Beachy Birthday

Happy Thursday!  So, as I am working to increase my stash of greeting cards at home, I figured it's summer, I need birthday cards, so let's make 'em!  I was inspired by challenges this week from both Die Cuttin' Divas & Creative Cutter Room to make a beach-themed card, so here's what I came up with:

The layout was inspired by a card I found on pinterest (who doesn't love pinterest?). It's simple, summery, and best of all - we have a ton of August birthdays in our family so this one will come in handy!  If you're feeling beachy this week, come play along at this week's challenges!


Entering this card in:
 Die Cuttin' Diva's Challenge #75 - Summer Fun
Creative Cutter Room - Summer Fun

About this card:
Kraft Cardstock - Papertrey Ink
Navy/White Mats - Stash
Distressed Stripes Embossing Folder (Cuttlebug)
Twine - Navy/white & Gold/White - Stash
Die Cut Starfish & Seashell - Cut from the Pack Your Bags Cricut cartridge using Bazzill Bling Cardstock
Sentiment - Pink by Design Summer Vacation

I Wood Like to Thank...

I know - My puns are the worst.  I get it honest... my family has 'pun-wars' over Thanksgiving dinner... Don't judge, please!  Today's pun was inspired by this card:

 

Here's the back story - About a month ago, a strong storm knocked over a rather large tree in our back yard.  Temperatures that week were averaging 90-100 degrees... it was HOT!  I posted pictures on Facebook of our fallen tree, and within an hour, a friend from church commented and offered to bring his chainsaw over and  help us remove it.  We were so grateful for him (and his son, who also came along to help in the incredible heat), so I want to send him a thank you card.  I absolutely COULD NOT pass up the opportunity to use my wood grain embossing folder (The Paper Studio).  I knew that bugger would come in handy some day :)  While I'll be sending him this card tomorrow, I hope I also have the opportunity to pay it forward.  Being on the receiving end of such a random act of kindness is a feeling like no other, and I hope to pass it along to someone soon!

Oh, and I just got the 'perfectly penned' sentiment stamp set from Stampin' Up, and I love it (Thank you, Kathy) in case you were wondering where the stamp came from.  Have a wonderful weekend everyone!

About this card:

Kraft/Brown Cardstock - Papertrey Ink/Stash

Hemp cord

Sentiment - Perfectly Penned - Stampin' Up (Stamped in Stazon Timber Brown)

Embossing Folder - Wood Grain - The Paper Studio

Distressing - Vintage Photo - Ranger

Metal Pearls - Making Memories Stash

Using Wild Card 2

I have to admit - the pictures on the Wild Card 2 Cricut Cartridge cover really don't do this cartridge justice.  The images look like a bunch of pictures from an 80's video game.  You have to look through the book to really be inspired.  This cartridge has TONS of potential!  I'm not a huge fan of the sentiments that they included with the cards, but I have tons of stamps that will make these cards perfect.  Here's my first crack at using Wild Card 2:

I love how the card base is in front of the clouds, giving this card lots of dimension.  I inked a few of the edges, added pearls, stickles and glossy accents.  The finished card is about 5" tall.  I can't wait to make more of these shaped cards - if you have this cartridge and haven't tried it yet, break it out and start playing with it - you won't regret it!

Altered Paint Can

I was in a swap where we had to decorate a mini paint can, and stuff it full of goodies and send it to a partner.  My partner gave me a few hints about her style and preferences, and the one thing she said that stood out to me was when she said she liked, "Black and white with a splash of color".  Here's what I made for her:

I used My Mind's Eye paper from their Lush line, and used adhesive pink pearls to accent the floral print.  The black ribbon is seam binding - I have really enjoyed using seam binding on projects - I'm glad someone introduced it to me  not too long ago.  Pretty simple and elegant - I hope she loves it!

Alive and Crafting!

My goodness - it's been over 3 months since I've posted!  Life just took me for quite a ride, but I'm back now and I hope to keep up with this blog a little better for the rest of the summer :)  The last 3 months have been filled with birthdays, anniversaries, vacations, work reorganizations, etc.  FORTUNATELY I was able to continue to make lots of goodies, UNFORTUNATELY I was unable to post most of them.  Here are some of the things that kept me busy:

1.) My daughter turned 3 in April, and we had 30+ kids (gulp) come to her party!  As favors, I made each of the kids a personalized water bottle:

I found these bottles at Michael's for $1 each!  I cut each of their names out in white vinyl using my Cricut, and added different colored spots to each to make each one unique.  They were a big hit, especially with the kids who have 'unique' spellings of their names!  This started my newly-found vinyl obsession!

2.) My niece Danielle turned 5 in April, and she loves the Littlest Pet Shop figurines.  I wanted to make her something to hang in her room:

I had to get really creative to make that little cat - I used the Create a Critter cartridge fror most of it, then substituted ovals for the eyes and used stickles to 'draw' in the eye features... Add a peachy Keen face and you have a Littlest Pet Shop!

She loved it :)

3.) My husband and I were watching the movie "Courageous" one night (Must See for ALL parents), and the little girl in the movie had a sign on her wall that said this:

My husband made the comment that he'd like to have that saying hung in our daughter's room, so I made a mental note and created the above.  I took an unfinished wood plaque from ACMoore, painted it, ModPodged it, and added the vinyl letters/designs to in, and finished it off with a little bling.  It matches the colors of our daughter's room perfectly - both daddy and daughter loved it.

4.) My final highlight of the past 3 months was this banner:

I never made a banner before, but I was in a swap where I needed to make something homemade, and the first item on my partner's list was a 'create' banner in lime green/black.  I love how it turned out!  I used my Ribbons & Rosettes cartridge for the first time, and while those little rosettes are a challenge to fold, they looked awesome!

I hope my partner is loving her new banner!

Ok - I have a couple of t-shirt ideas in my head, along with some more vinyl ideas, so hopefully you'll be seeing some of those from me soon.

In the meantime, I hope everyone in enjoying their summer!

Non-Card Fun

Hi Everyone... I just can't seem to catch up and do things I want to these days... such is life :)

I made the following for a friend who I am swapping with on another site:

This was my first attempt at altering something totally from scratch.  I started with a cereal box, and used that as my base.  I cut the M from the cereal box, using the Rolly Polly font on the Plantin Schoolbook cartridge.  Then I cut the same M out of some Fancy Pants cardstock I got in a grab bag, and glued them together.  (Lesson learned - - - Next time I will flip one of the images on my gypsy, so I can cover the printed side on the cereal box.  This M says Cheerios on the back of it!)

I distressed the edges with Vintage Photo Distress Ink, and put 2 coats of ModPodge on it.  I used the matte ModPodge for the base coat, then used the glossy ModPodge on top of that - I like the effect it gave the finish.  I also ModPodged the butterfly and used a recollections pearl flourish to embellish the right side.  The left side button was fun to make!  I took some lace and hot-glued folds into it.  then I formed a circle out of it (think rosette folding), and hot glued it onto the back of the brown button.  I distressed the lace with Vintage Photo Distress ink, and tied some hemp cord in a bow through the button holes.  I had to use my ATG gun/tape to get it to stick to the 'glossy' surface - it's not budging, I guarantee it!  I placed a couple of vintage pearls around a few of the edges, and there you have it!

I hope my partner likes it!  The finished size is 6"tall by 10" wide.  I can't wait to make more of these, especially for some kids I know, to help decorate their bedrooms.

Try something new today - I did, and I loved it - Have a great, crafty day!

Back to School

Hello!  Wow - 2 weeks without a post... I'm really slipping!  To prove I haven't really been slacking, I have 2 projects to show you that I'm excited about.

First, another card.  It looks very similar to my 'monochromatic' card from a couple of weeks ago:

 

I am having so much fun with the LUSH line of paper from My Mind's Eye!  My babysitter is getting married this coming weekend, and her wedding colors are black and white with a hint of red.  The card is 5"x5", and the 'doors' are each 3" so they overlap a little bit creating a more dramatic opening.

I am entering this card in Die Cuttin Divas "Pick at Least 2 Colors" Challenge this week!

ETA: My card did not win this challenge, but I was one of 3 cards chosen for their showcase - How exciting!!! See the showcase here: Die Cuttin Divas

The Skinny on this card:

All Cardstock - LUSH by My Mind's Eye

Black CS - Papertrey Ink Pure Black

Sentiment Stamp - Fiskars stamped in Memento Tuxedo Black

Pearl Trim - Joann's (bought by the yard)

Red Pearls - Stash

My next project is my first submission for an online COPICS class that I am taking.  It just started today, and our first assignment was to color 'something' for the instructors to see, so that they can offer insight and get a sense of what skills we are needing to work on.  Here's my initial submission:

 

Angel Anya

I was excited about how her hair turned out, but I need help on that dress and the wings.  The instructors said that we will be coloring these same images at the end of the class again, so we can see how much we have improved.  I'm hoping to share my journey with you here - if I don't have too much homework, I'll be sure to post often!  It's a 3 week class with 18+ lessons, so I plan on being pretty busy!

Sorry no pink project to share, but I do hope everyone has a WONDERFUL Valentine's Day!