Blanket Stitched Heart....My April Crop Chocolate Design Team project.

The theme this month was all about Grandma's quilt. I loved this theme, I love quilts and we own a whole bunch of them, most of them handmade by you guessed it.....grandmas! 

Here's what my finished project looks like. There's lot of handmade elements and hand stitching, just like all our quilts have, all done by hand, every detail, no machines allowed.

For the step by step instructions on how to make this, make sure you check out The Crop today!

My Mind's Eye + Printers Tray = Beautiful!!

I'm getting ready to head up to Moncton for Crop & Create and was finishing up some last minute project samples to stick in the stores booth. This is just to give people an idea of how wonderful some of these collections are, and give them some ideas on how to use them. I've had My Mind's Eye Lost & Found 3 Oliver for a while now, and I've made a couple of things, but not the big project I initially bought it for...so I did that up! 

Here it is completed...a Printers Tray with our family portraits in it that my friend and photographer pal Jessica did for us last fall. I printed all the pictures in B&W so there was no competition on the colors. I think they look great this way too. I used paper, brads, enamel dots, washi, stickers, layered stickers, lace and metal adornments and chipboard all from the Oliver collection....it's so pretty!! Silk ribbon and jute twine are from May Arts, Printers tray is from Close To My Heart and the white paper roses are Recollections from Michael's. If you're in Moncton at Crop & Create this weekend, you can check this out in person! 

Crop Chocolate DT Post - Nature Inspired

This month over on Crop Chocolate the theme for the design team members was "Nature Inspired". I thought about doing something with shells, or something beachy, but I do that all the time since it's my favorite place in the world. So I decided to step outside of the box with nature inspired and go more environmentally conscience...AKA: Reusing and Recycling. 

Check out my post on The Crop today, to see how I made this Travel themed mini album in the shape of a suitcase, by re-using things intended for the garbage and compost bins. Full tutorial with lots of pictures.

Check it out, I think you'll love it!

Spiffy Cool

Here's a card I made about 2 weeks ago for a challenge to use wood grain. I love this washi tape that I got from Freckled Fawn and I paired it with a wood grain stamp that I've had for ages.

I'm also using a brand new Your Next Stamp stamp release called "Spiffy Cool", and this stamp is extra special to me, because it's inspired my little boy. I sent a message to Karen at YNS and asked her if she could create a set of boy/girl stamps of kids wearing glasses just being kids, with no nerd/geek connotations ..she loved my suggestion, and this is the little boy that she came up with! Isn't he adorable?!! 

I'm linking this to Freckled Fawn for a product spotlight challenge....use washi tape on a project!! I can do that...as my little one in glasses says: "Easy peasy, lemon squeezy!"

Don't Worry 'Bout a Thing.....

Today my monthly design team project is up on The Crop today....go check it out and see how I made this sign for my house! 

Step by step instructions with pictures are all there! 

Chompy....and another Weekly Challenge

I've been absent from my blog for a month, sinus infection, throat, double ear and chest infections will do that, but I'm back! I'll have a couple of posts today. I just wanted to share a couple of cards I made recently.

The first one was for a challenge that I *thought* said to use a stamped image, but when I read it closer it was a stamped background...but I ended up with a cute card so I'm alright with that. 

The image is Chompy the caterpillar, he's from Your Next Stamp and he's just adorable. I colored him up with my Distress Markers water colour style. Paper is Echo Park Hello Summer, twine from My Mind's Eye, as is the button and enamel dots.

Here's the one I did properly for the challenge, same one I was going to enter the card above for. I used a music sheet stamp with Distress Ink for the background and with the play on words and the added image of the birds, thought a "Just a Note" sentiment was what this needed. Music sheet stamp is from Graphic 45, inks are Distress Inks and Memento, paper is Echo Park Hello Summer, sentiment is from Paper Smooches, rhinestones are My Mind's Eye and jute twine is from American Crafts.

This was for the weekly challenge over on Crop Chocolate. 

Page Maps Contest and Crop Chocolate Weekly Challenge

I was looking for a sketch the other day and went to my favorite place for them, Page Maps...always great sketches from Becky Fleck there. I stumbled across this one and it was for a contest to win some yummy Fancy Pants papers. I loved the sketch and it was perfect for my picture. 

I knew I was also going to enter it into the weekly challenge over on Crop Chocolate, the theme this week is to use the colors blue, green and white....not much of a challenge for me, since I have 2 boys and those are my favorite color combos.

Here's my LO:

I used some older Harmonie cardstock, some ANCIENT All My memories rub-ons for the title,  Making Memories velvet ric-rac and metal word and all the pattern paper, buttons and twine are from DoodleBug. I traced a plate to make the circle to follow with my Sew Easy and then stitched it all in white...I love this LO. This picture makes me so happy...it's my oldest boy on the day he was born....almost 7 years ago. And yes, this is for his baby book....and yes I'm just starting it. Sigh....they grow up too fast.  

If you get chance today, before midnight (MST), try creating a LO using the sketch at this post and get it entered to win!!