Thought I’d create a card in different dimensions than the norm… So I chose to slim it down a bit. Oh yeah, I broke down and bought a few sheets of paper. I did say that I’d buy paper when I put a “significant” dent in my stack (or should I say stacks)… I think I’ve done well… Plus I couldn’t resist the flowered paper that I used on this card…
Well, that’s it for now…
Until next time, enjoy…
OK well it’s not a couple of cards exactly...
So the story goes… I’ve got quite a few cards to make and I’m running really low on inspiration… So when I couldn’t come up with another idea for a “complete” card I made what would be the inside of a card and added a little polka dot envelope (cut from a Pazzles image) to house a gift card… You know, I think I’m on to something… Expect more of these…
The second card is a lattice card that I cut from one of the Pazzles CD images… I love the way it turned out… Expect more variations of these as well…
Well gotta go for now… Hoping to find my creative muse REALLY soon…
Enjoy…
I’m truly a gadget girl so after seeing all the great creations that Regina Easter @ Hand to Paper was making with the Pazzles Inspiration, I decided to add the machine to my inventory... What intrigued me the most was the ability to draw, scan, or save clipart images and cut them out… So the card below started as a clipart image that I found on the web. I used the Pazzles machine to convert it so that I could weld and cut it to make a Flower Pot Card… Don't you LOVE the way that I made the process sound so EASY... It may be easy to some, but I was actually confused for a while. I've got PLENTY more to learn, but I think I’m gonna like this!
Oh yeah… Just in case you’re wondering, I’d never give up my Cricut E… Together the two will make a great combination.
This is a LO of just an ordinary day. Since I have a camera in my possession 95% of the time, ordinary days can easily turn into photo ops… On this day, my mother and grandmother were in town visiting and as with all visits, we ended up shopping… Pam (not shown) and her mother (far right), met us for a portion of our store hopping venture and later we had lunch together… This photo was taken outside one of my mother’s MUST VISIT shoe stores… Notice the back drop in the photo. How appropriate…
So this LO not only documents an ordinary day, but it also fulfills a challenge issued by my friend Julie… The challenge was to create a 12 X 12 LO using at least one circle as the background… We were to also include a famous quote. The quote that I used is located on the arc of the circle at the bottom and it reads, “If the shoe fits BUY it… in every color” Julie, don’t know if the quote is famous in your family, but it’s FAMOUS in mine…
Anyway, had loads of fun creating this LO… Couldn’t stop adding colors, flowers, or ribbon... (circles too for that matter) Yep, I was pretty obsessive with this one, but I enjoyed every moment of it…
Well another completed challenge… AND it’s a LO… That’s an accomplishment in itself…
Enjoy…
My friend Kim asked me to reproduce a card that I’d recently made. Kim’s one stipulation was that the card be altered to include a photo of the little “dapper”, Joseph, and their cousin, Krystle… Joseph’s attendance at Krystle's graduation (as with all of his appearances) has been recorded on his blog….
So Kim, I hope you like. I see you’ve taken the “cards on demand” class from Pam… Well, at least you’re nicer!!! :-)
Enjoy…
Surprise, surprise… No black and white; instead we have shades of gray… Here are a couple of Father’s Day cards… I opted for a simple design for no other reason than I couldn’t come up with anything else. It’s so hard for me to make masculine cards… I’ll get better… But for now, it’s off to the post office I go... Luckily, the cards don’t have to travel far. This is a same-city delivery! And I’m done for now…
Enjoy! 
I’ve got a few Father’s Day Cards to make, but the request to make this one was quite unique. A friend of mine wanted to recognize and honor his mother’s LOVE and SACRIFICE by giving HER… you guessed it, a Father’s Day card. Hey the “single parent situation is not ideal…, but it happens…
Anyway, I thought the request was pretty special and I’m sure his MOM will think the same…
I combined the uniqueness of the request with the latest challenge between my friend Karen and myself. We were to use an ad as the inspiration to create whatever we liked. Of course, I chose a card… I should have chosen a layout. That would have definitely been a challenge. The ad that we used can be seen HERE… The ad-inspired card is below…
Enjoy…
A friend asked me to make a graduation card for his son. Graduation is Saturday so I finished this one with a day to spare. The school colors are black, white, and hunter green. I had some green ribbon that was perfect and since I’m OVERLOADED with black/white patterned paper, it was easy to get the other two colors.
Coming up with the design for this card was a lot easier thanks to a sketch that I got from 2 Sketches 4 You. I love doing cards from sketches. It can really help to get the creative juices flowing.
Another card down… Gotta get to those Father’s Day cards…
Enjoy…
My cousin has many favorite things. One of her favorites is the pink/brown color combination and another is all things STARBUCKS… So this card unites the two. I used my Cricut E along with Cricut Design Studio to make the card. And because I’m such a wonderful cousin, I included a Starbuck’s gift card on the inside.
So Cousin Kay, raise your mug high… Here’s to as much caffeine as the card will purchase and most importantly, here’s to the 3 months of the year that you and I are the SAME AGE!!!
Signed… your nine month older and wiser cousin…
Enjoy!
I love making shaped cards. So CPS Sketch Challenge # 66 was simply perfect! I found the “Life is a Verb” quote online and thought… how true…! As a lover of quotes, I decided to turn it into a card...
So far, I’m keeping my promise not to buy anymore paper until I put a “significant” dent into the mountain that I have. I am the sole measurer of what is “significant”. That’s my built in loophole for one of those uncontrollable paper buying urges… Can’t be TOO strict with myself, right???
Enjoy…
Well, it's no big secret that I don't do layouts nearly enough! I've got tons of photos just waiting to be "scrapped"... So, I'm grateful for the challenge issued by my friend Karen to create a layout based on a Valerie Salmon sketch.
I titled my layout "Master Life"... It's a play on words, because the photo of my cousin, my uncle and myself was taken when my uncle went BACK to school to get his Masters + 30 in Education... His favorite neices (self proclaimed) were there bright and early in the morning to witness the event...!
Well, that's one LO down, hundreds more to go!
Enjoy!!!
Well, I guess my break is over. After making and mailing all of my Mother’s Day cards, I took a break… It wasn’t a planned break it kinda just happened... Before I knew it, two weeks had passed and I hadn't created anything.
So, I decided to end my break and participate in the CPS weekly challenge. Here’s my take on CPS #65
BTW, my photography skills need some work... The flower on the ribbon contains pink rhinestones which blend nicely with the pink on the cake... Doesn't really show in the photo... Maybe I add a photography class to my list of "things to do"
Enjoy…
When you’ve got LOTS of cards to send, it becomes necessary to duplicate designs. Well, maybe that’s just for procrastinators like me! So the recipients got either one of the two cards below or this one,… Drum roll please… All cards were mailed ON TIME… *** pausing to pat myself on the back ***
Enjoy… 
Well, I had three people to send cards to for 5/1 and somehow one of the MOST important persons ALMOST slipped through the cracks… Anyway, I whipped it out really quickly AND then I called my girlfriend, Karen, and asked why she didn’t check to make sure that I had sent her father’s bday card… That’s just the mature side of my personality… PLAY THE BLAME GAME… Aren’t I just a shining example for the younger generation…? Well, she took it in stride… Afterall, we’ve been friends for 20 years… She knows my antics and loves me just the same…
Fortunately the card was hand delivered (ON TIME). I would have preferred that he get it in the mail… Oh well, charge the head and definitely not the heart…
Enjoy…
Don’t know about any of you, but I’ve got LOADS of supplies that I’ve been stockpiling. Lately, I’ve been making an effort to buy less and use more of what I already have. So for the Card Positioning System (CPS) challenge (#62), I decided to design my card around some ribbon that I’ve had for quite some time. If you haven’t noticed, pretty much all my cards have ribbon (it’s an illness I tell you)…
To match the ribbon, I found some pink, green, and white sheets of cardstock and after a while, one of my Mother’s Day cards was born (gotta make a few more)... I used my Cuttlebug for embossing and an emery board to sand the green cardstock. An emery board you say… Well, umm, yeah, it’s what I had on hand… Not a “proper” distressing tool…, but it works (and it’s cheap).
Oh yeah, and if you haven’t noticed, I ALSO use rhinestones a LOT… That’s because I kept buying and buying but never using so I have quite a supply… Expect to see rhinestones OFTEN…
Well that’s it for now… I kept it simple; I’ve got one less Mother’s Day card to make; I’m reducing inventory AND I’m having a great time! For me, that’s a winning combination…
Challenge complete…
Enjoy…
Well, I had some scraps of paper left from a birthday card that I recently created so I put them to good use. Again, I decided to participate in the CPS Sketch weekly challenge. Their sketches are always great and I really love seeing so many different takes on the same design. There’s no right or wrong… It’s simply how you see it… Is that an ideal situation or what?
This is MY take on CPS #61… It’s a fun little thank you card… Hopefully you see a semblance of the sketch in there… :-)
Enjoy…
Ever envision how a project will turn out, but the end result isn’t quite what you planned? Well, that’s my story with the flower card below. Actually this was SUPPOSED to be simple card with a computer generated sentiment mounted on a circle scalloped backround, but ummm, it seems to have turned out to be a flower… That’s because I couldn’t decide what size I wanted to make the background… So after a few iterations of cuts, I "inadvertently" had the layers for a flower. So I distressed each scallop (translation: kept filing until I was satisfied), bent the edges and played with them until they looked extremely worn, added the card base and voila…a flower shaped card… BTW… the colors in the photo are off a bit… The rhinestones are more the color of the card and the sentiment is brown and coral. Oh well, must be my photographic skills or lack thereof…
Anyway, the second card is a simple birthday card with a personalized tag. I guess I was having another case of less is best... Nah that's not exactly true… It's more like, I needed to get this card made AND in the mail and I couldn't come up with another design at the moment... Get this... First my friends were just asking me to make the cards for them, now I’m being asked to mail it for them too…!!! Ummm, anything else while you're making demands???
Enjoy...
I love the Card Positioning System (CPS) sketches. So much so that you can always find me lurking around to see what the extremely talented folk are doing… Rarely or I should say NEVER do I join in on the fun. But today, I decided to jump right in and follow the crowd.
I had a great time with this one. I will definitely join in more often.
Digital Elements: Paper -- Damask Dream Dots & Kim Christensen Thrift Chic
Physical Elements: Ribbon & Heidi Swapp Bling…
Enjoy…
I'm such a procrastinator... Julie issued this challenge a couple of weeks ago, but it was due today... Guess when I got started...? You're 100% accurate if you guessed today... But that's not important... The important thing is that I met the deadline... There's got to be some kind of reward for being on time, right?
Anyway... Julie provided a sketch for the challenge, with an additional requirement... We had to use the clipboard from the Cricut Fabulous Finds cartridge.
This LO is of me w/ a couple of my friends. I chose to title the LO "FRIEND" and use word strips with a mnemonic for FRIEND --- Frank, Reliable, Inspiring, Emotional, Nurturing, Dependable...
My required clipboard contains my friend "to do" list: 1. Call to say "hi", 2. Share a Laugh & 3. Repeat 1 & 2 often.
Also got a chance to use some red crystal swirls... Must have bling...
Well, as for this challenge I'm present and accounted for!!! - NEXT!!!
Enjoy...
I explained in a previous post that I’m often (and happily so) a one stop card shop for some of my friends.
So this card is per my friend Kim’s request. She wanted to send a friendship card to her best friend, Angie, who is away proudly serving our country!!! Not a problem, EXCEPT for the addendum to Kim’s card request… Well, she asked that I try and incorporate a picture of Angie (in uniform) and Kim’s cutie pie little boy Joseph somewhere in or on the card…
So I said SURE I can do that… Then I panicked because... ummm… I’ve never done that…
Anyway, the finished product is below. Isn’t Joseph a cutie??? He’s no stranger to the camera. As a matter of fact he’s got his very own blog with plenty more pics and videos… You can read the Joseph Chronicles (all 7 months of them) HERE…
So Kim, this card is from me 2 u --- 2 her… Hope U (plural) like it!
Enjoy…
Well I guess I’m always adding flowers to my cards so my mood is not extremely surprising… BUT, with the arrival of Spring, I thought I’d add some really colorful flowers for a change.
The first card is for my mother. It’s very basic, but I think it’s pretty elegant too… That’s because I made the card with my mother's personality in mind… She’s definitely not one for excess... A simplistic elegance is always in order as far as my mother is concerned… So I took a little textured paper, scored it twice, embossed the top then added flowers and the "HAPPY BIRTHDAY & LOVE" sentiments... Then I was DONE!!!
As the saying goes, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it… So I kept the flower theme going with the shaped “vase & flowers” card. It's a birthday card for a co-worker/friend.
Just FYI... I’m still loving my CDS. I was able to make the shaped card in a flash…
Enjoy…
I love the quote: “God didn't promise days without pain, laughter without sorrow, sun without rain, but He did promise strength for the day, comfort for the tears, and light for the way.”
That quote encourages me and this card was made for someone who could use a little spiritual lift. I’ve been in that position a few times myself and the thing that helped me the most was knowing that someone else cared.
Now it’s YOUR turn… Take the time and encourage someone. You just may be their “strength for the day”…
This card was made for a precious little boy who’s been in the world 365 days… that’s all!!! Yep, he turned a year old and is just the cutest bright eyed little boy… Aren’t kids just precious and loveable and deserving of their very own personalized birthday card?
So for this card, I couldn’t resist trying a little more digi paper. How cool is that…? If I don’t have the right colors in stock, I can just surf until I find some that I want… Works for me…
The card was made using a few Cricut Cartridges and I had to rely on my trusted Cricut Design Studio to bring it all together (welded that is…)
Enjoy…
So, I'm always reading scrap related things (magazines, blogs etc...) looking for new things to try. Hybrid Scrapbooking has been on the the list of things to try for a long time... I held off for a while because the idea was a little intimidating... Hybrid scrapbooking is the combination of digital scrapbooking with traditional scrapbooking. Some of the elements are physical and some of the elements are virtual... It's like having the best of both worlds (thx for the title PZ...)
So my first attempt is a hybrid card... Just know this... While creating this card, I spent an awful lot of time in a state of confusion... That's because Adobe PSE is also new to me and this hybrid thing requires the use of layers... Layers in the traditional sense... No problem..., but digital layers... Uh.. OK...
After trial and error (because I hate to read manuals), I have a finished product...
Digital Elements: Black and white dotted paper (way cool...), Swirl brushes (left and right of page), and the friendship quote... (all are either .jpg or .png)... Can't wait to learn how to change the colors... I'll never run out of paper or patterns...
Traditional Elements: White and black polka dot ribbon, paper flowers, and green rhinestones.
The actual card is more vibrant... The picture is a little dull...
Well here's to discovering new techniques... There are some serious digital scrappers out there... I am AMAZED at what they do...
Enjoy...
Since I’ve been making cards, the local Hallmark store or the card section of Wal-Mart is no longer a viable option for some of my friends and relatives. Yeah, very often, I’m an "on demand" one stop card shop of sorts… Can you relate????
So this card is a result of a call from my friend Pam. The call was simple... I answered the phone and she said, “Hey, I need you to make me a thank you card. I’m going to need it by Wednesday... I’ll drop by your house and pick it up.” Of course, I responded to her request with a few sarcastic comments and then I went to work...
That's because I do as I’m asked (most of the time) AND mostly because Pam has been the recipient of more than a few of my last minute requests (especially when a seamstress or culinary whiz was needed).
Anyway, I made a quick and simple card for her coworker... Now maybe I can get back to doing something for me… That is until the next call…
Enjoy…
I know I said that I didn’t want to get into the criss cross card “thing”, but they are just so CUTE! The first time I did a criss cross card was at the suggestion of my friend Karen (via a challenge)… So I thought I’d make it for the sake of the challenge then go back to my standard cards. This Valentine’s Day card (and others on this site) prove that I “kinda sorta” got hooked. And they are SOOOO easy to do. Instructions for making criss cross cards are HERE. Go ahead give it a try. I guarantee you’ll love it…
Enjoy!
When I said that I'd do more window cards, I didn't know myself that it would be so soon. But I'd promised to make a Valentine's card for someone and I needed to get it done quickly. This one came together extremely fast. Maybe I can default to window cards when it absolutely positively has to be done NOW! Got a couple more Valentine's cards to make so duty calls...
Enjoy...
I came across the embedded / layered card idea in the “Girlfriends Greetings” card idea book. The idea seemed fun and I knew it would be perfect for my current challenge. But most of all, I thought it would make the teenage recipient work just a little before he got to the one thing that matters most… the gift card…
The challenge was to use song lyrics in one of our creations. There wasn’t a stipulation on the creation itself; however, the song had to be from the 1970’s.
I chose Stevie Wonder’s 1973 rendition of “You are the Sunshine of my Life”. Each card contains a line from the song and the final card holds the gift card.
Enjoy…
I’m rolling along w/ the 2008 birthday cards. Thought I’d give the welded frame card a try. There’s been much talk on the Cricut Message board about welding inside frames. Sounded like a fun idea to me. And it was!!! The instructions were very easy to follow. There are so many possibilities for this type of card. Stay tuned, there’s certainly more of this kind to come. You know the rest, I’ve said it enough. The card was done using CDS. Sure makes life easier.
Enjoy...
I was asked to make a card for a couple who is getting married on Valentine’s Day. I wanted something simple but elegant. Thx to Cricut Design Studio and the ability to weld from several cartridges, I was able to do exactly what I’d initially envisioned, but I needed a few cartridges to get me to the final product. This was fun to do and the asymmetrical look (which isn’t obvious in the photo) is very different from anything that I’ve done. I think I like it… There will definitely be more of these. I’m always looking for an obsession. I think I have a new one… So out w/ symmetry! Well OK, not totally… But I will try and mix it up a little in the future.
Until next time, Enjoy...
