I am for ever losing my most used tools on my desk that is always so full of work in progress projects. This also leads to me losing my sense of humour and some other things every now and again. So what’s a girl to do?

With a little bit of imagination and some recycling you can make something so simple and functional. And those die cuts sure do make life a lot easier – they cut like butte through paper and cardstock which makes decorating your everyday life so much prettier.

i love how my XCut tools perfectly fitted into the holes and the colours are really pleasing with everything beautifully co-ordinated!

Products Used 

Crate Flea Market Paper Pad Cuttlebug V2 [PC 2000293] 

Glue Dots Pop Up [GD12296-75] 

Tombow Mono Multi Glue [TB 62191] 

Purple Turtle Double Sided Tape - 48mm [PT13] 

Xcut A5 Die Set – Flowers [DXCU503195] 

Xcut A5 Die Set – Leaves [DXCU503194]

it's time for another sketch challenge over at Scrap Africa.i loved working with this sketch - i turned the sketch 90 degrees so i could use portrait photos. for my background i used a stencil and inked through it using distress ink and an applicator tool. i moved the stencil and kept inking to create darker and lighter areas. love how it turned out. for my patterned paper i used scraps of Kaisercraft paper, some Prima word stickers, buttons, diamante and sewing.

as a focal accent i used one of my die-cut felt hearts cut on my Cuttlebug - yes it cuts felt perfectly - and scrunched up some gold thread underneath it. the heart hold the thread in place with a small amount of Tombow Mono Multi adhesive, and a small cross stitch sew afterwards holds it securely in place....just to make sure. simple and elegant, perfect for a layout of a little guy reflecting on life.

head on over to Scrap Africa to see what the other design team girls did with their designs. and why not play along to win some awesome goodies.

Happy new year to everyone!here's wishing you a wonderful new year - one filled with all good things. my word for 2014 is grow - for lots of reasons. this past year was as good as it was difficult. so grow i will in many different ways. i see growth in my business, i see growth in my faith and personal relationship with God, i see growth in making it work for me, growing in confidence, to flourish in life, friendship, relations and career, to evolve and move forward from the pettiness that surrounds me. it's a positive start, a step in the right direction of growth as i set my mind on it all.

and as i grow in getting more organized and set into routines completed my cover page for my 2014 Project Life album. i am so not a green person so this was a challenge for me. but with growth comes green and life and organizing - the green paper is the inside of a Kate's Paperie bag from New York that i cut up and used. it's time to get rid of those things gathering dust and prohibiting growth and this was a good start to it all. to mix things up i added pink, red, avocado and black into the mix for fun. so now with all good intentions i am on track with my album and hope to keep it up and not fall behind. How's your album coming along?

wishing you a creative day week and year! thanks for stopping by!

why is it that guilt creeps up on us so easily..even when we try and avoid it it has a nasty way of just being there. anyways i am still trying to catch up on things, ticking of to-do lists, and trying to be creative at the same time. yet it seems that i have no energy for anything and am feeling rather flat at the moments. so no updates and no new posts on the Cuttlebug, which i promise i will finish and continue with as soon as i am caught up! 

one thing that i managed to do this weekend is paint the one bedroom wall which was actually 3 walls counting the huge *blunder* of a grey wall i conveniently or subconsciously forgot about - anyways it IS DONE! and it feels really good. it took me most of Saturday and then i did the antiquing liquid on Sunday to get rid of the "off" paint smell.

funny thing that - when you leave paint to stand for months on end it tends to go rotten and get the most horrific smell! anyways a quick stir and off we went. thankfully the strong oil smell covered the paint odour and all is well in the household again! *note to self...use paint and do not store!

after said paint and oil layer was dry i got to hang the crystals and finish off my chandelier! oh my heart is well now - and i am in love. i do think that i may have to have another one of those beauties - so save some moolah and find a spot and just maybe it may happen in this coming year.

and not to bore you too much below is a sneak peak of a design team layout i completed and uploaded

creativity = 1 messy kitchen = 0

wishing you an awesome Monday. i am trying to clean the kitchen and throw out some mismatched and odd glasses, mugs and general crap that tends to collect over time, then some creative play and writing an article! how are you keeping busy?

I know i know (guilty for being MIA)so sorry - but while real life sets in and the reality of fighting a cold while my body and mind begs me to shut down i have gotten more and more irritated with society and their lack of celebrating Christ's birth instead of buying the love of their family members with lavish gifts while other die of hunger and depression. so i am throwing myself at the mercy of my work table and playing catch up.

tip # 8 - partial embossing
i am know for using only partial stamped images, small bits of paper and images and so it's only a natural extension of this trait that i only do partial embossing using my Cuttlebug.
i will emboss only a small part of corner of my patterned paper to add texture and then add a light inking on top to accentuate the design 

this is a funky way of adding texture to only a select piece of your design.

keep in mind that you can only move your selected piece of paper so far out of your embossing folder for it to still fit into the opening of your Cuttlebug. yes i know what you are thinking - and truly i am fine with it. i often turn my paper at an angle and only emboss a small corner to add texture.

play around and experiment with this - you too will find it addictive. i promise to be back...and will complete all 25 tips - but at my own leisure - without any pressure. so thank you for hanging around and here's wishing you a wonderful and Merry Christmas.