Wondrous Wreath

Love is in the Air

/ Jodi / 27 Comments

valentines pink and gray wondrous wreath

Love is in the Air….

Only a few weeks until Valentine’s Day, so time to play with all things lovely and pink and red and hearts and lacy  or whatever makes you feel Valentiney.

This card was made for a special someone that requested a “girlie and pretty” card for someone very special to them.  I had a lot of fun creating it with that special someone in mind.

For this card, I used the StampinUp Wondrous Wreath that is typically used for Christmas cards, but I made it in shades of pink and gray, added some tiny pearls, and backed it with a lacy doily to make it feminine and delicate and Valentiney.

This week’s Paper Players’s Challenge  #PP275 is a CAS Valentine’s card.  My card is not quite “clean and simple,” (I’ve created a few more layers than that!) but it is Valentine’s!

Our little corner of the world is bracing for a bit of a snowstorm in the next few days.  We will see.  No matter the weather – hope you are feeling warm and safe and loved wherever you are.

Remember love is a not only a noun – it is also a verb.  It is something we can give as well as receive.  And it is in giving that we receive.

Cherish the Moments.

Cheers & Hugs,

Jodi

 

 

Thanksgiving Reflections

/ Jodi / 14 Comments

thanksgiving 2014 group turkey shot

I hope everyone that celebrated yesterday had a wonderful Thanksgiving!
(It still blows my mind that people read my blog from all over the world, so there are places that don’t celebrate this American holiday!)

Today is a day of relaxing and reflecting for me – on an amazing day spent with this crazy coop of turkeys that I so adore!

thanksgiving place settings

My crafty and stampin’ friends might appreciate the table setting complete with hand-stamped fall wreath place settings :).

But…  as much as I love to dress up the table, decorate, and prepare creative dishes, I have to say – Thanksgiving is no time for breaking tradition!

turkey

No messin’ with the traditional turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, canned jellied cranberry sauce (though Jill did cut them into adorable little stars that made them taste even better!), Pillsbury crescent rolls (or Nick would be seriously upset), pumpkin and apple pie.

desserts thanskgiving 2014

A couple veggies took on a little twist this year – like my new favorite Roasted Butternut Squash with Rosemary, and the amazing Brussells Sprouts with Chorizo and Almonds that Joyce and Rob brought (still need to get that recipe!), but I did get in a bit of trouble with Marty (and only Marty!) for not making that disgusting green bean casserole with (GAG!) cream of mushroom soup…

table

We toasted family and friends, and of course Oh Rob had a story for us!

rob at table

It just wouldn’t be the same if he didn’t!  (Love you Oh Rob!) 🙂

vino

and homemade Reflection Wine – for in wine there is life.

cheesey turkey

Colleen made this cute cheesey turkey – complete with brussells sprouts eyes straight from Jake’s garden, which was devoured immediately.

bacon wrapped blue cheese stuffed dates

I also made this super easy, but TO DIE FOR appetizer:  Bacon Wrapped Dates stuffed with Blue Cheese.  Every single person L O V E D them, so don’t judge by the interesting combination of ingredients!  I simply cut a slit in each date, removed the pit and replaced with a pinch of crumbled blue cheese, wrapped it in a half strip of bacon, jabbed with a toothpick to hold together and make for easy serving afterwards, and baked at 400 degrees F for about 30 minutes.  Even those that claimed to not like dates or not like blue cheese adored them!  Highly recommend these for your next get together – just saying.  🙂

finger prints

Sweet Jackie brought the most adorable gift.  A print of a tree and a frame, to which we each stamped a fingerprint or two and labeled with our name and something we are thankful for.

fingerprint tree

I already have it hanging right outside my dining room.  What an amazing memory I will always have of this day and these peeps I love.  Thank you so much, Jackie!

turkey wine bottles

And how cute are these?  Isn’t this a fun way to take wine as a hostess gift?  Dress them up for the holiday.  Jackie also made these adorable bottles of red and  white into boozy turkeys.  I LOVE THEM!

thanksgiving hostess gifts

Colleen and Jake brought me the most awesome smelling winter holiday candle – who doesn’t love a wonderful smelling candle – and Joyce and Rob brought a crock stuffed with bags of pistachios and a festive apron and hot mitt along with a Bountiful Blessings calendar with a note written on it saying, “Looking forward to spending more time together in the new year.”  Now isn’t that a great idea?!  Such creative peeps I hang out with – eh?

calendar

I share these for those looking for great ideas for hostess gifts around the holidays.  Wine, candles, nuts, aprons, calendars – all very appreciated gifts!

And Jill handmade all of us these adorable turkey t-shirts.  Is she amazing or what?!!  And look how cute they all look.

hendy

They even had turkey feathers on the back!

turkey backs

It was wonderful to SKYPE with Julie, who if you look really close at the iPad Jackie is holding, is also wearing a turkey shirt that Jill sent ahead of time.  🙂  We only missed connecting with Jayme :(.

thanksgiving 2014 group turkey shot

We ended the evening with board games, including Cards Against Humanity…

cards against humanity

and laughed until our cheeks hurt!

cards rob jill

We were even fortunate enough to have Marty’s 91 year-old Aunt Francie with us, who is such a good sport.

Marty and Aunt Francie

I am simply stuffed with thankfulness and reflecting on my many blessings.

Wishing you all the same!

Cheers & Hugs,

Jodi

Thanksgiving Crack Snack Mix

/ Jodi / 7 Comments

Are you looking for a simple little way to give a little Thanksgiving gift to a co-worker or neighbor, as a hostess gift, something for your friendly delivery person or grocery clerk or……  (whoever you are looking to give a little gesture of Thanksgiving to)?

thanksgiving crack snack mixI came up with a quick Thanksgiving Crack Snack Mix.    Easy Peasy Stuff Here!

Just grab a bag of Mini Pretzels, Bugels, Cheez It Crackers, Peanuts, Candy Corn, and Reese’s Pieces.  Mix it all together in a huge bowl (and if you want to get fancier 🙂 – drizzle some white or milk chocolate or dark chocolate over it – I did not this time).

thanksgiving crack snack mix bowlYou can then package it up in cute jars or bags, dress it up with a cute tag and a bow, and a sweet little treat is created.

thanksgiving crack snack mix 2

Easy, thoughtful, homemade, and yummy!

Hope your Thanksgiving is STUFFED with HAPPINESS!

Cheers & Hugs,

Jodi

 

Vintage Wondrous Wreath

/ Jodi / 15 Comments

I’m on a vintage kick now since The Paper Players Challenge got me wound up last week (when I made this card that Claire kindly picked as her “Cut Above” – thanks Claire! 🙂 )

It’s been a busy week, so I was excited to wake up on my own at 4:30am on Thursday to get an hour or so in for stamping and crafting before starting the day.

(I know – very strange – but it is that  [er ahem] ‘vintage’ here-she-goes-again phase of life where I am waking every night around 3 or 4am and often can’t get back to sleep…. )
You know – like everything else these days – I blame it on the meh eh eh eh eh menopause (sung to the tune of “Blame it on the Alcohol”).

Wondrous Wreath Hello Doily PP221 jlm

This week is a Color Challenge (PP221)  at The Paper Players to use Cherry Cobbler, Very Vanilla, and Mossy Meadow to create any type of card.  Well the colors lead perfectly into Christmas, and Christmas leads perfectly into Vintage, and Vintage leads perfect into Hello Doily (again) and Stampin Up’s Wondrous Wreath!  I also discovered that Just Add Ink has a Texture Challenge (JAI#240), so I thought I would play along with that too since my card certainly has a lot of “texture” to it with embossing, die cut, brad, bow, and layers.  🙂

pp221C

With some Pinterest inspiration I discovered from Maggie Patterson @ I Love Papercrafts, I created this version:

Wondrous Wreath Hello Doily PP221 jlm 2

For my stampin’ friends:  To make this card, I started with SU Very Vanilla for the Card Base, then added SU Typeset Specialty Designer Series Paper (DSP) framed in black and sponged on the edges to vintage up, along with curling up a bit.  The wreath and bow are stamped with Mossy Meadow and Cherry Cobbler on Very Vanilla also, then die cut out.  The doily was done by stamping SU Hello Doily with Versa Mark on vellum paper, then sprinkled with white embossing powder and heat embossed.  I fussy-cut it out – a bit tedious, but love the results.  I also sponged with brown around the edges of this faux doily to vintage it up (as well as every other piece on this card). The banner and Joy sentiment were done with the SU Under the Tree Specialty DSP.  Topped it all off with an Antique Brad and linen thread bow, and Voila – another Christmas card ready for someone special – because I kinda love this one…. especially considering it was done on one cup of coffee and even before the sun came up 🙂 .

Wondrous Wreath Hello Doily PP221 jlm

Have a wonderful Friday and weekend!

Cheers & Hugs,

Jodi

 

 

Happy Fall y’all!

/ Jodi / 23 Comments

Wondrous Wreath Fall PP212

I know – Fall doesn’t officially begin until September 22, 2014 at 10:29 pm…  (impressed with my precisional detail? – my own made-up word, “precisional” 🙂 )

There are still 12 more days until the Autumnal Equinox, and I can assure you I am going to embrace every last moment of “Summer.”

But  – – – in my quest to also embrace Fall, I’m going with it here folks!

And… The Paper Players Design Team has a “Happy Fall y’all” Theme Challenge  (PP212) this week, so I thought I’d play along.

pp212

And… I know exactly who I am going to send this card to!

She is someone I work with, who L – O – V – E s Fall.

She always puts her Fall wreath on her front door for the first day of school.

Not sure if Jamie even reads my blog, but this card is going in the mail to my Fall-lovin’ friend, and I hope she enjoys it.

For my card, I used SU’s Wondrous Wreath and For All Things stamp sets and had a little fun embellishing with Crystal Effects on the berries and some fluffy, fuzzy Autumn Flower-Soft on the bow and acorns.

Happy Fall y’all!

Cheers & Hugs,

Jodi