My Timeless Template Challenge #2!

Good morning! I'm so excited to share my template challenge this week :O) I couldn't get Lauren's awesome templates out of my head for the past two weeks! Probably because of the challenge, but seriously, I drew sketches and took notes on the three templates I'm showing today while I was sitting at work. Mind you, I should have been looking over our money or contracts, but I was sketching on scrap paper! I took those sketches home and this is what I created:

Flower Pen Holder
Paper Clip Dispenser
Notepad File Box

I created this set for a friend at work who has a birthday coming up :O) Both the Flower Pen Holder and the Paper Clip Dispenser use the "For Keepsake" template. I printed the template scaled to "multiple pages per sheet" at 2 per page with a horizontal configuration for my Paper Clip Dispenser. This shrunk the template to approximately a third of the normal size.

While I was sitting at work thinking of these baskets I wanted to make, certain Longaberger baskets on my desk were my inspiration (for the pen and paper clip containers). I thought I could easily figure out how to make a paper clip dispenser based on the design of the Longaberger Paper Clip Basket. Wouldn't you know, I came home tonight and finally put it together...and my "vision" worked like a charm!! After I made the lid, I cut some pink foam paper about a quarter of an inch smaller than the inside of the lid. I didn't want it touching the sides so the lid would still fit the right way. I took three squares that I cut to the same size and cut a hole in the center of each (same size as the hole in the lid). I adhered the squares together with Crystal Effects and set them aside to dry. Once dry, I trimmed a piece of magnet to fit just inside the hole of the foam and lid. It was a little "taller" than the hole, so before I adhered it, I trimmed the magnet lengthwise to fit. Peeled the backing and adhered in the hole. I used Crystal Effects to adhere to the inside of the lid because I feel like it's a stronger bond and it seemed to be doing a good job of holding the foam together :O)










I have another Longaberger basket on my desk that holds my gerbera daisy pens :O) I don't recall the name of the basket, but it's shaped like a jar and kind of tapers at the top. I think it was the Blue Ribbon Basket or something like that. Anyway, the Flower Pen Basket I created is definitely not shaped like my Longaberger basket, but I really thought I could make the template work for flower pens. I only cut a window on one side thinking that the basket would most likely be pushed against the cubicle wall, but in hindsight, I would probably cut another window to make it easier to see the gem rocks and my cute, purple butterfly on the window :O) It was really hard trying to get a good photo of it.

I feel like anyone who likes to craft has made flower pens I kept the lids on my pens because I don't want them marking up the inside of my holder. Another option would be to line the inside with acetate. Then if the pens marked it, you could wipe it off.

For the inside panels of both For Keepsake baskets, I stamped white polka dots (PTI Polka Dot Basics) on Pretty in Pink cardstock. I also did this for the middle divider of my "From the Desk Of" template. I used some remaining flowers from my bunches to accessorize my templates.


Originally I was planning on laying the Notepad File Box on it's back to make it look like an in/outbox (mini) but I liked it so much when I stood it up, I left it alone. I wanted a cute way for my friend to display her notepads on her desk and thought this design was perfect! You'll notice I didn't modify the notepads we use at work to match the basket. This was on purpose to show what it will truly look like at work. We go through these things pretty quickly. Didn't this one turn out cute? I really did like it when all was said and done! I hope my friend isn't reading my blog this week... If she is, I guess it won't be a surprise :)

I really hope you get to play along today! The My Timeless Templates were soooo easy to use!! They're listed for $5 on Papertrey Ink, but they also have two free templates that you can use. Both of them are adorable! Part of the challenge of using a template today was to create a birthday gift and use the color purple or a butterfly.

If you upload to an online gallery, be sure to use the keyword MTTC02 (no space). I can't wait to see what you come up with!! Be sure to check out the My Time to Create Design Team's projects also! The sneak peeks are intriguing :O)

My Time To Create Design Team:

Lauren
Alicia
Dana
Dawn
Jennifer
Kendra
Lisa
MacKenzie
Maria
Odette
Pam
Tamara
Tracey

Okay, that's all I have for now! Be sure to post your creations to Mr. Linky on Lauren's blog so we can check out your projects! Have a great weekend :O)

My Time to Inspire Challenge #1

Well, we're off to a good start with Lauren Meader's new challenge line up! This is her first My Time to Inspire Challenge (MTTI01) for us.

I decided to make a mother's day card since one of the colors is purple - which is my mother's FAVORITE (yes, all caps FAVORITE) color!

I've been wanting to use this rose stamp from Fifth Avenue Floral for a while now, and I really liked the Mojo Monday sketch this week (MOJO85) so I forced it to work :O) LOL

I stamped the rose with Black Staz On ink and used watercolor pencils and an aqua painter to color it. I stamped the smaller roses on the brown panel using acrylic paint...easy way to make the colors stand out on the dark cardstock. As I was putting the layout together, I decided the rose needed something more to finish those panels off. It took a while before I decided to use the opening from the border punch on the left panel to pierce the design in each corner surrounding the rose. I was a little more satisfied with it after that :O)

So, my problem is that tomorrow is Mother's Day and the horrible daughter that I am this year, has NOT sent this card! OMG...shame on me. I did send her flowers earlier this week with a notecard so she isn' totally without. BUT, I really wish I had gotten my stuff together and posted this on time :( She deserves to receive it on time, that's for sure.

My mother is one of the strongest people I know. She has had MANY trials in her life that she has overcome or persevered through. She always made sure us kids had what we needed when growing up and she loved us unconditionally - and made that known at all times. She taught me to be strong and independent, and that the most important thing a family can have is love. Good, bad, indifferent...we will always love each other unconditionally. So, thank you, Mom, for molding me into who I am today and for teaching me so many valuable lessons in life. I love you - always ♥ Happy Mother's Day!!

Here's a sneak peek at the design team's creations:

Everything looks so pretty! I can't wait to hop over to their blogs :O) Hope you do the same! When you stop by Lisa's blog, be sure to read her post. She used a digi stamp on her card that has a very special purpose. All of the proceeds from the "A Fairy for Kayleigh" digital stamp will go to this special little girl who is very sick, and her family. You can read about their struggle here. I'll be buying this one in a few minutes!

Don't forget to check out the rest of the DT! I'm getting ready to hop by now ;O)

My Time To Create Design Team:
Lauren
Alicia
Dana
Dawn
Jennifer
Kendra
Lisa
MacKenzie
Maria
Odette
Pam
Tamara
Tracey

Hope you're inspired by Lauren's awesome challenge and find some time to play along! If you do, be sure to use keyword MTTI01 in the online galleries. Can't wait to see what you come up with!!

Have a great weekend. And if you are a mother, Happy Mother's Day!

Birthday Flowers...back in time

I haven't made a card for a few days because I'm working on something different that will hopefully keep me organized :O) That being said, I thought I would share one of my cards that I never got around to uploading on my blog.

It's actually one of Lauren Meader's sketches...mytimess26. Thinking back, there was a LOT of cutting on this card :O) I stamped the watering can on kiwi DSP and cut it out. I stamped all of the flowers on the panel and stamped some extras on a separate piece of cardstock and cut them out. I used dimensionals (cut in half or quartered) to make random flowers pop, and added glitter to the centers of the larger flowers.

I used the SU! Word Window Punch to create the large circle flowers on the top left of the main panel. I basically punched 9 strips for each flower, punched a small hole in each end of the strips, added a brad to the first hole in each and then curled the papers to push the brad through the second hole of each.

I have a few ideas to make these flowers pop even more if I ever use this technique in the future. With any luck, I'll finally put a mini-tutorial together on how I made these and show variations to achieve different looks.

Thanks for stopping by to check out the card I made two months ago :O) LOL Hope you find some inspiration from it! Supplies are listed in my SCS gallery.

Be sure to stop by on Friday for a sneak peek to the My Time To Create Challenge for Saturday!!! This week is an inspiration challenge!!

Hope you're having a great week so far :)

My Time To Create Challenge

Yep, that's right! My first official My Time To Create Challenge (mytimess32) as a DT member! I'm so giddy :O) This week's challenge was a sketch! It has so many possibilities.
I made this card for my daughter's birthday. She turned 15 years old yesterday! I can hardly believe how the time has flown. She has been such a blessing in my life, and I'm soooo proud of the lovely young lady she has become. She's a wonderful daughter in so many ways, and she has a kind heart - which I feel is more important than some of her other positive qualities. My wish for her is probably best explained in the song by LeAnn Womack, "I Hope You Dance". I gave her the song and book years ago and I try to remind her that it's still my wish for her. I'm happy to report that so far, she's "dancing"!
For the card, I stamped the image on watercolor paper in Black Staz On, colored the image using watercolor pencils and an aqua painter, and added Distressed Stickles to the centers of the flowers (though it's hard to see in the photo). I felt like the main image panel was missing something so I pierced a border...followed by piercing the borders of all the other panels! I may have gotten a little out of hand }:o)

Oh, and all the yellow??? That's my daughter's all time FAVORITE color! I had to make it prominent. The ribbon is from my stash. I think it was one of the dollar rolls at Michaels way back when. Doesn't it match the PTI vintage button perfectly?! I couldn't believe how close they were.

Be sure to check out the DT samples for some added inspiration! Here is a "peek" of their projects.
Lauren selected a great team! We are very lucky to have such a talented group!

My Time To Create Design Team:
Lauren
Dana
Dawn
Jennifer
Kendra
Lisa
MacKenzie
Maria
Odette
Pam
Tamara
Tracey

Hope you can play along! I would love to see what you come up with!!! Oh, and please stop by Lauren's blog (if something other than her blog directed you to me), and wish her a very happy birthday tomorrow!!

All supplies will be listed in my SCS gallery tomorrow. Have a great weekend!

Cowboy Ethan

This is a quick post to share the card I FINALLY made for Alicia Weiman's little boy, Ethan. You can read about him and his battle with cancer, here.

My intent was to finish his card right after I made his sister and his parent's cards, but it just wouldn't come together how I wanted it to. Finally, I had an idea of what I wanted to do with the horse image I bought just for his card. I came home yesterday and put it together.

I used the red bandana paper because apparently he was totally hooked on wearing his bandana a month and a half ago...Alicia's post about him loving his bandana reminded me of this paper I had in my stash.

I WISH I had a cowboy image! I went to Michaels and they had ZIP!! I bought a farm set of rubber stamps instead :O) The horse reminded me of his new horse, Questions that he received from the Make a Wish Foundation. I hope he likes it!

All supplies are listed in my SCS gallery.

Okay, I'm off to bed! Thanks for stopping by. I hope you're having a wonderful week...only two more days if you have my schedule :O)

Pinch Me...I Think I'm Dreaming!

WOW! I can't even believe I'm typing this, but Lauren Meader selected me to be on her new My Time to Create Team!!! I'm so honored to be on her design team, it's hard to put into words. The level of talent is incredible...I can't wait to learn from these creative ladies and to get to know each one personally. Lauren selected 7 new team members and kept 5 from her original team. Soooo, you should find PLENTY of inspiration every Saturday!

Remember, Lauren changed up her challenges from a simple Saturday sketch to a variety of challenges each month (not necessarily in this order):

~ Template Challenge (as in, PTI My Timeless Templates)
~ Inspiration Challenge
~ Color Challenge
~ Sketch Challenge

I'm so excited that we'll have a new challenge each week! I can't wait to get started :O) Lauren plans on providing sneak peeks on Fridays (if I remember right). Soooo, you'll have a teaser the night before! With any luck you'll have a sweet dream about what you will create the next day! LOL

She has already had two challenges before announcing her new design team. Check out My Timeless Template Challenge (MTTC01) and My Time to Color Challenge (MTTC01).

Please swing by the My Time To Create Team blogs and of course Lauren's blog and check out the talent!! You're sure to be inspired afterwards!

My Time To Create Design Team:
Dana
Dawn*
Jennifer
Kendra*
Lisa
MacKenzie*
Maria*
Odette
Pam
Tamara*
Tracey
* denotes original team member

Hope your week is going great! I know mine is :O)

MOJO83 and CTD39

I wanted to share a quick card I made this morning before I head to the mall to shop for my daughter's birthday! The layout is from the MOJO83 sketch and the colors are from the Color Throwdown (CTD39) palette.

I LOVE this Scattered Showers stamp set from PTI! I think it's sooooo adorable! I couldn't wait to use it this weekend :O) I added some rhinestones from my nail kit to the umbrella...isn't is cute??
I plan on giving this card to a friend at work who was in a car accident last week. She's okay but in a lot of pain. I just want to cheer her up :] Hope you're having a wonderful weekend! I'm off to the mall :O)

Supplies are listed in my SCS gallery.

Timeless Template and New Timeless Challenge!

I made this file holder using Lauren Meader's Filed With Flair template and her My Time to Color Challenge (MTTC01) palette. Lauren has really spruced up her Saturday challenges - be sure to check them out! Today is the first Saturday of her new challenge "rotation".

I scalloped the white panel using the SU! corner rounder punch and used the same size panel to make the gray layer (I just wanted it to peak through). I wanted a clean, fresh, spring look to my holder, so I didn't sponge the scalloped edge. Kind of second-guessed myself afterward, but I still like it :O)

This is a shot of the front.










I plan on making a set of matching cards to go with the file holder, but I ran out of time tonight :( When I do, I'll add them to the holder and give them to my close friend as a gift! When the cards are gone, she can add more or put a couple of notepads in the holder and keep it by the phone on her desk :O)

The template made this project super easy! I can't wait to buy some of her other templates...ideas are flowing already.

Supplies for this project are listed in my SCS gallery.

Ultimate Sketch Challenge...

Yesterday, I woke up and went straight to Lauren Meader's blog to check out her Saturday sketch - my normal routine. What I found was a challenge to create a card using one of three sketches, and a potential design team call. Lauren wasn't sure whether she should keep the Saturday sketches going or not, and solicited feedback to decide what to do. She also challenged us with one of the three sketches before she made her final decision.

Later in the day, she submitted a post explaining that she would keep the weekly challenges, but will spice it up by alternating a Timeless Template challenge, an inspiration challenge, a color challenge, and a sketch challenge! I LOVE that idea and can't wait to participate!! Her first template challenge has been issued. Check out her blog for details!!

I spent most of my day making three cards for all of the sketches she posted. I felt really creative this morning, so I just went for it :O)

mytimess10












mytimess30



















mytimess31











I plan on accepting her template challenge this week also! I bought the Filed With Flair template recently and haven't used it yet, so I'm excited to print it out and start stamping :O)

She also asked us to let her know if we're interested in being on her design team. I thought a lot about it since yesterday, and I really think I would like to join her team. So, cross your fingers for me! If I'm not selected, that's okay too...I still can't wait to play along with her new challenges!

Supplies are listed in my SCS gallery. Click on the link above each picture and it will take you to the associated post in SCS.

Hope you had a wonderful weekend! I sure did :] Best wishes for a wonderful week ahead.

Simple Thanks

Here's a quick thank you card I made for my neighbor, Bess. She is such a sweetheart and is always doing nice things for my family. Those of you who follow my blog know that my husband and I are both in the Air Force. Well, Bess is a retired Air Force O-5, so she definitely relates to the military things.

She's also very interesting...and a wealth of knowledge on most stuff. Especially gardening - which is coming in handy this year since we're putting a huge garden in our back yard. My husband dug up (and replanted) most of the grass last week and the weekend before, then it started to rain. A lot...and for a while. We now have a lovely marsh in our backyard! The birds love it! It's a feast whenever they get hungry :O) If I start seeing tadpoles, I'll know for sure we have a serious problem! LOL

Supplies and details regarding this card are listed in my SCS Gallery. Everything is Stampin' Up! except the border punch I used and the embossing folder.

Hope you have a wonderful weekend!!

A Soft, Spring Birthday Card...

Okay, so there really was no occasion in mind for this card, but I always seem to need birthday and thank you cards at the last minute...I went with birthday on this one :O)

I used the Taylored Expressions sketch #63 (TECC63) for the layout and the Color Throwdown Challenge #37 (CTD37) for my color palette. The colors for the Throwdown were Sage Shadow, Cameo Coral, and Pink Pirouette. It's hard to see in the picture, but I used Pink Pirouette as a highlight color with the Cameo Coral on the flowers.

This is a 2-Step Stampin' set, but I decided to use the outline stamp and watercolor myself vs using the coordinating watercolor, background stamp on the main image. I used it to create designer paper for the larger base panel instead :O) I'm still honing my skills with this new technique, and I made a few mistakes on this one, but I think it turned out okay :]

I outlined the centers with a black marker to make them stand out. I was going to use glitter or opal pearls, but I really didn't want any fancy bling on this card after I added the distressing and the vintage photo ink. I'm still honing my skills on that technique as well :O) LOL

Supplies are listed in my SCS Gallery.

Hope you are enjoying a relaxing, creative weekend :O)

Morning Glory

I finally made a thank you card for Shannon and Connie...it has been one week since they so thoughtfully made my family a wonderful dinner with salad, dessert, wine and some beautiful tulips. See this post for more details regarding their sweet gesture :O)

I've never tried the watercoloring with markers technique until now. Actually, I think I tried it once before but not with watercolor paper so it didn't work how I wanted it to. My Stampin' Up! order containing my first pack of watercolor paper arrived a few days ago. I don't know what I was thinking but I assumed Stampin' Up! watercolor paper wasn't anything like normal watercolor paper. It's JUST like normal watercolor paper (which I have plenty of BTW), but sturdier and pre-cut. LOL I'm such a dork sometimes :O)

So, I decided to use my brand new Morning Soft stamp for my first stab at watercoloring with markers. I love this stamp! I cannot believe I waited so long to buy it...I kept putting it off but just couldn't resist anymore. I used Ruby Red and Cameo Coral for the flowers and Old Olive and Mellow Moss for the stems and leaves. I created a very faint shadow with Blush Blossom. Unfortunately, I didn't have enough Old Olive cardstock to finish my card so I relied on Always Artichoke to compliment the Cameo Coral cardstock instead. I think it looks okay though :O)

Oh, and I just realized that this was ALMOST a Stampin' Up! only card...but the ribbon is from Michaels :( I was so close! LOL I suppose you could substitute it for SU! ribbon...

Thanks for stopping by :O) Hope your week has been wonderful so far. One more day for me until the weekend! Enjoy your Easter Sunday ♥

All supplies are listed in my SCS Gallery.

Girl Wonder...

Okay, I just had to share the morning I had at work on Tuesday. I arrived at work to find that my co-worker brought her 8 year old daughter in. I've heard from other co-workers that I would love this little girl and her brilliant, creative mind. I couldn't wait to meet her! I barely set my things down before she appeared at the doorway of my cubicle ready to introduce herself :O) I asked if she was Rowan, to which she affirmed, and I introduced myself to her. She was quite the conversationalist from the beginning. A very impressive conversationalist, I might add.

During one of our many chats, Rowan told me about the 4-headed hydra she made in her second grade class. Well, I was already impressed because I couldn't even tell you what a hydra was, much less a 4-headed hydra! LOL She explained that everyone liked her creation so much, that they all wanted her to make one for them. She informed me that she tried to make everyone a hydra but that it was very time consuming :O) So, she had to stop. Oh, and she made sure she told me that she cut this hydra from paper, free-hand...she didn't draw any lines! In my mind, I'm still thinking wow...it must have been really impressive...I still don't know what a hydra is.

Shortly after she asked if I would like her to make me a 4-headed hydra. Of course I would! I had to know what this thing was!! I gave her a piece of bond paper and a pair of scissors (that weren't too big for her hands according to Rowan :O), and she returned in well under two minutes with the creation you see her holding in this photo!!!! Can you believe the detail on this thing? From the teeth to the bump on the nose...OMG. I couldn't get over it. This girl is a WONDER! She carefully explained that she used the "paper folding technique" to cut out her 4-headed hydra. LOL She is too much! I just love this kid!!

Okay, so I knew I was going to finally post this today, so I took a picture of something else she created first thing Tuesday morning. Check out this drawing of what appears to be the Easter Bunny (though I would need to confirm with Rowan :O). I love the details from the deep green eyes, to the numerous eggs in the basket (or bag?? not sure). She is truly an amazing little girl. I can't wait to get her in my craft room :O) She'll have a field day!

I'll post a card I made yesterday a little later. I just had to share my experience with this "Girl Wonder"!