Cricut Candy Corn Box and Totes

 

My goal this weekend was to make a candy corn box, but then I had an idea and soon had candy corn boxes all over my craft room.  I wanted to participate in two challenges, the 3D Halloween Treat Container challenge at Bitten by the Bug 2, and the 3D Treats challenge at Cooking with Cricut.

I have seen several versions of Cricut candy corn boxes using a cake box cut on the internet.  Using Cricut Craft Room, I chose the triangle box cut from Sweet Tooths cartridge.  I liked that it is a 2-piece box, with a separate top and bottom.  The paper is Michael’s Recollection brand.

I cut the bottom at 6″, from orange cardstock and cut the top from white cardstock.  Using George and Basic Shapes, I put a triangle on my mat and sized it to match the triangle on the top of the box.  I then cut that from white cardstock.

I laid out two more triangles in CCR, one in yellow and one in orange.  Using ovals from George and Basic Shapes to intersect the triangles, I got the shapes I wanted for the corresponding pieces.  I then glued the orange and yellow layers onto the white triangle.

Using my Cuttlebug and the spider web folder, I embossed the entire front piece after it was glued together.  I then adhered the piece onto the top of my box.

I sometimes forget about all the dies I have for my Cuttlebug, opting to cut with my Cricut instead.  But this time I remembered I had some cute Halloween dies and that is what I used for my spider and the tiny candy corns on the front of the box.  I used the 3″x3″ Cuttlebug Halloween die.

I painted the eyes on the spider and colored the candy corns using Copics.  Then then applied Glossy Accents on the candy corn to give them some shine.  I added pop-dots to the spider and candy corns and attached them on the top of the box.

The tags I used on all my candy corn boxes is a free printable I found on a website called HelloCuteness.com.  The printable is from their old website, but you can get to their new site with the link I am sharing.

I hand cut around the tags, glued them onto some orange cardstock and again hand cut around the orange cardstock. For the cake box candy corn, I tied some twine through the hole on the tag and pop-dotted it onto the top.

While I was working on the cake box version, I got an idea to create a different type of candy corn box —  one that is more like a tote.  Using CCR and George and Basic Shapes, I started laying out triangles and rectangles to get what I wanted.  It took a little time and several attempts, but I finally got it worked out.

Here is my final version, along with two of my better attempts.  They look pretty much the same — the main difference is in the tabs where they attach together and how I assembled them.  The base shape is cut from orange cardstock and then there is a yellow and white piece that attaches to the front and back.

I used a Peachy Keen face stamp, stamping just one side.  I thought about stamping both sides of the tote but decided I didn’t want any two-faced candy corns!  I used a black pen to add the stitch marks to the fronts and backs.

For the first tote, I put it all together and then realized it would be much easier to attach the white & yellow pieces, stamp the face, and punch the holes for the ribbon handle if the tote was still flat.  The next two totes were done flat and it was a lot easier.  I used Terrifically Tacky Tape to assemble the totes.

I used a Crop-A-Dile to punch the holes in the side and 12″ of ribbon for the handle.  After threading the ribbon through the hole, I tied a knot and used some hot glue to glue the ends down inside.  The tags are hung using 1/8″ ribbon and I threaded it through the same hole as the handle before using the hot glue.  Again, I did this on the first tote after it was assembled.  For the next totes I added the ribbon before assembling the them.

  • Cricut Craft Room
  • Cricut cartrideges:  George and Basic Shapes, Sweet Tooth Boxes
  • Copics
  • Glossy Accents
  • Ribbon

Pull the Udder One, You’re How Old?

What a stressful weekend — and we found out the hard way that stress can have an adverse effect on dogs too.  About two weeks ago we found an abandoned kitten in our backyard, and it had a cold.  We started feeding it and even got antibiotics from the vet to give it.  We also started contacting every cat rescue organization in our area and always got the same answer — they could not take in any more cats.

Yesterday around noon we took Fifi, our 10 year old rescue Pomeranian/Chihuahua mix, outside.  She does not like cats but we thought she had been tolerating the kitten being in the yard.  The kitten was becoming tame and yesterday it came up to Fifi and started wrapping itself around her.  I could instantly see that Fifi was stressing out.

We knew something was amiss because Fifi had been having some digestive issues.  Seeing her reaction to the cat, I was sure it was coming from stress.  After that incident, Fifi refused to go back in the backyard.  She would only go out in the front yard, which requires us taking her out on a leash.

When it came time for Fifi to eat, she did not finish her dinner.  We started keeping a close eye on her.  About an hour later she threw up.  Around 1 a.m. we knew something was seriously wrong so we took her to an emergency animal clinic.  Fifi had intestinal bleeding and a temperature of 105 (normal for dogs can be up to 102).   They started her on an IV, antibiotics and gave her some medication for her stomach.

The dr. said it is not uncommon for small dogs to get so stressed out that it causes intestinal bleeding.  We were able to talk to our regular vet today (even though it is Sunday) and she suggested we have the cat out of the yard when Fifi comes home.  We are hoping we get to bring her home around 7 p.m. tonight.

Luckily the animal shelter is open today and we planned on loading up the poor kitten and taking it in.  Steve called a rescue lady that he had talked with yesterday (before Fifi got so bad) and when she found out we were taking it to a shelter she came over and picked up the kitten.

So the kitten stressor is gone and we hope Fifi will come home and be able to recover completely.  I will be taking her to see her own vet tomorrow and hopefully gain some insight to keep this from happening again.  This has been such a huge ordeal on the whole family — we were trying so hard to find the kitten a home.  I had no idea we were harming our dog in the process.  I so wish everyone would spay and neuter their pets.

OK, now on to my card.  I was able to put this together but wasn’t sure I would get it posted in time for the challenge I am entering it in.  Luckily I made it with a few hours to spare.

I made this birthday card for the On the Farm Challenge at Bitten by the Bug 2, which requires you to use any farm animal cut from any Cricut cartridge.  I selected the girl milking the cow from the Country Life cartridge.   My main reason for choosing this cut was that I had a sentiment stamp that I thought would be perfect with it.  The sentiment is from a set by Elzybell, who sadly is no longer making them.

I printed the checked background paper on my Imagine, using the Best Friends cartridge.  The fence and sun are from Pooh & Friends.  I printed the wood design on the fence, again with my Imagine, using the Snapshot: Nature cartridge. The girl milking the cow and the sunflowers are from the Country Life cartridge.  The thought balloon with the sentiment is from Cuttin’ Up.  All cuts, with the exception of those printed on the Imagine, were made using scrap cardstock. The girl and cow, sentiment and the flowers are popped up using foam dots.

And to show I learned something from this challenge, let me tell you about my cow.  She is a Brown Swiss.  The breed originated in the mountains of northeast Switzerland and was declared a dairy breed in the United States in 1906.  I’m not sure that the dark brown marking on her back is accurate, but if not then my Brown Swiss has a dark chocolate beauty mark on her.

After seeing the card assembled, it makes me wonder if there are many women working around cows who wear pink boots!  Well, my milk maid likes her stylish pink boots.

For the inside of the card, I printed another square of checked paper on my Imagine and added some sunflowers to the lower corner.

  • Cricut cartridges:  Best Friends (Imagine), Country Life, Cuttin’ Up, Pooh & Friends, Snapshot: Nature (Imagine)
  • Elzybells stamps

This is My Little Black Dress Onesie and Matching Card

 

Several months ago I bought some black onesies so I could decorate them using heat transfer vinyl.  I went on to other things and the onesies just sat — until Bitten by the Bug 2 posted their Fashion Challenge.  That was the push I needed to get the onesies done.  And when I finished with the onesies (I made a 6 mos size and a 12 mos size), I made a matching card.  Now I have a couple of gift sets ready when I need them.

 

I saw this phrase on a onesie on the Internet a long time ago and always thought it would be fun to do.  I cut all the vinyl with my Cricut, using Design Studio to lay out everything.  For the necklace, I brought a cut from the Paper Doll Dress Up cartridge into Design Studio to use as a guide.  I enlarged the design until it fit the neck of the onesie.  I then took circles from George and laid them along the contour of the necklace, making sure they touched so I could weld them. Once I had circles completely covering the necklace shape, I deleted the necklace so that all was left was a string of pearls.  I cut this from white flock vinyl, so it has a fuzzy feel to it.

I used a variety of cartridges for the letters — sort of felt like I was putting together a ransom note.  I used Don Juan for the “this is my” and “dress” cuts.  I used Forever Young for “black” and Graphically Speaking for “little”.  I cut these out of white and pink glitter vinyl.

When cutting heat transfer vinyl, you have to remember to mirror the images.  I had no problem mirroring the words  “little” and “black” —  just had to check the “flip shapes” button in Design Studio.  But because I was putting the other words together myself using individual letters, I was having issues getting the words to mirror.  I finally figured out if I typed the words in backwards and then checked the “flip shapes” button that it worked.

I used Life’s a Party for the onesie card.  I welded two of the shadow bases together at the shoulders.  I embossed the black layer using my Cuttlebug and a 5″ x 7″ folder from the Once Upon a Princess Companion Set that has little roses all over.

The label on the front of the onesie is from the Phrases cartridge.  Because the lettering is so thin, I cut it from pink vinyl and used transfer tape to put it on the scalloped ovals.  I added a couple of glittery flowers that I picked up at a Tuesday Morning store a while ago.  I used 3 white dot embellishments that I got in one of Joann’s $1 bins for the snaps on the onesie.

For the inside of the card, I cut a white layer and inked the edges and then I stamped an image from a stamp I have in my stash.

  • Cricut cartridges – Don Juan, Forever Young, George & Basic Shapes, Graphically Speaking, Life’s a Party, Phrases
  • Cuttlebug – Once Upon a Princess Companion Set
  • Heat transfer vinyl
  • Assorted embellishments

Enjoy the Season Winter Window Card Luminaria

I’m not sure what to call my latest project.  I like to think of it as a hybrid — a cross between a window and diorama card and a luminaria.

It all began with the Window to My World Challenge at Bitten by the Bug 2.  I knew immediately what window I wanted to use for this challenge — the cute little dog and cat looking out the window at the snow on the Enjoy the Seasons Cricut Imagine cartridge.    Then my brain started spinning with what I could do to make the card unique.  For a couple of days that’s all that happened — my brain spun and not one good idea.  Then it hit me — I wondered what it would look like if I printed the window part on vellum and lit it from the back.

That is where the diorama card comes into play, as it has sections.  I used the tutorial for a diorama card posted on splitcoaststampers.com as my guide.

I altered the measurements so that a battery operated tealight candle would fit in the back section.  My two print papers I used on the diorama were printed from the Elise Imagine cartridge.  I wanted a print that was not necessarily holiday looking and thought the prints on Elise went well with the cat and dog image.   My finished card/luminaria measures about 6″ x 6″x 2.5″.

I cut my print paper so that the two blue pieces (the outside) were 11″ x 6″, cutting an oval from George & Basic Shapes out of one section for the front.   I scored 2.5″ from each end and folded on those marks.   Because the oval takes a huge chunk out of the front of the card, I found I had to stabilize it.  I cut a  piece of plain white cardstock with the oval, this time a little under 6″ wide,  and glued it to the inside center to give it some strength.

The middle section was cut from the mocha print at 9″ x 6″ with a 2.5″ x 1.5″ window cut from the center.  I scored each end of this piece at 1.5″ and folded.  This is what my pieces looked like.

I printed the cat and dog on the Imagine at 4″, printing it on vellum and then in layers on regular white cardstock.  I took my craft knife and cut out the sky between the window panes from the cardstock piece, so that the vellum sky would show through.  This pictures shows both the vellum print and the piece with the sky cut out of it.

I added some Stickles to the snow on the vellum and let it dry.  I trimmed the vellum and glued it on the mocha piece, lining the sky up with the cut-out rectangle.  Then I attached the cardstock piece with the cut out sky over that.  I did two layers of the love seat and attached it, then layered the cat and dog twice and attached them with pop-dots.  I printed a little sign from Enjoy the Seasons to hang above the window and added a blue pearl on each side.

I started assembling my pieces, putting the mocha and back section together first.  Before attaching the front, I cut a snowflake frame from Lacy Labels that I adjusted in Design Studio to fit the oval on the front.  I cut two layers, the top layer from a glittery cardstock and attached the frame around the oval.  I cut extra stars and snowflakes and popped them up on the frame.  Then I attached the frame to the other sections.   I used a tealight with a white LED flame, which I ordered online.  All I could find at my local stores were tealights with amber flames and I didn’t want an amber cast to my snow.  This picture shows the card from above, showing the different sections.  The tealight sits right below the vellum window.  Because there is no bottom to the card, you just have to set it over top of the tealight.

This picture shows the card from the side, so you can see how the front and back overlap each other.

It was hard trying to take a picture showing the lit window, but I think this one gives you a good idea of what it looks like.  The card will fold up, but it doesn’t  go completely flat.  I think I stuffed it too much.  I would not send it in an envelope — it would have to hand delivered or sent in a box.  But this one I plan on keeping for myself!

I had a lot of fun creating this card — it’s a little different from what I usually do.  I am already thinking of other projects using this concept.

  • Cricut cartridges – George & Basic Shapes, Imagine Elise, Imagine Enjoy the Seasons, Lacy Labels
  • Glitter cardstock
  • Stickles
  • Battery operated tealight candle

Butterfly Kisses Baby Girl Card

 

 

The weekly challenge on the Cricut Circle Blog is a card sketch challenge and you must use at least two Cricut cuts.  I thought I’d make a card on my Imagine, since I haven’t made a complete project using the Imagine.

I decided to make a baby card,  even though I don’t know anyone who is having a baby right now.  But it will be good to have on hand.  Again, for no particular reason, I made the card for a baby girl.

I used the Cricut Imagine cartridge Nursery Tails for this card.  All the paper is from this cartridge, as are the pink socks and the Butterfly Kisses title.  I embossed the brown floral background and the pink contrast strip with my Cuttlebug.  I cut the images in layers and inked around all the edges.   I added some ribbon, attached the socks with foam pop-dots and added three pearls by the tag.

For the inside of the card, I used a Cuttlebug die for the “Welcome Baby” and the bib is from Nursery Tails.

This is a fairly simple card, but I like the way it turned out.

  • Cricut Imagine Cartridge Nursery Tails
  • Cuttlebug
  • Ribbon, pearls

Graduation Card — You Rock!!

A friend’s daughter graduated from middle school a few days ago.  I wanted to make her a card that was not the average grad card — I wanted something a little funky and feminine.  I know she enjoys music, and just to prove how old I am, I have never heard of the groups she likes!

I decided to go with the phrase, “You Rock.”  I found the phrase on the Cricut Phrases cartridge and liked the bold design.  However, this particular phrase came with a lightning bolt at the end of it.  So to make it more feminine, I welded a rose from the Indie Art cartridge over top of the lightning bolt.  I also decided to make this a shaped card.

The fun part of this card was printing and cutting the layers on my Imagine.  I used the Floral Emporium cartridge for the prints and solid colors (excluding the black cardstock).  I love the bright colors and fun prints on this cartridge.  I used my Cuttlebug to emboss the bright pink print paper on the phrase and rose.  The grad hat was cut from Everyday Pop-Up cartridge.

I used pop dots on the grad hat, rose and the “you” on the phrase to add depth.

For the inside of the card, I printed and cut a greeting from the Imagine cartridge, Greeting Cards Inside & Out.

When I was laying out the card in Design Studio, I was trying to keep the dimensions so the card would fit into a #10 envelope.  However, this is a big card and ended up being about an 1″ too large either way, so I made a custom envelope for it.  Luckily the card was hand delivered so I didn’t have to worry about postage.

As I was working on this card, Bitten by the Bug 2 announced their latest challenge — the Rose Challenge.  I was so happy because I would be able to enter this card in the challenge.

  • Cricut Cartridges:  Everyday Pop-Up, Imagine Floral Emporium, Imagine Greeting Cards Inside & Out, Indie Art, Phrases
  • Cuttlebug

Strawberry Teapot Card — My First Easel Card

 

I made this card for the Kitchen Challenge over at Bitten by the Bug 2. Your project must be based on something you would find in a kitchen and have a Cricut cut on it.  I started out with all sorts of ideas but narrowed it down to a teapot.  I was laying out my design in Cricut Design Studio and thought it was looking pretty good.  I decided to try making an easel card, going for a floral, frilly teapot.

Then, a couple of nights ago I was checking out one of my favorite embroidery websites, EmbLibrary.com, and happened upon a strawberry teapot.  I kept looking at it and wondered if I could make something similar using my Cricut.  So I started playing around in Design Studio and ended up with this card.

I used Core’dinations solid cardstock for the base of the card.  All the dotted printed paper I did on my Imagine, using The Good Old Days cartridge.  I am really having fun using my Imagine.

The teapot I used is from Kate’s ABCs cartridge and I welded a strawberry from Preserves over top of the teapot, so just the spout and handle were sticking out beyond the strawberry.  I then welded an oval from George & Basic Shapes onto the bottom of the teapot, to form the base of my easel card.  Here is a side view of the card, so you can see how it stands up.

I cut a scalloped oval and doily shape from Lacy Labels to go on my base.  Through the holes of the doily shape, I threaded seam binding that I dyed using Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist.  Where my seam binding met, I tied a bow.  Here is a close-up of the base so you can see how I threaded the binding, and also how the three small flowers allow the card to stand up.  I used Liquid Pearls to add some dots on the doily.

I also used seam binding to tie a bow around the handle of the teapot.  I used Glossy Accents and Martha Stewart coarse glitter to add some sparkle to the flowers.

I made the tag using my Imagine and the Imagine More cartridge.  I am very happy with how it came out — it is my first cut and print piece that I have used on a project.  I changed the color on one of the layers and left off the sentiment that was on this particular tag.  I then took a Studio G stamp and stamped Happy B-Day on the front and tied it up with some twine.

And here is a picture to show you what the card looks like when it is flat.

When I finished my card, I thought it would be nice if I embroidered some tea towels using the strawberry embroidery design that inspired my creation.  I found a couple of blank striped towels that I thought the design would look OK on and proceeded to stitch them out.  So now I have a nice gift set to give to someone.

And, finally, I want to thank the wonderfully talented Design Team at Bitten by the Bug 2 for the prize that I won in the frame challenge.  My number was picked to receive the Smash Book prize — and I am so excited!  Thank you everyone at Bitten by the Bug 2.

  • Cricut cartridges:  George & Basic Shapes, Kate’s ABCs, Lacy Labels (Lite), Preserves
  • Imagine cartridges:  Imagine More, The Good Old Days
  • Core’dinations cardstock
  • Martha Stewart coarse glitter
  • Glossy Accents
  • Rayon seam binding
  • Liquid Pearls

Elms Bakery Truck Birthday Card

 

I made this card for the Bakery Challenge at Bitten by the Bug 2.  This is a theme challenge and you have to create a project using something you would find in a bakery.

My inspiration will definitely give away my age, but the bakery theme brought back childhood memories of when the Helms Bakery trucks used to come to neighborhoods in So. California in the 1950’s.  I remember my mom putting the blue Helms placard in the corner of the picture window in our living room.  That told the driver to stop at our house.  The Helms motto was “Daily at Your Door.”

The truck was just like having a bakery parked in front of your house.  The driver would pull out drawers filled with baked goodies — so yummy.  The Helms truck delivered the bread that my brothers and I grew up on.

For my bakery truck, since it delivers to whimsical woodland creatures, I changed the name to Elms Bakery.  I created a shaped card using the milk truck from the Cricut cartridge, Pop-Up Neighborhood.  I tried to keep the colors true to the original Helms trucks.  My cardstock is a mix of both Bazzill and Core’dinations.

For the base of the card, I welded the squirrel from the Birthday Bash cartridge to the truck in Design Studio.  I made the card so it will just squeeze into a #10 envelope.  The lettering on the side of the truck is done in vinyl and the font is from Noah’s ABC Animals cartridge.  I cut the lettering twice, in two colors, so it looks like it has a shadow layer.

For the squirrel, I decided to put a beanie cap on his little head.  I used Baby Steps cartridge to cut the cap portion. To make the propeller on top, I used a number “8” and deleted the inside cuts in Design Studio.  Then I took the sizing handles and squished the “8” close together.  The little post that the propeller attaches to is a small rectangle from George & Basic Shapes.

I cut the cupcake from Birthday Bash and placed it in the squirrels arms.  I used red Stickles on the cherry.

I decided to make this a birthday card, so I cut a sentiment from Birthday Bash to put inside.  I also stamped another sentiment on the opposite side.

  • Cricut Cartridges:  Baby Steps, Birthday Bash, George & Basic Shapes, Noah’s ABC Animals, Pop-Up Neighborhood
  • Cardstock:  Bazzill, Core’dinations
  • Vinyl
  • Stickles

Tiptoe Through the Tulips Layout — Tulip Field in the Netherlands

I was inspired to make this layout after my dear daughter, Erin, posted a picture of herself standing in a tulip field in the Netherlands.  Erin and her hubby, Brett, were in the Netherlands the first week of May looking for a place to live as they will be moving there at the end of June.  They are currently living in Taiwan — have been there about 2 1/2 years.

Erin has been to the Netherlands several times before, but she has never been in the country when the tulips are blooming.  She thought they would be too late to see any this trip, but on their way to the airport in Amsterdam to leave, they found this field still in bloom.  Brett snapped the picture and Erin posted it on Facebook.  Once I saw the picture I knew I wanted to do something special with it.

Bitten by the Bug 2 has a frame challenge that began on May 7, right around the time I first saw the picture, so I designed my layout around that challenge.  We were to use a Cricut frame on any project.  The challenge ends today, so once again I am getting my project in just under the wire.

I have to first say that on this layout I finally used my Cricut Imagine.  It has been sitting in the box for some time.  I read some of the problems people were having with their Imagines and it took me quite a while to get up the courage to fire it up.  I discovered that the cartridge that came with my Imagine (Imagine More) was defective.  Luckily I had another cartridge I could use to get the machine running.  I called Provo Craft customer service and they are sending me a new cartridge.

I did manage to get it printing and cutting.  I am having some issues with the machine not cutting each time though.  Sometimes it just spits the mat out after printing.  I will play around with it some more and hopefully it behaves.

For this layout I printed the background paper on the Imagine.  I used a pattern from the Yummy cartridge and filled an 11″ square with the design.  I love that I can now print my own paper!

The solid color cardstock is mostly from Core’dinations, with a little Stampin Up thrown in the mixture.  For my swirly frame, I used the Cricut cartridge Fancy Frames.  I made the tulip frame in Design Studio by welding four corner shapes together from the Art Nouveau cartridge.  I welded just the shadow layer (black layer) only.  I cut the other layers separately so the tendrils would overlap on the center sides.  I also cut some extra tulip petals so I could layer them on the flowers and inked all the flower petals with some Tim Holtz Distress ink.  Here is a close-up of the frame.

The title is cut from the Bloom Cricut Lite cartridge.  Erin posted on Facebook shortly after she arrived in the Netherlands that she was hoping to tiptoe through some tulips, so this was a perfect choice for the title.  I used pop-dots under the title.

And, finally, to balance out the left side of the layout I added three butterflies from the Indie Art cartridge.  I cut three different layers, and on the last layer I only glued down the inside portion of the wings so I could bend them up.  I added some Stickles to the wings.

I have been playing around some in Cricut Craft Room and have to say that I am impressed by what it can do.  As with the Imagine, I have read some problems people have encountered with CCR, so I haven’t tried cutting with it yet.  I just didn’t have time to try it with this project, but I want to share what my project looked like laid out in CCR.  It is a great design aid because you can color your layers and see exactly what your project will look like.  For my background paper, I tried several different patterns before I decided on this one.  With the click of a button I could see what a different pattern would look like with my layout.  I think the final project looks pretty much like what I laid out in CCR.  I made a few changes as I started working on the layout, but this was my blueprint for my project.

  • Cricut cartridges:  Art Nouveau, Bloom, Fancy Frames, Indie Art
  • Cardstock:  Core’dinations, Stampin Up
  • Tim Holtz Distress Ink
  • Stickles

Prom Princess Scrapbook Layout

Wow, it has been so long since I posted something on our blog.  A couple of weeks ago, Bitten by the Bug 2, posted their Princess (the Word) Challenge and I decided I wanted to participate.  Of course, I waited until the last minute to finish my project.  Time is running so short, in fact, that I am going to post pictures right now so I can link my project to their blog and then come back and post the details.   I am hoping I can come back and add comments without creating a disaster — we’ll see how that works out 🙂

OK, now I will see if I can add some details.   The picture in this layout is of our dog and it was taken in 2006, shortly after we adopted her from a rescue group.  Fifi was in foster care for about a year before we got her, so we decided to keep the name she came with — even though it was not high on my hubby’s list of dog names.

Fifi also came with a few issues, the most worrisome was that she nipped.  We talked with our veterinarian about the problem and she recommended a dog trainer–Fifi likes to refer to her as her personal trainer.  Anyway, the trainer seemed to do the trick as Fifi has not nipped since getting individual and group training.

At the end of the year, the trainer had a party for the dogs.  She does this each year and always chooses a different theme.  For 2006 the theme was Prom.  The dogs all came dressed up, but once they walked for judging they got to get undressed and get down to some serious partying — which included running in the dog park and lots of doggy treats.

This was the first  (and so far only) time that Fifi has dressed up — and I wanted to make her something special to wear.  I altered a dog pattern to make her frilly dress.  I also made a matching cover for her leash.  I was surprised that Fifi did not mind wearing the dress.  After walking for the judges, Fifi was chosen as a Prom Princess and her award was a new chew toy.

 I used a paper stack from Die Cuts With a View called The Chateau Lavender.  I laid out my design in Cricut Design Studio and I used the Once Upon a Princess cartridge for the title “Princess” cut and Don Juan for “Prom”.  The frame was cut from Elegant Edges, the throne from Formal Occasion and the dog and crown from Paper Pups.

 I did some heat embossing on the frame using some Stampendous products that I recently bought.  The embossing powder I used all over the frame is called Fran-tage Shabby White Opaque.  It is chunky and has lots of gold glitter in it.  I also added some Stampendous Shaved Ice on top of the powder before I heated it — the Shaved Ice adds chunks of bling.  My only problem was trying to keep it from blowing all over.  I heated the frame from underneath, as Stampendous recommends.

 I cut a throw rug to go underneath the throne using George and Basic Shapes.  For the white on the crown, I heat embossed it using the same Stampendous products that I used on the frame.  I did some chalking on the pup.

I used Stampendous Fran-Tage Lavender Crushed Glass Glitter on the princess hat in the title and used Stickles on the star that dots the “i”.  The last step was the small flowers, which are Recollections brand from Michaels that I recently got on clearance.  I used Stickles in the center of the flowers.

  • DCWV The Chateau Lavender
  • Cricut Cartridges:  Don Juan, Elegant Edges, Formal Occasion, Once Upon a Princess, Paper Pups
  • Stampendous Fran-tage Shabby White Opaque Embossing Powder, Lavender Crushed Glass Glitter, Shaved Ice
  • Recollections flowers
  • Stickles