New Journal!

So here it is. My new journal. I constructed it like all the ones in my shop. It's about 5x7. Has assorted paper inside and is held together by two binder rings so I can add and rearrange pages as needed!

It has about 30 pages in it so 60 front and back. I figure if I write almost everyday it'll be full in about three months. Which would make it sort of seasonal! Though I was drawn to quiet understated earth tones. But who knows what the pages will look like after my "journaling" Which always includes Tape. Embellishments. Photos and other Goodies.

P.S. Don't you just love that Orange paper with the Glass Bottles?!?!?!  LOVE!

I still haven't decided what I want on the front though. So I'm leaving it blank for now!!! I know it will end up just how I want it eventually.

P. S.

Have I mentioned lately how in love I am with my instant camera? I find myself getting better and better at catching neat shots with it. And I love that it spits out a picture and into my journal it can go!!! So handy.

Something I LOVE

I LOVE to make things for other people.  I love digging through my goodies and finding just the perfect items to add to any project that make it unique and customized for that special recipient.  I guess it makes since.  I have ALWAYS loved buying and giving gifts.  I love the hunt and getting that special something.  I just love creating beautiful things for special people.  If anyone who reads my lil old Blog, and I know you are few!  If anyone is ever interested in a customized journal please message me!  No extra charge for custom work, so depending on the amount of pages pricing would still be between $16 and $20!  Plus the Summer discount! But if anyone wants a particular theme, or color scheme I would love to whip something up.  I'm just about finished making my own little book and now I am itching to make some more!  Have a Happy Wednesday, its back to the grind for me...

Just Passing Through

To announce a Summer Sale!!! All of the items in my Shop are 25% off with the coupon code Summer at checkout! ENJOY!

And Now For Some Updates

I have too many projects going on!!! Let's see. Firstly. My no pattern random stitch rainbow blanket is further along than I expected! It's about six feet tall now... Which was an accident and it's over a foot wide! I think this means the stripes will end up vertical versus my original horizontal.

I have yet to really start my postcard journals. But I've been thinking about them!!! I've also been pawing through my collection and coming up with a few themes.

I still haven't posted those little blank sewn albums in the shop yet. I just haven't had the time or drive to... Jury Duty took a lot out of me emotionally and while I thoroughly enjoyed it I wasn't expecting the emotional ramifications of the last three weeks.

Because of this I am going to make myself a new journal. The one I'm using currently just doesn't fit my mindstate right now and I think in this I've discovered another important personal requirement of my journals to make them work. While I love the idea of an epically thick journal that spans many years. I think I would prefer a smaller one that I could actually fill and complete in a few months. I think I need that closure and since of accomplishment. I also think that esthetically I need a change ever so often. Katie at Gadanke and Making This Home I think has the right idea. Smaller journals and often themed journals for specific types of entries.

So here we go again. I'll post pictures of my new journal hopefully later today. Tomorrow it's back to the real world for me. And I'm not sure I'm happy about it... At my day job I don't get a sense of accomplishment or of doing anything for the greater good of someone else...

This was supposed to be a cheery post!!! Oops!

On a Cheerier Note!

I tell you not even six hours after that post about a lovely little tutorial that will help me share my plethora of postcards while allowing myself to make more journals I received in the mail 100 more postcards!!!

My dear friends Erin and Max who recently got married and moved to Maryland whom I made a wedding album for bought me a thank you gift!!! It's a box set of 100 NewYorker postcards how neat!!!

Justice Was Not Had...

Today my life changed. I felt I put in a great amount of work and effort into a worthy task and was denied the result I so furiously wanted, one that was RIGHT and was deserved. I feel let down, tired. Like these last three weeks went wasted. All I can console myself with is the thought that fate must have a better design.


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Inspiration!

My favorite thing to do in the mornings when I have time and the rest of my family is still snoozing away and I've opened all the windows to let the chilly morning air seep in  is sit down at my husbands computer, poor myself a big cold glass of tea and catch up on reading some of my favorite Blogs.  I find it so comforting, relaxing and inspiring!!!  I always come away with at least three new things I want to try or make or cook or attempt.

I sadly haven't had much of a chance theses last few weeks to be very crafty!!!  So while doing my favorite thing this cool summer quiet morning I came across a GREAT idea.  Did I tell you I own a million postcards?  I'm sure I did on my Lil Old Blog.  OK, maybe not a million but LITERALLY a thousand.  I counted once.  You see it's these darn boxes of 100 themed postcards that you can get for what boils down to be like four cents a postcard!  You can find them on Amazon, and yes over the years iv'e purchased a few...

Well, now I have something fun and crafty to do with them!!!  I was catching up with one of my favorite Blogs A Beautiful Mess when I came across a Guest Tutorial Post by Kara from I Just Might Explode.  This is the thing I love about Blogs, getting to not only learn new things but "meet" new people.  Kara's Blog is well worth taking a look at!  I think it's going to be a new favorite.  Any who, her guest post was about making postcards into travel journals, and you KNOW how much I love to make journals!  And I get to use Washi tape!  I think I am going to hunker down for a fair part of this weekend and whip some of these up.  You really should check out the tutorial!!!  They are fun and super easy, look great and Kara has even been nice enough to include an Etsy shop link for those who don't already own postcards and would prefer vintage over new.

Happy Weekend!!!

Finally!

A photogenic snail. Lol. Isn't this the prettiest little snail you ever did see?

And on to other news I am STILL fulfilling my civic duty. Today is supposed to be the last day. But I am pretty sure we will be there through Monday as well.

Does anyone have any fantastic weekend plans?! Tonight is date night for me and the hubby. A very rare occasion. So we're going to go see Men In Black 3! I loved the first two when I was younger so this should be a pretty entertaining evening. Cheers!!!

It's Finished!

I have officially completed my friends Erin and Max's Wedding Album! These are the types of things I absolutely love to make as gifts. This happens to be the third one I've made over the years for close friends. You should see the three measly pages that showcase my wedding seven years ago in my basic all encompassing first scrap book. I've come a long way! But part of my wedding scrapbooks charm is in the simplicity in which I made it in. My crafting skills weren't what they are now. And every time I make another one it seems to get better and better!

For this one I used all pictures that I took while at the wedding (I LOVED playing the part of photographer). I incorporated Washi tape (of course), my favorite love poems and bits and pieces of other things like homemade stickers, ephemera and buttons! Oh! And some prompts from Smash Stacks that they have to fill in with their own answers.

I hope my good friends love their gift!!! I am sooo honored that I got to make it for them. Truly this is what I LOVE to do with my spare time.

Here are a few snap shots. I didn't want to share everything just in case they read this before the mailman gets to their house!!!















- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

I Can't Draw!

Seriously. I can't. I've also never really taken an art class... Strange I know. So. Remember that Elevated Envelope Exchange?! Well I finished my envelopes!!! I had already hand folded them. But I didn't know what to put on the outside... I was thinking water coloring some flowers. But I noticed that I didn't like how they were turning out and that the first two envelopes people had sent in we're just that. Water colored flowers. And they were gorgeous!!!

So I decided to do something else. I have no clue where the idea came from. But I chose ten old stamps from my stamp collection and decided to adhere them to the envelope and then re create their artwork stick figure style! (which is all I can draw, really!). And golly I think they turned out swell. Lol.

Happy!

Fathers Day! I hope everyone has a fun and wonderful Sunday! I have one more week of Jury Duty. Which by the way has been so fun! I wish I could be a professional juror. I'm learning so much and my days are a lot shorter than they are at my day job. We keep being told were a fun jury. I think it's because we all knew we would be stuck with eachother for three weeks and we can't talk about the case, so we're forceded to chat about ourselves. I've been hanging out with women old enough to be my mother or grandmother. And it has been so fun! I'm an old soul.Here are a few random pictures from my random week.

I received my last Twilight Card.

And I am going to make this blanket, isn't it Glorious?  Debra over at A Little Imagination and a Pile of Junk whipped this up. She calls it a random stitch crochet blanket. I think I'm in love. Every row or so you switch yarns and stitches. There's no pattern to follow or any rules. Which is great because I love to crochet but I get bored and end up leaving the blanket only a few rows in... So this suits me just fine!!! I think I'm going to go yarn shopping...

And finally some Washi Tape! (hello my name is Sara and I am addicted to Washi tape...)

Cheers!

I Love Mail

And thanks to my Etsy binge... And my Twilight Mom Card Exchange this month and the Elevated Envelope swap I'm expecting a lot of fun happiness to grace my mailbox!!! So far I've received two cards. And the bracelet I received is amazing!!!

June Gloom

I love June Gloom! Though it always falsely has me dreaming of an early Fall... I love the chill in the air. The ocean moistness that rolls in and stays for most of the day. I love the sort of wetness that clings to the foliage. The freshness in the air. I just love everything!!! All I need to make this June Gloom perfect is a lake house with a porch, lap blanket and a book!!! Ahhh. Heaven.

Does Any One Else Ever...

Go on at Etsy binge?! Haha. I do... Sometimes I just can't help myself! Why does everything have to be so colorful and tempting. I have So many crafty ideas running through my head that I can't seem to pin any one thing down that I want to start.

There are the album kits I want to put together. The Fall and Christmas journals. The Wedding Album for my friend Erin that is halfway to
Happy completion... Not to mention all of my personal journaling goals! I want to try incorporating memories into my everyday journal and I haven't figured out how as of yet... Is anyone else's brain as craftily muddled as mine?! Well at least it's enjoyable. Cheers!!!

Out Going Mail!

Today I've been a bit under the weather... But I committed to a Twilight Moms Card Exchange and I can't let my recipients down! So here is what I am sending out. Each little envelope has a little mini journal and a card in it. I think the envelopes came out fantastic! And they were super easy to make. That is all!

Journal Snap Shots

Here are few of my recent journal pages. I am still LOVING this journal. It makes keeping a journal so easy for me! And on the few occasions visually when I didn't like something it is so easy to just lay some paper over what I don't like and give it a second go. There isn't any fear of having to be perfect or ruining anything. It's just about chronically the moments. And I love it.

Hello There!

Gosh these last few days have been busy! Yesterday I attended a wedding for two great friends and had a blast. It was a whirl wind of a day that included me being a photographer, hair dresser, dress safety agent, Asian tourist bathroom wrangler, changing room attendant and traffic stopper. I had SO much fun. I got to stick close to the couple all day and help out whenever I could. Did I mention I also got to eat the best guacamole on the planet?!

Any who it was a fun and exhausting day. Now comes the really fun part for me. The gift making! I'm going to put something together using the photos I took throughout the day. I'll probably take some photos of the process and post them here. It's what I LOVE to do!

Envelopes Made

And ready to water color!!! I folded up these missive carriers out of paper that is suitable for watercoloring. I plan on using my water color field kit these next two weeks to get these ready for the envelope exchange I am participating in over at the Elevated Envelope!!! I hope it's fun. We have six whole weeks to get ready and I feel like that's a lot of time for people to forget... But oh well. I'll still have fun painting these. And I just HAD to use a little bit of Washi tape...

It's a Lovely Day

To eat lunch outside the courthouse. Day One and I am enjoying fulfilling my Civic Duty. Especially because I can eat lunch outside surrounded by beauty and I have enough time for a quick bite and some painting! Ok. So I am the first to admit that I am by no means an artist. I am a crafter. And I'm OK with that.

I brought my water color field kit with me today and one of my purchased Smash Books. I'll admit I don't keep the book as you are intended... Instead I use all of the lovely paper for various other crafty endeavors. (did I mention I'm a paper lover?!) While I LOVE the idea of a smash book I find the brand name ones too lovely and neat. They give me that " I don't want to ruin a pretty perfect page with my slop" anxiety. So my daily journal is still a smash book of sorts made by yours truly.

I've spent the last hour lazily sloping water colors onto a page. It's been quite relaxing and fun. Who knows what I'll use it for. But that's not really important. Just the moment of quiet mindless engulfing color is.

I think I like Jury Duty... Cheers!

I Am Pretty Sure

I just landed myself on a Jury... Oh well. Here's to fulfilling my Civic Duty! I am definitely going to have to bring some little crafty things to do on our long lunch breaks. It is so gorgeous outside in the courthouses little courtyard! I think my journal and some Washi tape are going to be making their way into my bag. And probably my water color field kit!!!