Custom HB Card - Hexagons

I made this card for a friend you requested a special birthday card for a son who is celebrating the big "50" this year.

I chose a taupe, grey and black elegant striped designer paper.  I added it to a large taupe card base in the half sheet size (8.5x5.5"). 

I wrapped a length of silk ribbon along the right hand edge and taped the ends to the back. I added a short length and tied it onto the other. The layer was then adhered to the card front.

I cut 4 hexagons in black and 1 in red which I arranged onto the card front. They were adhered with 3D foam tape.

I printed the greetings on taupe card stock and cut them with the smaller die. The dies are Spellbinder Nestabilities - Hexagons. These were adhere to the larger hexagons with double sided tape.

Birthday Lunch

I made this birthday card for a friend who celebrated her birthday in the last few days.  She has been out on several occasions over the last week, lucky girl. I am taking her out for Vietnamese food for lunch today.

The card base is yellow Bazzil textured card stock in the portrait orientation in the half sheet size (8.5x5.5 inches). 

I added this bright designer paper with spring blooms in yellow and various shades of pink.  I added a raspberry colored ribbon along the right hand side with the ends taped to the back.  The layer was adhered to the card front.  I then created the accent with Spellbinder Oval Nestabilities.  The yellow with the scallop edge, then the designer paper with the corresponding smooth oval.  I added some handmade paper flowers held in place with tiny black brads. I then added a birthday greeting in black on a Stampin Up Modern Label punchie.  The accent was adhered to the card front with 3D foam tape.

She is a faithful card giver and I am a card maker so she gets All Occasion cards every year.

I have included a small tin of Jasmine Green Tea from my stash as I recently discovered she enjoys it.

Looking forward to a great visit and lunch.

Recent Photos

We still have frost in the mornings.  I found this leaf quite covered with water crystals one morning this week when I was out with the camera to catch sun rise. 

I love the contrast in colors with the warm golden background with the darker grey of the leaf. 

Nice to have the stem out of focus but the frost in the center and edges in focus.

But a sure sign of spring is to see the Canada Geese near the wetlands at Lois Hole Centennial Park. 


Unfortunately, not much open water for them yet. We have to admire the tenacity of nature because if there was no open water when I arrived I would be saying to my mate let's head south for a few more days.  Thanks anyway.

The pond in Spruce Grove had some open water when I was there later in the week.

I loved the light that morning.  I noticed that the white patch on the smaller is darker which I presume is the female.  There were 2 set of geese at the wetlands and this was the case in both. I have not noticed that before.

I made a stack of fold top bags for sale at a fundraiser for my grand neice's trip this summer.

The majority of those I made are snack size.

These are larger because the piece of fabric was just nice to split in half.  I paired it with some warm turquoise fabric.  You can check here for sewing instructions.  This smaller bag on the right was just right to hold feminine pads.  A nice pretty bag for storing these in a purse or back pack.  Great for the girls and moms who will be attending this fundraising event.

The Flickr Macro Monday challenge this week was Look Up.  We were to look up in our environments and take a picture with our lens pointing to the sky or ceiling. 

I took this photo of the tassels on my mini blinds. 

You can check out what others took photos of at this Macro Mondays link.

You can check out my photo stream at SMDPics.

I have finally resolved my log in issues now that the process was updated not to require a Yahoo account.

Sharing with Mosaic Monday #22 hosted by Angie at Letting Go of the Bay Leaf.
Mersad who hosts Through my Lens #186.

Fundraiser - Fold Top Snack Bags

I continue my effort to reduce my stash of fabric and contribute to my grand niece's funds for her trip this summer.

I had a discussion with my sister the other day about making reusable bags.  She was considering making bags for girls to carry their feminine hygiene products discreetly in their purses and or back packs.  Great idea.

After that discussion I thought I had a great simple idea to make fold top bags.  I mostly made snack sized ones but the sky is the limit for size.  The fold top concept is familiar to most of us and likely to school aged children who take lunches to school.

These bags have no zippers are Velcro.  With a total of 4 seams they are quick to make. I basically let the size of my fabric dictate the size of the bag in order to make efficient use of my resources. 

Basically you need 2 pieces of fabric the same size.  I chose bright colorful patterned fabric for the outside and light colored solids for the inside so you can easily see the food inside.

1. Cut the fabric 7x12 inches.
2. Sew all the way around leaving a two inch gap on one of the short sides.
3. Trim the excess fabric in the corners and turn inside out.
4. Iron flat.
5. Sew the gap closed.
6. Lay the rectangle tall in front of you on the table. Bring up the bottom to be 2" away from the top.  Fold the 2" flap down over the piece you brought up. 
7. Sew all the layers together on the right and left sides with narrow seams. I back stitched a bit where the flap connects with the other layer as that will be the stressed connection as the child opens and closes the bag.

Based on these measurements your finished bag will be 6.00"W & 4.75"T.

The bags can be placed in the laundry for cleaning then be ready for another day. 

Having a stack of these on hand will ensure plastic baggies do not end up in our landfills and oceans.  Saves you money because think of how many you use in a typical school year!

These are not waterproof so are not suitable for snacks with liquids.

Great for pretzels, popcorn, any cereal, fresh fruit like apples or grapes, or crackers.



Easy to open for small hands.  I hope that they sell well.

Pocket Washcloths - Yellow

Check my previous post for more background information on this project.

Set 6 - Having run out of blue microfiber I switched to a yellow texture one.  This one is quite light and paired with the white terry cloth it makes a light wash cloth.

The hang towels had a white satin ribbon hanging loop in their center and I decided to just go with that style.  I added this nice striped cotton strip which again does not make it too girly.

I prefer the hang loop at the side but diversity makes the world go round. 

Set 7 - I put the hang loops on the side for this set. 

A strip of warm yellow, green polka dots across the top edge. 

White terry cloth on the back.

With the last few pieces I decided I would like to try this idea out so I made myself one.

It is cut larger for adult at 6.5 inches by 9 inches tall.

I put the hang loop on the side which is what I prefer.

Fundraising Project - Pocket Washcloths

I volunteered to make these for a fundraiser my niece is participating in on May 1st as a Girl Guide Leader.  Her daughter needs to raise fund for a trip with GG this summer so these hopefully will sell well and put a few bucks in the trip fund.   It was my niece who suggested Pocket Washcloths for kids.  They had small hands and a pocket makes it easier to manage.  She suggested microfiber and terry cloth. 

I purchased a couple of microfiber towels from dollar stores.

The left one is the blue one and I have just scraps left and at a cost $1.30, that was good value.  The yellow towel was one of the 3 this the red packaging set so that is less than $1.00 for each.   I selected terrycloth from my stash and reused the white ones I made to go with my aprons.

Set 1 - This is the first set I made based on some samples I had seen on line.  I cut fabric 5x8 inches.  I made .25 inch seams.  I sewed a strip of cotton butterfly fabric across the microfiber layer first. Then I sewed the front (microfiber) piece and the back yellow terrycloth piece together right sides together.  I added a yellow grosgrain ribbon aligned with the cotton strip in this step.  It is aligned along the cut edge and sits in between the 2 layers.  I trimmed the corners then turned the pocket inside out.  For this set I hem the top edge. I then top stitched the pocket on all three sides.  For sets going forward I took full advantage of the finished edges on the microfiber and terry cloth and placed the finished edges on these pieces at the top.  The other edges will all be covered during the top stitching.

Set 2 - Finding the first set a bit small I chose to make this set cut at 6 inches square.  I found that it may be a bit short for my liking.   I must remember this is for small hands.  All the fabric used in this set is the same as the first set.  Now you can see the finished edge of the microfiber at the top of the pocket.

Set 3 - For this set I cut the fabric 6.00 x 7.5 inches. Now they are a big rectangular.  I chose bug fabric for this set.  Still using the yellow grosgrain ribbon and the yellow terrycloth fabric.

Set 4 - I decided to choose a more masculine fabric for this set.  A nice graphic design in light and dark green.   In this set, I started using the white terry cloth from the hanging towels I made for the aprons.  As these did not sell they were up for reusing.  I also chose to use turquoise satin ribbon for these to coordinate with the microfiber towel.  This white terry cloth is a bit lighter than the yellow stuff I had.  Just makes a bit lighter cloth.

Set 5 - This set continues with the last piece of blue microfiber fabric.  The turquoise satin ribbon and a bit of again masculine wavy square colorful fabric.  This allowed me to use small pieces of fabric as the strip is cut 2" tall and 6 inches wide. Turn over a .25 inch top and bottom and top stitch in place. 

I hope these are a good seller. 

Recent Photos!

My Mom lent me this book.  It was very interesting to see a peek into the life of girls in London in the 1930-40's.  The poverty, the slums, the violence, prison time and the desperate measures taken to survive.

The sisters are Kathleen, Peggy and Eva.  All very smart but used their intelligence in much different ways.
















I was intrigued about what the place the lived in looked like.  The grimy streets of Lambeth, nestled beside the river Thames. A couple of photos from the internet.

The war time was very terrifying.  Shelters, black out curtains, the sounds and smells of bombs and warfare.


In the end, stuck together and were still a close family after the war. 

I was over to my aunt's for supper after my art reception on Saturday. 

She is a great cook and obviously has a green thumb.  Check out that Christmas Cactus.

The cyclamen was a gift which has flourished in the last year.

The amarylis is wonderful.  My Mom and sister also have these wonderful flowering plants.

It was a great visit with a couple of my aunts and uncle.  We crossed over with her kids which were over for a birthday party earlier in the day.

Family and exercise are important to  this lady.

I won a prize in the Juried Members Show.

I placed 3rd out of 49 entries.  Not bad me thinks.

This  is is the winning photograph.

It was taken at an antique mall here in town earlier this year.

This was my entry into Flickr Macro Monday this week.  The theme was April's Fools. 

I put a sticker to cover the optical sensor on the computer mouse which made it not very functional. 

You can check my photo stream at SMDPics.

I am sharing with Thru My Lens  #185 hosted by Mersad

Photo Blogging - Six

I have been chasing large plastic poker chips.

My niece is planning a girl guide project in June and put the call out for poker chips to be used as tokens in the camp.

I have found quite a few stashes of these for good prices.  My sister is also on the hunt.

We need 1500 chips and we are over 1000 so we certainly get what she needs before the deadline.

This traditional game pieces are being dumped as people go to digital entertainment.




Spring has arrived.

I have 6 new leaves on my African Violet plant as the light outside becomes brighter and longer

I love the contrast of the green against the red stems.

The leaves have not developed their fuzzy surfaces yet.

I see little flower buds in the back there so maybe I will soon have purple flowers on this plant.

I found some silicone muffin liners for this very old pan I inherited from my Mom.  I had not used it because I was sure what I would put into the cups would stick.

It is a mini muffin tin with 16 cups.

Love the colors in this set of liners.  I think they were a Halloween collection.

Now I could make some mini muffins which will certainly come out easily.

I found a cobalt blue tea bag holder to join my collection which now makes it at 6.

Unfortunately, they will not all sit in the holder.

It will certainly work very well with my Blue Nordic dishes.

Here are six props I bought in recent days for my macro photography.

I love the small elephant with a great red oriental bead.
Three filigree metal work beads.
A blown glass heart which was a drink marker.
The turquoise star was an earring.  The plastic circle is a cabinet door knob.
The gold Japanese fan is a jewellery piece as well.  It actually opens and closes.

I am joining the Photo Blogging Challenge - March 2019 - Six hosted by Lil HooHaa.

Juried Member Show - Accepted Submissions & Winner

These 2 photographs were accepted into the show.  The reception was held today.

Silver Roaster
15 x 15 inch frame
Double White mat
8 x 8 inch Color photo

This photo was taken at an antique mall in town. It is a stainless steel car book end. Again, taken for a Flickr Challenge of circles.  The circle of headlight, wheel, and wheel reflection.

It was a Winner!  I received the third prize ribbon and some cash.

Who Are You?
14 x 14 inch frame
Black mat
6 x 6 inch Color photo

This photo was taken at the John Poole Wetlands in Sturgeon County. It is a Wilson Snipe.  He just looked at me while I took many photos.  It was in the setting sun golden hour and the light was wonderful.  It was a great experience.

I was so happy that I bought the camera with a great zoom.

The reception was great. 

R2Go Stack Kit - Custom

I had a request for a custom Ready 2 Go Stack Kit.  She wanted the greetings to be about praying.

I chose to used No.8 envelopes with double sided designer card stock.  The 12x12 was cut 3 3/8 inch wide and 12 inch tall.  I then scored the fold at 6.25 inches. I added a 1/2 inch strip of black card stock at the bottom.  The easiest way to do that is to tape a strip bigger than what you need along the edge with invisible tape.  Then trim all 3 sides with the paper trimmer.

To repeat the black I cut a scallop border in black as well which I glued along the top edge and again trimmed on the left and right sides with scissors. 

The vellum greetings are 2 x 4.25 inches.  Color printed in black and clear embossed.  It this then adhered aligned with the top of the card and centered.  The scallop border is then adhered on top of that aligned with the top.

A white insert is added for the giver's personal message.

The paper is by The Girls' Paperie - Jubilee - Carousel.

This time I cut the paper the same way.  I scored it at 2 inches then from there 6.25 inches. This creates a gatefold card with the opening in the middle.

I added an Espresso brown strip of card stock along the edge and taped it down.  This one is wider than the .5 inch needed so it over laps onto the flap on the right.

I created greetings on stone colored paper which would work both pieces of designer paper I chose.  The letters are the dark brown of the small strip.  They are cut to 2" square.  It was adhered centered on the brown strip but with double sided tape only on the left hand side.

The paper is by Carta Bella - Beautiful Moments - Beautiful Banner Paper.  The other paper also had horizontal lines going across the card.

Another portrait tall card.  You have to be careful when folding designer paper because it has a white core and if the paper fibers are not well scored they will crease and expose the core which does not look great.  I ran my tool along the score line from both sides to stretch and soften the fibers.  Works well.

I added a half inch strip of coordinating ginger card stock along the bottom again attached with invisible tape. 

With the same card stock I punched the squares with the Creative Memories Double Square punch which does 1.5 and 1.25 inch squares which layer well.  The solid card stock is the larger and the greeting is the smaller. I used my corner rounder punch to do 2 of the corners. I adhered 3 squares aligned down the center of the card.

The greeting was printed in blue on ivory card stock, punched and corner rounded.  It was adhered to the center square. 

The paper is by Carta Bella - Traditions - Antique Damask. The other designer is very similar in pattern and color.

R2Go All Occasion Stack Kit

I had the daughter of a friend request some card kits as an activity for the women's group she runs in Ontario. She is here visiting her Mom for a couple of weeks. I jumped at the chance!

These are coordinated printed card stock with stripes and daisies.  They were corner rounded 4 inch squares. 

I cut the striped one in half and adhered one half aligned to the top and bottom edge of the card leaving a small border.

I wrapped a piece of white satin ribbon around the daisy layer, knotted it to the front and trimmed the ends.  It was adhered to the card front with 4 pieces of 3D foam tape.

I adhered a Stampin Up Modern Label white greeting  in the top left hand corner of the daisy layer. 

The card has a quarter sheet blank insert glued to the inside.

I have not used the following layout for quite a while.

I cut 12x12 designer paper into 6 inch squares.  I then cut the paper with my Creative Memories cutter on the largest circle with the red knife.  This is just under 6 inch circle.  These were then cut in half.

The paper shown here is by Making Memories - Animal Crackers - Jack Vanishing Dots.  I chose coordinating card stock in several colors for the kit. I adhered the half circle along the fold and trimmed the excess on the right and left card edges.

I added a black seam binding ribbon tied along the fold and trimmed the ends.  I then added 3 black sequins on the right hand side adhered with Bling Zots.

Of course, I turned to the old stand by - the DSP Split.

The designer paper was cut to  4.00 x 5.25 inches then cut again at 3.5 inches.  The small piece was turned over and aligned to the larger piece. These  taped on the back together to create a full layer. 

The paper shown here is by We R Memory Keepers - Wildflower - Botanical.   I just love this paper.  I provide a variety of paper and card stock in this kit.

I aligned the Espresso color grosgrain ribbon across the join and taped the ends to the back of the designer paper layer.  This layer was then adhered to the card front.

I color printed some greetings and punched them with the Stampin Up Artisan Label.  It was adhered to the card front over the ribbon with 3D foam tape.

I started with the label cut with the Tim Holtz Cameo Frame die.  I used a variety of designer paper for the labels.

The card bases are all white card stock.

I then cut a large card stock flower with the Sizzix Flowers & Leaves die.  I chose the color based on the color of the label. 

I added a large & small silk flowers in white with a white flower sequin on a white brad.  Using a push pin to make a hole in the designer paper I then pushed the prongs through and push them apart on the back.  The label was then adhered to the card front.

I added the color printed greeting punched with the Stampin Up Artisan Label punch.  It is adhered to the card front below the flower with 3D foam tape.

I have included the card samples so she had teach the class with something to show the ladies participating.

Sympathy Card - Photo

I am sending this photo card to my aunt who recently lost a friend.  They share mutual interests and were walking buddies.

The friend she met in the last few years and was much too young to pass away.

This is a petrified wood tree trunk taken at the Royal Alberta Museum.  I love the colors in this image with the off center focal point.  As you can see by the number of rings it was a very old tree.

Card Making Session - Art Cards with Pencil Crayons

I have been getting together with a friend to make cards once a month. My regular card club has been cancelled due to lack of participation.

I worked on Art Cards which needed to be colored.  I chose color pencils this time instead of watercolor and the water brush which I used last time.

I selected some blues and purples for this card. 

The greetings were printed in black on vellum and clear embossed with clear powder.  They were wrapped across the paint brush layer and the ends were folded to the back.  This layer was adhered to the front of a black card.

Tiny black brads were then placed on either side of the greeting through holes made with a push pin.  The prongs were press apart on the inside of the card.

I placed a blank white insert in the inside of the card.

The 3 designs and greetings are part of a greeting card gift set which will be donated to a fundraiser
at the end of April.

Shared Birthday Card order

I had a request from a friend for a spring looking card for her aunt who shares her birth date with my friend.

I chose to recycle a commercial card featuring Goldfinches. I trimmed it so that there was an even border on a 5x7 A7 large card.

I added a purple layer which was cut into 2 triangles which were adhered in the bottom left and top right corners.

I printed the aunt words onto the same card stock as the card and punched it with the Stampin Up Modern Label punch.  It was adhered to the top left hand corner with 3D foam tape.  I added the rest of the sentiment to the insert on this inside of the card.

Iridescent sequins were added to the card front with Bling Zots.