Ice Cream Parlor Blog Candy for Your Thoughts

Happy Monday, Papery Peeps!  I have to admit, I'm not really feeling like setting foot in my studio *quite* yet.  I'm enjoying a few days away from my craft room after the flurry of crafty fun I experienced over the weekend.  Do you guys ever go through periods of downtime like that?

Don't get me wrong, I have a fun little idea percolating in the back of my mind, I just wasn't *quite* ready to settle down and start working on it, you know?

Anywho, the upshot of all this free time is that:

1. I don't really have anything new and crafty to share (boo!), 
2. I do have a new facebook fan page (yay!), feel free to click *like* over there in the left column =) and...
3. I do have a question for all you loyal followers and commenters for a chance to win some blog candy (DOUBLE YAY!).

Loyal Followers:  Michey, get to the question already, we want CANDY!
Michey: Ok ok, geez, you guys mean business! ;-) So...

When you browse around on the blogosphere, how do you navigate around when you arrive at someone's blog?  Do you use the long list of links that they may have along the sidebar, do you jump around the related posts to see what other projects they've worked on? What do you find works best for you?

I'm working on a redo of my happy little blogging home (yeah, I know, I really only *started* blogging and already I want to improve things... I can't help it, it's in my nature! >.<), and I want to focus my efforts on creating something that is pleasing for you to look at, but also pleasing for you to use, so I'd LOVE to hear your thoughts!  Now's your chance to tell me how you *really* feel ;-)

There *may* even be a little blog candy for one lucky commenter, but you didn't hear that from me...

As luck would have it, I have a 6x6 pack of Ice Cream Parlor paper, ribbons, and buttons that is burning a hole in my pocket, so one lucky commenter will get to take it off my hands! If you missed this cute set during Sale-a-Bration, now's your chance to see what all the fuss was about!

Just leave a comment on this post (hopefully answering my blog-browsing question, but if you'd rather just chat about random things, that's fine too ;-) between now and Thursday at 5 PM to be entered for a chance to win.

Anywho, hope you all had a creative day!  I certainly did, but it wasn't with paper or ink ;-)

Thanks for taking the time to share your blog travelling experiences with me!

michey

Stamping Classroom - Almost Finished!

So, i've been less than active posting on my blog for the better part of this week.  You see, I'll be teaching my first stamping class on Saturday and have been furiously preparing card projects, but even more than that, I've been revamping my basement so it's fit for human habitation.

What used to be a large space decorated in the "Cardboard Box and Forgotten Furniture" style of decorating is nearing completion, and I'm just so happy with the way it's coming together that I wanted to show a few preview pictures.

My goal was to create an inspirational, inviting space using stuff I already had.  There are a few corners I am exceptionally proud of and wanted to share them with you.

First up are these sconces. I have been saving these wrought iron and glass things for the last 10 years, and I'd never bothered to hang them anywhere

As it turns out, the walls of my basement already have nails in strategic places (thanks to my dear friend, MJ for that!), so putting these up was easy peasy!  I filled them with some silk flowers and dried grasses, also from my leftover decorating stash.  I have 2 of these sconces strategically placed around the room and they work wonders towards brightening the space.

This next photo is where I'll be putting the Big Shot for Saturday's class.

I picked up that rocking chair at an estate sale for $12, hung some photos that I never got to using in the main part of my house, and filled the space with other furniture that I found as I was wading through my basement.  To the right of the picture you can see the basement door... that is going to be my classroom entrance so people won't need to be traipsing about the rest of my messy house ;-)

Here's another corner of the basement.  This one is where I'm going to put out a few catalogs (the wrought iron holder on the wall to the left is going to hold catty's and order forms).  The table is an old Child's school desk that I also unearthed in my basement cleanout.  I think it makes a fun, rustic statement! Also, the chairs should be out in my back yard, but I rather like them where they are ;-)  That eiffel tower hanging on the wall is the only thing I bought specifically for this remake.  I got it on clearance a few weeks back from an online store, and it holds some of my latest projects to serve as inspiration for my guests.

This last photo is a little vignette thats been stuck in my head for the last few weeks. The birdhouse is a gift from a wonderful friend (again, thank you, MJ!), the easel was another basement find, the chain is leftover from a chandelier project in my dining room, and the wall shelf I picked up about a year ago at a thrift shop. I think this is my favorite corner of this room redo, even though it's really just "for show". In case you're wondering, inside the cage is a beanie baby, who I fully intend to swap out for something else, yet I suspect I will prolly forget to do it ;-)

So, that's it for teaser pictures.  All my workspace tables are piled high with junk, so I didn't want to take pictures of them yet ;-)  I've got a good sized table for 6 down here, and then 2 card tables and chairs so I can fit a total of 12 people down here comfortably.  Will I ever be teaching 12 people at once?  Prolly not but at least I CAN ;-)

Anyways, thanks for taking a peek! now, it's back to cleaning for this gal -_-

michey

Check Out My New Blog Bling!

Oh, what a happy e-mail I just received from Shannon!  My Cheery Cherry Blossoms card was chosen as an artist pick over at Handstamped Sentiments!  So now i've got my very first bit of blog bling featured over there in the right column =D  I'm sooooo over the moon over this!  Looking at the other winners, the fact my card was chosen to be among them is truly an honor =D

Anyways, thanks for letting me gush!  I need to head back to my basement and finish setting up for my Saturday class.  it's coming along VERY nicely and I can't wait to post some pictures showing what the space has evolved into.

Happy Stamping!
Michey

Happy to be a Papercrafter

Today's story is a departure from my normal "Lookie what I made!!1!" post. Newp, today I present to you a story fraught with adventure, drama, and a sprinkling of Richard Dean Anderson.

Before I can go into details, I wanted to share with you my two furbabies, who are the stars villains of today's little story.

First up is Oliver (affectionately named Oliver Kittlesworth III). He's my photogenic lap-cat that loves to lounge and carries with him a certain "Je ne sais quoi".

This is one of my most favorite pictures of him because he's a beautiful gray lap kitty lounging on a beautiful gray laptop. When I'm at home, writing these posts, I usually have both him and the laptop on me, so this photo is a nice summary of my blogging experience =)

My other furbaby, and the catalyst for this post, is little miss Punkie Mewster (Punkie for short).

Punkie is Oliver's sister, and she's a no nonsense kinda gal.  She loves people-scratchums but Oliver is such an attention magnet that she can be very dismissive when he's around. Because of this, they have a really funny dynamic around each other.

So, now that you've met the stars of todays episode, it's time to explain why I'm happy to be a papercrafter (other than the obvious of being able to roll around in pretty papers, and go about my day with inky fingers ;-)

You see, I live in an older house whose main bathroom is desperately in need of a remodel. The sink and attached cabinet is decidedly "vintage" and the little drain stopper is long gone, so anything that falls into the sink is fair game to end up down in the pipes. I've lived here for 2 years and haven't lost anything yet, so I've been avoiding a remodel to make sure I have money left over for stampy goodness.  Genius, right?

Also important to this story is the fact that Oliver and Punkie are both obsessed with water. They love splashing around in a drippy faucet, and clamor for the sink when it's time to brush teeth or wash hands.

This particular morning, I was readying myself for the day. I had given my hair a generous spray of curl stuff, but neglectfully left the little plastic cap loose on the counter. Seeing me in the bathroom and eager to paw around the sink before her nosey brother came lumbering in, Punkie excitedly jumped up on the bathroom sink and promptly knocked the little plastic hairspray cap down the drain >.<

I peeked down into the hole, and could see it down there just out of reach.  The pipe was narrow enough that fingers couldn't get a grip on it, but loose enough that jostling the cap too much threatened to push it down into the P-trap to be lost forever.

So with thoughts of plumbers and bills and replaced pipes dancing in my brain, I wandered into my craft room looking for SOMETHING that could get me out of this mess.  My eyes settled upon my paper piercer and my trusty box of glue dots and I asked myself "What would MacGuyver do in this situation?"

I took a glue dot and stuck it onto the end of my paper piercer. The glue dots are super sticky so they don't take a lot of pressure to get stuff to stick to them, and the paper piercer was long enough to be able to reach down the drain where my fingers couldn't easily go. I snaked the sticky-ended piercer down the drain, glue-dotted the lid to the piercer, and fished the lid out, much like the steady-handed game of "Operation" I played as a child.

And just like that, my sink dilemma was solved!  Punkie did manage to finally get her scratchums just in the nick of time, because soon after, Oliver assumed his normal position:

That, my friends, is why I'm happy to be a papercrafter. To be able to fashion a household plumbing solution out of a ragtag bunch of supplies that I just "happened to have on-hand" is a beautiful, beautiful thing.  MacGuyver would be proud!