junk bowl challenge

you're looking at my guilty secret! (well, one of 'em!) :)

see, when i make something, i pull out ALL the supplies i think could possibly work with my theme, try out lots of options, and pick the best. so it's kind of vital to clean up between every project, otherwise i'd never find anything! and, really, i'm great about the big stuff--cardstock, tools, packages of chipboard--they all go right back to their homes! but the little things? the 3 discarded rhinestones, the primas that were a bit much, the sequins found under the couch, the cut-out rub-ons too small to go back in the packet? not so much. i toss all the little "bits" into a bowl to put away "later". uh-huh. much later. ugh.

the other day, overcome with virtue, i decided to empty the dreaded junk bowl for the first time in...well, in a while...and then it hit me: what if i used all the stuff in the bowl...on one card?!

i decided my goal would be to use everything--or as much as humanly possible--without adding any new stuff, except for basics like cardstock & adhesive. oh yeah, and in the spirit of tapping my "instinctive" side more often, i would put a half-hour time limit on the endeavor.

so what was actually in the bowl?

yikes. this might be harder than i thought! but wait: there's a lot of pink here, and a lot of flowers...hmmm...hey wait, i think i've got it!

i didn't use everything. the hula dancer & the matchbook are cool--i want to save them for another day. the fortune & the ribbon...i tried, but...no go. and i just could not spell anything using only "I-S-H"...so i snagged a few more alphas...the "HAPPY" is used, inside the card. when i was done, there was a little empty spot in the lower left, so i added a charm & a couple of tiny rub-ons. (first rule of any lauren challenge: creative cheating is not only permitted, it's actively encouraged!)

the final product.

ok, i'ts not the BEST card i've made in my life, but it's fairly fun & funky!

so here's the challenge: i bet YOU have a junk bowl, too! maybe not a bowl, as such...but a pile, or a box, or a particular drawer in a particular cupboard...somewhere... you've got little dribs and drabs of supplies from old projects, am i right? great! go get 'em, grab your basics, set the timer for half an hour (or, if that's normal for you, go 15 minutes) and see what you can come up with!

there's no prize, but there are rewards: you get a super-fast card,

aaaaaaaaaaaaand:

yep--empty junk bowl! WAHEY!