Lawn Fawn Halloween ~ DAY 5 Cat Lovers Blog Hop

I love Halloween.  It is my very favorite holiday (even though I don't dress up anymore - maybe next year!) as I love the candy, the colors, the cooler air, basically everything!  For day 6 I finally broke down (cause I tried REALLY hard not to put up a bunch of cat Halloween cards!) and made this card.  As soon as I saw the Lawn Fawn Simply Celebrate Critters stamp set I KNEW exactly how I wanted to use it.  Unfortunately, life has gotten in my way lately and I haven't been able to play as much as I'd like to, but this card had to be made and is purrfect for Day 5 of the CLBH :)

 

I started by stamping the critters on watercolor paper, coloring them in with my Zig markers, and then cut them out using the matching die. I also stamped the speech bubble and cut that out.  I put the cats onto a back card using some foam tape.   I used words from Purrfectly Wicked, Purrfectly Wicked Add On and Tiny Halloween to fill in the speech bubble, stamped them on the bubble and adhered that with foam tape also.  Then I cut the Giant Happy Halloween out from glitter orange card and glued that above it all.  I hope you can see the sparkle!

Thanks SO much and hope you are still hopping! Fondly, Christi

I am entering my card in the following challenges:
Cat Lovers Blog Hop Day 5
Beyond the Blue, #72 - Halloween
Cut it Up, #263 - Halloween
Sweet Stampers Challenge, #73 - Autumn or Halloween
Country View Challenges, October - Halloween or Harvest
This is Halloween - Halloween

 

Squares at River of Creativity March 2022

 Hi everyone!! I am so excited that River of Creativity is back with a revamp! We have a few changes that we have made to the challenge; first, we are now ANYTHING BUT A CARD - yup, no more cards allowed! We really want to see you stretch yourself and work outside the box; well except for this challenge because our theme is SQUARES and all my squares happen to be boxes.  I suggested it when we were all discussing what we should start with and, surprisingly, we have decided to use it as our first challenge. My very first thought was to make a menagerie of these adorable little critters that Lawn Fawn puts out. Let's get to it, shall we?

As you can see in the picture I've made a fox {he's the orange guy standing up}, a white bunny, a green frog, a bumble bee, a gray bat, a raccoon and 2 cats.  Each one of these begins with the Tiny Gift Box
as the body of the critter, and then the Add-On set brings the critter alive with all the accessories to make that particular animal. One of the best features of this Tiny Gift Box is how easy it is to put together; the creases are perfect coming out of the die cut machine, no need to go over them with a bone folder or anything, 2 strips of double sided tape and the box is done!  And these are tiny, the assembled box is 1 1/2" x 1 1/2" x 1 1/8"; Kelly, the box creator {and owner of Lawn Fawn}, made this to be part of an advent calendar but the ideas kept coming and so as of now there are a total of fourteen cute little animal Add-Ons to decorate the Tiny Gift Box!  OK, enough about that let's check out my creations! Grab a cuppa and let's go!

I did take the liberty of giving a few of these little lovelies googly eyes and they just make me happy.  I got an assortment of eyes from Amazon for cheap - I think they range from 3mm to 8 or 9mm and I doubt I will ever use them up, but the price was right and now I have googly eyes for every occasion.

First up is the frog; he would of looked a bit different if I had waited for Lawn Fawn to send me the die I lost! While cutting the dies apart the freckles {some of you might call them warts} went flying somewhere in my craft room and I have learned if I don't find it right away, it's probably gone.  I proceeded to make him anyway and of course got the freckles die in the mail {cause all you have to do is ask for a replacement die and Lawn Fawn will happily give you one - amazing!} the day before yesterday.  That's OK, he is still a handsome little frog in my opinion.   

Next up are the cats. Every other critter I made is a new die set except the cats
{I know, if you know me that is no surprise!} I had intended to make a black cat, but I forgot how some of the die cuts go together and needed a white die cut so I figured I just make both a black and a calico cat.  I used all the different pieces included in the set except the ball of yarn. I love how you can make the little paws hold onto something!

The racoon and the fox come in the same set, so it's a 2fer!  I made the fox standing up and I can use those standing up legs with many of the other critters, you can mix and match the dies as much as you want since they are all sized the same way! That would be an awesome rainy day activity if you had little ones, or even middle or big ones - a fox with wings, a cat with frog legs and on and on! I made my racoon hold a little red stitched heart that comes with the Add-On set; there is even a tiny bow tie I made to see if I could do it and I did!

Seems there are lots of cards and whatnot with bees on them lately and putting together this sweet bee was so simple! I love the little antenna {antennae?} and the stinger! I considered making the wings from vellum; or even
double up on the wings, one pair could be flat, the other bent to simulate movement or even this one pair could be bent {you'd be surprised at the ideas you come up with!} but I kept this bee traditional.  I really love all the little details on these critters; like the paws on the legs of the fox, the stripes on the cat and way you can put the paws on to hold something.

Spring is the perfect time for this adorable bunny Add-On; imagine a whole bunch done up in pastel colors and using them on Easter for pace tags, or even just around your home holding a few jelly beans!  Every one of these gift boxes are usable - I made sure each one could still be opened so they would all be as functional as they are cute! I also edged the bunny's legs and tail with Pumice Stone Distress Oxide Ink just so it would be a little easier to see his legs. For each one that comes with paws to cut out you can do it either way, have the long side of the paws at the top, closest to the head, or facing the bottom. For example, in the picture below the racoon has his paws with the long side facing down while the bunny has theirs facing up.  It all depends on what YOU want to do, and I think whatever the little guy is holding.  I used some clear tape to hold the pink in his ears, but you could just as easily leave them

open.

Lastly, we have the bat. I gave him some candy corn to hold so he wouldn't be too scary.  This critter has SO many possibilities for him I would have had to make a lot more than one to show them all off but the biggest change you can make to him, I think, are his wings.  I gave him the large, folded wings and the set also has a shorter wing that are more directly out of his body {it will make sense if you check out the link}.  I also used the tuxedo piece included with the set just to class him up a bit. 

All the Boxes Open

I was going to link the You Tube video for each critter but if you go to the link I have posted for each make there is the Introduction Video on that page. They aren't long, maybe 20 minutes and it is fun to watch these boxes come alive :) 

Wow - thank you for reading this far! Now,  the revamped River of Creativity will accept any project as long as it is NOT a card, and I am hoping for next month’s challenge I'll have some time to get messy with something! I have quite a few projects lined up, well, they are made, just need pictures taken, edited, blog post written, edited and then finalized; I need a secretary! Anyway, I hope to see you joining in and showing us some of the other things you made besides cards {but if it is chocolate, I will need to be bribed for my vote to choose you as a Shout Out, message me for details}.  We hope to have a list of upcoming challenges since we know that some projects take longer than others {as soon as we figure them out ourselves!} Thank you SO much for reading all of this and I hope you enjoyed my Square Critters and I hope to see YOUR Square stuff at River of Creativity! Hugs, Christi

I am entering my Square Critters in the following challenges:
Craft Rocket, #90 - Use an Animal (Or 8)
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Use a Die Cut
The Sisterhood of Crafting - Favorite Pet (Cats - there are 2 of them in there)
Creative Creases - Anything Goes w/ a Fun Fold (hope these qualify, they were fun!)
Critter Crazy Challenge, #90 - Anything Goes w/ a Critter
C.R.A.F.T. Challenge, #628 - Not A Card

Hearts and Kitties

 Hi all!! I've made this cute Valentine's {even though you could give it any time of year; I was careful not to add any specific Valentines sentiments} card using Lawn Fawn stamps and dies; some older and newer sets.  I hope you like it!

 

I started the card by cutting out the slimline panel using the Scalloped Slimline with Hearts, landscape out of dark pink paper, then I used the larger die and cut it out of lighter pink paper.  I also covered a white slimline card using a page from the Watercolor Wishes Rainbow paper pack.  Next, I stamped the curved hearts, from the Scent with Love stamps on watercolor paper, colored the with my Zigs and cut them with their coordinating dies.  I put them around the heart openings.  The kitties, from the Meow You Doin' stamps & dies, were already colored, cut and in my stash {I always have extra cats in my stash}.  I tucked the cats into the heart openings and put a few paper hearts cut from small hearts that are included with many of the Lawn Fawn sets {I can't recall what set I used, honestly, I have a bunch of them on my desk}.  I attached the hearts panel onto the pink scalloped paper, then used dimensional foam tape to pop it up onto the slimline card.  Lastly, I had stamped a few of the small sentiments from the Special Delivery set as well as the Scent with Love set.  I trimmed them down and added them inside the hearts.  Finally a few sequins were added and I was done.  

I had all these sets on my desk as I was to take a class {Love Letters} with the fantastic Jenn Shurkus; the class was originally on for he 5th of February, but they were getting a huge snow storm on the cape, so it was postponed to February 12. I decided to bite the bullet and order the copics she used in class, figuring I'd have them for the February 12th class, but the copics I had ordered never made it to my house, a case of "we delivered them" but *I* don't have them.  So, I am waiting for their delivery and hopefully I will be able to make the cards from the class and share them; thankfully Jenn allows you to access the class tape online along with your class fee so I can go back and take the class when the markers get here.  Ever notice that the more you want something the harder it is to get?  SO TRUE.  Also, the carriers have begun to take SO long to deliver items, not just one of them, all of them, things are taking 2 to 3 weeks that used to take a few days.  I am the type who wants their stuff before I order it and it's frustrating to no end.  But, it is what it is!  I hope you enjoyed my card, and I appreciate you listening to my little saga, and I thank you for stopping by!! Fondly, Christi

I am entering my card in the following challenges:
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Slimline Cards
The Funkie Junkie - Funkie Frilly Valentines
Sweet Stampers, #65 - Furry Friends
Dies R Us, #187 - Love & Hearts
A Place to Start, #202202 - Anything Goes, Twist: Include a Critter
SUYP, #75 - Anything Goes w/ Cats
Happy Little Stampers - Anything Goes With Dies

Double D - Shades of Pink

Halloween Houses

Hi all! I am so excited to share my little Halloween Houses with you! Halloween is my favorite holiday; I love all the spookiness, the decor and costumes and since the weather is cooler, yet not that cold yet, it just can't get much better!  I think we should have Halloween at least once a month so everyone could dream up great costumes and buy candy without feeling guilty :)  These Halloween Houses are so easy to make and you can find all the dies you need at Dies R Us - truly one stop shopping with great prices! 

What I Used to Make my Houses:
I used the following on both houses;
Lawn Fawn Scalloped Treat Box, #LF1232
Lawn Fawn Scalloped Treat Box Halloween Add On Dies, #LF1487
Card in Black, Yellow, White, Orange, Brown and Grey

I am calling this house House #1.  In addition to the above products I used the following:
Lawn Fawn Spooky Village Stamp Set, #LF2014 {sentiment}
Die-Namics Stitched Fishtail Sentiment Strips, #MFT-1123

 I cut the actual house out of heavy black card, as well as the the doorknob and one bat.  The roof, door and windows were cut out of grey card; yellow card was used to add a warm glow to the windows.  I added some spooky brown trees to each side of the house, the back has a window and a cute ghost.  Lastly, I added the sentiment.  These houses are so cute in person, they are small, the perfect size for  gift card and you can make them to match almost any occasion, including just because! You can make a beach house, a winter house, a spring themed house and even a dog house!  I am sure Lawn Fawn will continue making add on options for the treat box as it's a great seller and so adorable, even with no add on! 

On to House #2.  I used the products listed about as well as some orange card and the following:
Lawn Fawn Pick of the Patch Stamp Set, #LF1754
Lawn Fawn Pick of the Patch Die Set, #LF1755
Lawn Fawn Costume Party Stamp Set, #LF1458 {sentiment}
Embossing Ink
Hero Arts White Embossing Powder
Acetate

 I constructed the little house using grey card, used a darker grey for the roof and black for the door and windows.  I backed the windows and door with yellow card and used some brown trees on each of the sides.  I also made a pumpkin and added it to one side along with a tree.  The back of the house has a black cat and a window.  This one is my favorite of the two houses because I also added 2 black bats "flying" above the house with the help of some acetate strips.  I love them!  I embossed the sentiment with white embossing powder on black card and trimmed it to fit the spot on the roof.

These are perfect for a small, snack sized candy bar or a few truffles {dark chocolate, of course!} and if I don't give them away, I know they will come out to decorate for Halloween year after year.  They are easy enough to make using an assembly line, enlist some help from the kids or friend, and you can make a whole class worth in no time! And who knows, I may construct an entire village of spooky little treat boxes! I hope I have inspired you to dig out some dies and enter the Dies R Us monthly giveaway; just be sure you use products that Dies R Us carries and you could win!  Thanks so much for stopping by and I'd love to know which house you like the best, just drop a note in the comments :) Thank you all for all your support during my Design Team time here at Dies R Us!  This is my last post and I had a lovely time.  Stay safe and see you soon! Oh and HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!  Christi

I am entering my Halloween Houses in the following challenges:
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Anything Goes
Addicted to Stamps and More, #415 - Use Die Cuts and/or Stencils
Lawn Fawnatics, #109 - Awesome Autumn
Paperminutes, # 711 - Happy Halloween
Everybody Art Challenge, #497 - Anything But a Card

Christmas in July Blog Hop!

https://shoppingourstash.blogspot.com/2021/07/shopping-our-stash-449-christmas-in-july.html

Hello Crafty Friends and Happy Saturday! Today, The Paper Funday Challenges  and the Inspiration Station Challenges are hosting a Christmas in July Blog Hop! Please Hop along with us today for some fantastic holiday crafting inspiration and there are Prizes too!If you were directed here from Rocky's Blog  you’re in the right place. Should you get lost, please start at The Paper Funday Challenge Blog.  Here is my card, my very first light up card ever!

The house lit up

And the house normal.

What I Used to Make my Card:
White Card Base
Pre-made Oxide Ink Background, splattered w/ Gansai Tambi Starry Colors, White Gold
Pear Blossom Press EZ-Light
Lawn Fawn Build a House Die Set, #LF2046
Lawn Fawn Build a House Gingerbread Add On, #LF2438
Lawn Fawn Build a House Christmas Add On, #LF2048
Lawn Fawn Stitched Hillside Backdrop, Landscape, #LF1502
Lawn Fawn Stitched Tree Borders, #LF1236
Lawn Fawn Toboggan Together Stamp Set, #LF976
Lawn Fawn Push Here Stamp Set, #LF1415
Glitter Card in White and Red
Various Shades of Brown
Scrap Vellum and Green Card

Now, it might seem a bit overwhelming when you look at the number of products I used; but most of them I only used a piece or two; I've explained what I've used from what set a bit further down. Once I had found the pre-made back piece, I splattered it with the White Gold watercolor paint then I set it aside to dry.  I began to figure out how I was going to assemble my card; I knew I wanted the window to light up and I knew I wanted to light that window by pressing the door {I don't know, it made sense to me to have the light go on if you pressed the door bell} so I cut a foam piece using the house die. I ended up cutting almost all of the inside of the foam piece out, similar to a shaker card, so save yourself some trouble and cut a slit in the bottom {since you won't see it anyway} and cut out most of the house part of the foam, leaving the window top shape intact and save that excess foam, you will need it later. 

The Pear Blossom EZ-Lights are a miracle product if you can't get the whole tape connection battery light concept, which I cannot.  All you need to do is insert the battery and press the little button and BOOM, you have light!  The EZ-Light comes with three little bulbs attached and plenty of wire so you can spread those lights out or cut them off if you don't want to use all three {which is great because I accidentally cut one off and I was concerned I'd set the house - both the card one and the real one - on fire}.  I meant to take a picture for you of the back of the house as it began to take shape, but honestly, it was SO ugly I just couldn't.  I glued the vellum to the foam window, then glued my house base {the brown card} over that as well as the rest of the foam base; like I said, similar to a shaker card.  I positioned the lights in the window and kept testing them so that they wouldn't look funny when they lit up and to figure the door placement.  I was worried that the recipient wouldn't press right on the button the card would not work, but that was no issue either.  I glued the lights down and the pressing mechanism down inside the foam and I had a working light!  

The rest of the card was really just the finishing touches; the sentiment came from the Toboggan Together stamp set, the wreath from the Christmas Add On, the trees were cut from the Stitched Tree Borders and I modified the Landscape version of the Hillside Backdrop to fit the portrait card.  And those left over pieces of foam were used under the steps and the chimney!  The bow on the wreath and the card behind the candy canes are Red Glitter Card, the hills and the icing is White Glitter Card.

Well, if you haven't tried a light up card yet I hope I took some of your fear away and I highly recommend the EZ-Lights.  I have tons of batteries, copper tape and all sorts of tiny lights that I hope to use someday when my brain finally recognizes how to actually complete a connection, but until then I have four more EZ-Lights to use; and who knows, I might just sell all that other stuff and stick to the EZ way out {see what I did there?} 

For this Hop, 6 prizes will be awarded to 6 randomly chosen commenters. To be eligible for a prize, you must answer this Question below: How many light up cards have I made? I have provided the answer in my blog post.

Thank you so much for reading this post, I know it was long but I wanted to share my struggle.  I sincerely hope you are enjoying the blog hop and next you will be visiting Anita, and should you get lost, you can start again at The Paper Funday Challenge .  Thanks again & until next time, Christi

I am entering my card in the following challenges:
Krafty Chicks, #567 - Christmas
DL Art, #281 - Christmas in July
Through the Purple Haze, #182 - Anything Goes or Christmas in July
Little Red Wagon - Midway to Christmas
Shopping Our Stash, #499 - Christmas in July
Creative Craft Cottage Challenge, #142 - Christmas in July
Incy Wincy Designs Challenge - Christmas in July

Pet Talk

Hi Friends of Dies R Us! Yes, another multiple card post - just a 2fer this time! I used some older Lawn Fawn stamps and dies, but the NEW RELEASE is now available at Dies R Us, just go to the website and choose NEW ARRIVALS {you'll find more than just Lawn Fawn - I have my eye on some of the great Visible Image sets}!!   Enjoy!

What I Used to Make my Cards:
White Card Base
Pink Card
Lawn Fawn Speech Bubble Backdrop, #LF1989
Lawn Fawn Critter Chatter Stamps, #LF1964
Lawn Fawn Critters at the Dog Park, Stamps #LF515, Dies #LF520
Lawn Fawn Meow You Doin'? Stamps #LF1315, Dies #LF1316 
Watercolor Paper {I use this}
Zig Clean Color Brush Markers
Gina K Amalgam Ink Pad in Obsidian Ink
Dimensional Dots
Pink Ink

I started these cards by cutting the backdrop out of white card and pink card, twice each.  Then I began to stamp the different dog and cat sounds on various white speech bubbles from the backdrop cut out which I then attached to my white card bases. I placed the stamped speech bubbles onto different spaces left by the die cut and filled in a few of the more empty spaces with the pink speech bubbles, leaving some of the spots empty.  The cat and the dog I used on the cards were previously colored and cut so I just added the dimensional dots to them and attached them onto the cards.  Lastly, I stamped the sentiments on white card, trimmed them and dotted them onto the card fronts.  I also stamped the small heart in pink ink and the paw print in black ink onto 2 of the smaller panels.  I like the look of the different levels created by the dots and the speech bubbles.  They are a different type of "I love you" card but every bit as important as the cards someone might get from humans; and a such nice way to say that your pets care about their pet parent {or aunt, grandparent, etc.} as much as you do!  

Thank you for stopping by to look at my work. I hope you and yours are doing well and are staying safe! I hope you had a fantastic weekend and see you here, at Dies R Us very soon!!  Fondly, Christi

 Don't forget to come join in the fun at the Dies R Us Challenge Blog. There's a new challenge theme offered on the 1st and 15th of each month and one lucky randomly drawn winner will receive a gift voucher prize to the Dies R Us Store.  

  For your convenience, all the important Dies R Us links are provided below.

 

click below for:

STORE

CHALLENGE BLOG

FACEBOOK

INSPIRATION BLOG

FRIENDS OF DIES R US PINTEREST PAGE

I am entering my "Pet Talk" cards in the following challenges:
The Sisterhood of Crafters - Anything Goes
Paperminutes, #699 - Small Animals
Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenges - Fun & Quirky (entry #2)
Fab 'n Funky Challenges, #531 - Anything Goes
Cardz for Gals, #150 - Get Inky
Crafting Happiness, #103 - Anything Goes