Decorate to Celebrate #37 - Surprise Party!!

When witches go riding

and black cats are seen

the moon laughs and whispers

'tis near Halloween

Happy Halloween!! It's time for another fun challenge at Decorate to Celebrate!! For Challenge #37, we are asking you to create any project to be used as a party decoration (or party supply) for a surprise birthday party.  Let's celebrate everything wonderful about birthdays with your table decorations, party banners, pennants, yard signs, cupcakes, party favors and more :)

For my surprise party, I created a party banner. It's actually very sparkly in person but I couldn't get decent pictures because it was overcast. The paper is from My Mind's Eye Penny Lane stack...and it sparkles. The shapes of each individual banner is a Spellbinders Creative Book Pages die. I thought the shape was perfect to add crystal gems in the corners and decorative beads hanging off the bottom.

The letters for party are from Base Camp, cut on Core'dinations Core Couture paper and popped up with foam tape. Surprise was cut from Everyday Pop Up Cards and also attached with foam tape.

The white ribbon is from Hobby Lobby. I added a strip to each banner and then a bow at the end to tie all the panels together.

I am entering this in the following challenges:

1. DL.Art Thankful Thursday Challenge - Linky Party
2. Sunday Funday #2 - Linky Party

Now it's your turn!! Head on over to Decorate to Celebrate to see the amazing projects my design team sisters have created for today's challenge. Then link up your surprise birthday party decorations!! I can't wait to see what you create :)

Book of Spells

My thoughts and prayers today are with everyone affected by Sandy.

I have a quick project to share with you...my last Halloween project of the year. But I will have a Halloween card to share on Friday for a DT post.

I used an old free book from the library for the Book of Spells. The paper is from K&Company. The black ribbon on the spine is from my stash. The label is a Spellbinders Grand Labels Four. Book of Spells is from A Frightful Affair, the letters welded together on my Gyspy.

I can't remember who made the sticker bottles...I picked them up at Michaels and threw away the packaging.

Surprise when you open the book...the inside holds a secret stash of candy corn!! I mod-podged the pages together. Once they were dry, I cut a hole in the center of the paper, which was much harder than I thought it would be. I tried so many things and ended up using a craft knife...it took forever!! The frame is a Spellbinders Grand Scalloped Rectangle, with a Classic Rectangles Large for the cutout.

I am entering this in the following challenges:

1. DL.Art Thankful Thursday Challenge - Linky Party
2. Sunday Funday #2 - Linky Party

Thanks so much for stopping by today :)

Paper Playtime Challenge #87 - Anything Goes

Happy Monday, everyone!! It's time for another super-fun challenge at Paper Playtime!! It's a one week challenge and the theme is ANYTHING GOES. Our sponsor for this challenge is The Robin's Nest. The winner will receive a $15 gift certificate.

The paper for this Halloween card is from K&Company. The witch was cut from A Frightful Affair and popped up with foam tape. The toe of frog, witch's stew and bat wings labels were cut from a different piece of paper from the same stack.

The label is a Spellbinders Grommet Tags die. Best witches and the bats are from K Andrew Designs Fall-O-Ween stamp set. Click HERE to purchase this set or any K Andrew Designs set at 60% off.

I am entering this into the Red Carpet Studio Challenge #9 Pumpkins and Halloween.

Now it's your turn!! Head on over to Paper Playtime to see the amazing projects my design team sisters have created for today's challenge. Then link up your Anything Goes project...I can't wait to see what you create :)

Skull Halloween Decoration

Happy Sunday!! I hope you are having a great weekend!! It's a little chilly here but sunny...a nice Fall weekend :) I have a quick and spooky Halloween project to share with you today.

These are so fun and easy to make. The skull is a digital download from the Cricut Craft Room. I used heavy-weight white cardstock to cut it out and quick-drying white glue to hold it together. It was then brushed with Willow Adirondack Paint Dabber, followed by Espresso and then Snow Cap. Once it dried, I spritzed it with Tsukineko Walnut Ink Spray Antiquing Solution to give it an aged look. I added some spider webbing and a battery operated tea light and voilà, a eerie decoration sure to add a big dose of creepy to any Halloween display :)

I am entering this in the Little Scrap Pieces Fun Friday Challenge - Halloween.

Thanks so much for stopping by today!!

Thanks card

Happy Thursday!! Wow, this week has flown by...almost the weekend already!! The weather has been so nice here this week...it's about 80 today with a light breeze. I love having the windows open. I wish it would last through the weekend, but tomorrow the high is only supposed to be 50.

I have a card to share with you that I made for a friend who recently sent me a gift :) The paper is so pretty...it's from Prima Marketing's Nature's Garden stack. The base is a Spellbinders Grand Rectangle, followed by two sizes of Labels 17. All of the edges were inked with Old Paper Distress Ink. The ribbon is from May Arts, and the crystals are from Recollections. The center purple layer is a Spellbinders Fancy Tags Three, with a Fancy Tags One on top. "Thanks" is from K Andrew Designs Winged Things stamp set. All K Andrew Designs stamp sets are on sale now for 60%...hurry and purchase yours before they are all gone.

The butterfly is a Spellbinders Fanciful Flight die. It is covered in Martha Stewart Crystal Fine glitter and popped up with foam tape so it looks like it is flying off the page.

I am entering the card in the following challenges:

1. Crafty Friends Challenge #9 - All Things Glitz and Glam
2. DL.Art Thankful Thursday Challenge - Linky Party
3. Sunday Funday #2 - Linky Party

Thanks so much for stopping by!! I'll have more Halloween projects to share with you this weekend :)

Tales of a Mermaid

Happy Tuesday!! I hope you are having a great week so far!! I have a mermaid card to share with you today :)

The base is a Spellbinders Grand Scalloped Rectangle, followed by a Grand Rectangle. The awesome Core'dinations paper is from my dear, sweet friend Diana of DL.Art. It was embossed with a Cuttlebug embossing folder...no idea the name but it came in the Plum Blossoms set. It was sanded to bring out the texture.

The frame is a Spellbinders Floral Ovals die on more Core'dinations paper from Diana. It has texture and when you sand it, it turns blue!! I love this paper!! Thanks so much, Diana :) Crystals were added around the Floral Oval and the swirl at the top is from Recollections. The ribbon is from May Arts. The tag is a Spellbinders Nested Pennant die. "Tales of a mermaid" is from K Andrew Designs Pirate Tales and Fish Scales stamp set. You can purchase this set or any K Andrew Designs stamp set for 60% off right now by clicking HERE.

The mermaid is a stamp I purchased years ago from Sideshow Stamps. She was stamped with Versafine Onyx ink on a Spellbinders Classic Ovals Large die. The part of her tail that didn't fit on the oval was hand cut and then threaded through the front of the die so it didn't get cut off. She was embossed with Ranger Rainbow Embossing powder. I tried to get a picture of the embossing but it is so much prettier in person...she really sparkles. She was colored with Distress Markers in Broken China and Wild Honey. Blue gems were added to her tail and a crystal for her belly button :) The edges of the oval were inked with Broken China Distress Ink.

I am entering this in the following challenges:

1. Crafty Friends Challenge #9 - All Things Glitz and Glam
2. DL.Art Thankful Thursday Challenge - Linky Party
3. Little Scrap Pieces Fun Friday - Use Blue
4. Sunday Funday #2 - Linky Party
5. Speedy TV Mark's Finest Papers - Mermaids

Thanks for stopping by today!!

Product Used

Tim Holtz Inspired Steampunk Tag!!

Happy Sunday everyone and I hope you are having a great weekend!! I have a Tim Holtz inspired tag to share with you today. I would love to recreate his 12 Tags of 2012, but I never have all the materials he uses for each tag. So this is (very) loosely based on the September 2012 tag.

I searched all my local craft stores for the metal tape to do the background and couldn't find it anywhere. My super-sweet and amazingly talented friend Jayne of JayneDesigns created a fabulous tag HERE. When I told her that I couldn't find the tape, she sent me some all the way from England!! Thanks again, Jayne...I appreciate it so much!! The tag is from Tim's Sizzix Movers and Shapers Tag & Bookplates die, cut on Kraft paper. I used Tim's background distressing technique on the foil tape.

The filmstrip on the side is from Tim's Idea-ology line. The gears are Spellbinders Sprightly Sprockets dies. They were coated with embossing ink and then covered with copper embossing powder and heat embossed. A couple were popped up with foam tape for dimension. The hand stamp and the three guys at the bottom are from Tim's Steampunk stamp set. They were stamped with Versafine Onyx Ink onto Kraft paper, torn out, the edges inked with Walnut Distress Ink and attached with Tim's Tiny Attacher. Imagine and Dream are Spellbinders Girlie Grunge Labels dies, inked with Black Soot Distress Ink and Walnut on the sides. The top tag is from the same Sizzex Tag and Bookplate die. It was coated with embossing ink and then heat set with Distress Embossing Powder in Black Soot. "Live the live you want" is from K Andrew Designs Positive Thoughts stamp set. You can purchase this stamp set or any K Andrew stamps at 60% off by clicking HERE.

I am entering this in the following challenges:

1. DL.Art Thankful Thursday Challenge - Linky Party
2. Sunday Funday #2 - Linky Party
3. Joyful Stamper - Inspire Me Friday #81

Thanks so much for stopping by today!!

Products Used

Getting Cricky DT Post and BIG NEWS

Happy Friday, everyone!! Another weekend is here...I hope you have fun plans!! It's my day to design at Getting Cricky and I have some big news to share. First a preview of my project:

For all the details on how I made this and the products I used, please visit Getting Cricky.

I am entering this in the following challenges:

1. DL.Art Thankful Thursday Challenge - Linky Party
2. Sunday Funday #2 - Linky Party

And now for the big news...I'm very sad to announce that Kristal has decided to discontinue producing her line of stamps. She works full time and is raising two boys and she just doesn't have the time to keep up with the demand. I can't tell you how sad I am...I have used her sentiment stamps exclusively for over a year and I can always find the sentiment I need for any project. Plus, I love that she donates a portion of proceeds from every stamp sold to charity. You truly can feel good about purchasing her stamps knowing that not only are you getting a great product, you are helping those in need.

Kristal will be selling all of her inventory. You can purchase the remaining stock of stamps at 60% off or more!! That's below cost!! They range from $4.80 - $8.00. You don't need a special code to utilize the discount...they're already marked down. So click on the picture below to purchase her stamps...hurry before they are gone forever!!

Also, Kristal will be discounting her stock of twine this weekend so be sure to check back for that sale as well.

Thanks so much for stopping by today!! Have a great weekend :)

Ghost Decoration Tutorial

Happy Thursday!! Here is the tutorial for the ghost decorations that I promised yesterday!! They are so fun and easy to make :)

I originally saw the adorable ghosts on THIS post and fell in love with them!! Hers are so awesome and I tried to make them according to her directions, but I ruined some cheesecloth in the process. I must have cheap pipe cleaners because I couldn't get enough strength in them to hold up the fabric on the arms. Plus, I only had regular round balloons and the head shape was all wrong. So I had to alter the directions to fit the materials I had on hand.

Supplies

1. Cheesecloth (about a yard for a smaller ghost...more if you want a bigger one)
2. Water Bottle
3. Balloons
4. Sticks (I used lollipop sticks purchased from Hobby Lobby)
5. Liquid Starch (Wal-Mart should carry it)
6. Masking tape
7. Piercing Tool
8. Scissors

Directions

Fill water bottle about half full...just to give a little weight to it.

With a piercing tool, punch a hole in the side of the water bottle near the top.

Punch a matching hole on the opposite side of the bottle.

Insert the sticks into the holes...these will form the arms of the ghost.

Blow up a balloon for the head. This is a regular round balloon with just a little air. I used masking tape to hold it in place.

If you purchase the cheesecloth in a package, it will probably come folded in thirds. You want to unfold it and then double it over. Drape the cheesecloth over the form, making sure to pool some around the bottom, and then cut desired length with scissors.

Pour liquid starch into a bowl.

Soak the cheesecloth in the liquid starch so that it is nicely covered. You want it wet, but not dripping.

Drape the wet cheesecloth over the form and arrange as desired. Let dry. I let mine dry overnight so they were nice and stiff in the morning. They peel right off the form.

Decorate as desired. I used hemp fiber and phrases printed from A Frightful Affair.

If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask. If you do decide to give it a try, please let me know so I can see them!! You will have so much fun making them :)

Thanks for stopping by and have a great day :)

Decorate to Celebrate #36 - Halloween Party II

Happy Wednesday!! It's time for another super-fun challenge at Decorate to Celebrate!! For Challenge #36, we are asking you to create any project to be used as a party decoration (or party supply) for a Halloween Party!! Let's celebrate everything wonderful about spooky spiders and slimy slugs with your table decorations, party banners, pennants, yard signs, cupcakes, party favors and more :)

For my project, I created spooky ghost decorations!! I planned on posting a tutorial on how to make these, but my internet went down yesterday around 5pm and didn't come back until this morning. (I felt disconnected from the world!!) I have an appointment at 8am, so I don't have time to do the tutorial or find the link. If anyone is interested, I'll post the tutorial either later today or tomorrow.

These were so fun to make, although I ruined some cheesecloth before I figured it out :)

Spooktacular, Happy Haunting, and Boo are from A Frightful Affair, tied with hemp fiber.

I am entering this in the following challenges:

1. DL.Art Thankful Thursday Challenge - Linky Party
2. Sunday Funday #2 - Linky Party 
3. My Crafting Channel #1 - The Gh'oul Times

Now it's your turn!! Head on over to Decorate to Celebrate to see the amazing projects by my talented design team sisters...then link up your Halloween Party project!! I can't wait to see what you create :)

Paper Playtime #86 - Booville!!

Happy Monday!! I hope you had a great weekend!! It's the third Monday of the month, so that means it's time for a Say It With Sentiments Challenge at Paper Playtime!! The theme this week is "Booville". Our sponsor is Mary at Cardz TV Stamps...the winner will receive a set of of Mary's Cardz TV stamps!!

For my project, I created a Halloween wall hanging. I love the spooky tree and graveyard design of the background paper from K&Company. The edges were distressed with a Zutter Distress-it-All, and then inked with Black Soot Distress Ink. Boo is from Base Camp, welded on my Gypsy with a ghost from Happy Hauntings. The paper for Boo is from Me and My Big Ideas Mambi stack.

Such a tiny spider to have woven such a huge web, huh??!! The spider is from the October 31 cart with red gems added for his eyes. The spider web I picked up in a flea market. It was a big bag and a little goes a long way so you will be seeing more of it on my upcoming projects :)

Happy Halloween is from K Andrew Designs Fall-O-Ween stamp set. The bat is from October 31.

I am entering this in the following challenges:

1. DL.Art Thankful Thursday Challenge - Linky Party
2. Sunday Funday #2 - Linky Party 
3. My Crafting Channel #1 - The Gh'oul Times

Now it's your turn!! Head on over to Paper Playtime to see the amazing projects by my talented design team sisters...then link up your Booville project!! I can't wait to see what you create :)

LUFP #2 - Blessed Are Those Who Persevere

And here is the second card for the Link Up For Pink's Second Annual Link Up Party.

The paper for this card is from My Mind's Eye Blush stack. The base is a Spellbinders Romantic Rectangle. The next black layer is a Spellbinders Labels Seventeen, followed by a Labels Twenty-Five. The top black layer is a Spellbinders Fancy Tag Three, followed by a Standard Circles Small. The sentiment is from K Andrew Designs Scripture Sayings. The ribbon is from Stand and Salute, covered with a thin coat of Glossy Accents and then glittered.

I am entering this in the following challenges:

1. Link Up For Pink - 2nd Annual Linky Party 
2. DL.Art Thankful Thursday Challenge - Linky Party
3. Sunday Funday #2 - Linky Party

Thanks so much for stopping by!! Enjoy the rest of your weekend :)

LUFP #1 - When You Need A Little Lift..

Happy Saturday!! I hope you are having a great weekend!! It's definitely a Fall day here, 70 and overcast. The nights have been chilly...lows of 32. But I still have a couple of hummingbirds hanging around :)

So, on my last post when I said the next few weeks would be mostly Halloween projects, I forgot I wanted to get a couple of cards made for the Second Annual Link Up For Pink Link Up Party before the deadline tomorrow. Here is the first of two cards:

The paper is from Prima Marketing's Almanac stack. The base is a Spellbinders Grand Square, followed by a Spellbinders Fleur de Lis Square. The bra is from Forever Young, cut at 3". The sentiment is from K Andrew Designs Fashionable Friends stamp set.

I am entering this in the following challenges:

1. Link Up For Pink - 2nd Annual Linky Party 
2. DL.Art Thankful Thursday Challenge - Linky Party
3. Sunday Funday #2 - Linky Party

The second card will be in the next post to follow... :)

You Will Rise Above This...

Happy Friday, everyone!! Woo-hoo, the weekend is here!! I hope you have fun plans :) For the next couple of weeks, most of the posts on my blog will be Halloween-related, but I wanted to slip this card for a friend who is going through a hard time in before I start.

The base is a Spellbinders Grand Scalloped Rectangle, followed by a Grand Rectangle embossed with the Cuttlebug Plum Blossom embossing folder.

The ribbon is from May Arts, the button and hemp fiber from my stash. The inside red frame is a Spellbinders Decorative Labels Eight.

A music background was stamped onto white cardstock with Antique Linen Distress Ink. The flower is a Tim Holtz Stamp, inked with Aged Mahogany Distress Ink. It was then cut out with a Spellbinders Labels Eight and inked with Tea Dye Distress Ink. The label is a Spellbinders Nested Pennant Die, the edges inked with Tea Dye. The sentiment, stamped in Aged Mahogany, is from K Andrew Designs Positive Thoughts stamp set:

Click HERE to purchase this set or to see the entire fabulous line of stamps.

I am entering the card in the following challenges:

1. Crafty Friends Challenge #8 - Dry Embossing
2. DL.Art Thankful Thursday Challenge - Sympathy or Get Well
3. Simon Says Stamp - Dies or Punches
4. Sunday Funday #2 - Linky Party

Thanks so much for stopping by today :)

You're Awesome!!

Happy Hump Day!! I am having so much trouble transitioning from vacation mode back to crafty mode...I fear my mojo is still on the road :) But I have a card I wanted to share with you today for my sweet blogging buddy Naomi's (Creative Bug on the Loose) son, Michael. Michael is autistic and will soon be having surgery on both of his feet. Naomi asked for cards to share with her son. I encourage you to please make a card for Michael. For more information and to read about his amazing story, click HERE.

For Michael's card, I wanted to use a race car, but of the over 100 carts I have, no race car!! How is that possible?? This car is from Paper Doll Dress Up and I think it's supposed to be a super hero car but I thought passable for a race car. Since the card is for a boy and I can't add my usual bling, I used sparkly paper instead, from Core'dinations Core Couture line. The stars on the tail fin are from K Andrew Designs Crafty Friends stamp set, and "Gnarley" is from Guy Talk. The checkered paper is from the Paper Studio. The base and checkered layer were cut with Spellbinders Grand Rectangles dies. The labels for the sentiment are Spellbinders Labels Ten dies. "You're awesome" is from K Andrew Designs Food For Thought stamp set. Click HERE to purchase any of these sets. The ribbon is from Something to Celebrate, the layers adhered with foam tape for dimension. The #1 and Michael are stickers. When I make cards for kids, I like to add an interactive element so the ribbon has a pin attached to the back so he can wear his ribbon whenever he wants.

My inspiration for the card was the Indy 500, so you can imagine how excited I was when I spotted this set of race cars in the store!! I thought they would be perfect to include with the card :)

I am entering this into the following challenges:

1. DL.Art Thankful Thursday Challenge - Linky Party
2. Sunday Funday #2 - Linky Party

I  hope you are all having a wonderful week!! Hopefully my mojo will return soon and I'll have more projects to share!! Thanks so much for stopping by today :)

Vacation Pics and Owlsome Fall Blog Hop WINNER!!

Happy Monday everyone!! I'm home from vacation, but nowhere near caught up yet. I tried to get to as many blogs as I could this weekend and catch up on all of the projects I missed while I was gone. I'll still be making rounds this week to catch up. Before I announce the winner of the Halloween stamps from the Owlsome Fall Y'all Blog Hop, I thought I'd share some pictures of my trip throughout the southwest.

We traveled from Mexico...

(okay, not actually IN Mexico, but you can see it across the Rio Grande ;)

To London...

Okay, not the real London, but to...

 London Bridge!!

And some of the other places we visited:

 San Antonio, Texas  Riverwalk

Cadillac Ranch, Amarillo, Texas

Big Bend National Park, Texas

(I thought in this picture, the mountains didn't look real, but painted)

 Roswell, New Mexico
(no UFO sightings except for these guys everywhere)

Saguaro National Park, Arizona
 

Joshua Tree National Park, California

We also visited several other National Parks: Guadalupe Mountains, Carlsbad Caverns, Petrified Forest, as well as several National Monuments and Preserves. The two weeks flew by!!

Okay, now for the winner of the Heidi Grace Halloween stamps from the Owlsome Fall Y'all Blog Hop. I used Random.org to select the winner, and it chose...

and #10 is...

Congratulations, Tara!! I'll send you an email or you can email your address to me at indymermaid(at)gmail(dot)com and I'll get them in the mail to you before Halloween.

Thanks so much for stopping by and visiting me while I was gone!! I hope to be able to get back to my craft room this week and start working on some projects to share. Have a great day :)