Long time...

I know. I know. So I took a bit of a break. There just wasn't much working in my favor when it came to keeping up with this crafty blog over the last few months, but I am hoping to get back in the groove again. We're recovering after having the grandparents here for the Easter weekend, and my sister is coming to stay with us for a few days this week, so it's still a bit hectic around here for the next week at least.

BUT, I finally have my scanner up and running again, so I can share a couple of layouts I've done, and I have some cards waiting to be photographed (although finding a good setup hasn't exactly happened in the new house, yet). You know--all sorts of projects in the works. I have my new crafty space to share and I'm sure there will be lots of baby-related projects to come.

One of my recent projects has been researching and learning about cloth diapers, and I think I've gotten up the courage to give this a try. If you don't get carried away, it can be a real money saver. My problem is that I get caught up by all the cute things there are out there, and I start wanting to make stuff, which takes supplies, which takes moolah, which sort of prevents you from saving money on the whole adventure. So far, I think I've found a decent outlet, though.

One of the things you need if you're using the traditional prefolds or flats or even fitted diapers is a cover. And there are lots of PUL (plasticky waterproof material) ones out there that aren't terribly expensive considering. I do plan to use these, but you can also use more breathable cover made out of wool. So, I've decided to put my limited knitting skills to the test by making a couple of soakers. I found a pattern that wasn't so intimidating, and here is the first result. This is before blocking.


I hope to make some more of these, and if they work for us, I'll probably try to advance to shorties and longies later on. I'll have to repost when I have a photo of these in use.

I needed to meet the minimums...

When I order prints from a company that I use a lot, they have an order minimum. If you order total is less than a certain amount, then you pay that amount anyway. So I decided to experiment with my first real printed storyboard. I used the photos the I took for the Christmas prints and cards. We'll see how it turns out!

I made a little progress.

I thought this might take me a while, but once I got started on our Christmas cards, the design just sort of came together. Of course, it looks nothing like what I started with. Does anyone else have an evolving process? I love how digital gives you the freedom to do that without wasting goodies. I started with a totally different photo, colors, and fonts. The only thing that's the same is the basic layout which is obviously pretty simple.

I'm excited to see these since we decided to go with postcards this year. That saves a few steps since there are no envelopes to stuff and our return address is already printed on the cards along with the basic message. All we'll have to do is sign them and add the addresses--except for the ones we'll deliver by hand or that go with gifts. They were a bit more pricey, but I think it will be worth it!

It did speed things up to use some premade elements. The background and frame are by Jessica Sprague.

Just in case you were wondering...

...I am still alive. We've had a crazy few weeks with the move and all. I had several packages to ship out in the midst of it all, too. I'm hoping we're beginning to see the end of all the unpacking. That's especially important since I can't start organizing my new crafty space until all the stacks that found their way to my table are gone. At least I can see the floor now.

So, I do have to work on getting our Christmas cards done this week, but I hope to be back very soon with something remotely creative.

So

I was going to post an ad I saw in a magazine recently that inspired me with its colors. Only, I must have made it up in my head because now I can't find it anywhere. I have looked through every magazine I've touched in the last month, and I haven't found the ad. It's weird, but maybe I'll come across it again.



We're going to be in packing mode very soon, and when we move I don't know how long we might be without internet. So if I seem to fall off the face of the earth for a while, I am probably just buried under boxes of scrap stuff!

*Ahem*

I have an announcement to make.

I get to set up a new scrap space. Of course, for me that means it will be an overall craft space, but we all know the scrappy stuff takes over. If everything stays on track, we will be closing on our first house in less than 3 weeks. My space will be more out in the open and will mean taking my stash out of the closet and into the open. Oh my, do I suddenly feel overwhlemed. I want to do this right since it will be right there for all eyes to see, but it definitely has to be on a budget. Any ideas? Link me up!

Also, I wanted to share a few pics from the show this weekend. It was a bust, but that happens, right? They moved the date this year, and I think that killed attendance. It was a bad show for everyone there.



















I borrowed the display for the cards from Teresa McFayden who also supplied the inspiration for the advent calendars several years ago.

I also have a little challenge I'd like to share, but I'll save that for a bit later. I've been working on some projects for customers in my design shop this morning to catch up, so I better actually get some rehab done around this house of mine. It's amazing the destruction last minute crafting can cause!

Preparation. It's taking over.

I'm getting last minute stuff ready for the craft gala on Saturday. I can have a tendency to be a last minute person, so I'm trying not to let it overwhelm me at this point. I just had so many plans, and I know it would be physically impossible to get it all done by Saturday at this point.

My table is a wreck, so I've taken over the kitchen table. I'm hoping to get some of the mess cleaned up today, so I can start again refreshed. Sometimes that helps a ton.

We have winners!

I used the trusty random number generator to pick two numbers that would coincide with the comments that were left plus one who wasn't able to get a post to go through. And here are the winners!

Shaun & Rebecca said...
I want to win, I want to win! What a beautiful set! Rebeccakohly@htc.net
2:07 PM

and

Tara Cole (tcole@prairiewindpc.com) said...
Loving the traditional colors and hoping that one of those pertty templates will be our christmas card this year! Tara Cole
1:45 PM

Another Giveaway!

Since I just haven't had the time I had hoped I would have to work on templates and other downloads, I am excited to finally get a set of holiday photo card templates up!



So....I wanted to celebrate by having a little giveaway. Everyone who comments on this post by 11:59 tommorrow (Tuesday) night, will be entered to win the red and green holiday photo card template set for free! I'll give away 2 sets, so leave me a comment! Let me know what you think about my digi items, my blog, the weather--whatever.

It's that time of year again.

The time of year when I make an advent calendar from a cookie sheet, and then I promise never to make one again...until next year when I forget how much work it is to make all the stinkin' numbers.

You'll find this one in my shop, but I simply must find a way to streamline the process. Trust me. If I charged for my time on this, no one would be crazy enough to buy it.

I can't believe it's been so long since I posted. I'm a bit overwhelmed at the moment with getting things ready for a craft gala (doesn't that sound fancy?) next Saturday. My table is covered with piles, and I keep finding supplies that were meant to be used for various projects. Hmm...I'm sure you'll be seeing the aftermath show up in my shop after the show, although I hope it will be a success. At this point, though, I'm not really sure how I would define success.

It's that time of year again.

Here's a layout.

I made this layout using the Holiday Play paper and embellishments that are up in my shop. I just love the colors in these, and they were just right for this photo from last Christmas. You can find the kits here.

Here it is!

As promised I have put up a little freebie to celebrate the fact that I will be offering my designs for sale in the form of templates. Check out a sample of the scallops and stripes birth announcement set, and you can get the free download here.

Trying to Decide

I have a few things I'd like to get started with like offering templates for the basics of my photo card designs for limited commercial use. I'm not exactly sure how this is going to work yet, but I know it's something I'd love to do.

I've only prepared one set so far, but they would be sort of like digital kits. The files would be in .PNG format, and then the photos could be added along with personalized text. The idea here would be that they could be purchased for personal use (say you'd like to make some announcements for yourself or a friend.) or for photographers. They wouldn't be allowed to be sold in an online context (since I've got that covered), but photographers could use them to create announcements or cards for their customers. I'm still working out the details.

Definitely feel free to shout out any input you all might have. It's still in the brainstorming stages right now, but I'd love to start here and branch out into other digital kits or templates.

Here is a peek at the first one. I'm thinking that when I get things worked out, I'll start off with some freebies, so keep your eyes open for those!

Some new designs

I'll be getting some new birth announcement designs up in my shop soon. I actually sat down and got several completed today. I think I might have to bite the bullet and get some stock photos for more holiday card designs. I hate to do that just for samples since the higher resolutions ones can add up after a while. Maybe I'll just start rounding up everyone I know to take their photos!

Here is a taste of what I've been up to.

So now I just spread my junk out.

I am loving my new table. I plan to make some sort of skirt to hide all the stuff stacked under it, but it's working great already. I am such a piler, and now I can actually still work on the table even with all of my piles. Plus, I can have so many more things out where I can reach them. I'll have to really clean it off every now and then to keep things from getting insane, but at least the piles won't get dangerous quite so quickly. I've seen a few places I need to clean out in my closet because I had just been sticking things in wherever to get them off of my desk.

I haven't been doing all that much creating lately, but I can already tell a difference. I do think I need to get some sort of mat or something to protect the area where I actually work. I have a tendency to get gunk all over, and I don't want to ruin the table just yet.

Technically this room is more office than playroom now, but it seems like the little guy still end up in here. That's ok because there is more space for him to spread out in the floor now, and since his toys are mostly in his room, we can make him take them back before getting more out. Before, it would pile up pretty quickly.

Oh yeah, I guess I'm back from my break, although I can't make any promises. All I can do is try!

OK

I really am taking a break, but I couldn't resist posting about how I got this table for $40. I have been keeping my eyes out for something either to use as a new craft table or a desk for my husband since he wants to have a place to work at home. And I just happened to see a post about how people were getting these discontinued tables for waaaay cheap. And I just happen to love this table, and so I called the store here to see if they had any.

The guy looked it up and saw that it was discontinued, but he went to check and said they had the floor model left for $40. I am glad I called first because we don't have a vehicle large enough to get it in, and I had to send my husband and one of his friends after it. When they got there it still had a $179.99 price tag on it, and the people didn't really believe them. I think finally they found whoever told me it was $40 this morning, and so we got it. And now I have a dining table sitting in my den. Ha! We have to decide how we're going to rearrange. It will be some motivation to clean out for our yard sale, though, so that's good. But now I have even more stuff to do, so I'm off.

I now interrupt this blogging break...

...to post a digital layout. I can't find my table, and my paper is under a pile somewhere, so I decided to do a digital layout. I have been avoiding this for a while, but it's oh so convenient!

The kit is from 2 Peas by Rhonna Farrer, and I made the title work using the green paper as a base.

Taking a Break

I just wanted to pop in to let everyone know I will be taking a little blogging break. We're trying to get everything organized for the fall, and there is just so much going on. I hope I'll be back before you know it with project photos and goodies. It will just help me not to have blogging ideas and plans rolling around in my head. There's only so much space in there, you know!

At last...

...I am beginning to find some semblance of organization. Things get crazy when you have your hand in too many cookie jars. Is that a real expression? I think I may have made it up. Anyway, I do have a lot of different things going on, and it has become overwhelming for me the last few weeks--trying to keep up with all the crafting and posting and preparations for various projects and events. I have been thinking that, if it's overwhelming to my when I sort of know what is going on, then it must really be overwhelming to everyone else.

So I've been brainstorming. I've been working over the last few days to try to streamline a few things. Most importantly, where you can find my stuff. The first step was to create another blog that will be my main site for all of my shops and events. On this site, so far, there are sections for each of the types of products I offer and links from those sections to the shops where you can find them.

There are also links to other things such as this blog (for the fun stuff, of course) and to a networking group where everyone can find other handmade card sellers. This site will be a place where I can post shop and product updates, special promotions, and any other information I need to get out about my shops.

I've also been working on redesigning a logo and coordinating banners for all of my shops so that there will be a cohesive look and identity. Now I just need to have new business cards and a stamp made up, and Crystal Nale Designs will be fully coordinated.

Please do take a look around, and let me know if there is a glitch or something I may not have thought about. I'm trying to make things as easy as possible without jumping in an designing a whole new web site of my own.


And...the best part is that I can begin cleaning up this blog a bit. I am afraid my sidebar was getting a bit overwhelming.