Silhouette Blog Giveaway

Just popping to tell readers there is a great Silhouette blog giveaway today.  Follow the Silhouette link (My Favourite Toy) on the right.  Good Luck!

Rosette Card

I created this card using my Silhouette to cut  out the rosette and borders. The rosette reminds me of the large rose stained glass window behind the choir loft of the church where I was married.  The Cathedral of Christ the King in Hamilton (where I occasionally sing with the diocesan choir) also has a gorgeous rose stained glass window. 

The  patterned paper was from a pad purchased at the dollar store! 

Gift Wrapping Embellishment

I recently wrapped this large gift and wanted to decorate the package without using the usual large bow.  Instead, I cut embellishments using my Silhouette.  I used flourishes cut from green cardstock and cut   3 large flowers  (with a rhinestone centre) in colours that complemented the colours found in the wrapping paper.  I think odd numbers of embellishments look better than even.  Don't you agree?

One advantage to using a flat embellishment rather than a bow is that you do not have to worry about the decoration getting squashed in transit!

Wedding Card

My daughter attended a wedding a while ago, and I offered to create a special wedding card for the occasion. The card and embellishment were cut out using my Silhouette.  The sentiment is a Stamp'n Up stamp that belongs to a set that I won from Stamp4fun .   Thanks again, Lynda and Tammy!

Earth Hour Tablescape

I have a rather unorthodox tablescape for you this week.  It is a tribute to Earth Hour 2010.

In March 2009, hundreds of millions of people took part in the third Earth Hour. Over 4000 cities in 88 countries officially switched off to pledge their support for the planet, making Earth Hour 2009 the world’s largest global climate change initiative.

Earth Hour 2010 takes place on Saturday 27 March at 8.30pm (local time) and is a global call to action to every individual, every business and every community throughout the world. This year over 120 countries and territories are participating. It is a call to stand up, to take responsibility, to get involved and lead the way towards a sustainable future. Iconic buildings and landmarks from Europe to Asia to the Americas will stand in darkness. People across the world from all walks of life will turn off their lights and join together in celebration and contemplation of the one thing we all have in common – our planet.  (Source http://www.earthhour.org/)

If you look closely at the placemat, you will see that it is actually a bus schedule.  We could greatly reduce our carbon footprint if we would take public transit when possible.

I have placed an unusual ornament in the middle of my centrepiece. It is a solar light (borrowed from our garden). We have much larger solar panels on our roof which are capable of producing 500Watts of energy on a sunny day.

 

Clothespins anchor the corners of the napkin centred on the table. This is to remind us to use our 'passive wind generated clothes dryer' (ie. clothesline) rather than the electric dryer when possible.

The plates,napkins and cutlery are reuseable, of course. Our landfills are reaching capacity. It makes sense to avoid the use of disposable materials when appropriate. In fact the cloth napkins and napkin rings were purchased at a thrift shop. If we have no further use for items it is better to donate them to a thrift store, have a garage sale or give the items to someone who can use them rather that just throwing them out.

 
In our municipality we must sort our refuse into paper products, containers (bottles and cans), which are recycled, and organics and yard wastes which are composted. We are limited to one garbage bag per week. It is rare that we even fill it.

My dinner guest, Mr. Grey, a visiting dignitary from Area 51 agrees that it is in all our interest to be good stewards of our planet.  After all, Earth is our home.

Spring's Baby Steps

Today I'm excited to be participating in Outdoor Wednesday for the very first time!

Spring is just starting in Southern Ontario. No glorious trees laden with blossoms, alas. The temperature still frequently drops below freezing overnight. We did have spectacularly warm weather for March break. Unfortunately we have fallen back to more seasonable temperature ranges.

There are some hopeful signs:

Buds on daffodils,

daylillies poking up through the ground,

sedum sprouting through the cracks,

A glorious blue sky...

So I will ignore the snow in the forecast for next week (sigh), and enjoy the first stirring of spring!

Birdhouse Favour Box

I used pastel coloured cardstock to create this springtime favour box. The blue and ivory colours remind me of Wedgewood. The birdhouse box, flourishes and butterfly are all Silhouette patterns.

Picture Frame Embellishment

I took a plane clear acrylic picture frame purchased at the dollar store and embellished it with a vinyl rose cutout. Once again I put the Silhouette to good use.



I could see using this method to create a desk sign or perhaps a table number at a reception. Anyone planning a wedding?

Birthday Card for Sarah

My daughter went to a birthday party yesterday and brought along this butterfly birthday card. The flowers, birthday caption and butterfly are all cut from cardstock using the Silhouette. Happy birthday Sarah!

Mailbox Gets a Makeover

I wanted to try cutting out vinyl with my Silhouette and needed an uncomplicated project. I decided to add a white vinyl flourish to my plain, rather boring black mailbox. Voila!



Not so boring any more! I think I shall go a bit crazy now slapping vinyl embellishments on all sorts of things!

Card with a Mission

This dragonfly card is my contribution to the Taylored Expressions Card Drive. The cards will be donated to the NICU nurses at Sanford Medical Center in Sioux Falls, SD where they use the dragonfly as a symbol of hope for families who have lost a child during delivery or in the early stages of life.

For more information visit:
Taylored Expressions: Dragonfly Card Drive - TESC101

The mailing address for donations is:

Taylored Expressions Card Drive

924 NW 33rd Street
Ankeny, IA 50023

Sláinte (To your Good Health)

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

I just thought I would share some special cards I created to celebrate the occasion. These were all created using cutouts made with my Silhouette digital cutter.

Hope you have a wonderful day!

Paper Mache Creation

Many apologies for my lengthy hiatus from blogging. I've been quite busy with a variety of projects including this one:

It starts off with a large balloon covered in paper mache - paper strips generously coated with a goo of white glue and water.

After I have a few layers of newspaper, I add some layers of paper towel, and glue goo.

Now it's time to add some 3D features to my creation. I used expanding spray insulation (like they use for around pipes) to build up some cheeks, a chin and an ear.

Looks a little bulbous, but a bit more like a face and less like an egg. When it's dry the foam can be carved with a knife to refine the features a bit.

Time to add some more paper mache. Then paint and add a stocking cap.

Putting it together with the rest of the costume and we have: Bonhomme! Bonhomme is the snowman ambassador to the Quebec Winter Carnival. This Bonhomme was created for an elementary school winter carnival.

What a handsome fellow! Bonhomme and the Winter Queen were quite a hit. Seeing all the kids' happy faces made it worth all that work.

Happy New Year!!!

New Years Day is traditionally a time for contemplating last year's blessings and setting new goals. One of my goals for 2010 is to do something creative every day. I thought it might be fun to share my creative journey with everyone in Blogland.

One of the projects I've started is knitting a new scarf. Before Christmas I helped my daughter shop for a new hat and scarf for her sister. I was surprised at how expensive they were! I decided that my knitting skills were up to the task of knitting a scarf or two or three. The price of yarn and needles was approximately one third of the retail price of a scarf.

I was able to complete one just in time for Christmas and am currently working on a second. This one might be a gift for next Christmas or I might just keep it myself! It is going together pretty quickly using chunky textured yarn and size 9mm needles.

I have some other crafty projects up my sleeve too. I am currently working on a wedding scrapbook album and I plan on making lots of cards. It's going to be a busy year!