Project 100 - Catching Up

I usually don't post photos of all my crafty projects.  Let's be serious - not everything is worth blogging.  But since I have committed myself to Project 100, I want to be accountable to y'all by showing that I am actively creating my way through 100 projects.  I know it's a bit of a modge podge of projects, but I need to get caught up with my online tally!!!


1.  Charlotte Thank You Cards.  For some reason, it is so hard for me to throw away Charlotte's drawings and paintings.  I know that to most people, they're nothing special.  But to me, the process of sitting down and creating art with her is so precious.  So instead of keeping every.single.piece.of.paper, I decided to repurpose many of them into her embarrassingly belated thank you cards.  ::hanging head in shame::

I cut down Charlotte's watercolor paintings and various pieces of cardstock/ patterned paper down to 4.25" x 5.5".  Next, I ran the paper through an embossing machine with a journaling embossing folder to create writing lines on the backside of the card.  Glue the artwork onto the patterned paper.  I stamped a "thank you" sentiment directly onto the artwork.  To finish the card off, I just machine stitched around the edges.  Super simple but I really like them.  


Supplies:  Stamp (Paper Smooches); Embossing Folder (Sizzix).


2.  100th Birthday Card.  This card was custom ordered through my facebook/ esty shop.  It was such an honor to make something for such a momentous celebration.  100 years - wow.

Supplies:  Patterned Paper (Crate Paper, Sassafras); Cardstock (American Crafts); Brads (American Crafts); Stamps (Lawn Fawn); Other (Silhouette Cameo, Jenni Bowlin Inks, Uniball Signo White Gel Pen).


3.  San Francisco Birthday Wishes.  Here is another custom birthday card for a San Francisco recipient, also ordered through the facebook/ etsy shop.

Supplies:  Patterned Paper (Echo Park, American Crafts); Cardstock (American Crafts, Core'dinations, Martha Stewart); Buttons (My Mind's Eye); Stamps (Lawn Fawn, Paper Smooches); Digital Files (Silhouette Online Store); Other (Silhouette Cameo, Fiskars Cloud Punch, Provo Craft Embossing Folder, Jenni Bowlin Inks).


4.  Blueberry Birthday Party.  I've been helping a friend with the paper products for her daughter's Blueberries for Sal themed birthday party.  Here are some sneaks at the banner, favor tags and invite I made for them.  Can't wait for the actual party next week!

5.  Nursery Name Decor.  An Addie B Designs customer requested some custom artwork to match her son's nursery decor.  I really love how the handstitching turned out on this one.

Supplies:  Digital Files (Silhouette Online Store); Other (Silhouette Cameo, We R Memory Keepers Floss).


6.  Bib Baby Card.  You've seen these before but I still love how adorable they are.  Here is another baby bib card made to coordinate with a custom Addie B Designs bib and burp cloth set.  

Supplies:  Patterned Paper (Echo Park, American Crafts); Cardstock (American Crafts); Embellishments (Sassafras); Stamps (Lawn Fawn); Letter Stickers (Cosmo Cricket); Digital Files (Lettering Delights); Other (Silhouette Cameo, We R Memory Keepers Floss).


7.  Superbowl Cupcake Toppers.  This was one of my first attempts using the print and cut feature on the Silhouette Cameo.  LOVE!!!  I even had a customer purchase a set via our facebook page!

8.  Glass etched glass.  I think I might do a tutorial on this at some point.  I'm slowly getting obsessed with glass etching and the Silhouette Cameo lets me do it with such precision!

9.  Face Die Cuts.  And finally, someone saw my hairclip cards on etsy and requested some face die cuts.  I was so excited to get a "random customer" and ended up making her 50 of these die cuts with various colors and hair styles!  Here's a sample.

So now, the grand total as of today (and counting in project speak)?  12 thank you cards, 2 birthday cards, 1 birthday invite, 1 birthday banner, 2 birthday tags, 1 bib card, 1 nursery decor, 2 cupcake toppers, 1 glass etched beer pint, 3 face die cuts.  That's 26 projects in this blog post!!!  Wohoo!!!


Project 100 Update:  74 down, 26 to go.

Vanlikethecar Designs - Grand Opening

This past weekend, I was honored to be a part of a Handmade Open House graciously hosted by Autumn, an amazing crafter and owner of Beauty by the Sea Designs.  This was my first time ever participating in an event like this.  Let me tell you, I had so much fun chatting it up with other crafters, friends and shoppers as they browsed through all the beautiful handmade gifts that were for sale.

Participating in the open house also gave me the perfect excuse to finally launch Vanlikethecar Designs, an online craft shop to showcase my handmade paper crafts (and sometimes non-paper crafts).  

I have no idea what will become of this tiny little venture but I think that it will be fun and the perfect distraction while we I'm on my east coast sabbatical (or so I like to call it). So if you're in the need for some custom cards, birthday banners or other crafty gifts, please keep me in mind.  And in the meantime, please visit us either on facebook or etsy!

And since no blog post is ever quite complete without some photos, here is a sampling of what we have in the shop!

1.  Yarn Wreath.  This is an 8 inch wreath hand wrapped with a stunning gray colored yarn and then embellished with handmade pink and yellow felt flowers.  I then wrapped the top with gray satin ribbon.  Perfect for an interior door and the colors make for year-round decor. 

2.  Hair Clip Greeting Cards.  I got this idea from Under a Cherry Tree and I think it's the perfect gift when you want to send just a little something more than a card.  All the hair clips are handmade with American Crafts ribbon and lined with white velvet.  If you want a custom hair color, just let me know and I can make one for you.

3.  Glass Etched Ornaments.  Using my Cricut to make vinyl templates, I can etch into any glass or mirror surface (think ornaments, glasses, mirrors, frames, etc.).  While I don't have any pictures of the beer glasses (Justin took them to a White Elephant Party and I was told they were quite the hit), here are some of the ornaments I've made.

4.  Custom Banners.  I love to make custom banners for the holidays, birthday parties - basically, any and all types of celebrations.  Most banners are made up of 3-5 layers of high quality cardstock and include some pretty adorable details.  Here are a few samples which I recently made for a friend's Baby Sprinkle and for Charlotte's upcoming birthday.  Just message me if you want to put in a custom order.

So please go and "like" us on facebook and visit us over on etsy.  I'll try to post new items over on the blog every once in awhile.  But as always, thanks to everyone for their continued love and support.  It truly does mean the world to me.

Happy Holidays!!!!