Papercrafts and Planners

Crafting a beautiful balance of creativity and productivity

Spring Bouquet Sympathy Card

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Keeping a Stash of Cards on Hand

I like to keep a collection of cards on hand for most occasions. A few family members have even begun to rely on me to have a card ready when they have forgotten to purchase one. It’s nice to not have a feeling of panic when you realize you need a birthday card, and do not have time to run out and get one, or design one for the occasion.  As card makers it can be embarrassing to hand over a card from the dollar tree. 

My collection was sadly missing sympathy cards, so I decided to make a few. I hope I won’t have the occasion to use one in the near future, however. I flipped through my stamps, glanced through the Fun Stampers Journey catalog for inspiration, and gathered a few supplies.

Multi-layered Stamps

Before becoming a Fun Stampers Journey Coach I really hadn’t tried multi-layered stamps. Since joining I have purchased two sets, and love them both.

The stamp set I used today is called Spring Bouquet (I will have a link to the set below), and I decided to stamp it in different shades of blue. 

I purposely did not add a lot of bling, or shine, to this card. I wanted it to be very monochromatic, and fairly simple.

Pulling My Cards Together

Below is a video of me putting this card together. I hope it will give you a few ideas, and encourage you to add to, or start a card collection.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DtjgDwc-aDs

 

 

 

Supply List

Here are links to the items I used to make this card. I was unable to link to the Hampton Arts Stamp Perfect, but their are other manufacturers who make a similar product. If you have any questions about the products I used, please feel free to ask. 

 

Spring Bouquet Stamp Set

Bird Melody Stamp Set

Blue Lagoon Fusion Ink Pad

Beach Breeze Fusion Ink Pad

Pool Play Fusion Ink Pad

Blue Lagoon Card Stock

Whip Cream Cardstock

Teresa Collins Mega Runner Tape Gun

Thanks so much for stopping by my blog. Be sure to leave a comment below, I would love hear from you.

Dedra

 

 

Fun Cards Bloom Box

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A Mini Class Delivered to You

Bloom Box is an awesome card kit that is available each month from Fun Stampers Journey. This month the kit is called Fun Cards, and they certainly are fun.

Each monthly kit contains a full sized stamp set, an instruction booklet, and supplies to make four unique cards. 

The only thing you need to provide is your own adhesive, ink, and basic tools. Subscribers are sent an email with the recommended supplies approximately ten days before the kits ship. If you don’t have all of the supplies, you can always substitute with the supplies you do have.

Two Ways to Get Your own Bloom Box

The first, and best, way to get your Bloom Box is to subscribe. Subscriptions are $24.95 (plus tax and shipping) a month, and there is a six month commitment. Your card is charged around the 1st of each month, and your box will ship around the 6th. 

Beginning July 2017, the Bloom Boxes will be available as a stand alone, one month purchase. The price for a single box is $29.95 ( plus tax and shipping), and is available while supplies last. If you find there is a box you really like, try to order as early in the month as possible, before the box sells out.

Fun Stampers Journey will also begin offering the stamp sets separately beginning July 2017. Again, these will be available while supplies last, with the subscribers getting first priority.

A Video Demonstration Each Month

Richard Garay always films a video, which can be viewed on the Fun Stampers Journey YouTube channel, showing the special technique featured each month.

https://youtu.be/d-bsbNesQxw

 

Order Your Box Today!

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If you would like to sign up for this month’s box, simply visit my Shopping Site, and place your order. If you want to pick and choose single boxes, you can do that beginning July 2017.

Mermaids Coming Soon

Next month, July 2017, the Bloom Box is full of adorable mermaids. There will also be a die set available for purchase separately. If you subscribe, you will receive an email with a link so that you can order the die set. This will likely be a very popular box, so don’t delay when ordering your mermaid box.

If you want to see the stamp sets that are available from previous Bloom Boxes, a close up look at this month’s box, and a sneak peak of the July box, take a look at my video.

 

I have really enjoyed my Bloom Box subscription! It has been a lot of fun learning something new each month, and making cards that I otherwise would never have tried. I tend to be a pink, frilly crafter, and the boxes encourage me to get outside my comfort zone, and try new things.

Thanks for stopping by, I hope you have enjoyed learning about the Bloom Box.

Dedra

 

Learning to Art Journal – Distress Paints

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Trying Something New

I think the beauty of having an art journal is being adventurous. Stepping outside your comfort zone is never easy, but usually I am so happy I did. Today I pulled out a few supplies, and came up with an idea for a new page.

Distress Paint

I have had a few Tim Holtz distress paints in really fun dauber bottles just hanging around with my other mixed media supplies. The colors are darker, and not my usual preference. One of the colors I used still had the plastic packaging in tact. Really sad since I have owned these for years.

Beautiful Paper

I loved the floral print that was part of an Echo Park paper pack, but hadn’t gotten around to using it yet. Since it had a vintage, distressed feel, it seemed to be a perfect match for the distress paint.

A Gorgeous Stamp and Some Words

I have a Fun Stampers Journey stamp that looks like a vintage postal stamp. I love it, but again, hadn’t given it much attention.

I also had a package of sticker sayings by Tim Holtz that I thought would be lovely on an art journal page.

Putting it All Together

Now that I had all of my supplies, it was time to bite to create. Below is a video of my process.

 

Supply List with Links

Postage Stamps ATS

Blue Lagoon Fusion Ink

Reflections by Lori Whitlock Paper

Distress Pain in Tarnished Brash

Distress Paint in Walnut Stain

Tim Holtz Small Talk Stickers

I hope that you will take some time today, tomorrow, or at least this week to be creative. 

Dedra

Planning for Business Success – Part 2

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Adding More Content to My Business Planner

In my last Planning for Business Success post I discussed the steps I was taking to be more productive. 

Step 3 was setting up my business planner. I finished the editorial calendar for July, but my planner was lacking a lot of vital information.

How do I want my work days to flow? What do I need to accomplish every day? What goals will I want to reach in the next 90 days? What steps do I need to remember when publishing a blog post, or video?

Inspiration Needed

I wanted to make sure all of this was spelled out in my planner. Of course, the first place I look for inspiration is YouTube, followed closely by Pinterest.

I can not recommend enough checking out BohoBerry on YouTube, if you need some productivity inspiration. She primarily uses the bullet journal system, but she has lots of inspiration for everyone.

90 Day Goals

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First things first, I needed some 90 Day Goals. I decided to keep it simple, and stick to three main goals. Of course I needed to make the page pretty, and it needed to have an inspirational quote.  I set my goals, and added the steps I wanted to take to insure I reach my goals. 

My Ideal Work Schedule

 

Next, I wanted an Ideal Schedule page showing how I want my days to flow. Since putting this page together I realized that I needed some help staying focused. A gentleman happened to pop up in my YouTube feed talking about just that. His channel is Thomas Frank, he focuses on study skills, but has lots of good content on staying motivated and focused. He recommended the Tide app. and I’m giving it a try. 

An App to Help me Focus

The Tide app. lets you set a timer of sorts for the amount of time you would like to stay focused. You aren’t still trying to multi-task, are you? If you break your focus to check a message, pop in on Facebook, answer your phone, etc you fail. No one likes to fail, but more importantly it helps you realize just how often you lose focus during a time when you need to get the important stuff done.

So, I have my ideal work day mapped out, I’ve set my three 90 day goals, and I have a nifty new tool to help me stay focused. What’s next? I need to set a weekly work schedule that will take into account  my other commitments. 

The Weekly Schedule

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My weekly schedule needs to include the other commitments I have, and the hours I intend to focus on my business. I also need a side bar with my to do list for the week. I have broken mine down into different categories: YouTube/Blog, Admin Stuff, and Reading and Learning. 

Every weekend, usually on Sunday, I take the time to write up my weekly to do list. This will all go on the weekly side bar section in this new planner. 

Every day is broken down with the hours I intend to work, and the commitments I need to work around. I will be taking some time at the end of each day to review what I accomplished, and what needs to be accomplished the next day. 

In the past I have made the mistake of trying to fill in my entire week on a Sunday night. It rarely works. Someone will need my help with something, an appointment will get moved, or I over-estimate how much I can accomplish on Monday, and now need to move some items to Tuesday. 

In my weekly view I wanted to have a list of the things I need to do after filming a video, or writing a blog post. The process of filming, or writing, content is not the end. There is editing to be done, links and pictures need to be added. and you need to share your content so others can actually find it. 

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A Day Off

I also intentionally added a day off to my weekly schedule. Since I work from home it can be as easy to find myself working every day, as it is to get distracted when I should be working. The pull of a new idea when I really need to write a grocery list so there will be food in the house, is just as strong as remembering I need to call the insurance company while I’m writing a blog post. Of course, maybe this is just my adult ADD brain, but I doubt it.

How It All Came Together

If you want to see a flip through of my, very girly, business planner so far, check out the video. If you enjoy this video, please subscribe to my YouTube channel so that you don’t miss my future videos.

 

More to Come

This planner, as with most efforts to be more productive, will be a work in progress. I will check in from time to time, and let you all know how things are going. 

Stay tuned for Part 3.

Dedra

Learning to Art Journal with Pan Pastels

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Be Bold

I’m definitely getting bolder as I play in my art journal. I purchased some pan pastels in gorgeous colors and decided that they would be fun to use with embossed images.

I have a few butterfly stamp sets that I love, and couldn’t wait to heat emboss them. While this page looks simple I used a few different techniques.

I heat embossed the butterflies, used pan pastels to make the images pop, stamped a saying, and came back later with some modeling paste and acrylic paint.

Below are the videos showing part one and two of this page.

 

Supply List with Links

Beautiful Wings Stamp Set

Bold Wings Stamp Set

Journey Modeling Paste

Rich Sorbet PanPastels

Craftsmart Acrylic Paint in Plum can be purchased at Michael’s

Enjoying the Journey

It is so easy to look at all of the artists on YouTube, Pinterest, Instagram, etc and be intimidated by their art journals. I’m trying to just enjoy the process, and not compare myself to them.

Art journaling is meant to be relaxing, not stressful. When I catch myself thinking “this doesn’t look very good”, or “wow, I wish I could do that”, I have to find that inner child who makes art because its fun.

If art journaling is outside your comfort zone, or you don’t think you have time for it, I hope you will give it a try anyway.

Dedra

 

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