2015 Brings New Toys

Inky Hot Mess did a little shopping just before Christmas. Our studios were closed for Christmas so we didn't have a chance to get the new toys all set up. This past weekend we spent all day Saturday working. The new toys are all unpacked and working! 

One of the new items is an industrial paper cutter. This sucker is huge! I wish I had taken a photo of it.....I'm sure you'll see it in action soon. It's about 2 feet long! It weighs over 50 pounds!!! Now to figure out how to use it and get awesome cuts from it. 

One item that has been in the works for quite awhile is a color laser printer. We wanted to be able to print our flair sheets here so we weren't stuck to the Living Life printing schedule. We have a ton of ideas for flair in the works and we want to be able to release them bi-weekly or weekly. Here's the new pretty printer......it also weighs a ton! 

There's one new really big HUGE item in our studio....Man our work table got really full over the weekend....We're Apple geeks around here. There's been talk for quite some time about getting an iMac or MacMini. Well......we went with a MacMini because of some plans we have for the future and this gives us opportunities for expansion. I am sooooooooo stinking excited about having a 1 TB harddrive! Between our photos, business documents, and the Inky Hot Mess Living Life Kits which includes tons of work in Photoshop and Illustrator, the new larger harddrive is a very welcomed addition. Our MacBook Pro is only 250 Gig.....so teeny tiny nowadays!

We added a few Apple accessories along with an external harddrive for backups and the huge monitor. We hope the new, huge monitor will make designing our Living Life Kits and embellishments so much easier and a tad faster. 

Well, those are our new toys! We hope you received some fun toys from Santa! :)

BIg Shake Up at the House

Seriously. I am a tad on the crazy side. I'm downsizing my studio! I have gone through everything and have parted with lots of things....there maybe more as I move. Yup. I'm leaving the largest room in the house and moving to a room half the size. Gulp.

Not everything is moving with me. Our albums are staying put. My quilting is also staying put. My business has moved out of the room as well.

Here's hoping this all works out! I did buy some new furniture. I have been working on loading them up today.

There will be a tour when I'm done....

Have you any idea how many ink pads I have? Oh good grief! There's inks I didn't even know I had. I still have the first inky pad I ever bought!

Normally, I just use my Close To My Heart ink pads because they are handy. I keep them out so I can use them. But I have inks from all kinds of places. I put my Close To My Heart inks in the bottom of my drawer units. Shock and awe, right? I plan on using other inks for awhile and getting some rotation in there. I have soooooo many colors to choose from. It's crazy!

The embossing powders were also moved and now I can find them without digging through a bucket of them. The glitters and flock are up next!

Hold onto your hat! It's going to be a bumpy ride. :)

Follow Up Update from Inky

Lots of progress today! I'm having a horribly sad day, but I am trying to work through it and get some things done. I have accomplished a few things! Honestly, I'm surprised by this. I have updated everything on the For Sale pages! Everything sold has been marked. I have sent out lots of emails. I've gotten to almost everybody. I'm hoping to get the emails all caught up today. 

During my husband's lunch break (we're fortunate that he works from home), we started rearranging my studio. I've been wanting to move some things around. Now that I've been using my studio for awhile there are some things that haven't been working for me. I also thinking making some changes to our home - rearranging some things - will help with my grief over Milo. 

My workstation has changed! I'm now in a regular comfy office chair instead of a wooden bar stool which is so much nicer! Not to mention comfy. My neck and back are happy! More changes are to come. There will be lots of photos soon - once everything is moved. I have so much more room now. 

On a side note, the weather here in the Finger Lakes in New York is amazing today! The windows are open to my studio. I also opened up the French double doors which lead to our second floor deck. Maxx and Ashley have been having a blast out there. Maxx is thoroughly enjoying sniffing the air and lounging on the deck. Ashley is having her own stalk the squirrel who lives in the fence party. She's a Yorkie what can I say? Tigger and Dale have been brave and sat in the doorway investigating the smells. They're two of our cats and aren't always up to be super brave. They've never been outside, but they are super curious. 

Autumn is definitely in the air! Big sad face. But I do looooooooooove autumn. It's my favorite time of year. Apple picking. Pumpkin picking. Apple cider. Cider Donuts (if you've never experienced these, get your hands on some!). Autumn Harvest. Autumn Leaves. Bonfires. Grape Harvest! I'm looking forward to checking out some wineries/vineyards and the grape harvest. Grape Pies! Farmer's Market changes this time of year. Winter squash comes in. Craft fairs. Autumn Raspberries. Hot Chocolate. Smores by the Fire. Cool Breezes. Jumping in Leaves. Autumn Festivals. Harvest Festivals. Fireplace/Woodstove Evening Fires. The Birds Migrate! So cool watching hundreds - sometimes - thousands of Canadian Geese flying South overhead. It really is an amazing sight to see. 

Think Tank Tuesday

This week's Think Tank Tuesday is all about lighting. Studio lighting that is.

I've had four studios over the years not including times when I used the living room and dining room. One issue I've always had was lighting. Who wants to attempt to color match cardstock and ink to your papers in the dark or in bad lighting? It's never fun. It's always lovely to discover the cardstock you grabbed really isn't red. It's orange. Oops! Oh and you discover this at a crop! Yikes!

natural lighting

So when we remodeled the room that became my new studio I knew I wanted lots of lighting. Lots of natural and artificial lighting. Luckily, there are four windows and double French doors so I do get a great deal of natural lighting which really is awesome. I try to do all of my color matching using natural light. Makes life easier and fewer surprises at crops.

adjustable track lighting

Unfortunately, the sun doesn't shine every day or all day and night so artificial lighting is a must. I admit I was never a fan of track lighting. Maybe it's because track lighting in the 80's was scary ugly. It looked so office and industrial like. So not my style. Track of 2013 is nothing like that! I purchased a track light from Lowe's that has six halogen bulbs. The lights can be moved anywhere on the track and can be aimed where you'd like. Also the track is flexible! I straightened my track, but I know someone who has the exact same fixture in her kitchen and it is in the corner and curves. It looks really great there. I also put up a medallion to cover up the hole we had to make to install the fixture.

Believe it or not, I actually considered the ceiling when remodeling. Yes, I have wide beadboard on the ceiling. It's not painted ceiling white. It is painted a white glossy paint. Why? Gloss paint reflects light.

work station lamp

My workstation also has a lamp. Granted, it's not super bright, but it does help me late at night. It's not helpful for color matching I admit, but the shade has black damask on it. You know me and damask!

Until next time*

Soak up some spring sun! Go outside and take amazing photos.

Are We There YET, Papa Smurf?

Normally, Papa Smurf says no about 150 times before arriving to the Smurfs' destination. Folks, we have arrived at our destination! Do you hear the excitement in my voice? You should. And you should hear it loud and clear.

It is official! My studio is COMPLETE! That's right. No more remodeling. No more painting. No more sanding. No more freaking cleaning. No more unpacking. No more figuring out where to put things. No more trying to figure out if I really want to keep some things. It's all done! I'm soooooooo freaking excited. I've been waiting for this day for months. We moved in six months ago today.

While at Crop on the Cape two weeks ago, I felt totally lost. I couldn't figure out how to lay out my scrapping goodies and where to begin! I used to have this down pat and had a serious system. It was so strange to me to be so lost while scrapbooking. I've never experienced this.

Was I losing my love for paper? Yeah, right! Not exactly. Someone asked me if I had scrapbooked since I moved. Nope. Then she asked me when the last time I scrapbooked was. I had to think about it for a minute. Good grief! It was last June in North Carolina. That's nine months ago. I've never gone that long without playing with my paper collection. No wonder I was so lost.

Good news is that I found my way. I got quite a bit accomplished. Not nearly as much as I expected to given my track record. But I was quite pleased since the first night I didn't get much done and I was so lost. It was rather quite sad.

This sadness motivated me. I have been working on unpacking my studio for about two months now. I thought it would take two weeks. Boy, was I dreaming! I really do have a lot of stuff. No arguments here. My quilting and office are also in my studio so that took me some extra time. Previously, they were together in their own room. Here I get to have everything together!

Over 70 boxes later, they are all empty! Most are already at the landfill being recycled into something useful again. Tomorrow the rest will be recycled. I'm so happy to see them gone. Gone. Gone!

With the Great Unpack 2013 comes some challenges and new things. I have gone through every piece of paper crafting material I own. I roughly went through everything before I moved and had 2 boxes of things I planned on selling. Well, now that everything has been unpacked and sorted out, I can say wowee! There are a ton of pieces I will be parting with. I have dozens of brand new stamps and ink pads I'll be selling. I will be listing with photos and details everything on here first. Then it will move to my new Etsy store after a week or so. This is my project for next week. Wish me luck! Pretty sure I'm going to need it.

I will be starting posts on my new studio Wednesday! Exciting I know! There will be tons and tons and tons of photos and links on where to get the items I used for storage. Yeah, I'm cool that way. And nothing is expensive. Remember, every dollar spent on storage takes away from my precious paper budget!

Think Tank Tuesday will also be back next week. I completely forgot to set it up while I was away at Crop on the Cape. I'm a bad girl. I know. Sorry! Oh and Crop on the Cape 2014 will be March 13-16. Please visit the Colorful Creations website for details. Registration opens in November so the details may not be announced until then, but you can see the crop from 2013 and it will be very similar.

Until next time *

Look through an album you haven't looked at in years! You might be surprised to see how your style has changed and how different the faces are now.

Coming Along...

Oh the joys of moving! Unpacking and discovering how you labeled boxes isn't quite right or what you swore you'd remember. Why do I say I'll remember? Sure. No problem. There's only about 200 boxes! And over 70 of those are for my studio. So ummm yeah sure no problem I'll remember.

Oh and FYI...labeling boxes with the word Studio means absolutely nothing! Turns out that box was filled with office mumbo jumbo. My office is in my studio, but I'm thinking paper crafting when something says studio.

No matter because I have zero plans on ever moving from this house. I looooooooove this house. Yes, we do have some plans for remodeling and an addition. The remodeling is because the house was built in 1942 and that's when the bath and kitchen we last visited except for some dreadful 1990 country floral wallpapers. Hideous. That's the only word to describe them! Blind people would run screaming from them. The addition is a first floor master suite for when we're old and can't use the stairs so well. Yup, planning ahead!

So the unpacking is going. Taking much longer than I was hoping. Doesn't everything when it comes to moving? I have several new pieces of furniture so that's throwing me off a bit. I also picked up a second Ikea Expedit last weekend. That was desperately needed for my paper and cardstock mountain.

I have moved some things several times. Still not sure I like where my ink pads are. Pretty sure I don't actually. I think they're too far away from me.

The alcove maybe not happening permanently in my studio. So we stopped putting in the hardwood flooring in it. We may add the alcove to the bathroom behind my studio because it's sooooo narrow. It's claustrophobic in there! So the flooring in on hold for now until we make up our minds. We are also moving all of our clothes out of the walk-in closet in the studio and I'm getting to use it as extra storage! Yay! That's where I'll be storing all of my items for sale and big, messy things like my pieces waiting to be altered.

I've been taking some photos along the way, but the room is soooo messy that I can't bare showing them until I am done and ready to be creative. I don't want people to think I'm a slob and have that on the internet forever. Besides you want to see the before, during, and after all at once.

Until next time *

Take a photo every day....you never know what you may be missing out on every day!

Letting the Cat Out of the Bag

Have you been wondering where I disappeared to? Some of you know may know. My hubs was offered a new job - he wasn't looking for one at all - and we relocated. Where to? Oh um back to New York. Surprise! This time we're in the Finger Lakes. It's amazing here! Winter has been pretty mild so far. It's far from over though. Some serious cold is coming. Cold from the Arctic. Really, don't they know they don't need to share?

the new digs

So what am I up to? Well, we bought a new old house. Our new house is a Cape Cod built in 1942! It has charm all over. Original hardwood floors, built-ins, wood work - like actual wood not the plasticy stuff they sell today. Our house is on over an acre of land! We have great neighbors who we met while we were unloading the moving trucks. We even received a house warming gift! A bottle of wine from a vineyard on Keuka Lake.

former master bedroom with scary
carpeting and rose wallpaper 

So what happened with my studio? Glad you asked! This house has a major remodel/addition in 1990. The previous owners added shed dormers and a master bedroom upstairs. The room is far too large for us. We weird that we don't like huge bedrooms. We only sleep in there! A 14 x 20 room is a total waste on us. We are using the walk-in closet as our closet for now though. The second closet has been added to the room as sort of an alcove for storage. So um yeah the previous master bedroom is being remodeled into my new studio! And by studio I mean for paper arts, quilting, and my office. Yeah, it's all finally going to be in one room which will be awesome.

the new cinnamon maple wood floors, the pumpkin wall
is amber fields and the yellow wall is fall gold

Now this room was covered in scary rose wallpaper. It took me five days to remove it all. Several days to repair the sheetrock. Painting...oh boy. One coat of primer and four coats of paint later I have what I want - autumn in my studio. My paints are Amber Fields (an old Biltmore Estate paint from Lowe's) and Fall Gold (a paint color from Lowe's).

We are installing new flooring. FYI carpeting that is 22 years old is NASTY! We are slowly installing new wood floors. They are Cinnamon Maple wood flooring. It's actual wood flooring and not engineered or laminate.

new beadboard ceiling and
track lighting fixture

With the shed dormers, there were like 80 bazillion cracks in the ceiling and they've been repaired numerous times previously. I sure didn't want to be doing it every year. So wide planked beadboard went up on the ceiling!

We hung up a track lighting system. No, not those scary things from the 80's! This one has six small cans that have halogen light bulbs. It kicks out a lot of light which will be awesome. New light switches and outlets, too.

new pretty non-leaky french door
complete with blinds

There's an amazing 20 x 20 deck off this room. It's on the second floor so the views are fabulous. We were wondering if we'd get a teeny tiny glimpse of the lake, but nope we don't. Darn! During Hurricane Sandy, we discovered something fun about the French doors that lead to the deck. They leaked. And by leaked I don't mean a drop here and there. I mean water pouring down the door! YIKES! So a new French door was installed by us. Getting the door to the second story was ummm an adventure to say the least. Good news. No more leak!

There's still a lot to do....finish installing the wood floors (should be done this weekend), install all the trim (most of it is already painted), moving all of my studio furniture in, a trip to Ikea (which is five hours away), and putting all of my studio items in the room. Currently, there are boxes in five rooms for my studio! Yes, seriously five rooms!

Nope, I haven't been playing with my paper or my inks in a looooong time. It's been months. Since early summer. My studio was one of the first things packed once we found out we were moving. I can't wait to play again. I will be attending Crop on the Cape in Cape Cod, Massachusetts in March though!

Until next time *

Make sure you photograph and scrap your life around you. Not just the people and memories.

Sneak Peak in My New Studio

Let the studio tour begin! There's lots to see and this will take several posts and will probably take awhile. Please be patient. It is really worth it. I will be telling you were I got all of my storage pieces from! I have lots of people ask me about this frequently. I love cheap storage pieces. Why? The more I spend on storage, the less I have for new scrapping, stamping, and art supplies. I can always jazz up a storage unit. I can't jazz up stamps. It's amazing what a little bit of paint and elbow grease can do!

This is the main area I work in. The table is from Ikea and it was less than $50. It is a wooden folding table. I have it propped up on bed risers which I bought from Wal-Mart for about $7. In a post last week, I talked about my table being covered in vinyl. It's clear vinyl from Wal-Mart, but you can purchase it from any fabric store. They have different thicknesses so be sure you get one that will hold up. Some are super thin and didn't seem like they'd hold up to my inky messes. I cover my area with newsprint which I buy at Lowe's. Wal-Mart also has a bundle in the office aisle where they have the shipping/moving stuffs. I go through a lot of newsprint. It saves me from having to clean up lots of inks especially when I get out the mists and alcohol inks.

I have a small basket that holds the tags I have inked up. There's a metal stand (from Hobby lobby) that has three buckets full of blank tags waiting to be used up. A couple more containers from Hobby Lobby that hold my Liquid Appliques, Pixie Sticks glitters from Pink Paislee, writing markers, gel pens, scissors, etc. There are two glass candy jars (from Wal-Mart). One holds ribbon scraps and the other holds random embellishments that don't have a collection or there are only one or two left.

The metal buckets (from Target's $1 bins) hold my buttons. Well, some of the buttons. I have more button collections. These are just random buttons I have purchased. Not ones that are part of a paper collection or that can be purchased by the bag full in their color.

It's not in any of the pics, but my cup holder/trash bag hanger from Creative Memories is hanging on the left side of the table. Every paper craft must have a cup holder! Don't ever put a beverage on your crafty space! It always leads to disaster. Trust me on this one. been there. Done that. Rejected the t-shirt.

This wasn't on my studio table in my old studio. This is my collection of Close To My Heart inks. I have five of the towers they sell. Sadly, their ink towers only hold their inks. I would love someone to come up with a good ink storage piece that doesn't cost a lot of money and holds ink pads from everybody. I know it's a lot to ask for.

The little black box in front of the ink towers is my photo box form Creative Memories. This box holds the photos, layout info tags, and post its for the crops I go to. Never leave home without it!

Under the left side of the table is this set of bins from Ikea. They are like $20 for the rack and the bins! The top is an extra $7. This set of bins holds the majority of my sticker collection. The stickers that are part of a paper collection aren't in here. They're with their paper collection.

Until next time *

Have you played in your crafty space lately? Make some time for yourself!

Eviction!

Yup, you read that correctly. I evicted myself. I have two rooms in our house. One is my studio space for my paper, ink and paint mess and the other is my office and quilting room. I wasn't feeling my old space for my studio. The room is a smidge larger, but it was never a comfortable space for whatever reason. So this week my husband helped me flip flop rooms. Talk about a project!

Somehow everything fits better in the smaller room. I can actually get to my windows in here! I couldn't get to them in my larger room. Figure that one out! I sure can't. I think the layout of the windows and doors being in different locations and having an alcove helped a lot. I even have better closet space without it being a walk-in. Strange but true.

Want some pics? Wanna see my new home? I'll probably do several posts over a few days because there's so much. I'm even going to tell you where I buy my storage and how I store all of my paper and cardstock. Yes, I really do have more than some stores. What's more surprising is that I actually use it. Pretty sure I'm going to need to do a huge Bazzill order this autumn or winter. Time to stock up!

It will be a few more days until I can take pics. All of the furniture has been moved. Now I need o give everything a home. And by everything I do mean everything. Somehow I ended up with a bookcase that's completely empty. Everything that was on it before has a new home. Don't worry! I've got lots to fill it up with. That reminds me....I need to order some new button jars from SKS Bottle. I should do that before I forget!

Until next time *

Stay cool. It is 103 degrees here!

Studio Space

I am frequently asked about my studio space. Lots of people know I relocated last year to South Carolina and built a new house. In said house, a planned studio space was built. I honestly thought it would be more than big enough. I felt like I would have extra room to grow and space to spread out. Boy, was I wrong! My quilting doesn't fit in the room at all. My computer desk and printers aren't in there either! The walk-in closet is stuffed to the gills. The studio its self has cathedral ceilings and I have things going up to where the wall bends. Some things are pretty close to the ceiling. If I ever build a house again, I now know I need a space double this size to really do what I want to do. Scary!

Today's peak into my studio is my work table. It's our old dining room table. We've had it for well over 10 years and it's pretty beat up. It's not so spiffy for dining on any more. Sadly, the leaf doesn't fit in it in the studio, but I am saving it for a day when I have the space.

In case you haven't figured this out, I like to play with ink. Ink is messy. There's no way around that especially when you're spraying ink all over the place. So I took a suggestion from my friend Kendra and covered my table with clear vinyl from Wal-Mart. It was something like $1.97 a yard. It took 2 yards. I am going to get some more so I can cover things on the table so they don't get inky.

The vinyl is so easy to clean up. Baby wipes. Paper towels. And I'm all done! When it starts to look funky and the inks are't easily cleaned up, I can replace it for cheap which is perfect!

There are some things that are always on my work table. That is their home. It's things I use often and need within easy reach.

Are you ready? Here we go!

To my right is my pen holder from Club SEI. You, too, can purchase this if you become a member this month! Don't laugh, but I also put my iPhone in it so I know where it is. I certainly don't want my iPhone inky! I also keep a pair of scissors in it.

Behind the pen holder is a set of attached buckets from Hobby Lobby. The buckets are metal and sort of look like a rustic copper.

They hold my glue pens, exacto knives, paint brushes, painting tools, and dry erase board markers, eraser, and cleaner.

Behind the copper buckets is this super cute little drawer cabinet from Hobby Lobby. It's filled with my collection of tags from Staples. Yes, Staples sells tags. They call them Shipping Tags. They're fairly inexpensive and for those who don't have a scrap or stamp store they work very well! I don't believe they are acid free so don't put them directly on your photos. They work the same as the ones I have purchased in scrappy stores!

The majority of my button collection sits straight across from me. The only buttons not included in this collection are the ones from Close To My Heart, Papertrey Ink, and DeNami Designs. Why are those separate? They come in little bags and are available in a variety of colors. I restock them when necessary.

My buckets are filled with buttons from wherever! I collect them from everything you can imagine. I have some from old clothes. I have purchased mixed bags of buttons. Some are retired colors from Close To My Heart. Some are from fabric and quilt shops. And others I have no idea how they stumbled into my life. I am grateful that they found their way to my studio though. A girl can never have too many buttons!


And to the left of my Buckets of Buttons is this really cool, metal, square bucket stand I got from Hobby Lobby. I have absolutely no idea what they call it or what they designed it for, but it sure is cool! It holds my collection of tags. I have manilla tags, white ones, a pile of colored ones, a bunch of stamped and printed ones, and I recently added some really cool black ones that have a finish on them that doesn't hold ink unless you get out your sander from Tim Holtz, but they sure are fun and funky!

Next to this stand are two glass penny candy jars. They are from Wal-Mart. I have seen similar ones at more expensive stores, but why spend $20 or more each one when they are about $5 at Wal-Mart? That's money taken out of my creating budget and who wants that? Not me!

They're basically scrap jars. One holds ribbon scraps and I have lots of them! The other one has random buttons, brads, paper flowers, and miscellaneous random embellishments. You know the kind of thing you think you use up and them discover you have one or two left. Or when you drop a container of brads and think you found them all and then miraculously you find a few on the floor squished in the carpet 3 months later. We've all be there! Just another reason I dislike carpet in my studio. Allergies, sand (I don't have dirt where I live. It's all sand like the beach and there's no water for miles! WEIRD!), pet fur, and ink all don't agree with carpet.

And last but not least on my left side are two more containers from Hobby Lobby. First there's a super cute metal bucket that has a divider up the middle of it so it's like there's two pockets inside it' It holds my American Crafts markers and my Pixie Dust from Pink Paislee.

To the left is a mini library card catalog drawer from - you guessed it - Hobby Lobby. (There's a Hobby Lobby about 2 miles from my house and I have to drive by it to go anywhere. It's also the only craft store in my area.) This holds my Liquid Appliques, box cutter, and my Sharpies.

I just discovered I don't have a photo of the whole work table! I will have to take one and add it later.

Until next time *

Remember, a girl can never have too many buttons!

Welcome to the Beginning

THIS is beginning of my blogging journey into a new art form I am expanding into. Don't worry I'm not leaving my paper and stamp collection behind! Can you imagine?

What's new you ask? Plenty!

For starters, I will be going back to school for the umpteenth time. This time I will actually be studying things I LOVE and not things I can deal with. It's time for me to do what I wanted to do in high school but chickened out of. I'm giving myself a second chance and I have been met with criticism along the way. Hey it's my life and I have the right to be happy. Don't like it? Piss off!

So what will I be studying? I'm finally going for my bachelor's degree! My major is Fine Arts Technology. What's that? Fancy words for Media Arts which encompasses graphic design and so much more. I'll also be taking several photography courses to complete my art requirements.

I'm going for two minors. I'm not 100% sure about one of them. One will require me to work my ass off and I am fully prepared for it. The minor I am 100% comfortable with Music. My original plan in life was to go to music school in NYC or LA. Well, I left New York state last year so I'm pretty sure I won't be going to NYC. My decision to FINALLY study music was an easy one. I do have a ton of things to relearn, but I am already preparing myself for this. Piano lessons start soon!

My second minor - the one I'm not 100% sure about - is Creative Writing. It definitely goes along with Media Arts and Music. I'm going to take the first couple of classes and see how things go. If I love it, then I'll be a double minor. If not, oh well. I need the writing for the required writing portfolio anyway. Maybe I'll find the happy inner me once again!

What else is happening....

Well my studio is 99% done! FINALLY! I only moved last April. No more necessary trips to Ikea up in Charlotte. I do need to grab something small from Target tomorrow. If they were open now, I'd go over.  But for some reason, they don't stay open 24 hours like Wal-Mart which kinda stinks for us night owls.

I'm so close to being able to play in my studio that I have gotten myself decorations. Most of them are functional. I took some inspiration from Tim Holtz and a little from Teresa Collins and a tad from my own personal tastes and needs. Hobby Lobby and Wal-Mart have lots of great things for this purpose!

Don't worry there will be about a million pics when all is said and done. I'd take some now, but the table is kinda ummm covered and looks like a paper factory exploded. I need to make it all pretty and document it so I have proof that once upon a time you could actually see my art table!

My new art adventure....

Ink. Canvas. Some of my favorite words.

Stay tuned and you'll see what I'm talking about.

Until next time *

This was my Declaration.