Kiddo Valentines

As you may know, I am a preschool teacher at 2 different schools.

Since I ran out of time, I was only able to make my Valentines for 1 class, the smaller of the 2, and give pre-made ones to the other class. These were one of the first things I did on my brand new Cricut Expression (using the auto fill feature). I had a lot of fun doing these, and the kids LOVED them (along with the attached treat, of course). I wanted to do something simple, but sweet, and this is what I came up with:

These are 3x4" and punched with Fiskars Apron Lace.

The hearts are cut at 3.5" from CAC, in lt. pink and black cardstock.

Cotton Candy Stickles for accent.

Stamp is by Studio G, in Worn Lipstick.

Names (pixelated for privacy) and my message are written with Crayola markers.

Krispy treats attached to back with ATG.

fun<3

Thanks for reading!

Emily

Birthday Chihuahua

Made this card for my aunt for her birthday. She loves Chihuahuas (they have 2), so I really wanted to feature one. I ran into a problem when NONE of my cartridges or embellishments had any. Then I took a closer look at the terrier in Create a Critter… I decided with minimal alteration and the right color choices, I could turn that terrier into a Chihuahua. Ah, Create a Critter, you came through again. There’s a reason it’s my favorite!

I wanted to tie in a 'princess' theme, so I used as much pink as possible.

Recipe:

Create a Critter cartridge
stamps: Stampendous; Hero Arts
stickles
punch: Martha Stewart
cuttlebug/pop culture
tattered rose ink
colored pencils

Thanks for reading! :)

Emily

Bon Voyage cards

As this school semester comes to an end, our school will say "see you soon" to 2 sweetheart students and their mom - they will be living in another country next term. They are special to me, and I'm making them cards before they go.

* This is a white 4x4 (fits A2 envelope!), with a grey 3 3/4" x 3 3/4" mat.

* The grey mat is stamped with Hero Arts Friend Definition in Milled Lavender, and the edges are ink blended with the same.

* The pearls in the upper corners are self-adhesive & lavender, from Recollections.

* The ribbon was sheer white, but I inked it with Dusty Concord. I hadn't yet done this with ribbon - love it!

* And last but not least, this chandelier, which I am in love with, is cut at 3" from the Summer in Paris cartridge. Cut out of DCWV paper from Pocket full of Posies stack.

^ Close-up of ribbon detail. I love this - I bet I will rarely use ribbon now, without inking it!

- - -

2 of these -- one for each girl:

* This is a white 4x4. The bottom is punched with a fiskars border punch (sorry, I don't know the name).

* The rainbow heart and all its layers are cut from the Create a Critter cartridge, at 2.5" (+ shadow). Glitter paper is DCWV.

* Coordinating eyelets are The Paper Studio and I love them.

* Purple scrap inside card to emphasize border punch, and edges are blended with Tumbled Glass.

- - -

I'd like to take a sec to talk about the cartridges I used for these cards, because they're 2 of my favorites.

First, Summer in Paris is one I bought back before I really got into using my Cricut. I think it was my third cart. ever - found it on sale at Archiver's. This cartridge is SO GORGEOUS, and semi- hard to find. All of the images are VERY intricate (so I wouldn't advise very small cuts). There are options for several 3d projects as well - this chandelier is one of them. The images are actually pretty versatile - there is a phone, hot air balloon, male & female silhouettes, bike, car, perfume, phrases, several Parisian landmarks, and more. It's not everyone's style, but if it's yours, I'd get it while you can. I love mine! You can read more and see the images here.

Second, how about that Create a Critter? This is BY FAR my favorite cart of my collection. It is filled with adorable animals, phrases, accesories and more. The card I've made here shows that there is a lot more than just critter layers on it. In fact, I love this cartridge so much, I'm tempted to write Provo Craft and suggest/ask if they have thought of coming out with a second one. I'm just sayin', if they can make a second Paper Dolls, there are tons more critters they could give us to create...You know it would sell like hot cakes.

- - -

I want to give a big friendly THANK YOU to Sammye Jo at 62 Cards. She put a link of my blog on hers to get some followers for me. :) She does the most beautiful work - and right now she's doing 12 Days of Giveaways! You've gotta see her. :)

Gotta get to work now. Many thanks for reading!!

xoxo

mini!

Hello!

I made this mini card last night for Josh. :) His semester is winding up - finals next week - and who can't use a little encouragement during finals week?! Sheesh.

My favorite thing about this, strangely enough, is the envelope. I was SO excited to find these mini envelopes! Not sure why. Probably because they're small, which gives me a whole new excuse to make small cards...I love all things mini. :)

Create a Critter Cricut Cartridge - my fave (provo craft)

Kraft & assorted colors cardstock (paper studio)

Stickles (ranger)

Sharpies

Seeing Spots Embossing Folder (provo craft)

. . .

Time for me to get back to reading Breaking Dawn. Yes, that's right. I, too, have been sucked into the Twilight world for awhile now (no pun intended). G'night. :)

Thank You & My Favorite Cartidge!

I have been so busy, and therefore neglectful of this blog. =p
Wanted to quickly post this card. I made this for a friend who was considerate enough to come and support me at my first craft show! I made this using my latest, and possibly favorite-ever cartridge, Create a Critter. All die cuts shown are from this cartridge. I love it!

Below is a close-up, where you can really see my OOPS - I put a piece of paper that was ever so slightly too small in the cricut for the die cut. I had to then piece together some paper to re-create the ear. I say there's no such thing as a mistake.. Or at least, I try to tell my inner neurotic self that... :)

I have had the opportunity over the past week or so to play around and create a few critters. I love this cartridge SO much! I am quite the animal lover so this comes as no surprise. :)

Well, ta-ta for now.. :)