Doing the Dash for May Arts...

I always seem to like to challenge myself to the almost impossible when I start my 10 Minute Craft Dash!

This week I managed to JUST squeak in at 9 minutes 55 seconds - I had a last second panic because I had forgotten to stamp my sentiment, so I risked stamping after it was all assembled, luckily it paid off with 5 seconds to spare!  I need to be super, super organised before I start my timer - a clear picture in my mind of what my card will look like (or at the very least a sketch), the papers, cardstock & extras close at hand, my craft space tidy, all the tools I know (or think) I'll need handy.  I usually set up my Cuttlebug on the floor next to me so it doesn't take up valuable real estate on the table LOL.  First thing I do is cut all my cardstock and patterned paper to size and create my card base.  This week my scalloped circle was created using a punch - a much more time effective option than the Cuttlebug, but you are restricted by its size.  To save time, and because I knew I only needed part of my grass die-cut, I did not roll the last inch or so of my diecut through the machine - this meant it was MUCH easier to remove the die-cut grass from the die.  I glue penned my tree foliage to my kraft cardstock before I die-cut the tree trunk, so it was perfectly aligned and adhered with only one die-cut cut needed.  I knew I wanted the tree trunk longer than the die cut, so I just elongated my tree trunk cut out using scissors.  Perfect for playing along at Emphasise the Negative Challenge at Moxie Fab World too.  I stamped my deer onto a spare piece of the woodgrain patterned paper before fussy cutting.  The whole time I was cutting I was thinking - it would have been much faster to stamp this little guy onto the kraft cardstock, but once I had those scissors in my hand there was no stopping me!  A glue pen is super handy & super quick for sticking down all those fiddly bits in a hurry, and as always I peel the backing from my foam tape roll before I cut to it size to pop-dot my card.

Hope this weeks 10 Minute Craft Dash Challenge inspires you to give it a try, 

especially with a FAB ribbon pack from May Arts up for grabs!

 

Playing along with this weeks Simon Says Stamp A Bit 'o Green Challenge too.