Arigato ( Thank You) Card

 This simple card was made using an old Sizzix die (the thick heavy kind).  Because I couldn't find just the right Asian-looking card stock, I sprayed (Elmer's Spray Adhesive) on a card stock and adhered two different Japanese printed paper (from HM Ben Franklin Crafts) to both sides of the card stock before cutting it with the Sizzix die.

The inner circle is a die cut watercolor paper piece that was stamped with the girl image (Dandelion Designs), colored in and then painted with masking fluid.  Once the fluid was dry, I spritzed the circle with water and applied green watercolor paint before stamping with a cherry blossom stamp inked with Distress ink.  The kimono was paper pieced and the Japanese characters plus stamped, colored flowers were adhered with foam dots.

Since this card is going to someone who can read the 'arigato' Japanese characters, I didn't need to include an English translation, but a simple 'thank you' die cut could easily be added to the card.  The back of the card has ample room to write a sincere thank you message for the well-chosen birthday gift I received.  With the prevalent use of text messages, very few people send 'real' thank you notes but I really would love it if the courtesy of a handwritten gratitude would return. I guess I'm just an old fashioned dreamer living in an age of impersonal electronic devices.

Belated Cat Birthday Card

 Usually, I am very good about getting birthday cards and gifts to the recipient in a timely fashion, but sometimes there are unforeseen circumstances.  I was going to give the birthday girl something that she admired in My Locker Box (Hilo) but when I returned to get it....it had sold!  Oh well, I could make another one except that the pendant was a one-of-a-kind. Finally, I located another similarly carved pendant, but then I couldn't find the cording.  Where did I put the roll?  Despite all these set backs, I am confident that I will finish the gift before the end of 2016.  LOL!

Anyway, here is the belated birthday card that I whipped up from a blank card in a 'Justwrite' set by American Crafts.  This is an old product (from my stash) that contains rather plain designs which makes them fun to jazz up with images like the Art Impressions 'shake your booty' cat. (This stamp set comes with one sticker spring to attach to your card to make the cat's behind wiggle.)

The gold 'happy birthday' letters were Pebbles rub-ons and the cat's party hat was rubbed on before cutting the feline out.  Some of the sequins came from the Doodlebug Designs set of 12 colors and I like the way they add just a little bling.  Also the sequins and gold mist spray help to cover a few boo-boos...LOL!  This card came together very quickly because of the pre-made card and rub-on elements which is a good thing or I would be even later mailing out the gift.  That's it for today....got lots of other projects that need to be completed.  Thanks for stopping by!

Bee Happy!

 As a proud contributor to the Adopt-a- Beehive program sponsored by UHH and Alan Wong, I am happy to say that there is a bee hive in Hilo with my name on it.  That's why I am bee happy!  Besides helping deserving students acquire scholarships, I get honey from my hive mailed to my home.  As a special thank you to the student who is caring for my prolific hive, I decided to send this card and enclose a gift card.

The first photo is the correct color, but does not show the details of the die cut honeycomb (Intricutz) made from vellum. I hope this close-up photo gives you a better idea of how appropriate this die was (even though I had a hard time keeping the hexagons in their frames). The honeycomb impressions were made by simply reversing the honeycomb die so it wouldn't cut the paper.  (I couldn't find my honeycomb impression folder...necessity IS the mother of invention!)

 I wanted to have the gift card pop up, but I guess I should have used stiff card stock instead of washi tape to hold the tuck-in part upright. However, I really wanted to use the Little B washi tape since it matched, so I decided to just make a pocket. The rubber stamps were really old ones from my unmanageable stash....someday if the news reports the death of a crafter found under her supplies, it may be me!  Hoarder alert! Thanks for buzzing by..........

Happy Girl's Day treat holder

 This project was inspired by a cute stamp I purchased from Taj clubhouse at Ward Warehouse.  (The word stamp was from there, too.)  I decided to practice my masking and watercolored background techniques. After stamping in black, I colored the image in before masking it with liquid mask.  Once the mask was dry, I had fun spraying the watercolor paper circle with water and dabbing on some green watercolor paint.  Before it all dried I stamped the Sister Stamps cherry blossoms with pink Distress ink.

I think this Girl's Day treat holder would be a fun thing to leave on a co-worker's desk.  Three Big Island Candies shortbread cookies fit nicely in the hidden space.  I think a small candy bar is another option.

 Once your gift treats are eaten, the holder is a nice place to hide additional goodies for that late afternoon energy boost.

I didn't have the right printed card stock so I used Elmer's Spray Adhesive (from Ben Franklin Crafts) on some Japanese paper (lots to choose from at BFC) and adhered it to green card stock before using the Sizzix die to cut out the stand up card (now treat holder).

 As usual I had some extra practice pieces leftover which I couldn't waste so I turned them into a tag.  I used the Little B tag die from the set to cut the large tag.  I think I like the watercolored background on this tag better than the one on the treat holder.  For this tag I used a Petaloo flower but the treat holder is decorated with cherry blossoms purchased in Japan.....BFC does have some in the floral department.  The Wilton leaves were purchased in the cake decorating section of HM Ben Franklin Crafts. The yellow ombre Heiko ribbon is from Celebrations where they have lots of pretty colors of soft ombre ribbons.

I hope your Girl's Day is sweet and pretty!  Enjoy the start of spring!  Easter crafting begins!

Make It Quicker.... Use Some Stickers

This card was made for a golfer who dreams of hitting a score like 64 so I thought it would be fun to use his age to make a golfer's birthday card for him.  After returning from the CHA (Craft and Hobby Association) show, I had very little time to whip up a birthday card so I decided to cut corners and use dies and stickers.  Luckily, at the show I purchased a die for a golf bag and clubs (Lea'bilities )so it was a snap to run brown paper (for the bag) and silver luster paper (DCWV 6x6 pad)(for the clubs) through my Big Shot machine.  I used the Martha Stewart grass punch to make the ground and then finished up the card with the sticker letters and numbers. Over the years my stash of leftover letters and numbers (lots from clearance bins) has really come in handy for quickie cards.  I love that I can re-position stickers unlike stamping which leaves little room for error.

I like to dress up envelopes but the shortage of time made me look for a quick solution.  I just purchased a Little B birthday punch (from HM Ben Franklin Crafts) and thought a punched band would add a decorative touch with very little effort. This band decoration is only recommended only for hand delivered cards.  As I play with this new punch, I hope to come up with more uses for this fun tool. Oh, in the bottom photo is an 'awesome' die (Frantic Stamper Inc.) which I used inside the card (not shown). It is my hope that this post has shown you how easy it is to make a handmade card and not make it so fussy that the recipient feels obliged to keep it for decades....do men ever save cards?

Gift Wrapping with Tulle

 I love to use the tulle on a roll that is sold at HM Ben Franklin Crafts.  Mostly, I use it in place of ribbons for gift wrapping.  Tulle is so forgiving because you can re-tie it over and over until you get it just right.  Also it fluffs out easily and can even be re-used.  Here are two gifts tied with tulle that I accented with artificial roses (from the BFC wedding dept.) and paper butterfly stickers (Studio G) that are glued in place with Beacon 3 in 1. Yes, the green tulle does come with glitter on it!

Do you have a creative use for the tulle sold on a roll?  I'd love to hear about it.  Okay, that's it for this surprisingly short post. LOL!

When Life Gives You Lemons.....

.................make lemon bread and lemon curd (butter)!  Yes, it's lemon season again or at least my little tree thinks it is.  I'm always on the hunt for new lemon recipe and when I spied the 'pain de citron' (French for lemon bread) recipe in the Paper Crafts book that I purchasedat HM Ben Franklin Crafts, I knew I had to try it.  Instead of one large loaf, I made two small loaves that I baked in silicon baking loaf pans.  The minor changes I made to the recipe was replacing regular flour with white whole wheat flour (King Arthur) and using coconut oil instead of vegetable oil.  I think these ingredients make the bread a little healthier.

The Paper Crafts book showed how to dress up baked goods for gift giving.  I used Penny Black stamped images to decorate my lemon bread and lemon curd (Martha Stewart recipe). These little touches make simple home cooked gifts even more special. Oh, the bread loaf was bigger but I couldn't resist eating some and then I remembered that I needed to take a photo. LOL!  The bread was dense and flavorful but not overly sweet...great with tea.  Hope you'll look for this book because it has lots of great recipes and paper projects.  Have a tasty, crafty day!