Speaking of Teepees . . .

I thought I had already posted this but apparently I haven't.  Back in 2013, Cricut had a contest using designs from their Southwest cartridge.  I rarely enter contests where skill determines the winner, but I had an idea for something I wanted to make as a gift for my two-year-old nephew anyway so I decided to enter.  I actually won!!  I couldn't believe it!  It was a great gift package worth nearly $500!  I've never won anything like that before or since. 

Here is the teepee I made:

 

I made the extra props just for the contest.  I didn't even give him the cacti or critters.

 

The back

 

Close up of the sign I made.  I created the letters using various shapes on the Southwest cartridge.  I enjoy challenges like that.

 

 

 

This was what it looks like unassembled.

 

I made the teepee from a canvas dropcloth.  For the poles I cut bamboo from my mother-in-law's yard.  The designs are fabric appliques cut from the Southwest cartridge.  If you are interested in more details on how to make this, you can find the instructions on the Cricut website HERE.

 

I was pretty proud of it, but I was really shocked when I learned I had won.  I had so much fun making this I have made three more since.  One was identical to this one, one was plain, and one I recently made customized for my two-year-old grandson.  (I hope to post that one later.)

Thanksgiving Teepees

I host Thanksgiving each year and I like to have a fun activity available to anyone who would like to participate.  Last year I found a teepee printable on the Made With Happy blog.  I thought the kids and some of the adults would enjoy it.  I was pleasantly surprised at the participation, especially from one of the newest members of the family, my youngest sister's husband.  He is very creative and seems to be good at everything!  He took the teepee to new levels (literally).  Here are some of the creations:

 

My creative granddaughter's teepee

 

 

This one was done by one of my crazy nephews.

 

 

Not sure who did this one, but I like it.

 

 

My sister's family compound/reservation, including the royal palace complete with a hot tub and an outhouse.

 

 

Here's a close up.

 

 

Somebody burned the turkey!

 

 

My patriotic nephew's version

 

Not sure what we'll do this year.  I'm still trying to decide.  Hope we have as much fun as last year!

Card for Wanda

Since it is quite obvious that I am never going to catch up posting previous creations, I might as well start with the one from today while it is fresh in my mind.  I made this card for a friend of mine for a housewarming gift.  I was unable to make it to the actual party (over a month ago) due to being on vacation, so when she invited our Sunday School class over I thought that was as good a time as any to give her the card.  I have been working on the card off and on this whole time, trying to learn my Silhouette software.  I got very frustrated at times, but I'm glad I soldiered on and won the battle.  Most everything cut with the Silhouette Cameo would have taken MUCH less time to just cut by hand, but I was determined to learn the machine and software.  I would learn a little and then by the time I got around to it again, I had forgotten what I learned and would have to start over.  (Ugh)

After the frustrating part was over, I had great fun adding all the details.  As always, the end result was much different than my original plan, but this was one I was actually pleased with.

The door is huge for a reason.  That was the main feature in order to place a gift card behind it.  I "built" the house to fit the door.  :-)  The window design changed several times before settling on this somewhat plain one.  The shutters were from the hen house Silhouette file by Jillibean Soup.  The grass was a border punch, as was the window valance.  The kitty, wreath, flowers, and tiny butterfly were various punches.  I drew lines for siding and roofing (can't really see the roof detail).  The doorknob is a brad.  I got the inside sentiment from the internet and just printed it and added a punched heart.

The actual card is just the house.  The "sky" and "grass" were just used for photographing the card, but I really like how it looks so I might just have to recreate it as a scrapbook page.  ;-)  The card only opens at the door.  I went back and forth as to whether or not the entire house should be hinged.  I even made the back hinged, but I whacked it off when I decided it was too flimsy to open the whole house (and I didn't want to stay up any longer to add more support).  Decision-making takes way more time than any crafting I do.  (Sigh)