The Avid Scrapper

Baby Brooklyn Chipboard Album

2012-01-26T12:51:00.000-08:00

My husband and I never had any sons. We were blessed with girls. Ü Back in August of 2004, though, we had a very special young man come into our lives and he has been apart of our family ever since. I've always thought of him as the son I never had. Two months ago, he and his beautiful wife welcomed their first little one, a baby girl named Brooklyn. I made the following card and album for her.

5x5 Card. I made it to match the cover of the album.

I don't know what it is about duckies that I find so dang adorable!

Cover of the 8x8 chipboard album. I had to use 2" book rings for it. It turned out to be pretty thick with all the embellishing.

I had this idea to collage a bunch of cute baby things onto the front.

A Tim Holtz book plate with her name.

Pages 1 and 2

I love baby feet...

Pages 3 and 4

Pages 5 and 6. I think these two are my favorites in the whole album.

Almost all of the embellishments are adhered with 3D pop dots.

Pages 7 and 8

Pages 9 and 10

Back cover of the album

I kept the back simple, just adding the 3 flowers and a ribbon.

So there it is. I actually finished it the beginning of December, but you know my life is nuts right now, so I am just getting around to posting it. Oh, and sorry about the obnoxious "The Avid Scrapper 2012" on all the pages. I don't normally like doing that but I get so many emails from kind people telling me that someone else is using my images, so I finally broke down and decided I better start "marking" the images of my work.

Working on some other baby items for loved ones, so stay tuned for them... Ü

Hope your week has been Happy and Scrappy! Ü

Gratitude Journal

2012-01-15T20:04:00.000-08:00

I found something to share from last September. :) Yay!

2010 and especially 2011 taught me a very important lesson; to always have an attitude of gratitude. Gratitude is necessary and it literally heals us. I really put it to the test last year and became a different person. I found that when I began listing all of my blessings, my attitude changed, my out look on life changed and I began to feel instantly content and at peace, no matter the chaos going on around me. I began to write in a "Gratitude Journal" each evening, just simply listing all of the things I was grateful for that particular day. Of course my lists include, my Savior and His gift of the Atonement, my family, a loving husband who works hard to take care of his family, our girls, our home and so on. You know, the big, obvious ones. What really surprised me were all the things that I was grateful for that I normally took for granted: running water, microwave dinners, socks, my pillow, central heat, chocolate... all these little things help to give me a wonderful life! I have always felt blessed in my life, but when I wrote it all out in black and white, I came realize just how truly blessed I was and it was humbling.

I decided that I wanted to share my new found healing tool with my mom and made her a gratitude journal for her birthday. (The perfect gift for the woman who has everything!) The quote I include with all of my journals is fantastic and says it all!

"Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos into order, confusion into clarity.... It turns problems into gifts, failures into success, the unexpected into perfect timing, and mistakes into important events. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow."
~Melodie Beattie

How great is that? She loved it, btw. Here are the pics, oh and the card I made to go with it. :)

The cover

I always add a book mark so that it's easy to find your place. I love to add beads or charms to dress it up.

I stickled the flowers for a little bling.

The quote

You know how I love 3D effects. I cut additional flowers from one of the 12x12 sheets of paper and layered them.

The birthday card

I love that ribbon! The pearls really make it look fantastic!

Happy Scrappin Ü

Happy 2012!

2012-01-06T16:58:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year, my fellow scrappers! Can you even believe that it is 2012? Never in my wildest dreams, did I ever believe I would be living in such a year. As a kid, 2012 meant space suits and flying cars, am I right? It's an amazing time to be alive! Ü

I hope everyone's Christmas and holiday seasons were wonderful. Mine sure was. No stress and spent with the ones that I love. Perfection!

I am not one for resolutions. I hate the guilt that I feel when March rolls around and I still haven't started on the list. But, this year I have made my mind up to enjoy each and every moment. To live in the moment and savor today. I found a great quote by unknown author:

"If you have one eye on yesterday, and one eye on tomorrow, you're going to be cockeyed today."

I loved it and had to share. This has become my mantra for the year. So what about you? Any resolutions?

{The Lone Easter Card}

2011-05-15T07:12:00.000-07:00

This is it! This is the only Easter card I got made this Easter. Pathetic, isn't it? °Ü°

One Saturday, I got all of my K&Co Spring supplies out ready to go. I had scrapper's block something terrible! My daughter, sat opposite the table from me and made 15 cards in the time it took me to create a layout and get this one little, simple card put together. I need less stress to craft, at the same time, scrapping and paper crafting help reduce my stress. It's a crazy cycle that requires balance. Right now... there is no balance, hence only one card.

I miss scrapping and card making. I miss teaching my classes! I have so many ideas for projects and want to get to work on them, but don't have the time. I am still getting the house packed and doing last minute touch ups on it. I want it to be perfect and I am driving myself crazy (my husband and children, as well) I hope we get a serious buyer so we can get out of here and I can resume my crafting therapy in happiness and peace.

Hope you all had a wonderful Easter and Mother's Day. Mine were wonderful. And hey, school's almost out! Yippee! Looking forward to a productive summer, and more importantly, to 3 months of not having my alarm clock ring me awake at 4:15 each morning!

Happy Scrappin'! Ü

{Madness! Madness, I say!}

2011-03-24T02:42:00.000-07:00

Have you ever had a week, or a few weeks or even a month where things were so crazy that you couldn't even believe how crazy it was? That's been me since my last post.

Here is the quick run down of what's been going on:

Sprinkler System is leaking...AGAIN. Just found a good handy man. Will call him later today.
Car is leaking fluids... mechanic fixing this weekend
Under kitchen sink is leaking... plummer coming tomorrow
Tore my living room apart cleaning and organizing and packing
Tore my kitchen apart doing the same.
Dining room... ditto.
Celebrated 17th Wedding Anniversary by going to dinner and seeing the Lion King (This was a good thing!)
Ended up in ER with a hurt foot
Someone tried to break into our house one morning at 1:30 am. He was caught and arrested. We are all fine except for a little paranoid at noises in the middle of the night.
And finally, I am so far behind on just about everything I have wanted to do! °Ü°

I smile, because regardless of all the madness that is our life right now, it is a blessed life and I am grateful for it.

Anyways, I have so many things that I would love to get posted and I clearly don't have time to sit and blog all the live long day (although, that would be a dream right now) so I thought I would share the card I made my hubby for Valentine's Day.

"XOXO" is what I was end my emails, letters or texts with to my sweet Richard. I thought it only fitting to put it on this card. I made it using gold shimmer card stock and Making Memories Je t"adore line.

Not the best picture, certainly over exposed and too blue, but you can see the dimension of all the elements.

He absolutely love it. He keeps it on his dresser. I made similar ones for our girls, but made the mistake of giving them to them before taking photos. Goodness only knows where they have stored them, in a journal, box of letters and cards, a drawer... I certainly am not going to go digging for them!

Hope you are all having a wonderful week. Mine is gradually getting better. I have all these great ideas for crafts for Easter. I pray I can get to them.

What about you? Anything Spring or Easter projects in the works? Let me know, I would love to hear from ya.

{Making Your Cricut Image Searches Easier}

2011-03-11T19:42:00.000-08:00

I realized that I posted this on my Facebook page and not here on the blog. Talk about a time saving guide at your finger tips! I feel so bad that I haven't gotten it on here sooner. I use it all the time when searching for a particular image.

How it works: Go to CricutSearch.com. Type the name of the image you are looking for and it will tell you which cartridges you can find it in. In fact, if you put "Flower", it will list all of the Cricut Cartridges you can find flower images on. It's a spectacular resource. Be sure to add it to your favorites because you will use it all the time! °Ü°

Try it and let me know what you think. Everyone I know just loves it!

{Feeling the L♥VE}

2011-03-10T06:39:00.000-08:00

I want to thank each and every person who commented on my post below and who emailed me. My inbox has been bursting at the seams with emails. Thank you! I really do enjoy interacting with each of you. I am a social person and love meeting new and interesting people. Each one of you are that! I have just about worn my French Manicure to the bone writing everyone back and I LOVE it ♥ You have all made my week. Thank you!

If you have a craft or photo blog, send me the link! I love reading other's blogs and seeing all the talent out there. I, too, draw inspiration from those around me, so please, share! I will gladly add you to my list of favorite blogs.

I do have some projects that I still need to get up on here. It's just a matter of doing it. I am hoping to find sometime this weekend. I am in the process of painting, organizing and re-doing our lawn. We are hoping sell our home this year and move into a bigger one. Wish us luck! So if you don't see me for a weeks at time, know that I am up to my elbows in paint and boxes. :)

Thanks again, for your support and kind words. It truly warms the heart.

Oh, and Spring has sprung, here in Vegas! We have mid 70's all week long. How about you? What's it like where you are?

{A Little Blog Etiquette, Please and Thank You}

2011-03-03T11:49:00.001-08:00

I have been blogging a few years now. For those of you who blog, you know the work that goes into it. Especially a blog like this. True, I took most of last year off and this year is turning into a repeat of last year, and it's only March, but there is a good reason.

I blog and I blog and hardly anyone comments! For those of you who share the love by leaving me a comment, THANK YOU! You absolutely make my day. With each of your comments, I think, "Yes! Someone is tuning in and it's worth it to keep going." So, again, my deepest appreciation. Seriously, it means the world to me. You keep me sharing this crazy craft with you.

But the fact is... I have 153 followers. I get about 50-75 visits to this blog each day. I'd say 99.9% never leave a comment. You arrive, you read, your are inspired and you leave. :(

I have a feedjit tracker. I can see what you are looking at. I see what pages and posts you read. I see when you single in on a photo and chances are... you are doing the carnal sin of lifting it! Please don't do that. I don't steal from you... please do not steal from me. If you want copies of my photos, write me. I will be glad to send them to you so that you can use them for inspiration.

I was recently contacted by someone who said that someone had stolen some of my Disney pages and was using them on Google Search to link back to THEIR PAGE! It's a business, I guess. I have tried writing and get no response. I have recently contacted a lawyer and he is looking into it for me. I am nice girl, but don't mess with me... and don't steal my work to increase yours.

A friend of mine, Alli, recently posted Blog Etiquette rules on her blog. She got them from another blog, Confessions of a Cookbook Queen. I give them both full credit for the rules and the inspiring me to post this. I loved what they wrote. It is exactly what I have been thinking for sometime now, and just haven't known how to put it into the right words. Thank you, Alli and Kristan. You are awesome!

I am going to share these rules with you today. I learned a lot from them and have fixed those things I was doing wrong. I hope you will, too. May we all be better bloggers and readers for it. Oh, and, I hope to hear from more of you, more often. °Ü°

Here we go...

1. Be yourself.

One thing I've learned since I began blogging is that people will love you no matter what, as long as you're honest. Are you a neat freak? Is your house a mess? Do you REALLY like bacon, or are you just a self professed "bacon addict" because it seems cool? In the blogging world, cool is being who you are and loving yourself, perfections AND imperfections included.

2. Be good to your readers. You were one once, too.

I was a blog reader WAY before I was a blog writer, and honestly, I still spend more time on OTHER blogs than I do my own. I cannot stress how important it is to never forget that fact. When my blog was barely a month old (and I had NO CLUE how to take a picture) I sent an email to Bakerella. And she replied!! I cannot even express what that did for my morale. It was like meeting a celebrity, in a way. These days, I get quite a few emails myself and I can only imagine how full her inbox must have been. It makes the fact that she took the time to reply mean that much more.

3. Leave a comment.

Let's face it. Bloggers thrive on comments. Our posts and pictures are the sunshine and water, but comments are the beautiful flowers that sprout up as the result of our hard work. If you have a blog, you know this better than anyone else. So when you visit a blog, do as you would have done unto you and leave a comment. I am very guilty of popping on various blogs and not commenting because I think that the blogger is so fabulous, they don't need to hear from me. But I should know better, and I am making a conscious effort to leave a comment after every visit.

4. Give proper credit.

If you see something on another blog and love it so much that you decide to spend hours of your time recreating, photographing,and writing about it, it deserves more than a footnote at the end of your post and you know it. We all feed off of each other's ideas and inspire one another and that's fine. But when you downright copy something from another blog, repay them for the fabulous idea by throwing a little praise and maybe a new reader or two their way.

5. Do not namedrop.

Just like in the real world, we all have some people we are closer to or relate to more than others. But to use that friendship as a way of impressing people is just tacky. This isn't high school and you weren't invited to hang out with the head cheerleader. We're all adults here, and when you name drop simply for selfish reasons, it's completely obvious to everyone, name drop-ee included.

6. Do not correct a fellow blogger's spelling or grammar in a comment.

For real. If I was talking to you in front of a huge group of people and noticed your fly was down, I wouldn't loudly point it out in front of everyone. I'd find a way to pull you aside and tell you quietly. Same thing here. Send a friendly email, and let them know so they can fix it before anyone else catches it. It's the right thing to do.

7. Never say anything on your blog that you wouldn't say in person.

The only exception to this rule is "LOL" because I realize that no one, (besides my 12 year old stepdaughter and her friends) says that in real life. The Internet is not an invincibility shield. What we say is in print, and can be forwarded and printed out and saved for all eternity. So mean what you say and be willing to stand behind your words.

8. If you feature someone on your blog, let them know.

I can't tell you how many times I've noticed a spike in my traffic, only to find out that I was featured on a blog and not notified. It's like throwing a party in someone's honor and not inviting them. Let them know so they can stop by and read your kind words and all the comments your readers left in response. It really means a lot and can totally make a blogger's day.

9. Promote a blog you like.

Don't be a lurker. If you love a blog, visit it frequently, and know that they could benefit from you letting your readers know, do it. I have gained so many readers from bloggers like Cheryl (TidyMom) and Bridget (Bake at 350) taking the time to retweet my posts and letting their readers know that they like what I'm doing. We could all learn a lesson or two from ladies like them, and they are who I look up to and use as my own example.

10. Never, ever plagiarize.

Our words and pictures are our heart and soul. To steal them is to steal the small piece of our world that says, "this is who I am." Don't do that. It's really unforgivable.

So, there you have it. Rules to Blog by. Let me know what you think?

{Excuse the Mess}

2011-02-11T05:49:00.000-08:00

I have been wanting to re-vamp my blog for sometime now. It is going to take me a week or so to get it just like I would like it, so please be patient with me! I have all kinds of fun things that I can't wait to post when I am done. °Ü°

{Valentine Bulletin Board}

2011-01-19T07:02:00.001-08:00

I am still in charge of the bulletin board for the woman at church. I didn't get pics up of the adorable Christmas one, but I did remember to take photos last night, after I put the Valentine one up.

I just love My Scrap Chick. They have become one of my all time favorite companies. I love that they are constantly putting out fun new images. If you have SCAL and have checked them out, do! They have a Friday Freebie that you can't beat. I have gotten so many cute images free from them. Okay, so enough advertising... °Ü°

I used their JilliBean Valentine line to cut some of the images for the board. Everyone just loved them! They are stinkin' adorable and hard not to love.

The entire board

This image is entitled "Love is in the Air". She originally does not have an envelope in her hand, but I thought it would be cute and so I cut one using Doodlecharms.

I also added the little flower and gems to her outfit.

My 3 couples needed to be placed on matted frames so that you could see them better. They definitely were going to get lost against that fabric background. I decided on stamps to keep with the love letter theme. I was so happy that I had the gold cardstock. It brings out the flecks of gold in the fabric.

You can see that I used glitter paper for her blouse and one of the hearts. I also added gems.

I think these 2 just may be my favorites. I love their little outfits.

Here is couple number 3. I loved that I had jean paper for their jeans. Looks so authentic.

Using Sentimentals, I cut these sweet little swallows.

Now, to get started on the Spring one. I have most of it cut, it's just a matter of organizing it all.

{Thank You Cards}

2011-01-19T06:48:00.001-08:00

Last week, I realized that time was getting away from me, in that, I hadn't made my Thank You cards for Christmas gifts and goodies that were given to our family . As I was going through all of my paper, I pulled out "The Green Stack" by DCWV. The paper is made from 70% recycled paper. I hadn't used a sheet of it yet and thought, "Yeah! This will work." I also had the chipboard images to go with it, which helped to cut down on Cricut time, so win, win! °Ü°

As you can see, I basically used the same layout for each of the cards. I just switched which side the scalloped frame was on and then made multiples of some of the cards. This helped to keep it simple and quick. I used chipboard on all of them but the owls. Those I cut using the Sentimentals Cricut cart. The owls that came with the stack were adorable, but I didn't think my recipients would know they were owls because they are so different looking.

These were lots of fun to create and I have to tell you that I LOVED the texture of the paper. It's amazing. Feels almost like there is some plastic of something it. It's sturdy and so easy to work with. I highly recommend it to everyone!

{Sweet Birthday Cards}

2011-01-19T06:40:00.000-08:00

My oldest daughter was born on my birthday and we always have so much fun sharing the day together. I thought it was funny that this year we made similar cards for each other. :) Great minds think alike!

This is the card I made for her. I cut it on my Cricut using a My Scrap Chick pattern. You can't see it in the photo, but I used Stickles to decorate the little flowers on the icing part to give it some shimmer that would go with the shimmer on the glitter paper I used to cut the heart.

Her is her card for me. What do you know? Cupcakes! °Ü° I just loved it! I love the colors and how cheerful it is. She is so talented! I am so blessed to have such an amazing daughter and to share such a special day with her is something we will have all our lives. My cup runneth over.

{Happy New Year!}

2010-12-31T12:58:00.001-08:00

Happy New Year to all of my fellow scrappers! May 2011 bring you joy and happiness, a closeness to those you love most, patience for those who try you, time for all the things you enjoy, health for you and your family, peace in your hearts, and most importantly, plenty of scrapbook supplies! °Ü° Have a safe night and great start to your New Year!

May we all get our SCRAP on in 2011! °Ü°

{Wreath Christmas Card}

2010-12-28T18:13:00.000-08:00

Of all the cards I made this Christmas Season (and there were tons!) this one was my favorite. I used the Storybook cart and cut 30 of those little bushels. I then cut a 3.5" circle and glued down just the tips of them going around in circles. Of course, I inked them all before doing that. I also used 3 different colors of green to give it a realistic look. I glued down tiny jingle bells and a bow. Red Stickles were used for the holly berries. I inked and distressed the edges. Used a gold book plate and stamped "Noel" and then stickled it. 3 pearls and some ribbon and I had surprised myself with this card! :)

ALL IMAGES PROPERTY OF THE AVID SCRAPPER

PLEASE DO NOT COPY

{Thank You Card}

2010-11-05T17:17:00.001-07:00

My daughter has an amazing drawing teacher at school. She recently gave me a really cool scrapbook organizer that she didn't have use for. I love it! It is really handy for teaching my classes and projects on the go. I was grateful that of all the people she must know, she gave it to me. What a sweetheart, huh?

I made her this Thank You card for her kindness. I love this stack! My Mind's Eye. What an amazing paper company. I love them and the paper was perfect for what I had in mind.

The card is a 5x7 and I had so much fun using all of mine and my daughter's punches to design the cascading effect on the front of the card. I really love card making! I wish I did more of it, but the fact of the matter is, that if I scrapped AND made cards as much as I truly wanted to, I would never do anything else! :D Showering and a clean house are important, right? LOL °Ü°

{Baby Boy 12x12 Layout}

2010-11-05T17:02:00.001-07:00

Those of you who peeked in on the blog earlier this week, say the Baby Girl page I did, similar to this one. After finishing the sweet girly page, I decided to make a Baby Boy one, too. Using the same layout, I came up with this:

I cut the photo mat differently using a different marquee cut from Storybook. I thought it should be a little more masculine that the Baby Girl's mat.

I did cut the same flourishes, from the Stretch Your Imagination cart. I used Prima Flowers, but no BLING. Instead, I used buttons. Cute, huh?

This little outfit is made from baby blue material. How stinkin' adorable is it? I knew I had been saving it for something! °Ü°

There are 10 Prima Sprite flowers in all, layered to create 5 flowers total. The centers are buttons, 3 of which have ribbon tied into a bow.

There is a little terry cloth, sewn whale, too. He is so cute!

19 glitter embossed stars decorate the brown border.

I used 3D Pop Dots on the outfit, the whale, the blue photo mat and brown starred border. Lots of dimension!

Like the girl layout, there is white strip of Bazzill card stock for journaling all about your adorable baby boy! Also, the mat on this one is a tad bigger, so it will easily hold a 4x6 photo, or if you like, you can trim about 1/2 inch off of each side of a 5x7 to fit on the mat.

How perfect is this for displaying a new born photo, blessing or baptism photo. It can be framed in a 12x12 shadow box frame or makes a beautiful first page to your little guy's memory album!

Making cute pages like this makes me wish I had a son... I guess I can look forward to grandsons one day...right? °Ü°

This item SOLD on Etsy...

{Featured °Ü°}

2010-11-03T12:37:00.000-07:00

I am feeling very honored! Did I tell you that I was featured on the Fantabulous Cricut blog this past weekend? I was! °Ü° Those of you coming from the site know this, but those of you who have been with me for a while may not.

Lori, from over there, wrote and asked if she could feature me. This is only the second time this has happened and I was excited and nervous all at the same time.

It really is a great blog! They have all kinds of challenges and tips and tons and tons of Cricut creation ideas! Check them out when you get a minute, it's a fun site to visit! Oh, and the talented girls who run the blog are so nice and helpful!

Thank, Lori! It was a lot of fun. You did a great job of making me look good! :D

Oh, and did I mention? I will be donating a spread for a free giveaway over there soon, so I will keep you posted...

{Baby Girl 12x12 Layout}

2010-11-03T12:09:00.001-07:00

I know that with this economy, it is tough to spend $45 on scrapbook pages. At the same time, I realize not everyone has the time to create their own with all the working going on! So, I will be creating some 12x12 layouts AND I am dropping the price from $26 to $22 for each. ($20 is for the layout, $2 goes to covering my sales fees) I am hoping that this will help with building your albums and help me with sales. Win-Win... yes? °Ü°

Here is the first of many of have in the works. It's been a while since I worked on a baby page. I sometimes get really tired of working with the same colors, so the soft pink, brown and white was a nice change from my recent creations. °Ü°

This layout is so perfect for newborn pictures, blessing or baptism days, I could go on and on...

The background is brown Bazzill paper, layered on top of that is white card stock that has been punched with a decorative edge. On top of that is the cute white with pink polka-dotted paper.

It will host a 4x6 photo perfectly and as always, your photo will slide easily behind the flowers around the frame.

There are 11 Prima Sprites flowers layered to created 5 beautiful flowers to frame in your photo. In the centers of the flowers are clear gemstones; round and square. They are stunning!

Also on the page, is an adorable rattle that houses little soft pink, seed beads. It has a cute little pink bow tied to the rattle handle.

The largest of the flowers is layered with 4 Prima Sprites. It's gemstone is the largest on the page.

There are 2 brown flourishes that accent the flowers. I love they way they came out!

The flowery brown border has 18 flowers, all with small gemstones as the center. There is a lot of BLING on this pages! The "baby girl" is embossed with glitter glue.

Here you can see the dimension on the page. There is quite a bit of it. The flowers are all popped up with 3D Pop Dots, as are the brown border and photo mat.

All-in-all there are 24 gemstones on this page. Also, the white strip to the right of the photo mat is for journaling. I left it simple so that it can be personalized, either with writing, stickers, letters or so on.

So, what do you think? 12x12 layouts... a good idea?

This item listed on Etsy...

{Disney Class "WHAT A BUNCH OF CHARACTERS" Scrapbook Pages}

2010-10-16T21:49:00.000-07:00

So, I have finally gotten around to taking photos of my next Disney Class's pages. I don't know why, but that part always slows me down. :(

The entire spread

Left Page

Right Page

Donald, Daisy, Mickey and Pluto make up most of the title.

Up close to each of them. I didn't want to have to layer and glue down more words that we needed to (especially since we have 5 characters to put together PLUS part of the title) so I printed these on cardstock, inked the edges and layered them on black cardstock.

The rest of the title. Cut letters, layered on a white shadow and popped up from the page with 3D pop dots.

Here's Goofy. I just love him! :) The circle can be used for journaling. I thought it might be fun to go around the edges and then fill in the middle, too.

This spot if perfect for smaller photos. The 4 white circles can be used for anything. I am going to use mine for the year.

The others got a close up. Goofy should have one, too! :)

So there you have it. What do you think? It really is a colorful page, and I love it! Excited about the class coming up. See you all then!

{Hello BOO Kitty Halloween Scrapbook Pages}

2010-10-12T13:11:00.000-07:00

How cute is Hello Kitty? I have had a fascination with her since I was 7 or 8. There is just something about that little face of her that draws you in and hooks you! :D

I think this is the first Hello Kitty spread I have finished. I am so excited about the way these pages turned out! Rarely do I plan layouts and have them turn out exactly as I saw them in my mind. A rare phenomenon, I tell you! °Ü°

Again, this is one of my "freedom" pages, because as you will notice, no photo mats. This gives you the choice of 5x7 down to the smallest photos you can imagine. PLUS, you can arrange them any way you choose. I love that! ♥

The entire spread.

Here is page one...

And here is page 2!

This little bat and moon pop right off the page. They are accented with glitter. How cute is he?

Hello Kitty stands about 8" tall and her costume is cut from faux black suede, so she is fuzzy just like a really black kitty should be! She also pops off the page.

Here you see some dimension. Her bow and purple sucker pop off the page as well. Both are cut from glitter card stock.

Mr. Pumpkin is cut from glitter card stock, too.

You know how I loved flourishes, I had to put one in.

Here is the piece that ties the two pages together. It is shimmery and also has glitter spots on it. It need some more BLING so I outlined it with more than 50 black gem stones. I love the effect.

Here is the second part of the title. "Hello" and "Kitty" are cut from white glitter card stock. The "Boo" is cut from lined black card stock and pops off the page.

So, on the Hello Kitty Cricut cart, there isn't a Hello Kitty witch like this one. They do have one, but it wasn't the one I imagined when planning the pages. This hat is found on the Happy Hauntings cart and so I cut it and attached to Hello Kitty's head. I can't believe how cut it is. It looks like it was designed just for her!

The hat is inked and her band and buckle are glitter card stock, of course! °Ü° I also added yellow glitter to buckle for more texture.

She also is a journaling tag! Yes, just pull her hat up and she pulls out to reveal a spot for journaling. Her hands stay put and the tag is attached so that when you slide her back in, her chin fits nicely over the paper.

The papers are all a little different, which brings great texture to the pages. There is heavy card stock, shimmer paper, glitter card stock and textured card stock.

This was such a fun page to create! Can't wait to get more done!

Designed and Created by CJL

The Avid Scrapper 2010

Please do no copy for resale. Thank You.

This spread is still available for purchase! Not in my Etsy store so please contact me, personally, via email. Cost is $45 + Shipping

{My "Gorgeous" Girl Layout}

2010-10-11T14:16:00.001-07:00

It's not often that I put my own personal pages on this blog, but I had to share this one. This is my beautiful, youngest daughter. She is such joy. Both of my girls are. I love this picture of her. I took it last Thanksgiving. It has been sitting my scrap table for the past few months just waiting for me to create a page for it. I recently purchased the The Black Current Stack by DCWV. I kid you not, I have hardly any of it left! I love it and will have to go pick up another one soon. Anyways... I knew I wanted to use that paper for her photo.

There are lots of layers and the reason some of the flowers look orangy is because they are foiled and the flash did something weird to them! I used shimmer card stock and there is a little bit of everything in here. Did you see all the gems? You know I am addicted. I wonder if there is support group for people like me? °Ü° I inked and distressed the edges. Not a lot, but just enough.

For me, this is truly scrappin'! This is what it is all about. I love making beautiful keepsakes so that my grand-babies can see how gorgeous their mom was back when she was 14! °Ü°

{Monster Mash Halloween Scrapbook Pages}

2010-10-11T13:04:00.001-07:00

I have always wanted to go as the Bride of Frankenstein for Halloween! I think it would be fun for my husband and I to dress and Frank and Bride. One of these years. How morbidly cute are these two?

I have started scrapping my pages with a little freedom built into them. What do I mean by this? Well, as you can see, there are no photo mats. When you create a page using no distinct photo mats, it gives you room to play with photos later. You can add 5x7s, 4x6s or lots of 4x4s or 3x3s and the best part of all? You can add a variation of all sizes. Add as many or few as you would like. It is a freedom I have come to love about designing this way. Be honest, what do you think about it?

The title is large! It is a 3D title in that the letters are popped up from the black shadowing. The "MONSTER" is cut from glitter card stock and the "MASH" is cut from distressed looking papers.

The mummy is so thick! All of the characters are. There is tons of layering that make up each image. making them sturdy. I cut extra layers for the mummy so he would have that genuine wrapped look. I also used Stickles for his eyes and black spots, which gives the glitter look I was going for. The spider web behind him is accented with a silver glitter gel pen and the spider is cut from faux suede paper and popped up for dimension. He has glitter eyes, too.

A little more of a close-up so you can see all of the glitter effects.

The title. The letters are inked with purple

Journaling frame. It is actually 2 frames layered one on top of the other. The bottom one has white glitter that shines through the edges of the smaller, upper frame. Now that I look at it, I think it needs gems with I will go in and put on. Don't you think? I love the little pumpkin. He's a bit different but certainly fits in with this crowd.

He's a cooky little guys, isn't he? :D

I love tulle and I think it looks great with Halloween decor! Plus I think it brings the feminine touch the pages needs. The little "button" has a 31 on it.

Notice that through out the spread, I have distressed and inked the edges.

And here they are! Looks like she is taking his hand for a dance that he is reluctantly asking for, doesn't it? Cracks me up.

Here's Frank. I love his expression. He is so not impressed! Again, I used Stickles for his eyes and the white V part of his neck. His bolts are cut from brushed metal looking paper. I also cut extra pieces so that there was a distinction between his shirt, pants and shoes.

I also inked around his face and hands to add some dimension.

I think she looks ghoulishly-fabulous! °Ü° I added some purple chalk to her hair and her famous white stripe is decorated with glitter (Stickles). He dress was cut from spider web paper, but was a little boring so I took my glitter gel pen and traced the web to give her some more sparkle!

She has a little purple eye shadow and red glitter lips. °Ü°

Here you can see all the layers and the fact that they are popped off the page. The black cat is also cut from black faux suede paper and has red glitter eyes and a little purple bat color.

So that's it! I love Halloween and had a blast creating this page. I have at least 2 more spreads I am working on from the cartridge; Happy Hauntings.

Happy Haunting to you! ;)

Designed and Created by CJL

The Avid Scrapper 2010

Please do no copy for resale. Thank You.

This spread is still available for you to purchase! Not in my Etsy store, so please contact me personally, via email. Cost is $45 + Shipping

{Strawberry Shortcake "Cutie" Scrapbook Pages}

2010-10-11T12:39:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since I made a SS spread and I was missing this cute little face! °Ü° Once I finished, the only thing that came to mind for the title was simply, "Cutie". What a cutie she is!

The Entire Spread

Strawberry Shortcake stands about 10" tall

I love her little basket

Cute little flower gem with ribbon. Your picture will easily slide under the ribbon.

4x6 Photo Mat

2 More Photo Mats, embellished with gems

The Title. It has a 3D effect. The darker pink is popped up from the light pink shadow.

A Place for Journaling

I love this Strawberry die

The daisies have glitter on their petals and are popped up

I just love this sweet little face

Both SS images have button strawberries with gems in their bows

Gemstones! You know how I love them!

Some of the papers are embossed with glitter and really add dimension to the pages. There are lots of 3D pop dots. too! I just love SS. I don't think you can go wrong when she on the page! °Ü°

Designed and Created by CJL

The Avid Scrapper 2010

Please do no copy for resale. Thank You.

Watch for this page to be listed in my Etsy store soon. If interested, you can contact me via email. Cost is $45 + Shipping

{Kylie's Halloween Cards}

2010-10-03T21:16:00.001-07:00

I am lucky to have 2 very talented daughters. My oldest takes after my love of crafting and painting, and my youngest takes after my love for writing, drawing and journaling.

My oldest, Kylie, loves making cards and I envy her ability to create them so easily! I am a product of the 80's. Everything was very matchy-matchy and symmetrical. It is how I dressed, arranged the furniture in my room, it was in everything I did in Jr. High and High School and it is pretty much the same for me today. I am sure some of you have picked up that little fact in my pages! For Kylie, crafting, scrapbooking and card making is more care-free. She is really an artsy person. She is a photographer and sees the world a bit differently than most. (BTW, I wish I had just an ounce of her photography talent, too!) Anyways, back the cards, she has got a jump on her card making for the season and here are her first 5 Halloween cards. I just loved them and had to share them with you. Hope you are inspired, I know I am. Now maybe all the cute Halloween paper sitting here next to me can get put to some good use!

Happy Scrappin' °Ü°

{TP Roll Halloween Brag Book}

2010-10-01T09:54:00.001-07:00

Yes, you read the title right. TP, as in toilet paper. I made the above brag book out of toilet paper rolls. Crazy, huh? A couple of months ago my daughter Kylie was surfing the web for new album ideas and she found someone who made these little albums. She made the most adorable one for a friend and I fell in love with it and the idea. I've wanted to make one ever since.

I'm not sure I've ever said this, but I am a Bo Bunny-a-holic. I love all things Bo Bunny. I think they are an amazing company who get's today's crafter and makes a product that is loveable, useable and reasonable. A few weeks back, I bought the Bo Bunny WHOO-LIGANS line. It's been sitting on the corner of my scrap desk just staring me down and waiting to see what I will create with all of it! °Ü° I do have plans for it, but I thought it would make the perfect little TP album given that I wouldn't be using a ton of it.

So, I gathered it all together, and my TP rolls, 5 of them. First, I took the rolls and flattened them out really good.

Don't worry if they aren't totally flat, because as you can see from the pic they don't go completely flat until you paint them. I didn't get any pics of that part of the process, but I just took some black acrylic paint and and brushed it on each roll, first one side letting it dry and then the other. Once they were completely dry, I smashed them flat and they cooperated!

Now that that part was over with, it was time for the fun part... creating! Here's a look at all the pages:

The Back cover

Once I got all of my pages done, I created 5 tags, one for each roll. They slide right into the open ends of the album. I love that!♥

So that's it! Like I said in the post below, I would have never thought of using TP rolls to create an album, but how great is it to Scrap GREEN? I ♥ it! Plus, it's an easy and fast project. Took me about 4 hours, but now that I know what I am doing, I am pretty sure that I can get the next one done in under 3.

So, let me know what you think about it; Weird? Crazy? Cute? Would you make one? I'd love to hear what you think!

{October...Already?...Really?}

2010-10-01T03:26:00.001-07:00

Wow! Where has the year gone? I can hardly believe that it is already October. I feel like I've missed something! The thing is I've done so much this year, especially this summer so it's not like I've been doing nothing all year. I guess it is typical for this time of year. Always seems to sneak up on me a little too quickly.

Speaking of sneaking up on me, did you know that Christmas is 85 days away? Yes, Christmas Eve is just 12 weeks from today. Just sayin' °Ü°

Okay, so now that you are totally panicked and I have your attention, did you know that tomorrow, Saturday, October 2nd is WORLD CARD MAKING DAY? I'm really excited. I plan to spend the whole day getting a head start on all of my Christmas Cards. I have two layouts I am going to be using. I have over 100 friends and about 40 family members on my Christmas card list. Yes! That is a lot of cards. I usually just purchase photo cards from Costco, but after cleaning out all of scrapbook supplies and going through each and every sheet of paper, I realized that I have nearly 1,000 sheets of Christmas paper. I really need to get it used up and thought this would be a great way to do just that. I've always held off making my own cards each year because I know I will want to do it every year. Who knows, maybe the stress and enormity of it all will put me off for next year. We will see. °Ü°

So, I just finished a really cute little Halloween brag book. You will never guess what I made it out of. I would have never thought it would be something I could use in scrapbooking, PLUS it's a great way to recycle something we throw away nearly every day. You will just have to wait and see! I just need to take some photos and get it posted. I will do my best to do that today.

Happy Friday, October 1st to you!

{Halloween Coffin Treat Boxes}

2010-09-25T00:06:00.000-07:00

Looking for a quick and easy Halloween gift? This is it! Such a cute little treat. °Ü°

I wasn't feeling very well today and so I spent most of the day in bed. :( After dinner, I still wasn't feeling my best, but I couldn't go back to sleep, so I pulled a chair up to the Cricut desk and grabbed the Happy Hauntings cartridge. I thumbed through the booklet and came to the page with these adorable coffin boxes on it. After debating, I finally decided to give them a go. I got out some black card stock and scrap Halloween papers and started cutting. I started small, with the Witman Sampler boxes in mind, and cut each one at 7". Once I got the shells put together I cut the decorative scraps that I had. I added ribbon and cut some embellishments and before I knew it, I had two very cute little candy boxes ready to go! I am really excited about these. My daughters want to make some for friends, family and teachers. Now that I know what I am doing and have all of the dimensions down, it should be easy to create tons more. If you have the Happy Hauntings cart, you've got to try these! You will ♥ them and so will everyone you give one to!

The fnished box was almost 5" long and almost 3" wide. I filled them with candy kisses and was able to get quite a few in there. Just make sure you are cutting with thick card stock. The candy does add lots of weight and anything thin will not hold up.

Happy Scrappin' to ya! °Ü°

{Diaper Cake}

2010-09-24T02:03:00.000-07:00

Last month, I attended a baby shower that our youngest daughter and her friends threw for one of their Young Women's leaders at church. The day before the shower, we realized that we had no real center piece for the serving table! Somewhere in the deep reaches of my mind, I remembered seeing a "cake" made from diapers and immediately hit the YouTube website. I found a simple instructional video on how to construct a DIAPER CAKE. (I chose this one because it was simple and completely do-able) It is crazy to me what some people can come up with! Amazing, really.

So, after 10 minutes or so on YouTube.com, me and my daughter headed out to Target and Micheals. We bought size 2 Pampers, Ribbons, pacifiers, wooden dowel rods, Wilton Silver covered cake platter (scalloped edge) and rubber bands.

We got home and started rolling diapers and rubber-banding them just like the video said. Got the diapers into the layers, put 3 dowel rods down into the 3 layers- careful not to tear any of the diapers and then put on the ribbons, bow and pacifiers. I kid you not, it only took 1 hour and 15 minutes to make this cake! Seriously, the easiest and cutest project I've ever done. I wish scrapbooks were this easy! °Ü°

Your next baby shower, you've got to try it. The breakdown in cost:

Diapers $20
Ribbon $6
Pacifiers $ 2
Dowels $1
Cake Platter $1
Rubber Bands $1

Keep in mind, because it was a last minute thing, nothing I bought was on sale, but for around $31 dollars and a little time, we had a great center piece and it ended up being the actual gift that my daughter gave the mommy-to-be. She was so excited about it, she loved that the she could keep it up in the baby's room for a bit before having to tear it down to use the diapers. Shop around, buy less expensive diapers, get your ribbons on sake and you can decrease the cost of this project considerably!

How cute is that? Can't wait to go to another shower! I have so many ideas for my next one. I think this will be my staple gift for showers from now on!

{I'm Alive!}

2010-09-19T07:06:00.000-07:00

Yes, it is true...I'm Alive and doing well! °Ü° I have had a crazy few months, but I am back on the scrapbook wagon and working on all kinds of fun stuff for this fall and the holidays. I want to thank everyone who wrote to check up on me. I truly feel loved and appreciate your kind words. ♥

So, what have you all been up to over the summer? Created anything fun you want to share with me? I'd love to hear about it! °Ü°

{A Card for Dad}

2010-09-19T06:49:00.000-07:00

This past Father's Day I wanted to make a card for dad that was a classic. A shirt and tie says dad and is pretty classic! Not only did these cards turn out really cute, but they were quick and easy. Believe it or not, they are ORIGAMI! Gotta love that! I love that they can be used for just about anything you want to tell the special man in your life; Happy Birthday, Happy Father's Day, Retirement, Thank You... the possibilities are endless.

{Tuesday's Tip: MY Top 10 Cricut Cartridges}

2010-03-30T23:58:00.000-07:00

Several times a month, I will get emails asking me what cartridges I use the most, if a certain cartridge is worth purchasing or simply which ones I would recommend to someone purchasing their first Cricut. I am all too happy to respond. The world of Cricut Cartridges is overwhelming these days! They are releasing new carts ALL the time. When I purchased my first Cricut, there were just 15-20 carts to choose from, so it has been nice to grow my library as Cricut has expanded their available images.

The cartridge I use the MOST and I mean it never leaves my Jukebox is George and Basic Shapes. This cart came with my first Cricut and it is an essential. It's the "basic shapes" that has me using it all the time. I especially use it for the tags, flowers and hearts. I also love that there is a "silhouette" cut so that I can cut any of the shapes into frames. It's a hard one to find if you don't have it, but worth hunting it down and purchasing.

There is another cart that never leaves my Jukebox and that is Storybook. I cannot tell you how happy I am that I bought this cartridge. I wasn't even sure about it when I sent for it... °Ü° It's a must, especially if you like the more modern images. I use it for frames, letters, flowers, just about everything! There are SO many cuts you get from this cart that I had to include photos of all the different modes for you to see. I am telling you, go get this one, you won't regret it.

The next one I use is Accent Essentials. This cart has some great images that you will use more than you think you will. I love the frames and the scrolls. I use the snowflake image A LOT! I also love the leaves and arrows.

The next is Home Accents. To this day, I mix it up with the Accent Essentials. To me, Home Accents is an extension of the Accent Essentials cart. I use the damask images, leaves, scrolls, frames and words a lot in my family albums. I love that it is a solutions cart and inexpensive. I got this one on sale for $21. Can't beat it. It has been in Jukebox since I got it!

I love Plantin Schoolbook. When I first bought I thought to myself, "Why did I get this one?" BUT, then I noticed I was using it and on a weekly basis! Like George, it's basic shapes are awesome and I do love the simple font. The flower, leaf and apple are the images I use the most. I do like the rick-rack, it's nice to create a long line of it on Designer Studio, though sometimes I find it easier just to use the real thing! °Ü°

I think you know that I ♥ this next one from my past couple of month's worth of posts. The Indie Art cart is a fun one. I bought it because of my daughters. I also bought it to help with creating my own high school pages. It's a great "boy" cartridge and a must if you have teens or young adults.

The next one is Fabulous Finds. I love this one because if you are running low on metal embellishments or just don't want the weight of bulk of metal embellishment, this cart offers you the perfect alternative. I use the bookplates all the time! I also love the the different tabs. You know how buying dividers for binders can be pretty pricey? I have used heavy patterned cardstock, cut it to 8.5x11 and added my own tabs. Not only do they look nicer, but I can get a exactly as many as I want and for much less $. I love this cart!

This next one is surprise for me. Stretch Your Imagination. I really didn't think I would use it very much, but I do. It has so many fun and unusual shapes on it and yet I find myself going to all the time to see if it has what I need and you know what... it usually does! Truthfully, I use it most for the flourishes, but I do cut more and more images from it every week.

This one is also one of my very first carts and I still use it all the time to this day. Doodlecharms. The cupcake, the sun, ladybug, popsicle, watermelon, bus... I could just keep going. It's a great cart for seasonal and kid pages. I don't know how any Cricut library can go without this cart. ♥ it!

Mickey and Friends is another always in the Jukebox. This cart has lots of fun everyday images that come with the bigger ones. Even if I am not working on a Disney page or card, I still find myself going to find what I need on this one. When they first announced they were releasing this one I could not wait! I paid full price for it and it has been worth every single penny. °Ü°

So, there you have it. The 10 carts I use the most.

Two of my other favorite font carts, and ones I do use regularly are:

Alphalicious
Tear Drop

Other fav character carts I use a lot:

Pooh and Friends
Hello Kitty
both Princess carts
Tinker Bell

In case you are wondering which carts I use the least, they are:

Paper Pups
Doodlefont
Zoobaloo.

Carts I just bought, haven't tried out yet, but are really excited about:

Sponge Bob Square Pants
Forever Young
Sweet Treats
Home Decor
Everyday Paper Dolls
Sentimentals

On my wish list:

Create a Critter
Robotz
Independence Day
Heritage
Just Because Cards
Give a Hoot
Preserves
Once Upon a Princess

{I♥Mickey Disney Scrapbook Pages}

2010-03-26T07:03:00.001-07:00

So, I got my first Disney pages scrapbook class done! It was a lot of fun. I love sitting and talking with the girls while scrapbooking. I want to thank my friend Cheryl for hosting at her new, beautiful home! Can't wait for next month's class. °Ü°

As promised, our first spread was "MICKEY" and here it is:

Page 1

Mickey stands 11.5" tall! He's adorable!

4x6 photo mat. Photo easily slides under ribbon

Embellished tag

Page 2

Pocket could also be used for tickets/entry cards

Journaling tag pulls out

Next up~ Minnie Mouse for April's class

•The Avid Scrapper 2010•

{Minnie & Me Disney Scrapbook Pages}

2010-03-26T06:59:00.000-07:00

For April's Disney scrapbook class, we will be creating a Minnie Mouse spread. I took a chance and decided to design this one with more of a modern flair. For a few months now, all of the pages that I have been creating for my own albums have been done this way. What's so different, you ask? Well, the first noticeable difference is that there are not distinguishable photo mats. I love this because it gives me more versatility with my photos. I can mix 3x3, 4x6 and 5x7 photos in together and they flow beautifully! And the second, is that the spread, truly, looks like one big 12x24 page. You will definitely see more designs like this in future pages. They are fun, modern and so easy to work with, photo wise.

Here she is~ Minnie!

See what I mean about it looking like one 12x24 page? Love it.

This is the section where photos go. A 5x7 easily fits portrait or landscaped. You can put (4) 3x3's, 4x6's stand up perfectly between the yellow dotted paper and when cropped just a bit, can be stacked one on the other length wise.

This would be "Page 1"

Photos can easily slide under the flourish. Those are black onyx gemstones to the left. A larger, clear gem stone centers the flower.

Title

More gems

More flowers and flourishes.

Minnie! She is so cute! Also the journaling tag. Notice the scalloped and lace accents.

So, there you have it. Drop me a line~ Let me know what you think of the design and concept. It's not new concept, I know. There are tons of talented scrappers out there who have been doing their pages this way for years, but it is a bit new for me and my creations. I'd love to hear what you think...

•The Avid Scrapper 2010•

50th Wedding Anniversary Card

2010-03-26T06:51:00.001-07:00

Last week, in the midst of all my chaos, I remembered that I hadn't made a card for my father-in-law and mother-in-law's 50th Wedding Anniversary, which they celebrated this past Monday. I was in total panic mode!

I have to disclaim right now, that the design you see if not mine. I borrowed it, using the design of this card. (click "card" to go to link) I recently came across the blog of a VERY talented card maker named Jeannie. She is uses the Cricut and Gypsy on all of her projects. Her cards are amazing! A little warning though, you could spend hours on her blog just oohing and aahing over her work! Anyways, I remembered seeing a beautiful card that I had similar papers for. Hers turned out SO much better, but mom and dad loved theirs and that made me very happy! °Ü°

{Tuesday's Tip}

2010-03-16T06:00:00.000-07:00

Sorry, No Tuesday's Tips today. I've had some things come up this week and it's a little more busy than usual! Hoping to be back next week with more fun and informative tips!

THANKS FOR YOUR UNDERSTANDING! °Ü°

{Spring Bulletin Board}

2010-03-13T20:34:00.000-08:00

For Relief Society, which is the woman's group at my church, I am in charge of decorating and keeping our bulletin board up to date. I usually decorate to match the season's or holidays. I just put up the "Spring Board" today and wanted to share some the images with you.

MyScrapChick.com has the most adorable images and, as I have posted before, send out a "Freebie" pattern once a week. The adorable baby chick and bunny are images that I purchased from them. All of their patterns come in all kinds of files so that you can cut them by hand or use your die cut machine. These guys, I cut by hand because my SCAL is not working right now! Grrr... Honestly though, it didn't take much time to cut them by hand and they turned out so cute.

You have to check their sight out. I can't wait to do some Spring and Easter pages with some of the images I used on the board.

Here is the board in it's entirety:

This adorable bird I cut using the "Stretch Your Imagination" cartridge. The branch is from "Sweethearts" and the dragon fly is from "Walk in My Garden".

Here's a close-up of the dragon fly. You know me, gotta have some "bling"!

The sun is cut using the "Doodle Charms" cart.

This baby chick is the one I hand cut using the MyScrapChick pattern. How cute is she? I added ribbon and a flower to her "hair" and then I cut the grass from the "Pooh and Friends" cart and the flower and lady bug using "Walk in My Garden".

The bumble bees are from "Pooh and Friends", so CUTE!

Another dragon fly

Here's the bottom of the board. All the flowers, snail and caterpillar were cut using "Walk in My Garden" and "Pooh & Friends"

How cute is the grass hopper? He is from "Stretch You Imagination"

Caterpillar! Love him!

Wish my flower beds were looking this great right now! °Ü°

Bunny! She is so cute! Her bow is cut using the "Easter" cart.

So, that's it. If you are wondering, the backing is just patterned material. Fun board. Excited to get started on the Summer images... also from MyScrapChick.com. REALLY, you got to check them out! °Ü° You will ♥ them.

{Tuesday's Tips: "Rock Star" Matchbook Brag Book}

2010-03-09T06:00:00.000-08:00

Today, for our "Tueday's Tips", I thought we would make something fun, quick and basically simple: a matchbook brag book! I love little projects like these because I can actually finish them in one setting. I also love them because they make great gifts for moms, dads, friends cousins, uncles... who ever! °Ü°

You are going to need the FABULOUS FINDS Cricut Cartridge. {These can be cut by hand, but the Cricut makes it easy and calculates all the dimensions for you.} In the booklet, turn to page 127. I cut the lower one, the one that is more square and true the matchbook shape. Set the dial size to 4". I know they usually are smaller than this, but I am going to be putting wallet sized photos of my daughter in this and I didn't want to have to cut any of them down, PLUS 4" leaves room for journaling and embellishments.

For the cover, I cut it on BLACK OUT because I wanted to create my own cover. If you do not cut it this way, it will cut a window in the cover for you, which is nice, but not what I wanted. This is your choice, though. I used Bazzill Raven colored textured card stock for the cover, then I used paper from Rusty Pickle: Pirate Princess paper collection for the inner pages of the book. I am in ♥ with this paper! Since I wanted the book to fun and all with pictures of my daughter, I knew this was the paper for the project! {You can cut as many pages for the inside that you would like. I cut 5 inserts, this will give me a total of 20 pages}

Now, take your scoring tool {Be sure it is NOT the cutting blade...trust me, I've done it :( } Score along the small cuts the Cricut created for you. There are 4 total on the cover and 1 each on the pages. Don't push too hard, even the scoring tool can rip your papers. Just use enough pressure to put a small indented line where you want it.

If you are going to ink the edges, now is the time. It is going to be too difficult once the book is put together. I used Color Box's Black Bird ink.

Once you have inked, fold the cover and pages on the lines you have scored.

Now, take all the pages and put them in the order you would like. Mine are all double sided, so I took a few minutes to coordinate them all together in the order I wanted them. Once you have them folded together, you are going to want to line them up between the thinner, smaller scored lines in the book. Be sure that if you are going to have the traditional book-look, that your papers are right side up. See what I mean?

Now we are going to staple the book together. Here is a little trick a Junior High School teacher taught me. If your stapler is not long enough to reach where you need it staple (and mine wasn't), line you papers up the way you want them, paper clip them in place if they are slipping and won't stay put. Now, find a table or space where there is a small, straight crack. I use my dining room table where the leaf is in it. Make sure the crack is only about 1/4 of an inch wide. Place your booklet, where you are going to staple, right over the crack, then take your stapler, open it up straight and push the staples straight down through your papers. Be sure to center them so you don't get your table or counter or whatever you are using. Once the staples are in, turn the booklet over and your staples will be sticking straight up. BE CAREFUL! Take a Popsicle stick and gently push the staples down. There you have it! Staples are in place and your book is now tightly put together.

Now, you can fold your matchbook up and make sure everything fits nicely together.

When you open the book, this is what you will see, your first page. {You do not have to have your book open this way, it can stand straight up just like a real matchbook, I wanted my to flip right to left like a real book though. Play with it and see what works for you}

Now, time to decorate! The fun part! °Ü° Measure your papers out and cut them to size. Adhere down the front cover, back cover and spines.

To cover the ugly staples, I took 20" of ribbon and tied it around the center of the book and tied a bow on the outer spine, covering them up. Adds a little something fun, too. Yes?

To the ribbon, I added two silver toned stars and pinned them with a baby safety pin. More fun...

The "Rock Star" is a stamp that I stamped on pink textured card stock and cut out. Using 3D pop dots, I adhered it to the front. 3 pink star shaped brads were also added.

Here's the spine.

The back is just decorative paper. I thought about adding more, but really liked just this.

When you open it, this is what you see. I added the skull and cross bones with a fame to the inside. I thought it pulled all those cute Pirate Princess papers together.

As you can see, I haven't add photos yet. I am going to have my daughter help me choose the photos she wants in here and then we will embellish all the pages. Because each and every page is decorative, it will be quick to get the photos in, add some brads, ribbon, and die cuts from the Indie Art Cartridge.

So, there you have it! If you've got a couple of hours and want to make a cute project for yourself or someone you know and love, this is a fun one! Let me know how you do... °Ü° I would love to hear about themes, papers and the different ways you come up with making your very own matchbook brag book!

HAPPY SCRAPPIN' °Ü°

{E•A•S•T•E•R•}

2010-03-04T09:18:00.000-08:00

When I first got my Expression, about 3 years ago, I wanted to cut large chipboard letters and create something cute with them. Well, I finally did it and it was easy and a lot of fun!

With Easter fast approaching {okay, so about a month from now, but still, it will be here before we know it} I decided I wanted to make this table decoration for a really good friend of mine. She always decorates her house so cute for the holidays and I knew she would just love this. (And she did, I took it to her this morning)

I was really surprised by how quickly I finished these letters. I thought it would take me days, but it only took about 3 hours. I was pleasantly surprised by this! °Ü°

Here's a look:

Here's how I did it:

♥ I used the Storybook cartridge and cut the chipboard 5 1/2" tall on "shadow.

♥ I then cut solid cardstock to match.

♥ Then, I took my decorative papers and cut them, no shadow.

♥ I also cut plain white cardstock on "flip" for the backs of the letters.

♥ Using white acrylic paint and a sponge, I painted the edges of the chipboard.

♥ When the paint was dry, I glued the letters together.

♥ I then took my Spring Seasonal Easter cartridge and cut the chick, eggs, the bunny, the daffodil, lamb and grasses. The basket I cut using Doodle Charms.

♥ A little inking, some chalking, seed beads for eyes, cute flowers, brads, and ribbons and I was done!

I bought the new Easter line from Reminisce and plan to make one for my own entry way. Such a fun afternoon project. Can't wait to make more of these for future holidays. I figure since I have the clips, it would be fun to a whole year's set of decor and just change them out with the months. Oh, I bought the clips at Wal*Mart in the office supply section. I loved the polka dots. Reminded me of decorated Easter eggs. I also bought a more neutral set with a damask pattern. I can't believe how cute they make office supplies these days. Yay, for us crafty people! °Ü°

{Tuesday's Tips: Chalks & Inks}

2010-03-02T22:15:00.000-08:00

After my last Tuesday's Tips posts, I got several emails from ladies wondering about the different chalks and inks and wanting to know which kinds to purchase. I thought it would make a perfect post for this week.

It can be a little tough choosing with so many choices out there. I first started with chalks, about 8 years ago. This is the set I found at my local scrapbook store:

I instantly loved them! They came with a few "make-up" applicators (you can see them on the right side of the picture) and so I went and purchased a pack of 24 applicators at my local store so that I would have one for each color. Working with the applicators is easy and they are small enough to get just the right amount of color in tight spaces. I STILL have this same set today! Really, I do. They seem to last forever and even though some of the pieces are withered down with holes in them, this set is my old stand by. The average cost is about $14 for the set.

FYI, if you run out of applicators, Q-Tips work pretty good. They don't last as long, but they get the job done beautifully!

About 2 years ago, I was looking for some new chalks and found these at the same store I had purchased my first set from.

I bought three sets of them: Primary colors (seen in the photos), Pastels and Earth tones. These I didn't like so much. Some of the colors were so hard, you could hardly get any chalk to rub off onto the applicator and because of this, it tore my applicators up pretty good. Other colors were so soft that they crumbles to powder! For the most part, they worked like my first set, but it was frustrating to have to work with those colors that didn't quite cooperate. The average cost is about $9 each, I bought them because they were on sale for half off, so that wasn't so bad. Still, that put me on the hunt for newer chalks...

That hunt led me to these:

This is my most recently purchased set and I am in LOVE! °Ü° Each color has a matte and shimmer, which is why you see two halves of a whole circle. The ones on the top are shimmery and the bottoms flat matte. You can see that each color has 3 little white round puffy balls, called "pom-poms". They range in size from small, medium and large. These are your applicators! The tool to the far right, is what you use to grab the pom-pom of your choice, rub the color you need and apply it to your project! It also comes with a chalk eraser for mistakes (upper left tool), a burnishing spoon (which I have never used), a brush (equivalent to a "blush" brush) and stencils.

Pebbles Inc. is the manufacturer and sells refills for the pom-poms and eraser. A great set if you are looking. Lots of great colors and tons of versatility! The cost is about $28, I got my half off at JoAnns.com for $14. An EXCELLENT deal!

Ok, let's move onto inks. Like I told you last week, I prefer the Color Box Cat Eye Fluid Chalk ink pads. They come in over 45 colors, fit perfectly in your hand and are easy to work with. They go on like an ink and dry looking like you chalked the edges. For small spaces, I use a tiny paint brush and it works great! I have also used Q-Tips and daubers (will get to these soon) when working with crazy cuts and hard to reach edges. It requires a little more patience when using the brush and Q-Tips, but well worth the effect. The average cost for each is about $2. I usually find mine for about $1.19 on JoAnns.com.

Color Box also sells this set:

They are called Petal Point Ink Pads. There are 7 different sets, all sold in coordinating colors: pastels, earth tones and so on. The average cost in about $16 per set. These don't have the versatility of the Cat Eye pads, but you can use these with them:

Daubers. These ones in the picture, fit right on the end of your finger and allow you to work the ink. These are great for using with ANY ink pads you have. I do love them because they allow you the luxury of purchasing large ink pads and still having the ability to ink edges using all the fantastic colors that are offered in the larger pads. These are also sold in a smaller size, for smaller projects.

I really wanted to get some photos taken of how exactly to chalk and ink edges, but did not have time this week. It has been a little crazy around here and my daughter, who would have taken the photos for me, has been busy working. I still would like to them and hopefully will in the near future.

So, there you have a teeny-tiny idea of what is out there. The trick, again, is finding what works for you and then stick with it! Use scrap pieces of papers to practice your technique. Remember to start softly and then go on heavier with the color and lastly, just have fun with it! Like with any hobby or craft, there are endless possibilities to where you can take your shading! °Ü°

{STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE Handmade Card}

2010-02-27T14:24:00.001-08:00

I thought I would bring SS to my card making.

This 5x7 card features SS, one of my favorite images of her. Of course, she has 3D elements. I cut the strawberry from the Indie Art cartridge and the "hi" from the Hello Kitty Font cartridge. Some brads, a little rick-rack and some pink ink pull it all together. She is so adorable! I just love creating with her. Inside the card, any message can be written.

{THANK YOU Handmade Card}

2010-02-27T14:13:00.000-08:00

I love this paper from Memory Makers! It is the "Sabrina" collection and if it looks familiar, it's because I made a chipboard album out of it.

This card is 5x7. Like the "Sister" card, in the following post, I made a little pocket to slip a tag into. The tag pulls completely out. I used the George cartridge to cut it. Using some ribbon, ink and Sabrina embellishments, I decorated the rest. Oh, the flourishes were cut using the Home Accents cartridge and the "lace" with my Stampin' Up! punch.

A really beautiful card. Only took me about an hour and half to design it and get it put together. Really love this one and know exactly who I am going to send it out to. °Ü°

{YOU ROCK! Homemade Card for Girls}

2010-02-27T14:05:00.000-08:00

This is a smaller version of my other YOU ROCK! girls card.

This one is 5.5x5.5". I cut the skull and cross bones from faux suede, using the Indi Art cartridge. The black strip is also the faux suede. I used wired silver ribbon for her bow. Really loved the way it turned out. Using a stamp, I stamped the YOU ROCK! A little inking and some eyelets and I was done! Such a fun and easy card to make. I have several more cut out and ready to be pieced.

{A Sister Is... handmade card}

2010-02-27T13:45:00.001-08:00

I made this card for my sister for this coming Mother's Day. Shhh... °Ü°

The card is 8X3.5" and created using Chatter Box "Scrapbook Walls" paper collection. The tag slides down into the front pocket. I inked with green and pink. The "lace" edging was punched using my Stampin' Up! punch. The flowers are made by K&Co. I loved making this card. Really simple and yet so beautiful. I was really pleased with the way it turned out.

Framed gemstone brads really add some simple elegance.

The tag pulls right out to reveal the entire quote.

Inside I can write my own personal message!

{HAPPY BIRTHDAY Gift Card Holder Card}

2010-02-27T13:45:00.000-08:00

I think gift cards are the way to go when it comes to birthday's and some holidays! It just makes sense to create cards that will hold the gift card, too. So much cuter than just putting it in the card!

I created this 5x7 card using Imaginisce's Summer Cool line of papers. The ice cream cone was cut from Cricut's Indie Art cartridge and the "Happy Birthday" from the Celebrations cartridge. My girls loved this one and loved that it will hold the gift card, too. Really, you could place all kinds of goodies on the front; money, an invite, concert tickets, itunes card... whatever you like!

{"Post A Comment" Winner's Cards}

2010-02-27T12:54:00.001-08:00

Back on February 1st, I posted a post asking for your comments. In return, I would draw the name of someone to win 5 of my handmade cards. Only ONE person posted a comment, which surprised me. Well, that made it easy for the drawing, anyways. °Ü°

Here are the cards that are going out to Brandy. Thanks for all the great comments and words of encouragement. They are truly appreciated!

You Rock!
5.5x5.5
girls card

Any Occasion
5x5 card

A Sister Is...

8x3.5

Pull out tag card

Happy Easter
4x6 card

You Hold the Key to My Heart
4x5 card

Watch for more drawings to come...

{Tuesday's Tips: CRICUT~ Shading & Dimension}

2010-02-27T10:51:00.001-08:00

Okay, so we know how to pick out papers, right? Now what do ya do with them? °Ü° Shading and dimension will bring your piecings to life! I guess it is the old painter in me, but I try not to look at any of my dies as a 2-dimensional object. I am always looking to give them a little more.

Let's take this cute little chick, for instance.
{Image can be found on the new Spring Seasonal Easter cartridge}

Here is the image freshly cut.

Here is the bow. You can cut 2 layers for it, which I love.

Put the cuts together and this is what you have.

A very cute little Spring Chick-A-Dee

hmmm...I think we can do better! °Ü°

Get out your inks, (or chalks, your choice)

I use Color Box's (Cat Eye) Fluid Chalk Ink pads.

They are small, inexpensive, and really easy to work with.

Here is what I cut: 1 yellow chick, 1 orange & white polka dot chick, 1 pink patterned bow and 1 solid darker pink cardstock bow.

So let's start with our chicks.

I know this sounds a little mean, but cut the legs off your yellow chick. Be sure to follow the natural line of the body, so you can't tell this is what you did. You want it to look like it was cut naturally, with the Cricut, when you are done.

Now, take your yellow inks, or chalks, and go around the edges. Don't worry about the eye. We have something else in store for that.

So now, your chick has gone from looking like the first image to the second. And we are lookin' good... movin' on...

Take your orange chick.

Again, I know it sounds mean, but cut off the beak.

Be sure to cut it at a curve. You want it to look like a real beak when you are done.

Ink or chalk around the beak and the legs. (You don't need to waste on the body, that part won't even show!)

Now, take your little yellow chick and adhere the beak over the yellow beak.

Adhere the yellow chick to the orange one.

This is what you get!

Notice, I have a little baby blue brad ready for the eye.

Now for the bow.

The chick I cut is 4" tall, so when I go to cut the bow, it automatically cuts it to the proportionate size.

I cut the first bow, the one with the ribbon holes cut out, with patterned paper at the same size as the chick.
BUT, for the darker cardstock bow, I upped the size to 4 1/4" so that it would be just a tad larger and give me a shadow effect.

Here's what it looks like layered and glued down. See how nice the darker edges look? Much nicer than if they were the same size.

For me, the bow is still missing something. We need some BLING!

By adding a simple gemstone to the center of the bow, you get a whole new look! One that has a bit of a richer feel. Love it!

But, we're still not done.

Take the bow and GENTLY, with your thumbs, bend and roll the edges up just a little bit. This is going to add a little more dimension, just a like a real ribbon bow has.

Adhere the bow to your chick and you are done!

How stinkin' cute is she? The original was cute... but this one STINKIN' CUTE! °Ü°

She has some life to her and is adorable.

If you want a more realistic look, skip the paper bow and tie a ribbon around her neck. Add a little flower for a festive look.

To add more dimension, I would use pop dots to adhere her to my card or scrapbook page. It's that easy! When you look at an image, allow your mind to see past what is there and create what you REALLY see! The possibilities are endless!

Here are a few more examples of what inking and chalking will do:

A little ink around the edges of the paper, ice cream and cone will add some life.

Okay, backing up... I love make-up! I always have! I remember being a little girl and sitting and watching my mom and my older sister do their make-up and loving every second of it. I was so excited when I got to wear it. So, what does that have to do with anything? Well...

When I create babies, kids, girls and the Princesses of Disney, I always put a little color on their faces. Blush will do a lot for an image. Eye shadow will make them striking! °Ü°

Here Snow White is with no make-up. How embarrassing. Ü

Here she is with a little blue eye shadow and some blush! Really makes those red lips of hers pop, wouldn't you say?

A little chalking to the faces will warm them right up and make them more realistic that you will ever believe!

I did the same with Ariel

For her tail, I took some white chalk and chalked where highlights would naturally be.

For Minnie, I inked the edges of her bow and dress with red ink. For her shoes, a yellow ink.

Using 3D pop dots, I popped up her bow, dress and nose. Shoes, face and eyes lay flat. The difference to using no 3D effect is huge!

Here's Goofy, you can't tell from this angle, but he has 3d effects, too.

First, note the inking around his shirt.

and shoes

I popped up his hat, shirt and pants.

So, there you have it. Play with chalking and inking. Use 3d pop dots. You will be amazed at the results you get and your images will WOW everyone who sees them. I always get asked, "How did you do that?" Well... now you know! °Ü°

{Posting from the BlackBerry...}

2010-02-24T10:10:00.000-08:00

For those of you wondering about Tuesday's Tips, I apologize for this weeks delay. My computer is having technical difficulties... Should be up and running tomorrow after my tech guy comes. Until then, I am on my BlackBerry if you have any questions or comments!

{Brandy Wins!}

2010-02-22T06:47:00.000-08:00

Brandy Elegante... you left me a comment and so you win! Easy to do when you don't have any competition, huh? °Ü°

Email me your address so I can get your cards out to you...

The Little Mermaid ~ARIEL~ Premade Scrapbook Pages

2010-02-20T13:12:00.000-08:00

I think of all the Disney Princesses, Ariel is one of my favorites! I love her sense of adventure and courage. For about a year, I had the image of these pages in my head. I love pages that create a scene and this is Ariel's world to me. It took me 4 long days of working on this one to get it right! About 23-24 hours went into it. There was lots of shuffling and cutting and moving stuff around and taking stuff out and putting it back in... well, you get the point. Ü

I should also mention that I finished these months ago... I packed them away and forgot about them. Crazy, huh? Well, that is how busy I have been over the past 6 months.

Anyways, here it is:

Page 1

Ariel is cut with Bazzill cardstocks. She is about 8" tall. I inked and chalked for dimension.

I used gems for bubbles through out the pages.

She's adorable!

Flounder peaking out to see if it's safe! Ü

4x6 photo mat is embellished with ribbon and a starfish charm

A close-up of the charm

Bottom of sea floor on page one. There is 3D dimension.

A sea turtle

Plastic sea shell

Glitter shell. Note the sea plants have glitter and gel pen sparkles

Here you can see that dimension I was talking about.

Page 2

Photo mat also tucks journaling tag away.

Large tag for lots of journaling

How cute is she? Again, inking and chalking for dimension.

Photo mat is about 4x5, also embellished with ribbon and a charm.

I love the sea horse. Another plastic sea shell.

Sea floor on page 2

More shells and pearls, too.

See the gems? Air bubbles...

I used 35 gemstones in all! I don't think it would be as beautiful without them. Really fun pages to create.

SOLD in my Etsy store 12 March 2010. Thank You Ü

Strawberry Shortcake "SNOW BOARDIN" 12X12 Spread

2010-02-19T16:58:00.001-08:00

In honor of the Olympics and my spending WAY too much time watching snowboarding and skiing, I present this spread! Ü

I L♥VE Winter, it is my favorite season and I am always a little sad when it starts to warm up. I have had these images cut and ready to go for some time and happy to see them become part of a spread.

The papers I used are thick and have glitter embossing on them. The colors of the pages couldn't matcher her outfit any better than if I had planned it! I was so happy about that.

Here is the entire 12x24 spread:

Here is page 1

Strawberry stands about 10.5" tall

Behind this 4x6 mat is a 6.5" journaling tag.

Ribbon and strawberry decorate the top of the tag.

Here is the tag pulled out. Plenty of room to journal.

A ribbon and matal snowflake charm embellish this photo mat. There is a small pink gem stone in the center of the snowflake.

Part of the title...

The snowflakes are cut with Bazzill carstock, have a gem in the center and have glitter accents. They are popped up for dimension.

SS has 3D elements, too. Here you can see the dimension you can't see straight on.

The very bottom "snow drift" is also popped up for dimension.

Page 2

more snowflakes...

The second SS image. Too cute!

This is actually two photo mats...they look like one with the embellishments. Your photos will easily slip under them.

Another strawberry...

This is the 4th photo mat, again embellished with ribbon and a snowflake charm with gem stone.

here it is close-up

the second part of the title

another close-up of a snowflake

here you can see more dimension...

So there you have it. I used brads and inks, too. A great couple of pages for those snow days involving a board! Ü

SOLD in my Etsy store 12 March 2010

Strawberry Shortcake "Growing Up" 12x12 Layout

2010-02-19T16:39:00.000-08:00

Recently, I sat down and created a bunch of SS images for pages and cards. This past week, I have REALLY been stressed and that always works to my advantage when crafting. I've always said scrapbooking is a stress reliever for me.

Anyways... I made this one pager {layout} with this ADORABLE SS image. How cute is she? I just love her. Her shirt and pants remind me of an outfit I had when I was in second grade and I think that is why I like her so much.

There are 2 mats for photos. A 3x3 and a 4x6. There is also a huge journaling mat. The reason I made it so big because I thought it would give enough room for stats like, age, height, weight, grade and so on. Even a signature would be fun to have down the road!

There are lots of 3D elements and glitter, too.

I think this page would make a great album starter... you know, that first 12x12 in an album? A fun page to make.

SOLD in my Etsy store February 2010

{BABY GIRL Stroller Shape Album}

2010-02-18T09:21:00.000-08:00

Having girls myself, I love pink and baby girl stuff! I made this album a year ago! It has been all wrapped up and sealed and just waiting for me to do something with it. I finally decided to unpack it, take some photos, blog it and post it to my Etsy account! A friend of mine told me it was just too cute to be hidden and stored and looking over it again, I think she is right!

Since there are over 60 photos of this album, I decided to make a slide show for it:

The album is 10" tall. There are 5 pages, 10 total. It holds 8 photos and has 8 journaling tags. I used K&Co. papers, stickers, ribbons and chipboard elements. I added Sprites flowers, brads and all kinds of fun stuff! This is a great brag book! Perfect shower gift or Mother's gift!

This album is still available for you to purchase! Not in my Etsy store, so please contact me personally, via email. Cost is $48 + Shipping

{You Rock! Girl's Card}

2010-02-17T17:02:00.000-08:00

After making a guy version of the "You Rock!" card, I decided the girl's needed representation, too! Ü I think I have told you before in a post, how much I LOVE pink, white and black. Well, this isn't white, it's grey, but close enough.

Again, I used the Indie Art cartridge. Had to put a bow on our girl! I used a Gelly Roller Stardust gel pen to fill in the eyes, nose and line the fame. 12 large eyelets on black card stock and 3 pink gem stones make up the front. Oh, and I popped up the skull. You can see the dimension in the side view.

Inside of card:

Again, I used the gel pen on the little skull on the inside.

5x7 in size and I love it. Going to make 2 more like it to put in my Etsy store...

{YOU ROCK! Birthday Card}

2010-02-17T16:51:00.000-08:00

Funny story: when I was 17, I had a good friend, a guy friend, who had a younger brother. This younger brother was about 14 when I met him. Anyways, here we are all these years later and this younger brother, the 14 year old, is now my daughter's High School English Teacher! No kidding! Anyways, my daughter loves him. She says he is the best teacher and the funnest she has this year. He just celebrated his birthday and she wanted to make him a card. I dug and dug and found this Rock Star paper and got out my Indie Art Cartridge and designed this.

The guitar is layered with black textured cardstock and brushed nickel papers. The "You Rock!" is a stamp and so is the border on the inside. I cut additional stars from the paper and popped them up for additional elements.

I've never really made a card like this but I LOVED it! So fun and none of the rules of traditional more proper cards. This one inspired the post above!

{Happy 16th Birthday "Pooh Bear" Card}

2010-02-17T16:44:00.001-08:00

One of my daughter's friends from school and church just celebrated her 16th birthday. She loves Pooh! Just like me! Anyways, her birthday fell on a Sunday and my daughter wanted to make her a card that the other girls could sign and they could give to her. This is what the 2 of us came up with. I had some chipboard Pooh images and we decided to use one of them instead of cutting one with the Cricut. A little ribbon and some other chipboard images and this is what she got. She loved it! I think this was the quickest card I have ever done. Maybe it was because I had the help of my daughter but we got it designed and put together in 45 minutes!

The card is 5x7 in size.

{Cup Cake Birthday Card}

2010-02-17T16:32:00.000-08:00

I made this card, recently, for my sister-in-law's birthday. I love cupcakes! Not so much to eat, but just how fun and festive they are. When I found this paper from Imaginisce, I thought of this specific image from the Doodle Charms cartridge. I really liked the way it turned out and have lots more paper and have plans for more cards, similar to this.

The card is 5x7. I used 3D pop dots for the cupcake and there are 8 pink gem stones for "confetti" on the "frosting". Loved this one and knew it was a hit when my girls ooh'd and aah'd over it! Ü

{34th Birthday Card}

2010-02-17T16:15:00.000-08:00

This past January, my "little" brother turned 34. He doesn't have very many baby pictures...my parent's log cabin home burned in 2005 and they were lost in that fire.
　
When he was a few months old, my mom took all us kids down to Woolworth's to have our pictures taken. One of the poses was just him all by himself.
　
Now, do you remember the days when you would get little charms with your photo packages? Well, we did with ours and I begged my mom for a charm of my baby brother. All these years, this little charm has sat in my jewelry boxes. In light of what happened in 2005, I thought it would be fun to make him a card and place the charm in it.
　
This is what I came up with:

As you can see from the flag in the charm, he was a "Bicentennial Baby", which is why I chose the vintage red, cream and blue papers.

The card is a tri-fold and 5x7 in size. Lots of fun creating this one!

{Tuesday's Tips: CRICUT~ Choosing Creative Papers} Part 1

2010-02-16T16:34:00.000-08:00

I am really excited about sharing tips for the Cricut with you! I have been a Cricut owner since 2005 and have been in love the Cricut machines since the day I unpacked my first one! In the 5 years of using it, almost every single day, I have learned a lot about cutting and piecing beautiful die cuts. As I previously stated, a follower of this blog asked that I share some secrets and I am very happy to do that!

As I was putting together today's post, I realized that there are SO many little things that I have learned and it would be almost impossible for me to pack it all into one post and have it be as informative and helpful, as I am hoping it will be, so I am going to break it up into a few weeks worth of tips. Plus, I have over 120 pictures I want to share.

Today, we are going to talk about choosing creative papers for your dies. Like so many, I used to use the most simple and inexpensive paper that I could find to cut with. It was fun, it worked, but then one day I realized there was no zing to my images. They just blended into the pages and there was no pop! I decided it was time to try something new and so I started looking around at the real objects around me and could instantly see the difference between real life and how I was trying to give life to my images with no success. In real life there are patterns and textures. There are shadows and shading. There are metal and ribbon elements. All these things cannot be duplicated with plain card stock.

So, let's get started. There are SO many different types of papers out there! Let's start simply by adding some texture to our card stock. Bazzill brand card stock is my card stock of choice. It does NOT have a white core {which I hate} and it comes in so many fun colors and textures. Because it is heavy duty, your images feel solid and more realistic.

Check out this Mickey Mouse:

You can click on him to make him larger so that you can see the texture in the papers. I used a traditional texture for his body, eyes, face, tongue and shoes and, what is called, a "criss-cross" textures for his shorts. Just by doing this, Mickey comes to life! He has some realistic qualities just by using a textured card stock as opposed to using, what the industry calls, a "smoothie".

Looking close-up, you can see the different patterns in the papers.

For Minnie Mouse here, I did the same. Used the textured card stocks for her body, eyes, face, tongue and shoes. Now, in the book it shows her wearing pink and blue. I love my Minnie Mouse wearing the traditional red with white polka dots and so I used this paper for her bow and dress. No, it is not textured paper, but it has the pattern I was looking for. The pattern and the difference in the textures bring her to life!

Okay, for this Hello Kitty image, I really wanted her to feel like she was wearing rain gear. I also wanted her to have a really cute umbrella, so I chose patterned card stock for the umbrella. {I love polka dots and so you will probably see a bunch of them in my images} Like Mickey and Minnie, I used a the textured card stock for her face and hand. I chose a patterned paper for her bow and for his jacket and boots, I wanted them to be just like the "rubbery" ones I wore as a kid. DCWV has a "Glitter" stack. The whole stack is different colored glitter papers and the great thing about them is they have a "rubbery" feel and look to them. Perfect for the look I was going for!

Here's the patterned bow...

and here are those glitter papers. Amazing effect, isn't it?

For this very happy couple, I did the same thing. Only, for his suit, I used a striped card stock, giving his suit the illusion of pin stripes. Her dress and are cut from the white glitter paper. Oh, and note the 20 carat rock on her finger! I couldn't resist a gemstone on that all important finger of her! Ü

Here, you can see a little better the stripes in his suit. Also notice that I cut 2 of his jacket and then cut the lapel part out and layered it on top on the other, giving some realistic dimension to his suit. Her dress and shoes just sparkle and I love that!

Here with Hello Kitty, I used a faux fur paper for her costume. You can usually find it in "Mom and Pop" scrapbook stores and it comes in all kinds of colors. I thought it would be so fun to cut this image using the furry paper and it came out better than I had imagined! Again, I used the textured paper for her face, bow and paws, but I used a smoothie for the sucker.

It really makes her look warm and fuzzy! Ü

Since the green card stock was smooth, I put glitter glue and swirled it around to bring her sucker to life. It really helped with all the different textures already being used.

Below, you are going to find the Princesses. I used the textured card stock on all of them. Some it was shiny, some of it matte, but even when I got done, there was something missing. That "sparkle" that every Princess needs. Again, I went in with my handy glitter glue and added that some extra to the papers.

I love my Animal Kingdom cartridge and one of my favorite papers to use for cutting these little critters are handmade papers. Yes, there are those talented people out there who actually make this amazing paper . It is the same paper I use on my Tear Bears. When layered with card stock, it really gives that realistic look.

And finally, when I got my From My Kitchen cartridge, I went on the hunt for some "stainless steel" paper. I found this paper, called brushed nickel. It's pricey~ $2 a 12x12 sheet, but I love the look it gives my cut kitchen utensils and appliances!

So, there you have it! I hope this has been helpful and will help you when you have to choose your papers for your next project! Don't be scared to try new textures, patterns and papers! When you start to think a little outside the box, it will all become a new world to you! Oh, and my last tip on this: If you have an expensive sheet of paper you are working with and you aren't sure what size you need cut, take a piece of computer sheet paper or old scrap paper and practice your cuts in it first. Once you have it perfect, cut the good stuff!

Next week: Dimension, shading and inking!

{♥Happy Valentine's Day♥}

2010-02-14T00:01:00.000-08:00

{Still A Little Under The Weather}

2010-02-12T21:40:00.000-08:00

6 days now and still having the chills, sweats, cough and headache. The good news is that the sore throat is gone and the headache isn't as bad as it was at the beginning of the week. I pushed myself today to do all the mom stuff that has to be done: taxes and grocery shopping. Unfortunately, we seemed to be out of EVERYTHING around here and so shopping was not one-stop today. Several stores later and I am wiped out! I should have broken it up into 2 days, but wanted to get it all done because my sweet husband wants to take me to dinner and a movie tomorrow for Valentine's Day. I hope I feel well enough to go.

On top of my still being sick, I have my youngest daughter who is trying to get over the same thing. Poor baby, she is way worse off than me, but getting better each day.

Obviously, because of all of this, I didn't get my Tuesday's Tip posted and for this I apologize. I have a couple of more pics to take of some images I want to show you how to put together and have them really come to life! I will work on them Monday for this Tuesday.

I will be showing you some tips to putting together those teeny-tiny, totally impossible little cuts, how to shade your images for depth and pop dotting and how it makes a world of difference! Images you will see:

Hello Kitty with Umbrella
Mickey and Minnie Mouse
A few Princesses
Some images from the Cricut Cart From My Kitchen
and some others I haven't settled on.

It should be really informative. All my little secrets to creating larger than life die cuts! Check back Tuesday, it will be here just for you! {And Brandy Elegante...she is the one who gave me the idea for this one. Thanks, Brandy! °Ü°}

{ Sorry :( }

2010-02-09T16:21:00.001-08:00

Hello, everyone! I hope this Tuesday finds all of you in lots better shape than me. I have been so sick for about 4 days now! Fever, chills, sore throat, coughing, headache from coughing, congestion... Yep, I have an upper respiratory infection and it's a doozy! I lost my voice for 2 days- that was fun. Ü Not only it is it me, but my husband and youngest have it, too. It's hard when 3 out of 4 in the family are feeling like this.

Anyways, I have been working on Tuesday's Tips for this week, it just won't be posted on Tuesday. It may be more like Thursday's Tips this week. I do apologize-- just moving really slow.

So stay tuned. It is coming within the next 48 hours...

{Tuesday's Tip: ADHESIVES}

2010-02-02T05:56:00.001-08:00

Adhesives are what hold it all together! They are essential to paper crafting. I get tons of emails each month asking my opinion on adhesives and so I thought this would be a great starting point for our Tuesday’s Tips.

I think we all know that adhesives can be pricey and I know that each of us are looking for the best product at the best price. So, where do you start? There are SO many to choose from. Let’s start by looking at what is out there!

Glue Sticks

Double Side Tape

Photo Mounting Squares

Rolling Tab Dispensers

Tape Dispensers

Spray Adhesives

Glue Dots

3D Pop Dots

Liquid Glue in bottles

Vellum Tape

and more that I have missed, I am sure

Within each of these groups are countless products and companies that all claim to be the best and most efficient. It can be overwhelming to a new comer, and for someone who has been doing this for a while, and it can get a little pricey trying to figure out what works best with what and which is most efficient for YOU!

One of the questions I am asked is: "What do you use and why?" So, I am going to go through the products I use and why. I am not saying that what I use is the only way to go, but it works best for me.

I used to spend tons of money on tape dispensers and rolling tab dispensers. I still use them, but when I bought my first Cricut about 4 years ago, I found they were no help at all with putting die cuts together. One day, while in a Target store, I came across a bottle of glue. It had a fine tip and as sceptical as I was, I bought it for that reason only. I fell in LOVE with Scotch Quick Dry Adhesive! It is perfect for putting die cuts together, especially those tiny pieces. It is quick drying and when used in VERY small amounts, there is absolutely no rippling! (Which is why I sceptical in the first place. I had tried other liquid glues in the late 1990's and there were horrible! They ruined everything they touched!)

Last year, I wrote an entire post on the Quick Dry Adhesive bottle. Click HERE to read more about why I love it so much.

It goes without saying, this is my favorite adhesive.

Coming in at close second, are Glue Dots or Zots, as one company markets them. These come in handy, when nothing else will do the job. I use them mainly for adhering ribbon to my photo mats and any where else I need ribbon to stay put. Depending on the width of my ribbon, depends on the size I will use, and I am always stocked with mini, small, medium and larges. They even have a thicker one that you can use for a 3D effect, however, I have only used them once. I prefer pop dots for that.

These are also great for adhering buttons, metal embellishments, gem stones and fabric flowers or other embellishments. They are so strong that they will adhere metal to metal! Keep in mind that you only get one shot at putting them where you want them. Pulling them up will tear up your papers, and badly!

What they don't work on are some chipboard materials, felt, and some paper flowers. They will also not adhere to mull berry or handmade papers.

These babies can get pricey if you use them for everything. They run about $4 a box and up. There are about 300 dots per roll and go fast if you are using all the time. If you do use them paper to paper, I have found that thinner papers will show the dots underneath, so best to use them on thicker designs and cardstock.

I recently came across a new addition to the glue dots family:

I haven't tried it yet, but do plan to purchase one when I am out this week. If you have tried it, let me know what you think!

The next product that I use, in almost all of my projects, are 3D-Dots. I love dimension and love for my characters and certain embellishments to stand out. To me, it makes my projects come to life and makes them more realistic. Plus, they are just plain FUN!

I have tried a couple of different companies and my favorite is EK Success. They are easier to work with and aren't thin and flimsy like the Scotch brand. (I was really disappointed in theirs, especially because I love their glue so much) The EK brand adds just enough height where you want it and they are easy to peel back up if you get them in the wrong place.

They come in strips, squares and circles. I buy mostly strips and squares, but the circles are great for small flowers and tiny pieces. They also come in black squares, which are great for Disney characters cut with the Cricut. (They are all cut with black paper for their backing) The black goes fast, so if you find them and want them, get them! I can't tell you how many times I have seen them one day and gone back the next and they are gone.

If you haven't tried these, DO! The dimension they add is amazing and I think you will fall in love with them, like I have. The cost of each package is about $2, at WalMart- a little more at craft stores.

These next two, I use about the same or in equal amounts. They are some of the first adhesives I ever used and I still use them today, just more sparingly. They are double sided tape and photo sticker mounts. I use them for adhering my photos and for working with thinner papers. I love these because you don't need to use a lot for it to work. A little in the corners and you are good. That is why I love the mounts, they are pre-cut and are a perfect size. So, why even buy the tape then? It costs less at about $2-3 each, cheaper if you can fine the store brand. BE CAREFUL though, make sure it says photo safe or acid free! I have come across some that aren't marked. Make it easier on yourself and invest in a desk top tape dispenser, take the roll from it's original packaging and put it in the desk dispenser. It gives you a free had and makes cutting the tape faster.

Photo mounts will run you about $5 a box, average. They have boxes with 250 to 1000 squares, so prices will vary depending on the amount in each box. My brand new favorite in mounts are these little beauties:

MINIS! They are about half the size of the original and are great for ribbon, if you don't have glue dots, and tiny paper embellishments. I was so happy to find these, because it meant no more cutting down the bigger ones! The cost is about $4-5.

Many of you have probably seen the Vario tab dispensers. I do have one and use it, but for one reason only. They are the best at adhering thinner 12x12 paper to cardstock. Why would I do that, you ask? When I create a page or pages for sale, I like for them to feel sturdy in your hands. Sometimes I find a background paper that is perfect for the project, but is too thin to hold up under all I put on it, so I will mount them on cardstock for added strength. When the tabs are dispensed from the roller, they are back to back, no spaces--making them perfect for just this! They are expensive--about $12-14 for the dispenser and about $8 for refills.

My next adhesive is a must if you work with vellum, which I do on a occasion. I have had the same roll for about 6 years now, so a little goes a long way. It hardly shows underneath vellum and is worth it. Don't use too much and make sure it doesn't gum up too much or it will show through. Your cost per roll: about $5

Next on the list: Spray adhesive. I don't use it a lot, but I use it for 2 purposes-- adhering paper to tin and for extending the length of my Cricut cutting mats. I wrote a post about how I do that. Click HERE to read all about it.

Each can will run about $9-11. KEEP THE NOZZLE CLEAN! They can gunk up pretty easily and watch getting it on your hands and clothing. Goo Gone is this product's best friend and about the only thing I have found that will get it off of your hands easily. If getting your hands sticky is a real problem, use a pair of tongs that are just for use with this product, but be sure to ALWAYS use the sticky sprayed side on the backs of your papers, and the clean side on the fronts. You can tell the difference!

Xyron sticker maker. I have one, I rarely use it! It is so much faster to put a drop of glue or a photo mount on the back and stick my die or embellishment down. However, my daughter loves it and uses it for pieces that had an odd shape and are so thin, glue may show behind it. My advice, if you are given one, use it, but don't buy it. There are so many other economic ways of getting embellishments to "stick".

This last one is not my favorite. It never has been. Even when I was a kid in school, I hated them and how they made my papers look and feel, but it is a necessity if you make Tear Bears. This stuff was made for one thing and one thing only, in my book anyways, and that is mull berry or handmade papers. Not much else will adhere them like a glue stick does. You have to be careful because even my beloved Quick Dry Adhesive will not glue this as efficiently as the glue stick will. Plus, glue sticks will not bleed through the paper like liquid glues do.

I tell the ladies who take my classes, don't even bring one, unless I am teaching Tear Bears! °Ü° I know many love them because they are inexpensive and fast, but I don't like how they curl and ripple paper and photos.

SO, these are the products in my adhesive arsenal! These are the ones that I have found work the best for me. Please do not send me hate mail if one or all do not work for you! °Ü° I know there crafters out there that love their products and I would love for you post a comment about why you love your product or products. It may come in handy for my readers and me, too. If you have an adhesive you love and can't live with out, tell me about it, I want to hear and try it! I am always on the look out for something better.

My best advice is find what works for you and stick with it! {Pardon the pun Ü}

P.S.: I came across an article about a week ago about a woman who makes who own glue dots using Aleene's Tack Over and Over glue. Thought it was interesting enough to share. This is all it said:

Making your own 'glue dots'
You can easily make your own glue dots using Aleene's, Tack Over and Over glue. Apply small or large dots on a non-stick surface such as acetate. Let dry and PRESTO~Glue dots. Must be the Tack Over and Over Glue.

I'm gonna try it! I'll let you know how it goes.

{Leave A Comment & You Could Win!}

2010-02-01T12:14:00.000-08:00

As stated in the post below, starting tomorrow, I will begin sharing tips on a weekly post of "Tuesday's Tips"

LEAVE ME A COMMENT AND YOU COULD WIN! This is all you have to do:

○Please leave me a comment here on what you would love tips on.

○For each person who leaves me a comment about a tip they would love to see posted, you
will be entered into a drawing to win an assortment of 5 homemade greeting cards, with envelopes! {Photos to come in a couple of days}

○So let me know what you want to know!

○The *winner will be drawn on Monday morning, February 22nd. So let's hear those comments~ you only have 3 weeks! °Ü°

I am looking forward to hearing from you!

*{Once the winner's name is drawn, I will post it here on my blog. They will need to contact me via email with an address so that I can send the cards out to them.}

{Thank You • Gracias • Merci • Danka}

2010-02-01T00:01:00.000-08:00

I would like to thank everyone who took a moment to vote in my January poll. I really appreciate your input and have taken to heart what it is you want!

From this, I am going to start with a "Tuesday's Tips" post. Every Tuesday, look for tips on how to ink, chalk, tear paper, shade, organize, layer, embellish and much more.

Look for the first post tomorrow morning!

{January's Poll}

2010-01-31T23:59:00.000-08:00

Here are the final results of January's poll:
What Scrapbook Items Are You Most Interested In?

50Votes Total! {Awesome Ü}

Pre-Made Pages
23 votes (46%)

Pre-Made Chipboard Albums
7 votes (14%)

Pre-Made Die Cuts
5 votes (10%)

Pre-Made Complete Albums
11 votes (22%)

Pre-Made Cards
5 votes (10%)

Page Kits
24 votes (48%)

Card Kits
6 votes (12%)

Page Helpers {Titles, images, journaling tags}
14 votes (28%)

Patterns
16 votes (32%)

Blank Chipboard Albums
5 votes (10%)

Instruction Sheets
15 votes (30%)

How To's & Tips
19 votes (38%)

Thanks again, everyone! ♥

{Just Asking...}

2010-01-18T07:40:00.001-08:00

Above, you will find a poll that I am running for the next couple of weeks. I have had a lot of new ideas come to me about how I want to move forward with my craft and this blog. If you can just take a few minutes and let me know how I can better serve all you scrapbookers and crafters, I would really appreciate it!

If you have any other suggestions or comments, just leave me a comment here. Thanks♥

°Ü°