Christmas 2009

warm winter wishes!  Hi everyone!  I'm finally starting to unwind from the craziness of all the craft shows I did this year.  It's been a lot of fun, but I still have a lot to learn.  My next project is working on giving an assortment of 4 cards to each of 12 of my co-workers.  I found these DVD-sized Christmas gift boxes at my local thrift store that fit the 5"x6.5" cards that I use- 25 cents a box!  :D  I'm going to add just a ribbon because the boxes are already decorated, but I'll be sure to take pictures once I'm done.  I hope to have more time this week to post cards I've been working on. :)  I hope you're all enjoying the holiday season!

-Suzanne :O )

Snowman Soup!

Hi everyone!  Here are a couple of pictures of my Snowman Soup!  I used the appropriately name 'Snowman Soup' set by Inky Antics, some papers I wanted to use up by DCWV, and colored the images in with my Marvy Le Plume II Markers.  I also used a 3" scalloped circle punch by Marcy Uchida and some circle punches by EK Success.  The coloring took the longest, but otherwise, these little guys came together pretty quickly.  I stapled the toppers to some 4"x6" clear bags, and added a packet of hot chocolate, 3 Hershey's Kisses and two mini candy canes to each bag.  I made 30 bags (there are only 12 in the basket there) and sold 23 at Saturday's craft fair, so I'll say that they were a big hit! :D  I have to stock up on more for my next show in two weeks- they're great little stocking stuffers!  Hope you enjoy- thanks for checking in!

-Suzanne :O )

Fluffles?

Hi everyone!  I still have one more craft fair left, so I haven't had much time to post here.  This is a card I made about 6 months ago, and never posted.  (Would you have known the difference if I didn't tell you that though?) :)  I think this guy is the famous Fluffles the cat, but I'm not sure because the image came from a swap.  I used paper by DCWV (happy birthday), ATD (balloons), Colorbok (purple and blue grid).  I also added several fun rings of gems by Me and My Big Ideas and a photo corner by Colorbok.  It's a busy card, but I like the fun, festive feel of it.  :O )

Stay tuned for pictures of my snowman soup... I sold 23 packs this weekend and have to stock up again before my next show.  Thanks for bearing with me!

-Suzanne :O )

Let's Win a Free Stamp Set!

Hi everyone!  I need your help- here's the background story! :)  Back in September I went to a stamp convention in upstate NY and came across this FABULOUS company called Darcie's.  My heart nearly exploded when I saw her stamp sets, they're seriously too cute.  What I love about her stamps is that the images come with tons of matching sentiments that actually SAY something... too often you buy a set of Christmas stamps, for example, only to find that the sentiments say boring things like "joy" "peace" and "merry christmas".  I bought a set called "You Look Like Santa" and it's as funny as it sounds ;)  Plus, the images aren't teensy weensy- you can stamp a single image and call it quits, instead of having to use embellishments to fill space. Can you tell that I'm thrilled to have found this company??  Darcie's blog is chock full of adorable, colorful goodness- check it out here:  www.darcieheater.typepad.com  

She also has tons of U-Cuts, which are giant project sheets that you cut out yourself and assemble.  They're already colored, so you just have to add some embellishments and you're done!  I haven't tried those out yet, but if I catch her at another convention, I'm going to explore more!  Anyway, why am I gushing about this company?  She's offering free stamp sets!  Here's what Darcie's asking (on this post):

Leave me a comment at the end of this post stating who you referred the blog to (list your friend's name).  Have your friend leave a comment, and have the friend list YOUR name in her comment at the end of this post.  You can do this with as many friends as you want between now and Monday, November 16, at midnight Pacific Time.  And...If you sign up to be a follower on the blog I'll enter your name in the drawing two more times, in addition to the comment entries.  On Tuesday, November 17, I will randomly draw a winning comment.  Both you and your friend will win the Wagonload of Wishes Clear Polymer Stamp Set, the Gable Box Pattern, and an assortment of my printed card stocks.  Woohoo!  Let's see how many comments and friends we can get on this one.

This is the stamp set she's offering to you and me if we win:

 

Adorable, right?!  So if you'll be so kind as to mention my name when you comment on her blog, we might both have a chance at winning!  Be sure to check out older posts on her blog and check out her catalogues too to see her other stamp sets!  I haven't inked up any of my 4 stamp sets yet, but I will be sure to post pictures when I do!  Hope your week is off to a great start and thanks for stopping by!!!

-Suzanne :O ) 

Halloween 2009 Showcase :)

Hi all!  I've been putting my blog on the back burner again, but I just wanted to share my Halloween cards from this year before it gets TOO too late. :)  Enjoy!

Little Lamb

Hi everyone!  I made this card for my mom's friend's daughter, who had a baby last month :)  I used patterned paper by Miss Elizabeth's, a pre-made embellishment by Paper Magic Group (Sue Dreamer), a bit of ribbon and some cardstock scraps.  Super fast and easy.. hope you enjoy!

-Suzanne :O )

Baby Duck

Hi everyone!  Quick post tonight- I made this card for my dad's co-worker who requested a baby card with a duck on it.  I wasn't sure if it was for a boy or girl, so I went with the safe green and yellow colors :)  The duck sticker is K&Co, the green paper is DCWV, and I used scraps, buttons and ribbon from my stash.  Hope you're having a great start to the week!

-Suzanne :O )

Autumn-themed cards

Hi friends!  It's actually SNOWING here in New York, but I've been meaning to welcome the season with these yummy fall cards.  This is by far my favorite time of year- who doesn't love apple cider donuts and the chill in the air and mountains covered with brilliantly-colored trees?!  :D  The first two pictures are of packs I displayed at a show.  The bottom three are thank you cards I sent out for my birthday gifts.  :)  The top one says "so thankful", but it's hard to tell with the gold ink on the dark green cardstock.  I used lots of scraps and K&Co die-cuts to make for easy assembly.  The plaid paper is DCWV, which was really easy to pull colors out of for matting :)  I also used some Melissa Frances chipboard covered with Doodlebug Sugar Coating (top picture), a Hero Arts stamp (thinking of you), Making Memories metal signs (white thank you messages), and paper by Paper Reflections (top picture).   I hope you like these festive cards, thanks for stopping by!

-Suzanne :O )

Kiddie birthdays

Hi friends!  Here are some birthday cards I've made in the last couple of months for the children of my brother's friends.  You can see that I really love using my Making Memories chipboard animals and various party hats to exude that cheerful party-time feel! :)  I used lots of different papers, all with bright, bold colors.  I won't go into details, but ask if you want to know the manufacturer of anything. I think making cards for children comes easily to me because they're just so happy!  Hope these cards make you smile, and thanks for stopping by!

-Suzanne :O )  

Craft fair displays

Hi everyone!  I have been super busy for the last couple of months prepping for 3 different outdoor events.  The first one was Montgomery Day, which was a celebration in the town where my dad teaches.  It was drizzling for a good part of the morning, which kept the crowds away, but I ended up making $93 that day.  My dad knew a couple of my customers, so I can't say that didn't help ;)  The second show was also in Montgomery, but it was held to celebrate the farming community and there were only 5-6 craft vendors.  The people that came out weren't too interested in shopping for crafts.  I made $60, but there was no table fee, so I actually made a nice profit.  The most recent show was in Washingtonville, where I live, but it was held at the Brotherhood Winery, and the crowd was largely teenagers (read: not my crowd).  I only made $42, and my table fee was $70, so I probably won't do that show next year.  I've learned that this whole first year is just going to be trial and error.  :)

My hope is that when I start doing indoor shows next month, since they're actually craft fairs, and not just festivals or whatever, I'll attract the right kind of crowd for my merchandise.  I'm already signed up to do shows in December and November, and I'm thinking about doing 2 more shows in November to take advantage of the season.  I do worry that I won't have enough time to refill my stock, though! 

Anyway, enough rambling... it's good to be back and posting, so please stay tuned for pictures of my cards!

-Suzanne :O )

PS- I brought my cards in to work today at the request of my co-worker, and I ended up making $37!  :)  I'm counting that towards making up for my last not-worth-it show.  ;)

Long Time No Post

Hi friends!  I just wanted to pop in to say that I've been dealing with the craziness of prepping for many craft shows, and I will be back after a week or so to post some pictures of what I've been working on/selling.  In the meantime, I've added my upcoming events to the left of my blog, so you can see where I'll be next if you're a local!  Thanks for your patience!  ;)

-Suzanne :O )

TESC #79

Hi everyone! I'm getting closer and closer to the dates of my craft fairs, so I haven't been able to post much :( I used this week's Taylored Expressions sketch to help me make a set of birthday cards. I used tons of Making Memories papers (Boho Chic) and green cardstock by DCWV. The stamps are as follows:

Cupcake stand: Studio g
"Let's eat": Studio g
"yum scale": Stampin' Up!

I used my EK Success circle punches, my Fiskars border punch, and my Copic markers. I'm trying to get better at using them, but I don't have too many colors (yet!), so the going is slow. Hope you like my cards, and thanks for bearing with me! I hope to post a LOT more once my shows are done! :D

-Suzanne :O )

Use It! #23/Mojo Turns 100 Day 2

Hi everyone! I haven't been able to post much as work is SUPER busy and I've been slaving away at making cards for my craft fairs. The weather has also been wicked, so I haven't felt like doing too much! :) Anyway, here are some combined challenges- the sketch is Mojo Monday and the supplies list is from Regina's Use It! challenge:

1) What is old is new again-
check! I used OLDDDD DCWV brown (gingham?) paper and some K&Co company paisley papers.

2)The eyes have it-
check! Orange eyelets by Making Memories instead of candle flames! :)

3) Neglected stamps-
check! The birthday cake is a dollar bin goodie by Katie & Co. (Michaels).

4)Use a non scrappy item
check! I Cuttlebugged some transparency scraps! I took a close up shot so you could see the embossing. The embossing's not super crisp, but I think you get the idea ;)

I also added some scored-at-a-yard-sale ribbon and colored the image with my watercolor pencils. I used my Fiskars Shape Cutters to cut the white cardstock, a Fiskars border punch, and a corner rounder on the paisley paper. I used staples to keep my transparencies on ;) Hope you like these birthday cards; thanks for stopping by!

-Suzanne :O )

follow-up to July 2 post...

Remember the apple thank you cards I made for my dad to give to his students? I said I would post all twelve of them and I never did, so here they are:Here's the link to my original post: July 2nd post

I also made nine of these:
DCWV papers, Colorbok chipboard, Hero Arts sentiment, buttons and brads from my stash, and my much-loved aqua ribbon from the dollar store :) I really LOVE mass producing cards, it's such a fun challenge! AND I love using my stash ;) Hope you enjoy these, thanks for checking in!

-Suzanne :O )

Use It!# 22 and TESC#77

Hi everyone! Here's my follow-up to the white ink effect tutorial. I used this week's Taylored Expressions sketch challenge for my layout and the Use It! challenge for my materials. June was hosting this week and she asked us to do 3 things:

1. Try a new technique...
check! white ink effect :)

2. Use a virgin stamp...
check! Michael's got a TONNNN of new clear stamps- these are from their Recollections line, a set called Meow Meow.

3. Use papers you have never used before...
check! I used some DCWV Pet Stack papers (I had only used the dog papers, so I thought it was time to use some cat papers!) :)

I used some cardstock scraps to add a ring of color behind my images and my watercolor pencils to color them in. The "celebrate" stamp is by Close to my Heart. So that's it... another set of cards made for my craft fairs! :D Thanks for stopping by- hope you have an amazing week!

-Suzanne :O )