New Baby Keepsake Card

I was browsing around Papercraft Clubhouse in Westbrook one day, taking time to look at the many samples the store gals have put together using products from their inventory.

I was intrigued by a creation that is called a "Card in a Box."  It reminded me of a mini Jack-in-a-box with "stuff" in it.  I decided to embrace the challenge and look up how to make one.

Below is a photo of a similar card taken from the Sizzix blog (since of course I didn't photograph the store sample . . .)

See what I mean about the Jack-in-the-Box vibe . . .

There are numerous YouTube videos as well as diagrams, templates and written directions that appear after typing "Card in a Box" into a Google search box. 

Take your pick . . .

I chose one, followed the instructions and Voila! 

You are absolutely correct . . . the picture above does not at all look like the Sizzix  sample.  Did I  neglect to mention that the card has an open bottom and folds flat to fit into an envelope? 

Well it does. 

The photo above is what the recipients see when the envelope is opened.  The absence of a bottom to the box reduces bulk in the folding.  I'm told there was a bit of puzzlement initially after opening the envelope . . . but after a bit of manipulation, the surprise below emerged. Voila!

Card folded into shape

Left side of card

Right side of card

The stamps used for this particular "Card in a Box" are from the  Make It Market Mini Kit - Wee Folk sold by Papertrey Ink (online), while the heart paper is from a sale pack found at Michael's months ago.  Assembly involved folding and cutting paper for the box and then stamping and die-cutting the images for the pop-ups and for decorating the sides of the box.

This card was made specially for a new little baby boy found in a cabbage patch in Florida.

The "Card in a Box" came together fairly quickly and easily  . . . and was much appreciated by the little fellow's parents. 

Cheers til next time!

Note Cards for Dog Lovers

Hello friends,
Longtime friends - a delightful couple - are dog people.  In the nearly 40 years I have known them, I can't think of many years when they did not have a canine family member.

Right now, they are without  . . . I recently came across a dog rubber stamp that reminded me of their Tess.  So home it came and was used to make a set of  doggie note cards.

Here they are . . . a set of six. I am hoping they make both the senders and recipients smile.

The dog stamp is from B-Line Designs and the papers are from a Little Yellow Bicycle paper pad called "Dog." I kid you not.

Here's how it was done . . . the dog was stamped in black ink onto cream card stock, cut in a oval shape and the edges inked. The patterned papers were cut to fit the purchased card blanks and the corners rounded on the horizontal cards. The scarf on each dog was colored with Prismacolor pencils and the dog ovals were layered onto patterned paper and adhered to the cards. A small strip of contrasting paper was adhered to the vertical card.

Paired with matching envelopes, the cards are set to go!

Cheers!

Vintage Style Note Cards

Hello friends,
Recently I was invited to a golf outing  . . . for those of you not into golf etiquette, it is customary to bring a gift for the person extending the invite (or invite her back to your own club) since she is covering the invitee's costs.  When I was asked to play, my hostess quite forcefully said "And I don't want a gift!"

Oh that can not be!  I can not appear "empty-handed!"  This lovely lady has been quite intrigued by and supportive of my creative pursuits . . . and was instrumental in my being included as a presenter in the Adventures in Lifelong Learning program at Three Rivers CC.  Since she enjoys writing and mailing notes and letters, what better gift than an assortment of note cards?

So I ruffled through my supplies (yes, it took some time), and made a set of six cards -
two of each design.

The branch with berries (Stampin' Up "Simply Sketched") was stamped in green ink with red dots and the edges of the paper torn.  The portrait of the 1920's lady (B-Line Designs) was stamped in black and cut into an oval shape. The pear image (Stampers Anonymous Classics) was stamped in sepia ink and squared with a paper cutter.  All edges were inked with Distress Ink in Tea Dye color to provide visual depth and interest.

Script paper was cut to size and layered onto a cream colored card base. The images were mounted to the patterned paper and voila!  Note cards.

Paired with matching cream envelopes and accompanied by the vintage thank you card described in yesterday's post, they were a home run with the lovely lady.

Just for the record . . . I experimented using sepia ink on the portrait card, but it does not work at all with the background paper. So it lives in the file labeled "Experiments - close but not quite"  until I deconstruct it and stick it on a different background.  Sigh - I can't just throw it in the trash . . .

Cheers!

Vintage "Thank You" card

I was poring over the July/August/September issue of Somerset Life magazine and lo and behold -  in an article by Connie Fong are projects made with a stamp that I own. How about that?

Using her idea, I made the card pictured below for a friend.  The stamp is from Catherine Moore's Character Constructions line called "Adventures in Tea."

 

The gal was stamped on cream cardstock and then again on the plaid paper.  I cut out the body and dress/hat and inked the edges with Distress Ink in Tea Dye. Using Prismacolor pencils, I shaded the body with peach, added blush to the cheeks and a dot of blue to the eyes. Pink pencil defines the dress folds, edges, the flower on the bodice and the bow on the hat. The garments were adhered to the body base and a white gel pen was used to color in the necklace.

I stamped a purse from a Julie Nutting stamp set in white ink on black paper, cut it out and embellished it with flowers cut from a paper scrap. The handle was trimmed. looped over the arm and the purse glued to the doll. The Thank You sentiment and outline label were stamped from a Tim Holtz Stamper's Anonymous set called "Simple Sayings" and trimmed.

A vintage dictionary page was cut to size and adhered to a black card. The doll was layered on the page and a strip of scrap paper adhered as a border down the left side. The sentiment was positioned at an angle and attached. I used a plain end page from the same dictionary, wrote a greeting and glued it to the inside of the card.

My friend, who is a vintage fan, was thrilled.

If  $14.99 is a bit much for you to spend on a Somerset Life magazine, you can take a look at Connie's projects (wall art) made with my stamp (lol) on her blog at Artful Play.

Til next time!

S.

Lyme disease strikes the unsuspecting (me!)

Hello friends,
Early in July, I was feeling not quite like myself . . . I was achy and tired  . . . so tired that I would fall asleep while watching Gibbs (!) . . . and periodically had the chills  . . . my mind was scattered and everything seemed to take longer than usual . . . then I woke up one day with a ridiculously painful stiff neck - pain radiated up behind my ears, making it truly uncomfortable to wear my glasses and to touch my head or comb my hair.  I soon realized that driving my car was a challenge (and I spend a goodly amount of time on the road) since I couldn't turn my head much.  I was popping  Aleve like candy but nothing helped the discomfort. Car-guy son said "Mom you are sick . . . there's something wrong with you . . .you never sleep this much."

On Saturday, July 18, after about 10 days of misery and lousy golf, one of the gals walked up behind me on the 18th green and asked if I had been hit by a baseball "or something" on my shoulder blade.  She noticed I had what looked like a big round bruise.  My friend, Jan, looked and said "oh no,  that's a tick bite bulls eye." So off I went to the clinic where Dr. Motyl confirmed that surely I had been a "meal for a tick," and prescribed a 21 day course of  antibiotics. She also let me know that no matter how many Aleve or other like pain relievers I took, they wouldn't touch the nerve pain caused by Lyme.

So  . . . I took my last blue capsule on Saturday morning and had been feeling worlds better until I woke up this morning with another headache. Dismayed that perhaps this was not gone, I dialed up the Center for Disease Control website for some confidence-building information. Anyone heard of PTLDS?

Post-Treatment Lyme Disease Syndrome . . . "lingering symptoms of fatigue, pain, or joint and muscle aches after finishing treatment, most likely caused by residual damage to tissues and the immune system." Studies show that additional courses of antibiotics are not helpful and cause more harm than good.  Most symptoms normally disappear within six months.  Let's hope I'm better than normal . . .

So my plan is to soldier forth, think positive thoughts, get plenty of sleep and resume my normal activities.  A plan.

"Wrap it up" at Three Rivers Community College - Adventures in Lifelong Learning

Hello friends
Way back in mid-April, before a trip to Pinehurst and the start of golf season, I was the presenter of a program titled "Wrap it up" for about 25 enthusiastic "lifelong learners" at Three Rivers Community College in Norwich.

The intent was to show how to use recycled materials combined with items commonly found at home to create trendy and strikingly wrapped gifts. As a librarian friend once told me (her husband is a chef) "Presentation is everything."

Starting with these  . . . 

 . . . results in these. Can you pick out the Martha Stewart snack bag?

Upcycled gift bags - who would know these were free? (Van Heusen outlet)

A cheap-o bow from The Dollar Store with some added "stuff" graces an inside-out cereal box

From lunch bag to gift bag . . .

Merchant logos are hiding under these embellishments - who would know? 

Of course, some basic supplies are needed to transform the Aveda bag to a gift bag - scissors, tape, glue, a standard hand paper punch, ribbon, an interesting note card and tissue paper - many of these standard items can be found in most homes. Tags can be cut from index card weight paper.

So what do you think? Do these make the cut?  Inspired as you are now, go forth into the wrapping world and upcycle!

Cheers!

It's Golf season

Hello friends

I am on the golf course - the game is coming around (finally) after hand surgery three years ago. It has taken longer than I expected for everything to feel normal and my confidence to return. 

Playing around with Christmas things - and holiday Julie Nutting paper gals.

Here's several jointed gals in progress. They are not stamped but traced from a Julie Nutting stencil and hand-cut. Then the hair is colored with Prismacolor pencils and edges inked prior to wardrobe. They all need some glitz and trimmings as well as banners with holiday words similar to the "READ." Don't you just love the glasses on the reader gal?

Interestingly I've discovered that documenting the "making" process (for a blog) to be more time-consuming than the actual making.

I will be trying to post once a week during the summer. I'm out there (or in my creative space) doing and making rather than talking about doing and making. 

Kudos to all the bloggers out there who post frequently. It is a challenge! (But a good one.)

Cheers!