artsy Amy

Post-it Pad for Dad

Here's a manly version of the Post-it pad I made for dear Dad. Take a gander at my earlier post {here} to find out the skinny on how to make your own. I've included a peek at the back below...

The sticky note phase is nearly over. Me and ebay are at odds right now. The ruffler foot I ordered was not a Bernina foot! Imagine how disappointed I was since the listing stated "Bernina" in bold CAPS as the first word. As if that wasn't enough to irritate me, dear Hubby was like "Just try it, it may fit." I tried, for like ten minutes. All the while muttering to myself how it didn't say Bernina on the crappy little box and that everyone knows Berninas have special attachments and that I may never order from ebay again. Dear Hubby had heard about enough and was convinced I was doing it wrong. "It just needs adjusted." he said. So I told him to have at it. He fiddled with it for several minutes and was like "It's not wanting to go on." No sh*t. Since he was not about to be held liable for my elevating level of frustration, he got it on and threaded the thing. I got the "See there." comment and was told to try it out. He had left the room by the time the third stitch broke the needle into shards, one of which hit me in the neck! That sent me over the edge; full blown hissy fit. He emailed the seller right then and she replied the next morning to send it back. In the meantime, I've been mending sewing since the two men in my life can't seem to keep a crotch seam intact.

By the way, dear Hubby promised me a genuine Bernina ruffler foot from the dealer store in Birmingham. A whole lot of drama just to make some flippin tea towels. 

Cover Your Post-it Notes

There's a southern saying about skinning a cat more than one way. I don't know the phrase exactly because it's rather creepy. I've been in a sticky note phase of crafting so I thought I'd share another way to make your Post-its gift worthy.

Here's the down low on how to make one. Go here for the old Sunflowers and Dragonflies blog to get measurements and instructions. [Click here to visit the new Sunflowers and Dragonflies blog.] I used plain white card stock as a base and layered graphics from pcCrafter in the size needed using a very basic software. Since my printer is inkjet, I sprayed the printed paper with a light sealer. 

A little tip if you design your own cover; set up your format with the front cover art on the bottom. Then flip/rotate the upper portion because it will become the back after folding, so it needs to be upside down when printing. I promise this takes very little brain power, you just have to think the folds through. Using a non-directional pattern on the back and fold will make your life easier on this project. Or, go at it with scrapbook paper and eliminate the printer altogether.  

Here's a view of the fold to see how a non-directional pattern can be your friend.

For the inside, I used coordinating scrapbook paper. Here's a peek...

I'm sharing how the crazy sometimes crosses over into my crafting. First, the Post-its are still wrapped just like you get them in the store. Did you notice? I didn't want to give something that looked up-cycled even though using the new recycled Post-its. Neurotics, carefully tear the Post-its down the perforated seam on the back and slide your scissors in to cut out the back portion of the wrap so you can glue it down. I used small embroidery type scissors; you know the kind that should only be used on fabric. I'm bad about that. Second, the inside fold was too plain for me so I added some purple raffia ribbon unrolled and glued down. You can't see it in the photo above because I thought I was done when I took the photos. But that dern fold was bugging me, so I had to go back and fix it. Third, if you look very very carefully there is glitter. You can click on the photos linked to my Flickr to see the original size. I used this glitter glue to make the butterfly wings sparkle.

And I used my corner punch to round the edges because I'm crazy about rounded edges. 

Things I would do differently next time. Layer the graphics on the front by printing them on separate paper, using pop dots for dimension. Add the ribbon to the inside before taking photos. Try my very best to be less neurotic. Like that's going to happen...

Crappy, and we're not talking about the fish...

I've been feeling crappy for a over a week. I get really snippy and go on in complete denial that bed bound sickness is imminent, in the beginning. It is imminent. I act like everything is fine. I hate that word by the way. Male readers, when a woman female says fine, it means not fine. Trust me. So, I say I'm just tired. I'm always tired. Then after a sleepless night/day/night of tossing/turning and having my mind run faster than our old hp computer's RAM, I'm "officially" sick. This is my issue...I'm always sick. Sometimes it's just worse. This is the sucky nature of chronic disease Ala Lupus.

I was especially crappy the other night and had my laptop out looking at my Flickr favorites. Dear Hubby came home from work to find me curled up in the bed with the cats in the dark watching a slide show; crying. Oh yeah. Doesn't every man dream of coming home to this after a long day at work. Lucky him. The cats bailed since their shift was over and relief had finally come. He was like, "What are you doing?" I was like, "Trying..." sniffle, sob, "to cheer myself up." He was like "Why?" What the h*ll kinda question is that? Male readers, if you ever are attempting to comfort a crying woman female, never ask why. That's a stupid question. Your job is to comfort, not ascertain the why of the situation. Little tip there for ya.

At some point that I feel up to it and the mood strikes, I'll share some geeky information about Flickr and how incredibly fabulous it is. And how non Creative Commons people are making my life difficult. Open source people, open source. I still ♥ Flickr anyway. For now, here's what I was in the dark watching....

Posting about Post-its

Perhaps I should begin this post with a shout out to Post-it for their new Recycled Notes in bright hues. I'm a tree hugger from way back but I love me some color.

So, I saw these Post-it pads on Angie's blog and loved them. She has a great video tutorial which I've embedded right here for y'all. (I do recommend scouring her blog when you have some time. She has a lot of nifty craft tutorials.)

I'd like to point out two things. First, the scrapbook paper I used was card stock weight and had a linen texture. You probably don't care how the paper feels, but these are the things that delineate what supplies are used in a particular project and those that age on my shelf/pile for another day. Second, I decoupaged the itty bitty metallic clip. These are the details I worry about.

Mothers Day Card

So I've been m.i.a. again. It's the end of the school year and I am officially exhausted. I'd bore you with the laundry list of event details, but I'm too tired. Lucky you. I would much rather chat about these _{{EDIT: graphics only available to pcHugClug members for now}} super cute graphics. I mean really...how adorable are they? Hold your breath though, neither my dear Mom or dear Mom-in-Law saw me on Mother's Day. I was feeling putrid and stayed in bed all day. My own dear Mom's gift has yet to be delivered and dear Mom-in-Law's gift was delivered one week late. I am a terrible daughter/daughter-in-law. This is the point I could go into an essay on the guilt I feel for all the times I've let everyone down for one reason or another. However, the aforementioned tiredness allows that to be procrastinated to another day. Here's the scoop on the card. This is what I started with.

Generic pack of cards from my local stationer Wal-Mart. They looked sad. I originally purchased them because our Band Boosters needed some. Clearly our stationer has a limited selection. I have a handy dandy template kit that uses scrapbook supplies to make your own cards. I haven't a clue where I've squirreled it away. So, the sad little card was a base. I layered several of these graphics using Photoshop Elements (Note/Hint: I currently use PSE6 but desperately want the new version 7) printing the final artwork on 4 x 6 photo paper. I'm a fan of printing on photo paper. It makes any graphic look quite fancy because of the texture and color depth. The photo was trimmed to fit the sad card and corners rounded. I glued it down twice. The first time the image lifted on the edges and peeled right off like a post-it note. Often I've referenced my glue collection. I'm a cheap crafter; farm-girl budget you know. But there are a few things that just can't be skimped on. Cheesy glue is one of them. Once the image was stuck, I used my trusty corner rounder punch on the now less than sad card edges. Can I just say how much I heart the corner rounder punch? Maybe it's the OCD, but I detest sharp corners. I'd punch the corners of everything I print and maybe even notebook paper if I had the time. A trick I use when printing self designed stationary on standard printer paper. It fancies almost any paper product instantly. I've even corner punched high priced (honestly, over priced) Hallmark cards. Anyhow, back to the topic at hand. The card was much improved, but that sad thin envelope was bothering me. Left over scrapbook paper did the trick. Instructions for lining an envelope are below. Click here to select the original size for download or printing the instructions from my Flickr account. I'd love to hear if any of my artsy readers pimp out their sad envelopes. Happy crafting!

Quick Treat Bags

Here's a four ingredient recipe for Quick Treat Bags, suitable for any occasion.

1. Candy Bags. These are found in the baking isle of the craft department or store. I prefer these for two reasons. First, you get more bags for the money. Second, they are small and don't hold a ton of candy which can get expensive. Yes, I'm cheap.
2. Clear Backed Stickers. Simply affix to bag for decoration. Available anywhere that sells scrapbook supplies.
3. Candy. Here are some tips learned from experience. Don't include chocolate or anything that melts. Your cute baggie will transform into something reminiscent of a poop/vomit bag. Try to fill with individually wrapped candies. Since the ribbon is your only bag seal, non wrapped candies will go stale quickly and invite guests (like ants) if the bag is left out or tucked away in a desk drawer at work. As cute as seasonal items are, once the holiday is over, pretty much everyone is done with it. The recipient can dump the candies into their purse or desk drawer and enjoy the treats without thinking, "Man, how long ago was {insert holiday of your choice here}? Should I be eating these?" _{Footnote: The upper right bag contains sugar-free Life Savers. The others, classic Life Savers.}
4. Fabulous Ribbon! This is really what makes the gift. A twist tie would look cheap. A rubber band would look cheap. But a fabulous ribbon says ADORABLE; which cleverly conceals cheap every time!

Shabby Gift Tent

Dear Son was invited to a birthday party on short notice; I was having one of those weeks where adding another project would have done me in. We ran to Bath & Body Works,  finding a Liplicious in a yummy flavor dear Son selected (who would have thunk it?) Fancying up simple gifts is my forte'. I had recently purchased a digital art package from one of my favorite sources, The Shabby Shoppe, to use for Valentines. Although [the confection collection:::YOURS TRULY] was designed for sweet treats, it's perfect for wrapping a small gift. I layered graphics on one of the candy tents personalizing it using the PC Love Letter font from pcCrafter. Then I printed, cut out, folded, taped the lip gloss inside, and glued on a salmon button which was handy. Adorable, economical, quick, and handmade - why that's practically my craft mantra. The end result was a shabby gift tent than any girl would love to receive!

Bible Bookmark

This bookmark was made for dear Dad, and again I splurged for a real silver charm. It should be a lovely addition to his well read bible. I'm no photographer, but played with the macro settings to get the edge details. As tiny as the charm is, the intricate details are amazing.

Angel Bookmark

I promise, the bookmark phase is nearly over. This one was made for dear Mom. The charm is a silver (real silver) guardian angel. I wish so badly I could give a real guardian angel to her. She's been burdened with a series of health issues for the past while. Although on the mend, repeated health issues have a way of wearing down your spirit. This I speak of from experience. My dear craftin' Cousin would corroborate I'm sure. She's had a stay in the hospital, or as we call it "lock up". We've planned a mini-vacay lounging on sofas with blankets and lots of movies as part of her recovery. This time the amateur cosmetologists won't be allowed near our hair or toenails. Here's a glimpse of our last get together. It's real love to allow two preteens creative freedom when making us thirty-somethings over. Our Mom's, their dear Grandmothers, think we're crazy. Usually post makeover, we look the part!

Quilt Bookmark

Another day, another bookmark to share. This one was made for dear Aunt Gayle. She's such a quilter that she named the pattern on the pewter charm right away. I have three separate quilt projects underway. To date they aren't even fully pieced, which is very sad considering they are big blocks. I just can't hang with a craft project that long. At some point I must purge my stash of quilt patterns, books, paraphernalia, etc. and come to terms that I'm no quilter. I'm not ready quite yet to give up the dream.