DIY Ruler Growth Chart

I'm back!!!! It's been a while since I've done a post on a project. But now that the holidays are over it's time to share all those Christmas presents that I spent all of December working on. My brother-in-law and his wife had a beautiful baby boy this past July. Since I don't get to spend a bunch of time with the new mom due to work schedules and such I really didn't know what to give her for Christmas. So I went stalking through her Pinterest boards and came across a pin of a giant ruler growth chart. It was so absolutely awesome and adorable! So I knew I had to make one for them.

The funny part was, I showed my husband and he asked "why would you want that?". Then I had to explain to him the purpose of a growth chart. I thought everyone knew what a growth chart was. Although my parents just marked it on a corner of the wall in the house. But this one is better because you can take it off the wall and move it with you without having to re-do the marks!

I started of by searching Pinterest and then Googled DIY Ruler Growth Chart and came across this tutorial at Wilder Do's. After getting lost on their blog oohing and ahhing over various projects I called it a day. It's such a huge relief to know what you're going to make. So I followed the tutorial and laid out the marks and numbers on a 1 x 8 that was 7 feet tall. I started off with the 6" mark and worked my way up.  

For the number templates I simply cut out some Times New Roman numbers that were 3" tall and cut out some stencils from card stock. I used the card stock stencils to trace the numbers onto the board. Then I used my wood burning tool with a chisel tip to outline everything. After much trial and error I found out that my soldering iron gets much hotter than the wood burning tool and that worked better and faster for filling in the lines and numbers. I know... I could have just painted on the lines and the numbers, but I really liked the color and texture that the wood burning added.

After everything was burned in I coated it with three coats of Minwax Polyshades in Pecan with a satin finish. I was running out of time so the fact that it was stain and polyurethane all in one step made it the go to product.  

Then it was just a matter of letting it cure completely and wrap it up. I even wrapped up the hanging hardware with it, so there is no excuse for not getting it hung up. 

Thank you April from Wilker Do's for showing me how to make this awesome project! I will definitely be pinning and building some of the other projects you've shared! 

Linking up to these parties. 

Creative Hop - What Makes My Creativity Tick

Good morning lovely readers! I was tagged by the wonderful Boni Montano to participate in this Creative Hop. The idea is to answer five questions so everyone can learn a little bit more about the person behind the blog pages and pretty pictures.

What am I working on now?

Way too many things! I think I have crafting ADD. There is no point in time where I have just one thing I am working on. I like to hop from one to another to another. Especially when I have to wait for things like paint or glue to dry...

So here is a little bit of what I have going on at the moment. I've been working on a couple of quilts. One is nearly finished. I just have to finish up the quilting stitches and add the binding. The other the top is done and I just have to baste, quilt, and bind it. But here is a pic of the blocks. This is going to be a baby quilt for my new little nephew for his first Christmas!

I recently started a knitting class and a landscape painting class on Craftsy. The Knit Lab class makes it really easy to learn to knit and get the hang of the stitches. The Imagined Landscapes class was so much fun! I never knew I could paint anything even remotely close to this! (These are not sponsored links, I just love to share awesome things). 

The class really was amazing! I have come to the conclusion that you are not an artist because you are naturally born knowing how to paint beautiful things, but rather that you have the courage to keep going and keep adding and changing things until you end up with something beautiful. How else could you turn this , which looks like a child's finger painting, into the beautiful picture above? Yep, that is where it started.  

I am also working on updating my craft room and getting things better organized. So I can try to prevent having piles like this one... However, you can spot the two quilts I'm working on.  I hope to have a whole post series on this in the new year.

How does my work differ than others in my genre?

This is a tough one to answer... My work differs because I like to do such a large variety of crafting things. I have been crafting ever since I was very little and haven't stopped. I truly enjoy trying new things and I like to share how I make things so others can learn too. Maybe one of my tutorials or experiences will help someone else learn the easy way to do something. Or that way the instructions and steps are already there for someone who wants to follow along. Its also totally and completely me and my style. There is no way to replicate that.

Why do I create what I do?

I just love to make things! I love learning new crafts and giving my family handmade gifts. I hope they never get tired of getting them. Otherwise I wouldn't know what to do with all my crafted goodies. It is always fun to try using a different technique or medium and seeing your results. Sometimes the results aren't that great and it was a learning experience. Other times the results are fabulous and you are really proud of the piece.

It's also my escape from a busy hard day at work where I can turn up some tunes and just relax while having fun and making something pretty.

Besides... I have to justify having this huge space that is jam packed with all sorts of supplies and tools. This is a slightly outdated picture. I will have to do an update post when I get things finished a bit more.





How does my creative process work?

I usually see something either on someone else's blog, or on Pinterest, or even just out in nature that inspires me. Like a specific project, or a color combo, or a pattern. Anything can strike up inspiration. So I try to make sure that when I see these things I write them down either in my phone's note pad or in an actual note book that I keep in my purse. Sometimes my sister or mom gives me suggestions and it starts from there. Sometimes someone in my family will make a specific request.

Sometimes I just decide that I want to work on something. If I actually take the time to sit and really think about coming up with new projects that are entirely my own I find I can come up with lots of ideas. Some don't end up coming to fruition, but others are a complete masterpiece that I'm very proud of. Preferably that thinking time involves sitting outside or near a window with a glass of wine. I really do draw a lot of inspiration from nature. I love getting to sit outside and enjoy the sunshine, or curling up under a blanket near the window and looking out at the snow if it's too cold to sit outside.

Once I have the inspiration I take the time to think up the details and make notes. You will find all sorts of scraps of paper all over my craft room with notes and project ideas. I like to think about size, what colors will I use, what patterns should I use or look for, what supplies can I use that I already have. Basically I try to come up with a plan before I head down to the craft room so I have a clear idea of the direction I want to take. That makes it easier to have some of the thinking done ahead of time so I can work more on the actual putting together of the project.  

Most projects I also try to take photos and write down measurements along the way so I can share the how to with you! I'm also trying to think up more fun ways to photograph my projects other than just in front of a white board.

Tag… you’re it!

I'm not sure if I can tag multiple people or not, but I'm going to anyway. I would like to tag Jacque Craig at Stamp With Jacque. She is the brains behind Craft Project Central  and I think it would be fun to see what makes her creativity tick.

I would also like to tag my sweet sister Kelly at Kelly's Pages.

Here is the challenge! You have just one week to answer the same questions above so your readers can get to know a little bit more about what goes on behind the scenes.

It's been a while...

You may or may not have noticed that I took a bit of a bloggy break for the last three weeks or so. Other than posting the Link Party each week of course. No biggie if you didn't notice. I'm just one little crafty blog in a world wide web of so many countless crafty blogs.

The thing is I'm struggling with the reason behind this little spot of the interweb. What's the point of it all? Why bother going through all the work taking a good photo and editing it and adding all the supplies and instructions...

I started it to share with others what I'm making in my craft room and maybe to inspire a few people to try some different things. But it has morphed into something that takes a lot of time and work. I mean seriously? Making projects just to have a blog post? Knocking on the screen wondering if anyone really is reading any of this out there...Hello???

Recently a few things have happened. I got a promotion at my day job. Yay! But that also means I'm working a lot harder than I was before which for the last few months has resulted in me being completely exhausted by the time I come home and fix dinner.

I started going to school again and I am taking 7 credit hours of online college courses. You see, I got the job I have by working for the same company for nearly 10 years and learning as I went along gaining experience. So I'm getting a degree in the field I already work in just in case I should need to find another job in the future. Not that I really plan on going anywhere. (You can't beat good pay and a 7 minute commute). But I want to make sure I have the security that I could find similar work with the I experience I already have.

So with everything going on the blog and projects kind of fell to the back burner. Things are starting to go easier now and slow down a bit. Just in time for the holiday craziness.

I do like blogging, if for no other reason than to catalog the things I've made so I can look back on them later.

Basically the short of it is I am going to be posting less frequently. At least for a while until I get back in the groove of things. I want to concentrate on actually getting to make things in the spare snatches of time I can find instead of just writing about them.

Are you still there! High fives to you if you actually made it to the end of my little rant. Okay, I'm done venting. Now I'm off to start a load of laundry and cook dinner. 

Purse Gift Bag and Top Dog Dies Giveaway!

Here is the final Top Dog Dies post using the Purse Card Die Set. This is my favorite project of them all! 

You can find a complete tutorial for this project on the Top Dog Dies Blog.

I really did have a lot of fun playing with these dies. So just to recap, here are all the projects that I made. 

Just Because Purse Card

Purse Gift Card Holder

Love This Card

A Bag from a Purse?

Purse Gift Bag

To enter for a chance to win free dies just click HERE. You can enter anytime between now and August 31st. One winner will be selected on September 5th to win $50 in exclusive wafer-thin dies!

A Bag From a Purse?

Don't want a purse shape? Well you can use the Purse Card Die set from Top Dog Dies to create a fun little bag too! How you ask? Well I'm about to show you!

• Stamps: Cycle Celebration
• Card Stock: Crushed Curry, Bermuda Bay, Whisper White, Smoky Slate
• DSP: Moonlight
• Ink: Bermuda Bay
• Accessories: Purse Card Die, Silver Glimmer Paper, Stampin' Dimensionals, Brights Candy Dots, Multipurpose Liquid Adhesive, Decorative Label Punch

To make this adorable little bag start off by cutting a piece of Crushed Curry card stock 4-1/4" x 11" and run it through the Big Shot on the Purse Card Die. Now line up the score line on your card with the a grove on your scoring tool. I have taken a fine point permanent marker and colored in the 6" score line just for this kind of project where I need to line up two points. Now score 3/4" from the center on both sides of the score line. 

Now rotate your card 90 degrees and line up the edge of the handle with the grove and add a score line there. It's difficult to see in the picture so I've indicated the score lines with white lines. Now take your Paper Snips and cut where you see the red lines. Use a craft knife and a ruler to cut off the flap inside the handle. Fold on all the score lines except the very middle one!

Next cut two pieces of Bermuda Bay card stock 1-1/2" x 2-3/4". Apply liquid glue on the angled flaps. Glue the side pieces onto the side flaps. 

Then use liquid glue to glue the bottom flap up onto the sides. Yay! Now you have a bag!

Now it's time to decorate the bag. Grab a couple scraps of Bermuda Bay card stock and run them through the Big Shot on the Purse Card Die to cut out a couple of the handles that do not have the flap. Trim off any card stock extending past the bottom of the handles. Now glue the Bermuda Bay handles onto the bag. Cut a piece of Silver Glimmer Paper 1/8" wide and glue it onto the bottom of the handles. Trim off the Glimmer Paper where it extends past the edge of the handle. Repeat until all your handles have a glimmery band. 

Next cut a piece of Moonlight DSP 2-3/8" x 2-1/2" and cut a piece of Smoky Slate card stock 2-1/2" x 2-5/8". Glue the two pieces together then stick it onto the front of the bag with a few Stampin' Dimensionals. Stamp the greeting from Cycle Celebration onto a scrap of Whisper White card stock in Bermuda Bay ink. Punch out the greeting with the Decorative Label Punch. Add a couple Brights Candy Dots onto the label then stick it on the front of the bag with a Stampin' Dimensional. 

Now your bag is done! I really love the decorative detail on the sides that the purse die creates!

Take a look at some of the other projects I made using this wonderful die set!

Just Because Purse Card

Purse Gift Card Holder

Love This Card

A Bag from a Purse?

Purse Gift Bag

Love This Card

Even if you don't want to make a purse card the Purse Card Finishers set from Top Dog Dies can be used to create a regular card! I absolutely love the butterfly and lace trim die!

• Stamps: Hardwood
• Card Stock: Pool Party, Blackberry Bliss, Crisp Cantaloupe, Whisper White, Old Olive
• Ink: Coastal Cabana
• Markers: Crisp Cantaloupe, Crumb Cake, Soft Suede, Old Olive Blendabilities
• Accessories: Purse Card Finishers Dies, Dazzling Diamonds Glimmer Paper, Rhinestones, Stampin' Dimensionals 2-Way Glue Pen

For this card I started off by cutting a piece of Pool Party card stock 5-1/2" x 8-1/2" and scored it at 4-1/4". I stamped the Hardwood background image on the card front in Coastal Cabana ink. The retired DSP was cut at 1-1/2" x 4-1/4" and glued on. Then I cut some scraps of Blackberry Bliss card stock with the lace trim die and glued them on with 2-Way Glue Pen. Then the card had to have some glimmer so I cut some Dazzling Diamonds Glimmer Paper 1/4" x 4-1/4" and glued it on either side of the DSP.

Some scraps of Crisp Cantaloupe and Whisper White card stock were die cut for the butterfly then some rhinestones were added to the center and it was glued onto the card front with a Glue Dot.

For the greeting I die cut the word "love" from Blackberry Bliss card stock and glued it into the lower right hand corner with some 2-Way Glue Pen. The flower pieces were die cut from Old Olive and Crisp Cantaloupe card stock. I added some shading and detail with the markers and glued the flower onto the card with 2-Way Glue Pen and Stampin' Dimensionals.

Finally I added three little rhinestones to the left of the greeting just for some more sparkle! So pretty, sparkly and fun! 

Take a look at some of the other projects I made using this wonderful die set!

Just Because Purse Card

Purse Gift Card Holder

Love This Card

A Bag from a Purse?

Purse Gift Bag

Purse Gift Card Holder Tutorial

After using the Purse Card Die from Top Dog Dies to make a regular card I started trying to find other ways that this die could be used to create other useful things. Thinking outside the box if you will... So the next natural thing that came to mind was a gift card holder. So here it is!

• Stamps: Label Love
• Card Stock: Blackberry Bliss, Bermuda Bay, Crushed Curry, Whisper White
• DSP: Moonlight
• Ink: Bermuda Bay
• Accessories: Purse Card Die, Purse Card Finishers Die, Artisan Label Punch, Rhinestones, Whisper White Baker's Twine, Sticky Strip, Glue Dots

So I started off by cutting the Blackberry Bliss card stock 4-1/4" x 11" and running it through the Big Shot on the Purse Card Die. I cut some Moonlight DSP for both the front and the inside. I die cut the lace border from Bermuda Bay card stock and glued it on with some 2-Way Glue Pen. 

I wanted to add a bright band of color across the middle so I cut a piece of Crushed Curry card stock 1/2" x 4-1/4". I glued it on then used Paper Snips to trim the edges even with the sides of the card. I stamped the greeting from Label Love onto a scrap of Whisper White card stock in Bermuda Bay ink and punched it out with the Artisan Label Punch. I used the Artisan Label Punch again on a scrap of Blackberry Bliss card stock. Paper Snips were used to cut the Blackberry Bliss label in half and the two halves were glued behind the stamped label to create a frame. This was stuck onto the front of the card with a Stampin' Dimensional and a couple rhinestones were added to give it some sparkle. 

For the flap I ran a scrap of Bermuda Bay card stock through the Big Shot on the Purse Card Die just to cut out the handle with the flap. Then I used a ruler and craft knife to cut just the flap off. The flap was glued onto the flap of my purse card and trimmed even with the edge. I took some Whisper White Baker's Twine, threaded it through a retired button, tied a bow, then stuck the button onto the card with a Glue Dot.

I wanted to add a butterfly onto the handle so I cut the large butterfly from Bermuda Bay card stock and the small butterfly from Whisper White card stock. I folded the butterflies up on the score lines and glued them together with 2-Way Glue Pen. I added some rhinestones into the center of the butterfly then glued the layered butterfly onto the handle of the card with a glue stick.

Now onto the inside! I glued down the DSP just like I did for the front. For the pocket I took a scrap of Crushed Curry card stock and ran it through the Big Shot so it was cutting out the bottom section of one of the purse sides.

Next I used a ruler and craft knife to cut on the score line. Then I cut again 1-1/2" away from the score line.

Add Sticky Strip in the locations shown below.

Remove the Sticky Strip liner and stick this piece inside the card to create the pocket. Cut a scrap of Bermuda Bay card stock with the lace trim die and glue the trim onto the card pocket.

Now you're done and have an adorable gift card holder!

Take a look at some of the other projects I made using this wonderful die set!

Just Because Purse Card

Purse Gift Card Holder

Love This Card

A Bag from a Purse?

Purse Gift Bag

Just Because Purse Card

 

Today I would like to share with you a great place where you can get a variety of dies that are easy and fun to use. Now don't get me wrong, I absolutely love my Stampin' Up! dies, but sometimes you want more variety than what they offer. So when I need to find some other dies for my project I head on over to Top Dog Dies.

It is a new online store that offers their own brand of wafer-thin and steel-rule dies as well as many other brands that you already know and trust. Some of the other brands that you can find on the Top Dog Dies site are; Little B, Lawn Fawn, Taylored Expressions, Savvy Stamps, and Cheery Lynn Designs. They are also a leading U.S. retailer for Tattered Lace which is a new line of dies with intricate designs that were designed by Stephanie Weightman.

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Top Dog Dies. I received two dies to use and play with so I could share some fabulous projects with you! The two die sets they sent me are the Purse Card Finishers Set. This includes the Purse Card die as well as the Purse Card Finishers wafer thin dies.

I had so much fun playing around with these dies that I actually created 5 projects to share with you today! So make sure you keep coming back every few hours to see a variety of uses for these two wonderful dies! Without further adieu here is my first project. A greeting card using the die exactly as it was intended. 

• Stamps: A Dozen Thoughts
• Card Stock: Bermuda Bay, Whisper White, Strawberry Slush
• Ink: Strawberry Slush
• Accessories: Champagne Glimmer Paper, Stampin' Sponge, Rhinestone Basic Jewels, Coastal Cabana Blendabilities, Stampin' Dimensionals, 2-Way Glue Pen, Melon Mambo 1/8" Taffeta Ribbon

This is exactly how the finishers die came in the package. My only complaint about this die is that all the pieces are held together and not separate. I didn't want to have to use them all together and it did not come with any instructions. So I just did what I wanted to. I used some side cutters to cut the die pieces apart and a file bit on my dremel to get rid of the sharp edges. 

I started off by cutting a piece of Bermuda Bay card stock 4-1/4" x 11". You have to either be very careful positioning this piece on the die or use 12" x 12" card stock cut at 4-1/2" x 12". But since I only keep 8-1/2" x 11" card stock on hand I was just careful with my placement and didn't have any issues. The cut and scored the purse shape for me. I used the purse outline die from the finishers set to cut some retired DSP and glued it onto the front of the card with some Glue Stick. I used a craft knife from the inside of the card to cut the slit through the DSP that holds the purse closed.

Next I took a scrap of Whisper White card stock that was 1/2" wide and stamped the greeting from A Dozen Thoughts in Strawberry Slush ink. I stuck this onto the bottom of the card front with some Stampin' Dimensionals and used Paper Snips to trim the edges even with the DSP. I colored a few rhinestones with the darkest Coastal Cabana Blendabilities marker and stuck two of them on either side of the greeting.

I wanted to add some sparkle to the card front so I cut some 1/4" wide strips of Champagne Glimmer Paper and glued it on with some 2-Way Glue Pen then used Paper Snips to trim the ends even with the edge of the DSP.

I honestly thought that the detailed pieces were going to be a pain to clean all the little pieces out of. Previous dies I used that had a lot of detail required poking at with a needle tool to clean out every single itty bitty shape. So imagine my surprise and delight when the die popped right off the card stock totally clean and the die cut shape was cut cleanly through! You could almost hear angels singing! In case you are wondering that is one of my very well loved Big Shot plates in the background. 

Anyway... back to the card. I glued the little flower onto the flap with some 2-Way Glue Pen and added another colored rhinestone into the center of the flower. I took a piece of Melon Mambo ribbon and tied a little bow on the front handle.

On the inside I cut some more DSP and another strip of Champagne Glimmer Paper and glued it on the inside.

That's it! A cute and simple card ready for sending! 

Take a look at some of the other projects I made using this wonderful die set!

Just Because Purse Card

Purse Gift Card Holder

Love This Card

A Bag from a Purse?

Purse Gift Bag