advent.

i've been wanting to update our advent calendar for some time now, so this year i decided the time had come. i quickly came to realize why i hadn't attempted this sooner...it ended up being quite time consuming! but, i'm so glad i did it because i love how it turned out! the above picture is the kit i bought from craft warehouse. you literally have to build the entire thing...the base, the boxes, everything!

here is the finished product...

a little closer look at the different boxes...and yes, with me being me, each box is different. Ü

another close-up. the boys loved getting a little treat each day. thanks for stopping by...hope your holidays were filled with much happiness & joy!

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card holder box with cards.

i found the instructions for this box here. the two on either side are the cards which i made 2 of each. the center is the front of the box.

here are the cards in the box with some envelopes. Ü

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sneak peek.

details coming soon :)

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box card.

thanks to this stamper's video tutorial...here is my version of the box card. it was actually a lot easier than i thought! Ü

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tinting jars.

i saw this idea & "recipe" for tinting jars on...you guessed it...pinterest! love that site so much it is sickening! anyway, first just make sure your jar(s) of choice are all clean. then, mix up a batch of tint. i used 1 tspn. mod podge, 1 1/2 tspn. water, and 3 drops of food coloring. i used 2 drops of blue & 1 green.

then, just paint your jar(s) with a paint brush and set them to dry. they'll start to have a bunch of streaks on them, but don't worry...once it dries completely, i had no streaks at all. i just used 1 coat of tint. please note that these jars are not waterproof. you'd have to seal them if you plan on getting them wet but i'm not sure what you'd use &/or if it would change the look of the tint.

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"thanks" jars decor.

i recently made these adorable little jars for some thanksgiving decor. i just used recycled frappuccinno bottles and tinted them (tutorial coming tomorrow).

i placed them on my console table on top of some burlap and added some wheat stalks that i found at fred meyer in their floral dept.

a closer look at each bottle...

i embossed each of the letters with espresso embossing powder to make them "pop" a little more than if just using ink.

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thanks is for giving card.

here is a card perfect for this time of year. love the texture the burlap brings to the card!

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pumpkin cupcakes.

uh...delicious.

first time i've made these, & i'll definitely make them again. sooo good!

lost control with the frosting on the cupcake in the lower right corner, but it still tasted delish with my pumpkin spice latte Ü

recipe found here. enjoy!!

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halloween projects...

first, the witch's broom: i used a 4" x 11" piece of Howlstooth designer series paper from stampin' up!, sponged the edges with espresso ink, then just cut slits along both edges, careful not to cut through the middle portion of the paper. after that, apply sticky strip along the back of the middle portion of the paper.

for the broom stick, i used a piece of 7' x 11" espresso card stock. i ran it through my crimper and distressed it with white craft ink. if i would have had the woodgrain embossing folder, i would have used that instead of the crimper because that would have looked much better, in my opinion, but oh, well. Ü

here is a close-up of the tag i attached. i also stamped directly onto the cotton ribbon that is around the middle.

next, is the "trick or treat" card. super simple! just used some scraps of designer paper and the images were stamped with versamark ink and embossed with clear embossing powder.

and finally, a cute little treat jar. this was my first attempt at making rosettes. they're surprisingly simple and so fun!! you can find several videos on youtube or other tutorials all over the web.

here is a closer look at the one on top of the jar...

        here is the rosette tag.            

...and one final look at all 3 finished projects.

hope you enjoy them & thanks for stopping by!! Ü

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Happy Halloween.

all the details for these projects are coming tomorrow so be sure to check back!!

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2 versions of the same card.

i made these 2 cards...the birthday one uses some rhinestone bling...

...& the thank you, i used mini pearls. i love the simplicity & the colors of this card. so easy to duplicate quickly!

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(another) happy birthday card.

here is card #2 that i've made in the last few weeks. my boys were on a vacation with my awesome aunt & uncle so i had a (much needed) full day to play in my office! it seems like forever since i've been able to do that!

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happy b-day.

remember a few weeks ago when i said to stay tuned for new cards coming? well, here is one of the cards i was working on. love that it looks more "boy-ish." for some reason cards for the male species are harder for me to figure out...Ü

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happy birthday to me.

my birthday is today! here is the card my friend tami sent to me. i love it...so cute!! Ü

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photo a day july.

here is the list for july...

here are my instagram pics. due to vacation, i missed days 1-7, in case you were wondering. Ü

also, can i just say how uncomfortable i was with day 24? i totally felt like a stalker!

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photo a day june.

i know, i know, i'm super behind on posting my photo a day pics! this summer has been super busy! this was the list...

...here are my instagram pictures taken with my droid phone. i missed the last day of the month. (we were on vacation with no cell service, which was awesome!) Ü

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stay tuned...

card making today means new things coming to the blog soon! :)

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photo a day may.

so i found this awesome blog here. and she puts together a photo a day for each month. then you can use your camera, phone, etc. to take a photo each day. i'm using my phone along with the instagram app to share my photos. so far, i absolutely love this! it's like "a month in the life of..." type of project. as you can see i did miss a few days but that's ok because 1. i didn't get my new smart phone until may 2nd & then i had to learn how to use it (lol!) 2. this is my project & 3. i'm striving to do better this month. Ü

here is the list for june if you'd like to join the fun! and, check out the blog...super fun stuff!

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wedding invitations.

my friend is getting married this summer & i had the pleasure of making her invitations. out of all the invitations i've made before, i think these are my faves. i love the "book," i love the colors, i love the

embossing, love, love, love Ü

on the first "page" of the invitation, i embossed the image with clear embossing powder on the vanilla card stock & i printed the invitation in charcoal gray ink. i think it looks so pretty!

the next "page" is a picture of the cute little couple...

and the last "page" is actually a pocket that holds the response card & envelope as well as their registry information. the image is embossed with clear embossing powder again here.

& here is a closer look at the response card.

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