Quick Cards

"Oh mom, do you think you could make me a couple of Thank You cards?"
"Sure. When do you need them?"

You know the answer was tomorrow right? Just kidding...I mean the answer really was tomorrow but when you have a mom who makes cards it's really not that big of a deal. It's also OK if your child thinks it is :)

So he needed these for school which meant the school colors which I don't love. Red and yellow. Fine on their own and with other things. Hate them together. Sorry. I won't actually make him choose a college based on colors I like but the thought did occur to me.

Stamp: INKADINKADO...Paper: red cardstock and DCWV "Indian Summer" Stack

Another time sensitive card...a condolence card...but more my style:

DCWV "Natural" Stack; Floral paper, Magenta Silver Peel Offs, Chipboard Embellished w/ clear sentiment sticker

Thank You Blue Cricket Design and Moselle Design! Easy Peasy!

If you have been thinking about making a Halloween banner but don't have the time to pull one together, get yourself over to Blue Cricket Design where you will find one 90% done for you which you can download for my favorite price of FREE thanks to Moselle Design. Got your attention?

Download. Print.Cut.Hang. Even if you don't think you're crafty, you can totally do this! I decided to give mine a black border so I mounted on black card stock and trimmed with decorative edge scissors. Connected each piece together with brads, but you could use tape, staples, gum, OK just kidding on the gum. Mostly. I already had a banner on my fireplace so I put this one up on my stairs.

And if you want to add more to your banner? Well go over to BCD and see for yourself!

Having Fun With Rub-Ons!

Thanks Meg!

Have you ever used them? So. Easy. And, addictive. I haven't always loved them because when I first tried them they were, to quote Julia Roberts character in "Pretty Woman" when she's trying to eat escargot: "Slippery little buggers".  But I think they've gotten loads better and they don't come off the backing stuff as easily or shift around so much. Any that I've used in the past couple of years have behaved.

I was at Michaels this weekend searching for some that I'd seen used at Jessica's blog "Craftily Ever After"  where she did a great makeover of a key rack. She also has some awesome downloadable Halloween art which she's been sweet enough to share. Go visit and follow her! She'd mentioned she got the rub-ons she used at Michaels. I was so bummed when the Michaels I was in had dismantled their $1 section ( oh yeah..they're a DOLLAR) but all was not lost, I found a really cute pack of DCWV rubons. Still, it was nagging at me ,so when I had to go to Costco last night, which was right next to another Michaels, well you can probably guess the rest but just in case....THEY HAD THEM!!! Yippee!

First I did this:

Which started out as a plain wooden trinket box that I painted cream, dry brushed with tan, Mod Podged some scrap sheet music pieces, applied some of the DCWV ( Die Cuts With a View) rub-ons. You can't tell from the pic but these rub-ons have some glitter to them. Here's a link to the ones I used: Mariposa collection

I was liking the finish on the box . I picked up this scrap piece of wood at a salvage place so I painted it the same way and will use it for a key rack (have to go get the hardware for it) and got to use some of the $1 rub-ons from Michaels. I think I bought 12 packages. Oops.

They have keys, birdcages, eyeglasses, watch / timepieces...see...you get why I bought 12 packs. They were a DOLLAR and there are an average of 8 images per pack!

And with the rest of my Mariposa DCWV rub-ons, 'cause I was still liking this paint finish, I did a frame:

 

Linking Up At:

 

Yikes! I Almost Forgot My Own Party!

Which is why I can only manage to do monthly link parties.
So, you are cordially invited to my October Open House link party on Friday October 15. Link up whatever you like....seasonal projects, home dec, DIY, upcycled projects, recipes ( especially chocolate!). Just no advertising or etsy stores pretty please? Look forward to seeing you there!

My Inner Circle Wanted Christmas

Oh you thought I was talking about confidantes or something? No. I'm talking about the inner circle of matboard left over from the book and bottle cap wreath I made! Which, I didn't take a picture of, but it's a circle. Of matboard. You get it.

Since coffee filters come in the bajillion pack, I had some of those left over. So I took a bunch out, crumpled them up ( this is a scientific process...I'm sure there's a physics theory that explains how crumpling increases body and volume because it does) and them folded in half, then in half again, then in half again. Staple to secure each one. If I was a mathematician instead of a physicist ( ha ha ha ha... so not either of those) then I'd know the fraction that comes out to.

Hot glued those around the circle of matboard and then tore a circle of scrap paper to  cover up my staples and then remembered I'd downloaded a cool Santa image from The Graphics Fairy, printed that out cut in a circle and glued to the middle of my whatever this is  I put a ribbon hanger on the back so it's an ornamenty thingy.  Framed it in buttons and added some clear rhinestones which don't glisten the same way in a picture so you'll have to just take my word on it. So what did I end up with?

So now you know what I did with my inner circle. Because I know that was keeping you up nights.

Linking Up At:

Cookies For A Cause

Everyone's aware that October is Breast Cancer Awareness month. It's rare these days that we don't know someone who's been affected by breast cancer. Today marks the one year anniversary that we lost one of our best friends to this disease. I can't think of a better way to pay tribute to her than to continue to fight for a cure. It's great to see so many companies doing things to drive awareness and raise money for this cause. One of those is Pepperidge Farm, and through my affiliation with One2One Network, I'm joining in a blogging campaign to spread the word about what they're doing.

When someone posts a personal Milano Moment on Milano's Facebook Page in October, Pepperidge Farm will donate $.50 per Moment up to $50,000 to the Susan G Komen foundation, one of the leading organizations in the fight against breast cancer. What a simple way to raise money for a worthy cause. http://bit.ly/MilanoFacebook

 
And of course, there's always enjoying those Double Chocolate Milanos!

Book Pages and Bottle Caps

This is one of those things Mr. Chocolate asks: "What made you think of that?" to which I respond: "Dunno...just did".

If you can't tell, I kinda have a thing for paper flowers and got the idea that they'd make an easy wreath. I've made a book wreath using the scroll idea , but I thought I'd combine book pages and the flower idea. I didn't have any wreath forms but I had some mat board. I traced a circle using a plate and then cut out a smaller circle from the middle. I wanted it to have a finished look on the back so I wrapped the "form" with grosgrain ribbon:

LOVE Dollar Tree's Grosgrain Ribbon

Tied ribbon to the form to hang the wreath. I made 9 layered paper flowers ( great stress release...cut, crumple, cut, crumple) and then hot glued them around my wreath form. Now you could just stop there and have a perfectly lovely ( I think!) wreath. But I'm a "more is more" kinda gal so I remembered I'd picked up some stickers from the $1 bin at JoAnn's:

which are the perfect size to fit inside bottle caps. Because normal people go around thinking "What fits inside bottle caps?".  So I got out 9 bottle caps, put a sticker inside each, burnished with a dry embossing tool, and glued one bottle cap to the center of each flower:

Linking Up At: