handmade cass

Ever since I went to Alaska last year, I have been a little obsessed with matryoshka dolls .  I got these two sets while we were there (both made in Russia).   The bigger set in the back was from a fancy Russian store in Alaska, and I picked it because the dolls all have red hair like me.  Then afterwards the cruise we were on had some pretty inexpensive sets, so I got the set with strawberries and an itty-bitty baby doll. Frank!  Who knocked over the itty-bitty one? You can see just how tiny it is here.  The head is smaller than a pencil eraser. And I get a little thrill every time I see matryoshka designs online.  Apparently they are becoming quite popular in the crafty world.  Look what I found... I love EVERYTHING about this post from Polka Dot Prints Studio .  And I want to throw a party just so I can use these invitations and somehow find a way to get these cookies here all the way from Australia. Image credit: Naomi V Photograph...

I have to give a shout out to Listgirl for this one.  She is doing "30 Day of Lists" for September and I loved the idea.  However, I quickly realized I would fall behind after the second day.  So I am doing a book of lists that I update whenever I have a chance.  And like Listgirl, I am using a Smash Book which is so much fun I can't even handle it. The whole idea of a Smash Book (from EK Success) is to capture memories and get things into the book without too much thought or effort.  But being the Type A that I am.... I agonized over my opening page for about 2 hours.  It is still pretty bare and I'll keep adding to it I'm sure. Second list I did was about things I miss during a power outage, since all of San Diego went dark on Dan's birthday last week.  You can see I did a bit of story telling - so it's more like a journal than just a list. I was so excited to pull out my Hambly washi tape that I have been hoarding for a few months (and a ...

I always wanted to preserve my baby's hand and footprints, especially while they are still tiny.  I tried a baby safe ink pad when she was 3 months old, but it turned out neon pink instead of a nice subdued color.   The color was a little too jarring for any keepsakes I had in mind.  Onto the next project...  I saw some Crayola clay at Lakeshore when I was there last week to laminate the covers for my mini album.  That gave me the idea to preserve these precious prints in clay!   I ended up buying the clay at Michael's with a coupon, and they didn't have white in the big tub option.  So I figured the terra cota color would be next best.  It dried a bit darker than I expected.  And the color was uneven where I had tried to smooth over some areas with a wet sponge.  So I pulled out my Twinkling H2O watercolors that haven't seen any love in many years. Since I had to do a trial run I made a little handprint for my mom's birth...

Just celebrated my 6th wedding anniversary over fondue and a martini with my mr. last week.  It was our first date night since the baby was born, and was long overdue.  Unfortunately my handmade anniversary present for him is overdue as well.  It's almost done! I decided to make a mini album with one picture from every year that we've been married, and one for our wedding day too.  I had an extra picture for 2011 because I couldn't decide which one to put in the book, so I used it on the cover.  Each page has one picture, a typed caption from my typewriter, and a little ribbon tab. Unfortunately the pictures started popping off a day after I started making this.  Then the captions too!  Dang that American Crafts adhesive runner that I had a feeling wasn't strong enough.  Going to trust my gut and stick with the tried and true super sticky adhesives next time.  But this time, I did a quick fix with some double-sided scotch tape for the pict...

I love a good stamp.  And I'm not talking about the rubber stamp variety.  I mean a trip to the post office to pick out the latest and greatest, so you can send off cards to the ones you love.  I am already planning my Christmas cards and couldn't help but take a peek at what stamps are available right now.  I expect that at least a few more sets will be released, but these are my current favorites. And to make the outside of my cards even more special, I got some glassine envelopes and I am going to attempt to make some pretty address labels.  Inspired by this craft from Martha :

One of my very good girlfriends just had a baby!  I met her on my first day moving into my college dorm - her room was right across the hall from mine and she had a can opener when I needed one.  That was more than 10 years ago and we live a few thousand miles apart but we try to stay in close contact and both love to make gifts for each other. I had been excited to make this set for quite a while, and managed to get both projects done in one afternoon.  The first is a onesie with some fabric embellishment.  I'm not sure if you can call it applique if you use a machine to stitch it on?  I did.  And like always, I learned the hard way that you need a special needle and a stretch stitch for knits.  I just used my pinking shears and a zig zag stitch, so at least it looks cute.  Sorry if it doesn't survive the first wash Katie! Next was a set of "wee wee tee pees" that I saw in a fancy baby boutique.  They were really expensive and I didn't ...

My first video review, and first time posting anything to YouTube, so I thought I would share.  Not sure when the entire article is scheduled to be published on Craft Critique , but I will update with a link as soon as it is live.  I was too excited to wait, because my video was mentioned on the American Crafts Facebook page today.  Enjoy! August 10, 2011 Update The full review has been posted here on Craft Critique . August 23, 2011 Update I starting using the solid adhesive runner for scrapbooking and the pictures are not sticking .  Disappointed!