February Calendar

I finished up a layout for my February month.  I am running a bit late, I really should be working on March!  These are some photos of my boys I took the other day.

Valentine's Day

It is almost valentines day,  and I finished up some Mail Boxes for my Boys school parties.  I used the 'Valentine Mailbox Kit' from svgcuts.com.  And the monsters images are from Lettering Delights.  My youngest wanted his monster to have 'light savers' - he is really into Star Wars right now!

I was a bit bummed about Valentine's Day this year!  My sons told me that they wanted store bought Valentine's Cards.  I usually make the cards and treats that the boys hand out to their classmates - but this year they wanted Indiana Jones and Star Wars Valentines.  Sad - I miss making the cards!  I was thinking that it didn't feel like Valentines Day without the crafts --- so I decided to make some decorations for around the house!

This is my Kitchen all decorated for Valentines Day!  I made some large Pom Poms from various pink colored tissue paper.  You can find instructions for making the Pom Poms on the Martha Stewart web site (click here).  I was surprised how easy the Pom Poms are to make!  I loved seeing my boys faces when they came home from school.  They were surprised!

Be Mine

I keep seeing banners everywhere on cards and scrapbooks - so I thought I would put one to use on a card!  The top two card were cut out in plain Kraft paper and then I used some acrylic paint to paint the banner different colors.  I had to use some painter's tape to mask off the edges I didn't want to get painted.

This card is my attempt at using some patterned paper with this cutfile.  The papers are by Pink Paisley.  I think I prefer the first 2 Kraft paper versions.

I put this Digital Cut File in my 'shop' for $.99 cents.  This file is available in SVG, SCUT2, MTC, DXF, WPC, and GSD.

Hearts - Freebie

Here is a Valentine 'Freebie'!  I put this Heart file into my 'shop.'  Just click on the pink 'shop' button on the right hand side of this blog.  As usual, this file will be there for one week.

Valentine Boxes

I have been busy working on a few treat boxes for Valentines Day.  I wanted to make a couple simple Valentine gifts to give out to my son's school and religion teachers.  I thought that I could put a brownie or some M&M candies into the boxes.  I put a brownie in the box - but it was a THIN brownie.  I wanted to get 2 boxes cut from one 12x12 sheet of paper, so the boxes are only .75 inches tall.

The Valentine Boxes open up like a 'Pizza' Box.  Here is a photo of one of the open boxes.

I designed 2 different windows for the Valentine boxes.  One window has a 'Heart'.  The other window has the word 'Love.'  I made the word 'Love' as a separate cutout.  In the photo above I cut the 'Love' word out in contrasting white paper and then adhered it onto the box.

I put this file into my shop for $.99 cents.  This file is only available in SVG,  SCUT2 and MTC files.

School Mini Album - APPLE

I finished up my oldest son's 2nd grade mini album, this time I used an apple as my basic shape.  So far I have made 4 school albums in the shape of a School Bus, School House, Chalkboard, and now an Apple.  I am thinking of making a pencil for my next album.  

For the ease of completing the albums I have kept the format of all the album the same.  I usually make 5 pages and use all the same fonts and embellishments (pencil, notebook paper, paperclip, and binder clip).  On the front cover, I keep it simple and just put my son's name and grade. 

Every year on the first day of school, I make the boys pose by the front door before school.  And at the end of the school day, I try to get a photo as they get off the bus.  It is fun to see how much they change each year!

I also try to make some journal notes about some fun things that happened during the year.  I also try to list some 'Favorites' such as friends, food, games and teachers.  To keep the albums looking consistent, from year to year, I use the same format, fonts, and embellishments.  My favorite embellishment is the big pencil!

I also try to make a copy of their report cards!  Charlie has always had the same comments from his teachers - 'need to control talking' (he is a bit chatty).  I also include a class photo and a photo from a field trip or class program.  But my favorite part of all the albums is the last page!  I make the boy sign their names - it is really fun to see how much their writing improves each year.

FREE FILE:  I put this file in my 'shop' as a free file.  Just click on the 'Pink Shop' button on the right hand side of the blog. As usual this file link is good for a week!

School Mini Album - SCHOOL HOUSE

I finally finished up my youngest son, Henry's Kindergarten mini album!  I used a school house as the basic shape.  I kept the format similar to my other son, Charlie's school albums.  For Charlie's school albums, I used a School Bus and Chalk Board as the basic shape for the album.  I have one more album to complete - I am thinking an Apple will be my next album shape!