Check, Check and Check

Well almost everything I needed to do over the weekend has been checked off my list. I now just have to make 22 tags. I promise they won't look thrown together. I am a procrastinator like that, I'm sad to say. I will always meet my deadlines though. I just had know idea how long it would take for me to work on my skirts for the junk Gypsy night yesterday. That and I had a trip to the grocery store so my poor sister will have something to eat at my house while I am gone.

I had to redo the waist band of one skirt because the fabric frayed like crazy. UGH! Then I had to rethink how I was going to sew my Crinoline underskirt. I bought bridal type tulle in a light aqua and there was not way I was going to cut it to sew it in layers. So I cheated. I had to think on my toes and design my own pattern in my head and without paper. I bought fabric to make a drop down wait section. Then I made another mistake and cut the 1/2 piece if fabric in thirds so the drop down waist part is a smaller width than I wanted but oh well I made that work as well. But when I went to start cutting the tulle I cringed. too much work to cut 10 yards of soft tulle I could barely see in two layers on my cutting table. Then it hit me. I used the folder edge and sewed a basting stitch 1/4" down from the fold along almost 10 yards. (I cut off two pieces when I decided I was not going to make this like a regular tiered crinoline) With my drop down waist piece, the tulle folded in half was just long enough to stick out by a couple of inches from the skirt I made ( A skirt I made from a girls size 16 holiday style dress. I accidentally bought a girls size dress but thankfully when cut apart the bottom of the dress still made a nice skirt 2 layer tulle, ribbon trim lined skirt for me.) So I cheated again and just started gathering the tulle, stitched it on the band, sewed on some bias tape to make the waist band easier when finishing it off with elastic. I left the hem as is for now. I did think of trimming it off with my pinking shears for a cuter hem, but that would take a while to cut nearly 10 yards of double layer tulle.

I tried on my new outfit and realized I really do need a black Cowboy hat to make the entire outfit come together. How does one pack a cowboy hat and should I . I have an old one but it needs to be cleaned and would I look dumb wearing it on the plane?

So the plans now are to go out at lunch for a mani/pedi. Work on tags tonight and wash clothes. I realized this morning I have not washed clothes in 3 weeks. That is the longest I have ever gone without doing at least one load. Ok off to work I go.

Countdown to Silver Bella - 5 days!

I can't believe in 5 days I leave for Silver Bella. Woohooo. My sister will be staying at my home with my dog and kitty's. This is a very good thing.

Ok so here is a sneak peak for some of you on my swaps. The first 2 photos are 3 of the 4 fabric flower pins I made. I am not sure I am digging the red and cream one so that is why I went a totally different direction on the remaining ones. The bottom photo is one of my ornaments. Now I am off to finish the backs of the flower pins and start labelling everything so tomorrow it can be a crinoline and gift tag day. That and I must go to the grocery store at some point. My sister would kill me if I left her with an empty pantry again.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

Every since my niece was born I have spent Halloween night at my brother's house. I go trick or treating with my niece, nephew and family. This year I may forgo this plan and stay home and pass out candy. When I live din amy partment just about a mile away from them it was a no brainer to go over. Now I live almost 20 miles away and in the car it is a 20 to 30 min trip, thisis my second Halloween in my own home and I want to hand out candy this year. Plus I still have tons of things to work on before I leave for Silver Bella. I can't believe it is right around the corner. I have my ornaments, charms and ATC cards completed. I finally started working on the fabric flower swap and then that leaves me with 22 tags to do and my Junk Gypsy skirts to make. I can do all of this no problemo by next Tuesday night right?!!!

Lately after I get home from work I am just too tired to do anything and I hate it when I leave work when it is dark outside then when I get home I really do not want to do anything. I am so glad we move back to normal hours this weekend. woohoo!

I hate waking up in the dark even worse than I hate coming home in the dark! I do not get up with an alarm clock. Most people are shocked when I say that. I have one in fact; I laugh when I think about this because I even have a double alarm clock. LOL. The only time the alarm clock gets used is if I have to wake up at some horrid hour before 5:30am to go somewhere. Any other time no alarm clock going off in my house. I tell myself when I want to wake up before I go to bed and sure enough every time I wake up at that time or 10 minutes earlier. Never fails. I have never been late anywhere because I overslept in the morning. So don't forget it is FALL BACK this weekend! Now I am off to go buy candy to hand out tonight!

What Your Halloween Habits Say About You

You're a friendly person, but not the life of the party. You like making someone else's day - and you'll dress up if you think of a really fun costume. You definitely think of yourself as someone who has a dark side. And part of having that dark side means not showing it. Your inner child is open minded, playful, and adventurous. You fear people taking advantage for you. You are always worried about protecting your own interests. You're prone to be quite emotional and over dramatic. Deep down, you enjoy being scared out of your mind... even if you don't admit it. You are picky and high maintenance. If you wear a Halloween costume, it's only when you really feel like it. And it has to be perfect.

What's Your Halloween Personality?

Recollections Closing SAY What? & Look what I bought!

A friend f mine told me this weekend that the corporate executives at Michale's craft Stores announced to all the employees of the Recollections stores that they would be closing all the stores! SAY WHAT! They are going to concentrate on their framing and craft stores! ARE THEY FREAKING KIDDING! After they single handledly helped push many a mom and pop store out of business over the last 4 or 5 years! Hardly these stores are losing business for them! Now the closest scrap store near me is a store on Highway 78 in Lavon and it lacks a little polish. They have too much old stuff in the store. I can only hope this opens the doors for Archievers to step in and take over. If I only lived near Colleyville then the Scrap Pad would be my new store but alas it is just too far away for me to drive every time I need something so soon I will be stuck with Target, Hobby Lobby, Joann's, Wal-Mart and Michael's for my scrapping supplies. And have you seen Joann's paper lately. They have been buying some of the same paper for the last 3 or 4 years! GEEZ! even Creative Memories has some cool new paper these days! So I guess I will end up an online shopper!

Ok to celebrate my Birthday I bought me a few gifts over the weekend. One was this and I am so excited to put it to use at Silver Bella! I went shopping for a new Cannon and ended up with a Nikon CoolPix5100. Can you say 12.1 MP! I was just not travelling with my Digital SLR on another crafting trip. Thankfully this Nikon has all the same features I was looking at on the Cannon and then some. It is a little bit larger than I wanted but I think in the end if a better fit for me and since I bought it at Wolf Camera's I get to take some free digital camera classes! WOOHOO! That is exactly what I need.

I also took the plunge and signed up for laser hair removal on my chin and neck area. I am just so done plucking, and waxing. I hate getting older and I really dislike my family genetics. I have been wanting to do this for years and after watching my 65 yr old mom still plucking, I decided I didn't want to be that lady at plucking hair off my chin for the next 40 years and plus I am done worrying about ingrown hair of which I have the worst case ever right now. I go in tomorrow for my first treatment. In total I go in for 5 treatments scheduled 8 to 10 weeks apart. and then I go in for 4 or 5 free touch ups after that, with a lifetime treatment plan where if I have any new growth down the road I just pay a $40 co pay and get treated again. How cools is that! Wish me luck! This may be a whole new additicion for me. I may want my legs done next! LOL.

Another Scrap Book Store Bites the Dust

I just do not get it another ScrapBook store in the suberbs of Dallas is closing. The Scrap Bucket in Plano, TX is closing and it was a great store for 2 1/2 years. I loved the concept of buying pieces by the bucket. Also once again the store owners are blaming their customer's for not keeping their store alive. I do not get this at all. In a city like Plano Texas there are plenty of families and ladies that scrap to keep a scrapbook store alive, why blame the customer's. Why don't these stores ever take the blame themselves for not buying what their customer's want or offering choices for their customers. A little stamp store has been alive and well in Plano for many years now so why can't a scrapbook store stay alive?

This is what I think why they close:
1) They do well in their small space and think if they move to a bigger space they will do better and in the end they close. Don't expand to quickly! Stay where you are for 3 years especially if you are just getting by or just breaking even. I have seen this happen to often a store is doing well and they open a second store or grow to a bigger store and then shut down.
2) advertise - be creative! think outside of the box as ways to advertise. Funny some of my scrapping friends didn't even know about this cool store!
3) Stay on top of the FADs - This is a very fast moving and changing business. Buy just enough to sale out of it and then move on. Don't keep restocking the same items over and over again unless it is adhesive and cutting supplies.
4) make your store unique! With stores like recollections, Michael's and Target all selling scrapbooking supplies don't buy what they buy at market. Stay unique and not just in supplies, organize it in a unique way. make it fun, exciting and creative. A store needs to be warm and inviting. Make us want to stay and explore. I love the store's that look like boutique clothing stores. It doesn't have to cost a lot just be creative.
5) Don't expect to break even for a few years. You have to grow a business. get to know your customer's. The Scrapbucket sent out emails and had a website but it wasn't unique. It wasn't creative. It wasn't anything that made me want stay a while to read. It didn't really offer me anything. In fact their class offerings never had anything I was ever interested in taking.
6) offer unique classes. classes they can only find at your store. Right now a trend in scrapbooking is home dec. from what I remember they never offered a class that used scrapbook supplies in the home as accessories. Stay up with the trends! Don't just keep offering basic level classes. not everyone needs a basic class or a card making class or a stamp class, some of want more creative classes. Trust me we are out there!
7) if you are not doing so well don't send out 50% coupons for your high end items. yes we will use them on the expensive items if you let us. yes I understand you need to get customer's in the door but giving away product won't do it. Even Michael's has limits on their coupons. I do not even know if Recollections has ever mailed out a coupon. I could be wrong.
8) research - find out what your customer's want when you go to market. Ask questions, research and find out what is hot and what they think will be hot.

OK I am off my soap box. I just hate seeing stores close especially when there is a need for them and I have spent lots of money at them and I relaly hate it when they blame their customer's or the lack their of. It's not our fault!