Lazy-Day Farm

I am not sure why it is called "Lazy-Day Farm" because there aren't many lazy days around any farm I have been on!!!  BUT, I love this little tin barn just the same!

I picked it up and a few other cute things at a fabulous little antique shop called Flood Plain Trading CO in Hardin.  They are only open once a month and I have a hard time making it on that one day!

We know some people :) and were able to go down and shop all by ourselves a few Saturdays ago!

It was so much fun!!!  We were a bit rushed. . . I had many "farm" errands to get done for my hubby. . . but I did manage to buy several really cute things.

Now if only I could get a new house to put these new things in!!

 Just a bit of a random post I know. . .but antique shopping is one of my very favorite things to do.  I really prefer to go to auctions myself, but it is hard to find the time!!  And the owners of this store go to lots of auctions, so they have done the work for us!!!!!  They are so nice and so helpful and have SO many cute things in their shop. . . I wanted to take it all home with me.  Wouldn't the husband love that?

my latest read. . .

I read all three books in this series

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

The Girl who played with Fire

The Girl who Kicked the Hornets Nest.

And it was so fun to be able to read them right in a row, without waiting.  But now I am sad they are over! I want to know what Lisbeth will do next!!!  I do love a series and this is a great one!!!

Here is the link on amazon

Other series I have enjoyed are the

Hunger Games Series by Suzanne Collins

Stephanie Plumb series by Janet Evanovich

The House of Knight Series by PC Cast

The Twilight Series by Stephanie Meyer

and of course Harry Potter.

I love to hear what everyone else is reading, so I thought I would share my latest read!

And I think I might read Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand next.  Though not a series, it sounds intriguing!

Close to My Heart Ink Organizer.

For those of you who know me or follow my blog, you know I love organizing.  Almost as much as I love actually paper crafting.

So, I really LOVE the Close to My Heart Exclusive Ink Organizer!  It holds all 60 of our Exclusive Ink Colors!!!! And our markers too!  It spins, so each color is very easy to reach!  It is so nice to have all of our beautiful colors right at your fingertips!

A cool thing about this organizer. . . it has a carrying case. . . so you can slip your organizer in the bag and carry all of your ink pads with you, easily.  It is absolutely the best thing EVER!

Also. . .there is a re-inker tray you can purchase that will sit right on top. . .and fit inside the carrying case as well.  But, I keep my most used blocks in this tray.  I like having them right there, ready for me to use!

And it is the time of year when everyone is Organizing. . .or so it seems.

And I must include myself in that group.

Yesterday, I pulled out the P-touch Label Maker (One of my Favorite things) and finished labeling my Ink Organizer.  Now, I won't spend a lot of time figuring out which ink I have misplaced (or actually buried under all of my scrapbooking supplies).  I carry my inks to Workshops a lot for my customers to use. . . this helps them stay organized too!!!  I like having my inks in rainbow order. . .sort of anyway. . .and it is nice not to have to reorganize them when I get home from a workshop!!!

So this is my Organization tip of the day. . . And two Products that are my favorites. . . P-Touch Label Maker by Brother AND the Exclusive Inks Organizer from Close to My Heart! 

Class Kit Layout and Photoshop.

This is the Layout we will be doing at our Workshop on Sunday, January 16.  

This project is optional, but I only have a limited supply of class kits!

If you are interested, please let me know asap. . . and I will put your name on a kit!

A challenge I have given to myself recently. . .to use more of my papers for projects other than its intended use. . . just mix it up a little bit!

So, can you recognize the yellow polka dot paper I used??  

It is from the Zippidee paper pack.  Still don't recognize it?  It is the backside of the tan polka dot paper!!!

I absolutely love how CTMH gives us two sides of the paper to choose from!!!  This layout is far from the theme of Zippidee. . . and all of our Paper Packs can be used in a similar fashion!  Too much pink in the paper?  Turn it over!  Many times the reverse side is a fun neutral or a blue/green color. . . perfect for a more boyish layout!!  

Supplies I used are all CTMH. . . 

Zippidee Paper Pack

Gray Wool Cardstock

White Daisy Cardstock

Archival Black Ink Pad

Bohemian Alphabet**NEW

Wings WOTG Stamp Set**NEW

Color-Ready Alphabet Stickers- Oxford

Black Grosgrain Ribbon

Micro tip scissors

Anyway. . . for Christmas I received a most wonderful present. . . Photoshop CS5!!  I have wanted this program for SO LONG!  On my old computer I used Photoshop Elements. . .but that was a long while ago!!!  So now I have this cool, new program. . . now I just have to figure out how to use it!!!!!  Above, you can see a watermark image on the first page of my layout.  Not on the second page.  Well, I put it on the second page, but no watermark.   Hmmmmmm.......

There is definitely a learning curve with this program, but I am so excited to learn!!!  Any tips?  Send them my way!

I did download Scott Kelbie's book. . .thanks to the advice of a good friend. . . I like the way he writes and I am sure it will be very helpful!!!

Some thing else to watch out for. . .My Favorite Things. . . I figure Oprah can do it, well then so can I.  The only difference. . .I won't be giving away cars and trips!!  I know we all have things we love to use and I love to learn what my friend's favorite things are. . . SO I will start sharing some of my favorite things. . . or newly discovered items that I think are cool.  

My first things is Photoshop CS5.  It is going to be one of my favorite things, for sure!

Oh and Scott Kelbies books about how to use Photoshop CS5.  

I purchase Photoshop from Adobe's website.

Scott Kelbies book I downloaded from my itunes account, but you can find it on Amazon.