Decorating with Teal

Recently I had all of the rooms of my house painted.  It was quite the undertaking and I'm not sure if I'd ever do the whole house at the same time again!  I had to move all of my crafting supplies out of the sewing and stamping rooms (and you know that I have a LOT!)  and it's still not all put back yet.  It's like moving all over again, only this time nothing is even in boxes.  :(

Slowly, I am sorting and putting things back together.  I look forward to when I get both of my crafting rooms all set and I can just go in and sew or stamp without having to look for all of the supplies. 

Anyway, I have added the color teal in all of its shades to my decorating palate for this house.  I had the kitchen painted a soft teal, sort of like Soft Sky.  Today I set out a table runner that I made using some teal-colored Waverly home decor fabrics that I had purchased from Walmart.  They're just the right thickness for only $3.97 per yard.  Who would have thought that you could buy such nice fabrics at Walmart? 

I put the runner on the center island to add a bit of color.  It goes nicely with the shabby chic tray and assorted decorating balls.

I also cut up some large squares from the fabrics and hemmed them to use as centerpieces for the tables.  Pretty much the entire downstairs is a mix-and-match for changing out the decor in each of the rooms.  I forgot to take a photo of this to show.

One of my friends painted this hutch and I put it in the dining room where people come over to make crafts.  It is the perfect accent color for the teal decorating palate. 

I will be using it to display some of the my current craft items.  And I found the card rack along the side of the road one day while driving to visit a friend.  Some man who was in the area helped me get it into my car.  It needed a bit of spray paint to freshen it up but now I think it looks great next to the hutch. 

One thing I'd like to do is put a banner along the top of the hutch.  What do you think?

It's a Panda Birthday Party!

I's always sad when Sale-a-Bration is over for another year.  This year's stamp sets and accessories were a lot of fun to work with.  I especially liked the Panda Parade stamp set.  What cute images they are - perfect for making some whimsical birthday cards. 

I'm finally back to having regular stamping classes in my home.  I had to take a few months off because I had hand surgery over the winter.  I made a set of 4 birthday cards all using the Panda Parade set.  In this first one, the panda is juggling balls that are actually tutti-frutti sequins.  So colorful and cute, right? 

I love the colors in this bright and cheery card.  The paper is from the Bubbles and Fizz designer paper.  This card could be given just anyone- boy, girl, man or woman.  Don't you just love the tiny little heart on his notecard?

Next up is a fun shaker card filled with a mixture of shiny sequins.  The circle is supposed to be a balloon that the Panda is holding.  I added the stitch marks by hand using a coordinating marker.

And last up is a bright red card with star cut-outs and rhinestones for some bling.  The balloon is 3D, made using 3 balloon punch cut-outs glued together. 

Which one is your favorite? 

200 Posts! And there's a prize drawing!

I can't believe that it's been 5 years that I have been posting on this blog. I've been sharing my crafty life with you since February 2013!  I hope that at some point you have enjoyed and been inspired by at least one of my posts!

I just noticed today that I am at my 200th post.  Well, actually it's the 203rd post.  I guess I forgot to watch for the actual 200th number.  And for those of you who might actually be reading this post, I am giving away a $15 gift card to your favorite craft store!  You can choose from Michaels, Joanns, AC Moore or Hobby Lobby.

All you have to do is leave a comment and let me know which post or craft that you have liked or been inspired by over the past 5 years before Friday, April 20 at 9:00 pm EST.  I will randomly draw a number and let you know if you have won.  I will notify you and send you your gift card.

And to all of my readers and friends, I would just like to say:

I hope to be around for another 200 posts.  :)

Sewing Sampler Using Quilt Builder

When I first saw the Quilt Builder stamp set and framelits in the Stampin Up holiday catalog, I knew that I would want it.  It has great versatility and I'm surprised that it did not carry over to the new catalog.  You can use it to make quilty things all year round.

One day, long after the holiday catalog had expired, I took out the set.  I picked out a few colors and began to cut out the quilt shapes using my Big Shot.  I used the designer paper left over from the succulent suite from last summer. 

I added some images from an older sewing set and some cut-out buttons along with some real buttons and embroidery floss. 

For the focal point in the center I used one of my favorite stamps, "Do something creative every day."  Doesn't that sound like me?  I wish that I had this saying on everything! 

I matched up the colors with the colors in the designer paper, using Mint Macaron, Sweet Sugarplum, Tip Top Taupe and Lost Lagoon.  For the contrast color, I used Pacific Point, a dark indigo blue that coordinated well with the colors.

I didn't want to have glass over the top because of the layers, so I stopped over to the craft store and purchased a wooden framed saying without glass.  I glued the paper onto it.  It's hard to see in the photo because the images are so small, but I love how it turned out!  I'm not sure if I want to hang it in my sewing room or my stamping room (yes, I have both!); it would work well in either one.  I love blending my two hobbies!

Have you ever made a quilty craft using rubber stamps?  Or have you ever stamped on a quilt before?  I'd love to hear your ideas.

Winter Scene in Frame

After the holidays, I was crafting with my friend, Cindy and we decided to make a winter scene using the little house framelits that were in the holiday catalog.  We started with some teal designer paper and then added a row of the houses, some trees and some snow banks. 

I love the look of our "little town."  I added some snowflake cut-outs from the Seasonal Layers framelits, a small red heart on the church, a deer and some glitter snow and it just came to life!  It looks like some place that I'd like to visit.  If it was winter. 

Great Gifts: Acetate Candy Boxes

You may know that I had to have hand surgery this past winter.  I had to wear a cast and wasn't able to use my hand for a couple of months.  One of my friends came over to help me make some sort of a crafty gift to give to people that helped me by bringing over a meal.  We came up with this Acetate Candy Box to give to them. 

They are made using the acetate boxes from Stampin Up's holiday catalog.  It perfectly fits 6 Ghirardelli candies in it.  We wrapped them in designer paper cut 1 3/4" x 5" long and attached the paper with 2 glue dots to secure it. 

The belly band is 1 1/4" x 12" long and we wrapped that around the outside of the box.

After that, we just decorated them using different sayings, circle images, doilies, snowflakes, etc and attached that to the belly band to create a focal point. 

Then we cut strips of designer paper 1" x 4" and trimmed the ends to look like banners.  I added some sequined ribbon to dress them up even more.

Although the majority of mine are made with Christmas paper, you can make them for any occasion, just change out the designer paper.  They make a great little gift to show your appreciation to someone special. 

Which one do you like the best?  Have you tried making these yet? 

Working with Petal Palatte

One of the first stamp sets in the Stampin Up Occasions catalog to catch my eye this year was Petal Palette.  I like the soft, watercolor look that the images have.  I ordered the designer papers and framelits to go with it (of course, I just had to!). 

Here are 3 cards that I made using the stamp set with the papers.  Isn't the little bird really cute?  And I like the font on the sayings.

Although it is a little hard to see what this is, it's an acetate box filled with 6 Ghiradelli candies, each wrapped in designer paper.  Then the outside of the box has a band and a focal point.  I attached some designer paper banners hanging from the circle and some sequined ribbon to make it pop.

These are really easy to make and are great for giving as a small gift of appreciation to someone.  For more details on them, see the next blogpost.