Tuesday Tidbit: Spring Cleaning Part V

    Welcome to another Tuesday Tidbit!! The last couple weeks I have been crazy busy working on other Spring projects around our house! So I apologize that I didn't get to post any Tidbits for you these last two weeks!

   I'm back, though, and ready to share another part of the Spring Cleaning series that I started last month! Today I want to talk about organizing stamp sets! There are two things that I own a lot of: paper and stamps. However, I haven't tried to organize my stamp images and sets into something more user friendly. I have read and heard of a few different ways that other designers and crafters organize their stamps, but I haven't had a chance to tackle my stash yet!

   This was one of my main goals this Spring, actually! I wanted to go through my stamp sets, organize the images by category and theme, and keep those images in a binder or Rolodex that makes for easy reference! I just haven't found enough time this last month to get started! Hopefully soon, though! Instead I have been working on the baby nursery, re-decorating our guest room upstairs, and getting the house ready for our big basement finishing project (which started yesterday)!

    So today I want to share how I have my stamps organized now, and then share a few of my favorite tips and tricks that I have seen from some of my favorite designers and fellow crafters!

   First I want to tell you how I have my stamps organized currently! I use the CTMH large organizers for my CTMH stamp sets. I have 4 of these, and right now they are semi-categorized.

   One large organizer holds retired stamp sets (including retired SOTM sets and retired campaign specials). The other three organizers contain current stamp sets. I use washi tape to label the top of each organizer with which stamp sets it contains. I have them labeled as SOTM, WOTG, Christmas, Fall/Halloween, Background, Travel, Cricut collection sets, Hostess Rewards, and "Available Online". This last category are any stamps sets that coordinate with the Cricut cartridges (these sets never retire), and any stamp sets from the old Idea Book that are still available to order. Stamp sets are available for an entire year after they are released, but these are not always shown in the current Idea Books. So that's why I keep a separate organizer for just these sets!

    This system works for me when looking for current stamp sets to use on my projects, but it doesn't work for finding images that coordinate or specific phrases that I would like to use on my projects. That's why I want to reorganize. I would love to have a Rolodex type system where I can look at all the images I own that say "Happy Birthday" for instance. This way I can find the size, font, and style that works best for the project I am currently working on.

   Then I want to organize my stamp sets by letter and number for easier reference, too (A sized will all be together and in numerical order, B sized....etc)!! I am going to use CTMH's tabbed dividers to help me keep my stamps in order. These are super cute, match the organizers, and are easy to label! Plus they fit in the large organizer without any problems!

   I have a lot of stamps, and not all of them are CTMH. So I don't know if a Rolodex system will work the best, but I am playing around with a couple ideas yet before I dive in and start filing my images into a system! As soon as I find one that works for me, I will let you know!

   Here are a couple more ideas on ways to get organized with your stamp sets:

   Jennifer McGuire does it again with another amazing storage system for stamps! I love all of her ideas, and I encourage you to check out her YouTube page if you haven't already! Here's her video on storing the different sized stamps that are on the market currently:

   A fellow consultant, Angela Doescher, had another awesome idea to organize her hundreds of stamps as well! She uses the Evernote application and some storage binders to sort and file her stamps and images. Check out her video tutorial using this technique:

 
   Well that's it, friends! The last Spring Cleaning post for this series! I hope that I was able to inspire you to get organized this year with all these ideas! If you have any questions or would like to know about other ways I organize my supplies, please let me know! I would love to help you out as best I can! Enjoy the rest of your week, and until next time:

Here's to life, love, and creativity!

Tuesday Tidbit: Spring Cleaning Part IV

   Happy Tuesday, everyone! I hope you all had a great Easter weekend, and was able to enjoy some relaxation and family time!

   How's everyone doing on their big organization project for 2015??? This last week has been another crazy one in our house. So that means I didn't get to tackle more of my craft cleaning project, but I was able to finish up some projects and kit up some future workshops! I'll take that as partial organization!

   Moving along with our theme this month, though, I wanted to talk about organizing photos! Without photos we really don't have a story to tell or pages to scrapbook. The hardest part, though, is these days we have photos of EVERYTHING! So how do you organize everyday photos, event photos, printed photos, digital photos....phew....it gets to be exhausting!

   It doesn't have to be, though. Once you have a system in place, organizing photos becomes easier and easier, and you'll be able to find that perfect photo that you want to scrap or display in your home!

   I don't have the perfect photo organization system, but what I do use works well for me! The biggest thing with organizing all our photos is making sure you have a reliable back-up system!

   Not all back up systems are going to stick around in the next 5-10 years either! So making sure that you keep on top of your photo storage is important. I'm "old school" and use an external hard drive to store all my photos, documents, etc. It's always attached to my laptop, too, so I can access anything I need whenever I need it! I use Seagate's Backup Plus Portable Drive, and still have a ton of room left on there for more storage (and believe me...it's got a lot on there already).

    My digital photos are organized in a pictures folder on my hard drive. When I open my pictures folder I have multiple other folders that are all labeled and dated (if need be). Especially if I have multiple folders that are similar; like Christmas. My folders are labeled "McMullin Christmas 2014....2015....etc" for example. I also sub-organize my folders. Again sounds like a lot, but it really doesn't take that long! I don't have every photo named or labeled, just placed in the right folder. For example, I have a folder named "Ian and Karina" in that folder I have multiple other folders of trips, events, everyday photos, etc. that are just my husband and I together!

Here you can see some of my folders when I open "My Pictures". Each Folder is labeled, and some folders have sub-folders.

   This system works for me, and I am able to find what I need quickly and efficiently, too! If you have questions or want more examples of my digital organization, please let me know! I would love to help you with this!

   I also print photos pretty regularly. Printed photos are important to me because the idea is to get my favorites in scrapbooks and albums! I want to show them off not store them on my computer or in a box on my shelf (although that's where a lot of them are right now because I have so many printed). I usually print photos on a monthly basis, so I need a good storage system to keep all these prints organized until I am ready to scrap them or put them in pocket protectors!

   I have a couple things that I use to organize printed photos! My absolute favorite storage container that I use is from any local crafting store (JoAnn Fabrics, Michaels, Hobby Lobby, etc.). They are called Iris Photo Boxes, and they come with 16 individual photo carriers that fit 4x6 photos perfectly! I have 3 of these boxes full of printed photos! I love that they are see through, portable, and easy to organize. Each individual photo carrier is labeled with a notecard to tell me what photos are in it, the dates, and main points to remember about those particular photos (funny details, quotes, etc). I also keep my photos organized in chronological order so I can find events and trip photos more easily.

   I also love this system because if I'm going away to a crop weekend or scrapping with the friend, I can pull just the individual photo carriers of pictures that I want to work with for that particular project! It's very handy, and I have a lot of people ask me about them when I take them with me to crops.

Iris Box with 16 photo carriers full of photos (roughly 100 photos can fit in 1 carrier)

Iris photo carrier with notecard labeling photos inside, details to remember, etc.

   These boxes can be a little pricey, though, and I would wait until I could use a coupon or get them on sale to purchase them. However, CTMH has a very similar system that you could modify to make your own organized photo box! The medium organizer will fit 4x6 photos easily, and you can fit the individual photo carriers from Isis in the organizer as well! The individual photo carriers can be purchased separately, and are very reasonable! I have a few extras that I put into my medium organizer when I am traveling to events and weekend crops!

Medium Organizer by CTMH with PML journaling boxes on the left, extra 3x4 PML cards on the front right, and 3 Isis photo carriers on the back right! These photo carriers also will store 4x6 PML cards perfectly, too!

   The medium organizer is a fraction of the cost, and you can get as many or as little photo carriers are you want! Plus the organizer will fit other products as well (like PML cards, embellishments, ink pads, adhesives, etc.). It's perfect for being organized on the go!! I love system as well, and have used it a lot more when traveling than taking all my Isis boxes!

   Well I hope this has you thinking about organizing and tackling those photos! If you have any questions or need to get your hands on one of the medium organizers to help you get started, please let me know!

   Also, if you need to print photos, there are a couple great deals going on right now!! Shutterfly has 101 FREE 4x6 photos that you can take advantage of when you use the code CARROT at checkout! Act quickly for this deal, though, because you only have until midnight to get your FREE print order in!

   Snapfish is also still running their FREE prints for a year campaign when you download and order prints using their mobile app! I did it this last year, and it was awesome! 1200 free prints is nothing to frown upon at all!

   So get those photos ordered, and start organizing them today! I hope you're having a great start to your week, and make sure to spend time on your organizing project! Until next time:

Here's to life, love, and creativity!

P.S. Sneak over to the CTMH blog for an exclusive giveaway today! Make sure and comment to enter so you can try and win awesome prizes!!

Tuesday Tidbit: Spring Cleaning Part III

   Welcome back to the third part of my Spring Cleaning series!! How did your last week go? Were you able to get started on your "big task" from your to-do list? I hope you're enjoying this new series on getting organized! I really am having fun sharing with all of you!

   I'll be honest....I didn't get to work on my big task this week! I was wrapping up our taxes, finalizing plans for our basement finishing project, and working on upcoming workshops and planning! So I really didn't get a chance to focus on my plan yet. Hopefully later this week, though!

   There's no new challenge for this week, but I do want you to keep working on implementing your organization plan and tackling your big task! I know these things take time, and a week usually doesn't cut it! So keep working on it, and get motivated with the nicer weather that we've been having! 

Organizing Supplies Tips & Tricks:

   This week I want to share with you how I organize just a few of my embellishments. Especially the ones that I have a lot of like washi tape, ribbon, and stickers/accent sheets!

   I am the type of crafter where if I don't have it handy or highly accessible, then I'm not going to use it. This was a problem for me because I have a lot of embellishments, and I hardly was using any of them before my office remodel! Either I had to dig them out of storage or I had to thumb through boxes and unorganized bins to find what could work on my project. Neither of these things worked for me when I wanted to finish something quickly.

   First thing I did was look at ideas on Pinterest and on popular crafting blogs! I saw a ton of ideas for storing embellishments, but really it came down to "what am I going to really use?" and "will it work in the long haul?".

   For washi tape and ribbon, I loved the idea of using pants hangers to store my tape! I could hang these in the closet when not in use, and I could hang them from my cabinets when I wanted to find the right color or pattern for my project.

   I have a TON of washi tape, though, and knew I would need a lot of hangers. So I also decided to buy the We R Memory Keepers Washi Tape stackable dispenser system! I bought the base which came with 20 rolls of tape, and then I bought an extender and top tier. This I can leave on my desk or work space, and I fill it with the washi tape I reach for the most!

We R Memory Keepers Washi Tape Dispenser base with 20 rolls of tape

Stackable tier and post to add to the base system

    I purchased these online on a website called Blitsy! They have really great sales, and sometimes you can catch this set up to 50% off! The sales change week to week, though, so you really have to watch for it!

   For my stickers and accent sheets, I needed a completely new system! I originally had my stickers and sheets filed in 12x12 accordion folders. These worked for a long time for me! I originally bought them at Big Lots when I first started getting into scrapbooking again (back in 2006-2007). However, I quickly out grew these and would have to dig through them to find what I needed. The small sheets were always on the bottom, and I just stopped getting them out. I had too much for these folders, and I wasn't using what I had to help use up my stash!

A couple of my small Accordion File Folders that I used for paper and embellishment sheets

Inside of one of the folder to show how many sections there are to this nice organizer!

  
   If anyone is interested in these accordion folders, I have my extras, which are in great shape, for sale! Only $5 for the large ones, and $3 for the smaller ones!  Contact me and let me know if you want them! Otherwise, they will be available at my big craft sale coming up in about a month!

   I scored another online deal a while back and got an extra large Clip It Up organizer! This base unit is 18" wide to fit 12x12 sheets (if I needed...which I did)! It came with some clips and some plastic tag labels to section off items!

   I had it stored away in the box until we started our office project. At that time, Archivers was going out of business up here, so I went to the store specifically looking for an upper Clip It Up tier and more clips! I found exactly what I needed, and was able to get it 30% off with the store closing sale.

   Now the crummy part about this system is that the "Simply Renee" brand has gone out of business as well. You can sometimes find the stands on sale on ebay or other sites, but they're usually more expensive. I had a couple friends score some deals from other crafters on Craigslist. So you could always start there if you want something similar.

   I also know that Michael's has a similar, smaller system that they sell with their organizer systems. I think they work okay, but definitely are more flimsy than the Clip It Up brand and cannot fit 12x12 sheets on the base unit.

   I have not added labels to my plastic tags yet, but all my embellishments are sectioned off by theme. I have Christmas, Fall/Halloween, Baby/Kids, and then by popular brands (Heidi Swapp, Fancy Pants Designs, etc). This makes it so much easier for me to coordinate my products and find exactly what will work on my project!

   I needed more clips, though, because I had so much that I wanted to hang. I ended up using the S-hooks from an IKEA curtain clip pack. I think there were 50 hooks and 50 clips in the pack, and the hooks worked perfectly because they are flat and I can fit more on the Clip It Up that way!

   Lastly, my CTMH embellishments! These I keep separate like my other CTMH stuff so that I can coordinate easier, and pull what I need for workshops a lot faster! For my CTMH embellishments, I use the medium organizer from CTMH! This awesome tote can hold a TON of stuff, and I love mine! It's easy to take to crops, move from work space to work space, and I have no problems finding what I need in here!

Medium Organizer with dividers

How the inside of my embellishment organizer looks for CTMH stuff! I have shimmer trim, ribbon, washi, My Crush Assortments, and bling all in its own compartments!

   Another great system by CTMH is the small organizer with the craft box foam insert and craft boxes! These handy boxes store a lot of embellishments as well, and you can see what you have a little easier! I haven't tried this system yet because what I'm using still works for me, but I know a lot of other people that like the small organizer better!

Photo courtesy of Fancy Melissa

   Hopefully this gives you some great ideas to start organizing your embellishments! If you have any questions or need help getting your hands on some CTMH organizers, please let me know! I would love to help you get organized this Spring!

   Keep working hard on your organization goal this week, and until next time:

Here's to life, love, and creativity!

Tuesday Tidbit: Spring Cleaning Part II

   Welcome back to another Tuesday Tidbit, and the second part of my new "Spring Cleaning" series!! Did you all make a plan last week about what you want to accomplish in your crafty space this season?  How do you feel about your plan? Are you excited to get started or are you still unsure what your end goal is? If you still are not sure, sit back down and re-work the plan! You need to make sure you have a definite end goal to accomplish!

   Bear with me this week! This post might be a little longer, but I want to you to get a good grasp on where to start with things and give examples of organization that worked for me and other highly organized people! So let's dig in....

   Today I want to focus on the "big task". The one that most of us put off and ignore because we know it's going to take the longest, be the biggest hurdle, and frankly might not be the most fun to do (at least for some people).

This is how I feel about office paperwork some days!

   When I was in college, I had a prep course/crash course for time management and organization. The idea that stuck with me the longest from that course was this: when you have a to-do list or multiple tasks you need to accomplish, start with the one that is the biggest struggle or will take the most time. This way when it's done, everything else will seem like a breeze to complete.

   Some people don't like this idea (me included). I hate starting with the most daunting task. I would rather get a lot of little tasks done and crossed off my list so I feel like I did more, but that still leaves the "big task" to be dealt with.

   However, you might feel about this theory, this is my challenge to you for Part II of this series:

 Find the biggest task having to do with your plan, and start doing it! 

   You might not get it done this week and that's okay, but you will have started it and now have a feel for the direction you are going!

Organizing Supplies Tips & Tricks:

   When I started my office overhaul last Spring, I was overwhelmed by the amount of supplies I had to go through, organize, sort, and try and fit back in my space! I didn't think I would have room, and I started to panic that maybe this wasn't a good idea! However, when the time came to start going through all my supplies, I broke it down into a series of tasks.

   The largest task for me was to go through all of my paper and organize it in a way that made sense to me!! I have a huge paper stash (like most paper crafters), but it wasn't organized in a way that I liked. I still could re-work my system today, but it works for me and I can find what I'm looking for a lot easier now! Here are some embarrassing, candid photos of the "before":

This was my desk set up when we first moved in. Everything was in piles and was shoved where ever there was room. I needed a lot more storage! You can sort of see some of my paper organized in the cubes under my desk. These didn't fit all my paper, so I had paper stashed in random places, too! It's hard to use what you have when you don't have everything you could use in front of you!

These are two huge boxes stuffed full of just pattern paper!! You can start to see that I was organizing paper as I was packing it in these boxes before we started the office remodel.

   How did I even start to organize my paper? Well I share with you what worked for me. When we decided to remodel the office, we had to pack everything up into boxes and bins and carry it to a separate room (mostly the master bedroom). As I would pack things away, I would organize them and go through them. I had a keep pile, a toss pile, and a donate/sell pile. I went through every sheet of paper I owned. Literally...EVERY SHEET! It was worth it, though. I found what I was still "in to", sorted by category, and got rid of what I'll never use!

   The 12x12 paper organization system I use works like this:

1.) Organize designer paper by brand (My Mind's Eye, Heidi Swapp, Close to My Heart, etc)
2.) Other pattern paper organized by theme/category (Christmas, Fall/Halloween, stripes, dots, etc.)

**I should note that I keep paper packs/stacks together. I don't separate them out.**

3.) Non-CTMH colored cardstock all together
4.) CTMH colored cardstock sorted separately (for quick and easy use of a specific color to match)
5.) Non-CTMH paper scraps filed in folders by color
6.) Specialty paper and/or chipboard organized in the same spot (Vellum, Laser cut, acetate, etc.)

   When it came to other sizes of paper, I organized those so like sizes stay together. I have an upper cabinet that has all my mat stacks, 8x8, and 8 1/2 x 11 papers organized on separate shelves. I put all my 6x6 pads in a cube system with four drawers. The other drawers in that system house journaling pads, tags, and notecards.

   Everything has a specific home, and all my papers are together in one spot. It is much easier now to find what I need because I have all my paper within a triangle reach around my center island! Here's some pictures of my new organization system to give you an idea of what I did:

Here are the same Michael's stackable cubes from my office before, but I added many more of them into my system! On the lower, left side of my desk I have all my pattern paper (as shown here).

Here's a close up of my organization system. I used chipboard and post-it notes to label each designer's section, and then sectioned the rest by theme or category (stripes, dots, Christmas, etc.)

These cubes are on the lower, right side of my island when I am standing at it. The organizers on the left in this picture house Non-CTMH scraps sorted by color. The papers on the right in this picture are what I have left of my Non-CTMH cardstock sheets.

These cubes are on the lower, left side of my island when I'm standing at it. These slots are for CTMH paper collections only! This way I can keep my business papers and projects separated and easy to find when I'm creating!

Some of you have seen this before!! My husband made two of these paper towers for me to help me organize and sort my CTMH cardstock by color. They sit on either side of my desk and house only CTMH cardstock, Fundamentals paper packs, and glitter papers! We used melamine board, bracket supports, and the metal sides from an old organization system from college to make this awesome tower! These make me happy just looking at them!!

This is one of my upper cabinets above my desk that house other sizes of paper! In this cabinet alone I have 8x8, 8 1/2 x 11, and mat stacks!

I have lots of drawers in my island, and a couple of these drawers house 6x6 pads of paper. Similar drawers in the same cube have tags, journaling cards, and notecards as well! If I need to thumb through, I pull the whole drawer out and get what I need!

   I know my "system" isn't the most organized overall, but it works for me! Plus it's much better than what it was before! I only have to take a step or two to get to all the paper I own!

   This definitely took me the longest to complete, and it was the first thing I put back into the new office when it was finished! It was so much easier to bring it back into the space once I had already gone through it and organized it!

   Another person that I will reference often in this series is Jennifer McGuire. She is the organizer queen of craft supplies! I love seeing her ideas and checking out her space, and I highly encourage you to do the same!

   She has been doing this a long time, and has recently remodeled her space as well! I am not nearly as "put together" as she is, but you're going to love what she does. Here is her video on how she organizes her paper:

   I love her ideas on organization!! I also love how everything is labeled! Eventually I want to have official labels, but my post-it notes work for now!

   I would love to hear what your big task is for this next week!! What will you be starting on? What's your most daunting to-do item? Make sure and share in the comments or over on my Facebook page! The more we share with each other, the more inspired the rest of us will be to start working on the same thing! Until next time:

Here's to life, love, and creativity!

Tuesday Tidbit: Spring Cleaning Part I

   Happy St. Patrick's Day to you all! It's a little cooler today than it has been this week, but it's still nice out! The sun in shining, and there are some definite signs of Spring quickly approaching! Have you been able to enjoy the gorgeous weather this week??

   Today's Tuesday Tidbit is about the "itch" we all get this time of year to start anew, freshen things up, and purge our belongings! At least this happens to me every Spring! I definitely get Spring fever and start planning new projects, organizing various sections of the house, and going through forgotten items!

   However, sometimes tackling a big project can be overwhelming and difficult to decide where to start! That's what I want to help with starting today! This "Spring Cleaning" series is all about going through your craft supplies, sorting your forgotten gems, and organizing for future use!

   Don't panic, though!!! Every major project takes baby steps to complete! So forget the excuses, throw out the "but but buts", and let's dive into those craft supplies to get organized this year!!!

   Everyone loves organizing things differently. So I know my system(s) won't always work for you, but crafters love learning how other crafters organize! I will share pictures of what works for me, and share ideas for what I have seen works for others! The main point is to help you get organized or to re-organize your stuff! Trust me....even I could go through my stuff again this year, and I just had a huge organization overhaul not too long ago!!!

How do I get started??

   This week all I want you to do is sit down for 15-20 minutes and make a plan! It's that easy! Every major project needs a plan or an end goal! Without that how do you know when you're finished??

   Everyone's plan will be different depending on your existing set-up, amount of supplies, etc. The big thing is what do you want to accomplish? Here are some ideas to help you brainstorm your plan:

1.) Plan a craft space (this is the most involved plan....this would be for anyone that doesn't already have a designated space they use).

2.) Get rid of supplies I won't use or haven't used (come on, friends...have you had it for more than 3 years??? maybe it's time to donate).

3.) Make supplies more accessible

4.) Go through supplies to know what I have

   These are just some beginning ideas! You can make your plan as detailed or as vague as you want because half way through, you might need to re-work your plan anyway! That's okay, too! As long as you have an end goal in mind, this will be a fun experience for you! Besides it's always great to go through your stuff and see what all you have forgotten about (trust me we all do it)!!

This was my sketch of ideas when I was planning my craft space last summer! I listed items I wanted in my space, a couple ideas for set up using what I already had, and then looked at my sub-plans to figure out how to make it all work. My sub-plans included making my supplies more accessible, purging what I don't use, separating my CTMH stuff from my other crafty stuff, and putting the items I use the most in the most accessible areas.

  I hope this has motivated you this week to take a look at your organization plan for your craft supplies! Next week we will talk about how to dive into your plan and start organizing your supplies! I can't wait to see what all of you decide to work on during this series! Feel free to share in the comments! Until next time:

Here's to life, love, and creativity!

Hello from Sunny California!!!

    Hello from California! I hope this finds you all doing well and enjoying the start of your week! It has been awhile since I’ve posted on here! Sorry about that! As most of you know it has been a crazy busy June so far! We tried to put finishing touches on the office/craft room before I left on my extended vacation, had visitors staying at our house the second weekend of June, and I had to drop our dog off in Southern Wisconsin before I flew out to Reno, NV on Monday, June 16^th! On top of all that, I also had to finish up some thank you cards for my sister’s baby shower, a group of cards for the convention swap, and wrap up any orders that I received before I left! So yeah…..my absence on here has not been without haste!

     Ian flew into Reno on Saturday. We went into downtown Reno Saturday afternoon, and had dinner with Ian’s parents. Then yesterday we spent the day traveling around and eating at a couple places surrounding Lake Tahoe! It was a gorgeous day to be on the lake! We also went to the Ehrman Mansion to try and get in on the tour. We were late by a couple minutes, but that’s okay! We walked around the property and hung out on the pier instead! Today we are driving 8 hours down to San Simeon, CA to tour the Hearst Castle! I cannot wait to see this architectural masterpiece! We are touring part of it this afternoon, and another part of it tomorrow morning! The house itself is over 60,000 sq ft! I cannot wait to get all kinds of pictures!

     The office/craft room is so close to being done! It took us a little longer than we thought to finish the baseboard trim and hanging the shelving tracks in the closet. Our original baseboard order was calculated short by 1 board (the guy that helped us forgot the closet measurements when he put the order in), so we had to wait for that to come in. Then the closet, we found out, was not even at all. One side was 26” in width while the other side was only 25”. Plus the studs were spaced really goofy in the closet, too! A couple studs were 22-23” apart where the rest were 18-19” apart. So that made it a little difficult to space the hanging tracks just right!

     I will share a couple of our pictures of the office so far just to show you how far we did get! We still have my desk to finish setting up, the island to put together, and then just decorating and organizing! So that will be fun to do when I get back from this trip! Here’s a few sneaks at what we have been doing (sorry these pictures are not the best quality..... they are from our cell phones):

Here's what the flooring looked like when we finished it! The trim is not up in this picture, though.

My cabinets that are above my desk. The cabinets and doors are all from IKEA! The door color is a Juniper-like color that matches the closet!

Ian's side of the office! His side is pretty much set up! We only have a couple little things left to finalize (lights and computer components). Again, these cabinets, doors, desk, and drawers are all from IKEA.

This is what the closet system looks like! It's a heavy duty hanging track system from Menards. There are short shelves on each short wall and then a long shelf down the middle/back wall. These shelves are hung to support 150 lbs of weight/bracket. Woohoo! Medical books and scrapbooks now can sit comfortably!

   

    I finished putting my convention swap cards in clear bags last night with my business card and some technique tips. I am pretty pleased with how they turned out considering I did not have much time to throw them together! I have 3 designs: one is exactly like the cards I made for my sister’s thank yous except I used different stamps, the second and third designs are similar, but with two different color combinations. I made 40 cards for the swap and 35 cards for my sister! My understanding is that consultants swap their greeting cards to get ideas from other consultants on product usage, design, and workshop possibilities! I am hoping mine are well received! Here are some pictures of all the cards I worked on before heading out here:

This was the template for the "thank you" cards I made my sister! I used the same design for 10 of my swap cards, but did not stamp the stars and instead of the thanks stamp I used a Congratulations stamp from CTMH.

Happy Birthday card using Skylark paper, Washi tape, CTMH re-inkers, and water! I made 15 of this style and 15 of the same design but with the Ivy Lane color combination! For quick cards, I thought I did pretty good!

     There are only 2 days left until convention starts! I cannot wait to see all the new products, the amazing artwork, and meet some talented ladies! I will try and keep you all updated on my adventures while I’m out here! So far the sneaks and product talks that I’ve received so far are extremely exciting! I cannot share anything yet, but trust me…..you won’t be disappointed! :)

     I will be posting upcoming Preview Party dates and workshops over the next couple days under the “Event Calendars” tab! So check that out and mark your calendars so you can see sneaks of the new products releasing on August 1^st! Until then, I hope you all have a wonderful week, and

Here’s to life, love, and creativity!

Quick Updates

   Hey crafty friends! Hope you all are having a wonderful week so far! I have been busy finishing up painting and putting in the flooring of our office space/craft room! I cannot wait to post pictures of our finished project! We are picking up the cabinets and shelving units this week for installation, and (hopefully) we'll be finishing installing the shelving in the closet this week as well! It has taken longer than we anticipated, but a lot of that was finding the time to get the big stuff out of the way (clearing, packing, cleaning, painting....it takes awhile....). I cannot wait to get all the finishing touches put in the room so I can start organizing and playing in my new space! :)

   Today, though, I have some quick updates to share with you! There is so much happening this month with CTMH and convention coming up that I wanted to make sure you all stayed in the loop! First, let's talk about retiring items and unavailable items:

• Unavailable/Backordered items: 
• Z1797 My Creations Bracket Frame is currently backordered, but is anticipated to ship by the end of next week.
• Canvas D-ring and Post bound albums are still unavailable due to quality control issues and manufacturing delays. 
• Retired/Sold out items:
• 2014 Spring/Summer Idea Books are no longer available through corporate. However, you can still receive a copy from me (your consultant)!
• My Legacy Faux Leather Albums: Dark Cranberry and Black are completely sold out
• Work-in-Progress Album is completely sold out
• Exclusive Inks: Honey Marker set sold out
• A full set of retiring items will be released in the next month with the anticipation and release of the new Idea Book. I will keep you posted when the list becomes available! :)

   I also have a new giveaway for you all to check out on Jeanette Lynton's blog (the CTMH founder and CEO)! You can win a WOTG Scrapbooking kit just by commenting on one of Jeanette's social media sites (make sure to comment on her blog, on Facebook, or on YouTube before June 30th to be eligible). Watch the video below and follow the links to be entered into the contest! Good luck!

   Did you also see that I pre-ordered the Annual Inspriations Idea Book this week? I should have a bunch of copies on my doorstep by July 10th, and I cannot wait to start handing them out to my Idea Book mailing list guests at the Preview Party! I will have dates of the Preview Parties posted soon on the blog! I'm still working out my schedule for the rest of the summer to try and find the best available dates! I hope you all are enjoying the gorgeous weather we're having this week! Let me know if there is anything I can assist you with this week. Otherwise, until next time:

Here's to life, love, and creativity!