Papertrey Blog Hop!!!!

Hello everyone! I am so excited to be participating again. I had the best time last month and learned so many new things that I just knew I had to participate again. Well when the challenge was issued by Nichole issued the challenge to use MyTimeless Templates, I knew just what needed to happen. I have been wanting to organize my stamping room and the new template From the Desk of was perfect to help with that. To give myself more motivation, I went up to my room on the morning of the 15th and snapped shots just as it was. WOW!!!! I am the messiest stamper ever. I can't even add a LOL :( But as you see, that is about to change.

Here is my stamping room in all of it's messy glory. If you notice on the corner of my desk is a Mytimeless Template that I made just after Lauren created it. It is the Birthday card organizer and it is an All Boxed Up template that has been altered. Here is Lauren's instructions go and check out the master. I will say it has made my birthday card giving so much easier!

Wow I warned you what a mess! As you can see I am dying need of organization! Here is a shot of my desk. As I started to look at it, I had a lot of cards that I didn't even realize I had made stacked up. I also had quite a few that were made, addressed and written on that just needed to go to the post office. What a problem. I really needed to make something to orgaize my complete cards so that when I needed a sympathy card I could just go get it, write in it and send it off.

This was my solution for all of the completed cards. I decided to set up display cubes for all of the completed cards. It is really fun. I am going to hang some family pictures above display cubes to make it more homey, but here it is. Here is a close up of one of the 5 double From the Desk of's that I made to organize my complete cards.

Here is the close up of the top cubes. Isn't that fun. I neve did count how many cards I got into each one, but I know there was a lot!!! Did you notice the other Mytimeless Template on the top? That is for my Grandmothers for Mother's Day. I only had one box done, so the other cards will go in the other box when I get it complete. Love it!!!

Here was my next challenge. What to do about the pens, glue and various little things that need a place on the desk. Well here comes From the desk of to the rescue again! Love it!!!!

Dosen't that look much better!

Can you see the double from the desk of in Kraft behind the brown one? Well use your imagination because that is where all of my buttons will go when I can get my hands on some of those square trendy tubes. (This is also all ideas from Lauren!) I will have space to hold 20 colors (hint, hint!).

Just today, as I was finishing up my last bit of picking up for the pictures, I realized I really needed another From the Desk of to hold my envelopes. I have found if my envelopes are on my desk, I have a better chance of stamping them to match and then I address them all right away as well. It has been really successful with my birthday card campaign.
So I made 14 From the Desk Of templates in very little time. I just started all of the creating yesterday. It took me all the other time to clean out and organize the stamp room. Hopefully I will get more stamping done this weekend now that this project is done. If you would like to see more of the room, like Izzy's stamping table and the other organziation fixes I came up with, feel free to check out this post.

Wow that was a long post. Thanks so much for looking!

It's a good life!
Terri E.

Deets: All Supplies are Papertrey Ink unless noted
Stamps:
Paper: Green Tea Leaves, Vintage Cream, Kraft, SU Mellow Moss, Chocolate Chip
Ink:
Accessories: MYTIMELESS TEMPLATES!!!, Vintage Cream saddle stich ribbon, Aqua mist buttons, brown buttons, melon berry buttons, new leaf buttons, SU vanilla hodgepodge hardware, SU Chocolate chip saddle stich ribbon, dmc floss, sticky strip, crystal effects

I am alive!

I did not fall into a big black hole per say, LOL! I did clean and reorganize my stamping room and it turned out to be quite a project. The April Papertrey Ink blog hop challenge was to use the Mytimeless Templates. Well, I had been really wanting to use them for some cute and fun organization. I decided to go up that morning and take pictures of my room. I will be sharing more tonight at the Papertrey Ink Blog Hop.

I am going to be sharing these in 2 posts. If you saw it all at once you would run away and never return to the blog LOL!! Here is the before of the closet. I didn't even take a before of the wall where Izzy's stamping table is. It was a really ugly dresser that hand a bunch of piles on it. I have come to realize I am the biggest piler known to man. Hopefully this major overhaul will stick.

Stamping closet before

Closet after

Dosen't the closet look better? Okay this picture is probably the least dramatic change, but it is all organized! Can you tell I took a ton of stamps out? I am going to be selling those if anyone is interested. I am also going to be selling some of my Marvy punches. I have tons of those as well and most have never seen paper:( I also have a big pile of blog candy goodies that I will be sharing as well. I am so embarssed by how much I buy and don't use. Please tell me I am not the only one LOL!!!!)

Here is the back wall of my room. It was such a mess (okay the whole room was such a mess LOL!). I do all of my cutting on the back table, so that is where I had my paper as well. It was in storage units on the floor. I also had my printer there and the big shot as well.

This was the right side of the room
The left side of the room

I went paper storage crazy and I LOVE IT!!!! There is still pleany to room for when PTI expands their color collection. This is Izzy's new space. She loves it!!! I have only had it done for 2 days and each morning she wakes up wanting to go and stamp. On my days off we sure to head in there for about 45 minutes. That alone made this whole project worth it.

Izzy at her stamping table. I was sitting at my work space when I took this. Isn't that neat?

Here are my top things that I found out about myself and my stamping "hobby" during this big project.

1. I need to look at what I have before I purchase more. I have a lot of great things already and perhaps I have something that would work if I looked first.

2. I really need to use some of my scrap paper before I go cutting into a new piece.

3. I need to finish on project before I start another. Okay perhaps finish is a strong word. Write down what it was and who it was for and then put it on a list that gets checked off LOL!

4. I need to mail out the cards I make, write in and address! REALLY (this one was so embarrising until I realized that I just started making cards for others this year LOL)

5. I need to scrap all of these fabulous pictures I just had to print out! (We are looking at getting a new camera so I can capture more of Izzy's alusive smiles, so this goes with the "need" part of a camera LOL!)

Wow all that from cleaining my room. Does anyone have tips on how to help with these goals?

Also I was given my first ever blogger award from Lynnette, a new found stamping friend . I am so blessed and grateful. I wanted to participate and pass it along to some blogs I found recently. I am going to work on that tomorrow after the papertrey blog hop, but I did want to thank Lynnette!

It's a good life!

Terri E.