Jingle Bell Tutorial!

Before I start my tutorial, I just want to remind you that there are 3 days left to vote over at The Blog Guide Book! And actually, I am about 10 votes behind 1st place.......so if you don't mind popping over there, I would REALLY appreciate it! : )

I have had many requests for a jingle bell tutorial. It has sort of become my new obsession lately. (Like I needed another obsession!) ; ) I picked up a couple of packages of these babies, in two different sizes. I got them from Hobby Lobby for a pretty reasonable price.
When I took this picture, I thought I had wanted 3 different colors of jingle bells but ended up changing my mind and actually made 4 different colors. But in any event, you need to separate them onto different paper plates. I found this worked better than newspaper, as newspaper tends to stick.

I used Krylon spray paint in four different colors. I loved this minty green color!

See? Newspaper? This is how I know not to use it! (I was peeling off the red sales add for quite a while!) ; )

This part takes a bit of patience. You spray the color lightly, let it dry, shake your paper plate, and spray again. It will take a few times to get an even coverage over the entire jingle bell.

Once all of your bells are covered, and you are satisfied with them, bring them indoors to give them a sugary coating. This part is a bit messy! I used glossy accents to coat each bell and then roll it in glitter. A spray adhesive would work too. The only problem I found with the spray, is it has a tendency to move your jingle bell around the plate too much. So I had to keep my distance a bit.

....Place them in a bowl full of glitter and roll those babies around!

It is a bit messy, but the results are worth it! And honestly, I will probably have jingle bells till I'm 80! : ) Oh! And see those brown textured bells? That was sprayed with Suede spray paint! I love the cool look of it!

Here is a Christmas card using my lil' bells. The chipboard house is from Maya Road and I covered it using the Helmar Crackle medium. It is such a cool effect! I added a bit of texture paste for snow and sprinkled it with glitter. The sweet image in the doorway is from Crafty Secret's Creative Scraps. I even added tiny curtains to the windows!

I also added some tulle, twine, rhinstones for smoke from the chimney, and a Melissa Frances flourish. And of course, those sugary jingle bells! ; )

The family and I are headed downtown tomorrow to see the Christmas lights, ice skate, and have lunch. I know the days of my 14 year old wanting to spend time doing this with us may be coming to an end. So I will take advantage of it while I can!

I hope you have a wonderful weekend!!!!

A Little Christmas Cheer

Voting continues over at The Blog Guide Book........4 more days to cast your vote! : ) For those of you who have already voted, thank you for taking the time to do it! : ) I really appreciate it! If you haven't voted and would like to, just click HERE!

Good morning! I have a little Christmas card to share with you today that uses this darling stamp by Amuse! My friend Simone bought it for me last year and he was begging to be used again! I colored his cute self with my Copics and glittered his hat, beard etc. I cut him out and placed him on a small card that was actually a left over piece from another card. I added a doily behind him, added some mica flakes around his feet, and a couple of my sugary jingle bells tied with twine.
I am addicted to these jingle bells and can't seem to stop using them on my projects! ; )

My girl has a beauty shop appt. tonight. She is getting highlights in her hair for the holidays. It is so cute to see her enjoy being fussed over!

Thanks for popping by!!!

An Unusual Way to color Felt!

First I want to thank you for voting for me over at the Blog Guide Book's Top Blog Contest! It is a tight race and I am among some very talented ladies! If you haven't had a chance to vote, I would be so grateful if you took a minute to vote for my blog! Just click HERE! : )


Every now and then I have a moment of genius. (It doesn't happen often, so when it does I get pretty darn excited!) ; ) I wanted to make an ornament using this Spellbinder's mitten die and some felt I had. I cut two pieces of cream colored felt and used red floss and a blanket stitch all around the edges. After it was done I thought it looked too flat. (I wish I had taken a picture of it before!) I needed a way to age it......so what better than to rub the whole darn thing in used coffee grounds! AND, it gives it a nice smell to boot! ; ) Who knew there were so many things to do with coffee?
Once it was all dry, I just shook off the excess and continued to embellish the top of my mitten using Spellbinder's snowflake dies, twine, jingle bells, and a sprig of berries. I added a bit of mica flakes at the bottom with a bit glossy accents.

See those jingle bells? Watch for a tutorial on how to create your own colored, sugary jingle bells of your own!
Thank you for stopping by! I always appreciate your visits and sweet comments! : )

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It only takes a minute and this is honestly the LAST time I will aske you to vote! I promise! ; ) I would be soooooooo grateful for your help!

Just Rite's Topsy Turvy Cake!

I hope all of you had a wonderful holiday weekend! I was fortunate enough to have an extended weekend and enjoyed every minute of it! I hosted our Thanksgiving meal, and Friday was spent decorating the house for Christmas. I love the cozy feeling of the twinkling lights and putting out all of my Christmas treasures for display. Saturday the family and I decided to head to the mall and get our Christmas shopping done. We were quite successful and got almost everyone on our list done. When we got home and unpacked our gifts, we made a big bowl of buttery popcorn and watched Super 8. It was a great movie and pretty action packed. Yesterday was a "stay in your pajamas" kind of day! I got a bit of crafting done and tried to relax for a change!

Today, it's back to work! I'm not complaining though....... : )

I have a birthday card to show you using a fun set by JustRite called Topsy Turvey Cakes. This is the second card I've created with this whimsical set. The first card was HERE. I colored it in using my Copic markers and added teeny rhinestones to the centers of the flowers. I also colored additional colored flowers to add to the side of my "frame." This was created using the Beaded Oval's Die by Spellbinders and cutting out the center with an oval die. The large flower was cut using Cuttlebug's Daisy Quilling kit.
I added a bit of twine and some leaves cut from corrugated cardboard. I swiped a bit of white paint across them to bring out the texture.

I also have GOOD news to share! I have made it to the TOP 5 in Blog Guide Book's Top Blog Contest! It is all because of YOU! Thank you, thank you for all of your votes!!! The last round starts some time today, and if you get a chance to vote again (the last time I promise!) I would SO appreciate it!!!!! Please help me if you can by spreading the word on Facebook, your blogs etc! THANK YOU!!!!! : D

Vintage Dress Form

Good morning and happy Black Friday to you! Did any of you go shopping in the wee hours of the morning? Not me.......I definitely am not a crowds kind of gal! ; )


I have another Crafty Secret's card to share with you using the new Vintage Illustration's CD, which is available for purchase TODAY! If you love vintage papers and illustrations, this is a definite must have! I printed some paper and decided to print this darling dress right over it! I cut it out, inked the edges a bit and applied some Helmar crackle medium. (Such a cool product!) After it was all dry, I took my dark brown, inky sponge and filled in the cracks to make it more visible. I added a bit of felt, seam binding, a tiny spool, stick pins, and some machine sewing to finish it off!

This product works great on paper, chipboard, etc. You will definitely be seeing more using it!

And just a peek into my Thanksgiving......flowers that my Dad sent.....

My table before the bomb of food hit it! ; )

And my living room, with my new fireplace screen from Pier 1. Love the flicker of the candles...

Be sure to visit the Crafty Secret's website for Sandy's big announcement and a HUGE sale!

Today is the transformation from Thanksgiving decor to Christmas decor! Bring out the tree, lights, knick knacks etc!

I will be back tomorrow, so be sure to pop on by!

So Thankful For.....

I am in the lead over at The Blog Guidebook thanks to you! If you haven't voted yet, please click HERE! It only takes a minute and I would be so grateful, if you voted for my blog, Thoughts of a Cardmaking Scrapbooker! (Voting ends on Friday. You can vote from as many computers as you own too!) ; )


Before I start my creative post.....I just want to take a moment to thank you! So many of you have voted for me and have left me the sweetest comments here. It is truly so heart warming to hear these things. Honestly, I am just a 5th grade teacher, a mom, and a wife who likes creating with paper. It is my sanity, my therapy, and has literally saved me. Life isn't always what you want it to be, and this hobby of mine has given me an outlet that I am grateful for on a daily basis. Add to that, the support I get from you......and the whole thing is just overwhelmingly fulfilling.

The project I am sharing today was in last year's Cricut Circle magazine. It is a mini album sharing some of my blessings in life. The title was created using the Opposites Attract Cartridge for the words, So and Far. Storybook was used for the word, Thankful. I included some vintage papers I had on hand and some glittery leaves cut from the Thanksgiving cartridge.
I am grateful for my lil' family. We have been through a lot, and it has made us closer and more appreciative of this life we've been given.

The wheat stalks were from the Country Life cartridge and glossy accents was applied to make them pop off the page a bit more. I attached a little tag to it.

This house was supposed to be our "starter" home. We were meant to stay for a bit and then move on.......but our hearts belonged here, so we added an addition and decided to stay. It is customized for Cortney's needs and it is warm and cozy inside. It isn't the biggest home, or the newest, but it is perfect for us. Our memories, our laughter, and our tears, have been shared in this house.

The tree was cut using the Simply Charmed cartridge and again glossy accents was applied. I tied another tag to it.

And lastly, this little guy. We rescued him from the shelter after our Pug, Bruno passed away. He was a scroungy dirty 8 month old pup that stole my heart immediately! He is honestly, the best dog I've ever owned with the most loving personality.

The hearts and circles were cut using the All Occasions Cake Art Cartridge. I added a bit of stitching with black floss. His name was done on the computer.

I am off to clean and start cooking for Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow!

I wish all of you a very HAPPY and BLESSED Thanksgiving! : )