Blog Comments

Hi Everyone,
Hope all is well and you are getting into the swing of the holidays!  Boy, they seem to come around quicker every year!

I've been checking my blog,,,,and there haven't been any comments lately.  I'd LOVE to hear from you!  And I also know that I get hits from all around the world......from our neighbors in Canada.......from the United Kingdom, Germany, the Netherlands..........as far away as Australia..... and even the Ukraine and Russia.

It would be awesome to hear from you and share our love of stamping and paper crafting!

If you'd like, you can post comments or pictures of projects you have completed on our Facebook page!  Let's get the conversation going!!!  This can get really BIG!!! 

Let's show the world how BIG it can get!!!

In addition, you may want to sign up to get the postings straight into your e-mail box.  Check the side bar on the right and submit your e-mail address.  It's very simple.  (Don't forget that you will get a confirmation e-mail AND you will need to click on the link to verify your e-mail address.  Once that is done, you're finished and you will be getting automatic e-mails of every posting!)

Looking forward to your comments,
Anna

Christmas Tag

I really liked the tag I made for the "Thanksgiving wine bottle", so today I made one with Christmas colors.

I used the Spellbinders Mega Ovals, the Marianne Poinsettia dies (LR0122 & LR0142) and Marianne Swirls (LR0116).  These tags are great for wine bottles, but you can also put them on a nice bottle of olive oil or balsamic vinegar.  Or you can easily expand the tag and make a card.

Join us for the Christmas Accessories class where you'll make this tag and a few other non-card items for Christmas. 

Have a peaceful evening
and
Happy Stamping,
Anna

Happy Thanksgiving !

Hope you are having a wonderful day with family and friends today!

I just wanted to post the Thanksgiving Day card I made last night, just in time to be hand delivered today.

I really like the way it came out; I just love those Cheery Lynn Stacking Flowers and the Polynesian Sails oval.  You may remember that it is the same layout as a birthday card I made last month, but this time with a fall color scheme. 

Change the color scheme and you get a totally different look and feel to the card!  (The background paper is Marianne's Pretty Paper Bloc - Songbook, distressed with Antique Linen distress ink.) 

I also made this tag for a bottle of wine.  Here I used Marianne's Creatables dies, a Stampendous saying stamp, and the new Scrollworks embossing folder.  This embossing folder is becoming one of my favorites.

Thanks for stopping by
and
Looking forward to seeing you soon!
Anna

Rosette Turkey

It is Thanksgiving Eve and Tim Holtz made these cute turkeys with his rosette dies!  Aren't they awesome!

So.......how many will YOU be making tonight?  Tim says there is still time and they're not too difficult to make.  Plus, it's another use for your rosette dies!
Check out Tim's blog; there's a video, picture tutorial and even a turkey body template sheet you can download!  You better get cracking......time is "gobbling" away!

Gift Box for the Rosette Ornaments

As promised, here is the box I made for the rosette ornaments.

 These hand made square boxes are so easy to make.  You start with a square piece of card stock and make several folds with the points of the square and you make a professional looking box with no adhesive, in a color of your choice.  For the top, use a square piece of card stock 1/4 inch larger than the piece for the bottom .

In class yesterday, everyone was very pleased with the boxes they created; each one was beautiful, yet different.  Everyone used different color combinations for the rosette and it's backing and gave the box it's own personality.

Decorate the top and the sides, add some tissue paper to the inside, stack the ornaments and you have a fabulous hostess gift.

These hand made square boxes are just perfect for so many things.  What about filling them with special chocolates and using them as bridal shower party favors.  Any small square or round shaped object fits perfectly inside.  The possibilities are endless plus the finished product looks so very professional.

Join the Christmas Ornaments class and be ready for gift giving time.  You'll be happy you did!

Thanks for stopping by
and
Enjoy the beautiful warm weather today!
Anna

Rosette Style Xmas Ornaments

I really like the way my paper rosette ornaments came out.  And they were quite easy to make.

I made the rosettes with the Tim Holtz mini paper rosette die (the larger one on the strip die).  The centers were stamped with Just Rite Stamps and colored with Copic markers.  I then matted the rosettes on round scalloped circles from my Spellbinders Nestabilities.  Lastly, I added glitter because for Christmas ornaments we need glitter!

Here is a close up of one of the ornaments.

Later I thought of a great way you can package and present 3 of these ornaments.  Since they are relatively flat, you can stack 3 ornaments and place them in one of those cube hand made boxes made out of card stock.  I'll have to make one and post a picture of it soon. 

These would also make great gift tags!   Attach them to a gift and then the recipient can use it on their Christmas tree.

Join tomorrow's Christmas Ornaments class and you'll make one of these!  Just don't forget to call to reserve your seat.

Thanks
and
Happy Stamping,
Anna

Happy Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is almost here and here is another card that the ladies made in Saturday's class.  We used watercolor paper and made some backgrounds with Twinkling H2O's.  The trick here was to get the paper very wet and then paint with the Twinks.  I'm glad that you can see the pretty shimmer of the Twinkling H2O's in the photo.  Click here to see my video of the technique.

Besides stamping, we also used the background paper we created to punch out the maple leaves. This way everything is color coordinated.  The punch also does a great job and the embosser makes the pretty veins in the leaf.  To finish off the card we used the Scrollworks embossing folder and the Viva Decor Pearl Pen in black.  Quick and easy!

Thanks for stopping by
and
Happy Stamping,
Anna

Thanksgiving Day Card & Matching Candle

It is always fun to use our craft to make more than just cards. This was true this past Saturday when everyone went home with a beautifully decorated candle as well as Thanksgiving Day cards.

Place the decorated candle in a clear plastic bag, tie a beautiful ribbon to close the top and you have a great hostess gift!  Think about a Christmas themed candle for more wonderful hand made gifts from your heart.  I know we all run out of ideas on what to get everyone.  Hand decorated scented candles are always appreciated and as you can see, they are not too difficult to make.

Hope you'll take some time to make some hand made gifts for the upcoming holidays.

The Limited Edition Distress Ink Pads

Hi Everyone,  Just wanted to let you know that the Limited Edition Winter Distress Ink Pads have arrived at the Creative Corner!

The three colors are:  Evergreen Bough (a beautiful green with a hint of blue), Festive Berries (a true Christmas red), and Iced Spruce (an incredible greyish blue).

Those of you who have pre-ordered a set, they are ready for pick up.
And don't worry, there are still several sets left for anyone else; so hurry in before they are gone!

Also, check out Tim Holtz's blog!  He even has a video on there showing you more ideas using these great colors!

Embroidered Xmas Candle Card

Today, I used some straight embroidery stitches to create this card. 

I also used the Marianne Creatables poinsettia dies as well as a pine branch punch and the Spellbinders Mega Oval Nestabilities.  Lastly I finished it off with the large dots embossing folder and the very pretty Merry Christmas peel off.  I have to say that the peel off pulls it all together as I was going for an old fashioned look.

Thanks for stopping by,
Anna

Another Christmas Card

I have been wanting to make a Christmas card using the Marianne Creatables LR 0182 Christmas ornament die (the set comes with this ornament and the bell die) with the Marianne Creatables LR 0181 pine tree branch.  And this is what I came up with:

I kept it simple with just two colors for the card and glitter, of course!  Elizabeth Crafts micro fine glitter in Sahara makes the ornament really sparkle.  I highlighted the pine branch with stickles, embossed the shiny white card stock with the snowflakes embossing folder, added a greeting and ribbon and voila, I was done!

Hope you're getting in some craft time for your Christmas cards!

Happy Stamping,
Anna

The Perfect Layout

Recently, Soni came up with a wonderful layout and made this beautiful birthday card for Ginny.

 Soni used the Spellbinders Labels 12 to make the frame for the window.  She also used  the Cheery Lynn Victorian Romance Flourish die and the dots embossing folder by Crafts-too.  By using the 3-D Antique Roses and the pretty pale pink card stock, it truly gave it a vintage look.

Next, Ginny used the same layout for inspiration and came up with this stunning Wedding/Anniversary card!  For this card, Ginny used the Spellbinders Labels 16 for her window frame and the Marianne Creatable LR 0182 Bell die. Just like Soni, she also used the Cheery Lynn flourish to complete the card. 

The bells were die cut and adhered to cream card stock.  She then added cool highlights micro fine glitter to make the bells really sparkle!   As I mentioned before, these bells are great for Christmas and Weddings/Anniversaries.  And what about to "ring in the new year"?

These cards are truly beautiful and unfortunately the pictures do not do them justice. You really need to see these cards up close and personal!

Have a wonderful day,
Anna