Come dine with me...

Hi Blogland.. I know, get me... 2 posts in as many day's!! Today I want to share with you a project I have been working on for the Cuttlebug Blogspot Design Team. This weeks theme was Dinner Invitations. Specifically Thanksgiving, but due to the fact that the Current DT has quite a few international members (American, Australian, Dutch and of course us Brits!, sorry if I've missed anyone!) who don't really do thanksgiving we were given leeway to choose another type of invitation.
So here's mine...I don't know if the programme has been syndicated world wide, but here in the UK we have a TV programme called "Come Dine With Me" where a group of up to 5 complete strangers cook for each other. Each night it's someones turn and the rest visit their houses for dinner, and snoop around their house and see how they get on with each other. They vote (secretly) each night and at the end of the week someone wins £1000.. Honestly it's great viewing as some of the people are soooo pretentious and get their comeuppance from their fellow diners... Anyway, my friends and I are planning to do something like this between ourselves, not for the TV cameras obviously, just for fun.. And I thought an invitation along the theme might score me a few extra points.... So here's how I put it together..I took the plate image from the Wall Decor Cricut cartridge and welded 2 of them together using the Gypsy machine to form my base card.I'd planned on doing an Easel card so folded one of the sides in on itself.I then cut out a single plate shapeand attached it to the half folded card to form the Easel.I then cut out my dinner set, again from the Wall Decor cartridge, ooopps far too big for the base cardso I cut it out in a smaller size.
The dinner set looked great but needed something around the edge. I decided to use a Creatables die I have been meaning to use. Your die cutting machine is sooooo diverse, be it the Cuttlebug or the Big Shot as they take most manufacturers embossing folders and dies. If you fancy giving a Creatable a go here's how to use them in the CB.Take your A & B plates,add your card stock and dies, cutting side down.Add your C plate and pass through your machine.
Once cut, turn the die over with the cut out image still inside it. You know, just like a nestie (Nestabilitie). This time we are going to emboss the die...Now, add your NEW TOY ALERT!!! NO Shims Required Mat!! yep that's right, this mat does what it says on the tin, well cellophane packaging actually. This slightly thicker tan mat negates the need to keep on adding scrap bits of card stock (shims) when embossing. If you are anything like me I usually grab the first piece of card which comes to hand which is probably a piece I am working on and of good quality and therefore quite expensive just to use as a shim.This time, finish off with your B plate and pass through the machine to emboss your die.This was attached to the card with the dinner set,and remember earlier when I cut the dinner set too large for the card? The flourish from the cut out dinner plate worked perfectly for the stand of the easel.I then joined my phrase together using my Gypsy machine and the Calligraphy cartridgeand added them to the card.Voila! Bon Appetite...
I did also have time in a busy week to attempt a Thanksgiving invite.It's not my best work, but I did have fun playing around with it...
Thanks for checking us out, see you soon..
Andy.