Color Dare # 24 - Neutrals AND New Design Team!

Welcome to Color My Heart and Happy New Year! You're in for a treat today. I want to introduce to you our SEVEN new Design Team Members, for the very first Color My Heart design team:

Lela Norris



I'm Lela and I live in Medina, Ohio right now. My day job moved me here in 2005. I've been married to my DH for 25 years and we have 2 sons who are both in college - yes, I'm an empty-nester now! They always say you'll have lots more time to stamp and scrap when you're kids are grown and I'm testing that theory. I started scrapping in 2003 on a recommendation from a Career Coach the company I worked for hired for me. I thought she was crazy when she brought me a stack of craft magazines and suggested I pick a "hobby" as I needed balance. I ended up making a scrapbook of a trip we took to Finland and 17 albums later, the rest is history. I was introduced to stamping at a scrapbooking convention and started just by making Christmas cards but soon expanded as my stash of stamps grew. I'm not sure I achieved true life balance because I still have a full time day job and I stamp/scrap alot but I'm loving every minute of it. I was introduced to CTMH through a magazine ad and found a demo from there. I loved all the products but especially that it had colors I could scrap my boys. and the unmounted, acrylic stamps were just for me. It's all good and I'm thrilled to be part of the DT. 
 

Becca Whitham

I am a former CTMH consultant (back when it used to be called D.O.T.S for Dozens of Terrific Stamps) and still own a number of those lovely, wood-mounted images.  My original goal was to get in, buy what I wanted by using the money I made from parties, and get out in a year.  I lasted five years (because every catalogue had more stuff I “needed”) before I finally had to give up being a consultant.  Now, I’m a very good customer.  A very good one!  Because every catalogue still has something I need.

In addition to my stamping addiction, I am also a writer.  Not an author yet, but a writer nonetheless.  Most published authors will tell you it takes about ten years—and seven full novels—before you become an “overnight success.”  I’m two and a half years and two full novels into the process.  My genre is Inspirational Historical Fiction heavy on the suspense and always with a thread of romance.  My tag line is: Same Jesus, Different Setting.

My husband is an Army chaplain so we move.  A lot.  (The movers are never happy about my stamp collection, but I blithely ignore them and make a run to Starbucks as a peace offering.)  We are currently located in Lawton, Oklahoma at Fort Sill, but “home” is Washington State.

We have been married twenty-eight years and have two grown children.  Our son is an Army captain currently serving in Afghanistan; our daughter is married and lives in Wenatchee, WA.

This is my first design team.  I’m excited to share my love of stamping using both old and new CTMH products.

 

Marie Flayer

I have lived in New Jersey my entire life and am a retired physical education teacher, avid golfer and papercrafter.  I have 2 adult sons, 2 daughters-in-law and 1 adorable grandson who is almost 3 years old already. 

I became addicted to rubber stamp art 20 years ago when I attended a D.O.T.S. demonstration (what CTMH was called originally—Dozens of Terrific Stamps—they changed the name in 1996 when they added a scrapbooking line).  I can remember thinking that “I can do that!” with each item that the demonstrator, Karen showed us.  I spent $100 that day (and still have all of those old wooden stamps and markers!)  In 1996 I heard that Karen was moving away and signed up to become a consultant to make sure I could get these great supplies. 

When I retired from education 2.5 years ago to help care for my first grandson, I also became more involved with my Close To My Heart business and began blogging and sharing more of my artwork.  I also love to scrapbook although I don’t do it as often as I would like.  I love the quality of CTMH products, the ink colors and coordinating papers and markers and ever changing embellishments.  The addition of the Cricut cartridges really jump started my creativity and excitement for creating.  I’d say that 95% of my supplies are from CTMH.  I am enjoying the blogging experience, entering card challenges, posting my artwork, reading other’s blogs and being inspired by other’s artwork.  I look forward to working (really it’s playing LOL) on this design team.

Linda Anderson

Hi, my name is Linda Anderson and I am thrilled to be a part of the Color My Heart Color Dare Challenge design team. I live in Pittsburgh, PA with my husband Brian, our two boys, Phillip and Kevin, and our two cats, Moonstruck and Mojo. I have been card making for about 12 years now and just recently started scrapbooking. I've had many careers, from being a registered nurse and taekwondo instructor to my most recent one, a Domestic Engineer. I have been collecting Close to my Heart products for quite some time now, and as strange as it may sound, my absolute favorite is their inks. Talk about wonderful coverage, a requirement for every stamper!!! I'm looking forward to all the color dare challenges and meeting all of you along the way.

 

Amie Kiger

Hi!  My name is Amie Kiger and I was born and raised in the suburbs of Chicago.  Now, my hubby and I are raising our three daughters here as well.  I am a self- employed child care provider with a bachelor’s degree in Early Childhood Education and a Doctorate in the Close to My Heart Training Academy.  ;)  I have been with Close to My Heart for almost a year now, and I cannot remember what it was like to not be a part of this amazing company!  I am a scrapbooker-at-heart-turned-cardmaker and never imagined I would be in the place I am today.  Wherever there is shimmer trim or glitter paper, you will be sure to find me as well!  This is my very first design team, and I am super-excited to be a part of it! 

Caroline Bredeson

Hi, my name is Caroline, and I live in the Canadian province of Ontario. I am a speech-language pathologist by day, with hobbies of distance-running and Celtic music--when crafting time doesn’t pre-empt them! My family spent 10 years living in the US (Sarah’s home state of Wisconsin!) where I didn’t immediately have a work visa, so I took up volunteering and through that met a great group of scrap-booking friends. I joined CTMH in August 2011 and starting blogging when we moved back to Canada, as a way to find new friends to craft with. I have met so many “virtual” pals, through blog-hops, challenges, and the Heart2Heart design team--tons of talent and inspiration out there! My three sons are older now (still photogenic but not so fond of posing for the camera!) so I spend more time making cards and paper-crafting. I love the kick-start to creativity a good challenge provides, and am thrilled to be joining the Color My Heart Design Team for 2013.

 

Pam Korte

My name is Pam Korte and I have been a Close to my Heart Consultant since August 2012. I live in Scottsville, New York outside of Rochester, New York in upstate New York.  I am a full time tenured professor of nursing and adjunct professor of psychology for a course on animal assisted therapy at the local community college, subject matter expert for a major textbook company, sister to the one that got me started in paper crafting six years ago, and mother to two rescued dogs India greyhound and Gina whippet. I have been rescuing greyhounds for over 20 years. My hobbies include enjoying the outdoors, reading and playing golf in addition to my love for paper crafting. I love to paper craft for relaxation and do it most evenings after work. I started paper crafting after my sister introduced me to a paper cutter and some paper. I love to scrapbook, make cards and make a variety of 3D paper crafting projects. I thoroughly enjoy introducing new people to the art of paper crafting through workshops and custom made project kits for individuals to enjoy. I love Close to my Heart because it is truly about the celebration of relationships through the discovery of one’s own creativity. I found myself expressing my love for God and life through my paper crafting endeavors and sharing that creativity with others through key moments in life. I am honored to have been provided with this opportunity to share my love of paper crafting with others.

 

Please join me in welcoming these wonderful ladies! Just click on their photos to check out their blogs!

 

Congrats to Joanne Barnes for winning the color dare last week with this really cool card:

 

In honor of our Sepia-toned design team :), our Color Dare for this week is just neutrals. The names of the colors have been changed to Basics in our new color Palette. Here is what you have to choose from:

 

White Daisy

Colonial White

Black

Whisper

Slate

Chocolate

Cocoa

Desert Sand

Bamboo

Champagne

Cashmere

Saddle



 

The design team members will start their projects next week. If you are a design team member playing in this neutral challenge, please put DT after your name when you link up. Thanks!

 

Please view the side bar for complete rules to play along. Also please refrain from using a "pop" of color - I know it will be hard but you can do it!! I promise we will have one of those challenges in the near future. I can't wait to see what you come up with!