I did it again...I got Gruesome Twosome!!!

I am seriously getting into the Halloween mind of thinking and putting this "Appalling Apothecary" together for Haunted Design House Macabre Monday Challenge was just too much fun!!!  I have to start decorating for Halloween this weekend!!!  Thank you again to Haunted Design House for giving me the inspiration for the creation and the honor of being a Gruesome Twosome!

HDH107 Appalling Apothecary

I actually put this together TODAY!!!  I've been thinking about it all week.  Believe it or not but I had everything you see here at my house!!!  I am such a HUGE fan of Halloween and ALL things Halloween so something like this I knew I could create without any trouble...the hardest part was trying to keep my 22 month old away from it long enough to take pictures!  I have so many goodies here.

Starting with the top I have my Witches Brew...I think the sculls give it flavor! 

The first shelf I have (from left to right) a jar of severed fingers, witches foundation, a jar of baby monkey brains, and some flesh of a zombie.

The second shelf I have some green ghost goo and a jar of ogre eyes. 

The next shelf I have a jar of unearthed earth worms (and it looks like some are escaping), green goblin parfume and some shrunken sculls from Scandinavia.

The following shelf I have the tiny hands of munchkins and the heart of a (former) sinful boyfriend.

Lastly, on the bottom I have the set of werewolf paws that were collected from the werewolf of London!!! 

I know quite a collection of goodies.  I hope you enjoy them...I sure do! 
This is being entered in the HDH 107 Appalling Apothecary at Haunted Design House

Link Up Love Party with K Andrew 9/20-9/27

I am entering a project I post previously for a challenge, it is actually one of my favorite creations so far for the Fall/Halloween season.  This is my 1st Link Up and I hope I do it right.  I understand the Link Up the Love Party is a great way to meet new bloggers and find inspiration from amazing projects! How Fun- I'm doing it why not come share your blog Getting Cricky too!

Here's my project, it's an altered frame and the picture inside is my Mom dressed as "The Bride of Frankenstein"

Link Up Party runs from Tuesday 9/20 to Tuesday 9/27. Winners announced 10/3

• Grab the Getting Cricky blinky and post on your blog's sidebar
• Be a follower of Getting Cricky
• Create a new blog post that is titled Link Up Love Party with K Andrew. In your post, you must mention that the link up love party is a way to get to know each other and find new blog inspiration, mention my blog, with a link back to Getting Cricky
• Post your favorite project that you've done in your blog for HALLOWEEN
• Copy and paste the link up code into your blog post so the Inlinkz will show up on your blog
• Spread the word so everyone can join in!
• You must visit, follow, and comment on the 5 people before you AND the 5 people after you in the Inlinkz. It would be fantastic if you would visit as many as you can--maybe everyone? If you are one of the first 5 then you will need to blog the ones before you and a few more after--as long as it's a minimum of 10 near you in the link up
• If you do not do the above your link will be deleted, because it's just not fair to those who work so hard linking up and showing love to the ones on the list. I have two moderators who will be checking this out to keep it awesome and fun!

Things That Go Bump in the Night

I just had to create this card when I saw what the challenge was over at Cardz TV for challenge #91.  I already knew in my mind it had to be zombie related because I love zombies and they scare the heck out of me.  The other part of this card was very important to me because I wanted the hand to come out of the ground.  Then I remembered I saw back in one of my magazines a gift bag someone had made that did exactly what I wanted my hand to do.  This is my attempt at what that person created.

I used these items to create this card:

• Design Studio 
• Life's a Party Cricut cartridge for the tombstome
• Happy Hauntings Cricut cartridge for the ghost, the hand, the name "Willy Rot"
• Paper Doll Dress Up Cricut cartridge for the dirty mound
• stickles
• brad
• Color Box ink
• stencil brush
• white gel pen
• pop-dots
• black pen
• foam squares
• misc. Halloween stamps
• straw
• floss

I am also entering this card in Paper Cutz Challenge #109 titled "Caution - Ghost Crossing!"  The requirements were to make a card, LO or craft project for Halloween using a Cricut cut, hand stamped or digital stamped ghosts, and the colors black, white, purple and orange ONLY!

I am also going to enter it in Lia Stamp Challenge #3 - move around which required the project to have a moving element and hopefully I achieved that here!!!  When you pull up on the ghost the hand rises from the grave...creeeeepy!!!
I am also entering this card in Getting Cricky - Simply Sunday Challenge which is anything Halloween!

I'm so excited this project was so much fun and it turned exactly the way I planned it...I hope you like it as much as I do!

****This was an article in Paper Crafts October 2008 and is where I got my inspiration from...I hope this is helpful to those of you who want to try this project.  I made my own alterations to achieve my card but by no means is it perfect.**** 

***If you click on the image you should be able to zoom in if your having trouble reading the article***

It's an Elmo Party

I'm trying to get a jump start on decorations for my daughter's 2nd birthday party in November...she's having an Elmo party.  My daughter loves Elmo and when I saw the Cricut cartridge Elmo's Party and Cricut cartridge Sesame Street Friends I just knew I had to have them and create her party decorations and ,of course, the invitations.  I am also entering this in Decorate to Celebrate Challenge #8 - Anything Goes Any Theme. 

I used these items to create the centerpiece:

• fish bowl I had in my garage
• shredded paper from the $1.00 Store as filler
• red ribbon
• skewers
• Cricut cartridge Elmo's Party for the Elmo face, 2, and Jaidyn
• Cricut cartridge Sesame Street Friends for the Elmo characters
• Cricut cartridge Birthday Cakes for the Happy Birthday
• stickles
• white gel pen

I am still working on many other items for my daughter's 2nd birthday in November...this is just the beginning! 

Thanks for looking!

Grandparent's Day Cards my 9 year old made

Yes you read that right...my 9 year old daughter made these cards for her MomMoms for Grandparent's Day. When I got my Expression I gave my Baby Bug to my oldest daughter and she loves to create on it. She designed both of these cards, my only contribution was the ribbon, everything else was all her!  We are entering these cards in the Crazy about Cricut Thankful Thursday Grandparent Challenge

My daughter used these items to create her cards:

• Cricut cartridge Paper Doll Dress Up
• Cricut cartridge Life is a Beach
• Cuttlebug
• D'vine Swirls embossing folder
• stamp
• white gel pen
• ribbon
• Martha Stewart corner punch
• Leaf die cuts
• stickles
• foil leaves
• sea shell

I'm so proud of my daughter, she is always so thoughtful and these cards turned out beautiful!

Halloween countdown at FlashBannerNow.com

Throwback Thursday "Cricutless Challenge"

I finally decided on how I was going to attempt this "Cricutless Challenge" for Throwback Thursday at My Creative Time and this is what I came up with.  I'm so happy that this type of challenge was given, it made me (and I'm sure for others too) to re-explore life without Cricut.  The requirements for this challenge was to *** Create a CARD using the colors PURPLE, ORANGE, GREEN & BLACK and obviously not use your cricuts, imagines, e2's or your gypsy! *** But you could use punches &/or cuttlebug!  I knew right away I was going to use my cuttlebug, probably some stickers, ribbon and maybe a button or two. 

I am also entering this in the Getting Cricky Simply Sunday Halloween challenge

This is what I used to create this "Cricutless" card:

• Black, orange, purple, and green cardstock
• Cuttlebug
• D'vine Swirls embossing folder
• Stickles and Studio G glitter glue
• My Moments peel-n-stick ribbon
• Silk flower
• Crystal sticker (pumpkin in center of flower)
• (inside) Martha Stewart corner punch
• (inside) stamps

Thanks for looking and I think I may have to come up with some more projects without my Cricut, this was fun!!!

Welcome 2 the Zoo layout

Finally a layout for my newest addition...Jaidyn my soon to be 22 month old daughter.  I was inspired to create this layout for 2 challenges, I missed one but I'm hoping to squeak this one in for Paper Cutz Challenge 107.   The requirements for this challenge was to create a card, layout, or papercraft using at least 2 Cricut cuts or stamped images of zoo animals.  Plus, add some dimension or bling and use any colors or occassion you'd like.  I think I did all that!!!

The picture was taken March 14, 2010 and my youngest daughter Jaidyn (in the stroller) was almost 4 months old and it was her 1st trip to the Phoenix Zoo.  This was the 1st trip of many others to follow and still to come.  In 2010 the Phoenix Zoo had a new exhibit and it was the Komodo Dragon.  We have been members of Phoenix Zoo since that year and will continue to because my oldest daughter loves animals and we love this time together as a family.  I knew I would eventually scrap this photo so at the end of the day I purposely bought the 5 x 7 photo and today here it is!!!

I used these items to create this layout:

• Design Studio - to determine and cut the size of all the animals,the title and welded the word "the"
• LePlume II markers and stamp pad ink - for shading and outlining
• white gel pen - dots on the title and journaling
• google eyes
• Recollections Animal Kingdom pattern paper - for the title and background paper
• Misc. cardstock
• Foam squares - to pop-up all the animals and part of the title

I used these Cricut cartridges:

• Animal Kingdom - for all the animals and most of the title
• Birthday Cakes - for the 2 and the "the"

Here are some additional photos:

Thanks for looking...I really enjoyed making this layout, the 1st of many to be added to my daughter's scrapbook!

I GOT GRUESOME TWOSOME...AGAIN!!!

I can't believe it...I was choosen as a Gruesome Twosome again!  I was given this great honor because of the Here Lies the Bride altered frame 

I created for Haunted Design House.  I think I may have found my niche, or maybe just unleashed the hidden beast within!  Whatever it is I don't care I am so happy just to get recognition, plus I have so much fun doing it!  Thank you Haunted Design House for the giving me the inspiration to unleash the beast!!!

Here Lies the Bride - HDH104-I Was Framed

It's been a while since I created an altered frame but I was inspired by the lastest Macabre Monday Challenge - HDH104 I Was Framed  over at Haunted Design House.  The challenge was to create a dark, Gothic, or Halloween-based art piece that uses or includes a frame somewhere in the creation.  Well, I decided to do an altered frame.  During Halloween time I display past pictures of my family all dressed up in their costumes and I hadn't done one yet for this picture so this was the perfect time for me to do it.  The picture is of my Mom dressed as Frankenstein's Bride.  This picture was taken during a Halloween party my brother threw in 2004. 

I created the altered frame using these items:

•  $1.00 wooden frame from Michael's
• 2 different colors of gray cardstock
• craft paint
• Halloween moss
• plastic spiders

I used these Cricut cartridges:

• Life's a Party for the gravestone
• Beyond Birthdays for the opening of the frame
• Plantin SchoolBook for the lettering
• Storybook for the swirls on the gravestone

I created the gravestone cuts in the Design Studio.  I cut the letters at 1/2 and the swirls at 3/4.   I adhered everything onto the frame and then applied the paint.  Lastly, I used a hot glue gun to attach the moss and spiders.

Of course another fun and exciting project, and I can't wait for more!!!

Wicked Best Witches - Happy Halloween card

Happy September 1st!!!  Another day closer to getting cooler.  It has been HELL on earth here in the desert and I will be so glad to get into Fall.  I did a little something different with this card...I used some stickers.  I can't even tell you the last time I used stickers for a project.  I came across these particular Halloween stickers in my stash and thought they'd be perfect to add that little extra something and that is exactly what they did.

I am entering this card in multiple challenges this week:
Bitten By the Bug2 required you to make a new project using your Cricut and a stamp with a fall theme
Fantabulous Cricut Challenge Me Monday 75 required you to add the colour yellow to your Cricut project
Wacky Wednesday 49 - Halloween at More than Favors - required your project to be Halloween theme
Cricut Cardz Challenge 90 required you to make a card using the card feature from any cartridge, use any colors and for any occassion
Paper Cutz Challenge 106 required you to make a card, layout or project using stars for any occassion and colors

I created this card in the Design Studio. 

I used these Cricut cartridges:
Celebrations for the card base and inside of the card
Happy Hauntings for the witch (which I welded into the circle opening of the card) and the grave stone scene
Paper Doll Dress Up for the tree

I used the Cuttlebug to emboss the tree just to give it some texture.  I also inked the edges and some of the front of the tree.

I inked the grave stones with white, black and some green to give them a more realistic feel.

I added the stickers and stamped Happy Halloween on the front

On the inside I used a stamp from Bug Bites and some more stickers

I had so much fun creating this card and I think I might just be using some more stickers in the future!