Getting Crafty

I've been getting all crafty again, and loving my new Papertrey Ink stamps. Far out, I am in love with their stamps. Such gorgeous clear crisp stamps, with matching dies, so easy to use! Their sentiments are also divine. Just perfect for every card. I can hardly wait for the November release, which is today!!! If you love stamping, cooking, sewing, knitting or even just card making, you will just ADORE these stamps.

and a close up for those who appreciate the detail.

 

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Here are some other cards I made in the same session

Papertrey Ink products used:
Happy Day and Rosie Posie stamp and die sets
(+ a friend's border die cut-out)

Other:
Spellbinders die, Martha Steward doily border punch, paper scraps

{ edited to add, the November release blog post }

My fav's have to be the thread cards. What a genius idea!

'til next time,

 

DIY Blackboard

I've been checking out some gorgeous DIY projects online lately, and found some really cute little  blackboards made out of secondhand frames. Nothing gets me in like a cheap project, so cue the blackboard paint and look out Vinnies!

I found the perfect frame for, would you believe it, $1! No joke. Wishing I'd taken a pic of it 'before' its transformation, but to give you an idea, it looked a little like this...

I grabbed a spray can of undercoat & white gloss we had in the shed, and the blackboard paint I'd purchased many moons ago, while waiting for the inspiration for this project, a few fine grade sandpaper sheets, and off I went.

First, I took out the glass, and E even helped sand back the old varnish on the frame. After painting a few coats of white, I realised the stain that we couldn't sand back in the grooves was bleeding through, so I raced off to the hardware to see if I could find something to cover it. Thankfully, there was a product just for this situation, Stain No More (AND it was in a can - definitely my kind of product). So, instead of undercoat, next time I'll be using that direct over the frame.

For the glass, I sanded it back with fine (220) grade sandpaper, and I think it would have turned out fine if I had of sprayed the blackboard paint directly over that, but the good salesman at the hardware also managed to sell me some kind of etch stuff for smooth surfaces like glass, mirrors etc. So I'm not sure if it was that, or the sanding that gave it such a good finish, but the surface was fabulous. I think one coat of the blackboard paint would have been enough, but to be on the safe side, I did two.

Now comes the fun part! After letting it dry for 24 hours, I ran a chalk over it sideways, rubbed it off, and let the kids go wild.

What do you think?

Our baby's growing up!

I can't believe our baby is 5! For her party, Erin and her friends were lucky enough to try out the Lots a Scents candle making party kit. I was very impressed with the quality of the supplies in the box. The girls loved mixing in the colours and fragrance themselves.

I would definitely recommend this type of party for a group of girls 5+. It's so much fun, and the girls get to take their creation home too!

The girls mixing the colour and scent into the molten wax

Here's a photo of the finished product. They mixed their own colours too!

Her cute little cupcakes, Martha Stewart Choc Brownie Cupcakes with her famous vanilla bean frosting. Always a hit!

 

The sweets table - totally inspired from Pinterest.

 

Strawberry yoghurt in tiny glasses

TimTam truffle pops

Marshmallows on a stick with white choc & freckles

Layered jelly (very cute and yum!)

Fruit sticks (thanks to Dana!)

Martha Stewart brownie cupcakes with vanilla bean frosting (coloured pink)

and of course, what is a party without lollies.

Snag a Canon or Nikon Camera Giveaway

Everyone loves a freebie, so I thought I'd share my latest find.

I've been using MCP Actions for quite a while to edit my photos, making the time spent getting them just right was reduced nearly by half. I am especially loving the vintage style actions.

So, here's their latest competition to win a Canon or Nikon Camera!
http://bit.ly/zNsPjm

So who's in?

Card and a half sketch...

I made this cute little card for a gorgeous friend of mine who's been helping us out a lot lately.

I based this card on one of the gorgeous sketches from Card and a Half, and am loving the muted tones in these OA papers and the simplicity. I would've added a bow, but the style didn't really suit.

My bad

I've been so busy with life, that my poor little blog has been badly neglected yet again.

Lots has been happening of late, but something kinda scrappy and something cute coming up. A card for my gorgeous niece's 1st Birthday and Christening, and a cute photo of her at her little lady bug party.

Dedicated to Helen & the boys

This card was going to be for the Sketch Challenge over at Card and a Half, however I didn't get it finished in time. Then came some terrible news from the owner of the blog (a gorgeous friend), so I have dedicated it to her family xx

Forever Friends card

This card is for a friend who hasn't been well. I got the gorgeous Forever friends stamps with a magazine my MIL gave me. I hand cut the window so you could see him from the front, because he was too cute to hide!

Tooth Pillows

I've had my eye on this cute tooth pillow pattern from mmmcrafts for about 6 months, and since Aiden's first loose tooth was getting wigglier by the day, I thought I'd better hurry up! I ended up making it just in time, and also made one for his little girl friend's birthday as well. I used the basic pattern and dressed them up pretty similar to the examples, so I didn't have too much guess work.

Erin suggested we make the wings out of pink tulle (which turned out awesome), and she also chose the sequin ribbon for the ballet shoes. Lucky we have some left to make one for her soon!

Aren't they adorable!

Thanks to Larissa from mmmcrafts for sharing her awesome pattern for free! Make sure you check out the rest of her cute little sewing patterns in her etsy shop.

And here is toothless Aiden with his tooth officer waiting for the tooth fairy. He was so excited, and even more so because he helped me make this gorgeous little officer.

It's that time of year!

It's that time of year when everyone seems to be having babies! My niece just had a beautiful little girl, giving me an excuse to create a cute little girly card using these gorgeous Echo Park papers. I've also just heard through the grapevine that my cousin has just had a little boy, so off to the craft table again! xx

Jack's card

I had heaps of fun making this card for the arrival of a friend's little boy. Welcome to this world Jack! He's such a little cutie, even though he never woke the whole time we were there. Hope he doesn't wake his Mummy up too much tonight! You have one gorgeous little man there, Fiona!

Card Sketch Challenge

Another challenge over at A Card and a Half was to make a card using Helen's sketch. I used the sketch as inspiration for this card I made for our friends' gorgeous little girl, Emily. I love how it turned out, although it doesn't look much like the sketch now! LOL! Honest to goodness, I did start with the sketch! I used the girls paperie 'kitch' range, which is super cute!

A Card and a Half challenge

My gorgeous friend Helen has started a little card challenge blog - A Card and a Half. Her latest challenge was to make a male card using embossing and punches.

I chose to use the Spotted Owl Soup range from Jillibean Soup to make this card for a friend. I've kept it really simple and embossed stars on the spotty paper in the background, which I then sanded to reveal the pattern, and have punched the paper around the little owl.

7 years on the 7th!

I couldn't resist making a cute little card for hubby for our Anniversary on Monday.

I've entered it at the Show us your stuff blog for their February Challenge to make something with a handmade heart. I hand cut the heart shape as the base and then added some string and a cool flower I just made up in the moment! Love how it opens to a full heart. Even hubby noticed.

Family Time // Digi Scrapping

There's no time like the present, and I didn't feel like sitting at my scrap desk tonight, so I thought I'd have a play with the free Sweethearts digi kit I downloaded from ScrapOrchard by the awesome SuzieQScraps. I got a Christmas layout done too! Now I just have to work out the cheapest way to print these digi layouts.

A little sew-a-thon

After I made Erin's dress last week, I wondered how hard it would be to whip a smaller version up for Erin's Baby doll? I cut a few corners by not using bias binding for the armholes, and just sewed a small hem and was surprised at how quick it all came together.

The pillowcase is another from a thrift shop and came complete with the lace border and embroidery. I just had to re-hem it. I had a bit of leftover fabric, so created this cute little headband to match.

Last year a dear friend asked me to make a car roll for her eldest son, as I'd made her youngest one for his Birthday. I modelled it on one I'd bought at Handmade Heaven a few years ago for Aiden. I found a little iron-on letter motif to dress it up a bit. Hope you like it PJ!

And while I was at the sewing desk, I made one for Erin's Polly Pocket cars, using some gorgeous girly fabric I purchased from Bubbamia Fabrics yonks ago. Was so good to get these little projects finished, as they've been sitting on my desk for about 3 months. 

Thanks for visiting. xx

Giving and taking

While stopping at our local thrift shop earlier this week to deliver a load of goodies of my own, I picked up these gorgeous vintage pillowcases for $2. Bargain! (I'm so like Dad)

My mind started ticking over and although I have a half finished pillowcase dress for Erin sitting on my desk, I thought I'd have a go making one out of an actual pillowcase (in case I stuffed up). I was pretty impressed with the result. It even fit! Leone, you will be proud, I even made some cute little yoyo flowers to match.

There's nothing quite like the feeling of seeing something come to life that you've made with your own two hands.

The floods

This week has been most difficult to endure. The floods around Queensland and throughout Australia have brought so many horrific scenes to mind.  Etched into our memories forever, much like the floods of '74, this week will be part of our country's history forever. Whether directly affected by the floods, helping or onlooking, I don't think anyone could be prepared for such a tragic start to 2011!

While we are thankful that our little plot of land and belongings were not tossed into the giant bathtub that is the Brisbane River, there are so so many who aren't so lucky and will have to start their lives from scratch.

Sleeplessness has been my friend, as the scenes repeat over and over in my head, from those who have lost everything they own to those who have lost friends and loved ones.