Organizing Stencils for a Better World

Okay so that might have totally been one of those lame attempts to shock people into reading my blog and I really do apologize (kind of), but if you are here because of it, you may thank me later.

When life gives me lemons, I grab the vodka and the sugar and get on the whole lemon drop thang (totally INSTEAD OF THE LAUNDRY of course) And after that, when chaos still ensues, I have to bring some kind of order back to my life.  The easiest way for me to fix that is to ORGANIZE (see boys and girls, it is NOT a four letter word at all). Organizing gives my mind something to focus on instead of the negative (HA, you thought I was going to use yet another cheap ploy and put INSTEAD OF THE LAUNDRY didn't you??)  I love to organize and think I do a pretty dang good job of it.  My theory is "a place for everything and everything in its place." I am brave enough to chuck it if it doesn't have somewhere to go or a use (just ask my ex-husband!!  BADA BING...it had to be said!).  Craft supplies can be both easy and hard to organize.  WOW!! Vague much?  It can be difficult when crafters try to conform to the ways that others structure their mother load of supplies as opposed to the way that they craft.  HUGE MISTAKE!  BIG!  All the candy stations and Ikea shelving units mean nothing if they aren't helping you get creative and crafty every single day.  You have to think about your crafty style...are you color driven, theme obsessed, collection enthusiastic, in the holds of company products etc, etc, and that should drive how you on how to organize in a way that is meaningful and useful to YOU!!

That's it!  Done.  End of the blog post.  Did it make your world better?  Even though I am really kidding about the blog being done, remember we already settled the fact that I was using sensationalism to get you here.  And you were okay with that and forgave me.  And for that, I appreciate you :)

But seriously, I do have a suggestion for stencils that may (or may not) help you.  And if it doesn't, no worries!  If you don't craft like me and this doesn't work for you, I would love to hear how you organize your stencils.

Since life has thrown me some lemons as of late and I have indeed been doing some soul searching organization projects and creative therapy.  Here is what I have come up with in regards to those aforementioned stencils:

These are all of my smallish stencils.  By smallish, I mean less than 12x12.  My 12x12s hang on a separate ring.  I did punch holes in the corners of all the stencils that didn't already have an appropriate place to shove the binder ring through. I am totally okay with the extra hole in my stencil.  If I am using spray inks and don't want that hole to get all inky, I just place a piece of always handy painter's tape over it.  I know this is completely freaking some of you out because I have ripped these from their comfortable homes and haven't a clue as to who belongs to what and what companies to attribute to each one.  Well, hold on just a second...

Because there is also THIS:

On another handy dandy little binder ring, there is an index of all of my stencils.  And at the bottom of each is the title, the company they came from and, if it is a 12x12 I write that down too. This little gem is a winner winner chicken dinner because, not only does it keep track of the stencils I have (and can possibly fit into my purse should I need to take it to the store with me), but it also lets me know what they will look like once they are used with whatever creative yummy I put with it.  With some stencils, I get all kinds of confused with the positive versus the negative and what will actually come out as the end result.  

These handy dandy stencil holders and index all hang from an "arm"  on my studio wall.  Behind my main working desk I have a floor to ceiling peg board that is perfect for such items.  I find myself using my stencils a ton more than when they were stuck flat in a drawer.  So for me, being able to reach back, grab my stencils or my index and use them immediately without doing a lot of digging WORKS.  This organizational tip is a keeper for me!  Would it work for you??  Think about it before you rush out and do it.  If it doesn't and you find something else that does, I would love to hear about it.  In the meantime, I will totally be working on some mixed media canvases that include stenciling INSTEAD OF THE LAUNDRY!  Or if the lemons keep coming, I may have some more organizational tips to try INSTEAD OF THE LAUNDRY too! 

As always, thanks for checking me out!!

Art Journal Before and After

In my last blog post I left you anxiously awaiting what I was going to do to this art journal.  My apologies for leaving you wanting, on the edge of your seats and thirsty for more (our landscaper has been busy all day flinging mulch, so I figure why not fling a little of my own).

 I have to say I am not in a good creating place.  I am currently wasting time, procrastinating in a way.  Why?  I am not sure.  What am I avoiding?  Not sure about that either.  I need to start working on the May's retreat supplies.  I promised my LSS I would get to work on possibly working on some classes in both gelli printing (be still my heart) and Pan Pastels (the devil I tell you).  My daughter's big 13th birthday party is coming in July (an Instagram theme...where do I even begin) and I haven't even started to design the invitations.  There are teacher appreciation gifts to get to work on and Mother's Day cards.

And all I can say is BLAAAAAHHHHH!  I just want to color.  And watch You Tube videos on how to make pretty things.  And sleep.  And play golf.  And tennis.  And lay in my hammock and read books about how to make pretty things.  And ride Henrietta (that is the name of my vintage bike so get your minds out of the gutter).  And drink fruity cocktails and eat seafood. The dungeon is a mess.  The house is clean.  BLAHHHHH!  What the hell is wrong with me?

Part of me blames it on the pollen. Oh the pollen.  If North Carolina's color wasn't already blue, it really should be yellow. And since they are thinking of changing our slogan from "First in Flight" to something else, they might as well include pollen in there somewhere.  We have had to stop opening our windows because it literally forms drifts on the hardwood floors.  We have very tall windows that I love opening to the breeze and the sunlight.  NO CAN DO for fear of the pollen apocalypse.

It might be that I have a birthday coming up in less than a month.  I will be 41.  40 sucked.  Just saying.  I lost my sweet dog  I was very sick for most of it.  I lost my uterus. My ex-husband has made life hell.

It might also be You Tube.  I watch a lot of YT in the hopes of learning.  However, I really watch so that I can feed my people watching desires without ever having to leave home.  And a lot of times I watch these people wishing I could do what they do.  All with the understanding that I should be out there doing (because that is what these women are doing) not wishing.

All of that to tell you (in the worst incomplete sentence-laden blog EVER) that I finished my art journal entry.  Remember the one about all of the crafty things that are constantly running through my head?  It looked like this:

And so, after adding all the crafty bits of things that run through my head on an hourly basis, this is what it now looks like:

I may like it better in the before than the after, but I really am not sure.  I do know that I enjoy looking at this when I open my art journal.  That is something that can't be said about all of my art journal entries. If it didn't teach me anything else, I did learn that I love the layered look and process of this kind of art journaling.  Flat art journaling isn't for me (but for some reason, I continue to try and master the doodle).  I also learned that I still have a lot to learn about listening to my inner artist (and not the critic....kind of like the angel and the devil on each shoulder except I have a little artist and a critic that resembles the big guy with glasses named Gene somebody that used to review movies long long ago).  No matter what the outcome, you know I would rather be doing this INSTEAD OF THE LAUNDRY.  In my long rant of all I wanted to do above, I never, not once, mentioned household chores.  I will figure out this creative slump I hope.  Any words of advice would be appreciated.  I have thought maybe I needed to read "The Artist's Way" INSTEAD OF THE LAUNDRY because it seems to offers some insight into getting back your creative mojo.  If you have read it, I would love to hear what you thought.  And if not, maybe you could tackle it with me (totally INSTEAD OF THE LAUNDRY...cheap shots I know but a girl has got to do what a girl has to do for her little blog).  Thanks ya'll!

How Crafting ADD Translates to My Art Journal

Crafting ADD, or as it is known in the DSM-IV, Craftophrenia, was the topic of my last blog post (and if you haven't yet read that stunning piece of informational and inspirational non-fiction, I strongly urge you to run not walk to that blog post).  Did I find a cure?  HA!  What makes you think I want to??  No cure and no calming in the way my mind constantly drifts from one lovely art idea to another has yet evolved.  However, I was inspired to SHOW you how I feel as opposed to telling you.

As we have discussed in so many of my blog posts (such a stretch I know, but it makes me sound really quite professional if you are just finding my blog right??), this is a JUDGEMENT FREE ZONE.  So feel free to read this while eating a dozen Krispy Kremes (Dunkin' Doughnuts however are not acceptable and you will be judged for your lack of doughnut picking prowess) or  while dressed in your favorite pair of ugly pink pig pajamas because you haven't yet showered; I won't judge and am hoping you won't either.  Below you will see one of the pages from my art journal. I don't really share my art journal because I find it somewhat personal.  It is where I go to play NOT perfect (and by perfect, I hope you totally know that I know that you know that I am no perfectionist) and where I tend to display my "quote whore" tendencies.  It is also where I try out new techniques and supplies before finally putting them to use on a canvas or card or scrapbook page.  It is also a place of no fear (huge topic of conversation over at a new to me Google + community called The Kraaft Shaak as pf late) because I am usually the only person who sees my journal.

DANG TANGENT (the proverbial squirrel rears its ugly nuts once again)!

As I was flipping through one of my beloved Somerset Studio magazines, I saw an article about Junelle Jacobsen that featured some of her art.  I love her whimsical ways and recently took an idea of hers for a canvas and put my spin on it too.  But when I saw her girl with the explosion of hair and wishes she had for herself all tangled in it, it translated into something else for me.  Why not turn those wishes into all of the artsy and craftsy desires that are constantly running through my head (Craftophrenia members UNITE!)  and put them where I can see them and maybe, just maybe, cross some things off my list and concentrate more on some of the ideas that really make my heart sing.  So while you might be saying to yourself, "What the hell is she talking about?  All I see is some chic with a blonde afro puff and lots of circles!" hold on because it is not done yet.  It is a work in progress.  Isn't it always a work in progress?  Well, it is until it isn't.  For now, this little self-portrait of my Crafty ADD self is what I am doing INSTEAD OF THE LAUNDRY.  I have also been taking some golf clinics INSTEAD OF THE LAUNDRY but that is a whole other blog post (hell, that is a whole other blog titled THE THINGS I DO IN ORDER TO KICK MY HUSBAND"S BUTT At JUST ONE SPORT, ANY SPORT FOR PETE"S SAKE!).  I will be back to show you how she ends up whether I (or you) like it or not.  Can you figure out a way to translate your artsy fears into your art INSTEAD OF THE LAUNDRY?  If so, tell me how.  Or better yet, show me!

Crafting ADD means Pretty Mermaid Art

Without a doubt I suffer from Crafting ADD.  Some might call me Craftophrenic (kind of like Schizophrenic but instead of voices and personalities running through my head, I have tons and tons of crafting ideas).  When people ask me what kind of crafter I am, I have a hard time answering that question.  Depending on my mood, I love to try it all.  Scrapbooking? Yes!  Cardmaking? Yes (though I am not great at it!) Altered Art?  Yes and Yes! Art Journaling?  Yes!  Painting? Yes! If I could, I would absolutely do it all!!
However, it is the Craftophrenia that allows me to use up (and buy up) a lot of the sometimes neglected supplies in my studio.  For the last few weeks, my scrapbook supplies have remained untouched, only to be replaced in my heart by my mixed media goodies.  This area of crafting is somewhat dangerous because a lot of the supplies are pricier than your average scrapbook papers.  There are just so many different areas of mixed media to explore and if you suffer from Craftophrenia, that's a dangerous thing.
I recently visited my local scrapook store, Betty's Creative Studio, and bought the mermaid stamp from Prima.  I love mermaids.  I mean seriously love mermaids.  If I ever got another tattoo, I think I would want it to be a mermaid. I love mermaids so much that I think I used to be one (or at least I thought that when I was a kid...because no way would I ever still really believe that I might have once been a mermaid).  WOW, see how easily I get off track??  Ugggg, anyways, I wanted to do something different with this mermaid stamp.  Almost all Prima doll stamps are paper pieced and I wanted to veer away from that for my beautiful mermaid.  Since my Crafting ADD had already kicked in and I was steering away from paper anyways, it immediately struck me that I should use my Pans!  Awwww Pan Pastels are one of the priciest but most prized crafty possessions.  I have taken only 2 online classes from Donna Downey herself and don't exactly consider myself an expert.  However, I do have enough knowledge to play with them with some success.  They are freaking amazing and in some Wayne's World "I'm not worthy" way, I am always blown away with the results I get working with them.  Once I have a general idea, my ball generally starts rolling....until it doesn't and then is so stuck I have to walk away for a day or two while it plagues me until I get unstuck again.
So here is where my ball began so to speak:

Oh yeah, that is totally vintage book paper and I WENT THERE!!  What more could you want in life??  Vintage paper, Pan Pastels, and a Prima mermaid!!  Every bit of the shading (which I am not great at so please be nice) is done with Pans.  Most of the crafty peeps I know do the same with Copics (totally have those too and they are also amazing).  I think I could have left her there and been satisfied.  

But I didn't (and that is also a problem I have...not knowing where and when to stop in my art). 

 Somewhere in there I skipped a photography step.  I did add an underwater background with Pans and a TCW stencil, as well as some glitter to her body, modeling paste bubbles, and glass bead gel bubbles.  I knew she needed a quote because I LOVE quotes!!  LOVE LOVE LOVE Quotes.  Pinterest is my go to for quotes and I found a few I loved (and had to make a new board dedicated to Mermaids). This one was short enough to fit on the canvas I had chosen so I went for it.  What you see is just an example of the spacing because I knew I wasn't going to leave it white (I typed it and printed it from my computer).  So she is coming along right??

I think this photo is one that has an Instagram filter on it so it may look a bit lighter than the rest.  At any rate, this is my lovely mermaid after I finished with a few white highlights, shading in the quote with Pan Pastels, and inking the edges with coordinating Distress Inks.  At this point I was stuck.  My proverbial ball quit rolling and there was no moving it.  I am quite happy with her but I do see things I wouldn't have added (like some of the white highlights) but there is only rolling forward; there is no rolling back.  At this point, I did turn to the owner of the scrapbook store for help.  She was having a customer yard sale that I volunteered to work (fabulous by the way!) and I bent her ear when we had a break.  She is a genius and has taken classes from every big name in the business. If I ever needed a mentor, she would be it, but for now I just consider her kind of like my Jewish mother.

 And this is what we came up with.  The burlap canvas mimicked the natural color of the ocean so I used a TCW stencil that had an organic shape to it to run embossing paste (brilliant stuff...like the lightest frosting ever) mixed with Distress ink through in various spots.  I also inked the sides with Prima ink (you know the little ones that are light blue and shaped to run along edges beautifully?).  The mermaid needed grounding, so she got matted with a fuschia patterned paper and a thicker black frame.  In an effort to also give her some depth, I popped the entire matting/framed print up on the canvas.  Someone recently gave me some good advice: Let the art tell you when it is done.  I think my mermaid is saying BE DONE!!! Take me to your scrapbook store as your latest design team project and leave me there.  Start something new (as if she actually had to say that because my brain was already figuring out how to use a gelli plate to make something else with my mermaid).  I love her and am very proud of this.  It was one of the creating episodes where everything just seemed to go right (RARE!!).  This is what I worked on for several days INSTEAD OF THE LAUNDRY!  This is what came of my Craftophrenia.  And now I am ready for my Pans to go bye bye for awhile.  I want to play with the Gelli Plate (but first I have to save up to get one...I make my own but they end up molding and never seem to be as smooth as the read ones) INSTEAD OF THE LAUNDRY.  

How about you?  Do you stay in your creative box or do you suffer from Crafty ADD as well?  Do you stay in your crafty box because you want to or because you have that fear we talked about last week (and if you didn't read my blog post from last week, shame on you!  But I forgive you because I know you are headed there now)?  And if you are one of those rare crafters that manages to stick with the one thing, what else would you do if you could?  Come on!  Sky is the limit and money doesn't matter!!  What other crafty goodness would you get your hands dirty with INSTEAD OF THE LAUNDRY??

Creative is ___________Part 2

I know you have been on pins and needles waiting to hear what the very first assignment was...

Sadly, it wasn't so much an assignment as it was a question.  A question that I still am not sure I know the answer to.  Don't judge me.  It's not like a question you would find on Jeopardy (of which I am pretty darn good at by the way), but one of those psychological, mind busting, feel like your whole life hinges on your answer type questions.  Now mind you, if you have already snagged the book (and if you didn't read my first blog post regarding the aforementioned book...shame on you!) Creative is a Verb by Patti Digh then you know you obviously need the book.  So her first question of "who needs this book?" is pretty much null and void.  Apparently the only people that don't need the book are children (hence the reason my husband won't be reading it :) ).

No, the mind blowingness, should I just toss a coin or play eenie meanie miney moe part of the question comes in figuring out WHO you are or WHERE exactly you fit in the niche of people who need the book.  There are only 3 places for which you could fit (this to me is very disturbing as I always like to think I could be a hybrid of several categories...like one of those dogs we use to call mutts but now call cute names like Puggles and Shi-Poos and LabraDoodles).  If the millions of people I imagine in my head really read this blog, I might post a poll and see if society could see where I fit.  Since it would be a poll of maybe one (and my own vote really isn't supposed to count), I guess that wouldn't work too well.

So are you:
a. not a creative bone in your body (but wish you were more creative)
b. a dabbler (love to be a real artist but really you just play)
c. an artist (love to be known and respected for your art as well as be able to support yourself with your artwork)

And here is where I would like to put in choice d--none of the above.  I mean shouldn't there be something between a and b or even b and c????

Since I haven't come up with an answer yet, I have been afraid to turn the page.  I feel like I have failed already and that maybe I should get some test prep and come back with either a cheat sheet or some definitive time spent pondering it all under my belt.

Which means instead of continuing this book and INSTEAD OF THE LAUNDRY, I went shopping.  Oh yeah!!  The husband left for New Mexico today.  It was nasty, rainy weather.  My LSS, Betty's Creative Studio, was having a 20% off everything sale and a 50% off a massive section of the store sale.  My kiddo was super excited to go see Betty's dog Charlotte and claimed if we went to the newly opened 5 Below (a crazy dollarish type store) she wouldn't rush me through Betty's.  I was avoiding being at all creative because apparently I am not ready because I can't even answer a dumb question about being creative.  There was a crap ton of laundry that needed to be done.  Yeah, I ran like a fat kid chasing a cupcake!  Got out of the house and went shopping!! Wanna see???

I know!! I did good!  I shopped for pure love as opposed to necessity.  I am totes digging the new TCW stencils and the Prima goodness goes without saying.  There is some Graphic 45 back there too...the new By the Sea collection.  Betty had a canvas at her store that someone had done with the paper and I will be totally scraplifting the idea for my next retreat auction item.  Did this shopping trip help answer my question?  Nope!  But it was a hell of a lot more fun and something to do INSTEAD OF THE LAUNDRY!!!  And if you are done reading this, perhaps you are now stuck trying to fit yourself in one of those 3 awful categories too...let me know what you come up with and maybe we can be Labra-Poo-Shi-Terrier-Doodles together!!

Creative is a (fill in the blank).

If you are a former language arts teacher like me, you said ADJECTIVE! Unfortunately in this case you would be wrong.  The correct answer is VERB!  What??  Yeah, it is the title of the new to me book I am reading called Creative is a Verb by Patti Digh.  It is supposed to help you live your art and to "reclaim your creative spirit."  Since I am only on the first chapter, all of those mysteries remain just that...mysteries.  However, I have noticed that on every single page thus far there is an AH HA! moment.  So much so that I needed to find a cute notebook (I know right?  Any excuse for cute stationery!) to fill with my AH-HA moments.  I guess the real proof would be that these moments were so profound that they initiated this blog post (now if that doesn't convince you how much this book speaks to me, nothing will!!).

I don't want to take anything away from Mrs. Digh and give away the whole book, but I do want to share something with you.  I shared this on my Facebook page as well (sweet bellies) so if you want the short and sweet version, stop reading now and go LIKE my FB page (sneaky right :)???). One of the quotes that has stuck with me for both myself and for some of my crafty friends who constantly doubt themselves (you know who you are) is this:  " To live a creative life, we must lose our fear of being wrong."  And by wrong the author means not measuring up to others or own expectations or the expectations of an audience.  She wrote it much more poetically than I just did but that is why she gets paid the big bucks right??  Anywho, it caused me to pause and for my heart to jump because there have been many many instances in which fear did stop me from doing something I thought I might enjoy creatively (really in a ton of life things in general but since this is a crafty blog, lets slow our roll) because I feel as if people expect things of me that might not be cohesive with what I really wanted to do.

THINK ABOUT IT!!! How many times have you stopped yourself from doing something creative in nature because you worried about failing yourself or having others criticize your efforts??   Let me give you an example of one of my own recent worrisome moments. Prime example right here:

Now I personally think this is cute.  Is it my style? I don't think it is but something about it speaks to me.  Do I have a point?  Yeah I do.  I painted this.  It is a paint by numbers canvas by Mary Engelbreit.  Even as I relaxed and forgot all of the stress in my life at the current moment while I painted it, that little gnawing voice in the back of my head kept wanting to interrupt.  Those that know me would immediately say "BOOOOOO!"  Or "This is NOT real art!"  Or "Why would you waste your time on something like this?" Did this really happen?  Nope but neither have I heard praises of awesomeness, except by my daughter who might be buttering me up for a pony or something.  

The fact that I put it both on Facebook and Instagram and now my blog is a good sign right?  Like I am saying to the world, "Here it is and I don't give a damn what you think!" But the truth of the matter is, I do.  I guess that means I need to keep reading chapter 1 to figure out what to do about it (meanwhile I have started a second paint by number canvas also by Mary Engelbreit and I am loving every minute of it).  Yes, in this book there are moments of AH-HA but there are also moments of putting your money where your mouth is exercises that force you to practice what you preach (or blog or post or Instagram).  I plan on showing you what results I have to show for doing the exercise because you know I plan on doing the exercise (or exercises because you know it may take a few of them to get creative groove on) INSTEAD  OF THE LAUNDRY!!!  Stay tuned!!  And while you might be looking for something to do INSTEAD OF THE LAUNDRY, think about where your fears are when it comes to creating and let's see if we can all give a collective middle finger to the critics both inside and out!!

New Design Team Project for Betty's Creative Studio!

Creating with Graphic 45 Couture and Kaiser Craft!

Woo Hoo!  Back to the kind of crafty goodness that fuels my creativity!! When my favorite LSS, Betty's Creative Studio, put out a design team call it took me about two seconds to decide whether or not I wanted to go for it.  I did have to consider some family responsibilities, going back to school and my Sweet Bellies workload too.  In weighing all of that, I realized I needed an outlet that allowed me to create for pure creating sake.  In my world, that doesn't happen often.  More often than not, I am creating for work purposes.  While that is still a wonderful thing and I am a lucky girl, it sometimes limits my creative mojo.  I knew that Betty wouldn't put any limits on what I could do and would actually encourage the out of the box thinking that really tends to float my boat (she is cool like that :) ).  I jumped on it, submitted my thousands of pictures (no, really) and waited patiently (or not) to hear. 

As you can guess from the title, I made it!!  Betty started me off BIG but I was ready.  The DT has the responsibility of designing with products from the store in a variety of mediums and then returning what we created in approximately 2 weeks.  It has taken me a little bit longer because of the size of the project and because of the weather (snow in North Carolina makes North Carolinians do crazy things and pretty much shuts the state down at the sight of a flake or two).  I was lucky enough to get to work with Graphic 45's Couture collection and Kaiser Craft's Storage Cupboard.  GORGEOUS!!  Betty gave me a lot of the embellishments for Couture as well, but I am bringing most of them back to her.  I ended up using a lot of the 12x12 paper pad and even more of my own treasures that I have collected from junkin'. Keep in mind that I decided to transform my storage cupboard into a jewelry box, so as you look at the pictures you may notice a shelf missing.  I didn't put it in the top shelf in order to give necklaces room to hang from the "ceiling" of the cabinet. Your creative soul may think the cabinet has yet another purpose and that is totally fine.  GO WITH IT!!  It's suggested purposed does not have to be its final one. 

 I am putting a list below of the supplies I used as well as a few pics of the finished project.  I wanted to film my process but I just got a new computer and I haven't (that really should say MY HUSBAND hasn't) had a chance to connect my camera to it (not to mention this thing is pretty high tech and I am pretty low tech...huge learning curve).  Betty's is local for me but she is also online, so if you don't have an LSS as cool as mine, you can always look her up.  She is one of the most knowledgeable peeps I know about anything in the crafting industry and can help with just about anything!!  Her store is undergoing a name change, but you can find her online store here: http://bettysscrapbookroom.com/shopbetty/  and her Facebook page here:    https://www.facebook.com/Stampingbetty

SUPPLIES:
Graphic 45 Couture 12x12 paper pad                     Kaiser Craft storage cupboard
Graphic 45 Couture 12x12 cardstock stickers        Graphic 45 Couture cardstock banners
Graphic 45 Couture cardstock flowers                   Antique white and black paint
Gold metallic paint                                                 Folk Art Crackle Medium (any crackle will do)
Scor Tape                                                                Wood glue (enforces the cabinet joints)
Doily die cuts (choose a favorite from the Silhoutte store-I used doily scalloped lace--Design ID #40129 )
Wrought iron card cut (Silhouette Design ID #13597 )
Frame (grabbed from my stash of Michael's $1.00 spot frames)
3 vintage spools (my stash again)
Lamp shade finial (another stash item--from a yard sale!!)
Junk jewelry (including earrings, pearl strands, pendants, necklaces, and cameos)
Vintage button card (yep, stash)
Various pieces of black ribbon (oh yeah, stash)
Spray Mount (for adhering the doilies but I am sure you could use any liquid glue)
1/2 inch cup hooks (Lowe's/Home Depot)(make sure you get hooks that are small enough in size so that when you are screwing them into the "roof" of the storage cupboard, they don't go all the way through)**These are only necessary if you want to turn your cupboard into a jewelry box like I did.
Glue gun (for attaching the vintage stuff to the top of the cupboard)(Do NOT use a glue gun to put your cabinet together!!!

Ready to see the end result??  Yeah I know my photography skills still ROCK!! 

 

The front

The right side

 The left side

The top with all of my junkin' finds!!

Voila'!  The pretty inside

The left door

The blurry right door (do not attempt to adjust your screen)

 

IF you squint, you might be able to see the gold cup hooks hanging from the top.  These provide a space for hanging necklaces and bracelets.  There are 4 at the top and 2 underneath the second shelf.

It took quite awhile to put this pretty lady together...from the paint drying and crackle layering to the fussy cutting and trial and erroring (have fun with that spell check) of all of my junkin' finds, it was a labor of love that took a little over two weeks to complete. Had I been afforded the time to do nothing but work on it (you know INSTEAD OF THE LAUNDRY and the housework, and the homework, and the child-raising and husband-raising responsibilities), I would have had it done in a few days.  But it was a great way to spend a few hours here and there, letting loose creatively while completely ignoring the toilets that needed scrubbing and, of course, INSTEAD OF THE LAUNDRY!!  Sometimes it is about creating for just that reason that brings us the most inspiration.  Try it and see what happens...if I am wrong, at least you spent a few hours getting down and artsy and discovering what makes YOU tick creatively.  There are much worse things :).  You may discover, like I did, that your authentic self needs/craves/demands/yearns for that peaceful time.  What seems selfish actually becomes selfless because giving into that need to create makes you a better woman, mom, wife, daughter, teacher, Scout leader, astronaut...you get the picture. 
As always, thanks for checking out my blog.  Now go do something totally creative INSTEAD OF THE LAUNDRY!!   xoxoxoxoxox Heather K.