She is Me...

So what happens when you take Basic Grey's Kioshi Collection, add it to the Maya Road card deck and then stamp with Unity's She Said set? A pretty darn cute project if I do say so myself!

Honestly, I have been bound and determined to work with these stamps and paper since they came in.

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Are you interested in hearing my creative process?

Well as always, when I am creating, I start out in one direction and then end up with a completely different project in the end! I usually choose my theme and then paper and then I try to find pictures that work with both of these elements. (Note: this is how I like to work with mini albums....it is different when I work on a single photo project like a canvas....THEN I choose the photo and THEN the paper). I like to work with the various collection packs because I know that all the papers and embellishments (including letter stickers and embellishment stickers) all work together and that takes a lot of the guessing out of the equation.

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I knew I wanted this project to be for me and be about me. This is something that I know a lot of people are not comfortable with. I feel like I am always working on projects for other family members or other people but rarely do I complete a project for me. The Kioshi collection is VERY girlie and I knew this would be perfect for my "Kim" album.

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Anyways, when I started pulling the photos for my large acrylic heart album, it just wasn't doing it for me. Then I chose to scale the project down to these adorable 2.5x3.5 cards in the Maya Road card deck. There is not much room for photos and that was perfectly fine for me!

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I added my favourite Kioshi paper to the cards. I liked this line because the papers are double sided so you have double the possibilities. I used US Art Quests Perfect Paper Adhesive to paste the paper to the chipboard cards. Have I told you how much I LOVE this product? I always work with the matte because you can use it to paste your paper down and then you can brush it all over the top of the paper to seal it. It is so matte that the true colours in your paper always come through.

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Then I started stamping the various "She Said" sayings to each card. Each verse really spoke to me and was very relevant. I then stamped lines onto the back of the cards and journalled about each verse and how it related to me.

Oh, I should take a step back. It's funny but the Kioshi line is very "pastelly" and pretty but just a little too clean for my liking. The moment I distressed the edges with the sponge dauber and black ink, it was just SO ME. I mean, have a look.....even the girl looks like me!

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Subtle embellishments and products were used like glitter, glossy accent, stickers from the collection pack and my new favourite - Copics Atyou Spica pens! They come in 24 different colours and the sparkle you get from them is just gorgeous.

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It felt so good to create! I have to admit that this project has been going wherever I have gone for the last two weeks....I take it to the store and then I bring it home each night. In the beginning, I even carried it to various rooms of my house. That just shows you how much I LOVE my project AND shows you how much of a NERD I am!!

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PS....I've got another project in my mind and the products here at my house. I hope this will be a successfully creative weekend for me!! Stay tuned....

August Update - Did U Miss Me?

Well hello there....have you been wondering where I have been? I have had my head down for the majority of the last month getting my work done like a good little girl. Do you want to hear what I have been doing to keep the store just the way you like it?

I have.....

...Ordered NEW Product

OH MY! I have ordered TONS and TONS from the Craft and Hobby's summer show. We didn't get a chance to go (I couldn't convince my hubby that a 5 hour car trip with a 2 and 4 year old WOULD be fun) but my distributors have kept us well informed. I have ordered from :

Basic Grey (um, yeah....spent a little money there!)

Crate Paper (I am in LOVE with the Restoration collection! Have a look for yourself to the left!)

Pink Paislee - I think House of Three's Parisian line is pretty cool

Spellbinders - have you seen the new dies???? Whoa baby...they are BIG

• Ranger/Tim Holtz - I love his new dies!


• Kaiser - My favourite here is Up, Up and Away (did I mention we have it already?!?!)
  
• Cuttlebug - the new embossing folders plus are on their way


• Penny Black - Her new Christmas girls are just great
  
  
• A Muse - yes....I decided to bring these back. Look for lots of great little sayings
  
  
• Art Impressions - Many oldies but goodies here
  

Most of these products will start shipping within the next couple weeks. Soon you won't even recognize the store if you haven't been in in a while!

...Worked on Wedding Stationery

I have been working on wedding stationery like CRAZY! Did you know that we do everything from big things like invites to the smallest details like menus, seating charts, placecards and favour tags and everything in between. Here are some placecards that I designed for Brandon & Kristen Hinnegan (Trevor's cousin).

I have been averaging 2.3 weddings per week since the beginning of June. I know what you're thinking...what does a .3 wedding look like?! Ha. I will have to show you some time!

...Brought in NEW Product (yes, like it is here NOW!)

So I thought it was time for The Pickle to literally go GREEN. I found this AMAZING company called The Green Paper Company. They are all about the environment and offer products with 30-100% post consumer waste while doing it in a way that is not only beautiful but stylish too! The sizes of their envelopes include 5.75" squares (perfect for people who LOVE to make 5x5 square cards), 4.25x6.25 (perfect for those who like to include photos in their cards), the standard A2 and an adorable monarch size (long and skinny and just too darn cute). Oh, and their colour options are great! Prices range from $0.30 - $0.60 (bulk discounts are available...just ask!).

Neenah Paper is here!!!! Ok. All you copic lovers out there, I have brought in one of THE best papers out there according to many magazines. Scrap and Stamp Arts magazine gave this paper a 4.5/5. We have the Neenah's Classic Crest Solar White Smooth cardstock NOW in stock. It is beautiful and smooth....great paper not only for copics just a wonderful all round paper for stamping on.

...Have been Designing

Yes, you heard correctly. I designed a project just for me. Now that rarely happens these days. I normally only work on projects for the kids or for others. But this time I did something for me. I will post my creation tomorrow and you can let me know how I did!

Well that's it for me. You are now up to date on The Pickle!! Don't you feel better now?

Oh....one more thing. There is still room in Michelle's layout class for Thursday night (August 19). Have a look below for details and call if you are interested!