Verve Blog Party Challenge 5

Last one!!! This little gift card holder is for the Verve Blog Party Challenge #5. The challenge was to create a gift card holder. So, I pulled out, for the very first time since I bought it, Lauren Meader's Timeless Template Cash or Charge. This took absolutely no time at all to put together, and it was so cute, I didn't even need to add a stamp. I just grabbed some great papers and a couple of embellishments, did a little cutting and folding, and then DONE! I think I'll crank out a few more of these to have for Christmas giving. Afterall, who has time to actually shop when there are projects to create! Be sure to check out all the new stuff from Verve on the blog and in the store.
Project Recipe
Paper: DCWV Berry Street Farmer's Market Stack, My Mind's Eye Organic Glitter Paper
Accessories: PTI Timeless Template Cash or Charge, PTI Pure Poppy Twill ribbon, Kaiser Christmas Mix flowers, Recollections Gemstone brads

Who's the Boss

Today was Boss's Day and I have two of the best bosses you could want to work for. They  support our efforts in the classroom, are positive and encouraging, and organized and self-disciplined. Teaching is a tough job, but these two keep our campus running smoothly and efficiently. So, even though I contributed with a monetary donation to the gift fund, I wanted to do something just from me to show my appreciation of their efforts.
Verve has a stamp set titled "All About You" with a stamp that says "Hope today knocks your socks off!" I hope today we did knock the socks off our principal and assistant principal with our show of support and appreciation. But using that sentiment as the focus, I used a template from Lauren Meader and PTI  called Stocking Stuffer to create these cute "socks" for my bosses. The template is free, by the way. I wanted to make them look like men's socks so I used papers with a more masculine feel to it. I created the "socks", filled them with m&m's, and then added the Verve sentiment for encouragement. That makes this project just perfect for the Verve "Encouraging Words Project Parade Challenge". Here's another look at each sock individually.

Project Recipe
Paper: SU Chocolate Chip, SU Parisian Breeze DSP (retired), SU Manchester DSP (retired), SU Baja Breeze (retired), PTI Kraft CS, PTI Vintage Cream CS
Stamps: Verve All About You
Accessories: PTI Timeless Template Stocking Stuffer, white gel pen, SU Baja Breeze striped ribbon (retired), PTI Dark Chocolate Satin ribbon, Spellbinders Label Nestabilities die, cuttlebug, Paper Studio brads, twine

The Desk Set

Just wanted to show off a couple of graduation gifts I made earlier this month. I took pictures before I gave them out, but just hadn't had time to post them. I always give cash for graduation these days because I remember how it was always the favorite gift of my sons' when they graduated, but I wanted to do something a little more special than just hand them a card with some money inside. So, off I went to the dollar store to pick up a few study aides (small notebook, sticky tabs, highlighters, binder clips, small stapler, and some sugar-free gum) which I altered with some Papertrey Ink papers. One of the grads is a female and one a male, but other than changing a few design elements and choosing different papers for each, both got the exact same gift.
I used one of Lauren Meader's Timeless Templates to hold the study aides. This template is called From the Desk Of, and it will be perfect to put on a student desk to hold these and other desktop items a college student might need. I used my copics and my airbrush system to color a button, the chipboard B, and the hardware on one of the gifts. I personalized each deskset with the grads initial and then stuffed a little cash in the accompanying cards.
Project Recipe
Paper: PTI Black and White Basics PP (I colored the white in with a green copic) and Raspberry Fizz Mix PP, PTI True Black CS
Stamps: Lindsay's Stamp Stuff Doodle Ladybug digital stamp, My Grafico owl digital stamp, SU Lovely Letters Alphabet, SU Congrats
Ribbon: PTI Raspberrry Fizz grosgrain ribbon, PTI black satin ribbon
Accessories: My Timeless Template From The Desk Of, Making Memories buttons and felt flowers, copics and an airbrush system, bookplates from Joann's, PaperStudio brads, twine

Timeless Template Challenge Part 2

Administrative Professionals Day (sometimes referred to as Secretary's Day) is Wednesday. We have one school secretary, but we also have a couple of other ladies that help out the staff and perform duties similar to those performed by the secretary, so that means I need to have three gifts ready for Secretary's Day. At the moment, I've got one.

Lauren Meader posted a template challenge this weekend, and I decided to use her challenge to help me create this project. We were to use the label of a bath product as inspiration for our gift packaging. Lauren provided a link to Bath and Body Works Bath Lotions which had gorgeous flowery, fruity labels. But I'm a big believer in using up what you've got whenever possible and what I had was some sets of Mary Kay Satin Smoothies hand scrubs, hand lotions, and moisturizers.

The labels as you can tell are pretty plain. So I got my inspiration from

the color and used Lauren's My Timeless Template From the Desk Of for the packaging.

I created some coordinating flowers to add to the packaging with my paper punches. Then, I filled the package with items for any professional's desk: a small silver frame, a couple of pretty pens, a "jazzed up" legal pad, some small flower-shaped note pads, and of course the hand lotions. Hope these ladies know how much the staff appreciates all their hard work!

Project Recipe

Paper: PTI Melon Berry CS, PTI Vintage Cream CS, My Mind's Eye DSP

Ribbon: Sheer Creations (WalMart?)

Accessories: PTI My Timeless Template From the Desk Of, 5 Petal Punch, various flower paper punches, Kaiser Scrapbook rhinestone, Fiskars Apron Lace border punch