Happy New Year to All

May this year bring you blessing of peace, joy, good health and all good things.
Rae Ann

The Crazy Challenge #99 - Bears & Little Scrap Pieces

Little Scrap Pieces just posted an anything goes challenge, new or old, so I am entering this one.  I love how it turned out, and so simple, too.  The link to Little Scrap Pieces is below.
In the days before Christmas, Melinda's Papercrafting World, the site of the Cooking with Cricut Challenge,  made available free downloads.  One of  the digital downloads was this darling bear which I colored in with Marvi markers and colored pencils.  I thought it would be perfect for the bears challenge.

To visit The Crazy Challenge, click here.
To visit Little Scrap Pieces, click here.

Happy New Year!
Rae Ann

Candle Card Challenge at Bitten by the bug 2

These were made with the Cricut Simply Charmed cartridge.  Glitter on the flames gives them a nice sparkle.  Check out other entries at Bitten by the Bug 2.  Click here.

Happy New Year, everyone.
Rae Ann

So Artful Challenges - Ceil Chapman Inspired

This challenge intrigued me.  It is so different than most themes I've worked with.  I really enjoyed working on it.  I tried to mimic the fashion using a figure from the Cricut Forever Young cartridge.  What do you think? (Sorry about the beige background.  It doesn't spotlight the card well.)

Visit So Artful Challenges to see some other entries.  Click here.
Happy New Year.
Rae Ann

Whimsical Designs (Whimsical Wednesday) Favorite Card

I know this is repetitious but to qualify for this challenge there has to be an entry to this blog alone.  So, here again is my favorite card that I've made (so far).

I still get so much pleasure seeing the little details and how they all came together.  I'm looking forward to making another tee pee card, soon.  To see other entries at Whimsical Designs, click here.

Happy New Year.
Rae Ann

Whimsical Designs Christmas Home Decor Challenge

Here is a Christmas ornament I made using 3 ornament shapes from the Cricut Simply Charmed cartridge and flower shapes from the George and Basic Shapes cartridge to make the flowers.

To see other entries at Whimsical Designs, click here.
Happy New Year to all.
Rae Ann

Some Cards I Made as Gifts

Happy Holidays, everyone.  Are things slowing down a bit yet?  It's been a busy and exciting week.  I'd like to show you some cards I made.
The first one is a matchbook cocoa card inspired by Mary at cardz tv.

I never know what to give my sister because she is so good at finding what she wants herself.  So, since I'm into card making - what else!  She said she likes to stock up on Birthday and Get Well cards so here is a sampling of some I made for her.  I made 2 of each design so she got about 20 cards.  I found a cute decorated box at A.C. Moore's that I put them in.

Now I'm off to visit blogs I follow.  Thank you for the kind comments I've been receiving.  May you all have a Happy and Blessed New Year.

Rae Ann

Link Up Party at Robin's Creative Cottage & Cooking with Cricut

Cooking with Cricut Challenge #66 is the favorite project of 2011 and since this is my all-time favorite (so far)...
To see other entries, click here.

For Robin's Link Up Party we are asked to post our favorite project made in the last month, then comment on at least three of the others in the party.
This card is definitely my favorite.  I have it in a prominent spot in my apartment  where I can see it easily.  The memory of the fun I had making it adds to the pleasure it gives.

This is the only tee pee card I've made so far but I know I'll do more.  The way it's made, if the embellishments are planned correctly, it folds flat for mailing.  The directions are on You Tube by the norsugirl.  (here is the link:)

Stop by Robin's Creative Cottage to see favorites others have done. Click here.

Merry Christmas, all.
Rae Ann

A Christmas Tag

I bought this Santa stamp, secondhand, last year.  I've been looking forward to using it so I pulled it out last night and played with it.  There is no marking left on it to say which company it's from.  The only cricut cut used here is the tag itself, from the Picturesque cartridge.

I am entering this tag in Fantabulous Cricut (Trimming with a tag) click here.
Paper Playtime Wed. Sentiments (Anythng goes) click here.
My Craft Spot (Tag, You're It) click here.
Anything Goes Challenge Blog  (Not a card, option-tags) click here.
Whimsical Designs (a Christmas tag) click here.

Have a Merry Christmas, everyone!
Rae Ann

A Card for my Doctor

I had fun with the Cricut Everyday Paper Dolls cartridge making this for my doctor and his staff.  It really does resemble them.  They were so tickled with it.  This is actually the inside of the card; I made it so they could bend the front backwards and see this all year.  They said they are going to frame it.

Merry Christmas to all.
Rae Ann

Giveaway at Creating from the Heart

I just found out about a great Christmas giveaway at Creating from the Heart (http://keepsakesbymelissa.blogspot.com/2011/12/my-annual-end-of-year-christmas.html).  Be a follower; advertise the giveaway; link to her site.

I hope I'm the lucky one!
Happy creating and happy holidays, everyone.
Rae Ann

A Christmas Ornament

I had fun doing this.  The ornament itself is made of 3 ornament shapes from Cricut's Simply Charmed.  The roses were made from the shift-flower cut in George & Basic Shapes.  There is glitter all over the roses, which the camera does not do justice with, and the balls by the green are actually very shiny pearls.

This is being entered in: Fantabulous Cricut  Challenge # 90- Rolling in Ribbon - click here:
                                    Scraptastic Monday Challenge #6 - Christmas ball & bling     click here:
                                   
All these holiday themes are really keeping me in the mood.  Happy Holidays!
Rae Ann

Great Giveaway At Candy's Craft Corner and at The Hoosier Stamper

I just found both sites through sidebar buttons.  They are having great giveaways for Christmas.  It sounds like there have been some other treats recently as well.  How generous.  One site is Candy's Craft Corner at http://candyscraftcorner.blogspot.com/2011/10/huge-christmas-candy.html .  She's giving away some Cricut cartridges.  Entries end Dec. 15 and the winner will be announced on the 16th.    The other site is The Hoosier Stamper at http://thehoosierstamperleahanngast.blogspot.com/2011/12/i-have-blog-candy.html.  She's offering some neat Tim Holtz blog candy.  Her's will have the winner announced on Dec. 18.
What generous people with great talent displayed at their sites.  Have fun..
Happy holidays.  Rae Ann

Jingle Bells - Cooking with Cricut, Cardz TV, Paper Cutz Challenges

This little guy from Cricut cartridge Everyday Paper Dolls is performing "Jingle Bell Rock."  I modified the skiier's hat to make a little santa hat.  The glitter on the rosette center, the holly on the bells, and on his hat add that cheery holiday sparkle that this picture doesn't capture.
This card is being entered in:
Cooking with Cricut - Sounds of the Season - http://www.cookingwithcricut.com/2011/12/day-7-challenge-63-sounds-of-season.html
Cardz TV - A Caroling we go - http://cardztv.blogspot.com/2011/12/cricut-cardz-challenge-97.html
Paper Cutz - Jingle Bells - http://papercutzchallenge.blogspot.com/

Happy crafting and happy holidays!
Rae Ann

So Artful Challenges - 'Tis the Season & Our Creative Corner (Basic Sketch)

The minute I saw this great Santa I had an idea of what I wanted to do.

I used my new Sizzix embosser with Swiss dots on the white strip.  I cut the scalloped backing from Cricut's Graphically Speaking cartridge, and the corners are from the Picturesque cartridge.

This card was submitted to http://jeanette-soartfulchallenges.blogspot.com/
                                   and http://ourcreativecorner6.blogspot.com/

Happy holidays.  Rae Ann

Holiday Decoration Challenge at Getting Cricky with K Andrews

This tee pee card has turned out to be my favorite decoration so far this year. I live in a small apartment so this adds a nice Christmas touch without needing a lot of room for it. 
I used several cartridges: Forever Young, Simply Charmed, George and Basic Shapes.

Check out the Getting Cricky with K Andrews site by clicking here.
This card has also been entered in other challenges (see previous blogs.)

Happy crafting!  Rae Ann

The Crazy Challenge #95

There are some wonderful giveaways happening right now.  I used a free printable download I got at Go Make Something, courtesy of Lisa Vollrath, for this Snowflake theme.  Check out her Holiday Countdown freebies at http://countdown.tentwostudios.com/  The children are getting ready to skate as snow falls around them.  The layout is simple but I like how it looks.  The gold paper around the picture didn't photograph well but it really add a special touch to the card.

Visit the Crazy Challenge at http://crazychallenge.blogspot.com/.

Hope everyone is enjoying the season.  Happy crafting.

Birthday Sundaes Challenge #37 - A Birthday Card

I found the orange rosettes in a clearance box and decided to use one for this card.  I made the contrasting green part by hand.   The only Cricut cut in this one is the trophy from Everyday Paper Dolls.  It's with the race car driver.  Not a lot embellishment but I like how this came together.
Check out the Birthday Sundaes Challenge here.

Card for Mojo Monday and Scraptastic Monday Challenge

Is everyone in the holiday spirit?  I am.  The holiday card challenges and giveaways and up to Christmas events are keeping me in the mood. 

This card was designed based on the Mojo Monday Sketch #217 (click here) and the Scraptastic Monday Challenge at Cindy b Creations, 'Make a Christmas card with NO red, green, or gold.  I had fun doing this one and I really like this sketch.  Visit Cindy b Creations by clicking here.

Thanks for visiting. 
Don't forget to check out the free printable downloads at Go Make Something (click here)

Happy creating and happy holidays.  Rae Ann

Free Printable Downloads for Christmas

Lisa Vollrath at Go Make Something is sponsoring its 6th Annual Original Printables Holiday Countdown.  Every day from Dec. 1 to 25 there will be a free printable download available.  To check it out click here.
Thanks for this holiday treat.
Rae Ann

Holiday Challenges: My Sheri Crafts, Fantabulous Cricut, Cardz TV #96, Robin's Creative Cottage, & Whimsical Designs

When I saw the theme for the My Sheri Crafts Challenge, (click here:), make a decoration, I started thinking of all the ways I would like to decorate in my small apartment.  While scanning the net I found a sample of a tee pee card and I knew that would be perfect to place on display as a decoration.  The video of how to make one is by thenorsugirl; :here is the link:

I had a lot of fun making this.  I used a variety of cartridges:  Forever Young, Graphically Speaking, Simply Charmed and Forever Young.  I have lots of glittery embellishments:(Robin's Creative Cottage theme, Let It Sparkle) paper with shine, glitter ribbon, shiny packages, glitter glue, metal brads, sequins.  And, (Fantabulous Cricut theme, A Holiday Card) the sentiment, of course, is Merry Christmas.  For Cards TV (Say It With 'S') there are stockings on the fireplace.  With all the things on this card it is quite appropriate for the Whimsical Designs theme of layers.

Here are the 3 sides of the card:

I am also entering this card in
the Fantabulous Cricut Challenge click here,
the Cardz TV #96 Challenge click here, 
Robin's Creative Cottage Challenge click here. 
Whimsical Designs Challenge click here.

I hope you enjoy it as much as I am.

Rae Ann

My First Easel Card

This card is being entered in two challenges (if their rules permit).  Crazy Challenge #94 wants a shaped card.  Cooking with Cricut #61 requires a Bible verse.  My shapes were found on the Cricut Graphically Speaking Cartridge except for the quote's circle which I cut out with decorative scissors.
Here are links to the challenges:
To go to the Crazy Challenge #94, click here.
To go to the Cooking with Cricut Challenge #61, click here.

The challenge at My Craft Spot inspired me to try the easel card.  I didn't get it done in time to enter their challenge.

Happy creating!.  I hope everyone's holidays were filled with blessings and joy.
Rae Ann

My Craft Spot Challenge #34 - Handmade Flower Power (Also, the Pile It On Challenge)

I'm intrigued with what can be done with paper to make such beautiful flowers.  I wanted to try poinsettias and I'm pleased with the result.

The flowers were made from the 5 petal flower on Cricut cartridge, George and Basic Shapes.  The bowl came from the Pagoda catridge; the leaves are all from the Picturesque cartridge.  I hope you like it.
Rae Ann

To visit the Pile It On Challenge, click here

To visit the My Craft Spot Challenge, click here:

Fantabulous Cricut Challenge #87 - Thank You and Getting Cricky Challenge With K Andrews

I've made cards like this cutie as 'thank you's' for some friends and it's so easy to do.  The panda is from the Cricut Pagoda cartidge, of course.  The 'thanks' is from the cartridge, Just Because.  I used the emphasized word, 'thanks', from the 'thanks a melon' card.  Hope you like it!

Visit Getting Cricky here:

Visit Fantabulous Cricut here:

Cricket Couple is Celebrating

Cricket Couple not only passed 500 followers, they passed 600!  To celebrate they are having a giveaway which will be awarded on Nov. 28th.  Click on the Celebration button to go to the site for all the info.

Happy creating!.  Rae Ann

Checking In

I won some blog candy for the Fantabulous Cricut Harvest Blessing Crawl Blog (what a mouthful!).  It comes from Scrap Queen at http://scrapqueen141.blogspot.com/  What a nice surprise!

Since following the crawl blog I've found some wonderful sites and a bunch of neat challenges.  More of my entries will be shown here soon.

Happy creating!  Rae Ann

Birthday Sundaes Challenge #35

I'm trying another challenge, this time at Birthday Sundaes.  Challenge #35 is to include a tree in the card.  I used a tree in the Cricut cartridge My Community to create this Cupcake tree.

Happy creating!  Rae Ann

My entry for Fantabulous Cricut Harvest Blessing Blog Crawl

I never followed a blog hop (or crawl) before.  This is a great way to find inspiration and learn about other people who share the same creative joy.  For this week's challenge the requirement is red, orange and brown for fall.  Here's my entry:

My card is 6 x 6 inches.  I used the Picturesque cartridge for the fancy leaf and curlycue.  The small leaves and pumpkin came from accessories on Everyday Paper Dolls; I just used the real size button to make them 2 and 2 1/2 inches in size.
I look forward to these challenges.  They make me push my creativity in new directions -- and I love it.

Happy creating!  Rae Ann

I'm an now a Cricut Lover!

It's been a long time since I've been able to blog.  I've been spending more time making things for my group, Inchies-1x1 and Paperfollies, and now, experimenting with my Cricut.

I love searching online for ideas and tutorials and found the site, Fantabulous Cricut.  They have a Monday Challenge and I've entered in two of them.

The first Fantabulous Cricut Challenge I entered was to make something containing a ghost.  I used elements from Simply Charmed and My Community.  Here's my effort...

My second entry in a Fantabulous Cricut Challenge  was called 'for the birds'.  I used the Pagoda Cartridge to create this...



Having the themes to provide a direction is fun and challenging. 

While experimenting with Cricut cardmaking I realized I have the perfect gift for my sister this year.  She gives a lot of Birthday and Get Well cards during the year so I am making her a collection of cards she can use.  Here are some of the easy designs I've come up with so far...

The words came from George and Basic Shapes.



This is a variaton of the card in Just Because.



The cake and phrase are from Simply Charmed.  One of the flowers is from George and Basic Shapes.

The scalloped background is from Just Because.  The words are from Simply Charmed; I punch a circle out where the little smiley faces are.

These are only a few of the items I've made.  More will be posted later but, as you see, I'm really enjoying my cricut.





Catching up with Every Inchie Monday

I was very behind with my 'once-a-week' inchies because I've been focusing on bigger projects.  But this weekend I decided to catch up.

Strength



Sunset



Rust



Imagination



Change (a change jar)





Every Inchie Monday - Nest


Until next time, Happy creating!

 

Mini books & Button Fairies

Hi!  Again, even though I haven't been writing here I have been working.  Two new fun things I'm doing are one-sheet mini books which are so easy to create.  It takes longer to decorate them than to make them.  No pictures of them yet so here's my other recent delight -- button fairies.

My first button fairy.  The theme was holiday of choice for a swap at paperfollies. Since Halloween is so near...

The next one I made was for Winter:

Working ahead

I've been working ahead on inchie themes scheduled for June, July and August in my group Inchies-onexone.  When I sit in front of the TV in the evening I can't sit still.  If I have a theme I can work on I do it then.  Here's another that's ahead of its time.  The theme is NUMBERS.


Numbers



It's been a long time.

Once I joined paperfollies it seemed time on the blog got put aside.  I was too busy creating things.  One of the challenges was to make a paper bag book.  I had never heard of one but once I got started I was hooked.  I liked the first one so much I kept it and made another one for the challenge.  Here are some pictures:

I decided to keep swapped items from paperfollies in the first one.  It's great for storing ATC's, Twinchies, 4x4's, etc.

This is the second one I made.  The theme was nature so I filled it with pictures and quotes about nature.  I left a few blank spots, too, so the owner can add some of his/her own.

That's all for today.  I'm going away for 10 days so it will be a while until I blog some more.  Until then,  enjoy creating.