Candy Bar Wrapper

For this year's Halloween treats I made Candy Corn Cookie Bark but didn't photograph it. I know you're heartbroken. (wink)

This candy bar wrapper is a photo from last year. (a) The only Halloween paper I bought last year was this eyeball paper ... because I only anticipated making a papercraft gift for my boys. (b) The candy bar wrapper was a last-minute idea because I hadn't gotten around to baking treats. (c) I had NO Halloween stamps with which to make a tag. So I'm not sure the sentiment matches the eyeballs, but hopefully the gesture still conveyed its meaning.

Brighton wore his Ant on a Picnic Table costume to school today. After the costume parade, he told me his costume got the most cheers and the big kids told him they wanted to copy his get-up. He totally ate up the attention. Becuase I was the cool mom who crafted said attention-getting get-up, my Mommy Coolness Meter is currently off the charts. Told ya' I was awesome. :) (Gosh, I don't know where he gets that attention thing...)

Happy trick-or-treating!

Supplies.
Paper: Moxxie (Cauldron Bubble), Stampin' Up! (Ghostly Greetings, Basic Black).
Punches: Stampin' Up! (scallop border punch, tag punch).
Ribbon: Offray, Stampin' Up! (black twine).
Stamp: Stampin' Up! (You Make Me Happy).
Ink/powder: Versa Mark, Stampin' Up! (black embossing powder).

Ant on a Picnic Table

Done! With time to spare. Yes, I am awesome. :)

Brighton and I started searching for costume idea about two months ago. Somewhere (sorry, I don't remember where) we came along an idea for an ant on a picnic table. "Mom, look! That's so creepy! Ants all over! Can I please be that for Halloween?" No gore. No mask. I can probably make it. Alright, it's a go!





The costume itself wasn't hard to make, but it did take a while to find the supplies.
(1) A box just the right size. It's only about 4" deep. The cloth hangs over longer. Brighton still has full use of his arms.
(2) Fabric. Easy peasy.
(3) Tiny ants. After striking out at several toy stores, I finally just bought some off the internet.
(4) Toy food. Thanks, Target.
(5) Helmet. This is a bumble bee hat that I painted black and bent the antennae to look a little more ant-like. I found it at Michael's.
(6) Black balloons and pipe cleaners. Easy to find as long as you shop well head of Halloween.

The table is stablized with cereal boxes duct taped to the bottom. Brighton carries the weight of the costume on his shoulders, but there is a cereal box pressed against his chest and a box against his back to keep the table from wobbling too much. Again, his arms are free to move as needed.

The picnic food and ants are all hot glued. I suggest using traditional fabric as opposed to a vinyl table cloth because the hot glue was able to seep through the fabric, securing the food to box itself, not just to the tablecloth. I think the costume would come apart more easily if the tablecloth, weighed down with toy food, slid around.



Tomorrow Brighton has a school party, then we're going to a freind's party. Saturday is trunk-or-treat at the church, followed by trick-or-treating around the neighborhood. Phew! Hope you enjoy your weekend also!

Dr. Frankenstein's Monster

You guys ready for some sugared up kids this weekend? My boys have been hopping for the past week. I'm almost finished with Brighton's costume - yay me!

My boys loved this foam Frankenstein, so I used it as the focal point on my cards to them. I love making cards for such an eager audience. No stress to impress, just something fun and always appreciated.

I'm not sure how well the photograph shows it, but the orange and purple really are vibrant enough to carry that green.

I'm off to make some Halloween treats for the neighbors. 'Night!

Supplies
Paper: Bazzill Basics (black), patterned papers from the $1 section at Target.
Foam face: $1 aisle at JoAnn's.
Other: jumbo eyelits, thread, Fiskar's decorative edge scissors.

Woolie Tree and Amy Butler Purse

Apparently I've been missing the boat on this color challenge/sketch challenge thing. After playing along with Dawn McVey's challenge, my blog received a bazillion hits from all over the world. I'm not in the blogging "business," so to speak, so that's more of a nice to know tidbit. However, it turns out that for the i {heart} papers challenges, there are daily prizes! GOOD prizes. So I'm playing along again. :) I always have a list of cards to make - might as well try to win some free stuff while I'm at it, right?

I LOVE that felt tree. It's so warm and fuzzy and homey and fall-ish. Look at all those layers of fuzzy goodness - I just gotta touch it. Honestly, though, I don't think I've ever met a Woolie that I haven't liked.



Moving along to my next i {heart} papers challenge entry... This card was supposed to be about patterned paper and ribbon. I found these Amy Butler supplies on clearance at Fred Meyer, of all places. This little purse is a miniature paper version of the real deal. How clever is that!



I think the card is a bit busier than I would normally make, but it's certainly fun to try something new. Enjoy your day!

Felt Tree Card Supplies.
Paper: Stampin' Up! (Bravo Burgundy, Chocolate Chip, Autumn Vine DSP, Naturals Ivory), Basic Grey (Indian Summer - Acorn.
Stamps: Papertrey Ink (Everyday Button Bits).
Ink: Stampin' Up! (Chocolate Chip).
Ribbon: Stampin' Up! (Chocolate Chip), rick rack.
Felt Tree: Basic Grey (Indian Summer Woolies).

Celebrate in Style Card Supplies.
Paper: Stampin' Up! (Going Gray, Basic Gray, Very Vanilla), Amy Butler Lotus Mat Pad.
Stamps: none. Sentiment printed using computer.
Ribbon: Stampin' Up! (Kiwi Kiss), Offray (gray).
Embellishments: Amy Butler Lotus Faded China Purses Grand Adhesions, Stampin' Up! (rhinestone brads).

By Brighton

I love being the mother of a little artist.
I love that my little artist makes gifts - for everyone - but mostly for me.
I love that he supports my desire to share what I create with others.
I love that he's equally proud of his creations - and also wants to share them with others.
I love that he notices I take pictures by the window, in natural sunlight, and wants his projects to receive the same treatment.
I love that he doesn't use a kit, or a picture to copy - he creates from within himself.

Here is the owl puppet. Created for me. By my little artist. With a heart on his belly. Because he loves me.

Button Balloons

Papertrey Ink has the cutest stamp set - Everyday Button Bits - full of stamp images that you fill in with buttons. Click on the link - aren't they adorable!?

These little balloons are for a very special someone who was due a birthday card last month. Shame on me! I don't think she reads my craft blog (shame on her!), so this should still be a surprise.

I also decided to play along with another color challenge. One of Ben's Facebook friends is a stamper/cardmaker and was invited to host a color challenge earlier this week. Hi Sarah! The color scheme is celery, rose, light blue, and black - plus the project had to be birthday related. I fudged a little and used aqua - it's just so pretty! - hopefully that's close enough. :)

Supplies.
Paper: My Mind's Eye (Deena's Penny Lane), Papertrey Ink (Aqua Mist).
Stamp: Papertrey Ink (Everyday Button Bits).
Ink: Stampin' Up! (Basic Gray).
Ribbon: Stampin' Up! (Certainly Celery twill, pink gingham, silver cord).
Buttons: Papertrey Ink (Aqua Mist, Spring Moss, Sweet Blush).
Punch: Stampin' Up! (3/16" corner rounder).

Sweet Felt Cupcake

I needed to make some cards and decided to play along with a color challenge. Dawn McVey puts together some of the most vibrant and unique color combinations. It's fun (sometimes) to go outside of my comfort zone and see if I can make the colors work together. :)



That's another little cupcake from Martha Stewart. I cut out a tiny heart and put it on top to tie in the raspberry color. I've used this layout with these felt cupcakes before; it was fun to try to switch out the colors.

Supplies
Paper: Stampin' Up! (Kraft, Whisper White, Rose Red).
Stamp: Papertrey Ink (Everyday Button Bits).
Ink: Stampin' Up! (Chocolate Chip).
Ribbon: Stampin' Up! (brown felt), I'm not sure about the rick rack.
Punches: Stampin Up! (Curly Label, 3/16" Corner Rounder).
Felt Cupcake: Martha Stewart Crafts.