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| Not as messy as it looks! |
I found a big stock of white tissue paper that I've probably had for a long time, and decided to cover all those little boxes I saved from Christmas. Each time someone got a small technology gift or something else with a clever box, I grabbed it and so this week was the time to either cover them, paint them, or toss them.
I decided to spray paint the tissue paper until it was soggy, then let it dry overnight. I cut or ripped it up into pieces and using ModPodge, covered all the little boxes I could find. For now, I just have them stacked around the studio (space is still at a premium) until I decide to use them as containers.
Even with labels, I have trouble finding things that are not in clear containers, so I'm not sure yet how I will use them. Some will hold finished greeting cards, some will be shipped off with craft packs I am making up, and some will stay around just for decoration.
While I was on my ModPodging projects, I covered a cheap wood frame that I had bought years ago for a future project, so that I could display the photo of my little doggies, both of whom passed away from old age within the last several years. They were my studio companions for a long time and just recently I decided to get another little friend and adopted a Mini-Aussie rescue, a 7-year-old female named Lady. She is what is called a "velcro-dog" so she stays with me every minute. I need that. It gives me someone to talk to besides myself as I work.
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| Lady, my Mini-Aussie |
It is hard to organize things without getting distracted ... there's a diorama kind of thing I started a long time ago, and now have ideas how to finish; there's another frame to cover; there's some new spray paints I got from Lindy's Stamp Gang that I had never tried; there are others I don't like much that I'd just like to use up... but whenever I get diverted into "making stuff" I get further behind in the organizing mode.
On that topic, I found that the Lindy's sprays just kind of spurt... and I got ink all over myself. So having a large quantity of spray bottles on hand that I bought once from eNasco, I transferred the ink to them. (Maybe it's just my particular package, but I really am disappointed in them and won't buy them again.)
I installed some hooks for a dowel so I could put all my ribbons in order. I finally finished the 2015 art journal that is now ready for binding. I read the other blogs every morning and get even more ideas and that too, gets me off on another tangent!
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| Ribbons on dowel, hooked to shelf. See the shower curtain hooks in the photo? |
I use a lot of shower curtain hooks (cheap, about $1 or so at lots of places) to hang supplies wherever I can. I see all the craft room pictures on Pinterest and am amazed at the space people seem to have. I know that I am fortunate to have a 240 square foot studio just devoted to my toys, but I have NO wall space for the cubes I see in photos, or even more bookcases or drawers. I installed a few new shelves and am eliminating as much wasted space as I can, but I have learned that if I put things away, I will forget to use them. That's why I have so much "stuff."
I bought the Fuse and the little Heidi Swapp Minc foiling/laminator machine this month. Both are helping me finish the albums I need to complete, which starts me on a rekindled desire to make more mini-albums. The Fuse helps to seal up little packs of sequins so that I can see them through my plexiglass table top. And I filled a few little jars with glycerin and sequins just to look at or give away. And the foil looks great added to my parchment projects. Of course now I'm looking for a toner pen that seems to be out of stock everywhere!
Valentine's Day... Are you ready?
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| Parchment with gold foil. |
Speaking of Valentine's Day, don't forget to order your embossing templates now!
Moving on....
I built a folding screen for the studio to block out the sight of the painting area when I'm not painting, and have had trouble covering it the way I want to; I used Contac paper and stapled it to the frame, but the edges don't please me, so next is to add white Duck tape to all the edges. I am tempted to spray colors of paint on it, but I know the blank surface is really what I needed to break up the view of "stuff."
And on top of all that, my new KNK Force arrived on Friday, so I have devoted time to getting that set up, and putting my KNK Zing Air on Amazon for sale. The Force is a brand new type of cutter that can engrave and cut things the other cutters can't, so I know that means I will be making more stencils, templates, and engraving all the metal tags I have left over from my laser engraving business. In addition, I have more woodworking projects in mind...
My idea is to gradually use up all the materials I have on hand, thus the idea of creating craft packs for senior centers, or maybe even for sale, because there's no way I have enough time left in my lifetime to use everything myself. And I refuse to trash things that can be used by somebody!
Time to get to the studio and get busy!
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