Stand-Up Mini Album

Ok. I said I'd be back with a project, didn't I? It took longer than I expected to get fully inspired, but this is a sneak peek at the finished album. It's 5x7, so it will fit in an envelope for mailing (with a couple extra stamps. Mine turned out quite thick.) If you want to see the whole thing, you'll just have to stick around and read the rest of my post. ;)

I started with a plan and even took a picture of my supplies to share with you here. Then I shifted gears just a bit, so instead of the pic, I'll just give you the list of what I actually used:

• Two sheets 12x12 heavy pink cardstock for the body of the album
• Three sheets 12x12 heavy white cardstock for the frames
• Glitter cardstock (a girl has to have her glitter, right?)
• Punches for embellishments--I used flowers, a flourish, and a paisley
• Ribbon and jewels or brads
• An assortment of dies for cutting frames--I started with circles and squares but decided rectangles and ovals were a better fit. 

From one piece of pink I cut a 7x10 strip and scored it down the middle, so I basically had a 5x7 card. From the other piece of pink I cut a 7x12 strip and scored it at 5 inches and 10 inches, so I had a 5x7 card with a little 2 inch flap. That flap will connect the two pieces later. 

But first....

I folded both pieces and ran them through the Cuttlebug in a paisley pattern embossing folder. I used paper with a white core, so I sanded the embossing a little to make it pop. 

Next I adhered the two pieces together using that two inch flap, so I had a four page accordion album. 

Don't worry about the flap--we will cover it up later. 

Now for the frames. Using a variety of rectangular and oval Nesties, I cut frames for each of the four inside pages and the cover, as well as a solid piece of white (not in the picture) to serve as the back of each frame. I used a Dotted Swiss embossing folder on one of the two matching frames and the thinner oval, and I layered the two ovals together to make one frame. 

I adhered a strip of ribbon across the front--long enough to wrap around and tie a pretty bow. Then I placed all the frames. 

Remember that extra two inch flap on the back? I cut two 5x7 pieces from my strips of leftover cs and

adhered them to the back. Then I added a piece of lined paper, die cut to match the frames, for journaling. 

Now for the embellishments! I cut a 'J' for the front because this is going to a new baby whose name starts with 'J.' Then I punched several flowers, flourishes, and paisleys from the glitter paper and some of the scrap pieces of white. I scattered those among the frames, and this is what I ended up with:

I know it's basically just an accordion album, but with the extra layer on the back, it's stable enough to stand up and use as a table top frame. Now I think I'll try one in landscape orientation. Hmmmmm....

    No, I didn't make a horizontal version already. I was so focused on making this stand up that I didn't even consider hanging it on the wall! How cute is that?!

Ok. That's it for now. Time for me to go work outside. 

Thanks for stopping by! See you in a few days with the August calendar!

Welcome to the New and Improved Ava Belle's!

The flea market in downtown Aurora where Mom and I have a booth is moving        a-l-l      the       w-a-y    a-c-r-o-s-s      the      s-t-r-e-e-t!  Ok, actually it's across two streets and three doors down, but I like to play with words, so just go along with it, alright? 

It's been so much fun loading the new booth with tons of merchandise and making sure everything is arranged just right! This booth is smaller than the spot we had at the old building, but we managed to fit MORE stuff in it! 

We have lots of scrapbooking supplies,

several pretty lamps (including one made from an old hanging wire planter), 

a wall full of Christmas decorations (and then some!)

and lots of other pretties!

We even have stuff hanging overhead and on the backside of the hand-painted armoire (which is for sale) and our rescued display shelves!

We open to customers Monday. Peggy (Ava and Isabella's Gigi) has done an amazing job getting the building ready for us. Everything looks wonderful! If you're ever in Aurora Missouri stop by and leave us a message on that big chalkboard! 

I Actually Have a Written Recipe!

Today is my grandmother's birthday! I knew exactly what to do for her. She and Grandpa love the glazed pecans I make each fall, so I prettied up an empty Starbuck's bottle, filled it up, and delivered it this afternoon. Of course, I didn't want to cause problems -- those two are very protective of their sweets -- so I gave Grandpa his own bottle! (But his isn't as pretty!)

I'll start with the recipe first, so you'll have something yummy to snack on while you "cutify" your bottles. I don't normally use recipes. I throw in a little bit of this and a little bit of that, and most of the time it's edible. But I did start with a recipe for the glazed pecans. Of course I tweaked it a little (I tweak just about everything I touch!) and this is what I ended up with....  

How cool is THAT ^ ?! That is a photo of the pecans I glazed, and my handwriting in a computer font!

This recipe is SO easy! It's good with almonds and walnuts, too, but pecans are my favorite. The original recipe calls for only three cups of pecans, but there is plenty of sugar on them even if I use more than four cups. 

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Now on to the cute packaging.... 

I started with a strip of white cardstock 5.5 inches wide and punched one edge using the EK Flower Burst Large Edger

Then I flipped over the strip and punched the other edge, creating three full flowers and part of a fourth.

Next I inked the edges a bit and ran the strip thru my Xyron to thoroughly cover the back with adhesive.

I ran a kraft paper scallop circle and a single punched flower through, also. The flowers on the strip didn't match up when I wrapped them around the bottle, so I came up with a plan. (AKA embellishment!)

I adhered the stip of flowers to the bottle. Since there were only three, the ends didn't meet. That's what the circle and the extra flower are for!

I layered first the scalloped circle, then the flower over the gap, covering the ends of the flower strip, and topped it all off with a bit of twine and a big blue button in the center of the flower. The fact that the twine will help hold down any edges that might pop loose is a bonus.

Here is another look at the finished bottle: 

The "Happy Birthday" is from Perfectly Penned by Stampin' Up! and I used the Apothecary Accents Framelits to cut the tag. (I trimmed off one end.) I also punched a scalloped circle from white cardstock and ran it through the Cuttlebug in a swirly embossing folder before adhering it to the lid. 

So...what does Grandpa's bottle look like? I camouflaged it so he could hide it from Grandma!

However, you'll be glad to know, they were sharing very nicely when I left!

Happy Birthday, Grandma!

As for the rest of you, thanks for stopping by! Tomorrow is my last day of early morning band and Saturday is the last competition of the season, so I hope to be around a little more frequently again! See you next week!

Honeytree Lotion

Most of the jobs I've had in my life, both paid and unpaid, have had something to do with kids. I was the oldest grandchild on both sides of the family, so I always had lots of younger cousins around at family gatherings. My first job was babysitting the son and daughter of my elementary school principal when I was just twelve. I worked at a daycare while I was in college, then provided daycare in my home when the boys were little. When Michael was three I had the opportunity to go to work with Miss Connie and Miss Cathy at Honeytree Preschool. It was one of those jobs that just kind of fell in my lap. Honeytree was THE preschool of choice in Aurora and the surrounding communities. The three of us were a great team! I stayed there for twelve years and was considered a full partner when we closed a few years ago. 

One thing you notice when you're around three and four year olds all day is how many bodily fluids you come in contact with. The next thing you notice is how many times you wash your hands and how quickly they become dry and cracked. So we were always on the lookout for great hand lotions. One of the best we ever found was homemade! I don't remember who gave us the recipe, but it's easy and VERY inexpensive. All of the ingredients can be purchased at the dollar store!

If you know me, you know I never follow a recipe (or directions), so of course I had to switch it up a little! 

This is the recipe using the dollar store items:

15 oz. bottle baby lotion

7 oz. jar Vaseline

8 oz. vitamin E cream (two 4 oz. jars)

Just dump everything in a blender and mix well. 

Now here are my tweaks. I LOVE the smell of Jergens. That cherry almond scent reminds me of my great grandma's house. I don't know if maybe she or her sister used it, but for some reason I make that connection. So instead of the baby lotion I use a bottle of cherry almond scented lotion. And I like to use a pump so I only use about half the vaseline. The whole 7 oz. makes it too thick for a pump. 

Mix up a batch and store it in some pretty little candle jars. You probably have some stashed somewhere--I know you can't throw anything away, either! Tie on a ribbon and tag and it's a great little teacher gift. I recycled the clear bottle after I used all the lotion that came in it. The label peeled right off for me and I think the plain clear bottle looks nice. A little Goo Gone will take care of any adhesive residue. The white ceramic bottle came from my old bathroom. 

You might want to  experiment with different scents. I substituted a 15 oz. bottle of coconut lotion  for the baby lotion one summer and it smelled really good, but the cherry almond is by far my favorite. Give it a try--you'll love the way it feels! It's not heavy or greasy, and it really moisturizes. 

What is your most economical "beauty secret?"

Thanks for stopping by! See you Friday!

Secret Letter Box

Happy Friday! Today I'm just "showing." No "telling." Or would it be "telling," but not "showing?" Hmmm....

I came across a great site the other day called The Women's Waiting Room. Ellen is also a scrapper/crafter, but her posts cover a wide range of topics. She is very entertaining. Go to thewomenswaitingroom.blogspot.com to check it out. (Sorry-I tried to put a link there, but it didn't work.) In one of her posts, called "Fall, leaves, fall,"  she has a photo of a secret letter box that she made. I loved it so much I had to make one, too!

Just looks like a stack of old letters, right? But look what happens when you untie the lace and pick up the top envelope! Too cool! 

I am not EVEN going to try giving directions with pics. I think I would even confuse myself! But there is a Youtube video that gives very clear directions.  Click Here to watch it. (HA! That link worked!) Of course, I had to change mine up a little (mostly just to save my fingers!). See if you can figure out what I did. I think that once I find a place that works for classes and crops, this will be our first project! 

Thanks for stopping by! Have a great weekend and I'll be back Tuesday! (Or very early Wednesday morning! teehee!)