Floral Card Fronts

 Finally had time to work on floral card fronts that I have wanted to make. These card fronts have embossing folders with matching stencils for easy ink blending to add colour to the flowers. Here is a photo of some of the finished stenciled pieces:

The pink sample was made using the Vintage Lace 3D embossing folder and stencil set from Altenew. To make this card front I cut my white card stocks to 4 1/4 x 5 1/2. Once I put the card stock in the embossing folder I lightly misted the front of the card stock with water and ran it thru the die cutting machine to emboss this design. I did this same thing with the blue rose sample. Set these aside to dry.

Cut my coloured card stocks to the sizes I needed for the card base and card front. Set those aside. With the stencil in place over the embossed pieces I added ink to the design using blender brushes. Once all the blending was done I cleaned my stencils and trimmed the floral pieces to the size I needed for my card fronts:

Assembled the layered card fronts. Put them on the card stock bases using liquid glue. The floral designs can be used for many different occasion cards. Now I have to hot foil my sentiments or maybe heat emboss them - will have to see what I have in the stash... For a crafter that can not do colouring with Copics and such these embossing folders and matching stencils certainly let me have that "look" of a card that was coloured.  The Altenew 3D embossing folder embosses well with one pass in the machine and has lots of detail on the design:

Patriotic Pull Aparts

 A few years back Simon Hurley introduced his line of background stamps which he called Peel-Aways. These background stamp designs come apart so you can use them as a solid background piece or take it apart and make a partial background or to use that stamp piece as a stripe or border on a project. These separated stamp pieces fit easily into the background stamp for a solid background again. Now Taylored Expressions has introduced their separating stamps - Pull Aparts - and I bought their new Patriotic Pull Aparts for cards and tags I am making. 

Here is photo of these stamps:

The stars part of the stamp can be removed so you can easily stamp the striped part of the stamp. I used scrap card stock and cut that to size and put it in the MISTI. Then I laid the stamps on the card stock with pieces together:

I took the striped halves of the stamps off the MISTI and I inked and stamped the stars stamps using Catherine Pooler Dress Blues ink:

With those stamped I put the striped part of the stamp back under the stars pieces for stamping:

Took the stars pieces off and inked the stripes with red ink and stamped those:

I cleaned the stamps when the stamping was done and the stamps cleaned up easily:

On the TE YouTube channel they demonstrated these Pull-Apart stamps and made a patriotic card. Altho I do not have all the products they had I used items from my stash and made my own cards - I made a card using kraft card stock as they did, and I made a red and a white card. Here is a photo of the three cards:

For my patriotic background I used a background stamp from Divinity Designs:

This is the Old Flag background stamp and I bought this stamp at a stamp show long ago. I felt it worked for the backgrounds on the cards as it has a lot of shadows on it and interest. I used Pebble ink from Catherine Pooler to ink this because that is the lightest gray ink I have in my stash. 

For the card on kraft card stock I inked the edges of the background and the heart piece using brown ink and for the other two cards I used a light gray ink for the background edges and the edges of the heart and star pieces. The banners used are also from Taylored Expressions - their new release Fly Your Flag clear stamp and matching banner die set. I used brown ink for some of the words and blue ink for the others. 

Cut all the card stock bases and scored them at the top. Trimmed my background pieces to the size I needed for the card fronts and sponged the edges. Stamped, die cut, and sponged the edges of the hearts and star pieces. Used liquid glue to put the background piece on the card front. Used thin foam tape to put the heart or star pieces on the card front. Used pop dots to put the banner pieces over the hearts/stars on the card fronts. Added red sequins using Glossy Accents to the card fronts. 

Love the heart/star pull apart stamps as you get such a clear/clean stamped impression without having to mask off part of the stamp and having to use markers or something. 

Happy to add these two new TE products to the craft room and happy I was able to use more of my scrap white card stock for the cards as well as the Divinity Designs background stamp I also had in my stash. The heart/star stamps are approx 3" or so in width so these look good on a card front but can also be used as a tag or a decoration for a holiday table or on a treat holder.. 

Cinnamon Roll Hack

Had seen a video short by Kristin's Friends Cooking on YouTube for the TikTok Cinnamon Roll hack so I decided to give this a try . . .  As I was assembling this recipe I took photos on the phone to text to my niece in Pennsylvania as she loves to cook and we share recipes. Here is a photo of the items needed for this recipe:

Items needed:

Two 8 count cans of cinnamon rolls

1 cup Heavy WHIPPING cream

1 stick melted butter

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

2 teaspoons of cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1/3 cup chopped pecans

Here is a photo collection of this recipe I took:

Using butter I greased the pan - upper right photo - I spread out the cinnamon rolls. I have 5 rows of three rolls so with the 16th roll I pulled that apart and just tucked it between the other rolls in the pan. The photo on the left shows the heavy whipping cream poured over the cinnamon rolls. 

The photo below that shows the melted butter, brown sugar, cinnamon, sea salt mixed and spread over the rolls. Photo to the right of that shows I sprinkled the chopped pecans over the rolls - you do not have to add nuts if you do not want to. The photo on the lower left shows the foil covered pan ready to go into the oven. You bake these in a pre heated 350 degree oven for 45 minutes. Once you take them out of the oven you remove the foil and your cinnamon rolls will look like the bottom right photo. 

I put the pan on a cookie cooling rack to cool for 10-15 minutes and then I drizzled the glaze from the cinnamon roll cans over the rolls --

The photo on the right shows a cinnamon roll out of the pan and cut with a fork. These are very good and easy to prepare. A simple breakfast for a holiday or company. I was concerned the heavy whipping cream could make the cinnamon rolls too moist but it did not. GLAZE -- when I opened the two cans of the cinnamon rolls I removed the glaze containers and I left them on the stove top while the rolls were baking. This warmed up the glaze and I did not have any problems drizzling it over the cooled rolls. Remember once you remove the rolls from the oven, remove the foil, and let them cool for the 10-15 minutes or they will be too hot for the glaze topping and they will just absorb the glaze. This way you can see the glaze frosting on the tops. Thanks to Kristin for sharing her recipe and video for this TikTok hack!

Not a Collections Collector....

Years ago, when home stamp parties were popular, companies would sell their collections - ink pads with matching markers, with matching card stocks, with matching ribbons.... and so it goes. But once I began card making using only one company products was not for me... I found over the years I would buy ink pads from different companies, embossing powders from different companies, etc.. But when it came to storing them .... keep like brands together?? keep like colours together?? So for me it made sense to keep these things from the same manufacturer together... Great idea until you needed to look for a certain ink pad in a certain colour or whatever...

Just saw the new craft room reveal on YouTube from Lisa Mensing on her channel "Confetti and Cards".  I watched her video and when she showed her ink pad storage - CLICK - this system would definitely work for me in my craft room! I ordered the eye shadow holders she uses from Amazon and they arrived today and I went right to work..... In her video she also uses the three section clear trays from Dollar Tree in her drawers - with me recently reorganizing my craft room I had two of those trays that I could use in my drawers but I also had lots of plastic white baskets I could put to use. Happily I had one roll left of the non slip foam liner for drawers so I was able to use what I already had on hand to line the drawers. 

To start with I took everything out of the drawers and wiped them down and cut my foam liner to size. The drawers I am using for this new organization are not all the same size as you will see in the photos - but they worked and I love this new system -- Lisa keeps her ink pads and embossing powders and such of same colours in her drawers. For my drawers I have my greens and blues -- ink pads and embossing powders:

Reds and pinks:

Yellows and oranges:

Purples and browns:

Blacks and grays:

For my gold embossing powders I put those in with the yellows and for the silver embossing powders I put those in with the blacks and grays. I have one holder and dish in that drawer for my metallic silver and gold inks by Delicata and I also have those re-inkers in there with sponges I use for those inks as well. 

For my white and clear embossing powders I am still working on that drawer - needing to gather up more smaller baskets for that drawer so that should be finished tomorrow I hope. A BIG thanks to Lisa Mensing for her sharing this idea -- it is a game changer for me for sure -- the other inks I have are Close To My Heart and SU but I have holders I bought for those. In the drawers are ink pads from Simon Says, Memento, Simon Hurley, (just bought a few of those on sale), Catherine Pooler, and other random companies. I could have used this system when I was stenciling all the backgrounds on my Easter cards to help locate all the colours I have available to use -- so happy this came together and can't wait to put it to good use!! (Simon Hurley has done a video in the past talking about storing ink pads on their sides rather than flat and he suggests checking with a manufacturer if you are concerned about the side storing - as for his ink pads he stores his brand and all the distress inks he owns on their sides as well with no problems). 

Glad I saw her video and hope to finish this project up tomorrow after work for weekend crafting ahead!

Heath Bar Treat Holder

For BOO Day last year I made boxes for the full size chocolate Hershey candy bar.  For Fall treat holders for this year I decided to make a treat holder box to hold the 1.4 oz (full size) Heath candy bar. Using printed card stock scraps from my stash I made rosettes for the treat holders as well as the belly bands around the boxes. I also used the fall shaped wooden pieces from Hobby Lobby that I picked up last Fall on clearance. Using solid card stocks from PaperTrey Ink and SU here is a photo of my Heath Bar Treat Holders:

The first holder I made using my pattern is light blue and here is a photo to show that piece scored and bottom clipped and ready to form the box:

Here are the directions for the box I made:

Solid card stock: 

Cut card stock 5 3/4" x 4 3/4"

With 5 3/4" edge at top of the score board score this at: 3/8"

Turn with 4 3/4" edge at top of the score board

Score this at: 1/2", 7/8", 2 5/8", and 3"

Used bone folder and crease all score lines. On bottom of box with score line use scissors and trim piece as shown in above photo. 

Using a 1" circle punch I punched a third of a circle off the top edge of the front of the box to give the box front a curved top

Using tear and tape I formed the box and set that aside

For the printed belly band around the box - I used a piece of 1" x 5" piece of scrap printed card stock. I did not score this piece but I did wrap it around the finished box and creased this piece with my fingers. I added tear and tape to add this to the box. 

Used printed card stocks and a Sizzix Rosette die and made the rosettes. For the glittered tulle piece on top of the rosette I cut out a 1 3/4" circle of the tulle. Used glitter thread from my stash to add some more sparkle and shine to the rosette piece. Using hot glue I put glue on the front of the rosette in the center and put the glittered tulle piece on that. Added a little hot glue and put the metallic thread on top of the that. Added hot glue to the back of the wooden leaf pieces and put them in the center of the rosettes. Used hot glue to add rosette to center of belly band around the box. Here is a photo to show a closer view of the layered rosette piece:

On one of the treat boxes I centered the belly band/rosette piece and on the other two boxes I have the belly band/rosette pieces closer to the top of the holder. 

These would be nice as table markers or just as the treat holders I made. DH will be happy I finished the treat box pattern as he wants the candy bar now.... Here is a photo of the Hershey candy bar treat boxes I had made last year for BOO Day:

Both treat holders were fun to make and will hold a full size candy bar for treats. Also happy to be able to use more of the scrap printed card stocks!

More photos of the rest of the holders:

New Treat Holders

Last week the Little Crate Die Set I ordered from Concord & 9th came in the mail. Here is a photo of that die set with all the extras it has:

This is an easy crate die set to cut out and assemble and it has a lot of details - the oval pieces for the handles, and the stitched pieces at the top and bottom of the crate, plus all the extra dies to decorate your finished crate with. Here is a photo of the assembled crate sample:

You can make it monochromatic as my sample is or use coloured card stocks for the stitched top and bottom piece as well as the oval piece over the handle opening. Very easy to assemble and even using recycled card board as I did for my sample, the die cut all the pieces easily with one pass through the machine. 

This next treat holder is the larger Berry Basket die I picked up Friday at the Impression Obsession (IO Stamps) Warehouse Sale for 50% off - here is a photo to show their two Berry Basket dies - the large and the small:

Here is a photo of the samples I made using these dies:

The small die Berry Basket I used Paper Trey Ink Kraft card stock for. The larger Berry Basket die I used the Paper Trey Ink Canyon Clay card stock. The quality of their card stock makes it a favorite in this craft room so I was happy they recently had a sale and I could order their card stock on sale. If you look at the tops of the two berry baskets you will see the larger die set makes a scallop top edge around the basket and the smaller die set makes a decorated top edge around that one. Both of the die sets have stitching at the top edge of the baskets:

Here is a photo to show the two sizes of this die - the smaller basket is inside the larger basket for this photo:

Also here is a photo to show the size of the small Berry Basket vs the Little Crate from Concord & 9th:

Using a 1" scrap I put that in the small berry basket to show it could be used as a basket with a handle:

These dies will make fun treat holders - berry baskets for summer or Easter and the crate die set will make cute treat holders for fall. Happy that the crate die, with all the details, was easy to cut out and to assemble. Plus Concord & 9th have the crate die with top and bottom stitched die pieces all on the same die piece so you can easily cut out the four pieces you need to assemble your crate. Fun treat holders to cut out, assemble, and decorate for holiday projects ahead!

Heigh Ho I.O.!

Yesterday was the first day of the Impression Obsession (IO Stamps) Warehouse Sale. This is the first warehouse sale they have held since before the pandemic. My PIC (stamping Partner In Crime) and I decided this would be a sale we wanted to shop this year so plans were made with DH, our "Cuber" driver (crafter Uber driver), driving us there and back.... I baked brownies with nuts for this trip as well as I made the fruit salad for us so we would have something cold to eat since the temperature yesterday was in the upper 80s there --- here is a photo of the cold fruit salad:

It is made with a can of Mandarin oranges w juice, a can of Dole Pineapple chunks w juice, and a pint of cleaned strawberries sliced into bite size pieces. I keep the canned fruit in the fridge overnight before I make the salad so they are cold. Prep the strawberries and put in a large bowl, add the can of oranges w juice, and the can of pineapple chunks w juice and stir. Keep in fridge and serve cold. 

We left the house at 4AM for our drive to Richmond, Va for this sale. The IO Stamps warehouse is located in Oilville which is a suburb of Richmond. The sale began at 9AM and we arrived in Richmond around 8AM in plenty of time for the sale:

When we arrived at the warehouse there were a couple of other cars there with shoppers waiting to shop:

Before the sale I had looked at their website to see all their dies, stamps, and products I wanted to look at. I made a list of items I wanted to look at or buy as well as a list of background stamps I already have  because I knew I wanted a couple more of their background stamps as they are excellent quality. I wanted a couple of those I had seen used on YouTube by other crafters.  In the past when IO had their warehouse sale all their dies were 50% off but with all dies and stamps all over going up in price I was not sure if IO would still have the dies for the 50% off or not. Along with my list of items I wanted to check out I also had a generous gift card my PIC had gifted me for when I shopped this sale. 

Happy to report the dies were 50% off - altho some dies had increased in price since before the pandemic. They had deals on stamp sets, ink pads and refills, background stamps, and unmounted rubber stamps. Here are photos:

I picked up two background stamps, already mounted, for $5.00 each -- no packaging but I am fine with that:

These 2 background stamps were also $5 each but not mounted - but they mounted them for free for me:

I also picked up their orange ink pad with refill, both on sale for 50% off the prices:

This is the only stamp set I picked up which will get plenty of use for Christmas projects ahead:

DH was in the parking lot waiting for us when we finished our shopping. Since it was already getting warm out we sat in the car and ate the fruit salad. Then off to a store I had found online in Richmond and I wanted to shop at. It is the SCRAP Richmond Creative Reuse Center. In our area we have the Scrap Exchange in Durham, NC and they have all kinds of items that have been donated from building items, craft items, office items/supplies, tools, etc.. But this SCRAP store in Richmond is CRAFT items ONLY!!

We drove over there and we arrived shortly after they opened -- What a GREAT store!! They have fabric, quilt supplies, patterns/books, threads, needles, sewing supplies, ribbons, wood pieces, chip board, card stock, scrapbook kits, storage items, stamps/stamp sets, embossing folders, dies, a Cuttlebug machine was there, stencils, beads, jewelry making items, yarns, knitting needles, crochet hooks, books and patterns for such, buttons, trims, floral making supplies, picture frames, mats, etc.. All crafting items  -- for $2 each I picked up these bins with lids:

I also picked up a Cottage Cutz die set and a tulip stencil:

Fabric bundles for $2 each:

I also picked up a pack of collage card stock prints:

My PIC also found many items she wanted - plastic pages for her binders, another binder, a storage bin and such. Stopping at that store was a great find for us!  Wish we had such a place in the Raleigh area!! Fun thing was while I was shopping there two ladies that we also saw at the IO Warehouse Sale saw us at this store as well! Off to a great lunch at Olive Garden (we saw those ladies there too!!) and then onto our trip home -- with brownies for dessert on our ride home.... We were home by dinner time:

Once home I washed the bins and lids and those are all ready to hold craft supplies in my craft room so I am sure they will be in use in no time..... A fun day for this crafter - altho I will say there were far less shoppers at the IO Sale than in the past so hoping today is a busier day for the IO sale than yesterday.. It was nice to be able to get out again and shop for craft supplies -- esp on a week when Heartfelt Creations, a staple at all the craft shows, and a great online store, has announced it will be closing doors this year...