Caramel Apple Kits

A few years ago, I made witches' shoes for my students. I filled them with witches' toes (cheese puffs), and they were a huge hit...especially because of my thing for shoes! I didn't think I could top that, but I did last Valentine's Day with the iHeartpods. They're still talking about them.

Let me tell you - having the same students year after year can be wonderful. You see them grow up and accomplish so much. But it's a pain when it comes to gifts!! There's so much pressure.

While this little treat may not be super impressive, it did get some ooooh's and aaaahh's (thanks Glossy Accents!). I had lots of questions about how I got the "caramel on the apple" - here take a looksie:

I made these fun caramel apple tags to attach to a caramel apple kit - a cellophane bag with apple, tongue depressor, and individually wrapped caramels. I created the template and hand cut the apples and drippy caramel. Squirting Glossy Accents on 12 of these puppies sure did hurt my hand, so please excuse the air bubbles - at that point I just wanted to get them done :)

The kids liked them; and for those who insisted on eating the apple & caramels right away, they wanted to keep the tag. I guess that shows their approval. When they brought up the iHeartpods & Witches' Shoes, I knew that I didn't get there yet. And the fact that they didn't mention their owl treat bags from last year, I know I was off the mark a bit then too. Well, at least I can repeat projects every 6 years :)

Embellish....Hot Diggity Dog

The most recent challenge over at Embellish magazine was to use light pink, fuschia, gray, and some bling. Here's the inspiration piece.

I've been wanting to play, but I've had a lot going on this week. I was determined to do so tonight and came up with a cute idea. Unfortunately, I think I should have left it as an idea until I wasn't as tired. The card seems like it's missing something. I think I'll play around with it when I have some more energy :)

Off to bed...stay tuned for my harvest party treats that I'll post photos of tomorrow.


Details:
Stamp - Poodle (Snag 'em Stamps - Perfectly Posh collection)
Ink - Starlight Silver Brilliance
Paper - Raspberry Fizz, Sweet Blush (PTI)
Accessories - gemstones (Hero Arts); black grosgrain ribbon

Hootie (minus the Blowfish)

couldn't resist the title :) - I remember sitting in the cafeteria as a college freshman watching this new band called Hootie and the Blowfish....I wonder if the lead singer regrets that band name since most of us only know him as Hootie :)

Here's another Halloween card with some more of my Imaginisce paper...I'm not sure if I'll make any more - it'll depend on time. I've already cut out a bunch of images that I love. It's also a matter of taking those images and translating them into cards - which isn't always the easiest thing after a long day at school. I've been bouncing from science fair projects to Quiz Bowl practice to Greek mythology to math dictionaries (which my 4th graders begged me to allow them to make....oh my word!!) and around 5 other topics. Crafting is definitely stress relieving, but I wish my brain was more productive by the time I get out the paper & glue!

Did you notice all of that stitching? I added it all by hand. I would have preferred to break out the Singer, but my mom is borrowing my sewing machine right now to make a new Christmas tree skirt. She's had it for over a month and a half - and I left word that I wanted it by the weekend :) It's so funny how I don't ever think of using something when it's here, but the moment someone borrows it I need it desperately! The stitching is perfect for the current challenge over at the CARDS blog.

I finally got a new calendar and began to write down all the due dates of challenges & submissions that I hope to participate in. I've wanted to do this for awhile, so hopefully now that I have I can stay on top of things better! Hope you're all enjoying the beautiful fall weather!


Details:
Stamps - none
Ink - none
Paper - Spooky Town (Imaginisce), Bitty Star Basics (PTI)
Accessories - embroidery floss, dimensionals

Trick or Tree

Just a quick post.

On Saturday, at my Copic class/stamping get-together, I picked up a bunch of the SpookyTown line paper by Imaginisce. I love the funky images and decided to cut some out. Here's one of the cards I created using the tree image:

I did a lot of distressing on this card - I think it looks great with the Halloween theme. Can't wait to show you some more of the Halloween cards, but I'm heading to bed - my allergies got the best of me today and I'm awfully tired :(



Details:
Stamps - none
Paper - kraft, Bitty Star Basics (PTI - Thanks again, Kelley), gold (DCWV), Monster Mash (Imaginisce Spooky Town)
Ink - Tea Dye Distress Ink (Ranger)
Accessories - circle punch, ribbon

Free Broom Rides

I won this adorable set by Pink Cat Studios on World Card Making Day through the Limelight design team challenges. I couldn't wait to ink it up.

It's just a simple card - perfect for mailing & not upseting the post office with a bumpy envelope ;) I stamped the sentiment "Scary, Scary, Screamy, Screamy. Happy, Happy, Halloweenie" on the inside of the card - this may be my favorite part of the stamp set.

I have to finish up a few more Halloween cards this week - I bought some new Imaginisce paper on Saturday, so I can't wait to use it :)



Details:
Stamps - Itty Bitty Halloween Stamps (Pink Cat Studio)
Ink - Tuxedo Black (Memento); Copics
Paper - kraft, black; dp - Paper Pizazz & Imaginisce
Accessories - gemstones, embossed curve punch, black felt pen

MyGrafico Monday

It's Monday - time for a new challenge week at MyGrafico...remember, each week we offer two challenges for you to choose from and there's always a free set up for grabs!

Here's the set we're giving away this week:

And the challenge is to: CREATE A THANK YOU CARD USING DRY EMBOSSING ON THE CARD. Here's what I came up with:

I used my oval nestie to create an embossed frame on my card. I thought these would be great to create a box set - possibly with different colors of flowers.

Remember, you have until Sunday night at 10pm PST to add a direct link to your card on Mr. Linky on the MyGrafico Challenge blog - Can't wait to see what you come up with!!


Details:
Stamps - Mix and Match Stems (MyGrafico), sentiment stamp
Ink - StazOn; Copics
Paper - white
Accessories - polka dot ribbon, oval Nestabilities

No Sew Tote Bag

Today I crafted with something besides paper - oh my!! I'm so happy with the result and wanted to share it with you.

I made a no-sew tote bag:

Isn't the red & cream houndstooth marvelous?! I was watching an old episode of Martha that featured these bags. All you need is a yard of fabric, binding for the handles, a stapler, and duct tape. To make a sturdier bag, you can apply iron-on vinyl to the wrong side of the fabric. It was super easy!! Just make sure to have a good stapler - if I make anymore, I'd bring home this fabulous stapler I have at school. It's a big bag, so I'd cut down the sizing as well. I'm thinking of making some as gifts then using it as a gift bag. You can check out the instructions here - be sure to watch the video to see how to create the gussets.

Copic Class

Hi again - it's been awhile :) I've been busy, busy, busy! It looks like this week is going to be another busy one, too! I started on my Halloween treats for my students - I'm almost finished with them, so be sure to check back to see them...they're ca-ute!!

Saturday was my monthly stamping get together. This time, we changed our meeting location to a local stamp store. It was great! Plus, they were offering a Copic class that morning. Even though I had to give up some of my work time, it was nice to go through the techniques. We made four cards - two of which I completely screwed up....I'm horrible with spraying/spritzing anything. One card required alcohol spritzing - I had ink bleeding everywhere. The other used the airbrush system and just wasn't my thing.

Here are the two other cards from the class:

The cards are cute - not necessarily my style/colors. I think I'll definitely use a couple of the techniques just not alcohol spritzing :)

Rubber Romance Sketch Challenge

There's a new sketch challenge posted at the Rubber Romance blog, and I think you should join in on the fun!! You have until midnight (EST) on November 9th to get your card done, and you could win a marvelous Rubber Romance Prize.

Here's the sketch:

and here's my take:

This is Bunnie Girl - and like me she's not a morning person, but still maintains that diva status!! I added fun flock to Bunnie's robe and a little light green shadow for her eyes. I loved this Basic Grey June Bug paper (Shirley Temple) and decided to distress a lot of the other elements on the card to coordinate with the dp. My favorite distressing has to be with the orange embossed cardstock. Did you know that you can create this really cool effect by sanding cardstock after it has been dry embossed? All you need is cardstock with a white core base - like DCWV (Die Cuts With A View). I think it gives the card a great look.

Well...if I want to be more of a morning person tomorrow, I better wrap this up. Hope you're all doing well - I have lots going on here and hope to chat more about it tomorrow! ciao :)


Details:
Stamps - Bunnie Girl (Rubber Romance)
Ink - Tuxedo Black (Memento); Copics; Walnut Stain Distress ink (Ranger)
Paper - Basic Grey June Bug-Shirley Temple; goldenrod (DCWV); Melon Mambo & Bravo Burgundy (SU!)
accessories - Pink brads, Circle Nestabilities, Sizzix embossing plates, brown fun flock (SU!)

RRRuffles Have RRRidges

The current challenge over at Moxie Fab World is all about Ruffles. Do you remember those Ruffles Potato Chips commercials? I remember when we learned to trill our r's in Spanish & French and how that's all we'd say!

Here's my take on the challenge:

I ruffled the ribbon by gathering it on one side - which is super easy!! My flower is created from the security envelope that came with this month's gas bill - I just love the design!! I also stamped the kraft base with PTI's text background before rounding the corners and adding the cardstock letters.

Gotta get some sleep - my class is Skyping another class in North Carolina tomorrow.

MyGrafico Monday Goes Retro

I dvr'ed the marathon of Mad Men a few weeks ago and just started watching it...I'm not sure if I like it or not yet, but I can say that I'm lovin' the retro style. This is the same reason that I love to watch Bewitched - if some paper companies could just replicate Samantha's wallpaper, we'd be in business!!

This week MyGrafico is going retro, too! With our two challenges (remember, one on Monday and one on Friday), a lucky winner will receive the Vintage Appliances set by Zenware. If you've popped by my blog before, you've seen some creations with this set...yep, I love it!!

So to win this fun set, all you need to do is create a card/project/LO using POLKA DOTS and the colors RED, WHITE, and TURQUOISE.

Here's what I came up with:

I may have overdid the polka dots...ummm - my name is Stephanie and I'm addicted to polka dots :) Enjoy your Monday!

Details:

Stamps - Vintage Appliances (MyGrafico); Polka Dot Basics II (PTI)

Ink - Copics; Fresh Snow(PTI), Walnut Stain (Ranger)

Paper - Kraft, Bermuda Bay, yellow tablet; dp - Imaginisce

Accessories - Binding Edge border punch (EK Success), dimensionals, black brad, sentiment computer generated

Embellish Magazine - Circle Card Challenge

Holy Moley!! Almost forgot about the Embellish challenge!! Thank goodness for Google Reader :)

Here are the challenge deets:

and here's what I came up with:

super simple, but I like it...probably because I like the combo of olive & soft blue. I was really excited to find some ribbon that went with the olive/blue combo. It has red in it, so I couldn't use it here....but I bet you'll be seeing it soon :)

Strip Show

Bet my title got your attention!! Now.....get your head outta the gutter. I'm talking about the strips of dp behind the main image on the birthday card I made for my aunt. I added strips behind the main image on another card and couldn't wait to use the 'technique' (if you can call it that) on another card.

My aunt loves Maxine cards from Hallmark, so I wanted to create something humorous for her. I thought this sentiment & image was perfect! She really liked it, so mission accomplished!

It was a long day today - memorial service for a friend's husband, a Tastefully Simple party, and some shopping with a friend. The weather here is miserable, so I'm looking forward to a warm, cozy day making cards tomorrow. Hope you're having a wonderful weekend!!

Rubber Romance - You're Tweet!!

Have you checked out the latest Rubber Romance sketch challenge? You have 5 more days to get your card done & you could win a fabulous Rubber Romance prize!!

Here's my take on the challenge:

I was inspired by my fellow design team member Kathy, who paper pieced the Rubber Romance Cutie Pie Bird on this card. I just love this little guy paper pieced!! You can purchase him here along with other images in the new Cutie Pie collection!

We're still waiting on entries for the sketch challenge - which means you have a great chance on winning some goodies!! So what are you waiting for? Create a card based on the sketch and head over to the Rubber Romance Blog to leave a link! Can't wait to see what you come up with :)


Details:
Stamps - Cutie Pie Bird (Rubber Romance)
Ink - Tuxedo Black (Memento)
Paper - Very Vanilla (SU!); Ocean Tides (PTI); dp - DCWV Spring matstack
Accessories - Rustic Button Twine, button

Oh Baby!

A teacher in my school is about to have a baby, and we're having a surprise shower for her at school tomorrow afternoon. It's a girl, so I knew right away what I wanted to get - SHOES!!

and check these out!

Aren't they darling! They're from Old Navy and originally came on a hanger (yuck).....so, I created this box for them. I hope you can see the fun dp I lined the bottom of the box with. It's glittery & I think it goes so well with the metallic shoes.

And to go along with the gift, I created this little gift card. I love this little dinosaur (who's technically supposed to be for Valentine's Day) and how he could work for a little girl! He (along with the dp) is from the DCWV Doodlin' Stack - this is one of my favorite packs of paper!

I know she'll like it and definitely find it amusing that I help start her daughter's shoe collection :)


Details:
Stamps - Mixed Messages & Polka Dot Basics II (PTI)
Ink - Versamark; Chocolate Chip
Paper - Pink Pirouette, Chocolate Chip; dp - Doodlin' Stack (DCWV)
Accessories - ribbon (Offray), button, scallop punch, dimensionals

Thank You Trees

Last Friday, a coworker gave me a set of shoe stamps. She and her mother were cleaning out their stamping collections, and she thought I'd appreciate it....everybody knows about my obsession with shoes :) Wasn't that sweet of her!! She complemented a card I made using the PTI Everyday Button Bits, so I knew that I wanted to use it on her thank you.

Here's what I came up with based on some inspiration by Mish:

I will probably add something - a scallop or piercing along the bottom edge. It looks a bit too plain. I just love this dp from the Doodlin' Around stack (DCWV) - it goes perfectly with kraft!!

Speaking of paper, here's the latest update of my paper challenge:
I DID IT!!!! 100 cards/projects completed without purchasing any new paper!!! Wahoo - I'm sooooo glad that I did this. I'm also soooo glad that I can now snag me some Cosmo Cricket Nutmeg paper - I've been drooling over this :)


Details:
Stamps - Everyday Button Bits & Mixed Messages (PTI)
Paper - kraft, Very Vanilla, Chocolate Chip; dp - Doodlin' Around (DCWV)
Ink - Chocolate Chip, Certanley Celery
Accessories - rustic button twine & buttons (PTI), ribbon (Offray)

Gradient is Radient

Whew...just in time! My original idea wasn't coming along the way I hoped, so I switched it up a little. I wanted to create a hand with a gradient of polish on the fingernails - reminds me of myself in Trade Secret trying out all of the OPI polishes that I can't remember if I have or not.

The hand looked a little odd, so I decided to stick with bottles of polish. I love how this challenge and these images go perfectly with this sentiment!

I have Glossy Accents on the bottles - the burgundy just wouldn't dry fast enough, so it's a bit cloudy in the photo. I'm through with patience at about 3pm, so this one had no chance :)


Details:
Stamps - Slumber Party (MyGrafico); sentiment (Inkadinkado)
Ink - Copics
Paper - white, black
Accessories - Glossy Accents, ribbon

MyGrafico Monday - Tag You're It!!

It's Monday - time for a new MyGrafico Challenge. This one may have been my favorite to date. I've been seeing lots of tags showing up in layouts and in cards. I love the look these give and the dimension. The set up for grabs this week is just perfect for that!

The best thing with this set is that you can change the color of the border to whatever your heart desires! I did this on my example for this week's challenge:

CREATE A HOLIDAY TAG ------that includes buttons somewhere on the tag

Here's my Christmas gift tag:

and a close up of the tag:

I just love the kraft shopping bags for Christmas and doesn't this tag just pop! I changed the color of the bumblebee tag, cut a tree out using the Christmas Cheer cartridge on the Cricut, and placed it atop the tag hiding the bumblebee. I'm so happy with how it turned out & can't wait for Christmas to arrive so I can share it with someone!


Be sure to check out the other fabulous tags created by the MyGrafico Design Team. Then participate in our challenge where you could win this versatile set! Remember we hold two challenges a week now (one on Monday and one on Wednesday), so you have two chances up for grabs :) Please post a direct link to your creation on our challenge blog by Sunday night at 10pm PST. Include "MG20" and "MyGrafico" as tags/keywords when you post to any online galleries.


Details:
Stamps - Bumblebee Tags (MyGrafico)
Ink - Fresh Snow (PTI), Tuxedo Black (Memento)
Paper - DCWV Christmas Stack (from a few years ago), green from stash, white, kraft
Accessories - buttons, hemp cording, Christmas Cheer Cricut cartridge, stickles

Fall is the time for.....birthdays!!!

What a busy weekend this has turned out to be! Yesterday I cleaned & decorated for fall. It's my favorite season, and I'd like to get some new items to decorate with. Unfortunately, I couldn't find anything that I liked in an impromptu shopping trip yesterday afternoon. I did find the paint color for my bedroom at Lowes - Tin Pail from the Martha Stewart collection. It's so pretty - a combo of slate grey and dark teal. I'll have to take photos when it's finished....don't know when I'll start, though :)

Anyway.....my mom asked me to create some birthday cards for her. She needed two appropriate for a little girl. Here's the first one that I came up with:

I think Rollanda Ketto is so fun and the colors from the American Crafts Teen Collection is just perfect for a trendy card!

Check out all the glitter I added. Didn't you just love glitter when you were little? Okay don't you still!!!

I hope to be back with my Gradient Is Radient card & my Embellish magazine challenge card later today. Hope you're having a fabulous weekend!!


Details:
Stamps - Rollanda Ketto (Stamping Bella)
Ink - Tuxedo Black (Memento); Copics
Paper - black, Melon Mambo; dp - American Crafts Teen Collection
Accessories - black & white polka dot ribbon, pink brad, gemstones, circle & pinking circle Nestabilities, dimensionals, Gelly Roll pens

Elephant Birthday

I give birthday cards to each of my elementary students for their birthdays. They're really cute about it and have begun to request images. This card was for one of my fourth grade girls who requested a card with an elephant. I know she loves plaids and pinks, so I came up with this:

She loved it! So did I - especially those hot pink toenails :) I thought this would work wonderfully for a baby card as well.

On a separate note, my Christmas Budget Organizer (tutorial here) is being featured on OrganizedChristmas.com. Cynthia Ewer, the editor, left a comment on the Rubber Romance site to let me know...and let me tell you how shocked I was. Yahoooooooooooooo!!! Couldn't wait to rub this into the queen of all organization's (aka my mom's) nose. She then told me I was just like her....hmmmm...don't know if I'm ready to be just like my mother :)

I'm off to check my haluski (cabbage & noodles) - I LOVE fall foods...that goodness sweater season is here!! Have a good one :)


Details:
Stamps - Elephant (Clear Dollar Stamps); Polka Dot Basics II (PTI)
Ink - Versamark; Ruby Red; Copics
Paper - Ruby Red, Old Olive; Sweet Blush; white; dp - My Mind's Eye
Accessories - Embossed Curve punch, button, embroidery floss, white Gelly Roll pen

Happy Birthday with a cherry on top!

I created this birthday card a short while ago for Siobhan, one of my blogger buddies. She is such a hoot and the reason I've not purchased any paper for at least 2 months!! (<-this has actually been wonderful....I might do this challenge more often)

I used 3 PTI sets on this - Everyday Button Bits, Polka Dot Basics II, and Vintage Labels. I love the Vintage Labels set - now I can give my Nesties Labels One layers the perfect borders!! I thought the color combo was bright & cheery - perfect for a birthday card :) I'm glad it made it to Siobhan - she's in Japan, and I'm even happier that she liked it!


Details:
Stamps - Everyday Button Bits, Polka Dot Basics II, and Vintage Labels (PTI)
Ink - Tuxedo Black (Memento), New Leaf (PTI)
Paper - white, black, Rose Red
Accessories - buttons, black grosgrain ribbon

Everything But The Kitchen Sink - Pottery Barn Style

Last night I started on my 'initial idea' for the:

This month's challenge is to use something from the mail in your card/LO. I wanted to use letters from my local hospital's annual magazine to make the word HI on a card - uhhhh....didn't go as well as I planned! I pasted the letters on some thick cardboard which made cutting very jaggedy (this probably isn't a word, but I think you get the picture) and made me hate them - thus I scraped the project and came back to it today.

I leafed through a Pottery Barn Kids catalog - what a source of inspiration!! Toward the end of the catalog, I came to the swatches of fabric for upholstering their furniture - you can check these out online here.

And here's what I did with the swatches:

Using a circle punch, I created a simple grid card. I just love all the colors & patterns. I stamped a sentiment from PTI's Mixed Messages set on one of the circles - the coating of the paper made it difficult to get a crisp image.

So if you haven't checked out the Everything But the Kitchen Sink challenge - GET GOIN'!!! There's a $25 gift certificate for PTI up for grabs; and with the previews of the upcoming release going up daily, who couldn't use that!!

Details:
Stamp - Mixed Messages (PTI)
Ink - Chocolate Chip
Paper - kraft; swatches from Pottery Barn Kids catalog
Accessories - circle punch, dimensionals