A Tisket a Tasket....

... A Christmas colored basket.

All the Christmas cards are done, the house is decorated, and the cookies are made. Christmas time at the Chenoweth household is running like clockwork!

To celebrate this momentous occasion I spent the afternoon in my craft room coming up with a new tutorial! And guess what! I want to share it with you!

Isn't he cute?! lol

Supplies:

• Paper
• Adhesive
• Glue Dots
• Brads
• Anywhere Hole Punch

Instructions:

1. Make reeds: Cut 11 strips of paper to 1” x 11”; fold in half length wise (hot dog fold) at ½”; run a line of glue down the middle to adhere sides together
2. Lay four of the reeds side by side on a flat surface and weave in four more. Slide the strips together to make the bottom of the basket.
3. Fold the ends of the reeds up to form the side spokes.
4. Attach a brad to the end of a reed to the first basket spoke. This will hold the end in place as you weave that read through the remaining basket spokes. Attach end of reed to the brad after making it around the basket.
5. Weave in the remaining reeds as described above.
6. Fold the tops of the spokes into the basket and tuck them behind a reed or for a sturdier basket, adhere them in place.
7. Decorate as desired.

To download a PDF file of this tutorial click here. If you have problems downloading this information or would like to share your creations, please email me!

Tumbled Marble Trivets

Ahhh... My husband is off to work, Davy is off to school, and I'm toasty warm in my bathrobe and socks. Even the dogs are cooperating by taking a peaceful snooze behind me. The only thing this morning needs now is a new post on my blog followed by some stamping time in my craft room!

As promised, here are some of the trivets I made yesterday. It is so super simple I thought I'd go ahead and walk you through it one time just for the fun of it.

Supplies:

• Tumbled marble tiles - available at your local home improvement store
• Craft ink pads - various colors
• Stamp set of choice - I used Bud Basics
• Oven - preheat to 250 degrees
• Small felt pads - also available at your local home improvement store

Instructions:

1. WASH your tiles and allow to dry completely. I did this the night before so I would be SURE they were dry and ready to go.
2. Stamp your images using Stampin' Up!'s craft ink pads.
3. Pop in the oven for about half an hour or until it looks like the ink is completely dry. This will heat set the ink so it should not fade or run.

See? How easy is that? These two trivets will grace my Thanksgiving and Christmas table, but I'm thinking about making another set for my mother and sister.

Same supplies and instructions apply if you are making coasters from the smaller tiles. I'd love to see what you make. Email them to me and I will post them here for everyone to see and enjoy!

You Call This Work?

Oh boy! I've been a busy little bee this weekend! It occurred to me on Friday that OMG! I only have THIS week to finish getting ready for the NCA Mega Crop! So I checked my to do list and added like twenty things and then turned on the TV - plenty of time - RIGHT?! Yeah.... SURE... Right...

So finally about six last night I get off my duff and get to work. I stamped my contact info on Inspiration Sheets and Mini Catalogs. I printed and folded Technique Pamphlets for my class. I removed all the retired cards from my display board. And then finally, once my husband and sweet boy were in bed I got down to work.

I made this Frap Bottle set and had a wonderful time making it! I was SO excited about how it turned out. The bottles are filled with hand made bath salts made by yours truly. I'll give the recipe below in case you'd like to make your own!

For this project I used River Rock, Blush Blossom, and Very Vanilla Card stock; Blush Blossom, River Rock and Pretty in Pink Classic Ink pads; Pink Organdy (I just LOVE this ribbon!), and Pink Grosgrain Ribbons; Polka Dots and Paisley Stamp Set; See You Around, and Petals Wheels, Large Oval, Scalloped, and 1-1/4" Circle Punches; and Signo White Gel Pen.

Milk Bath Recipe

Ingredients:

• 2 C Dry Milk
• 1 C Epsom Salt
• 1/2 C Baking Soda
• 1/2 C Dead Sea Salt
• 1/4 C Citric Acid

Directions:

1. Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and mix well.
2. Cover tightly to retain integrity of ingredients!

Could that be simpler?! Oh, and to use this stuff is SO nice! If you're inclined you can add extra special ingredients like chammomile flowers or even some Essential Oils. If you're not used to using these though, I hope you'll find a reputable website to learn how to use them.

For Chocolate Milk Bath the directions and ingredients are the same as above, except you need to add 1/4 C Cocoa Powder. Couldn't be easier right?!

Yummy - but don't drink either of these please! It will give you the trots and really they wouldn't taste good at all!!

Alright now, time to get back to the craft room and get some more stamping done! I can't wait till Saturday! I hope to see you there! Remember to come by my booth to sign up for my door prizes - a free catalog PLUS a gift certificate!!

Envy Flower

You just never know where you'll get inspiration! I was watching Trading Spaces this morning and one of the designers was working on a little girl's room. This particular team made some really cool flowers to hang from the ceiling and the following tutorial is my take on her idea.

Supplies

• 5 #10 Envelopes
• Jumbo Wheel of Choice
• Jumbo Wheel Handle
• Stampin’ Up! Ink Pad (or cartridge)
• Dotto Adhesive
• Oval Punch
• Paper Trimmer
• Craft and Rubber Scissors

Instructions

1. Seal all envelopes.
2. Wheel both sides of all envelopes
3. Cut all envelopes in half – at the 4¾ inch mark.
4. Punch the two corners on the OPEN edge of the envelope using the Oval Punch
5. Trim off excess of corner with paper snips.
6. Run adhesive down the middle and across the bottom of each envelope, stacking one on top of another until all are adhered in a pile.
7. Run adhesive on the top envelope just as you did the previous nine.
8. Attach the top envelope to the bottom envelope to make a complete flower.

I would absolutely LOVE to see any examples you make with this! Email me at stampinmerr@email.com!!

Back on Line!

Grrr... Every time we get a decent size rain my Internet goes out. Luckily though, this time my wonderful hubby (who is probably really tired of hearing me whine about the Internet being out!) came to the rescue and fixed the problem!! Yay Tim!! Not to worry though I do have a few cards I've been working on.

I realize the two Snowflake Spot cards look very similar. There is a reason! I was preparing for a workshop and fell in love with the Snowflake Spot card (at right) using the while Stazon ink on one side of the velum and colored pencils on the back. It gives it a frosty look I think. Unfortunately though the card was way too in depth for a workshop. So the second card is my simplified redo. I still did the frosted velum but on the tag this time rather than the entire card front.

In addition to these two cards I made a couple more using Festive Favorites. I'll go ahead and show you the one we made at our workshop. I used Always Artichoke, Bravo Burgundy and Brushed Gold card stock; Chocolate Chip ink, Watercolor pencils, blender pen, Hemp Twine, both tag punches and a couple pieces of Pewter Hodgepodge Hardware.

After the workshop my friend Amy came over and I played around with the Thoroughly Thankful stamp set while she tried to convince me that the Wild Wasabi color "isn't that bad." LOL. I'm sorry to those who love it - I still don't like it! I did use it on my card however to prove to Amy that I can use supplies (or colors) that I don't like!

For this card I used Chocolate Chip, Wild Wasabi, Naturals Ivory and Pumpkin Pie card stock, Chocolate Chip ink, Watercolor Pencils, Blender Pen, Hemp Twine, and pewter Hodgepodge hardware.

Don't you just ADORE fall?! I am so excited that it's that time of year! School is in session, the nights are getting cooler and the leaves will be turning soon! Keep an eye here on the blog for information about my upcoming fall events!!

Excitement is in the Air!

So I had a few of the neighborhood kids over the house this week. Tyler and David sure have a great group of friends to play with, but with two of those boys come older sisters who have to keep an eye on them.

All four of these kids are great. The two boys play with my two boys, one of the sisters stays on my Internet for hours if she's allowed to and the other girl - the oldest - has a love of genealogy and enjoys being crafty. This week I tried a few of my techniques on her and I was very impressed with Miss Beth's craft-itude! She's promised to allow me to practice on her again! Anyway, here is my version of the cards that we worked on together.

The first was a variation on the card in the last post. I turned it on its side and added the dingy but everything else - ink and card stock colors and stamp set remained the same though we went ahead and left off the ribbon this time. We used Prisma Colored Pencils with some odorless mineral spirits - called the gamasol technique. Other techniques include: two step stamping, and masking.

Our second card we used Blue Bayou, Apricot Appeal and River Rock card stock, Blue Bayou ink, and the Au Natural stamp set. This is a stamp set that I bought at the end of the last Stampin' Up! year and have just now gotten around to using. I used the flower, she used the butterfly. This card started out as a spot light card, but I decided that I wanted the entire panel colored in instead. I also used holographic highlights glitter with the two way glue pen to get the glitter exactly where I wanted it. Lastly we died the new Stampin' Up! taffeta ribbon. The color is gorgeous on this ribbon!! What a treat!

Our last card was taken from a card I made at Gwen's house not too long ago. She and I sat down and copied a card from a book - I don't know which book, and if she reads this blog before I put up a new post I'm sure she'll let me know the name of the book! Anyway she was working with a Halloween theme for her card, and I chose an "In Color" theme for mine - in other words there's no rhyme or reason to it! I used Big Pieces and Little Pieces stamp sets, Purely Pomegranate, Blue Bayou, Groovy Guava, Soft Sky, River Rock and Wild Wasabi card stocks and inks. I still don't like the Wild Wasabi color but I hope that the more I use it the more I will grow to like it - no good so far! Oh, and in addition to all the products listed above we used every size circle punch Stampin' Up! offers!

So now that you've seen all my recent cards here's another one - that I didn't make! I received this as a RAK from AJ Otto (willosmama) from Splitcoast Stampers! I was thrilled to receive such a sweet card, I love the colors and her use of the patterned paper with this stamp set! How awesome!! Thank you so much AJ, I hope you enjoy the card that I've sent you in return. (Should look familiar when it arrives as it's one of the ones listed above!!)

The last thing I wanted to say before I sign off for the night is to let you know that I may be MIA for the next week or so. Many of you may know that my wonderful husband Tim has been serving our country on his third deployment to Iraq and has been gone since June of 2006. Our long wait for his return is nearly ended however as he is expected home sometime before Monday!

I'm sure you can understand our excitement and anxiety as our reunion draws closer. I hope you will pray for our family during this time of transition - especially for the children who now have to readjust yet again. I will post after a while about our reunion and all the wonderful things that are in store for us!

Here's the last picture I shot of Tim before he left home in June. You can tell by the look on his face he was tired of the camera at this point, but I couldn't resist one last shot! I'm lucky he loves me!

Daisy Crazy

That time of year has nearly arrived! Children dread it, parents wish for it. Yes, I'm talking about BACK TO SCHOOL! Or, as in the Chenoweth household, time to go to school for the first time!! That's right, our Davy, sweet, innocent and docile creature that he is will be wreaking havoc on someone else for most of the day soon!

Jump back a week in time however and picture me with my child (who is never messy and always does exactly what his mama asks him to) in Staples. We're buying school supplies and Mama's desk supplies, cause after all I do have a business to run too! We're tossing stuff in the cart right and left and the magic item tossed in happens to be a combo-pack of printer ink.

For purchasing that combo-pack we received a $10 gift certificate for Staples. My first thought was "Duh, of course I get one of those AFTER I buy school supplies." That little nasty was followed by: "But maybe I can give this to David's soon to be VICTIM - I mean teacher!" (You know, kind of butter her up and get in her good graces before David shows his inner demon!)

So, tonight has been spent trying to dress up that ugly gift card into something I can give to Mr. School Boy to hand over to his poor poor poor unsuspecting teacher on open house two days before school starts.

I used Purely Pomegranate and Bashful Blue card stock, the Build-A-Flower Accents and Elements, the Much Appreciated stamp set, as well as my Stardust Pen (non-Stampin' Up!) I went a little crazy with the flowers, but I was enjoying myself and so that's OK with me. I wasn't sure I'd ever make a project I liked with these flowers and it turned out to be more fun than I imagined it would be! So anyway, that's the front of the card. The inside isn't decorated so I won't bore you with any more on the card.

To accompany the card - and hide the UGLY Staples gift card - I used the Accents and Elements tin. First I punched holes at the top with my Crop-a-Dile and threaded some of the Double Stitched Purely Pomegranate ribbon through to make a little handle. I then punched three holes across the top to insert some of our Circle Rhinestone Brads, I used cool colors for this project. Then I put on some of the self adhesive die cut flowers from the tin on the top, a lot fewer this time though! Time to move on to the chipboard now. I took the "L" letter from our On Board series and covered it with Purely Pomegranate ink. Because I think the "L" looked more like a "1" I cut it up a little to look more like an "L" and punched three little holes down the top with the Crop-a-Dile. Time to go a little crazy with the stardust pen again and viola! All done!

I'm actually thinking about going back in and adding more flowers to the tin... I'm thinking it needs something and it may just have to be more more more more more flowers!! LOL!

Someone, quick!! Stop me!!!!!!

Tea Bag Card

What madness! The Red Hot Crop is only two days away and I am NEARLY READY! This last week my living room and dining rooms have been turned into Stampin' Up! Heaven! I've got the table covered with current projects I'm finishing up.

There's a small table in front of the TV with my forms and fliers and hostess packets and other things that I needed to go through. The counter is set up with my card display boards so I can fill in where I need to. And there's a humun-go rubbermade chest in the middle of the floor where I've been storing things as I think of them!


So beyond the chaos that is my house... I thought I'd share my Make & Take for the event. Isn't it cute? (Gwen Mangelson took all the pics for me! Cause it's kinda hard only having two hands!!) It is a Tea Bag Holder card, and just as easy as can be to make!



Materials:
Sahara Sand Cardstock 3-1/4"x9-3/4"
Buckaroo Blue Cardstock 2-1/4"x2-1/4"; 2-1/4"x1-3/4"
Whisper White Cardstock 2"x2"; 2"x1-1/2"
Sentimental Journey Patterned Paper 3" x 3"
Paper Trimmer
Bone Folder
Adhesive
Sticky Strip
Under the Weather Stamp Set
True Thyme, Basic Black classic ink pads
Blender Pens
Mellow Moss and So Saffron Ink Refills


Instructions:
1. Cut cardstock and patterned paper to sizes indicated above.
2. Using bone folder score Shara Sand Cardstock at 3-1/4" and 6-1/2". Fold along score lines and crease with bone folder
3. Cut the right most section in half cross ways to remove a small triangle. (see diagram)
3. Stamp Bowl image in Basic Black ink onto the 2x2 Whisper White cardstock.
4. Ink the steam stamp in True Thyme ink, stamp off on scratch paper, then stamp above bowl image.
5. Pick up some Mellow Moss ink with the blender pen, and color in bowl image. Use the same technique to color in soup and chicken on bowl.
6. Mount this square onto the Buckaroo Blue cardstock, and then again on the patterned paper. Set aside.
7. Using True Thyme ink, stamp sentiment on smaller Whisper White cardstock, mount on Buckaroo Blue cardstock. Set aside
8. Run a line of sticky strip along the bottom edge of the last pannel, remove backing, and fold over to make a pocket.
9. Adhere matted bowl image to the front of the card.
10. Open card and adhere sentiment.
11. Insert Tea Bag in pocket and you're done!

Hope you enjoyed the project! Have fun!

Man oh man did I get a ton of emails and posts since yesterday and all of them wanting the same thing… Instructions for the card below! Wow! Glad glad glad that everyone likes it! I was sure impressed with myself when I completed it! (And even as amazing as it looks on the computer it’s 110% better in real life! So anyway, here’s my tutorial on how to make this card!


Polished Stone
Materials:

• 3 different Alcohol inks (I used Terra Cotta, Wild Plum and Currant)


• Krylon Copper Leafing Pen


• Glossy Cardstock


• Felt Dauber (called a “stomper” locally)


• Alcohol Ink Blending Solution

Instructions:

• Randomly dot glossy cardstock with Copper Leafing Pen


• Apply three or four drops of each color to felt dauber, and add some blending solution


• Smoosh all over paper being sure to cover all the white spots. It’s OK if the Copper Leafing mixes in a little.


• Once the cardstock is completely covered hold bottle of blending solution above the cardstock and allow to drip. This will scatter the ink and pen, leaving a marbleize effect.


• The higher you hold the bottle when you drip it the larger the splots are going to be.

This same thing can be accomplished using Stampin’ Up! supplies. Rather than alcohol inks, use reinkers, and substitute rubbing alcohol for blending solution! You’ve got it made!

Have fun, and feel free to email me if you have any questions!