Sometimes the temptation is just too hard to resist….
Today, I received an e-mail from EMBELLISH IT!, an online scrapbooking company known for carrying everything Basic Grey. Not only that, they carry the matching Bazzill cardstock for every line put out by Basic Grey. Yep, two of my favorite things in life: Basic Grey and Bazzill. Anyway, this e-mail was titled, “Basic Grey Vintage Packs” and it said the following:
—–
BasicGrey has RE-released some of their first lines – these are only available in collection packs.This is a one-time offer as when they are gone – they will be gone forever.
Warning: Shop Early if interested.
They are on Sale for $12 collection
Sale Price is good until Dec 31, 2009
—–
Holy Grail of scrapbooking! Did someone say VINTAGE Basic Grey?!?! I’m there. I am SO there!
So I click over to their website and see all the gloriousness that is Old School BG. Let me just show you what I’m talkin’ ’bout…
“BLACK TIE”
“PHRESH & FUNKY”
“SUBLIME”
Well, crap, I can’t find a good photo online anywhere, but you remember how cool it was, right??
Anyway, you can see the BG paper packs HERE. Most of them are only $12.
I have a friend who has been looking for Sublime, so I called her today and told her about the sale. I thought she might want me to order it for her, then we could share the shipping costs; I was right, LOL!
I got some Black Tie and Phresh & Funky for myself, and the Sublime for her. I found a coupon code online for $3 off, and entered it at checkout, but I don’t know if it worked. The goodies don’t ship until (anticipated) December 18, so I’ll have to find some patience somewhere. Can’t wait til my BG gets here.
I’m trying to remember the first BG collection I ever saw. I know it was love at first sight, that much is certain. I think it was Motifica, which is still my favorite Basic Grey line of all time. {Shhhhh, don’t tell anyone! I am hoarding a substantial amount of Motifica….}.
They come out with new collections so consistently, I’ve never been able to keep up with buying them as fast as they make them. Black Tie and Phresh & Funky are 2 collections that I don’t have any of, so I was obligated to get some, right?
So, if you’re also a fan of Basic Grey in their vintage hey day, go over to Embellish It! and order some, so I’m not sitting her feeling guilty alone, K?
It’s that time of year to submit my annual Wish List to my own personal Santa Claus. I call him Scrapbook Santa, or Scrap Santa for short.
When I was a kid, I had a regular Santa like everyone else, who brought me toys and games, as long as I was a good girl all year. And you KNOW I was, LOL!
Then as a young woman, I graduated to Shoes and Clothes Santa, and in college, he became Textbook and Top Ramen Santa. Once I got married and started my family, I changed Santas once again and submitted my wish lists to Diapers and Baby Swings Santa.
Now we are a well-established family, and our basic needs are met through our hard work all year. The days of wanting to squeeze my size 9s into cute high heels are long gone, and I swore off Top Ramen the day I graduated from college.
Therefore, my Santa for the last several years has been Scrap Santa and I predict he will be the one I submit my lists to for quite some time. Probably until I start needing Metamucil and Depends Santa, right? That’s the plan, Stan! And here is my 2009 Wish List for Scrap Santa…
{Don’t worry, like all Santas, he understands if you slip in some unrelated requests. Santa is all about listening to anything and everything you want…your heart’s desire…your very most wished for things!}
#1 – KODAK EasyShare Z915 35mm digital camera in RED ($199; on sale right now for $159….hurry, Santa!)
Features: 10 MP, 10x zoom, 2.5″ inch screen, image stabilization, and panoramic stitch (I really enjoy the panoramic feature on my 35mm camera and would love to have it on my digi). It also has Best in Class click-to-capture speed so you don’t miss a shot. This is basically the new version of my current camera, which I adore, it’s just gotten old with a sticky dial, broken charging dock, etc.
This is similar to the camera I wanted to get on Black Friday at Target because, although it retails for $199, they had it on sale for $129 (a cool $70 savings!).
But I wasn’t near a Target or a computer on Black Friday. I did find someone who could run by my local Target and pick up the camera for me, so I called the store early that morning and they had already sold out. Color me sad :( But I would really, reeeeeeeeelly like the red one, Santa!
#2 – “Daisy Totes” by Creative Memories
“Daisy Wheeled Cart” $145
“Daisy Weekender” $60
“Daisy Project Tote” $32
and “Daisy Tool Caddy” $37 {Santa, I would like 2 of these please…one for all my stamps/inks and one for my loads of punches and other tools}
Here is just the Theme Set, Santa, so you know what you’re shopping for.
There are a bunch more pieces to it, though, so maybe you could take Scrappy Elf shopping with you. I think she’s familiar with this collection as I saw a “North Pole Misfits” layout she made with it (It’s on your blog AND your Facebook page, if you haven’t seen it yet, Santa…).
#5 – CREATIVE IMAGINATIONS “Creative Cafe” collection….yep all of it, even those cute binder rings. You know what a sucker I am for ledger paper and bright colors, right Santa? Here is a peek at the collection, but there is more so shop until you drop!
#6 – Personalized laptop skin for my MacBook Pro 17 inch by “SCHTICKERS.COM“, something kind of like this….
…but with the Journey “Escape” logo instead, since that’s the first album of theirs I discovered and it changed my life….
OOH! Or Santa! Maybe the artwork from the “Trial by Fire” album, since it’s the last one Steve Perry sang on…yeah THAT would be kewl….
Then maybe you could get me an iPhone skin with the Escape logo….yeah, rock on!
#7 – Speaking of music, here are some CD’s I’d love to get in my stocking….
MICHAEL BUBLE’ “Crazy Love” $14 … oh, and coincidentally, tickets for his show near me go on sale December 11 … Would you look at that! That’s only a couple of days away! Just sayin’ …
#8 – KINDLE DX wireless reading device by Amazon $489
Santa, I know the economy has hit everyone, even you, so I would be willing to settle for the smaller Kindle. It’s ONLY $289! See, I’m willing to work with ya’…Oh, but will you also please include a couple hundy in Amazon dollars so I can download a bunch of books. I know the classics are free, but most other books cost 10 bucks each so, you know…
#9 – Scrapbooking tees and Hoodies…here are a few cute logos to give you an idea of what I have in mind…in pink, white, or light blue please…
“Inspire, Create, Live” by Two Chicks Designs
“Anyone Who’s Anyone Scrapbooks” by Zazzle.com
“iScrap” by Zazzle.com
#10 – One year supply of the essentials I really need to scrap with: Epson 4×6 matte photo paper, printer cartridges for Epson PictureMate PM260, Dr. Pepper lip smackers, Diet Coke, sunflower seeds, kraft Bazzill cardstock, and American crafts black Slick Writer in fine tip.
Okie doke, I think that should do it for this year, Scrap Santa! Thank you for considering my list. I’ll let you know if I think of anything else. For instance, I NEED a treadmill so I’ll be window shopping for those today {wink}…
Hey, sorry for being MIA again. Had a holiday long weekend with extended family. Then upon returning to civilization, there was all that laundry, unpacking, and oh yeah, first of the month bill paying, calendaring the family appointments, and all that fun stuff that keeps me from blogging. I usually have the nanny, the housekeeper, and my personal assistant do all that crap but I gave them some time off this year.
Oh wait….I don’t have a nanny, housekeeper, or personal assistant, do I? I must’ve fallen asleep at the keyboard again and been dreaming of my Perfect Life. Wow, what a rude awakening. Do you know how to get sleep slobber off a laptop keyboard, by any chance?
Oftentimes, I look around my messy life and say, “Gaw, someone really needs to clean the bathroom!” Or “Dang, I can’t get in the laundry room anymore…Someone should really do a load or 10. Like, hello??” Then I realize…um, yeah….I’m “someone,” ain’t I? Shooks. (<- In my hood growing up, you say that like "shoot" but with "ks" on the end….shooks. Get it?)
So, I'm back to bloggy land now and ready to rumble! Let’s talk about scrappers background noise, shall we?
When I started my scrapbook room makeover, I took the TV out of my scrap space, and moved it to another room so the kids could hang out in there and watch movies. This particular TV is our #3 television and has no satellite or even antennae hookup, just a VCR and DVD player for watching movies. I honestly didn't think I watched it that much in my scrap room and was sure I wouldn't miss it being in there.
However, as with many things in life, I was wrong.
I miss it. I guess I popped an old-school video in there while I scrapped more than I realized. Some favorite movies to scrap by were: Good Will Hunting, Dead Poet's Society, Top Gun (oh man, Tom Cruise playing shirtless volleyball…he was so yummy before he went psycho…) … Wait, what? Erm, where was I?
Oh. Yeah. Movies. Um, I think my all time favorite movie to watch while scrapping is Napoleon Dynamite. Makes me laugh, and I get to hear all those quotable lines again so I can regurgitate them to my family for days afterwards in every feasible conversation. ("Did someone say 'skills'? Yeah, I got skills. You know, like nunchuku skills, bow hunting skills, computer hacking skills… Girls only want boyfriends who have great skills." I mean, the lines from that movie are SO applicable to daily life.
Seinfeld and Brady Bunch quotes are too, if you haven't noticed. Pretty much any situation you will come across in life can be addressed by either a Brady Bunch quote ("She always says, 'Don't PLAY BALL in the house!'"), a Seinfeld line ("No soup for you!" or "He's nice, a bit of a CLOSE TALKER."), or a Napoleon Dynamite quote ("Tina, you fat lard, come get some DINNER!").
So, yeah, I’ve missed having the TV in my scrap room. I have a little stereo hooked up and I play K-Life on that sometimes (Christian music, which is cool to scrap by). Other times, I play music on my laptop. I’m probably the only American who has never purchased an iTunes song, but I’ve built up a nice little collection of free songs from all music genres, and I’ve downloaded several of my CDs, too. I like to put my iTunes on random and just chillax to whatever music comes up.
But what I most often listen to while I scrap, or work in my scrapbook room, is PANDORA.COM. Sometimes I mention this on message boards and a lot of scrappers have never heard of Pandora, so I’m gonna ‘splain it to you….
Pandora.com is free up to 40 hours per month, then you pay a small fee if you want to listen longer than that. They have a huge music library. You can start as many "stations" as you like, with music of whatever genre you want, like 80s, country, Christmas, jazz, or whatever. I have one station called Everything Radio (original, huh?) that I listen to every day while I work. It has country, modern rock, spiritual, Celtic, you name it (I have eclectic taste, what can I say?). I have one called Journey Radio that plays Journey and other 80s rock.
Basically, you give Pandora some songs or artists to go on, and it gives you similar music on rotation. You can give a thumbs down to songs you don't like and they'll never play again. It's really cool…I can't believe it's free!
Tonight I started a Pandora station called Old School and added a bunch of artists: Harry Connick Jr., Ella Fitzgerald, Norah Jones, Ray Charles, Sarah Vaughn, Billy Holiday, Jamie Cullum, Michael Buble’, Frank Sinatra, etc. I just adore that kind of music. It’s relaxing and fun at the same time…great music for me to work by or scrap by or even pay these dad-gum bills by.
One thing I love about my Everything Radio station is that anytime I hear a new song or artist I like, I just enter ’em right into Pandora and I can hear their music on rotation. I’ve found a lot of new artists I love this way, by hearing their music on blogs, on TV shows like “So You Think You Can Dance”, or on the radio. I have a cool iPhone applicaiton called SHAZAM where you let your phone “listen” to any song and it identifies the artist and song for you.
With your Pandora.com account, you can Tweet your songs or stations on Twitter, e-mail your songs/stations to friends, even create a station FOR a friend. It’s pretty stinkin’ cool. There’s even a free Pandora app for your iPhone, so you can listen to free music any ol’ time. I just cannot say enough good things about Pandora.com. I hope you will give it a try and if you do, let me know what kind of music stations you’re making. I love ALL music and I’m so curious what other scrappers listen to :)
You know who has super cool music on their blog is EMILIE. Sometimes I just listen to her blog music, or I pull artist ideas from her. Right now she has Christmas songs on her player, so if that ain’t your thang, check her out after Christmas, lol. ‘Cuz Emilie has wicked good musical taste; just one of the many things I love about her.
So that’s what I listen to when I scrap. How about you? Do you prefer silence, a radio talk show, or maybe some TV in the background while you work? What are some movies you like to watch? Do you have a TV in your scrap area? Or do you listen only to music, like me?
This is a sad, sad day in Scrappy Land. After the December issue of CK (currently on newsstands), Ali Edwards and her “Studio A” column will be no more :( As of now, there are no plans for Ali to write any other features for CK, either.
The Peas are talking about it HERE, and the Scrap Sisters HERE…
So can you read that great big writing on the wall, folks? Cuz I’m seeing it in big, black, ugly, capital letters: Creating Keepsakes magazine is on the way out.
Here are some of the signs I’m basing my opinion on:
– BECKY HIGGINS leaves CK
– Crazy cheap CK subscription deals
– LISA BEARNSON no longer does her monthly CK column after January 2010
Sorry, folks. I think CK is “done and done.” And I fear Scrapbooks Etc. is right behind them.
How many scrapbooking magazines will that leave us then? Oh, that’s right! NONE.
I gotta’ be honest here and say we have no one to blame but ourselves. I’ve heard time and time again on the message boards about scrappers dropping their scrap magazine subscriptions because they didn’t like this or that about the magazine. Now with Ali leaving CK, here comes another round of “Well, now for SURE I won’t renew!”
Do you see the parallel with the demise of the LSS? I sure do. “My LSS has the latest and greatest, but they (charge too much), (don’t kiss my butt when I walk in the door), (kiss my butt too hard when I walk in the door), (don’t order the exact brand and model number of product I want), (don’t have sales or coupons like the Big Box Stores),” etc. etc.
And guess what? The LSSs all closed while we scooped up coupons and Killer Deals at the big box stores. Hey, there are fewer choices, only major brands to choose from, and paper stacks galore, but at least it’s cheaper so we’re happy shoppers! Oh, wait, you mean if we don’t support the LSS and the variety of scrapbooking companies whose products they carry, the LSSs AND the scrapbooking manufacturers will go out of business?? Wha???
Well, yeah, that’s how it happens. And the same goes for scrapbooking magazines. We complained. We said, “Screw you. I don’t like exactly how you do your magazine, so I’ll just go get my content online for free from blogs and such!” We quit subscribing and buying from the newsstand. The newsstands stopped carrying scrap magazines, even for those of us who still want to buy them (but can no longer find them without searching). Scrapbooking magazines started folding. Did we stand strongly behind the remaining ones? No, we didn’t.
So now we have no Ali, Lisa, or Becky ~ three of the biggest scrapbooking names in the industry ~ and I think we can see where we’re going from here.
I’m not pointing fingers, believe me. First, because I know the horrible economy played a big hand in a lot of our decisions as scrappers. Second, because I did/do a lot of these same things, all in the name of saving money on scrap supplies. I did do everything I could to patronize my LSSs when they were here, but I live in a rural area and lost mine well before most others did. I did the best I could to support this industry, but I failed it in many ways, too.
I gotta’ say, I never gave up on the magazines, though. I criticized the changes at SB Etc. (because I thought they were making the wrong choice to save a struggling magazine), but I still bought it at full retail every month, as I did with every paper scrapbooking magazine out there. I really, really wanted to save them! I’m a Scrap Mag Ho, remember?
I just want us, as scrappers, to accept some of this responsibility. Ali is a symptom, not the problem or the cure. I will miss dearly the unique perspective she added to CK for years and years. I wish her great success in all she does in the future. I will miss her :(
When CK and SB Etc. disappear soon, I will miss them terribly, too. And I will have no one to blame but myself.
Word on the street is….which is to say the unsubstantiated rumor is….that Target got a special Christmas line of their own. Instead of carrying Making Memories “MISTLETOE” like everyone else…
They got their own line called “Tinsel.” Of course, I can’t find it officially online anywhere. These were the only tidbits out there so far….Ebay listings by an entrepreneurial scrap chickie, LOL!
Here’s a YouTube “haul” VIDEO showing MM “Tinsel” felt stickers and 8×8 paper pack. I love the ornament shaped papers.
Gotta’ say I’m not a huge fan of the Mistletoe line, but I like what I see so far of Tinsel; it seems more my style. I can’t wait to see it in person. The colors look happy and fun.
Have you seen Tinsel at your Target yet? And didja get any? Oh, do tell!
Edited to add 11/25/09:
LOOKIE! LOOKIE!
A sweet lady named Crystal contacted me via 2peas and e-mailed a picture of all the Tinsel goodies! Thank you so much, Crystal!!!
I went to a crop this past Saturday. It was a monthly crop put on by a friend who gets the use of her complex’s clubhouse for free and there’s room for 6 to 8 of us. Most months there’s about 3 to 6 of us, a really great group of fun and supportive ladies. We can be in there from 9 to 9, and sometimes people come in the morning only, the evening only, or even leave and come back, like if their kids have a soccer game or something. It’s always a lot of fun and I love the chance to catch up with everyone’s lives. We are all varied women with various jobs and lifestyles…we all happen to be moms, and jobs vary from office manager to transcriptionist (me!) to doctor to SAHM, etc.
The cool thing is that there are never “crop horror stories” with these ladies, kwim? Have you heard of or experienced CROP HORROR STORIES? I sure have! Here are some examples of the bad behavior I refer to: talking super loud on your cell phone, smoking in the crop room, table hogging, the obsessive tool borrower, etc. Well, not this group…they’re all wonderful and I’m so lucky to be invited to crop with them all the time.
Speaking of which, this group does a yearly trip usually in February where we rent a double-condo at a nearby lake and crop from Friday night to Sunday afternoon. Everyone provides one meal, we all bring snacks to share, and it only costs $50 per person. This year, it looks like that trip will be in late January instead, which works well for me schedule-wise, so I hope I’m able to go. My mom usually comes down to stay at my house a day or two early, then she joins us on the crop weekend.
One really neat thing is that my mom and one of the ladies in my group developed a good friendship the first time we had this weekend a few years ago. They have some similar health issues and are really supportive of each other. It’s so fun to see them enjoying their time scrapbooking together, and with the rest of us, of course, LOL!
The sweet lady who hosts these monthly crops at her clubhouse is also arranging a weekend retreat for May 2010. It’s about $125 per person for 3 days and the retreat house is all decked out with individual cropping tables with Ott lights, a computer/printer, a big couch and TV for chick flick watching, etc. Again, each person provides a meal. Housekeeping is included in the cost. Whoo to the Hoo!
I told DH about these two fabulous cropping opportunities just to get them on his radar. He basically just grumbles when I tell him these things, but when the time comes, he’s fine if I go. As long as there are no sick kids around our house or anything. You know how it is, right? I’m feeling pretty positive about the January weekend, but the May one, well, we’ll have to see. The expense is the main problem. Maybe I can play the “…but May is my birthday-anniversary-Mother’s Day-month” card. Do you think that will work?
The only problem is I’ve already attempted to play THAT card to justify why I need to buy the camera I reeeeeeellly reeeeeeeellly want on Black Friday, since mine has been out of commission for months and a similar camera is on a great sale that day. And I only jumped ahead and played the “May” card because I had already used the “….don’t get me anything else for Christmas because I reeeeellly reeeeeelllly want this new set of crop bags.”
Sheesh, I’m running out of cards to play, ain’t I?
Hope you had a fabulous weekend and got to play with some paper! :)
My Scrap Sister ANGIE posted THIS link on the message board today…it’s a detailed look at the recent scrapbook/craft room makeover done by famous scrapper, DONNA DOWNEY.
Donna has been the subject of CONTROVERSY recently, but I’m not even gonna go there…that’s a post for another day. A day filled with lots of chocolate cake washed down with dirty martinis. I just don’t have the strength right now…Go ahead, read that 2peas thread, and then the link within the thread and you’ll see what I mean. I just can’t go there without being quite fortified with chocolate and vodka.
Okay, well!
Let’s just talk about her room makeover, shall we? If you’re not a DD fan ~ or say you’re even an official Hater ~ just pretend I’m talking about, ummmmm, my “friend” Dee Dee’s room, okay? Will that make it possible for you to be objective, to enjoy the room for what it is? Hope so. If not, go have some cake and a ‘tini, come back, and try again. See, doesn’t cake and a ‘tini make everything better? Yeah, Mama knows….
So.
Here is what DD’s scrap room used to look like:
And here is what it looks like now:
Quite a change, yes?
HERE is a whole series of photos of her old room, the makeover process, and the final product. What I would do if I were you (and I know you’re very glad that I’m NOT) is I would page back through all those photos and look at them in order. They will make a lot more sense that way, I promise.
As you can see, DD already had an amazing creative space, one we would all consider ourselves lucky to have. I have written many times of my love of and coveting of the Ikea EXPEDIT, especially those big honkin’ ones she had. I get slap happy just thinking about how organized I could be with all those cubes, wonderful cubes!
So I was already supremely jealous of the girl. I loved the French doors, the green shade on the walls, the large table space in the middle of the room, and all the wonderful organization. Then she goes and becomes a RUNNER, which is so amazing and inspirational to me. I see people like DD make a commitment like this, and it makes me believe I could actually do it, too. THEN she goes and re-does her room into a pretty close replica of my dream scrapbook room.
I am envious of her to say the least. Especially envious of anyone who can spend $4,500 (plus a new computer) on re-doing a perfectly good craft studio right now, at the same time I’m eating Top Ramen for lunch and working three jobs. Jealous, jealous, jealous…I’m not even gonna lie.
Back to her new room…I encourage you to watch the great video she posted to get the scoop straight from Donna….emmmm…I mean “DD.”
Things I love best about the room:
– Cute red Ikea bookshelf…the color, the way it makes great use of the corner, the different style of it
– The eclectic glass knobs on the drawers, keeping all that white furniture from being too industrial
– The color of the walls….that pretty blue is my dream scrapbook room color, so light and fun and inspiring
– All that counter space and closed storage space, under the counters and inside the island
– The accent colors, i.e. the whole color scheme of the room; that’s what I would’ve picked my own self
– All the fun art and deco things that make it her own and a special place she wants to create in every day
I just adore this room and ~ controversies aside ~ wanted to share it with you and see what you think. Are you loving it as much as I am? If not, what would your “dream scrapbook room” look like? Feel free to post links to photos, or just describe it to us :)
I’m just here with my chocolate cake and dirty martinis, and all the time in the world…
You may have missed out on THIS, but here is your second chance to get a great deal on a FEE-YOU-JUS pack of scrapbooking goodies from MY MINDS EYE for only $29.99. Or, like me, you got that first MME kit and loved it, so you want/need another one :)
“That’s right, Bob. Now tell them what they get…”
Well, you get “200 piece paper & accessories pack. This kit includes 39 sheets of 12×12 double-sided cardstock paper plus over 170 mix & match accessory pieces including frames, journaling cards, titles, quotes, rub-ons, and transparencies.”
The MEMORY WORKS SITE says this pack is worth $170, so you’re saving 83%!
If you need some prodding….erm, I mean…inspiration to buy and use this kit, HERE is the Tres Jolie gallery from the My Minds Eye site.
If you’d like more info or to place an order for the fab-O kit, click HERE. Have questions on how to place an order? Check THIS out…
Isn’t this a gorgeous kit? Now that I see this one, I like it even better than the prior one. The colors are brighter and prettier. You likee?
I decided to go the easy route for Christmas cards this year, and buy a kit to make them come together more easily and cheaply. I found this kit at Michaels recently and, with my coupon, it only cost $8.50. You get 18 cards and envies, so only 47 cents per card is pretty dang good, I think.
The kit comes packaged very nicely, in this cute little box. It’s empty here….sorry, I forgot to take photos BEFORE I started..oops.
You get 6 sets/styles of cards, with 3 in each set. There are samples on the back of the box showing how you can assemble the cards, and everything is packaged to make that very easy to do….NO guesswork whatsover. Then again, you are free to mix and match or put the cards together your own way if you like.
I think the artwork is cute and unique. The messages are light-hearted and sweet. There are six different sentiments to go inside….here they are laid out on my desk. I added a quick dot of a coordinating color of Stickles glitter glue on the four corners of each one to give it a little pizzazz.
Okay, is it just me or whenever you say the word “pizzazz,” do you just want to break out some jazz hands right when you say it? Like, “Pizzazz” … jazz hands! I can’t help it. Both of my hands instantly starburst themselves into the air. “Pizzazz!” Wha? Oh, what is that you’re saying? … Oh, crap. You wouldn’t be caught dead doing something so “Glee”-ish, even in the privacy of your own home? And it IS just me? Wow. Major wake-up call, dude. Thanks.
Ah, okay, back to the Christmas cards….
One thing that’s really cool about these is almost every embellishment is pop-dotted already. So the cards have that 3-D look to them, and you didn’t even have to waste your own pop dots to get it. Sweeeeee-tuh!
I also inked the edges of a few of the elements…for instance…
and on the back of every card, it’s pre-printed with the “Handmade for you by…” thingee, so I stamped my name in a color-coordinated ink. I have 2 fairly new sets of Cats Eye CHALK INK queues from Michaels (love me some coupons!) so it was fun to use them on this…metallic blues, greens, reds from one set, and gold and copper from another set.
I got these cards about 90% done on Friday night…it took under 2 hours. I was running on fumes after a long week, so I was glad it was so easy-peasy. No brain cells required.
Here is the finished product, front and back, one of each of the 6 designs.
Just the fronts…
Pretty cute, huh? {Why, yes, I CAN say that! I’m not bragging, since I didn’t design them…I merely “assembled” them, much like one of Santa’s elves assembles toys….sheesh, don’t be a hater! I’m like an elf here, just trying to spread some goddamn Christmas joy!}
Since this kit only made 18 cards and I send out 40-50, I’m going to be on the lookout for another kit like this. I also got some “free” clear envelopes to re-use :)
What are you doing for Christmas cards this year? None, store bought, from a kit, digital/photo cards, or totally handmade? Would love to hear about what you’re doing and feel free to post a link if you’ve started them already :)
As I explained (in detail!) HERE, our new message board is called Scrap Sisters Studio. It’s time for our monthly crop, and this will be the first one in our new place. Everyone is invited and it will be super fun with lots of challenges and chatting. There is also Saturday night Bingo, which you have to play to believe. If you’re not a member yet but would like to join us, you can register HERE and then join us for the crop starting Friday evening HERE; it continues 24/7 through Sunday evening. Hope to see you!
Now that I work from home, um, I’m home … A LOT. Like, I haven’t put gas in my car for two weeks. Like, my sweats get more wear than my favorite jeans. Like, I now know what my dog does all day. Yeah, like I said, I’m home a lot, LOL!
My very DH works “outside the home” so he’s gone all day for the most part. When he came home from work yesterday, the kids and I turned the lights out and yelled “AHHHH!!!” when he opened the door. He didn’t even flinch. He just yelled over us, “Why is the dog barking? Why isn’t someone making the dog stop barking?!?” Hee. NOT the effect we were hoping for. But as I explained to him, the neighbors were working on their fence in the dark and since the barking was only going to bother them, and since it was their fault Landry was barking, I was done yelling at him to stop. After the eleventy-millionth time.
I told DH that the “scaring” him was stress relief for all of us because, although I know he thinks I have a cush job at home and have a blast at home all day, it really IS hard sometimes. I was moody, the kids were moody and tired, I was tired of being nagged at, they were tired of me nagging back, we were ALL tired of the dog barking, yadda yadda.
He said, “Oh, I don’t think you have it easy AT ALL! I know it’s hard to be in the madness all day.” And then he said, “Hey, go shopping or something. Get out of the house.” {Swoon!} See why I love that man? He knows when I clearly need some Mommy Time, you betcha’. I wasn’t able to go out that night (as ordered) because I got a call to do some transcription work, plus I had signed up to work a few hours overtime.
But Thursday night was the night. I went to Michaels first because I had two 50% off coupons and one expired on Thursday. I was also on a mission to find this stamp/punch set….
…. for a friend at SCRAP SISTERS STUDIO (my favorite message board where all my Scrap Homegirls hang out). She said in a post about new stuff at Michaels that she really wanted it, but her Mike’s is 2 hours away (which should be a crime, in my opinion) and didn’t know when she could get there next. So I offered to pick up the punch and ship it to her if I could find it….and I did! It was even on sale for 30% off, so she only paid 9 dollah for it. I also found the December CK finally, which I plan to snuggle down on the couch with as soon as I finish writing this.
Since I had been banished from the house, I knew they certainly didn’t want me back anytime soon so, for once, I was NOT in a rush and just took my time strolling through the aisles. I ran into a friend out front and we chatted. I looked at all the pretty Christmas ornaments and looked for a new tree angel (no luck). And I took the time to flip through each and every one of the new paper stacks they have. So wanna’ guess which one I ended up buying?
BLADOW!
* Picture courtesy of SCRAPBOOK.COM, who I hope some of you will link to and buy stuff (or at least click over there and increase their number of hits). Because the Cosmo Cricket website, which I would’ve PREFERRED to link you to, has some stupid “using our stupid images stupid policy.” Go Scrapbook.com! They know how to do business!
But I digress….Yes, I got the Cosmo Cricket “Earth Love/The Boyfriend” 12×12 double deck stack. You can see both lines HERE. Honestly, there is one pattern in Earth Love that kind of freaks my deak ~ they look like weird space mushrooms to me ~ so if anyone wants them, let me know (I can cut them into 6×6 and ship ’em to you in an envie). It’s the pattern under the birds.
I ADORE the entire Boyfriend line. Some really cute papers in there for school layouts, and they also make me want to find some photos of DH from junior high and high school to scrap. There are cassette tapes, Atari joysticks, banana seat bikes, etc. Totally kewl, dude….
Anyway, got that stack for 1/2 off ($10 instead of $20), and used my other 50% off coupon towards a Christmas card kit for which I paid $8.50 instead of $17. Comes out to about 47 cents per card. As my dear old grampy used to say, “It’s better than a sharp stick in the eye!” Okay, I didn’t really have a grampy… I just made that up. But, yeah, I just outed myself. I’m a scrapbooker who cheats on her Christmas cards. I actually did stamp and make my own cards last year but, man, that is for chumps! Or for people not as lazy and selfish as me. WhatEVER! But it was WAY too much work and at the busiest time of year. What was I thinking???? So this year, I’ll do the traditional boring family Christmas letter, a 2009 photo collage, and *gasp!* cards made from a kit. I hope Scrapbook Santa will forgive me :)
From the clearance section, I got some Martha Stewart “Memory Labels” (18 pack) which are self-adhesive, come in orange, pink, and green, and say “Who, What, Where, When.” They could be used to make some cute invitations but I’m going to use them for journaling, of course (I have a journaling spot fetish). They were $2 instead of $4.
I went on to enjoy some more “me” time shopping at Target. {Nothing new in the scrap aisle…yeah, of course I looked!}. Prescriptions, Christmas shopping, a new Maeve Binchy book, etc. It was a nice, relaxing evening … even if I was doing a mommy job while I was there. You can relate, right?
On my way home, I stopped at the Starbucks drive-thru to get a latte for re-heating in the morning (remember, I work from home….I never. leave. the house) and got a big shock. My venti-sugar free vanilla – quad – breve – latte….now costs SIX BUCKS! Seriously? For shizzle. My ever so charming barista told me that they just raised their shot prices. So I now drink a six dollar coffee. Am I insane?
.
Last weekend I did some shopping. Well, mostly window shopping, as it is these days, but it’s always fun to look, right?
First stop was Tuesday Morning….
Lots of crafty storage, scrapbook embellies, and scrapbooks. MM Halloween paints, etc.
Those green rolling totes up top were cute, and I almost got that shoulder tote on the third shelf to use for a summer purse. It was a black/white print with some yellow and red…very cute.
They still had some of the HEIDI SWAPP TOTES, small Tote-ally Cool Totes, and lots more scrappy stuff. Even some blank canvases on the bottom shelf.
Tons of photo albums and scrapbooks…
Making Memories goodies like ribbon and clear frames…
These pre-done albums were SO tempting! Both by Making Memories, the red one was Fa La La and 8×8; the blue baby one was 8.5×11. Both were the nicely embellished inside. You could just pop in your photos, write some journaling, and be done.
I almost got this pack of KI Memories icicles for the little scalloped shapes and the heart. But the other packs that it came with were things I already had, so when it came time to narrow my purchases, these poor babies were cut… :(
This was interesting…a huge pack of the SAME Tigger cardstock stickers. I guess $2.69 is a great deal but WTH would you do with all those stickers, LOL!
More cute Icicles and KI Memories test tubes…
ADORABLE rubber embellishments and chipboard journal spots by KI Memories. Yes, these were in my hand, too, but didn’t make the final cut either….
So, overall Tuesday Morning was decent. I got a few things (see the end of this post) for great prices. They had a lot of scrapbooking stuff out.
Next I went to Michaels. I didn’t bother taking pictures this time with my stealth iPhone, since I linked to all those photos in my last post. Suffice to say, TONS of new holiday and Christmas stuff, so it’s worth your while to make a trip.
I did take a photo to show you that Martha Stewart peg stamp kit I talked about HERE. It’s normally $18 but everything MS was 30% off so I was tempted but didn’t get them….this time…
Again, see the end of this post to see what I got at Michaels….Oh, and apparently there is now a Halloween clearance SALE going on now.
Last was Costco, which hasn’t had much in the way of scrapbooking stuff in a while but I always check just in case….you never know….
They did have two scrapbooking kits, I assume because Christmas is coming up.
$37 and there were two choices….love the cute little holder it comes in.
That was the end of my scrappy shopping. I was in Costco, the reason for my trip to the Big City in the first place, so it was then down to bidness…It was a good free sample day :)
On my way home, I stopped at Barnes and Noble, planning to pick up the new December Creating Keepsakes magazine (the Peas said HERE that it had been out for a few days). Howevah! B&N did not have it, so I consoled myself with this British scrapping mag. The overseas magazines used to be much more expensive that US ones, but they cost about the same now, so why not? It’s fun to see their style and such across the pond. Plus, I love how they spell “colour”…..much more flair than plain old “color,” don’t you think?
While at B&N, I grabbed my usual latte and decided to splurge on something sweet from their bakery case since I hadn’t eaten breakfast or lunch. I picked this thing called a Starbucks Peppermint Crunch Bar, which looked like a white cookie with some pink frosting and crushed peppermint on top. I’ve looked all over online for a photo to show you, but it’s not ANYWHERE, which almost makes me think I imagined it. But I have to tell you…. OH. MY. GAH!! That was THE YUMMIEST anything I’ve had in a long time. I shudder to think at the calorie content, but it was such melt-in-you-mouth goodness, it was worth it, whatever the cost :)
Here is what I ended up with from Tuesday Morning:
A pretty sage green structured cloth storage cube for $5 and….
…2 of these Cropper Hopper photo boxes ($3 each) to help with my scrapbook room MAKEOVER. I’m going to store a bunch of mini-album supplies in the green cube, keep all that stuff in one place, out of the dust, and looking neater. Not sure about the photo boxes but I already have a couple. I just know they won’t be used for photos, because I have another system in place for those.
This was probably my favorite buy of the day….some KI Memories school embellies. I’ve wanted some of this line since way back HERE. It was a great deal, too….all of this for only $4….WOW!
{{{{Speaking of them, KI Memories WEBSITE has some great SPECIAL DEALS right now! If you’re a fan, be sure to check them out.}}}}
Here is what I got at Michaels:
Two sheets of this gorgeous paper. The swirls are glittered gold. So pretty and I think they look nice with 2 side by side for the background to a double layout…
This paper is really pretty also. We’ve taken photos over the years of our kids in front of the oak tree in our yard. I might use this paper with those pictures somehow…
Here are 2 of the newer papers by Recollections that I mentioned before…finally got me some!
Gorgeous Rome paper for my Rome scrapbook…I was there at that same Coliseum, LOL!
ALL of the open stock paper was on sale for 30% off (not just their usual sale of only the 69 cent papers), so it was a great day to get some specialty papers.
It was also one of those days that so much was on sale, it was hard to use my dang 40% off coupon! I ended up being practical and using it on this…
Near the registers, they had a display of breast cancer awareness stuff, and this caught my eye right away. Aren’t these darling? I love the little winged heart, and the “SURVIVOR” in blue glitter. I’m going to send these to an online buddy who’s dealing with cancer. She is SO going to kick it’s ASS, it’s not even funny! She’s been a real inspiration to me, and to all the girls at SSS….just want to send her a tiny “thanks.”
So that was my latest shopping adventure! What have you found to buy lately?
Sounds like a good time to get some of those sought after Martha punches….or the cool MS peg stamps that my SSS bud, KELLI, showed us. She made this card with them….isn’t it GORGE!?!?!
Also, a $100 credit if you buy the Gypsy before 11/30/09
If you’re signed up for their coupon and weekly ad e-mails, you can get a 40% off AND a 50% off coupon to be used those 4 days also.
For the love of all that is scrappy….you have got to look at all the Mike’s eye candy HERE! OMG, so glad I saw this. Now I’m REALLY excited because… If all goes as planned, I’m headed to the Big City tomorrow for my monthly Costco run. Which also means Michaels, Tuesday Morning, Barnes and Noble (December CK is out!), and the craft store. For some reason, I LOVE Costco Run days :)
I became a convert to the Fiskars Fingertip Craft Knife way back HERE in the day. I mean, ALI EDWARDS used it, so it must be cool, right?
And it is. With the fingertip knife, I have much better control when hand cutting things for my scrapbooking. It’s so much more comfortable to use and, being a FISKARS product, it’s great quality. What I use it for a lot is cutting off those little hanga majigger thingee pieces of paper that are left along the edge when you punch something out. I can’t stand those! Yeah, call me anal. Well, don’t really but….
Back when I bought the fingertip craft knife, it only came in one color: orange. So NOT my favorite color. But I was impatient and had to have one, so I bought one right away. Even though I figured, like the CROPADILE, BIG BITE and other tools, that it would first be issued in a fugly color but would eventually come out in cute colors like pink and purple.
Well, that’s what happened with the Fiskars fingertip knife….it eventually came out in cutie patootie pink and I sob a little every time I see that pink one at Target. I can’t justify buying a pink one, when my orange one is still working just fine, right?
Well, now I have found a good justification for buying a new fingertip craft knife…Fiskars has now come out with a version that is….
RETRACTABLE!!
Yep, the blade is now retractable. So if, like me, you suck in your breath a little every time your kids approach you working at your scrap desk, or you can be a bit clumsy and have nicked your fingertip a time or ten while putting the plastic cap on the blade, you are gonna’ be happy! And you now have permission to replace your old orange one. Well, at least I’m giving MYSELF permission. What you do with your life is up to you…
ISN’T SHE BEAUTIFUL???
Yes, black is not pink, purple, or green, I acknowledge that. Black is boring. Black is black. But Erika is impatient. Erika must have NOW. So Erika will have black.
Here’s what it looks like when the blade is retracted:
Features
The blade of this ergonomic fingertip knife retracts for cap-free storage. Insert your finger through the loop and let the natural motion and weight of you hand control your cutting.
• Slightly longer reach than original Fingertip Craft Knife positions hand away from project
• Includes hang clip for storage or to wear on a lanyard, and one standard No. 11 blade.
• Many uses including all crafts, school projects, household repairs and office tasks
• Ideal for cutting paper, cloth, balsa, acetate and other lightweight materials
The retail price according to the Fiskars site is $10.99 plus $6.95 shipping. HOWEVAH….I have a way to get these wholesale and would be happy to sell them for $10 each plus tax and shipping (which I’m pretty sure I can do for less than $6.95)…
If you think you MIGHT want to order one (no commitment necessary), please leave a comment here so I can get an idea how many to order. I’ll place the first order soon, so let me know :)
When I get them in stock, I’ll post something and let you know how to purchase…
Whether you might order from me or not…..you gonna get one of these babies???
Hi everyone :) Sorry to have been MIA. Everything is fine, just sooper dooper busy in regular life. In scrappy life? Not so much. I haven’t scrapped a lick since a crop I went to in, um, September? Sad but true. My friend Abby challenged me today to complete at least one layout by midnight, so I’m going to, LOL! I’m way behind on the Book of Me challenge she’s hosting, so that’s what I plan to work on :)
The NEW MESSAGE BOARD ~ Scrap Sisters Studio ~ has been going great. I’ve been trying to post a lot over there, especially making sure to welcome all new members when they post an Intro. I’m holding my title as the #3 poster on SSS (just like on AMR), with 195 posts made since October 25 (what’s that, 11 days, eek). When I have extra moments, I’ve been posting “Message Board How To’s”, i.e. instructions on how to do common message board things like putting a photo or image in your post, or create a poll.
Just wanted to let you know that I’m alive and will start posting again more often. Thanks to those ladies who were checking on me…it’s nice to be missed :) Hope all is well in your scrappy world!
I wanted to apologize for being such a bad blogger of late but the reason is a good one. Ohhhhh, sit right back and you’ll hear a tale, a tale of a fateful….erm, message board?
You may have heard me mention, oh once or eleventy-billion times, that my message board home is a place called AMR, All Moments Remembered. It was a message board started by a sweet friend and online store owner named Stacey. At the time AMR began, I had been a fixture at the Creating Keepsakes Message Board (CKMB) for about a year or so. {Remember when I had all the CKMB girls’ blogs in my blog roll…until there were over 100 of them and I had to stop).
But, honestly, for all the fun friends and conversations I had there, it was such a HUGE place, that it never truly felt like home to me. I’m one of those gals that, if you and I are friends, I got ya back for life, sista. Don’t mess with my friends and we won’t have a problem. You know, like we did in the Old Country (I’m Italian, capice?). But I’ve only got so much love to go around, ya know? Ten-thousand “friends” on the CKMB is a lot to handle, even for someone like me, LOL!
Well, then God sent me Stacey. She joined CKMB with her little bubbly personality, enthusiasm for life, and love for scrapbooking. Like me, her dream was to open a scrapbook store. The difference between us was that I talked about it. She was actually gonna do it. We became fast friends, chatting on and off the CKMB board. She started a blog to promote her new online store which she called All Moments Remembered, and I loved reading each day what the developments were with her store, the excitement in her voice, and the positive outlook she had on everything.
Then came the day when Stacey got booted from CKMB. {This story is well-known folklore, so I’m not speaking out of school, k?}. The TOU at CKMB clearly said you could not have a business name as your message board name, nor anything in your message content or signature line that promoted another business. Because obviously, Creating Keepsakes is a business who wants to continue as such, and they want you to buy THEIR products, not some cute lady’s from Oregon who just started the best online scrap store in the world. Apparently, Stacey was *cough* unclear on those rules, or her glasses fogged up that day, or SOMETHING…because she changed her MB name from whatever it was (“scraphappy” or something like that) to “AllMomentsRemembered.”
Scandal. Just pure scandal.
So, CKMB powers-that-be sent her a nasty-gram and when she didn’t cease and desist, they booted her. In true Stacey spirit, what did she do? Oh, she just started her OWN message board, of course. And THAT, my friends, is how the All Moments Remembered Message Board was started. I signed up on the first day the AMR-MB was up, which was December 27, 2007. I was proud to be member #29. As of closing today, there were 826 members but I believe at times there were over 1,000 or more). Also, as of today, I was the #3 poster @ AMR, right behind those Chatty Cathy’s named JENNIFER/Jingle and ABBY/scrapbookfrenzy.
So, for almost 2 years now, I’ve been chatting pretty much daily with the AMR Girlz. I would never have thought you could be “true friends” with people you’ve never even met face-to-face, who live all over the country, most of whom you’ve never even spoken to. If you stop to think about it, it’s our computers, our technology, that is actually making the connection, so it’s kind of bizarre. The only way I know most of them is from words they’ve typed that I’m reading, kwim?
But I have to say, I love those gals and they are my TRUE, dear friends. AMR was a smaller board and it didn’t move that the speed of light, like CKMB, 2peas, or the Cricut board. Sometimes I get frustrated when I want to chat and no one is around. “I need some chat, people!” Sheesh. But I would trade “busy but impersonal” for “quieter but more meaningful” any day of the week.
Stacey really set the tone for that board to be encouraging, friendly, supportive, and fun. We joked, we laughed, we shared our work, and our scrap shopping finds. There was a Chit Chat board for discussing TV shows, family stuff, you name it. There was a Spiritual forum where we could ask for prayers, and where a special lady named MISTY/snowlady posted daily quotes from Scripture. And we can’t forget the Recipe forum, where you could share or request yummy recipes from your AMR friends.
Another cool thing Stacey did was to give us “Stacey names.” Under your message board name and above your avatar photo, sometime when you weren’t looking and maybe didn’t even notice for a while, Stacey would add a special name chosen just for you, based on her getting to know you over time and finding out what phrase really represented you, be it funny, sweet, or serious. For instance, MARILYN/Melonscraps was christened “Stickles Queen” for her amazing love of and collection of Stickles; ANGIE/craftyscrapr became “Miss Pretty Toes” because she loves the beach and her flip flops with painted toenails; and I was given the Stacey name “Director of Advertising.” Which was funny because some people may have thought it was an actual title I held with the AMR store, and that I was a paid employee, but nope, lol. I just loved AMR so much, I talked about it and steered people towards her store any time I could. Stacey was living my dream and I did whatever I could to support her.
Which reminds me of a story….Remember that crazy scrapbook product frenzy, the THREADING WATERS punch by Fiskars? The first time I saw that thing, I knew it was going to be a hugely popular tool so I tipped Stacey off about it, and she had faith that I knew what I was talking about. So she right away ordered a whole bunch of them from Fiskars. And when they flew off the shelves at Michaels, Target, and all the online scrapbook stores, no one had them in stock anymore….except Stacey. For a while there, AMR was one of the only places you could buy that darn punch, and not on backorder, but actually get it right then. Stacey never forgot I had told her about it. She never tried to take credit for it or anything. She told everyone else, “Erika is the one who told me to get those!” And she sent me the most generous gift box of supplies from her store, just as a way to say thank you. Actually, that’s another thing Stacey was known for was being very generous in giving away her products as RAKS, crop prizes, and you always got extra items with your order, things she had handpicked for you, knowing what each of us liked. I don’t know how she did it, honestly.
Well, fast forward to the economic collapse last year, and long story short, the AMR online store eventually was closed. However, in the meantime, Stacey had realized her other dream of opening an actual brick-and-mortar store in her hometown. Over time, Stacey has had to move on from the AMR MB and the inmates have taken over the asylum, LOL! Stacey could no longer support the MB so several months ago, she offered to let members take it over, and DENISE/denisewalks stepped up to the plate. Denise has been running AMR since then, with a little bit of admin support from me, and lots of help from lots of other members. We’ve managed to keep AMR MB going and as fun and wonderful as it ever was.
But the time had come for a fresh start, where Denise and the loyal board members could be more in control of the mechanics of the board. Also, with Stacey no longer associated with the board, a new name for our gathering place was in order. A new domain name was procured by Denise (at her personal expense, but we’re going to find a creative way to make the board pay for itself and/or many generous members have offered to chip in so Denise doesn’t have to absorb the cost herself).
So today, October 27, 2009….Scrap Sisters Studio was born.
We had a Scrap Chat Hour tonight to kind of kick off the new site, and help get the word out to everyone that we’ve officially moved. I can’t think of a more perfect name for our board, because the ladies there are truly like family. Don’t get me wrong, we’re not perfect. Like any family in the world, we occasionally have scuffles and squabbles, hurt feelings and unspoken hurts, frustrations and unfairness. I mean, we’re women after all, LOL! But it always works itself out and the family bond is as tight as ever. New members are welcomed from Day One like they’ve been there the entire time.
It felt weird writing all those things above about the way AMR “was,” in the past tense. Because those things still apply to the way Scrap Sisters Studio “is” and “will always be.” It’s a warm, fun, friendly home away from home and even if they try to kick me out, I’m never leaving. Seriously. Don’t even try ‘cuz I grew up in The Hood and can kick serious ass.
Capice?
This post is just my way of memorializing AMR, Stacey’s store, everything that brought this group of sweet scrapbookers together and still bind them. I wanted to honor Stacey because it was her personality and efforts that set us up to be the way we are now. And for that, we owe her a debt of gratitude. {Stacey, if you’re out there, MWUH! Love ya, girl}.
And this post was a way to celebrate, and document on my own blog, this day being the start of something new and fun for me and my scrappy girlfriends.
We always welcome new members. HERE is where you would sign up. (ETA: When you register, you will NOT get an e-mail confirmation. Sorry, this new board doesn’t have that feature. We’re approving new members as quickly as we can, so please give it a little wait, then try to log in until it works :). We’ve got some fun plans for the Scrap Sisters Studio website as a whole, so this is going to be a great new adventure! Thank you for letting me talk about my buds…I {heart} them like sisters.
I picked these up at Walmart today. I don’t know if they’re old news there, but it was the first time I’d noticed them.
*This came out blurry because I took it after dark tonight. Will try to get a daylight pic and repost, but you get the idea :)
The packaging is different (more plain) and the name is different than when I see it at Michaels, like this, but it’s the same thing:
Instead of me trying to explain what it’s used for and why it’s so cool, I’ll let MICHAELS.COM do all the work:
Truly, a terrific double-sided tape in roll form! It’s industrial strength with an instant bond which increases over 24 hour period to maximum bond.
COMMONLY USED SURFACE-TO-SURFACE APPLICATIONS:
1. paper to paper
2. beads, glitter, etc. to paper or other surface
3. embellishments to ornamental fabric items
4. plastic or metal to paper
5. paper, plastic or metal to wood
DIRECTIONS & TIPS FOR USING TERRIFICALLY TACKY TAPE:
Apply tape to first surface.
Remove protective liner and apply second product (beads, glitter, etc.) or second surface.
SPECIAL TIPS: Use at room temperature. Surfaces must be dry, and grease free. Do not expose to air until ready to use as curing will commence.
You can see HERE what a wide range of prices it usually sells for, although when I click on a lot of those links, they don’t carry it anymore. I got the 1/4 and 1/2 inch sizes for $3.00 and $3.50 respectively. Seems like a decent deal, especially since no shipping charges :)
I’ve used this product since way back in 2005 when I discovered it in a CKU class. It indeed has a very strong bond, and it’s easy to use. I like it for attaching ribbon strips to my layouts just because it’s in a strip form and holds so well, but it’s also great for attaching heavier items. It looks red, but that’s just the backing. When you peel that off, it’s clear. Just a great adhesive, so I thought I’d share!
Remember the new line by Melody Ross for GCD I showed you HERE? It’s only being released at 100 Michaels stores and, as predicted, it’s not at mine. But my buddy ABBY who lives down South (or is that DAY-own SAY-outh? Sorry, Abby, don’t hit me!) found the line at her store. She recently became an iPhone convert and has been taking stealth photos in scrapbook stores! Why I never! Oh, wait, I do that, too. Anyway, she sent me these photos….I’m so jealous.
But the true scrappy friend that she is, she said if my Mike’s never gets “Artsy Urban,” she will send some to me :)
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Have you seen the Nov/Dec issue of SCRAPBOOKS ETC yet?
As you may know {and I wrote about HERE}, they decided to change the magazine a bit and this was the second issue with the new format. It’s not getting rave reviews HERE at all… I was actually relieved to see that thread because I was quite underwhelmed by this issue also, but thought it must just be me…cuz I’m so pissy about their format change and all. And it’s humid here. And I’m so disappointed that WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE, the movie I was going to take my kids to this weekend, is being reviewed as doomy, gloomy, mature, and boring {ASTRO BOY it is!}. And I’m tired, cranky, and generally vindictive….. But no. That wasn’t it. The issue sux. It’s not just me. {What a relief, ‘cuz it’s usually just me}.
My discontent started when I found the issue at Walmart the other day and that new title font just rubs me the wrong way. It reminds me of those cheapie supermarket magazines at the checkstand, the ones that look to be worth about 50 cents. The logo looks….cheap, I guess. I am a classy woman. I prefer to look at a classy logo. Nay, I DESERVE a classy logo! To sum up the rest of my issue with the issue (ha!), it just wasn’t a page-corner-turner-downer, kwim? Few layouts I wanted to steal…erm, scrapjack. Few articles I was excited to read. And some non-scrappy advertising, too. Yuck. {Yeah, yeah, I know beggars can’t be choosers…SBE is taking the advertisers it can get, but do I have to be happy about it?}.
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Just to give you an update on my scrapbook room makeover…there isn’t one. I’ve been working a lot and just generally busy. And I’m at the point with it that some decisions have to be made about how/where to store things. I want it all to make sense and be user-friendly. I go in there sometimes, look around, try to wrap my brain around some kind of concept….and usually walk back out without accomplishing anything. I think I need to complete two things before I can really move on: Paint THIS shelf so I can decide where to hang it and what to put on it, and put my 2 remaining JETMAX cubes together so I can decide what to store in them. Both of these things involve manual labor which, like “exercise,” are words I try not to utter much less DO. Hollah! Okay, okay, you’ve nagged me enough! {Oh yes, I can read your mind, sista!}. I will do these two things so this makeover can move forward. But when I get paint under my fingernails and hurt my hand with that tiny screwdriver, I will curse YOU, damn it!
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My scrappy and ever-so-talented online friend JULIE is having a RAK to celebrate her 10,000th hit! Please go say hi to her. Once you see her blog, you’ll be hooked. She takes great photos, has beautiful kids, and makes riDONKulously gorgeous layouts. And she’s such a huge JASON MICHAEL CARROLL fan, that she makes me feel better about my own STEVE PERRY crush. Swoon!
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Upcoming in November 2009, there is a “Blogging for Scrapbookers” class by SHIMELLE … isn’t she pretty? And she is wicked talented, I tell ya….
What a wonderful idea for a class. Unique but very pertinent, since so many of us scrappers love to blog. If you sign up, let me know :) I’m thinking about doing it…but if some people that I know signed up, that would tip me over the edge… {hint, hint, wink, wink}.
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Okay, mah chickies….Peace out!
This is a public service announcement for AMR Girlz: The message board is down. Please join us on the backup board HERE. Spread the word via Facebook, Twitter, your blog, etc. Share the link, please…a lot of members don’t know it. Thanks a bunch!
ETA: Eileen, did you get approved yet? I don’t see you online over there. I e-mailed ya…
ETA #2: The original AMR board is now back up and fully loaded! But please save the “back-up board” link in your Favorites….just in case ;-)
MELODY ROSS joins GCD. HERE is a link to Artsy Urban papers on GCD. And here is a lot more of this gorgeous line…
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You can see the rest of the line HERE ~ There’s a page kit, mat pad (HERE is a link to individual sheets), 8×8 pad, 12×12 paper pad, and 12×12 page kit.
I just love, love, love this line. It’s actually not my normal style, all vintage pretty and stuff. But I’m hoping to buy some (lots?) of Artsy Chic {see the reason for my hesitation below}. I love the colors, designs, and overall feel of it. I think it’ll be great to use on Book of Me layouts, for one thing. Even the packaging is beautiful. You GO, GCD! I was checking out their website and they have lots of cute stuff. For instance, check out these GLITTER LETTERS…
But back to Artsy Chic. Melody mentions on her blog that her lines will be carried by Michaels, but only in limited stores apparently…as I found this on the GCD blog: “Michael’s is carrying Artsy Urban today, but only at a 100 locations.” I can pretty much bet my Mike’s is not one of the 100 :(. I was in Michaels tonight and didn’t see any… GCD blog also says the Artsy Chic line will be in scrapbook stores and kit clubs, so unless it makes it into the Memory Works kit, I still won’t have access to it in person…but online shopping is fine :) Anyway, the GCD BLOG has been hyping this while for a while with all kinds of reveals and giveaways, so cruise on over there if you’d like to see more.
Melody has always been a favorite of mine, as a scrapper, designer, and just plain “woman I look up to.” I wish her all the luck with her new line at Michaels, “Artsy Urban,” and her upcoming line for Michaels called “Homespun Chic.”
ETA 10/20/09: Great minds think alike. THE SCRAP REVIEW has posted about this new line today also. They have wonderful page ideas from scrappers like NOEL CULBERTSON ( <- one of my favorite scrappers and the sweetest lady ever) and honest reviews of the line. Did they give it a thumbs up or thumbs down? Go check it out!
