HAS December Card

I am finally able to post my card from the December Humble Artists Swap!

 

The guidelines were:

Create a Winter themed card

May NOT use any Green, Red or Blue

Must use 5 embellishments

Add some sparkle and shine

Must emboss something

Must have 8 layers stacked somewhere on the card

 

The cards I received in the mail from my fellow swappers were FABULOUS!  You can check out their talent over in my sidebar under Humble Artists.

 

 

Recipe:

All products CTMH

Cardstock: White Daisy, Slate and Whisper

Ink: Slate and Whisper

Stamps: D1480 Snowflakes, D1512 Holiday Wishes

Silver embossing powder Z669

Slate polka dot ribbon Z1802

Silver shimmer trim Z1799

Bitty pearls Z1707

Bitty sparkles Z1263

Clear sparkles Z1752

Vellum paper

 

I can't believe I haven't posted since before Christmas!  I did get into my craft room in January, just haven't had time to photograph anything.  Will try to get some new crafty things posted soon.  Thanks for stopping by today!

 

Lorrinda



 

 

3D Interactive Pop-Up Cash Card!

Who doesn't like cash? 
I have 2 teens on my Christmas list this year, and they are saving their money for some big-ticket items, so I was happy to contribute cash as their gift this year (saves me shopping stress!)
But as nice as it is to get cash, it's kind of a downer not to get a gift to open. 
So I made these:



 

 

 

So fun!

And I feel good that I put a little bit of effort into their gifts. 

 

Should at least earn me some "Coolest Auntie Ever!" votes :)

 

 

Here's a close-up of the pop-up part for those of you who want to make one yourself:

 

• Sorry, I don't have a template for the pop-up part, I just "winged it". 
• There are basically 2 pop up tabs cut out of the center of the card, with snowbanks glued to them. 
• Instructions for money origami can be found HERE. 
• I used glue dots to adhere the cash to the card, easy to rub off without damaging the money.

 

Note: the new Canadian bills that are sort of plastic don't work well for origami folds, make sure to use the older paper bills for this.

 

I wish everyone a wonderful Christmas!

Lorrinda

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My 2012 Christmas Cards

In all the holiday chaos, I forgot to post my Christmas cards I sent out this year:

Inspired by Lisa Stenz, check out her blog and you will be inspired too!

Inspired by my friend Vicki (and not the first time either, she has the best ideas!)

Inspired my many starburst cards I found on Pinterest

Direct CASE from a card found on Pinterest by Monica

I kept these all very simple and non-bulky because I hate having to pay extra postage when I'm mailing out a bunch of cards. 

I have a couple more "Gift" cards to work on today, which are definitely more bulky and not simple at all...I will post them for you soon.  I hope everyone is enjoying the holiday season and not getting stressed out with a bunch of last-minute things to do!

Lorrinda

Christmas Cards Day 6

Another simple Christmas card for you:

I kind of wish I had taken a group shot, I made 12 of these and they looked so pretty all lined up!

Papers: CTMH Believe Level 2 kit

Stamps: CTMH D1498 Art Philosophy Seasons(tree)

SU Season of Joy(sentiment)

Christmas Cards Day 5

Can you believe I've posted 5 days in a row?  I've been pretty lazy with my blog lately, but that's just because my life keeps getting in the way.  I like these recent short and sweet posts... quick and easy just like my Christmas cards have been.

This card wasn't exactly quick with all the heat embossing, but if you set it up assembly-line-style it doesn't take too long. Nothing beats heat embossing for a little bit of shimmer without too much bling:

Snowflakes were cut out with the CTMH Cricut Art Philosphy cartridge, then stamped with the coordinating snowflake images from D1480 Snowflakes stamp set in versamark,  then heat embossed using silver and pearl. Added a little extra sparkle with some rhinestones and silver ribbon. Papers are from CTMH Wonderland Paper kit.  This card is really pretty up close, click on it to see for yourself.

Thanks for popping in today!

Lorrinda

Christmas Cards Day 4

I believe this was a Mojo Monday sketch from days gone by...a great pattern for using up scrap strips of paper:

Paper: CTMH Mistletoe Level 2 kit (retired)

Snowflake : CTMH Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge

Thanks for popping by, be back soon with more Christmas cards!

Lorrinda

Christmas Cards Day 3

Another cased Christmas card for you.  I was inspired by a beautiful card made by Darleen Adamo, and I wish I could find the link to post here, but I had this saved in my inspiration folder b.p.(before pinterest)  Now I pin inspiring ideas to my pin boards on Pinterest, so finding links will be a snap.

It's hard to see in the photo, but I stamped a glittery snowflake in the center cutout portion using CTMH Create a Shade Pearl Paint.

Stay tuned for more Christmas cards!

Lorrinda

Christmas Cards Day 2

As promised, here's another set of cards I made for this year's collection.

And the same card, just flipped sideways:

Stamp: CTMH C1469 December 25th

Card base and cut shapes made with CTMH Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge Z1686

I totally cased these cards from CTMH TV.  Here is a handy dandy video tutorial:

Want some more crafty holiday video inspiration?

Check out CTMH TV

Lorrinda

Going Postal...Christmas Cards Day 1

I am so unprepared for Christmas this year!  I had most of my decorations up by the end of November, and thought that I was on track this year....but I just realized that it will be Christmas next weekend!  NEXT weekend!! I have made a few online purchases, but I am no where near the end of my Christmas list.  

I have been tinkering away at my Christmas cards since Halloween, so at least I have that done...but I still haven't mailed them. Before I go postal, I figured I would snap some photos to share with you over the next few days.  I don't usually make bulk cards, but at Christmas I try to make at least 6 of each style. Assembly line cardmaking means I get lots done quickly, but I have to keep the design fairly simple.

Please excuse the poor lighting, I've been going to work in the dark and coming home in the dark, so it's been tough to get any decent natural light for my camera.

This is a quick and easy card, and I liked how it turned out so I made another variation using the opposite piece of the torn white paper:

Paper: CTMH Wonderland Level 2 Pack

Stamps: C1468 Winter Joy (kids) and

                  D1480 Snowflakes (sentiment)

Make sure to check back, as I will be posting the rest of my Christmas cards over the next few days.

Lorrinda

Medallions Challenge

Say that 10 times fast!

I made this card for the Championing Award Medallions Challenge in the Moxie Fab World.

The challenge is to make something that incorporates a 3 dimensional medallion in an innovative way.  I was in Christmas card mode and I couldn't figure out how to use a medallion for Christmas other than on a tag...then it hit me to make a tree out of it!  What do you think?  I have a gazillion brads so I went all out with the silver mini brads.  I like to bling-bling my Christmas cards, don't you? 

This card will probably be attached to a gift, so I wasn't worried about the weight or the thickness, but it would probably require a padded envelope for mailing. 

Thanks for popping by today!
Lorrinda

Supplies used all CTMH unless noted otherwise:
Paper: Mistletoe Level 2 Pack
Sentiment Stamp: D1243 Peace on Earth
Red Sparkles Z1326
Bitty Brads-metal Z1368
Cranberry Ink

SU Silver elastic cord
SU Border punch
Create Impress snowflake brad

Dreaming of a White Christmas...

I made this card for my parents, had to make it big (5x7") to include kid's school portraits. I don't know why I don't make big cards more often, they just seem more festive somehow...
 

I was feeling the white....

Cut the snowflakes on my Cricut using Home Accents cartridge. Dabbed them with liquid glue and covered them with glitter. Arranged the snowflakes in a wreath circle, added adhesive pearls and ribbon. The sentiment is embossed in a silver pearl color (tough to photograph the sheen, but it's real purty IRL), and I used a pearl paint brushed on the edges for some extra shine. 

I like how this turned out, I wanted something simple and elegant and I think this works.

And, it was easy to make :)

Merry Christmas!

Lorrinda

Recipe:

All CTMH Products

Cardstock: White Daisy

Stamps: C1281 Card Commentary and C1379 Holiday Commentary

Z678 Silver Pearl Embossing Powder

Z1039 Pearl Paint

Z1336 Pearl Opaques 1/2 pearls

Z134 Prisma Glitter

Craft Heater

paint brush

White ribbon from my stash



Need a little gift bag?

This is my second post today, can you believe it? I've actually had these done for a few days, but am only getting a chance to post them to my blog now.  I'm sure you are all having a crazy week too!

Need a last minute pretty package for a little gift or stocking stuffers? Why not use up some of that ancient printed paper or cardstock that you have laying around? (Admit it, you have stuff that you bought because it was on sale and have never used...)

Try these simple 2-5-7-10 boxes.  A full tutorial can be found HERE at Splitcoast Stampers.

Each of these were made with a single 81/2 x 11" sheet of double sided cardstock. This particular paper was in a bulk pack from Costco that I have had forever. The stamp is from SU, cut circles out of coordinating cs with my Cricut.  Used a length of twill ribbon threaded through holes to fasten the top.

I needed these to be a bit taller, so I used a 12x11"  sheet of Costco cardstock, used the same score measurements of 2-5-7-10 along the 11" side, and altered the score lines on the 12" side to 2" and 10 1/2" (see tutorial).  I cut the tags with my Cricut and Storybook cartridge, used CTMH stamps C1427 I Believe and C1379 Holiday Commentary with gold embossing powder. To make the fastener for these, I threaded a loop of stretchy gold cord through a pierced hole, and knotted it at the inside so it stays. The loop can be hooked around a gold brad to keep the top closed. Embellished with a bit of gold ribbon, a bit of bling and some punched pine branches.

I think both sizes turned out pretty nice, and these came together very quickly.

Best of all, they were made from stuff I had in my stash!

Merry Christmas!

Lorrinda

Holiday Dough!

I have a nephew who is saving his money for a school trip to Quebec, and his mom told me he wanted cash for Christmas. Well, that's just boring. Not the cash part, who doesn't like cash? But I think he should get some presents to open.  I found this adorable little poem by fellow CTMH consultant Theresa Dodd, and I just had to use it!

(Click the pic to get a closeup view)

Theresa's project used rolled up dollar bills (which made for a really nice fat presentation), but here in Canada the smallest paper money we have is a $5 bill, so I got creative with the $1 coins and added some candy to fill the box.

The clear box is recycled packaging I found in my stash. The candies are Hershey's kisses and Mint Candy cane balls.  Now he'll have a present to unwrap with the rest of the kids. This should keep him busy unwrapping his money for a while, don't you think?

Merry Christmas!
Lorrinda

Gift Card Presents

I love gift cards!  I know many people think they are a cop out, last minute, haven't-put-any-thought-into-it gift...but for those on our list who have everything and are hard to buy for, they are always perfect.

I came up with a cute way to package those gift cards:

The one on the left is how it looks closed, the right one is open.  This way they still get a present to "open"!

These are very simple to make: 

Start with a piece of cardstock 5"x12"

Score along long side at 5" and 10"

Fold along score lines

Embellish as desired, I used a velcro dot to hold it closed.

That's it!  I whipped these two up in about 15 minutes using retired CTMH Evensong paper pack.

I'm going to share this over at Heart 2 Heart, where the last challenge of the year is an easy one...a Christmas card!

Thanks for visiting my blog!

Lorrinda

Oh Christmas Tree, Oh Christmas Tree...

My daughter's class is having their Christmas party today, and I was asked to bring something sweet.  Finally! The last couple of class parties I was assigned veggies or fruit...boring! What kid is going to eat veggies when there is sweet stuff around?  Sweet stuff is so much more fun to make, and to eat!

These were very easy to make. I started with 2 dozen cupcakes, and 2 dozen cake balls shaped into cones.  When the cupcakes were warm out of the oven, I used the bottom of a shot glass to press holes in the center, then let them cool.  The cake ball cones were placed into the holes to form the base of the tree.  Then I just spread white frosting around the edges, and piped green frosting onto the cone shape with an open star tip.  Sprinkled on some colored balls and placed a little candy star on top. 

Only took me 30 minutes to frost these, and aren't they cute?

Thanks for visiting my blog,

Lorrinda

Home Made Gift Box

It's gift week at Heart 2 Heart, they want to see what we can make or dress up as a small gift for someone.

Well, PERFECT TIMING!  Who doesn't have little gifts to package up at this time of year? I have many small things, from perfume to ornaments as well as homemade goodies which need to be gift packaged. I like to give things in packaging that can be reused, I've kind of boycotted gift wrapping because it seems like such a waste of pretty paper. I much prefer reusable gift bags, or in this case a gift box which can be used as a decor item as well :)

Here's what I came up with:

Front

Back

And just when they think the house is the gift, they figure out that there is something inside:

Ta Da!! This one is full of cookies! 

I made these White Chocolate Cranberry oatmeal cookies,

and this little house holds them beautifully.

This looks difficult, but really isn't that hard. I've made quite a few of these now, and the possibilities for decoration are endless.  It starts with a template that you just print out onto your cardstock and then cut out.  Then you get to have fun with the embellishing.

The  reusable digital TEMPLATE for this little house can be found HERE.

To make this little house I used mostly CTMH products:

Cardstock in Desert Sand, Holiday Red and Topiary.

 Stamps D1377 Around the Block for doors and windows

and C1363 Beary Best for trees.

Inks in Topiary, Cocoa and Versamark

Z1366 Cocoa Ribbon Collection

 Embossing powder in White Daisy

Craft Heater

The white lace edging is from my stash.

The wreaths were made with paper shavings and Liquid Glass.

The snow is white glitter sprinkled over white craft glue.

I used strong Scor-Tape to adhere the parts together, this baby is going to last.

For more packaging inspiration, head over to the Heart 2 Heart Challenge blog for some fabulous ideas!

Thanks for visiting today,

Lorrinda

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This little box made the Friday Five this week!  How flattering to get chosen from among all the beautiful entries.  Thanks ladies!  Everyone's projects were so unique and inspiring, must have been a tough one for the judges.

Merry Monday 2010 #4

Aghhhh! I just realized my Merry Monday post (which was scheduled to auto-post on, umm, Monday) didn't publish like I had scheduled!  My apologies! Please just pretend today is Monday and read on...


Merry Monday!
I can't believe how fast Christmas is approaching! I'm so behind this year...haven't even started gift shopping yet.  Well, my cards get mailed out today, so I can at least cross that off of my list.

Just a refresher about the Merry Monday posts:  This year I made bulk cards, 6 of each design, in 12 different designs.  I've kept them fairly simple so they are easily produced and can be mailed with standard postage. I supply some of my family with their cards, they each got a pack of 12 different cards. 

Here are 2 more of my bulk Christmas cards made for this year.

Recipe:

CTMH White Daisy cardstock

CTMH Ink in Sky

CTMH pearl paint

SU Stamp 111690 Snow Swirled

Ribbon from my stash

Techniques: masking, sponging, stamp was covered with ink first then pearl paint

Recipe:

CTMH stamp C1420 Snow Days

CTMH markers in White Daisy, Holiday Red and Sunny Yellow

CTMH Ink in New England Ivy

CTMH New England Ivy cardstock

SU cardstock in Kraft and Naturals

Red ribbon from my stash

Merry Monday!

Lorrinda

A few of my Favorite Things...

I love Christmas! Every December, my home is transformed for the holidays. I usually unpack and put out everything in one day, but this year it's taken me 3 days just to get the ornaments unpacked. My back has pretty much incapacitated me...and I store everything in large rubbermaid containers in the basement. Thank God for my sweet hubby who had days off, and did all the heavy lifting for me! And for my kids, who helped me unpack and never broke anything :) My family has really stepped up to help around here since my back started giving me grief...who knew they could be so independent?  I am pleasantly surprised...guess they have been paying attention.

I have several Christmas decorations that I love, and I thought I'd share them with you. You know, as I was taking photos, I realized I don't have any pictures of these things. Why do we not photograph the things that we love more often?  My mind is swimming with scrapbook page ideas for these photos, I think a "My Favorite Things" page would be a great addition to a holiday album!

I really hate the brass accents on the fireplace, and have been wanting to change them, but they actually work with my gold/cranberry color scheme at Christmas. We use this fireplace every day in the winter, this is the coziest room in the house.

My Christmas Countdown Calendar...this has to be my kids favorite decoration. Behind each door is a wooden toy ornament for them to hang on a peg in Santa's workshop. There is also, mysteriously, chocolates in each little door every year.... Tonight they get to fight over who opens the 1st door, after today they take turns each evening.  I found this a few years ago at Costco for $35! What a find!

My Nativity set, given to me several years ago by my best friend, is one of my most cherished Christmas decor item.  Each character is almost 2 feet tall, so it doesn't fit under my tree, so I have it on a bench behind my sofa, it's the first thing you see entering my living room.  Would you believe these are made out of paper?  The faces and hands are porcelain (as is baby Jesus), but the crinkly stuff is paper. Here are some close-ups so you can see the details...

And I just know I'm going to hell for posting this pic,

but my kids giggle every time I put Baby Jesus out because of this:

Is this not the most precious Nativity set you've ever seen?

This beautiful heavy glass bowl was a wedding gift, I used to fill it with Christmas candies on my coffee table, but we really don't need the extra calories sitting in front of the TV all month. This works better:

My Santa collection sits on the TV:

I also have several beautiful ornaments which bring back memories every year when I unpack them: 

My Mom has been giving me these Hummel collectible ornaments each year. I have several now, and I love them!

And of course I'll always cherish these ornaments the kids made at school:

Yep, that's an "antique Christmas light" (according to my kids)

My darling Jenna in Kindergarten. Made with a baby food jar lid.

How cute!

This one made me cry...

My kids know the true meaning of Christmas, they each made one of these in Grade 2, and they bring a tear to my eye each time I read them.  They are called "The Important Book", and on each page is a picture and a story abut each character in the Nativity, and why they are important (in my kid's own words)...

Here's a sample of the inside:

by Jenna

by Shane

My kids have the best teachers in the world!

Do you have Christmas ornaments or decorations that hold special meaning for you? This year, take some photos of them and add them to your Christmas album. Years from now these may become heirlooms, and wouldn't it be nice to know the story behind them? We seem to only take photos of the people we love, why not scrap a page about the things we love too?

I hope you enjoy decorating your home for Christmas as much as I do!

Lorrinda