CHA....Chicago Style

The Road Trip is winding down. I have finally made it to Chicago for the Craft Hobby Association (CHA). I am excited and looking forward to tomorrow. I know it's going to be busy and people everywhere, but I cannot wait to see what's new and what I can buy! I will be reporting back for duty tomorrow afternoon. Stay Tuned....

TAGS, BAGS, BOXES, & MORE!!!

Our challenge this week at Platinum Scraps was to create anything from Cricut Cartridge: Tags, Bags, Boxes, & More. Please visit the above link to see what the other designers created.

I love cake boxes. How beautiful they look when stacked like a cake. They can by used for any occasion. I chose a baby shower. Let me know what you think.

Brown Butterfly

We are back from vacation and boy have I missed having internet access. It was so hard and a struggle. By day 2, the withdrawal was tapering off. We spent some great time with family in Arkansas and was able to visit a friend in Mississippi. Oh yes, I stepped into Hobby Lobby for the first time and fell in love. That store is great and I found 3 albums that I need in multiples. My great friend Nicole of Creative Delights by Nicole offered to pick up some for me and send them once they go on sale.

While I was gone, I missed the deadline over at Platinum Scraps for this weeks Challenge. Please visit Platinum Scraps to see the different interpretations of the above sketch.

Honoring the Hero at Home

Next week we will celebrate the 4th of July and in the spirit of honoring those that serve. I am taking this opportunity to Honor the Hero in my family. My Big Brother!! He spent 8 years in the Navy, traveling all over the world, and serving on the offshores of our current war. Upon leaving the Navy, he signed up as an Air Force Reservist and is in his 3rd year. In between all this time, he never lost sight of the big picture: becoming a FIREMAN!!! He spent years as a volunteer and now, his dream is reality. Thank you for serving your country as a soldier and rescuing those as a firefighter. Now, get your butt back on the East Coast and put fires out here because your family misses you!

FATHERS DAY Lunch Tins

It's been a busy week and I will be getting some much needed rest this week. I wanted to share some Father's Day tins that the kids and I put together.

Video: Tiny Tip 2 - Printing Text on Cricut Cuts with MS Word

It's time for another video. I'm always thinking of ways to share the tricks I used prior to life with my cricut. Some of them still work today, except now, I have more cuts to choose from other than sizzix dies. Take a look and let me know what you think. If you try it, be sure to come back and let me know. Thanks for watching. Now get back to crafting!!!!

Happy Anniversary Nicole & James

I just wanted to give a special shout out to a wonderful friend of mine. On Sunday, June 13, Nicole & James celebrated another year of Love & Happiness. Here is their card, that I'm sure arrived in the mail a day late. LOL!!! Everyone knows I have a love/hate relationship with the post office.

Star Cut

Platinum Scraps has struck again. This week's Challenge was to use a star from any Cart. I chose Hannah Montana. Hop on over to Platinum Scraps to see what stars my fellow design team members had in their eyes.

Graduation

As we closeout another Graduation Season, I am so proud of all the graduates in my life. I know first hand how hard it is and the reward is all worth. Here are to cards I did last week. The Chef card is for Shayona who is on her way to Culinary School. The card design was a challenge issues on the Cricut Messageboard in the Sistas Scrap Too thread. Thanks for the challenge PkaySunshine!

What we do for love...

Every now and then, my hubby walks into my Corner, sees what I'm doing and asks, 'when are you going to start my scrapbook?" Now, this may seem crazy considering how many projects I've done for others, but he rarely takes a photo. According to him, I practically force him to take family portraits every year. In actuality, he's just used to it, so he never puts up a fight. But, I got the message loud and clear, so this page is the start of something new..

ANNIVERSARY FAVOR TINS

As we wind down a beautiful holiday weekend, I am trying to gear up for the work week to come. I had 3 days off last week that were pretty much spent running errands for our weekend celebrations. My Birthday, Anniversary, and Housewarming, all in a one week span. I'm sitting here right now enjoying the delicious taste of bbq. Hubby did his thing on his new gas grill (1st time using one) and my girlfriend Chinita hooked up the yummy sides along with her mom's tasty potato salad.

Friday night, we had a dinner party with some married couple friends of ours and it was too much fun. It made our 10th Anniversary so special. On to the real reason for this post: The favors:





See the video below on how I put these together.

Time to Celebrate!!!!

Yesterday was my Birthday. I had the best time with my Sister-Girls. In honor of my Birthday, my layout over at Platinum Scraps has me embracing this new year. Check out how my fellow designers interpreted this 1 or 2 page sketch.



My friends kidnapped me for dinner at Olive Garden (man, that Grilled Shrimp Caprese was D-E-L-I-C-I-O-U-S) where I cleaned my plate. Next up, we headed across the street to the movies to see Just Wright, followed by dessert at Dairy Queen. I settled in for the evening reading all my cards from family and friends and melted myself to sleep. Ahhhhh..

Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to all the Red Hot Mommas. Let me explain Red Hot. It means you have it going on. It means you are balancing being a wife, mother, employee, friend, sister, and in all other aspects of your life!!!



This is a 5X7 Card. The lady and purse were cut from Forever Young. The top note die shape, was cut from the Mother's Day seasonal mini cart. The sweet treat cup is filled with red hot candy. Want to give it a try. Go ahead give it a try and come back and let me know.

ConGRADulations!!!!!

As we continue to usher in Spring, we are once again at the door of Prom and Graduation season. I am so proud of my bestest girlfriend, Tricia. Between her busy job (Asst Womens Basketball Coach at Bowie State), Head Coach Changes, active Church life, and heavy family involvment, she managed to complete her Masters Degree in Organization Communication.

It's time to P-A-R-T-Y

Teacher Appreciation

Teacher Appreciation has come and gone and the last of the lunchboxes to be made are signed, sealed, and delivered. My son's teacher is a scrapper herself and she oohed and ahhed over her lunch tin. It's off to the next adventure for me.

Happy 10th Anniversary Honey!!!

I told you all a few days ago, that May was my favorite month. So much to celebrate, so much happiness. Hubby and I will be celebrating our 10th Anniversary in a few weeks. I am thrilled to reach this small milestone because marriage is H-A-R-D but so rewarding. I started working on this design last week when my Summer in Paris cricut cartridge arrived in the mail. I knew what I wanted to do and was excited to pull it off. Here's the invite.



Here is how I did it:
1) My gypsy of course.

2) I welded a square from George & Basic Shapes to the building/bridge (is that what that is??) base from Summer in Paris to make the card base. (Silver 10.25 X 5.5)

3) Then I added the couple from Sweethearts and welded them to the base of the card as well.

4) Next, I cut the very intricate lace portion of the building/bridge. What a task. I ended up switching the blade after cutting out 6. It took a while to cut out all 4 on one sheet of 12X12 paper. I still had to take my pic and poke out several of the pieces. (Royal Blue 5.5 X 4.75)

5) Added silver ribbon across the top (using terrifically tacky tape)

6) I cut another set of the couple (black) to make us look cuter. LOL!!!!! And adhered them to the base.

7) Cut the inside and use Word to print all the details.

Shoes for Momma

Next to Diamonds, I hear Shoes are a Mom's best friend. This shoe idea is courtesy of one of my Scrap Sistas. Check out Alice Brown's blog to see her original design. I figured out how to add the fold portion (using George & Basic Shapes, of course) and tadaaa! Here ya go. Thanks again Alice for the wonderful idea.

Mother's Day

This weekend, we ushered in my favorite month of the year. MAY!!!!! I'll celebrate Mothers, Life, Love, and a New Home. Please share what you are doing for Mother's Day.

We all know a Supermom in our lives. That person may even be you. A Mother who is always on the go. A Mother who is balancing work, children, spouse, and even some quality time for herself. This week's project is dedicated to YOU!!









Here's Another. This was was done using Once Upon A Princess and Storybook. Let's just hope the kids' God-Mommy doesn't scope out the blog this week. LOL!!! It's full of goodies for her to keep in the car. Her car is black and her favorite color is red.




There is a mirror on the left side and the poem on the right reads:

Godmothers aren't fairies in a tale,
Offering a world that cannot be.
Demand of them glass slippers and they fail,
More likely to do favors naturally.
On them you can depend for a relation:
They offer gifts and guidance with a kiss.
Having taken on the obligation,
Each freely out of love gives what she is.
Real godmothers have no wands or wings,
So they must work with wisdom, love, and things.

LADIES NIGHT!!!

I'm all clear from Party Central (My son had a blast) and now I need to shift my focus back to my weekly scrapping. The challenge this week at Platinum Scraps, is to use the Forever Young Cartridge. If you do not have this cart, it is a must have!!! This cart just oozes girlfriend, diva, classy and sassy. You'll be using it for years to come.

What Cricut Cartridges did what:
1) The building scenery was cut from Plantin Schoolbook.

2) The ladies of course, were cut from Forever Young cart. This includes their clothes and accessories. The picture mat is also a purse from FY.

3) Traffic light is from Going Places with a little stickles to make it bling.

4) Street signs and post - George & Basic Shapes (told you I don't have too many layouts that I don't use this cart on).

VIDEO: Tiny Tip 1: Creating Layouts

It's Video Time. In the past, I have been called the most organized scrapper, an anal scrapper, and a silent scrapper. I will just roll those names together and call myself an organized scrapper. That is the only way I feel like I get things accomplished when I got away to crops. When I'm home working, it is no big deal. I just dive in and flow.

No matter where you are in your world of scrapping, this video will show (at every layout) an easy way to pre-plan your layouts.

Take a look and leave me some feedback. If there is anything you'd like to see, leave that too and I can start sorting out the how tos and when.