Christmas cards

Saturday is my first demo meeting since becoming a Stampin Up demonstrator. Since it's Christmas time, we're all doing a card swap. We're also each bringing a handmade gift using Stampin Up products for swap.


I LOVED the Candy Cane DSP from the holiday mini so I knew I had to use that for the cards. I love that the colors aren't the traditional red and green. The pinks and blues are so pretty. Since we had to make 16 cards, I ended up doing 8 one way and 8 another so I didn't run out of paper. I kept everything else pretty much the same though.

I actually used things I rarely use in these cards. I typically have a pattern that I do for all cards and always forget extras like punches and embossing. But, I thought the corner rounder on everything made it look so much better. And dasher just looks way better embossed. I do wish I'd sponged the background on the pink set now, but too late to change it. Seems too pale, but when I first did sponging on the red set, it was too busy so I skipped it.

 

I decided to make another set of glitter ornaments for the gift.I chose to go with traditional colors since it will match more people's decor. I used Green Galore and Real Red reinkers. This is a good way to use those retired colors! The snowflake is cut in the big shot out of the white decor elements vinyl.

 

Supply list for the cards:
Candy Cane DSP
Real Red cardstock
Blushing Bride cardstock
Light Pink gingham ribbon
Basic Gray taffeta ribbon
corner rounder punch
scallop trim border punch
silver embossing powder
Dasher stamp
Delightful Decorations stamp set (for Merry Christmas circle)
Northern Lights stamp set (snowflakes)
Baja Breeze ink

Quick favors

The night before Thanksgiving (well actually around 4am on Thanksgiving lol) I couldn't sleep so I decided to throw together some favors for the next day. I ran to Walmart and grabbed some candy. Then I got to work.

I decided to make the sour cream containers since the don't require a lot of work and I had all the materials on hand. All you really need is some cute paper for whatever event you are going to and a paper crimper. I decided to add tags and ribbon too, but they look cute w/o them too.

Close ups. 

I used the Day of Gratitude stamp set for the tags. I love the leaf designs from this set. I actually originally bought my paper crimper just for this project about a year ago. I popped the tags up with a dimensional.

The paper is cut at 4 1/4 by 5 1/2 so you can get 4 containers out of 1 8 1/2 by 11 piece of cardstock.

JewelMint review

So I've been a member of shoe/purse of the month clubs for awhile now, but recently, a jewelry club popped up too. It's the same concept as JustFabulous and ShoeDazzle. At the beginning of the month, they send you selections based on your style (they do a style quiz when you sign up). You can skip the month if you see nothing you like. The items are $29.99 each and there is free shipping/exchanges.

One thing I like about the showroom is that you can add more items by choosing the see more option. From there, you can click "like" if you want to see it in your showroom.

I finally decided to make a purchase because they were having a BOGO event. For every item I purchased, I will get a credit on Dec 1st. So that makes each item only $15 shipped.  I figured I had nothing to lose at that price. My first selections were the Poseidon Disc necklace and the Pearl Bouquet ring. I got both today and I love them.

Love the packaging! Definitely ready to be given as a gift.

 

Pearl Bouquet ring. Soo pretty. And really good quality. Their rings come in 3 sizes (6, 7, 8). 

 

Poseidon Disc necklace

 

Here's the ring on. It's the perfect statement ring. Good size w/o being overwhelming. (Notice I'm hiding my need for a manicure!) 

Close up of the pendant. Really hard to get a good pic. 

 

Back of the pendant is engraved with the Jewelmint logo

 

Here it on. (Excuse my no makeup/slobbiness, I've been cleaning all day.) It's a really long necklace, but you can wear it shorter.  

Overall, I love the items. They seem to be good, heavy quality. Don't feel cheap. And they look just like they photographed on the website. I don't see having a problem using my 2 credits in December.

Shipping was relatively quick, I order on Wednesday and got them on Monday. It is Fedex smartpost since it's free which means Fedex delivers it to the post office who then delivers it in your mail., But, I'm only a state away so I got it quickly. People on the east coast will prob have a longer delivery time. 

One thing I REALLY wish they had, was a color option. There's many items that I'd buy if they were in silver rather than gold. I am really pale so I don't look good in gold but it seems there is more gold than not. I would love the Poseidon necklace soo much more if it wasn't bronze. But it will probably end up being a gift. There's a pair of pink drop earrings that I love, but since they are gold, I won't buy them.

There are a few things that I think they could improve. They are a very new company though so I'm sure some thing will improve. The website is the biggest thing I think could easily be improved. The zoom option doesn't appear to actually zoom. It brings up the picture, but it's about the same size or smaller. I'd love to be able to really zoom in to see the details since it's jewelry. I also wish the order history actually showed the date you ordered. Right now it just shows the status of the item. Also, if you buy 2 items at the same time, they both ship together (which I prefer), however, I think they should include the tracking # on both items to avoid any confusion.

I also think they should add a FAQS page. All I see in the How It Works section is videos and most people don't have time to pay attn to those or can't if they are working. Would be much easier to have an area that lists the info. 

Another big thing is referrals. Unfortunately, you can only refer by sending an email. :( Having a link would be so much more beneficial since you can post it anywhere. But, you also get 1 credit per referral (if they purchase) so that is a great bonus. 

If anyone is interested in becoming a member, please send me your email address so that I can get a credit. You can become a member w/o having to buy anything. :) They also don't ask for your credit card # until you make your first purchase.

Shoe crafts

Welcome to Teetle Insomnia night. For those who don't know, my other love besides crafts, is SHOES! So, while unable to sleep, I thought, why not combine the 2?!

I bought these shoes at a wholesale store for only $10. I thought they were cute and well, you can't beat the price. But, it's been a few months and I still haven't worn them. They are just a little plain. 

 I was getting ready to put them in the sell/donate pile, but they were a good fit so I decided to experiment a little. I figured if it didn't work, I'd only be out $10 and a few hours. So, yes, I took glue and glitter to my shoes. 

 And here's the finished product! Pretty sparkly gold shoes! I kept a similar color since I wasn't sure if any of the original would show through. 

There's a little loose glitter I need to wipe off still, but I'm pretty happy with the results. I definitely think I'll wear them now. 

Then I decided to give my shoes more options. But this time, less permanent. 

I made a few shoes clips that just clip on and off so I can use them on any pair and put them wherever I want. This was my first attempt so they aren't the best, but I think they're kinda cute.

I added a green and orange flower to my Coffee no Cream Bliss. This will go really good with my orange purse. Then since feathers are popular this season, I added a clip to another $10 pair from the wholesale store. Most feathered shoes I've seen are really pricey. So, for $10, I'll take my DIY pair. (The feather came off a free belt with a pair of jeans, hated the belt but saved the feathers)

I LOVE how this set turned out. Great way to add some color to a basic black shoe. 

And as you can see, you can place them wherever you think looks best for your outfit that day. 

Here it is with my black patent Bliss. 

And a way to add a girly quality to a edgy pair of shoes. Got these for $10 at the wholesale store too. LOVE that place. 

What do you think?! I don't love the top 2 shoe clips but they aren't bad. I love my new sparkly shoes and love the pink/black clips though. 

And to show you just how obsessed I am with shoes...here's my shoe closet for those who haven't seen it yet. If you think that's a lot of shoes, you should see my craft room! I seriously love this closet. Thankfully I have an awesome hubby that not only understood my need for a closet just for shoes, but he bought and built the shelves for me. AND carried all my boxes of shoes into the room for me. :) 

How to: For the glitter shoes, I mixed a bunch of mod podge with a bunch of glitter. I didn't measure just put almost equal amounts and added more glitter as needed. I put on 4 coats, letting them dry for about 30 min between each coat (I waited til it became clear since it goes on white). 

For shoe clips: 

Black/Pink: I used the Big Shot with a flower shaped die and cut all 4 sizes in both fabrics. I used my Crop-a-dile to punch a hole through the middle of each and set it with an eyelet. I then hot glued in onto a metal shoe clip. 

Feather: I punched out a small circle and hot glued the feather to that. Then just hot glued that to the metal shoe clip.

Green/Orange: I used some white flowers from the Stampin Up Pretties Kit and sponged them with Stampin up ink. I added a flat back pearl from the pretties kit to the center with a mini glue dot. Then attached it with hot glue to the metal clip. 

If you want to buy the Stampin Up supplies I used (Big Shot, Crop-a-dile, mini glue dots, pretties kit, circle punch, eyelits, ink, glitter), here's a link to my Stampin Up site: The flower die is used isn't available any longer but there are others for sale. http://www.stampinup.net/esuite/home/crystalmincher/

Custom ornaments

Mom, if you are reading this, STOP! Don't want you seeing your gift. :)

Yep, TWO new posts in one day! This is what happens when I can't sleep.

I decided to finally do something with the clear ornaments I bought last year. I've seen a few tutorials on how to make these really pretty glittery ornaments using Stampin Up reinkers and glitter and have been wanting to try it forever.

I started with these plain clear ornaments I bought for $5. 

And this is what I ended with. Much prettier! I used Bermuda Bay and Dusty Durango for the colors. Since I was making them, I decided to go with colors that aren't the usual colors for Christmas. 

Since there were 4 in the pack, I decided to make these for my mom and I monogrammed them with each of her kids initials. The snowflake and the letters are vinyl. 

Here's a close up so you can see the glitter a little better. I tied matching polka dot ribbon to hang them. 

This was definitely not a clean project. My hands are covered in ink at the moment. But, it was fun to do and I LOVE the finished product. Hope my mom likes them too. 

To do this yourself: Add about 25 drops of the reinker of your choice into the ornament. Then slowly swirl it around starting at the bottom and working your way to the opening. make sure to cover the whole area. Keep something plastic to catch the drips at the end. Once it's coated in ink, let it stand upside down on the plastic to get the leftover ink out. Then, start adding glitter. I just poured a little at a time using a piece of scrap paper folded in half. Put some in, cover the hole with your finger and shake it up. Keep adding more glitter as needed until the whole thing is coated. Make sure to not wait too long after the ink since the glitter needs to adhere to it. 

Finally!

My new craft room is finally unpacked! Almost everything is put away, except for a few things that I'm still trying to decide the best way to store. Need to bring my sewing table upstairs too, but that's all that's left.

So, I finally got a chance to do some NEW crafts! Yay!

My first project back was just a card. But, it's not exactly your typical card. I took a "tassle twirling" class for fun. Express MiE, where I took my pole classes, was hosting it and I figured why not?! When else will I have the chance to do a class like that?! And the studio is only for women and it was a small group. It was a blast! Miss Kitty Victorian was an awesome teacher. Of course, I had to make a card for it!

I ripped some ribbon to make the string for the tassles and thread it through a green sequin. And I just realized I forgot to put on her makeup! I need to do that before sending it out. So yeah, like I said, not your typical card, but fun none the less :)

Halloween Crafts

Since I didn't have a blog last Halloween, I haven't posted these on my blog yet. These are from last year but I wanted to share them. 

Boo blocks

From another angle

2 signs

Closeup

Closeup

Skull mini album

Hope you enjoy! 

Where have I been?!

Wow, I have seriously been SLACKING in my blogging. I suck! I've had such a busy few months though. Here's what I've been up:

I've fully moved in to the new house and have renters at the old one (and they signed a 2 year lease!!!). Of course there's still plenty to do around the new house and it feels never ending. Here's a link to some pics of the new house (they are pics from the listing) http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=182971&id=757844115 I absolutely LOVE it and feel so lucky to have such a beautiful home.

August started a string of great vacations all in a row. First up was a girl's weekend in Vegas. I drove up with a friend I've known since HS and reconnected with about a year ago when I found out we both moved to AZ. The rest of the girl's that we met there were friends we were meeting for the first time in person. Sounds kinda crazy I'm sure, but we all met through our love of shoes on a Facebook page and became friends and decided it was finally time to meet up. We all had a blast and got along great! It was like we'd known each other forever and I can't wait to see them again.

Next trip was back home to IL for my 10 yr high school reunion. I almost didn't go, but I hadn't seen my family in awhile and I figured why not?! The only real cost was the plane ticket since I could stay at my moms. I'm soo glad I went. I had way more fun than I expected and there was a really good turnout. I got to hang out with some of my best friends from HS and FINALLY got to meet my friend's adorable little girl. I wish that I lived closer to them still but I'm so happy that I stay in contact with them 10 years later. And that through moves, marriage, kids, etc, we can pick right up where we left off. I also got to spend the day at 6 flags with my niece, nephew and sister.

A few days after I got back from IL, my hubby came home on leave!!!! YAY!!! I hadn't seen him since April so it was a long time coming. It was extra weird for him this time since he was coming home to a new house that he'd only seen once before we'd even found out the offer was approved. He is still here but leaves in about a week. We've been relaxing and doing house stuff (all the things I can't do alone). Oh and playing with our new puppy! (more on that in a second!)

He had almost a week before it was time for our 3rd trip. This time we went to Playa Del Carmen, Mexico. My sister lives there and she was celebrating her 40th birthday. We had an amazing rooftop dinner one night and then her big party was an Undead party. Everyone had to be in costume. I went as Miss Argentina from Beetlejuice. It was a blast dressing up and celebrating my sister's bday on the beach. This trip was awesome. One day was spent swimming with whale sharks. OMG it was an amazing experience. These things are HUGE. We also went snorkeling 2 times (got my little brother who is scared of water to go one of the times!). I also taught my brother how to swim!!! He did great considering he learned for the first time at 25. We had tons of amazing food also. Here's a link to some of the pics. There are more that I haven't gotten around to posting yet. http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=240044&id=757844115

So, last major new thing is the puppy! I got her on the way back from Vegas. My husband has missed having a dog to come home to each leave. He loves having a running buddy. So, we decided to go for it and I figured I'd do it in time for this leave. She is a beautiful Weimaraner. She is now about 14 weeks old and growing soo quick. During the week we were in Mexico, she lost that puppy face! We named her Zuker, which means Sugar in German (since they are German dogs, they have to have German names IMO). It took a lot of emails back and forth to decide her name (I can only imagine how hard it will be to pick a name when we have a kid!). We narrowed it down to Anka (means graceful) and Zuker. Well within 10 min of meeting her, she'd fallen over about 20 times so obviously Anka was out of the questions. But, she was as sweet as can be so Zuker worked perfectly. She's definitely a handful, like any weim is, but she makes me laugh out loud pretty much every day. It's nice having someone else around when my husband is gone too. Here's a few pics of here. http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=201651&id=757844115

Ok, that might be the record for the longest blog ever, but like I said, it's been a busy few months. Now that the house is mostly unpacked and the hubby will be back in Afghanistan soon, I will be better about blogging. I miss my craft room and want to start making stuff! I just knew if I unpacked that first, I'd never get anything done! lol

New purses

I mentioned Justfab.com in a post once before and so far, I have ordered 6 bags from them! (Shh...don't tell my husband!). I have to say, the quality has been awesome on all of them. And I love getting to see the new styles they recommend each month. Here's the ones I've purchased (not including the Rockstar that my other post showed).

I can't pick a fave, because I really love them all!

This is my newest one: Anthology in pink. Has tons of space inside and the flowers are soo cute! This one also comes in black

This is the Oscar Worthy in black/white. LOVE this clutch. The handle has rhinestones all along it and it's big enough to hold more than the typical clutch. And the zebra print sequins are awesome! This also comes in bronze.

This one is the Special Effects. I LOVE the vintage feel to it. It has a decorative border and clasp with rhinestones. It also comes in black and gold. 

This is my least favorite and I ended up exchanging it. It's very cute and nice quality, but I'm just not sure that I would use it much since it's all white and I already have a tan bag that's similar in size. This also comes in black and a pinkish color. 

This is the tan one I just mentioned. It's the Take A Bow. I loved the bow on it and it's a really pretty cream. I don't use it as much as the others because of the color and not wanting it to get too dirty. But very cute. 

And last, but not least. This is the one that is on it's way for my exchange. It's the Prop Master in pink. I love the pics and have liked it for a few months but worried I'd never use it enough. But after seeing how much I loved my other pink bag from them, I figured I'd get another one, but in a clutch instead. It also comes in a greyish color. 

OOH and while typing that, I decided to check tracking on it and it showed delivered! So I just ran out to my mailbox and it's here! It's very cute and will be great for dressy events. Each of the rosettes has glitter along the edges. :)

So there's my newest additions to my closet :) Don't worry, I didn't buy them all at once, it was a couple months worth. If you want more info about Justfab, let me know (or check out my previous blog post where I go into more details). If you decide you want to sign up (it's free!), I have a referral link at the top right corner on my blog. That way I get referral points towards a free bag.

Oh yeah, and you ALSO get point for every purchase you make. After buying 5 bags, you get 1 free (Or it can be shoes or a combo, I've just only been buying purses). So, one of these was actually a free bag that I bought with credits. And exchanges and shipping are free too. So if you don't like something, it's very easy to send it back for something else. Their customer service has been beyond amazing too which is rare these days!!

Facebook

I decided to start a FB fan page since I'm always on FB. Figured it would help me keep this blog updated. It's so easy to let it fall to the wayside and not update it. I'll be posting past project pics up over there later in the week. I already put up most of my cards.

Please join! It would be a great place for everyone to also share their projects and blogs. I know I don't get a chance to check out everyone's pages as often as I'd like, but if it's all in one place, we can all share our creations and get inspiration from each other. :) And a place to just chat about anything going on in our lives and get to know each other better.

Look up Sweet Teetle and it should come up! Hope to see you over there.

New house

Sorry I haven't posted in forever. As some of you may remember, we were getting really close to closing on a short sale property. Well, we FINALLY got it! It has been soo busy since then getting it ready to move in, all the paperwork, packing, etc. We've been trying for over a year and a half and none went through until this one.

So, my craft room is all packed up which means no new projects. And unfortunately, it will prob be awhile until it is unpacked and ready to create again. I have to get our old house ready for move in for the renters and then unpack the daily things here first. Tons of work means no time for fun. :( But, hopefully it goes quicker than planned.

Gypsy review

I used my gypsy for the first time earlier in the week to make those piggy cards. Now, I was one of the few people that was not in any way excited about the gypsy and never thought that I would want to buy it. But, my old laptop broke and I'm only on a mini laptop for now and my DS doesn't work on it since the screen is too small. I decided to take the plunge and bid on one on ebay. I ordered from seller proudparents2005 and got a great deal. They seem to have plenty of them and shipping was quick. I'd definitely recommend them to anyone wanting to buy one. Best deal I've found.

My fave option on the gypsy and what really got me to finally want it, is they have currently added the option to hide features. This made it possible to save TONS of paper by not having to cut things I wouldn't use.

 Since I made 20 of these, I did each separate thing in a row. Cut all the paper together, stamped all the faces in a row, etc. That way I didn't have to constantly keep switching tools. Made it go soo much faster. If you are making things in bulk, I definitely recommend the assembly line style.

For the pig base (the darker pink layer), I used main pig image and set it to 2.75 and set the cricut on autofill. That set it at 20, which was perfect! So with 1 piece of 12 x 12 cardstock, I made all the bases. Since I wanted to use the cute pig face stamps (They are from Peachy Keen stamps...Critter faces medium size), I didn't need all the layers. I decided to use layer 2 since I wanted the dark pink to show through on the ears, feet, and hands. This is where the gypsy came into use. I was able to hide all the other cuts so that the face parts didn't come in. After I made one on the gypsy w/o the extra cuts, I was able to copy the image 4 times and lay them side by side. Then, to make it even easier, I was able to select all 5 across and copy that 3 times. So I was able to quickly make 20 hidden faced pigs to fit on one mat!! Seriously LOVE this option.

While that layer saved me tons of time, the next cut I did is where I saved all the paper that I would normally have cut. I still wanted the layer with what looks like a dress?! But, on layer1, the dress cuts with another pig layer. Well, here I hid all the face cuts AND the pig. Then I copied just the dress 19 times and laid them all in a row. I saved a whole sheet of cardstock by having this option! No more waste!

Sorry, I'm so wordy as usual. But, I wanted to share how happy I am that I got the gypsy. I recommend it to everyone now! I still can't believe how quickly/easily it won me over. I now wish I'd bought this ages ago when it came out (although I sure saved a lot of money by waiting). If you don't already have one, go get one! If you have any other questions about it, let me know!

The paper I used is all Stampin up, the punch is my free one from Sale a Bration (I'm impressed I remembered to use a punch for once), stamps are My Pink Stamper "Punny-licious" and Critter Faces from Peachy Keen, the ribbon and flower are from Michael's. Also used white gel pen, blue stampin write marker, chalk, watercolor pencil and blending pen for coloring the pig face.

Hope that helps anyone who has been thinking about the gypsy. :)

Rhia's pigfarm & Superstition Farm

A few weeks ago, I saw a post from my fave local farm, Superstition Farm, about how they were selling some stuffed piggies that a 9 year old girl made to raise money for the Ironwood Pig Sanctuary. I was touched that  someone so young could be so involved in something she's passionate about. So, I messaged the farm to let them know that I would donate some cute pig cards they could sell as well to help her out. Figured it was the least I could do, plus it gave me an excuse to buy the Create-a-Critter cartridge that I've been wanting. :) Win/win right?!

Well I finished them up and dropped them off to the farm today. Here's a pic. For the crafters that follow, I'll have a more detailed post about what items I used and a review of my the gypsy since I got to use it for the first time on this project. Quick review is I love it! lol But I'll tell you why later this week.

 I made 20 total, 10 "stinkin' cute" and 10 "hog wild"

If you'd like to check out Rhia's FB page, look up Rhia's Pigfarm. I bought one of her cute stuffed piggies today too. Her name is Swirly. I'd post a pic but I can't find my SD card!

And if you are local, please make sure to support your local dairy farm, Superstition Farm. They have a FB page as well. Some of the nicest people, super clean farm, and cool shop. I bought some fresh milk and some new milk mix ins today too. :)

Cricut circle

Did any of you get the email that finally explains the Cricut Circle? It's pretty much what I guessed it was and like I thought, it's WAY overpriced in my opinion. It's a membership based program and you get 4 exclusive cartridges a year. That's really the only major benefit. The other stuff (discounts on cricut.com for example) are no use to most people since most buy online at other places to save money. It's $275/year or if you do quarterly payments, it's $80/quarter. So much money for what you get. Especially since you don't even know what the cartridges are yet.

Anyone considering signing up?

I'm also not very impressed with the Cricut Lite cartridges that are exclusive to Walmart. The only one I will probably even buy is the Slumber Party one since it has different images than other carts and it's cute. But, again, I think these are overpriced. They only have 50 images and limited extras for layering. But they are $40. I don't even pay that much for brand new regular carts. I think PC is making it really hard for most crafters to be able to keep buying their product. They are releasing too much in one year IMO. Between the cake, gypsy, cricut lite, and cricut circle. And it's all soo expensive!

Storage Tin

My aunt had asked for something that she could put on her nightstand for a small amount of storage. I couldn't decide what to make and then I realized I had a couple of storage tins in the closet that I never got around to using so, I decided to see what I could come up with.

The paper is from Imaginisce "Twitterpated". I love the set since it has cute birds and rabbits and foxes. The So Tweet stamp is also from the set and I heat embossed it using a black embossing powder. I adhered it with modge podge and did a layer over the top as well.

Unfortunately the handles were broken from shipping so I used a few coordinating colors of ribbon and threaded it through the handles holes instead.

Last week, I got a GREAT deal on about 21 tubes of Tim Holtz alcohol ink and I've been itching to try it. Well, since I was using tin, I figured I'd use it for the top. If you've never used these before, you totally should! I sponged on 3 coordinating colors and then added the gold mixative. It was clogged so it came out WAY too much! Luckily with the inks, it doesn't matter and you can still get a really cool effect. After I got it all on, I used some blending solution to lighten it a little bit and give it a better blend. I LOVE the way the top turned out. I can't wait to use the inks again.

I heat embossed the deer and bunny using gold embossing powder. Both the animals are from Stampin Up "Forest Friends". The tree, "life is good", "love," and "happiness" are all rubons from SU "Bright Delight". To add a little dimension, I popped up a polka dot flower. I couldn't find a matching smaller flower, so I sponged a white one to match the dots. Then added a corduroy brad from SU.

I hope she likes it.