Still in Love

 Coffee/Tea of the Day - Earl Grey Lavender tea

Hi there! I realize that this is a Valentine share on the day after Valentine's Day, but hubby and I are celebrating the holiday this evening.  There was a group at Camp this weekend, so it will be our first bit of time together. 

The main image is again from Gecko Galz. it reminds me so much of David and I in our much younger days. I still love that guy so much, even after all of our years together. blessed, so very blessed. the free image can be found on their blog on this post.

some papers by Stamperia and Echo Park, a pretty doily and twine from Michael's, and some tickets complete the card. 

I'll be back to sharing creations for the baby journals I am working on in the upcoming days. thank you for celebrating with me this week the love I have for my family. :)

have a joyous day!

Jennifer 

Challenges:

Gecko Galz - All You Need is Love

Christmas Tea Remembrance Cards

Top Pick at Stinkin' Inkers
Coffee/Tea of the Day - Chestnut Praline coffee

Hello and Happy weekend! :)

I wanted to participate in both the Caring Hearts Card Drive and the Fall/Winter Coffee Lover's blog hop. I was so excited when I saw that the Caring Hearts card drive deadline had been extended, so I got busy. understand that it takes me forever and a day to get anything crafty made anymore. oh, the joys of cancer. rolling eyes.....and when I thought about creating cards for people who are in nursing homes, I knew I would be remiss if I didn't make some to send to my MIL, who is also in a nursing home. I thought I would make some little tea cards for her to pass out to her friends. she has always been one of my biggest supporters of my crafting. I think she has truly given away hundreds of my cards as gifts to her friends over the years. :)

So about a week ago I started crafting. yep, it takes me that long! :D I usually have an hour or two each day when I feel well enough to craft. I am so very thankful for that time! although I confess that I spread out on the living room coffee table these days so that I can rest on the couch when I start to feel icky. hubby is so very kind and understanding!

The little packets use digital papers from Gecko Galz, including items from the following collections: Christmas in Nature ATC set, Botanical Christmas, Grandmother's House, Merry & Bright, Christmas Past, and Merry Little Christmas. the tea cups were die cut with dies from Stamp Simply Coffee or Tea set. foliage is from the Tim Holtz mini Holiday Greens die set and cut from cs sprayed with several shades of distress oxide sprays. the poinsettias are from Michael's.

inside the poem is die cut with the Tim Holtz stitched rectangles set, and the scripture is cut with a Spellbinders die set. distressing was done with both inks and a paper distressing tool. beautiful gold organza ribbon is from Really Reasonable Ribbon. mini doilies are from my stash. oh yes, I also stamped the right hand side behind the scripture with the music score from the Tim Holtz Mini Holidays 3 stamp set. sheesh, my head these days! oh goodness!

as I was checking the Caring Hearts card drive post to find out about envelopes, I discovered that they are only wanting A2 sized cards. oh well. I guess I will be sending all 24 of these to my MIL instead! but I hope all of you who are reading this can get something made in time to participate in the card drive. it's for such a worthwhile cause. I know there is no way I am going to be able to get anything done in time between the way I am feeling and the amount of time it takes me to create. but I know that my MIL will be happy to have some treats to share with her friends. :)

have a most amazing weekend! love to all of you, my dearest friends!
Jennifer

Challenges:
Crafting by Designs - anything goes
Ellibelle's Corner - Christmas/holidays
WAW - anything encouraging goes
Ike's World - K is for kindness
Holly and the Ivy - anything Christmas goes
TTCRD - anything goes
Unicorn Ch - Christmas/winter
Dragonfly Dreams - Christmas/winter
Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas - anything Christmas goes
Merry Little Christmas - anything Christmas goes
Papercraft Business Ch - to give as a gift
Stinkin' Inkers - 'die'lirious and punchy (dies by Tim Holtz, Spellbinders, and Stamp Simply)

Floral Pink Ribbon of Courage cards

Top Pick at Path of Positivity
Path of Positivity DT Favorite
Path of Positivity Most Inspiring
Coffee/Tea of the Day - Spiced Pumpkin Hazelnut coffee

Happy weekend to everyone! :)

As most of you know, I am currently battling the dreaded 'C' again. yeah, it pretty much stinks, as I feel lousy most of the time. as with any disease, there are good days and the not so good ones. the past few weeks have been rough, but I am really trying to get crafty time to help combat the doldrums that easily come with being sick for so long.

I created 2 cards for Breast Cancer Awareness month. they are almost identical, with only minor variations. imagine my shock as I was creating these to discover that I have NO pink 12x12 cs! none! what is up with that?! as much as I love pink in my crafting, I obviously rarely use it as a card base unless I am making something different than my standard 6x6 card. almost every card I make has a kraft cs base. guess I had better ask Santa for some pinky goodness in my stocking this year. ;)

the bg piece was created with distress inks stamped over distress oxide. I used the gorgeous Tim Holtz Glorious Bouquet as well as several Prima tiny bg stamps - script and doily. 2 shades of crackle paint were added sporadically and then topped with splatters of white Mr. Huey's spray. edges were distressed with ink.

the pretty awareness ribbon is from the SU! Ribbon of Courage stamp set. the sentiment is from the same set. the hearts in the ribbon were colored with SU! markers. I then used an aqua painter to mute the colors. after fussy cutting, I wrinkled the image to add a vintage feel.

beautiful flowers are from Michael's and altered with inks and Frantage embossing powder. bg papers are from the Kaisercraft Magenta and Echo Park Wedding Day collections. pink tags were stamped with a Prima bg script stamp. doily is from my stash and was distressed with ink. vintage buttons, lace, ribbons, and iridescent sequins are also stash items.

I want to add a little message here about the sentiment:
for anyone dealing with a terrible disease, courage is required on a daily basis, sometimes by the hour. but that also goes for the members of their family. there is courage needed to face the diagnosis and what it means for the changes that take place. courage is needed when dealing with medical appointments and procedures. courage is needed the most when trying to wrap your head about what the future means and not giving up hope. sometimes courage is needed when people who mean well say things without thinking of how it comes across. (no, my  multitude of sins did not cause my cancer, but I will smile and say thank you for trying to be encouraging.) courage is needed as the person diagnosed deals with the numerous changes that their body is going through, tasks that can no longer be easily accomplished, and the multitude of emotions that can, at times, be overwhelming. we might be a bit tattered, but we are not broken. and we will fight with all we have because that is what courage means - bravery in the face of adversity.

Thank you so much  for stopping by! I hope you enjoy your weekend! remember that you are truly loved! :)
Jennifer

Challenges:
SSS Mon. - All Things Pink
Alphabet Ch - 'O' is for one word sentiment
Creative Fingers - anything goes
Craft Rocket - pink
Southern Girls - anything goes
Unicorn Ch - pretty in pink
Creations in Pink - anything goes in mainly pink
Creative Craft Cottage - make it pink
Digi Doodle Studios - black and/or pink
Path of Positivity - courage

You are Somebody!

Coffee of the Day - Pecan Turtle coffee

Happy Friday and welcome to the weekend! Don't forget to enter my Birthday Blog Candy before the end of the month! new additions are being made to all of the prize packages, including the international packages, almost daily. :) you know you want to win. :) right now the odds are pretty good since only a few people are entered. looks like a few of you are going to possibly get LOTS of goodies! grins! you can gain more entries by linking up a birthday themed project. I have heard back from my friend, Mo, of Mo's Digital Pencil, and I'll be buying gift certificates from her store later today. you can't win in you don't enter!

now on to today's project...
I received these beautiful stamps from Reverse Confetti in the mail after having a lovely gift certificate arrive in my mail box from the owner, Jen Del Muro. What an incredibly nice person!!!! I wanted to make something with them right away, but had a few other projects that I had to complete first. But then God put someone on my heart. you know how that goes. and I have learned that when He speaks, I had better listen. He might be quiet, but He is mighty indeed. :)

so I got busy yesterday. I have used the sets "Tall Blooms" and "My Tribe".  Around here, during late summer and early fall, there are some wildflowers that grow along the roadside in the most vibrant purple. they are absolutely gorgeous! they stand out so beautifully from the brown wheatgrasses they grow alongside. I wanted to try to recreate that if I could. it's not easy to see the purples in my photo, but they are there.

(you may click on 

the photo to be taken to

another page to see it larger)

after the Coffee Loving Cardmaker's blog hop, I was so blessed to have won a neat kit from WOW embossing powders, filled with all kinds of goodies. included were the powders that I used on this card: Perissa and Caramel Macchiato on the flowers, and Skinny Chai Latte on the sentiment. The Perissa is probably more suited to scattering like you would do with frantage powders, but I really love the look here on the flowers. it is a gorgeous silver and copper color when melted. the caramel macchiato is a shade of copper.

The sentiment from "My Tribe" was stamped onto vellum with brown ink. it didn't show up so well, so I added the skinny chai latte embossing powder to see if it would help make it pop a bit. once embossed it created a neat marbling effect. this is only a portion of the entire stamp, but the person the card was for needed to know that she is somebody in God's eyes. :)

a few years ago I attended a women's leadership conference. one of the most powerful moments was when we were all told to stand up and repeat over and over again, "I am somebody." for this woman, who had been abused since the time I was a little girl, to say that was difficult because I have never believed it. the young woman receiving this card needed that encouragement yesterday. she immediately sent me a text letting me know how much it meant to her. so to Jen Del Muro, that portion of your stamp is powerful. it's not so much the card, but the message of the stamp you created. thank you. :)

The flowers were stamped onto watercolor paper, embossed, and then painted with SU! inks. after heat setting and painting, I double stamped the other images with ink to make it appear that they were in the bg. I used my SU! ink squirty tool in shades of brown and purple over the top.

beautiful die is by Spellbinders, copper glitter ribbon is from Really Reasonable Ribbon, and miscellaneous sequins & lace are from my stash. flower is from Michaels, distressed with ink, and then a bit of distress stickles were added. paper is from my beloved Basic Grey, the Vivienne collection...sigh....

thanks for your patience with my long post. :)
have a most fabulous weekend!
Jennifer

Challenges:
Reverse Confetti Stock Your Stash - hello/just because
Crop Stop - anything goes w/a product they carry (Spellbinders, distress stickles)
As You Like It - favorite type of embossing and why: heat because I can use so many neat colors of powder for lots of neat effects. I do enjoy dry embossing, but it doesn't compare to the fun things I can do with embossing powders, such as here.  thanks!)
Aud Sentiments - anything goes w/a sentiment
Moving Along with the Times - June Blooms
Creative Crafters - anything goes
Back to Basics and Beyond - heat embossing
Crafting By Designs - flowers, flowers, flowers
Crafty Addicts - anything goes/w say it with flowers option
WAW - anything encouraging goes
Die Cuttin' Divas - embossing
Tuesday Throwdown - you are on my mind
Crafty Catz - anything goes w/beautiful blooms option

Hey Sugar!

Coffee of the Day - Salted Caramel

Hello and Happy Friday! :)

I am sharing another one of the cards I've made to send to my son Ryan who works at Hope Bridge, the therapy center for children on the autism spectrum.  I am just slow getting things both made and posted. ;)

This card was made with a special someone in mind. One of the boys there is someone that Ryan knew before he started working there. After graduating from college, Ryan worked at The Salvation Army. This young boy would come into the office to visit his mom, who also worked in the office. When Ryan left later to start working at Hope Bridge, he discovered that his friend attended when Ryan was greeted with a loud, "Hey Sugar!"  for some reason, this boy decided that Ryan's name was Sugar. :) everyone laughed and that has become his new nickname at work. so they call one another Sugar. isn't that so fun?!

The cupcake image and 'You are so sweet' sentiment come from Graciellie Design.  I used the digital images, but you might be familiar with her stamps at Unity.  the 'Hey Sugar' was computer generated.

papers are from the Carta Bella Cartopia collection, enamel dots are some homemade ones, button is from my vintage stash, and twine is from Michael's.  I added a few little Pearl-ex dots in olive green under the 'You are so sweet' sentiment. a wink of stella clear glitter pen accents some of the frosting swirls.

Have a great weekend, and I'll be back tomorrow afternoon for a fun blog hop with Tiddly Inks! :)

Challenges:
QKR - anything goes
Aud Sentiment - masculine plus a sentiment
Creative Moments - anything goes
Crafting From the Heart - anything goes
Crafty Hazelnut's Patterned Paper - anything goes w/patterned paper
Create and Inspire - anything goes w/ optional stencils or dies (oval die cut)

Engagement Gift

Coffee of the Day - only drinking green juice right now. out of almond milk, which I need for my coffee. have a cup of Victorian Earl Grey tea brewing, which is a fabulous Earl Grey with lavender, rose hips, and rosemary.

That horrid migraine came back to rear its nasty head, so I've been in bed ever since we came back from Indiana. yuck. :(  But I did want to share with you how I wrapped the engagement gift for Ryan and Elizabeth.

Please excuse any typos.... the headache makes it hard for me to see. having to rely upon my typing skills from way back in the high school days. can't see the monitor very well as it's all a blur.

I had picked up some neat typeprint style wrapping paper at Michael's a while back, thinking it would be great for crafting. since we don't tend to give many wrapped gifts that aren't holiday based, this seemed to work out well for the engagement present.

Elizabeth really enjoys period type television shows such as Downton Abbey and Save the Midwife, so I knew that going with a pretty floral stamp would be perfect. I chose 'Strong and Beautiful' from Unity Stamps to stamp across the paper in various shades of her favorite colors - plum, sage, and lavender.  vintage lace was used for the bow.

I also stamped the flower in plum ink on a tag made from the same cs used in the card for her letter. (see previous post) it was stamped again in sage ink as a shadow effect. a doily portion was adhered in addition to some crochet trim and pretty little Wild Orchid Crafts blossoms & leaf. a cheesecloth bg stamp was used on the tag base and then the SU! ink squirty tool. Zipper Stop seam binding that was distressed was tied at the top and a re-purposed bit of plum twine anchors the tag to the lace bow.

and here is a photo of what was inside. We gave them a Lladro bride and groom figure. Dave and I had one on our wedding cake. I used to collect Lladro pieces. it seemed only fitting to give them one as they begin their happily ever after together. :)

Challenges:
Crafty Creations - anything goes
Creative Moments - anything goes w/optional spring theme
Inspiration Destination - #147 anything goes
Crafting From the Heart - anything goes

Happiest of Birthdays, Pretty Fairy!

Coffee of the Day - actually, today I'm having a yummy tea - Strawberry, Lavender, Mint Green blend from a wonderful tea shoppe in Ann Arbor, Michigan :)

Hello to everyone! yep, once again I have been missing from my blog. all for good reasons, I assure you. I had even picked up a few goodies to do a birthday blog candy, and then didn't even get around to posting. how sad is that?! ;) I'll try to get that up by the weekend though.

I have been to several protests against pipelines and fracking, so traveling all over Ohio. hubby and I are also delivering water and other supplies to Flint, Michigan every Saturday to try to help the situation there. Even Palmer went along on our last trip! Country dog in the big city! :) of course he was a big hit. He celebrates his fist birthday next week.... oh how the time has flown! When not traveling, I am busy working at Camp. yep, life is lots of fun and filled to the brim!!!

So today I am sharing a card I have made for both the progressive monthly challenge in the Simply Betty Facebook group and for a very special young lady we know. :) I hope she enjoys it as much as we enjoy having her in our lives! :)

The challenge is to use at least one decorative paper, the colors red, black, yellow, and cream, and also add glitter.

I used Prima digital papers and elements from the Doodledux collection, added touches with stickles glitter and the wink of stella pen, included flowers from Michael's, Prima, and Wild Orchid Crafts, vintage buttons, and finished the card with glitter ribbon also found at Michael's. the inside is decorated, too, with elements from the same Prima digital paper collection. I added cream acrylic paint to the card edges.

Thank you so much for stopping by! love to all of you!
Jennifer

Thinking of You Birthday Card

Coffee of the Day - English Toffee

Super quick post today as I am on my way out the door to a pipeline protest. Also trying to get this card in the mail for a birthday next week.

Over in the Simply Betty Facebook group there is a monthly progressive challenge. this is the image that was provided this month. isn't she so lovely? we also had a color challenge to use. I decided to create a birthday card for Mick's girlfriend.

papers are from a pad I picked up at Michael's. flowers are from both Michael's and Wild Orchid Crafts. main die and matting one are by Spellbinders while the large flourish is by Sizzix. buttons are from my vintage stash. the sentiment is not from the challenge set, but is from Simply Betty. lace and baker's twine are also stash items. a bit of shimmerz paint accents the main image as does a white gel pen.

the large flourish is cut from a piece of re-purposed plastic packaging.

thanks for stopping by! enjoy your weekend! gotta dash......
Jennifer

Cutey Snail Mail

Coffee of the Day - Caramel

Hello and Happy Saturday to all of you! I am up on the Digi Bells blog today. here to share a little bit of  inspiration with you to get you started on your crafty way this weekend! :)

I hope all of you have subscribed to Elisabeth's wonderful newsletter. the image I am using is one I received as a freebie in my mailbox as a subscriber. you can sign up here.

The precious image is called "Kisses from Cleo the Snail." I needed a belated thank you note, so she seemed so perfect for a snail mail card!

while you won't find this exact image in Elisabeth's digi store, you can find plenty of other wonderful ones.

I used digital papers from Adrienne Looman's Peaceful Harmony collection, a selection of flowers from both Michael's and Wild Orchid Crafts, vintage buttons, and ric rack.  all dies are from Spellbinders. my white gel pen was used to add lots of fun accent dots.

Enjoy your weekend!

Valentine Love with Fab 'n Funky Challenges

Coffee of the Day - Pecan Truffle

Hello to all of you! I hope life has been treating you with all of the love and kindness each of you so deserves! :)

I have been super busy going to several protests and marches here in our lovely state. I've met some of the most fabulous people and had such a great time standing up for both human and animal rights. Several more on the schedule before the month is over.

But the news for today is the new challenge over at Fab 'n Funky! the theme is "Wild About You" and you can use either wild animals or go with a love theme on your projects. Our sponsor is The Paper Shelter who is offering a nice gift certificate to one happy participant!

Rather than use any of the images from the Paper Shelter store, I chose instead to use a few of their digital papers. for the base, I used paper from the "Can't Take My Eyes Off of You" set and then added elements I cut from the "Hey Baby" paper.

the tag, gilded rose, red doily, and 'love' letters are all from Michael's. the pretty 'Valentine' sentiment piece that I punched out with a scallop punch is by Create with TLC. buttons and pale pink lace are vintage treasures. both red hearts were punched.  distressed red seam binding is from Zipper Stop.

little Prima flowers were added to paper flowers and then dotted with distress stickles. polka dots were added to the scallop heart with a white gel pen.

I hope to see YOUR entry in the Fab 'n Funky challenge this week! :)

I'm Beary Lucky!

Coffee of the Day - Tiramisu

Happy Friday! I am back from a most amazing trip to Washington DC, Philadelphia, and then quick stop in Pittsburgh. whew..... I am one whooped puppy! ;)  so I have lots of crafting to do to get caught up on things. isn't that always the way it is when you go out of town?! ;)

I have used the cutie "Teddy Heart" image from Morgan's Art World on my card as well as a fun little bear template and then a sentiment by Create with TLC.  papers are from Michael's as is the gorgeous burlap and lace ribbon trim. satin ribbon is from Really Reasonable Ribbon.

a few vintage buttons, doily, shabby bark heart, and pretty flowers from Wild Orchid Crafts complete the card. will soon put it in the mail for Valentine's Day, which is so very quickly approaching!

have a fabulous weekend! :)
Jennifer

Tugging on Your Heart Strings with a Candy Bar! :)

Coffee of the Day - no idea because I am on a train to Washington DC for the Women's March as this posts !!!! :)

Hello and Happy Friday!  I am crossing my fingers that our friend, Blogger, does right by me and posts this as it is scheduled..... oh please, oh please, oh please! :)

I am headed to the Women's March and am so very excited! will tell all about it when I get back. but until then, I leave you with some fun for The Digi Bells blog hop. if you are hopping along, then you will have arrived here from LINDA's absolutely gorgeous blog. :) if at any point you ever get lost along the hop, just head over to The Digi Bell's blog for the complete list.

The cutey image we are all featuring is called "Heart Strings" and will soon be available in the store. I decided to make a cover for a candy bar and a matching card.

at Christmas the guys all received various Oreo cookie treats. Ryan happened to get this Oreo crunch bar, which was new on the market this year. it was a huge hit. well I received a text a few weeks letting me know that he had searched and searched all over the town where he goes to school looking for them, but couldn't find one anywhere. so I took to the internet in search of.... of course Mom came to the rescue!

I found a few for Ryan and also decided to decorate one for Tyler's fiance for Valentine's Day. she love love loves chocolate!

the red polka dot paper is from Michael's. the other papers are from the Prima Coquette digital collection. some vintage lace and buttons were used in addition to distressed seam binding from Zipper Stop. flowers are from Wild Orchid Crafts.

a heart doily and cute little pearlized bauble add some fun touches.

now off you go to the beautiful blog of KARINA! thanks so much for stopping by! :)

I'll be back on the 25th with my project for Elisabeth Bell's challenge world! another fabulous image of hers will be used, and you know you don't want to miss that. ;)

Holiday Die Exchange Cards

Coffee of the Day - Bourbon Pecan with Eggnog

Woooo Hoooo! It's Saturday!

So have all of you recovered from holiday and new year festivities? has life gotten back to whatever form of normal is at your house? hopefully it will at our home in the next few days. we have had company in and out ever since before Christmas. it's been wonderful seeing so many people, but I do confess it will be nice to have a bit less stressful environment again. ;)

The Digi Bells Design Team had a fun card and gift exchange over the holidays. Each of us created a card for one team member and then also sent a collection of dies. it was a wonderful treat to receive such a beautiful handmade card from one of our teammates and know that they had spent so much time creating it just for us. :)

I'm sharing with you both the card I made as well as the fabulous gift package I received. I sent my card to Alethea along with some fun dies I found from Whimsy Stamps. I also included one of Elisabeth's lovely rubber stamps, because at the time, Alethea had been having trouble with her printer. this way she would have a back-up anytime she wanted to use one of Elisabeth's wonderful images! :)

First up is the card I made. I used 'Sweet Country Christmas' and lots of fun holiday embellies. papers are from a pack I found at Hobby Lobby, buttons and holly sprigs are from my vintage stash, and distressed seam binding is from Zipper Stop. 'Believe' wood veneer is from Michael's, poinsettia is by Petaloo, and other flowers are from Wild Orchid Crafts. main image and matting dies are by Spellbinders. banner die is from SU!

This is the GORGEOUS card and die assortment I received from the VERY talented, Lynda! isn't it fabulous??!!!? and I know that I will use these dies quite a bit on projects. :) she used the cutey 'Meadow Magic' image on the card she made for me.

Enjoy your weekend! :)

Challenges:
Crafty Friends - anything goes
Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas Ch - anything Christmas goes
Creative Corner - anything goes
Creative Fingers - anything goes
Jingle Belles - no time like the presents
Fab 'n Funky - little girls

Hello Winter Hot Cocoa Canister for GIU

Coffee of the Day - Bourbon Pecan

Well we are in the final stretch for my Growing in Unity posts this week. y'all have been so nice to me and left such kind comments on my projects! thank you so very much! :)

Here in northeast Ohio, especially the area of the state where we live, it gets downright COLD in the winter. currently our temps are in the single digits or teens. lots of beautiful snow is on the ground, with quite a bit of ice mixed in.

that means in order to keep warm, you need a big cup of coffee or hot cocoa! for our wonderful neighbors, I made a canister of homemade hot cocoa mix using a fun assortment of Unity Stamps.

I started with a re-purposed Nestle Quick container (it's actually part of the cocoa recipe) and added digital papers from the Design by Dani Woodland Spring collection. it's funny that the papers aren't a Christmas collection at all, but rather a spring one. I just loved the colors, though, to match the canister lid. ;)

images from the "Hello Winter" stamp set by Susan Weckesser were stamped on Stampin' Up! natural white.

the cutey girl was stamped and then cut with a Tim Holtz stitched die. I also stamped the doily from the Layers of Life "Magical Bliss and Wonder" set after masking. the trees were added and then several little snowflakes from the same LoL set in kraft ink. more snow flakes were made with Viva Decor pearl drops. the flower center is dotted with distress stickles and the snow on the ground is created with stickles as well.

more snowflakes from the LoL set, also stamped on the same natural white cs, with dual shades of blue ink, were fussy cut and added to the canister.

gorgeous burlap and lace ribbon from Michael's wraps around the canister and ties in a bow.

a beautiful glitter snowflake, also from Michael's, acts as a lovely little backdrop to the precious girl image by Susan.

a doily sprayed with glimmer mist and tree cut with a Tim Holtz die help accent the canister. a few snowflake stickers, also from Michael's give the final decoration. normally I would have added buttons, but our neighbors have 2 adorable little girls under the age of 3 and I didn't want to chance a button coming off and presenting a choking hazard to either one of them.

tickets were cut from the "Ticket to Christmas" set and lightly painted. I love the way the inks ran together to create a vintage look! distress markers were used to accent.

the top is decorated with a beautiful velvet poinsettia, gold glitter dusted berries, a pretty bow made with ribbons from Really Reasonable Ribbon, snippet of same burlap and lace, and a little pinecone.

that does it for today's post! if you would like the recipe for my hot cocoa mix, head over to this post. the mix used in this canister uses hazelnut flavored creamer. you can use all different flavors for fun!

thanks so much for stopping by! don't forget to leave a comment on any of my GIU posts for your chance to win a Unity Stamps grab bag! :)

check back tomorrow for my final post.
Jennifer

p.s. a reminder that you can enlarge any photo on my blog simply by clicking on it. the picture will open in another window for you. :)

Challenges:
Sweet Stampers - anything goes
Scrap 'n Challenge - Christmas in white and blue
The Crazy Challenge - everything goes
Simon Says Stamp Wed - make it sparkle (lots of glitter and rhinestones in addition to the pearl drops)
Shopping Our Stash - Winter Wonderland
Kraftin' Kimmi's Wonderful Wed - anything goes
The Crafty Addicts - anything goes or Let it Snow
Craft-Dee Bow-Z - anything goes with a handmade bow

Holiday Gift Ideas with GIU

Coffee of the Day - Eggnog

Welcome back for my second Growing in Unity (GIU) gal post. How's your holiday shopping going? have you finished? started? ;) my husband used to have a tradition of waiting until Christmas Eve to actually BEGIN his shopping! thankfully after 30 years of marriage, I can happily say that is no longer a tradition of his! grins! he likes to start in October or so like the most of us....

today I want to share with you a few somewhat 'quick' little ideas for gifts using Unity stamps. now bear in mind that quick for me might not be quick for you, I am a VERY slow crafter. I kinda like it that way, as it gives me plenty of time to think about the people I am making things for. once upon a time I could whip up a card in less than 10 minutes, but these days it takes me several hours just to paint my images. but it is sooooooooo relaxing! my cat, Moon Pie loves to come into my craft room with me, so it's really a special time. :)

now on to my gift ideas ~

first up is a tag I made to go on a candle that was sent to my Mother-in-law. if you have a Michael's craft store nearby, these jar candles are fabulous! every once in a while they go on sale 4/$10. otherwise I'll use my 40% off coupons on them. the fragrances are quite nice and even when I burn the candles all day long, they'll still last almost a week.

when my MIL came for a visit this spring, I hooked her on them, too. so I found one in a scent I knew she would like and added it along with some other goodies for her for Christmas.

the tag is made using the pretty "Peace Dove" image, stamped in versamark on one of the freebie tags that came along in the 'thank you' gift Unity sent in my last order. I then embossed it in copper ep, once that dried, I added some frantage powders and spritzes of a few shades of glimmer mist. touches of distressing to the tag's edges, a vintage holly sprig, and pretty ribbons turn this into a fabulous gift!

Next up are some cutey little gift bags that I also found at Michael's. These use a combination of stamp sets that might cause you to scratch your head at first, but they really look great together!

I stamped various snowflakes from the Layers of Life Magical Bliss and Wonder set in Prima chalk inks on the muslin bags as well as the little wooden tags my husband made. I then stamped the snowman from Susan Weckesser's "One of a Kind Winter" set using Staz-on. Tim Holtz distress markers were used to color it in, and the snow drops were made with a Viva Decor pearl pen.

several shades of glimmer mist was sprayed to add a bit of sparkly shine.  poinsettias are from Hobby Lobby. finally, the 'joy' is from a sentiment from the "Joy to Go" set.

Thank you so much for stopping by for a cuppa with me! be sure to leave a comment on any one of my GIU posts this week for a chance to win a Unity grab bag of stamps! :)

Jennifer

Challenges:
Crafty Boots - Winter Wonderland (gift bags)
Love to Scrap - anything goes
Melonheadz - time for Christmas
Marker Pop - winter (gift bags, colored with Tim Holtz distress markers)
Use Your Stuff - Merry Christmas ( buttons, ribbons, twine, and Viva Decor pearl pen are all from my older stash)
Simon Says Stamp Wed Ch - gift it

Christmas is Love AND Gingerbread Men

Top Pick at Crafty Catz

Coffee of the Day - Starbuck's Holiday Blend

It's Saturday and Christmas is right around the corner! How are your preparations coming? I feel a bit like a hamster on a treadmill, to tell you quite honestly. ;) lots of running and running and not getting anywhere! grins!

I'm sharing a new card with all of you today, made with one of the cutey freebies Elisabeth Bell so graciously sends into the mailboxes of all of her newsletter subscribers. I sure hope each of YOU has signed up for the newsletter! if not, just pop over here right away.

The little image is called "Gingerbread Man Corner" and I've paired it with a sentiment from Create with TLC. by using png formatted images, layering is super easy!

papers are some fun ones I found on a recent trip to Michael's. main and matting die are by Spellbinders, tree die  from Sizzix, and holly flourish die is by Cheery Lynn. little poinsettias are from Petaloo. vintage buttons and twine are from my stahs. some little accent dots were added to the card base border with my white gel pen for interest.

enjoy your weekend!
Jennifer

Challenges:
Art by Miran - anything goes
Crafty Catz - anything goes
Jingle Belles - I think it's an anything Christmas theme?
DL Art - any winter holiday
Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas - cute Christmas
Die Cut Divas - layer it up
Polkadoodles - traditional Christmas

A Merry Hot Cocoa Canister

Coffee of the Day - Salted Caramel

Wooo Hooo! it's Friday! phew.... I am actually taking the day off from crafting once I finish typing up this post. and one of my treats for the day is making the journey into Starbuck's to celebrate! I am very excited about that, I tell you! the closest one to me is a 30 minute drive, so it's not often I am able to treat myself to one of their yummy coffees. today is the day though! :D

I'm sharing a fun project I have made for the family of my oldest son's fiance. yes, you read that correctly. I said FIANCE! Tyler and Danielle became engaged a few days ago! we are over the moon excited for the two of them!!!

last year I made a container of hot cocoa mix for Danielle's family and they all loved it so much. they asked for more of the mix, in fact, before winter was over. so I thought I would make more for them this Christmas, but wanted to create a different type of container to  hold it, so I have re-purposed a coffee can.

I used digital papers and elements from the Bo Bunny Father Christmas collection with the exception of the stripe base paper which is from Michael's.

all buttons are from my stash, as is the wonderful rustic plaid ribbon.

pretty red polka dot ribbon at the top is from Really Reasonable Ribbon.

snowflake die is by Sizzix. the pretty Christmas pick on top is also from Michael's.

thanks so much for stopping by! enjoy your day! :) I'll see you again tomorrow.
Jennifer

p.s. you can find the recipe for my hot cocoa mix here on this post. the mix I have made for today's container uses hazelnut flavored creamer. it smells simply divine! :)

Challenges:
Winter Coffee Lover's Blog hop
Alphabet Ch - use something red
Brown Sugar - red, green, and white
Craft for the Craic - anything but a Christmas card
Crafty Calendar - Christmas Time
Eclectic Ellapu - anything Christmas
Simon Says Stamp Wed Ch - gift it