CDAC Progressive Challenge

Clearly, I'm having a problem crafting. Seems like I can only concentrate fully on one thing at a time, and lately it's been eating healthy and exercising my butt off (I wish!) which takes a major chunk out of my day and my mojo has suffered (BIG TIME!) When I finally actually have time to craft, I'm scurrying from blog to blog and challenge to challenge and although there are a million I WANT to participate in, it seems I can't make up my mind WHICH to do first (so I end up doing nothing). I've been talking about balance in my life, but I certainly haven't found it yet and I'm feeling terribly guilty now about my lack of posting.

So anyway, I got an email from CDAC talking about their Progressive Freebie Challenge Series 2, which is just starting now and decided to give it a try. Not a member of CDAC? No problem, just ASK to join. Then join the Progressive challenge Group and WooHoo! You're provided with a bunch of free images from a number of fab digi artists and all you have to do is use one to make a project and you have 2 weeks to do it. As long as you participate during each round, you continue to get the images for free (and if for some reason you just don't make it one round, you can buy in the round you missed for just $1.00). The payoff? Complete all 6 rounds and you will be entered in the fabulous grand prize drawing. Fun, huh? Since crab season started yesterday in CA, I just HAD to use the cute crab from Tiffany Doodles along with the birthday sentiment from Sending Treasures (that I modified a bit to go with the crab theme). HeeHee! These qualify me to enter the My Partner in Crafting Crime Freebie Challenge.

That crab just begged to be paper pieced so I'm entering it in the 4 Crafty Chicks Challenge this week and I added some lidded google eyes as well. The sentiment was cut with my Nesties labels One and the DP's are from an ancient DCWV stack. The shell border is a Martha Stewart punch.

I've popped parts of the crab as well as the mats and done a number on some of them with my Distrezz-it-All to make it more masculine. The twine holding the shell charms are looped through eyelets done with my Cropadile. These 3 different embellishments, along with the 2 patterned papers ( the large nauticul mat and the barely visible diagonal striped mat behind the small blue one) and one image qualifies for the Crazy Challenge Recipe this week. So yea! I'm set for round one, (although I just might make some more cards using the other adorable stamps I received in this round) and although this took me far longer than I ever anticipated, at least I finished something. If you've never played at CDAC, you must check it out. Lots of good stuff going on there all the time and it's a very supportive community.

A New One for Tiddly Inks

This new Imagination stamp from Tiddly Inks really took me back. I used to just get lost in books, especially during summer vacation. I spent hours and hours outside, transported to worlds unknown. Oh, to have that time again! I have to apologize for the coloring. I'm having a bit of trouble with new contacts that I hope to have corrected on Friday, but in the meantime, my close up vision stinks. Besides that, I printed the image quite small to fit into my Nesties Labels Seven die and tried that "dotty" technique with my Copics on much of the background, somewhat unsuccessfully. (Oh crap! Now that this is posted I realize I didn't finish coloring in the bunnies' ears and noses either. Well, At least that's fixable!)

I wanted the image to look like it was a part of the book so I cut several of the largest size Labels Seven and cut a Classic Rectangle out of the top one. Then I curved and popped the layers. I added a little twine bookmark for embellishment. The DP is Heidi Grace as is the "imagine" rub on. The top words are just how I felt during those carefree summer months. They are also rub-ons from K&Co. Don't forget the Manly Men Challenge at the Tiddly Inks Challenge Blog this week and stop by Christy's blog for a peek at the new images and freebie at the Store. I"m also entering this in My Partner in Crafting Crime's Twine, Jute, or String challenge.

BBTB2 Egg Challenge

Yes, you're on the right blog. I know, I've NEVER made a regular rectangular card for BBTB2. Well, okay, once, but it was because we had sponsor product and I had no choice but this time I did so there ya go. Our sweet and talented Krista chose any egg from the Easter 2010 cartridge. I've used this cut alot and if you'd like to see one of my more typical shaped cards from last year using it, click HERE. There's even a .cut file. This particular card, however, has been in my mind for quite awhile and although the egg is not exactly front and center, it's still there so...

It is all done with the Easter 2010 cart and actually is not welded and doesn't need DS, except, perhaps for placement of the egg cut out on the rectangle from Plantin Schoolbook but you could always cut the egg and then trim the surrounding paper to a 4 1/2 x 6 1/2" rectangle. I'll give you the dimension of the cuts at the end in case you're interested. The card itself measures 5x7. Oh wait, I also hid the contours of all of the interior filigree cuts on the regular cut of the cross and embossed it with a tiny textured Sizzix folder for Stampin' Up. The white mat is embossed with one of the Cuttlebug folders that I think came in a bundle.

The Easter Lilies were cut 3 times in regular, once in shadow. I colored the stem and leaves on one layer as well as the stamens. On the second one I cut off the individual blooms and added some shadows with copics. Then, on the third layer I turned the flowers upside down and drew where I thought the stamens should be (on the back so I wouldn't have to worry about pencil lines) and fussy cut them so I could color and glue them to the blooms. the sentiment is a peelie by Stampendous I got on clearance at my LSS a year or so ago and I just hand cut layers to frame it. I didn't go nuts on popping the layers but as you can see, there's a reasonable amount of dimension. This is for my MIL for Easter.

Card size 5x7

Purple mat 4 3/4 x 6 3/4

White mat 4 1/2 x 6 1/2 with shadow egg cut out at 5" (Egg cut out is slightly above center)

Cross 5", both shadow and regular

Easter Lily 4", shadow and regular

Please stop by BBTB2 to see the lovely eggs designs by my DT sisters and I hope you're inspired to play along. I'm also entering this into the Cricut Cardz Easter Challenge and My Partner in Crafting Crime Layer it Up Challenge. Less than 2 weeks to Easter.

The Cuttlebug Spot Buttons Challenge

Continuing our focus on embellies this month, our weekly challenge at The Cuttlebug Spot is buttons. I knew immediately I wanted to use the adorable La Mode dragonfly I'd gotten at J's awhile back and set about looking for a good embossing folder to use with it. I decided upon the folder from the Cuttlebug Friends Forever Card Making Combo and the "hello" sentiment from the Everyday Greetings set, both still available, and on SALE at Custom Crops. I fashioned antennae from fun wire I had strung though the holes in the dragonfly's body and took the colors from the wings and chose tiny buttons by Fabulous Findings (also from J's) to glue onto the embossed flowers. The sentiment was cut twice and glued slightly offset and I added a polka dot mat and it was done! Super simple but I love how it came out. Be sure to stop by The Cuttlebug Spot for more inspiration from the rest of the team. I'm also entering this in the My Partner In Crafting Crime Challenge which is conveniently, BUTTONS! WOW, short post! How about that?

A Horror Spooktacular! Barb Turns 40!

The Minions of Haunted Design House are wishing our Fearless leader Barb, the Masterful Mistress of the Macabre, a very Happy Birthday, or at least as happy as it can be turning 40 and all. LOL (Yeah, like I should talk bein' the Granny of the bunch. What I wouldn't give...) Anyway, being the Creepy Cricut Cween and all, my card is a Cricut shaped card I designed in DS using the Fabulous 50's cart. I went for the Horror Movie Drive In kinda theme. Had to do a bit of hand trimming because the cart design includes a car designed into the cut and I added a Nesties full moon. Spooktacular and 40 are cut from Mini Monsters and Plantin Schoolbook respectively and the rest is spelled out in stickers or computer generated. Cool embellies including Memory Makers, Recollections and the very best Glow Skull from our own Creepy Glowbug. Click HERE for info on how to win your own.

Did a bit of my dimension thing and really had a ball creating this card. Gonna be a little late, girlfriend, but have a great one! xxD

I'm also joining the challenge at My Partner in Crafting Crime which is Retro Cool.