November Joyful Stars Blog Hop: A Christmas Card

Hi and welcome to the November Joyful Stars Blog Hop. It's a circular hop so no matter where you start just keep hopping till you come back again. If you get lost you can find the list at Joyce's blog. If you're coming from Krista's blog, you're on the right track.

I'm trying to get a jump on the holidays this year so I'm posting a Christmas card. My kids were at the table "helping" me so it's not the most complicated design ... but there's something elegant about it anyway!

The stamp set is a Hostess Reward set so make sure you talk to your Consultant to find out how you can get this exclusive set! To make the card, I used White Daisy and Lagoon cardstock with Lagoon & Silver (non-CTMH) inks with Lagoon twine (retired).

I used second generation stamping on the angel for a subtle effect.

Now you're off to Crystal's blog to see what she's created. See you next month!

Scaredy Cat, Day 3

Here is the last of the cards I made with the Scaredy Cat paper pack scraps:

I recently found out about "Inchie" cards and then saw this template in the MIFYH book. I added some Thistle ribbon and Sunset Mini Medley brads and buttons (retired). The stamp set is Trick or Treat Sweets.

Joyful Stars Blog Hop: October Edition

Welcome to the Joyful Stars Blog Hop for October! If you're coming from Krista's blog then you're on the right track. It's a circular hop so if you do get lost, visit Joyce's blog for the complete list.

I've been working on a self-imposed challenge to post a project a day from the Artfully Sent cartridge, but due to my lack of foresight I'm sharing a card I made from some scraps of my Scaredy Cat paper pack:

I used the new purple glimmer trim, blue twill ribbon and a scrap of the black striped ribbon (retired) with embellies I colored in with the alcohol markers (yes, even the sequins!). The sentiment is from Trick or Treat Sweets stamp set and cut with the Art Philosophy Cricut cartridge .

Now you're off to Crystal's blog. Have a sweet October!

Ooops! My Bad.

So I didn't think this challenge through - or at least, I didn't consult my calendar. This week is our town's Farm Show and it's a pretty big deal. One, because it's my family's tradition to be involved behind the scenes and two, I live only two blocks from the farm show grounds. This is a week that I don't buy groceries (or do dishes!) because we eat lunch and dinner there every night. All food stands are from churches and civic groups in town so this is a big fundraiser for everyone. And there is so much good food!

Anyway, I digress ... (sorry, dreaming of those whoopie pies.... mmm!)

Here is a card I made using the Scaredy Cat paper pack, not using the cartridge, this is left over from last month's challenge. I'll post a few more cards using this paper pack (because it's what I have to share) and then I'll return next week with some more projects from the Artfully Sent cartridge.

This 3" x 3" card is made with scraps of the Scaredy Cat paper pack and would be perfect as a gift tag for a teacher's gift or if you're into "Boo"ing your neighbors. I used alcohol markers to color the white enamel stars to match the Thistle ribbon.

Artfully Sent Monthly Challenge, Day Five

Today's project is a card that took me less than five minutes - it's so simple!

This card was actually a mistake cut - I meant to hit "Shift" before "Cut" and this is what I got... but add some washi tape, twine and a liner and I've got a great gift! So simple!

Hope you have a great weekend and I'll be back tomorrow with another project from the Artfully Sent Cricut cartridge!

Artfully Sent Monthly Challenge, Day Four

Here we are at Day Four! Are you enjoying the few projects I've shared with you? If not that's okay - there's a lot more to share so I hope you stick with me! There is so much on this cartridge that I'm finding a month may not be enough time ... but I've committed to a month (and only a month!) and I'm going to do my best to share the range of projects from this cartridge.

Today's project isn't a card - it's an envelope. Back when I married my husband, my mother-in-law and her sisters were making cards together and they made their own envelopes out of wallpaper sample books. It was a time consuming process because wallpaper can be thick and difficult to cut. But they had their templates and they did it - but they also had to cut out liners for the inside because of the ugliness and destruction of the glue on the backside of the wallpaper. Eek! It wasn't for me - I was quite happy buying my envelopes in bulk from Staples. But, I will admit, receiving a beautiful envelope in the mail was an event - it always meant love because I knew it could only come from one of three people. I can now hope to carry on that tradition because this cartridge makes a lot of different envelopes - all with their own liners! It's so easy! 

I selected a plain Jane envelope and liner to start with but there are scalloped edges, sleeve envelopes and more. But I lined it with some of my favorite B&T paper from the "For Always" paper pack (retired but there is a new PML pack that will match it!). This will surely bring a smile to whomever opens it!

Tomorrow's project is another card but you'll love how quick and stunning this one is!

Artfully Sent Monthly Challenge, Day Three

Yesterday I shared the first of two baby cards I made using the new Artfully Sent Cricut cartridge from Close to My Heart. Today, I'm going to share the second one.

This cartridge makes it so simple to make a beautiful card quickly. But it also features envelopes, PML cards and much more. I used a PML card to decorate the front of this card, added a few embellishments and voila!

This card is preset to cut at 4" x 6" so I changed the dial size to 5" so it would better fit a 5" x 7" card. As you can see, it's not exactly 5" x 7" but it does fit the 7" height of the card base.

I added a bow of the new Thistle ribbon and some silver Glitz (retired) to highlight the heart shape.

The drying time of the Glitz was the longest part of making the card, but tying that bow was a close second! :)

The inside sentiment was from the stamp set that came with the cartridge. There are lots of phrases to choose from and it's easy to mix and match. There are sentiments for every card occasion I could think of - all on one stamp set!

Yes, this cartridge is an investment BUT there is so much in this purchase to make it a wise investment. There are three D sized stamp sets that come with it plus a bundle of White Daisy cardstock. I'll be using another of the stamp sets on tomorrow's project.

See you tomorrow!