My First Design Team Project - "Inking It Up Crazy" - Font/Phrase Project

Hello Friends,
Wow, looks like I'm on a roll with these multiple postings. Today is our First Design Team post over at Inking It Up Crazy. We were asked to create a Font Project or Font Phrase Project from any of the font cartridges. I chose to use an "oldie font cart" (try saying that super fast 3-4x's...lol) BASE CAMP. Here's is my project. I really like the how the colors came out with this.

As I create more DT projects on this team, I'll be experimenting with various inking techniques as much as I can, that I'm learning for myself from various crafters out there who are all sooo inspiring. At least that's the vibe I get when I'm "Inking It Up Crazy"...lol. Anyhew, there are some super cool other talented ladies also known as the I.U.C. DT Mates. Head on over to Inking It Up Crazy and see what other fabulous projects the Design Team came up with. Enjoy! Smooches...
Recipe:
Cart: Base Camp
Embellies: Bling, Michael's (Sheer Ribbon)
Paper: DCWV (Green Stack), Recollections
Tools: Perfect Pearls, SU Inks (Green Galor, Taken w/Teal, Old Olive), MS Ink (Metallics) SU Stamps (Valentine Defined), Versamark, White Embossing Powder

O-M-GEE! - I Won!!!

Hey My Fabulous Friends,
This is starting out to be a Fantabulous Day. I'm just getting up a few hours ago (if you read my post below, you'll know why) and began checking my normal blog sites and found out the most Amazing, Wonderful News!!!

I WON ALL 4 OF MY PINK STAMPER'S

CRICUT DVD SETS

WOO HOO!!!! (Doing the Happy Dance....)

Thanks So Much Robyn... Smooches

Sweethearts... "Honeymoon"

Good Morning My Friends,
Yes, Good Morning... while some of you are well into your sleeping, I'm still up crafting in the wee wee hours. I think I must have insomnia or something. I've been doing this a lot lately for the past, almost 2 weeks now and still have to get up early with my 2yr old. I know my body is really going to pay me back hard if I don't get a grip on myself...and soon! (lol) Well....since I'm already up, what's a person to do when they can't sleep???? Hmmmm.... CRAFT!, CRAFT!, CRAFT! :-).

Here is an entry I did for More than Favors "Wacky Wednesday #48" Challenge - Create a Travel Themed project. This is also going to serve as another entry going on at More than Favors with Paula for the Cricut Cartridge Chaos Challenge (CCCC) #29 - Sweetheart Cart.

(click on any image to see larger)

As you can tell there are many, many details in this project (that's what happens when you can't sleep). I'll have to come back later and provide you all the recipe because if I don't make myself go to bed now, I know I'll regret it later. Smooches... (p.s. but if you already up and happen to see this, go ahead and leave me some comments...). **sn: (I think I seriously need to switch to Decaf..."yuck", just the thought of that makes me cringe...lol) ** Ok...Good Night/Morning; Dbl Smooches...

Calling All Card Makers... MPS - "Card Donation Project"

Hi My Friends,
Over at My Pink Stamper, one of Robyn's followers reached out to her for an event supporting a Great Cause. This person is only asking for "1" card to be donated from us card makers out there, but of course you can send more. Please read the story over at My Pink Stamper. Here is my card that I will be sending. Have a Great Day Everyone! Smooches...

Happy Birthday, I {Heart} U... "Friends to the End"

Hello Friends...
Here is a project that I was working on and thought it would be fitting for two challenges out there. The first on is the well know Peachy Keen (Let's Face It Friday) Challenge - Create a project using animals as your main theme! Tell me what project wouldn't look good with any one of those adorable peachy faces on it. I Soooo Love this company! I had so much fun making this project that I was smiling from ear-to-ear. I will also be entering this into Cricut Cardz Challenge #89  - Make a child's birthday card using something you see in a jungle...monkey, lion, giraffe...etc. I received my newest stamps from Emma at My Creative Time's 9th release and I was sooo excited I just had to use them right away. I thought they fit my card perfectly for what I was going for. **sn: (they arrived the fastest that I ever ordered anything on the internet)** While getting ready to upload my project I also found out that Whimsical Wednesday has a challenge on "Inspiring Words". Well this is also something that incorporated in my card. Wow, I scored a tripple decker with my creation. I had so much fun making this that I can assure you this won't be my last of these kiddie cards. I believe this came out pretty cah-ute if I say so myself...<grin>. Feel free to leave me some comments, I read them all. Smooches...

Recipe:
Cart: Create-a-Critter, Mother's Day 2010 (Branch)
Paper: DCWV, Recollections
Tools: MCT (Stitched Oval, Gift Card Sentiments, Small Talk), iRock, MS (Metallic & Craft Ink), Marvy (Scalloped Oval Punch), PKS (Critter Faces), SU (Pastels Chalk)
Embellies: Bling, Michael's (Sheer Ribbon)

"Blog Award"

Hello My Friends,
Just wanted to pop in and share some Joyful news. I just received this Blog Award from Candice at Stampin' Pearls with Candice. I am so honored for this award and will certainly pass this on to others who are just as deserving. Thank You CANDICE!

As part of this award, I have to answer the following 12 questions and pass this on to 6 people.  Here are the answers to my questions:

Name your favorite color? I like all colors, but I tend to always sway towards "Yellows" (it's a Happy color)
Name your favorite song? My Wedding Songs "At Last" by Etta James & "Forever" by Dave Hollister.
Name your favoirte dessert? Cheesecake (Sara Lee French or Cheesecake Factory)
What wizzes you off at the moment? Dishes left in the sink, when the dishwasher is empty for them!
Your favorite pet? Don't have any pets.
Black or white? Black
Your biggest fear? Any creapy crawly things (Bugs, Lizards,...etc.)
Best feature? Eyes & Hair
Everyday attitude? It must be in God's Plan...
What is perfection? My daughter
Guilty pleasure? Paper, Stamps and Embellies... Oh My!
When you're upset? I Shop...

This award is being passed on to:

Adrian @ By Adrian 4 U

Ana Maria @ Shorty Creations

Jennifer @ Life is Just Dahling
Paula @ More than Favors
Melissa @ Created by Sunshine HoneyBee
Sherri K @ Sherrie Scraps with Passion

Easel Card & Digi Coloring come together...

Hello Friends...
I'm at it again. I'm trying my second Easel Card and also another attempt at coloring a Digi Stamp. I got this stamp from the progressive challenge over at Designed to Delight. This little girl "Maisie Belle" is the cutest and I couldn't resist entering again for the 2nd time. I'm still growing in my coloring skills, but I'll get there. I'm a fast learner. When I saw this, I knew just the coloring I was going for because over at Birthday Sundaes, the challenge is an Inspirational Photo. There were soo many fun colors to choose from in this photo I couldn't go wrong. I hope you like what I've done, but keep in mind...I'm just a "Scrapper in the Making" (lol).

MAG Challenge #41 - Sweet Treats (Pg. 45)

Hello My Friends,
It's Me again and yes it's that wonderful time over MAG Challenge by the Page, where this week the showcase of this challenge page is "Sweet Treats - Pg. 45".
Remember: ...for MAG Challenge you cannot use any other Cricut cartridge, page or cut from another cartridge (even if it was left over from another project or stash), only cuts from the specified page.  However, your are free to use all the embellishments (brads, ribbons, chipboard, eyelets, stickers, stamping, letters...etc.) and other treasures from your stash!!!

When I saw this page I knew exactly what I wanted to create. My god-daughter is having her first baby (due in December) and she recently found out that It's A Boy. Soon to be named "Cayden" when he arrives. We are ALL thankful it's going to be a boy, we don't think she could handle having a girl because she's too much drama herself...lol. You'll probably be seeing a lot of Baby themed projects whenever I can fit them into what I'm doing because I'll be making some things for her and the baby to give to her at the shower.

Ok, back to MAG... I Love, Love, Love this Challenge Blog as many of you know. It certainly makes you think outside of your normal Cricut Box. Not to mention it's a perfect way to start using some of those items in your Stash. Goodness knows we all have plenty in our stash to use. Come join us over at MAG and check out the other projects my fellow DT members have in store for you and be sure to leave them come Blog Love Comments. OHHH, Oh, Oh... I Forgot one of the main features of this frame, it was Cut & Made from a Cereal Box before being covered in some wonderful papers. After looking around, JOIN IN ON THE FUN!!!

(Cricut Cartridge - Sweet Treats Pg. 45)

I created a Baby Frame for my Inspiration. Thank Goodness for the GYPSY (if you don't have one, you would want to put this on your Christmas list) it was a life saver! I don't think I could have created this without it. I took the bottom layer of the crown and stretched/re-sized it to creat the frame. There were a lot of re-sizing and cuts going on with this project, but it was a Labor of Love I'd do all over again. Hope you enjoy!

Recipe:

Cart: Sweet Treats page 45

Paper: Pattern Paper (MS - Playful Blue Paper Pad), SU, Recollections, [All covered over Cereal Box as my chipboard]

Tools: EK Punch (Baby Poem, Giraffe Tag,), Multi Craft Punch (Rattle, Face, Bottle, Bib, Safety Pin, Bear), Marvy Punch (Scalloped Oval), iRock,

Stamps: Kelly Panacci ("Baby"-Poem, Face), Fiskars ("Baby"-Giraffe, Elephant, Baby Carriage, Stork, Arrival Info...), My Creative Time (Dashed Lines), Autumn Leaves Stampology (Letters)

Embellies: Stash, Stash, Stash...(Thickers-Varsity Letters, Brads, Ribbon, Bling, Twine, Stickles, 3D Stickers)

My First D2D Progressive Challenge

Hello Friends,

I've been experimenting with a lot of first lately, but I'm learning sooo much along the way. Over at Designed 2 Delight we were given this wonderful digi to bring to life. I don't own any copic markers...yet (lol), but I get by as much as I can with my SU Markers, Marvy Memories Markers, Ultra Fine Sharpies & Blender Pen of course. This is my first entry but I assure you it won't be my last.  They have a new challenge each week, begining on Fridays. Everytime you enter, you get another FREE Digi in your email to participate again. Easy Peasy...right? Check out Designed 2 Delight (D2D) and join in on the Fun! Stay tuned there are more projects to come.

(click image to see larger)

My First "Easel Card"

Hello Friends...,

I finally took the plunge and tried my hand at my First Easel card. I've heard that they are sooo easy to do and I've watched enough videos on seeing them done. So I said, "what the heck"..."Just Do It"! Well when I started putting hand to paper, I couldn't stop myself. I've found another new love. I think you'll be seeing a few more of these from me from now on. I absolutely LOVE how this came out and I got to use one of my favorite stacks from DCWV (Lemon Stack) to make this even more cuter. I am sooo proud of me. I think this is just the cutest that I don't even want to give it away at least not for now that is. One of my BEST Girlfriend's (I call her my SIS) Birthday is Today and she's out of town. Since I have a key to her place I'm going to leave a Goodie Gift along with this card as a Surprise when she returns. Shhhh.... (I hope she hasn't read this due to her too busy celebrating)

I think I'm going to need another pack of that Lemon Stack... I just Love that Paper Pad. Let me know what you think. I have a few other crafty things I'm working on so check back often. I love reading your comments. Smooches...

Recipe:

Cart: Celebrate with Flourish (All cuts at 2.5")

Papers: PTI, SU, DCWV, Bazzil, Recollections
Sentiment: Inkadinkado (Happy Birthday), PBD (Party Animal)

Tools: irock, Inks(SU -Green Galore, MS -Metallic Silver, Memento -Tuxedo Black), Crop-a-Dile, MS -Birthday Presents Punch 

Embellies: Brads (Recollections), Ribbons (Michael's & My Stash), Twine (Dollar Store), White Gel Pen, 3D Pop-Dots

I am entering this into the following challenges:

Celebrate the Occasion - Birthday Easel Card

Birthday Sundaes - It's All About the Brads
Pink By Design - Fan Flash Fridays on Facebook

Throwback Thursday - w/Retired Cartridge

Hello Friends,...
Have you hear that Emma from My Creative Time is coming out with her next, 9th Release this Friday. Check out her Sneak Peaks and the Design Team's showcase of them from this week's Mon-Wed posts. Yes, it will be her 9th release. I wish I could afford them all. For this week's Throwback Thursday, she asked us to use any retired cartridge and link up our entry. I used the "Home Decor" cartridge. Well I'll admit that this started out really easy in my head, but when it came to actually creating it, I had quite a few trial and errors. More than I care to admit...lol. Anyhew, I knew that I certainly want to create some that would highlight one of her favorite stamp sets of mine using the "Inspiring Words". I thought how wonderful it would be to be able to have such quotes on hand as a reminder to get you through your day no matter what. Well my creative mind really took me beyond my comfort zone. I was inspired when Emma first showcased this set with a home decor project she did making some coasters. Click here to see her video. Well I haven't been able to get that idea out of my mind and wanted to piggyback off her inspiration. All Women Love Flowers; at least I like to think so and I know I sure do. "Yellow Roses" are my #1Favorite. Well I wanted to combine one of My Favorite Stamp Sets with one of My Favorite things..."Flowers". So hence you have my creation below, a Bouquet of Flowers. I called it my...

"Inspiring & Encouraging Bouquet"

The hardest part with this was choosing which quotes to use. Now of course I had to also use the "Inspiring Words - Accents". This bouquet will remain in my craft area to keep me Inspired, Encouraged and Creative... and to just get me though those not sooo good days. There is a different quote on each side of the flower so I can arrange them according to the Inspiration or Encouraging Words I need for that day.

 (click on any image to see larger)

Oh, Ohhh... I almost forgot some other exciting new going on over at My Creative Time with Emma. Be sure to Spread the Word on this New Release and tune into Emma's Blog on Friday and watch her video for the full Release & Winners. She is also going to give one Super Lucky Crafty Winner an opportunity to be a part of her next release (10th) with her Design Team. This means they get the entire set of her 10th release to showcase with the rest of her Ahhh-Mazing DT! I can't begin to tell you what a Dream Come True of Mine that would be. My Inspiring & Encouraging Bouquet will keep me going in hopes she announces my name. Let me know what you think of my Bouquet. I barely got this in on time...  p.s. my apologies for some of the blurred pics. Like I said, I was trying to meet the deadline. I'll post the recipe later. Happy Crafting! Smooches...

First Day of "DAYCARE"...

Hello Friends,
Well we know its that time again, for kids to go Back To School/First Day of School, buses, slower traffic, school zones, PTA meetings, Open House... well you get the drill. Even though my little one is only 2, I still feel like I need to get things on track too. I have plenty of nieces, nephews and god-children that fit this bill enough for me and I am taking much note for when my little is ready. I've seen a lot of sites that have given me so much inspiration on how this back to school thing works for the children and their teachers. I think I better get started on my teacher treats now...lol. Anyhew I decided that I still wanted to participate in some of the back-to-school challenges out there so I put a little twist on my creation. I'm still not that ready to release the strings for my "sunshine" (Felice) to leave me just yet. I've been having the most Ahhh-Mazing Summer being home with her for the first time this entire Summer. Some days though, I don't know how you SAHM do it; and I only have one. She's is Full Throttle all the time and when it's time for her nap, I feel like I need one too...lol. Seriously, I sometimes feel like I'm going to catch a case...(with myself that is). This motherhood thing is still new for me and I'm not sure if I'm even close to ready to have another one. DH is going to have to wait this one out with me for while. OK, I'm rambling... let me get back to my project. Here is a Layout  **sn: (yes, I said Layout... it's been too long since I've done one of these)** I did for Felice (pronounced: Feh-leece, like Feliz Navidad) when she gets ready to start her
"First Day of... Daycare". I figure that's sort of like going to school; there's learning time, recess, nap time...etc. All the fun things that Mommy has been doing at home with her, but she'll get to experience this with other little ones her own age. I know I'll be ready when the time comes. I hope it was ok to put a twist on this for some of the challenges I'm entering this into.

Cards by Jovan - Back to School Blog Hop
Whimsical Wednesday - Back to School
Dutch Dare Card Challenges - Back to School
Creative Cutter Room - Back to School

MAG Challenge #39 - TBBM (Pg. 89)

Woo Hoo... I'm so excited to be posting this week for the MAG Challenge. If you've never heard of MAG before, then trust me when I tell you that you MUST Check It Out! MAG - Challenge by the Page is an Awesome Blog that host challenges like no other blog out there. It definitely pushes your mind to be extra creative. I Love my Design Team, they are so talented and I get so much inspiration from everyone. This week at MAG the cart that was chosen was Tags, Bags, Boxes and More pg 89. When I saw this page, I can honestly say that nothing immediate popped in mind, but later on that day (more towards the evening...) it Hit ME! I knew what I wanted to do. I wanted to go a little beyond the obvious on the images of the page so I hope you like what I came up with. I really pulled out some stamping techniques on this one.
Oh, BTW... let me give you the cliff notes on what MAG Challenges are all about:

In MAG Challenges you cannot use any other Cricut cartridge or page from another cartridge, only the specified page.  However, you are free to use all the embellishments and treasures from your stash!!!

Go check out the rest of the Design Team and Get Out that TBBM cartridge and join us for the fun! There's sure to be some inspiration over there to get you going.

 (click on image to see larger)

Recipe:
Cart - Tags, Bags, Boxes and More (page 89)
Embellies - Bling, Michael's (Sheer Ribbon)
Paper - DCWV, MS Pattern Paper (Blue Paper Pad), Recollections
Tools - PTI Stamps (Beautiful Blessings, Daydreamer), EK Punch (Butterfly), PT[personal touch] (Distressing on inside of frame done with fingers by hand), White Gel Pen, Memento (Rich Cocoa & Tuxedo Black), SU (Old Olive & Crushed Curry), PIT (Fresh Snow)

Also this card will be going to the "I Feel The Love Project" for August in honor of Kate McRae (please take the time to read her story) over at Madison's blog - Funky Cards. She has a Super Huge Heart for doing this. As long as I'm making cards I can't help but contribute to her calling as long as she willing to keep doing it. I also share the same last name as Miss Kate McRae so I knew I surely had to participate in this one and it won't be last either. I hope you'll be moved to participate too. We must count our Blessings Each & Every Day! Smooches...

Inking It Up Crazy - NEW Design Team Member!!!

Hi Everyone,

I'm So EXCITED to announce that I have been selected to join Kassidy's wonderful NEW Design Team over at "Inking It Up Crazy" with: Kassidy. I soooo look forward to joining in on all the fun with her and the rest of the Team Members. Thanks Kassidy!