New Stuff!!!

Hello everyone!!

I have some new cards and things to share with you.  I'll more than likely make more than one post since it's been a while and I have a lot to share.

First are Cake Boxes

These cute boxes open to store little things such as notes, jewelry, etc.

This next is a tiny little book I made for a challenge one night. 

Next I have an ATC that is made with Texture Paste to give it that added "zing!"

For Halloween last year I took a wooden plain birdhouse and altered it into a haunted house and used my Cricut to help add to it

I created a Technique Book for myself so that I can try different techniques first hand and have them for future reference.

Stay Tuned

More to Come!!!

All About Me For You #1 - What are your name ingredients?

Hello friends!!!  

Welcome to the first "All About Me For You" post.  I sure think you will like this little project.  After all it's one thing to leave a scrapbook and this is a great thing to do.  But what this project is doing is getting into your head so to speak.  It's asking those questions that can personal and things that are informative as well as fun.  So I hope you join me in this little endeavor.  

For this first week we are discovering all about our name.

1. What Are Your Name Ingredients?
1. Who picked your name - mom, dad, grandparent
2. Are you named after anyone or given your name for any particular reason
3. What does your name mean
4. Do you have a nick name & if so what is it, do you use it more than your given name

Now What?

Be creative with your name and make some word art

For example:

 1. Make doodles in your name or out of your name

2. Make little faces  in the letters

 3. Spell something out using your letters from your name 

  4. Anything you want to do

The tag in the adjacent pocket has my answers the above questions regarding my "Name Ingredients". I do hope you join me in this weekly adventure on getting to know yourself and recording it all in a fun and creative way.

Create yourself today!

All About Me For You...

Hello everyone! I wanted to share with you something that I decided to do craft wise that is.  I want to create a book or two or three...called "All About Me For You".  What this is is a book/binder/scrapbook album or whatever you choose for your system, this will be a wonderful gift to give to someone so that will never forget all the little things about you. 

The general feel of the completed book will be heartfelt, comical and informative.  I plan to do these on Thursday's and call it "All About Me For You Thursday's".

I have been struggling as to the final format I will use to create my book(s).  Here is what I am leaning toward:

Front Cover

First page on its side with pocket

Second page on its side with two pockets

Third page on its side with "flaps" that connect on other page and hold note cards

Third page with the flaps open to show photo mats

Fourth page with flaps same as third page

Flaps open on fourth page

last page with pocket

The tutorial is on YouTube and here is the link to it Manila Folder Tutorial.  What I am going to do is have a book for possibly each month since there are only a minimum amount of pages.  You can choose whatever you like and who knows, I may still change my mind. 

Greeting Card Reminder Binder

Do you know how many cards you will need in the new year? Do you know who has a birthday in March and what "off-beat" fun holidays are in June? Have you ever wondered if you sent out a card or forgot to because your life was so hectic at the time and you couldn't remember?

I have wanted for a long time a book or something to keep all this information in and so I finally made something to organize all these ideas.  

I took a Recollections small binder that I had a junk journal in and transformed it into this simple little but hugely beneficial Schedule for Card Making.

I added some stickers to the front and the pink you see here is an elastic band to keep book shut.

This is the inside front cover. the pocket came with the binder.

This is another pocket and in here I will keep the actual records of who I sent what to and when it was sent out.

I used some stickers that had the months on them and to secure them better used a small piece of clear packaging tape to surround the month sticker. (I was painting hence the paint on my nail, lol)

You may have seen my birthday reminder calendars in a previous post but what I did was take the calendar portion and put it on it's own page

When I turn the page for each month I have a generic monthly calendar folded in half that I can easily flip open to see all the major holidays.

Behind the major holidays are the "Off-beat" holidays as well as Monthly celebrations and observances. This is also a folded paper

This is the record of who I have sent to and what off-beat holidays I have chosen to focus on and some different monthly observances. The highlighted parts are the holidays

This here is a spreadsheet that you can write 20 different peoples name on the top going across and on the left side going down write holidays then when you send out to them you can put a check mark.

Some of these lap over onto one another but I really find it useful and to me it helps to see it in a couple different ways.

I hope this might help someone who is looking for a way to do the same thing.

Take care...

SMILES!

Mini Album Using Cricut Mini Books Cartridge + A New Layout

Happy Christmas Eve everyone!  Hope you're doing well and are ready to enjoy the holidays.  Tonight I will be seeing my kiddos and going with them & Eric over to my moms place.  I made Kristin a mini album last night that I think turned out so great and I'm very pleased with it.  I am going to also give this to her tonight. Here are the photos of the completed project:

Now there are a lot more pages in this book beyond what I have shown.  It really turned out nice.  I used so many random pieces of patterned & colored paper which in the end was perfect!  The Mini Books cartridge cut everything out from the cover, to all the pages and even the tags I have in there.  It even cuts the holes in the paper for you.For my adhesive I used the Scotch Quick Dry Adhesive

and that was used for the cover on the inside and outside + to adhere all the envelopes and folders together.

This was so incredibly easy AND FUN to create!  If you get a chance try your cartridge out and create your own.  Elegant Edges also has a book feature on there too.  I have not tried this one yet, but I think I will soon since I enjoyed this first one so much.

The other day I also made a new layout.  There is not a lot to this layout and I have my reasons for that, but the lack of luster was on purpose...

This was taken at East Fork Lake here in Cincinnati and was right at the beginning when Eric and I started to date.  He is the king of goofy faces lol.  We will now be spending our third Christmas together and we couldn't be happier!

This was our first Christmas!  Isn't he adorable?!

So the new job although it's only been a week now is going great.  Friday we had a little Christmas lunch together.  It was the 2 guys who do the maintenance for both properties, Wendy and myself.  I made everyone a card and also gave Wendy a Birthday Calendar that I made.  Wendy gave me this:

Not to mention 2 other full boxes of homemade cookies!!!  Can you read what the cocoa mixture says?  It's to cute.  She handmade everything right down the the candy, mmmm!

I really think I'm going to excel in this new position, I just have this feeling of overwhelming joy & satisfaction when I am there.  Saturday I was there alone, I will be there always on Saturdays by myself.  So I showed 2 people some apartments on both properties and they went very well.  I was able to do everything I needed to do and handled it.  I was able to call Wendy if I needed her for anything which I did a couple of times for things that I had no information on.  It's nice that she lives on site in case I need her for anything major.   I go in again this week for two days alone as well.  It just feels right to me...

Well I am going to stop here for now.  I truly wish you all a joyous holiday from my family to all of you and yours.  Please be safe out there, no drinking and driving, stay warm, cozy and most of all...jolly!

Merry Christmas!