Angry Birds King pig and Helmet pig! fun birthday cards

Hi all, so happy to let you all know Beth is home! :) wow what an amazing time she has had in India it took us a while to look at all her photos and videos but so worth it they are great! she has told us so many amazing stories too! her first week back home was spent sick in bed though but she is starting to feel better. I love this pic of her at the Taj Mahal and wanted to share it with you

we are so proud of her courage to experience teaching in this way and we know the children and people she met will always stay in her heart. So the cards I have made for this post were inspired from Beth's stopover in Malaysia. She bought some plush toys from the Angry Birds computer game, I also found these cute angry birds boxes you can make.

I made the King pig for Ben's Birthday.He has just turned 19 and is about 3 days into his first Uni prac for high school wood tech teaching and seems to be enjoying it! Beth will be home for another few weeks so it will be so good having all our family home for a while. Anyhow i have the patterns below and you can watch the video on how i made the King pig, same things apply for the Helmet pig..... enjoy!
Blessings to you

and a last thought

You're blessed when you're content with
just who you are - no more no less. That's
the moment you find yourself proud owners
of everything that can't be bought.
Matthew 5:5 (the message version)



Angry Birds King Pig and Helmet Pig Patterns

Flying hearts

Hi all, Victoria now has flooding so keep those prayers coming for those areas and also for the recovery proses. Thank you so much for the many messages sent they are all appreciated. This project is one of my older iris folding patterns which Ive adapted to suit some punch art as well, very easy to do if you have never done iris folding before! All punches used are from stampin up and can be purchased here through me. I used Bashful blue ink for the clouds and the saying comes from an older stampin up set called "so many sayings". For more details you can find a folding pattern sheet for the wings here and also check the below pics.....



For the wings on these smaller hearts I have embossed some lines to help make them curved. And the below pic shows how I have shaded the main large heart.


A simple project but hopefully one you will enjoy :) sit back and watch my video....
Blessings to you

and a last thought

“Keep on asking and it will be given you;

keep on seeking and you will find;

keep on knocking [reverently] and [the door] will be opened to you”
(Matthew 7:7, AMP)

Flying Heart Pattern

Making a milk carton box without a die

Hi all, we've all seen these cute milk carton dies for a while now but I still haven't bought one ...... so i thought id give you my quick version of this great project, not quite as small as the die but cute the same :) My daughter laughed when she seen it had popcorn in it..... a bit average but i didn't have any other treats in the house at the time so i went with what i had and tied the bird theme into it! a great little gift for someone watching their weight. You could add anything though! anyhow its still winter here and everyone likes hot popcorn! so its makes for a cute CORNY gift idea! lol I'm cracking myself up today!! anyway the pattern is below and i made the punch art decoration with the 2 step bird punch from Stampin up which you can order off me here. I used extra wings to make the leaves have a fuller look and double punched the large oval for the nest. To get the sweet treat cups (also from Stampin up ) to fit this pattern i cut some of the edging off either side then taped it in. Hope you enjoy this quick post today ...
Blessings to you

and a last thought

Isn't rude

Genuine love is gracious and honorable; it is
under the control of God-guided reason at all times;
it seeks what is right and proper;
it can do nothing but good;
it cares for others sensibilities and produces unity.
(taken from 1 Corinthians 13)

Small Men's Briefcase gift box

Hi all, Our nice cool winter has produced some really great fruit this year! the Mandarins have been so sweet and same with our lemonades. We got a nice lot of large passion fruits that's enjoyed climbing all over the Mandarin tree! we had to pick a lot of them already as some other little creatures are enjoying them as well and leaving us just the skin shells! we only have a very small back yard but we have been amazed how much you can actually grow in such a small space. We also have a Guava tree that should produce next year mmm yum cant wait!
anyway i was watching one of Dawn's videos today and just loved this men's shirt and tie card she made and wanted to use up the leftover DSP on something that could match the card so I came up with a cute little briefcase gift box! you could get 2 out of the leftover paper. See the pattern and video below (sorry the sound is a bit out of whack on this one...not sure why), Enjoy!
Blessings to you

and a last thought

Isn't jealous

Genuine love drives out jealousy;
it is generous and self- denying;
it promotes happiness and
rejoices at the success of others.
(taken from 1 Corinthians 13)

making a gift box envelope for those bulky punch art cards

Hi again so soon ! I had an email from a lady called Cindy...Hi Cindy! asking me for some ideas as to how she could give her fuchsia card she had just made from my instructions without getting it squashed in a regular envelope...soooo i came up with this gift box envelope which i think will work well :) I wouldn't send this through the post though! this was an idea that you could use without taping your card directly to the present. I used a regular A4 size card in stampin up craft. On the horizontal i scored it at 2', 3', 71/2' and 81/2' and on the vertical i scored it 1' flipped it and score the opposite side at 1'. Cut each mark in to the 1' score on both sides of the vertical. the larger flat is the base of the box, glue those flaps closed. The smaller flat is to be left un glued so you can open it properly.....just tie this with a pretty ribbon to keep it closed! this pattern will help plus watch the video! :) hope this has helped. all these products bar the score pal can be purchased through me. Or if you live in the Nambucca Valley area and would like to do this as a workshop please contact me.
Blessings to you

and a last thought
Give as freely as you have received!
Matthew 10:8

Folded Card Front / video tutorial

Hi all, my head is so busy at the moment as we are packing to go away for a 10 day holiday to Great Keppel Island....off the north Queensland coast of Australia.....it's so exciting, we've had this planned now for a while as something spacial to celebrate our 20th wedding anniversary. strange how when we are the busiest we seem to get heaps done....sooo i wanted to leave you all with this tutorial for you all to try while im away. One of the ladies from my card making group bought this idea along to show me, I think its a nice change form the regular flat card fronts and looks great as a Christmas card idea. Ill post the pattern below...To make the poinsettia flower I used a large maple leaf punch cut into sections and a 1/2" circle punch to mount it on (not shown here).




I have circled the stamp i used and shown you here where to cut the leaf in sections for the flower, punch 3 leaves and cut each one in this way then mount then on the 1/2" circle punch. to add glitter to the swirly stamp i used a quickie glue pen and traced the swirls then added glitter.



Hers's another one i made. I added some more emboss lines around the edges and attached this cute little flower i learned to do by layering up 2-3 large flowers and 2 smaller ones. sponge some colour on them and put a brad through them all. Spray them with water and crunch each petal up how you would like it to sit and let dry. This works really well and dries quite hard. I then sponged a little more colour on it and added some glitter. And Ive also done a video of this card front as we all know we learn much easier by watching someone else do something.. i hope you all enjoy and catch you all when we get back!!....Valita

this ones in inches

and a last thought

Those who plan what is good
find love and faithfulness
Proverbs 14:22

In his heart a man plans his course
but the Lord determines his steps
Proverbs 16:9

Sweet Strawberries

Spring is bringing on some yummy strawberries here so Ive made this sweet little card and box set that you could pop in a chocolate as a simple gift with your card. I made mine with the largest of the heart spellbinder nest dies and a maple leaf punch but you could also cut your own....Ive drawn up a simple card pattern here you can use if you don't have the dies and punches. Click here for the box pattern....its been around on many blogs but is not my own. I ran these through the cuttle bug with the swiss dots folder and then lightly ran my black ink pad over the raised embossing. I found this cute little butterfly dancing around on my lettuces while i was taking the pics of these. enjoy....Valita

and a last thought

And out of justice, peace. Quietness and confidence
will reign forever more.

Isaiah 32:17

Happy Fathers Day

Hi to all the Dads in Australia Happy Fathers day!!.........Dave woke me at the crack of dawn and whispered lets go to the beach! so we got up and watched the sun rise as we walked along.... we found some beautiful Cowries as well ! came home and had some breakfast and had a BBQ dinner together later that day. This is the card i made for him... The Kids all chipped in and gave him enough money to get a new tow bar on the car so this was the inspiration for this card.
the tail lights were made with the small oval stampin up punch. the tow bar was made with the word window stampin up punch and the 1/2' circle punch. the wheels were the large oval stampin up punch which i cut a flat end and i ran them through a crimper. and the background was done in a similar way to my designer back ground tutorial found here. were off to a wedding tomorrow in Queensland, a 6 hour drive from our place...looking forward to spending some time together!

and a last thought

Reverence for the Lord gives a man deep strength

his children have a place of refuge and security.
Proverbs 14:26


heres a rough pattern you can adapt parts to suit your car if you like

Fancy Dress Corner Fold / pattern & Video Tutorial

Hi everyone, this is an easy corner fold dress that i showed my card making class how to do and i would love to show you. If you haven't tried any of my corner fold patterns yet this one is a great pattern to start on. I stamped the swirls after the folding was done. We also used the cut out to make this second card....

which i ran through the cuttlebug and added some ribbon around the waist and one of my rolled scallop rose's with a pearl in the center, which you will find the pattern for HERE

So quick and you get 2 cards with the one pattern. below are the video tutorials for this card which i hope will help you to understand the corner fold concept a little better....i will eventually go back and do more video tutorials on how to corner fold in the future and get you all addicted...lol... but for now here is the pattern for the dress... enjoy...Valita


PS...A few people have also asked what stamp set i used for this project it is called Dot Flourishes
heres a pic of them...i used two different ones from this set to create a fuller flourish look and then added some glitter over the dots...


and a last thought

For His anger is but for a moment,
His favor is for a lifetime,
weeping may last for the night,
but a shout of joy comes in the morning
Psalm 30:5-12

Happy Birthday to my blog...and a free giveaway to celebrate

wow it's amazing to think a whole year has gone by since i started this blog. I'd like to thank everyone who has sent me emails and left encouraging messages, i appreciate them all. God has blessed our family and taken me on some strange and a little hard to understand journeys this year but all have a purpose in the great scheme of God's plan for our lives. So to celebrate my blogs first birthday I'm giving away the whole set of my patterns that are for sale to one lucky winner...want to play...all you have to do is print off this cake pattern make it up into a card to suit any occasion any way you like and email me a copy along with your name...and at the end of 2 weeks the name of a card sent in will be picked at random to win all 48 of my patterns i have for sale. Ill add pics of these cards to this post over the 2 weeks as you send them to me. Id love to see your creations.


We had a picnic lunch today after church and enjoyed these chocolate cupcakes if you'd like the recipe go here and just add 1/2 cup of coco.


...have a great day....Luv Valita

thankyou Amy for your yummy cake card

another yummy card By Sue thanyou

and a couple of late commers this one from Ameila

and this one from Ingrid....thanks

and a last thought

This is good and pleases God our savior
for he longs for all to be saved
and understand his truth;
That God is on one side and all
the people on the other side,
and Christ Jesus, himself man, is
between them to bring them together,
by giving his life for all mankind.
1 Timothy 2:3-6

Christmas pudding/ Pattern

Hi all, wow what a week.....weve had Beth finish all her exams and her schooling!! woo hooooo ! we took her out for dinner ....heres a pic. I made here a chocolate mud cake. to celebrate. We would like to thank you all for your thoughts, prayers, and well wishes for her during this time.

and then we were off to Cooranbong ( a 5 hour drive each way with our learner driver!) to a Youth Rally where our church's youth group band played for the rally...that's Beth in front doing the lead singing. They did such a great job and God really blessed the day.

So here's Monday's second card. This was a wreath stamp and i added in the pine cones, leaves and flowers, then the cuttlebug tree dies. and the pattern for the pudding. These are both easy cards to do.



So i hope you enjoy and once again thank you for all your encouragement to Beth. And my friend Bev has been cleared of her breast cancer praise God!!

and a last thought

Overwhelming victory is ours
through Christ who loved us
enough to die for us.
Romans 8:37

Cool starfish Christmas

Hi all, i designed this card with an Australian Christmas in mind. it's meant to look like a star/starfish with a Santa hat at the beach....mmmm i wasn't quiet happy with the gold paper i chose ...it seemed to sit too flat. When I showed the ladies in class how to make this one we used a thicker textured Gold wrapping paper and it worked better. Instead of fold 1 i used the word window punch from Stampin up. Ive been Buying some of these great little QuicKutz dies and the glasses die was the perfect size for this project

We glued some shiny foil paper to the back of the glasses. The nestabilities dies worked perfect to create the bauble look and saved a lot of careful cutting!!
Our next card was a quick one using the idea of a smaller card on the front tied up with a ribbon. This stamp Ive had forever and is always a cute one.

Well I'm off tomorrow to the Sydney paper craft festival ....I'll fill you all in when we get back....enjoy...Valita

and a last thought

For God has not given us
a spirit of fear; But of power
and of love, and of a sound mind.
2 Timothy 1:7