Hello Kitty Waits for the Great Pumpkin

I just love Hello Kitty and try to think of ways to incorporate her into my projects. We all know the story of Linus waiting in the the pumpkin patch for the Great Pumpkin to arrive. I decided to use that theme and replace Linus with Hello Kitty. I could envision dear, sweet Kitty dressed in her Halloween costume waiting in the pumpkin patch for the Great Pumpkin to arrive.

Waiting for the Great Pumpkin to arrive.

Directions for Hello Kitty Halloween Card:

Grey, dark purple, orange, white and black card stock
Cricut Hello Kitty Greetings cartridge
K&Company Tim Coffey Halloween Bone and Bats Layered Accents; Tim Coffey Halloween Pumpkin Grand Adhesions
Halloween Print Ribbon
K&Company Tim Coffey Halloween Specialty Paper-Black with orange, yellow, purple and green dots


1.  Using the Cricut and the Hello Kitty Greetings cartridge cut Hello Kitty (HK18) at 3 1/2 inches out of black card stock. Press the Hello Kitty Black Cat (HK18) and White Fur/Bow?Nose keys to cut Kitty's face. Press the same keys plus Shift to cut her bow out of orange card stock. Assemble Kitty. Add orange glitter glue to Kitty's bow and paw pads. Let dry.

2.  Cut a piece of black and green, purple and orange card stock approximately 4 inches wide by 5 3/4 inches high.  Place Hello Kitty so that she is centered on the card and approximately 3/4 inches from the bottom of the card. Glue in place. Attach two medium size pumpkins in front of Kitty's feet, leave enough room the sit a small pumpkin between the two medium ones. The smaller pumpkin should sit on top of the the larger pumpkins.

3.  Cut a piece of dark purple card stock approximately 1/4 larger (on all sides) than the black dotted card stock. Glue the black dotted card stock on top of the dark purple card stock. Attach a bat with the moon and larger flying bat to the top corners of the black dotted card stock.

4.  Fold an 8 1/2 by 11 inch piece of grey card stock in half to make a half-fold card. Cut a piece of black dotted Halloween ribbon the length of the card plus 1/2 inch. Center the ribbon on the card and tuck 1/4 inch of ribbon under the top and bottom of the card. Glue in place. Tie a small bow and glue to the bottom of the card over the ribbon.

Rock Princess Birthday Card

I had debated about buying Cricut's Rock Princess since it was released. I really liked the images but didn't think that I would use them enough to justify the price of the cartridge. Cricut recently put a lot of their cartridges on sale, including Rock Princess, so I couldn't resist adding it to my collection. I also should mention that Cricut has brought back the popular (discontinued) Paper Pups cartridge both as a cartridge and a digital download in the Cricut Craft Room. If you have wanted Paper Pups now is your chance to own it. It's uncertain how long Cricut will make it available.

Michelle's birthday is coming up soon so I wanted to use Rock Princess to make a fun card for her. To accent the card I cut individual skulls from some skull border tape that I found at Michaels. I added Washi tape across the top edge of the card. Washi tape is quickly becoming one of my favorite embellishments. While it looks rather unassuming on the roll, it really enhances a card. I have been using it for borders instead of ribbon. Another line of products that I really like is Memory Box dies. I used the DeLacie Border for this card. The best thing about Memory Box dies is that they can be used with any die cut machine that uses individual dies like Sizzix, Cuttlebug, etc.

Directions for Rock Princess Birthday Card:

Dark pink, light pink, black, grey, light tan, brown, and leopard print card stock
DCWV Tres Chic mat stack- grey striped card stock
Recollections Black and white print Washi tape
Recollections pink mesh trim
Recollections pink crystal self adhesive hearts
Recollections glittered skull tape
Pink self adhesive pearls
Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist- Diamond Dust and Pink Cherry
#4 flat paintbrush
Zots
Memory Box DeLacie Border die
Cricut Rock Princess cartridge

1.  Using the Rock Princess cartridge cut Ashley out of black card stock at 3 inches. Press shift and Ashley keys to cut the face, hand and knee out of light tan card stock. Press the Layer 1 and Ashley keys to cut the hair out of brown card stock. Cut the belt out of light pink card stock by pressing Ashley, Layer 1 and Shift. Next cut the scooter out of dark pink card stock (Press Ashley and Layer 2). Press Ashley, Layer 2 and Shift to cut the wheels and skirt out of grey card stock. Repeat to cut the skirt out of leopard print card stock.  Assemble the image, using the grey for the wheel covers and the leopard print skirt.

2.  Embellish Ashley's scooter. Cut one skull from the glitter skull tape and attach to the front of the scooter. Add dark pink heart shaped crystals to the center of the scooter's wheel covers. Add a small light pink heart crystal to the front of the scooter for a headlight. Highlight the wheel spokes with a grey colored pencil.

3.  Embellish Ashley. Use a dark pink colored pencil to draw in her mouth and add blush to her cheeks. Attach a small faux pearl to the front of her belt and two small faux pearls to her wrist for a bracelet. Shake Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist Diamond Dust and remove the spray cap from the bottle. Dip the #4 flat paint brush into the bottle, blot the excess Glimmer Mist on a piece of scrap paper, then lightly brush over the lens of the sunglasses and boot. Rinse the brush and dip into the Cherry Glimmer Mist. Brush the Pink Cherry Glimmer Mist over the scooter. Set aside to dry.

4.  Cut two DeLacie borders out of light pink card stock.using Sizzix or other die cut machine. If you have trouble removing the card stock from the die use the tip of an awl to lift the card stock from the die.

5.  Create a Birthday card using a greeting card program and the half-fold option. Score the card and fold in half.

6.  Glue one DeLacie border approximately 1/4 inch from the bottom of the card. I ran the border through the Xyron machine to create a sticker instead of applying glue to the border.

7.  Cut a background from the Tres Chic grey striped paper approximately 3 1/4 inches high by 4 1/4 inches wide. Round the corners with a corner rounder paper punch. Cut a piece of Recollections pink mesh trim the width of the background. Press into place approximately 1/8 inch above the bottom of the background. Attach foam dots to the back of the Ashley image. Place Ashley so that the tires of the scooter sit between the pink mesh rows (to simulate the lanes of a road). Cut 2 skulls from the Glittered Skull tape and place one skull in the upper right and upper left corners of the background. Attach Zots to the reverse side of the background. Place the background approximately 1/4 inch above the highest point of the border and 3/4 inches from the left edge of the card.  Press the background in place.

8.  Glue the second DeLacie border approximately 1/4 inch above the top of the background.

9.  Cut a piece of black and white print Washi tape the width of the card. Apply the tape approximately 1/4 inch from the top of the card. Embellish with 10 medium self adhesive pearls, evenly space across the length of the Washi tape.

Merci Beaucoup!

Lately I have resolved to be more organized and not wait until the last minute to make cards, decorations and gifts. So far I'm off to a good start- the Halloween decorations are almost finished and cards are being made before I actually need them.  I bought an accordion type file at Staples to store the finished cards. The cards are then filed by category: thank you, birthday, etc.

 I really like the Paper Pups cartridge and wanted to use it for a thank you card.  This card also allowed me to use the Spellbinders die and Prima flowers that I had been wanting to use for some time.

Directions for Merci Beaucoup Card:

Aqua and white dotted ribbon
Prima Flowers Ballerina Blooms Margot
Cricut Paper Pups Cartridge
White and grey card stock
DCWV All Dressed Up mat stack- aqua and green dotted card stock
DCWV Collage Stack-green marbled card stock
Spellbinders Nestabilities Fleur de lis rectangles-large rectangle
Sizzix Big Kick or other die cutting machine
Zots


1.  Use a greeting card program to print a thank you card on white card stock. Score the card and fold in half.

2.  Cut Birthday Dog at 1 1/2 inches out of grey card stock; using the Paper Pups cartridge. Press the Solid key and cut the dog out of white card stock. Assemble the dog, layering the grey outline over the solid white dog. Use a fine point black Sharpie or other felt tip pen to draw in the dog's eyes.

3.  Use the Spellbinders die and the Sizzix to cut the large rectangle out of the green marbled card stock from the Collage stack. Cut a mat approximately 1/4 inch larger (on all sides) than the large rectangle.

4.  Attach Zots to the back of the dog. Center the dog on the rectangle and press into place. Attach Zots to the back of the rectangle (in the center and each corner) and center the rectangle on the mat, leaving a 1/4 inch border all the way around.

5.  Glue a gold Ballerina Bloom to the upper left edge of the rectangle.

6.  Cut two pieces of ribbon the width of the card plus 1/4 inch. Place the ribbon approximately 1/4 inch from the top of the card and the left end of the ribbon close to the fold of the card and glue in place. Fold the right end of the ribbon over the edge of the card and glue to secure. Repeat with the other piece of ribbon, placing it 1/4 inch from the bottom of the card.

7.  Tie a small bow with the aqua print ribbon and glue the bow to the center of the top ribbon.

Owl Birthday Card

One of the really nice things about owning the Cricut is having the ability to make personalized cards for any occasion. I like searching through my Cricut library to find the right image for my cards. I found this adorable little Owl on the Kate's ABC's cartridge and decided to build a card around him. When I create cards I very rarely have a clear vision of the finished project, I usually start with an image and go from there. I recently bought some pink Washi tape and wanted to use it in a project. I liked how it looked against the white card stock so I used the tape as the basis for my color scheme. Last night I had some new Memory Box dies lying on my drafting table and had cut the Melinda Corner image out of pink card stock. The corner was beautiful but didn't fit anywhere on this card, so I trimmed off the ends of the corner to use, under the edges of the mat, as accents.

Owl Card Directions:

Darice Washi Masking Tape-pink print
Recollections Faux Pearls
Yellow,light pink,medium pink, brown, green, and white cardstock
Yellow self stick crystals
Petaloo Floral Embelishments
Petaloo Premier Darjeeling Collection
DCWV All Dressed Up mat stack- black and pink dotted card stock
Martha Stewart Rose Leaf Paper Punch
Corner Rounder Paper Punch
Small black card stock oval
Cricut Kate's ABC's cartridge
Memory Box Melinda Corner Die
Tattered Angels GlimmerMist Diamond Dust
Zots and Foam Dots

1.   Print a birthday card on white card stock using a greeting card program. Leave enough room (on the front of the card) under the greeting for the card design. Score the card and fold in half.

2.   Cut a piece of pink Washi tape the length of the card and position it 1/8 inch from the folded edge.

3.   Load the Cricut cartridge into the Cricut machine and cut the Owl base layer at 2 inches out of yellow card stock.  Press the Shift and the Owl keys to cut the branch and eyes out of brown card stock. Press Layer 1 to cut the Owl body out of light pink card stock. Press the Shift, Layer 1 and the Owl keys to cut the leaves out of green card stock. Cut the eyes out of white card stock by pressing Layer 2 and the Owl keys. Press the Layer 2, Shift and Owl keys to cut the feet out of brown card stock.  Assemble the Owl.

4.  Cut a piece of black and pink dotted card stock approximately 5 1/4 inches high by 3 1/2 inches. Use the corner rounder paper punch to round the ends of the mat. Turn the mat over to the white side and place one Zot in the middle of the mat and one Zot in each of the 4 corners. Position the edges of the mat approximately 1 1/4 inches from the folded edge of the card and 2 1/4 inches from the top of  the card. Press into place.

5.   Cut a small oval out of black card stock, slightly larger than the Owl. I used a left over center from a die cut frame.  Put small foam dots on the back of the Owl, center on the oval and press into place.

6.    Cut the Melinda Corner out of medium pink card stock.  Cut the ends off of the corner. Place the ends under the upper left and lower right corners of the black and pink dotted mat and glue in place.

7.   Place a small pink flower from the Floral Embelishement at the bottom center of the mat.  Place a large pink flower from the Darjeeling Collection at the upper right corner of the card. Using the Martha Stewart rose leaf paper punch, punch three leaves out of green card stock. Pinch each leaf together lengthwise to make it curl upward. Glue the leaves under the large flower.

8.   Add small faux pearls around the oval black frame, and on the ends of the Melinda Corner. Add large faux pearls to the corners of the mat and to the Washi tape (at the top, middle and bottom). Add a small yellow crystal to the left of the oval frame and to the right of the Owl.

9.   Lightly spray the card with Glimmer Mist and set aside to dry.

Quoth The Raven Nevermore!

This is the last Halloween project for a while. I have ideas for a few more projects but I will save those for later. The inspiration for this project came while browsing the Halloween aisle at Michaels. I found these resin books and just had to find a way to use them  in a project.

Side View

Front View

I scooped up the books and then walked around Michaels gathering items to use in my project (I still had no clear vision of the finished product).  By the time that I arrived at the check out counter I had collected a large Raven, some feathers, a black foam pumpkin, purple flowers and a purple glittered branch and of course-my books. Finally around 2 a.m. the inspiration hit me. I really like Edgar Allen Poe's line "Quoth the Raven Nevermore" and decided to use it as the theme for my project. After all is there anyone who epitomizes Halloween more than Poe?

Front View

This project goes together very quickly. Beware the branches shed glitter! The mat on my work table was covered with purple glitter despite the fact that I had sprayed the branches with sealant. Since this decoration sheds glitter I don't intend to use it near food.

Side View

Directions for Quoth The Raven:

Large Raven-available at Michaels
Branch of purple flowers-the flowers should be medium size with stems so they can be tucked in the branches
Set of resin books-available at Michaels
2 black and dark green feather picks-available in the floral department at Michaels
1 medium black foam pumpkin
1 large purple glitter branch
Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist Raven
Parchment paper
Tim Holtz distress ink
Ranger Walnut Ink-Eucalyptus color
Distressing tool or sand paper
Hot glue gun
Wire cutters


1.  Cut the flower stems from the main branch, using the wire cutters.

2. Spray the bird with the Raven color Glimmer Mist and set aside to dry.

3.  Using the wire cutters, cut the purple branch into 2 pieces. Make the pieces long enough so that they will drape down the sides of the pumpkin. Glue the end of one branch to the left of the pumpkin stem and drape the branch down the left side of the pumpkin and glue in place. Repeat, gluing the second branch to the right side of the pumpkin.

4.  Trim the stems of the flowers if necessary and place the flowers along the top of the pumpkin and along the sides of the pumpkin. The flowers should be glued on top of the branches.

5.  Tuck the feather picks in between the flowers. Position the feathers on the right and left sides of the arrangement and glue in place.

6.  Glue the Raven on top of the pumpkin so that he is nestled in the flowers.

7.  Print Quoth the Raven Nevermore on parchment paper using the font of your choice at 22 pt. Cut out the quote and apply distress ink to the parchment. Lightly spray the quote with Ranger Walnut Ink-Eucalyptus color. Use sand paper or the distress tool rough up the edges of the parchment. Glue the quote just below the flowers.

8.  Glue the decorated pumpkin on top of the resin books.

It's That Time of Year!

I can't believe that it's almost time for the kids to head back to school. Brittany is once again rushing around buying books for the new semester and gathering her things to take back to college. Fortunately for us she put a lot of things in storage in Storrs so that she can fly back to the University of Connecticut rather than have us drive her there.

For parents of incoming students at UConn, who are planning to load up the car and drive to the campus, I must warn you that Storrs is a very small rural town that doesn't have a lot of hotels. We had tried to book a month in advance and found that all of the hotels were already booked up. However, if you don't mind driving for 45 minutes there are hotels in West Hartford, Connecticut. I was able to book a room at the West Hartford Inn, a small family run hotel at a moderate price. The West Hartford Inn does offer AAA discounts and the staff is very helpful. The hotel decor is a little dated, especially the carpeting in the hallways and the lobby is small but we were pleasantly surprised when we entered our room. The room was spacious, the linens on the bed were very clean (the bedspread had just been washed), the bathroom was clean and there was a small refrigerator in the room. The mattress was slightly firm which was perfect for me since I had just had back surgery. The hotel staff said that they were in the process of replacing the mattresses with pillow top mattresses. The West Hartford Inn offers a nice continental breakfast every morning in their dining area on the second floor. I went to the breakfast in search of a cup of coffee and found not only two pots of fresh coffee brewing (real coffee not K-cups), bagels, danish pastries, muffins, cereal, bananas, doughnuts, milk, and orange juice. Food must be eaten in the dining area but coffee can be taken back to the room. If you are unable to book a hotel in Storrs you may want to consider the West Hartford Inn.

On mornings when time permits I grab a cup of coffee, put on Mozart's Divertimenti and watch the butterflies as they enjoy the beautiful, fragrant flowers of my Butterfly Bushes. This morning I decided to go out and see if I could get some pictures of these beautiful creatures. The butterflies were used to me working around the bushes pruning and weeding so they were not frightened by me when I tried to take pictures. In fact they allowed me to walk right up to the bush so I could take a close-up. This butterfly seemed to enjoy being photographed so I snapped this picture as he landed directly on the flower in front of me and spread his wings.

Biston Shrug Update

The Biston shrug is almost finished! I am knitting the textured border around the shrug. I am happy with the result so far. The Madeline Tosh Lace yarn gives the sweater a light weight texture that is perfect for this time of year. The shrug fits nicely in my Rio bag so I'm sure that the finished sweater can easily be carried in my tote.

Floral Raven Decoration

I know it's only August but the craft stores are starting to stock Halloween and Christmas items. Some shoppers were complaining that summer isn't even over and already we are seeing Christmas items on the shelves. It does seem like the stores are pushing the seasons rather than let us enjoy the rest of the summer. That being said, the craft supply stores are the only place that it really makes any sense to stock Halloween and Christmas items during July and August. Many of us like to start working on decorations and hand made gifts early and not wait until November when the holidays are quickly approaching and we run out of time and it's nice to be able to buy the supplies that we need.

Last year Michaels featured a Halloween Floral Ball with a Raven on their website. By the time it appeared on the website it was too late to find the flowers or the Raven in the stores. Several Michaels stores in Maryland used the purple flowers and the Ravens to make wreaths to sell in their floral department for Baltimore Ravens fans. I bought the candelabra base and decided to wait until this year to buy the flowers and the Raven.

This is a quick and easy project. I sat the candelabra base on Brittany's copy of Edgar Allen Poe's stories. I chose not to glue the candelabra base to the book because I didn't want to deface the book and I thought it would make the decoration easier to store after the holiday.

Directions for the Halloween Floral Raven Ball:

Black candelabra- available at Michaels
6 inch styrofoam ball- available in the floral department of craft stores
Medium Raven
14 Dark Purple flowers approximately 4 1/2 inches in diameter
Hot glue gun
Wire Cutters

The directions for this project are available at www.michaels.com  Halloween Floral Ball Crow.

1.  Cut flowers from the stems with wire cutters. Leave about 1/2 inch of the stem still attached to the flower.

2.  Glue the styrofoam ball to the candelabra.

3.  Insert a flower at the top of the ball and glue in place. Then slightly overlap each flower and glue in place until the ball is covered.

4.  Place the Raven on top of the ball and glue in place.