~ JOY holiday cards ~

 Rich red and warm yellows, greens - such cosy colors for the days ahead. I have a couple of cards to share tonight before bed.


I found this soft, luxurious crocheted trim in my mother's box (again!) ... little things piled together onto the palette of kraft cardstock - and a happy, warm card is created!


Crinkled paper flowers ... and velvet leaves. Makes me happy.

And I've got to say it again, that trim is so beautiful! Watch for more of it in the coming days :)

Another card for you ...
 

... grosgrain ribbon, fussy-cut flowers, more pretty trim, and a mini, mini tag.


 See the little pile of tags in the corner? That's something I will share in the store soon ... coming in bundles of tea-stained tags, 25 or 50 each, for your own crafting craves. I'd love for you to share my craze for them :)




OH! and before I forget...... the happy one who wins the set of holiday tags is..........
Number seven.

Yes, it's you, Jo! :) pop me an email at viola.mahr@gmail.com and off your tags will go!

Hugs, and good night.
~ Vi

~ Handmade Shabby Tags ~ holiday gifts

... just dropping in quickly to say that for those of you who have ordered these tag sets (inside or outside etsy) they're finished, packed, and ready to go :)


large tags covered with yummy little things stashed into a special paperbag with pretty doilies tucked in between. The whole package will be carefully enclosed in a padded envelope for it's journey to you ... Wish you joy using them for your holiday gifts!


And... before I go, I decided to give away a set of these tags ... leave a comment letting me know what type of tags or creating-sets you would like to see next time ... and I will share the winner sometime next week.

see you soon!
~ Viola

~ Embellished Candles ~

I love thee to the level of every day's
Most quiet need, by sun and candle-light.

-Elizabeth Barrett Browning

I so wish I could have lit the candles for the photos, but wisdom prevented me from doing it. I don't think the final recipient of these lights would have appreciated it anyway, haha. 

a little lace, fussy-cut flowers, pearls, buttons, twine, and ribbon made a simple pillar candle really shine. Can't wait to see what it'll look like when it's a-light! :)

Let me live blessed Lord in the light of Thy Word, let my life be a light on a hill
Leading souls astray to the straight narrow way, help me do some good deed while I live
Let my life be a light shining out through the night, may I help struggling ones to the fold
Spreading cheer everywhere to the sad and alone, let my life be a light to some soul...

Give me wisdom and power every day every hour, let me drink from the fountain above
Guide my footsteps aright through the dark stormy night, give me peace, give me joy, give me love
Let my life be a light shining out through the night, may I help struggling ones to the fold
Spreading cheer everywhere to the sad and alone, let my life be a light to some soul...



Give me souls for my hire let my life be on fire, shining out to the world as a guide
Help me rescue someone seeking out with no hope, that in heaven we shall ever abide
Let my life be a light shining out through the night, may I help struggling ones to the fold
Spreading cheer everywhere to the sad and alone, let my life be a light to some soul.

- J R Varner

 More ribbon, lace trim, buttons, twine, a mini-tag, chipboard butterfly all glittered up, and little vintage flowers. I love these warm, happy colors ... the red cherry buttons are so adorable. I had the most fun in the world doing these candles. And something makes me want to share them, so they may appear in the etsy store before long. 



Thank you ... as always, for letting me ramble about my projects.

Good night, friends!
~ Viola

~ Picnics, Holidays, and Friends ~ random

Home from the park where my family had a happy little picnic together. I spent the afternoon mixing up meatloaf, mashed potatoes, toast, and vegetable medley with my sister. Our little spot in the outdoors was so much fun. I even sat on the swings with my "little" brother! :) Crazy us.

Before I head to bed, I have some little things to share with you ...


 Paper. Scissors. Glue... twine, felt, trim, stamps, ink, flowers, crystals, and so much more!

I'm so loving a new die I got: a film-strip! check it out ...


 ... each section is individually cut, and then pieced together in a row! Love it :)
and, it's a short post tonight as it's WAY late.
but before I go, I want to share a little tag I made for a gift-bag holding some goodies for my friend.




Quick and simple ... the flowers were trimmed from some scraps of patterned paper, and a tag, pearls, ink, and a sweet little stamp finishes the job.


Good night!
~ Viola

~ Snowing in Singapore ~ some winter cards

No, wait, that's not true! But I wish wish wish it were ...... the heavy tropical rains the last few days aren't enough for me! let it snow!


If only I could make a wish, I'd wish for snow! And if only wishing wishes did come true!!


I've been messing around today with some BasicGrey and FancyPants patterned papers ... since I found some sparkly snowflakes, I've been so absorbed at my craft table. add to them some wide grosgrain ribbon, twine, a vintage mother-of-pearl button, trim, mini-tags, and PTI stamps, and you've got some really fun things going on!


More ..................


I'm not quite sure where those vintage mother-of-pearl buttons came from, but of this I'm certain: they're FABULOUS! I love them.


More PTI, more BasicGrey ... crystals, ribbon, and other yummy little things.

I made a grand discovery. With my new, baby Big Shot, I decided to run some felt (some really, really polyester-y a.k.a LOUSY felt!) through with my scallop die. It cut!!! Perfectly. Can you see it?


 Here's to some warm, cozy wishes this winter season where ever you are. Take time to sit back, enjoy your families, embrace happiness, and make a wish ... for snow :) ...

If you'd like to share my craziness for the big and beautiful snowflakes, check out the etsy store. I've got a few to share with you.

~ Viola

~ Timeless Card Set ~ colors for men

A few little note-cards to share today ....


Cozy little note-cards - three of them - that fit into a set. something about a little set of handmade cards really, really makes me happy!


The BasicGrey Marjolaine collection is so gentle and softly colored, yet simple enough for guys.



And I found these little die-cut clocks somewhere amid the rubble I cleared from my drawers.
I used the PaperTrey Ink notebook page die, a little torn at the top.

And now for a few pictures of some fun things I picked up this week.

Fun little crystal jars for colorful buttons ...



a cute tray for cards and a rusty basket for twine ...



and not forgetting the old-fashioned bamboo mat below them :)

Before I go, just thought to let you know a quick update on the etsy store ... what's coming soon.

tiny, tiny clothespins for your rustic, handmade projects.



... and lightweight parcel tags in three sizes.

Thank you for visiting today.
~ Viola

~ Friendship Shabby Card ~ and a distressing tutorial

How's your week going? Mine is happy and I've got a bunch of stuff to share today.

BasicGrey's new Curio collection has gotten me! I love the vintage beauty of it!

 

...... and felt. Still hand-cutting leaves from the puffy fluffy goodness.





Hi there to all of you who's reading. Say hi back so I'll know you dropped by! :)

...............

After the card was dished up, I decided to do a little something special ... with a large manila tag and some distress ink. This is kind of a lazy tutorial, but I thought to share it anyway. That's me - lazy.




First, you dabble the brush in the distress ink (or any kind of ink, I'm not fussy...) and gently rub it inwards from the edges of the tag. This rubbing technique seems to work only on the manila tags (at least for me), but you feel free to test it on other paper surfaces. Just don't shout at me if it doesn't work.

Then I minced up a few other little ingredients and threw them together ...



... and they baked into a perfect pie!





The card and tag were then bundled together with a kraft paperbag and a yard of twine to make a special gift set.





So fun! Thank you for letting me share it with you!

.......

And a quick update on the etsy store: a huge thanks to the wonderful Miss Sarah Martina for being my first customer! That brought a big smile to me. I will be adding more of the berry-trinket-pins in a few moments, along with die-cut tags in the dollar goodies section of the store. I hope to fill the place with affordable and sweet embellishments for your crafts. Maybe manila tags will follow. Feel free to drop me ideas; I will be more than happy to listen.



Good-bye!

~ Viola

~ Felt Embellishments ~

Discovering the joys of felt - who knew it could be so fun and delicious? Ah, and making this cabbage rose ... this flower is so soft and beautiful. I had so much fun with this card, piling the lovelies on!



The cherry-crystals turned out kind of cute I hope.

Sentiment from a Fiskar's set, scallop die from PaperTrey Ink, and patterned papers from Melissa Frances.



... buttons, ribbons, chipboard key, white ink, little stamps from randomness on my table.



I don't have PTI felt (yet) ... so I grabbed a piece that is definitely not as woolly (it doesn't work with dies) and trimmed the leaves with my scissors. A little tea-dye ink warms the tones ...

More felt fuzzies ...



It's pretty hard to cut a perfect circle, especially with felt. Please understand.



Loving the PTI notebook page die and sentiment stamps! LOVE!

Let me ask you a question. Are there any rules about adding pearls to a card for a guy?



NO.

The card was matted with felt and some unknown patterned paper.
Mr. Owl hopped over from October Afternoon along with the ledger lines stamp.



He makes me happy!!!

Have a good week, friends. get out that felt and snip away .....

~ Viola