Sour Cream Packets

Hello blog friends.

Today I'm going to show you the 'sour cream packets'

I made for the stockings at my family Christmas party.

I made 28 of these.

I started out with a piece of card stock measuring

5"x5.5"

I made a packet and figured out where I wanted the window,

cut it out and then took the packet apart to use as a template.

I traced the window onto the back of each piece of

card stock.

I then used a straight edge and blade to cut the window out.

I wanted it in the lower part of the center.

I then added tape.  Along the bottom and the right side

I have ATG tape.  Along the top I used "score tape"

You can use any kind of strong adhesive for this, but the top

should be something that has a backing, like score tape,

as you won't want that to be stuck together too soon.

I then put strong adhesive around the window cut out

and adhered a piece of acetate to cover the window.

Next I rolled the card stock from the left to the right

and adhered it together into a tube shape.

Once that is done, the bottom could be pressed together

so the window is in the front.

I used a bone folder to press the end together

and be sure it's stuck together securely.

Now i had the sour cream packet with the top open.

Now was the time to fill the packets.

I filled mine with candied peanuts.

After the treats are inside, I removed  the

release paper from score tape on 

 the other end and press it together in the

opposite way of the the bottom.

I was careful to press it securely.

To be honest, I wish I had used a stapler and stapled 

each end, just to be safe.

Even with the strong adhesive, I was a little worried that 

they wouldn't hold, especially since they would be in 

the stockings. With food inside, I didn't want it to fall out

or have the ends opened.
They did okay in the end, but some of them were

starting to open.

This is how they looked when they were finished.

I like that I put the window in, so the treat inside could be seen.

They hold just enough for a nice little snack.

These could be used for any number of treats.
In most incidents I wouldn't put unwrapped food into 

these packet.  Especially anything for a kids birthday

party or for class mates.  I'd put wrapped candies

or some kind of little gift into them.

But for what I was using them for, they worked great.

Thanks for stopping by today,

come again soon.
If you'd like to see a video on making 

sour cream packets

check out this post
Pootles

is one of my favorites.
Her packets are a little different in size

and don't have the window, 

and are also much more elegant.

It's a great video, so go check it out.
Until next time,

try something new and different!

Christmas Table Gifts

Hi all!

I hope you had a lovely Christmas.

I had a wonderful Christmas with my family.

I had dinner at my home with just my kids and

their significant others, so there were

6 of us here.
I know I've posted before that when I have a holiday

meal of some sort, I like to have some kind of little

gift or favor for my guests, and today was no different.

But today was actually more special, because it was Christmas

and I really wanted something special for each person.

I decided to make little ornaments for them all, including 

my hubby and myself.

I made these glittered ornaments and put a different

'symbol' on each one.

I wrote up a little note telling them why I chose that particular

symbol, rolled it up and put it in the loop at the top of the ornament 

Dave set the table for me and I added the little ornaments

 to each persons place setting.

On the fronts of the ornaments I put the vinyl cut out

of the symbol I chose for them.

This is the one for Dave.

Some of the meanings may be obvious, some may not

be so obvious. Dave's has a Celtic symbol with a heart

for our love, it has no beginning and no end.

On the back sides I put the year.

This is the one I made for myself, it's hard to see

but it has the infinity sign, one side has 2 hearts in it

the other says 'family'

The mother and child is what I chose for my daughter,

Kelsie, for obvious reasons, 

but not only is she my daughter,

she is also one of my best friends.

This symbol that means loyal was what I chose for 

Jason, Kelsie's boyfriend.  I see him as a very loyal

person.

My son, Jaryd, received one with the intertwined hearts,

showing his love for his fiance and his family.

Sara, Jaryd's fiance, has a Celtic anchor on hers,

this symbolizes her love for the water and her Irish 

heritage.

I think they all liked their ornaments and the notes

explaining what they meant to me.

It was a little simple gift that conveyed my love for

each of them.

Thanks for stopping by today,

I hope you'll stop in again soon.

You never know what you'll find on

Kristie Kreates.

Merry Christmas!

I'd just like to wish everyone

the Merriest of Christmas'

and a wonderful 

2018.

Today I'll be attending the

 Backstrom Family Christmas Party.

I always love this get together,

as I see some of my family that I don't 

see often.  This year, I have some games planned,

not only for the kids, but one for the adults too.
I think it will be a fabulous time for everyone.

Tomorrow will be a little different for us.

This is the first year that Dave and I will wake up 

alone at home. No children in the house this year.

But they will be over for dinner and presents.

This year we will have  

Kelsie and Jason, Jaryd and Sara

and Dave and Me here.

A nice quiet happy Christmas.

I hope you are having a wonderful and joyous

Christmas season.

Multiple Gift Card Holders

Tis the season!

Hello everyone, how are your holiday preparations going?

Mine are coming along and today I'm showing you a couple

gift card holders that I made.

A couple weeks ago I was visiting a friend and we

went to a demo where Peggy showed us how to make

these cute gift card holders.

I took it a step farther and embellished it more than she did

but it's the same pattern as we learned at the demo.

They hold multiple gift cards, or you can put other things

like lottery tickets or cash in them.

I don't know if I'll be using this one or if it will be going

into my stash for future use.

Once it's untied and opened there is an embellished area

inside the one flap.

Open it a little farther and you have 3 panels

One more step and you reveal the little pockets that hold

the gift cards.

This is the one that I made for my Aunt Marilyn.

Every year we give her a bunch of gift cards for restaurants

that she can go to for a bite to eat.

I stamped, heat embossed and fussy cut the tree for the front,

I used Nuvo drops for the ornaments.

I created this little bird to mimic the birds on the paper.

All the snowflakes were heat embossed with silver,

then fussy cut.

Open it all the way and there are the pockets with the gift cards.

The Santa is on an Action Wobble.

Hopefully this video will work so you can see how 

cute he is when he wobbles.
I can hear Aunt Marilyn giggling right now when he

wiggles and wobbles.

Thanks for stopping in today,

I hope you are well on your way to being ready 

for Christmas or whatever holiday you 

celebrate.

Until next time, 

happy crafting!

Muffin Pizza

Hello everyone!

I've said it before and I'll say it again....

You never know what you'll find on Kristie Kreates!

Today I'm going to show you a quick and easy little lunch

or snack, depending on how much you eat.

Y'all know that I had weight loss surgery this

past June, so I can't eat much at one time.

Well, I was looking for something to eat for lunch

and since we'd just had our first snow of the season

and I was being a wimp about going out in the cold,

I had to eat something I had.  One of the things I needed

to do in that cold was go grocery shopping.

I decided that a little pizza was in order.

All I had was some English Muffins, so I made up some

Muffin Pizza.

I split the muffin open and put it onto some parchment paper.

Then I took a bit of spaghetti sauce, yes, it's from a jar.

I don't know how to make sauce, some day I'll learn.

Then I added some mozzarella cheese and pepperoni

and put in onto a baking sheet and into the oven.

I baked it until the cheese was melted and the muffin 

was crispy around the edges.

I'm guessing it was about 15 min. at 350*

Boy was it tasty!

And, yes, that is a Star Wars plate.

My kids are grown, but I still have the Star Wars plates

and I use them all the time for lunch or snacks.

I'm not a dietitian or anything, but here's a little break

down of the calories and protein

English Muffin 130 calories 4g of protein

Sauce is 90 Calories for 1/2 cup, so barely any for this amount, 

I only used about a tablespoon

Cheese 1/4 cup 90 calories 7g protein I'm guessing I used less than

1/8 cup

pepperoni 15 slices is 130 calories and 6g protein. so 

52 calories and about 2.5 g protein.

That means less than 250 calories and 10g of protein.

Now I don't know if that's how to really figure it out,

but it doesn't sound too bad to me. 

Thanks for stopping in today,

have you ever happened upon a tasty 

treat because

necessity was the mother of invention

like this?

I'm glad I did, I'll be making these again.

Snap Bags

Christmas is getting close all you crafty people!

Welcome!  

Today I'm going to show you a gift that

I made for an exchange.
I have a group of crafty friends online and a few of us 

decided to have a gift exchange for Christmas.

My sister in law told me how to make these cute 

"snap bags" She has made a lot of them for her church 

as part of Christmas gifts that they give out.

The size she does and the one I'm going to tell you 

how to make is the size for a glasses case.

The first thing is to purchase double sided quilted fabric

Our Joann's doesn't have a lot of variety, but I found

this one that I really loved.

I had a great coupon, so I bought a yard of this fabric

so I could make several if I liked how the first one turned

out.

Cut a square measuring 10" x 10"

On one side, fold over about 1/2"

Now fold that same side over about 1" and pin in place.

Fold the piece in half with the right side out.

Measure 2 lengths of ribbon about 3" long.

Measure the width of the bag and find the middle, keep

in mind that you will be sewing a seam at the side of the

bag, so adjust for that.

  Fold the ribbon in half and put the raw ends under the

folded down top edge and pin in place.

Repeat this on the other side.  

To be sure they are even, you can push a pin through from

one side to the other and see if the pin comes through

the ribbon.

Once you have the ribbons in place, unfold the bag and 

sew along the edge of the folded over top.

Cut approximately 4" pieces of a tape measure.
I bought mine at the Dollar Store, so they weren't a very

heavy metal, so I cut 4 pieces.  If you have a heavier 

tape measure, you can use 2 pieces.

I used a pair of heavy duty kitchen scissors for cutting,

if you have a pair of tin snips you can also use them.

Now round the ends of each piece of the tape measure.

Be careful this can be very sharp and small pieces can 

go flying.  My sister in law holds hers inside a box to cut,

this way the small sharp pieces don't go flying.

Stepping on one of these with bare feet wouldn't be very 

pleasant.

Now you have rounded ends and no squared corners.

If you are using the light weight metal, put 2 pieces together

on top of one another.

I used electrical tape, my sister in law used duct tape,

to tape around the ends. This will keep the sharp edges

from tearing through the fabric and possible cutting 

the person using the bag.

Be sure to use a heavy duty type of tape.

Now slide the tape measure pieces into the "pocket" at 

the top of the bag. One from each side of the bag and

push to the center of the bag where it will be folded.

Be sure the tape measure pieces are curved the right way.

You want them to bump out to the outside of the bag,

as shown in this picture.

Fold the bag in half again, right sides together,

and sew a seam close to the edge of the fabric.

I sewed mine with the edge of the fabric right along

the edge of the presser foot, only about 1/8" seam allowance.

Be sure your tape measure is pushed in far enough

that you won't be hitting it.

Sew down the side and across the bottom of

the bag.  

Turn right side out and you have your 

snap bag.

Perfect for sunglasses.

Here is a quick little demo of how the snap bag works.

It's easy to pull open with the little ribbons and snaps

closed on it's own.

Not only is this great for sunglasses, but for any number

of other things.  Make up, a pad and pen, maybe some

feminine products for your purse, even craft supplies..

You can make them in whatever size you choose.

These are 3 I made for my friend for our exchange.

All different sizes.  They have already been sent out 

and received. She opened them and has thanked me for

them already, she loves them and has a lot of ideas

what she can use them for.
These are easy to make and anyone can use something

like this.  I know my brother asked my sister in law to make

one for him for his glasses, she is planning to put a small pocket 

on the outside of it for extra hearing aid batteries.

I believe he's going to use his in his golf bag.

So many uses for them!

I'm guessing you could use another kind of fabric,

but it would have to be something with some

"substance" It needs a bit of thickness and/or stiffness to it.

I'm glad you stopped in today, I hope you are too.

I also hope you have been inspired in some way

and maybe will give these bags a try.

They really are quite easy to make and 

come together quickly. 

They make lovely little gifts for anyone.

See you again soon,

until then, happy creating!