Frame It Up! A Paper Craft Weekend Challenge

Today I am guest designing on a fabulous blog Paper Craft Weekend Challenge.  I have to thank my good friends Caroline and Allison for giving me the opportunity to be a guest designer this Sunday, the day before the ghosts, ghouls and goblins go walking in your neighborhood in search of candy, candy and even more candy!  So, with a Halloween theme in mind, I have a few projects to share with you and of course I am ready to present this week's challenge:

Frames

I created two cards using frames to create a focal point. The first card's frame can be found on the Happy Hauntings cartridge, and just to prove that you can still create something Halloween themed without a Halloween cartridge, I used a frame from the Circle exclusive cartridge Sophie for the second card.

Now those of you who know me know that I am a big fan of dimension.  I mean it's difficult for me to create any project where every piece of paper or embellishment is laying flat on the paper.  I can't begin to tell you how many pop dots and dimensionals I have purchased over the last year.  I would be lost without them.  That being said, one of the best ways to create dimension is to cut out several frames and put some dimension in-between each layer.  I did this on both of these cards, and it certainly makes the focal point stand out that much more.

I am someone who hates for the inside of cards to be bare so I cut out a few layers and added some stamps.  Again I used Elegant Edges and Art Philosophy for a few of the mats and all of the stamps are from Papertrey Ink's Halloween tags collection.

My son's birthday party is today.  Thankfully it's not the big production that it was last year, it's just going to be family and a few friends.  I decided to make up a few quick pillow boxes for the few friends he has coming - and his little brother of course who refuses to be left out.  The pillow box image is from Easter 2010.  You can find numerous ones on different Cricut cartridges.  I prefer this one because it's easy to fold down in my opinion.  I used images from October 31st, Happy Hauntings, and Wrap It Up to cut out a Halloween themed image that I covered with a clear page protector from the inside.  And then I framed each of the images using an Elegant Edges frame.  The back of the pillow boxes has a band that I cut using Paper Lace 2.

And that's it.  Okay, maybe not - there's a little blog candy to go along with this post.   I am an avid fan and collector of Spellbinder dies. I have one new set of Spellbinders Snowflake dies up for grabs - just in time for your Christmas or winter themed projects!  For those of you unfamiliar with Spellbinders, you can easily use them in most die cutting machines, including Big Shots and Cuttlebugs.  Here is a picture of the dies:

If you are interested in winning this set, please hop over to Paper Craft weekend challenge and leave a comment on my "Frame It Up!" post.  I will leave this open until next Saturday, Noon eastern standard time.

Recipe:

Paper:  K & Company Kelley Panacci, Kraft Spooky Words, DCWV Blossoms & Butterflies, DCWV Ghost & Gobblins

Cartridges:  Easter 2010, Happy Hauntings, Elegant Edges, Sophie, Art Philosophy, Wrap It Up, Paper Lace 2

Spellbinders:  Ornate Artisian Tags & Accents

Stamps:  Papertrey Ink Halloween Tags

Bling:  Imaginesence, White & Black Enamel Accents, Martha Stewart glitter

As always, thanks for stopping by!

Eight is Great!

My son celebrated his eighth birthday recently and I have been working on this one a little here and a little there over this past week.  His party isn't actually until tomorrow and thankfully I was able to get it finished up today.  It's a simple card, and really just a take on the birthday cards I made for my friend's twins'earlier this summer.  

The patterned paper is from Stampin' Up and the 8 is from Plantin Schoolbook.  I cut the 8 out of Coordinations cardstock and my original plan was to add a layer to the top of the 8 (what you see is the shadow) but I loved the way the coordinations cardstock looked so much I decided to leave it as is. The "is" came from my letter stash and the "great" was cut using Cindy Loo and of course I added  pop dots!

The inside sentiment was stamped using a stamp from Stampin' Up.

Recipe:

Paper:  Coordinations (card base and 8) and Stampin' Up

Cartridges:  Plantin Schoolbook and Cindy Lou

Embellishments:  Epoxy Stickers from my stash

Thanks for stopping by!

Ego Tripping - This Saturday Morning's Musing

From the distinguished Nikki Giovanni:

Ego Tripping (there may be a reason why)

I was born in the congo
I walked to the fertile crescent and built 

   the sphinx
I designed a pyramid so tough that a star
   that only glows every one hundred years falls
   into the center giving divine perfect light
I am bad

I sat on the throne
   drinking nectar with allah
I got hot and sent an ice age to europe
   to cool my thirst
My oldest daughter is nefertiti
   the tears from my birth pains
   created the nile
I am a beautiful woman

I gazed on the forest and burned
   out the sahara desert
   with a packet of goat's meat
   and a change of clothes
I crossed it in two hours
I am a gazelle so swift
   so swift you can't catch me

   For a birthday present when he was three
I gave my son hannibal an elephant
   He gave me rome for mother's day
My strength flows ever on

My son noah built new/ark and
I stood proudly at the helm
   as we sailed on a soft summer day
I turned myself into myself and was
   jesus
   men intone my loving name
   All praises All praises
I am the one who would save

I sowed diamonds in my back yard
My bowels deliver uranium
   the filings from my fingernails are
   semi-precious jewels
   On a trip north
I caught a cold and blew
My nose giving oil to the arab world
I am so hip even my errors are correct
I sailed west to reach east and had to round off
   the earth as I went
   The hair from my head thinned and gold was laid
   across three continents

I am so perfect so divine so ethereal so surreal
I cannot be comprehended except by my permission

I mean...I...can fly
   like a bird in the sky... 
 

Card Patterns Sketch Challenge 138

When I saw this week's Card Patterns challenge sketch I fell in love instantly.  I stepped a bit out of my comfort zone and decided to try to cut a doily using one of my cartridges.  Paper Lace is one that I've had for quite some time, and while I've been using it more recently because it has a great chunky font, I haven't given the other images much attention.  I'm glad I decided to use it because there are some gorgeous doilies on this cart!  I cut this one out at at 5 1/2 inches using a multi cut and it cut out very well.  I really love this card.  It's very different from anything I've made before.  I've had this ribbon in my stash for about six months now.  I found it at a local scrapbook store my best friend turned me onto.  I used my glue gun to cinch the words closer together and then to adhere the ribbon across the top of the card.  And just for my sister - I used my brand new hot glue gun and didn't burn myself once.  So there!

The Front:

The butterflies were cut from Cupcake Wrappers - believe it or not it's designed to be a cupcake topper! I inked the butterflies' edges with Soft Suede (Stampin' Up) and added a flower cut from Art Philosophy.  It's hard to go wrong with that cart, there are so many versatile images on it.

The Back:

I definitely feel like I'm in the zone.  It's been a good couple of weeks of crafting.  I'm excited to see what I can come up with next!

Recipe:

Paper:  Kraft Paper, DCWV Stripes, Plaids and Dots,  Coordinations Vintage Blue, Stampin' Up Natural White

Cartridges:  Paper Lace, Art Philosophy, Cupcake Wrappers

Other embellishments:  Ribbon (my stash), Pearls (my stash)

Thanks so much for stopping by today!

Happy Birthday Ciprian - This Coupon is Redeemable . . .

Happy Birthday Ciprian! Who the heck is that?  My little sister's boyfriend.  She texted me (I feel so cool saying that) on Friday night and asked if she could come over on Saturday to make Ciprian's birthday card and a coupon book of some sort.  My sister and her boyfriend are college students, perpetually broke, so things like this go a long way.  I get it, it's been quite some time since I was there, but I am willing to help out!!  Plus,  I love it when my sister visits and so do my kids so my answer was a resounding YES!  Last year, in honor of Cipriain's birthday, she and I spent a week constructing the massive haunted house from Happy Hauntings.  Given the bar was set so high, I wasn't sure two evening was going to be enough time to top last year's creation. Despite my trepidation we jumped into it.  My sister wanted to create a coupon book for him to cash in  for things she would never normally do - like watch a movie of Ciprian's choosing. I know, that sounds crazy, until she started to tell me the type of movies Ciprian' likes - think Lifetime movies circa 1988 and you'll get the picture.  So, with that painful picture in my head and a clear understanding in my heart I pushed forward.  Creating a coupon book is a first for me.  I thought it was a fab idea and I was thrilled when I found the PERFECT image  on a Cricut cartridge.  Scratch that - unfortunately the one I wanted wasn't on a cartridge I own!  Don't worry, it's Make The Cut to the rescue.  I was able to find a ticket image in the Make The Cut gallery and with about ten minutes worth of modifications we were in business.  I am in love with this coupon book.  Ruh roh.  That means you guys might be seeing more of these in the future.  Somebody stop me!  Without further adieu, here it is:

Who is Spanky?  Well apparently Cirprian has an alias, and Spanky it is.  Don't question it, just go with it.  The front and back of the Coupon book were cut using cereal box chipboard and then covered with houndstooth paper on both sides from one of the DCWV Halloween packs.  I wish I could tell you which one but my sister was in charge of most of the paper selections.  I used my Chomas' gel pen holder to print everything on the coupon, and before unloading my mat from my machine, I changed the gel pen back to the cutting blade to cut out the tickets.  We added a mat, and then adhered it to the ticket.  Pretty cute isn't it?

My favorite part of the coupon book is the front and the back. Believe it or not I did not use any adhesive to hold it together, just Bazzil yarn that I've had from a Stitch It Up set that's been sitting around for quite some time. I also tied a few 7 Gypsies gears to the front because Ciprian is an engineering student and my sister thought he would appreciate the reference.  The tags on the front of the book were cut from Spellbinders Four and the flourishes are from Waltzingmouse's Vintage Banners.  Spanky's name was spelled out using Making Memories Alphabet Charms.  I'm almost at the end of this pack and it making me sad.  I don't think they sell these anymore!

Don't you love the yarn?  I love the yarn.

Next up is the birthday card.  After flipping through the Happy Hauntings book for a while my sister decided she liked the gate and tombstones.  I sprayed black paper with Marshmellow Glimmer Mist and then cut it out three times.  Once adhered together it was thick enough to resemble chipboard.  I cut the tombstomes out of DCWV silver shimmer paper several times to add some dimension.  The bats are Spellbinders dies (Nested Bats) and they were inked with Basic Grey (Stampin' Up) to accent their embossing.  I also pop dotted the bats for dimension.

The sentiment and the tags behind it I love but I really can't take credit for.  Many of you know that I am head over heels in love with Waltzingmouse Stamps.  This past week, one of the Top Mouse's used these spellbinder tags and accents to create the most awesome focal point.  I totally scraplifted those from her card which you can see here.  Jeanne is an incredible crafter with many awards to her credit.  One day I can hope to create with ease the masterpieces she turns out week after week. 

Here is the inside of the card.  The sentiment at the top was cut using Wild card, and I used a Stampin' Up image from the Happiest Birthday Wishes set on the bottom.

And that's all folks.  I really have to say I loved this project.  I received some invaluable tips and ideas from my crafting buddies about the coupon book and it made all the difference in the world. I really like being stretched outside of my comfort zone and I hope to get to create something like this again soon.  In the meantime I am planning on entering it in the latest Cricut Circle Weekly Challenge.  I think this is a gift just about anyone would want to receive!

Recipe:

Paper:  K & Company Spooktacular; DCWV Ghouls & Ghosts; DVWV Midnight Spell

Cartridges:  Happy Hauntings, Wild Card

Make The Cut:  Coupon book and tags;  Fonts: Stencil & Batang

Spellbinders:  Fancy Tags, Ornate Artisian Tags & Accents, Nested Bats, Labels Four

Stamps:  Waltzingmouse - Cameo Maker (oval stamp) & Vintage Banners (flourish); Papertrey Ink Happy Birthday; Stampin' Up - Happiest Birthday Wishes

Embellishments:  Bazzil yarn; 7 Gypsies Gears; Making Memories Alphabet Charms

 Thanks for stopping by!  I hope to have something to show you again real soon!!

Fall into Autumn Double Page Layout - Psst! There's Blog Candy

Happy Saturday everyone!  Welcome to The Bugbytes Fall/Halloween Blog Hop!  If you've started here at my blog, please go here -  The Bugbytes.  Our wonderful host, Pam is starting us off and she has put together a fabulous list of crafters for you to visit today.

   Here is the lineup:  
Jen from http://3catsandabug.blogspot.com/

Lori from www.scrappinmystressaway.blogspot.com

Jeannie from http://nonnasscraps.blogspot.com/

Audrey from http://cuteandsome.blogspot.com/

Kymberlee from http://www.thepapermidwife.com/

Allison from http://goodybagdiva.blogspot.com/

Kelly from http://www.kamscraftyplace.blogspot.com

Debbie from http://debseclecticthoughts.blogspot.com/

Carole from http://www.onmycraftroomwall.blogspot.com/

Kate from http://sassyandscrappykate.blogspot.com/

Amylynne from http://www.amysscrappyspace.blogspot.com

Mila - M&M from http://milamemories.blogspot.com/

Dayna Sabrina from http://sabrioletdesigns.blogspot.com/ - you are here!!

Elizabeth from http://www.217creations.com/

And now for my project.  If you're a regular visitor here, you know that I've been in a scrapbooking mood lately and this project is guess what - a scrapbook page!  This past weekend I took my boys for a short hike in our State Park and despite many moans of boredom before we even got out of the car, they actually had a great time.  When it was time to leave I had to corral them into the car because they wanted to (gasp!) stay.  Moments like this are always great to capture so not even one week after the big day I've managed to get this event memorialized in a double page layout.

Here is the first:

And here is the second:

If you are new to my blog, I probably need to explain.  I generally make duplicates of my scrapbook pages for a book that I am putting together for my Mother.  This way I am not scrambling at the last minute to come up with new pages for her books.  One of the things I like about working this way is that it opens up my options.  I can use a slightly different embellishment, change a picture placement, or go with an entirely different color scheme if I want.  

So, to tell you a bit about the pages, I started with a sketch from PageMaps.  It's one from one of my books, so unfortunately I can't post a picture of here.  I picked up most of these lovely fall papers early this week.  The papers are from Imaginisce - Happy Harvest, Little Yellow Bicycle Hello Fall, and last year's Autumm stack by DCWV - Autumn Splendor.

The title was cut using several Cricut cartridges - Straight from the Nest (Fall) and Gypsy Wanderings (Autumn).  I used my stash of embellishments to spell out "into" and I adore the way this title turned out.  

As you can see, the picture placement is a little different from page to page.  I honestly couldn't make up my mind so I ended up doing it both ways!  I'm not sure which one I like better, but I do know that just about my favorite things on both of these pages is the crinkly ribbon.  Yes, I've only had it a week and I think I've managed to work it into just about every project I've done since then.  I'm addicted.  If you are interested, I get my crinkly ribbon from Kimberly at My Craft Spot.  The shipping was incredible.  I ordered it on Wednesday afternoon and it was in my mailbox on Saturday afternoon.  You can't beat that!

Aren't my boys cute?!!

These pumpkins were cut from Holiday Cakes.  I ran each through my Grand Calibur with different embossing folders, and then inked over them lightly so that the embossing would stand out.  I then added some dimension (I'm a lifelong fan) and backed them with grass cut from Straight from The Nest and ZooBalloo (also inked).

The journaling mats were cut from Elegant Edges.

This border was cut from Paper Lace.

I added some leaves that I cut out from Straight from the Nest as well as my Spellbinders Nested Maple Leaves dies and used them throughout both pages.  I also added a few buttons here and there, and walla, I think these babies are done!

Recipe:

Paper:  Imaginisce - Happy Harvest, Little Yellow Bicycle Hello Fall, and last year's Autumm stack by DCWV - Autumn Splendor

Cartridges:  Paper Lace, Straight From The Next, Gypsy Wanderings, ZooBalloo, Elegant Edges, Holiday Cakes

Spellbinders:  Nested Maple Leaves

Punch:  EK Success

Buttons:  My Stash

Ribbon:  My Craft Spot

And for the best part - the blog candy.  I am so fortunate to have some great followers and hopefully some new folks who have stopped by today and have enjoyed my work.  With that in mind, I am offering a brand new Winter Woodland cartridge as a big "Thank You" to everyone who has stopped by today.  It's a classic, and a very good one at that.

The dirty details are as follows:

1)  one winner will be selected randomly this upcoming Saturday, October 29, 2011.  

2)  All you need to do is leave a comment at the end of this post, including an email address or an alternative way to contact you.   Really, that's it.  You don't need to become a follower, show up here everyday, jump through twenty six hoops, tell me how wonderful I am, or offer to sell me your firstborn child in order to win something!  I get how absolutely annoying that can be, I honestly do.  

3)  Only one entry per person.  You can leave me more than one comment if you want, but you will only have once chance to win the cartridge.

4) I will ship the cartridge free of charge to the winner as long as you are in the United States (Hawaii and Alaska included).  If you are from the UK, Australia, or anywhere else, I am happy to ship the cartridge to you as long as you agree to pay (in advance) for the difference between shipping to a US addresses versus wherever it is you are. I have a Paypal account and we can work this out with no problem.

5)  I will take all comments up until Saturday morning, October 29th, at 10:00 a.m., Eastern Standard Time.  No exceptions.  All comments need to be left on this post.

I think that's it.  I want to thank each and every one of you took time out of your day to play along with us.  You've made it this far and you're almost done. Your next stop is:  Elizabeth from http://www.217creations.com/.  Make sure you stop by!