I decided I had to finish the manicure set “purse,” so went to Joann’s, and bought Velcro, then came home and put the final touches on it.  Then I watched the video clips to write notes for Rich for his editing.  And that’s when I found some serious boo boos….I just got a new video camera a couple of months ago, that has a remote and a great screen, so I can make sure I’m always in screen…I’m so used to not having access to what’s really on screen, that I didn’t look at it….and that was a HUGE mistake….I had videos where almost everything I did was not on screen, and then other clips where I had zoomed in to show a ruler, then forgot to zoom back out, so it was not only fuzzy but also, again, out of frame.  I had to re-video  lot and then I realized when I did the new video, I forgot to turn on the microphone, so did it again.  I can’t tell you how sometimes when doing videos, when it rains, it definitely pours.  I think I worked out most of the bugs and tomorrow Rich will do the editing and we’ll put it on YouTube.  I really like this project and hope he can piece together the video so others can follow my directions…

Tomorrow I think I’ll either work on my art journal or play with another monthly kit.  I’m not sure which one gives me the most inspiration, and I’ll decide in the morning.  I’d really like to do something that truly inspires me, like the manicure kit…that was challenging and fun, and I really felt like I was making something useful…I’m hoping viewers give me more ideas for things they’d like me to make.  I definitely enjoyed the challenge, and right now, a break from card making is a welcome relief.  One of my friends makes cards for her church, and she’s making over 130 birthday cards for the month.  That’ amazing, and I wish I had the inspiration to do that, but I’m getting a little burned out on cards and want to try some new things.

I’ve had one of those days where you smack yourself on the head and say “what was I thinking?”  I normally get a few emails from friends on a daily basis.  The last couple of weeks I haven’t been getting any.  I thought maybe they were busy, or not feeling well, but it never occurred to be to check spam.  How could I be that dumb?  It wasn’t like it was one person…it was every individual that sends me emails…Of course I got the stupid sales pitches from every crafty store I’ve ever visited, but nothing personal.  I should have thought about it logically, but apparently logic went out the window.  Fortunately, one of my friends was smart enough to put a note on my blog, and THAT forwarded to email…and then my brain kicked in.  I feel idiotic, and I know I hurt some feelings and that just devastates me….I went to spam and found all of the emails and responded to them and made my apologies, but still….shouldn’t it have occurred to me?  Geez!!

I’m almost finished with my manicure “purse.”  But I need to decorate the front and wish I’d get the Velcro I ordered, but we all know how these things work.  You get the things you really want, last.  I did however, get a lovely ballerina die yesterday.  What do I need a ballerina die for?  I have no idea, as I don’t think I ordered it..It’s the mysteries of being me.  You know I’ll be going back through my orders to figure out if I did order it, and if so, what the heck was I thinking?  I’ll let you know if I did order it….and then we’ll all scratch our heads about my sanity…

The Paper Pumpkin kit I used from Stampin’ Up is an older set, and no longer available. If you are interested in receiving Paper Pumpkin kits on a monthly basis, here’s the link for them. https://www.paperpumpkin.com/en-us/sign-up/?demoid=2104107
I gave the wrong price in the video, as it’s $19.95 (including shipping) per month, and every kit is a surprise, you don’t get advance notice of what’s in the box. You’ll get a Stampin’ Spot (a 1′” by 1″ ink), a stamp set, plus whatever other products they choose to send each month.
I  wanted to show you a cool technique to use with intricate dies. I could use wax paper or drier sheets to help remove the contents of the die, but wanted to show a different way of using the die instead. I took a white sheet of cardstock (Recollections 110 lb heavyweight cardstock) that is 4″ x 5 1/4″ and I inked the cutting side of the die with the ink spot (Bermuda Bay) and then using my die cutting supplies, used the primary plate for the die cutting machine, added the clear plate on top, then add a foam layer, then the paper, then the die facing down and then the other clear plate, and run it through the die cutting machine. It comes out embossed and the edges inked…and it looks really cool.
I took this paper and added it to one of the card bases I got in the kit, and added one of the sticker strips near the top of the card. I took one of the circle stickers and stamped the flower stamp that came with the kit all over it and then put rhinestones in the centers of the flowers and attached it to the center of the embossed doily. I stamped a sentiment that came in the kit on a die cut I’d cut and put it on dimensionals and added three layers of twine to the sticker and wrapped the edges under the sides of the sticker. The twine had kinks in it, so I put a little water in my hand and pulled the twine through the water and that removes the kinks.
For my second card, I thought it would be fun to punch out some small flowers with a Stampin’ Up Petite Petals Punch (retired but available on ebay). I used one of the envelopes and punched seven flowers out of it, then took a paint brush and the ink that was provided, ran a thin line out to the ends of each petal, then used Tempting Turquoise ink and my 1″ blue chip brush and painted the entire flower.  Then I took a cake stylus from a set I have, and here’s the link to it: https://tinyurl.com/ycqtnydp .. I used a piece of fun foam to lay it on, flipped the flower over and rubbed the tip of each petal with the stylus, then flipped it back over and pushed the stylus into the center of the flower…I added one of the green pearls to the center and did this to each of the seven flowers. Then I took one of the belly bands and cut it into thin strips and used those for the stem of my flowers. I used one of the small gift card holders and placed it near the bottom center of one of the card bases from the kit. I glued the strips with Tombow Mono Aqua glue so they looked like stems coming out of a vase, then used dimensionals to adhere the flowers to the top of the stems. I took one of the other gift card (small) holders and an old Punch Bunch leaf punch punched as many leaves as possible out of the gift card holder…I used my green chip brush and Gumball Green ink from Stampin’ Up and colored the leaves. I tucked the leaves in around the flowers and then after I had glued everything in place, glued down the gift card holder that was acting as a vase. I stamped a sentiment on one of the stickers and adhered it to the bottom below the vase. I added some of the pearls to the top of the “vase” and called it done…
The third card I made, I used an edge punch on a piece of envelope and adhered it to the front of the card base, then added one of the belly bands and twine on it then added one of the squares that I put a sentiment on, and adhered two of the flags to make them look like they were holding the square in place.
The fourth card I took one of the bands and adhered it ear the top of the card, then before gluing it down, pulled twine through holes I punched into the small flags and glued them down in a semi-circle. I adhered one of the circle stickers with “for you” stamped on it from the kit, then stamped confetti from a stamp set I had and used an old Stampin’ Up set called Garden Collage that’s retired….here’s a link to it on ebay. https://tinyurl.com/ycjtjjo7
I stamped it near the bottom with the ink from the kit and used a white gel pen to accentuate the flower and butterfly.

I’ve been having so much fun making the “purse to hold a manicure set and two bottles of nail polish from the Dollar Tree.  I’ve made a few mistakes that I’ve had to rectify, and some that I decided to leave in place, like gluing the decorative paper on backwards (it’s double sided)…I could have cut a new piece, scored it, and glued it down, but decided to throw in the towel since I’d already made that same mistake one other time..

I need to add more closures.  I put a strong magnet at the top, thinking it would be strong enough to keep it closed, but unfortunately, it doesn’t.  I’d ordered some small round self-adhesive Velcro from Aliexpress in white, and my decorative paper has white circles on it, so I’m hoping it arrives soon and then I’ll be able to add a circle on either side to hold it closed.

When I put the holders for the polishes and manicure set inside, I thought about a way to use the “purse” that might be even more useful.  I think I’m going to glue a piece of clear plastic to the inside of the purse and then you can lay it flat, put your hand on it, and paint your nails.  The plastic will keep the purse protected and give you a nice surface to paint on….That’s my thought so far, and I’m hoping it looks OK once I’ve finished it.  I am really happy that a viewer asked me to make the set, as I love making different products than simply cards….and when I was in the Dollar Tree, buying the supplies, I found a set of bath gel, body cream and maybe shampoo (can’t remember the third product)..It’s in it’s own clear plastic packaging, and I thought it would be fun to either surround the products with decorative paper, or make a  “purse” for them.  I haven’t decided which I think would be best….What are your thoughts?   I have several viewers that donate things to nursing homes and to their churches, and I think both of these ideas would be perfect (and inexpensive) to donate.

Once you see the purse video, you’ll realize how simple it is to make, and I hope a lot of you give it a try.  I’m going to try to make the bath set even simpler, so you can mass produce them for gifts or craft fairs.  In this case, the set would only cost a dollar, plus whatever papers and cardboard you’ll use…so it will be really inexpensive..YAY!  I love making projects that are easy and won’t break the bank…If you have any requests, something you’d like me to make, please let me know, and I’d be more than happy to give it a try..

I made a video today…YAY!  I was starting to feel a little bit burned out making cards, and played with the Paper Pumpkin kit I was sent from Stampin’ Up, and I felt rejuvenated using their supplies.  I didn’t get a lot of stamps, and I guess it allowed me to think outside the box and boy did I…The kit included gift card holders, and I wasn’t thrilled with using them for that particular purpose, so came up with something totally unusual…And I showed a very intricate die, and a great way to use it that doesn’t involve removing paper from a hundred little slots.  I really enjoyed the process and hope you do too.

It’s supposed to start drizzling here tonight and continue for almost a week…If that happens, I might be limited to the kinds of videos I can make.  My wrists and hands don’t enjoy drizzle, so we’ll power through by playing with some new and different ideas.  I’m looking forward to it..(not the drizzle, the alternative ideas.)

I’ve been working in the craft room, but I don’t have anything to show for it yet.  I made a video last summer, and Rich has been putting off editing and uploading it, because it is so long.  Yesterday and today, he’s been working like a dog, to get it finished.  How hard does a dog work, anyway….I’m going to look for the origins of that statement.  Here’s the scoop…

phrases, sayings, idioms and expressions at

The Phrase Finder

So there you have it…  Rich finished uploading the video tonight and I had to then add the description.  You’d think it would be easy to do so, but when almost a year has gone by from the making of the album, to explaining how I did it, things have gotten lost (in my mind) along the way.   I feel kind of foolish, but there are gaps and my explanation isn’t the greatest, so here’s my apology for it…I’m so sorry, and will not let this happen again…If we have any videos that don’t go live in the first few weeks after filming, I’m going to delete the video rather than put all of you through this kind of mess.  I don’t have dimensions, I had Rich delete the portion of the video where I cut then ends off of the envelopes so they can be pockets, and the list goes on and on.

The next video I make will be of a normal length and I promise, will make a lot more sense than this one does.  If you’d like to make one of these albums,  you can easily follow Helen Griffin’s instructions ..Here’s the link.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=itgn7DyO1SU  This is the video I watched to learn how to make the album.

As for what’s in store in my next few videos…I’m going to cover Stampin’ Up’s Paper Pumpkin kit, which is their monthly subscription kit, show you how to emboss with an ornate die, and then I’m going to do a project I promised a viewer.  She’d like me to make gift packaging for a manicure set….and then, back to my art journal.  You probably thought I’d forgotten all about it, but no, I’m still thinking of ways to use it.

I used 5″ x 7″ envelopes (and the cards that went with them) that I bought as a set from Joanns. I used nine envelopes and used Distress Stain in Black Soot on the edges of the envelopes. They no longer make the stains with daubers, and are now sprays..You can do the same process by using the new stain and spraying it onto a foam makeup wedge and wipe the makeup wedges along the envelope edges. Here’s the link to the distress stain: https://tinyurl.com/ya72moam
I glued them together with Scotch Tacky wet glue to glue the flaps together. Link: https://tinyurl.com/yda2qycy The album technique I used was done by Helen Griffin’s envelope album system for gluing the envelopes together. Here’s a link to her video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=itgn7DyO1SU

Before doing anything else, I trimmed a very thin line off the bottom of six of the envelopes.  This allows me to make them into pockets.
I put the glue on the outside of the envelope flaps and then glued two envelopes so the flaps end up sticking up in the center and the fronts of the envelopes face each other as you glue them together. You’ll need three sets of two envelopes glued together, and three more envelopes that you’ll be gluing onto the center flap that sticks up (we’ll cover this a little later.) You’ll also need four (I made five but didn’t need the last one) pieces of cardstock that are 1 1/4″ wide scored on the long length at 1/2″ and 3/4″ and put tear tape on the back on the outside edges of the scores with the center section not having any glue on it. You normally will want these pieces to be as long as your envelopes, but I used the cards that aren’t as long as my envelopes,  they’re 7″ long and the book came out fine by using the shorter length cardstock versus using paper that is the same length as the envelope. I also put wet glue on the sides where I put tear tape so the sides of these strips will be well adhered to the base. I only took the tear tape off one side of my strip and laid the edge on the end of my envelopes (making sure the envelope flaps are inside and the opening is on the opposite side from where we are gluing our flaps.) Make sure the length is centered on the envelope so the envelope and strip are straight, then take off the tear tape backing on the other side, take another set of two envelopes and glue those to the other side of the strip. You’ll add another strip and two more envelopes, then you’ll adhere one strip to the back and one to the front so you can adhere your front and back covers.
Next, we’ll add the envelopes over the center flaps by cutting off the flap of the envelope we’re adding, put wet glue over the flap that sticks up in our album, and push the new envelope onto it until it reaches the center fold. Glue down any little flaps that might stick up on the envelope you’ve inserted.
I cut the cards that went with these envelopes so I could use them as inserts to write on. I cut them to 4 3/4 x 6 3/4″, rounded the corners withe my Kadomaru Pro corner rounder, and using the stamp set from Graphic 45 called Typography, stamped the cards with “Write your story.” I used black ink and clear embossing powder and heat set them. I used a punch from McGill Creativity called a File Tab punch to put tabs on each of the cards. I glued the tabs to each of the cards, staggering them so there were tabs at the top, middle and bottom.
I went to an old dictionary that was falling apart, and cut out pages to fit the pages and put tear tape on the back and adhered them to the album. I also used Graphic 45 Typography papers and cut them down and put tear tape. I cut the papers so they were 1/4″ shorter and narrower than the envelope. (Sorry I don’t have that measurement.)
I cut the covers to be 5 5/8″ by 7 1/2″ tall out of chipboard. I used grey cardstock 8 1/2″ x 11″ and using the back of a paintbrush, scored around the cardboard so it wouldn’t crack when I bend it. I trimmed out the corners on an angle to get rid of the excess paper. I used tear tape and wet glue to adhere the paper to the album covers.
I used Stampin Up linen thread (discontinued) and tied it to the ends of Tim Holtz Idea-ology Word Bands link: https://tinyurl.com/yc4nqc5f and used screw brads link: https://tinyurl.com/y8b852al with the legs cut off adhered with Glue Dots to the tops and bottoms of some of the pages of the album.
I used Deco Art Modelling Paste and Tattered Angel sprays in Boardwalk and Cardboard mixed together and adhered to the front cover through a stencil. After it was bricked, I covered the back of my covers with cardstock. To adhere the covers, I took the backing off the tear tape that was on the strip on the front, and lined it up so it was even top, bottom, left and right sides, then adhered the back making sure it’s even with the front cover. I needed to make a strip to surround the book. I took the same grey cardstock I used for the cover, that was 5″ wide and 7 1/2″ tall. I scored every 1/8″ on the 5″ side, so the paper is very flexible. Then I flipped it over and scored it again every 1/8″. I bought Tim Holtz Textile Surfaces to cover it, but it wasn’t tall enough to cover the length of the book, so I cut it 5″ wide. I took the adhesive off the back and laid it over the grey cardstock that I scored, then put tear tape over the back 1 1/2″ in on both sides, leaving the center loose. I added wet glue to the front and back covers 1 1/2″ and laid the paper on the cover. I put corner covers on the top and bottom of the front and back covers. link https://tinyurl.com/ybv7kycf

I painted an F with a beige paint. I used Mod Podge to cover it and let it dry. Then I used a stencil and an alcohol marker to color the F and glued it to the front cover of the album along with one of the Tim Holtz word bands. I also added a key on the spine of the album and the key hole I glued to the front of the album. Link https://tinyurl.com/ya4hwxfj

I’d like to say that I have been busy in my craft room, but honestly, the urge hasn’t really been hitting me much over the last three days.  I did make one card (that I hated) and threw away, but otherwise, I wanted to hang out and read.  Sometimes I wonder if it’s a weather issue, or I simply lack motivation….I’ll go with lack of motivation for $1000 Alex…It’s a Daily Double.  I’m doubly unmotivated.  Is that possible?  I think it must be since I haven’t been able to make a viable video in days.  I’m going to force myself into the craft room tomorrow, and I will make a video.  I have a lot of ideas for videos, but not for cards.  Maybe I should watch some YouTube videos featuring card makers….I did try to do that today, and ended up watching videos about religious cults and identical twins with differing DNA results..I have absolutely no interest in either subject, yet somehow I watched at least a couple of minutes of both videos…And then I found a makeup video where a YouTuber used only clearance makeup….I think her idea of clearance makeup and mine are at opposite ends of the spectrum, as she spent over $300 on her clearance makeup, and the results weren’t amazing.  If I’d spent that much money, I hope I’d look like a movie star…I’m pretty sure it would take a lot more than clearance makeup for that.  Even if she did pay over $300 for it..

My friend Sherry sent me a card folder that I loved, and wanted to duplicate.
You’ll start with a normal paper two pocket folder, putting it in your score board with the pockets facing the left side of the score board and scoring at 6 1/2″ on the long side of the folder. Try to make your score so it comes through both sides of the folder. Then you’ll want to fold it on the score line to make sure it bends in half.  Then put it in your paper trimmer so the top of the folder is on the bottom of your trimmer and cut 3/4″ to the left of center and cut up to the score, then move it 3/4″ to the right of the center line and cut up to the score line, then cut on the score line between the two cuts so you have a segment cut out of the top of the folder.
The paper I used was Graphic 45 Couture Collection, a retired paper collection. I found that my folder and Sherry’s folder were not the same size, so my measurements might not work for your folder. The paper I cut for the front and back covers of the folder is   11 1/2″ x 8 3/4″ wide.  I used tear tape that I buy at Craftchameleon.com and Tombow Mono Aqua Glue to adhere the paper to the folder.
I rounded the corners of the papers that cover the pockets with my Kadomaru Pro corner rounder that I bought from Amazon. The inside pocket covers are 9 3/8″ wide x 4 3/4″ tall.
The pieces I cut for above the pockets are 6 7/8″ x 8 5/8″ tall. The paper set had cute little squares with ladies on them, so I cut enough of them to cover the spots I left missing at the top center of my folder. I didn’t like the white underneath so used Black Soot Distress Oxide ink to cover it before I glued down the strips.
I cut a small matching strip for the pockets that was 1/2″ by 4 3/4″ tall and scored it in half on the 1/2″ length and glued it to the center line between the pockets so you don’t see the red center.
I scored the inside of the folder after adding all of the layers of paper at 6 1/2″ from the bottom. If I had been smart, I’d have scored each paper as I glued them down so I didn’t have to score through so many layers.
I wanted to punch a hole through the side of the folder to close it but I couldn’t get my hole punch to work…In the end, I used a long piece of really elegant ribbon to close the folder.
I used all of my scraps to make cards to put in the folder, and it should hold up to 8 cards that don’t have a lot of layers.

I have been spending all of my free time working on my craft room.  I’m not exaggerating when I say this time it will be clean enough to do a room tour.  I know you’re shocked, because if you’ve been reading my blog for any length of time, you know that I talk (lie) about cleaning my craft room….a lot.   This time things are different…I cleaned one area of the room enough to put the new tall dresser inside that I’m going to use to organize several things, and the rest of the counters are clean…The floor only has a couple of things that need to be donated and then it will be clean as well.  This is the first time I’ve felt any kind of excitement about the level of organization I’ll be working in.  I can’t tell you how happy I am with the progress I’ve made…You’ll just have to wait to see..