Week 2: the Poetry and Prose of Poe

It's the second week of our Haunted Design House challenge honoring the poetry and prose of Poe.  Lunatic, or Romantic?  We'd like your opinion.  Certainly the man has his demons and even his truly romantic works are filled with loss and despair but I chose a few lines from my fave "Annabel Lee" that captures the essence of true love when every breath, every beat of your heart, every thought is of your "One".  Obsession?  Perhaps, but is that such a bad thing?

"and this maiden

she lived

with no other thought

than to love

and be loved

by me"

Been there, done that.  Quite a lovely way to pass the time.

I've had this one in my head for months but just couldn't quite pull it together.  Poe and Annabel Lee are from The Octopode Factory. The come individually or as a Set of 8 Poe images.  The Lighthouse is from Tiddly Inks.  I'd always planned to go monochromatic but achieving the right mood escaped me until I saw the February Junk Funk challenge on the Smeared and Smudged Forum.  Used dryer sheets!  Of course.  I've got wads of those laying around so I spritzed and inked and ripped and taped (mostly around the back) until I'd set up a proper fog.  WooHoo!

I've also been trying to enter the Octopode Factory Friday Challenge with Octopode images for months but my time always got away from me.  This fortnight is Glitter.  Perfect!  After coloring Annabel Lee with Copics, I covered her with a Be Creative Tape sheet and sprinkled on Glitter Ritz transparent microfine glitter in cool highlight.  Even though I'd colored first, this stuff is so fine that you can actually stamp and color over it without damaging your marker nibs and gave Annabel the ghostly ethereal look I was after.  Cool!

Be sure to stop by HDH to view more Minion eye candy and come join us.  Inquiring minds want to know your opinion.  Romantic, or Lunatic?  Well, I dare say love can drive you mad.  So come and join us.  Just be sure that your entry has an obvious nod to the Master, Poe. 

Wicked Wednesday ATC Fairy House Challenge

I  love the whole idea of fairies and elves, don't you? I lived across the street from my grade school and the property included a little woodsy area beyond the playground.  I'd peek in the hollows and under the leaves, imagining the magical folks that lived there.  I was especially fond of jack-in-the-pulpit plants and even dug some up to replant in my secret garden behind my playhouse, knowing for sure that someone special was bound to move in.  I was very excited that the Wicked Wednesday Challenge this week was Fairy Houses.  I couldn't find a jack-in-the-pulpit digi, so I used the next best thing.  Seems mushrooms are all the rage in the fairy community and this adorable one is the Fairy Fae House from Tiddly Inks.  It's colored with Copics and gel pens and popped atop sweet DP from Heidi Grace.  I've only recently begun to eat mushrooms, never liking them as a child.  Wonder if that's because I didn't want to leave anyone homeless back then. LOL  The little fairy on the flower is a rub-on, also from Heidi Grace and I've used adhesive epoxy letters to call it home. 

I'm also entering this in the Anything Goes Challenge at ATC'S and Cards with Attitude.

Dilly Beans Cute and Creepy

It's Friday and that means another fun Challenge at Dilly Beans.  We're gearing up for Halloween and asking for Cute and Creepy.  I've used the adorable #476 Me & Pops and #478 Little Monster & Bat.  It's just a fun family out trick or treating.  The sentiment is a freebie from Tiddly Inks found HERE on Christy's Blog.  It's cut and matted with Nesties labels Eighteen and embellished with a Wonky Eyed Skull from our own Creepy Glowbugg's Etsy Shop.  (Fab stuff there, just sayin')

It's an easel card.  Been awhile since I've done one and they make the cutest scenes.

The monsters were merged in Printmaster, printed a  whole bunch of times, colored with Copics and fussy cut and layered within an inch of their lives.  I must say fussy cutting is theraputic when you're having a bad night and major bout with insomnia.  I even layered the bat and wired him.  HeeHee!

The house is a Tim Holtz for Sizzix die that I've embossed with the Bricked Sizzix folder.  The roof is cut again, popped and embossed with Cuttlebug Distressed Stripes.  The cool banner is K&Co.  So it's time to get creepy and cute and join us at The Dilly Beans Challenge blog.  Loads of adorable inspiration by the rest of the team there too.

I'm also entering this in the Simon Says Stamp Joy's Eerie Inspiration challenge.

Truebie or not Truebie?

Well, are you?  A fan of HBO'S True Blood, I mean.  That's our challenge theme at Haunted Design House this week, so your mission is to create a dark, Gothic or Halloween based piece inspired by the series (that would be VAMPS peeps, in case you live under a rock.  LOL).  When Googling True Blood, one of the images that caught my eye was the advertisement for Tru Blood, the synthetic blood nourishment beverage for vampires.  Catchy slogan, eh?  It immediately brought to mind one of my fave stamps from Bombshell, Man's Ruin.  She's colored with Copics and fussy cut and then I stamped again on red vellum and paper pieced for the cocktail.  YUMBO!  She's popped atop a blood drip background from this Tiddly Inks freebie (funny how I use this A LOT!)  and I've added a wine charm with fabby vamp teeth from Scattered Tenacity.  Please visit HDH for more inspiration, and again on Wretched Wednesday for additional fun from Creepy Glo and whomever else was slow on the go this week and remember, please drink responsibly.  Oh, and be sure to come back later today for the Skull Appreciation Day Blog Hop, sponsored by Smeared Ink.  Loads of skullie goodness and prizes.  You know you wanna!

I'm also entering this in the Simon Says Stamp Anything Goes Challenge.

Macabre Monday

 This week at Haunted Design House we're doing a Gothic Makeover.  Use a cute image and make it over into a Gothic nightmare, sponsored by the fabulously adorable Saturated Canary.  The winner of this challenge will receive two digis of her choice. WooHoo!  I can't tell you how many of these super cute images I own, and some of them are creepy cute in their own right.  Choosing one to "goth up" though proved to be somewhat of a challenge, but I finally decided upon One of Those Days (who I don't see in the shop right now, but I'm sure Krista could find her for you).  I've colored her up all "gothy" with black lipstick and nail polish and fab purple streaks in her hair but unfortunately, it looks like she's had a "Carrie" kind of day.  Bummer!

The frame cut from Nesties Labels 25 and popped with an acetate overlay printed with a Tiddly Inks freebie colored in my Printmaster Program that has always reminded me of major blood drips.   (Sorry Christy, perhaps not what you intended.) The corners are MS as is the ever present drippy goo behing the computer generated sentiment.  This is a super fun challenge for those of you  who prefer a bit softer side of HDH.  So stop by and check us out and be sure to join in for a chance to win.

Macabre Monday Freaker's Free For All!

Huh, you say? That's the Minion's term for "Anything Goes" (within the spirit of Haunted Design House, of course.) You know, sometimes that's even harder for me. I printed about a gazillion images and had the hardest time deciding what to use. I've been a bit ADD and the thought of coloring became a bit overwhelming today so I went the CAS route (so unusual for me) but LOVE how it turned out. I took our own Teri's Gothic Heart image from Delicious Doodles and sized it to fit the Love Hurts heart from the Tiddly Inks Basement that I'd printed in red. The sentiment is computer generated, the background embossing is the Tim Holtz Poison label and I've used MS border punches for the graveyard and drippy goo.

Gothic heart was printed twice and fussy cut around the skull and then just the top half and popped for dimension atop the TI heart which was also popped. Cool, no coloring, just 4 square gems for the corners and that was it. Now aren't ya just dying to bring out your dark side? Hey, with no parameters...Woohoo! If you need more inspiration, go take a look at Haunted Design House and don't forget our Wretched Wednesday when the slackers (OOPS! I mean Glo and whomever else screwed around this weekend instead of completing their DT commitments) post their projects. They're always FAB with all that extra time they have and all. LOL Just teasing, guys. xx I'm also entering this in the Cardmadfairy's Digi Days Hearts Challenge, the Corrosive Challenge Love Bites, Sentimental Sundays Feel the Love Challenge, and of course, Delicious Doodles All Loved Up Challenge.

Tiddly Inks New Release and SALE!

I've been missing my Tiddly Inks and Inkers so much since retiring from the team the end of October and was thrilled to see the fabulous new release Christy cooked up (or should I say sketched up) after spending time with her adorable niece the past weekend. I had such a hard time choosing which of these darling "Little Somethings" to use first, but this "Little So and So" really stole my heart. I had a fun time paper piecing him and shading him with Copics and I finally got to use some of my DCWV Safari Kids Stack. You can view the rest of the group and fabby samples on Christy's Blog HERE. And WOOHOO! Check out the Cyber Thursday code (SOMETHING) for a whopping 30%off any order at the Tiddly Inks Shop.

I was excited to use Karen's Sweet Sunday Sketch #145 for my card for this is the first time playing along with this challenge. And I'm also entering it in the Shopping Our Stash Digi Images and/or Sentiments Challenge. (BTW, that cute little digi saying is TI too) Happy shopping!

Tiddly Inks Fabulous Inky Friday

I just love the new Fall Queen digi at Tiddly Inks Shop! Little Mavis looks so cute perched atop those pumpkins and I just couldn't resist her. She's colored with Copics and cut with Nesties. The DP is from an old DCWV Fall stack. For embellies I used some burlap ribbon and layered card stock and more DP on top. The leaves and acorn are wooden (so cute) and were found in the button section of J's. Flowers are Prima and that's it. Love that she can be used for any Fall occasion (and there's a new Christmas version of Mavis for all you kitty lovers now too. WooHoo!) Pop by the Tiddly Inks Challenge Blog for more inspiration from our Tiddly fans and DT.

A Tiddly Inks Halloween

Oh what fun we have at the Tiddly Inks Challenge Blog today. We're celebrating Halloween in major style and I really think the Tiddly Inkers have outdone themselves. There are so many cute Halloween images in the SHOP that it was tough to choose, but when I saw Sugar Angel and Angel Spice with their little treat bags (and their fab haircuts, LOL, available individually, as well, but the set is such a DEAL!), it brought back fond memories of trick or treating with my BFF, so I thought I'd create a little scene. The house and fence are Tim Holtz dies and the grass and kitty, MS. The little row of pumpkins are felt from Queen & Co.

I merged the two images in my Printmaster Program. This is SOOO easy to do with the PNG version of the images in any computer program like Photoshop etc. Then I colored them up with Copics and cut them out with my Nesties Grand Oval. The top of the sentiment is done with my trusty Alpha Beads.

The easel card is done with my Nesties Labels Three Grands. The fun candy DP is an older K&Co stack. To hold the easel up, I've added a row of adhesive beads and completed the sentiment with a puffy sticker from atd. I just know you'll want to play along with this fun challenge AND on Christy's BLOG you can see the new images as well as a contest for Fall cards that you won't want to miss. See ya there! I'm also entering this in the Simply Betty's 12 Days of Halloween Day 2 Challenge,The Crazy Challenge Halloween, Paper Sundaes Halloween or Fall, The Sparkles Forum Halloween and Desert Islands Crafters using 1, 3 (orange at the moment), 5, 6 and 7 (the fence looks like stripes to me).

Fabulous Inky Friday

It's Fabulous Inky Friday at the Tiddly Inks Challenge Blog when we announce our winner, highlight cards by our fans and post some more inspiration from the Tiddly Inkers. I chose to use the brand new image Danny's Duck. Is he about the sweetest thing on earth? He just begged to be paper pieced so that's what I did, and I used Deconstructed Sketch #23 for the layout. The DP's are Nana's Nursery. I used Nesties Scalloped squared instead of border punche because for the life of me I just couldn't punch right today. LOL Don't forget our current challenge, Boys will be Boys, and be sure to stop by the SHOP and check out what's new. I'm also entering this in the Divas by Design Button Up challenge and Ruby's Rainbow Cute and Cuddly challenge.

TOFF Men

WooHoo! I finally managed an Octopode Factory Friday Challenge. Been missing them the last few weeks. The challenge is MEN. I've been dying to do a pirate card for awhile. First of all, I had the perfect colored treasure map digi from Tiddly Inks, and then there's the TWO (yes, you heard me, not one but TWO) fabby pirate stamps from The Octopode Factory to choose from. There's Captain Hook as well as Captain Jack (oops, I don't see him in the shop at the moment but he does look exactly like Johnny Depp, in the movie...REALLY). Anyway, I chose Captain Hook because he's a bit more masculine and I find the whole "hook" thing kinda cool. LOL

He's colored with Copics in shades of purple and green and I can never figure out why purple just doesn't photograph correctly. I've added an earring, because no self respecting pirate should be without one. The sentiment is computer generated and quite fitting since my pirate is ALWAYS looking for booty and I've added a Wonky Eyed Skull from my sister Minion Creepy Glowbugg's Etsy shop where X marks the spot.

The Captain and sentiment are popped and I've done a ton of distressing with my Distrezz-it-All and Distress Inks. The DT has some fabulous examples (as always) this week AND, if you've been craving some Octopodes RUN, don't walk, to The Octopode Factory IMMEDIATELY because you can get 30% off with the code theprancingpony at checkout until tomorrow morning since Lily is away celebrating her 18th birthday at Disneyland Paris. Lucky girl! I'm also entering this in The Digi Doodles Shop Distressing Challenge, Ruby's Rainbow For the Boys challenge.

Paint it Up With the Tiddly Inkers

This week at the Tiddly Inks Challenge Blog we're painting it up. You can use any type of paint, watercolor, acrylic, Distress Ink, just paint it on. I took this opportunity to try a technique I've been seeing all over blogland. It's the faux woodgrain technique using acrylics and plain white glue (like Elmer's). First I painted my tag with acrylic in brown. After it dries, I brushed on a coat of white glue and waited 'til it was just tacky. Over that I painted another coat of acrylic. This time I used a color called Bleached Sand. As it dries, the cool crackle appears like magic. Soo much FUN! (And I didn't even really get my hands dirty...much. LOL) To add some strength to the tag, I backed it with brown card stock. I thought the sweet Lilli Claire Tiddly Did You Hear? was perfect for the rustic background. She's colored with Copics, fussy cut and popped. I colored my metal "friends" sticker with a Bic permanent marker and added some cute flower brads and a ribbon. Please stop by the Tiddly Inks Challenge Blog to see the amazing work by the rest of my teamies. and don't miss Christy's Blog where she previews a NEW little Christmas Lilli Claire image and has a fun little freebie to match. I'm also entering this in the Craft Your Days Away Tag It challenge.

Fabulous Inky Friday at Tiddly Inks

TGIF! Really! Not that the weekend is gonna be all that great either but... Obviously I'm still in a bit of a funk. Sorry, guys. I did manage a card though, for my Sweetie who does so much for me, even when I'm a crab cake. LOL The lovely image is Will You? from Tiddly Inks Victorian Gothic/Steampunk Release. Sooo romantic, no? I've colored them up with Copics in shades of brown for a vintage feel (except for the red hair, but I just HAD to make her red).

My original plan was to use one of the ADORABLE NEW SUGAR AND SPICE GIRLS but this sentiment was very timely this week so those cuties will be for another day. OOhh, I'm getting sort of misty here. Lotsa love goin' around.

The gorgeous papers are from DCWV Tattered Time stack and Tim Holtz Lost and Found. The mats are cut with Nesties Labels Seventeen and popped for dimension. The pearls are Recollections. Now pop on over to the Tiddly Inks Challenge Blog to see Some fab inspiration by our Tiddly fans and more of the Tiddly Inkers. If you're featured, you may grab bragging rights and a fab badge for your blog. Also, our current Acrylic Challenge is still going on and the projects there are AMAZING. And if you'd like to see a whle bunch of inspiration for the fab Sugar 'n Spice gals take a look at Christy's blog HERE. I'm also adding this to the Whimsical Wednesdays Anything Goes Challenge, the Delightful Pearls and Swirls Challenge and the For Fun Warmth Challenge. That's all for now.

New Sugar 'n Spice for Tiddly Inks Sale!

I'm feeling really bad that I don't have a sample of the new Sugar 'n Spice Girls from Tiddly Inks but you MUST have a look HERE at the GORGEOUS samples from my teamies. Then take a read HERE. You can get them at 40% 0ff if you HURRY! They wil be available at 40% off for all orders over $7.oo with the code SUGARNSPICE at checkout until 7:00am Central Time tomorrow morning. I'll have a love Tiddly card to show tomorrow morning, but I didn't want you to miss this SALE! xxD

Tiddly Inks Fabulous Inky Friday and Special NEWS about a Contest at BBTB2!

TGIF!!!!! That means it's time for another Fabulous Inky Friday at the Tiddly Inks Challenge Blog where we highlight fabby creations by our fans found all over the net, as well as creations by the DT that may or may not feature the current challenge, and announce the previous challenge winners. BTW, that current challenge is Art Journaling, and because it is perhaps a bit unfamiliar, we've extended our challenge to two weeks so have a gander HERE and get inspired. I honestly did try to do another journal page, but I never got further than a half done background, so I decided to pull out an old favorite, Poppy, as well as Poppy Accents, for my card this week. I realize the popular sentiment is "Take time to smell the flowers", but my dream has always been a garden that would provide cut flowers for at least 3/4 of the year, but now that I have it, I've been so busy, the majority of them have just died on the vine. Bummer!

Poppy provides an excellent opportunity for practicing your Copic coloring skills. This time I opted to attempt a sort of wavy look and I'm pretty pleased with how it came out. The DP is K&Co and the sentiment is computer generated.

I've also chosen to print the images twice to decoupage. The centers of the flowers are highlighted with Glossy Accents. Each word of the sentiment is cut and glued separately and partially outlined with Copics as well.

Now don't faint. I actually finished the inside as well. I used the flowers from Poppy Accents, colored them with Copics and doodled a similar frame around the space to write a personal message. WooHoo! I might actually send this one. Now why not pop by Tiddly Inks and check out the beautiful featured cards, and it one of them is yours, feel free to grab the badge for your blog. There will also be some adorable new images this coming Tuesday. There's a bit of a sneak peek on Christy's BLOG I'm sure you won't want to miss.

On another note, I hope everyone has heard about the FABULOUS CONTEST going on at BBTB2. Our sponsor is My Creative Classroom. THIS IS HUGE! My Creative Classroom offers classes in just about anything you'd want to explore. Die Cutting (Cricut and others) of course, but also Stamping, Mixed Media, YOU NAME IT! Click HERE to see the list. You have through Monday to enter so HURRY! CLICK HERE to read all about the contest, (wish I could enter!), and good luck!

Tiddly Inks 2 Week Art Journaling Challenge.

Better grap a cuppa, this is gonna be a long post.

Our challenge this week at Tiddly Inks is inspired by our Wow Ya Wednesday artist Kate of The Kathryn Wheel and what a challenge it is! (for me, at least) Create an art journal page (or project) inspired by the multi media style so popular now. I'll be honest. I don't have a lot of paints and sprays and that kind of stuff because I really don't like to get my hands (and everything around me) dirty. And I'm a chicken, and a perfectionist, and if I don't like something I throw it away and start over, COMPLETELY over. The philosophy here is "There are no mistakes in Art". Tell that to my waste basket. LOL So actually experimenting in a bound journal is actually quite terrifying to me. I joined the Smeared and Smudged Art Journaling Group and I lasted 3 days and NEVER posted what I did on my blog. The group was very supportive, but what was supposed to be a fun and freeing experience caused me EXTREME anxiety so I dropped out. However, armed with the fab inspiration from Kate and the various links Christy provided for us HERE, I was ready to take the plunge again.

Okay, so maybe it looks like a little dip, because my page is really not as jam packed with doodling and whatnot as I would have liked... I started by slapping gesso on the page which covered up the lines and provided a base. Then I used Distress Inks in colors I immediately didn't like (was going for a sky and grass thing because I had no idea what the page was gonna be about, or what images to use.) Note to self: have a plan first.I hated it so on went another layer of gesso which muted it all (thank GOD!) Next some Acrylic Paint Dabber in Cloudy Blue and while the gesso AND the paint were still wet, I pounced it all with bubble wrap trying to get some texture. Then I had to let it dry. Hmmm... not very patient, so I blasted it with my heat gun.

Then I pretty much just messed around. Used more bubble wrap and Distress Inks with pretty much all of the blues. Stamped a Heartfelt Creations text background stamp with Perfect Medium and dusted with Perfect Pearls in the upper right corner. So it started to look like sky, or water. Took a look at my Tiddlies and came across Whaz'Up...or Down (currently residing in the Tiddly Inks Basement for a mere $1.00! Now you know I'm more of a cat woman, but these little guys captured what I've been feeling lately. (Read the computer generated journaling. No, I was just too chicken to try and write it by hand and possibly mess up after all of this!) I colored the little guys with Distress Ink and cut them out. I also added a compass mask and some stamping also with Distress.

Then I decided I wanted clouds so I got REALLY BRAVE and slapped on some Dreamweavers Embossing paste. What I didn't read was that it was translucent. CRAP! (thought it was white) so I looked in my drawer and grabbed some Sparklyfluff, sprinkled it on, and hoped it would stick. Yea, it did, but the pic doesn't show the sparkle...bummer. My only dilemma now was the balloon strings because I was pretty sure I couldn't draw over the Sparklyfluff. Couldn't find black floss either, so I opted for wire which was not a great choice, but what's a gal to do? So anyway, here's my page and I have to admit I had FUN! No, it's far from perfect, but it's okay. Now, if you want to see perfection, check out what my teamies have done HERE. And don't forget this is a 2 week challenge so you have plenty of time to muster some courage if you're a newbie like me. You may just find your voice. There are no mistakes in art.

P.S. Christy has previewed 2 new adorable images and a FREEBIE on her blog, so have a look HERE.

Tiddly Inks End of Summer Card

div>It's Fabulous Inky Friday which means at The Tiddly Inks Challenge Blog we highlight cards we see using Tiddly Inks images throughout blogland as well as those from the Tiddly Inkers. We also announce the winner from the previous challenge so of course you wanna go see, don't you? Although it wasn't my team's turn to do the Goodbye Summer Challenge for Tiddly Tuesday, I couldn't help but do a Fall card. It's my favorite season.

I immediately thought of the sweet Colorful World, an older image that resides in the Tiddly Inks Basement. Remember, that's your spot for things you may not find in the new Tiddly Inks Shop. Many of the images in the basement are discounted as well. WooHoo! You can snag her for a mere $2.00! She's colored with Copics, and glossy Accents added to her brush, fussy cut, then popped on a Nesties Mega Oval.

The leaves were cut and embossed with a Cuttlebug die and folder. I used the trees from the huge Harmony at Home Mega Pack for the patterned paper by resizing and printing each in a different color, using my Printmaster Platinum Program, then cutting the leaves out of the tree tops. Brushed Corduroy Distress was used to bring out the embossing.

To add a little interest, I wound a fiber through the popped leaves. I kind of thought it gave a feeling of movement and allows me to enter it in The Ribbon Carousel Anything Goes Challenge this week. Some gold adhesive beads were added for a little shine. There's still plenty of time to enter our Goodbye Summer-Hello Fall challenge so I hope to see you there and wait until you see the fabulous inspiration from our Wow Ya Wednesday Guest Kate from The Kathryn Wheel. Seriously, art journaling at it's FINEST! And pop over to Christy's Blog and see the adorable new Little Miss Sunshine image, just released Tuesday. There is always something fun going on at Tiddly Inks.

I'm also entering this in the Craft Us Crazy Autumn Colors and/or Favorite Embellishments Challenge (adhesive beads, here).

Tiddly Inks Reading Fun

It's Tiddly Tuesday and rounding out our "Back to School" inspired challenges, our challenge this week is Reading Fun. It can be inspired by a particular book, or just a general reading theme, which is what I chose to do. When I came across Aida-Gonna Miss You I thought of taking a trip in my head. That's what reading is, isn't it? I cut the book and pages from the My Community Cricut cartridge. I wrote a little story about Aida on the left page and the theme of my piece on the right and printed it on the pages.

Aida was printed 3 times, colored with Copics and decoupaged for dimension. The "bookmark" is a Tim Holtz Swivel Clasp with a Philosophy Tag and a key from K&Co to represent "the key to the imagination".

Obviously, it's an easel card and the map DP is from the Tim Holtz Lost and Found paper stack. The small tickets are preprinted Adage Tickets and the large one is a Journaling Ticket (also Tim Holtz) on which I printed "Read" and added a few adhesive beads for emphasis. There are fabulous projects by the rest of the Tiddley Inkers HERE and Christy is previewing some adorable new "Minnie" images that are already available in the "What's New" section HERE and a freebie on her blog HERE. I hope you're inspired to share a reading inspired project with us this week at Tiddly Inks. I'm also entering this in the Simon Says Stamp and Show Some Travel(oops! missed that one), the Sentimental Sunday Back to School and Kaboodles Doodles Easel Does It Challenge.

Oh, and BTW, if you haven't commented on my BBTB2 Home Decor project, please scroll down and do so for a chance to win a $40.00 gift certificate to Custom Crops. They've got a fab sale going on and lots of new products, so check it out HERE.

Romance with Tiddly Inks

This is a special one, one I've been thinking about for a long time. When Christy came up with the new Tiddly, You and Me, I knew it was time to try it. It was sort of a risk, printing and coloring the image and then using Cricut DS to create a puzzle.

The pieces are from Don Juan. The hard part was moving the pieces close enough to create the puzzle. You can't weld them, they have to be separate. You just have to hope that you've moved them close enough together to cut as one, as each piece is cut separately and then has to be retraced, in part, for the next row of pieces.

I printed and colored my image first. Lots of time invested. On top of the puzzle I placed a heart from George to cut as well.

Then it was just a leap of faith. There was some rough going. It wasn't perfect. I thought after, that I should have just cut out the one piece, but that's not how love is.

Sometimes the going gets rough, but if you can hold it together, everything will be fine...stronger, better than the perfect, easy way out.


I'm sorry, but something in this post is causing all the stuff on my sidebar to go to the bottom. May have to delete it all.

Tiddly Inks Inch My Way Along

This week our challenge at the Tiddly Inks Challenge Blog is inspired by Inchie Arts, as we created mini cards and projects. How fun! I went the simple route and used the adorable Inky Critters, which are conviently set in their own little frames and a cinch to color. I made my mini cards Using by Labels Twelve Nesties and placing one of the cutting edges right above the fold and running it through my Grand Caliber, then used my Cuttlebug to cut and emboss the snowflakes. Super cute for Christmas tags or mini notes, and as quick as can be! There are many more adorable mini projects to see at The Tiddly Inks Challenge Blog, and Christy has previewed a brand new set and has an adorable freebie you can use as a teacher's gift, so be sure to check out her blog HERE. On a more serious note, please consider joining us in donating a card for our dear Meredith's family friend, Ryan, who was seriously injured recently. You can read Meredith's post HERE, or click on the top sidebar badge to see how this wonderful crafting community is lending their support. I'm also entering this in the CHNC Simply Christmas Challenge and The Crazy Challenge Monthly Christmas Challenge for August.