Card Outreach and I Feel the Love Cards

Happy Tuesday, my sparkly friends! I hope everyone is having a marvelous week! Today I have a couple of things to share with you that I made for two very sweet girls. This post is a bit picture-heavy to show the contents of the petal box... and a bit long in general. But with two cards for two cancer-battling girls and a deadline tonight, there was just no other way.

The current Cooking with Cricut challenge has joined forces with my favorite part of crafting: Madison's I Feel the Love Project. They are collecting for two amazing girls and I am thrilled to have something for each of them. My sappy heart was in overdrive over the weekend as I created a card and little gift for each of them.

You all already know how important (and vital) I Feel the Love is to me. Each month the sweet and talented Madison highlights a particular person, family, or organization in need of an extra burst of love and sunshine. In turn, we have the incredible honor of using our passion for a greater cause. This month's recipient is Emily, a lovely 6 year-old girl who is battling leukemia. She loves pink, purple, kittens, horses, and arts & crafts... I jammed them all in between her card and gift. Teehee.

"Purrfect"

I hope she gets as much joy from this card as I had while creating it. Create a Critter was used for all of the cuts. I used bright and cheery Heidi Grace papers to reflect a sunny outdoor scene. I couldn't resist sprucing up the sweet kitten's pillow... so I pleated some My Craft Spot Buttercup crinkle ribbon to symbolize ruffles of sunshiny love and added bright yellow rhinestone "sunbeams" to the trim. She's one happy kitten, immersed in God's loving warmth.

I love the yarn accessory that's part of the kitten page on the CAC cartridge, but instead made a little "ball" of yarn with Grape Fizz trendy twine. Not only is it Emily's beloved purple, but it also adds another fun textural element. Strawberry Cupcake twine was used for the kitten bows and I used Peachy Keen faces to give her and the sun some personality. :o) All twine is also from My Craft Spot.

"Wishing You Sunshine all Year Through"

For Emily's pillow box (from Art Philosophy), I used the same Heidi Grace paper as her card and wrapped it with Papertrey Ink Raspberry Fizz ribbon and Strawberry Cupcake twine. Oh the sweet sentiment... for so long I yearned for circular sentiments from Lili of the Valley. They recently had a free worldwide shipping promotion and I finally ordered one of the sets. I opted for the Dreamy Days set and am in LOVE. What better first-use than for these two girls? :o) I used a Spellbinders Lacey Circle to frame it, lightly inked with Tim Holtz Spun Sugar. Regarding the contents of this, that is the one thing left undone. Since Madison's collection runs through the end of the month, I will be filling it up this weekend with a bunch of cuts she can play with and will post it with the second card I'll be making her. Since Emily loves arts and crafts, I'll be doing a similar assortment to the pillow box of love I made sweet Trinitie last month.

The other recipient of Cooking with Cricut's challenge is a beautiful 13-year old named Patty, who is battling a rare form of cancer. She has had numerous rounds of chemotherapy, surgeries, and a stem cell transplant. Aren't you so crazy proud of her? I wish I could hug all of these people we create for...

"Be Unique, Be Unforgettable, Be You"

After much debate, I made Patty a purse from Create a Critter. I wanted to make her an actual purse, but I lacked the proper supplies. :( Hopefully she likes this purse-shaped card. :o) It's a pretty pink plaid because Patty is wearing pink in the picture of her that was posted. I gave it a fun pom-pom trim, which is one of my favorite things. To personalize it and make it especially for her, I made her a "P" logo and tucked it just beneath the pom trim. The heart base and frame layers are from Gypsy Wanderings. Her initial is from Storybook, which I accented with rhinestones. The purse closure is made of Art Philosophy flower cuts, a shimmery button, and a Blossom twine bow.

The wonderful Whimsical Designs sentiment is from the Whimsical Fun~ Volume 1 stamp set. It's "secured" with Strawberry Cupcake twine and I finished the purse by adding three tiny rhinestones on either end of the handle. When I debate between brads and rhinestones, the sparkly option will always win out. ;)

"Wishing You a Day Full of Happiness"

Do you think Patty likes wonky bows? I sure hope so. ;) (Although I will try to fix that before I mail it out.) I made her a petal box from the Art Philosophy cartridge, wrapped it in pretty ribbon that she can just slide off, and used another one of the beautiful Lili of the Valley sentiments. I truly love all 12 that came on the sheet.

Want to see the contents? The petal box Echo Park paper provides a clue... pretty flourishes are like fluffy frosting swirls. :o)

Secured with a jump ring, I made six fun and delicious cupcakes. All of the frosting is embossed and I tried to choose a nice variety of "wrappers." But these aren't merely pretty confections. What goes with sweet cupcakes? Sweet sentiments.

"Believe That You are Wonderful"

"Believe in Your Dreams"

Each cupcake has a unique sentiment from that same coordinating set, stamped upon a lacey circle, and inked with Spun Sugar. I tied sheer pink dot ribbon to the jump ring to coordinate with the petal box. I hope and pray that Patty and Emily smile upon receiving their little gifts. :o)

Challenge entered:

 * Cooking with Cricut~ Card Outreach

Thank you for persevering through this post and for visiting me today! I hope your day sparkles with love and joy. :o)