"There's Only One Like You" Butterfly Card

Good evening faithful followers! :)

I hope all is well with everyone! This week the teachers in my district reported back to work. Our students aren't back until Tuesday of next week, but this week was all the fun preparation work that goes into getting ready for another year! I have had a great week so far, since it is the first year in five years (I can't believe I've been teaching that long! lol) that I haven't had to pack up and unpack my room, which has been A-MAZ-ING. I also feel much more prepared and organized than in years past (instead of running around trying to get it all done), so I am truly looking forward to this year!

The card I'm sharing tonight was made for a very good friend of mine who is also one of my teammates at work! J. is the art teacher at my school, and was my mentor the first year I started there. We've been friends since the very beginning, and I feel very blessed to call her my friend. J. was out on maternity leave for most of last year, as she gave birth to her firstborn son (who I will call B.B. for "Baby Boy") aka my "nephew" :) Obviously, since she is at work, she has had to place BB in daycare :( She had a left him with the daycare last week a few times as a "test run", and he was fine. Unfortunately, this week, the drop-off has been quite rough for both J. and BB :( He has cried everytime she has left, and it has been quite stressful for her on top of transitioning back to work. I wanted to make her a little something to remind her that it will all be okay and that she was loved and appreciated :) So I headed down to my craftroom and whipped up this lovely little card:

Supplies Used:
Card: DCWV White & Black Rickrack Cards (A2 Flats)
Cardstock: White Value Pack Cardstock
Stamp(s): KinderStampO "Friendship" Set (sentiment)
Digi Stamp(s): Fred She Said "Monarch Butterfly" Digi & SVG Set
ProMarkers
Stamp Pads: TPC Clearly Better Inks in "Black"
Martha Stewart Punch-Around-the-Page Set in "Monarch Butterfly"
Imaginisce Pop Up Posies in "Brights" and "Pinks"
Imaginisce Pearl Brads
ZIG 2-Way Glue Pen
Zots 3-D Dots
Pink ATG

Since it was a flat A2-sized card, I designed this to go on the back where I could write my message to her:

This was a fun card to create and was pretty easy to pull together after a long day at work. I shared it with J. today, and she LOVED it! Hoping that the rest of the week begins to improve for her and BB!

This weekend is a long one (thank goodness!) and I have several projects to work on in preparation for the hops I am in for the month of September. Hope you enjoyed this card, and I look forward to sharing more projects oon!

Happy Crafting!
Ashley "Scrappin' Pink Piglet"
>:@

WINNERS! :)

Good evening everyone!

I hope everyone is having a great night and that all of you on the East Coast are safe after the wicked earthquake we had today!  I was about 40 miles from the epicenter when it happened and it was unbelieveable to have experienced - a bit disconcerting too!  Thankfully, I was fine as was everyone else where I was.

Earthquakes could not stop me from announcing my winners, however! :) 

First off, thank you to all of you for visiting my blog and leaving me such wonderful comments.  I love hearing your feedback! 

My husband served as "Random.org" the other night and chose my winners for me :)  Without further ado...

The winner from the "Bucket List" Blog Hop is... #32, Lori Apgar!

32

Lori Apgar said...

You are off to a good start for a bucket list!!! Very cute!

Glad to be in this hop with you!



The winner from the "Interactive Card Hop" is... #18, Doris P.!

18

Doris P. said...

love the card.. I am being inspired by this blog hop!

Congratulations Lori and Doris!  I've sent e-mails to both of you concerning your prize, and have already heard back from Lori (who was pretty excited!).  Doris, if you're reading this, please e-mail me at scrappinpinkpiglet(at)gmail(dot)com to claim your prize!

Thank you again for visiting my blog and commenting!  I truly do appreciate it!

Take care everyone :)

Ashley "Scrappin' Pink Piglet"

>:@

Interactive Card Hop - Day 2

Welcome to the Interactive Card Hop - Day 2!

You should have arrived here from Rachelle's blog after seeing her outstanding gatefold card.  If you have arrived at this blog without starting from the beginning, please go visit Monica, our wonderful host, at her blog.   Be sure to leave a comment and become a follower on EVERY blog in order to be eligible to win the grand prize offered by Monica - it looks pretty amazing!

Welcome back!!!  Today I am sharing a Joy Fold card.  Once again I used a tutorial found on the Splitcoaststampers website.  This tutorial was written by Beate Johns and, like the shadow box tutorial, was easy to follow since she included pictures for each step of the process.   

Without further ado...my first Joy Fold card (but certainly not my last!):

Supplies Used:

Cardstock: DCWV "The Lodge Stack", Standard Blue, White, and Light Blue Cardstock

Stamp(s): Pink by Design "Sandy Toes" Stamp Set (sentiments)

Stamp Pads:  TPC Clearly Better Inks in "Silver" and "Chocolate"

Stickers: Creative Imaginations "Tidepools Jumbo Sticker Sheet"

Brads:  The Eyelet Outlet Pearl Starfish Brads in "Cream" and "Blue"

Ribbon: Dashes, Dots & Checks

Mini Glue Dots

Pink ATG

Since it is hard to show all the different levels of the Joy Fold card in one photo, I thought I'd share a couple of additional images to help you understand the concept :)

Overhead shot of all the different layers

First layer opened

Second layer opened - the sentiment reads "Wish you were here!"

I had a lot of fun creating this card, and definitely could see myself making several more in the Joy Fold style.  Even with a few hiccups here and there, it was fairly easy to put together and - don't tell my Expression/Imagine (or hubby for that matter) - it was nice to have a card that was machine-free! :-D

BLOG CANDY ALERT! :) :) :)

If you are my lucky winner, you will receive:

 Cuttlebug Embossing Folders - Feel Better 

and

DCWV Shimmer Cardstock Envelopes in Ivory

 

To enter, please leave a comment on this post along with a way to contact you if you should win.  As well, if you become a follower of this page (or are already a follower), please leave me another posting saying that you did so and I will give you a SECOND entry into the drawing.  I am planning on combining the entries from both days of the hop to select my winner, so you can have up to FOUR opportunities to win!  I will post a winner by Tuesday (I was in another hop this past Thursday and Friday, so I will post the winner from both hops on that day).  And don't forget - be sure to leave a comment and become a follower on every blog in order to be eligible to win the grand prize offered by Monica!

Your next stop will be Brittany's blog to see her double pocket card.  Thank you for visiting, and I hope to see you again soon! :)

Happy Crafting,

~ Ashley "Scrappin' Pink Piglet"

>:@

Interactive Card Hop - Day 1

Welcome to the Interactive Card Hop - Day 1!

You should have just arrived here from Patricia's blog after seeing her amazing shaker card.  If you have arrived at this blog without starting from the beginning, please go visit Monica, our wonderful host, at her blog.   Be sure to leave a comment and become a follower on every blog in order to be eligible to win the grand prize offered by Monica - it looks pretty amazing!

I am extremely excited to be part of such a fun concept for a hop!  Prior to this weekend, I had never made an "interactive" card like many of the cards featured on this hop, although I had seen them on others' blogs and always thought that they looked so AWESOME but have never been brave enough to try!  So, I would like to say a HUGE thank-you to Monica for creating and organizing this hop so that someone like me could explore the world of interactive cards!  Otherwise, I would have still been making flat, one-dimensional creations to share with you all ;)

I chose to make a shadow box card for my first interactive card on this hop.  I wasn't quite sure what this was when I signed up for it (lol) so a quick search on the concept led me to the Splitcoaststampers website.  This website has an AMAZING amount of tutorials that are extremely easy to follow and include pictures to help guide you along (which is GREAT for a visual learner like myself!).  I have been really enjoying exploring different card styles as a result of this hop, and Splitcoaststampers has been a great place to do some research.  For my shadow box card, I used the tutorial found on this site and written by Dawn Griffith. 

My first shadow box card (and first interactive card EVER! WOOT WOOT!):

Supplies Used:

Cardstock: Standard Black, White, and Purple Cardstock, ProvoCraft "Celebrations" Paper Pad (grass) 

Cartridge(s): "Plantin Schoolbook" (used to cut out oval), "Create a Critter" (grass)

Stamp(s): KinderStampO "Friendship" Set (for sentiments), Pink by Design "Cloudy Days" Background Stamp, Heidi Grace Designs "Tags and Words" (birds)

Ribbon: Rainbox Ribbon (leftover from other projects)

Coloring Utensils: Process Red (PM-1) ProMarker

Stamp Pads:  TPC Clearly Better Inks in "Silver", "Chocolate", and "Black", Studio G Pigment Ink in "Purple", "Blue" Ink Pad (lol, it was from the dollar bin at Michaels!)

Martha Stewart Luster Glass Microbeads in "Onyx"

Martha Stewart Flocking Powder in "Swan"

ZIG 2-Way Glue Pen

Mini Glue Dots

Pink ATG

I wanted to make sure you got the full effect of the "shadow box" concept, so I had the hubby take this picture as well:

Even with a few little hiccups, this project was fairly easy to put together, especially at the very end!  The tutorial suggests using craft tape to hold the sides together; I used my ZIG 2-Way Glue Pen and it worked perfectly fine!

I am extremely, extremely proud of this card.  Although many of the elements, including the design, were new to me, it was a worthwhile challenge and I love the end result.  I also love the fact I was able to use my new KinderStampO stamp set on this card - it fit perfectly with the other elements, and it was a lot of fun to play around with!

Since you've survived this very long post, I thought I'd offer a bit of blog candy ;)  If you are my lucky winner, you will receive:

 Cuttlebug Embossing Folders - Feel Better 

and

DCWV Shimmer Cardstock Envelopes in Ivory

 

To enter, please leave a comment on this post along with a way to contact you if you should win.  As well, if you become a follower of this page (or are already a follower), please leave me another posting saying that you did so and I will give you a SECOND entry into the drawing.  I am planning on combining the entries from both days of the hop to select my winner, so you can have up to FOUR opportunities to win!  I will post a winner by Tuesday (I was in another hop this past Thursday and Friday, so I will post the winner from both hops on that day).  And don't forget - be sure to leave a comment and become a follower on every blog in order to be eligible to win the grand prize offered by Monica!


Your next stop will be Lori's blog to see her wonderful easel card.  Please stop by again tomorrow to see my second project, which is quite different than my first interactive card (but just as much fun!). 
Until next time!
~ Ashley "Scrappin' Pink Piglet"
>:@

Bucket List Blog Hop - Day 2

Welcome to Day 2 of the Bucket List Blog Hop!

You should have just arrived here from Anita's blog.  If you have arrived at this blog without starting from the beginning, please go visit Michelle, our fearless host, at her blog. 

Welcome back!  I hope you've inspired by all this projects on this hop so far.  But wait!  There are MORE! :) 

I decided to focus my second project on my husband's bucket list.  Meet George, my wonderful hubby of two years:

My husband is the risk-taker that I have never been.  This is the man that, during his first encounters with my family, told my mother that he "would probably die young".  George is all about living life in the present, no plans, "go with the flow" - unlike his plan-oriented, organized wife - which makes the dynamic in our relationship interesting at times :)  Needless to say, my husband has achieved many more of the items on his bucket list than I, including:

- dog sledding in the Yukon for two weeks (with his mother as well!)
- flying SF-260 Marchetti (turbo prop plane) TWICE
- sky-diving - FOUR TIMES (and quite eager to go again, lol)

I decided to create a project that highlighted one of the two times he went skydiving.  I know it was an important event in his life, and one that he'd love to try again.  I found this AWESOME tutorial for a 6 x 6 mini album at Splitcoaststampers (loving them for tutorials right now!) that I was eager to try out.  It was fairly easy to put together, although there was a lot of folding and cutting involved :)  I would definitely recommend using the tutorial if you would like to put together one of your own!

Supplies Used:

Cardstock: Provo Craft "Cricut Blues" Stack, DCWV "The Guy Stack", Standard Grey Cardstock

Cardboard

Cartridge(s): "Alphalicious" (letters for "skydiving"), "Create a Critter" (cloud), "Accent Essentials" (inside panels of the album), "Paper Dolls for Everyday" (plane, parachute)

Embossing Folder: Cuttlebug "Swirls"

Glitter Glue:  Stickles in "Xmas Red", "True Blue", and "Crystal"

Glitter: Martha Stewart "Clear" Lust Glass Microbeads

Ribbon: Rainbow Ribbon

Tag: Tim Holtz Idea-ology "Philosophy Tags"

Coloring Utensils: Indigo Blue (PM-43), Dark Brown (PM-88), and Crimson Red (PM-4) ProMarker

Martha Stewart Scoring Board

Purple Cows Paper Cutter

Pink ATG

Zots 3-D Dots

I love this Tim Holtz Idea-ology tag...perfectly appropriate for this type of album!

Fun folds!

Some of the inside...

A space to write an "introduction" of sorts.

Lots and lots of pictures and space for my husband to write some of his memories down.

And another blank area for my husband to list his other bucket list items!

As you can see, this project is still "under construction" - since I was not part of his life during this jump (or any of them for that matter, lol), I think it would mean more for him to write his thoughts and reflections in the book instead of me.  I also am unsure about whether I should add some embellishments to the individual pages of the album.  If I add anything, it will be after my hubby does his writing, but I'm not sure if it would add to the project or be a little overwhelming :)  I would LOVE it if you would share your thoughts - bling it out or not so much? :)

As I shared yesterday, I will be offering a bit of blog candy for this hop ;)  If you are my lucky winner, you will receive:

 Cuttlebug Embossing Folders - Decorative Squares #3 

and

DCWV Shimmer Cardstock Envelopes in Pearl

 

To enter, please leave a comment on this post along with a way to contact you if you should win.  As well, if you become a follower of this page (or are already a follower), please leave me another posting saying that you did so and I will give you a SECOND entry into the drawing.  I am planning on combining the entries from both days of the hop to select my winner, so you can have up to FOUR opportunities to win!  I will post a winner by Tuesday (I am in another hop this weekend, so I will post the winner from both hops on that day).


Your next stop will be Amy's blog.  Thank you for hopping with us these two days!  AND ANOTHER HAPPY BIRTHDAY (AND HAPPY ANNIVERSARY) TO THE LOVELY LADIES (Michelle, Justina, Gill & Jim, Wendy, and Jamie) OF THIS HOP! :)

~ Ashley "Scrappin' Pink Piglet"
>:@

BLOG HOP LINE-UP (UPDATED TO REFLECT CHANGES):

Michelle - http://craftychelle.blogspot.com/   <-----Happy Birthday to Michelle on the 18th!

Justina http://justmycrafts.blogspot.com/       <-----Happy Birthday to Justina on the 28th!
Anita - http://anitaandbugs.blogspot.com/
Ashley - http://scrappinpinkpiglet.blogspot.com/
Amy - http://www.lovetocrop.com/
Maria - http://www.mdcraftcorner.blogspot.com/
Tami - http://tamboscreations.blogspot.com/
Sher http://www.patternsbysher.blogspot.com/
Gina - http://californiascrappin-gcinderella21.blogspot.com/
Gill - http://scrappincreationsbygillm.blogspot.com/   <-----Happy Anniversary to Gill and her husband Jim on the 11th!
Linda T - http://www.lindascreativity.blogspot.com/
Inga - http://mommahobbit.blogspot.com/
Corrine- http://celebratingordinarymoments.blogspot.com/
Lori- http://scrappinmystressaway.blogspot.com/
Nancy - http://blog.fancywithnancy.com/
Lisa - http://handmadewithlove-lisa.blogspot.com/
Wendy - http://wleitel.blogspot.com/  <-----Happy Birthday to Wendy on the 31st!
Jamie - http://myamusinglife.blogspot.com/  <-----Happy Birthday to Jamie on the 18th!

Bucket List Blog Hop - Day 1

Welcome to the Bucket List Blog Hop!

You should have just arrived here from Anita's blog.  If you have arrived at this blog without starting from the beginning, please go visit Michelle, our fearless host, at her blog. 

Welcome to my little corner of the crafting world!  I am so excited to be part of such a unique blog hop and to be able to celebrate all of these ladies' wonderful birthdays (and anniversaries!) in the month or August!  Thank you to Michelle for organizing such an amazing concept for a hop and for including lil' old me! :)  As you've guessed from the dates on our button, this is a two-day hop.  Each day we will be featuring a different project relating to the theme...THE BUCKET LIST!

To be perfectly honest with you, prior to this hop, I didn't have a bucket list!  Although I've dealt with death and understood from a young age that sometimes life is way too short, I have never really thought about what I'd like to do before I "piff" (that's what we call it in my family).  Working on projects for this hop pushed me to think about those things and figure out what is important to me.  I'm still developing my "bucket list" but I am starting to get a good idea on what I want to achieve during my time on this earth :) 

To create my project, I took this old Ferrero Roche container and made it into this:

Supplies Used:

Cardstock: Provo Craft "Celebrations" Stack, DCWV "The Colorful Life" Cardstock Stack, DCWV "The Street Lace" Cardstock Stack, odds and ends of colored cardstock

Cartridge(s): "Ashlyn's Alphabet" (tag), "Birthday Bash" (bucket), "Create a Critter" (grass), "Paper Dolls for Everyday" (drops of water), "Makin' the Grade" (lettering for "bucket list"), "Plantin SchoolBook" (lettering on bucket)

Glitter Glue:  Stickles in "Green"

Ribbon: Standard Green and Blue Ribbons, Celebrate It "Mariposa" Ribbon

Coloring Utensils: Metallic Silver (PM-118) ProMarker

Martha Stewart Dual-Tip Marker Set

Hot Glue Gun

Pink ATG

And on the inside...

I created these cool little cards to write my goals on my "Bucket List" - kind of like the drops in my "bucket"! :)

I thought I would share some of my "drops" with you...

Most of mine concerned some type of travel - whether it is returning to somewhere I've already visited (like Chile) or traveling somewhere new (like Greece or Australia). 

 

I probably should have changed this card to "make a meal that my husband doesn't try to take over the cooking for" instead ;)

Yes, one of my goals in life is to make a design team!  You can laugh if you want, but for someone like me, being accepted to a design team - especially for some of these wonderful crafters that I admire so much - would be a DREAM COME TRUE!

I can't wait to see if I am able to cross some of these dreams off of my list - some seem easier than others to achieve - but I'll do my best with the time I'm given!

Since you've survived this very long post, I thought I'd offer a bit of blog candy ;)  If you are my lucky winner, you will receive:

 Cuttlebug Embossing Folders - Decorative Squares #3 

and

DCWV Shimmer Cardstock Envelopes in Pearl

 

To enter, please leave a comment on this post along with a way to contact you if you should win.  As well, if you become a follower of this page (or are already a follower), please leave me another posting saying that you did so and I will give you a SECOND entry into the drawing.  I am planning on combining the entries from both days of the hop to select my winner, so you can have up to FOUR opportunities to win!  I will post a winner by Tuesday (I am in another hop this weekend, so I will post the winner from both hops on that day).

Your next stop will be Amy's blog.  Please stop by again tomorrow to see my second project, featuring an accomplishment from my HUSBAND'S bucket list! :)

~ Ashley "Scrappin' Pink Piglet"
>:@

BLOG HOP LINE-UP:

Michelle - http://craftychelle.blogspot.com/   <-----Happy Birthday to Michelle on the 18th!

Justina http://justmycrafts.blogspot.com/       <-----Happy Birthday to Justina on the 28th!
Anita - http://anitaandbugs.blogspot.com/
Ashley - http://scrappinpinkpiglet.blogspot.com/
Amy - http://www.lovetocrop.com/
Maria - http://www.mdcraftcorner.blogspot.com/
Tami - http://tamboscreations.blogspot.com/
Sher http://www.patternsbysher.blogspot.com/
Scrappingmamma~ http://www.scrappingmamma.net/
Gina - http://californiascrappin-gcinderella21.blogspot.com/
Gill - http://scrappincreationsbygillm.blogspot.com/   <-----Happy Anniversary to Gill and her husband Jim on the 11th!
Linda T - http://www.lindascreativity.blogspot.com/
Inga - http://mommahobbit.blogspot.com/
Corrine- http://celebratingordinarymoments.blogspot.com/
Brynn- http://flairandfrillscreativity.blogspot.com/
Lori- http://scrappinmystressaway.blogspot.com/
Nancy - http://blog.fancywithnancy.com/
Monica - http://scraps2treasure.blogspot.com/
Lisa - http://handmadewithlove-lisa.blogspot.com/
Wendy - http://wleitel.blogspot.com/  <-----Happy Birthday to Wendy on the 31st!
Jamie - http://myamusinglife.blogspot.com/  <-----Happy Birthday to Jamie on the 18th!

In a JAM?

Good evening all!

As I said in my posting last night, I've been on a bit of a roll when it comes to challenges and projects this week.  The project I am sharing tonight was inspired by a few challenges, including Peachy Keen Stamps' Let's Face It Friday - So Punny! and Cricut Cardz Challenge #86 - Tuitti Fruitti. 

Supplies Used:

Cardstock: Couture Cardstock White Felt Cardstock, DCWV Nana's Nursery - Baby Girl Paper Stack, DCWV the All About GIRLS Paper Stack, DCWV Scrapbook Kit in a Stack - Dog, DCWV Scrapbook Kit in a Stack - Elegant Wedding, DCWV Scrapbook Kit in a Stack - Love & Wedding

Cartridge(s): "Wild Card" (for the base of the card), "Ashlyn's Alphabet" (rectangle background), "From My Kitchen" (jam jar), "Preserves" (strawberries)

Stamp(s): Peachy Keen Stamps' "Everyday Character Faces" (1 1/8" size), Scrappy Moms Stamps'' "A Pinch and a Dash" (sentiment)

Embossing Folder(s):  Japanese Scales (Cuttlebug)

Glitter Glue:  Stickles in "Frosted Lace", "Xmas Red", "Crystal", "Green"

Coloring Utensils: Dark Brown (PM-88) ProMarker, White Sakura Gelly Roll Pen

Stamp Pad in "Olive"

Martha Stewart Scoring Board

Purple Cows Paper Cutter

Challenges entered with this card:

Peachy Keen Stamps' Let's Face It Fridays - So Punny!: 

Puns are fun, and even more perfect when paired with Peachy Keen Faces! This week, create a project using your PKS faces and along with any pun you'd like.

Cricut Cardz Challenge #86 - Tuitti Fruitti: Make a card using fruit, and you may use any cartridges, colors or occasion you'd like.

Fantabulous Cricut Challenge Me Monday #71 - Let's Be Friends: It's Friendship Day! Create a fun project for a friend.

 

The main inspiration for this card came from the sentiment I used.  Since the theme for PKS' challenge was using a pun, and the Cricut Cardz' challenge was to use fruit in the card, the "In a Jam?" was perfect!  I was able to convey a look of uneasiness and unsureness (is that even a word?) using my awesome PKS "Everyday Character Faces" set (love me some Peachy Keen!), and my application of Stickles was far less heavy-handed than usual ;)  I am also enjoying the new sizing of the cards I am creating - the 4 x 9 is a bit more unique and I'm enjoying the challenges of arranging my cuts and sentiments on the card. 

I hope you enjoyed viewing my project!  Thank you for visiting!

Until next time,

Ashley "Scrappin' Pink Piglet"

>:@