Teacher Gifts - Note Pad

This is my favorite element of this year's Teacher's Gifts. It was inspired by Michelle Wooderson at Mish Mash. If you haven't checked out her blog, you are really missing out! She is wonderful and her creativity is overflowing!

It is a handy little notebook, the perfect size for the many lists that we all have this time of year. The pad inside is a Junior Legal Pad cut in half. I took mine to FedEx/Kinko's and had them cut (12 pads for about $3). I've heard that some office supply stores will cut them for free if you purchase them there.

I will definitely be making these again. They're easy enough to adapt to any holiday or occasion and make a very useful gift. Who doesn't need another pad to make a list? If you have to make a list of all the things you need to get done, why not have a cute pad to write it on?

recipe: paper: Jillibean Soup Grandma's Christmas Soup, The Paper Co; Hero Arts Snow Place, Penny Black Warm & Cold, Hero Arts Winter's Butterfly; Tsukineko Graphite Black Ink, VersaMagic Red Brick Ink; Crystal Stickles; Mark Richards Nailhead Stickers; Marvy Scalloped Circle Punch; Stampin Up Watercolor Wonder & H2O pen

Teacher Gifts - Chocolate

Who doesn't love chocolate? I think these are cute little additions to the Teacher's Gift packages. One is a Wilton Pretzel bag (I told you I like those lately!) with 4 Dove chocolates sandwiched between cute little snowmen. The other is a triangular package with 4 Hershey's Kisses inside. It doesn't seem like much, but will be the perfect little pick-me-up for the teacher's during their hectic holidays.

recipe: paper: The Paper Co; Hero Arts Snow Place, Hero Arts Winter Warm, Hero Arts Winter's Butterfly; Stampin Up Watercolor Wonder & H2O pen; Marvy Scalloped Circle Punches; ribbon: JoAnns; Tsukineko Graphite Black ink, VersaMagic Red Brick Ink, Wilton Pretzel Bag

Teacher Gifts - Bookmark

This bookmark was included in the Teacher's Gifts I made for our boys to give their teachers. I love the packaging on this! I used a Wilton Pretzel bag and created the text for the header on the computer.

recipe: Paper: The Paper Co; stamps: Hero Arts Snow Place, Hero Arts Winter Warm; ribbon: JoAnn's; Vinyl coated paper clip WalMart; Marvy scalloped circle punch; Stampin Up Watercolor Wonder & H2O pen; Tsukineko Graphite Black Ink, Moonlight White ink; Wilton Pretzel bag

Teacher Gifts - Gift Tags

This is a set of gift tags I included in this year's Teacher Gifts. I packaged them in a Wilton Pretzel Bag. I love these bags! I used them a few times in this gift.

recipe: paper: The Paper Co; stamps: Hero Arts Snow Place, Hero Arts Winter Warm, Hero Arts Winter's Butterfly, Hero Arts Holiday Tags; Stampin Up Watercolor Wonder & H2O Pen; Marvy Scalloped Circle; Crystal stickles; Wilton Pretzel bag

Teacher's Gifts

This was the gift I made for our boys to give their teacher's this year. It was a fun one to make, but let me tell you I spent many evenings coloring snowmen....I made 13 gift sets....that's a lot of snowguys! The set consists of a junior legal pad notebook (a la Mish Mash), 4 Dove chocolates, Hershey Kisses, a bookmark, and a set of gift tags. All the items were placed in a decorated gift bag with yet another snowman! Although I used it as Christmas gifts, it could also be given for a winter birthday. These cute little snowmen are sure to bring a smile to anyone's face!

recipe: paper: Jillibean Soup Grandma's Christmas Soup, The Paper Co.; stamps: Stampendous Jumbo Snowman, Hero Arts Snowplace, Hero Arts Winter Warm, Hero Arts Winter's Butterfly, Hero Arts Holiday Tags; Ink: Tsukineko Graphite Black, VerseMagic Red Brick; Stampin' Up Watercolor Wonder & H2O pen; Crystal Stickles; ribbon: JoAnns; Vinyl coated Paper clips; Fiskars border scissors; Martha Stewart snowflake punch; Mark Richard Nailhead stickers; Wilton Pretzel bags; marvy scalloped circle punches; Dove chocolates; Hershey Kisses

Mish Mash Hip to be Square Challenge

I've never participated in a sketch challenge before, but thought today was the day to give it a go. Check out the details at http://michellewooderson.blogspot.com/2009/12/hip-to-be-square-card-sketch.html. If you've never taken a look at Michelle's blog you are in for a treat! Her blog is one of my absolute favorites and my day is not complete until I read her post. Her creativity is inspiring! In fact, one of the gifts I made for the boys' teachers, was inspired by her (I'll try to get those photos posted tonight!) Anyway, back to Mish Mash.....she has great ideas, beautiful photos and a fantastic Etsy shop. Be sure to check out her blog!

I've never been a big fan of red and pink together, but for some reason this card "works" for me. Once again, it incorporates my favorite little snowman. I'm trying to get in the mindset to work on Valentines, this card is a great transition - not quite Christmas and not yet Valentine's Day. It will be perfect for either Valentine's Day or a February birthday.

Hope you have fun plans for New Year's Eve. We're staying home and enjoying family time. We'll see if we're able to stay awake until midnight to ring in the New Year with Dick Clark. Maybe I'll work on my blog a bit and get caught up on some photos I have for you....that should help me stay awake to see the start of 2010.

recipe: Paper: kisses Me & My Big Ideas, red dots unknown; Martha Stewart snowflake punch; ribbon: Offray; stamp: Penny Black Warm & Cold; Crystal Stickles; Prismacolor pencils; Goo-Gone; tortillons

Snow Globe Card

This was such a fun card to make. I made one for Sweet Alyssa's birthday (one of the 3 cards we gave her). This was my first attempt at a snow globe card and I have to say I was pretty happy with the way it turned out! I'll be making more of these. I think it will be great for any winter birthday. Once again, it uses my favorite Penny Black snowman (I've given that little guy a good workout in the last few weeks.)

recipe: paper: purple swirls unknown; grey The Paper Co.; stamps: Penny Black Warm & Cold, Comotion mini snowflake; Prismacolor Pencils; Goo-Gone; Tortillons; Ink: Tsukineko Graphite Black, Stazon White; Martha Stewart Snowflake punch; Ribbon: JoAnns; Fiskars border punch; Glitter: Stampendous Lavendar Ultra Fine; Crystal Stickles; Liquid Applique; acetate sheet; button unknown

Hopefully I'll be back tomorrow with photos of the thank you notes I finished today - this cute little snowman makes another appearance on them. See you then!

Cold Hard Cash

Every year for my niece's birthday, I give her one dollar for each birthday. Well, this is how I decided to package her ten bucks this year. I cut a water bottle around the center, glued snowflakes inside the bottle, added the cash and taped the bottle shut before adding the label and decorating. It was a fun gift to create and one I'm sure she'll get a kick out of receiving.

recipe: Paper: The Paper Co; stamps: Hero Arts Cute Letters, Hero Arts Winter's Butterfly; Ink: Tsukineko Graphite Black, VersaMagic Red Brick; Martha Stewart Snowflake Punch; ribbon: JoAnns; button probably off an old pair of pajamas!

Alyssa's 10th Bee-Day

This card is for my sweet niece, Alyssa. So hard to believe she's 10 years old already. She is a beautiful, kind and thoughtful young lady and makes me a proud Aunt!

recipe: Paper: DCWV Nana's Kids Mat Stack, DCWV Glitter Mat Stack; stamps: Stampendous Hap Bee Day; Prismacolor Pencils; Goo-Gone & Tortillons; Crystal Stickles; DMC floss

Tip: For a fun touch, decorate the envelope to give a little "sneak peek" as to what's inside....

Merry Christmas!

Well, I didn't get Christmas cards made and in the mail this year. So, I made one card and posted it to my Facebook page with a note to family and friends that this is what they would have gotten had I gotten my act together in time. Oh well! Maybe next year I'll be more organized (I can dream, can't I?)

Anyway, this stamp is one of my favorite Christmas images. I think this little drummer boy is just so darn cute! I have another card or two I'm hoping to post in the next day or so, but just in case I don't get a chance, I'd like to wish you and your families a blessed Christmas!

recipe: paper: Colorbok Christmas Script, DCWV Classic Mat Stacks; Stamp: Stampendous Drummer Boy; Stampin Up Watercolor Crayons; Marvy Liquid Applique; Making Memories Eyelets

I'm Blog Hopping today!

Hi! I'm a HUGE fan of Hero Art Stamps and today to celebrate their new stamp releases, they are hosting a huge blog hop. If you've never done a blog hop before, you should give it a try. Start at www.heroarts.com from there they will lead you to the next blog and so on and so on and so on. Each blog you visit will feature cards that these very talented artists have created using Hero Arts' newest stamps. There are some beautiful projects featured today and I have been inspired to get some of the new stamps good and inky.

So, because I have been busy "hopping" I have nothing new to post today. Hopefully it will be nice and sunny out tomorrow and I will be able to get some good photos of the teacher's gifts I made this year. The gifts have all been delivered, so I can show you what I made now.

Ok, now get hopping....go to www.heroarts.com and get started! Get inspired! Then, get inky!

Last Year's Christmas Gifts

This was the gift I gave some of the teachers and a few friends last year for Christmas. The bag is filled with sugar coookie mix, and has a bag of sprinkles attached. Inside the to-go coffee cup is a bag filled with cocoa mix. The plastic spoons were dipped in melted chocolate and have marshmallows on them. The little pop-top ban has a handful of Hershey's kisses inside. Stay tuned I'll show you this year's gifts in the next few days.

recipe: Paper: The Paper Co; ribbon: JoAnn's; coffee cup: Archer Farms; Stamps: snowman: Studio G, snowflakes & sentiment: Hero Arts

The Stampers Christmas Story

Twas the night before Christmas,
I'm glued to the tree.
I'm wondering what Santa brought just for me.
Could it be cardstock or inkpads or lace?
Or some stamps, I said, with a smile on my face.
And that's when I heard him......"Hi Santa, " I said
He replied, "You know....good girls should be in their beds".
"I know I should Santa,and now I've been caught.
But I was just so excited to see what you brought."
"Well, let's take a look in this room where you work".
He shook his head quickly, and left with a jerk.
I heard him exclaim as he put it in gear.
"You've got enough crap, I'll see you next year!"

Cup of Cheer Gift Tag

This was another tag included in Rachael's Christmas gift last year. The great thing about this tag is that it could be used at any time of the year. Pair it with some gourmet tea, chocolate covered espresso beans or a coffee mug to celebrate any occasion. This Hero Arts stamp set is one of my favorites...you'll probably see it making another appearance soon. I added Diamond Glaze to the "tea" inside the cup, to make it look wet. Some Crystal Stickles on the steam is the perfect finishing touch!

recipe: paper: The Paper Co.; stamps: Hero Arts Sparkle Clear Tea, Hero Arts Holiday Tags; oval template: Creative Memories; ink: Tsukineko Graphite Black; Crystal Stickles; Diamond Glaze; ProArt Watercolor Pencils

Snowman Gift Tag

Last year one of my favorite gifts that I gave anyone was a set of gift tags for my college roommate. This was one that I included in her collection. I like the was the snowflake flourish looks behind Mr. Snowman. Gift tags are a quick and easy project and a great way to use up scraps of paper and ribbon.

recipe: paper: The Paper Co,; stamps: snowman: Studio, flourish: Hero Arts Winter's Butterfly; to/from: Hero Arts Holiday Tags; sentiment: Studio G; ink: Tsukineko Graphite Black, Tsukineko Moonlight White; ribbon: Target $1 Spot; Crystal Stickles (buttons); Orange Prismacolor Pencil (nose)

Shake Your Tail Feather...it's almost Christmas!

This was a quick and easy gift tag to make and a great way to use up some ribbon scraps. I can't bring myself to throw away a piece of ribbon that I may be able to use later, so I have a cute little box I keep my scraps in for future use. The ribbons on this gift tag make me smile because they remind me of little tail feathers. I added red Stickles to the holly berries.

recipe: Paper: The Paper Co.; stamps: Hero Arts Christmas Wishes (Archiver's Exclusive), Hero Arts Holiday Tags; Christmas Red Stickles; ribbon: JoAnn's; decorative edge scissors: Provo Craft

Paper-Pieced Snowman Gift Tag

This was a fun gift tag to make last Christmas for my oldest son's Preschool classmates. I made ornaments for each kid, and placed them in red lunchbags. These tags looked so cute attached to the top of the bags with green ribbon. I CASE'd these from a magazine I had kept from a few years ago. Always trying to be frugal, I used old manila folders for the tag itself.

My First Post!

I wish I had a Christmas card to post here. Unfortunately, they are still works in progress! (Better get busy, Christmas is right around the corner!) Soon I'll post the Christmas gifts I am making for my son's teachers...don't want to ruin the surprise for them if they happen to check out my new blog!

Anyway, back to this card. I love Changito! I think he is just about the cutest little guy, I just can't get enough of him. I made this card a few months ago for my Mom's birthday. Love this paper, Die Cuts With a View paper is the best - so colorful and fun!

recipe: stamps: Stampendous Changito Birthday; paper: DCWV Nana's Kids Mat Stack; ink:Tsukineko Graphite Black; color: Prismacolor Pencils; ribbon: JoAnn's; glitter: Clear Stickles