One of my Christmas presents!

I have been wanting one of these for a while now and had it on my "wish" list! This is from the Pottery Barn and is so worth the money! It will hold cards in portrait or landscape position!

Here is is with some of the Christmas RAK's I received from my rubber stamping friends!

Happy New Year!

Well almost!!!! This past week has been busy busy busy! From having all of my family here on Christmas Eve., and other Christmas celebrations the week is winding down. It seems that we prepare so much and then it is all gone in the blink of an eye! This is my favorite time of year and hate to take down the decorations.......I will leave them up for a few weeks yet!

I made some tags before Christmas and never got around to sharing them. These were inspired by Tim Holtz and his twelve days of Christmas on his blog. While mine are wimpy in comparison, it was fun to play.

From Coaster to Calendar

I love to alter things! I picked up these great coasters at a local mall. And here's what I did:

Apply glue stick all on one side of coaster and apply designer paper. I used Cutie Pie and Brocade Background and another paper I had in my stash. Trim excess and corners. Repeat on all sides. (2 coasters). Then I stamped the year on the front with a set of acrylic number stamps I have. (can't remember the name) The calendar was printed out on my computer and then cut. I then punched holes with my Crop-O-Dile and attached it with my Square Rhinestone brads or my Circle Rhinestone brads. Then I held the front and the back coasters together and punched holes at the top with the Crop-O-Dile. I put Jumbo Eyelets on both and set them with the Crop-O-Dile too!!! (I LOOOOOOOOVEEEEEEEE this tool!) I tied them together with the Double Stitched ribbon or used the Satin ribbon that was on special. I added buttons, and little clips that I also had in my stash. I can't wait to make more of these!

The one done with the Cutie Pie paper is for my mother so I stamped the heart around her birthday and did same in March for my Dad's!

**************REVISION!

I got the template from CAT on SCS .

I got the coasters at a seasonal store in the mall called Pubdecor. They had a web site, but now it is down! Don't know if it's been hit now too much or not!

You may also want to check your local liquor stores. I saw a rectangle one at the register area of one the other day but only took one. Maybe they have some and could sell them to you. Sorry!

Pineapple Upsidedown Cake Demarle Style

I cannot say enough about Demarle at Home!~ I love this product and love showing people what it is all about!

Here I used the Flower Mold along with the medium Perforated Baking Sheet. You do not have to grease the molds at all!!!

I took a good cup or more of brown sugar and spread in the bottom of the mold. On top of this I placed rings of pineapple with cherries in the center of each.

Then I mixed up a Butter Yellow recipe cake mix and poured over top.

I baked a little less than what the recipe called for. And this is the end result! It just unmolds so easily and nothing sticks!

(This was made for a teacher's dinner raffle for my son's middle school)

Yummies!

I have been making Chocolate Pretzel rods all day! What you see here is just a few! Some of the little bags are ready in a bag for hubby to take to work. Some are unwrapped and in a storage container ready for Christmas Eve. I made the Cinnamon pecans and Toffee almonds a few days ago and bagged them up.

Felted Presents!!!

This purse is black but the close up looks gray. I have been busy getting ready for Christmas and have been neglecting my blog. I can't keep up with it all! Here are two purses I have made but I am not telling who is getting them.....shhhhhhhhhhh!

Both are done with two different yarns. I added handles attached with some felted yarn and got some great beaded trim at Joann's! I think it adds just the right amount of bling!

I See Prisms in My Lights!

I picked up these cardboard glasses at Lowe's the other day. They are like the ones you get to watch a 3-D movie. You look at the lights on the tree or outside, and the prism shows up! So I had to see if my camera could see it too! DUH! Of course it could! See the snowflake prism around the lights! Connor loved it!

Big on Christmas and Holiday Glitz!

Holiday Glitz Update December 6, 2007 The Holiday Glitz promotion will end December 15, 2007 at 11:50 pm (MT). Please note that the Love & Joy stamp set is no longer available as part of this promotion (this set was part of the Holiday Mini catalog and is no longer available now that the Holiday Mini sales period has ended). The Snowflake Spot, Snowfall, and Big on Christmas stamp sets are still available as part of this promotion.

You can still get the Holiday Glitz promotion! This kit comes with this great cardstock you see above all precut and scored and ready to assemble! You just add your stamp and ink! I love the textured cardstock! How cute is this card? The kit comes with ideas, but I had to make it my own!

Maryland's First Snow

What does the snow on the bushes here remind you of in this photo?

We got a little snow yesterday. Only about 4" here where we are. Just enough to make everything look nice and pretty! Schools were only delayed for 2 hours this morning so Connor was very disappointed.

Treat Boxes Galore!

I am having a ball creating these boxes! Beate did the tutorial and I am loving them! I have tons of retired paper that I need to use up so I will be making more and more!!! Will be filling them up with goodies for gifts!

Have also been busy creating my online shop at Etsy. Stop by and see what I have for sale! Will be adding more as I can get photos uploaded!

Candy Cane Bag!

Vickie Howell has this free pattern on her blog! I fell in love with it and knew I needed to make one. I changed mine up a bit and had the red as the main color. I knew if I had white handles it would get dirty too fast! I used a different yarn too. I used large magnetic snaps to keep it closed. Isn't it cute! These are photos before felting and complete!

Baby Jesus is Born

I have been busy and not posting.............sorry about that! I love this set and would love to mass produce this card but don't have enough of the hardware. The inside of the hardware has Crystal Effects giving the card a rich look.

Stamp Set: Baby Jesus is Born

Cardstock:

Purely Pomegranate Blue Bayou Wild Wasabi Whisper White Winter Green Designer Classic Ink: Blush Blossom Purely Pomegranate Blue Bayou Close to Cocoa Groovy Guava River Rock Basic Black Accessories: Jumbo Eyelets Crop-O-Dile Hodgepodge Hardware Crafters Tool Kit Blender Pen Pop Up Glue Dots Snail Adhesive Crystal Effects Ticket Corner Punch Purely Pomegranate Satin Ribbon

It's Beginning to look alot like Christmas..............!!!!

Jenn Balcer did a great tutorial on making these trees. I have seen them popping up all over! So of course I had to do it! I think I might have to do a class on these! Any interest ladies?

Let it Snow! Let it Snow! Let it Snow!....................

Oh the weather outside is frightful (not! almost 60 today!) but I wanted some snow. It has been unseasonably warm and I will soon be decorating the house for Christmas. So...................I have instant snowflakes!

You are going to LOVE this! I just stamped my powder room mirror and the side light of my front door with snowflakes!!!! I used the Supersize Snowflake which will only be available until November 30th in the Mini Catalog and a retired set that I had. You could also use The Snowflake Spot, or Snowfall. You use the White Stazon as your ink!!! And they wash off with Window cleaner and elbow grease!!!! So order yours today and get your windows decorated for the holidays!!!!! I will take orders for these until 11/28! These would make a great gift for someone too! Snowflakes that last all winter!!!

Time Well Spent

Stampin' Up! sent ALL active demonstrators a Level 3 Hostess set from the upcoming catalog for FREE! I love this set and cannot wait to do more with it! The colors here are two of the current In-Colors, Purely Pomegranate and Wild Wasabi. I stamped the flower image on Whisper White and colored with my blender pen and classic ink with the colors above. I cut out and added a Rhinestone brad in the middle. I stamped the words "Too much of a good thing is a Good thing" all over the background layer and topped with a layer of designer paper from Darling Doodles, punched the corners with the Ticket Corner punch, and added brads on either side. I tied a piece of Wild Wasabi double stitched ribbon to look like the stem and leaves of the flower.

Demarle at Home November Special!

Get this treemold for your holiday baking! Makes a great cake, jello mold, brownie, molded stuffing, or just about anything you can think of! Normally retails for $32.95, but you can get it as the November special for $24.95! Makes a great gift too!

This isn't a large photo, but you can go to Demarle at Home and see the details on this and all the wonderful products!

ONLY $24.95

Microwave Peanut Brittle

TREEMOLD

1 cup sugar • 1/2 cup light corn syrup • 1 1/2 cups Spanish peanuts • 1 Tbsp margarine • 1/2 tsp baking soda • 1 tsp vanilla *Combine sugar and corn syrup in the Mold. Stir in peanuts. Microwave on high until light brown (8-10 minutes) stirring after each 3-minute interval. Stir in remaining ingredients until light and foamy. Cool. Wrap in plastic wrap and decorate with ribbon. A perfect gift for anyone! Preparation Time: 15-20 minutes Cooking Time: 8-10 minutes Makes: 1 lb Bake your favorite cake! Perfect for a holiday sidedish!

Let It Snow Shaker

We have our group meeting this weekend so I am starting my swaps! This is an ATC (Artist Trading Card). It is a mini shaker!

All supplies are Stampin' Up! except for the transparencies and the double sided foam tape. I stamped the image from Big on Christmas onto Shimmery White cardstock with Basic Black ink and then just the face portion again onto a piece of scrap of the same paper. I used the 3/4" circle punch to cut out the face portion of the snowman. I used snail adhesive and adhered a small square of transparency behind the opening. I used my SU markers to color in the Image and did just the nose on the scrap piece. I then stamped all over the main image with Pixie Pink Classic ink with Itty Bitty Backgrounds. I used the Ticket Corner punch on all four corners. I applied snail adhesive to the scrap piece and held it up against the main image to get it lined up right, and then pressed it down onto the main card of Pixie Pink Cardstock. I cut pieces of double sided foam tape and put it around the scrap image. Put a bit of Micro beads inside, added some more foam tape to the corners of the top piece and lined up over the scrap piece and pressed down to seal. I hope this makes sense you! If not, let me know! And you can get 10 trading cards from one sheet of 8-1/2 x 11 cardstock! Here's how!!!!! Cut two strips at 2.5" on the 11" side, and one strip at 3.5". Then cut the 2.5" strips at 3.5", and the 3.5" strip at 2.5". Easy huh!!!! And if you are layering, just trim your top layer 1/4" smaller!

Knitty Gift Bag!

I saw a little knitted gift bag at Target in the Christmas section and I knew if would be an easy thing to do!

I used Kathmandu Aran Tweed for this that is a blend of wool, silk, and cashmere! This color 130 on the label, and it is a light purple with flecks of green.

I cast on 50 stitches onto size 8-16" circular needs and knitted in the round til I was satisfied and then did a P1, K1, for a few more rows and then cast off. I threaded some ribbon on my large needle and wove through the top to tie it up with.

I will be using some of my 1/2 skein stash to make some more to have on hand for small gifts!

Black and White Memo cube

I needed to make a few little gifts so I dug out some of my SU memo cubes that I had hoarded since they are no longer available (sorry)!

I used Basic Black ink and stamped the cube with the swirly stamp from Baroque Motifs, and then filled in with the little flower from the set. I did the same thing for the pen. I stamped onto a part of a large label and wrapped it around the pen. Then I added some sticky back paper and then rolled into mini micro beads. I wrapped the black ribbon around the cube and secured the pen. Cute huh!

Celebrate 30!

My cuz is turning 3o and we are getting together on Friday to celebrate! This is how I did it:

The base card is DCWV Glitter Stack paper. I cut it at 5-1/2 and then at 11" to give me a square card. I stamed Cosmobella onto Whisper White cardstock and colored with my Prisma colored pencils and gamsol. This was then corner punched with the tag corner punch and layered onto Pixie Pink cardstock. This was mounted on squares of Green Galore and Brocade Blue cardstock. I used the the Crafters Tool kit to punch the holes around the green square. I had the numbers in my stash and can't remember who makes them, but I used mini brads to fasten them to the cardstock. The word "celebrate" is from Everyday Flexible Phrases and is mounted to the Rouned Tab punch. The flowers are Prima Daisy and Bazzill Blossoms, and the center is a CK Rhinestone flower brad. I popped the main image up with dimensionals, and used a pop-up glue dot to secure the flower. Hope you like it!!

My Pride & Joy!

I feel like all I ever post about is my stamping, knitting, and cooking, and not much on life. So here it is!!! Connor is 12 and as tall as me or I think could be taller now! The bangs get a little crazy sometimes but I just love this boy of mine! He is a good kid for the most part but I think he has a mouth like I did when I was his age! I would always "sass" my Mom and we butted heads quite a few times. So I guess it's payback time! Hard for me to believe that he will be 16 in four years and wanting to drive! I hope the laws change to 18!!! PLEASE! He is into video games as most boys are and we are gearing up for basketball! Practice starts this week! Don't know what I'd do without my boys! (hubby and son!)