3 Easy Holiday Crafts With Hersheys Chocolate kisses

Every once in a while I get the opportunity to try out products for various companies. Mostly for the craft industry but lately I have had other types of companies and products come my way. My life (although full of crafting) has so many aspects to it... all of which I love to share here on my blog, Twitter, facebook or instagram.

It's me. It's my family. It's my life. It is probably very similar to yours too. And that's why I share, because chances are we all are going through similar things, like similar things and well if I can share something helpful, I will.

This summer I started receiving Voxboxes from Influenster to try out various products. I receive these products complimentary with no compensation other than the products themselves. I get the products, test them out and share my experiences with them. Pretty simple and it helps to break up the monotony of contract work with this little sprinkle of fun. It is a lot of fun to get a mystery box of goodies to play with.
 

This seasons Voxbox was for Hershey's Kisses (#merrykissmas). This makes sense for our family since we bake and craft a whole lot of stuff for the holidays and Hershey's are really easy to add into the mix.

Kids Craft- Puffy Candy Garland

This craft is perfect to do with kids, even younger kids. Using broader point needle helps to teach kids some good hand eye coordination, but also give them the basic skills of sewing. I recommend supervising kids as they create this even though it is such a simple craft.

Supplies:
dental floss
tapestry needle or other broad needle
puffy craft balls
Hershey Kisses
cute crafty kids :)

To begin simply take a string of dental floss and thread your needle. I only have the thread pass through once to keep the thread thin. tie the end to help prevent your garland from falling apart. Proceed to thread sequences of kisses and puffy balls. We did 3 puffy balls to 1 kiss. This can also be a great time for kids to work on color pattern sequences as well. You can structure this as a learning tool for kids or you can just let them have at it and create. Your choice, either way its fun, easy and something they accomplish which is always a win. When you are done tie off the end. Kids can gift wrap this and give it to friends, this can be a candy/craft garland that they share with a friend as a part of a crafty gift basket... truly the possibilities are endless with this. After the gift is given, the kisses can be eaten and the puffy balls can be used to help learn counting, or for older kids they can be used for crafts. In our family when our children were younger, these puffy balls were used as currency in our home... so seriously the sky is the limit with this craft and the creative ways you can integrate it into your home or gifts.

In Case of Emergency "Relax" Kit

My first craft I made with my Hershey Kisses was some hostess style gifts. I gave these to the brave moms who helped me wrangle 15 girls for my daughters 9th birthday party last week. It didn't take long, but it was a nice way to share a treat with my friends who helped me so very much.


supplies:

string or twine
2x2 white cardstock
ink
stamp- Collage of Digits- Unity Stamp Company (Liz Hicks Studios)
scissors
washi tape
bottled drink
hersheys kisses

To create these is super simple. I made the 2x2 cards by stamping the cardstock, adding some white washi tape and then writing on the card my sentiment "hugs and kisses". From here I tied the card around the neck of my soft drink and tied the string into a bow. I simply added the kisses with washi tape to add some chocolate to my gift because seriously... after 2 hours with (15) 8-9  year old girls... who wouldn't need a little chocolate?

Peanut Butter Blossom Cookies

Every year our neighborhood gals get together for a cookie exchange. It is by far my favorite time we get together because well, we eat... we chat and we all leave with a bunch of cookies... It's like an Oprah's favorite things moment for me :)

This year my neighbor made my kids favorites- Peanut Butter Blossom Cookies


If you really want to make something quick and easy... these are them. You can pick up the two ingredients (peanut butter cookie dough and hershey kisses) that you need at the store. If you have a little more time you could use this recipe here.



But seriously if you are in a pinch... all it takes is just these two ingredients to make these cookies happen. Super easy.

If you are interested in learning more about the Influenster program click here.

Hopefully this gives you some quick and easy ideas for some homemade treats.

Enjoy your weekend!

~Liz Hicks ♥

ScanNCut Blog now LIVE!

It is still surreal to think that my work has taken me to this place that I get to work with a client like Brother International (tm). I am not an employee of theirs, I own my own business in which I work with different companies in marketing and product development as that is my background, but never in my wildest dreams would I think that I would be working with a company that has been such a legacy of products in my own family.

As I always mention in my contract posts, I am a paid consultant for Brother International and although I am paid, My opinions are my own and I am never prompted to jeopardize my integrity by bearing false information. All information that I share is my own and of my own opinion.

Now with all of that said... I just wanted to take a moment and share that the Brother Blog is now LIVE! This will be a great inspirational point for those of you looking for blog projects from the designers that helped with the launch as well as some Brother posts as well.

I could not be prouder that my sweet little girl is on the header of the blog right now.... Here is a screen shot of how she looks. You can't notice this but she is hiding a bright orange cast on her left hand :)

She had so much fun on site during our photo shoot together. And she is just beautiful on camera (I'm sorry, I just love her so much ♥)

In addition to this picture and projects you will find more information as well as links to the Brother Crafter social media sites... I highly recommend you check these out.

Thanks for stopping by today and make sure to check out the Brother blog and site for the most up to date information. Also if you have any questions you can ask me, or you can post them on facebook... Facebook is the fastest way to get a response.

 xoxo,

~Liz ♥

The BUZZ about ScanNCut- All you need to know about this new machine.

Disclosure: I am a paid consultant for Brother International Corporation and have received a ScanNCut from Brother to evaluate. However, the opinions expressed are entirely my own and are based on my use of the product.

So I have seen SO MANY questions around blogs and message boards in regards to ScanNCut and I wanted to take a minute to answer some questions that you may have based on my experience with my machine.

Let me first start by sharing some information that I received from the Senior VP of the Home Appliance Division at Brother International, Dean Shulman:

"There are 2 models which will ship in October. One model will be available at Amazon for $399 plus applicable taxes and a step up model will be available from authorized Brother dealers starting at $499. You can find out the differences between the models on the www.scanNcut.com website. The differences are substantial and worth the value if you have the extra money.

Brother is planning on adding a download center before the end of the year for Scan N Cut owners which will offer additional features which can be done in the cloud."

Now I have had my own ScanNCut by Brother International (tm) machine since about April 2013 (prototype and pre-production machines) and have worked with it from the beginning with one of the first hand built machines. I have had time to work through it, create and really push the capacity of the machine. I have had time to truly investigate this machine and explore all of its features. In addition Brother used us crafters to help develop features that we would like to see on the machine; so this machine has been truly infused with a crafters desires in mind.

 I wanted to make sure that this machine was worth my endorsement as with all of the product that I use on my blog. So I really pushed my machine hard and stretched the limits. Like I mentioned before, although I have been paid by Brother and have assisted them with consulting, this in no way is reflected on my opinion. In all honesty I work with companies I trust and can endorse whole heartedly without remorse. I have always had this approach with my blogging and continue to do so. I firmly believe in sharing the truth and sharing knowledge. As a part of my commitment to continuing this approach on my blog, I wanted to share this info from Dean and myself with you all :)

So here are my thoughts...

ScanNCut it not only the first home and hobby personal cutting machine with a built in scanner but in my opinion it is the last digital cutting machine I will ever need. I have worked with others and have found that what other manufacturers have made are machines that are complicated, dependent on future sales and always rely on a computer or cartridges and well, that is just not what I have seen of Brother. With Brother, the machine is created with a USB port so that any future software updates will be free and will be as easy to update as plugging in your USB into your machine.

I have been working with Brother on this project since March and I have watched as Brother has taken steps toward eliminating what other machines have made complicated and have now created a machine in ScanNCut that is simple, easy to use and extremely intuitive.

In addition you may want to check out the new LIVE site at www.ScanNCut.com. This site is full of information as well as printable project sheets and the specifications of ScanNCut. You can choose which machine works best for you as both models are featured. Although both machines work perfectly for a multitude of crafts as well as have the same firmware and infrastructure, there are a few added bonus designs in one of the machines. This helps to allow you to pick which machine works best for you!


You can see the video below which Kathy Cano-Murillo and I shot in Colorado not to long ago. This shows from start to finish one of the many benefits of having a scanner built into your electronic cutting machine can offer.  The Scan to Cut function.







WHY the SCANNCUT machine?

Besides this video, we have about different 20 videos that feature a wide variety of tools, techniques, tricks and projects that share with you the many features of ScanNCut; Check them out here. ScanNCut was created for use in a wide variety of crafting from Mixed Media, Paper Crafting, Sewing and Quilting and even DIY general crafting to mention a few. Brother takes the technology and innovation that they are known for and apply it to ScanNCut to help solve many problems that other electronic cutting machines have faced before. In addition, ScanNCut is covered under Brothers Customer Service, as well as maintenance which ensures peace of mind for crafters looking to purchase ScanNCut.

When taking a look at your cutting machines as well as any future machines you may look into, here are a few tips to consider:

• Take full notice of what your total investment may be (machine, cartridges, software, computer, time and downloads). Tally up what you may spend this next year as an investment into your electronic cutting and crafting.

• Also take into account how much space all of these items take up as well as the convenience of set up. With ScanNCut it is light weigh and all you have to do is take it out of the box and plug it in.  You are you can start crafting anywhere. There is no need for cartridges or a computer.

ScanNCut is a great machine and I hope that you will see that it truly is this simple to make your designs come to life in minutes. I encourage you to take a few minutes to grab a cup of coffee and watch these videos on the BrotherCrafter YouTube channel. Although you may not have a ScanNCut, this will teach you the features of the machine as well give you some great tips and inspiration from some of the industries top crafters. Kathy Cano-Murillo, May Flaum, Vanessa Vargas Wilson, Julie Fei-Fan Balzer... these girls worked hard on these videos and I know that collectively with their talent you will find in these videos some of the answers that you may be asking yourself about ScanNCut.

Again although I am a paid consultant, this information is what I find to be true about ScanNCut and I am sure that you will see what I am talking about. Or if you come up with some questions please ask me. I have been working with the ScanNCut machine since March.  In addition, the Brother team is excited to help you learn all about ScanNCut; you can ask questions through their social media sites at anytime.


Feel free to comment here or on the Brother Crafter page on Facebook with any questions you have.  My goal is to help anyone who wants to learn more. I am a teacher by nature :) So if I can help, please let me know! email me or you can find me on Facebook under Liz Hicks Studios.

~Liz Hicks ♥

say hello to my friend, ScanNCut!

Isn't she pretty :)

I just wanted to let you all know that the ScanNCut site is close to being done. In the mean time, we have a few videos up, click here to check them out! In addition, we have revealed the machine!
Here it is in red :)

The site is going live September 23rd and ScanNCut machines will be available to ship this October!

Make sure to sign up for the newsletter to get all of the latest and greatest info, tutorials and updates about ScanNCut.

You won't want to miss out!

Let me know what you think of the videos, we have so much to share with you, this is just the beginning!

~Liz Hicks

ScanNCut= No more fussy cutting!

Another amazing feature of ScanNCut is the capability to cut designs directly from your surface.  I have been able to take the fussy cutting out of crafting with ScanNCut.

You can see here how I was able to scan in my Graphic 45 paper and cut this dress form directly from the paper.

In just a few simple steps, within minutes I was able to cut this dress for out of my paper without any scissors.

I can't wait to show you all of the fun that I have been having with the machine, I know that these little teases have given you a glimpse of ScanNCut's capabilities, but I promise I will show you so much more soon! The machine launch is just around the corner.

Remember, to be the FIRST to find out about ScanNCut make sure to sign up here.

If you have any questions feel free to email me or ask here :)

~Liz ♥

ScanNCut can do what?

I am SO excited with the response ScanNCut is getting from all of my crafty friends!

Here is a fun experiment I wanted to share with you on the capabilities of ScanNCut...

I really love pushing the boundries of the products I work with... ScanNCut did not fail!

Above you will see that I was able to cut through wood veneer paper, denim as well as paper all with the same blade! Not only did it cut, but it cut flawlessly and precise... I am in LOVE.

It is incredible to see all that ScanNCut can cut through, I can't wait to share more with you!

If you want to learn more about ScanNCut make sure to sign up HERE to be the FIRST to hear about ScanNCut.

XOXO,

~Liz ♥

Introducing ScanNCut

I can't believe that it is finally here. Time to announce the amazing project that I have been working on since February...

I am so pleased to introduce to you...

 From Brother International

ScanNCut is the Worlds FIRST Home and Hobby Cutting Machine with a 300 DPI built in Scanner.

With the capability to scan you can easily make this...

Into this...

Within minutes. No computer, no software JUST ScanNCut.

Make sure to sign up HERE to be the FIRST to hear about this innovative new machine from Brother International.


~Liz ♥