Using my Stash - Field Flowers

I made this card using supplies from my stash.  You know, those old stamps you haven't picked up in a while, and that cardstock that has been sitting on your shelf staring you in the face.  Sometimes I get so excited about the shiny new stamps, and the latest & greatest whatever-is-hot-this-week, that I forget about some of my trusty old favorites.  For this card,  I used the (retired) Field Flowers set from Stampin' Up.  This is one of those fantastic 2-step stamps that creates the beautiful layers of color on the image.  I also used the (Free!) InkScape program to create an SVG file to cut the flower heads out with my Cricut so I don't have to fussy cut them with scissors.   LOVE that!

Details:  The card base is an oatmeal colored cardstock I had left over from another project, layered with chocolate colored cardstock from a paper pack, and then Vanilla Cream cardstock from Close To My Heart.  On the Vanilla Cream layer I stamped the JudiKins "artist signatures" background stamp in Bamboo, and inked the edges in Autumn Terracotta.  The leaf in the corners is from Magenta, and was stamped in Chocolate.  Using the Stampin' Up Field Flowers set, I stamped the stem in Olive, and the flower centers in Chocolate and Cocoa.  The flower head was cut with the Cricut, then stamped with Goldrush and Autumn Terracotta, and the center with Chocolate and Cocoa, then adhered to the card front with Pop Dots.  Ribbon and bow are an old Halloween ribbon from Michael's that I've had sitting around for a couple of years.

The only trouble with using stuff from your stash is that if you run out, there's a good chance you can't replace it to finish the project.  Like my ribbon, for example.   I made 20 of these cards, but ran out of ribbon, so some have a bow, and some just have the ribbon band.   Either way, I really like the way the card turned out, and it didn't cost me a penny!  Well, not recently, anyway.  ;)

Olaf Party Games, with the help of my Cricut

Hunter has decided that he wants an Olaf birthday party this year.   OLAF.

Be sure, this is NOT a Frozen party.  He is adamant that there will be NO Anna, and NO Elsa, and NO Let It Go.   ONLY OLAF.  And snow.  He really wants snow, because after all, you have to have snow if you want to build a snowman!

We are going to take this idea from Growing A Jeweled Rose and Olaf-ize it.  Instead of the generic snowman face she used, I cut out an Olaf face using the Print Then Cut feature on my cricut.   If you have a Cricut, and don't know how to use this feature, LEARN IT.   Crafts by Two has a great playlist of tutorial videos here.  This video shows how the Cricut cuts out an image that I printed from the computer.

These are the faces after they are cut, still sitting on my Cricut mat.
Can I just tell you how awesome it is to be able to do that on my Cricut with any image I want, and not have to fussy-cut all those little faces by hand?!?!

I just glued the cut out faces onto plain white foam cups. For the top Olaf, I cut a pipecleaner in three pieces & stuck them in the top of the cup.  We will stack them up, and let the boys knock 'em down!  Just like the carnival game with the milk bottles & a baseball.  Only we won't be using a baseball.   A rolled up sock makes a great plush snowball to throw at the Olaf stack.  Or you could arrange them all on the floor and let the kids roll the snowball for some Olaf Bowling.   We may do both if we need a little time-filler.

I  cut out more Olaf faces for these Snow Shooters, also from Growing A Jeweled Rose.  Those are going to be going home with the kiddos in their goodie bags, which will also feature these same Olaf faces!  

I have lots of other fun things planned, but I will wait to post until after the party, when we have photos of the games actually being played!

Have I mentioned how much I love planning birthday parties??   If I honestly thought I could quit my job and just plan parties for people all the time, I would do it in a heartbeat.  A heartbeat, I tell you.

I LOVE IT!!

Well, we are finally ALMOST finished with the play room.   I thought I was done once, but I was wrong...    Two of my dear friends have moved out of state recently, and both of them had bookshelves they were getting rid of.   I can't pass up a good bookshelf.  And a free or cheap one from a friend is even that much better!!  So with a few coats of paint, and a little Pinterest inspiration, I turned three cast-off bookshelves into Play Room Perfection!!!

 

 First, we painted the three bookshelves a nice
"Lego Blue" color.  We brought them in the basement & got them positioned where we wanted, then screwed them together & used brackets to anchor them to the wall.   We wanted the two end shelves to stand up like traditional bookcases for storage, and the 3rd one we laid down to create a window-seat type sitting area, which AJ was more than happy to demonstrate.   Hunter insists that is not the only good sitting space....

Here it is after we got our stuff organized into bins & boxes, labeled, and put on the shelves.   We are putting some of the boys books here too, but keeping the majority of the books in their bedrooms.  The small wooden shelf is one my father in law made years ago that is perfect for those Lego storage boxes by Iris.  I am going to paint or cut letters on my Cricut for a quote I want over the shelf.  It will say "PLAY is the highest form of research. - Albert Einstein" 

Gotta love labels on boxes!  I printed labels off the computer with pictures of what is in each box and the words to help my learning-to-read 5 year old know where things go.  Eventually there will be a nice soft cushion on the bench part to make it a cozy spot to curl up with a good book or the latest Lego Club Magazine! We just have to go pick out the fabric.  Both boys want Lego fabric, but alas, I cannot find it

This corner has chalkboard paint on the wall, which the boys have really enjoyed.  They use that wide windowsill for displaying some of their favorite Lego builds, and store chalk and things on the Crayola shelf they got from Aunt Jenn.

This wall is where my Gramma and I have been painting Legos on the wall.   They aren't quite finished yet, but you can get the idea. 


It is definitely a Lego inspired room, but that is what my boys are really into!   We love the bright colors, without it being overwhelming. 


So, I think I will call this my Jane & Jill shelf, in honor of those friends who made this whole project possible!