Dot & Whimsy

Did you know...

it's "Something on a Stick" Day?

Yep, it is indeed!

As part of a fun monthly challenge, the 

design team was asked to choose a "day/holiday" and create

a project based on the theme.  So, with today being 

"Something on a Stick" day, I crafted these rustic-vintagey

plant stakes using some printables and the 

Xyron Creative Station Lite and the Xyron Double-Sided 5" Laminate

I grabbed some crepe myrtle sticks from the yard and set out to embellish
them with these sweet collage butterflies that I purchased from Etsy.


  After printing the printable and cutting out the butterflies, I placed the 5" Laminate
 into the Creative Station Lite.  Before trimming away the laminate from the butterflies,
 I gave them a good rub with a bone folder.

I attached them to the sticks by sewing through a button (on the front) and then
securing around the back of the stick with burlap twine.  Wooden buttons from
my stash added to the rustic charm!



The tops of the sticks were embellished with a large star stick pin from Maya Road!
I did have to snip off a couple of the pins so that they would sit all of the way
down into the stick.
Now they're ready to add charm to my washtub full of pink geraniums!
I will sit these under a covered patio, but knowing that the butterflies will be
protected from water when watering the flowers is a big PLUS...
I'll be able to enjoy them all spring and summer long :)

Thanks for joining me today!
www.xyron.com
https://www.facebook.com/xyroninc

What better way to kick-off the 'almost' weekend than

with a super-fun GIVEAWAY from these two fab companies:
XYRON & CRAFTER'S COMPANION

Let me share how I've used the Diamond Press and then I will

follow with instructions on how you can enter to **WIN**

I started with some premade tags that I had in my stash from Simple Stories DIY Foundations Tags

Next, I cut a 2" X 6" strip of white cardstock and placed it onto the longest cutting mat.

(The kit also comes with a shorter mat for single-cutting).  I placed several of 

the dies onto the paper so I could cut them all at once!

The bottom of the Diamond Press has a suction device, so be sure to place it

on a smooth, clean surface; lift the lever to raise the suction and then press the

lever down to create the suction.  Now your Diamond Press is in place!

Easily crank through the cutting mat holding the dies and you're all set.

And of course, I must have some adhesive foam so I made my own!
Actually, I have two versions of creating adhesive foam with the 

and the Xyron Sticker Maker

First, using the Xyron 5" Lite.  The foam is a little too thick to run through when 

the machine is closed, so I opened the top latch slightly and then ran the foam through!

Easy!  By opening the latch, it allows the rollers to spread just a bit.  Just

give the foam a good rub so that it picks up all of the adhesive.  To apply adhesive on

both sides, run the piece back through with the adhesive side UP.

Of course to use the 1.5" Sticker Maker, you will need to cut a strip of foam to that

width and the proceed to run the piece through twice.  I cut the adhesive backing close

to the foam after the initial run-through before running it back through for the second

coating of adhesive.  Snip off the desired amount of foam and you're ready to go!

The Diamond Press also comes with the cutest embossing folders, black ink

and an assortment of stamps that match the dies!  

Above, I used the dot folder to emboss the smaller tag.

I wanted colored ink for stamping the various pieces, so I used different chalk inks

from my stash.  The black ink from the Diamond Press kit was used for the sentiments.

I dressed each tag with enamel dots and some twine and we're done!

Now for the GIVEAWAY!

I will announce the winner next FRIDAY, April 1st  right here on the blog!

THANK YOU!

Hi, everyone!

I had the pleasure of attending a wonderful retreat

this past weekend with a bunch of awesome ladies!  

We crafted, scrapbooked, stamped & bible-journaled until

our hearts were content!  

One day I took a break from my daughter's album and made

this sweet little cake-shaped mini album using an oldie from 

I decided it was time to make something with it! 

You can see all of the pages by visiting HERE

(just scroll to the very bottom)

It's also FOR SALE in my Etsy Shop :)

I'll be back on Thursday with a GIVEAWAY from 

Xyron and Crafter's Companion, so be sure to check back!

Xyron and Chibitronics

are teaming up for a week-long blog hop featuring

them amazing products!

If you're unfamiliar with Chibitronics, they

are the makers of these cool things called "Chibi Lights"

Stop by their blog and check out their products, as well as

their design team's projects for the hop!

At first glance, my project may not appear too "illuminating", but it is.

I started with the set of Paper Smooches Giddy Bugs Clear Stamps

 and Prismacolor Assorted Pencils

It looks all cute, yet ordinary so far...let's turn off the lights and see what we get:

Now he's lit like a true lightning bug (or firefly, whichever you prefer)

should be! With Chibi Lights, you can give light to just about anything!

The science is in just a few products: conductive foil tape, LED circuit sticker, binder clip

ad 3V coin cell battery.  I made a backing piece for the firefly to sit on by cutting

a circle of paper and then adding the conductive tape and circuit sticker to it.

  You will notice that I also drew a circle around the coin battery twice...this is for placing the + and - sides against and then clipping in place with the binder clip.  Once the battery connects with the ends of the foil tape, the light springs to life!

Next, I punched a large hole into the top paper, just under the bug's "bottom".  

The hole was lined up with the circuit light on the bottom paper.  

I used the Xyron 3" Sticker Maker

for attaching all of the bugs to their presumptive spots.  

I also used strips of foam and ran them through the Sticker Maker to create

some dimension between the two layered pieces on the scallop circle.

Again, don't forget to stop by the Chibitronics Blog and Xyron Facebook Page

and take a gander at all of the pretty things!

Happy Tuesday!

I'm excited to be up on the 

today with a fun take on paper bunting!

This is a substantial bunting piece and measures approximately 24" across!

I have a tutorial, as well as other ways to use the bunting on the WRMK blog...

check it out!

The newest member of the Xyron family will be 

making its debut on the HSN channel!

Introducing the Xyron Creative Station Lite™

I love the compact design, which makes it super portable and easy to store 

right on my small crafting area!  Here is a little project that I made using

the Xyron 5" Permanent Adhesive Refill

I started with a chipboard shape that I took from a precut mini album set from

Michael's Recollection brand.  I traced the shape onto patterned paper from

the Echo Park Paper Company Spring Collection Kit

and then ran it through the Creative Station Lite:

Even though the points on the sides of the paper extended slightly beyond the 

5" alignment grids (see above), the adhesive was still wide enough to cover

the entire paper...I love some wiggle room!

As with the other Xyron Creative Station,

you will want to roll your paper out just

past the cutting bar to ensure that you don't accidentally clip off too much.

Give the adhesive a good rub (especially around the edges of the paper) and

then carefully room the top film.

And I am so happy that the handle can be tucked away when it's not in use!

Because I have both the Creative Station and now the Lite, I plan to

use the larger machine for the 9" adhesives and leave the Lite to handling the

smaller 3" and 5" rolls.  I love them BOTH and use them each and every day

that I craft...which is pretty much each and every day LOL

I hope that you will check out the debut on HSN!  

There will be an amazing bundle at an amazing value!

Thanks for stopping by!