Sweet & Kelster Challenge: Using the Same Products-Treat Bags!

Hello lovely readers!  Welcome to another Sweet & Kelster Blog Challenge!  Congratulations to Heather Adams on winning the Halloween challenge.  Kelly will contact you about your $5 gift certificate to Two Peas in a Bucket!

Are you guys ready for this challenge round?  This time, Kelly and I decided to create something using the same product!  We both had different takes on this challenge, but that's the beauty of a challenge!  Kelly sent me these adorable treat bags she had purchased from The Plaid Barn I believe last year.  This site is one of those daily deal websites for crafty stuff!  Can't go wrong there!  Anyways, she mailed me 9 treat bags:  5 orange and white striped glassine bags and 4 brown and white striped glassine bags.  

I got these cute babies in the mail Saturday afternoon.  I was already holed up in my scrap room and my mojo was high.  As soon as I opened the package and saw these treat bags, I knew what I was going to do with them.  It was really a spontaneous idea:  a "Thankful" mini album!  The colors were screaming autumn/Thanksgiving, so it was perfect.  And, I save all my paper treat bags from kits, so I definitely had enough bags to cover the 30 days of gratitude.  Now, I didn't plan to make a gratitude album this season.  I get a little overwhelmed with mini albums (I still have one that I've cut the paper for and printed the pictures and haven't done anything since), but I was already feeling the craft-high, so I just went with it.  I was definitely going to journal daily about my gratitude, but a project was not an intention.

So, here's the finished project...

I knew from the beginning that I wanted to hand-paint my title, like in this layout by Garden Girl Kristina Nicolai-White.  And, if you read my post yesterday, you know that I've been obsessed with gold! I just had to try this technique and I love how it turned out.  

I really wanted to challenge myself beyond using these treat bags, which was to use my stash for embellishing my mini album.  I wanted to stay with the traditional autumn color scheme of burnt orange, deep red, darker/mustard yellow, deep green, and brown.  I pulled everything in that color scheme from my stash.  And let me tell you, there wasn't much.

I do have to let you guys know that I cheated a little.  You see that cute felt leaf, the green sequin leaf, and the fall-themed stickers?  I got those from Michael's Saturday night.  Again, not intentionally.  Michael and I went to get him some sketchbooks and I happened to see a display of fall-themed craft stuff for 80% off!  I got felt leaves, sequin leaves, and fall-themed stickers each under $1! I couldn't say no.  So, I was able to add some fall-themed embellishments to my mini album.  Something I am thankful for!

I had a lot of fun putting this mini album together.  It's simple, but cute and all I have to do is write down what I'm thankful for each day on the piece of cardstock in the pocket and slap a photo on the bag side of each day.  As you guys were hopefully able to see in the tutorial, each treat bag was folded in half to make 2 pockets.  Each pocket will represent a day.  Journaling goes on the pull-out cardstock and a photo will go on the back of the day.  I'm doing a photo daily journal #mythankful30 using a list from @lilgik at feedyourcraft.com.  I am not documenting every photo on Instagram, only because some photos I'll have to pull from my photo library because some of the prompts may not match up to the day (i.e. a bright sunshiny day on November 23rd may not be sunshiny).  

Here's a picture of some of the plain paper bags I used in my mini album as well.  

I still haven't decided how I'm going to bind it.  I did punch small holes in everything, but it's really thick, so I don't know if rings would be a good idea.  Right now I have it all bound with twine, but I don't know if I'll like it.  

Now, it's your turn!  Share a project of yours and someone else's using the same products or kit. Make sure to include the link to your project and the other project in the comments section or Kelly's comments section for a chance at the prize.  Remember, the prize is a $5 gift certificate to Two Peas in a Bucket!  You have until Wednesday, November 20th to link up your project!  Now, go check out Kelly's take on our challenge.  You won't be disappointed; it's super cute!

xoxo,

Heather

Coffee & College

Hollie

Hello everyone! I hope you have visited the page to check out Heather's awesome wish lists and the projects she's been working on. I know I check in frequently.

I would like to inform you guys on my new membership into Delta Zeta! It was a long process with many obstacles, but I couldn't be happier that I am now apart of this awesome sorority!

So anyway, I want to focus on Fall. Fall is the best season of the year, in my opinion. However, it might be skewed a little since my birthday is in Fall. (four weeks, if you were wondering). Fall, to me, seems to bring so many opportunities of change and reflection. A lot of people would relate fall to death because the leaves are falling and it seems to be overcast most of the time. Fall is my beginning. And I can tell you why. Fall is the beginning of a school year. Each year, over summer, you learn to reinvent yourself or find new things that seem to click toward you. You change. For me, especially this fall, I have changed in so many ways. And I honestly couldn't be happier in where I am in my life.

But another thing about Fall I love, is the activities! So many fun and awesome activities! The weather cools down and you can wear sweaters and boots (basically my daily outfit for this season), the air is crisp, the wind is breezy. You can finally start having/attending bonfires, oh come on, I know all of you love them! You can go out apple picking, travel to the local pumpkin patch,carve (or paint) pumpkins, ride hayrack rides, have/attend costume parties, and drink hot cocoa and apple cider! And for some of us, celebrate our birthdays! I know all of these things are on my "things to do" list while I'm down here, along with some haunted houses too.

So, what will you guys be doing this fall??