Snowman Ornament

Every year I devote all of my energy to Halloween. I spend weeks working on Halloween projects, decorating, and of course baking Bat Cookies.  Halloween, for me, signals the start of the holiday season and of course I like to get off to a good start.  The problem is that I can't sustain this pace until the holiday season is over. Usually by the time that Christmas roles around, I am so burned out from the baking, decorating and craft projects that I just want the holiday season to be over with so I can go back to working on projects at my own pace with no looming deadlines.  This year, I resolved, will be different! My yard decorations were starting to look tired and a little "ratty" so I opted not to put them out.  The whimsical witch on her flying broomstick will still hang on the front door along with my bats. La Sorciere and her friends are gracing the inside of the house with their presence. Of course Brittany is not on board with this paired down decorating, but it has allowed me time to start working on my Christmas projects. It is nice to be able to knit socks and scarves for gifts without the marathon late night knitting sessions to get them all finished the week before Christmas.

This year I want to work on some of the fun Christmas projects that always get bumped because something else more important had to be done.  Those of you who know me, know that it's not just about the gift but the presentation of the gift. I saw some little wood cut outs in the Christmas section at Michaels. The unpainted wood came in all sizes and shapes. I really liked the square shape and bought several to use a package decorations. I was inspired the snowmen in Snow Buddies Throughout the Year! bu Nancy Smith and Lynda Milligan. This is a book for making a snowman quilt block for each month of the year, but the book does not stop there. It also has ideas for painted decorative containers, appliqued sweatshirts, place mats and more. The book is still available from Amazon and other booksellers on line. My little snowman is inspired by one of the snowmen in the front of the book. The ornaments are drying on a Dry It Board. This board is a great help when painting small objects, all sides of the object can be painted at once and left on the board to dry without marring the paint. How is this possible? The board is composed of tiny, sharp tips that do not stick to the painted surface. These tips are very sharp and you must use caution when handling the board to avoid being stuck. No matter how carefully I move the board, I seem to always get stuck. It's sort of like getting stuck by a sharp needle or pin. The Dry It Board is available from on line craft retailers.

Original wooden square, and painted squares.

Finished snowman with blended fibers for texture.

Directions for Snowman Ornament:

Celebrate It Carved Ornament- available at Michaels
Liquitex Light blue, black, burnt sienna, white, deep rose acrylic paints
Liquitex Blended Fibers
Pebeo Prisme Fantasy paint-buttercup, glossy
Small flat, round and liner paintbrushes
Foam brush
Saral or graphite paper
Embossing stylus or ballpoint pen with a pointed end on the pen cap
Tracing paper
Stickles- Ice Stickles Diamond Dust-glitter glue
Martha Stewart Snowflake Border paper punch
Scrap of White card stock
Craft glue
Craft varnish or sealant- water based


1.  Remove the string from the ornament and set aside. Wipe the ornament with a damp cloth to remove any dust or residue and let it dry.

2.  Mix the light blue and white paint until the paint is the color of a blue sky. Paint the ornament on all sides with the foam brush. Lay the painted ornament on the Dry It Board and touch up any smudges.

3.  Sketch a snowman figure on a piece of tracing paper. I used tracing paper so I could see the image placement on the wood. Once the image is centered on the ornament, place a piece of saral or graphite paper under the drawing. Be careful not to shift the drawing. Use an embossing stylus or the cap of a ballpoint pen to lightly trace around the snowman.

4.  Use the flat paintbrush and white paint to fill in the shape of the snowman. Next paint the scarf and hat with the deep rose paint. Paint the carrot nose with the burnt sienna paint. After the paint has dried, use a palette knife to apply the blended fibers to the snowman; working around the carrot nose. Let the snowman dry over night.

5.  Paint over the blended fibers with white paint and let it dry and paint a pom pom on the end of the snowman's hat. Add a dab of black paint to the deep rose and shade the scarf and the hat to give them more detail.  Add a small amount of white paint to the deep rose and shade the lighter areas of the hat and scarf.
Using the round brush or the liner brush paint the eyes and the mouth with black paint and the cheeks with a light rose paint. Using the round brush, paint the Pebeo Prisme paint around the indented area on the top of the ornament. Apply 2 coats. Let each coat dry over night.

6.  Punch snowflakes from the white card stock with the snowflake border punch. Scatter the snowflakes around the top of the ornament and glue in place. Add a dot of Ice Stickles to the center of the snowflakes and to the pom pom on the hat. Set aside to dry over night.

7.  Varnish the ornament with the water based craft varnish or sealant. Let it dry and apply to more coats.

8.  Reattach the string to the top of the ornament.

Chanel Glass Block Light

I have always admired the ultra chic, elegant and outspoken Coco Chanel. While browsing through Stamp Francisco's on-line catalog, I discovered the Fashion Icon stamp. I couldn't resist ordering the Chanel stamp for use in my projects. After all I have always considered Mademoiselle a sort of mentor to me. It is from her that I learned that "fashion fades but style remains" and pearls (not diamonds) are a girl's best friend.

Now that I have acquired the stamp I wanted to use it in a project. I floated several ideas (a mixed media canvas, cards, journal projects) but none of them were right. Suddenly the idea hit me. I had bought a glass block that I wanted to turn into a light-what about a Chanel light?

First I stamped the image on the block with Staz-On black ink, but the glass was slick and the stamp shifted causing the image to blur. I cleaned the glass block with nail polish remover and then washed and dried it. I decided to stamp the image on transparency film for laser printers. The image came out crisp and clear. I trimmed the film close to the image and ran it through the Xyron machine to make a decal which could be applied to the glass block. I embellished the block and put a strand of 20 mini white lights inside. I was originally going to use the light in another part of the house but I really like having it in my studio, so it's staying. The light was difficult to photograph because of glare from the reflection of the lights. The actual block is beautiful when lit.

Chanel decal.

Detail of the top-bow and roses.

Finished block.

Finished light.

Directions for Chanel Glass Block Light:

Stamp Francisco Fashion Icon rubber stamp- available from Stamp Francisco.com
Strand of 20 mini lights-white- available from Hobby Lobby
Glass Block-available at Hobby Lobby or JoAnn
Dark Rose 1 1/2 inch grosgrain ribbon- mine is recycled from a package
Pink self-adhesive pearls and one white pearl
Prima roses-one off white and one pink
Martha Stewart Rose Leaf craft punch
Scrap of dark green card stock- a piece large enough to make three rose leaves
Staz-On Black ink
Transparency film for laser printer-available from Office Depot or Staples
Hot glue gun
Xyron Create a sticker machine
Craft Wire

1.  Wash and dry the glass block to remove any residue.

2.  Ink the Chanel stamp with the black ink. Press the stamp on the transparency film and lift the stamp straight up off the film. Don"t let the stamp shift as you stamp the image or lift the stamp away. Shifting the stamp will distort the image.

3. Trim the film, leaving approximately a 1/4 inch border around the sides and bottom of the image. Trim the Chanel name away from the top of the image.  Run the trimmed image through the Xyron machine (face up) to make a decal. Peel away the paper backing and center the decal on the glass block. and press into place.

4.  Attach a row of pink pearls above the top and below the bottom of the decal.

5. Cut a piece of rose ribbon to fit around the glass block. Glue the end of the ribbon near the opening for the light on the bottom of the block. Wrap the ribbon around the sides and the top of the block and glue the edge of the ribbon under the block near the opening for the light.

6.  Make three ribbon loops, each one slightly smaller than the previous one. Pinch the center of the loops to make a bow and secure with craft wire. Glue a white pearl to the center of the bow (over the wire).  Cut a piece of ribbon to fit over the top of the block and extend over the edges to make a streamer. Glue this to the ribbon and then glue the bow on top of the streamer.

7.  Glue the Prima roses to the top of the block in front of the ribbon.  Punch three leaves out of dark green card stock, using the rose leaf craft punch. Glue the leaves under the roses.

8.  Insert the mini lights in the block and plug the light in.

Lapin Jardinier Father's Day Card

My husband likes gardening and has a beautiful vegetable garden. We live in an area that is over run with rabbits. Not the cute little bunnies but big, ugly brown rabbits with voracious appetites. These pests destroy our flowers and vegetables and nothing seems to deter them.

Recently I ordered some stamps from Stamp Francisco and Lapin Jardinier was among them. I couldn't resist the cute bunny carrying his flowers and spade and decided to use the image for a Father's Day card. I am very impressed with the quality of the stamps that I received from Stamp Franciso, the images stamped clearly on the paper each time.

Update: My husband loved the card and couldn't believe that it was a stamped image. He thought I had printed it. He also liked the irony of Lapin Jardinier and the sunflowers. It's not clear if Lapin is planting or stealing the sunflowers. The rabbits at our house have destroyed all but one of my sunflowers.

Directions for Lapin Jardinier:

White, dark teal, olive green and kraft card stock
Sunflowers
Lapin Jardiner stamp- available from Stamp Francisco
Aqua and white print ribbon
Cuttlebug Swiss Dots embossing folder
Ranger Tim Holtz distress inks- iced spruce and vintage photo
Ranger foam ink blending tool and foam pads
Derwent Color Soft colored pencils
Archival Ink coffee bean
Recollection blue spray ink
Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist- Pearl Mist
Martha Stewart Rose Leaf paper punch
Tan decorative trim- available at Hobby Lobby


1.   Ink the Lapin Jardinier stamp with coffee bean colored ink and stamp the image on to white card stock. After the image is dry, color with colored pencils.

2.  Trim the stamped card stock to approximately 3 7/8 inches high by 3 inches wide.  Apply iced spruce distress ink to the ink blending tool and color the edges of the card stock with the ink using a circular motion. Dip a paint brush in water and paint over the distress ink to lighten it. Pull some of the ink toward the stamped image so that the ink fades into the white card stock. Don't apply too much water or the card stock will start to degrade. Continue to apply ink to the sides and edges of the card stock to darken them.

3.  Mist the stamped image with Tattered Angel's Glimmer Mist (Pearl Mist) and set aside to dry.

4.  Cut a piece of dark teal card stock approximately 1/4 inch larger (on all sides) than the white card stock with the stamped image. Spray the teal card stock with the Recollections blue spray ink and let it dry.

5.  Cut a piece of kraft card stock 5 1/4 inches high by 4 1/4 inches wide and emboss using the Swiss Dots embossing folder. Use the ink blending tool and clean foam pad to apply the vintage photo distress ink to the embossed card stock.

6.  Glue the Lapin image to the teal card stock and then glue this to the embossed kraft card stock. Cut two small pieces of aqua and white print ribbon to wrap around the corners of the kraft card stock, glue in place and attach a bow to the ribbon in the upper left corner.

7.  Print Happy Father's Day with Microsoft Word and trim around the greeting. Glue the greeting to a piece of teal card stock to frame it and then glue this to the top of the card, centering it over the bunny image.

8.  Place three small sunflowers evenly spaced across the bottom of the card. Using the Martha Stewart Rose Leaf paper punch, punch 6 leaves out of olive green card stock. Glue the leaves under the flowers.

9  Cut the decorative trim the length of the card and glue along the right edge of the card.

Hunting Dog Birthday Card

My husband's birthday is coming up soon and I wanted to make a card that was a little different from the average birthday card. I really like the Cricut Paper Pups cartridge and use it a lot for my card projects.  Since my husband  likes to watch Duck Dynasty, I thought the hunting dog would make a cute card. I wanted the card to have a rustic feel so I used burlap ribbon for the dog's background. Paper Pups can be purchased for a limited time through Cricut.com.

Directions for Hunting Dog Birthday Card:

Cricut Paper Pups cartridge
White, tan, brown, cream and aqua cardstock
My Minds Eye Indie Chic Nutmeg Paper Stack-aqua glitter dotted card stock
Burlap ribbon or a piece of tan burlap approximately 4 inches wide by 4 inches high
Copper colored small brads
DCWV Mariposa Paper Stack
Small golden self adhesive pearls (3)
Fine point black Sharpie pen
Tim Holtz Distress Ink- Tea Dye
Small craft sponge
Zots- large, medium and 3D
Aqua and white dotted ribbon
Gogglie eyes (small)
Martha Stewart Maple Leaf paper punch

1.  Using a greeting card program print the birthday verse on the inside of the card. Use the half fold option and white card stock. Fold the card in half.

2.  Load the Paper Pups cartridge in the Cricut machine and cut the hunting dog at 3 inches out of brown card stock. Press the Solid and Hunting Dog keys and cut the dog out of cream card stock. Assemble the dog. Glue a small eye on the dogs face. Color the nose, trigger gun barrel and back of the gun with the black Sharpie. Attach the small pearls to the dog's collar. Cut Happy Birthday out of aqua card stock at 1 1/2 inches (press the Solid, Shift and Birthday Dog keys).

3.  Cut a piece of 4 inch wide burlap ribbon approximately 4 inches long. Attach the 3D Zots to the back of the dog. Center the dog on the ribbon and press in place. Attach a small copper brad in each corner of the ribbon.

4.  Cut the aqua glitter dotted card stock approximately 4 3/4 inches high by 4 1/2 inches wide. Place the card stock on an angle so that the upper point is approximately 1 1/4 inches from the top of the card. Attach the large Zots to the back of the card stock and press in place. Trim off the corners that extend past the edges of the card. Glue Happy Birthday at the top of the card over the aqua dotted card stock backed image.

5.  Center the burlap ribbon over the aqua dotted card stock. Attach 3D Zots to the back of the ribbon and press in place.

6.  Using the Martha Stewart Maple Leaf paper punch and the tan and orange glittered card stock punch 5 tan leaves and 6 orange glittered leaves. Attach the medium Zots to the back of the leaves. Alternate orange and tan leaves along the bottom of the burlap ribbon, under the dog's feet. Alternate tan and orange leaves along the left side of the ribbon. Place a tan leaf at the top of the aqua dotted card stock, just under Happy Birthday. Glue a tan and orange leaf to the right of Happy Birthday and an orange leaf to the left.

7.  Cut a piece of aqua and white dotted ribbon the length of the card plus 1/4 inch. Attach small Zots to the back of the ribbon. Position the ribbon 1/2 inch from the bottom of the card and press in place. Tie a small bow from the ribbon and attach to the ribbon border.

8.  Using a small craft sponge and the distress ink, lightly pounce the ink over the white card background.

Kitty Thank you Card

I was standing in the check out line in the grocery store and noticed a display of greeting cards with a "hand made" touch. I picked up a cute card with a die cut bird and bird house on the front. I contemplated buying the card until I turned it over to look at the price. I was in sticker shock- $7.95 for a card with a few die cuts on it? There was no way that I could ever justify the price when I have a Cricut at home.

Although this is a thank you card, it could be used for other occasions by changing the greeting. I almost decided to use theme for a Valentine's Day card instead.


Directions for Kitty Thank you Card:

Recollections small white roses
Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist-Cherry, Pearl
Martha Stewart Heart Border Punch, leaf paper punch
Pink ribbon with white hearts
Recollections adhesive backed small crystal hearts, pearls
White, black, light pink,cream and olive green card stock
DCWV Tres Chic mat stack- pink and black print card stock
Cricut Four Legged Friends cartridge
Bone folder
Zots
Small foam dots


1.  Print the greeting on a piece of white card stock using the half fold option.  Fold the card in half and crease it with a bone folder.

2.  Using the Cricut Four Legged Friends cartridge cut Cat 5 at 2 1/2 inches out of white card stock. Press the shift key and cut Cat 5-S out of cream card stock. Press the Layer key and cut the ear, nose and collar out of light pink card stock. Press the Layer and Shift keys and cut the eye lashes out of black card stock. Assemble the cat. Lightly spray Kitty with Pearl Glimmer Mist and let her dry. Attach a small pink crystal heart over Kitty's nose and attach 3 small pearls to her collar.

3.  Cut a square, 3 1/2 inches high by 3 1/2 inches wide, from black and pink print card stock. Cut a 4 inch square out of the light pink card stock. Cut a 4 1/4 inch square out of the black card stock.

4.  Glue the pink card stock on top of the black card stock, leaving a 1/4 inch border on all sides. Attach Zots to the back of the black and pink print card stock. Layer the print card stock on top of the light pink card stock leaving a 1/4 inch border on all sides. Press the print card stock in place.  Attach foam dots to the back of Kitty, center her on the print card stock and press in place.

5.  Cut a piece of  pink ribbon and tie a small bow. Cut two smaller pieces of ribbon and glue them to opposite corners layered card stock. Glue the bow over the ribbon on the upper right hand corner of the card stock.

6.  Lightly spray a white rose with Cherry Glimmer Mist. Let it dry. Punch two leaves out of the olive green card stock, using the Martha Stewart leaf paper punch.

7.  Punch a heart border out of the light pink card stock, using the Martha Stewart heart border punch. Save the left over pieces from the punched paper (hearts and paper scraps from heart image).

8.  Apply a small pink heart on each side of the word Merci. Use the left over scrap of pink card stock from the heart border punch and glue it over the top and bottom of the word Merci, to frame it. Glue the rose to the left of the frame and glue two leaves under the rose.

9.  Glue the heart border under the front edge of the card.  Glue the small hearts from the border punch to each corner of the black card stock.

Decorated Shipping Boxes

Lately I have been doing a lot of shipping. It seems like I am always standing in line at either the Post Office or the UPS store holding a package. I always made sure the contents of the package were attractively wrapped and made a nice presentation but I never thought about the shipping box itself. I always shipped in a plain brown box. I was reading the latest issue of Somerset Studio and there was a call for decorated envelopes and shipping boxes. The magazine staff liked getting letters and art submissions in creatively decorated envelopes and boxes.

I started thinking about it and thought, why not? My philosophy has always been why does something have to be boring and mundane just because it's functional? I was getting ready to send a package of sugar cookies off to Brittany, so why not send them in a decorated box? I could just imagine the look on her face as she saw one of my artistic creations sitting on her doorstep.

I had just finished reading, the recently published, Drawing and Painting Imaginary Animals by Carla Sonheim. I drew my rendition of a cat that was featured in the book. I was pleased with the way that the cat turned out and decided to use him to decorate my shipping box. I planned to ship through UPS and they do not allow the outer shipping box to be wrapped so I decided to decorate one side of the box. UPS accepted my decorated box with no problem.

My rendition of the Cat on Page 9.

Work in progress.

Close up of colored cat drawing.

Finished box.

Directions for Decorated Shipping Box:


Brown shipping box
Grey, light purple and dark purple card stock
K&Company Jubilee Printed Paper Pad- dark purple print
Martha Stewart Butterfly paper punch and Tulip paper punch
Cricut Beyond Birthdays cartridge
Stickles Glitter Glue- blue
Decorative edge scissors
Pearlescent chalk
Picture or drawing
Colored Pencils- I used Derwent Studio Colored Pencils

1.  Scan in your drawing or picture. I opened the picture with Microsoft Picture Manager and increased the contrast and the brightness to lighten the pencil shading of the drawing.

2.  Once you are satisfied with the picture, print it on white card stock. I used the wallet size option on a photo printer.

3.  Use colored pencils to color in the image. I chose two shades of blue for the cat and added dark purple for the shading and pupils and lavender for the eye itself. Once you are satisfied with the colors, trim away the excess white card stock.

4.  Cut a piece of dark purple print card stock approximately 1/4 inch larger, on all sides, than the drawing. Glue the drawing to the card stock.

5.  Cut a piece of light grey card stock slighter smaller than the box. Glue the card stock to the box. Glue the drawing to the center of the grey card stock.

6.  Use the Cricut cartridge to cut out "Thinking of You" at 1 inch out of medium blue card stock.  Glue it to the bottom of the drawing.

7.  Punch three dark purple and three light purple butterflies out of card stock, using the Martha Stewart butterfly paper punch. Position the butterflies randomly on each side of the drawing (3 on each side) and glue in place.

8.  Use the decorative scissors to make an edging out of light purple card stock. Apply this edging to the left and right edges of the grey card stock.

9.  Using scraps of card stock and the Martha Stewart Tulip paper punch, punch a green tulip and a lavender tulip. Cut the top of the lavender tulip off and glue it over the top of the green tulip. Glue the tulip that you just made, to the lower left of the "Thinking of You" phrase.

10.  Apply the chalk to the grey card stock panel. Randomly apply blue-violet around the panel. Next apply dark purple and then light purple highlights to the panel.

11.  Apply dots of glitter glue to the butterfly"s body and wings and to the decorative border on the sides of the panel. Let the glitter glue dry completely.

You may want to seal your design to prevent damage. I sealed mine with clear shipping tape.

Update: The UPS driver liked the box and said that it brightened his day. He mentioned that it was nice to see something besides plain shipping boxes.

Foxy Valentine Card

Valentine's Day is fast approaching and as usual I have more ideas for projects than I have time to complete them. C'est la vie! There are several more Valentine's projects in the works and hopefully time won't run out before they are completed and ready to post.

The first of the cards is finally finished. This card was originally intended for Valentine's Day but I plan to use it for my Close-to-Valentine's Day Anniversary.




Directions for Foxy Valentine Card:

Cricut Ornamental Iron and Noah's ABC Animals cartridges
Martha Stewart Filigree Heart and tulip paper punches
DCWV Black Current Stack-patterned grey paper and pink dotted paper
Recollections Metallic Stack- silver paper
Black, rust, white, dark pink and grey card stock
Offray Black and White Dotted ribbon
Jolee's Bling adhesive pink pearls
Stickles Ice Stickles glitter glue
Adhesive clear crystals
Small pink adhesive backed rose
Scrap of green card stock to cut leaves for rose and tulip stem. Scrap of pink and white print for tulip
Smooch Pearlized Accent Ink- green apple or green metallic nail polish
Foam Dots



1. Fold the light grey card stock in half and crease along the fold.

2. Cut the grey patterned card stock to approximately 6 1/4 inches long by 5 inches wide. Next cut the black card stock 4 1/2 inches wide by 5 1/2 inches long. Cut the pink dotted card stock 4 inches wide by 5 1/4 inches long. Glue the pink dotted card stock on top of the black card stock, leaving approximately an 1/8 inch border on all sides. Attach foam dots to the back of the black card stock. Position the black/pink card stock on top of the grey patterned card stock, leaving a 1/4 inch border on all sides. Once you are happy with the placement press the black/pink card stock in place. Position the grey patterned card stock grouping about 1 1/2 inches from the top edge of the card and center it and glue in place.

3. Using the Cricut Noah's ABC Animals cartridge cut the Fox at 3 inches out of black card stock. Next press the Fox and the Shift keys and cut (Fox-s) out of white card stock. Finally press the Layer and the Fox keys and cut the fur out of rust card stock. Assemble the fox. Attach 3 clear crystals around the Fox's neck for a collar and apply a small amount of Ice Stickles to the Fox's eye lashes and nose. I used a tooth pick to apply the Stickles to the eyes and nose.

4. Load the Ornamental Iron cartridge into the Cricut machine. Cut Gate 10a at 5 inches out of silver metallic card stock. Glue the Gate to the pink dotted card stock.

5. Attach foam dots to the back of the Fox and position her near the bottom edge of the Gate, leaving a small space to the right of the Fox's feet. Press into place once you are happy with the placement.

6. Attach a pink pearl to the swirls at the top of the Gate. Next attach a small pink rose at the top center of the Gate. Cut 3 small free form leaves out of the green card stock. Don't worry if they are not perfect, leaves in nature are not perfect. Fold the leaves over an awl or other small object to give them an upward curve. Bend the tip of each leaf backward over the end of the awl. Paint the leaves with Smooch or nail polish and set aside to dry. When dry glue the leaves under the rose.

7. Punch a small tulip out of the scrap of green card stock and another tulip out of the pink and white patterned card stock. Cut the tulip flower from the stem of the pink and white card stock and glue it over the green tulip flower. Paint the tulip stem with Smooch. When the flower is dry glue it to the right of the Fox's feet.

8. Punch four hearts out of dark pink card stock using the Martha Stewart Filigree Heart paper punch. Glue a heart to each corner of the grey patterned card stock. Apply a small amount of Ice Stickles to the inside of the hearts.

9. Tie a small bow out of the black and white dotted ribbon and glue to the top center of the card.

Snow Friends Candle

I have had this idea on my project list for a while and finally got around to completing it-just in time for Christmas. I enjoyed making the Halloween candle so much that I wanted to do a winter themed candle. Although I hate snow, I think snowmen are so cute. The Cricut Snow Friends cartridge has the most adorable Snowman images. These happy little Snowmen were perfect for my winter candle. This was a quick (2 hours start to finish) and easy project.




Directions for Snow Friends Candle:

Cricut Snow Friends cartridge- still available through Amazon
White or Ivory Flame-less Candle
Candle Holder-large enough to hold the candle globe
Glass Candle Globe or cylinder
Sheer Dark Aqua Ribbon
Martha Stewart Snow flake paper punch
Vellum
Self adhesive crystals and pearls
Blue and white print card stock, white, black, and orange card stock
Pink colored pencil
Hot glue gun
Xyron Machine

1. Using the Snow Friends cartridge cut Snowman 7 at 2 1/2 inches out of white card stock. Cut the shoes, buttons and eyes out of black card stock. Cut the nose out of orange card stock. Cut the scarf out of blue and white print card stock. Cut a total of four Snowmen. Assemble the Snowmen. Highlight the Snowman's cheeks with pink colored pencils. I like the look of Snowmen with rosy cheeks.

2. Run the Snowmen through the Xyron machine. Remove the paper backing and attach each Snowman 1 1/2 inches from the base of the glass cylinder, leaving about 1 inch of space between each Snowman. Press them securely in place.

3. Tie a small bow with the dark aqua ribbon and use the hot glue gun to attach the bow between the Snowman's hands. Trim the ends of the ribbon if necessary. Repeat this 3 more times.

4. Punch 8 snowflakes out of Vellum using the Martha Stewart Snowflake paper punch. Punch each snowflake slowly to avoid tearing the Vellum as it punches. Run the snowflakes through the Xyron machine. Carefully peel each snowflake from the paper backing to avoid tearing. Position 4 snowflakes approximately 1 1/2 inches above the bows and press in place. Next position the other 4 snowflakes between the attached snowflakes about 1/4 inch from the top of the glass globe. Press firmly in place.

5. Add a self adhesive rhinestone to the center of each snowflake. Add a small pearl to each branch of the snowflake (5 pearls for each snowflake).

6. Place the glass globe in the candle base and place the flame-less candle inside the glass globe.

Cherry Blossom Card

One of the nice things about living in the Washington, DC area is the annual arrival of the Cherry Blossoms. The Cherry trees bloom around the last week of March and the first week of April. They line both sides of the Reflecting Pool in front of the Jefferson Memorial. When the Cherry blossoms are at their peak this is the most beautiful spot in the city.

I made this card in honor of the beautiful Cherry Blossoms but the card can be used for other occasions (birthdays, Mother's Day). I cut one corner off of Bo Bunny a gift of love paper and then ran it through a crimper to give some texture and evoke the feeling of a fan. Rather than use a traditional card greeting, I decided to use part of the quote by Kahil Gibran-...Beauty is a light in the heart.























Directions for Cherry Blossom Card:

Light grey and white card stock
Bo Bunny a gift of love paper/Sophie Joy Die Cut
Fiskars Crimper
Hero Arts Four Dolls stamp
Color Box black pigment ink
Colored pencils
Pink and white dotted ribbon
Recollections butterfly-light pink
Got Flowers? -small pink flowers
Recollections flower shaped brads-green
Martha Stewart Doily border punch
Foam Dots


1. Fold a piece of 8 1/2 x 11 inch light grey card stock in half.

2. Print ...Beauty is a light in the heart. -Kahil Gibran on white card stock using Microsoft Word and Calligraph 421 BT font at 18. Trim the card stock so that a small border surrounds the quote.

3. Cut lower left corner of the Bo Bunny paper 4 1/2 inches long by 3 1/2 inches wide. You want the brown scalloped edge on the left and bottom of the paper. Turn the paper so that the blue corner is at an angle. Feed the blue corner into the Fiskars crimper to begin crimping the paper.

4. Stamp the Hero Arts doll onto a piece of white card stock with black ink. Use the colored pencils to color in the doll. Carefully cut out the doll. Turn the crimped paper so that the brown scallops run along the side and bottom and the blue edge is at the top. Attach the doll to the Bo Bunny paper using foam dots. Tie a small bow with the pink and white dotted ribbon and glue to the top corner of the fan. Position the center scallop approximately 1 7/8 inches from bottom of the card. glue in place. Tuck the quote just under the blue edge and glue in place.

5. Glue a light pink butterfly to the left of the quote.

6. Attach 4 light pink and 2 dark pink flowers to the bottom of the card with green flower shaped brads.

7. Use the Martha Stewart Doily border punch to punch a border out of white card stock. Trim the border to the length of the card and glue in place.

Hello Kitty Valentine Card

I just love Hello Kitty because she's so cute and sweet. She's just perfect for a Valentine's Day card. The best part about this card is that it uses the left over card stock pieces from other projects.






Directions for the Hello Kitty Valentine's Day Card:

Cricut George and Basic Shapes and Hello Kitty cartridges
Dark pink, light pink, white, black and green card stock
Cream satin ribbon
K & Company Felt Valentine Roses (available at Michaels)
K & Company pink print Valentine's paper
Got Flowers? Iced Flowers- Aqua
Small brads- I used a flower shaped brad for Hello Kitty's bow and a round one for her flower
Martha Stewart Heart Border punch and Rose Leaf paper punch
Microsoft Word
Cuttlebug Swiss Dots embossing folder
Sanding pad


1. Type Be Mine in Microsoft Word using the Monotype Corsiva font at 36. Change the font color to red and print Be Mine on white paper. Trim to approximately 2 inches long by 1 inch high.

2. Using the Cricut George and Basic Shapes cartridge cut a heart at 4 inches out of dark pink card stock. Emboss the heart using the Cuttlebug Swiss Dots embossing folder. Lightly sand the raised dots to highlight them.

3. Cut Hello Kitty 2 at 3 inches out of black card stock. Press the fur key and cut Kitty's face and paws out of white card stock. Press the clothes key and cut her dress out of light pink card stock. Cut it again out of the dark pink card stock. Press the clothes and shift keys and cut her bow out of dark pink card stock. Assemble Kitty using the dark pink pieces for her shirt. Color her nose with a yellow marker. Place a flower shaped brad in Kitty's bow. Use a small aqua flower for the flower in her hand. Attach a small round brad to the center of the flower. Cut a small piece of green card stock for the flower's stem.

4. Use the Heart Border punch to punch a border out of dark pink card stock. Save the small hearts left over from the border. You will use these to accent the card.

5. Cut a piece of pink Valentine paper 5 inches wide by 7 1/2 inches high. Glue a piece of cream satin ribbon 1 inch from the bottom edge of the paper. Tie a small bow and glue it to the ribbon. Glue the dark pink heart border along the right edge of the paper. Fold a piece of white card stock in half lengthwise and crease it with a bone folder. Glue the pink Valentine paper to the white card stock leaving a white border around the top and bottom of the card. Apply foam dots to the back of the heart and attach it approximately 1 3/4 inches from the bottom of the card. Attach foam dots to the back of Kitty and center her on the heart. Press her in place.

6. Place a red felt rose in the upper left hand corner of the card. Punch two leaves out of green card stock using the Rose Leaf paper punch. Glue the leaves under the edges of the rose. Glue Be Mine at an angle above the heart on the right hand side of the card. Glue the small dark pink left over hearts in opposite corners of the Be Mine greeting. Randomly glue the hearts around the pink Valentine's paper.

Poodle Valentine Card

The Cricut Paper Pups cartridge is so cute and versatile. I really like this cartridge and wanted to use it to make another Valentine's Day card for my husband (who has been banned from reading my blog until Valentine's Day is over). Thursday we had a wintery mix (snow and ice) so it was a good day to work on some cards. Like the last two cards I decided to use a French verse for the greeting. Mon amour pour toi est eternal (My love for you is eternal) just seemed to work well with this card.




Directions for Poodle Valentine Card:

Black, dark pink, pale pink, green and light grey card stock
K & Company Black and White patterned card stock
Cricut Paper Pups cartridge
Spellbinders Nestabilities Labels Nine; Sizzix or other die cut machine
Pink ribbon with white hearts
Clear stick on rhinestones
Martha Stewart Holidays Paper Rose Embellishments
Martha Stewart Lace Heart border punch, Rose Leaf paper punch and Lace Heart edge punch
Bone folder
Large and small foam dots
Tattered Angels Pearl Glimmer Mist
1. Fold a piece of light grey card stock in half lengthwise and crease with a bone folder.

2. Use the Martha Stewart Lace heart edge punch to punch a heart out of dark pink card stock. Next punch a heart border out of the same card stock using the Lace Heart border punch. Save four hearts from the border punch left overs.

3. Place a piece of black and white patterned card stock on top of the Spellbinders large label and cut it with the Sizzix or other die cut machine. Cut a piece of pink and white heart patterned ribbon to fit the lower edge of the label and glue in place. Tie a small bow and glue in the center of the ribbon.

4. Cut a piece of black card stock 4 inches wide by 4 1/2 inches high. Glue the pink lace heart border under the bottom edge of the black card stock. Place foam dots on the back of the label. Center the black and white label on the black card stock and press in place. Glue the four small left over hearts in each corner of the black card stock. Glue the black card stock framed poodle approximately 2 1/2 inches from the top of the card.

5. Using the Cricut Paper Pups cartridge press the solid key and cut a 2 3/4 inch poodle out of pink card stock. Turn off the solid key and cut a poodle out of light grey card stock. Assemble the poodle and spray lightly with Tattered Angels Pearl Glimmer Mist. When the poodle is dry color the nose black and fill in the eye area (add eyelashes if desired) with a fine point black marker. Place three small rhinestones around the poodle's neck to make a collar. Put several small foam dots on the underside of the poodle. Attach the poodle to the label just above the ribbon.

6. Center the dark pink lace heart under the pink lace heart border and glue in place.

7. Print Mon amour pour toi est eternal or the Valentine's greeting of your choice on white paper, using Microsoft word and Monotype Corsiva font at 18. Trim the paper to approximately 3 inches wide by 3/4 inches high and glue on to a piece of dark pink card stock. Leave a small border around the white paper. Cut a piece of black card stock slightly larger than the piece of dark pink and glue the previous layers on top of the black. Position the framed greeting at a slight angle across the top left portion of the card.

8. Place two light pink and one dark pink rose in the upper right hand portion of the card, overlapping them slightly. Press in place. Using the green card stock and the Martha Stewart Rose Leaf paper punch, punch out three leaves and glue them under the edges of the roses.

Cheshire Cat Valentine Card

Cricut has just released the Disney Classics cartridge. The cartridge contains several images from Alice In Wonderland including the Cheshire Cat. I received my cartridge yesterday and couldn't wait rip open the box and start working on a project. I just had to incorporate the Cheshire Cat, with his cool smile, into a Valentine's Day card for my husband. I chose Je pense a toi (I'm thinking of you) for the greeting because it just seemed to fit the character and it gave me another opportunity to use my French.



Directions for Cheshire Cat Valentine Card:

Cricut Disney Classics cartridge
Light grey, pale pink, dark pink, black, yellow, dark purple, medium purple, dark green and white card stock
Wilton heart shaped lace doily
Pink dotted sheer ribbon
Recollections pearls
Cuttlebug Swiss Dots embossing folder and embossing machine
Tattered Angels Pearl Glimmer Mist
K & Company Valentine Felt Roses
Got Flowers? pink and cream colored flowers
Martha Stewart Lace Heart border punch and Rose Leaf paper punch
Foam backed mouse pad
Dry embossing stylus (ball tip at each end)


1. Fold a piece of light grey card stock in half lengthwise and crease using a bone folder.

2. Cut a piece of medium purple card stock 4 1/2 inches wide by 4 1/4 inches high and emboss it using the Cuttlebug Swiss Dots embossing folder. Lightly sand the embossed surface to highlight the dots.

3. Glue the heart shaped doily 1/2 inch from the right edge of the embossed card stock.

4. Load the Disney Classics cartridge into the Cricut. Place a piece of black card stock on the Cricut mat and cut Cat 2 at 3 inches. Press the shift key and cut the top of the cat's head out of dark purple card stock. Press Layer 1 and cut the tail, ears, paws and mouth out of pale pink card stock. Press the shift and Layer 1 keys and cut the mouth out of white card stock. Cut the eyes out of yellow card stock by pressing Layer 2. Press Layer 2 and shift to cut the stripes out of dark pink card stock. Load pale pink card stock into the Cricut and press Layer 3 to cut the alternating stripes. Assemble the cat.

5. Spray the cat lightly with Glimmer Mist and let it dry. Attach foam dots to the cat and position him to the left edge of the heart.

6. Use the Martha Stewart Lace Heart border punch and pale pink card stock to make a heart border. Glue the border to the bottom edge of the embossed card stock. Attach the Recollections pearls to each corner of the embossed card stock.

7. Apply foam dots to the back of the embossed card stock. Position the piece 2 inches from the bottom edge of the card.

8. Type the Valentine greeting of your choice in Microsoft Word using the Minya Nouvelle font at 18 and print it out. Cut a tag out of dark purple card stock and glue the greeting to it. Glue the hearts left over from the punched border to the top and the bottom of the tag. Tie a small piece of pink dotted sheer ribbon to the end of the tag. Tuck the end of the tag under the embossed card stock and glue in place. Glue three small hearts left over from the heart border next to the cat's head.

9. Punch six leaves out of green card stock using the Martha Stewart Rose Leaf paper punch. Lightly fold each leaf in half lengthwise. Turn a foam mouse pad upside down to expose the foam backing. Place a leaf on the mouse pad and use a stylus to lightly press veins into the leaf.

10. Attach a felt rose to the bottom center of the card. Arrange the off white and pink flowers around the bottom of the card, alternating pink and off white. Glue the flowers in place. Glue the leaves under the edge of the flowers. Attach a Recollections pearl in the center of the flowers.