An oldie

I made all my Christmas cards and Christmas thank you notes for 5 or 6 years...not sure exactly...last year I stopped and did the photo card...I still feel guilty about that, kwim? But making 110 or so cards in addition to what I make for the coffee shops just ain't gonna happen. I still make my Christmas thank you notes, though. I made this was one in the early years. I used navy linen cs, white linen cs, blue metallic text weight paper, a silver Pilot pen (edge the white linen cs), a Magenta stamp, silver pigment ink and embossing powder. It was much more time consuming than I thought. Lots of embossing, then cutting the image up in five pieces.

Thanks for looking!

A belly band card...literally!

I had this epiphany the other day to make this card. Now someone, somewhere has probably thought of this too. I often think of things to invent and a few years later I'll hear someone patented the same thing. So I'm not cocky enough to think I'm the first papercrafter to think this up, but I was happy with the idea anyway.

This just may be the simplest card I have ever made.

I gatefolded red linen cs (so Santa's belly will bulge a little), used Bazzill Bling cs (white & black), and an EK Success buckle punch on metallic paper. It has more shimmer IRL.

Ho ho ho!

I just had to make 6

I went in my craft room yesterday in search of my mojo. I pulled out my Christmas file stash and spread it out on the floor. I had exactly one 12x12 of this snow flake paper. I start thinking," Okay, that will mat 6 cards. Where are my snowflake heavy metals?" I search my heavy metals storage container and found 6 MM snowflake eyelets. Then I think, "Let me find my rub-ons." I search my rub-ons bag and found a package of MM with "merry christmas (snowflake)". Can you guess how many came in the package? Yep, 6! Then I thought,"Now, for coordinating cardstocks...reds are hard to match and this is a funny red...no luck in the dozen or so reds cs shades in my stash...let me check my DCWV cards & envelope box (digressing for a moment... I love these DCWV cards & envelope boxes! I'm on my third box. Michael's sells them and I they put them on sale at 50% off quite often. I've used all the black, white, brown, yellow, but I have A LOT of this red color from previous boxes; yeah, more than 6. LOL!)...unbelievable! This hard to match card base matches perfectly :) The green cs is called "tropical green" from ACMoore open stock cs. Oh yeah, and I used my SU! ticket punch on the corners.

Stay tuned for my belly band card I'll post tomorrow...I just finished it. I came up with it in my little head last night.

Many Joys

I remember seeing this card on the Hero Arts website around 3 years ago (?) I made this set because I was thinking of one of Kathryn's kindergarten team teachers, "Miss Joy." She IS such a joy, too. She is always smiling and her enthusiasm in working with 22 kindergartners is contagious! I am going to see her tomorrow. Wednesday is usually my day to run the parent table in Kathryn's class (always an arts & crafts item!)

Anyway, I had some Hanko Japenese cardstock I purchased from Camie's Paperie in Purcellville, VA before she closed her store last year. I also owned the "Joy" stamp from Hero Arts, the EK Success tree punch, MM small buttons, and stickles all in my stash. I love this card, but I do not know who to credit for the original design other than to say "Hero Arts" website. I have not created a June Houck original in a long time. I hope to find my mojo soon :)

Paper Purse w/ 4 notecards

Ingredients:
1 @12"x12" Sharon Ann paper,
4 @ 3"x6" Bazzill cs, scored & folded,
Amercan Crafts rub-ons "Ginger" font,
American Crafts double-sided ribbon, and
scallop and circle punches from coordinating Sharon Ann paper

For mass production and speed, use Cricut for circles and scallop punches OR SU! punches. The "purse" is one entire sheet of 12x12, scored and folded...no cutting involved! I learned how to make the "purse" from Sue(http://www.welovetostamp.com/). Isn't she awesome?

Two from Sue

One of my Stampin' Up! consultant friends is Sue ( http://www.welovetostamp.com/). I made these two cards at Sue's monthly stamp camp. She provides everything you need to create two cards. This is what we made last week. The T'giving card is made from circle, oval and flower punches. Yep... even the beak, feet, and dangly thingy are pieces of flowers punched. The friend card is a stamp set from the mini catalog. My mom bought this set...I think I'll need to borrow it!

My "aha" moment...

No cards or other fun things to post, but...when I was in the shower (why do all my "aha" moments come in the middle of the night or in the shower?) I thought about this:

Since moving to northern Virginia, I have made some new good friends. First, Tracy (a Jersey girl http://suzyscrapbooker.blogspot.com/ & http://smallsmackerels.blogspot.com/). I started reading (and loving) the Stephanie Plum series by Janet Evanovich (both Jersey girls).
Then Mary (no blog; a Jersey girl). Then my dh (who was born in NJ) took me to a book signing to meet my favorite author, Sharon Kay Penman (Jersey girl). Then I met Jean(http://prettykittydogmoonjewelry.blogspot.com/; from NY...close enough to Jersey, right?). Then Lauren (Jersey girl; http://llaurenb.blogspot.com/).

Are you sensing a pattern here? Or maybe I just need to get more sleep...

If you are from Jersey, please comment. If not, it really isn't your fault. Don't feel bad, leave a comment anyway. If you are not reading this, you are not obligated to leave a comment.

Last of the stash

The card on the left I taught at Memories and the card on the right I made from scraps a few years ago as my mass produced card that year (not a Memories card). These are my favs of all the cards from this stash. I hope you like them too :)

More Christmas card stash

More cards I made when I was a customer/taught at Memories. Simplistic designs, and using MM metals (brads, circle clips, eyelet charm, and eyelet).

New Kindergarten teacher for Kathryn

I found this cute box pattern from an SCS challenge Qbee's Peek-a-boo box. The pattern did not come out in my pic, but it does credit Brenda Quintana (here is the link: http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=295073)

I've needed an excuse to try it, so I covered the circle hole with acetate, then filled the box with chocolate covered peanuts. Kathryn's teacher moved up to teach 2nd grade (she is a wonderful kindergarten teacher, but needed a full-time paying job). Kathryn's new teacher, Mrs. Leone, is being moved from one of the K-2 Autism classrooms (not the one Julia is in). How great is that?! She totally gets Kathryn :) I'll give this to Mrs. Leone on Monday, when I get to see Kathryn play the part of a turkey in a Thanksgiving play.

More Christmas card stash

I made these also from my days teaching at Memories...a moment of silence, please...I can't believe they closed. Recollections is closing too, but no surprises there. Now there is really just Ashburn Family Scrapbook Center, where I currently teach, that is "near" (about a 15 minute drive, same as Memories was, Recollections just a little further). I am also fortunate to have ACMoore & Michael's at 10 and 8 minutes, respectively. I just like options, kwim?

Heavy Metal Christmas cards

These are from a class at Memories...possibly a Christmas in July class of '03. Greenberry's has customers asking for cards since BEFORE Halloween. I thought it was just the stores that were early in preparing for the holiday season :) I have not made any cards since those last batch of Halloween...feels like forever...I pulled these out of my stash and packaged them. Just need to invoice them and get them over to my happy place :) I love G'berry's chocolate tea cakes...they are so yummy! And a nice hot green tea with honey or a mocha latte with cinnamon...oops! I gotta wipe the drool off the keyboard. TTFN!

A Christmas tag

Oy! My picture looks washed out. This tag is made with Deja Views dp and cs sticker, red linen cs, and white cs. The poem came from a tag from a Memories class from maybe 2003? I don't recall. You place the tag on a big Hershey candy bar :)

The poem reads:

Christmas Fudge

A day or two ago
We thought we’d make a treat
For all our special friends
A Christmas treat to eat.

Our intentions were top notch
But our schedules wouldn’t budge
Hence, here’s this year’s edition
Of homemade Christmas fudge.

Two Little Mermaids

Here are my two little princesses enjoying their Halloween treats. I hope your Halloween was cooky and spooky!