Lovebirds trio of boxes

This is my entry for SVG Cuts Valentine's Day challenge. It's been ages since I entered one of their challenges so this time I told myself I would do it no matter what! ;-)

I used the candy box and the heart pennants from "Love Me Do" collection. The little fence is from the "Love Bear Village"collection, and the birds are from "Robin's return" collection.

It's hard to get an idea of the scale on the pic but those are actually quite big, 5 1/2 " in height.

I used coordinating cardstocks so the color theme is the same for all. This is box 1.

This is box 2. I love that plaid with spring colors. <3 :-)

This is box 3.

Not sure what will go in the boxes so I just put some tissue paper in there for now, but in retrospect it might not have been a good idea, it makes it hard to see the details...  Oh well! LOL ;-) As always, click on any pic and you will get a bigger version. Plenty of details that way! :-)

I had initially planned on giving those to my kiddos for Valentine's day, but I think they are too cute and would be crushed too fast... >.<  So I am saving them instead... Bad Mommy!... LOL ;-)

Smell the roses...

Here is my project for the "Cherry Blossom Challenge" on SVGCuts.com's forum.

I LOVE everything cherry blossom, I have fond memories of the huge cherry tree that was in my garden when I was a child... So when the challenge got posted my creative wheel started turning right away... the problem is, my mind was going in all kind of (very) different directions at the same time, and I couldn't decide on one option!...

It quickly became clear I wanted something a little different, so I thought this paper would work well with big colorful blooms. Now if you know me, you know that black & white isn't really a combo I use a lot in papercrafting. I find it too cold and strict. I tried to soften it up here by using a lot of patterns that ressemble old french wallpaper.

I made a little sheet music with stamps, and used the page of an old novel because I like text background a lot... (It cracked me up that the title was "Late Bloomer" so I just had to use it! ;-))

I tried using novel pages in my cricut to cut SVG's but it didn't go well at all! The paper got torn, even on a lower speed... :-(

I made my 3D blooms using the Sakura flower from the cherry blossom collection. I am so glad Mary included this simple flower in the collection as I really really love the little indentation on the end of the petal... It's my favorite one. :-)  They remind me of peonies this way, and peonies are my favorite flowers (with lilac blooms and cherry blossoms... ;-)) It's hard to see in the picture but I also cut the foliage twice and added leaves on pop-dots here and there to give it more dimension.

I finished it off with a little tag with a sentiment, and little pearls on the opposite corner, and hung it on the wall next to my crafting desk. Initially it was going to be a card, but as I was adding things on it it got bigger (it's 6X6), and the blooms are so full that they would be an issue to mail, so I glued it on a cereal box chipboard and made a little hanging sign instead... :-)

I love the end result and I had fun playing out of my "color comfort zone"... ;-)

ETA: My entry was 3rd in the challenge! :-D

Our family Birdhouse

I finally finished my project for SVGCuts Spring challenge. It took me forever, between spring break and sick kids, but I'm finally done!... Phew! :-)
I started with a wooden frame found at Michael's for $1, the minute I saw it I knew what my project would be... So the frame became my little birhouse... I "mod-podged" some Que Sera Sera paper on the frame.

I then decorated it using files from Spring Birdhouses for the birds and greenery, and Robin's return for the gorgeous lace border. I added Prima flowers, and a little felt to keep my birdies warm and cozy... :-)

 
The stamp I used is from PaperTrey Ink.

Of course it was only when I was finished sewing the button on the bow that I noticed it was off center... LOL I decided to leave it like that and argue that it looks more homemade this way... ;-)

For now, this hangs above my desk, I like to look at it and think about my crazy little family of 5!... :-D

ETA: My entry got 4th place in the challenge! :-D

Valentine's Take-out box

This is my entry for the Valentine's challenge on SVGCuts forum. I used the take-out box from the "Crush on you" file, but put my little spin on it by folding the flaps the opposite way to reveal the underside of that gorgeous paper! (yes, still the "Que sera sera" pack from K&Company ;-))

I used die cut felt hearts (PTI dies), (Martha Stewart) punches (heart and butterfly) and Prima flowers to decorate it.

I know what you are thinking though... "No sign of the beloved new twine?" LOL Well I did this project before getting the twine!... ;-)  And I'm afraid you'll soon suffer from twine overload anyway!... ;-)

I believe love is in the little details... so I added little hearts at the end of my ribbon... <3
My daughter is getting this little box for Valentine's day with Matryoshka dolls in it (more about those in another post...;-))



Christmas Gatefold

I made this gatefold card for the christmas challenge on SVGCuts.com. I used their gatefold card as a base (freebie). I ran it into my Cuttlebug with the swiss dots folder, then distressed it to reveal the paper's white core. The little stars and Christmas tree sliders are from the Buckles collection.

Inside I created a little scenery of 3 gingerbread men/women enjoying a cup of hot cocoa next to the Christmas tree... ;-) It's my husband who came up with the "concept" and I thought it was a fun idea... Everything is from the "Christmas Cookie Party" collection, except the gifts I made myself (bow is from the collection), and the tree skirt doily (from the baking section...). I used foam tape of course for dimension, and bended the little arms. My favorite part has to be the little marshmallows in the hot cocoa... Yum! ;-)

My husband thinks the eyes are a little creepy but my daughter loves them!...(she and I decided against red eyes because it looked too "evil"!...;-)) The star on the tree is a brad, and I used plenty of rhinestones.

As always, clicking on the pics will give you a bigger version. It's really hard to get the dimension on a pic. I still have to figure out all the wonders of this camera... ;-)
This card will likely go to my niece for Christmas. She loves everything papercrafted, and religiously keep all the cards I send her and likes to look at them or display them. I think she'll enjoy this one too. :-D
I sure had fun making it (well, aside from cutting out those tiny marshmallows with my big hands!... ;-))

Mistletoe wreath

I love this card! Simple cards are my favorite, and the hardest ones to make in my opinion too. This one came out just as I envisionned it which is enough to make me happy! (Sometimes I have this idea in my head and can't transform it in paper!)
I made it for the Christmas Card challenge on the SVGCuts forum.

I used the wreath from "christmas cookies party" file and cut it out 3 times, assembling it with a few glue dots between the layers to slightly prop it up, and bending the leaves forward a little. My "door" is embossed with a Fiskars plate (in my cuttlebug) and I scored some panelling lines. The door handle is a brad and I cut out a little mail slot to slide a mini Christmas postcard in it...

I wrapped some cheer ribbon around my wreath to soften the overall look, made a pretty little red bow and I decided to avoid the expected red berries and go with mistletoe instead, using little pearls...

My little "Joyeux Noël" postcard slides in and out of the mailbox.

Harvest frame

Tonight marks the beginning of Sukkot, a jewish Holiday celebrating different things including the Harvest.
I made this little wreath for my friends who invited us to celebrate the 1st night of the holiday with them.
I turned it more into a frame by adding a prayer in hebrew that has to do with Sukkot in the middle (hard to see in the pic).
I used all SVGCuts.com files, except the fruits that I made myself by hand. I started with the Laurel Wreath (that I stretched to 11X11), then because it's a Harvest celebration (some people refer to it as the jewish Thanksgiving) I included details of Fall like the mums, the pumpkins, the maple and oak leaves, and the fruits at the top.

Then at the bottom are 2 things very specific to this Holiday: a lulav and an etrog. I won't go too much into details but those are things used for prayers and celebrations. The lulav is a little bunch of certains tree branches including palms and myrtle, and the etrog is a fruit from the citrus family, kind of like a giant lemon.
I used various files for my branches (including a cornstalk turned into a palm... ;-)) and made my lemon by hand.

Because I didn't know if this was gonna be hung outside (and we are in Florida so the heat and humidity are still very much here) I used a hot glue gun to attach my little decorations.
Because I turned it into a frame I didn't prop things forward too much, and just folded some of the leaves forward as much as possible.

If it didn't take me that long I would definitely make another one for my own home... ;-)
As always clicking on the pic will open larger pictures. :-)

ETA: My wreath tied for 3rd place in the challenge! :-D

Autumn Squirrel

This is a card I made as my 2nd entry (1st being the strawberries) to SVGCuts August Challenge. I used Fall Pop-Up cards for the card, leaves and acorn, and used the kangaroo free file (that completes the Cuddly Animals collection) that I altered into a squirrel... :-) I think he looks a bit like a angry squirrel though, I hope he doesn't have rabies! LOL... (maybe he's just a little overprotective of his acorn, after all winter is just around the corner in some other states....;-))

For the inside I cut the word Autumn a 2nd time and glued it over. I attached a little ribbon to the T and added leaves on foam tape.

My little guy is propped on foam tape, so is the acorn (run into Cuttlebug folders) and 2 of the leaves, and his paws.

Strawberries Harvest

SVG Cuts' challenge for August has been posted and this time the requirement is to use one of their pop-up files. I know most people think Fall when they read Harvest, but I live in Florida and I am not quite ready for Fall just yet!... I decided to celebrate the sunny days of summer, and their strawberries' harvest.

My card is pretty straight forward: a lot of layering with foam tape and glue dots, a little bit of texture with embossing folders, and a tad of coloring or inking here and there...

I don't usually take my pictures in the sun, but today I thought it enhanced the summery feel of my card... ;-)

I used SVG Cuts files, the "Chamomille Friendship Cards" for the picket fence, flower pot, and bees. And the "Strawberry Lane" for the strawberries and leaves.

The inside is a Fall Pop-Up Card. I added the "berry sweet" caption and a strawberry leaf from Strawberry Lane.

        

I'll send this card to my sweet e-friend Bee who lives in California. She's the one who introduced me to the awesome goodness of SVGCuts.com, so I sure owe her one!! :-D

We both are nicknamed "Bee", so the 2 little bees on the card represent us... ;-)

ETA: My card tied for 2nd place in the challenge! :-D