Tinkerbell Nugget Holder

Happy St. Patrick's Day! I have something else that is green I want to share with you today:  Tinkerbell Nugget Holder.

I created Tinkerbell for Vrushti, my friend's daughter, and her friends to make at her 8th Birthday party.  They had so much fun (and a little confusion with the bent leg). :)  We also took pictures of all the kids with Vrushti and then made a scrapbook page for each guest

The tea box was so cute that I couldn't pass in re-using it.  You know, I feel like "going green" lately.  It stored the little bear and candy I made for Vrushti.

Her expression and eyes are not quite exactly like Tinkerbell herself, I must admit, but it still make Fairy Vrushti very happy!  Thank you for letting me share my creativity with your daughter and her friends, Setu!  It was such a beautiful day!

Have a wonderful day!

Danee

Labor Of Love For My Valentines

Hello, there!  I hope you had a wonderful Valentines Day and a nice President's Day weekend.  This year, I wanted to simplify the kid's Valentines Day gifts.  So I started out by making gifts for Jake's friends using all the things I have in my stash.

They were so simple that I finished them a couple of weeks before Valentines Day!

I was not sure what to make for Ryan's friends.  So I started to make these bears for my sons instead.  They turned out really cute and then Ryan wanted to me to make them for his friends.

I couldn't possibly finish 30 bears on time with all the activities we've been having lately and told him to save it for next year.  No, he begged and begged me to do so.

While working on these bears, my husband said he couldn't understand why I would spend the time doing this since some kids (the boys) would not appreciate them.  I told him it melted my heart to see Ryan cared enough about his friends to beg me to do them.  It's "Labor of Love" to me.  The next thing I knew, my husband sat down and asked me, "What can I do?"  That's so sweet since it's the first time he had ever crafted with me!

We finished 30 bears on time to pass them out to the 4th graders and teachers.  They loved them!  Some of the kids ran to me to say "Thank You" after school.  Other kids were snuggling and patting on the bears while showing their parents.  One particular boy, Ismael, emphasized, "Everyone liked them!" when I told him that I am glad he liked it.  I think 4th graders are perfect kids in receiving these bears.  They are not too young to take them for granted and they are not too old to feel embarassed to receive them. :)

My kids love them and can't thank us enough!  Who wouldn't when they are only about 2-1/2" tall?  Even the teachers were excited to receive them.

They are ADORABLE!  Thank you, Patty Bennett, for a great tutorial!

Danee

Frog Magnetic Bookmarks

Yesterday, I've shown you Ryan's gifts for his classmates and teachers and the instruction for the bookmarks here.  Today, I am showing Jake's choice.  He decides that he wants frogs on his bookmarks since his class theme this year is Fully Responsible, Organized, and Growing (F.R.O.G.).

He wants to do it all!  So he stamps, punches, and colors all the images.  I just have to re-stamp some of the images with shadows.  Since it's more of a Spring theme, I decide to use {friend to friend} for his friends and "thank you" for his favorite school staffs.  Yes, he is very considerate with this!  All the stamp sentiments are from Teeny Tiny Wishes stamp set which fit perfectly into my little projects.  The frog was from the Turtle & Co. (retired) stamp set.

The bookmark snaps closed around the page with the magnets.

When you give a 5-year old a chance to do what he wants, things won't be perfect and he will make himself unique!  I am OK with this as it sure speeds up the process with little helping hands!

The kids are on Spring Break starting tomorrow so have a very happy Easter this coming weekend!  Yeah!

Danee

Everybunny Chick Bookmarks

I can't hardly believe it has been a 100 days since my Dad passed away and I miss him so much!  My Mother-In-Law has also become ill recently.  Please say a little prayer for them for me.  Thank you!  My youngest son, Jake, is so thoughtful and reminds me that Grandpa loves rosemary and tangerines.  So he picks the tiniest tangerine from our garden to bring it to the cemetery.  How cute is that?

Let's get start with today's project.  I told the boys that we have to start making gifts for their friends for Easter.  This year, I am making magnetic bookmarks that I got the idea from Julie here because every Spring break, the kids have a Read-A-Thon from school.  I like the idea that these bookmarks snap close around the page.  The boys get to choose a stamp based on Easter or Spring theme. 

Ryan selects the chick from Everybunny stamp set.  He has done a great job at stamping, punching, and coloring.  After coloring a few images, he said that he got too many classmates and asked me to finish it up for him. :)

I get to reuse and recycle expired calendar and advertised refrigerator magnets that I no longer need.  My brother also gave me a whole sheet of advertised magnet he got at his auto shop, too.  So there were plenty for both Ryan and Jake's classes!  Each magnet is cut into 1" square and made sure that they are place on the right polarity by turning the top magnet around until it's stuck hard to the bottom magnet.  You really need to do this step right, trust me. :)  I also use the Coloring Coach for these great dynamic dual colors:  Rose Red/Regal Rose and Baja Breeze/Not Quite Navy along with the Daffodil Delight.

I cut my card stock into 5-1/2"  x 8-1/2" and score at 2-3/4" on the short side.  Then I trim it down to 2-1/8" before I run it through the Big Shot with the Two Tags Die.  Line up the fold in the middle line along with the large tag to cut.  You get 8 bookmarks per sheet.

Have a great day!

Danee

Post It Note Holder with Pen

I've made a lot of these Post It Note Holders with Pens a few years ago using Dawn Griffith's tutorial.  I had trouble keeping it in my purse as the flap kept opening up and eventually it got damaged.  I modified these to have a simple locking mechanism this year.

These are more favors for the WCEA Team members.  The background is stamped with the hearts from the Confetti stamp set.  I heat embossed the image from Crosses of Hope stamp set before coloring the rest of the image with a blender pen and ink pads.  The Rhinestone Jewel is colored with a Red Sharpie marker.  I love how the Square Lattice Embossing Folder show up like crosses as well.  The cross from on the flap is from the Itty Bitty Punch Pack.

It's another way of saying "Thank You", but it's also great for Baptism, First Holy Communion, Confirmation, or Bible Study Favors

Have a great weekend!

Danee

Fancy Favor Owl Backpacks

So I modified the colors of the owl backpacks that you saw from this post.

These owls are made for the WCEA team members who were visiting my kid's school for the school accreditation the last few days. I used the Fancy Favor and Top Note Dies, 2-3/8" Circle punch for the wings, 5-Petal Punch for the nose, and 1", 3/4", and 1/2" for the eyes.

I used the sentiment from Word Play stamp set and the Chalk Technique.  I stamped the sentiment with White Craft Ink, embossed it with White Embossing Powder, and added white lines around with White Pencil.  I also sponged the edges and some random parts inside the black card stock.

The back looks like a backpack, of course!  You'll need one 4-1/2" and two 5" ribbons total.

You can get everything in one sheet of paper if you use the same color as I did on the previous post.

I couldn't help making an extra one for Valentines Day using the sentiment from Delightful Dozen stamp set!  Happy Valentines Day!

Danee

Owl Backpacks

Ok, two posts in one day as I can't wait to share this with you!  I saw some great (real) owl backpacks out there lately and they are cute!  After seeing a backpack made by Wendy Bell using the Fancy Favor and Top Note Dies, I decided to make some Owl Backpacks!

Which one do you like?  I decided to use the Chalkboard Technique to send the "Thank You" message.  The front pocket holds a Ghirardelli chocolate square.  There's plenty of room from the inside to put more treats in.  I use the lollipop stick as a chalk for the owl on the right, but I have a lot of trouble keeping it in place.  I'll have more of these to show you next week.

Have a nice day, owlways!

Danee

First Holy Communion Banner

I have to warn you this is a long and detail post!  My oldest son, Ryan, is going to be receiving his First Holy Communion this coming Saturday.  We were asked to make a banner as a family.  Ryan and I roughly sketched out all the elements that he likes to have in his banner.  Jake helps me crank the Big Shot and makes sure that I listen to his opinion.  My husband cuts the wooden dowel to size.  And I learn how to work with fabric like never before!

I like to use as much SU! products as possible as it helps me coordinate and design easier.  The end result is a little bit different than we envisioned, but we love it! I use the Deck The Halls fabric collection from SU! for the last name and the mountain-like scenery.  As you can see for this project, the Big Shot becomes part of a helping hand!  I use the Serif Essential Alphabet Die for the last name.  Working with letters is probably the most difficult thing for me as fabric does not hold up its shape like the way paper does.

Since we don't have too many choice of fabric selection yet, I pull out my stash of fabric that I received from my husband's friend and customer, Shirley Anderson.  Shirley does custom sewing for the interior and according to my husband, her work is absolutely awesome!  Since I rarely use fabric, I was pretty nervous about cutting into these beautiful, and to say, expensive, fabric that Shirley generously showered me with.  Thanks, Shirley!  Since I can't hand-cut very well, the beautiful pattern of the fabric becomes this gorgeous-looking stained-glass cross as my main element that I built around. The mat for the cross was hand-drawn and hand-cut.  I started out with the oval shape, but end up with the egg shape instead!  I rather like the idea as the egg represent the beginning of life which is the opposite of the cross. 

The host, chalice and fish are made from Circle #2 Die.  The fabric for the chalice and the fish is from the small scraps of precious fabric designed by Mariano Fortuny.  According to Shirley, how the fabric is made is still a secret and it's very expensive.  So I try my best to preserve and make art out of them.  The largest circle from the die is cut into 3 pieces for the chalice.

I was going to make a fish, but Jake insists that I have to make 3!  A little mistake in cutting the tail from the blue fish becomes double-tail fish.  I can say, it's meant to be!  I re-insert the circle back to the die with slight shift away from the circle to get the moon shape piece.

 

Although I wish that I got the Elegant Bird Die from the Occasions Mini Catalog, I decide to work with what I have and I discover how much fun it is to make die-cut art on fabric too!  I use the Scallop Circle #2 for the tail, Island Floral for the body (yes!), and, get this, Leaves #2 for the wings (no kidding!).  I love it!

I use the smallest circles from the Circles #2 Die to create the grapes.  The leave is from the Leaves #2 Die and the swirl is from the retired Tulipe Die.  The bread is made from the Ovals Die - nice and dark like chocolate for my 4-year old Jake. :)

A sentiment from the Crosses of Hope stamp set on one of the Lots of Tags Sizzlit Die finishes off the whole banner.  I really love all the elements considered in this banner as we see how bless we are to receive all that is given by God - from the sea, the plain, the mountains, to the sky!  The Tasteful Trim Die is also used to make the separation between these elements.  Finally, the burlap background lends itself to an earthy feeling which I love!  When working with fabric, I have to consider fraying is part of the natural process which adds to that earthy feeling too!

I hope you enjoy seeing the details of the banner as much as I enjoy making it.  Have a very blessed day!

Danee

Angry Birds - Blue Bird

Good Morning!  It has been awhile since we created an Angry Birds character.  I made these nests based on Brenda Quintana's direction here. Thanks, Brenda!  I love your work!  These nests are so cute as they are, but they are for my sons so I want to add these little Blue Angry Birds to them!

The Blue Bird is a smallest and weakest character in the Angry Birds game.  However, it has the ability to split into a three identical birds to maximize its force.  It has with 3 different expressions, too. How fun!

I love the surprise and happy look, but to mass produce this bird, the close beak and no eye-liners will do a faster trick!  I don't know if anyone does this or not.  I love to do eye-liners (what I named it) on my punch pieces as shown on the surprised bird.  I hold the punch piece between my thumb and forefinger (or tweezers) and roll the edges on the ink pad.  It gets my fingers very inky and then sometimes it smears on the punch pieces.  However, it really define the punch art - much different than sponging!  Try it on a few pieces, but don't mass produce!  Ask me how I know.  Never mind, just look here.  :)

Have a wonderful Easter weekend and may God bless you and your family!

Danee

Sweet Treat Ladybug

My boys have been enjoying their time with the ladybugs they caught during the weekend. Every year we allow them to catch something in the garden to do some experiment - to observe their behaviors and changes. Two years ago we caught a few caterpillars and a couple of them changed to moths instead of butterflies! They defecated so much. Cleaning up and feeding them was a lot of work. Last year, it was a lizard. Since the boys couldn't catch bugs so my husband had to do that for it to eat. He didn't mind it at all!

This year it's the ladybugs. Ryan has been telling me the ladybugs have been wrestling a lot - it must be mating season since we see some very small ones as well. Ryan has to look up to see what they like to eat. We have been looking for plants that have aphids or mealy bugs. When we let one out to eat, it flew away! So we have been feeding leaves and a few bugs here and there. Jake really enjoys looking at them! We'll let them go soon.

So here is my Sweet Treat Ladybug that I created. How about a raindrop on the dot? It's the same concept as the lamb. The head pulls off and it opens up the trap door for the treats to come out.

I hope you and your kids get a chance to enjoy the little things in life with Nature like my boys have. :)

Danee

Sweet Treat Lamb

We've been having crazy weather around here. Last week, it was freezing cold. Then during the weekend, it was beautiful and sunny. Then it rained. And today, it's really windy. Some people told me it's earthquake weather. We live in California so it could happen and it happened on the Hayward Fault on Monday. Thank God, we were not affected by it though! It's still sunny today with all the wind and it reminds me that Spring is coming.

We saw Disney On Ice Toy Story with the kids on Saturday and then the rest of the time out in the garden during the weekends. We were weeding and trimming trees while the kids enjoyed catching ladybugs. Look at our lemon tree! We ended up with 33 bags of more than 20 each donated to the church to sell. There's still a lot more!

OK, so on with Spring approaching. I was inspired by Heather Summers' Sweet Treat Frog found here. So I created this Sweet Treat Lamb. The kids keep coming around to pick out an M&M or two, here and there, as it has an open trap in the back. I know, eventually, the treats will be gone! :)

Hope your day will always be sunny!

Danee

Wedding Cake Card

We had such a wonderful time celebrating Vincent and Claire's Wedding yesterday!  They are such a beautiful couple.  Vincent is my husband's nephew.  Welcome to the family, Claire!  Congratulations, to the newly wed!

I made this wedding cake card for them using the Adorning Accent Embossing Folders along with many pearls!  They ended up with one layer cake and lots of very yummy cupcakes for their wedding!  The kids loved the cupcakes!!!  And so did I!

Here are a couple of pictures of my boys.  Since it was an all day event yesterday, the kids finally sleep in today!!!

Ryan at 7

Jake at 4

Have a great day!

Danee

Happy Chinese New Year!

This card was supposed to be posted last week. The Cute Critters for Valentines ended up with the attention!  Check out that post to see how you can get free tutorials for them.

I've been inspired by red envelopes for Chinese New Year and Mary Fish's layout for this card. I love how the Everyday Enchantment DSP and the Label Framelit bring out a beautiful scenery in this card. "Happy New Year" has been isolated with Stampin' Marker from one of the stamps from Delightful Dozens stamp set. It reminds me of either a dragon or snake. This is the year of the Dragon! How perfect is that?  Gold embossing around the rims of the bowl and vase gives this card the Oriental look.  The tiny flowers from Pocket Silhouettes stamp set also reminds me of the fancy fans from Asia.

Don't forget to check out Inking Everything with Becky!  The fun will begin in a couple of days.  Check out the previews that Becky has been posting on her blog, Inking Idado!  It's not too late to sign up.

Just a reminder, when you order from me, make sure you click on the tab above (Shop) or the link on the right of my blog.  Otherwise, you won't get the Hostess dollars that you earn when your order is $150 or more.

Enjoy!

Danee