AHS #50 and Balloon Talk Thanks

We were very fortunate to be able to take our sophomore daughter (and 7th grade little sis) to visit the University of the South and Vanderbilt University over spring break last week.  One of my MIL's friends is a dean at Vanderbilt, and we got the royal treatment while there.  I made this thank you card for her, inspired by the Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge #50 and the beautiful day we had there.

The Skylark paper pack screams spring to me, so it was my first choice for a thank you card.  The "believe" piece was perfect because the recipient really believes in our daughter!  Did you know that the top piece and the bottom piece are from the same 12"x12" piece of B&T Duos?  The stripes across the card are gold polka dot washi tape and Lagoon shimmer trim.  I cut the speech bubble with the CTMH/Cricut Artiste cartridge then stamped the sentiment in Lagoon.  The square durables are the perfect finishing touch, coordinating well with the quatrefoil pattern, the washi tape, and the bird.

Here are a few fun pictures from our trip:

Big Sis leaves tonight for a chorus trip to Chicago for the next five days, so I would appreciate your prayers for her and the group's safe travel!

Thanks {big time} for letting me share my card and a little of our trip!

Easter Egg Card

This cute little egg is actually a 3" high Easter card!  (If you'd like to see a few 3-D egg decorations I made recently, click HERE.)

To make it, I used a few clicks and cuts on my CTMH/Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge and the Ariana paper pack.  I just kept all my measurements at 3" for the White Daisy card base, the floral egg, and the Coral overlay.  (The blue pieces are scrap that I cut to fit behind the cutout opening.)  The pretty (self-adhesive) bow is from the Ariana Assortment.

This little flower on the inside is leftover from one of the egg cutouts from my 3-D projects.

Because this is my first-ever egg card, I am linking it up to the Fantabulous Cricut Challenge #205: Spring Cleaning.  They are challenging us to use a cartridge or a key that we've never used before.  Thanks for hopping by!  I hope that you have an egg-cellent day!

H2H Challenges: Twisted Cricut

This week's Heart 2 Heart challenge is to use your Cricut in a "twisted" or different/unique way.

When my friend Joy sent me a tutorial link for 3-D paper Easter eggs, I knew what my Cricut project would be for this challenge!  I have my own quick tutorial for the two different types of eggs you can see in the bowl (and close ups of them too).

1.  Start with five die-cut eggs.  (Mine use the Ariana paper pack and the CTMH/Cricut Art Philosphy cartridge.)  Fold four in half vertically.  Place two folded eggs on either side of the one egg that you didn't fold.  (I alternated my patterns for a very pretty final effect.)  The two eggs below the flat egg fold down and the two eggs above the flat egg fold up.  (Don't worry if you don't get that part right because you can fold them again after you staple them.)

2.  Stack the eggs on top of each other.

3.  Staple the center fold all the way through all five eggs.  Fold the pieces again to fan them out.

 Here are the other two eggs, also from the Ariana paper pack.

For this one, I used two eggs that have a flower cutout.  (This is one of the egg options on the CTMH/Cricut Art Philosphy cartridge.)

 For my final egg, I decided to get fancy and create a honeycomb effect.  You can find a link to the honeycomb tutorial HERE if you'd like to learn how to do this for yourself.  (I think that I used 20 identical die cut eggs and lots of patience, so this one isn't for the faint of heart!)

Be sure to visit the H2H blog to check out all the creative Cricut projects our design team made for you this week.  You have until the end of the month to play along with all of our April challenges, and there's also a special giveaway going on this month too.  Go check it all out!

April Stamp of the Month Blog Hop: Balloon Talk

No fooling, it's time for the April stamp of the month blog hop!  If you've already started hopping, then you should have arrived from Lori's blog.  You will visit Jen next.

My card is based on a Make It From Your Heart sketch and the CTMH Corporate artwork for this set. I love the fun Lollydoodle paper pack! On the center Whisper panel, I used Slate ink to stamp the two outline speech bubbles and "miss you."  The focal sentiment is Cotton Candy ink on a Pear mat.  The arrow gem is from the Lollydoodle Assortment.  I also used some Lagoon and Slate washi tape.

Be sure to check out all the cute ideas with this set!  Your next stop is Jen's blog.  Thanks for hopping by!

Give a Lift Card

Happy spring!  We are starting spring break this afternoon (YIPPEE!!!!!!) so I wanted to share a lovely card with you.

Imagine me floating away... to a little rest and relaxation at least!

(If you're interested in the details, this card is based on a sketch from Make It From Your Heart, Vol. 1.  I used the "quick coloring" technique to sponge the balloon and the sky.  The Sorbet band around the balloon is paper pieced.)

All supplies from Close To My Heart: Give a Lift stamp set; Balloon Ride paper pack; Crystal Blue, Saddle, Sweet Leaf, and Creme Brulee inks; Sorbet and Creme Brulee markers; blending pen; Bronze shimmer trim; Balloon Ride Assortment

Snowy Sarita

After a few brief tastes of spring, we are back to more cold weather.  Hopefully this is our last cold snap before spring stays.  (At least we didn't get the snow that was predicted.  We've already missed 8 school days and have extended our day by 30 minutes to make up for some of the student days.)

These pictures are from one of our January snow days.  I paired them with the Sarita paper pack, which might seem like an unusual choice with its Southwestern motifs, but I liked the colors and thought that the B&T Duos that I chose kind of looked like sweaters.  What do you think?

I used up a lot of retired stash, like Sassy Strands, rub-ons, and brads.  I thought that they really went well with my layout, and it is always great to use (rather than horde) my crafting supplies.

This layout is definitely a tribute to how much the girls have grown and changed.  They used to jump on the trampoline and sled when it snowed, but this year, they went driving around in the T-Rex.  They are growing up so quickly!

No matter what your weather, make today a great day!

H2H Challenges: Country Flair

What does the challenge "country," mean to you?  Is it country music?  Cows in a pasture?  Denim, cowboy boots, and quilts came to my mind, so that was my inspiration for the Heart 2 Heart Challenges country flair challenge this week.

I chose the Ariana paper pack for its Outdoor Denim and Crystal Blues.  Doesn't the blue strip pattern remind you of ticking?  I used a sketch from the Lollydoodle Card Workshop on the Go because it reminds me of a quilt.  (I "hand stitched" my pieces with my Outdoor Denim marker.)  The pretty striped bow is from the Ariana Assortment.

Thanks for checking out my country flair!  Now go see what the rest of the H2H DT has created.  You have until 3/31 to link up your project for any of our March challenges.

Studio J Special This Month!

Don't forget that this month only, Studio J. layouts are only $5 each!  You need a minimum of 4 layouts to place your order.

One of the things that I love most about Studio J (other than its ease of use) is that I can create gift layouts so so so easily!  I made a copy of the above layout and then changed the journalling a bit to customize it for a gift for my mother-in-law.  I know that she will LOVE having pictures of her "baby" boy and her granddaughters!

Happy St. Patrick's Day

May your troubles be less

And your blessings be more

And nothing but happiness 

Come through your door!

~Irish blessing

Confirmation Layout

This layout was actually my first project for the Heart 2 Heart Challenges "lucky" challenge.  It's really more like blessed than lucky, for indeed I am truly blessed.  I try to be mindful of my blessing each and every day, and that is especially true today.

The soft, muted colors of the Balloon Ride paper pack seemed to be the best fit with the photos of our family at my daughter's recent confirmation.  I used my Frame Flair stamp set for my title and journaling boxes.  If you look carefully, you'll also see that I embellished the corners of the Saddle photo mats with the rectangle frame stamp.  I also used a retired set (though the name eludes me right now) for the sayings.

One cool thing about our alcohol markers is that you get two in a set, the actual color and either a lighter or darker pen.  I used both on my layout.

To add a little sparkle, I used bronze shimmer trim and the Rosewood mini-medley assortment.  My girl definitely has a sparkly personality so a little bling was in order.

May you count your blessings today and always!

H2H Challenges: Feeling Lucky

This week's Heart 2 Heart Challenge is all about feeling lucky!  I just have to ask (in my best "Dirty Harry" voice), "Are you feeling lucky?  Are you, punk?"  If so then scoot on over to the H2H blog and link up your lucky project!

My project is a shamrock card that I am actually using as a cute little table top display.  If you'd like to make one, you can find a great tutorial HERE.

To start, I cut out two 4" hearts out of Pear card stock and two 4" hearts out of the Pear B&T paper from the Lollydoodle paper pack with my CTMH/Cricut Art Philosphy cartridge.  (The White Daisy heart is 3.5".)  I used my Holiday Tags and Geometric Background stamps with Sweet Leaf, Pear, and Honey inks to decorate two of the hearts.  (The flowers, fabric button, and Pear ribbon are retired stash.)

Doesn't the gold polka dot washi tape look like gold coins?  Also, to create my little heart shamrock, I cut four 1.25" Sweet Leaf card stock hearts, folded them in half, and only adhered one side to the larger heart.

Be sure to visit the tutorial to see how to thread the ribbon to make the card stand up.  You can fold it back flat and mail it if you wanted!

Thanks for visiting.  Be sure to check out the talented Heart 2 Heart designers' lucky projects!

Happy Place Card

If you saw the March stamp of the month blog hop, then you already know how much I love nesting dolls.  Here's a card I made with this great stamp set.

(Mom, pretend to be surprised when you see this for Mother's Day!)

I used the Ariana paper pack and my Cricut Artiste cartridge to make a card with the Make It From Your Heart Vol. 1 sketch.  Those nesting dolls were colored with our markers and cut by hand.

I hope that you're enjoying your March.  Don't forget about this month's Studio J $5 layouts and the March stamp of the month, Happy Place!