Mario themed Party Update

We had our grandson's Birthday party today.  It was a big success.  Here are a few pictures of the big event:

The treat table....cupcake boxes ready for guest to take home

Party visors and Mario and Luigi treat bags

Star cookies, mustache gazoos, princess crowns

Dish of Mario themed candies, bubbles, and lollipops decorated with Mario Characters

Chomp Chomp made from  a black balloon

Mario hat cake

Pin the mustache on Mario game

Blue table cloth used for a blue sky...notice the picture on the lower right hand corner...the birthday boy coming out of a tube...

Mario Themed Birthday Party

My grandson turns four next week.  He is totally obsessed with Mario and has been role playing that he is Mario for the past 5 months.  Even when people ask him his name he will tell them Mario. My husband is Luigi and his mother is the princess. Me?  I am just Grammy. I have been busy the last few days preparing for his Birthday party. Of course it is gonna be Mario themed. There isn't a whole lot out there, so I had to get creative and come up with some creative ideas. It is gonna be a good day and I will update you all when the party is over.

Picked up cheap bubbles at the Dollar Tree and adhered Mario themed papers to them.

The last box of these fruit snacks on the shelf...

Large lollipops from the dollar store...I just added the themed papers.

Chomp Chomp, made from a black balloon...this will be part of the decorations...

Instead of party hats...party visors...

I wanted a pinata...they didn't have any I liked, not to mention they are expensive, so for about 3 dollars and a little of time I made my own.

Treat bags...

My new obsession...felt

Hello there, for those of you who may still on occasion read my blog, I am still around. Just been busy and find that I don't really have time to sit and write.  Not that I was ever a "writer" before.  This is just an update to let you know what I have been creating lately....my new passion is working with felt.  I have been creating felt finger puppets and pretend play food.  I am having a ball with it, and like anything I start to do it becomes an obsession.  Here are a few of my felt creations:

Cute and Spooky Birthday Blog Hop

Today, I am helping my scrappy friend Kimberly celebrate the 1-year anniversary of her Etsy Shop, Polka Dotted Bliss. She has a spookalicious line-up of talented girls sharing polka-dot Halloween creations all week long on her blog! AND, she's giving away some blog candy each and every day this week. So make sure you stop in all this week, catch some inspiration and enter the giveaways! 

Day One: http://CreatedbyDonnaK.blogspot.com 
Day Two: http://karenskraftymoments.blogspot.com/ 
Day Three: http://www.kristaspapercafe.com/ 
Day Four: http://lilhoneybeestudios.blogspot.com/ 
Day Five: http://scrapyourworld1.blogspot.com/ 
Day Six: http://mywhimsylife.blogspot.com/ 
Day Seven: http://mypolkadottedbliss.blogspot.com


 I love  creating with paper and have an obsession with making mini albums and journals.     My first thought was to make an album as this is what I love doing, and am sure everyone expected me to make.  So I did the un-expected and created a gift tag instead.

  I used a re-purposed vintage layaway tag for my base, and MME's Wicked  paper.  I embellished it with a little touch of burlap, canvas border, a felt spider,  a handcrafted stick pin, vintage black seam binding ribbon, and a unique hand crafted skull button. Can you tell what I made the button out of?

I am all about the vintage look, and I hope that I captured it in this tag.  

Materials I used:
My Mind Eye's papers
Tim Holtz Black Soot Distressing Ink
Pink Paislee Hocus Pocus Canvas border and skull
Burlap
Felt spider
Vintage layaway tag
Vintage poker chip
Vintage seam binding


Here are the goodies Kimberly is giving away today. To enter the giveaway:
Head on over to Kimberly's blog here   for a chance to win this fabulous prize: 

**Giveaways Open to US residents only.

Twelve Days of Christmas Mini Album

Christmas will be here before you know it.  This mini album is perfect to journal and add those special pictures of your special memories of the holiday season, a great December Daily.

It is made to document the Twelve Days of Christmas.  The album is approximately 5x5 1/2" in size and made of 6 up cycled card board CD Protectors and beautiful Vintage Christmas themed patterned paper, from the 7 Gypsy collection. There is a total of 6 pages (12 front and back to include covers). The cover is adorn with a metal number "12" brad for a book handle, a stocking charm,, deep burgundy ribbon and hand stamped "memories" in the lower right hand corner.

There are 6 large pockets, (perfect for storing special keepsakes, and a perfect size to slip in a cd and or dvd), 6 mats (4 1/2"x4 1/2"), 12 hand crafted tags made from coordinating papers and recycled shipping tags...each of these tags have hand rubbed stencil numerals on them. They are perfect to journal and/or add cropped photos to. This album is linked up to the Just Because Linky Party..be sure to check out all the fabulous creations.  If you are interested in this album, you can purchase it in my etsy shop here.

All Occasion Paper Towel Mini Album

Here is another one of my paper towel mini albums. 

Again, like most of my creations it is vintage inspired. 

Lots of tags to add cropped photos to and or journal on. 

This album is linked up to the Just Because Linky Party...be sure to check out all the fabulous creations.

Travel Journal Made from Repurposed CD covers

I think like a crafter.  I can not go anywhere without looking at every item as an opportunity into making and/or using in one of my journals.  A few months back while in the electronic section of Walmart I came across these card board cd protectors.

Of course I had to buy them, not sure at the time what I was gonna use them for, but...the gears in my artistic (or crazy) mind were working.  I finally pulled them out yesterday and this is what I created.

I love how this little travel journal turned out.  If you are like me, you take hundreds of photos, and can't bear to part with any of them.  This journal is perfect  for you to add your favorite photos  then make a cd of all those extra photos and insert into one of the pockets.

I handcrafted tags and mats using coordinating papers....perfect to journal about those adventures and/or add cropped photos to.

The journal measures approximately 5x6", 12 pages (front and back) created from 6 cardboard cd holders and is spiral bound.

The front cover is adorn with a faux pearl brad for a book handle,  dark navy blue ribbon and two metal charms.

Like all my creations there is an embellishment pack included to add to the pages. If you feel creative you can make one of these special albums or you can skip all the hard work and purchase this one in my shop.

This post is linked up to the Just Because Linky Party....be sure to check out all the creations.

Here is a list of materials I used creating this album:
6x6" Teresa Collins "Far and Away" paper pad
Paper Studio Kraft tags
Vintage twine
Cardboard CD protectors by Guided
Zutter Bind it All 3/4" rings
Kraft envelope by Paper Studio
Misc. Charms/brads
Navy Blue Seam binding