Teacher Gifts: a card that doubles as a tag

Every gift must have a matching tag and/or card! Am I right?

If you use a clear envelop you can make the card double as a tag!

I cased Amber's (Damask Love) Monogram Flap Box Card Holder.

First, I gathered all my Clear & Simple Stamps supplies. Coordinating cardstock to match each 6-pocket Bag, Flower Buds Die Set, die cutter, scrap paper and double-sided tape.

The scrap paper and double-sided tape help me save time by having the dies I need organized together.

Then cut.

Then organize.

Then assemble using the Large Print Alphabet Dies and a little Elmer's Glue.

For our 'Book Lover' Teacher. See bag post HERE.

For the 'Pool Lover' Teacher. See bag post HERE.

For the 'Writer' Teacher. See bag post HERE.

Thanks for stopping by,
steph

Teacher Gift: for the writer

Last but not least, a teacher gift 'for the writer'. I made this 6-Pocket Bag using this tutorial HERE. I made it twice as big though! You could definitely fit your laptop in this bag! You can fit your mini tablet in the middle pocket.

This gift came with a journal and pretty pen (not shown), a zipper pouch and an organizer.

This teacher's college bound daughter loves this bag and tried to claim it as her own.

I covered the paper organizer with a little fabric. I used double-sided tape and fabric fray on the raw edges.

The blue organizer is the before.....
found at Target.

A great place to keep all your little lists!

This is a glasses pouch for my reading glasses wearing teach! Come to think of it, they all wear glasses. I should make a few more!! I got the tutorial HERE.

Check out the other two bags HERE and HERE.

Thanks for stopping by,
steph

Teacher Gift: for the pool lover

I found this cheeky fabric online.... it's so pretty but if you look closely it has a big old frog in the pattern. I find that amusing and I thought my son's 'joke cracking' teacher would think so too. This is the 6-pocket Bag again. I found the tutorial HERE.

I made it for my son's 'Poolside Loving' teacher.

You can see the frog very well on the zipper pouch. Look at that perfectly matching zipper!!
You can fit a tablet in the bag or magazines. And the six outer pockets provide storage for all things you'd need for a poolside adventure....

I found the perfect coordinating towel at Target. Not that I wasn't willing to make my own.

I had some scrap fabric left over so I cut it in strips, sewed the strips together and then top stitched going the other direction. It looks like a miniature patchwork quilt.

See the other two bags, HERE and HERE.

Thanks for stopping by,

steph

Teachers Gift: for the book lover

I am so grateful for the teachers that guide my kids each week. I made all three of them personalized gifts for Teacher Appreciation Week.

First up, For the Book Lover.....

This 6-pocket Bag is smaller than a laptop but big enough for any tablet, book or magazine.

I used this tutorial.
It was so easy and so fun that I made 3 of them! (see them HERE and HERE).

You may have caught my last post HERE about the Zipper Pouch. I put a handmade coaster in the pouch using scraps from the other projects.

My son's 'book loving' teacher also loves cake so I got her this pretty recipe book and made a bookmark from ribbons and a jewelry charm.

I purchased all the fabrics at Jo-Ann Fabrics. I scour the remnant bins to find fabrics on the cheap! 50 to 75% off!!

Thanks for stopping by,

steph

My Clear & Simple Faves: teacher gifts

Picking favorites is very hard for me considering I drew a lot of the stamps that came out over the last year! But I picked these products because I felt I hadn't spent enough time with them. I was so excited when Nicki (co-owner of Clear & Simple Stamps) asked me to design a dome set for our cake decorating sets. They are such a fun addition to the collection!

I am thinking this lovely little pouch will make a great teacher gift.

I gathered up some scrap fabric, an iron, applique webbing, my Cake Decorating and Cake Domes sets, and Perfect Little Black Dress ink.

After I stamped cut and adhered the image to the fabric I sewed up this little pouch.

I recovered a cardboard gift box using Coral Necklace Wrapping Paper and Simple Adhesive. It was so easy.

I dropped the pouch in the box and topped it with coordinating Coral Necklace ribbon and a tag; my favorite tag from Tags 2.

I used some leftover fabric on this card and stamped the coordinating cardstocks to match using my faves sets and Flowers (also, a fav!)

Everything I used for these projects you can find at Clear & Simple Stamps..... I mean everything from the buttons, to the twine, to the wood grain impression plate. Ok, not the fabric but you get the idea! I used so many products, please feel free to contact me if you have questions about anything you see here.

Be sure to check out the Design Team Faves! Starting at Clear & Simple Stamps.

Thanks for stopping by,

steph

DIY Plush Bunnies

I made these cute bunnies for my kids this year. I'm so proud that I can sew now and my kids can actually play with these for many years to come!

I drew a simple two piece pattern on paper then cut my fabrics. I used small print fabrics for the back and inside of the ears and some super soft fuzzy fabric I found in the remnants bin at Joann's Fabrics for the rest. Once I stitched and stuffed them I hand stitched there faces with embroidery thread. The kind I used way back when to make friendship bracelets. So fun!

Zipper Pouch and Pretty Fabric Flowers

I am a paper crafter learning to sew. I love how you can cut fabric with the same dies you cut paper with.....
Check out how I made the cute flower embellishment to help cover up a flaw on my first zipper pouch.

With a little help from a scratch piece of paper I made a clean cut with my die cutter and metal flower dies from Clear & Simple Stamps. I simply sandwiched the paper between the bottom cutting plate and the fabric. The die was on top of the fabric.

I cut 4 large flowers and 1 small one. Then I folded the large flowers in half then in half again.

I used this tacky glue to adhere the fabric flowers to a circle of felt.

 Once all four flowers were stuck to the felt I turned it over and glued the back of the felt and added it to the zipper pouch.

Then I crumpled up the small flower a bit to give it some texture and added it to the center of the flower on the pouch. I also roller a strip of fabric into a flower and added it to the top.

I was feeling pretty brave and decided not only was I gonna tackle adding a zipper to a project but I was gonna add pleats too. A first for both!

You can't see that the polka dot strip of fabric in the center of the pouch is higher up on one side than the other. The flower tricks your eye!!

So go ahead.... try out your dies with fabric! I'd love to see what your creative minds come up with!

Check out the Release in Review line up at Clear & Simple Stamps. This die set has a matching stamp set!

Thanks for popping in,
steph

DIY Stamped Fabric

I am a little obsessed with fabric these days. As a designer I am so anxious to design my own fabrics but printing your own fabric designs is so expensive. Then I realized I had everything I needed right here in my craft room!
1) light colored cotton fabric (found in JoAnn's Fabrics remnant bins for 50% off)
2) cute stamps (bonus: I designed them)
3) pigment craft ink (from Clear & Simple Stamps)

I used two stamp sets from Clear & Simple Stamps: Apothecary Sweets and Apothecary Holidays.

 Once I was finished stamping the fabric I scoured my Pinterest Sewing Board for a project. I thought this Fabric Tray Tutorial was perfect!

Thanks for stopping by,
steph