little gi

some december kenner road

last night was the december reveal for kenner road's gorgeous new kits.  here is what i've completed so far.  i'll be showing the canvas mini book that i'm working on on the kr blog on the 21st & i've got a few other things in the works for christmas package decoration.  this kit's gorgeous neutral colors are so fun & easy to work with!   

the little mini book will be tucked away as a gift.  really like those little jenni bowlin 12 month journaling cards.  just the perfect thing for mini books. 

 

 

 

hope you all are having a blessed Christmas season so far!!  back to the workshop :)

xoxo

gi

felt on a snowy day...

we got about 6-8 inches of gorgeous snow last night.  the kids had a snow day from school & before they headed out to play in the snow, we spent the morning crafting some little Christmas gifts (& a little pressie for them too :).

we made these adorable little scottie dogs for kelly's teacher.  she has 2 white scotties that she speaks of often & the kids in the class all know of their silly tricks.  kelly says her teacher calls them "little ninjas".  lol!  so we got the scottie dog pattern from allsorts & made these 2 little doggies.  we put little green velvet "hangers" on them so the teacher can pop them on her tree if she wishes.   (& yes, we made choco chip cookies too :)

 

 

next up, we made little felt gingerbread cookies a la happy together.  i embroidered all the faces, kelly sewed the pink buttoned one all on her own (i think she did REALLY well!!!) & ryan did a bunch of the stitches on the blue buttoned one w/ a bit of my help (he did a fabulous job too :).  i love how they turned out & will have to make a few more to make up a dozen for their little kitchen. :)  they are all upstairs right now having a little cookie party.

 

alrighty, LOTS more Christmas crafting to do!!! 

hope you have a happy wednesday!!

xoxo

gi

this Christmas...

we are doing things handmade & homemade...

we are not getting caught up in the "spend, spend, spend" chaos...

we are doing more with less....

we are going to remember what this Blessed Season is all about :)

& to that end, i've been collecting crafting & gift ideas for a while now.   sew mama sew had some really wonderful links to great free tutorials & free downloads during the month of september during their "handmade for the holidays" feature.  whip up also is a sure bet for great free tutorials.  also, if you purchased the november tarisota collection you get all of the new tarisota classes for download (if you didn't get the collection, there are still 2 free classes available & if you wish you can purchase the classes that suit your fancy).

this week the kids & i have been recycling our broken up crayons into these adorable marbleized star shaped chunky crayons & we will wrap them up pretty for gifting to their classmates & friends (& shhhh...they each are getting a full set too :)  

we are having a blast, and because this gift is basically free, it is really a gift from the heart :)

click here for a free download of these adorable hello kitty gift tags (tamar also added some really cute ones for the little guys).  also available for free download are some more sophisticated gift tags that are really gorgeous.

here is what you do:

*  go around the house, the car & dig in your purses to gather up all of used up & your broken up crayons. if your family is anything like us you've got a ton. 

*  pop the kids at the kitchen table w/ a trash bowl & have them remove the paper wrappings. 

*  chop the crayons up into bits w/ a sharp knife.  we chose to keep our bits separated into color groups so that the crayon would be a mix of purple, a mix of yellow, etc.  you may choose to throw all the bits together & create full on mixed rainbow stars (super fab too!!)

 

*  pop those colorful waxy bits into one of those shaped silicone baking trays (i got a star shaped one at michaels, use that coupon!!!)  or you can use a regular muffin tin (just make sure if you are going to use it to bake food in again, you line the muffin tin w/ foil cupcake liners.)

 

*  bake your bits at 250 degrees for @ 15-20 minutes (time will depend on how small you cut up the crayons.  just wait until the bits are nice & melted & liquidy).  remove from the oven & cool completely.  be patient & wait for them to completely cool before you try removing them from the tray.  we had one batch that we tried to remove too early & it got all wonky, so we had to re-bake it.

*  now you have adorable star marbleized crayons

* now wrap up your star crayons really pretty (i used some cellophane bags that i bought way back for some reason i forget why...lol  brown paper bags would also be great.), add some ribbon (c'mon i KNOW you've got gobs of ribbon around :) & add one of these adorable hello kitty gift tags

TA DA!!!!!!!  little perfect pressie all done :)

Merry Christmas & happy crafting!!!

xoxo

gi

november kenner road...

 

 

 

 

oooh this month's kits are gorgeous!! 

can't wait to make more stuff w/ 'em :)  i've got plans to make another little mini for my winter wallet photos since the fall one (see above) turned out so adorable.  i really like having my fave photos all together & portable & cute :)

happy monday!!

xoxo

gi

timber cover & snow drift

gosh this month's kenner road kits are beautiful!!

here are some sneaks of what i've been creating thus far with this month's kits.  they are set to reveal tomorrow night at midnight Eastern (or 9pm Pacific for you west coasters) :)

i even made a card.  i never make cards!  i get so stuck with them for some reason.  but all the colors & elements in the kits go so beautifully together, it kinda made itself!  love when it all comes together like that :)

 

alrighty, i'm in the middle of a mini & i've gotta get going. 

have a great friday!

xoxo

gi

my creative space...

i happened upon this gorgeous blog today & got really inspired.  take a look, you will be too :)

my creative space is filled with bits & bobs everywhere.  the kenner road november kits are set to reveal this saturday night & it is "go" time at the desk these days.  after taking a break from paper during september & october, it has been interesting getting back into it.  at times it's like i've forgotten how to scrapbook & at other times it's like i'm looking at everything with new eyes.  looking forward to creating/experimenting a bit more today :)

happy thursday!

xoxo

gi

Vintage pretties...

the latest tarisota gallery has been revealed & it is so gorgeous.  the team and our designer in residence, deb godley, really went over & above with this collection.  wait till you see.   seriously....just wait till you see.  SO gorgeous.

as for me, here are my contributions thus far. my favorite are these christmas trees.  they are photographing terribly, but i sewed up triangles of the pattern paper & stuffed them w/ stuffing so they are puffy.  then a little trunk (found in the yard :) & popped them into a little spool.  they look really cute on the shelf right now...just a little bit more till they get joined by the other christmas decorations :)

 

 

 

don't all those colors look gorgeous together?? 

there will be another gallery release with this collection in december as well, so be sure to look for that for more inspiration too :)  here is a peek at a couple layouts of mine that will be included. 

 

AND  if you fell in love with rachel's fairy house like i did, be sure to click on over to the tarisota blog to enter to win a pattern for the house created by rachel's friend, robyn.  good luck!!!  i know this is definitely on my "to create" list for the girls.  i think it will look adorable hanging in their room.  maybe for kate's 5th birthday :)

see????  GORGEOUS!!!  be sure to enter to win!!!

good luck & happy monday!!

xoxo

gi

some link loves...

we are knee deep in football around here these days.  ryan (& mike, since he's the head coach :) has a tournament & the turkey bowl this weekend & kelly's team made the playoffs, so she'll be cheering her little heart out.   so we'll all be getting ready this week for a big hometown blue & gold weekend.  (& looking at that pic, i think i need to get kelly a haircut too!  lol!!)

meanwhile, i thought i'd share 3 of my recent favorite "go-to" crafty spots sure to inspire & educate & give you that great creative spark. i've been getting so many wonderful ideas @ the www & have so many ideas jotted down to start doing some Christmas crafting.  

so here we go:

*  sew mama sew:  sew mama sew is such a wonderful resource.  & november is their Handmade Holidays feature during which they link great tutorials & ideas for the holidays each & every day.  it is awesome!  (& definitely go back through October to see all of their fabric scrap ideas.  i've tried a few already & really enjoyed bustin' through my fabric scraps :) 

* one crafty mumma:  mel goodsell is just the best.  i've "worked" with her as a part of the tarisota team for over a year and a half now & she always inspires me and she just so happens to be one of the nicest people in the world.  but just this past weekend, i found myself lost in her beautiful blog reading about all of her (& her adorable family) crafty adventures.  she has got a million and one fantastic ideas & she shares them.  LOVE it :)  after going through all of her gorgeous & whimsical creations, i'm rarin' to fire up the sewing machine & create.

* ruffles & stuff:  this is one clever & creative mama!!!  she shares so many great ideas from altering dollar store pj's to look like a fabulous crewcuts top to whipping up a no-sew tartan fleece cape.  seriously good ideas to be found.

hope you are having a happy monday!

xoxo

gi

hello november :)

I've been enjoying sewing like crazy around here these days!!  It has been so enjoyable rediscovering this craft after so many years of being away from it. 

So when I received my November Tarisota Box & saw the fabulous muslin inside, I knew I wanted to make another pincushion (yes, I am addicted to making pincushions now...lol!  expect to receive one for Christmas...lol!).  I found the tutorial here.

This month's featured product is stamps, & there is a gorgeous set of Pink Paislee stamps in the collection.  So I just randomly stamped the butterfly (using regular Stampin' Up dye ink) & then used that stamped fabric in my patchwork pincushion.  The stamped image came out really well, I was so pleased! 

And be sure to check out the great offer from Tarisota for November.  The entire Design Team will be once again offering classes to go along with the bonus Mistletoe & Mayhem Collection, so you are sure to get LOTS of great ideas & crafting done over the holidays!

 

Hope you have a wonderful start to your November!

xoxo

gi 

today we....

* are giving out Candy Corn Cookie Bark to friends :)

(NOT to the slow truck driver that was in front of me on the way to preschool drop off today.  it was so funny.  i'm sitting behind him at the light groaning @ him being so slow & kate pipes up from the back seat "THAT guy is definitely not going to get any of our Halloween treats!".  SO cute!!  lol!!)

 

we wrapped it all up super cute & i finally used that great Owl stamp.  so happy i've finally decided to actually USE all of this crafty stuff rather than just accumulate it, lol :)

* i'm going to try this little candy corn felt bag tutorial that nicole sent me.  looks adorable!

* hit the farmers' market & grab some more of the gorgeous harvest around here.  the butternut squash & celery root & beets & spinach & potatoes & onions & lettuces are just at their absolute peek right now.  we are expecting another rainy weekend, so perfect for some crock potting & some soup making :)

* the girls have a sleepover tonight.  hope the little birthday girl likes the crayon roll we made her :)

* maybe vacuum...lol

hope you have a great friday!!!

xoxo

gi