Button Owl Tutorial

After making 2 versions of the button bird , I decided to try something else. Since I really like owls, that's my next button creation!

You will need the following paper pieces and buttons as shown in the picture above. I used punches to create these shapes, but you could also cut your own.

Arrange the buttons and feet as shown in the picture above. Adhere. I used foam tape for the buttons, that works especially well if the buttons have a center that is lower than the rest of the button. Also, please note that the top button will be covered up completely, so it doesn't really matter what color it is.

Glue the 2 raindrop shapes together to form the head and adhere to the top button.

Add the beak, eyes and belly.

I thought he was missing something, so I gave him wings.

And then I suddenly thought he could use a branch to sit on. So I went to the yard and collected some small twigs... Then I needed to make another pair of feet, since these needed to be glued on top of the branch.

Then, I added a flower to the branch.

I really like the end result. This would be so cute as a card, for a scrapbook page(although I don't think the twig is acid-free...), in a picture frame as wall art, or glued on the frame itself to make a cute picture frame, or ...

What do you think?

I linked this up to:

Graduation Card

It's graduation time again, and I realized I don't have any graduation-themed stamps or paper. So, I decided to see if I could come up with a simple graduation card, using supplies I had on hand. I liked how simple it was, and decided to take some pictures so that I could make a tutorial.

You are going to need the following supplies:

1. foam tape
2. black diamond shape (cardstock or shiny paper)
3. black circle shape (same material as item 2)
4. brad
5. (white) cardstock, folded in half (this will be your card)
6. a sheet of (black) paper, slightly smaller than 5
7. strip of (silver) paper
(I embossed items 5&6 using my Cuttlebug embossing folders, but you could also use patterned paper or cardstock.)
8. piece of white paper
9. silver colored yarn

Tools:

• adhesive
• paper trimmer
  
• scissors
• needle or other piercing tool
  

First, assemble the card, as shown in the picture above.Then, cut the circle as pictured above.

Use a needle or other tool to poke a hole in the center of the diamond.

Put the brad in the center of the diamond. Use the foam tape to adhere the diamond to the shape that used to be the circle.

Roll the piece of paper to create the diploma, put a little bit of adhesive on the edge to make sure it doesn't unroll itself. Tie the yarn around it. Trim if necessary.

Use adhesive (I used Glue Dots here) to adhere the diploma and cap to the card.

This worked great, since I didn't need any special supplies or tools to create this card.

Also, the material I used for the cap is just the package that the embossing folder that I used came in. It was nice, shiny and sturdy cardstock, so I thought that would look pretty good. (Good thing you can't see that there is text printed on the back - I assume the graduate won't take my card apart...)

The string I used to tie the diploma is ribbon that was wrapped around a gift.

I always like to see how I can turn 'ordinary' things into craft supplies :)

I linked this up to:

Baby girl card

My husband had a baby shower at work for one of his (male) colleagues who is having a baby soon. I learned about it last minute, so had to get a gift and card at short notice.
I decided to make the card and keep it simple.
This took me only a few minutes.

The grosgrain flower ribbon I used is from Hobby Lobby. It's SO cute, so I decided the card didn't need much more. I'm really a sucker for pretty ribbon!! This one is pretty wide, so it covers a big part of the card. I put the stamped image on foam tape, so it is 3D, but you can't really see that in the picture.
To add a little more texture I used the "Swiss Dot" Cuttlebug embossing folder in my Big Shot. I really like how this changes a normal piece of cardstock into pretty embossed cardstock!

Button bird with fluffy tail

Do you remember this little bird?

I made him a little friend, this time with a fluffy tail!

As we were picking up some toys last night, I picked up some feathers that came from a feather boa from our girls' dress up box. I was heading for the garbage can, and then I suddenly got the idea to use them for this bird!

These are so easy to make!

Supplies needed:

• Buttons
• Googly eyes
• Feather (one makes a lot of tails!)
  
• Patterned paper or cardstock
• Marker
• Adhesive

Cut a little triangle to use as a beak. Cut a piece of the feather. Using the picture above as a guideline, lay the feather and beak down on the paper. Put the button on top of it to see if you like the look. With a marker, draw the feet of the bird.
Glue the beak and feather in place.

Glue the button on the background paper.

Cut a little wing out of patterned paper or cardstock, and attach the wing and the eye.

And that's it.

These are fun to use on cards, in scrapbook projects, or other paper crafts.

I just love the possibilities.

I linked this up to:

Creating silhouettes...

Today I just had to try this!

This is SO cool, Amy from

shows how to turn pictures into silhouettes using Photoshop.

(Warning: once you have started to look at her blog, you will probably stay there quite a while, since she has so many awesome ideas. That happened to me a few days ago. So don't tell me I didn't warn you ;) )

Rather than cutting out a 'traditional' silhouette, this gives you an image that you can use over and over again. So you can use it to make cards, create wall art, use it on your blog, as your email signature, just whatever you can come up with!

Just LOVE this idea!!!

Flower Cupcake Toppers

We made some colorful flower cupcake toppers to decorate our cupcakes for our flower-themed birthday party. It's fast and easy, and the kids really liked them.
You will need the following tools and supplies:

* colorful cardstock
* flower shaped punches
* wooden skewers
*adhesive
*double-sided foam tape
*scissors

I was worried about the sharp end of the skewer, so I just trimmed them with scissors. My skewers were pretty short to start with, you can trim them to any desired length.

Next, punch out your flower shapes. I punched two of every shape, so that back and front of the flower looked the same. Assemble 2 flowers.

Put one flower right side down, and put the skewer on top of it. Put a piece of the foam tape on top of this as pictured below.

Next, remove the protective strip, so that the adhesive part shows.
Then, cut 2 smaller pieces of foam tape and put them one both sides of the skewer, like pictured below. This should bring the tape up to the level of the skewer.

Remove the protective strips and stick the other flower on top of it.

Repeat for more flowers!!

I linked this up to: