Hi. {The Twinery}

Hi.

I'm happy to have you here!

Today I wanted to share this card featuring a few of my favorite things - mason jars and twine...and (stamped) flowers. 

I love using The Twinery's twine to jazz up mason jars, and I wanted to give the same feel to this mason jar stamp. Rather than wrapping my twine around the entire card as I often do, I just pierced holes in the card around the rim of the stamped mason jar and threaded the Solid Lilac twine through the holes. I love the final product!

Thanks for stopping by today!

Supplies: 
Twine: The Twinery (Solid Lilac);
Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (Kraft); 
Stamps: Ink Blot Shop, LLC (This & That; Quirky Alphabet); 
Ink: Ranger (Archival - Jet Black);
Colored Pencils: Prismacolor (Premier - 24 pack);
Tools: Fiskars (Trimmer, Scissors);
Scor-Pal (Scoring Board);

1-2-3-4 Whipped Body Butter {The Twinery}

Hello!

'Tis the season for homemade gifts and today I wanted to share with you this easy homemade whipped body butter, packaged in a cute little mason jar that is tucked inside a handmade box.

To start, I first whipped up (pun intended!) a batch of body butter. 

I came across a few homemade body butter recipes and wanted to give it a try, but didn't want to go through the whole double boiler/heating process that they all required. I gathered a few basic ingredients and went to work. Here's my recipe...no melting required!

1-2-3-4 Whipped Body Butter Recipe

1 tbsp. almond oil

2 tbsp. coconut oil

3 tbsp. shea butter

4 drops essential oils

Step One: Blend ingredients together with immersion blender until well combined. (Mixture will be watery.)

Step Two: Put in freezer for 30 minutes.

Step Three: Scrape down sides and blend with immersion blender until mixture is a whipped consistency.

Step Four: Place in fridge for 15 minutes to set.

The recipe can easily be doubled, tripled, quadrupled...you get it. Just keep it in a 1-2-3-4 ratio.
Also, you can choose whatever essential oils you prefer for your scent. I like lavender and/or grapefruit...and peppermint would be a great choice for the holidays!

Once the body butter was set, I transferred it into a small mason jar. (You know how I love mason jars!)

I wanted to make a cute coordinating package for gift giving, so I also created a decorative box.

Both my box and mason jar are finished off with some of The Twinery's Solid Caribbean and Gold Shimmer twines.

An easy homemade gift, perfect for giving during the winter when our skin needs that extra moisture.

What is your favorite homemade gift to give for the holidays?

Please share in the comments.

Supplies: 
Twine: The Twinery (Solid Caribbean, Gold Shimmer); 
Patterned Paper: Heidi Swapp (Hello Today - 12x12);
Tools: Fiskars (Trimmer, Scissors, Ornament Squeeze Punch); We R Memory Keepers (1-2-3 Punch Board);

Thankful Jars (& Free Printable!) {The Twinery}

Can you believe how quickly Thanksgiving is approaching?! I was totally caught off-guard recently as I realized that Thanksgiving is next. week. 

I wanted to come up with something cute to decorate with, and I wanted it to be something simple enough to share (and re-create) with my daughter's Girl Scout troop.
Enter the "thankful jar":

No, the idea of a thankful jar isn't new, but...well...it's another reason to decorate a mason jar! (And I sure love mason jars - don't you?)

I decorated two different jars - one feels a little more "Fall" and one feels a little more "Winter" - but I was just going for variety and fun colors.

It was a simple process: wrap jars with glittered burlap, add a pop of color by wrapping with The Twinery's twine, stick in a few paper leaves, and finish it off with a twine-tied button. 

I used The Twinery's Solid Caribbean and Solid Strawberry twines on these jars, but there are a lot more solid and striped options to choose from!

The point of the thankful jar is to add in little notes of what you are thankful for, so I created this printable to coordinate with my jars:

{Click here to get the FREE printable - for personal use only}

Do you do a thankful jar (or some other "thankful" tradition) for Thanksgiving? I'd love to hear about it - just leave a comment!

Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies: 
Twine: The Twinery (Solid Caribbean, Solid Strawberry); 
Patterned Paper: My Mind's Eye;
Tools: Fiskars (Squeexe Punches, Scissors); Tim Holtz (Tiny Attacher);

Handmade Holidays 2015 {Blog Hop}

The Introduction:

If you are hopping along with us today: Welcome!

If you aren't already a follower, I'd love to have you follow my blog!

If you are on Facebook, please "like" Ink Blots by TRD.

If you are one of my regular readers: Thanks for coming back! I love having you! Please feel free to join along in the hop - you can start at the Clearsnap blog.

The Gift:

I'm excited to be part of this year's Handmade Holidays blog hop! I've participated in the past and have always enjoyed it. You can see some handmade gift ideas I've previously shared here.

When it comes to the holidays, generally I've got gifts for family taken care of. What I generally have the hardest time deciding on is gifts for our neighbors and church family. Last year, I opted for Salted Caramel Sauce in a mason jar. Yum! 

This year, I'll probably go for another edible gift, like this Lemon Curd:

I love to package it up in little mason jars - because, really, who doesn't love mason jars?

This Lemon Curd is eggless, gluten free, delicious, and easy to make. (Bonus - you can easily make this vegan by using vegan butter.)

Is the word "curd" difficult for you to swallow? (Pun intended.) That's okay - just call it Lemon Topping or Lemon Sauce!

Here's what you'll need:

Most Lemon Curd recipes are complicated and easy to mess up - those eggs can make it tricky! I love the simplicity of my one dish, egg free Lemon Curd. Just toss it all in a saucepan or pot and cook over medium heat until it has started thickening. (Be sure to stir or whisk it so it doesn't boil or burn.)

Once the Lemon Curd has thickened, pour it into some small canning jars. (Or, if you are like me and need to "test" it first, pour it straight on some fresh-from-the-oven scones.)

For neighbor gifts, just pair it with a bag of scone mix:

I used Solid Pink Sorbet baker's twine from The Twinery to decorate my Lemon Curd mason jar and bag of scone mix.

Don't worry if scones aren't your (or your neighbor's) thing. Lemon Curd is delicious many ways: on ice cream, mixed in to some plain yogurt, on (or in) crêpes, on pancakes, spread on toast...or you can just eat it straight out of that cute little jar. 

Thanks for stopping by today - and happy holidays!

The Hop Order:




The Giveaway:
Before you move on - don't forget about the giveaway! This collection of over $600 in craft supplies will be sure to help you make this holiday handmade. Enter to win using the widget below:
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Christmas in September {Unity Stamp Company}

I am thrilled to be able to sneak into this week's Unity blog hop!
Although I am not technically a part of the Unity Design Team, I am one of Unity's Artists...so I was able to squeeze my way in. :o)

I am excited to share my projects with you today! To create them, I used two new stamp kits (Reason for the Season and Little North Pole) that I created for Unity Stamp Company:

{Reason for the Season}

{Little North Pole}

The first few projects are created using the Little North Pole kit:

And these cards are created using the Reason for the Season kit:

I hope you love these little cuties! I had fun creating them!

Unity is giving away two great prize packages!
There are two ways to enter to win:

• Link up your Unity project by Wednesday night. (The linky closes at midnight CST.)
• Leave a comment on each blog in the hop. 

(The winners will be announced on the Unity blog.)

Continue hopping on through to the Unity blog, and then go shopping!

Thanks for stopping by today!
Supplies:
Stamps: Unity Stamp Company (Reason for the Season, Little North Pole); 
Cardstock: Discount Cardstock (Brilliant White 110#);
Patterned Paper: Studio Calico (Brighton Pier 6x6 - green and white triangle); Studio Calico (Wanderlust 6x6 - red and white scribble); Echo Park (Sweet Girl - Border Strips);
Twine: The Twinery (Solid Maraschino, Solid Honeydew, Solid Peapod, Solid Lilac);
Tools: Fiskars (Trimmer, Scissors); Scor-Pal (Scoring Board);

Twine Net Drink Holder {The Twinery}

Today I wanted to share with you a quick project that can be created using a Mini Bundle (15 yards) of The Twinery's twine (I used the new tri-color Firecracker twine):

To create the twine net for your mason jar, it is a fairly simple process of knotting. (I used a series of overhand knots.)
I think these would be fun to create with a scouting troop!

First, cut your 15 yard Mini Bundle into 10 strands (1 1/2 yards each).
Then, knot as follows:

Photos 1 & 2: Tie all 10 strands of twine in a knot, keeping the knot at the center. (You will have 10 strands approximately 2 1/4' long on each side of the knot - a total of 20 strands that you will use to create your net.)

Photos 3 & 4: Take two strands (starting with one from each side of the large knot) and tie them into a knot approximately 3/4" away from the large knot. 

Photo 1: Continue working around, knotting two strands together until all 20 strands have been paired up and knotted approximately 3/4" away from the large knot. This will form the 1st row.

Photos 2, 3, & 4: To create the 2nd row, take two strands (one strand from a formerly created knot, and the second strand from the formerly created knot next to it) and tie them into a knot. (Again, keep them spaced approximately 3/4" away from the previous knot.) Continue working around, knotting the 2nd row until all 20 strands have been paired up and knotted.

Photo 1: Lay the base of your twine net on the bottom of a mason jar (or other drinking glass), keeping the large knot at the center. From here, the glass will keep your net's form and make it easier to work with.

Photos 2 & 3: Create more rows by taking two strands (one strand from a formerly created knot, and the second strand from the formerly created knot next to it) and tie them into a knot. (Again, keep them spaced approximately 3/4" away from the previous knot.) Continue working around, knotting each row until all 20 strands have been paired up and knotted. I created 6 total rows in this way.

Photo 4: To start forming the handle, split the net in half, gathering half of the strands on one side and half on the other. (There will be 10 strands on each side.) Knot these as you did to create the previous rows of the net, starting at the outermost strands (which will separate one set of knots from the other). This will create a total of 10 knots on the 7th row. For the 8th row, gather 5 strands (both strands coming from 2 of the knots on the 7th row, and one strand from another knot on the 7th row) and tie them together in a knot approximately 3/4" away from the previous row. Do this with all the strands, which will create a total of 4 knots on the 8th row. Then, gather all 10 strands on each side and knot together, for a total of 2 knots on the 9th row. Bring both sets of 10 strands up and knot together to create the top of the handle.

Wow...that was harder to explain than I thought! 
It really is a simple process once you get started and hopefully the pictures and description together will help it to be clear.

This is a great way to keep your drink close, but not completely tie up (pun intended) your hands.

You can also find a tree branch (or some other convenient place) to hang your drink...

If you'd like a drink holder that can be worn on your shoulder (purse style), I would recommend starting with 10 strands of twine at least 2 1/2 yards long. (Go even longer with the strands to create something that can be worn cross-body or sling style.)
The finished product (without the jar) can easily fit into a pocket or purse - so bring one along with you to your next picnic or outdoor party.

I am thinking it might be fun to create some outdoor candle jar holders like this, too! 

Or maybe even a reusable fruit/veggie grocery bag?

What else can you see being created with this net technique?

Thanks for stopping by today!

Supplies: 
Twine: The Twinery (Firecracker);
Tools: Fiskars (Scissors);

Growing In Unity :: Day 1 - Your Light Shines Card

Welcome to the 1st day of my week as the Growing In Unity gal!

Stay tuned each day this week as I show you something I've created using stamps from Unity Stamp Company...and be sure to comment on each of my Growing In Unity posts this week because Unity Stamp Company is allowing me to give away some free stamps!

If you are new here or aren't already a follower: I'd love to have you follow my blog!
If you are one of my regular readers: Thanks for coming back! I love having you!
If you are on Facebook, please "like" Ink Blots by TRD.

It's no secret that I love all things to do with mason jars (except canning...I haven't done that before...ha!). As soon as I saw this cute stamp (Your Light Shines by Joslyn Nielson) I knew I wanted to stamp with it.
(And...bonus...the sentiment stamp happens to have the words to a song I love - Hillsong's "From The Inside Out".)

I created this simple card sketch to go along with the stamp and sentiment and just added a hint of coloring on the stars. I love how it turned out, and with this design it is easy to create 3 cards at the same time...so I have extras!

Thanks for stopping by today - and don't forget to leave a comment so you can enter to win!

From the comments that are left on each of my posts this week I will be randomly choosing TWO winners who will each receive 25 random stamps from Unity Stamp Company - to be sent to a domestic address only, please.

Supplies: 
Stamps: Unity Stamp Company (Your Light Shines); 
Cardstock: Discount Cardstock (Brilliant White 130#);
Patterned Paper: Studio Calico (Brighton Pier - 6x6);
Ink: Ranger (Archival - Jet Black);
Colored Pencils: Prang (20 - Tan);
Dies: Spellbinders (Standard Circles Large);
Tools: Fiskars (Trimmer, Scissors); Scor-Pal (Scoring Board);

Hoppin' with Unity! {Unity Stamp Company}

I am thrilled to be able to sneak into this week's Unity blog hop!
Although I am not technically a part of the Unity Design Team, I am one of Unity's Artistas...so I was able to squeeze my way in. :o)

I am so excited to share my project with you today. To create it, I used a new mini stamp kit that I created (Mason Jar LOVE) from Unity Stamp Company.

This kit was specially designed to decorate regular mouth mason jars, but it works well for all kinds of Valentine's cards, a variety of tags, and all sorts of general gift giving!

Here are a few tips and tricks for this mini kit:

• To cut out the round heart background stamp for your mason jar lid, simply follow the outer circle with your scissors. (You can also hold the metal lid on top of the round background and trim around it, or you can even use a round die to cut it out with a perfectly smooth edge.)
• The round heart background stamp is sized perfectly to fit a regular mouth canning jar, but don't stop there. I used a smaller (2") round punch to create a round tag for the side of one of my jars. 
• The "made with love" stamp is sized to be able to fit perfectly inside the rim of the jar lid, but I've also used a tag punch to create a gift tag with it. 
• You can also use the "made with love" stamp on the backs of your handmade cards, or even stamp it with a fabric safe ink on clothes or quilts that you create. 
• The "love" flags were designed so that they can either be used as-is as an embellishment, or punched and tied on as a gift tag. 
• The "date" circle is a cinch to cut out with any 1 1/2" circle punch. 

And with this kit priced at only $7, it is a total steal!

Don't forget: for today's blog hop, Unity is giving away two great prize packages! Be sure to leave a comment on each blog in the hop (including the Unity blog) to be entered to win. (The winners will be announced Monday night on the Unity blog.)

Continue hopping on through to the Unity blog, and then go shopping!

Thanks for stopping by today!

Supplies: 
Cardstock: Discount Cardstock (Brilliant White 110#);
Stamps: Unity Stamp Company (Mason Jar LOVE);
Twine: The Twinery (Solid Caribbean, Solid Blossom, Solid Pink Sorbet);
Tools: Fiskars (Scissors, XXL Lever Punch -Tag, XL Squeeze Punch - Round N Round, L Squeeze Punch - Round N Round, Hand Punch - 1/8" Circle);