THE MEN IN OUR LIVES...FOR THEM

HIP-HIP-HOORAY!!! 

MY MEMORY CARD SURVIVED!!!

GOD IS GOOD!!!!

Now on to my post!

A quick reminder of my goals for these cards:

• Easily mailed / no extra postage - Postal Service gets enough as it is in my opinion! 
• Wide range of styles that reach out to the young men in our lives, the old or older, the tots, the ones who love jewelry, cuff links, rings, earrings (as so many of them wear now) etc. Basically those who love bling and those who don't!
• To use items from my stash that have been long forgotten about! A Must!
• To go back to what we did before the giant flowers, the fancy and not so fancy brads, the rhinestones, the glitter glues, the bulky embellishments etc.
• To get you all motivated enough to set time aside for making men's cards BEFORE you need them!

Just as I suspected when I started these posts for my men's cards, I figured it would take me probably a couple months, depending on how often I loaded them, to get them all up on my blog. I think it's been about that length of time or perhaps a bit longer but in any case, I'm almost done! I will probably have three or so more posts and that will be it for this long winding, eventful journey into the deep, dark stash of PawwPadds craft caverns and what they hold! Perhaps some day soon, I'll be invited by you, into your craft caverns to see what mysterious, forgotten items you've come across! LOL!

Well enjoy the post and as always, THANKS for stopping by to say hello!

See you soon!

Bethann aka PawwPadd

 If you'll notice, this sticker and the next 5 have a decorative paper design around them. I wasn't real sure how I would use them because of it, but as it turned out I happened to have this blue paper that matched pretty well! I was happy with it! I used some of that silver tape that I mentioned in another post (also have had for quite some time).

This card has a couple 3 dimensional stickers on it. Can't remember what company made them. Do you have them in YOUR stash?!  :-)

This card is interesting in that, it's a full size card, 5X7, and the guitar you see was actually cut from an ad I picked up in a hotel lobby last summer! It was for some restaurant in the area I was in. I grabbed a few of them, brought them home and cut them all out for later use! The sentiment is an old rub-on and I simply added some rhinestones at the bottom. seriously hope you have been paying attention throughout these posts because, I've been telling you my secrets!   ;-)

This card is also a full size card, sticker car that's metallic red with a rub-on sentiment in the middle.

Also a full size card, same car and also a rub-on sentiment.

I used the Tim Holtz embossing folder (wood grain) for the background paper, the had is actually a cowboy hat that was on some old 81/2 X 11 paper that simply had a few images around the border. I wasn't going to use it otherwise, so I cut the hat off, trimmed it out with a fine tip marker with detail and mounted it on this card! Stamped the sentiment on some craft paper and called it a day!

Also used the Tim Holtz wood grain embossing folder for this one. Used several stickers on this one. These stickers have to be at least8-10 years old!!! I purchased them after my oldest son graduated in Kentucky from Army Boot Camp so that I could do a scrapbook layout for him. As you're entering Kentucky and leaving, you see a huge water drum that has been painted all the way around with the most magnificent image of the Kentucky races! It's fabulous! That was my inspiration and what prompted me to buy the stickers at the time. I made a tag, stamped the sentiment, "grounded" the horse with a simple straight line drawn with a fine tip sharpie, inked the edges with a brown ink and popped up the tag with very masculine brad!

Believe it or not, the stickers on this card and the one below were purchased when I started my youngest son's  scrapbooks. He's now 21 years old, almost 22!!! I just loved them so much because they were "ALL BOY"! This photo doesn't do any of them justice. I just didn't want to get rid of them, didn't know anyone who would use them, all of my Grandchildren are girls (so far) and so I thought I'd try to incorporate them into a card. I always, for the most part, tried to purchase good quality stickers when I was buying them and I always shopped for a good deal on what I needed, as I do now. I've become more creative with reusing, recycling etc. I just try to look / think outside the box when there's something I really want to use.

This is a Fresh Cuts (I believe) also purchase around that same time when I was working on my youngest son's memory albums! The strip going along the card under the cap and ball is a sticker. I will tell you that the way you store your items is key!

Another Fresh Cut (I think). There was another company out there that sort of jumped on the band wagon and started producing the same types of images as the Fresh Cuts, so I'm not real sure, I can't remember if I purchased any of theirs or not. The sentiment is stamped. This card couldn't be simpler! Love those kind!

Another Fresh Cuts image and stamped sentiment.

Fresh Cuts Image and stamped sentiment.

Lol! Old as my youngest son at least! I simply popped it up over a corrugated strip of brown paper, put a gold brad in it, stamped the sentiment and there it is! I must tell you that the sentiment I used on this one is made to look "old world" or vintage. I like it, but I'm always afraid the recipient will think I just didn't do a good job stamping it out  :-)

Another tag from the same book. Notice the difference in the size. Those corners at each end of the tag are old stickers and I used the same sentiment.
Well, I hope you enjoyed this post. A quick recap: Storage is key, Don't look at anything the same, Everything is up for grabs in the world of crafting, Don't dismiss the value of those VERY OLD supplies in your stash, Reuse, Recycle, and Most Important... STOP GIVING THE POSTAL SYSTEM ALL OF YOUR MONEY!!!

JUST CAN'T WIN!!!

Well, I've finally gotten all of my men's cards shot and ready to load in saved posts so all I have to do with the remaining cards is click publish! So, tell me why my memory card with all of this data on it, went flying into the washer machine this morning as it was loading full of soap and water!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I've got it, as I'm typing, standing, hoping it will dry out and be good as new! Please pray for this to be so. Other than what I've already said on this matter, I have nothing else to say. If you see another post later on tonight or tomorrow from me, then you know the drying process worked, if not...
Thanks for stopping
Bethann

FOR MEN ONLY! THE CARDS THAT IS!

A quick reminder of my goals for these cards:

1. Easily mailed / no extra postage - They get enough as it is in my opinion! 
2. Wide range of styles that reach out to the young men in our lives, the old or older, the tots, the ones who love jewelry, cuff links, rings, earrings (as so many of them wear now) etc. Basically those who love bling and those who don't!
3. To use items from my stash that have been long forgotten about! A Must!
4. To go back to what we did before the giant flowers, the fancy and not so brads, the rhinestones, the glitter glues, the bulky embellishments etc.
5. To get you all motivated enough to set time aside for making men's cards BEFORE you need them!

More for the men and not the last of them yet! I still have so many men's cards to load it's not even funny, FOR REAL, it's not! I don't know if any of you are tired of seeing them but... Here they are once again. Hope you enjoy this post! 

Thanks for stopping by! 

Bethann aka PawwPadd

 Didn't know what this one was going to turn into, started to trash it and my friend once again saved it! I just kind of drew the mountains and birds back there. After I'd placed the dog down, I really didn't know what to do with it, but I knew he needed to be looking out at something. Didn't have any mountain stickers or such so...

 These car stickers are very metallic with an irridescence to them

 I used a silver tape that I have had forever and ran it along the edges here. Dare to Dream is a rub-on, the plane is a sticker.

 Free Spirit is a rub-on

 Make a wish is a rub-on

 A Fresh Cuts

 Stickers that I simply overlapped

 These stickers were also overlapped

 Don't know if you can tell, but I actually added some stickles glitter to some of the swooshes around the football. This is a regular size card by the way. 5x7

 This is a 5x7 card and the stickers were overlapped. Cute for a little boy, I thought.

 This is another 5x7 card.

 Another 5x7 card and lots of stickers!

 This is a 5x7 card and the sports items are punch-outs. I was hesitant about entering this card but, I thought it would be cute for a little girls soccor player to give to her Dad, Brother, Uncle etc. What do you think?

 This car I  cut from an ad! The rest are stickers and paper.

 Hope you enjoyed this post! Thanks again for stopping by! See Ya!

AWWWW, A BABY SHOWER GIFT!

Hello All, Thought I'd show you what I've been up to in between loading my men's cards... Life does move on with or without us! This is a gift I made for my Minister and his wife who are expecting their first child in April! I have so much love and respect for this couple! They are such a good example of what GOD expects us to be in our lives and I'm blessed in having them as friends and a Christian Brother and Sister.

I actually made them a set a 20 Thank-You cards and decorated a tin for them to reuse. The front of the tin actually represents (pretty much) what the cards inside look like. They already know they are expecting a little girl so I thought I'd incorporate some pink for them. They are so excited about this event in their lives and I know they're going to be great parents!
Hope you all enjoy my photos and as usual thanks for stopping by!
Bethann aka PawwPadd

 This card as you can see was done with the swiss dot Cuttlebug embossing folder. I did the baby bottle with bow and the words by using a brass stencil my sister Rachel gave me. I Cuttlebuged the bottom with a border of buttons and then simply chalked them in same color combo as card. The mats on this card are simply large paint chips that I had picked up at Lowes or Home Depot some time ago! I cut them down and I love using paint chips because of their stability. They're wonderful! I used a paste with the stencil and before it dried I sprinkled it with an irridesant dust glitter.

 The next few cards are what the Thank you cards look like. I just did them in pink, purple and yellow and used a Pearl Cotton thread in varigated pastel colors to wrap and bring in the baby them. The base card is done with the Cuttlebug Thank You embossing folder. I used a 2002 Stampin' Up stamp as the focal image of the diaper pin and did it in matching color ink. The them of the baby shower was "Children's Books",  and one of them was Winnie The Pooh! I have quite a few Pooh stamps so I incorporated him into the cards. You will see his rear-end on the backs of the cards and his front side in the lower right corner of the inside of the cards. I love Winnie The Pooh so I really enjoyed using these stamps. By the way, these pooh stamps are actually about 20 years old and I don't really remember where I got them! There is a famous Pooh story about him visiting Rabbit and Rabbit, being a good host, offers Pooh some honey and of course you can't offer a Honey Bear honey without him getting really excited about having it! Pooh ate way too much honey while visiting Rabbit (all Rabbit had as a matter of fact) and when time to leave, Pooh could not fit through Rabbit's burro hole and got stuck! It's really a funny story! That's why one of these stamps shows Pooh's back and one shows his front! Cute huh?!

 Not a very good shot but it shows the shineyness of the Pearl Cotton Thread.

 This is the tin I did for the cards and pens. Simply used gingham ribbon, two different shades of pink buttons glued on top of each other (12 total) and each stack has pink gem stones glued on top. I used square gems (2) on one side of the can just to pull in the square in the gingham and the Pearl Cotton design. I simply did a mock card (front) to represent what is in the can. Thought it would make a nice design for the top of the can.

 The cards stacked in and the pens. I simply wrapped the pens in a satin white ribbon that has pastel colored baby feet all around it and tied it off with the same Pearl Cotton Thread, added tissue paper and it was done!

 Hope you enjoyed it! Thanks for stopping by!