Mystery Picture

Hi friends,
Look at what I found in my house yesterday!!! And guess what??? I'm so happy about it! Any guesses??? Bwaahaahaa!!! :)


PS: I will have a tutorial for Frankie & Mummy and for the Christmas Card Tabletop Display coming soon!

Thanksgiving Frame

Hi friends,
This is such a great time of the year for me. I usually look forward with anticipation...why??? Kids back to school--->no, (remember, I'm a teacher, that's so not it ;) Leaves turning their beautiful colors--->nope, (I'm in So cal, not so much of the beautiful foliage like on the East Coast). Give up? It's this time when Pumpkin Spice Latte returns to Starbucks!!! Yeah, baby!!! Ohhh, I luuuuv Pumpkin Spice Latte. (heart*heart*heart*) Starbucks stock will shoot up for the next few months Hee! Hee! Well, let's get on with today's project, shall we...

I call it "A Curiosity Creation"Huh? What? (I'll explain in a bit). This is a very inexpensive project to do--- how does under $3 sound? I like, I like! Let me break it down for ya!

8x10 White Wood Frame $1 (Dollar Store)
Pattern Paper $.059
1 sheet Summer Sun Cardstock $0.25
Scrap pieces Really Rust CS, Pumpkin Pie CS $0.46
1 sheet Espresso CS $0.16
-----------------------------------
Total: $2.46

The fall paper (with the squares) was FREE. Actually, this is the free paper sample (Autumn Abundance) you can print out from Papertrey Ink. I loved the colors & wanted to see what they looked like IRL (in real life). (This is where the curiosity takes place) so I printed it out. Because I hate throwing anything away, I thought, "What can I do with this paper?" And voilà... this project was born :) I die cut the letters with the Curlie Girlie Sizzix alphabet in the Espresso CS. I used micro pop dots to pop them on to the squares. I adhered that to the Summer Sun CS, & adhered that to the Pattern Paper. Then I popped it into the frame. I punched out three 3 leaves, crumbled them up, & inked them to age them a bit.

Edited to Add: The squares measure 1 5/8" x 1 5/8". When you print it out from PTI, it will print exactly as shown in my project. You don't need to cut the squares out. Make sense??

Here's a closer peek at them:
They look very realistic IRL. To finish I added a bow to the opposite corner. Really simple, real cost -effective, don't ya think? I think this would look just lovely in an entry way table to welcome guests for Thanksgiving dinner. I'm adding Tim Holtz Distress Crackle paint on the corners to finish it up!

Thanks so much for peekin' at my project today :) I have loads of papers to grade--->yes, already! I'm off to grade them while sippin' on some Pumpkin Spice Latte!---Gotta Go!

The 411
Paper: Summer Sun- PTI, Really Rust, Pumpkin Pie- SU!, Fall Stripe PP- K&Co, Autumn Abundance PP Sample - PTI
Ink: Chestnut Roan- ColorBox
Tools: Curlie Girlie Alphabet Dies- Sizzix, Leaf Punch-Marvy Uchida
Other: Micro pop dots, ribbon

Sweet Dreamer's Challenge # 6 Get Your Motor Running!

Hi friends,
Today I have this card for Sweet Dreamer's Challenge #6 "Get Your Motor Running!"
Our challenge was to use anything with a motor. I thought I wouldn't be able to join this challenge b/c I couldn't remember having anything with a motor. Then I checked my stamp book & saw this one! Woo Hoo! I get to play after all :) Very straight forward card. I colored, cut out, pop-dot the truck to the panel and replaced the wheels with buttons. Fall is just about here- but in my neck of the woods (Southern California) it is HOT!!! All the fires aren't helping either :(

Some bit of news... YMH would like to give away a Cricut Cartridge! You can find all the deets here.

Thanks for peekin' today! I'm spending the day at the marina with family & friends---one last outing before we're back to our regular program--->Gotta Go!

The 411
Stamps: Loads of love, Loads of love Accessories, Branch out- SU!
Paper: Stained glass, Espresso CS- DCWV, White CS
Ink: Chocolate Chip, Pumpkin Pie, More Mustard- SU!, Memento Black
Other: Buttons, Copics

Test Tube Trio Treats

Hi friends,
Today I have this Test Tube Trio Treat Box (say that 3 times fast ;) to share with ya today. I luuuv the goo punch (from Martha Stewart)! It's just perfect for this kind of project :) Actually, I used a lot of MS products on this. I created the box following the uber fab Lisa Somerville's template---> (adjusting it for 3 tubes). I bought the tubes from "Uncle Mike's" & cleaned him out! I like to hoard! Don't hate me for that! (Wait, let me make sure I spelled that right- yes, hoard) Tee Hee! I'm sure they'll get more in. I like these because they're a great size, they're hard plastic (sturdy, but not breakable), they come in an 8 pack, & I like the cork top! I couldn't think of a better way to use my coupons :) I filled them with coordinating Halloween M&Ms. It didn't take too many. I don't know what to do with ALL the extra?? ;) I guess I'll have to dispose of them... down my esophagus!

Edited to Add: To answer Karen's question on how to make the gooey circle around the tubes... I just punched out a circle & put it in the punch & simply punched & rotated it until I had done that all the way around. It won't look exactly drippy, but it looks pretty good, ay!

Thanks so much for peeking at my gooey creation. I've got loads of projects brewing in my mind & I don't know where to start! I know, tragic--->Gotta go, but have a fabulous Labor Day Weekend! (US)

The 411
Paper: Black CS, Green CS, Halloween Print- DCWV
Tools: Bat Punch, Cat Punch, Skull & Crossbones Punch, Goo Drip Border Punch- Martha Stewart
Other: Stickers- MS, Test Tubes-MS, ribbon

For Frankie

Hi friends,
After making Frankie, I thought he needed a girl---so I created her:

Watch out Halli Berry! Check out those come hither lashes...and her style. That trademark hair goes on & on! I created those wavy locks by dry embossing the white streak part. I started on one side, slid it across & worked my way to the other side. Frankie could not be more smitten ;) I mean, look at her- she's a knockout! She fits in a No. 10 (business size envelope). So now Mummy is feelin' like a third wheel :( Maybe I'll have to dig someone up for him (Tee! Hee!)

Thanks so much for peeking today! I've got one more project from the "bat files" to share with ya---Gotta go!

Friends Resurrected

Hi friends,
I'm pulling out some cards & projects from the "Bat Files" to share with you. These were all over SCS last year & I went insano cranking them out! (cause I made a bazillion!) These Frankie & Mummy cards are SOOOO fun & easy-peasy to make! Don't they just put a smile on your face? Frankie is made almost entirely out of punches. For my mummy, I decided to use gauze instead of paper- for a more authentic & realistic feel! I ran the gauze directly on the ink pad to age it up & added googlie eyes. I can make a tutorial on these if anyone is interested, but I thought everyone is probably familiar with these :)

Thanks so much for peekin' today! I'm off to eat a little & call it a day!---Gotta go!

Christmas Card Display & YMH News

Hi friends,
I have a project to get you thinkin' about the Holiday Season. I know it's way early, but my brain works in its own place & time! For the most part I just try to stay out of it's way & let it do it's thing! I have created a very simple Tabletop Card Display. I don't get an avalanche of Christmas cards, and sad, but true- they eventually end up in the round file. But not the handcrafted ones ;) I wanted to create something where I can showcase the handmade ones that I receive so that they get a "special" place- since they're heartmade. Here it is:
It's Christmas Tree shaped & it has 3 sides/panels with a very dimensional star at the top.

Here's a view of each of the 3 sides/panels:
Side 1:


Side 2:

Side 3:
The panels flow from one paper to the next seamlessly. The bottoms are anchored with this fabulous ribbon from Pebbles Inc. It comes with 5 different patterns of the same color (Olive, in this case). I absolutely LOVED working with this ribbon! I created & adhered bows to each bottom edge & center.

I used some Clips (in the Christmas Theme) to hold the cards to the display. I used velcro behind the clips so I could rearrange the cards if I chose to. Here's a look at the cards arranged on the display:
The clips hold the cards very securely. You can add more or fewer. This is a great way to display photos or photo cards as well. This is a picture of my little one (when he was a little one still -insert tears here- He doesn't look like this anymore, so that's why I'm sharing this one.)

Now here is a quick card I made incorporating the clips & the ribbon:
I took some ribbon strips, frayed the edges a bit & added them to the panel to create the tree. I scattered some bling to decorate. If you notice the clips serve two purposes: 1) to attach the panel to the card and 2) as the message. The clips are pre-printed with Christmas words. These read "Merry" "Christmas" (just in case it's a little hard to read.) If you don't want the word to show, you can just flip it over to the back where it's blank- you can use both sides. You can add your own word if you'd like. It also comes with a clipper tool to make it easy to clip them to papers. They're just a fun little embelly that doesn't add a lot of bulk.

The best part is that these items are ON SALE for seriously bonker prices! The ribbon comes in almost a dozen colors. You will love it! The clips with the clipper tool come in different themes (not just Christmas). Ok, but get this: because this is a grand reopening of Your Memories Here Store you will get an additional 10% off---> including sale & clearance items! Woo Hoo! There will also be giveaways all week on the YMH Design blog. Sign up to be a follower & enter the drawings for your chance to win. Be sure to check the YMH Design Blog for all the deets & giveaways! You will also get to peek at what the rest of the DT has created :)

Here's a quick link to the ribbon and the clips. They have lots of other goodies on sale too.

Thanks so much for peekin' today! I hope you can jump in on the ribbon, other goodies & win some prizes too! Bye for now :)

The 411
Paper: Oh Joy- Cosmo Cricket
Other: Olive Ribbon- Pebbles, Inc, Clipper +50 clips (Christmas)- Around the Block