The Cut Out Trend

I've been seeing a lot of projects that feature cut-outs backed with paper.  I just love them and when I saw this card on the Bits of Paper blog, I was finally ready to try it myself.  I didn't have that SVG, but I did have a file from the Silhouette store that I thought would work.   Sure enough, it worked just perfectly.  I glued a scrap of paper from my scrap bin, added some baker's twine and inked the edges with some Distress Ink.  I'm leaving the sentiment blank so I can use it however I need it. 

So Much Love

No, not a Valentine's Day card.  I posted that one a while back without stating that it was the card for my dear hubby.  No, this is a congratulations card for my boss who got married back in December, but we are finally getting around to celebrating it now.  I found this wonderful monochromatic card on SplitcoastStampers.  I started to make this card following that scheme but it just didn't have the pop that her card had.  So I swapped out the white for some soft yellow and green and realized I finally liked how the card looked.  I never really get to use my Sizzix dies enough and I so love this swirly one a lot, particular how it compliments the flower cut from the Silhouette Design Studio topped with a pearl from Recollections.  I back it all with an embossed background using the Sizzix Musical Flourish embossing folder. I then finished off with a sentiment stamped from an old Studio G mini stamp set I've had for several years. 

Love That Lattice

I found this cute monochromatic card on Pinterest using a lattice die.  The original is on Linda Higgins' blog. I really liked the simplicity of the monochromatic color scheme, but, of course, that wasn't what I replicated.  Instead I focused on the lattice work.  I used the intersect feature in the Silhouette Design Studio with a lattice background I had downloaded earlier.  It turned out pretty good matted on the printed paper from the Fiddlesticks 6x6 pad from My Mind's Eye.  I added a sentiment from my new Inky Antics stamp set using Brocade Blue ink from Stampin' Up and finished it off with a button and some ribbon from my stash.  Cute.

Fun Pinwheels

I love the pinwheel trend that's been going on.  They are so cute and whimsical.  So even though I've done a similar card before, I just had to case this one from I{heart}2stamp.  It's so cute although I forgot how hard it is to get the pinwheels to keep their shape.  This pinwheel and the grass were cut from designs bought in the Silhouette store.  The paper is all from the Stella and Rose 6x6 paper pad from My Mind's Eye.  The first version included a stamp from Inky Antics, a new stamp set I picked up from the going out of business sale at Stampin' Cat Studio (so sad to see another local store close).

But I decided to make a second version with a slightly different background paper so I changed up the sentiment too.  This one is from the Birthday Wishes set from Inkadinkado. 

Best of Luck Card

I loved this shamrock design I found on Pinterest made by Erica Cerwin showcased on her blog Pink Buckaroo Designs.  It was so cute so I just had to make my own version of it.  I designed the shamrock hearts in the Silhouette Design Studio.  It was fun to play with the hearts and then back it with this cute polka dot DCWV paper from the Spring stack from several years back.  I finished it off with the cute sentiment from Inkadinkado's All Occasions set.

 

I'm Back

I'm back in my craft room.  I simply haven't had the time or energy to drag my rear into my craft room for a week now since we've been busy putting in tile in the bathroom at my in-law's home.  They needed a new floor and I wanted to learn how to do it.  I was really surprised at how easy the process is and how physically hard it is to kneel on those hard floors to put it in.  Knee pads helped (a lot) but my knees were still not very happy with me.  But now the floor is grouted so we have a little break in the work, so it was time to go back to my craft room.

I spent a little time last night cleaning it up/organizing a bit.  I was really unhappy with how one corner of it looked.  Everything was very messy there and it was hard to get the boxes with my envelopes in them.  Last night it came to me that I really needed a shelving unit there and realized that the one in my closet was the right size.  So today I found it on sale at Office Depot and picked up a new one, broke it out of the box and put it up in it's new home.  It's absolutely perfect and I'm so excited that now I can access my envelopes and everything else without having to unbury them.

So I didn't get a whole lot of time to actually create anything, but, in between sessions of kitten watching, I managed to re-create this very cute card I found on Pinterest.  Fortunately, the picture contained a watermark of the creator and the pin told me that it was from October 2009 or I never would have been able to provide credit to Dana Grouthas at Dana's Dabbling Studio.  I made the little "petal" in the Silhouette Design Studio and then resized it for the shadow and the inset. I used left over paper from another project and I added a button from my stash for this cute 4.25 by 4.25 card. 

Card Making Helpers Interrupters...

Tonight I found a cute card from Clean and Simple Stamping that I wanted to make.  I'm on a masculine card kick, which is a great thing since those are usually the hardest to make and the ones I'm out of the most.  I used some scraps from the My Mind's Eye Twinkle Twinkle Little Boy pad, with stars cut with my Cameo.  I found a couple of flourish stamps that I've had so long I no longer have the packaging and stamped the sentiment from my Inkadinkado's Garden Flowers set.  It was fun to put together.

I also wanted to show you what cute little interruptions I have.  You see they know I have Temptations in my craft room and they come in for a treat all the time.

 

Fun with Pens

I bought the pen holder for my Silhouette Cameo.  Unfortunately, it really only holds standard pens.  But I didn't let that stop me.  I basically pulled apart the pen I wanted to use and rigged the pen holder to hold one of my Sakura gelly roll pens.  I love these pens but I rarely ever use them.  But I knew it was the perfect pen to try to with a great card I found on The Card Grotto.  I swapped out the flower pattern for a cute Echo Park butterfly design I purchased in the Silhouette store.  I used a sentiment from the Fiskars All Year Greetings set, which I stamped on vellum (I love that technique).  It was a simple and fun card and I love getting to try out something new.  I just wish it photographed as cute as it is in person (and that I didn't get a stray strand of my hair in the shot).

Sigh...

Here I have all day to play in my room, but do you think I am feeling it?  No.  I'm spending more time watching Project Runway on the DVR than creating anything.  But I did manage to make this card inspired by the Green Christmas card by AnnetteMac I found on Pinterest.  I started by making it in red with a poppy on it, but it just didn't sing to me.  So instead I switched to colors that remind me of my sister.  Then it really took shape with the Sizzix textured paper, a little EK Success border punch and a 3D flower pattern out of the Silhouette store.  I also got to use a stamp out of my new set from Recollections called Journal It.  A lot of time went into this card (far more than should have). 

Sweet Thinking of You Card

My darling sister is a real estate agent and, from time to time, needs cards to send to clients.  So tonight when I found this simple and stunning card on Pinterest, I knew it was perfect for her.  I loved the hanging stars card showcased on Amusing Michelle, and I'll probably make my own version soon, but the inspiration card was what really caught my attention tonight.  The inspiration came from the CASE Study Challenge Blog.  It truly was perfect.  I made my own little house with a heart using a square, triangle and heart in the Silhouette Design Studio.  I used my Hemptique twine which has the perfect brown to match my Stampin' Up Chocolate Chip ink.  I love it!  Of course I went back to the Inkadinkado Garden Flowers stamp set for my sentiment.  I just love that set. What I also love is that this post does double duty.  It shows off this cute card and also lets my sister know I'm thinking of her.  Love you sis!  When are we going to have our next reality TV marathon?

Hubby's New Thermos

For Christmas, the hubster and I received these great new Thermos bottles from my parents.  We got hooked on how wonderful they are during our vacation earlier this year.   It's amazing how well they work.  But having two alike in the same house means that I needed to do something so we can identify whose is whose. I asked the hubster what he wanted and he pointed to a scrapbook page about our first trip in our RV hanging on my wall and said he would like something like this:

Well, of course, I could quite do that, but with the help of a great download from the Silhouette Design Studio, I was able to make this (he also wanted the silhouette of the fisherman):

 

More Thank You Cards

Here's another thank you card inspired by Julie Davidson's blog Julie's Stamping Spot from the post here.  This one went together very quickly.  I used a sheet of paper from the Honey Cake 6x6 pad from My Mind's Eye.  The shapes were all cut from the Silhouette Design Studio and topped off with a button from my stash.  The sentiment was stamped from Inkadinkado's Garden Flowers set using Chocolate Chip ink from Stampin' Up.  It was quick and easy and quite colorful.

Snow Many Thanks

I loved making this fun fold card I found on Julie Davidson's blog Julie's Stamping Spot.  She provided a link to the tutorial on Splitcoaststampers.  I have to agree that while folding the card, I was sure I'd made a mistake until it all came together.  The it was just the decorating.  I used the Sizzix Triad Leaves folder, a stamp from some set that I threw away the packaging on a long time ago, and circles and snowman parts cut from a pattern on my Silhouette Design Studio.  I think this is probably my favorite that I've made recently.

Snow Many Thanks

I was looking for a snowman in the Silhouette store when I came across this adorable thank you card that I just couldn't pass up.  It was just too cute and cards from the store are so easy to make.  I used some cute snowflake paper from DCWV from a Christmas stack from a few years back along with some scraps and a blue metallic brad to finish it off.  Super fast and cute. 

Another Take on the Sweet Little Square Card

I made another of the square cards inspired by Julie Davidson's blog, Julie's Stamping Spot, that used the Sizzix top note die with an extra cut into the square.  This time I just followed the card she posted.  I loved the color combination and the sweet little flowers.  I cut my flowers using a pattern from the Silhouette Design Studio.  The paper was all from my scrap bin, but I'm pretty certain that the orange flower is cut from leftovers from the My Mind's Eye collection Twinkle, Twinkle Little Boy.  It was also the perfect opportunity to use my new Happy Birthday stamp set from Fiskars. 

A Lovely Christmas Card

I saw this cute little card on Julie Davidson's blog, Julie's Stamping Spot.  I just loved that it took a die I already have and turned it into something else completely.  Although I loved her color choices, I knew immediately that I wanted to use this lovely little poinsetta I found in the Silhouette store.  It turned out to be a very simple little card to put together because it's really just two passes of the Sizzix top note die and some cuts on the Cameo.  I added a brad and some Stickles for a little sparkle.  It's really a lovely card in person.

A Little Bit of Rest

All my to-do's are done until Monday when I have to bake the pies, so I have a little time to rest.  It's a good thing too because Thursday night I sneezed hallmarking the start of a cold.  Fortunately, I was only planning to work a short day on Friday to make up for the extra hours lately.  I managed to get everything done just before I ran out of energy.  Then it was home to make a quick coffee cake and some cupcakes for last night's get together.  But I ran out of energy again and we had to come home early so I could get some sleep.

Today I had absolutely nothing to do but I also didn't want to sleep all day either.  So I headed into my craft room to play for a bit.  But I can tell I don't feel well because I wasn't making much progress on this card.  I found it on Julie Davidson's blog Julie's Stamping Spot.  I made the tree using my Cameo.  I had a tree pattern but it didn't quite fit the card.  So I cut the trunk apart and created my own leafy canopy.  I then used the rhinestone feature to create the cutouts and then, when layered, had a pretty decent substitute for the tree in Julie's card.  While all the plain paper is from my stash, the striped paper is from the Simple Stories Awesome 6x6 paper pad. 

More inspiration from Julie Davidson

The other night when I was looking for the original source for a Pinterest link that inspired me, I spent a lot of time looking at Julie Davidson's blog.  I found so many cards that were inspirational.  Today I made my own take on this one I found in my search.  I found this flower and the leaves in the Silhouette Design Studio.  The patterned paper is from the Stella and Rose collection from My Mind's Eye.  The sentiment is stamped from Finley's Estate by Cloud 9 Design combined with the flourish from Birthday Wishes from Expressions and Frames from Inkadinkado. 

Sending You Love

I found this pin on Pinterest and just loved how clean and cute the card was.  It was originally posted on Clean and Simple Cards here.  I didn't have a plain envelope pattern, so I used a cut I downloaded a long time ago in the Silhouette store.  The little hearts were cut from two pages of the Love Me 6x6 pad from My Mind's Eye. The sentiment was printed in Word and I used my little Stampin' Up ticket punch to frame it out.  Super cute and fun to make.

Love You a Latte

So when I saw this shape in the Silhouette store, I just knew I had to download it and it was perfect for a card for dear hubby to find while I am off in DC.  It was ever so simple to cut and put together.  I ran my kraft cardstock through the Sizzix Four Petal Flower embossing folder.  Then I cut a big U and heart and, viola, it was done, easy peesy.