Storage Solutions: Ribbon

Hi there! I kind of took too long, but I'm here :-) And in this post I want to share with you the storage solution I found for all my ribbon.
It's a good thing I don't have a huge collection of ribbon. Still, before, they were all dumped into one of those plastic storage drawer-type-things. I don't have to elaborate on what a mess that would've been! So I definitely needed a better, more practical solution to store them.
I had a couple of ideas in mind - putting them on a dowel, or keeping them in baskets or something so they also double as pretty display pieces, etc. All that flew out of the window when I thought about my toddler unrolling yards of ribbon all over the room! So they had to be stored somewhere where she couldn't lay her tiny little hands on them. And then I found this brilliant idea on the internet. It is simple and works perfectly for me as I don't have a lot of ribbon.

I cut 2x3-inch rectangles from card stock. Then I punched half a circle on either of the short sides with my small circle punch, and there you have it - a cute little ribbon holder! So simple! I did spend a lot of time taking all the ribbon from the original packaging and wrapping them onto the cards, but it was worth it. I used inexpensive rubber bands to secure the ends. Now all my ribbon is neatly contained in one big box. I love being able to see all my ribbon when choosing something for a project. I also made a few extra holders so they're all ready for any new ribbon that I buy. And when there isn't any room in this box, I'll simply get another box. I love easy, practical solutions like this one!

So, that's pretty much what I have to share in terms of storage solutions. Rest of the bits -

• Ink pads: I have them all in one drawer (I don't have too many)
• Adhesives: Again, in one drawer
• Punches: I have them on the Ikea rails

Hopefully, I'll be able to do the big reveal of my craft room soon :-) I'll also attempt making a video tour.

Until then, happy crafting!

Storage Solutions: Stamps

'Hello!' on a beautiful autumn day here in Sydney! The sun is out and the birds are tweeting, and it's just the right amount of 'cold' for a nice hot cup of coffee :-)

This is the second post in the Storage Solutions Series. The first was all about paper & card stock. Today, I want to share with you my storage ideas for stamps.

My love obsession for stamps goes way back! My first set of stamps ever were from Stampin' Up! It didn't take me too long to figure out I preferred clear stamps over rubber stamps. I like the simple idea of being able to see exactly where I'm stamping. I'm not too good with precision and hate it when images end up being stamped off-centered. (I keep thinking I should get one of those Stamp-a-ma-jigs) Anyway, over the years, I've collected quite a few stamps - not too many rubber stamps, tons of clear stamps. I've always struggled with keeping them neatly organised and easily accessible.

Clear Stamps: I started by putting them into page protectors that were filed into one enormous binder. But I hated the way everything sagged and looked messy. Then, I backed the page protectors with A4 size card stock, which did make things slightly better, but I still wasn't happy. This isn't such a bad storage idea - if you find the right sized binder and decent, sturdy pockets to hold everything. But somehow, it wasn't working for me.

Then last year, I organised them into categories -

• Alphabet
• Sentiments
• Patterns/Backgrounds
• Birthday
• Holidays
• Baby
• Girly
• Boy/Man
• Cute Mini Stamps
• General Sets

I got clear plastic containers, one for each of these categories and labelled all the boxes. It wasn't a bad idea, but I did face a couple of issues with it: A. The boxes were taking up too much space, B. some of the stamp sets didn't fit into the boxes, so I had to trim them to size; which meant I had to take them off the original packaging. Somehow, I still wasn't convinced it was the best solution.

Now I have them in clear filing cases/folders - the ones with zippers. I still have them in the categories, which makes everything easily accessible and doesn't take up too much room. I got mine at Daiso and I got them in B5 size, so everything fits in there in the original packaging. They hold everything quite comfortably, with enough room for more, knowing my obsession for stamps :-) For some reason, the labels from my label maker wouldn't stick onto them, they kept falling off! So then I just took a black Sharpie and wrote on the folders, problem solved! I have them standing up neatly on the Expedit units and I'm a happy crafter :-)

Rubber Stamps: I don't really have too many of these, well, not as many as my clear stamps. Before, I had them all dumped into two small drawers, which meant I had to rummage through everything to find a particular stamp. But now, I'm lucky enough to have three dedicated drawers for all of my rubber stamps. I love the drawer inserts we got for the Expedit unit.I've put all the stamps face down, so I can see every stamp at a glance. That way, hopefully I'll be motivated to use them more often. And yes, I really need to get the Stamp-a-ma-jig :-)

So, my dear crafty friends, that's how I have my stamps organised. How have you organised yours? Drop a line here...would love to know :-)

In my next post, I'll show you how I organised my ribbon.

Until then, happy crafting!

Storage Solutions: Paper & Card Stock

Hiya!

As promised, I will be sharing all my organising and storage ideas in my craft room. I thought I'd start with paper & card stock.
This & this will tell you about my journey so far...

**Edited to add: This has actually ended up being one super long post! I realised I'd actually rambled quite a bit! So, if you'd rather get straight to the important bits, then please just scroll down until you find some text in blue and read starting there. On the other hand, if you're up for some virtual (one-sided) chat with a girlfriend, then sit back and read it all, maybe with some coffee? :-)**

I'm a paper hoarder (actually I think all we paper crafters are big time paper hoarders!) and this is kind of an important area for me. It's always been a problem area for me, to be honest. Back when we used to live in a two-bedder, I had crammed all my craft supplies into the closet in the spare bedroom. I had these canvas hanging shelf thingies from Ikea and had stacked all my paper and card stock on one of them. It got to a point where the cubby holes started sagging and everything was just one big mess. I hated looking at it! Well, not as much as I hated the state of my paper and card stock in the study in our new home before the big transformation! You see, on a mini organising whimsy I went and got a couple of those bog-standard white storage cubes. I didn't even think for a second if the cubby holes were deep enough for my 12x12 patterned paper and card stock to fit. I think I'll safely blame it on baby-brain, I was heavily pregnant at the time :-) So when we got home and found out that the paper wouldn't fit, hubby gave me a big fat "Oh, you didn't do your research" look. But there was no way he was going through all the trouble to return them or buy more stuff. So, as ghastly as it sounds, all my paper and card stock sat in there, pathetically hanging off the edge of the shelves! Such an eyesore! And not to mention a potential threat of them getting wrecked. So when we decided we were going to re-organise the room, one of my big priorities was finding a practical solution for all my paper and card stock. I wanted them to be neatly organised and easy to access.

My friend (Linnie) suggested stacking them horizontally - either on storage cubes (ones that are big enough, heh!) or tucked away inside deep drawers (the Alex series from Ikea are a great, great size). I ended up getting two units of Expedit from Ikea. The cubby holes are big enough to hold 12x12 paper. While stacking paper and card stock horizontally was a great idea, I still wasn't very sure. Of course, it could work well for some people, but for me, I find it rather difficult to get to a particular sheet of paper somewhere in the middle of the stack. I'd either have to pull it out carefully (imagine the table cloth trick!) or pick up the rest of the papers on top. Also, I'm the kind who likes to flip though all my paper and muse over the patterns and colours before I pick one, so horizontal wouldn't really work for me.

The other option, of course, is storing them vertically. I had seen quite a few craft room tours on YouTube where people had stored their paper & card stock vertically in magazine holders. "Now that's a brilliant idea!", I thought. Soon I realised the magazine holders available locally weren't big enough for 12x12s. Aaargh! Then I saw the Cropper Hopper paper storage folders and thought they were great, only they were 40-something dollars a piece, and before shipping! Never mind.
Then one day, I left the kids at home with hubster and went shopping, alone. If you're a mum to two little ones, you'd know the magnitude of that sentence, LOL! There's just so much peace and quiet that your brain can actually process better :-)  And at this fun Japanese store called Daiso (where everything is $2.80, by the way!) I found some plastic bin-like things that looked a lot like the Cropper Hopper paper holders. I was so thrilled, I can't tell you! $2.80 a piece, sturdy and big enough for 12x12s?? It was like I won the Lotto! Well, almost...because I did measure them (see, brain functions more efficiently when kids aren't around) and it was a teeny-tiny bit smaller than 12 inches. Ah, never mind, they were an ugly cream-ish white colour anyway.

Then I went into a Dollar King store and after a casual look-sy around I was just about to leave when something caught my eye. There were these clear plastic bins on the lower two shelves, in the far left aisle, some place I almost never get to. They had actually used them to hold some page protectors and other stationery that were for sale. And luckily, they were for sale too. (Even if they weren't I was quite happy to negotiate with the pretty Asian lady at the checkout counter!) They were strong and big enough for my 12x12 paper, I checked :-) Now, I'd won the Lotto!

See I would never have been able to find hidden gems like these with a screaming toddler, a fussing baby in the pram and an impatient husband in tow! And at $7.50 a piece, these babies won with a big, big margin over the Cropper Hopper ones :-) (Oh yes, not a dollar. Here in Aussie not everything in a Dollar Store is $1. Makes you think why they'd name it that! Anyway.)

Them and my paper & card stock - a match made in crafters' heaven :-)
Look how they sit pretty, all snug in the cubby hole.

I got 4 of them and ALL my 12x 12 paper & card stock fit in nicely.

Next, A4 card stock. This was easy peasy. I just got a couple of magazine holders from Ikea. problem solved.

Okay, last but not the least - paper scraps. Did I say I'm a hoarder? Yep, I can't part with all those small bits of paper or card stock leftover from projects. I save them for other projects so I can get best use of all my pretty paper :-) But things were getting out of hand when I had too many of these saved bits and no organised place to put them in. For this I had a clear idea in mind. I got these B5 size clear folder cases from Daiso.

One for each colour, labelled and neatly stood up, how cool is that?
A good word of advice here, if your leftover piece is anything smaller than a 3x3 piece, chuck it in the bin. Not worth saving, only adds to bulk.

So, that was all about my paper & card stock storage. Hope I didn't bore you? Did I cover everything? If you have any specific questions please ask :-)

Next up - Stamps!

Until then, happy crafting!

Only a few steps away from my dream craft room, yippee!

Hello me Lovelies!

It is with great pleasure and utmost excitement I announce that the craft room of my dreams is ready, well a.l.m.o.s.t :-) Just adding a few bits 'n' pieces and some finishing touches, but other than that, it's already such a happy little place! I won't show you pictures just yet, 'cos I still need to set up a little crafty nook for Sia, my 2.5 year old missy, and then a comfy little play area for my little man (who's almost 8 months! Wow! Time flies or what?) Even Hubby is beaming ear to ear - he's got his own shiny new table and we had an electrician put in some much-needed extra power points. That means no more snake-like cables running all over the floor and no more of those bulky white extension cord thingies. So, yeah, lots of good things; but not quite there yet, nearly there :-)

But I thought I'd get started off with sharing what I (we) did - right from, "Alright, let's do this!", up until now. I'll pick one area, for example - paper and card stock, and share my ideas and solutions for storage. So, eventually, I'll share everything in there, but a topic a post. I'll try and cover as much as I can and if you have any specific questions, please ask. Actually, I might even make a video tour. But let's not get too ambitious, ahem!

Here are some handy tips for the 'Getting started' phase -

• Get in there! Seriously, I was scared of that room, like really, LOL! It was overwhelming. But once we took the first big step of getting in there, rolling up our sleeves and starting off, everything simply followed!
• Have large boxes/garbage bags set up, preferably in 3 main categories (or maybe 4) -

1. Chuck
2. Keep
3. Donate
4. Hmm...not sure! (be careful about this category though. It's good to have someone else with you who can help you decide. I know I can easily end up putting everything in this category, ha! A stern 'No!' from someone else really helps when you're indecisive.)

• Move everything out of the room. This was L & S's great idea and it made so much sense. It's like having a blank canvas, which is very exciting. Plus it helps to measure the room, plan layouts, etc.
• Decide on a colour scheme/theme. Actually, it's not a must, you don't have to play by the rules. You could pretty much just go for a practical space that works for you - theme or not. But having said that, a colour scheme does add an element of fun and makes everything look oh-so-pretty. Not to forget how much fun you can have shopping, looking for just the right things to put in there :-) On an important note, this could actually help you decide the colour of furniture you want to buy, assuming you're buying new stuff. If you're working with what you already have, skip this bit.
• Plan, plan, plan! Plan for every single bit, every craft supply, every item you have in there. Without a plan you'll be running around like a headless chicken, believe me. My point is, think of where and how you'd want to store your paper, stamps, tools, etc. 'A place for everything and everything in its place' - couldn't be simpler! This makes maintaining your craft room that much easier. You really don't want to end up with clutter, again. Heck, no! Also, plan a layout that works best for you and take note of important measurements/dimensions.
• Go shopping. Based on your planning, your shopping trip can turn out to be a fun and pleasant experience or a nightmare. So, you decide :-) Another important bit here is to have a budget in mind. And keep all those receipts/dockets in a safe place until you're all set and done, just in case you want to return/exchange something.
• Don't stop, keep going! This is it. Don't fall prey to old habits again. Keep up the momentum and get on with it. I've had one too many unfortunate instances of leaving things half way in. So unpack, assemble, arrange, organise - get busy! Go get the room you always dreamt of! I've almost got mine :-)

Hope I've encouraged someone today just like our friends did to us!

I'll be back again, starting a series of posts on organising and storage solutions I've used in my craft room. Until then, happy crafting!

And when it rains, it pours!

Hey ya'll!

Just when I thought there was some excitement in my life, my back decided to give up on me! It seems my (t)rusty old back had had enough...after two babies and a couple of years of neglecting good advice, my lower back just froze one morning. I couldn't get off my bed, I couldn't sit, I couldn't walk - I couldn't do anything unassisted. My eyes filled with fear and tears, "What if I couldn't stand up straight, ever?". OMG! The things we take for granted! After half a day of excruciating pain and the terror of ending up with a slip-disc, seeing a doctor was the obvious thing to do. Turned out my lower spine had taken a lot of beating from the strains of everyday life. "You need complete rest!", said the doctor. So that translated to no picking up my little man, no picking up anything heavy, no house work (yay to that, by the way!), no nappy changes (yay to that too!), nothing. Just plain and simple rest, rest and more rest. And medication. Oh yes, the blessed little pills that knock you off completely, LOL! So then, thanks to my hubster, I rested. I rested while he looked after the kids, cooked and cleaned up. Bless him! And now, I'm so much better. I can sit up and walk and be myself again, hallelujah!

Anyway, that was my little woeful story. But all this stalled my craft room transformation. It's going to take longer than I'd planned. Damn! Oh well, better late than never, I guess? There has been a whole lot of progress though. Thanks to Linnie & Shiva (again) the furniture was all up pretty soon. Then we went shopping for storage - fun 'n' pretty storage. I have a colour theme going...won't say it just yet : -) It's fun to go shopping, looking for pretty things in a specific colour (or two).

So, it shouldn't be too long. I'll share e.v.e.r.y.t.h.i.n.g about the room here soon. Now, where's hubby? The little man needs a nappy change (wink).

Happy Crafting!

The end of a hiatus...

Hello there! (is anyone even there?) I'm hopeful that the long hiatus ends here. From this post on, I hope I'm able to keep posting here regularly. I hope I'm able to spend more time crafting and creating, and feel the peace within. I hope.

My crafting space (and husby's home office) is going through a much needed makeover, yippee! And all thanks to our friends 'cos if not for them, we would never have gotten off the couch and actually done something about it. So now this has turned into an exciting and fun little project for us :-)

Okay, want to see the study that had turned into a portal to clutter-hell?

In there, hidden somewhere, is a pretty little craft room (and a home-office). And we're determined to uncover it. Then, I can actually go into my happy place and do what I love doing :-)

I just want to take a moment and say something about 'positive influencing'. Yes, that's what our friends - Linnie (Malini) & Shiva are kind of doing to us now. It's something like peer-pressure for grown-ups, only in the most positive, encouraging and motivating way :-) Like I said before, if not for them, we would still be on the couch, drooling over all the picture-perfect rooms on Pinterest and sighing in despair, doing nothing about it. I tell you, with two little ones who need a lot of attention and looking after, it's not easy to be self-motivated. So Linnie, with her organising and decorating expertise (see her blog, ColoursnMe), kindly offered to help me kick my butt off the damn couch and help make it the perfect place to be creative. And husby darling generously offered to finance the entire project, aka, The Much-needed Makeover!
Am I excited or what??

After a long day of clearing out the room and a trip to Ikea, this feels almost surreal -

There's a lot of work to be done and I'm confident we will do it all. And I'm most excited about sharing it all here with you, and maybe being a positive influence on someone else out there, in creative space!
Will be back soon with more updates.
Until then, Happy Crafting!

A New Year and hopefully New and Better Habits!

Hey there!

Pathetic is just the word that springs right at me when I see my last post!
What started as a nice decent series ended even before it even took off properly, sheesh!
Well, here's to the New Year and new beginnings (hopefully!)

We just got back from a much-deserved holiday and it was destination California! Three whole weeks well spent with family, lots of laughter, lots of love and lots of shopping!

I for one couldn't help shaking my head in vigorous approval when I saw all the scrumptious craft goodies, and at such affordable prices too! So it's no big wonder that I bought quite a load of exciting crafting supplies. But right now, they all have to be organised, neatly so they work their magic on me and I actually put them to some good use. I need to get working on my craft room, enough with the excuses I guess!

So, here's hoping that this new year brings with it all things positive, all things fun and all things happy!
Wishing you all a creative, crafty and wonderful 2013!

Happy Crafting!

Project Christmas Stamps: Stamp 3

Hello hello! I bring another card with me today. Another one of those stamps I got at, yes you guessed it right, Riot! I'm quite obsessive that way, I see stamps, I buy stamps, LOL! So I'd bought a bunch of these on a Christmas theme spree. The Christmas carols playing at the store, the store attendants wearing cute Santa hats and a general feeling of 'oh-it's-Christmas' all together created the perfect setting to get hypnotised and buy half a dozen rubber stamps that day! This is the stamp -

And here's the card -

With this card I actually didn't know where I was going and it ended up being eclectic. And I like it! It's something totally out there, you either love it or you hate it kind of a thing. Husby hated it, me, I quite like it :) There's something interesting about that jolly Santa juxtaposed there with the unconventional choice of two seemingly uncoordinated pattern papers. Whatever, no need to muse over it so much I guess, I like how it turned out, ha!
Of course, how can Santa not have some Christmas sparkle right? So I ran a line of stickles around his cap. More bling with some sparkly rhinestones and just some highlighting with a white gel pen and a plum marker.
I didn't add any sentiment. Somehow every time I look at the smiling Santa, there's a really deep Ho-Ho-Ho that plays in my head...is it just me, am I hearing voices again? Just kidding! I think Santa does the talking in this card J

So that's Stamp 3 in my Project Christmas Stamps. Have you started making cards for the holidays yet?

Happy Crafting!

Project Christmas Stamps: Stamp 2

**Scroll down to see my guest post on Aalayam**

Hi! I'm back again with another stamp. This is Stamp 2 in my series, read about Project Christmas Stamps and see Stamp 1 here.

Got this one at Riot, a simple, no-fuss sentiment stamp.

And here's the card I made - 

Don't you think the card reflects the simplicity of the stamp itself? I decided to use the sentiment as the focal element here and highlighted it with sparkly rhinestones and a white gel pen. I also lightly inked the edges of the die cut with the same plum ink which I stamped the sentiment in. Rounded the corners off at the bottom, and the card was done!

Have you rummaged through your stamp collection yet? What have you pulled out that you'd like to use in a project soon? Leave a comment, would love to hear!

Be back again real soon with another stamp and another card.

Until then, Happy Crafting!

Guest Post at Aalayam

Good Morning! It's totally my kind of day today - slightly cold, the scent of a light drizzle from last night, and birds shaking off their wet feathers on rooftops, chirping away!

I'd like to share with you all a wonderful blog that one of my girl pals co-writes - Aalayam. Here's what the writers say about their blog -

Aalayam is co-authored by Deepa and Supriya. We are passionate about living the good life and by extension we love design, décor, travel, photography, good food, and the vast richness of world culture! The entries in Aalayam will reflect our ethnic Indian culture while juxtaposing the global appeal for readers, followers and pinners from all over the world. Via feature posts on topics as varied as the red ochre of the Warli paintings to the weft weave of the Ikkat dyeing, Aalayam will strive to be an intellectually and visually stimulating experience for our readers. Come join us at Aalayam! 

Supriya & I go way back. We went to the same school and have had some great times together. And it's so wonderful to be able to stay in touch and be connected, even after all these years! That we both love everything arty and chic and eclectic just makes the friendship even more colourful and sort of close to the heart :)

I'm guest posting there! I have a really fun and easy DIY project for you. So head over to Aalayam to see my post.

Have a wonderful day you all!
Happy Crafting!

Project Christmas Stamps: Stamp 1

Hey there! 'tis the season, already! Gosh, where does time go?!

The other day I was clearing up my (very) messy craft room and now it looks so much better, I can actually see the floor!! While working on Little Miss' birthday party projects I seemed to have pulled out e.v.e.r.y one of my craft supplies, although for the life of me, I can't imagine why! And then weeks and weeks after that I had simply let things pile on there, always closing the door to that room as if if I did that some little elves would come in and clean up the room for me at night.

Anyway, I totally have this rather annoying habit of digressing way too often, ha! Now, while I cleared up the room (yeah, those elves never came!) I dug into my rubber stamps' drawers and picked some Christmas themed ones. I thought I'd do a series about cards I make using each of those stamps. You know, have some fun, get creative (and justify the years 'n' years of hoarding.)

So here's the first in the said series, that I'll call Project Christmas Stamps ( makes me feel good 'cos it sounds oh-so-grand!)

This stamp is something I picked up...Mmm...I tell you, I forget!! I have no idea when and where I bought this one, but I have it and I inked it. I remember now - at Riot Art & Craft Store! I bought a bunch of these really cute itty bitty Christmas stamps last year...and this is one of them.

Here's the card I made. Just a clean and simple card - 4x6, chocolate brown base, layered with pattern paper from K&Co (which I had picked up like ages ago, seriously!) and a banner stamped with the sentiment. Can it get easier than that? Oh and some bling and faux stitching, of course :)

Do you have any Christmas themed stamps (or any stamp) that you've been wanting to ink up? Leave a comment here, I would love to hear from you!

See you again tomorrow with another stamp and another card :)

Until then, Happy Crafting!

I think I'll move onto other stuff...

Hey there! I was 'supposed' to finish my post on all the exciting projects I took on for Little Miss' First Birthday Party, but, sadly, I do not have ANY pictures of the party favors I made :( Aargh! I could smack myself! I guess in all the excitement and anxiety of getting them done, all packed and ready to go I did not stop for one moment and think, 'Hang on, lemme quickly get a few pictures to put on my blog...'. Nope, didn't do that and now I don't have any pictures of the finished projects. Sigh!

But, anyway, let me at least tell you what the goodie-bags had in them -

I bought some notebooks from a local store here and covered them in colourful and pretty scrapbook paper in the theme colours. Then I used the stamp set Quinn's ABCs from Lawn Fawn and stamped each notebook, on the cover, with the respective child's name. It makes for a fun personalised gift.

Then, I made some bag toppers for 4x6 size self sealing clear bags and filled them with some Hershey's Kisses. I might have had a picture of one of those which was an extra one, but husby darling had sneaked it into the car for a 'snack-on-the-go'! Pfft!

And then the rest of the things I filled in were all store-bought little goodies.

Now for some yummy in the tummy for the kids, I  made some savoury corn, zucchini and cheese muffins, loosely based on this recipe. I made some good old frosted cupcakes with sprinkles, colourful (and healthy) fruit skewers. Rest were store bought cookies and nibbles. Oh, yeah I printed out water bottle labels with every child's name. It added a nice touch to the table, apart from being very practical ;)

And then, thanks to Pinterest, I made this colourful pompom bunting to put on Little Miss' high chair, you know, all the small details, etc. But don't know how but it somehow ended being a funky accessory for the birthday girl :)

So now I think I sort of have a closure! That post was hanging on unfinished way too long, plus I have other exciting projects to share :)
And moral of the story for me: Be more organised and take lots of pictures. Always with a blog post in mind :)

Happy Crafting!

Projects I Want to Make...

Hey there! I said I'd do another post on the birthday party projects I made...haven't forgotten, just that I have to take some pictures, so will be back with a post soon.

Meanwhile, I thought I'd spread some crafty cheer and share with you some projects that I've had on my mind for a while now...want to make these soon.

1. Tealight Candle Card

2. Upcycled formula container with dollar store elephant lid...something like this 

3. Coasters

I L.O.V.E how much inspiration there is all over the Internet these days! Crafting Nirvana is just a click away :)

Have you been inspired by anything lately? Are there projects that you've had on your mind too?

Happy Crafting!

Crafting as a Mommy!

Our Little Miss turned One! Gosh, where does time go?? It was only like yesterday when she was born...

First Birthday Party = Loads of crafting fun for me! It's really hard to explain the profound joy I found in making (almost) everything for my baby's special day. I had so much fun and all the while I had a warm, fuzzy feeling in my heart. I thought I'd share all my projects with you lovely crafty people. Hope it inspires you to plan a fun party soon, you know, just like that?

I was quite ambitious when I started planning, which was about a month and a half ago. I wanted to make most of the things myself - the invites, the party hats, favor bags (+the favors), buntings, decorations, the cake, a photo booth, and a whole lot of other things, phew! But somewhere along the way, I decided it was all getting too much, even for me! So I skipped the party hats and...yeah, just the party hats :) Oh and yeah, the photo booth props. There's a whole story behind that, but I'll spare my woes!

I'll split the projects into a couple of posts as I don't want to cram everything in one long, never-ending picture-heavy post!

The theme was 'Sprinkles'. Actually, it ended up being more of a 'Colourful Dots' kind of a thing. Sia (my baby) had a cute onesie that was white and had these little polka dots in orange, fuchsia, turquoise, green and yellow and the inspiration came from there, weird huh? I kind of liked those colours together, and no offense, but I thought the 'fairy' or 'princess' theme had been really, really overdone everywhere, and so I simply picked a colourful, yet girly 'n' pretty theme. (I may have to do a 'princess' party after all, once my little girl is big enough to say she wants one, but until then it will just have to be mommy's choice, ha!)

With these colours in mind and a sort of polka-dot theme happening, I started off with designing the invites. I must say, I heavily relied on my wonderful 'n' efficient Silhouette for most of the party projects. I made a very simple cupcake-shaped card for the invites.

Decorations next. I didn't want to go overboard with the party decorations. I knew I didn't want the usual suspects - balloons and streamers. So I went for tissue paper pom-poms. I know they're already on the verge of being 'too common' these days, but I'd never made them and this was the perfect opportunity. I made them in all the colours of the theme. 

They were so so easy to make and very economical too! The tissue paper packs were about a $1 each! And the colours were easy to find, which made me a very happy mommy :) 

Next I made a 'Happy Birthday' bunting, again using all the colours of the theme. 

We did have some balloons in the end, but we decided to just leave some around on the floor for the kids to pick up and play with. But that's pretty much the decoration bit - simple, colourful and cute. Checked all my boxes :)

For the photo booth, I had a vibrant, fun, colourful backdrop in mind. There were a lot of ideas, including finding a polka-dotted sheet, painting a large frame, etc, but in the end I made these. I kind of don't know what to call them, buntings? paper garlands? I punched out a bunch of circles in all the party colours and went to town with my sewing machine :) They did take me a while to make, but I loved the end result! 

I think that's enough material for one post :) Will be back with the food and party favors in my next post.

Until then, happy crafting!

P.S: I'm taking custom orders for party supplies. If you see something here that you'd like for your next party, please contact me on thecraftangel@gmail.com.

Putting in some Love into our (new) Home...finally!

A bright 'n' cheery 'Hello' on a lovely morning!

One thing checked off my work-in-progress list.

We moved into our own little nest about three months ago and I'm still amazed (and kind of disappointed) that I haven't given our new home enough TLC. There are ideas sitting in my head but I just haven't got around them yet. We only recently made up our minds about the arrangement for the family room and finally got the two chairs we'd been musing about. I had my mind set on either paprika or mango (colours for the chair! Although I could do with some slices of mango with paprika sprinkled on them, yum!) but somehow at the store I suddenly changed my mind and we got dark grey ones. With Pinterest in my life, the whole equation changes you see. There's an explosion of ideas and inspiration and sadly, nobody really accepts Monopoly money! So neutral is always safer. Any time we feel like a change of decor, we just have to change the accents and not all the furniture! 

Anyway, so we set up this nice little seating area and then the wall started looking really bare. So I pulled out one idea I had inside my forever-teeming-with-craft-ideas head. I knew I'd make something in true Indian style - lots of bright colours and it had to have elephants in there somewhere. So I made these canvases. The idea was to make something like pop art, but ideas always change along the way, and mostly for the better I'd say :)

And before you go 'Wow! How did she paint those elephants so neatly?', I'll let you in on my little secret - I did not! Ever since I had the idea of colourful elephants on a solid background, I was hammering my brains as to how I would actually draw them, you know so they look like elephants, heh! Then I had a light-bulb moment and I decided to print out the picture in its full glory and Mod Podge it onto the canvas! Sometimes, the simple solution is just lurking around the corner, no? And I didn't have to worry about fussy cutting, I simply let my Silhouette do it for me :) All I did was paint the canvases in a solid colour and the rest was just a matter of PVA glue and Mod Podge. Oh, by the way, the image is something I found on the Internet and meant for personal use only. Unfortunately, I did not note the source :( 

I'm We're really happy with how they look so bright 'n' cheery 'n' Indian on our wall! What do you think?

Happy Crafting!

Work(s) in Progress...

Hello Creative Goddesses (Gods too may be?)

I've been spending some time in my craft room lately and it's a great feeling. I've been on a crafting high and it's way better than a glass of red wine ;-) I've started off with a couple of projects, still work in progress...here are some pictures -
 

Will tell you all about it when I'm all done :)

Until then, Happy Crafting!

I (heart) CAS cards

Hello all you lovely people!

I never cease to be delighted whenever I see or make a CAS card :) There's just something beautiful and endearing about simplicity.

I made this one for the Hands2Hearts challenge this month. I loved the Christmas lights as soon I saw them, so I had to get this stamp set :)

I think the lights would look even better with some sparkly Stickles. Hmmm...next time :)

Happy Crafting!

Peter Rabbit Themed Party Supplies

A post a day, woo-hoo am I on a roll or what?

Anyway, I just finished an order for a very sweet client and so I thought I'd share my creations with y'all.
It's a Peter Rabbit themed birthday party and the idea was entirely my client's. I simply designed everything based on her chosen theme and I had so much fun all along :)

First up, party invites. Made these on my Silhouette, which is freakin' awesome! Did I not mention that before, hahahaha!

Of course, it had to have a coordinating envelope :) These invites have a little magnet at the back so mommy can slap it on to the fridge and remember to send her little girl/boy to the party, how cute!

Next, these darling little tags. My client wanted them for the favor baskets. I found a bunny silhouette and cut  out a bunch using my Silhouette (heh). Then I pulled out my trusted Cuttlebug and some round punches to put the tags together. Finished off with some ribbon.

Okay, next these table cards. Dessert Tables are becoming very popular at parties. And why not? Who doesn't like candy and cake and cookies and chocolate? Mmmmm sugary bliss :) When she first mentioned these I didn't quite know what they were, but I think these table cards are such a cute idea!

And then, these cutesy flags for straws! Didn't know these either :) Now I do. See other picture for the idea.

 

Image: www.boards.weddingbee.com

So that's the Peter Rabbit project. I had so much fun with it :)

If you want custom party supplies, please contact me. My email ID is on the top right. I'd be more than glad to help with your next party :)

Happy Crafting!

Crafting will always be a part of me...

It almost made me cry when I saw the date on my last post!

Suddenly, I seem to have lost control over life. Not that I was in total control before, still. There's just so much to do and so little time! I had never imagined that I would be so swept away with the tide...it's almost as if a strong gust of wind is trying to take (a reluctant) me along with it. Where to, I don't know. All I want to do is stay still for a while, with my eyes closed and pretend that I never have to open them again. Keep them shut while gazing into my inner peace, forever. Sigh! Overwhelmed is what I am right now...

I thought I could do it all. I thought I'd be this super cool mum who reads to her little girl, cooks for her darling husband, does the laundry, diets, exercises and stays slim, and makes gorgeous stuff in the craft room. How I dream! Reality is a totally different picture.

These should tell you something about my state of mind right now :)

(Courtesy: Pinterest, of course!)

Yeah! Being a stay-at-home-mum IS a job! A job that goes on and on, doesn't have an eight-hour shift and no weekends off, well technically. Oh don't think I'm complaining though...it just gets too much to handle at times and a good rant usually lets off some steam :)

Anyway, so I thought I'd do something about the 'I-miss-crafting' itch that's been there for way too long now. 'Even if it means something really simple', I thought and made this peg-pail (well, technically it's not a big project, but was just enough to whet my appetite for something make-y do-ey). It's an empty yogurt container. I had to rinse it out anyway before I chucked it into the recycle bin, but then the hoarder in me somehow made me put it on the dish drainer. So there it was, all clean and white and I had to use it for something. So I grabbed a few Sharpies and sat down with Little Miss on her play mat and turned an empty plastic pail into something simple and very useful in my laundry room. 

And it wasn't a big ordeal too as Little Miss seemed to enjoy picking out the colours for me :)

Crafting mommies out there would nod with me when I say it could be a challenge to sit down and craft with a little crawler who wants to touch every little craft supply that mommy has out! But this was easy...

You know something (I told you I was going to ramble) this little project made me think of my Grandma. She is one person who inspires me to be enterprising and productive. She would never waste anything and would try and get as many creative uses out of an object. Hers were simpler times where an empty cough-syrup (glass) bottle would turn into a little kerosene-filled lamp with thick twine running through the drilled bottle cap. Several of these would dot the beautiful old country home during power-cuts, lighting the rooms softly as rain and thunder ruled the night outside. 

I love the heart-warming effect crafting has on me, sigh!

Here's hoping for more!

Happy Crafting!

Alive & Kickin'

Hello hello crafty bloggies!
I thought the idea of a whole room to myself, yes, one big room, just for myself, would make me set up my craft goodies right away and get crafting like mad. Err, apparently not! The 'study' that's waiting for me to give it some TLC is still waiting, patiently. Random boxes and things lay strewn, it looks nowhere close to the craftroom of my dreams right now, but will work on it soon. Oh, and yes, by the way, I've decided that husby darling will get a side, just one side for his computer desk and chair. I'm very generous and kind that way :)
So, yeah, my point is - I haven't set up my craft room in our new little nest yet. Will do so soon. Oooh and you know what? I'm going for a closing down craft sale this weekend and apparently the fixtures, racks and such are on sale too! I mean, it's sad that they're closing down, but yay for me :) Now, I only have to convince husby to take me there on Saturday morning. (No, I don't drive!)
Can't wait to get my things organised and get crafting real soon...

Happy Crafting!