Be Merry!

Happy Wednesday!
Over at Pink by Design, we are continuing our week of Gift Tag Inspiration!  Today's technique is using Shrinky Dinks!!  If you would like to see the tutorial, head on over here!!

This was my first time using shrinky dinks, and I wanted to try the new PBD stamp set called "Trendy Alpha".  I used a Staz on ink pad and stamped them out on the film.  They shrink down in the oven to this cute little size!!

The tag and reindeer are from the Silhouette Store and the twine is from Pink by Design!  I LOVE this stamp set because I can make any words I want!!  Now that I have figured out Shrinky dinks, I can shrink them down to this smaller size when needed!! I used my snowflake cuttlebug folder for the background to add a little more detail.

Don't forget to come on over this week and link up with us for the Gift Tag challenge!  Entries must be in by Saturday Night 11:59 p.m. CST.  Click here to link up!!

~Rebekah

Pink by Design Gift Tag Challenge

Hi Everyone,
It's finally beginning to feel like Christmas here in Arizona!!  We are in the 50's today ;-)  Today, we are announcing a Pink by Design Gift Tag Challenge.  You can upload a homemade Gift tag anytime before Saturday Night to be entered to win a $10 gift card to Pink by Design's Store!  The Linky for this this challenge is over here at Pink by Design!!!  We will announce the winner on Sunday!!  Spread the word! We would love to see a bunch of entries this week!!

Here is my tag!

The tag, poinsettia and leaves are all from the Silhouette Store.  I inked the edges and added some colorful ribbon and brads!  The Pink by Design sets I used were "Scripted Year" and "Everyday Banners".  I used Pink by Design twine to hang it from my Christmas Tree!

Now it's your turn!!  I can't wait to see all your tag ideas!!  Head on over to Pink by Design to see what some of the other designers came up with for this challenge!!

~Rebekah

Angry Birds Birthday Party!

Hi Everyone,
Life has been extremely crazy since my last post and I am finally finding time to start posting again.  My oldest just turned 5 a couple weeks ago and he wanted an Angry Birds Party.  I had a lot of fun creating everything and my son loved t!!

The invitation!

I used my cameo's print and cut feature for the back of this invitation.  The font is called "Feast of Flesh"

I found this fun game on pinterest and knew I definitely wanted to do the same thing.  I used chunky soup cans and martha stewart acrylic paint for this project.  I free handed the pigs faces (wasn't too difficult).  I found the ball at Walmart for $1.50 and just painted on the birds face with acrylic paint.

It was a real hit at the party ;-)

My husband and I worked together on the cake.  He made the fondant and I created everything you see on top of the cake (except the twix!)  We used marshmallow fondant and wilton food gel.  It was actually not too difficult to make!

I used my silhouette cameo to make the sign and the TNT box.  The rocks are from Duff at Michaels.

The twix were perfect to build with and looked like wood :-)

 Here is an up close look at the pigs!

For party favors I decided to do ornaments.  My son's birthday is about a month from Christmas and I wanted to do something that everyone would want to keep.  I found these plastic ornaments at Hobby Lobby and got a great deal with my coupon.  I glittered the inside red and then used vinyl to put the faces on the outside.  On the back side I wrote "Thanks for Crashing Zach's Party" and then I added the date :-)

I love doing centerpieces for my kids' parties.  I whipped these up on my cameo and cut the "5" out of vinyl to personalize it a bit more.

I also try to have the food fit the theme.  I made little signs and had them sitting next to the different food on the table.  We had Dorito flavored pig ears (chips).  Cheesy Pig tails (spiral mac and cheese)  Shredded pork, and pigs in a blanket.  I didn't get a close up of those but they are on the front of the table in the next picture.  The bucket to the left was from the dollar store and I just added a face with vinyl.

I got most of his balloons at the dollar store (much better deal than party city) and the angry birds balloon from Walmart.  I used vinyl to personalize the balloons.

Another thing I sent the kids home with were Angry Birds Graham crackers that I found at Walmart. I put them into little baggies and made toppers for them that said "Thank you".

The party was so much fun!  I rented a bounce house and the kids never got bored :-)

Here is a picture of the birthday boy!  I made his shirt too :-)

Every year I get a picture with just him and I at his party!

Thanks for stopping by today!!

~Rebekah

Pink by Design New Release Sneak Peek!

Hi Everyone,
I hope you are enjoying all of the sneak peeks from Pink by Design.  If you are coming from Julie, you are in the right place :-)

I was in a really bad "hit and run" accident last Sunday so this is really the first time I have been able to step into my craft room.  I can't be up for very long but couldn't wait to play with one of the new stamp sets.  I have had a lot of people helping me since the accident and wanted to show my thanks to them.  I went to Bath and Body Works and found cute little Christmas candle holders.  I snagged a couple and put a yummy smelling candle in each one. They even gave me the bag and ribbon when I checked out :-)

This stamp set is called Trendy Alpha, and it awesome for a quick and easy gift tag!

The snowman face is from PKS and the "Thank You!" is from one of the PBD sets that will be released this week!
I used my scalloped punch along one edge to give it a little detail, but it was so quick and easy to do.

This is just a fun little way to say "thanks" to someone.  I am now going to send you over to the talented Sabrina for your next sneak peek!  Don't forget that all the new releases are available right now in the Pink by Design Store!!

Thank you for stopping by today!
~Rebekah

My first few sewing projects

Hi Everyone,
My husband got me a sewing machine for Christmas last year and it has just been sitting in my craft room staring at me!  I had no idea where to start so I went to Pinterest to get some inspiration.  With the help of some friends, they helped me make this book organizer that fits in between my kids car seats.

After this project was complete, I decided to try something on my own.  I didn't have a pattern or anything but it was pretty simple to figure out.  These hang on the back of the front seats and work perfectly to hold my boys sunglasses when they aren't being used.  No more stepped on sunglasses!!

I love organizing, and this is a cute way to contain the car clutter :-)

Thanks for stopping by today!

~Rebekah

Melisa's Crafty Creations Blog Hop

Hi Everyone,
I am honored to be part of this fun blog hop today to celebrate Melisa's one year blogiversary! ( Not sure that is a word, but it works!) :-)  I am your last stop on this halloween/fall themed hop! Remember to leave a comment on each blog in order to have a chance to win some prizes.

Here is the order for the hop:

Melisa   www.MelisasCraftyCreations.blogspot.com

Anna   www.stampanna.com

Annette http://aspoonfullofsugarcrafts.blogspot.com/

Barb www.bugbites411.blogspot.com

Candace www.scrappin2littleprincesses.blogspot.com

Elizabeth www.217Creations.com

Gloriahttp://gloriasgoofycraftspot.blogspot.com/

Jeanne www.jeannespapercrafts.com

Julie http://jk-littlebitofbling.blogspot.com/

Kathy http://kathyand3kids.blogspot.com

Lisa http://prettypaperprettyribbons.blogspot.com/

Nicole http://teachdanz.blogspot.com

Rebekah http://craftyteachermom.blogspot.com/ --------- That's me!

I have had a $1 frame from Michael's laying around forever, so I decided to spruce it up for Halloween.  I modge podges some paper from the Trick or Treat Stack from The Paper Studio, found all my cuts in the silhouette store and had these cute little faces from Peachy Keen Stamps!  The "Boo To You" sentiment is from one of the first sets ever released by Pink by Design.  I strung the banner together with some PBD twine and added a couple decorative brads from Hobby Lobby.

I added this to my Halloween decor and will update it each year with a current picture :-)

Thanks for hopping with us today!

~Rebekah

Master Crafter Project

Good Morning!
Today is the day!  It is time to link up my Master Crafter project for Pink by Design :-)  What is Master Crafter??  Sarah Hamer from Pink by Design was able to get a few sponsors and gave 100 people a box of crafting items.  Our goal was to make a project using the stuff in the box and other items we had on hand.  Today is the day we link up our projects so that the voting can begin.

Here is what was in our box:

- Scissor Mouse sponsored by Westcott 

-DCWV Rockstar mat stack sponsored by DCWV Deals

-Cotton Bag Sponsored by State line Bag Co. 

-1/2 sheet of Rhinestones sponsored by Queen & Co.

-Sentiment stamp sponsored by Pink by Design

- a button 

I wanted to make something that I had never done before and force myself to think outside the box.  This is what I came up with...

What is it,  you ask???

It's a Candle Cozy :-) I put pumpkin spice scented bath salts in the bag and decorated it with a matching tag!  I thought it would be a fun way to decorate my candles year round without adhering it to the candle.  When Halloween is over, I take it off and add a new one!  I use a battery powered candle just to be safe!  This is also a great gift idea!

Here are a bunch of pictures so you can see the entire thing...

How did I make it?

I cut some felt that I had in my stash and sewed paper from the DCWV Rockstar stack.  I also used other paper from this stack for a few of the pumpkins and the stems.  I used two sentiment stamps from PBD and the faces are from Peachy Keen Stamps.  The green rhinestones went perfectly with the stems.  All of the cuts are from the Silhouette store.  The button that came along with my box was perfect to help hold the Candle Cozy together.  A simple hair tie was used to connect it.

I thought this was a fun, outside of the box idea.  This is only the third time I have ever sewn anything and was happy with how it turned out :-)

If you think my project deserves to win, please come over and vote for me HERE!!

~Rebekah

Getting Ready for Fall

Hi Everyone,
I have been wanting to put a wreath up on my front door FOREVER, but I just couldn't figure out what I wanted.  I wanted something that could stay up year round but could easily be changed for the different times of year/holidays.  This wreath has been in my closet for almost a year so I decided today was the day.  Hobby Lobby has their wood letters on sale for 30% off (cost me less than three dollars) and their ribbon for 50% off.  I thought it would be cute to keep the letter the plain wood color and just change the bow throughout the year.  My silhouette came in handy for cutting the "Est. 2002" on brown vinyl and the font is playball.  There are super strong magnets holding the ribbon on the backside of the door which works perfectly!

Here is an up close view

I love how this turned out and how simple it will be to change it up.

~Rebekah

Mickey Mouse Travel Journal

Happy Monday!
Awhile back, a friend of mine asked me if I could make her a trip journal for their upcoming trip to Disneyland.  She has an adorable 8 month old and wanted to put the highlights from his first trip all in one place.  I decided to try out a digital kit for some of the papers and  embellishments because I didn't want it to be too bulky.  I found the kit here!

I used my Silhouette to create this entire book.  The fonts are from my computer, a few images are from my cuttlebug folder, and the rest is done using the digital kit.  I laminated the front and back cover to give it more stability because she is taking it with them on their trip.  I then used my "bind it all" to hold it all together.  This book is 5"x7" (Perfect for traveling).  I created the journal pages on my silhouette by making my own lines and then fitting the digital images around them.

On this page I used my cuttlebug and die cuts I found at Big Lots a few years ago.

The page on the left is also done with my Cuttlebug die cut folder

What a fun idea to keep your memories from "The Happiest Place on Earth"!

Have a great day!

~Rebekah

"Super" Birthday Card

Hi Everyone,
Today is my day to post over at Pink by Design!  Here is my project.  If you want all the details for this adorable little guy, you are going to have to head on over and check it out ;-)

Isn't he cute?!

Have a great day!

~Rebekah

DIY Angry Birds Chore Chart

Happy Monday!
Today I have a fun Dollar Store project for you.  My boys are 3 and 4 years old and have really started to enjoy helping me around the house.  I thought they might enjoy their own chore chart with their new craze, Angry Birds!!

What you'll need:
Cookie Sheet ($1 at the dollar store)
Magnets (Set of 8 at the dollar store)
Hot glue gun
ATG gun or some other adhesive
I used my silhouette for the angry birds, chores, wood, and words
different color cardstock
The font I used is called "Feast of Flesh" and you can get it for free from dafont.com!


They absolutely love them!!

It's my turn to post tomorrow over at Pink by Design and you don't want to miss it!!  Here's a hint: It's a super hero project ;-)

~Rebekah

DIY T-shirt Sailor Knot Headband Tutorial

Hi Everyone,
Today is a big day!  I am doing a step by step picture tutorial for you :-)  I have been seeing these super cute t-shirt headbands on Pinterest but there weren't really any tutorials to make one from a t-shirt.  I decided to play around with some old stained jersey cotton shirts of mine and figured it out!! There is no sewing involved!!!


Here is what you need:

An old cotton t-shirt
scissors

That't it!!!


First, you are going to lay your t-shirt out flat

2. Cut the bottom hem off

3.  Now, you are going to cut as many 1/2 inch strips as you want.  The more strips, the thicker the knot will be and will stand out better.  Make sure you cut in even numbers.  For this tutorial I only cut two so I could show you a little easier.  The final picture is actually six strips!

4.  Now, pull the strips tight.  This will make them roll up.

 5.  You are ready to make the sailor knot!  Take one strip and cross it right over left

6.  Take the other strip and lay it right on top in the shape of a U

 7.  Take the right side of the U and put it under the right end of the loop

 8.  Take the left side of the U and place it under the loop

9.  Now, take the right side of the U and put it under the left side of the U and pull it over the top of the loop (it is really hard to explain in words but super easy)

10.  Now you should have two end sticking out the top and two at the bottom.  Pull the top end and the bottom ends away from each other and the knot will form.  You can make it as loose or tight as you want! (Remember that this is a much smaller knot because I only used two strands.

11.  Make sure you stretch out the strands so they are the same length.  Cut a small strand from the sleeve of your t-shirt (about 4 inches long).  Bring the 4 loops together

12.  Now,  you are just going to tie, the small strip around the loops to connect them into a circle.  Make sure you double knot and pull tight!  This pic is before I tied it.

Here is what it looks like tied

Now you just put it on like a normal circular headband.  This next picture is what it looks like with 6 strands!!

Isn't it cute!!

I made a bunch in different colors today.  I am going to use the two strand ones when I go to the gym and save the bigger ones to wear out and about!  The color possibilities are limitless and it's a great way to recycle and old shirt that is just going to get thrown away anyway :-)

Thanks for stopping by today!

~Rebekah