Creative Inking Blog Hop- Here Comes Peter Cottontail

It's that time again- the Creative Inking Blog Hop is here! I hope you are ready to hop along with us and the Easter Bunny today. By the time you are done you will be inspired for your Easter gatherings next month too :)

A week or two ago I saw something that said "Happy Easter Peeps!" on Pinterest (of course packaging for those *disgusting* Easter candies). Well, I'm obviously not a fan of that take on it- but it made me think of our cute little Sale-a-Bration chick stamp, and I thought it would make such cute Easter gifts for friends or family.

So I set to work making a little tag using that stamp- and I needed SOMETHING to hang it from... so I pulled out the berry basket die to make an Easter Basket to match :) Hopefully you don't see too many baskets on this hop... but then again the die is so stinking cute I'm guessing you will!

I used a lot of Sale-a-bration items on this card. The cute little chick stamp is from the Honeycomb Happiness set. And then I also added some Wildflower Fields DSP to dress up the basket.

To make the chick I stamped the image twice- once on the white tag and once on Hello Honey cardstock. Then I was able to cut out the yellow parts of the little cutie and attach to the tag, still allowing me to give him some orange colored legs. Since the sentiment I wanted wasn't one of our stamps I considered typing it out on the computer and printing it up... but in the end I decided I liked the idea of my own handwriting on the tag to give it a personal touch. In this case the Project Life pens we carry are the perfect writing instrument. They go on nice and smooth- and there are two different thicknesses to choose from.

To give the tag a finishing touch I sponged Blackberry Bliss all along the edges, and then also used the direct to paper technique on the very edge (to do this you drag your paper right across the ink pad). In person it gave it a really nice edge- but I was a little sad to see it doesn't show up very well in the photo. So you'll just have to take my word for it :)

Alright, time to hop on to see what Kristine has made for us this month!

And just in case you need to go backwards on this journey, this will bring you to BJ

Flutterby again soon!

Creative Inking Blog Hop: Love is All Around

Welcome to the Creative Inking Blog Hop!

Today love is in the air as we prepare for Valentine's Day!

Most people see the new Going Global stamp set and think- Wow, what a great guy stamp set. And yes, it does have a more rustic feel to it... but I see the sentiments on it and can't help but think Valentine's Day :)

So I paired it with the Love Blossoms DSP stack and here is what I came up with:

I remembered making these little paper cups in elementary school. It has come in handy ever since if I needed a drink but didn't have a cup :) Well, maybe not that often... but I actually have done it on occasion in my lifetime.

I switched up the cup pattern slightly to make the DSP more showy, and I love how they turned out. Just check out the variety you get using different sheets from the DSP. And they are the perfect size to hold many different types of Valentine's day treats!

To dress up the front of the candy package I used the image of the world- stamped once in Crumb Cake and once in Blushing Bride. The first I cut out using the 2" circle punch, and then the later I added the sentiment to and punched out with the sweetheart punch. I attached the two worlds together, making sure I lined up the images, and then mounted them on a scalloped circle.

For one of the treat pouches I even added a little gold thread. I wouldn't do this for an entire child's classroom- but to give to friends or coworkers it adds just a hint of sparkle which is really pretty :)

Now, I'm sure you want to know how to make the little treat pouch right? I've put together a video to show you how- it is super simple and you could crank out a whole bunch of these really fast. Enjoy! (And if you don't... well, bear with me as it is the first video I've ever done that wasn't a screen capture for MDS!)

Flutterby again soon!

Now hop this way to see what Kristine has in store for us today!

Or Back this way to see what BJ has been up to.

Butterfly Boxes

This was our last project at last month's Watercolor Wings class. I had been seeing these boxes pop-up all over Pinterest and just had to include my own version.

The base curvy keepsake box is cut in Melon Mambo and then the English Garden DSP was cut from the handle side of the die as well (skip the other section). I then trimmed this cut piece of DSP down at the fold lines so that only the main side face was left- all the folds were trimmed off- and I adhered it to the matching place on the Melon Mambo base.

Last, but certainly not least (after all it is what makes the box awesome!), I used the butterfly framelits to cut out the medium butterfly in Melon Mambo and the small butterfly from some vellum. To attach them to the box you have to cut the butterflies in half (gasp!) but don't worry, once you adhere them to the sides of the top split they will look whole and beautiful again :)

Flutterby again soon!

Creative Inking Blog Hop: Happy Birthday to You!

Welcome to the Creative Inking Blog Hop! Come hop with us as we inspire you in all things Birthday related :)

For my project I wanted to make a little gift bag to fill with treats for a friend's birthday. So I grabbed my Mini Treat Bag Thinlits and here is what I came up with:

I just love how bright and cheery this bag turned out! I used the Cherry on Top DSP stack and matching cardstock for the base colors. This paper is just perfect with the bag die because it sized at 6x6, which is the perfect size for the larger of the two dies in the kit. And you have so many fun choices of patterns in this back that you could make bags for all ages and occasions!

See the fun little star cutout in the bag? That die even comes with the Mini Bag Thinlits and you can cut it out the same time you cut out the bag shape. Isn't that fun! The 'Happy' cutout and 'Birthday' sentiment come from the Crazy About You Bundle. I got this last spring when it was in the Occasions catalog and I am SO EXCITED that it carried over into the main catalog this year. There are so very many fun combinations of greetings you can do with this set. It is one of my 'must have' items :)

Of course this bag is originally flat... but that wouldn't work so well for putting treats in (unless they two were flat). So I added gussets! And it is so easy to do- the Stampin' Up! home office demonstrated this technique for the treat bags from the catalog at convention... and I thought, why not do it for the mini bags as well :) I will hopefully have a tutorial on how to do this soon- so stay tuned!

Now hop on over to Lisa's blog to see what she is up to this month

Or if you are doing the backwards hop then head over to B.J.'s site

Flutterby again soon!

Catalog Open House

I had so much fun on Saturday hosting my first New Catalog Open House. Can you believe it? I've been a demo for 5 years and I've never done this before. I hope to do it more often from now on cause it was so much fun :)

I had a couple of my stamping gals show up (and one even brought a new friend- Yay!) with their darling daughters. Elli had a BLAST playing with her friends :) and then we all made the Make & Take for the day. I had planned some adorable little pinwheel projects with the kid friendly factor in mind:

I had two styles planned out. The first was to make them like a 'party favor' with a twizzler as the stick. I think these would be so fun to give out at a summer BBQ someday! The other option was to use a paper straw for the base... all the girls chose option #2 (so that they could eat their licorice right away LOL!).

If you've never made a pinwheel they are super easy! Just take a square of DSP and fold it in half diagonally, open it, and fold it diagonally again the other direction. While it is folded use a hole punch to add a small hole right in the center where the creases meet. Then open it up and cut in about 3/4 of the way to the middle on each fold.

Next you are going to punch a hole in every other point (so one of the points from each corner- always on the same location). Push a brad through the center and then fold each of the punched points down to it. Open the brad and then cover the middle with a punched decoration to hide the brad legs. and you're done!

Flutterby again soon!

Creative Inking Blog Hop: Happy Mother's Day!

It's time again for another Creative Inking Blog Hop. This month we are inspiring you to make something special for you Mom for Mother's Day next month!

Since my Mom will be seeing her present today (Hi Mom!) I figured I had better give it to her early this weekend. I think she loved it... in fact I was worried it was going to make her cry ;) So I hope you enjoy it as much as she did.

I went back and forth this month about what I wanted to make- but ultimately I was inspired by a Shutterfly advertisement of all things :) It was a photobook cover geared towards a Mother's Day gift- but I loved the layout of a picture with flowers... and that sparked the idea for this frame!

I made the photo insert using MDS. I figure I only have two more months to feature this awesome program on our hop, so I'm making the most of it!

In addition to printing up the large 8x10 I also created a smaller version. From it I punched out a bunch of the flowers and added to the outside of the glass. I love the depth it added to project- just check out some of the close ups.

And of course nothing is complete without a butterfly as well :)

Hope you enjoyed :)
Flutterby again soon to see the matching card!

Now it's time to keep hopping...

Creative Inking Blog Hop: Spring has Sprung

I've joined up with some other fabulous demonstrators to bring you a dose of monthly inspiration. This month we are going to inspire you to celebrate the coming of SPRING! It is finally here in MN and I couldn't be more thrilled. This weekend we bought my DD her first bike and took her out for a ride- she did so fantastic and the weather was PERFECT for it (although the bike was Frozen themed- anyone else see the irony there :) ). But now I digress.

I've had in my mind what I wanted to make for you today for quite some time... in fact I started working on it while winter was still in full force. And let me tell you- boy was that confusing to my mind to be working on this nice cheery spring project and then battle out the elements later the same day :) Are you ready to see it? (Make sure you click it so you can see it nice and big!)

Isn't it darling? The Hello You thinlit was just begging me for a good cause to say 'hello' to :) And who can resist a darling butterfly!

All of the 'stamping' for this project was actually done in MDS :) If you have visited Swift Thinkin before I'm sure you're not surprised ;) When I saw the Painted Petals stamp set was available digitally I was over the moon excited! It is one of my favorite products in the spring catalog and now I could use it in MDS too! Squeal!!

When I create hybrid with MDS I like to make sure the finished project has lots of dimension. And just take a look at all the yummy layers in this one.

The letters are actually from a font on my computer in MDS- and to get them to really pop off the cards I actually printed out an extra copy and fussycut them by hand. I'm not normally much for cutting, but I really wanted the effect it would give and I'm so glad I did it. Although... this does fuel my wish for an e-cutter ;)

Last but not least I'll leave you with a close up of some of the details. Enjoy!

Now hop on over to the next blog. I'm sure Kristine has something amazing in store for us.

Or if backwards is your thing, then hop this way instead:

Flutterby again soon!

Note: I created this project and blog post before the announcement this week that MDS would soon be leaving us. I understand why this must be so, but am very saddened by the news. If you too are an MDS lover please be sure to back up your program and digital downloads. As I work through how I will close this chapter on MDS I will be sure to pass along information to you all via this blog.

Cute Little Valentine's Bags

Aren't these just adorable :) I can't wait to fill some up with treats for Valentine's day.

All you need for it is a scoring tool of some sort (I used the Simply Scored board- cause it rocks for making multiple items) and the Scalloped Tag Top Punch (actually, any of the tag top punches should work). Oh, and of course, a piece of adorable Paper Stack paper like the Stacked With Love pack, or any paper cut at 4.25x6.25.

To start, score the paper the long way at 1", 3", 4", and 6"

Then turn the paper the short way and score at 1" again.

Next you are going to punch out the top of the bag (so the side opposite the 1" score). Slide the paper into the tag topper punch and line up one of the 2" sections with the punch top. If you look on the backside you can see where the score lines are- make sure they are just outside the punch shape.

Repeat for the other 2" section. Your paper should now look like this:

Now grab your scissors and trim off the tabs between the tag tops and cut up along the score lines to the 1" mark. It is also helpful to cut out the little extra corner.

Fold in the long skinny strip and add an adhesive of your choice to it (preferably something super sticky like the Fast Fuse or some Sticky Strip). Then fold half of the paper back to meet the tape- this is way easier than trying to line it up 'in the air' as you hold it. Lastly give the bag some good shape and tape in the bottom flaps. Done!

And you have an adorable little gift for someone you love. Embellish as desired and watch them smile :)

Flutterby again soon!

Valentine's Paper Pumpkin

I was SO EXCITED to get the January edition of Paper Pumpkin. I was in need of something cute for my kiddos Valentine's and boy did Paper Pumpkin deliver! We created a ton of different variations with this kit, and I can't wait to share them all with you!

First off, I made a couple per the directions. Aren't they adorable!!

And a little close-up of all the shiny beauty :)

But my daughter is only 4 and my son 1... so I didn't want to use all those clips for kids so young. In addition, my daughter and hubby had picked out some cute 'Frozen' hearts for her Valentine candy, and they didn't fit in the bags that came with. So this is what we came up with for her:

First off, I used some of the bigger cello bags I had. Then I cut the banners in half and stapled them on the bags sideways. We also added the little flags from the hearts sideways too. Elli had a blast helping me out with these :)

Then for my li'l man I had a bunch of the bags left over. I love the size of these bags- they are perfect for filling with candy (minus the hearts that my daughter had to have of course). I really hope they put these in the catalog next year!

So, back to my son's valentine. I pulled out some of the leftover DSP from my stack last year, added the matching stamp and punch, and it turned out great! I especially love the little label punch sticking out the sides of the sentiment :)

   Last, but not least, I had some extra pieces left still. So I decided to treat my class this month to a little grown-up chocolate. Yum :)

Now go and finish up your Valentine's! Flutterby again soon :)

Valentine's Day Garland

Yesterday I shared with you a snippet of what I worked on last weekend. I was inspired to add a little love to the garland on my fireplace mantle. I like to leave the pines up all winter, but wanted to spruce it up for February :)

So I sat down with all my heart punches and the You Plus Me stamp set to see what I could come up with. Soon Declan saw me crafting and HAD to be a part of it. He became the snail operator :)

And what would craft time be without my girly to help out too! Of course she saw me taking pictures and wanted to help with that part. Here are the close-ups of her ponies…

She actually took a couple decent ones of my craft stuff too. For instance, have you seen these adorable little hearts yet (they've been popping up all over pinterest). To get them you punch with the heart border punch, and then from the remaining paper punch the small heart out around the hole. Cool huh?

After sticking everything together, here is what I came up with. I'm loving it!

And here is the whole thing (click the picture to zoom).

Flutterby again soon!