Double Halloween/Thanksgiving Duty Holiday Decor

I love when things can serve more than one purpose, and my holiday decor is no exception.  I had just received my new Thanksgiving mini Cricut cartridge, but Happy Hauntings was still calling my name since I just haven't had a chance to use it as much as I'd like yet.  The solution was a fun little hanging sign from my stash.  (I tend to buy alterable items when they're on sale, and hoard them along with some recyclables to alter when the mood strikes.)

The plan was to decorate one side for Halloween, and one side for Thanksgiving.  I didn't want typical black & orange for Halloween, but some of the colors needed to be the same so I could add ribbon to the wire hanger for a more decorative look.  So, let's see how I did:

I'm going with a bit of an elegant vampire theme for Halloween this year, so I pulled this paper from my stash, traced the sign on it, and cut it out.  I decoupaged it to my sign and let it dry while I cut my Cricut Designs.  Using the Vampire font from Happy Hauntings, I cut "Beware" from American Crafts glitter paper in Rouge and the font shadow from black paper.  I cut the Bats using the Layer 1 feature for Frame 3 on page 40 of the handbook.  I added the red eyes using some Stickles in Christmas Red.  To adhere the shadow, I again decoupaged.  Helpful Hint:  I like to make my paper look like fabric by brushing on the first layer in one direction and letting it dry, then brushing on the next layer in the opposite direction.  The vertical and horizontal cross-hatching looks just like a fabric weave.  Once everything was dry, I added the pieces cut from glitter paper using Glossy Accents.

Now, for the Thanksgiving side:

Using the same process as the other side, I adhered this paper from my stash to the sign blank.  I cut this nice little Pilgrim couple on the Thanksgiving cartridge from black cardstock, using creamy white and deep orange for the layers.  After adhering them to the sign, I just cut off the excess from the "swirly" part that hung off the edge.  I cut the "Give Thanks" design from American Crafts glitter paper in Chestnut, and adhered it over the top of the Pilgrims.  Somewhere along the way I misplaced the dot for my "i" - since I didn't want to cut it again, I just pulled an adhesive rhinestone from my stash and stuck it on instead.  Finally, I tied ribbons and attached them to the hanging wire using Glue Dots Pop Up Dots.  I added a red button to the Halloween side and a deep orange button to the Thanksgiving side for a little color.

Supplies available at Cutters Creek:

Cricut Happy Hauntings Cartridge
Cricut Thanksgiving Mini Seasonal Cartridge
American Crafts Glitter Cardstock, Rouge and Chestnut
Ranger Glossy Accents
Glue Dots Pop Up Dots
Ranger Stickles, Christmas Red

Two Quick and Easy Cards with your Cricut by Mandie

This month I have been really busy creating cards! I created lots to sell at a craft show at our local library this past weekend, so every free moment I had was spent creating. Because I wanted to keep my cards fairly easy to make and fairly flat so they could be mailed I thought I would share two of them here with you!
Both card bases are 4” x 5 ½”.

First we have my Santa Card. I used the Paper Doll Dress Up Cricut Cartridge to cut out my Santa at 3”.

For the Santa suit and hat I used plain red card stock. I actually cut the jacket and hat twice, the second time I used a white textured paper to look like swirly fur and then just trimmed out the “trim” pieces. Before gluing down the trim I used a glue pen and added Chili Pepper Red Stampendous flocking. Then I used my Quickie Glue Roller Pen to adhere all of the pieces to my Santa. Then I grabbed a sheet of green from my Bazzill Dotted Swiss Multi-Pack and a scrap from a Christmas Paper Stack and a piece of the red leftover from cutting the Santa Suit and adhered them to my card. Then I used the Christmas Red Stickles to add a little bling to my card.

For my second card I used the Christmas Cheer and Opposites Attract Cricut Cartridges. I cut the wreath from Christmas Cheer at 3 ¼” and if you look closely the leaf layer is cut from a scrap of embossed cardstock that I had embossed with one a folder from the Plum Blossom Cuttlebug Folders Set. I cut the smaller wreath and berries at 2 ¾” and then adhered them all together. Then I used the
Christmas Red Stickles on my berries for some sparkle. Next I grabbed my Opposites Attract Cricut Cartridge and some American Crafts Gold Glitter Paper and cut the word “Joy” (it’s already welded on the cartridge) with the Opposite Font feature at 2”. Then I used my D’Vine Swirl Cuttlebug Folder to emboss my piece of red cardstock.

Hope you enjoy both of these cards and please stop by my personal blog: Mandie’s Scrappin if you’d like
to see more of the cards I created. I will also be posting some info about a great Blog Candy giveaway on my blog at the end of the week!

Cutters Creek Shopping List:

Cricut Cartridges:
Paper Doll Dress Up
Christmas Cheer

Opposites Attract

Other Supplies:
Chili Pepper Red Stampendous flocking
Christmas Red Stickles
Bazzill Dotted Swiss Multi-Pack
Plum Blossom Cuttlebug Folders Set
American Crafts Gold Glitter Paper
D’Vine Swirl Cuttlebug Folder
Quickie Glue Roller Pen

Rosettes 101 by Laura C.

Rosettes: 101

Well, ask and you shall receive!! My second project this month was rosettes as well (if you haven't noticed, they are HOT in everything paper crafting!!).  I've included more detailed pics on the how to's this time, so hopefully you will all try this fun new technique!!

Step #1: Cut a strip of paper to the size of rosette you'd like.  I used a 1" x 12" and 1& 1/2" x 12" (which I
punched with a lace punch for a funedge!). 

Step #2: Fold one end of the strip over about 3/16" to start accordion, then continue to fold back and forth
until the entire strip is folded. 

A side note here: take your time to make sure you keep your folds even.....it will take a few minutes, but you'll love the end result!  Some people have used a paper crimper to "start" the accordion--but it is tricky to get the paper thru perfectly straight, also, Tim Holtz has a new a die that does this, it comes out soon.....you can always ask our wonderful store owner (Kim, of course!).

Step #3: adhere ends of your rosette together with a bit of your favorite adhesive.

 

Step #4: cut a circle to fit your rosette (I used a 2" circle for the 2&3/4" rosette and a 1&1/2" circle for the 2&1/4").  Then cover the circle with adhesive....I used a layer of my favorite regular adhesive, and then 4 or 5 glue dots spread out on top of that.

Step #5: Push the center of the rosette down, then holding it slightly pinched, pick it up and place it on the circle with the adhesive. Ta Da!!  You have a complete rosette!

Step #6: Embellish!!  I used twinkle jewels and Stickles, and they are also a perfect fit with the brand new Spellbinders Beaded Circles dies--the larger sizes for the base, and the the smaller sizes for the centers! I added an additional center circle (1 & 1/4") that I wrote in and inked.  This center could be ANYTHING--stamped or printed from the computer)

These can decorate scrapbook pages, cards, anything you can think of!  Attach them to a small stick, and make a bunch of "flowers".  The "Boo to You" example I have here, would be perfect if you attach it to a big lollipop, for a gift, or for a child's class. Remember, you can do this for any holiday, any event (think wedding or baby showers, graduations, any party!) you can make them in any color and decorate anyway you'd like.....the only limit is your own imagination!

Happy Creating!!


Available at Cutter's Creek:

Spellbinders Dies (Beaded Circles)
Stickles (Purple)
Twinkle Jewels (Many!)
Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Rusty Hinge)

Never Ending Card by Melissa

Well I am finally back!! Overtime has ended at work for the most part and I am now able to finally create again! I have been hearing a lot lately about Never-ending Cards so I decided to do some research and was able to make my own. Now if you have no idea what I am talking about, it is perfectly fine! I didn't know what it was either! Below is a short video (under a minute) showing a completed Never-ending Card and the 4 panels you create. Hopefully it sparks your interest too!

Just in case it doesn't load for you, click here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMNymSEYaSc

Ready to start making your own? It is soooooo simple! You will start with 4 sheets cut to 3" x 6" and scored at 1 1/2" on each side.

Next, you will want to go over each score with your scor-tool in both directions (with the scored portion on top and than on the bottom) This way it bends much easier after assembled.

Lay out two of the 3" x 6" pieces horizontally and line them up evenly to apply tape to the 4 corners only.

Take the 3rd sheet of 3" x 6" and lay it over one side vertically. Only remove the adhesive one corner at a time so you can line up the pieces perfectly. (Ask me how I know this!)

The last sheet is extremely easy to apply as you really only need to line it up against the other vertical sheet. But remember to still only remove the tape one corner at a time.

And here is your assembled card!

Just in case, here is the youtube link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QKovCaMrehw


The next part is simple. It is probably the most time consuming part because you are cutting out the sections for each of the 4 panels. The measurements for each panel are below. I am using color 1 and color 2 so you can see how I layered them. Also, if you are going to be using layers, I would recommend using patterned papers or thin papers as cardstock makes the card very thick and heavy if you are mailing.

Panel 1:

















Color 1: (4) 2 3/4 x 1 1/4
Color 2: (4) 2 1/2 x 1
Color 1: (2) 2 3/4 x 2 3/4
Color 2: (2) 2 1/2 x 2 1/2

Panel 2:

Color 1: (2) 2 1/2 x 2 1/2
Color 2: (2) 2 3/4 x 2 3/4
Color 1: (4) 1 x 1

Color 2: (4) 1 1/4 x 1 1/4


Panel 3:

Color 1: (4) 1 1/4 x 1 1/4
Color 2: (4) 1 x 1
Color 1: (2) 2 3/4 x 2 3/4
Color 2: (2) 2 1/2 x 2 1/2



Panel 4:

Color 1: (2) 2 1/2 x 2 1/2
Color 2: (2) 2 3/4 x 2 3/4
Color 1: (4) 2 1/2 x 1
Color 2: (4) 2 3/4 x 1 1/4


Now the best thing I have found about this card is that there are so many areas to fill that your imagination has free reign. But, you are limited on your 3D embellishments as with all the folding it may not work properly. I love simple cards. I used the stamped flowers for my background in place of a patterned paper and sponged like crazy! I love how it turned out. You can see how very little embellishments are needed after everything was stamped.

Some good stamps for this project are:

Pink Cat Studio Garden Plate.
Inkadinkado Chandeliers, Filigree Fall, Leaves Galore, O Holy Night (this would make an awesome Christmas Card!!!)
FlowerSoft Flower Foliage
Autumn Leaves Swirls V2

Let me know what you think!

Products Available at Cutters Creek

Mini Hannah Collection from Pixie Cottage


Copic Markers:

Water: B000, B00, BG10
Sky: YG11, G0000, BV0000, RV0000, YR000
Skin: E50, E00, E02
Stones: N1, N4, N6, N9, C00, C2, T1, 0
Grass: YG03, YG63, YG17, E33, Covered with: YG11, YG06, YG03, YG63
Leaves: YG91, YG93, YG95
Flowers: Y04, R30, R32, R35
Dress: Y32, Y35, Y17
Hair Band: Y17, Y19, Y18
Hair: E33, E97, E99, 0


Copic Atyou Spicas


Prism White Paper
Memento Tuxedo Black Ink
Mini Hannah Collection by Pixie Cottage

Scor-Pal
ATG
Scor-Tape 1/4"

Spooktacular Layout by Laura C

This is a 12x12 layout that starts with the Basic Grey (BG) Lime Rickey collection.  The 12x12 lime green page is distressed around the edges and then inked in black.  The next layer is the orange polka dot from
Lime Rickey cut down to 6&1/4" by 8". This is also distressed and inked.  The photo is 4x6 and is double matted--first on a 4&1/4" x 6&1/4" piece of orange (from Lime Rickey) and then a 4&1/2" x 6&1/2" piece of lime green core'dnations from the Black Magic Spellcaster collection, that has also been distressed. The matted photo is then placed about 1&1/2" from the bottom and from the side of the orange polka paper.

From here, you can embellish and have fun.....I used a bat punch from EK success on a 1"x8" piece of black
cardstock, and placed this close to the bottom, then pleated and stapled on Halloween ribbon--the Tim Holtz Tiny Attacher is perfect! The medallions were made using the Cuttlebug A2 folder "Boo to You", and the same piece of Core'dinations cardstock. Once embossed, it was sanded to make the images "pop".  They were cut out with a 1 & 1/2" circle punch. The skeleton head circle is mounted on a 2" circle (distressed and inked) and then pop dotted.  The "boo" is just adhered with glue dots. An American Crafts pearl brad holds the "paper lace" in place (PS that was the bat punch that was punched on BOTH sides of the 1" strip of paper!).  The "scary" was adhered with glue dots, to a rosette made from a 1&1/2" x 12" piece of the polka dot from the Lime Rickey collection. After accordian folding this piece, I adhered the ends together with adhesive, and then the entire rosette, to a 2" circle of plain cardstock using glue dots.

Hope you get some inspiration for those "Spooktacular" fall and Halloween pictures you'll be scrapping soon!!

Available at Cutter's Creek:


Basic Grey Lime Rickey
Core'dinations Black Magic (Spellcaster)
American Crafts Pearl Brads (Earth Tones)
Cuttlebug A2 Folder (Boo to You)
Glue Glider (permatac adhesive)
Glue Dots (Dot n' go memory dots and pop dots)
Tim Holtz Tiny Attacher Stapler

Little Fishies Layout by Chris

As many of you know I have been trying to catch up on my LOs and I am almost there. This LO is a day that all 5 grandkids (and their parents) were over. What fun! I started with 5 pictures (3 are 2x3 and 2 are 3x5) and a 12x12 primary color blue sheet. I cut two strips from a 12x12 pale green sheet: one 3x12 and one 4x12. Using my ATG, I glued the thinner sheet along the top and the 4x12 strip along the bottom of the blue base sheet and glued the smaller pictures on the top strip. I mounted the 3x5 pictures on a 3.25 x 5.25 rectangle before adhering to the bottom strip.

I then took the Cricut cartridge Life is a Beach and cut 3 sets of the fish border (p. 53 of the handbook). I set my expression on fit to length and chose a 3” length. The machine then cut it out with a width of 1 ¾ inches. I used a spray adhesive to mount the borders under each small picture. To tie the three pictures together I used Plantin Schoolbook’s zigzag (p. 70 in the handbook) and again used my fit to length key. This time I set the length to 2 ½ inches, which cut each strip to a .5 width. I made 7 of these. To get a 12-inch strip I overlapped the ends and glued them together; then glued the length over the top edge of the photos, trimming away the excess. Using George and Basic Shapes, I cut a 1 ½ inch circle from yellow, wrote the date using my Sakura Glaze pens and adhered between the photos.

I made my title (5 Little Fishies) in SCAL using a free font call Gentle Redhead and cut the shadow from the same yellow as the fish and the letters from the same color as the base paper. (I’ve attached the scut if you care to use it.) For the part “swimming in my pool” I used a trick a friend shared with me, and a yellow marker. Just draw two lines—I tried to make mine wavy like water—and write, making all letters touch both the top and bottom lines. I think it is a cool effect for journaling. What about you?

Finally I had to add some glitz so out came my stickles and I highlighted the number 5. Still not satisfied I dug in my stash and found some clear sequins. I used these to add a few more bubbles, which I attached with Glue Dots vellum glue.

Cutters Creek Products:
ATG gun
Cricut Cartridges: Plantin SchoolBook, Life is a Beach, George and Basic Shapes
SCAL
Stickles: Waterfall
Glue Dots Vellum Adhesive
Sakura Glaze Pens

Monkey Tent Card by Chris

I’ve been playing with several different versions and sizes of tent cards and wanted to share one with you. This one will fit in an A2 envelope.

I used my SCAL and my cricut markers to write the sentiment on the back and to cut the 8.5 x 4.25 card base. (I find it easiest to do the sentiment first, so I remember to turn the card the opposite way to work on the front.) I glued a 4x4 green dotted paper on the front. Taking my Spellbinders Small circles--the second to largest size—I cut a hole in the center of the front. (You could do this in SCAL, but I wanted a frame around the circle and wanted to be sure I could match it exactly.) I then used the largest circle die and the second to largest die (that I had just used) to cut out the yellow frame. I used repositionable-tape to hold the two circles on the yellow paper and make sure they didn’t shift as I cut them. Once cut, I glued the yellow frame around the opening.

Using ZooBalloo I cut the monkey and his layers at 2.5 inches and the vine at 1.5 inches. Once the monkey was assembled, I used my TH paper piercer and made a hole in his tail and in the top of the frame, looped a jump ring and hung him upside down in my card. To make the vine frame the monkey, I snipped off two pieces—one from each end of the vine. I shaded the leaves with copic G19 and then dabbed some light green flower soft in each leaf’s center. I set that aside to dry.

Next I cut a 4.25 by 4 inch rectangle and scored it on the 4-inch side at 1, 2, and 3 inches with my score pal. I folded these so the middle fold was up (a mountain fold). I knew that my cutout circle was going to show this piece so I also cut a 4.25 x .75 inch piece of the green dotted paper and glued it to the front of the mountain fold. (If you choose a smaller cutout, you can avoid this step.) I used Scor tape to adhere the first fold to the back of the card. The inside of the card also gets covered with a 4-inch decorative square, but I wanted more of a jungle effect. I had the perfect print from one of my travels, cut it and glued it to the part that would show through the cut circle (the opposite side of the printed sentiment).

I then flipped the card back to the front and attached the vine. The longer loopy piece I draped over the center and just laid the two smaller pieces so they attached to the ends. I scored the card at 4.25 and using scor tape again, I glued the last fold to the front edge of my card. I now needed to trim the part of the card stand that was showing up through the circle. I used my cuttlebug scissors to snip towards the frame, (crossed my fingers), and carefully trimmed along the yellow frame. Whew, I didn’t slip. This card is really simple to make. I’ve made them with and without hanging images. Let’s see what you create.

Cutters Creek Resources:
Scor Pal
Cuttlebug
Spellbinders Small Circles
Scor Tape ¼ inch
Cuttlebug scissors
Cricut Cartridge: ZooBalloo
Flower Soft—pale green
Flower Soft glue

The First Day of School by Lori

Call me strange, but I just love the first day of school! To me, it always feels more like a new year than New Year's Day does. I've always loved the smell of new clothes and new school supplies, and the hint of Fall to come (my favorite season). I also love seeing the changes in my kids from year to year, so this was an especially fun layout for me.

I notice it's a little hard to see in the photo, but that American Crafts glitter paper really makes this layout pop. And by creating a visual triangle with my glitter paper, it's very pleasing to the eye. You can get SO many projects from each sheet of this fabulous paper since it's so eye-catching.


My super cute title and paper pieced school are cut with my Cricut using the Locker Talk cartridge. If you scrap kids or grandkids, this cartridge is a must-have! There is everything from preschool to high school, playground to driver's license on here and you are sure to get your money's worth from it. The title is cut at 3.25" and the school is cut at 2.5". The extra apples were cut using the layer from the title, at 2.5", and I hand cut the leaves to match.


I also used the Plantin Schoolbook cartridge to create the scalloped photo border, using my Gypsy to get it sized the way I wanted. I used the same technique along with Everyday Paper Dolls to create my walking trail using the Blackout feature with the road design. Combining pieces from different cartridges is a great way to personalize your designs. My kids walk to school for the first few years, and we use the walking trail behind our house to get there. Years down the road, it will jog their memories of walking to school by adding this feature to my layout even though it isn't in this set of pictures. Think about these types of things when planning your cuts, and don't feel you have to stick with what's included in a single cartridge.


The patterned paper & CS is from my stash.


Items available at Cutters Creek:
Cricut Expression
Cricut Gypsy
Locker Talk Cartridge
Everyday Paper Dolls cartridge
American Crafts Glitter Paper, Rouge

Christmas Morning Layout by Mandie W.

Today’s project is featuring some of the gorgeous Ecstasy Crafts  cut-outs that Kim has started stocking in the Cutters Creek store. Now these exact ones aren’t available *yet* but I’m sure that if you ask Kim really nice to add the “Charlie’s Ark” line to the store she might be persuaded. I personally think these are soooooo cute! The sheet I have is the “Sweet Dreams” one but there are many others including: Closest of Friends, Sharing a Special Moment, and Gardening Friends. These images are so simple to assemble and look stunning in the end.

I made a layout so you could see these aren’t just for card makers (although they make adorable cards too). I took the photos so you could see the top and side views since it is so hard to capture the beautiful dimension in a photo. Once I assembled all four of the characters that came on the sheet I decided that the little girl holding the teddy bear made me think of Christmas morning! Also the little elephant asleep on the present really sealed it! I used photos from Christmas 2008.

I’ve had the “Christmas” title in my stash for about 3 years now and I decided it looked so cute with the papers I chose. I cut out the word “Morning” with my Cricut Nursery Rhymes cartridge and used the Christmas Cheer cartridge for the tree (It’s actually 2 layered together). I also used my 1/8” Scor-Tape to adhere my ric-rac to my layout. The gold chipboard star was sprayed with Yellow Daisy Glimmer Mist.

If you need any more details about this layout, check out my blog: Mandie’s Blog. Please don’t forget to leave us a comment if you love these little characters as much as I do and maybe they will be in the store sometime soon! I will send some blog candy to one lucky commenter!

Shopping List:

Ecstasy Crafts
Cricut Nursery Rhymes cartridge

Cricut Christmas Cheer cartridge
1/8” Scor-Tape
Yellow Daisy Glimmer Mist