Cricketleg Creative

“Not a Card” Challenge

Challenge Cards, Handcrafted Cards, Uncategorized

My examples for the Simon Says Stamp Not a Card Challenge

simon says stamp challenge

This week’s Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge is “Not a Card.”

I have to admit that I was not excited about this one because I’m super focused right now on making lots of CARDS for my Etsy shop! So “wasting” time on something not card-related seemed like a bother.

But I actually had a lot of fun working on these projects.

Candy Bag Topper

Having recently cleaned out my candy, cookie, and cake stuff I knew I had some treat bags waiting to be used. Halloween candy seemed the perfect match for these, and timely.

I grabbed a notecard just a little wider than the bag and folded it in half. I stamped the front of the card with an old stamp set from Stampin’ Up! And I mean from back in the 90s!! It’s always been a fun set to use.

I filled the bag, placed the card over top, and stapled it in place. Easy!

simon says stamp challenge

Recipes

Okay, technically this is a card…but it’s not a greeting card so I say it counts!

Another oldie but goodie from back in my Stampin’ Up! demo days, this recipe card stamp is pretty cute and came with all the basic recipe category stamps too.

I stamped the main card stamp onto cream cardstock. Then I used the Main Dish stamp in the bottom right corner. I just did some simple colored pencil work….it’s too detailed to do much more.

This is a great idea for when you need to take a meal to someone. Why not share the recipe, if it’s one of your best? And doing it with stamps is more fun!

simon says stamp challenge

Planner Embellishment

I love, love, love my planner. Took me years to find one that works for me.

I thought it might be fun to embellish it a little. Not necessarily to make it pretty because I have come to be a firm believer in kind of a messy planner. Or should I say well-filled?

I just wanted to add a little visual to my upcoming week.

So for a youth campfire I added a flame stamp. For my daughter’s bone marrow donation day I added a gift stamp (what a gift she is giving! so proud of her!). For family game night, I added a confetti stamp in multiple colors. And for my day to work on Christmas cards, I stamped a little tree.

I actually think I may do this on a regular basis. Because I block my time off with highlighters and have some repetitive items, sometimes I forget which week I’m on. Having a visual reminder–“oh yeah, this is the week with the campfire night”–will be helpful for my brain!

simon says stamp challenge

Gift Tags

Can I make a confession here? I don’t do gift tags.

Why? Well we have this fun tradition I started a few years ago where I don’t label the gifts to the kids. I pick a different paper to represent each person each year and my kids have to figure out who is who! It’s really fun. One year I even decoy wrapped everything–I wrapped it once in the correct paper for that person, and then again in a “decoy” wrap to confuse them.

Yes, I am looney.

But really, they were getting too good at guessing based on what people had on their lists. I add extra padding, coins, etc., to throw them off base.

Anyway, I digress.

Even though these tags will not be used for the family gifts, I will have fun using these for gifts to friends. Die cuts used for some, stamps for others.

simon says stamp challenge

Christmas Card Log Book

And now to my favorite result of this challenge!

I’ve had this Christmas Card Log book for YEARS!!! I think I got it free. I know I’ve always hated the cover. Just not my style at all.

It happened to be sitting out on my stamp desk, and I thought, “Hmmm…can I make it cute?”

Answer: Yes. Yes, I can.

Many of the stamps I own I have had since the early 90s. I remember thinking when I saw the stamp of a blank card, “Oh, that’ll be fun to use!”

Yeah. I never used it.

But now I have! I really enjoyed just making this up as I went along. I made lots of little Christmas cards to adorn this new log book. Then I masked them off with Post-Its and did some ink blending around them. That really made them pop!

Now I’m excited to mark off who I’ve sent cards to and who have sent cards!

simon says stamp challenge

So there you have it. All five of my entries into this week’s challenge. And I have to say, these ideas were fun and pretty fast! While I enjoy making a beautiful card to send, it can take a while. It was fun to make some things that were quick!

Check out the last Simon Says Stamp challenge I did.

Bear Witch Project Shaker Card

Handcrafted Cards, Holiday Cards

This Bear Witch Project Shaker Card didn’t go 100% as planned, but he’s still a cute little spooky witch!

Bear Witch Project Shaker Card

It’s been a hot minute since I’ve made a shaker card. So I figured it was high time I tried one. Especially since I had the great idea to add googly eyes to the glitter and sequins!

Well, that didn’t quite work out as planned.

You see, those eyes are fairly fat. And they didn’t fit in the shaker window. Well, they fit, but they wouldn’t shake.

I could have added some more fun foam to add extra space but I was worried about the card fitting into my A2 size envelope. So I just took the eyes out. But I’ll definitely be trying the eyes again soon!! I just know it’s gonna be great!

Regardless of the best laid plans and all that, the card turned out well and I am really enjoying the stamps from this Simon Says Stamp set.

You can watch the whole process in this Bear Witch Project Shaker Card video below. I’m still getting the hang of editing and am limited to 15 minutes of upload time. So I have to cut a few steps out. But there’s enough there to give you the general idea.

I’d love a comment, either here on the blog or on YouTube under the video about what your favorite shaker elements are. I’m wondering what to buy and need some suggestions!

Check out this other cute Halloween card I made.

Halloween Moon Witch Card

Handcrafted Cards, Holiday Cards, Uncategorized

Making a card using “Copic” markers to create a moonlit sky around this cute little Halloween witch!

Why the quotation marks?

Because I don’t actually own Copic markers (if someone would like to be my wealthy benefactor here, I’m all in). I do use alcohol-based markers but I find most people are familiar with the word “Copic” more than the phrase “alcohol-based markers.” Moreover, if you’re into the whole manifesting idea, then why not just go ahead and say the word?

COPIC. There, I said it.

My Mentors

Having been recently inspired by my never-met-mentor, Sandy Allnock, I embarked on the slightly intimidating task of creating a background using only markers.

As you’ll see from the time lapse video below, I stamped only a witch and some trees. The rest is all marker.

I have to admit that I absolutely adored using non-traditional colors for this Halloween card. It was so fun to do something different!

Oh, and my other never-met-mentor, Jennifer McGuire, gave a great idea in one of her videos recently. She has oh-so-many stamps and gadgets that I just drool over. I’ve been fairly jealous of how many sentiment stamps she has.

Having only just recently returned to the stamping scene from a long hiatus, I seem to have a lot of, well, dated stamps. I really want some of those simple yet awesome sentiments.

Yeah, so anyway, Jennifer mentioned casually that you can “just print them out on your printer” if you don’t have a sentiment you want.

DUH.

Consequently, that opened up a whole new world for me, I can tell you! So I’ve been playing with that a LOT.

Please take a look at the time lapse video below to see how my card came together. Someday the blending will be much more smooth when I have those real Copics. But for now, I can be content with what I have.

Mostly.