Sweetie Pie

Today the Guild Hall was awash with the glorious smells of baking pies. The house gnomes were busy cooking up apples, cherries and other foods that they’ve been harvesting and turning them into delicious desserts. With so many sweets being created, we were lucky enough to have a sugar bear appear in the kitchen! These winged creatures tend to come round when there are treats being made and assist with the sugary process.

This card was created for the reminder about the Just Some Lines September Challenge that is happening now! The theme this month is Autumn/Fall or Back to School. Come play along with a JSL image for a chance to win a digi! Yipee!

I started by colouring the Sugar Bear image using my good ‘ol Prismacolor pencils. I then used my new Tim Holtz embossing diffuser to emboss all around the image earning me +70 diffusion exp points. 

I decided to add some sparkles to the little bear’s wings, cuz who can’t use more bling? The pie I cut out using the Country Life cartridge. I then stamped the sentiment on the rolling pin using the Lawn Fawn “My Silly Valentine” set. 

On the inside I stamped various sentiments using some Unity stamps and a MFP stamp. The smiley pie is from the Lawn Fawn “My Silly Valentine” set.

I used the cute little pie again to decorate the envelope, giving it a decisively more pie-like feel to it.   

This sugar bear will sweeten up the following challenges:

Die Cuttin’ Divas Challenge #134: Fall Colors

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge: Anything Goes

Loves Rubberstamps Challenge #71: Show Us Your Fall Colors

Cardz TV Challenge #36: Colors of Fall

Craftitude Challenge #49: Anything Goes/Harvest

Dream Valley Challenge #66: Autumn

Friends of SpeedyTV Challenge #91: Animals

2 Sisters Challenge #163: Anything Goes

Little Scrap Pieces Fun Friday Linky Party

The Octopode Factory Friday Challenge: Wings

Simply Create Too Challenge #47: Fall/Autumn

Love to Create Challenge #84: Color Inspired

Upon spotting the sugar bear, the Lady Commander of Copics predictably squealed with delight and immediately asked if we could keep him. I tried to explain to her that the sweet fae bear would depart on his own accord when the desserts were complete, but she was already concocting plans to try and convince him to stay. It would be nice to have him around constantly baking for us...although then I’d need new tunics...larger tunics as I would surely not fit into my current ones any longer after ingesting so many sweets. Mmmm...pie...

~ Guild Master Crystal ~

Follow the Herd

Good day and welcome to the Guild Hall. Don’t mind the straw strewn about. We just returned from a quest over at Natsume Farm. The proprietor had sent a raven to the Crafters Guild earlier today, imploring us to assist him, as someone had stolen all his animals! We donned our armour, grabbed our weapons and rode west to the large farm. The young farmer was in quite a state when we arrived, clearly concerned for not only his animals' safety, but for the loss of revenue that their absence was causing. I lead my direwolf Lycan into the barn so he could collect their scent and then released him. After sniffing the ground for a bit, he took off, following the scent of the stolen animals.   

This was created for the Creative Card Crew’s “Down on the Farm” challenge that is happening now! Create a farm themed project and you could win a $15 gift voucher to Scrapping Center!

 

I made this card for a lady I work with. She lives on a farm with numerous animals (including a buffalo), so decided to make her a farm themed card. I started by cutting the horse and cow out using the Create-a-Critter cartridge and the buffalo using the Birthday Bash cartridge. You may think I stamped a “50” on his skate because the card recipient is turning 50...well....you would be wrong {lol}. I stamped the “50” because her actual buffalo is named “50 Bucks” as that is how much she paid for him ($50). Oh...and she noticed the 50 right away and loooooved that little touch :) Anyways...I digress...the farm house/barn I cut out using the Country Life cartridge and embossed it with my Cuttlebug before gluing it together, earning myself +202 texturization exp points and leveling up! I adhered the animals and the house using different thicknesses of pop dots to create dimension. I then stamped the sentiment using the My Pink Stamper “Birthday Crazy” set. Some ribbon and a sunflower button I’ve had in my stash foreeeeever finished off the front.

On the inside I stamped the sentiment using the Lawn Fawn “On the Mend” and “Harold’s ABCs” sets. I then decorated the edges using the Dylusions “Further Around the Edge” set. I wanted to leave enough white space for everyone to sign.

Which they did!

I used the same Dylusions border stamp around the edge of the envelope to make everything match wonderfully.

This herd will stampede into the following challenges:

Challenges 4 Everybody #27: Anything Goes

The Perfect Sentiment Challenge #87: The Great Outdoors

Penny’s Challenge #140: Lace and/or Ribbon

Cute Card Thursday Challenge #282: Button Up

Jo’s Scrap Shack FFC#13: Anything Goes

Speedy Fox and Friends Challenge #173: “House”

A Gem of a Challenge #93: Punch it Out

There She Goes Challenge #221: Fur Friends

Craft Your Passion Challenge #176: Summer Flowers

Try It on Tuesday “Let’s Create a Scene”

Cardz TV Challenge #2: Pop It Up or Make it Wiggle

One Crazy Stamper August Birthday Challenge

We eventually came across the animals in a small apple grove. There didn’t appear to be anyone else around, but they had clearly been taken as they were all tethered to trees. Whilst the Lady Commander of Copics watched our backs, the Guardian of Glitter and I untied the animals and led them back to Natsume farm. It was suspicious that there was no one about and I told the young farmer to perhaps get a guard dog, or someone to stand watch over his flock by night, should the thief return to finish the job. The whole thing seemed kind of "off" to me and I had a feeling this wasn't the end of it...

~ Guild Master Crystal ~

A Sudsy Load

Good day dusty traveller. Since moving into the Guild Hall, I have always disliked the laundering chambers. Mostly due to the complete lack of decoration. There are no pictures and no window coverings to speak of. It literally echoes in the chamber. For the past fortnight I have been spending my nights by candlelight in the crafting chambers working away to rectify that problem.

click for +55 enlargement exp points

I bought this collage frame super cheap from Wal-Mart specifically to make something for my barren laundry room. Here is the finished project complete with mini clothes pins, buttons and pearls all glued on. Let’s go through it a panel at a time though...

Every stamp on this panel was an ink virgin until this project. The shirts are from the Unity “The Man” set. I paper pieced the ties onto a different colour cardstock then stamped them with some flowers from the Unity “With Sympathy” set. The tag is also a Unity stamp, but I don’t know what it’s called as it was included free in an order with no packaging. The sentiment is from the Unity “Loads of Love” set. 

Next panel. Ummm...yikes...probably should've cleaned the dust off this frame before taking pics. Oopsies. *ahem*...moving on... I cut some of my beloved My Little Shoebox paper for the background. *sob* The clothesline I diecut using the Country Life cartridge. The little birds and gnome are all from the Lawn Fawn “Gnome Sweet Gnome” set. I stamped them onto watercolour paper and using Distress Markers and my Hydra Brush of +77 wetness coloured them in.

This next one is a panel from a piece of Cosmo Cricket paper...I believe the collection was called Clementine. Well, the 12x12 sheet had six different panels on it and I used three for this project. I added the buttons from the Unity “Sew Cute” set by stamping them onto coloured cardstock and simply cutting them out.

This image was also cut from the Country Life cartridge. I embossed and inked the bubbles and the tub before gluing it all together. The little decorative corners I cut using the Art Philosophy cartridge.

I was super pumped to use my ink virgin “Simply Anya” from The Greeting Farm and the laundry basket (also previous uninked) from the Unity “Loads of Love” set and this panel actually ended up being my least favourite. "Simply Anya" I stamped onto watercolour paper and used Distress Markers and my waterbrush weapon to colour her in. This panel earned me +44 sadness exp points because I was disappointed with the end result.

The background of this was another panel from that Cosmo Cricket paper. The underwear and sentiment came from the Unity “Change is a Good Thing” set. I had fun going through my scraps and finding different patterns to stamp the underwear on. Teehee.

The only panel that has nothing to do with laundry. I decided to make one with our last name. I diecut the letters using the Rock Princess cartridge. The background paper I stamped with a bunch of different Unity stamps. The bird I don’t know what it’s called as it was another packageless freebie (and also an ink virgin). The feather, uninked until now, is from the Unity “Tail Feather” set. The vintage looking gal in the corner who got her ink cherry popped on this project, is from the Unity “Gossip, Hot Flashes & Crazy” set. Oh...I lied...they’re not all Unity stamps...in the top right corner I stamped something from the Tim Holtz “Reflections” set. I diecut the flower and whooshes from the Art Philosophy cartridge, stamping the green parts with that same “Reflections” stamp. That was a LOT of different stamps for one panel - sheesh. I did manage to collection +824 inky exp points for using so many uninked stamps!

Okay last one. Err...this is simply one of the panels from the Cosmo Cricket paper. I literally did nothing else to it other than glue it onto some background paper so it would fit the 4x6 slot.

And here it is hanging in my laundry room! YAY!

This collage will wash up in the following challenges:

Little Scrap Pieces: Fun Friday Linky Party

Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge: Make the Cut

Jo’s Scrap Shack FFC #13: Anything Goes

Top Tip Tuesday Challenge #107: Embossing

Cuttlebug Mania: Anything Goes Embossing

Crafty Sentiments Designs: Dies and Punches

Cute Card Thursday Challenge #282: Button Up

Card Crafter’s Circle Challenge #88: Winged Things

TGF Farm Fresh Friday: Anything Goes

Use It Tuesday Challenge #61: Un-Inked Stamps!

Unity Friends With Flair

After hanging my new creation on the wall a door suddenly materialized behind it! It seems I had triggered some sort of spell by hanging a piece of art in the exact spot the invisible hidden door existed. With great trepidation and a little excitement I stepped through the door into the blackness beyond...

~ Guild Master Crystal ~

Ancient Secret Recipes

We had got another lead on the schema we were searching for that would allow us to make the legendary adhesive, so the Lady Commander of Copics and I set out to the Shabby Shutter Isle, hoping for better luck than last time. Everything on the island was varying shades of green, making it difficult to navigate and easy to lose our way. Angela began marking trees we passed, using her accessory R26, to help prevent us from getting turned around too much. We finally came to the location we sought and began to dig under the Great Green Oak Tree as instructed. I’ll admit that I was somewhat surprised by what we found. Not only did it include the schema we so desired, but multiple other diagrams, directions and recipes for making various accessories, tonics and potions. 

I made this recipe book as a gift for my lady mother and lord husband’s mother (that’s right, I did two of these suckers) to share my favourite recipes. I made all the pages, embossing the edges of each one, then used a piece of ancient designer paper to bind it all using my YourStory. The letters on the front of the book were cut using the Storybook cartridge. Okay...there’s a lot of pages, so we’ll go fast (I took pics of them before they were bound). You can click on any of the pics should you like a closer look.

The sliced apple was cut using Country Life.

Apples were cut using Give a Hoot.

Muffins were from Create-a-Critter.

The milk and eggs were cut using Country Life.

Cute smiling bananas from Create-a-Critter.

Blender cut from Nifty Fifties.

Cute panda came from Create-a-Critter.

The carrot and cheese were from Create-a-Critter and the snail is from Paisley.

Veggies were cut from Country Life.

Chicken also came from Country Life.

The corn is from Country  Life while the mushroom is from Create-a-Critter.

The KAWAII noodle bowl is from Create-a-Critter.

Lemon and can are from Simply Charmed.

Another chicken from Country Life.

Apron is from Country Life. The utensils are from Disney: Dreams Come True.

Cute mouse is from Create-a-Critter. I honestly don't remember which cartridge the flowers came from.

The ship and fish are both from Pack Your Bags.

Cute cow is from Create-a-Critter.

Cheese block is also from Create-a-Critter.

Mushrooms are all from Paisley.

It's very puffy!

Okay I know that was a lot of pages. Phew. This recipe book will cook up a storm in the following challenges:
Fantabulous Cricut Challenge #149: Kiss the Cook
Friends of SpeedyTV Challenge #60: Recipe Card (well there’s a few here - lol)
Shopping Our Stash Challenge #90: Use your oldest designer paper
Penny’s Paper-Crafty Challenge #115: Anything Goes
Spark your Creativity Now! Challenge #6: Anything Goes
Crafting for All Seasons Challenge #46: Dies and Punches

We carefully removed the tome from the ground, in awe of our find. We would be able to craft some powerful accessories and potent tonics with the knowledge contained inside. The Lady Commander and I left Shabby Shutter Isle to return to the Guild Hall, eager to begin creating. Quest complete!

~ Guild Master Crystal ~

The Petal Peddler

Today we received an unexpected piece of post at the Guild Hall. It appeared our lady mother was coming for an unexpected visit. We normally liked to have the Guild Hall decorated with flowers and such whenever she graces us with a visit, but being that we were in the middle of winter, it would be rather hard to find any blooms or foliage outside. As such, the Lady Commander of Copics and I set out to the village to visit Violet’s Greenhouse and pick up some blossoms to brighten up the Guild Hall for our lady mothers eminent arrival.

I made this card by cutting out the pot and flowers using the Country Life cartridge. I embossed the flower heads with my good ‘ol swiss dots folder and Cuttlebug then added some gems to the middle of them. I tied a scrap of raffia around the pot for some visual interest. The word “mom” was also cut from Country Life. The only thing that sucks is that cartridge doesn’t have shadows for the fonts, so it’s not as “contrasty” as I would prefer.

Next I made a matching bookmark to go with the card. I cut the pot and flowers using papers to match the card exactly. I then laminated it with my YourStory. I always laminate my bookmarks to protect them from wear and tear. They don't look as nice after being laminated, but they'd look even less nice if they got ripped or something, so alas, laminating it is. Making these matching items earned me +80 perfect pair exp points. Not sure exactly what those are used for...but I guess I’ll find out when I gain enough to level up.

This pair of crafts will be entered into the following challenges:
A Gem of a Challenge #67: Dies & Punches
My Craft Spot Challenge #87: Flowers
Penny’s Paper-Crafty Challenge #115: Anything Goes
Simply Create Too Challenge #31: Mother’s Day (or for a female)
Fairy Tale Challenge #61: A Set of 2 Parts
Spark Your Creativity Now! Challenge #6: Anything Goes
Challenges 4 Everybody #14: Anything Goes
Crafting for all Seasons Challenge #26: Dies and Punches

I do hope our lady mother enjoys the blooms we selected. My sister and I know next to nothing when it comes to flowers...we just pick whatever smells the least stinky.

~ Guild Master Crystal ~