"My Little Cupcake" 12x12 Double Layout

Edit: This project was featured on Fantabulous Cricut Challenge Blog's Scrappin' Saturdays!

This layout was created for My Sheri Crafts Challenge #45 - All About Girls and Scrapbookaholic by Abby's Use Pink Challenge.

First of all, I apologize for the picture quality; I took these photos late this afternoon so there wasn't a lot of natural light left and the lighting in my house leaves a lot to be desired. If you guys have any tips for photographing your work, I would love to hear them. Also, some of the alignment may seem a little wonky but that's due to the weird camera angle. I promise all of the cuts were adhered completely straight and this layout looks much better in person.

This is a 12"x12" double layout featuring ten 2.5"x3.5" photo mats (a standard wallet sized photo) and one 4"x6" photo mat. I wanted to create a layout that would hold a bunch of photos and this one certainly does.

I used two different fonts from the Cricut Elegant Cakes cartridge. The standard font is cut at 3" and the plain font is cut at 1.25".

On the second page, the standard font is cut at 1.75".

I used the Martha Stewart Heart Chain Punch to add some detail...

...and some cute cupcake ribbon that matched my color scheme.

 I created two different cupcakes from the Sweet Treats cartridge at 2.25" each...

...and embossed them.

As always, all of my cuts are popped up on foam.

Products used:

Cricut cartridges: Sweet Treats and Elegant Cakes

Martha Stewart Around the Page Punch - Heart Chain

Cuttlebug Embossing Folders: Asian Bundle, Swiss Dots, Divine Swirls, and Candy Cane Stripes

Paper: Basic Grey - Sultry and Recollections cardstock

"Flower Pot" Pocket Card

This card was created for My Creative Time's Throwback Thursday Challenge #167 - Walk in My Garden, Fantabulous Cricut's Challenge #48 - Emboss It,  Charisma Card's Challenge #7 - Spring Has Sprung, Jitterbuggn' Get in Shape Challenge, Queen of My Craftroom's Challenge #5 - Spring Theme, Cardz TV's All About Spring Challenge and Creative Sisters' Monday Challenge - Emboss It.

I love the look of flower pot cards but I wanted to create something a little different. I cut two flower pots from the Walk in My Garden cartridge at 4.5" using the "blackout" feature, embossed them with the Cuttlebug Distressed Stripes embossing folder, inked them with light brown ink and adhered the sides and bottom together to create a pocket. I cut a separate top for the flower pot and popped it up on foam in order to create depth.

The butterflies were punched from the Martha Stewart Monarch Butterfly punch and layered for extra color and dimension.

The chrysanthemum was cut at 3" and embossed with a folder from the Asian Bundle; the daisies were cut at 2.25" and embossed with the Textile Texture and Swiss Dots folders, the larger leaves were cut at 1.75" and embossed with a different folder from the Asian Bundle and the smaller leaves were cut at 1.25" and embossed with the Candy Cane Stripes folder. 

The tag and layers were cut from the Sweet Treats cartridge at 6.75". I placed the tag inside my flower pot pocket to determine where my flowers should be place and then adhered them accordingly. Usually I would stamp a sentiment on the white layer but I haven't decide what I want to use this card for yet so I've left it blank for the time being.

I cut an extra layer for the back of the tag and embossed it with another folder from the Asian Bundle. 

Products used:

Cricut cartridges: Walk in My Garden and Sweet Treats

Cuttlebug Embossing Folders: Asian Bundle, Textile Textures, Swiss Dots, Candy Cane Stripes and Distressed Stripes

Martha Stewart Large Punch: Monarch Butterfly

Paper: Recollections cardstock

"Western-Themed Birthday" 12x12 Double Layout

Edit: The project was featured in the March 1, 2011 issue of the Cricut Chirp and won the Frosted Designs Fabulous Friday Top 3 Award! 

This layout was created for The Paper Cutz Challenge's Challenge #79 to create a Western themed project for a boy's birthday and the Frosted Designs Fabulous Friday Challenge - No Designer Paper. 

This is a 12"x12" double layout featuring three 4"x6" photo mats. The desert scenery was cut from the Paper Doll Dress Up cartridge at 4.25" and the mountains were cut at 3.75". 

The title and the barn were both cut from the Create a Critter cartridge; the title was cut at 3.75" and the barn was cut at 2.34". The sun and the clouds were both cut from the Mickey and Friends cartridge; I bought this during the epic $9.99 sale at Michaels and I'm so happy that I did...it was worth it for these two cuts alone. I've already used these cuts in three different layouts and I'm going to have to be careful not to overuse them. The sun was cut at 3" and the clouds were cut at 1.5" and 1.25".

The cowboy was cut from Paper Doll Dress Up at 4.5" and his face was stamped with a Peachy Keen Face Stamp.

The covered wagon was also cut from Paper Doll Dress Up at 3.5"...

...the fence was cut at 3.25" and the cow was cut at 4.25".

Products used:

Cricut cartridges: Paper Doll Dress Up and Create a Critter 

Peachy Keen Face Stamps - Everyday Assortment 

"Under the Weather" Card

This card was created for The Cuttlebug Spot's Open the Gates: Gatefold Card Challenge and The Saturday Challenge's Challenge #122 - Fancy Folds.

I wanted to make a encouragement card for a friend who's been going through a difficult time but I didn't want it to be overly-sympathetic. Of course, now that I look it, all I can think about is Oreo cookies...

I hand cut a 4.25"x5.5" gatefold card out of white cardstock and layered black cardstock onto each fold.

The scalloped squares and the rounded squares were both cut from the Accent Essentials cartridge; the scalloped squares were cut at 1.5" and the rounded squares were cut at 1.25" The rounded squares were embossed with a folder from the Cuttlebug Asian Bundle. 

The large scalloped heart and shadow feature are cut at 3". The large rounded heart is cut at 2.75" and embossed with a different folder from the Cuttlebug Asian Bundle. The silhouette and layer are cut from the A Child's Year cartridge at 3.75" and popped up on foam.

The inside of the card is finished with layered black and white cardstock and embossing. The umbrella was cut from A Child's Year at 1.5" and finished off with some faux-stitching.

Products used:

Cricut cartridges: Accent Essentials and A Child's Year

Cuttlebug Embossing Folders: Asian Bundle

Paper: Recollections cardstock 

"Congratulations" Wedding Card

This card was created for the More Than Favors Wacky Wednesday Challenge #26 - Wedding Theme and the Card Creations and More by C So Saturday Challenge #3 - Black White and One Other Color.

This card was created solely with the Sweethearts cartridge; this was one of the first cartridges I ever purchased and it's still one of my favorites. I started with a pre-cut 5"x6.5" card and added a piece of 4.75"x 6.25" pink cardstock and a piece of 4.5"x6" black and white striped designer paper. The bridal gown was cut at 3.75" and embossed with the Cuttlebug Swiss Dots folder and the Cuttlebug Textile Texture folder. The groom's tux was cut at 4" and embossed with the Cuttlebug Candy Cane Stripes folder.

The accent corners were cut at 1.75" and embellished with half pearls. 

The bridal outfits are popped up on foam for added dimension. 

The inside of the card is layered with a piece of 4.75"x 6.25" pink cardstock and a piece of 4.5"x6" white cardstock. Both pieces have been punched with the Fiskars Elegance corner punch. The corner accents were cut out using the "Blackout" featured and embellished with tiny punched hearts.  

The sentiment was cut at 2.75" and embellished with a half-pearl.

Products used:

Cricut cartridge - Sweethearts

Cuttlebug Embossing Folders - Swiss Dots, Textile Texture and Candy Cane Stripes

Martha Stewart Border Punch - Doily Lace

Fiskars 4-in-1 Embossing Corner Punch - Elegance

Paper: Me and My Big Ideas - Black and White stack and Recollections cardstock

"Thank You" Card

Edit: This project was featured in the February 22, 2011 issue of the Cricut Chirp and won the Fantabulous Cricut Challenge Blog's Fantabulous Cricut Top 5 Award!

This card was created for the Fantabulous Cricut Challenge #47: Weather Forecast and the Crafty Creations Challenge #106: Thank You Challenge. 

I started with a pre-cut 5"x7" card and layered a piece of yellow 4.75"x6.75" cardstock and a piece of blue 4.5"x6.5" cardstock on top. The blue cardstock has been embossed with an embossing folder from the Cuttlebug Asian Bundle set. The tree, clouds and both butterflies were cut from the Serenade cartridge. The tree was cut at 4.5", layered with extra leaves in contrasting colors and embossed with the Cuttlebug Tiny Mosaic Texture folder; the clouds were cut at 1.5" each and embossed with the Cuttlebug Swiss Dots folder; and both butterflies were cut at 1.5". The grass was cut from the Paper Doll Dress Up cartridge at 1.5", embossed with a different folder from the Asian Bundle and trimmed to fit.

The sentiment frame was cut from the Twinkle Toes cartridge at 1". 

Except for the background and grass, all of the cuts have been popped up on foam.

I finished the inside of the card similar to the outside. I layered a piece of yellow 4.75"x6.75" cardstock and a piece of white 4.5"x6.5" cardstock on top and added a single layer of grass. Both butterflies have been cut 1.75". I didn't add a sentiment to the inside because I plan to write a note, instead. 

Products used:

Cricut cartridges: Serenade, Twinkle Toes and Paper Doll Dress Up

Cuttlebug Embossing Folders: Asian Bundle and Swiss Dots

"Let's Catch Up..." Card

This card was created for the Cricut Cardz Challenge #62- Cup of Cheer and the Cooking with Cricut Emboss It Challenge. A special thanks to everyone who let me know about this challenge! 

I started with a standard 4.25"x5.5" card base and layered two different colors of pink on top cut at 4"x5.25 and 3.75"x5" respectively. The top layer is embossed with the Cuttlebug Perfectly Paisley embossing folder. 

The teapot and mug are both cut from the Cricut Lite Savory cartridge; the teapot is cut at 2.75" and embossed with the Cuttlebug Spots and Dots folder and the mug is cut at 2.25" and embossed with the Cuttlebug Seeing Spots folder and the Cuttlebug Swiss Dots folder. 

I cut two frames from the Wild Card cartridge at 11.75" (the measurements on this cartridge correspond to the base card size...not to the actual size of the cut) and layered them on top of each other. The top frame is embossed with the Cuttlebug Swiss Dots embossing folder.

Everything is popped up on foam for added dimension. 

I used cardstock, a stamp and a corner punch to create a simple sentiment on the inside of the card. 

Products used:

Cricut cartridges: Savory and Wild Card

Fiskars Corner Punch - Elegance

Inkadinkadoo Clear Stamps - Tickets and Coupons

"Sacred Heart" Gatefold Card

This card was created for the Cricut Cartridge Chaos Challenge's Rock Princess Challenge. 

The sacred heart is one of my favorite cuts on the Rock Princess cartridge and I thought it would look really cool paired with the delicate iron gates featured on the Ornamental Iron cartridge.

The sacred heart was cut at 4.5" and embellished with tiny crystal rhinestones.

When I first saw this cartridge, I was concerned it was going to be like the Lovestruck cartridge...full of incredibly beautiful but way too intricate cuts that can be very frustrating high-maintenance to work with. But with the right settings, everything cut beautifully! I used a freshly sticky mat and cut my cardstock at blade depth: 6, pressure: 4, and speed: 1. The designer paper was very thin and I did have a little tearing with that but everything cut fairly well at blade depth: 6, pressure: 3, and speed: 4. 

I didn't care for the accents on the gate pieces so I used my crop-o-dile, punched some small circles out of silver metallic cardstock and adhered those instead.

I chose the three pieces that I wanted for my card (two gate pieces and one back piece), chose their shadow cuts and welded all three pieces together on my gypsy in order to create a shaped gate-fold card. The back piece measures 8" and the gate pieces measure 5.5". I cut the shadowed back piece at 7.75" in order to create a layer for the inside of the card but kept the iron cut at 8". 

I cut a second back piece out of white cardstock at 7" and used the middle cut-out for a card liner.

The phrase is cut from Rock Princess at 1.75" 

Products used:

Cricut cartridges: Rock Princess and Ornamental Iron

Paper: K&Company - Best of K and Recollections cardstock