October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month...So Here's Your Gentle Reminder!!!

Well a Great Big Hello, and Yes, I'm still kicking over here!!! Lol! I know I've been MIA for quite awhile, however,  life has kind of taken over in a Swirling Hurricane over here...As you all know, I'm the sole caretaker of my Mom, and she had a rough Summer and an even rougher Fall. So, between caretaking 24hrs a day, and more recently traveling over an hour, 2 hrs round trip, to be by her side in the Hospital has taken a toll and I'm just getting back into the swing of things now that she's rehabbing in a facility a lil closer to home.

I'm PROUD to say that this Breast Cancer Awareness Wreath is now hanging on her door in the rehab facility! This is a piece I made, Altered Art if you wish, out of a Cereal Box, Flowers I took apart from the Dollar Store,  Mod Podge and a Whole Lotta Glitter...of course!!!

I made the Ribbon Pattern based on a computer print out; since I wanted a larger version of what I could print,  I just freehanded the sketch, then traced and cut it out of a Cereal Box.  Next I took apart what seemed to be hundreds of Flowers (not really sure how many I used), then I took each Flower, trimmed the stem, Mod Podged each while pouring Pink Iridescent Glitter on the wet petals. Once they were dry, I dabbed Green Glitter Glue on each of the centers. Finally, one by one,  I hot glued each flower to the Pink (I also painted the chipboard a light pink just in case something would show through,  and so that the back would be finished as well) Chipboard Ribbon. Once all the petals were set, I added a bit more Glitter to the prominent Flowers and hot glued a small hook on the back so I could hang the Ribbon up.

I HOPE you enjoyed this project as much as i enjoyed making it! My Mom is a 23 year SURVIVOR of this difficult illness, and this was the PERFECT time to display it, not only because it it Breast Cancer Awareness Month, but also because 24 years ago this month is when she found the lump and was proactive in seeking Medical Attention. Although it was caught early, she still had to have the lump removed surgically, she fought through 8 weeks of 39 Radiation Treatments (travelling 120 miles per day in the middle of a brutal, snowy Winter with one of my older Brothers driving) and 4 months of Chemotherapy all while raising this 9 year old Daughter who just couldn't understand why Mommy was so sick (Me)...and she MADE IT!!!!!

So, as a last minute reminder, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE don't procrastinate and CHECK THOSE TA TA'S!!!!!

Love to you ALL and Wishing you a Happy & Healthy Day♥

My Cricut Craft Room Wedding Crafts Ideas and Inspirations Blog Hop

Good Morning! It's a dreary Spring, definitely does NOT feel like Summer, here in Northern Maine,  making this Beautiful Blog Hop a WONDERFUL way to wake up this morning!!! I am again joined by some VERY Talented Ladies,  to which I will pass on all the links at the end of this post...MAKE SURE to Hop on over to each and every one of thier AMAZING Blogs for more Creative Inspiration!

Recently, our Niece was Married in a Beautiful Ceremony that unfortunately due to Family health issues, we weren't abld to attend. So I wanted to make a Wedding Card for her that she could Treasure FOREVER, and included a removable keepsake magnet for them.

This is a Double Cascading Fancy Fold Card I created out of AC MOORE White Cardstock,  leftover Wedding Themed Vellum, Dazzle Stickers from Hot Off The Press and Wedding Themed Stickers from Dollar Tree.

I created the Star lined Vellum Borders out of the Ribbons and Rossettes Cartridge on my Cricut E2,  as well as a matching Rossette for the card top, including a larger Star centered to the Rosette to help keep it together, and to make the Rossette stay together better making it more sturdy. I then adhered the remainder of my Stickers, which in Color matched our Niece's Wedding perfectly, some with Foam Dots to create more depth. Lastly came the Rhinestones placed in the Martha Stewart Scallop Punched Cascades of the Card.

The center Rosette is removable and has a magnt on the back so as to have a Special Keepsake to treasure while keeping with the Star Theme.

The Inside of the Card featured two Wedding Band Stickers that matched Heart Stickers from the Front of the Card. When signing the Card, I also included a Poem to the left, tying the Star Theme together which read,"And the two shall become one...For it was written in the Stars".

Needless to say,  this one took quite a few sessions to finish...however, it was definitely one of my FAVORITE works! They absolutely adored it...and that was worth every sweat bead I had while thinking,"Will they like it? ".

As always,  Thanks for stopping by!!!

If you came from

MyCricutCraftRoom.blogspot.com

Then you're on the right track...

Next you will hop on over to 

Connie's Blog

Http://papercraftingfromanotherviewpoint.blogspot.com/2014/06/love-is-in-air.html

This is the complete lineup to enjoy all the BEAUTIFUL Projects from my very talented fellow design team members...

1. Start- http://mycricutcraftroom.blogspot.com

2. Trish - http://ifieverdoit.blogspot.com

3. Connie - http://papercraftingfromanotherviewpoint.blogspot.com/2014/06/love-is-in-air.html 

4. April - http://curlsandgrins.blogspot.com

5. Alicia- http://goldengoddessdesigns.blogspot.com/

6. Erica- http://EricasProjects.blogspot.com

7. Pam- http://psiloveyouscrapbooking.com

8. Craft Lovers- http://CraftLoversComeHere.com

Dad's & Grads Blog Hop from MCCR Design Team...Graduation Time...Where Does The Time Go?!

Good Morning All!!! Been MIA for awhile and Thanks to MyCricutCraftRoom.blogspot.com for hosting an AWESOME Blog Hop for Dads & Grads with some AMAZINGLY TALENTED Ladies, I got my mojo back for blogging!!!

Life has been soooo crazy lately,  between Spring Clean Up,  a sick Mom (to whom I am the sole caretaker), end of school activities (am I the only one who thinks saving EVERY activity for the last possible minute of the school year is beyond overwhelming...and crazy too???!), and just the day to day demands in life, I am often left wondering,  "Where does the time go?!". I am completely convinced life is like a clothes dryer and time ends up with all the socks I've been missing for years! BTW, if anyone knows the Sock Monster, the one who obviously jumps into my dryer to take his daily fill of a sock here and a sock there,  please tell him it's time for him to come back and make a deposit,  NOT a withdrawl cause I'm going bankrupt here...at least in the sock and time division!!! Poor Jocelyn,  for her 10th Birthday recently,  we purposely bought her mismatched sock sets so she didn't have to go to school with one sock that said Hanes and another that said FTL! Happy Birthday Pumpkin!!! Lol!

Having recently had one of those moments, wondering where the time goes, 4 yrs seemed to creep up on us soooo fast with our first College Graduation of my fiances extended family, our Niece! Looking back 14yrs ago, when I first met her, I never thought the Chubby Cheeked Cutie would have made us all reflect so much on how precious time is down the road...and here we are! We couldn't be more proud! Hence the inspiration for my Blog Hop Card this week...a College Graduation Card with Matching School Colors!

Unfortunately,  I only managed to capture one pic while rushing out the door to the Ceremony,  but she was extatic about receiving a card that actually matched her school colors, Gold & Green!

Using the Cricut Happy Graduation Seasonal Cartridge,  I sized the Owl/Scroll image to fit the front of my card, which was 6×8 and created with AC Moore Cardstock in White and matted with a Black layer that I rubber stamped and heat embossed in a Snowy White Powder by Ranger. After layering my Cricut Cut, I simply outlined the Scroll with a White Pen, and added 2 Rhinestones for the Owls' eyes. After adhering the Gold Based, Green Layered Owl image directly to the front of thr card, I added my usual bling by using Rhinestones in the centers of the little embossed flowers. This one, although stressful in matching colors perfectly,  was definitely a treasure to make, and has given me a great occasion to reflect on time and slowing down to smell the roses and enjoy every minute because in a snap of the fingers, it's all just a distant memory!

So Thank You for stopping by as always,  and for joining us on My Cricut Craft Room's Dad's & Grads Blog Hop! 

Next you will Hop on over to another very Talented fellow Design Team Member,

 Eileen- http://craftykards.blogspot.com

Below are all the links to the Hop, just in case you missed someone! Happy Crafting!!!

Start

1. Start- http://mycricutcraftroom.blogspot.com 

2. Amanda- http://salnclts76.blogspot.com 

3. Vicki - http://vickiscraftroom.blogspot.com 

4. Connie- http://papercraftingfromanotherviewpoint.blogspot.com

5. Erica- http://EricasProject.blogspot.com 

6. ShanAnn- http://kraftinmama.blogspot.com

7. Trish- http://ifieverdoit.blogspot.com

8. Eileen- http://www.craftykards.blogspot.com

9. Crafting Blog Events http://craftingblogevents.blogspot.com 

Happy Easter!

Happy Happy Easter!!!

Just a quick blog tonite because I'm spent...from slaving over a hot srove ALL day to running errands and having 2 kids over at the last minute...and I still have an Egg Hunt to do....so here we go!

This is an Easter Card I made for my Best Friend,  and I felt quite accomplished since I could never figure out how to make those beautiful Flowers I keep seeing...well this morning I set my mind to it and finally figured it out!  The Base White Cardstock is from AC MOORE,  the Patterned Paper is from DCWV, and the Solid Colored Cardstock is also from DCWV. I Cricut Cut and Mat the 2 pieces in the middle from the Basics Cart in CCR, then Embossed the White layer, then on a separate sheet of White Cardstock I Heat Embossed the Easter Greeting in a Pink Tinsel and adhered that with Foam Tape. I added the Rhinestones and finally created the Roses, using the Essentials Cart in CCR. 

Sooooo excited to add a new technique to my repertoire! 

Thanks for stopping by!!!

Jump Rope For Heart Jumping Bunnies

Good day all! The Sun is finally shining and the smow is totally melting, too fast however (thought I'd never say that!)....this is what happens where I live when it melts too fast...

That's right, ICE JAMS & FLOODING! Luckily,  I live above Flood Stage, so no danger here....Thank God!

It's been another crazy week, but I managed to get these lil guys done for our Daughter's Jump Rope For Heart Team, The Jumping Bunnies for the Annual American Heart Association Jump Rope For Heart event yesterday!  They are pins that her and her teammates wore during the event and they were soooo much fun to make!

The are Cricut Cut from CCR with the Create A Critter Cartridge, and a School Cartridge (the Jump Rope was made by cutting out 2 Graduation Cap Tassels and gluing them together). I Swirl Embossed and Red Glittered the Heart before adhering the Bunnies with foam tape for a layered effect. Then I added Black/ Red Glitter Glue to the Jump Rope, Pink Glitter Glue to the cheeks and added a few Rhinestones,  of course!

Our Daughter and her Teammates LOVED these little guys and so did the Teachers! 

Now it's time to hop back on over to the Studio to get some Easter projects done! 

Thanks for stopping by!!!♥

Gettin Busy With My Cricky!

Good Morning Monday Morning! I had a busy weekend in the Studio this weekend....and had a blast with my new Subscription to the Cricut.com Cricut Craft Room!!! I am sooooo excited about this purchase,  I can't even tell you!

Unfortunately,  I've been so busy creating new things, a lil bit here, a lil bit there, I haven't finished a thing! So I decided to post a card I made for my Parents Anniversary for thier last one. If I get a minute later, I'll share the details, but for now, pictures will have to do! Thanks for stopping by!♥

Monochromatic Thank You

Good Morning from Melty Northern Maine! Yesterday's snow did not accumulate,  Thank Heavens! So it's finally starting to feel like Spring! Yippy!!!

I thought I would share a Thank You Card I made recently for my Mom's Caretaker. She is a Sweetheart with a Fashionista/Diva side and Pink is her favorite color. The base is AC Moore Cardstock in White, Patterned Papers are from an AC Moore Cardstock Patterned Pack which came in 6x6 so it's PERFECT for Card Making. I Stamped and Heat Embossed the Sentiment in Glittery Pink on a Frame from the same Patterned Paper, added some Ribbon and of course Rhinestones.  I Love Love Love Bright Colors and Monochromatic Schemes, and this one fell together exactly as I saw it in my "Creative Thoughts", otherwise known as my "Pea-Brain"! Don't you just LOVE it when that happens?!

Thanks for stopping by!!!♥

Birthday Cards Using the Cricut!

Good Morning!  Well, guess what....it's snowing!!! AGAIN!!! Yeah I know...but it's April....tell that to Mother Nature over here!

Very busy day today, so it'll be a quick post....this is a set of cards I made with my Cricut E2 with the Something to Celebrate Cartridge,  AC Moore base White cardstock, coordinating Patterned Papers, Foil Stickers, Glitter Glue, Confetti and my signature Rhinestones, of course! These were made for my Twin 17yr old Nephews for thier Birthdays recently. Hope you like them!

Thanks for stopping by!!!♥

Card # 3 From My 1st Card Order...

Good Morning Sunshines! And yes, we've FINALLY seen the sun...for 3 whole days!!! But...here's the kicker...we're getting MORE snow over the weekend  :( Where we live, we strongly believe in what's called the Farmers Almanac, which is supposed to predict the years' weather, and this last one had predicted a long, snowy & very cold Winter...check...it predicted 2 snow storms in April...well here's the first...and it also predicted a large snow storm in May...we'll have to see...but so far, it's been right on the money! The old timers have always said, during the last snow storms,"Well, we needed this snow to melt the old.", all I have to is come on storm of May so we can get on to Spring!!!

This is the final installment of my 1st card order, the 3rd card. It was for an expectant Grandmother at her Step daughter's shower, and I hope they all Love it as much as I did making it!

As always, Thanks for stopping by! !!♥

Second Card From 1st Order...

Good Morning from another Snowy Northern Maine morning!!! I figure at this point, we'll still be digging out in July so might as well enjoy the "Prettiness" of it all and just pretend that we're still in January and tomorrow is not the 1st day of April!

Here is Card #2 I made from the 1st order I received recently.  Its a Birthsy Card with matchinv envelope loaded in ribbon, pop ups and of course, BLING! I used AC Moore Pink and White Cardstock for the base and the Patterned Paper is from Best Creations Inc as well as the die cuts. I added a fe strips of Ribbon and a Ribbon Yoyo to the front ad well as Rhinestones (of course! ). On the inside,  I created a PopUp mechanism, and of course more Bling! A matching envelope was rubber stamped,  and away we go! 

As always,  Thanks for stopping by! ♥

My First Card Order!

Good Morning!  It's been a few days since my last post and I am happy to report Jocelyn is finally over her Bronchitis/Pneumonia!  She is slowly increasing activity, but is only doing half days at school...till next week anyways. 

I finally got around to finishing a 3 card order that had been on my desk for awhile, and this is the first! Although Sympathy Cards are my least favorite to make, I know they bring comfort in a time of great need. The Cardstock Base in Pale Yellow is from a local print shop, as are the Bright Yellow Embossed Layer using a Darice Folder, the Black Mat and the White Mat. I Heat Embossed in Black the lovely Bouquet from Inkadinkado and colored it with various Sharpies and Bic Markers, then added Glitter Glue to the petals and Glossy Accents to the Vase to make it look like glass. Of course, my Signature Rhinestones and Ribbon/Bows were added for Embellishments.  The curvy shapes on the card front/inside were die cut with my Cricut using the Craft Room Basics. I alsi hand wrote the sentiments, which I usually shutter to do, but basically had no choice since I didn't have the proper stickers or rub ons for the occasion.."Invention is the Mother of Necessity"! Last but not least,  I heat embossed in iridescent gold the same bouquet on the envelope to match.

It was well received,  for which I am Grateful my Creativity brought a slight sense of Peace in a difficult time!

Thanks for stopping by! ♥

My Escapes...

Good morning Crafty World! The beautiful sunshine this morning reminds me Spring IS coming...at some point! Yesturday proved that this Winter is taking it's tole, Jocelyn is still sick, and after trying to go back to school, she just couldn't do it...she called me after being gone only 1hr to go get her, and so I decided it was time to go back to the Drs., and so we did. New Antibiotics,  New Neb Treatments,  New Cough Syrup, a Lung Function Test scheduled in 6wks, and an Order For LOTS & LOTS OF REST!!! That one didn't go over well, but would it have with any other 9yr old??! 

So that left little time for Crafting,  but I managed to get a Birthday Card for one of her Friends done. Obviously this one is Cricut all-the-way! I used the Something to Celebrate Cartridge and just die cut extra layers for the top of the Party Hat, ran them thru my Xyron, as well as the bottom layer, and Glittered them up. I used Rhinestones for the centers of the "dots", and left the inside blank for my Daughter to handle the writing part.

Thank God I have this Creative Life to escape to when my Real

Life gets to be a lil much.....hope you like my Creations! Have a

B-E-A utiful Day!

Sweet 16...

 Good Morning! Hope it's warmer where you are than where I am...yesturday morning, we recorded -8 for the temp and -35 with the wind chill! And it's not much warmer this morning :(

Our Daughter is still recuperating from Bronchitis,  so over the weekend I prepared for a relatives Sweet 16 coming up and it made me realize how quickly time goes. We spend day after day preparing our Children for "Life", going thru the motions, handling the cooking, the cleaning, the dressing, being a "limo" driver to all the sports, dance & various activities as well as playdates and then sleepovers and .....well the list goes on and on! Then one day, as if it happened overnight, theyre all grown up doing these things for themselves and all of a sudden we realize the time we were coveting to be able to enjoy that "hot" cup of coffee or a quiet dinner is here and we would give ANYTHING to just go back to the "middle of the night feedings" and just start over again...but we can't,  and so I've come to realize it's those little things that are sometimes overwhelming that matter and that we should try our very best to enjoy. They grow up way to fas and at almost 10yrs old, our Daughter has started to remind us, "I'm not so little anymore! "!

With that said, here's what I came up with,  a Tri-fold Sweet 16 Birthday Card.  The base was AC Moore Cardstock and the Patterned Paper is from a Birthday Stack I've been waiting for the perfect project to use on. I used the Alphabet Cartridge that came with my Cricut for the sentiment base, which was cut out of an iridescent gift bag I had in my stash (finally I could tell my Fiancé, "See I told you I would use it!"). The sentiment was rubber stamped and embossed with a Glittery Embossing Powder.  The glittery "16th" was die cut from the Cricut and the gifts & glittered letters came from my stash. I LOVE LOVE LOVE making things with fancy or surprising elements, so this fancy fold was perfect for the occasion!  Hope you like it, and remeber, take today on just for today and enjoy the simple things because life goes by way too fast!

The Storm Is Finally Over! & My 1st Blog Hop!

The snowstorm that dumped 2ft of fresh powder is finally over, and now that the clean-up is done (once again!), it's time to focus on Creativity! With that I am sooooo excited to say I have been invited to participate in my 1st ever Blog Hop with some very talented ladies over at http://MyCricutCraftRoom.blogspot.com
today (Saturday) and I am honestly soooo honored to have been given this opportunity that I just hope my new little blog does provide a little bit of creative spirit for everyone who comes thru! With that said, I'll be posting a few more projects than usual just to make sure you have a few more things to look at!

My project for this Blog Hop is my Birthday Card Exploding Box, which I last posted a pic of on Wednesday,  but have since finished it. This will hold a mini Ty Beanie Boo key chain for our Daughter's Birthday in May! Hope you enjoy!

This is what you saw while in progress...

This is the finished project...

I made the bow with left over strips of Foil Cardstock which matched the outside panels of the box as well as some of the layers on the inside. I embellished the Ribbon on the outside of the box with my favorite kind of bling, rhinestones!  The rhinestones were also used inside for extra pop on the Cricut Cuts, which came from the Something to Celebrate Cartridge.  I added Glitter to the cuts to bring all the colors together,  and used the Cricut Craft Room to make the Scalloped Circles which mat the Cake cut outs I fussy cut out of matching paper.  

This is one of my favorite projects I've created thus far, and I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed making it!

Thanks again for joining the Blog Hop, and for riding alongside me whilest I learn all the ins and outs of sharing my creativity with you in this new venture of a Blog! Much LOVE and Thanks for stopping by!!!♥

PS-I am adding this post to the Buttons and Rhinestones Challenge over at the seizethebirthday.blogspot.com !

A Warm Scarf...

"Snow, snow, go away...can we fast forward to May?!"

This scarf was finished just in time...made out of lacey neon yarn, it matches most of her wardrobe and all her friends wanted it!!! #SUCCESS

The best part is, it took less than an hour to knit up....and it fits Mommy too!!! Lol!!! Hope you like it!

The Sickly House is Snowbound...AGAIN!

Hello from Stormy & Snowy Northern Maine! Been MIA the past few days getting ready for the storm, Dr's appts for my Daughter and Mother, and came down with a bad cold too, all at the same time.....so needless to say,  it's been a lil cray cray around here!
With the storm finally here, I'm hoping to get caught up on all the Blog stuff, but to start off, here's a project I'm working on for my Daughter's 10th Birthday coming up in May....hope you like it! It's still a work in progress,  so I'll have to keep you posted!

Baby It's Col Outside!

Another weekend over, and a new week has begun! Time to get all my "Must do" projects going and out the door! I was able to catch up on a few cards over the weekend seeing as the warmest it got over here was about 5 above zero and the wind chills hit -25...not exactly playful outdoor weather, so my daughter and I took in some bonding time in the studio...

With the cold weather set in and a lil time on our hands, we finally got all the Christmas decorations down, and I remembered I needed a Thank You Secret Santa Card (better late than never, right?!), and this is what I came up with! The feel reminds me of a Christmas gift with the ribbons and just the way the paper is layered. 

I used Ribbon from Hobby Lobby, AC Moore Solid Cardstock for the base and DCWV Christmas Stack Patterned Paper for the top layer. Hope you like it! 

Wine Is Fine, But Coffee's Warmer!

Good Morning! Another FREEZING morning in Northern Maine,  and tucked in with a hot cup of coffee the day statts off as usual...a lovely little surf around a few of my favorite blogs, starting today with My Craft Spot, giving us another great release party for stamps & dies!  (craftspotbykimberly.blogspot.com)

With that said and all the Beautiful inspirations seen this morning,  I guess it's time to post one

of mine!

Although all my posts have been cards, today I decided to post a different kind of project,  Wine Glass Charms! These were for a Best Friends' Birthday,  and were fairly easy to make with just a few pieces of wire and some Murano Glass Beads.  They were loved when received and will come in handy as she and her husband make thier own wine, delish by the way, and the colors were chosen with her liking warm colors. Hope you like them!