Category Archives: craft

It’s Craft Day!

My friends and I decided we need to spend more time hanging out.  So we are instituting a monthly craft day.  Every one brings her own project, and the hostess of the month makes a light lunch.  Today was our first craft day.  Our crafts included knitting a scarf, digital scrapbooking, creating a stash of cards, felting and making party favors.  It was a blast getting some work done and chatting.

Lunch was a fabulous home-made white bean and kielbasa soup with fresh bread and pie for desert.  Health and delicious!

Ingredients
1 pound dried white beans (such as great northern or navy)
14 ounces kielbasa, halved lengthwise and sliced 1/2 inch thick
4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes
1 large onion, chopped
6 cloves garlic, chopped
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
5 ounces baby spinach (6 cups)

Directions
1. In a 4- to 6-quart slow cooker, combine the beans, kielbasa, broth, tomatoes (and their juices), onion, garlic, rosemary, and 1 cup water.
2. Cover and cook until the beans are tender, on low for 7 to 8 hours or on high for 5 to 6 hours.
3. Just before serving, stir in the spinach. Serve with the bread.

i was working on party favors for my friend’s son’s first birthday.  They are having a farm themed party, so cute.  The favors will be a small box filled with treats and toys.  The boxes will have a little sheep on them with the sentiment “Thank Ewe!”  Hoe cute is that!

I used the Stampin’ Up set On the Farm, with black Memento ink and colored the image with Copic makers.  The sentiment was printed.

Thank Ewe!
Thank Ewe!

Tickled Pink!

Stampin’ Up! makes the cutest stamps.  I buy new sets and used sets and may have even stolen a set from my sister once.  I have even bought the same set more than once!  I was so excited yesterday because I had four eBay packages waiting for me when I got home.

The stamp set Very Punny is fabulous and I had fun putting together this tickled pink card.  I stamped the little pig on a white background, colored him with Copic markers, mounted him on a medium pink square and put it all together on a light pink card stock.  Hope you like him!

Tickled Pink Blank Notecard
Tickled Pink Blank Notecard

My Obsession…

I have a problem.  The first step of a program is to admit the problem.  I fully admit I have an obsession with Copic markers.  I am not ready for treatment.

Copic markers are alcohol based markers that are blendable.  This allows you to use multiple hues of the same color to add depth to your art work. I really enjoy stamping a cute image and then adding color to make it pop!

For this project I used a Stampin’ Up stamp with Memento black ink.  I cut a small square out of the front of the card, matted the cute dog on a slightly bigger brown square with foam to add dimension.  It is a very simple card, but perfect for a quick note to cheer up a friend.

Ruff Day Card
Ruff Day Card

It’s a Whole New Year!

I have been making handmade Christmas cards since 2000.  We have a lot of family overseas, and they look forward to getting our holiday cards.  Our cousin got married a couple of years ago, and his best man, whom we had never met, wasn’t interested in the fact that we were cousins from America, he was excited because he got to meet the Christmas card people.

So when my friend told me that she did not get a chance to send out Christmas cards this year, due to traveling over the holidays, and asked me if I could help her make New Year’s cards I jumped at the chance.

I used the Accucut, A2 step card die, with craft colored paper.  A Sizzlets set from Sizzix for the 2015, a Stampin Up label punch and a Hero Arts sentiment.  Of course the beautiful family is my friend and her husband, son and mother-in-law.  I think the cards turned out lovely.  Hope you like them!

Handmade 2015 New Year's Card
Handmade 2015 New Year’s Card

Tasty Treats from the Heart

Valentine’s Day will be here before you know it.  Remember when we were little and gave every kid in our class a Valentine?  Why stop now, just because we are adults?

This year I made little treat boxes that are just under two inches. I am still trying to decide what to put in them.  More likely than not, it will be something chocolate. Yum!

Letterpresses Treat Box
Letterpresses Treat Box

image

First I used my letterpress to print the word love on thick cotton cardstock.  Used a punch to cut out the label and used my Accucut Grande Mark die cutting machine to cut out the box.

Penny Farthing for Your Thoughts?

I love the weekend!  This is when I get to be creative and use all my crafting toys. Last night I decided to get dirty…

That means Letterpress!  Letterpress is dirty work because you have to get inked up.  First you scoop out ink with you ink knife.  You work your ink a bit with the knife and then dab it on the letterpress ink disk.  The letterpress rollers go over the disk to collect a thin layer of ink and then rollover the blocks and letters to deposit the ink.  I can not do this process without getting ink all over me, no matter how hard I try.

So what did I make?  Cute mini notecards with an ordinary bicycle (AKA old fashioned bicycle or a penny farthing).  The cards are 2.25 by 2.25 and are printed on Lettra cotton cardstock with brown black ink.  I then made mini envelopes to match out of craft colored card stock.

Mini notecards with a cool letterpressed penny farthing bicycle
Mini notecards with a cool letterpressed penny farthing bicycle
Penny Farthing mini note with envelope
Penny Farthing mini note with envelope

Felt Birds are Darling

This weekend was fabulous.  Saturday was spent on all sorts of fun things. My friend and I spent the morning crafting, then off to lunch, followed by pedicures.  It was an ideal day!

I worked on making “Happy New Year’s” cards for my work friend.  She was so busy this year with a family wedding over Christmas, that she didn’t get a chance to send out holiday cards, so she asked for my help.  I made thirty step cards with room for the family picture.  I am just waiting on JC Penny to get those prints done.  I will add a picture once they are done.

My friend was felting birds for her baby’s room.  I have never done any felting, but these birds are amazing.  I am going to have to try it out!

Beautiful hand felted bird
Beautiful hand felted bird

Happy New (Letterpress) Year!

I hope you have a wonderful 2015!  I know I will, because I will be making time to do the things I love; spending time with my husband, snuggling with the dog and crafting.

Earlier in 2014 I bought a Kelsey Excelsior 5 x 8 letterpress machine.  This antique machine was made sometime between 1893 and 1928, based on the patent number.  How cool is that!  I have vintage printing blocks and several alphabets for pressing images and words.  I am still learning how to use it, but I am hooked.

Kelsey Excelsior Letterpress Machine
Kelsey Excelsior Letterpress Machine

I was lucky enough to have five days off over Christmas, so I played.  I made a bunch of little note cards that said:

  • Hello
  • Hola
  • Ciao
  • Bonjour
International Hello Letterpress Notecards
International Hello Letterpress Notecards

I used Crane Lettra cotton cardstock and a midnight blue ink.  Next step, send all my friends a card!

I would love to hear about projects you are working on; leave a comment and let me know!

Santa Claus Is Coming to Town!

Merry Christmas!

I hope you were on the nice list this year!  I think I was. 😄!

These past two weeks have been crazy!  All my free time was taken up with getting ready for today.

My sister has joined me in the year of craftiness project and has completed her first project.  She is an elementary school teacher and wanted to do something special for her fellow teachers; so she made wooden Santa Claus ornaments for each of them. They are totally cute!

Wooden ornament hand cut and hand painted.
Wooden ornament hand cut and hand painted.

First she used the scroll saw to cut the various pieces.  Then she hand painted each piece, glued them in place and added a button nose.  What fun!

I hope you and your loved ones have a spectacular Christmas and a wonderful new year!

Little Gifts Need Little Boxes

I found the cutest little body butters at The Body Shop last week. They were on sale, so… I got one for all my co-workers. They will make a perfect little Christmas gift!

Next I needed a perfect way to wrap them. I love die cuts! I have Sizzix, and Quick Cuts, and a Slice with about 10 cartridges and two Cricut cutting systems. But my favorite of all is the Accucut Grande Mark. This giant machine cuts perfectly every time. I knew just the box for these little goodies and had a fabulous holiday paper.

This self closing box needs no adhesive. Just run through the die cut machine and fold on the score lines. Tuck the tabs in the slot and you are good to go.

I hope all my co-workers like their gifts!

Little Gift Box
Little Gift Box
Little body butter from The Body Shop
Little body butter from The Body Shop