Babbling Brook

Candy Cane Hearts

2010-02-13T21:46:00.000-08:00

Preheat oven to 250 degrees and bake 10 mins. on a cookie sheet lined with a silicone pad or spray cookie sheet with nonstick spray. Then, smash ends together to connect. Lay on wax paper to cool.

Crocheted bracelet

2010-02-10T11:03:00.001-08:00

I really enjoy crocheting. I saw this idea and thought it was fabulous so I thought I would try it. This is how my first one turned out...it's going to a very special person.

Mason jar pin cushion and bead straight pins

2010-01-02T22:09:00.000-08:00

I saw this GREAT tutorial on One Pretty Thing a while ago and thought I would make some Christmas presents. The two things I did different were to use fabric glue to attach the lid instead of hot glue and cut my paper circle underneath a little bit smaller than the lid so it would fit down on the jar easier. Thanks Suzanne for a WONDERFUL and inexpensive idea!

I wanted some FANCY straight pins to add to this cute jar so I glued some cute beads to the pins.

Lottie Moon Auction

2009-12-08T12:38:00.000-08:00

Every year our church has a Lottie Moon auction right before Thanksgiving. The proceeds go to fund missionaries around the world. This was my contribution this year. It was so fun making these!! A dear friend of mine was the winning bidder, I can't think of anyone else that I would love to have these. She always appreciates my cards!

Creating Keepsakes Convention-Nashville, TN

2009-09-13T13:57:00.001-07:00

This was my first Creating Keepsakes event. My best girlfriend, Somer Jane and I went together to experience scrapping bliss! One of the classes we signed up for was a card swap. This was the card I created to swap with 20 other ladies. I know I'm wearing this pour owl out I've made so many different owl cards lately. I just can't resist...it's my favorite one to make!

We decided to make it a getaway and stayed at the Opryland Hotel where the convention was located. We are fortunate enough to be within driving distance to this amazing indoor retreat. The hotel features a plethora of vegetation inside a glass ceiling. It also features large scale buildings with restaurants, stores, waterfalls, gazebos and an indoor fountain(mini version of Las Vegas).

We went to Wasabi's for lunch to eat sushi, my favorite...California cream cheese roll.

I could have spent a thousand dollars easily. There were so many cool treasures. Sadly, I walked away leaving a few things behind for someone else to buy. ;-)

Me with some of my loot!

Acting silly....

Thanks Somer Jane, I had a BLAST with you! Your the BEST!

Another Owl Card

2009-09-02T15:22:00.000-07:00

I am addicted to the owl on the Wild Card cartridge!! I keep thinking of new ways I can make it...this one is for a very special friend whose birthday is coming up. I hope she is surprised when she gets it.

Sympathy Card using Storybook cartridge

2009-08-27T10:00:00.000-07:00

I have never made a sympathy card before. A dear friend asked if I would make some to give to the families of some special fallen Army hereos. I really wanted the card to be elegent and beautiful but not joyous colors. You can't tell from the picture but the black paper has raised velvet dots. It was really important to me that this card be very respectful! I pray that I accomplished my goal!

Cards and Envelopes using the Cricut

2009-07-20T09:25:00.000-07:00

I just got three Cricut Cartridges for my birthday, Wild Card, Stamping Solutions and Storybook. They have quickly become my favorites! I have been excited to play around with them along with my new bird acrylic stamps.

I learned the hard way that it's important to cut the envelope fit to page first before cutting the card otherwise your card may end up being too big for the envelope.

Wild Card Cartridge

Key #8 Oval for card and envelope(fit to page)

I repeated the cut for the card next size down

and cut on the fold for the inside of the card

Indadinkado Birds Galore stamp

Wild Card Cartridge key #41 owl card

#41 owl-s envelope

#41 Icon for tree trunk, leaves and grass

#41 Liner for eyes and inside of card

Wild Card Cartridge

Key #21 Blackout for card

Key#21 Blackout for envelope fit to page

Key #21 Liner for inside of card

Storybook Cartridge

Key #11 Accent Blackout shift (circle)

Key #44 Accent Blackout

Key #44 Accent Frame

Inkadinkado Birds Galore stamp

Scrapbooking Pages

2009-07-19T18:10:00.000-07:00

At one point in time I was addicted to scrapbooking. I first started in 1998. I takes me a long time to complete a layout. I generally like double layouts. If I don't like my finished product I usually take it apart and start over. On average it takes me an hour to complete one. I don't sketch out my layouts which may account for it taking so long. I have a general idea and play with it until I like it. Now, cardmaking has become my past time. Although, scrapbooking and some of my favorite pages still have a soft spot in my heart!

I used his dog tags and name patches from his uniform.

These are stips cut from circles and inked to make the pumpkin.

I LOVE pumpkins in scrapbooking. The letters were

cut using my sizzix.

TThese wooden letters were covered with paper and sanded.

Meara and I placed our hands on a copier to get this picture.

This was my first experiment with making a title

using embellishments.

I LOVE to use ribbon and buttons.

The playzone cardboard piece was actually cut

from the packaging of this toy.

Cricut Wild Card Cartridge

2009-07-13T18:31:00.001-07:00

I am so EXCITED! I just got the Cricut Wild Card Cartridge for my birthday. It has become my favorite one to use. The card has options for you to cut out the tree trunk, the leaves and grass. I inked the edges to add some dimension. I inked the edges of the owl and the feathers with a clear ink pad and used sparkle embossing powder. It also has an option to cut out the liner of the envelope.

This card was made using the Wild Card Cartridge also. The sentiment is from the Storybook cartridge.

Fabric Covered Burp Cloths

2009-04-23T19:59:00.000-07:00

Several of my friends have had babies lately. I wanted a special handmade gift to give to them. I remembered when I had Meara I found these diaper burp clothes that weren't the traditional plain white color they were in prints. I LOVED them! Of course, now they don't sell them anymore and people look at me sideways when I try to explain it to them. So, I decided I would make it my mission to find a tutorial online to make my own. Although, in all of my searches I couldn't find exactly what I was looking for. Most of the ones I came across were the ones that just had a strip down the middle. That was still too plain for what I wanted. I decided to cover the whole front. The first ones I made I am a little sad that I gave away because they weren't as nice as these. It was by accident that I decided to make them this way. I only had a few scrapes of fabric left and decided to sew them together. I liked the effect and that created a new excitement about making them. I am sending these to my sweet friend who was the first friend I made when I moved here thirteen years ago. I don't think she looks at this but if you do girlie it's on it's way to you across the pond! I'm not the best semstress. Someone near and dear gave me a sewing machine for my birthday when I turned 20. That was almost 15 years ago. I haven't sewed as much as I would like in all of those years but I try.

Birthday Gifts for My Best Girlie Girl

2009-04-13T07:03:00.000-07:00

I always try to make handmade gifts for the special people in my life for special occasions. My best girly girl had a birthday saturday. We celebrated by going to Opry Mills to shop and eat. It was nice to get out without our children and have some girl time!

She LOVES handbags. This was my first time making one. I made it from a FREE pattern from http://www.youcanmakethis.com/. Once you sign up for their newsletter they give you several free patterns. Next, I am making one for myself! ;-)

and more cards....

Valentine's presents

2009-02-18T08:58:00.000-08:00

My best girlie girl Somer Jane made this wonderful collage picture of the things I handmade and gave her for Valentine's Day. Most you have already seen in my previous posts or ones similiar. I LOVE this scarf. It's the first time I ever sewed iron on appliques to a scarf. I really like the way it turned out. She almost didn't get it because I liked it so much! Thanks Somer for the great picture! ;-) You can click on the picture to enlarge the view.

Flowered Crochet Scarf

2009-02-14T22:12:00.001-08:00

It's my dear friend Nicole's birthday. I wanted to give her something special and handmade. She likes scarves and hats so I thought I would make her a scarf. I decided to do something I have never done before...crochet a flower. I found a great tutorial on You Tube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BxGffjMkaxI&feature=related. I think it turned out great for my first time. Although, because of the hook I used it's a little big. She likes her scarves all one color so I made the flower to match. It's hard to see in the pictures but hopefully you can get an idea of what it looks like.

Inspiring Ideas give away

2009-02-13T19:48:00.000-08:00

I LOVE this blog! http://jeannewinters.blogspot.com/2009/02/1st-anniversary-giveaway.html I enjoy seeing her insert her faith in to her creations.

She is celebrating the one year anniversary of her blog. She has her own Hallmark designer collection. Please go to her blog and check it out!

The Swap Goodies I made

2009-02-13T18:41:00.000-08:00

I belong to A Year of Color Blog. These are some of the things I sent to my swap partner. I had some better pictures that I took of most everything I made her but I accidentally deleted them from my camera. Thankfully, I had taken these a week before.

I found this box and had a vision of painting it and making it crackle but it didn't turn out exactly like I had planned. The crackle was subtle and almost unnoticeable. The inside is filled with tiny cupcake holders with different candies inside. There were three layers with a heart divider between each layer.

I made bath fizzy balls. http://www.marthastewart.com/article/bath-fizzies Finding the citric acid was not very easy. Luckily, we have an Amish store close by that carries it regularly. All the local nutrition and grocery stores had no idea what I was talking about. I did find out that you should make sure you have half a dozen molds to place the mixture into. I took the first one out of it's mold before it dried. It ended up cracked and flat on the bottom from where I placed it on a flat surface. After the second time of wetting the mixture it lost it's ability for the two sides to stick together inside the mold. I had to throw the remaining mixture away.

I found some large flat glass marbles and decoupaged Valentine's scrapbook paper to the back and added a magnet.

I found this beautiful fabric at Hobby Lobby that had hearts all over it. There were about twenty different patterns to choose from. It worked out perfect that I had a variety to choose from to make this button covered bracelet.

Valentine's Swap

2009-01-31T15:20:00.000-08:00

Saturday
January 31, 2009

I am so EXCITED about this Valentine Swap for A Year of Color blog. I have been busy working on my gifts and can't wait to show everybody! I will be sending my package out on Monday to Sara. Once she gets it I can post my pics. I am also looking forward to seeing what everyone else put together for their swaps. Here is a sneak peak. ;-)

My First Crocheted Hat

2009-01-23T07:40:00.001-08:00

I LOVE my best girlie girl, Somer Jane! She really likes hats. Christmas before last I crocheted her a scarf. This year I was determined I was going to figure out how to crochet a hat. I decided to sit with my dear husband while he watched football and play around with it until I figured out how to do it. I had a bare bones idea of how to start and had to figure it out from there. She likes it which makes both of us happy! ;-)

Mosaic Pot

2009-01-10T11:56:00.000-08:00

This is a pot I made twelve years ago. The tiles were several discontinued patterns from a Spa and Pool store that I got for FREE. I made the mistake of planting a plant directly in the pot instead of placing another pot inside it. Which is what caused the cracks and discoloration in some spots of the grout. Since The Year of Color blog this month is concentrating on the color blue I thought I would take it down from it's prominent spot on top of my kitchen cabinets and take it's picture to share on the blog. I'm very proud of this pot because it's from my beginning days of crafting.

New Card and necklace

2009-01-09T21:12:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite blogs is http://www.oneprettything.com/ If you haven't seen it I encourage you to check it out. Posted there you will find DIY projects and tutorials from around the blogosphere. Everyday I find at least one project I like and want to try. Today I saw a tutorial on making jewelry from recycled magazines. http://www.craftstylish.com/item/39212/how-to-recycle-magazines-into-jewelry I had to try it. Here is my finished project.

This is my latest card. I have been making cards to give to my friends for Christmas. I know...I know...Christmas has come and gone. I wanted to use my Cricut I got on Christmas Day. So I got a late start. I think this card so far has become my favorite.

Year of Color inspired candle

2009-01-05T20:00:00.000-08:00

I joined A Year Of Color blog. It's purpose is to focus on different colors each month. During the month there will be crafting tutorials, party and decor ideas, photography, and journaling prompts. I can't wait to see art through the eyes of others from our group. Today's craft was to decorate the outside of a tall candle. Our colors this month are blue and white. I have been working on this glitter snowflake for a couple days with the intention of placing it on a card. When I saw this craft I knew it would be better suited for the candle. I LOVE glitter!

Great give away from Red Hen Studios

2009-01-04T20:54:00.000-08:00

A generous lady from Red Hen Studios is having a WONDERFUL give away. Visit her blog http://redhenstudios.blogspot.com for more details. She also has a store where you can purchase some of her great items. http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5015260

New Bracelets

2009-01-04T13:01:00.001-08:00

I LOVE beads! My husband gave me a big tackle box one year for Christmas to store them in. Here are some of my new bracelets I just made and a picture of my favorite...the last one.

Our Christmas Tree and ornaments

2009-01-02T18:51:00.000-08:00

Christmas is my FAVORITE holiday!! :-) Several years ago I started a tradition in our house to make at least one homemade ornament for the tree. This is a tradition that my stepdaughter, Mercedes and I have immensely enjoyed doing together for several years. Meara is now old enough to enjoy this tradition too. She and I made several ornaments this year. One we made strickly as give aways and the other we placed on the tree. I also have a thing for santa ornaments and my favorite color for the tree is red. As a matter of fact our tree has become a sea of red. We have collected elves for the tree and really like our ladders they climb on to hang the christmas lights.

There are ladders that go sideways and up from the bottom on the left and broken into three segments on the right side with elves climbing on them stringing lights. At the bottom is Mickey's Ski Slope which we all LOVE to watch Mickey and his pals climb and slide down around the tree.

This is one of the ornaments Meara and I made together this year.

This is one of my favorites that we've made. I LOVE red, buttons and ribbon!!!! :-)

A close up of the giant candy canes

Snowflakes

2009-01-01T14:33:00.000-08:00

Meara(my 4-year-old) and I made these beaded pipe cleaner snowflakes together. We hung them from the ceiling with fishing wire with white pom poms threaded on them. It was fun watching her excitement over making these. She has inherited my LOVE for crafts.

Button Covered Bracelet

2008-12-31T13:37:00.001-08:00

My friend Kristen showed me how to make a button covered bracelet. This was my first one. I LOVE it!! It was a lot of fun making this. My husband picked out the fabric. He did a great job! I can't wait to make more.

Cards using my NEW Cricut

2008-12-31T11:16:00.000-08:00

My sweet husband bought me a Cricut for Christmas. I am soooo EXCITED! These are the cards I have made so far using this wonderful machine.

2008-12-31T10:29:00.000-08:00

These are some of the cards I have made over the past year.

Iris folded ghost

Iris Folded Pumpkin