So much fun at Sweet Woodruff Acres

  

I had the grand kids a few hours early on Christmas Eve-Eve (we celebrated Christmas Eve two nights in a row!).  While we were in the kitchen baking, we somehow got way off track when I taught them how to make a blow up balloon squeal loudly!  Then we three got rowdy and ended up rolling on the kitchen floor in laughter.   I think we were all super excited about Christmas (and maybe had too many sweet by then, too!)

Jessica & Craig had wrapped all their gifts in brown craft paper.  For the tags they had sepia photos of the recipients. The kids absolutely loved this, they didn't have to look for names, but their own faces.  These gifts were so pretty! 

I made plates of gingerbread cookies, Tex-Mex Snack Mix, bags of candies, mini-gingerbread houses and more to give out to neighbors and friends.  

 This is one of the small wood cutting boards I made to give out as gifts.  I took my Scottie Dog cookie cutter and enlarged the pattern.  I cut them out of wood from myrtlewood trees that grow on our property.  Did you know myrtlewood only grows in two places on earth?  Yes, here in Oregon and in Israel.  How cool is that?  I wanted to make more of these, but ran out of time, as well our wood wasn't dry enough yet. It takes at least 6 months to really season it well.



This Oregon state shape cutting board was made the same way as the Scottie Dog one above.  I have an Oregon state shape cookie cutter  that I traced and just enlarged the pattern to the size I wanted.  These cutting boards were one of my favorite crafts this year, right up there with my gingerbread house decorating party!  More on that next post!

Have a great weekend.

May you have 2012 blessing this year!

Hugs, Heidi

(Linked with Cindy's My Romantic Home Show & Tell Friday here.)

Wheat Thins to Chipboard: Stamping Cardboard

How:   Eat a box of Wheat Thins, dipping each one into straight-up-cream-cheese.  Wash down with "Pom" juice, pomegranate juice (counters for all the cream cheese!).  Open up the box and start cutting shapes. (You know I'm kidding, right?)

This is Project Number 4:
           Stamping Card Stock with Metal Alphabet Stamps

When I asked for, and received,  the metal alphabet stamp set for Christmas my intention was to use it on metal, such as vintage silverware.  I was inspired to try this method by Melody Ross in her video for our Brave Girls "Soul Restoration" online class.  Yes, I'm a Brave Girl and I belong to the Brave Girl's Club.  Don't you just love that? We are in week six, the final week, and this was included in one of her final art techniques videos.  By the way, she will have a second online Soul Restoration class beginning soon; you can sign up on her website.  So in her video she used her brand of metal stamps, both artistic designs and alphabet sets.  As much as I'd love to go out and purchase her brand, I decided to try using what I already own.  Oh am I thankful for this metal set I received from Mark.  It works perfect.  I don't have any card stock, so I just used cardboard packaging from kitchen foods.  I've been saving every package now!  I have to be careful no one sees my stash and thinks I'm turning into a hoarder!

I used my precious and favorite cookie cutter, my Scottie Dog.  I traced it on cardboard, cut it out and then lightly wet it down.  Confession about my dampening down process:  I was drinking a mug of Stash Chocolate Hazelnut Decaf Tea (Jessica gave me---it's so good!), and had the wet tea bag nearby.  I just used that to wipe down the cardboard to dampen.


I made a whole table full of these cutouts, but these are the only photos I have. 

The quote on the one dog says, "MY LITTLE DOG IS A HEARTBEAT AT MY FEET"  The other dog pictured reads, "I AM A BRAVEGIRL".  The flower reads, "WHERE FLOWERS BLOOM SO DOES HOPE". On the small scrap pieces I just stamped various words, such as BRAVE, LIGHT, COURAGE, JOY, FLY, PEACE, LOVE, SOUL HOUSE, QUEEN, etc.  Stamping just one word was easier.  Next I just inked up the edges.

News flash:  ***it's snowing outside right now***

The pictures don't quite capture these as well as I had hoped, but they do turn out really cool!  You can go on eBay or Stampington to search for Melody Ross's products.  You'll see her sets right away. 

Let me know if you try this technique, or if you have any other fun metal stamping suggestions.

Blessings, Heidi

(Linked to Between Naps on the Porch Metmorphois Monday here...lots more to see, too!)