Mr. Big Ears

Easter is just around the corner, April 20th in fact.  That means it's time to get started on making those Easter cards and other projects if you've haven't done so already.  Today it just so happens that I have my first Easter card  of the season ready to share with you.

I found this adorable SVG file over at Treasure Box Designs and as of this writing they were having a 50% off sale.  This particular file is title Bunny and Jelly Beans.

The sentiment is from the Maymay Made It M'pressions stamp set titled Mr. Big Ears. Unfortunately this set does not appear to be available any longer.  But she has some other great sets to choose from.

What projects have you started on in preparation for Easter?  I'd love to hear about and see them.  In the meantime, I'm off to enter this card in to the Hiding in my Craft Room freestyle challenge.

Thor Layout

Yesterday was a busy day for my poor Cricut Explore machine.  Cut, design. Cut, design.  Cut, design.  That's about how the day went.  All told I put together three cards and three layouts.  And today I want to share with you one of the layouts I created.

This one was designed using the Thor Bear from the Little Scraps of Heaven My Hero Bears volume 2 set.  I had a small issue cutting this file, but I didn't give up, got it done and I am so glad I did.  I love how this little guy came out.  So much so I have a layout to share with you later this week using the same cut.

In addition to the SVG file used, I used a couple from Cricut:  

• the lightning bolt is from Create a Friend
• the 'boom' is from Crash! Boom! Pow!
• the squiggly is from Crocs Rule

The font used for "Thor" is Showcard Gothic, one of the true type fonts on my computer. This was the first time I've tried cutting a true type font and I was excited with the results.

And now I'm off to get this layout entered in to this week's 'Freestyle' challenge over at Hiding in My Craft Room.

You Make My Day

This week I've posted a couple of projects I created using SVG files but today's project goes back to Cricut.  Today is challenge day over at Cardz TV and this week it's all about giving thanks.  Our project directive for this week was to create a Thank You card.

For my card, I used the duck border cut from Doodlecharms.  I cut several of them so that I could cover the front of the card with the design.  The word Thanks is from the Cricut Sampler cartridge.  And my stamped sentiment is from the Cardz TV Stamps set Simply Said.

Easy Peasy.......Now it's your turn.  Create your thank you card and then hop on over to the Cardz TV and link up so we can see what you create.

Superstar Parade Layout

The other day I mentioned how much I love the new Cricut Explore and the fact that it allows me to cut SVG files.  Well here is yet another reason why having that capability excites me.  Our trip to Universal Studios has had me dying to scrapbook it, but Cricut just didn't have any cuts that really worked with the characters and features at Universal.  But being able to cut SVGs has left me with a variety of options.

Take today's layout for example.  This cute little girl dressed up like a minion.  I found this adorable cut over at Little Scraps of Heaven Designs.  And she has a few more designs that I'll be using in my pages to come. For this one though, I left the pieces grouped together (I still have to learn the tricks of Design Space) and left that grouping to cut at 8".  The end result was a minion about 5" tall.

Happy Birthday Silly Penguin

My oldest daughter turns 24 this week and when I saw this adorable penguin over at Kadoodle Bug Designs I knew it was the perfect cut for her birthday card.  Needless to say having the new Cricut Explore machine has opened a whole new world to my paper crafting abilities and I am beyond elated!  Thanks to this awesome machine I can now create projects using all of these adorable SVG files I have seen others use. This penguin being one of them.

The happy birthday sentiment on the bottom of the card is from the Cardz TV stamp set titled Good Times.

Be on the lookout for more projects to come because I have been an SVG cutting fool whenever I have the time. I've even started scrapbooking again.....Nothing like a breath of fresh air to breathe life back into my papercrafting mojo.

Spartan Shadowbox

I had a little bit of time to play in my craft room today so I decided to finally put together a shadow box from the Spartan Sprint Race my daughter and I did together in Atlanta a couple weeks ago.  It was a very fun experience and I look forward to doing more Spartan races, but am definitely bitten by the obstacle course racing bug.  I will spare you the details on this blog but you can read more about our first Spartan race here on my fitness journey blog.

So why am I sharing my shadow box with you on my craft blog  you ask?  Well if you take a look at the bottom left hand corner of the frame you'll notice a wonderful Spartan cut I made.  This is only one of the many wonderful cuts you'll find on the Cricut Team Spirit cartridge.  Needless to say I'm sure I'll be cutting more from this one as the need arises.

And now it's time to step away from the crafting and go enjoy some more of this wonderful sunshine and mid-70 degree weather we are having today here in Florida.  But first I will share just one picture from our race....

of course you can see more of them on my other blog, A Journey Into Fitness, where I share with others about my journey back to a healthier, more active lifestyle.

Witch You Were Here

Yep, you read that right.  Nothing like a little play on words as we begin the middle of the week slide towards the weekend.

I've eyed this sentiment off and on for a while now but finally decided to use it and Cricut's Teddy Bear Parade had the perfect cut to go with it.  

I cut this cute bear witch out using printed papers from Michael's Recollections Halloween mat stack.  The background paper is from My Mind's Eye Halloween (Scary Sparkles) mat stack.

The bat hovering by the sentiment is a button from a set called Fright Night Halloween Specialty that I ordered from Factory Direct.  

And finally the sentiment is from the Trick or Treat stamp set over at Cardz TV Stamps.

My First Crocheted Scarf

After many years of on and off attempts at trying to learn how to crochet, I decided a couple months back to give it yet another try.  I still can't hold the yarn properly but at least now I'm kind of getting the hang of it.  At least enough that I was able to complete this scarf.

Hmmmm, maybe I'm not a lost cause after all when it comes to the world of crochet.  After all I've only been trying to learn it for 24 years now and if my 10 year old niece can do it surely I can too.

Oh well, off to try my hand at yet another one........

Baby Bear

It's a beautiful, chilly morning here in Florida and what better way to start the day than to warm the heart with a precious baby card?  That's right today is another Cardz TV Card Challenge and today it's all about new babies.  

For my card, I used the Teddy Bear Parade cartridge and the Cardz TV Stamps set Beary Sweet.  I stamped my sentiment with some of Tim Holtz's distressing powder in worn lipstick.

Quick, Easy and Effective.  And now that you've seen my take on this week's challenge be sure to check out the creative designs our other team members came up with for the challenge.  Then after you've been amply inspired, create your own new baby card, link up and play along with us.

I can't wait to see what you create!

Hat of Many Colors

I haven't posted a loom knitted project in a while so I thought I'd share my latest - and rather colorful - hat with you.  This is one of my slouchy beanies that I love making because of my time constraints takes me a while to complete.  

It's very easy to do and it's done on the Martha Stewart loom......