Tuesday, February 25

Alterend Notes 2

Sorry for my late post...  something came up and I wasn't able to visit my planet yesterday.  This is going to be a quick post too, as I have to do some house chores.

Anyway, on Saturday I blogged about my altered note set freebie I got from One Kings Lane.  Here's the other half of the bunch. 

Starting with the folder that came with, I made a sampler of the embossing on the 4 cards inside.  Then for closure, I just used a black ribbon.  The orange bow was made with the Unity bow maker. 







You can see the four cards inside, each having a different embossing design (Spellbinders).  I also left the white die cut blank (EK Success), so it can be personalized, or you can just write a one word greeting - like THANKS, or HI, etc.



And since the base I used is dark grey/black, I attached a white die cut (Spellbinders)  inside for whatever message that needs to be written.




This card set is postal as we speak.  I hope the recipient likes it.  

'Til next blog!

Saturday, February 22

Altered Notes

My last post was about a casette tape stamp by Yellow Owl Workshop.  I made a card set with it, which you can see by clicking here.  Anyway, I bought this stamp from One Kings Lane.  It was my first time to order from OKL, and I was very satisfied with this purchase.  There was actually a surprise that came with my goodies:





The note card set came with this message:




It is true.  Technology is kinda one of the factors that is making us lose that "personal" touch.  Even though it makes keeping in touch so much easier, cheaper and faster, wherever we are in the world.  I am guilty myself, as it seems greeting somebody "Happy Birthday" on Facebook seems to be enough.  The only time I send cards is during Christmas and New Year.  The irony is, I am a card maker.  But it is also a fact that it does cost money to send cards and letters by snail mail, especially internationally.

That note inspired me to make more cards out of the note set that came with my OKL order.  The set came with 8 envelopes and 4 embossed note cards.  I decided to make 2 card sets out of those - one with the "folder", and the other with the craft box they came with.

Here is the first set:

 

I used the same layout and elements on the four cards, except the embossing is 4 different designs (Spellbinders).  They are depicted on the box. 




To match the box, I used kraft cardstock for my card base.



Materials used:
Cardstock/dp:  Recollections, Georgia Pacific
Tools:  Spellbinders (dies and embossing folders), EK Success punch
Adhesive:  Scotch, Glossy Inkssentials


I'll show you the next set on Monday.  For now, enjoy the rest of the weekend.  'Til next blog!

Tuesday, February 18

Taped

So I was enticed by a $15 coupon of first purchase at One Kings Lane, thanks to Mish, my crafty friend from NY.  Browsing through their website, I made sure I got this stamp by Yellow Owl Workshop:


The kit came with an ink pad and a red pencil.  Remember how we used a pencil to rewind a casette tape?  I really like the concept of this kit. 




I have been into anything "casette tapes" lately.  It's a big staple of my youth.  In fact, there's this top I bought last summer and I wore it in one of our band gigs.




I was excited to play with my new stamp.  I really like the size - 2.5 x 3.5 inches.  I ended up with a mini card set using the exact same box it came with.  I was relieved to find envelopes that would fit the box.  And since they are small manila/kraft envelopes, I decided to use kraft cardstock as base for my cards as well. 




I ended up with 24 cards with matching envelopes, and they all fit perfectly in the box.  For more variety, I stamped with 6 different colors from the ColorBox Petal Point dye ink set in Provence.





And since the stamp kit came with a pencil, which I really don't need,  I added the pencil to my card set.  I made sort of like a holder for the pencil, which also gave a 3D effect on the cover of the box.




The polka-dot kraft paper?  That's actually Unity Stamp packaging.  I embossed it with matching QuicKutz polka dots embossing folder.  





I sure enjoyed making this card set.  And I love the latest addition to my stamp collection.

'Til next blog!

Monday, February 17

Post Valentine Post

I love my title today!!!

Anyway, I shared with you my Valentine project last week (click here to see).  I mentioned there that I helped a friend make Valentine treats for her twins to give to their classmates.  Well, I have shared only one project.  The other treat is a Valentine Treasure Chest filled with yummy Kisses and Hugs.

It's designed by the late Katie Renz for Clearly iStamp (click here to see).  What I really love here is the material used for the lid.  It's actually from a book of wall paper samples.  My friend bought it from Home Depot for $1 per book.  That's something to look out for next time. 





The hearts were made with Creative Memories heart punch.  We didn't have time to add key holes... hee hee!  For closure, we used magnet strips from Xyron.  But that didn't work.  We ended up using Velcro, just like what the tutorial recommended.    What made this chest special is the message inside which says "This treasure is for you, Valentine".  It was thought of by one of the twins.  And for more personalization, he wrote his name on punched pieces of paper.

During times when you are busy with real life stuff, I'm really thankful there are tutorials like this by crafters available online.  It cuts time from the thinking and planning process.  Thanks to them, we are able to make Valentine treat bags for a whole class, multiply that by two.

'Til next blog!

Friday, February 14

Snappy Valentine

Hope your Valentine celebration was extra sweet.

For the past couple of days, I was helping my friend make Valentine treat bags for her twins to give to their classmates.  I was actually glad, because with my new work, I thought I won't be able to make Valentine goodies anymore.  

So she got this alligator template from Skip to My Lou, as her daughter is into alligators lately, and NOT crocodiles.  It's designed to where you can put treats inside.  It can fit 3 peppermint patties comfortably.  We made 22 of these alligators, and when I got home, I just had to make a couple more for my crafting pleasure.


I curled the sentiment a bit to emphasize the tongue.  Then for the nostrils, I adhered two green pearl accents.




I had to add texture, so I embossed designer paper that would look alligator-ish and adhered it to the body.  This embossing folder is by Cuttlebug - from their Asian set.  The design gave my alligator some scales. 




I also embossed a separate piece for the tummy side, where I adhered the legs with brads so they can actually move/wiggle.  This embossing folder by Tim Holtz is perfect for the look I want to achieve.



I really enjoyed making these alligators.  And I think the template is well designed, fitting so well on a 8.5 x 11 cardstock.  You can download it by clicking here.

'Til next blog!

Wednesday, February 12

Altered Eclipse 2

For my second altered Eclipse tin, I used an adhesive backed denim sheet I bought from the 100 Yen store in Japan.  I wanted this one really simple, making it look plain in front.  


On the lid and on the back, I added some accents and a strip of washi paper.



Now,  I wonder where I hid the rest of my tins....

'Til next blog!




Tuesday, February 11

Altered Eclipse


I have been a Sams Club junkie for a long time.  And one of the things I like to buy there are the Altoids and Eclipse mints because of their tins.  Yeah, I like to repurpose them.  I have had several projects with the Altoid tins (regular and mini), but not with the Eclipse ones.  Well, I had the chance to play with them several weeks ago.




I wanted it to be a quick and easy project, so I used adhesive backed fabric from my stash.





For the one on the left, I used fabric tape remnants.  To break the pattern, I added a strip of washi tape.  The flip cover has embossing on it, so I covered both sides with fabric as well.





Back side.


Back side opened.

I'll show the other tin in detail tomorrow.  'Til then!

Monday, February 10

Here

How's your Monday so far?  I can't believe we're almost halfway to the second month of the year, and then it's Valentine's Day already.  I guess it's true what they say - time flies faster as you get older.  Somehow, I still think I'm in my younger years.  I have to remind myself that I am getting older.

Anyway, here's the last card of from my Joann's and Meijer loot.  This one's very simple, but I'm really liking the effect of Smooch Spritz.  I should use it more often.  There are a lot of things in my planet that need to be used more often.  And believe me, I'm trying to start :)





'Til next blog!












 

Saturday, February 8

You Rock

Happy Saturday!  Time for more play in my planet.  However, that's after I finish "real" household chores.  Laundry is in progress, and I'm about to start vacuuming the carpets and tidying up the kitchen. 

But before that, let me share with you Card No. 5 from my Joann's and Meijer loot.

This is not the first time I used this embossing folder, and everytime I use it, I love it more and more!





Have a great weekend... 'til next blog!



Friday, February 7

Heck

In case you missed it, you can see the previous three cards by clicking on the following:
This fourth card is one of my faves.  I love how the bleeding of the coloring actually went well with the overall theme of the card.





TGIF... 'til next blog!

Thursday, February 6

OMG

Today's card is the third of a series made with my Joann's and Meijer loot.  This stamp is originally a dollar at Joann's but I got it on clearance with additional discount, so I ended up paying only 35 cents.  The first card is called ME, which you can see by clicking here.  And the second card is DANG, which you can see here.

What I love about this card is the no planning involved.  I kept with the rugged look of the embossed background, and added tearing on the silver washi tape.  It gave the look of a card made in a rush because you suddenly remembered somebody's birthday.





'Til next blog!

Wednesday, February 5

Dang

Happy Wednesday!  

Here's the second card from my Joann's and Meijer's haul.  I love how the silver accents go well with the washi tape I used.



You can see card no. 1 by clicking here, and my Joann's and Meijer loot by clicking here.

'Til next blog!

ME

Yesterday, I blogged about my latest haul from Joann's and Meijer.  Well, I accompanied those stamps with Spellbinders Labels 17, Tim Holtz embossing folders, Copic markers, Core'dinations cardstock and Smooch Spritz to create six A2 cards.  

Let me share with you the first card of the bunch:





'Til next blog!

Monday, February 3

Latest Loot

Each time I go to any store or go shopping online, I make sure to check out the clearance or specials section.  You just don't know what you'll see, and what you'll get.  Often times, I get lucky.  And because of that, I rarely buy anything in its MSRP anymore.  I know somewhere, somehow, I can get it cheaper.

On my last visit to Joann's, I saw these Studio G dollar stamps for only 50 cents each.  


I had a 30% discount off total purchase coupon, so I ended up paying only 35 cents for each of these stamps.  Way cool huh?

Then at Meijer, I saw these washi tapes in their clearance section.




And if I remember it right, everything in that rack had an additional 70% off.  I only paid just a little over a dollar for all 5 rolls.  Now how can you say no to that?

I already had plans on making a card set with my latest haul.  And last weekend, I was able to make six cards, one for each stamp.  I colored each image with Copics, and cut with the same Spellbinders die.


I'll show each card in detail in the coming days.  For now, have a great week, crafty reader!  'Til next blog...

Saturday, February 1

Happy New Year!

Hello crafty friends!  How's your 2014 so far?  Mine's been super crazy with a lot of ups and downs - new job (yey!) and my grandma passing away (sob!).  I intentionally didn't post for the whole month of January as I wanted to finish cataloging my stamps.  Yes.  I finally did it.  I have bought so many stamps the past couple of years, but I haven't taken them out of their packaging.  So I told myself I won't post anything until I put them in the right place.  The fun part is seeing all these beautiful stamps that have been in my possession, and now I can't wait to play with them.  The frustrating part is that during the process, I found stamps that I already have and ended up buying again.  Because they were not catalogued.  But those doubles are good reason for some blog candies in the future... yeah!  It's been a while since I gave out blog candy.  

Anyway, for my first post this year, I want to share with you an altered project.  I have been keeping a lot of these candy/gum containers, well, because I wanted to alter them.  This one is a Black Black mint container I bought from Japan.


I peeled off the label, and it gave me a really nice small container, perfect for altering.




I wanted to stick to the black and white color scheme of the container, so I took out a bunch of washi tapes from my stash.




The washi tape adhered really well to the plastic container, and I super love the final product!


Front

Back
 
The bottom is glitter cardstock punched with Creative Memories circle punch.  It was a perfect size.

Closer look.

I added bling under the cap, making this container extra special.



I have to say that this one is definitely a keeper.  'Til next blog!