Buenos díaaaaaaas! Welcome to the Cinco de Mayo Blog Hop hosted by the sweet & talented Abby {Scrapbookaholic by Abby}. If you just dropped in from Abby’s blog, then you’re in the right spot. If not, be sure to jump over there first so you don’t miss her projects and the prizes up for grabs! Thanks so much for inviting me to be a part of this, Abby!!

Did you know that Cinco de Mayo is celebrated more in the USA than in Mexico itself? And it’s common for people to think it’s Mexico’s Independence Day, but it’s really not! It’s the day Mexico won the Battle of Puebla against French forces. It’s a fun holiday for us to celebrate our Mexican heritage, and much like St. Patty’s Day for Irish descendants, I think it’s safe to say “Everybody’s Mexican on Cinco de Mayo!” ;)

My dad was born and spent the first part of his childhood in Guadalajara, Mexico and I’ve always felt tremendous pride in my family’s traditions, language, and the Mexican-American culture.

But what I LOVE about my heritage the most is the art. Walking into the small shops in L.A. – or closer to me – the National Museum of Mexican Art in Chicago always brings me to tears. It’s silly, right, because I should be enjoying it – but that’s how MUCH I enjoy it. The beauty overwhelms me. I collect Talavera pottery, Frida Kahlo-inspired art, Mexican folk art, nichos, milagros, old Calendar prints (two Jesus Helguera prints are hanging in my living room, one of them is this one), punched tin, and anything else I can get my hands on when I visit my family in California.

For my card today, I was inspired by my friend Erin’s card she made for our last Let’s Face it Friday Challenge @ Peachy Keen Stamps. I adore the way she layered border-punched pieces and placed them on her card. I tried a similar technique with mine!

Papel picado is a beautiful paper cutting technique created with chisels. I purchased the shapes for my “papel picado” banner from the Silhouette Studio store. Cutting intricate designs into the heavier cardstock was tough, but overall, I love how it turned out!

For my little chile (from the BFF’s set by Market Street Stamps), I used Versamark watermark ink and stamped our Paisley background onto green cardstock. I then pieced the top of the chile from a piece of white cardstock colored green with my Copics.

I used the same Paisley background stamp to stamp onto the yellow section of my card and used white embossing powder to bring out the design. All cardstock is Stampin’ Up and Papertrey Ink. The sentiment was handwritten and the scrumptious twine is from The Twinery.

Don’t forget to leave a comment across ALL blogs for a chance to win some Market Street Stamps {Punched Tin & BFF’s}!

Your next stop is Erika – you don’t want to miss what she created! Thanks for stopping by! xo Angelica

Abby~ http://www.scrapbookaholicbyabby.com/

Angelica~{You’re Here!}

Erika~ http://www.cricutlove1.blogspot.com/

Gaby~ http://www.gabycreates.com/

Kich~ http://www.scrappykich.blogspot.com/

Linda~ http://www.krazyquilling.com/

Monica~ http://simplycricutting.blogspot.com/

Patty~  http://mynameisscrappy.blogspot.com/

Raven~ http://love4stamps.blogspot.com/

Sandra~ http://www.365daysofcricut.blogspot.com/

Xochitl~ http://cricutcritter.blogspot.com/

Yolanda~ http://www.justyolie.com/