Craft Some Organization by Laura C

I'm trying to be more organized....and this simple project is
an easy way to do just that!  I picked up one of the jumbo
clothespins (you can find them at a lot of craft stores right
now) and fixed it up to become somestylish organization!

Just measure width and length of the clothespin and
cut out.  I used Echo Park Hello Summer....it's sold
out in store...but Kim may be able to order....but so
many of the Echo Park kits lend themselves to home
decor projects!!  And one of the best adhesives for
this type of project....Scor Tape.  It will hold the paper
to the wooden clothespin without any problem--it's
truly my "go to" adhesive for any home decor type
of project! To finish the piece off, decorate as you'd
like....I added stickers, and some Thickers to dress it up.
Then it was just cutting 3x5 index cards in half and they
fit right into the Mini Kraft Bags by Canvas Corp
(Kim also had  these....she can re-order!).  I'm finding
so many uses for  these....just love them!  Great for
holding journaling on a LO or holding a tea bag or a gift
card....they are awesome!  I fussy cut out the clouds,
and added alpha stickers to spell the days of the week
and a little twine made them super cute....it looks great
sitting on my counter in my kitchen! I can menu plan and
write a "2 do" list for each day...it helps keep me organized!

Have you ever made a "crafty" organization item?  Please share!! 

Inspiration for the New Year...by Laura C

Do you have goals or dreams you'd like to accomplish
in the next year? Maybe ideas you'd like to keep track of?
This project is a small "reminder" of those things you want
to keep in mind. I've included a simple "how-to" so you
can make your own mini inspiration board:
 

And a close up:

I started with an inexpensive wooden frame from
the craft store and my supplies:
 

I painted the frame, using the Adirondack
daubers in Aqua...I used a pouncing method
to do this....hopefully you can see the bumpy
texture in this pic....(you can see in the first
pic of the finished project, I added some color
around the edges with Sunset Orange as well):

Once that dried, I turned over the frame
applied Scor-Tape to the entire inside
edge, and then cut and stuck my twine
down in the pattern I wanted (making
sure it was VERY tight!) making this:

Next up....2 layers of foam tape on top of the
Scor-Tape and twine layer:

Then I made a backing piece out of left
over chipboard from a paper pack (I'm a
pack rat, what can I say?) and some
pretty patterned paper....so many options
in Kim's store....Graphic 45 or Echo Park
collections lend themselves to these projects!

The paper was adhered with Scor-Tape, and
then the entire backing adhered to the foam
tape on the back of the frame....it gave just
enough depth to be a usable memo board,
which you can hopefully see from this pic:

Now for embellishing....the FUN part!!
I die cut little memo pieces....dressed
them up with embossing powder, and
Distress Ink (I used Rusty Hinge and
WOW embossing powder--some ovals
I stamped reminder messages on).  The
roses are Prima Fairytale Roses (I used
the Poppyfield and Baby Pink), the bird
was embossed with the WOW and then
inked with Distress Ink--this pic below
shows that, and how I embossed my
sentiment, then traced around it using the
inside of the Spellbinders die (Fancy Tags Two)
so I could cut it to fit the die cut frame:

And more embellishing goodies....Want2Scrap
Nestabling (the tag after being diecut was attached
to the matching Nestaboard as well....this stuff is
awesome if you've never tried it!).  The stick pin
made from beads in my stash, buttons, some twine,
Want2Scrap swirl bling was cut apart to fit the top of my
frame. And the tiny clothes pins are from Canvas Corp,
the Mini Clothespins in Natural (YES...Kim has these
in the store!)....I painted them with the Adirondack
Sunset Orange paint.

So there you have it....a great project to jump start
a creative, productive New Year!  Would be a
cute project for small school photos too!

Happy Crafting!!

PS....remember, if one of these items is not in store and
you'd love to have it....you can always ask Kim!!

Fall Banner by Deanna M

So Kim recently added some great products from Canvas Corp to the store and of course I had to try some out.

I got some of the mini Burlap Mini Triangles. These are just so cute and versatile. I decided I had to make a Fall Banner out of them. I started by spraying them with some glimmer mist. I used Rum Punch, Sugar Maple, Sun Sisters, and a little Coffee Shop.

I then used the Tim Holtz Tattered Leaves die to cut my leaves. (Kim doesn't have this die in the store but I bet she can get it for you.) I used my awesome new eBosser to die cut my leaves. (love that machine!!!) I used some of the Tangerine My Minds Eye paper to cut my leaves. I inked my leaves with some distress inks in fall colors.

For the word FALL I used the Birthday Bash Cricut Cartridge and the Tim Holtz Kraft Core Paper (Kim can get this for you). I cut each layer 4 times so I has some thickness to my letters. I then embossed them using the Clear Gloss WOW! embossing powder. I did embossed my letters twice. I then attached everything to my burlap triangles. I then painted some of the natural mini clothes pins with some Indian Summer Glimmer Glaze (a special order item from the store).

I then outlined the leaf on each end with my Spica Glitter Pen in Orange. To finish my banner I used some gold colored hemp and hung each triangle from the hemp with the clothes pins.