Holiday Wishes Treat Containers!

Good morning! I can't believe it is Friday already! It has been a busy, crazy week at my school. The kids have been practicing for their Christmas concert next week and the teachers have been having a "Grizwald" decorating contest. We have a little competition between the 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade teachers on who can decorate the most. My 5th grade cohorts and I cut, laminated, strung, and hung about 100 paper snowflakes in our hallway yesterday! I think I may have developed Carpal Tunnel. ; ) It's all in good fun and seriously our school, kids and teachers, feel like one big family. It is a wonderful place to work and learn.

I have been busy making gifts for teachers, bus drivers, and co-workers. Something small, not expensive, but something that took time and care to make. I had these test tubes from Halloween that were unused. I pondered whether or not they would be appropriate to use for Christmas. Sure! Why Not? Christmas and test tubes goes together like peanut butter and jelly...........right? OK, so maybe it was a stretch, but I think I made it work. ; ) (Or the teachers are gonna think I've really lost it.......we'll see!)

I used my Cricut Winter Frolic cartridge to cut the trees. Glitter was added to the trees. I used Echo Park paper, Papertrey paper, some Magic Scraps red twine, a jingle bell, and a sentiment from Papertrey Ink. The tag was cut using my Cricut Sentimentals cartridge. (I actually cut the tags in bulk and leave them in a bucket to grab whenever I need one quickly!) The test tube was covered with a piece of vellum to soften the look a bit.

I have a busy, busy weekend ahead of me! Lots to do! Hope your weekend is fabulous! Thanks so much for stopping on by! : )

Crafty Secrets and a Few Family Photos

Good morning to you! I have a Crafty Secrets card to share with you today that uses the new set, Angel Blessings. I colored the image with my Copic markers and added lots of glitter to their wings. I cut out the image and placed it on foam squares for dimension. I used Artsy Banners for the word, Joy, which was printed from my computer. I added a couple of pearls to the banner and tucked it under the angels. I layered various papers in my stash and added glitter to the edges. I tucked a doiley under all of it and some seam binding.

If you are here only for crafty reasons.....then feel free to click outta here! ; ) For my family and friends who enjoy coming here to see my little family every now and then feel free to stay a spell. I have just a couple of pictures from our little jaunt downtown this past Sunday. I kindly asked a stranger to take a family picture of us. Unfortunately, my girl has her eyes closed.....but at least there is a smile on her face! ( I probably should have taken her bib off too.........oh well!)

My little photographer, Kyle, took this one of Brian and I. Pretty good for a 13 year old!

And last but not least, a picture of Chicago's "Bean." It looked beautiful reflecting the city in front of it. : )

Thanks so much for stopping by for a visit!! Have a wonderful "hump" day! : )

Altered Memo Board

Good morning! I hope you had a wonderful weekend! Mine was a busy one! Saturday we had lunch with my aunt who was in from out of town, did lots of Christmas shopping afterwards, and yesterday my little family and I went downtown to walk Michigan Ave. We saw the lights, walked tons, visited the LEGO store, ate at the Cheesecake Factory, and enjoyed being together.

I have an altered memo board to share with you today. It was a little cheap one dollar magnetic thing from Target. I used October Afternoon papers and my Cricut George & Basic Shapes cartridge to cut the various sized circles. The smallest yellow circle and large cream circle were hand stitched. The word "Love" was cut using the Sweethearts cartridge using cream paper and glittered. And last but not least, the large flowers were cut using the Accent Essentials cartridge. I cut it twice, inked the edges and layered them on top of one another for dimension.

I altered some clips I had in my stash with smaller flowers cut from Accent Essentials, buttons, and lots of glitter! I love that the clips stay in place and all I have to do is swap out the photos.

Do you think they have a self-help group to help me combat my obsession with glitter? ; )

The 3 buttons were threaded together......I was way too lazy to do each one individually!

Hope y'all have a great day! I am off to work! I was a bit spoiled having the last week off.......back to reality! : )

My American Honey

Many of you who follow my blog know that Cortney graduated from 8th grade. But you probably also know that she doesn't go to a typical school......and doesn't go to a brand new school because she has moved on to high school. Instead she goes to a different wing of the school. Her teacher for the past 3 years has loved her like no other teacher I've ever known. She has shown Cortney the greatest respect and has accepted her just the way she is. She has allowed her room to grow and blossom and for that I am extremely thankful. This teacher, Miss Amber created videos for the 3 students who graduated this year. Each one was different....each one was personal. She loved these kids like they were her own. Cortney's video included the song, American Honey by Lady Antebellum. The song is about growing up, changing, moving on. My girl is changing, blossoming, coming into her own. I attribute a lot of those changes to Miss Amber. And now I have a new song to cry to every time it comes on! ; )

I used Noel Mignon's kit from last year called, "Love Story." I loved the rich reds and earth tones in this kit. I cut the circles, accordion circles, and title from my Cricut machine. The circles were cut from the George & Basic Shapes cartridge, the Accordion circles were from All Occasion Cake's cartridge, and the Title was cut using the Storybook cartridge. I pleated the half circles to create these dimensional pieces.
I used a JustRite stamp for the jar of honey. It is from the Preserved Borders & Centers set. I colored it using my Copic markers. The word honey was stamped with a Papertrey script set.

Thank you for allowing me to share my family with you. I am thankful that I have this creative outlet to express myself.........thanks for caring and "listening!"

Have a wonderful weekend! : )

Happy Thanksgiving!

Hope your day is filled with lots of yummy food, laughter, family, and love! : )

JustRite's 12 Weeks of Christmas Blog Hop 12!

Welcome to the final week of JustRite Stampers’ Wednesday feature, 12 Weeks of Christmas Blog Hops! JustRite has been showcasing their entire Christmas Collection of stamps during the hops and ALL of those JustRite Original stamps are currently on sale at 25% off now through November 29, with free shipping within the U.S. on consumer orders over $50! You can view all of those Holiday Sale stamp sets HERE.

If you would like to go back through all of the hops and see all of the gorgeous Christmas inspiration from the past 11 weeks, you can do so by clicking on the 12 Weeks of Christmas Blog Hops category on the JustRite Inspiration blog. All of the designers’ projects are hyperlinked directly to their blog posts that have full details of how they created the project, so you won’t have to search for them!

Don’t forget that JustRite also has some Christmas stamps in their newly released CLING line of stamp sets, too -- you can find all of their cling stamp sets HERE. This week, the designers joining the JustRite design team are the 2 Sketches 4 You designers! JustRite is sponsoring this week’s 2S4Y #66 sketch challenge. You can find the fabulous sketch inspiration AND details about the JustRite prize package, by visiting their blog post HERE.


My card today is a bit out of my norm.......more simple than I usually make? I loved this Dear Lizzy paper so much that I didn't want to cover it up! The card was cut using Provo Craft's Christmas Card cartridge. I love the rounded edges of the card, it gives it a more modern look!
The large snowflake is a die by Spellbinders. I cut the snowflake twice, once with the DP and secondly, with the vellum. I added a round circle in red to make the image pop a bit. The sentiment is by JustRite's Whimsical Christmas set. It was stamped in Pure Poppy. (Papertrey Ink) I placed the vellum snowflake directly over the sentiment to soften it a bit. I did add lots and lots of gllitter! (Gee, are you surprised by that? ; ) As my final touches, I added a white satin ribbon and a sheer red ribbon.

Please visit these designers’ blogs to see what fabulous JustRite Christmas inspiration they have for you on the hop today!

JustRite Inspiration Blog
2 Sketches 4 You

Debbie Olson

Kazan Clark

Laura Davis

Barb Schram

Angie Tieman

Heidi Blankenship

Courtney Baker

Michele Kovack

Julie Lacey

Sankari Wegman

Laurie Willison

Stephanie Kraft

Mona Pendleton

Angela Barkhouse

Regina Mangum

I am home today, and I have a "to do" list a mile long! Lots of cooking and cleaning! In case I don't make it back until after the holiday, may you and your family have a wonderful Thanksgiving! Eat lots and be grateful! Hugs to you all!!!!

Crafty Secret's Christmas Challenge!

Good morning and happy Monday to you! I have a fun card to share with you today for the Crafty Secrets' Christmas Blog Hop! My card actually uses an older stamp from the Vintage Christmas set. But there is just something so endearing about this little Eskimo girl. I colored her with Copics and added Flower Soft to her hood. I added glitter to the ice. I used Spellbinder's circle, petite scalloped circles, and lacy squares to matte the image. I added a doily and some Glimmer Misted seam binding.

Love the dimension of the Flower Soft on her hood!

I forgot to take a picture of the inside, but my sentiment says, Have a warm and fuzzy Christmas!

To see some other fabulous Christmas projects, be sure to visit the other gals' blogs!!!
· Vicki Chrisman Team Leader

· Pam Hooten

· Heidi Blankenship

· Linda Duke

· Michele Kovack <------- Me! : )

· Melissa Phillips

· Flo Teixeira from France

· Julie Campbell

· Mary Hamer

· Anna Wight (November Guest Designer)

· Heartwarming Vintage blog
www.craftysecrets.com