Family Movie Night - this Friday

In the mood for a good movie to start your weekend off this Friday?  Family Movie Night returns to NBC with A Walk in My Shoes, and after watching the trailer I think it's going to be a great, thought provoking movie.  You can check it out here.

Remember the old adage don't judge a book by it's cover?  Of course we've all heard it time and again, but being human we all do it at some point in time.  But did you ever get to know someone that you had passed "judgement" on and then realized that you were too quick to judge because things weren't what they seemed?  Well that's what this movie is all about.

Be sure to check your local listings to see what time it airs in your area and then sit back with a bowl of popcorn surrounded by your loved ones and enjoy.....I know I will.

All Occasion Card

Here's another quick and simple card.  This one was created for the Card Creations: Favorite Occasions Week All Occasion Challenge in the Moxie Fab World . 

So how much easier can you get than making a couple cuts, tearing a few edges and embossing a piece of paper?  Then to finish it off, add a few embellishments. Ink an edge or two and viola - you're done.

Growing Old is Mandatory......Birthday Card

Here's a simple but yet fun birthday card for one of those "over the hill" occasions.  This card was created to join in on the fun for the Card Creations: Favorite Occasions Week Birthday Challenge in the Moxie Fab World .

For this card I used:

Paper Dolls Dress Up for the clown
Create a Critter for Happy Birthday

The inside sentiment says, Growing old is mandatory.  Growing up is optional.  ~ Chili Davis

Merry Christmas

This week's challenge over at Cricut Cardz Challenge was to create a Christmas themed card using words ONLY.  You got it.  No pictures.  Zip.  Zilch. Nada.  So for a girl who loves to create cards with a "scene" this one was a little out of my comfort zone.  But, I did it, and I enlisted the help of one cartridge to do it..........

Making the Grade

So whaddya think?  Easy right?  Now why don't you come play along.  Make your own card using words only and then come link it to challenge #52.  Just click on the link above. 

I look foward to seeing what you create.  In the meantime, we are getting ready to head to Birmingham so I want to take this opportunity to thank you for following and playing along with me.  It does my heart good to read your cherished comments.  I hope that each of you have a wonderful, blessed and Happy Thanksgiving.

Spot of Sanity - Pre Black Friday Sale

Are you looking for a special, handmade from the heart gift?  If so come take a look at the variety of items we have to offer you at Spot of Sanity.

We are a mother-daughter team that has been producing quality handmade crafts for over 20 years.  Our small business has grown out of our passion for crafting and our need for "sanity".

With products ranging from crocheted plushes to ceramic bisque and tole painted home decor you're sure to find something for that special someone on your list.

And now through midnight on Tuesday we are offering 15% all items storewide.  So stop by today.

Count Your Blessings - Altered Plate

I created this altered plate for a Christmas gift this year.  A while back I had made a card with a similar theme and really loved the way it turned out so this time I decided to add to it and this time make it into a decorator plate.

For this project I used:

Thanksgiving for the font - cut in vinyl

Speaking of Winter for the snowmen and hats

Christmas Noel for the Christmas tree and star

George for the circle background

REVIEW: Homeless for the Holidays

In a day and age where downsizing and layoffs are plentiful we could all use an encouraging story that will inspire us in some way. Whether we are inspired to have more faith, find joy in the seemingly bad or learn to leave our comfort zone Homeless for the Holidays is that story.


A couple weeks ago I was provided with a free copy of this movie and in return I was asked to review and provide you with an honest review. And I admit there were a couple of scenes where I thought “that’s a little cheesy”. You know what though? That’s okay because this is a story that speaks to the heart and asks some tough questions.

While watching this movie I couldn’t help but notice some similarities to my family as we have struggled with layoffs before. And while it’s never easy to walk such a path it’s manageable when we learn to listen to the Lord and do as He guides us. For some us it might come only after we’ve fallen as low as we feel we can go – much like the main character, Jack Baker, in Homeless for the Holidays. Hopefully then we have learned what it truly important in life.

So would I recommend this movie? Yes! Absolutely I would. It might not be a huge Hollywood production but it’s a huge production that is laying up its treasures in Heaven.

Santa's Snack Christmas Coasters

Today I'm going back to my first crafting love/obsession - plastic canvas.  This is a craft I used to do oh say about 20 years ago but then after 10 years I put it aside and quit crafting all together.  I got rid of everything - and I mean everything.  Fortunately, it didn't go far as I gave it all to my niece so I just had to walk about 300 yards and ask her if I could borrow the pattern books, buy some supplies and I'm back in business. 

This is a coaster set that I used to sell years ago and I always loved the way that it turned out.  It's just so fun don't 'cha think?

Child Friendly Thanksgiving Place Setting

Last month I picked up a copy of Scrapbooks, etc and saw an article spotlighting a variety of fun ways to set the dinner table for Thanksgiving.  One of them used a paper pieced turkey as a crayon holder.  Well immediately the lights went on and I thought what a great idea - now let's expand it.  So off I went, dusting off my Cricut markers and pulling out cartridges to find images that would work for creating this project.

And now that the November edition of the Wildly Whimsical Crafing Loft Newsletter has been published I can share it with you. 

For this project I used Thanksgiving, Create a Critter, A Child's Year, PPDU, TBBM and Animal Kingdom.  A list of other supplies used and complete instructions including cut sizes can be found in the newsletter.

Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree

I was at Michael's this weekend and my mom was picking up some of these charger plates to paint on and I got to thinking I could do something with that myself.  Then today my Rock Princess cartridge arrived in the mail and I knew exactly what to do.

The circle background is cut from George at 8".

The Christmas tree is from Christmas Cheer and I stretched it so that it was taller but skinnier at 6 1/2".  The star is from PPDU.  I embossed the tree using one of my Christmas Sizzix plates and then 'painted' the embossed garland using Smooch in Christmas metallics.

The rocker girls were all cut at 4".

The verbiage is from Mickey font cut in vinyl at .85"

And there you have it.....an easy Home Decor project perfect for display or giving as a gift this holiday season.  Now I'm going to have to go back and get some more of those charger plates before they're all gone.

And the winner is.........

Pam who said.....

"Hello!  This might be to much but, I would like to see how to use SCAL or any of the other ones.... Thanks so much for a chance to win"

However, I do not own SCAL or Make the Cut since they are not Provo Craft approved for use with the Cricut.  I know that there are a lot of women out there that use and love these programs and they create great things, but I am too chicken to venture into that world  ;o)

Congratulations Pam - I will be contacting you to find out where to send your new folders.

For those of you wondering how the winner was decided - there were two posts that contained entries (one entrant posted twice as they forgot to provide contact info so that 2nd post was removed from the count).  These were then totaled for the random.org decision.

Cuttlebug Folder Blog Candy

This post will remain at the top of my blog until November 14th.

               
                                              Please scroll down for my new projects.

In honor of the holiday season and gift projects I wanted to provide you with an opportunity to win some blog candy. Up for grabs are two brand new cuttlebug folders. These are the larger folders that measure 5 x 7 inches. One is snowflakes and the other is a tartan plaid design.


So what do you have to do to win? It's easy just leave me a comment telling me what kind of projects (tags, altered items, gift bags, home decor, card, etc.) you'd like to see me create and you'll be entered for a chance to win both folders. Then I will do my best to create each of the projects and post them on my blog so we can all share in the inspiration.

I will choose a winner using random.org on Sunday, November 14th. Be sure to leave me a link to your blog or your Cricut MB name so I can contact you if you are the winner and good luck.
 

And for those of you who have left comments on the original blog candy post - never fear as your comments will not be forgotten.  ;o)

Hello Kitty Christmas Card

Can you believe that this week marks the 50th challenge for Cricut Cardz?  Wow!  It seems like yesterday that Mary started all the fun.......And this week the fun continues.  Our challenge for this week was to create a Christmas card using any card feature and colors we chose.  For some reason my brain just froze up this week and none of the card features screamed out at me..............until I remembered Hello Kitty.

I can't even remember the last time that I used this cartridge, but I can tell you that it's been far too long.  I even forgot just how cute the cuts are on this cartridge.  Like this one of Hello Kitty bundled up in her warm winter jacket and hat with those adorable reindeer antlers. 

For my card I cut Kitty out at 5" and then flocked all cuts with the exception of her face, hands, feet and ears.  When flocking her hair bow I added in a touch of glitter to give it a little bling. 

Now it's your turn to play along.  So get your creative juices flowing, create your card and link it up for your chance to win the November challenge.  And be sure to check out the other great cards from our Design Team members.

Clipboard Wall hanging

Tonight's project is the first one created based on suggestions/requests provided by you, the readers.  My recent post for blog candy asked that you leave a comment telling me what kind of projects you would like to see me create.  To date most of the comments have said home decor.  So I decided to try my hand at altering a clipboard and turning it into a wall haning for my first creation.

For this project I cut a piece of paper 9" x 12" for my background.  In order to fit it "around" the clip I cut a notch out of the top center of the paper measuring in 2 1/2" from each edge and 1" down from the top.

The 'title' was created with an 8" x 2" rectangle, the squares are 3 3/4" and the large rectangle is 3 3/4" x 8".  The blue squares and rectangles measure 1/4" smaller and were embossed.  I used:  

Christmas Cheer for Merry Christmas cut at 1 1/2"

Christmas Solutions for the nutcracker cut at 7"; Santa cut at 3 1/2" and the Elf cut at 5"

The clipboard is one of the wood/pressboard type so I sanded and inked the edges.

Happy Gobble Gobble Day

While perusing through the current issue of CardMakers magazine I saw a fall card that inspired me so I lifted the "sketch" and created this one.

My card is 5 x 6 1/2 inches with the brown background mats cut at 3 1/2 x 4 inches and 3 1/2" square.  The colored mats were then cut 1/4" shorter, embossed and edges inked.

The scalloped ovals are from Accent Essentials cut at 3 1/2" but then I skewed the width to create an oval instead of the circle.  To create the top oval I cut and pasted the image and then skewed it to make it a 1/4" smaller than the background.

The turkey is from Create a Critter cut at 2 1/2".

Altered Christmas Mailbox & Blog Candy

This is the week for easy, quick, put together gift projects.  And following in that trend today I give you an altered Christmas mailbox.  These were ultra easy because I used stickers and chipboard from my stash to embellish the tins.

And in honor of the holiday season and gift projects I wanted to provide you with an opportunity to win some blog candy.  Up for grabs are two brand new cuttlebug folders.  These are the larger folders that measure 5 x 7 inches.  One is snowflakes and the other is a tartan plaid design.

So what do you have to do to win?  It's easy just leave me a comment telling me what kind of projects (tags, altered items, gift bags, home decor, card, etc.) you'd like to see me create and you'll be entered for a chance to win both folders.  Then I will do my best to create each of the projects and post them on my blog so we can all share in the inspiration.

I will choose a winner using random.org on Sunday, November 14th.  Be sure to leave me a link to your blog or your Cricut MB name so I can contact you if you are the winner and good luck!

Speaking of inspiration, here's a sneak peek at my upcoming project for the Wildly Whimsical & Crafting Creations Newsletter.  If you haven't subscribed yet come check it out.  It's put out once a month and you can subscribe to receive the newsletter either via email or by following the blog - or both like me.

Snow Day Appeture Card

This week the Cricut Cardz Challenge Design Team #2 was presented with the challenge to create a Christmas card using something beginning with the letter 'S'.  Even though I'm not on this particular design team I wanted to play along and this is my take on this week's challenge.

For this card I used Winter Woodland for the following cuts:

Tree branch cut at 1 1/2".  Glossy accents was used to add dimension to the berries and flower soft for the snow.

Bird cut at 1 1/2" and pop dotted

Snow Day (blackout) cut at 1"

And for the final touch I added more flower soft to the globe.

Thanksgiving Gift Bag

I had a plain, brown paper bag lying around so I decided to dress it up.  The background paper is from the DCWV Autumn Splendor mat stack and the edges were inked using the color Peeled Paint Distress Ink.

The turkey is from Simply Charmed cut at 5 1/2".  The feathers were debossed and the body was embossed.  To add a little texture I used paper flowers folded in half for the wings.

Happy Thanksgiving was cut at 2" from Thanksgiving.

The leaves in the corners are Mulberry paper rose leaves from the Recollections Boutique Fleur line.

Give Thanks Cameo Gift Canister

There's a chill in the air today, and it's setting the mood for all things Autumn.  So in honor of the season and all the beauty that comes with the changing of the leaves I decided to alter a canister with an Autumn flair. 

The paper used is from the DCWV Autumn Splendor mat stack and my cuts are from the Thanksgiving cartridge.

After cutting the "cameo" I lightly inked the edges and then covered the surface with glossy accents to add more dimension to it.

Now I have a canister that would be perfect for giving a gift of bread or cookie mix or even baked cookies.

Halloween Ornaments

After I posted my Christmas glitter ornaments last night it dawned on me that I never posted the ones I did for Halloween.  My husband loves Halloween but it's never been a big deal for me.  After nine years of marriage and never having 'decorated' I decided to surprise him by making some things for him this year.  So along with the graveyard centerpiece I made weeks ago I made these ornaments.

Unfortunately, the fact that I used glow in the dark glitter does not come through in the picture.  But I still like the way they turned out and my husband enjoyed them as well.