MONDAY GOODIES!

Good morning, everyone!

No cards this week. Bob got home Friday afternoon and as usual, we've been on the go. Today we are working on the filming corner.

I spent most of Thursday, Friday, Saturday watching all the amazing creators taking part in the Card Makers Success Summit at Stamp Me Some Love. The event is FREE unless you want to purchase the lifetime access. Trust me... if you think you're not going to be able to watch everything or want to go back at a later time and watch a video again, it is well worth the minimal price for the VIP.   Videos are only available for 24 hours without the pass! But here's the thing...   If you don't buy the pass the first time you click on the purchase link, the price goes up... so make your decision the first go round. You'll be glad you did. I think Brandi said there would be another the end of March as she has other stuff going on in July when she normally runs the next round.

Okay..  So no cards, but lots of video watching, downloading free tutorials and signing up for lots of emails I'll probably wind up dropping.

BUT... I did fall in love with a product that apparently has been around awhile.  I'm always late to the party LOL

Have you heard of STENCIL 360*?

I'm going to link you to Ardyth's video because I think it's one of the best. Justine Hovey also has a really good one, but here's Ardyth's:

You'll find the product on the Penguin Palace website. They are out of Canada. My starter kit, storage bag and one other stencil set should arrive Thursday or Friday. LOL

I'll be doing tutorials and plays in the near future. Keep in mind... whether you are a card maker, a scrapbooker or play with junk journaling.. THIS product has sooo many possibilities.

I also networked in the livestream chats quite a bit and had requests for tutorials using other products so I'll be busy this summer.

Okay... I'm recording a haul video this morning before we get started. I did a short Hobby Lobby trip on Saturday. When I went last week, not a lot of stuff had been marked down. Saturday was much more successful...

I was thrilled to find the teal wax melts for the glue gun. I want to make Thank You seals for my etsy gift packages. I also picked up charms for the mermaid journals, four wink of stella pens, a package of misters and four packages of different types coils for the cinch - 2 coil and 2 D style. The little blue crystal cup was from the Easter Spring Shop line. I'm going to use it to put my fine tip glue bottle in upside down when I'm working on a project. Then there's one other item up in the top right you can't see very well....

It is called a Glitter Vac from We R Memory Keepers. I saw one on the shelf for $15, but then looked behind and there was one for $10!!!  You recharge with a USB and use it to vacuum up all the little bits on your work desk. You can also run it across your keyboard.  I've been wanting one so grabbed this. I figure what I saved on the clearance more than paid for this new addition to my office... and it's teal!

okay... I'll be posting pics to my IG account for the #100dayproject. I have day 3, 4, 5 to post yet but thought I'd share them with you here. All about the studio progress...

The adhesives from off of one cart are all sorted and ready to go here:

I took all the punches off of this cart, sprayed it Teal and now I'll have all different styles of adhesives on hand next to my table. I've already put a liner in the middle tray and Bob trimmed down my stickles tray to fit in there. But since I'm not using the black carts anymore, the tray had been stored in, the tray had to be reconfigured to fit.

The punch cart is finished!

All of the punches I use most are on this cart. Most of the seasonal punches are in a rack on the end of my big work island.  I was even able to add the crocodiles and standard hole punches thanks to the clip on containers on the side. 

That's it for me. 

I'll be back Wednesday with our March Challenge chat and our stick samples on Thursday. Other than that, pretty quiet here this week as I have Bob home to help whip the studio into shape. 

Are you doing the #100dayproject?  Some have told me they were inspired to use the challenge to organize as I am doing. I'd love to hear what you're up to!

Creative Blessings!

~ Kelly

CREATOR'S CORNER - Tiffany Solorio

 Good morning, crafty friends!

I am super excited for today's guest. Tiffany Solorio is my go-to creator when I want to play with my Lindy's Magicals. 

Before we go any further - I want to remind you of the Card Maker Summit THIS WEEKEND! If you've not signed up yet, please use Tiffany's Link HERE and come join the fun. Need more info about Card Maker Summit - Check out THIS VIDEO from Tiffany.

Okay.. let's get to know Tiffany:

I am a mom of 2 and I love creating. I started back in 2008 (ish) when I went to a Stampin' Up! meeting. I was hooked from the beginning. Even though my style has changed my love for learning new techniques and helping others to create has not changed. 

Here is one of the shots of Tiffany's inspiring space:

Thank you for joining us in the studio today, Tiffany. I can't wait to share your talent with my readers!

1 – What got you started on the creative path?

 I was invited to a Stampin' Up! party by a mom in a mommy and me playgroup I was in. I was hooked right a way!

2 – How has your creativity evolved?

It has taken so many turns. I fell in love with stamping. I made cards at first and then dabbled in a little scrapbooking. I then quickly found my love for mixed media and altered projects. After many years of creating 3d projects and more in depth projects I came back to card making, 

3 – What do you enjoy most about your creative path?

I am going to get a little vulnerable, which I don’t often do. When I was young I always felt artistic or the urge to be creative. But I was never able to draw or paint “correctly” and I always got bad grades in art class. In high school I remember the teacher telling me I wasn’t trying hard enough and I would almost fail each year but I stuck with it because I loved expressing myself through art. I also loved cooking and was actually pretty good at it and I thought maybe that is the “art form” I was supposed to pursue. I almost went to culinary school but life took me a different way. In 2008 I found paper crafting and over the years I obsessed in learning new techniques. People would often call me an artist but I felt so uncomfortable when people would call my projects art. Or tell me I am a good artist. It wasn’t until this year 2023 that I finally embraced the fact that I am an artist. 

4 – What inspires you?

I am inspired by so much every day! A color can inspire a project or the sunset can make me want to get in my room to create. 

5 – When did you move from hobby to business and what initiated the transition?

It was kind of by accident or maybe a natural progression. I have been creating YouTube video since 2008. Back then there was no money in it at all. I was always on some sort of design team but they didn’t pay. Just offered free products. It wasn’t until 2020 I took a course on how to build a better YouTube channel and my whole mindset shifted because I started implementing these things and I could see the potential. I started getting paid sponsorships and was asked to join summits and teach classes. 

6 – What do you love most about your space and would you change anything?

Recently I purged a lot of stuff out of my room and no matter what drawer I open or bin I dig in everything inspires me in my room. I think that is the thing I love most. For too many years I was so unorganized and I felt overwhelmed. I don’t have that feeling anymore. I would only want to somehow add a little hangout area for my kids. They often sit in my room with me but there is no couch or anything. 

7 – What 3 things do you feel are important when planning a space?

Don’t compare your space to other peoples

Make it functional but also have things out that inspire you. 

Keep your most used supplies closest to you

8 – What is your best organization tip?

I think the thing I stress the most is before you organize you have to purge. Not just a few items but have an honest conversation with yourself about what you haven’t used and won’t use in the future. 

9 – What is your best tip for anyone wanting to turn their craft into a business? 

Have multiple revenue streams and always learn how you can do better, whether that is with marketing, YouTube videos or other things. 

As you may have realized from these Creator's Corner interviews, getting to our 'Dream Studio' is much like finding Planner Peace. There is a process we must travel to find what works for us. Dream Studio is NOT about size but how we work with the what we have.

Tiffany gives us a tour of her dream studio in this vide:

I hope you've enjoyed this visit with Tiffany Solorio. Remember to check out the Card Maker Summit details coming up this weekend. This event is FREE (however, you can purchase lifetime access)

Here are some ways you can connect with Tiffany:

WEBSTIE   YOUTUBE   INSTAGRAM   REDBUBBLE

Creative Blessings!

~ Kelly

WOYWW #716 & #100dayproject - Day 1

 Good morning, everyone!

Before I get to my desk, I want to remind everyone there are only a couple of days left to sign up for the Card Makers Summit. We kick off the event tonight with a chat on YouTube then the classes begin tomorrow. This is all FREE unless you choose to buy the lifetime all-access pass. But FREE is good. Make some time to Play. If you know any of the instructors, feel free to contact them for their link. 

I am promoting Tiffany Solorio. She will be my guest in the studio tomorrow! Here is Tiffany's Link

You can also find out more by watching Tiffany's video HERE

Quick peek at my desk then you'll see where I'm going with picture number 2:

This is all of my 'most reached for' punches. They fill 3 shelves of a craft cart. On top of the punches, I have the diagram for placement of items in the cube storage. You can see the progress - or lack there of - HERE.

Items to the right are what came out of the top of the cart that will NOT go back in. The stack of junk mail envelopes with the pink clip... those are junk mail envelopes cut in 1/2 to make tuck spot belly bands for junk journals. I got the idea from Scrapbooking With Me on YouTube. Once I can get back to crafting, I'll get those turned into covered bases that I can then just decorate as needed for a specific journal.

I've pulled them all out of the craft cart because I'm prepping for my Day 1 project of the #100DayProject. You can find information for that HERE. Basically, you plan to do one creative thing every day for the next 100 days. I failed miserably at the creative last year so I decided to use the challenge this year to get the studio in order... one Day - one Task at a time. 

I have 3 black  craft carts. The one with all of my adhesives has a handle and won't fit between the Project Life cabinet and the filming table. So I pulled all of the punches off the one without a handle and did this:

Yep. We finally had a warm enough day this week I could spray the black cart teal to match the creative corner and add a pop of color. 

I'm giving this a few days to cure then I'll sort out all of my adhesives and put them on this cart next to my filming table. Then I'll put all the punches on the one I take the adhesives off of.

That's it for my desk (and story) this week. Who's Miss Julia and why am I here?  When you are done visiting me in the Ozarks, please hop on over to Stamping Ground for all the details. Miss Julia has a long list of other studios you can peek into. No standing on an up-turned milk pail to look in the window. We open the doors wide and welcome you.  Please leave your number and you'll be among the first on my list.

 

 Creative Blessings!

~ Kelly

A DIFFERENT MONDAY - #100dayproject

 Good morning, crafty friends!

I've been so busy working on trying to get the filming corner done that I've not done any cards.  With that in mind, I thought I'd show you what I am doing.

Incidentally, my #100dayprojectd is to get the studio in order. 100 days and 100 projects should see me there, right? Well... Hmmm

I've been focusing on the filming corner. Once it's done, I can continue to put together content while I work my way out into the rest of the room. 

I hit a couple of bumps with the cube storage last week but managed to push through until I hit one that I just have to have Bob take care of. So much for having the stuff out of the living room before he gets home. ::: sigh :::

I showed you the empty space a couple of weeks ago. If you missed that, you can see the picture HERE.

That empty space was filled with 3 black mesh carts I bought on clearance at Office Depot several years ago. Each was comprised of 2 drawers. A deep bottom drawer for hanging file folders then a shallower top drawer. I bought them with the intention of keeping my Stampin' Up! business files and overstock of cardstock in the bottom drawers then other business/ and ink storage in the top drawers. The problem was, the bottom drawers could not handle weight of either the file folders or cardstock. I'd pull the drawer out but when I tried to put them back, the frame would torque. I'd have to take everything out of the drawer, straighten the frame then try again. Such a pain!

Here is a similar cart on AMAZON except with 3 drawers

I tried remedying the problem by moving the overstock cardstock to a milk crate in the warehouse. but the frames had just been done in and I only put things in those deeper drawers that were light weight and weren't needed often. 

I finally got frustrated enough that I had to have a better option. Then I had the idea for cube storage. 

Here's where I am and I'll explain why there are only 3

There will be a 4th cube top left. But there is a 1x4 brace under that end of the shelf  against the back wall that is about 1/2" too low to allow the top unit to slide back against the wall. I've cried uncle and decided that is just something Bob is going to have to take care of. I think he can do it without having to take the whole shelf down. 

I have drawn out the cubes and noted what will go where. There will be 4 teal cube storage boxes with lighter weight items in them and I think Bob can add a shelf to 2 of them so that I don't have wasted space... like the bottom right where my ink spots/ refills will go. 

My only challenge at the moment is how to reconfigure the stickles storage Bob built me - custom made to fit one of the metal drawers.

As you can see, I can spare a hole or two that might make it fit in one of the cubbies.

That's it for me. I will be back Wednesday with our final February stick pull and WOYWW. Thursday we'll have a complete interview with one of Tim Holtz' makers - Tiffany Solorio. Friday, the element from the stick pull then Reindeer Club on Saturday. Going to be a busy week so don't miss a minute!!!

Creative Blessings

~Kelly

#KCDFEBJJ23 - Week 3 Part 2 - Let's Make Doilies!

 Good morning, everyone!

With snags in getting the cube storage in place, I'm a bit behind. I was able to remedy a couple of the snags but the final piece will have to wait until Bob comes home next week.

Yesterday, I had to get the bill binder in order then go pay a couple so no time here.

Which brings me to today's video.... 

I told you we'd be making doilies, no crocheting required. I hope you enjoy this week's project. A couple girls have already posted their makes to the facebook group.  Give it a try!

Creative Blessings!

~Kelly 

WOYWW #715 & #KCDFebJJ23 Week 3 Challenge

 Good morning, crafty friends!

Wow... just rolling into 8 a.m. and I thought I was running late this morning. 

First off, this is my 'desk' for the week:

This is my filming corner and the desk should be to the left in front of those shelves but I've taken everything out of the space that I can to make room for improvements. I have cube storage units to put together today then I'm hoping (if I measured correctly) that 4 of them will fit below that window ledge (that I still need to clear off before I start).

As part of this whole studio redo, I took one day last week to sort gather all of my bling and sort out. 

This is just a small portion of what I have:

Back in 2021 I ordered THESE bags from Amazon with the plan to store all of my stamp sets in. I'm hoping to finally get to that project next month.

In the mean time, I took 55 of them, lined each with a piece of poster board for stability and put each bling type in their own bag.  This way I can store them in a photo box and flip through to find what I need. I may still pull the basic colors from the scrap rack and add them to here since when working on a project, unless it's theme specific, I may not know what I want to use.

I chose not to cut the sealing edge off in case I want to use the 'empty' bag for something else later. They are sized for 5x7 cards.

Week 3 Stick Pull for the February challenge:

In tomorrow's video we'll be making doilies for our journals. They can also be used on cards. No crochet hook/ thread required. Intriqued? 

That's it for my desk (and story) this week. Who's Miss Julia and why am I here?  When you are done visiting me in the Ozarks, please hop on over to Stamping Ground for all the details. Miss Julia has a long list of other studios you can peek into. No standing on an up-turned milk pail to look in the window. We open the doors wide and welcome you.  Please leave your number and you'll be among the first on my list.

  Creative Blessings!

~ Kelly

MAKE IT- MAIL IT MONDAY

 Good morning everyone!

Spent a bit of time getting a couple of cards made for today before I totally empty out the filming corner. I'm tired of the disaster. I'm taking the studio one area at a time and working my way through.  I'll show pictures on Wednesday of the first mini-project I did on Sunday.

Before I get into today's card I want to talk about the Cardmaker's  Success Summit 2023 that will be going on the end of this month. I participated last year and had a blast. We even have a virtual crop... and it's all FREE! (Though if you want life-time access, you can purchase an express pass)

Each presenter has a link for you to sign up. This month on KellysCreativeDreams, we're all about Tiffany Solorio so unless you know someone else on the panel you normally work with, please sign up through Tiffany's link. I'm linking her INFORMATION VIDEO HERE and you'll find her sign-up link in her Description Box. Come join the fun!!!

Today, I played with Lindy's again. I know... surprise!  But I also added in older sets of Stampin' Up! Brushos and Sprinkles.

Here are the two cards then I'll tell you what I did.

You'll notice one is lighter than the other. That is because you will NEVER get the same look twice when working with these powders. That's part of the magic.

I mixed up the powders (Stampin' Up! Granny Apple Green) (Lindy's Magicals Forest Green from the Jingle Bells collection) with a few squirts of rubbing alcohol then dabbed the color on with a makeup sponge. You'll get a walk-through in the video below.

Then I layered a strip of varigated tweed patterned paper from my stash as well as the image in the center. I mounted the mat on a retired SU Emereld Envy card base from my stash. 

I've been asked if I decorate the inside. I do, just usually when I'm ready to send it off so I decorated these with identical insides:

I used clear vellum stickers from The Paper Studios St. Patrick's Day packs.

Here's the video with the walk-through:

I'll be back on Wednesday with a way to get all that bling under control & a look at 'hopefully' the new and improved filming table!

Creative Blessings!

~Kelly

WOYWW #714 & #KCDFebJJ23 Challenge - Week 2

 Good morning, friends!

I'm squeaking in late. Seems the past few nights when I go to bed the sinus' start draining (even sitting up) then the throat gets a bit of a scratch. For the most part I'm fine during the day. I've been up and back to bed once today. We'll see how the rest of the day pans out. 

So, my desk is a bit more cluttered than last week. For those of you who thought it was staged last week, it wasn't. I had just finished filming a video and that is the sheet I use in the video.

A bit of a mess but that's okay. All will be right again as I have another video to film today. 

All of this is getting cleared off this weekend as I prepare to move things around in the filming/ creative corner so I can finally get my stamps all unpacked and cataloged - next month. 

My #KCDFebJJ23 Challenge video is up. I start with a bit more clarification in my purpose behind the monthly challenge before pulling the stick for this week. If you were thinking of playing along but weren't quite clear, this is the video to check out.

That's it for my desk (and story) this week. Who's Miss Julia and why am I here?  When you are done visiting me in the Ozarks, please hop on over to Stamping Ground for all the details. Miss Julia has a long list of other studios you can peek into. No standing on an up-turned milk pail to look in the window. We open the doors wide and welcome you.  Please leave your number and you'll be among the first on my list.

Creative Blessings!

~Kelly

MAKE IT - MAIL IT MONDAY - Let's Play with Lindy's Magicals!

 Good afternoon, friends.

Apologies for being late. I'm trying really hard NOT to come down with a spring cold. Sore throat yesterday so didn't really feel the creative vibe. I'm a bit better today.

For today's card, I was inspired by THIS one on Pinterest.  I knew I wanted to use the Detailed Hearts die (retired) from Stampin' Up! This is one of those dies I knew I needed but haven't used a single time since I bought it. There will be a lot of those coming up in makes this year.

I also knew I wanted to play with Lindy's Magicals.  If you've played with Ken Oliver powders or Stampin' Up! Color Bursts powders then you'll LOVE Lindy's. The pigmentation is sooooo intense and vibrant. Then add a little shimmer and you have the perfect new color medium to play with. 

For the background, I used Alpine Ice Rose. I put a few sprinkles on my Tim Holtz glass mat then swirled with a bit of alcohol from my water brush. Alcohol dries quicker than water and since I'm on a time crunch, I wanted to give it a try. I just swirled with the alcohol then brushed across my watercolor paper cut to 4" x 5.25"

Then I worked directly on another piece of the 4" x 5.25" watercolor paper. I sprinkled on the Alpine Ice Rose and the Rudolph Nose Red (from the Jingle Bells collection), sprayed with water from my Tim Holtz mister bottle and swirled with the paint brush to spread everything around and break up the pigments faster. I didn't want a 'run' or 'drip' look. I wanted more concentrated intensity. Here's the paper after I'd already run through the die..

Then I ran the die through a sheet of Stampin' Up! Shimmer White cardstock. The picture below shows the die cut out and flipped over. I'm placing the Stampin' Up! mini dimensionals on the back of all the solid hearts.

After the dimensionals were in place, I added some liquid glue to the loose edges of some of the heart areas so they'd lay flat. Then flipped it over and adhered to the Lindy's color-washed mat. Then I punched out a few of the hearts from the Lindy's mat that I'd die cut and added dimensionals to a few of the hearts I punched out and placed them throughout the open hearts.

I mounted everything on a tent-folded card base of Flirty Flamingo (Stampin' Up!)

Here is the finished card:

I haven't decided if I'm adding a sentiment banner to the outside of just on the inside. I feel like a sentiment would detract from the over-all effect. What do you think? 

Creative Blessings!

~Kelly

WOYWW #713 & New Monthly Challenge!

 Good morning, everyone!

Making a quick stop to join in with my friends at WOYWW. I've not visited in a very long time and have missed them. 

So here's my desk this week:

I just filmed the video for my monthly challenge. Everything else around the outside is leftovers from the January challenge make. I hope to totally clear the desk off this week and prep for new organization in that area. 

If you want to jump in on the February Challenge (#KCDFebJJ23), then check out the details in the video:

Bob is still home. Sections of the roads in Missouri he needs to travel are still ice/snow covered. With no precipitation today, hopefully they can get that cleared and he can head out tomorrow.

Creative Blessings!

~Kelly