Thursday, January 31, 2013

Words to Live By

I've been trying to use up scraps and utilize other items that don't get used very much. So I created this card with that in mind.

I started with the background paper, which I've had for a while. I added the sentiment, which I love, but I don't use the stamp as often as I'd like. Then I added the cute bear from Create a Critter.



I finished the card with a border punch, ribbon and a few gems. I then finished off the inside of the card.



Thanks for stopping by.

Challenges:
Fantabulous Cricut: Time
Forever Friends: Ribbon/lace
Tuesday Throwdown: Bling
Red Carpet Studio: Ted/bear
Pin and Tack: Anything goes
Paper Crafting Journey: For a girl
Crafty Ribbons Challenge: Anything goes
Moving Along with the Times: Punch it out

Tuesday, January 29, 2013

Another Year Older

My little brother's birthday was this past weekend. It's hard to see him getting older, because that means I'm getting older, especially when his birthday is the day before mine.


When I set out to make a card for him, it took me awhile to settle on a design. This is what I finally settled on.



I love the background paper, maybe because I use to work for newspapers. I added a little star clip that I got on clearance at Michael's.


Inside the card, I added a few more details.



Thanks for looking.

Challenges:
Raise the Bar: Message me
Pan Pastel: Stars
Little Scrap Pieces: Birthday
Make it Monday: Anything goes
Tuesday Alchemy: Anything goes
Die Cuttin' Divas: Anything goes
Creative Inspirations Paint: Anything goes
Pin and Tack: Anything goes

Love Bug

I've always loved ladybugs and have so many around the house. When I saw this cutie on Create a Critter, I just had to use it.

The sentiment is also from Create a Critter and cut from a great paper with a really subtle swirl pattern. I cut the hearts from George and Basic Shapes. I added glitter glue for extra sparkle. I have several bottles of the red glitter glue (because it's the best color!) so I'm trying to use more of it.



I put the phrase and ladybug on pop dots or a little dimension.



Inside the card, I stamped a Valentine's Day sentiment.



Thanks for stopping by!

Challenges:
DL.Art: Red or pink
Whimsical Wednesdays: Love
The Sisterhood of Crafters: Hearts
The Pink Elephant: Hearts
My Time to Craft: Things with wings
Exploring Cricut: 1, 2, 3
Scrap-Creations: Valentine's
Shopping Our Stash: Valentine's
Pin and Tack: Anything goes
Creative Inspirations Paint: Anything goes
Make it Monday: Anything goes

Friday, January 25, 2013

Berry Sweet

I recently purchased a new paper pack that included a strawberry print. I thought it would be a perfect match with my Simply Charmed cartridge, so I created a Valentine's Day card with red, pink and green colors.

I cut two strawberries and used the word feature for the sentiment. I finished off the card with gems, ribbon and a border punch. (Sorry for the poor photo quality. It was late and the lighting was bad.)



Inside the card, I stamped a Valentine's Day message.





 
Thanks!

Challenges:
Cricut Chirp: Sweet Valentine
Die Cuttin' Divas: Edge punch with ribbon
Crafty Creations: 2 identical elements
DL.Art: Pink or red
Cut it Up: Love is in the air

Thursday, January 24, 2013

Thank You Snow Much

My lucky daughter is still getting Christmas presents from people we didn't see over the holidays, so I created a quick thank you card to send.

The paper has blue snowflakes that are raised a little, so it gives it great texture. I added ribbon and a few gems to finish it off.




Thanks for looking!


Challenges:
Card Makin Mamas: CAS
Paper Playtime: Use brown
2 Sisters: Brown, white, blue
The Hybrid Chick: Winter
Cupcake Inspirations: Winter/brown, white, blue
My Sheri Crafts: Got snow?
Tuesday Alchemy: Winter wonder

Wednesday, January 23, 2013

It's a Girl -- Finally

There is a baby due very soon in my family. My aunt and uncle have three boys and now they are expecting a baby girl next month.

My aunt loves dragonflies, so I wanted to give a new gift that incorporated them. I bought a cute picture frame and used Alphalicious to add the baby's initial -- J. The background paper is pink and sparkly, and I added glitter glue to the dragonfly wings. It is from Simply Charmed. I really love the way this frame turned out. Their house needs pink, glittery cuteness after all those boys.





I kept the theme going on the card. I used the same dragonfly, but cut the flowers and background mat from Create a Critter. I added ribbon and pearls, and that was it. I love the soft, pastel colors -- perfect for a new baby.



I stamped my sentiment inside.




Thanks!



Challenges:
Celebrate the Occasion: Baby
Cardz TV: Baby New Year
Go Fish: Pastels
Crafty Boots: New
Challenges 4 Everybody: Anything goes
Pan Pastel: Nature
Make it Monday: Anything goes
Little Scrap Pieces: Use a flower

Monday, January 21, 2013

Layers of Love

I made a quick Valentine's Day card with a color combination I love -- pink and brown.

I used George and Basic Shapes to make several hearts and layered them.


I just added some brown ribbon and glitter glue. The Feb 14 is a stamp. Inside the card I stamped a simple sentiment and heart.


This was a simple card that came together quickly, and I love the colors.


Thanks!



Challenges:
The Pink Elephant: Pink/brown
Really Reasonable Ribbon: Valentine
Paper Pretties: Ribbon
Challenges for Everybody: Anything goes
Make it Monday: Anything goes
Paper Playtime: Use brown


Friday, January 18, 2013

Wishing You a Banner Year

As I've mentioned before, whenever there is a birthday where I work, everyone signs a card for the birthday girl or boy. Today is my coworker's birthday, so I made this card for her. I used Pretty Pennants for the banner and used my Fiskars clear stamps for the sentiment.





Inside the card, I decorated both sides since several people were going to sign it. The sentiment inside is also from the Fiskars birthday set.






Thanks!


Challenges:
Creative Inspirations Paint: Favorite Stamp
Shopping Our Stash: Two Ts (twine and tangerine color paper) 

Whimsical Wednesdays: Anything goes

Simply Create Too: Anything goes
Cardz TV: Banner

Little Red Wagon: Repeat shape



Butterfly Birthday

I was checking the dollar bins at Michael's and found round card bases. I've never made a shaped card, so I figured this would be a good starting point.

I inked the edges of the card and cut the background circle using George and Basic Shapes. The butterfly and branch are from Create a Critter. I hand-cut the birthday banner and stamped it with a clear stamp that's from my go-to birthday set from Fiskars. It's a great set with lots of variation.


The flower is another dollar-bin find, and I just added glitter glue and pearls.



Thanks for looking!


Challenges:
Little Red Wagon: Bling 
Crazy 4 Challenges: Shape card
Red Carpet Studio: Butterflies
Pan Pastel: New technique
Creative Inspirations Paint: Favorite Stamp
Divas by Design: Girlie

Thursday, January 17, 2013

Something Fishy Going On

I've been playing with my Create a Critter cartridge and really wanted to use the cute goldfish. I had a little fun with this card, and made a girl and boy fish who won't let anything come between them. (Yes, I created a back story for them. It was late, and I should have been in bed.)



The great thing about this card is it was made using ALL scrap pieces of paper. Every, single thing was cut from scraps. Obviously, I love glitter glue, and I used it to accent my design. I also used gems that I've had for more than three years! I only remember that because they were used on some decorations for my wedding.



I stamped a sentiment inside the card using one of my new favorite stamps. I think it sums up the romance between these fish perfectly. This might be my husband's Valentine's card. We'll see.



Thanks!


Challenges:
Forever Friends: Favorite Embellishment
Use it Tuesday: Sparkle


Make it Monday: Anything goes

Fantabulous Cricut: Man's World

 

Tuesday, January 15, 2013

Bright and Cheery Winter

Here in San Antonio it is dark, gloomy and cold! But the weather has inspired me to make a fun, colorful winter card. I used Create a Critter and new paper I got from the discount rack.


The background paper has cute, bright mittens and I just added a few snowflakes.


Inside the card:

Thanks for looking!

Challenges:

Exploring Cricut: Baby it's cold outside 

Little Scrap Pieces: Winter blues 
Ribbon Carousel: Winter spirit 
Cupcake Inspirations: Winter/penguins 
Tuesday Alchemy: Winter
Die Cuttin’ Divas: Penguins

The Sisterhood: Baby it's cold outside

Saturday, January 12, 2013

Do What You Love

I did some power shopping at the craft store recently during my lunch break. I quickly found a new paper stack and stamps, and was on my way.

I bought the DCWV Sweet Stack and found clear stamps in the $1 bins, and quickly put them to use.


The paper is glittery so I didn't want to add too much. I just added a little ribbon and a few brads.



I decorated inside the card but left space to write a little message.



It's a really simple card, but I love the colors and the sentiment.


Thanks for looking!


Challenges:
Tuesday Alchemy: Hopes and dreams
Pink by Designs: Inspiration

Friday, January 11, 2013

Super Star

I've been building up my birthday card stash lately, and it has been fun trying different styles. I saw a card on craftideas.info and loved the style, so I made my own version.

I wanted it to be something that was more gender-neutral, so I used stars instead of flowers. I cut out the stars with my Cricut using George and Basic Shapes.




I was attracted to this design because of the use of negative space. I think it adds a lot of dimension. Instead of the paper piercing, I used a patterned paper with dots. The paper comes from a great stack called Moments from My Mind's Eye that I just bought on clearance for about $1. I wish I had gotten more.

I added pop dots like the original, and a button instead of the bead. I got these buttons from the $1 bin awhile ago, and I'm finally getting around to using them.




Inside the card I used scraps from the pattered paper and the negative of the small star cutouts. I also stamped a birthday sentiment.



Thanks for looking!


Challenges:
Creative Inspirations Paint: Case it
The Hybrid Chick: Negative space
Crafty Creations: New
Tuesday Throwdown: New
Challenges 4 Everybody: Anything goes
Pan Pastel: Anything goes
Make it Monday: Anything goes
Card Makin' Mamas: Anything goes
Shopping Our Stash: Buttons 

Thursday, January 10, 2013

Gone Fishin'

I've been working on building up my birthday card stash, and I am seriously lacking in cards for boys. So that was my project last night.

I used Simply Charmed for the image and phrase. The "U" is from Alphalicious.



Here's a close-up of the poor fish.




Inside:


Thanks


Challenges:
My Sheri Crafts: Sports
Tammy’s Scrapin Corner: Manly
Forever Friends: Birthday
Celebrate the Occasion: Boy birthday with blue
The Pink Elephant: Celebrate
Lexi’s Creations: Anything goes  
Divas by Design: Anything goes  
Paper Crafting Journey: Anything goes  

Tuesday, January 8, 2013

Love is in the Air

I've been seeing so much cute Valentine's Day decorations and crafting supplies, so I just had to make something for the upcoming holiday.

I wanted to start off simple, so I just made a little tag. This is my first Valentine's Day with my Cricut, so I'm just excited to use some of the cute cuts. I used George and Basic Shapes for the tag and Simply Charmed for the heart.


I just added a little glitter glue on the wings and the sentiment, and that was it!



Thanks for stopping by.



Challenges:
Hiding in My Craft Room: Black and white + 1
Crafty Boots: Black and bright
Fantabulous Cricut: Tag
Pin and Tack: Anything goes
Challenges 4 Everybody: Anything goes

Friday, January 4, 2013

Doggone Excited

A new year and a new Cricut cartridge! I'm so excited to have Create a Critter; I've been after if for a while now. I have big plans for this cartridge, but I'll share more on that later.

I couldn't wait to try out this cartridge, so I made a quick and simple tag for a birthday boy. I used George and Basic Shapes for the actual tag and added a little sparkle to the hat and collar.



Thanks for looking!

Challenges:
Crafty Boots: Lad tags
The Pink Elephant: Anything goes
Fussy and Fancy: Furry friends
Scrap-Creations: Something new
Hiding in My Craft Room: Freestyle
Forever Friends: Birthday
Make it Monday
: Anything goes
Crafty Creations: Anything goes  
Divas by Design: Anything goes
DL.ART: Anything goes

Getting Organized

Over at Fantabulous Cricut, they are trying to get organized for the New Year. That inspired me to get a little organized myself.

I had a plain, white photo box lying around, so I decided to decorate it for my card stash. I've been trying to make extra cards here and there to have on hand, and I thought this was a great way to organize them.

This is what I started with:


Pretty boring, right? So I grabbed paper from my stash and my Cricut. I used Paisley and Alphalicious for the top of the box. Hmm, I just realized I put the S on upside down. I'll have to fix that!







It was quick and easy, and now I have a place to put my cards. I'm thinking of making one for my clear stamps.

Thanks!

Challenges:
Fantabulous Cricut: Organization
Tuesday Throwdown: Bright colors
Hiding in My Craft Room: Freestyle

Thursday, January 3, 2013

Happy New Year!

I hope everyone had a safe and happy New Year. I'm so excited to start this year with my great friends and family, and of course, crafting.

I created this simple card to celebrate 2013. I used Simply Charmed for the champagne flutes and Alphalicious for the year.




I used really great gold paper for the champagne and little gold gems for the bubbles. I also added glitter glue to make the flutes sparkle.



Inside, I used the word feature in Simply Charmed to cut the sentiment.






Challenges:
Exploring Cricut: New Year
Little Red Wagon: New Year
Paper Pretties: Bling
Just Us Girls: New Year
Hiding in My Craft Room: Freestyle
Scrappy Moms Stamps: TTC  (Baby New Year)