Happy New Year!!!!!

Happy New Year!! I hope 2010 is Better than all the years before and that each of us finds new happiness, good health, safety, riches in our pockets and in our love. That we all learn what matters and what doesn't and we make better use of our time and resources. This is what I wish for, for 2010!!! I hope your New Year is filled with all those things!!! Hap, Hap, Happy New Year!!!
Cheers,

Thank You!!

Thank you cards are what I'm posting about today! Do you send them? I try to always, but sometimes I forget. I hate that. I hate forgetting because it feels great to get one, doesn't it? I need to be better with that!

I stamped these cards using the saltbox studio A Basket Celebration set, I love those baskets and a Amuse, Thank You, sentiment. After I colored with Copics I then used liquid applique by Marvy for the tops of the cupcakes to give them the appearance of lots of frosting...because that is the best part of the cupcake and who wouldn't feel Thankful after receiving a basketful of cupcakes with piled high frosting!!!? Whew....

And speaking of Thank Yous....before the New Year starts....I wanted to say Thank You, to YOU! I wanted to say Thank You for stopping by. Thank you for each and every order and purchase! Thank you to every follower! Thank you for every comment left and know that each one completely makes my day!! So....Thank You.......Thank You!!

Fun Wine Tags....I'll Drink to That! =:O)

If you're anything like me, you find yourself taking a bottle of wine over to a friends house, sometime during the holidays. I never like to take them undressed and these cute little tags, do the trick!

The base of the these tags are craft card stock from Papertrey Ink. Covered in vintage Christmas sheet music and painted with a little Tim Holtz Crackle Paint they then get fun embellishments and who can resist some happy ribbon?!

This tag uses a chipboard piece that I sewed and attached pretty felt to the backside...makes a little color pop! The Glimmer Mist helps too...and you know I love a little sparkle!! I love this way to dress up your wine bottle and your recipient can reuse it too...its perfect for a scrapbook page or Christmas tree decoration, or even use it on a package as the gift tag...Love that!!!

Hard to believe Christmas is just next week!!! Are you ready? Have any fun plans? We will be having our annual Smorgasbord Party at our house. A yummy pot luck of fun! Our older Kids will spend the night on Christmas Eve and that is very special. I like having everyone home, at least for a couple of days or so =:O) Remember if your are out and about, heading to Christmas parties...Please don't Drink and Drive!
Happy Holidays!!!
Hugs,

Chocolate Covered Pretzels! Yum!!

Busy, Busy, Busy! That's how this time of the year is! Beside the shopping and the wrapping, the cleaning of the disaster that was once my office, I've been baking and cooking and making these like crazy......

I made them before each Holiday Boutique I was in. They were a big hit. Then an order or two. Tonight I made these for my Daughters class. I have to make more this weekend. I have made Hundreds!!! Hundreds of little yummy pretzel sticks all decorated pretty...

I'm behind on everything else! I need to finish my Christmas shopping and wrap the gifts. This year I am praying I get it all done so that I am not up till 3am wrapping on Christmas eve! I hate that. I've always hated that..I want to relax on Christmas Eve and wait for Santa!! What have you been doing? I saw a neighbor's Persimmon tree....It was heavy laden with the ripe fruit. I wanted some. I wanted to stop and say....can I Please pick some of that beautiful fruit from your tree? I want to bake with it. I hope they don't let it go to waste. It was a beautiful sight it just needs to be picked. Hmmmmmm.....persimmon cookies....persimmon jam....What are you baking? Back to the pretzels, they are calling.....
Hugs,

Snowman Soup!

Snowman Soup...that's what the weather is like. Pouring rain. Off and on all day long. Dark and cold. We stayed in bed till almost eleven!! Drinking coffee with my Husband, a Daughter or two playing around with, well, a dog or two. Still snuggled in we watched the movie, Julia and Julia. Made me want to run out and buy her cookbook...Okay maybe not run out right now...but next time I'm in the bookstore...I might want another cookbook, hers might be it!?!
When I finally did get up...I knew I had better hurry up and get busy making some items for the Holiday Boutique tomorrow. I had run out of several items on Friday. Note to self: Do not schedule back to back Boutiques. Its important to have time to make new items that sell out! Like these:

Adorable Snowman Soup packets! Packed in Glassine bags which I stamped with a snowflake stamp from Papertrey Ink and used the download for the tag. A little wooden snowflake, painted and glittered sits on top and inside is filled with a packet of premium cocoa, a Hershey bar wrapped up pretty, a package of Jet Puffed marshmallows and a peppermint candy cane for stirring. They are so cute and they make the perfect cold day treat!! A woman who bought several of them said she was going to attach a gift card to them and that was going to be the gift..how fun is that!? A fun way to spruce up a gift card. Gift cards are great but I always think if your giving one you should take a little time to present them better....just my thinking.
I tried getting a better picture, but its almost midnight and its dark and rainy and it wasn't working no matter what I tried and I think I'm too tired now to give it another try.
Another busy day tomorrow and the Girls have a performance at the church as well! After Tuesday, I will be able to focus on my home and Family, completely and that feels good. Its been a busy couple of weeks and I'm ready to clean up the mess and start watching Holiday shows with the Kids!
Hope you have a Great today and a better tomorrow!!! Wish me luck for another successful boutique!
Hugs,

The New Year is Coming!!

Can you believe it? Its going to be 2010 in just a few short weeks!! Are you ready? What are your goals for the year 2010? I'll have to think about mine and write them down....you know if you write them down and put them in a place where you can see them...you'll be more likely to reach them!!?!!
I've been busy making some more 2010 Calenders! They are so fun to make and make perfect gifts for co-workers, friends, neighbors! Everyone likes to know what day it is...Right?

I used 3 1/2 x 3 1/2 square coasters for the base! Followed by lots of different scrapbook paper, cardstock, matching ribbon and brads! Easy! I also found these adorable little clear plastic easels that fit these perfect and are so fun for the desktop....you could also put magnets on the back too if you wanted it to go on your fridge!!

Wrapping these up is sooooo easy too....I stamped the Happy New Year sentiment from a Melissa Frances Clear stamp set onto a tag and added a matching ribbon! Easy Peasy and fun too! Perfect for sticking these in a co-workers mail box.

I'm hoping 2010 is better than 2009 for my Family and I. Its been a long year with a Husband who is a General and Plumbing Contractor. Our business has dropped dramatically this year and that has caused us to make quite a few changes, some great, some not so much! I'm hoping for only good things and I hope 2010 is Great for YOU too!
Have a Great Day!
Hugs,

Ahcoo! It's that time of Year!!

Whewww....its been a busy week! My first craft fair was a success, so much so, I will be doing a couple more before the season is over!! How fun it was to meet new people and see Friends who came out to support me!! Thanks to Everyone who stopped by to say Hi and those that made a purchase too!! It was Wonderful!! I did make a purchase from one of the vendors at the fair, Schmidthead Canning, she had said she's never sold her jam before but they were trying to raise money for their Son to go to the Boy Scout Jamboree, OMG...I bought some Strawberry and Fig Jam....deeeelish! It was certainly some of the best jam, I've ever had!! The lady at the table next to me, sold Scentsy Wickless Candles and all night long I got wiffs of these yummy scents! All in all, it was a fun time! If you havent been to your local craft fairs, you should really go, its a great way to support local Artists and get some great things that you normally don't see on the shelves of the local stores!

My Girls have both woke up this week with the sniffles! Ugh...runny noses and sore throats! Knowing that my Kids are not the only ones who feel this way, I made these cute little Get Well Soon! Survival Kits, which will be in my etsy store soon!!

How fun are they!!! Sure to make Anyone feel better!! I hand stamped the High Hopes image and colored him with my Copics...added a few rhinestones from Prima and ribbon from Papertrey Ink. My favorite part is that the bag can be used for those sniffle tissues!! Too funny!!! Inside, is just what the Dr. might order....Hot Cocoa, Soup, Tissues, Hand Sanitizer, Chapstick and some Ricolas!!!

Very Fun stuff, I tell you and perfect to make someone feel a little bit better because who wouldn't feel a little better after receiving this??
Another busy week ahead to get ready for the next show! Exciting and Fun!
Have a great Weekend!!!
Hugs,

Don't Change the Wrapper!!!!

I know...its been a little boring around here lately....I'm trying to get some stuff ready for the couple of craft shows I'm in! I've been busy making little happy things...like these...I know you've seen me show them before but these little peppermint candy bags are some of my very favorites...I dressed them all up for Christmas this time of course.

They all got a little tag or hanging something and then I couldn't resist adding a little jingle bell to each one too! I used all sorts of Christmas scrapbook paper and ribbon. I made lots and lots!! They look so pretty all together!! I'm more concerned with the fact that I think York has gone to packaging the peppermints differently! They are coming now in little packets instead of foil wrapped! I thought maybe it was just for the Holidays but it appears that even the everyday ones are in the new wrapper too....and that is sooooo sad!!! The crafting community should write letters!! Boycott the new wrappers!! LOL...anything..a revolt..just tell them not to take away the foil wrappers!!!

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving.....lots of yummy foods and family! Although sometimes I forget during the struggles of everyday life, I am Thankful for SOOOOOOOO much!! May you have a blessed Thanksgiving with LOTS to remember to be Thankful for!!
Love and Hugs,

Is it YOU????

Another busy week is shaping up! I'm still working on crafties for the Boutique but managed to get in some fun time with my Husband. He and I had a chance to see a pre-screening last week of the movie The Blind Side!
OMGosh...if you have a chance to go see this movie....do!!! It was GREAT! I laughed and cried(as always) and had such happy feelings during the movie! The fact that it is based on a true story is amazing!! Go see it!!!
Oh...you were waiting weren't you?!.... Waiting for....

The winner of my blog candy.....

Well....while I wish you all could win.....there can be only one this time....

and its:

beadz who said...
I guess I was supposed to leave a 2nd entry saying that I am a follower - so I am!
gini
November 9, 2009 6:40 AM

Wooohoooo for You, Gini! Please send me your contact details...If I don't hear from you by Sunday....I will randomly pick another!

The comments were all great and I loved reading them all! Thank you for taking time out to enter!

Until next time!
Hugs,

I'm not just "hanging" around! =:O)

There is still time....not much time, less than a week really, to enter to WIN my first year blog candy!! Hurry!!!
Click HERE! Odds are very good!~~

I have been busy! Busy making little crafties for my first ever craft faire! I am making some little do dads that will be inexpensive but cute! This week, I have been working with these...

Using only scraps from my HUGE scrap paper pile, I turned those into these and made lots and lots of them....

They are not as fast as I thought they would be to make. In fact I have been working on them for days! I measured the paper and glued them, I Mod-Podged them. Then of course finding the perfect accoutrement for each one is probably the most important thing! Some have flowers, some have bottle caps, some have buttons and string, the one thing they all have is....cuteness!! I even made some for myself! =:O)
Its getting pretty cool here in the mornings, today it was 40 degrees when I got in my car! I love cold mornings. The kind where you can see your breath in the air! I only wish it snowed here. Then the Holiday spirit would really kick in!!
I hope you had an amazing morning and your weekend is wonderful!!
Hugs,

Chocolate ~ All Dressed Up!

~~There is still time to Enter to win my Blog Candy !
Click HERE! Odds are very good!~~

Im busy trying to get some stuff ready for a Holiday Craft Fair!! I've been working on these lately....a beautiful way to give a little gift to someone....

You can't give a Huge gift to everyone you know...but a Giant Chocolate bar that is both inexpensive and dresses up quite well can be the answer! It would make me feel special if someone gave me something like this....plus the Chocolate...a double bonus!!

Theses ones are made with scrapbook paper, holiday picks and a Giant Hershey bar. I added tags stamped with Papertrey Ink 2008 Holiday Tag Collection stamps and ribbons of course! Happy things I tell ya...

Hope you are having a happy kind of day!! Have a great Weekend!
Hugs,

As Always..Click on the pictures to make them..Bigger

My late night making...Trick or Treaties!

~~Enter my Blog Candy to Win Yummy Stuff! HERE! Odds are very good!~~

So at 7:30pm last night, my Girls tell me they want to take some treats for their classmates....What? You tell me this now???? So, I wondered what we could make that was both....very inexpensive and cute...because cute is the most important thing when it comes to treats, afterall! We tossed about a few ideas and decided on these......

The Girls went thru my scrap stash and picked out Halloween paper scraps, I quickly cut 45 pieces (sized 3 1/2 x 3) grabbed the Hershey Milk Chocolate snack size bars and they started wrapping. We then looked thru the button box for black & orange buttons, cut the black string and ribbon...and unfortunately..it was BEDTIME...
ugh....I had to finish them alone.....I printed the Happy Halloween From tags, cut them out, distressed and punched them then worked in an assembly line to create these adorable little treats.....super inexpensive, a fabulous way to use up little scraps and easy! What could be better!!?!!
(As always, click on the picture to enlarge it a little bit!)

It was so fun to drive to school this morning and see all the people dressed in their Halloween outfits! Too fun! I saw Football Players, Bumble Bees, Witches, a Geisha....my favorite was the Crossing Guard who was dressed like Maleficent, complete with magic stick and all! Made me smile! Are you going to dress up this year? What are you going to wearing? Several years ago, I won a complete outfit from a movie...I will be dressed as a Dr., wearing Scrubs that are printed with "Woodward Penitentiary for Women"....Can you name the Movie????
Hope you have a SPookTaculaR Day!!
Hugs,

Not so boring Gift Card Holders!!

~~Don't forget to enter for my Blog Candy posted HERE! Odds are good!~~

I love gift cards!! Giving them and getting them =:O) but I dislike store bought gift card holders and want the recipient to know that even though its a gift card, I was thinking of them personally so I made a fun and beautiful way to make them a little more dressed up and festive, using a Bazzill library pocket!! Easy Peasy!!

The small tag inside has been covered with vintage sheet music, distressed and then a little paint on the top using crackle paint! When it was dry I stamped with Papertrey Inc. stamps...(which just might be my favorite stamps ever!!) The larger tea stained tag has been decorated with matching paper and the perfect size for a gift card!! Click on the pictures to enlarge them a little!

I'm doing my first Holiday Boutique in a month. Exciting stuff!! I have to start thinking of yummy things to sell!! Have any ideas???
Don't forget to enter my blog candy! Great Odds right now!!
Hugs,

Blog Candy!!!! Yum!!

This Blog Candy is Now Closed! Thanks to everyone who entered!!!
Well...in less than a month it will have been 1 year since I started this blog and I thought....What fun thing can I do on my blogaversary? Well....I decided I could draw a name to be the winner of this here blog candy!!! Woohooo...who doesn't like to win fun stuff?!! This lot is perfect for the holidays!!! I will draw the winner on, November 18th!

Lots of stuff in here...click on the picture for a closer look but this is whats included:
Chip Chatter Tall chipboard letters in White, perfect for coloring and spritzing..
Pack of Petaloo Flowers in red
Prima Black Tie Collection flowers
Me & My Big Ideas, Rhinestone Words: Believe
Brillance Ink Pad in Lightning Black
Next Style, Flower Appliques
Bazzill Rub-on & Rhinestones in green
Soft Spoken embellishment pack
Basic Grey Bling it
2 Rubber Stamps by Hampton Art, Reindeer and matching Ornaments
Jolee's by You Holly leaves
Making Memories Brads in bloom
Love, Elsie, Soft Charms, Noel
Bazzill Really Big Chips tag pack
Roll of green ribbon
Royal Langnickel Jolly Lights glitter rub ons
Treasured Memories glue stick
Blank Paper Bag album, sewn.
Wow...fun stuff and if I get 50 entries...I'll add a little something, something!!!

So how do you enter?!!! Spread the word by either posting the picture of this blog candy with link or put a link on your sidebar, letting other people know about it, after you have done that....come back and leave me a comment letting me know you did and then tell me your favorite Holiday tradition!! If you are a follower of this blog, you'll get two entries, so leave another comment letting me know you follow! Exciting stuff!! Remember to come back to see if You won!!!
Have a great Weekend!
Hugs,

They Say it's Your Birthday!!

Birthday cards are so much fun to make! They can be any size, color or theme and no matter who they are for(this one just happens to be for DB) or what age they are turning(18!!)....
A Birthday card means.....it's a special day!(Happy Birthday!)

I've loved this Basic Grey, June Bug paper since I saw it! Its bright and fun and makes me feel pretty happy. Perfect for Birthdays!! Perfect for today!
Hugs,

A Wacky, Wrinkled Wednesday!!

It was Dress 80's style at my Daughters school today! She looked so cute in her leg warmers, tights, multi-layered shirts and of course Big hair!! They should have days where you have to dress the same way your kids do....I know I could get some BIG 80's hair going on!! =:O)
This card turned out wacky. I didn't want it to. It just didn't work out like I had envisioned it. I was trying to do the #7 Challenge over at Chelsea's Blog,
Crafting Life's Pieces. Her designs are always fun and her work is AMAZING!

So off I start the challenge......I thought with this great Magnolia image, wouldn't it be fun to crumple it all making it look like a leaf?! Good thought...bad execution....I crumpled without abandon. Crushing all in my path. Pleased with the little ball my work had become, I opened the wrinkled art and to my complete dismay...I had wrinkled her face...UGH...I should have done a controlled wrinkle..It really can't be fixed. So I didn't really do all the elements to the challenge and wont submit it but the happy news is, my Mum will soon find in her mailbox a lovely little note from her favorite daughter and she no doubt will think, I, am truly crafty. Gotta love that!!
I'll have to try again next week for the CLP Challenges and finish working on the piles of unfinished stuff on my desk! So many ideas....so little time! As always, click on the picture to make it a little bigger!
Hugs,

Happy Tuesday!!!

What a beautiful day it is today! The weather here is perfect and sunny and both of my Girls came home from school and gave me the biggest hugs just to say Hello! Gotta love that!!! It reminds me to enjoy the little things!!
Speaking of little things! I spent the morning making these adorable little matchbox treat boxes!

I know altered matchboxes have been around for a while but when I saw the one on bibbi's dillerier I was inspired to make some! How happy would it be to find one of these on your desk or mailbox!?! Very fun! I love them! They are filled with 2 little Hershey chocolates wrapped in matching paper and they fit perfectly in there. I'm still working on a few more of them but with different themes! A perfect way to use up the last of my matchbox stash!!
What exciting thing are you doing today? Did you see something beautiful? Did you get a warm hug? Did traffic go your way? Did lunch taste great? Remember to enjoy the little things and theres lots and lots of little things out there!!!
Hugs,

This Item has Been Sold!

Christmas is Coming.....

The goose is getting fat...c'mon admit it...you were singing along in your head! =:O)
I took some time out today while the Kids were all off playing and Honey was outside working to make a couple of Christmas cards!
I used part of a pack of Soft Spoken embellishments to accentuate the Melissa Frances heart...I love how that looks!!

The big chipboard "Joy" is so perfect for a card! Love the cute little reindeer!

As always....I am so disappointed with my camera...it just cannot capture the cuteness of these cards! There is alot of sparkle on the heart, which can't be seen at all...some day I'll figure it out or I'll get a new camera...hopefully the later of the two...=;O) Will try to take some better pictures tomorrow.
Off to pop these cards on etsy. Then to figure out what I'm going to wear tonight, Honey and I are going to see a play, should be fun!
Hugs,