Lunch Bag Recipe Book

I have been hanging out at Waffle Flower Crafts #wfchallenge2108 Week 4 with the fun challenge they have going on: Unexpected supplies...something from the kitchen. I had to think hard of something I could use from my kitchen, and then it hit me: brown paper lunch bags! I have made these type of albums before, but it has been a while. I do have lots of food patterned papers and stamps, so I got started. (Edited 8/31/21: I was not happy with my first background on the cover and redid it today.)

I stamped with cooking stamps on the patterned paper panel. Then I made a shaker and put the stamped panel and then the shaker on the top tag. I thought the tag looked like a clipboard so I added silver cardstock on the top part only. I cut the bottoms off the lunch bags and attached them inside the two tags/covers. Then I cut several patterned papers to fit the bags on both sides. (I agonized over which papers because I either hated to cut into them or  just wanted to keep hoarding them. This part took two days!) I made tabs for each bag inside: Apps (appetizers), Drinks, Desserts and Misc. I only made one recipe card so far and had to show it. I made and added an envelope to the inside of the back cover to hold loose notes or whatever else I acquire.

Products used:

Simon Says Stamp Intense Black Ink

Waffle Flower Go Girl Winter and Summer die and stamp sets

Pretty Pink Posh Summer Drinks stamp set and Fruitastic confetti for shaker

Assorted Patterned Papers; acetate (for shaker)

Stampin' Up! From The Kitchen Of and Voilá stamp sets and checkered ribbon

Stampin' Up! tab punch and stamps (I made my own "apps" tab for appetizers)

I thought this would be a way to keep all my favorite, go to recipes in one place for get togethers we will hopefully be having again one day! 

Go check out the kitchen supplies the design team used on their sample cards. Pretty clever!

See you again soon,

-Carol

Goin' coastal...

A good friend just told me about a challenge that I had not previously known about, so I decided to give it a try. Freshly Made Sketches #500 is celebrating its 500th challenge!! That's quite an impressive milestone!!! Here is my card and their sketch for this very special occasion! (I kept it simple as this challenge likes "clean" cards.)

I inked up the sea on the left and tore the right edge off to lead onto the white sandy shore. Next, I added my new favorite Gina K Glitz Glitter Gel for the sparkling sea foam at the water's edge. In person this gel really makes it look like the crashing waves on a beach! I stamped and fussy cut the umbrellas from Essentials by Ellen Everything's Beachy and rounded them from underneath with my fingers to look like real, open beach umbrellas. Foam tape stacked four pieces high made them stand up off the sand. I stamped and hand cut the "This way to the beach" kind of a sign with the "Going coastal" sentiment from the same stamp set. I added a few sequins for sparkle in the water and I was done. I was afraid to use this new stamp set because I didn't think I could do it justice...have you seen all the ideas Ellen is posting with this set?!! I only used the umbrellas this time, but plan to break out the rest of the set soon.

I assume that if you are here reading my blog you are a stamper, so you seriously need to check out this challenge. There are all sorts of great sponsors with prizes!! So much fun!

Hope to see you back here soon,

-Carol

Birthday By The Sea

For me there's nothing better than being able to celebrate a birthday by the water... and the Seize the Birthday Challenge #221 is By The Sea. This My Favorite Things flamingo is spending her special day on the beach! I am also playing along with the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge: Anything Goes where My Favorite Things products are being showcased.

Who says that these string lights can't decorate a birthday party? We have been lucky enough to travel to attend several of my husband's company sales incentive trips and they always begin with a beach night. The decorations are these same "bright pastel" colors (that probably isn't a thing, but that's what it seems like to me) and it has always felt SO festive...so that is how I picked my colors for this scene. The sequins are my way of doing sparkly lights on the card. 

Products used:

My Favorite Things Festive Flamingos stamp set and Ocean Waves dies (to make a stencil)

Simon Says Stamp  Warm Christmas Wishes  and Circle Sayings stamp sets; SSS Intense Black Ink

Pretty Pink Posh Fresh Fruit embellishments

Prismacolor colored pencils: pink, coral, aqua, yellow green, bright green

Stampin' Up! Classic inks: Daffodil Delight and Bermuda Bay

Blender brushes

Sea you soon,

-Carol

Back To School

Well, not any more! I'm a fairly recently retired high school teacher but I still have friends who teach. I will send these to friends to use as bookmarks in their teacher's editions of the textbook or for their personal reading. The Color Throwdown Challenge #656 is red, yellow and blue, and Back To School is usually thought of in terms of these colors. Here are my "funny" bookmarks to make a teacher smile.

Products used:

Stampin Up! patterned papers and Classic inks (The yellow shows up better in person: "The little joys of teaching are without number.")

Reverse Confetti Tag dies

The Twinery baker's twine

Stamps: Rubber Stampede, Stamp Crazy, Kidstamps

Simple gift for those who give so much. Be sure to remember your kids' teachers. They appreciate even a thank you card.

-Carol

You Go "Ghoul"

Although I wasn't quite ready for fall themed cards, the challenges are starting to be about it so here I am with a card for Waffle Flower Challenge #2108 Week 3 Unexpected Shaker Elements. I have these googly eyes around for all sorts of projects and know that they make Halloween creatures funnier, so here you go! This is a mini slimline card.

After I thought of the googly eyes, I grabbed patterned papers for Halloween and the Stampin' Up! set called Spooky Bingo Bits.  I love this skeleton's eyes and thought he was the perfect guy for my shaker. I used two My Favorite Things Inside and Out Stitched Circle dies to create the shaker using glitter paper, acetate and fun foam. The FUN began when I got out my Waffle Flower Go Girl stamp set and inked up different words and letters to form my sentiment. ("Ghoul" came from the word "enough" by first inking up the "gh" followed by the "ou" and then the "l" from the word "beautiful.") I like the sparkle of the black glitter paper so I used it not only on the shaker but as strips on the card front. I like fun, not scary Halloween stuff and I think this card fits my taste. I die cut the banner (SU Bitty Banners Framelits) around the sentiment, then ink blended distress ink on it to add color.

Check out the #wfchallenge2108 on Facebook and Instagram for great shaker ideas. I did! I'm always looking for new ideas for shakers! I love interactive cards.

-Carol

I'm a Teacher

Welcome back to the Tic Tac Toe Challenge #127 (here) where I chose the center column: CAS, Free, Teacher. I was a teacher my whole career (Spanish, English as a Second Language, Literacy) and I could write a book with many funny/crazy stories from year one through the last. I imagine this card being given as a set of cards to a teacher or to a teacher who has had a hard week. 

I have accumulated many teacher related stamps over the years and I got started in stamping with "Good Work" and "Excelente!" stamps many many years ago. This is an American Art Stamp image called Teacher and I have a few stamps from this stamp line because they are/were so relevant to my life.  I just got the Sugar Pea Card Front Element Builder die that I used on the front flap of my card. I love the different stitched shapes I can make with the dies in this set. The white stamped part of my card is the card front and the red patterned paper is  a strip adhered to the bottom inside of the back half of the card base. All I had to do is stamp the image and color it with Prismacolor pencils. CAS!

Hope you'll check out our challenge and play along! 

-Carol

Thinking of You

I recently bought these Concord and 9th Thinking of You stamp and die sets and was ready yesterday to make something for the first time with them. It was fun to stamp, color and die cut with them. The flowers and frame are all one piece! I thought the flowers were so pretty how they were drawn, and that is why I had to have them in my collection.

I am playing along with The Flower Challenge #59 where this month they ask that you use a die. I also decided to add this card to NBUS, Never Before Used Schtuff #29, as well as Happy Little Stampers August Anything Goes With Dies.

I used Copic markers to color the flowers and leaves and added Wink of Stella to them here and there for sparkle. My sentiment is cut from Stampin' Up! white glitter cardstock.

Hope your summer has been full of pretty flowers. I love to see them in public places where the landscaping is well cared for and has extensive design with them.

See you soon,

-Carol

Wishing You Sunny Days

Back again with a mini, mini slimline card using a new product I just ordered: Gina K Glitz Glitter Gel in white. LOVE this product. It is a soft and creamy yet glittery/sandy texture that glides on the paper so nicely! (It is not a mistake that there is sparkly gel on the water...my stencil has the sunshine on the water just a little!) 

This card is for a friend who needs a little pick me up right now AND for the MFT Slimline challenge (here), the NBUS #29 (Never Before Used Schtuff) challenge (here) as well as the Color Hues Challenge (here). 

Products used:

Pretty Pink Posh Layered Surfboard Stencils

Tim Holtz Sunshine stencil THS003

Ranger Distress Inks: Abandoned Coral, Dried Marigold, Tumbled Glass, Broken China

Blender brushes

Gina K Glitz Glitter Gel

Stampin' Up! sentiment from the Beach Happy stamp set, Bermuda Bay Classic Ink

It's still summer here in Florida so I will be making my tropical cards for a while yet!

-Carol

Christmas By The Sea

I just saw this card style for the first time two days ago and wanted to try it. Jennifer McGuire made several of these "bridge cards" on a YouTube video and I was intrigued. It folds flat into an A2 envelope! I am playing with the Inspired By Challenge Fintastic Christmas Challenge IB181C because I like all things tropical! Do you see what makes these glasses Christmasy?

I used my Concord and 9th Bright Eyes glasses and a Tommy Bahama envelope for the lenses that I saved for its tropical patterns. The sentiment is by Flora and Fauna and the waves dies are My Favorite Things.

Hope your Christmas crafts are started and that they are all fintastic!

-Carol

You Make Life Fun

No, this card is not for or from my dog. LOL! I don't even have a dog. (Sadly, we have allergies.) I used this Simon Says Stamp Peeking Pup die simply because he is so CUTE!! I think the card could be for a dog sitter, the vet, or the groomer, though. I am playing along again with The Color Throwdown CTD654 (Click here) where the colors are white, grey and "kraft."

Products:

My Favorite Things Inside and Out Stitched Cicle dies Stitched Rectangle Scallop Frames Die-namics

Stampin' Up! Large Polka Dot Textured Impressions Embossing Folder and Jelly Bean Sweet Shop brad (brad for his cool collar)

Pretty Pink Posh Simple Sayings: Life (sentiment)

Simon Says Stamp Intense Black Ink

Copic marker

Glossy Accents

Hope this little pup made you smile! Have a great week ahead.

-Carol

Masculine Card

I don't know about you, but I struggle when I need a masculine card and I also have a hard time not putting a sentiment on the front of a card. I faced those struggles today because I am playing along with The Color Throwdown CTD654 where the colors are grey, "kraft" and white. I hand made all the pieces and put them on the front of a side opening A2 white card base. I used textured kraft colored cardstock for the tie to look like fabric and found some older Stampin' Up! corduroy buttons to use.

I made a printer paper version first to adjust sizes, so at least now I have a template for the next time! Fun patterned paper would be great for the tie, too.

Happy Saturday! Hope you are crafting too.

-Carol

Oceans of Love

The Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge this week is Summertime Blues and I have been playing with blue shades of cardstock and the Iris Folding technique, although I'm calling mine the "freelance iris-like" with no folding technique. LOL! I'm also playing along with The Card Concept #158: Long Summer Days Challenge as I was inspired by their photo of colors and items related to the sea for this clean and layered card.

This cute little guy is from Flora and Fauna's Mermaid Love stamp set. I used a My Favorite Things Inside and Out Stitched Circles die then placed two rows of cardstock strips, one by one, around the back side of the opening with adhesive. I used the circle that was cut from my white panel to make my little ocean scene, attached it to the card base, then popped up the front panel on foam tape for depth. Sequins finished off the card for some sparkle like the water at the beach! I was inspired by this video by Debby Hughes of Lime Doodle Design. She made a gorgeous card and her video is very helpful on the technique. 

Hope your summertime blues mean that you are out under blue skies and by a pool or body of water somewhere!

See you soon,

-Carol

You Make Life Sweet

We are back for another fun week at the Tic Tac Toe Challenge TTTC#125! I chose the bottom left diagonal to top right: yellow, patterned paper, green. I am also playing at Just Us Girls Challenge #595 where the theme is Anything But A Card. This lemonade stand can sit on a desk to hopefully brighten up someone's day.

This is a total CASE of Notable Nest's (click here) Lemonade Stand Banner Card from 2012. Her "card" can fold up into an envelope, and so should mine, but in gluing it together mine became a permanent table tent/mini sandwich board, so it is not a card...oops! Check out her great photo tutorial. I decided to wing it and made my own tweaks here and there. 

Products I used:

Pretty Pink Posh: Summer Drinks Stamp Set

Paper Smooches: Life is Sweet sentiment

Various patterned papers

Simon Says Stamp Intense Black Ink

Foam tape

Summertime themed vellum (my banners)

Stampin' Up! banner punch

The Twinery: Baker's twine

Prismacolor pencils

Glossy Accents (to make the glasses shine)

Hope this is a lemonade kind of day for you too! Happy summer!

-Carol