Halloween Hybrid Freebie and Good News!

First, the good news! MY COFFEE POT IS WORKING! Yeah. It took 2 days to dry out. Phew, I'm glad about that. I've been spending so much money lately I didn't want to have to buy a new one... all these magazine fundraiser sales, dental appointments, school pictures, the list goes on and on and it is making me broke!

Well, if you're broke like me, here's a little Halloween Hybrid Freebie. Just print and cut and you'll have a cute little pillow treat box that you can fill with some treats.



I have provided in a zip file format (at the end of this post) everything that you will need to make these pillow boxes. I have 8 1/2 x 11 pdfs & jpegs complete with a template that you can just print out and cut out with a craft knife. I have also provided both a blank inside and outside template. These files are jpeg, pdf and also svg file format for those of you that use SCAL. I also included a jpeg and a pdf of just the label part. You could add the label to a scrapbook page, or a jar filled with "twisted" goodies. That would look pretty cool on a shelf or mantel. I added some bling, stickles and a spider brad to my box, to jazz it up.



Here is the download. It is 16 meg. Hope that's not too big.

Halloween Twisted Treats Kit

If you've never made a pillow box, or need a refresher, I have posted step by step instructions on the Ally Scraps blog. Check that out if you get a chance once you download the kit.

That's it for me today. Time for a nap! Had a stinkin' migraine today.

Have a great day!!

Monday Morning Coffee Fiasco

This AM, my dh (dear husband) messed up my routine. YES, this whole mishap is HIS fault.

Our coffee pot is a Mr. Coffee and it's red and shiny and I LOVE IT!! Well, Mr. Hertel decided to take the basket out and set it beside the coffee pot.

Mrs. Hertel (that'd be me) proceeded to put water and coffee into her coffee pot. She put the freshly ground beans into a coffee filter and put the filter in the pot.

A few minutes later my son yells that the "tea" is leaking.

Oh no, the basket isn't in the pot. I try to rescue the coffee by pulling the filter up and out, but it EXPLODES.... coffee and grounds are now everywhere. UGH.

One hour later... coffee is cleaned up, grounds are cleaned up, I decide to rinse the pot out... the machine, as well as the pot... apparently, water got up under the clock thingy. It still worked so I just ran water through. I dumped out the water and was ready to make a fresh pot. By now it's 9:30 and way past coffee time. I get everything ready, grind the beans, add the water... and press the button.

NOTHING.

I KILLED IT.

BUMMER.

I had to pull out an old machine and make due... it made coffee that tasted like watered down cigarette butts.

Desperate... I drank the hot liquid.

I guess I need to buy a new one, unless it dries up and suddenly starts working.

Here's an ode to my coffee pot that I did a while back.


Hope your day started off better than mine!! Happy Monday!

Free Leaf Files and 2 Cards

Wow, thanks so much for the response on my leaf layout in my last post. A lot of people have asked how I did it. Really, it took less than an hour to do, once I had the leaves cut out.

I used several sheets of the Pink Paislee Amber Road papers and cut them to 6x12 so I could fit them into my Silhouette die cutting machine. I found a leaf pattern online and cut out about 75 leaves of 3 different sizes. (If you have leaf punches or Sizzix dies, you could use those instead.) What is nice about the double sided paper is after you have your leaf cut out, you can flip it over and have a different pattern on the other side. The papers I used were Pink Paislee Amber Road - Hayride, Pink Paislee Amber Road - Bonfire, Pink Paislee Amber Road - Apple Cider and what I had left of the Autumn Blossom, which I cut to 10x10 and used over the base of the Pink Paislee Amber Road Diecut Sheet - Fall Festival.

Once I had all my leaves cut out, I just dabbed each with a dot of glue and went to town, layering them until I thought they looked right. The next step, I went to my sewing machine and just stitched a random pattern on top of the leaves.

Since I used double sided paper, I had 8 different patterns to choose from. I tried to not make the same patterns touch. That was it.

This is the leaf pattern that I used. I found it online, redrew it and altered it a bit.


If you would like the jpeg image click here to download.

If you would like the SVG image to download, click here.

I had some extras leaves left over, so I made 2 cards. I think they look so elegant with that Pink Paislee Amber Road paper.





Thanks for stopping by. Have a great Sunday!!

Fabulous Fall!!

When last I left you it was still summer! Man, how did that happen? Is it FALL already?

Yep, it sure is... it was official yesterday the 22nd.

I have to admit, I love fall, it's my favorite time of year. Cooler temps, pretty colors, Halloween and Thanksgiving... Fort Ligonier Days parade and festival, apple festival, apple pies, going to the pumpkin patch, wearing sweatshirts... what's not to love???

To celebrate fall, I did this layout. I got the idea from another blog where she used circles and layered them... then I thought that leaves would be cool. So, I cut out a bunch of leaves using the gorgeous Pink Paislee Amber Road Collection. This paper is so pretty. I wanted to make something more than a layout that I'd stick in an album and not see, so I made this to be more like art than a layout. The tree trunk is from the PP Captivating Collection (if I'm not mistaken).

I have this layout propped up on a wall shelf in my foyer amongst fall leaves, pumpkins and gords. I think it turned out pretty, I'm happy with it.


Here's a couple of closeups:

I stitched randomly over the leaves to sort of quilt them:




Next, I used pop dots to raise my photos up. I wanted the "tree" to look full and fluffy, so I didn't want to squash the leaves down.


That's it - it was pretty easy to put together. I used about 75 leaves give or take a dozen. I cut out 3 different sizes. All the details are on the Ally Scraps blog today. If you haven't been there lately, there is a gorgeous layout by Kimber McGray, check it out if you get a chance.

Have a fabulous fall day!!

Nikki Sivils ~ Seriously Cool Paper!

Today Ally Scraps is featuring Nikki Sivils - scrapbook manufacturer and designer. I had the pleasure of meeting Nikki at CHA in July. She is such a sweet person and she put lots of work into the new lines.

Nikki provided us with tons of design inspiration using her new Halloween line with a really cute chipboard mini album. Plus — our message board members came up with 10 questions for Nikki to answer, it’s all on the Ally Scraps blog - check it out.

Here’s my contribution, using the “seriously” cool Halloween paper, aptly title “Boo-tiful”:



I used 3 different papers, the base is Ghosts R Us, Trick or Treat Smell My Feet, and Light Up Our Life. All of the bats are from the Cut Up Cuties sheet.

Couple of close ups:





Check out the other Nikki Sivils projects by Ally Scraps team members AND the uber talented Jana Eubank, who will be featured on the Ally Scraps blog next month.

Hope you have a boo-tiful day!

“Diggin'” the Digi

Well, instead of working this morning, like I should be... I did this digi layout.



I used all Crystal Wilkerson papers. Speaking of Crystal, she has a super cute kit on her blog, and the proceeds go to Kate, the little 5 year old with cancer. It’s a HUGE digi kit and only $5. Check out Crystal’s blog for details.

Jennifer McGuire is also doing Cards for Kate. Check out Jennifer's blog for details.

That’s it for today. Have a blessed day.

Apron Strings...

I took a break from blogging for a few days... I have a lot of stuff going on. But, I did want to share two things. One is this ADORABLE apron that Joscie made for me!! AND, it has "peas" on it!! My mb name is Chrispea.... oh, and it has nothing to do with Two Peas in a Bucket... it has more to do with eating Chinese stir fry in 1997 with my friend Suzi at work and having peas roll all over the floor... I've had the nick name Chrispea ever since.

I have to say that Joscie is a fabulous seamstress! This apron is perfect! Check it out!! I love it!!



Ignore the scary hair... I'm getting a long over due cut on Friday! I was trying to fan out the apron, but apparently, Sophie wanted in the photo, too.

Look at the cute details on the pockets! Thanks so much Joscie!!



My second share is this "toadly" cute card. I made it real quick last week for the in-laws for Grandparents Day, which was yesterday.



The inside says "the best grandparents ever."

That's it for today. Check back, I'll have a Nikki Sivils Halloween layout on Thursday, plus she'll be featured at Ally Scraps, then some freebie hybrid stuff to share next week... and who knows what in between. ;)

Have a great day.

09.09.09

Check out that date above!

Hee hee.... it’s the little things that tickle me.

Last night I did this layout using some October Afternoon that I ordered from Ally Scraps. I couldn't decide what photos to use, then I came across these baby photos of Emma wearing yellow and red and thought that they would be perfect. This layout looks much better in person, it didn’t photograph very well.



A couple of close ups:


Again with the little DCWV birdie! ;)


And here is a yellow chipboard flower that I had in my stash. I have no idea where it came from. I used a vintage red button on it for the center and some marvelous bakers twine tied in a bow. Thanks Joscie for the bakers twine!!


If you’re interested in purchasing some of this cute OA paper, Ally Scraps has it in stock. Details to the specific papers with links to the store are on the Ally Scraps blog.

Thanks for stopping by. Have a scrappy day!

My One Little Word LO

I decided to do the One Little Word challenge... I missed the deadline. Actually, I was done, but it was too dark to take a photo. That's OK, I love how it turned out anyway.

The word was Beauty.



These photos, well the big one, is my absolute favorite. It reminds me of a forest that could be in Washington state.... I can pretend that the Collin's live here! hehe

A few close ups:


And, gotta have some whimsy, so I added the little birdie:


I used the DCWV Green stack. You get A LOT of paper when you get a stack. I'm glad I really liked this stack! And, like I've said before, I'm not a stack girl.

Have a great day, and happy Labor Day if you're celebrating.

Jillibean is in the House {Friday Favorite!}

I haven't picked a Friday Favorite for a long time, I'm still stuck on the Cosmo Cricket lines! hehe

Well, move over Cosmo, there's a new kid in town.... Jillibean Soup ~ AND Ally Scraps has it in stock. I am just so stinkin' excited!!

Did I mention that I talked to Jill of Jillibean at CHA? She is so sweet... and guess what? She's originally from Pennsylvania! Yep, just a bit north of Pittsburgh. We talked about the area “up North”.

Here are a few of my favorite Jillibean sheets (gotta love these names):

Olive Oil:

From the Kraft line:
Shittake:
Bit of Babble (this one is fun):
And some Christmas ones:
Pinch of Christmas Cheer:
Frozen Crabmeat:
Tomato Soup:

Aren't they fun? (as if I need more Christmas paper! or any paper at all for that matter!!)

Oh, and almost forgot, these journaling spots... if you get anything, you gotta get these, they go with any paper line:

Check out what Kimber did with the Jillibean papers. She made a house, Christmas Trees, a mailbox and layouts. Gorgeous stuff. It's all on the Ally Scraps blog....go check it out.

Have a scrappy day.

Kimber McGray and Big Changes

There are big changes going on over at Ally Scraps. My design team run is over. :( However, they have asked me to come back from time to time as a guest designer. They are doing away with the regular design team and will now be featuring 2 guest designers each month. As sad as I am that my run is over, I think it will really be a boost to their blog traffic AND - bonus - there are many FABULOUS designers lined up to show off their incredible talent and style. That's what I'm most excited about.

The first guest designer will be Kimber McGray!! How cool is that! She's been gracing us with her presence on the Ally Scraps forum. What a lovely lady. To find out all the happenings and for a fun giveaway, check out this Ally Scraps blog post. There is a lot in store!!

Lucky me... I also get to be a guest designer for September!! I did my first Ally Scraps guest dt layout last night on a full belly of the Olive Garden's never ending pasta bowl. YUM! That's where Em wanted to go for her birthday.

This layout is done with Cosmo Crickets Boyfriend line. When I saw this line, I knew I had to have it. Totally perfect for my son. He's been feeling a bit neglected with all the girly layouts lately! (OK, not really, he could care less! haha)



Couple of close ups:





You can find out the details and the supplies used by going to this post on the Ally Scraps blog.

I've really been drawn to more simple layouts lately. I've even been considering switching over to 8 1/2 x 11 size. I could do a lot more computer stuff that way, more hybrid things. My printer will print full bleed 8 1/2 x 11 photos, so I could throw in some digi layouts in the albums. Just tossing the idea around.

Have a great day, and don't forget to check out the Ally Scraps blog and enter the giveaway.