My 2014 Top Operation Write Home Cards

This was my first year participating in this awesome organization that provides handmade cards to our service members overseas to help them keep in touch with their families.  I was laid up with a foot injury over the summer so with all the extra time on my hands it was the perfect time to jump in and give it a shot.  I had a blast!  It was a chance for me to try out a lot of great techniques that I've seen online too.  I was able to make 50 cards to donate.  Some of them I duplicated but most were one of a kind cards.  You'll see that I like my cards to be bright, colorful and cheerful.  I don't use a lot of neutrals or dark colors but I do tend to use white a lot.  I just love the clean, crisp look of white cardstock.   Another thing I don't use much of is patterned paper.  Most of the patterns you see on my cards are either stamped, watercolors or embossed. Here are my favorites for the year.

                            

To all our service members I salute you!  Thanks for all of your sacrifices and dedication.

~Lisa~

Getting Sketchy with MFT #208

Here's this weeks sketch from My Favorite Things Wednesday Stamp Club, #208;

For my card I used the following supplies:

  My Favorite Things:  

Up, Up & Away clear stamps

Up, Up & Away dies

Pinstripe BG stamp

First Place Award Ribbon dies

Lil' Inker Designs:

Stitched Mat Circles Dies

Border Builders Dies

I also used:

 Hero Arts Shadow inks; Pale Tomato, Tide Pool and Green Hills

Versamark ink, white embossing powder, dimensional tape and clear sequins.

Thanks for stopping by!

Making a fringed fleece blanket....Ninja Turtle style!

Eight Christmases ago,  my stepsister Kim made me this really awesome fleece blanket for my family room.  I had never seen a blanket made like this before.  Nice thick fleece and absolutely NO SEWING!!  Well that just won me over right there!  This blanket quickly became a family favorite and is fought over all winter.  It's so warm and cozy and is just the right size to cuddle up on the couch with.  I don't think there is a warmer blanket in the house.  This blanket has been through many....many washings and is still almost as soft as it was when she gave it to us.  Thank you again Kim.  Just like you, it stands the test of time.  ;)  hehee!

Well of course if I see something handmade that I really love you know I have to give it a shot myself.  I have made a few of these lovely blankets myself since this one was gifted to me.  I made one with my niece a few years back and I made a Chicago Bears one for my nephew Bruce last year.  This year I wanted to make one for Bruce's little boy Drue.  He is crazy into Ninja Turtles so I was excited to find this awesome flannel with Ninja Turtles all over it, at Walmart.  So bright and fun!  I chose a coordinating, solid,  bright red for the back of the blanket.  This is seriously all you will need to make one of these blankets and you can make it as big or as small as you want.  I used 2 yards of each of these fleece designs and I invested in a new pair of super sharp scissors.  That is the best tip I'll give you....sharp scissors!!!   And no running!!  ;)

Next find a nice big area to lay your material out on. I used my kitchen island. Make sure the best side of each material is facing out.  Smooth it all out and make sure the edges lay nice and straight.

Go around the material and pin the edges.  Then trim off any excess at this time, keeping the lines nice and straight.  A tip to make things easier is to find a nice pattern to follow.  This one has a brick pattern which made it super easy.  After I've cut the edge I go back and move my pins about 4 inches in to make room for the fringe.

I cut a 4 inch square out of each corner because that's how long I want my fringe to be.  If you want a 3 inch fringe then you'll want to cut out a 3 inch square, etc.

Now it's time to really put those super sharp scissors to use.  I chose to make my fringe 3/4 inch wide.  You can make them wider if you want but I like a lot of fringe so I make them thin.  One thing I can't stress enough is don't worry if all of your fringe is not perfect in width or length.  It would take forever if I physically measured each fringe.  I do a lot of eyeballing and every once in a while I'll grab the ruler to make sure I'm still close to the measurements I chose.

Now the fun part.....tying the knots.  All you do is take the top and the bottom material and make a knot.

I worked in sections, cutting and knotting as I went.

I worked my way around the blanket.  Look, you can' see the cutout square anymore!  It's awesome how nice that comes together.

And this is the finished Ninja Turtle blanket.  If I would have gone with 3 yards it would have fit the whole length of the bed.  I wanted one that Drue could use either on his bed as a throw or to keep in his family room to watch TV with his dad.  It is so warm and snuggly, I hope he likes it!

Thanks for stopping by.  Have a wonderful Christmas!!

~Lisa~

Getting Sketchy with MFT #207

Here's this weeks sketch from My Favorite Things Wednesday Stamp Club,  #207;

For my card I used the following supplies from My Favorite Things;  Up, Up & Away dies and stamps and the Pinstripe Background stamp.   I also used dies from Lil' Inker Designs; Border Builders and Stitched Mats; Rectangles.  The YOU die is from Simon Says Stamp.  I did some embossing with white embossing powder and Versamark ink and I also used some clear sequins.

Getting Sketchy with MFT #206

Having fun with My Favorite Things - Wednesday Stamp Club Get Sketchy sketch #206 this week.  Here's the sketch:

And here's my take on it:

For this card I used MFT's Pinstripe Background stamp,  Confetti Background stamp,  Delicious Birthday sentiment stamps and large scalloped edge die.   I'm always looking for a chance to use Lil' Inker's Donut die and Eat More Donuts Stamp set and I also used LID's Stitched Mats: Rectangles die and Sentiment Flag die.  I also used Stardust Stickles and some pretty sequins to top it off.

The more I look at this card though the more I feel that my choice of green on here wasn't a good one.  When I look at green I think more of sour than sweet.  I think I should have gone with more of a cotton candy pink.  Am I right?

Thanks for Looking!

~Lisa~

Making a Mason Jar Snow Globe

Here's a fun project that takes little or no time and very few supplies.  Make your very own snow globe.  

Look how pretty!

Here's what you'll need:  a one quart mason jar.  2 tubes of  white or crystal glitter.  I tried 3 but that was way too much.  Super glue or any other water proof glue and a cute little tree on a base which I found in the Christmas village display at Michaels.  Actually, I found all of these supplies at Michaels.

First I super glued the tree base to the inside of the jar lid.  I didn't have to let it sit too long, Super glue dries fast.

Then I poured 3  tubes of glitter into the empty jar.  Big mistake.  I ended up having to scoop out the extra tube because it was way too much.  I suggest only using two or one might even be enough.

Next I poured water almost to the top of the jar.  I wanted to leave enough room to account for the tree that I'll be submerging in the next step.  But I also did not want to have a huge air pocket at the top of the jar once I flipped it over.  Don't be scared to experiment.  It took me a couple tries to get the exact right amount of water in the jar.

What I noticed was that a lot of the glitter sunk to the bottom like it was suppose to but there was still quite a bit that floated on top.  I gently took a spoon and kept pushing it down hoping that it would get wet enough to make it sink.  Most of it did but some of the stubborn stuff I sifted out.  This jar isn't full enough so I added a bit more water.

Time for the tree.  Simple as this.  Just flip it over and slowly sink it into the water.  This is where you can tell if you have the right amount of water or not and can adjust it accordingly.

Screw that lid on tightly.  We don't want any leaks!

Shake, rattle and roll!

For the most part this project turned out great.  So simple your kids could probably do it (just be careful with that super glue!).  There were a few little flaws in mine that left me a little disappointed.  First, after a few shakes, it seems like the water is a little yellowish dirty.  I don't know if the tree was dusty or it's the affect of the glitter but it does have a little tint to it and doesn't look clear.  Second, some of the glitter still floats to the top.  As you can see in this picture, most did what it's suppose to but there still quite a bit that didn't settle to the bottom.  Not sure if maybe a courser type of glitter would work better but might be worth a try.   Third, it did eventually have a little leak.  I don't know why, the lid is as tight as I can get it.  I never had a mason jar leak on me before so maybe I just had a defective one.  All in all, this is a fun project so give it a try!

Merry Christmas!!

~Lisa~

A mix of fun cards.

 Well I'm happy to say that all of my Christmas cards are done and I'm now in the process of sending them on their way.  That doesn't necessarily mean I'm ready to put away all those fabulous dies and stamps that I've collected this year.  As a matter of fact I'm still catching some last minute sales and this beautiful deer die is one of my new treasures.  I happened upon a new company Wplus9 .....or new to me anyway. They have an amazing selection of stamps and dies.  I stamped the background of this card with an awesome, inexpensive little stamp set and added the reindeer in black.  Then I just pieced together a little saying with a  few different stamp sets I had in my collection.  The inside just says a simple Thank You.  The black background is stamped with white pigment ink using My Favorite Things Confetti BG stamp.

Stag Trio Dies

Just Geometrics: Triangles

BG Confetti Background

This next card is made with some more great Lil'Inker stitched dies and the Fresh Cut Flowers dies and grass die from My Favorite Things.

Fresh Cut Grass

Fresh Cut Flowers

Stitched Mats: Rectangles

Anytime Tags

Bunnies & Bows

And for this third card I was so excited to use these little donut dies and stamps for the first time.  They were so fun to make!  I actually got the dies from Lil' Inker Designs abut the sentiment stamps are by Reverse Confetti.  How fun to have a bunch of different sentiments to go with these dies.  

Donuts Die Set

Stitched Sentiment Flag Die

Donut You Know

Thanks for stopping by!!