CPS - last card challenge of the year!

CPS has a fun challenge going on. You can choose from their gallery of sketches - which one you would like to use - for their last challenge of 2009. Cool, right? I chose challenge #102.

{thinking of you}

I used some Making Memories "Mistletoe" pp because it's not just for Christmas projects. LOL! The rest of the stuff is from my stash...and I cut out a heart from some cardboard. The rub is AC. Sanded & inked w/colorbox olive & black. Flowers & gems are Prima.

Looking forward to what CPS has in store for 2010.

Happy New Year, all!!

~patti

{friends card}

I wanted to try paper pleating, so I made this card. Glue holds the pleats down. This 7 Gypsies polka dot pp is one of my new faves. The fabric tag is by Donna Downey, 7 Gypsies chip pieces, Offray ribbon & primas w/buttons. The sentiment was stamped using a wicked old set of Technique Tuesday letter stamps...so old, I'm surprised (and happy) that they still adhere to the acrylic block. LOL! Just for fun, I added some pp & embellies to the envelope too.

BTW, I {love} the AC cards and envelopes available at Hobby Lobby. They are so sturdy and I really like the texture of the AC cardstock.

That's it from me! :)

~patti

CPS Challenge 146 ~

I haven't done a card challenge in a few weeks, so I thought I'd give CPS' 146 a go.

the sketch ~

~family~

Shelly, over at Citrus Tree Studio has a challenge this month to use paint. I combined the sketch with the paint challenge and this is what I came up with. To get the painted circles, I dipped the top of my MM flower container in some MM paint and then stamped with it. Added some MM flowers & buttons, prima bling, and a "family" word cut from some 7 Gypsies gaffer tape. {I've had this gaffer tape in my stash for what seems like forever, but I still love it.}

Thanks for lookin',

~patti

a little something cute ~

~click for bigger view~

I bought these American Crafts 6x6" albums on clearance at my LSS last year for $1.50 each. This past year, two of my nieces had babies. I'm thinking these little albums are perfect for them. I used s*e*i and Cosmo Crickets pps, CC rub on, Offray & AC ribbons, Bazzill trim, MM epoxy, AC & misc. buttons, doodlebug stickers and some machine stitching. They're held together with Fabri-Tac and Zip Dry glue.

thanks for lookin'!

~patti

Citrus Tree Studio Challenge Day!

This month @Citrus Tree, I was assigned to create an "ad challenge".

I saw this ad and knew it would challenge me....and hopefully it'll challenge you.

Here's my interpretation - "Stay Left"

For this lo, I started w/Bazzill cs. I printed my journaling on Scenic Route pp, and added an Anna Griffin journaling tag. The stamp set is by Autumn Leaves. Some primas, buttons, American Traditional Designs "left arrow", 7 Gypsies stickers and a little bit of hand stitching completed my lo.

Thanks for coming by,

~patti

Product Spotlight at Citrus Tree Studio ~

December's product spotlight at Citrus Tree Studio is the

Artist Printer's Tray by 7 Gypsies.

{click for a full view}

I used photos from a trip the hubs and I took in November to St. Thomas.

We stayed in a condo on Sapphire Beach. It was beautiful!

I've placed an order from CTS for another tray. One is not enough!

{For complete description, check out the gallery at CTS}

thanks for lookin,

~patti

Citrus Tree {December Kit} Reveal Day!!

I'm psyched. Not only is it Saturday, and I got SO MUCH Christmas shopping done yesterday (thanks to my 75 year old mother's motivation & help!) but.........IT'S REVEAL DAY AT CITRUS TREE STUDIO!! {insert little happy dance here.}

Now, I'm going to be completely honest and give it to you straight. These kits TOTALLY ROCK. IMO, CT's kits are packed with incredible value.

The S*E*I "Winter Melody" is gorgeous. I found the Winter Melody to be very versatile. It's not just for winter los. Cindy throws in 3 AC cards with envelopes (big, sturdy ones), these very pretty Maya Road pearl corsage pins that are perfect for the cards, and other yummies that you really need to check out. The mini kit is ALL KINDS OF CUTE. You'll just want to whip up some los featuring happy children with the Cosmo Cricket "jolly by golly".
Go look! I promise, you'll love what you see.

Here's my stuff. And mind you, I have much product left over. I could keep going and going....LOL!

First, I made a tag for a friend who's mom had passed away. This is what I mean about the versatality of the s*e*i. I used a Martha Stewart treat box and added some AC brown ribbon and a prima.

~to comfort you~

Next, I made a lo featuring my best buddy, Filbert.

~GRAY ROAD~

And then I made a couple of cards. How sweet is this mug steaming with love?

~keeping warm with memories~
~Holiday Greetings~



My boys! Yes...the little boy on the right is Thomas who will be 23 years old next week. The little boy on the left is Matthew, who is now 20 years old. Don't ask me....I don't know where the time has gone. If you figure that out, please let me know. ;)

~You 2 Melt My Heart~

These cute bags took me less than 10 minutes each. Easy cheesey lemon squeezy. I am lucky to have two 8 year old nieces, Elyse and Skylar...or as everyone calls them "elly & sky". The bags came from the dollar store (2 for $1.).

If you like what you see, come on over to Citrus Tree and place an order.

If you have any questions about the kit or my creations, just leave me a comment and I'll get right back to ya.

'Til then, I hope you're enjoying this wonderful time of year and get some time in to scrap.

~patti

My Sketch World ~

{December} Lay-out Sketch Challenge ~

young gun '06

{click to see a close-up}

I saw this sketch by Lucy Chesna, over at My Sketch World and immediately thought of a hockey puck. I've had this trading card (I bought two off of e-bay, one to scrap) for a couple of years now. It was weird...but I almost didn't want to scrap it, not wanting to jinx Jimmy. {I know! Being superstitious is so silly.}


Anyway, it was so fun to make this page. I used Lily Bee & Crate pp, a K&Co. die cut, some thickers, raw 7 Gypsies chip swirls, old chatterbox chip buttons. For the trading card, I pop dotted the plastic case. Then I added the doodlebug metal clip to the actual card so that one can pull it out and look at the stats on the back. Some zig zag machine stitching and there ya have it.


Thanks to Lucy for the fun sketch!!


~patti

graphic 45 wall hanging~

I am in an altered state. LOL! I have a few more projects for Christmas gifts that I plan to alter. I picked this wooden piece up at AC Moore. {It was wicked cheap, less than two bucks, I think.} The piece was first painted with green paint. After the green paint was dry, I lightly added some tan paint. Once the tan was dry, I sanded the piece with sandpaper.

This graphic 45 Christmas Past Collection could make anything look good. I love the colors and old fashioned charm of this paper. So glad I was able to pick up the set at 40% off at my scrapbook store in Cicero, NY.

The Santa and tag are die cuts adhered to chipboard. It's hard to tell, but I used my finger to add embossing ink to the hair and beard of the Santa. It is sparkly in real life. The sanded and inked chip stars are Melissa Frances. The holly leaves & berries are from a small sprig, ribbon is Offray and jo-ann's holiday. I sanded the MM metal brads on the tag, and added Darice gold gems to the background pp. I stitched the ribbons together and used my big ass staple gun to attach the ribbon for hanging.

I'm thinking I will give this to my older sister for Christmas...even though it looks nice in my foyer. ;)

Thanks for stoppin' by.

~patti

snowmen collector ~

My mom collects snowmen. She has a beautiful wall display of snowmen and keeps some out on her dining room buffet all year long. I altered her this wood box (from AC Moore), for her birthday this December.

First I lightly sanded the edges of the box and removed all of the hardware. Next, I spray painted the inside of the box. Using Making Memories paint, I painted all of the edges and the bottom of the box. I then used Zip Dry glue to adhere the paper. Once the paper was dry, I screwed all of the hardware back into place. I kept my embellies simple because I wanted the paper to shine.

This snowmen paper is one of my all time favorites! It's an old pp by Junkitz (and now I've used it all). The sparkly snowflakes are Melissa Frances, other chip snowflakes are Imaginisce, buttons & velvet trim from my stash.

Thanks for lookin' and let it snow!

~patti

The Paper Crafts treat box challenge, take 2 ~

*It just wouldn't be Christmas without fudge*

I saved these coffee containers last year. They've been sitting in my scrap room all this time and now I know why. What a challenge to alter this little tin box. LOL! I do really like the way it turned out and it will be perfect for fudge, but I'll tell ya....the person who gets this for Christmas, I must really, really love. :)

I used kraft cs as the base and stitched on some MM pp, after making the border w/a Martha Stewart border punch. I heat embossed the thickers letters. The tag stamp is by Stampin' Up!, rub on words & heart are SR, buttons from my stash.

Thanks for lookin' and woo hoo, it's Friday!

~patti

Paper Crafts "The Heart of Christmas" ~

Paper Crafts is featuring a fun holiday challenge.

*happy holidays*

You have until Monday to whip up a treat container and enter it here.

I bought these Martha Stewart treat containers at my LSS last year at 75% off. {too good!}

I think this Bo Bunny paper is adorable. I love the colors and all of the patterns on the Christmas trees.

The sides of the box are all covered. The tag is a chipboard piece from a mini album. I stitched a center rectangle and then added a Melissa Frances sparkly chip snowflake. The "happy holidays" stamp in by fancy pants, the made w/love charm is Blue Moon, and I've had the small bells in my stash forever...you can pick them up at any craft store. I hope the jute gives the box an old fashioned feel, because that's what I was going for.

thanks for stoppin' by!
*smiles*
~patti

2 Sketches 4 You ~

Laura's sketch #39

Here is my take.

*believe*

{...if you look closely, you can see the one silver bead that says "made with love"}

Making Christmas cards is getting me into the spirit of the season.

Guess I should start my shopping soon!

For this card, I used Making Memories pp.

I hand-cut a star from a chip coaster, covered it w/pp and

stamped "believe" w/doodlebug font stamps by Hampton Art.

I inked the edges and for some sparkle, the piece was heat embossed.

Then I used 20 guage copper wire to string some

Blue Moon (and misc. wood) beads.

The trim is by Bazzill.

thanks for looking!

~patti

A beginner's version ~ a party time plate!

**click for a big party time image**

Heidi Van Laar had this tutorial on her blog for stenciling & painting on ceramics.

I made notes of what I would need, and headed off to Hobby Lobby. After getting some paint, I drove over to Marshall's to see if I could find anything ceramic that was white & cheap. Score! This plate was on clearance for 3 bucks.

Here is my first attempt at it.
I can finally exhale. LOL!!
Talk about needing a steady hand!
I purposely kept this piece simple. I used an Inkadinkado stamp (Partytime!), the stars are by Autumn Leaves and the little doodle is Technique Tuesday. I used Staz-On black for the stamp and then Folk Art Enamels Acrylic Paint for Glass & Ceramics to add a bit of color.

I've already got another plate and idea in mind for this fun technique. Next time, I hope to be more brave and color more. No guarantees though. {ha!}

party on,
~patti

Citrus Tree Studios

I am so excited & honored to be a part of the Citrus Tree Studio Design Team.
I was chosen for the winter term. Yay! Something to look forward to through our very long, seems like it will never end, winter. Cindy, the owner is such a nice lady! Everyone at the site is passionate about scrapping and it shows in their work. I've already made some nice friends, even if I am old enough to be many member's mom. HA!! So it goes...

I received the first kit (December's) to work with and I am so impressed! The kit is jam packed full of well coordinated, fun, new on the market stuff! Saying it's fabulous does not do it justice!

Come on over to CT and say "hi". You'll be welcomed with open arms.

~patti

Card Patterns ~

For Card Patterns sketch 39 challenge, I used

Graphic 45 Christmas Past Collection.

~Merry Christmas~

If you haven't worked with Graphic 45 yet, look for it. The weight is beautiful.

I used Graphic 45 pp, die cut tag & tiny angel die cuts, MM brad, Melissa Frances sparkly holly that I sanded and inked, Inkadinkado stamp & Offray ribbon.

Thanks to the Card Patterns girls for this fun challenge.

~patti

Caardvarks ~

The challenge at Caardvarks is to create a tall card.

Almost everything on mine is Heidi Grace. I saw this patterned cardstock at jo-ann's and thought it would be so sweet to use for birthday cards. And, since there are 5 birthdays in our family between now and Christmas, it works. This card is for my sister, Amy.

Also used a Fiskars border punch and added a prima w/a prima pearl and some AC thickers. A simple, tall card.


Thanks for lookin'!

~patti