MY WOOLY WEEKEND

Whenever my mother talks to my great-nephew about his day, he always begins by saying, "Well, I got up", and I'll begin this post by saying that I got up early yesterday morning (really early for me) so that I could meet my parents and sister in Statesville, NC to attend the Quilting and Needle Art Extravaganza.  I was quite excited to go and to spend time with my family, but I had only allowed myself four hours of sleep.  When I stepped out of the shower at 2:00 a.m., I seriously considered just staying up until 7:00 a.m. but knew that wasn't really a good idea.  This was my second time attending this particular quilt show, and I knew there would be vendors there with wool and flannel and, of course, fabric.  I haven't dabbled much with fabric, but I'm always drawn to the beautiful colors and patterns.  It's sort of like designer paper for me, and I have started a small collection of it.  When we walked through the double doors, Auntie Ju's was staring us in the face.  Ahhhhhh.  And so I spent a considerable amount of time in their booth . . . and $$$.  There were other vendors of particular interest to me, one of which was the Dragonfly Quilt Shop. They have such a nice selection of flannel (and wool, patterns, etc.), so I felt compelled to lay down some $$$ there.  When I got home, I laid out the wool and flannel haul, and this is what it looked like:

Being around so much crafty goodness yesterday inspired me to pick up a needle last night and complete a project that I had started the night before.  The design is Buttermilk Basin's Live Each Season, which is the name of their free Block of the Month this year, and this is what the January pattern looks like:

Yesterday was such a fun day!  Daddy didn't attend the show, but he didn't seem to mind driving us there or waiting while we shopped. 

TWIST & POP-UP and BENDY CARD SWAPS

I have a class each month and normally plan three cards and one non-card project.  Several of the ladies who regularly attend my classes have been doing so for years and have become friends first, customers second.  They are a fantastic group, and I enjoy the time with them very much!  Each month, we decide on a swap theme for the next month's class.  Since we made a Twist and Pop-Up card and a Bendy card at the last class, it was decided that our January swap would be a choice of those two types of cards.  I can't believe that I didn't take a photo of my card, but I wanted to share the awesome swaps that my friends made.  I am so proud of them!!!  Not everyone participates in the swaps, but one of the highlights of each class is seeing what everyone made.  There are two photos of each (Twist and Pop-Up) card--the first photo is the card front, and the second photo shows the inside of the card:

 

Terry really loves us because she fussy cut the flowers on the front and

also on the first, third, and fourth panels of the pop-up.

Last, but certainly not least, is Jane's gorgeous Bendy card:

Didn't these ladies do a great job?!?!  Both of the card styles from which they had to choose can be challenging and definitely take time and commitment to make, and I am so pleased with their creations and proud of them!  I think these ladies should take turns leading our class!  ;-)

BAG OF COFFEE BEANS

This must be "Shaped Card Week" because I have yet another shaped card to share.  It's hard to believe but, as of today, I have been married for 33 years.  That seems like a really long time and even though the occasion may have called for it, I didn't make a gushy, sappy anniversary card.  Instead, I created a shaped card for my husband--a card shaped like a bag of coffee beans, complete with a scoop.  He loves coffee (almost as much as I love Cheerwine).  He almost always finds a really neat greeting card for me on occasions--they either have a fun fold or are interactive.  It's hard to top the cards from him, but I enjoy trying!

If I'm not mistaken, the image for my card came from Cricut's Love You a Latte cartridge.  After cutting all of the pieces for the card, I used the cheesecloth image from Stampin' Up!'s Ghoulish Grunge stamp set to add a little texture to the bag, and it looked really good in real life.  I cannot understand why that stamp set didn't carry over from the Holiday catalog, but my fingers are crossed that it will show up in Stampin' Up!'s next annual catalog.  Even if doesn't, I will be using that set until those rubber images are worn down to nothing.  

Have a happy day!!!!

A VERY SPECIAL MEMORY PILLOW

A couple of weeks ago, as I began purging some cabinets, drawers, baskets, etc. in my stamp room, I came across an old card that I had received from my mamaw S.  Most of the cards that I have from her (at least the ones that aren't tucked away somewhere else in the house) don't have a nice long note written in them, but this particular card did.  She was thanking Chadrick and I for a recent visit and for the gifts that we had brought to her.  I don't remember now what those gifts were or how many years ago the card was received, but I thought that a particular part of her handwritten note would be so perfect on display in my stamp room--and in her original handwriting.  This is the portion of her note that seemed so fitting:

 

 

And so I started thinking about how I could use this treasure to create another treasure to display.  I thought about trying to trace the image with Silhouette Studio, cut vinyl, and adhere it to glass or fabric, but vinyl can sometimes be tricky--especially when it involves words.  I decided to give my brain a rest and see what other ideas I could find on Pinterest.  That's how I ended up on Etsy (Sunshine & Happy Shop) . . . and received this lovely pillow today:

 

 

A treasure, indeed, huh?  





SHAPED CARDS USING CRICUT "FLOWER MARKET" CARTRIDGE

It hasn't been too long ago that I ordered the Flower Market Cricut cartridge, but I worked with it for the first time a couple of nights ago.  It seems like forever since I have designed a shaped card, and I was really wanting to make one.  How fun that I got on a roll and made two!  Shaped cards are what made me fall in love with Cricut machines and cartridges, and I designed quite a few of them with the Gypsy back in the day.  Anyone remember that fun little design gadget???  Oh, how I loved my Gypsy . . . until I lost all of my design files when the machine had to be reset.  :-(  Anyway . . . the other night I ended up designing two shaped cards, and this is what my design mat on Cricut Design Space looked like:

You'll notice that I welded two jar images to form the shaped card, and I used the hide contour feature to remove the opening at the top of the jar that would be the inside and back of the card.  To create a white layer (shown as the pink jar on the mat) for the inside of the card, I adjusted the size of another jar image.  I really, really love the way this card turned out!!!!

I used a sentiment from Stampin' Up!'s Bunch of Blossoms stamp set for both of my cards, and a very subtle cheesecloth image (from Ghoulish Grunge stamp set) was stamped on the front of the card and the inside white layer using Soft Sky ink.  Cardstock colors are Perfect Plum, Rich Razzleberry, Soft Sky, Whisper White, and Always Artichoke.

The cheesecloth image wasn't stamped at the top of the white layer so it would mimic water (a vase) for the flowers.  I really, really love this card!

My second card was designed so that the message could be pulled from the top (by the flowers).  What I didn't account for in the design was the fact that the top of this layer (the back of the flowers) would show from the back of the card.  It might be a good idea to cut another set of the detail layers to adhere to the back so it will be pretty, too.  Stampin' Up!'s Hardwood stamp was used to decorate the front of the card, and the sentiment was adhered with Stampin' Dimensionals.

I enjoyed my little Cricut groove and hope it won't be too long before I try designing some more shaped cards.  They're so much fun and a fantastic way for me to use the images on all of those cartridges that I've been accumulating.  ;-)

PLANNING AHEAD FOR EASTER

A sweet friend asked yesterday if I would look at a card that she saw on Pinterest where the silhouette of a bunny was cut out of the front layer.  I easily found the card yesterday, but it isn't showing up using the same search today.  Anyway, I thought that it couldn't be too hard to re-create using circles and Cricut Design Space, and this is what I was able to design and cut with my Explore machine:

After the layer was cut, I embossed it with Stampin' Up!'s Petal Burst embossing folder, and then adhered a scrap of Festive Birthday designer paper behind the bunny-shaped opening.  I traced inside the cut shape with a Tip-Top Taupe Stampin' Write Marker, adhered a fluffy white pom-pom for the tail, tied Daffodil Delight Seam Binding around the top of the layer, and adhered it to a layer of Emerald Envy cardstock, which was then adhered to the front of the Whisper White card.  It just needs a sentiment, which I forgot to stamp before the top layer was embossed.  And . . . since there was a white bunny cut from the top layer of the card, it seemed like a great idea to put it to good use:

Stampin' Up! products featured on this card include Crumb Cake, Mint Macaron, Whisper White, So Saffron, Flirty Flamingo, Soft Sky, and Sweet Sugarplum cardstock, Fringe Scissors, Stampin' Dimensionals, Teeny Tiny Wishes stamp set, Tree Builder punch, Elegant Dots embossing folder, and Boho Chic embossing folder.

SKETCH CHALLENGE #67

There's a new Creating Pretty Cards - Card Challenge at Craft Project Central this month, and it looks like this:

Find the tutorial HERE

Sketch Challenge #67 was designed by Julie Warnick, and it's one that I think anyone would enjoy because it's quite an easy one.  This is my take on the sketch:

My card features Stampin' Up!'s brand new Bookcase Builder stamp set, Stitched Shapes Framelits dies, and Neutrals DSP stack.  

REMEMBER:  If you create a card for the sketch challenge and upload it HERE, your name could be entered in a drawing for a free one-month subscription to Craft Project Central.  For every 10 cards that are created and uploaded for the sketch, a free subscription will be given.

HEY, CHICK . . . AND ANNOUNCING A WINNER!!!!!

I was supposed to announce the winner of the FREE one-month Craft Project Central subscription four days ago, but I got sidetracked and forgot.  You see, I got this wild idea that now was the time to do a little purging and re-arranging in my stamp room.  Now I can't even take down Christmas until I'm finished with my room because the access to the attic is in here.  I should also mention that my room is quite a bit more than a dedicated stamp room:

• This room serves as the office where bills are paid, files should be are maintained, household records should be are kept up to date, etc.
• It's a comfy den (when there's a clear enough path).
• My quilting supplies stay in here.  I'm not a quilter, but my wool appliqué hobby requires some quilting-esque tools and a generous supply of wool, fabric, etc.
• Since I dabble with mixed media on occasion, there's quite a plethora of supplies for that.
• I have die-cut machines and electronic cutters that require a fair amount of space.
• Ribbon and paper.  I absolutely should not buy another roll of ribbon or pad of paper for the next 5 years or so, but I already know that I will.  I bring these items in with the best of intentions, but who has enough time and ideas to use it all????  And sequins.  Thank goodness sequins are tiny because they're my newest obsession.

By the time I finish with this round of working in my stamp room, there will be quite a few things that I won't be able to find--until the next dig.  But . . . before I announce the winner of the FREE subscription, I wanted to share a card that I made last week for my January class (unless I change my mind).  It features the cute, cute, cute Hey, Chick stamp set which can be earned FREE from January 4th thru March 31st with a $50 merchandise purchase during Stampin' Up!'s annual Sale-a-Bration promotion.  Just click the Promotions tab on my web site www.regina.stampinup.net any time during Sale-a-Bration for all details or contact me in you have any questions:

And now . . . the winner of the FREE one-month Craft Project Central subscription is . . . SHARON GUARINO!!!!!  Congratulations, Sharon!  Just contact me at randari at hotmail dot com so we can get your subscription set up.  I'd like to once again thank those of you who take a couple of minutes to leave comments on the projects that I design for Craft Project Central!

Oh . . . and HAPPY NEW YEAR to you and yours!!!!