The Red Box Challenge!

If you’ve been following along, you already know that I love Paper Pumpkin. A beautiful and practical creative retreat delivered right to my door every month, for under $20. It’s awesome. But I will admit, sometimes the boxes don’t get emptied right away. I might do the greeting cards, but skip  the small gift enclosures or tags. I might need all of the projects for a holiday gift idea, or I might only use half of them. Of course the projects are just too pretty to get discarded. So they wait. In a neat stack. 

Because life happens, and we can let those boxes linger on long, Stampin’ Up! Has issued a challenge. We are challenged to open one of those red boxes in the pile and make an alternative project. That means make something different than the project the kit was designed for. This might mean turning a card base into a giftable treat, turning those embellishments into a great scrapbook page, or whatever your imagination sees in that little red box of supplies.  Once you’ve created your masterpiece, share it on Facebook or Instagram with the hashtag (so its searchable) #redboxchallenge and you might become internet famous!!! 

Well ok, you might become Paper Pumpkin internet famous. Your project could be featured online by Stampin’ Up! And you might win the March Anniversary Paper Pumpkin FREE! 

So here is my Red Box Challenge project. I looove, love, love donuts. But the May 2017 kit had nine donut cards. I didn’t need nine donut cards. Now, this girl can eat nine donuts from Krispy Kreme without a second thought, but that’s neither here nor there. So I made a “mermaid” card instead. What do you think? 

Want in? Join Paper Pumpkin now.

Want to join the challenge? Here are the rules and fine print!

Snips, Snail, and a Bone Folder “Tail”

If you’ve been to the Cloth, Paper, String studio, you know that I have lots of tools and supplies to help you achieve your perfect crafting goals. I really enjoy sharing these tools and sharing in the fun of crafting all the things. But I’ve decided to make a slight change starting with this month’s paper crafting workshops.

In my cloth and string events, people are given a list of supplies that they need to bring to class. Now, for paper classes, I will ask crafters to bring their own paper crafting basic tool kit along to workshops. What is a paper crafting basic tool kits you ask (besides a mouthful)? Well it’s pretty simple, actually, and you probably already have the three most important pieces laying around your house. Of course it can also be pretty extravagant if you like, but I’m going to focus on three core items - scissors, adhesive, and a bone folder. Here are my favorites for paper crafting:

First, you need good scissors. And yes, they need to be used only for paper. I love the Stampin' Up! snips because they have a perfectly pointed end that allows for smooth fussy cuts around those stamped designs.

Second, you need a steady stream of adhesive to craft with paper. Now there are many kinds of adhesives, each with it's own special use. But most commonly you just need to adhere paper to paper and the Stampin' Up! Snail Adhesive is perfect. Plus, I always keep a stock of refills on hand if you run out during class. If there is a specialty adhesive needed for a workshop project, I will provide it. But over time, your adhesive collection will likely grow.

The last key paper crafting tool to bring along to class is a bone folder. It makes for sharp creases and flat folds. You can use your fingernail, but that gets tough after a few folds. Again, I love the Stampin' Up! bone folder. Especially the personalized* one gifted to me by a sweet friend this year. 

* Personalization was done after purchase by a third party and is (unfortunately) not available through Stampin' Up!

While I obviously prefer the Stampin' Up! versions, you are free to bring whatever your favorites are to class. But if you need a kit, you can get all three of these for just $24, when ordered directly from me. It can take a couple weeks for items to arrive, so plan ahead for your future workshop attendance. 

I can't wait to see you at the next workshop! And don't forget your kit. 

Happy 2018!

Whether you are celebrating or mourning the passage of 2017, A brand new year is an exciting time!  I love the blank slate of it, all of the potential ready to be appreciated. Are you ready for 2018? I am so ready.

We don’t make resolutions in our house, we set goals. One big goal in our family in 2018 will be the remodel of our kitchen, more on that later. I always have travel goals, and I’ve set a fitness goal of running a 5k in less than 30 minutes this year. The kiddos have their own goals related to school and such. And of course I have big goals for Cloth, Paper, String! 

With all these goals, it’s important to take some time to get organized and get your plan together. I’ve been busy with a lot of planning over the last couple weeks. For example, with our kitchen, we’ve spent years fantasizing about what we would like to change.  But after a series of issues with our current kitchen, we finally had to focus on reality. We needed a plan - what needed to happen, in what order, and final decisions on what we could realistically do with our space and budget. The same decisions need to be made regarding our other goals...what is realistic, what steps are needed to get us there, what does the end result look like? 

Honestly, with my busy family, I need a plan everyday. That’s why I’m a big fan of planners. And I don’t mean an electronic calendar, that just doesn’t work for me. I need to visualize it, write it, erase it, feel it, in order for my plan to work. And yes, I love to do lists that I can cross off. I just love the blank slate of a new month or a new week in my planner. 

That’s why I was so excited when Stampin’ Up! introduced the Love Today Planner. It’s pretty, practical, and a great tool for keeping me on track with all of my plans. And since it is undated, you can start on any month.  Over the next few weeks, I’m going to share some of my favorite planning and organizing tips. I would also love to hear your tips and tricks to stay on task and achieve your goals!so be sure to follow along and comment here on the blog, and on Facebook or Instagram.