Punch Storage

You know what I hate about moving?! NO?! Well, let me tell ya! LOL! I hate "knowing" I have something and not being able to find it! Worse yet, finding only part of it! UGH! I love having everything organized, crafts are my exception yet they are still organized - somewhat! One of the hardest things to organize is craft punches! Yes, you can buy things off the Internet but, that's money I can spend on more punches though! I had found the PERFECT storage at Ikea (LOVE that place!). It was a wooden shoe rack, slotted, and cost only $4! Can't beat that now could I?! So, we move and part of it is MIA! ! My stubborn side says don't buy one you'll find yours but, you don't find it AND the store no longer carries them! UGH! So, what's a girl to do when it's killing her that she NEEDS to organize her stuff?! She goes yard saling! Yep, you always find good stuff yard saling right?! I do! This past weekend I was out looking for things to make my grandson's stay more comfortable for him and his Mom like a baby bed, toys etc...I don't have that stuff anymore! So, what do I find?! Hello awesome new punch storage! Take a look below to see my awesome find!



This is apparently a stand made for Longaberger baskets (I have some of those!) but when I saw the rails, perfect for larger punches AND the wooden pieces, perfect for my Big Shot and my smaller punches, I knew it was PERFECT! It also matches my decor! How cool is that?! What's even cooler is I got some great punches while I was out! LOL! I also found everything I needed for Logan's visit! Now that is a great way to spend a Saturday morning...on top of a great 7 mile run too! Call me a happy stamper! LOL! Oh and it only cost me $10! Woo hoo!

Adornit Blog Hop

Is it magic....is it recycling....or just simply, a darn good idea?! I think it may be a little of each?! Welcome my little page on the web, my world and my creations! No it's not always all about me as I do post about my family here too!

If you came here just to see me, thank you! As you can see I am participating in a "blog hop" with the Adorn-It Carolee's Creations girls! YEAH - fun! I'm sure, now, you want to see who else is playing and what they did right?! Well then, let me suggest you start at the beginning, at the Adorn It Blog . There are 79 other participants in this huge event so, sit back and enjoy the run!

The project I'm posting today is something I have thought of several times and, now, finally have it done! Have you ever gotten "stuff" from the store and thought "hey this packaging is pretty cool"?! I do all the time! Well, I use these makeup remover towels sometimes after a run or whenever I need it and my little light bulb went off LOL! Here's the before, the store packaging that instigated the thoughts;



See the little box it is sitting in?! That's it! I thought, you know I could recreate that box and put something else in there and make it a little gift?! Well, I did! Here's what I created;



How'd I do that?! Easy! Just simply, and carefully take the box apart. This box just so happened to be exactly 12" wide! I laid it out on my scrapbook paper, traced it out, cut it out, recreated the creases using my Scor-Pal (don't have one?! Hurry up and get one - you won't regret it!) decorated it how I chose, taped it and Voila! Cute box! How much time elapsed? Maybe....10 minutes if you know exactly what paper you're going to use?! The goodies inside you can tell are Bath and Body Works and were on sale for $1 each a while back. So, once they're decorated too, my total cost for this great project?! Less than $4 - yes FOUR dollars! Now when I have company, like this coming weekend, I'll have a cute little gift to put in their rooms! Now for the details, of what products I used! The paper is from "The Paper Company" and I believe it's called Espresso, the purple striped paper and the solid cardstock are from my stash of scraps so I didn't have a name, the ribbon is from a roll I got out of the $1 spot (AKA dollar vortex) at Target, the little pearls are from the same spot but...get this...he he he I picked them up at our Goodwill for 29 cents! Yep! LOL! I can find crafting stuff just about anywhere! LOL! Now, that gorgeous butterfly stamp is one of my newest favorites! Well I got it from The Rubber Cafe! She as the most beautiful butterfly stamps and I am working hard on having my own full collection! LOL! She also carries the Scor-Pal so it could be one stop shopping there! LOL! I love that! Gives me more time to come home and play and, the way my life goes....I need all the extra time can get! So when you're done with shopping at The Rubber Cafe, please visit all the other talented ladies in this blog hop! I mean seriously,it's Friday so kick back, relax and don't forget it starts here, at the Adorn It Blog, and the next talented lady on the list to visit.... Debbie Raymond! Now she is one talented lady you don't want to miss!

Enjoy the hop!

Until next time....

Just An Idea!

I'm tired today! Well I guess I should be since I stayed up until almost midnight last night and here I sit 0600 about to get ready for another day! I made a really cool discovery yesterday though! Easter is Sunday and what is Easter without deviled eggs?! So I bought a small pack of pickles, individual serving size, so I can cut them up to put in my egg mixture. Looking the packaging over (future craft potential here?!) and I saw this "Calories - 0"! YEAH! Now that's what I'm talking about! Zero calories! YESSSSS! Sooo what kept me up until midnight was making my meatless meal for tonight, making muffins to take in to my co-workers (they love the Fiber 1 muffins I make - you totally have to try them!) hanging curtains, cleaning etc.. all in preparation for my Dad coming to visit! YEAH!! I'm so excited! Anyway I had to finish up a gift I was making my boss.

Can you believe this is a drink carrier?!!



I had gone to lunch with some other girls a few weeks ago and they had a drink carrier and, gasp..., were going to throw it out! Can you believe that?! I mean how often do you get these with NO advertising?! Rarely right?! I knew I could do something with it! I got two plastic cups from Target with bright colors and used that as my color inspiration! I can't remember the origin of the DP but the cardstock is, well, you know...SU! Not too shabby for having started it at 1100 last night and finished before midnight! Had I started earlier I would have embellished it more! That's okay thought as I'm sure he'll give the "Michelle you shouldn't have" look anyway! He's a lot like me and is careful about what he eats so I filled it with mostly stuff I know he likes and, for his wife, I added chocolate! I have treats for his dogs too but they don't fit in the basket! Over all I spent less then $8 on this! Not bad since my other option was boring flowers that were $9! LOL! Yeah....patting myself on the back for this one...! LOL!

So, if you're wondering.....the drink container came from Bob Evans!

I hope you like it!

Until next time....

Another Light Bulb Moment!

I love organization! I love when everything has a place and is in it! Now my DH would argue that statement just based on my craft space! LOL! Looking behind me now, I can't blame him! LOL! I do get into messes as I tend to roll from project to project! Anyway, I have so many little things for my projects like buttons, brads, eyelets etc and I had to have something to put them in! I have these little containers that I keep my beads and beading supplies in and I thought, "hey, these containers would be perfect"! Here's a picture of the container;



What I liked about these versus the floss organizer is that the compartments open separately! They also lock so I can't accidentally pop one open and, me being the klutz I can be at times, if I knock it over things won't "travel" like the would if there was one lid! I took this one a little farther by putting the SU "color family" on there in case I needed it! I got mine at Michael's for around $3 too! Not too shabby! I hope you like my idea! I have another one to share with you soon too! This one is "brilliant" too! LOL!

Until next time....

It Doesn't Look Like This Now....

He he he! Guilty! Guilty of having it clean long enough for a picture! LOL! I thought I'd share another "Light Bulb Moment" with you! Have you seen the paper storage areas the crafters have been making out of the wire cubes you can find at Target?! Well, I decided it would work for me too so, I got it! Well, when you make this into the paper storage you could easily be like me and, have an extra "side"! Well, what do you do with that extra side?! You turn it into an SU punch holder! That's what! I simply put it on the extra piece on my shelving unit, secured it with some "zip ties" (commonly used in packaging too) and VOILA! Punch storage! Still not sure what I'm talking about?! Take a look at the picture below;



Can you see them? They're on the 3rd, and biggest shelf. I simply put them in there using their handle to hold them in place. They're at such an angle that I can look at their underside and see which one it is! I found too, if I place circles next to each other I can tell the bigger or smaller ones from each other! It holds 15 of the bigger punches like this! I hope this idea helps someone else too! I get lots of great ideas from other ladies out there on their blogs! Time to share mine!

p.s. - I'll show you a picture of my storage with the cubes next time! My camera battery is low tonight!

Until next time......

How About This Idea

Well, I get lots of great ideas from some great bloggers on how to organize your scrap room/crafting room. Not all work for me but some give "birth" to new ideas that do! As a military wife, moving a lot, it's hard to settle on one great idea because just as I do, we move and I have to start all over! I thought I'd share some of my ideas, maybe they'll help you! So since I can't honestly say I'll do it habitually I'll call them my "Random Lightbulb Moments"! How about that?! Okay, enough of the not so fun stuff here! Now for the real fun stuff! LOL!
This idea I got a long time ago, shared it on a couple of websites but figured I should probably put it on my own now.
If you're like me you probably have a ton of punches, limited space and if they're out of sight they're probably out of mind! Don't use what you don't see! That in mind when I went to Ikea (in D.C.) I was looking for something versatile (remember military wife = ideas must be versatile/flexible!)to put my punches in, on, or "something"! I walked past their outdoor type section and saw the shoe racks. At first I thought "hey verticle storage, collapsable, re-usable - get it"! Then I got to looking at the thickness of the wooden slats, the distance in between and the lightbulb went on! YES! I was pretty sure it would work for storing those rascals where I could see them and, therefore, be able to use them! So, without further ado, here's my shoerack/punch holder aka storage! LOL!




How's that idea for about $3?! I also got those cute brown boxes at Ikea and use them for my SU markers and just "stuff"! If you see it's high enough too that you can store some flatter items underneat like my Creative Memories cutting system! The cute little buckets came from Target Dollar Spot/vortex!

I hope this helps someone the way it helped me!