Baby Girl Sprinkle

My friend April had her second child, a daughter, just a few weeks after I had Chael. I made her invitations and favors as well. I love all of the chalkboard signs I see on Pinterest, so I decided to use her colors and make her invitation look like a chalkboard. I had fun downloading all sorts of chalkboard fonts and playing with the layout. Her favors were Pink Zebra sprinkles in sweet pea scent. On the back of the tag is the Pink Zebra consultant information. I forgot to take a picture of her thank you cards, so below is the digital file.

Baby Boy Sprinkle

I recently had my second son, a baby boy named Chael. In May I had a "sprinkle" to celebrate his upcoming arrival at my favorite little restaurant! I didn't really have a theme, just went with boy colors and kept it pretty simple. Unfortunately all of the pictures taken before guests arrived were accidentally deleted, so I don't have pictures of how cute everything looked. Each place setting had a little menu that I created to match the invitations. The centerpieces were tin cans wrapped in burlap and ribbon combined with mason jars with tea lights. The favors were blue nail polishes with a poem that said "10 little fingers, 10 little toes, Baby Rudy fill our hearts with love that overflows".

The invitation.

 The best picture of the table that I have...you can sort of see the menu and the favors. There were cans and mason jars staggered the entire length of the table. It was super simple, but I loved how it looked. 

What Will It BEE?

Have you heard the buzz?? I think this is such a cute baby shower theme, especially if you don't know whether you're having a boy or girl! I made these for my friend, Geri who is expecting her first baby. As always, they were made with MDS and I used the hexagon punch, rotated 90 degrees to create the honeycomb effect. The insert was also the same punch, only I scaled it to be 2x2 inches (talk about a lot of cutting -- I made over 100 of these). I rounded the corners to finish off the invitations.

Her favors were homemade honey and I created the tags for them. I used the circle punch and scaled it slightly larger than my 1 3/8 punch so that I would not have to worry about having to line each one up perfectly to avoid having white space around each one. Then simply punched a hole in the top and she tied them on with twine.

Her centerpieces were super cute too (I had no part in these!). I love the puff ball and pipe cleaner bee!! How clever!

I won one of the centerpieces, but unfortunately it got rained on before I could get a picture of it!

Fancy Favor Made with 8 1/2 x 11

As you can see, today's bag is very similar to yesterdays... however, this bag was made using an 8 1/2 x 11 piece of cardstock instead of a 12x12 piece. I knew there had to be a way to do it and found the solution! Unfortunately, I didn't take pictures of the process, but the directions should be easy to follow for those occasions when you don't have a 12x12 of the cardstock you want to use!

1. Cut your cardstock to 6x11.

2. Cut the remaining strip to 6 x 2 1/2.

3. Adhere the small strip to the longer strip.

4. Line up the cardstock on the die so that the seam occurs AFTER the score line for the flap of the bag (if you lay it before the score line of the flap, you will have a seam on the front of your bag).

5. Run through the Big Shot and score creased lines.

6. When you fold your bag together, you will notice a small strip of paper that extends past the crease line of the flap. Simply snip this off at the score line and you can adhere your bag together!

Stamps: Holiday Best, Seasons of Friendship

Paper: Kraft, Whisper White, Old Olive

Ink: Whisper White

Accessories: Big Shot, Fancy Favor Die, Scalloped Oval Punch, Horizontal Slot Punch, SU Markers, Chocolate Chip Ribbon

Baby Shower Favors

Let me just start by saying that these were supposed to be Halloween favor bags...but, after opening all of my new goodies, I realized that the new Big Shot Die Fancy Favor only works with 12x12 paper! While I did buy a pack of the Halloween DSP (which is 12x12), I wasn't ready to use it just yet...so I decided to do a baby shower theme in honor of my cousin who's shower is in a few months. My aunt contacted me about doing invitations and favors, just haven't set anything in stone yet, so I thought I'd start throwing around ideas. These could also be adapted for weddings, birthday parties, graduations, etc! And they were SUPER easy to make! A 6x12 piece of paper and two pieces of Sticky Strip and you have this really cute little bag to fill with any kind of treat you like! You can also leave them open (without the ribbon) for an even bigger treat.

I used the retired Parisian Breeze DSP and the Fun and Fast Notes stamp set (which was one of the sets I got in my Starter Kit!). I made both of these in 10 minutes. Coloring the carriage took me longer than assembling the bag. Plan on seeing lots more of these!

P.S. I have been brainstorming a way to possibly use 8 1/2 x 11 cardstock. So if it works as well in real life as it does in my head, I will have a tutorial for you soon :)

Stamps: Fun and Fast Notes

Paper: Kraft, Whisper White, Parisian Breeze DSP

Ink: Chocolate Chip

Accessories: Big Shot, Fancy Favor XL Die, Horizontal Slot Punch, SU Markers, Chocolate Chip Ribbon

Granola Bar Treats

I'm having a staff meeting tomorrow for my Group Exercise instructors and wanted to give them a small snack to have during our meeting. I immediately thought of granola bars...but I couldn't simply just give them a plain g-bar (as Joe and I call them). Here is what I am taking to the meeting tomorrow:

Surprisingly, these didn't take long to make at all. In fact I made all 20 in less than an hour and a half. The most time consuming part was cutting out all of the butterflies. I'm really pleased with how they turned out. At first I was going to use some retired DSP, but Razzleberry Lemonade was too tempting and I caved!

Stamps: Great Friend

Paper: Whisper White, Rich Razzleberry Cardstock, and Razzleberry Lemonade DSP

Ink: Melon Mambo, Rich Razzleberry

Accessories: 1 3/8 and Scalloped Circle Punch, Polka Dot Ribbon

1. Cut DSP to 4 x 4 1/4 and wrap around bar (long side is the length)

2. Stamp butterfly onto scrap piece of Whisper White using Melon Mambo and cut out. Adhere to 1 3/8 Whisper White Circle. Adhere that piece to Scalloped Circle punched from Rich Razzleberry.

3. Stamp sentiment over butterfly using Rich Razzleberry ink.

4. Adhere to center of bar.

5. Tie Polka Dot Ribbon around top of the bar.

And voila! Super easy! These could also be done with candy bars, rice crispy treats, etc!

Best Wishes Pillow Box

It's hard to believe that this is only the first project I have made with the new In Colors, ribbon, and DSP!! This is another project for my July 17 workshop and I can't wait to show you how simple these little pillow boxes are to make! I used the In Color markers to color the stamp in Melon Mambo, Crushed Curry, and Rich Razzleberry. At first I thought the polka dot ribbon and DSP together would be too much, but I'm glad I didn't turn the ribbon around. This was also the first time I used my new Oval All stamp set. I love how it coordinates with the Large Oval Punch and Scalloped Oval punches...super super easy!

These would also make super cute favors for weddings, showers, or graduation parties and can be customized to any color theme (and filled with your favorite treat!)...just let me know!!

Stamps: Oval All

Paper: Melon Mambo, Whisper White, Rich Razzleberry, Razzleberry Lemonade DSP

Ink: Melon Mambo, Rich Razzleberry, Crushed Curry Markers

Accessories: Big Shot, Pillow Box Die, Large Oval Punch, Scalloped Oval Punch, Melon Mambo Ribbon

Punch Pal Piggy

Oink! Oink! That's "Happy Birthday Mom" in Pig! haha Why am I making a pig reference for my mom's birthday??? Well she LOVES pigs! She's collected them my whole life, so it was only appropriate for me to make her a pig-related birthday gift! This little guy was made using the large oval punch and coluzzle. I love his little piggy tail on the back! Inside holds a gift certificate. I made this a few weeks ago and couldn't wait to post it, but I know she reads my blog and didn't want to ruin the surprise!

Stamps: Sanded Background

Paper: Regal Rose, Chocolate Chip, Whisper White, Basic Black Cardstock

Ink: Chocolate Chip

Accessories: Coluzzle, Large Oval Punch, Big Shot, Top Note Die, Ribbon, Chocolate Chip SU Marker, Mat Pack, White Gel Pen, Small Craft bag, Sponge

For Top Note Bag:

1. Cut two Top Notes from Chocolate Chip using the Big Shot. Stamp Sanded BG stamp using Chocolate Chip ink.

2. Cut craft bag to fit inside the Top Notes. Attach one to one of the Top Notes.

3. Use the large oval punch to punch a handle in the Top Note and through the bag.

4. Adhere other Top Note to other side of bag. Line up oval punch with previously punched one to punch through the other Top Note. Tie handle with Chocolate Chip ribbon.

For Punch Pal Piggy:

1. Cut out two ovals using 4th largest circle on Coluzzle on Regal Rose cardstock. Also punch 3 ovals using large oval punch.

2. Sponge around edges using Chocolate Chip Ink.

3. Line up mat pack in the center of one of the 3 ovals to create snout. Color two with Chocolate Chip marker.

4. Free hand cut two half ovals out of Whisper White and two half ovals out of Basic Black to create eyes. Use gel pen to draw highlights. Adhere to back of snout.

5. Use dimentionals to attach snout to largest oval.

6. Take the other 2 ovals and fold the tops down to create ears. Adhere to back of largest oval and adhere to Top Note bag.

7. Take a small strip of Regal Rose and wrap around a pencil to create curly tail. Adhere to other large oval. Adhere to back of Top Note bag so that it lines up with the head on the other side.

4th of July Top Note Box

With 4th of July being next week, I thought I should pull out some patriotic colors and see what I could come up with. I have been wanting to try one of these top note boxes so that's what I decided to make. There was no stamping involved in creating this which was kind of strange. Let me know what you think!

Paper: Not Quite Navy, Riding Hood Red, Whisper White Cardstock

Accessories: White Gel Pen, Mat Pack, Big Shot, Top Note Die

The tutorial for the box can be found here. The stripes were formed by cutting 1/2 inch strips of Whisper White and laying them over the Top Note Die. The stars were created using a gel pen and the mat pack.

*I didn't have any candy to decorate or there would definitely be a treat inside!

Kiwi Kiss Fry Box

This is one of the projects I will be demo-ing at the party I have this coming weekend. I used the template from Stampin' Up's demonstrator site and cut it out using Kiwi Kiss. It was super simple and took max 10 minutes once I figured out what I wanted it to look like (that's always the hardest part!) I will definitely be making these again!! It is filled with six wrapped Hershey's mini candy bars and some crinkled Designer Series Paper to match.

Stamps: Great Friend

Paper: Kiwi Kiss, Basic Gray, Bashful Blue, Walk in the Park DSP

Ink: Basic Gray

Accessories: Ribbon, 1 3/8 inch Circle, 1 1/2 inch Circle, and Scalloped Circle Punches, Twine, Cello Bag

Wedding Cake

First off, I'm going to start by saying these pictures do not do this project justice!! I earned a spot in the APEX (A Positive Example) swap through Meg Loven due to my performance last quarter. I was super excited as this was my first quarter as a demonstrator :) The theme for the swap is wedding (cards, favors, etc). I, of course, had to do a favor because I love making little treat bags/boxes. I got the template from the SU demonstrator website. Since there are only 9 people in the swap (so far, but tomorrow is the last day, so I should be safe) I only made the bottom layer which consists of 11 slices. There are templates for a second and third layer to make a tiered cake. The slices open up from the bottom which reveals a little tab holding them together, so even after opening they can still be put back together in tact. I couldn't choose between chocolate and vanilla pieces, so I did both! The only thing that bummed me out is that since there is an odd number of pieces, my alternating color pattern got messed up and I ended up with two white pieces next to each other. I know I could squeeze another one in there if I wanted to though...but after 3 hours of making these, I was done for the night! I can't wait to have a reason to make this again (and would really love to do a baby theme!)

Stamps: To Have and to Hold

Paper: Pink Pirouette, Chocolate Chip, Whisper White

Ink: Chocolate Chip

Accessories: White Organza Ribbon, 1 3/8 Circle, 1 1/2 Circle, and Scalloped Circle Punches, SU Markers, Stampin' Pastels, Blender Pen, Dimensionals

Here is an example from the SU website of what a tiered cake would look like:

Click here for my sample of wedding invitations!

Easter Treats

With this being Easter weekend, I wanted to make a few more projects using the Egg-cellent Easter set before it has to be put away. Since I love to make treat boxes/bags that's what I decided to make. I plan to use them as door prizes at Kim's party tomorrow afternoon.

Nugget Box:

Stamps: An Egg-cellent Easter

Paper: Bashful Blue, Certainly Celery, Whisper White Cardstock and Sale-A-Bration Designer Series Paper

Ink: Chocolate Chip

Accessories: Certainly Celery Ribbon, Stampin' Pastels, 1 3/8 Circle, 1 1/2 Circle, and Scalloped Circle Punches; Blender Pen, Dimensionals

1. For the bottom of the box, score 5 1/4 x 3 3/4 piece of Bashful Blue cardstock at 1/2 and 1 1/8 on all sides.

2. Cut off the three small boxes that make an "L" shape in each corner. On the long side snip along the score line up to the 1 1/8 score line to create little flaps.

3. Apply adhesive to the outer side of the flaps and the inside of the other edges and fold the box together.

4. For the top of the box score 5 1/8 x 3 1/16 piece of Bashful Blue cardstock at 11/16, 2 1/4, 2 15/16, and 4 7/16.

5. Fold on the score lines around the box and adhere ends together. (If you don't fold it around the box before adhering, you might make it too tight for the box to fit inside.

6. For the nuggets, wrap 1 x 3 piece of Designer Series Paper around each candy piece.

7. Decorate box as desired.

Top Note Treat:

Stamps: An Egg-cellent Easter

Paper: Bashful Blue, Certainly Celery, Apricot Appeal, Whisper White Cardstock and Sale-A-Bration Designer Series Paper

Ink: Chocolate Chip

Accessories: Apricot Appeal Ribbon; Stampin' Pastels; 1 3/8 Circle, 1 1/2 Circle, and Scalloped Circle Punches; Big Shot; Top Note Die; Blender Pen; Dimensionals; Medium Cellophane Bags

1. Send scrap piece of Certainly Celery cardstock and Designer Series paper through the Big Shot machine using the Top Note Die.

2. Fold both Top Note pieces in half. Cut DSP Top Note in half. Stamp sentiment in top right corner.

3. Wrap Apricot Appeal ribbon around DSP and adhere.

4. Fill medium cello bag with wrapped nuggets. Fold bag to close and place inside the folded Certainly Celery Top Note.

5. Staple bag to Top Note making sure that the front of the staple is in the back and that the prongy side comes out the front.

6. Adhere DSP Top Note with ribbon to the bottom half of the Certainly Celery Top Note covering the staples.

7. Decorate as desired.