Tri~Shutter Card

 I made my first Tri-Shutter Card and it was so much easier than I thought it would be!  Thanks to Splitcoaststampers.  You can get the instructions on how to make the card HERE .

I used Martha Stewart's Scoring Board, Inkadinkadoo Thoughts for the Day clear stamps (found at Michaels) and some gems.

I matted the paper with blue.  I stamped the sentiment on some of the mat paper and used a scrap of the pink and some gems to jazz it up. 

I used some small gems to show movement for the little butterfly stamps.

I hope you like my version of the Tri-Shutter card!!  Once I get my Gypsy back, I will add all of these cuts to a file to make it a bit easier to cut out (thanks for the tip Elizabeth)!

Bicycle Easel Card

I am a Guest Designer again today for Sassy!!

My Gypsy is still not back from her "spa" visit, so I switched my focus a bit for this project. I was on youtube watching some videos from www.splitcoaststampers.com and was intrigued. I usually don't make cards, but the Easel Card and Tri-Fold card looked fun so I gave them a try! My easel card was a bit more Sassy than the other, so here is what I made!



This easel card is 4 1/2 x 8 1/2 for the base with a 4 1/2 x 4 1/2 front. Click HERE for the link to the video.

I got to try out my brand new Martha Stewart score board!





Once I made the card base, I needed an image to put on it. This is the difficult part for me! I wanted to use my new Independence Day cartridge and I really liked the bicycle. I did not necessarily want this card to be a holiday card, so I used pink and purple instead of red and blue.

I totally guessed at what size would fit the card and I got lucky on my first guess. Now, if I had my Gypsy, I would have been able to size the bicycle on a 4 1/2 x 4 1/2 square. I cut a white bicycle at 2 inches. I then cut a black bicycle at 2 inches. Call me weird, but I wanted the tires black!!





I cut off the black streamers and then glued the black bike on top of the white bike.

I cut two layers at 2 inches, one in metallic silver and one in pink.



Once I assembled the layers on the bike, it was still missing something. I dug out my stickles and pink gemes and Sassified!

As the stickles was drying, I found some girly paper (not easy for a mom of all boys) and cut it 4 1/4 x 4 1/4. I used some paper left over from a K&co. paper pack I bought for Valentine's Day.



I took a scrap piece of blue (the same color as the card) and stamped on it with a stamp from InkaDinkaDo ~ Thoughts for the Day set. I found this set at Michaels and got it on sale and used an extra 15% off coupon on Monday (score).



I put the sentiment on the card and added a gem for the dot on the i. I used pop dots to raise the bicycle up and stuck it down "pop-a-wheelie" style! I put some gems on the bottom of the card to hold it upright.

The card is sitting on my craft table, and everytime I look at it I like it more!



Thanks again for having me on your blog Sassy!! It is always such an honor!

Guest Designer on TheBugBytes today!

Hello!! I am a Guest Designer on thebugbytes today!! OK ~ I am more nervous than excited because WOW this is for Pam's blog! I refer people to her blog all the time!!

I created a really great box and welded and embellished it with images from Heritage. I bought new paper just for the box....I bought just the right ribbon....I test cut the box....I cracked my Gypsy screen...I panicked....then I remembered something that Pam recommend we do a while back. I saved my files to my computer!!! I am so glad that I listened!!

So, the good news is I still have the file. The bad news is I don't have a Gypsy to cut out the file. My G is all packed and ready to go to her "spa" appointment for a face lift.

Well, I am not going to let a little set back keep me from creating, so off to plan B. I came up with a layout design using the Heritage cartridge.



I turned on my E and then drew a blank. I forgot that I need the actual cartridge to cut my images out. So, I went to my rolling tote that serves as a storage closet for my cartridges and dug out Heritage. I am glad that I am not using more than one cart!!

I also forgot to load my mat! I just hit cut like we do on the Gypsy ~ silly E didn't understand!!

I made a layout about my dad since Father's Day is coming up. I used 12x12 Metallic cardstock from Michaels. I used bronze for the tree and used the fit to page feature since I did not want to waste an entire sheet of paper trying to get the size right.



Because I can't really tell how large a 2" charm tag really is in relation to my tree, I have to experiment (aka waste paper). I used a piece of 8 1/2 x 11 gold metallic cardstock and remembered to repeat last. I cut out a 2" 2 1/2" and 3" charm and tag set. I forgot to set paper size so I cut off the mat. You can see that I wasted quite a bit of paper (I really miss my G). I cut out the word FATHER at 2". I started at 3" but my E told me it was too big for my paper, so I reduced the size until it cut!



Now for the fun part!! I had a photo proof of my dad that had writing on the photo. I trimmed it down to fit inside the charm. I glued the photo to the tag and then glued the frame on top.





I took Glossy Accents and squeezed a layer over the photo.








The tag started to curl a bit so I took two packages of index cards and layed them down on each side to hold it flat.



I let the tag dry overnight. You can see the dimension and shine.





I put a jump ring through the hole at the top of the charm and tied gold ribbon to it. I hung the charm from the tree.




I took one of the extra charms that I cut out and wrote in my dad's name, birth date and death date. I wanted the photo to stand out more than this charm, but this one seemed too bland. I thought about inking the edges, but decided to trace around the inner square with a fine tip black marker instead. I put a jump ring through the hole and tied some ribbon and hung on the opposite side of the tree.



Because I am a 2-page scrapper, I will make a coordinating page that will be filled with journaling (as I have no place to hide any journaling here). I plan to write him a letter, but it is a little too soon for me just yet, so maybe a place to tuck that letter I will be able to write in a few years.





Thank you Pam!! It is quite an honor to be a Guest Designer on your blog!

Designer Showcase #10 ~ Mini Albums

This week on Audrey's BLOG it is my turn to host the Designer Showcase #10.  This week's theme is Mini Albums.  Audrey is also having a game contest so be sure to check it out and enter!!

Here is my sample for the Mini Albums.  I made this album out of tp and paper towel tubes for a staggered look.  I bought the paper at Michaels (full price for me, but noticed it was on clearance today!).  My Gypsy is still broken, so I used paper strips with an edge punch instead of tags.

For the showcase, you can make any kind of mini album ~ chipboard, acrylic, cardstock, etc, and you can bind it however you choose.  Have fun with it!!

Flip Flop Winner!!

We have a winner!! 

The Croppng Canuck said.....Groovy Flowers!

Congrats!!

Card for Lennon

I made this card for Lennon a very special little boy that I learned about HERE.  This is my very first tri-shutter card and it was so much easier to make than it was to decorate!!

I had fun playing with my new Martha Stewart Scoring Board ~ thanks to splitcoaststampers for their awesome YOU-TUBE video for the instructions.

Flippin for Flowers Giveaway!

I am honored to be back as a Guest Designer for Sassy today!! For those of you who don't know, my Gypsy screen cracked last week and I have been a little lost without her! Thankfully, I completed this project before she cracked!!

I wanted to try cutting fabric with my Cricut, and with summer right around the corner I thought this would be a great time mix my project with some summerwear!

I AM GIVING AWAY THESE FLIP FLOPS AND VISOR TO ONE LUCKY WINNER!! All you need to do is be a follower and leave me a comment here to have a chance to win! I will select a winner Sunday June 6th and will post that evening!!




I bought some fat quarters from Michaels and Wal-Mart as well as used some left over fabric that I already had. I picked up some hot pink flip flops and a visor from Michaels. My original color scheme was hot pink and zebra stripe. Well, the zebra stripes looked too chunky once the fabric was cut into small flowers. I changed out the hot pink for the orange flowered fabric. Lucky for me, I work at Michaels and was able to pick up another pair of flip flops and a visor in white!!




Cutting fabric is a bit tricky when you don't have a ton of patience like me! I almost quit more than once, but I do have a stubborn streak as well!

The first thing you need to do is iron Heat and Bond (or something similar) to your fabric. This will stiffen up your fabric and make it easier to cut. I did iron my fabric first to get out the wrinkles, then ironed on the Heat and Bond. My friend uses a heavy duty iron on paper, but this is all I found at Michaels. Next time I will seek out something more Heavy Duty!!



Following the directions on the package, place the paper side up (shiny side towards the fabric) and iron to the wrong side of the fabric. Do not peel off the paper until after you cut the fabric.




You should use a new blade and a new mat. My friend also recommends using painter's tape to tape the fabric down to the mat. This helps keep the fabric tight across the mat. I did not have painter's tape handy, so I tried scotch tape. It did not really seem to help much and it did not come off the edge of the mat easy.



I used Plantin Schoolbook for my flower shape and made four different sizes of flowers. The pink fabric cut the best as it was a pretty thick fabric I used to make drapes for my daycare with. You can see here the orange flowers did not cut well. I used scissors to snip the parts that did not cut through all the way. I did peel off the paper backing once I removed the flowers from the mat.





Once cut, I had a difficult time getting my flowers to have some texture. I tried running them through the crimper, but that did not do much. Crumpling does not work with fabric like it does with paper ~ that would have been too easy!!

I decided to poke two extra holes (one on either side of the middle hole) and gather the flower a bit. I used my Cricut dental tool for this and it worked like a charm. I only poked my finger once!! I used the biggest brad I had and poked it into the bottom hole, back up through the middle hole and down into the top hole to gather the layers together. I did this one layer at a time. I couldn't take a photo as I needed both hands and did not have a helper handy!



I glued a rhinestone on each flower. I used Tacky Tape to glue the flowers to the flip flops.

I made a third flower with the extra pieces and glued it to my visor with a glue dot.



So here you have a nice flowery pair of flip flops and visor!! This project was a bit frustrating, but I am glad I stuck with it!

Don't forget to leave me some feedback with a way to reach you so you have a chance to win!!