Bug Day Party Pictures

It's hard to imagine that our little girl is already 6 years old, but that day has come and gone - she is growing up so quickly!  It's funny how when you are this age you think time can't pass quickly enough....as you get older it seems like it passes more quickly each year.  We certainly appreciate our time with our sweet family and children and try to enjoy it as much as possible. 

Here are a few snapshots of the party we had (now that I've crawled out of my crazy business for a few moments!). 

My mom came to the rescue to help me make Halleigh's shirt.  I added the Pink Pirouette ribbon using Patch Attach - very easy to iron on.  I thought the same would be true of the ladybugs, but obviously felt doesn't feel the same way about glue as other materials.  Needless to say, my mom patiently stitched all the ladybugs on by hand while I made the cake! 

THANKS MOM!!!!

And a matching little head band - all supplies came from Hobby Lobby.  Thanks to the genius who invented hot glue guns, that was much easier to make!!!!  I didn't even glue myself thanks to the SU Silicone Sheet.

Here are a few of the food items we prepared - we stuck with the buggy theme for this party - all the way down to the food!

Love my help from Pinterest!

Target clearance special!  Gummy worms in petry dishes - on 75% off sale!  The kids loved them!

Snapshot of the food table...

Caterpillar puffs and Stick Insects

Bug Bites - I just gave them these names - they are the bomb, though!  And so easy!  Little smokies wrapped in a half slice of bacon - you pour brown sugar on top and bake in the oven at 450 until the sugar carmelizes!  YUMMMY! 

Bug Juice - AKA Blue Hawaiian Punch

Peanut Butterflies and Jelly

TIP:  We decided that it would be much easier to cut the bread FIRST with your cookie cutter and THEN add the PB & J.

TA-DA!!!!  Yes!!!!  After 6 years of miserable looking cakes, I finally made a cake that was exactly the way I envisioned it!  Thanks goes out to Pillsbury, Duncan Hines and Wilton for great cake pans, cake mixes and the great new cans of frosting that actually taste pretty good (well, honestly, black is not the greatest taste!)

I'll share some more pics later this week of the activities and party favors, etc.

 

Bug-day Party

If you've been wondering if I fell off the face of the earth, the answer is no!  I have been swiping every possible moment to prepare for my daughter's 6th birthday party!  These darned parties come on so quickly, I tell you!  You blink and they are already in school and the year is nearly half over!  ACK!

Anyway, she wants a bug birthday party this year, so we have been working on an invitation for her upcoming party - that has taken all of my free time....that and countless soccer games this month!  Just sleeping has been a luxury lately!

This was the outside of the card.  Here was the inside of the card:

I made the inside pieces on My Digital Studio and printed them out on Whisper White cardstock.  That part really couldn't have been easier!  With my Simply Score board, scoring the cards strealined the process, so once they were ready, it all came together quickly!

 

Guest Designer: Carolyn Manning - Fall Printer's Tray

My downline and friend, Carol Manning has been showing me just how fantastic she is lately.  Can you believe how gorgeous this printer's tray is?  These printer's trays are certainly THE home decor item to have lately, and I love how you can create inserts that are interchangeable!  I am all about interchangeable home decor! 

As you can see, this set of inserts that she has made could last from late September all the way through the end of November.  Look at all of the fantastic details in each insert!  From the stamping to the multi-colored stamping, the coloring - there are plenty of gorgeous colors to catch your eye!  And then look at how she used her Big Shot and punches to create so many lovely layers - and all of those leaves in the trail above the button - just magnificent!  I know how much work went in to this piece - and she made more than one! 

I don't know about you, but I certainly can't wait to see more inserts!

And just in case you're wondering if there are any great specials....there's an INK-CREDIBLE deal out there this month for hostesses (online purchases count!) as well as new demonstrators - this is a great deal! 

 

Dates: November 1 - December 16, 2012

Promotion Details: Hostesses who hold a minimum $450 party during the promotion period will receive a FREE collection of Classic Stampin Pads--they can choose from Brights, Subtles, or Regals--a $49.95 value! Plus, the free ink is in addition to the regular hostess benefits--INK-redible!

Promotion Details: New demonstrators who join the Stampin' Up! family during the promotion period will received a FREE collection of Classic Stampin Pads--they can choose from Brights, Subtles, or Regals! It's INK-redible!

And, as if that wasn't great enough.....there are free digital downloads and all digital kits are 50% off!!!

What do you get when you combine Digital Scrapbooking Day and My Digital Studio? A week of FREE downloads and 50 percent off ALL digital kits!
What: Three FREE downloads. 50% off ALL digital kits. Mega blogging on MyDigitalStudio.net all week!
When: October 29-November 5, 2012.
Why: To get the word out about My Digital Studio's awesome design program, content, and print products!
Get Your FREE Downloads: (132557 Enjoy Everything Kit , 132562 A Split Second Designer Template Pages and 132558 Days in December Kit-Updated 10/29/12)

 

Holiday Ornament card

I had a few really old DSP scraps laying on my table the other day and thought they would be perfect for creating this card I saw in Becky Roberts' tutorial.  I used several new items in making this card with old scraps! 

 

Stamps:  More Merry Messages, Ornament Keepsakes

Ink:  Real Red, Garden Green

Paper:  Real Red, Whisper White, Retired DSP

Accessories:  Lacy Brocade embossing folder, Apothecary Accents framelits, Holiday Ornaments framelits, 1" circle punch, Festive Paper Piercing pack

 

By, the way, you can get the Festive Paper Piercing pack for free this month!  Here's how:

 

Dates: October 1-31, 2012 Promotion Details: It's only October, but Stampin' Claus is coming to town! Get a FREE Festive Paper-Piercing Pack when you purchase the Ornament Keepsakes Set and Candlelight Christmas Specialty Designer Series Paper. Choose from the following options:

Item	Description	Retail Value	Special Price
132260	Christmas Gift Pack (wood-mount) Includes Ornament Keepsakes Set (wood-mount), Candlelight Christmas Specialty Designer Series Paper, Festive Paper-Piercing Pack	$55.85	$47.90
132261	Christmas Gift Pack (clear-mount) Includes Ornament Keepsakes Set (clear-mount), Candlelight Christmas Specialty Designer Series Paper, Festive Paper-Piercing Pack	$44.85	$38.90
132262	Christmas Gift Pack (wood-mount bundle) Includes Ornament Keepsakes Bundle (wood-mount), Candlelight Christmas Specialty Designer Series Paper, and Festive Paper-Piercing Pack	$70.85	$62.90
132263	Christmas Gift Pack (clear-mount bundle) Includes Ornament Keepsakes Bundle (clear-mount), Candlelight Christmas Specialty Designer Series Paper, and Festive Paper-Piercing Pack

Triple layer stamping

I tried this gorgeous technique called triple layer stamping this week. I have seen it all over blogs and galleries, but hadn't tried it myself. Really, it was very easy!

The white mat/card base images are 4 1/4 X 5 1/2, 3 3/4 X 5, 3 1/4 X 4 1/2, and 2 3/4 X 4.

The red mat bases are 4 X 5 1/4, 3 1/2 X 4 3/4, 3 X 4 1/4.

I just put a dab of adhesive on the white layers to adhere them together while I was stamping. I took those layers apart and adhered them to the red mats. It was really that simple!

And look how pretty it turned out!

Stamps: Snow Swirled

Ink: Tempting Turquoise, Real Red, Gumball Green

Paper: Whisper White, Real Red, Champagne Glimmer Paper

Accessories: Gumball Green stitched ribbon, Basic Rhinestones, Merry Mini punches

Candlelight Christmas ornament inspired by Becky Roberts

I decided to make one of these ornaments that I saw on Becky Roberts' 12 Days of Christmas tutorial last night.  I used the Candlelight DSP and some sparkling Champagne paper for a lovely effect.

While it was somewhat tedious, overall it was pretty easy to make!  The only thing I would change going forward would be to use Sticky Strip on every single piece - including the inside piece that holds it together.  Otherwise, I think it turned out quite lovely.

Here is another view - you can see the DSP much better here. 

 

Stamps:  Joyous Celebrations

Ink:  Early Espresso

Paper:  Real Red, Very Vanilla, Candlelight DSP, Champagne Glimmer Paper

Accessories:  2 3/8" scallop circle punch, 1 3/4" and 1 1/4" circle punches, Snow Flurry die, Basic Rhinestones

Sparkling Evergreen

I decided to play with two of my new items last night after the kiddos were in bed.  I had a new Evergreen stamp set I wanted to use and some gorgeous Champagne shimmer paper I wanted to use.  I put the two together and made this lovely card!

 

Stamps:  Evergreen

Ink:  Gumball Green, Encore gold

Paper:  Real Red, Crumb Cake, Whisper White, Champagne shimmer paper, Candlelight DSP

Accessories:  Scallop trim punch, Apothecary Accents framelits, Clear Embossing powder, Merry Mini punches