Birds the Word................

Owls must be the new "in" thing. I'm seeing them everywhere! Which is okay because they are so cute.  I recently came across a blog where a fabulously crafty mom had made some owl pillows for her daughter's party. I just had to give them a try!

Fortunately I have an incredible husband with some mad computer skills.  He helped me design a pattern, we printed it and got started.  So here's what we came up with -

So what do you think? Cute huh?

If you haven't stopped by Crafter's 10! (link at top) than please come do a fly-by!  There's still plenty of time to play along. And our first give away is an awesome one! Ready for this? A Cricut Cartridge!!!  But you have to play along to enter!!!


Thanks for stopping by and  happy crafting!!

I've been overlooking things.........

If you've been following my blog then you know how much I love SCAL (Sure Cuts a Lot).  One of the reasons I use it so often is because I love the 3-dimensional look I can get with the paper piecing. But after a fantastic sale of Cricut cartridges for just $9.99, I couldn't pass a sale like that up.  It made me take a second look at the Cricut cartridges I had. And instantly I started seeing all kinds of possibilities.

I made the fuschia for this card using the Accent Essentials cartridge.

I have always had a love of fuschia. My first full-time job was at a B&B in California while I was in college. It had fuschia hanging from all the balconies and it was just so beautiful.

Okay, so how did I make the flowers? The patterns from Accent Essentials I used are listed as

* Accnt6S/Blackout @ 1" in green
* Accnt31S @ 2" in purple
* Accnt33S @ 3" in red
* Accnt35S @ 3" in red

The next step is to ink the edges. You'll then want to cut out the center of the scallop shape and the sun-looking shape.

Now you'll want to roll the "sun" and the scallop.  It's easiest to do using tweezers.

Glue the end of the "sun" piece. Then you will glue this into the middle of the curled scallop piece.

Curl the leaves of the flower back with a bone folder.

Glue the inside piece to the center of the flower. Turn the flower over, and glue the green piece to the back.

And there you have it. A beautiful fuschia! Fuschia plants have very thin stems, which is why they hang down the way they do.

I hope you have as much fun with this as I did.  I'd love to see what you come up with so leave me a comment with a link to your work!

And lastly, it's not too late to join me for February's Crafters 10! WOTG. For details, just click on the Crafters 10! link on the top of this page.

Hope you have a great weekend and happy crafting!!

I Love Monthly Clubs!

Monthly clubs can be so fun!  Not only do you receive really fun and exciting products, but they can give you some great ideas as well.  Sometimes when I'm in the mood to craft, but don't want to do too much thinking, it's nice to be able to pull out a kit, follow the directions and enjoy the beautiful results!

Do you like creative kits? Interested in a monthly club but don't want the commitment? Do you like getting free products? Do you like learning new techniques and projects? How about all of this delivered right to your doorstep?

If you answered yes, than Crafters 10! is the club for you!!

For only $29.95 (plus tax and shipping) you will receive a new Close To My Heart Workshop on the Go delivered right to your door each month.

Each kit includes:

1- CTMH Level 2 Paper Pack
1- Exclusive B-size CTMH My Acrylix Clear Stamp Set
1- Coordinating Accessory Pack
1- Full color instruction brochure.

Check out these cards & scrapbooking layouts made with these fabulous Close To My Heart products.

What you'll receive -

* Awesome products at a great discount!
* A free Idea Book
* Free technique or project each month
* An exclusive stamp set available only through the monthly kits
* Opportunity to win free product!
* Receive the Stamp of the Month at a great discount or even free!


Each kit includes a brochure with instructions to complete a combination of projects. You can make 2 two-page layouts or 12 cards or a combination of both, a 2 page layout and cards. By simply adding a few pieces of card stock you can make even more. As an added bonus, I will be posting a new technique or project each month right here on my blog!

And there's no monthly commitment!  Buy only the kits you like!

And I've saved the best for last -

* When we've reached 10 Club Members each month, all club members' names will be entered into a drawing to receive either free product, a gift card, or even next month's kit free!!
* Send me a picture of what you've created with that month's kit and you'll double your chances in the drawing!!
* Refer a friend who joins the club, and you'll triple your chances!

Extra Details -

* Each month I will send you an email with the link to place your Crafters 10! club order.
* Kit orders must be placed by the 10th of each month.
* Orders are shipped right to your door via FedEx. After your order is placed you will receive a FedEx tracking number for your convenience.
* During any given month you may add to your order from the Ez-Invite order form.  All orders over $100 qualify you for a FREE Stamp of the Month!

So are you in? To check out our first Crafters 10! Club Workshop on the Go, visit me at Crafters 10! or go to the tab at the top of this blog. I'm so excited and I hope you are too.  So let's get together and get crafting!!

So Long 2010! You won't be missed!

My husband and I just celebrated our 18th wedding anniversary! Wow, has it really been that long?

Most people use this time of year to reflect on the past year. Boy, do I have a lot of things to reflect on. To say this year hasn't been easy is an understatement. It hasn't been all bad, but I am glad 2010 is coming to a close!

So let's start with that - 2010. 2010 guys!! Wasn't this the year of civilian space travel, flying cars, pop a pill in the microwave and, waalaa! a full turkey dinner done in just minutes! Where's my jet-pack or my robotic dog? We don't have any of that. Things have sort of stayed the same. We DO have cell phones taking over the entire planet, just add arms and legs to the Iphone and you've basically got IRobot - Can you tell I'm an Iwidow? I'm one step a way from becoming an Angry Bird myself. I wouldn't mind Will Smith jumping in and saving me from the dangers of Doodle Jump.

(Oh, sorry honey, this started as an anniversary blog didn't it? Focus...focus)

So Happy Anniversary to my wonderful husband of 18 years! It's been a wonderful, crazy ride!

Congratulations to my beautiful daughter who graduated from high school a full 6 months early and was full time pioneering while doing it! I'm very proud of you!

Congratulations to my wonderful son who overcame his incredible shyness, got up in front of our whole congregation and did his first bible reading like a pro! Way to go!

Good bye 2010! I'm glad you're over. And if you see Will Smith, tell him my husband wants an Ipad. I may require his services soon!

TLS Designs is now on Facebook!

Isn't the internet just awesome!

My husband and I have owned several different businesses during our years of marriage. The first thing you learn about any business is "advertise, advertise, advertise"! In the good 'ol days we spent a LOT of money getting our name out there through radio ads, television ads and trade shows. It was all about networking.

The same thing holds true today - It's not what you know, it's who you know.

Fortunately today, we don't have to spend all that money to get our name out there. It just takes a little elbow grease (or in this case - decent typing skills) and due diligence.

Which brings me back to my original thought for today. The internet is awesome!

I have created a Facebook fan page for my internet store TLS Designs. I would love to have some followers. You don't even have to leave my blog! Just click on the "Like" button on the left.

I am now following all the blogs that are following me. See? Networking!! And I would love to have some more Networked blogs as well. It doesn't take very long at all to set up so if you haven't already, set one up!

Thanks again for visiting and please leave a message after the beep..................

I love a good challenge.........

......... especially when they include really cool prizes. So I couldn't resist playing along with these two.

The first one is from Becky's PageMaps.

I recently did a very similar card but this time wanted to try something a little different. I cut out the leaves using my Cricut, and then inked the edges of them. I like this better than the ribbon leaves I was putting around the ribbon roses.

The second challenge is from Sketches In Thyme.










Hope you like them and remember to leave a comment so I know you stopped by!

H2H Challenge

This week's challenge was to use this sketch. I've been playing around with ribbon again and just love the look of these roses.

If you like challenges, go check out their cool website! This week's prize is CTMH's Triple Play Kit. I was not able to get one for myself when they were available, so it would be so cool to win one!

Thanks for stopping by and hope you have a great weekend :)