1000th post

Cheers my friend, we've got something to celebrate...  this post marks my 1000th blog post, wow.  I wanted to do something a little special to celebrate this milestone (since I missed my blog's third birthday earlier this month).  So I've got a fun tutorial on one of my favorite go-to projects, wine labels. And... because I wanted to share in the love, I've got a little challenge and some goodies to give away to celebrate, so scroll down for all the details.

Burlap is seriously one of my favorite ribbons, so here are a few simple steps on how to recreate this look at home (and be that person people awe at when you head to your next dinner party).  Start with a 4 inch piece of May Arts burlap.  Measure the diameter of your wine bottle and cut a piece to be slightly longer then you need.  I used some scor-tape to adhere the ribbon directly on to the bottle, just tape one end and then wrap the ribbon around and tape the top layer.  I then added a 2 1/2 inch piece of  May Arts sheer organza to the top.  So once you've got the bottle decorated next step is to create a tag to match.

There are some great wine tag dies out there, but if you don't have one here's how you can create your own.  I started with a piece of kraft card stock and cut it 3 inches by 7 inches.  I used a PTI Edgers die on the bottom to give it a decorative edge, used a circle punch to cut out the center and a corner rounder punch on the top corners.  I love the rustic feel of burlap so I wanted to keep that feel with the tag, so for this one I used a piece of cardboard packaging, added some distress with picket fence distress stain and then added a May Arts frayed sheer chiffon flower with a wood veneer heart in the center.  The background is a Hero Arts background stamp.

This tag uses WPlus9 defining words for the background, then I added more cardboard, a piece of May Arts faux burlap and finally some May Arts sheer flower.  I wrapped the center with a combination of woven burlap ribbon and burlap string and added a banner for the sentiment.

And my final tag utilitzes a fun fabric flower (compliments of Jen).  I cut a piece of Tim Holtz Coredinations card stock a bit longer then the first tag, embossed with a woodgrain embossing folder, then sanded it down for more texture.  I used a piece of May Arts 2 1/2 inch burlap for the background and added the flower to a tag, with some May Arts jumbo leaves, and woven burlap ribbon and burlap string.

So there you go, three fun wine tags with matching burlap wine bottle covers...  Cheers!  Now, I'd really love to see you guys pull out some of your May Arts stash....  so come join me in celebrating, please post a link to any newly created project with May Arts ribbon and I'll draw one random winner to win a free spool of May Arts ribbon plus their choice of a $20 gift certificate to either Papertrey Ink, Hero Arts or WPlus9.

And since I'm such a challenge junkie... I'm going to add this to the Moxie Fab World tag and gift wrap challenge, the Simon Says Stamp Challenge "anything goes" and the City Crafter burlap challenge.

Yellow Roses Mother's Day Cards

I was asked to make a mother's day card with yellow roses and being me I made 3 different versions.  

This one uses the PTI Make It Monday technique of line frames.  It also works for the City Crafter Challenge of "Mother May I".

This one doesn't fit for any challenges, but I love how the sentiment looks on vellum. 

This one uses Waltzingmouse Sketch challenge.  And since I've snuck in a "mom" tag it also works for the City Crafter Challenge.  Many thanks to the blogging pals who's scraps I have used in this card (that's a nod to Ms. Moxie Fab Karen and the fabulous May Arts Queen Jen).

Materials: First Card: Mark's Finest Papers rose, PTI Daily Designs sentiment, PTI kraft card stock, cream card stock, water color paper, water color pencils and blender, Versafine black ink, Sharpie black marker

Second Card: Mark's Finest Papers roses, PTI Mat Stack 4 frame, PTI Mat Stack 2 sentiment, PTI Mat Stack 3 sentiment frame, Core'dinations card stock, Cuttlebug Just My Type embossing border folder, EK Success corner rounder, PTI Mat Stack 4 die, vellum, Water color paper, Water color pencils and blender, Versafine black ink, Stampin Up yellow ribbon

Third Card: Waltzingmouse Stamps Roses in Bloom stamp,  PTI Tiny Tags die and stamps, Hero Arts Classic Fabric Cling background, May Arts ribbon, Versacolor yellow ink, Tim Holtz Distressing Ink Antique Linen, Versamark, Versafine black ink, Cuttlebug Just My Type embossing border folder, PTI kraft card stock, yellow card stock from stash, Twinery pink twine

sweetheart

I love the idea that I've made a Valentine's Day card without any pink!  This week's Wee Memories challenge is a sketch.  Mark's Finest Papers, Simon Says Stamp Challenge and City Crafter Challenge are celebrating Valentine's Day cards.

Materials: PTI Mat Stack 3 stamp and die, PTI Daily Designs sentiment, My Mind's Eye Love Me Do patterned paper, PTI cloud dies, EK Success 1 3/4th inch circle punch, Brillance Rocket Red ink, Stampin Up black ink, vellum, Making Memories white eyelets, white card stock

you warm my heart

I have to confess that after looking at a number of the recent PTI January Blog Hop cards I decided that I just "had to have" a number of new PTI sets.  One of the sets I'd seen that I knew would be perfect in my collection was the Warm Happiness.  I'm a total sucker for coffee stamps and already have a (cough cough) few fun coffee stamps.  I drew inspiration for this card from Julie's card and Janelle's card.  This week's City Crafter Challenge is "all you need is love" and I think this card is exactly the type of Valentine's Day card I'd like to receive (I even gave the DH the subtle hint).  Mark's Finest Papers is also having a Valentine's Day challenge this week.

Materials: PTI Warm Happiness Too sentiment, PTI Warm Happiness PTI Warm Happiness die, PTI Warm Happiness coffee steam, PTI kraft card stock, My Mind's Eye Love Me Do patterned paper, Spellbinders Nestabilites Label 8, Stampin Up black ink, Versa Color Bark ink, 

Friends

This week's City Crafter Challenge sketch seemed like a great way to use this fun Stampin Up friends stamp that I inked off my girlfriend's stash. Part of me thinks the card needs a few more layers, but the reality of the moving deadline is looming and I'm going to accept the card for what it is and hopefully motivate to give it to one of the many friends I must say goodbye to, sob sob.

Materials: Stampin Up friends stamp, Stampin Up chocolate chip designer paper, Stampin Up chocolate chip card stock, white twine, corner rounder punch, Stampin Up chocolate chip ink

Boy reading Bookmark

This week's City Crafter inspiration photo is a tree of books and my first thought was the fabulous PTI All Booked Up set. I've been meaning to make a bookmark with this set and finally motivated (guess I'm a bit too card-centric these days). Moxie Fab World is having a holiday gift giving challenge this week and I'd love to say that I'm going to make a whole stack of bookmarks and give them out (but I'm not, so please forgive me, I think I'll keep this one for my own personal use- terrible huh?, but it's a good idea...).

Materials: PTI All Booked Up stamps, Versacolor Bamboo ink, Stampin Up black ink, PTI kraft, Fiskars circle punch, ribbon from my stash, corner rounder punch

thank you for always being by my side

The Moxie Fab World Tuesday Trigger has my favorite item in the photo- a couch! And since I'm oh-so-literal I thought it would to pull out my PTI On My Couch set (again!). But I went for the chairs, aren't you ladies proud of me for branching out a bit. This week's City Crafter Challenge is all about "Let Your Light Shine", so while my literal brain issues wanted to put flowers between the two chairs (see photo above), I went for the lamp (b/c I want more Lawn Fawn goodies, and this week they're giving away the fun Critters in the Sea set).

Materials: PTI On My Couch stamps, Stampin Up red card stock, white, black, yellow/teal card stock from stash, Fiskars rotary scallop cutter, Stampin Up black ink

PDC color heart card

I made a card with the Play Date Cafe colors the other day, click here, but decided that I wanted to try another one. In my craft room cleaning I found this square with the heart and thought it worked well for the beige color. City Crafter is having a "leave my heart in San Francisco" challenge, so I'll enter this one in that too.

Materials: beige heart from craft room floor, brown art paper, green ribbon, cream card stock

be mine

Susan's Simplicity One Layer Wednesday Challenge is Unexpected Colors, make a one layer card with colors you wouldn't expect. I thought a Valentine's Day card w/o pink and red would be fun, so I went for this week's ColourQ colors (pin, green, brown, turquoise). City Crafter is having a "I left my heart in San Francisco" challenge this week, use a heart. I've used the clean and simple sketch. Happily Ever Crafter is having a one layer challenge for the month of August, so I'll enter this card in the challenge too. Normally my one layer cards take me several attempts, and this week was no exception, I have been having some serious inky finger issues, and those are very difficult to hide on a one layer card, so don't be surprised if you see a very similar looking heart on another card down the road, I've got a small stack of them.

Materials: Kolette Hall Circle of Love stamp, PTI sentiment, white card stock, Versacolor Bamboo ink, Versacolor brown ink, Spotlight cheap turquoise ink, Studio G pink ink, corner rounder punch

Strawberry Sweetie

This week's photo at City Crafter looks so delicious. The theme is food inspired card and I've chosen to play with another one of my new stamps (compliments of Sylvia). I think eating fresh strawberries right now sounds like heaven. Too bad it's the wrong season down here at the bottom of the globe. This week's Flourishes Timeless Tuesday challenge is no embellishments, easy challenge for me, CAS girl that I am.

Materials: White card card stock, black card stock, Hero Arts sentiment, Stampin Up red card stock, Stampin Up square scallop punch, Stampin Up Tart & Tangy strawberry stamp, Versacolor red ink, Stampin Up black ink, Versacolor Bamboo ink, red marker

Carte Postale Tag card

The photo on City Crafter is just lovely, the theme is to pick one of the colors from the photo and make a card that has something to do with mail. I love mail and had far too many ideas. In the end I went for some fun patterned paper in a tag shape (thinking of the inspiration photo) and a lovely PTI sentiment.

Materials: PTI kraft, patterned paper, PTI sentiment, purple art paper scrap, Fiskars rotary scallop cutter, Stampin Up Black ink, Silver Brad

School Bus card

My 5 year old son started school this week. I've been wanting to make some cards to celebrate that and also send some cards to the fellow parents from my parenting class, who's children will all be turning 5 in the next month. In New Zealand you start school on your birthday, so it's a big event. Well I guess turning 5 would be a big event regardless, but here it ties in with school. I got called out for saying that Ben started kindergarden (oh the American in me), and my lovely Kiwi friend "in New Zealand they start kindergarden at 3, he started school." Right. I drooled over the PTI School Time set, but wasn't able to get over the fact that the international postage was more then the set of stamps. So when I saw Virgina's cute card I thought that might work, a) b/c the digital Treehouse set was on sale and b) I wouldn't have to pay postage or wait till it arrived in my mailbox. I used this week's City Crafter Challenge sketch. Now all I need to do is make another half dozen of these... if only I could stay on one track.

Materials: Treehouse digital school bus, Stampin Up square scallop punch, yellow & black card stock from Spotlight

I like Your Style

Moxie Fab World is celebrating card styles this week and I am a Clean and Graphic kinda girl. I'm pretty confident that this card fits the bill... and I'm chuckling at style reference (it was an accident, but now I realize it's "moxie fab" as Cath would say). I've used red/white and blue for the City Crafter Challenge, and the London theme is that folks are far more fashionable in London. Aly's Sunday Challenge is red/white and blue.

Materials: Stampin Up dress form and sentiment, VersaColor red and blue ink, Fiskars rotary scallop cutter

Summer Fun

This CAS card is for the City Crafter Challenge of "Some Like it Hot" and use red. I got the cute summer fun digital image off the Unscripted Sketches website and then colored in the flowers with a versamark pen and red ink (one day I'll get some Copic markers, but for now I have to be creative). The background stamp is off the super cute Stampin Up dress form set I've been using. Which ties this card together for the 365 Cards challenge that I'm the guest designer for-- use one digital and one stamped image. Aly's Sunday Challenge is to use red or white or blue. Creative Craft Challenges is celebrating summer fun.

Materials: Digital image from Unscripted Sketches, Stampin Up Red card stock, Stampin Up background stamp, VersaColor red ink, Corner rounder punch

Dinosaur birthday card

We're still celebrating my birthday, click here for yesterday's post and blog candy giveaway. I was born on one side of the international date line and currently live on the other side (it's tomorrow here in New Zealand), so I think we should continue to celebrate my birthday- all you lovely folks in the US are on the right day!

This dinosaur birthday card uses the Card Positioning Sketch. It's also got three shades of green for the City Crafter Challenge. And Caardvarks is having a birthday challenge this month.

Materials: Paper Source dinosaur stamp, Cosmo Cricket Early Riser patterned paper, Fiskars free hand cutter for star, white gel pen, green art paper from stash, colored with markers

Thank you- Mojo Monday/3 Shades of Green

This card is definitely busier then my normal style, but I've had so much fun with all these challenges that I think it's worthwhile to test myself from time to time. Watch tomorrow's cards will all be white and white and white? This card uses the Mojo Monday sketch. It's also for the City Crafter & 365 cards "Three Shades of Green" color challenges. And since I used vellum, again, I'm going to enter this in The Character Cafe challenge (they must be getting sick of me!). I just realized I forgot the star- it got swallowed up in the mess on my craft table... oh well, I tried... I'm sure I'll use the star for another card, that is when I find it.

Materials: Cosmo Cricket Early Riser patterned paper and sticker, Fiskars circle punch, Fiskars shape cutter/star pattern, vellum, Hero Arts thank you sentiment,

Venice

Okay, I love this card. I saw that City Crafter was having a challenge having to do with Venice and while I will admit that I've never been there, I happened to have a dear friend who is currently living there. I sent her an email asking for a photo, because she's quite the photographer and I knew she'd have a cool art shot. I woke up this morning with 25 photos in my in box. Oh my! I decided to use the Taylored Expressions sketch. Since I'd love to travel here, I'm going to add it to the Papertrey Peeps summer vacation challenge.

Materials: Photograph by Natalie Kehrwald, Black paper, red card stock, vellum, scallop oval punch, scallop cutter

Coffee cups

I made this card and kept thinking I would color in the coffee cups, but after awhile I decided that since I'm on a very CAS trend at the moment that I'd just leave them. And as a result, I can enter it in the Crafty Creations Challenge (Black, White and a splash of red). The card also works for the City Crafter Challenge of a button and bow (although now that I think of it I haven't tied a bow, just used ribbon... oh well, I like the card like it is...)