Honey Bear Collection

My love of tea

inspired me to create this

"Honey Collection" clip art!

It's so darned cute.

And it's interactive -- 

meaning you can dress up your

two styles of honey bears

and the honey pourer

with the other clipart provided.

There's a bee of varying sizes,

a 3 types of honey wands, two types of spoons, 

a heart with the word 'honey' and 

honeycombs.

And I threw a couple of backgrounds 

to make it easy to make cards.

It'd be so sweet for Mother's Day 

or Father's Day coming up!

Also perfect for baby showers, a 

spring or summer party,

Valentine's Day, engagement, anniversary, birthdays, thank you cards... 

basically for anyone and anything you're sweet on!

You can get it here

on my etsy!

Gingham Picnic Cooler Tutorial for Tailgating

'Tis the perfect season for

picnics, camping and tailgating!

We had a beat-up cooler

that I decided to upcycle,

and what is more picnic-y than

GINGHAM?

Isn't she cute?!!

So today I'm sharing

How to make a Gingham Tailgate Picnic Cooler

otherwise known as the

Gingham Picnic Cooler Upcycle Tutorial.

Let's take this step by step:

DiY Wood Branch Coasters

Nature makes some stunning patterns.

And that means we can bring those

natural design elements into our homes

in simple and elegant ways.

After pruning a hedge apple tree 

we noticed the gorgeous rings in this branch.

Aha! 

Such dense wood makes for beautiful coasters

for a wedding gift,

housewarming,

fathers day

or your own home.

Here's how to make

DIY Wood Branch Coasters:

Easy Creamy Yummy Healthy Bean Dip Recipe

I'll give you a second to guess

what the secret ingredient is in my 

Easy Creamy Yummy Healthy Bean Dip

that saves calories

and yet makes it soooooo good.

It may be a little unconventional

but here it goes:

cottage cheese.

I wouldn't steer you wrong.

After all,

I told you the REAL scoop on those

great-looking {but are they?}

crunchy honey roasted garbanzo beans.

So here's my 

Easy Creamy Yummy Healthy Bean Dip Recipe

10 MORE Techniques for Handcrafted Cards

When your schedule is too packed 

for larger projects, creating a handcrafted card 

for a family member or friend can become 

the perfect, contained creative outlet.

Valentine's Day, Mother's Day, 
Father's Day, birthdays, 
graduation, weddings, showers, thank-you's... 
the opportunities are endless!

I shared 10 Techniques for Handcrafting Cards

with you *here.*

And now here are 

10 MORE handcrafted card techniques:

Printable Quotes for Dads

X-Ray Skull Watch by iGottaCreate

Whether for 

Father's Day

birthdays, or just because... here are 

four printable quotes for men

that you can frame as gifts

or adhere to a card blank.

I love how this one

is a reminder to stay present

Wild West Party Theme Ideas

 

I'm sharing

party theme ideas suitable for guys

and gals. Check out these dozen

Wild West Party Theme Ideas!

Patinaed Buttons Digital Download

If you find yourself charmed
by elements sporting
an aged patina,
I have a digital gift for you!


I only ask that if you download
these lovely funky elements,
please G+ this post, share it on Facebook
and pin it. Great deal, right? :)


Ok, so here are some pretty, perfectly

patinaed buttons digital download

elements for you:

10 Ideas to Spice Up a Guy Party Theme

Details bring any project to life. 

They are, as they say, the spice of life!  

Spice up a party theme for guys with

these 10 great ideas:

Western Fringe Sour Cream Party Favors

Yeehaw! We're rounding up a whole herd of fun with the Wild West party theme. 

How sweet are these western sour cream party favors with faux leather fringe?!! 

They complement the Wild West Fringed Snack Bags {*click here for tutorial.*} You will use a few of the lunch sacks from that project to make the faux leather fringe for these cute party favors.

They would be great for July 4th fun, too!

Imagine all the secret goodies that could be waiting to surprise some lucky cowgirl or cowboy! 

The tutorial instructions are longer than it takes to do the project. After your first couple, you'll start whipping them out quickly. 

Here's how you make Wild West fringed 

sour cream party favors: 

A Joyful June Overview!

Another busy month zooms by with Fathers Day celebrations and preparations for Independence Day. Here's an overview of June projects and fun here at  I Gotta Create! 

Preparations for guy-gift-giving in May...

how to powder emboss

woodgrain embossed gift box

western card with twine for 3-D fun

...expand in June with:

fishy two-toned embossed {recycled} gift packages

Tall Fish Tales card

Angling for a fabulous 4th of July, Pringles cans provide lots of bang for the buck:

firecracker tutorial

working straw caddy

rockin' rocket mobile

Morphing the "guy" and "independence" themes, we're adventuring into wild west fun with movie night popcorn bags! 

Don't you love that faux leather fringe look?!

And of course, what's summer without at least one Root Beer Float? I give this tradition a twist this summer.

June's inspiring creative woman is: Lizy B Bakes. She didn't realize it, but she's helping to create world peace with her gorgeous cookies!

Kirstin at Craftiments submits a fantastic Pinterest tip for bloggers at the Blog Tips Cafe party. That party is open year-round, so link up your wisdom.

And the party all month long with the Wildly Original Round Up continues. An Independence Day extravaganza feature of your work goes up July 1st!

Whew! Are we having summer fun yet? ;)


Come see the 25 Star Spangled Spectacular July 4th Projects *Here!*

{I host a weekly linky party. Come find out more here!  I'm sharing these Summer Fun Projects with...Monday:  Craftomaniac, Making The World Cuter, Project Queen, The Gunny Sack, Alderberry Hill, A Round Tuit, Skip to My Lou, Cherished Bliss; Tuesday:  Not Just a Housewife, The DIY Dreamer, Tip Junkie, Today's Creative Blog, Uncommon, Gingersnap Crafts, The NY Melrose Family; Wednesday:  The 36th Avenue, Live-Laugh-Rowe, No Minimalist Here, Nest of Posies, Savvy Southern Style, Someday Crafts, The Trendy Treehouse, Very Merry Vintage Style, Family Home and Life, What We Wore & Made,Snap; Thursday:  Bliss Ranch Hot Fun in the Summertime, Shabby Nest; Friday:  Funky Junk Interiors, Anything Goes, Finding Fabulous, My Simple Home Life, Romantic Home, French Country Cottage, Tatertots and Jello, Thirty Handmade Days, Faith Trust & Pixie Dust, Naptime Crafters, Too Much Time on my Hands, Stuff & Nonsense; Saturday:  Be Different Act Normal,  It's Overflowing, Sisters of the Wild West, Sew Country Chick; Sunday: Nifty Thrifty Things, DIY Project Parade, Under The Table and Dreaming, My 1929 Charmer, Sew Darned Crafty}

Western Fringe Popcorn Bag Tutorial

 

Movie nights at home are the best! Shoot the fun factor through the roof with this super cheap and cute idea: faux 'leather' fringed bags for your popcorn. 

They're made from plain, ordinary, everyday lunch sacks...  

Tall Fish Tales {DiY Card}

He's a great catch, so let him know it with a card you create yourself. 

When you use a rubber stamp to create your image, you can have lots of fun and color coordinate it any way you want! This card complements the *embossed gift boxes.* Here's a closer look...

Tackle This! {Gift Box}

He'll be hooked the moment he sees the package! Whatever you put inside... 

{maybe these DIY Rustic Coasters, for example?  

}

...part of the fun of gift giving is the presentation! 

Can you believe this is paperless gift wrapping?!