Stamped Tie On Tassel

My Very Educated Mother just joined our blog design team and she created a really unique project for us. A stamped tassel that you can use as a key chain, decorative element when gift giving, and even in your home decor, this is a fun and completely unique project. (Never would have thought of this one! This is one of the reasons I love having our design team. They really open us up to new ideas!)

She used the Frenchie Peel & Stick pack which contains the Fleur De Lis -- just a great decorative element. 

 I also love that she chose to use the centering block. It really illustrates how you can get perfect alignment with our tools and accessories.

Head on over to My Very Educated Mother blog to check out the full post and complete tutorial! 

Sugar Scrub Gift

Diana at The Girl Creative made the most divine looking Sugar Scrub to give as a gift.  Give this to a friend who needs a little pampering, to your babysitter, or to your mother-in-law so she can relax and put her feet up!  (Oh, heck -- make it for yourself!)  A small, homemade gift really shows you care.  (Some girls need a little pampering!)  Diana calls it "Winter White Sugar Scrub" and she's used a snowflake from PSA Whimsy Flakes as a tag to dress it up. 

Doesn't it look amazing? Good enough to eat! 

I absolutely adore the stamp tag tied perfectly with twine. 

Here's the recipe: 

1.5 C of white granulated sugar

1/4 C of baby oil

1 tbsp of vaseline

1 tbsp of hand soap

Just mix it all together and spoon it into your jar. The amount of each ingredient can be tweaked to your liking. Diana used baby oil but you can use any oil that you have on hand.  See her round up of 15 different sugar scrubs -- if this is your thing, be sure to check this post out! 

Head on over to Diana's blog and check out all her amazing DIY projects, round ups and ideas. Read her full tutorial with more pictures of her Winter White Sugar Scrub that includes a FREE printable or Read all 15 recipes of Homemade Sugar Scrubs here. 

Gift Card Holder

I love gift cards for Christmas!  Right after the holiday, there are tons of sales going on and you can  shop for exactly what you want.  Organizing your gift cards and keeping them in a safe place is crucial, though.  The last thing you want to do is loose them, or go to use them and find out they are expired.  Ashley with Cherished Bliss created a mason jar gift card holder that I just love. It's festive and utilitarian.  Keep all your gift cards in one place on your counter, and be sure to go through them every so often to make sure they don't expire before you get a chance to use them.

Ashley stamped from our PSA Essentials gift tag collection to give this as a gift.  She used her PSA Stamper loaded with a gift tag to fill in who this gift is to and from. 

Ashley tied a collection of ribbon and twine for a shabby chic look.

An easy gift or something for yourself, this is a great idea that you can make in minutes.   Are gift cards on your list this year?

Teacher Gift

As long as I was on a roll sharing Mae Armstrong's designs of Sugar Body Scrub and her DIY Learning Numbers game, I thought I would share a third project today:  a DIY Teacher's Gift.  This gardening kit with message:  "thank you for helping me grow"  is such a cute idea and Molly's teachers at May River Montessori would just love it.


Mae started by designing a printable gift tag.  She created a blank circle for the stamped initials.  She used PSA Essentials Archive Peel and Stick Stamp set for the initials.  She also used the corresponding outer circle to perfectly frame the letters.

 

She punched a hole and looped through a pink and white twine.

She picked a few items at the Dollar Store to create the simple gardening kit: tools, gloves, and some seeds. 

 

She stuffed the glove with all the goodies and wrapped the stamped tag.  That's it.  It's such a simple way to show your appreciation! 

DIY Body Scrub

Mae Armstrong created a big batch of brown sugar body scrub and turned them into teacher gifts. This homemade, DIY idea is surely one you will want to create!

Ingredients
Organic Coconut Oil (1 1/2 cups)
Virgin Olive Oil (1/2 cup)
Brown Sugar (2 cups)
Lemon Juice (5 tbsp)
Lemon Zest (2 tbsp)

First, Mae tells us to mix all the ingredients.  Make sure there are no lumps! 



Mae designed a set of circle labels to decorate the packaging. Punch circle tags using a 2" circle puncher and glue onto the tops.



Transfer and divide into mason jars. Seal and secure lids.



Decorate the jars with ribbon and attached the circle label.

 

Mae also prepared stamped circle tags and attached it with a pink ric-rac ribbon. She used her custom stamp from PSA Essentials and that's it!  Easy and super cute.

Teacher Thank You

Teachers have such an incredible influence on our children's lives that I am not sure we'll ever be able to properly thank them.  Teacher Appreciation Week is coming up at May River Montessori and I love this idea of "an apple for the teacher" for Molly's teacher's Miss Deborah and Miss Cyndi.   It's a paper craft that can sit on their desk all year long.  Because it's not a real apple, it won't go bad!  Ginger of Ginger Snap Crafts created the paper apple, then stamped "thank you" from our PSA Just A Note Peel & Stick pack.  She punched it out with her 2" scallop punch and tied it onto the apple.   What a cute idea!

Birth Announcements for Girl

Of course babies are born 365 days of the year, but for some reason in marketing land, spring means baby. All of my favorite stationery companies are launching new birth announcements right now and even though I am not expecting, I still love to look at new designs. (Check out my board on Pinterest, I've been pinning away!)  Here are a few of my favorites: 

Tiny Prints Birth Announcements

Tiny Prints

Tiny Prints Birth Announcements

Our personalized stamps make a great gift for new parents (or even 2nd, 3rd or 4th time around parents) because it makes sending birth announcements a breeze.  No more writing your address dozens of times or those icky printer labels.   When Molly was born, I used my personalized Wallace stamp and switched out the middle with "It's a Girl" from PSA Carriage Peel & Stick pack.  I went a step further and swapped out my ink cartridge with lime & pink ink.  

You see how our switchable middles work and how there's one stamp for every occasion? 

Sending out Molly's announcements out feels like such a long time ago.  The day she was born: August 30th, 2009 feels more like 30 years ago, much less than 3.5 years ago.  What a little peanut Molly was!  Mike and I were so thrilled, so enchanted with her right away.









These pictures bring back wonderful memories!