Thanksgiving with Imaginisce

We're celebrating Thanksgiving at Imaginisce and today I have a quick way to add a little fun to your holiday table.

We always have Thanksgiving at my mother-in-law's house, so I thought I would create some fun place cards for our family dinner. Of course, I had to use the new Bushel of Fall collection, which really helped me because I have been so busy lately (I let the cuteness do the work for me!) With the die-cuts, the gorgeous jewels, and a bit of foam tape, I had some sweet little place holders to spruce up the holiday table!

Be sure to visit the Imaginisce blog for more Thanksgiving inspiration!

BEAN NOTES

(die cuts, patterned paper, jewels from Bushel of Fall collection) Imaginisce; (card stock) Stampin' Up!; (gel pen) Tsukineko

Give Thanks for the Simple Things

This Thursday is Thanksgiving and it's such a special holiday in our family. My dad always felt that it was the most important holiday of the year because for him it's one about being thankful for family and loved ones. He still feels that way and much of that sentiment has been passed along to my own little family. I wanted to create a card that captured that idea.

I used this sweet image from the Thankful set from Taylored Expressions and I absolutely love the sentiment. I decided to keep the card fairly simple, which I thought was appropriate. This Thanksgiving, I hope you all have a wonderful, safe, and happy holiday and may it be filled with the delight of simple things.

BEAN NOTES

Stamps: Thankful (Taylored Expressions); Patterned Paper: Gnome Sweet Gnome (My Mind's Eye); Cardstock: Pool Party, Very Vanilla (Stampin' Up!); Accents: Pearls (Kaisercraft); Dies: Label Stacklets 2 (Taylored Expressions)

Let's Clicut!

It's Monday! Today is my day with Imaginisce to share a fun project using one of my favorite tools, the Clicut!

I am in full birthday gear here at casa de bean, as the rugrat's big 5 birthday party is this weekend. But, I still needed to be thinking about the holidays. I thought I would make some placecard settings for our Thanksgiving feast and the Clicut was just what I needed.

I found this lovely tutorial by Kate Pullen on how to make a paper pumpkin. I wanted thinner strips and so I adapted the tutorial to suit my needs. Now, I usually reach for my paper trimmer when I need to cut strips, but the one I have doesn't do so well with strips smaller than 1 inch wide. So, the Clicut was just perfect!

I also wanted to make some little curly cues for the "vines" on my happy pumpkin, so I cut even thinner strips with the Clicut before curing them around the barrel. 

I hope your Thanksgiving feast is festive!

BEAN NOTES

Patterned Paper: Monster Mash and Makin' Waves collections (Imaginisce); Tools: Clicut (Imaginisce); Fibers: brown grosgrain (generic); Other: branch stand (Target)

Happy Fall!

It's time for another Monthly Challenge from Imaginisce! Here is my project...

This month's challenge was a color inspiration challenge based on this photo:

I love this color combination and the best part is that the papers included in the new Monster Mash collection have a lot of them in them! I decided to create a little basket to hold an apple. I thought these would make a nice favor to have at each person's place at Thanksgiving. 

The apples I put in the photo are actually from a recent apple-picking adventure. (That little one is the only one the rugrat would pick!)

Are you already thinking about your Thanksgiving table? It's never too early to start planning!

BEAN NOTES

Patterned Paper: Monster Mash collection (Imaginisce); Sticker: Boo-ti-ful Friends Sticker Stacker (Imaginisce); Digital Cut File: Basket (Silhouette)

Bushels of Thanks...

It's almost Thanksgiving and I have a lot to be thankful for. I have a wonderful family, I've moved back to my home state, and I get to enjoy things like papercrafting while taking care of my sweet rugrat. When I saw the inspiration photo from this week's Lawnscaping challenge and Simon Says Stamp's Thanksgiving/Thank You Challenge, I knew I had to make a 'thank you' card to show my appreciation. 

As you can see, apples seem to be the focal point of the inspiration photo. Lawn Fawn does have a darling apple stamp, but alas, it isn't part of my stash. So, I improvised! I took the cute cookies on a plate image from Cozy Christmas, the little leaf from Critters in the Forest, and a fine-tipped black pen to create my own little "bushel" of rosy apples. After coloring and fussy-cutting, I searched for some patterned paper and came across this darling paper from MME. The sentiment is a customer thank you stamp from LF and it pretty much nailed what I wanted to say to all my friends, family, and colleagues who bring me joy each and every day! Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours. 

BEAN NOTES
Stamps: Cozy Christmas, "Many Thanks" sentiment stamp, Critters in the Forest, and Bannerific (Lawn Fawn)
Cardstock: Choice Buttercream (Taylored Expressions); Riding Hood Red (Stampin' Up!); Gray textured (American Crafts)
Patterned Paper: Darling Deer (My Mind's Eye)
Coloring Medium: Sketch Markers (Copic); Black Marker (Copic)
Tools: Screw Punch (Martha Stewart Crafts); 1-3/4" Circle and 2" Scallop Punches (EK Success)
Accents: Glossy Accents (Ranger)

Pin It

Happy Fall...

to view the image up-close, please click on the photo

It's hard to believe that November is already half-over. The colors here in NYC have turned and it's gorgeous in Central Park. I thought I would celebrate Fall with a card using this month's {SOTM} from Clear & Simple Stamps, Happy Fall. To give my leaf a bit of autumn crackle, I crunched up the cardstock a bit before stamping. Before we know it, all those lovely leaves will have dropped and winter will be here. Where DOES the year go?

SPILLING THE BEANS

1. Make card from cardstock.
2. Stamp sentiment. Apply liquid dimensionals.
3. Trim patterned paper; mat. Tie ribbon. Adhere with foam tape.
4. Crunch cardstock. Stamp leaf. Fussy cut and adhere with foam tape.

BEAN NOTES

• Stamps: Happy Fall (Clear & Simple Stamps)
• Ink: Memento Rich Cocoa (Tsukineko)
• Cardstock: More Mustard, Chocolate Chip (Stampin' Up!)
• Patterned Paper: Togetherness (Cosmo Cricket)
• Fibers: Chocolate Grosgrain Ribbon (Jo-Ann Fabrics)

HAPPY BEANS

• Accents: Espresso Liquid Dimensionals (Adirondack)

Enabler Alert: For a $1 discount on Happy Fall, enter code CSS1110 at checkout!

Sneaky Peeky: If you'd like to see more Autumn inspiration, I have a card that will feature on the Clear & Simple Stamps iPod/iPad App tomorrow, November 20! For more info, visit HERE.

A Close Call...TE Blast from the Past Blog Hop!...

to view an image up-close, please click on the photo

I love participating in the Taylored Expressions Blast from the Past blog hops, mostly because it gets me to pull out my older sets that I may not have used in a while and I'm reminded again of why I loved them so much in the first place. But, for this month, the Fall/Thankful theme had me in a bit of a quandary. I realized that the sets I own that fall into that theme were on the "no-no" list! So, I had to put on my thinking cap and I decided to go funny!

I chose to use Garden Party Critters, adding my own "Turkey Farm" signage on the cute signpost image. Then, I used the sweet little bird and had him narrowly avoid the fate of many, many soon to be table-side turkeys. I employed a bit of masking for the background and drew in a relieved "whew!" for the lucky little avian who certainly needs to "Give Thanks" for at least one big thing this year!

BEAN NOTES

• Stamps: Garden Party Critters and A Year of Sweet Sentiments (Taylored Expressions)
• Cardstock: Saltillo, Lagoon (Bazzil); Choice Snow (TE); So Saffron (Stampin' Up!)
• Ink: Baja Breeze, Dusty Durango, and Pear Pizazz (SU!); Memento Tuxedo Black (Tsukineko)
• Fibers: Dusty Durango Grosgrain Ribbon (SU!)
• Tools: Grass Border Punch (Martha Stewart Crafts)
• Dies: Inverted Circle and Classic Circle Nestabilities (Spellbinders)

HAPPY BEANS

• Coloring Medium: 0.2 Multiliner SP (Copic); Sketch Markers (Copic)

Happy Hopping!

Happy Harvest...

to view the image up-close, please click on the photo

It's definitely Autumn and it's a lovely one here in Manhattan. We went apple picking a couple weekends ago and had a fantastic time. We are so lucky to get to do such fun things and share such good times with our friends and with each other. This week's 2 Sketches 4 You theme of Thankful/Thanksgiving  fits in just perfectly with that feeling. Uber-terrific Kazan has come up with a great sketch this week to get you in the mood for Fall and if your card is chosen as Card of the Week, you could win some fun goodies from this week's sponsor, whose owner is 2S4Y DT alum Kathy Martin! Today, I chose to use these darling apple digi-stamps and the cute and simple sentiment. I don't use a lot fo digi-stamps, but the more I do, the more I realize how versatile they are. For this card, I was able to take the images and manipulate them easily using Microsoft Word to create some background paper and a border strip...plus, talk about mess-free! I hope everyone has a Happy Harvest this year...I know I am so far.

SPILLING THE BEANS

1. Make card from cardstock.
2. Format digi-stamps in word processing program; print on cardstock.
3. Punch label; adhere.
4. Print sentiment on cardstock. Punch out and mat. Attach button and adhere with foam tape.

BEAN NOTES

• Digi-Stamps: Apple, Apple Trio, Happy Harvest (Digital Doodles)
• Cardstock: Solar White (Neenah); Poppy Parade, Crumb Cake (Stampin' Up!)
• Tool: Decorative Label Punch (SU!); Circle Punch (EK Success)

HAPPY BEANS

• Fibers: Hemp Twine (Jo-Ann Fabrics)
• Accents: Button (generic)
• Computer & Printer

Gobble 'til You Wobble!...

to view the image up-close, please click on the photo

October is almost over and so it's time to start thinkin' about Turkey Day! This week's Card Positioning Systems sketch is being sponsored by Taylored Expressions, and so I thought I'd use it as an opportunity to break out my Gobble, Gobble set and get going on my Thanksgiving cards.



SPILLING THE BEANS

1. Make card from cardstock.
2. Trim patterned paper; mat and adhere.
3. Die-cut kraft and yellow cardstock. Stamp sentiment. Trim die and adhere. Tie ribbon, attach button; adhere.
4. Stamp turkey cupcake twice. Color with markers. Fussy cut turkey feathers/cupcake and adhere. Fussy cut cupcake portion and adhere with foam tape.
5. Apply liquid dimensionals.

BEAN NOTES

• Stamps: Gobble, Gobble and A Year of Sweet Sentiments (Taylored Expressions)
• Ink: Memento Rich Cocoa (Tsukineko)
• Cardstock: Parakeet Bazzil Textured from October Key Ingredients (TE); Summer Sun (Stampin' Up!)
• Patterned Paper: Apple Cider (Imaginisce) from October Key Ingredients (TE)
• Fibers: Gingham Ribbon from October Key Ingredients (TE)
• Accents: Orange Button from October Key Ingredients (TE)

HAPPY BEANS

• Accents: Espresso Liquid Dimensionals (Adirondack)
• Die: Take Note Frame 3 (TE)

Gobble, Gobble! (TE Release Day!)...

 to view an image up-close, please click on the photo

It's Release Day at Taylored Expressions! Do you remember this card I made on Sneak Peek Day 1? (Feel free to check it out HERE.) Well, I thought I would make some fun place cards to go along with the centerpiece card and send the entire set to my wonderful in-laws. My mom-in-law puts on a swell spread, and though we won't be going home for the holidays, at least we could send along a little bit of sweet tidings to show how thankful we are for our family. So, I took out the absolutely adorable new set, Gobble, Gobble, and got cookin'! 

SPILLING THE BEANS

1. Make place card from card stock.
2. Print name on card stock; mat with patterned paper. Adhere.
3. Apply liquid pearls.
4. Stamp Cuppie; color with markers. Fussy cut and adhere with foam tape.
5. Stamp pumpkin; color with markers. Fussy cut and adhere.
6. Repeat for each place card.

BEAN NOTES

• Stamps: Gobble, Gobble (Taylored Expressions)
• Dye Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black (Tsukineko)
• Card Stock: Dusty Durango, Marina Mist, and Whisper White (Stampin' Up!)
• Patterned Paper: Togetherness (Cosmo Cricket)
• Color Medium: Sketch Markers (Copic); Red and Gold Metallic Markers (Sakura)

HAPPY BEANS

• Font: Amelie (www.fonts101.com)

Well, that wraps up another fresh and fun Release Week! By the way, if you are new to TE, you may be curious about what the stamps are actually like. They are wonderful, deeply-etched rubber that come pre-cut (yay!) and cling perfectly to acrylic blocks. The TE store is now open, and I hope you enjoyed this week's projects. For more inspiration, check on the rest of the Baker's Dozen blogs. Thanks so much for stopping by!

The Baker's Dozen

Charmaine Ikach

Danielle Lounds

Donna Baker

Jackie Pedro

Jodi Collins

Karen Giron

Karen Motz

Melissa Sauls

Sankari Wegman
Taylor VanBruggen
Tori Wild

Jami Sibley
Nancy McKinney - TE Designer
and Guest Designer Barbara Anders

A Little Mayflower (TE Sneak Peek Day 1)...

to view an image up-close, please click on the photo

If you are looking for this week's 2 Sketches 4 You post, please click HERE.

It's the first week of a new month, which means another fun Release Week at Taylored Expressions! The Baker's Dozen have a ton of fabulous sneakie peekies and I'm sharing my own with today's project. Thanksgiving is one of my favoriate holidays, for both its message of gratitude and reflection and, well, I just love me some marshmallow-covered yams! So, in honor of this most delectable of holidays, I wanted to make a fun and special card that could actually double as a centerpiece for a food-laden table.

I got to play with an adorable new TE set, Gobble, Gobble, which features the singularly sweet Cuppie, this time dressed up for Turkey Day. For the outside of the card, I needed to keep it relatively simple as the card needed to be able to lay flat if used as a centerpiece. When I saw the Pilgrim and Native American Cuppies, I knew I had to commemorate the meeting that first sparked this happy day with something that featured the Mayflower. Lucky for me, I found a template for a pop-up ship card and added a few special touches of my own.

SPILLING THE BEANS

Inside Pop-Up

1. Print ship template on card stock. Trim pieces and card stock for base.
2. Emboss ship piece with impressions plate.
3. Write "Mayflower" with pen on card stock. Trim, sponge, and adhere with glue.
4. Sponge all pieces and assemble according to directions.
5. Draw wake lines. Punch waves and adhere with glue.
6. Trim card stock to form beach. Adhere gravel along shoreline. Stamp sentiment.
7. Hand draw rock shape. Trim, leaving tab. Crumple slightly and write "Plymouth" with white gel pen. Adhere with clue.
8. Stamp Pilgrims and Native American Cuppies on card stock. Color with Copics. Fussy cut and paper piece each. Adhere Pilgrims to ship. Adhere Native American with card stock tab.

Outside

1. Trim two pieces of card stock, large enough to mat inside of card. Adhere back piece with sticky tape.
2. Trim patterned paper. Mat with card stock and adhere to front of card.
3. Die cut white card stock. Stamp sentiment and adhere.
4. Stamp leaves on card stock. Fussy cut and adhere.
5. Adhere entire front panel to card with sticky tape.

BEAN NOTES

• Stamps: Gobble, Gobble (Taylored Expressions)
• Dye Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black and Rich Cocoa (Tsukineko); Marina Mist, Dusty Durango, Creamy Caramel (Stampin' Up!)
• Card Stock: Dusty Durango, Marina Mist, Creamy Caramel, Basic Gray, Close to Cocoa, Chocolate Chip, More Mustard and Whisper White (SU!)
• Patterned Paper: Togetherness (Cosmo Cricket)
• Color Medium: Sketch Markers (Copic); Black Multi-liner SP (Copic); White Gel Pen (Signo); Red and Gold Metallic Markers (Sakura)
• Tools: Wave Border Punch (Fiskars); Woodgrain Impression Plate (Papertrey Ink)
• Dies: Bigz Top Note (Sizzix)

HAPPY BEANS

• Accents: Gravel (from my old Minnesota backyard!)
• Template: Ship (robertsabuda.com)

I hope you enjoyed my salute to Turkey Day. Don't forget to check out the amazing projects from the rest of the Baker's Dozen and please join me tomorrow for some wintery goodness (wink*wink*)! Gobble, Gobble and other goodies will be available this Thursday, October 7. Thanks for stopping by!

The Baker's Dozen
Charmaine Ikach
Danielle Lounds
Donna Baker
Jackie Pedro
Jodi Collins
Karen Giron
Karen Motz
Melissa Sauls
Sankari Wegman
Taylor VanBruggen
Tori Wild
Jami Sibley
Nancy McKinney - TE Designer