Single-Handedly Supporting the Scrapbooking Community in this Down Economy

Single-Handedly Supporting the Scrapbooking Community in this Down Economy

I did a little bit of shopping this last month. A teeny tiny bit. So little that my coworkers didn’t even notice the packages that arrived at our office. Ok well, that’s a flat out lie. I had packages coming to the office every other day these last couple weeks. Every day was like Christmas! IT WAS AWESOME.

So what did I get? Here’s the list:

EZ Mount Regular and Thin Mounting Foam
These have become a staple in my stamping arsenal. FYI don’t put your EZ Mounted stamps directly on CD cases because the foam will end up losing their “tackiness.” Instead buy the next item…
EZ Mount Stamp Storage Panels for CDs
I got a bunch of these for my stamp sets which are all now in CD cases. They fit perfectly too.
Acrylic Blocks in Assorted Sizes
Sunday International has the best selection of acrylic blocks in my opinion. And they’re cut perfectly with just the right amount of ridge so your hands can get a good grip on them.
Papers from Daisy Bucket Designs and Bazzill Basics Swiss Dots
I purchased a few sheets from Daisy Bucket’s Garden Gate line. These papers have such a beautiful linen texture, I knew I had to get them when I first saw them at Personal Scrapbook a few weekends ago. And I love siwss dots so of course I bought some of the Bazzill swiss dots paper.
Life and Mother Clear Stamp Sets from PaperTreyInk.com
Ok, I’ve been looking forward to these stamps for a long time. I’ve been a longtime lurker over at Nichole Heady’s blog and have been envying the stamp sets she’s release over the last couple years. This is my first purchase from her store, but it definitely won’t be my last.
American Crafts Clear Accents Stickers in Black and Color
Yet another Peachy Cheap purchase, but this one was involuntary. I’d originally sent this over to my friend Steph because I knew she would love them, but then she inadvertently purchased 2. So of course, being the good friend that I am, I happily purchased the 2nd set from her :)
American Crafts 6×6″ D-Ring Recipe Scrapbook Kit
This is probably the one purchase I made this month that I’m SO excited about. It’s a recipe scrapbook kit that I purchased from PeachyCheap.com (LOVE Peachy Cheap!). This kit came with the 6×6″ album, recipe dividers, page protectors, paper, rub-on transfers with food icons, a black Precision Pen, metal photo corners, and 2 sets of black and white Remarks stickers “Charlie Jr.”

A New Material for Cards: Fabric

Happy end-of-Monday! Hope everyone had a happy Easter!
This card is a very special card in more than one way. My friend Heather’s parents are celebrating their anniversary so she made a beautiful quilt for them. She asked me to make a card using some of the leftover fabric which is what you’re seeing here.

It was no easy task I’ll admit, but for a friend like Heather, I was willing to step outside my element. In making this card, I learned a few things about working with fabric. Double-sided tape isn’t enough to really secure the fabric to the card. If you have a Xyron machine, that will probably work. However, spray adhesive works just as well. Be sure to use this in a well-ventilated area.

Also, it’s almost impossible to cut perfectly straight edges on fabric using a pair of scissors. If you have a rotary trimmer and a good self-healing mat, consider using that to trim your fabric as seen here. I wish I had seen that post before I made the card because that would’ve saved me some time trimming the edges of the fabric!

To add a little dimension, I wrapped a coordinating piece of fabric around a strip of chipboard and used it as trim. This also helped to cover up some of the jagged edges of the green fabric :)

So the big question is would I work with fabric again? Maybe :) I feel like I’ve gotten some of my curiosity out of the way, so at least if I had to work with it again, I’ll know how next time.

Stamping Better Images with Your Stamp-a-ma-jig

Using a large acrylic block raises your stamping surface so your plastic sheet or your paper doesn't slip.

Using a large acrylic block raises your stamping surface so your plastic sheet or your paper doesn't slip underneath the Stampamajig.

I love my Stampamajig. Love, love, LOVE it. I love it when it works the way I want it to though, which, for a while, it wasn’t and I couldn’t figure out why. I would follow the instructions: place the T-square flush with the plastic sheet, stamp my image, position the stamped plastic sheet on the paper, then place the T-square, then stamp again. But occasionally the image would be just a hairline off. That’s when I discovered the plastic sheet kept slipping underneath the T-square into the thin foam underneath.

To combat this problem, I started using a 5×7″ acrylic block as a platform. If you don’t have one of these, any thick material with a squared corner will work (masonite, plexiglass, etc.). It’ll raise your stamping surface above and away from the gap and give you a perfectly stamped image every time :)

Wishing You Love



Wishing You Love, originally uploaded by krisalis903.

This week, I’m trying to complete 3 items using supplies that hardly get used.

In this card, I’m using some Making Memories paper from a line I purchased two years ago. The die cut tag is from an SEI die cut page I bought about a year ago as well. The stamp and embellishments are relatively new, except for the pearl brad which I absolutely love. I need to find more of those. They’re just so elegant :)

Color Inspiration Challenge #48



Color Inspiration Challenge #48, originally uploaded by krisalis903.

I’m finally using the Sale-A-Bration Yummy set that I bought recently. I’m not sure if I like the way Stampin’ Up combined the phrase and the curvy border. It doesn’t leave much room for flexibility when it comes to placing the sentiment :( Anyhow, here’s my entry for this week. I definitely have to do some workspace cleanup sometime soon!