Repackaging Mint Patties

Peppermint patties and thin mints are two of my favorite treats.  To commemorate a day with friends and family, I'm adding a little splash of paper crafting to wrapped patties.

To make these, I used the Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge to quickly cut out 60 circles (settings: 1 3/4" of  on page 21) on card stock.   I stamped them with the text using blue ink then used a marker to ink the edges.

I added a stamped image of a baby bottle then used a light blue marker to color the bottle top. 

These were affixed to the peppermint patties with glue dots. It took about an hour to make 60 party favors.

This favor used a very simple shape from the Art Philosophy Cricut  Collection.  This video gives an overview of all the treats tucked inside this cartridge.

Dreaming of Kenya

As part of a monthly card swap with very creative women cross the United States, I am creating eight greeting cards which use a recycled material and the same rubber stamp image more than once. After hearing President Obama deliver his first State of the Union address, I decided to use one of the colorful and detailed postage stamps adhered to an envelope sent to me from Kenya.

Technique. Gently peel the postage stamp from the envelope. Glue to coordinating cardstock then ink the edges. Glue to another piece of matching card stock then trim the edges with decorative scissors (postal ridges).

For the main image, I stamped a woman's face (Embossing Art) on a scrap of glossy white card stock and layered onto two pieces of card stock. I used Copic markers to add color to the image.

My favorite item to recycle are pages torn from books written in foreign languages. I cut this one to 5" x 4" then inked the edges of the page before gluing to the card front. I used a text stamp to randomly stamp "dream" (Inkadinkado) on the front of the card before adding the framed woman's face then the framed postage stamp.

I stamped "Dreams Come True"(Inkadinkado) on scrap glossy paper and embossed with clear ink. I used a blue Copic pen to color the text. I used Stampin Up window punch to cut out the embossed text then glued it to the front of the card.

Because I have only one envelope with Kenyan postage stamps, I am looking forward to discovering what may be used for recycling into cards for this month's card swap.

Memorial Magnet

SEI has a monthly challenge which appealed to my reduce, reuse, recycle mode of art. They encourage using the refrigerator magnets, which are often found on phone books or handed out freely by business merchants, to create something unique.

Technique: I started with an outdated business card magnet (i.e., the consultant moved to sunny Florida about two years ago). I stripped off the glossy surface then covered the magnet with a scrap from the "Enroute" paper collection (SEI). I placed glossy stickers "Christmas Mint" collection (SEI) in each corner. I used dye based ink on a rubber stamp image (Attainable Treasures) then pressed it onto beige card stock. I layered the stamped image on a green watercolor paper then adhered to the covered magnet. I stamped the text (Stampin' Up) using dye based ink onto glossy card stock. I used the Stampin' Up window punch to cut out the text in the elongated oval shape. I inked the edges of the oval and of each layer of paper used for the stamped image.

Both photographs show the magnet clinging to the exterior of the exhaust fan over the stove.

Nine days after the initial earthquake in Haiti; reports state the efforts will turn from rescue to rebuilding. Hope more assistance reaches those who have survived thus far.