WIN A GYPSY!!!

The Gypsy Spot is giving away a Gypsy, courtesy of Custom Crops, to one lucky winner. Click HERE to visit The Gypsy Spot for all the details and be sure to give their sponsor, Custom Crops, a visit! They have a huge selection of craft products and awesome prices!

My sister asked me to make some Christmas cards for her and since I'll be seeing her this weekend, I don't really have a lot of time to work with. I'll have to post the details later, as I have one grandson crying and the other one is clinging to me at the hip!
The first batch is all Cuttlebug embossing and die cuts. I embossed one of the backgrounds backwards, but trust me, my sister will never notice. Used vellum for the snowflakes.


This is the inside:

The next batch is my favorite, so far. The deer was cut with my Silhouette. I used Tim Holtz distressed stickles on two of them and Zing embossing powder on the other two. The scarf is also distressed embossing powder. Noses have glossy accents on them.

INSIDE:

MYSTERY BOX CHALLENGE #2 at Custom Crops

Yippee! Yahoo! Yay! The Mystery Box Challenge #2 is up on the Custom Crops website! You've got to check out all of the awesome, creative projects we came up with. Each one is so different. We had some unusual products that we were required to use and I can't believe how differently each one of us used them!
Cereal, plastic utensils, shrinky dink film... those are just a few. All the details and more pictures can be found HERE at Custom Crops. I worked extremely hard on this project and I am very proud of it, so I'd love it if you took a moment to leave a quick review over there on Custom Crops.

Here's a picture taken in the dark, with the mini lights lit up:I had to edit this post and in the process lost the comments that were previously left here. Sorry about that! I tried to get them back, but they're gone!

TURKEY - The Cuttlebug Spot challenge

Good Monday morning! Last week was a busy, busy week for me. I was working on my Mystery Box Challenge #2 project for Custom Crops and was still putting some finishing touches on it just hours before it was due. Check back later when I reveal my Mystery Box project!!!
This week at The Cuttlebug Spot, we are featuring turkeys on our projects. My silly little turkey was done using my Silhouette cutter. I downloaded the turkey, cut it all on white cardstock and used my Prisma markers to color it. I gave him some wiggly eyes just because he looked like such a silly turkey. I embossed the body with the folder from the Cuttlebug Welcome Baby cut 'n emboss set. The green background was embossed with the CB Victoria folder and inked with Tim Holtz Distress Ink shabby shutters. The sentiment is from the Cricut Animal Kingdom cartridge. The lettering was done using the Mini Gel Pen Holder and mini gel pens, available at Custom Crops. The word bubble is from the Paper Pups cartridge. I stretched it in Design Studio to fit the sentiment. I attached a piece of organza ribbon from CropStop, using my Tim Holtz Tiny Attacher.
To see what the other wonderful Design Team members have done with their turkeys, click HERE. Nilda has been sick with the flu, so if it's not posted yet, please check back later.

Got Gas? - The Gypsy Spot challenge

Let me explain.... my nephew is taking his road test and hopefully will be getting his driver's license. I want to send him a prepaid gas card and thought I'd make a card to go along with it. Since I needed to do a design team card for The Gypsy Spot, I thought I'd do a shaped card, hence the gas pump. Only thing is, when it was all cut, assembled and glued, I realized I forgot to put a question mark on it, so now it looks more like a statement rather than a question. LOL! This week at THE GYPSY SPOT, Nilda asked the team to weld a font and shape from two different cartridges. The gas pump is from Going Places and the title is from Don Juan. I welded together 2 gas pump cuts on the blackout feature at 5.5" to form the base card, in black cardstock. Then I cut the gas pump again on the shadow feature and once again on the base feature to create the layers. GOT was cut at 1.52" and GAS at 1.73" using the shadow feature and welded to the card base. Cut it again on shadow, and one more time on the base feature in the dotted cardstock. The top layer of the gas pump was embossed using the Cuttlebug Diamond Plate folder and lightly inked. I used metallic markers on the "hose" of the gas pump, which is actually part of the red cardstock. I embossed a heavy foil paper using a Big Momma alphabet plate from Ten Second Studio. I placed the foil over the plate and rubbed it with a large paper stump. If you're a new Gypsy owner looking for inspiration, hop on over the The Gypsy Spot to see the fabulous creations by the other Design Team ladies. We'd love to see your creations, so why not play along. Just click HERE!

LET'S GET FRUITY - The Cuttlebug Spot challenge

Good Monday morning! It's time for another amazing challenge over at The Cuttlebug Spot. This week Nilda asked the Design Team to create something using fruit as the theme. I wanted to make a Thanksgiving card for Bella to give to her teacher and I thought apples would be the perfect fruit. The basket and apples are from the Cricut Doodlecharms cartridge. The basket was cut at 2-1/4" on shadow and base features. The apples were cut at 1 inch. Some were flipped and some were made smaller using Design Studio. The top ring of the basket was embossed with the Cuttlebug Autum Type folder and the bottom was done with an embossing folder from the Just My Type set. The top layer of the basket was embossed with the Distressed Stripes folder. I colored part of the apples with Prisma markers and added some Glossy Accents. The basket was inked with Tim Holtz Distress Inks. I added four copper brads and adhered to the card front with thick glue dots. The green background was embossed with a Sizzix apple embossing folder. I added some chalk to it, just to make it a little bit more visible. The tag is pre-made by Jillibean Soup. The alpha border is pre-printed. The sentiment is computer-generated. I wrapped some hemp around the card front, wrapped it around a red ribbon, added a red button and called it DONE! The entire Design Team has gone fruity, so hop on over and check it out and maybe you'll be inspired to play along!

Red, White & Black

This card is for two challenges. The first being the monthly card sketch challenge over at Crop Stop and the second is a color challenge at the Play Date Cafe. The colors for the challenge are red, white and black. That funky red background is handmade paper by Sizzix. I used an EK Success border punch on the black panel and attached an inked-up Tim Holtz Adage Ticket with a Trinket pin. The tag is from the cricut Tags, Bags, Boxes & More cartridge, I believe I cut it at 3-1/2 inches. The image is a stamp by Amy Wilson. I distressed the tag edges and then inked with Black Soot distress ink. I added a vellum tag cut from a Spellbinders die and added a rub-on sentiment to it. Attached it to the card with 2 small black brads. That's it!

BIG LEAF - Stuck On U Sketches

I'm so excited that I was able to squeeze this one in! The designers over at Stuck On U Sketches are so talented and their layouts are so inspiring! I'm going to have to replace the photo of Bella with her giant leaf. My printer was running on empty and the colors are all washed out. The huge label cut behind the photo is from the Storybook cartridge, cut at 11" on shadow and base. The BIG is from Jubilee cut at 1-1/2" with a foil leaf sticker behind each one, and LEAF is from Speaking of Fall also at 1-1/2" on shadow and base. The flourishes are a QuicKutz die. I added an embossed birch leaf using a Sizzix folder (the type with the brass plate) to the journaling panel. I used an EK Success border punch on the larger panel behind the journaling. I wasn't happy with my 12"x12" paper choice, but naturally I realized that AFTER I had glued everything down.

Stampendous Evergreen Borders clear stamps

All of these cards and tags were made using a set of Clear Stamps by Stampendous. The set is Evergreen Borders and they are quite versatile. For the first card, I used square and scalloped punches and the trees stamp. Using the snow stamp, I added some snow to the trees using a metallic ink pad. The sentiment, front and inside, are also from the clear stamp set. The trees, snow, swirly borders and sentiments were all done using stamps from the set. For the falling snow, I used Ranger Perfect Medium and holographic embossing powder. The tags are from the Cricut Christmas Cheer cartridge, stamped with the trees on the front and the back was done with with a JustRite alpha set. The little note cards are a Sizzix Bigz die. I inked only one of the trees and stamped it on the envelope front. The inside card was stamped with a little holly flourish that is also included in the set. The Stampendous Clear Stamp "Evergreen Borders" is from CropStop. For a direct link to the Stampendous Stamps available at the store, click HERE. They offer FREE shipping on orders over $35.00 and if you order by Nov. 11th, you can save 10% on orders of $29.00. Enter coupon code "HWE" at checkout.

The Gypsy Spot AND The Cuttlebug Spot

It's Monday, the Yankeees won and I've got TWO Design Team Challenges to post! Life is pretty good. So far.... By now, everyone knows about Nilda's THE CUTTLEBUG SPOT challenge blog, right? But, have you heard about her most recent, THE GYPSY SPOT? Well, today is our debut challenge and you should see what the Design Team has cooked up using their Gypsy. If you own a Gypsy, come play along. This card is the very first one that I made using my Gyspy. The colors aren't quite autumn... more like the softer side of autumn. I neglected to save the file, but I believe the tree from Gypsy Wanderings is cut at 2 inches, the scalloped frame at 2.5 inches and the Gypsy Font is at 1 inch using the shadow and base features. The larger rectangle cut-out was done with a deckled edge Nestabilities die. I used the Martha Stewart Maple Leaf around the page punch for the border. We'd love to have you come join us in our first formal challenge. Did I mention there's a prize? Get some inspiration from the Design Team and check out all the details of the new challenge HERE!

THE CUTTLEBUG SPOT:
Now on to THE CUTTLEBUG SPOT Challenge. This week we are celebrating Thanksgiving and Giving Thanks. I pulled this scarecrow out and was determined to use him. It's a Sizzix embossing folder (the type with the brass plate). They work like a charm in the Cuttlebug. First, I cut out an oval with my Nesties and then did the embossing. I lightly sanded and inked the raised embossing. Then cut another scalloped oval, again with Nesties, and matted the scarecrow. Using my largest scalloped oval, I cut a hole in the center of the houndstooth patterned paper, which was first adhered to a piece of white cardstock for stability. It shifted a tiny bit when it went through the Cuttlebug, so I just inked the inside edges to conceal the white paper. That was then mounted on the green paper, using foam dimensionals. The leaves are a Cottage Cutz die. I added some Spiced Marmalade Distressed embossing powder and Chinese Red Antiquities embossing powder... very cool products! The scarecrow was looking a bit dull, so I added some embroidery floss stitching to highlight him a bit. The inside green background was embossed with the CB Houndstooth embossing folder and inked slightly. Another large scalloped oval Nestie and computer-generated sentiment. The crows are another Cottage Cutz die. Don't you love them? The Cottage Cutz die are sold exclusively at The Scrapping Cottage.
Now, I know you want to come and join in the fun over at The Cuttlebug Spot, right?

BLOG CANDY WINNER!!!

Thanks to everyone who entered and left such wonderful comments! The winner of my Blog Candy is.... TERRY (iluvmybugs). Terry, email me with your address and I'll get it out in the mail to you.

Over The Top Blog Award from Sandy & Kaye

My dear friend, Sandy, passed along this awesome award to me. Sandy is one of the sweetest ladies I have met through the Cricut mb and always has time to leave comments on my blog. Thank you, Sandy! She's been working on some calendar pages and they really are something to see. Hope you have a minute or two to stop by her blog. Here's a link. I also received this award from the very talented Kaye. You can always find a new layout on her blog, usually centered around her handsome boys. Hope you can visit her as well. Now, on to the award.

The rules are to pass this on to five people, and to also answer some questions only using one word. Plus, leave the people you choose a comment on their blog letting them know that have been awarded. So here we go:

1.Where is your cell phone? Charging
2. Your hair? Boyish
3. Your mother? Syracuse
4. Your father? Florida
5. Your favorite food? Pizza
6. Your dream last night? Creepy
7. Your favorite drink? MARGARITA
8. Your dream/goal? Longevity
9. What room are you in? Craft room
10. Your hobby? Duh!
11. Your fear? armageddon
12. Where do you want to be in 6 years? Retired
13. Where were you last night? Craft room
14. Something that you aren't? Focused
15. Muffins? Huh?
16. Wish list item? Mercedes Benz SL 550 Roadster
17. Where did you grow up? The Bronx, baby!
18. Last thing you did? Ate
19. What are you wearing? Skinny jeans
20. Your TV? off
21. Your Pets? none
22. Friends? Definitely!
23. Your life? unmanageable
24. Your mood? upbeat
25. Missing Someone? my mom
26. vehicle? GMC Acadia
27. Something your not wearing? Gloves!
28. Your favorite store? Hmmm......
29. Your favorite color? red
30. When was the last time you laughed? today
31. Last time you cried? last week
32. Your best friend? Mandy, Melissa & Dana (my daughters)
33. One place that I go to over and over? Post Office
34. Facebook? Yep
35. Favorite place to eat? Carmela's house
And now, to pass it along to five others to enjoy. There are so many talented designers who inspire me, and it's difficult to pick just five, so I will do a random selection. Here goes:
1. Amber I watched a video clip of hers and thought she was the sweetest person ever!
2. Wanda We have a bit in common, she and I, and I just love everything she creates!
3. Joy You've got to see her Halloween Pig!
4. Leah She is able to create some gorgeous layouts, even with her hands full!
5. Vicki My design team sister on the new The Gypsy Spot blog. Check out the Peace sign she made!

Bon Voyage

This is a card I did for the Cricut Forum over on the Crop Stop message board. There is a forum dedicated just to Cricut cuts, so if you need some inspiration, hop on over and take a look at all of the creative ideas. Just click here! The corners are from the Sweethearts cartridge, shadow feature cuts welded to form a frame. The sentiment is from the Beyond Birthdays cartridge. The papers are from a 12x12 stack I got at Hobby Lobby, but the brand name escapes me at the moment and I'm not at home to take a look.

CUTE LITTLE WITCH - The Cuttlebug Spot

This week at The Cuttlebug Spot we have a color challenge for you! And with Halloween quickly approaching, it should be a piece of cake using Purple, Green & Black! I have had this paper from the DCWV Halloween stack for at least 2 years and I can finally say it's almost gone! The witch is a Sizzix brass embossing folder and the spider is a Sizzix small embossing folder. They were both done using my Cuttlebug. I made the flower center brad with my i-top!!! MS scary fence border punch, embossed with a border folder from CB Just My Type set (I think?). Flowers and glitter brads are Doodlebug. Now, there are some great inspirational projects by some of the Design Team over at The Cuttlebug Spot, so hop on over and check 'em out! Remember... the colors are PURPLE, GREEN, BLACK!!! Winner of the challenge gets a gift certificate!

BLOG CANDY!!!

Well, it's been just over a year since I started my blog, I have reached 100 followers, and my new craft room is just about complete. So.... as promised, here is the Blog Candy up for grabs! And yes, that IS a Jubilee cartridge that you see! There are a couple of Cuttlebug embossing folders, a Cuttlebug cut 'n emboss set, a Making Memories paper pack, some punches, baby embellies, prima flowers, ribbon, an invitation stamp, DOTS markers and a ruler cutter with interchangeable blades, and some skittles. As I continued to organize my new craft room, I may be adding to this bundle. Now, here's all you need to do. Place a post or sidebar item on your blog with a link back to my Blog Candy Visit one of the 4 sites that I design for. They are listed on my sidebar. Leave a comment on any post on one of those sites. Come back, leave a comment here with a link back to your blog and a link to the comment you left on one of the other 4 sites. Ends at midnight on Halloween! Check back on Sunday, November 1st and I will announce the winner, to be chosen randomly. Good Luck and THANK YOU FOR VISITING!!!
Oh, and I'd be flattered if you follow, but it's not a requirement!

Design Team Announcement & Blog Candy!!!

Well, I've got a few reasons to celebrate and I'm spreading the love! First of all, I AM ON NILDA'S NEW DESIGN TEAM AT HER BRAND-SPANKIN' NEW BLOG, "THE GYPSY SPOT"!!! If you haven't heard about it yet, click HERE for a direct link. Secondly, I've got 100 followers... go me! Now, for me, that's a milestone. I am flattered that even 1 person would want to follow my blog, so 100 is quite the compliment! Last, but not least, I have finally moved into my new craft room and in the process have found that I have way too much stuff! I've even got duplicates of Cricut cartridges!!! So...... I will be giving away a pretty hefty box chockful of blog candy, so stop by on Friday for all the details and pictures. I promise you, it will be worth your time! Thanks for stopping by!

Candy Corn Pillow Box ~ The Cuttlebug Spot Challenge

Here's the back... it shows the embossing a bit better.

This week over at The Cuttlebug Spot it's all about the CANDY! Wrappers, boxes, bags... whatever! I have to make some goody bags up for my granddaughter's kindergarten class and these acrylic pillow boxes came in real handy. The paper is from the DCWV Halloween Stack. I embossed with with the QuicKutz diamonds and dots embossing folder. Tied a ribbon around it and printed out the tags. I printed on candy corn patterned paper and it almost looks as if it's a clear window! They are a font I downloaded from Scrap N Fonts. Then I just cut them out with a circle Nestabilities die. HINT: be sure to put the candy corn in the box BEFORE you tie the ribbon around it! Yeah, I actually forgot to do that! There are some amazing projects by the other Design Team members. Check them out HERE

Halloween Happy Dance

I'm trying to use up this paper that I've had for 2 years. I had this one strip of skeletons left over and couldn't bring myself to throw it out. The sentiment was cut from the Cricut Lyrical Letters cartridge. I inked it up with Tim Holtz Distress Inks 'spiced marmalade'. Paper is DCWV Halloween Glitter Stack. The inside sentiment is computer generated with a metal brad by Around the Block.

Non-traditional Christmas Colors Challenge

Woo hoo! My first official Weekly Challenge as a member of the Crop Stop Crew! Now, I'm sure everyone has to make at least a few Christmas cards, but if you're like me, I'm not quite in the full swing of the season yet. Even with that snow we received yesterday, I still found it a bit too much to break out all of the green and red. So, we're going non-traditional for this one. My snowflakes are Spellbinders and Nestabilities. The tag is a scalloped oval Nestie. The sentiment is a Stampenduous clear stamp, done in maroon ink to match the snowflakes. I believe the background paper is My Minds Eye. HERE'S a link to the Crop Stop blog where you can find other fun challenges, as well as our monthly challenges, and maybe win a Crop Stop Goodie Bag!!!

My Guest Designer Spot & Blog Candy Winner

Come see me over at Hallmark Ladybugs! I am the Guest Designer this week!!! Thank you Jody for the wonderful opportunity.

The winner of the blog candy is Beverly S. Awesome card, Beverly! Please email me with your address and I will send this right of to you. Thanks for having some fun with us!

Beverly S. said...

Love your fall card. Here's mine:

http://www.scrapbookexpress3.com/photopost/showphoto.php/photo/9058/ppuser/9

Happy Card Making Day!

One-Eyed, One-Horned, Flying Purple People Eater

I just had to get the pic posted tonight! I'll post the details in the morning. This is my take on the critter from the '50's. It's about 15 inches long and is chillin' out on my fridge! He's for this week's challenge over at The Cuttlebug Spot.
Most of the cuts have been stretched and skewed in Design Studio. The head, wings, horn and body are all welded together for the bottom layer. The wings have Ice Stickles along the edges. The body and head were embossed with Fiskars plates. The wings were embossed with the Cuttlebug tiny mosaics folder.

Shiver Me Timbers

My grandson, Domenic, went to a Halloween birthday party today and he won the prize for Best Costume!
Aaarrrggghhhh, matey!

Look What Sandy Gave ME!!!

The Honest Scrap Award!!! And what an honor it is! I've recently decided to make a conscientious effort to catch up with some of my scrapbooking and have found Sandy's blog along the way. Her designs are truly a work of art. I just love her style. Just click HERE to see her layouts! Here is how it works....*Say thank you and give a link to the presenter of the award*Share “10 Honest Things” about myself*Present the award to 9 other bloggers whose blogs I find brilliant in content and/or design or to those who have encouraged me *Be sure to tell the 9 bloggers chosen that you are giving them the Honest Scrap award and provide the guidelines for them. Here is my list of honest things:

1. I love thunderstorms... the bigger, the better!
2. I am a roller coaster fanatic.. the bigger, the better!
3. I am a chronic complainer, but I'm working on a cure.
4. I had my 4 children by the time I was 27 years old! That's just pure craziness and I am NEVER doing that again!
5. My 4th grandchild will be born on my 50th birthday. At least, that's the plan.
6. I love football season... it keeps my dear husband out of my hair!
7. I was born and raised in The Bronx. Yes, I admit it!
8. I love driving fast cars.
9. I can rollerblade better than my children!
10. I don't like to cook. One of my least favorite things to do. I'd rather dine out every night!

I'm supposed to pass this on to nine people. Since I've been neglecting my award duties over the past 6 months, I would like to share this with EVERYONE, so please accept it, share your thoughts and pass it one!

GYSPY FOR SALE

I have a Gypsy, brand new in a sealed box, for sale. $230.00 includes shipping. If you are interested, drop me an email. It contains the Gypsy, USB cable, AC adapter, Cartridge Validation cable, a slipcover, pre-loaded Gypsy Wanderings and Gypsy Font cartridges.

Simple Life

I just love this photo of my grandchildren, Domenic and Bella. My daughters took them apple picking a few weeks ago at a local farm and this is one of my favorite snapshots from that day. They seem to be off on a little stroll, with not a care in the world. I think I am making some progress in my 12x12 layouts. Baby steps, but I'm getting there! This layout is for the Monthly Layout Sketch Challenge over at Crop Stop. They have a Monthly Card Sketch Challenge as well. I'll have to list all the details tomorrow. I'm having computer issues at the momemt.

The Cuttlebug Spot - Pretty In Pink

This week at The Cuttlebug Spot, we are going pink in honor of breast cancer awareness month. The sentiment cut was done on my Gypsy using the Gypsy Wanderings cartridge. The butterfly is a Cuttlebug cut 'n emboss set and the smaller butterflies are a Martha Stewart punch. I added some glitter embossing powder to the big butterfly and heat embossed it. It looks really pretty in real life. I embossed the background with the Cuttlebug 'birds & swirls' folder and the sentiment was embossed with 'swiss dots'. The embossed heart is a 2x2 folder from the QuicKutz basic shapes set, which Nilda sent me a while back. I was glad to finally use it! Please come join us.... just click HERE!