Tri-Shutter Card

My very first tri-shutter card. I’ve always wanted to make one so, seeing as it was a special friend’s 50th birthday, I gave it a shot and had a ball making it.

Here’s the recipe:-

Tools/Items:-

Cricut Expression

Cricut Cartridges (see below)

Score Board

Glue (regular & Zig Two-Way for small items)

Patterned Paper

Envelope

Embellishments (see below)

Popdots

Cricut Cartridges used:-
Pink Journey – scalloped ovals & flourish
Lyrical Letters – Happy BDay
Hannah Montana - butterfly
Plantin Schoolbook – tri-shutter card, itself
Home Décor - flower

Various embellishments:-
Regular bead – on small blue flower
Seed beads – on border punch flowers
Flowers – interspersed on the card
Stickles – on small butterflies
Skittles – on light blue flowers
Pearls – on blue & brown flowers
Chipboard – 50; Happy Birthday; Celebrate
Ribbon – around scalloped oval
Rhinestones – on large butterfly

I used the cut file provided by OkieLadybug at:-
http://okieladybugsscrapnmore.blogspot.com/search/label/Tri-Shutter%20card%20PS
(thanks, Okie!) but, if you don’t have a Cricut Expression, you can make it manually by following Bonnie Szwalkiewicz’s instructions at:-
http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/resources/tutorials/trishuttercard/
(thanks, Bonnie!)

I used my Martha Stewart Scoring Board to score the various parts. Worked like a charm! :-)

I put the card together, using various coloured patterned paper, die cuts from the Cricut cartridges and different embellishments, pop-dotting the flower and butterflies. The sentiments are computer-generated. The tiny butterflies are from the Martha Stewart punch, using “Waterfall” Stickles to embellish. I used the Martha Stewart flower border punch, on the right-hand side, adding seed beads to them.

If you can’t see the sentiment clearly, it says:-

50 is just a number - It's where the heart is that counts.
Happy Birthday, my dear friend!

The envelope was a regular A2, covering it with the “negative” of a scalloped oval. Then I added, inbetween, “Happy BDay”. I think it turned out pretty good!! :-)

Now, if you haven’t already made one of these cards, give it a “go”. :-)

Check out this blog candy...

This is just ONE of FIVE different blog candies being offered. Check it out here:- http://inkedinspirations.blogspot.com/2010/07/its-my-birthday.html

My Gypsy's styluses are a-stylin'!

My Baby Girl has some new duds........If you can't see the pic clearly enough, click on it and it should enlarge. You'll notice one has pink bling, whilst the other one has a li'l turtle to keep it company. :-)

This will help prevent me from losing/misplacing those li'l critters. :-)

Wowsers! A blog award!!

OMG, I just received this really cute blog award from Caroline of Caroline’s Craftography.

I’ve never seen this one before. It’s really sweet --- in more ways than one and I feel really honoured to have received it. Thank you soooo much, Caroline. You have to check out her blog. She has the cutest li’l pups! We all know how I love pups! Caroline’s creativity is “off the wall” and she won first place in a contest for one of her gorgeous cards! WTG, Caroline!!!

The rules of this award are:

1. Thank the person who gave this award to you.

2. Copy the award and put it on your blog.

3. List three things which you love about yourself.

- I love that I’m a “good listener”. (so I’ve been told!)
- I love being able to make people laugh.
- I love putting a smile on someone’s face, with something I’ve made for them.
4. Post a picture you love.
5. Tag five people you wish to pass this award to.

Here are my picks:-

Debbie -- http://debseclecticthoughts.blogspot.com/
Staci --- http://lizardnladybug.blogspot.com/
Tereesa --- http://uplate2create.blogspot.com/
Terry --- http://iluvmybugs.blogspot.com/
Theresa ---http://binkyblossoms.blogspot.com/

Here's the picture I love:-

It's of my sweet li'l Sasha, on the day she passed away. :-( She looks like she's saying:- "It's okay, Momma, I'm ready to go now. I'll see you at "Rainbow Bridge". :-(

New friend....

I have a new friend to join me in the Ladybug Lair. Hubby surprised me w/ her yesterday, for my birthday. She was waiting for me downstairs, at the front door -- when I would have to check for the mail. She is sooooooo cute! :-)

Someone said that if I kept feeding her (filling her up w/ air now/then), she would be w/ me for a lonnnnnng time. Ain't she sweet?? :-)

Something else for Baby Girl

I forgot to mention that I got something else for my new Gypsy:- a stand that she can lie down on! :-) Found it at Michael's and it's basically just an easel but works great for what I wanted it for. I jazzed it up w/ some cute li'l flowers. The green flower matches her green sleeve and the pink flower matches her cherry blossom sleeve. The purple flower is just for show. :-)


Here it is sans the Gypsy:- With her Cricut green sleeve.....


With her Cherry Blossom sleeve....

Underneath the flowers, are curly-qued wrought iron, in a swirly. (for a better description!) lol

But because she's a "girly girl", her stand needed to have some "jazz"; hence, the flowers. :-)

My "Baby" arrived today!!

Nooooooo, not a "real" baby! LOL ---- my sweet li'l Gypsy. It may as well have been a "real baby" --- from the way I've been carrying on about getting her, tho! LOL

I showed her the new clothes and her new bed. She was verrrrrry happy w/ everything! :-) She had a very lonnnnnnnnng trip and has jet lag, so she's just going to rest for awhile. LOL

Baby's New Bed :-)

When my baby (my new Cricut Gypsy) arrives, she'll have a nice bed to lay her weary bones in. I had originally bought a $ store black zippered case, which I might still utilize for the power cords, etc. I have noooooo idea how much space they'll take up, so I'll just play it by ear.

But, here's her new home:-

Ain't it sweet? Love the colours --- black/white/magenta. Gor-geo-so!! :-) As you can see from the pic, I can fit two sleeves in it, soooo having the extra sleeve, plus the Baby Girl, herself, will work like a charm. The accessories (stylus, lanyard, extra screen protector, and pinkie stylus) fit into the zippered compartment. Found this li'l gem at WallyWorld in the Cosmetics Section.

Now I just have to wait for Baby Girl to get her. She's cleared Customs but I have noooooo idea in what city. :-( I just have to wait patiently for her. --------yeah, right! LOL LOL

Oh, you'll also notice the Gypsy A to Z dvd. I couldn't resist getting that. I have Megan's Cricut A to Z dvd (LOVE it!!!!) and just had to get her Gypsy one, too. This one is collaborated with Tammy, whom most of you already know. If you don't know these two wonderful gals, check them out here:-

http://www.aboverubiesstudio.com/ - Megan's blog

http://www.cricutcritters.com/ - Tammy's blog

Updated news

Hiya my sweet blogger friends. Sorry I've been MIA for awhile but I've been going thru a bit of a rough spot. As some of you may have seen/read, I was given another medical "hurdle" to jump over, a while back. I had a biopsy taken and was given the results a week ago. I didn't take them very well, at all. :-(

You see, when I went to see my Specialist, he didn't have the results, yet. He received them later that day and told them to me, over the phone. Basically what he said was: I had a mild form of a disease and it goes:- mild, moderate, severe, Cancer, and we'll see you in 6 mos. to see how everything is.

I completely "shut down", didn't ask any questions at all because all I heard was the "C" word. I basically became mentally and physically sick for the entire week. I went to see my GP today and he told me that I should never have been told the results that way. And......you ready for this one?? -- that my "mild" case was just that: "mild" and it may never carry on to the next stage. Obviously it might and could but, for the time being, I'm alright. I had already had myself boxed and buried. And to put it mildly -- I have been to "hell" and back. Horrific experience.

So, I am just soooooo thankful and feel sooooo blessed right now and I wanted to share that w/ you!

I was really upset, too, over the fact that I was finally getting a Gypsy (it's at Customs!!) and I wouldn't be able to enjoy it. How sad is that, eh? --- thinking those thoughts? And li'l Bailey --- how would he deal w/ all of this? Just from what I've written above, you can see how I was a mental wreck! My sweet hubby was awesome throughout all of it. He was my "rock". I am soooo lucky to have him!!

And....I've certainly learned something from all of this:- ask questions! ask a LOT of questions!

But, by the same token, that Specialist should've volunteered that information, too! At least the part:- don't worry for now. But, nope! Couldn't say that!! :-(

I hope you all have a wonderful day! I know I will! The sun is shining brightly just like my eyes, right now!! :-)

ADDITION:-
I may have not been clear in what happened:- it was the Specialist that called me on the phone and told me that, because he didn't have the results when I was there for my first appointment. My doctor's office hadn't received them either. There was "another party" involved who didn't get the results to the right people, in time. It was my sweet, dear doctor who finally put my mind at ease, yesterday. The whole situation was one BIG schmozzle! (sp?) :-( There's more to the story, but I just wanted to give a general gist of it. :-)

Thanks, everyone, for all of your sweet comments. For whatever reason, they're not showing up on my blog, even tho I'm receiving them via an e-mail notification.