What A Mess!

It's always amazing to me how I think I am so organized in My Scrapbook Garden, but when I actually work on a project or two or three like I did this weekend, I can't find everything I need for that particular layout.  Most of my stash is put away so nicely in its own little container, but it's a never ending battle to find that perfect "storing" and "using" balance. I mean, seriously, how hard is it to make everything organized, accessible AND workable in real life???  Apparently I haven't completely figured that out yet, but I'm getting closer!  Every project offers a new adventure and learning experience in what works and what doesn't work.

So I was working on one scrapbooking project and decided mid-stream to jump right into a different one.  Next thing you know I've pulled out several plastic paper cases looking for just the "right" papers to use (mine are all sorted by theme), paper piecing tools are scattered everywhere, bling containers are all dumped out because I just know there's a package of orange rhinestones in there somewhere, chalks and punches are cluttering up the window sill, counter top is sticky from adhesive because I've buried not one, but two of my crafting mats underneath all those paper scraps, I know my desktop must still be there because I can barely see the legs, my paper cutter is doubling as a work area, and don't even get me started on what the floor looks like!  Where is that darned clean-up Scrapbook Fairy when you need her???

It is just way too easy to go from this:

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to this:

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Oh well.  I've read somewhere that a messy work area is a sign of a creative mind so I'm going with that.  The good news is that I actually got a couple personal projects completed last night and I'm off to a good start on a baby shower gift (which I really, really need to hustle on because the shower is this coming Saturday - yikes!).  May have to go to Plan B on that one and make a trip to Babies 'R Us instead.

More on how these projects turned out and some exciting news later!

Until next time... Happy Scrapping!

Santa Clara Scrapbook Expo

As usual, the Santa Clara Scrapbook Expo was an absolute fun filled time with my scrappin' Gal Pals. We celebrated two birthdays, went to two crop nights, won best decorated table contest (Woo Hoo, especially since we didn't even know about the contest -- just did a "surprise" circus themed table for our two birthday girls!!!), won some raffle prizes, found some great deals and had the absolute best time just hanging together.  It was a little bittersweet because my sister-in-law was flying back to Bangladesh the day after Expo, but we crammed in as much joy, laughter, and fun (not to mention food and, ahem, beverages) as we could in those 2-1/2 days to celebrate us all being together and to give her a proper send-off.

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Our surprise birthday table for the two birthday girls.  Biggest surprise was that we won for best decorated table ... prize was a certificate for a crop table for four at a Scrapbook Expo of our choice!!!

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Such a great bunch of gals - love our time together!

Our group would sometimes shop together on the Expo floor, but we would also go off individually to check things out. It was exciting to get together in my room later in the day and have a little "show & tell" to see what treasures everyone purchased.  We all have different styles of crafting so it's really cool to see the variety of items we each get, although there were a few "where did you find that?" comments and mental notes of "I need to go get one of those" LOL!

With that said, it is also way too easy to get caught up in everyone's excitement and seeing all the latest and greatest products being offered for sale.  I kept my spending in check this trip mostly because I wanted to shop smarter.  When considering a purchase, the three things I asked myself were: 1) Where will I put it? (My Scrapbook Garden supplies totally runneth over!);  2) Do I really need it?; and 3) Is this something that can wait until the next Scrapbook Expo in October?  

So I made what I felt were some really good, selective purchases and my handy new tote bag that I personalized proved to be just the perfect size for carrying them around.  It was sturdy enough so that NONE of the papers I purchased got their corners bent...a HUGE PEEVE of mine... and was wide enough so no embellishments got smashed. Everything I got had a purpose and was sooo easy to put away after I got home.  Patting myself on the back for sticking to the plan.

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My Expo stash

So there you have it!  Until next time ... happy scrapping!