handmade cass

We kept busy this summer with crafts for the whole family. I started by making a book with all the best scraps of patterned paper I had after cleaning up my craft room. There were spots for my daughter to color, draw, and write stories. My trusty, old Zutter book binder pulled it all together. I took the time to fussy cut some of the stamped images I had mixed in with the scrap paper. This matryoshka from Hero Arts is one of my favorites. A friend was having her first baby and I wanted to make an extra special card. I used Distress Stains to ink smoosh a background. The stars are hanging on gold thread. When my daughter saw that I was making my own coloring sheets (with a stamp from Paper Source), she insisted on helping me watercolor it. Then I had to give it to her because she loved it so much (even though I did too). Update: she still has this hanging up in her room 2 years later We took some visiting family members to the local ceramics painting studio and I made a b...

I wanted to send cards to a couple family members that visited recently, and the Hero Arts paper layering pineapple die was the perfect thing to get me started. To start, I outlined the die on watercolor paper and colored it in using ZIG Clean Color Real Brush pens (from the set of 36). When the watercolor was almost dry (because I am super impatient) I used the pineapple die, bent the layers back, and glued it onto a pre-made card. I also used a die cut sentiment from Avery Elle's Stay Fresh set, and adhered it to the interior of the card. This also happened to be the perfect project for the Simon Says "Anything Goes" challenge this week. Supplies: die cuts - Hero Arts (paper layering pineapple), Avery Elle (stay fresh) watercolor - ZIG Clean Color Real Brush Pens watercolor paper - Loew Cornell adhesive - Tombo Mono Multi liquid glue card base - Michael's

I received a set of Inktense pencils for Christmas and was so excited to try them. Why did I wait so long? The bright colors are so beautiful! I was working on a set of cards for my stamp club and started with the floral image top, left. By the time I was done (bottom, right) I was pretty happy with myself. Supplies: stamp - Stampin' Up (Birthday Blooms set) ink - Ranger Distress Ink watercolor pencils - Inktense water brush - Pentel watercolor paper - Canson

I originally started this blog in 2009 when I was just trying Tim Holtz Distress Inks for the first time . I always got so frustrated when I would get rectangle shaped dark ink spots that were impossible to blend out. I eventually got a bit better at the blending but never really enjoyed it. But all that has changed and I have a renewed love for these distress inks! The new mini ink blending tool from Ranger is so much easier to use. And how great is it that the blender pads fit into the bottom of the mini ink pads?! I'm most excited to start making some night sky and sunset backgrounds. But today I needed to make up a sign for our guest room because we have a summer full of visitors. This sign will have all of our Wifi info so they can stay connected during their vacation with us. Does anyone else have a crazy complicated password? I guess I could try to figure out how to change it but that would take time away from crafts. This project also forced me to do some heat embo...

I am going to call this the card with the best intentions. I had taken a break from paper crafts for a while because life was crazy, and jumping back in was more difficult than I hoped. I tried to take a shortcut and do some background blending without the right tools. Big mistake. Especially since this technique is new to me. Time to go watch some more Laura Bassen videos . But at least my daughter's friend will love this card for her My Little Pony birthday party. So in the end I'll call it a success. Supplies : stamps - Lawn Fawn "Critters Ever After" ink - Memento | Tim Holtz Distress Ink markers - Copic | Wink of Stella cardstock - Neenah Solar White | Michael's card base

Wishing you a very Merry Christmas and a new year filled with lots of crafts. We took a little drive to our local sledding spot and were greeted by giant snowflakes all around. Fingers crossed for a white Christmas at our house.

I am part of a Stampin' Up club that meets every other month to exchange cards and work on holiday projects together. This month we are exchanging a set of gift tags to use for Christmas presents.  I spent waaaay too long making these wreath tags with a paper bow, watercolor leaves, and Stickles berries. And I was very excited to use my Envelope Punch Board and the Notcher Punch to make a self sealing envelope from vintage music sheets. Inside the envelope I have a mix of gift tags all ready to be used this Christmas. I hope they enjoy! Supplies : stamps - A Muse wreath | Hero Arts doily | Memory Box reindeer | Avery Elle snow globe ribbon - American Crafts glitter - Stickles tools - We R Memory Keepers Envelope Punch Board and Notcher Punch | Stampin' Up bow punch | Marvy circle punches