Workshop Wonders

December 14, 2015 ~ moanaj ~ Leave a comment

What do you get when you bring together some creative friends? A really unique workshop that was more fun than work that is for sure. Just look at these adorable projects they created!

We really did have a wonderful time sharing ideas, laughing, exchanging gifts and enjoying a lovely luncheon. I think they impressed themselves more than each other. And I loved crafting with them.

I already blogged mine on Saturday, but wanted to just show theirs. Two of our group couldn’t attend this one and they sure missed out. Next time I am sure they will share something wonderful. The ladies liked the activity so much that we decided to do it twice a year, once in December and once in the summer. I do love these gals!

Have a creative day!

Moana

White Christmas

December 11, 2015 ~ moanaj ~ Leave a comment

I had intended on making a matching bag for yesterday’s card, but I spent so much time on the card I had to call it and move on. Yet the large piece of velum was still waiting for me to finish it up. I made an effort or two.

My original plan didn’t work because I didn’t punch my holes along the bag top evenly and the ribbon stitching looked horrible. I cut off the top and tried again. There were improvements, but it is still uneven. It did look really nice with the card, but this is like the Where’s Waldo of crafting goofups to be honest. Can you find them all?

How about this obvious one. I was chatting to my daughter and not paying attention to my scoring and the measurements got off. You don’t waste foil velum though, so I continued on. That is when I goofed up the hole punching the first time, and a bit again on the second time. I didn’t bother putting treats inside because I don’t know if I can let this goof off the desk.

But, the set does look nice even if I made mistakes. I always tell my ladies that there are no mistakes, only opportunities. I don’t know about this one, maybe an opportunity to learn from my mistakes?

Have a creative day!

Moana

Joy, Plain and Simple

December 10, 2015 ~ moanaj ~ Leave a comment

As we have been showered with much needed rain here in Northern California, all I feel is joy and gratitude. We have a long way to go, but every little bit helps. I thought I would put my feelings into a card.

The Color Me Irresistible Specialty DSP is so much fun to work with. It was actually my inspiration. I knew it had a raindrop pattern and the project just went from there. I sponged with a dauber in silver encore ink all over in tiny swirls to give a cloudy gray look. Turned out fantastic I must say.

The flowers were punched with the pansy punch hovering over the large dots in the silver fancy foil designer velum, using the dots as the flower center. Nice idea, right? I used a bone folder to curl the petals of the velum and decided I needed more flowers. Basic gray became the flower background color and I punched another six of those. I distressed those with a large stylus to give them dimension and lift. Layered with dimensionals and glue dots, the side border came together.

A single stamp from the Your Presents set put the focus just right. It was framed with a smokey slate oval and both were sponged with more silver ink. The “i” was dotted with a metal rimmed pearl and a tiny ribbon was wrapped around. Add one more awesome card to the mix. A very rewarding project to make and enjoy.

Have a creative day!

Moana

Bitty Boxy Holiday Bags

December 9, 2015 ~ moanaj ~ 1 Comment

I managed to sneak yet another project out of that paper set. I still have enough for a couple of cards or a medium sized gift bag. Dang, what a lot of fun I have had using this paper. But these tiny little bags certainly do take the cake. Aren’t they just absolutely adorable?

My husband was given a large bag of candy as a thank you and he brought it home. And he opened it. So that is just dangerous. I knew I had to come up with several little bags to use them up. I am getting there.

Three different styles of box bags to get me going today. I am partial to a milk carton style to be honest, but the tiny pinch pouch is just so sweet. I used up three scraps of paper with a touch of glimmer paper to give them some bling. I don’t know what I love more, the cording or metallic thread, so I had to use them both.

Have a creative day!

Moana

Glittering Holidays

December 5, 2015 ~ moanaj ~ 1 Comment

After nearly a two week run of a clean and simple holiday gift set I have been more than ready to make something fabulous. That is exactly what I did, if that sounds a bit showy, well, just look at it! I have been planning it all week.

I really just had the flowers in mind and knew they should go on top of a box. So, to get my brain going, I picked some paper, ink and a stamp and got to work. The paper alone was just lovely. I stamped in a way to further elongate the tall box I had in mind. I really wanted it to be about the flowers. I did have to use my hot glue gun to keep these guys in order. After they were assembled I attached them to each other. The ribbon is threaded between them to hold them on top, so they are not attached otherwise and can be used again.

The box is just scored every two inches for the side measurements and the same for the top and bottom. Simple there for sure. I closed the bottom, but just folded the top in place. I am so going to use this for a wonderful gift, so I needed to get back inside. Not just for a blog post, nope.

My husband actually designed the card for me. We chatted while he drove to work and he did a great job with the stamp choices I must say. I stamped in silver ink and heat embossed in clear to give it an extra shine. So pretty. I added flowers with metal rimmed pearls in the centers and added a thin ribbon to finish it off. The ribbon also helped tie the gift box in as a set.

Have a creative day!

Moana

Happy Christmas

December 4, 2015 ~ moanaj ~ 1 Comment

And this would be my absolute favorite stamp from the set Oh, What Fun. The sentiments are fantastic, but this one is the true reason I bought the set. Just look at how lovely the card is with just the sentiment. Giggles and grins here.

I used a single layer of Merry Moments DSP for the card front, love those adorable ornaments. I stamped on a doily and centered it nicely and then finished it off with a gold cord ribbon wrapped all the way around. It is a tall fold card so my cording goes around the whole card front.

The reason I like that so much is that it allows a space for gift cards to be put inside and still allow for plenty of space to write a message. You have to have both for sure.

Have a creative day!

Moana

Oh What Fun

December 3, 2015 ~ moanaj ~ Leave a comment

Adorable, adorable, adorable. There is only one more to share in the set after this one, but I do love this one especially.

Some time ago I came up with a little way to attach a tag in my twine and thought it would work well with this card. Yes, it worked out great! A bit of a threading thingy, but definitely not tricky. Just looks neat. I did have to use a dimensional to keep it straight across the card though.

The triple banner punch came in handy to make the tag super easy. I am not one to have success with a square punch to make the banner end, so I think they made it for folks just like me. Thanks for the frustration reliever. Light sponging went into this one to finish it off. Simple and sweet and easy to make. Give it a try!

Have a creative day!

Moana

Wishing You a Sweet Season

November 26, 2015 ~ moanaj ~ Leave a comment

Happy Thanksgiving! It feel odd being surrounded in snow, but that is how it is working this year and it is rather pretty. Just not fun to drive in. I have gotten soft over the years and have lost most of that snow driving confidence.

Either way, I love this card. Talk about simple elegance. I thought it was kind of adorable that after I tied on the gold cording the strands fell into a large ‘s’ shape. Totally unintended, but it made me giggle.

I stamped and layered my sentiment on the heavy whisper white cardstock. I absolutely love that stuff. I wanted the edges to show a bit, but didn’t want the uneven look of sponging. I just put the edge directly onto the inkpad and got the most crisp even lines possible. Not too dark and it didn’t bleed into the paper. Thank you! It turned out wonderful!

Have a creative day!

Moana

From Santa

November 25, 2015 ~ moanaj ~ Leave a comment

Another wonderful day in Utah. I sure could get used to this vacation thing. My girls are fast asleep and looking adorable. I took a photo of them, but they would not be happy if I shared, so it stays with me. So cute. However, here is one of the adorable cards from my gift set.

This is definitely a clean and strong look with these wonderful stripes. They are the focus of the card for sure. So I kept the sentiment simple and stamped on a strip of velum. I backed it with another piece of paper from the same dsp set, only one set of paper used in this series, and wrapped them together with silver metallic thread. I just love that thread! The ends were punched with the triple banner punch and it finished it off quite nicely I must say.

Have a creative day!

Moana

Christmas Card Gift Set

November 24, 2015November 24, 2015 ~ moanaj ~ Leave a comment

I have the pleasure of visiting my children and family during this Thanksgiving holiday. Well, when I see my daughter I like to give her card sets. So, I thought I would share them with you.

It couldn’t just be simple for me though. I gave myself a challenge. I let myself have one set of dsp and access to coordinating cardstock and only two stamp sets. The challenge was to use these things, keep them simple but elegant, and make ten cards.

She is a young stamper and has loved having access to my supplies over the years. But being at college she doesn’t have all of that, but does pretty well of course. I thought I would make a set that she could see as doable for herself.

All of the cards are basic in shape, so they would fit in the card holder, with only one layer of dsp as the front. A series of single stamping, sometimes an accent, and tag punches. I am going to share her gift with you over the next week, so enjoy!

Have a creative day!

Moana

Wonderful Wreath Noel Set

November 21, 2015 ~ moanaj ~ Leave a comment

I certainly am in the mood for Christmas cards that is for sure. I am also working towards a goal though. The other day I blogged about a service project I was involved in. There turned out to be twenty four advent gifts to share. I thought it would be appropriate for the young women who had worked so hard on them should write a personal Christmas card to accompany the gift. So, I need several cards.

I am notorious for a matching gift bag though. I love putting a treat or two in a little bag and sharing it, so I call this a win. How simple is this card though? A simple layering of designer velum on a card front made just smaller than the base, love my 1/8″ narrow borders. It was accented with a single strip of ribbon that I didn’t even make a bow or knot or anything! Unheard of really.

The Wonderful Wreath framelit set has this lovely ‘Noel” die in it that was just perfect. Blackberry bliss is one of those colors that goes in almost any season, but Christmas is a good one most certainly. Glue dots were hidden behind the silver dots so the adhesive wouldn’t show. I used tombo on the ‘Noel” and it stayed put quite nicely. On to the next project!

Have a creative day!

Moana

Birthday Hamburger Box

November 20, 2015 ~ moanaj ~ Leave a comment

This die cut hasn’t been out in a while and I miss it! I have had so much fun making boxes of one kind or another and I just love the shape. I am pretty darn good at making a box or bag for a custom gift, but boxes like this just need a die cut.

One of my TA’s has a birthday today and I thought he would get a kick out of this guy. I think he is expecting something because he has mentioned his birthday several times in the previous weeks. Well, of course I had to deliver. I think I will pick up a wonderful pastry this morning to put inside. Yummy.

One sheet of island indigo went into the box. I was left with scrap enough to make the matching gift card and leave a couple of good sized scraps behind. That is great. I did sponge all of the edges really well before I glued it together. I also used tombo to put the edges together. Much easier with a little bit of wiggle room while it bonds and then it is there to stay. My kind of adhesive. I ran my bomb stamp down one direction of the die cut and then flipped it around and went the other. The pattern turned out random enough to look like patterned paper. I love making my own background paper for projects.

Have a creative day!

Moana

Schoolhouse Thank You Gift

November 18, 2015 ~ moanaj ~ Leave a comment

People do kind things all of the time and never ask for anything in return. I am fortunate enough to have people like that in my life. A school secretary is definitely a wonderful person. They do more than most people imagine.

As it happens, I have been helped along once again. So, I wanted to thank her, again. This lovely box was made to look as school like as possible. The Schoolhouse DSP had so many patterns to choose from, but I needed a vehicle of sorts, so I went with the bicycles. I used a whole sheet of 12 x 12 card stock in Hello Honey and a good portion of the dsp to decorate it. It is filled with large pretzel sticks that have been dipped in white chocolate. So yummy.

I got into the Chalk Talk framelits for this huge tag. I wanted to have a stamp and a spot for a tiny note. Just right, don’t you think? I forget about that set sometimes, but the tag options are really wonderful. I gave them a bit of a go over with my bone folder for some added texture and clipped it around one of my favorite ribbons. Gift done!

Have a creative day!

Moana

Everyday Chic Gift Bag

November 17, 2015 ~ moanaj ~ 1 Comment

Inspiration can come from the most unlikely places. I like to ask my youngest daughter what colors to work with so I don’t go to my favorites all of the time. Last night she said, “I don’t know.” Classic teen response. However, she was wearing an adorable white shirt with a gold studded neckline and a lovely long turquoise scarf. Inspiration complete.

This bag is hearty enough to hold plenty of weight for sure. I used a whole sheet of bermuda bay card stock for the bag and a good portion of a 12 x 12 sheet of Everyday Chic DSP. Before I assembled the bag I used a gold marker to color in random hearts for a little bit of accent. That was actually quite relaxing.

This ribbon is so wonderful. I knew I wanted a huge bow out front, so I threaded it a bit differently. I made sure to have the ends out front, both long enough to make this pretty bow. I just tied the ribbon together with bakers twine right at the front of the box which left two long strands of ribbon hanging down just ready to go. I did have to fuss the bow a bit to get it where I wanted it, and used a couple of glue dots to keep the bow pulled back a bit. Now I am ready to fill it up and give it away. So much fun!

Have a creative day!

Moana

Sparkly Seasons Ballerina

November 16, 2015 ~ moanaj ~ 2 Comments

Doesn’t everyone get enchanted with a pretty snow globe? This particular stamp set has a few options to make one happen, but this pretty ballerina might be my favorite. She is so delicate and lovely.

The base is stamped in sahara sand and the globe is in soft sky. That is also the card base and background color. I stamped her in sahara sand as well to give a hint of skin color without having to make it happen. I did water color her tutu and slippers though, couldn’t resist that. Her hair just had a touch of marker coloring.

I stamped the ‘sparkle’ inside the globe with versa mark ink and then covered it with dazzling diamonds. Loved it. But I needed more. So I used the 2-way glue pen to color a layer around the bottom of the globe and used more dazzling diamonds. I liked that a lot better. Of course I had to put a bunch of rhinestones around as well. Sparkle means sparkle. I even put a few inside.

Have a creative day!

Moana

Merry Moments Gift Card Set

November 15, 2015 ~ moanaj ~ Leave a comment

A card that looks like a gift, but is a card, or is it? I guess you could use this when you want to give a gift card and don’t just want to use the tiny envelope provided. Either way, I like the look of a present shown here.

It has a hint of masculine with the color choices, but with that much ribbon I hesitated to give it the full masculine stamp. You could probably get away with it though. And I have to be honest, this is the first time I have used this adorable Christmas tree punch. I guess I needed this awesome paper to inspire me to get it out. It fit nicely as the gift tag. So, I guess I will get to use it on other gifts this holiday season as well.

The DSP is layered on a piece of sahara sand cardstock with a narrow border showing. I wanted to have a little more strength as I tied my ribbon on. I do very much like a snug fit and probably winch it in a bit much sometimes. I got the look I wanted though. Why not give it a try your self?

Have a creative day!

Moana

Hearth & Home Thinlits Fun

November 14, 2015 ~ moanaj ~ 2 Comments

After a full day of workshop excitement, I finally have a few minutes to share the third project we did. This one just about did my ladies in, but they managed though most of it. I didn’t have to help too much really.

The base of this candle holder is made with old olive from one sheet of cardstock. Two card bases with 1/2″ cut off from one side and 1/2″ score on the other with a score in the middle. With two of these joined together, the box frame was made. Four panels of heavy whisper white cardstock were put through the Bigshot in the Brick Wall embossing folder that had been brayered with old olive ink. It gave the perfect mix of a soft brick wall that coordinates nicely with the base.

Cherry cobbler was used to create the window frames. The Hearth & Home Thinlits set is simple, but what a great look right? The window frame is a great focal point that I chose to back with velum to allow an opaque look in. I had provided fun battery operated candles that fit nicely inside. When they flickered it made it look like there was a very colorful set of Christmas lights going on inside. So pretty. A couple of buttons, some twine with a simple saying set the front panel apart from the others. Along with a few little shrubs made from mossy meadow paper punched with a scalloped circle punch. Really, a cute project all in all, even if it was a bit of work.

Hope your day was creative, mine sure was!

Moana

Oh What Fun Gift Box

November 13, 2015 ~ moanaj ~ Leave a comment

I actually started out with a different stamp set and a card in mind. But I just wasn’t feeling it, so I changed gears. I do really love what ended up in its place. I love a pretty holiday box like crazy!

I used a whole 12 x 12 from the Merry Moment DSP pack. Of course I migrated to the huge dots. I love all kinds of dots. And I couldn’t stay away from these beautiful ornament framelits. They are so wonderful. I think that these will be all over my Christmas gifts this year.

The Oh, What Fun stamp set is so full of fantastic sayings to make any holiday crafting one step better for sure. They will make gift giving and card making quick and easy without looking that way. Just yummy. Oh, and these little embellishments are so adorable! With twenty in a box they will find there way just about everywhere.

Have a creative day!

Moana

Embellished Ornaments

November 10, 2015 ~ moanaj ~ 2 Comments

This started out as a pretty darn good morning, but I am having quite the head cold, so my time management isn’t the best. I think I am going in kind a slow motion mode. The results still show nicely though, don’t you think?

New product, new product, new product! I so enjoy working with new product! Today was the first time for three different newbies to my collection. Two stamp sets and one framelit set. They are sure to get a lot of use this holiday, for sure.

My photos don’t let you know very well, the colors look off, but I am working with Sahara Sand and Not Quite Navy. The ornament on the left is backed with a deep navy blue and it looks so pretty. The smaller ornament is backed with Crumb Cake just to give a better contrast. The stamping is all done in Sahara Sand, as well as the sponging. I used the new gold cording to “hang” the ornaments and it worked great. I have been waiting to use this set, and it was so worth it. Be patient, you will be seeing it a lot.

Have a creative day!

Moana

Elegant Butterfly

November 2, 2015 ~ moanaj ~ 1 Comment

Butterflies, butterflies, and more butterflies. There are a bunch going on here, but one in particular started it all. You might not realize it, but I played quite a bit with this little butterfly. Lots of detailing and working it with a stylus.

Sometimes the attention to detail makes all the difference. My daughter made a good observation. She said it would be really pretty if it were glass or something so it could be a necklace charm. I have to agree, it would be lovely.

I do rather enjoy working with colors that are so not of the current holiday. Nothing more entertaining than making a spring card in late fall, or a fun Christmas project in the middle of July. Something different to expect.

Have a creative day!

Moana

studio824

Creativity for all seasons and reasons.

whisper white

Workshop Wonders

White Christmas

Joy, Plain and Simple

Bitty Boxy Holiday Bags

Glittering Holidays

Happy Christmas

Oh What Fun

Wishing You a Sweet Season

From Santa

Christmas Card Gift Set

Wonderful Wreath Noel Set

Birthday Hamburger Box

Schoolhouse Thank You Gift

Everyday Chic Gift Bag

Sparkly Seasons Ballerina

Merry Moments Gift Card Set

Hearth & Home Thinlits Fun

Oh What Fun Gift Box

Embellished Ornaments

Elegant Butterfly