Quick and Easy

I usually try to make cards that are unique in an obvious way...the way that makes people say, "How did you do that?" I love to watch them inspect the card and try to figure out how I created it. Of course, there are frequent occasions when I need a quick card! Here are a couple that I made in 20 minutes or less.

This was super easy! I used SU! patterned paper and the matching stamp set, plus two other for the sentiments. It was basically cutting the paper to size, folding and adhering it, and adding a few stamped images. Simple, simple, simple!

Looking for an even simpler card?! Here's one for you. Three colors of cardstock, one sticker flower (SU!), some mini, medium and large rhinestones, vellum, black staz-on ink, and a "Congratulations" stamp -- poof! Instant card. The colors look so good together, I couldn't resist. I made a similarly designed card in a previous post, but everything was stamped. No simple stickers and no rhinestones.

I love how quick this one was and how cute it turned out.

Okay...I really must get some rest, so I'm going to post this. I'll update the supplies and links tomorrow.

Second Lease on Life

I wanted to share a card I made for a special young man. His name is Dave but he prefers to be called by his last name, Lettier. Calling people by their last names makes me feel like we're on a football team together, but I'm torn on whether to respect or defy his wishes and call him Dave :O) I usually defy...unless we're at work. Here's a picture I took last week that he brilliantly altered.


Anywho...his birthday was in June if I remember right. We all went downtown to his local spot and ate sushi, listened to karaoke (some sang - NOT me), and just enjoyed each other's company.


Of course I made him a card to celebrate the occasion, which was actually a difficult endeavor for me. This man is a brilliant graphic artist who I admire greatly. I wish I had an ounce of his talent! So, how do I make a simple card for someone so talented? I just give it a shot with good intentions and hope he likes it a little.

This is the result...





I liked the idea of stamping and embossing on the acetate sheet, and I think this turned out nice. I used the Out On A Limb stamp set from Papertrey Ink, which is perfect for male or gender neutral cards. I also sponged Distress Ink on the edge of the acetate. The card inside the acetate is made of patterned paper. I really don't remember where I picked up the paper, but it was probably Ben Franklins Crafts (when I was in Hawaii) or Michaels. Oh, and the sentiment on the inside of the card is from Stampin' Up!


So, back to Dave. I work in a clinic, so I know I should respect his privacy, but I will say this, he almost died three and a half weeks ago. The doctors never truly determined a cause for all of his problems (that he is recovering from), and one physician even told him he couldn't believe he was alive. This is his second lease on life.


Please know that I'm being very deliberate by not going into details regarding his situation. I just wanted to share a little info about this special man. He has so much potential and talent...and such a unique outlook on life, that I can't wait to see where he takes it. I admire him greatly.


Maybe it's time to make him another card. The last one was a get well card that I don't think I took a picture of :(


Until next time...

Mom's Birthday...take two!

Okay, so I did what I said earlier and created another card for my mom.



Notice this one isn't purple per se, BUT I did use Purely Pomegranate as a focal color. I figure that's a good combination of purple and red (best of both worlds). This card isn't perfect by any means but I do like it better. I really like the fact that I have a longer, more meaningful sentiment inside. I found this particular sentiment on the web...a quick change of font and a swift print on vellum did the trick! My mother would be devastated with anything less than three lines :O)

I stamped So Swirly in white craft ink on the beige cardstock, heat set it, and proceeded with stamping my butterflies and flowers. If I did this again I would definitely make sure my flowers didn't underlap the butterflies on the fold with the pop-out wing. I think it makes the flower look funny when the card is open. Oh well...not too bad for my first stab at this design concept.

I used the Stampin' Up! Love and Happiness rub ons on the round tag, affixed the vellum sentiment with brads, and adhered the gatefold card to Purely Pomegranate cardstock. Here are the dimensions if you're interested:

Base Cardstock - 5 1/2" x 4 1/4"
Gatefold Cardstock - 12" x 5 1/4" (score at 4" and 8" and score lightly at 2" and 10" so as not to ruin the butterflies you will cut out later)

I cut out the butterflies using the Stampin' Up! Hobby Blade. I also sanded the edges of the cut with an emory board to soften and round them a bit more. I'm glad I took the time to create this card in place of the first one. It was worth the time...even though it will more than likely be late getting to her :(


Supplies:
All products by Stampin' Up! except the beige cardstock (random purchase somewhere)

Mom's Birthday...and a quick thank you!

Yesterday I was on a mission to create a birthday card for my mother. I wanted to use the Quilter's Sampler stamp set from PaperTrey Ink because I like one of the sentiments, "Mothers are the stitches that hold a family together". The design template (i.e. inspiration) came from an SCS tutorial.

I really struggled with the theme of the card and the color combinations for some reason. My mother loves purple! I knew I had to make that my focal color. I love red! So, I had to add a little bit of red to make it mine :O)



I really like the style of card (how it folds) but I'm not overly thrilled about the final product. I have a mental block I swear when it comes to tying it all together.



I embossed the sentiment to give it that finishing touch...plus it's my favorite technique (probably because it's the easiest :O).

I also wanted to share a cute thank you card that I made for our neighbor. This one is very simple, but I LOVE it! You know...the red and the gerber daisies (which are my absolute favorite) make it easy for me :O)

I randomly stamped the gerber daisy from the Floral Frenzy stamp set in white craft ink on the red cardstock. After heat setting it I cut it out, rounded one corner and adhered to the white cardstock. I followed this with some cute red and white polka dotted ribbon, a white gerber, and a red button with black twine threaded through. The finishing touch is the "thank you" sentiment from Stampin' Up!

Maybe I should stick with the simple, fun cards?? They seem to come together better for me. It helps when I am inspired by others. This card template came from Lauren Meader's blog.

Okay, I'm off to explore possibly making my mother a different card :O) Lauren has a tutorial on a really cool gatefold card that I'm in love with. I think it will give me more room to put a longer, more meaningful sentiment also. We'll see if it turns out!

Have a great Sunday.

Supplies:
Cardstock and Vellum ~ Stampin' Up!
Patterned Paper ~ Michaels
Ink ~ Stampin' Up!, Michaels, and Martha Stewart Crafts
Embellishments ~ Ribbon and daisy, Michaels; Hodgepodge Hardware, clear embossing powder, buttons and twine, Stampin' Up!

Mindless Creativity

I've really been putting some thought to how I view my "creativity". I'm toying with making a real banner and coming up with a cute saying that describes my hobby and my laid back style. So far I like "Mindless Creativity". Though a very talented friend of mine thinks I should go with "Transcendent Creativity". I don't think I'm worthy of that title! :O)

Anyway, despite the lack of posts, I have been creating cards...the designs of which are inspired by magazines or certain blogs. Here is one that I created the other day for my daughter's, boyfriend's mother. I like how it turned out.



I made this one recently for my daughter's friend who graduated high school.



I like the use of color in both of these...I think they turned out really cute :O) They're great examples of my "mindless creativity".

That's it for today...just a quick post. I'll add more soon!


Supplies:
- Stamps ~ Stampin' Up!; Autumn Leaves
- Cardstock ~ Stampin' Up!
- Ink ~ Martha Stewart Crafts; Stampin' Up!
- Vellum ~ Stampin' Up!
- Embellishments ~ Ribbon, Rhinestones - Michaels; Eyelets, Brads, Button - Stampin' Up!; Flower Die Cuts - Cricut

Results...

I found the inspiration I was searching for last week and turned it into a full-day project :O) What I haven't found since then, is time to blog! So, here are the results. I decided to make a lot of simple cards to start a collection of sorts that I can package with Papertrey Ink's awesome Clear Boxes, and give to a friend as a gift. I'm not finished making all of the cards, but here are the first six I came up with.

You may have noticed that I chose three "templates" and created two different cards for each. I plagiarized two of the three templates from the 2008 issue of Papercrafts Magazine Stamp It! Cards. What a wonderful source of creative inspiration!

Here are close ups of the three sets.

So, that's it...the result of the inspiration I was searching for last week. I hope you enjoy the simple creations.

Supplies:
- Cardstock: Stampin Up!
- Ribbon: Michaels Crafts and Stampin Up!
- Stamps: Stampin Up!, Autumn Leaves, and Papertrey Ink
- Ink: Stampin Up! and Martha Stewart Crafts
- Embellishments: Brads, buttons, Accents and Elements flowers from Stampin Up!; Marvy Uchida Oval Scalloped Craft Punch from Papertrey Ink

Inspiration

Today I'm looking for inspiration. I had it in spades yesterday morning, but household chores and sending my daughter off to her 4th of July celebration wore my inspiration thin. By the time I was able to sit down and put my ideas on paper, the ideas weren't as clear as they were in the morning. So, today, I vow to find inspiration, and put it to good use!

Until I get started and am able to share the results of my inspiration, I thought I would share one of my favorite cards. I made this card for my friend's daughter, Frazier. Frazier learned a few years ago that she has diabetes. With the help of her mother, she is doing a wonderful job of controlling her diabetes and giving herself daily shots (three a day if I remember right). I'm really proud of Frazier...this kid has faced a lot of challenges in her life. I made this card and sent it to Frazier at diabetes camp. I really like how this turned out. The simple colors and the sweet little bumble bee are just too cute :O)

You'll probably notice that I frequently use the "Flower Garden" stamp set created by Lisa Johnson for Papertrey Ink. I LOVE this stamp set! Ever since the day I saw the first sneak preview, I knew I had to have it. It's so versatile and fun...you should see the cards that have been created with it. Oh yes, I should mention that Lisa's blog is one of the two that I faithfully read.

The sentiment inside the card is from Stampin Up! I thought of Frazier the first time I read it. I thought sending it to her at Diabetes Camp was even more appropriate :O) Unfortunately, she never received it at camp...probably because I didn't send it until Tuesday and she left on Friday :) I'm planning on recreating this one and sending it to her at home though.

Here's a close up of the embossed flower. It's hard to see, but I only embossed the outline of the flower...just to make it pop more.

So, that's it. The card that never made it to camp :O) Hope you find inspiration this weekend to create some keepsakes!

Supplies:

~ Cardstock - Whisper White, Pomegranate (Stampin Up!)

~ Stamps - Flower Garden, Flower Garden Sentiments (Papertrey Ink), Full of Life (Stampin Up!)

~ Ink - Pomegranate, Basic Black, Soft Sky, VersaMark (Stampin Up!)

~ Embellishments: Crystal Clear Embossing Powder, Black Brads, Pomegranate Ribbon (Stampin Up!)

Another Favorite of a Friend...

So, I have to share a quick blurb about my office. I am very fortunate to be able to say that we have the best office dynamics of any work environment I have been in over the past 15+ years. Seriously, I have never been so content with each and every one of my co-workers, employees, and boss as I am right now. I'm very blessed.

One employee began working with us just a few months ago. He is very positive, good-natured, light-hearted...just an all around good person and hard worker. He's always looking out for everyone else and making sure the "wheels are oiled"...so to speak. For some reason he has also taken an interest in what I truly enjoy doing in my spare time (from card to jewelry making). I'm really into making cards right now, and I share all of them with him (and the rest of the office). He's the one who takes a sincere interest (is this turning into another dedication?). Anyway, I really respect his thoughts on things and appreciate his encouragement to go further with what I enjoy.

In short, I would like to share the card that is his all time favorite. It's a Father's Day card that I made last month. I think the real eye-catcher is the transparency. When DON'T transparency cards look good?

Supplies:

~ Stamps from Paptertry Ink, "Father Knows Best" collection

~ Ribbon, Cardstock, Hardware, Ink and Markers from Stampin Up!

Have a happy, SAFE 4th of July holiday!

Debut Blog ♥

After long consideration and many hours of experimenting with scrapbooking, making cards and jewelry, drawing, painting, crocheting - you name it, I decided to put my work in one place. If for nothing more than to give me a central location where I can refer back to the products of simple inspirations that whimsically floated by one day.

I'm a fan of VERY few bloggers, primarily because I simply can't seem to find the time to keep up with them. But, the two that I faithfully read, have me mesmerized. I'll share their links in a later post when I get used to this blogging :O) I'm really not sure how I will keep up with my own blog...but I'm willing to give it a try.

I don't think it's following protocol to "dedicate" a blog to someone, but what the heck? I dedicate my first blog to my good friend, Jill Reschke. She is fantastic at keeping in touch with all of her friends...without fail. No excuses, no accusations for not doing the same, and never judging because some friends never send the annual photo of their children (or child in this case). If you're wondering, yes, I definitely receive updated photos of her three children every year plus some!

With that said, I suppose the most appropriate project to share is this card I made for her tonight. Of all my friends and family, Jill was more excited than anyone I've ever given a handmade card to when she received the graduation card I sent her oldest daughter, Cassie. She's too funny. My heart swelled when she went on and on at how neat she thought the card was. I went straight home and made one just for her. Very simple really, and I plagiarized the idea from a magazine...maybe one day I will create something I crafted from beginning to end without stealing someone else's idea :O)

Supplies:
~ Cardstock (Really Red, Winter White), colored ink pads (Really Red, Garden Green, Yo-Yo Yellow, Basic Black), and Clear Embossing Powder by Stampin Up©
~ Versamark ink pad from Ben Franklins' Crafts
~ "Flowers In Bloom" stamp set by Papertrey Ink
~Ribbon and rhinestones from Michaels

Thanks for stopping by!

About

My name is Kristin Eberline...or eberlinek on SCS :O) I have a full-time career in the Air Force and I'm mom to a beautiful 19 year old daughter, Tia, and 7 month old granddaughter, Kaila.

I love to create things - everything and anything that sparks my interest. I'm currently focused intently on papercrafting, designing digital paper, cut files and stamps for My Time Made Easy, LLC. I also love to make jewelry, crochet, draw, paint, you name it. With my demanding career, I don't find time to update my blog as much as I would like to, but it feels good having an outlet to share my thoughts and my creations. After a full day at work, all I want to do is something mindless to unwind...hence, "Mindless Creativity".

Feel free to contact me:

Disclosure

The following list contains companies whose product I work with or have worked with in the past. Some companies provide monetary compensation, some provide products. If you have any questions about a product or my affiliation with these companies, please feel free to contact me on my "About" page using the comment submission form.

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My Time Made Easy

Chicken Girl Designs
Clear and Simple Stamps
Gina K Designs
JustRite Stampers
Kelleigh Ratzlaff
Kitchen Sink Stamps
Lil Inker Designs
Louby Loo
Pixie Petals
Simon Says Stamp
Starving Artist Stamps
Want2Scrap
Wplus9 Design Studios

Shopping

 7 Kids College Fund

All That Scraps
Ellen Hutson
Flourishes

Inspiration

Alicia Weimen
Amy ShefferAnjas-Artefaktotum
Barbara AndersBecca FeekenBecky OehlersBroni Holcombe
Cathy Indelicato
Chat
Danielle Kennedy
Dawn Easton Debbie Olson Heather Schlatter
Helena Jodi Collins
Keri Brown
Lauren Meader
LeAnne Pugliese
Lisa JohnsonMandy Sarver
Niki Estes
Silke Silke LedlowTammy HershbergerTasha Hickert
Tiffany Johnson

Awards

Thank you, Andrea!

Thank you, Debbie!

Thank you Debbie!

Thank you Tasha!

Thank you Heather!

Thank you Pam!

Thank you Anja!

Thank you Keri!

Thank you Heather!

Thank you Lettier!

Thank you Anja!

Thank you Gabby!