Freedom Isn't Free

Happy Saturday Everyone! I hope that your weekend is off to a fabulous start! I haven't had tons of time to craft lately because I am preparing to move into my new house, which is finally finished!!! I am beyond excited and I can't wait to start the next chapter of my life in my new home! I will be moving towards the end of next week, so I hope to make a quick move so that I can begin crafting in my new, larger crafting space!!!

With all of my excitement about the house, I did need to take some time to do things to take my mind over the stress of having to get everything packed up and ready to go. This week over at Getting Cricky with K. Andrew, Kristal is having a  Simply Sunday challenge to make cards for the troops! Did I mention that she has AMAZING stamps that are manufactured here in the good ol' USA!!! Not only that but Kristal donates $1 from every stamp set sold to charitable causes! How fabulous is that! I highly recommend that you go over to K.Andrew Design's store and check out her stamps. I promise you won't be disappointed. Now on to my card

The tanker was cut from Boys will Be Boys and the star pin/medal was cut from Rock Princess

The sentiment is from K.Andrew Designs- Positive Thoughts

Support Our Troops embellishment and yellow ribbons from K & Company

Shine On sentiment is from K.Andrew Designs- Splashtastic Summer

Patterned paper is from K & Company. All other paper is from my craps.

I really like how this card is simple, but at the same time says so much! I hope you enjoy! I am also entering this card in the Cricut 360- Challenge #5 Transportation

Thanks for stopping by and I love reading all of your comments!

Until Next Time...

Crafty Hugs,

For All My Teacher Friends in Blogland

Hi Everyone!!!

I'm having so much fun with my crafting blog, I've decided that I am going to soon venture into creating a blog that is strictly for sharing my teaching ideas and thoughts! I have come accross some really great teaching blogs and I think it will be another way for me to grow as a professional.

I will also be changing the name of this blog very soon to reflect my personality and interests a little more!

But anyway, for all of us who are teachers in some shape or form, and getting prepared for the start of a new school year, I wanted to share a giveaway that I ran across on one of the teaching blogs that I follow.

Mrs. Walker over at First Grade Pandamonium is giving away a wonderful book club packet that can be used in the classroom in many ways. I'm quite sure it can be adapted to fit any teaching needs. She has a super cute blog, so be sure to go over and visit her soon! This giveaway ends on Monday July 25th.

Until Next Time...

Crafty Hugs

xo Lynda xo

Today is Your Day!

I hope that everyone is having a great week! This has been a pretty lazy week for me and I was quite okay with it because it was SOOO HOT this week over here on the East Coast! It is supposed to cool down a little bit next week, which will be very much needed.

I wanted to quickly share a card I made yesterday morning. I woke up and headed straight to my office/craft space because I had an amazingly strong urge to create something. I went in with one idea and by the time this card was done, it was nothing like what I had planned on doing, but definitely much better!! The best part is that it was made completely from paper that was in my scraps bag!!!  I am entering this card in two challenges:

Getting Cricky with K. Andrew- Food For Thought

Fantabulous Cricut- # 69- I Scream for Ice Cream

I LOVE how the colors and cheerfulness of this card came together!

My sundae was cut from the Birthday Bash cartridge and the face was stamped with the Peachy Keen- Happy Lashes Set. I used some stickles on the cherry and sprinkles for some added bling! I also added some glossy accents to the spoon handle for fun! :)

Both of these sentiments are from K.Andrew's Designs- Positive Thoughts stamp set. I love this set!!!

Well that is my card for today! I hope that you have enjoyed it! I have a few more things I would like to make this weekend before I start working on things for my classroom!!! Thanks for stopping by and letting me know what you think of my card!

Until Next Time...

 

Crafty Hugs

xo Lynda xo

Tacky Tuesday, Peachy Keen Let's Face it Friday & Birthday Sundaes Challenges

Just stopping in to share the card that I made for three challenges! I am entering this card in the Tacky Tuesday July challenge – Cool Treat with the word Sweet hosted by Ruthie of September Ninth. I am also entering it in the Birthday Sundaes Challenge #17- Summery Colors- Use orange, green and white and in Peachy Keen Stamps- Let's Face It Friday-- Plentiful Patterns Challenge

Here is what I came up with!

The ice cream cone is from Smiley Cards. I welded an extra scoop on using my Gypsy so that it could be a double scoop cone! The "sweet thoughts" sentiment is from My Creative Time's Just a Note set

Face is stamped from PKS- Happy Lashes. Sentiment is from My Pink Stamper- Friends and Family set. I did the embossing on the cone with the Pop Culture Borders folder

Thanks for stopping by! I absoulutely love reading all of your comments! They have been keeping me going this week!

Until Next Time..

Crafty Hugs

~Lynda J

Smile

This card is my entry for the Pumpkin Spice Design Team Call. Pumpkin Spice is a great company that offers so many of the crafting supplies that we use for a VERY reasonable price. I have personally ordered from them and I was so pleased with the customer service and promptness of getting orders shipped out. I happened to order something that was a pre-order and there was constant communication keeping me aware of the status of my order. I just loved it! I would definitely recommend this store to EVERYONE!

For this Design Team Call we were asked to make a card, scrapbook page, or other project using two or more of the following paper lines: Echo Park, Cosmo Cricket, My Mind’s Eye, Bo Bunny, Graphic 45, or Crate Paper.

I chose to use paper from Bo Bunny and My Mind’s Eye. This was my first time using either one of these paper lines and I absolutely loved the choices and what I was able to create! I usually tend to work with Die Cuts with a View paper stacks (which are my favorites J )but I will definitely be adding these two paper lines to my collection J .

So here is my entry:

 

Here are all the papers I was using. The beautiful flower paper is from Bo Bunny and the other patterned paper is from My Mind's Eye

 Here is the finished card. Isn't it beautiful! I added some glossy accents to the mirror to give it a more realistic effect.

I chose this sentiment from K. Andrew's Positive Thoughts Set because I think that all girls and women should remember that we are queens and that no matter what we should always smile. We should also never be afraid to fail because that is a part of living.

 I cut the beautiful lady and mirror from the Forever Young cartridge. I added some Martha Stewart glitter to her dress for some added bling.

I also used my i-rock (LOVE this tool) to add some bling to her dress, the mirror, and the sentiment

One final look! Remember we should never be afraid to fail and if we do... we should still keep smiling

Recipe:

Bo Bunny Sophie Bouquet

My Mind’s Eye- Everyday Tango Stack

Forever Young Cartridge

The Paper Company- all solid color papers

Sentiment- K. Andrews Designs- Positive Thoughts Set

Martha Stewart Glitter- Bubblegum

Glossy Accents, i-rock, ATG, Offray Ribbon, Momenta Ink- Rich Cocoa

Thanks for stopping by!

Until Next Time…

Crafty Hugs

~Lynda J

Sunny Thoughts for You!

I am really enjoying all the time that I have had to craft this week! It has really been a great way for me to clear my mind of all thoughts!  I was so happy this afternoon when I went to my mailbox because my order from K. Andrews from Getting Cricky was in there!!!!! YAY!!! I just love her blog and I’ve wanted to get her stamps since they first came out. I finally was able to get my hands on a couple of sets and hopefully the others in the future.

Since I just HAD to make SOMETHING with the stamps today, I decided to make a card that I will be entering into 3 challenges.
Wacky Wednesday #44- Fun in the Sun 

Peachy Keen Stamps Sketch Challenge #56

Cooking with Cricut: Challenge #42- Pen or Marker Work or Sun ( I went with the sun because I don’t have pens or markers for my Cricut yet)

I just LOVE working with bright colors! They tend to brighten up my thoughts as well

Sentiment is from K.Andrews Designs Splash-tastic Summer set.

Sun is cut from Create a Critter. I stamped that cute little face on the sun from PKS- Wide Eye Kids set. Flower is from DCWV Animal Crackers sticker embellishments

Background layer is embossed with Cuttlebug- Tiny Bubbles folder

So glad that you stopped by yet again to see my creations! I love reading your comments. They continue to inspire and motivate me to craft!

Until Next Time….

Crafty Hugs

"  Lynda "

Happy Birthday the Mickey Way!

I hope that everyone has had a wonderful Wednesday! I’ve been busy crafting again today and it has been so helpful in helping to keep my mind off of other things that have been wearing me down.

I was inspired to create this card because of two different challenges. The first of which is the Birthday Card challenge over at Crafty Chics blog. She and her family have created a wonderful site, My Cut Search, which is EXTREMELY helpful in finding images by simply typing in a keyword without having to pull out all of our handbooks. I was able to use the site to find the perfect image to create a pair of high heels, since she likes Mickey and shoes! J

Isn't it just beautiful! I tried to stick with the colors of Mickey throughout the card.

Shoes were cut from Forever Young. Mickey paper is from some goodies I won during one of the Disney Blog Hops!

Sentiment is from My Creative Time- Just a Note to Say set and the fun border is from the Fiskars Girls Night Out set. This was heat embossed (something that I'm just learning how to do)

 .

I embossed the yellow paper with the Cuttlebug Spots and Dots folder, I of course had to add some beautiful bling (a jeweled brad) to these gorgeous shoes for the perfect touch!

Inside of the card.

I am also entering this card over at Amber’s Crafts & Stuff- Challenge #18- Embossing.

I hope that you have enjoyed what you’ve seen today. Check back shortly for my card I made using my new stamps from K. Andrews!!!

Until Next Time…

Crafty Hugs

J Lynda J

Simply Sunday Fashionista Challenge

Hello again! 2 posts in one day! I told you I was on a roll! LOL

I wanted to share with you the card I created for the Simply Sunday Fashionista Challenge over at Getting Cricky with K. Andrew. I absolutely LOVE visiting her blog on a daily basis. She is is such an inspirational person and so giving and kind. I could go on and on. She is absolutely amazing and I just love all that she does.

So the challenge is to create a fashionably fun project! I must say that I had a lot of fun making this card and I am so happy with how it turned out. I think it's one of my new favorites of all time. I am actually going to be giving it to one of my sorority sisters who has a birthday coming up, which is why I chose the colors that I chose for the card.

This is the finished project

I used the Forever Young cartridge for both the model and the frame that she is in.

The sentiment is from the Fiskars Girls Night Out set.

I added some Martha Stewart Pearls underneath the sentiment and also on the belt portion of the dress

Here is a close up! The patterned paper is from the DCWV All Dressed Up stack. I also added some stickles  to the ribbon/belt on the dress

A different view

And of course I had to share the inside of the card! :0

I really LOVE the way that this card turned out! I'm so happy to finally have had the chance to enter one of Getting Cricky's challenges! I've been wanting to for a LONG time and just haven't had the time to. I'm also patiently waiting on my K.Andrews stamps to arrive so I can get to play with them! A portion of the sales of each one of her stamp sets purchased goes towards a charitable cause which I absolutely love! I told you she does absolutely amazing things. If you haven't already been to her blog, be sure to stop by and check out her awesomeness! Thanks for stopping by today!

I am also entering this card in The Paper Variety's Photo Inspiration Challenge

Until Next Time...

Crafty Hugs

~ Lynda

Cricut 360 Challenge #2

Good Morning Crafty Friends of Mine!

I think I've finally got my crafting mojo back and I've been on a roll! It feels good to be out of that rut, because it was taking a toll on my happiness. Nonetheless, I wanted to share a card that I made to enter the Cricut 360 Challenge this week.  I missed thier first challenge, but I didn't want to miss out on this 2nd challenge. The challenge this week was to make a Thank You card but it had to be a circle. Well here is what I came up with. Let me know what you think!

Base of the card and the scallop were both cut from Birthday Bash

Sentiment is from The Pink Stamper's Everyday Life Set.

Butterfly is a wood block stamp that I picked up from Michael's many moons ago

I think it's a little more simple than I'm use to making but I had to make sure it had some bling,  I am very happy with how it turned out.
Well that's all I have for now. Check back later today to see what I made for the Simply Sunday Challenge over at Getting Cricky with K. Andrews!

Until Next Time...

Crafty Hugs

xo Lynda ox

More End of the School Year Goodies

Every year at the end of the year as a token of my appreciation for all of thier time and energy, I like to give my parent volunteers and room mothers a small gift. My wonderful friend and co-worker Wendy over at Cricut your Classroom, gave me a fabulous, inexpensive (because we ALL know teachers do not get the pay that we deserve, but that's a whole other story. I should also add that I did not become a teacher for the pay ( I don't think any of us do), but for the rewards and feelings that I receive from making a difference in a child's life) gift idea for my volunteers. I was very happy with how everything turned out and it was great to have my students very involved and take a part in creating the gift.

The first part of their gift was a glass jar. Inside each of the jars, was a slip of paper from each child, telling the parent thank you for all that they did this school year. We did a different color for each parent. The students also signed each jar using paint pens, so that the parents would have an extra way of remembering them!

This is one of the GIANT Hershey bars that I covered for one of my volunteers who came in every week to help with my math enrichment group.

Stamped sentiments are from Peachy Keen Stamps Teacher Says and My Creative Time's My Favorite Sayings Set.

This one was for my other parent, who I also call Mama! She came in twice a week to help with computer lab time and to read with students.

I made 4 of the smaller Hershey Bars, that look like this for my teammates in 1st grade! I love how cute they turned out. For my other two parent volunteers I wrapped bars like this in a very bright/summery patterned paper (I forgot to take a picture of the bar before I gave it to them...oops). They also looked really pretty!

In addition to these items, I gave my volunteers one of the thank you cards, that I made for my Blast Off to Summer Blog hop, back in May, with a special Thank You note to each one of them. I know that it wasn't a lot, but it was something that was thoughtful and from the heart of not only myself but the students as well.

That's everything that I was busy making during the last week of school. I hope that you have enjoyed seeing everything! I plan on getting some crafting done this weekend and to hopefully start in the next week or so making things for my classroom. I'm not sure how much I will get done, since I will soon be packing and moving into my new house, which is almost done! I'm sooooo excited!

Well Until Next Time...

Crafty Hugs

xo Lynda xo

The End of the Year was all a whurr....

I don't know if any other teachers were feeling like I felt at the end of the year, but I definitely felt that the end of this school year, was A LOT more hectic and chaotic than my first two years. I think part of the chaos for me was that I found out less than a week before school let out, that I was going to be moving to a new room. So for me that added another level of stress. So of course I had to turn to crafting to try to ease some of my worries. 

This year there were a few of my co-workers who are going to be a mommy for either the first time or the 2nd time and so for a week straight we had baby shower after baby shower, one of which I co-hosted for my awesome teammate! Nonetheless this called for some card making! I enjoyed making these cards, because it was the first time that I've really made baby shower cards and I was able to make each one different and special.

First up is the card I made for my teammate. She is having a baby girl right around the time we head back to school so we wanted to have her shower before then, just in case she made her arrival before then!

I just love the baby blocks from New Arrival. The rattle and toy are from Baby Steps.

All of the stamps used  on the inside are from My Pink Stamper's Sweet Baby set

Next up is the card I made for the teacher who was right next door to me. She actually gave birth to a healthy baby boy this past weekend! She is such a sweet person and I had a lot of fun making her card as well.

Rattle is cut from Baby Steps

Sentiments and footprints are from Sweet Baby by My Pink Stamper

This is the envelope for the card. These cute little jungle friends are from a set I picked up at Michaels

And last but not least is a card I made for my co-worker who does not yet know what she is having, but she did mention that she was doing a duck theme, so I took that idea and ran with it!

I used Baby Steps for the adorable duck pin and the sentiment is from Sweet Baby. I also added some stickles to his wing and beak!

I used My Creative Time's Just a Note to Say set to stamp the larger sentiment.

So there you have it! All of the baby cards I was making in those last few days of the school year. Come back by a little later today to see the gifts that I made for my parent volunteers and my teammates! They were all super sweet goodies! Thanks for stopping by and as always I LOVE to read your comments! They fuel my desire and motivation to create!

Until Next Time...

Crafty Hugs

J Lynda J