Christmas in July at Live & Love Crafts!

Hello, sweet friends! I hope you're having a beautiful week. A new month means a fun new challenge at Live & Love Crafts and I'm very excited... we're celebrating Christmas in July! Most of you know Christmas is my favorite everything. :o) I hope you join us!

This will soon be on its way to a magical location. Are you familiar with Give Kids the World? It is the resort village where most Make-A-Wish families stay for their week-long Disney World adventure. This village is filled with such joy and love that it is often declared the favorite part of wish trips.

Christmas is celebrated weekly at GKTW. Every Thursday the magic of the season fills the village and hearts of all visitors. Why do they do this? For many of the wish children, it will be their last Christmas. GKTW gives families one more opportunity to make Christmas memories.

I am honored to be creating cards for the parents and children as part of their magical celebrations, Christmas and otherwise. I have been anxious to begin and am thrilled my volunteer opportunity was accepted. :o) My first card is for the parents of a wish kid, with a hope to engulf them in beauty. 

My card features lovely papers from Maja Design's Vintage Frost Basics. 3rd of December is one of my favorite snowfall patterns of any company... it's so beautifully done, in design and color. To create a wintry wonderland, Madeleine lace flutters around the sides and top of my Cheery Lynn Designs Horizon Square Boutique base, while the new Shabby Chiffon Ruffle trim serves as blanket of snow. Sunflower Pearl trim lines the ruffles, as they remind me of pristine snowflakes.

For such a lovely recipient, the Christmas tree needed to be special. Since it's outdoors, I used the snowflake paper. Each layer is trimmed with Madeleine lace and graduating pearls. The top is adorned with Shabby White Jingle Bells and a jute triple bow, while the tree trunk is made with Double Row Pearl Trim. It rests atop a Joy! Crafts Oval Frame, encircled with Pearl String. For extra softness, I layered them atop a doily.

The Cheery Lynn Snowflakes (my favorite snowflake set!) are centered with Wild Orchid Crafts roses and covered in Glamour Dust, which is also sprinkled throughout the card. Memory Box Deer Trio was used for the animal friends, which are frolicking in the snow and in front of a Joy! Crafts Fence.

The My Craft Spot sentiment (no longer produced) is from Tiny Tags Christmas, which seemed ideal for the card's destination. It is cut out with a Spellbinders Nested Lacey Pennant. It is an honor to be a small part of these extraordinary Christmas celebrations. Love heals and every card I create will be filled with an abundance.

Thank you for fluttering on by and I wish you a wonderful day!

Lovely challenges entered:

 *613 Avenue Create~ Anything Goes (Optional: Use a Pearls and/or Rose)

 *Cheery Lynn Designs~ Christmas in July

 *Christmas Card Challenges~ Anything Goes

 *Creative Inspirations~ Anything Goes (Optional: Sketch)

 *Glitter n Sparkle~ Use a Sentiment

 *Papertake Weekly~ Take Your Pick (Product: Pearl)

 *Penny's Challenge~ Anything Goes

 *Scrapy Land~ Anything Goes w/brands carried by store (I used Cheery Lynn, Memory Box, and Spellbinders dies)

 *Sparkles Christmas~ Use Ribbon, Lace, or Twine

Maja Design - Vintage Frost Basics - 1st of December	Maja Design - Vintage Frost Basics - 3rd of December	Shabby Chiffon Ruffle Trim (40mm)	Lace "Madeleine" (25mm)	Double Row Pearl Trim (10mm)
Sunflower Pearl Trim (10mm)	Pearl String, 2mm pearls	WOC Open Roses, 15mm	WOC Open Roses, 10mm	6mm Jingle Bells
Round Doilies 4.5"	DecoArt Glamour Dust	Tim Holtz Paper Distresser Tool

InLinkz.com

Vintage Love

Hello, sweet friends! I hope you're having a lovely week. I'm posting on the Live & Love Crafts blog today, where Sandy has given us the theme of "The World is my Oyster."

The theme inspired this card for my mother. In celebration of her birthday, I'm encouraging her to look up toward her future instead of how many decades have passed. The world is *still* her oyster, with plenty of dreams and love for the taking.

This is my first dabble into vintage images! They are so beautiful and make my heart flutter.

My card features lovely Maja Design papers. The majority are from Vintage Autumn Basics, which is one of my favorite collections. The color palette is stunning. I distressed my paper edges a bit, which was a first and great fun!

The Sagen vintage image from their Mix die cut sheet felt perfect for the occasion. Resin corners frame the sweet moment (and also the top of the card). I have been saving these pieces from Prima's Lace Heart collection for ages and am thrilled to finally use them. The added texture and elegance are lovely. The die cut frame is from Joy Crafts' Frame and 3 Corners.

The corner offers a glimpse into the treasures that await my mom. The rolled corner is lined with Madeleine lace, which ruffles atop pink hearts from Maja's Vintage Baby. The butterfly is from Coffee in the Arbour. A pearl heart provides an extra scoop of birthday love. The top border is Joy Crafts' Lace Edge.

Wild Orchid Crafts blooms pair with sparkling beaded pomegranate apples and decoration berries. The flowers have a touch of shimmer from Wink of Stella. Cheery Lynn Designs Mini Fanciful Flourishes scroll beneath. I triple-layered the trims, using Pleat tulle, Valerie lace, and Pearl lace with Beads. My postage stamp sentiment was created with My Craft spot dies and stamps. This was fun to create and I'm excited to give it to my dear mom in a few days. ♥

Thank you for fluttering on by! Have a sweet and sparkly day. :o)

Inspiring challenges entered:

 *613 Avenue Create~ Anything Goes 

 *Inspiration Destination~ Anything Goes

 *Lil Patch of Crafty Friends~ Anything Goes

 *Glitter n Sparkle~ One for the Ladies

 *Penny's Challenge~ Anything Goes

 *Simon Wednesday Challenge~ Anything Goes

Sagen Vintage Design - Die Cut Sheet "Mix"	Maja Design - Vintage Autumn Basics - No.II	Maja Design - Vintage Autumn Basics - No.X	Maja Design - Vintage Autumn Basics - No.V	Maja Design � Vintage Summer Basics -1921
Maja Design - Vintage Baby 6x6 Paper Stack	Maja Design - Coffee in the Arbour 6x6 Paper Stack	Maya Road Tulle Pleat Trim (43mm)	Lace "Valérie" (21mm)	Pearl Lace with Beads
Lace "Madeleine" (25mm)	WOC Wild Roses, 30mm	WOC Open Roses, 20mm	WOC Open Roses, 15mm	WOC Open Roses, 10mm
WOC Lilies	WOC Sweetheart Blossoms	Pomegranate Apples	Decoration Berries	Prima Shabby Chic Resin Treasures - Lace Heart & Corners
Pearl Hearts	Tim Holtz Distress Ink Pads	Inkssentials Ink Blending Tool	Tim Holtz Paper Distresser Tool

InLinkz.com

Sprinkled with Love

Hello, sweet friends! I hope you're having a sparkly day. :o)

Last week I mentioned the precious family I found via a Prayer Page while looking for kiddos to pray for. My heart was guided to create for them. I'm happiest using my paper passion to bring love and sunshine to those in need. First I made a card for her parents (found HERE), which I hope they love as much as you all did.

Today I have my card for sweet Audrey, the precious 1.5-year-old child who is battling an abundance of serious health issues... and has been since she was born. It is heartbreaking.

Her beautiful eyes are unable to be opened right now, as she is on a form of life support to help her body heal from some of her health conditions. I wanted something extra bright and cheerful to greet her when she awakes:

The moment I saw this rainbow shaped card cut file on Cardmaking Paradise, I had to make it for Audrey. She endures so much, but I truly believe her rainbow is coming. This is a tangible declaration of it. :o) I wish my pictures were better, but I think the love still shines through.

My papers are from various Doodlebug Designs collections. Wee ones like her love color and patterns, so I used an assortment. My sentiment is from Whimsical Designs, which I stamped upon a sunbeam-filled paper and cut it out with a Spellbinders Nested Lacy Pennant. The enamel dot accents are from Doodlebug's spring assortment.

My sprinkles of love are made with the Memory Box Precious Hearts, which hang from Strawberry Cupcake Trendy Twine. Rather than a simple embossed cloud, I opted to fill it with rainbow butterflies. :o) During these terrifyingly dark days, divine transformation is happening within her. The sun was made with My Craft Spot's Lacy Banners, as I felt a peek of sunshine made this even happier.

The interior is just pink (pure pink love!), so as not to interfere with the patterns when viewed from an angle. I love this little girl with all of my heart and I pray this brings a smile to her fighting heart.

If you want to support this family and follow Audrey's journey, her Facebook prayer page is Audrey's Army. She is approaching 10K prayer warriors and I am honored to be one of them! Want to know something fun? Unbeknownst to me at first, this little angel is just down the road from me. It's nice to bless someone in my area. :o)

Thank you for visiting! I wish you a sunshiny day. :o)

Wonderful challenges entered:
 *613 Avenue Create~ Anything Goes (Optional:Create Your Own) I used at least one from each column!
 *Crafty Boots~ Butterflies
 *DL.Art Thankful Thursday~ January Linky Party (Anything Goes)
 *Make My Monday~ Bright and Cheery Colors
 *Penny's Paper-Crafty Challenge~ Anything Goes
 *Simon Says Stamp~ Anything Goes
 *Through the Craft Room Door~ Anything Goes
 *WordArt Wednesday~ Encouraging/Uplifting sentiment