Birthday Card for a Young Man

'

 

 

My nephew was turning 18 and I couldn't come up with any ideas for his birthday card.  I knew I wanted to emphasize this milestone birthday, which eventually led me to the numbers theme.

 

Using Cricut Craft Room (CCR) and the free cuts available in Cricut Craft Room Basics, I welded numbers from 1 to 17 in different sizes and orientations to fit on a 5x7 card front.  It was a little tricky because after welding quite a few numbers together the program started to act a little unpredictable.  I think I saved my project and exited the program a time or two in order to get it to work correctly.   Also, to help me size my number shape to fit the card, I added a 5x7 rectangular shape from CCR Basics on a separate layer prior to beginning my number shape so that I would have a visual aid to help me plan my design.

 

After I was pleased with my number design (or when I began to fear that CCR would lose all functionality if I kept tweaking the numbers), I cut just the layer that held the number shape.  I wasn't satisfied with the color of the cardstock I had chosen so I used a brayer to roll ink onto a Darice embossing folder called Dot and ran it through my Sizzix Big Shot.  I cut the number 18 from the Cricut Cartridge Calligraphy Collection.

 

To assemble the card I glued the number shape onto a patterned cardstock rectangle from the DCWV Timeless Type stack, which I cut at 4 3/4 x 6 3/4.  I then wrapped hemp cord around the middle of the rectangle a few times and knotted it on the left side of the card front.  I adhered the number 18 to the right side using foam dots, then glued the card front to a 5x7 kraft paper card base. 

 

Thanks for visiting!



30th Anniversary Mickey and Minnie Card

 

My husband and I took a short trip to Disneyworld to celebrate our 30th wedding anniversary.  It wasn't the exotic, once-in-a-lifetime trip I had dreamed of taking for this momentous occasion, but it was a much-needed break from reality.   And that's what I needed more than anything.

Since my husband did all the legwork to make this trip possible, I wanted to do something special for him.  And it needed to be inexpensive.  So I compiled a slideshow of our thirty years together set to one of my favorite songs, God Gave Me You, by Dave Barnes.  I didn't have to spend a penny.  And that was a gift my hardworking husband could really appreciate--a free one.

The card theme was a no-brainer in light of our trip to Disney World:  Mickey and Minnie.  I wanted to celebrate the fact that we managed to stay together through thirty not-always-wonderful years, so I needed to incorporate that onto the card (the 30-years part, not the fact that they weren't all wonderful).  I had seen some really cool latching gatefold cards on Youtube, so I decided to use a two-part heart design in the center of the card as a latch.  I used memory thread to create the appearance that Mickey and Minnie were holding a celebratory banner.

The inside sentiment was printed using the Waltograph font, and included a reference to the rollercoaster ride we had lived the past 30 years.  This gave me the perfect excuse to use the Cuttlebug Wild Ride die for the rollercoaster on the back of the card.  I also found two pictures of our family at Epcot: one with our two daughters back in the 1980s and another with our two granddaughters a few years ago. Deja vu.

Mickey and Minnie were cut with my Cricut using the Mickey and Friends cartridge.  The hearts were cut using the free shapes from Cricut Craft Room Basics, which is available in the free online design program Cricut Craft Room.  Yes, I love freebies.

 

I'm already looking forward to the next 30 years.  Or at least the next trip to Disney World.

Logan's First Birthday



My favorite grandson celebrated his first birthday last month.  I was thrilled when my daughter asked me to make the banner for his airplane-themed party.  She knew exactly what style banner she wanted, which definitely made it easier for me.  I'm more of a worker bee than a creative type. 

My daughter preferred that I not make an age-specific banner so that she could use it again another year.  Since I knew I needed a space between "happy" and "birthday" I designed a couple of different options, one being the star that says "1st" (what can I say?  I'm a rebel).   Because the pieces of the banner are joined with individual lengths of ribbon, it will be easy to remove the star and replace it with another piece if she decides to use it again.  

 

The airplanes are from the Cricut Lite cartridge B is for Boy.  Using the Cricut Craft Room design program, I took the letters from the cartridge Martha Stewart Elegant Cake Art  and stretched them to the proportions I needed to fill the rectangular flags I had cut with my paper trimmer.  The stars I used are free shapes from Cricut Craft Room Basics.

                                            

 

The night before the party we stayed up late cutting mats for about ten thousand photos showcasing Logan's first year.  Yes, I exaggerate, but not by much ;-)  My granddaughters and I worked hard assembling all the pictures.  My daughter spent most of the day and night cooking the most amazing food, which looked as beautiful as it tasted.  And finally, sometime well after midnight, we finished our tasks and went to bed.
 

The day of the party we woke up to snow.

My two granddaughters were excited to see the white stuff.  They were the only ones.  I was heartsick for my daughter.  I knew she had been looking forward to this day for so long, and she had worked so hard to get everything ready. We weren't sure what would happen.  How much more snow would accumulate?  Would anyone come?  As for me, I was disappointed that my sisters, who live a few hours away, might not be able to make the trip.

 

We set about decorating the neighborhood clubhouse anyway, uncertain what the day would bring and not willing to be unprepared should the weather improve before afternoon. 

 

Then the sun came out.  The snow melted.  The guests started to arrive.  And my sisters were able to get across the mountains safely and spend a couple of hours with us.  It was a wonderful day.

Don't be fooled; there were tons more photos of Logan on the walls. 

The excited guest of honor.

He thoughtfully opened each and every gift. 
At least that's how it appeared to this adoring grandmother.

Birthday Card for my Daughter

Since I first learned my daughter likes owls, she's been inundated with papercrafts featuring the feathered creatures.  I decided she needed a short break, so I reverted to her previous favorite--dragonflies.

 

I enjoy trying new techniques when I have a couple of extra minutes, so I decided to use a stamped acrylic overlay on this card.  (Truth be told, the glittered background paper I used was making a complete mess in my craft room, so I decided to put it under a protective cover.)  The script was stamped on the acrylic with Stazon metallic ink.  The frame was designed in Cricut Craft Room using shapes from Cricut Craft Room Basics stretched to fit the card base dimensions.  The dragonfly is from the Cricut cartridge Disney Pooh and Friends (who would have guessed?).  I cut the dragonfly base from vellum and the body accents from metallic cardstock.

 

Disney Photo Flip Book

I was offered a free photo flip book and thought, "What the heck...fewer photos to scrap!"   The finished product with its plain clear cover was crying out for some embellishment.  My huge vinyl stash was also crying out for attention.  I was feeling lazy.  It was either this or housecleaning.

 

I sat at my computer (that's always easy) and designed a frame using Cricut Craft Room Basics (again, no need to leave my chair) and Mickey Font. 

 

From CCR Basics I chose a rectangle and circle (can't believe there's no basic oval in CCR Basics!) then resized and reshaped them to fit my cover.  The now-oval shape was placed in the center of the rectangle to create the cutout, the Mickey Font letters and date were lined up along the bottom of the opening, then everything was welded together.  After cutting the vinyl using the kiss-cut method, I used clear contact paper to transfer the overlay onto the photo book cover.   Could it have been made fancier?  Sure, but not by me.

 

As God is my witness, I'll use my vinyl stash one 4x6 piece at a time.