My AMR friend Abby aka ScRaPbOoKfReNzY told me this tonight:
“They (Mike’s) have a whole endcap of the Noteworthy stuff (didn’t have the paper out yet) and they had all of the MM Fa La La stuff out including stamps and paper. They also are carrying 6×6, 8 1/2×11 and 12×12 American Crafts cardstock. They had new wooden $1 stamps. I got 3. Gonna post on my blog.”
Please go see Abby’s BLOG for her post about this.
I luuuuuurve all that NOTEWORTHY stuff from MAKING MEMORIES. When I’m done using my coupons on Jetmax cubes to re-do my scrap storage, I’ll be using them for Noteworthy. Glad to hear about the FA LA LA stuff and AMERICAN CRAFTS CARDSTOCK too. I’ll have to resist the FLL, as I have enough Christmas stuff in my stash for now. I might have to give the AC cardstock a try…I love how it comes in a box you can use for vertical storage. We’ll see if it can lure me away from my Bazzill…
Does your Mike’s have these new items, and have you bought any? Give us a review!
I was at the Big Red Bullseye yesterday and saw that my Target had everything from the Making Memories “Garden Party” line on clearance. It was in the regular scrapbooking section, but had bright orange tags on it and the prices were pretty good.
{HERE is where I would insert a photo of said Garden Party, but Making Memories in all it’s wisdom, does not let you copy images from their website. HERE is where I would’ve put a link to their page and given them all kinds of free publicity but, alas, I shan’t. Because their website sucks lemons}.
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ETA 6/5/08: Yay, I’m happy to say I rescind my earlier “sucks lemons” comments about the MM website, because I got this nice note from Kelly @ Making Memories in the Comments for this post:
“Hi! I saw your mention about MM’s product images, and I thought you would like to know that we do have all of our images available for you to use anytime you want! Please visit our web site at https://www.makingmemories.com. Click on “About Us” and go to “Media Info.” You’ll see the link there to all of our images in hi-res format. Hope that helps! Thanks so much and take care!”
I’m the first to admit when I’m wrong, and I’m very sorry to Making Memories for uttering a disparaging word about their site. Mea culpa (gulp). I didn’t realize I was an important, hotsy totsy media person but I guess I am (put THAT in your pipe and smoke it). SO…without further ado…here are some pics of MM Garden Party. Bladow!!
All that being said, unless I’m again missing something (entirely possible, yes)…the MM site is still not a great situation for bloggers like me. Defined as: In a hurry, and not terribly photo-resizing savvy. First, I had to quite hunt around to find the Garden Party stuff because I didn’t know which show it had been released from. Second, the initial small image is too small (what you see above), but if you click on it, it’s way too large for a blog. Yeah, maybe I’m not as “media” as I thought. Thirdly, it was too time consuming to navigate…I mean, I have 2 paying jobs and a family…I gotta get in, BLOG, get out, ya know? I prefer to poach from the front page of a manufacturer’s blog or after a quick search from their home page. And I always try to link right from the manufacturer, btw, as opposed to an online store or another blog (if I can, and there’s not some other reason I’m referring you to a non-manufacturer). So there, my usual frightfully truthful review of something scrappy. We now return you to your regularly scheduled blog post.
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None of it ended up in my cart, although it’s very cute and summer-y. My scrap budget has gotten a bit tighter lately with these crazy gas prices and such. It cost $55 to fill up my Honda Accord yesterday! I almost dropped my ever-lovin’ ATM card when I saw that stupid receipt come out. This car used to cost about $20-25 to fill. Mama mia! Doesn’t OPEC know they’re affecting my scrapbook shopping?!? ‘Cuz they don’t wanna’ mess with the Scrapbook Obsessed…
Our tax return arrived so it was my duty to stimulate the poor economy by shopping, right? First stop was Staples on my way to work. I have SO been wanting/needing an external hard drive so I can get my plethora of photos off my laptop. They take up so much space. I found the one with the largest memory — 1 TB! — and was happy to see the price. An older buried price tag showed $329, the newer tag said $289, then with a sale and rebate it was $229 (online right now it’s showing $253; yeah, I got a deal!). So I got it for $100 off! Sweet. I verified on the box that it will work with a Mac but if it doesn’t, they said I have some time to return it even if it’s opened. Isn’t it pretty?
Not SBR, but I also had to get a fax machine for home, which I’d been putting off because I thought they cost a lot, and I already have a printer/scan/copier so I was wondering where in the HAY-ELL I was going to fit another machine on my desk. Well, I really needed one because the online faxing I’ve been using hasn’t been reliable and I need to get faxes for work so I bit the bullet. And found one at Staples, a tiny little cheap-o Brother fax machine for $60 … with a $40 rebate. So just a $20 expenditure..I can live with that.
After work, I went by Dollar Tree cuz it’s the time of year we need to buy new pool noodles. I also got 4 Garage Sale signs to advertise my Scrapbook Garage Sale on May 2/3. They had nothing new in the scrappy aisle except for some 12×12 papers that weren’t my taste. I check there once in a while because that’s where I got my whole stack of fake Thickers. Silly me, I gave more than half of my stack away as crop door prizes and now I find that I use them all the time myself, so I wish I had more! But, no, no Fake Thickers at DT this time :(
Next was Michaels even though I didn’t (GASP!) have a coupon this week. Did I miss the ad on Sunday, or was there no coupon issued? Bah! Anyway, I wanted to see if they had any of the most recent studio g acrylic stamps aka Mikes stamps. Don’t ask me what number this set is, because I’ve lost complete track, there are so many. But here’s a pic of the ones I found:
Sorry about the shadow (that’s me!) but my camera just died and I couldn’t retake like I wanted (oopsie)…
I also have no idea if I got the whole set. I need to find a listing of them again with photos of all the stamps. The stamps say www.hamptonart.com on the back so I’m going to try the website. If not, I’m sure someone has posted them to CKMB or 2peas.
ETA 4/19/08: I knew my CKMB ladies would come through! Thanks to KPax331/~Katie~, I see that I’m missing 4 of the stamps and they are from Series 11. HERE is the post she directed me to.
Not SBR again, but I found some very cool “How to Draw” books for kids that show step by step how to draw animals and monsters. A very cool gift for a very cool kid I know. And now when DH sees the Mike’s receipt, I can just say, “Oh, I went there for a birthday gift.” Mmm-hmmm…don’t try and pretend you don’t pull that one too!
Onward to Target so check out the scrapbook sec….er, um…for more birthday shopping. I did get some great deals on toys but that’s not what you want to hear about, I know! My Tarjay is notoriously behind the curve on getting new things so I wasn’t feeling hopeful. But they did finally put out some of the new Making Memories Noteworthy, 5th Avenue and Animal Crackers that everyone has been talking about. They had almost the entire 5th Avenue line this time, but I only got the Clear Tags and Shapes. I already have most of the line from ALL MOMENTS REMEMBERED online store; it was part of their monthly kit which you can sign up for HERE. Target also had some Disney Jolee’s I hadn’t seen before, so I got the castle one. I was happy to find a pack of MM Noteworthy. I already have many of their papers but I hadn’t seen the felt flowers, die cut shapes or flower stickers. It was $8…not a screamin good price but doable considering you get 2 of the shaped papers, and some embellies along with the regular 12×12 paper. One thing I noticed at my Target is the majority of kits they had that were newer lines were in 8×8. Wazzup with that noise? I know its cool to have once in a while, but don’t most of us still scrap the majority of the time in 12×12? I was bummed to see that. Finally, they had some of the POP CULTURE line from KI MEMORIES. I already have some random papers and the alpha, so I just got the Gel Candy epoxy stickers. They had a Pop Culture theme set but I added up the cost of each of the pieces (isn’t it sad that I know how much everything costs individually??), and it wasn’t a good deal. If I remember right, the pack cost $9.99 and the items individually would’ve been $9-10 anyway. There were a few papers I wouldn’t use so it wouldn’t be a bargain for me. Besides, I’m always disappointed when a big box like Target can’t offer a price that AT LEAST beats what I’d pay at the LSS for separate items. I mean, c’mon! I thought you guys had “buying power” and “bought in bulk” and would “save us money.” I thought that in exchange for you guys putting all of our LSS’s out of business and taking away our buying freedom, you were supposed to give us great prices on the FEW new items you do actually carry. Pony up, dudes…
Speaking of good deals, I did find some cute things in the Dollar Spot…a paper pack with soft pretty colors called Wedding. It includes printed, foiled and embossed papers, $1 for 8 sheets of 12×12 so not bad. And a line of embellies called Vacation that were really cute and bright and versatile, so I got the epoxy letters, epoxy stickers, and glitter tags.
Anyway, here’s a pic of my haul for the day…
Oh! What was that?!?! You’re asking if that’s a FISKARS THREADING WATER PUNCH in my swag photo?? Why, yes, that does seem to be what it is. I am apparently one of the lucky few to find one of these sizzlin hots at Target. The rumor is that each store gets one at a time, so when one sells, they order and wait for another. I was happy to take their “one” off their hands, as I have a friend who’s been craving one ever since she saw mine (I posted about it HERE). So I’m sorry, I know you want my punch, but please don’t send me chocolate or scrap supplies trying to bribe me into sending it your way…well, second thought…send the chocolate. I’ll think about it and get back to you…
Coming in Summer 2008, according to the video. I’m still not sure if I NEED it. I mean, fer shizzle, I WANT it! But do I really need it? Prolly not. The things that are winning me over: It’s way more portable than my Cricut and would be so much easier to carry to crops. I like that you can plop it down on any size paper and not mess with lining it up precisely in the upper right corner of the Cricut mat and then pray the paper sticks down and the edge doesn’t get all snarled up in the blade. And I like that it has alphas and shapes that coordinate with the Making Memories lines that I love so much, like Noteworthy. I know I’ll be a fan of MM product lines to come and I imagine they will keep making compatible discs for The Slice to match. Why oh why must they keep coming up with products like this?!?! It’s a scrappin’ tragedy, I tell ya…
I’ve had my MM Embellishment Shelf for about…well, let’s just say I got it with a 50% off coupon from Michaels so it must’ve been since a recent holiday. I finally got it hung ~ all by myself and I even used a level ~ DH would be so proud! Here it is in progress. I’m still working on it, while I organize my entire scrap space. I love to see all my little pretties lined up, so cheerful and colorful. Stickles make me smile :)
Since I took this picture the other day, I decided to add one of the ribbon spool dowels. Yikes, I had put both of them in my bin for Scrapbook Garage Sale and was going to get rid of them. But I had all that cute Target ribbon in the bright Spring/Summer colors so it has been installed. I’ll post a pic when I’m all done too.
I actually turned off the computer FOR AN ENTIRE DAY yesterday. Yeah, I know, I didn’t think I could do it either. But it was amazing how much stuff I got done when I wasn’t saying to myself, “Oh, just one more post on AMR MB….Wait, I want to check my blog stats…Darnit, I need to e-mail so-and-so about whatevah-whatevah…Shoot, one more look at CKMB won’t kill me… And before I know it, the entire morning is gone and I still have tons to do, nevermind not getting to those “extra” things that would be nice to get done.
Here is my list of accomplishments from yesterday:
1. Moved all of my scrapbooks to the empty shelf in the living room that has been available for about a month. I wanted them out of my scrap area so people will actually look at them once in a while, LOL.
2. Moved layouts around and got things in chronological order. Put some “homeless” layouts into scrapbooks…you know, the ones you complete then keep in a stack somewhere? I had nowhere near the job of ALI EDWARDS, but it still took some good ol’, sit down on the floor and spread it all out kinda’ time…
3. Lots of housework ~ yuck! But a good feeling of accomplishment…
4. Continued my scrap space organizing. It’s a never ending project, I swear. But I can see my two beautiful Basic Grey Magnetic Mats! So I can actually get some scrapping done now.
5. Found some childhood pics of my hubby, noticed how much one of our children resembles him, and left him a little love note with the pictures for him to see before he left for work this morning.
Believe it or not, I got even more done but you’re probably dozing off by now, so I’ll stop. I’m sad I missed a whole day of message board and blog haps, and I didn’t blog, but feel really good that I got so much done around here. Maybe I’ll have more Turn Off the Computer Mondays!
Have you ever been forced to stay away from the computer for a day, just to get something done?
You know how right before the new fall season of TV shows comes on, and you’re hearing about all the great new shows, and you can’t wait to watch them, and every show you’ve always loved and been watching seems so dull and boring merely because you have had a taste of the new stuff and you want more??? (Phew, that was surely a run on sentence!).
Well, that’s how I’m feeling about scrap products right now. I went scrap shopping today, with my 40% and 50% coupons in hand, and knowing that my local craft store had 25% off the entire store. I was in the mood for some serious swag, I tell ya’. First, to the LSS and my only really good finds were the new issue of CK, and some cute/cheap papers from their Half Off table. Their shelves weren’t empty, per se, but there was nothing “new” like there is every other time I go, about once every month or two. Then to Michaels to use my 2-day only 50% off coupon. Again, I came up pretty empty and had to struggle to find something to use the coupon on. I got a cute MAMBI page kit (all page kits were already 40% off) then walked around that store for 10 minutes trying to find something I wanted that was Coupon Worthy. I finally decided on the Making Memories medium-sized storage jars, which will fit on my MM Embellishment Shelf.
I have no idea what I’ll put in them, but $5 instead of $10 was a transaction I was obligated to make. Heck, I’ll use them in my pantry to store sugar if I have to. Finally, I went to the craft store. The acrylic stamps I went there for were out of stock:
For a gift, I picked up the K&Co. Wild Saffron paper slab, tag set, and photo mat set. This is one of my favorite lines ever and I already have most of it. My friend keeps admiring it, so guess what she’s getting for her birthday?
Everything was 25% off, which was already a good deal, but then the cashier gave me 40% off the paper pad “because there was a coupon this week” (which I had in my purse, but thought I couldn’t use because of the storewide sale). So, that was a good buy…$16 worth of Wild Saffron for $9.50.
Other than the CK, the only find of the day that made me all perky was noticing that the craft store now sells……BAZZILL!!!!!!!!!!!!! Okay, is that enough exclamation points to communicate to you how stinkin’ happy I am??? I LUVLUVLUV Bazzill cardstock but my LSS was the only place to get it (other than online, which I don’t usually do b/c I like to buy it by the sheet and match it to papers I have). They sell Bazzill Canvas and Bling for 75 cents/sheet, In Stitch’z for $1/sheet. I buy sheets when I’m there to match whatever patterned paper I buy. However, in my world, one can never have enough Bazzill. So I was crazy-excited to see 5 racks of it at the craft store. They sell Canvas and grasscloth for 59 cents/sheet, Bling for 69 cents/sheet, and With an Edge (scalloped, etc) for $1/sheet. So I got about $10 worth of Bazzill which cost me $7.50 with the sale. The only “newer” stuff they had was all the Valentines stuff, most of which I didn’t like this year, like the Daisy D’s and Wild Asparagus stuff.
I spoke with the cashiers at two of the stores, and yes, they are anxiously awaiting new items from CHA. The LSS said she ordered things from 15 different companies, some of whom they’ve never carried in the store before. So, like the store owners, I will patiently wait for all the new goodies to arrive. Amend that: I will WAIT, but not patiently, because I wanna see the new stuff NOW! Just hope the big reveal of all the new scrapbook products from CHA won’t be as disappointing as the new fall TV shows have been in the past few years, LOL!
PS: Have you noticed that I’m getting dangerously close to hitting the 100,000 blog hits mark? Wow, that just kills me!
I’ve been eyeing this puppy since Thanksgiving but didn’t want to pay $20. Even when all the Christmas stuff at Target went on 50% off, then 75% off, then 90% off, this item remained full price. Patience, dearies, patience… I found it on an endcap at Target yesterday for $14. Hey, that’ll work! Although I’m hearing from my friends on the CKMB that I should take my receipt back and {nicely} demand the 90% off, because that discount should have been applied to this item. Yeah, that refund could be worth a trip to Target! Oh, who am I kidding, it wouldn’t take a special trip; I’m there once a week as it is…
MAKING MEMORIES HOLIDAY FOAM STAMP AND PAINT KIT:
I wasn’t looking for these, but they jumped in my cart when I was there. They were also on a clearance end cap. Originally $5, marked down to $2.50. Pretty good price for glittery and/or 3-D embellishments and a bling word. Not sure if I’ll keep them all for me, because they would make great little prizes for crop goodie bags. I think everybody needs a little bling in their life!
MAMBI EMBELLISHMENT KIT VALUE PACK:
So head over to Target and report back with any kick-ass deals YOU find!
Thanks to ali_bl (ALINA) and THIS POST from the CK Message Board, I found another Must Have tool. It’s a punch so we can make our own scalloped/eyelet edge papers instead of paying an extra $1 per sheet just because the company did it, LOL. This is one of my favorite looks in scrapbooking these days, so I’m very excited that someone came up with this tool. I hope Fiskars or someone else also makes one that punches the scallop without the eyelet holes, as sometimes you just need that little bit of a different look, kwim?
FISKAR’s SCALLOP / EYELET PUNCH
THE EMBI by Provo Craft
Sounds like a very well-rounded tool but, so far, it’s not on my shopping list. Maybe when I see it in use. I’m not much of an embosser-girl, and I already have the Making Memories Tag Maker gathering dust in my scrap room. But it does seem like one cool tool!
Embi™Universal Embellishment Press
A clever new tool that offers you several convenient functions in one!
Embi comes with interchangeable heads to:
Make framed tags
Attach rhinestones & studs
Set eyelets
Punch
Emboss
This all-in-one embellishment solutions lets you add accents to your creations without the hassle of using different tools, saving you precious space and money. This versatile tool is perfect for all sorts of creative projects, from scrapbooking and card making, to home décor and fashion art. Embi can embellish in a variety of materials, creating lasting accents you’re sure to love. Interchangeable heads are easy to change and fun to use. Each Embi head comes packaged with designer embellishments to get you started with your creative projects. Embi is also portable and simple to use. Its six-inch reach allows you to work anywhere on a 12″ x 12″ scrapbook page or project.
Well, I won’t call this a Must Have for me, because I think the price tag is over $100. As much as I’d love to have The Slice, it will probably have to wait for a birthday or Christmas “please-honey-I’ve-been-really-good-and-nice-this-year-and-I-made-you-dinner-306-times-don’t-I-deserve-a-new-scrapbooking-toy?” gift.
I’ve been following The Slice since way back, before they even had a distributor. Here is my POST from August 2007. And here is what it used to look like:
Here is what it looks like now:
I think the best way to show this baby is a couple of YouTube video demos of the product at CHA.
HERE’swhere Queen of CKMB, Miss Leslie, asks others for their thoughts on The Slice. And check out what the AMR GIRLS and 2PEAS LADIES have to say about it. We crafters are in serious decision-making mode about which of all these fab new tools we want/need to spend our money on!
Will you be getting one, two, or all three of these scrap-fabulous new tools??
In a comment on my LAST POSTabout the progress I’ve made toward Total Scraproom Organization, YVETTE made a very good suggestion about putting my vertical space to better use. Now, I don’t have a bunch, because my space is in the corner of the room with two big windows. But there is one wall spot with a cute house-shaped shelf with little cubbies ~ originally bought to store/display my rubber stamps. It came as naked wood and I painted it dark green to coordinate with the ‘decor’ of the room (and I use that term loosely…very…very…loosely). However, it has turned out that the spaces are not the right size for the most part so, as much as I hate to, I need to junk it (but it’s sooooo cute!) (and I hand painted it!). Good golly gosh, I’m so good at making excuses NOT to get rid of stuff & that needs to change. Like, yesterday.
I think it would take a little sting out of the pain if I replace the cute green house-shaped shelf with this Making Memories Embellishment Center:
I saw one at Michaels the other day and was very intrigued by it’s sassiness and usefulness. However…#1 it was $80, #2 I had nowhere to hang it because my only wall already had a VERY cute little…oh, you know! But now I’m wondering if it will ever be 30% off, or if I can use a 40% or 50% off coupon. That would put it in my price range, ya know? If I remember right, I think there are two versions of this shelf and the other one is bigger with an additional cubby/section per row. Anyone have this item? How ya’ liking it?
I know that Scrapperdays, for one, is rockin’ this Organization Challenge. Go check it out on HER BLOG. Yay for you! Anyone else making progress you want to tell us about? Keep going…you can do it!
Well, I missed out on it last year because I joined the CK Message Board right before Christmas. So this year I made sure to say “sign me up!” at the first mention of a Secret Santa gift exchange. These are the goodies I got.
Patterned paper (unk. co.) w/kraft background (5 sheets)
KI Memories Pop Culture paper (6 sheets)
Quick Quotes Instant Journaling rub ons about Family
Studio G/Mikes stamps, Christmas series (7 sets)
and a Mount St. Helen’s postcard from “Lisa. The return address was WA state. So, I posted on the CKMB a big fat “THANK YOU” and calling my Secret Santa out of hiding.
ETA 12/13/07: Yippee, I know who my Secret Santa is! She left me a Comment here (thank goodness, because I missed her post on CKMB). I pasted it here:
Hi Erika!
I left you a message on the MB, but I’m not sure if you saw it, so I thought I’d post here as well. I am your SS and I’m glad you like your goodies! I was a bit worried.
I’m really enjoying your blog. That is how I found out about the new BG line (which I now love) and the Pop Culture line is perfect for my daughter. I like reading your reviews too. I’ve been wondering about the MM Magnetic Mat system as well. That is on my Christmas list.
Anyway, enjoy your stash!
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year
Lisa
THANK YOU LISA!!! What a generous gift. I {heart} every single thing. I can’t even get those Mike’s stamps around here, and my LSS doesn’t have Pop Culture yet so you are DA BOMB. And YOU RAWK! As a mommy who doesn’t get much under the tree, you can’t imagine how much this gift made my Christmas :) I was good all year, I promise…
PS: As you know, I’ve been having “issues” with my blog formatting. I’m now trying to edit it from my work computer…let’s see if this holds…pretty please, pretty please, pretty please….
Perhaps just in time to be #1 (and #2 and #3) on your Christmas list, here are some new organizational items from Making Memories.MAKING MEMORIES DESKTOP CAROUSEL:
I have yet to see it in person, but word is that it’s showing up at Michael’s stores around the country as we speak. Therefore, I assumed it was “NEW!”. However, when I found THIS PRESS RELEASE about the Carousel on the MAKING MEMORIES WEBSITE, I noticed a press release date of July 20, 2007. Jeez, sometimes I’m really behind the power curve, aren’t I? Anyhow, assuming it’s not such “old news” that you might still be interested, here are the deets:
“The Desktop Carousel is a hexagonal shaped, multi-level storage unit that offers top-loading cubbies as well as slide-out drawers in a 12″ x 14″ footprint. Each upper compartment is accented with a metal label holder for easy product identification, while the lower drawers are outfitted with curved handles and magnetic closures.”
It retails for $39.99 so grab that next Mike’s 40% or 50% coupon and get this baby for roughly $20 to $24. I found one art supply website selling it for friggin’ $55.95. WTF?!?!
Per the press release, “In addition to working as a desk organizer, the Carousel can double as a makeup organizer, school supply caddy, and even kitchen accessory…(It) is constructed from sturdy MDF, and currently is available in a white glossy finish. The company also has released coordinated Desktop Storage units (MSRP: $19.99), constructed from chipboard, to hold 12″ x 12″ papers, as well as sticker sheets and other embellishments.”
And ~~TAH DAH!~~ Here are the aforementioned Desktop Storage Units:
“Your workspace will always be dressed for success, thanks to our desktop organizer. Neatly store 12″ x 12″ paper and tools while stowing away stickers, embellishments and more in convenient removable drawers with label holders. Get organized!Ideal storage for 12″ x 12″ paper, embellishments and more. Made of sturdy paper-covered chipboard”
MAKING MEMORIES DESKTOP ORGANIZER – EMBELLISHMENT BOX
While you’re over at the Making Memories website oogling all their cool stuff ~ like the FABulous Noteworthy paper that WILL be mine (oh yes, it will be mine…)…
and the Shimmer Brads….
…make sure and check out their very scrumptious MAKING MEMORIES BLOG, where there is tons of MM news, yummy recipes, and wonderful page ideas.
Okay, enough sounding like a Making Memories commercial because, NO, they don’t sponsor this blog like they should, so I’m going to tell you what I really think about their products.#1: The Carousel is awesome looking but I won’t be getting it. First of all, I bought a similar one from Target several months ago. It was cheaper but not nearly as cute. It’s a square shape, white, with drawers and metal label holders. Secondly, the footprint on the MM Carousel is huge, so I probably wouldn’t get it even if I didn’t already have one. What I find is that carousels just don’t work great with my set up because the only space for it is kind of at the back of my desk. Then it bangs into things every time I rotate it, including the window blinds, my Leaning Tower of Memorabilia-to-File, and my Diet Coke. I recommend a carousel if you have a project table where it could sit in the middle of the table. Also, I ‘travel scrap’ a lot and it’s not like I can take this heavy wooden thing with me to a crop or event. So I end up putting less-used items in there like flowers, smaller punches, etc.
What has been the better item for my needs is the Tote-ally Cool Totes I got at Costco recently, which even come with a rotating metal stand that fits in a pocket of the tote when you’re not using it. I wrote about them HERE.
#2: The Desktop Organizer and Embellishment Box. If you’re going to order it online, just please note that the material they are made of is “sturdy, paper-covered chipboard.” My experience with that material on a heavily used item is not good. The item scratches easily, the drawers stick, and the paper starts to come up at the corners. They’ve had an older version of the MM Embellishment Box sitting dusty on a shelf at my Mike’s for, what, a couple of years? It’s tan with a black lid, and the price is decent for the box and all the embellishments inside, but the thing is totally scratched up. That’s the same reason I never give in to all the adorable “cloth covered” or “linen covered” storage boxes at Tuesday Morning. They are so cute, but oh-so-scratchable. Anyway, the MM website says it’s “new and improved,” so maybe they brought down the scratchability quotient.
All that said, I like the looks of both items. I like how the Organizer holds 12×12 stuff and could sit back on my desk out of the way…Hey, a girl’s gotta’ have her creative space! It would be a perfect place to store my new stuff AFTER I sneak it past DH into my scrap area (oops, did I say that in my “out loud” voice?), but BEFORE I find time to put it away in it’s proper place in my properly organized scrapbook area, which is always 100% clean and organized just like Martha Stewart’s.
I would still pass on the embellie box, only because I love the system I already have for storing all that tiny stuff. I have these and each little snaplock compartment is filled to the brim. Must…not…buy….more…brads…til…4,000 I have…are used!
When I’m berating myself for having too many embellies, I remind myself that my mom has this…
Mom can always make me feel better. Here is the link to the CKMB THREAD on the Carousel if you want to see what others are saying. If I find a thread on 2PEAS, I will add it later.
So, what do YOU think of these Making Memories storage products?? Do tell us in Comments.
PS: At least on my screen, the formatting is still all screwy with photo captions next to the photo instead of above them. And none of the line breaks or spacing I entered are showing. Which is SO annoying to me as an English major because it looks like one big run on sentence to me! Is my computer broken, or do you see what I see?
