Father's Day Recap: Envelope Surprise

Hi everyone! Wow, a lot has been going on lately that haven't even had time to sit down at my computer to blog! I was planning on at least blogging on Monday, but little girl decided not to take a nap that day. No nap = no blogging for mama. :0

Anyways, I just wanted to give you an update on last weekend. On Saturday, I hosted a 30th Birthday Party for my husband (more about that in later posts!). And on Father's Day, I officially became a Godmother to my 2 week old Goddaughter Scarlett! Isn't she adorable in her Baptism dress?!

Also, to celebrate Father's Day, I did this little "Envelope Surprise" that I was first inspired to create from Oh Happy Day [here]. Since my husband's birthday was the day before Father's Day, I didn't want to do anything to too big to overshadow that. So starting on Tuesday, June 14th I made an envelope for each day that had a little "surprise" waiting for him inside. So there were 6 days of surprises.

These envelopes were hung next to my husband's desk in his office. He was so excited to wake up every morning to open up his envelope for the day. It was so cute! And to make these, I just used some large envelopes that I have been hanging onto for years and covered just the portion you see with colored scrapbook paper. Then I used white foam number stickers to place on the envelopes.

The 6th Day was of course Father's Day, so I put little stars next to that number. And inside that envelope was his Father's Day card that I ordered from Tiny Prints for FREE (such a steal!).

The other envelopes had other little surprises such as a "free lunch", his favorite candy bar, and coffee that I made for him that morning. It's the little things that can do wonders to brighten his day. :0)

Hope you all had a fabulous weekend! And stay tuned for posts about my husband's 30th Birthday Party! It was a "mustache theme" party! Here's a little preview:

Linking up to [these] parties!

[Jen]

[Scrapperday: Graduation Card]

Tonight I just returned from a fun graduation party. It definitely brought back memories of graduating high school. The excitement of finally being done with high school, the anxiousness to start college, and the confidence (and fear!) of entering the "real world". Ahh to be young again...

Anyways, I just wanted to share a little card that I made for the honored graduate. She loved it and appreciated the effort, which is always nice. :0)

I think the hardest part about making the card was hand-sketching the graduation cap. Trying to make the square part look 3D was quite the task. But in the end, it all turned out just how I wanted it. I used green behind the cap since it's their school color. The tassel was also hand-drawn, and cutting out the little ends of the tassel was probably the best part of the entire process. It sort of gives it that extra flair.

Hope everyone is having a fabulous weekend! :0)

Linking this card up to these parties.



[Jen]

[Scrapperday: Another Birthday Card]

Here's yet another birthday card I recently created. There always seems to be so many birthdays around me this time of year. Anyways, just thought I'd quickly share this fun little card. I love it because it's so bright and colorful. Perfect for spring/summer birthdays!

As usual, I followed Kristina Werner's video tutorial and made some changes/personal touches of my own. I think my favorite part about this card are the little presents. So cute! And the "Happy Birthday" sentiment was actually hand-written with an embossing pen, sprinkled on some white embossing powder, and heat-embossed. So easy and it looks fabulous! :0)

I'll be linking this card up to these parties! Come join me!!

[Jen]

[Scrapperday: Mother's Day Card]

Have you checked your calendars? Yes, that's right, Mother's Day is a week away! So to prepare for the occasion, I decided to whip up a fun little card. :0)

I got the idea around Valentine's Day after I saw one of Kristina Werner's videos from her blog, KWerner Designs (adding my own flair as always!). I thought it would be the perfect, non-traditional "Happy Mother's Day" card for any mom.

I especially love the little cut-out heart as the "o". And it was super easy to make! (seriously, it only took about 10 minutes to make) Bonus: who doesn't love a handmade card?!

Happy Scrapperday! :0)

Linking up to these parties!

[Jen]

[Scrapperday: Big Shoes to Fill]

I just realized I haven't shared any scrapbook pages I've created in a while. It's been all about Spring lately, so I thought I would show you a page that totally captures my daughter.

Every morning while I'm getting ready for the day, she has a mission to try on all of mine and my husbands shoes. So funny! And what's more hilarious is when she attempts to actually walk around in these gigantic shoes! So of course, I just knew I had to document this daily event. :0)

She certainly has "big shoes to fill"! I created this title with various letter stickers/rub-ons from different collections. The tag is simply made out of cardboard backing (from those packs of cardstock paper) and some blue stitched ribbon.

The paper collection I used was from the All Occasion Page Kit by Making Memories. I am really pleased with how it turned out. Very simple yet totally showcases the two photos.

Linking up to these parties! :0)

[Jen]

[Scrapperday: Butterfly Art]

After posting yesterday about my Spring mantel (click HERE in case you missed it!), I thought I might share with you how I made this little butterfly art. I was recently inspired by Jenny over at Embellishing Life on her Butterfly Specimen Art project that she shared last month and thought I might make some of my own!

I started out with this butterfly patterned scrapbook paper. I bought it from Target last year in their $1 section, and it came in a pack of about 10 Spring/Easter patterned paper. I thought this one was super cute, so I cut out 4 different butterflies.

After I cut them all out, I folded them in the middle to give it that 3D look and adhered them onto some white cardstock with a mini glue dot. So simple!

I think they go nicely in my "Blue Skies" Etsy frame. And it makes me smile. :0) Happy Spring!

Linking up to these crafty parties! Come join me!

[Jen]

Spring Mantel

Okay, I would just like to start off this post by saying that I NEVER decorate my mantel for Spring. Christmastime? Of course! But never for any of the other seasons. So this year, after being so inspired by other bloggers, I decided to give it a try! And actually, I surprisingly had a lot of fun decorating! :0)

[If you have read my previous post, you might recognize this cupcake liner wreath. (click HERE to view the tutorial) It hangs over our framed poem called "In Our Home" that we received as a housewarming gift a few years ago.]

[Below the wreath are these fun little plastic Easter eggs from last year sitting in a tea light candle tray (another housewarming gift). I think they add a little "fun" to the mantel, but my 2-year old daughter constantly wants me to take them down to play with them!]

[This "Spring" banner is a free printable from At Second Street. Super easy to make! Click HERE to print one of to make for yourself and to check out her super cute Spring mantel.]

[I decided to include one of my handmade frames from my Etsy shop. Inside the frame I made a little butterfly art that I will talk about tomorrow. So stay tuned!]

[I found this free Spring printable from Smile Like You Mean It and knew I just had to include it on my mantel (click HERE to print one out for yourself). It's just a fun colorful subway art that totally describes Spring. I stole the frame from my chalkboard frame that I first posted about when I started blogging. You can view that post HERE.]

[This little flower pot traveled from my craft/laundry room (click HERE and HERE to view a post on my craft room). I purchased it from Walmart about a year ago, and it's held up quite nicely.]

[I decided to fill these little candle holders with plastic eggs, a couple of feux flowers, and a colorful ribbon tied in a bow. And p.s., this candle holder only cost $2! I will show you how I made it on Tuesday!]

Well, that concludes today's post on my Spring mantel. I'll be linking it up to these fabulous parties! Happy Friday! :0)

[Jen]

[Scrapperday: Happy Birthday]

To conclude "Party Week" and to celebrate my birthday weekend, I wanted to share with you a fun little birthday card. I am actually planning on giving it to my niece who is turning 7 in a couple of weeks. I was inspired by Kristina Werner at KWerner Designs. Click [here] to view her video tutorial on how to make a card similar to this one.

It was very simple to make. The flowers were actually cutouts of two different patterned scrapbook pages. I placed them on some dimensional adhesive and added a fun little button in the center. The "Birthday" letters are from the Parcel collection by Jolee's Boutique. I used them before to make this [pumpkin card] last Halloween. Don't you love it when scrapbooking supplies are so versatile? :0)

Linking up to these fabulous [parties]!

And to all of you who share a birthday with me this weekend...HAPPY BIRTHDAY! :0)

[Jen]

[Scrapperday: Little Feet, Big Heart]

This card could easily be considered a Valentine's Day card, but it could also be used as a mother's/father's day card, birthday card, etc. It's all about making it your own. I recently gave this card to my mother-in-law for Valentine's Day that I thought would be super special with her granddaughter's footprints on the cover of the card. I simply traced out my daughter's feet, cut it out, and inked the edges. This is very similar to the handprint hand project I recently posted about. A little cardstock, some rub-ons, twine tied in a bow, & you've got yourself a fun handmade (or "feet" made!) card. :0)

Little feet...Big heart. I also used rub-ons for the inside of the card along with a red cutout heart and some feux stitching with a black pen.

Hope you enjoyed this fun little card project that you can make with your kids! It's super fun, and it will create a memory that will last a lifetime. :0)

Linking this up to [these] parties!

[Jen]

[Scrapperday: Valentine Scrapbook Page]

Given the spirit of Valentine's Day is in the air, I thought it would be appropriate to share with you a Valentine scrapbook page I made a while back. It was pretty simple to create, and ALL of the materials used were from that fabulous Valentine's Day Scrapbook Collection pack from the $1 section at Target. I enjoy using collection packs since all of the styles/color are already coordinated. Really takes the guesswork out!

[As I brainstorming the layout, I knew that I wanted to keep everything to a minimal at the top and force the eye to focus primarily at the bottom of the page. And I love how the little frames look around the photos. Really showcases both pictures. Of course I had to take a picture of my daughter in her Valentine's Day Heart socks (also from the $1 section at Target). I think I am obsessed with tiny baby feet! So cute!]

["LOVE": I wanted to mimic the famous "love" sculpture in NY with these white foam letter stickers. The layered heart embellishment is actually 3 glitter heart stickers on dimensional adhesive. And since the heart patterned paper was so busy, I decided to trace around a couple of hearts with dashed lines using a white gel pin for that extra focus yet flair.]

["All you need is love, and love is what you got!" So true. My little journaling tag consists of the die-cut, the Happy Valentine's Day banner in dimensional adhesives, a couple of glitter heart stickers, and some pink satin ribbon. Like I said earlier, everything was super easy. I think I finished this page in under an hour (including the usual distractions from my daughter).]

Hope this inspired you to create a Valentine's Day page of your own! :0)

Linking up to [these] parties!

[Jen]

[How-to Tuesday: Accordion Button Flower]

Last Saturday I talked about a Valentine's Day card I made that featured this cute little button flower. [You can view the original post on the card HERE.] Well, today I am going to show you a step-by-step tutorial on how to make one. Of course, you can buy one pre-made, like the Eternal Delights Paper Flowers from American Crafts, but this one can be easily customized to whatever style/color you want and is super fun to make. :0)

Materials Needed:

Scrapbook paper or cardstock

Button

Tape adhesive or glue

Dimensional adhesive or glue dots

Scissors

Circle cutter (if you have one)

[Step 1: Cut out a circle. I cut mine to be about 2 1/2 inches.]

[Step 2: Cut a slit halfway into the circle. Then begin folding the entire circle "accordion-style" as shown. You can make these folds as large or as small as you want.

[Step 3: Once you have finished folding, your circle will look something like this. Notice it's only a half circle.]

[Step 4: Repeat the first 3 steps again to make another folded half-circle.]

[Step 5: Glue & adhere both half circles together, intertwining the folds, to form a full circle as shown.]

[Step 6: Adhere a button with a dimensional adhesive or glue dot in the center of the circle. Voila! A fun accordion button flower! Perfect for embellishing cards, scrapbook pages, or you can even make them into a magnet by adhering a little magnetic strip on the back. The possibilities are endless!]

[I will be linking this up to these linky parties!]

[Jen]

[Scrapperday: Colorful Valentine's Day Card]

Today I thought I'd share an unconventional Valentine's Day card that I recently made. While there's still the traditional pink & red combo, there are splashes of other bright and cheery colors that still make it very festive.

I originally got the idea to make this card from Kristina Werner's blog KWerner Designs. [You can view her card and video tutorial HERE.] Of course, like always, I kinda made it my own with a different sentiment, types, of paper, technique, etc. Most of the materials (patterned paper, stickers, letters) were purchased at Target this time last year in their fabulous dollar section. I got a bunch of scrapbooking supplies from their Valentine's Collection saved some of it for this very occasion. :0)

[Want to know how to make this cute little button flower?? I will be posting a step-by-step tutorial on Tuesday, February 1st. Stay tuned and get your scrapbook/craft paper ready!]

Linking up to [these] parties! Come join me!

[Jen]

[How-to Tuesday: Mother/Daugher Valentine's Day Gift]

With all the fun, creative Valentine's Day crafts going on, I was inspired to come up with my own little craft. I wanted to create something special for my hubby that my daughter and I could give to him as a gift. All I needed was a few basic supplies:

• Cardstock paper (in white, pink, & red)
• Black ink (I used charcoal in ColorBox Chalk)
• Rub-on numbers (I used these black rub-ons from Doodlebug Design Inc. in their "All Mixed Up" collection)
• Scrapbook glue or other adhesive
• Frame (optional)

[Step 1: Trace the outside of the hands with a pencil. I really only needed to trace one hand, cut it out, flip it over and trace it the cut-out template to have 2 hands cut out. This is key when trying to keep a busy toddler still while tracing tiny fingers.]

[Top photo: daughter's hands cut out in red cardstock; Bottom photo: my hands cut out in pink cardstock]

[Step 2: Ink the edges of all the hand cut-outs. I say it doesn't have to look super neat. Just want it to have a rustic look. Once both hands are inked, glue both hands together to make a heart shape. See photos above for placement.]

[Step 3: Adhere the heart-hands onto the page. I tried to layer them slightly so that they both fit onto the 8 x 10 white cardstock. Place rub-ons anywhere you like. I put "2011" to date how tiny my daughter's hands were this year.]

[Step 4: Optional: Place artwork inside a frame. Voila! Two hands, two hearts, one very special project.]

Hope you enjoyed today's Valentine tutorial! I will be linking this up here! :0)

[Jen]