Spookley the Spuare Pumpkin (audio-visual eBook)

Spookley the Square Pumpkin (Image via RottenTomatoes.com)Spookley the Square Pumpkin is an illustrated children's book with audio narrations (complete with rhymes) that tells the story of this cute square pumpkin. Illustration are nicely done, and narration is good. It should keep your very young quite engaged... but it really needs to be played on a tablet. It's quite readable on a phone, but do you really want your kid to squint at a tiny screen?

http://www.appbrain.com/app/spookley-the-square-pumpkin/com.oceanhouse_media.bookspookley_app

Revisiting Halloween Past

Yesterday I said there would be a surprise post today - surprising to both of us as I had no idea what I would be making.  Well, sadly what I made was a horrid headache!  The headache stole both my creative mojo and my concentration so the surprise Halloween project I am sharing is from last Halloween.

I really liked this treat box and card set.  The box is the classic matchbox style with a wrap around sleeve and a slide out box. I chose Basic Grey Halloween print paper to make the box spooky fun. I welded the spider web from Paper Doll Dress Up into an oval to make the top of the box for a spooky touch.  I also crafted an oval tag with it's cute little monster and attached the tag to the box. 

I also made a matching card to go with the box.  One of my favorite little goblins received this box (with six fun size candy bars inside) and this card.

My headache is fading so I am hopeful that as the pain goes away my creative mojo will return!  Let's hope so because I have not completed my BBTB2 project of the week yet!

Spooky Boo Alice Card with Nesties

Only two days left until All Hallows Eve so my week of Halloween themed projects is close to winding up.  Today's card features some of the same elements that I have shared in earlier posts this week, Graphic 45 paper, Prima flowers, fun fall papers, and Halloween ribbons.  Of course the elements are put together differently making a completely new card.  I love that about paper crafting.

The main image of the card is from Graphic 45's Hallowe'en  in Wonderland line.  The image was cut out with a nestabilities, as was the cardstock mat behind the image.  The matting was embossed with a Spellbinder's metal embossing sheet before being affixed behind the top image.  

The base card is black (as is the matching envelope) with wonderful orange and cream print paper added to the front.  Atop the front paper I added an angled rectangle of lighter colored matting to create a bit of contrast between the orange background and the copper image matting.

I trimmed the Hallowe'en in Wonderland card and tucked it under the edge of the image and added a yellow Prima flower that matches the gold color in the image.  I added a row of lace and topped the lace with a fun Halloween "Spooky Boo" ribbon and bow.  A bit of black doodling around the edges of the card added a bit of interest to the edges..  Inside I added a square of smooth white cardstock to hold the Halloween message.

This card is one of my favorites of the season.  I like the simplicity and elegance.   I will be back tomorrow with a new project to share.  This project will be a surprise - for all of us as I have NO idea what I am going to make!!  I will see you tomorrow!

Spooky Halloween Layout with Happy Hauntings

Today's spooky Halloween offering isn't really spooky at all!  This is one of four Halloween layouts I will have to make this year.  Normally I complete a two page layout for each of my children, but this year there will be one more.  It seems that no matter how old we get our family still loves Halloween (what was it I said yesterday about fun for kids of all ages - yes, I meant all of us).

This two page layout was creating using layers of Halloween themed paper.  The two base papers are Halloween pinstripes of oranges and greens with two three inch strips added to the bottom half of each page - a pretty orange floral print and a bolder stripe.  My favorite paper in this layout is the rectangle added to upper half of each page, a green cardstock with pumpkins and leaves.  Love this paper...!  I added a strip of ribbon to each page - fun witches feet going across the seams.

The main focal point (do I even need to say?) on this layout is the fun over-sized Trick or Treat bag.   I would love to tell you that I cut this bag with the cricut but that would be a big fat lie!  This great embellishment was a $1.00 coupon purchase at the Creating Keepsakes Convention in Charlotte - in 2008.  Yes, I have had this embellishment stored for two years and had not used it.  Embarrassing but true.  The good news is, I am FINALLY using it.

Normally I use solid cardstock for my photo mats.  But this simple black and light, light gray Halloween paper is perfect for photo mats.  I tried to cut the paper so that some of the fun phrases will show at the edges of the photographs.  After adding the matting to the pages, I felt like more definition was needed.  I used my two layer Stampin' Up corner punch to create corners for the photo mats and random page corners.  This punch is one of my favorite Stampin' Up products!

I used Happy Hauntings to cut the double layer title, Spooky 2010. I used a black cardstock base layer and a scrap of paper printed onto archival paper using the Cricut Imagine (leftovers from a previous project).  The Imagine is going to be a treasure trove of great paper!!!

Finally, I added leftover (from a previous year) Halloween journal squares.  I used another Stampin' Up punch, the label punch, to shape the label in lower left corner of the layout.

With two Halloween layouts done I would normally only have one more to go.  But this year I too will need a Halloween layout - I dressed up for the Halloween Chili Cook Off at work.  This was my Charlie Chaplin get up!  I liked how the costume came out and I love that other than the hat and moustache the costume was put together with things we mostly had at home!

Do I even need to tell you that I will have another Halloween project again tomorrow???  :-)

Beware Card with Prima and Happy Hauntings

Continuing my week of Halloween, I have another card to share today.  In case you have not guess, I love the Happy Hauntings cartridge.  I think Halloween should be a fun for children of all ages.  Happy Hauntings has some very fun cuts.  I have previously shared the 3-D house, some of the treat boxes, the frames, and a character or two. Today I am going to focus on the BEWARE gate.

I used a black base card and added a triangle of fun Halloween paper to serve as a background on the front of the card.  The second layer on the card front is a wonderful glittery Halloween paper with shimmering jack-o-lanterns.  I cut the gate at 4 inches tall in a heavy weight black cardstock and affixed it to the front of the card.  I added the gate plate with black brads as well as the spooky BEWARE gate sign.  Beware would frighten me away!!!

I embellished the card with strips of natural twill.  On the left of the card the twill is attached with black brads.  On the upper right corner I knotted a small strip of twill and attached it to the card with a medium sized glue dot.  I added this fabulous black flower to the lower right for a bit of dark beauty.

I will be back tomorrow with results from a chili cook off in which I am involved.  I made vegetarian chili tonight and I have the "bring it on" attitude. 

Halloween in Wonderland - Off with his head!

"Off with his head!"  The Queen of Hearts is not very happy with the Mad Hatter.  Her royal proclamation is going to make his hat fit a bit loosely!  These adorable characters are not just from Alice in Wonderland but also from Graphic45's Hallowe'en in Wonderland line of paper.  You have probably seen this paper all over the Internet as it is very popular.  I have actually had the paper since it first released but I have been treating it like gold and had not cut it.

This Halloween card is gong to a family member who hopefully will appreciate the lack of tradition.  There may not be ghosts or jack-o-lanterns on this card, but it has spirit!!!  The background is a multi-print Halloween paper with an additional print attached on the right side.  A second layer of background was applied using another Halloween cardstock and the Stampin' Up ticket punch was used to shape the corners.

In the photo above you can see the sheer ribbon I affixed over the paper seam. I added 1/4 inch black circles to the right side of the card, just to the right of the ribbon.  Using the same ticket punch, I punched the corners of the Queen and the Mad Hatter cards.  And finally I used my favorite white pen to trim out the card with a few lines and doodles.  This card is going into the mail tomorrow so that my family members receive it before Sunday!

If you have not already done so, you may want to read Monday's post (below) and sign up for my monthly blog candy.  I will be back tomorrow with another Halloween project to share (this may be a theme this week)!

Mini Monster Name Tags for the Office

Halloween is slowly working its way into our office area at work.  I have put up orange mini lights, a fall leaf garland and a few other odd and ends.  But this weekend I decided to make name tags to cover our door name plates.  Outside of each office is a plate that contains the office number and the first initial and last name of the office occupant.  For those in my area I crafted new name plate covers.

The little monsters should attach over top of the name section and leave the office number visible.  Our office is divided into quadrants and I did not feel obligated to make a character name plates for the rest of the office personnel, that would be far too many.  My area only has six people at the moment as some are on assignments out of the office and two people recently left.

The four Mini Monster characters here were cut using Mini Monsters with the Imagine cartridge on the Imagine machine.  It is possible to insert two cartridges into the Cricut Imagine at once, a regular Cricut cartridge (in this case Mini Monsters) and an Imagine cartridge.  You can then select an image (and the image layers) to cut and edit each layer.  For example, the Imagine provides to the opportunity to click on each layer of an image and change the color or pattern.  In the image above I cut the Susan tag in three layers - the base cut was colored goldish-orange, the second layer was colored white, and the top layer was colored black.  The Imagine printed and then cut my selections. It is a lot like the Cricut Expression, except instead of placing your color/pattern paper on the mat and cutting, you select your color or pattern electronically and the Imagine prints then cuts the image layers.

This final name plate was assembled then colored with Copic markers.  I also added discarded pieces from the previous characters, like the ribs and pelvic bones as well as the bones on which he is munching.

I will be back tomorrow with another new project to share.  Thanks for stopping by today.

What do you Mean I am Creepy?

My friend Donna is an enabler!  She introduces me to all sorts of fabulous paper crafting products and I end up loving each and every one.  Donna's latest enable are these fabby Simply Betty Stamps!  I discovered a sale at SBS and purchased four or five of the digital stamps.  This card features stamps from two different catagories, but I like them together.  This is Spiderella and James!  (Doesn't James look like a snoot next to our flirty little Spiderella)?

Before I get too wrapped up into today's project I need to interrupt myself for a moment!  I have been aware over the last week or so that my number of followers was near a new milestone.  But yesterday, Monday, the coveted 1000th follower clicked to follow my blog!!!  Thank you Stacy Armer for being my 1000th follower (you will be receiving a cute set of printable stamps from The Cutting Cafe).  AND - a BIG thank you to the other 999 of you for helping me reach this milestone. 

So now back to the card.  In the photo above I would like to introduce you to Spiderella.  She is a sassy little Halloween elf with a hefty does of flirtatiousness and personality!  She was colored with Copic markers, which were great for bringing out the green highlights in her complexion as well as defining her girly curves.

And this dear fellow is James.  James is a nearly perfect Victorian gentleman with his green locks and snooty stature.  What James was doing in this grave yard we will never know. But we do know that he is playing hard to get with our little Spiderella. 

The digital stamps were cut out and matted on to labels printed and cut with the Cricut Imagine.  I am really starting to love my Imagine... So many options; so many fun features!!  I affixed the matting layers to a black 5.5 x 5.5 black card.

Spiderella seems not to understand why James would have a less than stellar opinion of her asking, "What do you mean I am creepy?"   The sentiment was printed on white card stock them punched with a 2 inch scalloped punch.  The back layer was punched in dark, dark gray cardstock with a 2.25 inch scalloped punch.  The flower in the center of the sentiment was hand trimmed and stamped with a swirl stamp prior to being finished with a dark gray button.

This card and its unfolding story was so fun to make that I decided to dress up the inside also.  I added a white inset card and a strip of Halloween paper across the top of the card.  A black tag embellished with another button centered stamped flower was added.  I finished the card with a Happy Halloween sentiment stamp and a cute spider in the signature area.

Thank you for dropping by today and I will be back with quick project tomorrow.  While you are blogging, how about going by Regina's Cutting Cafe and checking out her printable stamps??

BBTB2 Spooky Candle Card

Hello Monday Bloggers!  Today the BBTB2 design team was asked to use the candle cut from the October 31st cartridge to create a project.  Sadly, I do not own that particular cartridge so following the design team rules, I used a different candle cut to complete the challenge.  I used the candle from Christmas Noel Solutions cartridge.  I love Christmas Noel; it is one of my favorite holiday cartridges. 

I cut the candle in rust Bazzill cardstock and used gold cardstock to cut the top layer of the candle stand.  I cut a basic black Bazzill shadow.  I used fabulous glitter cardstock to cut a frame from Happy Hauntings, tweaking the size in Design Studio.  I must tell you about this particular glitter cardstock:  I cut the glitter cardstock with the blade set on 6 and the pressure on High.  I only needed to cut this particular cardstock once.  This is not the hugely heavy glitter cardstock that you will find in the craft stores.  I purchased this cardstock from Scrap Your Trip (Yeah Julie!) at this LINK. 

I cut the boo two layer cut from Holiday Cakes to create the inside sentiment.  I also added a strip of the the front background paper.  The base card was cut in light gray and a strip of boo/spooky ribbon was added to the bottom front edge.

Be sure to go by BBTB2 and check out all of the fabulous designs.  I am always amazed at the talent of this group of designers!

Magnolia-licious Blog hop - Bats and Broomsticks!!!!

Woohoo!!!! It's time for another Manolia-licious blog hop! This month our theme is Bats and Broomsticks! I love Halloween and all the fun it brings. I love draping spider webs and creepy music and tombstones in the yard!! LOL! If you made your way here from the oh-so-talented Janiel, then you're on the right track. If not, then please head back to the Magnolia-licious Highlites blog to start at the beginning.  I don't want you to miss any of the spooktacular delights the design team has cooked up for you in their cauldrons!  I chose to use this adorable #398 Sitting Witch Tilda,  the cutest bat in the history of stamps #479 Bat. The tombston is also a Magnolia stamp from the So Spooky collection, but it appears it's not in stock right now. If you're interested, please just send Diana an email and ask her if she's got some on order. There are tons of fabulous Halloween stamps in stock and available right now over at Magnolia-licious!

Now for the FUN stuff! I'm giving away this cute Sitting Witch Tilda stamp along with the adorable bat stamp to one lucky person that leaves a comment on this post before midnight Friday night, Sept 24th!! One comment per person please, and I'll ship anywhere. Now it's time to make your way over to see the fabulously talented Mindy! Thanks for stopping by to see me today, and hope to see you back again soon! Hugs!

My Saturday at Everyday Cricut

Hello scrappers, happy Saturday.   I love the third Saturday of the month because those AWESOME ladies at Everyday Cricut (woot, woot for Joy and Melanie!) allow me to contribute to their blog.  And this month's project for Everyday Cricut ties into my blog party 200K celebration:  I used the Halloween cuts from HOLIDAY CAKES!  I wanted to show those of you who might need some ideas that the cake cartridges are not just about fondant and gum paste cutting! Go over to Everyday Cricut to get more details and see more photos of the layout.  Also you can register for their weekly giveaways (hint, hint).

Remember that if you have not already registered for my blog candy give away, you still have time.   The drawing will be tomorrow (Sunday) after I return home from a scrapping weekend at the lake.  I love spending time with girlfriends!

To register to win you will need to do two things:  become a blog follower and drop down to the BLOG PARTY post and leave a comment telling me what you would plan as a first project using Holiday Cakes.

Horrid Photos of Fun Projects

I tried to capture some quick photos to share with you of four double page layouts I made last weekend.  My camera battery was flashing a low power alert and apparently it decided it should therefore exhibit low quality output.  Grrrr. The layout above is of my hubby using his first Football Fire Starter... LOL..... OHHH and about this battery thing.... Know that the layouts look far better than these photos and know that I WILL change the battery in my camera before we head to the coast tomorrow to celebrate (a week late) my older son's b-day!!!

And speaking of Mr. Birthday-Man, there he is shaving his full beard so that he could transform into Harvey Dent from Batman... Better known as Two Face.  The Two Face thing was icky, but the shaving photos were a hoot!

And there is Two Face and his lovely girl friend, Crissie.... Errrr, I mean Poison Ivy... Yes that would be another Batman villian.  They were pretty cute from the photos I saw... Well, cute aside from that icky Two Face thing....

And speaking of Halloween costumes, here is Bethany and two friends in Charleston, SC, doing the Charleston, as 1920's flappers.  They were adorable.

I will have lots of projects to share next week as Jeannie Phillips and I will be sharing the Guest Designer spots on Christmas With the Cricut.  We are both excited!!!

One last Halloween card to post and GDT for Whimsical Scraps and Bugs

I'm very pleased to announce that I was invited to play along with two challenges this month over at Whimiscal Scraps and Bugs as a guest design team member. I had a great time and wanted to thank Cindy for inviting me to play along with the two challenges!! The first challenge was a recipe challenge. It was to use three colors (orange, purple, and black), two stars from any Cricut cartridge, and one stamped image. I used #294 Tilda with Spider (LOVE her!!) which I received from Magnolia-licious.

Most of the paper is Recollections from Michael's, and the cardstock is Bazzil. Tilda is colored with copics on an oval cut with Nestabilities. The stars were cut from the George cartridge and the loopy border punch is by Martha Stewart. Added a few buttons to balance out the design and this one was finished! Thanks a lot for stopping by to see me today and hope to see you back again soon! HUGS!

A Corny Kind of Love - Papertake Weekly

Happy Tuesday! We made it through Monday and now it's time for a fun new challenge from Papertake Weekly! This week is a sketch challenge by the fabulously talented Dawny, and it's sponsored by the wonderful Toodles and Binks! And what a fun sketch it is, too!! I loved playing with it! I made another Halloween card with a cute, cute image from Fresh Brewed Designs. I just fell in love with the candy corn bat! Isn't it the cutest?? It's colored with Copic markers. And then of course I got the absolute perfect sentiment from The Cutting Cafe'!! That fun, stripey ribbon was sent to me from my wonderful friend Regina.

I cut the scalloped circle with my Cricut Expression using the Mini Monograms cartridge and added a strip of drippy goo from a Martha Stewart border punch. The top DP is from Imaginations and the circle paper is by Best Creation Inc. The glittery paper is from a stack of DCWV papers.

Please be sure and pop over to Papertake Weekly and check out the rest of the fabulous creations, and then grab your paper and glue and join in on the fun! You could win a fabulous prize from Toodles & Binks! Thanks for stopping by to see me today and hope to see you back again soon! HUGS!