Matchy-Matchy Gift

I've had the privilege of a friendship with a super-sweet gal since 7th grade (about 20 years - yes, I'll let you do the math - wink). Much to my dismay, she moved across the country after we graduated High School. :(  We have kept up the friendship over the years, and to say I am grateful is a bit of an understatement. ;-)  Sometimes we're good about staying in touch, sometimes not. But we always know that friendship is there. Through thick and thin. :)

I had purchased a little something for her birthday...a little pick me up for each day. But that just didn't seem like enough. So, I made an ensemble out of it. A few little "extra" things to add to the gift I purchased. I love dressing up ordinary things to make them more fun (matchy-matchy). Hee hee...

I was thrilled to find a retired designer paper in my hoarded supply (wink) which matched nicely - Raspberry Suite!  I covered a mini comp book with it, added some retired cardstock to the edge (Apricot Appeal), and then some white taffeta ribbon to top it off. Made a pen to match, and...wait...what's in that little box??

CHOCOLATE, of course! What's a gift without chocolate?? ;-)

I used the same retired dp and cardstock on this little gift, but I also used some NEW items!! :)  The birthday tag is a stamp from the Happiest Birthday Wishes (Hostess) set. I *heart* that set! :) On the inside, you'll see some Hershey's Nuggets with a stamped wrapper!  When I saw the catalog for the first time, I labeled this It's A Wrap Occasions stamp set a must-have. :)  Oh, and guess what?! They've came out with another label set, the one in the mini catalog is called It's A Wrap Holidays! What fun! :)

Last on my agenda was a matching card...and I'm not that excited about how this one turned out. I was just having trouble, for some reason. But I used a new stamp set (Easy Events), AND it matches (cue singing angels)! lol :)

If you look closely, there's a bit of *sparkle* on the frosting - NEW - Dazzling Details (Holiday Mini)!  Oh, and the cherry on top? A CropADile punch, with crystal effects added to make it shiny. Stem and leaf were handdrawn. :)

Also used in these projects: Whisper White cardstock, Scallop Circle punch, 1 3/8" & 1 1/4" Circle punches, Scallop Edge punch, White grosgrain ribbon, Ink pad lids, Aquapainter

WHEW! Well, I think that's all...what do you think? Would *love* to hear from you! :) 

Thanks so much for stopping by, and have a GREAT day! :)
Crystal

All The Little Things

I completed a challenge!!! WOO HOO!!
Do you know how long it's been since I've participated in a stamping challenge??
Me either. ;-)

It's great for gettin' those juices flowing again. :)

The challenge at SCS is called Free For All, and the title was "Acknowledgement." Think on the last 5 days...is there someone you could thank? Make a card for them and give it to them within 48 hours of making the card!

This is such a great challenge for me! I often think of making people a card, to say thank you, or hello, or whatever...but then I get busy, time goes by, and the moment has passed. :(

I knew I wanted to use a certain stamp and a certain designer paper, and I really really like how it turned out! Thinking about making more to sell on Etsy! :)

I used the new designer paper Spice Cake from the Holiday mini!! LOVE that stuff - perfect for Autumn, or really...any time of the year! :)

I inked the stamp from Full of Life with my More Mustard and Soft Suede markers.




Also used are Soft Suede, More Mustard, Pool Party, and Very Vanilla cardstock!  The Soft Suede taffeta ribbon was the perfect final touch, don't you think? ;-)

The sentiment panel is up on dimensionals, of course. ;-)

Well, what do you think? Would *love* to hear from you! :)

Thanks so much for stopping by, and have a GREAT day! :)
Crystal

Lost & Found

Ever lost something and found it years later?
Back when I was about 14, I lost my wallet.

I was as devastated as a 14 year old can be. The wallet itself was an 8th Grade Graduation gift, and I mean...who knows if there was money in there or not...but what about everything else? You know, all those pics I traded with classmates??? I mean, THAT is important, lol! ;-)

Well, nearly 20 years later...my parents were cleaning out the attic and found this:

What was once was lost...now is FOUND! :)

They put it in a box with a bunch of other stuff that was supposedly mine (wink), didn't tell me it was in there, and one day as I waded through each and every item...there it was!

Boy, was it a blast from the past!! lol

Yup, classmate pics were there, as well as 2 group pics of my friends and I taken in 8th Grade...I'm trying to figure out a way to share it with those friends on Facebook, without the whole world seeing it (in a private message) - anyone know how to do that?

Anyways...back to the subject at hand. I found other little treasures, too:

Shall we play "I Spy?" in this pile of stuff? lol

I wonder what DQ would do if I walked up to the counter with one of those tokens? lol

Oh, and there WAS a $10 bill, and a bunch of change too - score! :)

Have you lost something and found it years later?  If you haven't....you might want to go search your attic! ;-)

Thanks so much for stopping by, and have a great day! :)
Crystal

Ten Tiny Toes

Ten tiny fingers, ten tiny toes...

My mom, SILs, & I are going to be hosting a baby shower for a cousin-in-law of mine, who recently had a baby boy. Guess who was on invitation duty? ;-)

I thought on it for awhile, and came up with something I liked...assembly was the "easy" part. It was all the cutting, stamping, embossing, etc...that took all my time! :)

Ready for the end result?

OK. :)

Everything is SU except for the baby feet stamp. I got that AGES ago (10 years??) when I started stamping, and it's one of my non-SU stamps I've kept for such an occasion. ;-)

Supplies: Bashful Blue & Whisper White cardstock, Big Shot, Polka dot embossing folder, Bashful Blue gingham ribbon

Well, what do you think? I'd love to hear from you! :)

Thanks so much for stopping by, and have a GREAT day! :)
Crystal

Polka Dots, Polka Dots!

So, my girls and I were thinkin' on a party theme for my youngest, about to turn 5.  Finally narrowed down to two possibilities. Butterflies, or POLKA DOTS!!

I'm sure you've guessed what we chose. ;-)

Yup. We had a great idea, now we had to come up with an invitation.

Why not buy some? Oye. Good question!  I was sooo tempted - multiple times - especially knee-deep into it. Would've been much easier, but you know me. I can't buy what I can make, especially when we have a good idea and are excited about it. Gotta see it through to completion. :)

Soo...we set to work. Made a pattern, then set to work repeating over and over.
5 year old punching
7 year old adding adhesive
Mom (me) putting all the polka dots on in the set pattern.

Oh, now that's the short of it.

Here's a few pics of how it went down.

Yes, we put them on the cardstock.

But then, as you see, the polka dots need to be cut off all the edges.

Like this.

Then, some computer work was needed...

Printed onto vellum....

And now....the finishing touch...

Hole punches at the top, then added ribbon!

Colors used:

Retired: Green Galore, Lavendar Lace (I think? It's been too long, lol!)

Current: Whisper White, So Saffron, Tempting Turquoise, Melon Mambo

Well, what do you think?

COMPUTER UPDATE: Yup. My laptop has FINALLY arrived !!

Thanks so much for stopping by, and have a GREAT day! :)
Crystal

SU Update, and STILL no computer!

Yup. Still no laptop back from Dell.

Boy, I am going to be SOOO glad to see that thing when it is back in my hands!

I'll probably kiss it! lol :)

I did fire up the dinosaur (old computer that takes 25+ min. on button to being able to type something in a search bar online)....and I've updated the SU catalogs tab - the new HOLIDAY MINI came out on Sept. 1st!  yay!! :)

Here's a little a teaser of sorts...you'll have to click on SU Catalog tab for more. ;-)

Well, that's all for now...crossing my fingers that the laptop will be shipped today??

Thanks so much for stopping by, and have a GREAT day! :)

Crystal