Thursday, August 31, 2017

Collab: Chibitronics + Studio Katia



Hi everyone,

The Chibitronics and Studio Katia design teams have teamed up to bring you some fun projects. I made this card in honor of all the people in Houston who have been dealing with the Hurricane Harvey aftermath.  Even in the craziest, darkest times, there's a shining light that will lead them through this devastation.  My thoughts and prayers are with the families affected by the storm.

Here's what the card looks like:

Lights On!

Lights Off!



Materials:

About Chibitronics:
  • To learn more about Chibitronics, you can visit their website and see even more ways to use these exciting LED lights.  Some of my older card projects are posted on their craft page.  You can try out their tutorials and more advance techniques. Interested in trying it out for yourself? Check out their shop too!

About Studio Katia:
  • To learn more about Studio Katia, you can check out their website or visit their blog to see some amazing creative projects.  You can also find them on social media here: on FacebookInstagram, and Pinterest.

More Chibitronics Inspiration from Bubblegum Paper:
Have a wicked awesome day!

Christina

A note about the products used: The Chibitronics starter kit and the Studio Katia products were sent to me from both companies free of charge. I love everything I used in this project and would definitely use it again.  Thank you again for checking out this card.  

Friday, August 25, 2017

Collab: Chibitronics + Newton's Nook



Hi everyone,

It's been a while since I've made a card and I'll explain more in a future post.  But for today, I am so excited to be a part of another fun Chibitronics Collaboration.  This week the Chibitronics and Newton's Nook design teams have teamed up to bring you some fun projects.  I'm using this fun Cocktail Mixer stamp set.  After all it's a Happy Fri-YAY, right?!?

Here's what the card looks like:


Lights on!

Lights off!


Materials:

GIVEAWAY!

Now there's something in it for YOU too!  There will be a $30 store credit for Newton's Nook and a Chibitronics starter kit (valued at $30) given away randomly to two winners drawn from comments across all days and all blogs.  So the more you visit and comment, the better your chances of winning.  So check out the posts on the Chibitronics blog here and the Newtons' Nook blog here.


About Chibitronics:
  • To learn more about Chibitronics, you can visit their website and see even more ways to use these exciting LED lights.  Some of my older card projects are posted on their craft page.  You can try out their tutorials and more advance techniques. Interested in trying it out for yourself?  Check out their shop too!

About Newton's Nook:

More Chibitronics Inspiration from Bubblegum Paper:
Have a wicked awesome day!

Christina

A note about the products used: The Chibitronics starter kit and the Newton's Nook products were sent to me from both companies free of charge. I love everything I used in this project and would definitely use it again.  Thank you again for checking out this card.  



Wednesday, May 24, 2017

Collab: Chibitronics + Lawn Fawn

Hi everyone,

I am so excited to participate in a fun collaboraton! This week the Chibitronics and Lawn Fawn design teams have teamed up to bring you some fun projects.  I'm using this fun Wonderful Window die cut and Love Letters stamps in today's card.

Here's what the card looks like:



Materials:

GIVEAWAY!

Now there's something in it for YOU too!  There will be a $30 Lawn Fawn gift card and a Chibitronics starter kit (valued at $30) given away randomly to two winners drawn from comments across alll days and all blogs.  So the more you visit and comment, the better your chances of winning.  So check out the posts on the Chibitronics blog here and the Lawn Fawn blog here.


About Chibitronics:
  • To learn more about Chibitronics, you can visit their website and see even more ways to use these exciting LED lights.  Some of my older card projects are posted on their craft page.  You can try out their tutorials and more advance techniques. Interested in trying it out for yourself?  Check out their shop too!

About Lawn Fawn:

More Chibitronics Inspiration from Bubblegum Paper:
Have a wicked awesome day!

Christina

A note about the products used: The Chibitronics starter kit and the Lawn Fawn products were sent to me from both companies free of charge. I was given a gift certificate to select which products to showcase, so I definitely like everything I used in this project and would definitely use it again.  Thank you again for checking out this card.  

Sunday, May 14, 2017

Happy Mother's Day, Ma! | Mama Elephant, My Favorite Things, Simon Says Stamp, Lawn Fawn

Hello everyone!

Happy Mother's Day to all the mother's out there, especially my very own Mama.  I hope you are enjoying a nice, relaxing bright Mother's Day.  Here's a quick Mother's Day card I made for my Ma:

This card was actually inspired by Mama's First Selfie photo that we took a few years ago when my brother and I were visiting our hometown for a belated surprise birthday trip for my mom.  We went for a walk in the local park and decided to introduce my mom to selfie photos.  She doesn't like having her photo taken... but in this photos, she's like a celebrity in disguise wearing a hat and sunglasses.  


This card features the Mama Elephant Photo Bomb stamp set which almost matches the photo.  I also incorporated a tag from the My Favorite Things Tag Builder die set, the Heart Breeze die cut from Simon Says Stamp and the Happy Happy Happy stamp set from Lawn Fawn.

Here's a video tutorial on how I made the card.  Hope you like it!  You can also find other card tutorial videos on my Bubblegum Paper YouTube channel.

Click image to watch this video on YouTube!

Happy Mother's Day!
Christina



Sunday, December 25, 2016

Merry Christmas! Full 2016 "25 Cards in 25 Days" Recap

Hi everyone!

Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas!  I hope you are all enjoying this holiday season and spending time with those who matter most.  I am very grateful and lucky to be surrounded by family and friends this holiday season and plan to cherish each day.

If you've been following my blog for the past few years, you know that I typically do a Countdown to Christmas "25 Cards in 25 Days" holiday card series.  Well, this year is no different... except for the fact that I decided to bring the series to my Bubblegum Paper YouTube channel instead of posting on my blog each day.  I know many of you subscribe to my channel and follow me there, so I hope you've had a chance to see some of the cards from the series this year.  However, since the original series launched here on my blog, I felt it was necessary to recap all the cards in one GIANT blog post... so here we go!

You can find the link to the full playlist of all 25 videos on YouTube here.

Note: for materials used and directions for each card, please watch the corresponding videos on YouTube by clicking on the images.

Card #1 | Mama Elephant: I kicked off the series with two new products from Mama Elephant: Pix's Happy Holiday and Wooly Winter stamp sets.  These proved to be very popular stamp sets throughout the series.

 Card #1 | Mama Elephant
Card #1 | Mama Elephant

Card #2 | Lawn Fawn: I then headed "Home for the Holidays" with Lawn Fawn.  I didn't really go home... in fact, I haven't been home all year.  This is probably the first calendar year in my life that I haven't been back home (due to health reasons).  Luckily, my family was able to come to California.

Card #2 | Lawn Fawn
Card #3 | Lawn Fawn: This day happened to be my aunt's birthday, so I combined the holiday cards with a "Season's Tweetings" message to wish her a happy birthday.

Card #3 | Lawn Fawn
Card #4 | Simon Says Stamp: Occasionally a sketch out an idea and then it takes a turn or gets "improvised" during the creation process.  That's what happened in Day 4, so I ended up with not one, but two cards.

Card #4 | Simon Says Stamp
Card #5 | Avery Elle: Once again, reindeer seemed to be popular throughout the series. I incorporated reindeer from various stamp companies, this first of which was Avery Elle and their North Pole Pals stamp set.

Card #5 | Avery Elle
Card #6 | Mama Elephant: Feliz Navidad! This card contains another one of my random stories.  My friends and I love singing Feliz Navidad whenever we hear it on the radio.

Card #6 | Mama Elephant
Card #7 | Simon Says Stamp + Mama Elephant: This was one of my more elaborate card creations because it was a POP-UP card!  My favorite Lunar Animals stamps from Mama Elephant made their holiday debut in this fun pop-up card dedicated to my aunt and uncle who were celebrating their birthdays.  Yes, this too was another "story" card.

Card #7 | Simon Says Stamp + Mama Elephant
Card #8 | Mama Elephant: This card started with a simple sketch and ended up becoming one of my favorites of the series.  Perhaps it's because I absolutely love the Pix bunny character from Mama Elephant... and pink and purple never cease to amaze me.

Card #8 | Mama Elephant
Card #9 | Lawn Fawn + Avery Elle: I changed it up a bit and made three Christmas tags using a combination of stamps from Lawn Fawn and Avery Elle.  The scripty Merriest sentiments from Avery Elle are so cool!

Card #9 | Lawn Fawn + Avery Elle
Card #10 | Lawn Fawn + Avery Elle: This was a new technique I decided try with the Avery Elle Santa Stamps and Dies from their "North Pole Pals" stamp set.  I used the coordinating die to make a window.  This card, was the first of many that could be considered "quick and easy" for making multiple sets.

Card #10 | Lawn Fawn + Avery Elle
Card #11 | Taylored Expressions: I went with an elegant holiday card incorporating the Taylored Expressions Shade Tree cutting plate with some blue and silver glitter paper.  I was channeling my inner Frozen theme that day.

Card #11 | Taylored Expressions
Card #12 | Lawn Fawn: This was the first appearance of the Lawn Fawn Penguins.  I'm surprised I didn't use them more often, but they were fun to color nonetheless.  I did manage to use the "Snow Cool" stamp set a few times in the series.

Card #12 | Lawn Fawn 
Card #13 | Concord & 9th + Simon Says Stamp: This card was one of the cards I sketched early in the series because I was sooooo excited to figure out how the Take a Bough dies from Concord & 9th worked.  It took my a little longer than I expected to make the card, but it was so much fun and now I can replicate the card in record time.

Card #13 | Concord & 9th + Simon Says Stamp
Card #14 | Mama Elephant + Doodlebug Design: My Simon Says Stamp December 2016 card kit came earlier in December, so I decided to crack it open for this card.  Once I saw the super cute Doodlebug Design products and Mailbox Doodle Pops, I knew I had to combine it with the Mama Elephant "Incoming Mail" stamp set.

Card #14 | Mama Elephant + Doodlebug Design
Card #15 | Lawn Fawn: I mixed it up again and instead of creating a standard A2 greeting card, I made two different mini gift cards with matching envelopes. I used the Oh Snap and Cheery Christmas stamp sets from Lawn Fawn along with the gift card envelope die from The Stamps of Life.

Card #15 | Lawn Fawn
Card #16 | Simon Says Stamp: I started falling behind schedule with work and everything, so I needed a quick and easy card to help me close the gap.  The deco tree dies from Simon Says Stamp were perfect for this occasion.

Card #16 | Simon Says Stamp
Card #17 | Mama Elephant: This card also served as a quick and easy card and helped me close the gap on my backlog of cards, but it also served as a mini teaser to Card #18 which also featured the Reindeer Games stamp set from Mama Elephant.

Card #17 | Mama Elephant
Card #18 | Mama Elephant + Lawn Fawn: This was an interactive SPINNING card.  I sketched the original idea for this card back in October when the Mama Elephant Wooly Winter stamp set was first released.  I knew I wanted to incorporate the little wanna-be-reindeer lamb with the reindeer from last year's Reindeer Games stamp set.  The result: this spinning card that was super fun to make.  I laugh every time I see the little lamb's red nose!

Card #18 | Mama Elephant + Lawn Fawn
Card #19 | Mama Elephant + Lawn Fawn: In case you haven't noticed, I tend to use a lot of Mama Elephant and Lawn Fawn products.  They go great together and their little stamp characters are always so cute.  For this card, I use the Mama Elephant Playful Pups stamp set and paired it with some holiday accessories from Lawn Fawn.

Card #19 | Mama Elephant + Lawn Fawn 
Card #20 | Lawn Fawn: It's hard to believe that it took me a full 20 cards to make my first shaker card of the series!! There were so many times before Card #20 that I said to myself, "oh, I can turn this into a shaker card."  Given the amount of foam adhesive I used in each card, multiple shaker cards was definitely possible.

Card #20 | Lawn Fawn
Card #21 | Simon Says Stamp: I turned to the Simon Says Stamp card kit once again to make this super easy no die-cutting card.  Stamp masking is a technique I typically use whenever I don't have coordinating dies for a given stamp set.  That's why you see me using this with a lot of Simon Says Stamp stamp sets because they come in a card kit, typically without coordinating dies.

Card #21 | Simon Says Stamp
Card #22 | Paper Smooches: Once again I was falling behind in my video posts, so I needed a quick and easy card to help me get back on track.  These stockings dies from Paper Smooches came to the rescue!

Card #22 | Paper Smooches
Card #23 | Mama Elephant: For my last few cards, I had to make them ahead of time because I was heading out of town but I wanted to have some kind of story or theme with each one.  So I figured I would make one that represented me and my boyfriend, one for my family and one with Bubblegum.  This is the card that incorporates me (rabbit) and Rob (mouse) and it also includes two of my very favorite stamp sets from Mama Elephant.

Card #23 | Mama Elephant
Card #24 | WPlus9 + Mama Elephant: This card is a greeting from my family to yours.  I used the WPlus9 garden buddies (one of my few stamps sets with people) and incorporated some snapshots of my family.

Card #24 | WPlus9 + Mama Elephant
Card #25 | My Favorite Things + Mama Elephant: For my final card, I am once again incorporating some kind of Bubblegum theme.  This year, I chose the Gumball Machine die from My Favorite Things.  This card is dedicated to all of you... my blog and YouTube subscribers.  Thank you for your support and feedback throughout my crafting journey.  I appreciate it sooooo much!

Card #25 | My Favorite Things + Mama Elephant
So, I wasn't kidding when I said "Giant Recap" right?  That completes 25 Cards in 25 Days for 2016.  I wish you all the very best in the coming New Year!  See you in 2017!

Best,
Christina

Wednesday, November 23, 2016

Fall Frugal Fun: Thanksgiving Favors, Place Cards and More!

Hi everyone,

It's hard to believe the holidays are here!  The local radio station just started playing holiday music 24/7... that's when you know Thanksgiving is right around the corner.  And you know what that means: FOOD, FAMILY and FUN!

When I was younger, our family would typically drive down to New Jersey and spend Thanksgiving at my aunt's house.  We would have an amazing weekend of eating.  Thanksgiving dinner typically consisted of half "American" and half "Chinese" food.  Occasionally we would experiment with different food discoveries.  One year, I went back and wanted to show of my sushi making skills and tried to make sushi for the whole family.  Only, I misread the recipe and added a cup of vinegar to the rice instead of a tablespoon. As a result we had a lot of vinegar flavored rice to use up that weekend!

After Thanksgiving Day, we would get up bright and early and head to the outlet malls for some fun shopping excursions, fighting the insane crowds and cars.  We set out in multiple cars, had different meeting times and locations and went off on our own to shop.  I'm always impressed that we were able to make this happen and not get lost. After all, this was the era before we all had cell phones!

But the holiday season doesn't necessarily mean we need to spend a ton of money.  I'm here today with a few easy DIY Thanksgiving decorating ideas that are fun for the whole family to make. Consider these projects "frugal fun" ways to use up any scraps you have lying around.  And, if you're interested in tips to help you stay on budget this holiday season, check out these free financial tools from Personal Capital.

First up: Party Favor Boxes.  You can fill them with candy and other treats!

I used the Mama Elephant Gable Boxes and one sheet of 12x12 patterned paper to make these two party favor boxes.  It's so easy and fun.  I decorated the front with an embossed "thanks" from the Simon Says Stamp Thankful Hearts stamp set and paired that with some scrap patterned paper.

Next, I have place cards.  These are so easy to make!

I used the same patterned paper as the paper I used for the gable boxes, cut them into 3.5"W x 4.25"H rectangles and folded them in half.  I used the same rectangle die from the Gable Boxes and cut out scraps of orange and green paper.  I stamped "Mama" and "Baba" in gold ink using the Mama Elephant Calli Letters stamp set.  You could easily just write the names by hand.  I finished them with decorative leaf stickers from my ever-growing sticker collection.  This pack of 18 clear glitter stickers was only $1 from Hobby Lobby!

Lastly, I made a few napkin rings with my remaining scrap paper.


I punched two circles from the same scrap paper, added the stickers and wrapped a ring around the napkins with the leafy patterned paper I used for the favor boxes and the place cards.  

In addition to these projects, there are so many other DIY projects you can make for the holidays.  Banners, thankful/gratitude cards, food labels for parties... the key is to have fun and get the whole family involved.  It's all about the fun and you don't have to spend a lot of money.  Just search the house for different scraps you have lying around and make something creative!

Happy Thanksgiving!  Gobble Gobble!

Monday, November 14, 2016

Card Series: One Kit - Five Cards | Doodlebug Design | Under the Sea

Hi everyone,

Given all the recent events happening IRL (in real life), I've turned to my happy place... card making. I also haven't posted a video on my YouTube channel in a while, so this weekend, I posted a series of card videos where I use one kit and make five different cards.

The original inspiration for this project came a few weeks ago as I was preparing for my much needed vacation to Hawaii.  I was so excited and thought it would be fun to create a bunch of cards for each day while I was in Hawaii.  Well, guess what?  I didn't make any videos or do much of anything while I was on vacation.  In the days leading to vacation I was busy with work and packing and just getting everything in order.  Do you ever clean the house before you leave for vacation?  For some reason, I like do tidy up before I go... or at least try to tidy.  I had grand plans of writing blog posts and editing videos while on my trip... but guess what?  I didn't.  I spent most of my vacation eating yummy food, relaxing, spending time with fun people and experiencing once in a lifetime adventures, like watching lava flow straight into the ocean at 5am.

Okay, back to this card series.  With the ocean, beach, Hawaii them in mind, I decided to use this super cute Doodlebug Design Under the Sea Collection Essentials Kit.  If you're not familiar with Doodlebug Design, they make the happiest, brightest, cutest designs, characters and patterns.  Everything coordinates.  Everything is just ever-so-cheerful!  This kit is no different!

Here are images of the five cards I created (well, 6 really) and a BONUS plan with me video.  I also posted tutorial process videos on my Bubblegum Paper YouTube Channel.  You can see the entire playlist here or click on each image below to go directly to the corresponding process video on YouTube.

Card 1: Hugs - Click to see this card on YouTube
Card 2: Peace - Click to see this card on YouTube
Card 3: Aloha - Click to see this card on YouTube
Card 4: Love - Click to see this card on YouTube
Card 5: Happiness - Click to see this card on YouTube
BONUS: Plan with Me Planner Video - Click to see this card on YouTube

Hope you enjoy watching the videos and I'll be back soon with more projects!

Christina