Here's One For The Birds

(Click on any photo to view a larger image.)

I've been on a bit of a birdhouse fad lately. In my last post, I wrote about a birthday card I made with an image of a birdhouse on it. Here I'm featuring some wooden birdhouses that I have painted and embellished to use as home decor in my mountain house.

It seems as if I've been seeing birdhouses all over the place. Well, actually I've always seen them but never paid much attention until recently. The birdhouse motif is a frequent sight on the back roads of upstate New York where they decorate mailboxes, front doors and wreaths. I suppose the allure of country living has given me the birdhouse bug.


Here are photos of the birdhouses I have done to date. The blue and green ones in the center photo were painted last year. (Then they just sat on a shelf in my craft room overlooking my work table, whispering that they wanted some company.) The larger of the two is decorated with paper die cuts that were featured in Part II and Part III of my most popular post, the Cuttlebug Filigree Medallion tutorial, By combining the negative cutout pieces, I created the design on the front and back of this birdhouse. On the sides are the pieces from which the negative spaces were cut. The smaller birdhouse is actually made in 1:1 scale for miniature dollhouses. You can get an idea how small it is by comparing it with the size of the dime in front of it. This house was a little to small to embellish with paint or paper cutouts so I used nail art decals instead. They worked like a charm

The black and red birdhouse at the top also features die cut designs from the very same Cuttlebug die as the blue-mint green house. Here only the tiniest of the cut outs were used to create the black design under the tiny red hearts. The hearts themselves were left over from a project I made for my sister and brother in law's 30th anniversary surprise.

The yellow and green house at bottom is not to be outdone. It also sports decorative die cut flowers with rhinestone centers resting on a delicate vine twining around the outside of the house. The flowers were burnished slightly to cup the petals so they would pop up and have some depth. All of the birdhouses were painted with acrylic paints and sealed with Mod Podge before and after painting.

I still have one more wooden birdhouse on my craft table. I don't know what I'll do with that yet but I'll be sure to show it to you when it's done. Until then, keep crafting!

Ballo ergo sum
- Gitana, the Creative Diva

Reprise of a Winning Post

(Click on photo to view a larger image.)

Once again I find myself so firmly caught in day-to-day affairs that I haven't had the time to post to my blog and with the current spate of holiday activities in full swing it may be a little while before I'm able to post again. To help fill some of the void I have decided to re-run a three part Cuttlebug tutorial series I posted in early 2009 that enjoyed quite a bit of attention from many crafters. Here is the link to the first of these posts. Links to the second and third part of the tutorial are included in the post.

I hope you enjoy discovering the many possibilities in using the Cuttlebug Vintage die set as much as I enjoyed creating this tutorial. It was a lot of fun. And please leave a comment or two. I'd love to hear from you.

Ballo ergo sum
- Gitana, the Creative Diva

Tri-Shutter Card

(Note: Click on an image for a larger view)

One of the crafts groups I belong to offers a weekly layout challenge where its members are invited to create a card according to a featured layout. This week's challenge is called a tri-shutter card, an interesting bit of paper engineering that offers myriad possibilities for decorating. Splitcoast Stampers has a great tutorial for this card and you can see it here.

For my first attempt I created a card for my daughter's friend who has been like family to her during their first summer as camp counselors. I was told the young miss prefers "red and green, like Christmas" as her colors of choice so, armed with that information, I began to create. After staring blankly at the paper for an eternity this is what I came up. After all was said and done, I liked it.

The embossed textures and large flowers were done with Cuttlebug folders and dies. The ovals on the front were cut with Nestabilities dies. It is difficult to see from the photo but the red scalloped oval is flocked, giving it a velvety texture. That was achieved with Fun Flock. It is embellished with self-adhesive rhinestones that I picked up at a local 99 cent store. My thanks to Annette Warkentin at About Art Accents for the sentiment stamp which I received as a generous freebie from her. (She's got beautiful stamps and other goodies at her site. Definitely check it out.)

The smaller flowers and leaves were cut with the Empunchlar hand punch system (I don't recommend this particular punch as it has limited functionality). The swirls and flourishes were hand-drawn with gel pens.

Now that I have cut my teeth on this particular layout, I think I will create another one and submit it to the weekly challenge. That one has to have an Asian theme so this red/green card doesn't qualify. No matter, I'll just have to start crafting again. Yippee!

Ballo ergo sum
- Gitana, the Creative Diva

Asian Influence

(Note: Click on an image for a larger view)
I have always had an affinity for Asian cultures, especially Asian decorative motifs. I recently joined the Oriental Stamp Arts Yahoo group (OSA) and have been inspired by the beautiful artwork created by its members. This week I have begun working on Mother's Day cards with a decidedly Asian flavor.

The first card began with a self-imposed challenge to use a Cuttlebug® die to create something other than for what it was intended . Using the 4-pointed blossom from Cuttlebug's 2x6 Flower die #37-1508 (indicated with a red arrow in the illustration at left), I cut several flowers from a green-gold iridescent vellum, then used the inner cut-outs as leaves for the stylized tree. (I'll save the flower petals for another project.) I also punched small blossoms from the CB 2-step Paisley die in gold foil, then drew in a slender trunk and branches for the tree. An elegant Asian woman was stamped under the tree and colored with water color pencils. The card appeared to lack something so I began to draw in some details by hand and didn't stop until I had created an entire background scene. Two hand fans were stamped on the inside front of the card, also colored with water color pencils. The edge was colored with a marker, deliberately dragging it to give a ragged appearance. This card is a departure from my usual style in that it has very few layers (only two -- leaves and blossoms) and is predominantly hand drawn.

The second card is a variation of a prize winning ATC design I created for a vendor challenge some time ago. I'll give the details of its construction in the next posting.

Thanks for stopping by. I'd love to hear what you think of this post. Please feel free to leave a comment. Thanks.


Ballo ergo sum
- Gitana, the Creative Diva

(Cuttlebug is a registered trademark of Provo Craft and Novelty, Inc. All rights reserved.)

A Short Hiatus

I've been very busy with home-related issues as well as preparing for an upcoming vacation. As a result, I haven't been able to do very much crafting nor will I be able to for the next couple of weeks. In the meantime things will be very quiet here at The Creative Diva. However I do hope to be able to play catch up once I return from Mexico. I have a few ideas for a new Cuttlebug tutorial and I've joined some great swap and challenge groups that promise to be very inspiring. Until then, keep those hands busy creating beauty.


Ballo ergo sum
- Gitana, the Creative Diva

Cuttlebug Tutorial – Die Cut Configurations (Part 3 of 3)

(Note: Click on an image for a larger view)
In the last two tutorials, I showed you some simple ways of combining die cuts created with Cuttlebug ® ’s Vintage die set. I hope you’ve done a little experimenting of your own with this versatile set. As promised, I am going to show you some of the combinations possible with the two die used to create the Filigree Medallion and the Mini Medallion.

(Please note that illustrations are not to scale.)

The dies in the Cuttlebug 2x2 Vintage set do not have individual names. For the purpose of this tutorial, I will assign the following names to make identification easier:
A - Scroll Corner
B - Stained Glass Square
C - Openwork Scallop Square
D - Tulip Corner
Only dies A and B will be used for the following configurations.

By way of review, this is the scroll corner with alignment holes indicated. All of the configurations that use this piece are aligned at the holes.



By combining two corners you can create this ornate square. It is shown here in two colors for clarity.




By combining four corners you create the base of the filigree medallion demonstrated in my first CB tutorial.




This is the “negative space” cutout from the scroll corner that I call double cane. This is a wonderfully versatile piece. Note: This is a rather small piece and creating some of the designs can be very tricky. I suggest using a bent nose tweezer for placement.

Here are some of the designs you can create with double cane:










Now add a stained glass square (die "B" above) and you can get combinations like this:









Okay, I think you can see where this is going. The possibilities are limited only by your imagination. Now let's see what you've got. Show me YOUR Cuttlebug die cut creations.

Click here to go to Part I of this tutorial series.
Click here to go to Part II.

I hope you liked my CB tutorials. Please leave a comment. I would greatly appreciate it. Thanks for stopping by.

Ballo ergo sum
- Gitana, the Creative Diva

(Cuttlebug is a registered trademark of Provo Craft and Novelty, Inc. All rights reserved.)

Cuttlebug Tutorial –“Negative” Space Mini Medallion (Part 2 of 3)

(Note: Click on an image for a larger view)

I hope you liked my tutorial on the Filigree Medallion created with Cuttlebug®’s Vintage die set. I also hope you took my suggestion to save the larger cutout pieces because, as promised, I am going to show you how you can put those normally discarded pieces to creative use. Using those scraps, you will be able to create a simple motif that can be used as the basis for many others. By the end of this tutorial, you will agree that negative spaces can be positively beautiful.

The scroll corner used in the filigree medallion has a cutout that looks like two canes attached head to head (“double cane”). For the purpose of identification, I will refer to the two parts of the double cane as swirl and tail. This simple piece can be combined in so many ways that you can spend hours just contemplating the possibilities. In this tutorial we will create a mini medallion (four of them pictured above) that can be used in a variety of papercraft projects.

Materials list:
• “Vintage” 2 x 2 Cuttlebug® die set; (37-1201), scroll corner die;
• “Squares” 2 x 2 Cuttlebug® die set (37-1216, largest square) or a piece of cardstock 1 ½ inches square;
• Cuttlebug® or any other die cutting/embossing machine that accepts CB dies;
• Pencil and a soft eraser;
• Spray adhesive.

1. Punch out four of the scroll corners. Remove and save the large “double cane” cutout from each corner and set the rest aside for later use. (If you saved your pieces from the last tutorial, skip to Step 2.)

2. Punch out one 1-½ inch square with the Squares die set. If you don’t have this set, simply cut out a 1-½ inch cardstock square in a contrasting color to the double cane pieces.

3. Very lightly mark the center of each side of the square.

4. Position one double cane piece diagonally on the square, placing the tip of one tail on the center mark on one side and the other tip on the adjacent center mark. Make sure the swirls are facing the center of the square. Repeat this positioning for the remaining sides. When correctly positioned, the four double canes form four heart shapes in the center of the square. Refer to the photo above.

5. When you are satisfied with the positioning, glue the pieces down using the spray adhesive. These pieces are so slender and delicate that most other adhesives are liable to leave telltale residue. If the pencil marks are still visible, lightly erase them out with the soft eraser.

Ta-da! You’re done! You have just created a “mini medallion” using the negative spaces from the Scroll Corner die. Now it’s time to show off your creativity. Send me a picture of what you have created using what you have learned in these last two tutorials. I will create a photo album of all the entries and let you all see them.

In the next tutorial, I will show you some die cut combinations using the Vintage die set that I guarantee will blow your socks off. The possibilities are nearly endless.

Click here to go to Part I of this tutorial series.
Click here to go to Part III.

Did you like this tutorial? Please leave a comment and send me some feedback. I’d love to hear from you.

(Cuttlebug is a registered trademark of Provo Craft and Novelty, Inc. All rights reserved.)
(The individual dies in the Vintage set were given names to facilitate identification. See the Filigree Medallion tutorial for more information.)

Ballo ergo sum
- Gitana, the Creative Diva

Cuttlebug Tutorial - Filigree Medallion (Part 1 of 3)

(Note: Click on an image for a larger view)


The "Vintage" Cuttlebug® die set is very versatile and lends itself to many intricate designs. In this tutorial, you will learn how create a pretty medallion by combining various pieces in different ways. Pictured above are two ways of using the medallion –on a card front or as the main design element on a cube ornament. Use your imagination to come up with other applications.

It is important to note that not only the die cut image is useful but some of the cutout pieces (the “negative” space) are also very useful. Save the larger cutouts when you have punched out the dies. As I will show you in the next tutorial, they can lend a lot of interest to your designs.

The Vintage die set comes with two corner dies and two openwork squares. For this project we will use only two dies - the scroll corner and the stained glass openwork square. (They should be easy to distinguish from the tulip corner and the scallop square.)

Materials list:
• “Vintage” 2 x 2 Cuttlebug® die set;
• Cuttlebug® or any other die cutting/embossing machine that accepts CB dies;
• A 2½ inch square of cardstock for the background;
• A contrasting color of cardstock large enough to create the die cuts;
• Spray adhesive or tacky glue applied with an extra fine tip.

1. Punch out four of the scroll corners and one openwork square.

2. You will notice that the scroll corners have a small hole at each end of the design. Before gluing your corners to your background cardstock, place them just slightly inside the edges of the background (about 1/8”), visually aligning the hole from one scroll with the hole from the next. This alignment is important in order to fit inside the edges of the background.

3. When you are satisfied with the way it looks, glue the corners down. I like using spray adhesive for this step because it is fast, gives even coverage and doesn’t leave any telltale residue like other glues may. A fast-setting glue applied with an extra fine point or spread neatly with a pin head would also work.

4. Next, center and glue the stained glass square in place with its corners pointing to the aligned holes of the scroll corners. (Refer to the photos above.)

That’s it. You have created a beautiful filigree medallion that you can use in your crafting. I would love to see what you have created with this.

Click here to go to Part II of this tutorial series.
Click here to go to Part III.

If you are interested in knowing the details for the two items shown in the pictures above, feel free to send me an email at gypsiwoman55@yahoo.com.

(Cuttlebug is a registered trademark of Provo Craft and Novelty, Inc. All rights reserved.)


Ballo ergo sum
- Gitana, the Creative Diva