Craft Haven Retreats

Happy Valentine's Day!

noreply@blogger.com (Nanci) — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 03:46:00 +0000

Just a quick post to share with you some of our favorite cards just in time for Valentine's Day! All of this evening's cards are clean and crisp, with a simple color palette using Stampin' Up! card stock in Whisper White, Real Red, Basic Black, and a splash of Red Glimmer. Our inks are Basic Black and Real Red.

For our first card we used the You Are Loved stamp set from the Holiday Mini Catalog. Our Red Glimmer Heart was die cut using the new Framelits Dies, Hearts Collection, featured in the new Occasions Mini Catalog, and then layered on top of a black Embosslits Dies, Scalloped Heart of Hearts. For an elegant edge, we used the new Edgelits Dies, Adorning Accents, on all three layers of our card stock. For a finishing touch we added the new coordinating Textured Impressions Embossing Folders, Adorning Accents. For a bit of bling, we added a butterfly, die cut from the Beautiful Wings Embosslit Die. A single Rhinestone finished our card.

Our next card was stamped using the You're My Type stamp set. We embossed the bottom edge using the Textured Impressions Hearts Embossing Folder. Our hearts were die cut using the Embosslits Die, Fashionable Hearts. These sweet little hearts are simultaneously cut and embossed, and make the perfect accent!

The hearts on our next card were die cut using the Hearts Collection Framelits, Fashionable Hearts Embosslits, and the Small Heart punch. The red and white hearts were textured using the Vintage Wallpaper Embossing Folder, and bottom edge textured with the Impressions Hearts Embossing Folder. Our sentiment is from P.S.I Love You.

More embossing using Textured Impressions Hearts and Perfect Polka Dots. Our cupid is from P.S. I Love You, and our sentiment from Candy Converstions. Plenty of Red Glimmer paper was used with the Pinking Hearts Border, Scallop Circle, and Small Heart punches.

The image on our next card was stamped using the Take It to Heart stamp set, and the sentiment if from P.S. I Love You. The Hearts Collection Framelits Die fit perfectly with all the images in the Take It to Heart stamp set!

Our last card is stamped using the You Are Loved stamp set, accented with hearts and butterflies Embosslits, and framed using the Framed Tulips folder.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Final Holiday Mini Post 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Melannie) — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 04:26:00 +0000

We had a few cards that Nanci did this fall that we did not get around to sharing with you! Hope you enjoy them!

You cannot go wrong with the Top Note die!

I love this combination - Natural White, Crumb Cake, Early Espresso card stock with Cherry Cobbler accents! It's absolutely gorgeous!

Punches add dimension and whimsy to your cards and they are quick and easy!

A vintage Christmas combo!

These cards and matching envelope were part of a free class we offered with the Simply Scored Scoring Tool! Have you tried the water color paper from Stampin' Up?

We will post pictures from our retreat last weekend soon! Our guests created a scrapbook layout for each month of the year complete with photos and embellishments!

It was unseasonably warm last weekend in Michigan. Nanci spotted some Pansies blooming in the flower bed at the front entrance to Lake View Lodge.

Yes, pansies in January, in Michigan! Last Monday we had a snowstorm and this Sunday we have pansies! Even odder . . . here is a photo of the same flowers with some of the leftover snow! A little bit of spring in winter!

Holiday Mini 2011 Review

noreply@blogger.com (Melannie) — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 09:39:00 +0000

Happy New Year! Nanci and I were at Lakeview Lodge this weekend preparing for next weekend's retreat - the first of 2012! Monday morning we woke up to our first real snowfall of the winter season, so I decided to take some pictures of the fresh snow (through the screens on the porch).

These are some cards we made earlier this fall.

The door card design is cased from Jennifer Timko. I love the simplicity of her design!

I love these two cards! Nanci used the Natural White card stock, Cherry Cobbler embossing powder and Crumb cake Ink. This color combination is fabulous-the picture just doesn't do it justice!

This card is cased from Sage Kimble's blog. I changed the design slightly to make it easier and less costly to produce and mail!

The stocking is a gift card holder!

This card is also cased from Jennifer Timko! The tree panel is Very Vanilla card stock sponged with Always Artichoke ink. It looks like velvet!

Nanci and I are looking forward to the creative possibilities in 2012. We hope this season will afford you the opportunity to explore your artistic inspirations as well. If you are looking for a craft weekend getaway, visit us at Lakeview Lodge! We are running our Crazy Eight Special - bring your group of eight and the eighth guest is free - a $299 value!

Pop Up Gift Card Simply Scored with Holly Berry Bouquet Specialty Paper

noreply@blogger.com (Melannie) — Sat, 24 Dec 2011 06:22:00 +0000

Isn't this gift card holder cute? When the holder is opened the gift card inside pops up! It's a quick and easy project with the Simply Scored Scoring Tool and Table Top Cutter. I selected two patterns from the Holly Berry Bouquet Specialty Paper to dress it up. I am completely addicted to this pine cone stamp from Pines and Poinsettias. Use the Stampin' Write markers to ink the stamp and then highlight the stamped image with Dazzling Diamonds.

Gina K. posted a video tutorial to make this Gift Card holder and I had to give it a try! My co-worker wanted a few gift card holders, so I decided to try out Gina K.'s tutorial.

I used sticky strip to adhere the belly bands and the scored areas that form the base which holds the gift card. The area that the gift card stands in is open the entire width, so this design will hold gift cards of varying sizes.

The Scallop Punches make an attractive embellishment for the belly-band, but I wish I had a Very Vanilla Gel Pen. As you know Holly Berry Bouquet uses Very Vanilla as an accent color, so I did not want to use my white gel pen to decorate my Real Red scallop. Does anyone else feel the need for a Very Vanilla Gel Pen or do you have an alternative suggestion for embellishing the Real Red scallop? Leave a comment, if you have a solution to the Very Vanilla/scallop circle dilemma! Happy Holidays!

Village of Christmas Cuteness Featuring Holly Berry Bouquet DSP

noreply@blogger.com (Melannie) — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 01:18:00 +0000

Hello! Remember us, Craft Haven Retreats? This year has passed in the blink of an eye for Nanci and I. We haven't posted since March! My camera decided to stop working and I did not replace it until Black Friday! Lake View Lodge kept us pretty busy this spring and summer. Nanci attended the Stampin' Up! Convention in Utah this past July and I became a demonstrator later that month as well.

We decided to hold our December Club meeting one week after our November Club, so that two hostesses from our club could take advantage of the additional hostess benefits that Stampin' Up! was offering. While at Convention, Nanci participated in the Village of Cuteness class and she decided that our club should make a Village of Christmas Cuteness at our December meeting.

Village of Christmas Cuteness

All our club members were thrilled with the project! Our villages sparkle with Glimmer Paper, Mica Flakes, and Dazzling Diamonds!

Nanci downloaded this My Digital Studio stamp image from Welcome Christmas and sized it to fit the project!

We love the dimension that the wood sheet layers give this door.

We will all enjoy our Village of Christmas Cuteness for years to come. One of our club members suggested that we could add to it each year by adding a church, stores, or additional homes. We hope this post will inspire you to start your own Village of Christmas Cuteness! Nanci and I wish you, your family and friends a safe holiday season and a happy new year!

Stamp Club Road Trip!

noreply@blogger.com (Melannie) — Fri, 04 Mar 2011 08:11:00 +0000

Nanci and I had planned an overnight special at Lake View Lodge for February 19th. Several members of Nanci's Stamp Club signed up, so we decided to have the February Club meeting at Lake View Lodge! We had a blast! We had planned to make this delicious cupcake card, but we forgot the Create a Cupcake stamp set!

What do you do when you are 125 miles from your sentiment? You improvise!

Terry, the newest member of the Stamp Club, is modeling the re-design with an extra cherry on her cheek! We love the Red Glimmer paper--it makes the cherries on the cupcakes sparkle! The Elegant Lines embossing folder really adds depth and swirl to the cupcake icing! Nanci and I went to a Stampin' event at Carol Nee's home and she actually had the cutest cupcake stand and cupcakes that looked just like the one's on Nanci's card! They were delicious too!

From cupcakes, we switched over to Ice Cream Parlor DSP from the sale-a-bration catalog!

The colors of this DSP are fun and fresh. The Sew Suite stamp set is great! I wish they had done sentiments to go with them! Nanci and I want to suggest; Sew nice to meet you, Sew Sweet, Miss you sew much. The possibilities are endless! Share your sentiment ideas with us--leave us a comment at the end of this post!

Puns from the Past stamp set does include--sew glad we're friends--I recently purchased that stamp set just because it had that sentiment in it! :)

The Sweet Stiches DSP paper and Pattern Pieces stamp are great too! We used the coordinating fabric and buttons with a little bit of crochet trim to embellish our card. Another great card using Sweet Stiches DSP and Designer Fabric!

Once we finished our club projects, we jumped right into full throttle crafting mode! Michelle and Jessice were swapping pictures and the stories behind them!

Have you ever made a diaper cake for a baby shower? Becky's turned out so cute!

Making sure that the stamp is inked thoroughly!

Terry's very first scrapbook page!

A whole lot of scrapbooking is going on!

Chris made her first Squash Book and has plans for a second one already!

These ladies are serious crafters! Almost everyone was crafting until 2:30 AM, but I heard the first person head back to the craft room around 7:30 AM!

Jessica took several photos of our group before everyone left Sunday afternoon! These two are my favorites.

Which do you prefer the black and white or the color photo? Please e-mail us at info@crafthavenretreats.com, if you would like to bring your group to Lake View Lodge for a crafting retreat! We are running a Crazy 8 Special right now. Bring your group of eight crafters and we will give you an additional $200 off our Spring 2011 Special of $199 per person! Happy crafting!

Afternoon Delight!

noreply@blogger.com (Melannie) — Fri, 11 Feb 2011 06:00:00 +0000

We had a great card class on Wednesday. Fourteen novice card makers attended our Beginner's Valentine class! We made the three cards from our post, Be My Valentine on Monday. Isn't this room perfect for crafting?

We used Stampin' Up! glue sticks and Dimensionals for our adhesives with great success. Everyone agreed that the Red Glitter Paper is fantastic!

A little concentration, smiles, and laughter made the afternoon fly by!

This lively group of neighbors were eager to learn about card making! We had so many great questions!

Applying light even pressure after careful placement of the background layer.

All the participants loved the cards they made! They stamped the backs of their cards with the Handmade By stamp from the Occaisions Mini catalog. They also stamped their envelopes with coordinating stamps from the XOXO Stamp set. We will be returning in April to make Easter/Spring cards!

Punch Art Montage!

noreply@blogger.com (Melannie) — Thu, 10 Feb 2011 04:56:00 +0000

Believe it or not . . . Nanci's daughter painted her room Basic Gray with Black, White, and Melon Mambo accents! So Nanci created this montage of punch art to hang on her wall. Yes, with the exception of the Melon Mambo button all the decorations were punched or cut with an embosslit die!

Here is a picture of the 12" X 12" page before it was framed!

This project is fast, fun, and fabulous! Happy crafting!

Be My Valentine!

noreply@blogger.com (Melannie) — Mon, 07 Feb 2011 06:04:00 +0000

I'm doing a Valentine's card class this week. All the participants are first time card crafters, so the cards need to be fast, fun, and fabulous! The class materials are limited to the XOXO stamp set, Real Red Ink, Whisper White, Pink Pirouette, Real Red, Basic Gray card stock, Love Impressions DSP and Red Glimmer Paper. These are the cards I chose for the class.

Card 1

I just love the Red Glimmer Paper! Don't you? I stamped some Whisper White card stock with the XOXO background stamp and punched out the other two hearts! They are mounted with dimensionals on Basic Gray Scalloped Heart of Hearts embosslits.

Card 2

This card is cased from Lori Mueller's blog. Lori cleared up the mystery of where I saw this card! Thanks Lori for sending the link to your card! You can view Lori's card here! I love the Pinking Heart border punch! The Basic Gray layer of the Curly Label was cut with the Movers and Shapers Curly Label.

Card 3

This card is the only one in the set that didn't use the Red Glimmer Paper. At the suggestion of the hostess, the Real Red and Pink Pirouette Small Heart punches were replaced by Red Glimmer Paper punches. Unfortunately, I sent the card samples ahead, so they could be displayed without taking a picture of the card with the Red Glimmer Paper hearts! All three cards are easy to assemble. Vote for your favorite card in the comments!

January Stamp Club with a Valentine Theme

noreply@blogger.com (Nanci) — Mon, 24 Jan 2011 03:28:00 +0000

Valentine's Day was the theme for our January Stamp Club. Our cards this month feature the all new XOXO stamp set, Valentine's Defined, and Love Impression Specialty Designer Series Paper found in the new Occasions Mini Catalog. We also used the Love Patterns DSP and Filled With Love stamp set, along with our free Bitty Buttons from the Valentine's Day Promotion. A touch of Red Glimmer Paper completd our cards.

Paper: Pretty in Pink, Whisper White, Love Patterns DSP

Stamps: Valentine Defined, Filled With Love

Ink: Pretty in Pink

Misc: Big Shot Movers and Shapers, Pinking Heart Border punch, Heart Small punch, Full Heart punch, Basic Pearls, misc white ribbon

Earlier this fall we discovered that the Movers and Shapers pieces can be used to add a layer to several of the stamps and punches, perfect for an extra border!

Paper: Whisper White CS, Basic Grey CS, Real Red CS, Love Impressions DSP

Stamps: Filled With Love, Valentine Defined

Ink: Real Red

Misc: Big Shot Movers and Shapers, Pinking Heart Border punch, Full Heart punch, Real Red Ribbon, Basic Rhinestones

Paper: Basic Grey CS, Real Red CS, Pink Pirouette CS, Whisper White CS,

Love Impressions DSP, Red Glimmer

Stamps: Filled With Love

Ink: Real Red, Basic Grey, Versa Mark

Misc: Love Impressions Rub-Ons, 1 3/8" Oval punch, 1 3/4" Oval punch, Heart to Heart punch, Heart Small punch, Heat and Stick Powder, Pink Glitter, Real Red Seam Binding, Basic Rhinestones

Paper: Whisper White CS, Basic Black CS, Real Red CS, Love

Impressions DSP,Red Glimmer

Stamps: Valentine Defined, Filled With Love

Ink: Real Red, Garden Green

Misc: Pinking Heart Border punch, Heart Small punch, Real Red Glitter Brad, black

ribbon, misc. flower punch

Paper: Very Vanilla CS, Cherry Cobbler CS, Basic Black CS, Love Letter DSP, Red Glimmer

Stamps: XOXO, Filled With Love

Ink: Cherry Cobbler

Misc: Scalloped Heart of Hearts Embosslit Die, Full Heart punch, Small Heart punch, 1 3/8" Oval punch, 1 3/4" Oval punch, Cherry Cobbler Seam Binding

Paper: Real Red CS, Pretty in Pink CS, Whisper White CS, Patterns Love DSP, Red Glimmer

Stamps: Filled With Love

Ink: Real Red, Versa Mark

Misc: Pinking Heart Border punch, Scalloped Heart of Hearts Embosslit Die, Perfect Polka Dots Embossing Folder, 3/4" Circle punch, Full Heart punch, Small Heart punch, Heart to Heart punch, Heat and Stick Powder, Pink Glitter

Paper: Whisper White CS, Basic Grey CS, Pretty in Pink CS, Patterns Love DSP

Stamps: Valentine Defined

Ink: Pretty in Pink, White Craft

Misc: White Embossing Powder, 1 3/8" Oval punch, 1 3/4" Oval punch, Eyelet Border punch, Curly Label punch, Basic Rhinestones, white ribbon

Paper: Whisper White CS, Real Red CS, Pink Pirouette CS, Love Impressions DSP

Stamps: XOXO

Ink: Real Red

Misc: Small Heart punch, Bitty Buttons, 1 3/8" Circle punch, Scalloped Circle punch, 2 3/8" Circle punch, White Gel pen

Quilt Much?

noreply@blogger.com (Melannie) — Sun, 09 Jan 2011 00:03:00 +0000

My grandmother made us quilts when we were little. I still have mine. I enjoy quilting and have seen several quilted top note cards on different blogs and wanted to try my hand at quilting a card.

I used DSP Patterns Stack Regals Collection and the 1 1/4" square punch to make my squares. I adhered my squares to a piece of cardstock and then ran it through the Big Shot with the Top Note die. I used my paper-piercing tool and mat pack to create the pattern for my stiches. Luckily, I had some gold embroidery floss that matched the More Mustard ribbon. I used a cross stich to add stability to the paper pieces (some of them ended up quite small) and to add more texture to the quilted layer. The card base is Night of Navy card stock layered with More Mustard DSP Patterns Stack Regals Collection and Very Vanilla. The senitment is from Inspired by Nature and stamped in Night of Navy Ink. I used the cutter kit distressing tool to distress the edges of the Very Vanilla and Night of Navy layers of the sentiment. I loved making this card. I hope you will try this technique too!

Merry Christmas-disco style!

noreply@blogger.com (Melannie) — Sat, 25 Dec 2010 17:55:00 +0000

Merry Christmas from Nanci and I! I cased this idea from Melanie and Joy over at Everyday Cricut! Of course, I picked another song and dance! Nanci and I were both disco queens! LOL Hope you enjoy the video! You may need to go to the blog to see the video, if you receive our posts via e-mail. Just click on the post title Merry Christmas-disco style! and it will take you right to the blog!

Sweet and Simple Box #2 Bigz XL Dies

noreply@blogger.com (Melannie) — Sat, 25 Dec 2010 00:08:00 +0000

We crafted these boxes to hold peppermint candies to sell at our craft shows for the holiday season. We sold all the boxes we made originally.

Nanci received an e-mail from a prior customer wanting to purchase twelve more boxes. We did not have enough of the Candy Cane Christmas Specialty DSP left to satisfy the order. At the customer's request we improvised.

This box design is what we came up with. We stamped the candy piece from Bingo Bits and punched out the circles and scallop to coordinate with the papers. We love these festive little boxes all tied up as gifts for our customer's guests!

The boxes travel better with the lids closed. The candy tag lets the recipient know what to expect inside the box when it is opened.

This tower of boxes makes a sweet display!

Did you notice the background paper? It's the Specialty Paper Bride! I purchased it on clearance a few weeks back because someone had mentioned it in a blog that was discussing the Presto Patterns DSP. I love this paper! If you have the snowflake punch, it is an awesome combination due to the shimmer of the paper's design and the slim detail of the punched snowflake!

We hope that you will enjoy this video that Nanci's daughter suggested. The group is Straight No Chaser doing the 12 Days of Christmas. They are fantastic!

Nanci and I would like to wish you and your families a Merry Christmas!

Snow Expected!

noreply@blogger.com (Melannie) — Fri, 24 Dec 2010 01:36:00 +0000

We're expecting snow for the next three days, so I thought I'd share this Sweet Snowglobe card with you!

We used the Sweet Treat Cup to hold our dazzling diamond "snow." We ran our Bashful Blue card stock through the Big Shot with the Northern Flurries embossing folder. Our sentiment and Sweet Snowglobe are heat embossed with silver embossing powder. We also applied a little two-way glue to the stamped image so some of the dazzling diamonds would stick to the stamped image too.

The sentiment is from the Snow Swirled stamp set. Night of Navy and Whisper White card stock complete the card. We recommend mailing this card with the padded envelopes from Stampin' Up! Extra postage will be required. Let it snow!

Jolly Holiday Revisited and $99 Overnight Retreat Special

noreply@blogger.com (Melannie) — Thu, 23 Dec 2010 05:25:00 +0000

Oops! I forgot to post these cards the other day with our Have a Jolly Holiday DSP post. If you need a few quick and easy card ideas these are very simple. We made them at our beginner's card class at our Ladies Night Out Retreat.

We ran the Very Vanilla card stock through the Big Shot using the Vintage Wallpaper embossing folder. Our wreath stamp came from the Northern Hearts set stamped with Old Olive. Our sentiment is from Many Merry Messages stamped in Cherry Cobbler. We've adorned our wreath with red crystal stickles!

The idea for this card came from DOStamping with Dawn (Olchefske)'s blog. She used the French Foilage stamp set to create a holiday wreath with the "stamping off " technique which she explains in the same post. We loved her card, but wanted to give it our own look. Our sentiment is from the Scenic Season stampset. We inked the stamp with VersaMark and Cherry Cobbler inks and heat set it with clear embossing powder.

This card uses the Scallop Edge Border, 5-Petal Flower, and Two-step bird punches and Holly Jolly DSP to create a fast and easy card! Our sentiment is from the Bright Christmas stamp set inked with Cherry Cobbler.

We have 6 spaces left for our $99 Overnight Retreat Special February 19, 2011. Check-in will begin at 11:00 AM on Saturday. Your overnight will include:

*Lodging at Lake View Lodge on Saturday Night

*Free Make n' Take

*Full use of our Craft Room and Tools

*Saturday Lunch & Dinner

*Sunday Brunch

*All Beverages and Snacks

Check out is at 12:00 PM on Sunday! Located on Dewey Lake, the address for Lake View Lodge is:

50650 Garret Road

Dowagiac, MI 49047

Space is limited! Place your reservation today! E-mail us at info@crafthavenretreats.com, for additional information or check out our Facebook page. Happy Holidays and Happy Crafting!

Deck the Halls DSP Collection

noreply@blogger.com (Melannie) — Mon, 20 Dec 2010 01:04:00 +0000

We love Deck the Halls DSP Collection! We designed these cards for Nanci's Stamp-a-stack, the November Stamp Club, and our Ladies Night Out Retreat in early December.

Dasher was the favorite at our Ladies Night Out Retreat! The sentiment and Dasher stamp are both stamped with VersaMark and heat embossed with gold embossing powder. Don't forget to use your static pad or embossing buddy you want a really clean image when you're through. We ran the Early Espresso card stock through the Big Shot using the Northern Flurry embossing folder.

We love the vintage look of the Deck the Halls DSP and fabric! We frayed the edges of our fabric ribbon to add texture to the bow. Nanci used colored pencils to decorate the bell stamp from Bells & Boughs.

Here's another vintage Christmas look! I used markers to color in the stamp of the bough image and then I masked that stamp and stamped the bell in Early Espresso ink. It looks like the bells are hanging from the bough. The sentiment is from the Bells & Boughs stamp set also. The Cherry Cobbler card stock was run through the Big Shot with the Petals-a-plenty embossing folder. I think it makes the background look just like poinsettias. We also finished this card off with a Deck the Halls fabric bow.

We just love the Christmas Collage stamp! Nanci inked it in VersaMark and Early Espresso and heat embossed the image with clear embossing powder on Crumb Cake card stock. She used the same procedure for the sentiment and the "25, " but she used Cherry Cobbler for the ink. She punched them out and used dimensionals to add depth to the card. She used colored pencils to fill in some of the images of the stamp. This picture doesn't do the card justice--it is really a show stopper when you see it in person.

I cased this card from Tiffany Bauer (www.mycraftyworld.blogspot.com) who made it for a Founder's Circle event. We decided that it was a lovely card, but too expensive to make in bulk and mail--those buttons are heavy! We tried to find a more cost effective design for mailing.

This card was my cheaper to produce and mail alternative. I tried to make it look like the ornament was hanging from the bough. I used markers to color the stamp. The sentiment is from Teeny Tiny Wishes and is stamped in Early Espresso ink. The Cherry Cobbler card sock was embossed using the Petals-a-plenty embossing folder.

We loved the gift tags from Tags till Christmas! We used gold gel pen accents on some of the punches with natural twine for the ties.

More chocolate--you can never have enough chocolate on hand for the holidays! Again, we used Deck the Halls Fabric for our ribbon bows and natural twine ties.

We loved this paper from Deck The Halls DSP for these Fancy Favor die-cut bags! The poinsettias were so pretty on the outside of the bag. We choose the fabric that matched the inside of the bags to make our bows out of. Soft suede card stock accents finished them off nicely.

We're from Illinois and the cardinal is our state bird. We loved the look of these gift bags and mini-milk cartons with their Cherry Cobbler cardinals. Our bags are tied with Deck the Halls fabric bows again, but our milk carton bows are the Cherry Cobbler seam binding. The icy edge on our mini-milk carton roofs is Silver Glass Glitter which really looks fabulous in person!

The altered Scalloped Envelope die holds a regular size gift card and can easily fit inside any of our gift bags or cards. It also would look nice just placed on a branch of your Christmas tree!

That's a quick overview of some our Deck The Halls DSP collection. We have really enjoyed working with all the designer series papers this year and we hope you have too.

Nanci and I wish you and your family a healthy and happy holiday season and Happy Crafting in 2011!

Have a Jolly Holiday DSP!

noreply@blogger.com (Nanci) — Fri, 17 Dec 2010 05:21:00 +0000

Gift Tags - þ

Medium Gift Bags and Christmas Cards - þ

Gift (a.k.a. Chocolate) - þ

Gift Card Holder - þ

Hoo is it? Santa - þ! Hiding Chocolate and his true Owl identity--even his pack of toys is an owl punch!

Small Gift Bags with Cards - þ

Jolly Holiday Collection - þ

Happy Crafting!

$99 Overnight Special and Tags Till Christmas!

noreply@blogger.com (Melannie) — Tue, 14 Dec 2010 04:48:00 +0000

Nanci and I have decided to offer a $99 Overnight Special for Saturday, February 19, 2011 with check-in at 11:00 AM through Sunday, February 20th at 12:00 PM. Your overnight will include Saturday night lodging, make n'take, full use of our craft room and tools, Saturday lunch, dinner, snacks, and beverages, and Sunday brunch!

We hope you will be able to join us at Lake View Lodge located on Dewey Lake in Dowagiac, Michigan for our mini-retreat! It will be cold and snowy outside, but the lodge will be warm and toasty! Space is limited for our $99 Overnight, so make your reservation today!

When we were preparing for our craft shows this fall, we decided to make Christmas gift tags to coordinate with the three holiday designer series paper packs;

Jolly Holiday DSP

Candy Cane Christmas Specialty DSP

and Deck The Halls DSP

We loved the Top Note packaging that we designed for them, but it definitely did not show off the tags to their full advantage! So we took some photos of the contents before they were packaged!

Aren't they cute! The Tags till Christmas stamp set coordinates so well with the Stampin' Up punches--they are a snap to stamp, punch, and assemble. We added some white and gold gel pen accents!

Unfortunately, the gift tags for Jolly Holiday were already packaged at this point, but all three designs were very similar!

Farewell to Candy Cane Christmas DSP

noreply@blogger.com (Melannie) — Sat, 11 Dec 2010 22:35:00 +0000

We were saddened to learn that Candy Cane Christmas Specialty DSP is no longer available. We have really enjoyed the projects that we made with this paper. We hope you enjoy them too!

Gift Card Holders with the Scalloped Envelope die cut altered to fit regular size gift card. Click here for a link to Tara Bazata's video tutorial! It's fast and fun! We used velcro to close our gift card holders and a few quick punches and a brad to decorate the envelope!

We cased this gift card holder by Vicki Burdick from Late Night Stampers! It was so cute! We made it at our November Stamp Club and at our last retreat at Lake View Lodge! It's a gift before you open it to get your gift card!

We did not pick the gift card our to match the paper--it was a happy accident!

A Baker's dozen gift tags made with the Tags till Christmas stamp set.

We loved the matching Candy Cane Christmas fabric that Stampin' Up! put out to match this paper. We used it in place of ribbon to compliment these chocolate bars wrapped in the Candy Cane Specialty DSP.

Fabric ribbon and some fancy penguin punch art adorn these mini milk cartons! These quirky birds are concealing chocolate treats and their true "owl" identities!

We designed these cards for our Christmas Stamp-a-stack, but we also used them at last weekend's retreat for a beginner's card class with fantastic results!

Everyone at our retreat loved the dazzling diamonds! A little "bling" goes a long way!

What would scallops be without a little Crystal Stickles? Remember to give the stickles some time to dry!

So long Candy Cane Christmas Specialty DSP! We will miss you!

A Candy Cane Christmas is coming!

noreply@blogger.com (Melannie) — Fri, 26 Nov 2010 20:57:00 +0000

Everyone needs gift bags at Christmas! We've used the Candy Cane Christmas Specialty DSP and Candy Cane Christmas fabric to decorate our holiday gift bags! The tag on our bag was created with the Sweet Snowglobe stamp, circle punched, and adhered to a scallop circle punch of Garden Green decorated with White Gel Pen dots!

A great gift bag deserves a great card! :)

Is this bag too large? How about a die-cut gift bag? These cute little bags were made with the Fancy Favor Stampin' Up! Bigz Xl die. The stamp on our tag came from the Tags Till Christmas Stampset. It's a fast fun project. The perfect container for that special gift!

What about a Candy Cane Christmas Gift Box!

This box was cut with the Box #2 Bigz Xl die. We filled ours with peppermints of course! Tomorrow we'll have a few ideas about what to put inside your gift bags and boxes! :)

Thank You - Inspired by Nature

noreply@blogger.com (Melannie) — Mon, 22 Nov 2010 04:28:00 +0000

I love the stamp set Inspired by Nature. I purchased it in September or October, but I haven't had a chance to use it until yesterday! I needed to send some Thank you cards out, so I decided to inaugurate the stamp by using it to create my cards.

Here's the design I came up with. The stamp is quite large and double-sided. The background grass is on one side and the flower is mounted to the other side of the wood block. I inked the stamp with VersaMark and then I inked my brayer with Early Espresso so I could apply an even coat of ink over the VersaMark before stamping my flower image. I embossed the image with clear embossing powder. I used daubers of Always Artichoke, More Mustard, and Cajun Craze inks to apply ink to the Very Vanilla card stock. The edges were inked with Early Espresso also.

Early Espresso card stock is layered with Autumn Spice DSP which frames the completed stamped image. The sentiment is from Teeny Tiny Wishes, stamped with Early Espresso, and punched out with the Word Window and Modern Label Punch. The completed sentiment is attached to the stamp image with Dimensionals.

I highly recommend adding Teeny Tiny Wishes, Word Window Punch and Modern Label Punch to your arsenal of stamping supplies--they are must haves! You can purchase them on-line from Nanci's Stampin' Up! site 24/7. As for Inspired by Nature, I cannot wait to use this stamp again!

Happy Stamping!

2010 Ladies Night Out - Chrysalis Community Center FundRaiser

noreply@blogger.com (Melannie) — Sun, 21 Nov 2010 02:34:00 +0000

We had a wonderful time at 2010 Ladies Night Out! The event was from 5:00 PM to 9:00 PM and benefited the Youth Programs for the Chrysalis Community Center. Our Penguin Treat bags sold out! We had pre-packaged our Note Card Desk and Christmas gift sets, so we displayed samples of each set on our table.

There were approximately ten other venders at the event which featured a raffle ticket fundraiser with vendor donations and a weekend getaway!

A troup of dancers provided entertainment at regular intervals over the course of the evening. Their costumes were charming and the dances were lively!

The dancers were all different ages!

We had a great view from our table!

Yes, those are lighted candles that they are dancing with on their heads! The Chrysalis Community Center is going to have another fundraiser this spring, we hope to see you there!

Craft Haven Retreats current special of $199 per person has been extended to our Spring 2011 season. Retreat weekends at Lake View Lodge in Dowagiac, Michigan, include two nights lodging and five home-cooked meals, beverages, and snacks. Your weekend can be customized to meet your groups needs. Crafting classes, massages, manicures, and pedicures available for an additional fee.

2010 Ladies Night Out - Chrysalis Community Center

noreply@blogger.com (Melannie) — Thu, 18 Nov 2010 06:00:00 +0000

Just a quick post to let you know that we are participating in a charity event to benefit Chrysalis' youth programs at the Chicago Heights Country Club West tonight from 5:00 PM to 9:00 PM. We sold out of our Thanksgiving Hostess gifts at Saturday's show, so we came up with a couple of cute replacements!

These cute little boxes of "Rudolph Spares" are filled with Red Hot Candies or Cherry Candies.

These Penguin Kiss bags are the substitute for our Turkey Treat Bags! They'll both make excellent stocking stuffers! I want them both in my stocking!

Look close our "penguin" is an owl in disguise! After the Chrysalis Community Center event, I'm off to the midnight showing of Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows Part 1! I will be drinking a lot of coffee at work on Friday!

Retreat!

noreply@blogger.com (Melannie) — Wed, 17 Nov 2010 05:56:00 +0000

We've been keeping quite busy in our scrap-booking room preparing for a few craft shows and some Stampin' Up! events. I thought I'd share some pictures from a retreat we had at the end of October. The weather at the lake was beautiful that weekend--mostly sun! The grass is not brown--it's covered with pine needles!

Sandy, from St. Louis, MO sent us this photo. The view is from the living room of the house looking at the lake. I love the fall color in the foliage. I love sitting on the front porch--it's so relaxing!

We had a varied group of crafters this weekend-- quilting, scrap-booking, and handmade ornaments. Saturday after lunch we all ran over to Kathryn Wise's store, Sew Many Pleasures in Dowagiac, MI and we hit a sale! Kathy specializes in gifts and collectibles. After our guests departed on Sunday, Nanci and I ran up to Kathy's shop and hit the sale again!

Best of all we had lively games of dominoes after dinner both nights! Grilled Peach and Chicken Salad, Home Made Navy Bean Soup, and Creme Brulee French Toast Casserole were the favorite weekend menu items! We are booking retreats for 2011 now! E-mail us and reserve your weekend today!

October Stamp Club

noreply@blogger.com (Nanci) — Tue, 26 Oct 2010 02:23:00 +0000

We celebrated the arrival of Fall at our October Stamp Club meeting by making 4 cards using Stampin' Up!'s gorgeous Day of Gratitude and French Foliage stamp sets. Both of these beautiful sets are featured in the Holiday Mini Catalog. Our DSP for the evening was Autumn Spice. With all of the rich colors and texture, this specialty paper is the perfect choice for Fall and Thanksgiving projects. Combined with card stock and inks in Early Espresso, Cajun Craze, More Mustard, Old Olive, Very Vanilla and Crumb Cake, our fall color palette was complete!

For our first card, we used the French Foliage stamp set.

We used every stamp in this set to create our background paper and then inked the edges in Early Espresso. We lightly sponged More Mustard throughout our image to give a more aged look. Our sentiment from the Holiday Best set was stamped in Cajun Craze, layered on More Mustard and Cajun Craze card stock and popped up with Dimensionals. For our simple embellishment we cut out a few more stamped leaves, inked the edges for a crisp look, added an antique brad and a twist of twine! All of our ladies LOVED this card!

For our second card we used the awesome medallion stamp from Day of Gratitude. This stamp is so bold and versatile! It can be used for all seasons with just a change of ink colors, and looks great stamped with multiple colors or in just one tone. It's perfect as a background stamp using tone on tone, or embossed with Versamark. It's hard to go wrong with this fantastic stamp!

For our project, we went for multiple colors using our Stampin' Write Markers. We cut out our medallion and layered it on Early Espresso, More Mustard and Cajun Craze. Our sentiment is from Teeny Tiny Wishes and punched out with Word Window and layed on a Modern Label punched out in Cajun Craze.

For our next card we made a gate fold and featured a beautiful patterned paper from the Autumn Spice DSP on one panel and complimented it with a leaf image stamped in tone on tone on the other panel. We Ticket Corner punched our layered panel for added dimension. Our Day of Gratitude sentiment was punched out using the Decorative Label and made for the perfect card closure!

For our last card we created a quick and easy background using the Bright Blessings Jumbo Wheel rolled twice across our paper in More Mustard ink. Our three simple images were colored using our Regal markers and punched out using the 1 1/4" Square Punch and then layered on Early Espresso. We used Crystal Effects on the center of our flowers and added 3 Rhinestones across the bottom for a little sparkle and shine!

We ended our evening by making our Turkey Treat Bags, which have become quite a hit! You can view these cute little guys in our previous post! Thanks for looking at our projects and Happy Crafting!