Fun with Cupcake Wrappers-Four Step Fringe

Happy Hump Day! Today is all about cupcake wrappers! I just love making things out of them. Take a look at this chipboard book I made. 

The fringe is all mini cupcake wrappers, cut in half, and scissored.  The best part? It's so easy! Handsome shall be my helper in the scraproom today.

First, I folded the mini cupcake wrapper in half.

Next, I "fringe cut" all the way around the outer edge by making cuts approx. 1/2" long.

Then, I opened the wrapper and cut in half (followed the fold line).

Lastly, I glued the half circles onto the edge of my book. You can use fringe on your page layouts and altered projects as well. Here is a card I whipped up for today's example.

Supplies Used: MME Lost & Found 8x8 paper, DCWV Vintage Collector letter stickers, MME Cut & Paste heart sticker, MME Cut & Paste washi, butterfly from DCWV's Mariposa collection.

You can step this up by adding inking around the edges before your fringe cut. Cupcake wrappers come in all colors and patterns (think of those pretty foil ones). Imagine the possibilities! More ideas using cupcake wrappers coming soon! 

Have you ever used cupcake wrappers in your layouts, projects, or cards?

Thanks for stopping by and as always, stay scrappy!

-Gina & the Hounds

Hump Day with the Hounds-Handsome's Update

Happy Hump Day! At the risk of sounding like the worst pet parent in the world, I will recap the last several hours of Handsome's terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day.  So, I couldn't stand seeing him in the cone. He was bumping into walls, couldn't eat out of his dishes (even when I raised them), and overall, looked miserable. As mentioned yesterday, I ran to the store to grab some no-lick bandages.  Little did I know, I purchased the bandages from hell. The outside of the package read, "Will not stick to wound or fur." I opened the package, pulled one of the bandages out (there were two) and peeled the paper off the back of it to expose the sticky side (just like a Band-Aid). I then proceeded to wrap the bandage around the wound. You would have thought that I was cutting his tail off with a saw. I was in a panic, not knowing what the heck was going on.  I notice that there is a small instruction sheet behind the second bandage.  It read, "Do not stick directly on wound. Place bandage directly above or below wound. Contains cayenne pepper." In my defense, looking for instructions on how to apply what is essentially an over-sized Band-Aid never entered my mind. I wish it would have. I felt terrible for causing my tiny Chihuahua man so much pain.  It must have been excruciating (imagine pouring jalapeno juice over an inch long laceration with muscle exposure). No bueno. Furthermore, the bandage from hell did stick to the fur so I had to ease it off today with some Aquafor. I tied the cone back on pobrecito Handsome and ran back to the store to find something more suitable.  I settled on this:

Upon returning home, I found the cone on the floor and a very excited Chihuahua. I inspected the wound and despite it looking a little red, (I'm assuming from vigorous licking), everything looked okay.  After some gauze and a few wraps of the self-adhesive bandage and a lot of praise, kisses, and treats, Handsome appears to be comfortable and much happier. To recap:

Unhappy Chihuahua

Happier Chihuahua

Are you a happy boy?  You are?!?!

In other news, I am very excited to be going on my first Scrappin' in the City Retreat in beautiful Sevierville, (close to the Smoky Mountains and just behind the Scrapbook Superstore...eeek!), Thursday night through Sunday evening. I have stocked the fridge with Giant's favorite foods and have packed my overnight bag. Hopefully the animals will all still be alive when I return and I won't find the Giant lying in a pile of his own filth. ;) I will be posting some of the pages I complete throughout the rest of the week and if the rest of the crew isn't camera shy, some pics of the attendees doing what they do best...scrappin'!

Thanks for stopping by and as always, stay scrappy!

-Gina & the Hounds

Tools of the Trade Tuesday-Fiskars Sure Cut Paper Trimmer & Hound Drama!

Happy Tuesday!  Before I begin on today's product review, I must tell you about the hound drama this morning at the Bates Motel. The whole family was snuggled in the bed this morning as it started out to be a chilly, overcast day.  Handsome jumped up on Giant's chest as he usually does and Bax was sandwiched between the Giant and myself. Handsome began licking Giant's face and inching toward his nostrils. As he did so, Giant rolled him off, (not knowing that Bax was right next to him and belly up I might add). What ensued can be best summed up this way:

$200 and 3 staples later, Handsome is resting comfortably from his minor surgery to close up an almost inch long laceration on his right front leg. I was so upset to see him in a cone and bumping into walls, that I went out and got him a bitter, no-lick bandage instead.  

We'll see how the bandage works...

Now onto today's product review, the Fiskars Sure Cut Paper Trimmer.  I decided to review this product because it is a question that comes up often at crops.  I have owned paper trimmers from Cutter Bee, American Crafts, We R Memory Keepers, Purple Cow, and have used a variety of guillotine trimmers in teachers' workrooms.  Whenever I am asked which trimmer I think works the best, I always recommend Fiskars.  I have both the large and the smaller version, one for the scrap room and one to bring on crops.  Both cut 12 x 12 sized paper and both have swing arms for larger measurements.

What I like most about the Fiskars trimmers is that you can see where you are actually cutting which allows for more accurate cuts and fewer mistakes. It is able to cut card stock and chipboard with ease.  The replacement blades are easy to find and install as well as inexpensive.  If you are looking to cut other types of material like thin foil sheets, these paper trimmers are not suited for that (as I learned first-hand).  It will shred the cutting wire, rendering your trimmer useless.  You must use a rotary trimmer for those kind of cuts.  I have not tried cutting fabric but I assume that a rotary trimmer would be best suited for that as well. 

Amazon always has a variety to choose from depending on your needs.

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_0_12?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=fiskars%20surecut%20paper%20trimmer&sprefix=Fiskars+sure%2Caps%2C219&rh=i%3Aaps%2Ck%3Afiskars%20surecut%20paper%20trimmer

And you can't go wrong with a 40% off JoAnn's coupon!

http://www.joann.com/search?q=fiskars

Scrapbook.com has a decent selection great prices as well. 

http://store.scrapbook.com/products/?w=fiskars+

Thanks for stopping by and stay scrappy!

-Gina & the Hounds