The Old, The New and Other Cool Stuff

It's embarrassing to admit last year's December Daily album remains unfinished.  Journaling is not my strong suit and this is the only element remaining to complete.  I've firmly committed to completing one page each day until finished.  Four remain.  Baby steps.

Another project completed (tonight, yee-haw) is indexing all the stamps.  Most would still consider me a rookie, but stamping over 200 stamps by category is not child's play.  Now when out shopping, I'll think twice about buying 15 sets at a time.  I will not get behind again.  Once they come into the house they won't be put away until they've been stamped into their corresponding page.

I bought the 4x6 Fiskars Easy Stamp Press before beginning the task. 

 I can no longer imagine stamping without this tool.  From the beginning stamping has always been hit-or-miss, mostly miss, and as such created dread when a project included stamping  This allowed me to become a pro overnight.  Stamps have no choice but to comply with equally applied pressure.  For the first time I can stamp a clean, crisp image every time.  This rates as high as review scales go.  A definite must for both beginning scrappers and pros alike.

This vacation's mini remains in the conception phase.  I've selected all the photos, which go out to print tomorrow and I've committed to the size (8x8) and using the Fair Skies collection.  Now to get motivated.

Improbable

Page with flip out card on left

 As improbable as it might seem, I worked out several technical issues and now back on track on the page order.  Also improbable, I completed the first page.  Nothing's been glued down, but there's no work remaining to complete the page.  At least that's what I think today.  As pretty as it is, it seems as if "something" is missing.  No worries, loads of time to think this through.
 



Because I changed my mind about the album dimensions, I can't firmly grasp how the above page will sit on the inside cover.  There may be room to add an ivory pleated trim between the book board and paper.  Another reason for not gluing the components to the page at this time is because it's probably 100 times more difficult; that, and if it can be done, I haven't seen anyone do it.

Next... an absolute final commitment to the 8.5x8.5 page size.  Either later this evening when there's more time, or tomorrow, I plan to cut the base paper for the first page.  It's with that extra added one-half inch that the certificate, that cause so much grief, can snugly fit.

The I am Roses package arrived today.  Oh, my!  These are going to be fun with a capital F.  The time has arrived where I can no longer ignore the (b)looming flower storage problem.  From incorporating flower use only a couple of months ago, the inventory is accumulating as quickly as weeds grow.  That's not including the dozens of flowers I've cut from off the Cricut.  Guess it's back into the room with the rolling bins.  Although... a $25 wall lateral wire shelf would go a long way in solving this problem without taking up floor space.  TBD.

It's total defeat in collecting the full Once Upon a Springtime collection.  What's on hand should be enough to do everything I bought it for.  I saw another Graphic 45 collection, Le Cirque since retired that peaked my interest, but thought much older then the Once Upon and, as these things go for me, figured completely unobtainable.  Not so fast!  I got my hands on both the 12x12 and 8x8 paper pads, and some of the other pieces in the collection.  I could not be more pleased.  Finally, as budgeted, I bought the full Tropical Travelogue collection, but from several places; all now on the way to the house.

While browsing through YouTube the other day I ran across a mini-album design, with tutorial, that's a must for several future albums.  The link for the YouTube video.

Boing, Boing, Busy

That whole stamping category process continues.  The first day I knocked out about 100 stamps, since then only a few packs at a time.  Slowly, but surely.  This will curb my appetite for large random stamp purchases.  (Boy, oh boy, what a meager set with such limited range, or so I know now going through the process!)

Today's focus was working with the Miss on a Father's Day card.  Her ability grows.

I've virtually copied and completed two different types of mini albums, step-by-step. It's a long-standing threat, but it's time to break away from the masters at YouTube and develop my own style.  And, in my fashion, design not one, but three, all at the same time.  

Graphic 45's Playtimes Past is a charming collection.  I don't mind cutting the paper any longer, but I only had a 12x12 inch pad.  Not so much room for error.  I found another 12x12 during one of the more recent excursions for only $7.00.  Mine! Now there's back up, not so much nail biting.  There's no getting around the fact that G45 fashions its lines with women in mind.  They do publish more masculine lines - and do a marvelous job - but even then many of the details scream feminine.  The Playtimes Past is a very fair mixture for both sexes.  I want the more masculine pages used for a carefully selected collection of my boys childhood pictures.  That leaves about 1/2 of the paper unused.  However!!  When I begin making pages for them, I can begin designing the feminine pages for my sister's girls; using the same page styles, but frilly it up a bit, more ribbon and sparkles, etc.  So two MA's for the work of one.  Not a bad idea.


The third will be a no-frills summer camp mini.  I've selected a Tim Holtz Retro Grunge paper pad for the project.  A little dark, perhaps, for a girl's summer album, but I'm sure this will fit her to a Tee.  I think to pattern this after the wallet-style just completed for this coming Christmas photos, with major modifications since we're only looking at less than 25 shots.

First though, I must pull together a couple (four or five) regular 12x12 layouts.  There's a very gratifying feeling when completing projects.  LO's only take a day or so and therefore seems as if I'm accomplishing much more than when compiling a single mini.  Perspective. 


In less than 10 minutes I pulled together the first LO.  Add paper and embellishments, and it's a done deal.

Our only snow 2012

Stamp Organization System

Way, way back in March I described a system that helps keep track of the all the punches I own.  The system is working out wonderfully; no more guessing about ownership of a particular punch, and knowing exactly what's a hand in an instant.

Keeping an active scrapbooking room organized is the singularly most difficult part of the hobby.  Too many times," out of sight, out of mind" applies and various items become under-used.  This proves especially true when it comes to stamps.

I don't have a mega-collection of wood, acrylic, and rubber mounted stamps; there's probably about 200 individual stamps in all.  How to best keep the inventory in mind?  And because of the nature of stamps, they tend to end up in various places around the room: baskets, shelves, boxes, etc.

While trying to remember whether I had an appropriate stamp for a project being worked on today, and spending over 15 minutes looking about the room for one, I came to a breaking point.  Something had to be done, and done now!

Solution:  I pulled out a box of extra large index cards and begin stamping images by category.  Some fell into more than one, so those were stamped in whatever other category they could be assigned.

Indexed Images

 In little over three hours I grew a index card collection about 1/2 inch thick.  Unfortunately, this also meant cleaning, drying, and repackaging each stamp.  I'm stopping today at the halfway point... or so I hope, though I'm still working on repackaging/drying the first batch.

What a mess I created!

Just as in the case of the punch system, stamps will on longer come into the house without assigning a category with the stamped image. I've yet to determine the binding system since the collection will continue to grow over the months and years to follow, but notebook closure rings or ribbons come quickly to mind.

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It's really a "nothing" deal, but I've been asked to come in and work with a group to teach the basics of card making.  I'm flattered to no end.  It will be enough to know I've helped people of all ages discover a new creative outlet.

Finishing Touches & Adhesive Lessons

I've gotten a bit of scrapbook work done in the new craft room during the last week, and there's no comparing the before and after differences.  Any kinks have now been worked out to all satisfaction!  Now, having said that...

During the weekend of transition, my loving husband wanted to put in a new system for punch storage.  NO!  I couldn't take another thought of more arranging.  He wasted no time today to rectify this and went out and purchased/assembled the adapted wooden shoe storage unit.  It's more than adequate to store my entire, extremely limited, punch inventory, with plenty of room to spare.  Tomorrow this system goes into place with minimum disruption.  He also bought and put in place an additional unit to organize the laser printer, printer paper reams, with an additional small shelf area for quick mailing supply access.  After completing this last small task, there will be no more talk of reorganizing for months, perhaps even years; however, the flesh is weak.

Miracles of miracles, the mini-album is 99.9% complete.  One major mistake made in the beginning was punching holes in the book board (homemade) before tearing a single page out of the pad.  In all fairness, the video never mentioned the need, and as a novice, I didn't realize how important this would be until much too late.  So the book was finished, sans holes.  No problem, we'd drill small holes into the completed covers and make up hole reinforcements to cover the blemishes.  No problem.  Except!  The front cover came out exactly as prescribed; the back, no so much.  The holes were drilled on the wrong side.  I'm so disheartened at the moment.  There doesn't seem to be a viable solution, unless crying counts.  A solution does exist.  I just don't know what that might be as of now.  So much fussy cutting on the back, no more paper to replace it with; blah, blah.  Inspiration will come, hopefully soon.  Regardless, this is a lesson that will never be forgotten.  That's part of the learning experience; but at such a great cost.  *moan*


I learned a great deal during the construction.  Yes, the greatest error was the holes; but less dramatically was adhesive function.  LO's tend to be very forgiving, no moving parts, no stresses, and the page protectors contain/protect whatever might come loose.  Conversely, mini-albums with all their pockets and tags, pages turning, etc, demand a higher degree of adhesive mastery.  

I learned:

1.  Murphy's Law applies to scrapbooking in general and adhesives specifically
2. Zip Dry paper glue means paper-on-paper 
3. ATG glue buckles under stress/movement
4. You get what you pay for; super strong double-sided red tape pays for itself in reduced frustration levels, measured in seconds
5. Glue dots are woosies
6.  Wet glue does not include Elmer's School glue
7. All glues take longer to set than expected, except when attaching large pieces onto pages within a precise 1/4 inch border, in which case, at that very moment, all glue becomes instantaneously and irreparably bonded to paper
8. There exists a substantial "bite" difference between the textured and smooth sides of paper
9. It's highly recommend not to Superglue your tongue to the lips, and keep in mind some glues are highly flammable (especially important if interested in keeping eyebrows nice and smooth)  *kidding folks! except for the Superglue part*

In the midst of placing the new unit upon the desk tomorrow I hope to put the finishing touches to a LO, long in the coming.  

Remember:  that which does not destroy us, makes us stronger!

New Room, Returned Time

It took from Thursday evening (the breakdown and emptying of the craft room) until the following Tuesday afternoon to recreate the room.  I'd forgotten how hard real work can be :)  But it's done for better or worse, and I probably like the results.  Thing is, since I haven't had the chance to work on a project, there's no way of know how truly efficient the changes.  Tomorrow it's back to play time... and planning which area of the house to hit next, without the urgency of this past weekend.  At this point I can't even imagine organizing anything beyond my thoughts.  As much as I earnestly enjoy the process, I've been processed out for a day or two.

I posted the first set of pictures at my other blog.  Maybe I'll split the series between the two sites.

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I managed to make a run to TM while in Fayetteville earlier this week.  The question posited in a earlier post about a binder system is answered.  I had wondered whether the Zutter or Cinch systems to go with.  The decision was made for me!  On the shelf sat a Zutter (Bind it All) for less than $40. No more comparisons beyond that.  Like everything else acquired over the past week, it sits waiting to be opened.  There's not a real need to play with it yet, three other projects based on rings precede the necessity, so it may sit for some time before pulling it out.  That just seems so wrong, but for the price, well...  Did I mention we picked up the UTEE?  Again, this whole timing thing.


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Ah, heck, why not do some more before and after pics now?

Prepped for furniture (the photographer took a slanted photo... the wall is fine!)

A very narrow bookcase.  Decidedly bare.





 

99% complete.  Still not sure what to put in the middle area; thinking something decorative.  Amazing that it holds all the card stock purchased thus far!

New Craft Room

The new furniture works splendidly.  The reorganization of scrapbooking supplies remains an on-going project, even after 15 hours of sorting between Saturday and today.  It looks as if the room will finally be squared away by Tuesday at the latest.  (Better time than originally estimated.)  

Thus far I've bee able to empty two multi-drawer rolling bins; which provides more floor space, and gives the room a more open appearance.

I honestly believed the room outgrown, but this forced re-do sheds light on how badly space was managed.  It's difficult to see this when bringing in a few items at a time, and not seeing the changes necessary to accommodate the growth and change of room function.  Taking this lesson to heart (and a recent episode on a much smaller scale a couple of weeks ago in a kitchen cabinet) it's probably not a horrible idea to empty a room and repack it every couple of years.  It's amazing to discover how much "junk" held on to when a non-critical eye becomes accustomed to the placement.


There's one another system yet to add to this marvelous overhaul, which will finally provide a real solution to the punch storage issue, but I don't have the heart to take this project on until catching my breath from this weekend.  I decided to also empty and reorganize the craft closet while assigning new spaces to everything else; something that could have been delayed, but a better idea to tackle now.  (The closet also looks a bit foreign at present.)  Once finished, most of my everyday supplies will be much closer at hand and the constant rifling through will largely cease.


At long last, I can quit the daily struggle to keep the room organized and get down to scrappin'.

Mother's Day Present

My husband found a steal for a complete professional desk set.  Mother's Day, I'll be sitting in a room with coordinating furniture with tons of table top space.  And reorganizing yet again.


Tonight and tomorrow night we'll be breaking down the craft room down to walls and carpeting.  I wish we could paint the room before the furniture gets set up Saturday morning; however, there's a limit to available energy on such short notice.  There won't be a pen or pair of scissors in proper place during the transition, and probably for a week after that.  This is the mother of all reorganization efforts.


The new work surfaces is muchly appreciated, but the bookcase is the crowning touch.  Finally!  A place to store all the completed LO books (how quickly they all add up!) and yet another shelf or two to store essential supplies without going into the closet multiple times each day.


I'm a little excited about all of this!

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The Kiwi Lane Designs templates came in on Wednesday and they're perfect for the Little Darlings album once I begin.  The ABC Primer is almost complete, it's still the more advanced techniques that consume most setbacks.  Since I feel I'm still not ready to design a book on my own, I've found two YouTube videos using only the 12x12 Graphic 45 paper packs conveniently already on hand.  No detailed instructions for these, but at this point I'll be able to assemble what is shown without instruction.

I've studied Graphic 45 even further and realize how very easy it is to look at a page and instinctively know how a page works best; background or as a complimentary layer to build upon.  This may very well bleed over into other company's patterned paper sets, and if so, I've finally "got" it; if not, back to the drawing table  Once this organizational nightmare is over, I'll put the theory to the test.

Zutter v Cinch

It's time.  

I've purposefully avoided looking into buying a book binding system for the past year; for one, that whole real estate thing, and second, all the focus centered upon creating LOs, not books.

Between the two brands, I know practically nothing other than the Zutter punches rectangles and the Cinch round holes.  The Zutter takes less table/shelf space than the competitor.  I also know the Cinch offers a wide variety of punched pattern capabilities; a variable not known for Zutter.

So back and forth until either a sign happens in the heavens, or I collect enough information to make an educated decision. 

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It would be wonderful to say the shelving unit my husband put up the other day proves a real improvement to crafting.  Alas, no.  The punch issue was immediately ruled out.  I've collected a whole bunch of items largely misfiled, and filled up seven of the eight shelves.  It's a very pretty arrangement... lots of bright colours and sparklies.  However, while it must appear visually pleasing, it also must improve everyday function.  That it does not... yet.  There's also a real danger in moving tools around.  Everything has its place, and when moved to a new location can put me into a search frenzy.
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While digging through the closet last night, searching for a torn notebook binder, I found a large box filled with electronic cables under several layers of crafting materials.  Martin leapt for joy; he'd looked for the box for over a year, thinking it in the garage.  I gained 3 cubic feet of shelf space! 

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Tomorrow's sale includes 75% of embellishments.  That covers a whole lot of ground.  Fun, fun, fun! 


*** I've changed to a much larger font to save my poor eyeballs for the micro-print.

Progress Steady Now

I'm almost to the point where I can begin constructing pages for the mini-album.  I shiver with a girlish nervousness simply thinking of sitting down and beginning the first page.

I own a fair collection of Cricut cartridges; like everyone else, there are the go-to favourites.  There's still so much uncovered possibilities in these cartridges; options available that have only been skimmed.  For instance, I tried to make a card and envelope from one of my cartridges, and the effort was a miserable failure.  This was in the early days with the Cricut, when getting the image I selected was magical.  A few more hours under the belt, and I'm looking at some of the functions best left alone until now.

In the upcoming (and future) project, there are dozens of tags and envelopes to make.  Though willing, the thought of constructing all these by hand, with only a limited supply of  "hard" dies was painful.  I pulled a dozen or so cartridges out to look at again and found (duh) that there were literally thousands of possibilities with the Cricut.  The amount whittled down to three primary and a couple more secondary cartridges to work with.  More interesting to discover was that some of the cartridges contained complimentary images to others.

Martin, at the least bit of prompting, hung the six-foot wire rack today.  The hope was to transfer all the punches from the the shoe bag to the new rack..  He had no sooner packed the electric drill before I began moving punches.  The result?  Ugly.  This will never work for what I imagined.  Never.  Had it been in the closet I could have lived with a little bit of ugly, but this is front and center of the entry into the room.  Aaack!  Instead, I've began loading the rack with "pretty" items taking valuable closet space.  Such as:  tatting thread, glass jars with colourful contents, all the bright colours of glitter and stickles, Tattered Angel bottles, etc.  That takes care of the short shelves, but the wider spaced shelves on the bottom half stay empty for the time being.  In the meantime, most of the punches are scattered between the table and closet floor.

Decisions, decisions...  The SSD Annex hosts another 75% sale Tuesday through Friday this week.  The scope of the 75% off is rather limited, but 10 sheets of name brand, heavy weight paper for $1.00 is worth the trip.  There's more, but won't know what until getting there.  Now it gets tricky.  TM also brings out a new line of products at 66% off this Tuesday.  The problem is money.  Martin generously offered $50 split between each sale, because I'd already spent my allowance.  What he may or may not realize it how hard it is to walk out of either for less than $60.  I could be extra sneaky and take him with me!  He's worse than I when it comes to, "Oh, you could really use this.  Right?"  Yes, I think so is the only reasonable reply.  Honestly, there's not much more in supplies I need for now, but the hunt is highly addictive.

Time to wrangle up the punches!

Not all Goes as Planned

Feeling much better now, thank you.  There's still no clue as to what happened.

Much to my amazement, there are areas in life where paper, though decorative, doesn't enhance.  The coloured pencil container - previously coffee container - came out splendidly.  So, using great leaps of imagination and motivation, decided to decorate a few other recycled coffee tins.

{Before going forward with the story, it's necessary to note my husband is a closet garage hoarder.  Only the garage.  He'll come back and say it's my fault... blah, blah, blah.  It most certainly is not.  It's that I finally gave up trying to organize the area, only to find it totally junked up weeks later; wasted effort.}

Finding a particular item inside the garage is a daunting task.  Not quite impossible, but we've lost 16x8x7 tents in there.  I'll give credit and say he has a loose system of grouping like items in a particular part of the garage.  He loves my homemade fire starters for BBQ and camping.  He said he'd run out recently, and could I make some more?

This is where the story gets crazy.  Why, we'll never know, but I decided to melt the paraffin so it would store neatly in three cans (first duh).  Task finally completed, I  though it would be nice to paper the exterior of the can to serve as a visual cue in the virtual wasteland.  It finally hit me!  Getting the paraffin out of the coffee cans would require heat... lots of it.  Not so good for paper.  What a total and complete flop.  Live and learn!  Is that funny, or not?

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For my baby pictures mini-album, I'm currently studying every aspect of what makes a page work, or not.  Since the album cover and pages will be created from cereal boxes, you can only imagine the intense labour required.  From scratch!  I only hope it begins to come together before the end of the year.

I gathered my baby pictures from all sorts of stashed areas yesterday, then decided which pictures to use.  A huge task in and of itself.  Now I have a good idea what size pockets to create.  That's it so far.

The inspiration for all of this comes from a video from YouTube, from a user calling herself, Monkeydreamz1. Everything she does are pieces of art.   Of course, I'll need to make many, many adjustments, beginning with painting the pages pastels instead of the bold black she (appropriately) uses in this video.  I'm still looking forward to the project; but maybe because I haven't done anything but find pictures and collect chipboard, no labour as yet.

Too Much Time

I somehow injured myself Thursday afternoon, and am still on the mend as of Sunday.  There's not much to do during recovery but sit in the most comfy chair in the house; a chair that, by happenstance, resides in the craft room.  (Bed rest can become quite painful after long stretches.)

And so, stuck in the craft room all weekend long, I spent the time trying new techniques; which has paid off handsomely... and organizing project where possible.

I completed the rooster/shot reminder page.  There's a few areas most would call mistakes, but since it's not going anywhere but the inside the house, they remain as is.

Cute & functional medication reminder

At long last, I played with the chipboard available from my considerable cereal box collection.  Pre-cut chipboard costs unimaginable pennies at the craft stores.  I have Cricut, Cuttlebug and many Sizzix Bigz dies on hand.   Both Cricut and Cuttlebug claim the ability to cut light weight chipboard, but until now, I've never put either to the test.  The Cricut worked wonderfully.  It requires a very stick mat and three multi-cuts.  The selected image came out crisp and clear. The same goes for the Cuttlebug.  I shouldn't've doubt, but the tendency to protect the equipment overrules challenges.  I've also saved a fair amount of "white" chipboard from Sweet-N-Low packages that will finally be put to great use.

I also picked up my tatting materials, neglected for months now.  Surprisingly, it all came back quite easily!  The reason for review stems from the desire to use homemade lace on the mini-album planned.  How sweet a touch this offers.  Fortunately, I have the perfect pink, green, cream coordinating threads already on hand, but will need to search for baby blue and yellow; a far harder challenge than imagined.  I can knock out several inches of lace in under an hour, so now I have something to do when there remains not an iota of creativity in store.

Loosely related to tatting was beading again.  This, too, will add a personal touch to any layout in mind.  Gosh, the only skill not put to use was using a floor loom to weave a carpet or something.  :)

On to organization...

It only took a month, but every single scrap of paper bought at the 75% clearance sale last month is now put away and sorted.  This took much, much longer than should have.  But the exercise proves need for more storage solutions.

An essential tool for any scapper would be a clear pocketed, hanging jewelry bag hanging in a closet of or the back of a door.  Small rubber stamps, bottles of embossing powders, ink pads, small packages of bling, tatting shuttles, ribbon scraps, and any number of small crafting items fit nicely in these relatively inexpensive bags.  Target has a line of very sturdy organizers, and during a sale make them down-right cheap.  At present, I only have one, but will pick up several more over the next few months.

After reading the post, it's scarey what gets done when my body is up to task!

Stuff

My husband began a new diabetic medication, though while not insulin, does require two injections each day.  He handles the morning dose just fine, but not so much with the pre-dinner shot.

I've decided to venture beyond scrapbooking proper and make a cute little 9x9 framed page to hopefully prompt his memory before dinner.  Going all out, I'm working with colours and sizes never used before.  It should do the trick; if not as a visual reminder, then as new splash of colour in a very monochromatic kitchen.

When I first began using the Cricut I counted a well-cut image miraculous. I stayed very, very basic with the cuts, and came to the point of frustration where I almost decided to sell the kit and kaboodle. Time and practice has refined enough to get the image I want every time.  There's enough confidence to now have fun and play around.  And... I no longer fear cutting the pattern on 15 different pages to get the results desired.  The differences between the first successful cuts and what's put out today is remarkable!  While still plenty of room to improve, it ain't half bad.

A Cricut Rooster

Thus far, I've given the mini-albums a mile-wide divide between them and me.  No way, never going to happen!  (That pesky word: never)  Finally, at long last, I saw one of these, putting to great use the beautiful Graphic 45 paper.  To put it simply, I was awestruck.  This is what scrapbooking is all about!

Graphic 45 Mini Album  at YouTube.  I am going to shamelessly copy every little detail demonstrated in the video.  I'll practice all the different techniques on less expensive paper, so maybe there will be two in the end... maybe three or twenty before getting it right?

During a total mental meltdown last night, I created a list of all the scrapbook paper/card stock packs.  The list includes the manufacturer, size, dominate colours, coordinating accessories on hand, and special features such as maps, stamps, tickets, etc.  There were almost 50 packs accumulated thus far... this is on the frightening side of paper obsession.  This list does not include single patterned, themed papers, or special bonuses like vellum and transparencies.  There must be a totally different approach to the 7 inch stack of primarily unsorted paper.  Perhaps tomorrow I'll inventory the paper kits on hand; another 5 inch stack I've lost the ability to instantly recall.  Stamps will have to follow at some point soon; just trying to think of the most effective way to accomplish/organize the system.

It doesn't get any simpler than this, but the dowel rod was finally hung in the closet (amazing dead space remains!) with three evenly spaced curtain rod support screws.  Most ribbons fit on the rod, but a couple more spools will necessitate another row.

I ordered my first Cricut Cartridge since December.  It was on the list and at the right price.  What's up with eBay charging as much, or more, for these cartridges as can be bought in stores?  I wouldn't have nearly the collection if most of these were bought at (usually) less than $20.

At long last, I want to offer praise to our Lord Jesus for answering a prayer thought unanswerable.  Well, I knew He would!  The answer came in the form of yet another miracle, but my God always does it in style.  Thank you so very much, eternal praise for your faithfulness.

Table, Organization & Tricky Deals

There's no comparison between my crafting table "during" the creation of a LO and the rare times when I'm not.  One looks as if a slow motion explosion has taken place, and the other a nice orderly oasis of quiet.  Without exception, and from a hard earned lesson, the table gets cleaned in between projects.  I've said it a hundred times already, but I can't think with a disorganized mess in the line of site.  I can't!  In the future I'll have to make sure any haul mention will be during those times between projects.  I want to start photographing/videoing them... for future reference.  And that simply can't be done on a disorganized table.

I find that once again there are more scrap room organizational changes necessary.  It's the paper!  There's a small box sitting on the floor layered with colour coordinated long paper strips.  There's no other place to file them neatly as they come in varying widths and lengths.  I'm thinking the solution to this could involve using the shoe tree bag currently used for punches; but then, what with all the punches?

Pink Shoe Bag, very weighted down

This, too, has become problematic lately since it's very difficult to find a particular punch within the current system.  Punches don't file into neat categories, be that size or theme.  The card ring with punched images is the only way of really knowing what I have available anymore.  That's a real lifesaver.  But most of the punches proper are heavy and restrict some options.  Maybe....?  We have a few open-wire baskets, primarily used with wire shelving systems out in the garage.  (Always a treasure trove of storage possibilities!!!)  I'm thinking using these at the back and hanging under of my craft table where they have both the weight and extra area to spread them out instead of riffling through small sleeves as required now.  Each time I wanted a punch it would require bending over and crawling under the table; bothersome, but "do-able" until I come up with a better system, and to a certain extent, I'm already doing with the current system.  The only other option would be to hang the other six-foot wire rack (the twin to the rack shown here) somewhere within the room.  And, as these things go, doing so would require rearranging that area, also.  Either way, something has to give somewhere.

The craft room was originally set up as the computer room.  I hadn't actually began scrapping at that point.  But, should we move again, the room would be set up specifically as a craft room, alleviating most of the organizational challenges dealt with over the past year.  One thing for certain... that computer desk with hutch would never grace the room!  I would certainly buy another crafting table instead.  And paint the room in pink and lime green, if I want.

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I submitted the latest LO for the CSI challenge with only hours to spare, and then only after I decided to settle with the photography results on hand, which were all less than idealistic.  Before this project, I never, in a million years, would have never considered the tricky problems with photographing a matte finished photo with a glossy.  Well, I sure do now!  I'm convinced that it can't be done.  Oh, sure, hundreds of photographers would testify to the contrary.  But not with MY skill set!  I literally spent almost two hours, some with Martin's help, trying to capture a true page likeness.  In every case it became a contest of shadows.  Even though I had two different skies to work with - 1 sunny and 1 rainy - and an abundance of natural and artificial light sources, there was no coaxing out a single great photo.  I guess the lesson taken from the experience is to consider this problem when thinking of using two different photo surfaces in the future.

The problematic glossy photo!  Urg!

All the myriad of talents learned thus far are about to be put to a functional use.  My husband went on a new diabetic medication delivery program.  It's not insulin, but he has to administer a shot within an hour of eating dinner, never after.  He does well with the morning shot, but 9 times of 10, he forgets the evening dose.  I'm about to put together a 6x6 or 8x8 cutely decorated page to remind him each evening.  It will say something to the effect of:  No pot before the shot, or some other silly thin.  I can't wait to jump on this project.  Just right after I pull together an awesomely adorable ocean themed LO.  ;D

Not Really a Second Post for the Day

This isn't really the second post of the day.  In my excitement over the hall yesterday, and not desiring to forget anything, I posted the blog previous to this in my Myspace blog.  Today I transferred the post to here; a more appropriate setting.

I've spent nearly twelve hours re-organizing paper and paper scraps.  To accommodate for a hefty but handy pre-sized paper cuts, some of the smaller dies had to be consolidated.  So too with other tools, but it will be worth the effort in the end.  Not administering enough organization torture, I labeled every bin and drawer.  Needless to say, after only twelve hours into the project, the room looks as if a paper bomb went off.  I really need to track how often I go through these two-to-three day organizational fits; it seems I do this at least every other month.  But wait!  There's more accomplished today...

For my coloured pencil collection, I saved an old coffee tin.  Yes, it's totally filled, but this collection goes back at least twenty years.  Back when the boys were kids, and I was a Camp Fire leader, I put all the crayons in a coffee bin and decorated it with a wallpaper scrap and crayon wrappers; the exterior decoration lasted virtually forever.  Each "play" coffee can had a unique decoration so they could pull the can and know what was inside at a glance.  The coloured pencil can has served well, but it was nothing to brag about.  It really bothers me when a container I use is ugly.  With some help for my great helper, we decorated the coloured pencil bucket with very pleasing results.  I added a pencil sticker on the label after taking the picture, which adds that much more cuteness.

Sometime early last year I found a small plastic accordion folder in Hobby Lobby's clearance section.  It originally sold for $10, but because it had a busted carrying strap, I picked it up for $2.00, I think.   We buy cat litter in boxes that have sturdy plastic handles.... just about the size needed to repair the accordion folder.  A match made in heaven!  Better than that, the new handle is of better plastic quality than the original.  All due credit goes to Martin that thought to marry the two.  He's one smart cookie!

I picked up a black painted wood frame with a mysterious slot in one side for 50 cents while at SSD.  Playing around with it, we discovered the slot perfectly accommodates a scrapbook page.  Martin wants me to go back and pick up as many as ten, should they still be there.  His idea is that we (yes, he likes to help scrap sometimes, too!) design decorative holiday pages to display for the various seasons.  He also wants me to display a few scrapbook pages around the house instead of photographing them and throwing into an album.  It will take an hour to make the round trip, so I hope it's worthwhile.  Maybe call to find out before leaving the house?  Nope, there might be new stuff on the floor tomorrow.  As much as he thrills over this prospect, he has yet to see what scrapbookers are doing to deep-framed art canvases.  I can put together a piece of art to hang on a wall for under $10 for what departments stores sell at $20-30, and can do a better job of it.

Probably not this year, but perhaps next, I take this hobby to the next notch and try to sell cards at the farmer's market.  I've gotten very good with cards, but don't feel I'm up to the commercial level yet.  I've always been crafty, but never considered ever making a profit from it.  Who knows?

Punch Drunk

I went to JoAnn's this past Friday in small hopes of finding We R Memory Keepers brand new Lucky 8 punches.  I hoped there might be just one.  Foolish faith.

While over in their Fiskars punch area I happened to see a clearance tag on a small corner punch.  Lacking a goodly supply of these, I snatched it up.  The punch was originally listed at $12.00, but was marked down to $2.98.  WOW!  What a deal.  Initially it appeared I'd come in too late in the sale to take advantage of other great deals after seeing so many of the arms with clearance tags empty.  Undeterred,  I began looking more closely at the clearance tags.  They didn't hang on the front of the arm, but each was pushed against the back wall.  The search was on!

In the end, I found: 1 regular shape punch, 2 small corner punches, 2 3-in-1 emboss plus punch, 1 4-in1 emboss and punch, 1 medium squeeze punch, and 3 different border and corner punch sets.  Oh!  And a Sizzix Original dye.  Over $150.00 retail value, I spent less than $50!  A 66% savings value!!!

In the past, I've hesitated over buying corner punches.  They just seemed so dog-gone expensive.  At the same time, I've also felt the loss of these tools, especially when matting photos.  Small rounding and large rounding was to the largest extent of photo and matting ability before now.  While nice, there's just so much creativity to be had.  Between the newly acquired tools, and the couple of other punches I owned, I now have the ability to create no less than 18 corner designs.  And that's before combining punches for extra depth.

And this is the way I've built a huge inventory in such a short time, by taking advantage of really great deals.  They almost always come in bulk of one tool or element.  If I buy one, and find others, I stock up.

There's still one of the WRMK Lucky 8 punches I really want, but the last purchase ate this month's remaining allowance.

Before ending the discussion of punches, I found posted somewhere a nifty tip about how to know whether a particular punch in the store is not already sitting in the closet, or punch bin, whichever applies.

For every punch bought, punch an index card with the new punch.  Each card then gets a general round punch so each card as acquired can be added to a opening/closure ring.  When heading out to a craft store, take the entire ring.  Then, when wondering whether the punch on the shelf is something already owned, all it takes is pulling out the ringed set and flipping through the punched cards

Punch Ring - Organization

I've taken this idea to a higher level and write the brand name and title of the demonstrated punch to make putting together the "supplies used" sheet easier to write up after the page or card creation.

(Sorry for the mess.  Actual scrapbook page creation in progress)

Inventory Building

One of the best ways of building a paper supply quickly is to buy paper packs.  These packs range in paper counts between 24 and 80; the larger the number, the more papers there are to choose from.  You can also figure the higher number packs will probably contain paper; the lower the number, the likelihood of card stock contents.

What's best about any pack, whether paper or card stock, is that papers within that pack will always coordinate.   Probably the most important consideration while building an inventory

Most packs of any count run about $20.  I never pay for anything full price.  Hobby Lobby, JoAnn's, Michaels, regularly put these on sale for $10.   Regularly means between twice a month, but certainly once each month. (I can't vouch for scrapbook specialty shops because we only have one (boo) in our area and they are so pricey I can't afford to shop there very often; and when going, only hit the 50% off table, but drool at the rest!)  Most often when the paper packs are on sale, the racked individual papers are included in the sale.  However, there's no guarantee you can get more than one project out of each page later down the road.  I do often buy these papers for accent pieces needed from time to time.  Since the already packaged packs are still on the shelves, I can go down the aisle with the pack at home and pick out coordinating sheet papers.

For the first year of scrapbooking I tried to take advantage of as many of the sales as possible.  Buying one pad at a time feels as if it takes f-o-r-e-v-e-r to build an inventory.  I'm more fortunate than most since my husband is very supportive of my hobby, and allows a generous budget with most of the "extra" money that comes into the house.  In a one year period I managed to purchase 27 paper packs in as many moods and themes as possible; some of the packs in places never believed to carry scrapbooking supplies, and usually for pennies on the dollar.

For those with a Cricut, or similar machine (now that there's different brands out in the market), an important consideration when buying paper is how well it stands up to the rigours of automated machine die cutting, and to a lesser extent when using an embossing machine.  An inferior paper will never stand up to detailed cutting with the Cricut.  Going about it the wrong way, I ruined pounds of paper trying to put it to purposes it clearly isn't designed.  That's never the case with superior grade paper and card stock.  It takes some practice to figure out what works and what doesn't.  I can assure you the rack paper at Hobby Lobby will not stand up to the test!!!  I wish I had kept a list of which brands work the best with the Cricut, but not yet.  Off the top of my head I can vouch for K&Company, Graphics 45, and We R Memory Keepers, and Creative Memories among others not so close to immediate thinking.

The last word about paper probably should go without saying.  I keep ALL my scraps organized by colour.  I don't know how many times when looking for a particular colour I've discovered papers from different packs coordinate with another.  I "try" to indicate on the cover of the packs when this happens, but that's another organizational weakness.

This year March is National Scrapbooking month.  I'm hoping some of the specialty on-line shops (that normally only have bi-annual sales) come out with special discounts during the next few weeks.  As the motto goes:  more bang for the buck!

More Ways to Save

I've mildly ranted about the cost of storage; mildly, because it's part and parcel of the craft.  I'd like to share today another nifty way to save money while keeping scrapbook items organized.

Over the year I've grown quite the patch of flowers... paper and silk primarily.  Between Cricut, dies, and templates there's almost an endless assortment.  I also enjoy crafting three-dimensional paper ribbons and embellishments.   Like everything else, it didn't take long before a system had to be put in place to accommodate the collection.

I've saved six stacking plastic ice cream half-gallon buckets.  They're scatter throughout the craft closet.  Some labeled, some not.  Even still, they all look the same at a quick glance.  So I've decided to colour code the containers so that in an instant I'll know a particular bucket contains flowers, brads, etc.  Red indicates flowers.

Organizational Work in Progress

 

 

 

 

No, not exceptionally pretty in this DIY project, either; however, I'll probably attach a large flower on each side and the top of the lid to pretty it up a little bit.  The image will also assist as a visual clue to others who like to sneak into the closet and design something wonderful for me!  (This happens often, much to my great delight!)

In time, I'll have a colour coded embellishment organizational system in place.  There might be acid content concerns for hard-core scrappers, but for my purposes, it should work fine. 
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When meeting Martin's mother for the first time she pulled out a decades old scrapbook.  A woman ahead of her time.  I could tell she rightly held this as a prized family possession.  The amazing part of the physical scrapbook was that despite the decades, and despite a lack of concern of the obsession we have with acid and lignum today, the book had not deteriorated.  Yes, there was some fading and yellowing, (in my opinion perfect seasoning) but the overall quality remained excellent.  It's probably a good idea to construct albums with perpetuity in mind, but as I've just described, it might not be as critical an issue as some make it to be. Maybe.

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Yet another recently finished page!

Silly Night

Christmas Eve
December 24, 2011

Ribbon Organization

This is the best system for ribbon organization I've seen yet.

I'll say it here, and 100 more times before ending this journal:  Scrapbooking need not be an expensive hobby; yes, there are companies out there that offer incredible products.  But in most cases, a goodly amount of imagination can slash costs to pennies on the dollar.

Just yesterday when visiting Hobby Lobby I saw a pack of eight large paper clips with small pieces of ribbon tied on as a bow.  I actually said out loud, "I can do that at home."  Someone standing near me laughed.  I suppose the thought is fairly universal.  Nevertheless, I couldn't bring myself to look for the price knowing I would have had a total meltdown in the middle of the aisle.  (Closest estimate is around $6-$8.)

I highly recommend you take a quick look at one woman's solution and have your socks knocked off!  Just click the image below: