Huge Birthday Wishes and some great news to share

Hi Crafty Friends,
Here's my card for today:

I made this card for two very special reasons.  First, a good friend just celebrated her birthday and I wanted her to have one of my handmade cards.  And, secondly, it's a DESIGN TEAM card for Cut It Up Challenges!!!  That's right, I'm now a member of the  Cut It Up Challenges design team - woohoo!  

Today kicks off Challenge #70 - Paper Piecing.  Along with a die cut, you must also include paper piecing within a stamped image.
I love Cut It Up Challenge Blog because, along with following the bi-weekly challenge theme, you must include a die cut,  cut with either a manual or electronic cutter.  Well, you know I love my Cuttlebug and metal dies AND my Silhouette and Cricut, so this is the perfect new team for me.  I'll be posting every other Friday.
For my first DT project, I used the Mini Tag Dies 2 and Tropical Dies from Jaded Blossom as my die cuts.  I've had this cling stamp in my stash for a long time (sorry, I don't have the packaging that says where it came from) so I colored it up with Copic Markers and paper pieced the balloons using Doodlebug Designs paper.  The sentiment is from Jaded Blossom's Go Wild set.  A few enamel dots, some twine and doodling and that's it.
I hope you'll visit Cut It Up Challenge Blog to meet the new designers and join in the crafty fun!