Mindless Creativity

So Very Thankful...

2012-02-12T20:19:00.002-05:00

I finally finished up another card I started working on last Tuesday! I needed another thank you card, and the CTD178 palette along with the Mojo Monday sketch (MOJO227) and some of my patterned paper made for a card that came together easily.

I used my Sentimental Occasions stamp set for my focal sentiment, and the coordinating Occasional Labels cut file to frame it. I stiched on a piece of patterned paper from my Fresh Cut Expressions Collection 2 pack that worked perfectly with Keva's palette! The brown panel was cut with a Recollections border punch and adorned with white, ruffled sewing trim, some pretty Marth Stewart ribbon, and a prima.

I added a large antique brad to my text panel and some more MS ribbon to give a little visual interest. I also added some brown stitching to my yellow panel and the base panel.

That's really all there was to it. Simple, yet lots of stuff going on :] Hope you all had a wonderful, relaxing weekend! I'll see you here again on Wednesday for the CTD challenge - I'm hosting ♥

Color Throwdown Challenge #178

2012-02-08T00:01:00.000-05:00

Time is truly flying this year. I can't believe it's already February! A couple of things stand out to me...we don't have a lick of snow, and I've already missed TWO Color Throwdown challenges :[ The fact that time is flying just means I'm super busy. Work and my commute soak up a lot of my time, but I'm not complaining. I thrive when I'm busy, so it's all good ;] Today, Ms. Keva is our sweet hostess, and she chose the PERFECT palette for a masculine card...which suited me just fine since I'm in need of a masculine Thank You card! The timing couldn't have been better. Check out her cool combo:

My card is clean, simple, and flat enough to mail (which is a huge accomplishment for me :). I used sheets from two of my MTME digi paper packs, Shutt-erfly (recolored), and Get Graphic - Collection 2. I used Crushed Curry in place of Summer Sun because I'm out of the latter cs. I chose the MTME Trendy Tags 2 cut file for my sentiment which is from the MTME Sensational Sentiments set.

I added some twill ribbon, hodgepodge hardware and four brads and called it a day. It's possibly a little TOO simple, but it's just right for the recipient :] My layout was inspired by the Mojo Monday (MOJO227) sketch.

I almost finished another card with this same color combo and layout, but it's not quite finished. I'll post it in a day or two :] Thanks for stopping by today. Before you head to your craft room to whip up something amazing, swing by my CTD sisters' blogs for a ton of inspiration:

Jenny Peterson ~ February Guest Designer

Hope the rest of your week is low speed and relaxing ;]

Color Throwdown Challenge #176

2012-01-25T00:00:00.000-05:00

Happy Wednesday, friends! I'm popping in to share my lackluster CTD176 card that was the result of my mojo being on hiatus this week :/ This CAS design was inspired by Deb's card found HERE. Hers is absolutely STUNNING, whereas, mine failed in a few areas that I believe to be obvious so I won't belabor you with explaining. Instead, I'll thank the ever so talented, Joan for selecting this fantastic color palette that made it a little easier to CASE Deb's card. If that even makes sense... Either way, check out this fab combo:

I used my MTME Sentimental Occasions set to build my greeting, and the MTME Bold Botanicals set for my bloom. My border punch is Recollections (from Michaels) and the butterfly was made using a Martha Stewart punch. Other than that, it's pretty basic and self-explanatory. I guess the perk is that this will mail easily unlike most of my other cards :] LOL

Please be sure to swing by the rest of the team's blogs for some real inspiration!! They're projects are stunning as usual.

Wanda
Stacy Morgan ~ January Guest Designer

Thanks for stopping by today. Hope you are having a great week!!

Color Throwdown Challenge #175

2012-01-18T00:01:00.000-05:00

Hi everyone! I'm back in the Color Throwdown swing of things after my trip to San Antonio last week, so I'm popping in to share a VERY quick project I made to house the VERY time consuming cupcakes I made :/ Danielle is our hostess with the mostess (CTD175), and she chose an awesome palette for this time of year. It can be winter-y, Valentine-y, spring-y, whatever theme you're feeling at the moment. I'm feeling kinda Valentine-y ♥ ...even though I don't even have a prospective Valentine :[ Check out her palette:

I used the new MTME Hey Cupcake template for my project. I've been itching to whip one of these up, so this week's challenge was the perfect opportunity! I layered my MTME Fun Flowers paper as the decorative panel, adhered my fave white sewing trim and olive ribbon, and hot glued some primas. That was IT! I know, I know...I didn't stamp a tag, I didn't stamp ANYTHING, but I still think it makes a statement and is adorable! Just goes to show your projects don't have to be overly fussy to look sweet ♥

Here's a snapshot of the inside of my box:

I also couldn't wait to show you how easy it is to dress up your cupcakes!! I made some fancier cupcake wrappers for this release (My Sweet Heart and Fine Foliage), but I didn't want anyone to lose sight of how quick and easy the Basic Cupcake Wrapper can be when paired with some fun digital paper! It cuts in just a few seconds (whereas the more detailed the design, the longer it takes to cut), and it's simply a matter of securing it and adding the cupcakes like I did here! I used the smaller of the two sizes.

So...what do you think? EASY stuff, my friends! Glad you stopped by today. Please be sure to check out my fellow, amazing DT sisters to soak up some more inspiration :]

Wanda
Stacy Morgan ~ January Guest Designer

Have a fantastic remainder of the week!

Achoo! Bless you...

2012-01-16T22:19:00.001-05:00

Hi friends. I’m popping in to share my third project as Our Craft Lounge's Artist of the Month! This is the time of year for runny noses and head colds, so I thought a little decorated tissue pack would make a cute, yet thoughtful gift for my co-workers who are a little under the weather. I chose to work with two sets today to make my simple project. I stamped the “ACHOO!” sentiment from the Say It With Flowers set, because I wanted a simple font that I could stamp repeatedly.

The “Bless you” sentiment, the tissue box and bowl of soup came from the Running Sick set.

I saw the cutest dyed doilies on my friend, Dana Gustafson's blog the other day, and just HAD to give them a try! The original tutorial was posted by Charlotte's Fancy. I kind of followed Charlotte's tutorial for the first three colors I tried...but I used SU ink droppers instead of food coloring. The pastel colors were really pretty, but I love BOLD regal colors, so I changed it up a bit. I put my white doilies in a Pyrex dish and squirt a LOT of SU ink on them. The doilies kind of absorbed the ink, but not edge to edge, so I put the dish under the faucet and simply turned the water on just until it hit the doily (very slow drip) and then shut it off. I'm talking a DROP of water...literally. I then moved the doily around to completely absorb the ink and used the same mixture for my next doily. Check out the difference in the color hues!! I LOVE the dark ones :]

The "blue" doily is actually plum in person...it's gorgeous!! I used the Garden Green one on my tissue pack decoration. You'll notice I cut a fancy 4.25"x4.25" white frame to go under my doily so that the colors of the tissue pack wouldn't show through.

I also cut an Occasional Label out of my MTME Fresh Cut Expressions Collection 1 pack of digi paper, and stamped my ACHOO on the layered oval. I colored the soup bowl and tissue box with Copics and layered them with dimensional tape. The Bless You sentiment was a perfect fit for my SU punch using another sheet of digi paper from the same pack. A little ribbon and a prima finished off my project :]

Easy, cost effective, cute little gift!!! Love those kinds ;] Hope you're inspired to get crafty!! Thanks for stopping by.

love YOU

2012-01-15T10:13:00.001-05:00

Hi everyone! I'm popping in this morning to share the card I made for my second week as Artist of the Month over at Our Craft Lounge. I'm a tad delayed in posting (okay, a little more than a tad) due to a work trip to San Antonio, so please forgive my tardiness. Hopefully you were able to check out my project on the OCL blog and this is a repeat! I had the pleasure of working with a lovely set called Love Notes. Check it out:

I plan on using this set again, so keep an eye out for more fun projects ;] I have a TON of ideas for this set...just not enough time in the day to bring them to fruition all at once. For my card, I used one of my newest paper packs over at My Time Made Easy called Island Love. Now, I realize I also released a more traditional Valentine/love color palette for this paper, but I wanted to go against the grain of what's expected. So, I stuck with the pretty Pool Party, Calypso Coral and white palette. I created a double frame if you will to bring the focus to my script panel. If you look closely you'll see that I first stamped the "shaded" background in Soft Sky and then embossed the script in white on top. I highlighted the last word in the script, "love" to draw the eye to the first word in my sentiment.

I added some white, frilly trim layered with some teal seam binding and a coral bloom, then adhered the second word in my sentimet, "YOU". Hot glue is my adhesive of choice when I play with blooms, so I just tucked my tag in while it was still hot. I added some antique brass SU! brads to finish the look and I was done!

I'm having such a great time using my OCL goodies and sharing them on their blog. I'm still very honored to represent OCL as their Artist of the Month ♥ I'll have another project to share on the OCL blog tomorrow! I might wait a day or two to share on my blog just to break it up a bit since this post was so late. Hope your new year is off to a wonderful start. I know I'm inspired by the possibilities and have a great feeling that this year is going to be amazing.

All the best ♥

The Importance of Exercising During and After Cancer

2012-01-04T00:01:00.000-05:00

Hi friends. I'm sharing a special post today written by David Haas. David contacted me and asked if I would be interested in posting one of his articles about cancer awareness, to which of course I happily agreed. I'm very blessed to report that my mother is a breast cancer survivor, which is one reason I take cancer awareness seriously.

I wanted to make a card to share with David's article, so I made use of the Color Throwdown's first challenge of the year. Bar's color choice was perfect for my card:

David is a Guest Blogger for the Mesothelioma Cancer Alliance, so I did a little research and found that the ribbon awareness color for Mesothelioma is pearl. I used some satin white ribbon to depict pearl, and recolored my MTME Amour paper (swapped pink with gray) to follow the palette ;] My layout was inspired by the Mojo Monday challenge (MOJO222).

As for David's article, he eloquently educates us on the importance of exercising during and after cancer. I hope you'll take a minute to read his important message whether you or someone you know has been affected by cancer. You never know when this type of knowledge will be useful in life.

The Importance of Exercising During and After Cancer

Afteryou’ve been diagnosed with cancer, you have to reassess your entire life. Howyou eat, when you sleep, and how you care for your body are all factors of lifethat you must tailor to survive cancer. Whether you are a cancer survivor orrecently diagnosed, changes have to be made to your lifestyle in order tomaintain your health. However, both cancer survivors and those who have beenrecently diagnosed should consider the health benefits of continued fitnessboth during and after cancer.

If you already have a fitness routine when you are diagnosed with cancer, itcan be beneficial to continue with it. However, youshould adjust your exercise routine to ensure that you do not overexertyourself during treatments. Cancer changes your body. While you areundergoing cancer treatments, your doctor may recommendthat you decrease the intensity of your workouts, as well as tailor yourfitness routine to ensure that you are getting the maximum benefits, and nothurting yourself.

Maintaining an exercise routine while you have cancer and after you have cancercan help you in a variety of ways. Exercise can help you maintain your weight,as well as keep your bones, joints, and muscles healthy. Exercise also helpswith your mental well-being. Having a healthy mental well-being while you havecancer is vital to getting better. When you feel good about yourself and knowyou are keeping your body healthy, it can boost your mood.

After you go through cancer, you need to slowly build your health back up.Exercise is an ideal way to help build up your health because you can tailorexercise routines. For example, you can slowly build up how much rigorousactivity you do as you start to feel better. Typically, adults need to exerciseat least five days a week for 30 minutes a day. However, as you go throughcancer or build yourself up after cancer, you can tailor this amount ofexercise to fit your needs.

While studies are not conclusive, research has indicated that people who have aregular exercise routine have a lower risk of developing certain types ofcancer.

When your doctor gives you a cancer diagnosis, it does not matter what type ofcancer it is. Whether it is breast cancer or mesothelioma, the news isalways devastating. However, when you keep yourself active, it can help youovercome the obstacle of cancer.

Thanks for letting me share my card and David's important message. I hope you found it enlightening.

Please be sure to visit the CTD gals today while you soak up your creative inspiration. You can find their links over at the CTD blog :0]

I hope you all have a wonderful, prosperous 2012 ♥

Artist of the Month at Our Craft Lounge!!

2012-01-02T00:01:00.005-05:00

Wow! What a nice break, ehh? The CTD closed shop early for the holidays which gave me more time to focus on my kiddo and spoiling her, but it's been a while since I've shared a project ;] With the new year, we're getting back into the swing of things, and I'm also soooo excited to announce that I'm the January Artist of the Month for Our Craft Lounge! I was equally humbled and excited when Kendra asked me to join them for the month :]

I have lots of OCL goodies to work with, but I chose Pretty Petals for my first project, because it's my FAVE set!! I also like the fact that I can use it for the much needed thank you cards this time of year, and also as a catalyst to gently bring us out of the holiday season. My MTME Buzz-y Blooms and Get Graphic patterned paper also helped to promo this fun set.

I used the Mojo Monday 221 sketch from last week as the inspiration for my layout.

I masked two of my daisies and sponged the bg on the main panel, and layered another I cut by hand. The centers of my daisies are indeed fluffy, if you were wondering ;] I used OCL's exclusive Sparkly Fluff, Lemon Drop Yellow on my blooms ♥

My sentiment is from the very versatile OCL Say It With Flowers set. I just love the fun, "You're Bloomin' Fabulous!" sentiment. This will be perfect for a close girlfriend of mine ;] I stamped it with Staz On on vellum after cutting my flag with the Lil Inker Sentiment Flag Die. I adhered my button and white hemp twine with hot glue.

That wraps up my project deets for today, but be sure to check in each Monday this month for another dose of OCL inspiration ala Kristin ;]

Hope you and yours had a wonderful holiday this season. I wish you all the best 2012 has to offer.

Supplies
Stamps: OCL Pretty Petals and Say It With Flowers
Ink: Black Staz On, SU! Soft Sky
Paper: SU! Old Olive and Vellum, Couture Cardstock One Sheet Wonder, MTME Buzz-y Blooms and Get Graphic
Accessories: OCL Lemon Drop Yellow Sparkly Fluff, SU! Scalloped Border Punch, Large Circle and Scalloped Circle Nesties, Lil Inker Designs Sentiment Flag Die, Michaels white jewelry hemp twine, aqua ribbon and button

Color Throwdown Challenge #172

2011-12-14T00:01:00.001-05:00

Happy hump day! It's Wednesday which means it's time for another Color Throwdown challenge (CTD172)! This happens to be our last palette for the year, but be sure to check back starting in January for a new feel to our challenges ;] This week the sweet and talented Kerri! Check out her fun colors:

I had to use Sara's new paper, Femmie Flakes & Fuzzies...it had all of the colors I needed! I recolored the dark gray to brown, but other than that, I left it as is. The blue is more of an aqua, but I had to use it because I don't have any Bermuda Bay :[

I went with a template again, because 'tis the season! I packaged some DELISH peanut butter and dark chocolate chip cookies I made for a co-worker in the fun Pick of the Petals package.

I stamped Merry Christmas from my Sentimental Occasions set on the So Sentimental Frame cut file and embossed it with white powder. I trimmed the lid with some pretty aqua ribbon and a big button.

The snowflake on top is one of the free cut files I offer on my blog. You can find it HERE. I layered a snowflake "button" from my stash to finish the top.

That's really all there was to it! Hope you are inspired to play along with us for this last challenge of the year! Be sure to swing by our amazing DT's blogs to see their fun projects :]

Wanda
Lydia Fielder ~ December Guest Designer

Thanks for popping in. Hope you and your family have a wonderful holiday season!

Just Us Girls Challenge #114

2011-12-10T00:01:00.000-05:00

Hi all! I whipped up a project to play along with Just Us Girls this week, so I'm popping in to share real quick. I'm getting up early to lay wreaths at Arlington National Cemetery so I need to get some zzzzzs (you'll probably be reading this while I'm laying wreaths :). The oh-so-talented Kathryn is our hostess this week for a fun technique challenge (JUGS114). She challenged us to create a Center Step Card, which I've never done so I thought I'd give it a stab. I also needed a birthday card for a co-worker, so it worked out perfectly :0]

I wanted to use some of my new paper from the Amour collection, so I went with that color palette. I recolored the leaves of my Happy Hallows tree to match, printed and cut with the Well Rounded Tag. I cut my black layer by increasing the size of my tag by 10% and shaving off about 1/8th inch from the bottom. I used a Recollections border punch on the side panel layers, and decorated the bottom with black sewing trim, ribbon, resin Recollections roses, and my sentiment. The Happy Birthday comes from the So Sentimental set and is cut using the Lil Inker Designs Sentiment Flag.

For the inside, I printed my "Just For You" sentiment and a few colored leaves and cut them out using the Be-Dazzled cut file. Simple, yet effective I think :]

You can follow along with the very easy instructions HERE if you'd like to play along by making a Center Step Card this week! Be sure to check out the DT's amazing projects for some additional inspiraton :]

Lenet ~ December Guest Designer

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend!!

Color Throwdown Challenge #171

2011-12-07T00:01:00.000-05:00

Hi friends. I'm popping in VERY quickly to share my project for the Color Throwdown Challenge #171, hosted by the awesome, Wanda. Check out her fab palette!

I am short on time this week so I decided to push the color selection slightly and go with some of my paper that is CLOSE, instead of recoloring. I used Cherry Cobbler, Crumbcake, and Early Espresso instead of the first three colors in the palette, but I don't think anyone will mind ;] I also decided to whip up a template becuase they tend to go much faster for me than a card (true...go figure!). This template is from Lauren's newest My Time Made Easy release, it's called A Box is a Box. So simple in concept but unique at the same time. It also has two different configurations and four cut files that come with it.

I chose to go with the basic box set up, but added my own cut file borders to the box top (Border Builders Elegance Scallop cut file). I scored the edges, folded them up over my ribbon and adhered them with Scor-Tape. I double looped the ribbon and secured it with a brad and hot glue. I created my tag by resizing one of my rectangle Simple Tags and cutting out my recolored digi sentiment from Sara's new Warm Sentiments set that I printed on an old sheet of recolored Fresh Cut Expressions paper.

The bloom on top of my box is my Perfect Poinsettia cut file I created last year. I added a button from my stash to the center with a little lime hemp twine threaded through.

The bottom of my box was cut from my Timeless Traditions paper that I scaled to 5x7 (I prefer the smaller pattern :).

Notice that I packed this baby FULL of fun, cold weather drinking supplies! It's also large enough to hold a jarred, three wick candle from Bath and Bodyworks (and would also go perfectly with my sentiment). Here's a clear shot of everything I had stashed inside.

And that about does it for me! I need to get back to studying so I'm going to refer you to the amazingly talented DT members for some awesome inspiration!

Wanda
Lydia Fielder ~ December Guest Designer

Thanks for stopping by! See you again next Wednesday for our last color challenge of the year!

Color Throwdown Challenge #170

2011-11-30T00:01:00.001-05:00

Welcome back to another week of COLOR, with the amazingly talented Color Throwdown team! If you haven't been keeping up, we have several new superstars on our team. They each have been taking their turn hosting during these last few weeks of challenges this year. This week our hostess with the mostess is Lynn. Check out her awesome palette:

I was so happy when I viewed her color choice, because I've actually designed a pack of paper with this palette. So, I wouldn't need to recolor a different pack in order to play along :0] Yay! I used my Cheerful Chirps pack and made it fit a holiday card without modifying anything. LOL I think it lends a rustic charm to my CAS card. I incorporated one of the birds from A Little Birdie cut file, the Frame Me cut file, and the Border Builders Scallop Dot cut file. My card was cut using the Spellbinders Large Circle and Scalloped Circle dies.

My layout was inspired by the fun Mojo Monday sketch (MOJO217):

I turned the sketch to accomodate my digital Beautiful Baubles sentiment. The little bloom on the bird is from a mini punch I've had forever, and the button is from my stash. That's about it. One more holiday card down, and several to go!

Be sure to check out our amazingly talented CTD team and their wonderful works of art :0]

Wanda
Lydia Fielder ~ November Guest Designer

Thanks for stopping by this week. Hope you had a great Thanksgiving with your loved ones ♥

Color Throwdown #169

2011-11-23T00:01:00.007-05:00

Hi friends. I'm here to share my Color Throwdown card for the challenge (CTD169) our very sweet and talented, Lori is hosting. Check out her fun palette:

If you know anything about me, you know I love dimension on my cards and I love using digi paper. This card is no exception...it's more like a perfect example of what I love to do. Sometimes I feel like I'm cheating by simply recoloring my paper to fit a challenge, but doesn't that make perfect sense? Why struggle to find the colors you're looking for? RECOLOR and print. Easy... For my card, I recolored two sheets in my Brisk Breeze pack.

My dimension is portrayed through my Perfect Poinsettia cut file. I scaled my file by 50% and eliminated the bottom layer. After I cut my pieces, I ran them through a crimper at different angles repeatedly to soften the cs. I then formed the leaves with my finger and thumb and gave each one a slight pinch at the tip. I adhered matching layers with a glue dot, and single layers with dimensional tape...just to give it a little more pop. My sentiment is from Secret Santa and it's stamped on Laura Pryor's Lil' Inker Designs Flag die (THANK YOU LAURA!!!). My scalloped border was cut with my new MS punch.

My layout was inspired by Chupa's Sketchbook Saturday Challenge #38:

That's all I have to share today, but be sure to check out the rest of our amazingly talented DT:

Wanda
Lydia Fielder ~ November Guest Designer

Thanks for stopping by today. Hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving this week and a LOOONNNNG weekend ;]

Sweet Season's Greetings

2011-11-21T22:20:00.000-05:00

I have been itching to use my new supplies from the very talented Laura Pryor's newest Lil' Inker Designs release! I finally finished my card today, so I thought I would share. When I first saw this ca-ute lil' tree, it just begged to become 3-D. I found later that my idea was far from original :[ This lil' tree has become 3-D at the hands of some very talented designers...BUT, I still went with my initial idea!

To create my 3-D tree, I cut 7 trees using the Holly Jolly Dies. I scored 6 of the trees down the center and folded them in half. I adhered each half to the next, one half at a time (does that make sense?!). After I adhered my 6 folded trees, I adhered the 3-D tree to the remaining die cut tree (to give it a flat base). I created my "frame" by tracing the die cut tree with my SU tool (can't remember the name of it and I can't find it in the catalog) and cutting with my exacto knife.

I stamped my sentiment from the Holly Jolly stamp set, using VersaMark and dark brown embossing powder. I must say that I am in love with Laura's stamps! They are the highest quality acrylic on the market and produce a crystal clear image every time. I was so pleased when I embossed this sentiment...nothing got muddled like some of my other stamps do. Here's a closeup to show you how clean the sentiment is:

For my border, I used my new Recollections punch, some pretty lace ribbon, and my multi color earthy twine. I tied my button down with the twine after adhering my ribbon and decorative border, and added my pearl tree topper (by cutting the prongs off the back and adhering with a glue dot). I then popped up my frame layer with 1/4" foam tape, to give a lot of dimension around my tree that I adhered directly to the base of my card.

My tree trunk is actually three die cuts popped up with 1/16" foam tape. You can kind of see it in this photo:

That's really all there was to it! I love dimensional cards anyway, but this one just makes me smile :] Probably one of my favorite Christmas cards made to date ♥ I have a ton of ideas for this lil' tree, hopefully I'll have time to bring them to life.

Thanks for stopping by today. Hope you are having an amazing week!

Color Throwdown Challenge #168

2011-11-16T10:52:00.000-05:00

Today one of our newest Color Throwdown members, the very sweet and talented, Keva is our hostess. She chose a unique palette that I think you'll adore. Check it out:

I love this combination together! I decided to recolor my own paper (as usual) and make a little package for a friend filled with hot chocolate K-Cups. My friend recently bought a Keurig, and she has helped me out in a pinch several times at work, so I thought a little treat would be a nice way to say thank you :0] The paper I recolored is from my Cherry On Top collection. I used the MTME Oh-K Dokey cut file to create my package. It went together in less than a minute, seriously. SUCH an easy cover to whip up, I could make 100 pretty much in the time it takes to cut them out on the Cricut!

I kept my package relatively simple to show off the pretty paper. I wrapped it with my favorite white sewing trim and used some girly grey/silver ribbon to tie off my sentiment panel and show off my new resin roses. I picked up the roses at Michaels, but I swear I'm going to buy some molds and make my own one of these days ;] The tag I used is one of my newer cut files, Simple Tags Rectangle. I stamped my drink choices, check boxes and check mark using the Fancy A Cuppa stamp set.

For the top of my K-Cups, I stamped the Fancy A Cuppa? Add-On hot chocolate sentiment and cut it out using one of my punches (which was obviously a little too small since it chopped one of the outer circles off). I cut the outer, red circle using a nestie...also too small. Apparently I don't have a 1 1/2" circle punch or nestie so please just ignore the outer edge of the K-Cup that's showing. I need to update my punches/die collection :0]

That's pretty much all there was to it! If you know someone who has a Keurig, this cut file is for you. It's so simple and only costs $2.50!! Can't beat that!

Be sure to check out the rest of the DT for added inspiration with this week's colors:

Wanda
Lydia Fielder ~ November Guest Designer

Thanks for stopping by today! Hope the rest of your week is awesome :0]

So Thankful...Color Throwdown #167

2011-11-09T10:38:00.000-05:00

Hi everyone. I'm here to share my Color Throwdown card for the challenge Joan is hosting (CTD167). She chose an awesome, vibrant palette this week:

I celebrated my birthday last week while I was in San Antonio for work...and I was lucky enough to have a very good friend who just so happened to be there at the same time. He and I and some fellow, FUN co-workers, went to dinner. We enjoyed some amazing steak and margaritas at a fab restaurant, and my friend was soooo sweet, he picked up the tab for my dinner! Totally unnecessary and I argued with him, but he just would not let me pay on my birthday :] I really appreciate his thoughtfulness...and I really don't feel deserving, but I'm SO THANKFUL to have such a great friend. I owe him so much more than a simple thank you card, and hopefully I can find a way to return the kind gesture.

As you can see, I kept my card very simple, and tried VERY hard to make this palette masculine! The easiest way for me to do that was to recolor some of my plaid paper from last year around this time. This sheet came from the Candy Shoppe collection. I also started two other cards using two other recolored sheets from the same collection. I hope to share those this week...I simply didn't have it in me to finish three tonight. I got home pretty late and I'm feeling under the weather. So...keep an eye out...I may be back tomorrow ;] My leaves are from the Old Oak Leaf and Marvelous Maple Leaf cut files, the green tartan pattern was recolored from the Fresh Fabric Collection 2, and my sentiment came from my Sentimental Occasions stamp set. The card was cut on my Cricut using the Creative Cards/Envelope 1 cut file. The button and twine are from my stash and I used a SU punch to cut out the word "thank". I also sponged the edges of the green patterned paper with white acrylic paint.

That's all I have for you today, but swing by our very talented DTs' blogs for a great sampling of inspiring projects!

Wanda
Lydia Fielder ~ November Guest Designer

Thanks for stopping by today! Hope you're hitting mid-week on a great note!!

Color Throwdown Challenge #166 & MTME Release

2011-11-02T00:01:00.002-04:00

Happy Wednesday, my friends. Welcome back to another edition of the Color Throwdown ;] Today, Danielle is our talented hostess, and she chose this awesome palette:

Beautiful, huh? LOVE the cool colors together. I kept my card CAS for the most part and focused on some fun digi paper (FREE 12 Days of Snowflakes, Fresh Cut Expressions Collection 1, and Trendy Forest) and some super cute cut files. The sentiment is stamped on a Tag You're It cut file and the other, more prominent cut file was released yesterday at My Time Made Easy. It's the bell in the spotlight called, Ring in the New Year. Isn't it adorable? I scaled it 50% and then another 25%...so it's pretty big in the original form...but thankfully for cut files we can have any size we want! Check out the MTME store to peek at all of the new products! They're sure to inspire you for the holidays.

My layout was inspired by the MOJO Monday sketch (MOJO213):

You can also check out the MTME Gallery and DT for even more inspiration ;] Be sure to swing by the Color Throwdown DT for some amazing inspiration on the fresh palette Danielle chose:

Welp, I need to get going for now. Thanks for stopping by today! Hope you found a little inspiration to get crafty this week :]

2011-11-01T00:01:00.000-04:00

Hi friends! I’m poppingin to share a project I made for the My Time Made Easy November release. Lauren and Sara came up with a greatcollection of templates, images, cut files, paper and stamps this month! This release is chock full of fun, versatileproducts that you can use for the holidays or throughout the year. I chose to go with a holiday theme when I sawthe Tri-It template. It immediatelyreminded me of some gold colored “cones” I hang on my Christmas tree. My entire tree is decorated in white and goldornaments – no exceptions. So, I thoughtit would be fun to recreate the gold cone and put my own twist on it. I kept it simple and pretty…just like my tree:]

I scaled the template to 50% before cutting and then stampedmy pieces with Fanciful Flourishes using VersaMark and embossed in gold.

I created my handle simply by trimming about a 6”x1/4”strip of paper and wrapping the metallic ribbon around it until it wascovered. Neat, huh?

I trimmed the extra “closure” strips off of the base(that ended up being my top), lined the edge with gold/white ribbon and acouple of pretty bows, and cut a tiny hole in the point. Here I threaded a gold bell with somemetallic ribbon and tied a small knot inside the cone to hold it in place. I then tied a small bow above the bell (canwe ever really have too many bows?! Ithink not).

Now if you’re wondering what this “ornament” would beused for on my tree…think goodies, like chocolate or a tiny present. Either will look adorable with the white maraboulining the interior. I love how it givesmy ornament an ethereal look…because that’s the look I’m going for on my tree:]

Okay, that’s all I have for you today, but check backtomorrow – I have a quick and easy card to share for the release. Remember, everything is live in the storeNOW, so go fill your shopping carts!! Take a gander at the rest of our talented DT for some moreinspiration! They never fail to amaze♥

Thanks for stopping by today. Hope the rest of your week is spectacular!!

Color Throwdown #164

2011-10-22T23:08:00.000-04:00

Hi friends. I'm popping in to share a card I made this morning for the Color Throwdown (CTD164) challenge. I didn't get my card done for the challenge on Wednesday because I was out of town this week for work (and I'm a procrastinator). Broni is our hostess and she chose a pretty Halloween palette for us!

Of course, I decided not to make a Halloween themed card, and recolored the same paper I used last week instead, Fresh Cut Expressions - Collection 1. I used Chupa's Sketchbook Saturday Challenge #34 as the inspiration for my layout:

I didn't want to cover my bold print with my sentiment (MTME Sentimental Occasions) so I went with vellum (again). I added some black sewing trim and a piece of black lace and stiched my small layers together.

I also randomly stitched my vellum to secure it to my paper and to add interest. Other than that, it's pretty self explanatory :]

You have until 11:59 pm on Sunday to link to your card and be eligible for our Featured Stamper badge. Be sure to check out my fellow DT creations also! I'm being lazy tonight, so I'm going to refer you to their blog links over at the Color Throwdown site ;] I WILL be back this week as usual. Check in with me again on Wednesday if you're looking for a fresh palette of inspiration!!

Hope you're having an awesome weekend.

Color Throwdown Challenge #163

2011-10-12T00:00:00.004-04:00

Hi friends! It's Wednesday which means I'm here to share my Color Throwdown card!! Bar is our fab hostess who chose this stunning palette.

I didn't realize it until I uploaded my card, but apparently I channeled my card from two weeks ago when I was getting crafty! I kept thinking something felt familiar, but I dismissed it and kept right on going. Oh well...I love the colors and I adore this paper I recolored to fit the challenge palette (MTME Fresh Cut Expressions - Collection 2). I also used a sheet from my Romance pack and recolored a sheet from my Cheerful Musical Magic pack. My sentiment is from the MTME So Sentimental stamp set.

My bird, sentiment panel, round layer, and branch are all cut files (Branching Out, A Little Birdie, Framed Elegance, and What's My Fortune? Cookie). I ran my Poppy marker around the edge of my bird and also dotted her eye. I did the same for my sentiment panel. The vellum layer is dry embossed, and I added some cool, dark brown hemp twine to show off my button. The ribbon layer is the same as the layer on my card two weeks ago (of course). That lace trim just sings to me every time I get busy in my craft room!

My layout was inspired by Chupa's Sketchbook Saturday challenge #32...which was inspired by a card our guest designer, the talented Ms. Amy sheffer created not long ago.

That's pretty much all there was to my card (other than a BUNCH of dimensional tape)...but be sure to check out our new DT! You'll find a LOT more inspiration each week with our awesome designers ;]

♥ Amy Sheffer ~ October Guest Designer ♥

Thanks for stopping by today! Hope you are having a wonderful, short week ;]

Swimming for Katie Renz ~ Blog Hop and Fundraiser

2011-10-11T00:01:00.011-04:00

From October 10-12 some of the best stampers are joining together to support and encourage our friend and fellow stamper, Katie Renz, who is currently battling inoperable gastric cancer. If you're not familiar with her, Katie’s cancer story started just before Christmas last year. This young, beautiful, healthy, vibrant mother of 3 with her infectious smile was suddenly diagnosed with an inoperable cancer, virtually overnight. A few tummy aches and then stage 4 gastric cancer. Her first post about it is here. The idea of “Swimming for Katie” came from her recent post here.

This exclusive stamp used in my sample, designed by Becky Oehlers is available as a clear stamp, as well as a digi or a digi and SVG cut file (I used the svg cut file to trim around my digi image...if you haven't used digis with cut files before, Lauren Meader has an awesome tutorial HERE...the digi papers I used came from my MTME Blue Skies collection). 100% of the profits go to Katie's fund to help her and her young family. Her husband Kevin and her three young children need our help and support.

In addition to the Keep Swimming Octopus, Marianne Walker and True =D Doodle Designs both also donated digis that are for sale. Direct donations are also being accepted. Information central is HERE. This is a permanent page that will stay active at i {heart} papers with current information and the full 3 day blog hop listing, as well as the donation button.

Here are all the items available for sale.

Keep Swimming Octopus
Peachy Clear stamp
$5.50 with free shipping

Keep Swimming Octopus DIGIstamp
$3.00 with instant download

Keep Swimming Octopus DIGIstamp with SVG cut file
$3.50 with instant download

Keep Swimming Mermaid DIGIstamp
$3.50 with instant download

Keep Swimming Ribbon Fish DIGIstamp and DIGIpapers
$5.00 with instant download

I hope you will join me in supporting Katie through a purchase or donation. If you would like to send Katie a card, her mailing address is:

Katie Renz
PO Box 5913
Bellingham, WA 98227-5913

The following is a list of everyone who has projects posted today. I hope you will be inspired by them and moved to purchase or donate.

Thank you!

Ashley Harris
Clare Buswell
Jessica Diedrich
Lisa Somerville
Charlene Merrick
Eva Dobilas
Judy Rozema
Sharon Doolittle
Tifany DeGough
Windy Robinson
Ashley Cannon Newell
Connie McCotter
Heidi Van Laar
Karen Maldonado
Lori Craig
Melissa Phillips
Tosha Leyendekker
Amy Kolling
Angela Thomas
Angelica Suarez
Angie Blom
Becky Oehlers
Betty Wright
Bev Gerard
Brenda Weaver
Carolyn King
Chari Moss
Charlene Driggs
Cindi Bisson
Claire Brennan
Corinna McGregor
Craft Critique
Karen Hunsaker (Rubbernecker Stamps Designer)
Keely Yowler
Kelly Schirmer
Keri Lee Sereika
Kim Hughes
Kimber McGray
Kittie Caracciolo
Kristin Eberline
Wendy Price

Color Throwdown Challenge #162

2011-10-05T00:00:00.001-04:00

Hi friends! I'm here to share my card for the Color Throwdown Challenge (CTD162) that Tammy is hosting this week! BUT, before I get into my post I have to apologize to everyone who played along last week. I was the hostess and I set aside Monday night to comment on everyone's cards and type the Featured Stamper post, but unfortunately I've had MAJOR CONSTANT issues with my wi-fi router. Sometimes it works like a charm for a good length of time, and others, well it just doesn't allow me to do anything for a good length of time. The latter was the case last night. It took me over two hours to comment on one blog post. Eventually I had to give up because 5 am comes way too early. Fortunately, my sweet friend, Broni, stepped in and saved the day! THANK YOU BRONI!!! I owe you girlfriend. Okay...onto Tammy's awesome palette! Check it out:

I chose to work with my MTME Romance paper since the palette was so similar to the challenge colors! I hand-stitched my three base strips together (1.5" x 4" each) and added a strip of some pretty, brown lace trim I picked up at Hobby Lobby a while ago. I used my Sentimental Occasions stamp set, my Occasional Labels and Flutters and Flowers cut files for my focal points. I punched "happy" with a SU punch, and secured it with a button. I layered about four pieces of the daisy cut file after inking the petal edges with a Copic and curling them with my fingers. I secured them with a button also. My card shape is also a cut file from MTME, Cornice Trimmed Square.

My layout was inspired by Chupa's Saturday Sketchbook challenge.

That's all I have to share today, other than the links to our fabulous DT! Swing by and take a look at their fab creations :] You'll definitely receive a HEALTHY dose today...we've expanded our talent - take a look ♥

~ Newbies ~

don't forget our HUGELY talented October guest designer:

♥ Amy Sheffer ♥

We certainly hope you can play along this week! You don't have to use these exact colors (obviously, because I didn't :)...just come close. Thanks for stopping by today. Hope your week is off to a great start and you're on a swift downhill slide ;]

Color Throwdown #161

2011-09-28T00:01:00.000-04:00

Happy Wednesday, my friends! I'm hosting the Color Throwdown (CTD161) this week and I chose what I think is a fun and easy palette for you to work with! Check it out:

It's based on my new digi paper pack at My Time Mady Easy called Trendy Forest. HUGE thanks to the CTD gals who were able to use it on their cards this week! They made it look fantastic!! I used three of the sheets on my card, and also recolored some Wistful Musical Magic paper in chocolate for my circle panel. I cut it on my Cricut using my Cornice Trimmed Circle cut file resized to 3". I cut my flag panel using the flag piece from the What's My Fortune? Cookie cut file. My sentiment and the bird cage are from the Singing Silhouette stamp set. I stamped and embossed the cage on the vellum panel I cut using the Caged cut file. My cute little bird was cut from the A Little Birdie cut file and resized to fit on my birdcage :] Oh my...evertime I think I'm done sharing the supplies I used, I realize there's yet another cut file! Last but certainly not least, the pretty branch that I cut from my plaid lime paper used the Branching Out cut file. My white, ruffled trim, melon ribbon, and chocolate brad are from Hobby Lobby.

My layout was inspired by Chupa's Sketchbook Saturday Challenge #30.

Okay, I think that covers everything! Don't stop here though, we have a TON of inspiration from our very talented DT. Be sure to check out their goodies :]

♥ Julee Tilman ~ September Guest Designer ♥

Thanks for stopping in today! Hope your week is awesome so far, and finishes up on a nice and easy note ;]

Color Throwdown Challenge #160

2011-09-21T08:15:00.000-04:00

Hi all...I'm back from the work trip I took to New Mexico last week, and am happy to be playing along with the CTD today! Danielle is our hostess and she chose a timeless color combo that I adore. Check it out:

So pretty ♥ Fortunately, I have some paper that jives well with this palette, MTME All Steamed Up and one sheet from my Coffee Beans collection. I really wasn't trying to plagiarize our fab guest designer, Julee Tilman's concept on her MOJO Monday card when I use her sketch, but maybe the coffee theme spoke to me subliminally :]

Total bonus that my paper just so happens to be coffee themed. I used one of my newest label cut files, Frame Me to provide a base for my cup. I stitched my sentiment tag to my handle, and added a pretty, pearl flourish for my "steam"...along with my chocolate twine and pink button. I'm planning to send this card to my kiddo at college with her next care package because I do, miss her a "latte" :)

Okay, friends. That's all I have to share with you today, but be sure to swing by the rest of our team's blogs for a healthy dose of inspiration.

Bar

Broni

Danielle

Julee Tilman ~ September Guest Designer

Thanks for stopping by today :] Hope you're having a fabulous week!!

Color Throwdown Challenge #158

2011-09-07T00:00:00.000-04:00

Hi everyone. I'm back today with my card for the Color Throwdown (CTD158). Broni is our hostess today and she chose a perfect palette for the masculine card I needed to make! Check it out:

I realized recently that CAS is my friend when my mojo is on vacay. I think I may have left it on the cruise I took in August...not exactly sure, but it's M.I.A! So, today I used my new digital stamp set at MTME, Happy Hallows. I layered the solid, abstract circle in a pale gray (80% transparent), the plaid in Peach Parfait (also 80% transparent), then layered my open faced leaves at full opacity in Island Indigo. The trunk of my tree is Basic Gray. I inserted my tree "photo" into a Word document, added the "happy" sentiment, and printed.

I recolored the multi-striped paper from my Shutt-erfly collection to match this week's palette, layered my white, embossed 'birthday' sentiment from So Sentimental, stitched on some peach colored buttons, and layered it on gray cs. That was it...all finished. Almost too simple (in execution and appearance)...but the recipient won't mind. It's going to a teenage boy ;] LOL

Find some real inspiration at our DT's blogs...and our fabulous September guest designer, Julee Tilman!

♥ Julee Tilman ~ September Guest Designer ♥

Thanks for stopping by today! Hope you had a relaxing, LONG weekend ;]

Color Throwdown Challenge #157

2011-08-31T00:00:00.000-04:00

Hi everyone. I'm here to share a very quick card I made for a special man in my life, using Bar's fab Color Throwdown (CTD157) combo for the week! Check it out:

Awesome, right? I used my new stamp set being released at MTME this month (available tomorrow), Happy Hallows. It pairs beautifully with my paper, Trendy Forest also. I used three of my sheets from the collection to whip up this card. It was SO easy...it came together effortlessly.

I used Lauren's Round Up Tag to cut my tree out (using Lauren's instructions on cutting digi images with cut files found HERE). I layered three of the images to make the top of my tree (the kooky circle at 80% transparency, the fill leaves, and the outline leaves in blue). My tree base is in kraft (kind of)...and my sentiment from So Sentimental is in burgundy. SO, I eDID use all the colors, but like normal, I focused on two of them ;] Not sure why I always do that...one day I hope to be as creative as our other gals and be able to incorporate all of the colors thoroughly.

Notice my sentiment panel. I pinned the rectangle from Round Up Tag to my limeade plaid with a couple of brads. I wrapped my hemp twine around the brads and tucked them behind the two notches I punched using the SU punch that has two little rectangles on it (couldn't find the link, sorry) on each side of the plaid panel. I layered everything with dimensional tape (as usual).

I used Chupa's Sketchbook Saturday Challenge #26 for my layout

That's all I have for you today, but be sure to check out the rest of our talented DT and super-talented guest designer!

Bar

Broni

Tammy

Sharon Johnson ~ Tonight's Guest Designer

Thanks for stopping by today. I'm finally getting back into the swing of things, and hopefully chanelling my mojo again (if not today, maybe next week).

Have a great hump day! It's almost over...

Just Us Girls {3-D/TEMPLATE} Challenge #99

2011-08-27T11:45:00.000-04:00

Hi friends. I'm popping in this morning to share the quick project I made for today's Just Us Girls challenge (JUGS99). Lisa is our hostess, and she kept things easy for all of us! Simply create a 3-D project that showcases a back to school theme! Oh the possibilities!!

I decided to use the MTME Cutesy Cover template to create a sweet little box to house some much needed hand sanitizer for anyone going back to school - student and teacher alike! I didn't add a sentiment simply because I liked the way it looked without one and I haven't decided who I'll be giving this one to. I printed 4 sheets of my MTME Academic Hodgepodge paper. Two at full, 8.5" x 11" size, and the other two at 5" x 7". I used to two full size sheets to line the interior and layer the exterior.

The smaller sheets were what I used to create the Rosey Posey Rosette and the Steno Note sheet. I always use hot glue on the rosette because it's the only adhesive that works every time for me. I threaded my button and tied off some double looped hemp with a cute bow, then hot glued the button on my rosette. I used the combination of the rosette and the steno note paper as a "latch" of sorts to hold my box closed.

This little template almost held a third hand sanitizer! Not bad for one of the smaller MTME templates. Especially considering this one only requires one sheet of cs to cut the template. Oh, and I only used one strip of tape to adhere the template together! Bonus if you ask me ;] The REAL WIN is the fact that this little treasure is FREE in the MTME store! Check it out and share with us on Facebook if you whip something up!!

Thanks for checking in today. Please be sure to swing by the rest of our talented DT's blogs for a healthy dose of inspiration:

Pam

Hope you and yours are staying dry and safe from the storm this weekend. I don't know about those of you enduring the storm, but it sure makes me feel crafty! Helps that we aren't taking a direct hit, I suppose, but I hope to take advantage of it!

Color Throwdown Challenge #156

2011-08-24T00:00:00.002-04:00

Hi friends! I'm back after a long break for summertime fun with my kiddo and dropping her off at Penn State. My mojo is nowhere to be found, unfortunately, and our little, unexpected earthquake today made for a 2 1/2 hour trip home on the train which put me further behind (because I wait until the last minute :). BUT, alas, I did make a card...for none other than my sweet college girl, just to let her know that I think she's awesome and I love her ;] The latter sentiment is on the inside but I didn't take a photo (sooo tired). Check out our awesome palette this week that Laura selected:

Love this combo! I recolored some of my digi paper for the challenge and used Laura's Lil Inker Rainbows and Clouds stamp set for my sentiments. Clean, simple, fun and cute...just like Tia (the fun and cute, that is). Her fave color is yellow, but I was really feeling the kraft on this card so I went with it. I'll add links to my paper later, I am up way too late tonight and I have an EARLY morning. Sorry for the slacking post...I'll get back into the groove before too long.

Hope you are all well and can find some crafty time to play along. Gather some more inspiration from our fab dt and guest designer:

Bar

♥ Lori Tecler ~ August Guest Designer ♥

Thanks for stopping by today. Have a fab week/weekend :]

Just Us Girls {3-D/TEMPLATE} Challenge #94

2011-07-23T00:00:00.000-04:00

Hi friends. I'm here to share my JUGS 3-D/Template project with you. Dana is our hostess this week and she selected a fun challenge that hopefully anyone can play along with! Check it out:

Don't we all have some sort of plain gift bag laying around? I have a ton in my collection of wrapping paper and gift cards. I found this little, dark brown gift sack and I knew it was perfect for my project! I kept my bag ultra simple to show you how easy yet effective a quick decoration can be on a simple bag like this one. I already had some of Lauren's Spring Is Here paper printed from my last project, so I took the 5x7 piece and used a scalloped border punch on each long side. I cut the left and right edges of my double sided scalloped layer to about 5 1/4". I then scored down the middle and cut in about 1/4" on each side about 1" from the edge. I kept it folded and cut from one slit to the next. That gave me the opening I needed to slide the panel over my handles.

I simply added two matching buttons from my stash, after threading with green twine and adhering with glue dots. I added a triple loooped bow to hold my panel down, and I was finished. It really doesn't get much easier than that...and Lauren's fabulous paper didn't need much to make it sing on this project! It's such a lovely contrast with the dark brown...I couldn't bring myself to muddy it up any further. My three wick candle fits snugly inside ready to give to someone when the occasion arises.

Well, that's all I have for you today. I sure hope you can play along this week! If you do, please add a direct link to your post using Linky Tools over on the JUGS blog, and use keyword JUGS94 in any online galleries.

Don't forget to visit our fab DT for some awesome inspiration! Some of the girls are on break this week due to busy summer schedules, but please swing by and leave them some love anyway :]

Thanks for stopping by! Hope you stay cool this weekend and find time to get a little crafty.

Color Throwdown #151

2011-07-20T00:00:00.000-04:00

Hi friends! I'm here to share the card I made and today's palette at the Color Throwdown, where I'm your hostess! Check out the palette our team came up with:

As you can see, I chose to work with part of the palette, vs trying to use ALL of these pretty colors. Laura's Rainbows and Clouds dies and stamps were our inspiration this week:

My chosen colors from the expansive palette came straight from Lauren's Spring Is Here paper. Today was the perfect opportunity for me to finally use it!! Isn't the combo purty?! Love it!! I cut the rainbow from my patterned paper found in the Fresh Cut Expressions Collection 2 set. I layered it on my circle by adhering the three stripes with Scor-Tape on the reverse side (small pieces that spread across the three stripes in different areas). I left the tape backing intact and added a few small pieces of dimensional tape.

Now, I know my rainbow looks offset, but it's NOT! I promise!! The bottom edges of my rainbow are perfectly aligned...I just used the clouds as an optical illusion. I offset them as much as I could without revealing the edges of the rainbow. Cool effect, huh? I layered my circle and rainbow on another piece of my Fresh Cut Expressions Collection 2 paper cut from Lauren's new label cut file, Be Dazzled.

I layered some Saffron ribbon and satin, 'gold' ribbon on top to thread through my label die and create a double looped bow. Tied it down with a green button from my stash and finished everything off with dimensional tape ;] EASY, girly card, for a very, VERY dear friend of mine, Kristin Daugherty. It's her birthday today, so I wanted to whip up a late card for her (she knows me well, and doesn't expect to receive any cards on time from me :). So, with any luck, I'll stick this in the mail tomorrow and she'll have it by Saturday.

Oh, and my layout was inspired by the very talented Chupa's Sketchbook Saturday Challenge #20. Check it out:

That's all I have to share with you today, but be sure to check out the rest of the team. Some of our gals are taking a break, and some are playing along. I'm linking everyone because I know they all would appreciate a little love if you're in a commenting mood ;]

Keva ~ July Guest Designer

Have a great week and weekend!!

Color Throwdown #150

2011-07-13T00:00:00.000-04:00

Hi all, and happy Wednesday :] I'm here to share a VERY quick card I made for the Color Throwdown challenge. Laura is our hostess and she selected this pretty palette:

I used the colors quite literally, which I normally try NOT to do, but like I said...this was a quick card and I LOVED all of the colors together. So, I decided to just go with it. I cut the frame using the MTME Killer Curves cut file, and then embossed it with one of my Cuttlebug embossing folders (birds and vines...not sure of the actual name). I tied a teal, satin bow around the right side and popped it up with dimensional tape on a 4.25"x4.25" card base.

My flower was created by cutting the pieces from my Fluttering By paper using the Blossoming Into Spring cut file. I only worked with four of the flower pieces for my bloom, but I popped all of them up with dimensional tape except for the base and the top layer. Before I adhered them, I sponged a pale pink followed by a rose red and stitched a teal button to the top layer. I adhered the flower to my card with glue dots...and as you can see, that's literally all there was to my card. Simple, but fresh...and sentiment free so I can use if for a myriad of occasions that pop up.

We hope you're able to find some crafty time this week and can play along. Remember, you don't have to match these colors exactly, just use the closest colors you have on hand. Also, be sure to add a direct link to your post using the Linky Tools widget on the CTD blog. Last but certainly not least, check out our CTD gals for a healthy dose of inspiration today:

Thanks for stopping by, despite my MIA status recently :| Hope your summer is relaxing and happy ♥

Just Us Girls Challenges #91 & #92 :]

2011-07-09T00:00:00.000-04:00

Ahhh...TGIF! I'm back after several days of NO crafting :[ I've been engaged with lots of non-crafting stuff though, and it's all AMAZING, so I'm definitely not complaining. I'll set aside crafting to enjoy life any day ♥ Maybe I'll share more on that another day...as things get even better...but for now, I'm going to share my JUGS92 card! I'm your hostess this week for the Technique Challenge, and I'm challenging you to make a project showcasing your very own handmade paper buttons!

My button trial didn't work out so well initially, and I can't say I'm overly thrilled with this one but it is night and day better than the first! I created my button using cut files instead of punches. For this one, I used the MTME Elegant Curves - Circles cut file.

I scaled the main layer to 1", and copied/pasted until I had five pieces. I cut three out of SU Poppy Parade cs, and two out of white. I added two small circles to the poppy pieces for my button holes, and added one larger interior circle to my white layers so that I would end up with a frame of sorts. Here's a snapshot of what it looked like in SCAL:

After adhering the layers, I painted the sides with white acrylic paint to hide the poppy layers, and added a thick glaze (a little TOO thick) of Crystal Effects to the top. Let it dry before touching the glaze otherwise you'll have to add another layer of glaze and you'll end up with the THICK layer I've got!

Check out the cutie-patootie rainbow and cloud pieces!! These clever little images (and sentiment) are courtesy of Lil Inker - Rainbows and Clouds Dies and Stamps. Laura is so talented...she never fails to amaze me with her new products. Her eye for versatility and what the market is lacking, is phenomenal. I love watching her humble company grow with each release and can't wait to see where this takes her :] If you LOVE her products as much as I do, and you're looking for a temporary design team gig...check out her DT call! You'll be a part of the very beginning if you get picked up AND you'll receive at least two of her current release products! Win-win if you ask me!!

I cut my rainbow from four different sheets of my MTME School Plaid, and added a strip of the poppy to the top of my card. I used Kathryn's sketch from last week's challenge (JUGS91) for my layout.

That's pretty much all there was too it other than some sponging and embossing. Be sure to swing by the rest of the DT's blogs for a ton of inspiration this morning. They turned out some gorgeous cards!!

♥ Christina ~ July Featured Designer ♥

Thanks for stopping by today! Hope you are enjoying this HOT summer and finding some time to get creative. Have a fab weekend.

Color Throwdown #148

2011-06-29T00:00:00.001-04:00

Hi friends! I'm popping in to share my Color Throwdown card for this week. Bar is our hostess and she chose an unconventional palette, that actually works beautifully together! Check it out:

I shied away at first, but then a light bulb went off and I envisioned my very simple-in-appearance card. I made the flower using the new Rainbows and Clouds die from our very own Lil Inker, Laura Pryor. I decided to use the small and large arches from the small rainbow to create 6 petals. I cut the arches from the free coral paper I created for the CTD. You can still download it HERE :]

I basically used one glue dot per "petal" and adhered them to a 1" circle. I hot glued the button to the center to help firm up the bloom. I added the MTME Branching Out cut file (trimmed into two pieces) for some foliage (and to use Garden Green :), and stamped the sentiment from the Lil Inker Rainbows and Clouds Sentiments in Pacific Point. That's all there was to it other than cutting/layering my top panel and rounding the corners. I popped it up on dimensional tape, and my card was done.

We certainly hope you'll take on the challenge this week and help to show everyone how well these colors work together! If you don't have these exact colors, just use the closest you have. Be sure to post a direct link to your project over at the CTD blog and use keyword CTD148 in any online galleries! Before you get started, swing by our CTD gals' blogs to check out their inspirational projects!!

Betty Wright ~ June Guest Designer

Thanks for stopping by today. Hope you're having a fantastic week!

SURPRISE Birthday Blog Hop for Katie Cotton!!

2011-06-26T07:00:00.015-04:00

Happy Sunday, my friends. I'm here today to help surprise the very sweet, multi-talented, Katie Cotton as part of her birthday blog hop! Tangii is the mastermind behind it all and I didn't hesitate for a second when I read her email inquiring about who wanted to take part. Katie is AWESOME! One of the nicest people in blog-land ;] I typically refrain from shabby cards because I don't execute well...they usually just end up looking messy. BUT, today I decided I'd give it a go...I was just feeling shabby I guess :] I LOVE how it turned out! I don't think it's perfect, but that's the point, right? Keep it kind of abstract and piled high with goodies?!

Katie seems girly to me so I went with some pinks and some neutral browns. My stamps came from four different sets: Birthday = Sentimental Occasions; Wishes = So Sentimental; to you = Just For You; and the flourishes = Fanciful Flourishes. I cut my sentiment panel and base from my Occasional Label cut file.

The pink, pearl flourish is from Prima, the metal swirl is from SU Hodgepodge Hardware, lace ribbon is May Arts, satin ribbon is from Michaels, button is from my stash, multi-colored twine is from the jewelry section at Michaels, and the flowers are also primas.

I distressed my edges and use some Ranger Ink sponge daubers to add white acrylic paint. The patterned paper is from my Wistful Wonder pack and my Wistful Musical Magic pack. I stamped flourishes on my Soft Suede cs in the same color ink. My layout was inspired by Mojo Monday's MOJO196 sketch.

So...that's all there was to it :] Here's wishing you a very HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MS. KATIE!!! Big birthday cyber hugs to you, girly! Hope it's awesome.

Now, for the rest of you, we would love for you to hop along to each designer's blog to leave some love ending with the birthday girl, then make a birthday card for Katie and add it to the hop! Check out the master list:
Thanks for popping in! Have a happy Sunday.

Just Us Girls {3-D/Template} Challenge #90

2011-06-25T15:14:00.000-04:00

Hi friends! I'm here to share my JUGS project just a wee late this time. I've been MIA this month with family in town, a college visit, and my daughter's graduation festivities...but I'm trying to get back in the saddle ;] Maria is our hostess this weekend and she challenged us to create a 3-D project or template with a patriotic theme. I immediately leaned toward the MTME Star of the Show template for my project (as did Lisa, I noticed this morning! Great minds, I tell ya!).

I used some of my basic patterned paper from the Dotted Stripes Collection 2 and Collection 3 for my project. My printer ink was waning, but I loved the rustic look it gave to my template so I went with it! I'm so bad when it comes to enhancing a rustic, or vintage look because I refrain from distressing or sponging. I probably should have done one of the two with my project, but I just couldn't bring myself to do it :] So, it is what it is.

I adhered some white lace May Arts ribbon to the lid alone, and used some navy satin ribbon to tie my box closed. My Killer Curves cut file came in handy once again for my sentiment. I used the "Friends are like stars...you don't always have to see them to know they are there" sentiment from the MTME Keep Strong set for my focal point. This will make for a fun way to package up some goodies for a friend who helped me out tremendously with Tia's graduation party! I think I'll add some sugar free chocolate covered blueberries as my gift...just need to swing to Trader Joes and pick some up :]

If you're wondering how I was able to sponge the interior circle on my sentiment, it was really quite easy. Just cut two center pieces of the Killer Curves cut file, but center a circle sized to your liking to one of them before cutting. It'll look like this on your cutting mat:

Then, just layer the frame on the panel you want to sponge, hold it in place, and sponge away! Easy stuff. You can also store the frame for future sponging like I do to save paper.

Alright friends, that's all I have to share today, but swing by in the morning for another special projects :] Be sure to check out the goodies that our JUGS gals came up with as well! They made some CA-UTE projects today!

♥ Rosemary ~ June Featured Designer ♥

Thanks for swinging by today! Hope your weekend is off to an awesome start!!

Color Throwdown #147

2011-06-22T00:00:00.000-04:00

Hi friends! I've been MIA this past week getting ready for my daughter's high school graduation and party...and visitors, and my boss's retirement ceremony! Lots of stuff going on and I just needed to focus on my kiddo :] But, I'm back to host this week's CTD challenge!! Broni shared a cool color inspiration site with us weeks ago that extracts colors from vibrant photos. I loved several of the palettes, but settled on this one for today's challenge:

For my card, I obviously honed in on the black and pink, but I promise I used Sage Shadow and Cherry Cobbler! Both colors are in the patterned paper...hard to see, but they're there - I swear! I recolored my Serenity MTME paper for my card, and also used a sheet from my Fun and Fortune pack.

I used my Killer Curves cut file and the Gratitude stamp from Bold Botanicals. The black trim is from Hobby Lobby, the ribbon is Stampin Up, and the black hemp twine is from the jewelry section in Michaels...button is from my stash.

This is the first of many thank you cards I owe to friends and family for helping me TREMENDOUSLY in preparing for Tia's grad party. I'm very blessed to have such helpful, considerate, selfless people in my life ♥ My layout was inspired by the MTME Pretty Patterns sketch (MTMEPPS14).

Okay, so now it's your turn to get busy with my palette! We'd love to see your interpretation of these colors this week. Just post a direct link to your card over at the CTD blog and use keyword CTD147 in any online galleries. I'll be by to check out the goods!! Before you get started, swing by our CTD sister's blogs for some inspiration.

Betty Wright ~ June Guest Designer

Thanks for stopping by today! Hope you're having an awesome week :]

Color Throwdown #145

2011-06-08T00:00:00.003-04:00

**Updated post 6.8.11 @ 10:30** WARNING! This is a QUICK POST but I will update it appropriately first thing in the morning...we got home around 9:30 from our Penn State trip, so I'm whipped! Thankfully I started my card on Monday before we headed out of town. Laura is hosting for Carole this week, and this is the fun palette Carole selected:

I kind of cheated and went with Soft Sky vs Baja Blue. Close enough though :] I finally used my MTME Buzz-y Blooms digi paper, and I paired it with one of my very first cut files, the daisy from Flutters and Flowers. The leaves came from the same cut file set. I punched my saffron border using an EK Success border punch. The Happy Birthday sentiment is from my Sentimental Occasions stamp set. You may have also noticed that I changed up my hand-stitching on this card (I normally cross stitch or make a "v" pattern)...here's a close up. I like how it turned out!

...and here is a close up to show that there is a "Happy" to go with my "Birthday" sentiment ;] It's just hiding under my ruffled trim.

The Mojo Monday (MOJO194) sketch was the inspiration for my layout...and a couple other CTD gals!

Okay, swing by the CTD gals' blogs and check out their stunning projects.

♥ Betty Wright ~ June Guest Designer ♥

Hope you're having a great week, friends.

Color Throwdown #144

2011-06-01T00:00:00.001-04:00

Well, the long Memorial Day weekend is over and for many of us, it's back to the daily grind :[ I marched in the National Memorial Day parade on Monday, in my Battle Dress Uniform (heavy, hot material), in 100 degree weather. It was SO HOT and we were out there in the blazing sun for nearly five hours...but I was still proud to be one of the active duty representatives in the National Capitol Region. We marched a little smarter and with a little more determination every time someone would clap for us, or shout, "thank you", or "God bless". It's heart warming to know we have so many supporters - many of whom are veterans themselves...who have witnessed first-hand the trauma of war and the ultimate sacrifice their comrades made for our country. A country I'm forever proud to defend. I'll never regret my decision to join the Air Force.

Oh, and I have to share an early highlight to our day. We ate lunch before we marched (HUGE thank you to Chipotle, Subway and Chic Fil-A for providing food), and found ourselves in the presence of two stars shortly after! I don't know if they made their way to our tent on purpose or if they were on their way to another destination, BUT, we were lucky enough to get their attention and snap a few photos with them. Check 'em out:

This is me with Pat Sajak!!! He was SO nice...and he looks amazing!!

...and this is me with Gary Sinise!!! THE one and only Lt Dan ;] He was also SUPER nice. They were both so accommodating. They stayed there and took photos with a ton of service members for quite a while. Such a great way to start the afternoon.

Okay, onto the challenge (CTD193) and my card :] Cathy selected this fun palette for us. Isn't it fresh?! This was a quick card for me. I used the Mojo Monday (MOJO193) sketch for my layout:

My image is from Flourishes' April Showers set, and my sentiment is from Flourishes' Orchids set. I used the following Copics to color my bucket of tulips:

If you follow my blog, you KNOW I'm not a Copic colorer, so please be gentle :] I stitched my panels of MTME Fresh Cut Expressions Collection 2 and Wistful Wonder (recolored) paper together and cut my main image and my card base panels with Spellbinders Blossom dies. I triple layered and looped my thin, white ribbon along with some orange twine that I used to tie off my button and bow. That's really all there was to it! Easy stuff.

Now, I so hope you all can play along this week! Our CTD gals have a ton of inspirational projects to share also, so be sure to check them out!

Tammy
♥ Betty Wright ~ Our June Guest Designer ♥

Thanks for stopping by today. Hope your week is moving right along so that you can jump back into a weekend :]

Color Throwdown...4 Days Late :[

2011-05-29T23:07:00.000-04:00

Hi friends. I'm here today to share my very late Color Throwdown (CTD143) card with you all. I had a friend in town this week, and I'm last minute with all of my cards, so I took a short break to hang out. I DID finish my card on Friday but by then it was JUGS time, so I'm just now sharing. Laura selected our fab color palette...check it out:

I recolored my MTME Fresh Cut Expressions Collection 2 paper to match the palette, and I was on my way! Tangii's MTME Pretty Pattern Sketch (MTMEPPS11) was the inspiration for my layout:

My sentiment is digital from the MTME For Dad stamp set. I imported the image in Microsoft Word, cropped it to only show the sentiment I wanted, and typed "Mother" above using Rose Red and a drop shadow. I printed to the size I knew I wanted and cut it out with a nestie. This sentiment perfectly describes my mother (heck, all of our mothers probably :)...and I plan to give this card to her on her birthday at the end of July. Shh...don't tell her though ;] LOL She sees my cards on Facebook, but I'm hoping she doesn't notice my focal point! OR, she only sees the thumbnail and the first little snippet of text...maybe she'll think I made it for someone else's mother. *Crossing fingers*

I tried a pretty rolled flower using a cut file I made the second month we were in business (and never released), but it just didn't look right sitting there all by itself, so I crocheted a double layered flower. Isn't it pretty? I love how it turned out. I triple wrapped some of my lime hemp twine and layered it under my bloom, pinching it together with the brad. I wanted the twine to resemble or replace the leaves for my flower...and I love how it turned out ♥ I cinched my double looped yellow seam binding with some twine and hot glued my primas for a nice girly look. I layered everything on my digi paper that I hand-stitched together, and I was finished!

I'm sure you've already hopped around the other CTD gals' blogs by now BUT just in case you didn't, be sure to check out their beauties!

Jen Mitchell ~ May Guest Designer

Thanks for stopping by today. Hope you are having an awesome, Memorial Day weekend. Remember, if you happen to watch the National Memorial Day parade tomorrow, look for me in one of the formations of active duty service members...I should be near the back (I'm short) :]

Just Us Girls {3-D/TEMPLATE} Challenge #86

2011-05-28T00:00:00.000-04:00

Hello, my friends. I took a short, unintentional break last week from both JUGS and the CTD, but I'm back today with the Just Us Girls challenge (JUGS86), sponsored by sweet, Andrea. She challenged us to make a 3D project or template for Father's Day. Easy, right?

I threw mine together fairly quickly for me. I decided to use Lauren's Barrow of Blooms for my Father's Day template, and I filled it with dark chocolate Lindor truffles. I used my MTME Autumn Leaves Collection 2 paper to decorate my side panels, and SU River Rock cs as my base. I created my label cutting out my MTME Trendy Tags #4 cut file and layering my digital sentiment from the MTME For Dad set.

There are a ton of different ways to format and print digi stamps, but I tend to use Microsoft Word for mine. It's very easy to import the picture, crop and resize using the Format function. I'm very familiar with graphic design programs, but Word is what I like to call "simple-stupid"...like, digi stamps for dummies :] Perfect for this tired mind... I'll show you another card with a digi sentiment this weekend that shares a few other options when working in Word.

I cut out an MTME Oak Leaf cut file to use as a tag for my bag of truffles. I tied it down with a button and some black hemp twine.

That's really all there was to my project! I will post my very late JUGS and CTD cards this weekend sometime...they're both finished, I just need to share them :] Be sure to swing by the rest of the DTs' blogs for some fun Father's Day projects! You'll just love what they've come up with!!

Just Us Girls

Thanks for stopping by today. Hope you have a safe, relaxing, LONG Memorial Day weekend. If you watch the National Memorial Day parade this weekend, keep an eye out for me ;] I'll be marching ♥

SURPRISE Birthday Blog Hop for Bar Anders!!

2011-05-20T04:00:00.001-04:00

Hi friends! Today I'm here to share a card I made for my CTD sister, Bar Anders. It's her birthday and Tammy arranged an awesome blog hop in honor of Bar! If you didn't arrive at my blog via Broni's, you may want to start at the beginning of the hop over at Tammy's blog.

♥ HAPPY BIRTHDAY, BAR ♥

I made a pretty CAS, albeit semi-shabby card for her using Verve's "Believe" set. I added several panels using sheets of dp from my MTME Wistful Wonder pack, and even stamped three graduated sizes of blooms from the Verve set, cut them out and layered them after curling the petals with my fingers to make them look a little fuller. The leafy branch came from the MTME Branching Out cut file. I distressed the edges of my panels and added some narrow, lace ribbon with a triple strand of craft thread along with a triple looped bow.

Okay, so that's all I have to share with you today, BUT be sure to hop along to Laura's blog for her inspirational goodies and to continue your tour of a HUGE ARRAY of talented papercrafters!

Thanks for swinging by. Have a great Friday!!

Color Throwdown Challenge #142

2011-05-18T00:00:00.000-04:00

I am SO excited to share my card today! I'm certain this is the FASTEST card I've ever made! LOL Took no longer than a half hour (I think). So, I'm either getting better at throwing these together or I got lucky tonight ;] Either way, it's a card I would feel comfortable giving away (though I hope I never need to). This awesome palette was selected by the ever so talented, Broni ♥ Check it out.

I used my new go-to set, MTME Sentimental Occasions and Occasional Labels. The bloom is from the latter. I simply stamped it in black and stamped a second time for the gray blooms. I then stamped my lime blooms using Memento New Sprout ink. I ran my oval layer from the MTME Occasional Label cut file along my Memento London Fog ink pad and popped it up on my label. My green cs is Bazzil Petty Cash. I printed some of my MTME patterned paper for my base layers, Love Notes and School Plaid - Collection 1.

The black ribbon is actually trim from the Hobby Lobby, and the gray ribbon came free with an order from Ellen Hutson. I tied off the ribbon and button with some lime twine I picked up at Michaels. ...and last but not least, my scalloped layer was a remnant I cut from my MTME Border Builders Elegance cut file the other day. Not much more to it than that! Super quick and easy!

Be sure to swing by the rest of our DT's blogs to absorb some more inspiration!! You can check out the rules and link your card over at the CTD blog :]

Bar

Jen Mitchell ~ May Guest Designer

Thanks for stopping by! Hope you are having a fantastic week!!

MTME Pattern & Palette Challenges!

2011-05-15T22:52:00.001-04:00

Hi all...I made a very quick card today for both the MTME Pretty Pattern (MTMEPPS09) and Pretty Palette (MTMEPPC09) challenges! The sketch and the color palette were easy to use and just worked out perfectly for my card. The funny thing is that I bought the ribbon you see on my card while I was out craft shopping last weekend. When I saw Lisa's color selection, the lightbulb lit up! PERFECT opportunity to use the ribbon. Tangii's sketch made it easy to pull the palette together. Some pretty paper and a layer of vellum...a little embossing and a pearled flourish, and I had a pretty, girly thank you card.

I double looped my bow and added two extra tails by gathering my ribbon strips as I tied the bow down (hope that makes sense). I adhered three blooms with a pearl brad using hot glue. My paper is from my Love Notes Color Me Pretty pack (scaled to 5x7"), and my scalloped layer is my MTME Border Builders Elegance cut file. The sentiment came from one of my new stamp set, Sentimental Occasions. I made this card for a sweet little gal who moved to Ohio last year with her family, Rowan Goble. She was so sweet at Easter. A co-worker was visiting and met up with her family during that time, and this little lady sent her home with a plastic egg filled with candies, chocolate and a large rubber ant, all for me! LOL Isn't that sweet?!

Okay...that's all I have for you today. Hope you find some time to play along with our new MTME challenges! Tangii and Lisa and their teams are doing an absolutely amazing job each week! Their projects have me drooling :]

Thanks for stopping by. Have a fantastic week!!

Kissing With a Twist

2011-05-14T00:00:00.001-04:00

Hi friends! I'm hosting the technique challenge at Just Us Girls this week and I've challenged you to *kiss* with a twist! Splitcoaststampers has an easy to follow tutorial for you HERE.

I selected the solid coffee mug image from MTME's Fancy A Cuppa set and the two larger individual daisy stamps for the technique. This gave me a nice, large surface to twist my daisies ;] I embossed my entire mug after I finished stamping...to give it that enamel look. My sentiment, "Miss you a latte" is from the MTME Grab A Cup Sentiments set. I thought it was perfect with my lone, hanging empty mug...symbolizing the fact that there was nobody to share a latte with :[ I tied it off with some beige hemp twine that I recolored with a dark blue Copic. I layered two daisies that I stamped in navy, cut out, fastened with a brad and adhered to the triple looped hemp twine.

My daisy paper is a sheet from the MTME Coffee Beans pack that I recolored to match my mug. I also added a strip of Fresh Fabric - Collection 1 navy paper for the strip I used to hold my grommets and tie off my twine. See the slightly curled top right, and bottom left corners? I totally channeled Julee Tilman on those little pretties! I LOVE how she adds a curled corner to her cards...it really gives it a little something extra. So, I gave it a go :] My layout was inspired by the Card Positioning System sketch #217. It was perfect for hanging my mug after I flipped the sketch!

Well, that's all I have to share today, but our awesome DT has a lot more ispiration for you! Check em out:

Clare Buswell ~ May Featured Designer

Thanks for stopping by! Hope you have a wonderful, relaxing weekend ♥

Color Throwdown Challenge #141

2011-05-11T00:00:00.000-04:00

Ahh...my friends. I'm finally back after NOT finishing my JUGS card - yet...but I do have my Color Throwdown card to share :] Danielle selected a FABULOUS palette that I MUST use for one of my next packs of paper!! I can't tell you how many times I've reached for Aqua and Pink, or Aqua and Melon...I NEED some paper that I can grab and go (err...print and go). Check out her fresh palette!

Mmmm...mmmm...LOVE IT. So, you know by now, that I don't have an aqua/rose red pack, BUT, I do know how to recolor digi paper, so I was truly all set. Plus I wanted to keep the top bg white, which made it easier to design the rest of my card :] I chose to use my School Plaid paper and recolored it to a lovely melon because it matched the flower I colored better than rose red. Oh, and if you're new to my blog you may not realize I typically DON'T color...especially with Copics since I have such a limited collection. I do MUCH nicer work with watercoloring...but I'm trying to get better with Copics so that's what I went with. That being said, I totally realize that my coloring is far from the best! BUT, it matches the very pretty melon ribbon and hemp twine I picked up this weekend!! Score!

I double looped my melon ribbon and twine under the aqua button...and layered it on top of some super cute aqua ribbon I picked up when Amy Sheffer and I went shopping at the Hobby Lobby! I'll type a separate post about that OH-SO-FUN-DAY with Amy, later :] She is awesome...

My bloom and sentiment came from Catherine Doucette's Bee-Loved and Bee-Loved Sentiments sets (consecutively). I adhered a few yellow buttons from my stash to follow the Mojo Monday sketch (MOJO190) and also to subliminally represent the sun shining on my flower :]

I layered my panels on some pretty Day At Sea cs from Couture Cardstock to finish up. So...that's my humble card! Hope it makes you smile :O) Check out our other CTD ladies for a huge dose of inspiration!!

Bar

Jen Mitchell ~ May Guest Designer

Thanks for stopping by ♥

Throwing Down Some Color Mojo ;]

2011-05-05T23:17:00.000-04:00

Hi all. I'm finally posting my Color Throwdown #140 card. No excuses - I'm just late :[ I made this card for my mom. I'm SURE it will also be late arriving at her house, BUT, I know she'll see it posted on Facebook, so at least she'll have a sneak peek ;] I used Bar's amazing color palette this week, and just so happened to have some paper I made that matches perfectly! Check out the palette:

My paper is from two MTME packs. The floral and the scalloped patterns are from Fun and Fortune, and the striped sheet is from Serenity. I used the Framed Elegance flower on my round panel, and my Border Builders - Elegance cut file for my top scalloped panel. The other scalloped panel is an MS punch. My label is from the Spellbinders Ribbon Tags. My sentiment is from the new Flourishes Motherly Love set.

Instead of creating a flag panel, I decided to pleat my kraft colored ribbon and pin it down with a brad. I added some hemp twine bows to my label, and embossed the zig zag on my smaller scalloped panel.

My layout was inspired by the Mojo Monday sketch (MOJO189).

Well, that's all I have to share today. Be sure to swing by the CTD blog and visit our CTD gals' individual blogs for some AMAZING inspiration! Thanks for stopping by today. Hope you are having an amazing week :]

SURPRISE Birthday Blog Hop for Lauren Meader!!

2011-05-03T00:00:00.003-04:00

Hi friends! I'm popping in real quick because the MTME gals decided to host a surprise blog hop for our lovely, Lauren Meader! Today is her birthday and we couldn't let it slip by without sending LOTS of big wishes her way :]

♥ HAPPY BIRTHDAY, LAUREN ♥

I used the new Bee-Loved set designed by Catherine Doucette for my card. I also incorporated the JUGS technique that Andrea selected for challenge #82 - emboss resist.

Tulips are Lauren's favorite flower so this set was perfect for my project! I sponged two tones of pink on my tulip petals (Pink Pirouette and Regal Rose) and I sponged Certainly Celery on my stem and leaves.

It's a little hard to see beneath my vellum layer in the photo, so here's a better shot:

Not much more to it than some triple wrapped and looped ribbon tied off with a butterfly gem and my sentiment embossed in white on top of the vellum layer. So, be sure to check out the main hop hosted on the MTME blog. We would love for you to make a card for Lauren and join us on the hop! You simply need to post your photo on the MTME blog so that everyone can hop along! Once you're finished hopping, hop on over to Lauren's blog and leave her some birthday love!

Sentimental Occasions to Throwdown Color (CTD#139)

2011-04-27T00:00:00.000-04:00

My occasion really ISN'T sentimental...well, I guess it's kind of a happy sentimental since my card is for a very special lady in my life (she reads, so I can't expand on that). The subject of my post is really in relation to my two new stamp sets I released at MTME this month! Woot woot! They complement each other, so the CTD gals agreed to help me showcase both sets!! Aren't they the best? Oh, and LAUREN is the best for sponsoring us this week and sending the sets to the team (except Kisa and Carole...that was TOTALLY my fault! So sorry ladies). They played along anyway and did a bang up job! SO...how about we take a peek at the palette I selected based on the colors in my new paper pack, Fresh Cut Expressions - Collection 2.

FIVE colors to play with, folks...should be simple because you can always minimize one or more of the colors if it doesn't really speak to you. Oh, and Tangerine Tango should probably have been Cameo Coral...I messed up on that one when I selected my colors without looking at my paper! LOL If you play along, just go with the closest palette you have.

My layout was inspired by the Mojo Monday sketch, (MOJO188).

If you're wondering where my label from the set is, it's my scalloped edge on my strip of text paper! I also used the Occasional Label cut file for the word, "You" in my sentiment. All of the paper I used is from the same pack my palette was inspired by, and was printed two sheets to a page (5x7" each) to maximize paper/ink and to scale the large pattern. The sentiment I built came from my Sentimental Occasions stamp set that is based on building your sentiment! This is such a timeless set and has so many possibilties, I foresee myself going back to it frequently for years to come. My card base was cut using my MTME Cornice Trimmed Circle cut file. I cut two pieces, scored the top portion of my back panel, and adhered above the score line to my front panel. Hot glue a couple of primas, and add some pretty craft seam binding (MS) and hemp twine, and ta-da! All finished!

Before you run off to start your card, be sure to swing by the CTD gals' blogs for a healthy dose of inspiration. Also, check out the CTD post....there is a nice prize to be won this week ;]

Thanks for checking in. Hope you are having an amazing week!

Happy Easter!

2011-04-24T14:13:00.000-04:00

Happy Easter, my friends! I woke up early this morning and made a quick card for my daughter, Tia, that I want to share. She's 16 so she sleeps until at LEAST 11, which worked in my favor today! I wasn't quite finished when she woke up, but she knows her mom and just laughed it off (plus, I had an Easter basket packed with gourmet chocolate waiting for her, so she wasn't empty handed :).

I used the new Orchids stamp set from Flourishes for my main image. I thought it was perfect for a delicate Easter card. I stamped the orchids in VersaMark and embossed them in white. I used a technique I found on Debbie Olson's blog to shade the orchids. I used my Buttercup Copic (Y21) to shade around my image but not over the embossed lines. My colorless blender was perfect for fading the edges of my shadow (though my result is not NEAR as lovely as Debbie's).

The sentiment is from my MTME Sentimental Occasions stamp set. I stamped it in VersaMark and embossed in white. I used my MTME All Tied Up - Rectangle cut file for the label and tied it off with some SU So Saffron grossgrain ribbon and some hemp twine with a button from my stash. I created my scalloped card by cutting two pieces of white cs with Large Scallops Nestabilities and scoring a line across the top of my back piece just under the top row of scallops. I then adhered above the score line to my front piece. I stole this idea from Julee Tilman :] I don't like the look of scalloped cards that are cut off at the top, so I've been using her method. Gives it a more finished look in my opinion.

That's pretty much all there was to this one! My daughter LOVED it!! She told me it was her favorite card of all the ones I've ever made her (it helps that her favorite color is yellow :). Hope you are enjoying a relaxing Easter holiday with loved ones. Thanks for stopping by ♥

Just Us Girls {3-D/Template} Challenge #81

2011-04-23T00:00:00.001-04:00

Hi friends! I'm hosting the Just Us Girls challenge (JUGS81) this week!! I chose to simply challenge you all to create a 3-D template/project that has a spring theme! What an EASY challenge this Easter, huh?

My mind was geared toward spring break and cutesy ;] I've had this idea in my head for a week or so now, so I thought it was the perfect challenge to bring it to fruition. I took Lauren's MTME SK8 Board Box template and turned it into a flip-flop! Isn't it cute?! I kept it pretty simple, but I love the clean, cute look. It turned out just like I had imagined. I have a young niece in mind who I want to send this little goody to ♥

To create my flip-flop, I simply punched two holes at each point where I wanted to thread the ribbon through. I used my craft knife to cut an opening between each set of vertical holes.

This is how I threaded my ribbon. I snipped the ends and taped them to the inside of the box with Scor-Tape before assembling the rest of my template.

I took apart a carnation and used about 4 layers to assemble my bloom. I wanted my flower to be functional, so I decided to adhere it to a little barrette that my niece can wear.

I created my pearl center by following Becca Feeken's Becca Bit - Frugal Decorative Pearl Flower Center tutorial. I BUTCHERED my pearl center, but I'm hoping it doesn't show that clearly in this photo! LOL I used flexible wire, and I clearly should have used very thin regular wire that I could form. It's seriously not pretty in person, but I hid some of the eyesores with a glob of hot glue :]

The barrette actually came in handy by pinching the crossed ribbon together. Cute, ehh?

I added a little tag at the back of my flip-flop, kind of like a label you might see on a real shoe. The sentiment is from the MTME Sensational Sentiments set and it reads, "Sending you Sunshine!" Totally appropriate for my spring-filled contents.

I fit everything you see here inside this template! As you can see, it holds a LOT! I'm sending my niece some sunblock, aloe, lotion, and sunglasses to use when she starts hitting the beach :]

That's all I have for you today. Be sure to swing by our fab DT's blogs for a lovely variety of spring themed projects! You will LOVE what everyone came up with this week :] Start your journey with our amazing April featured designer, Ms. Teresa Kline!

Happy Easter, my friends ♥

New Pinwheel Die...from that Lil Inker we all know and love!

2011-04-20T00:00:00.005-04:00

Hi all! Happy Wednesday to ya! Hopefully you are having an awesome week! Mine...ehh...could be better. Had to take leave today, VERY last minute, so that I could take my car to the shop. My daughter came home late on Monday night and told me something was wrong with my car. Ugh...the kind of thing you don't want to hear from your 16 year old...BUT, I'd much rather hear that from HER, than a call from the police telling me she's hurt. So, I count my blessings, and look forward to my car being repaired by tomorrow afternoon. $600 later...but at least I'm not upside down in the value of my car and I could actually make some money if I sold it tomorrow (after it's fixed). :O)

So, since we're looking at the glass half full, let's also take a look at this week's Color Throwdown challenge (CTD138). This week we are being sponsored by the super talented, Laura Pryor from Lil Inker!! The challenge is being hosted by Tamara (pronounced like 'camera') Hershberger. Check out the FANTASTIC palette she chose! I LOVE it!!

Navy blue is always a winning color when paired with white and another contrasting color! It's very British, fresh, crisp...in my opinion. I chose to use a nice Fallen Leaf as my contrasting color since it was already part of the palette in the patterned paper I chose. My floral, navy sheet is from my MTME Fun Flowers collection and the fun polka dots are from my MTME Darling Dots collection. I scaled the digi sheets to 5x7" and printed them double sided on Georgia Pacific cs before cutting 6 pieces with the pinwheel die. I adhered my pinwheel to my lollipop stick with a 3-D glue dot. I threaded my two buttons with the same, fun baker's twine that I used with my sentiment panel (that Tammy sent me for Christmas :]), and adhered them with a flat, medium sized glue dot.

My sentiment was cut with a Spellbinders Ribbons Tag Trio die, and my scalloped border was cut with a Fiskars border punch. The navy ribbon is from May Arts. Pretty simple, really, but I love the pop of color! My layout was inspired by the Mojo Monday sketch (MOJO187).

This was seriously one of the easiest color challenges I've completed this year! Be sure to play along and link up your project on the CTD blog for a chance to win one of Laura's dies and coordinating stamp sets (winner's choice between Sentiment Flags and the Pinwheels). If you choose the Pinwheel die, be sure to take a peek at Laura's fantastic tutorial on how to put the pinwheel together, HERE. So many cool things you can do with this one :]

Okay, friends. That's all I have for you today, but be sure to swing by the CTD gals' blogs to check out their fab projects! Swing by Kisa's blog also...she's been feeling crafty and sneaking in projects each week ;]

Thanks for stopping by today.

Suprise Birthday Blog Hop!!

2011-04-16T00:00:00.000-04:00

Hi friends! We're having a surprise blog hop for our very sweet, Lisa today in honor of her birthday!! I'm a WHIPPED and up typing this late, so I'm only going to share the card right now, and update the details/supplies sometime tomorrow :] Hope you don't mind too much.

So, the master hop list can be found on the MTME blog! Be sure to visit everyone, ending with Lisa, and link up a birthday card of your own for our bday girl!!

My layout was inspired by Card Patterns Sketch (CPS213)...isn't it fun?!

This is also my JUGS card showcasing the colors Lisa chose!

Okay friends. I'm nodding off at the keyboard. I'll update this later though! Be sure to swing by JUGS for the JUGHead cards and MTME for the master hop list!

Thanks for stopping in!

Color Throwdown Challenge #137

2011-04-13T00:00:00.001-04:00

Hi all! Today I'm sharing a fun project using Cathy's spring palette at the Color Throwdown (CTD137).

My card was created using the Gardeners Apron cut file and some fresh paper by Sara and me. The paper on the bottom half of my card uses a sheet from Sara's Shopping Shirley's Nomad Teal Leaf. The colors were absolutely PERFECT for the challenge! The yellow, striped sheet is one of mine from the Romance collection. I lined the pockets and the top of the apron decorative panel with some sewing trim. I cut my pieces to the width I needed, then cut them lengthwise down the center so that I would only have one side of trim, vs double-sided. I adhered it with Scor-Tape. The grape image and the frame for my sentiment is from the Tending the Garden set and my sentiment is from the Well Preserved set. My ribbon is MS teal seam binding and my flower is a prima I hot glued to my tag. The green cs is from Bazzil.

Now, my original thought when I started making my apron thank you card, was to use it on a wine bottle. It doesn't fit as is, so I had to make do. I snipped in about a quarter of an inch on each side of the half circle, then simply slid it over my bottle. You could give it a more finished look by cutting the excess cs or simply stretching the half circle slightly while it's still on your SCAL mat...too bad I didn't realize it was too small prior to cutting :[ Next time I'll get it right!

I want to give this wine with the cute thank you tag to a very dear friend of mine who helped me out this month with some stuff. Hopefully, I'll be able to deliver in person next month on a quick trip I plan to make...she lives several states away. Anyway, I'm very happy with how it turned out and I'm envisioning several other designs to use as wine bottle tags, from elegant to cutesy :]

Okay, friends...that's all I have for you today but be sure to swing by our fab DTs' blogs to check out their fabulous projects! You're sure to be inspired ♥

Thanks for popping in today! Hope you are having an awesome week!

Mindless Creativity

So Very Thankful...

Color Throwdown Challenge #178

Color Throwdown Challenge #176

Color Throwdown Challenge #175

Achoo! Bless you...

love YOU

The Importance of Exercising During and After Cancer

Artist of the Month at Our Craft Lounge!!

Color Throwdown Challenge #172

Just Us Girls Challenge #114

Color Throwdown Challenge #171

Color Throwdown Challenge #170

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Sweet Season's Greetings

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Swimming for Katie Renz ~ Blog Hop and Fundraiser

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Color Throwdown #150

Just Us Girls Challenges #91 & #92 :]

Color Throwdown #148

SURPRISE Birthday Blog Hop for Katie Cotton!!

Just Us Girls {3-D/Template} Challenge #90

Color Throwdown #147

Color Throwdown #145

Color Throwdown #144

Color Throwdown...4 Days Late :[

Just Us Girls {3-D/TEMPLATE} Challenge #86

SURPRISE Birthday Blog Hop for Bar Anders!!

Color Throwdown Challenge #142

MTME Pattern & Palette Challenges!

*Kissing* With a Twist

Color Throwdown Challenge #141

Throwing Down Some Color Mojo ;]

SURPRISE Birthday Blog Hop for Lauren Meader!!

Sentimental Occasions to Throwdown Color (CTD#139)

Happy Easter!

Just Us Girls {3-D/Template} Challenge #81

New Pinwheel Die...from that Lil Inker we all know and love!

Suprise Birthday Blog Hop!!

Color Throwdown Challenge #137

Kissing With a Twist