Spooky Haunted House Treat Box

Today's post features some spooky treat boxes that I made to go with the small cards I posted yesterday. It was a lot of fun to do! I diecut a box using the Favor it Box 2 die, and then embossed the top part of it with a Haunted Halloween Cuttlebug folder (available here).

Then using a Q-tip and the tip of my paper piercer I added highlights to the embossed areas using orange and yellow acrylic paint. The highlights really helped to emphasize the embossing and give it more dimension. I then swiped Fresh Snow PTI ink along the edges of the front and back of the box to give it a foggy night feel.

Here's a detail.

To finish the box I swirled bits of pillow stuffing that I got from Michaels around the handle of the box to look like spooky clouds. I smooshed in a little bit of orange acrylic paint to give it more nighttime glow. Then I added some bats from a Martha Stewart punch, to give a 3D sense that the bats are flying out of the painting.

I made a lot of these and each of them was handpainted! It took a little while to finish, but I love how it turned out. Can't wait to hand them out!

I am entering these treat boxes into the Cuttlebug Spot's Challenge, Simon Says Stamps Challenge to make something spooky, and the Cupcake Craft Challenge 114 to make a Sweet Treat for Halloween. If you get a chance, play along with these fun challenges!

Thanks so much for stopping by today! I wish you a very happy and safe Halloween! Have fun! :)

Supplies
Paper: True Black
Ink: Fresh Snow
Paint: Tangerine, Yellow acrylic paint (Folk Art)
Other: Favor It Box 2 Die (PTI), Haunted Halloween embossing folder (Cuttlebug), Bat punch (Martha Stewart), pillow stuffing (Michaels)

How to Make a Small Shaped Card

I had some questions about how to make a small card, so just thought I'd post some quick instructions if you would like to make some using Papertrey Ink's Mat Stack 4 die (found HERE).

First, cut a 3-1/2" x 6" piece of paper (you should be able to get three from one 8-1/2" x 11" sheet of paper). Then score and fold in half so that it measures 3" x 3-1/2". Then place the sheet of paper on the die with the fold slightly overlapping the end of the die. Make sure part of the cutting line is exposed. Like this.

It may help to attach some removable adhesive to the inside of the card so it stays in place. Then run it through your die cutting machine and you will have a small shaped card!

Just to show you an example of the finished product, here's a different version of the small Halloween card I posted yesterday.

I stamped and heat embossed the card and then added yellow acrylic paint to the windows.

Then I added yellow acrylic accents to the moon inside too!

Thanks for stopping by. I have another post up with some treats that I made for Halloween too! Have a sunny day!

Happy Haunting!

So are you getting ready for Halloween? We are going to a Halloween party tomorrow tonight. We're still trying to finalize our costumes. My husband is probably going as a graduate, and I'm still trying to decide between an angel and a cat. It should be fun. We're looking forward to it! What are you dressing up as?

So today I'm posting some small cards I made for family and friends to celebrate Halloween. They will be getting these along with a treat box (which I'm posting tomorrow). I had a lot of fun making these! :) I am also entering this into Caardvarks challenge to decorate a card inside and out. The details are HERE. If you get a chance, play along with this fun challenge!

I stamped PTI's Tiny Treats: Halloween images (love these!) in Versamark and then heat embossed in white and red. I then took a Q-tip and added eerie moonlight accents with an orange acrylic paint. It was fun adding these accents to create a haunted mood. I like how the circle hints at the idea of a full moon.

On the inside I stamped the ghost and added the Boo several times with clear EP. Just a fun touch, to seem almost like the ghost was "waiting" inside the house, ready to say Boo! when you "stepped" inside. :)

I'll be back tomorrow with a treat box I made to accompany this card. I used Favor It Box 2 and a cool Cuttlebug folder. See you tomorrow! Have a spooky, sunny weekend!!!

Supplies (all Papertrey Ink unless otherwise listed.)
Stamps: Tiny Treats: Halloween, Spooky Treats
Paper: True Black
Ink: Versamark
Other: Mat Stack 4 die, Detail White & Clear EP (Stampendous), Rouge EP (American Crafts Zing!), Tangerine acrylic paint (Folk Art)

Just a Note: More Small Thank You Notes

In yesterday's post, I said I would be posting more small thank you cards with a different twist. Today's cards also use the Mat Stack 4 stamp and die but these have a more retro musical look.

By stamping the frame in a shimmery gold/black it gives a more retro, almost record player-like look. The circles in the mat stack kind of look like visual rhythms in a song or music notes. I prefer the mat stack stamped in lighter colors but do like the contrast it provided for this card. I used just a spot of red, with the intention of entering this into Susan's One Layer Wednesday challenge here. I masked out the circle and stamped the lines from the PTI "Take Note" stamp set.

I curved the inside sentiment and added a musical note, leaving just enough room to add a short message.

My family has quite a few musicians in it...my aunt was a professional violinist, my grandma plays the piano and used to teach and my uncle plays drums...so it is nice to have a few music "notes" on hand! :)

That's all for today! Have a sunny Sunday! :)

All supplies are Papertrey Ink (PTI) unless otherwise noted.
Stamps: Take Note, Tiny Treats: Halloween, Just A Note (musical notes, Wplus9), Thanks (sentiment, American Crafts)
Paper: Stampers Select White
Ink: Brilliance inks (Lightning Black, Rocket Red)
Other: Mat Stack 4 die

P.S. Just a reminder, my url has changed to www.craftinginsunshine.com. I redirected it through blogger so all links to the previous url (www.monicacrafts.blogspot.com) still work. Just wanted to let you know in case you wanted to update!

Small Thank You Notes for Fall

Hi everyone, hope you're having a nice weekend! Just wanted to post a few fall thank you notes I made recently. I made these for some PTI forum members who I split a stamp set with. :)

I stamped the mat with a Halloween treats set. It can be fun to think outside the box and find new ways to use your holiday supplies. I was inspired by Melissa's post to make a diecut card. These type of cards are the perfect size to slip into a package you're sending out to someone to let them know they are appreciated. Since it is one layer, it is also super flat and easy to mail. I made a few extras too in different colors (not pictured) to have on hand just in case.

Here's a closeup pic (click on the picture to see more detail.)

I stamped the fall leaves with Brilliance inks, which have a beautiful glittery sheen to them. I prefer the mat stack stamped in lighter shades. It's such a bold frame, that a lighter color softens it a bit I think!

Tomorrow I'm posting a completely different take on Thank You notes using this same die. And I've got a few more posts coming within the next few days.

That's all for today. Thanks for taking a look! I have a date with my hubby tonite so need to go get ready! Have a sunny weekend! :)

ETA: Thanks so much to the Create (CARDS) blog for featuring these notecards! Details and directions on how to make a small shaped card are here.

Supplies (all PTI unless listed otherwise).
Stamps: Through the Trees, Tiny Treats: Halloween
Paper: Rustic Cream
Ink: Aqua Mist, Brilliance inks (Coffee Bean, Sunflower Yellow, Pearlescent Rust)
Other: Mat Stack 4 die

P.S. Just a reminder, my url has changed to www.craftinginsunshine.com. I redirected it through blogger so all links to the previous url (www.monicacrafts.blogspot.com) still work. Just wanted to let you know in case you wanted to update!

It's beginning to look a lot like...Fall!

So in Florida, we don't have autumn (or winter either for that matter), so if we want to experience the missing seasons, we have to get a little creative! I love fall leaves, but the closest I can get to them is by stamping them. So that's exactly what I did for this card project! :)

I got a beautiful CHF Oak Leaves backgrounder stamp in the mail recently and I immediately thought it would look lovely stamped in gold on white paper. Then I saw Susan's One Layer Wednesday challenge this week, which challenged us to add something metal to our cards (you can find the details: HERE) and this project came together!

Here's my entry. It is a set of metallic leaf notecards to give as a gift.

I stamped the leaves with Versamark ink onto Papertrey Ink's white shimmer cardstock. (And I'm going to totally enable you and say that if you haven't yet tried it--you must! So beautiful.) Then I sprinkled embossing powder onto each and heat set it.

Another interesting thing, I used a different EP brand for each card. Here are some closeups so you can see the shimmer of the cardstock and compare the embossing powders for yourself. (Click on the images to see them enlarged.)

Here's the gold (using PTI Filigree gold EP). See the CS shimmer? :) And check out the amazing detail. You can see all the veins of the leaf! The PTI Filigree powder gave the most detailed and clear lines.

And the copper (using Zing! EP). The lines were much "puffier" and thicker and not as detailed.

And the silver (using Stampendous detail EP). The lines were very precise, but there were a lot more excess stray bits that stuck to the paper and in between the veins of the leaf.

Isn't the detail in these leaves amazing? I had a lot of fun stamping them. Now they are sitting on a shelf in my living room, shimmering in the afternoon sunlight. Nevermind that it's 89 degrees outside--if I turn down the A/C just enough, it's beginning to feel like fall around here! :)

That's all for today! Enjoy your beautiful, sunny autumn day wherever you might be! :)

Supplies
Stamps: Oak Leaf Backgrounder (Cornish Heritage Farms)
Paper: White Shimmer Paper (Papertrey Ink)
Ink: Versamark
Other: Embossing Powers- Gold (Filigree-available at PTI), Silver (Stampendous, detail), Copper (Zing, American Crafts)

Handmade Soap from Croatia

Hi everyone! Hope you had a great summer. It's hard to believe that fall is already here. Where did the time go? I've been a little bit behind in posting things I've made, I'm so sorry about that, so I'll be catching up with some posts over the next few days. So check back if you can! :)

Today I will be showing you a handmade soap project where I made some soaps to give to friends and family as souvenirs from Croatia. As a crafter, I think it's kind of a fun idea to hand make souvenirs rather than buy them. This is my first time making soaps and it was a lot of fun! I would definitely recommend trying it out if you haven't yet. It's super simple to do.

To make the soaps, I brought back some bags of dried lavender, which grows on the island in Croatia where my mother-in-law lives, and a bottle of distilled lavender scent. When we returned, I bought some Olive Oil soap, molds, and purple dye from Michaels.

Then I melted the soap base, mixed all the pieces together and this is how the lavender soap turned out!

For the soap wrap, I trimmed some PTI kraft paper and ran it through a Fiskars crimper. If you've never used a crimper, you should give it a try. I just love that tool! The handmade paper is from a soapmaking kit, but I would love to learn to make handmade paper too one day. If only there were enough hours in the day to make everything by hand...I think I would seriously try if I could! There is something really fun about making things yourself.

And here is the full set, including some pretty handstitched lace bags we also brought back from Croatia.

And since we're on the topic of Croatia, I thought I'd share with you a few pics that I took!

Here's the cool unusual-shaped beach at Bol where we went swimming. And yes, the water really is that blue and crystal clear!

Here is the River Canyon where we rode on an old wooden boat through the mountains. It was very magical being that close to such high mountains. Living in Florida my whole life, mountains amaze me like nothing else. I'm so used to everything being flat!

And this is the town where my mother-in-law lives on the island. You can see the mountains of the mainland in the distance (see, I can't stop talking about mountains! ;).

The houses are all made of hard white limestone, which is quarried locally on the island. That same stone was also used to build parts of the White House in the US. The island also has the most beautiful purple flowers. Can anyone name the type of flower in the picture? (ETA: I found out that the flower is a bouganvilla. Thanks Mariana!)

We had a great trip and are looking forward to going back next year!

Also, just wanted you all to be aware too if you haven't noticed yet, that my url has now changed to www.craftinginsunshine.com. I redirected it through blogger so any links from the previous url (www.monicacrafts.blogspot.com) should still work. Just wanted to give you a heads up if you'd like to update with the new info!

Thanks so much for taking a look today! Have a wonderful, sunny day! :)

Thank you, Nichole!

This post is dedicated to Nichole Heady, who is such an inspiration to many of us! We want her to know how appreciated she is so we are posting cards in her honor to let her know how much she inspires us. Thank you Nichole for all that you do!! This card is for YOU!

When I think of Nichole's stamping style, I think clean and soft with a touch of glitter. Spring Moss and Aqua Mist were the first colors released by Papertrey Ink, so I used those colors for this card.

I stamped Thank You from Big & Bold Wishes (PTI) in versamark, clear embossed it and then sponged on Aqua Mist & Spring Moss ink. I then outlined Stickles glitter over the clear letters and attached the panel with pop dots.

Thanks again, Nichole! You really do bring joy to so many lives with what you do. Thank YOU!

All supplies are Papertrey Ink unless otherwise listed.
Stamps: Big & Bold Wishes
Paper: Stampers Select white
Ink: Aqua Mist, Spring Moss, Versamark
Other: Clear embossing powder, Stickles glitter

Wish Big!

Hi there! :) Hope you're having a great summer! The past few days we've been getting things ready for our trip to Europe. We go every summer to visit my mother-in-law in Croatia and we can't wait to see her. Just thought I'd stop by real quick to post a card I just finished.

This card was a lot of fun to make! I used embossing powders, which I had been neglecting for awhile, and also a ton of bling. I had a birthday card in mind when I made it, but I realize now that it might also work for a New Years fireworks card or a Congrats card too.

So here's today's card, Wish Big.

I saw this fun card by Michele, and it inspired me to use a black base for my card. I stamped the sentiment from Big and Bold Wishes and embossed half in Rouge and half in Neon Amber. I stamped the largest circle from the Shapes by Design stamp set several times in Versamark ink. Then I lightly dusted Zing embossing powder at an angle on all the circles.

I had a lot of fun adding all the gemstones to the card! I usually tend to hold onto them, so it was fun just letting go and adding lots of bling.

Ok, I've got to get back to packing! Thanks for taking a look. I appreciate you stopping by. Have a wonderful, sunny day!

ETA: A big thank you to Nichole for featuring this card in the Papertrey Ink August newsletter!!

All supplies are Papertrey Ink, unless otherwise listed.
STAMPS: Big and Bold Wishes, Shapes by Design
INK: Versamark
PAPER: True Black, Summer Sunrise
OTHER: Gemstones (Michaels), Zing embossing powder-Neon Amber, Rouge, Aqua (American Crafts)

Watermelons!

So today’s post is all about watermelons. Yummy, juicy watermelons. Nothing says summer quite like them.

One of my favorite summer memories from childhood was slicing open a huge watermelon out by the pool and spitting the seeds into the grass. I have no idea why it's so fun, but it is!

So here’s today’s card, You’re So Sweet.

I made it for Ingrid’s challenge to make a summer card. I am also entering it into a Passion for Papertrey’s challenge, since they are also featuring summer cards right now. Summer is definitely in full swing! I also found out that Sarah Martina is hosting a "fruity" card challenge, so I'm entering it there as well. Be sure to play along with these fun challenges! :)

The veins of the watermelon are from a Halloween spiderweb Cuttlebug folder. Then I swiped on some fresh snow to give it a little juiciness. The watermelon rind is a branches cuttlebug folder swiped with Simply Chartreuse to emphasize the stripes.

And here is the back of the "watermelon". :)

Since we’re on the topic of watermelons, here’s some fun things I found while looking for inspiration for the challenge!

How about some watermelon shoes?

 

Or maybe a watermelon sweater?

Or how about a watermelon car?

And yes, the inside is pink. ;)

Who knew there were so many watermelon products out there!

That’s all for today! 

Thanks for checking out my blog! I really appreciate you stopping by. It is so *sweet* of you! ;)

Have a wonderful, sunshine-filled summer day! :)

ETA: Thanks so much to Ingrid for choosing this card for her summer challenge! Thanks also to A Passion for Papertrey for featuring this card as one of the Top 3 Passionistas cards!

All supplies are Papertrey Ink unless noted.

STAMPS: Cupcake Collection (sentiment)

INK: Dark Chocolate, Berry Sorbet, Simply Chartreuse, Fresh Snow, Tea Dye Duo

PAPER: Simply Chartresue, Berry Sorbet, Rustic White

OTHER: 1/8” white silk ribbon, rustic twine, cream fabric (Michaels), Cuttlebug folders-Halloween spiderweb and branches, Dark Chocolate buttons, pearls (Michaels)

You're a Grand Old Flag...

I hope you all are having a wonderful 4th of July! I just wanted to pop on here real quick to show you a card I made for Susan's One Layer Wednesday challenge on the Simplicity blog. The challenge this week was to create a patriotic card using just one layer of paper and ink. So I thought it might be fun to stamp an abstract flag design! I am also entering this into Ted's Old Glory challenge, which challenged us to use the colors red, white and blue.

The stripes are from the fun stamp set by Practicing Creativity, called You're Dandy. The other stamps are from We R Memory Keepers, Old Glory collection. I masked around the circle and around the sentiment and then added red gemstones to give it some 4th of July sparkle. You can find my other 4th of July posts HERE and HERE. I just love the bold shapes and colors of this holiday!

Have a fun and safe 4th of July with your family and friends! And thanks so much for stopping by the blog today. Have a wonderful, sunshine-filled 4th of July! :)

Supplies used.
STAMPS: Freedom from the Old Glory collection (We R Memory Keepers), You're Dandy (Practicing Creativity)
INK: Rocket Red (Brilliance), Mediterranean Blue (Brilliance)
PAPER: Stampers Select White (Papertrey Ink)
OTHER: Red gemstones (Michael's)

Father's Day: Stepdad

Here is the second card I made for Father's Day. This one is for my stepdad. He is really into cars, so I knew I would be using Enjoy the Ride stamps.

I originally meant to have the card sitting on a road, but thought it was kind of fun and abstract to have it sitting out in a field. The tree in the background is from PTI Father Knows Best. I also used Lisa's magnet idea and included a magnet with the same car design on the front to coordinate with the card.

Here's a detail shot.

Thanks for stopping by and have a great, sunshine-filled day!

All supplies are Papertrey Ink, unless otherwise noted.

STAMPS: Father Knows Best, Masculine Motifs, Enjoy the Ride, Up, Up and Away, Grass (A Muse stamps)

INK: Ripe Avocado, Dark Chocolate, Terracotta Tile, Enchanted Evening, Fresh Snow

PAPER: Kraft

OTHER: Enjoy the Ride car die