90th Birthday Invite!!

I hope I live to be 90!  My grandfather will be celebrating his 90th Birthday next month.  He is such a wonderful man that I am so glad to have in my life.  He has always believed in me and made me feel special.  So, as you can guess, I loved creating his 90th Birthday invites.

My mother's main requirements for the card were that it have a fish on it and blues/greens.  He has always been an avid fisherman.  So, after a  few prototypes, this is the one that we all agreed on.  Due to sending 45 of these in the mail, I kept the embellishments fairly easy on this card.  I used 2 hole puches and did a slip though "bow".  This added visual appeal with not a lot of bulk.

All of the product used is Close to My Heart.  However, the patterned paper and ribbon have been retired for awhile.  I have been keeping them in my stash for just the right project.

Happy Father's Day!

 I am making 4 (qty) of this Father's Day card this year.  My Dad, Eric's Dad, My Grandfather and My Uncle Jim, will be receiving this card.  It was fun and very easy to put together.

This card is made with a mix of fun scrapbooking products. (Recipe Below) 

Tracey from the Fab 5 Gang at Picture This has done a few cards using this Tie Die from Memory Box.  So, I owe my inspiration for this card to her.  Please check out her blog here:  Owl Be Craftin'   She gives a fun Alcohol Ink Tutorial that you will want to see.  So, thanks Tracey! 

That is the great thing about blogs, Pinterest, Facebook groups, etc.... You can see a card that inspires you, change it and make one of your own.  Even though our cards are extremely different, her card is the reason I had to have this die.  Plus, did I mention that it matches almost perfecly with Macho Nacho from Jillibean Soup?  It's fun to mix trendy products with items from your stash.

 This picture shows how the ties are cut into the Kraft cardstock and then pop-dotted.

Look close...  You can see here that I used my Copic marker to make faux stitching.  I love this technique.  I think it adds a lot without taking a ton of time.

Recipe:

6x6 Card and Envelope from Close to My Heart

Tie Die from Memory Box

Patterned Paper from Jillibean Soup - Macho Nacho

Prussian Blue Copic Marker

Say it in style Stamp Set from Close to My Heart

Outdoor Denim Stamp Pad

Outdoor Denim and Colonial White Cardstock from Close to My Heart

Banner Images cut from Cricut Art Philosophy Cartridge - Close to My Heart

White Twine - picked this up in bulk from my LSS

Pop dots

June Blog Follower Contest

Well, this was supposed to be posted yesterday.  However, we stayed an extra day on vacation.  We went to Mt. Rushmore, Devil's Tower and the Badlands (along with a few other stops).

Here are the June contest details:

1.  You must be a follower of this blog to win.

2.  Comment on 2 posts during the month.

3.  The contest starts today and ends on June 24.

I will pick 2 winners randomly to win a FABULOUS, handmade item from me.

The winners will be posted on Monday, June 25.  So, make sure you check back often for new posts and on June 25 to see if you won!

Good Luck!

Winner Announcement - May Blog Follower!

Thanks to those of you that started following in May (and new ones in June too)!  It is time to announce the winner of the Dotty for You paper pack winner from the new followers in May.....  drum roll please......

Congratulations - MONARCHMOMx2

Please email me with your Name and Address so that I can get this fun paper packet to you!

maria_woodworth@yahoo.com

Stay tuned for a new chance to win MONDAY, JUNE 11!!

Teacher Thank You Cards

 This card was so much fun to put together.  I used a CTMH Cranberry cardstock base, and CTMH stamp sets to complete this card.  The school house is a looong retired stamp.  However, I have held on to it because I love it so much.  I colored it in using my Copic markers.  The Chevron Stripes are from the Simple Stories - Summer Fresh line.  The banner and blue background piece were cut using my Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge from CTMH.  The cloud behind the school house is a corrdinating sticker from Simple Stories.  I cut it in half to make 2 cards. (1 for Ms. Vine - Sydney's Teacher and 1 for Ms. Pietsch - Ethan's teacher)  I used a faux stitching technique to add a finishing touch to the project by piercing holes and connecting them using my Copic marker.

Ethan and Sydney are also aspiring card makers.  Here are the cards that they put together for their teachers.

 Sydney - Kindergarten (Card Front for Ms. Vine)

 Sydney - Kindergarten (Card Inside for Ms. Vine)

Ethan - 1st Grade (Card Front for Ms. Pietsch)

Ethan - 1st Grade (Card Inside for Ms. Pietsch)

Teacher Gift

 Well, here is a look at the gifts that Ms. Pietsch and Ms. Vine will be receiving. 

It all started with the 31 All in One Organizer bags.  My image was for the teachers to be able to tote papers to be graded, projects that needed to be worked on, etc.  So, that is why I included the items in the picture below.  I absolutely love the new Simple Stories line "Summer Fresh".  I used the patterned Chevron paper from that line along with the coordinating Stickers.  I picked up the pencils at Michaels in the clearance rack for .10 cents.

 This picture shows a close up of the notepad journal that I made.  I used one piece of 12x12 CTMH Cranberry cardstock.  I cut 2 pieces and scored them just big enough to fit the small notepads that I picked up from Wal-Mart.  I used liquid glass to adhere the notepad onto the cardstock inside.  The ribbon closure is held in place with a small piece of velcro.  I cut a small banner from Colonial White Cardstock using the CTMH Art Philosophy cartridge.  Then I added a few coordinating stickers from the Summer Fresh sticker sheet.  In order to make 2 sets of everything you see above, I only used one piece of the Chevron patterned paper, a few Kraft Scraps from My Mind's Eye, 1 piece of Cranberry CTMH Cardstock, 4 file folders, a couple pieces of CTMH ribbon and backless brads, and the coordinating stickers from Simple Stories.  High impact with the teacher notepad set, but not a ton of cost.  The major cost of the gift was the frame that I used for the memo board and the 31 All in One organization bag.  I hope they enjoy it as much as I enjoyed putting them together.



Simple Stories - Summer Fresh - Memo Wipe Board

I love making these Memo Wipe Boards.  This is one of my favorite paper lines that I have ever purchased.  I picked it up at Picture This in Eau Claire and Archivers in Bloomington.  This patterned paper made the memo wipe board very easy to make.  90% of this project was done when I bought the paper, and the 12x12 Frame.  The patterned paper is "As-Is" the way that I bought it... except for the coordinating stickers from Simple Stories Summer Fresh line that I added to personalize the project.  I used the denim letter stickers to spell out "notes" and added the flower sticker after it.  THAT'S IT!!  It looks so complete just on it's own.  So, I really didn't feel the need to add a ton of other embellishments.  Once it was in the 12x12 frame (purchased at Michaels), I added an Expo mark to the top with some black velcro.  Instant Memo Board!!  As you can see, we are using this one at home.  However, I made 2 others that I included in a Bag of Goodies for teacher gifts. (Check back in tomorrow's post to see what Ms. Vine and Ms. Pietsch will be getting this year)

This is a completed Memo Wipe Board.

Taste of Eau Claire

The weather was beautiful today.  We got outside and went downtown in Eau Claire for the "Taste of the Valley".  There was free musicians, activities and food.  The kids took a break to sit on a rock in Phoenix Park to listen to some music along the Chippewa River.

 As you can see from this picture, we definitely tried a little bit of everything.  As always, we "go with what we know" as Eric says...  we had pizza and chicken wings.  (Along with a lot of other yummy things.)  My favorite was the Main Street Cafe.  They served up little mini pies, cheesecakes, slices of pies, brownies, AND yummy Strawberry Shortcake.

 This is Ethan standing on the bridge crossing the Chippewa River.

Eau Claire has many statues in the downtown area.  Recently, they moved many of the "older" ones.  Some of them went to new home in other cities, while some of the favorites found new homes around town.  Here is the Dane.  He was moved recently from down town to Phoenix Park on the River.  This is Wyatt and Sydney playing with him.  Since moving many statues, Eau Claire has brought a lot of new statues to the downtown area.