WOW!!!

So far 76 of you have taken the survey and provided me with excellent feedback! Thanks so much everyone! Also I have added 4 more prizes to the prize pack since we have made it to 50 posts. I am going to give everyone until Thursday at midnight to complete the survey and post on the thread below for your chance to win. So if there is a paper crafter you know who has not made it yet, please tell them to come on over by Thursday night!

I will draw a winner on Friday morning!

The Survey is ready!!! (along with a chance to win)

Hello everyone!

I have my survey completed and ready to go! I am really hoping I get a lot of feedback and participation with this survey to give me a good feel for how paper crafters would feel about purchasing project kits. I would really appreciate it if you would take the time to complete the survey and then send any crafty friends over to do the same. In addtion, if you are willing to post a link on your blog or facebook page or anywhere else you know paper crafters may find it I would appreciate it! Besides, you will have a chance to win! The above photo shows a few of the items that will be included in the prize package. Each time I hit 25 survey takers I will add two more prizes to the pack. (we will start the prize pack at a $40 value which includes a Cosmo Cricket Mini Deck, assorted ribbons, metal rimmed tags, acrylic stamp set, mini book, flower epoxy stickers, rub on letters, and Thermo O Web Zots, Glue Stick and Mounting Tabs) So once we get to 100 survey takers (blog posts that people have taken the survey) then I will have added 8 more prizes and so on. The more people you send to take the survey, the more prizes get added and the higher the prize value goes for the drawing! Here are several ways to win-

1. Once you take the survey come back to my blog and post on this thread that you have done the survey. You earn one entry into the drawing.
2. If you post a link to your blog or facebook, a crafty message board or anywhere else that paper crafters can find it come back and let me know that along with a link to where you posted the survey link. You earn another entry.
3. Send a crafty friend over to take the survey and once they are done, have them come back here and post that they completed the survey and that you referred them. Each time you refer someone to take the survey you get another entry!

Ok, below is the link to take the survey! Thanks so much in advance for all your help, feedback, and support!

Click here to take survey

Character Education

At my daughter's elementary school we have this whole Character education piece going. We do a monthly Character based newsletter and we do activities within the school as well. Banners and posters are everywhere promoting the 6 pillars of Character. I am the committee chair for this group and in May we are kicking off an entire program based on the 6 pillars of Character. So we needed a box to drop the nomination slips in and you know me, you know how I love to alter!

So off to the thrift store I go searching for something cool to alter. Then out of the corner of my eye I see it....this old wooden bread box. It was perfect. A slanted pull down door where people can easily open and close and drop their nomination slips inside.

So I bought it, brought it home and altered it. So the photo above is the finished result. Great fun and of course lots of great conversation with my 6 year old about developing Character over the past week while I've been working on it!

I am hoping to have the survey up on Monday and would really appreciate all the feedback you guys can give me!

Survey coming soon!

I've been thinking a lot lately about my crafty life and wanting to do more with it. I would really love some feedback from all of you who follow and read my blog. So watch soon for a link I will be posting to a survey I am creating. I'd love for each and every one of you to take it! I may even have it posted over the weekend!

Big Picture Scrapbooking

Well for awile now I've been working on a class concept for Big Picture Scrapbooking. That's right everyone, I have a class coming soon to Big Picture Scrapbooking! I am very excited about this and I will keep you updated on this class and when it will be available! I just wanted you to know why I have been kind of quiet....working on something BIG!

Anyway, since I am totally immersed in creating my class and not a ton of time to create crafty fun to share with you, why don't you inspire me! Post a link to a photo of something crafty you have done recently or if you don't want to post for the whole group to view, then send me a picture via e-mail at lfalduto at charter dot net. I'd love to see what all of you are working on these days!

Fairness

Today I deviate away from creating with paper to delve into another kind of paper....books! Read on to find out how you can help needy children!

Last night my 6 year old daughter was invited by her elementary school teacher to participate in a group from their school presenting on Character. She had to simply say one line which was, "Orange is for Fairness." We have this whole Character education piece we are doing at our school and I am the committee chair for the effort. Anyway, one of the parents on the committee does a monthly newsletter related to Character and she put the following link on the April newsletter. Follow the link which will create more fairness in the world of reading by sending a book to a needy child. All you have to do is take the quiz, the organization sends the book!

Send a book to a needy child

I also challenge you to post this on your blog or Facebook page to create more fairness in the reading world!

Crafts Unleashed!

Today I have a post up over at the Crafts Unleashed blog. It is a happy spring card just waiting to be created by you!

To view it and for instructions how to make it just head over to the Crafts Unleashed blog by clicking on the spring card link below!

Spring Card

Busy, busy, busy!

Whew, I have been busy! We have friends coming this weekend to stay with us from Oconomowoc and I've been busy cleaning, menu planning, shopping, etc. Plus working quite a few hours volunteering at school and then the normal stuff I do! Thus, the lack of posting on my blog. I am anxious for the weekend as the couple coming has a daughter a bit younger than Meliah and she always enjoys playing with her and we always enjoy some adult time with them!

So hopefully next week I will be on track and will have time to do a little more creating as well as posting on my blog. So stay tuned...

Cookie Jar Idea

If you are like me you love to give handmade gift items to friends and family or you love to have things on hand that you can take as a hostess gift when invited to someone's home. I created the cookie jar above with this in mind. This piece recently appeared in Simply Handmade which is a Scrapbook Trends publication. I used the Cosmo Cricket Early Bird collection to create this piece.  This is my favorite Cosmo Cricket line ever!

Do a google search for "Cookie Jar recipes" and you will turn up a lot of different recipes to fill your jar. Then alter the outside how you like and add a recipe card to it somewhere that will explain what other liquid ingredients are needed to create the cookies so the receiver can whip up an easy batch of cookie dough!

New project!

Ok, a couple of days ago I posted about a new Basic Grey line that I picked up and I asked all of you to tell me what to make. The majority said an altered item. But there was one particular comment that intriged me, challenged me, and I decided to take on the challenge! Here is the post...

Kitty said...
Spring tennis practice opens in two weeks. I will have MANY tennis ball canisters-both aluminum and plastic-lying around. There must be something to create from them!! :) The new Basic Grey line is bold, bright, and colorful. Thanks for all your inspiration

So just to let you know, I have no tennis balls nor tennis ball cans at my house. I have shelves full of altered items. But this one intriged me. What can I do with a tennis ball can? So I headed to the store and picked one up. My daughter will love playing with the pink tennis balls inside of the can!

In one of the photos you see the altered tennis ball can with cover. I used a Martha Stewart punch to make the decorative border and simply layered on the paper and then used the chipboard flower, stem and leaves. You could also add some glitter to the elements if you wanted it to sparkle. So the first photo is an Easter candy tube. What fun, huh?

Then I started wondering what else you could do with it so I turned it into a vase. You could add real water! (sorry, flowers are not the best match)

What a great Easter hostess gift. You take the tube full of candy along with a bunch of spring flowers. The hostess empties out the candy tube, adds water, and displays the flowers!

Thanks Kitty for your great idea to alter a tennis ball can! That really inspired and stretched me today!

Crafty Kids!

So a couple of months ago I was asked if I would like to join the Design Team over on Crafts Unleashed by my good friend Jenny Rohrs. Of course I was thrilled that Jenny had asked me! I have several posts on the site over there and today I wanted to share one with you from this week.

This post features my 6 year old daughter creating a Lei from a kit I received from Crafts Unleashed. She had a blast making this and when she was done she decided she wanted to give it to her Kindergarten teacher as a gift. So she proudly packed it in her backpack and took it to school!

Anyway, check out the link below to this article and while you are there check out the rest of the site as well. Lots of crafty things happening over there!

http://www.craftsunleashed.com/index.php/kids-stuff/kids-crafts-fun-with-leis/

What would you like me to do?

So this past weekend I was in Archiver's. It was a Basic Grey weekend and I love Basic Grey. I saw this new line and I had to have it!

So now that all of you have seen it leave a comment and tell me what you would like to see me create using this line. A layout? A card? An altered item? Tell me what you would like to see and I will create a project based on your feedback. Oh and please feel free to get specific. So if you vote for an altered item, what type of item can you see me altering with this line?

Wausau Paper Creative Collection project!

Today I am posting the advanced project I created for the March Wausau Paper Creative Collection project of the month. These are always free downloads available to you so make sure you take advantage of them each month. Of course I will always post them on my blog as a reminder for you!

This one is a gift bag suitable for a birthday but could also be used for Mother's Day or for many different occasions.

http://mywpcreativecollection.com/files/PDF/POTM/201003b.pdf

New Project!

As many of you know I do monthly projects for the Wausau Paper Creative Collection. This month my beginner project is a baby shower invitation which you could also use as a card for a new baby as well by simply changing the stamped word on the front.

So here is a link to the complete photograph along with complete instructions so you can make your very own card? No use for a baby card? Simply switch out the stamped image in the circle area for what you like and stamp word(s) off to the side to match and you have your very own version of this card!

http://mywpcreativecollection.com/files/PDF/POTM/201003a.pdf

Home and playing catch up!!! (winners too)

Hello everyone!

I hope you enjoyed my week of giveaway opportunities! I am home and playing catch up after my Costco Road Show in Ohio. What fun I had meeting so many crafters! Such nice folks in Ohio. Sales were great and it was fun working with my friend Niki!

So while I spend the next couple of days catching up I thought you would enjoy reading who the winner of all the giveaways are.

1. Alpha stickers- Patty 2262
2. Prima Flowers- Tona
3. Stamps- Carol F
4. Hearts and Tags- Ginny

Congrats to all! Please send you mailing address to me at lfalduto at charter dot net. I will get your prizes out to you once everyone has their mailing info to me. Please send me your info by March 10th. After that the prize will return to my prize stash for a future giveaway!

Last Giveaway before I come home!

Ok, this is the last giveaway before I return home! I am of course anxious to see my family and spend time with them.

Simply leave a comment for a random chance to win the Heidi Grace heart epoxys and the tags above. Tim Holtz does lots of cool things with tags on his blog so you could use his tutorials and create some cool stuff with these!

So leave your commment and I will randomly draw a winner either Tuesday or Wednesday!