Workspace Wednesday....Washi Tape + Twine Storage

Edit:  I wanted to say "hi there" to my friend Carol and answer a question....the white storage units in the background are from Pottery Barn.  I got them probably 10 years ago and they are discontinued now.

You know how it is when you're a crafter....you have lots of stuff.  You know how it is when you're a junker....you have lots of stuff.  I love it when the two worlds collide and you come up with some fun storage.  For me, my organizational system is not all about everything coordinating and being behind pristine, white shelving.  I like wood and texture and metal...and a little rust never hurt either.  I also like to have my crafty things out in plain view.  If everything was hidden away all nice and orderly, I'd never find a thing and I'd probably forget I even have it.  That's what happens when you get to your mid-40's.  The memory gets thrown out with the dish water.  Or is bath water?  See what I mean..

So today I'm sharing two crafty items...my Washi tape and baker's twine + two junkin' finds for storage.

First up I've been using old receipt spikes to stack up my Washi tape.  I loved this system for a while but I'm finding that my stacks are tipping over and the Washi I want always seems to be on the bottom of the stack.

 So I dug out this wooden nail divider that I've had for quite some time.  I made a deal with myself that I had to get rid of whatever Washi rolls wouldn't fit in the unit.

 I think I ended up with about 8 extra rolls I had to purge but I'm confident that about 120 rolls of Washi should be sufficient.

 So what about the receipt spikes?  These things are little junkin' gems to me.  I love searching for them in junk stores.  However, the prices have gone up on these.  I used to find them for about $3-5 bucks but now they're usually $8-15 bucks.

 I was storing my twine spools in this metal strainer but it was getting a little crowded.

 I decided to use one receipt spike for each spool and I love it!  I can take a spool on the spike over to my work table and just reel off what I need for each project.  The spool stays upright and doesn't roll all over the place.

So there we have it for today's Workspace Wednesday.  I hope you find the perfect little matches made in heaven for your crafty stuff + your junky stuff.

Boutique Item...Gray Polka Dot Gift Packaging

Hi all.  As I'm getting back into the swing of things as the girls are back in school, I'll be focusing more on my shop and fun blog posts.  I'll be bringing back the Friday Favorites posts which will include good junk finds, awesome recipes, great Pinterest finds and more.  I'll have more cards and packaging items up on the blog in addition to my Project Life posts.  It's going to be a great Fall season and I hope you'll join me.

When doing a little work for my online business, I realized that I have over 100 items in my shop! Many of those items are staple items that I keep stocked on a regular basis. Other items are little kits & cards & special finds that I put in the shop in very limited quantities.  Sometimes those speciality items sell out quickly & I get emails asking for more quantities.  Sometimes I can accommodate and sometimes it's just a one time deal, depending on quantities of supplies on hand and if I feel like creating more items.  

For those items that are listed in limited quantities, I'm going to start listing them as a Boutique Item.  The Boutique Items will be listings that are very limited in quantities and perhaps a creation that I devoted a little more time to. The Boutique Items may be a special project that I created using a featured product in my shop.  They may be a limited quantity of some great vintage find.  Whatever the case, my hope is to showcase those Boutique Items here on the blog in a special way.  So stay tuned for my Boutique Item featured posts.  

Today's Boutique Item is set of gift sacks that I created using the Gray Polka Dot Gift Packaging up in the shop. With the little kit you get a fun little bundle of supplies to create a unique gift sack for that special present.  Today I created 2 of the gift sacks to hold some notebooks that I created for my two favorite secretaries at the girls' school.  They are nicest ladies & always give a shout out to my girls as they pass through the halls.  They deserve something special.  

 On my gift sacks, I used every little item that is included in the little kit.  I adhered the Dainty Doily to the sack.  Then I used the Small Clothespins in a fun way.....I added double sided tape to the backs of them and adhered them right to the doily.  I tied the gray twine and tiny little silver tag to the Small White Parcel Tag.  I used some white cardstock, a circle punch and wood letter stamps to create the name tags.

 I then placed all of the sequins into the clear cello bag & adhered that to the top of the doily with the silver Washi tape.

 I tucked in the cute notepads (which you'll see in September for the Gossamer Blue release) and they're ready for the girls to take to school.  Boy, doesn't it make you feel good to create a gift for someone special.  I need to do it more often.

I hope you'll enjoy my Boutique Items posts & everything else that is to come this Fall.  I've got a few more Boutique Items up in the shop currently which include my Special Delivery Gift Packaging kit, my Hello Gift Sack Kit and Vellum Pocket Inserts.  You can see them in the main shop HERE.  Have a great day everyone.

Chocolate Chip Zucchini Brownies + NEW Waxed Paper Sacks...

It's that time of year again when the zucchinis start to pile up everywhere. I always like to try a few new recipes each Summer and Pinterest was the first place I looked. I found a very intriguing recipe called Chocolate Chip Zucchini Brownies so I pinned it. The original recipe is from this post at Food Plus Words blog, a fun new blog find. And shortly after, I tried the recipe. There's something about baking that always takes me right back to my mom's kitchen. Maybe that's why items from my kitchen (shown below) look like they're from another era. I love all the old time dishes and utensils.
I knew I wanted to use these brownies for some gifts so I wanted them to cut perfectly. I lined my baking stone pan with foil and then sprayed it with *Spam* as Jordan calls it....Pam baking spray actually.
Then I just lifted the little tin foil handles and out came my brownie brick.
But they were far from bricks when it came to the texture. These babies were soft and moist and tasted really good. And chocolate-y. No taste of zucchini what so ever. That only adds to the moistness. Note: I ended up wrapping the brownies in clear wrap and freezing them for future use. I found that they were SO moist that they might end up sticking to my packaging.
I did a little photo shoot with my brownies and a half pint of milk + an old plate. I had a little idea brewing for a fun tag to add to a new product that's coming up in just a bit. I used Instagram and Phonto apps on my iPhone to alter my photo, which will be used for my packaging.
And now I'd like to introduce a new product that I'll be carrying in my shop. Waxed Paper Sacks are my newest packaging item that I'll be adding to my product line up. They will be sold in a set of 10 and will be perfect for food packaging or just for fun packaging of small gifts. I absolutely love the Kraft color and the crinkly feel. There is about a 1" gusset on the sides so they can be filled with lots of treats and goodies. I think these will take you back instantly to the days your mom packed your lunch and wrapped everything in waxed paper. Anybody with me on that one, or was it Ziplocs all the way for you?

I'll be using the Waxed Paper Sacks frequently I'm sure for teacher gifts, etc so you'll be getting lots of inspiration. I'll probably offer some kits up in the shop too, using the sacks, tags + other shop items. Today I have a fun packaging to share for the Chocolate Chip Zucchini Brownies. I grabbed a few out of the freezer and let them thaw. Meanwhile here's the line up of products that I'll be using to create my treat gift sacks.

Products used:

Waxed Paper Sacks

Large Manila Parcel Tags

Grid Paper Labels

Cotton Twine

Washi Tape

Instagram photo (printed at 2" x 2" with a white border)

Studio Calico paper clip stamp from Please Note Stamp

Directions to create tag:

Type to/from on Grid Paper Label with vintage typewriter. Adhere label and photo to Large Manila Parcel Tag. Adhere strip of torn Washi tape to tag and stitch over with sewing machine. Stamp the paper clip over the top edge of the tag. Fold over Waxed Paper Sack, filled with treat, and punch hole. Tie embellished tag to sack with cotton twine. Be sure to leave the tails of the bow long. Love that look.
And that's it. A fabulous homemade treat, simple handmade packaging and you look like a domestic piece of loveliness.

Thanks for stopping by. I hope you enjoyed today's post. You'll be seeing lots more homespun creations using my shop items + favorite products.

My Pieces of Me Kit...

This Summer I've decided to cut down a bit on my work schedule while the girls are home from school.  I plan to do two things in particular....spend quality time with the girls and spend more time working on some "just for fun" projects for me.  

One of the projects that I'm particularly excited about is Maggie Holmes' Pieces of Me workshop that's currently offered at 2Peas.  It's theme is centered around creating a mini album that is all about YOU.  Little bits and pieces about who you are and what you love.  I sat down this morning and wrote two full pages of things I want to include in my album. There is a kit that 2Peas is offering to go along with the workshop but I opted to design my own using items from my shop.    I offered some of my kits up in the shop (sold out now) and you can see the details and fun inspiration photos in this post.  Here's what my main kit looks like:  

My album will be 4 x 8 and I'll be using lots of Instagrams  and typed lists.  As you can see in the main kit photo above, I chose a color scheme of soft robin's egg blue, a peachy orange, olive green, cream/white and Kraft + grey.  I decided to add to my main kit with a few other products I chose after I shopped my own stash of goodies.  I'm placing all my supplies in this wicker tray and will keep it out on table #2 in my work room.  My plan is to dabble with the album and work on it here and there.

Here's some of the supplies I've added to my main kit.  Spray mists from October Afternoon and Studio Calico.  I want to experiment with my supplies and see what fun techniques I can try.  Big splatters and masking is on the list.  

While shopping my stash, I reached for some of my favorite items.  Vintage button cards are high on the list.  I'll use baker's twine to tie individual buttons that are from the main kit.

Washi tape is a new obsession.  3 whole stacks that have colors that coordinate with my kit colors.  Love this stuff..

Small tags and die cuts to use for journaling or to layer small embellishments.  Love these from Banana Fish Studio.

Sacks of all kinds from my shop + little coin envelopes, etc.  These are perfect for tucking in receipts, journaling tags, extra photos, etc.

Little buttons and baubles that I hand picked from my stash.  I selected a few favorites that I've been hoarding.  Wood buttons are becoming a new favorite embellishments.  I see a trend developing with lots of wood items.  Or maybe I'm behind and just now noticing.  ;)

Tags and more tags for journaling.  I want to experiment with more layering and stitching on tags.  My sewing machine should get a work out for sure.  I'll also be using lots of my Grid Labels that I'll run through my vintage typewriter.  My handwriting is large so the typed journaling helps save space.

Vintage trims of all kinds, including laces, ric racs, pieces of old doilies, circles cut from cutter quilts, velvet trim, seam binding and more.  Definitely pieces of me.

Embossing powders.  These always get stuck in the corner just like Baby but I'm hoping to experiment with some fun techniques.  I thought these colors were just perfect for my album.

And last minute I realized that I'll need some more page inserts.  I reached for lots of neutrals + a few new My Mind's Eye Indie papers that I just picked up at Archivers last weekend.  I just shuffled them all together and will select papers randomly.  Lots of the patterns will be covered by the Instagrams and embellishments so I'm not worried about patterns being too bold.

And that's a wrap.  I tucked everything in my basket and it's ready to go.  I took some time last night and watched all of Maggie's videos and looked all the albums from the class contributors.  Way to represent, girls!  Awesome class and I highly suggest it if you're looking to do a little something for "just you".  

Note:  I've several emails for requests to re-stock my Summer Cottage Kit.  I'm sorry but I just don't have the albums, etc to recreate full kits.  But if you look at the top photo of today's post or go to my original post about my kit, you'll see that there are tons of items from my shop that are available as individual items.  You could easily stock up on tags, etc and make up your own kit in no time.  

I'm hoping to report my progress if it's something you'll be interested in.  Just let me know by leaving a comment....let me know if you're taking on this project, how you planned your album, what you plan to include.  I'd love to hear from you.  

In shop news:

Thank you for the Washi love, I'm ordering new rolls with every batch but if there's some in particular that you'd like a repeat of just let me know.  Also, look for a brand new batch of sacks coming soon.  I am fresh out of everything and have had lots of requests.  You got it!

Have a great day everyone!

Snow Confetti Gift Sacks...

Hi there, I'm back today with more inspiration from the Lemon Lime Kits I offered in the shop recently. By request I've made up lots more of the kits and they are in the shop now right here. I've also added some assorted glassine and clear bags that you can use for confetti projects like the ones I've been doing lately. You can see the Snow Confetti Tag & Bookmark post I did for more ideas using the kit.

Here we go for today's projects. It's all about confetti gift sacks. It's like a gift for your gift. A package on top of your package. Double the fun! I used a regular paper sack for the base that can be filled with an actual gift.
Then I filled a glassine sack with these color Sixlet treats as a little bonus gift. Cute!
I stitched glassine sack shut with my sewing machine then added a strip of fun snow confetti tape that I made across both sacks. So shimmery and shiny.
Tags, button and baker's twine from the kit for embellishments....just couldn't be cuter. I might just use something like this for Jordan's graduation gifts to her friends. We will be on a mission to find something that fits inside. :)
Here I used a polka dot sack (the kits have a striped sack) to make another confetti embellished sack. A hand cut banner + more of my handmade border strips adorn the front of the sack.
I filled a little sack that comes with the kit with about a teaspoon of snow confetti, also included in the kit. I wrapped around some baker's twine, added a button and topped off the sack with a stamped embellishment from the kit. SO cute and perfect for holding cards or small gifts.
Kits are limited in quantity and I also have most of the kit items available on their own in the shop too. Lots of new tags, bookmarks, sacks....+ a few stamped cards....Bookmark Kits, Confetti Gift Sack Kits and Wrinkle Ribbon. Thanks for stopping by. Wrapping gifts has never been so much fun!! Enjoy...

Twinkles and Tinsel Packaging Kits

Flipping over to that November calendar page means that the holidays will soon be here. I'm kicking off my holiday happenings here on the blog and in my Etsy shop. I've got some new kits all wrapped up and ready to go.
My Twinkles and Tinsel Packaging Kits are the perfect way to jump start your holiday gift wrapping. With the kit, you'll get all the supplies needed to create two each of the pretty little packages below. Kits require some assembly and you will need pop dots to stick on the tag elements. For each tag, you'll get a label with an adhesive backing....simply write the recipient's name, peel and stick and you've got yourself some cute packaging. Assemble the tags ahead of time and you'll be all ready for gift wrapping once it gets closer to Christmas.

These kits are very unique to my Etsy shop and will be sold in limited quantities. If you miss out on a kit and would like to create your own gift boxes, many of the supplies can be purchased separately from my shop such as: Kraft Boxes with Tissue, White Boxes with Tissue, Green Parcel Tags, Red Parcel Tags, Twine and the Mini Clothespins.

Shop update: I've got a some more Jolly Jingle Bells in stock. :)

Please remember that any of my kits may be reproduced for personal use only....you know I love to share...... but may not be replicated and sold in Etsy shops, etc. :)

A Sunday in September...

Last Sunday my dad picked me a bouquet of wildflowers from the nearby pastures. He told me every flower that was in the bouquet....broom weed, goldenrod, sunflowers and some others that I can't remember.

Fresh picked flowers are the best kind. Thanks Dad! They look so pretty in my old watering can.
I also got a few mum to sit on the porch along with my little pumpkins and strawberry corn from the patch.
This beautiful, vibrant mum really took off this year. So pretty. And Eric you need to weed eat, buddy.
One of my favorites in the fall is this Live Forever plant. That color is beautiful.
And my coleus is hanging on too. It will be gone at the first freeze though.
Ahhhh, so much inspiration and color. My flowers inspired today's kit called A Sunday in September. Fun colors that remind me that Summer is trying to hang on.....but that Fall is on it's way.
The contains all the supplies to create five of the finished gift sacks as shown below. A strand of Cotton Twine is also included so that you can create a garland and hang all five finished sacks on the string with my Marigold Rustic Clothespins. This would be so cute for a little party where guests could take a little gift home with them.
Each gift sack would include a Brown Paper Sack, a lined card for writing a message, supplies to assemble a cute tag and the Marigold Clothespin. You can cards, candies, vintage hankies or linens, crafting supplies, et into the sacks. Lots of possibilities. Stamped images are left up to you to customize as you wish.
Also included in the kit are extras like a sampling of my Fabric Tape and extra yellow and manila tags to add to cards that could coordinate with the gift bag.
All packaged and ready to go. You can find them in my Etsy shop HERE.