Lame joke...

I know, but I promise you that my DGD thought it funny when I gave her the card and her valentine candy, last night!

S loves pandas and for her last birthday, my DDIL cut bunches of them from Create a Critter and hid them throughout the house.  The party guests had to find them all, count them (without moving any of them) and report the total to my DDIL.  What a fun game!  Lots of running about and squealing!  LOL!

Back to the card.  I searched and searched my stash for a newspaper print that was black and white rather than antiquey looking yellow - nothing!  Instead I had to go for a chalkboard look and I achieved this by inking inside my Cuttlebug Script embossing folder with black ink, adding white textured cardstock and rolling it through the Big Shot.  Very cool!

The panda comes from Animal Antics and the heart from Create a Critter.  The flowers are from Art Philosophy and I added three little red gems to the banner so that I could link my card with the Valentine Challenge at Exploring Cricut.

I am also linking with the FCCB  # 197 "I Heart you!" challenge here!


I'm not quite Valentine'd out, one more card to share later this week.   Thanks for visiting with me today!  Christine  : )

Valentine Mailbox - SVG Cuts

One of the hardest things to explain to a Kindergartner is when it's necessary to 'tell tales' and when it's a situation that can be dealt with by the children themselves.  And, of course, a teacher wants to know everything that's going on in the classroom.  LOL!

Educators have come up with lots of innovative ideas to solve this problem, and the one I 'teacher -lifted' had many positive results, especially towards the end of the year.   I bought a Melissa and Doug wooden mail box and provided fun notepads and gel pens.  The Kindergartners wrote, using phonetic spelling, about problems they were having in the classroom and mailed the notes in the box.  Often, they enlisted a 'writing expert' to help them compose the letter.  Lots of learning opportunities there!  (It sounds dreadful, but their letters were sometimes most amusing and very few required more than my keeping an extra eye on the complainer and complainee!)

The mail box came home with me when I retired and has since been a source of fun for my DGDs and DGS.  J in particular likes to post cards through the slot and open the door to discover them - surprise! - inside.

I HAD to make him a mailbox for Valentine's Day and found the perfect one at SVG Cuts.  I did enjoy decorating it and making little valentines to go inside.  Hope he likes it!  Thanks for coming with me down memory lane today!  : )   Christine

Valentine Treat Boxes

One of my favorite things about Martha Stewart stacks is that you get 3 pieces of each design.   That gives me one piece of card stock to mess up on and two to do the project.  However, there are always a couple of designs that I have NO idea how to use and I usually cut a sample project from this kind of paper.   To my surprise, this busy, busy pattern worked very well with this simple little box cut from the Artiste cart!  Ha! 

The label and decorative flourish were cut from matching foil and also come from the Artiste cart. 

The sentiment, "Happy Valentine's Day" is from the Silhouette store and I used the Offset button to create the shadow.  My machines play so nicely together.  Wonder if they'd like another playmate - one that has its world launch this week?  I think so!!!!! 

I am linking my treat boxes in the Cardz TV 3-D Valentine challenge.  Have a look at the DT's creations here.    Lots of inspiration!

Thanks for visiting with me today!  : ) Christine

Birthday Card in a Box!

XX years ago today, I received an early Valentine - my DD!  Since she shares my interest in pop -up books, I resolved to make her a Card in a Box which lays flat for mailing, but pops up when taken out of the envelope.  You can see a video on the process here.

I love the idea that both of my DDs have metamorphasized into beautiful young women, both inside and out and therefore, both of them have butterflies on their cards this year!  The background papers come from the Mariposa stack and the flower and butterfly cuts are from Botanicals.

Happy Birthday, Elizabeth!  LYM.

Thanks for visiting with me today.  : ) Christine

Hopping by with Lots of Love!

Although Ms. Kangaroo and her joey are meant as a birthday card, I think it will work as a Valentine's Day card.  I stamped 'Happy Valentine's Day' on the back just to reinforce the intention!

All the cuts are from the Cricut cart, Birthday Bash.  This, along with Create A Critter are my go-to carts when I want cute images.  Now I have to confess that I am tired of 'cute' and ready for something more sophisticated!  Hmmm.

There are so many challenges out there this week!  I am linking this card with the 'Heart' challenge over at Bitten by the Bug 2

and the 'Seeing Red' Challenge # 196 at FCCB

Both DTs have done a terrific job and I'm totally intrigued by a couple of the projects.  I feel a 'sophisticated' scraplift coming on!    Thanks for visiting with me today.   : )  Christine

Happy Valentine's Day from the DGD!

Our wonderful DGDs came for a visit this weekend.  Such fun!  I dug out our ancient collection of Fisher Price Precious Places houses and they happily assembled the prettiest little village ever.  We taught them a card game we used to play with our DS many years ago and read the silliest story EVER about Arnie the Doughnut.
In the morning, after 'helping' Grandpa with the wood supply for the week, they came inside to make valentine cards.  I cut hearts and embellies with the Cameo and supplied the card bases and mats.   Then they cut and glued and wrote messages for two hours.  (I could not resist joining in. LOL!)   They made a little card for Cocoa that I am going to have to scraplift because it is so pretty!
I told them that I would post some of their cards on my blog - and here they are:-

Thanks for visiting with me today.  : ) Christine

Valentine Treats - Part Deux

There are SO many adorable animal cuts on my Cricut carts and I obviously need more DGKids!  (hint! hint!)  I finally decided on this sweet mama kangaroo and her joey because of the heart shaped balloon.  This cut is from Birthday Bash and I think that I'll use the card key and replicate mama kangaroo on G's Valentine card. Should be a cute card for a cute DGD!

Since my head was full of cute 'holder' ideas, I thought that I would cut the baby from Baby Steps and have him holding a basket of goodies and a gift card for an upcoming baby shower.  Again, the heart border holding the box - all the baskets I have in my stash were too large - is cut from Paper Trimmings and the flowers are from Art Philosophy.  Inconsistent, I know, but somehow I don't mind his huge head!

I am linking my big-headed baby in the Bitten by the Bug 2 Baby Challenge

and this week's Exploring Cricut  Cricut Choice challenge - use the color blue, two Cricut cuts and patterned paper.


Now I'm off to pick up Master J for the afternoon.  Hope you have a fun day, too!   Thanks for visiting with me.  : ) Christine