Work It Wednesday

Every Wednesday we will feature a little scrapbooking, paper crafting, card making tip of some sort. An idea that will help you really "work " your craft.

Today's Work It Wednesday is dealing with scraps.

If you are like me, you hang onto your scraps. The problem is that scraps can become hard to manage and messy. Photo 1 shows my little scrap box. I keep this box out while I'm working on layouts and such so that I can quickly tuck my scraps in a dedicated spot and off of my work surface.

After I've completed my project, I'll take my box of scraps and my paper trimmer and I will trim all my scraps into a manageable size. For me, that size is 4.25 x 5.5. This measurement is the most common size for homemade cards. Once they are trimmed I keep them all organized in a little bin. Cardstock on one side. Pattern paper on the other. When I'm in need of a certain color or want to make a quick card - Voila'! I've got them close by and easy to find.

Often times I will even take this one step further. I tend to use a lot of neutral colors, like white and cream, for my journaling. My scraps of neutral colors are usually too small to cut at the measurement above. What I will do with them instead is trim them down into thin strips. Then using a stamp set, like the one below, I will stamp a bunch of sentiments. I'll bundle them up by category and keep them in my scrap bin (photo 3). That way when I need to make a card quick, I've got the paper pre-cut and the sentiment pre-stamped. All I need to do next is add a little decoration, sign my name and I'm done.

If you are interested, we've got a great new set of sentiment stamps in the store. This one shown is perfect for making cards as it has so many different sentiments and sayings.

That's it for your Work It Wednesday. Put in a good movie, grab your trimmer, your scraps, and a stamp set and you are good to go.

Enjoy!
Amy

P.S. The trimmed scraps are good for more than just cards, you can use them for all kinds of things like punch art and photo mats too.

AND THE WINNER IS......

WINDY!!!
Here's what she won - congrats!

Windy call the store for details on redeeming your prize!

Since tomorrow is Wednesday check back for a little thing I'm calling Work It Wednesday. Every Wednesday we will show a little scrapbooking, paper crafting, or card making tip.

And please remember you can leave us comments at any time. We love to read your messages.

Product pick and quick update....

Hey There!

Thank you to all of you who posted a comment on our blog. We are absolutely thrilled with the response. We only had a handful of people leave a comment but our blog has been viewed several hundred times and is stretching out across the U.S. We've had views from Texas, California, Iowa, New York, plus other states - how cool is that?! I'm so pleased that our little shop blog is being read by so many.

So, what about the blog contest? We will announce the winner on Tuesday. We'll let you know who won as well as show you their prize. So don't forget to check back!

Until then, I will leave you with my product pick for the day.

I must admit, I am not one who usually uses a lot of stickers in my crafting. However, I really, really like these. They would be perfect on the front of a Christmas card or even as an accent on the outside of your Christmas card envelope. Can't you just imagine your Christmas card sealed with a beautiful silver snowflake. There are different styles in stock and they come in either silver or gold. Perfect for this time of year.

Let us know if we can set any aside for you.

Blog Contest

Want a chance to win a goody bag filled with scrapbooking products? Of course you do, who wouldn't?! It's easy too, just leave us a quick comment about what you'd like to see on our blog. More new products? Your own layouts? Project how-to's? More contest? What is it, as a store, that we can do for you? Leave us a comment on this blog and on Friday we will pull a lucky winners name and award them with a fun-filled goody bag.

We're looking forward to hearing from you.

December 1st Classes

We've got some fun classes coming up. Two of which will be held on Saturday, December 1st.

Holiday Home Decor
Dec. 1st - 10am

Come prepared to do a little holiday decorating. Learn how to use scrapbooking products for non-scrapbooking projects. We will be making 5 fun and festive home decor items that can be used to decorate your own home or can be given as a gifts. Every project is easy to do, fun to make and quick to duplicate - that way, if you like what you create, keep it for yourself and make more for your friends. You will need to bring a 12" paper trimmer, scissors and adhesive. Everything else will be provided for you. We will be featuring a new line of paper and products from Daisy D's (not shown in picture but just as cute) Class cost is $37 for all 5 projects, plus I will have other ideas on display as well. CLASS IS FULL - if there is continued interest, we may run the class again. Please let us know if you are interested

Christmas Advent Countdown
Dec. 1st - 2pm


It's always fun to countdown the days until Christmas. In our class we will be making a cute 10x10 magnetic advent calendar. The highlight about this class is you will leave with a completed calendar that you can start using the same day. Perfect timing. Make the project for yourself or use as a gift. Please bring your paper trimmer, scissors and adhesive. Class cost is $25.
1 Seats left
Call the store to reserve your spot - 889-8000 or email today.

We've restocked!

We've had some new shipments arrive this week and we wanted you to know about them....

-Vellum spray is back in stock
- Air Force and Army pattern papers are in
- Cooking papers arrived (perfect timing for Thanksgiving)

Smiles,
Amy

Quick and Simple project - Place Cards

Okay, sorry it's taken me so long to get this posted. But here it is, just a simple and quick little project that you can do in a matter of minutes.

Let's start!

Here's what you'll need:
- 2 pieces of cardstock, (I used a burnt orange and a cream)
- various stickers (I used leaves and alphabets)
- adhesive
- paper trimmer or scissors
- brown ink
- ribbon and fibers

Step 1- Gather supplies
Step 2 - Trim background cardstock so that it measures 3.5" x 6" and fold in half.
Step 3- Trim cream cardstock to measure 3.25"x 4
Step 4 - Hold cream cardstock on top of one side of your folded background paper and begin placing stickers near top of cream paper. (See photo) Note: You are not adhering the papers together yet, only getting a visual of where the stickers will end up. See in the photo how the stickers will end up above the fold of the orange cardstock.

Step 5 - After stickers are positioned on cream cardstock, take scissors and cut around the tops of the stickers to remove excess cream cardstock.

Step 6: Finish your place card by inking the edges and adhering the cream cardstock to the orange.
Step 7: Customize the place card by adding a name and other elements like ribbon.

And, there you have it! A simple little place card to help decorate your Thanksgiving table.

Thanksgiving, It's coming right up!

I'm sure you've realized this, but Thanksgiving is just a week and a half away. Do you have your table decorations all planned? If not, stop into the store and see some of the new home decor items we have in stock. I was up in Orono yesterday and I was able to grab a few pictures of some of my favorite items. I think any of these, plus many others that I didn't photograph, would look great on my table.

And, just something else to think about, what if you aren't staying at home for Thanksgiving? Will you be enjoying dinner in someone else's home? These items, especially the beautifully carved fall pumpkins, would make a great Thank You gift for any well deserving host/hostess.

Check back soon for a quick place card idea..... I'll be sharing photos and step-by-step instructions.

What's working out for you?

THANK YOU!

Many of you have been so kind and have sent praise about our new blog. Thank you for that. We hope that as we continue with it we can inspire and inform. Inspire you to try new things and keep you informed about what is going on in the industry and with Judy's store and staff.

So, here's a little funny story. I ask one of my daughters how she was liking school. She's 5 and just started Kindergarten. Her response: "good". Curious what "good" meant, I continued to ask more questions. "Well, what's your favorite thing?" She replied by holding up her right hand, and pinching her pointer finger to her thumb, said, "They're teaching me how to hold a pencil like this - and, that's really working out for me right now!"

Those were her exact words. I was expecting her to say something completely different. While I've been laughing ever since, I keep thinking about how true her words were. She's learning something that is a basic for life. She's learning how to hold a pencil the right way. And to top it off, it's really working out for her.

So, since this is a scrapbooking related blog, I'm curious; what product or tool is it that is really working out for you right now?

I'll share mine first, and if you want you can share yours in the comment section below.

For me right now, I'm loving my EZ Tintz. That was probably a given, since there's a picture of them at the opening of this post. I love that I can do fun things with them without having to have too many other supplies on hand. The photo below shows a couple of quick cards I made using them coupled with a resist technique.


So that's mine. That's what's working out for me. I look forward to hearing from you about "what it is that is really working out for you right now." Do share.....

Amy

A Full Life...

I just wanted to give everyone a quick sneak peak at the cover for our album that we will be making in Saturday's class. The class is called "A Full Life" and will feature all those unique things that make your life "full" and special.

Our class will be "full" of fun as we will be working with page windows, paint, transparencies, wood, stamps, masks and more. Bring along 8 to 10 horizontal 4x6 photos that you love. (Photos can be color or black & white and should be a good mix of different things, people, or places that you feel compliment and bless your life.) You will need your basic supplies: scissors, paper trimmer, adhesive and brown ink (If you have it) - Class cost is $30

Seating is limited and there are only a few seats left so call (889-8000) or email right away if you'd like to join me on Saturday
Hope to see you then!
Amy

Product review and samples:

I've recently been trying my hand at the new Kaiser, Beyond The Page board books and products. And, I must say, I love them! If you enjoy making mini albums or home decor projects I highly recommend you check these out. They come in a variety of styles and are made from solid craft wood so it gives any design a firm base. Showing here is a sample of a Christmas Tree shape. The picture above is the item as it is packaged and the pictures below are of the item after I decorated it. On one side I decorated it as a Christmas tree, as suggested on the packaging, and the reverse side as a candy corn for Halloween (I know Halloween is over but I'm one decoration ahead for next year!). I love it when I can get two designs from one product!
This project, as well as an accordion book, is on display at Judy's.

New Items at Judy's!

New paper from Fancy Pants has arrived! Fun colorful patterns and calendar pages that are double sided and heavyweight.

Some great new Kalico Kitchen items are in! Have a look at these new Jams and Syrups. They're perfect for a holiday meal or as gifts!

These great Beyond the Page dimensional scrapbooking products from are really useful because they're much more sturdy than chipboard. Customize them however you wish by gluing on papers, painting them, etc. Let your creativity run wild!

For the music enthusiast or musician you're scrapping, these musical instrument sticker sets, Elvis stickers, and music-patterned papers are just the ticket!