Friday Quote- The Grinch

Who doesn't love Dr. Seuss' The Grinch Who Stole Christmas? Not only is it a classic, but it has a great message in it as well.  So with Christmas just around the corner, we want to remind you all that as fun as all the presents are, maybe Christmas is a little bit more than all of that.

And The Winner Is....

Congratulations to Jeannette Moreira for winning our Thanksgiving Giveaway!  We will be contacting you soon to see what prize you would like.  Thanks to everyone else who entered.  We'll be having another give away in just a few weeks for Christmas, so try again then!  The odds are in your favor. :)

Quote Friday: Live with Gratitude

This quote comes as one more on gratitude, after having spent a wonderful Thanksgiving among friends and family yesterday.  It comes from a speech, and right before this quote Thomas S. Monson shares a wonderful story of one Gordon Green, found in a Reader's Digest in 1956.  Thomas S. Monson paraphrases and quotes from that story, and I thought I'd share it with you all, in the spirit of Thanksgiving. :)  Enjoy:

Thanksgiving Giveaway!

Happy Thanksgiving week! We want to say thank you to all of our friends who visit and read our blog. To show our gratitude, we are doing a little giveaway, just as a fun piece of thanks before the holidays.  Yay!  All you have to do is leave a comment below and tell us something you are grateful for.  For double entry points, like our facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/MakeItScrappin)  and most recent post.  "Entries" need to be received by 11:59 PM, Sunday Nov. 30th.  We will be picking the winner on Monday, Dec. 1st so check back then to see if you're the winner and so we can contact you!

It's simple, so enter to win.  We are giving away your choice of one of the following:

-A new cutting mat (Cricut or Silhouette)

-A roll of vinyl (select colors) (Cricut or Silhouette)

-A $10 Silhouette gift card

Don't forget to leave your name in your comment so we know who you are!

Friday Quote: Gratitude

:) Good reminder.  Happy almost Thanksgiving.  What are you grateful for?

Family Book of Thanks

So, I heard of this idea awhile back: creating a Book of Thanks for your family (and guests) to record something they are grateful for each Thanksgiving.  Take a group shot of everyone at your Thanksgiving feast each year, save room for it on a

Thanksgiving Napkin Rings (Lincoln's Proclamation)

Have a little humble history and thanks with your holiday meal, by sharing quotes from Lincoln or Washington's Thanksgiving Proclamations setting forth this great holiday of remembrance.  

Do a little remembering of your own.

Napkin rings.  As a college student, I have just had little use for them.  When do I hold dinner parties that consist of much more than pizza?  Okay. So I'm not that stereotypical; I actually really like having people over for dinner, and love a nice spread (ever see my Cheese Party post?).  But because I have a hard time limiting my guest list, still share most things with roommates (so keep my good dishes, etc, boxed away), and because I'm usually trying to cram all those people into my small living room to sit around a card table, a folding kitchen table, and my couches--my dinners usually end up looking something like this: 

Quote Friday: Giving Service

"Do for others with no desire of returned favors. 

We all should plant some trees we'll never sit under."

Oh how I love this quote--for so many reasons.  Beyond the wisdom of these words, and for an application fitting this blog's purposes, I can see this quote being placed on some scrapbook pages of service, of a grandfather or grandmother teaching a child a skill, of a Boy Scouts leader teaching something, etc.  Hope you can find a good use for it in your scrapbooking or home.

DIY: Pottery Barn Knock-off "Give Thanks" Holiday Glitter Banner

You bet I will. 

So, a few weeks ago I had some time to kill at the mall as I waited for my roommate to get out of a movie.  I wandered through the usual clothing shops out of habit, but then found I spent most of my time perusing the decor in Pottery Barn Kids.  Ugh.  I really love some of the Pottery Barn styles.  Unfortunately, I don't generally tend to love the Pottery Barn prices.  Ouch.  Especially on a budget.

Quote Friday: Whittier's Autumn

"The tints of autumn...a mighty flower garden blossoming under the spell of the enchanter, frost.” 
― John Greenleaf Whittier"

What a beautiful sentiment.  Perfect for a scrapbook page filled with your beautiful Fall photos.  

In the mountains back West we'd take a drive through the canyon to see all the beautiful Fall colors. Now, living out East, I can see them just stepping out my front door.  (However, I still love to take drives now and then to see them uninterrupted by houses and telephone poles.)  

What a gorgeous earth on which we live.

Halloween Craft Project for Kids

Did you just remember that you signed up to do a craft project for your child's Halloween party and have no clue what to do? Or, just looking for a fun craft to do with your kids?  Well, here is a Halloween craft that you can do that is simple and it turns out really cute.

I have seen this idea floating around on Pinterest for a while and I have also done it in my classroom when I was an elementary teacher.  All you have to do is

Halloween Apothecary Jar

Well, this post is sort of an addendum to my "Spooky" Dollar Store Potions/Halloween Table Decor Books post, which I shared a few weeks back.  (And which I kind of love.)  Just wanted to show that you can also do the wet paper towel technique (see that previous post) to create neat looking jars to also add to your Halloween decor.

Spooky Halloween Apothecary Jar

The method for the jar was the same as the base layer for the books.  Namely, cover it with a wet 1-ply napkin or paper

Pixy Stix Witch Halloween Card or Party Invitation

This card or invite combines the festiveness of Halloween with one of the other things so loved about this holiday: CANDY. :)  

Using Pixie Stix Candies from the dollar store, some obliging bark from a branch in my backyard, some cardstock, glue dots, and my Silhouette--I was able to make these tasty lil' cards in no time at all. 

Don't send out Halloween cards?  I think these are even better used as the front of an invitation to a Halloween Party.  

DIY Vinyl Window Cling

Feeling like your house is lacking in holiday decorating?  Mine sure was.  So I broke out my Silhouette, found these cute Halloween shapes and cut them out of vinyl.  Once that was done, I simply placed them in my front windows and just like that, the outside of my house looked 'decorated'.  This project only took me 5 minutes to do and when Halloween is over, all I have to do is peel the vinyl off and throw it away! My type of holiday clean up.

Friday Quote- Beautiful Fall

I love this time of year and all the beautiful fall colors.   So, when I saw this quote I knew it was perfect for our Friday quote today.  This quote would be cute on a sign in your house, on a picture of fall leaves (with or without family in it) that you have, or even on a card you are making for someone.

DIY: Dollar Store "Spooky" Potions and Spells Halloween Table Books

Well, wow, if that wasn't the longest title for a post ever.  Good thing it is for such an AWESOMELY  amazing, you're-gonna-love-me project!!  I am seriously, seriously...obsessed with this project and how it turned out.  Like...I want to show everyone I see.  And it was so cheap and surprisingly simple.  So, please, without further ado let me share them with you!

DIY Affordable Halloween Door Decoration

Well, the Halloween posts aren't stopping yet! (I even have a few more to come this week.)  Here's a stylish but easy door hanger that I made, on the cheap.  If you have some of the supplies on hand, you can make this, like I did, for under $3. This is a great base idea for a door decoration for any holiday.

All you need is:

* A platter, old picture frame, etc. (Mine is a plastic platter I picked up at WalMart for $2.47.)

* A piece of scrapbook paper

* Mod Podge, glue, or sealant

* Silhouette Double Sided Adhesive sheets (Optional--can just use more scrapbook paper.)

* Glitter and paint brush

* Vinyl (Again, optional.  Can also just use scrapbook paper, but if you use all paper you will most certainly need a sealant.)

* Finishing Spray (like polyurethane spray, or Krylon Matte Finish Spray)

* Ribbon

Here's how to:

How-to Make Stencils, and "Spooky" Halloween, Sugar-Dusted Brownies

Um...cute, right?  (I mean, spooky.) These things are perfect for any Halloween shin-dig you've got going on--fun family function, whatever!  All you need are brownies (or cookies, cake, etc.), powdered sugar, a piece of cardstock, and your Silhouette machine.

Friday Quote-Day: All Time Favorite

So Friday came and went, and I completely let the day slide without posting our quote for the day.  Seeing as how I was at my sister's wedding reception, I decided a quote about "love"  would be appropriate to share.  Smile. :)

Yeah.  Pretty much. :)

Friday Quote-Day: Watching the Clock

I can see this on a sign posted by a clock in the office (or made with vinyl on the clock itself). ;)  (Except, we all love our jobs, so it wouldn't be true, right?) :)

Vinyl Pumpkin

Want an easy way to decorate your pumpkin this year, or a way to achieve a different look?  Try this simple one!

No need to spend the extra cash to buy one of those more expensive white pumpkins.  Instead, just

Halloween Photo Props

So recently my sister was in charge of a Fall Festival activity in her neighborhood. This activity is apparently a big deal, with pony rides, pumpkin carvings, and of course: candy.    This year they decided to tap into the Photo Booth craze that has been hitting the wedding scene, where guests are provided props to use as they get their picture(s) taken. They are then given a copy of the photo(s) to take home with them, while the host is also usually printed a copy for their memories.  It's great fun. And in this case, a terrrrifyingly fitting and good idea. ;)

Friday, Quote Day: Charged with opportunity

So very true, though often can be so very hard to see.

This message/quote would be great to send to a friend or co-worker, to put on a card to a recent grad at a new job, etc.

Just Because

Sometimes, friends just need roses.  Other times,...well roses are just always nice, aren't they?  That's what I thought.

I love flowers.

So, I saw some flowers at the grocery store one day and thought, "why not?"  I bought them and thought I'd pass them on to a few friends to brighten their day, "just because." :)

I found a few simple labels/tags that I had in my Silhouette Library and added in a few very small circles as "hole punches"

Quote Friday: Today is a great day for laughing

Guess I just put the whole quote in the title of this post, huh?  :)  Well, easier for you to find, my friends.

Here it is, one more time, just because:

"Today is a great day for laughing."

This is a great quote to have up somewhere in your house as a reminder to enjoy life and to laugh at the small things--to keep a smile on your face!  

(For instance, when my sisters and I were taking the above picture and I was somehow the only one who missed the fact that something funny had happened.  When we saw the picture later, we were all laughing.)

Pizza Peel/Paddle Recipe or Memo Board

So, my sister is getting married. There's no other way to say it. :)  Congrats!  A few weeks ago we had her bridal shower, and I decided to make her a gift.  Because it was simple and a nice gift to give at just such an occasion, I thought I'd share. So here is how to make this personalized Pizza Peel (I had no idea that's what it was called) Memo/Recipe Board.  Perfect to hang in the kitchen, or to set up on the counter with a photo easel.  

Quote Friday

Being in the scrapbooking, card-making, and crafting business, I am often looking for the perfect quote or tag line to add to my page, card, sign, etc.  I think we can all relate in some degree. Sometimes, a simple word or phrase will do to capture the sentiment I want to get across,

or to tag the feeling or event.

Other times, I want a fun phrase to serve as label or decoration,

or a quote that fits perfectly to a room or friend. 

Often, this entails a lot of searching for inspiration, for that thing that fits "just right" with what I'm feeling for that craft.  For instance, when I was making a Father's Day card for my Dad this year, I wanted something a little silly but that also expressed gratitude.  I came across a card that read: "Well done, Dad!  I'm awesome."  I went with that :) (and then went on to tell him all the ways his example had helped shape me into being so, of course).  

In the spirit of that search, we thought we'd start sharing some sort of quotation/phrase with you each week.  I'm doing a similar thing on my personal blog as a means of just keepin' up that inspiration, or that smile.  These will be great things to pin to pinterest for that time when you just may need them. So, here's hopin' they inspire you and your crafting, or help you with that perfect tag-line for a card or scrapbook page.  They'll be quick, but we hope you like them and keep checking back each week.  Have a favorite of your own that you've seen or used?  Please share it with our readers as a comment on this post!  We all thank you now. :)

So, to get us going with an auspicious start, I stopped by a local diner today and saw this saying on the wall:  

Love supporting small businesses, and the fact that they usually have such personality. Thanks for the quote idea, HoneyDip Donuts & Diner! Crafters--have fun with that one. Now go each a donut cheeseburger. (Actually on the menu there.)

*Note:  If you are interested, each of the images above, minus the last sign, are from previous posts we've shared on this blog, which give descriptions of how-to's and font styles. 

How To: Personalized Silhouette Chipboard Puzzle

Well, I guess my last post sort of left you with a slightly unfinished product. :)  The idea was to have that post be for sharing some basic steps of how to use chipboard with your Silhouette, for those who might feel uncomfortable testing out a new product.  Also, it was easier to only do one video per post. :)  But as you can now see, chipboard is easy enough to use.  So, to follow up and finish off the project, watch the video above for the rest of the tutorial on how to make your own personalized puzzle! However, for those of you who know how to use chipboard and who say "Who needs a tutorial?!  Let me get my hands on that stuff!"--to you, I say "have at it!"  :)  I can't wait to see what you make.  Also, we've obviously got some chipboard on our website for a good price.  Have at that, too. ;)

But, if you are looking to polish off your idea, here's mine:

I took a photo of my nieces from when we got free 7Eleven slurpees on one of my visits, and added on the "Families are cool" (get it?) tagline. Yeah, I'm a little cheesy (or cool), but that's alright by me.  Then I gave them the puzzle as a gift.  Family momento and a puzzle, in one?!  Can things get any better than that?  Maybe. :)  But I still like things that preserve family memories, share family love,...and I also really like puzzles. So have at it.  Make a family puzzle.  Take a photo of your kid's favorite toys having a tea party and then turn it into a puzzle.  Scan a photo of a picture they drew and use that.  There are so many fun possibilities. I think I am going to try one more next week.  

Also, I got the free puzzle file from www.birdscards.com.  Thanks, Bird's Cards!  They have a few different options that you can check out here.

And that's all, folks!

Key Reminder:  Be sure to print your photo with the registration marks clicked on to "show."  This is needed so that your Silhouette machine will then know where to cut out your image, and will match it up with your printed image.   Yeah.  That's important stuff. :)  (The registration marks are those two corner markers, and the black square in the top right-hand corner. 

Puzzled at all?  Just watch the video above.  And have fun!

How to use Sihouette Chipboard

Wondering how to use Silhouette Chipboard?  This tutorial gives easy to follow, step-by-step instructions with a few tips/hints...aaaand...it is the beginning to a great little gift: a personalized puzzle using your very own photo.  Follow up with the next post where I can attach the second video on how to do so, and where I'll also have some photos of the finished product.  Yay.

DIY Travel Guess Who, Disney Style

Going on a road trip with kids, but don't just want them watching Frozen on repeat for the ump-teenth time?  Travel games are great, but why pay the price when you can just make your own, and personalize them to your own interests ta-boot?

Well welcome to another DIY game, this time--a travel version of Guess Who.  Thinking about how my post on DIY Homemade Qwirkle Game has been so popular, I thought I'd come up with another DIY game.  

Simple Summer Craft for Kids

Looking for an easy craft project for the kids to keep them busy one of these summer days?  Try this fun paper tissue art. Here's all you need:

Materials Needed:

* Colored or pattered tissue papers

* Die cut shapes (heart, butterfly, etc.) in cardstock

* Glue sticks

For this project, first cut out a few simple shapes on cardstock using your Silhouette or Cricut.  My nieces really love butterflies and flowers, so those were easy choices for me.

Next, using some scissors, cut the tissue paper into small squares, about 1 1/2 inches by 1 1/2 inches.  You can make them bigger if you want the design to come up...taller. ;), but I found that this size works well.

And now...you hand it over to the children.  :)   Because this craft will include children using glue, having a table cloth down is always a good idea. :)

To make the design, you put a little glue on one side of a piece of tissue paper.  Then put your finger into the middle of the paper square on the opposite side and press the paper down onto the cardstock, glue side down.  Repeat with other squares of tissue paper.

Put your finger in the middle and then put a little 

Press the tissue paper down onto the cardstock using your finger and "fluff" the tissue on top.

The kids can have fun making patterns with the different colored tissue papers on their shapes.  If your kids like art, this can keep them occupied for awhile and not make much of a mess.

Isn't my niece a good little design maker?  This is her butterfly. :)  Hope your kids enjoy it just as much!

Treat Gift Box

Are you tired of just sticking some cookies/treats on a paper plate, covering it with foil, and calling it good?  To be honest, that's what I usually do. However, recently I got thinking about how easy it would be to cut out a simple box using my Silhouette or Cricut and putting my homemade treats inside it instead of just on a boring paper plate.

So I made some fudge the other day, found this simple box from the Silhouette store, and cut it out. To top it off, I cut out the word 'fudge' using my 'off set' tool on Silhouette Studio and glued it to the top of the box.  (If you don't know how to use the 'off set' tool on your silhouette, simply go to 'object' then 'off set'- simple as that.)

I loved the way it turned out and it made giving this fudge seem extra special. Also, make sure that you use a heavy card stock for you box so that it isn't too flimsy. 

This would also work for Christmas treats, birthdays, and other holidays.  You can add whatever words you want on top, or just leave it blank.  The possibilities are endless!  Make gifting treats fun again!

You + Me

How are these for a few simple lil' "love decor" ideas?  

You + me = aWEsome.  :)  ('Aint it true.)

Or, you can try "You [I love using a heart as the 'o'] + me = us," and then adding the wedding date at the bottom.

You + me = us, and wedding date.  Perfect to make and give as a shower or wedding gift.

Easy as can be!  The first is just made using Silhouette Studio (or Microsoft Word, etc.) and sent to the printer, and is then stuck in a frame of your choice.  This particular one was actually made for a cousin's wedding and set next to the sign-in scrapbook along with a few other framed photos.

[Idea: Instead of a sign-in wedding book, try making a few mostly empty scrapbook pages of engagement photos, etc, and using those pages as the sign-in sheets.  Much more interesting and memorable than just signatures, and it's a great way to add meaning TO your engagement scrapbook photos.  See examples below.]

The second was just a simple block, painted black, with the words cut out using white Silhouette vinyl.  (You could also easily use clear stencil vinyl to paint the letters on; or, in the reverse, paint the block white, put the letters of the stencil vinyl on once it dries, paint over it black, and then pull off the letters.  So, ya' know, a lot of possibilities.)

Simple as can be, and perfect for decor, to put on gift tables at a wedding reception or on your own mantlepiece at home.  Here's to you (+ me) (to we) (to being awesome).