So many things….

Ooh I have been so busy!  I work 3 days a week at the best store in the world.  If I haven’t bragged in a while, I work at the local craft store in our area, Ben Franklin Crafts and Frames-Grass Valley. I work in the Paper Arts department and I have recently started teaching classes. We have free classes during the week and on Saturdays.  I teach the Saturday classes.

Head on over to our Facebook page and LIKE us!!  Be sure and let them know Jeannie sent you over while you are there!!

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Ben-Franklin-Crafts-and-Frames-Grass-Valley/109294332432249?fref=ts

But, I also teach classes that you can sign up for(that you have a fee for) and I have been getting some great feedback from the ladies taking the classes so far. HOORAY!!

Today I taught my Mad about Mary Card Class.  Here were the main cards..

The cards you see here are my samples and what is so awesome about them is each one has a handwritten sentiment on it.  For my class the sentiments were computer generated, but they turned out just as cute.  It seems I have a lot of bosses at my job, but my direct boss, is the MOST AMAZING ARTIST,….well, outside of Mary….Linsdsay about takes the cake!  Go take a look at her blog to see what I’m talking about.  Her name is Lindsay Ostrom.  She is the one who has handwritten all my sentiments, how lucky am I???

Also this month….Clear Scraps has revealed their new Kit…and let me tell you…WOW is it a good one!

You can be part of our little Kit Club family by going to our Facebook page and liking it.  Creating Made Easy Kit Club Facebook Page. Let them know Jeannie from The Polka Cabana sent you over!

That way you can keep up with our kit reveals and what we are up to.

Here is our May 2013 Main Kit

May Main Kit 2013

Click HERE... to see what all is included in this kit.

My Mind’s Eye Papers….LOVE IT!!

If you head on over to the Clear Scraps Kit Club blog, you can see what our Design Team has been up to with this kit.  Here is a sneak peek at what I made…

You will have to head on over to the blog post to see my completed project and I’d love to have you leave a comment and let them know I sent you over.

Here is the link to see my completed project!

http://clearscraps.typepad.com/clear_scraps_kit_club/2013/05/you-make-me-smile-scrapbook-page.html

I will be back later with more Clear Scraps projects.

Next up at Ben Franklin’s:

Mary inspired Scrapbook Pages

Washi Tape Cards

Father’s Day Cards

I Love You card with Cheery Lynn Designs New Release dies

Hello Everyone…This is Jeannie with a beautiful card to show off some of the new release of Cherry Lynn Designs dies.

In the top left corner I have used the new Butterfly Out die.

The bird on the branch is a combination of the new Hummingbird die and Embellishment #2 set.

The delicate flower is made from the Build a Flower #2 Plate.

I’ve embellished some of the flowers and the butterfly with some i-rocks from Imaginisce, leftover from our fun joint swap with them.

My card is based on a design and products from a kit from Deena Ziegler.

I hope you have enjoyed my creation today.  I live for making these weekly creations, I really do!

Cheery Lynn Designs are magical to work with and this new release, WOW!!  That about says it all!

Have a great weekend, this has been Jeannie with The Polka Cabana posting for Cheery Lynn Designs.

Be sure to stop by the Cheery Lynn Designs challenge blog and enter this week’s Doily Challenge for a chance to win a $20 shopping spree at the store.

Wednesday Wowzer {ippity} Time

Today I have a fun card I have made with a special friend in mind to give this to.

This is for a friend who lives locally and works harder than most women I know.

She is quiet and has been known to hide behind produce to avoid talking to people, but I can say I have been lucky enough to go out to Ice Cream with her, so it’s safe to say, we are beyond the hiding behind the produce stage:)

I am using the set called SIMPLY HOME for this card.  While making this card, I thought of my friend Brooke, for so many reasons.  She runs her own farm, she posts the most hilarious things sometimes about her adventures on the farm, she works with the local search and rescue team(I don’t know if I got the term right, sorry), she is a wonderful cook, a wonderful mom, wife and a devoted and loving daughter of god.

The phrase on the card says “Life is Simple.”  I thought of that, and physically life in far from simple for Brooke.  But it is important for you to know, that she is the kind of person that would tell you that if you just break life down to the basics, such as Living for and Loving God and finding Joy in something every day, then you could say that yes, “Life is Simple.” ….and that is why this card inspired me to think and write about Brooke and make this just for her!

So there you have it..a little peek into the life of someone I know!

I’ll give this to her as is…so she can just have it in her home, or if she feels like giving it someone at some point..she can!

I hope you liked my story…

This has been Jeannie from The Polka Cabana posting for I Heart {ippity}.

Special kudos goes to Cheery Lynn Designs for the dies I used on this card also!

Masculine Card with Tutorial

Hello everyone..Jeannie here with a little tutorial with a different variation of the card I made last week.

Last week I used the REFLECTIONS SCALLOPED CIRCLES to make this card.

Today, I am using the REFLECTIONS MINI PEAR: FRENCH FLAIR for my card.

To start, I cut out 4 squares using the 4th largest die and then one square for the card base with the 5th largest die.

Here are the cut papers all stacked up, you can see the base is just one size larger than the card pieces.

Take each card piece(not the base) and fold them in half down the middle.

Adhere them to the card base, forming a cross type pattern, shown here.

Two pieces are on the bottom,

the other two are on the top.

Here is what it looks like from the back with the base facing up.

To fold the card closed, start with the right flap, then the bottom,

then the left flap,

then fold the top down and tuck half of it under the the flap your first folded in.

This is the same way you fold packing boxes, get it?

Here it is, all closed up and ready to embellish.

Over on the Cheery Lynn Designs Challenge Blog, our theme is MANLY CARDS.

So my card is dedicated to that theme.

I used the SCALLOPED SQUARE NESTING DIES for my card front panels.

I also used the Dotties Ric Rac and Ribbon Eyelet dies for some extra embellishing.

All of the paper and stamps are from CLOSE TO MY HEART.

All of my inks are from Stampin’ Up!

Doesn’t this card remind you of that Route 66 song?

I think it is the perfect MANLY card!

I hope you have enjoyed this brief tutorial today.

Be sure to check out our Challenge Blog.

You will love the things you can win and all of the inspiration over there too!

This has been Jeannie from The Polka Cabana with Today’s post.

When is a circle not a circle?

Do you like that title?  When is a circle not a circle?  When it is a square!!!

The reason that’s my title is because the main part of this card is made out of the

Reflections Dies Scalloped Circle Set.

I wanted to point out a couple of things about the REFLECTIONS DIES.

They are very versatile, you can mix and match the sets, you can use them for cards, scrapbook pages and even sentiments and tags.

This card not only uses the Scalloped Circle Reflections set, but also the Mini Pearl French Flair set.

On the dark blue base you can see how elegant the Mini Pearl French Flair is.

I also used the Mini Pearl French Flair to create all my sentiment tags.

The tags were then embellished with rub-ons, Flourish Leaf Strip, Pretty Petal and mini pearls.

Here you can see how this unique card opens up.

You can see how the card is created with the 4 circles.

It is opened and closed the same way you open and close a packing type box.

Here is the inside all decorated also.

I just love this type of card!

I hope you can see just how much fun you can have with our Reflections Dies.  The possibilities are endless.  It is like buying 3 types of dies all in one shot.  Scrapbooking, card making and tag/sentiment dies all in one!

Have you been over to our challenge blog?

Our new theme is FOR THE GRAD.

Be sure to head on over there and check out the inspiration that our DT has for you.

Join in the fun for a chance to win a $20.00 shopping spree at Cherry Lynn Dies.

This has been Jeannie with The Polka Cabana with today’s post.

Criss Cross Bliss Card

I came across an awesome tutorial for this Criss Cross card.

You can find the link HERE.

I do have to warn you, I don’t think the directions are very accurate.

After a few revisions, I came up with this lovely card to share today.

This card is one of those things that after I am done, I could kick myself for not writing down the dies I used as I was going along.

I will try my best to let you know all of the dies I used.  On the card base I used:

ZIG ZAG RIC RAC, SWEDISH SPRING OVAL AND QUEEN ANNE’S LACE.

For the band around the card I used FRANCESCA BORDER, TIFFANY BORDER AND BORDER CARNIVALE.

The sentiment focal point attached to the band, I used the following dies:

SCALLOPED OVAL, MINI FLOURISH ONE, BUTTONS 1, BLACK EYED SUSANS EMBOSSING PLATE, MEDIUM ROSE AND MINIATURE ROSE.

Here is the card with the band removed, you can see the Criss Cross Base in back.

All the paper is the brand new line from Authentique Paper called:

CAREFREE

I love the way this turned out and I think it would make a perfect Mother’s Day card.

I hope you have enjoyed my project today.

Have you visited our Challenge blog?  Enter the challenge for a chance to win a $20.00 shopping spree to Cheery Lynn Designs.

Our current theme is FLOWERS.

I think I did pretty good for the theme this week;)

Hope you have a great weekend.

This has been Jeannie with The Polka Cabana with today’s post.

2 for 1 card with Cheery Lynn Designs

Today I am sharing 2 cards I made, just for this post.

On one of the cards I have used a new stamp I just got from {ippity} stamps, so I decided to use a sketch on an {ippity} challenge blog.  Here is the sketch.

Here is my first card.

It is a pretty simple sketch.  Since I am using some very bright and colorful MOMENTA papers, I kept my embellishments to a minimum.

I used the ZIG ZAG RIC RAC, Scalloped Circle and Circle dies.

Let me know how you like my flower.  If I get enough responses..maybe I can do a tutorial on how I made it!  Leave a response in the comments if you’d like me to do a tutorial.

 Here is the card I made with my itty bitty Unity stamp set called Adventurous.

I used the same sketch.  The dies I used are as follows:

Black Eyes Susans Embossing plate, Ribbon Eyelet Border, Pretty Petal, Circle dies and the center of the Celtic Fire Rectangle.

Here is a picture of them both together.

All my papers are from Momenta and all my embossing powders are by WOW EMBOSSING powders.

I am so thankful I have so many fun products to work with.  I hope you enjoyed how I combined different products today and that you also enjoyed the cards I have shared today.

Be sure to say YAY or NAY to the idea of a tutorial on the flower in my first card on this post.

Have you visited our new CHALLENGE blog yet?

Here is the web address:

http://cheerylynndesignschallenge.blogspot.com/

Our current theme is THINK SPRING.

I think my cards were also inspired by the theme!

Thanks for stopping by today.

This has been Jeannie from The Polka Cabana with today’s post.

New Dies from Cheery Lynn Designs

 

Today’s post is to alert you that Cheery Lynn Designs has released another set of gorgeous Dies.

Today the NEW dies I am using are called:

Lace Rose & Flourishes

Stacker Flower #5

Stacker Leaf #1

Other dies used:

French Flair

Heartland America Large

Border Carnivale

This card posed some difficulty photographing.  I hope I have done my project justice.

Isn’t that Stacker flower just gorgeous??

To mimic the banner on the Pink Paislee paper, I used the circle’s from the Heartland America Large heart.

Here is a close up of the added fun I did on the Lace & Rose Flourish.

I filled each part of the flower and leaves with DG3 Art Gel and then added the beads and glitters.

The paper lace gather border was made with the Border Carnivale.

Here you can see how the card opens up.

You can see that this is just a treat of layers.

Be sure to head on over to Cheery Lynn Designs Blog to see the other dies that our Design Team has created things with.

 We were all given different dies, so head on over to what the others have made.

Thanks for stopping by, you are going to love this release of dies, I promise you!!

 

 

 

Halloween with Cheery Lynn Designs

I do so want fall to get here!

The warm weather is getting old and I am in the mood for cooler temps, changing colors and making costumes!

So, I have decided to help things along the way by thinking forward.

Here is my project for today. It is called a shelf card.

Now, I am not going to lie to you, maybe the theory of making this card is easy, but…

…if I had someone to call and cry to about this card, I would have!

I borrowed the name BOO CREW from Authentique Paper. I as using paper from their GLOWING line and on one of the HEADLINES for GLOWING , you will see this cute little phrase.

Once again, I used a lot of dies on this project. To start, on each level I used a SCALLOPED OVAL as my decorating base.

For my spiders on the first level, I worked my magic on some DARLING DAISIES turning the daisies into this likable spiders.

Also on the first level of the card I made flowers out of the smallest SCALLOPED OVAL.

The oval made this funky sort of shaped flower, perfect for this card.

The leaves underneath are from the set called JUDY’S BLOOMS.

On the 2nd level, I use the GARDEN GATE, DIMENSIONAL SMALL LEAVES, TROPICAL FLOURISH and OPTIMISTIC 1/2″ FONT.

On the 3rd and top layer I used a cute little stamp I had to represent the BOO CREW.

Here is a side view of this intricate card.

Another side view.

You can see how each layer is staggered.

Believe it or not, it DOES fold flat!

Have I made you long for some fall time activities or card making? I hope so.

I had fun making this, even though it was very trying!

I adore the way it turned out and it was huge therapy for me to make my own spiders…

…NO ONE is more scared of those things than me!

Like I always say, Paper-crafting is THERAPY!!

This has been Jeannie from The Polka Cabana with today’s post.

She did whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat?

Yes, if you have heard the rumors, (like anyone gossips about me), they are true! 

Ladies, I have in fact BROKEN my BIG SHOT! 

 This is a public service announcement to pass on valuable information on “sammich” makings in the Big Shot. 

Now, if you do not know what a BIG SHOT is, you might be in the wrong place, because anyone that visits my blog for inspiration, support or ideas should know what a Big Shot is.  For you 1st timers, a Big Shot is a darling piece of machinery that cuts papers from dies.  It is a DIE CUTTER!

I was peacefully minding my own business, finishing up a card for my Sweet Stamps DT assignment.  I had one last step to do.  I wanted to use my Cheery Lynn Designs Oval Stackers to cut out a frame around my finished piece of art.

In my defense, I had sick kids running around the house, a berserk dog barking at his own shadow, teenagers fighting over who knows what!  I was not myself that evening.

Here is the card that BROKE THE BIG SHOT.  You may or may not have already seen it on my blog.

I wanted to make a frame around the image to have the image sit on, since I had no Big Shot after I broke it, I resorted to tulle and machine stitching to frame the image.

My day went like this, this is the short version!  9am or so, need to finish that card, got the coloring done on the butterflies.  I don’t color, I paper piece.  Got everything glued down and wanted to do a polka dot frame around it. 

 I planned on using my FAVORITE paper from 7 gypsies.

So, I got my Scalloped Oval set out from Cheery Lynn Designs,  cut my paper just bigger than the die I wanted to use.

With Cheery Lynn Dies, they emboss while they cut.  I wanted a really deep emboss, which is easy to do by using a piece of paper or something like a shim. 

But I mentioned, the house was CHAOS, and I really could not tell you how many pieces of paper I crammed under my die before puttin’ my sammich altogether.

I put the sammich on the Big Shot runway and started turning the crank, yeah, it was a little rough, “Put some elbow grease into it”, I swear I could heare my dearly departed grandma encouraging me. 

 So, that I did.  But at one point, my elbows would grease no more!

Side view of my sammich jam.

 

Isn’t funny there is a UL sticker on that machine?  I thought UL had something to do with electricity?  Anyhow, at this point I am PANICKING!   How on earth am I going to finish that card?  Ok scratch that, what am I going to do with out a Big Shot for more than 10 min? 

I decided right then and there, I would take that puppy apart and get that sammich out! 

Upside down view as I start to disassemble it!

First pieces off! 

At this point most of the BODY is off and I still can see no way to unwedge it!

This is what it looks like under the turn handle.

 

 

After I got all the parts off I could, this is what I was left with!

 I investigated the gears, and realized, there was nothing left that I could do. 

I think I calculated the small gear should have 12 or so teeth, of which I had broken about 3 or 4 of them.

At this point, I was feeling pretty much like this!

 

I gathered up all the change in the house I could find…

 

…determined I would gather enough to go get another…   Here is my sneaky, proud of myself face, and my brilliant partner in crime.

Then I thought about it for a while, shot off some emails and lo and behold, I have to say that a knight in shining armour came to my rescue!

My machine is now, as I speak(type), at the Big Shot hospital and is getting some new parts. 

Moral of my story is what?  Don’t craft under stress?  Don’t shove more than you can roll?  When making a sammich, hold the mayo?  I don’t know.

  But you know how we bloggers are, when disaster strikes, we see a beautiful blog post forming. 

Think of me and this post, the next time  you think of adding any more to that sammich you are running through whatever machine you have!

Bye for now and happy crafting!