Small Business Saturday (and coupon!)

Hello and Happy Thanksgiving! I hope each of you have plans to spend the holiday with loved ones and eat lots of delicious food. I'll be up on Ohio with my husband's side of the family, where we'll have a full house of 30 or so people!

Everyone knows about Black Friday following on the heels of Thanksgiving, but do you also know about Small Business Saturday? It is a day to support your small local businesses, in contrast to the big box stores. I'll be participating in Small Business Saturday this weekend by offering a coupon for my Etsy shop.

By using coupon code SBS14, you will receive 15% off your entire purchase now through Saturday, November 29th! I have Christmas cards, cute holiday gift tags, and cards for all occasions.

Have a great weekend!

Holly Bough Card

I am participating in a holiday craft fair next weekend with some talented local crafters, so I am definitely getting in the Christmas mood! Here is one of the designs I will be offering.

 

I've had the idea for this rumbling around in my head for a while now, so it was fun to finally see it come together. 

I die cut the holly leaves from a textured green card stock. The red button is actually sewn to the card front with baker's twine and tied in a loopy bow. The sentiment I found in the Michael's $1 bin several years ago!



SUPPLIES Stamps: sentiment ($1 bin at Michael's)
Paper: Rustic Cream (PTI), Old Olive textured (SU!)
Ink: Onyx Black (Versa Fine)
Tools: Holly Jolly die (PTI)
Embellishments: red button, baker's twine

Halloween Spider Tags

I'm sneaking in one more Halloween project for you. Gift tags are one of my favorite things to make so I couldn't help but make a few for Halloween. These would be cute on treat bags for little ghouls and goblins. :)

I die cut the tag shape with Papertrey Ink's Tag Sale #3 die and then stamped the spider and web images. I used a fine point sharpie and a ruler to draw the thread the spider is dangling from. A simple sentiment and some orange and white baker's twine finished them off!


 

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Creepy Crawly (Inkadinkado), Teeny Tiny Wishes (SU!)
Paper: Stamper's Select White (PTI)
Ink: Onyx Black (Versafine), Tangerine Tango (SU!)
Tools: Tag Sale#3 die (PTI), black fine point Sharpie
Embellishments: Clementine Baker's Twine (Maya Road)

Halloween Banner Cards

Hello! Today I have some Halloween card inspiration to share with you. These are a variation of some birthday cards I have available in my Etsy shop. To make these I picked out a variety of Halloween themed pattern papers and die cut banner shapes from them. I then shuffled the die cuts around into coordinating groupings.
 

I arranged three banners across the tops of 4 bar sized cards and then machine stitched them in place, leaving the thread tails long to mimic the ends of the string that would hold up a real banner. It is finished with one of my favorite Halloween sentiments from Inkadinado's Creepy Crawly set. They turned out very cute, if I do say so myself. :)

Have a fun and safe Halloween this week!

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Creepy Crawly (Inkadinkado)
Paper: Vintage Cream (PTI), assorted pattern papers
Ink: Onyx Black (Versafine)
Tools: Banner Builder dies (PTI), sewing machine

Apple Cider Pound Cake

Ah, fall. My favorite season of the year. Cooler temperatures, changing leaves, roaring fires and delicious smells of spices baking in the kitchen. Everyone seems to snuggle down with loved ones when shorter days and cooler weather come back at the end of the year. Fall, though, has been a little late in coming to the South. Cool weather flits in for a tantalizing day or two and then the temperatures soar back up to the mid 70's. But now that it is mid-October I don't care what the thermometer says, I am going into fall mode!

The recipe for this Apple Cider Pound Cake was a happy discovery on Allrecipes.com a few years ago, and I pulled it out again last week to make for a group at our church.  Our kitchen smelled divine while this was baking! And as none of the cake was left at the end of the night, I know you'll love it, too.

Apple Cider Pound Cake from allrecipes.com

INGREDIENTS
3 c. sugar
1 1/2 c. butter
6 eggs
3 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground allspice
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
1 c. apple cider
1 tsp. vanilla extract

ICING
1/2 c. sugar
1/4 c. butter
1/4 c. buttermilk
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. baking soda

PREPARATION
In a large mixing bowl, cream sugar and butter. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir together all dry ingredients; set aside. Combine cider and vanilla. Add dry ingredients alternately with cider mixture to batter. Mix until well blended. Spoon into greased 10-inch angel food cake pan or fluted tube pan. Bake at 325 degrees F for about 1 hour and 10 minutes, or until cake tests done. Meanwhile, combine all icing ingredients in a saucepan. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes. While cake is warm, drizzle 1/2 of the icing over cake. Serve remaining icing over individual cake servings, if desired.

Enjoy!

Ruler Growth Chart

Hello! It has been ages since my last blog post, it is good to be back. If you are anything like me, you have a constant backlog of projects you want to do or have started to do and haven't quite finished. Life is a busy thing. With that in mind, I am always excited when one of those projects gets completed! 

I had the idea of making a ruler growth chart back before my son was born. It was actually one of the things I had pinned to his nursery inspiration board. But knowing I wouldn't need it immediately, it sat on the back burner. By the time his 1st birthday rolled around, I had at least purchased the pine board from the hardware store and was able to mark off how tall he was on it. A few months later I stained it. And a few weeks ago I finally added the lines and numbers. All before he hit the ripe old age of 18 months no less. Ha!

As I mentioned, this was made from a simple pine board I bought at the hardwood store. It measures 6' x 8". I stained it with Special Walnut and then marked off the lines in 1" increments with a pencil. I then went back over the pencil lines with black paint (the perfectionist in me is trying not to agonize over the wobbly hand painted lines. . .) and then I stenciled on the numbers at each foot mark.

I love how it turned out! I plan to record my son's height every 6 months or so. Besides loving how this looks, I like that this is something we can take with us when we move. If we had marked off his height on a wall or door (like we did when I was growing up), we'd have to leave it behind when we eventually move. Now I have a durable, portable, growth chart, that is cute enough to leave out!

Botanical Father's Day Card

Need some inspiration for Father's Day? This year I went with a nature inspired theme and kept it simple. I love the layered leaf fronds across the top with the sentiment nestled inside. The paper is a rustic white card stock with flecks of fiber in it. If you love it as much as I do, pick one up in my Etsy shop to give to your dad, too!


 

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Turning a New Leaf, World's Greatest (PTI)
Paper: Rustic White (PTI)
Ink: Old Olive, Kiwi Kiss (SU!), Smokey Shadow (PTI)

Crafted Westside Grand Opening & Artist Feature

Hi friends! I shared back in April that my stationary and handmade soap is now being sold locally at Crafted Westside here in Atlanta. They are having their Grand Opening party on June 7th and I am excited to be one of the featured designers!! If you are in town, it's going to be a fun time so please stop by and say hello!

Thinking of You

I love Atlanta in the springtime. The city is in full bloom right now with flowering trees and shrubs adding pops of color everywhere you look. In that spirit I wanted to share a floral card with you to hopefully brighten your day. 

I used PTI's lovely set The Sweet Life for the roses, paired with Background Basics: Chevron to add some modern contrast. The sentiment is from the Stampin' Up! set Trendy Trees. The finished card measures 3.5"h x 5"w, or 4Bar. I've been using this smaller scale a lot lately and have really been enjoying it.

I hope you are enjoying some warm spring sunshine this weekend!


 
SUPPLIES
Stamps: The Sweet Life, Background Basics: Chevron (PTI), Trendy Trees (SU!)
Paper: Stamper's Select White (PTI)
Ink: Pink Pirouette, Rose Romance, Melon Mambo, Certainly Celery, Garden Green, Smokey Slate (SU!)
Tools: The Sweet Life dies (PTI)

Easter Pillow Boxes

One of my family's Easter traditions is to set out small treats (preferably chocolate!) at each family member's place setting at the main meal. My parents will be joining us for Easter dinner this year so I thought I would continue the tradition but also create some cute packaging for my sweet offerings. 

I used the Essential Pillow Box die by Papertrey Ink to create my packaging. These were so easy to make! If you are like me and have waited until the last minute to make Easter favors, these work up in no time.

I made the happy discovery that this pillow box die will just barely fit on a 6x6 piece of pattern paper. So I looked through my stash of 6x6 pattern paper stacks and picked an assortment of fun spring colors and patterns.

Here are my assembled boxes, now they just need decorating!

I tied each box with ribbon and tucked a banner die stamped with the sentiment underneath. You could also write the recipient's name on the tag and use these as place cards.

I think they turned out pretty cute!

I filled each pillow box with a few Cadbury caramel eggs. Yum!

Wishing you a happy Easter! He is risen!



SUPPLIES
Stamps: Teeny Tiny Wishes (SU!)
Paper: Stamper's Select White (PTI), Assorted pattern paper
Ink: Only Orange, Kiwi Kiss, Tempting Turquoise (SU!)
Tools: Essential Pillow Box die, Double Ended Banner die (PTI)
Embellishments: Assorted ribbon

A New Venture

Hello!

I have some exciting news to share today. My card designs and handmade soap are going to be sold at a new store opening up here in Atlanta! The store is called Crafted / Westside and will feature the work of primarily local artisans and designers. I am flattered to have my work shown alongside some awesomely talented artists!

Things have been happening pretty fast behind the scenes here and I have been working furiously during my son's nap time and after hours to get everything ready. A big thank you to my husband for watching our little man for me so that I could have some dedicated time to work! On Monday I dropped off my work and the owners are hoping to open their doors this week. Here are my cards displayed in a cute tabletop carousel.

If you are local, please be sure to check them out next time you are in Midtown! They are located across the street from Octane Coffee in the old Whipstitch Fabric space.

Chicken Wire Frame & DIY Vintage Clothespins

I have been wanting to try making one of these chicken wire frame display boards for ages. The push that finally got me to complete the project was wanting to use it for displaying photos at my son's first birthday party. After acquiring all of the materials, it was actually fairly easy to put together.

I started with this large open frame I picked up cheaply at a local art supply store. Originally I was looking for a used frame at thrift shops, but when I saw this it was perfect! It was the right size (23" x 27"), I loved the rustic wood finish it already had, and it was no more expensive than ones I had seen at the thrift shops. Hurray!

The chicken wire is from Home Depot, found in the gardening section. It is a standard 1" hex, galvanized chicken wire, that comes in a large roll. I laid my frame on the floor, right side down, and unrolled the chicken wire across the back. I then used wire snips to trim the wire to the same width as the back of my frame. Using my new staple gun (thanks, sis!) I began securing the edges down while holding the wire taut. I sort of worked my way around, and when it was fairly secure, snipped the final edge to fit. Any staples that didn't sink all the way in, I went back over with a hammer so they sat flush.

Here is a close up of the finished frame. I love it so much! I can envisage all sorts of uses for it, from displaying photos or Christmas cards, to using it as a memo board or card display if I do another craft show.

I also wanted to talk about these clothespins, because they make me happy. These are what I used to clip on photos at the birthday party. See that lovely patina on the wood? It looks like it could be an old, vintage clothespin.

Only it's brand new. I bought a pack of regular wooden clothespins at Target and doctored them up. I thought they looked too new and lacking in character. :)

So I stained them! I used a foam brush and Minwax wood finish in Special Walnut to give them a gloriously aged look.

When they aren't in use on my new chicken wire frame, they have a home in a wire basket. I love how they look all grouped together.

Burlap Banners

If you follow my blog, you know my son just had his first birthday last month and that we celebrated with a farm themed birthday party. For the occasion I made several banners out of burlap for some rustic and festive decorations.

They were fairly easy and straightforward to make. Here is how I did it!

I cut my burlap into 5"w x 6"h triangles. I used a rotary cutter quilter's ruler, but scissors would work fine, too. After all of my triangles were cut out, I went around the edges with Fray Check so they wouldn't, well, fray. With burlap's open weave, the threads were very prone to pulling out. I wanted these banners to last for future parties, so sealing the edges gave them added durability.

I found this set of plastic stencils at Michael's. They weren't intended for use with paint per se, but they certainly did the job. I laid the stencil over the triangle I was ready to paint, the used painter's tape to secure it down and make sure the paint didn't spill over onto the neighboring letters. Then I simply used a stipple brush and acrylic paint to stencil the letters on. I put scrap cardboard under the burlap to catch any paint that bled through. 

Once all of my triangles were painted and dry, I used jute twine and a tapestry needle to string them together. This was so simple because of the loose weave of the burlap. I made sure to leave the tails long enough to tie them in the places I wanted them to hang. Again, because burlap has such a loose weave to it, the triangles easily slide along the twine, making adjustments in placement very easy. When I was ready to hang the finished banners, I tied up the two ends, then slid the triangles along to get them centered after it was hung. No need to get them centered beforehand!

Thanks for stopping by and have a great weekend!