Happy Mother's Day card (for BBTB2 and Exploring Cricut)

I have a Mother's Day card for you today!  Both the Exploring Cricut and BBTB2 challenges this week were to make a Mother's Day project, so my card for my mom works for both.  I am really lucky to have the greatest mom ever, so I wanted her card to be beautiful, just like she is.  I used the Phrases cartridge for the Happy Mother's Day sentiment on the front and the beautiful print paper is from the Echo Park Everyday Eclectic collection.

Cricut:
Phrases-sentiment cut at 3 inches
Paper-Echo Park Everyday Eclectic 6x6 prints, CTMH solids
ribbon-American Crafts
brown chalk ink
stamp-Hero Arts
ink-Stampin Up Lucky Limade

So check out the design team blogs at both BBTB2 and Exploring Cricut to see some fabulous Mother's Day projects and link up a project!  You know you want to make that special card for your Mom!!!

Happy Easter layout (for Exploring Cricut)

I've made a layout for the Exploring Cricut challenge this week, featuring three cartridges!  Yes, that's a bunch….but I needed them all. Our challenge is to make an Easter project, including a frame and a button, brad, or jewel.   I used the Phrases cartridge for the happy Easter title.  The bunny frame is from Elegant Edges.  The chick and eggs are from Create A Critter 2.  I added some pearls to my cute little Easter egg (for the jewels).  The cute print paper is from Hobby Lobby.

Cricut:
Phrases-title, cut at 3 inches
Elegant Edges-bunny frame and shadow, cut at 4 1/2 inches
Create A Critter 2-chick and eggs, cut at 3 inches
Paper-The Paper Studio
brown chalk ink

You can use any cricut cut or SVG for this challenge, so link up at Exploring Cricut, and check out the design team's cute projects!

St. Patrick's Day wall hanging (for BBTB2 and Exploring Cricut)

Happy Monday!  It's supposed to feel warm and springy here today, which will be nice for a change since it snowed last weekend!  St. Patrick's Day was the theme for both the Exploring Cricut and BBTB2 challenges this week, so my project is dual purpose.  I like to change the little decorating accents monthly in my house by switching up the candles, wreaths, and wall hangings to fit the seasons and holidays, so I made a a St. Pats wall hanging for my foyer, using A Child's Year and the Phrases cartridges.

So for March, I've got my green candles in the living room, shamrock towels in the hall bath,  along with my project below.  (Sorry about the glare from the glass-I forgot to take the picture BEFORE I put it in the frame!  And it was such a pain to get it hung up that I wasn't taking it down!)  I love this silhouette of the boy with the shamrock on A Child's Year.  I was super-pleased to find the Lucky Day cut with the shamrock on the Phrases cartridge when I searched for "shamrock" on mycutsearch!

Cricut:
A Child's Year-silhouette cut at 6 inches
Phrases-lucky cut at 2 1/2 inches
Paper-St. Pat's print paper is from the DCWV All-Seasons stack, solids are CTMH
brown chalk ink

Show us your projects at BBTB2 and Exploring Cricut and see the festive projects from my awesome design team sisters!  You'll be all in the mood for some green beer and festivities on Snake Saturday!

Party Time mini album with Artbooking (for Exploring Cricut)

Today is my day to share the daily project at Exploring Cricut and I have a really fun project to share!  I made a mini album using the Artbooking cartridge for pictures of my mom's big 70th birthday party.  (It was a Christmas gift for her!)  I used the 8x8 travel themed album for the base pages on the Artbooking cartridge.  I also used Artbooking for most of the decorative elements.  The title is from the Phrases cartridge.  The fabulous paper and stickers are from the Bo Bunny Surprise collection.

Cover:  title is from Phrases

Page 1:  cuts are all from Artbooking

Page 2:  cuts are from Artbooking

Page 3: no cricut cuts, just stickers

Page 4:  This is a half page cut from Artbooking

Page 5: other side of half page-forgot to photograph!

Page 6:  cuts from Artbooking

Page 7: just stickers

Page 8:  another cute little half page

Page 9:  other side of half page

Page 10:  stars from Artbooking

back cover

This actually came together pretty quickly!  I recommend using a coordinated paper pack that includes stickers to make things easier, like Echo Park and Bo Bunny make.  That way all the papers all look good together already and you already have some decorative elements ready to go!  I hope you enjoyed this and are inspired to make a mini!  Remember to check out our daily projects at Exploring Cricut each day (or on Facebook).

Cricut:

Artbooking-album and decorative elements

Phrases-title

Paper/Stickers-Bo Bunny Surprise collection, CTMH solids

brown chalk ink

ribbon-Stampin Up

Gimme a big smile layout

I have a fun and easy boy layout for you today for the Exploring Cricut daily project-using the Phrases cartridge for the title!  The gears  on the layout are cut from the CM This and That cartridge (you can also find gears on some other cartridges if you don't have that one).

It was all inspired by the cool print paper from the Echo Park A Boy's Life collection.   I added some buttons, brads, and stickers from the paper collection to finish it off.  I have a whole bunch of random silly 3x5 photos of my boys taken with my iPhone to go here, so the title is just perfect!  The gear paper is 4x6, so it will show too.  Sorry the colors didn't photograph too well for whatever reason (i.e. photographer errors, lol....).

Cricut:
Phrases-title
CM This and That-gears
Paper-Echo Park A Boy's Life collection prints, CTMH solids
brown chalk ink
buttons and brads-Stampin' Up

FYI:  this title would work for so many layouts and you could change the gears to flowers to make it a girl layout very easily.

Keep checking out all our daily projects over at Exploring Cricut-they are sure to wow you and get you using your cricut!

4th of July layout (for BBTB2)

We have a patriotic theme for our BBTB2 challenge this week!  The 4th of July is one of my favorite holidays of the year-besides celebrating our wonderful country, it is just more laid back and casual than many of the other holidays.  We always go to see the fireworks show in our city park, which is lots of fun.  Our little suburb of the KC metro usually puts on a great show, complete with band music and hotdog vendors.  We take a cooler, lawn chairs, and a frisbee and have a blast.  It's just a really fun community event.

I've made a layout for my pictures of the event, using A Child's Year for the boy on the rocket and the Phrases cartridge for the title.  I found this fabulous paper from Authentique- the kind of retro looking postcards are from the back side of one of the papers.  I added the Reach for the Stars stamp on my journal box as a little extra fun touch!

Cricut:
A Child's Year-boy on firecracker
Phrases-title
Paper-Authentique prints, CM solids
Stamp-K Andrews
brown chalk ink

Have fun joining us at BBTB2 with a patriotic/4th of July project-I so enjoy browsing blogs to see what you make!  And I hope you have a wonderful 4th, however you may be celebrating it!

I'm also going to link this to the Fantabulous Cricut challenge and the Cut It Up challenge this week, since they are both also doing patriotic themed challenges.

good times layout

I was intrigued by the sketch challenge at SOUS this week-while I'm usually not much of a sketch person, I decided to give this one a try!   I used the Fun in the Sun cartridge for my wakeboarder dude and the Phrases cartridge for the good times title.  The fun arrows are from the CM This and That cart.  Sorry the pics are dark-it won't stop raining!!!!

Cricut:
Fun in the Sun-wakeboarder cut at 5 1/2 in.
Phrases-title cut at 2 1/2 in.
Paper-Echo Park All About a Boy prints, solids CTMH and CM
brown chalk ink

These pics made me long for summer, as spring has not really had much in the warm and sunny weather department.  And yes, that's me and Son#1 wakeboarding and Sons#2 and #3 tubing last summer!  Hubby was driving the boat (and it began to thunder and lightning just as he was set up to hit it on the wakeboard, so he didn't get a picture...maybe he didn't have such a good time, lol!).   Fortunately, they did not get a picture of my spectacular wipeout!

Give Thanks layout

Thanksgiving is just around the corner-well almost!  Are you a turkey or ham family?  We go back and forth, but last year my husband smoked a turkey and it was the absolute best turkey I've ever had!  So it is definitely turkey again this year.   So when I saw the BBTB2 challenge to use a turkey, it was time to make my Thanksgiving scrapbook page.   I used the stretched turkey from Stretch Your Imagination, and he turned out looking mighty fine.   I also cut some leaves from SYI.   Two use the Silhouette feature over the blackout leaf cut, which I thought looked pretty.  The layered"Give Thanks" title is from the Phrases cart.

And the story behind the pie, which is from Simply Charmed (without the smiley face part) is that my extended family LOVES pie, so all family gatherings and holidays include lots of pie.  We even have birthday pies instead of cake sometimes!   When I saw the Pause Dream Enjoy challenge to do a food/beverage project, I added my cricut pie to represent all the delicious pie we will be eating over Thanksgiving.

Cricut:
Phrases-title
Simply Charmed-pie
Stretch Your Imagination-turkey, leaves
Paper-DCWV All Seasons print, CTMH solid card stock
brown chalk ink

Christmas in July card

Several challenges are doing Christmas in July right now, which is an incentive to get working on those Christmas cards!  I have not exactly been in a Christmas frame of mind, as the temperatures have been 100-105 here, but decided maybe it would make me FEEL cooler to do a winter project.  (Just for the record, it didn't...but I did get a card made!)  I used Phrases for the Merry Christmas and Elegant Edges for the shape underneath.

Cricut:
Phrases-title
Elegant Edges-shape
Paper-CM solid cardstock, Doodlebug printed paper
Stamps-SU
Swiss dots embossing folder
I'm going to link this to the Cardz TV and BBTB2 Christmas in July challenges.  

Independence Day layout

I can't wait for the fireworks on the 4th of July!!!!  This layout is going to be for my pictures from our city fireworks event.   We bring our lawnchairs, frisbee, and cooler and hang out for a great fireworks show and some big band music-so much fun!   I cut the title Independence Day from Phrases and the Statue of Liberty is from the CM Traveler cartridge.

Cricut:
Phrases-title
CM Traveler-Statue of Liberty
Plaintain Schoolbook-stars
Paper-Echo Park 4th of July mini collection
ribbon-Stampin Up
I'm going to link this to the BBTB2 patriotic challenge this week.

You Float My Boat Father's Day card

We are going canoeing with my Dad next week (after Father's Day), so I thought this sentiment (you float my boat) with the canoe image from Just Because Cards would make him smile for his card.  The stamp is from a K Andrews set I got recently called Splashtastic Summer, which has lots of fun summer sentiments.  The awesome paper is from the Basic Grey Shine On collection (along with the button and transparent stars.  The banner cut for the sentiment is from Birthday Bash.  The #1Dad is from Phrases and the sun is from my fave Doodlecharms.

Cricut:
Birthday Bash-banner (under sentiment)
Phrases-#1Dad
Doodlecharms-sun
Just Because Cards-canoe
Paper-Basic Grey Shine On collection paper and transparencies
Stamp/Ink-K Andrews Splashtatic Summer set, Stampin Up pool blue ink

I'm going to link this to the Fantabulous Cricut challenge to make a fathers day card with an outdoor theme and the Die Cutting Divas challenge to make a father's day card.

King of the Grill card

This card is for my sons to give to my husband on Father's Day.  My husband is definitely the King of the Grill and often fires up the smoker or grill to do some BBQ!  When you have a whole shelf in the fridge for the collection of BBQ sauces and marinades, you know it's serious!  (Of course here in KC we take our BBQ very seriously anyway, as pretty much any random person off the street can tell you where to find some fabulous ribs and burnt ends.)  I've been waiting for the right occasion to cut the bird with the grill from 3 Birds on Parade and here it was!   I'm hoping we can celebrate Father's Day with something delicious (maybe that he doesn't have to cook :)

Cricut:
3 Birds on Parade-bird and grill
Phrases-#1 Dad
Stamp-My Pink Stamper set Lunchbox Thoughts
Paper-Echo Park A Boy's Life
twine-Doodlebug
I'm going to link this to the My Craft Spot challenge "King of the Grill", which was definitely the perfect one for this card and the Cardz TV challenge this week to make a father's day card.

"You Did It" layout

I have many pictures from the end of school and elementary graduation ceremony, so I'm trying not to make all the layouts look the same-tricky sometimes, don't you think?  This one used the Phrases cartridge for the giant You Did It and the CM This and That cart for all the other cuts.  Lovin this Basic Grey Shine On collection-it has a weathered distressed look that I really like (the transparency over the journal box is from this collection also).

Cricut:
Phrases-title
CM This and That-all other cuts
Paper-Basic Grey Shine On collection

I'm linking this to the Celebrate The Occasion challenge this week-anything goes!

make a wish card

The challenge this week at Celebrate the Occasion is to make a masculine birthday card.  Since I've depleted the stash, this seemed like a perfect opportunity to restock!   I used the Phrases cartridge for the words and kept the rest of the card simple-just some paper and ribbon.

Cricut:
Phrases-words
Paper-My Mind's Eye
Stampin Up ribbon