Monster Mash Blog Hop

Welcome to the 

Monster Mash Halloween Blog Hop

Thank you for joining us for a fun weekend of Spooktacular Halloween projects! We have monsters, tricks and treats!!

You should have arrived from Christi!

Connie Can Crop is the first stop in this hop. 

This is a one day blog hop and we appreciate your leaving a comment for all of these amazing crafters.

We have an awesome sponsor for this month! 

One lucky winner will win a gift certificate for a free Bundled Collection ($15.96 value)  

Be sure to check out their shop online HERE

Visit them on facebook HERE

Follow their blog HERE for inspiration!

 

What do you need to do to win? Easy... become  a follower of each of the fabulous blogs in this hop and leave each of them a comment letting them know what you like best about their projects.

 

You will have until 10 pm Sunday to finish the hop and leave your comments.

Winner will be announced on Wednesday 10/19/16 at Connie Can Crop.

Be sure to follow everyone and leave a comment along the way!

Ready to be Spooked?

Beware of the things that go bump in the dark!!

 

*** Note to you, Dear Reader... ***   We've been going through a lot here, but I thought I'd do a really simple project. (My 11-yo had spinal fusion last week, and we spent a lot of time in the hospital... She's doing just fine, and we are here at home, but busy taking care of the invalid... if you know what I mean...)



 Ok... so ya'll know it's not Christmas, right? What you may not know anything about are these awesome SLIDER CARDS! I did a make and take on this one... and loved it so much, I bought the Halloween one...

Or so I thought. In my euphoric state, I neglected to realize (or they forgot to tell me) I had to buy other parts. So... I was left with just this and decided to make the best of it.

 

So I inked up a card and some orange-y cardstock...

and attached the cut-outs from the wannabe slider card...

I even did the INSIDE!

Short and sweet! just like me...

 Up next is Alicia

Here's our line up in case you get lost:

 

 

Connie- http://conniecancrop.blogspot.com

Kim- http://katydidcards.com
Michelle- michellekinder.blogspot.com...
Angela- http://mermaidsnmonograms.blogspot.com/
Christi- https://tranquility1905.blogspot.com/
Lisa- http://lisaslittlerascals.blogspot.com/
Alicia- http://goldengoddessdesigns.blogspot.com/
Sarah- http://sarahbiswabic.blogspot.com/
Veronica- http://vickyscrappingpassion.blogspot.com/
Tricia- http://mysticalcardcreations.blogspot.com/
Holli- http://sunflowerholli.blogspot.com/
Charmagne- http://sanurascraps.blogspot.com/

National Cat Day Blog Hop

Welcome to the National Cat Day Blog Hop! If you came from Barbara's Blog you are in right spot. But you may want to start the fun at Haidee's Blog if you happened to come over to my blog!!!

I am excited to have you hop with us! Each blogger participating in this hop is featuring a crafty project having to do with "Cat". You'll find unique ideas that have to do with Cats. We hope you'll enjoy each and every project along the way.

Be sure to leave a comment at each hop to show some Bloggie Love and to qualify to win a Prize. (Check it out!!! I spy some Wobbles in there... In case you didn't get it... I love Wobbles!)

Now onto my project...

Guess what? If you know what or you know me I was originally going to go with a Black Cat. You know... of the Halloween sort. And then I thought... Nah... Haidee (pronounced like Heidi... don't go pronouncing her name all wrong... at least not on MY blog!) probably didn't think up her blog hop all like that. I mean... if she did, it would be a Halloween Hop, right? Right. And so... I went a totally 'nother direction. And here we are.

Enter my Cricut Explore Air. (Yes... I have one of those, too.) I did a search for Cat. Kitten. Lion. Tiger. And Bear! (Oops! We are NOT following the Yellow Brick Road, are we?). And so I went back to the Cat and Kitten. Nope didn't find anything I wanted... Nothing was calling my name. I kinda felt like coloring.

So, while digi stamps are all the rage (and yes, I do love those, too...!), I felt like getting a free coloring page. And I found one I loved. It's totally not in any of the "season" that is now. It's not Halloween, it's not "Fall" at all, and no... It's not even Christmas. It kind of reminds me of Easter. And so I went with that. Afterall... Easter cards or Spring cards can always come in handy, and why not get a jump on that! Huh?

I found a cute little kitty with an Easter Bonnet on it... I threw her into Photoshop and cropped out the lettering... ended like this:

I adjusted the size to 4x5", then saved it as a JPG. I then opened up a Word doc, and copied her in there 4 times.

 

Then printed on white cardstock and colored her in. But I didn't color her in with just ANYTHING... I colored her with the fabulous lacquer pens that I just bought at the Scrapbook Exp... Shhhh... don't tell my husband! *See my "Lessons Learned" at the bottom of my entry*

 

 

And then... I cut them into 4 equal parts, with a band of white to throw in my stash because I'm a hoarder I always use my good scraps. And my bad ones sometimes, too. You never know what your mess-ups can deliver!

 

 

I haven't done anything with my "her's" yet, but, they are waiting in my card bin, ready for when I am. Even though "Fall" hasn't really hit it here in Southern California (it's still in the 80's, people...), I know Spring or whatever the occasion is that called for these pretty little kitties will arrive very quickly. It always does.

 

I hope you enjoyed my National Cat Day post! and on to... Uh...

 

Whelp, I'm the Cat's Tail-End of the hop... But, if you missed someone, here's the lineup:

 

Haidee - http://created2bunique.blogspot.com
Kim - http://katydidcards.com
Connie - http://conniecancrop.blogspot.com
Sarah - http://www.sarahbiswabic.blogspot.com
Lori - http://savingmine.blogspot.com
Nan a- http://www.nanasscrapspot.com
Gina - http://www.californiascrappin.com
Jearise - http://www.lorbysworld.blogspot.com
Barbara - http://barbarab3.blogspot.com/
Lisa - http://lisaslittlerascals.blogspot.com <======= YOU ARE HERE!

Come back to Haidee's Blog Friday October 30th to see IF you are the WINNER.

HAVE A SUPER FANTASTIC HOP!!!

** LESSONS LEARNED**

 

• Always, always, fully look at the picture, stamp, photo, etc. before you ASSUME it is something. I thought this was a kitty in a basket with a "Easter" or other type of Bonnet on... It's not. It's a kitty in a hat box.
• Be sure to TOTALLY let the lacquer dry between colors.
• Cut your card tops apart FIRST. You might smudge color into your whitespace, just like I did.
• Only use small color portions for lacquer-type coloring. If you don't, then you'll totally get streaks in it, like I did.  Otherwise, if doing a larger area, color with pen, watercolors, etc. let dry, then apply CLEAR lacquer for even tones.
• Put the pens back in the boxes as you go. They could role all over into your coloring, like mine did.
• Keep a pin nearby to prick any air bubbles when coloring with lacquer. Air bubbles, especially those in yellow or light green tend to look like boogers and snot.

50 Shades of... Mom? AKA: Mama's Losin' It Writer's Workshop; Prompt #4: Show us what your kids want to be for Halloween this year

Every day year my daughter dresses up. Usually, there is some sort of procrastination issue at least my husband thinks so. It's not necessarily by me, as two years ago... it was by Amazon.

Marissa had wanted to be a peacock for Halloween. Wow, that stuff at the Halloween stores is super slutty cheesy and cheap-looking, but with a super high price tag and nothing in my daughter's size. It was September, so I thought I was r-e-a-l good being able to order online. Everything I was ordering showed less than two weeks to deliver.

The first piece came within 3 days. So far, so good. And then... NOTHING. Nothing until almost the end of October. Mind you, it didn't all come in... That feathered crown I was going to make with the long peacock feathers? N-O-P-E. Those didn't come in until almost December... so... they're in the craftroom, waiting for something to be done with them... One day...

Last year, the hubs bought her the Anna (not Elsa) costume. I just made a fleece hooded cape. I made it the week before. And it was done the week before Halloween and to my husband that is still procrastinating. Whatevs... It was done and I was done with it.

This year... Marissa wants to be Catwoman. So... way back in August... I ordered off Amazon, double-checking to be sure all of the products would be shipped through Amazon, not another vendor because everything that came late two years ago had been shipped from Asia. I did not want history repeating itself.

I ordered this

See those super sharp nails?

 

And I bought this...

Oh yeah... Can you whip it?

 

My older girls were finally cleaning up their big pile of stuff and saw the padded envelope with the items in it. Being the nosey children adults they are, they looked through the envelope and asked me, "Is there something you want to tell us?" "What?" I asked (not knowing what they were even talking about). "A little '50 Shades,' huh...?" they asked. "What ARE you talking about?" was my response. And then they showed me... I laughed so hard I cried and almost peed my pants.

 

I'm sure it seriously looked that way to them. A black whip. A pair of motorcycle gloves with sharp metallic-looking nails on top. Oh yeah, baby. Mama is turning "50 Shades." 50 shades of laughter and skin color, maybe... I thought it was hilarious!

 

So I explained to them it was only their sister's costume, and they supposedly already knew what she was going to be. I was only waiting on the bodysuit/costume. And the next day it came.

 

Marissa promptly took it out of the box, took off her brace (she is going brace-free for Halloween... it is kind of special, so she'll get more than two hours out of the brace), and jumped into her suit. Much to my delight and amazement, it didn't need to be altered at all!

See how the fluffy puffy wanted to get a piece of Catwoman, too?

 

It fits so awesome, she even felt like Catwoman! "Mrrrr Owwww!" Those nails look totally sharp! Watch out!

 

 

This is a writing prompt from Mama Kat, to help me get my creative mojo back. Here's hoping the little pushes help... If you'd like to participate, please visit Mama Kat and visit some other wonderful bloggers and writers who have linked up. Please always leave a comment. Comments are so appreciated. Thank you! And come back tomorrow evening for a fun Fall Festival Blog Hop with lots of awesome crafters!





Creepy Cricut Creations Blog Hop!

Hi Everybody!

Welcome to the Creepy Cricut Creations Blog Hop!  If you're here from Angela at 3 Crazy Monkeys, then you're in the right place.  If not, then you may want to start at the very beginning HERE.

We're celebrating our Cricut machines, and Halloween in this amazing hop!  Here's my creepy Cricut creation:

I usually completely decorate my door for Halloween... I intended to "mummy up" my door with these great big google-y eyes I got from Michael's (saw something similar on Pinterest...), and just didn't get around to it. So... I was doing something else and Jenny (@ Crazy About Cricut) happened to post openings for a blog hop. I love Halloween... and thought I needed THIS to kick my mojo back in gear. And make a banner for my front door, I did! Whoop, whoop!

Before you look any further... Let me apologize for the bad, BAD photos. I took them with my phone. I know... not a great excuse. I could've done better, but I was already frustrated from not being able to find my regular camera (um... I "hid" it so a kid wouldn't mess up my favorite settings again... and can't seem to remember where my hiding spot is. Hopefully... it'll turn up soon...)

Moving on...

The little ghosts are cut from Paper Doll Dress Up (Cricut, of course!). They were slightly distressed with Black Soot (Tim Holtz), glittered eyes with fairy dust and Stickles.

The letters B-O-O are from Blackletter (Cricut). The "blackout" is done in white and the actual letters in a cute black candy-ish print (got it from a swap... all these items were from my stash!), all done at 5.76" height. Fairy dust glitter is again used in the white openings.

I did add another ghost down at the bottom... Couldn't leave the first one alone (he might've been scared!)...

This wonderful roll of burlap-type orange-y and green-y distressed stuff cost a whole $.40 at Michael's on clearance some time ago.  I finally quite hoarding it and put it to a good use! Hahaha!

 

If you notice all the cuts are slightly raised, I used silicone gel. The stuff from Home Depot. Love it!

 

Now... Jenny only asked for ONE project, but when I saw what one of the blog candy prizes was... I couldn't resist making this cute little card:

He's one of the pumpkin cards from Mini Monsters. I absolutely love this cartridge. It's so versatile... Plus, It's the closest thing I have to any of the Halloween-y carts. I use it all. the. time.

I gave him some google-y eyes (different sizes to add to his quirkiness) and Black Diamond Stickle-d his zig-zag mouth (I didn't want to follow the original mouth line...). His leaf is done in green, then distressed in Tea Dye (Tim Holtz). His cute edges of his polka dot face are distressed (can you tell I absolutely LOVE Tim Holtz Distress Inks?) with Peeled Paint.

Then, you open him up... and BOO! (in Christmas Red Stickles...) a Mini Monsters ghost jumps out at you, floating on an ACTION WOBBLE!!!! He's a little glittered and glammed from the pumpkin mess within, but he's all mine. Gotta love him.

I tried to post the video of him wobbling, but... I'm not that tech-y. Bummer.

At this posting, I am the end of the line... But, if you'd like to hop around and look some more, here is the lineup. Remember... I'm already the end of it...

1. Jenny - http://crazyaboutcricut.blogspot.com/
2. Lori - http://scrappinmystressaway.blogspot.com/
3. Cheryl - http://cardsbycg.blogspot.com/
4. Wandy - http://greenapplescrapper.blogspot.com
5. Sarah - http://sarahvaitstamps.blogspot.com
6. Tracy - http://lovesbuggin.blogspot.com/
7. Carol - http://www.workmanscraps.com
8. Elizabeth - http://www.ejoym.blogspot.com
9. Amanda- http://amandascraftsandmore.blogspot.com/
10. Angela - www.crazy3monkeys.blogspot.com
11. Me! You're already HeRe!

There are some amazing and fun things to see... so PLEASE visit everyone. Thanks for stopping by. Hope you had a "Hoppin' Halloween!!!"

Blog Hop Prizes:

Please be a Blog Follower and Comment on all thru the blogs for a chance to win.

The more blogs you comment on the more chances you have to win!

5 PACK OF ACTION WOBBLES!

$5 GIFT CERTIFICATE TO JADED BLOSSOM!

 

Wordless/full Wednesday: Halloween,,, Present-Day

Let it be known... today is kind of wordy... and tomorrow will have costumes from the years before (the ones I made... and a story to go with it...)

Halloween was just the other day. And we had loads of fun. The kids dressed up (even the olders), and we went out trick-or-treating (tot). Went to Grandma's (Mom's) house for dinner (traditional Ghoul-ash and Mummy Fingers [cheesy breadsticks] and tot-ing , went to the "old" neighborhood after, then back to Grandma's to have our traditional donuts and apple cider, before we trekked home 60+ miles.

The "Kids" Gang... (l-r, Stacy, Travis, Rey, Marissa, & Xanny, too!)

Grandpa and the Ghouls:

Friends' house...

they go "all out!"

Marissa, kissing her favorite cartoon character... (and Rey... posing!)

Look!!! It's Colonel Sanders (KFC for those of you too young to know who the Colonel is...)

and his chicken!!!

We're just having fun, MOM!

Look at how pretty the sky is...

It's hard... but they finally got a pic of me... (with my older girls)

She passed out on the long ride home...

Remember to come back tomorrow and relive the days... of the HOMEMADE costumes, before my kids "liked" storebought.

Oh! and if you wanna link up to others of wordless/wordfull Wednesdays, check these sites out: http://www.twoofakindworkingonafullhouse.com/ and DANG! I can't find the site for wordFULL Wednesdays... if anyone remembers, please be sure to leave me a link. Thanks!!!

Paper Hoarders Design Team Challenge: HALLOWEEN Shaped Card

I love shaped cards. You can ask my friends (those that receive them) how often a card they get (from me, of course) is rectangular. Not very often. Don't get me wrong, I do DO them, but... when it comes to holidays or birthdays (unless I'm doing in bulk!), I try to find something a little original to do. And sometimes I'm stumped.

And sometimes, I have more ideas than one.

Like this week.

Let's just say the final card IS NOT what I had originally designed. This was meant to be a witch's hat. And it was ready to be cut. But then... I sold my first sale in my new Etsy shop! And I changed all thoughts. You see... I sold two ghosts! And with that sale... I changed my total idea to all things ghostly. (just a little plug... if you'd like to see my shop and/or order, just click here.  i will do things custom and will soon post more holiday-theme items, seeing as the holidays are quickly approaching. what do you want to see?)

*note: due to the sticky nature of this project, photos were taken mostly at the end.

First off... I picked a ghost from Paper Doll Dress Up. Then I enlarged him to a 5.5. I copied him, then I flipped him from side to the other side (horizontally). Then I scooted him until he was up against the other one, a mirror image that overlapped. And I welded him together with his twin.

(whew! we're not done yet with the Gypsy, peeps!)

Next, I went to "advanced" and "hid" the elements I didn't want. On one side (the bottom side), I hid all the inside cuts (eyes, billows at the bottom). On the top side, I hid the billows, but not the eyes. Then I cut him out and scored him on my Martha Stewart Scoring Board.

Took out my Christmas Red Stickles (yes, he was still folded!), and did the eyes (remember... the eyes were cut on the top!). This left them red-rimmed on the outside of the card, and red-rum-my on the inside. I opened it and stamped a creepy ax-y-lookin' stamp (something that had fallen off, perhaps?) in Distress Inks and let him dry.

Here's the sticky part... then I cut a used Bounce sheet (you know... the fabric softener sheets) into the ghost form (with my Cutter Bee scissors. my regular paper-type wouldn't cut it) put it in a soda case box and sprayed adhesive glue on it. I tossed glitter (the iridescent pixie glitter) on it until it sparkled and shined! Pretty! I tried to let it dry. It took a long. time. But it was dry for the most part. I picked it up, flipped it over, and sprayed it AGAIN (on the reverse side) with spray adhesive and quickly picked it up.

Getting it to to stick on properly was a chore in itself. Ugh! Messy. Glitter and sticky icky adhesive glue all over my fingertips. Yeah... no pics for this... But when it's wet (the Bounce sheet), it's more stretchy. (My note to self for next time? cut it a little bigger... it seems to want to shrink!) Got it pretty well matched up and stretched out and on. And I let him dry. (notice... the bounce sheet is now on the card, so we're back to "him" again...?) Here's a pic (I got a chance to finally wash my hands!)

After drying, I couldn't see the red Stickled eyes so well, so I added them to the outside. Let him dry again, then took him out for a stroll in my Halloween Haunted Walk (outside my door! see the orange-y lighting? and cobwebs? and black roses?). Yeah... cool-e-o!

Hope you like my shaped card! And if you'd like to see others, simply stop by Miss Tanya's website, as she's got the whole group posted! Please be sure to leave a comment for the cards you visit, as everyone likes a prop or two. Have a HalloSCREAM!!!!!

It's January? Break Out the NEW Calendar! (Calendar Swap Pages)

Yes, I took a much needed break yesterday. I lounged around, checked in on Facebook a little, made a "boxed" dinner (Stove Top Stuffing ROCKS, btw...), watched some television, and read a little, too. (Oh yeah... and in all of that, I also hit up Walmart for some 75% off stuff...) After all, I had to recover from taking down and putting away all things holidays...

But, I'm coming back today! And... with something a little bit crafty, too.

I am in a couple of groups online. The Scrapbook_Bingo group on YahooGroups does swaps occasionally. This last time, we did a calendar swap. We each signed up for a particular month to put together a "Header Page" (you know... the one that goes at the "top" of each calendar month) and made 12 landscape-style layouts for it. We then sent them in and would get a full year's worth back! Woohoo! I just love assembly-line style...

This is what I got back:

January! (You already know it came from me... Don't you just love the cheery snowman?) For more information on this layout, click HERE.

February... the month of L.O.V.E.

 

March... the month of Leprechauns

 

A super cute list of dates and an adorable buttoned 4-leaf clover were added to complete it.

April brings RAIN SHOWERS... that make uh... FLOWERS!

And I just love the matting and felt flowers!

May(be)...
(NOT)

June... oh, so sweet!

a little more detail on those super CA-YOOT! lady bugs...

July... full of sparkle and patriotism!

August... is a good summer month.

September... School Days!

October (another one by yours truly!)... a Boo-tiful month!

Notes on October... this cutest paper was a pack at Big Lots... adorable and so fitting! The web was Stardust Gellyroll-penned for glitter effects. The Floating Ghosts are cut from the Paper Doll Dress-Up and pop-dotted at the eyes to keep them afloat in the air. 

And the webbing behind the mat is leftover Halloween "webs"... The font is Blackletter, which I thought I'd never use. But! I did, especially since it came for free with my Gypsy download. I added Red Stickles for the glitter-y blood effects... Boo!

 November... time for leaves to fall.

A closer look at the details... very nice falling leaves.

And these pumpkins are look so sweet... perfectly inked and irresistible.

December... a month for celebration and magic... just BELIEVE...

This layout is simple, yet... majestic. The tree just makes it that way!

The calendars were then bound with my friend's wonderful Cinch. Later... I customized calendar pages and printed them from KeepAndShare.com (which is a FREE site, so check it out!!! GET IT? FREE Printables!!!), and adhered them with my trusty friend... ATG! A quick hole, punched with my Crop-a-dile Big Bite (exactly in the center at the top of the pages), and Voila!

And so... I created two calendars, both of which were given as gifts, which I'm sure the recipients will cherish forever and ever, especially since they have to add their own photos... I'll show the glorious wrappings another day...

What type of calendar are YOU using for 2011? Get crafty! It'll make you want to use it more. (AND... fyi... these calendars CAN be used over and over again, by simply re-printing new years and placing them over the old... maybe update the photos a little bit, but hey! very economical!)