No...not on a hot date... well I was hot as my studio has no air conditioning. lol

I spent all Friday night and sometime Saturday as well trying to find a place for the assorted scrap and stamp crap we all accumulate: punches, embossing powder, assorted tools etc.

I came across a scrap room on two peas in a bucket where some fantastically clever pea had simply lined the front of her Steralite storage drawers to match her room. WOW what a huge difference this simple touch makes in terms of how they look in a space.


I didn't have to glue the paper in place- there is a little lip on the inside that holds the paper perfectly in place so if i get bored with them I can switch out the paper!

Now the these labels I did spend time on- and they took forever, but I am happy with the way they came out so it was worth it. I don't like my handwriting and I wanted a bolder look than handwriting could provide. So I dug through my rub-on basket and discovered that I had 2 practically full American Crafts Rub-ons (well its actually not surprising that they were practically new or that I had managed to buy two of them). The frame is a Sassafras Lass stamp that I hand cut out. The ink is one of my favorites- Burnt Sienna Palette ink.
Oh the carts themselves I found at Target and were like $15 on sale.

Even my usually non observant husband came in and immediately complimented the way they looked so I guess I did ok :) I still need to figure out what I'm going to put in the last few drawers but I sure I'll come up with something!

Posted in organization

I own a Sizzix Bigshot that I adore! When they were starting to clearance the various old Red Sizzix dies i totally stocked up when they dropped to about $2 a die as I LOVE that they cut through chipboard like buttah!

I found this storage unit on clearance at KMart about a year ago for less than $5.


As you can see I still haven't gotten around to painting the gray part white but- life goes on. I did however finally figure out a workable organization (I think) and finally got around to adding basic labels to the drawers.



I am one of these people that gets paralyzed into in-action when I can't do something perfectly. I'm trying to get over it and just get it done instead of not doing it all.

I also store my Nestabilities and my Cuttlebug embossing folders right next to this unit.
This is just a super basic CD holder that Joann's was selling during their "back to school" line last year. The fabric drawers perfectly compliment the Sizzix unit, I'm not so keen on the frame part but I'll deal for now.

So there you have it- super basic but very functional.

Posted in organization

I know for many people finding colors that match among what they have can be a real nightmare. Trying to pull a card together can be like pulling teeth.

I stumbled across this fantastic site SU COLOR COMBOS You can pick anywhere from one to four Stampin Up colors and it will suggest other Stampin Up colors that will match. It also has a Surprise Me! option where it will pick 5 coordinating colors at random. I got some wonderful pallets this way that I never would have envisioned on my one!

This way you can slowly add to your collection- or be more creative with what you might already own. I love how it combines from outside a color family for even more options! Here's just one of my favorites from the surprise me option- perfect for little girl cards and summer cards and mother's day cards.....


So what are you waiting for- go and play!

Posted in organization, Stampin Up

I at last have a way to store my chipboard. Well my alpha's at least!

Ive seen several people use these cheap shoe holders to store punches but I had too many and no way to attach something that heavy to my concrete walls.

Light-weight chipboard though- no problem! I even had orange chipboard letters from Lil Davis from like a gazillion years ago I had never used! They were perfect to label each pocket!

It took me a while to sort them all into their little pockets and I had to double up on the last 4 letters- but I am so happy with the way they turned out. With the pockets being clear- it is an absolute breeze finding just the right letter.

And the pockets are large enough to get my hand in there and sort of shuffle them about without having to pull them all out to browse. I am finding that I am using them so much more now that I can just glance up and be reminded- hey I have a TON of chipboard! Now I just need to figure out what to do with my shapes and numbers (I'm out of wall space so I can't just add a second shoe holder). Ahhh the dilemmas of being in a basement :( So back to the drawing board!

Posted in organization

What is an artist?

Websters dictionary defines it as:
1 a obsolete : one skilled or versed in learned arts b archaic : physician c archaic : artisan

2 a: one who professes and practices an imaginative art b: a person skilled in one of the fine arts
3: a skilled performer; especially : artiste
4: one who is adept at something artist> artist>

To me an artist is someone like my grandmother. Actually she was an Artist. You could hear her add the Capital "A" when she said it. And she was right.

My grandmother is my hero. Possessing infinite strength and a faith and self confidence that seemed almost impossible. She knew exactly where she stood on every issue and she KNEW she was right because as she would remind you "I am an Artist!".

She also was an artistic genius and worked in many mediums. Sculpture, painting, drawing, she even sewed and did crochet (although for most of her life this was out of need rather than want). As she would quickly tell you when you admired her work- she was a straight blue ribbon prize winner. Winning first place in every exhibition and contest she ever entered. She was even approached by some museums to display some of her work.

From the time I was a little more than a baby, my brother and I had "art lessons" when we spent our summers with her. We painted and even got to do some ceramics at the senior center she worked at. Its from her I learned without being taught the importance of color, composition, balance, perspective etc... All the fundamentals for good art. At the time it seemed more like play than work and I think it was this early exposure that instilled a profound love of being creative that still is a tremendous passion of mine.

Every single time I sit down and do something creative I am reminded of her. I feel her hands carefully guiding mine the same way they did when I was 3 or 4. I wish I had told her just how much I appreciated this tremendous gift she bestowed upon me. All I can do now is dedicate my work to her as I still stand humbled in her artistic shadow.

Posted in family

It has a bird. It has orange. It was on clearance.
Nirvana.

Posted in birds, sales