Fun and Mental Changes

*** Please scroll down to view Simply Betty Stamps Funky Potters Sneak Peek****                                                                                       WOO HOO!!!  IT CAME TODAY!  That means NO WAITING and I can announce the give away today!!!  YAY!  What you are looking at doesn't seem like much in the pic to the left, but I assure you it is A LOT.... and it could be all yours!!!!  The good folks at Nantucket Bagg donated this AWESOME lime green and pink "diddy" to one lucky winner here at Fun And Mental Changes!!!  WAIT till you see what this thing is!!!  You'll see very quickly that you've been missing it all along.   Ok, so first off, what are we looking at?  What you see in the picture is a b...

I have been in my craft closet ALL DAY!!! Wow! That is a record even for me. I've just had quite a few things piling up that I wanted to get done, after all, I'm preparing for the Copic invasion. I want my workspace free and clear for their arrival. Yah... I really am THAT obsessed! hahahaha! So anyway, a Ms. Denise Hill over at Paper Pastime sucked me in to a challenge of sorts. She used gel pens in her Cricut making the most adorable designs. I mentioned that I had the gel pen assembly since last year and hadn't ever used it... do you think I could just leave it at that? Oh No! I committed myself to making something. So here it is... well, it's the START of something anyway. I'm waiting on some supplies to be restocked at my local Joann's to actually finish what will end up being an awesometripular old world card. But in the meantime, if anyone is intersted in using this design yourself, I have uploaded it to my cut file library that is found in the right mar...

Problem: After never entering design challenges, I've entered 2 card challenges in the past 2 days! Wow... this is entry number 2! If this is how I am in just two days, then I'm scared!!! This challenge is sponsored by Amy's Paper Romance which is one of the MANY new craft resource sites that I've discovered on Ms. Vicki Garrett's WONDERFUL blog... Summerthyme Studio . You NEED to check her out along with all her incredible resources. But, WHOA MAN! What is this lady doing to me?!? She's got me buying new stamps, buying Copic markers (PULEEZE let them come next week!!! I wanna work with Copics soooo bad!), entering design challenges... yah, that's the story I'm stickin to.... "SHE'S" got me doing it!!! It's a fun adventure, so for now I'm rollin with the inspiration. I needed a little kick in the pants to get moving in my craft closet . And finding new art mediums is JUST what the doctor ordered, so "Thanx" Vicki! I...

A while back I completed a closet conversion for my scrapbook addiction. I was so proud of the workability in such a small space that I wrote a blog post on it (you can see it here ). Well, since then I was honored to be asked to do it for someone else. So again, with the same sense of awe with what you can really do in such a small space... here is MY SECOND closet conversion done for Ms. Betty! And while my own closet was strictly for scrapbooking (yes, I installed lighting and even a table top), this new closet conversion was for general craft storage. I also want to say, and I've said it before, IKEA rocks! Most everything came from IKEA. It took me three days to complete and cost about $300 start to finish, INCLUDING the mobile, expandable sewing cart (look familiar?), shelving and storage tubs. The sewing cart runs about $125. The only storage items that were pre-existing were the black four drawer chest and a couple of tubs that you see on the upper shelves. Because of...

Well, I don't have anything big to share today other than how I organize my Konad image plates. If you've ever read my closet conversion post, you know how big I am on organization that is mobile. My nail art isn't any different and I wanted to show you my trick. The pic you see here is a clam shell case that had an acrylic stamp set in it... you know, the kind of stamps for card making, scrapbooking, etc. The case was the perfect size (well so far) and currently holds approximately 24 plates with room for a FEW more. I then printed a list of all the plates that I have and what images are on the plate so that I can find them easily when doing my nails. I cut the list to fit the lid and attached with a dot of acid free glue. This little thing has been gold for me and was a "free" fix to the clutter that was forming in my bathroom from the nail art. Gotta love recycling!!!

I talk quite a bit about organizing, because I believe that organizing has made me the happy person you don't see today (because this is a blog, get it?). It started when I wanted to decorate my house and began learning about Feng Shui. Now, I'm an Aries and I'm a redhead and stereotypically (and quite literally) I am NOT an organized person. Yes, this is all very true! But that's the beauty of organization... it is 100% learned. To date, I have never heard of the organizing gene. Some of us are a little more predisposed to "getting it" though, and I was not one of them. I spent many years frazzled because of disorganization. I would never have known that was the reason if I hadn't spent time organizing the things in my life. It is through that process that I felt the release of frustration.... I actually felt problems get solved. In a previous post , I talk about the problem with clothing in my bedroom. My husband and I argued over missing articles of cl...

Ok, so about 2 years ago I FINALLY decided I needed some separate space for my scrap booking, but was very limited on space and very limited on money (scroll down for pics). I had a budget of about $500.00 +/- and a closet in my office. You can probably see where this is going! I completely gutted the closet. I removed every shelf but the top shelf that is really too high to use anyhow, but everything else went! I painted the closet and then began the search for what to put in it. It dawned on me after watching many home improvement programs on Home and Garden Television, that most low cost/high function fixes of the pro's for home organization happens at Ikea. And I just happen to have one near me. Off I went armed with the dimensions of my closet. I was surprised to find out that there were MANY affordable options to choose from and ended up spending about a week going over them (they even have "planners" on-site to help you). I finally chose a "closet organizer...