A Happy Retirement Candy-Gram.
A friend of ours recently retired.
Instead of just a card, I thought it would be fun to do a Candy-Gram.
It is fun to pick out a bunch of candy bars and try to make them into a message.
Great fun for special birthdays and holidays.
And the best part is – it’s a card and gift all in one!
Happy Retirement Bob! We are so happy for you. Enjoy the candy and enjoy your free time!
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
Paper Cut-Out Hearts.
Paper cut-out hearts,
X’s and O’s,
Handmade cards,
Love notes…
These are the things that truly melt my Valentine heart.
Cheers & Happy Valentine O’s,
Jodi
Snowy Red Ford Truck with Christmas Wreath on Front Watercolor 11×14
Red Truck Christmas.
I can think of a few peeps who would love a new red truck for Christmas (one is the guy I’ve been living with for the past 35 years!).
But he already has one, and it was the model for my latest Christmas watercolor painting.
When I painted my previous classic red truck carrying a Christmas tree, my red truck man informed me since it was a Chevy, I needed to paint a Ford too.
So here it is.
It was fun to paint it this past Sunday afternoon en plein air. Sunny and 77 degrees F outside in late October painting Christmas snow! Gotta love it!
This painting makes great prints and cute cards for Ford truck lovers.
They will be available in our McKinneyX2Designs Etsy Shop, at Berry Vine Gifts, and at the Mars Fall Craft Show on November 18th.
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
I am O-Fish-Ally Hooked on You Daddy!
If you are looking for a cute and easy, creative Father’s Day Card to make from a child or grandchild to his daddy or grandpap, how about this cute little hand print fishy? (Especially if Daddy or Pap enjoys fishing!)
My little granddaughter and I made this for her Daddy for his first Father’s Day. On the inside, we wrote: “You are the best daddy in the whole sea!”
A great little gift idea to go with the “theme” that we did was a gift bag full of fish: Swedish Red Fish and Pepperidge Farm Goldfish Crackers, which come in at least a dozen different flavors ranging from Vanilla Cupcake, S’mores, and Fudge Brownie to Pizza, Chedder, Pretzel, and Honey Mustard and Pretzel Blends.
Hope all the Daddys and Grandpaps out there are o-fish-ally recognized and surrounded with love on their special upcoming day.
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
Idea inspired by: gluetomycraftsblog
Baby Girl Baptism Card
A Sweet Baby Baptism Card.
It has been a while since I’ve played with card stock and embossing folders and the Cuttlebug, but I wanted to make a sweet and dainty and special card for a very special baby who is being baptized today.
As she is surrounded by family and friends who love her dearly today, my hope is that she grows up feeling completely loved and blessed by these people and others who are in her life and as she grows. I hope the love she feels today is something that stays with her through good and bad times, ups and downs, ins and outs, and all arounds.
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
A 30th Birthday Money Flower Card.
If you are looking for a creative card and/or gift for a special 30 year old in your life, how about making them a money flower card?
I needed a special card for a very special young lady (my daughter-in-law, Colleen) who turned 30 this past weekend. I was trying to think of something creative like the Happy Birthday Money Cake I made for my son (her hubby!) a few years ago.
For the card, I started with a piece of black (any color will do) poster board cut to approximately 20 inches wide by 10 inches high that I folded in half to form a large card. I also used two pieces of white 8.5 x 11″ card stock, 30 $1 bills and 1 $20 bill, approximately 33 dimensional adhesive dots, Tombow Mono Multi Liquid glue, a small piece of ribbon, and some colorful Sharpie markers.
I rolled all of the dollar bills tightly and adhered the loose end of each with a dimensional adhesive dot to the first piece of white card stock in the shape of a flower. I used the $20 as the flower stem rolling it the long way. I then drew around the flower with colored Sharpie markers, added two leaves with “Happy” written in one and “Birthday” in the other. I drew a big bold “30” in the center of the flower, tied a bow on the stem, and then glued it to the front of the folded poster board using the Tombow glue.
On the inside, I listed 30 things we love about Colleen. (That was the really easy part!)
You could use this for other milestone birthdays too and create different shapes. It might make a fun wedding, anniversary, or graduation card too.
It was really fun and super easy to make, and even more fun to give to her.
Make giving the gift of money fun and creative!
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
Watercolor Birthday Card in Prussian Blue and Burnt Sienna
A Special Happy Birthday.
Every year on this day
is a very special day to me.
27 years ago
on a Saturday at 1:57 a.m.
a perfect and chubby 10 pound
baby boy blessed my life.
That sweet little boy
grew into an even sweeter man.
Thank you for the joy and happiness and love
you bring to my life.
May this year be the best…
until the next.
When I wish that it is the best,
like I feel being your mom.
Every year was the best – until the next,
and they still continue to be.
Happy Birthday NIck!
With so much love,
Mom
“She was beautiful,
but not like those girls in the magazines.
She was beautiful for the way she thought.
She was beautiful for the sparkle in her eyes
when she talked about something she loved.
She was beautiful for her ability to make other people smile
even if she was sad.
No, she wasn’t beautiful for something as temporary as her looks.
She was beautiful deep down to her soul.
She is beautiful.”
F. Scott Fitzgerald
Let’s teach this to our daughters
and granddaughters
and sisters
and friends.
And….
let’s teach this to
ourselves.
#BestGiftEver #LoveYourself
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
Seymour Snowie – Watercolor Holiday Snowman with Cardinal – 4 1/4 x 5 1/2
Baby It’s Cold Outside…
I swear everything reminds me of some song.
No matter the discussion, I typically can break out into song about it…
or at least have a song running through my head at the same time.
(If you are anywhere nearby, you will likely hope it only runs through my head as carrying a tune is not one of my stronger talents!)
This time of year,
everything brings to mind a Christmas Carol.
It started snowing yesterday!
And turned C O L D!
I really can’t stay…. but Baby, it’s cold outside….
I’ve got to go away…. but Baby, it’s cold outside….
December snow is the best snow. It is when most of us actually get excited to see snow – as opposed to March snow – when we are usually soooo over it!
So I was inspired to paint this chilly little guy – Seymour Snowie.
He is a holiday snowman, and he is chatting with his little friend Cameron the Cardinal. I think they are so GLAD it’s cold outside! At least Seymour is.
Wishing you cold, snowy fun outside, and warm comfort inside!
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
(PS – I thought this might make a cute Holiday Greeting Card or Holiday Thank You Note, so I made these little cuties into cards for our McKinneyX2Designs ETSY shop. You can check them out here!)
Thankful thoughts,
Grateful glow,
Blessed beyond belief.
Happy Thanksgiving Week!
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
*Thanks Stacey Ailes of Studio Designers for hosting the StampinUp card-making class where I made this Thanksgiving card. It was so fun to create this and a few other fun projects a couple of weeks ago with friends and my daughter-in-law. And hopefully this card made it to its intended recipients today in time to show my thankfulness, gratitude, and blessings.
the creative life in between 