another birthday card

my baby sister turned 21 this year. i think she's officially all grown up. :)

i sent her a card - yes, late! -  but also sent a bunch of goodies with it to make up for it. so we're good.

i used BasicGrey's Sweet Threads collection - of course. :) gotta break it in right! almost EVERYTHING is from that collection - all the paper, solid & patterned, the sticker on the card front, the sticker border on the envelope front, even the letter stickers. i used Paper Smooches Word Salad stamp set to stamp the sentiment in versamark, then embossed in white. then, i took a rag/paper towel/whatever you have on hand, and, after marking on the rag with a purple marker, rubbed it across the embossed sentiment to really make it pop. the embossed image resists the marker, so it looks like you just stacked the words on top of the smudging.

which, now that i think about it, you probably could've done, too.

anyway. hope you're having a good week! my wisdom teeth are coming out today, so don't laugh at me when i show up in a viral video making a fool of myself, okay? thanks.

dear penpal

just a fun little card i did for a friend some time ago.

BasicGrey's Origins Collection is my favorite when it comes to making a masculine-style card. i love that i can have patterns that include flowers & it not feel too girly. :)

thanks for stopping by!!!

sunday school encouragement

a few weeks ago in the sunday school class i help with, we made cards of encouragement for leaders in our church. knowing third graders & their attention span (or lack of) i thought making a couple for reference would be a great jumping off-point. so here's what i came up with in about 10 minutes. don't judge. :)



one girl copied the cat & bunny freehand - it was pretty impressive for a nine year old. it was alot of fun to see the kids get so excited about making their cards their own, & then eagerly give them away.

materials used: all paper from BasicGrey's Sweat Threads Collection, Paper Smooches Sets: Word Salad, Chit Chat, & Party Pals, AC Alpha Stickers & Martha Stewart punches.

welcome baby

this card was an official welcome to my gorgeous neice, who was born on 12/11/12. her name is kylie caroline & she is seriously one of the cutest babies. i might just need to get permission from her mom & dad and put up a picture. being an aunt is just so exciting already! i can't wait to spoil her & my nephew (born 3 months earlier!!!)

i told you i would just go crazy with my new purchase of basicgrey's sweet threads collection.... i haven't made anything without it since i got it over a month ago.... it's just so fun!

i have had that ric rac for ages, and it pretty much went with the pink in the cardstock like they were made for each other.... & seeing how it was a baby GIRL card, it was the per-fect accent. i weaved the ribbon & adhered to the back of my solid pieces of cardstock & then stuck them onto the card base. i used Paper Smooches Word Up & Word Salad to make the sentiment, & embossed in white for a little pop. the flower & leaves are from sweet threads, and i just stuck some foam tape on the back of the flower for a little dimension. and voila, a cute girly card!



paper crafting without paper

A few months ago i saw an AWESOME wreath on pinterest (yes, i  have been sucked in by all it's glory), and finally got around to making it. now, this would be totally easier if you have a cutting machine of some sort (big shot, cricut,e tc) but i have not invested in one yet. :) but this can definitely be done without.

here's the original inspiration:

and here's mine:

you can visit the source here for instructions on how to do it.

 i used about 1 1/2 yards of canvas. don't be afraid to use more than just one color!!! you could use lots of pastels for an easter wreath or maybe some fall shades for a seasonal wreath later in the year. this really only took a few hours (and most of that was tracing & cutting out the circles by hand) & it looks so fresh & simple on our front door.

thanks for stopping by!

doilies!

simple yet cute card today: i started with a cardstock base using AC’s Botanique Opal (this paper is gorgeous!). i got several pages from this collection pieced out on clearance at a local shop & have used all of it up already! the opposite side is a nice peachy cream. i was really wanting to use one of my new Martha Stewart doily diecuts, so the whole card revolved around that. i decided where i wanted to put the doily, and then adhered some brown satin ribbon around the card base and put the doily on (they’re self-adhesive!).

i then stamped my sentiment on a scrap of brown cardstock & embossed with ZING! white powder…. i’m getting a lot better at embossing, if i do say so myself… J the brown cardstock is from CoredinationsFoundations.com and has this awesomely smooth finish. i’ve noticed the smoother the texture, the easier it is to emboss CLEANLY.

thanks for stopping by. J

and the obsession continues...

just bought BasicGrey's Sweet Threads collection pack.

digging in. more to come! :)