Cute Little Mice

Hi, there!   It's been awhile since I posted.  I've had quite a bit to do and not had enough time to do it all.  I've delivered all my Halloween and Thanksgiving orders and am now working on all the Christmas.  My goal is to get all Christmas orders delivered before Thanksgiving.  Wish me luck!

I'm popping in to share a couple of projects with these cute little mice!  What an adorable stamp set.  These little mice are the sweetest.

I've had this curvy box die for a few years now.  I actually use it quite a bit.  It's just a fun little box.  Stampin' Up doesn't have this one anymore, but it does have an even smaller curvy box.  It is adorable, but I decided that I really didn't need it since I have this one!

Don't these cuties make you smile?  

Hope you're having a lovely fall!

Make a 3D Truck without Dies Video + Smile!

Hi, there!  I've had a great weekend with Louisa here.  It's been getting colder, so we stayed in most of the weekend playing with buttons and paintbrushes.  Who knew it could be so much fun to pretend to paint pictures on a bedroom door?!

When we were outside, the wind would gust and blow leaves off the trees and Louisa would say, "What is that?"  She asked me about ten times and the thought still makes me smile!

This adorable image makes me smile, too!  I had so much fun coloring it.  It reminds me of Louisa pulling leaves off the tree to help them out!

I really wanted to make some 3D trucks for Thanksgiving.  I thought a truck would be so cute with pumpkins and a small bag of pumpkin shaped candy in the back.

I was a little sticker shocked when I saw the price of the 3D truck dies.  So, I kept thinking surely I could figure out how to make one without dies.  First, I looked through my stamps and I didn't have a truck stamp big enough. 

So then I looked through clip art on Etsy.  Found a watercolor truck set that I really really liked.  Thought about how it might work and decided to buy the file.  It was a little more than I usually spend on digital files, but I thought even if it didn't work out for a 3D truck, I might use it for something else.  It has a cute car and other pretty elements, as well.  Besides, $7.99 is waaay, less than $48.00!  

Then I set out to figure out how to put a 3D truck together.  Turns out, once I figured it out, it was really easy to do.

I put a video together to show you just how to make your own 3D truck.  Check it out:





I may even put some trucks together for Christmas - that would be fun!

Fall Scarecrow and Vintage Wishbone Kids

I love fall and Thanksgiving!   The cool weather, the colors and the Thanksgiving dinner.  

This will be the first year since Louisa was born that they've lived close enough to come for Thanksgiving.  Can't wait to have them and get back to fixing our traditional goodies.  Pecan Pie, anyone?

Scarecrows are perfect for fall, of course.  I've had this one for a year and finally had time to create a card.  I've combined images from several stamp sets to create the scene.

Had so much fun coloring all these sweet images!

Speaking of sweet, aren't these kids adorable?  Love the huge wishbone.  I created a Z-fold card that when opened reveals more of the image and that cute turkey. 

A band of vellum keeps it closed.

You can download the kids below.  The download also includes the Make A Wish (slightly off the edge), so that if you want to make a card like this one, all you have to do is cut off the top portion of the paper and a little bit off the right side, then fold.

Download Wishbone Kids HERE.

Are you like Louisa and her mommy and daddy planning to travel for Thanksgiving?  Or are you like me, cooking with everyone coming to you?

Paper Pumpkins + TV Experience!

Guess what?????  I was on TV yesterday morning!  YES, me!  Are you wondering why? 

 Promise - it wasn't a mug shot.  I got to do a craft segment on our local Rise and Shine morning program!

Out of the blue, I got an email from Sweeney PR Firm asking me if I would like to do a fall craft TV segment for JoAnn Fabric and Craft Stores.  At first, I thought "Yeah, right."  But I googled the firm and the person and they seemed legit.  Called and talked to a lovely lady who said they found me through my blog.  Fast forward a couple more days and I actually did it - LIVE!  I keep hoping they'll get the segment posted, when (and if) they do, I'll link to it for you to see.

It was a 5 minute segment, so the project had to be easy.  And, of course, I wanted it to be cute.  Answer:  Paper pumpkins, sweet and cute paper pumpkins.

These are so easy I've even done them with first graders.  You've probably made a paper chain and that's what these are, but instead of linked together, they are wrapped around each other.

Here's how:

For the large pumpkin, cut 4 strips 1 1/2" x 12.  For the medium pumpkin:  1" x 10 1/2.  For the small pumpkin:  1" x 9 1/2.

Place the ball on the strip diagonally.  Place it so that the open spaces align with the strip.

Add a stem and decoration.  These stems are made with wooden spools.  You could use corks, too.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Thankful for Whooo?

Hi, there!  Hope you had a fun Halloween!  It was unusually quiet around our neighborhood this year.  Did you have a lot of trick or treaters?

Keren, from Free Pretty Things for You and I are bringing you the cutest Mama (or maybe, it's Dad) and baby owl image today!   

The owls look rather fall-ish, so I decided a thankful card would be a great match.  I printed them on a linen finish and sewed the scallop circle and ribbon right to the card.

The owls are so darn cute, I couldn't stop at just a card.  I made a tag for an orange gingham bag, too.

Every time I look at these sweet owls, I just smile!  I had picked up these gingham bags quite some time ago and had practically forgotten that I had them.  Luckily, I came across them while I was looking for something else.  Do you ever do that or am I the extremely disorganized one?  

(These projects were Choux Box Kits.  I have a couple of orange gingham bags left, so if you're interested in a Choux Box Kit let me know and I'll send you  the details.)

As always, Keren and I offer cute images for free!   Click HERE for a download of these cutie owls in a 2" and 3.5" circles.  To get a large download, visit Free Pretty Things for You.

So glad you stopped by.  Have a lovely week!

Thankful + Free Image

It's time for Keren  (Free Pretty Things for You) and I to share some "Cute and Sweet" with you.  Ruth Newton's illustrations are certainly cute and sweet!  This one is from Ruth E. Newton's Mother Goose book - page after page of adorableness!

I thought it would be fun to create a thankful card.  Her dress made me think of autumn and it seems to me the puppy is thankful to the little girl for taking such good care of him.  

You can create your own project because Keren cleaned her up and even changed her cap and apron to pink!  You can download the cream colored apron image HERE.  Click on over to Free Pretty Things for You to get the pink apron version.  

So glad you stopped by!

Spring and Autumn Girl (Free Images)

Hi, there!   Keren (Free PrettyThings for You) and I teamed up again to bring you a couple of oh, so sweet free images!

Couldn't you make some cute things with this darling girl and her deer?  I found the original card up some time ago and had tucked it away.  Luckily, I remembered that I had it and Keren cleaned her up and even changed her colors to autumn, so that I could use her in a fall project, as well! 

It's so cool, how Keren can change it up!

I used the Spring version to make a "You're such a dear" card - giving a little nod to that adorable deer.

I added the Autumn version to a small gift bag  - adorable for fall or a Thanksgiving hostess gift.

Some punched leaves made a pretty decoration on the top (over to the side, so they wouldn't interfere with the bag closure).  The sentiment stamps are from Paper Sweeties.

Love the shape of this bag!  You can find it HERE.

Click on over to Free Pretty Things for You to download the autumn version and click HERE for the spring version.  Hope you enjoy this sweet image as much as I have!

Have a wonderful week!

Paper Sweeties November Release + Yummy Cookie Idea

We love Maple Flavored Sugar Cookies!  Never tried them?  Well, you certainly should!  Dennis and I made leaf shaped ones the other day and tried something new.  Something I definitely recommend:  paint on the maple syrup!

Welcome to the first day of Paper Sweeties November Release.  Those yummy maple cookies needed an extra special gift wrap.

 I used the  wreath from the new Season of Love set to prettify my sweet little treat basket (a die from Papertrey Ink).  Isn't it lovely stamped in chocolate and highlighted with pearl pens and glitter?  It will be available in the Paper Sweeties store on Friday.  Now back to those cookies for a second:

  

Maple Sugar Cookies How-to

You can use your favorite Sugar Cookie recipe.  

Divide it into three or four balls and add food coloring, then mix the balls back together.  

Cut into leaf shapes and bake as usual.  

When they first come out of the oven, brush them generously with maple syrup and sprinkle with sugar.  

They glisten and smell divine!  They smell so good that Kitty Boy was going crazy (I think he thought we were making pancakes and bacon would be involved)!  Give it  a try - you will love them!

Be sure to visit the Paper Sweeties blog for all the new release details.  And come back tomorrow for another peek at the November Release.  See you then!

Paper Sweeties Challenge Time

It's Paper Sweeties Challenge Time!  We've got a color challenge this month.  From the picture above, you probably have no trouble figuring out the color palette.  But just in case, here are the colors:

Isn't she the cutest thing?  What a darling costume!  Perfect fall selection...

I created a 3D pumpkin out of book pages and added color with distress ink.  The sentiment is from Paper Sweeties Happy Fall Ya'll stamp set.  The papers are from Shabby Miss Jenn's Forever Fall.   Visit the Paper Sweeties blog for all the details about October's Challenge.   Would love for you to join us!