For Someone Very Special

My niece Taylor is turning 14 tomorrow. She has 5 year old triplets for siblings. She is the best babysitter in the whole world. She stays overnight and because we live on a farm we love that we don't have to drive her back to town when we get home! And she can handle my 2 with one arm tied behind her back. We LOVE her!

Did I mention she has a 94% average so far this year in Grade 9, her first year of High School? Are you kidding me? Could we have asked for a better Big Cousin for our girls?!?

I made her a bookmark. I am making one for all of my 3 tween/teen nieces and nephew. This is 2 down, 1 to go. See my previous post for a link on how to make a bookmark. I used Silver Fairy from Wee Stamps as my digi stamp. I used the trace and detach function on my Silhouette, flipped her horizontally, then used print and cut. The Silhouette did a fantastic job of cutting her out. I was afraid I would lose her bell or her tendrils of hair but I didn't. I colored her with a combination of glitter markers and regular markers. For her hair I used my EK Success pencil crayons and then highlighted it with a glitter marker. For the books and the snowflake border (both Silhouette images) I used the silver sketch pen to draw them instead of cutting them. I used the cut edge function to just cut around the outside of both images. I printed the sentiment out on my purple background paper. I distressed the paper edges and inked them with silver. Ran everything through my Xyron and assembled. Really pleased with the way it turned out, I hope T.T. is too!

My lessons learned: I borrowed my Mom's Ott Lite to take pictures after dark. It worked really, really well. I took several pictures of my project and had a hard time choosing which one to use. That never happens! Am putting an Ott Lite on my Christmas list!

I would like to share my bookmark at:

Digital Tuesday Challenge sparkle and shine,

Flutterby Wednesday's open with an Angel, butterfly or fairy,

Charisma Cardz snowflakes,

Crafty Purple Challenge for someone special,

Dream Valley Challenges sparkle,

Creative Challenges free for all.

This is Pretty Cute

Bugaboo Stamps challenge this week was a pocket challenge. When I saw this pop-up Santa in the Silhouette store I knew he would be perfect. I cut out all the pieces using my Silhouette and paper pieced him together. My daughter colored the Popsicle stick black for me. At The ABC challenge this week they chose D for Dazzle. I added Diamond Sparkles to his 'fur'. I added red Stickles to the berries. I used my ColorBox black ink to soot up the chimney, I just couldn't bring myself to soot up his suit though. If you look really closely you'll see some cookie crumbs around his mustache! Added some faux stitching around the chimney and bricks. Used doubled sided tape to attach the Popsicle stick to the back of Santa and Voila! A little time consuming cutting and assembling Santa's pieces, but overall very easy and cute, cute, cute.
My lessons learned: use paint to color a Popsicle stick, the marker just kept coming off on our hands once we got enough on it, and we had to put a lot on it. I loved having my daughter Kaylee (just turned 4) help me out with my crafting, made me feel less guilty for crafting while they were awake ;o) And they can play with him now that I'm done (as long as they don't touch the stick, ROFL).

I would also like to share my Santa at:

Fussy and Fancy Challenge anything but a card,

Dream Valley Challenges stitching



Remembrance Day

We just celebrated Remembrance Day here in Canada on November 11th. I have a hard time describing my feelings about Remembrance Day because it is such a solemn day/time for all Canadians. It's easier to describe my card. I created this card to be part of a Remembrance Day display. I was inspired by Sheri Gilson's centre step easel card. She provided a link {here} with instructions/templates. My digital poppies were a free image from Birds Cards. I paper pieced the poppies with red cardstock and colored the greens with my Zig markers. I used MME's So Sophie houndstooth cardstock for my mats. I created the headstones myself in my Silhouette program and cut them and the maple leaves and crosses out using it. On the actual overseas gravestones, the cross and maple leaf are etched into the stones, that's why I opted to keep mine all white. I placed the first row along the bottom border of my card and then used popdots to lift the front row off the page to give them some dimension. I used my Silhouette to cut out the tag, used black and white twine to attach it, and a pop dot to lift it off the page. I chose the "We Remember" sentiment because it just sounds so positive of all the Remembrance Day sentiments. I used Recollections decorative metal star brads for the sides. I wanted to give them a military medals kind of feel.
My lessons learned: a nice surprise was how once I got the headstone border on the front of the card it looked as if the poppies were growing right up behind them. I love the look. This card is such a great 'display' card and I will definitely use this technique again.

I would like to share my card at:

Divas by Design use metal,
For Fun Challenges honoring Vets,
Simon Says Stamp photo inspiration, field of poppies,
Cute Card Thursday red for Remembrance,
Totally Stampalicious 3D,
The Stamping Boutique home of the brave,
Stamp and Create easel or centre step card.

I Love Gus...and I Know Several

I made this birthday card using Gus from Bugaboo Stamps for their anything goes challenge. Gus and Margaret are my faves, I think because they remind me of so many people I know, lol! I used 2 different patterned papers, the asphalt and the road signs paper, both from the photo stack 2. I used my Silhouette to print and cut Gus. I paper pieced the truck and used my shiny mirror paper for the bumpers and horn for the Pixie Dust Studio Challenge (paper piecing). I colored Gus and used Glossy Accents on his glasses. I used silver brads as hubcaps for the Meljens challenge (to use brads) and  Divas by Design Challenge (to use metal).  I cut several cloud shapes from grey cardstock using my Silhouette to use as exhaust and then ran them through the printer for my sentiments. Popped them and the truck off the page with pop dots. As you may have guessed this is for our friend Vern's birthday on Nov. 7th, which also happens to be election day here in Saskatchewan. Coincidence -- well, yeah. I should probably add that he was a mechanic for years and is now a shop/mechanics teacher at one of the high schools in town. He has several vehicles and it is completely possible that he would "trade" for another!
My lessons learned: do NOT ask your husband to hold your card for you before the Glossy Accents have completely hardened. He not only got his fingerprint on one of Gus' lenses but squished the other one flat. I did manage to fix them, but I was pretty steamed, I think because it was as much my fault as his (maybe more), lol!

I would like to share my card at:
Stamps R Us masculine,
The Poodles Parlour lets hear it for the boys,
For Fun Challenges a special birthday,
Aud Sentiments make us laugh,
Fab'n'Funky Challenges planes, trains and automobiles,
The Paper Variety laughter is the best medicine.