101st Birthday!

Believe it or not, my husband's Aunt just celebrated her 101st birthday. Can you believe it? When she was born they had no electricity, no telephone or some of the luxuries we now consider essential. In her lifetime she has seen more inventions come to life and the world has transformed significantly. How amazing.

When she finished high school she went to the big city and went to business school. She started working in a law firm and shortly thereafter was assigned to work with a new lawyer. It turned out she worked for him throughout his entire career and he eventually became a Senator. When he died, she retired to her house and her garden which was always magnificent. She never married and she never learned to drive. She bought her house in 1950 on her own. In those days single women just didn't do things like that. She lived there without too much help until at the age of 99 she decided it was time to move into a retirement home and she is very happy there. Needless to say, she is the oldest resident. She has made many friends and she is still very physically and mentally active. Apparently she is the only resident who still goes outside with her walker and takes her walks around the grounds to keep mobile. I guess all those years of walking everywhere has paid off.

Anyway, for her birthday I couldn't help myself but make a card based on the 101 Dalmatian theme. I cut the dog house and dog from the Four Legged Friends Cricut cartridge and added a banner saying Dalmatian Clubhouse. I added the black spots on the bog myself and then added a tag with 101 on it. I used my Peachy Kean stamps for the eyes. A big brown satin ribbon finishes it off.

Last week we took the card to his Aunt and she absolutely loved the card. All of her other cards had flowers on them so this one really stands out. She absolutely loved it! We spent the afternoon with her talking about her house plants and all the things that are keeping her busy. We are looking forward to seeing her again at Christmas time.

Card Challenge - A Caroling We Will Go

Cricut Cardz Challenge this week is to make a card for Christmas based on your favorite Christmas song and use any Cricut cartridge you'd like. Well after some deliberation I decided upon the song, "Deck the Halls".

I started with a backdrop of black designer paper that would enhance the wreath. I cut several holly leaves and berries from the Stretch Your Imagination Cricut cartridge and arranged them in the shape of a wreath. I then shaded in the berries using my Copic markers and added Christmas green Stickles to the leaves. More sparkle was added with the green organza ribbon.

Now, let's see what your cards look like. Go over to Cricut Cardz Challenge and add your project for everyone to see. It's always interesting what other crafters are doing in their spare time. See you next time!

Christmas Tags

This weekend I spent time with friends in Michigan. As a small gift for everyone, I made boxes of gift tags.

I started by cutting several images using my Winter Frolic Cricut cartridge small enough to fit onto gift tags destined to fill the boxes. Each image was put together and Stickles glitter was added for fun. Red and green peppermint Baker's twine was threaded through the whole at the top and will be tied to each present for gift giving. I made 6 boxes and 6 different images so that each box contained 2 tags of each design - so 12 tags in each box.

It was a great project to get me into the Christmas spirit. Everyone loved getting a little something that was so unique and useful. Happy holidays!

Let it Snow!

Kids just love playing outside so why not let it snow in the classroom too! I made these classroom bulletin board decorations for a friend of mind who teaches Grade 2 students. At the same time the Cricut Cardz Challenge this week is to create something using the letter "S" and any cartridge. I certainly made lots of "S" objects - snowman, snowflakes, snow, skater, sled and students.

I cut most of the images from my Winter Frolic Cricut cartridge. There are a lot of fun images to choose from. The snowflakes were cut using Martha Stewart's snowflake punch. I pressed the snowflakes in VersaMark ink and then sprinkled them with Stampin Stuff Winter Wonderland opaque glitter which I set using a heat embossing tool.

The mittens were made a bit larger and I cut these from the Designer's Calendar cartridge. In the classroom, students can earn a mitten each time they do something nice for someone else. It's hard to keep students motivated the month before Christmas and every little bit of fun to keep them on track is helpful. I know they will love them.

Why not head over to Cardz TV with Mary and enter your creation into the Cricut Cardz Challenge. Don't forget - it has to be something beginning with the letter "S" and using any cartridge. So go have some fun!

Let's Give Thanks - Diamond Fold Card

The challenge this week at Cricut Cardz Challenge - Cardz TV with Mary is to make a card giving thanks. With the American Thanksgiving coming up in a couple of weeks, I thought I'd try something new. I've never made a diamond fold card but I thought I'd give it a whirl. I was very pleased with the results.

I started with some heavy weight patterned cardstock that I scored to enable the card to fold properly. I used my Martha Stewart score board which really made this task much easier and way more accurate. I then added some autumn designer paper from K & Company to the diamond shape as well as the side panels. Next I cut cornucopia and fruit images that I found on the Paper Doll Dress Up Cricut cartridge which became the focus of the card. I used my Copic markers to add shading and dimension to the basket and the fruit. The last thing I added was the simple sentiment - So Thankful.

We are all truly thankful and privileged for all we have!

Happy Halloween!

It's that time of year when we can get goofy and dress up in all sorts of strange outfits. Kids especially enjoy the excitement of going house to house to show off their costumes and to collect candy.

I made these shapes for a friend of mine who teaches Grade 2 to use as classroom decorations. The large tree was cut from the Stretch Your Imagination Cricut cartridge with some of the leaves were outlined with sparkly Stickles. The spider web also received sparkly Stickles after being cut from the Designer's Calendar Cricut cartridge. I found the cute butterflies on the Gypsy Wanderings Cricut cartridge and again added Stickles for shimmer. The ghost and skeleton shapes were cut using the Paper Dolls Cricut cartridge.

In addition, each student got their own pumpkin to decorate at school and add their name to it. This image came from the Wrap It Up Cricut cartridge.

Baptism Card

You know Baptism cards can be tricky. They can either be very simple or they can be quite formal and in front of the entire congregation at the church. A friend asked if I could make her a Baptism card for a Greek Orthodox ceremony. Sure no problem.

I had to do some research on the internet before I started. I didn't want to make something inappropriate but I also had to recognize that this was a traditional religious ceremony that recognizes that the entire congregation is asked to accept the child as their own and everyone is asked to celebrate with the family. I knew that I had to incorporate a cross and the ones that I cut were from the Designer's Calendar Cricut cartridge. One cross was cut from baby blue cardstock and the other one was cut another cross a bit smaller in white cardstock, scored it using my Martha Stewart scoreboard horizontally and vertically. When I pressed the sides down, it gave the cross a 3D look. I then added dimensionals behind it and placed it on top of the blue cross The word "rejoice" was placed above the cross. This white layer was then added to the front of a 4 1/4" x 5 1/2" baby blue card.

To create the inside images, I first printed the blessing onto cardstock from my HP printer. Then using the "center point" button on my Cricut Expression machine, I cut around the blessing using my Lacy Labels Cricut cartridge. It came out perfectly! The baby booties were cut out from my Paper Doll Dressup Cricut Cartridge and mounted on baby blue cardstock. White satin ribbons were added and placed underneath the verse.

My friend really loved the card and I understand it was a very lovely ceremony.