Gratitude For Days Birthday Cake Banner ~ Stampin' Up! Artisan Blog Hop

Bit of a personal post this week and a bit of a 'homemade' job on the banner (by which I mean terribly uneven hand-drawn lettering)! But, I hope you'll appreciate the idea anyway because this Gratitude for Days set has some great little images in it which - I might add - stamp beautifully on our Canvas Creations.

So, here you go - my daughter's 4th birthday cake. Basically a GIANT blueberry muffin! I'm not big on making fancy cakes (too hard basket) but always try to make them delicious. This is my favourite oh-so-adaptable muffin recipe made in cake form and layered with cream cheese icing in the middle. Ok ok - enough about the cake. Nom nom.

Supplies Used:
Inks: Real Red, Strawberry Slush, Tangelo Twist, Calypso Coral, Hello Honey
Papers: Hello Honey, Coastal Cabana, Strawberry Slush, Tangelo Twist
Stamps: Gratitude for Days (Holiday Catalogue)
Accessories/Tools: Canvas Creations, Basic Black Baker's Twine, Gift Card Envelope & Trims Thinlits Dies, Handheld Stapler, Project Life Journaling Pens

Bamboo skewers

Let's check out what Teneale has to wow us with this week...

Box Tree ~ Stampin' Up! Artisan Blog Hop

What Christmas decor do you put up around your home? Well, here's a little idea! It's a mini Christmas tree made from boxes. Fill it up and use it as an actual gift or pop it on display in your office space or around the home. Welcome if you've come through from our November showcase on Facebook :)

The Gift Box Punch Board makes this project a breeze. I used the guide on the board itself to do one of each cube size - 4x4x4", 3.25x3.25x3.25", 2.5x2.5x2.5" and 1.75x1.75x1.75". 

Sheer Linen Ribbon is really great to work with and holds shape beautifully. I used an extra long piece and simply tied two bows on top one after the other. I'm not usually that good at fancy bows so that says a lot for this ribbon!

'You must be my lucky star...' - I used a 1" wide strip of our Festive Designer Kraft Paper Rolls to make this Japanese Lucky Star (see, I did learn something at school way back when). 

And YUP! It's the Under the Tree Tag a Bag kit again! Getting good milage out of that one.

Supplies:

Inks: Pool Party, Real Red & Wild Wasabi Markers. Jet Black Stazon. Cherry Cobbler & Old Olive Blendabilites.

Papers: Under the Tree Specialty Designers Series Paper, Festive Designer Kraft Paper Rolls, Under the Tree Tag a Bag Accessory Kit, Tea Lace Paper Doilies, Whisper White

Stamps: Mingle All the Way

Accessories/Tools: Cherry Cobbler Sheer Linen Ribbon, Basic Black & Cherry Cobbler Baker's Twine, Gold Metallic Baker's Twine, Gold Sequin Trim. Rhinestone Basic Jewels.

Time to hop to Teneale's blog and check out her amazing creation!

Bow Time ~ Stampin' Up! Artisan Blog Hop

If you like it then you gotta put a bow on it.. oh oh oh, oh oh oh oh oh oh. Before we get any deeper into this terrible excuse for a Beyonce cover, here's how I made this super easy bow with the Gift Bow die...

I used nine cut outs (I was even a bit cheeky and rolled them through ALL at once). The bottom layer of the finished bow has five 'petals' and the top layer four. They're cute all facing the same direction to look like a fan too!

1) Pull some linen thread onto a needle until both ends meet then tie the ends in a knot twice in the same spot.

2) Poke your needle through each end of the cutouts. Make sure the side of the designer paper you want to see is facing you when you first poke.

3) Thread on all your cutouts.

4) Roughly put them in the orientation you want then cut the string to let the needle off, thread a button on and tie tightly. 

5) Use some sticky strip to secure it to your package. This holds each 'petal' in place pretty well.

Did you know our uber-cool takeout boxes are food safe? Maybe you could fill them with Chocolate Peppermint Bliss Balls! (SEE RECIPE BELOW) You know I will be.

Supplies for Box:
Inks: Whisper White Craft, Cherry Cobbler
Papers: Takeout Boxes, Tea Lace Paper Doilies, Trim the Tree Designer Series Paper Stack, Gold Foil Sheets
Stamps: Cheerful Tags (Holiday Catalogue)
Accessories/Tools: Cherry Cobbler Sheer Linen Ribbon (love this stuff!!), Linen Thread, Gold Basic Metal Buttons, Gift Bow Bigz L die

Chocolate Peppermint Bliss Balls

By Tanya Howie

(Tanya is a passionate and healthy foodie friend of mine. Check out her Delicious & Nutritious board on Pinterest and if you're an Auckland local, she's contributing in the Backyard Grocer hampers - great for Christmas.)

1/2 cup almonds
1/2 cup cashews
1/2 cup oats
1/2 cup desiccated coconut (plus extra for coating)
1 firmly packed cup dates (soaked in hot water for 15 mins, or use medjool dates)
1/4 cup cocoa or raw cacao powder
1/2 tsp peppermint essence (or more to taste)
Pinch of sea salt

Soak dates in hot water for 15 mins, then save the water in case your mixture is a bit dry.
Blend first four ingredients in your food processor until it's a fine crumb.
Add in dates (not water), cocoa, peppermint and sea salt. 

Blend again until well mixed. If mixture is too dry, add in 1 tbsp of date water at a time, until you can roll it into balls easily.
Roll mixture into balls & roll in coconut.
Put into fridge to set for at least 30 mins. Store in fridge.

Let me know in the comments if you make these and what you think! Nom nom. 

Time to check out Teneale's creation this week...

Be Merry Christmas Card ~ Stampin' Up! Artisan Blog Hop

I'm sure that November is always busier than December these days as everyone (me) tries to cram things in before Christmas. So... just a quick post this week!

Here's a fun Christmas card made with the Under the Tree Tag A Bag Accessory Kit. And just to let you in on a bit of the process - this project morphed quite a bit as it was being made. It started as a mini banner! All part of the fun.

Supplies:

Inks: Early Espresso, Cherry Cobbler

Papers: Whisper White, Pistachio Pudding, Under the Tree Tag a Bag Accessory Kit, Silver Glimmer Paper

Stamps: Holiday Invitation (Holiday Catalogue), Gratitude For Days (Holiday Catalogue)

Accessories/Tools: Basic Black Baker's Twine, Cherry Cobbler Baker's Twine, Cherry Cobbler Sheer Linen Ribbon (cut in half and used as a mat for the sentiment), On Point Textured Impressions Embossing Folder

I wonder what crafty goodness Teneale has for us this week... click below!