I Sewed Some Makeup Bags

I think these came out really well!

What's nice about a project like this is that since the bags are a rectangle you can just use sheets of paper to make a pattern.  I made 3 different sizes to make this gift set.

I purchased most things at Joanns.  The fabric and the zippers at least.  I didn't get a photo of the insides but they are just plain brown.  What's nice about these bags is that the way they are sewn the edges look beautiful inside just like they do outside.  I learned how to make them look nice on both sides by watching this tutorial. 

The only things I would note is that for this type of fabric I found I couldn't sew the zipper too close or it wouldn't open and shut easily.  Also, this fabric frayed easily while working with it so I couldn't really rip out a seam and fix a mistake.  I made a bag the same way out of cotton before and it was MUCH easier.  

Here's a closer look at the little zipper pulls I made before I attached them to the bags.  I just used some beads I had laying around in my jewelry supplies and I think they made an awesome finishing touch.

After spending many hours getting these bags done I really wanted to present them nicely so I made a custom gift box.  Before assembling the box I stamped all over the lid with a Fiskars set called Winter Wishes using Stampin' Up ink in Tempting Turquoise and Chocolate Chip.  I also made a gift tag using my Nestabilities Labels One dies.  The back layer is embossed with the Cuttlebug folder Divine Swirls.  Here's the completed box they went in all tied up with pretty grosgrain ribbon.

So, there ya have it.  A custom gift set of makeup bags.  I'm very pleased with how they came out and think they made a perfect gift.  I may make more in different colors for other friends in the future.  I'm trying to do more sewing :)

Thanks so much for stopping by!

I'm linking these up to the following parties:

Chipboard Flower Bouquet

I have a fun project to share with you today.  Awhile back I made an order from Oriental Trading and saw this chipboard flower kit on clearance for like $2.50 and figured I'd go ahead and get it.

I had a lot of fun putting this together.  The kit came with way more flowers than I ended up using.  So, I got to pick and choose which ones to use and how to layer them.  All I did was trace each flower onto the back of my paper, cut it out, and then attach the paper with Scotch Quick Dry adhesive.  I layered 2 flowers on top of each other also using Quick Dry.

View of the top of the flowers - the color is off in this photo.

To attach the chipboard to the plastic stems that came in the kit I used some Scor Tape.

All the papers I used are from Stampin' Up.  I also added some ribbon to the vase.  For the front I stamped "You're never more than a thought away" from Stampin' Up's Whimsical Words set.  I cut it out with a circle shaped Nestability, and layered it onto another Nestability shape.

Once I had all my supplies together this went pretty quickly and I'm really happy with the results.  

Thanks for stopping by today :)

Stay crafty!

Thanks Teacher Bookmark

Tracy over at Craft Junkie Too asked us to create end of school teacher gifts.  This is what I came up with.  I cut the bookmark from the Plantin' Schoolbook Cricut Cartridge at 7 inched wide (turn the fit to width button on your Expression and then set the dial to 7 inches.)  

The apples were cut from the Country Life Cartridge at 2.42 inches - but you could just cut them at 2.5 - I used a Gypsy.  For the apple on the left I added some Glossy Accents to make it shiny.  The apple on the right I added some Xmas Red Stickles to make it sparkly.

I used some foam Thickers to spell out "thanks."  I had to fiddle with them a lot to get the placement right, but I think it came out kind of fun and still easy enough to understand.

Along the top I tied some pretty green and white ribbon and added some self adhesive green bling from my stash around the circle opening.  

For the finishing touch I went around the edges with a red gel pen.

To be honest I'm not sure how well it would work as a real bookmark because of the depth of things like the Thickers... but I still think it's very cute.  Be sure and stop by Craft Junkie Too today to see what the other gals created!!

Yellow Makes Me Happy Gift Set

I made this set for a friend who's favorite color is yellow.  

I made a personalized box using my Gypsy to design everything.  I measured the top of the box, then I made a rectangle on my Gypsy that was the size of the box top so that I could design all the elements there and see exactly how they would fit without doing any test cuts and wasting paper.  

Here's what the top of the box looks like

First I painted the outside of the box white. Then I added all my cuts with some Scotch Quick Dry and Mod Podged over everything.  The paper is Stampin' Up.

The font is from Ashylyn's Alphabet.  

The flourishes and swirls are all from Straight From the Nest.  The one on the bottom is 2 that I welded together.

The butterflies are from Serenade.

Inside the box I painted yellow, and then added more Stampin' Up paper.

Inside is a little crocheted purse that I made for her & her card.  I really wanted them to match nicely.  For the card I added some Stickles to the flowers, but it didn't show up in the main photo, and I didn't want to take a whole bunch of photos so sadly you won't be able to see that detail.

Thanks for stopping by today!

Love Frames

These were designed for Tracy over at Craft Junkie Too.  This time she challenged her designers to do the following "Make a gift bag, party favor, treat bag, box, (for a valentine party or gift) and incorporate the word LOVE in it."  

These aren't a traditional party favors, but I think they would be adorable to give out at a little Valentine shin-dig as a favor.  I kept them really simple without embellishments and all those extra touches that add additional time and cost to a project, which helps keep them fitting for such an occasion.  

In my particular case I made 3 frames, one for my hubby and one for each of my 2 kids to help decorate the dining room table for Valentine's Day.  You could also do a lot more work and make them nicer to be an individual gift or display piece instead of keeping them simple for larger scale production. 

I got my frame shape from Ashlyn's Alphabet.  I liked the oval shape to show the photo, and the interesting shape of the corners, but you could easily use something else, or use a Gypsy or Design Studio to create your own frame with basic shapes.  I manipulated the shape to be 5.34 by 8 WITH the actual size button on!  I found that I liked this size when I took a rectangle sized at 4 by 6 and placed it over the shape to see how much of the photo would show through the oval.  I figured the proportions would be right if I used a piece the size of the photos I planned to use. My estimate seemed to work pretty well.  Only a small amount of the photos are covered by the oval edges.

For each frame I cut the word "Love" from Sweethears at 1.75 inches tall.  What a gorgeous word!  I just love the loops in the L.  The heart is from Plantin SchoolBook at 2 inches.  Many other cartridges have hearts!

For the silhouettes I cut the couple for my husband's frame from Sweethearts at 3.5 inches.  The boy and girl were both from A Child's Year and also at 3.5 inches.  There is a wide variety of silhouettes on A Child's Year, so if you are making these for a party or a class you can find some other ones to use.  I chose the 2 that reminded me most of my own children. 

To have a place to slip the photos I cut pieces of white cardstock at 4.25 by 6.25 inches.  Then I taped them behind the frames on the sides and bottom, leaving the top open to slide my photos inside.  I bent some cardstock in the back to create stands.  Mine work so-so, but I imagine I could have done a much better job. 

Super quick and easy!  They will take a fair amount of cardstock cut for photos this large, but if you have plenty on hand this will be affordable and fun to make for favors!  Definitely something different than the usual candies and Valentine cards everyone is used to exchanging. 

Like I said, you can easily modify this idea to suite your needs.  To fit different sizes of photos or different people.  I am going to love using these on our table, and because they were simple I'll be OK with throwing them away after wards. 

Thanks for visiting!  Be sure and visit Tracy to see what she's been up to, and today you will be able to see the other designers fun projects to fit this challenge as well :)

Wedding Gift Set for a Bride

These are a couple of items I made for a friend to celebrate her getting married!  I crocheted a little white clutch purse out of yarn that had sparkle in it - it almost looked like thin tinsel wrapped around the yarn.  Very cool, and it's soft too.  I also used some pink satin ribbon.  I made the same purse pattern for a holiday gift a bit ago, but the color scheme was totally different.  To see that version - check out this post. 

I also made a simple little bracelet with some faux pearls I purchased.  I am starting to think I should make more jewelry. I'm finding that I enjoy it.

Just thought I may as well share these projects really quickly. I know they aren't my usual papercrafting projects - but I do like to dabble in other things now and again.  :)

Save Some Bucks Mug - Starbucks at Home Joke

So, I just had to do this!  My sister-in-law loves Starbucks, but this past year they purchased a LOVELY home so I doubt she'll be making as many trips there - you know how it is ladies!  *LOL*

I ordered a nice quality mug that a photo can be inserted into to do this project.  Remember I ONLY did this for personal use and I did not sell it or profit from it in any way.  I took the Starbucks logo, took out the Star part and wrote in "Save Some" so now it says "Save Some Bucks Coffee"  *LOL*  C'mon - I thought it was funny!

 

 

I printed that out and cut around it.  Then I made instructions to go along with it.  The most important part of these instructions is... ADD SUGAR :)  I cut out a piece of white cardstock the right size to fit the mug and I embossed it with the Cuttlebug folder Swiss Dots.  I attached my printed pieces to this and slipped it in the mug.

 

I made a charm using a hero arts stamp of a coffee and a piece of Bright White Shrinky Dink.  I attached this with some green embroidery thread, and WAH LAH!  

Crocheted Clutch Purse

This is what I made for my best friend this year.  I crocheted the purse using a pattern from a book.  The ribbon is from Stampin' Up.  I created a little charm that is hanging from the purse, but she could also remove it and use it for something else.

I sewed a liner for the inside and I wanted it to be a really fun pop of color... so I really used some fun fabric!

Shrinky Dink Photo Keychain

This was another handmade gift for this year.  I made this for my stepmother who LOVES photos.  These are all her grandchildren :)

I used the inkjet printable Shrinky Dinks to accomplish this.  I believe I printed the photos around 2 by 3, and I did lighten them in a photo editing program as the instructions suggest.  I punched holes in them with the larger hole setting on my Crop a Dile.

After I created all the shrunken photos I attached them to chains with a clasp at the top so she can clip this in her purse.  I also added a leaf charm that I thought was pretty.

Etched Mirror

This is a gift I gave to my aunt this year.  I bought the mirror from a local craft store and used Armour Etch cream to do the etching.  I used vinyl to create the stencils. I cut the vinyl in my Cricut.  The lacy edge was from the Easter Seasonal cartridge, and I added another circle inside to make it just a border.  The M is from Tie the Knot.

Stamped Gingerbread Charm Bracelet

Yes, ANOTHER post - I've been creating a lot, what can I say.

I made this charm bracelet and little charm for Samantha over at Scrapmaster's Paradise.  She's become a good friend and I wanted to make her something for the holidays.  This was made using her own stamp set called Cutest Gingerbread. 

I tried this first with the bright white Shrinky Dinks and Copics.  I DO NOT recommend that.  At all!!!  I was so frustrated trying to make that work I nearly cried.  So, I went back to the store and bought the Frosted Rough and Ready Shrinky Dinks instead.  Those recommend colored pencils - so that's what I used.  This worked MUCH better!

Charm next to a quarter for a size comparison.

I stamped the gingerbreads with Staz on in Timber Brown.  Then I colored them with the pencils - punched holes, cut, & baked them.  Then all I had to do was turn them into jewelry.  As a finishing touch I covered the front with clear nail polish to help seal in the color.  This kind of Shrinky Dink is AWESOME because you can see the design from both sides.

If you would like a more informative post about Shrinky Dinks I will direct you to a project I did not too long ago.  Now... for that project I used the Shrinky Dinks that are designed to work with Ink Jet Printers, but everything else is the same.  So you can see more photos of the process of cutting and baking - where I placed the holes, etc.  Check out that project by clicking here.

Honestly they are pretty easy to use.  Like I said, the other project has a better tutorial talking about baking and such.  The coloring of these was simple. 

Samantha took some photos of how I packaged it, and wearing the bracelet.  You can see her post by clicking here.

Thanks so much for visiting!  Have a fabulous, and very crafty day :)

Thank You Card Gift Set

I wanted to do something really special this year for our realtor.  She sends out a ton of cards, so I thought a set of cards would be a lovely gift.  I really wanted them to be special and have some fun details - so I set to work on a set of 15 of these.

 

 

Holy cow.  Hours and hours of work, but I think it paid off in the end.  "Thanks" is from Gypsy Wanderings.  The button is a Martha Stewart punch.  The vase and flower are from Serenade.  The vase is cut from acetate, and I inked the edges with white Staz On. I attached the stem to the acetate, and the acetate to the card with a little Glossy Accents in the part of the vase that would have water.  It's a really fun little detail, and a practical one too since adhering acetate is a challenge.  The flower is on a pop dot, and I used some Stickles for that extra special touch. 

 

 

I wanted to package them in a special way.  I didn't have any of the nice card boxes or anything.  So I used a large freezer sized ziplock bag.  It was big enough to fit the cards side by side.  I added 15 high quality envelopes to the package as well.  I had to alternate the cards rightside up and upside down because of the depth of the pop dotted flower.  I also slipped a strip of cardstock in the middle of the bag to keep the 2 piles of cards separate.  Otherwise they would start to overlap and look less pretty. I added a card I had made earlier, and a sentiment from Winter Frolic - along with more Stickles.  I only attached the back of the bag to the flap, using Sticky Strip.  This way she can just lift the front of the flap and open the bag without having to tear it up.  

 

Thanks for visiting!  Have a fabulous, and very crafty day :)

Handmade Holiday Organizer

This week my design assignment for Miss Craft Junkie Too was to give a holiday organization tip.  I went ahead and did a project that will help keep me organized for all my handmade gift giving and cardmaking for many holiday seasons to come. 

This is a 6 inch cube sized box.  I'll discuss and show you the inside first, where the organization is - and then show you how I made the outside cute.

Inside I placed a cardboard divider in the box.  I wanted to be able to put cards in the front of the box, and have file folders in the back.  To keep everything from sliding around too much I figured this divider would help.  

The dividers in the back are really simple.  I just cut cute double sided papers that I would say are a medium thickness, then I scored them in half.  They are from a K & Company holiday stack.  To cut the tabs along the top I used the Cricut and the From My Kitchen cartridge.  Then I drew some stitching lines and wrote names on the tabs with one of my Stampin' Write markers from Stampin' Up. 

One of the tabs is labeled "cards" so I can keep a list of who I have made cards for, or sent cards too.  The other tabs are all names, and each family only has one folder.  So, for example - my husband's sister is named Becca, and the folder just has her name on it, but it will also include the gift lists for her kids.

My plan is to put any gift ideas in the appropriate folder.  Also, if I decide I know I want to make a certain project I can write a supply list, and also record where the pattern is if it's something that requires one.  

I decorated the outside to look like a present.  I used a couple die cuts from Doodlebug Designs with some Stickles and Buttons.  I covered the whole thing with some DCWV patterned paper and finished off with some high quality grosgrain ribbon.  I tied a bow, knowing that my family cannot replicate it - so I'll know if someone has peeked!  *LOL*

Little Penguin Favor Box

Here's a simple and cute little penguin box I made for a challenge over at Momo's blog.  If you don't know Momo, you're missing out!  She makes tons of fun videos and has regular challenges on her blog.  I just get behind and miss out on most of them!  *LOL*  At least I made something in time for this one :)

Everything was done with my Cricut.  The penguin is from Winter Frolic.  I used Liquid Applique on the white parts of his hat so they are puffed up.  I used various colors of Stickles to do some outlining on him.  The box itself is a favor box from the Sweet Treats cartridge, made with paper from the Peppermint Forest stack.  On the other side of the box is another penguin, but I flipped him so the box is more symetrical.  

 

I did weld the penguin shapes to my box on my Gypsy before cutting so there are more layers of stability. 

Thanks for visiting!  I had fun with this sweet little projects as penguins are one of my most favorite things in the whole world! 

Fruit Necklace

 This was my first time ever using Shrinky Dinks.  They make some that work with your Inkjet printer that I've been wanting to try, and that's how I made these :)  

The adorable images are from Digi Crafts.  I had purchased a some cute images from her, the Kawaii Ice Cream, and made some cards.  When I shared them with her she asked my permission to put them up in her Etsy shop.  I said yes, and as a thank you she sent me these great fruit images.  I had to do something really special with them.  So, if you bop on over to her shop you'll see a little of my work in her listings.  Cool, huh?

For those of you that haven't made jewelry before or worked with Shrinky Dinks I'm doing a walk through type tutorial with some photos so you can get a feel for the process I went through to see if it's something you'd enjoy.  Here goes!

With the instructions for the Shrinky Dinks it tells you that you need to lighten your images before printing them.  When they shrink the image will get much darker, so they recommend lightening the image about 50%.  If you skip this step your images will be too dark and may not dry properly.  Luckily with the images I was using she includes each image individually, as well as a collage of them, including cut lines.  I used the sheet with all of them, so I just had to adjust the one photo and print it.  Super easy!

Next I had to make holes and cut around the images.  I separated the images from each other with a very rough cut, and then punched the holes before I cut the images out nicely.  I used my Crop A Dile on the larger punch setting - and it's a good thing too, because those holes shrink WAY down!  I followed the provided guidelines on my image as cut lines, except for where I added the hole I had to eyeball it.  Make sure you think about how you want the images to hang before adding the holes.  I placed holes near the stems in a couple of the images. For the cherries I did not cut out the center portion of the cut, I figured this would help keep them more sturdy.  

The next step was baking, which I did in my toaster oven.  The package tells you the recommended temps, but I was so nervous doing it!  *LOL*  The images curled up A LOT while they were baking and the orange nearly got stuck together.  The package says sometimes they will actually stick together and you have to stick something in there to separate it from itself if that happens.  Luckily I didn't have to.  The images curled up a lot, and then started to flatten out some.

After I removed the images I was not able to get them very flat, I even tried individually baking one a little longer and then re-flattening it.  No luck.  So, I decided to use my heat embossing gun and a smooth piece of cardboard to flatten them.  I did this carefully one piece at a time - heating it until it was pliable, and then smushing it gently under the cardboard.  It worked great! 

When the images were all flattened the last step was turning these pieces into jewelry.  I used a chain, a clasp, and some jump rings.  The only tool I needed was a couple tiny pairs of jewelry pliers, which are inexpensive.  I laid out all the pieces in a row to determine placement, and decided not to use the orange.  I wanted the banana to be the center because it was bigger than the others, and then I had 3 pieces on each side of it.  

I let my daughter play with the extra orange piece, and it was ruined pretty easily.  I am going to seal up the necklace with some clear nail polish, I just haven't done it yet.  The package recommends a couple brands that they tested so I know it will be safe :)  Here's a photo of the piece with a quarter so you can see how tiny and cute these came out.  Thanks for stopping by and have a fabulous & very crafty day.   

Butterfly TP Mini Album

 

Remember you can click on any photo to see it enlarged, but then MAKE SURE and use the back button on your browser because the larger photo will open in this same window.

This is a simple album I made to send to a friend.  The paper is from the Die Cuts With a View Blossoms and Butterflies stack.  Almost all the embellishments are from 3 birds, which is a line exclusive to HSN.  I also used a bit of Stampin' Up's satin ribbon and some Fruit Punch colored Stickles.

To make a toilet paper roll album you take your toilet paper rolls and flatten them.  An easy way to do this is to run them through a machine like the Cuttlebug or Big Shot.  Then you will seal one side closed and leave the other side open.  You cover each roll with paper, and punch holes using something strong like a Crop-a-Dile.  You insert binder rings in those holes.  I used 1 inch rings, and purchased them from a local office supply store.  Of course if you have a binding machine, you could use that instead!

The reason that you leave one side of the rolls open is so that you can slip things inside.  Tags look really nice and work well, but in this case I used folded sheets so that there is a lot of extra room when they are opened up.  Here is a photo of one of the inserts, they all look the same.

This is a really simple type of album that is fun and easy to do.  It's a great project for those who want to try a mini album, but feel intimidated.  It's also a great way to use up scraps or supplies that have been sitting in your stash for awhile.  I left parts of this album pretty simple so that the recipient can do what she chooses with it and put her own personal designs in it too.  That's the main reason I left all the inserts blank inside and out.

Me Time Door Hanger

Here's a fun little door hanger project I made.  Check out the video below if you'd like the details of the cuts.

Friends Fur Ever Bag

This was the project I submitted for the My Pink Stamper Design Team call.  Now that she has announced her team I am able to share it.  The rules were not to post the project anywhere else until she picked her team.  I ended up putting monogrammed note cards inside and giving it to my best friend.

I think this turned out really well & is pretty original.  I used several cartridges.  Tags, Bags, Boxes & more for the bag, Serenade for the cloud, Create a Critter for the foxes, Easter 2010 for the bows on the foxes, & Plantin Schoolbook for the grass.  I covered the foxes in flocking powder to make them nice and fuzzy.  I used my Ultimate Crafter's Companion to help me tie the perfect bow with some brown satin ribbon.

Instead of listing all the sizes and directions I have a cut file available for download, free as always :)  This will save you some time, flipping, hide contouring, etc.  Just delete any of the cuts you don't have the cartridge for and substitute something else.  Click here to download my free cut file!

Have a fabulous, crafty day, thanks for stopping by!  Comments would be especially appreciated on this project, I always feel sad every time I get turned down for a design team, even though it's to be expected it's still a bummer.

Paper Shoes & More - Link to Free Template!

I wanted to make something really fabulous to send to Tracy, Miss Craft Junkie Too.  She's such a big inspiration to me, and a real nice gal too!  I decided to make a set of adorable paper shoes.  I got a free template online and made two of them, the template can be found here 

As a finishing touch I made a really cute shoe box for them.

I wanted to make a little something cute to match, so I settled on one of the darling purses from the Forever Young Cricut cartridge.  I wanted to add something special to it.  It closes with velcro that is hidden under a chipboard flower.  For the handle I used some thick brown grosgrain ribbon, but the really cool thing is that I took rhinestone brads and put them in the ribbon!  I just used my paper piercer to make small holes to slip the brads through and I just love the effect.  I think it is super fun and adds a lot to it.

The last item is just a simple shaped card, I made it for one of my National Scrapbooking day challenges, so it's already been posted on the blog, but since it's part of this girlie set I thought I'd include it here too.  It's made with the Forever Young cartridge also, and I just did a little bit of really simple welding with my Gypsy to make it a card.

This has got to be one of the best projects I've ever done.  I really, truly love it.  All the papers are from the We R Memory Keepers stack, Tiffany's.  Just love that stack!  Perfect for projects like this.

If anyone has an interest in seeing me put the shoes together on video, let me know and I can make another pair.