Organize your Stuff: Week 1 (round 4): Space Audit (part 1)

It is that time again…to begin at the beginning (...waiting for Vacini...Princess Bride reference.  If you have not seen it, you live with Patrick Starr and the guys from the GEICO adds under a rock...however it is playing out there somewhere on cable and is totally DVR'able if you have not.) with the space audit. When we began this blog, the space audit was a monumental and life changing event.  It started our hostile takeover of the dining room, which at this point will take NATO airstrikes and then some to get us to leave!

However, do not be alarmed if choirs of angels…or even lesser seraphim do not sing for you. It is a chance at an Ah-ha! Moment, but not necessary. (Link to my ah-ha moment here).

This is a 29 week…or 29 Step Organizational process first put forth by Zen Master Wookiemouse (blog here) on the Two Peas in a Bucket message board for scrapbookers. We have been working at this for two rounds now, but since PA Me is one of our more dominant inner personalities, we do have 3 kids with schedules (and a Girl Friday that likes to "help"), and the Creative Me is always messy, this continues to be a work in progress.

The task for this week is not to clean anything (PA Me and the Inner Hoarder are cheering loudly, and OCD Me is glaring). That does not mean that one does not have to tidy up their nursery… er scrap space (cancel the flying nanny and un-cue the music…No Mary Poppins needed here!), but rather there is no prescribed cleaning.

This week is all about creating. Unleash your Creative Me, and find out what is and is not working in that scrap space! Here is our layout for this week:

Yes, the Illusive Middle Child still has no front teeth.

Normally, we have cards on Tuesday, and a layout at the end of the week, but since a layout is required at the beginning to figure things out (and we were in Portland with no internet and missed our DT call for cards), you are treated to a layout instead!

What we learned:

Love our scrap caddie of essential stuff.
Love our cardstock organization… patterned paper needs tweaking.
Buttons need to be addressed.
Ribbons and fibers are fine.
We are still in denial over memorabilia.
Storage under the desk needs work.
We need/want more Iris containers and stock in the company!


See you at the end of the week with some cards! The POW pinky swears to it!

Organize your Stuff: Week 29 (round 3): Finale- Room and Space Décor (part 2)

This is the last day of Round Three (Awwwww). Like we posted earlier in the week, that means that the old scrap room is officially emptied out…and the new one is a little over cluttered. We guess that is probably why we are getting ready for Round Four!!!

Here is our scrap room in its messy glory! The POW thinks that you deserve to see our room warts and all. OCD Me wants you to know that we have been at CKC Portland since Thursday, and therefore this is a little messier than usual, as we tore the place apart to pack, and dumped the stuff when we returned.

Speaking of CKC Portland, it was FABULOUS! We thought that we would have to drag the Inner Hoarder out of there, because she just wanted to buy everything! However, we did know that there was a budget, and tried to stick to it.

We attended three crops, and FINALLY got Easter 2010 finished! Ok…no journaling yet, but the POW is just glad to get ‘er done! We think it is a mental block, but mini albums seem to take us forever to finish!

Tracy- Creative Me finally learned how to use Copics, and they are now officially on our must have list! It really does make a world of difference…if you know how to use them, and after taking Copics I, II, & III, Creative Me feels much more confident.

Anyone going to CKC around the US, the Technique Tuesday In Bloom Class is worth it. It spoke to all our personalities and was really great! Creative Me got to be…well creative. OCD Me and The POW loved that the class did not do a layout, but rather had you put your flowers/ flower techniques on 4x6 cards with directions, so that Creative Me could actually recreate them at a later date. Like most CKC classes, we did not finish, which was OK with PA Me, but there were great directions, so The POW may actually get her to finish. Finally, we got a “free” gift at the booth with a $10 purchase for attending the class, so the Inner Hoarder got to shop!

Are you ready for round 4?

Organize your Stuff: Week 29 (round 3): Finale- Room and Space Décor (part 1)

It is Tuesday again! It has been a rough week, but we have survived. Poor Oldest Child had the stomach bug and got sent home for two days (which got us out of jury duty to pick him up), we were in a jury duty holding pattern… and never got to see a real case… and there was the baby invasion!

Even with the invasion of the bedroom snatchers and OCD Me and the POW trying desperately to make sure that there were two clean and empty bedrooms for them to snatch… Creative Me found time to create this card for our Design Team post to Tuesday Trio for Sketch #59.

If you don’t see it, that is OK. Daily, our moderator, didn’t see it either, and we actually had to send this to her as she thought that we had created off of the wrong sketch!

Just in case you are wondering (or missed it earlier) we are officially the little old lady who lived in the shoe, who had so many kids (cats, dogs, spare parents) that we did not know what to do! That’s okay. Life in the shoebox is bound to be an adventure! Fabulous Spouse’s brother is going to Iraq soon, and so Awesome Auntie, the Toddler, the Baby, Cat #1, Cat #2, the Dog are our permanent house guests … or at least for the next year. Illusive Middle Child is now the Big Man on Campus, and Girl Friday has gone into Little Mommy overload. We think that the Oldest Child is ignoring the whole thing, but he is a bit psyched about the Dog (in Oldest Child lingo- that totally pones…don’t ask me, it is what he says).

As for this week, it is finally the Finale! Say that ten times fast!!! Believe it or not, the old death trap of a scrap room from Round 2 is now completely empty, vacuumed and painted penitentiary grey and six coats of red (as per Awesome Auntie’s request) for the nursery for her two little ones. This means that the Dining Room-now-Scrap Room is a little over cluttered (OCD Me will not allow pictures at this time.  She needs to straighten up first). Fortunately or un-, one of Awesome Auntie’s personalities is the De-Cluttering Fairy (unfortunately not related to the illusive laundry fairy, or the deep pocketed and equally illusive tooth fairy). That means that by the end of Round 4, our scrap room will look fabulous (especially if somehow the Declutter Fairy, OCD Me and the POW join forces *gasp*).

Organize your Stuff: Week 28 (round 3): Card supplies (part 1)

Happy Tuesday! Sorry that we never got to a part 2 last week, but the plague had struck our household! That plus the final week of girl Scout Cookie Sales and we finally got called up for Jury Duty (no case yet, just lots of sitting) have kept us busy. For those 73 people (73! That is just unbelievable!!!) who left comments on the Operation Write Home Blog Hop, the winner is #42- randomly generated by asking Oldest Child to pick a number from 1-73 since there is nothing more random than a middle schooler’s mind. Congrats! We will be contacting you and sending you some paper roses and other goodies!

42~Jeri~ said...
LOL I love your personalities! i can relate to so many of them!! Love your card and those flowers are gorgeous.
Thanks to you and your family as well for your service. If you ever need a shoulder, I'm here!
~Jeri #130~

Here is our Design Team Card for Tuesday Trio’s Sketch #58. In honor of font week, Creative Me replaced the blocks in the sketch with letters, and we got all 28 on there!

For card supplies, currently they live in this Little Yellow Bicycle bag…or cannibalize it from the scrapbooking stuff. OCD Me is not particularly thrilled with the current storage solution. However, since we are still on jury duty this week, and we are about to be invaded by babies on Friday (Fabulous Spouse’s brother is going to Iraq, so SIL, 3 mo baby, 20 mo baby, 2 cats and a dog are coming to stay here for a year), the POW is couching this week with a definite maybe. The POW may be in the veterinary ER with our 13 year old cat instead. The funny thing is that now the Inner Hoarder can look in our bedroom that now has 2 extra rooms of furniture and see what a true Hoarder’s place might look like. (OCD Me is hyperventilating in a bag, but Inner Hoarder seems relatively nonplussed).  Wish us luck!

Organize your Stuff: Week 27 (round 3): Fonts (part 1)

Wow what an inspirational weekend!!! We still have about 20 blogs left to go (sorry!) on the Operation Write Home Bunny Blog Hop (our entry here). However, with over 130 to visit, three kids to run around, and Fabulous Spouse is away with a Drill Weekend, that’s not too shabby! If you are a fellow OWH blog hop straggler, Welcome!!! If you are a new follower, Welcome back! Also, special thanks to Kate at OWH’s Stars & Stamps blog for the shout out today!

First, our Tuesday Trio Design Team card for this week (Sketch #57). This was actually a little challenging for Creative Me because we had to use our three favorite things. Only Three! That unleashed five way negotiations in the mind, and at one point OCD Me threatened to strafe the other personalities fearing an uprising! We calmed her down, promised not to demonstrate in the streets, keep out the swirlies and the butterflies (Creative Me-I heart me some butterflies!!!), and reminded her that we were having Chinese (ok.. fake Panda Express Chinese), but only if we could get our homework done.

With visions of soy sauce dancing in our heads, we settled on a relatively simple card. Our three things are (1) Stamping! Of course! We stamped the silhouette, sentiment, and used like seven different colors of inks with a piece of sink sponge to make the rainbow fade on the borders of the cardstock pieces.

(2)Punches! We punched the photo corners and the three layers of dictionary paper for the rosette! (BTW- dictionary paper is also in our top ten. This is a copyright 1939 German to English dictionary that the Inner Hoarder found at St. Vincent de Paul for $2.99) OCD Me cringes every time Creative Me ruins another page! LOL!

(3) Misting! Or more specifically glitter shimmer and shine! The above mentioned paper circles are glimmer misted and the brad holding it all together was stickled. Creative Me readily admits that mists are her current uber weekness… ok… they are our crack. But unlike Charlie Sheen, we do not have the Godesses and a personal trainer to help us kick the habit.

Next, we will tackle fonts. Fonts!?! Shut the front door! Seriously? The POW does admit to a coup last year by PA Me and the Inner Hoarder…and summer break… that kept us from finishing, but seriously? OK, to those of you who have enough fonts on your computer that it would take a week to organize them... we apologize. We thought that the ABC order that they arrived in our Microsoft Office Suite was good enough.

We have fonts, but they are in the form of stickers and stamps, and those weeks are already behind us (or ahead of us, as the Organization Challenge restarts in 3 Weeks!). Maybe we are finally those old people who have not embraced technology yet? (The POW officially apologizes to Rose the Secretary for whom she worked in college. We now understand that there is nothing senile about wanting to use a typewriter to hand type 200 form letters because the word processor program and mail merge are scary. )

 

We used fonts on the layouts below, but that is because the POW is making Fabulous Spouse do his own journaling. (PS- these are the layouts that would not load for Saturday because electronics do not like us and the scanner/printer would not play).

See you at the end of the week! Honestly though, are there any of you guys out there for whom fonts would be your Memorabilia Week? (That is NOT the pile of memorabilia you are looking for).

Organize your Stuff: Week 26 (round 3): New Items and Keeping it Neat part 2 &OWH Spring Blog Hop!

Apologizing in advance to our regular readers for two blog hops in a row! if you are looking for One Little Word (OLW) blog hop, click here for that entry.

Today’s blog hop is in support of Operation Write Home. This non-profit group sends homemade cards to our deployed forces so that they can write home. Since Fabulous Spouse’s brother will be headed to the sandbox in a few weeks to do his one year tour, and Fabulous Spouse, himself, will be gearing up for an Iraq deployment at the end of the year, this seemed like a perfect fit for us and our extra cards!

For any of you interested in using some of your stash to help support this cause, the Easter deadline is March 18th and the Mother's Day deadline is March 31st.

This is the spring card that Creative Me put together. It was our first attempt at the rolled paper roses, and OCD Me nearly threw in the towel (it is slightly harder than the internet makes it seem). It did not help that PA Me never bookmarked the site (or sites…we have seen it a couple times now) where we saw the tutorial, so we decided to make one for you…just in case you want to try. (The POW says that it was not that hard. We got it right on the third try, ODC Me is just impatient!)

To make this rose, just grab some scrap paper (this was leftover paper from an 8x8 album where Creative Me sacrificed a lot of 12 x 12 cardstock to get it done).

Cut at the one inch mark, then fold in thirds and tape close with double sided adhesive. We have a Martha Stewart Score Pad, so we scored at 3/8 inch and 6/8 inch and put the glue on the1/4 inch.

Then the tricky part, rolling the flower. We found that if you cut your base and put adhesive on it first (we used 1 1/8 circle and ATG tape) then set it aside, the assembly process was easier.

Lightly mist your paper with water (This will make it more pliable). Roll in a corkscrew the whole strip. Then form rose by rolling in a circle. When done, place it on your sticky circle so that it does not unravel.

Another trick that Creative me discovered is to lightly mist once adhered to the circle and press down. This makes sure that the paper fibers set this way and do not try to spring back and pop off the page like our first attempt. Ta Da!

As for the something new and keeping it neat, we have done neither. The POW and OCD Me are proud of the Inner Hoarder for not using this week as an excuse to shop, but to be honest, we have been so busy that she just has not has the chance. We have, however, survived three Girl Scout cookie sales (one rain, one hail SERIOUSLY!, and thankfully one indoors), two wrestling matches, cub scouts and boy scouts! Using what we’ve got, Creative me also got more of the Iraq 2007 book done. We will have to post them later as the scanner and my computer are not speaking. (*update: layouts posted here*)

Three weeks left until the Organization Challenge restarts! Can you believe that we will actually make it to Week 29 this time!

For those on the blog hop this is where you are (I did not post the whole list as there are 135 participants!) If you get too lost you can always go back to OWH and pick it back up:

Leave a comment and we will give some blog candy (and paper roses) to one person!  Since there are so many blogs, we will close this on March 12th!

60. Tammy, My Craft Central, you'll link to Amanda at http://scrappnbee.blogspot.com/ *you are here*
61. Amanda, Scrappnbee the Scrapbooker, you'll link to Shelley at http://shelleyscreations.blogspot.com/
62. Shelley, Shelley's Paper & Ink, you'll link to Mari at http://marikocreations.blogspot.com/
63. Mari, Heartfelt and Handmade by Mari K., you'll link to holley at http://helloholley.blogspot.com/
64. holley, holley's hobbies, you'll link to Velda at http://oldstamper.blogspot.com/
65. Velda, Oldstamper Musings, you'll link to Cheryl at http://shestamps.blogspot.com/

Organize your Stuff: Week 26 (round 3): New Items and Keeping it Neat part 1 &OLW March Blog Hop!

Try and say that one 10 times fast! This is yet another jam packed (and probably a little too long) blog entry, so let’s get started! Post a comment for a chance at blog candy (and if you are posting as anonymous, please leave an e-mail address so that we can find you if you win- the witness protection program will never know that you shared).

First up, One Little Word! The first of every month, we will share our homework and thoughts from last month's class (and hop arpound with all our classmates who have done the same!)This is our first year with Ali Edwards’ OLW project, and so far, it has been amazing! My word for 2011 is Embrace, and it has truly become our mantra. There are many things that we cannot change, that we cannot control, and against which we cannot rage (sad but true!). In the (to quote Disney) Circle of Life kind of things, there are the glass is half empty people…and the glass is half full. For the most part, we have avoided the latter, considering them too perky and lacking the reality check and grounding that the rest of us had (and they were probably the ones who spiked the cool-aide too!).

However, now we begin to realize that one can Embrace life without going into Technicolor, and spiked cool-aide isn’t half bad! Look at Jessica Rabbit! She’s not bad, she’s just drawn that way. In any event, we have begun to Embrace our world, and revel in it, and realize that the unexpected is possibly a chance for celebration and adventure. And if nothing else, it will make a great story to be retold with dry wit and a cold beverage later!

Above is one of my Embrace photos, as February's homework for the OLW class was all about the photos of your word. This is our front yard rose bushes. We are SEVERELY allergic to them, and the POW has the worst black thumb that OCD Me has ever seen. No matter. These roses positively thrive in our front yard. Two years ago, rather than uproot them altogether (since benign…or not so benign neglect did not do them in), the POW decided to take another track and Embrace them. When the flowers bloomed, we called our local church and the Church Lady Mafia came in when no one was looking and cut them down for use in the floral arrangements.

Every year these roses are hardier and more prolific, and every year they are whisked away when nobody is looking to serve a higher purpose than making us a stuffy nosed Benadryl addict. Last week it snowed on them as they were beginning to grow. It almost seemed like they Embraced the snow and cradled it, knowing how fleeting it would be here in the Pacific Northwest (unlike the East Coast with its feet and feet and feet!). None of the leaves have withered. It just Embraced a circumstance that it could not change!

OK! Now for the not so sappy and introspective Guy Smiley and Gosh Darn It People Like Me section. This is the Design Team card that Creative Me made for Tuesday Trio’s Sketch #56. The POW is totally in love with the baby chick in the boot! We thought that this would be appropriate as the challenge was dots and…now that it is warming up…rain is in the forecast until July 4th! Again, something that we must Embrace. We chose to live in the Pacific Northwest and there are four seasons…Cold, dark, and wet; warmer, lighter, and wet; so dry nobody can keep a lawn alive even with in-ground sprinklers; and wet again. We must Embrace it, and forget that we ever had good hair days.

Finally, for the new stuff and keeping it neat…you know that whole organizing thing and whole reason for this blog! LOL! What do you do with your new stuff? Do you file it away so that nobody notices that there is any new stuff…Inner Hoarder favors that, as does OCD Me…but for different reasons. Do you put it on your desk for a certain period of time so that it imprints into your memory that you own it…Creative Me’s personal favorite (side note from the POW: all brains can only hold so much information. Trying to memorize your clear acrylics and patterned papers will drop other information like you great-aunt’s birthday and your phone number at that house you lived in during the first part of third grade). Do you leave it in its bag until you come home with something in another bag… the PA Me method.

Here are the other blog hoppers for today! You are currently at lucky #21! Please stop by and say to the rest of the list as well! These all go live at 8AM PST on March 1st!

1. Margie http://xnomads.typepad.com/
2. Monica B http://scraplifters.blogspot.com/
3. Jill http://jillconyers.typepad.com/
4. Miranda http://mirandasscrapsite.blogspot.com/
5. Donna http://www.donnabryantdurand.blogspot.com/
6. Lynn http://www.crafty-creativity.blogspot.com/
7. Stacey http://www.TheAcornGarden.com/blog
8. Lisa http://backtoallen.com/writers_blog
9. Cassie http://craftycassiescorner.blogspot.com/
10. Abbey http://athomewiththerichardsfamily.blogspot.com/
11. Nicky http://seejanebake.blogspot.com/
12. Holly http://lovingrobots.blogspot.com/
13. Karen http://breathenowsmile.blogspot.com/
14. Claudia http://creative-moms.com/
15. Rebekah http://istampscrapcraft.blogspot.com/
16. Kimberly http://foreverdaisies.blogspot.com/
17. Kat http://www.katswonderings.blogspot.com/
18. Kristina http://ciqis.blogspot.com/
19. Jan http://mysimplelittlelife.typepad.com/
20. Nikki http://www.inkyart.com.au/
21. Amanda http://www.scrappnbee.blogspot.com/
22. Lisa http://luluoz.typepad.com/
23. Sam http://learncreatedo.wordpress.com/
24. Maureen http://cookingmylife.blogspot.com/
25. Kristi http://theprojectofme.wordpress.com/
26. Tere http://terecontodomicorazon.blogspot.com/
27. Karen http://womenontractors.blogspot.com/
28. Katrina http://k84mansramblings.blogspot.com/
29. Monica Bergler http://questtoperfectimperfection.blogspot.com/
30. Mandy http://captureandcreate.wordpress.com/
31. Lisa http://makeyourownescape.blogspot.com/
32. Chrissy http://getcraftywithchrissy.blogspot.com/
33. Lee http://thelinarstudio.typepad.com/embracelife
34. Jen http://www.byjen.com/
35. Sylvia http://baxtersmom1.blogspot.com/
36. Christianne http://christiannemarra.blogspot.com/
37. Cheri http://cheriandrews.blogspot.com/
38. Joy http://www.undiscoveredjoy.blogspot.com/
39. Beth http://justbebeth.wordpress.com/
40. Jennifer L http://www.studiojenn.blogspot.com/
41. Kathryn http://www.katlodesigns.com/
42. Heather http://www.scrappyhare.blogspot.com/
43. Cindy http://seriousplay.typepad.com/
44. Cynthiau http://paperpapereverywhere.blogspot.com/