Doodle Pantry Ant Masquerade

I had to make one more card using the Ant Masquerade pre-colored digital stamp set by Doodle Pantry.  This is one of my Doodle Pantry favorites!  

I printed out the ant butterfly image and a sheet of the butterfly digital paper, the digital paper on text weight paper and the image on cardstock.  My card layout was inspired by another card maker, I loved the sketch layout she'd used.

I used Stampin' Up! Close To Cocoa as a base and a smaller panel that I put through the Cuttlebug with a Tim Holtz wood embossing folder.  The butterfly strip is part of that sheet of digital paper and the sentiment is cut out with a Papertrey Ink double ended banner die.  Some of their dies are rather challenging but I managed to get the sentiment where I wanted it.  I also used a Papertrey Ink envelope liner die, I really like the look of a card with a matching lined envelope. 

Thanks for visiting my blog today -

Wax Fruit Co. Just The Car

We have a new challenge at Operation Write Home Stars & Stamps that starts today, our theme is Transportation and I have my card ready ahead of time.

I've had this digital image from Wax Fruit Company for awhile now, it's actually been minimized on a Publisher page on my computer screen ready to print the perfect size for this sketch.  How's that for a reminder that I REALLY want to use this image and sketch?!  

I'm so happy with the way my card turned out, I love this image and it is perfect for this sketch by Mary Williams too.  I have a feeling that this is one of those sketches that.... well you know!

I used Copic markers to color the image:  BG11, BG23, BG13, C0, C1, BG0000, BG10, YG11, R27, R46, R59, T3, T5, Y000.  I tried something new I learned from Jennifer at Dove Art Studios with the windows.  I used YG11, BG10 & BG0000 in that order to color the windows so they look transparent.  

The papers used are Via Vellum Basic Black, Hero Arts Layering CS Bayou, Neenah Pewter, Copic X Press It.  Three red brads from my hoarded supplies, I haven't used brads in ages!  The DAD is a stamp by CC Rubber Stamps dated 1996.

I hope you have time to play in our Transportation themed challenge at Operation Write Home Stars & Stamps this week!

Thanks for visiting my blog today -

Challenges:

Operation Write Home Stars & Stamps - Transportation

Make Your Own Baby/Body Powder

Have you ever wondered what's in your baby powder?  I was at a baby shower recently and read a label on a name brand baby powder the mother to be received, wow...  what is all that stuff?

While browsing on Facebook I came across a recipe for natural baby powder and had to try it, so my tutorial today is a variation of that recipe.  That Facebook page I enjoy spending time at is Aromahead Institute, Andrea has lots of recipes and valuable information about essential oils on her page.

This recipe calls for ground Chamomile Flowers, mine were whole so I used my coffee grinder that's reserved for stuff like this.  They were kind of chunky, I highly recommend buying ground Chamomile Flowers, I got mine at the Bulk Herb Store.  I've made body powder for myself since with the Bulk Herb Store's ground chamomile and it's much nicer =)

After weighing out all the dry ingredients on the kitchen scale I whisked them together.  

It's a little messy!

I chose Lavender for an essential oil because it has a lot of therapeutic properties but most of all is calming.

Here again I tried for a 1% dilution of the essential oil to the 3 ounces of powdered mix equaling 12 drops of Lavender essential oil and stirred it in.

Then I added my homemade baby powder to a stainless steel powdered sugar shaker and made a label.

And my last photo is of three of the baby products I've made and have ready for the next baby shower.

The Baby Powder Recipe:

1 oz. Kaolin Clay

1 oz. powdered Chamomile Flowers

1 oz. Arrowroot Powder

12 drops Lavender Essential Oil

Where do you buy this stuff?

The Bulk Herb Store

Aromatics International

Thanks for visiting my blog today -

Linky Parties:

Clever Chicks

Frugally Sustainable

Gingerly Made

Adorned From Above

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OWH Blog Candy Winner!

Congratulations Nancy M. you've won my blog candy from this last weekend's Operation Write Home Memorial Day blog hop!  

 Nancy M said...

OMGosh, Jan--this is SO cute!! I LOVE how you lined the envie but also the whole card is so well-coordinated, as always! Nice job, as usual! Thanks for you loyalty to OWH and the chance for blog candy!! (I SO hope I win!!) 

May 26, 2013 at 6:46 PM

I've e mailed you and hope to hear from you soon!

Hambo Stamps Nerd

Welcome to our Operation Write Home Memorial Day Weekend blog hop!

Our theme for this hop is Thank You cards based on Operation Write Home sketches, if you visit my blog to see my cards regularly you know I love sketches!  

I'm not going to spend a lot of time "talking" today because there is so much eye candy to see on this hop, I do have a supply list below if you are curious about the products I've used to make my card.

Supply List:

Hambo Stamps Nerd digital stamp set

Papers:  Via Vellum Black & Cyan, World Win Treasures Smoke, Doodlebug Design Lipstick Dotted Line

Ink:  HP LaserJet

Copic Markers:  Skin – E000, E00, E01, E11, R21, Hair – YR21, E34, E25, Shirt – B00, B02, B14, Pants – E41, E42, E43, E44, Belt Buckle – C0, C2, C3, Glasses – BG0000, G0000, B0000, Shoes – W0, W1, Flowers – R81, R83, R85, YG01, YG13, YG25, YG67

Tools/Accessories:  Spellbinders Square die, Papertrey Ink Envelope Liner die

I used OWH sketch #99 for my card layout.

...and I have blog candy!

Leave a comment so I can draw a winner for my blog candy Monday evening - good luck!

Most of all, have fun hopping =)

Thanks for visiting my blog today -

Soap Naming Contest Winner!

Happy Friday, today is the day to announce the winner of my soap naming contest!

Congratulations Cassie, I loved your Lemon Bars name for my latest soap creation!

It was great talking with you in e mail too, now I'm counting the days till I can send it out =)

Clear Dollar Stamps Garden of Life

I have two clean and simple cards for you today.

I've been thinking in 3's because I've been playing with a die and this little flower from the Clear Dollar Stamps Garden Of Life digital stamp set has inspired me.  It's a beautiful set, I've barely scratched the surface using one tiny flower for my card  and hope to use more of the set very soon!   

The die cuts three squares in a row and I was wondering if I could use it to create a digital card.  It took a little while for me to size the flowers down, flip a couple of them so they weren't all the same and put each one in just the right spot so I could cut three in a row with the die.  I've grown used to using Spellbinders dies that I can see through and this one is made by Papertrey Ink and solid so it was a challenge. 

My second card was C.A.S.E.d from Dana at Dana's Dabbling Studio.  I thought her clean and simple layout was so nice I wanted to try it myself.

I used the negative part from the die cut to draw around the flowers with a Copic 0.5 Multiliner and as you can see I need practice starting and stopping.  

I have a supply list for my cards below:

Stamps/Images:  Clear Dollar Stamps Garden Of Life

Cardstock/Papers:  Mohawk Bright White, SU Brocade Blue

Inks/Markers: HP Office Jet 6000, Memento Tuxedo Black

Accents/Tools:  Papertrey Ink Take 3 die, PTI banner die, PTI Sentiment, Copic 0.5 Multiliner, Cuttlebug Dots Embossing Folder, Scor - Pal

Techniques:  Digital Stamping

Today's cards are also for our Operation Write Home Midweek Throwdown challenge themed X3.

Thanks for visiting my blog today!

Challenges:

Operation Write Home Stars & Stamps - X3

Homemade Baby Bottom Butter

I'm gathering supplies today to make a Baby Bottom Butter, it's main function is to heal and keep away diaper rash.  

You might remember I told you last week that I'm soon to be 53 years old and want to assure you I'm not having a baby but we are expecting our first grand baby!  I also have a couple of younger friends who are expecting so I'm working on some natural baby products to give as baby shower gifts.   

I love mason jars and thought they'd be perfect for this project so I have them in a pan of boiling water to sterilize, boil for 10 minutes, let them cool so you can touch them and they're good to go.  Maybe I should add you'll need to dry them before adding the Baby Bottom Butter.

Next I'm melting the oils and beeswax in a homemade double boiler using a 2 cup Pyrex measuring cup.

After all the oils and beeswax have melted I wanted each jar to have an equal amount so I used my kitchen scale.  You can see in the photo they are starting to cool and will soon become solid.

It's time to add the gentle skin nourishing essential oils to the butters at a 1% dilution which would be no more than 15 drops total in each of my jars.  Baby skin is very sensitive so less is more with the essential oils.  I chose to use Lavender, Rosewood, German Chamomile and Helichrysum.

Can you see the German Chamomile essential oil?  It's a lovely royal blue color and smells wonderful!  In this photo I'm blending, blending, blending.  It takes a little work to get all the essential oils incorporated into the butters but it is so worth it - you'll have a nice finished product when the essential oils are all blended in.

Here it is!  Finished Baby Bottom Butter ready to give as a shower gift.

My recipe for the body butter came from Andrea Butje's Aromahead Blog and I used a few different ingredients because I didn't have everything her recipe called for.  Andrea is my instructor for the Aromatherapy Certification Course I'm taking online at Aromahead Institute.  

Here's my variation of the recipe:

1 oz. Beeswax

1 oz. Unrefined Cocoa Butter

1 oz. Palm Oil

2 oz. Fractionated Coconut Oil

1 oz. Baobab Oil

1 oz. Shea Butter

Remember to measure your ingredients on a kitchen scale and add your Shea Butter last to the melted oils and just stir it in.  Shea Butter can become grainy when over heated so I add it to my melted oils and just stir until it's incorporated.  

I hope you enjoyed my tutorial and come back to see some of the other baby products I'll be working on.

Where do you buy this stuff?

The Bulk Herb Store
Aromatics International

 Thanks for visiting my blog today -

Linky Parties:

Clever Chicks

Frugally Sustainable

Gingerly Made

Adorned From Above

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Jacki's Hearts & Sweets

I have some fun cards to share with you today using a pre-colored digital image that came in a set from D.A.I.S.I.E Company called Jacki's Hearts & Sweets.

I've been working on Clean & Simple designs and having a hard time with leaving all the white space alone.

After I walked away from this one and came back to look at it I like it, but it was hard to walk away!

I cut out the image again and placed it on the white card body after I embossed it, it just seemed so naked without it... 

These are cards that were just for fun and are going into my Operation Write Home box.  I left them blank inside so they'll make nice "love" cards to write home on.

Thanks for visiting my blog today!

Doodle Pantry Ant Masquerade

I have a fun Doodle Pantry card to share with you today!

When I saw this already colored digital stamp set I was so excited!!!  I have the Ant Masquerade digital stamp set that was previously released as line drawings to be colored but hadn't used it yet.

I wouldn't have thought to use some of the colors in the pre-colored version either and I LOVE the digital papers that come in this set to match the images.  My card layout is an old sketch from "Fetch A Sketch" that I wanted to try.  It took some thinking and math on my part and I'm really happy with the way my card turned out.  Here's a peek at the sketch.

I also like the matching digital papers most Doodle Pantry colored stamp sets come with because I like to dress up my cards a little with envelope liners.  Most of my cards are donated to Operation Write Home and I think envelope liners make them just a little more special.

Thanks for visiting my blog today - 

RED Soap Cutter from Essential Depot

Soap Makers have you heard the news?!

I joined a Facebook Soap Makers group recently called Soaping 101 and have been learning a lot through participating in and following conversations as well as watching Soaping 101 videos on You Tube.  

Yesterday there was a whole lot of excitement in the group about this new soap cutter being rolled out by Essential Depot today.  They're signature color is red and here's what they have to say about it:

Engineered to last a lifetime when used as directed, the U.S. – made soap cutter uses quality steel and is coated with a hard, baked-on firehouse red powder-coat enamel.  Its heavy-duty base and cutting table are high-grade HDPE plastic.  Essential Depot’s RED Soap Cutter is specifically designed to complement the company’s RED Silicon Mold.  Loaves from the mold fit exactly into the cutter and can be cut quickly, easily and accurately into 11 equally sided one-inch bars.

I want one!  And then there are the RED Silicon Soap Molds that I really want to try out!

I have a 2 LB Acrylic soap mold for experimenting with new recipes that I do not have to line and love it.  

Here's what Essential Depot has to say about their RED Silicon Soap Molds:

The Revolutionary Essential Depot (RED) Silicone Soap Mold is four to five times thicker than traditional silicone molds, and is the first silicone soap mold strong enough to withstand thousands of uses.  In addition, it is engineered to provide years of easy service, and sized to make soap loaves that can be cut into 11 one-inch bars.

Made of finest grade silicone with following specs:  

• Temperature ranges from -40 to 536 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Will retain its shape after thousands of uses. 
• Dimensions (Inches): Interior: 11.25(L) X 3.25(W) X 3.70(H) Exterior: 11.75(L) X 3.75(W) X 3.941 (H) Wall thickness: .25 inch; Bottom thickness: .24 inch.
• Designed to make a 4 lb to 6 lb 11.25 inch long loaf of soap. You determine the height of the soap when you fill the mold.

I haven't placed my order yet I'm still day dreaming about the new cutter and soap molds...

They are definitely on my wish list!

Thanks for visiting my blog today -

OWH So Sentimental

I wanted to share my card for this week's Operation Write Home Midweek Throwdown challenge, the theme is So Sentimental - using a sentiment as your focal point.

I made my card months ago in a mass production frenzy using this sketch and different patterned paper pads I've collected as well as great digital sentiments I've found on the internet.  

Thanks for visiting my blog today -

Challenges:

Operation Write Home Stars & Stamps - So Sentimental

Handcrafted Essential Oil Face Lotion

I only have a little dab of my homemade face lotion left in the jar so I'm gathering supplies today to make a new batch, I hope you'll join me!

I thought I'd get a little more personal and give a some background information about myself today and why I make my own creams and lotions.

Our family moved to Arizona when I was 10 years old from Montana.  I'm now approaching 53 years old and my skin needs moisture, sometimes desperately.  Our climate here is hot and dry sometimes reaching high temperatures of 120+ degrees in the summer but with very low humidity.  Don't get me wrong about low humidity it's still hot, let's just say you won't be going out to check the mail box in your bare feet.   We also have very hard water in our town so the combination of climate and hard water are really a challenge for my families skin.  

About a year and a half ago I started making my own soaps, lotions and potions to see if I could get some relief from the dryness I was experiencing.  The store bought preparations just seemed to make things worse for me.  They were expensive, harsh and I felt like they made my skin even more dry.    Now that I've learned a little more about what goes into our store bought soaps and skin care products I'm pretty sure I'll never go back to using them.  

Enough talk, let's get started!  I measured out 1 1/2 ounces of unscented lotion base into a 2 oz. amber jar.  The reason I like amber jars is because essential oils need to be stored in dark containers preferably in a cool place to maintain their integrity.  

I've added all the essential oils and it's time to stir it all together.  Be sure to blend well, it takes a little time and effort but it's well worth it.  Did you know that German Chamomile is a royal blue color?  It changes the color of the lotion base ever so slightly.  

Here it is blended together, it smells heavenly!  I love the fragrance from this combination of  essential oils and it's as pure and natural as I could find.  For me, no fragrance oils or colors to be allergic to - yea!

I do make my own lotions and creams but did not for this face lotion.  I purchased a large quantity of unscented lotion base from Aromatics International for my Aromatherapy certification course and I really like it so I'm going to enjoy it while it lasts.  Most of my essential oils are also from Aromatics International, they are high quality pure essential oils.  Each essential oil they sell is tested using a Gas Chromatography/Mass Spectrometer device to determine the precise chemical constituents of the essential oil and the data is available to everyone on their website.  I also added links to each essential oil in the recipe so you can buy them if you wish and/or read about their therapeutic properties.

Here's the recipe if you'd like to make your own Essential Oil Face Lotion

1.5 ounces unscented lotion base

2 drops Neroli - Citrus aurantium var. amara

2 drops Rose Absolute - Rose damascena

2 drops Jasmine Absolute - Jasminum grandiflorum

1 drop Geranium - Pelargonium roseum X asperum

1 drop Sandalwood - Santalum paniculatum

2 drops German Chamomile - Matricaria recutita

3 drops Roman Chamomile - Chamaemelum nobile

1 drop Sweet Fennel - Foeniculum vulgare

1 drop Carrot Seed - Daucus carota

2 drops Lemon - Citrus limon

2 drops Lavender - Lavandula angustifolia

3 drops Frankincense - Boswellia carterii

Blend together well, store in a cool dark place and enjoy -

Where do you buy all this stuff?

Aromatics International

If you're not into making your own I have this Essential Face Lotion available in my Etsy store Life Scents in the 1.5 oz size.  Thanks for visiting my blog today!

Link Parties:

Clever Chicks

Frugally Sustainable

Gingerly Made

Adorned From Above

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