Birthday Tag

My niece Kayla turned 14, so I made her a tag/money holder for a present. I have a number of tag swaps I am in currently and I thought it would be a fun way to test out some design ideas. Played a lot on this one embossing, bead work, handmade flowers, stickles, border punches, alcohol inks... I put a video with more details about it on youtube: Birthday Tag

Wedding Card

The son of one of my mom's good friends got married. She asked me to make her a card. It was so bulky that it wouldn't fit in an envelope, so I ended up making a box for it out some nice bronze Martha Stewart cardstock - sorry no pic of the box.

 
I used this beautiful Prima Victorian pin bouquet (loved this, marketed to be used on crafts or just worn as a pin), some mariposa paper, some wasau pearlescent cardstock, swarovski crystal bead (so pretty), a fiskars circle punch (too bad it only works well on lightweight papers, it is my fav toy of the moment), metal photo corners (I wish I had more of them), Tattered Angels glimmer chips, CTMH stamp & chocolate ink, and lots of glimmer mist (sea glass & walnut gold). It took far too long for me to come up with something so simple, but I am pretty pleased with the results.

Oh My!

It has been so long since I put up anything on my blog. I should be ashamed. But I am not! LOL I have been crafting a bit, and I have been very involved in making mvids for youtube with my Sony Vegas. So I may not have been posting, but at least I have been creating. Did you guys buy that? Sigh..I will be back later with some photos of projects I have made in my absence.

Recipe Card for a birthday

A dear family friend celebrated a milestone birthday, well sort of (LOL). His family planned him a surprise party for his 59th birthday (because for 60 he would be expecting one right?) and the theme was food/recipes, since he loves to cook. Each guest was asked to bring a recipe to be included in a cookbook they were compiling for him.

Here is what I came up with. The front of the card had the ingredient list and simple ribbon with a button embellishment, the back had the instructions for preparing the dish.

 

The accompanying birthday card.

More flowers

More flowers I made over the holidays. These flowers I made for my mom. She wanted them as toppers for some watering can themed gifts she gave the ladies in her office.  They were so much fun to make. I used mostly old Chatterbox pattern paper from my stash, I cut flowers shapes with my Cricut in graduated sizes, then I sprayed them with glimmer mist in varying shades and crumbled them up.  I love the shimmer and the texture of these flowers. I used rhinestone brads from Oriental Trading for the centers.

Flowers

One of my favorite things to make. I have been coming up with all kinds with my cricut.

This first one I made using a flower from my Cricut. I cut it in graduated sizes, ran it thru a cuttlebug embossing folder, chalked it and attached it to a punched scalloped circle. Of course I topped it with a rhinestone.

 

 

This next flower I also cut with my Cricut, Gypsy Wanderings I think and added a large rhinestone brad.

Let's just pretend...

Just because I haven't updated in a while, doesn't mean I have not been crafting. I just have not had a chance to post some of the stuff I have been working on over the holidays. I am going to start posting the stuff right now, and let's just forget that I have not put anything up since October. Okay? Okay!

Two more calendars

I am still on my calendar making kick. After years of imagining making calendars, and collecting supplies I am finally doing it.

I have been asked a number of times to share how I am making my calendars...I am working on doing a quick video about them. They are so simple, since they really are just a scrapbook page with a calendar instead of a photo. (I really think that last sentence just explained it all. Do I still need to do a tutorial?)

 

Loving my gypsy

Got the new Cricut Gypsy...it is proving to be quite a fun new toy. I love being able to design while I am commuting to work. And best of all...no more arguing with my hubby about getting access to MY LAPTOP to cut with my cricut. I made a number of things over the weekend and never once had to take MY LAPTOP away from him. Peace in the house....nice!

Here are a few things I made using the Gypsy Wanderings cart that is installed on the Gypsy.

Some creativity before chaos

My scraproom is currently in shambles. My DH is rearranging and cleaning it for me....what a sweetie. But right now it looks like a cyclone hit it. I always hate cleaning, because it makes such a mess. No before shots...I am far too embarrassed. But I will share the after...I have a card catalog that I love as my main storage for my supplies. I managed to snag one when we were getting rid of them all here at work.

I have a major project to do by this Saturday, so hopefully this restructuring of the craft room will be done by Friday, so I can spend the day working. I did manage to get two layouts done before my husband got busy.

Birthday Cards

Two cards I made for my mother in law and my grandma for their birthdays. I made them to fit in a business size envelope, so they are basically 4x9. I used a bunch of older, yet very lovely papers...had to add primas of course...and used my Glamour Girls Crafty Secrets stamps (these are great by the way) and some Brillance ink in gold. The ink is so pretty it has a sparkle to it.

supplies: paper - K&Co, Me & My Big Ideas, Cosmo Cricket, Daisy Ds; Embellishments - Prima, Autumn Leaves; Stamps & Ink - Brillance (galaxy gold), Crafty Secrets

Scary Picture (of my halloween card)

I made this card for my monthly Cricut messageboard card swap. I totally spaced that it was due and had to hurry at the last minute and pull something together. Ironically, I cut those black swirly things at a crop in July in the hopes of being ahead of the game. So much for that.

I am not even sure which Cricut cart I used to make this card. The little black swirly thing in the back was cut on my cricut. If I try to guess it would be Storybook, Home Accents or Home Decor. I am probably wrong on all fronts. Oh well. I took the picture on my camera phone - which sucks as a camera.

I am happy I got to use the Studio G halloween stamps, I got last year on clearance at AC Moore, along with my trusty EK flower punch, bic markits, 7gypsies journaling stamp and Sakura metallic pens.

Window Shopping

Been scrapping more than shopping these days, although I did manage to do a page and a half over this past weekend. I am also working on favors for my mother in law's upcoming birthday party...so I guess I have been crafting, just not taking photos of my work. I will have to rectify that soon and share. But since I am here at work, in my down time all I can really do is shop. So I thought I would post a few things I am drooling over and hope to own sometime soon.

1 - The Gypsy. This is my Cricut dream. I cannot wait for the day when I don't have to lug my laptop and all my carts with me to a crop. It is bad enough lugging the expression.

2 -7 Gypsies calendar stamps - I have something bordering on obsession with calendar stamps. I keep buying them, and of course I have yet to make a calendar. Obsessions rarely make sense. These 7 gypsies ones are so lovely. I don't know why I have not bought them yet. I just like to stare at them. (And their new papers are gorgeous as well)

3 - Cricut Calendar Cartridge - speaking of calendars, this is a cartridge I had hoped they would make from day one. I cannot wait until it finally hits the shelves. Maybe then (hopefully) I will actually bite the bullet and make a calendar.

4 - Prima - Prima is like a thief in the night, roughing me up and taking all my money. With every new release my pockets get lighter. I cannot resist all the pretty. Their new stuff just seems even more gorgeous than the last. I swear this is cocaine. Cocaine in crafty form.

5 - Webster's Pages - so pretty I just want to wrap myself in it. I love love love...this line.

A long time coming

I haven't done a page of myself and Joe in so long. I think the last ones I did were wedding pictures. Could be because there are very few pictures of us in existence where we are both together. This one took far too long, but I think it came out pretty good.



supplies: Flowers - Prima; cardstock - Bazzill and CTMH, stamps - Inkadinkado and 7Gypsies; pattern paper - CTMH; ink and markers - CTMH and Sakura, diecut paper - KI; ribbon - offray; brads - oriental trading; tools - Cricut (wild card cartridge)

A few cards

My monthly card swaps on the Cricut board.

Border Swap for Splitcoast

I had to make "page candies" of specific themes for my swap partners. I did soccer, dancing, and baby girl. While I got some nice wedding ones in return.

Finally getting a chance to update

Been forever...but finally getting a chance to get back to my blog. Luckily I still have been finding the time to create in my absence. That is always a good thing.

Supplies: tons of Primas, MME patterned paper and embellishments, swirls and leaves cut with Cricut, Inkadinkado stamps, Anna Griffin stamps, coredinations card stock, ribbon, buttons, and brads by Colorbok

Finally had a chance to do a layout

Well I was totally swamped at work with the end of the semester looming and RU Day...so I spaced on the Cricut Team Challenge date. Don't you love the human brain? Where a 26 could be confused for a 29...sigh. Well my submission was too late to help my team, but I am posting it anyway. I think it came out pretty cute.

Supplies: Cardstock: American Crafts and Wausau; Pattern Paper: Making Memories, KaiserCraft; Embellishments: American Crafts, Prima, Petaloo, Oriental Trading; Stamps: Autumn Leaves, Anna Griffin, Marcella by K; Inks & Markers: Colorbox, Copic Sketch, Copic Spica, Sakura Gelly Roll, Glimmer Mists, EK Success; Tools: Tonic Edge distresser, Cricut (carts used: Home Accents, Wild Card, Graphically Speaking)

More Crafting for work

I am starting to think I work for Michaels. Student Appreciation Week has rolled around again, so we are giving out the goodies. Every year I try to create something cute for the students. This year I am a little lacking in the cute department. I think I am fried from all the RU Day stuff, but I should at least earn an E for effort. Little brown bags filled with candies, with a simply cute topper.

Cards for Boys - the biggest challenge of all

In my ongoing attempts to challenge myself creatively, I chose to make 20 boy birthday cards for another swap on the Cricut board. What should have been a simple endeavor turned into a full out production. I really am clueless when it comes to making things for males. I am so tempted to slap a flower on everything I make.

So after too long brainstorming. I finally came up with a super simple design that really should not have taken me so long. I used one of my all time favorite PP - cosmopolitan by Making Memories and cricut carts - Going Places and George. It took a bit to actually put the cards together because I used pen work on each of the titles for the card. That is the most embellishment I could muster without using a flower or a rhinestone.