Snow Much Fun!

I've been having a ton of fun as a Stampin' Up demonstrator!  This was a make and take from a recent card class that I held.  I used the "Snow Much Fun" set, with "Be of Good Cheer" designer series paper, whisper white cardstock, and cherry cobbler Baker's Twine.  I also used the Smooch Illuminate pearlized topcoat for the buttons and some snow highlights. 

December 25th Swap

 Rounding out my swaps for the Stampin' Up Regional Event, I decided to use these gorgeous ornaments from the Holiday Ornaments Framelits set, and the Window Frames Collection Framelits dies.  I used the paper piercer and the Festive Paper Piercing pack, to create the holes around the Windows Frames.  I had to add the lovely polka dot designer paper as a banner.  Hope you like it!  ~Hoppy Crafting!

Daydream Medallions Swap!

 I'm SO excited to attend my first Stampin' Up Regional Event, soon!  In preparation, I'm feverishly cutting and assembling my swaps.  I came up with this gorgeous "flower" idea, using the set Daydream Medallions and the Floral Frames Framelits.  I'm using Lucky Limeade, Summer Starfruit, Basic Black, and Basic Gray, along with a piece of designer paper from International Bazaar.  I have distressed the Lucky Limeade layer, and used the Scallop Trim Border punch on the Basic Black.  Hope you enjoy!  ~Hoppy Crafting!

Sympathy

Seems like I've been making a lot of these types of cards lately, and getting more requests for ideas for Sympathy cards.  I guess it's a fact of life, but loss is always so hard.  Stampin' Up needs more sympathy-type sentiments.  I pulled these images from retired sets "Thanks for Caring" and "Forever Young" I also used the extra-large Oval punch from SU for the sentiment. ~Hoppy Crafting!

Baby Toy

I made this baby card using a pink base, then layered it with a brown background, which was punched with the SU Scallop border punch at the bottom, and tied with some of the retired stitched poly ribbon.  I also used the white gel pen to faux stitch a border.  The sentiment was stamped using the SU Itty Bitty Banners set, and cut out with the new SU Bitty Banners framelits.  I also cut another larger layer of brown to add behind it. 
For the toy, I punched a 2 1/2" circle from white cardstock, then cut it in half for the base.  I used SU Pretty In Pink ink and the SU Elizabeth stamp to stamp the pattern on the base.  The rings of the toy were all punched using the SU Word Window punch.  How did I make it longer and shorter?  Very carefully!  :oP  For the longer layer, I measured the width of a word window that was already punched, then cut a strip of paper that would fit.  I fed it thought the bottom of the punch, not the normal slot, then held part of it out of the punch to punch the first end.  When the one end had the rounded edge, I took it out, and fed the opposite side into the punch (from the bottom again), then cut at the desired length.  A Quik Stick or reverse tweezers can be extremely helpful in this process!  The smaller ones were easier, because I just had to shorten them, and didn't have to worry about accidentally cutting it off before it was long enough.  I cut one last white Word Window to put up at the top of the toy, and then I was finished!  Hope you enjoy!  ~Hoppy Crafting!

Butterfly Picture Transfer

I've been seeing people do some picture transfers lately, and decided to try one of my own.  First, I printed off a picture with a whole bunch of butterflies on it.  I decided to go with a picture without people, just for my trial run.  I printed it on regular paper. 
Next, I applied gel medium to the wood I had chosen for this project.  After the wood was completely covered, I placed the printed photo, face down, onto the wood, and set it aside to dry overnight (or close to 24 hours).  (I did the first part at about 9pm, and then, after returning from work the next day, at approximately 5pm, I commenced the second stage.)
After everything was dry, I took a sponge and wet the paper on the wood, then rubbed with my fingers to remove all the paper (SUGGESTION: You may want to use rubber gloves!  My fingers were so ink-stained, that I went to work the next day with purple hands!).  When all the paper is off, let dry again. 
My final steps were to add two coats of ModPodge (allow to dry between each), to seal in the ink and make it glossy or matte (whichever you choose).  I really like how they turned out.  I also ended up using some acrylic paint to spice up the edges with some color, before hanging, but you can do whatever suits your tastes!  I've even seen this done on canvas, but I have as of yet to try it!  ~Hoppy Crafting!

Framed!

I know this isn't a card, but this is still fun and crafty!  I've been seeing picture frames with chicken wire in them lately, and thought that this would be a fun craft to brighten up a space!  I found some old frames at Goodwill and painted them with my preferred colors.  Then, I stretched chicken wire across the back, and used a staple gun to keep it in place.  Next, I used wire cutters to cut off the excess wire, and to bend any dangerous pieces inward.  You may want to wear gloves when making this project, as the chick wire can be quite evil on your hands with one wrong move (read:I was stubborn and thought I didn't need gloves, so I ended up with multiple puncture wounds.).  The next CRITICAL STEP, is to take a hot glue gun, and patiently COVER all those little exposed ends of chicken wire on the back of the frame.  DO NOT SKIP THIS STEP!  Also, don't be stingy on the hot glue.  Those little pieces can be pretty pokey, so make sure you really cover the entire spot before going to the next.  This will protect you, and your walls!  Lastly, add a hanger or piece of wire on the back, so you can easily mount it on a wall, and get some mini clothespins.  The mini clothespins will hold on your pictures, cards, or whatever you want to hang up.  ~Hoppy Crafting!

Happy Birthday, Bro!

I made this birthday card for my brother!  It was another good reason to use the Stampin' Up set "The Open Sea", which I am IN. LOVE. WITH!!!!  I found the background paper from Imaginisce and loved the travel/vintage/masculine look.  I wrapped that with some Denim Twine from The Twinery, and layered it onto a SU Basic Gray base. 
Next, I cut Spellbinders Reverse Wonky Rectangles (S4-307) in three sizes, out of SU Crumb Cake, SU Marina Mist, and White.  I stamped the Crumb Cake layer with the captian's log, in Staz-on Black.  Next, I took the Marina Mist layer, and stamped the globe all over it in Black, also.  Finally, I took the white layer and stamped the ship on it in Staz-On Black.  I swiped the sizes of the layers on the ink pads to add dimension, then I got out my SU blender pen.  I used the blender pen to pick up ink from the ink pad lids, and shade/watercolor the ship and water.  I used Poppy Parade, Soft Suede, and Crumb Cake on the picture.  For the "stormy/cloudy" sky, I used a sponge with some SU Basic Gray. 
If you've never used the blender pen, they're SUPER easy!!!  I like to carefully squish the lid of my ink pads into the top before opening, then you have a palette of color to work with.  You cold also use a drop of reinker in the lid.  Carefully dip you pen into the color, and, Voila!  You essentially have a paintbrush, without all the mess!  Cleanup is easy, too!  Just use a scrap piece of paper and swipe your blender pen on it until it runs clean.  Easy-peasy, and look at the effect!  You'll look like a watercolor master!  :o)  ~Hoppy Crafting!

Baby Berkley

 New baby Berkley made her way into this world recently, and here's a crafty little banner I made for her room.  I used some Spellbinders die cuts for the banner, and the Cricut Cindy Loo cartridge for the letters.  The flowers are from a Tim Holtz flower die, and the gorgeous twine is from The Twinery.  Congrats to Berkley's parents and siblings! ~Hoppy Crafting!

Handy Man Tools

 A few weeks ago, we had a garage sale, and sold a cute little kid's tool bench. My friend wanted to refinish it and give it to another family member, so she sanded it all down and repainted everything.  Well, in that process, the original artwork that was in the background, was covered.  Sooooo....she asked me if I could make some tools and a clock for her to replace them.  I got out my handy dandy Cricut, and found some tools from the Handy Man cartridge, and a clock from another.  I think the finished products look great, don't you?!?  

Mickey Birthday

Happy 3rd birthday to a Mickey Mouse fan!  He didn't turn out too shabby, if I don't say so!  I used my Mickey Cricut cartridge to cut Mickey, and used some Sizzix Dies to cut the "#3".  After layering, adding packages and some awesome twine, I used the Stampin' Up stamp set "Itty Bitty Banners", and their coordinating die cuts "Bitty Banner Framelits" for the Happy Birthday.  I also used an embossing folder to add character to the background.  ~Hoppy Crafting!

Elegant Wedding Cake

A friend asked me to make her some wedding cards for the summer, and here's what I came up with!  I used several embossing folders, one of which, is Stampin' Up's "Manhattan Flower.  I also embossed silver paper "trim" for each layer of the wedding cake, and punched the cute little flowers, using Stampin' Up's "Boho Blossoms".  For a finishing detail, I added Stampin' Up pearls.  ~Hoppy Crafting!

Summer!

Whew!  The school year is done, and I just finished wrapping up my classroom for its hiatus.  I even got in a few extra days to recycle and sort/rearrange files.  If you're a teacher or are close to someone who is, you understand the amount of work that goes into maintaining and constantly revamping everything you use!  I was so grateful for these few extra days (before the district locks us out! GASP!!!), and put every minute to great use!  I was also very thankful that I didn't have to move classrooms, AGAIN.
I'm at the point, where I have quite a few things prepped for fall, and have all my packing up finished.  With that being said, today, I gave up what little was left of my control, and TURNED IN MY KEYS for the SUMMER!  I'm sure I'll have forgotten something, or think of some absolutely AMAZING idea during the summer, and wish I could run right in and copy, create, laminate, and cut, BUT...I'll be forced to wait until I can reclaim my keys in August.  I really abhor the fact that we get locked out, BUT, I know I will live.  I know the next month will fly by, and it will be time to prep more for 50 kinders, again.  Now, the weather just needs to cooperate so that we all BELIEVE it's summer and not January!  Mother Nature needs some bipolar meds here in the Seattle-Tacoma area!
Now I can concentrate on the many needs and goals I have for the summer!  We already crushed one this past weekend by staging a rather successful yard sale!  (Epic, I know, considering school just ended!  What was I thinking???)  Even though the weather absolutely didn't cooperate (it poured!), we had room in our garage, and got rid of a ton of our treasures!  Next on the list?  Well, the list is SOOOO long, I think I'll tackle a ton of the small things to make myself feel better (like doing the touchups of paint for walls that have gotten scratched/scuffed, and making raspberry jam.).  I've already started cutting, scoring, and folding a TON of new cards, and have ideas dancing around my head like disco inferno!  I'm itching to create!  I also need to update this blog...sorry!  My CrAzY school year was just. too. much.  I have a great deal of awesome creations to blog!  I just need to fix my computer and download some pics, and I'll have a blogfest!  :o)  Stick with me, crafty friends.  I know I've been MIA for a while, but now it's summer!  Summer is....the time when teachers can feel human again.  :o)
~Hoppy Crafting!

Manhattan Flower Graduation

Oh, Manhattan Flower embossing folder, you never fail to amaze me!  So versatile!  This time I'm using Stampin' Up's Manhattan Flower as a graduation card.  I embossed the Very Vanilla cardstock, then used a sponge and some Early Espresso ink to rub across the raised images.  Then I tied a little gorgeous ribbon around the bottom, added some bling, and used the "Modern Label" and "Word Window" from Stampin' Up, along with Teeny Tiny Wishes" for the sentiment.  ~Hoppy Crafting!

Owl Grad!

I saw an adorable owl grad card, that my friend, Terri, had made, and I just had to scraplift it!  I had been thinking about making an owl grad for a while, but when I saw hers, I knew I just HAD to!  This card was made using several Stampin' Up punches and supplies. 
I used a SU Real Red base, and layered it with Basic Black.  Then I used another piece of Read Red, and ran it through the Big Shot in the Square Lattice embossing folder.  I adhered a strip of gold cardstock over half the embossing (not SU), and started on the dimensional top layer.  I again used a Basic Black base (which has dimensionals behind it), and added the same gold cardstock, which I used Versamark and a stamp from the SU Rustic Rooster set  .  After that, I punched an owl from the SU Owl punch, and also cut wings from a scallop punch, which were then cut in half.  I sponged the owl with SU Soft Suede ink to give him some depth, and added the eyes, beak, and feet.  I cut glasses from the Cricut, and used a Stuido G stamp to make the grad hat.  I used the SU word window punch to make the diploma and drew a sprial on the top and tied a small ribbon around it.  The sentiment is stamped in Basic Black, from the SU set Teeny Tiny Wishes, punched out with the SU Word Window, and mounted on the red SU Modern Label. 

Cardinal Grad!

Where I work and live, the high school mascot is a cardinal.  This year, I was asked to make a number of grad cards for different co-workers.  I came up with this awesome (if I don't say so myself,) card that would work for either gender!  I ended up making half a dozen of these for others! 
For the cardinal, I used an old stamp that I had picked up a few years ago from a clearance sale.  I'm not sure who made it, but I knew it would come in handy someday!  I colored it in with Zig markers, after stamping on a Stampin' Up Labels Collection Framelit. 
I used a Tim Holtz 'bubble wrap' embossing folder and tore around the sides for a more distressed look, then wrapped with twine.  I mounted it all on SU Cherry Cobbler (some on Read Red) cardstock for the base of the card.  I also used Glossy Accents/Crystal Effects on the bird eye to make it really shine.  ~Hoppy Crafting!

Grad Cat

One of my co-workers wanted a cute cat for a graduation ceremony.  I found this adorable little guy on the Create A Critter cartridge and cut him out.  I used Stampin' Up Rich Razzleberry cardstock and newsprint, as well as Adorning Accents embossing folders and Edgelits.  I also used "Teeny Tiny Wishes" for "Happy Graduation", and punched it out using the word window and modern label punches.  ~Hoppy Crafting!

Tea for Two!

 I have fallen head-over-heals in LOVE with Stampin' Up's "Tea Shoppe"!  This set contains this gorgeous tea cup stamp, and quite a few fun sayings!  It does not have a die cut, so if you want the cups cut out, you must do it "old school", but they really aren't that hard.  (Take it from someone who cut around 20 out!).  I used the Vintage Wallpaper embossing folder and slightly distressed it with some Early Espresso on a sponge.  I was trying to use up some lace and paper I had for the side.  The banner is from Spellbinders, and the mother's day stamp is a $ bin one from a local craft store.  ~Hoppy Crafting! 

Kindness Matters-Triple Butterfly

I love all the butterflies that are in designs these days, and decided that I hadn't used Stampin' Up's "Kindness Matters" enough!  I decided to use some gorgeous yellow and gray scraps that I've had, so add to a Crumb Cake base.  Then, I wrapped some lemon twine around the yellow layer before attaching to the card.  I stamped the butterflies in both Daffodil Delight and Basic Black, then also used the Daffodil to run around the edges after I had used a distressing tool.  I used dimensionals behind the butterflies, and there you have it!  ~Hoppy Crafting!

Rue's Parasol

Rue de Fleurs is an amazing set from Stampin' Up!  This parasol looks fantastic, whether you stamp it or emboss it.  This is one of the cards I taught my mother how to make, while I was visiting her. 

2012 Northwest Paper Chase--Day 1

The Northwest Paper Chase has become a yearly tradition that I love taking part in!  It started on March 2nd, and runs through March 18th.  To take part in the Paper Chase, you purchase a "Passport" from any participating store, and take it to get stamped at each store you visit.  You also get a lapel pin and 20% off at every store.  This year's theme is "Let's Eat!", and each store has a layout for a recipe of their theme! 
While I love hitting the chase with the girls, everyone seemed busy, so I rooked my husband into riding along with me! (With the promise of VooDoo Doughnuts and Otto's in Portland, Oregon at the finish! He he he!) 
We ended up getting a little later start than planned, due to a super late night the evening before, but we were in Lacey at Sharin' Memories by the time it opened.  The laughs started right off the bat!  We were greeted with "Hello, ladies!", and I looked back at my husband and laughed! The owner laughed and quickly added "gentleman". LOL!  Of course that was all it took for my husband to start bantering with them as I shopped.  I swear he flirted with all the ladies throughout the chase! 

Once back on the road, we headed towards Centralia to Cindy's Simple Stuff and Scrappy Stamper, both stores I enjoy travelling south for!  At Cindy's, my husband was lured in with the promise of their yummy pumpkin bread, and sat at the table to "guard" the remainder of the pieces for all.  Soon the store was incredibly packed, and all he had to do was say "Honey", and about 20 women all stopped and stared at him in response.  Of course he let that go to his head, and then he joked that the picture opportunity only cost $1 for each to sit on his lap!  Well, one of the shop ladies just kept going with it and actually offering to take pictures of other women on his lap for $1!!! It was completely hilarious!  He said he was pimping himself out for lunch money, since I wouldn't feed him.  Lol!

After visiting Centralia, we ventured on to Scappoose, Oregon, to visit the newest (and farthest!) store on the hop.  It was quite the drive, but we finally made it.  Not sure that I'd venture there again...it really was quite small, and not much selection, but the owner seemed nice. 

At that point, we were done with our plan of stores for the day, so we trekked to Portland.  This was my second time, ever, to Portland, and this time we were able to find parking and hit VooDoo Doughnuts.  I swear that I had THE BEST bacon MAPLE BAR, EVER!!!  We also bought a few others to try, as well as a couple of requests from friends.  Rounding out the Portland places we had to visit, we went to Otto's and bought some yummy sausage, horseradish, a pastrami on rye sandwich, and other assorted yummies to enjoy at home. 

All in all, we had a great (and very tiring!) day, and drove around 300 miles of paper chasing fun!  I can't wait for the next weekend!  :o)  ~Hoppy Crafting!

Rue de Fleur-Thanks!

 Here's a couple of quick "thank you" cards I made, using Stampin' Up's "Rue de Fleur".  I used Pool Party and Calypso Coral, along with embossing powders to coordinate.  I even decorated the envelopes with the ornate pen from the same set.  I LOVE this set!  Thank you to everyone who came to my party!  I hope you all enjoy your thank you cards!  ~Hoppy Crafting!

Baseball Valentine

My friend, Lisa, and I spent about five hours crafting just prior to Valentine's day, and she wanted to make some cards for her family.  One of her children is really into baseball, and she came with this adorable background paper!  We brainstormed a few ideas, and this is what resulted!  I cut a baseball player out from the Cricut Baseball cartridge, and stamped the sentiment, then punched it with SU punches (I can't remember the set the sentiment came from).  Lisa layered the players, and we decided it needed something more.  I suggested the player be "catching hearts", and punched a few out of glimmer paper.  We both loved how the card came out!  Hope you enjoy it too!  ~Hoppy Crafting!

To Gnome you, is to love you...

This is a little Valentine's Day card that I made for my husband this year.  I used the SU sets "Gnome Sweet Gnome" and "Gnomenclature", as well as some red glitter paper, a fly stamp from another company (behind the hearts), and some cute puffy Lego paper to finish off the wheelbarrow contents.  I used an Xacto knife to cut a slit in the wheelbarrow so that the Legos could sit below the line and really look like they were "in" it.  ~Hoppy Crafting!

Valentine, You Color My World!

I made these fun Valentine's for each of my almost 50 kinders.  After melting crayons (more info at the end of this post), I packaged each in a 3"x4" bag from G.T. Bag Company, and created toppers for each.  For the toppers, I used pink cardstock, and stamped "Valentine" from a ProvoCraft dial-a-word stamp (since I couldn't find just the word WITHOUT an "s" at the end!), in Early Espresso. 
I used the SU Definitely Decorative set "Crayon Kids" to stamp the crayons, using Tempting Turquoise and Melon Mambo ink.  In SU Early Espresso, I stamped the phrase "You color my world", from Pink by Design's "Simply Everything" set. 
I love how each of these turned out, and they were a huge hit with my kinders!
How did I make the crayons, you may ask?  I found some silicone heart baking pans, and, after peeling millions of crayons (maybe not MILLIONS, but MANY---and THANK YOU to Terri and her family for also peeling a TON!!!), I set my oven to 250 degrees and broke up crayons to fill each mold.  Just for safety sake (didn't want to ruin my oven with melted crayons), I lined a cookie sheet with foil and baked the molds on it for approximately 15 minutes.  You have to check the crayons to make sure they are fully melted.  Depending on the oven and the brand of crayon, they may take longer to melt. 
After baking, I sped up the cooling process by placing the molds in the fridge.  When set, I popped the crayons out and began a new batch.  ~Hoppy Crafting!

Valentine Treat Sticks

Happy Valentine's Day!  I made these cute 1"x8" bags of Valentine-colored candy corn for my co-workers, using the P.S. I Love You stamp set in the new Stampin' Up Mini Catalog.  They were super easy (after stuffing all the bags, of course!). 
I got the 1"x8" bags from either Stampin' Up or the G.T. Bag Company (www.gtbag.com).  I have been loving the bags I ordered from G.T., and will definitely order from them again! 
I used SU Melon Mambo ink on two tones of pink cardstock, then punched with the 1 3/4" scallop circle, and 1" and 1 1/2"  circles.
One scallop circle was placed behind the bag, and one placed on the front with the dark pink circle centered.  I backwards stapled through all the layers, then added a dimensional and the smallest circle with "Hand crafted with love for you". 

~Hoppy Crafting!

Creative Hiatus

Apparently I've been taking a hiatus from posting.  I can't believe we're a month and a half into the new year, and I haven't posted!  January flew by!  I had the best of intentions, but feel like I hit one of those crafting blocks (like writer's block). 
Also, we had a snow storm, followed by a freezing rain storm, which led to trees breaking everywhere and our power being out for a few days.  We even had a week "off" of work with the crazy weather! 
This weekend I had a guest over for about five hours, and we had a fantastic card-making frenzy!  In addition to that, I have also finished 50 Valentine's for my kinder kiddos, and another 60+ other special treats in bags with toppers!  I will have to download the pics and share everything!  I'm hoping that I'm back in the craftin' groove (even though my work remains crazy-busy!!!)! 
~Hoppy Crafting!