Lost Post

Well, I lost some postings it would seem. I know I posted after the 5th. Leave it to me to do that. Well, to show you what I have been up to I will just post all the photos and go from there.

This is from the class I took. Ink Boot Camp. We made a page for each of the techniques she showed up. Jenn Starr was wonderful and I actually had a great time and learned a lot.

This is the Distressed and Spritz techniques.

This is done with pigment inks.

This is the alcohol technique done on glossy or photo paper. I think it is my favorite from the class. I made the mottled background. I also went and picked out five colors to start with and all that goes with it. I already have several ideas for cards and such using this method along with some other mediums.

I am involved in my first card swap with a an internet group. The group is Card Crafts on Yahoo. They are a great group with great ideas. Some one on the group had posted about this video for making a pop up card with balloons. You can go here to see it. I used her idea and came up with this card for a "Travel" themed card.
The front is done with chipboard and ribbon sayings and a stamped image I colored and cut out then attached with foam dots for a dimensional look. The person this card is going to likes to visit California and Disneyland. I was really happy to find the paper with a palm tree image to use for this.

The inside is done with a Mickey Mouse punch to make balloons and with a small font I stamped the word Mickey on the balloons. A sheet of Disney paper had a border so I trimmed it off and used it for the bottom of the balloons. I used an acetate sheet to make the sticks of the balloon, but I think my sheet was way thicker than it needed to be. I know, I will be making some more of these, they are just too fun.

This is a view from the side to show the pop up effect a little more.











The theme for the next card is "Letter B". The card has to have an animal, flower, food or color to represent the letter. I think I accomplished it.





I used my Cricut cutter for this one. The pop up spring is made by punching a circle then cutting it in a spiral. I used my School Book Plantin cartridge to cut the circle so I could make it the correct size. The letters on the front and the word on the inside was done with the Lovely Floral cartridge. I cut the butterflies for the pop up out of some printed paper I had. I will make this type of card again, but will cut the spiral a little tighter and will pay a little more attention to the positioning of the start of the spiral. I have one more card to make for the swap, it is a free theme, so can do what ever I want. I bought some Flower Soft stuff to try making a card with a tree on it. Will see how that goes this afternoon.

Well that is all for now. I am off to have lunch with my mom. Today is my birthday and she is taking me out. The local quilt shop sent me a newsletter that showed some new fabric they got in that has little cakes all over it. Just can't pass it up and will get a little bit to make an apron for my cake class out of it. I have been sick so didn't make the class this week, I put the cake layers in the freezer until I am ready to work on them. Next week I have to take cupcakes.

Tomorrow is bowling and now that my new eyes finally got here am hoping that I will be able to see the arrows better. Maybe bowl a better game. Although, if I can just bowl as well as I did Saturday I will be happy. Hubby is off tomorrow so maybe he will go with me.

Thanks for stopping in and drop in anytime.

Wish List

Oh my goodness what all I saw today! I went to Home Depot today to pick up some metal shelf strips for daughter's room. Now, I have gone to Home Depot a hundred times with my hubby to get supplies for what ever project or repair was happening, have even gone there a few times to pick up an essential part or such for something hubby was in the middle of. But, today, I had an experience in there that I can only relate to finding the Christmas catalog in the mail box when I was...like nine? I repeat. Oh my goodness.

Here I am dreaming, sketching out, obsessing over the new sewing room I am about to make the now empty bedroom in to. I saw all kinds of neat organizing gizmos. Now, granted most of them are for putting in a closet the size of the bedroom I am working on, but the thought hit me and there it is. I have a 10 foot by 10 foot space to transform in to a sewing slash craft studio. So why not dress it out like a closet? Now, I am not complaining by any means about the size, after all before I packed all the sewing stuff away I only had a little corner of the bedroom and it served me very well. Although, hubby had to learn to sleep with the noise of a machine going, a light in his face, and the sound of the TV going.

I was very happy spending my days and nights making quilts, crocheting, hand embroidery for crazy quilting embellishment and machine embroidery. Joining trades and swap with people from all over the world. Of course, 95% of my work went to various charities, but I felt pretty good with myself when I worked on something. That is until I got a stupid brain fart and filled out an application for a job I saw in the paper. I was hired. Soon after settling in to that full time routine, the commute to and from work, dinners that didn't get prepared, clothes that didn't washed, children's events that didn't get attended, all that was going on and I just got really pissed one day and just packed it all away. No more quilting, no more swaps, no more sewing. I tried to keep doing the embellishments for some crazy quilting as that had been a new and fascinating technique I had just added to my quilting hobby, along with building up a great beginner's supply of all the essentials needed to embellish. All five machines were packed up and put away. All the sewing supplies in the drawers of my wonderfully huge desk (praying that we can manage to get it in the new room) were boxed up and put away, even labelled it all. Gifted away the bulk of my fabric stash as well. So, then I got the bright idea to get in to creating monthly menu plans, wanted to dress them up a little, so wanted to get in to stamping. Even became a Stampin Up demonstrator (huge mistake - too many quotas) and that led to scrapbooking. I admit, my very favorite thing to do is embossing. Just love to see the design and color pop, literally as it heats. At any rate, I dropped a lot of paychecks on scrapping supplies and equipment. I went to some classes, went to some crops. The last crop is when I determined that I was a total idiot when it came to figuring out what to take to a crop, I tried to take way too much of everything. I mean seriously, I would take two boxes of stamps, all my inks, embossing powders, my big case of punches, all my cutters and glues, photos as well. I think the only thing I left home was my Big Shot and Cricut (which I did take to one crop). All for what, to be snubbed. Some ladies just had their set groups and ignored everyone else, some where there and all of life is just about them and what they are doing or need to purchase, then some of them just showed up with their computer because they only do digital scrapbooking. Now, I ask you, what supplies to you need for that other than software? The classes were pricey, the projects were a state secret or something because they never gave you written directions to take home. I realized quickly that I can do the same thing at home, directions for various projects can be found on the internet or You Tube, and will end up being more productive and the best part is I can dress in my lounging attire.

Wow, had a few interruptions, helping to get daughter's waterbed filled so she can sleep in her new room tonight. She is so very excited and I while I am glad to see her happy I am just really hoping that her determination to keep it clean stays around a little bit. I mean really, is it expecting too much that a girl entering high school in the fall do a little housework? Not asking her to scrub floors with a toothbrush here, just that she get the dirty dishes from her room to the kitchen, pick up the bathroom when she is done, put away her clothes. That's all. The room still isn't finished, but all that is left is the little details. Furniture is all in place, most of the clothes, tomorrow hubby will install the shelving and she can finish moving her TV and games in there.

Read back over the posting and now I know where I was heading. LOL

After putting away the sewing, getting hooked on scrapbooking, I then put all that stuff away. And let me tell you, for a baby beginner I have a lot of stuff. Let's just say that when I dive in I dive in deep and leave it at that. Now, I have had a couple of health issues come up and have had to quit my job because, as I was informed, I have used up all my time off and it wasn't even March yet. You see, we had a family reunion to attend (which only happens every three years, had been eight since the last one, and we had already paid for it all) so needed a week then. Would need at least a week coming up when oldest daughter has the new grand son (will try to take a few days more now that I don't have to be back for work) and of course I am not going to miss that one. Just waiting for her to let us know he is here and we will head that way...19 hours one way. So, now that I am home, had gotten hooked on Facebook games and getting absolutely nothing done. At least nothing that should get done. Now, I am in a time crunch to get these bedroom make overs done because my oldest son and his wife are moving out of there apartment and they have been letting me stash a sewing cabinet I got from mom until I could get the rooms done. Oh, and did I mention that I am getting back the couch I let them have when I got my new living room furniture? It is a great couch, and I will enjoy sitting on it doing hand work this winter. Just wasn't planning on it coming back so now have to figure out how to get my dad's chair in there as well. Maybe though, I will rearrange the master bedroom and put the chair in here. Yeah, that's the ticket.

The long and short of this little novel is this, I am so ready to be done with all of this so I can actually work on something fun. I still have to peel off the wall paper, paint, shampoo that carpet and then move everything in. While I won't be able to get it all done before we have to get the stuff from the kids, if I can just get the room empty I can throw a drop cloth over the couch and paint around it. That brings me back to all the cool stuff for organizing a closet at Home Depot I found and will be getting. Not all of it is for closets, some is for laundry rooms and pantries. But the idea wheel started turning in mind and is still going. They had this set up that attaches to the what like those adjustable shelf units, you know the kind that has the little hook end support brackets you place where you want and then a wooden shelf lays on it. At any rate, there is this set up that is made of wire and has baskets that slide out like drawers. My head can see all my yarn and fabric in those. Of course my mother would hate it because you would be able to see it all still, but tough. I love momma to death and am so happy she is living in the same town with me once again. Oh, along with my health issues did I mention that I have my elderly mom living here now that depends on me more and more and I don't mind at all. For twenty years I lived in another town, the last ten of which was in another state and resulting in only being able to see her once a year. Especially after my sweet dad died. As I said, I love my mom, love all my family, but I have waited too long for this room and thank God above for moving my life to this point. So, selfish as it sounds, after being a stay at home mom for 20 plus years with four children, working full time for three years, now back at home with one child (a teenager, two children if you count hubby) I am now going to create my little hide away to create my own peace, one piece at a time. I am ready, and am determined to get my good life back.

Plan or goals. Get my room created, then get all my play things out. It will be fun finding what all I still have. Then, since it has become brutally obvious (has been for a few years, but made a bit clearer lately) that every bit of house hold chores is only going to get done by me I am going to purge the fat from this house. All the clothes that don't get worn, all books that are already read and reread, all the clutter that lays around waiting to be picked up for months on end, it is all leaving. I want to have a huge yard sale, but now that it is so close to time for the baby to come, it is looking like it may be September for I can have one. But that may be a good time around here for all I have to get rid of. Another goal is to actually get in to the habit of creating and using menu plans, doing big cooking sessions once a month or so for the freezer to have some dinners ready to go. Honestly, planning the menus will save us a lot of money. I did this in the past, it worked very well, and now that there is only three of us instead of six of us, I think it will work even better. Also, I want to get all the Christmas gifts made, Christmas cards made and addressed, then spend some time working on PIGS (projects in grocery sacks) of which I have an over abundance of. I don't think I will get in nearly as many swaps as I previously have, but will always do a few. One other thing I am really looking forward to is having room to get set back up for machine embroidery. I hope to have my mom's shirt made for her birthday in October. She is now in the Red Hat Society and I found a purple shirt and some embroidery designs to make her an embroidered shirt to wear to her meetings. I also hope to finish the scrapbook album I started for her...three years ago...it was to be a Mother's Day gift.

Almost forgot, have to add something about the new green craze. I am not a green person, but I am a person that believes in using something up until it can't be used anymore. I recently found out that some ladies were using up plastic grocery sacks to crochet in to mats and just have to do it. I have a ton of bags and am always bringing home more from groceries. So, I figure why not? Then today, found the neatest article about recycling old t-shirts in yarn to crochet. I have cut so many ones up for rags it is pitiful. While they are great dust rags, they are just not very absorbent for cleaning. Although, I did come across a pattern for crocheting a Swiffer type duster that can just be thrown in the wash and thinking that it would be the perfect thing to crochet out of old t-shirts. Trust me, I am always looking for new uses for an item before tossing it.

Well, I am off soak in a tub. My back is screaming at me for spending the last few days painting, moving furniture, and sewing and ironing today. However, that little voice inside me is screaming way louder to get it done so I can make something. Ah yes, some nice soft fabric, a great quilt pattern in mind, History Channel and Law and Orders on the TV, big bag of skittles, and my Dallas Cowboy mug of ice water and I am set. I will have to do one little project of scrapping first, going to pull out the Cricut and cut out my daughter's name to attach to her wall, of her new room of course. Yeah I know, I will have to take a break from my happy projects to do the boring things like go to the gym, clean the house, cook the meals, but hey, I am going to be so organized it will almost do itself. If I don't get stuck on my farm or in the frontier. LOL

Dreaming

I have spent the past few hours pouring over images of various sewing rooms, craft rooms, scrapbooking rooms for ideas of how I want to set mine up. I am both overwhelmed and elated at the prospect of finally having a sewing room again. I haven't had one since we lived in Texas, before my youngest daughter was born. There I had a whole room and bathroom that originally was a two car garage and had been converted by the previous owners. Of course it ended up turning in to a storage/junk room. Then we turned it in to our oldest daughter's bedroom so youngest daughter could go in to a room. You see, since we had a 15 year gap between the two girls, and since we had room, we didn't want a high schooler sleeping with a newborn. LOL

At any rate, I am so ready to start the work on the two bedrooms and not really sure where to start. One room is now empty due to son moving out. However, he left behind a ton of stuff that needs to be dealt with. I have talked to him about the clothes and things left, he has said he has gotten all he wants, so deal with it all I will. I may even make a little money off of all of this mess.

It will be slower going than anticipated since I recently was told that anything done would be done by me. But, I am not helpless, do have some experience with minor carpenter work, and of course I do know how to google the information I need as well. So the experience will begin.

Tomorrow I will get started on going through more clothes, purging as much to the trash as I can, and then get the room ready to paint. We have family arriving tomorrow, beach trip on Sunday, then a week of family reunion so will be camping for that. I hope to have the empty room painted, new carpet in, and youngest daughter moved in before the new grand baby arrives. We will be taking a trip to meet him of course. Then, after the first room is done, it will be time to start on the second room. New paint and wood floor in there as I think it will be much easier to clean up from sewing and scrapbooking. I will then get all my supplies and machines moved in there and set up. I am really hoping to be able to have it all ready so I can make a few clothes for my daughter and I for fall, new quilt and some clothes for new grand baby then have the rest of the year to work on Christmas gifts. I have determined quite to my sadness that it will be necessary to find part time work unless I can figure out something else. It is also quite clear that I am unable to handle full time employment due to health issues. So, like so many other people, I will just have to suck it up and make the best of it.

So there you have it. The plans are in the works, and I am now motivated to get the new "studio" up and going as soon as I get youngest daughter all squared away in her new digs. This is going to happen. I will have a room by football season (hopefully) that I can retreat to that will house my sewing machines and supplies, crochet supplies, comfy chair, a TV, the computer and printers (have to have them in order to print photos for scrapbooking and load design card for embroidery machine), scrapbooking equipment and supplies along with also having access to my beads and embellishments for crazy quilting embroidery. My menu planning for all the meals will be done in there as well. Oh, I am giddy with anticipation.

Thanks for dropping in and please leave a comment.

Getting Started

I spent all day yesterday cleaning out kitchen pantries and feel really good about what I got accomplished. Only made it through one and a half cabinets, but the one cabinet is a converted small closet and the half of cabinet I completed is the top half of the main pantry and while isn't huge is nice size. I am upset that I had to throw so much away but found lots of expired food and those blasted brown moth's and their maggot looking babies were quite a few things as well. So, here is how the kitchen work has played out so far.

The small closet was converted by previous owner's of the home. It is actually located by the front door right across from the kitchen and am sure it was a little coat closet. I figure it is about two and half feet wide and about eighteen inches deep. There are four shelves and then the floor area. I mainly use it for extra storage of kitchen ware, not much food. One entire shelf is hubby's liquor collection. Of course, my friend Capt. Morgan, and his sidekicks amaretto, peach schnopps, raspberry liquor, and mixers are visiting there as well. For a couple that doesn't really drink much we are well stocked. Hubby likes a good margarita but I found that I have three bottles of tequila. Hmm, maybe some tequila chicken or margarita marinade is about to show up on the menu. LOL I keep my potatoes and onions in a big bowl in the bottom and yesterday when cleaning out I did however get rid of the healthy start in that bowl to homemade vodka. Man do potatoes and onion smell offensive when they melt in to mush. Some overlooked home canned goods were found underneath the fifty boxes of swifter refills. Okay, not fifty, but did count five open boxes. Two were the refills for the duster and three were boxes of the floor swiffer. I had no idea that ants were so attracted to those floor rags. I saw somewhere a pattern to make a crocheted swiffer type duster that goes on the handles and then you just toss it in the washer. I kept a copy of that somewhere and it is going to be one of my first projects when I get my little craft room up and going. Other than that, the cabinet mainly has baking supplies. You know, foil pans in all sizes, a box of chocolate chips, paper goods and lots of empty storage containers. The bottom is where I keep my gizmos that I have to have to help me cook...but never use. Like the meat slicer we bought when the boys were smaller and ate us out of house and home so we bought bulk cheese and and cooked hams and breast to slice up our self. It was a huge savings, we could buy a five pound block of cheese for about what one pound sliced from the deli cost. I would slice off part of it, grate a big bag full, then cut the left overs in to cubes for snacking. Now it is just the three of us, and most times just one or two for a meal. And, of course there is the big griddle, canning supplies, and the rice cooker. Although, I quit using the rice cooker because it just didn't seem to make enough, so it might get brought out again. Found a recipe yesterday that uses the rice cooker to make oatmeal and am going to try that one out for sure. I also have a two foot high, literally, stack of assorted Jell-o molds. There is a flag for patriotic holidays (never used), mold to make jiggler jelly beans (used a little), eggs (used a lot) and then the cars, footballs, Christmas shapes (never used) and for a lark when I was involved in a frog themed dinner there are some little frog molds as well and two molds to make what looks like a bundt cake or ring of Christmas trees. At least now I can see it all. Hubby was impressed so we just won't mention the three shelves in the garage that have baking sheets, enamel water canner (huge), roasters, canning pans, shaved ice maker, ice cream maker, pressure cookers (one large for canning and two small for cooking) pasta maker, coffee makers not used any more and the food sealer (which needs to be moved to the house because we use it a lot). Oh, and I just put an electric orange juicer out there too. That is left over from when we would go to the coast for the day and come home with a twenty pound box of juice oranges for $4. I would juice them and freeze the juice.

I am a gadget junky. Along with all I already mentioned, there is also a deep fryer, electric skillet, milk shake maker (won it at some picnic) blender, food processor, hand mixer, the thing you stick in a cup or bowl that blends, about five different crockpots (various sizes and shapes) and of course my bread machine that also makes butter. I found something yesterday that resembled what only a ninja warrior would carry, one twist and a zigzag of sharp blades would come out and cut what ever you had sticking in it. I tossed it. LOL

As for the actual pantry of food stuffs? I got the top half done and now know that I have seven cans of cream of celery soup (for example) to use in a recipe. This where I was very wasteful and threw so much out. Found jars of miracle whip that expired in 2008. It may have still been perfectly fine, but just wasn't willing to risk being sick or making my family sick. Same with all the cans and jars that had expiration dates. I am for sure going to keep a better eye on what I have and make sure to use it. I also put the items back in the cabinet and stacked the older ones in front so would use them first, putting like items together. Now all my green beans are with green beans in the same spot, corn together, peaches, and such. It is only half the cabinet, or all the canned goods, but I am seeing that pretty much all I need is some meat. Even found four cans of chilies in adobo sauce that I had on my list to buy because they were used in a recipe I saw on TV.

Now for the bottom half, which should go a little quicker. Mainly baking mixes, flour, sugar, cereal and such. What I call the boxed goods as opposed to the can. I know that when I get done with all of that I will be well stocked in that area as well. My goal is to get through the bottom section and then finally go through my spice cabinet. A little small cabinet by the stove, but loaded with spices and flavorings. I have been writing everything down as it goes back in to the pantry so I know what I have on hand and will probably spend tomorrow entering it in to my MasterCook program. From there I can enter recipes, create menu plans from the recipes, then create a shopping list which will check my pantry list to see if I already have it. Great help for the goal of organizing the meals. Only draw back... if you have five recipes that call for milk, it will list five milks on you grocery list. LOL I am thinking that when I plan my menus, I need to start trying some pressure cooker recipes along with at least twice a month try some new ingredient, like the chilies in adobo sauce, or a new vegetable or fruit.

Oh well, enough talking, I need to go to Facebook and check over my farms then back at it in the kitchen. I still have a cabinet full of pans that needs to be cleaned out as well and am hoping that Monday I will able to start on clearing out the vacant room so we can start painting. Here is the plan for that. Oldest son has moved out. That bedroom is going to be cleared, cleaned, painted, new carpet, and youngest daughter moved in to it. Then, her room will be vacant. That room will be cleared, cleaned, painted and new floor. Hope to get wood flooring down in there as it will become the craft den. I will move my computer in there, need it to load designs on card for machine embroidery. I will set up all my sewing machines and move in all my supplies for quilting, sewing, crocheting, machine embroidery and scrapbooking. My daughter and I will hang out in there. I even saved my dad's recliner to put in there and will sit in it, think of him, and do the hand work. I see my crazy quilting coming back to life. Oh yeah, of course there will be a TV in there as well. LOL I AM SO EXCITED just thinking about it. I can sew til all hours with worrying about the light or sound interrupting any one's (mainly hubby who seems to have to go to bed by nine) sleep. Although he snores like a chain saw, I am told I keep him from getting a restful sleep. I am thinking I may have to find a dressmaker's mannequin now that I will finally be able to make some clothes. Of course quilting will be first, and am very motivated to get it all set up so I can make new grand baby a quilt. Now that I am not working, I think it will probably be a homemade Christmas all around. LOL Hmm, wonder if daughter would accept some handmade infant wear?

Well off to other things. Will post my progress when I have any. Thanks for visiting.