Perpetual Calendar Card Keeper

Hey crafty people!!

So.... I typically take photos of my projects to post here.  But recently, I have found that making videos is so much simpler for me.  (With my illness, being on the computer makes me more nauseated than I already am, and videos are just so much more simple to record and then post to YouTube.)  Lately, I have been trying to do both, take photos to post here, and record a video.  For this project, I was just so thrilled that I finally completed it, that I forgot to take photos!!!  Yikes!!  But I did record a video.  Lol.

I made a Perpetual Calendar and Card Keeper for a very good friend.  It is for her birthday, (which has passed, but I still wanted to give it to her regardless.)  I have wanted to make myself one of these for quite a while now, and since I've completed this one, I can NOT wait to get started on mine!  I really, really hope my friend likes it!  Here's the video:

 Thanks for stopping by today!  I hope you are all having a wonderful week!





"Don't glue anything I wouldn't glue!!"
               

Smash-Style Book for Emma!

Hi guys!

In my last post/video, I said that I made something else for Emma, but I didn't want to share until I knew that she had seen it first.  Well, now that I have confirmation that she has received it, I can post my video!  The reason I did a video, is because it would have been WAY too many pictures to post! lol.

I made her a Smash-Style Book! I hope she likes it!!

Thanks for watching! Let me know what you think! 


"Don't glue anything I wouldn't glue!!"
               

Pregnancy Mini Album

Good Morning!

Today I want to show a project I worked on for quite a while last year.  (The end of last year.)  If you've read my previous posts, you know that it takes me a very, VERY long time to craft because of my limited eyesight and my illness.  Well, my little brother and his wife (my awesome sister-in-law) are expecting their first baby in two months!! (wow...it's less than two months...where does the time go!?)  I wanted her to be able to document her pregnancy, so I made her a Pregnancy Mini Album!!
It is not technically "mini."  The finished size is roughly  8.5" x 12"     Also, there will be lots of pictures in this post, and they are not great pictures.  I took them as I was running out the door to give this book to my sister-in-law.  (I had forgotten to take pictures of it once it was completed!!)  So I ended up taking these all in 30 seconds....and...well...you can tell! haha.

Here is the cover and unopened, standing, view:

 I made the book to represent a woman's pregnant belly as it grows over the pregnancy.  (I told Liz that I had to make the month 1 page with a little belly bump otherwise the book didn't look right...and to not be offended because she soooo does NOT have a belly!!! Haha.)
Here are the month 1 pages:

I made a lot of tags and pull-outs, for plenty of room for journaling and photos.  This is an important time to document!! :)

Month Two:

Month Three:

Month Four:

 I love that page!!  The pickles and ice cream cone tags to write down her cravings!  The pickle has journaling spots on the back, and the ice cream flips to the side (via the brad on top) and there are lines for journaling under the ice cream!  There were fun!

Month FIVE:

Month SIX:

That photo mat behind the tree pulls out, and on the back are lines for journaling.

 Month Seven:

Month eight:

I really like this crib that I made into a pocket for tags!!

 Month Nine:

On this last page, I made tags that have room for all the details of the baby and birth, like weight, length, time, name, etc.  And room for a pic of the newborn! :)  I am so happy with how this book turned out.  I tried to make most of the tags interchangeable.  That way, if the shower wasn't held in the month I had the tag in, she could put it in a pocket of the month it actually was.  Same with doc visits and other tags.  I hope my sister in law likes it, and fills it up with good memories and fun pictures!

Thanks for stopping by!!  




"Don't glue anything I wouldn't glue!!"
             

Garden Themed Cards

Hello my friends!!

I am so very glad to be back in blogland!!  I have been M.I.A. for the past little while.  I think it has been a month since my last post.  I have had a horrible past 6 weeks, medically speaking.  There was only one week in May that I wasn't hospitalized.  Three separate admissions.  ::Sigh::  I've been home just over a week now, and just started feeling better yesterday.  This GP is not a fun disease!  (like any diseases ARE fun, right?! Lol!)

Anyway...I just wanted to explain why I hadn't been posting or leaving allof you wonderful crafters any comments.  :)   I made a few cards last night.  I unfortunately have absolutely NO creativeness flowing right now.  My mind has been real spacey since the last hospital stay. (A doc gave me some meds that I had a bad reaction with...basically they sedated for an entire week. My mom said it was like I was in a coma. I couldn't communicate [to refuse the medicine or for any other reason] and I have no memory of the entire time.  Or, for that matter, for the week after.  Not fun!)  So, I have not been able to think up any creative crafty ideas, but have wanted to craft each and every day.  Do you guys ever get like that.  Want to craft so very badly, but just can't create anything?!  It's frustrating!!!  So I just made real basic, simple cards.

Two are basically the same.  The inside sentiments and messages are different, and the flowers are different, and that's it.

It's a garden gate! :)  I believe the cut is from the Freshly Picked Cartridge.  To make it even more simple, this was a blank card from a store bought pack.  It's a gatefold card.  All I did was add the green paper, cuttlebugged with the Divine Swirls folder, and the cricut cuts of course.  See..SIMPLE!! :)
Here's another view:

The little butterfly in the upper right corner is from a bling pack that I got at JoAnns. Just added for some extra interest.  (I just realized that I put a 'gate' on a 'gatefold' card, and made myself laugh.  I'm way too easily amused!! Haha.)
Here is the second card, just different flowers and background paper:

These flowers are glittered.  I didn't make them that way, that is how they came, luckily!! But they are something from my stash, not in their original packaging, so I don't know what brand they are or where I picked them up.  I do like them though! :) 

The background paper on this one is from the DCWV Animal Crackers stack, and embossed with the same cuttlebug folder as the other.
Here is my third card:

The watering can cut is also from Freshly Picked.  I must have been in a one-cartridge state of mind! :)  I cut the watering can with  'metal sheets' by QuiKuts.  I adore that stuff! (Even though the cashier at Hobby Lobby ruined the first three sheets of it for me!! Arg!!) It feels like a thin pop can..... if... a pop can had adhesive on one side! Haha.  But it is so fun to use with Cricut cuts!!  I didn't worry about being careful with the metal sheet because I wanted it to look like the watering can was old, and had been used...a lot!  So that is why it looks kind of dented all over.  That is actually the look I was going for!  Then, the flowers are sticker fabric flowers from a dollar pack that JoAnn had a long time ago. And, the card base is one from those DCWV box of cards (& envelopes.)   This one is from the box called "The Linen Closet."  And that is it. Super simple. But it did let me craft for a bit, so I'm happy!

I also made a Backpack Mini Album.  I worked on it through April and had planned on giving it to my niece to give to her preschool teacher for an end of the year gift.  Then life happened well, I had one page left to do, and then my not-so-fun hospital filled May happened.  School ended.  I was still hospitalized, and I couldn't give it to her. I was so upset!  At least they didn't ASK me to make it, and didn't even know I had made it, so they weren't dissapointed, but I was. I AM.  So now i will have to think of a different use for it.  Maybe I will just put pictures of my niece in it to document her preschool year!  We shall see.  I took pictures of it, but they don't do it justice, and there are just a TON of them.  So instead, I will shoot a video of it.  I LOVE the album!!  I will try to do the video this week so that I can share it with you all! :)   Here is a sneak peek though!!

The cover is nothing special at all...the inside is what I just can NOT wait to show!!  :)

I also received a picture last week... Remember my Girl Scouts Word Books?  The girls I have it to sent me a picture of them holding their books!  It is soooo SOOOO cute!!  I feel so happy, and am so glad that they liked the books! :)  Too sweet!

Thanks for stopping by everyone!! I hope you are all doing well, and having a wonderful week! :)
 Take care!



"Don't glue anything I wouldn't glue!!"
                

Girl Scouts Word Book/Mini Albums (Lots O' Pix!)

Hi there crafters!!

I can not believe I am finally done with these word books/mini albums!!! I haven't even been working on them very long (in comparison to my other projects I have done.)  I started them about 3 1/2 weeks ago.   I was browsing around the SCAL forum and found a SVG for a Girl Scouts Word Book!!  The second I saw the file, I knew I had to make these!  A friend of mine has two little Girl Scouts in her family, and I wanted to make them for my friend to give to the girls.   I cut the books out of chipboard, and then covered them with cardstock, and binded them with my Bind-It-All.  Here are the books pre-emellsihment:

I had no idea how much I would struggle with these books!  After I got them cut out, and put together (the base pages,) I realized that I know absolutely NOTHING about the Girl Scouts Organization.   ... Other than that they sell cookies once a year, and I buy them!!  :)   I thought I would just try to go for an overall 'girly' theme, and even with that, I still struggled with the books!  I did a lot of Google searches on Girl Scouts, and talked to my friend about when she was in the organization, and that did help a bit! 

I tried to make them a little interactive, and leave plenty of space for adding photos, and journaling.  Here is what I did:
The first page G & S (outside) Is left blank.  I didn't want to distract too much from the "Girl Scouts" words on the book.  The inside of the first page has the girls names on it.  It was only an 1.25" strip to work with, so that is what I found to be the best fit!  :)   I welded the names on my Gypsy using the Rock Princess Cricut Cartridge.

The Second page, (the I & C on te front side) I put a purple with white polka dots photo mat, and placed a monogram  (K) flower-topped tag onto the mat.  Rather than having the tag in a pocket here, I attached it with a strong mini magnet!  (The other magnet is hidden under the photo mat)  On the other side of the tag, there is a K&Co Girl Scouts Tag that says "My Troop # is...."  That way the girls can write in their troop number!

On the back side of the I&C page, I have another photo mat.  There are tags that say "laugh," and "play."

Page three, (the R & O page)  the front side has a pull-out tag holder.  It's kind of accordian style (I guess it would be called. :/  I don't know!!)  This tag pocket section has a ribbon closure:

  The little "K" crown is from the Once Upon A Princess cricut cartridge, and the flower is from a K & Co die cut pack, that I layered three of the flowers to make a 3D looking flower.  And, of course the purple cardstock there is "Cuttleuggd!"  :)   Here's a better view of the 3D-ness of the flower: (Like that...3D-ness? lol. If you can't tell..I tend to make up my own words a lot!)

  This "interactive" part opens two ways, to the left, and to the right.  I made this part to show "Activities of a Girl Scout."  So I put titles in such as, "Service, Fund Raising, Outdoor Activities, Baking, Arts & Crafts, Etc."

There are some (simple)  tags that pull out as well, to add photos and journaling.   (Is 'journaling" a word?  Because my spell check says that it is not. lol)  

For the backside of this (R&O) page, I added another 'interactive'/fold-out section.  
I also want to mention that I tried to make each individual page a little different.  Instead of using a single paper stack of all coordinating paper, I tried to make each page different.  I did try to still tie in the Girl Scouts or Girly theme... but I wanted it all different.  And here is the next section:

I made my own closure for this one as well.  I had these cute little flower button brads, so I placed it into an eyelet, (to make it stand up a little bit.) I then added an elastic cord on the bottom to hook over the button to keep closed.  I hope that made sense.  I'm not so good at describing what I am doing! lol.  Here it is with the elastic cord off the button:

And here is the picture of this section completely opened:

(The back of these flaps have patterned paper on them as well...I just didn't take a picture of that!)  I left this section pretty much blank.  I included a pack of K&Co Girl Scout stickers and die cuts for the girls to decorate their own books...so they could add their own personal touch as well.  So I tried leaving them plenty of space to do just that!

Page Four:  (L & U front side)  This is a photo mat, with a "My Friends" chipboard sticker title. 

And I had to add a little bit of bling there on the side of the photo mat.  :) 

The reverse side of the L & U page is another photo mat. 

The flowers with the pearl center in the bottom left corner, is just attached at the one side, so that if there is a large picture, it can slip right behind the flower.  I like how it looks to have the flower on top of the photo... so I just had to add it in that way. :)

The next page,   The 'T' page, front side:  This is another 'interactive' section. 

 This section consists of three pocket pages, each one having a double-sided pull out tag.  These pages and tags are all large enough to put a 4x6 photo on if desired.  Plenty of room for photos and journaling! (And to embellish!!!)  Here is the first page:

And with the tag pull out:

Second page (with back side of first tag):

I don't know if you can see it in the picture, but this yellow and pink paper has cute little flowers and butterflies on it.  They blend in so well, I love it!
Here is page 3 of this section: (I think this is my favorite one!) 

This is the reverse side of the second tag.  I like this tag because I designed it so that you could slip a photo under half of that die cut flower!  (it looks sort of like a clipboard...that would be the best way to describe it. haha.)  It could also be a good spot for journaling. 
This is a close-up of the flower on this page:

(It's a K & Co flower.)
Here is the reverse of the last tag, and the last page.  The final page does not have a tag pull out, it is just adhered down to the book. 

 The green ribbon is not adhered down, so that a photo could slip in behind it.

And for the final page.  The Girl Scouts Logo and the 'S': 
For this page, I wanted ti to showcase the girls awards and badges.  I had these cute little girl scouts uniform die cuts, so I made 'tags'/photo mats that had the three different level of uniforms on the sides, and one tag that just had the "Girl Scouts" title on it.  The left side says "Awards &" and the right says "Badges."

I thought the girls could place the stickers of the award/badge that they earned (on their sash) onto the corresponding Girl Scout uniform page!  (That's just an idea, of course they can do whatever they want!!!)  The back of the tag can have a photo or journaling, etc. 
I added faux stitching around these too.

And here are the sticker packs that I found at Hobby Lobby to give with these books:

I didn't open them, but the stickers look like they are actual patches!  I'm sure they aren't really fabric, but they sure look like it to me! (Then again, you can't really take my word for it.  My eyes don't see what normal eyes see. Ha!  I'd say they are fabric, and you would say, "Um...Lori...those are PAPER!" Lol!)   But I thought they would be cute either way to put in the albums when they earned that particular badge! :)  Just a thought.  There are also bags of K & Co Girl Scouts Embellishments.  So that will give the girls some starter things to decorate and embellish their own books! :) 

Here's what the finished books look like:

The finished book measures approximately 5" X 12"  (The original cut file was about 7" X 15"  but I thought that was just a little big for a "Mini")  Haha!  :) I really, really hope that the girls like them!  I really struggled with making these.  I need to stick with things I know about, I guess. Ha~!  But I am pleased with how they turned out, and hope the girls like them!  If I were to do them again, I would do a million things different, but isn't that always the way it is?! :) 
One of the reasons that I wanted to get these done so quickly, (besides having them done for Easter gifts,) is because my Best Friend since....THIRD GRADE is pregnant!!!!!!!!  :)  I am so, SO excited for her and her husband! :)    I am going to make her a "Pregnancy Album" to document her first pregnancy!  Oh my gosh, I am so excited to make this!  And, what is cool about it is that I can take my time and make it PERFECT because I am making it along with the pregnancy!    That way it's not rushed, and filled out later... it grows as she does!! Lol. :)   Ok, I could go on and on about that...but I won't! Just a quick CONGRATS AGAIN to Lori, and thank you for letting ME make the album!!  (No that is not a typo, her name is also Lori!  I did NOT like that in third grade, lol...my mom says that I came home crying about having another "Lori" in my class!  Hahaha.  But now I think it's pretty cool!)


Thanks for stopping by!!  I hope everyone is having a wonderful week!

-Lori