One year ago, I posted about my card making goals for 2012. I'm back to recap my progress and set new goals.
2012 Goals:
1. I want to do every OWH sketch this year. Past and upcoming sketches together, that will be just over 150 sketches. I nearly met this one, but I missed the last few due to being away from home for the holidays. I'll get them done ASAP and report back.
2.
I want to color at least 20% of my cards because I need to develop this
skill. This will be hard to track, but can be a guiding percentage as I
craft. This definitely didn't happen. I'm just more attracted to papers than stamped images, I guess. I did color more than I had in the past, and I can see some improvement in my coloring.
3. I want to include at least 1 AnyHero card for every 50
cards I make. I'm often so into the crafting that I neglect to write
special messages for our heroes. I sent over 200 Any Hero cards, most of which were written by my 8th grade students as part of their service learning.
4. Purge then organize my craft room. I saw my aunt's space over the holidays and was enamored with her very organized space. My mom visited me in the summer and we tackled this project together. See the post here.
With most of my 2012 goals met, I'm looking ahead to 2013. Here are a few things I'd like to accomplish:
1. Submit for a publication. I'm not going to say "get published" because that's not something I can actively control, but I can make sure I actually submit something.
2. Continue with the OWH sketches. We'll have 200 by the end of the year, but I won't feel the need to start over at #1 this year like I did in 2012.
3. Put no less than 5 AnyHero notes in each box I ship. I'll be writing in memory of my great uncle, a WWII veteran who passed away at the end of 2012.
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Cards shipped to OWH in 2012: 1284 blank and 218 AnyHero
Cards shipped to OWH in 2011: 1695
Check out OWH at www.operationwritehome.org to learn more about its mission and how to get involved.
Showing posts with label goal. Show all posts
Showing posts with label goal. Show all posts
Tuesday, January 1, 2013
Tuesday, October 9, 2012
A few spooks!
Two weekends ago, I got together with a newly forming scrapbooking/card making group at my church. We made these acrylic cards together and then worked on our own projects that we brought for a bit. It was nice because I got to meet one parishioner who I didn't know, chat with one I did know, and drum up some support for OWH!
Aren't these fun? They're not my normal style, but I like them! These obviously won't go to OWH as that deadline has long passed. I'll probably send one to my grandmother and the other to my great aunt and great uncle. They enjoy getting mail!
In other news, I shipped off my most recent box of OWH cards today. I hadn't sent a box since late June, so I was pretty much overdue! I missed the Halloween and Fall deadlines, so those will go in my overflow box for next year. I actually had more than the box would hold when I went to pack it up, so I already have about 20 cards for my next box waiting. As it was, the box was a bit too full and I thought they might try to charge me an extra fee since the top of the flat rate box wasn't entirely flat. However, I must have caught the postmaster on a good day because she actually asked me if she was charging me the right amount! Haha! Can you tell I live in a small town? There are 356 cards and 3 AnyHero cards are making their way to Caro in NC as we speak.
I would need to make almost 400 cards in the next two months to match my card totals for 2011, meaning 40-50 a week. I started off the year making cards at a fast pace, but more recently I've been working on single cards instead of multiples, so the work isn't going as quickly. I'm OK with not passing last years number, but I would like to fill one more box by the end of the year or early January so my total can get past 1500. We'll also be doing hero letters at school prior to Christmas break again this year, so that should net about 200-250 more for the AnyHero count!
My goals for the year were to work on more AnyHero cards, to complete all of the sketches, and to color more. I'm making good progress on all three of those goals, so I will not be deterred by a smaller total number of cards. :)
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Cards shipped to OWH in 2012: 1284 blank and 218 AnyHero (as of 10/9)
Cards shipped to OWH in 2011: 1695
Check out OWH at www.operationwritehome.org to learn more about its mission and how to get involved.
Aren't these fun? They're not my normal style, but I like them! These obviously won't go to OWH as that deadline has long passed. I'll probably send one to my grandmother and the other to my great aunt and great uncle. They enjoy getting mail!
I would need to make almost 400 cards in the next two months to match my card totals for 2011, meaning 40-50 a week. I started off the year making cards at a fast pace, but more recently I've been working on single cards instead of multiples, so the work isn't going as quickly. I'm OK with not passing last years number, but I would like to fill one more box by the end of the year or early January so my total can get past 1500. We'll also be doing hero letters at school prior to Christmas break again this year, so that should net about 200-250 more for the AnyHero count!
My goals for the year were to work on more AnyHero cards, to complete all of the sketches, and to color more. I'm making good progress on all three of those goals, so I will not be deterred by a smaller total number of cards. :)
------
Cards shipped to OWH in 2012: 1284 blank and 218 AnyHero (as of 10/9)
Cards shipped to OWH in 2011: 1695
Check out OWH at www.operationwritehome.org to learn more about its mission and how to get involved.
Thursday, August 2, 2012
Goal Update
We're 2/3 of the way through 2012. Can you believe it? I know I can't quite fathom the idea of going back to school later this month. I have to go to training today, in fact, so I guess that will kickstart the BTS season for me.
I thought it was an appropriate time to review my cardmaking goals for 2012 and check my progress. Copied below in italics are my goals that I blogged about in January.
1. I want to do every OWH sketch this year. Past and upcoming sketches together, that will be just over 150 sketches.
I'm totally on track with goal #1. I've finished all of the numbered sketches that have been published thus far and I've done most or all of the bonus sketches. I just need to go back through the bonus sketch document that has them numbered and check them off. As a sidenote to this goal, I was honored to make the sample cards for two of the sketches earlier this year, #104 and #120!
2.
I want to color at least 20% of my cards because I need to develop this
skill. This will be hard to track, but can be a guiding percentage as I
craft.
20% might have been an unrealistic goal for me in January but I think I might get there by December. I still don't enjoy coloring, so it's not something I do that often. It's also really easy to do multiples with pre-colored digis and sometimes I do like to take the easy way out! (I definitely made about 40 cards with pre-colored digis this week.) Two things that have helped somewhat in this goal are my growing collection of marker colors and having the correct ink, Memento Tuxedo Black. My images come out without smearing and match my papers better now that I have a few more markers. The box that's currently filling up has 155 cards of which 20 have coloring. That's about 13%. I still have some work to do if I want to make it to 20%.
3. I want to include at least 1 AnyHero card for every 50
cards I make. I'm often so into the crafting that I neglect to write
special messages for our heroes.
Yes and no on this one. As you can see in my signature below, I've sent in 215 AnyHero cards this year. Of those, about 200 were written by my students at school. If I count only the cards I've personally written, I'm a handful behind. Good thing that's this week's Midweek Throwdown!
4. Purge then organize my craft room. I saw my aunt's space over the holidays and was enamored with her very organized space.
Yes, or very nearly so. I spent a good deal of time on this task in the past two weeks. I took a carload of items to Goodwill from all over the house including the craft room, purchased new-to-me furniture to provide additional craft storage and workspace, and now have a much more useful craft room. I moved into this house in 2008 and there were some boxes in my craft room that hadn't been used much or at all in that time. I also had a much, much, much smaller collection of stuff when I moved here. I think I had two paper punches, a corner rounder and a fleur de lis. Now I have well over 100. Previously, I crafted in my craft room and also in the dining room just to have extra space to spread out and use my Cuttlebug. Now, my Cuttlebug has its own dedicated space so my craft room is much more functional. The part that remains to be seen is if I can keep the space neat! It's not a pretty space (my furniture doesn't match, the walls are boring white, etc) but I intend to post pictures soon in case they inspire anyone else on a small budget to overhaul their space.
------
Cards shipped to OWH in 2012: 928 blank and 215 AnyHero (as of 6/26)
Cards shipped to OWH in 2011: 1695
Check out OWH at www.operationwritehome.org to learn more about its mission and how to get involved.
I thought it was an appropriate time to review my cardmaking goals for 2012 and check my progress. Copied below in italics are my goals that I blogged about in January.
 |
| My sample for Sketch #104 |
I'm totally on track with goal #1. I've finished all of the numbered sketches that have been published thus far and I've done most or all of the bonus sketches. I just need to go back through the bonus sketch document that has them numbered and check them off. As a sidenote to this goal, I was honored to make the sample cards for two of the sketches earlier this year, #104 and #120!
 |
| Some of my best coloring at this point |
20% might have been an unrealistic goal for me in January but I think I might get there by December. I still don't enjoy coloring, so it's not something I do that often. It's also really easy to do multiples with pre-colored digis and sometimes I do like to take the easy way out! (I definitely made about 40 cards with pre-colored digis this week.) Two things that have helped somewhat in this goal are my growing collection of marker colors and having the correct ink, Memento Tuxedo Black. My images come out without smearing and match my papers better now that I have a few more markers. The box that's currently filling up has 155 cards of which 20 have coloring. That's about 13%. I still have some work to do if I want to make it to 20%.
 |
| Fun AnyHero cards using mazes I bought at the Dollar Tree. |
Yes and no on this one. As you can see in my signature below, I've sent in 215 AnyHero cards this year. Of those, about 200 were written by my students at school. If I count only the cards I've personally written, I'm a handful behind. Good thing that's this week's Midweek Throwdown!
 |
| Just one way I am trying to stay organized- this bin holds scraps and a second one like it holds 8.5 x 11" cardstock. |
Yes, or very nearly so. I spent a good deal of time on this task in the past two weeks. I took a carload of items to Goodwill from all over the house including the craft room, purchased new-to-me furniture to provide additional craft storage and workspace, and now have a much more useful craft room. I moved into this house in 2008 and there were some boxes in my craft room that hadn't been used much or at all in that time. I also had a much, much, much smaller collection of stuff when I moved here. I think I had two paper punches, a corner rounder and a fleur de lis. Now I have well over 100. Previously, I crafted in my craft room and also in the dining room just to have extra space to spread out and use my Cuttlebug. Now, my Cuttlebug has its own dedicated space so my craft room is much more functional. The part that remains to be seen is if I can keep the space neat! It's not a pretty space (my furniture doesn't match, the walls are boring white, etc) but I intend to post pictures soon in case they inspire anyone else on a small budget to overhaul their space.
------
Cards shipped to OWH in 2012: 928 blank and 215 AnyHero (as of 6/26)
Cards shipped to OWH in 2011: 1695
Check out OWH at www.operationwritehome.org to learn more about its mission and how to get involved.
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
OWH Sketch #102
Sorry that some photos are sideways. Short of uploading them from my camera again, I don't know how to fix them. :(
Continuing onward to my goal of making a card for each of the OWH sketches this year, I tackled #102 for real this time! My last attempt turned into something else that, while lovely, was not quite like this sketch. Here are four cards made with the sketch. I decided that ribbon would be an easy substitute for the 1/4" strips in the sketch. I also used up two colors of the ribbon, hooray! As much as I like to have plenty of options in my craft room, my collection seems truly justified when I use up the last of something, whether a piece of paper, spool or ribbon, or (the real challenge), a sheet of stickers.
This sketch complete, I have finished 6 of the sketches. Assuming one sketch each Sunday until the end of the year, we'll be at 154. There are two bonus sketches without numbers between 62 and 63, so there will really be 156 at the end of the year. If I average 2 sketches a week, I'll be done in time.
What are your card making goals for 2012? Are you on your way to reaching them?
Cards shipped to OWH in 2012: none thus far, but my box is filling up nicely!
Cards shipped to OWH in 2011: 1695
Continuing onward to my goal of making a card for each of the OWH sketches this year, I tackled #102 for real this time! My last attempt turned into something else that, while lovely, was not quite like this sketch. Here are four cards made with the sketch. I decided that ribbon would be an easy substitute for the 1/4" strips in the sketch. I also used up two colors of the ribbon, hooray! As much as I like to have plenty of options in my craft room, my collection seems truly justified when I use up the last of something, whether a piece of paper, spool or ribbon, or (the real challenge), a sheet of stickers.
This sketch complete, I have finished 6 of the sketches. Assuming one sketch each Sunday until the end of the year, we'll be at 154. There are two bonus sketches without numbers between 62 and 63, so there will really be 156 at the end of the year. If I average 2 sketches a week, I'll be done in time.
What are your card making goals for 2012? Are you on your way to reaching them?
Cards shipped to OWH in 2012: none thus far, but my box is filling up nicely!
Cards shipped to OWH in 2011: 1695
Sunday, January 1, 2012
2012 Cardmaking Goals for OWH
Last year, I made two simple goals for my OWH cardmaking. I wanted to make 365 cards and host at least one party. I'm proud to say I surpassed both goals!
My goals this year are a bit different. Due to the end of the Iraq conflict and the increased press OWH is getting, there are less heroes to receive cards and more crafters to make them. That means we can work to put more detail into our cards.
1. I want to do every OWH sketch this year. Past and upcoming sketches together, that will be just over 150 sketches.
2. I want to color at least 20% of my cards because I need to develop this skill. This will be hard to track, but can be a guiding percentage as I craft.
3. I want to include at least 1 AnyHero card for every 50 cards I make. I'm often so into the crafting that I neglect to write special messages for our heroes.
4. Purge then organize my craft room. I saw my aunt's space over the holidays and was enamored with her very organized space.
Cards shipped to OWH (as of 12/5/11): 1695
My goals this year are a bit different. Due to the end of the Iraq conflict and the increased press OWH is getting, there are less heroes to receive cards and more crafters to make them. That means we can work to put more detail into our cards.
1. I want to do every OWH sketch this year. Past and upcoming sketches together, that will be just over 150 sketches.
2. I want to color at least 20% of my cards because I need to develop this skill. This will be hard to track, but can be a guiding percentage as I craft.
3. I want to include at least 1 AnyHero card for every 50 cards I make. I'm often so into the crafting that I neglect to write special messages for our heroes.
4. Purge then organize my craft room. I saw my aunt's space over the holidays and was enamored with her very organized space.
Cards shipped to OWH (as of 12/5/11): 1695
Friday, December 30, 2011
Top 10 Cards of 2011
It's time to say goodbye to 2011. As I had only started making cards for OWH in December of 2010, this past year really represents the beginning of my serious card making. I've learned a lot and am proud to show off some of my best work. I'll do my best to link to each card's original post, if it has one, and tell you why I chose the card. :)
Back in this post, I laid out goals for the year. I wanted to host at least one card party and create at least 365 cards. I actually hosted two card making parties, one in January and one in September. I also had all the 8th grade students at my school make AnyHero cards in December. As for the cards, I made well over 1,000 cards. As you can see below, I've shipped 1695 cards. To the best of my recollection, only about 60 of those were made in 2010. My friends helped to make a few hundred at our parties, but that still leaves 1,000+ that I made all by myself. :) Later in the week, I'll be posting the new goals I have in mind for 2012.
Off to the top 10, in no particular order.
#1- Love these because I made them with paste paper I'd made in college. The paste paper gives great visual and tactile texture.
#2- The card that helped me win the Maryland State Digi during the Virtual Card Making Party (my favorite OWH event of the year, by the way).
#3-The card that helped me win $50 to spend in the EK Success online store, thanks to many OWHers who voted.
#4 -My favorite tie card. I am proud of the way I went beyond the designs I'd seen and made something uniquely my own.
#5- Super CAS!!!
#6- I was so proud of myself for coloring the metal accents to match the green paper. This card was also a part of the 10 paper challenge I did this summer. :)
#7 - Shaped Valentine card- I so rarely stray from rectangular cards that I was really happy with this one!
#8 - OWH digi valentine - I really liked the ribbon trim and unisex feel of this card.
#9 - A Christmas card. I made tons, and mostly didn't love them. They're the hardest cards for me to make, aside from sympathy cards, and I really wish they weren't such a challenge for me. This one I really liked because it was CAS and unusual colors for Christmas.
#10 - As a thank you for visiting, I thought this last card was appropriate. I think it's the best I've ever done with distressing.
Thanks for sharing this look back at 2011 with me! Can't wait to see what 2012 brings!!!
Cards shipped to OWH (as of 12/5/11): 1695
Saturday, January 8, 2011
On a roll
Remember how I said in this post that I was setting a goal of 365 OWH cards this year? Well, now that a week has gone by, I'm wondering if perhaps my goal isn't quite right. I have started this year off on a major roll, thanks in part to excitement over new supplies I got during the holiday sales.
Here are a few recent projects:
Supplies: DCWV Spring stack, SU Curly Label punch, Studio G stamp, Cuttlebug embossing folder, Target $1 bin ribbon, unknown green cardstock.
Supplies: Unknown papers from value pack at Big Lots, SU stamps, hardware from Dollar Tree
(How do I rotate the picture??? Oh well!)
Supplies: DCWV pp, cricut label, inkadoo stamp
Here are a few recent projects:
Supplies: DCWV Spring stack, SU Curly Label punch, Studio G stamp, Cuttlebug embossing folder, Target $1 bin ribbon, unknown green cardstock.
Supplies: Unknown papers from value pack at Big Lots, SU stamps, hardware from Dollar Tree(How do I rotate the picture??? Oh well!)
Supplies: DCWV pp, cricut label, inkadoo stamp
Saturday, January 1, 2011
Starting 2011 with a goal!
I've been away from OWH's challenges for a while because I've been visiting family and wasn't near my supplies. It's a shame because Sandy came up with some great challenge themes and I had enough time to be crafty.
Over my Christmas vacation, I purchased lots of new crafting supplies (too many, to be honest). So, I'm going to set a goal for my OWH cards for 2011 in hopes of using these new supplies and not feeling guilty about my purchases. If I use them as intended, then I will be happy.
I've thought for a while about my goal and I decided that an average of 1 card per day is a reasonable goal. I might do more than this, especially during the summer and if we have any snow in the next few months. I won't do a card every day- my schedule doesn't allow it, but I'll do a few cards a couple of times per week. In addition to these 365 cards I've promised, I will be hosting a card party later this month. If it is well received, I'll host a few others this year.
Looking forward to being crafty in 2011!
Over my Christmas vacation, I purchased lots of new crafting supplies (too many, to be honest). So, I'm going to set a goal for my OWH cards for 2011 in hopes of using these new supplies and not feeling guilty about my purchases. If I use them as intended, then I will be happy.
I've thought for a while about my goal and I decided that an average of 1 card per day is a reasonable goal. I might do more than this, especially during the summer and if we have any snow in the next few months. I won't do a card every day- my schedule doesn't allow it, but I'll do a few cards a couple of times per week. In addition to these 365 cards I've promised, I will be hosting a card party later this month. If it is well received, I'll host a few others this year.
Looking forward to being crafty in 2011!
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