Cheers! ATCs with Shenanigans and Malarky

What do you get when you cross snarky sentiments and alcohol? Irish people! But also a really funny collage sheet from Alpha Stamps. Leslie made my wee heart happy with the new images! The problem, however, was choosing which ones to use for my project. 

I ended up making five chunky ATCs- and after a pint of PBR, I decided they needed someplace to live, so I turned a Mini House Front Box into a mug shaped caddy.

I ultimately decided to make ATCs because I really wanted to try out the new Alcohol Pearls. The inks were daubed on some yupo paper, then I used stamp pads with a few stencils to make the backgrounds. Pretty simple application but the shimmer from the alcohol inks was impressive! The frames are free-hand cut (because at this point my beer was 3/4 finished so I forgot I owned a straightedge...)  from nice card stock then spritzed with some shimmery spritzy stuff. The card stock I used for the cards is thick, with a nice texture, so I also used it to cover the side and back of the caddy.

 I cut out a few of the heads from the St. Patrick's collage sheet (there's so many!) and decided they needed frames too. So, I used a round stamp from the stash, stamped it on card stock, and cut out the middle. The background of the round frames are actually trimmed mica sheets that have been tinted with Alchemy Alcohol Pearls. That alcohol ink is pretty neat. Too bad I could not capture the pearlescent shine of it! After the mica, frame, and image were glued together, it was adhered to the card and a few tiny rhinestoned shamrocks cut from a Mini Punch Bunch punch were splashed about.

wish you were beer, ha!

I selected the text using the eenie-meenie-miney-mo method because how else would one choose??

To wrap up the day of mad crafting, I busted out the bumpy chenille stems and made two little dancing dudes that are getting their Irish on. This one is Seamus and he likes Riverdance.

Here's how to make your own Seamus, in case you need him in your life.

You need three bumpy chenille stems, the St. Patrick's collage sheet, glue, and that adorable glittery bow tie. That is kinda necessary.

1. Cut stems like so:

2. Bend one stem in half for the legs. Bend the single stem in half and slip it between the legs for the torso and neck.

3. Stick the other stem between the skinny bits (it's the neck) and wrap the arms around a few times.

4. Glue a head from the collage sheet onto the neck and add that cutesy bow tie. Seamus is ready to dance!

Seamus is accompanying me to the St. Patrick's parade here in Savannah, so I know I won't be pinched! Cheers to you!

A supply list can be found HERE.

And thanks for the awesome collage sheet, Leslie!

Tiny House Basket

This month's kit from Alpha Stamps has got to be the best one yet as it has a wee house-shaped box (or a basket), a little door and two windows, and sweet sweet Spring Farmhouse paper for decorating. Oh, the possibilities! And guess what? That same house is also in pint-size! Be still my heart! It is approximately 2" x 1 1/2" x 2" and can fit inside the original house box. Wow.

This thing is so small, you could decorate it with all those scraps of things you've squirreled away. The pink ribbon and Dresden trim came from my Bin of Snippets, where I throw useless bits until they become useful. To give you an idea of how small this house is, the black trim along the roof is just the bottom portion of a Dresden border, and the windows (which thankfully are pre-made) are a mere 1/4" x 1/2"! The door is a rectangle of cardboard that I've cut a heart into, the doorknob is the teensiest of flat-back pearls, and the flowers come from a package of Garden Growies.

It makes more sense to show you how small this basket is, right?

And even though the larger House Front Box might seem more practical in regard to what you can fit inside the basket, I am here to tell you it will hold all manner of itty-bitty cuteness.

Happy crafting!

Supplies for the Tiny House Basket are right HERE

and the knitting pattern for the pocket bunny is HERE