NOW, This Is Christmas Crafty Goodness!

Hi Everyone,
This is the stuff my crafty dreams are made of.  I found this little tote bag at Walgreen's for $5.99 and had a $2.00 coupon. I just loved this little tote but I knew I had some fun stuff in the craftspace that would bump it up a bit.  I had a left over feather boa from a Halloween costume and some jingle bells as well as a white plastic buckle. Also hanging around in the fabric stash is an old black velvet dress that had seen better days.  In my sewing basket was a magnetic purse closure. Wow I had a bunch of cool stuff to add to this tote bag.    I started by cutting off the not so nice black buttons.  I saved them of course!! I hot glued the feather boa right over the white fur so it looks nice and full. I added the magnetic closure so that it was not just an open tote bag. (I was really impressed that this little bag for $5.99 came with a zipper pocket!)  I used gold embossing powder on the white plastic buckle.  I used the bells to cinch the bag up a bit.  I spent about 1-1/2 hours on this tote bag and only took about 20 stitches to sew down the bottom insert that came with the bag but was not secured.  Everything else was glued.  I just love it and I bet I will be carrying it on Christmas eve.  I hope you like it too.  Have a great weekend and thanks for stopping by.
Lysa

The first 2010 Christmas Crafty Goodie

Hi All,
Even with the busy weekend when all the decorating was done, Rory and I had time to make at least 1 quick craft on Sunday night.  We decided that Magic Reindeer Food would be the favor she would give to her friends this year.  I love this craft but I just can't get on board with the glitter in the recipe.  I keep thinking that one of the little ones will want to take a taste.  So our recipe is as follows:
oatmeal, Wilton white crystal sugar, Wilton red crystal sugar, Wilton cinnamon drops (aka: Rudolph spares), and powdered cinnamon.  Rory had a blast mixing up the batch and asked so many questions as to why reindeer like each of the ingredients. This is a great kid craft.  I have also used granola mixed with oats too.  The rabbits and birds will eat it up.  I know the glitter looks a bit better but I just can't bring myself to use it.  Wilton makes an edible glitter but it is very pricey.  I think its $5.99 for a small vile.  The tag art is from an old Microsoft picture it CD and the tag was cut with my most favorite Stampin Up punches.
The standard reindeer poem is on the back of the tag.  It reads:

Sprinkle on the lawn at night,
The moon will make it sparkle bright,
As Santa's Reindeer fly and roam,
This food will guide them to your home!

I hope you like what Rory and I created for our first project of the season.  My favorite part was watching her mix up the batch.  So cute to see a young'n with wide eyes at Christmas and I believe this reindeer food was not the only magic in the air    in  our home on Sunday night.  Thanks so much for stopping by and enjoy the Christmas crafty season!
Lysa

WOW! Look At The Pretty Ribbon

                                                                Hi Everyone,

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. I rarely take advantage of black Friday shopping deals.  I am more the cyber Monday type.  But, this year the Hubby got me up and out not just on Friday but Saturday too!  Joann's had this $24.95 ribbon ladder on sale for $7.99.  I loved it.  And Paul made it even better.  He bought me 2 and took one apart, flipped it and put the 2 back together to create one big boy ribbon ladder.  It is actually facing backward and mounted to the wall.(don't you just love our circa 1950's paneling?) Now I can remove the row and move the current season shades to the lower easy reach area.  I can now even see my ribbon inventory and stop over buying!(ok, so that is so not going to happen.)  I just love it.  The holiday weekend went so fast.  The house is totally decorated and we are in full Christmas mode.  I have started my favors and also did a quick craft with Rory.  Now the crafty fun can begin as the house is in order.
Thanks for visiting,
Lysa

GOT BIRD?

Hi Everyone,
November? November?  I am not getting a warm fuzzy feeling about November! Today is November 21st!
What's up with that?  Paul and I went to the market today for the Thanksgiving run. OMG!, we were in ShopRite for 2 hours.  And yes, we now GOT BIRD!!!  And shrimp too!  The fridge is packed.  I have been going strong with all the holiday prep and I only have a 2 day work week ahead of me.  The ole' homestead is in order, and I am so ready to cook on Thursday.  In the meantime I have been crafting (when not cleaning or working) I am not ready to post pics of this years treats but here is my "little treat by the front door" from last year.  I will tell you that this year Mr. Moose will be holding Magic Raindeer Food.   These little boxes from last year have one Rocher chocolate candy in each little mini cupcake box.  The candy looked just like a little cupcake in this box.  I think I made about 90 of them and brought them everywhere I went.  I hope you like them. and I hope you like my Moose too!  Best wishes to all for a Happy Happy Thanksgiving.  And let the season begin!!!!
Lysa

The Last Weeks of The Year! We All Need to Get Crafty!

                                                                                
Hi Everyone,
I have been so busy the first few days of November.  Fall is a busy time for this family. And now we are heading into the last eight weeks of the year.  I have been driving my family crazy, and sending them on a cleaning binge.  I am in full holiday mode.  I have been spending less time in the craftspace and spending more "quality" time with the vacuum cleaner.(so sad). I was able to get a head start on this years candy favor for the Christmas season and can't wait to post a picture. But they are not ready yet.  So here is a simple triangle box from the past.  This box was from 2007.  It was simple, but why I liked it was that it was also an ornament.  I was surprised when I saw that people had saved it and hung it on their tree the following year.  It made me smile to see the little box was packed away with other family treasures and kept for another year.  I have made many ornament through the years, some fabric, some wood, but when I see paper survive I really like it. Can you believe I have a quilled snowflake that I made back around 1984. I laugh to myself each year when it gets hung on the tree. I hope to post this years treat container soon. In the meantime I wish for you all to find your Christmas 2010 crafty mojo and get crafting.  The holiday clock is ticking.  Thanks for visiting!
Lysa

Happy November Everyone!

Hi Everyone,

Wow it seems like I was floating in the pool just yesterday,  Now its November 1st!  Halloween is behind us and the holiday season is just around the bend.  I took a trip to the craft store this weekend and picked up all my Christmas papers for the season and I love them all.  I really love the K and Co. Susan Winget paper stack I got.  This paper will make great treat boxes.  I had already purchased my Stampin Up cardstock but added a digi download of their Deck the Hall series.  I haven't set my mind to what box favor I will be making this year.  I hope to get going this weekend.  In the meantime I thought I'd post a picture of last years cocoa packet favor.  I made so many of these.  This was a true case of designing the favor around the paper.  What happened was ... I print the inside of my holiday cards every year.  Well, last year in my haste I missed a typo.  I had run about 35 or so of the cards through the printer when I realized that I had messed up.  I was so bummed out.  I kept thinking of the cost of the cards. And I loved these snowman cards that I had found at Walgreens.  I thought for sure I would not be able to find another 2 boxes.  Paul was a dear (as always) and ran to Walgreens and was able to replace them.  I think he only had to go to 2 stores.
Ok, well with the cards reprinted I just could not throw away the other cards.  So I trimmed off the front and used them as a belly band around the cocoa packet favor.  I love how they turned out.  I rarely use blues at Christmas as I prefer the greens and deep reds so it was nice to step outside of my comfort zone and work with these colors. I really enjoyed all the silver ink too. I am looking forward to the holiday crafting 2010 season and hope to post some nice ideas. Thanks for visiting.
Lysa

And In The End ....

Hi All,
Halloween 2010 is coming to an end.  I know, I know its only October 26th. But I am officially done with my Halloween crafting for 2010.  I so enjoyed this years crafty bounty.  I got to use so many new products.  I am loving my new Imagine cricut. I am really loving my Epiphany shape studio.  I used my Stamp'in Up digi papers that I downloaded and boy are they fab.  And I have to mention MME. LOVE THE PAPER!! I used my new pink ATG adhesive gun. I just loved all the new products that I was so lucky to get to play with.  I have to give a shout out to the Hubs for all of it.  Here's to you Paul, You be the man!!!  Thanks for all of it!!  I am taking off my normal fall vacation days to enjoy my grand daughter's Halloween parade and to celebrate my birthday and Halloween.  But I just had to post a picture of my last minute sour cream containers that are filled with Hersey kisses.  I of course just needed that last little favor.  I told you guys in an earlier post if you need a quickie these work great.  My paper is cut at 41/4 X 51/2, rolled into a tube, filled and crimped at opposite directions on the end. And yes I printed the paper, on both sides so the inside is printed too.  I used American Crafts white textured cardstock.  I like it best for printing digi paper and to me it works the best in the Imagine.  Some might think its a waste of ink but for me its all about the detail. Wishing all of you a Happy Happy Halloween and see you soon with some Christmas Craftyness. Thanks for visiting,
Lysa

Friend, Good ....

Hi All,
Please someone, anyone ... I need a Halloween intervention. I can't stop.  I am in papercrafty Halloween heaven.  I needed just one more little boxy treat holder and I went back a couple of years and I remembered this stink'in cute Frankie box that I had learned to make from Angie Kennedy over at Chic n Scratch.  Gotta love this little box and Frankie's droopy eyes too! Check out her blog and vids. She is amazing.  Please somebody stop me, I need to get going on Christmas.  Hope everyone is having a wonderful weekend and enjoy the fall. Thanks for visiting!
Lysa

Hi All!

Hi All,
I have not fallen off the earth!  I am in the throws of Halloween, Work, and Family.  So just a quick post to say Hi! and How are ya?  I did the Imagine update and all is Goooooooooood! Darn, I love that machine. Provocraft seems to really be striving to help everyone.  Many people are posting that Provo released to soon.  People keep saying that they want a machine that is complete prior to the release.  No, It does not work that way anymore.  Want to hear about my iphone updates?  To me the  Imagine was ready for release, and now we grow with it.  Everything in tech today works like that.  I don't mind the updating (gives me and Huey time together) I have been playing with the Imagine for about a month and I think that Provo brought a great printer/plotter combo unit to market at an affordable price.  I hope you out there who did buy it hang in there.  I think the updates coming down the pike will be worth the wait. OK enough about the Imagine,  I am happily finishing up this years Halloween crafty goodies and I have been dreaming of Christmas already.  Hope this post finds everyone happy, healthy and enjoying the fall season.  Hope to post some pics soon. Enjoy Halloween 2010! Thanks for visiting.
Lysa

Halloween Banner

Hi All,
Hope everyone is enjoying the weekend!  I have yet another Halloween 2010 decoration that I made.  It's a banner and it is so long that I just could not get a great picture of it.  But I did my best and I have to tell you it looks great in person.  The papers I used are My Minds Eye and American Crafts. I had this long piece of black ribbon from a holiday candy box in my ribbon stash and the die cuts are from Cricut Happy Hauntings and October 31st.  I used the expression to cut them as no printing was involved.  Really the pictures don't do it justice and I sure love it.  Have a great day and thanks for visiting.
Lysa

Tic...Tac...Boo!

Hi All, I am so in Halloween Mojo 2010, that I can hardly contain myself.  Work, home, laundry seems to be interrupting my flow.  It has been a few exciting weeks around here with the Imagine arriving and birthdays and the season change in general.  Do I dare tell you that the pool is still open?!  I was treated (by my dear dear hubby) to many early birthday presents this year.  One of which was the Epiphany Crafts Shape Studio.  People I LOVE this thing.  Simply put it is a 1/2 inch punch with pre-fabricated epoxy domes.  So when I got it I had to come up with something really fun to do with it. So enter my magnetic Tic Tac Boo!  I recycled a tin that I had laying around.  I was so lazy that I painted it with black Stazon (which by the way worked great)  I used cast a spell and old olive stampin up paper to decorate it and the die cuts were from Cricut's Happy Haunting cartridge.  I used my Imagine to cut them out. I used the Shape Studio to make the tic tac toe pieces and my regular printer with my Scrapbook artist 2 software to make the board and inside tag shape.  The magnet was punched with the Shape Studio and it was a recycle fridge magnet from the local pizza place that came in the mail.  I totally love this project because I used so many different supplies.  That's what crafting is to me. USING the things you have.  Not to get to corny but I would really like to thank all the manufacturers I just mentioned because I feel that the quality of all the products were 100% .  I felt my creative juices flowing and not one of the products let me down. I guess I should mention too that I used my all time favorite Xyron 2" adhesive runner and my 2 way Zig glue pen as well.  Normally, I try not to make wishes, and when I do I try to wish for good health for family, world peace, happiness for all, but I have to say right now if I had a wish it would be to have hour after hour of hands on time to play with all these fantastic craft supplies. Thanks for visiting my blog and I hope your Halloween 2010 brings you some crafty mojo as well.   Lysa

Words On Walls

Hi All,
I have been decorating for Halloween all week.  I started on Saturday and now that it is Thursday the primping has begun. Tonight I just wanted a little something above the picture by the front door and now that we all know I am totally in LOVE with the BOO on the cricut Happy Haunting cart, I just could not resist making a BOO for the wall. I know ... I know its a bit redundant using the same graphic here, there and everywhere .... but com'on that BOO! is so pretty.  I just can't get enough of it.  I think provocraft did a great job with this cart and I need to mention that the bats are from the Oct 31 cart.  I have been having a blast with both.  Thanks to you all for letting me share my love for Halloween.  I have 1 more goodie I hope to finish this weekend and post.  And then I have to settle in to making my favors.Wishing all of you a crafty Halloween and thanks for stopping by.
Lysa

Does Paper Last????

Look at this people ... this is my proof that paper can last. A goblin just like this was sitting at each place setting at my daughters 1st birthday party.  Yes ... that event was celebrated in 1988!  I have three of these paper twist goblins that remained with me after the party.  He is made from paper capers paper twist.  The bow tie was made from black pipe cleaner stems and the eyes were cut from scrap fabric that I had kicking around at the time.  So maybe these simple paper decorations are not the most artistic and even though they look weathered and worn, as they get unpacked each year they remind Paul and myself of happy times.  To be honest the more worn they look, the more ghostly they appear.  Thanks for visiting and hope you all are getting your crafty Halloween mojo going!
Lysa

Halloween Is In The House!

HALLOWEEN ... yes it is my favorite holiday.  Every year I sadly pack up all the summer things.  The dishes, the seashells, all the patriotic treasures. I say good bye to the swimming pool and all the bathing suits get put away.  And then down from the attic comes Halloween.  In all is orange glory. This year I was thinking as I unwrapped all my Halloween decorations which Halloween icon do I like best.  Was it the goblins, the witches, the black cats, or the pumpkins?  I just could not decide which it was that made me love Halloween so much.  Than I started to look around at things I had made over the years, and believe me there is a lot.  From wood shapes to paper and everything in between. You know all of us crafters are like that.  We toggle from craft to craft showing off any skill we learned along the way.  While I was standing in the center of the living room my eyes fell on this ribbon witch that I had made sometime back in 2000 or maybe 2001.  I just love her!  She is made from a bow. Yes a bow.  and two of the bow loops make her arms!  The rest of the bow is glued to a foam cone and a purchased doll head is glued to the top.  I made her broom from a twig from the yard and sisal fibers that were cut from a pre-made broom.  She has my favorite spiders in her hair and on her broom.  A pumpkin and goblin bell hang from her ribbon belt.  And can you see the goblin confetti hanging in her hair.  I smile when I see her.  I hope you all like her as much as I do. Thanks for stopping by and letting me share her with you.  Have a great night.
Lysa

Still Love'n The I

People, you should see my house, my laundry and oh my, the kitchen.  I am obsessed with the Imagine.  I have been running home from work each day to play with it.  I am laughing to myself that it is the last week of September and I still have the whole house decorated in summer mode.  I usually have Halloween going up by now.  At least Paul got the boxes down from the attic so maybe I can get summer packed away and all the fall and Halloween stuff put up this week end.  I think that just may be wishful thinking on my part as I cannot tear myself away from the Imagine.  I am glad I bought it.  I can play around with the carts until the updates arrive.  I will not focus on what it can't do. I will figure a way to use what it can do.  Here is a little word book I made using my grand daughters name. I used the country carnival cartridge. I can't wait to fill it with some pictures and a bit of writing.  I didn't change a thing.  It is all their (Provo's) clip art and I think it is really cute.  I so love the font and I am pretty sure I will use this cartridge a lot.  I hope you like it too.  Have a great night and thanks for visiting.
Lysa

A Halloween Tag

WOW .... I really am having a blast with the Imagine.  I am in love with this oh so swirly BOO from the Happy Haunting cartridge. I just could not resist using it again.  This tag will look great attached to a candy box or just sitting on my mantel next to my jack-o-lantern.  So sorry the picture does not show the dimension. The goblin, the BOO, the pumpkin and bat are all popped up but you cant see it. I really love how it came out.  Hope you like it too!  Thanks for visiting.
Lysa

And Here It Is ....

So there it is.  The first card I made using the Imagine.  I did like using it.  It did go quickly. But I really only used it to print the dotted orange square and the word Boo.  The current work around for that (until the gypsy update) was provided by Scrappyjess from the cricut message board (Here's a shout out to Thank Jessie) Here is her link: http://scrappyjess.blogspot.com I also cut the Gobblin and Bat from Happy Hauntings. OK so the fact is that I did not need the Imagine for any of it.  I had everything I needed right here in the Craftspace already.  I have loads of digi papers happily living inside of Huey and I certainly could have cut the Gobblin and Bat with my Expression. So than why did I need to purchase the Imagine?  Well the fact is I am hoping Provocraft comes through with some great updates.  I have always liked their products.  I love a lot of what they produce.  I am mostly a favor and tag maker and I have used my cricuts for many things along the way.  I Know ... I know the nay sayers think because they don't have an open source attitude we should not use their products.  People seem to think they are limited products that then limit their (the crafters) creativity.  I really don't think that.  If you buy a rubber stamp you get that 1 stamp in 1 size.  Your options are based on how you use that 1 stamp.  See that little bat up there.  Well I can make many changes to him. Fact is I can make him as you see him at 1 inch, cut from paper to hang out on a card or 12 inches cut from vinyl so that he can hang out on the back door at Halloween.  So that being said I will fully admit I knew going in that the Imagine would not be the end all, be all for my crafting needs.  I saw this as an opportunity to grow along with a currently new released printer/plotter combo unit.  Really people if I had $30,000.00 I just would have gotten a Roland.  But this is where we are at this point in time and ya know my Expression is in pretty bad shape.  Keep in mind, I am the nut who tried to cut a record album with it. My "E" will still be my main box cutter along with my KnK (cause nothing beats that studio software, really I mean NOTHING)  I am glad I got my Imagine (soon to have a name of it's own), I totally enjoyed the release hoopla and I can't wait to see how this product grows.

The Imagine is in the craft space

Well... There it is.  What can it do? What can't it do?  Am I glad that I bought it?
First and foremost I just got it about 18 hours ago.  I'll say right from the start it sure is pretty.  Just the kind of machine I have a tendency to fall for. People... it has a plug and one thing for sure if I can plug into an outlet I'm half way to heaven.  I was on board with this new cricut from the start.  Yup, from the first rumor that magically appeared along with a patten application right through the HSN release.  Following the Facebook and blogging updates and even the JustinTV interviews with the engineering dudes.  I knew going in this was going to be a machine that was being released without being it full glorious self.  Meaning I knew that I would be waiting for updates and "possible" software packages to be released. The fact is I knew going in that it would not be able to do what I wanted (needed) it to do.  So of course I bought it.  I plan on naming it some cute cleaver name as soon as I can think of one. Here are a few first thoughts I have about the imagine:
It was easy to use right out of the box.
The new mat adhesive is horrible (I did all the quick fix it tips like the warm water and the scrapper rub but it won't be long before I hit it up with some zig glue)
You can't easily tape down odd types of media as if you cover the black registration lines it won't read the mat.
It did a great job printing on and cutting fabric! (Cool)
I will need to buy a gypsy so that I can use it to make the kind of things I make.
Provo will really needs to introduce a software package for this or it won't hold a crafters interest for a long period of time as crafters need more than prefab-ed images.  They already have that on their regular computers. (com'on Provo we want to use our own art!!)
I won't be happy till I can import some form of graphic files like a jpeg or png file.  I have great digi files and papers of my own that I want to use.
The screen was bigger than I thought.  I can see it!
Love the RGB ability. That is something I will use.
Enough said for now.  You may have noticed that I did not post a picture of something that I made. Know why.  Well that would be because I haven't made a completed project yet.  But I have been printing and cutting stuff out for hours.  Hope to make something soon.  Have a great day!!
Lysa

Can't Get Enough of DSA2

So I ran home from work today to start to play with the kids Florida pictures.  Maybe this is not the best digi scrapbook page but I am learning this software and boy is it ever fun to use.  I practiced bending text and adding decorative edges to the photos.  So much fun.  Check out the Sarif website 'cause there is free (yes FREE) download version of this software and the vids on youtube are the bomb! LOVE IT!!!!! Thanks tonight go to Melinda for the vids and to ducky designs for her oh so cool graphics.  Thanks to you both for sharing, I'd be no kinda crafter without you all.  Have a great night!
Lysa

SHOUT OUT!!!!

Here we go People!  My weekly SHOUT OUT!
Today's shout out goes to (wait for it) (here it is)
www.thescrapcastle.com
I so love these guys (girls) ya know what I mean!  What a great online shopping experience. I placed my order for some MME Halloween paper that I needed on Saturday at about mid morning EST and I got home from work on Monday and my paper was here already.  Along with a little bonus I might add.  This website was pure costumer service at its best and I can't wait to place another order.  So to you Scrapcastle here is a SHOUT OUT and a note of thanks!!  I appreciate your service and wish you all the best for the coming crafty season!
Lysa
ps Did I mention that even with the shipping I got a better price than when I bought the paper at my local Michael's store.(which by the way is not so local) (gas does cost $$$!)

Halloween - 2010 Treats, DONE!

Hi All,
I am so excited that I have a handle on this years Halloween crafty goodies.  Each year I try for three items to make as a little give away to family and friends.  Now that I know what I am making it is easy to start really pushing out a large quantity.  I started with the pad cover (which I love!). Next was the Ghirardelli box to hold three Ghirardelli chocolates. I love the sides of the box that say "TRICKS" & "TREATS".  Last, was the little pouch to hold two Ghirardelli's. Yum....I just love all three.  I ended up using DSA2 for all the graphics.  The boxes were all cut on the cricut using SCAL.  The paper on the candy holders is from My Mind's Eye spider web collection that I ran through my HP printer.  The pad cover paper is Martha Stewart. And of course (what I consider my) signature spider is everywhere.(He is a fav of mine!!)  The only thing missing is that there is no Hersey nuggets.  Last night I placed my Stampin up paper order for the fall holiday season, so maybe, just maybe when I get my hands on the new wicked paper I will have to add a nugget project into the mix.  Have a great day and thanks for visiting.
Lysa

A Second Look

I had some time to take another look at the Halloween graphic I made yesterday.  I left it posted even though I saw things that I wanted to change. First off I had printed it on photo paper and had tried to add some marker ink.  The photo paper didn't take the marker as well as I hoped. I also needed to work on centering the parts and adding some shadows.  I also felt the entire graphic was way to large and needed to be smaller.  I took out the background and this time I printed it on some Martha Stewart card stock.  I like it much more with no color added to it.  I think this would make a great bookmark to go along with a scary paperback non edible treat for Halloween. Ummm, I could see it now! Thanks for visiting,
Lysa

 

Halloween Is Kind Of Crazy!

I had so much fun today playing with DSA2.  I learned so much from videos on youtube and I knew this would be a great graphic for some note pads that I bought at A.C. Moore at the end of Halloween last year.  Sorry for oh so sad pictures I take!  I am really starting to feel the Halloween Mojo now!

Have a great evening and thanks for visiting,
Lysa

A Shout Out To Serif Digital Scrapbook Artist and Denise Too!

Hi All,
Happy Weekend To Everyone!!  I have been falling behind on so many things lately, one of which is all of my pictures. Last winter I had made a commitment to myself that I would keep up on the 2010 year of pictures.  After all it was the start of a new decade.  Well, true to form I don't think I printed one picture this year and here we are in August.  I got bit by some inspiration from Denise (Hi Denise) over at Purple Paper Paradise when she started to get going with her digital pages.  They are awesome!  Denise is doing hybird pages combining digi with the traditional layout style. AWESOME!!! So inspired by her blog I put down the Halloween paper and went back to my friend Huey.  I had bought DSA2 back in I think February.  I have been using it to make bookmarks and coasters.  Melinda over at the yahoo Funtime group has made some great youtube videos.  Please check out this software.  I think it is fantastic.  I think the company is in England but I am not sure.  They even have a free version available.  I have been enjoying playing around with the software and only wish I had hours and hours to spend learning everything it can do.  I think the next page I make I will try Denise's technique and and add some traditional embellishments to my page. Thanks Denise and thanks to DSA2 also.  Have a great day and thanks for visiting.
Lysa

And For When You Need A Quickie!

Nothing but nothing can beat the Sour Cream Container.  I just love this favor.  So super simple for any occasion. There are instructions all over the internet for these but really all you need is a piece of paper about 5 by 4 inches.  Though,  I have made them in all sizes.  Some bigger than others.  I have even done a photo template of my granddaughter as a birthday party favor.  You don't even really need the crimp-er as you can set a piece of sticky strip in the end seams and use your score board to create the crimp.  The crimp-er does make it go a bit faster. You are simply creating a tube that you fill and crimp in opposite directions.  I love these because when I need a last minute favor or even filler for a group of favors, they are quick and easy.  Enjoy the evening and thanks for visiting!
Lysa

Trick or Treat ... Something Sweet

I had a blast with this carrier box and tag from last year.  I just loved the saying "Eat, Drink, and Be Scary". I mean I aspire to these three things on daily basis.  I saw the saying as a rubber stamp (pretty sure it was Stampin up) but I needed my own take on it.  So Huey, the vaio helped out.  The carrier was the sizzix die that I made digital so that I could cut them with the plotter.  I made 20 or so of these.  The names and tags were all done on the computer and then hand punched with Stampin Up punches.  I think these came out great.  The carrier base is recycled report covers and the designer paper is Stampin Up "Cast a Spell" from last year.  That paper is now available as a digital download from them.  I just loved that paper and was so excited when I was able to get it as a digi paper.  I think my favorite part is the silver thread and the spider.  The side you see has the Ghirardelli chocolates and on the other side is 6 wrapped Hershey nuggets.  They went over big.  This year I am thinking a coffin box and have started working on them.  I have a few days off from work next week so I plan on really getting organized for the fall crafting season.  I feel the summer is coming to a crashing halt, and I am so not ready for the cooler weather.  Hope you all are enjoying the day and thanks for visiting!
Lysa

Signs of Halloween

Hi Everyone,
Welcome to the weekend! I have been digging through old pictures to find pictures of Halloween crafts that I have made and I must say I get side tracked.  I have been loving seeing pictures of family and friends from past years as I hunt for pictures to use on the blog.  My goal was to focus on pictures that I could post but it has been wonderful to see all these great pictures from the past.  I also have come to the conclusion that I should take a photography class.  Really I can't take a picture worth a darn.  So please look past the poor photography and try to imagine how nice the object looks up close.  I hope to really start banging out some Halloween treats this weekend.  I made this sign back in '06.  The font is my most favorite Halloween font called "Agatha".  I just love it and use it for almost all my Halloween text.  I used my KnK to make these signs and I have the file if anyone wishes to have it. The text has been converted to path so if you don't have the font you will still be able to cut it.  Just leave a comment and I will be more than happy to share. Have a great weekend and thanks for visiting. Lysa

It's August and We Know What That Means ....!

... For all who know me it simply means ... HALLOWEEN
Yes I have already started.  I make a lot of Halloween crafts and if I don't start in August it would "spell" disaster.  So because I was not involved in blogging this time last year, I feel the need to throw in the old with the new.  I know I already posted my paper ribbon witch and now here comes one of Halloween 2009 sweet little treats.  I need to say I am a candy specific kinda girl.  Most of the treats I make are for adults.  I can't really see lollipops (though I do love them) for my particular target audience. As you may know I am a Hersey Nugget freak but I also love, love, love Ghirardelli chocolates.  I use them all the time.  I have to wonder if all the families that receive these year after year are thinking ..."oh no, not the Ghirardelli's again!!" yeah I bet they don't and I always mix things up a bit.  There is always an array of chocolate.  I make sure there are dark chocolate, and milk chocolate, almonds etc.  People ... I do know my chocolate!  So here is a simple fold over for a Ghirardelli chocolate.  And please note my little plastic spider. He is a fav of mine.  I also had the pleasure of using my xyron creatopia, which I love but as usual I can't find a adhesive refill locally.  This had become a pet peeve of mine.  I know the internet allows me to freely buy, buy, buy but I really do want to just walk into a store and be able to purchase the product without using my credit card.  I hope you like this project and my tip is that if you have a favorite candy and want to make a simple fold over all you need to do is measure your candy.  I find when you use a simple base and focus on the outer decorations you will come up with something fabulous.  If you want the specific measurements for this leave me a comment or send me an email at LhueyC@aol.com.  And please take a minute to ahhhh over the stampin up designer papers.  I so love their paper!!  Thanks for visiting, Lysa

Paper Raffia Ribbon - Why Can't I Find It?

Hi Everyone,
I remember doing lots and lots of paper twist crafts back in the late '80's and early '90's.  I loved that stuff.  I wove baskets and made wreaths and even life size dolls out of it (the base was a tomato cage).  It was fairly inexpensive and oh so available.  Well while looking for pictures of Halloween projects I have done I came across a picture (as always not a great picture) of this little witch. Her body is made from the paper raffia ribbon and her cloak is made from regular paper twist.  I've done angels like this as well for the Christmas season.  I still have this witch and was thinking I'd like to make some new ones as mine is getting pretty frail in her old age. I also would love to make a few as gifts for Halloween this year. Sadly, I am pretty sure its not going to happen.  I have been all over the internet looking for the paper raffia that was made by MPR ribbon.  I am having no luck what so ever.  I also could not find a source for the regular paper twist.  I will try on Monday to see if MPR in High Point N.C. is still in business and try to give them a call.  In the meantime if anyone can clue me into a source for the paper twist I would be one happy crafter!  Thanks for visiting and enjoy the rest of the weekend!
Lysa

CHA is almost here

Hello All,
Yes, CHA summer is upon us.  Soon all of us who are not attending can watch video reviews and read about all the fall crafty fun that will soon be available in a store near us.  I am on the edge of my seat waiting for a glimpse of the new Cricut Imagine.  Now we all know the boards are a buzz with info and even a picture.  There is rumor of a contest.  I myself have posted all over the place that I will be first on line for this.  Yeah I don't even have a clue about specs or what it can do. But I am telling you now I am on line to buy.  Yes, that would be me.  Printing and cutting my heart out for the fall and winter '10 season.  I am on board!  A long awaited stand alone printer cutter. Why. that's every papercrafter's dream.  Really it has been my dream since the wishblade.  I love that blue machine.  It works, but not good enough.  I waste paper due to alignment issues.  I have also used my KNK and gee it is a bit complicated for print and cuts, and yes I have used the hinge method with the cricut but .... none of them are on the mark.  I know that there are industrial versions on the market that can fulfill my needs but  a whopping price tag of about $3000.00. I just can't swing it.  I mean I am an average Joette.  I can't do it. So if Provocraft can bring that into my space for under $1000.00 then I am thinking they may have a winner.  Without any info I need to say it would have to be able to import any .jpeg or .png file.  I would have to be able to draw my own cut lines to surround the imported image.  I would like to be able to export in a standard file format like an .svg.  I would like to be able to buy replacement ink locally. I would like to be able to use the cartridges I already own.  Will it fulfill these hopes?  Ahhh, time will surely tell.  I know I can't wait.  Sorry for the rant but my family and friends just don't want to hear me talk about it anymore. Thanks for visiting and check out the just a scrappin link and joy's life link for updated info on the Imagine.  Those girls have it all goin' on.
Lysa

Hello HALLOWEEEN!!

OK, so here is the thing, I started writing this post like an hour ago.  I keep erasing because I am not sure what I am trying to say.  Let me start off with - "Don't you just love this candle holder?" come on, sure you do. Well it comes straight out of  a Better Homes and Garden magazine from Halloween 2000.  I fell in love with it from the minute I saw it.  If I wanted to make it I would have to buy 5 rubber stamps, a glass vase, numerous specialty papers, and an array of basic craft supplies. People please it was the year 2000.  Did ya hear about Y2K.  My daughter was in like 5th grade.  Who had money?  Well I didn't. Mostly because of, well ya know taxes, braces and oh yeah...CRAFT SUPPLIES.  So trying ever so hard not to be disrespectful of the magazine and the designer and the rubber stamp manufacturer and of course my parents who raised me to not take what is not mine ... I did the worst thing ever.  I scanned in the pictures from the magazine and then cleaned them up with Kai's Photosoap (Really ... who even remembers that software) printed the cutouts onto card stock with my Canon bubblejet BJ-10 printer and cut them out by hand.  Even the spider web background. Yup, thought I was as slick as a counterfeiter do'in $100.00 bills.  I made 5 of them for friends.  When I get sued I know just where to find them and I am going to give 'um back.  Well now its 2010.  I still got the magazine.  The designer was Roberta Royce (sorry Roberta) The rubber stamp manufacturer was Visual Image Printery (sorry VIP, I tried to track you guys to buy the pumpkin stamp but alas you are gone) So to all I say I am sorry but boy does that luminary so look sweet every Halloween, glowing.
So by now most would think that this post was about my need to purge my soul of my rip off tendencies. Yeah, NO its more about how I discovered how to blend my computer with my crafts.  I find that I love Arts and Crafts but always felt a bit skewed.  I always looked at items and thought I can make that.  I seemed to struggle with my own ideas and seem to find it easier to put my spin on things that I see.  My point (as wordy as it is) is if you can't create an original idea from within, do your best to interpret something you've seen.  There is no right and wrong in crafting.  There is simply a feeling of "Hey, I made that".  I've grown as a crafter and do more original things now then I did in the past but I will never forget my starting points because when we forget our beginnings that is when we fail at our futures. As always thanks for visiting.
Lysa

And The Bead Goes On ....

Now I know for sure I am avoiding a purse project with all these CapriSun pouches.  I mean it is for sure, I am totally avoiding the thought of sitting down at the sewing machine and sewing these foil squares into a tote bag.  It's not that I don't like tote bags.  It's more like ... "It's so been done"  OK, it's true, I have absolutely no CapriSun crafty tote bag Mojo.  At night, I have thoughts of throwing out all the CapriSun pouches or better yet dreams of folding them into little origami birds so that whilst I'm asleep they fly away. My heart was in the right place, I know it was.  It all seemed so cool. All those silvery pouches lined up, Just sitting there waiting for me to add in bit of this and a pinch of that and they would somehow transform into some sort of crafty-licious goodness.  People, I was wrong.   I do not love the oh so shiny, hard to work with CapriSun foil pouches.  I do however, still love my Rexlace plastic lacing.  I thought back to the early days (daze) of cutting up my Mom's magazines to create paper beads.  I thought back to the hours of rolling paper onto toothpicks to create some of the nicest beads I had ever seen.  So, I said to myself, let's give it a try.  Here are pictures of the results.  I just want to say one thing ...... Forget the glue stick and white glue.  You will need crazy glue to stop  these bad boys from unwinding.  I did have fun making the beads but I am so putting the rest of the pouches into an envelop and putting the purse project on the back burner.  Hope you like the beads and the bracelet, and thanks for visiting.  Lysa

WOW that's a lot of holes ...

OK, so the new Cinch binding punch came to live at our house.   So of course now all my focus is on punching a lot of round holes in just about anything that crosses my craft desk. YES, I did try to punch a record.  NO, it didn't work.  But  it was worth a try.  The Cinch did eat right through the chipboard and card stock that I used on this post it pad holder.  I like the Cinch well enough but to be honest I like my GBC square hole office binding system better.  The upside to the Cinch is its ability to control the punch dies, meaning you can somewhat control the spacing of the hole punches.  The GBC at my work has that feature but my home one does not.   I love  the post it pad size that is in this little notebook.  It is a 4X4 square.  Rory has staked her claim to it already.  Now in reality I probably would have punched smaller holes by hand but our goal was to play and experiment with the Cinch and of course use a capri sun pouch as well.  I have two other capri sun projects happily floating around in my head but the weather has been so nice that we are hardly in the house.  We will see if they get done as my crafty mojo is already turning to thoughts of Halloween.  Have a great day and thanks for visiting.  Lysa

NOT A GREAT PICTURE BUT ....

Ok, So here is the first Capri Sun project.  I am a Barn Star freak.  I just love them.  So the first thing Rory and I came up with was this Capri Sun Barn Star.  Rory laced the whole outside with lime green plastic RexLace and the star was cut on a the Cricut using Make the Cut software.  We cut a white paper star and used the new Xyron Creatopia on the Capri Sun material. We are not sure where to hang our star but we sure had fun collecting the juice box holders and coming up with at least one project that used a recycled medium.  Hopefully we will move onto a purse project next but the pool and beautiful weather seem to call us to the outside of the house.  Summer is passing so quickly and I am beginning to realize that maybe just maybe I am a winter crafter.  No can't be as I have to make a diaper cake this weekend.  Thanks for visiting and if anyone wants to leave me tips on taking pictures I would sure appreciate it!
Lysa

Capri Sun - The Summer Project!

Wow People, can you believe May is coming to an end!  I have been so busy with getting the house in summer mode that it seems crafting has taken a back seat.  BUT NO! because while I was spring cleaning and getting all the outside goodies going things were growing in the craft room.  Yes it's true, I said to the little one (fave and only grandchild) "you should save all those Capri Sun juice pouches you drink, maybe we could make something out of them".  Yeah well, can someone explain this?  Had I said "maybe you should turn your socks right side out before putting them in the hamper"  Yeah, you know I would get no response, but ask for Capri Sun pouches?  WOW, you should see the response.  I'm pretty sure she would mug someone in the streets to secure what is now a precious commodity.  All kidding aside,  the summer project for 2010 will be a Capri Sun juice pouch tote bag.  It's perfect.  I was looking for something that Rory (fave and only grandchild) could work along with me on.  Then in my own head I started thinking about that plastic craft lace.  You know like 2 or so posts ago.  I was going to teach her a  spiral lanyard stitch, make a key chain, and call it a summer.  But then it hit me, Plastic lace, Capri Sun pouch! Well that's just a marriage made in heaven.  Now I know these tote bags and purses have been around for like 10 years or so.  I have done my best not to look for a pattern or any other info online.  I do know that people have been sewing these pouches together to create great little crafty goodies like purses and pencil cases etc.  So my goal along with the fave Rory is to make something fun and colorful. So check back to see what we have made. Thanks for visiting!

Lysa