Monday Mixtures

Happy Monday, Crafters! I have been on a hiatus due to my usual hectic schedule. I keep saying I am going to post to my blog regularly but I need to stop talking and just do it! Therefore, I am going to keep my posts short and to the point until I can get back on track.

I am trying to use up all of the items in my stash. I have unopened packages of paper and albums when I was a Creative Memories consultant as well as all of the things I bought on sale from Michaels, Jo-Ann's, Archivers, and various websites since then. It bothers me whenever I purchase things that I intend to use but don't.

I made a mini album out of a manila folder this weekend. This thank you mini album has a dinner party, new home or formal celebration theme. Here is a list of the products I used to create this album:

1 Letter size manila file folder
1 12 x 12 Bazzill Out of Time scrapbook paper
1 12 x 12 Recollections Feathers scrapbook paper
1 12 x 12 Recollections Black Small Dots scrapbook paper
1 12 x 12 Colorbok silver metallic paper
1 12 x 12 Recollections Cartulina cardstock
Rusty Pickle Thanks rub on
Glitz Plum Crazy rub ons
Zebra Washi tape
Recollections cutlery adhesive glitter shapes
Tim Holtz black soot distress ink

Let me know what you think of my mini album. Thanks for stopping by!

Anita

Creating "Minutes to Memories"

Hello! I hope everyone had a blast during the Fourth of July. I did not care if one firework exploded, if I ate a grilled hamburger or hot dog, I was just happy to see all of my children and grandson together. My middle son is currently in the Navy and returned to the United States on July 3rd and came home to Kansas on July 4th. I was so proud to see how much more he has matured. UGH! I'm getting old!


A few months ago, my son emailed me an article regarding an incident that happened during his recent deployment. I was reading the article and at the end of it, I browsed at the photographs that were attached. I clicked on one of the photographs and noticed that the person driving the boat was MY SON! Even though you cannot see his face in the photograph, I instantly recognized him. I was grateful for their bravery while rescuing the sailors from the burning ship. The movie Battleship has nothing on the real USS John Paul Jones! 


Now, as a crafter, I am always thinking about ways to incorporate my photos with scrapbooking, cardmaking,  repurposing and/or upcycling. I thought, how can I display this photo besides placing it in a scrapbook? I remembered I bought a clock at Dollar General store that I was going to use to display my youngest son's middle school football photos. I procrastinated too long because he will begin his freshman year in high school next month. I decided that I should do something else with the clock. My father said he needed a clock for his house so I thought that this would be a perfect gift and a way for me to finish one project that I had set out to do years before.

First, I printed my son's photo on 12x12 white cardstock. I used my Martha Stewart circle cutter to cut the photo. Due to the subjects in the photo, I had to cut it a little shorter than 12 inches. After cutting the photo, I  removed the glass face. I cut a slit in the middle of the photo and the clear acetate clock overlay that I had for years. I believe the acetate clock overlay is by K&Company. It has been stored in my stash of many scrapbooking paper and supplies for so long.

After I applied adhesive on the back of the photo, I adhered it to the face of the clock then placed the acetate clock overlay on top before replacing the glass cover. 

Here is the finished project. The acetate overlay contains the following sentiment "life is not measured in minutes but moments." My father and son loved the clock!

Now onto my next project, completing his Navy Crackerjack scrapbook  this past Memorial Day. Hopefully I will complete it before he retires from the Navy. 

Thanks for stopping by!

Anita

Serving Up A Bittersweet Lesson

Last week, I went to my local Walmart to purchase a white Studio G ink pad and discovered that it was marked down to $0.20! 

So today I was thinking that I could have additional ink pads on hand since I messed up my previous one or to put some in the scrapbook and card kits that I am assembling. I just came back from Walmart and bought 10 white Studio G ink pads. I noticed when I was checking out, some were scanned at $0.20 and others were scanned at $0.97. How could that be if they were all the same product? When I got home, I noticed that they had different SKU numbers! I thought that I was really being cheap but in the long run, it cost me more to research, return and refund because I was in a rush to get out of Walmart :( 

Instead of being salty over a few dollars, I am going to enjoy the rest of my Valentine's Day and work on my St. Patrick's Day cards. I hope your Valentine's Day was uneventful.

~ Anita

Canned idea

For this Monday Morsel, I am sharing my completed altered can . I am running out of space inside my tote so I decided to add another storage option to my craft cart. The idea of altering a can is not my idea. I've seen altered cans on  a ning.com site and other blogs. I decided to up-cycle this can and add my own "flava" to it. What do you think...hot or not...or should I "can" it? LOL!

Craft Cart

Hello, fellow scrapbookers and crafters. I'm dishing up a Monday Morsel of organization. This time, it is a re-purposed microwave cart. Remember when microwaves were as big as a television console? LOL!

Since I cannot afford The Original Scrapbox and my husband is taking his time to make me one, I decided to try to find a cheaper alternative. My mom and I visited our local Goodwill store and I found a microwave cart for $7. I painted it black and added a touch light underneath so I can see the titles of my Cricut cartridges. I store my baby Cricuit (hopefully, I will get a Cricut Expression), mini sewing machine, Sizzix Texture Boutique with embossing folders, Creative Memories 12" trimmers, cardstock and paper. I added peg board inside the doors so that I can hang my decorative scissors, 6" Cricut mat, handheld hole punch and wire cutters. Enjoy!

Microwave cart = craft cart

Pegboard inside the cart door hold decorative scissors

Catch-all area for Cricut cartridges, hot glue gun, paper trimmers, embossing folders, and Cinch binding machine

Other side of door holds Cricut mat and wire cutter

On top: Cricut machine, mini sewing machine, Sizzix Texture Boutique and my panic button

Let Them Hang Out

Hello, fellow scrappers and crafters! Today, I'm serving a Monday Morsel containing an organizational tip. For those who know me, I like to "reduce, reuse and recycle" a lot of things.

While doing laundry yesterday, it dawned on me that I have too many skirt/pants hangers. I was about to toss them when I got an idea to reuse them for SCRAPBOOKING!! I remember I bought wooden ones at Target a year ago in the $1 Spot section. I knew they wouldn't last at that price so when I thought about purchasing them at either Target or Walmart at regular price, I thought they were a little too expensive for crafting purposes.

Clear skirt/pants hanger

 I used my wooden hangers to organize my two-page layouts from a scrapbooking swap that I had previously participated in, in addition to my layouts that are ready to be placed into a scrapbook albums. Yesterday, I decided to take a different approach with the clear plastic ones. I decided to use them to hold felt and I used a Sharpie to label the hanger. I found the hangers to be useful for organizing photos to use in upcoming projects.

Wooden hangers purchased last year for 2-page layouts

Tip: Label hanger with a marker

Great for organizing for upcoming projects

Hope this little morsel helped today. If you have suggestions how other things can be re-purposed, let me know.

Smash Book

I hope you all are having a wonderful Friday! It is almost time for my kids to go to back to school and I am elated! I am trying to get back in my scrappin' groove and I am starting to work on more projects. I have been inspired by fellow bloggers and You Tubers.

I have been hearing a lot of things about Smash Books in newsletters and online. A Smash scrapbook is a way to keep photos, memorabilia and notes in a way that has not been planned or designed. The Smash books that I've seen have an attached glue pen and coordinating stickers, pens, etc.


I decided that I didn't want to spend the money on one those books because I have too many scrapbooking supplies and materials laying around, I am being cheap and I still have a little creative juices left to make my own. I'm not saying it is not worth buying but I know if I did purchase one, it would probably be near the scrapbook planner I have now.

Blank Journal

 
After rummaging through my closet, I found a couple of journals that had I purchased from Michaels. I distressed the edges and embellished the cover with ribbons, stickers, images from the Songbird Cricuit cartridge and a charm. I added tabs to divide the pages inside. I still need to add paper clips, pens and other accessories so this is what I have so far.

Cover

Inside with tabs

Supplies used:

• Colorbok journal
• Offray green ribbon
• Offray Old Gold ribbon
• K & Company Floral stickers
• Frame 2 and Bird from Songbird Cricut cartridge
•  3" File Tab punch by McGill
• Tim Holtz Vintage Photo Distress Ink
• cross charm