Welcome!

Welcome to my brand new blog! There's not much here yet, because I've been preparing for an Open House on Sunday, November 8 where I'll be selling many hand made cards and gifts. Be sure to check back soon! Here's a peek of what's for sale.

Updated:  January 29, 2010

BUILD-A-BEAR tote bags:  I got this great idea from attending the annual Stampin' UP! Convention which was held in Salt Lake City, Utah during August 2009.  In case you haven't heard, SU has teamed up with Build-A-Bear and have brought out an exclusive product line that was showcased in the 2009 Holiday Mini Catalog, released on September 1, 2009.   This new product line includes a selection of exclusive die-cuts (used with the Big Shot Die-Cut Machine item #113439 / $99.95), stamp sets, as well as Designer Series paper to complement this collection.

The totes were purchased at a local craft store, as was the selection of material that I used in creating clothing for these adorable bears!  I had my 14 year old daughter, Kelly, come along with me to pick out the materials & I was glad I did, as she quickly spotted the ever popular "peace sign" print as well as finding the paw print, puzzle print & more!  Believe me, I have no knowledge of fabrics (those who know me, know that it takes a lot for me to sew a button on, or do mending...not what I'd call fun) so I really relied on the help provided by the store employee.  I explained to her what I wanted to do & she pointed out the product I needed to buy to bond the material to (by ironing on) before cutting the pieces out (of course, now I can't remember what it was called!).  Anyway...

Next step was to 'call in the troops'...my oldest daughter, Robin, (24 years old) for help!  Wow, it did take us the entire day to make these but I think they turned out SO CUTE!  We had quite the assembly-line going, what with adhering the material; running it through the Big Shot & then piecing the items together to get a variety of fashions for these cute bears. To be honest, probably the most time-consuming part was peeling away the paper from the cut material to expose the adhesive side for me to iron down to the actual bear on the tote.   This is just a sampling of the totes; we put together about 15.  Inside each tote, I included a box of 8 crayons as well as a 3"x4" coloring booklet, held together with a hinged ring.  EACH!coloring card was hand-stamped & each was a different image using the Build-A-Bear "Beary Best Friends" 6 piece stamp set (item #118052 / $18.95).  Have you calculated that?  Yup, I made 300 3"x4" color cards!!  To finish off each tote, I added a piece of SU's Chocolate Chip 1" Double-Stitched Grosgrain Ribbon (item #111849 / $8.95) which comes in a bolt of 10 yards. 

The second item that was made to sell, were sets of kids' pre-worded 'thank you note cards'.  The first picture shows the snowman note cards "Simple Seasonal Thanks" item #111548 / $17.95.  Each image was hand-stamped on a piece of Whisper White Card Stock measuring  5 1/2" x 4 1/4".  Each envelope was stamped with a snowflake image using Ballet Blue Classic Ink.  Next picture, with the large cupcake "Simple Birthday Thanks", item #111546 / $17.95.  Both images are the largest stamp that SU sells; the wood block measures approximately 6 1/4" x 5".  To dress up the envelope I used the cherry image from the "Just Jawing" set, item #111660 / $25.95 & colored it with SU's Stampin' Write Markers (Real Red & Handsome Hunter).

ADDITION TO ORIGINAL POST:  In case you are interested in purchasing either one of these items, I do have some leftover for sale. Feel free to contact me for price & shipping information. 

Comments

[Barbara Bird]

Hey Gayle,

Your blog looks great! Wishing you luck with your sales today!

(((((HUGS)))))
Barb

[Joyce Hiebert]

Very pretty, Gayle, love it!

[Kim---Piccadillie]

Gayle I found your blog! I can't wait to see what else you come up with.

[LeAnne]

SO cute, Gayle! We want to see more!

[Kathleen]

Gayle!
I am SO impressed with this blog and everything you are doing!
Love from CT!
Kathy