Jubilee Layout (Yes, you read that right!) for Custom Crops- .Cut File Available

Don't faint, but I actually made a layout. Of course I couldn't find the picture I had in mind to put in it, but it's a layout nonetheless. Those of you who know me know I have NEVER done a layout in my life. But this was a challenge from Custom Crops so I just couldn't refuse. (It does hopefully excuse the quality, though, I hope. LOL) Anyway, besides it having to be a layout, it also was to feature the Jubilee cartridge. (Another one of those I thought I needed and have NEVER used.) I didn't go all creative because, quite frankly, it's the houses that I bought this cart for so I focussed on them. I hope you can tell that the huge mat in the background is a house with a porch. (My dear friend Leah, who's the QUEEN of layouts, didn't immediately get that so it sort of made me nervous.) I planned to put a 4 x 6 picture of our house the day we moved in on this but as I said, I couldn't find it. Thought this "Welcome Home" theme could work for a number of different Homecomings though; new baby, returning soldier, you get the picture. Only the big cloud from Create a Critter (which I thought could be used for journaling) and the grass and rectangular mat from Plantin Schoolbook were not cut from Jubilee. The DPs are from Heidi Grace and I added a few Prima flowers and texture with my cuttlebug Spots and Dots and Swiss Dots folders. The article and .cut file are available HERE on the Custom Crops site. Now I'll happily return to my comfort zone (much to everyone's relief! LOL)

Oh Alice!, Sweet Pea Stamps and Simon Says Stamp Challenges

This week at Oh Alice! we're to work with a sketch by DT member Tasha. Great sketch but you know the trouble I have with them. I actually managed to turn this one 90 degrees (I'm so proud of myself, LOL) because I wanted to use this fabulous image by Sweet Pea Stamps. I was introduced to these fab stamps by Oh Alice! DT member Jessica and fell totally in love! I received my order on Monday, just in time to get started on my sketch card, and also for Sweet Pea Stamps 1st Anniversary to create a birthday or anniversary card. They're having a Customer BLOG hop celebration. Of course I'm participating and you can too. The darling image by Elaine Cox ( just one of 8 and of course I bought them ALL!) is colored with my Copics and cut with my Nesties. I added embossing to both mats to enter this card in the Simon Says Stamp challenge also, which is create a card with a movie theme and add dry embossing. (Do you believe 2 entries for that challenge this week?) I used tiny bubbles and the flower folder that comes with the With Tanks Card Making Combo. The colors and patterns are kind of "out there" because that's my vision of Wonderland and I thought it added to the party theme. The papers are K&Co. The sentiment is spelled out in Alpha Beads and theoretically could be used for a birthday or anniversary, don't ya think?

It's Showtime at The Cuttlebug Spot and at Simon Says Stamp Challenge

This week at The Cuttlebug Spot we're celebrating our favorite movie or TV show. You KNEW what was coming here, didn't you? LOL Well BESIDES the fact that I just LOVED "Alice in Wonderland", it finally gave me the opportunity to use my Queen of Hearts Cuttlebug folder. WooHoo! I just substituted the head from my Sassy Studio Designs Queen of Hearts Card, colored her with Copics, cut her out and popped her on. The extra gold crown is a brad. I embossed just the hearts from the folder in red and cut them out to add to the card. The shadow behind her head is a Spellbinders Heart die and the sentiments are also from Sassy Studio. The larger sentiment was cut and layered using Spellbinders Labels Nine. The red mat is embossed with the Cuttlebug Heart Blocks folder and the border punch and photo corners are EK Success.

Tell me she's not hilarious! Looks just like Helena Bonham Carter in the movie! I really enjoyed this challenge and looking at all of the fabulously creative projects from my DT sisters, it's obvious they did too. Be sure to pop by The Cuttlebug Spot and see, and we encourage you to play along. It certainly is a fun one! P.S. don't forget to use some kind of embossing on your project. It is, after all, a CUTTLEBUG challenge. Had to sneak that in there, Leah, you'll NEVER live that one down. LOL I'm also entering this in the Simon Says Stamp Challenge which also has a movie and dry embossing theme this week. WooHoo! Obviously great minds think alike!

BBTTB2 From My Kitchen Flower Card Challenge

This week at BBTB2 we were challenged to use the flower card located on the shift tab feature for the ice cream cut (page 59, go figure!). I flipped it in DS, changed the proportions as bit, welded a layer of grass from WIMG to the bottom of the opening and used it as a mat for my little scene. My Give a Hoot cartridge was laying out and I thought the little deer was cute so that's what I went with. The background is another of the tabs (with the half round tab) with a sun from Create a Critter (also laying out, I desperately nee to clean up my craft room!)welded to it. I just so happened to have a stamped sentiment left over from our Technique Tuesday challenge so I used it for the center of the sun. Looking at it now the whole project is reminiscent of the Technique Tuesday challenge but I was a bit creatively impaired this week. (The creepy baby faces took it all out of me. LOL) The papers are from DCWV Nana's Nursery Stacks, both boy and girl, regular and mat stack. The buttons are from Stampin' Up.

Here's the dimensional view. Although I intended this to be a card, the welded sun stuck up so high that it was impractical, so I added a ribbon hanger instead. The rest of the team, including the new designers (WooHoo) came up with much more creative projects than I this week so pop by BBTB2 and have a look.

Bah! Humbug! Santa Paws Challenge and Christmas Stampin' All Year Long

Okay, I know I'm unbelieveable early in doing my Bah!Humbug! Challenge this week but I didn't want to risk being deleted from sidebars all across Blogland by leaving my creepy baby faces on any longer than necessary. LOL This week the lovely ladies want to see festive furry friends on our creations so I decided to do Jezzie's Christmas card for Daddy in advance. I'd never cut any of the Christmas images from Hello Kitty Greetings and I thought this one was especially adorable. Jezzie fancies herself a white sparkly kitty (as seen on her Easter card) so of course I glittered her again. The little antlers are flocked and she has mini jingle bells for the buttons on her jacket. I really wanted to use Flower Soft for her collar and hood trim but I didn't have the right color so I embossed it instead. All of the layers are popped which made this card take alot longer than I intended, but it's done so you can all breathe easier now that the creepy baby flowers are gone. You can also check out the challenge over at Bah! Humbug! and perhaps play along because for once I didn't just squeek in under the wire. I've also just come across ANOTHER Christmas challenge blog called Christmas Stampin' All Year Long and the challenge was to use Die cuts. All you Christmas lovers, check it out! WooHoo!

Oh Alice! Flowers and Stampotique "Girly Card" Challenges

This week at Oh Alice! we're learning alot from flowers. I've been dying to make some of these layered flowers and thought it would be the perfect time. (Especially since I wanted to use my "creepy" LOL baby face stamp for the centers.) I used 2 sizes of the Blossom Nesties with tissue paper and colored the edges with Copics. Because the faces stamped in black looked a bit harsh, I adhered a single layer of tissue (cut with an even smaller blossom) over the stamped image by running it through my Xyron right side down. It just so happens that Oh Alice! is being sponsored by Stampotique (one of my FAVE places to shop for stamps) this week and their Designer's challenge is to create a "girly card". I usually prefer to use Stampotique stamps when doing their challenges (even when we don't have to like this week) but I thought this looked pretty "girly" with the fluffy flowers and all so I'm entering it there too.

I was having a discussion with my friend Smita this morning (by email since she lives in India)about MS border punches so I had mine out to test them and actually ended up punching out 2 sides of the card stock without screwing up so I folded it to make the card base. WooHoo! I considered using another color for the embossing behind the flowers (Cuttlebug Leafy Branches) but decided I preferred the pristine white look. The sentiment is an "Alice" quote done on the computer and cut out with my Nesties Labels 9. I really enjoy doing challenges that allow me to explore different styles and techniques so I hope you think these are as much fun as I do.

Wish You Were Here! - Peggy Loves Vintage

Well, actually I wish I were there! LOL This sexy lady is my fave (notice the red hair!) from the Sexy Ladies Cutouts from Peggy Loves Vintage. Did you know that besides the fabulous CD's Peggy offers, there's a full line of cut out pages for immediate gratification? The card was inspired by some vintage souvenier cards from Florida I found in with some of my great aunt's photos; two of which I used on the card. Aunt Bob (Barbara) was quite the traveler and I've inhereted all of her photos and memorabilia. The cards have a really cool lineny texture so I printed out my image on textured card stock to match as closely as I could and further enhance the vintage feel. I used my Nesties deckle rectangles to mat the cards and Making Memories letter stickers for the sentiment. The white on black reminded me of the captions she had in her albums. I popped the sexy lady (slightly askew because I thought it looked better that way, LOL) and used an EK Success punch for the photo corners. The cool beach umbrella paper is by K&Company. Peggy Loves Vintage has images for all sorts of occasions so be sure to take a browse. Be sure and pop by the Peggy Loves Vintage Blog too. That sweet Peggy is offering up an adorable free April Showers kitty image just waiting to be played with. You might want to sign up to follow too so you don't miss the tips and tricks, new product info and contests. Lots of happenings going on there.

Bah! Humbug! Tag Challenge

This week at Bah!Humbug! the challenge is Tags and Labels. I was very excited because I just ADORE Tim Holtz's 12 Tags of Christmas every year and even bought all of the stuff to make them, but did I? Noooooooo, of course not! This one is inspired by his Tag #4 and I actually stamped all that stuff collage style with StazOn without messing it up TOO much. Then it's inked with Distress Inks (but when I looked back on his tag I see I was really conservative with that inking.) Oh well.

I feel like I cheated a bit, because I had made the little memory frame earlier to match a card I made with my Peggy Loves Vintage Santa Cut Outs 1 Sheet but I really had meant to put it on a tag and just never got around to making it.

I had so much fun with this tag, that for the rest of the day I attempted another using Tim's plaid technique with Alcohol inks and glossy card stock. As you can see here, it was a bust, and those muddy looking plaids were not the result of poor photography but rather, my poor technique. Back to the drawing board!

The Cuttlebug Spot Bling Challenge and a Hop!

This week at The Cuttlebug Spot we've teamed up wth other Challenge Blogs to do a Blog Hop filled with fun challenges and prizes. Each site offers a different challenge and an opportunity to WIN! We at The Cuttlebug Spot are doing "bling"! I really felt like doing something different, and also wanted to use a few things that I had bought and promptly put away and forgotten about. (Don't laugh, I know you do that too!) I came across 2 of the Cuttlebug Card Making combos, Persia and Ornamental Iron. I had gorgeous royal blue glitter card stock that I thought would be fabulous for the peacock and other embellishment from Persia and I used my Nesties Labels 10. Originally I planned to use mirror cardstock for additional bling, but it really turned out to be too much with the intricate peacock so I opted for some mat specialty paper and embossed it with the folder from Ornamental Iron. The gorgeous dark gold (It sort of looks green in the photo, but it's not) burnished paper behind the embossed layer was a gift from my dear friend Smita, all the way from India! This paper is sooo fabulous and heavy, with almost a leathery texture and I've been hoarding it. IRL it shimmers like it's embedded with gold dust. Thanks so much Smita! The background paper is K&CO Blue Awning which I've had forever and never used. The corners are MS and of course I added some adhesive gems in amber, gold and blue for added bling! This card was quite different for me but I really enjoyed making it. Be sure to stop my The Cuttlebug Spot to see the fabulous bling my DT sisters added to their cards this week and to find out more info on the Hop!

BBTB2 Plantin Schoolbook Rick Rack Challenge

Happy Monday! First I want to congratulate and welcome all of the fabulous new Design Team members for Bitten By The Bug2! Woo Hoo ladies, we're honored to have you join us! Leave it to our dear and unbelievably talented sister Carole to come up with a challenge that lends itself to such varied interpretation. How fun is that rick rack cut from Plantin Schoolbook? What do you see in it? Well obviously, I saw a worm (too much gardening, LOL) and besides, I also wanted the chance to use my new Create a Critter Cartridge. I tweaked the rick rack in Design Studio and also fashioned a shadow. The worm head was dissected (EEEWWWW!!!) from the worm body from Create a Critter and popped on. That fat little apple is also from Create a Critter (too cute) and the blossom is from Walk in my Garden. All in all pretty simple except for all of the adhesive beads I couldn't restrain myself from adding.

Just a little popping, and that was it. Be sure to check out all of the creative ways my BBTB2 DT sisters used this cut and we'd love to see where your imagination takes you!

It's Good to be Green!

It's a rainy Sunday here in CA but at least that means it will stay green a bit longer into the summer. Believe it or not, my DH loves this weather and is out on a "storm hike". Not me, I'm staying cozy. Looking outside, things really are greening up which made me think of one of Regina's new sets at The Cutting Cafe for upcoming Earth Day. The Earth Day downloadable printable stamp set includes 20 images, suitable for celebrating Earth Day, as well as reminding us to do our part to take care of our beautiful planet. I resized and printed the earth and sentiment in green, and colored the oceans with my copics. The circle word was resized so the earth would fit in the center. I cut all of the stamps with my Nesties and popped bits for dimension. In keeping with the "green" theme the designer papers are from the DCWV Green Stack which is 70% recycled paper. Be sure to top by The Cutting Cafe to see what's new. We have a whole new video team with loads of great projects to share.

Oh Alice! M.A.D. Challenge

This week's challenge at Oh Alice! almost through me for a loop. In this case M.A.D stands for monochromatic and distressed...hmmm... Well, the good news was I just so happened to have one of The Greeting Farm's Creepy Cakes Images that I was dying to color so I really wanted to participate. (Not required, but they are sponsoring the challenge.) My problems are always with the paper. I kept looking for pretty monochromatic prints to no avail and then realized I was going about this all wrong. I really needed to see what color Copics I had enough of to do a decent job on the image. The best luck I had was with the BG's # 109-115. I really need a Copics class to ge the hang of this shading business but I'm fairly pleased. I was going to color her face, but I thought I better quit while I was ahead. LOL Next problem: I'm not too hot at distressing. Don't get me wrong, I love the look, but I've always been the type to want things PERFECT, so distressing is against my nature.

At first I thought that using Coredinations and sanding would be enough, but I'd printed my image fairly large so what was left of it after embossing with the Cuttlebug Harlequin folder seemed rather miniscule considering distressing was a major element of the challenge. So I took my scissors to the edges, and then to the several mats I'd cut. See, there really is (a bit) of distressing. Wait 'til I get my Zutter Distrezz-it-All. I'll be grinding the crap out of those edges right and left! LOL Anyway, the finishing touches were the punched crown corners and the adhesive pearls which I also colored with my Copics. And don't those feathers add to the "madness"? I can't believe I had just the right color! The Sentiment is from Sassy Studio Designs. Now off for my walk. I think I'm on a roll here. Besides the exercise, I've managed 4 days without wine. Wish me luck, it's SOOOO much harder on the weekend to abstain!