Triple Crown!

After compiling a CD of my mom riding her horse for mother's day (and quickly creating a CD case with horse silhouettes on it), my mom asked me if I could make a card for her dad with horses for Father's Day...

My Grandfather is a HUGE fan of horse racing, and he and my mom watch the Kentucky Derby together every year. So my mom wanted to make sure the sentiment on the card had something to do with the races. Again, I utilized this weeks sketch of MojoMonday...

Mojo193

The horses were cut with SCAL (of course), as were all other shapes (I really ♥ it!!). The sentiment was actually printed on the cardstock using a free font I downloaded from a website, and then traced over with my Copics. I forgot to photograph it, but I also created a little circle inside the card for cash/gift cards!          Under the layer of patterned paper, I finally got to use my Tim Holtz distressing powders.. I like the effect it gave the paper, but it was also gritty and a little messy. I finally learned how to take a decent pic of my cards, after blog-hopping this morning (I wish I could remember the link...), so I'm super proud of my picture quality!! ♥

Favorites Discovered:

• Photographing 
• Printed Sentiments
• Distressing Powders 

Procrastination...

All day, I searched for the missing "Get Well" card I started last weekend, and unfortunately, it's mysteriously disappeared!! So, in an extreme act of procrastination, as I spent 90% of my Memorial Holiday sitting in my craft room, watching Lost and fawning over the new MojoMonday sketch, I decided to try it out...

I had fun making this card, as it was my first circle card ever! I have to give credit where credit is due, so I must say that I am still IN LOVE with my SCAL 2, and so glad I bought it before they took it off the market. All shapes (excluding the cupcake) were cut using this godsend of a program, and the cupcake was colored by hand with my new Copic Sketch Markers!

 

Mojo193

I have to admit that I know I could've done better with this card, but I'm just so glad I finally got back to working on cards! To give my own criticism (as I always do), I think the color scheme is a little off. I would have rather not had such a light background... which is why I decided to lightly brush the edges with my stamp pads... I ended up liking it though, because it reminded me of chocolate smeared on the edges... MMMmmm... Chocolate... I also think I went a little too crazy with the ribbon, but I love BOWS!
I love my cupcake embossing folder from the Cricut Companions "Once Upon a Princess" line.

I actually inked the embossing folder before running the circle through the Cuttlebug! I love the definition it gave the paper...I think my biggest accomplishment (as far as growth on my part), was the pink sentiment. The paper was, of course, cut out using SCAL 2 (♥!), and originally white!! I actually used my light pink, cheap, studio g  (chalks) inkpad (from the $1 section at Michael's...), and inked the entire paper. Then, I stamped the sentiment, drew over it with my E49 copic sketch marker (♥!), and then gave the edges a distressed look by running the edges with my dark brown Memento Dew Drop pad. *I also drew a dark pink shadow around some of the edges with stickles, and then smeared it off with my finger...☺ Although I can still see the imperfections, I'm so proud of myself and my progression!!

Favorites Discovered:

• Chalks pigment ink
• Circular Cards

The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything!

"We are the Pirates, Who Don't Do Anything. We just stay home, and lie around; and if you ask us, to do anything, we'll just tell you... WE DON'T DO ANYTHING!"

-Veggietales "The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything"

            I debated whether or not to post this, but I was too proud of my handiwork! This was originally one of those cheap paper treasure chests (in a pack of 4 from the party supply stores...). I copied and sized screenshots from Google Images (of Veggietales characters from the movie "The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything"), cut the characters out, and then taped them to the chest. The best part is the clarity of the characters and the random pop-ups I created. At work, we're currently having a sales competition, where we are placed in teams. We had to choose our own name (pirate themed), and decorate our treasure chests, where each sale would give us one "gold doubloon". At the end of the competition, the winners not only get money, but the team gets to split a "treasure chest of prizes".

I think we all know which team will win...

Mighty Max Low

"Mighty" Max Low  ( click the link for the full story) is a 12 year old boy (from Neola, IA) that has had leukemia for the past seven years. His wish is to receive one million get well cards, and is so far (the last time I checked) inbetween 200k-300k cards received.

Initially, a friend of mine had forwarded the story on Max, back in March. We decided that we needed to schedule a paper-crafting day, where we would sit down and just work on cards for Max. It took about two days of careful planning (as it usually takes for any card idea), and on Friday night, I pulled the current MojoMonday Layout (MOJO191)

MOJO191


This card was (again) used with the Imagination's "Celebrate It" line. I somehow stumbled across the paper pack while rummaging through the books at Ross, and I've never been so happy with a paper pack filled with mainly primary colors.



I really enjoyed making this card. I love every aspect of it, and even the small imperfections make it PERFECT to me.

It may be hard to see, but the open red space actually has a watermark of the "get well soon" that is imprinted in the middle. I did this by using Versamark ink on the plain paper.

The letters look like chipboard up close AND far away, but they were actually cardstock stickers that had come with the paper pack. I placed the stickers on black circles, and released the pyromaniac inside myself and burned the edges until they got too close to the letters (like I said, I  REALLY ENJOYED making this card). The letters were then placed on circles that were individually cut out from the same paper pack (Gotta Love that "Celebrate It"!!!).

I'm sending his card out first thing tomorrow morning.

If you'd like to send a card to help Max meet his goal, you can send it to:

"Mighty" Max Low

c/o Greg and Bambi Low

P.O. Box 111

Neola, IA 51559

Mother's Day!

Yes, it's a little late, but I've been on vacation, so my mom understood when I gave her this card TWO WEEKS after Mother's Day...

The card is actually patterned paper with vellum over the bottom. I embossed the small flowers bordering the sides and the corners with some embossing powders I found INSANELY CHEAP (30 powders for 11$) on Ebay. I love the little ribbon, because I'm not used to using sheer ribbons on anything. It looks so adorable to me (except I'm a little embarrassed of the placement of the letters...).

My mom loved the card. She said it was amazing and adorable, and even asked me to make a get well card for one of her friends from her horse-group. I love the colors. This is probably my first PRIMARILY gray (grey...gray? I hate that...) card, so I think I'm more proud of stepping out of my "color comfort zone". This is also my FIRST TIME using vellum on a card... and my first time using plain vellum! 

The best part about this card was that I used a cheap paper pack I found on sale at Ross. When I bought this paper, I remember thinking to myself, "Hmm... this paper is nothing like my tastes...". Yet I still bought it, and now I'm satisfied with it.

Still, my favorite part of the card is definitely the pink embossed flowers on the vellum! The bow is pretty adorable too!






 

Favorites Discovered:

• Embossing on Vellum
• Sheer Ribbon
• Gray (grey?) Paper

Class of 2011!

This is my first Graduation card... My cousin is graduating high school, and I made this card for her gift. I'm sure I'll give her something handmade, along with some $$ :) 

Growing up, my cousin's favorite color had always been purple. She has also always been an AMAZING artist. When I saw the patterned paper, with the cloud and rainbow doodles, with the glittery accents on the grid paper (it was in a pack in the 1$ section of Target!), I immediately thought of her!



The "CONGRATS" is actually made of college ruled paper. The most difficult part of this was cutting the letters on the Cricut. The paper is so flimsy that I had to attach the paper to thin black cardstock to prevent tearing. The letters were then attached to the inner circle, and I used Stickles over the letters to incorporate more glitter to the card.

Of course, once again, I've used the Cuttlebug to emboss the plain papers. I like the overall feel of the card, because I can see the recipient in the card. The only problem with the card is that I'm not crazy about is the pink border to the side (it's actually a darker hue than what I thought it was).



Favorites Discovered:

• Cuttlebug Embossing Folder (Dots)
• Studio G Stamps ("class of")
• Inkadinkadoo Stamps (Numbers)

Father's Day!

So, here I go, my first attempt at a masculine Father's Day card...

The qualty of the photo REALLY doesn't give it justice. This is my first card made using Sure Cuts A Lot 2 (SCAL2). The tag shape and letters were cut using a font called "Chumbly" that I found for free on the internet, and the tag was also found on the internet after just searching "tags" in Google Images. Could SCAL2 be the best program in the world... I'm thinking YES! The letters on the tag are actually done similar to a stencil. I had originally attempted cutting each individual letter, and gluing each letter on the tag...Besides being a tedious and overall mind-numbing procedure, I hated the end result. It took 3 times for me to actually settle on the above tag. This is also the first time I've incorporated inking the edges if the tag, which (after a mistake) fell in to me swiping the ink over the sides of the tag. I think it gave more of a rustic or dirty look to it. The top and the bottom have loops of twine... I can't take credit for it, because it was actually the idea of a friend of mine that was making cards with me that day... Overall, I love this card. Not just the new techniques I've learned, because it looks just like my dad's persona. I can't wait to see his expression when he receives it!

Favorites Discovered...

• Memento Dew Drop Ink Pads
• Sure Cuts A Lot 2
• Twine

My New Craftroom!

So, it's been a long time coming... I bought my house a little over a year ago, and had FINALLY settled on a color scheme for my craftroom.

Let me be completely honest... I have NEVER painted a wall before. I grew up with WHITE walls, and I like them very much. About two years ago, I made pact with my friends and said, "When I find a house, I will have at least ONE room painted..." and from then on, I tried to settle on colors. These were a mix of my four FAVORITE colors, and I couldn't be happier with the outcome...

This is the room before... it was so bland and annoying... it was hard for me to focus, but served its purpose...the shelving, I had attempted to paint, but turned into a hideous color, if you can see the top right corner... the dark green abomination...

I basically used what I had, and attempted to organize my equipment to an area that would make me happy... I was constantly knocking things over, and frantically looking for EVERYTHING! 

NOW 

Nice and Organized!!! I painted the walls (with some help) and the table.

The "ProvoCraft Station" is by far one of my favorite areas!! In each drawer houses my cartridges, vinyl, gypsy, dies, embossing folders, and anything else made by Provocraft. It's the most organized I've ever been!!

Just some random activity...

So, I've been a little let down by my most recent card. I feel like I've lost my "Mojo"...or maybe I never even had it. Nevertheless, I'm doing what I love, and I'm going to start posting a lot more projects (not just cards)... 

This card was originally going to be a Birthday card for my friend's son... but I wasn't satisfied with it, so I decided to keep it. I'm posting this to document my (hopeful) progression. :)

This was originally a submission for a challenge... but when I forgot the NAME of the challenge, I figured I'd let it go... This was one of my first times utilizing the gypsy to join the letters together :)

This was my first experiment with twine... it was SUPPOSED to be a submission for a challenge, but it was last minute, and It still seems like it's missing something...

Well, that's it for now... more to come, I hope :)

Mojo Monday!

Here is my entry for Mojo Monday, MOJO174. It was my first time using my new American Crafts Stamp Markers. Both the cupcake and the phrase ("Celebrate") are from Inkadinkadoo, and the paper is DCWV's Sweet Stack (my FAVORITE paper!)

<3

Sweet Sketch Wednesday!

So here is my entry for Sweet Sketch Wendesday. I used a new kit (Colorbok) I bought this past week, as well as the Cuttlebug "Love Language" die and embossing kit. The lighting makes the card look a bit darker. I love this card!

Mojo Monday!

This is my entry for this week's Mojo Monday Challenge.

I basically thought this sketch over ALL DAY at work, and when I came home, I still couldn't grasp it. It took about 4 hours, but I'm so happy with this! It's my first time using these hues, so I was a bit skeptical... Overall, I'm content with my choices :)

Most of the paper (as wells as the "Celebrate") is from Imagination's Celebrate It line. The sparkly brads are Recollections :) I had too much fun with this sketch!

Wish!

This afternoon, I ventured outside of the craftroom, and brought a few of my supplies to a friend's house. After skimming the craft challenges, we came across Polka Doodles! It's fun to just pick a challenge and randomly enter! So here is my simple "Wish" themed card.

I've had some harsh criticisms on it, but my love of cupcakes has made me fall in love with this card.

Like I've said before, I've seen alot of people list the items they've used for their cards, what I can say is that the "Make a Wish" is from oriental trading, the cupcake: recollections, the paper is from my favorite book: "The Sweet Stack" from DCWV, and the embossed images are from the Cuttlebug!

Amour

I'd like to be artistic with my introduction of my first uploaded card, but I'd rather not.

I'm extremely proud of this card, even if the quality isn't professional; for someone who just started paper-crafting a year ago, I think I'm doing just fine. :)

This card is my first entry into a challenge (mojo monday! linky!)... it's a little intimidating to have so many people see my work, but... I'm satisfied with it :)

Most people add a list of what they've used to make their cards, but honestly, I can't remember. The only thing I CAN say is that the red was embossed with my new favorite little gadget! The Cuttlebug!