Click it with Cricut at Imaginise

This week I had the pleasure of working together with fellow Imaginisce Designer Kim Holmes for the special Click it with Cricut feature at the Imaginise blog. For this segment we both created projects featuring Cricut's Tags, Bags, Boxes & More.  Make sure you hop on over to the Imaginisce blog to see our projects and get in on a chance to win some great prizes!

I combined the Animal Crackers collection with Circut's Tags, Bags, Boxes & More, and "monkeyed-around" with Cricut's Create a Critter and Nate's ABC's to put together this little gift-bag ensemble for my two grandsons (who often run around like monkeys I might add!).

Cricut Cuts - Tags, Bags, Boxes & More - Gift Bag
- Cut < inchbg > with Blackout Feature selected  at 7 inches from Animal Crackers patterned paper
- Use Animal Crackers Border Die Cuts, your i-rock and Glam Rocks to decorate

Tip: Add the border to the bag while it is still flat, before you fold it.

Cricut Cuts - Tags, Bags, Boxes & More - Hang Tag
- Cut < hangr2 > with Blackout Feature selected at 5 1/2 inches from Animal Crackers patterned paper
- Cut < hangr2 > with Shadow Feature selected at 5 1/2 inches from orange cardstock
- Adhere cardstock to patterned paper with POGO Adhesive Dispenser

Cricut Cuts - Nate's ABC's - Letters for Names
- Cut letters for name from organe cardstock at 1 inch with < font2 shadow> feature selected
- Adhere letters to tag to form name with POGO Adhesive Dispenser
- Use your i-rock and Glam Rocks to decorate

Cricut Cuts - Create a Critter - Monkey Stick
Cut < monkey > at 4 inches from black cardstock
Cut < monkey > with Layer 1 selected from Kraft cardstock
Cut < monkey > with Layer 2 selected from dark brown cardstock
Cut < monkey > with Accessory selected from green cardstock
Adhere together with POGO Adhesive Dispenser as shown in photo
Attach money on vine to a stick (I used a Wilton Cookie Stick) with Small Badge Daddies created with your I-Top

(note: supervise play with "Monkey Stick" due to stick pin on Badge Daddy, or adhere vine to stick using glue)

Tip:  Add "whites" of eyes with a white gel pen. Add "pink" to inside ears and cheeks with chalk

Add candy or small prizes and shredded paper to inside of bag and you are done... TA DA! :-)

Papercraft Star Executive Team Reveal

It Friday's (whoot whoot) and also my turn for the Papercraft Star Executive Team Reveal.  I had such a great time working with another Liz Chidester sketch (she is such a talented sketch artist and papercrafter as well!) for this week's sketch challenge at Papercraft Star.

It just so happens that a couple of weeks ago, one of my daughter's (hi Cait!) celebrated a birthday, so I used this sketch to create a gift bag and card for her. I know, I know, ANOTHER gift bag and card... BUT, when I have the opportunity to use a challenge to actually create something I know I already have a recipient for, I just have to combine the two... I can't help myself! For me, this means that I won't be adding to the growing pile of cards I've created that I still haven't given away!

Anyhow, the event (her birthday) and this challenge also gave me a chance to pull out some new Bo Bunny patterned paper and chipboard that I purchased in early January (another plus!).

Other products I used to create this gift bag and card set included cardstock, stamps and ribbon from Papertrey Ink, Hot Rocks (adhered with my I-Rock) by Imaginisce, dies from Spellbinders and an EK Success border punch.  The bag I purchased in a bundle that was on clearance from my local Meijer store (in fact, I bought three packs of ten bags for just a few dollars... gotta love a bargain!).

Okay, so there is still time for you to join in this week's challenge (but you gotta hurry) so hop on over to Papercraft Star lickety-split to join in... I'll look forward to seeing what you create!

Papercraft Star Challenge 25 Executive Team Reveal

It's Friday's Executive Team Reveal for Challenge 25, at Papercraft Star and my week to create something for the challenge!  Check out this pretty inspiration photo from Martha Stewart dot com.



To find our current challenge at Papercraft Star and enter your project for this week go here.

When I sat down to create this project I was seriously out of Mojo, I've created more holiday projects this season than I ever have before and despite the fact that I absolutely love the inspiration photo for this week, I was seriously out of ideas.  I solved the problem by cruising through the November/December 2010 Paper Crafts magazine and TA-DA, I found some inspiration in a project designed by Carolyn King. You can see the project for yourself on page 59 of that issue. Here's my take on her gorgeous design.

The colors that really spoke to me from the inspiration photo were the combination of red on the holiday decor and the aqua hue of the wall. So I brought those colors together on this gift bag/card combination. Because I was also so burned out on the holiday papers I've been using lately, I decided to break out some patterned paper from the Beautiful Blooms pack by Papertrey Ink to create this project. Although it's certainly not traditional holiday paper, it does have just the right colors, as well as the Aqua Mist cardstock (also by PTI)...the perfect match to the wall color in the inspiration photograph.

This close-up shot gives you a better look at the felt flower and that adorable little reindeer I made (I made about 30 of them little suckers... it's addicting!). I found the idea for that in a papercrafting magazine as well! (I told you I was out of Mojo!!) :-)

I'm really looking forward to seeing all the beautiful holiday creations you make using our fabulous inspiration photograph for this week's challenge.  You still have time to enter your project before voting begins too, so I do hope you join us!

Before I go, let me just give you a quick run-down of the supplies I used to create this gift bag/card combo.  The patterned paper and cardstock are from Papertrey Ink.  I also created the felt flower using Pure Poppy and Spring Moss felt and a Beautiful Blooms flower die (also by PTI). The sentiment is stamped using their Pure Poppy Ink with a Hero Arts Stamp. The button and twine are also PTI. To create the reindeer I used brown yarn and google eyes and bells that I purchased at Wal-Mart. The ribbon on the bag is from Really Reasonable Ribbons.