Bridal Shower Decor!

Hey there!

This past weekend we celebrated my dear friend Amanda's bridal shower! I'm so excited to celebrate the upcoming wedding of 2 of my best friends! :) The four of us bridesmaids all worked together to pull off a beautiful yellow and grey themed shower on Sunday.

I didn't get as great of photos as I had hoped, but here's what I was able to somewhat capture of the crafty stuff -- the banner, food labels, and a keepsake box with notecards.

For the banner, I spelled out "bride to be" using my Cricut and Cindy Loo Cartridge with deep grey cardstock. I used the George + Basic Shapes cartridge to cut out 2 hearts. (Good old George - it seems so plain but always manages to come in handy!) I adhered the accented letters and shapes to yellow and grey cardstock cut to 6x6" square pennants using liquid glue. I used a ribbon punch to punch two holes in each square-shaped pennant, and finally, began weaving grey grosgrain ribbon through each slit. I love love love the finished product! The colors were perfect and it hung beautifully on the mantle! (Do you spy the gorgeous lemon centerpieces??)

For the Vegan-Friendly food labels, I cut some nice thick yellow cardstock to 3x3". I scored it at 1.5" and folded it in half. Using Lawn Fawn's Smitty's ABC's, I spelled out "Vegan Friendly" and stamped it on all the of the mini cards in pretty grey London Fog ink. Next, I punched some hydrangeas in the dark grey cardstock. I rolled them petals, layed the flowers using liquid glue, and adhered one to each card. Once they were dry, I used Platinum Liquid Pearls to add a subtle and pretty center to each bloom. I loved these! The bride did too, and wants to repeat using them at the wedding. :)

Finally, as a keepsake for the bride, I make a "Shower Memories" box and lots of notecards for all the guests to record a memory or advice on. To begin, I painted a kraft box and lid with yellow acrylic paint - I did 2-3 coats to get a good even color. I created a flower using grey cardstock and Tim Holtz' Tattered florals die. (This brought back QUITE the memory of my own wedding, just 6 months ago, for which I die cut and embellished hundreds of the Tattered Florals by hand for my reception centerpieces. A labor of love and totally worth it!) I added a bit of Tea Dye distress ink for dimension, and finished the center with a pretty yellow October Afternoon button and grey baker's twine from Doodlebug. I stamped a vintage lady in London Fog on ivory cardstock and added Mustard Seed Distress Stickles to her dress. After cutting her out, I adhered her and the flower next to one another on the lid of the box. I adhered a strip of dainty grey lace along the bottom, and wrote "Shower Memories" in silver metallic Sharpie. This was a lot of fun and I was pleased with the finished product!

Finally, I had lots of fun creating a variety of cards for guests to write on. I cut them to various sizes, and decorated them with a variety of stamps, punches, border punches and washi tapes. I hope the almost Mrs. had fun reading over them! <3 p="">
Thanks so much for stopping by today! If you have and questions, comments or requests just let me know. Happy crafting!
xoxo,
Emily

P.S....

Everyday Card using Watercolor Technique

Hey there! Tonight I was inspired to pull out some products/techniques I haven't used in awhile. Here is a card I made this evening using some oldies but goodies!

I began by choosing some nice solid image rubber stamps - in this case, Three Silhouettes by Hero Arts. I mixed some inks (wild honey, milled lavender and victorian velvet) with some water from a mini mister. I stamped all three stamps in a random pattern onto smooth white cardstock cut to 3.75 x 5.25". Once I covered the entire paper, I used a paintbrush to splatter the  three ink mixtures from my craft mat. When I was finished, it looked like this:

I used an ink blending tool to cover the entire paper with antique linen distress ink. I LOVE the look of this ink blended over the light lavender color!

Next, to add the dramatic flair I wanted to acheive, I pulled some HUGE Heidi Swapp flowers out of my stash. I've had them for awhile - checked the copyright date to find 2002. :) About time I put them to use! Though I was seeking drama, the flower was actually TOO large to fit, so I trimmed it in have with some precision scissors. I adhered it down smoothly using my ATG. The flower was the perfect addition to my feminine card...it's so fun pulling out older products and putting them to use! I added some Rock Candy distress stickles to the petals for a muted sparkle.

On top of the flower I wanted a sentiment. I chose "lovely" from Hero Arts' Heyday Sentiments. I stamped it  on white cardstock using Jenni Bowlin's Malted Milk ink. I trimmed it into a half banner and blended some more antique linen ink on top. Finally, I used some Buttercup Liquid Pearls to make random and various sized pearls around the sentiment and center of the flower.

I had a lot of fun working with the watercolor technique I hadn't tried in awhile, and some products that had gotten dusty. Thank you so much for reading along with me!

Happy crafting! I hope you create something beautiful today.
xoxo
Emily

Lawn Fawn card + Class!

Wanted to share this fun little card I made for my friend Erin.

Materials used:
- gnome sweet gnome + you've got mail stamp sets
- peppermint cord
- textured golden yellow scrap
- stickles
- vintage photo distress ink/ink blender
- patterned paper from Dear Lizzy Neapolitan 6x6 pad
- sew easy stitch piercer/leprechaun floss
- diamond stickles
- memento tuxedo black ink
- copic markers
- cloud brads (recollections)

I am also really excited to share the news that on Saturday I'll be attending a LF class hosted by design team member Lynette, at one of my favorite papercraft stores, Papertrix. My new husband offered to travel the 5 hours round trip so that I could attend. I'm SO excited and I can't wait to share details of the class, I just know its going to be a blast!

Thanks for reading! See you soon.
xoxo,
Emily

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

I'm back - with a Halloween card!

I'm back!!! I have missed my crafting and blogging so dearly, as wedding planning has taken over my free time. Not that I'm complaining. :)

I recently started a new and somewhat quick scrapbook, but have really been working more on cards when I do get time to craft. Fall is my favorite season, and I always find myself very inspired when the leaves start to fall. Here's a card for a friend:

Since I last blogged, I have begun working with Copics, and my cartridge library has grown considerably. BUT, this is the first project I've done in ages that did not involve the cricut. Here's the recipe:

- A2 cream card, edges inked in Vintage Photo

- Patterned paper, both from Cosmo Cricket, inked in Vintage Photo:

- polka dots: Odds and Ends, 1.75"

- plaid: Matilda, 2.25"

- 3 characters (My Mind's Eye) stamped in Archival Jet Black on Bazzill Coconut Swirl. Colored and blended with various Copics. Hand cut, inked with Antique Linen, edged with Colorbox black, and adhered with pop dots.

- Sew Easy original head run along all 4 card edges; stitched with American Crafts black twine.

Thanks for reading!!

xoxo

Emily

Matryoshka Thinking of You

I made this card last night for my Grandma. I had a finished product in mind, and I am really happy with the results. It turned out just how I had hoped. :)

Started with A2 size white card/envelope; 3.75" x 5.25" white mat, distressed.

* I began by stamping 3 matryoshkas (basic grey) and 'thinking of you' (hero arts) in varying sizes onto smooth white cardstock. I stamped them with versamark dazzle champagne, and clear embossed them.

* I blended ink (dusty concord, spiced marmalade, broken china, and worn lipstick) over eat embossed image.

* With a 1.25" square punch, I punched each image out, so that each doll/sentiment would be placed in a different corner (think brady bunch credits). Gasp...Emily working with asymmetry (but still lots of symmetry, too).
* I rounded these with my corner chomper on the 1/4" setting.

* I knew I wanted them to lay perfectly flat, which can be tricky, so I ran them through my xyron create-a-sticker (old faithful!). This worked wonderfully, and they are still adhered wonderfully. (I've learned that it really pays to not only have a large, varying collection of adhesive, but also to take a moment to think about what will work best. With glue dots, or even ATG, I still would have had loose edges. The create-a-sticker was the best choice here.)

* After these were adhered, I cut the size ribbon I would need (american crafts, boutique bleu), and adhered with with ATG to the mat. Then I adhered the entire mat to the card using ATG.

* Finally, I used white enamel accents free-handedly to create a raised texture backgroud. I love how these add a soft, bubbly backdrop to the main image.

Voila!

Thanks for reading. :)

Emily

I was inspired by "Pumpkin Give Thanks Card" from p. 13 of the Winter 2011 Stamp It! magazine.

Top o' the Mornin'!

In my family, Saint Patrick's Day is a fun, peaceful celebration. It's one of my favorite holidays. My family has strong Irish blood on both sides, and it's something I'm very proud of. While some people celebrate only on March 17th, I prefer to take the time leading up to Saint Patrick's Day to reflect on my family's history, and fill my ears with beautiful Irish music, and my well-loved Irish movies. My favorite? Evelyn. I have a mondo crush on Pierce Brosnan, especially in this role.

SO, I have decided to make a few mini cards for the upcoming holiday. I made two identicals of this one, for me mum'n'dad. :)

- These measure approx. 2.5 x 3.25 on a forest green base. I was really at a roadblock as far as color inspiration until I paired the peach and mint. LOVE 'EM!

- The images were cut at 3", I believe (I had to play around to get it right).

- I spritzed the peach with copper pearl mist; yellow stickles on the rays. Copper paint dabber around the edging.

- The peach was pop-dotted onto the mint mat, which is edged with lettuce paint dabber.

- White mat on interior with negative of cricut scraps; sentiment (studio g) is stamped in crushed olive.

Hope this gets you in the springy, Saint Patrick mood. 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

True Colors

It. has. been. so. long. since I completed a scrapbook page - at least since September. Oy! I got to looking at my ongoing project, and decided I really wanted to get to work on it while I still had memories in my head (they tend to fall out easily with me...). My current ongoing project is a 12x12 album of my trip to Chicago to see GLEE live in concert. Yes, I'm still beaming about it. :) I have no idea why the pictures upload sideways. It's quite the aggravation. Hope you can get the idea. :)

The bulk of the pages in the album are themed on titles of the songs they performed, most of them exact reenactments of the scenes in the show. This particular page/2 pages are based upon "True Colors", a Tina solo. This was a great choice to get me back into scrapbooking mode, because I LOVE bright, fun COLORS. This took a lot of time, but it was super fun. :)

A 2 page spread. I'm a fan of those...

Page 1. The photo is from FOX (I used a mixture of photos I took live, and shots from the show that really capture the themes well).

Font from Wall Décor & More, cut at 3.25" with Monogram feature. I cut them all in white cardstock, and then applied ink and coordinating Stickles, to create a rainbow effect.

I love this photo!! It set the perfect tone for inspiration.

It's not secret that I'm obsessed with these... :) I made them each by hand from paper studio cardstock, glossy accents, buttons, and stickles.

Page 2. Both photos taken by me. I used this page for all of my journaling.

Font from Wall Décor & More, cut at 2.5" with Monogram feature. I cut them all in white cardstock, and then applied ink and coordinating Stickles, to create a rainbow effect.

I am having so much fun documenting this night. The show itself brings me so much joy, but getting to see them live? Knowing that my boyfriend loves me so much that he made it actually happen? I have no words. No one can ever top it - and no one can ever take those memories from me. :) Thanks so much for reading with me. I hope everyone is staying WARM! Brrrr!

big hugs!!
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

Fun Tuesday Things.

Check out this fun birdcage I made! I love the shabby look it turned out with (shocking, I know).

- Basic cream, lt. blue, teal, and kraft cardstocks.
- Aqua and Silver paint (I used a very light hand!)
- Rock Candy <3>
I made this with my new Cricut cartridge, Straight from the Nest – this was one of my Black Friday gifts to myself. :) It was one I hadn’t heard of before; I think once upon a time it was an HSN exclusive. It’s one of those that at first glance, looks pretty basic, but if you take a closer look it’s got lots of fun functions on the dedicated buttons. Ribbon Sliders, Corners, and more. I’ve been having fun experimenting with it. I also used it to make these Christmas accents for my December Daily album I’m working on:

Speaking of December Daily – what a fun idea! I first read about this in BHG Scrapbooks Etc. The whole idea of it is a low-stress way to create a keepsake album that displays all your holiday traditions for the year. The key to the low stress, as I understand it, is the fact that you are supposed to create the album pre-December 1st, so that you’re not all caught up in the pressure of coordinating everything. Haha, well…I didn’t discover the wonderful idea of December Daily until after Thanksgiving, so, I am just recording my thoughts each day, and I’ll make them into a project later. It’s not really my style to dive into something without a plan, so this is working out. I am making some embellishments as I go. Fun. :)

Amazing sale right now at CRICUT MACHINE. Free shipping on all orders, and amazing prices. I got Everyday Paperdolls (for a Christmas gift) for $21.95 total. Gadzooks!

Things I’m Loving:
* Tim Holtz’ 12 Tags of Christmas. I’ve never seen so much inspiration packed into such a short amount of time! Tons of fun ideas there to try. :)
* The DCWV package I got from HSN today. Umm - $45 worth of gorgeous paper for 10 bucks. Yes.
* My cricut Tool Kit. At first glance I thought it was another ploy for money – but as it turns out, those gadgets all really do serve a purpose!
* My recent Hero Arts clings!!...

GLEE Thoughts:
Well, I love Christmas, and I love Glee. It’s no surprise that the combination of the 2 left me giddy. I have no complaints – although I’m still not happy with the Finchel storyline. A smirk in her direction at the very end, while they’re huddled around the Christmas tree? That doesn’t cut it! However, love the Brittany/Santa plot, and in keeping with tradition, Artie’s Christmas gift and Becky’s “Christmas came anyway” made me burst into tears.

And just so everyone knows...it's seven degrees outside right now. Seven.

xoxoxxoo