confetti by lexi

tag it!

 

one of the easiest ways to dress up or personalize your packages at christmas is with gift tags and mini cards.  here is a small assortment of hand stamped ones that i created last year.  i also sell a bunch of personalized ones, both stamped and created on the computer or a little of both, which i hope to photograph and post soon.  i used the first one here for holiday tipping.  the card inside is a folded mini card the size of a business card, perfect for concealing folded bills.  the vellum envelope allows the design to show, but protects the contents from slipping out.  tied to a mini note pad or small set of cards, it gave my tips more of a gift feeling.   i love giving gifts and the tag is the icing on the cake!

:) lexi

happy bird-day to you!

 

usually this little bird is singing "a little note."  but for this card, she's going for the whole song!  this card was sent as part of fellow amuseaddict rhonda's birthday blast--she recieved it and now i can post it!  as i was deciding what to create for her and trying to come up with something specific to her, this idea hit.  i had a few extra elzybells squares from my last pc pro swap card on my desk and all of a sudden it occurred to me, the bird is singing!  and what does rhonda do?  she sings.  happy birthday.  to everyone who has a birthday in our group.  perfect!!!  the song continues inside:  happy bird-day dear rhonda, happy bird-day to you!  i simple omitted "to you" when stamping that line and added "dear rhonda," matching the lettering and curve as close as i could!  this particular sentiment is from stampin' up!, but a muse has a similar one or you could even print it.  it's such a cute word play!  christmas preps are in full swing, so it's back to work for me...

enjoy!
:) lexi

ideas for free ~ craft critique

 

i love creating at christmas time, especially when it involves paper and ink--ornaments, gifts and cards, oh my!  need some great ideas for cool christmas projects?  it's beginning to look a lot like christmas at craft critique!  check out my article there today to find out about these ornaments and a great resource for free ideas.  it's a good thing!

:) lexi

p.s. the girls were holding the bird for the first time on thanksgiving and i just loved the quick pictures i took, especially the one of mignon--it kind of reminds me of the elzybells stamp from yesterday!

swapping pc pro style {4}

 

today i give you my fourth and final card for the paper crafts wcmd swaps!  the theme, all snowed in; the host, pc pro wendy johnson .  that brings my grand total to 80 cards made and mailed away.  now, i can't wait to see the returns--it's like getting a new magazine, but you can actually touch the cards instead of just look at pictures of them!  Like all of the others, this card features snowflake serenade by papertrey ink--with a theme like all snowed in, it was a natural fit and the perfect back drop to this winter elzybell stamp.  by accident i found out that the martha stewart velvet ribbon looked like a scarf when the edges frayed, which was a perfect look for a cold winter card.  the thick ribbon was hard to tie, so when i discovered the heart brad in my stash, it was the perfect solution, and another way to bring in my pop color.  i love shopping around my studio and discovering old purchases!  a little glitter on elzybell, the bird and the snow is the perfect finishing touch--and while it's hard to see here, there are at least 19 other people who'll definitely get to appreciate it up close and personal!

happy monday...
:) lexi

o christmas tree

 

after seeing linda's post about the holiday a muse window based on a card by juliehrr, i had to get the little tree stamp.  i don't know how i missed in on my previous holiday stamp purchases!  since i love julie's decked out nest and already had the three other stamps she used, that's what i stamped first--i wanted to use my new 4 bar notes, but otherwise no need to reinvent the wheel!   but, really, this little tree just spoke to me and here are a few things that came next...

 

replacing the flowers on the table with little tree is a great way to turn this bella stamp into a holiday chat.  the martini shaker turned coffee go cup (from a muse clear stamps party time ~ original idea thanks to jennifer pebbles!) is the perfect finishing touch.

 

i loved the elzybells pulling the tree, but forgot to add it to my cart.  then i realized i could replace the little singing bird with little tree and get a similar feel.  i wonder what else i could put on that stump!

 

every igloo needs a tree, too!  i used the holiday garland for a fellow amuseaddicts member--if the focal layer were smaller, you'd see a little more, but i think it works nicely here anyway.

 

and last, but not least, little tree is perfect for calling attention to this tree lot--i would shop there!

o christmas tree, o christmas tree,
much pleasure doth thou bring me!

:) lexi

happy thanksgiving!

 

just a quick hello this morning to wish everyone a happy thanksgiving.  i can't post without a picture, so here are my girls.  mignon had native american day at school, so i made a tunic for her to wear.  of course colleen had to have one too and my decorations immediately became props!

may your day be filled with family, food and football!
:) lexi

no peeking penguin!

 

after putting the santa hat on baby penguin for the mini christmas gift cards last week, i just had to pair him with this "no peeking" sentiment on a card.  and it works for the current amuseaddicts challenge to make christmas cards!  this one would be perfect to send early with a gift that has to wait for christmas morning.  baby penguin, santa hat and paper are a muse; ribbon, buckle and sentiment (retired) are su!

ready to eat tomorrow?!
:) lexi

cowgirl update!

 

yay!  the cowgirl card finally made it--right along with this follow up card mailed exactly one week later!  what's up with that!?  anyway, don't you love this fondue pot?  it's from party time, one of the new a muse clear stamp sets, and was the stamp that originally drew me to the set.  and these new 4-bar note cards are so cool too.  i only got a couple to start with, but i know i'll be going back for more!

enjoy...
:) lexi

howdy cowgirl!

 

just squeezing in a somewhat fall card before christmas totally takes over!  this one was so quick and easy--which is why i fell in love with a muse in the first place!  sadly this l'il cowgirl has been stuck in the us postal system for almost a week and a half now, when she was only supposed to travel one state away.  i was going to wait until the card reached it's destination to share, but since it's not there yet, i wanted to go ahead and post it--i hate the thought of it stuck in a mail truck or worse, the floor of a sorting room.  it may be simple, but it's still cute...

yee-haw!
:) lexi 

swapping pc pro style {3}

 

today i have card number three from my round of papercrafts wcmd swaps hosted by the pc pros--the host, none other than nichole heady; the swap, versatile verses.  both of the other swaps featured snowflake serenade by papertrey ink, so i felt compelled to use it again here--duh, she designed it!  it's new and has been sitting on my desk *and* the snowflakes are the perfect backdrop for christmas!  the idea was to create a card with a verse from a favorite holiday song or poem.  i love all christmas music, so it was hard to choose, but finally, inspired by the snowflakes, i went with the opening verse from winter wonderland.  it pretty much doesn't snow here in new orleans, but we had an actual white christmas a few years ago and it was beautiful and so much fun!

in addition to snowflake serenade, i used take a bough for the branch and ornament.  to add snow to my scene i printed the verse on white cardstock, trimmed the bottom and width and tore the top edge, adding stardust stickles along the tear to make it glisten.  i also added snow to the branch with liquid applique, dipped into clear glitter while wet, before heating.  the ornament is stamped on pink for a bit of extra color and punched with a small circle punch--of course, it needed shimmer too, so i ran it through my xyron sticker maker on the top side and pushed it into the glitter before adhering it to the card.  i love sparkle and shine!

have a great day!
:) lexi

celebrate

 

this is another of my piece of cake cards.  my goal here was to play with the frame.  i love the loops and swirls on it, which make it great for adding other pattern details as well, like i did down the folded edge.  i chose basic grey on cool caribbean, a color combination that i love.  the flowers in the background are stamped with versamark and i embellished the card with mini jewels, a few glitter pen dots and a maya road sheer white blossom.  the shape of the petals matched the flower stamp perfectly, but it kind of overwhelmed the frame, so i cut it in half and added it to each side.  i almost didn't keep it, but once i placed the pieces and then looked at it without, it seemed that something was missing, so i put them back!  i hope you're having a nice weekend...

:) lexi

have your cake & eat it too!

 

today was another happy stamper day for me!  nichole heady spotlighted this piece of cake card in her monthly honorable mention post following the guest star stamper contest--thank you so much, nichole! 

i started entering the contest way back in the very first month, and i'm a bit compulsive about it now, even after a few 'mentions and winning last month!  or, maybe that should be especially after all that.  i often set my sights on honorable mention, because i know the competition is stiff and it eases a little pressure on myself.  but i think it would feel too weird *not* to send something in at all! 

on this card, everything but the silverware is papertrey ink (piece of cake, plus the little faux ribbon touches).  the silverware is from a trip to vegas and viva las vegastamps a couple of years ago.  i thought the detail on them was perfect for the scallops and dainty cake.  the cake is foam mounted and i used regular scallop scissors and a piercing tool on the placemat, mini scallop scissors on the napkin and fruit punch stickles for a little finishing detail.

thanks so much for stopping by!
:) lexi

quick minis for christmas

 

i didn't think i'd have time to participate in the current amuseaddicts yahoo group challenge to stamp christmas gift tags or packaging.  but an extra colored and punched a muse holiday house was sitting there on my desk and it dawned on me... instant mini card!  these are 2.5 inches, based on the size of the marvy giga square scallop punch and will be perfect to stick on a gift or, with a small hole punched in the spine near the top, tied around a bottle of wine.  stamp a few images, punch, color and layer on the mini card and voila! easy peasy!  i've gotta run now, but i'll try to post some close ups with credits in my splitcoast gallery later tonight...

tgif!
:) lexi

soft & still

 

when i was creating the embossed resist snowflake background for the holiday lights card the other day, i decided to create a few extra to see what else i could do with it.  i wanted to use the pieces and parts sentiments from same set (snowflake serenade by papertrey ink) for the focal point, so i cut the front panel of the card, turned it sideways and mounted it on a shimmery green card base.  i love how the sentiment is in pieces so you can mix and match it, change the color, etc.  when i look at this card now, it seems pretty easy and straightforward, but color presented a challenge for me, since the blue and red were decided from the other card.  in the end, i'm happy how it turned out, but i spent more time than i should have trying to make it just right!

:) lexi

heartfelt thanks

 

a quick post tonight...  this is a card i did a while back, but never got around to posting.  the colors and sentiment are perfect for fall and thanksgiving, so it works better now anyway!  all stamps are from butterfly kisses by papertrey ink; paper and ink are su! plus a little watercolor paper, probably from michael's.  i have a few cards using last month's papertrey releases in the next few days--just in time for new ones to debut!

:) lexi

swapping pc pro style {2}

 

here is the second of my wcmd swap cards, this time hosted by pc pro alisa.  with holiday lights as a theme, i just had to use the holiday house by a muse since it's all lit up!  once i decided that, i couldn't get past the one in this post of my a muse guest designer series.  so i decided to case myself with some significant changes--i wanted snow gently falling and a soft, mottled night shade of blue, so i masked off the top area of a standard card, stamped and clear embossed the snowflakes (by papertrey ink) and sponged ballet blue ink over them.  and since there were 20 cards to make, i traded dots of stickles for the a muse twinkle stickers on the original.  finally, i also changed the color of the house a bit as well as the sentiment.  one of my favorite touches that you can't see in the picture is that the lights are colored with copic spica markers and they shine like little lights should!

back to stamping...
:) lexi

pillow fight!

 
 

for today, i have an invitation i re-created recently for a sleepover party.  this design is particularly fun since you can design the pillowcase to match the occasion or honoree and the invitation takes on a personal feel.  here, the party was an overnight at the zoo, so i went with a wild animal theme.   some details on the pillow insert include the ticking pattern printed with the words, slight trimming to give a bit of a lumpy shape, stitching drawn on the edges and a tag for the rsvp--not to be removed under penalty of law!  to make the pillowcase, i scored and trimmed it first into the shape below with tabs for sticking it together...

 

i used eclipse masking tape to get a crisp edge on the leopard "hem" and a straight edge to add the marker "piping", followed by random stamping for the main section.  after folding and securing the edges, i free-cut a wavy edge for a little pizzaz where the pillow peeks out.

here's the original, with a girlfriend's sleepover theme and a blue ticked pillow--the possibilities are endless!

 

thanks for stopping by!
:) lexi

'tis the season?

 

i'm not actually ready for christmas to be here yet, but i know many customers and other readers are, so here is another in my "oldies, but goodies" christmas series.  this was for a party celebrating two friends' birthdays during the christmas season, but could easily be altered by changing the phrases.  like my other invitations, i figured out my layout and printed the words first (including the check mark!), four on a page; then cut, stamped, colored and layered.  i also created matching return address labels to dress up the envelope.  this particular stamp was in the michael's dollar bin last year, but you could easily transform any martini glass into a christmas martini by doodling your own candy cane!

cheers!
:) lexi

mignon's a star too...

but being two years older and wiser, she's a little less hammy and often lets me take a picture of her only if i promise not to post it.  so here's one with no such strings attached!

 

mignon does like to take control of the camera though, so in order to give her equal time as l'il sis, here are a few pics she took around memphis last month...

 

i should get her hooked on scrapping her photos next!  i promise to get more cards posted soon...

happy friday!
:) lexi

starring colleen

she loves to pose for the camera & i love to share...

 
it's a bird... it's a plane... about a month ago, we had a super hero party to go to, and well, with only girls in house, we're a little short on super hero gear.  but then inspiration hit and a real life superbella was born!!!

 
i think i mentioned colleen doing the robot at the wedding we attended in memphis last month--she was the non-stop life of the party!

 
all that dancing wore her out, but she still wasn't ready to give up the music!

 
our latest photo shoot was all about teeth, or lack of them!  this picture was taken last thursday when colleen lost the second of her two front teeth, but it's already outdated--on friday she lost one to the top right, and today, another one on the bottom.  she's keeping the tooth fairy on her toes!

big toothless smiles...
:) lexi