Baby Card Featuring Lawn Fawn Stamps

I created this baby card tonight using Lawn Fawn Plus One, copics, stickles, and my cuttlebug. As much as I love trying new techniques, I love having staples like some of these to fall back on. There's a reason they've stayed popular!

I trimmed scrap from my stash to 3.75" x 2" in peach, mint, and light yellow. I ran them through the Cuttlebug using my first and trusty-dusty Swiss Dots folder. I punched the bottom of each layer using the EK Success border punch "Bumpy Road", and adhered each one with a strip of ATG adhesive only at the very top. Once there were adhered down, I sort of flipped the bottom of each layer outward to give it some depth.

On a white scalloped circle, I stamped my image in London Fog ink and colored it using R22, G00 and Y21. No shading this time. I adhered it with a large, thick foam square and over the top I used Bundled Sage and Mustard Seed Distress Stickles.

Finally, on the topmost (yellow) layer, I stamped a sentiment from Grand Greetings in New Sprout ink and tied a bow using yellow Doodletwine. Voila!

Thanks so much for stopping by! I so appreciate your comments, questions, and subscriptions! ;)

xoxo,

Emily

Lawnscaping Challenge - Bling It!

Hello! I'm thrilled to be involved in my second Lawnscaping Challenge, and to be sharing it with you! The theme of this challenge is "Bling It" -- to add sparkle via Stickles, Glitter, Shimmer, or whatever type of sparkle you want. You can view the challenge here.

Though I love Stickles and use them on many projects, I use them in pretty small doses, and usually 'clear' colors like Diamond or Crystal. I decided this Challenge would be a great opportunity for me to think outside of my own little box! For the Sparkle elements, I used sequins, rhinestones, and 3 different Stickles. Here is what I came up with:

This was such a fun card for me to make because I know the recipient, my sweet mama, will appreciate every inch of it. Thanks so much for stopping by! I appreciate all comments + subscriptions! Happy crafting! :)

xoxo,
Emily

Materials used:
- ivory panel from scrap stash, cut to 3.75" x 5.25"
- kraft a2 size card + envelope
- juli's garden cuttlebug folder
- flutter by stamp set
- bazzill coconut swirl cardstock
- memento tuxedo black and lilac posies inks
- memento lilac posies marker
- stickles (thistle, icicle, golden rod)
- copics (R20, R22, R29, RV04, RV17, 0, Y17, Y21, Y38, YR07, YG 03, YG25, YG63)
- liquid + foam adhesives
- martha stewart sequins
-hero arts rhinestones

Merry Christmas!

Hi there! Merry Christmas Eve! I got to work early on some Christmas thank-you cards -- here is a video and a few pictures.

Here's another card -- a regular sized one to pop in the mail, with many of the same features.

MATERIALS USED:

Cricut/Winter Lace Cartridge (Provo Craft)

Cuttlebug/Snowflake Embossing Folder (Provo Craft)

Various cardstocks (Bazzill Basics & Core'dinations)

Adhesive gemstones (Recollections)

Foam Adhesive (Paper Studio)

Pumice Stone ink (Ranger)

Classic sentiment clear stamps (Hero Arts)

1/4" Corner Chomper (We R Memory Keepers)

Crystal Stickles (Ranger)

Patterned paper scraps

ATG (Scotch)

Thank you so much for reading/watching. May you all have a blessed Christmas with warmth and loved ones.

Lots of Christmas love,

Emily

Cuttlebug Folder Storage

How do you store your Cuttlebug embossing plates? A while back, I decided with a growing collection I needed a more practical way to store them than keeping them in the cardboard and plastic sleeves and dragging them out each time. I saw several really great ideas on the internet, but I couldn't find any of the exact materials, or they required cricut design studio, which I do not have or plan to have. So I came up with my own idea!

I have to give Mr. Fiance the credit for this one - I showed him the size I needed and he found the perfect storage box. (Hobby Lobby). I have found that this method works really well and looks nice too. :)










* I begin by cutting kraft cardstock to 8 3/4" x 6". Score it at 4 3/8". You can do this using any scoring tool. This will form a folder.
* Round the top 2 corners of the folder at 1/2".
* Run one side of the folder through the Cuttlebug, with whatever plate you are going to store in that folder. NOTE: This must be matched up and done twice, as the embossing plate size is larger than the kraft folder.
* Cut tabs from From My Kitchen Cricut Cartridge. I use the round tab on page 55, (Row 3, # 8), cut at 1 1/2" with Real Dial Size ON.
* Score tabs in half and adhere to one folder at a time using ATG tape or similar adhesive. I alternate the colors of mine, and also stagger them in 3 rows.
* Insert each embossing plate in it's new folder.

VOILA!


I store my A, B, and C plates and a few dies behind the folders. I keep an index card with these measurements taped to the bottom of the box (in the photo, the wrong cricut information is written - please disregard). I also keep a small bag of extra tabs for when I get a new embossing plate.


Hope this helps someone! Thanks for reading.
xoxo
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

Piece of Cake!

I wanted to get a craft fix in this evening, so I made this card for my mom to give to a friend of hers. The recipient is a cake maker - so I immediately got busy thinking of what cake images I have on my cartridges. I was able to use Simply Charmed, which my mom got me for Christmas. Perfect!

So often, I use more monotone color combo's, so this was fun to do. I like that it has a variety of colors that I wouldn't ordinarily combine.

Recipe:

- White 4.25"x5.5" (A2) card

- Cake and all layers from Simply Charmed p. 74, cut at 3"

- Cake accents embossed with Tim Holtz Swirls

- Cake accented with Stickles (Crystal, Yellow, and Orange Peel)

*please note the vivid orange color on the flames. This is due entirely to the Orange Peel Stickles; the actual color of the paper was pale yellow (see base of cake). I am quite familiar with Orange Peel, as it was my first and much-used Stickles, but this is a perfect example of why you should test things out before you slap them on a final project - it's brighter and more pigmented than most Stickles!

- Pink mats embossed with Cuttlebug Swiss Dots embossing folder

- Pink mat punched with Martha Stewart Lacy Doily Lace Border Punch

- Sentiment by Hero Arts, stamped in crushed olive

- glossy accents

This was a pretty quick card - unusually quick for me. I think the main reason it flew by is because I had pre-sketched what I wanted to accomplish. I've written about this before, but I find this to be a really time-saving technique, especially for a Miss Busy such as myself.

- - -

I'm thinking Etsy shop. I am being urged by several loved ones. We'll see. :)

Hope you're keeping warm! Thanks for reading!

xoxo

Emily

Back in business!

After begrudgingly dropping some cash on a replacement camera charger, I am back in business. At the end of the day I decided the pictures I missed out on taking (including CHRISTMAS! Grr..) were worth more than the charger costs.

- - -

Since my family members aren't craft-obsessed like I am, some of them decided to give me gift cards and so on to purchase my own craft gifts this Christmas. They know how happy it makes me - so sweet. I used them to get supplies for my next project: December Daily. Woo hoo!

I'm currently working on Christmas thank-you notes. So fun! I began by making a batch of identicals for the students in my class - they presented me with such sweet things the day before break. The excitement in children that young, about giving a gift to someone else, really shows the spirit of Christmas. What a gift in itself. I wanted to make them some really cute thank-you's that would be appropriate for both the little ones as well as their parents! I've had a lot of fun! In doing these, I was able to utilize the cartridges I got for Christmas. :-D

* kraft, pink, black cardstocks by the paper studio

* stickles
* border punch (Sorry, I do not know the name!)

* Mary Engelbreit snowflake stamps, white embossed.
* Simple Sentiments by Hero Arts, Archival Ink

This one is for someone else:

* kraft, brown, red, and cream cardstocks by the paper studio

* ric rac stamp by stampendous, white embossed

* glossy accents

* seeing spots embossing folder

* Simple Sentiments by Hero Arts
* scrap from my stash

* Inkssentials white opaque pen (this did not show up well on the cream CS - not sure what I was thinking)

- - -

And also..

These don't have an exact location yet, but my boyfriend got me a scoring tool for Christmas - sooo excited - and I have been popping these out like crazy. Love their pretty, sophisticated finished look!

I'd love to go on, now that I'm back with all my photos - but it's REALLY late! Thanks for sticking with me through the absence of my camera! :) Hope you're all having a lovely Thursday!

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. :)

Love.

Here is a card I made last night. A close family friend is struggling with a terminal illness and some very hard times. At times like this it seems that there are no words or actions that you can say or do that will make a difference, but I try to believe that’s not true. I try to believe that just letting someone know that you care, makes at least one happy moment.

I cut this card base with Archiver’s CS in their crop room. I then used the cuttlebug, tea dye ink, tacky glue and flower soft to embellish the front. My favorite mini alphas on the inside for a simple but powerful message. Pretty simple, really, but I wanted to focus more on what I was writing than a crafter’s bells and whistles.

<3

Christmas Tag How-To

Before I go to work today, here is a HOW I DID IT for these Christmas tags :) The only thing missing from them is a hole-punch and some ribbon at the top.

So the ornament shapes themselves I cut at Archiver's crop room, using assorted cardstocks I bought there.

I started out by making die cuts of this Pine Tree from the My Community, at 1 1/2 in. and the blackout feature.

Next, I arranged them on the Swiss Dots Embossing folder and ran them through the Cuttlebug.

Once all dotted up, I did a light brushing over Peeled Paint Distress ink over the dots. It's just barely enough color --

So I spritzed them with a mini mister (just water) to let the ink wick out and give a bit more color.

I actually used a glue stick to adhere the die cuts, and then added a puffy gift stickers (archiver's hot spot) under each tree.

Since I've managed to lose my TO/FROM stamp (grr..), I just used my type letters to spell the words out.

close-up of embossed tree.

hurray!

I officially signed up for the craft fair yesterday. I'M SO EXCITED!

xoxo

A cricut, a cuttlebug, and tim holtz walk into a bar...

So, couple of things...

Made this card for Grandma, for her birthday which was yesterday. I was really excited to use lots of new things. I challenged myself to explore with my Cricut, because I haven't used it much since I purchased it (over 1 1/2 yrs. ago)...to be honest, the machine sort of intimidates me. At least it has up until now. I'm getting more comfortable. :) I cut out some balloons from the Stretch Your Imagination cartridge, before inking and stickling them. (Yes, I just made stickling a verb...)

I also was stoked to use the cuttlebug for some texture and my very first cuttlebug die cut. The die cut I did, is one by Tim Holtz. They're called Alterations, and I absolutely love them - however, they are intended for Sizzix machines. Through my repetitive watching of THIS Youtube video, I was convinced to spring for one, as she very efficiently proves that they are in fact compatible with the cuttlebug. So the other night I got the Baroque die cut. I cut one to add to this card, after inking it and embossing it with Swiss Dots.

Distress Inked + stickles

Swiss Dots

So when I first cut a balloon, I had it on the wrong size dial, which resulted in this teeny tiny balloon. Always trying to use it all up, I was excited when I realized I had the perfect use for the little mistake. A touch of red sharpie and voila! :)

So I'm finally getting to explore a little bit with the T.H. Compendium of Curiosities. First up, the Shabby Chic technique:

I was thrilled with how this technique turned out. This is just a plain grunge heart (mixed minis set). The paint dabbers I used were sunset orange and espresso. *TIP: rather than using the actual dabber foam top, i dabbed it on and then used my finger to spread it all around. a much smoother look.*

Next up, 2 techniques layered in one. The background coloring is the Wrinkle Free Distress, and I am actually blanking on the name of the other technique. I do know that it didn't work the best for me. It had to do with Perfect Pearls over a distress stamped image, and then misting water so that the ink would wick out from beneath the powder. Well, my ink ran. But I'm ok with the finished product:

^ prisma glitter over stamped image

Finally, I did some experimenting with my mini misters. I have only made one concoction so far, but as I was warned, I am addicted. I just mixed some bronze p.p. with a full tube of water. I spritzed it over this ornament tag, and also over this imitation grunge flower I made.

^ close-up showing mini mister detail! :)

As a P.S., that imitation flower was made using the cricut (george & basic shapes) on 'shadow blackout' at 2 1/2 inches. I used Scattered Straw distress ink, Golden Rod stickles, and a spritz of my DIY mixture. Gave it to my mom as a Get Well flower - she and I are both peuny!

xoxo