A Little of Both

Long before scrapbooking, I used to cross stitch. I would cross stitch everything - bookmarks, bags, wall hangings, gifts, etc. I loved it but some of my projects would take forever. I was excited to find a project that combined my love of cross stitching with my obsession of scrapbooking. There is a book by Leisure Arts called Smirk by Kyla May. I made the "You're Always There For Me" Clipboard for my friend Katie. First, I cross stitched the two girls and the cute saying on 14 count white aida cloth. Then I cut a piece of transparency and attached it to the top of my design using brads in the upper corners. To make the rest of the clipboard, I covered it in cute paper and then wrapped ribbon and threads around it. I attached these to the back using double sided tape and masking tape. Then I printed out sayings about friends and attached it to the ribbons using little clothespins and paper clips. Katie can add her own pictures to the other paper clips. The book is full of projects just like this. Have a great week!

Why Thank You!

Writing thank you notes has become something of a lost art. We get gifts from friends and family and we always mean to tell them, "Thanks," but then life gets in the way and we forget. I always try to send thank you notes, whether it is to the children in my classroom for their homemade gifts or to my friends and family for all that they do for me. Here is a thank you note that I made for everyone who sent me goodies for my birthday. I started with a basic white 4 in. by 5.5 in. card that I covered with some pink paper. Then I used some black ink and this Kiki La Rue stamp called Cupcake Kiki. (I have been baking lots of cupcakes lately so I thought this would all go well together.) I colored her with some colored pencils and cut her out. Then I inked the edges with some pink ink and put some glitter on the cupcake. I attached her to the card. Then, since I made many of these, I printed out "Thank you!" on my computer with a fun font called "Oh Photoshoot." Then I attached the sentiment with some pop dots. The next time you get a gift, take the time to send a thank you. Your friends and family will feel like they got a gift too!