Baby Birdie Thanks

I have been busy nesting and getting things ready to welcome baby into the world. I am so excited!!!! I thought it might be prudent to get a few Thank You cards made before I am busy with a newborn and too tired to think straight. I put this together the other night as a possible pro-type to mass produce. I was inspired by the patterns and textures based off of the quilt I finished as well. I will be sharing it here when I get it photographed. I will let you know when I get it posted. Also, for those of you who are interested, I added my final baby project that I gave to my SIL which you can see here. I had promised to share it and had to do a quick photo shoot on Christmas Eve before we headed out the door. I was relieved to see that the photos turned out bright enough when I uploaded them to my computer.


For those of you who have been around for a while and know me, know how much I love birds and nests, especially for babies and weddings. I couldn't resist using this fabulous "Birds and Nests" set from Cavallini Papers & Co. that I picked up at a local Stationery shop a few years ago. Also, I realized that I ommitted Papertrey Ink from my watermark on my photographs.

I used Damask Designs for the background on the brown panel. This design should be quite easy to mass produce, especially since I used so many punches and only one color of ink. I think the eggs might need a smidgen of color to really tie it all together, but we will see.

Also, we have been having the hardest time trying to pick a name for our little guy. If any of you have some fabulous "R" names, I would love for you to leave me a comment letting me know. If we pick the name you leave, I am sure some fun blog candy will be coming your way! LOL!

I am off to start another sewing project! Thanks for fluttering by!

Snowflake Splendor *SFYTT*

Well...Christmas came and went. I was hoping for more time to enjoy the feeling and spirit of the season this year, but time just got away from me. I guess it is up to me to keep that feeling all year long, but sometimes it is hard. We did have a wonderful day and I loved seeing the joy in my children's eyes and feeling their excitement. Christmas is such a magical time and I just love it!!! I have been so busy getting ready for baby and for Christmas, plus being Wife and Mother that I just ran out of time. I did enjoy the things that we did do this year; going to see the lights at Temple Square, baking and cooking Christmas goodies, having the kids write out their lists to Santa, Classroom parties, Family Parties, etc, etc.....
I really wanted to make another Christmas card for today's SFYTT, but I am sure you would all be scratching your head as to why I was posting a Christmas card the day after. LOL! I decided to go with a "Winter" themed card. I started out by using a couple of my Cuttlebug embossing folders for the background rather than using any pattern paper.

The stamps are all from Verve Stamps, which I love. I haven't used this particular set since last winter and I have been itching to get it out. I love the fonts on the sentiments and all of the great snowflake images. I added a snowflake ornament that I picked up at Michaels a few years ago that was the perfect touch. Unfortunately, the card looks much prettier and sparklier in real life. My photography just doesn't do it justice today. I was hoping for a much brighter photo, but it just wasn't happening.

Jen is doing an amazing give-away on her blog in connection with today's sketch. You will want to head over there to see what it is. Also, this will be the last SFYTT until February. Since Jen and I will be welcoming our little baby boys into the world in the next few weeks, we all will be taking January off. I will still be posting other creations, hopefully, but we shall see!

You won't want to miss the other SFYTT designers.
Jen Del Muro and Kim
Amy Rohl
Susan Liles is in Florida and having a wonderful time, I am sure!

Amy Sheffer ,Leigh O' Brien!!!!!

Thanks for fluttering by!

Merry Christmas!!!!

I just want to wish each of you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! I hope everyone gets the chance to see their loved ones and feel the magic of Christmas! Thank you for stopping by to visit! I will be back tomorrow with one of Jen's fabulous new Sketches. Have a wonderful day!

We Wish You a Merry Christmas....

and a Happy New Year!!!!

ETA: Thank you so much for all of your sweet comments! I had someone ask me where and how I did the picture of my children. I took the picture in our yard. I used Corel Paint Shop Pro for all of the photo editing. I used the "effects" category and changed it from color to Sepia Tone and then I used another effect by running it through the "time machine" option. I then used my text tool to add the "We Wish you a Merry Christmas" using one font in the color white. Then I changed the color and text and added the "and a happy new year" and adjusted the size and placement. I hope that makes sense! Again...thanks so much for all of your sweet comments!!!

I hope you all have had a wonderful week! I have been M.I.A. from the blog this week, but I have gotten alot of *other* things done! It feels good to be almost done with Christmas shopping and getting ready for baby! It has gotten to the point that I just want him here NOW!!!! I guess getting through Christmas would be best, though! LOL! I am glad that I have had the holidays to keep me occupied on other things rather than just counting down the days until the baby comes.

My card today is a bit on the non-traditional side, but I like the warm tones and I know exactly who will be getting this. I haven't inked my Thomas Kinkade images for a while, yet I didn't feel like doing a lot of time consuming coloring. Instead, I chose to create a Sepia toned image and took the color scheme from there. My dimensions are a bit off on the card, so you will definitely want to check out Jen's blog (link at the bottom) to see the correct dimensions.

The Thomas Kinkade images are all from Cornish Heritage Farms. They are really fun to work with, especially if you have extra time to do some coloring! Everything else is pretty straightforward, so I won't ramble on about the details. You know me; a little sponging, distressing, ribbon, lace and buttons and we are good to go! LOL!

Here is the photo of my kiddos that will be tucked inside the Christmas cards this year. No...I don't have them out, yet, but they will be going out today, so I better run! My daughter has her ballet recital tonight and I am so excited!!!

You won't want to miss the other SFYTT designers.
Jen Del Muro and Kim
Amy Rohl
Susan Liles and Amy Sheffer ,Leigh O' Brien!!!!!

Thanks for fluttering by!

From Our House to Yours *SFYTT*

I know you are all probably shocked that I am not posting a baby card or project! LOL! I decided to switch gears and get another Christmas card done. Last year, this was my *go-to* stamp set, yet this is the first time it has seen ink this year! I also ran across this Making Memories Christmas paper from last year when I was searching for something else, so I pulled it out so I would remember to use it.
I am fashionably late this morning as well. My pregnant body was so tired last night, that I fell asleep early and then we had to get to our Church Christmas breakfast and I was in charge of making pancakes, so my early morning was shot. I quickly came home and pulled this together. I had fun, even though it was a quick job. This week's sketch is super fun and easy to work with.

I stamped the focal image twice, punching one out with the large oval punch from SU! and then mounting it on top of the other. I did this quite a bit last year with this set and thought I would do it again. I love the fonts of all of the sentiments that are included in this set, which by the way, is called "to you and yours". I did cheat a bit with the embellishments and added them a few extra places! I just couldn't help myself. I wanted to add some sewing as well, but my machine is still threaded with pink thread.

I cut out my quilt for my baby yesterday, so I will start on that in the next day or two, but I have another project that I want to finish first that I will share as soon as it is done!

You won't want to miss the other SFYTT designers.
Jen Del Muro and Kim
Amy Rohl
Susan Liles and Amy Sheffer ,Leigh O' Brien!!!!! Thanks for fluttering by!

Bundle of Joy Notecards

I promise this is one of the last baby gifts that I will be showing you. I still want to show you the project that my Mom is working on, but it's not ready yet. I am so glad that I got to work on all of the projects when I did, because my neice was born today! How exciting! I still haven't heard what they named her, but I can't wait to see her.


Every new mom needs Thank You cards on hand to send out once the baby has been born. I wanted to make a little set of notecards that were simple, easy and most of all; Mailable! I kept everything quite flat so that they woudn't require hand-cancelling or extra postage. I have had this little cuttlebug embossing folder with the baby pea that I have wanted to use, but never seem to. I was glad to be able to work it into this design.











The base for each card was created using Vintage Cream Cardstock. I embossed the Pink covers using the Swiss Dot Embossing folder by Provo Craft. I tied a simple knot of pink gingham ribbon that I picked up at Hobby Lobby quite a while ago. The scallops were made using Nestabilities dies and the pink circles were punched with a 1 3/4 inch circle punch by SU!. Once the circles were punched, I embossed each one with the pea die from Provo Craft. I also stamped each one with the "Thanks so much" sentiment from Mixed Messages and the inside with "You're Too Kind" from the same set. I packaged the cards and envelopes in a Clearly Creative Card Box which I love because it makes everything look really professional.

To tie everything together, I sewed a quick bag using some of the fabric I used for the bib that I showed a couple of days ago. I trimmed all of the edges using Pinking Shears for a quick, easy presentation. I made a tag to go along with it using the same supplies as I did on the card.

I was telling my Mom that it was funny that if I made a fabric project, I made a paper package for it, but if it is a paper project, it gets a fabric package! Go figure!!!

I hope everyone is having a fun, festive holiday season. I have come to realize that it just doesn't last long enough. I can't believe how quickly the days slip by! I still have enough on my list to keep me occupied for some time! LOL! Thanks for fluttering by!

I will be back tomorrow with a new SFYTT!!!!

"Do Me A Favor" Sneak Peek

I was thrilled with this month's new template from Papertrey Ink! I was in need of a creative way to package a baby bracelet and this was the perfect solution! As you know, I have been putting together a gift ensemble for my SIL and this was the perfect finishing touch. Even though I have been using Papertrey Ink products throughout, I decided to mix things up a bit and use some different stamps, but keep the colors and feel the same.

Once the base was created, I stamped the mat layers using Guide Lines Two stamp set in Hibiscus Burst and Spring Moss Ink. I also had the opportunity to use the Guide Lines Grid Sheets in White(these are the mat layers). I simply ran the paper through my printer and had the mat layers printed directly onto the paper. Be sure to put the paper in backwards, so that the black lines are on the back rather than the front. Once that was done, I created my own little embellishment using Simply Stationery and Mixed Messages. The finishing touch was a bow using SweetBlush Swiss Dot Satin Ribbon. Thanks for fluttering by!

Another Baby Project

I am winding down on the baby projects for my SIL's baby gift ensemble. I only have one more project that I really want to get done and I will share it when it is finished. I have also commissioned my Mom to make a project for me, which she graciously agreed to. Thanks, Mom! You are the best! My talents only go so far and then I have to ask for help! LOL!

I love making handmade bibs to give as gifts to friends and family when they are expecting.You can see the completed bib that I made for my SIL here.

I usually only make girl bibs, but have made a few boy ones as well. I am sure I will be getting the bug to make some boy ones here in the next week or two. I have a few other sewing projects for my baby that I would like to get done before any bibs. Of course, I needed to make a cute package to wrap it up in, so I got to work.


This box is one that is meant for A-2 cards that I have used over the years, but many a bib has been packaged up in it as well. It is the perfect size and super easy to make. I decided to create a belly-band to go around the box as to not disturb the embellishments. I simply sewed some ric-rac around the paper, added some pattern paper, a bow and the circle embellishment. The tag is adhered using a Making Memories safety pin, which I love to use on baby projects.

Like I mentioned earlier, I am almost done with the baby projects, so you won't be seeing the same colors, stamps, etc. for too much longer! LOL!

Thanks for fluttering by!

It's a Girl *SFYTT*

When I saw the sketch for today, the layout was perfect to make a baby card to go with the quilt and other gifts I have for my SIL. I had mentioned yesterday that I would probably just re-create a card that I had already made, but this sketch was perfect, so I went with it. I do want to apologize for having "a lot of the same" going on, but that is what happens when you are putting together a gift ensemble. Unfortunately, this won't be the last of this color scheme, etc. I will try and throw in some other projects along the way to mix it up a bit.

I started off making a Vintage Cream card base and rounded the corners using the current corner rounder from Stampin' Up!. They have had so many throughout the years, but this one takes off the smallest amount of paper from the edge, which I like. I did the same with Spring Moss and Ripe Avocado cardstock. Each of those panels were embossed using two different cuttlebug embossing folders, who's names I cannot remember. One, I believe, is called "Swiss Dot".

I used Everyday Button Bits for the focal image and created the flowers using the Holiday Mix Vintage Buttons. The focal image was cut using circle and scallop circle nestabilities dies, which I love. I have since put away all of my other circle cutting devices and soley rely on this. The sentiment is from Mega Mixed Messages and the smaller side tab is from Stampin' Up's "Nursery Necessities". I added a tiny panel of Friends 'Til the End pattern paper for a bit of detail. The ribbon tag was also die cut using Nestabilities dies. I also stamped a tiny strip of Ocean Tides cardstock using Polka Dot Basics stamp set. Even though this is similar to the other couple of cards I have done, I still had fun. I finished it off with a bit of sewing. I even decorated the inside, which I forgot to photograph.

You won't want to miss the other SFYTT designers.
Jen Del Muro and New December Guest
Amy Rohl
Susan Liles and Amy Sheffer ,Leigh O' Brien!!!!!

Thanks for fluttering by!!!

Welcome, Little One tag and quilt

I am finally done with one of my baby projects for my SIL who is expecting a baby girl in the next week or 2. I also, finally posted more info about the project on my other blog, Thimbles and Thread.



I love to have things coordinate, as I mention here on a regular basis, so of course I needed to create a tag to attach to the rag quilt that will be part of her gift. Rather than stamping any flower images, I opted to die cut some felt flowers using my cuttlebug and cuttlebug dies. I love using felt for projects and some of the cute bottle scarves that Amy has been making got me in the mood to pull some out. I was pleasantly delighted to have stumbled across some pieces while I was cleaning up my sewing area.



I made a card a couple of weeks ago using a similar color and design scheme that looked really nice with the fabric, so I used the same ideas. I am thinking of re-creating that same card, but substituting a baby sentiment, to tuck in with her gifts.

The background is embossed using a cuttlebug embossing folder. The flowers are die-cut as I mentioned before as well as the ribbon tag. The sentiment is from SU!'s "Nursery Necessities" and the cardstock, buttons and pattern paper are from Papertrey Ink.
I have another sewing project on the horizon to finish in the next day or two that I will link here as well. If you would like to see the quilt or even instructions on how to make one, you can check it out here. Thanks for fluttering by!

P.S. I will be back tomorrow with another new SFYTT!

Merry

ETA: I have had a few questions about my banners, so if you have sent me an email or left a comment, I have decided to do a Q & A soon. Stay posted!

As promised, here is the banner I have been working on for my daughter's bedroom. After I got done with my Get Well card on Saturday, I knew that I wanted to use that paper combo on another project and what better way than with a holiday project. I had so much fun making this and it looks so cute in my daughter's bedroom. Actually, this is my favorite banner I have ever made. I added a lot of details which added to the fun. I am tempted to pull off the letters when Christmas is over and add a new word and leave it up all year long. Hmmmm.....

All of the papers are from K & Company (The Bailey Collection) with the exception of the text paper at the top of each panel and the circles under the r and the y which is from Tweety Jill Publications. I didn't want to add my "standard" buttons where each panel joins, so I added a festive touch by adding some silver jingle bells tied with a bow. I simply used a glue gun to stick them on, rather than threadintg them through each panel.

Originally, I only had the banner saying the word Merry, but once I measured it with the shelf that it would be hanging from, I realized that it really should have two more panels. I solved this dilema by cutting two more panels and used Vintage images from Crafty Secrets for embellishment. The snowman got a little something extra by adding the pearl buttons to the tummy.




The angel is from Crafty Secrets as well and I added a few rhinestone gems to the corners and a retired "Snow Flurry" from Stampin' Up! Of course all of the edges recieved a generous sprinkling of Rose Quartz glitter from Martha Stewart. I had quite a time cleaning up after this project...everything had pink glitter stuck to it, including my DH last night! I don't know how that happened. Maybe while we smooched under the mistletoe? LOL!


The finishing touch was some crepe paper ruffles added to the top of each panel. I simply baste stitched strips and gathered each piece to 3 1/2 inches and then adhered it with sticky strip. I almost didn't add it, but I am glad I took the extra time to put it on. My daughter was really concerned when she came home from school and said that I had covered up two letters with the pictures. I had to explain to her that there weren't any letters on those panels. She seems pleased with it as well as her small pink tinsel tree with pink lights. Her Barbies have been ringing in the Holiday's around the pink glow! LOL! Thanks for fluttering by!

Believe

Christmas has made it's way into our home, finally. We usually put up the tree and deck the halls the day after Thanksgiving, but this year we are a few days behind. The kids had loads of fun decorating the tree last night with Dad, while I sat and watched/directed. I told them that while they were at school the rest of the decorations would be in place.

I made this banner last week while the kids and my DH were watching "UP". I love that my craft space is connected with the family room, so I feel connected with the family, even when I am in the "crafting zone". I used some retired SU! paper from last year and mixed it with some new Making Memories chipboard letters. These are the same ones that I used on my "Spooky" banner. I love how versatile they are. I added some snowflakes, lace and buttons for extra detail.

I got a bee in my bonnet and decided that my daughter needed a Christmas banner in her bedroom as well, so I will share that when it is done. I am almost finished; I realized that it needed to be a bit longer to stretch the length of her shelf, so I have some addititons to make. I coordinated it to match her pink/green/ yellow bedroom and I am thrilled with how it is turning out.

I am almost finished with one of my sewing projects as well. I will post it on my "Thimbles and Thread" blog and post a link here as well. Thanks for fluttering by and Happy December!