Damask Birthday Ensemble

I created this ensemble for my daughter's teacher's Birthday! She is really a great teacher and such a fun person in general that I wanted to create something special for her. She is fresh and funky and she happened to wear these colors for the class picture, so I knew she would like them.
It wouldn't be a birthday without a card, so that was the first item that I worked on. I started out by picking out the stamps, papers and color scheme. I used one of my favorite stamp sets; Damask Designs to create the entire ensemble. I also used the "birthdays are the best" sentiment from Blooming Button Bits. All of the paper is from Papertrey Ink; I used Raspberry FizzBitty Dot Pattern Paper and everything else is just Perfect Match Cardstock in True Black and Raspberry Fizz. The base is made from Stampers Select White Cardstock that is a necessity in my opinion!!!!

I also used one of my ribbon slide Nestibilities that I used to stamp the "birthdays are the best" sentiment. Of course I had to add a matching button and a few rhinestone gems to the design. I am in love with the "Recollections" rhinestone packages that you can get at Michael's. Everytime I am there, I purchase a few new ones to add to my collection.

Rather than pick out a gift that she may or may not like, I opted for a gift card. I created the gift card holder before I went out and purchased the gift card, but I knew that it would be the standard size, so I cut the width 4 1/2 inches. The inside pocket is 2 inches. Unfortunately I don't remember any of the other measurements, but if you wanted to create one, simply measure the gift card to get your dimensions.








The gift card actually came in a pretty nice package itself, so instead of throwing it away, I filled in the "to-from" and amount of the gift card and tucked it under the entire gift so that she could put it back into it's original packaging. I told her once she was done opening everything to look under the silver tray that I packaged everything up in. I hope that wasn't tacky, but it is what it is!! LOL!

I always like to add something "sweet" to my gift ensembles, so I created this little box to house some Dove chocolates that I know she likes. If you are interested in creating this box, I made a tutorial that you can view here. Once I was done with everything, I packaged it all up onto a silver tray that I purchased at "Dollar Tree". I have been using them for years for assorted projects and I love them. Everytime I see them, I buy quite a few to have on hand.





I was running behind when it came to package everything up, so I quickly printed out a large "L" from my computer(L is her initial), grabbed my Raspberry Fizz Ink and stamped a crown and called it good. While I was at the dollar store, I purchased a bundle of flowers that were the perfect fit. I wrapped the entire tray up in cellophane, tied the ribbon, added the tag and flower and headed out the door. This was one of those gifts that was not to be stuffed into the backpack and left to my daugther's devices to get to the teacher; this was one that needed to be hand delivered. She was very appreciative and gave me a big hug. Have I told you lately how much I love stamping? It is moments like those that are the reason why I started all of this in the first place!!!!

Also, I want to apologize for my lack of posting. My computer has been going at a snail's pace these last few weeks; so slow that at times I want to smash the whole thing to bits. It is really frustrating to actually have projects to show, but not have the computer working. Technology is such a blessing and a curse at the same time! LOL!

We finally put the crib up and Rowan spent his first night away from my side. I asked the doctor at his appointment yesterday if he should be able to sleep through the night. He gasped and said absolutely not, that I shouldn't even be thinking about that until 6-9 months. I told him that both of my other kids slept through the night by this time. I also asked him if my husband's snoring could be to blame. He told me that I might be on to something and that it might be waking him up. Guess who slept from 9:30 p.m.-7:40 a.m.? That's right; my little angel Rowan! I couldn't be more excited. I am not saying that he will do it every night, but it was still exciting. He had his first set of shots yesterday, so I was thinking that maybe that tuckered him out and that could be part of his long sleep. Who knows? We shall see! Thanks for fluttering by!!!

Wish Big *SFYTT*

I really hate it when I go a whole week without posting! I have a fun ensemble to show you, but haven't had a chance to get it posted. I made it for my daughter's teacher; it goes along with the tea box that I made. Anyway....it is now Saturday and you know what that means; a new SFYTT! I needed to make my Step-Dad a birthday card and I thought this sketch worked well for a man. It is simple and straightforward and I didn't even add any ribbon or twill.

The other night as I was trying to fall asleep, I was thinking about eyelets. I know...go figure? Who thinks about eyelets when they are trying to go to sleep? Well..., I was. I realized that I have more than a lifetime worth of eyelets that never get used, so I decided to add a few to the corners of this design. They seem manish and worked nicely, I thought.

I decided to let the pattern paper do most of the work, with minimal stamping. I used Star Prints and Birthday Basics from Papertrey Ink. I have so few masculine stamps, but I thought I could make these work. The paper is from an ancient 8 by 8 slab by Marcela for K&Company. I found it while I was looking for something else; decided to pull it out into the light, so that it could get used. What do you know? It worked nicely for this design.

Just so you know...I have completely lost my mind. I think I must have left it at the hospital after I had Rowan. I left it there and brought a baby home in it's place. LOL! On Tuesday, I dropped my daughter off at her friend's house, took my son to Grandpa's and headed to Rowan's two month check up. I got to the Doctor's office a half an hour away to find out that his appointment is NEXT Tuesday! Are you serious? Am I really that far gone? OH well...I have a beautiful miracle that I wouldn't trade for my mind. It would have left me sooner or later anyway! Wish me luck!!!

You won't want to miss the other designers!

Jen Del Muro and Angie
Amy Rohl
Susan Liles
Amy Sheffer ,
Leigh O' Brien,
Jenn Diercks,
Amber Hight
Megan Lock

For Susan *SFYTT*

It is never easy to make a card for someone who is going through a difficult time, especially when that *someone* is one of your SFYTT sisters. The hope is that your card will bring joy, which is what I am hoping with today's card. Susan Liles' husband was recently diagnosed with cancer and my heart goes out to her and her family. {{{{{{{Susan}}}}}}} I am sure her world has been turned upside down and any words of encouragement and support would be appreciated. Jen has *dedicated* this SFYTT to Susan and her family, so if you would like to participate and create a card for Susan, it would be wonderful. Jen has Susan's address on her blog (the link is at the bottom of this post).

This week's sketch is really fun with the 3 different panels. I immediately thought of how much pattern paper I could use on one design, which I love to do. I used the same slab of "My Mind's Eye" paper that I used last week, since it was still out. I used bright, cheery colors to hopefully brighten Susan's day.


I really, really tried *not* to use Tea For Two, but I just couldn't resist. It really is a testament to what a *must have* set is really is! LOL! I also paired it with another favorite; Heart Prints Sentiments. Now you may be thinking," Why didn't she just use a hear for the focal image?" I tried, I really did. It just wasn't happening, so here we are with the tried and true tea pot! LOL! I did mix it up by adding a heart to the front, which I actually love. It was punched from pattern paper using the heart punch from SU! that has the three different hearts.




Like I mentioned before, I hope this card brings some joy to Susan's day.
You won't want to miss the other designers!

Jen Del Muro and Angie
Amy Rohl
Susan Liles
Amy Sheffer ,
Leigh O' Brien,
Jenn Diercks,
Amber Hight
Megan Lock

Thanks for fluttering by!


P.S. I had someone ask me if I had a photo of all 3 of my kids together, which I didn't. On St. Patrick's day, since it was Rowan's 8 week birthday, I decided to do a little photo shoot with all the kids. I love them to pieces!!!!!!!Today Rowan is officially 2 months old, so it will be time for another photo shoot. Who says you take less photos the less kids you have? Not me...that's for sure! LOL!

Tea Box Tutorial

I had some questions on how to make this box a while back. I decided to make a similar box for my daughter's school teacher, so I took the opportunity to put together a little tutorial. Enjoy!

P.S. I made a whole gift ensemble that I will be sharing, so stay tuned!

Also, you can use the measurements that I specify here, but you could also make the sides and fronts smaller if needed. I think the measurements on the other box were slightly smaller, but since I gave it away, I can't measure it. Once you figure out how to put it together, etc. it should be easy for you to alter it to the size that you need.

ETA: Start with an 8 1/2 by 11 piece of cardstock. Sorry I didn't include that earlier.

Step1: Place your cardstock horizontally onto your paper cutter and score it at 1 3/4. Move that score mark over to 3 1/2. Move that score mark over to 1 3/4 and then again at 3 1/2. You will have a small bit of paper left over for your tab to secure the box.

Step 2: Move the cardstock into the vertical position. Score at 1 3/4. Move that score mark to the 3 1/2 inch mark. Move that score mark to the 1 3/4 . Can you tell that I don't like to add? It is much easier for me just to move the previous score mark to the proper location.

Step 3: Once you have all of that done, you will need to do some cutting as shown in the photo below.

Step 4: Using a bone folder, burnish each score mark for crisp folds. If you have any stamping you need to do on the outside of your box, now is the time. Also, if you will be doing the eyelet closure like I did on the box shown in the link at the top, you would want to do it now.

Step 5: Apply sticky strip to the side and bottom as shown in the next two photographs.
Step 6: I didn't use the eyelet closure for this particular box, so I chose to use sticky back velcro dots as shown below.

Step 7: Decorate as desired. Thanks for fluttering by!

Lucky Day *SFYTT*

I woke up this morning after a night of blessed sleep; Rowan let me sleep until 4 a.m. Then I fed the baby, unloaded the dishwasher, made breakfast, had Emma read to me, ate breakfast, did the breakfast dishes and then....REMEMBERED that I hadn't gotten my SFYTT card photographed or anything! Eeeek!!!! Here I am, late, but here! Maybe too much sleep isn't such a good thing for my brain...a little too relaxed apparantely. LOL!

I really wanted to create a "ST. Patrick's Day" card, but I don't have any stamps or anything remotely related, so I decided to create my own things. I started out by picking my papers; they are from a really old slab of My Mind's Eye paper, but I still love it. I punched out the hearts that I used for the four-leaf clover and then stamped them using Background Basics:Text Style. It is one of my favorites and I end up by using it on a lot of my designs. If you look closely you will notice that I stamped them all upside down, so you won't want to do that if you try this at home! LOL! I folded each heart in half and them applied them to the cirlce using a thin line of crystal effects. I cut out my own stem and added a button to the middle for some extra detail. I used some *really* old alphabet stamps from PSX that I love and have been well used over the years. I mixed using the upper and lower case together for a whimsical feel.

I really struggled with what I should use as the side embellishment, so I just decided to die-cut a ribbon slide, added some paper and a button. This is an a-typical card for me, but I had fun creating the four leaf clover and such.

You won't want to miss the other designers!

Jen Del Muro and Angie
Amy Rohl
Susan Liles

Amy Sheffer ,
Leigh O' Brien,

Jenn Diercks,

Amber Hight

Megan Lock

Thanks for fluttering by!

Baby Name Blog Candy

Before Rowan was born, I had mentioned that we were struggling to come up with an R name for our little bundle. Quite a few of you left comments with some great names, but Rowan was our pick. There were 3 of you who mentioned Rowan, so it wasn't too hard to pick a winner with only three names to draw from. And the winner is.....

Alyssa B
Congratulations!!!!!!

Email me (kellyrory1@msn.com) your address and I will send out some fun Blog Candy!

I don't have anything papercrafty to share today, but I do have a new sewing project that I just posted here.

Thanks for fluttering by!

Postcards from Wonderland *SFYTT*

Before I dive into the details of my card, I have some fun *SFYTT* news from Jen. She has asked a few new "sisters" to join the SFYTT family and I couldn't be more excited. I will have the links to their blogs at the bottom like I always do, but I wanted to "welcome" them and let them know how excited I am to have them with us. It is always fun to see how others interpret the sketches!
Now...on to the card. With the release of the new "Alice in Wonderland" movie this weekend, I thought it fitting to make a "Wonderland" card. I used two of my favorite stamp sets from TJ Designs; Alice In Wonderland and Design Elements. TJ Designs also has quite a few NEW Alice in Wonderland stamp sets, which I am super excited about.

There is something about this little royal rabbit that I just can't seem to get enough of. For those of you who visit often, you will notice that I use him quite a bit. As much as I wanted to color Alice, this little guy made the cut instead. I think a little Alice is in order, though, so stay tuned for another "Wonderland" themed card or project.

I used the crown, flourishes, postcard sentiment and label for the "queen" sentiment from the Design Elements stamp set. I liked the whimsy that they added to the design.

I stamped the rolled paper that the rabbit is holding and cut it out and popped it up to give the focal image a little bit of depth. I really like how doing something simple like that can add a lot.

I created a smaller accordion medallion, using about a 1/8 inch fold. I stamped the "Postcard" sentiment before I glued it together. I punched the crown image using a circle punch and added some gem stickers. I also added the gem stickers to the scallops on the focal image and on the sentiment.

Everything else is pretty straightforward. I hope you all get a chance to play along. Jen's sketches always get my creativity going. I like not having to come up with a layout, so that I can spend my time perfecting the details and embellishments. I am pressed for "creative" time these days, with little Rowan on the scene, but I wouldn't change a thing. He is just the sweetest thing ever and brings so much joy to our home. You won't want to miss the other designers!

Jen Del Muro and New March Designer
Amy Rohl
Susan Liles

Amy Sheffer ,
Leigh O' Brien,

Jenn Diercks,

Amber Hight

Megan Lock

We have all been sick since last week and I just took Rowan to the doctor knowing he had Conjunctivitis (sp?) but also came home with an antibiotic. I guess it is impossible to keep him well with Mom and Dad constantly coughing and such. The other two kids have runny noses as well, but not near as bad as us parents. I thought I would share two of the *many* photos that I took of Rowan on Wednesday; his 6 week Birthday. His poor eye was goopy, but I guess it will always be a memory to remember now that it has been photographed! LOL!

FYI: I feel like a huge slacker with all of the questions and things that have been asked of me over the last weeks, etc. I don't want you to think that I don't care or that I have forgotten about you. It is just taking me a *little* longer to get to things these days. Also, I haven't forgotten about my "banner" tutorial or the name the baby "blog candy" that I promised. I know that at least one person suggested Rowan if not more, so I will get that squared away soon, too! Thanks for being patient with me and thanks for fluttering by!