Not Your Typical Sympathy Card

Hello everyone. I have to tell you, I have really debated with myself about posting this card. I really like how the card turned out, but I made this sympathy card for a friend and I did not want her to think I was exploiting her card or loss.
My friend Toby is an amazing woman, mother, teacher, wife, friend, and an incredible daughter. Toby's mother became ill and Toby refused to put her into a nursing home, but instead turned her own life upside down in order to care for her beloved mother. Her mother had been a pillar in Toby's life and Toby became a pillar for her mother. Toby is an example of what we should all aspire to become - completely devoted to those whom we love. I know that I have learned greatly from her example.

Toby's mother recently passed on to her eternal life and I wanted a pretty card for Toby. Toby loves dimension on cards - she is very tactile and likes touching the layers. I chose this card cut from the Cricut Circle exclusive French Manor cartridge especially for Toby. I knew she would be able to touch the flower cut over and over again. I cut the base card, then resized and cut the top layer to add dimension. I added foldered flowers over the cut flower, again for dimension as well as for additional color.

Inside the card I used an old-school wooden stamp to add a verse of scripture..... Toby lives her faith better than anyone I know so I thought she might I appreciate this reminder from Isaiah.

I know that most sympathy cards are not rosy pink with flowers and a bow, but for this lovely friend, "pretty" was perfect.

Bonjour Raspberry Card

Bonjour!  This is day three of "Berry Week" here at Busy with the Cricky.  Today's card is going to make all of you non-Cricut Circle members wish that you too had joined the Circle!   I used two cartridges to create this card, Preserves for the raspberries, and French Manor, the first Cricut Circle exclusive cartridge, for the base card and lattice cuts.

French Manor has a lot of lovely European decor cuts, but also a wonderful selection of cards.  I really liked the lattice cut (above in medium pink) and was thrilled to discover that there is a lattice cut card!  I cut the base card in black and gray diamond print cardstock.  I then cut the lattice in medium pink and the lattice border in a pink print.  Using glue, I layered the pieces together.

As I stated above, the raspberries were cut using Preserves (which is perfect for Berry Week).  I cut the base layer in a hot pink cardstock, then used Copic markers to color the stems.  I cut the leaves in a lime green and again used Copics to add detail to the leaves.  And the berry tops were cut in this great pink-on-pink print.  I used a cat's eye ink around the edges of the berries before placing them on the card with pop dots.

The bonjour tag was created by layering an adhesive backed cardstock sticker to a circle of printed cardstock.  I used a hole punch and added ribbon to finish the tag.

I thought you might like to see the side view of the card.  I lined the inside of the card with white cardstock.  If I were to make this same card again, I would probably choose a light pink to line the inside of the card.

I hope you will be back tomorrow for another berry project!

Fence Challenge using Heritage

Rejoice Christmas Card with Cindy Loo

Hello everyone - it is a Bitten by the Bug 2 Monday with our weekly challenge kicking off my week of Christmas themed projects.  As most of you know, there is a "challenge" cut each week at BBTB2 which the Design Team must use in our projects.  This week's challenge cut is Flourish 3 from the Cindy Loo cartridge.  I have incorporated the flourish into my Rejoice Christmas card.

My base card was cut using one of two card options on the Cricut Circle cartridge, French Manor.  Each cut on French Manor has two card features - I chose the full image cut out card and selected this wonderful French Horn.  I created a French Horn base layer and using Cricut Design Studio - utilizing the "Hide Select Contour" option, I removed the inside cuts on the base layer horn.  I attached the base layer behind the green card front.  I also cut a top layer of French Horn, this time with the cut outs included and using pop dots, attached the horn over the green layer.  Between the gold and green layers of the horn you can see this week's challenge cut, Cindy Loo's Flourish 3, coming out of the horn in triple layers.  The flourish represents the music of the French Horn.

While at CHA last summer I purchased quite a few sheets of "peel offs".   I confess that I purchased peel offs in several colors and brought home peels for myself and my scrapping girl friends!!  I framed the front of the card using gold peel offs, both around the outside edges and around the plain green rectangle at the top of the card.  I added the gold peel off title, Rejoice, to the upper right front across from the flourish on the upper left..  Peel offs were also added around the mouth piece of the horn and the bell end of the horn. 

I added a scrap of lovely SEI Christmas paper behind the horn in the cut out area of the card.  I played with several color and a prints until I settled on this light blue and white print. 

The inside of the card has a white cardstock lining with a thin rim of green showing around the edges.  I finished the inside of the card with a strip of gold peel off under the signature area.

The front of the card was finished by trying a pretty silk ribbon around the horn.  I also used my Martha Stewart branch punch and added evergreen branches on either side of the bow knot, growing up the edges of the French Horn.

I really like this card and plan to duplicate it for a couple of friends to use.  I will be back tomorrow with the second of my Christmas week projects.

Projects, Where Oh Where are the Projects

I have missed my blog... It has been a tough week.  For some crazy reason I went into super-mom/Susie-homemaker mode last week.  My youngest son is home from college on fall break (he is on a crazy school schedule).  Ian asked me to make one or two of his favorite meals last week.  Of course this guy's favorite meals are not burgers and pizza.... oh no.... He wanted Greek Chicken Pie (i.e. chicken, feta, spring onions, spices, in a fabulous sauce wrapped in flaky phyllo) and Beef Bourguignonne with Egg Noodles.  Seriously.  The simpler of the meals he requested was homemade tacos and homemade beef BBQ. 

I think I have gained four pounds in the last week.  Did I forget to mention the homemade apple pie? Yes I did.  I made from scratch apple pie and pie crust on Sunday.  That pie was awesome.  And the crust was fabulous.  I also used the Cricut Cake machine to cut extra pie dough to decorate the top of the pie. The apples were from A Child's Year and the flourish is from French Manor.

Ian goes back to Atlanta on Friday and I think Doug, Bethany and I will going on a diet starting Saturday!  I will be making a round trip to Atlanta and back in one day, so there will be no crafting on Friday either.   But this weekend THERE WILL BE CRAFTING!! 

I have three projects planned for the weekend.  My next two BBTB2 projects as well as my fall Yudu napkins. 

I will be back tomorrow to select a winner of the Custom Crops gift voucher/blog candy.  Sorry to be so worthless in the craft world this week.  I will improve....