I DID IT!!!! HOORAYYYYY!!!

I finally finished this puppy.  Wow....I am embarrassed to admit how long it actually took me, so let's just say it took a while to do.  I used my Gypsy and started with the very first cut in the handbook, making it as large as possible on the 12x24 virtual mat.  I then made all of the layers scaled to that first one, by selecting it, going to the overlay and selecting the next layer, going back to the mat and ungrouping, then copying to the next layer, and so on.  Is that too confusing??  If enough people would like to see it, I can make a video of how I did it on the Gypsy.

So, then I used Tim Holtz to dab silver ranger ink to break up the black.  I did it mainly on the roof and fence pieces, to make it look a bit distressed.  I followed the instructions directly from the handbook, so it was actually pretty easy.  Designing the layers and cutting it all took a while too.  Phew, but it's done!!  I'm pretty happy with it, and it definitely can be made smaller.  This turned out quite large, measuring 18"H x 12"W x 12"D.  These pictures are from all four sides of the house.  And with that, I am off to Washington, DC, for a nice long weekend!  My boyfriend is 29 and has never been there, so we are headed down tonight!  Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend, and I promise - no more Halloween stuff for a while.  LOL!

OK, so, it's possible I'm obssessed!!

I just love these things!!!  All cuts are from Happy Hauntings again!  I did a couple more test runs, and here they are.  They are both cut to fill the 12x12 mat, and then I layered the one on the left.  The right one was my first attempts, so I kept it really basic to get the feel for size, cutting, etc.  But I decided the throw a little ghost, some silver accents, and a skull and crossbone MS punch on it.

The one on the left was double sided paper from K&Co, fit to page, and then I got fancy.  I took saran wrap, crinkled it, and dipped it into my blank ink to get the distressed look on the silver paper.  I then used black glitter glue to accent the tombstone at the top, black pen around the perimeter, and I used the "MT Tomb" phrase from layer 1 of the tombstone on page 63 of the handbook for the glitter writing.  I just used the negative cut as a stencil for the glue and glitter application.  So much fun!  I thnik that about covers it, so thanks for visiting!

My new baby

So, I finally got around to taking pictures of Tigger, my new cat, since she wandered up to our deck a little over a month ago.  She is actually more people friendly than your usual stray.  Well, I found out why.  I posted these pics on Facebook, and a friend of mine responded that she is a Bengal cat, and there is a woman who breeds them 3 houses down.  Uh ohhhhh.....so, I asked the dreaded question - do I need to give her back??  She said, no, if she is out, the woman let her out on purpose, maybe because she was the runt, went unsold, etc. 

She also informed me that, since Bengal cats are partially bred from a bloodline of a wild cat from Asia, she will most likely not be fond of being petted, or ever be a lap cat.  Apparently a friend of hers bought one from this woman near me, and she paid $1200.  Yep, you read that right, $1200.  WOW!!! 

So, basically, when people buy Bengal cats, it's mostly for aesthetics, as opposed to affection.  But that's OK.  Every time I go out to see her, she meows really loudly, and is quite vocal and "talkative". So, I guess in her way, that is being friendly.  If our suspicions are right, and she is pregnant, I will post more pictures!  Note, though, how she has spots more than stripes!  Beautiful!

Back to creating!!

After a long week on the beach, I am back to creating, and was this fun and really easy!!  This is from my brand new Happy Hauntings cart, and this was just a test run.  I cut the 3D pumpkin box, and I cut it twice - once in orange, once in black.  I then cut the face parts in black, inked the stem green, chalked for the brown lines, and it was done.  These are very easy to put together, and I can't wait to do more!

For the size, I simply filled the 12x12 virtual mat on the Gypsy, so I could get it as large as possible.  The end product is 5" x 3.2", and the fillable area is approximately 2.5" x 2.5", so I would say candy corns or something small would be best for this.  I cut the base in black, then took just the pumpkin area from the orange cut and glued it to the black base, then glued on the face parts, also cut in black.  I really can't tell you how easy this is, so I am on to other things....with the coup de gras being the 3D house.  Wish me luck!!!  And thanks for visiting today - it feels good to be back.  Hopefully, I didn't lose too many followers from being idle for so long!!

WOO HOOO!!!!!

Well, I left Ocean City, NJ, at 9:00 AM yesterday, and would you like to know the first thing I did????  I stopped at ACM to get these babies!!!!  HAHA!  I was waiting all week to stop and get these on my way home.  Oh, and I also needed a dress for my class reunion last night, but the first stop was ACMoore.  I verified with the clerk that these (not even supposed to be released yet) carts were included in the $39.99 sale, and they were!  I was pretty excited, since I don't often buy carts, and I hope some of you got to take advantage of this deal last week!!!  I will be back to creating this week, so have a great day everyone!  I am winding down and enjoying my tan from vacation!!

More Christmas in July!

OK, so here is another one.  This was my very first Christmas card ever, and it took me a while to get it done, lol!!!  Mickey and Friends and Celebrations were the carts used here, with a little glitter for the snow.

On vacation, soooo.....

How about some Christmas in July???  I will be gone until the 25th, so I figured maybe scheduling a couple of posts for a Christmas in July theme may be a little fun!  I am going to do some cards I made for this past Christmas, and here is the first one.  I made this for my niece who loves Pooh, and I used Pooh and Friends.  This was my first Christmas making cards, so these are pretty simple!!  Thanks for visiting!

WHEW - Lots of work here!!!!

Wow, did these things take a while!!  I think it was because I had so many to make!!  OK, let's just get started.

I did a bit of tweaking since I posted my first one a week or so ago by deciding to paper the backs of the pages as well.  I did NOT have the time or patience to layer both sides, so this will have to do!  I made two different designs for the boys and girls, with the boys' book on top in the picture, girls' on the bottom.  I made three of the boys and two girls books, so that's why it took so long.  All cuts are from Life is a Beach except the shell on the girls books, which is from Disney Dreams Come True.  See the pearls inside it???  I couldn't resist, lol.  I used Divine Swirls on the shells and crabs, and Swiss Dots on the iguanas and flowers.  Some inking for shading, coloring on the sandcastle and pineapple drink, and stickles and gems on the treasure chests completed it all!!  I intentionally kept it plain and clutter free to give them the opportunity to decide how they want to use them, for pictures or journaling.  Once they decide, I will make some mats and frames that fit their choice.

I'm leaving for vacation in a couple of hours, so the kids will get them later when everyone gets there.  I hope they like them!  Sorry this is so long, and I will be live again after I get back from vacation on the 25th!  Have a great week everyone!!!

Day 6 - elephant!

Look how cute!!!  I drew on the eyes because they were cut a bit too large, so I took a sharpie and drew them instead!  I inked the edge of the tail just to give it some distinction from the back end!  Thanks for checking in today!

Day 5 - lion!

I love this little guy too!!  My Scrap Chick does such great work!  Despite the look of it in the back view picture, there are no lines in it.  I think it is a reflection from the plastic on the cricut mat under it!  Thanks for visiting again today!

Day 4 - tiger!!!

Well, I've made it no secret that I love tigers, soooo....I think so far he might be my favorite.  What does everyone else think???

Day 3 - Hippo

I think this little one is pretty cute!!  I used pink gems on the cheeks instead of plain cardstock, and everything else applies as with all other animal books.  Therefore, to keep from being too redundant, I will just post the pics each day now.  Thanks for checking in on day 3!!

Day 2 - monkey!

OK, Stacy, this one is for you!  After I saw your comment on the giraffe, I had to make this guy day 2!!!  Same specs as all of the animal books - My Scrap Chick files, pop dots on the feet and tail, cut at 6"x5.5".  A little ink for the cheeks and sharpie for the eyes, and he was done!  Hope you like him!

Round 2 - Animal Book Week

Well, I think it's time for another animal book week.  This time, it's the collection from My Scrap Chick called Zoo Animal Books, and I cut them all with Make the Cut.  These seem to be even easier than the Sweet Animal Books I featured a couple of months ago, because she made use of negative space for the eyes, spots, etc.  I love them!  All links are included above, so just click away!

OK, without further ado, here is day 1, animal 1 - giraffe!!  I think he is so cute!  I cut him at 6"x5.5", and put a little ink on for his cheeks.  Everything else was cut to proportion with the base.  I also pop dotted the tail and hooves for some dimension.  Very easy.  As before, there are seven, so it works out perfectly for this entire week, while I put most of my craft time into the rest of the beach shape books I'm making!  I can't believe we leave for vacation in less than a week!!!

Visitors!

I went out to feed my cat this morning, and saw she was sitting on the deck, intently watching something off in the distance.  Then I heard an odd clucking sound, looked up, and saw a huge turkey in one of our trees!!!  After some observation, I realized she was calling her babies, and then a male turkey joined in a couple of trees over.  There were eight babies in all, and we (my nephews and I) followed them until they went out front.  UH OH!!!!  I am happy to report that they made the trek across the street just fine, and here are some pics I snapped just before they went to the other side!  We have a pretty busy road, but traffic actually stopped to let them cross!!

I'm "meh" about this

Not sure I like this one, but it's done.  I made this for my mom to give to my brother and his wife for their anniversary yesterday.  I'm not real impressed with this one, but here it is anyway.  The flower is from Life is a Beach, and I chalked it to add some dimension and color.  The satin ribbon is generic, the paper is from DCWV Nana's Kitchen, the "Happiness Always" is an SU! stamp, and the little brown plastic flowers are from a random kit I got from HSN.  On the inside, I used Amy Chomas' sharpie holder and the sentiment from Lyrical Letters.  Very simple, and I threw it together in about 5 minutes, literally.  I guess that's why it's so crappy!!!  LOL.  Anyway, thanks for visiting, and is anyone else out there a Big Brother fan, and looking forward to tonight????    : )

Not my idea, LOL

This card idea is scraplifted, and I have seen several people do it on the MB, so this is my version.  I just LOVE this moon cut on CAC, and I used a page from DCWV Baby Boy Nursery for the base.  I didn't want to put a mat on it, because I wanted the colors to all blend and mesh, so I left it unmatted.  

All cuts are from CAC, and the sentiment is from Gypsy Font.  The buttons are SU!, the ribbon is from Michael's, and I used Stickles on his hat, and Swiss Dots on the stars.  The inside sentiment came from an old Hallmark card I found (hehe), and I just put alphabet stickers to spell out "Baby" on all four of the mat corners to finish it off.  I did chalk the moon to give it almost a shadow effect on one side, but it doesn't really show up here. 

Anyway, that about covers it all, so thanks for visiting!  I am currently getting ready to work on the girls' beach books, so I should have those up in a couple of days.  Stay cool, especially all of my friend here on the East Coast - going up to 101 today!!!

My first ever mini-album

I know this is nowhere NEARRRRR the talent of the mini albums I have seen (and been inspired by), but I am pretty excited because this is my first attempt!  After seeing The Bug Junkie's albums, I decided to try to put one together myself once I got my Gypsy!!  Sooo, here it is.  I am going to make these for my nieces and nephews for our vacation in 2 weeks to Ocean City, NJ.  I intentionally left the pages very plain and basic, because I want them to decide what they want to do with them, be it photos or journaling.  So, once I give them their books, I will have photo mats and journaling mats ready for them to choose.

OK, down to the nitty gritty details!  I used Life's a Beach and Plantin Schoolbook for all of this.  It was actually much easier than I thought.  I just copied and pasted the pages (rectangles), and just made them slightly wider for each page.  The new layers feature in the Gypsy make these SUPER easy to make now, and I used it to my advantage when lining up pages.  I welded each shape to the rectangle, and then just cut out the shapes and layers later.  All of the papers are loose sheets I hand picked, with this project in mind, from Joann's.  Some Divine Swirls on the crab, googly eyes, button eyes and glitter glue, and it was done!  The gems on the treasure chest came from Michael's, and they are all Recollections brand.  I also inked the inside of the shell slightly pink and used Stampin' Up! Sanded stamp on the shell.  Whew, I think that does it for details.  How about some pictures?!?!?!

Jen asked me what I cut this out of, and I felt so stupid for not mentioning it originally!!  The base for the pages is, believe it or not, the backing material that comes in the packages with Stampin' Up designer paper!!!  It is absolutely PERFECT for the mini albums and shape albums.  So, if you buy SU designer paper, do NOT throw away those cardboard-like backings!!!  Put them to good use!

If anyone wants the Gypsy file for this, I will certainly e-mail it to you. Just leave a comment with your e-mail address.  Hope you enjoy, and thanks for enduring so many pics!!!

Happy 4th of July!!!

Happy Independence Day, everyone in the U.S.A!!!  I love 4th of July events, and this is my contribution to the picnic this year.  I made these cupcake wrappers from start to finish in Make the Cut!!!  All I did was start with a rectangle, weld a border to the top and "Happy 4th of July" in the center, and then I used the Bezier warp feature to create the curve.  I did 20 of them in four different patterns, and the first picture is one of each of the patterns.  The final product is sitting in the middle of the table as the centerpiece! 

I hope everyone has a wonderful day today, whether you are celebrating or not!  It's going to be a hot, sunny day here - typical 4th of July!!!  Have a great holiday, everyone!!