BFF Open House

 

Happy Friday Eve and welcome to another party. I hope your December is off to a great start. We did a weekend getaway to Los Angeles and got to see some incredible decorations. I need to do a post with all of the amazing holiday decor from our Thanksgiving trip to Las Vegas and this past weekend. Finished up decking my halls and really glad I listened to myself and finished making my holiday cards before Thanksgiving so I can get them in the mail this week. 

Not surprisingly, you were all busy elves at last week's party, sharing some wonderful holiday inspiration. Let's take a look at a few ideas! 

Whether you bake actual Gingerbread Houses or not, Me and My Inklings shared a way to bring Gingerbread to life via Gingerbread House Gift Wrapping! So cute. 

Maybe you want to squeeze in a decor makeover before the holidays or right after the New Year starts. Check out these amazing End Table transformations from Birdz of a Feather! 

Got corks? Or perhaps you're giving a bottle of wine this season? LOVE these Wine Cork Gnomes from Condo Blues. What a great way to repurpose corks or dress up a bottle! 

Finally, if you need a quick cookie to add to your cookie plates, these Brownie Drop Cookies from Cindy's Online Recipe Box are just the ticket! 

Thanks to all who linked up and let's take a look at what you've all been up to this week! 

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BFF Open House

 

Happy Friday Eve and Happy December Creative Peeps! Can you believe it? This is the month we were made for! I hope everyone had a lovely Thanksgiving and all leftovers have been taken care of. It was both wonderful and strange not to have to deal with that this year since we ran away. It was a wonderful escape getaway and may become a new tradition. 

I made my first Christmas gift for the place where we board our furbaby here: Pet Ornament and Card and started working on Hanukkah gifts this week. I finished this year's holiday cards before our trip so now I just have to get them in the mail. Will share those as soon as they're off. 

Now, let's see some of the wonderful ideas you shared at last week's party! 

The thing I love about fellow Creatives is the ability to see ideas in things that have nothing to do with the finished project. Enter this brilliant Trio of Trees from found Thrift Store items shared by the appropriately titled My Thrift Store Addiction. 

Likewise, if you've got some silver spoons you've inherited or picked up while thrifting, check out this lovely idea from The House On Silverado that transformed them into Keepsake Spoon Ornaments!   

It's card season and Paper Seedlings shared a gorgeous Snowflake Card. We must be on the same wavelength because I used some blues in my cards this year too! 

Finally, after a busy day of Elfing, relax with this delicious Chocolate Raspberry Truffle Cocktail from The Kitchen Is My Playground. Hot, or cold! 

Thank you as always to everyone who linked up. A lot of busy people out there! Let's see what everyone's been up to this week. 

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Gift Giving: Pet Ornament and Card

 

Working on some holiday gifts! When we moved this Summer, we needed to ensure that we found a new place to board our furbaby, and we are so glad we found one nearby; they love her and take great care of her. They are definitely on my nice list, and I wanted to make sure I showed them that we appreciate them!

Supplies:

• Ceramic Disc Ornament (I got these at Michaels last year and then bought a bunch more on sale after Christmas).
• Black Vinyl (I used Cricut Glossy Black)
• Ribbon
• Pet Sentiments (Creative Fabrica)
• Coordinating Scrapbook Papers
• Transparency
• Paw Jeweled Sticker (Jolies, Michaels)
• Digital Cutting Machine (Cricut Explore 2)

I removed the ribbon that came w/ the ornament and then cleaned it with alcohol to remove any residue. I downloaded a bundle of Pet Sentiments from Creative Fabrica, chose one for the ornament, sized in Cricut Design Space, and cut using Cricut Glossy Black Vinyl. 

Weeded the vinyl and applied the transfer tape then applied to the ornament. To finish, added a piece of ribbon to use to hang. 

But what's a gift without a card? I grabbed some papers from my stash, used another sentiment from the Creative Fabrica bundle, cut more vinyl, and applied to a piece of transparency cut to size.  

Using Cricut Design Space, I made a rectangle shape with a circle cutout as shown, then layered background paper, transparency, and top. 

Admittedly, I goofed on the "O" when weeding so I added a rhinestone as the hole in them middle, ad finished with some paw shaped rhinestone stickers I found at Michaels on clearance!

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BFF Open House

 

Whatever you're doing today, including nothing at all, wishing you a day of peace. I'm thankful for my family and our blessings. 

Going to open things up early and just do links, no features this week. We ran away from home and for the first time in over 30 years, I am not in the kitchen! Be well creative friends! 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

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BFF Open House

 

Happy Friday Eve Creative Peeps! Can you believe Thanksgiving (American) is one week from today? You know what happens after that. It's full steam ahead for Christmas and Hanukkah. I'm almost done with this year's Christmas cards since for the first time in thirty years, I won't be hosting Thanksgiving. We're actually going away which will be completely different yet exciting for us. I loved doing it and with my Martha Stewart compulsions, always did it big, but last year when it was just the two of us for the first time...my mom was visiting her sister, we didn't have any other family to host since moving to AZ etc. I realized by not doing all the work how much work it really always was. No complaints! I loved all the years I did it but life is about trying something new and I'm actually really excited about it. This week I shared the Thanksgiving Cards I made and sent to family and friends. 

Let's take a look at some of the great things shared at last week's party! 

If this is your first time hosting or you would like to be better organized, then Blue Sky At Home has the perfect thing for you with 21 Ways to Prepare.

Whether your guests are young, older, or everywhere in between, this printable Thankful Tree from Creatively Beth is a great way to entertain them and make a memory. 

As we get close to counting down to Christmas, I LOVE this Advent Calendar for Couples from The House on Silverado. 

Finally, while we're still on Thanksgiving, if you want to add a little something to your dessert table (and I'm all for adding chocolate to Thanksgiving which is the most chocolate free celebration) or bring a dessert where you're going, check out these Nutter Butter Acorns from Drugstore Divas! 

Thanks to everyone who linked up and let's see what you've been up to this week! 

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Papercrafting: Copper and Berry Layered Pumpkin Thanksgiving Cards

 

Cardmaking has always been and probably will be my first love. I should probably have kept track of the number of cards I've made! And I love making Thanksgiving cards to send to friends and family. This year, I went with copper and berry for my colors. Technically, the "copper" is considered rose gold but it's copper to me! 

Supplies:

• Scrapbook Papers (I had these on hand. Craftsmith, Craftsmart, and Recollections from Michaels.)
• Layered Pumpkin SVG (I used one from Creative Fabrica)
• Digital Cutting Machine (I used my Cricut Explore 2)
• Tape Gun and Spray Adhesive
• Iridescent Sequins

The great thing about "building up a paper collection" (or what Mr. Chocolate calls "How can you possibly need MORE paper?") is how you can pull out different stacks and mix and match. It's also a  great way for me to find inspiration. These were the stacks from the stash I used. 

I downloaded the image, imported into Cricut Design Space and used 3 of the 4 layers. (Orange, Pink, and Grey).

This is the first layer. 

Second layer.

Layers one and two. I used a 3M Spray Adhesive to attach each layer since they're so delicate. 

And finally, all three layers combined! For the cards, I used a 110lb cream cardstock (Recollections) and then cut panels from the paper stacks I'd selected. 

I used foam tape to attach the layered pumpkin to the cards just to give things a little depth. To finish, I grabbed some iridescent sequins from my stash and used a dimensional glue to attach. 

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