Christmas Treats for Your “Sweets”

Hi everyone.  I'm here today sharing a Christmas surprise idea with you.  I made some Christmas treats for my “sweets”. My sweet girls that is and it was so fun to make these and to watch the delight my girls had wondering and discovering what was inside.

I’ll step you through how I made these but I’ll be back next week with the process video I created so you can see it come together in action!

It might be a little hard to tell but these treat bags are bursting at the seams with Christmas chocolates!  These can be used as party favors, advent or just fun little treats for your friends, family and even co-workers. The great thing is that they are really easy to make if you have a pair of scissors or die cutting machine, glue and a few embellishments.

Let’s take a look at how I assembled the Christmas tree. I used my Silhouette CAMEO but you could easily hand cut these.  Either way, you need two identical cut trees. Easy, right?

Next, add brads from the embellished brads set. Alternatively, you can use die cuts, glitter, enamel dots but these brads are just so awesome.  I love the color variations and the gold rim around them.

Next, Starting at the widest part of the tree, which is the bottom, glue the bottom and the edges together until you have a large pocket.  Once dry, fill it with candies. Repeat until you are at the top and your tree is completely filled.

Here’s an example of a treat bag embellished with die cuts.  Simply adhere the die cut with strong liquid adhesive and set aside to dry.

Set them out as a surprise treat for the special people in your life.  They have no idea what’s inside and it’s so fun to watch them open their surprise.

Beware, they will want to open them all!  You could also add in different candies or other small items you think your friends and family will enjoy!

Check back next week for the process video I filmed while creating these Christmas treats for my sweets!

Supplies:

COZY & BRIGHT DOUBLE-SIDED CARDSTOCK 12″X12″MERRY LITTLE CHRISTMASCOZY & BRIGHT DOUBLE-SIDED CARDSTOCK 12″X12″ SANTA LANDCOZY & BRIGHT DOUBLE-SIDED CARDSTOCK 12″X12″ WINTER GREEN
COZY & BRIGHT DOUBLE-SIDED CARDSTOCK 12″X12″ MERRY & BRIGHTCOZY & BRIGHT DOUBLE-SIDED CARDSTOCK 12″X12″ WARM & COZYCOZY & BRIGHT DOUBLE-SIDED CARDSTOCK 12″X12″ FA LA LA LACOZY & BRIGHT DECORATIVE BRADSCOZY & BRIGHT EPHEMERA CARDSTOCK DIE-CUTS ICONS W/WHITE GLITTER ACCENTSCOZY & BRIGHT EPHEMERA CARDSTOCK DIE-CUTS PHRASE W/WHITE GLITTER ACCENTS

THANKFUL for…printable cards

Hi everyone.  Heather Leopard is here with a new spin on our annual Thanksgiving “I Am Thankful” cards.  Today’s project also includes a process video, which I will post here this week.

Each year either my mom or I make cards for family members to fill out when we’re all together at Thanksgiving.  This year was my turn and I wanted to create cards that have space for a small photo of the person who completes the card along with short journaling spots.

I drew this up in PowerPoint and then printed it on my color printer. Easy peasy!  The square measures 1.5″ x 1.5″ so there’s just enough room to fit a small 1.25″ x 1.25″ photo. Then the other boxes are just the right size for a small phrase or even just one word, like “family.  You could even write out a long sentence or two utilizing the space in all the boxes together.

I added embellishments, like stickers and die cuts to each of the cards. I didn’t add much, more like just enough, because the true heart of the card is in what everyone writes on them.  I plan to place stickers next to the cards in case anyone wants to add more to theirs.  You could also wait to add embellishments and let your guests add their own.

Some of the embellishments are adhered directly to the card, while others, like this cute butterfly are popped up using 3D foam dots.

Here’s what the completed cards look like. I made 8 in total and they were just so quick and easy. I can totally see my guests adding more die cuts and stickers to these or maybe even some doodling.  I can’t wait to see what everyone writes.  Oh, that gives me an idea…I think I’ll turn these into a mini album. Stay tuned for another post on that!

Also, check back later this week for a process video on how these cards came together.

xoxo, Heather
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Supplies:
My Bright Life 6×6 Paper Pad 733892My Bright Life Ephemera Die-cuts with Gold Foil 733884
My Bright Life Accent Stickers 733882

Scrapbooking Tips & Tricks | Cutest Pumpkin in the Patch Layout

Hi everyone.  Today I’m sharing a few scrapbooking tips and tricks, and a process video. Some of these tips were part of my scrapbooking newbie “go-to” arsenal when I first started scrapbooking and others are still my tried and true essentials today.  All of it is manifested in the process video below for this cutest pumpkin in the patch layout I did.

Okay, let’s dive right into the tips and tricks I used for this layout…

Tip #1

Courtesy of Rogers Gardens

CHALLENGES: The photo above relates to a current challenge here at Pebbles…many online groups and scrapbooking companies create challenges every month.  These are great ways to help you focus on what to create.  I find that I just have WAY too many photos to scrap so searching for “scrapbooking challenges” or terms along those lines are sure to uncover something that will inspire you. The bonus is that there’s usually some contest and reward.  Sometimes it’s a gift card, sometimes a kit, sometimes it’s just the glory.  For example, Pebbles is currently hosting a “pumpkin-inspired” project challenge.  I took that challenge on and created the layout above. The current challenge is to create something pumpkin inspired so it can be a project, a card, a layout, whatever! Head over there to see the details.

Tip #2

SKETCHES: Many people turn to sketches for inspiration.  A sketch is like a recipe for scrapbooking.  It doesn’t necessarily tell you how many of this or that or provide measurements but it’s a visual diagram of a layout. Some people choose to follow sketches exactly, while others use it as a jumping off point for their layout, meaning they see something in the sketch that inspires them and may only follow part of the sketch for their design. There’s really no rules for sketches.  There are many sketch sites out there. Just Google scrapbooking sketches and you’re sure to come up with many options.  I also have sketches of my projects, which can be found HERE ON MY BLOG.

Tip#3

SCRAPLIFT someone: Visit scrapbook company blogs, your favorite designer’s blog, Instagram, YouTube, wherever find inspiration and choose a layout that you think suits your photos.  Like sketches, you can scraplift exactly like the original or use it as a jumping off point and take it whichever direction you choose. I see scraplifting as a form of compliment and if you post it online, it’s always courtesy to list the person who inspired you!  If you can tag that person, they are sure to see what you did and leave you all sorts of wonderful feedback. The layout above was part of a collaboration I did with Christine Meyer, where we scraplifted each other.  I did not scraplift exactly like hers.  Instead, I chose two elements of her design – she had a small amount of the buffalo check and a circular floral design.  You can see her original layout in the process video below.

Tip #4

DESIGN: Whenever possible, I like to use a visual triangle design for my scrapbooking layouts. This helps guide the eye around the page to the important things you want to call out and can be easily accomplished by looking at the layout as having 3 anchor points.  These anchor points usually have the same colors and many of the same elements.  In the photo above, I have the photo at the top right (most important element), the pumpkin at the bottom and the floral cluster at the top left.  Notice that the same colors are used but also the same flowers are the one thing that is the same in each of these areas.  The triangle doesn’t have to have equal sides and things can be placed lower or higher or over more but just having a general triangle in the design should help with the flow of the layout.

Tip#5

SUPPLIES: I like to make a kit for each of my projects.  The easiest way to do this is to gather 6 – 7 patterned papers, 1 – 2 cardstock papers, alphas, die cuts, chipboard and stickers.  You can add additional embellishments, such as ribbon, washi, twine, enamel dots, etc. I like to print my photo and then make a kit using supplies that coordinate well with my photo. Or if you really want to use a certain color scheme and your photo doesn’t match, print it in black and white. Creating kits before you start creating really helps you focus and speeds the scrapbooking process tremendously. Knowing what you have to work with also helps remove the design clutter in your head.  Once you have the kit, you have everything at you fingertips. I used the Pebbles Spooky Boo and My Bright Life collections for this kit and layout.

Watch my Process Video to see how I used these scrapbooking tips and tricks for this layout.

xoxo, Heather
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Supplies:
Spooky Boo 12″ x 12″ Paper Pad
Spooky Book Cardstock StickersSpooky Boo Thickers
My Bright Life Field of Flowers Patterned PaperMy Bright Life Stitched Flowers Patterned Paper

Eat, Drink & Be Scary Halloween Scrapbooking Layout

Hello everyone.  It’s almost Halloween time here in the U.S. and you know what that means??? It means chaos and fun at Target. Yep, every year we are “that family”. You know the ones you see trying on the most absurd costumes right there in the costume aisle? That’s us. We’re not loud or obnoxious and we don’t walk around the store in them but we do have a little fun. Oh and by the way, we ended up buying the milk carton that night and my daughter’s best friend went back to get a cookie costume so they could Trick or Treat together as cookies and milk.

I wanted to try to create a layout that mixed a lot of the Spooky Boo collection and several years ago I created a woven heart and I loved the look. That’s what inspired me to create this layout. Only instead of a heart I went with an “X” because it reminded me of the symbols you see around this time of year cautioning you not to drink the poison.

The first step, which is not featured here but is in my process video coming soon, was to add clear gesso to the white background and apply lime green paint / mist.

To weave this together, I cut 1/4″ x 12″ strips of paper. I believe I used about 8 different patterned papers so it would have lots of variety but you could use one if you want a more cohesive look. That’s all up to you.

Next, it was time for the photos.  I struggled with this a bit here because no matter what I tried, the photos just kept blending into the background.  I ended up going with a dark paper immediately behind the photo and then a whitish and orange to help it pop. I also used foam to pop the photo of them eating the taco and drinking the milk and milkshake. Then I drew attention to them with the sticker embellishments around the photos.

I also knew that the title would help draw attention to the photos. The alphas I used are a really cool black glitter but the foam is orange so it’s really eye catching.  I chose a title appropriate for the photo – Eat (the taco), drink (the milk and milkshake) and be scary (always).

Lastly, I added journaling to the bottom right with a cute little spider to catch your attention.  I also added other small embellishments in that area as well as at the top left.

So that’s my Eat, Drink & Be Scary Halloween Scrapbooking Layout. Check back soon for the process video for this layout.

xoxo, Heather

Goals and Dreams Bullet Journal

Today I’m sharing a goals and dreams bullet journal I created for my daughter who begins her first day of high school Monday.  My idea for this was to create a way for her to document ideas about what she hopes her future holds.  I may even add a few of my own thoughts for her future.  I think it would be fun to include this in a time capsule with other things from her childhood.

I thought the llama paper was not only fun but I often say, “save the drama for your llama” and we all know high school can be full of drama.  Perhaps this will turn into a way for her to journal that right out of her system. Ha!

So the first thing I did was cover a Traveler’s Notebook with the adorable little llamas from the My Bright Life collection.  I think they’re so adorable striking their poses with the flowers in their hair. Soo cute. To cover this, I applied Sticky Thumb tape runner to the cover of the notebook and then laid it down on the back of the paper. Then I applied adhesive to the spine and the back cover and folded the paper over leaving paper hanging slightly over on the front and a bit more on the back. Same for the top and bottom.  I did this because if you trim the paper to what you think the measurements are for the notebook, odds are you’ll be just a bit off.  It’s much easier to do it this way and then trim around the edges with scissors. Trust me on that one.

I knew what I wanted for the main theme of the journal to be but we’ll get to that in a moment.  I also wanted to add some inspiring words and the 2″ x 3″ cut apart cards in the 6″ x 6″ paper pad had exactly what I wanted. I just needed to choose which one I loved the most.

“You Can Totally Do This” was it so I cut that one out and adhered it with some foam adhesive over a dark contrasting patterned paper.  I used the same colors and flowers as the llama and her pretty little flowers.

Now it’s time to go back to my main theme, “MAKE IT HAPPEN”. I love that you are in charge of your destiny and it’s all up to you to make it happen. I used gold foam Thickers and placed them over the flowers. Then I decided we needed more gold so I added a layer of gold plaid patterned paper.

It’s time to put it all together. I used tape runner adhesive again and left enough room on the edges to hang over just slightly and then just trimmed it up with scissors again.

So there you have it.  I also sprinkled additional 2″ x 2″ and 2″ x 3″ notecards, die cuts and small puffy stickers to some of the inside pages.  I’ll make sure to include more embellishments and papers in the package when I give this goals and dreams bullet journal to her so she can decorate the inside pages.

xoxo, Heather
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Supplies:

My Bright Life Lovely Llamas Patterned Paper 733874My Bright Life Flower Pop Patterned Paper 733868
My Bright Life 6×6 Paper Pad 733892My Bright Life Ephemera Die-cuts with Gold Foil 733884
My Bright Life Puffy Stickers Icons 733886American Crafts Thickers with Gold Foil- Bryn 733888Sticky Thumb Marathon Runner and Refill 342038

School Lunch Notes

Hi everyone. With the first day of school just 3 weeks away, I’m getting a jump start on school lunch prep.  No, I’m not prepping the actual meals because that would be just gross; I’m talking about school lunch notes.  I don’t care how old your kids are, including a little note in their lunch kit will make their day!

I don’t care how old your kids are, including a little note in their lunch kit will make their day! Shoot, maybe I’ll make my own lunch notes. Just kidding, kind of.

I knew that I was going to use the 2″ x 3″ cards so I downloaded a Silhouette file and sized it so that the notes would perfectly fit in them.  I was able to cut multiple of these at a time which sped up the process.  You could also make these without a machine pretty easily.  Just apply a bit of adhesive to the edges, fold over and you’ve got your pocket.

There’s also this little flap that you can fold down. You can tuck these in or out depending on your mood.  I folded most of mine out like you see pictured above and look how the flowers align so well.

Next, add a simply embellishment to the front of the card.  You could also add a sentiment but then again, the sentiment is in the lunch note, right?

The cards I chose were from the 6″ x 6″ paper pad, which was great because the backs were white. That’s perfect for adding a personal note to each of them. I also added a small puffy sticker or two to each note. It just needed a little pop of something.

Once the personal note is written, just insert the card in the pocket and stash them away so you have them ready to go when you pack their lunches.  I think I’ll make or alter a cute little box to store these in…

So there you have it. School Lunch Notes ready to go.  Super fun and super easy!

xoxo, Heather
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Supplies:
My Bright Life Lemons Patterned Paper 733860My Bright Life Flower Rows Patterned Paper 733862
My Bright Life Daisy Quilt Patterned Paper 733863My Bright Life My Tweets Patterned Paper 733864
My Bright Life 6×6 Paper Pad 733892My Bright Life Ephemera Die-cuts with Gold Foil 733884
My Bright Life Puffy Stickers Icons 733886Precision Pen .03 Point 62311Sticky Thumb Marathon Runner and Refill 342038

Embroidered Scrapbooking Layout | Challenge Yourself

Hi everyone, this week over on the Pebbles blog is all about challenging ourselves. I went about tackling this by doing something relatively new to me – Mixed Media – and something I LOVE to do but never make the time to do – Hand Stitching.  Take a look at this embroidered scrapbooking layout and then keep reading to see how it all came together.

As you can see, I did not shy away from this challenge. I just fell in love with the floral patterned paper and absolutely HAD to create an embroidered scrapbooking layout.

To get started, I trimmed the upper right and lower left triangles of my layout. If I had been machine stitching a pattern, I would normally have stitched the entire thing but I knew I didn’t want to embroider something that I would have to cut apart. I added a small cluster of die cut flowers and a wood embellishment to the top portion of the layout.  Just a little since the embroidered patterned paper was quite busy enough.

This is the lower half. As you can see, I spent way too many hours poking holes and threading the needle doing what I refer to as a regular stitch and french knots. If you are thinking about doing this, I suggest finding a comfy spot of the couch and binge watching your favorite show. Or if you have a road trip (and your the passenger) or a long flight.

I added two photos to the layout. I was originally going to tuck them both under the pretty embroidered patterned paper so I wouldn’t have to cover any of it up but it didn’t look right so I tucked one under and another over. That’s when it felt right!  I also added some layers of patterned paper and vellum and die cuts, 3D stickers and regular stickers.

Oh, the mixed media…I added white gesso to the yellow patterned paper background and then applied watered down mist to the gesso. I just needed to soften up the background slightly and add a few pops of color. All I need to do now is add my journaling – private words to my daughters will be written on those lines above!

There you have it – my labor of love, literally and figuratively!  I hope you have enjoyed seeing how I challenged myself this month and hope you will try something just a bit outside of your comfort zone very soon!

xoxo, Heather
YouTube | Blog  |  Instagram  |  Pinterest

Supplies:
My Bright Life Bright Life Patterned Paper 733858My Bright Life Stitched Flowers Patterned Paper 733859
My Bright Life Fresh Picked Patterned Paper 733859My Bright Life 6×6 Paper Pad 733892My Bright Life Ephemera Die-cuts with Gold Foil 733884
My Bright Life Cardstock Stickers 733882My Bright Life Dimensional Stickers with Gold Foil Accents 733883