Just a Note!

What a beautiful Thanksgiving we had. Our weather was a glorious 63 and sunny...what!!??!! I thought this was almost the end of November! Max enjoyed three nice walks and lots of lounging time in his backyard. We hosted dinner for 8 this year down from our usual 12-14 due to illness and work for some. But our house was filled with love, laughter, games and lots of eating! I just love our family to bits and bits.

I had previously posted that The Creative Paper Trade challenges have ended. I had done some work ahead so today I would like to share a project with you that I had prepared for our next round of challenges. Our Color My Week colors were to have been dusty rose, golden yellow, navy and red. 

As many of you know our daughter-in-law is a first grade teacher. She has asked me in the past to make her notepads for lists and notes she makes for school. I put this together with our sweet girl in mind. The outside features a floral October Afternoon paper that contained most of the colors needed. I die cut a small length of my PTI simple circles die from Harvest Gold felt then added two tiny navy buttons to it. To the center of this I added a Prima felt flower with my own teeny felt heart and some navy/white twine. 

When creating the base to hold my notepads (also from PTI) I included hidden magnets. You can see in the photo of the inside I made the flap from the reverse side of the OA paper. The plaid die cut flower you see on the tab has one magnet under it. The other is hidden under a vintage cream felt flower die cut. Fabric trim and some twine to decorate along with a chipboard polka dot button and a scrappling of a PTI filigree border.

Wishing you a delightful day ~Lisa

CPT ~ A Fond Farewell

Hello friends ~ I come to you today with bittersweet feelings and a sad post. Andrea Budjack has decided to end The Creative Paper Trade challenge blog. Family and other design duties are calling her name and so the blog has come to an end. I want to thank each and every one of you who showed your support on this adventure. Though it was a brief journey I enjoyed every creative moment of it. With a heavy heart I bid it a fond farewell.

I would like to share a project with you that I had prepared for our next round of challenges. Our Color My Week colors were to have been dusty rose, golden yellow, navy and red. 

I used my PTI Mat Stack 5 die to create a tag. I dressed it up with a pretty dusty rose Prima flower topped with an October Afternoon tin pin. I backed this with a PTI Limitless Layers die and a few punched branches...come on how cute are gingham branches!! This sentiment is from the PTI Love Lives Here set. Buttons, felt and twine for accents.

And now for the handmade with love gift ~ snickerdoodles in a jar! I topped this with an inexpensive crocheted doily, a paper doily, a circle of Lily Bee Design paper and a handmade felt bloom I made following one of Andrea's fabulous tutorials. Two MFT die cut leaves, again in the fun navy gingham (also by Lily Bee Design).

Put it all together and you have a yummy little treat! This went to some very special loved ones who were unable to join us for Thanksgiving dinner this year.  But we wanted them to know they were in our hearts.
 

I have one more project I had prepared for The CPT blog , but it can wait for another day. Thanks again friends and to my fellow American bloggers have a blessed Thanksgiving ~Lisa

CPT ~ Blessings For You!

Rain rain go away come again another day! Well actually I'm enjoying the sound of the rain as I get a bit of crafting done this afternoon. We had a busy weekend and it's good to be on the lazy side of life right now. I wanted to remind you that our challenge at The Creative Paper Trade has been extended through this week. Yay...now you have until the 18th to get busy on your entry. I have a card to help inspire you. I've combined all three of our challenges into one using a softer gold rather than the orange color.

I have been hoarding the paper from this darling Crate Paper collection since this past spring. Shameful I know but aren't these little girls the sweetest! I set my mind on diving into those hoarded items. Don't know how successful I'll be, but I'm going to give it a go!

All of the DPs here are Crate Paper, the die cuts are PTI with the exception of the MFT leaves. I've used portions of sentiments from our sponsor Paper Sweeties. I made a rosette using some fabric ribbon and tulle that Andrea sent me along with one of her crocheted blooms.

We have three family members in the hospital, so this is sure to go to one of them. I would like to ask for prayers today for my dear sweet mother-in-law who has broken her ankle ~ several breaks to be exact. Our sweet sister-in-law who had infection complications following a recent surgery and our daughter-in-law's sweet momma who has double pneumonia. We love all of these dear ladies to pieces and have had them all in our prayers.

Thanks for visiting today, I hope you have a chance to play along at 

The Creative Paper Trade! ~Lisa

CPT #4 ~ The Splendor of Autumn!

Another rainy dreary day...blah. But a moment or two of creativity can sure lift the spirits. Not to mention that our master bath looks smashing with the new paint. It dawned on me as we were painting...our bedroom color is the softest pretty green by Martha Stewart called Winter Surf. And our master bath is now a soft whipped creamy shade of white called Snowbound. Hmmm I see a chilly pattern here ~ HA!  But enough of my silliness how about a card!

Following our Creative Paper Trade: Tip Top Shape challenge today we are asking to see your creations made using the simple shape of circles. Now how could I ~a polka dot girl ~ not include those sweet little circles on my card! My card base is one I picked up at Archivers a while back by Doodlebug Designs. Found it in my stash and it was the perfect bright green for our color story board. A pretty round paper lace doily was a fine circular backdrop don't you think. Next up I die cut yet another wee polka dot paper with one of my PTI limitless layers dies. Spellbinders labels 10 die holds my Paper Sweeties sentiment topped with a pretty felt flower crafted by Andrea Budjack and a couple of fussy cut autumn leaves. This sweet A La Art leaf stamp is near to my heart...it came from my son when he was in college. Little Abigail is dressed in her colorful autumn outfit and glammed up a touch with some purple gems...yet another sparkly example of a circle! And as much as I love my polka dots I think buttons fall into a very close second place. Yep that's right more circles!

 

And now I am happy to announce that comment #7 from Tracey McNeely is my give-a-way winner!!! Please email me your mailing info Tracey and I'll get your SU paper collection out to you right away!

That's it for me today friends. Remember you still have another week to link up with us at The Creative Paper Trade! Now go get yourselves busy! ~Lisa

CPT ~ Tuesday Tut!

Hi friends just popping in with a quick post to invite you over to The Creative Paper Trade for our Tuesday Tut! Andrea has created a step by step tutorial on the sweetest little felt bobby pin flowers. Hurry on over and take a peek!!

 

Thanks for stopping in today. I continue to keep all of my East Coast friends along with all in the path of  storm Sandy's weather in my prayers. ~Lisa

The Creative Paper Trade Challenge #4!

Good Morning! Isn't this a beautiful photo. I sure would love to be on that bridge smelling the falls leaves and hearing thee rush of that gorgeous waterfall! This is our Color My Week inspiration photo for challenge #4 at The Creative Paper Trade. Paper Sweeties is sponsoring us this month and has sent along their image of Abigail for the design team to work with throught the next two weeks of our challenge. They have also been kind enough to give a prize from their shop to our winner ~ YAY!



It took me a while to get rolling with the colors. I had to play around with them to get a good balance. I decided to recreate the fall leaves on either side of the waterfall from the photo with my new MFT leaf dies. The dainty white doily is anchoring the cluster in a way that I feel echos the pool at the bottom of the waterfall. The bridge at the top of the photo holds nature gazers. So I positioned little Abigail among the leaves in the same way. Well lets just say this all works in my mind!! My DT teammate Jessica was having printer issues this weekend, so she and I switched our scheduled projects. My sentiment from the Abigail set is for her...I was helping a sweet friend in need at the last moment. Hugs to you Jessica! This gorgeous felt bloom is one that Andrea crafted and sent out to me. Love this rich purple felt. I chose a softer shade of the inspiration green so my cardstock would match the felt leaves. Artistic license so to speak!

That's all for me today friends. I wish you a blessed Sunday and hope you find time in the next two weeks to play along with our challenge. We've been getting fabulous and oh so creative entries, I hope yours will be next! ~Lisa



The Creative Paper Trade ~ Tip Top Shape #3

Well hello are you up for some sweet treats today? I have a funky little Halloween project that I put together for our Tip Top Shape Challenge at The Creative Paper Trade. This time our shape is stars!

 

I picked up this little metal take out box at Michales and decided to jazz it up with some funky Halloween colors and elements. I started by die cutting my stars using flannel fabric and cardstock. I glued my large flannel star to the tin then layered on the smaller star and punched Halloween digi image designed by Andrea. This is dressed up with a few little pompoms and gems. Next I wrapped more of the green pompoms around the handle and decorated one side with a bow made from felt, fabric and twine. A few more stars, a digi, gems and twine dance along the handle. 

This is filled to the brim with Hershey Bliss chocolates! Our neighborhood does the "You've been boo'd" thingy. If you're not familiar with this someone runs to your door after dark, rings the bell or knocks and leaves you a Halloween treat! We have some friends on the street who don't have children or who's kids are grown (like our son!), but we all play along too. Sometimes even Max gets boo'd! Anyway I thought this was a good adult treat!!

Thanks for popping in today. 

You still have time to play along at The Creative Paper Trade, better get busy! ~Lisa

The Creative Paper Trade ~ Paper Nudge!

I have a party favor Paper Nudge for you today! Yep that's right. It's the second of our three challenges at The Creative Paper Trade! We are challenging you to show us your party favor designs. I've also used our Color My Week colors to design my favor that would be suitable for a girls party. You know something like a shower, cookie exchange, Stampin Up...you get the idea. Just a nice little thank you to your guests for taking the time to be there for you whatever the occasion.

I've used a clear pillow box that I purchased from our local stamp convention this year. I made a band using some of Andrea's digital paper and used a border punch on each edge. To this I added one half of a paper doily. These little inexpensive doilies can really dress up a project. I die cut and stitched up a felt PTI library pocket and adorned it with various die cut elements from both PTI & MFT.

A few buttons for interest and a tag for the pocket made by punching a digital image then embellishing with sheer ribbon and sparkly gems. The favors to go in the box are a couple of little on sale hand sanitizers from Bath and Body Works. Total cost for this was right around $3.00! Don't forget we have a sweet prize that could be yours! Hope you have time to play along!!

I'm so happy you stopped by today, I appreciate you! ~Lisa

The CPT Tutorial Tuesday!

Hi again! This is my second post for today. For my CR84FN entry please scroll down. Andrea has the prettiest flower tutorial up for you today on  The Creative Paper Trade blog. Check this out...

Be sure to stop by for your step by step instructions! ~Lisa

10 Minute Craft Dash #5!

Good morning! I'm off and running today....where you ask? To the 10 Minute Craft Dash! The girls over there have graciously asked the entire Creative Paper Trade Design Team to join in the fun and design a 10 minutes or less card for their latest color challenge.

I gathered my supplies and tried to formulate a plan in my head before starting.

My stop watch was set and I was off!!! Didn't know if cutting my card base to size ahead was allowed so that was the first step. Next I quickly die cut an orange scalloped border, you know those cranks will only turn so fast ~HA!  Over this came my ribbon and bow. When I was all done and admiring my crafty dash creation, I looked inside to find the ribbon twisted ~ oooh good grief!!! Then I trimmed my focal element to size, added foam tape strips to the back and adhered it over the ribbon. Went to add one of Andrea's felt flowers only to find my glue wouldn't come out of the bottle. THE PRESSURE...clock ticking...yikes!!! Scrambled for my score tape instead ~ whew. Thank goodness for gems. They go on fast and add lots of pretty sparkle! I topped it off with this sweet little pennant provided by Andrea. Hit the stop watch and I made it...9 minutes and 53 seconds!

 

I had to laugh at myself a few minutes later after taking the photos. I decided to hit the kitchen to make chocolate pudding for dessert and found myself racing through it! Can you believe it! I started cracking up...all by myself I might add. Max must have thought I was a tad insane!!! I hope you have a chance to visit the blogs today and maybe take the 1o minutes to create something as well. It's nerve wracking, but fun! Have a great day ~Lisa

CPT ~ Happy!

Well hello!  I have a card to share today using the colors from The Creative Paper Trade Color My Week challenge. 

I went with an overall soft color palette and used just a tiny smidge of the brighter shades on my Spellbinders labels 18 die cut frame. The pretty cardstock that I used along with the medallion panel are digital items designed by Andrea. I added a bit of Niagra Mist chalk ink to the edges of my card. Next I cut a piece of gray Authentique paper and distressed the edges a bit then added the medallion panel to it. The die cut frame is made with My Mind's Eye paper. A couple of ribbons were used on my shabby bow along with a soft gray button and pretty stick pins. Soft with a touch of shabbiness and I like the way it turned out!

Andrea had the best felt flower tutorial up on the CPT blog today ~ you really need to check it out! A quick and easy little project to add to your creations for that touch of extra pizazz! Thanks for stopping by to see me today. ~Lisa

    

The Creative Paper Trade ~ Challenge #3!

Hello my sweet crafty bloggy friends! I hope your week is off to a good start. I'm catching up on household duties ~laundry, groceries...darn them anyway I want to get some craftiness happening here! But I did want to fill you in on our latest happenings at The Creative Paper Trade. Take a look at our pretty inspiration board for challenge #3!!!

From the moment I saw this fairy tale bed with the gorgeous wood surround and those dreamy dangling stars...my OH my do I just want to sleep there one night! Some of us on the DT are wondering if people really live like that ~HA! Hey if they do sign me up. I would even forgo the stars just give me the snuggley bed! Okay enough of my swooning...some one catch me please ~ hee! A beautiful fall color pallet for Color My Week, fun fancy party favors for our Paper Nudge and those (here I go again!) dreamy stars for our Tip Top Shape challenge.

Up next for your viewing pleasure is our delightful prize package just waiting to be mailed to your home! Another display of Autumn sweetness!

 And finally the free digi available for your crafting whims.

And there you have it! Now that you have all of the details I do hope to see your entries in our gallery! Off to fluff and fold ~Lisa

CPT: Tip Top Shape #2 ~ Hello to You!

Brrrr what a chilly weekend we had. It sure was a sad moment to retire my flip flops in favor of wearing shoes and socks. But then again a chilly drizzly weekend brings about some crafty time for this girl! I had the best time putting together this sweet little project for our Tip Top Shape challenge #2 at The Creative Paper Trade. Take a peek!

 

This fun project was made using digital images designed by Andrea and are available in the shop at The Creative Paper Trade. I used three of the Monster Ball digi images to create the triangle box. They were printed out at 3" x 3" then cut into a triangle. I left and extra 1/4" border on all three sides of two of the images. This was scored and folded over to give me room for my adhesive (score tape). I then fit the three images together to form the little box. I snipped a small piece from the top making room for my wooden skewer (coated with chalk ink) to fit in. The pinwheel is made by gluing two 3" x 3" pieces of the Check and Dots digital paper together. Done with nothing fancier than a good old glue stick! I cut a line on the diagonal from each of the four corners coming almost to the center. I leave maybe 1/4" in the center. Then I fold the cut corners down to the center point to form my pinwheel. A small bit of score tape holds them in place. A threaded button to cover the center and my pinwheel is taped to the skewer. Some snippets of ribbon and twine from my stash with a tiny hand cut felt heart dress up my little box. The small sentiment tag is punched (Martha Stewart tag punch) from the sentiment banners that come with the Monster Ball set.

The bottom of this tiny box is open. I think it would be cute to sit over a little treat or prize on a party table or even on school desks! You could print the image out larger or smaller to fit the size of your treat or prize. 

We would LOVE to have you join us at The Creative Paper Trade for our biweekly challenges.  Andrea always has a cute prize and the team is full of inspiration. Stop by for a visit to check things out! A photo inspiration collage like this goes up at the beginning of each challenge. You can participate in one, two or all three of the challenges as often as you like. You can even combine them if your little creative heart desires!! 

Thanks for sticking with me...this was a long post!! ~Lisa

Hi Friends!

Hi friends! Just stopping in today to show you the latest free set of digis Andrea has designed and has up for grabs at The Creative Paper Trade! Isn't this a cute set! I do love me some polka dots!!!

Our third challenge for the week ~Triangles~ is up and running. You still have over a week to put something together for one two or all three of our challenges. This is the fabulous prize you have a chance to win. Cute huh!

And speaking of CUTE!!!

This little guy is so adorable it's just ridiculous!!! Last weekend we took a trip to the park and had a long adventurous walk around the lake. He was mister popularity with all those fellow hikers we encountered and he had himself one grand time. When he see's the camera equipment and his leash headed for the car he knows he's in for an adventure and he's one excited pup!  Between all of the sniffing and exploring he'll even stop and give his daddy a dapper little pose. I do love this little furry fella!

Have yourselves a delightful day ~Lisa

Creative Paper Trade ~ Happy!

Hello! I hope you are all enjoying a pleasant weekend. Today begins our second round of challenges at The Creative Paper Trade. First up is our Color My Week challenge. Isn't this the dreamiest, feminine inspiration photo! 

With that thought in mind I set out to make a very feminine frilly card. Something that would be appropriate for a birthday, anniversary, wedding or even a shower. And what better place to begin than with a mix of sweet papers from My Mind's Eye: Lavender, Dear Lizzy: Neapolitan & Creative Imaginations: Loolah.

Die cuts from PTI and MFT along with a mix of pearls and frilly floral trim accent this digital image from the Vintage Love collection that can be found in the CPT shop. 

We have another fun prize this week (stamps, felt flowers and ribbon!) and of course there are the free digis. I hope you'll take a moment to stop by the blog for more inspiration from the team and then get to work on your entries! Thanks for visiting ~ Lisa

CPT:Paper Nudge ~ Hugs & Kisses!

Good morning all! Need a little nudge to get those creative juices rolling? How about taking a little trip over to the Creative Paper Trade. We have our second challenge for the week up and we would love to have you join in the fun. Let's see what you can come up with using the alphabet theme!

If you're like me you probably have a couple of alphabet stamp sets in your collection that you forget about. Mine see the light of day now and again and I'm always happy with the results once they get inky!

I pulled out this cute Hero Arts set and made some hugs and kisses to go along with this fun digi image from the Sweetness collection. It's die cut with MFT well worn greetings with a snippet of a PTI scalloped border cut from felt and a left over scrap of a PTI rick rack border. I cut a banner from some MME lavender collection paper, added it to a piece of SU pool party then layered these on a white card base. Next came my label combination and the letters. I cut a strip of fabric, frayed the edges and made this sweet polka dot bow. I tied it up with some twine and a button. It's all topped off with this cute felt heart stick pin.

Now hurry over to CPT to see all of the delightful works of art from the team! I hope to see your creations in our gallery! Have a great day ~Lisa

CPT ~ Color Inspiration Challenge!

Good Sunday morning! I am over the moon excited to be sharing my first challenge project for The Creative Paper Trade Color Inspiration Challenge!  Isn't this inspiration photo fun. When I first saw it I thought of Leave it to Beaver! I wasn't around yet, but didn't they have pink refrigerators back then!

I can just picture June Clever in her dress, heels and pearls whipping up something for Wally and the Beaver in this kitchen!

The kitchen is the heart of the home don't you think. So I set out to make a wall hanging to represent home. Several items from the shop were used to create this project. The pretty little rows of heart paper were die cut with my Impression Obsession house die. I love the sentiment on this square digi ~ something to live by. Sweet felt flowers and a pennant bring in some warmth. A tribute to June's pearls was a must! I think this frilly doily anchors everything in place quite nicely. And perhaps June had a frilly lace hankie like this tucked in her pocket or sleeve.

My mom didn't wear heels and pearls in the kitchen, nor do I. But we both made it the heart of our homes and still do. There's nothing quite like smelling something yummy cooking on the stove or sweetness baking in the oven. I do love our home!

Here's the prize for this week  (cute huh!) and a chart to show you  the schedule of events!

I do hope you'll take a moment to stop by and check things out, then play along! Have a blessed day friends and thanks for stopping by ~Lisa

Meet Jessica!

Hi friends, this has been such a busy day ~ a good busy...but busy! I tried like the dickens to get a card finished and photographed! It just wasn't happening. So hopefully all will fall into place tomorrow!! I would love for you to stop by The Creative Paper Trade to meet another of my teammates ~ Jessica Santiago! Fun facts and a sweet little berry project she put together are there for your viewing pleasure. And remember if you leave a comment you have a chance to win one of our give-a-ways! In addition you can grab this cute and free digi that Andrea has designed!

 Thanks for popping in today ~Lisa

A Happy Hello!

What a fun week we're having at The Creative Paper Trade! Today you will have the pleasure of meeting Ginny Larson. Don't forget to leave a comment for your chance to win goodies! Now how about a just for fun card!

This card went together in a snap. I started with this fun digi image included in the Round About set from Andrea's Etsy shop. A kraft card base with a panel from the BasicGrey Serendipity paper pad and a PTI  heart border; using another of the papers in the collection are the backdrop for my focal image. Next came a pretty paper doily topped with the image that was printed then punched with a Marvey scalloped circle. A had to add one of my favorite elements to the card...a cluster of sweetness! This cluster includes a crumpled seem binding bow, felt and kraft colored buttons, a PTI tiny tag ~completed ever so sweetly with the polka dot stamp~ red button twine and topped off with this adorable felt pennant pin.

Fudging with the bow probably took the most time! That being said this took under 15 minute start to finish! That's what I love about Andrea's digital images. Some come with the sentiment already there so you can put a card together very quickly!

Have yourselves a beautiful day ~Lisa