Tree ornaments

Happy Day After Boxing day! Did you go out for any sales? I went to the in law's place. they live close to a huge mall. 2 Off ramps from the highway were blocked, as was the road to the mall. So glad we were going the opposite direction. And I'm staying in again today. We're off to Montreal at my sister in law's tomorrow. So I'll save my boot shopping till then.

Anyho... here is the 1st version of the ornaments I made. i made about 20 of them and forgot to take pictures. The red ones were so cute, I think I'll make a few more to have on hand.

The box is a matchbox style. the tag is from Quickutz Jolly die cut set.


I couldn't get a decent picture of it on the tree, so here it is on the table. I love this. I used Cuttlebug tree die and embossing set. The paper is glitter paper. And the glass is microscope slides. i didn't have to cut it! Limiting in size of project, but I'm happy with it. I plan on making more of this project for various occasions. can't wait. The hook is from Walmart. i have a bunch of people on the look out for them, as I need more gold ones to match the copper foil.


Thanks for looking and have a great New year's. I may check in before then, but I don't really have anything made to show you. I can show you my new boots when I buy them. Ooooo, that will bring you back for sure. lol

have a good one,
Amanda

4 little snowmen in a row...

4 little snowmen made of snow.
out came the sun and shone all day,
1 little snowman melted away.

I think of this song I used to sing to the wee ones in my other life. It's funny to watch them melt at the end.

Anyhow.... here's an idea that came to fruition. I'm so tickled, I thought I'd share with ya, b/c my husband is a little weary of hearing my giggles about it.


I wanted to make a hot chocolate kit for my husband's relatives. It started with the mug, then I bought some other plastic container for the marshmallows. But lo and behold..... I saw these babies and HAD to have them! I mean, are they not perfect????!!!! I have to see if there are any left for future gifts.
The cup fits in the bottom with a spoon:


The marshmallows fit in the tophat:


Hot chocolate mix in the middle part. I had to take it out of the tin and put it in a baggie to make it work, but it's for people I know. So hopefully they won't get too squeamish about that.


And to top it all off, a frother. It makes it so much easier to mix the powder in than stirring with a spoon.


Did you notice that the snowmen are drinking their own hot chocolate? TOO Cute I tell ya, too much.

Tomorrow I'll be baking some mini partridge berry loaves. Partridge berries grow in Newfoundland, where I grew up. it is sort of like at small cranberry or actually, closer to a lingonberry that is found in Sweden. Then wrap a few more presents. My daughter keeps asking to see santa. Since tomorrow is her last chance, I may just have to hit the mall! bleck. Make a few more prezzies that I should be able to show you the next day and then off to sing. I get a few hours to myself in the evening. My husband is visiting with his extended family in their tradition on Christmas eve. But being the cantor at my church, I have to stay and sing. oh well, Jesus is the reason for the season after all. They will join me in church the next morning.

i wish you and yours a safe holiday!
Merry Christmas!

Thanks for looking,
Amanda

Rafael the red nosed reindeer

My son, the joker...



He likes to get a little silly sometimes. Doesn't he remember his mother always has a camera ready?!
This layout has been swirling in my head for a few weeks. I finally got some things together. Felt reindeer from michael's, dotted paper from SU, black paper with cutouts from memoriy makers, mini tree lights from the buck store last year and the letters from a bunch of different places. i really should invest in some proper chip board letters. Or at least more than 1 pack of 1 kind. I used glitter and flocking on them. oh yes, and the micro beads. Don't forget to colour the letter under the micro beads. I did for the flocking, but not the beads. Learn from my mistakes people. it looks naked under there. lol And I used the antler from the hat he was wearing. It had lived it's life and is now immortalized.


I made this just for you , you know, so I could give you something to look at.
Thanks for stopping by and go wrap a present or something. I know I should.
Amanda

glass ornament #2

K, here is a sneak peek of what I've been working on. The others don't have pictures or the scrapbook style, but I can share this one, as the recipient does not read my blog.


I've had this vision to make this style of ornament since this summer. Remember i bought the items to make soldered ornaments this summer? Well, I finally got the nerve to try it and enjoyed the learning curve. i am still learning and will play with it more. It is still not good enough to give as a present (soldered ornaments), but I'm trying. I am also cutting my own glass, which is another huge learning, patience thing.

But hey, at this time of year, I don't have an hour or 2 to spend on one ornament. So..... this is my compromise. Just using the copper foil tape without the silver soldering. I spent many, many days trying to figure it all out. i started using 1/4 inch ribbon on some sticky tape and using that to hold the glass together, but the tape wasn't sticky enough. with the changes in the weather, the ribbon would start to unglue. I thought of using the foil, but didn't know how to put a hanger on it. then I bought these hooks from Walmart. I already had them in silver, but knew it wouldn't look good with the copper colour. When I went back, they had this gold-y colour. i grabbed them. they are close enough for me to use. I stick it to the ornament with more copper foil. i think i'll have to double it. this ornament is HEAVY! Don't want the hook to tear off.

The paper is from K&Company and the gingerbread people are from Quickutz Jolly die cut set. Cut out of velvet paper. Ribbon from Stampin' up!, I think.

k, off to make more stuff.

thanks for looking,
Amanda

checkin' in!

Hi ho,
how goes in this crazy season?

i've been working on a few things, but I can't show you as there is a danger that the recipients of my craftiness may be reading my blog! So you'll see it after Christmas. I know, too late for you to case it, but there's always next year. lol

Busy here with singing in various venues. We sang at a mall last weekend and actually got a crowd gathering and some applause! It's been a while since we've experienced that. It's funny to see all the cell phones pop out when you stop long enough for people to take pictures. Wonder what they do with them??? mmmm. It was a nice thing compared to the 4 piece jazz band in the party room we had to sing against the night before. We stayed in the hallway as the residents come to the party. sore singing. Buit I love it. Where else do you get to roam around and sing? Don't know of any other season where people unite in song. Quick, name me a rousing Easter song that people sing in the mall. :}

well, I told my daughter we could go to my stamping room and now she's bugging me to go.. she's only 2 and is hooked. I also told her she could sit at her big brother's table. Too much excitement.

Thanks for stopping by and have a great one!!!! don't let it stress you... we are human beings, not human doings...
peace.

Amanda

Glass ornament#1

Last night, I woke up at 3:30 when my daughter crawled into my bed. She was so restless, I didn't get back to sleep. But my mind was put to good use thinking of ways to use the STUFF i have. Too much STUFF not being used. After blurffing, i saw this kind of ornament.



I had square ones from Michael's last year. I'm sure you can still get them. Boy was this baby hard to photograph.
The image is stamped and embossed in black EP on acetate. Then i coloured it in with Sharpie markers and covered the back with white embossing powder. It boosts the colour of the image. A hole was punched at the top to hold a string. (next time, I'll use invisible thread.) You roll the acetate and insert into the top of the ornament. Oh, put the fake snow in first. My friend was over and said it needed a little something else, so I stamped the dog and cheers on the outside of the ornament and embossed. The images are from a snowglobe set from Michael's a few years ago and the sentiment is from Papertrey Ink's Holiday greetings.


Kinda fun to do. I have 3 more bulbs, so you'll see a few more of these. i hope.:}

Thanks for looking,
Amanda

Christmas Snowglobe

here is the change up I did for my snowglobe. The glitter did settle down. it just needed a few days to get thoroughly wet.
It's fun to change it for the seasons.




My son and I are sharing a lovely bark, aka, cough and sore throat. but it didn't keep us from seeing santa yesterday. yes, more pics to scrap.

Thanks for looking,
Amanda

Toolafella

I decided I needed to add a new fella to my stamping room... Meet Toolafella from Stamping Bella. I mean, I have the tape measure paper, the screw eyelets, friends that are a little handy, or at least try to be. So he needed to come home with me. lol






Thanks for looking,
Amanda

Joy Joy!

At this time of year, I work with an agency and sing Christmas carols in various places around the city. My husband brought the kids to watch me and Neve was enthralled. She got daddy to come back twice before they actually left.

When I came home, she wanted to put on my costume. I managed to snap this picture before the doilie fell off.

I KNEW I had to scrap it. When I went to my friend Sarah's to play (www.sarahiscrafty.com) she let me loose with her Quickutz Silhouette cutting system. WOW! Great machine. Endless.....




I chose this Joy Ornament on real red SU cardstock. The black paper is from Making memories. It is in a pack of 6 black pages with various cutouts. I embossed around the opening using my enveloper as a guide. The snow flakes are SU and the brads in them are from Target. Got them a few years ago. The silver flowers on the snowflakes are also form SU. The ribbon is from Michael's, last year.
So tickled that the green CS matches the shirt.

her photo is not so washed out in Real Life. I braved the freezing cold and took it out on the walkway to get some light. It sure was bright today. And Cold. And windy. I chased that thing around the yard more than I wished. lol

I think I'm a think about it for a few days scrapper.

Thanks for looking,
Amanda

YOu ROck!!!

My niece celebrated her 10th birthday last month and I was looking for this stamp set after I saw it on someone's blog. It is from Inkadinkado. It has a drum kit, some skulls, rockstar and the images here. LOVE IT!

Bailey, sorry it's sooo late, but I've been adding extras to your birthday box! :}




Thanks for looking,
Amanda

Post it note holder

I had fun last night making up these post it note holders. Quick and cute:



I was looking over the internet to find a template for some kind of holder, but didn't find one that was easy. There is something where you put the pencil inside the spine, but I couldn't find the directions. So I made my own.


The original was the reindeer one. it has a little pocket inside. When I was putting the others together, I noticed the little pocket could be a flap/cover. I tried it with some silver elastic cord, but it was bulky. Then my eye spied the lovely garter ribbon from Stamping Bella. Small, stretchy and visually appealing. Leave it to Emily to find such treasures. :} The pink pompom ribbon is also from Stamping Bella. You really should go there! So much in a small space.


I decorated the front with a few simple things, die cut shapes from Quickutz and the label 1 nestability. The sentiment is made from Karen Foster snap stamps that have been retired. The paper is from K&Company.


The possibilites are endless. I'm looking forward to making a few more and handing them out to my friends.

thanks for looking,
Amanda

Baby shower thank you kit

I attended a baby shower yesterday and made this for the mother in waiting.

the tin case is from Lee Valley. the 53mm watchmakerm tins came in it. i have a few of these on hand from all my previous watchmake tintreasures. SO glad it all fit nicely.


The top is done with Stampin' Up! paper and nestabilities label 1 die. image is from the baby set at Joann's.


See how nicely the cards, envies and stamps fit in? the book on the right is the guest/gift book.


Here is the inside of the book. I did the template for it last spring and had to tweek it a little to remember how to print on both sides. Pain, but hopefully I'll remember for next time. Should write the specs down.

And lastly, here's the tag that came on the gift. simple.


Have a look at the stamp sets for sale below.

thanks for looking,
Amanda

Stamps for sale

Well, finally getting around to putting these up. I have a few more I'll do later..

1st up is a retired Stampin' Up! set from 2001. It has been loved and has some staining, but doesn't affect the stamped image.
$20 rare


Another rare set from 2004, Little Engine. Some staining, does not affect image. $25


And one for the Christmas season, very rare $30 The 12 Days of Christmas. 2001. Some staining, does not affect image. great to emboss and colour! Advent calendar ideas galore.


Shipping: I took the 12 days of Christmas to the post office. It is $7-$10 in Canada and about $8-9 to USA. Buyer will pay actual shipping. Payment can be set up thru paypal or cash for local pickup. Canadian Funds only.

Thanks for looking,
Amanda

cupcake

here's a card I had fun with for my friend sarah's birthday. Also, my sister in law.




The cardbase is from michael's. It comes embossed already. The sparkle bits are also from a card pack. Big cupcake is from inque boutique. I used crystal effects on the cherry and leaf. The small cupcakes are from Stampin' Up!. It's the small wheel. I coloured with markers and then used chalk for the background. the little clip is from some tag maker machine. I bought a box of tags for like, 3 bucks. Shoulda bought the thank you ones also.
The hole and frame were cut from Nestabilities label 1.

I attended a birthday party for Sarah tonight. We had it at Stamping bella. Nicky did a great job with the cards again. What fun!
I have to get a pic of the card I made from the group to Sarah. A tri-fold card with Hello Kitty Paper. it was also a fun one.

thanks for looking,
Amanda

Remember these??



Well, I put them together in this little package...


To put on the top of a wine bottle. Kind of a little hostess gift with the wine. I'm not a drinker, so when people bring wine, it's like, thanks, my husband thanks you. What about the non drinker??!!! huh? lol


The top of the bag is Nestabilities label 1 die, Merry Christmas font is from Quickutz dollar stamps, ornament QK Jolly die and the curly hook is from Walmart. Love them.

Thanks for looking,
Amanda

Baby clothesline

Don't you just love it when DH comes in the stamping den and makes a quick, quite useful comment to make your mass production quicker?
Such a thing happened with this card. DH is good for these one liners.
I showed him my card in it's development stage. He says, "hey, wouldn't it be cool if you could put all those stamps on one sheet of acrylic?" And I say, "what, like this one?"
Thus, this card became a 3 step stamping card instead of 5.



THe most time consuming of this card was gluing the little green clothes pegs on the line. I had to switch glue to a faster drying one. Who wants to sit around holding down a little piece of paper. "Not I!" said the sheep.

Clothes are from the baby acrylic stamps I got at Joann's. The pole is from Papertrey Ink's Green Thumb and the grass is from Stampin' Up! Pocket Silhouettes.

Hope you like. I made 24 for a shower. Gonna make a kit with the postage stamps, little book to keep track of presents and who gave them and some mailing labels.

Thanks for Looking,
Amanda

Tutu Face

Hello!

I've been busy, but didn't take pictures. I have some now, so I'll be a little more regular in the next few days.

This is a card for my friend's daughter. Her party is tomorrow. Think this is a good card for a 3 year old?


Image and sentiment is from Stamping Bella. Love it. Can't tell ya much more about the rest of the products. Simple layout.
I just finished 24 shower thank you cards and a few little keychains. Off to try a few bookmarks before bed. Gotta get these ideas out of my head.

thanks for looking,
Amanda

Reindeer in flight

This card base was cut with Spellbinders Label 1 die. The ornaments and hohoho were cut with Quickutz Jolly set and the paper is K&Company, Peppermint twist paper pack. A bit of glitter to bling it up... voila.


Thanks for looking,
Amanda

Ornament card

here is a sample I did using the large ornament from the Jolly die cut kit from Quickutz.
base is purely pomegranate CS from SU. The white circle is confetti white CS with holly cuttlebug embossing folder. I used some metallic rub on cream (?) I bought at a 2nd hand sale. It comes in a palette like kids watercolour paints, but it's like a cream. You can use your fingers to rub it in the paper. I've seen it for sale on Gina K's site.






Easy peasy.

Thanks for looking,
Amanda

Jolly Magnets

I borrowed my friend's Quickutz Jolly die set over the weekend and had a lovely time on Friday night cutting and creating.
I LOVE this set. But at 90 bucks a pop, it's just not on my list of acquisitions soon.:}
Here are some little magnets I made with the frame die and the bulb.
(for more ideas on this set, check out my friend's blog... www.sarahiscrafty.com

This one uses the frame die, hoho die and the trees die. Paper is current, but I don't know what it is.


This one uses the smallest bulb and the gingerpeople row. LOVE this little die. so cute. The green was done with swiss dots cuttlebug folder.


This paper is from K&Company. I think it's last year's paper? Bought the stack from Winners for 7 bucks!!!!!!! Used the inside of the frame piece for this one. A bit of glitter on the beard and fur to bling him up.


And an idea that needs some tweeking...
A picture frame that can also be an ornament.

2 problems: the holes are in the die, so the wire is in the middle of the frame. I can fix it by playing with it and adding a hole higher to wind the wire through. You need to do that b/c the wire falls when it is used as a magnet. For photo purposes, I tucked the wired under the magnet corners. But believe, me, it falls otherwise.
Problem #2: The magnet was also cut out with the frame die, so it is the same size as the frame. Good right?! No. When you tuck a wallet size picture in there, it covers the magnet. Solution, cut the frame out of heavy cardstock as the back, glue the picture into place and then cut out a magnet piece to cover the back. it was fun to play with the wire and beads that were in my stash. The nice heart is a magnet separate from this set. My daughter put it there as I was taking a picture. Nice idea. May have to look into making a paper one to put there.

that's it for now,
thanks for looking,
Amanda

Stampin' up foam

Look what happens when your kids are bored of watching you cut rubbah!



Poor Dora, even she couldn't be spared!

have a great day.
Amanda

matchbox ornaments

My crafty friend at www.sarahiscrafty.com has done it again! She used the small ornament die from Quickutz Jolly set to make a cute little gift. But she made it even more delish by putting it in a match box cut out by her silhoutte machine.

here is my take on the whole thing. I made my own match boxes, as I don't own the silhoutte machine.
Sorry, the pictures are all backwards to how I wanted to present it. so you'll get the surprise first. :}

The paper is SU confetti CS. THe blue foil-y paper is from the dollar store. The snowflakes and swiss dot folders are from Cuttlebug.


The paper on this one is from Stampin' Up! DP mini book. I put a white circle inside as it is double sided paper and most of the insides are dark. This way, people can write easily inside.


The paper on these is last year's Basic Grey paper. Or is it from 2 years ago?! I don't know if it's still available this year. I had just enough scraps to make 4 each.


Here they are nestled snug in their beds....


And all boxed up.


These were really fun to make. i have more ideas for regular tags to put in these boxes. Gonna make some themes.. music, hockey, dance.

last night, I worked some more on my soldering skills. It's fun, but definitely a learning curve. The hardest part will be cutting the glass straight. It's cheaper than buying precut pieces and I'm not limited to the size of product I want to encase. i also want to do photo ornaments this way. We'll see how far all my plans get!

thanks for looking,
Amanda