Alice in Wonderland Cards

Hello everyone!

How many of you out there have been invited to a million sweet 16? 

My second son, whom is now 17, was invited to at least 20.  I honestly could've made a mortgage payment, and then some, with the amount of money I spent on gifts! Hahaha.

I'm so glad we got past that, but in the interim, I made some pretty cool cards. 

One theme in-particular was a regular. Alice in Wonderland! Now,

here I was, the mother of 4 boys, and none of them into Alice in Wonderland...lol.

The only Alice movie I remember, was the Disney version from my childhood. I think I seen it maybe twice. 

I remember the basic characters, basics of the movie, BUT, there's a new version from Tim Burton! I was lost...lol. 

So I decided to stick with components, and characters of the movie, but in general....not from either version, Disney or Tim Burton. I looked at as a artistic vision. Lol.

This was the first Alice in Wonderland card I made. I had such a hard time deciding on colors and what other components would work. I actually stressed a little! Hahah 

This was the second card that I made for the Alice In Wonderland theme. This one is the one that I consider an artistic vision...lol. 

This one was the 3rd style Alice in Wonderland card that I made. I actually had svg's for it, that I got on sale for $2.00. I used peachy keen stamps for the faces. I think it gives them more  of a cartoon look. Makes them cuter.

Well, I hope you enjoyed my cards!

If you like my work, be sure to follow me!
Comments are always welcome too...love to hear what you all think of my designs. Thanks or looking!!

Couture Dresser Baby Shower Invites

Hey Guys!

I hosted a baby shower for my sister in law, back in June, whom loves Juicy Couture. I just had to make the invites, and of course they had to be over the top! I know, I'm out of control, but I really love this sort of stuff. 

She was having (actually already had) a baby boy! She already has 2 girls. I decided I loved the detail I can do on a dresser design, so that's what I did.

Being that I have the Cricut Explore, I was able to design the onesie, with the crown on it. The Explore prints and cuts!!! Love that machine! Figured it looked more "Juicy". Lol

The leopard diaper bag was a mock of the Juicy Couture diaper bag she actually has!

Again, simple, just time consuming, being that I has to make 15 of them. Love them though! I was extremely pleased with how they turned out!

Well, I hope you love them as much as I do! If you get the opportunity to make one, do it! It was a lot of fun!! Enjoy!

Teacher Pop Up Cards

Hello everyone!!

Sorry I've been gone for so long, things have been crazy! But, I'm back!

I'm a scrapbook junkie, (yes, probably would be put in a rehab if there was one...lol) so I have a lot of supplies at my finger tips. But even if you don't, don't get discourage. It took me years to get where I'm at with my collection. Lol. And there's still alot of stuff I need to get. Notice, I said need. Hahaha

Ok, so, when the school year ended back in June, I made some cute cards that I'd love to share with all of you!

My son Mathew, he's in preschool, so I made a pop up card for his teachers, based on school supplies, etc. They may look scary for first timers, but they really are pretty easy. 

On these cards, all I used was my Cricut Explore, my peachy keen stamps, paper and glue. Pretty simple supply list. Being that I have a monthly subscription with Cricut, I really don't need cartridges, and I have a pretty extensive svg collection. ( Yes, Cricut Explore cuts svg files!)

 Normally I cut, stamp or print everything on the cards, but this time I did write in the "to" and "from". Lol. When you use black paper, the computer doesn't print white....but my gel pen does! Hahaha

 You can see I used my Peachy Keen stamps, for the book worms face. I never cut the faces from the Cricut files (used too, until I found Peachy Keen stamps!). 

I always shut the contour off and use a stamp for the face. I think its much cuter!

Well, I hope you enjoyed my pop up card! 

Check back soon to see what else I've been up too!

17th Birthday Card

Good morning bloggers!

It's a beautiful spring day here in NY! Waiting for the afternoon high of 60*! Yay!!! So happy. I feel like I can spread my wings, and bust out of this cocoon. LOl. Spring has arrived!!

Ok, on to business...

My son Bryan turned 17 on March 19!! A very Happy Birthday to my second born son! Love you Bryan!

Of course, being hooked on step cards, I had to make him one!

This card though, I think may be my favorite. I love the candles and the cake.

I really love the that I turned the number 17 into candles too! Just 

like a real birthday cake!!

Not to mention the bright colors! 

I used my new Cricut Explore to cut all the details (the happy birthday, candles, and frosting).

Now that I have my Cricut Explore, it really

does cut so much nicer then my Cricut Expression 2 does!

And, Cricut offers 2 weeks free of every image they

 have, except licensed ones. 

I went to town! Hahaha. And this card is easy to make.

Plus, this can be turned into a wedding card, an anniversary card, there's 

so many things you can do!

Oh, the possibilities!!!!!

Well, hope you enjoyed another one of my step card designs! 

Hope that you feel inspired to make one of your own!

I'm going to be posting the 2 Alice in Wonderland cards I made for 2 sweet 16 that my son attended. So, check back!

Thanks for looking!! 

(Be sure to check my Ebay and Etsy stores)

Starting my Easter cards....

Good morning followers!!!
Spring is in the air, even though it's still cold here in NY!!
The birds are chipping and the sky is blue...love that!
Suppose to even get up to 48* today...yay! Lol
With that said, I'm thinking Easter already....

Another hop closer to Easter...

Easter is coming and of course it's on my brain.

I got my new Cricut Explore machine and want to do so many exciting projects,

but the first one I did was an Easter card.

I used to own a chocolate shop (yea, a lot of people didn't know that about me) and I love the look of the chocolate bunnies in paper crafting.

So, I found an awesome image with a chocolate bunny,

with a bite out of the ear!!! Love it!

I made it look like the actual chocolate bunnies that
 I used to sell, bow and all (yes, I had made my bows on my chocolate bunnies too. I actually used this exact ribbon on some)

Naturally, the grass was made from
green non preails (on the real ones), not paper! But, I can't use non preails on my cards, so I made do...Hahahah

Hope you love it! There are going to be many more, once I have the time! Lol...

Kids keep me running and life is so busy! Dr appointments, blood work, ugh! Between the kids and my own health issues....no rest for the weary...Hahaha. I'm just happy to be here! ;-) 

Think I'm hooked on step cards....Disney!! Mickeyand Minnie mouse

Disney step card with Mickey and Minnie Mouse

OMG!! I think I'm hooked on step cards! 

I love the way you can make a whole realistic scene!! So awesome!

 Can you tell how excited it makes me? Hahahaha

Now, those of you who love Disney, or have been to Disney, 

Will totally get this scene!

Only one thing, my computer crashed and I lost all my fonts, including my disney ones! Ugh!!
That's why I used a differnt font for Happy Birthday :-(

I used my cricut cartridge, Mickey and Friends ( Have to get the princess one, I have an idea floating around my head)

 Create a Critter cartridge for the castle. (It's actually a sand castle)

White gel pen

Chalks,

And some twine.

Im so pleased with this card. Can't wait to make more!!!

Challenges, challenges, challenges

So, I entered my birthday card (from my attempting my first step card post)
in the

 Fantabulous Cricut card challenge. The theme was 

your favorite holiday. Fingers crossed! Maybe this ones a winner!! Lol

I also entered this card in another

 Peachy Keen sketch challenge. Will I be a Peach? Probably not...LOL, but as my husband says, you have to be in it to win it!

Ok, so here's my entry for the Peachy Keen challenge....

You had to use the basic elements, but were free to use them as you wanted.

I'm just starting to get the hang of this (card challenges and blogging). Some of the other ladies work is gorgeous, but I think I can hold my own...lol

Just like everything else I have ever done creatively, I'm sure I will look back and say, "what was I thinking" , when I get the hang of it. Lol.

Just like when I look back at my first scrapbooks pages.

 Finding time lately

too, has been kinda rough.

Experiencing an exasperation from my MS, has really

made me extremely 

tired and run down.  It's ruining 

my crafting fun!

Stiff upper lip, and I shall forge forward!

Paper bag album

Smile paper bag album

Ok, so, for years now, 

I've seen these paper bag albums around, and always 

wondered what people did with them. I never

 saw them all decorated, so, to me, it was

 confusing. Well, as years went by, I grew older(and

 I like to think wiser too, lol) I seen them around, 

decorated. Once again,

Pinterest came in handy! They are so pretty and you can't even tell that they're actually paper bags!

Beautiful and easy to make!

 How does it get easier then that, when most of us

 already have paper bags in the house! So, one night, after getting a new book of scrap book paper, I decided to make one. 

I went on you tube, to get an idea about what other people did, how they put them together, etc. What did they use, glue gun? All the little questions that one may have when exploring a new craft.

I watched a couple of videos, each from a different

person, so I got different views, and

ways to go about this project. I also came to the conclusion that an
ATG is an assest to own! LOL!! I've never been big on using adhesive tape...always a glue girl. Well, let me tell you,
 I LOVE adhesive tape!! Talk about hold, and easy to use!
Understatements!

Ok, so, I used a standard lunch size paper bag, that I had a bunch of in the house, for my kids lunch. 

I folded it right where the bottom of the bag, where it flaps....

Then I secured (taped) the flap on the inside, where it would open to make the bag wide. Also, taped the flap where I folded, so now it was one complete piece, that would be one big flap technically.

Then I used a solid color card stock. I used that to layer over the bag. I let a little stick out the sides though. Some people cover it completely, some people let some show, it's all a matter of preference.

I chose matching printed card paper, not card stock to the next layer on the page, but again, it's a matter of what you want to do. It's all preference.

I made some cool printed paper tags, and stamped some journaling tags, so whomever is using this book, has the freedom to write what they want.

Va la!!! I'm done!

I just jumped in, feet first! Hahaha.
After finding my way thought, and learning
from my experience, I defiantly look forward to doing it again!
I recommend at least making one, once! It's a great DIY project and it's inexpensive, if you already have card stock. (Which I scrapbook, so I am a paper hoarder! Hahaha)

My next one will be a baby boy one, being that my sister in law is having her first little boy (she already has 2 girls), and I'm hosting the shower!
I already have 4 boys, from the age span of 19 to 3!!! Lol!!! It's a miracle that I'm not bald yet....hahaha
 No, but really, I love being a boy mommy!

My New Home Card!

A "New Home" deserves an awesome card!!!!

YES, I've been working,...slowly,

but seems like nothing but issues lately! Lol!!

Between the computer, my little guy having a cold... to much to do, too little time! Hahah!

It's all good! I'm getting there....hahaha

Well, enough about my grips...

What have I been working on....Let's see....

Ah, yes! My new home card! A couple friends have purchased homes lately, and I was thinking, how cute it would be to make a step card, that looks like a yard.

So I got busy, I even included a walk way with a home sweet home door mat! That was my sons idea, when he saw how it was coming out.

Really wanted the house to look "homey", so, I even put a little flower box with flowers under the front window, and encased the front door with stones.

 I just love the mail box,

fence and stone walkway!

What did I use to make this card?

Cricut cartridge Mickey & friends (for the mailbox, walkway & the fence)

Cricut cartridge Create a Critter (house & trees)

Spellbinder die (for frame)

Lots of luck stamp set

Frisker scissors (for the grass)

Green, red, brown, blue, aqua and yellow card stock

The flowers I used a star Martha Stewart punch

So Many Ideas!!!

 I always have the ideas floating in my head, but have trouble getting them to relay on paper.

One of my biggest problems is my indecision with color!

Being that I have MS, at this point, it's affecting my decision making process

and is really becoming hasslesome to my craft!! But, this too shall pass! I'm getting through, not without frustration though! Hahaha.

Could be worse!!!

My Etsy shop and Ebay store

Just want to remind everyone, my creations are 

available for purchase in my Etsy shop and my Ebay store. 

There's even some listed that haven't made it to the blog!!! 

Be sure to click the links for my shops on top of the page! Thanks again!

Sending warm and fuzzies card

What's a great way to let someone know that you're thinking of them? 

Send some warm and fuzzies their way!!

Super cute and a great card!

In this particular card, I used pastels but bright colors will work just as good.

 Maybe even better, depending on who the cards for. 

 I had a stamp for the mason jar, and my Peachy Keen stamps for the faces. That's what really gives them personality!

I didn't have a svg or die cut that was a real "fuzzy" so I used something else that I found on one my Cricut cartridges. 

Create a Critter to be exact. The more that I explore my Cricut, the more I find uses for parts or layers as they call them. Even just basic shapes, can turn into something amazing with a little imagination! 

(And added personality, faces!!)

I have made a really cute camera card that I used my Cricut craft room basics to make. Just used a retangle shape....Really simple too, and it seems to be a trend....the camera thing...lol

The more I look at the "fuzzies" the more I think they can even double as popcorn! How exciting! LOL! 

Another step card...Get well soon

I really do love my Peachy Keen stamps, 

so I sat down and thought of a great project for them. 

I really wanted to try another step card. 

Being that it's new to me, I wanted to play around some more.

The faces on the Peachy Keen stamps are so friendly and emotional, 

I figured I would try the Get Well Soon card.

I had to cut everything (for the pills and the medicine bottle), from shapes. Basically like a punch art card would be, except I used my Cricut. For the border around my Get Well Soon, used my Sizzix  Big Kick die cut machine, with Spellbinder dies. Also used my polka dot embossing folder for the band aids.

I do love my Sizzix machine a lot more then my Cricut right now. I like the freedom of putting the die exactly where you want it. I finally learned the trick to do that with the Cricut, but the Spellbinder dies are another one of my loves!

There are svg files for cuts like this, but being that I have the Cricut expression 2, it doesn't cut svg!!! Sooo, disappointing!

But, there's hope! I did my research, and I know that the Silhouette machine does and the new Cricut Explore machine cuts svg files too. The Explore won't be out until March though. 

So, this is the question that I dare ask....do I give up my Cricut Expression 2 and get a Silhouette, or the Cricut Explore???

I definitely want a mach that cuts svg files!!! No doubt about that! 

Attempting first step card.....My sons 19th birthday card!

Attempting my first step card!

First I want to say Happy Birthday to my son Michael...(wow, that felt weird. I always called him Mikey, once in a while Michael, but now he's 19, and probably prefers Michael)

Ah yes. What would crafting be, if it wasn't for jumping in with new projects. 

My oldest son turns 19 today, so I figured I would make his birthday card....giving a step card a try!

How hard could it be? Right? 

I have a template, written instructions....I got this!! All under control....

What!??? Huh???

I don't know why, but no matter how much I measure, I always seen to be a tad off....ugh! 

Cut card 4.5" by 8.5"...check, easy enough! 

Then the little measurements inside....huh??? I remeasure a 100 times and still can't figure out my mistake...

Oh wait!!! The measurements on the template, are different then the written ones! Someone made a boo boo and it wasn't me....for once! Lol!

Anyway, after figuring it out, I finally was cooking with gas! I defiantly can't wait to do one again. Now I know how to measure....lol. Plus I also have a better idea of size and scale, etc, for the future set ups. 

Hope Michael loves his card!!
 Yeah, right! Being a typical teenage boy, it'll get tossed aside after removing the contents...
money of course! Hahahaha

I will add the template to help any of you out there, that want to make a step card. As soon as I make my own template for you to use. I will make sure the numbers are correct! Lol ;-)

I'm no "Peach", but maybe a Cricut???

Defeated.....

So, I didn't win the "Peach" award that I tried too, but that's ok! 

Some may say it's an embarrasment. I'm a loser, but I beg to differ!

A beautiful card did win, and that's creative inspiration enough!

Helps with my creativity when I see others work, well, sometimes!! 

Usually my work is just my own crazy brain child! Hahahaha.... 

There's another challenge from Peachy Keen Stamps, that I will enter. When I do, I'll tell you about and of course, show you my work!!! 

My 2 Cricut entries, in case you missed them....

 I have entered 2 cards in the Cricut challenge....just maybe...LOL!!

I went in a totally different direction with each card, but the rules were,

** 1) it had to be a Cricut cut

** 2)you had to use hearts. 

I really like the shamrock card. It's a unique way to use a heart cut, don't you think???

And with Valentines day passed, why not?! Mix it up people!!!!

I used my hot glue gun with the shamrocks...it dries faster and provided a mega hold. Lol!

Plus, with the 3 D look they have, i felt it was a better choice! :-)

Another card challenge. ...could this be true...lol

Oooh, looky what I found!

I spy with my little eyes, yet another card challenge!This ones pretty easy too!!!
Has to be a Cricut cut and something with hearts. Lets see what I come up with!

Well? Made this little gem a couple weeks ago. 

What do you think? Certainly meets the criteria. 

I'm jumping in with this guy.

I used my create a critter cartridge, some chalk, and stamps. This is one of the projects I wished I had the peachy keen stamps for, but I made the eyes with punches....

not bad, in my humble opinion!!! 

Then, of course, there's this one.....

Once again, because this is a Cricut challenge, I used my Cricut machine to cut the hearts out. I have the Cricut Expression 2, and I'm also hooked up the the Cricut craft room, so, I used the craft room basic heart in this one. I just picked the sizes I wanted and va la!

So folks, there's the two cards I entered so far! Maybe I'll do a third...hmmmmm????

This particular challenge, you can enter up to 3 cards, 

sooooo, I better get busy!!!Ta Ta for now. I have 2 more cards to design asap! 

I'll keep you all posted.....