Happy Holidays!

Happy Holidays to y'all!

I'm taking a break until after the first of the year

to spend more time with these amazing people.

My daughter and son in law,

Kelsie and Brad.

My son and grand children

Jaryd, Marie (3 yrs old)  and Asher (6 months old)

My daughter in law and grand kids

Sara, Marie and Asher

Me with my 3 of the kids.

Ahser's first Halloween.

Our Bills cheerleader and big fan, Marie.

My husband, Dave and our little Miss Molly.

I hope you have a wonderful holiday season and

a fabulous, happy and healthy 2023!

 

Congrats Card with Mulberry Paper

Hello!

Today I have a very simple, but beautiful card to show you.

I love the look of torn mulberry paper.

To tear mulberry paper, use your wet finger or a

wet paint brush and run it along where you want to

tear it.  Once it's wet just pull it apart,

this will give it the feathery edges like on this card.

The 'congrats' was heat embossed with white 

embossing powder onto gold metallic card stock.

I simply layered the mulberry paper onto some metallic

gold card stock, added the greeting and adhered it to

a card base and the card was done.

So quick and easy and any greeting could be used

on this type of card.
You can make it masculine or feminine, whatever

you are in need of.

Thanks for stopping by today and checking what I've

been up to lately.

I hope you will come again soon.

Until then,

experiment with different kinds of paper.

BFF Breast Friends Forever

Hello!

"My girls" asked me to do some sweatshirts for them

to wear when they participated in the 

Susan G Koman Upstate NY More Than Pink Walk

held in October.
One of my daughter's closest friends (one of "my girls") was diagnosed with

breast cancer not too long ago.  She is only 27 yrs old

Colleen and the other 2 friends were all in her wedding

party and they walked together.
On the backs they had me put 
BFF
Breast Friends Forever

On the fronts they wanted the breast cancer ribbon.

Here are the 3 girls ready for the walk

2 Beauties ready for the walk.

Here is their team with Colleen,

they even took our grandchildren.

Marie resting up for the big walk.

Kelsie giving Asher a bit of nourishment.
Both kids were dressed in pink for the day.

Colleen with her "Breast Buddies"

Isn't she beautiful?!?!

She is undergoing chemo treatments and will

be having a double mastectomy in February.

So far she is doing well and it determined to beat

this evil disease.

Thanks for stopping by today.

I hope you were inspired in some way and

will come again soon.

Until then,
support cancer research!

 

Heat and Dry Embossed Card

Hello everyone!
A couple posts ago I showed you a couple cards

that I made with embossing folders and the

letterpress technique.  Today I have another 

card to show using an embossing folder.

For this card, I rubbed a VersaMark Ink pad

over one side of the inside of the embossing folder.

I used a heavier hand and the ink got the raised areas

as well as the lower areas.
I added a piece of white card stock and ran it through

my Cuttlebug.
I then added silver embossing powder and heated

it until it was melted.

I think it gives this a look of night time

in a forest and I love how it turned out.

I added that little bird and that finished off the

card.  This could be used for any occasion.

I really need to try some of my other embossing

folders with this technique.

Thanks for stopping by today, I hope you 

have been inspired in some way.

Come again soon,

until then,

emboss something!

 

Thank Full Journal - Junk Journal Style

I've been bitten by the junk journal bug!

I have made journals in the past and learned how

to make hand sewn signatures and such, but 

I guess, it was last spring I got interested in 

junk journals.  In June I made my first one and 
I'm now loving making them.
I made this one for a friend after seeing a 

video by Nik The Booksmith
where she made a "thought-full" book.

I combined her idea with a junk journal and 

now have made a few "thought full journals"

This is the outside of the journal.  I made the whole thing

from scratch, cover and all.  I used some canvas that I 

had sprayed with ink sprays to cover the cover.

I braided embroidery floss and wrapped it around buttons

attached to the front for a closure.

I can't show you all the pages I made, this would be a 

way too long post with all the pictures, so I picked a few

and will show you them.

This is the inside cover, I used paper that I created by

dipping string into paints, swirling them onto the page,

covering it and then pulling it out the bottom of the page.

Here is one of my blog posts about this technique.

My friend is a bit fan of Janet Evanovich, so I used the

dust cover from one of her books to create this page,

with a belly band.

I used some printed and embossed velum that has been in my 

stash for a long time for the page on the left.  I bought

it because I loved it, but then never found a use for it, until

now.  The page on the right has a large tuck area that is

made with some eco-printed paper from my stash.

I made a tag to go into the tuck too.

Using book pages and music is great for journals.

I used some lyrics for the page and sheet music for the

pockets.  The front is a piece of eco-printed paper.
Here is a video explaining how to make these

pockets.

I used some of my alcohol inked background papers for the

page on the left and created a diagonal belly band with 

a coordinating piece.
The page on the right is part of a page from a very old

book on how to manage your household money.

On the left, more eco-printed paper and on the right

I used some instructions from an old sewing pattern.

The purple is some paper that I made a while back, it's

thicker than regular paper, so really lent itself to being

decorative.

Guess I've chosen several eco-printed pages for this post.

Here is another one.

I have a very small dictionary that I picked up at a 

recycle store and I love using the pages from it in my

journals, this one I have starred "flowery" since it is

on the page next to the eco-printed flowers.

An alcohol ink back ground, with an ink sprayed piece of

canvas for a tuck spot and a tag from eco-print paper on the left.

The right is a page for her to write about memories.

This page is a page that I colored from an adult coloring book.

Every wonder what to do with those colored pages, well

cut them up and use them in a journal, they are also

great to cut up to make cards.
The pocket on the left is simply a piece of card stock with lines 

to outline it and a small journaling tag.

The bottom right is a picture of M&Ms from a magazine

that I fussy cut and made into a small pocket.

This is one of the center pages in a signature.  It's a cover from

some very old sheet music.  I love the picture and there is 

a poem on it.  I think it's beautiful and she can write on it and still 

be able to see the picture, if she wants.

Here is the inside back cover.  Another piece that I made.

This time using paints and a gelli plate.

This is where I added the buttons that hold the 

string that closes the book.

Well, that's all I have for this journal.

I'm sure I'll be posting more about my journals,

I have made a few more already and intend to make even

more of them.  I love creating something from things I have

and things that are old.

Thanks for stopping in, I hope you have been inspired in some way

and will come again soon.

Until then,

think junk journals and give them a try.
Here are a couple links to some of the people I follow on 

YouTube that may help if you are interested in creating 

some of your own.

The Paper Outpost

Scrapbooking with ME

Nik the Booksmith

Letterpress Cards

Welcome to Kristie Kreates!

I'm glad you here to spend a little time with me.

Today I'm showing you a couple 

letterpress cards.

Letterpress is when printing or an image is pressed

into the paper/card stock

I used embossing folders to do this letter press

technique.

I inked up the raised side of the embossing folder, 

put the card stock into the folder and ran it through

my Cuttlebug.

I have found that a light hand with the ink works 

best for me, but it's kind of a hit or miss until you

find the right amount or color of ink.

Sometimes, I will do a second generation printing,

where I run it through once, then without inking up the

folder again, run it through with another piece of card stock.

It all depends on how much ink you have on the folder and

also the color of ink.

I cut the little birds from a die set that I have

in my stash and added them to the fronts of the cards.

I really love that pop of color.

For one of the cards, I used this little die cut bird

on the inside of the card, just to add a little pop of color

and interest.

I love this technique and should remember to use it more often.

Thanks for coming by today for a visit,

I hope you'll come again soon.

Until then,

try some letter press printing.

 

Paw Tree Unique Decoration

Hello crafty friends!

Do you have a beloved pet?

Today I'm sharing a gift I made for my husband

last Christmas.
I saw this basic idea when a friend took her dog

to make one.  I thought it was a really cute idea

and since our little Molly is my husbands soul dog,

I knew he'd love one.

I simply dipped Molly's paw into some green paint

and pressed them onto a canvas in the shape of a

tree.  She's such a good girl and just went along with it

for me.
Once that was dry, I used stamps and paint to add the

greeting.  It did need a little touch up, but that was easy.
I think it would have been easier and gotten a better imprint

from the stamps if I had used a canvas board rather than a 

stretched canvas. 
I added some dots for ornaments and a star on top of the tree

and there I had a cute gift for my hubby.

If you have a pet, give this a try. It makes a great

gift and a wonderful keepsake.

Thanks for coming by and spending some time with me today,

I hope you'll give this project a try and come visit again

soon.
Until then,

try something different!

 

Fall with handmade paper and leaves

Happy Thanksgiving!

I hope your turkey day has been wonderful.

Today I thought I'd share a fall themed card with y'all.

I had some handmade paper in my stash

that I picked up somewhere quite a while ago.

Don't know why I hadn't used it yet, but it

is beautiful.  There are small leaves embedded

into the paper and I love the look of it and it feels

so nice too.
I used that as a panel adhered to a card base.

I then embossed some leaves onto

metallic gold card stock with embossing folder and

my Cuttlebug.  I fussy cut them and glued them

to the front panel of the card.

Here is a better picture of what the leaves look like.

On the inside I stamped this sentiment onto

a piece of the handmade paper and adhered it inside

the card.  I love the different look on the inside of this

card.  Something a little unexpected.

I'm so glad you stopped in to see what I've been up to

lately, I hope you have been inspired in some way

and will come again soon.

Until then,

enjoy the fall season.

 

Give Thanks

Hello crafty people!

Thanksgiving is this week, so I thought I'd share a
"gift thanks" card with you.

I used a piece of eco-printed paper from my stash

for this card.  Having a stash of background papers

makes putting a card together so quick and easy.

I found the sentiment in my stamps stash and

simply stamped it, trimmed it out and adhered it to 

the card with some foam tape.

Easy peasy!

Thank you for coming for a visit and I wish you

a wonderful Thanksgiving and hope you are able to 

spend it with family and friends.

I have a great deal to be thankful for and

crafting and the ability to share it with

y'all is one great blessing in my life.

I hope you will stop by again soon.

Until then,

Happy Thanksgiving!

 

Floral Embossed Card

Happy Day to you all!

I hope the sun is shining where you are and you 

are having a fabulous day.
Today I have a card that I made from a piece of card stock

from my background stash.
I'm not sure how I made the background piece, but

it was light yellows and oranges and I thought it would

be beautiful to emboss it.
So I ran it through my Cuttlebug in an embossing folder

and love how it turned out.

I thought it worked out beautifully on a yellow card base.

I added the little sentiment in the lower corner to finish

off the card.
I used this card as a birthday card for my Aunt who 

just turned 99 yrs old.  I thought the brightness of it

was very cheerful and would give her a smile.

I'm so glad you stopped by today and hope you will come 

again soon.

Until then,

bring out your embossing folders and make 

something pretty with them.

 

One in a Minion

Good Day!

My son in law's birthday was in October and

my granddaughter wanted to make him a card.

My daughter in law gave me this idea and we 

ran with it.

Marie and I used yellow craft paint, dipped her thumb

into the paint and made finger prints on a piece of

white card stock.

I put dabs of glue down and she put the eyes and the

hearts onto it.  I then used a Sharpie to make the faces etc.

Inside I wrote a message for her and she helped

me sign the card with her name.

We had a lot of fun making this card together and

she was so proud of it.  Uncle Brad loved it.

Kids are never too young to start crafting.

Thanks for coming by today,

I hope you have been inspired in some way,

and will come again soon.

Until then,

craft with a child.

 

Autumn Greetings on Mulberry Paper

Hello crafty people!

One day at our crop a friend asked if I

knew what mulberry paper was.

I told her that I did and had some right there

at the crop, pulled some out to show her

and decided that I should make a card using some

of it.

I love using mulberry paper, but often don't think

about it.  I'm glad my friend asked about it.

When you use it, the easiest way to get the 

size you want it to use a paint brush or even your

finger to wet the paper where you want to tear it.  Then

gently pull it to tear.  The fibers in the paper give you

the feathered look along the edges, which I love.

If you don't want that look, you can always just use a paper cutter

to cut it to size.

I stamped the image and sentiment with brown Archival ink

and used Bearly Arts Glue to adhere it to the front of

the card base.

I use ATG tape very often to adhere panels to my card

bases, but mulberry paper just doesn't work with tapes,

the tape just doesn't stick to the paper,

so wet glue is a must.

I love how this card turned out.

Thanks for stopping in today to see what I've been up to.

I hope you will come again soon.

Until then,

give a new supply a try.

Note the links are only to give a reference so you can

see what the products are.
I didn't necessarily purchase from these sites,

except where specified,

and you may find better prices elsewhere,

I am in no way promoting any particular site.

Embossed Christmas Cards

Hello and Welcome!

It's that time of year to think about getting those

Holiday cards started.

Today I have a couple very simple cards to show you.

Embossing folders are simple to use and often don't need

much in the way of embellishment.

You can see how simple it is to make a quick card using 

and embossed piece of card stock.

With the trees at the bottom, it was easy to stamp 

Santa's sleigh and the sentiment to finish off

the front panel.

Inside I stamped a sentiment and my card was done.

Here is another embossed card that is quick and easy.

Again, stamped an image and sentiment for the front of the

card and done.

Inside, another sentiment and the card is finished.

I think both of these cards turned out beautiful and

were quick and easy to put together.

Look through your stash and see what you have that

would make it quick to make your Christmas cards.

These aren't the ones I'll be making to send out to my 

family and friends, but I love how they turned out and they will

be put into an auction basket of handmade cards.

Thanks for stopping by today!

I hope you have been inspired in some way

and will come again soon.

Until then,

get started on those Holiday cards.