And the WINNERS are...

Oh. My. Goodness.  Hardest post EVER!!  Over the last month, I have thoroughly enjoyed visiting new blogs of my oh-so-wonderful-followers-both-new-and-not-as-new...  I have gotten to *know* several of you through your posts and comments...  And I knew it was going to be hard to finish up the drawing for my FANTASTIC FOLLOWERS GIVEAWAY...  But I didn't ever imagine the number of hours and amount of work that would go into making sure every comment was counted accurately and every extra chance was given accordingly...  I thought I kept up pretty well with all of it in the beginning, but as the month went on, I realized it was much more involved than I had originally thought...  WHEW!!  It is DONE!!  Yes, I am a day late (and I sincerely apologize for that), but as an extra THANK YOU, I have selected a few extra people to receive a BONUS treat from me (after all, you did help me DOUBLE my goal to reach 100 followers!!!  YIPPEE!!!)...

Thank you so much to each and every one of my followers...  Thank you to those of you who created a post for me on your blog and to those of you who posted my blinkie...  If I have not had the chance to stop by your blog to write you a note, please know that I am still working on it!!  If you left me your blog address, I will be visiting you soon!!  :)

So without further ado...  The winners are... (be sure to scroll down for the complete list of winners-there are EIGHT!!)...  Remember, you have SEVEN days to email me at scrapbookingwithamy (at) gmail (dot) com to claim your prize (please send me your mailing address)!!

A BRAND NEW Creative Memories Stork's Delivery Cricut Cartridge goes to:

Jennifer from The Country Life!!!!!!!

 The Winner of the Rugged Baby Boy Celebrate Additions Kit...  (includes 5 sheets of double-sided 12x12 paper, 8 double-sided photo mats, 1 sheet of title stickers, and 1 sheet of decorative stickers) :

LISA (ScrappingPinkLady) from A Touch of Pink!!

The winner of the Fabulous Baby Girl Celebrate Additions Kit...  (includes 5 sheets of double-sided 12x12 paper, 8 double-sided photo mats, 1 sheet of title stickers, and 1 sheet of decorative stickers):

TRACY (josie0602) from Scrappin' In The Woods!!

 And now...  For the FIVE winners of the BONUS prizes (a small gift just to say thank you)...

Carol from Scrappin' Heaven
Melissa from Sleepless Wonder
Sheri C
Just A Pac Rat from Circle B Enterprises
Beverly from Beverly's Blog

That's it, folks!!  Once again, I would like to say THANK YOU SO MUCH to all of my Fabulous Followers!!  I hope you'll continue to check back often!!  I will continue to make sure I visit each and every one of you -- I love seeing what everyone else creates too!!  :)

Until next time, may every day be fabulous...

Celebrate The Occasion Challenge #7 -- Our New Home! Handy Man, DonJuan

It's time again to Celebrate The Occasion!!  Challenge #7 is to create a card, layout, or project celebrating a New Home!!  My submission for the Design Team this week was created using the Cricut Lite Handy Man Cartridge (have you seen all the houses on this cartridge???) and the DonJuan Cricut Cartridge.  I hope you'll hop on over to CTO to see all of the Design Team's awesome creations and join in on the challenge with me!!

This two-page 12x12 layout features background paper from Creative Memories Primary Power Palette (now discontinued) and cardstock colors in gray, cranberry, gold, and deep blue.

I used my circle punch to punch all those little blue circles for the background AND the shingled roof on the house, and I used my SU! scallop border punch for the 'shingled' look across the top of the layout...

This house can be found on the Cricut Lite Handy Man Cartridge (available at Walmart)...  I originally got this cartridge because of all of the tools (thought it would be great for some masculine cards and layouts of The-Boy-Child playing with his toy hammer or helping his grandpa in the workshop), but I've found the houses on this cartridge to be a real treasure!!

The title was cut using both the base font and shadow feature found on the DonJuan Cricut Cartridge...

I hope you have enjoyed my layout created for Celebrate The Occasion's Challenge #7...  Your comments are always appreciated, so please let me know you were here (and if you have a blog, please leave a link so I can visit you too!!).

Until next time, may you have LOTS to celebrate!!

A Liebster Blog Award!! :)

Admittedly, I forgot to post this before now -- It's been sitting in my 'drafts'...  Luckily, I found it tonight when I didn't have a project (and a long post to go with it)...  I'm very honored and excited to receive another Liebster Blog Award, this time from Vero over at Mommy's Crafty Creations...

This award was created for bloggers who have fewer than 300 followers, but still put a lot of love and heart into their work.  It is given to bring light to new blogs and it's a great way to share blogs that might not otherwise be seen or ones you want to share with others.
As a recipient you must share the love and pay it forward by:
1-Creating a post where you blog about the Liebster award and reveal your 3-5 blog picks
2-Let them know you chose them by leaving a comment on their blog
3-Copy and paste the blog award on your blog
4-Have faith that your followers will rally and show their crafty love back out to those you awarded this to
5-Have fun!

I would like to pass this award on to the following blogs...  This was a ridiculously difficult decision for me as there are sooooooo many people I think really deserve this...  I tried to select people who not only inspire with their creations, but also take the time to inspire others with wonderful and kind comments -- I know they spend a good deal of time visiting other blogs, and I want them to feel that their efforts do not go unnoticed.  I hope you will visit them and check out their fantastic creations!!

Tami's Craft Connection
Musings of a Crafty Mom
A Little Bit Of Bling
The Crafty Kitten

Thanks again to Vero!!  :)

And thank YOU for taking the time to read this and (hopefully) visit the lovely ladies listed... 

Chomp! Punch! Challenge! -- Celebrations

Is it Wednesday already???  Oh, so many challenges I've missed this week!!  Ya know which one I did NOT miss???  M.A.G. Challenge by the Page!!  I had something all in mind for it, but it just didn't work out for me...  Sooooooo...  After lunch today, I decided to take a few moments for some Scrap-Therapy, I took a look at what I needed to do and use and create...  And voila!!  Imagine me doing the happy dance now...  :)  Need help with that?  Looks a little like this...  :)

Check out these challenges that I was able to enter my card into:
M.A.G. Challenge by the Page #18 -- Celebrations Cartridge page 130 ONLY
More Than Favors Wacky Wednesday -- Manly Challenge
OWH Stars & Stamps -- Cards 4 Kids
Creative Sisters Challenge #4 -- Anything with a Punch
I'm thinking there was another one, but I'll have to add it later if I think of it...

Anyhoo...  I wanted to make another card that I can send in for OWH (Have ya checked them out yet?  I love the benefits I get of doing something nice for someone else!!), and they requested cards that can be sent home to children...  I'm really hoping there's a hero who would love to send this card to their son or daughter!!

M.A.G. Challenge by the Page... Those of you who have followed me for a while know that this is one of my FAVORITE challenge sites -- Why. you ask?  Well, I love, love, LOVE my Cricut, but sometimes I think it's easy to fall into a pattern of letting the PC people out in Utah do all the imaginative and creative work (which is GREAT!)...  And I start to miss not being able to 'see' something new...  So M.A.G. does just that for me -- You only get to use your Cricut for the cuts on ONE specific page...  The rest has to come from embellishments or other tools (like PUNCHES!!).  :)  So page 130 of Celebrations has only these cuts:

I cut three 4" tags using the blackout feature and 25 half-inch triangles also using the blackout feature...  Those cuts would become the head and teeth of my, um, crocodile?  Alligator?  Dinosaur?  Help, Peyton...  Tell me what this is!!  :)  I then punched a whole bunch of punches with my circle makers and layered them to create the eyes and nose...  I hand cut the tongue from red...  Used my Crop-A-Dile to punch a hole for the 'jaw' joint (a light green brad covered with a circle punch from the 'right' green).  I dug through my stash to find some ABC stickers to spell out 'chomp!'...

Since the Wacky Wednesday Challenge at More Than Favors was to make anything for a guy, I thought this was perfect for that too...  I mean, it's for a 'little' guy, after all!!  :)  I left the inside blank (added a liner to each side since the front of the card had a few layers on it)...

And, finally, I am the Guest Designer over at Linda's Creativity this week (for the Creative Sister's Challenge #4)...  The challenge is to use a punch (or many punches) to create a card, layout, or project...  If you haven't entered to WIN one of The-Girl-Child's Punch-Art Flowers, I'd love for you to do that by CLICKING HERE...  You can get an extra chance in the drawing by entering your project over at Linda's Creativity too!!

Click HERE and enter to WIN a Punch-Art flower!!

Please check back again as I'll be posting another FUN punch project!!  Your comments are always appreciated...  I love reading what you have to say!!  If you are a new follower, and you have a blog, please be sure to leave a link in the comments so I can come visit (and follow) you too!!  :)  Thanks again for visiting!!

Until next time, have a CHOMP-endous day!!  :)

Turtle Says Hello... And I did my first SKETCH!! Woot-woot!! -- Stork's Delivery Cricut Cartridge

If you were expecting to see a picture of The-Turtle-Cat in all of her glittered-up glory, I am sorry to disappoint you...  I really do mean that a turtle is saying 'Hello...'  (hee hee)  I actually did not have any help at all from The-Turtle-Cat tonight -- I think she's a little upset with me that I wouldn't get the glitter out...  It's all locked up tight (for now)...

Anyway, I'm super excited to share my card with you today...  I used a sketch, and I was actually able to follow it (I think) for the first time!!  For those of you that don't know, I've always admired those who could look at a sketch and come up with something very creative -- I've always looked at a sketch and have only seen, well, a sketch!

I wanted to make a card for TWO reasons tonight -- 1. It's getting down to the last minute that I can enter something at Cooking With Cricut for their 'Green Scene' Challenge (use 2 shades of green).  2.  Over at OWH Stars & Stamps they have a sketch challenge each week, and I thought I'd like to give it a try!!  Here's the sketch they gave:

So I cut my turtle from the Stork's Delivery Cricut Cartridge (he turned out a little larger than I anticipated, but I thought he was sized just right when I got him on the card!)...  I did a little inking on the edges to make him 'pop' off that background paper -- I didn't want to use dimensionals because my plan is to send him for OWH (you can find out more about OWH by clicking HERE), so I think the inking was a better choice. :)  My cute little 'Hello' stamp is from SU!'s Great Greetings set.  The ribbon was a $1 find (I folded it in half to make it thinner and not as transparent).  I added liners to both sides of the inside of the card so there will be enough room for a hero to write home...

I hope you've enjoyed my turtle card...  Please take a moment to visit Cooking With Cricut and OWH Stars & Stamps to see what everyone else created for these challenges.  Your comments are always appreciated and enjoyed!!

Until next time, may your days be turtle-turtle-turtley!!

I'm super excited to be the Guest Designer at Linda's Creativity!! :)

Hello, hello to all my crafty friends!!  Thank you so much to all of my wonderful followers for tuning in today -- I have a project and a challenge to share with you all!!  :)

My big exciting news for today is that I am the Guest Designer over at Linda's Creativity (for the Creative Sister's Challenge #4)!!  I was so honored and excited when Linda emailed me and asked me to do this -- Thank you so much, Linda!!  Linda and her sister, Patti, offer a challenge every other week (they take turns hosting -- This time the challenge is hosted by Linda)...  I was so excited to find the Creative Sisters' Challenge as I have always credited my sister for being the one to first spark my scrapbooking interest :)  I remember watching my older sister cut up her Polaroid pictures (gasp!), hand cut titles from construction paper (double gasp!), and put everything in those magnetic photo albums (the horror!!)...  Anyway, my scrapbooking has evolved greatly since those beginning days -- I now use photo safe products and I really enjoy using all of the tools available to scrapbookers!!

Now, about the Creative Sisters' Challenge #4...  Linda and Patti are asking participants to use punches on any project (card, layout, altered item, mini album, etc.!)!!

I can't imagine ever scrapbooking without punches -- I don't care how heavy they are, I tote two huge bags of punches with me whenever I scrapbook!!  I'm so excited to get to show you one of my 'all punch' page layouts here....

The border (on the left) for this page was punched with Stampin' Up!'s Scallop Edge Border Punch...  I punched three 12-inch stips (navy, clay, and french vanilla) and layered them together...

My photo strip was created by punching five 1.25" circles with the Creative Memories Circle Maker, attaching them to a thin strip of cardstock, and then cutting them in half.  I then added a narrow french vanilla ribbon.

The 'date' box features the SU! Curly Label Punch (punched once in clay and once in navy) topped with a 1"x3" rectangle...

The accent to the right of the photo box (which is for a 5x7 photo) is 1/3 of the main flower...  Since no one can see the entire flower, there was no need to create the entire flower for this embellishment. :)

My punch-art flower was originally created by my daughter (lovingly referred to as 'The-Girl-Child')...  It is a blessing to have my daughter as the inspiration for this layout...

To create this flower, you will need the Creative Memories Sweetheart Punch and super-sticky-double-sided-tape (we use the red roll of Terrifically Tacky Tape)...  If you do not have this punch but definitely need to have it, you can find it HERE...  This heavy duty punch creates delicate, decorative hearts that look great on layouts, cards, and projects!!  After punching 18 hearts (all one color or mix and match several colors for a unique look!), layer the 'outside' punched image into a fanned-out-circle keeping the points together...  Then layer the 'inside' punched heart into a (smaller) fanned-out-circle keeping the points together and attach to the larger layer...  Add a touch of bling to the center of the flower if desired.

If you would like to WIN one of these flowers, please leave a comment on this post telling me what color flower you would like to win -- For a second chance, enter YOUR project using a punch over at Linda's Creativity, then come back and leave another comment with a link to your post (so I can check it out!!)...  I will create and send one flower (in the color of the winner's choice) to a lucky winner selected from the eligible comments*!!  As a BONUS, I will draw an additional winner for every 25 eligible comments* left on this post!!

Throughout the Creative Sisters' Challenge, I will be posting additional projects featuring punches -- So please come back daily for more ideas and inspiration for putting those fabulous punches to good use!!  If you like what you see here, I hope you'll become a follower...   And if you DO become a follower, be sure to CLICK HERE and enter my Fantastic Follower Giveaway for your chance to WIN a BRAND NEW CM Stork's Delivery Cricut Cartridge !!

Thanks so much for stopping by...  Until next time, may you be creatively inspired and punch-happy!!  :)

*There's always small print on the drawings, right???  Well, this is mine...  A comment counts as 'eligible' when it clearly states a color choice OR includes a blog/photo address for the challenge entry...  Winners will be posted within 48 hours of the END of the Creative Sisters' Challenge #4...  At that time, winners will have 7 days (one full week) to contact me at scrapbookingwithamy {at} gmail {dot} com with their punch-art flower color choice and shipping address.  Failure to claim the prize will result in my re-gifting the prize to some other lucky participant (or perhaps allowing The-Turtle-Cat to cover it in glitter and use it on her own project)...  You may now remove your magnifying glass as this is the end of the very small print. :)

Green & White Challenge -- A Child's Year, Base Camp, Mini Monsters, Sans Serif, Varsity Letters

Lasting Memories Layout Challenges had a Green and White Challenge this week...  You could use other colors in your layout as long as the MAIN colors were green and white...  I had originally created this layout for the challenge, but then decided it wasn't green and white 'enough'...

 So I created this layout too...  Definitely green and white enough...  :)

I was delighted to discover that over at Paper Cutz this week's challenge was 'YOUR CHOICE'!!  Participants in Challenge #83 can create a card, LO or craft project using any colors and any theme!!  So I'm happy to enter my 'A Visit from the fairies' layout in the challenge there... 

This two-page 12x12 layout was created especially for my very inspirational and imaginative mom...  I sometimes think if I had to choose a famous celebrity that my mom most reminded me of, it would be Shirley Temple...  Aside from the fact that my mom is the most adorable mom ever, she has the same optimistic outlook and friendly demeanor of my favorite dimple-cheeked child star -- When my mom tells certain stories from her childhood, it's not hard to realize why she's as sweet, creative, and wonderful as she is now.  One of my favorite stories to hear (and one of her favorites to tell) is about the fairies...

My mom's neighbor (her 'aunt') would tell her about the fairies who lived under the shrubs...  Each morning they would come out from under the shrubs to collect the morning dew to make tea in a miniature tea set ( a tea set just like the one my mom had)...  Together, my mom and her aunt would also make fairy tea...

Even today, my mom enjoys the spring season most of all -- She spends hours in her gardens creating the most beautiful scenery for the fairies...  And you'll still find a miniature tea set (or two) tucked away on a shelf at her house now...

This little fairy is cut from A Child's Year Cricut Cartridge at 4".  I've seen pictures of my mom as a little girl, and this is exactly what I envision her silhouette to look like when I think of the fairy story...

The fairy on the right page is actually the little girl with the hula hoop on the A Child's Year cartridge -- I removed the hula hoop and added two of the fairy wings from the other image (cut the fairy child image twice, flipping one to have a full set of wings)...  I just loved how she was holding her arms out as if to catch the dew drops (and stars)...

The font for the title is from the Jasmine Cricut Cartridge...  I cut both the base image and the shadow image at 2.5".  This is a very flowing font, so it's important to cut a sample of a few of the letters you want to use before making your final cuts -- The sizing can be very different from what you're expecting!!  :)

My background paper for this layout is from Creative Memories Delight Power Palette.  The cardstock colors I used are White and Honeydew.  Additional products used include brown chalking inks, CM's Stardust Maker, CM's Meadow Maker, and the new CM Paper Edger...

For my second layout, I used some of the distressed white paper from the Black and White Power Palette and Black and Green cardstock.

This two-page 12x12 layout is designed to hold one horizontal 4x6 photo as well as TEN 2x3 photos (printed as '4 on a page' 4x6 photos)...  Since the boot camp class is held in the university's gym, the lighting isn't always the best -- So these small photos allow a showcase of more events without a huge amount of attention to detail in the photos...

The class 'theme' is "got pain?" so I felt that was a pretty appropriate title (and the answer is, YES! -- This class is definitely NOT without pain -- LOL)...  The font used for this title was from the Sans Serif Cricut Solutions Cartridge.

The class logo is that fun skull and crossbones...  Cuz of course you think of DEATH when you think of Boot Camp Class, right???  This skull can be found on the Mini Monsters Cricut Cartridge...  The image is cut at 17.5" (in proportion to the headstone it goes on -- RDS would be 8.5".

The SRU was cut from the Varsity Letters Cricut Lite Cartridge at 2"...  I've been wanting to cut some letters with this one -- I was super excited to use it for this (as that REALLY does look just like the SRU logo!!)...

And 'Boot Camp' was cut using the Dog Tag Feature on the Base Camp Cricut Cartridge.  I wanted to thread a chain through the top of the dog tags, but I couldn't find any to use (yet!).  Since that's an addition I definitely want to make to this page, I only lightly adhered the tags (so they can be pulled up and re-attached).

I hope you've enjoyed my Green & White (and more) pages...  Your comments are always welcome and appreciated...  Remember, there is still a little more than a week to enter my Fantastic Follower Giveaway -- Don't miss your chance to WIN a BRAND NEW CM Stork's Delivery Cricut Cartridge!!

Thanks so much for stopping by!!  Until next time, may your grass be green and your fairy visits be a delight!!  :)

Thinking Of You Card -- French Manor

 Hello, hello, my crafty friends!!  And a VERY BIG welcome to all of my followers -- I so appreciate you!!  :)

I really struggled with creativity today...  Luckily, when I called (and whined) to my mom, she encouraged me (as always) and gave me some inspiration!!  Of course, you'll have to wait and see what she inspired...  Maybe tomorrow :)  For today, I finally got my thoughts in order and wrapped around what I needed to do for TWO challenges...  Cricut Cardz Challenge #65 (make a tall card, 9"x4", using any cartridge, colors, and theme) AND Cooking With Cricut Challenge #20 -- Time To Spring Forward (make a project that includes a timepiece, clock, or some reference to time)...  I hope you'll stop on over at both of those sites to see all the other wonderful creations!!!

For my card, I chose to use the clock image from the Cricut Circle Exclusive Cartridge French Manor...  I have only used this cartridge once before, so I was happy to pull it out again!!  YAY!!  I cut the clock at 8.5" and then added a few personal touches -- Chocolate chalking ink on the edges, CM brown pen for details (including the clock face), and CM metallic bronze pen for the accents on the clock hands and pendulum (which was my own addition, so you won't find it on the cartridge)...

My 'Thinking of You' stamp is from SU!'s "Great Greetings" -- I can't even tell ya when the last time was that I used that set!!  My label was created by cutting a 1.25"x2" rectangle and then punching out the corners with a circle punch.

The base cardstock is a shimmery metallic copper from my scrap stash (yup, I've got some pretty big scraps in my stash!).  The patterned paper is from SU!'s Christmas paper -- I just love how that pattern looks with the clock!!  :)

I added a cream-colored liner to both sides of the inside of the card -- Since this is a tall card, I liked the balance of both sides being lined (that funny OCD character making an appearance here)...

And I popped up the sentiment label for some extra dimension...

So although my mom is indeed the one who inspired me not to give up on creativity today, the rest of the inspiration came from two people...  My grandpa and my dad...  Aside from the fact that this card could easily be considered a 'masculine' card, there's something about grandfather clocks that, well, kind of encourage you to think about your grandfather!!  :)  Of course, I was already thinking about my grandpa after seeing Gigi's card (*click here to see it*) for this week's CTO challenge...  My grandpa had one of those bobble-head dogs in his car that I remember from my days of being very small -- I used to love making that head bobble, bobble, bobble...  Anyway, grandfather clocks always make me think of him too...

And my dad...  Well, he has to be one of the greatest woodcrafters ever...  He's just another example of how  creative my family really is...  Growing up, I remember watching him turn plain pieces of wood into amazing creations -- The smell of sawdust and fresh cut wood remind me of moments spent in his woodshop watching him measure, draw, cut, and build...  He made me a beautiful desk with a drop front and fancy edges when I was probably 11 or 12 -- I loved running my fingers over the texture of the wood and feeling the banding and curves...  As I added the details of this clock, I was reminded of how I love that desk (it's in The-Boy-Child's room now)...  How lucky I am to have so many things in my home that are such a part of who my parents are...  The furniture my dad made, the arrangements my mom made, the things passed on to me to make it my home, some of which will eventually be passed on to my children in their homes...  It certainly makes it easy to look around and not only feel loved, but also to be always thinking of them...  :)

Thanks again for stopping by...  I hope you have enjoyed my card today -- Comments are always encouraged and appreciated!!  And, of course, I'd love to know what grandfather clocks make YOU think of!!  :)   Please remember that if you haven't already enter my Fantastic Follower Giveaway (for a CM Stork's Delivery Cricut Cartridge), there's still time!!  Simply CLICK HERE and enter to WIN!!

Until next time, may your memories inspire you and remind you of how special YOU are...