~CutItOut Creations~

CAARD varks Reader Weekend

2009-05-01T00:48:00.004-05:00

If you've never been to the CAARD vark website, you really should. It's a great challenge website....I spend more time ogling cards there than I should. I soooo should be taking part in the challenges. Anyway, they are celebrating May Day weekend, May 1-3, by spotlighting thier readers. Reader cards and projects will be in the spotlight all weekend!

Be sure to visit the CAARD vark website all this weekend. I even have a card being featured in this "show-n-tell"! I'm so excited!!!

Check Out This Blog Candy...

2008-10-30T07:37:00.002-06:00

Twisted Chick Creations Flaxychick is offering some great blog candy from paperaddiction... designer paper from Imaginisce & Basic Grey, rub-ons, brads, stamps and ribbon. Doesn't that sound great? Just click here to check out the blog candy, and look through her blog while you're there. She creates some gorgeous things!

I'll post another card one of these days. :) Have a great day!

A Must See Blog...

2008-10-18T19:49:00.003-05:00

I have been a fan of Bety since I found her sometime last year. Her creations are always stunning. I wanna be Bety when I grow up! ;)

She is celebrating 2 years of blogging by offering some blog candy. To find out more about it, check out THIS POST, and while you're there, make sure you check out the rest of her beautiful creations. You should also visit HER ETSY SHOP.

I had some "happy mail" twice this week. I plan to post pictures tomorrow. Thanks for stopping by!

Blog Candy from Julie at Scrapping Away....

2008-10-18T19:27:00.003-05:00

Earlier today as I was on my Google Reader page, catching up on all the blogs I follow, I was reading a post on the Inspirational blog. If you've never visited that blog, you must! Julie created it to showcase creations from around the world. Julie and her team post pictures and links to many blogs that are just so inspiring. Many of the ones that have been showcased on the Inspirational blog are now subscriptions in my Google Reader!

Today's post featured blog candy that Julie is offering on her own blog, Scrapping Away, to celebrate becoming a Stampin' Up Demonstrator. If you would like a chance to win her awesome blog candy, check out THIS POST. She is offering 5 sheets of American Crafts Thickers alphabet stickers, Adirondack Acrylic Paint Dabber, Pot of American Crafts Typehouse Numbers and last but definitely not least Ranger Perfect Pearls!!

She will pick a winner on Saturday, November 1st, at 10pm (UK Time), so this is open for two weeks. Well, watcha waiting on? Get OVER THERE and check it out! :)

Webster's Pages Blog Candy

2008-10-17T09:19:00.003-05:00

I love the Webster's Pages papers, even though I don't have any yet. I'd love to win some, so I'm posting about their new product that's being offered as blog candy.

Their new collection, "Hello! Beautiful" is in and being offered as blog candy today! You've gotta get over there quick.

This is a great giveaway! You're getting the complete collection of papers PLUS a pack of the new journaling cards PLUS a pack of the new message cards!

Birthday Card for my daughter....

2008-10-10T08:50:00.013-05:00

My daughter's birthday was this past Monday. I can.not.believe she's 10!!! She brings so much joy to my life. Here's the birthday card I made for her...

Ya think she liked it? Best reaction I've *ever* gotten from her with a card!

This reaction is another story.....

The gift that brought on this reaction has been the source of MUCH conversation.... begging... whichever you wanna call it. What was it? How 'bout this...

Nah...cute little Webkinz, though. Think it was this?

God, no!!! One more....

Yes, we got her a cell phone. Still can't believe I caved. :)

Card Recipe:
Paper---SU Pink Pirhouette; SU Kiwi Kiss; Basic Gray Eva
Assessories---Cricut Expression; Cricut Indie Art Cartridge; Cuttlebug & Mesh Texture Embossing Folder; Ribbon from Target Dollar Spot; Tiara Stickles
This card meets the requirements for the World Card-Making Day Challenge over at creativejourney

How about candy for breakfast?

2008-09-16T13:41:00.000-05:00

Why, I'd love some! But, since chocolate isn't really a breakfast item (unless it's covering donuts or in the form of chocolate gravy that my BIL makes so well), I think I'll try THIS. You can, too...just follow that link. Good luck!

Wanna Win a Cricut Expression?

2008-09-10T17:16:00.002-05:00

How would you like to win a Cricut Expression? If so, check out this post on The Secret is in the Sauce. All you need to do is add their blog button to your sidebar (a requirement of the give-away) and leave a comment in the post that I linked earlier. You can enter once each day by visiting their blog and commenting. If you also post on your blog about the contest and link back to SITS, you'll get 5 extra entries! Good luck. :)

Di Hickman: Card Sketch August #3

2008-08-20T21:22:00.003-05:00

Di Hickman: Card Sketch August #3

As I was reading the various blogs I subscribe to, I came to this card sketch on Di Hickman's blog:

I've been slacking on working on my albums since I started card-making, and when I saw this sketch, as much as I wanted to go upstairs and make a card, I feel crappy because of a sinus infection. So, why am I telling you all this then? Because I created a digital scrapbook page using her sketch! Whaddaya think?

Credits:
Digital Template ~ Di Hickman
Digital Sentiment PNG ~ Creative Memories
Digital papers ~ Starburst from Digital Freebies
Digital embellishments ~ Annie's Room, BabyCafe MegaCollab Kit, Raspberry Road Tool Box Kit, Refresh Collection, Raspberry Road Lovebirds
Created using StoryBook Creator Plus by Creative Memories

Thanks for stopping by!

Gift Set for a Happy Birthday

2008-08-10T10:48:00.006-05:00

One of my best friends had a birthday waaaaaaaaay back in May. There's a reason I'm just now posting her gift....it's called "brain farts". ;)~ Everyone who knows me knows that I have memory issues....it's relatively new, so I hope everyone, including the birthday girl!, understands and loves me anyway!

When Shannon saw some cards I made before, she "kinda" hinted that she would like some. I decided then that I would come up with a set for her birthday. I knew she liked pink and brown, so I went with those dee-lish colors....I mean, what girl doesn't love pink and brown?!?!?!?

**Please click on the pictures to enlarge.**

I made the box using my Scor-Pal. It was relatively easy.

Here are a couple of pictures of the cards. I made 6 cards/envies, using a different Cuttlebug embossing folder on the large brown mat to help give each on a different texture. To stamp the monogram, I used the StampRite Monogram stamper, Curly font.

Even though I don't have pictures, I also made a couple of other things for her. One of them was a giant clothespin from Michael's. I painted it with some chocolate distress paint and attached a large fancy Prima flower and some ribbon onto one side...I hope that she'll use it as a photo or memo holder. I also "fancied" up a Pentel RSVP to use with her note cards. I unscrewed the end and pulled out the ink reservoir, wrapped it with some matching paper that was cut it the length of the area between the black rubber gripper and the black on the end of the pen. I also used some of the ribbon that was used on the bag, plus some Basic Gray fibers, to tie onto the cap of the pen. I sooooo wish I had taken a picture!

***Please note that if you are interested in a set of cards similar to this, just email me at jowen214ATyahooDOTcom. I can play around with various papers, but a set like this would be $25 plus shipping. I take PAYPAL only.***

Stamps: JustRite Monogram Stamper w/Curly font
Paper: Creative Memories Romance papers; Creative Memories white card stock
Assessories: Prima flower; We R Memory Keepers rhinestone brad; Swiss Dots & Textiles Cuttlebug Embossing Folders; Cricut Expression & Design Studio; Creative Memories mini flower punch; Creative Memories photo tape.

Hoot, hoot...

2008-07-02T21:33:00.004-05:00

I made this card yesterday for a dear friend who had surgery, a breast reduction. I have loved this owl from the Cricut Happily Ever After cartridge ever since I saw someone post a card made with it. I finally got it and this, of course, was the first image I used from it!

The printed paper and the green paper are Basic Gray Sultry, and the pink and brown papers are Bazzil. The brown grosgrain ribbon was bought from Taylored Expressions. The pink & green ribbon is from the dollar spot at Target. The brads are from a package of pearlized mini brads that I got from Stamper's Dream. The white dots and faux stitching were made with my white Signo pen. The card base was cut using my design studio and a cut file from Capadia Designs.

I just couldn't resist this caption inside! Very appropriate, huh? ;) The owl stamps here on the inside are from Hero Arts, stamped with white pigment ink and then heat embossed. It's going out tomorrow, and I can't wait for her to get it.

Thanks for stopping by!

Been Gone Too Long!

2008-06-29T13:10:00.014-05:00

Lots to post since last time! I'm still busy receiving cards from members of the Cricut message board for the St. Jude Cards for Kids project. Several ladies and I will be delivering nearly 7,000 (as of right now...I'm still getting cards in the mail!) to the hospital. Some for the families of children being treated there....and some that will be sold in the gift shop---the money made from these will go toward research at St. Jude. I am so excited to be a part of this! The day we deliver the cards, we are going to discuss this being an ongoing project.

I've got a few more cards that I made for this project:

Here are some other cards I've done since my last post:

Mother's Day for my mom. For the main panel, I used a piece of printed paper from DCWV All Dressed Up Mat Stack. The scalloped and plain circles were cut using Mini Monograms and my Expression machine. The "D" and "Donna" was cut from Jasmine. Flowers are Prima...the black one started out white! I needed a black one but didn't have the correct size, so I used my BIC marker and colored it black! White dots on each scallop were done using a white Singo uniball pen.

Birthday card for my dad. Printed paper is Basic Gray Archaic, as well as the smaller green panel. Both of these are mounted on a deep brown Bazzil cardstock. The dinosaur was made by cutting a small dino out of another piece of the B.G. Archaic, enlarging it on the copier, and then tracing that onto the orange B.G. Archaic. I added rain dots to the lower left corner of the smaller panel, after coloring them with an orange BIC marker. I know that dinosaurs seem like a card for little boys, but as soon as I saw the paper, I immediately thought of a great sentiment for the inside.... "glad you're not extinct". :)

Father's Day card for my husband...I saw some cards like this on the gallery at Splitcoast Stampers that used stamps. I love the idea of a card like this for a Father's Day card, but I did not have any stamps like that. So, I took to the "drawing board"...or rather, my Design Studio. Using D.S. and the George cartridge, I created these ties. This paper from the Basic Gray Boxer 6x6 pad were PERFECT for ties! It's simple, but I love it. Here is the cut file: FATHER'S DAY TIES

Father's Day cards for my dad, my husband's dad, and my husbands step-father....all are the same. I figured I'd make it easy on myself since I had 3 to make. I also got this idea from Splitcoast Stampers. There, someone used a folding template. I used my Design Studio and George cartridge! Printed paper is from Basic Gray. Here is the cut file for the shirts: FATHER'S DAY SHIRTS

Here's a birthday card for one of my daughter's friends....

And a tag I made to add to the gift of my next-door neighbor's little boy....they were having a Happy Feet themed party, so I thought I'd carry the theme on with the tag. Printed paper is by Arctic Frog.

As soon as I figure out how to add cut file for Design Studio to my blog, I'll come back and add them. Thanks for looking!

A Couple of Quick Cards

2008-05-27T21:46:00.003-05:00

I went upstairs for a few minutes earlier tonight to work on some cards for the St. Jude project. I decided to come up with some simple but cute ones so that I can "mass produce" and get more done. Here, I used Design Studio to create some 4x4 cards and envelopes to fit. Actually, I used Design Studio for the entire project. I have found that I never use the machine by itself anymore. It's just so much easier to get things the desired size when using Design Studio!

The scalloped mats are from Mini Monograms, the butterfly from New Arrivals, the little birdie from Stretch Your Imagination, and the "hi" is from Opposites Attract. I ran the front side of the cards through my Cuttlebug using the Swiss Dots embossing folder. The inside of the cards were left blank so the families who get these cards can use them for any purpose they choose.

Before you go, please check out the following links related to this project:
Press Release About St. Jude Cards for Kids
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital

Thanks for stopping by!

Birthday Card for my Husband

2008-05-25T13:04:00.003-05:00

My husband's birthday was yesterday. He loves golf, so I made the card below for him. I used THIS CARD for my inspiration. I got the printed paper at Archiver's Friday (along with a TON of other stuff!) during a shopping spree with my friend Sharon. I used my Cricut Expression, Design Studio, and George and Plantin Schoolbook cartridges for the words.

I wrapped my husband's present in brown craft paper, using twine instead of ribbon. I made the tag by cutting a circle of chipboard out with my Cricut Expression, as well as the white paper that I used for the golf ball and the "grass". The golf ball was run through my Cuttlebug to get embossed and then I inked it. I stole one of my husband's golf tees (hey, he left it lying on the kitchen counter, so it was there for the taking! Heehee!), cut off part of it to the correct length using some wire cutters, and adhered it to the tag using Ranger's Glossy Accents. I CASED THIS CARD for my tag.

Thanks for stopping by! I hope you enjoy the long Memorial Day weekend!

One Last Teacher Gift---A Card Set

2008-05-25T10:54:00.005-05:00

Here's a set of cards that I made as one more gift for my daugher's teacher. Several of these cards were "CASED" from other blogs....I wish I had 1/4 of the creativity that some of those ladies do!

First is the little box I made for storing the cards. The flowers and butterflies were cut with my Cricut Expressions machine. Flowers were cut out of white cardstock and the edges inked. I used the border feature on Walk In My Garden for these. The butterflies were first cut in shadow out of white cardstock, inked on the edges, and stuck down. The top layer of butterflies were cut out of various Creative Memories Printed Paper. I decorated both sides of the box this way.

This first card uses paper from the Basic Gray Sugared 6x6 pad. I used printed paper as the background and a strip of solid (distressed) paper from the same pack across the middle of the paper. The scalloped circle was cut using my Cricut Expression and Design Studio, as was the the inside circle. Flowers are Primas, fastened to the lighter paper using a clear rhinestone brad. I know, you're thinking to yourself, "that doesn't look like a clear rhinestone brad!". :) It is, but it's topped with a "skittle". These little gems are being raved about all over the Cricut message boards. I found my CLEAR ones at Michael's....Yes, this pink "skittle" started out clear! I just colored the flat bottom using my BIC markers. It was then attached to the top of the brad using Ranger Glossy Accents. I love the dimension it added. (This card was CASED, but I can't find the blog user who first created it.)

This card was created using scraps from my Basic Gray 6x6 pad of Sultry and some scraps of Bazzill. The birds (Stampin' Up "A Little Birdie Told Me") were stamped onto white cardstock and cut out. Then I colored them using my colored pencils and then I went over that using a Goo-Gone Pen....Yes, Goo-Gone is not just for getting rid of goo! I read on Splitcoast Stampers that some ladies were using a Goo-Gone pen for blending their colored pencils instead of Gamsol or Baby Oil Gel. I had tried the Baby Oil Gel before and didn't have much luck with it, even after several tries. I got it the first time with the Goo-Gone pen. I based this design on a card that I saw HERE.

More Sultry paper here. I so love the bright colors from this pack! This is one of the few design I came up with on my on. (shocker!) Prima flowers are secured to the ribbon using a clear rhinestone brad. I used my Cricut Expression machine and the Walk In My Garden cartridge to cut the butterflies in pink and green Bazzil cardstock. See the round accents on the wings of each butterfly? Those are CLEAR Rain Dots that I colored with my BIC markers. You would not believe how excited I was after seeing how good these looked after coloring them.

Here's another of my own designs. I used DCWV cardstock as the base after running it through my cuttlebug to dry emboss it. The printed paper is from DCWV All Dressed Up Mat Stack. The green embem was cut using my Cricut Expression and the Home Accents cartridge. The "W" monogram was cut from the Jasmine cartridge. Everything was then inked with black ink.

Another one of my ideas, using all the same paper as noted in the above paragraph. In this card, I used a corner ticket punch on the green paper and printed paper. White eyelets were then put in all four corners of the black cardstock. Flowers are Prima and attached to the printed paper with a clear rhinestone brad. The black flower in the center started out white! I wanted to use a black flower in the center, but I did not have one in the size I needed. So, I took a white one and colored it black using my BIC markers!

I love this card, too! Check out THIS BLOG for my inspiration for this card. I ran the pink paper through my Cuttlebug. The printed paper is from Imaginisce. The flower petals are ovals cut using my Cricut Expression and the George Cartridge. The green accents in the center of the flower are clear Rain Dots that I once again colored with my BIC markers. The square "button" is chipboard and the Imaginisce paper that I cut out using my Cricut Expression, Design Studio and the George cartridge. Then, I punched two holes using my Crop-o-Dile and tied various ribbons on it for added dimension. The stamped image is a small border from Studio G clear stamps.

THIS BLOG is so full of beautiful ideas, and it's where I found a card to base the one above on. All paper is from the We R Memory Keepers Silver Lining collection. I did not have the stamp used in the original card, so I used my Cricut Expression and the Joys of the Season cartridge.

The card I chose to case for the one above is by The Stamping Addict. Her flower image and stem are stamped, and I did not have anything that I liked to use in this spot, so I used my Cricut Expression to cut out several different sized flowers and a stem. I layered the flowers and attached them using a gold mini brad. The light colored paper at the bottom of the card front was a scrap of Basic Gray that had been stamped using Stampin' Up's French Script backgrounder.

This card was also CASED, but I am unable to find who came up with the original. Design paper is by Basic Gray, all cardstock is Bazzil and DCWV. Flowers are Primas and ribbon came from Michael's dollar bin.

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Mother's Day Cards & Link to Some iCandy

2008-05-10T13:42:00.016-05:00

I was a busy bee last night. Nothing like waiting till the last minute, but I got my 3 Mother's Day cards done. Well, I already had one but had to make the other two. I'm only going to post two....one because my MIL already has hers & the other because I don't think she'll see it here before she gets it. I'm not posting my mom's because there's a slight chance she might see it here, and I don't want her to see it till I give it to her.

Here's the first:

I started with a base of chocolate colored Bazzil cardstock to create this card. Next is paper from the Basic Gray Infuse 6x6 paper pad. The ribbon is also Basic Gray Infuse. I covered a piece of Maya Road chipboard with more BG and then stamped and embossed the sentiment. The small flower was add there because I got the sentiment off center. :) I used my new Cricut Home Accents Solutions cartridge and design studio to cut the flourish and welded "mom" to it using Jasmine. The flowers were stamped onto more BG Infuse using Stampin' Up Boho Blossoms. I stamped two of the large flowers, cut them apart and did some layering to add some dimension. The small flowers are also from SU Boho Blossoms, but I punched them out using a SU punch.

Inside, I used a pretty green Bazzil cardstock for the letters that I cut out using Cricut Design Studio and Alphalicious (love that cart for fonts!). More Boho flowers stamped and punched out. The tag was cut using Tags, Bags, Boxes, and More....I used another SU stamp on it....ribbon is Basic Gray.

My second card also features stamps from Stampin' Up. The sentiment is from "The Art of Life---I stamped and then embossed it, making it so shiny that getting a good picture was impossible. The main stamped image is Avian Toile by Stampin' Up, colored with my makers. All paper is Creative Memories cardstock. The decorative corners were made using my Cuttlebug.

For the inside sentiment, I used Cricut Design Studio and the Alphalicious cartridge to weld and cut the letters. The tag and it's envelope were cut using TBBM. Ribbon is from Michael's. The flowers were stamped using Stampin' Up's The Art of Life. I stamped the image using VersaMark and the embossed with clear embossing powder. A clear "skittle" was placed in the center of one and clear Stickles in the other.

Since I started card-making, I've found many, many blogs that offer much inspiration and instructions. One that I subscribe to is iSTAMP , and I just love her creativity. Obviously, many others do, too, because she has reached 200,000 hits on her blog!!! To celebrate, she is offering some awesome blog candy. If you're interested in the chance to win some free stampin' stuff, be sure to visit her blog.

Thanks for stopping by! Happy Mother's Day.

Teacher Appreciation Day 3---Snacks!

2008-05-07T10:07:00.000-05:00

No project for today's gift....no picture either. I forgot to take a picture---I guess because we didn't make anything to send with this little gift. I found a cute plastic popcorn box at Dollar Tree and added individual bags of popcorn, a bag of Pepperidge Farm Chocolate Chunk Soft-baked Cookies, and a couple of diet cokes (yes, I actually parted with 2 of my own! I know it's very hard to believe for those of you who know of my diet coke addiction. LOL!).
Heehee, here's a picture I found of a similar box for our gift. Ours was a little wider, though.

Teacher Appreciation Day 2---School Supplies

2008-05-07T09:38:00.000-05:00

Tuesday was School Supply Day for Teacher Appreciation Week. We got a pop-up sticky note holder, some dry erase markers, some Sharpies, and a notepad. Once again, because "my teacher loooooves purple", Taylor chose this paper....

The Creative Memories Gazebo paper was used to help create this gift box for Taylor's gift. First, I covered a square priority mail box with brown craft paper and added the decorative paper to each side. The white scalloped paper is Creative Memories cardstock and I used my Cricut Expression and Design Studio to cut it to the right size. Both papers were inked on the edges using a Delta pigment ink dauber.

Each purple mat was stamped with the largest swirl from Rhonda Ferrar's Autumn Leaves stamp set and then heat embossed. I added a purple satin ribbon covered by a sheer white ribbon all the way around the box, and tied a bow using a sheer purple ribbon on one side.

The butterflies were all cut out of Creative Memories paper using my Cricut Expression, then inked, and added to each side of our gift box. I also added some small clear bead accents to each side.

I had a couple of extra butterflies, so I attached them to a couple of the gifts inside the box!

I used a metal-rimmed vellum tag from a set I found at Wal-Mart the other day. Using my new Studio G alphabet stamps, I stamped the sentiment and then heat embossed using a clear embossing powder. The tag was then tied to the handle of the box using a sheer purple ribbon. Speaking of the handle, I made it by punching a hole in the box and using a thick gauge wire. It was then covered with purple satin ribbon.

Taylor took this to her teacher on Tuesday. I really hope she likes it!

Teacher Appreciation Day 1---Thank You Card

2008-05-07T09:23:00.000-05:00

This week at Taylor's school is Teacher Appreciation Week. The students can bring something for each day (Thank You card day, School Supply Day, Snack Day, Pamper Your Teacher Day, and Gift Card Day) or just pick one day. OF COURSE Taylor wanted to do something every day, so here's her card for Thank You Card day....

She picked this paper from the DCWV Glitter Mat Stack because "my teacher REALLLLLY likes purple". She wanted to use my stamps, so she picked this one by Stampin' Up (A Little Birdie Told Me set). She stamped it onto white cardstock, heat embossed it, and then colored it with my markers. We used my Cricut Expression and Cricut Design Studio to cut the scalloped pink mat, and she mounted it on pop dots for more dimension.

Inside, Taylor used the "you're the best" sentiment stamp from the same Stampin' Up set, as well as the smaller birdie and flower stamp. She also heat embossed all stamped images and then used my markers to color the bird, the flower, and to doodle around each and every sentiment! :)

You'll also see that she decorated the back of the card. I love her creativity!

Creating the envelope was my only contribution to this project! I used my Cricut Expression and Cricut Design Studio to cut out the envie. Because the flap was a little too short, I punched two holes and used ribbon to close it. I also used my Martha Stewart Lace Edge Punch so it wouldn't be so plain.

Thanks for stopping by!

St. Jude Cards for Kids

2008-05-07T09:00:00.001-05:00

I haven't gotten to do much work lately on my cards for St. Jude. I plan to do more on that next week. Here is the one I did get to finish last weekend...

I used a new paper from Creative Memories. The blue square postage stamp mat was cut out using my Cricut Expression and Cricut Design Studio, with the help of AMKSCRAP, a fellow Cricut message board member.
The cupcake (stamp by Hero Arts) was stamped on white cardstock and then colored by my daughter. I added Glossy Accents by Ranger Ink and mounted on pop dots to give it more dimension.

Inside, I used my Cuttlebug to cut a small postage stamp out of purple CM paper and then cut another one out of some plastic I saved from one of my Cricut cartridges. After cutting the plastic postage stamp, I embossed it with my Cuttlebug and mounted it over the purple postage stamp. The sentiment is from the same Cupcake stamp set by Hero Arts. After stamping it, I heat embossed it using a clear embossing powder.

Basic Gray Birthday

2008-05-07T08:13:00.008-05:00

I know Mother's Day is just a few days away, and I sooooo need to be working on the three cards we'll be giving on that day, but I saw THIS card and wanted to create a birthday card along the same lines.

I didn't have the same paper by K&Co. (love it!) as the original card, but I thought I could make it work using my Basic Gray Two Scoops paper. For my cardstock base, I used a chocolate Bazzil. The rectangle background piece is vellum layered on top of a piece of vanilla cardstock by Creative Memories. I dry embossed the vellum using my Cuttlebug and the Textile Texture embossing folder. Then I ran a Delta pigment ink dauber across the vellum to help the embossing stand out more. I love the way this looks!

I cut the bird out using my Cricut Expressions machine and the Joys of the Season cartridge. After cutting it out, I embossed the swirls using my VersaMark pad. The sentiment was stamped using my new Studio G stamp. Both the bird and the sentiment were then heat embossed using clear embossing powder. I added some Prima flowers and some silk flowers (from Oriental Trading) with gold brads in the center, plus a creamy organdy ribbon for embellishments.

I hope the recipient loves this card as much as I do! Happy Wednesday.

St. Jude Cards for Kids

2008-04-20T00:49:00.004-05:00

I am a member of a message board for people who have purchased a Cricut machine by Provo Craft. I love visiting there and seeing all the creations that everyone comes up with. A few weeks ago, a nice lady from Washington decided that she wanted to do something for some families at St. Jude Hospital in Memphis, TN. Marcia thought it would be a great idea to create cards to donate to the familes there....these could be thank you cards, birthday cards, any kind of cards that a family might need but not be able to get out and purchase. She's coming here in July to visit her daughter, and she and I plan to tour St. Jude to visit some children there and to distribute the cards. I don't have a number, but I know that there are A LOT of ladies who've signed up to make cards and send to us to give these familes.

Here are the first few that I made:

paper ~ Bazzil; Creative Memories white cardstock; Provo Craft Rob & Bob red paper & patterned paper
tools ~ Cricut Expression; CM mini-square punch; eyelets; Cuttlebug w/birthday embossing folder

paper ~ Creative Memories white cardstock; Provo Craft Rob & Bob patterned paper
embellishments ~ Provo Craft stickers; Studio G birthday stamps
tools ~ Cricut Expression

paper ~ Creative Memories white cardstock; Bazzil green; DCDW glitter stack
embellishments ~ Prima flower; rhinestone flower from Archiver's; Studio G stamp

paper ~ Creative Memories white cardstock; DCDW glitter stack; Bazzil blue & green
embellishments ~ Studio G stamp
tools ~ Cricut Expression

I hope to get many more cards done next week! I hope you'll check back soon. :)

2008-04-20T00:40:00.006-05:00

A couple of Fridays ago, my friend, Sharon, came over, and together we came up with a couple of luggage tags for Sharon's boss and his wife. He is a big Memphis Tigers fan, so we definately wanted to use that for his. And for his wife's, anything girly was great.

paper ~ Creative Memories Blush Blooms; Creative Memories white and royal blue cardstock; Bazzil cardstock for the basketball
tools ~ Cricut Expression; Design Studio; Xyron 510 w/laminating cartridge
embellishments ~ ribbon from Michaels; Prima flower; rhinestone flower from Archiver's

These were so fun to make! One of these days, I think I'll make some for my family. Thanks for stopping by!

Long time no see....

2008-04-19T22:50:00.007-05:00

Well, it has been months since I've posted. I haven't been completely idle, though, just lazy about posting on my blog. I'll upload several pictures to show what I've been up to since Christmas. I'll admit I was reminded that I needed to get back to posting by a fellow blogger, Enfys (Check out the wonderful work of Enfys .) Thank you, Enfys.

First, I'm going to go back to February and post some Valentines cards I made for my husband and daughter.

paper ~ all Creative Memories card stock

tools ~ Cricut Expression; Cuttlebug w/Heart embossing folder, ribbon from Wal-Mart

Here is the card I made for my daughter:

paper ~ pink and white Creative Memories card stock

tools ~ Cricut Expression to cut house shape; eyelet; pink ribbon; mini-ABC's by Creative Memories; candy cane Stickles

Next, I'm going to show off something my daughter made for school. Everyone in her class had the project of decorating a shoebox to take to school as thier Valentine mailbox. Here's her creation:

paper ~ Creative Memories Shades of Pink

stamps ~ Autumn Leaves

ribbon ~ garland I got at the dollar store before Chistmas

Next is a birthday card made for me by a dear friend, Sharon. I love the colors!!

Next up are some cards that my mom ordered......

First, she wanted a Tinkerbell card for my niece. KB loves Tink, and I had so much fun creating this card for her.

Paper ~ Creative Memories Blush Blooms

Embellishments ~ Tinkerbell sticker from Michael's; Ribbon---rak from a friend; Rain Dots; Ric-Rak; Stickles

Tools Used ~ Cricut Expression; Design Studio; Scor-pal

Here is the envelope for the Tink card:

Paper ~ green & pink---Creative Memories Blush Blooms; white ---Creative Memories card stock

Stamps ~ Studio G Happy Birthday; swirl stamp by Rhonda Farrar

Ink ~ black pigment ink from Michael's; pink ink on "KB" from Stampin' Up

Tools ~ Cricut Expression; Design Studio; Martha Stewart lace border punch; Scor-Pal to create envelope

For my uncle, a big racing fan:

paper ~ Creative Memories white, red, black, yellow, orange, purple, and blue card stock

embellishments ~ Creative Memories racing stickers

tools ~ Cricut Expression; Design Studio; Scor-Pal

Here is the birthday card I made for my husband & I to give to my niece:

paper ~ Creative Memories black, white, and green cardstock; Basic Gray Two Scoops

stamps ~ Studio G "Happy Birthday"

tools ~ Cricut Expression; Design Studio; watercolor pencils

And, of course, I am going to share the cards my daughter made! She made one for my niece and one for my nephew....

paper ~ DCDW Glitter stack; CM cardstock in pink, yellow and red

tools ~ Cricut Expression; Cuttlebug w/Birthday folder; stamp-Stampin' Up Little Birdie Told Me; baseball stickers from Michael's; Sigmo white pen

Thanks for looking! More to come....

Twas the night before Christmas.....

2007-12-27T12:12:00.001-06:00

Actually, twas three nights before Christmas, and all through the house, not a creature was stirring....actually, *I* was the only one stirring because, as usual, I procrastinated and was up waaaaaaaaaay too late finishing Christmas gift projects and cards! I had gift card holders to make, Christmas cards to finish, and a couple of gifts to wrap, and we were leaving at lunch the next day. YIKES!!! I stayed up until around 2:00 a.m. and was worn out, but they were done. That meant all I had left to do the next morning was to pack for our "traveling" holiday. (Those of you who know me, know what I mean by this.) Sooo, here they are...the last of my Christmas projects...

Here is the Christmas card I made for my daughter's teacher. The patterned paper on the front, as well as what I used for the stocking on the inside, are Merry Grinch-mas from Rusty Pickle. The other papers are from Creative Memories. Ribbon is from Wal-Mart. I cut the scalloped square on the front from Mini-Monograms at 4 inches, and the ornament was cut from Christmas Cheer at 3.5 inches. "Merry Christmas" and the stocking were cut from Joys of the Season at 2 inches. I used Diamond Stickles on the words and the stocking inside.

I participated in a gift exchange on a message board I belong to. Included with the gift I sent my gift exchange partner were some chocolates and a pack of 3 cards that I made. The cards were copied from some other birthday cards I made earlier.

In the above picture, I just put the Hershey's Kisses into a cello bag and laid the bag down on top of the green CM paper I was going to use. I marked the paper and cut it so that I would have about 2 inches on the front and back after it was folded down from the top and up from the bottom. On each piece of paper, I scored two lines that were just under .25" apart and folded. I then adhered the paper to the top and bottom of the bag and added ribbon to each. Both styles of ribbon are from Big Lots. The red tag was cut at 3 inches from Provo Craft Christmas Cheer paper. The white paper is CM and was cut at 2.75 inches and stamped with a $1 stamp from Michael's.

I made this slider box for two Dove chocolate bars. Again, I placed the candy on top of the paper (Christmas Cheer paper from Provo Craft), marked and cut the paper large enough to cover both bars, then I punched a hole and tied ribbon (again, from Big Lots).

For the Christmas card I made for her, I used cranberry CM paper and a discontinued silver CM paper. The bells were cut at different sizes using Joys of the Season. The ribbon for the bow that ties the bells together is from Wal-Mart, and the "Jingle Jingle Jingle" stamp is a $1 stamp from Michaels.

I gave several gift cards this year, and I loved having my Cricut Expression to help me with those projects. It was also very helpful when making a couple of money holders.

For this first gift card holder and tag, I cut them using Tags, Bags, Boxes & More. It was tied with a ribbon (from Wal-Mart) to close, and the tag was attached using a sheer gold ribbon from the dollar store.

These 2 slider boxes were cut with TBBM at 5". The first one was made using CM Starry Night paper and a green sheer ribbon from Wal-Mart. The tag was cut at 2.5". The second box was made using CM blue cardstock for the box, white CM cardstock for the top, and ribbon from Big Lots. The white paper was embossed using the Cuttlebug machine and the Snowflake embossing folder.

The outside of this money holder was created by folding and adhering 3 sides of a post card in half, covering with paper, and then inking the edges. The pull out money holder was created by cutting a piece of paper that would slide easily into the "post card" once folded and glued shut. All patterned paper is Christmas Cheer by Provo Craft, and the red and the white paper are CM cardstock. The ribbon is from the dollar store. I cut the "B" from George in white at 2.25 using the shadow blackout feature, and I cut it in red at 2". The rest of the name was cut in white at 1.25" and in red at 1".

For this gift card holder, I used red CM paper cut at 4" on Plantin Schoolbook using the card key. "Merry Christmas" was cut at 1" using Beyond Birthdays and CM green paper from the Candy Cane album kit. The Santa face was cut from Doodlecharms at 2" and embossed with the Cuttlebug and the D'Vine Swirl embossing folder. "To" and "from" were cut in CM black cardstock using Christmas Cheer, and "Mark" was cut using Cuttin' Up. The ribbon on front is from the dollar store. I used CM photo mounting corners to hold the gift card on the inside and small pop dots to keep the card closed.

The next gift was for a female, so I used TBBM to cut the purse. For the size, I chose the "fit to page" function on the Expression machine. I used Prima Aurora paper and ribbon from Michaels. The tag is made with paper from CM's Shades of Green Paper Pack and inked on the edges. I cut a tag pocket (tag pocket 1) to slip the money down into.

I cut this cut triangle box to use from TBBM using the fit to page feature on the Expression machine. The paper is CM Evergreen cardstock. For the tag, I used red paper from the CM Candy Cane album kit, using the tag feature on the Christmas Cheer cartridge. I used ribbon from Big Lots, and the box is closed by using small cuts of leftover Velcro that I had lying around.

The next gift card was for my mom. I put it inside one of my favorite Christmas cards that I made this year and, wouldn't you know, I forgot to take a picture of it. Yet I thought to take a picture of the envelope! Geez. Hopefully, I can get my mom to take a picture and email it to me soon. I used an invitation-sized envelope, a tag from the My Mind's Eye Bohemian Christmas pack, and ribbon from Michaels. "Donna" was cut at .75" using the shadow feature and then stickled using Diamond Stickles.

And that's it for my last minute Christmas projects. I learned a lesson....STOP WAITING 'TIL THE LAST MINUTE!!!! LOL, well, at least I *think* I learned my lesson. Thanks for looking. I would love for you to leave a comment!

My First Card Order!!!!

2007-12-21T01:40:00.000-06:00

I got my first order for a set of cards! My mom's boss ordered some to give as a gift. She also ordered a box to organize them in. Here are pictures of the box and some of my favorite cards out of the bunch....

LOL, it looks like I put them all on here! Ah well, TFL....I'm all caught up and will update from now on with any new creations....'Night all!

Card Set....

2007-12-21T01:32:00.000-06:00

I made a small set of cards with a box for a Christmas gift. The box is what I guess you call a shaker box (is that right???). I made it using TBBM, cutting a window for the top, putting glitter into a CM sticker envelope and sticking that to the inside of the top of the box. Here are the cards. I only took pictures of the fronts for some reason. Most of the insides were stamped with a "Happy Birthday" or "Celebrate" stamp and had a gift cut w/the cricut & stickled.

Here's the box:

And here are the cards:

Christmas Treat Boxes & Bows...

2007-12-21T01:22:00.000-06:00

I made these little treat boxes for the girls I used to work with. Paper is Provo Craft Christmas Cheer, except for the blue with Christmas trees & it's Creative Memories Starry Night; cart used was TBBM & they were cut at 4.5 *I think*. Ribbon is from Dollar General, Big Lots & Michael's.

And here is little bag I made that holds a little "happy" for a friend of mine who's gotten into card making (yes, I proudly enabled her! Hey Sharon if you see this!!!!). I got her 2 bottles of stickles. Instead of using tissue paper or confetti, I rolled and taped up different sizes of scrap paper. All paper in this project is Creative Memories Starry Night paper. The ribbon is actually cut from a garland I got at Dollar Tree.

I saw the tutorial for this paper bow on Splitcoast Stampers a few days ago and thought it was too cute. My DD's class were exchanging gifts and after she wrapped it, I remembered that I left the bows and tags in the attic. Then it dawned on me...."I've got that awesome expression and can make a waaaaay better tag than one of those peel and stick boring ones." So, I got to work. The tag is the scalloped square tag from Christmas cheer & so is the reindeer. It's hard to see, but I used Jasmine to cut "to" and "from" (I got home from Christmas shopping to find it on my front porch, just begging me to try it out.). I used diamond stickles on the words and candy cane stickles on the reindeer's horns, hoofs, neck & nose (to match the reindeer on the wrapping paper.). DD asked me to "glitter it up" on the names, so that's why the words are so hard to read. After I finished the tag, I was trying to find some ribbon to use for a "bow", and then remembered that SCS paper bow. I used Creative Memories Candy Cane paper for the bow, CM Everyday power palette paper for the green tag, & CM red card stock for the "shadow" tag. Brown & black CM card stock was used for the reindeer. TFL!!!

Some Christmas Cards....

2007-12-21T01:11:00.001-06:00

I've made a few Christmas cards, but I'll just post my 2 favs. In the first one, the ornament was cut from Joys of the Seasons Cricut cart, the red paper is CM cranberry cardstock, the Striped Square Paper is Rusty Pickle Merry Grinch-mas Whoville, the dark Green Scalloped Square is Creative Memories Starry Night Paper, Blue Ornament "Shadow" is Creative Memories Gazebo Power Palette, Striped Ornament is Rusty Pickles Merry Grinch-mas Candy Cane, Clear Rain Dots, Diamond Stickles, and Starry Night Stickles. Inside (no pic) I used Creative Memories clear photo mounting corners to add a photo card created by me using CM digital scrapbooking software (Storybook Creator Plus).

Second Card: All paper is from My Mind's Eye Bohemian Christmas pack except the siliver that I used for the ornament. The silver is from Creative Memories Shimmer paper. Silver ribbon is from Walmart. Snowflake and "joy" were cut from Creative Memories white card stock and then covered in diamond stickles. Inside I again used the clear photo mounting corners so I could add the photo card I made.

Happy Anniversary, Baby....

2007-12-21T01:05:00.000-06:00

I have been married to my wonderful husband for 14 years. I love this card I made for him. Various Cricut carts were used to create it...accent essentials, beyond birthdays. The cuttlebug was used to emboss the gray paper on the front. He loved it and I love him!

Turkey 'N Dressing....

2007-12-21T00:57:00.000-06:00

My daughter, Taylor, came home with a family project to do for school called "Turkey 'N Dressing". The students were given a "naked" turkey that they and their family had to "dress". Taylor had the idea of dressing the turkey as Santa Claus. Why, you ask? Because if it was dressed as Santa, it couldn't be eaten for Thanksgiving dinner. LOL!

She wanted us to use my Cricut in some way, so I cut out a Santa suit using the Christmas Cheer cart, traced it onto paper, enlarged it, modified it to fit Mr. Turkey, and there ya have it. For the beard and the trim on his hat and suit, I used some of that white fluffy stuff (what IS that called, anyway?!?!) that comes in jewelry gift boxes. So, here's Santa Turkey....

Criss Cross Applesauce

2007-12-21T00:54:00.000-06:00

Well, not really, but that's what I think of every time I hear the name of these cards. Criss cross cards....now who came up with this idea? I dunno but I love 'em! Here are my first two...

Some of my creations....

2007-12-21T00:33:00.000-06:00

Since my blog is brand new, I do have several cards I'd like to post. I'll post my favorites out of what I've made so far, and after I get those posted, I post future creations as I make them.

This first card is a birthday card I made for my mom. Again, all paper is Creative Memories. I used my cricut to cut out the "D" (tear drop cartridge), the flowers (george cart), the "it's your day", and the gift. (Can't remember the cart for "it's your day"; I think it was celebrations.) I inked the edges to give it a distressed look.

I also made a set of thank you cards for my mom for her birthday. She sells Premier Jewelry and sends the hostess a thank you card after each show, so I thought they would come in handy. Because I was so new to card making, I just used some patterned CM paper, applied Stickles for some "bling", and cut out "thank you" or "thanks" with my Cricut. Here are a couple of the thank you cards....

Since I made a set of cards, I also "had" to have a box to store them in, so I altered a box that I had just received a shipment in. Here it is....

2007-12-21T00:12:00.000-06:00

Time to start a blog. I've heard about blogs, I've read other people's blogs, I've never thought about having my own blog...till now. I've really gotten into card-making, and I've been spending a lot of time scouring various message boards, websites, etc., to get ideas. One link led to another and another and another and I found myself on someone's blog. After seeing the awesome creations posted on different blogs, and after uploading tons of photos to photobucket, and then sending links to friends and family so they could view what I've been up to, I decided it was time to start my own blog.

I plan to use my blog to store photos of my crafts and to share the "recipe" of how I made them. This will serve as a reference for me in the future as I make more cards. I also hope in some way it might inspire others. If you see something you like, please feel free to use it. I know I need inspiration all the time!

Because the blog is brand new and this is my first post, I think I'll post the very first card I made. It's a birthday card for my daughter, Taylor. When I made this card, I had just gotten my Cricut machine. After this card was finished, I was addicted....I loved it and wanted to create more! All paper used was Creative Memories Everyday Power Palette. Cricut was used to create the monogram and name on the front, as well as the words and birthday cake on the inside. The "you take the cake" sticker is also CM. Anyway, here it is....