Mistakes

The hubby and I recently babysat our niece and nephew over night. Once we put the kids to bed, I pulled out my iPad to continue my Clean and Simple Card Making Class by Jennifer McGuire and Kristina Werner. My niece couldn't sleep so I let her snuggle next to me while I was watching one of the videos. My niece was absolutely adorable; she had several questions about card making. In the end, I got her to finally go to bed by promising to make her a card with a rainbow. 

I sat down this weekend to work on her card and struggled quite a bit. I'm not sure about any of you, but there seem to be days when I am crafting and nothing seems to work out right. My ink smeared, I grabbed the wrong ink for the medium I was working with, and on and on the list went. I was frustrated but determined to make the best of a bad situation. In the end I was able to make something that I think is rather charming and magical. I'm hoping my niece will love it as much as I do. 

I started by smooshing (this is a real word, I swear) some Memento Ink  onto a clear acrylic block.

(Colors: Lady Bug, Tangelo, Dandelion, Pear Tart, Bahama Blue, and Lilac Posies)

I brushed on a thin layer of water and started to paint on each of the colors to achieve a rainbow background. 

I loaded up my "Palette" again and started to watercolor my Magical Unicorn images by MFT Stamps. 

While I has some issues on the rainbow, I loved the way the rest of the images came out. 

 (See I told you that rainbow game me problems)

I then took that rainbow background I and ran it through my Cuttlebug using Darice's Cloud Background Embossing Folder.

I cut down my background to 4 x 5.5 and then stapled my sentiment using  Tim Holtz's Tiny Attacher. I next affixed it to the front of So Saffron Card Base. I die cut out my images, stamped my sentiment onto Neenah Solar White, and put it all together. I felt like it still needed a little something so I added some iridescent sequins that I added some Ranger Stickles. 

So here it is my final project... 

Until next time!

Top 5 Online Stores

Sorry I didn't post anything last week. As it turns out, last week was crazier than the previous couple of weeks. Last week I participated in g.i.s.h.w.h.e.s. (which stands for the Greatest International Scavenger Hunt the World Has Ever Seen) is a 7-time Guinness World Record breaking scavenger hunt hosted by Misha Collins that you can compete in from anywhere in the world (even from your own home!). My plan is to do a write up on my whole experience next week.

Since all the crafting I have done has been for g.i.s.h.w.h.e.s. and I can't post any images of what I did until points are tallied, I thought I would write up a post about my top 5 favorite online sites to buy crafting supplies.

5. Ellen Hutson

Why I love shopping here: Ellen Hutson also carries my favorite companies, and a few more than Simon Says Stamps. They have good prices, and are quick on shipping.

Shipping Costs: All USA orders totaling $0.00-$100 ship for $7, orders totaling over $100 ship for $8

What do I purchase here: I mostly buy stamp sets, and dies. I do have to say that every time I order from Ellen Hutson, there is always a little something extra and a thank you included!

4.  Marker Pop

Why I love shopping here: Marker Pop always has something on sale,but what is even better is that they price match! WOOT!

Shipping Costs: Free shipping on all order over $75 in the contiguous US. 

What do I purchase here: Low cost stamps, dies, embellishments, and tools.

3.  Butterfly Reflections Ink

Why I love shopping here: I found this site in my search for a set of out of print dies. Not only did I find the dies,but they were on sale. I was not sure what to expect, but service is amazing, shipping is speedy, and they have a frequent shopper program!

Shipping Costs: $5.00 for Stamps and Dies, $7.00 for other items. Shipping is Free on all orders over $77.

What do I purchase here: Their prices are so great that I purchase quite a few stamp sets and dies. I tend to wait for sales to make large purchases. Also using their frequent shopper program is a breeze!

2. Simon Says Stamps

Why I love shopping here: Simon Says Stamps often has great sales. They carry all the products I love (Neat & Tangled, MFT, Your Next Stamp), but they also have amazing exclusive products. Simon Says Stamp Sets vary from cute and whimsical, to sophisticated. 

Shipping Costs: All USA orders under $75 ship for a flat fee of just $6.99, and all USA orders $75 and over ship for a flat fee of just $7.99! 

What do I purchase here: I buy ink, stamp sets, and dies. Most times when I place an order on Simon Says Stamps and make it a point to include a Simon Says Stamps Exclusive set because they are so darn adorable!

1.  Amazon.com

Why I love shopping here: I know that not everyone loves Amazon because they can make it more difficult for smaller stores. This being said, I am on a budget and I can get a lot of bang for my buck through Amazon.

Shipping Costs: Free for orders over $25 (or with Prime) if sold by Amazon or affiliate. Otherwise shipping varies

What do I purchase here: I tend to purchase most of my ink, embellishments, and super low cost stamps sets I happen to see.

So what are your favorite online places to shop? Is there somewhere I have missed? I'd love to hear from you!  Until next time!

 

Crazy Week

This week I didn't have time to take any pictures of the card process as it was an absolutely insane week. Between the hubby's birthday, my nephew's birthday, and my anniversary I was surprised I had time to craft.

How do you all handle a crazy week? I am honestly curious? How do you busy people find the time to craft or blog, or just relax?

I planned out as much as I could, but obviously somethings are just out of my control. I had been smart enough to get a head start on many of the hubby's birthday crafts, but not all of them. My week began with scurrying to finish up the remaining projects for the hubby's birthday. Next we had the hubby's party with my side of the family. Normally we would have just had one big party, but my super busy brother and sister in law wanted to do a joint party for my nephew and my hubby. My adorable nephew idolizes his uncle so a joint party was born.

See there is the nephew, didn't I tell you he is adorable. As you might be able to tell he is a San Francisco Giants fan, he loves Lego, Star Wars, his Uncle Don, and cake. 

See that corner of missing frosting? Told ya the kid loves cake! Any-who.... My card for the week is my nephew's birthday card. I apologize for the lack of pictures and quality of pictures, but as I said it was a crazy week. 

I used My Favorite Thing's Space Explorer stamp set along with my Kuretake Gansai Tambi and some Gouache paints to make this galaxy scene. 

Now go forth, craft, and have fun.