This Little Light of Mine

I have been so busy I haven’t had a chance to get into my craft room to do any papercrafts. That doesn’t mean I haven’t been crafty! For instance, I made this great lamp out of an old coffeepot I picked up at a Thrift Store a couple weeks ago. 

Coffee Pot Lamp

 I went to the hardware store to buy a light kit, but it was too expensive for my pocketbook and besides, this was a re-purpose project.  So, back to the thrift store I went.  I found an ugly, but working lamp but no lampshade for  $3.00.  I took the ugly lamp apart and used the harp, socket, electrical cord, and the threaded pipe that runs down the center. The only part that got thrown away was the ugly outside.  The shade you see is one I already had and goes to another lamp. I have since, found a slightly damaged put very usable shade at a garage sale for $2.00 that’s perfect.

Eureka Moment

I had a Eureka moment this weekend that I wanted to share with you. I love repurposing old things. I love poking around at garage sales and estate sales and finding weird overlooked items and then trying to find a new use for them. Last weekend I picked up an old metal stamp holder at an estate sale. You know, one of those things accountant types used to use. They usually hold wooden handled stamps that say Payment Due, Sign Here, etc.  I thought, hey, I’ve got stamps maybe I could use this. So I took it home with high expectations. Well, my stamps don’t have handles, my punches where too big, and I was beginning to think uh-oh when it hit me. I keep my brads in glass spice bottles. The kind with glass stopper tops. I store them in a cabinet and every time I need a brad I have to root around trying to find the color I want. Guess what? Six of those spice bottles fit perfectly in my stamp holder! Now when I need a brad I can just spin my stamp holder and grab what I need.

Eureka!

As you can see I don't have my brads in the bottles. I thought I better clean the bottles out  if they were going to be on display. LOL!
I'm sharing my idea with other crafty people over at 
Tatertots and Jello's Weekend Wrap Up Party
So You Think You're Crafty's I'm Crafty Linky Party! 
Nap Time Crafters: Friday Favs Party 
 

Spring has Sprung or has it?

Just when you think it’s safe to say “spring has sprung” another cold front comes through. Granted, where I live, deep in the piney woods of east Texas our cold front is spring to a lot of you, but it’s still not quite time to put away all the winter clothes. I guess that’s the reason all the spring paper challenges have got my creative juices flowing again. I’m ready for some sunshine.

I wanted to make a cheery Get Well card for some dear friends of mine that are on the mend after long bouts of illness and mishap so I combined that with several great challenges going on.

I used Everyday PopUp Cricut cartridge to make this colorful card.

I love how the flowers really stand out when you open the card. I used cardstock on the flower stems, but I still had to go back and glue and tape some wire to the stems of my flowers keep them standing up.

I added some grass for even more dimension.

 I cut the card, the popup flower box, and flower stems at a height of 5.24 using my Gypsy. The flower heads had to be scaled down to 3.08 so they would fit the stems. The sun is from Gypsy Wanderings. I also cut a circle from there for the center of my sun. 

The butterfly is an embellishment from my stash

I’ve been looking for some nice Get Well and Sympathy sentiments that aren’t run of the mill. I found just what I was looking for in the “From the Inside Out” stamp set by Scrappy Moms. My order just came in and I love the sentiments and font styles in this stamp set.

I am going to enter the following challenges. Stop by and check out all the creativity.

FCCB-Fantabulous Cricut Challenge Blog #155

Go Fish Challenge #38

HIMCR-Hiding in My Craft Room #92

Just A Scrappin'#47

Flip Album

Flip Album

I made this flip album after viewing a You Tube tutorial by CHIBICHIBIANDMILO  She used plain white cardstock for the video, but at the end she shows one made using Graphic 45 paper and it turned out stunning. 

I’ve had this paper pad called Wild Saffron by K&Company for a while. I just love all the colors! 

Top Flaps Opened

I’ve made a couple of layouts with it, but I wanted to do something to really showcase the richness of the paper. Ok, I confess. I hated to use the paper because I love looking at it and didn’t want to use it.  I finally convinced myself to use it and thought the journal would be the perfect project. 

Center page flipped up

Second Center page opened out.

Note the pockets and journaling cards.

Now I just have to talk myself into using it! Is that totally weird or do you sometimes have trouble bringing yourself to use your creations?

ATC

   I’ve seen the letters ATC around and about crafting blogs for a long time, but I wasn’t sure what it stood for so I googled it. According to Wikipedia, “ATC or Artist Trading Cards are miniature works of art about the same size as modern trading cards, 2¹⁄₂ by 3¹⁄₂ inches.”  A size that, in my mind, is not intimidating. You can trade them and collect them just like baseball cards. Fun! I was geared up to do something for Easter so I thought I could try making an Easter/spring themed ATC. In my Craft Ideas folder I had a template for an ATC size Swing card that I downloaded from Penny Wessenauer a long time ago.
   I used the little rabbit holding the balloon that's in the Give a Hoot cartridge. I free hand cut the balloons in various sizes, used an unraveled piece of Sugar and Spice yarn for the balloon strings, placed Washi tape on either side  where the center square folds back and forth and made grass by snipping a strip of green cardstock here and there and then fluffing it a little. I added a couple of flower brads for another touch of spring time color.

 

When it’s opened flat out it measures 3.5 x 3.5

When the card is folded, it measures 2.5 x 3.5

When it's folded open the center can swing

showing both sides.

I'm going to enter this in the following challenges this week. (I'm slipping in under the wire of a couple, but I had got to babysit the GBs this weekend and just got back into town)

Fantabulous Cricut

My Paper Crafting

My Craft Spot 

Little Scrap Pieces

Die Cutttin Divas

When Irish Eyes are Smiling

Happy St Patrick’s Day!

 

When I was little I thought we were Irish because my Dad was born on St. Patrick’s Day. We aren’t, but that doesn’t mean I don’t wear green on March 17^th and I made this trio of cards to spread the luck of the Irish.

The little leprechaun on the left, was cut using Paper Doll Dress Up Cricut cartridge. I used some of the scrumptious, so-o-o easy to cut Paper Layerz by Megan Elizabeth. If you’ve not had a chance to try out Megan’s paper you don’t know what you are missing. This paper cuts like butter and I love that one side is a solid color and the other side is 3 x 3 inch squares of coordinating color blocks. I only had to load the paper once to make my little leprechaun and all his layers. I used Star Dust Stickles to give a little bling to my pot of gold.

The center card is a simple 4 leaf clover, but I put this pot of gold (flowers, that is) inside the card. I was planning to write Happy Saint Patrick’s Day on the pot in white, but my pen dried out. I may go back cut out the sentiment with my Cricut.

This card is my personal favorite. I cut shamrocks in different sizes and used pop dots on some of them and layered others to give it a more 3 dimensional effect. The umbrella is from A Child’s Year cartridge and I used a fine tip marker to write Erin Go Bragh on the edge. The clovers are from Paper Doll Dress Up. On the inside is the sentiment, ‘MAY YOU BE SHOWERED WITH THE LUCK OF THE IRISH’ which I printed up on my computer before decorating the front.  
If you don’t want to get pinched, don’t forget to wear green on Sunday, March 17<sup>th

I'm going to enter my cards in these fun challenges:
Bitten by the Bug 2: So Lucky Shamrock 
Go Fish Challenge Blog #36 GOLD
StuckOnUSketches: Shamrock Die Cut Reveal 
My Paper Crafting:CWC #124 Irish Eyes are Smiling 
Exploring Cricut "The Luck of the Irish" Challenge 
Fantabulous Cricut Challenge "Luck of the Irish" 
Scrappy Moms Stamps Terrific Tuesday Challenge</sup>