Hugs & Kisses For All - Favor Cake

This gorgeous cake is entirely made of paper, well... it has a chocolate center if that counts!  I needed to come up with something fabulous for Kyler's Christening favors and I wanted to make it special.  So I started creating these cake slices...one thing led to another and I ended up with a beautiful 3 layer cake with some cupcakes gathered at the base (possibly looks like a 4th layer?).  Whenever I'm working on a project I usually don't have my entire project mapped out ahead of me, maybe I have a general idea of what I want to do and then just let creativity take over. 

 Both the cake slice box and the cupcake box were cut from the Eclips Albums, Bags & Boxes #2 cartridge.  I cut the cake slices in two different sizes to get the layered cake effect and then topped it with one of the cupcakes.

  Each one has is filled with HUGS & KISSES from baby Kyler!!!

I have always loved Penny Duncan's creations and she had just the perfect cross for this occasion. And, of course I had to dress up those sweet little cupcakes! I used the Flower Burst punch from EK Success to adorn the all the sides.  A perfect fit! 

The flowers on this cake were all cut with the Eclips using the Albums, Bags & Boxes #2 cartridge.  I liked that I could cut the flower at a variety of sizes to give them a more natural and nonuniform shape.  That is as natural as blue flowers can be.  I cut them all from white card stock and then sprayed them with my homemade shimmer mist.  Once all my flowers were cut, I rolled them while zoning out in front of the TV.  A quick spritz of water before shaping helps soften the paper making it easy to mold just how you want, even on the tiniest of flowers. 

I just love how this favor cake turned out.  I see making many more in the future!  So many ideas running through my head...the wheels are spinning... 

Don't worry there will be a video coming in the very, very near future on how exactly I made this.  I just wanted to share the pics right away with you.  But I promise you it will be coming :)

Introduction to the Eclips

I want to introduce you to the Eclips by Sizzix.  I know many of you have been looking for a die cut machine that is compatible with third party software like Sure Cuts A Lot.  At CHA Summer in July, Sizzix and SCAL announcethat will be exclusively compatible with the Sizzix eclips machine. d that they are working together to launch a new version of the very popular SCAL software With the unique features and capabilities of the eclips machine, it is necessary to develop a “stand alone” software solution that allows the user to leverage such machine features as scoring, laser cut preview and others, which are not available on other consumer electronic cutters. This software is in the beta test phase and is anticipated to be available at a special price for consumers to purchase at their favorite Sizzix retailer in October of 2011. Watch for more details coming soon. 

This first video tutorial shows you some of the basic features of the machine...there are many!  I was pleasantly surprised to find that it was so easy to learn how to maneuver through the menus to find just what I was looking for.  There are even some surprises hidden in the embellishment section of some of the items.  I will talk more about this in my next time. This is the first in a series of videos I will be doing as I learn about the Eclips and it's possibilities.  My next video will feature scoring.  You don't want to miss that one.  I'm working on a very special project that is awesome, if I say so myself.  LOL   For now ENJOY the video!

Love Birds Anniversary Card

 My husband and I are celebrating our anniversary today!  15 magical years together!  We've been through a lot together but our love continues to grow stronger every day.  Through the years we have grown even closer, finding that we share even more in common than we had originally though.  We are truly soul mates.  Enough about our mushy stuff, on with my project...  I've been exploring my new Eclips.  And am really impressed with it.  I will be doing a tutorial (later this week) showing some of the great features.  I created this Anniversary card using the Card Front cartridge.

The card stock I used was a shimmer paper by DCWV. I like how detailed the cuts are. For the second flap, behind the birds, I inserted a piece of white cardstock that I inked a bit to make look like the sky. I wanted to have it shadow a bit so the scrolls and birds stood out. I love how you are able to choose which pieces you wish to cut, and are able to see them all on the screen. It also has an envelope that you can cut to fit your card. I think it turned out fabulous! My husband thought so too.