Two days to go...

...and no, my Christmas cards have not been mailed! I'm thinking I might just send New Years cards this year instead!!

My card stash has grown a little in the past few days though, as I've been playing along with Amy Heller's fabulous '12 Days of Christmas Cards' over on her blog, {Paush Design} . Her fun sketches & super cute examples were totally inspiring...all I wanted to do yesterday was create cards (Note: I didn't want to write & address cards, just create the cards! LOL) I'll just have to save these ones for next year...

I had so much fun playing with a variety of papers & embellishments from my stash.
Thanks for all the inspiration, Miss Amy!
xoBC

Eight days to go...

...and I'm still not done with my Christmas shopping. But I've promised myself I will not fret & vow to stay merry! With the few gifts I have picked up, I've been playing with some fun packaging ideas. I really like how this one turned out...

I used Basic Grey paper & embellishments from the Hip 2B Square November kit and added a bit of vintage glass glitter to the Poinsettia. Easy, yet festive!
xoBC

Who's up for a Challenge?

It's challenge time over at Citrus Tree Studio! Today kicks off the Design Team's December challenges. This month, I have another sketch challenge to share. Here's my sketch...

And here's my layout based on the sketch...

So many things to be merry about this month!
The chipboard garland at the top & the chipboard package under the tree are from my stash, but all the other products used in this layout can be found in the CTS 'Holiday Hoopla' December kit. The tree paper is actually two pieces from the 6x6 paper pad in the kit that I pieced together.

If you play along with my sketch, be sure to leave me a comment with a link to your project. I'd love to see your creations! (Don't forget to also link your holiday projects over at Paper Issues too!!!) And...be sure to go here, to check out the other CTS December challenges & get the details on the fabulous prize that's up for grabs!

I'll be back soon to share some projects I've been working on with the jam-packed-full-of-fun-holiday-goodness Hip 2B Square November kit! If you haven't seen this kit yet, check it out here.

Happy Friday my friends! Have a merry weekend...
xoxBC

A Few December Projects

Hi friends! Just a quick post to share a few things I've been working on for Citrus Tree Studio. These projects were created using the fabulous 'Holiday Hoopla' December kit. I absolutely ADORE this kit & Crate Paper's Snow Day collection...

xoBC

Welcome, December!

Hi friends and...happy first day of December! Can you believe it?!? December 1st! When I flipped the calendar today, I had to take a few moments...with a paper bag. Breathe in. Breathe out. Breathe in. Breathe out....
Seems like I flip the calendar to December & my To Do List doubles in length! LOTS of fun projects to work on. LOTS of fun projects to share. AND a determination to try to slow down a bit and enjoy every minute of this joyful season.

Thanksgiving week brought an early snow & we traveled over the pass to spend the weekend with my In-Laws. It has been a long time since we've had a snowfall before Thanksgiving in Western Washington, so it was a bit exciting! Snow makes everything seem so magical, doesn't it?

(Um, ok...the dirty snow by the side of the road doesn't look so magical. Note to self: Learn how to use Photoshop!)

I've been working with the super fun Citrus Tree Studio 'Holiday Hoopla' December kit...and reveal day is coming up on December 5th! Here are a few sneak peeks of a couple of my projects...

 

 

There's a second December kit called 'Christmas Potpourri' that features The Girls' Paperie 'Tinsel & Twig'. It looks amazing too! Go here to see more sneak peeks from the fabulous Tammy, Melonie & Rita! And don't forget to check back on Friday to see the full reveal of both kits!

Also...go visit the Paper Issues blog and link up your 'Christmas/Hanukkah/Kwanzaa/Festivus/Christmukkah' projects! Lots of inspiration to be had over there...

xoBC

Got Paper Issues?

I certainly do! And I'm so excited to be joining the Creative Team over at Paper Issues!! Go check out this fabulous network of paper artists...and join in on the fun! The current 'Issue' is 'Save Thanksgiving'. You can find all the details on this post. Link up ANY of your Fall/Thanksgiving themed projects there...have you created a 'thank you' card, layout about someone or something you're thankful about or some festive fall decor? Well, go there & get to linkin'! Would love to see your projects.
And in the spirit of Thanksgiving...I am TOTALLY thankful for my blog followers and the creative peeps around the globe - the ones I know personally & the ones I have yet to meet in person! Networks of amazing, talented people. You inspire me everyday with your creativity. I am so grateful for your kind comments, encouragement and the ideas you share. I'm so very, very thankful for YOU!
xoBC
ps...As soon as I finished this post, I ran across this quote...
At times, our own light goes out, and is rekindled by a spark from another person. {Albert Schweitzer}
How true is that?! Love that.

Hip Kit October Projects

When my October Hip Kit and Add On kits arrived from Hip 2B Square, I was amazed at how much product there was. Tons of Fall and Halloween themed goodness! (Be sure to go warm up your coffee now, because there are a load of photos on this post!) Here's what I came up with using the October kits...

This next layout was based on a sketch by our DT Coordinator, Melanie Jarocki. Here's the sketch...

 And here's what I came up with...

For the leaves, I roughly traced a leaf from our yard, cut several out of cardstock from the kit, inked the edges & stitched them to my page for some added texture. These October Afternoon cardstock alphabet stickers are great I've used them on many projects. I do love the Robin's egg blue and orange color combo!

The ribbon kit had this cool black & white striped crepe paper in it. To make the lollipop on this next card, I rolled the crepe paper ribbon into a spiral circle and used Glossy Accents on it. I cut down a BBQ skewer for the stick and voila...

Besides the layouts and cards, I was inspired to create a few other projects with the goodies from the kit. I embellished a bottle and a couple of jars for some Halloween decor...

On the jar to the right, I used one of the Pink Paislee Hocus Pocus rub ons . A neon yellow candle looks perfect burning in the jar...and ironically is a 'Hocus Pocus' candle from PartyLite! The tall jar in the middle is wrapped with the Pink Paislee Hocus Pocus paper & I added a little dark brown glitter to embellish it. The little vintage bottle to the left is embellished with one of the tags from the Graphic 45 Hallo'ween in Wonderland collection, black & white bakers twine and some cute little buttons...

And the last project I created with this kit is a Mad Hatter's paper chain...it looks super cute hanging in one of our bathrooms against the wall that is painted 'Dill Pickle'. The strips & tags come on a couple of 12x12 sheets...you just have to punch them out. I stapled the strips together into a chain & embellished with bits of ribbon, buttons & the tags. Super simple & fun!

 

And that's all, friends! Thanks for stopping in and sticking with me through this photo heavy post. I had a lot to share and hope you've had fun looking! For more inspiration, visit the Hip 2B Square blog here to check out what the other DT members created with the October kit!

xoBC

Meet my Sketch...

Hello my friends! Wanted to share one more layout I created using the Citrus Tree Studio 'Something to Celebrate' kit...

 

Based on my layout, I created this sketch for the CTS November sketch challenge...

Five new challenges kick-off today over at the CTS site. Go check 'em out & play along!

xoBC

I really can't believe...

...that November is already here! AND it's already the 5th day of the month!  Over at Citrus Tree Studio, the 5th of the month is kit reveal day...and I am a lucky girl to be their Guest Designer for November! I've had such fun playing with the 'Something to Celebrate' kit. There is so much goodness in this kit...which means I have TONS of pics to share today! This kit features paper from the Echo Park 'Life is Good' collection.
I created a couple of layouts...

...several cards (I just couldn't stop...there's so much fun product in this kit!)

 

...and a gift bag topper!

This is a really fun & simple way to dress up a plain gift bag. I used a little crepe paper & a Basic Grey brad from my stash, along with the cute Echo Park papers in the kit.

To see more...go here. So much creative inspiration can be found in the CTS Design Team & Member galleries!
Wishing you a happy & creative weekend my friends! TGIF!!
xoBC