Guest Designing for Cuttlebug Mania

I've been asked to guest design for the Cuttlebug Mania Challenge after previously winning one of their challenges. This time around the challenge is a tic-tac-toe grid and keeping in mind you must use either a Cuttlebug or any other die-cutting machine for your creation.

For my card, I chose the diagonal line, using an embossing folder, die cut and circle.

I used an Anna Griffin Cuttlebug embossing folder to create the background, adding both a die-cut circle from MFT and a rectangle die-cut from Lil Inker in some pastel blue colors. The flower die was a gift from a dear friend and is unbranded, while the sentiment was done with a SU! Sincere Salutations stamp set. To add interest, I use a hole punch and some teal glittered card stock to make the flower centers and accents on the sentiment panel.

I hope you'll join us over at the Cuttlebug Mania challenge and play along.

Thanks for stopping by and make it a great day whatever you do!

Carol

It's Getting Cold Out!

I'm the first to admit it - I have a snarky sense of humor. When I recently spotted this new digi from Whimsy Stamps (by Dustin Pike) I had to have it! After printing it, I colored it with Copics, stamping some snowflakes with an older SU! stamp and added some Frosty Stickles to the bottom for some sparkly snow. I enhanced the er....um.....fart.......with some liquid pearls and stickles and die-cut the panel with a MFT stitched square die. I stamped some white snowflakes on the kraft card base, adding a dot of Stickles to the visible one for some sparkle. I die-cut the sentiment panel with a Chalk Talk framelit die from SU! and called this one done.

I had a request for some snarky cards from a customer, so I made another card with this image.

For this one, I used some Island Indigo card stock, and some retired SU! dsp. I used a snowflake punch from Martha Stewart to make the snowflake which I covered with Wink of Stella and adhered with a foam dot. I fussy cut one of the images from the dsp and adhered it to the top along with a frosty clear gem. The banners were done with a retired SU! mini punch using the flip side of the dsp and adorned with more frosty gemstones. The sentiment is slightly different from the first card, as the letters are outlined, so I colored them in with a blue glitter pen.

I'm entering the first card into the following challenges:

Cardz4Guyz#233 - Icy Cold

Cuttlebug Mania - Animals

I'll enter the second card into 

the  2 CraftyCritterCrazies November challenge - use a critter on your card

Thanks for stopping by and have a wonderful day!

Carol

Autumn Thanks

Today I'm sharing a thank you card made with an autumn theme. I added a Spellbinder die-cut leaf that was colored with distress inks and then clear embossed for shine. The unbranded mesh panel was placed on a snippet of autumn dsp and the Kaisercraft die-cut Thank You was done in black and covered with glossy accents for some super shine. The little bow was made from copper colored cord and that's all this one needed.

I'm entering this into the Cuttlebug Mania "thank you" challenge.

I suppose blogger has finished with it's upgrades as things are seemingly back to normal again with adding photos. I'm happy about that!

Thanks for stopping by and make it a great day whatever you do!

Carol

Autumn Colors and Leaves

I've had a paper pad by Debbie Mumm for much too long, and wanted to finally USE these pretty Autumn themed papers. First up is a card where I used some GinaK Coral Reef orange, along with some celery colored green card stock for the background. I love this sketch design and it makes great cards with those little snippets of dsp. I added some leaves that were colored with alcohol inks and die-cut with Lawn Fawn stitched leaf dies. The sentiment is from SU!

I'll enter this card into the Cuttlebug Mania "Hello Autumn" challenge

Here's another of the same design made with a gold card base, some grass green card, and a larger Lawn Fawn stitched leaf die cut. The dsp is from the same paper pad, but a slightly different color than the one above. I added a Northwoods stamped greeting in dark brown ink.

I'll share this one with the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday challenge which is "fall/autumn colors

 Thanks so much for stopping by and taking time to leave a comment. I wish you all a wonderful day!

Carol

Sending Hugs

While recently digging through my stash, I found some snippets of water colored paper that were large enough to be put to good use, so I searched through my drawer of tiny clear stamp sets and found this one by G Studio from 2008. I bought a lot of these stamp sets at Michael's when they were popular, and I decided to make a tag with this snippet. I used a glaze pen to color the circle around the "1" but the rest of the tag was already pre-colored from a former project. I used a set of unbranded stitched tag dies and added a few Taylored Expressions enamel stickers in green and blue colors. The sentiment is from the same stamp set and says "Redeemable at a Moment's Notice." The background was embossed with a Darice Brick Wall folder and I swiped 2 Distress ink pads over it in the colors of tumbled glass and twisted citron to match the tag, then put it all on a pool party card stock base. The twine was saved from a Lawn Fawn order and the blue and green colors match perfectly.

I'm sharing this with the following challenges:

The Retro Rubber Challenge #113 - anything goes (use stamps older than 1 yr)

Addicted to Stamps and More challenge #346 - anything goes

the Cuttlebug Mania Challenge Tic-Tac-Toe challenge - must use a manual machine to cut and/or emboss - I used my big Shot and the vertical line 

on the far left

Thanks for stopping by and have a great Wednesday!

Carol

Hey Honey!

Most times I'd use the color yellow with a honeybee image, but for this card I used orange, simply because I'd already had this Spellbinders Lotus die already cut and assembled in my box of doodads and wanted to use it. It was cut from black and an orange floral dsp and the negatives were swapped for some contrast. The image was a colored digital print that was fussy cut and popped up on the Lotus with foam tape. The sentiment was computer generated, and the background was done with a SU! hexagon embossing folder.

I'm sharing this with the Cuttlebug Mania Challenge which is "orange."

As always, thanks so much for stopping by and I wish you a wonderful day!

Carol

Healing Vibes

I made this get well card for my stash using some powder pink and white card stock. I embossed the background with a CB Geometric Rings embossing folder, adding some crystal Nuvo drops to the centers in the design. The border was done with a SNSS Lacey Eyelet border die (retired) in both colors, and I inlaid the pink bits into the white. The sentiment panel was done with a SB grommet tag die; outlining the embossed portion while it was still in the die with a matching marker. The sentiment is from the SU! Healing Hugs stamp set, and I added 2 little die-cut butterflies done with Gina Marie Designs dies, adding pink Nuvo drops on the bodies, and covered them all with clear WOS for a little sparkle.

I'm sharing this with the following challenges:

the Cuttlebug Mania Challenge - Get Well (must use a die cutting machine)

Addicted to Stamps and More #341 - anything goes

Thanks for stopping by and the sun is finally shining today, so it's  going to be a good day :) Have yourself a wonderful Wednesday!

Carol

Stitched Mother's Day Card

Here's a mother's day card that's already been received. I used a panel of Wild Wasabi card stock for the background, stamping with Versamark ink and a retired SU! stitched background stamp; then heat-embossed it with white powder. The ribbon slide die-cut panel was done with a SNSS (r) die, and was woven with wild wasabi stitched ribbon. The stitched oval was done with a GMD die, and all the leafy elements were done with assorted dies from my stash. The sentiment is by Verve, and I added 3 tiny pastel green gemstones to finish this one.

I'm entering this into the Cuttlebug Mania Challenge - honoring Mother or the special woman in your life.

Thanks for checking in this weekend, and I hope your plans for Mother's day fall into place nicely :)

Carol

Easter Bunnies

 I've made a card with this fun digital image by ScrapHappyPaperCrafter and colored it with Copics, sponging in some clouds with Tumbled Glass distress ink and adding a double grassy border done with a SNSS die (retired) and some Grass Green card stock.  I used some fluorescent Copics for the bunny collars and Easter eggs, and colored the little droppings with a black marker. I'm not sure if they're black jelly beans or bunny droppings, but you can decide. Either way, I don't think I'd be eating them! LOL The bunny tail has a bit of liquid applique that was puffed up with my heat gun.

I'm sharing this card with the following challenges:

Tuesday Throwdown #429 Kitty Bee - anything goes

Addicted to Stamps and More Challenge #337 - make your mark 

Crafty Gals Corner Challenge #189 - Easter is on its way!

Cuttlebug Mania Challenge - Egg-cellent - use an Easter egg on your project

Thanks for checking in with me today and I hope you have a wonderful Wednesday filled with a few smiles :)

Carol

Easter Wreath

I have an Easter card to share today done in pastel blue and white card stocks. The wreath was made with die-cut Shasta twigs by Poppy in both colors, and the tiny bunny was die-cut with a GinaMarieDesigns tiny bunny die. The Happy Easter sentiment was done with an unbranded die that was gifted to me last year. This was quick and easy to make but I'm really fond of how it turned out.

I'm entering this into the Cuttlebug Mania challenge which is "Easter bunny."

Also entering into the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday challenge - use no designer paper

Thanks for stopping by, and have yourself a wonderful day!

Carol

Christmas Ornament in Blue

Please excuse the lousy photography on this card; it's much prettier IRL. I had to tone down the brightness in order to see the soft stenciled background, and that really washed out the bright royal blue color on the ornament and sentiment.

I haven't used this Heartfelt Creations stamp and die set in ages, so I decided to give it a play. I took a piece of royal blue card stock along with a stamp from the matching set, and stamped it with Versamark ink, then embossed it with Winter Wonderland ep to give it a little sparkle. I dotted the flakes on the stamped image with Nuvo crystal aquatic drops. The background was done with some Tumbled Glass distress ink along with a SU! stencil. The branches at the top were die cut with Poppy Shasta Twig dies from a medium blue card stock and covered with liquid applique. After it dried, I puffed it up with a heat gun to make it look like snow. I added a twine bow with twisted white & silver for some contrast. The "chain" it's hanging from is a sticker and the random mirror blue snowflakes are also stickers. The sentiment was done with a SU! sentiment, embossed to match the snowflake, and die-cut with a Lil Inker stitched sentiment panel.

I'd like to enter this into the Cuttlebug Mania challenge  to use 4 different shades of blue (must always use a die cutting machine - I used my Big Shot)

Also entering into the Merry Little Christmas Challenge MLCCB#8 - March anything goes

Thanks for stopping by and have a fantastic day!

Carol

Falling Hearts

Today I have 2 valentines made with a Nellie Snellen 2-hearts Filling Die. I die cut the hearts from a piece of lipstick red card stock, then die cut one from white, inlaying the white hearts outline into the card front. I took the pieces from inside the heart and embossed them with a Sizzix Curlique & Hearts embossing folder and inlaid them into the white negative heart outline. I die-cut the Lil Inker stitched sentiment panel from white and stamped it with a retired SU! sentiment. With alternating the colors, I had enough to make a 2nd card...

 and here is that version. Made the same as the first, only I used a SU! falling petals embossing folder to create the pattern in the white hearts.

I'm entering into these challenges:

 Cuttlebug Mania "Be My Valentine" challenge.

the Tuesday Throwdown #425 "Falling Hearts"

Thanks for stopping by today and I hope you have a fun and fabulous Tuesday!

Carol

Baby Boy Card

 Today I have a baby card made with a Sweet'n Sassy Cocoa Mouse image that I colored with Copics. I used my Big Shot to cut the image panel with a Gina Marie Designs stitched square die along with the MFT stitched tiny tag done in 2 colors. I added a tiny punched white heart (SU! owl punch) and some twine tied into a bow. The plaid dsp has been in my stash for years and was purchased at QVC.

I'm entering this card into the following challenges:

Cuttlebug Mania Challenge - Hello New Baby

the Crop Stop October Link Party #44 - A/G using a manufacturer's item sold in their store (MFT) plus an option to use plaid.

Addicted to Stamps and More Challenge #312 - Make Your Mark (Copics)

Love to Craft Challenge LTCCB#27 - October anything goes

Thanks for stopping by and I wish you a great Wednesday with lots of warm sunshine and lots of smiles :)

Carol

Father's Day

I think there are some dads out there who like trains so I decided to make a father's day card with a train image. I pulled out a SU! set of stamps called "Happiness is a Journey" (now retired) and heat-embossed the train image with white ep on a piece of turquoise cardstock. I die-cut it with a rectangular postage stamp stitched die, and matted it with a piece of black cardstock that was die-cut with a Lil Inker stitched rectangle die. The background panel was a piece of silver mirror cardstock that I embossed with my Big Shot and a Cuttlebug diamond plate ef and splattered with some black ink for a rustic look. I used a piece of retired SU! ribbon along with 3 honkin' big silver brads and added a computer generated sentiment to finish this card.

I'm entering this into the following challenges:

the Tuesday Throwdown #395 - "what a guy"

Cardz 4 Guyz challenge #196 - "father's day"

Shopping our Stash #357 - "my favorite things" 

(my stitched rectangle dies are a favorite)

Cuttlebug Mania challenge - "frame it"

Thanks for stopping by and I hope your Wednesday is fabulous! Enjoy!

Carol

Easter Bunny & Egg

I really gave my Big Shot a good workout in making this Easter card! My friend loaned me this cute and fancy Easter Egg die which I cut with turquoise and lined with some graphic 45 dsp. I went searching for some pastel coral cardstock to coordinate with it, but the only thing I found was this dark coral piece of CORE-dinations so I embossed it with a CB swiss dots ef. The lower panel was a snippet of celery green cardstock which I embossed with a SU! square lattice ef. The bunny is  a die by Lil Inker and I added a twine bow and some liquid applique fuzz for his tail - along with a tiny black gemstone for an eye. The greenery was made with an unbranded die I received as a gift from a thoughtful and generous friend, and I added a bit of darker green color with a Copic. The sentiment is a digital print from Sans Design which I colored with Copics and then matted with celery and turquoise - again using my Big Shot and some SB circle and scalloped circle dies. The final touch was adding some tiny pearls from Pizzazz Aplenty and I called this one done.

I'm entering this into the following challenges:

Cuttlebug Mania Challenge - Springtime

2 Crafty Critter Crazies - must have a critter on your creation

Thanks for stopping by and make it a great Wednesday whatever you do!

Carol

Gray Mother's Day Card

I combined a few challenges to make this card, and although I'm not sure about the colors, I'm glad to have dug into my stash and used some long overlooked supplies. I found a partial pack of Prism paper cardstock in white, gray and black that I've hoarded for years and used the gray to die-cut the SB nested ovals with my Big Shot. I wove some SU! retired silver and white ribbon between the ovals and attached a little bow. The white panel was die-cut with a GMD stitched oval die and I placed a few clear gemstones on the upper right. The dsp is from the DCWV Luxury stack of pearlized papers and I used a matching Prism papers card base. The sentiment is by Inkadinkado and was stamped with Smoky Slate ink by SU!. I keep wanting to add a touch of pink somewhere because it's a mother's day card, but for the time being I'll leave it as is.

I'm entering this into the following challenges:

Double D challenges - "when skies are gray" - make a card using mostly gray

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday challenge - girl power

Cuttlebug Mania - ribbons and bows

Our big Noreaster fizzled out for the most part, but I am not complaining by any means! Bring on spring now and I think we've had enough "onion snow" as the farmers call it :)

Thanks for stopping by and have a great day whatever you do! Enjoy the sunshine!

Carol

Dual Birthday Cards

Today I have a couple birthday cards made with the same design, but using different colors and papers. I love this Darice swirl die and paired it with some Lawn Fawn polka dot dsp, creating a little tag done with a SU! note tag punch, and added a heat-embossed birthday sentiment with white on black, then stamped the smaller sentiments with black on the Bermuda Bay tag. I added some tiny circles done with a Poppy holly and berries die set and a little snippet of twine to the tag finished this off. I find I can make 2 cards just as easily as one when they're the same design, but I use different colors to mix them up.

Here it is with some gold cardstock and coordinating dsp, The snippets are from my stash and the twine is by Lawn Fawn.

I'm entering these into the following challenges:

Cuttlebug Mania Challenge - birthday celebration

The Repeat Impressions Blog Anything Goes Challenge J2418

Thanks for checking in and I hope your Wednesday is just perfect!

Carol

Valentine Mouse

I found this adorable pre-printed and pre-colored image in my stash recently and decided it was time to pull it from my box of images and make a card, so today I have a valentine to share with you. I'm sorry, I don't know who the artist is but if anyone knows, feel free to let me know and I'll give credit to them. EDIT: Thanks Janice for your comment telling me this is a Whipper Snapper Designs image. I appreciate it :)

I began with a red card base and some dsp from SU! that has teeny tiny hearts on it. I matted the image with red, and then die cut the PTI Notched Hearts banners with red and white and placed that to the side. For the final touch, I used a SU! framelit die to cut the little heart from red and heat-embossed it with white ep and a tiny sentiment stamp that I found at a rummage sale some years ago.

I'm sharing this with the Cuttlebug Mania Valentine's Day challenge - which is to make a Valentine.

I'm also sharing this with the Dies R Us challenge #89 which is "Kids Kards."

Also sharing with the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday challenge to "add a sentiment."

Thanks for stopping by and I wish you a fantastic day!

Carol

Peachy Birthday Card

I have a birthday card to share today that was done with a SU! Beautiful Bouquet stamp set and matching set of Bouquet Bunch framelit dies. I used a piece of peach cardstock, and embossed it with a Cuttlebug Geometric Rings ef, then placed it on a green card base. I die-cut the matching stem and leaves with matching green, and popped up the stamped and die-cut flower with foam tape before adding the SU! birthday sentiment.

I'm sharing this with the following challenges:

Cuttlebug Mania challenge - flowers

Double D challenge - birthday or anniversary card using the following mood board as they celebrate their 2nd anniversary...

The delicate little flowers in the bottom right photo inspired me to make my card.

Thanks for stopping by and make it a great day whatever you're doing!

Carol

Walkin' in a Winter Wonderland

Here's one of a few last minute Christmas cards I made - this one for a youngster. I used a SNSS snowman image and sentiment, coloring with Copics and making a plaid scarf with markers. The snowy drifts were done with Lawn Fawn stitched hillside dies and my Big Shot, and I added a few die-cut small IO bunnies to look like they're playing in the snow. I added some eyes and noses with fine markers. The star was made with a MB Star of Wonder die and some glittered gold paper, and the border on the side is a die-cut MB Frostyville border. I added a strip of turquoise cardstock behind the angled image panel to break up the red and white, then added diamond stickles all over the card to look like snow and make it sparkle.

I'm sharing this with the following challenges:

Tuesday Throwdown #TT372 - anything goes

Words 2 Craft By W2CB#48 - keep Christmas in your heart

Cuttlebug Mania - Anything Christmas (must use manual die-cutting machine)

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - simon says stitch it

Thanks for stopping by and I wish you a great day!

Carol