Bella Blvd Yumminess!

Earlier this week, a package from A Cherry on Top arrived.  I've tried to be good about not buying as much.  It was very hard after all the CHA goodies started coming out.  I finally broke down and bought Bella Blvd's Sunshine & Happiness line.

I discovered a short bit ago that I'm too addicted to collection kits.  I vowed to stop buying them and just choose a few sheets from the collection that really spoke to me.  The problem was, everything in the Sunshine & Happiness line spoke to me.  All of it.  The whole shebang.  Usually it's just paper, the alphabet, and maybe some stickers that call my name.  This time, it was every little part of it.  I bought all buy the flags and chipboard from A Cherry on Top.  I have no idea why I didn't get those.  At the time, I was thinking that they're in my bucket at Two Peas so I'll just get them there.

Anyway, they arrived!  I was about to do a dance of joy when I recalled the whole concussion thing.  Still quite dizzy and having a constant migraine.  Dancing = bad.  I did unpack it and drool over it (as well as Echo Park's new summer line Hello Summer collection kit.  I only picked up a single sheet apiece of the "solid" cardstock.  No other complete collection kits for me!  Scrapbooker's Honor!!

So, over the past week, I've slowly been working on the layout with my favorite Winter CHA release.  I chose the pictures one day.  I color corrected them another day.  I picked out the layout from a Scrapbook Generations book another day.  I even cut the strips a bit at a time.  I fussy cut out clouds from this gorgeous paper this morning.  After that, it was a matter of putting everything down.  It took longer than I expected.  It was a two page layout with clouds going across a strip at the top.  It took me forever!  Now, I'm regretting.  Please, no one tell my husband.  He'll be lecturing me about taking it easy.

It was worth it though.  Everything on the layout is yummy Bella Blvd goodness except for the washi tape.  When I'm feeling up to it, I'm going to take some pictures to upload here so you can see.  I just adore the layout!!!!

This Will Make an Interesting Project Life Entry

I'm trying to make my Project Life album about my everyday life.  Not all happiness and smiles, but the lows with the highs.

One thing I truly enjoy doing every year is helping our school's music teacher put on the spring show for middle school.  We do a musical twice and then a talent show.  Rinse and repeat.  This year is the talent show year.  The performances were yesterday.  One for the school at 9am and then an evening performance for everyone who'd like to attend at 7pm.

Usually when I'm backstage manager for a musical, backstage is packed of set and prop pieces, not to mention all the actors and my backstage crew.  It's a mad house at times.  With a talent show, we don't have much.  There were only five large props that were used on stage - a bench, two chairs, a stool, and a tree.  Simple, right?

Sigh....not so much.  Yesterday morning, on the next to last act, I tripped on the bench.  I went flying and hit my left knee first (didn't dislocate it again!), then landed on my hands and hyper-extended my right elbow resulting in a sprain that I have to wear a sling for, and hit my jaw on the stage floor with a bruise about the size of a half dollar.  

When my jaw hit, the whole world went white.  It was like sheet lightning.  I didn't see stars until after it had passed.  My head was killing me.  When the show was done, I was taken to the nurse's office and the principal drove me to my doctor.  My wonderful doctor told me about my sprained elbow and that I also have a concussion.  A day and a half later my head is still killing me, and I'm still very dizzy. It's hard to focus sometimes as well.  Needless to say, I missed the evening performance yesterday.  That's the first performance I've every missed for our current music teacher!  I'm so bummed.  :(

A concussion and sprained elbow will certainly make an interesting Project Life entry!

Scrapbooking a 12x12 page is out at the moment.  I did get some of my Project Life photos for the week into the album slots but that was hard enough with the room spinning.  No scrapbooking means I'm not sure what to do as a blog post!  I'm trying hard to do this at least once or twice a week.  It will probably be posting on the weekends mostly for me. After all day with third graders, I'm exhausted.

I was thinking about photographing (since that doesn't take long) my Project Life pages.  I am in love with Project Life, so sharing is something I really want to do.  What do you think?  Would you like to see some more Project Life pages?

Our Little Angel

One more post for today.  It's been the busiest day I've ever had for blogging!  Shimelle also had a challenge to mix two totally different patterns of scrapbook paper.  Patterns that were obviously quite different.  One she suggested I actually had - hearts and stripes.  They're actually the same piece of double sided paper!

I messed up the way I was going to tape the two pieces together.  The heart border sticker curled and ripped so I couldn't use it all the way across like I had planned.  So, I decided to have a little more washi fun!  I am falling in love with this tape more and more every day.

I also brought out a drawer I started right after I gave birth.  It has lots of baby themed scrapbook stuff.  I was able to use a few stickers, some fabric tape, and a rub on I'd had for years!  The line of paper I've used is Little Dancer by Fancy Pants.  It's also some stuff I'd had for a while.  It feels good to use it!

Oh, That Grin!

One of my recent purchases was some paper for the Simple Stories line Fabulous.  I've had the photo of Elizabeth for quite a while.  My dad and stepmom came to visit and we had a girls' day out and went shopping and then got frozen yogurt.  Gram bought Elizabeth the little piggy she has in her hand.  When we were done eating the frozen yogurt, Little Miss had to sit in every chair outside the shop.  I couldn't help snapping a few pictures and this was my favorite.  The sketch I used was from Sketch Support.  It's supposed to be a two photo layout but my 5x7 worked perfectly.

 

Actual Scrapbook Pages!

A novel concept, I know!  It seems everything lately is my reorganization.  Let's get to what it that reorganization was meant to do - get scrapping done!

Shimelle has been doing a weekend long online crop.  I've been reading through and learning a lot as well as getting some great ideas.  The first challenge she did was to take inspiration from a scrapbook layout she posted on her site.  I was inspired by the background color, the clouds, and the paint splatters.  (that what it looks like to me at least)  I loved playing with the washi tape.  Having it out on that rod is pure awesome!  It was also fun to be able to play with my Cameo.  The clouds, yellow label in the title, and the green doily pieces are all cut from it.

Reorganizing - Part 4 - The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

Wow! Am I really blogging four times in April? And I have another post already in my head to do about a layout I did yesterday? Maybe I'm starting to turn a page on this blogging thing! Only time will tell. :) Anyway, I left out some things yesterday from my scrapbook room photos that I did want to share. So many times I see all the great things about a room redesign, and I'm left wondering if there's anything that isn't shown. So, I'm going to show you my good (all my fun little details), my bad (things I still need to figure out that still aren't working for me), and the ugly. I have a couple of "disaster areas" that I want to show.

Let's start with The Good


This is my Project Life box.  I went ahead and added all my weekly title cards and daily journaling cards to my album.  That left me with a lot of empty places in my box.  I've been finding little embellishments that I like to add if I've got time to the box.  Labels, letters, and assorted other things are just waiting in one place. I love that box!  On the side you can see one of two glass bowls.  I bought these from IKEA.  One holds my Glimmer Mist/Glaze/Glam swatches that will be hung when I get a rod up and the other holds some embellishments for a canvas I'm working on.  They're contained but easily accessible.

Like many others out there, I've started collecting washi tape. I've gotten some from Target and Michaels but my favorites come from Two Peas in a Bucket. I was trying to figure out a way to organize this so I could get to the colors easily. In the photo above, I have some glass bowls on my desk. That was how I was going to store it originally. I didn't like it though. While unpacking the second MM Embellishment Center, I realized (duh!) I could hang them on the ribbon organizers. I love it! As I'm using the tapes, I'm leaving the edge open so it's easy to find the next time. If my collection grows (if? Did I really say if?) I can always rearrange and add a second row if I'd like.

With the second MM Embellishment Center, I can finally have out my Tattered Angels Glimmer Glaze and Glimmer Glam. My collection has grown a lot. I'm buying a lot of them used. People try them out and don't like them, so, they sell. I love being able to pick up new colors at low prices.

Next on my wall is my magazine holder. This used to sit on the small shelf on my desk. I love it on the wall though so I have more desk space! It holds my Creating Keepsakes and Scrapbooks Etc. magazines as well as idea books and my Sketches for Scrapbooking sketch books by Scrapbook Generation. I've only got three of those right now. I'm hoping to get some for my birthday in June. Fingers crossed!

In the drawers of the magazine holder is where I store a majority of my Glimmer Mist. This part could technically go under "The Bad" but I didn't photograph it. I don't like it in the drawers because I can't see the colors! I've got a couple ideas on how to fix this but nothing that speaks to me yet. One thing I've figured out about myself - if the idea doesn't speak to me, wait! Something better will come along if I'm patient.

This is one thing I've never had before - artwork on my walls!  I picked these up at Target when they were having a sale.  I love that the words in are in rainbow order and the words themselves are very good advice. Hmmm...these might make good pictures to put in my Project Life album when I'm having a slow day.

Up next are my shelves hanging on the wall opposite of my desk.  I bought these a year and a half ago with the intention of putting all my Glimmer Mist on them.  Well, my collection of that grew too and now there isn't enough room.  I have my Chalkboard Mist on the medium shelf.  It all fits.  On the smaller shelf (not shown here) are the mists that don't fit on the other shelves.  On the largest shelf are the Glimmer Mists I've recently purchased (used!) that I haven't had a change to make swatches for.

My final good thing is my candy shelf.  I'm a third grade teacher and for holidays, I always seem to end up with a ton and a half of candy.  In fact, the large glass jar with the flower on it was given to my this Christmas by a student and it was chock full of candy!  I do like to nibble on something sweet while I scrapbook so it's nice to have a pretty display of my sweet treats.  My favorite thing to eat while scrapping is rock candy in the sticks.  Grape is flavor #1 followed by lemon and cotton candy.  I like that it has a stick so I don't have to get anything on my hands.  Does anyone know a cheap place to get rock candy in bulk?  If so, please leave me a comment!

 The Bad


My bad things aren't really too bad I suppose.  They're just things that aren't working for me right now.  For instance, these buckets on my desk.  I have some rods that I've purchased to hang them on but I don't have the right screws yet.  Fabulous husband and I need to take a trip to Lowe's.  They'll hang right above where they are now giving me more desk space.

Next up on my bad list is my Cameo cart.  I bought it second hand from my lss that closed.  (I miss you Scrap Shack!)  It's actually a microwave cart they were using for a small tv for a children's area they had.  I changed the handles from black to brushed nickle so they match.  However, there's a ton of paper I need to sort through.  And inside is a mess.  I want to get a shelf to put inside so I can maximize my storage space there.

These are my Bazzill swatches.  They're mostly in the order I want but totally in the wrong place.  They will go on the same rods I mentioned above that will hold my Glimmer swatches.  I like being able to find matching paper right away when I'm ordering something online.

My last bad thing is this corner.  I have four quarter round Jetmax shelves.  When I got to the end of the my reorganizing, they were still out in the hall.  They're in my bad category because I can't really use the bottom shelves easily.  It makes me sad but at least I can use the top ones!

The Ugly

Yes, there's an ugly place in my scrapbook room.  I don't want to show it but I know I have to.  Let's start with my bookcase.  This is a bookcase I've had since before I was married.  It's just a cheap, five shelf white bookcase I bought from Wal-Mart over a decade ago.  It's been through four moves and has held up pretty well.  This is generally an organized chaos spot.  On the top is a basket with my photo paper.  My Arccivo is underneath is and easy to get to if I'm scrapping on the go.  But on the left is a mess to sort though.  You'll see that word "mess" as a theme to my Ugly stuff.

This is the more organized area of my bookshelf.  It's my 8.5"x11" cardstock and some drawers I use to hold my markers and embellishments.  These drawers need a serious purge.

The bottom shelves hold my albums mostly.  There are also some storage boxes for my printer ink and some unfinished projects.  Do you see that pink suitcase?  That holds all my stamps that I haven't sorted through yet.  I won it in a blog hop from Rusty Pickle.  I love it!

Finally...my closet.  ARG!!  Don't look!  It's a disaster and a half.  In the front in the black crate are my scraps.  I think I finally figured out how I can store them so it's just a matter of getting the supplies and time to do so.  The large sideways box is my spray box.  I can mist in my room without worry now.  It's big enough to hold a full sheet of paper.  The rest of it are things that need purged badly.  A lot of it is baby stuff.  There are eight rubbermaid tubs of clothes my daughter outgrew.  I can't even get to it now.  That's my biggest project in the room and will probably be one that sits there for a while.

There you have it!  My good, bad, and ugly.  What do you think?  Leave me a comment and let me know!  Also, I am trying to be really good about updating more.  And about actually scrapbook pages -shocking, I know!  I'd love to get some more followers if you're so inclined.  Have a super day!

Amy

Reorganizing Part 3

Wow! I was reaching the end of my rope on Thursday with all the reorganizing. My room was a mess, and I still had so much more to do! Today though, I finished all the major moving!!! YAY!!!! Check it out!

Here's the view from my door:

My nice, clean desk! I haven't had a desk this empty in quite a while. I love having both of my Making Memories Embellishment Centers hanging on the wall now. The one of the left I purchased on Black Friday in 2010! It's finally up! Thank you, fabulous husband! I love having all my embellishments in rainbow order. It's my major way to sort in my scrapbook room.

This next area is one I've had on my mind for a while now. I wanted a place dedicated to my electronic cutters and would also have somewhere to hook up my computer. Since getting the idea last summer, I've also acquired a printer for my Project Life photos and wanted to incorporate it as well.

Ta-dah!

It's everything I need. My Cameo is on a rolling cart so I can pull it out to cut with and push it back under when I'm not using it. The stack of papers under the Cameo is a bunch of stuff I need to still sort through. My Silhouette SD will go there when it's clear. It's also very easy to switch my Pazzles Inspiration and Cameo to I can use either machine easily.

On the floor next to the cart you can see my photo box. It's in easy reach but now has a designated place.

Next up is my card stock and patterned paper. I love the Cropper Hopper Vertical Storage. It's just amazing. The bottom row has eight slots on the left for my card stock. The eight slots on the right are all Basic Grey patterned paper.

On the top row from left to right are four slots for misc patterned paper including one place for my new purchases, a slot for scraps (which has yet to be organized), specialty paper like glitter, vellum, etc., Bella Blvd, and Fancy Pants. They are four slots for Bo Bunny, and two each for Echo Park and My Mind's Eye. While most of my products are sorted into the rainbow, my patterned paper is usually by manufacturer.

On the top is my Clip-It-Up and my ribbon storage.

Finally, the last major area in my room is my spare desk. I bought this because I invited a friend over to scrapbook and then realized I didn't have anywhere for her to sit! Oops!!

The plastic storage under the desk can easily be moved and a chair added for a friend to come visit. It holds my non-Distress ink, patterned scraps, and some embellishments I have sorted by theme.

On the top is my stamp storage for my clear stamps that I've sorted, sticker storage for my Thickers and small letter stickers, some empty storage, and my storage for some misc things including my magnetic ruler and sample sheets for my Ranger products.

I hope you enjoyed the little tour of my scrapbook room. I still have a lot left to do. There's a closet that needs sorted and all the drawers and shelves I have really still need to be sorted through and purged. I've never purged before in the almost thirteen years I've been scrapping. I think it's time. I'd love to hear what you think. Leave me a comment and let me know!

Reorganizing Part 2

Ugggg....so much still to do! But, I'm slowly making headway. I was worried that the "desk" I'm putting together (that fabulous husband is currently attaching the top to) wouldn't bit. But, it does with about four inches to spare! I thought I'd include a few pictures of the halfway point.

This is the view from the door:

This is the view from the messy corner looking to where my desk is now:

This is the view from my window:

I think when I'm done moving everything (and after an insanely long nap) I'm going to try to purge some things. I have never done that, and I know there's just a ton of stuff that I could get rid of.

Reorganizing

Well, it's Spring Break week. I decided to undertake reorganizing my scrapbook room. It was something I planned to do over Christmas break but I didn't count on Elizabeth dislocating my knee. Nothing got done that week! So far, I'm getting stuff done. I moved my big 4x4 set of Jetmax cubes into the hall. They're going to be split up a different way instead of just a grid on the wall. Ten will go under the window and the other six are going to create a high "desk" to put my digital cutters under and my printer on top of. It'll make more sense when I post a photo of it. Promise! Here's my before picture:

It's an absolute disaster. The room stopped working for me a while ago, but I haven't really had much time or inclination to really do anything about it. Fabulous husband, Elizabeth, and I all went to IKEA earlier this week where I picked up a few little supplies to help me out in the room. I think I can do it. The biggest thing is moving the desk to the opposite corner. Back to work!