Pink Christmas! Forget the Traditonal!

I love traditional Christmas colors but sometimes I want a change.  I think blue Christmas stuff and pink stuff is so cute!  I can't make the switch to the decor though.  I have to stick to traditional colors because it just looks so elegant!  But hey, I can make Christmas cards in ANY color!

I made these last year.  I know, I know....I'm just slightly behind in my posting.  LOL.  OK, WAAAY behind!

I love stockings on cards.  I am drawn to them for some reason.  Maybe because they are tiny and just cute!  How about that mini clothespin?!  Adorable right?  I used them in a Halloween layout I made last year.  Oops, nope....those were hangers!  Just checked.  Well, if you want to see those too you will die from cuteness!  Here's the link! 

Baby Girl Card

Told ya I needed to make baby shower cards.  Yesterday I posted the boy version so today is the girl version!  I made two of these as well except the second one is slightly different.  Same paper but different placement of the elements.

 

And once again I used My Thoughts Exactly stamps, Trendy Twin's twine and Recollections paper.  Pretty cute huh?  Isn't the elephant adorable?!

I think next up will be a neutral gender card. 

Baby Shower Congratulations Card

I realized I had only made one baby shower card EVER!  That needed to change so I decided to make another.  In fact I need to make a few.   

I had gone to Michael's last week and saw the cutest 6x6 paper packs from My Minds Eye and swooped up a few.  Too bad I didn't get them when they were 2/$8.  These little packs are really perfect for making cards and that's exactly what I did with them!  I used paper from MME Blink of an Eye 6x6 to make my latest baby boy card.

I wanted to stick with a classy look for this and I think I pulled it off.  I used a punch to cut out the star and then stuck the star studded background in behind the star for a pop of pretty design!  I used a My Thoughts Exactly stamp set for the sentiment both inside and out.  I think the embossing and inking of the edges really makes the card stand out more so than it would have had I not used those techniques.  Oh and of course I used my favorite twine...Trendy Twine to tie the little button into the design.  Inside I stamped "mommy to be".  Normally I don't stamp sentiments inside cards but I am trying to see how I like it so I gave it a try.

Oh, I also made a second card that looks exactly like this but without the sentiment inside that way it can be used for any congratulatory reason.  I liked it THAT much that I made more than one.  :)

 

Mummy Halloween Card

I have been seeing cute Halloween cards floating around, and one of them being a mummy peeking out from behind his wrappings.  I really wanted to make this card so last night before I headed out to a family party I decided to make one.

Isn't he CUTE!!!??  I used white cardstock as the base and then tore up some white scraps I had laying around to use as the mummy's wrappings or bandages.  I inked the edges to give it an older more worn look.  I stamped the bottom with a sentiment from My Thoughts Exactly's Fright Night Phrases stamp set using Vintage Photo distress ink from Tim Holtz.  The eyes I cut out using some stencils I had.

Thankfully I didn't start out with a cutting machine when I started crafting because having the old school basic stuff helps out when you just don't want to mess with SVGs or setting up the machine and computer to cut.  Really, I just don't want to deal with the hassle sometimes.  In fact I have been eyeing punches lately but then I realize I'd end up spending a TON because I would need every shape in every size and I might as well just either use the stencils I have or use my Silhouette to cut them out rather than spend hundreds on punches.  Oh the dilemmas us crafty people deal with!  :)

Oh by the way, I read that Silhouette is coming out with a new machine?!  I can't remember the name of it but I was intrigued at first but then realized it's small like my SD so I have no use for it.  If I'm going to upgrade I will get the Cameo and get rid of my dust collecting Cricut Expression.  Poor thing has been sitting for at least a year collecting dust.  I have used it once since getting my Silhouette.  Probably time to sell the thing and use the money towards a Cameo!  

Anyway, hope you enjoyed my mummy!  I may make some more with different colored eyes such as purple or green.  Maybe have him or her peeking ou from behind some darkness......

Anniversary Card

I sat at my computer to print out my Starbucks voucher from Living Social ($5 for $10 worth of coffee) and instead I made a card!  I guess the craft monster took over and overthrew the coffee monster!

This week I received two awesome orders!  OK, there was more than just those two orders but I only used items from two of the orders I placed.  First let me show you pictures of a card I made using some of the new items I received.  Here ya go!

Sometimes simple is more!

First up are the stamps from My Thoughts Exactly.  I absolutely love this brand.  They stamp so crisply and they don't lose the stick which I noticed happened on some of the ones I purchased at big chain stores.  Well, my disappointment in clear stamps has completely turned around once I started using My Thoughts Exactly Stamps.  These are the only clear stamps I buy now!

Next up is the embossing folder.  Oh how I LOVE it!  I purchased a few sets but the one I used is a chevron design.  This folder is from QuicKutz.  Each pack has two embossing folders and I purchased them for pretty cheap off Scrapbooks Steals or one of those bargain sites.  I have to hunt down more of these awesome embossing folders now!  The only bad part is that they don't emboss a true A2 size but if you trim up the paper like I did then it's not so bad.  I truly LOVE this embossing folder and the others I purchased.

Oh, I must mention one of my other favorite tools!  Epiphany Crafts Shape Tool!  I have had the heart shaped one (along with many of their other tools) for awhile but I usually use it with the epoxy shapes as well.  This time I used it as a punch to punch out the three hearts on my card but didn't use the epoxy.  Nice right!?  It's like a two-in-one! 

So go on and check out the two products I featured.  I PROMISE you won't be disappointed!

~Kasi    

   

Bandaid Get Well Card

Hi all!  It's another day and another post.  Still going strong with making cards!!  Yay me!

Today I made a few get well cards.  My favorite get well card is one that I make with a fake bandaid on it.  I try to make it look authentic.  What do you think?  Works??

The stamps are a mix and match of My Thoughts Exactly sets.  Love those stamps for that reason and because they stamp so crisply!  

This card is available in my Etsy shop!

Etsy

I recently re-opened my Etsy shop.  It's been awhile since I was on there.  With my recent pregnancy I lost all interest in all hobbies I once loved which included crafting and reading.  Now that the little one is here I am ready to get back to everything my "normal" self loves. 

Here's a link to my Etsy shop:  19Eighty Expressions on Etsy

and

Here are some of my latest creations:

Oh how I missed crafting!!!

Cleaning Your Cutting Machine Mat

I have always struggled with trying to efficiently clean my cutting mats whether it's the Cricut mat or the Silhouette mat.  I NEVER was able to get all the goo off until now!

I re-stick my mats with a chisel Zig Pen and it works great but it is a pain in the butt to get the glue off when I need to clean it and re-stick.  My mats are a huge ugly mess of old glue and grossness.  I tried the soap approach to no avail.  Baby wipes didn't work.  I also tried the Goo Gone or whatever that pungent smelling stuff is.  All it did was give me a headache, stink up the house, and eat up the printed lines on my mat.  Big huge fails!  Today I discovered the answer to cleaning my mats...baby oil!  Seriously.  No joke!!  I just tried it and it took some scrubbing (probably from a years worth of glue stuck on the mat) but it worked!

I put some drops of baby oil on the mat and spread it out by rubbing it into the glue.  I let it sit for a few minutes then added soap and scrubbed with a scrub sponge.  The glue came off!!  I really wasn't expecting that to happen.  I am so happy to have finally found a solution that is cheap and super easy!

I would have taken pictures but my mats were so embarrassingly gross that I couldn't bring myself to post pictures of the before.  Anyway, if you try it let me know if it worked for you!

*UPDATE*

I noticed that the glue definitely came off but then stuck to my scrub sponge.  I had to keep peeling it off.  Also, because I have so many layers of glue on my mat it took some serious effort for me to scrub the glue off.  Not sure how much scrubbing is needed for just one layer.  It took most of the glue out but I'm tired of scrubbing so there's still some on my mat but it's much much cleaner than it was before.        

Fun Beach Layout

Hi guys!!  It's been a long long time since I lasted posted anything here.  May was my last post and before that...uhhh...no clue.  I have a good excuse though.  I really do.  We welcomed a baby girl into our family earlier this month.  I pretty much lost all interest in crafting and all other hobbies I once enjoyed throughout my pregnancy.  I did a few pages here and there but not much else.  OK, enough about that, let me show you a layout I completed this week.

I'm still working on pictures from our last three vacations to Hawaii.  I finally got all the pictures printed now just working on getting pages cranked out so I can move on.

Ahem, I will not tell you which one I am....chunky or skinny chick.  

I used:

-Echo Park's Splash paper collection.

-The cute poxy buttons happen to be Epiphany Craft's Shape Studio Round 25.

-The stamps are from Unity Stamp Co. 

-I purchased the fishies that you see lined up in the center of the page from the Silhouette online store and printed them out so I can add some more cool Echo Park images to my page without having to cut up more of the pretty paper!

-Oh and I can't forget Trendy Twine!  I used the Sew Easy to stitch a teal border along the right top corner of my page (Did I just see a guide to sew in circles???  Wahhh?  Gotta have!).  I used Trendy Twine's new Tickled with Teal bakers twine.  Psst, they have a lot of awesome new colors in the store!   

There will be more posts up.  I promise.  I made a few other pages over the month that I haven't showcased yet. 

Firestarter Layout

As promised on my FB page I have made it over here to post a picture of my latest scrapbook layout.  I made this layout for the DCWV Template Challenge for the month of May.

A little backstory on the pictures.  For our honeymoon my husband and I went to Hawaii.  We decided to do all the touristy things and one of those things was to go to the Polynesian Cultural Center on the Island of Oahu.  We did the whole nine yards there, Luau (you may have seen layouts of pics from the Luau), activities, evening show, etc.

In the pictures for this particular layout my husband had been chosen as one of two guys to compete to start a fire by hand.  Being the Eagle Scout & pyro that my husband is he was pretty darn excited.  He gets to play with fire!!  Unfortunately I didn't print some of the other in-between pics where the fire lit but the top pic is of him starting to light the fire by some means that did not include matches.  My husband was awarded the winners crown of leaves and a flower because he smoked the guy (pun intended)!  He had his fire lit in a matter of seconds while the other guy had trouble getting it lit which leads me to the next two pictures.

In the bottom two pictures my husband is, well....posing which he does quite often for any reason he can find, then dancing a hula dance.  It was an interesting sight.  I married a goof ball.

 

 Materials used:

  DCWV Tahiti Stack

Trendy Twine - Twisted Lime

Epiphany Crafts Shape Studio - Round 25

Crop-a-Dile to set eyelets

Prima flowers (I think)

Unity Stamp's "Time For Travel" set

Silhouette SD to print and cut title

Hope you enjoyed my little story.  I have another layout for you to see in the next few days and I am working on finishing up another. I just may be back in the game......

Stationary Box

I know it's been quite some time since I've posted.  In fact it's been just as long since I've really made anything!  Oh wait, I did make some wall art.  I will have to post that soon. 

I was inspired by Alyssa's (from My Thoughts Exactly) project from last Saturday.  She made the cutest stationary set.  Now I have been wanting to make a greeting card box forever and it dawned on me that it would be a cute gift to give to my mother this Mother's Day so I went on the hunt for a greeting card box tutorial.  I was expecting to do something really simple to just put cards in but I stumbled across Alyssa's project and loved it.  Psst, she has instructions on her site.

Trendy Twine and cute buttons adorn the lid

Ta daa!

A2 sized cards are held in the biggest compartment in the back

Tags and mini note cards

Post it Notes

Stamp holder & pen holder

This stationary box holds A2 sized cards and envelopes.  I added some mini note cards and envelopes for them as well as some tags.  Also featured on the fold down flap are some Post it Notes, a stamp holder and a pen holder.  All in one stationary set!

 

I totally forgot to take a pic of the box with just the top off but with the box shape still in tact.  Boo to me!!  Anyway, when you take of the top of the box you bring down the front panel to reveal all the goodies,  It's such a cool set!  Love it.  

St. Patty's Day Card

My latest Trendy Twine design team project features some lovely Twisted Lime twine on a St. Patrick's Day card.

 I used a thin outline of a shamrock I cut out with my Silhouette and Make the Cut as a template and lined it with the Twisted Lime twine so I would have a perfect shamrock rather than one I would have come up with which would have looked like a kid made it. 

Check out Trendy Twine's blog for the rest of the St. Patrick's Day projects made and also for details on this month's challenge!  Don't miss out on your chance at winning 50 yards of twine!!   

Tasseled Bookmarks

Hello hello!  Kasi here with my latest Trendy Twine design team project.  My inspiration for this latest project is from something I love to do...read!  The book nerd I am just never seems to have a proper bookmark on hand for those times when I actually pick up a "real" book and not my Kindle.  I usually just grab an old receipt or whatever scrap of paper I can get my hands on to.  I finally decided to make myself a pretty bookmark!

 
I used Trendy Twine's new Chocolate Cupcake twine for the tassel.  Now usually when I make classic bookmarks like these I just throw on some ribbon or twine at the top but I never made a tassel before this.  I had to do some hunting around and found this blog which I felt did a great job in demonstrating through pictures how to make a tassel.

Hope you enjoyed this project and learned a new way to use Trendy Twine!!  For more great twine ideas visit the Trendy Twine blog! 

Trendy Twine Tuesday

It's a another fabulous Trendy Twine Tuesday where the entire Trendy Twine design team shows you their creations using a specific color of twine.  The twine of choice for these projects is Strawberry Cupcake which is a pink and white twine.  To get into a little more detail, the twine is 4-ply and is twisted with dark pink, light pink, and white. 

My project, which I made for a friend's baby shower features both Strawberry Cupcake and Twisted Lime.

To see all the Trendy Twine projects visit Trendy Twine's blog which is linked HERE.

Vibrant Layout

Wow, it's good to be back!  I explained a little in my last post about why I've been away for so long but it seems I am back now (and hope to stay back)!  Yay!  I have missed crafting so much.  Last night my husband came home and saw me working away in my craft room and commented on the fact that I was actually crafting.  He was happy to see me feeling much better and able to do what I love to do.

So this past Tuesday was my DT day for Trendy Twine but unfortunately due to unforeseen circumstances, I was unable to work on a project.  I felt HORRIBLE but the awesome owner and DT were very accomodating toward my situation and I was given a free pass.  Well, I thank them for that but I felt bad about it so I made up my day!


I have actually been working on this layout for almost two months now.  Yea, crazy right?  Well, since I haven't been feeling well it just kind of sat on my craft table for most of that time collecting dust and waiting for me to finish it.  Finally last night I was able to.

 

 

I used Trendy Twine's Valentine's Cherry Cupcake twine to "hang" the little banner.  I also used the same twine in the center of the flower.  I felt the flower was naked so I decided to dress it up by adding some twirled Cherry Cupcake twine.  As you can see, this is not a Valentine's project so just keep in mind that the Cherry Cupcake twine can be used for ANY occasion. 

I used Unity Stamp's Time for Travel stamps and Epiphany Crafts Shape Studio tools to make the epoxy embellishments on the banner.  I also used the Unity Stamps itty bitty collection of Echo Park Banners stamps for the three sentiment banners.

Ooh, I am entering this layout in DCWV's Stack-a-holic Template Challenge.  Wish me luck...I saw some serious competition on their FB page!!!  The layout template is from Sketch Savvy.  

Before I let you go I wanted to let you know that Trendy Twine has two new colors available now!  You can get them in spools and also in a mini pack.    

Stay tuned....Trendy Twine has more colors debuting this year!