Cuttin' Up Saturday - Happy Birthday Cuttlebug Challenges!

This week during the Cuttin' Up Saturday edition at the Cuttlebug Challenges we are going to use a "Happy Birthday" phrase that comes on a cartridge. There are a LOT of cartridges that come with a happy birthday phrase. I chose to use one from Elegant Cakes (there are actually two on this cartridge). I don't have my Cricut Cake™ Machine (yet), but I got this one just for the beautiful fonts and imagery and have used it on several cards. Remember, all the Cake Cartridges work in your Cricut®! :)

I wanted to make a shape card out of the words because it comes with a great shadow feature. I loaded the image onto my Gypsy™ and "hid" the holes in the shadow so that it would be a solid blackout image. After welding it together to make a card, I added another shadow layer (without hiding the holes), the phrase, and the "Happy" layer.

I chose to use Cosmo Cricket Material Girl DP that I got at Torendi. Torendi will soon be carrying Pink Paislee. Color me excited. Anyway, I digress.

After putting all of the layers together, I decided that it didn't have enough "pop" and was a little difficult to read, so I penned around all of the letters to make them stand out.

Simple quick and fun for a summer birthday!

Have a wonderful weekend! I am hosting a small Swarm at my house on Saturday and am very excited to teach some newbies the ways of the Cricut and Cuttlebug!

Don't forget to play in this week's Be Inspired challenge for a chance to win! :)

OTWC#18, WMC#16, PKS#34, CricutCardzChallenge#36

I love this card! I think it came out SO cute! I think that's probably bad to say about one's own cards, but sometimes you just like them. I hope you do too!



I made this from the Peachy Keen Stamps Challenge #34 sketch. Sketches do tend to make one's life easier and that combined with a color challenge at Off The Wall Craftiness made this a perfect card to make while watching a movie.

I am currently addicted to the chip board I got over at Torendi so I had to add that chipboard heart.

This card is so front loaded with materials and pop dots that it almost falls over towards the front when standing up! Do they make weights to put on the back of your cards in case of excessive embellishment-ing? haha.

Recipe:
A2 sized card
Paper: DCVW, K&Co.
Cartridge: Elegant Cakes™ (border, double sided and welded in Gypsy™), Wild Card™ (rectangles and circles)
Embossing: A2 Leafy Branch Emboss Folder™
Ribbon

This card therefore qualifies for the following challenges:
Off The Wall Craftiness #18: Navy blue, white, and yellow

Peachy Keen Stamps #34: Sketch

Wee Memories: Chipboard
Cricut Cardz Challenge #36: Birthday card for a teenager - I thought this would make a cute sweet 16!

Torendi/EAD designs/WMC#16 Hello Bird!

This is going to be a fun post with lots of links to products and blogs that I am coming to LOVE!

Jenn over at Torendi's Blog had a contest a while back that I won for a free roll of washi tape! So I not only ordered that but ordered another washi tape, a "mini deck" by Cosmo Cricket™ (Material Girl), a "wee bundle" from Sassafras™ (Indie Girl), some Cosmo Cricket™ (I spell Cricket -Cricut- every time now! I just realized I did that in all my posts before! Oh dear!) Earth Love chip board pieces (on sale for $2.50!), and Jillybean Soup "bean stalks" a.k.a. ribbon ($3!).

Thank goodness because Jenny at Wee Memories made chip board her challenge this week).

SO, that came in the mail on Saturday and I was SO excited, but I had to finish up the Christmas Around the Clock over at Cuttlebug Challenges first! One I commit to something I have to finish it. Anyway, I finally got to play with my new Torendi products and I am THRILLED. Her sale is still going on right now so go check it out!

Also, a little while ago my EAD Designs Stickerz and Rub-ons came in the mail so I wanted to use a few of those too!

Recipe:
This is an A2 sized card (4.25x5.5").
Cartridge: Elegant Cakes™, Gypsy Wanderings™ (scallop edge welded to rectangle with the Gypsy™)
Embossing: A2 Combo Friends Forever™
Paper: Cosmo Cricket™ (via Torendi) Material Girl Mini Deck, Core'dinations™
Tape: Washi - "pink" with polka dots - it comes out more of a lavender color.
Stickerz: EAD Rainy Day set (flowers which I colored in purple)
Sentiment: EAD Right on Target
Chipboard: Cosmo Cricket™ via Torendi™ Earth Love chip board pieces

This qualifies for:
Wee Memories Challnege #16: use chipboard (this was my first time using chipboard! It's so much fun!)

Christmas in July 11-14

This was my favorite set by far because I learned new things in all the projects and it challenged me. I had to make a few changes because I didn't have the materials needed, but all of them came out well.

Challenge #11 - Make your own gift bow.
Who knew it was so easy to make a gift bow? Their tutorial made it so simple! I couldn't believe it. This isn't exactly "Christmas-y", but I really wanted to use this paper! :)

Recipe:
One piece of 6x12" paper - double sided pattern if you have it.
Follow tutorial HERE.

Challenge #12 - Simple Little Luminaries
My grandparents had just given me wax candles that have battery operated lights built into them for my birthday. They even come with a remote! So this was perfect for this challenge because I was able to decorate a "wax" candle with some vinyl that I recycled from the back of a black notebook. I realize now that it's not exactly what they were going for, but I didn't know that at the time and I don't have any vellum. It comes out the same as it is still a luminary. I wish I would have taken a picture of this at night! C'est la vie.

Recipe:
Cartridge: Elegant Cakes
Cut one 10.5" Border 3 (depending on the circumference of your candle)

Challenge #13 - Stationary Set
This was my favorite for sure! I am SO excited about this and as I was planning on giving some monogrammed stationary for Christmas gifts, this will be a PERFECT vessel! You can find the tutorial HERE.


Recipe:
Two 12x12" pieces of your favorite card stock
Cards to put inside of it when you are done!

Challenge #14 - TIn Ornament
I didn't have a round tin to use for this, but I did have a tiny glass jar. This jar is about 1x1" so you can imagine how small the little tree and snowman were that I cut by hand.

Recipe:
The bottom of the jar is a green polka-dotted piece of card stock. I cut the tree and snowman with a little flap behind them that I glued down to make them stand up. Then I dropped some glue in the jar and poured some glitter down and shook it around (that's what it's all about! - hokey pocky theme - I couldn't help myself). Voila! I think it is too cute. Oh, and I tied some ribbon around the top. I can add ribbon to the two sides so that it can hang from the tree. I thought it was a good twist on what they were doing! :)

Of course these were all for the Cuttlebug Challenges!

Crafts for the puppy!

Yesterday I got out my EAD Vinyl and wanted to make something for our little Yorkshire Terrier named Spoon. She is such a little cuddlebug and spooner! Anyway, we occasionally throw wine and cheese parties and Spoon never gets to participate.. :( Poor puppy... So, I decided to make this placemat to go under her bowl that says "Wine" and "Cheese" for her water and food bowls respectively.

I cut the "Wine" and "Cheese" on my Cricut Expression™ from the Elegant Cakes Cartridge™. Then I used the transfer tape that comes with the EAD Designs™ Vinyl (they're SO thorough!) and stuck it to the card stock that I chose.

The card stock is from the Taj Mahal card stock stack from DCVW. I cut it to 8.5x11".

Then I simply placed it in a Provo Craft® laminating sheet and ran it through my YourStory™.

Easy peasy and the pup loved it! I am also posting one of my pup in focus because I think she's too cute!


Happy Wednesday everybody and I hope the week goes by swiftly for you so you can get to the weekend and do some crafting!

Happy Birthday Mike!

Just a quick post for this card to get it in by the deadline!

This card is for my co-father (FIL) Mike. It's about to be his birthday! He's the best kind of man. I am so lucky. Some of the best conversations I've had with him have been driving in the car on family vacations or just between homes that are two hours away.

Recipe:
Car: Heritage™
Road: Everyday Paper Dolls™
Scallops for the "M" pendant : Gypsy Wanderings™
"M": Designers Calendar™
"Happy Birthday": Elegant Cakes™
Embossing: A2 Happy Birthday Emboss Folder™

So this is my card for him and it qualifies for a few challenges...
Peachy Keen Stamps: Favorite Summer Vacation + bling, brads, or buttons
The Cuttlebug Spot: Sketch Challenge


Last, but not least, thank you to my new followers! I am so excited that you like my work and if you have blogs, I'll be around to see your work too!

Christmas Doily

Well, I didn't think I'd be making Christmas cards in July, but the Cuttlebug Challenges have inspired me to try my hand at it.... I have never made a Christmas card with my Cricut™ as I received my Cricut™ as a Christmas present last year from my "big brother" Bob.

The challenge this week was to use a doily. I don't have any doilies so I made one using the Elegant Cakes Cartridge™. There are plenty of frilly cuts on this cartridge, but I really liked this one.

The REALLY exciting thing is - I was just informed that I won a Cricut Cake™ on the Cuttlebug Challenges wedding week extravaganza! SO, I will be able to use my Elegant Cakes Cartridge™ on actual cakes now!!! I couldn't even believe it. I found out about it when I was about to get on a white water rafting boat for my friend's bachelorette party. I still can't believe it. I sent BettyBee my phone number and I actually got to talk to her! What a treat! And she is SO nice. I'll definitely be calling her when I open it and I'll have my husband take pictures as I will be bouncing off the walls.

I also used my Cuttlebug™ and my Love is in the Air Set™ to add some texture.

So, I made this card for the Cuttlebug Challenges challenge and enjoyed spending time with some great friends while I made it (thanks Hazel and Christy!).

This also qualifies for the Cricut Cardz Challenge: Christmas card.

I hope you like it!

Hezzy's Wedding Week - His and Her Bookmarks

Yet another home made gift I made for the shower - bookmarks. I'm such a nerd - how do you all put up with me? My husband and I love reading together cuddled up. So, I'd like to think they'll be able to cuddle up the same way we do and remember their wedding, their silly friends, and just enjoy being with each other.

Heather's wedding invitations were craft card stock with brown and blue. Our bridesmaid dresses are blue. So, I stuck with the theme for these as well as for the next project.

The bookmarks were elongated tags from Sentimentals™. Once elongated, I didn't like the one with the heart anymore. So I hid the heart and replaced it with a heart from Gypsy Wanderings™ and hid the inner line of that heart as well.

The other bookmark was the tag that was on the Key2 feature. The Key2 feature was also cut as well as it's shadow and placed on the card stock.

I used the font from Elegant Cakes™ to create all the words. I welded all of it on my Gypsy as well as the shadows. This took a very long time, but I really enjoyed doing it and hope she likes it as much as I hope she does.

I punched holes in the top with my Crop-a-Dile™ and then ran both bookmarks through the YourStory™. Then I re-punched the holes and added eyelets.

Then I just added ribbons and tied them at the top. I painted the ends with clear nail polish so they wouldn't fray and there you have it! My mom used to tell me that I was the key to her heart and wore a necklace that had a tiny key and heart to it. So the special meaning is being passed along.

Girls Night! - BBTB2

Girls Night!

This Friday two of my close girlfriends and I are going out to watch Sex and the City 2. I thought it would be fun to send them little invites for the occasion! So, I sent these in the mail yesterday with the invite to the movie, RSVP and of course the addresses, but I just put up a blank one here. I have to say I think the other one was a little better (straighter lines and the cut came out better (I think cutting the dress form at 3.75" was too small for the cut), but that's okay, you get the gist).

The image is cut from the Summer in Paris Cartridge™ and the words are welded using the Elegant Cakes Cartridge™ on my new Gypsy™! I love that machine!

I used this cut because the challenge on BBTB2 for this week was using the dress form from Forever Young, but I didn't have that cartridge, so I supplemented this one.

So next time you're going to do a girls night out, send them some invites! It will make it more fun!

Cara Cloward Thank You

This card is for Cara Cloward who works at Provo Craft®. On the CricutCake™ launch day, I was online for pretty much the whole 24 hours trying to win something. I won the Elegant Cakes Cartridge™ on the last drawing and Cara was the administrator at the time. I wanted to send her something that said I appreciated the fact that she stayed up all night, was the quickest with the information, and that I am SO honored, excited, and blessed to have received the cartridge. So, this is what I made for her using the Elegant Cakes Cartridge™. The "Thank You" is also from the Elegant Cakes Cartridge™, but I welded the letters in Design Studio™. Provo Craft® is amazing and I think that the employees who do wonderful things need to be appreciated and thanked for their services - which are almost always to us. Thanks Cara!!!