And that is what I was going for when I put this into my son’s lunch. (He never has a treat in there, so I am sure he was thrilled.)

The best part? This was so easy to make. (For more information on it, you can head over the the Paper Crafts Connections blog. There are some other kids ideas there, too.)

Start with a 10 ¼” x 4” piece of cardstock (I used Bazzill) and add score lines at 2”, 2 ¼”, 6 ¼”, and 6 ½”. That is it! Just fold it up and you have a cookie holder. I also added a die cut window with the new Lawn Fawn Puffy Star die to the front panel so you could see the cookie inside. Here is what it looks like unfolded…

After I put a cookie in, I used an old Thicker letter sticker to hold it closed.

I had to add some stamping, of course… with a repeated Hero Arts circle (a great image!) and a Paper Smooches pencil. And I stretched a die cut banner (with a computer-generated greeting using the Ever After free font) across the star opening.

Here is a look at the awesome Lawn Fawn Puffy Star nesting dies set I used for the window. Adorable, huh?

And the repeated circles? It is from this Hero Arts set. Lots of good images here for building backgrounds on many styles of cards.

Colin loved this treat. I bet your little one would, too. Do you ever do any lunch surprises? Would love to hear ideas.

Take care!

Below are the supplies used for this card. To find them at Simon Says Stamp, click on the SSS below the thumbnails. For Ellen Hutson, click on EH…

Lawn Fawn Puffy Star Dies (SSS|EH)	Hero Arts Not Perfect Stamp Set (SSS|EH)	Paper Smooches Smarty Pants Stamp Set (SSS|EH)	FAVORITE THING: Simon Says Stamp Small Folded Banners Dies	Vagabond Die Cutting Machine (SSS|EH)
Sizzix Vagabond Solo Thin Die Adapter (SSS|EH)	FAVORITE THING: Fiskars Premium Cut Paper Trimmer (Big)	Teflon Bone Folder	Corner Chomper (SSS|EH)	Hero Arts Pool Shadow Ink (SSS|EH)
Copic Markers (SSS|EH)	Bazzill Robin’s Egg Cardstock	Neenah White Cardstock 250 Sheets (SSS|EH)	Neenah White Cardstock 25 Sheets (SSS|EH)

I was hesitant to really give them a try… until I saw the lovelies that Neat and Tangled carries. And if you know me, I can’t just use them in a simple manner – I instead have to go all out…

I started with the gorgeous My Favorite Things Steel Grey cardstock and stamped the Neat and Tangled Party Dots border image repeatedly with black ink. I then stuck down a boatload of sequins – each with a mini glue dot. And to add to the shine, I put a tiny gem in the center of each sequin. Bling bling!

Sweet Danielle of Neat and Tangled said I could do a giveaway of a TEN sequin packs and the Party Dots stamp set to a lucky winner! For your chance, leave a comment here by 5/21/13 at 11:59pmEST. Good luck!

Neat and Tangled Party Dots Stamp Set	Neat and Tangled Sequins	FAVORITE THING: My Favorite Things Steel Grey Cardstock	FAVORITE THING: Hero Arts Milwaukee Heat Gun	FAVORITE THING: VersaMark Ink
FAVORITE THING: Hero Arts White Embossing Powder	Hero Arts Black Dye Ink	FAVORITE THING: Neenah Classic White Cardstock 250 Sheets	FAVORITE THING: Neenah Classic White Cardstock 25 Sheets	Clear Gems
FAVORITE THING: Mini Glue Dots

Check out Simon Says Stamp’s newest release of dies and stamps.

Such. Good. Stuff.

That’s all. Just wanted to share.

See you soon.

I love how dainty the images are in the new Filigree set. So pretty! I decided to make some layers of bold-colored lace…

I used Copic Markers to color the lace in, and added highlights with a white pen. The greeting is from the Mama Elephant Smitten set. (Which is a must-have!)

Next, be sure to head over to the blog of the fabulously talented Jenn Biederman. (To start the hop again you can head to Kryssi’s site.) There are some amazing girls in this hop – be sure to check it out! ( Here is the hop order: Kryssi Ng / Mama Elephant, Me, Jenn Biederman, Mariana Grigsby, Iwona Palamountain, Alice Wertz, JJ Bolton, Lea Lawson, Samantha Mann, Geralyn Sy, Savannah O’Gwynn and Cheiron Brandon.)

To celebrate the new release, Mama Elephant is giving away 3 gift certificates worth $20.00 each to 3 lucky people! Winners will be chosen at random from the collective blogs in the Stampede. Winners will be announced on the blog on May 19th.

Here’s how to qualify to win (leave a separate comment for each):

1. Leave a comment on this blog post. (You can just do this if you want.)
2. Become a follower of the Mama Elephant blog.
3. Like/share Mama Elephant on Facebook.
4. Follow/tweet Mama Elephant on Twitter.

Good luck!

Mama Elephant Filagree Stamp Set	Mama Elephant Smitten Stamp Set	Hero Arts Black Decor	FAVORITE THING: Memento Tuxedo Black Ink	Copic Markers
Neenah White Cardstock 250 Sheets	FAVORITE THING: Neenah Classic White Cardstock 25 Sheets	Hero Arts Pool Notecards	FAVORITE THING: White Uniball Signo Pen

And yes, her wild hair matches her personality.

I created a video of Lila’s first year to surprise my family tonight. I wasn’t going to share it here but decided to since many of you have been so encouraging over the last year. (More on that another day.) But I warn you – it is long so I don’t blame you if you don’t watch it. lol.

Good night!

You don’t need a reason to send a card. I truly believe the unexpected ones are the best. This one is going in the mail Monday to a friend…

Simple. Truly simple.

Stamp. Color. Done.

I used stamps from a new-to-me company – The Craft’s Meow. They have some incredible designs! (And it turns out the owner is really kind, too.) These stitched greetings are marvelous. Simon Says Stamp just started carrying their stamps and here are my favorites:

Sometimes when stamps are designed amazingly well, you don’t need to do much with them. These stamps are perfect examples of this. Sweet and simple.

So… I challenge you to join me. Join me in sending a few cards to a loved one for absolutely no reason. It will make them (and you!) feel good. Who do you plan to surprise?

Take care.

The Craft’s Meow Stitched Sentiments 2 Stamp Set	The Craft’s Meow Stitched Flowers Stamp Set	Copic Markers	FAVORITE THING: Memento Tuxedo Black Ink	FAVORITE THING: Neenah Classic White Cardstock 250 Sheets
FAVORITE THING: Neenah Classic White Cardstock 25 Sheets

• Ellen Hutson has 20% off everything. Use code “momsday13” for the discount.
• 25-75% of stamps? Yes, please! Just head over to Two Peas in a Bucket. (No discount code needed.)
• I just ordered all the new goodies from Kelly Purkey. And her next kit has some amazing stuff in it. Impressed!
• Do you love bacon as much as I do? It’s my favorite. Therefore, I just had to have this stamp set!
• I am really happy with the Avery Elle Stamp Pockets. They are the perfect way to store your clear and cling stamps… and are back in stock.
• I have shared in the past that I use THIS container to store my clear and cling stamps. Well, I have found it is also perfect for storing completed cards! I just put them in categories. Perfect.
• If you use your phone’s camera as much as I do, you should join me in taking THIS class. Such good people are leading it!

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend. I am in deep denial that Lila is turning one on Monday. So, if you are looking for me, I will be with my sorrows in a bowl of ice cream. lol

Take care!

And one of my favorites? That would be Kelly Marie – the owner of Lawn Fawn. I was happy when she came to town to be part of a retreat with friends. Her energy is amazing.

She also brought with her some of her newest designs. When I saw her teacher set, I had to create something right away. So I have been holding on to this card for a few weeks… just waiting until she released the set…

Aren’t those images fabulous? And perfect for Colin’s teacher. She just rocks.

I heat embossed everything with white embossing powder and colored it in…

Lawn Fawn has recently released lots of great stamps and dies. Head over to their blog HERE to catch all the release party fun. (You can also get their newest products at Lawn Fawn directly or at Simon Says Stamp HERE.)

Oh… and I thought it would be fun to share this photo. Kelly and I were laughing so hard… and I have no idea why. Ha! It makes me smile.

See you soon!

Lawn Fawn A Good Apple Stamp Set	Lawn Fawn Blue Skies Stamp Set	Lawn Fawn Chevron Backdrops Stamp Set	FAVORITE THING: Hero Arts Milwaukee Heat Gun	FAVORITE THING: Hero Arts White Embossing Powder
FAVORITE THING: VersaMark Ink	Hero Arts Tide Pool Mid Tone Shadow Ink	Hero Arts Orange Soda Mid-Tone Shadow Ink	Copic Markers	FAVAORITE THING: Bazzill Rainbow Card Shoppe Variety Pack
Hero Arts Pool Notecards

I used the same My Favorite Things Cheerful Blessings stamp set I used in my last post. This stamp set truly makes me giddy. You can now get it at My Favorite Things or Simon Says Stamp.

I also used a MFT border stamp to create the pattern on the bottom. Although there are three colors in the pattern, I only used two inks. I stamped the bottom with Butter Bar yellow ink. I then stamped above it with the same ink… and then directly on top of it with Pale Tomato light red ink. (This gives the orange color. It is easy to double stamp with clear stamps!) Then on the top I just used the Pale Tomato. This layering of ink colors is great for getting more colors out of the inks you have.

And the hearts? Just punched them and added a bit of glitter with my Wink of Stella pen. Finally, I covered if with Glossy Accents for shine. I tell ya – these are eye-catching in real life…

I am really enjoying the pink/orange/yellow combo lately. What color combo are you lovin’ these days?

MFT Cheerful Blessings Stamp Set	MFT Mod Borders Stamp Set	Zig Wink of Stella Clear Glitter Brush Marker	FAVORITE THING: Martha Stewart Heartbeat Border Punch	FAVORITE THING: 1/4 and 1/2 Corner Chomper
FAVORITE THING: Hero Arts Milwaukee Heat Gun	FAVORITE THING: Hero Arts White Embossing Powder	FAVORITE THING: VersaMark Ink	Hero Arts Pale Tomato Mid Tone Shadow Ink	Hero Arts Butter Bar Mid Tone Shadow Ink
FAVAORITE THING: Bazzill Rainbow Card Shoppe Variety Pack	Neenah White Cardstock 250 Sheets	Neenah White Cardstock 25 Sheets	FAVORITE THING: Large Ranger Glossy Accents

Today I had a bit of time to make some cards. That felt good.

I was so happy to use a new set I am crazy about – Cheerful Blessings from My Favorite Things. Lots of greetings that I love so much. Oh, and sorry I didn’t warn you to wear sunglasses…

This card was quick to do. I stamped the background with the Hero Arts Radiant Banner stamp and Butter Bar Ink. I then painted over the rays with orange and yellow Wink of Stella glitter brushtip markers. (This gives subtle, delicate shine that rocks. It is excellent to use on simple cards.) I then die cut an orange circle and embossed the new My Favorite Things Cheerful Blessing image in white. (LOVE THIS GREETING. Sorry. That deserves capital – lol.) And finally I put a light coating of clear Wink of Stella glitter brushtip marker over the orange piece and rubbed it away quickly for just a bit of shine…

Bright colors. A bit of shine. The perfect message. I am hoping this card has everything it needs to make a friend smile.

Here is a look at that must-have stamp set from MFT…

This stamp set is a new one and you can get it HERE. (By the way, I would recommend buying a few other goodies while there so you can get THIS amazing set for free.) Or you can get it at Simon Says Stamp HERE.

Have a happy day.

Below are the supplies used for this card. To find them at Simon Says Stamp, click on the SSS below the thumbnails. For My Favorite Things (where you can use the discount code above), click on MFT…

MFT Cheerful Blessings Stamp Set (MFT|SSS)	Hero Arts Radiant Banner	MFT Circle 1 Stax Dies	Zig Wink of Stella Clear Glitter Brush Marker	Zig Wink of Stella Orange Glitter Brush Marker
Zig Wink of Stella Yellow Glitter Brush Marker	FAVORITE THING: Sizzix Vagabond Wafer Thing Die Adapter Plate	FAVORITE THING: Sizzix Vagabond Die Cut Machine	FAVORITE THING: Hero Arts Milwaukee Heat Gun	FAVORITE THING: Hero Arts White Embossing Powder
FAVORITE THING: VersaMark Ink	Hero Arts Butter Bar Mid Tone Shadow Ink	Neenah White Cardstock 250 Sheets	Neenah White Cardstock 25 Sheets	Hero Arts Snow Notecards
Best Creation 3-D Foam Adhesive