New Pebbles Design Team Announcement!

Posted: August 1, 2016 | Author: Renee Zwirek | Filed under: Scrapbooking | Tags: Pebbles Inc | Leave a comment

Happy Happy, Joy Joy!

PB Design Team 16-17

Leanne Allinson
Monique Liedtke
Eva Pizarro
Heather Leopard
Renee Zwirek (ME!)
Wendy Sue Anderson
Becki Adams

I’m excited to share that I will be joining the 2016-2017 Pebbles Design Team alongside these talented ladies! Can you believe it? My 5th year with the Pebbles family! Feeling totally OVER THE MOON! Thanks so much to Shelly and everyone at Pebbles and American Crafts for giving me another opportunity to continue as a Design Team Member. I’m so grateful. You can check out these ladies blogs to see their beautiful and creative work. I’m excited for the year ahead. And, looking forward to creating with these new lines coming up from Pebbles!

Woodland Forest collection

Product Feature

Jen Hadfield and Pebbles: Warm & Cozy collection

Emoji Themed Craft Birthday Party

Posted: May 30, 2016 | Author: Renee Zwirek | Filed under: Crafts, Family, Party Time | Tags: American Crafts, We R Memory Keepers | Leave a comment

For Caitie’s 11th birthday party last month, we decided to have an emoji themed craft party at our house. Caitie and her friends had a blast and the time went by SO fast. I kept the décor of the party pretty simple because I wanted to focus on preparing the crafts for her and her friends. Creative kiddos!

The party lasted four hours (it was too short…the time just flew by). Too much fun to be had! I started the Emoji Craft Party with the DIY mini Emoji Pillows. It was the right decision. It turned out to be the most time consuming project because instead of using a hot glue gun for everything I decided on machine stitching and ironing on the faces.

To make the mini Emoji Pillows as durable as possible (I did not want them to fall apart right after the party), I machine stitched the pillows ahead of time. A week before the party, I purchased yellow fleece at my local Jo-Ann store. For 15 party guests, I used 2 yards of fabric. I outlined an 8″ plate (from the kitchen) with a sharpie onto the fleece, cut them all out, layered two circles together, and machine stitched them. After machine stitching all the mini pillows, I used my washer and dryer to clean them up. I purchased black, blue, red, pink, and white felt fabric that came in rectangle sheets for the girls to draw and cut-out the faces. I used the Heat n Bond UltraHold Iron-On Adhesive by Therm O Web from Jo-Ann to get the faces on the mini pillows. It was easy to use. No sew, no steam required, machine washable, permanent, 1 yard package (17″ x 1 yd). The red package not the purple package in the store. The girls stuffed their mini pillows with the Morning Glory Premium Polyester Fiberfil 20 oz package. This one bag purchased at Walmart was more than enough.

I purchased DIY Party Sunrise Fringe Tape and DIY Party Circle Mini Piñatas from We R Memory Keepers. LOVE, LOVE, LOVE!

The girls had so much fun creating their own Emoji mini Piñatas. It was something different for them and they loved it! The best part was filling the mini Piñatas with candy from the candy bar. Perfect party favors!

I had the girls use American Crafts smooth cardstock and Elmer’s glue for the faces. They turned out awesome!

Emoji cupcakes displayed in the candy bar! TOO CUTE!

These emoji cupcakes turned out amazing and were yummy! I bought them from a local bakery. The team at Miss Joan’s Cupcakes were fantastic! We all had huge smiles on our faces when we opened the box and saw these impressive cupcake designs. They were exactly what we wanted! Actually, they turned out to be better than what we imagined.

The girls enjoyed a photo booth all decked out with an emoji background and props that I found and purchased at the Justice store. I also purchased the table covers, cups, plates, napkins, and party favor bags from the Justice store. I love their party section. Fun stuff, perfect finds for our party, and all of it was on sale!

I added this AWESOME Heidi Swapp Lightbox for décor that I purchased from Jo-Ann. Perfect Emoji Icon Lightbox Inserts!

These emoji balloons were purchased online at the Emoji Balloon Company. They were at each table for décor.

Thanks for stopping by to see how I put together Caitie’s Emoji Themed Craft Birthday Party! It turned out to be one of my favorite parties!

Elementary School Layout

Posted: May 17, 2016 | Author: Renee Zwirek | Filed under: Layouts, Scrapbooking | Tags: Pebbles Inc | 1 Comment

I’m up on the Pebbles blog today with A Teacher layout using the Jen Hadfield Everyday collection. I’m here to share an update on the Elementary School Double-Page Layout I made earlier this school year using the Harvest collection by Pebbles. Caitie ends her time in elementary school next week and I added her 5th grade photo to complete this layout.

I really enjoyed combining her First Day of School photos with her School Pictures.

Here’s the left side of the page:

Here’s the right side of the page:

I love that we can look back on these photos. She has grown so much through the years. When the time comes, I’ll make one for Payton, too. You can see more photos of this double-page layout along with the step-by-step tutorial here.

Supplies:

Pebbles Harvest Flowers (732871)
Pebbles Harvest Fall Time (732872)
Pebbles Harvest Cutting Board (732873)
Pebbles Harvest Apple Crisp (732874)
Pebbles Harvest Recipe Cards (732881)
Pebbles Harvest Peppercorn Thickers, Black & White (732886)
Pebbles Harvest Wood Mounted Stamps (732893)
Pebbles Harvest Chips Die-Cut Shapes (732895)
Pebbles Harvest Enamel Dots (732898)
Pebbles Harvest Puffy Stickers (732899)
American Crafts Zing! Opaque Embossing Powder, White (27124)
American Crafts This To That Dimensional Dots (61709)
American Crafts This To That Adhesive Runner w/2 Refills, Dots (61742)
American Crafts Knock Outs Border Punch Value Kit #1, Open Scallop (63013)
American Crafts Cardstock Pack 12″ x 12″ 60/Pkg, White (71259)
American Crafts Mini Marks Rub-On Transfer Book, Lauren – Black (43316)

LOVE card

Posted: May 7, 2016 | Author: Renee Zwirek | Filed under: Cards, Scrapbooking | Tags: Pebbles Inc | Leave a comment

Happy National Scrapbook Day! Hope you’re having fun crafting today and creating some pretty projects. I couldn’t resist making another Mother’s Day card using the Jen Hadfield Everyday collection by Pebbles. This one is for my girls’ Great Grandma.

My card measures 5″ x 7″. I trimmed the Anchored pattern paper to 4 7/8″ x 6 7/8″ and adhered it to my card base. I trimmed the woodgrain Happy Thoughts pattern paper to 3″ x 4 7/8″ and adhered it along the bottom of my card. I added machine stitching around my card. I added fussy cut flowers from the Sunny Blossoms pattern paper between my two pattern papers.

I added gold Color Mist splatters around the card. I added butterfly stickers to my flowers.

I added the “love” gold foiled phrase sticker for the sentiment on my card. Love it!

Supplies:

Pebbles Everyday Happy Thoughts (733054)
Pebbles Everyday Sunny Blossoms (733066)
Pebbles Everyday Anchored (733067)
Pebbles Everyday Accents Stickers with Gold Foil (733085)
Pebbles Spring Fling Gold Foiled Phrases Stickers (733117)
Pebbles Cottage Living Golden Color Mist (369021)
American Crafts This To That Foam Tab Adhesive, Squares (61710)
American Crafts This To That Adhesive Runner (61718)
white cardstock
scissors
sewing machine and yellow thread

Mother’s Day Card

Posted: May 5, 2016 | Author: Renee Zwirek | Filed under: Cards, Scrapbooking | Tags: American Crafts, Crate Paper, Pebbles Inc, We R Memory Keepers | 1 Comment

Yep, it’s been a while since I’ve blogged. Sorry. It’s been a busy past few months. I’ll be back soon with a birthday post of Caitie’s Emoji Themed Craft Party. For now, Mother’s Day is just around the corner and I’m up on the Pebbles blog with a Mother’s Day Frame and Card Gift Set I made for my Mama. Here today, I’m sharing another Mother’s Day card idea.

I made this card for my MIL using the pretty Spring Fling collection by Pebbles. My card measures 5″ x 7″ and I used white cardstock for the base of my card. I rounded the corners of the card base with a corner punch. I trimmed the floral pattern side of the Spring Fling paper to 4 ¾” x 6 ¾”. I trimmed the heart pattern side of the Spring Fling paper to 2″ x 6 ¾” and adhered it along the bottom of the Spring Fling pattern paper. Again, I rounded the corners of the pattern papers with a corner punch. I added white Glitter Tape, adhered the paper layers to my card base, and added some machine stitching around the card.

This cute little teacup is from the Garden Party collection (an oldie but goodie) by Pebbles. I used my craft knife to trim out the center of the teacup. I added Glossy Accents to a piece of white cardstock and sprinkled Gold Glitter onto it making sure I pressed the glitter down. After that dried, I brushed some Mod Podge onto the glitter to make sure it wouldn’t be able to come off. I added some more Mod Podge to the teacup and adhered it to the glitter on the cardstock. I love the “tea” in my little teacup! I added adorable flower Puffy Stickers next to the teacup. Love it!

Love this grouping and layering of a Die-Cut banner, a Rosette, and more puffy flower stickers.

I used the We R Memory Keepers 1-2-3 Punch Board to make a matching envelope for my card.

I used the Blossoms pattern paper to make the 5″ x 7″ envelope and used the Celebrate Thickers to label it with the word “Grammy.”

Love how the card and matching envelope turned out!

The card slips easily into the gold ribbon on our gift.

We can’t wait to give Grammy her Mother’s Day Gift! We know she’s going to love it!

HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY, EVERYONE!

Supplies:

Pebbles Spring Fling Spring Fling (733100)
Pebbles Spring Fling Blossoms (733105)
Pebbles Spring Fling Celebrate Thickers, Gold Foiled Foam (733114)
Pebbles Spring Fling Ephemera Cardstock and Vellum Die-Cuts with Gold Foil (733116)
Pebbles Spring Fling Puffy Stickers (733120)
Pebbles Spring Fling Dimensional Embellishments 4/Pkg, Rosettes (733123)
Pebbles Garden Party Die-Cut Cardstock Shapes (732541)
American Crafts This To That Foam Tab Adhesive, Squares (61710)
American Crafts This To That Adhesive Dot Runner (368570)
American Crafts Sticky Thumb Flat Adhesive Dots .25″ (340274)
American Crafts Glitter Tape, White (96041)
Becky Higgins Project Life Corner Rounder Punch (93740)
Crate Paper Maggie Holmes Confetti Wow! Glitter .88 oz 4/Pkg, Rose, Frost, Gold, & Mint (683719)
Fiskars Fingertip Precision Craft Knife
Plaid Matte Mod Podge
Ranger Inkssentials Glossy Accents
We R Memory Keepers 1-2-3 Punch Board (662530)
We R Memory Keepers Precision Glass Cutting Mat (71299)
sewing machine and yellow thread
paintbrush

Valentine’s Day Treat Boxes for Teachers

Posted: February 2, 2016 | Author: Renee Zwirek | Filed under: Crafts, Scrapbooking | Tags: American Crafts, Pebbles Inc, We R Memory Keepers | 1 Comment

Happy February! I have some Valentine’s Day cards up on the Pebbles Blog today. I wanted to share Valentine’s Day Treat Boxes I made using the We R Memory Keepers 1-2-3 Punch Board, the We R Memory Keepers Flower Punch Board, and the Be Mine collection by Pebbles.

I had my girls select their favorite pattern papers for their teachers and I decided to use the Box design this time. I made Halloween Treat Boxes using the String Tie Box design.

I chose to make a 4″ x 4″ x 4″ sized box again here and used a 12″ x 12″ sheet of pattern paper. I trimmed off the bottom strip of paper.

I lined up the edge of my paper with the XL Box Start Line. I punched the paper then scored Box Score Lines A, B, and C. I repeated that going around all four sides of the 12″ x 12″ sheet of pattern paper.

I flipped the paper and lined it up again with the XL Box Start Line. I punched one more notch on all four sides of the 12″ x 12″ sheet of pattern paper.

I rounded all 4 corners of the paper using the Corner Rounder at the top left of the Punch Board.

I created attachment slits on all 4 corners of the paper using the Corner Slitter at the top right of the Punch Board.

I folded all the lines on the paper.

I added This to That Double-Sided Tape along all 4 diagonal score lines. This side…

…then I flipped the pattern paper over and added more adhesive.

I pinched and creased the diagonal score lines inward and flat and assembled my box.

I connected the first two attachment slits.

I connected the second two attachment slits. Ready for decorations and treats!

The girls don’t have any male teachers this school year. So, instead of bows I decorated these boxes with flowers using the We R Memory Keepers Flower Punch Board. You can see how I used the Flower Punch Board to make the flowers here. The only difference is that I cut one petal from each paper strip to add dimension to the flowers. Then, I twisted each paper petal around the petal curler to make the flowers look realistic. I layered three flowers to make one…XXS (3″ dia.), XS (4″ dia.), and S (5″ dia.).

I used my Making Memories Paper Piercer to make holes into each box. I used a gold brad to combine all the flower layers and attach them to the box.

I used my Sticky Thumb Cordless Mini Hot Glue Gun to adhere Gold Glitter Stickers to my flower centers.

I added favorite yummy treats of each teacher inside. All that’s left to do is for the girls to fill-out each tag for each of their teachers. And, of course, to give them to their teachers on Valentine’s Day along with big hugs!

Pretty, simple, and sweet Valentine’s Day Treat Boxes.

I love them all!

Hope you enjoyed these treat boxes. I loved making them! Happy Creating!

Pebbles Supplies:

Be Mine Sweetheart (733032)
Be Mine Scattered Love (733033)
Be Mine XOXO (733035)
Be Mine Sugar Cookies (733036)
Be Mine Share the Love (733037)
Be Mine Be Mine (733039)
Be Mine Love Is In The Air (733040)
Be Mine Minc Tags 2″ x 4″ 18/Pkg (733045)
Home+Made Gold Circles Glitter Stickers (732621)

Other Supplies:

We R Memory Keepers 1-2-3 Punch Board (662530)
We R Memory Keepers Flower Punch Board (71342)
American Crafts Cardstocks
American Crafts This To That Double-Sided Tape, .25″ x 11 yd (61708)
American Crafts Sticky Thumb Cordless Mini Hot Glue Gun, Blue (340278)
Heidi Swapp Minc Reactive Foil 12.25″ x 10′ Roll, Red (69978)
Heidi Swapp Minc Foil Applicator & Starter Kit (370124)
Fiskars scissors and paper trimmer
Making Memories Paper Piercer
gold brads
candy

Mini Piñatas Holiday Ornaments

Posted: December 26, 2015 | Author: Renee Zwirek | Filed under: Crafts, Scrapbooking | Tags: American Crafts, We R Memory Keepers | Leave a comment

I hope you had a wonderful Christmas! We had a great time with our families. I’m looking forward to working on my December Daily album. But first, I wanted to share these adorable Holiday Ornaments made with the new We R Memory Keepers DIY Party Mini Piñatas. They make great stocking stuffers, party favors, or pretty decorative ornaments for your tree.

I had the chance to play with the DIY Party Circle Mini Piñatas and turned them into pretty ornaments. They were fun and super simple to make using the peel and stick DIY Party Fringe Tapes. Love the variety of colors the Fringe Tapes come in!

I chose to make a couple of the ornaments with a trendy mix of black, white, and gold.

I made another ornament with bright and happy colors.

I love the way they all turned out!

These Mini Piñatas come in eight different shapes and I can’t wait to try them all! They would be fantastic for a kids craft-themed birthday party with a candy bar. Hmmmm…my girls birthdays are coming up in a few months. 😉

(image below from the We R Memory Keepers blog)

DIY Party Mini Piñatas by We R Memory Keepers

You can see how my crafty friend, Amanda Coleman, turned the Circle Mini Piñatas into fun holiday wreaths by heading on over to her blog.

Supplies:

We R Memory Keepers DIY Party Circle Mini Piñatas (3 Pack)
We R Memory Keepers DIY Party Black Fringe Tape (12 ft)
We R Memory Keepers DIY Party Blossom Fringe Tape (12 ft)
We R Memory Keepers DIY Party Gold Fringe Tape (12 ft)
We R Memory Keepers DIY Party Ocean Fringe Tape (12 ft)
We R Memory Keepers DIY Party White Fringe Tape (12 ft)
We R Memory Keepers DIY Party Metallic Confetti (0.3 oz)
Black Cardstock (American Crafts)
POW! Glitter Paper, Silver (American Crafts)
Knock Outs Border Punch Value Kit, Simple Scallop Punch (American Crafts)
Jen Hadfield DIY Home Specialty Cardstock 12″ x 12″, Gold Foil Stripe (Pebbles)
Jen Hadfield Cottage Living Gold Circle Stickers (Pebbles)
Clever Lever Jumbo 1″ Circle Craft Punch (Marvy Uchida)
scissors (Fiskars)
ornament hooks
Christmas candy

Halloween Treat Boxes

Posted: October 30, 2015 | Author: Renee Zwirek | Filed under: Crafts, Scrapbooking | Tags: American Crafts, Pebbles Inc, We R Memory Keepers | 1 Comment

I love Halloween! I wanted to share some quick and fun Halloween Treat Boxes I made using the We R Memory Keepers 1-2-3 Punch Board and pattern papers from the Boo! collection by Pebbles. These will be fun to give to my nieces and nephews for Halloween tomorrow.

I started by selecting the pattern papers and the String Tie Box design. You can also make envelopes with liners, bows, boxes, file folder cards, and coin envelopes using the 1-2-3 Punch Board.

I chose to make a 4″ x 4″ x 4″ sized box and used a 12″ x 12″ sheet of pattern paper. All I did was trim off the bottom strip of paper.

I flipped the paper and lined it up again with the XL Box Start Line. I punched the paper then scored Box Score Lines A, B, and C again.

I rounded all 4 corners of the paper using the Corner Rounder at the top left of the Punch Board.

I cut opposite ends of the paper along the vertical score lines.

I folded all the lines on the paper.

I used my We R Memory Keepers Crop-A-Dile II Big Bite Punch to punch holes in all 4 corners.

I added Sticky Thumb Double-Sided Tape to all 4 tabbed sections

I assembled my box.

All done! So easy! Love it!

Finally, I added ribbon through the holes in this pattern to make sure the box closes correctly.

Now, it’s ready for the treats!

HAVE A SAFE AND HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Pebbles Supplies:

Boo! Jack-O-Lantern (732972)
Boo! Trick-or-Treat (732973)
Boo! Hocus Pocus (732974)
Boo! Spiderwebs (732977)
Boo! Skull & Crossbones (732981)

Other Supplies:

American Crafts Sticky Thumb Double-Sided Tape, .25″ x 11 yd (340265)
American Crafts Green, Purple, and Orange Premium Ribbons, .375″ x 4 ft
We R Memory Keepers 1-2-3 Punch Board (662530)
We R Memory Keepers Crop-A-Dile II Big Bite Punch

New Pebbles Design Team Announcement!

Posted: September 4, 2015 | Author: Renee Zwirek | Filed under: Scrapbooking | Tags: Pebbles Inc | 4 Comments

Yes, it has been quite awhile since I have blogged. Sorry. It has been a busy and fun summer. I hope you’ve enjoyed your summer, too. Kiddos are back in school and we’re getting back into our routine.

I am back on the blog today to say how excited and grateful I feel to be joining the 2015-2016 Pebbles Design Team! This will be my fourth year with the Pebbles family. My goodness, I couldn’t be happier. Thanks so much to everyone at Pebbles and American Crafts for giving me another opportunity to continue as a Design Team Member! Shelly Myers, you are the best, you are so very loved, and I thank you for your love, support, and continued hard work for our team!

Amy Cowley / Amanda Coleman / Eva Pizarro / Holly Gagnon

Renee Zwirek (ME!) / Wendy Sue Anderson / Becki Adams

I am honored to be working alongside these talented ladies. You can check out their blogs to see their fabulous work. We are going to have a great year ahead and the new lines from Pebbles are just fantastic! Also, I will be stepping TOTALLY outside of my comfort zone and share process videos with you. Ah! I’m just a bit nervous because I have never made scrapbooking videos before. Just breathe. Just do it.

Mendi, I’ll miss working with you friend! Best wishes on the launch of your new stamp company, Sunny Studio Stamps! So excited for you and your stamp designs are just adorable! You can see Mendi’s stamp designs today and join her grand opening on September 8, 2015!

Have a happy and safe Labor Day weekend, Everyone!

Teacher Thank You Cards

Posted: May 18, 2015 | Author: Renee Zwirek | Filed under: Cards, Scrapbooking | Tags: Pebbles Inc | 2 Comments

I’m up on the Pebbles Blog today with Thank You cards I made for Caitie and Payton’s teachers. I cannot believe how quickly the school year passed by again. Here are the Thank You cards I made for the girls’ other teachers.