Love and Hugs....

      Happy Friday!!   Can you believe that it's already Friday?    This week seems to have flown by and it's been a lousy week here in Massachusetts.  We've had rain and clouds for the past four days and it looks like we won't see much of any sun before Sunday...I sure hope this is not the sign of how our Summer will be.   We all look forward to warm Summer weather and no one wants a rainy Summer -  Yuk!!

       Another great part of having this wonderful hobby is that it's perfect for rainy days and today I'm back in my craft room working on more cards.  I have two now to share and both will be going off to OWH, but both were inspired by Copic Coloring challenges.

        My first card was inspired by a Copic Challenge over at SSC and sadly, we found out yesterday that SSC will be closing the group at the end of the month.   It's a group that I've been a member of for a long time, and I've met some fabulous people because of that group, so it's bittersweet to know that it will no longer exist.  I also was very sad to hear that Judy, the owner is battling with terrible health issues and that's a shame...my heart goes out to anyone who had poor health.  It's scary and it can happen to any of us at anytime...another reminder of taking things one day at a time and trying to remember to cherish each day!!

      This is my 'Teddy Hugs' card and it was created with one of the adorable digi images from Teddy Bo and Go.   I've always been a fan of images with Teddy Bears and found these cuties after seeing them on another blog.   You can find their store/blog HERE along with a gallery for inspiration -- Very Cute!!

    My Hug card is also being submitted to these challenges:

• Southern Girls Challenges - Challenge # 21 - Anything Goes
• Simply Scrapping Crafts - Copic Coloring - Color Yellow
• PaperCrafting Journey - Blog Hop and Anything Goes

  My next card is also another card that was inspired by a Copic Challenge and this one is over at 'The Outlawz', where the challenge this week is 'Anything Goes'.  I chose to make a cute little LOVE card, since that is the theme the OWH is looking for this week.   I picked out one of my Bugaboo images and this was the card that I created.

     This card is being submitted to each of the challenges and then will be sent to OWH in my next package!  

• The Outlawz Group - Copic Coloring - Anything Goes
• Stars & Stamps Blog - Operation Write Home - LOVE YOU
• Scrapbook Sisters - Challenge # 41 - Anything Goes
• Ladybug Crafts Ink - Challenge # 33 - Use Red

    And to my Favorite product of the die and it's a product I use almost every time I make a card.  It's my Cuttlebug and I love it!!   I still have one of the original lime green first editions, but it's still in great shape and even though I also now have a Grand Calibur, I find it easier to do almost all my 'embossing' in my Cuttlebug.   I also really love adding to my embossing folder collection and I have found that some of my favorites come from Stampin' Up and also from the Craft Concepts line.

     If I were starting ALL over today, there is no doubt I would by another Cuttlebug and it's a tool I would recommend for all card-makers.   The only difference is that I would choose one of the new models and I would LOVE to have a Pink one to match my Cricut Expression.

 

     Now as much as I do LOVE my Cuttlebug, I recently bought the new Cuttlebug All in One Unit along with two sets of the All in one Folders and they get a Thumbs DOWN from me.   I absolutely do NOT like them and they don't work in the way I had hoped.    I wonder if anyone actually likes them and uses them often?  Maybe I'm doing somethign wrong, but I have watched a few videos and it's pretty easy to figure out, but just is not what I had hoped it would be, which means, I'll never use them and they'll sit around taking up space.     If you have been thinking about buying one and are not sure -- my suggestion is to save your money and buy something else!   Or, if YOU really want these -- I'll be happy to sell you mine or even consider a trade!   The two sets of  Folders I have are the  Thank You and the Bloom and Grow Set and I'll happily calculate the shipping for you too!

   And that's my update for today!  I'm off now to work on some more cards and looking forward to having a very creative weekend too!!