I made the CHIRP!!

I have only posted three projects so far on the Cricut.com message boards but my second one...my altered Tool Box from the new Handy Man lite cartridge...was featured in the June 22nd newsletter.  I am so excited!!!!  I am in there with Melanie from Courtney Lane Designs and Joy from Obsessed with Scrapbooking who I have been following on their blogs and Everyday Cricut for just over a year now.

Here is a link to the newsletter:  http://www.cricut.com/newsletters/volume.aspx?ID=262 

Celebrate with Flourish-Father's Day Card

Here is the quick card I made for my dad for Fathers Day today.  I used the same DCWV paper that I used yesterday for my brother-in-laws birthday card.  I used tan for my shadow from DCWV Rustic Stack and the metallic blue green is from DCWV Metallic Stack.  The brown pearls are Recollections that I just happened to pick up at M's last week--almost like I knew I would use them soon.

I love using vellum for the envelope when I get the chance to...you spend so much time making the card look nice just to stick it in an envelope...why not show it off even before it is opened.  This card is 4.25 x 4.25; the envelope is from Plantin School Book cut "fit to page" on 8.5 x 11 vellum.  I believe it is Roly Poly feature then shift of the card for the envelope.

Celebrate With Flourish-Golf Bag Birthday Card

I made this for my brother-in-law today since it is his birthday.  I shouldn't have waited until the day of to make it but it was really simple.

I used my new DCWV Linen Closet stack for the stripe background and the blue of the bag.  The brown and gold were scraps from the scrap drawers.  The ivory card is The Paper Company from Michaels.  The sentiment is from Inkadinkado "just saying" inked with brown ink from M's (don't remember brand).

I cut all four layers of the golf bag at 3 3/4 from the new Celebrate with Flourish Cricut Lite cartridge that I purchased last week.  I cut the shadow and third piece both in brown.  I glued the blue and smaller brown piece together and then cut off the clubs.  I wanted the clubs to look like they were coming out of the bag and also wanted them to be metallic instead of matching the color of the bag.  My card is 9 x 6 1/4 (folded is 4 1/2 x 6 1/4), the striped layer is 4 1/4 x 6.  I used a corner rounder on the card and the background piece because I thought the card looked funny with just the striped paper rounded.  I inked the edges of the golf bag and striped paper with brown ink.  I started to add ribbon and or twine but realized it was for a man so he wouldn't care if that was missing.

Handy Man Father's Day Card

I have the new Cricut Lite Handy Man cartridge. I have dreaming of this cartridge for a long time and they finally did it. I am very excited!!!!! As soon as I saw it I started seeing images that I would alter to make shaped cards. Here is the first one.

The tool box...........it just screamed "open me." LOL

I used Design Studio to weld two tool boxes together at the handle. I used hide contour to remove the cuts for the "lid". I also hid the holes in the hinges becaues I only wanted two instead of the four it is designed to cut. I cut the shadow in gray, glued one box to the shadow, used my bone folder to create the crease for the card at the handle, used scissors to cut the part that opens, then glued the front of the box to the other that I had already glued down (wow that is confusing). Luckily I have a Xyron X sticker maker...I would never have been able to make those strips stick down if I didn't have the X.

I work for a maintenance department that employs approximately 130 trades men and women so I plan to get a good bit of use out of this cartridge making get well and retirement cards for work. I will also be doing scrapbooking projects of our house hold changes since we are planning some big projects around here soon.

We will be using this card for my Father-in-Law for fathers day. I will be using the new Lite "Celebrate with Flourishes" for my dad's card but can't work on that right now. We have a new kitten (Gracie) and I need to go check on her.

Forever Young Shoe Card

This is my first ever shaped card and I loved how it turned out so much I almost didn't want to give it away but I did since I made it specifically for my Sister-in-laws birthday card.

I used my Cricut Expression, the Forever Young cartridge, misc. adhesives, rhinestones and paper.

I had to use Design Studio to weld the shoe together using the shadow feature. Then I cut out a single shadow for the front in dark metallic gray so you wouldn't see the fold. I then cut the shoe in black metallic and the upper part in pink metallic. I added rhinestones for more bling. The inside I used the shoe cut and did hide contour to keep the cuts out that are used to layer (ie pink on black...there are cuts on the black part to show where to put the pink). I stamped Happy Birthday on the white with light pink ink--hard to see but it was the only pink ink I had. I didn't try to make it fit in the standard invitation size envelope but it did so I call that a happy accident.





Thanks for looking!!

Peachy Keen Stamps Challenge #28

http://peachykeenstampschallenge.blogspot.com/2010/05/peachy-keen-stamps-challenge-28-and.html

Here's the Challenge!! You have until Sunday, May 23rd to link up your entry to Mr. Linky. We will draw one RANDOM winner and one JUDGED winner. That means you have TWO chances to win! Entries will be judged based on: originality and creativity! The bottom of this post lists the prizes. Good luck!































Inside:

















I saw someone post on the Peachy Keen page a few challenges back where they stamped their image on patterned paper and then cut it out and glued it on top of the whole stamped image to make the stamp coordinate with the paper. I loved it and wanted to try it myself...that is how the hat matches the blue, the blanket matches the yellow and the diaper matches the smaller stamps ink color. On the diaper I dabbed the blue ink on white cardstock, let it dry, they repeated the earlier steps of stamping the image over top and cutting it out.
























Here is my long list of supplies:
PK-250 "Sleeping Teddy"
Staz-on Ink Black
Hero Arts "Welcome Baby" (Onesie, feet and pins)
Inkadinkado "Just Saying" set (congrats)
Versa Magic Dew Drops Sea Breeze
Around the Block "Baby Brads"
Pressed Petals "Baby Boy" assorted open stock paper pack w/glitter. (Big Lots bargain)
Georgia Pacific White for the card base
EK Success Corner Rounder punch...my new favorite!!
Xyron X for the little pieces
Mono Adhesive for the bigger pieces
Yellow Stickles
Crayola Colored Pencils for my coloring
and Misc. Ribbon

Thinking of You

My grandmother loved all of the cards I made on National Scrapbooking Day (well weekend for me) and asked if I would make her some "Thinking of You" cards. She requeseted 5 cards, not flowery or too girly and no black. The image is a little dark but the colors are brown, gold, green, orange, yellow and ivory.

Supplies:

DCWV Rustic Stack

Ivory cardstock

Brown ink

thinking of you stamp (from Michaels...not sure of brand)

Gold embossing powder

Lyrical Letters cricut cartridge

various adhesives

Brown Ribbon

Corner rounder punch (my new favorite!!)

I haven't embossed a stamped image in quite a while so I was excited to do that again. I also inked a lot of edges. The paisley print paper was a 12x12 sheet with the edges already distressed so I had to ink the edges of the pieces when I cut it to size for the card to make it look better since one or two sides were already done. I don't have any fancy tools for blending but a cotton ball and piece of scrap paper to dab on worked wonders.

If my printer had been working I would have printed the saying inside the card that she requested but the inside is blank so she will have to write it in. Hopefully, I will get a new printer soon so I can complete my cards :)

MPS--NSD Challenge #10-"May Day"

Mypinkstamper.com challenge #10

Make a project using flowers or something springy!!


































I liked this paper from the get go and thought the flowers would also make good embellishments so I sat here and cut a few out by hand. Wow...time consuming. Instead of popping up the phrase I decided to put the flowers on top of themselves (did that make sense, oh well).

This is it for me. I am not going to try any more challenges before the deadline. I have grand plans for challenge 12--Critter-licious. My husband and I went to Animal Kingdom a few weeks back and I have all kinds of animal pages to scrap but I think it is time for bed.

MPS--NSD Challenger #7-"Hey Dad"

Mypinkstamper.com Challenge 7

Make something for Dad or a guy in your life. It doesn't have to be for Father's Day but try to make it masculine.



















I didn't think I would get anymore challenges done. I started preparing this one as soon as I got home from work, then got frustrated after an hour. Stopped to eat dinner and post challenges 1 to 6. Then, all of a sudden, I got a burst of determination and made this one work. I think it turned out good. I will probably use this for my dad's Father's Day card.

MPS--NSD Challenge #6-"Kids Craft, Too"

Mypinkstamper.com Challenge #6

Have a child help you with a craft project. If a real child isn't available use a paper kid (Child themed cartridge)











































My sister asked if I would watch my 3 year old niece overnight Saturday (part of the reason I only got through challenge 6) and I thought it would be a perfect opportunity for her to make mommy a mothers day card. I had some white test flowers from my mothers day cards that I let her color with color pencils and crayons. She saw me doing my stamping so of course she wanted to do the stamps herself--at three I didn't dare let go or she would have had ink everywhere. The finished product isn't glamorous but it is the vision of a three year old. :) As soon as her mommy walked in my door on Sunday she wanted to give mommy her special card.


















Like I said above I only got through challenge 6 by Sunday evening and now with computer glitches I will be lucky if I can get them all linked to Robyn's page in time. Thank you for the wonderful challenges and opportunities to win. I had a blast and so did my niece!!

Update--I had a burst of determination. I am going to try and do more of the challenges. One at a time then post. Wow I got Challenge 7 done quick (well I spent about an hour contemplating it earlier then gave up.)

MPS--NSD Challenge #5-"Teacher Appreciation Days"

Mypinkstamper Challenger #5
Create something for Teacher Appreciation week -or- someone you appreciate.






















My husband found two 3 day old baby kittens at work 3 weeks ago and a friend of ours works for the local SPCA so we asked her if she could care for them until they were old enough to come home and join the two we already have. She said yes. Last week she called to let me know that one of them didn't make it. I wanted to make her a card to tell her that we appreciate everything she is doing and that maybe the little guy was just too sick from the beginning to survive.

The paper is from a Cloud9 Cat kit that I found at my local Big Lots. I also purchased a Dog one but we don't have any dogs at this time. I tried something new for me on this one as well...inking the edge of the "Thanks..." tag; I think it really gave it a finished look. I will be inking a lot more from here forward.

MPS--NSD Challenge #4 -"I like you the least"

Mypinkstamper challenge #4
Make a project using your least favorite or least used cartridge.


I am posting two photos--one is a little dark and the other has a glare. No good middle ground :)































I even used what I thought was my least favorite color combination...pink and orange....but I think it turned out really neat. I used my Tear Drop font cartridge. I can't tell you the last time I dusted that one off (yep, no gypsy yet so still using cartridges). Paper again is DCWV. I didn't like how the saying cut out and you had to put all of the little pieces back in to make the letters work so I used the "negative" image and cut the shadow instead. I used a white gel pen to replicate the butterfly trail that is typically cut with this image.

MPS--NSD Challenge #3-"Think Outside the Box"

Mypinkstamper.com Challenge 3
Do something on your scrapbook page, card or other item that you wouldn't normally do. Add something fun or crazy!!





















I did two new things on this card:

1st--after watching a video on Robyn's site earlier in the week I saw her emboss a piece of paper with the Swiss Dots Cuttlebug folder then run a white ink pad over top to essentially make white polka dots. I recently purchased a new stamp from Peachy Keen and knew that on dark blue paper white dots would look like stars and tie in with the stamp perfectly.

2nd--I have never used a cotton ball as part of a finished project before so I added one to the bottom of the stamped image to represent a cloud. Added some stickles for bling and I have a perfect card for a co-worker of mine who just found out she is going to be a grandma for the first time.

MPS--NSD Challenge #2-"Getting Scrappy"

Mypinkstamper.com Challenge #2
Make a project incorporating your scraps.

I had some left over flower pieces from my first three cards and a large left over piece from a birthday card I made a few weeks back. I have a new Happy Birthday card in the stash...those always come in handy.

MPS--NSD Challenge #1-"Mother Dear, I Love You So"

Robyn at MyPinkStamper.com ran a 12 hour challenge on Saturday, May 1 in honor of National Scrapbooking Day. She did one challenge per hour for 12 hours. I was only able to complete the first one and number 6 on Saturday due to other obligations.

Challenge 1: make a scrapbook layout, card or other item with your mother or someone dear to you in mind.

I was already planning on making my three Mother's Day cards this weekend so this challenge was perfect.
















Inside (all three are the same):















Mother, Mother-in-law and Grandmother are done!! I used DCWV Prints for the Year Ultimate Stack, My new Forever Young Cricut Cartridge and my new Corner Rounder punch, Stickles, random brads and Offray Pink Ribbon. How did I live without that punch for so long?? LOL Thanks for looking.

MPS--Pink, Green and Black Challenge

I am a little intimidated posting this at My Pink Stamper as I look up to a lot of the design team as well as Robyn for being so crafty!! The challenge was to use Pink, Green and Black to make something creative.

Here is what I grabbed to brainstorm with:
















DCWV--Nana's Kids Stack
Beyond Birthdays Cricut Cartridge
Staz-on Black Ink
Peachy Keen PK-M12 Lady Bug Thank You stamp
Offray Ribbon
Misc. Brads
Georgia Pacific White Cardstock
Crayola Colored pencils (not pictured)
Stickles (not used in final card)
Embassy Invitation Envelope from Wal-mart
Misc. Adhesives
Cricut markers (not pictured)

I have really wanted to use the cute green and pink lady bug paper from the Nana's Kids stack for a long time now but never had any ideas. Well when I saw this color challenge and realized that I just got the PK stamp I could use this paper to make something really cute. My niece, Brooke, will be turning 3 in two weeks so I made her card. I decided to personalize the envelope also which is not normal for me. Thanks for looking!!

Congrats

My cousin finish school just before Easter so I made her this card:






















Here is a shot of the inside--sort of--I didn't want to post what I had written in the card as it is sort of personal from me to her.






















The patterned paper is from DCWV Nana's Kids stack. The solid purple is from the DCWV shimmer metallic stack. "Congrats" was cut from Beyond Birthdays on my Cricut and the flowers were from the Mickey and Friends cartridge. The pink was just basic Georgia Pacific cardstock from Walmart--ran through the Cuttlebug using Swiss Dots and Stickled like crazy.

Peachy Keen Stamps Challenge 25

Ok, so I haven't done a Peachy Keen challenge since their Halloween Challenge but I just ordered some of their wonderful stamps during their St. Patrick's Day sale and couldn't help myself when I saw the sketch for this challenge.

Here is their blog address for this challenge:
http://peachykeenstampschallenge.blogspot.com/2010/03/peachy-keen-stamps-challenge-25.html

Here is my entry:





















I used my new PK-M12 Lady Bug Thank You! stamp set. The paper selection is fairly plain but I prefer plain. I also used a few of my newer Cuttlebug Embossing folders. I love how those little brads just added the right 3D look to the Lady Bug's antenna. Thanks for looking. Now to head over to my facebook page and post this there! See what happens when I stay home sick with bronchitis--I get creative :)

"Just Married" card

I was in a hurry to get to a friends wedding (like normal...if I am not part of the bridal party I will be late) and it was either finish drying the clothes I intended to wear and make a card or change my outfit and leave time to run by the store. I am glad I made the card because it turned out cute--I ended up changing the outfit anyway.

I had some left over Thank You cards from mine and Ken's wedding last year that I purchased at Target.











My friend's favorite color and wedding color was purple so I made a card base from basic card stock purchased in the office section of Wal-Mart. I used the plain inside of the thank you card as the front of the new card and cut out the tux and dress. I added ribbon that I had on hand from Big Lots, a purple brad, some Making Memories flowers and used purple Staz-On ink so the sentiment "Just Married" wouldn't smear.














I made sure the new card was the same size as the original card so I wouldn't have to make an envelope.

Valentines Cards

I am really bad about posting after the fact but oh well. Here we are almost a month later and I am posting my Valentine creations. Enjoy!!

The flower is a digital stamp from "Sew Many Cards" blog. They have some really cute images. I intended to post this in their Valentines Black and Red challenge but didn't make it.












Card inside:















I made this card using the word "Sweetheart" from the Mickey and Friends Cricut Cartridge. The paper is DCWV and Core'dinations. I took these to work and a few of my co-workers took them home to their wives.












Last but not least: I made this coupon book for my husband as his gift and card











Again--DCWV and Core'dinations. The ribbon is from Michaels.

Birthday Card

I wish I had taken a picture of the finished product. I got to use a lot of Christmas presents on this card for my sister Shelley's birthday. I used my new Cricut Cartridge - From my Kitchen (thanks Kim) for the cupcake. I used my new Cuttlebug and swirl embossing folder for the swirls in the frosting part of the cupcake (thanks to my husband and in-laws). Finally, I used my new Xyron 5" create-a-sticker to turn the cupcake into one big sticker (thanks Gigi).

The glitter is Stickles, the diamond paper and brown paper is DCWV, the pink, purple and white paper is basic card stock from the office supply section at Walmart. The sentiment is stamped on vellum using Staz-on ink...works wonderfully!! I did learn a valuable lesson about white core card stock--it doesn't emboss flawlessly. I had to use a brown brush tip marker to color over a few spots on my "chocolate" frosting because the white core showed through. Oh well, lesson learned.

In addition to the card I made an envelope using an 8 1/2 x 11 sheet of vellum cut "fit to page" on the Cricut. (card size is 4.5 x 6). I also used a 12x12 piece of the diamond paper to cut another envelope at "fit to page" to use as the wrapping for the present. I tied the two together with white ribbon. It looked so nice Shelley didn't even want to open it. Again, I wish now that I had taken a picture of the completed gift.

Christmas Cards

I know that I am quite late in posting these but I didn't even have them finished until Christmas Eve (I know today is January 24th). Who am I kidding...I made them on Christmas Eve morning. Everyone in my immediate family (excluding my Dad, Ken and Brooke) received a hand made item. The girls got the purses (see post below) and the boys got these cards.



















I read some where that using vellum for your envelope is the neatest way to show off what is inside. You spent time making the card let everyone see it! That is what I did with these. I don't have a picture of the back but I wrote the name of the person the card was intended for on the flap of the envelope with a vellum marker so it wouldn't smear. I just used some adhesive to attach the gift cards inside.