition by giving each child their own bag of popcorn to string?!?

I started with a plain Kraft Bakery Bag as my base. I wanted it to be bright and cheery so I pulled out my Christmas Key Ingredients. I cut the pink cardstock to the size of the bag but I didn't want to fiddle with cutting out the window exactly as it is on the bag so I used my Labels 3 Nestabilities to create the opening in the pink cardstock.

The images are from Wings of Joy...I just love this set! I stamped them with Memento Tuxedo Black onto Choice Buttercream and coloured them with copics.

The chipboard snowflakes were fun to alter. First I coloured the red one with a red copic then I covered it with Rockstar Red Sparkly Fluff (from the Christmas Key Ingredients). For the blue one, I coloured it with a blue copic then covered it with Waterfall Stickles. I layered them together and added a pink button from my Rhonna Christmas pack.

Of course you could use these bags for cookies, chocolates, even a small gift! How would you embellish a Kraft Bakery Bag? I'm sure we can brainstorm plenty of fabulous ideas. :)

Don't forget to sign up for the TE Newsletter if you aren't already a subscriber.

Thanks for stopping by!

Karen

TEBB Challenge #2 Hosted by Karen M.

Welcome to Challenge #2 for the Taylored Expressions Birthday Bash! There are lots of fun challenges and fabulous prizes to celebrate Cuppie's 1st Birthday! We hope you'll play along in as many challenges as you can. Did you already start working on Taylor's challenge? Isn't her inspiration piece just yummy!

A new challenge will be posted each hour by our fabulous Baker's Dozen design team. We'll have a variety of challenges including sketch, technique, colour and inspiration. You'll have 5 days to complete these challenges and be eligible for the prizes.

My challenge is the first sketch challenge of the day and I've kept it clean and simple.

So what do you need to do to participate?

CHALLENGE: Create a card, scrapbook page or 3D item using the sketch. You're not required to use Taylored Expressions images for our challenges.

KEYWORD: Upload your creation to your blog or online gallery (or both). If you're uploading to online galleries, use the keyword TEBBKM. Then come back to this challenge and leave a comment with a direct link to your creation! In order to be eligible for the prizes, you must leave a comment with a link to your card by midnight PST Wednesday, September 9th.

PRIZE: I will choose my favourite creation from among all the participants and mail you the card I created for this challenge along with a $10.00 gift certificate to the TE Store!

GRAND PRIZE: One random person who participates in ALL 13 of our Birthday Bash challenges will receive a $50.00 gift certificate to the TE Store in addition to an 8x10 custom watercolour Cuppie painting by our very own Jessie Oleson! Click here to check out all of Jessie's adorable artwork at her Etsy Shop. Once you complete and link all 12 challenges, send an email to tayloredexpressions@gmail.com to be eligible for our grand prize. Just include your name and "I completed all 13 challenges".

Here's the sample I created using Branching Out and Branching Out Coordinates.

I stuck with the simple layout but added plenty of detail and texture. The image is stamped with Memento Tuxedo Black onto Choice Buttercream. The tire is paper pieced, the branch is covered with Espresso Dimensional Pearls, the leaves are popped for dimension and I added a swipe of Green Apple Smooch to each one after colouring them with copics. I pleated some paper and stitched the pleats down so they'd lie flat then added some ribbon. Lastly I added some Multicolour Twinkles for a little sparkle.

Thanks so much for playing along! I can't wait to see what you bake up with the sketch! Don't forget to check back every hour for a day full of the fun challenges!

Happy stamping!

Karen

Stamps: Branching Out, Branching Out Coordinates

Paper: Choice Buttercream, Prism Blush Red Medium, Prism Frosted Yellow, Prism Suede Brown Dark, My Mind's Eye PP

Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black

Accessories: copics, circle Nestabilities, Espresso Dimensional Pearls, Green Apple Smooch, Multicolour Twinkles, foam tape, ribbon, sewing, scallop border punch.

No longer out of sight....

Are you like me??? When things are out of sight they're out of mind?!? I always reach for my copics because they're right in front of me and I seriously forget about my poor Lyra pencils, so I thought I'd create a fun holder to get them out in front of me. I'm hoping to use them more often...as you can see, they're all pretty much the original length with sharp points...I need to start using them.

I decided to alter a fun Handbag Tidy and the Berries and Cherries Key Ingredients were the perfect colours to coordinate with my stamp room. This little handbag comes unassembled so it's easy to alter. I gave everything a coat of Espresso paint with my Ranger dauber then set it aside to dry while I worked on the image.

I chose the chocolate cherries from Berries and Cherries, stamped them with Memento Tuxedo Black onto Choice Snow White and coloured them with copics. See...I didn't have my pencils out yet so I reached for my copics! LOL! The image is cut out with oval Nestabilities and the center cherry is popped on foam tape for dimension. I paper pieced the red chocolate liner then adhered the image to a red scalloped oval. I added lots of bling around the image with some Zva rhinestones.

Now back to the handbag...I traced around the cut out the main body on brown, then traced the scallop part onto one of the patterned papers and finally traced the handle onto the red glitter paper, all from the Berries and Cherries Key Ingredients. I adhered the papers with Zip Dry (love this glue...it doesn't wrinkle your paper and just rubs off if you get it on your desk or fingers...perfect for me!) then sanded the edges for a perfect fit. I added more Zva bling around the pink scalloped piece. I finished my project with some Espresso Dimensional Pearls on the chocolates and as "studs" around the edge of the handbag.

I'm really happy with how this turned out, but I'm worried it could end up holding my chocolate stash instead of my pencils...grin! Don't forget to sign up for the Taylored Expressions Newsletter if you aren't already a subscriber...it's always full of fabulous info!

Thanks for stopping by!

Karen

A Scrapbook Project for the Non-Scrapbooker

I've had this idea for a while now but when I saw the Beach Bum set I knew it was the set to use. You see, I started paper crafting as a scrapbooker (way back many years ago) but I haven't really scrapbooked much since I discovered rubber stamping and cardmaking 6 years ago. The only problem...I never stopped taking pictures. So I was looking for a quick and easy way to get my vacation photos into a "scrapbook" when I came up with the Rolodex Book. I'm calling it an "unscrapbooked" project for the non-scrapbooker! LOL! Because really, it's just like stamping little cards. 

I started with a plain Rolodex that I picked up an office supply store and I used the rolodex Sizzix die cut from Stampin' Up for the pages. I used the Beach Bum stamp set and the Beach Bum Key Ingredients, along with plenty of Stickles and a fun assortment of summer shaped brads. 

On the cover I used my JustRite lower case Times New Roman font and the rectangle stamper for the title. I created a little beach scene then penned in the dates of our vacation in the lower right corner. I added ribbon tabs to each of my divider pages so whomever is looking at it can easily flip to a different section.

Who goes to the beach and doesn't play in the sand? There are plenty of pictures of my niece and nephews in this section. The images on the divider pages are done with a combination of paper piecing and copic markers. 

The beach bum section is home to photos of mostly the adults...LOL!

And of course, a little swimming in the ocean and the pools was in order. We weren't swimming with sharks though (that I know if anyway) so I only inked up the little swimming Cuppie and stamped him three times so he'd be with his friends. 

We also had lots of fun using the resort sailboats and taking a boating excursion to Rick's Cafe, so this section holds all those photos. The cloud stamp is from the Branching Out Coordinates.

In just a few hours I was able to "unscrapbook" our Jamaica vacation and I have 107 photos to proudly display. It would also be super easy to go back and add journalling cards to each section too (yeah right...LOL!). Wouldn't this be a great gift idea? Hmm...my family's coming to visit in September, do I have enough time?

Don't forget to sign up for the TE Newsletter...the link is in the sidebar. It's full of fabulous information on products, sales and creative ideas.

Also, just a reminder that Taylor is smack dab in the middle of her big move from California to Iowa so the TE Store will not be shipping any orders until July 13th. The Store is open and taking orders though.

Thanks for stopping by!

Karen

It's Grillin' Time...Are You Ready?

'Cause I'm ready! The warm weather is here and that means it's time to get together with friends and family and enjoy summer and the outdoors. 

I've made up darling place settings and invitations for our next BBQ. So when I say I'm ready, I really mean it. I used the awesome BBQ image from the Boys Will Be Boys set at Taylored Expressions. (Just a note: the Boys Will Be Boys set is currently out of stock, but if you'd like to be notified when it becomes available then go here and click the Request Re-stock Notice. Simply enter your email address and you'll be notified as soon as it's available!)

I wanted the invitation to look like an apron and I found a pattern online. I tweaked it a little to suit my design though. I used supplies from the Father's Day Key Ingredients because I really like the checkered patterned papers for this project. 

For the invitation I started by stamping the grill with Memento Tuxedo Black ink onto Choice Buttercream cardstock. I coloured it with copics and used one of the metal sheets from the Boys Will Be Boys Bundle for the grill body. Next I stamped and coloured the steak and flames then I cut everything out. By the way, I really enjoy cutting out, so there's a lot of it in my project...wink! I kept the front of the invitation simple so the grill would really shine (pardon the pun!). All I added was a little sewing around the edges and the ribbon. I left the ribbon loop rather long so I could hang it on my friends' front doors instead of just leaving it in their mailboxes. 

For the inside of the invitation I used the JustRite Rectangle Stamper with the Brayton Font Set and created my invite. I intentionally left the date off so I could write it in when we decide on our grillin' date. I love having things like this in my stash...ready to go at a moments notice.

For the place setting, I found these fun polka dot paper plates at Target, along with the clear plastic square plate and the cutlery.

A napkin ring seemed like a logical accessory and it was super easy to create. Once the image was stamped and coloured I cut it out with oval Nestabilities. I attached one of the patterned papers from the Father's Day Key Ingredients to the image with screw brads then wrapped it around the napkin. I couldn't resist adding the shish-kabobs and another flame.

The final surprise is on the clear square plate. Because it's see-thru I figured why not stamp the BBQ on the underneath of the plate...nobody would expect it! I stamped the image with Versamark and embossed it with black embossing powder. Then I "coloured" it with a mixture of diamond glaze and reinkers. There's no risk to the food because the image is on the under side of the plate. I can't say how durable this will be over time, but I think I'll be hand washing these plates!

So now you can be ready for grillin' season too! And don't forget to sign up for the Taylored Expressions newsletter so you're "in the loop" when news breaks about new products, specials and inspiration. You'll find the mailing list sign-up on the TE homepage here. 

Thanks for stopping by!

Karen

A Diva's Receipt/Coupon Organizer

I'll admit it...I'm one of those people who shoves receipts and coupons into the black hole, otherwise known as my purse, never to be seen or used again. I'm organized for some things, but definitely not for receipts and coupons. As soon as I saw the Downtown Diva set I KNEW I needed to make myself an organizer to keep in my purse. So here's what I came up with! 

The image from Downtown Diva is stamped with Memento Tuxedo Black onto Choice Snow White and coloured with copics. I cut it out using my Labels Two Nestabilities by Spellbinders. All the paper and ribbon are from the March Key Ingredients and the rhinestones are from the Mother's Day Key Ingredients. Have you signed up for your Key Ingredients subscription yet? I absolutely LOVE the Key Ingredients...coordinating products in one package...it's super easy to whip up projects using the Key Ingredients, and the subscription service is packed with extra value! 

But wait a second...did you notice that there are two green and one blue rhinestone, in addition to the clear ones? Well, I discovered that you can colour your rhinestones with copic markers...so the green and blue ones started out as clear ones from the Mother's Day Key Ingredients. 

Here's a tutorial I put together so you can build your own Receipt/Coupon Organizer...just in case there are other "black hole" purse carriers like me!  :)

Start with a 6x9.75 inch piece of red cardstock. Score it at 3, 3.5, 6.5, and 7 inches. This will make the body of your organizer.

Next cut two pieces of brown cardstock to 3x4 inches. You'll score both of these every half inch, at .5, 1, 1.5, 2, 2.5, 3 and 3.5 inches. Then accordian fold both pieces...these will create your sides. I wanted the sides to be accordian folds like a file folder, so that the top would open up wider than the bott0m...easier to put receipts in and get coupons out.

Next I chose one of the striped cardstock pieces for the divider. It's cut to 3x6 inches and scored at half an inch from each end. 

Then I used an oval punch on the red base piece, to create a little opening. Be sure you're punching the end panel that measures three inches, because the slightly smaller end is the one that creates the front flap. 

Next add a strong adhesive to the ends of the accordian folded pieces and to the ends of the divider piece. Taylor's Sticky Tape would be perfect for this. 

You'll adhere one end of the accordian fold piece to the inside of the front panel and the other end to the inside of the back panel. Repeat for the other side, then adhere the ends of the divider piece to each accordian piece. 

To keep the front flap closed I added some self adhesive Basic Grey magnets. The easiest way to line them up is to adhere a magnet to the inside of the flap, take your second magnet and let it attach itself (magnetically) to the first magnet, then close your flap. Presto...magnets are aligned. 

Then I added another of the patterned papers from the March Key Ingredients to hide the magnet on the front of the Organizer. I left the other magnet exposed for two reasons: 1) it doesn't really show except when I open the organizer. 2) I didn't want another layer of cardstock to take away the strength of the magnetic connection. 

Once your Organizer is built you can decorate it to suit your Diva style! 

For all the latest news, information and inspiration, don't forget to sign up for the Taylored Expressions Newsletter. You'll find the link on then left sidebar of the TE Store homepage. 

Thanks for stopping by!

Karen