Pebbles guest design work...

Recently I was asked to guest design for Pebbles, Inc., a division of American Crafts, and today I get to share my creations with you! I used mostly their Floral Lane line, right up my alley, and added a few items from The Mr. & Mrs. line. I REALLY enjoyed working with these products! The first layout was actually inspired by the "thank you" sticker. Of course it would be perfect for a card, but I wanted to use it on a layout! I love to write little notes to my girls on my pages. (Someday they will read them, and it will mean something to them. Right now, they are too little to care. lol)

(I'm not sure why Blogger is cutting off the right side of my page, sorry about that.)

I used a Papertrey Ink die (Spiral Notebook Page) to cut the little notebook shapes out of the patterned paper and ran them through the printer for the journaling. Also punched out a doily shape (Parisian Doily) from white cardstock and cut out the middle with a circle punch to add a little spot for the "thank you" sticker.

These are fall pictures, but they seem to work great with these papers none-the-less! I wanted to add a little detail at the bottom, so I stamped with Papertrey Ink's Everyday Button Bits stamp set.

Here is the journaling...

Next, I made another layout and wanted to include all of these fun patterns and colors from the papers! I saw a picture on Pinterest that really sparked my attention HERE. I decided to try it out on a page by painting the limbs of the tree on white cardstock, then I punched several circles from the papers. "You Make Me Smile Everyday"...

I love the dimensional stickers and gorgeous flower brads!! I stamped "happy, happy, joy, joy" with Papertrey Ink's Blooming Button Bits to add a bit of text to my page.

Here's a little thank you card made with the floral paper, a strip of the polkadot paper and some of the dimensional stickers. They are so easy, just peel and stick, and you already have dimension.

Thank you to Pebbles for having me as a guest this month! For a complete supply list and a chance to win some Pebbles products, stop over to the Pebbles blog!

teacher gifts and wrap...

Wow. June, where have you gone? Just yesterday it was May. There have been field trips and field days and Kindergarten graduations, field hockey lessons, Father's Day, Donuts for Dads at school, my 40th birthday, Kati's 6th birthday, dentist appointments, cheerleading meetings, class parties. I just can't believe all that has gone on so far this month!

Yesterday was Kati's 6th birthday. It was their last whole day of school. Today they have a 1/2 day and tomorrow is her birthday party with her friends! We have had cake with family over Father's Day weekend for her, snack at school for her birthday, then yesterday we had cake at home with her on her "real" day. Tomorrow we'll have a party at the park with her friends! Four birthdays - what a spoiled little girl. But, I do have to say she deserves every minute of it! I'll post pics and such soon!

Really quick, I wanted to share the teacher gifts I put together. Taylor is in 5th grade and has 5 teachers and Kati had 1 (great one!), so I couldn't go overboard on the price of the gifts unfortunately and didn't want to leave anybody out. I found some beautiful necklace and earring sets at Kohl's for the female teachers on sale, and they came in the cute jewelry boxes, so I had fun dressing them up.

I added a piece of scrapbook paper to the top (Pebbles - Floral Lane - Sweet Thoughts paper), wrapped a doily around the boxes and taped the doily together on the bottom of the box. Next came the Twinery twine, then I had some Jenni Bowlin stamped butterflies lying around from another project, so I clipped them onto the package with little clothespins. First, I painted the clips with acrylic paint, just a swipe with my finger, then stamped on them when they were dry with Papertrey Ink stamps. "Heartfelt thanks" and "just for you" are from the Mat Stack 3 Collection.

On the cards, I used the "thank you" from Think Big Favorites #4, the leaves were stamped with Turning a New Leaf, then I made hearts from the yellow Papertrey Ink felt. This card below is very similar, except I added a stamped border from Ribbon Tails. I had to make this card larger to fit a gift card inside for Wendy, our bus driver. (Ink is Pure Poppy and Hawaiian Shores.)

This one is very similar, just a slightly different color scheme going on. I made the little roses from seam binding.

The last one uses Pebbles - Floral Lane stickers. You are probably wondering why I didn't do all of them with the big red butterflies. Originally, I was going to and then...I couldn't find the butterfly stamp in my mess of a desk!

I hope the teachers like them and feel appreciated for all of their hard work.

 

birthday invitations...

Today I've been working on a little something for my daughter Kati's 6th birthday next week - some butterfly birthday invitations.

Awhile back when I made these lollipop bouquets, Kati decided she wanted a butterfly party for her 6th birthday, and she wants to make that craft with her friends at the party. We are actually going to have it at the park, but hopefully we can fit in a craft. I think I'm going to have things stamped out ahead of time and the lollipop bouquet bases already made and all they will have to do is assemble the bouquet - stick the lollipops in the middle of the stamped images and insert into the foam! (See link above for directions for that craft). I will probably change the colors of the lollipop bouquet stamping to match our invitations and party decor.

Anyway...let me tell you a little about my invitations! I started with Papertrey Ink's medium Glassine Bags. I used the sentiment from Blooming Button Bits and stamped it in black StazOn ink across the bag. The bags are somewhat slippery, so I thought StazOn would work the best. It did. But for the flower stems, I didn't really want black. I wanted to add some green, so I used Ripe Avocado ink with the stems from "Blooming Button Bits". It didn't come out perfectly, but that's ok. I used my heat gun to dry the green ink quickly, so I could move on to the next step. I stamped all of the sentiments and stems first to all of the invites.

Next, I made the insert for the inside, by printing out the party details onto white paper, then stamping a yellow butterfly over the top from Happy Trails.

The finished inserts were put inside the bags...
I punched a bunch of butterflies from vintage book paper and some October Afternoon - Detours paper from my stash...

...then attached the butterflies to the outside of each bag.

Then I added ALL of the buttons. This part is the most painful and took the longest! I threaded all of the buttons with white embroidery thread and attached them with a glue dot. To finish my invitations, I folded over the edge of the bags and stapled them closed with a staple and some pretty seam binding. To color the seam binding pink, I sprayed it with Vintage Pink Glimmer Mist by Tattered Angels. I ran out of Vintage Pink, so I ended up spraying the rest of them with Viva Pink. Let them dry or heat them with a heat gun before attaching to your bag.

My older daughter asked me, "Why are you making them so fancy? You KNOW people will just throw them away!" Yes, I do believe she's right, but I do what I do because I enjoy it....and I hope they will put a smile on someone's face. :)

all kinds of fun...

That's what I had when creating with the new Papertrey Ink stamps this month! ha All of the new sets come out on the 15th of every month, and you can see them on the main page at www.papertreyink.com. They are so cute. Are you ready to see? OK, here we go...

The first card is made with my absolute favorite set this month. It's called Mehndi Medallion. The details are just amazing in these stamps! So many cool things you can do with the circles!

I layered a large circle, then a red one in the center. Then I stamped some yellow ones and punched them out with a scalloped circle punch that I have. You can leave them flat or pop them up for dimension! I added a sentiment from the new Think Big Favorites #5 set and lots of layers of Papertrey Ink cardstock.

 Thank You card:

Stamps: Mehndi Medallion, Think Big Favorites #5
Ink: Pure Poppy, True Black, and yellow/pink by Jenni Bowlin
Paper: vintage book paper and Papertrey Ink cardstock
Dies: scalloped punch from my stash
Other: resin keyhole by Melissa Frances 

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This one was also made with Mehndi Medallion.

I made a pattern with the circles for my background, then added a label sticker and chipboard over the top. I stamped "Sweet" in True Black from the Sweet Baby stamp set.

Sweet Girl card:

Stamps: Mehndi Medallion, Sweet Baby
Ink: True Black, Pure Poppy, and Yellow/pink by Jenni Bowlin
Paper: vintage book paper, yellow cardstock
Dies: none, punch is Martha Stewart 1" scalloped circle
Other: chipboard and stickers by Crate Paper, Papertrey Ink felt

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This card is made with the new Gracious Vases stamp set.

I used some of my favorite flowers from the set to stamp across the card with Jenni Bowlin ink and added one or two of the flowers in red for the "Cherished" flowers. :) I had fun looking through my stash for some papers I haven't used in a long time and found these October Afternoon - Detours papers and die cuts. Lovin' the color combo.

 You are Cherished card:

Stamps: Gracious Vases
Ink: Pure Poppy (red) and Jenni Bowlin - Chewing Gum (pink)
Paper: October Afternoon - Detours, white cardstock
Dies: none
Other: resin swirl - Melissa Frances, ribbon - Papertrey Ink, tab - October Afternoon - Detours

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Here is the new Flower Fusion #5 stamp set.

I stamped the flower and cut it out, then popped up the top of the flower with dimensional adhesive. The sentiment was masked off, so I could fit a little bit of it on each side of the flower. I pleated the ribbon with my sewing machine and then attached it to my card.

You're the Best card:

Stamps: Flower Fusion #5
Ink: True Black, Hawaiian Shores, Raspberry Fizz
Paper: Crate Paper - Toy Box (journaling card), blue cardstock
Dies: Flower Fusion
Other: Ribbon - Cosmo Cricket, brad - Crate Paper 

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This is the new Tag-its #5 stamp set. The circles are stamped with Hawaiian Shores ink, very subtle. Added a Crate Paper sticker, brad and 2 felt hearts. Super quick and easy card.

 Love You, Love You card:

Stamps: Tag-its #5
Ink: Hawaiian Shores, True Black
Paper: Papertrey Ink cardstock
Dies: none
Other: sticker and brad - Crate Paper, Papertrey Ink felt.

Stop over to my JUNE gallery to see all of my projects for this month!

happy in my heart...

Hello! First today, I wanted to show you a little card that I made last month that I forgot to post. I am so loving the Papertrey Ink products (if you couldn't tell!) and am having so much fun creating with them. When you try something new, it's like a breathe of fresh air. That's how I feel with stamping and die cutting lately! I am having fun with it and it's making me very happy! :)

On this card, I used some Papertrey ink felt to make a little house and decorate some Maya Road chipboard. I used the Wonderful Words die for "happy" and added the touch of red with stitches. The red words on the bottom are the "Wonderful Words Additions" stamps.

 Happy in My Heart card:

STAMPS: Wonderful Words Additions

PAPER: cardstock - Papertrey Ink, patterned paper - Pink Paislee

INK: Pure Poppy

DIES: Wonderful Words

OTHER: chipboard - Maya Road, twine - Pink Paislee, button and felt - PTI, 

Cuttlebug embossing folder - dots, Melissa Frances pearl.

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Next is a card made with the Fruit Fusion stamps. I was playing around with the Edgers #3 dies with red cardstock and found that if you don't cut all the way through the ends (make the cardstock just a touch longer than the die), you get a nice pocket, perfect for tucking in a tag...

This is the new Fruiti Tutti paper! Cute, huh? I stamped the little criss-crossies onto the red cardstock with the Fruit Fusion: Pear set. The wording is Fruit Fusion: Berry. One tip: when stitching on the felt, it stretches the felt a bit and makes it not quite straight....I'll have to remember that next time. It was difficult to make it look straight on this card. I cut another word out of the Wonderful Words die and used a pin to "underline" it. :)

You're Berry Sweet card:

STAMPS: Fruit Fusion - Berry and Fruit Fusion: Pear PTI

PAPER: red, white and green cardstock, Tutti Fruiti paper - PTI

INK: Pure Poppy and True Black - PTI

DIES: Wonderful Words and Edgers #3 - PTI

OTHER:  felt, button and twine - PTI, machine stitching.

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Hope you are having a great day,

Happy trails...

Welcome to another Papertrey Ink blog hop and today we are featuring the new Happy Trails stamps and dies coming out the 15th. I was inspired by the bird in the set and the little inspirational saying that goes with it!

I've been seeing these cute stuffed birds on-line and well....I love any fabric project, so I gave it a whirl. To make the bird, I just cut 2 bird pieces from fabric and placed them wrong sides together. I machine stitched around 3/4 of it and left a hole at the bottom of her belly to turn it right side out and stuff it with quilt batting. I stamped "smile" on her belly before stuffing. The wings are decorate with felt, lace, flower and an Artisan Element by Pink Paislee.

The legs are made of thick wire, so that the bird can stand. I just bent them and played around until she stood up! It helps to make the wired legs long and stick the wire all the way up into her body to give her some extra stabilization. Oh, don't forget to add some cute wooden spools to the legs if you wish! Makes her a little whimsical and homespun. :)

I really wanted her to hold a twig of some sort, but I opted for a pin and then hung a felt heart on the pin.

I loved the saying that came with the bird in the stamp set, so I stamped it with Ripe Avocado ink and Pure Poppy for the word "song" and added it to this cute little frame with a Happy Trails die cut bird in the corner. I had to stamp the words a little differently to get them to fit, so I masked off some of the words as I went and stamped a few words at a time.

Tuck these two together in a nice gift box and what a sweet gift it would make.

Because It Has a Song gift set:

STAMPS: Happy Trails

INK: Ripe Avocado, Pure Poppy, True Black

PAPER: white cardstock

DIES: Happy Trails (small bird on frame)

OTHER: fabric, Papertrey Ink felt, Prima flower, Pink Paislee Artisan Element, lace, floral pin, frame from Dollar Tree, pink ribbon and brad by Crate Paper, wire and spools from craft supply.
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I have one more card to show you with this set. I stamped the bird onto a resist paper by Pink Paislee. Damask paper is new by Papertrey Ink and so pretty!

Dreams Take Flight card:

STAMPS: Happy Trails

INK: Simply Chartreuse

PAPER: Pink Paislee (text), Papertrey Ink (damask)

DIES: XL ric rac border

OTHER: sticker by Crate Paper, pin and flower by Maya Road, bird by Melissa Frances, Papertrey Ink felt.
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Thank you so much for reading today. Please visit the other gals to see what they have made with the other items in this stamp set...there is a butterfly, fountain pen, quill pen, ink pen, pencil, dragonfly, and an airplane...all come with "trails" you can stamp with them as well.

Betsy Veldman  

Dawn McVey  

Erin Lincoln  

Heather Nichols  

Jessica Witty  

Lisa Johnson  

Maile Belles

Melissa Phillips
Michelle Wooderson
Nichole Heady

Sweet baby inspiration...

Welcome to another Papertrey Ink blog hop! Today we are featuring projects made with a new stamp set coming out on the 15th called Sweet Baby. I wanted to tackle a fabric project - a bib made out of a dish towel.

I found a plain white dish towel at the Dollar Tree store and folded it in half, then cut out a half circle at the top (on the fold) for the neck with pinking sheers. I had some white muslin in my stash of fabrics, so I stamped the animals on it with Raspberry Fizz, Ripe Avocado and Orange Zest inks, then heat set them with a heat gun. I don't know if they will wash out. I would probably recommmend using permanent stamping ink for this type of project, but the only color I had in permanent was black! I tried fabric paint, but it was too thick and gloppy. When I stamped with it, it filled in the holes of the stamp, so stamping ink is definitely better!

After stamping on the muslin, I trimmed it with pinking shears. Next, I cut a strip of yellow gingham fabric and pleated it, and cut a fabric heart. I pinned everything down, then stitched with my sewing machine.

I hand stitched "baby" with pink floss and made a little flower with Raspberry Fizz ribbon, then hand stitched it on to the center of the heart.

This bib just slips over baby's head. Wish I had a cute baby to demonstrate the finished product! :)

  Sweet baby bib:

STAMPS: Sweet Baby

INK: Raspberry Fizz, Orange Zest, Ripe Avocado 

PAPER: none 

DIES: none 

OTHER: muslin, fabric from my stash, ribbon - Raspberry Fizz,
pinking shears, embroidery floss.

Please visit the rest of the ladies to see what they've made! 

Betsy Veldman  

Dawn McVey  

Erin Lincoln  

Heather Nichols  

Jessica Witty  

Lisa Johnson  

Maile Belles

Melissa Phillips
Michelle Wooderson
Nichole Heady