Thicker Collection

Those who know me well know I am a collector of alphabet stickers.  Mostly I have American Craft Thickers, but I do have a few others in my collection.

I currently have them organized in drawers, as seen below.  That calls for a lot of digging.  They also get a little squished, and that does not do well over a long period of storing.

After watching some organization videos by Jennifer McGuire, and after adding pins after a Pinterest search, I decided that I definitely needed a sleeve or bag that made my stickers more uniform in size if I had any hopes of feeling "organized."  This idea was very appealing:

I started searching for 6 x 12" ziploc bags, and what kept coming up was 6 x 12" page protectors.  

"Hmmm," said I, "why not just go with what I know?"  

It also helped that I had an Amazon gift card.  So, for about $40 and free shipping, I will have 10 packs of these:

I was not feeling the plastic magazine holder vibe.  Then I remembered I had two magazine baskets that I bought long ago.  They are not the perfect width, so, I placed my stickers in sideways.  I used what 6 x 12 page protectors I had to see how it would work.  I think I will like it very much.

I will post more of my re-organization journey as I go.

Administrative Professionals Day

I have been working on cards tonight for our two secretaries.  As many a teacher knows, the school would shut down without them (and our custodians).

This one cracks me up.  The sentiment is from the Kelly Purkey "I Like You" set.  The patterned paper is from Stampin' Up, the baker's twine from Lawn Fawn.  I colored the "Thanks" with a Copic, and popped up the inner flag (cut with Stampin' Up! dies) with Dimensionals.  I hand-drew the brown outline, as it looked very stark without it.  The sentiment was perfect, as I am constantly asking the secretaries to sign some delivery for me at work.

This card has a little bit of Papertrey Ink and a little bit of Stampin' Up!  The Center Stage die is from PTI, as is the sentiment, "Think Big Favorites #6."  I LOVE how this stamped...like buttah.  The patterned paper is actually the flipside of the paper used in the card above.  The glittery black tape really makes this card directed toward the particular secretary for whom I made it.  I think she will love it.

I used Versafine ink for both cards.

Wading in Watercolors

As of late, I have seen some crafting with watercolors.  I have to say, there are some things I love about watercolors, and other things I am not so in love with.  Here are some cards that lately I have really liked using this technique:

I love the die cut over the watercolor background on this one.

This might be my favorite KKel card of all time.  It mixes two things I love: summer and Ali Edwards!  Isn't that background perfect for the sentiment?

This one's a Kristina Werner video that actually made me want to give it a whirl.

And here is my attempt.  So clean.  So simple.  Made, of course, under the watchful eye of Karen (see the photo background?).  I used her Sakura KOI Watercolors and a Stampin' Up! Aquapainter.  Then we sprayed some watercolor paper with water, and I experimented.  I loved how the paint blended, and knew I did not want to cover it much, so I looked for a sentiment that would fit.  I found one in PTI's Wise Owl set.  The cool thing is, I know exactly to whom I want to give this card.

Mighty Oak Sympathy

I have been eyeing some cards on Pinterest that use this stamp and die cut.  I decided to break it in for a sympathy card for a friend.

Paper: Neenah Solar White and Studio Calico Dot One
Stamps: SU! Close as a Memory and Hope for Comfort; PTI Mighty Oak
Die: PTI Mighty Oak
Embossing folder: SU! Woodgrain
Ink: SU! Chocolate Chip
Adhesive: SU! Dimensionals; Tombo Monoadhesive