Feline Friday-One of my "Grand-cats"

 

This is my daughter's cat Milo, although sometimes we call him Tank!

This is my son holding Milo when we visited a little over a year ago.  I just love a ginger cat!

Feline Friday is hosted by Messy Mimi's Meanderings. Have a good week!

Textured Geode Canvas

 One of the classes my daughter and I attended at the Pinner's Conference was making this textured "Geode" on canvas.  I'm hoping to recreate it on a larger scale.

The supplies we used are mod podge, gold metallic paint, mica "candy" sheets from Epoxy Candy, two types of mica flakes, iridescent fine glitter, and shimmery textured plaster provided by our instructor Stacey from Stacy Designs.

This was my favorite class!

To-Do for Vacation

 

There is a lot of planning that goes into a vacation, and my to-do list just keeps adding up. (These are not in order)

1.  Purchase some black sandals

2.  Sew a bucket hat (free pattern and directions here)

3.  Make arrangements for the cat to be taken care of

4.  Purchase another duffle bag

5.  Do some laundry

6.  Pay bills that are due during the time we will be gone

7.  Purchase travel size toiletries

8.  Pick up prescriptions at the pharmacy

9.  Get a beach bag

10. Locate the passports (should be in the lock box)

11. Make arrangements for someone to look in on mom at Memory Care while we're gone

12. Put my Etsy shop on hold for the days I will be gone.

13. Pack

It sure is nice being a retired empty-nester so I can go on vacation while school is in session.  Have a great rest-of-your-week!  And visit Thursday Thirteen for more fun!

Pinner's Conf.

 Hello, and welcome!

I spent my birthday weekend in Dallas with one of our daughters and her husband.  My daughter and I attended Pinner's Conference in Fort Worth on Friday.

It's not just for people on Pinterest! If you like to craft, bake, paint, sew, or even if you just like to support small businesses, then this would be a place you'd love.  There were over 200 booths with everything from craft kits, to spices and other food products, beauty products to clothing.  There were also over 100 classes in so many different topics, not just crafts, but personal growth, baking, sewing, health and beauty,  home decor, and so much more!  We took two classes, did a couple of make-and-takes, and shopped.  We will definitely go next year if it's feasible.

Moving right along...

The coffee defies gravity!

Visit Stacy Uncorked and Comedy Plus for more fun!  Have a crafty week!

Crafty Week

 It's been a crafty week around here, just like I like it.

First, I did a new craft:  etching on slate coasters.  I wasn't sure it was going to work, and I worried about the protective gear they tell you to use, but the cream didn't have an odor, and I protected my hands and eyes.  I think it turned out well.  I may have to try some glass etching now that I know how the process works.

I spent several hours designing 5 different "Most Likely To" humorous Christmas sayings.  They will be available on short sleeve shirts, long sleeve shirts, and mugs.  It was so much fun!

I'm currently trying to design some centerpieces for a record/rock-and-roll type theme at my mom's memory care center.  I found my old 45's (yes, I still have them, and albums, too), and I made a jukebox die cut.  I'm not sure how I'm going to style the centerpieces.  I'm not crazy about most of what I've seen on Pinterest, so if you have any clever suggestions, I'm all ears!  Leave a comment and let me know if you have an idea!

Look at this old-school record case!

Crazy, huh?  Good times!

I hope you have a good week!  Don't forget to visit Happy Tuesday and Random Tuesday Thoughts.  Both really fun posts!

Quick Tip Tuesday-Craft Supply Shopping

 

What stores do you think of when you think of shopping for craft supplies?  For me, it's Hobby Lobby, Michaels, Jo Ann, and Amazon, which all have good deals and/or coupons.  But I have something to share today that might be quite surprising.  Blick Art Supply (and NO, I am not getting paid to promote this).

Blick has stores in 23 states and Washington DC, but I am not lucky enough to live in one of them, so I shop online.  I've done the comparison shopping for you, and they have the lowest prices on a number of items you might use regularly, even when includingthe shipping cost.  Items such as...

• Water colors and other paints
• Canvases
• Art markers, colored pens, alcohol markers
• Punches 
• Photo frames and shadow boxes
• Wood
• Beads
• Scissors
• Adhesives
• Craft machines
• And so much more!

I even got my self-healing cutting mat from Blick. Everything, and I mean EVERYTHING, is sold at lower than typical list prices.  Plus, you get cash back with Rakuten!  Happy shopping!

Quick Tip Tuesday - Craft Organization

 

My tip today is to "think outside the box" when it comes to organizing your craft supplies.  While some supplies might require specific storage such as 12x12 papers that you can't simply put into a drawer, some materials can work in items you already have.

Let me give you an example.  I have quite a few ink pads, so I ordered a desktop ink pad holder.  It didn't work out. First, I had to put it together.  Second, it took up a lot of space on my craft table.  Third, all of my ink pads didn't fit.  Some of them were too big.

So, I gave up the ink pad holder and stored them in a plastic bin.  This didn't work out, either, because the only place I had to put it was on a shelf, and I was frequently having to get it down.  Plus, all the ink pads were stacked one on another, and most of the time, the one I needed was at the bottom.

What I finally ended up doing, which provided a perfect solution, was to put them in my daughter's old jewelry hanger.  There is a pocket for each and every ink pad I have (it has 30 pockets on each side), and it stores on the wall out of the way!  It couldn't be more perfect!

  So, my tip is to think outside the box when it comes to storage solutions. Have a crafty week!