"Fun with Lip Gloss"

Alyssa and I had a fun day making homemade lip gloss! I got the great inspiration for this from Clear Dollar Stamps.

They have a wonderful stamp set called Lip Gloss Fun and the little jars with white (or black) lids to create your own lip gloss. What a fun craft for girls!!

The stamp set comes with different fruit stamps for all the different flavors you can create, plus the little extras to personalize it for a gift. (Alyssa has already decided she wants to make these for all her friends for Christmas!)

Here is a picture of one of the lip glosses that we've already tied-up in cello for Alyssa to give to our sweet little neighbor, Amber. She is four and loves anything pink. (So, I made sure her lip gloss was, of course, pink! heehee)

Also, following is the recipe that is posted on the Clear Dollar Stamp website for homemade lip gloss. This recipe is very easy and is what Alyssa and I went by in creating ours.

Fruity Lip Gloss

1. Melt 1 tsp. Vasoline

2. Add 1/4 tsp. Kool-Aid (sugar free)

3. Stir until dissolved and mixed together completely

4. Pour into lip gloss container

5. Let cool and apply

"Yippee! -- I Got An Award"

Thanks so much to Beth for this award!! I had the great pleasure of meeting Beth and her husband, Kevin, when my family own our scrapbook store. We just fell in love with them!! They always shopped together and I always kept them longer than they had planned because I talked and talked! (Thank goodness they got used to me!! heehee) Now I get to scrapbook with them at the monthly crops at the Vineyard.

Anyway, getting back to this fabulous award. Here are the rules:

1. The winner can put the logo on his/ her blog.

2. Link to the person you received your award from.

3. Nominate at least 7 other blogs.

4. Put links to those blogs on yours.

5. Leave a message on the blogs of the people you have nominated.

These are the 7 people I am nominating:

1. Rochelle at Impressions

2. Angie at Chic n' Scratch

3. Michelle at Michelle's Tidbits

4. Lauri at Paperville

5. Julie at Paper Jewels

6. Lisa at Shabbychick Junk

7. Sharon at Paper Fections

Thanks, again to Beth, for the award. If you've not had the chance to check out her blog, you should, she's very talented!!

"M&M Medicine"

By now, most of you know that when I go to the doctor, I always take him a 'treat' of some kind. Well, I've done the M&Ms in a test tube before, but I saw this on SCS and it was a little different twist, so I thought it would be perfect to take to Dr. Colotta!

I used a container from the bead section that held individual tubes, which was ideal to hold the separate colors of M&Ms. So, I decorated it up and this is what I came up with!

Below is a picture of how I decorated the lid and also the poem that I printed for the inside:

M&Ms MEDICINE FOR YOU

Each color is a different cure; of this fact I'm very sure.

When you're grouchy and a little mean, I truly recommend the GREEN.

Or the times when you're feeling down, the very best choice is the BROWN.

ORANGE'S oh so special coating, will help minimize any moping.

If you have an ache in your head, this will be cured by the RED.

Need something to help you mellow? Take a dose of the YELLOW.

If anxiety feelings overcome you, eat a handful of the BLUE.

If your day should come unglued, you'd better eat an entire tube!

These make great gifts! Especially for anyone you know that is sick -- this will lift their spirits! Dr. Colotta loved it just because it was chocolate!!

*Added note: The container used was bought in the bead section at Wal-Mart and it already had the individual test tubes included inside.

"Post-It Note Coaster"

I got this idea from Angie over at Chic n' Scratch. She has the neatest ideas! This is a post-it note coaster holder that I used the Bind-It-All on to give it a front and back. (Thanks to Rene for letting me borrow hers!)

On this one, I used striped paper from Scenic Route and layered scalloped circles on top. I added the stamped image to the circles and colored it with Prismacolor pencils and blended with a stump and gamsol.

These make adorable gifts! I made this one for my sweet gal pal, Ruth Ann!

"Hostess Gift"

I made this for my gal pal, Anndrea, as a hostess gift for her Stampin' Up party today, because I just could not arrive empty handed -- I had to make something! heehee

I came up with this little treat 'wrap' after picking up a bag of Bit-O-Honey. I've always loved this candy, but it has gotten hard to find.

Anyway, I knew I wanted to do something with it related to a "bee" (because of the honey). Since the wrapper had red on it, I tried to coordinating the black, yellow and red together.

Thanks for inviting me, Anndrea! I had a great day and the lunch was fabulous!! Stephanie, you did a great job!!

"Another Scripture Tin"

This is another tin I decorated for my mother to give to a co-worker for her birthday. I really like how these 'scripture' tins turn out. The inspiration for it came from the gallery on Clear Dollar Stamps.

The tin, itself, came from Oriental Trade, and I covered the top with layered patterned and solid cardstock. (I printed the title off the computer) For the inside, I made six (6) individual scripture cards, using the stamp set "Beautiful Scriptures" by Clear Dollar, on coordinating solid layered cardstock.

The measurements for the scripture cards - Outside piece of cardstock is 2.6" x 4" and the inset piece is 2.4" x 3.6".

"About to Quack?"

This is the last of the 5x5 cards I made using a stamped image from the set Cute Critters by Clear Dollar Stamps, and this is the fourth 'critter'.

I love the duck -- just cute and simple. Again, I colored the image with my Prismacolor pencils and blended with gamsol and a stump. Also again, I was able to add the saying to the front using my word window punch.

I really did not have a color combo in mind for this card, but I thought all these papers ended up working well together.

For the inside of the card, the saying reads: Waddle over to GOD.

"When Life Stinks. . ."

This is another 5x5 card I made using a stamped image from the set Cute Critters by Clear Dollar Stamps. This is the third 'critter', so I'll be posting the last card soon.

I think this little skunk is cute. I colored the image with my Prismacolor pencils and blended with gamsol and a stump. Again, I was able to add the saying to the front using my word window punch. I love how the bright papers I found to use, 'pop' off the black background.

For the inside of the card, the saying reads: Shower yourself in the word.

"Needle Lift?

This is another 5x5 card I made using a stamped image from the set Cute Critters by Clear Dollar Stamps. Again, there are four 'critters' in all, so I'll be posting cards using the other two images soon.

I love how the little porcupine turned out. I colored the image with my Prismacolor pencils and blended with gamsol and a stump. I also love the saying I was able to add to the front using my word window punch. A total of 14 sayings come with the critters in this set, so it's an awesome set!!

By, the way, IRL the blues on the card do match. It looks bad scary on the post, but trust me, they match!

For the inside of the card, I used another stamp set from Clear Dollar called Christian Critters. (It, mainly, is additional sayings that can coordinate.) The saying inside reads: In a sticky situation, GOD is the answer.

"I'm Alive!?!?!"

I just wanted to say a quick "hi" to everyone and let you know that I'm officially still alive! I promise to get back to crafting and post something real soon!

Thanks to all of you for your thoughts and concerns! Thanks, also, for being so patient! See ya soon!

It's Michelle again!

JoAnna says a HUGE thank you for all the sweet comments and prayers.

She is still in the hospital and unable to blog but she hopes to be home by the 4th.
She is feeling ok for the most part, please continue to pray for her!

Your friendly blog-jacker,
Michelle Bingham ;0)

This is Michelle-JoAnna's neighbor.

JoAnna asked me to hijack her blog and let you all know why she isn't posting. On Sunday morning she had a kidney stone attack. She waited until this morning(Monday) to go to the doctor and they have put her in the hospital.

DON'T PANIC!!!

She is ok, they just wanted to be able to give her lots of liquids and pain meds, and they thought it would be easier to get her better if she were in the hospital.

They have done tests to see how big the stone is and see if she will be able to pass it on her own. She is unsure how long she will be in the hospital. So it may be a few days before you hear from her again. I will be sure to update you with any changes.

She is in great spirits and can't wait to post more on those cards she was in the middle of making.

We all hope you get better real soon JoAnna!

"Slowpoke Card"

I made this 5x5 card using a stamped image from the set Cute Critters by Clear Dollar Stamps. There are four 'critters' in all, so I'll be posting cards using the other images soon.

I like how the turtle turned out. I colored the image with my Prismacolor pencils and blended with gamsol and a stump. I love the saying I was able to add to the front using my word window punch. A total of 14 sayings come with the critters in this set, so it's an awesome set!!

For the inside of the card, I used another stamp set from Clear Dollar called Christian Critters. (It, mainly, is additional sayings that can coordinate.) The saying inside reads: Take time to slow down and feast on God's Word.

"Arts & Craft Day"

I had such a fun day at my neighbor, Michelle's, house today! She fed me lunch and I took stuff to do arts & crafts with the her and the kids! We had a blast and took lots of pictures!

I wanted the crafts to pertain to the 4th of July, so the prepared projects to make today were a star celebration wand; a Popsicle stick mini American flag; a color by number American flag; candy covered with decorated Avery labels; fun 4th of July shakers; and, a magnetic American flag.

I've posted fun pictures below! Thanks, Michelle, Jacob, Amber and Nathan for letting me spend the day with you crafting! I had so much fun!!

"Notecards, Envelopes & Holder"

This is a card and envelope holder that I finished up this evening. I loved, loved, loved this project the moment I saw the tutorial for it here! So, I thought I'd give it a whirl! I used my sheet of patterned paper by Scenic Route to guide my color scheme for the project and I think the colors worked well together!








Here is a photo of the inside of the holder:










And, here's a photo of the four (4) notecards I made with coordinating envelopes:









Many thanks goes out to Dannie for her great tutorial on this. She did a great job! If you are interested in making one yourself, I would definitely recommend checking out the tutorial -- she makes it seem as easy as pie!

"My Sweetie Pie"

Here's a photo I was able to snap today of my sweetie pie, Alyssa, in the K Mart parking lot when we did a quick meet and clothes exchange. She's been with her grandmother in Jackson since last Wednesday, but is 'actually' leaving town in the morning.

So, my sweet neighbor, Michelle, and I drove to Jackson for me to meet up with her so I could get those hugs & kisses before she goes and, of course, to send more clothes....you'd think she was moving...NOT! heehee

She has already had such a blast at her Uncle Andy and Aunt Mon's house that she was talking 90 miles a minute! I know she'll have just as much fun at DG & Mary's!!

"Vacation Time"

Just a quick note -- my mom, sister and niece, Lauren, have arrived in Cancun and are enjoying it rather nicely! (This trip was Lauren's graduation gift -- pretty neat, huh?)

Anyway, with my daughter off one way for 2 weeks and the rest of my gang hangin' out at a resort in Cancun for 7 days, I'm hoping to create, create, create! However, I would not have minded putting my toes in the sand abit! *wink* But, right now, I'm lovin' the quiteness around here.

"More Birthday Wishes!"

Good morning! I wanted to wish my gal pal, Rochelle, a big 'ol happy birthday!!

Again, I chose a photo of a cake from "Ace of Cakes" -- only, this one is a little more whimsical!!

Rochelle, even though your sweet hubby and Katie are both gone, I know you'll still have a blast with Sarah and Molly! Just have a girls day and celebrate!!

Best wishes from Alyssa and I!

"Summertime"

Well, summer is here! So, to celebrate it's arrival, I thought I'd use some fun 'summer' themed paper by Doodlebug and create this post-it note holder. It turns out like a little book -- really neat! The inspiration for this holder came from Angie at Chic 'n Scratch. Angie has a great tutorial on her site with all the how-to on these!

Oh, by the way, my dear daughter is leaving in a couple of days to go to East Tennessee to spend two (2) weeks with her grandparents. So, I'm making her little things like this to take with her. She's going to have a blast and I'm so excited for her! However, we've never really been apart that long and I must say it seems that I am the only one kinda sad! heehee

Anyway, back on track. . .I've posted a smaller photo below of the inside of the holder.

"Patriotic Tin"

This is another great idea I got from the gallery at Clear Dollar Stamps. With the 4th of July coming up, I loved the idea so much that I absolutely had to do it!

I started with a band aid tin from Provo Craft, and decorated it with some fun patriotic patterned paper by Doodlebug, layered on top of red cardstock. I attached a Jolee's star embellishment on front and adhered a red 'raindrop' center by Cloud9 Design. I then tied miscellaneous red, white and blue ribbons/ric rac on the handle.

Now, on to the fun!! The stamp set I used by Clear Dollar is called Patriotic Nuggets. It is wonderful! It is everything you need to decorate your nuggets for anything patriotic!! I used white Avery mailing labels to stamp my images on, then all you have to do is peel & stick! How great is that -- quick & easy! For my images, I used SU's Real Red; Brilliant Blue; and Summer Sun.

For most of you that know me, I usually wrap my nuggets in decorative paper, instead of using the mailing labels. But with this set, using the mailing labels is the way to go, and the results are great! (You know I'm excited to find something else that holds decorated nuggets!) heehee

I've posted a smaller photo with the lid opened on the tin, showing how I adhered a stamped label to the inside lid.