Outta My Way! I’m Going Shopping

The corner of 119^th Street and Metcalf Ave (69 Hwy) in Overland Park, KS. is a crafter’s paradise – there is Walmart, Joann’s and Salvation Army on one side. Directly across Metcalf is Archivers and Hobby Lobby. And across from Archivers is Michael’s. Now (I’m thinking to myself), be sure to grab your shopping list, D, and coupons before heading out the door and hit the clearance aisle before leaving the stores. I’m looking to get my craftin’ fix before long. Yippee, can’t wait!

I was checking out the clearance aisle at one of the stores, when I literally bumped into a nice lady looking at a die cut and I opened the conversation with “Are you a frugal crafter too?” *smile* She said yes and she  was buying clearanced fabric for her new resale shop, which, of course, piqued my interest being the frugal crafter that I am. So here’s my shameless plug for her new 3 story shop, full of furniture at the moment,  which, by the way, isn’t open yet, but hopefully will be soon (she’s supposed to let me know). It’s to be called “The Glittery Goose” and will be down by KU Med hospital on  W. 39^th street in the artsy part of Kansas City.

I was over at Lindsay’s blog (another Frugal Crafter) and spotted a new gadget by Inkadinkado I just have to have. I didn’t have a coupon with me and it wasn’t on sale at Hobby Lobby. Lindsay has the round one, but I saw an oval one also. Just be warned though – all the pieces come separately, so it’s gonna have to go on sale down 40% or more before I’d even consider it. The other thing I was thinking about is how can I make my own? I’m going to have to put my thinking cap on -- ah, ha! I have an idea for my stamping jig, but will it be feasible to make? Will have to play and experiment and twist my hubbin’s arm a teensie bit to get him to help me make it. But if I go that way, will it be cost effective?, because I’d have to buy something in order to make it. Ah, the condumdrum of making do versa frugal shopping.

Postscript = I never got my own version of Inkadinkado's stamping gear made, but here it is two years later and while my husband was waiting for me to come out of that necessary room in the back of Joann's, he poked around in the clearance aisle and found nearly the whole set of gears on clearance for $1.00 apiece. Woo hoo! I guess the old saying is true about good things come to those that wait!

Security Envelope Paper Backgrounds

These three cards were also made with security envelope paper. The light bulb paper came FREE wrapped around an electric company bill. Reminded me of those Posh Impression pear stamps I had in my stash. All the other stamps are also by Posh Impressions.

By Dolores J. Rush

Wishing You Well
 

Instructions:

1. Cut out black & white cardstock and strips of black & white security envelopes. Attach strips to white layer, then attach white layer to black.

2. Stamp sentiment on top white space with black dye ink. Stamp apple duet on white cardstock, cut out and layer on red cardstock. Attach apple & small ribbon bow to card.

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Fabulous!

Instructions:

1. A2 Card, punch holes along bottom edge. Layer a piece of electric company's security envelope over black cardstock & attach.

2. Stamp pear outlines from duet on white cardstock with black dye ink. Ink up brayer with Memories Soft Stone and roll over outline of pear. Lightly sponge black dye ink with dampened sea sponge, then cut out. Lightly color in pears with the lightest color of pastel brush markers you have (Stampin' Up). Then, with finger, spread Plaid's Treasure Gold to highlight pear. Attach pear to card.

3. Stamp sentiment, cut out and color edges with soft stone. Attach to card with popdots and add three brass brads.
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Celebrate!

Instructions:

1. A2 Card. Layer a piece of olive green security envelope over black cardstock & attach.

2. Stamp watermelon outline from duet on white cardstock with black dye ink. Ink up brayer with Memories Soft Stone and roll over outline of melon. Lightly sponge black dye ink with dampened sea sponge, then cut out. Lightly color in watermelon with the lightest color of pastel brush markers you have (Stampin' Up). Then, with finger, spread Plaid's Treasure Gold to highlight melon. Attach melon to card.

3. Stamp sentiment, cut out and color edges with soft stone. Layer to more of the security envelope background & trim. Attach to card with popdots and add three brass brads.

4. Stamp 6 stars in pale pink and lime green, outline with matching fine line markers Cut out and attach to card. Draw curvy lines from watermelon to stars and around security envelope layer to finish.

My First Signature Sewn Notebook

How many of you retired homeschooling moms keep up with friends you made in your homeschooling support group? Some of us have moved, some have continued teaching in other venues, but for the most part, we have stayed in touch with each other. We all learned how to not only teach our children together, but supported each other with prayers and hugs through hard times and rejoiced together when our children finally made it through high school! As a social activity, we moms rubber stamped when our children got together for family game night once a month. Those were some good times!

Yesterday, a group of us had lunch together at Trisha’s house and Julie showed us how to make notebooks. Julie cut 8.5 x 11 sheets of copy weight paper in half and we folded each half in half again width-wise, stacking six sheets together, fold to fold, in what’s called a “signature.” My little notebook consists of four such “signatures.” Then she showed us how to make templates for the holes (designate the top of the template—very important) and use, what she called a “pokey hole tool” (her fancy name for a piercing awl *smile*) and an open telephone book to make the holes in the center of the folds. Of course, mine was skewed off-center on a couple of the signatures, but I got better on the last two. Then we sewed the signatures together into one little notebook. She used pre-waxed linen bookmaker’s thread, but she said we could also use thin nylon cording, waxed crochet thread (make our own by pulling a thread over a cake of tailors wax), or dental floss. Being as how this is my first sewn book project, my seams aren’t very tight, so there are gaps between each of the signatures, but I was assured that the right tension comes with practice!

The cover is a 12 x 12 inch piece of scrapbook paper cut to size. It’s cute paper, but not very flexible.  The spine cracked when I scored it, so then I had to cut it completely apart and start over. I also misjudged the spacing of the double faced tape on the inside covers to attach the outside sheets of the first and last signatures. Julie said that talcum powder dusted across the tape would remove the stickiness. She was making a scribble notebook for her grand-daughter. I thought I would add a couple of eyelets to the back cover vertically along the open side with a piece of elastic to wrap around the front as a closure for the notebook like the commercial ones I’ve purchased from Walmart.

Now here’s a project I can sink my teeth into – Karen made her notebook signatures from paper printed on one side and covered tissue box tagboard pieces with brown parchment paper for her cover. These could be made as small gifts using brown grocery bags, cotton fabric, newspaper comics, or gift wrappers glued to tagboard or cardboard also for the covers. I think it’s time to make out my Christmas list! *smile*