More celebrations = More cards

It was a busy weekend, filled with celebrating not one, but FIVE birthdays!!! A few of them were overdue celebrations, but it's never too late to show someone you care, and are thinking of them, right?!?!

This first card was inspired by Monique Griffith Designs Blog Post back on March 29th, and I thought I'd give it a go. I was worn out after folding all that paper, so my center cut wasn't too elaborate. I'll be trying it again to see if I can perfect it a little better.

The next card was another attempt at incorporating buttons (the newest addition to my craft craze). If I had more time, I think I would have used a bigger base card, and had a bigger balloon bouquet, but I like it.

The third card was for my oldest niece, Sophia, who turned 8 in February (yeah, this one was REALLY late). I'm in love with the Create A Critter cart, and thought this one was just perfect for a young girl.

Using the same cart (Create A Critter), I made my youngest nephew a card for his 4th Birthday (just around the corner).

And lastly, my husbands step-dad, my son's Peppere birthday card...it's simple, semi-manly (LOL) and it gets the point across. The Celebrations cart was used to create both the words & party hat!

I know the quality of photos is lacking in this post, but when it's 12:45 a.m., and you've got an alarm (my toddler) that is set to go off around 6:30 a.m., you'll take what you can get! Happy Crafting, and thanks for coming by!!!

Cards...not my strong suit

So I know I had said I was going to post about "Love Day" today, but I realized that I haven't gotten a decent picture of the 2-page layout, so we're going with the 3 cards I've made recently. I try and be creative, but really, cards are not easy. I just haven't been able to figure out how to really jazz up a card, but not have it look like a complete mess. Here are the last few attempts I've had at card making:

First up is the card I made for my sister-in-law. I wanted to put her age on the front, but I think my mistake was making the numbers too big, and not leaving more room to embellish around it...it's a learning curve:

Numbers and balloons were cut using the Celebrations Cart

Next up is a Baby Shower card I made for my friend who's due a month before me. I like this one a little better, but I still think I could have done more...maybe a thicker ribbon perhaps?!?! If you look closely, the blue mat on the front is embossed with tiny hand & footprints:

B-A-B-Y was cut using the New Arrival Cart

Lastly, this is the card I made for my Gram's birthday. It says "Tutu," which is what my son calls her (it's Hawaiian for Grandma). Instead of creating layers for this card, I decided to cut out the frame in white and color it in, just to do something different...did it work???

"Tutu" was cut from George & Basic Shapes (welded together with Design Studio), the tulip frame was cut from the Stretch Your Imagination Cart (I think).

I've created a new birthday card, but it hasn't been given yet, so I'll wait to post that one...I have to say, the more I practice, the better it's getting. Still have a long way to go though! Happy Crafting all, and thanks for stopping by. You can always contact me at sandiegocoley@yahoo.com