Saturday 28 February 2009

New home card and gift.

I made this new home card with the Neighbourhood Stampin' Up! roller, all the little houses printed out in a row - so cute!!
They are coloured with Copic pens and the house gift box took a little while to work out but i really like how it turned out :) It is filled with Thorntons chocolate bars as im sure during a house move the last thing you think to do is relax with a bar of choccy!! :)

Have a good weekend xxx

Friday 27 February 2009

Thankful its Friday!

Im shattered - dont know if im coming down with a cold or something as i dont usually feel this tired!

WARNING - POST IS PICTURE HEAVY!!

The boys wanted desert last night and i made a fruit salad - kid style! I love these mini sparklers - they were on sale at Christmas from Whittards of Chelsea and dont half come in handy for that excitement factor! LOL

Is it just me or are Gu brownies the closest thing to Heaven EVER!! They deserve a little box all their own (no its not just so the kids think they have all gone and i now have a secret stash!!) ;) Heres a tutorial on the little tie box i made to house/hide them! lol

You can use 12x12 or A4 patterened paper or cardstock. I used 12x12 as i wanted the pattern - please bear in mind though that i have now sworn i will never work out a template based on paper with diagonal stripes! Boy do those lines run look wonky when youre drawing and cutting!

First of all you need to draw a rectangle consisting of three rows of 4 squares measuring 2.75 inches x 2.75 inches. Add a 1 inch strip at the end which will work as a tab to hold the sides together.Cut this section out Score all of the lines
Turn it back over onto the drawn on side and you need the top to look like this......
On the second and fourth squares at the top mark the centre points and cut away the remaining card/paper to leave little triangles. Squares one and three need to be cut 1.4 inchs in from the top.Punch a hole into the top of each triangle
Mark the bottom (squares two and 4) to create a half inch lip.
Cut away these sections
Fold over all the lips and place double sided tape on each.
Bring up the left hand side and stick the first lip to the first whole base square. (see below) Then attach the sticky tape to the second whole square base (this is done now to stop it from sticking to the mat while you press down the first lip.
Stick all of the base together finishing with the little lip on the inside base. At this point the side lip will be easy to attach to the inside, press all edges to secure the tape firmly.
Fill with goodies and thread ribbon through the two holes, fastening in a double knot.
Decorate and finish as you would like :)

Tomorrow is crop day so im hoping to make lots of goodies (ok, i will probably make one card and chat the rest of the time!) LOL

Have a lovely weekend
xxx

Thursday 26 February 2009

The morning after.......

Last night was great! I broke the news we were going out with a little romantic gesture.........It was lovely to actually have an adult conversation without having to stop every two minutes to discuss which one is better....... Hannah Montanna or The Suite Life of Zack & Cody, cries of 'mum ive spilled my juice' and 'dad I need the toilet'! LOLThe food was gorgeous (Thai - bang went the diet!) and we came home to a happy home with 2 boys tucked in bed and 2 boys lying on the sofas about to fall asleep :D Claire is a star and i dont think they frightened her off forever!! :)

Ive been making some cards with my new Stampin' Up! goodies - i adore this little truck and the accessory pack is next on my list with lots more items to fill up the back of the truck! :D
All coloured using Copic - i need lots of practice but so far im loving them!!

Wednesday 25 February 2009

Cupboards, card and sssshhhh its a secret!!

OK, cupboards first since i had a request to show pictures :) The paint is lovely and i adore Laura Ashley anyway (couldnt you just move straight into one of their stores! *swoon* ) The colour is biscuit and i bought it ages ago when i made over a sideboard (which is still holiding up well!) The colour goes perfectly with the tiles and oven! lolI made a little mini card with the Stampin Up Fun and Fast note stamps. I coloured the pram using COPIC caio markers, inked the edge in soft pink chalk ink and layered it onto Basic Grey patterned paper :)
Heres my secret........................Im going on a date tonight and dh doesnt know about it!! (he is out all day too so wont read my blog until its too late!)

Before you all gasp in horror at my confession i need to confess its my gorgeous hubby im going out with ......for the first time ON OUR OWN WITHOUT KIDS in probably over 8 years!!.
I have this fabulous friend who i met through stamping who is just about the only person i would trust with the kids (besides family but even then one sis has her own girl, another sis just isnt into kids and my mum lives 200 miles away!) - bearing in mind i have 4 boys that would run circles round a circus ringleader! Claire is as wacky as the boys and can no doubt tire them out before they wear her out!

I thought it would be a nice suprise to just have hubbies clothes ready for him tonight and once Claire turns up tell him that we are having our first date night :) So excited!! xxxSo cool - look at todays sentiment on the calender!! *click for bigger pic*

Hugs
Debbie
xxx

Tuesday 24 February 2009

Tuesday rundown...

Sorry i didnt get to post yesterday, you know when you start something then realise just what you let yourself in for?? Well, i started painting the kitchen cupboards in Laura Ashley Biscuit eggshell paint which makes them look lovely and fresh.............which led to me deep cleaning the rest of the kitchen.......which led to me moving furniture in the living room...........and bedroom............you get the idea!! I finally crashed at midnight knowing i had to get up to a completely overhaul this morning as lots still needed putting away, but im finished now and i thought i would treat myself to a little crafting session.

Anyway to start off im going to give myself another little shout out as i got an honorable menion on the Papertrey Ink blog!! Im such a happy bunny right now! :)

Im going to invite some girls around for a coffee and crop session as i loved having them here last time and theres more of a friendship aspect to it than sitting in a crop hall (as much as i love that too!!)
These are stamped with the Papertrey Ink Warm Happiness stamps, baby blue chalk ink, Latte and espresso adirondak inks. The ribbon is from Stampin Up.
I found the Hersheys kisses in Fenwicks (along with Lucky Charms, Goobers, Marshmallow Fluff, Bazooka gum and lots of other goodies!!)

See you soon girls xxx

Sunday 22 February 2009

This weekend....

...has included...

1. American Idol
2. Dinner at Yo sushi
3. A pitcher of alcohol
4. Indulgence at the MAC counter
5. Almost getting my eyebrows threaded (can anyone recommend this??)
6. Watching superscary movies!
7. Picking up son nmber 1 so we now have a full house again
8. Getting clothes together for back to school day tomorrow

.....bliss!! :) :)

I will be back tomorrow with some pics of goodies ive made :)

Friday 20 February 2009

Easter box ....

Well it could be used for any occasion but i thought the top kind of lended itself to a suprise opening instead of just the normal box/lid combo :)

I worked it out using an A4 sheet as some readers required something smaller than the 12x12 sheets scrapbookers use :)

First of all cut down a sheet of A4 paper to 10.5/8 inches.You need to measure the following and mark at both ends so that they line up on the scoreboard ready for scoring all sections.
Score all sections vertically and horizontally.
Cut out the pieces that are not needed - follow pic below for which ones to get rid of.
You can now use this as a template for use on either patterened paper or card to save doing all the measuring etc next time. Trace template onto you required paper/card.
Cut and score all folding pieces.
Use DST to secure the side reinforcements. Because this box is top opening both of the reinforcements fold into the same middle section thus making the whole box really sturdy.
Decorate as you like....i popped a little double sided velcro dot onto the lid lip which means its easily closed and opened. The stickers were found in a £1 shop and the colours are ideal for a little special pressie instead of the normal easter egg :)
Enjoy :)

Thursday 19 February 2009

Kiddy day out...

Today was the day the kids have been waiting for... they were told if they behaved this holiday week, then the first fine day, we could go into town and spend the day doing things they wanted to :)

First off was a stop at the juice bar for homemade chocolate milkshakes.

A stop at the £1 shop to pick up something each (they were so excited to spend one of their own £1 coins from their pocket money - it was lovely to see this when so many kids rant and rave for expensive things!) Im hoping they will learn to appreciate money and not just 'expect' it.

Then we stopped for brunch, this waiting for something to eat is hard work you know - ok so cooked breakfast isnt on my diet but i couldnt really sit there while the kids had theirs could i!! lol

Then we headed to see Bolt - cool film and worth seeing but there were horrid black lines all down the screen which kind of spoiled it! I complained once we got outside and was suprised to see there was only one other lady there who was mentioning it too. We got free tickets to see Hotel for Dogs next week so fingers crossed that one is ok :)

All in all a good day xxx

Wednesday 18 February 2009

Where would we be without.....

..Friends :)

I have so many friends to be greatful for its a lovely feeling. I really mean this, all of my friends are from forums online. (except one - and ive only been in touch with her this week after a year and a half of no contact!)
I have met some of them, maybe a day cropping or a weekend away at a retreat etc and i really do appreciate the fact they are as lovely in real life but you know what.........even the ones i havent met i hope would know that if they need anything im always here.During the last year they have helped me through so much and for that i will always be greatful. For you, my friends, here are a couple of thank you cards, i love you all :)


Supplies used:-

Birdcage card.....
Hero arts stamps Birdcage F4899
Bazzill cardstock
Prima flowers
October afternoon papers
Papertrey Ink Sentiment

You are a great friend...
Hero arts Clear stamps CL184 Thoughtful messages (flowers, butterfly and sentiment)
Bazzill cardstock
Hero Arts Gem flowers
October afternoon paper
Adirondac ink - espresso
Baby blue and pistachio chalk inks
Baby blue and diamond stickles

Tuesday 17 February 2009

Stampin Up.....

I am now a Stampin Up demonstrator!! Expect some creations made with their stamps etc as my demo kit should be arriving soon. If you like in Co Durham or Tyne and Wear and would like a demo of these products or would like to place an order dont hesitate to give me a yell :)

Here is a little note box i have made out of the packaging that comes with the Papertrey Ink stamps. I cut it in half and made a little boxbase for the top to slide into. This was then fastened with ribbon. I handstamped the sentiment and hearts onto the thank you notes, rolled them a little so they would sit snuggly into the box and popped those inside with some pretty pens - you then have a little kit ready to either give as a gift or use yourself when you need to send out those appreciative notes :)

Saturday 14 February 2009

Double cupcake box!



Click on image for dimensions :D

Friday 13 February 2009

Honorable mention!!

Yayy, i logged onto the Hero Arts blog yesterday and was so excited when i saw that i had an honorable mention for the card i made! It was quite funny as i thought the animals were just cute until one of the other girls said it looks like the elephant just told a joke that the giraffe doesnt get - his face says it all really! LOLThank you everyone for the kind comments regarding the cupcake box - im working on a double cupcake box at the minute so will post more pics when i can :)

Wednesday 11 February 2009

More instructions, more boxes and more cards..

Ok, so i will share the more boxes bit as soon as the glues dry and i can take a decent pic in tomorrows light :D
Here are some more instructions for the cupcake box below, i hadnt realised you couldnt see the dimensions properly in the photo so hopefully even without the photograph these guidelines should help :)

Take a piece of 12x12 paper and draw a line from top to bottom 3 inches in from the left hand side.
Draw another line parallel to this 2 3/4 inches over to the right, and another 3 inches after that.
You should now have one 3 inch column, one 2 3/4 inch column and a final 3 inch column (there will be space on the right hand side which can be discarded now.)
Draw a horizontal line across the parallel lines in the following order working up from the bottom.
2 3/4 inch then from that line...
2 3/4 inch then from that line...
2 3/4 inch then from that line...
2 3/4 inch then from that line there should be 1/4 inch left which is the piece of the lid you tuck into the box to keep the lid closed.
The sides that are 3 inches wide need to be scored at the 2 3/4 inch mark, this leaves a little lip that is folded in on its self for the lid to rest on.
Score all of the other lines too. This can be done with a scoring tool either on the end of a trimmer or scoring board. If you have neither of those then carefully fold along all of the lines and gently rub against the creases so they hold position.
Open back out and now you need to cut away some of the excess. Place it back in front of you the way that it initially was - with the 1/2 inch marker at the top. Have a look at picture 1 on my blog and it will show that i left a little extra at either side of the score lines which are to secure the sides against the back etc - these can be as big as you like - you could even leave the extras the same size as the sides so that it is completely reinforced.
The window is cut 1 1/2 inches either side of the final two 2 3/4 boxes to create a 3 inch window. (see pic 1 on my blog)
Round the edges of the 1/2 lip which will make it tuck into the box easier.

Hope that makes the overall structure simpler :) Give me a yell if you have any questions.

I received Spiral Bouquet today from PTI and its gorgeous! Here is a card i made with one of the stamps. I created my own background with 1 stamp, added a little Basic Grey, some buttons and a PTI sentiment. The background twinkles with different coloured stickles and they look like little berries!

Monday 9 February 2009

Cupcake Gift box!

Having a love of cupcakes and a love of papers has to work together - dont you agree?? I can have the best of both worlds and make cupcakes as presents and also the box to give them in!! I managed to work out this one so that it fits onto a 12x12 sheet of cardstock and could even be adapted for an A4 sheet of card.
Instructions are as follows, please excuse if the pics arent all really clear as i was taking the pics as i was working it all out! lol

Cut out and around template, score the pieces to be folded and all of the edges. Score and cut out a 2 1/4in by 2 1/2in window half in the lid, half down the side. Cut a piece of acetate slightly larger, score the middle horizontally and stick onto the underside of the window you just cut. Stick double sided tape along all of the cut flaps, fold them in and stick them down. You need a little stand inside for the cupcake to fit securely. Cut a piece of sturdy card half an inch larger than the base of the box. Score 1/4 of an inch all the way round and snip the corners. I used a nestability die to cut the scallop circle from the middle - you can use a punch, die, even plain old scissors, whatever. Score and fold the 1/4in strips around the outside and you should have a little seated tray - this can be popped straight into the box. Decorate the box as you wish :)
Hope that was ok to follow and if anyone has any questions just give me a yell :)

I would love to see a picture if anyone does make some of these as im quite proud of my little box! :)