Does spring give you a creative boost?  Does it get you all ramped up to make and learn and create?

For me it does.  To the point where I am so ramped up that I am going in circles.  I have a massive urge to learn new creative things, try and experiment and just generally muck about.  It feels like a million ideas flowing through my brain - all at once.

The problem?  It is too much creativity right now.  There is so much going on in my brain and so many ideas that I can't seem to focus.  It happens to me every spring.  The urge to stretch myself is overwhelming.  I want to learn EVERYTHING.  I mean I am reading books on felting, bookbinding, crewel work, watercolors and so many more.  I just flit from one thing to the next - just soaking it all up and wanting to try it all.  The problem is that there are just not enough creative hours to fit it all in.  I mean if I worked all day just making stuff I couldn't fit it all in.  And since I obviously DON'T have ALL day to just create I feel frustrated.  When I do try tomake something I feel like I should be making something else or I need to go and get supplies for the new thing I want to learn and the I end up doing nothing.  Just going in circles I am!

Totally on creative overload and not able to create.  How crazy is that??  I mean I dream of feeling this creative and here I am complaining (well sort of complaining but not really -I have a smile on my face as I type this cause I can see how ridiculous it is!). 

So since I can't really focus I made myself sit last night with a crochet hook and I created these.  Something out of the norm for me and I was 'learning' so I was sort of satisfied - for about 2 seconds, lol!

Just fooled around and created.  A small project and they take little time to make so I was kind of satisfied.  I made MANY more than just these :) and I am not really sure what I am going to use them for but I like the way they look and they are all pretty tiny.  I figure I can use them on a scrap project or something - I have them in just about every color now!  LOL  It felt good to be creating - even if it wasn't some crazy loom weaving project or a wall mural....seriously, I have no room for a new hobby!  Scrapbooking takes up all the spare space in the house!

So that is me in a nutshell right now and probably for the next bit.  All ramped up on creativity and no way to get it out in a way that is completely satisfying.  :) 

Ah, if this was the worst thing in life then I expect that is pretty good! :)

I have a favor to ask you. 

My cousin has a friend who is in college and she is working on a marketing project for school.  She was assigned the topic - adhesives for scrapbookers.  Her group has created an online survey that will help them with their school project and I am wondering if you would take a few minutes to fill it out????

Here is the link.

This not for any company.  It is strictly a school project.

The survey is 20 questions long and only took me about 3 minutes to complete.

Thanks to anyone who completes it. :)

MMM = a Memory Makers Master!

Oh ya!  The rules for 2009 are up!  Woohoo!  Go for it! 

What are you waiting for???  You can't win if you don't try!

Good luck to everyone who enters this year! 

So if you can believe it - I am outside again!  Day started out really crummy but it has certainly turned beautiful. 

But, I am so tired today.  I had a night filled with bad dreams so I didn't sleep well.  Does this happen to anyone else?  I mean the kind where your hubby wakes you up 'cause you are crying or wimpering in your sleep?  Weird, huh?  I haven't had this happen in quite some time but it is something that I have had for as long as I can remember. (This is why I will never watch a horror or really scary movie!)  I figure it might be because I am a creative person???  I am not sure.  I always have vivid dreams - like the time I had a direct line to the Prime Minister of Canada and we were best buds or dreams about the babies who live in my pocket- affectionately named...Pocket Babies.  Oh ya, I love the pocket baby dreams - one of the only reaccuring dreams I have.  (And before you ask - yes I have had flying dreams!  Love the feeling 'cause it feel so real!)

Don't think I am weird ;) - I just have a vivid imagination when I sleep. Plus, I don't sleep that well so I can often remember them.  But the flip side of having wonderful,  vivid dreams is that they can also be horrible and scary.  Not so fun.

So now that I rambled on about my dream patterns...have no idea why such a long ramble...I was just trying to make the point that today I was dragging my butt even though I have tons to do.  I have the laptop outside so Magnus can dig and play (currently he is playing with the tobboggan - go figure??) and I am supposed to writing an article that is due soon (shhh, don't tell that I am procrastinating) but I am not. I have about 100 words done - does that count?  LOL

And since yesterday's post didn't have any pictures I can't do the same today!  Can you guess with all the class planning that I have been doing what my house is starting like?

A scrap store of course!

I am trying to be really organized and put stuff up on shelves in class groups - as it arrives.  I usually end up with a crazy amount of boxes everywhere so I am trying to prevent that.  This way I can still use my scrap space!  Yesterday all the canvases arrived for my Altered Canvas Memory Clock workshop (all 4 GASC shows) and they alone take up one cubicle on my shelf.  I have a feeling I am going to run out of room and have boxes everywhere anyway.  I think I have items for less than 20 of my classes here and I have over 40!  Yikes - it really is going to feel like I have a scrap store in my house!  Anyone want to come over to shop???  LOL

So that is it for today's ramble - hope you made it through ;)

Better get back to that article....

In a t-shirt and squinting in the sun!  Hooray! 

It is completely gorgeous today and it definitely feels like spring!  I guess the weather man heard all my complaints.  I have all the windows open in the house and I am loving it.

So I have a busy few days ahead of me.  I'm trying to get some projects done and off my plate as deadlines are looming.  I feel June looming over me - I know it seems a way off but I have A LOT to do!  I have a feeling April and May are going to fly by and then I start travelling a lot in June and July and before I know it, it is going to be August.  I can feel it flying past me.

So since I don't have any projects or scrapping to share today I thought I might do some enabling.  I recently ordered a bunch of new scrapping supplies from a bunch of different places - thoughout the US and Canada and I thought I would share some great places to shop (that you might not have heard of).

The first is PaperCents.com.  I ordered items and I swear I blinked and the stuff had arrived.  Often when I order things from the USA I have to kind of forget about it for awhile so I don't get anxious (got to clear customs) but not this time. I was shocked - I am pretty sure they mailed it to me the day I ordered it or at the latest, the next day.  Loved it - everything in the order was perfect and the prices were great (I think I caught a storewide sale).

Next is BlackberryPaper.com.  She was out of one thing I ordered but quickly contacted me and let me know that it would be in in two days and did I want to ship now or wait.  I love that kind of service.  When I order and then get a box with stuff missing (even if it was subtracted from the bill) I am not happy.  I mean I order the things cause I want them.  I really appreciate the way she took care of my order.

Of course there is LifetimeMoments.com.  I first dealt with them when I did a chat for a MM book but since then I have been ordering from them.  They have a great selection and are really efficent.  I had a pre-order in (first time ever doing that) and then I needed a few other things.  They gladly matched up my orders and shipped them all together.  Love not being treated as just an order number!

And then in Canada I often order from ScrapbookStar.ca.  Wonderful selection and fast service.  One time a box got lost (the only time that has ever happened before) and they totally took care of things.  I mean it was the postal services fault but they took care of the paperwork and quickly sent out what I needed.  Love shopping there.  Lots of fresh stock which is sometimes hard to find in a Canadian based store. 

And one of my favourites - PapierValise.com.  Just go to their home page and you will see why.  The attention to detail - yum!  This is where I shop for vintage and unusual items.  Everything comes perfectly packaged and often tied up with string...these are a few of my favorite things...sorry I digressed.  Seriously I want pretty much one of everything in this shop.  Oh wait, I already do - just kidding!  I do have a lot from this store though.  Probably more than I need. ;)  And wait until you see the baby pizza boxes that the orders come in!  Love putting them next to the regular boxes - so cute!

Ok that is it for today - happy shopping everyone.

So I got a lot scrapping done yesterday.  (Thanks Mom you are the best!)

Actually, it was class samples that I was working on.  I finished up the sample for the All Boy Mini Class that I have at the GASC in Arlington, TX. (Thursday, June 5th - 6pm)  I love great 'boy' products and the Archaic line from Basic Grey is wonderful to work with.  The colors are so rich yet not too bright and will coordinate with just about any photo. 

And just a quick note about the workshops.  I checked my class registration the other day for Texas and most of my workshops are either sold out or just about to sell out.  So, if you were thinking of registering you better get your butt in gear!  You don't want to miss out - we always have tons of fun! ;)

Have a great weekend everyone!

My mom is here to play with Magnus and I am going to get some scrapping done!  So just a quickie today.

I realized I forgot to post about our Earth Hour night.  We fully participated with every little light turned off and spent the evening chatting, playing board games by candle light and I got a chance to play with my camera a bit. 

Low light photography.  Yup, it is hard.  And often I get photos that I am not happy with.  So in an effort to understand my camera a bit more, I played around with it in the semi darkness to see if I could capture what I was seeing.  I got a few shots that I was happy with but I have a long way to go.  Practice, practice, practice!

So happy scrapping if you are out there scrapping today. :)

It's frozen again.  All that melted snow has been frozen into ice.  I am ok with it though because the sun is out today.  Yes - the sun!  I will take ice if I can have sun!

I am not blue today.  Got some sleep, the sun is out and I remember that my new Basic Grey arrived!  I have no idea what I was thinking yesterday!  LOL  I actually got up this morning and dove right into it.  Actually went right to working on my All Boy Mini Album class.  (This one is only at the Texas GASC - Thursday, 6pm)  I am offering this class because it is sometimes hard to find classes and products that are definitely boy.  The new Archaic line from BG just screams boy!  And this class can be used for any male theme - from little guys to our biggest boys!  Here is a sneak peek of it so far.  Hopefully will get a chance to work on it later so I can finish it up.

It is turning out really cute.

It looks as the GASC - Chantilly, VA show is open for registration if you are thinking of attending.  Hope to see you there.

And now because we can all use some inspiration every once in a while check this out.  Art by Peter Callesen.  My mom forwarded me this thinking that I would love it and she was right.  This amazing artist makes works of art with paper.  A lot are done with an ordinary piece of paper.  Something we see everyday and he sees as the base for his art.  Simply stunning. 

Be sure to check out his website and see some of the big pieces.  Here are two of my favorites from regular paper.

Holding on to Myself, 2006

47,5 x 37 x 7 cm

Acid free A4 80 gms paper, glue, acrylic paint, and oak frame

And this one.

Happy Fools Day.  I am feeling much too sorry for myself today to play any tricks, lol!

I cannot even tell you how sick I am of winter!  I feel like it is never going to end!  Even now as I look out the window I notice that it is snow a bit - SNOWING!!!  What?  I do feel like I have the winter blues and could use some sunshine to give me a lift.  I know I am Canadian and supposed to love all things winter but, shh, don't tell...I hate it!  I mean we have been there, done that - time to move on to spring!

So tired of looking out my window and seeing this.  Snow and dormant (let's be honest - dead looking) plants.

It is totally dragging me down and it definitely has an effect on my creativity.  I have not been creating at all these last few days.  I have had insomnia for a few nights which doesn't help but I got some new goodies in the mail today and nothing.  Nada.  Zero.  Ziltch.  No desire to create with them - just spread it all out so I can admire it.  It all feels so wrong, lol!  Why?? **insert me shaking my fist at how wrong it all is***

So with all my beautiful new Basic Grey sitting on my table and not getting any attention from me (it is the new stuff that I am making a bunch of classes from - I will keep you posted on those classes - you really do not want me designing classes when I am feeling this creatively sorry for myself - LOL) I went outside to look for signs of spring.  Well, actually Magnus dragged me out, kicking and screaming and I brought the camera along to cheer myself up. 

You know what I discovered?  There are lots of signs of spring (they are just not far along enough!!). 

What I like to call  "pre-signs" of spring.

Water.  Everywhere.  The thaw just started the other day so everything is flooded.

And toys - long lost in the snow and now being rediscovered.  (This 'puddle' was to the top of Magnus' boots - he loved it!).  But look - there are bare areas!  Spring has got to be soon right?

This is my driveway right now.

At first I felt like everything just looked like a giant watery mess.  Bits and pieces all over the place and just generally looking gross.  But then I looked through my camera and looked at the details.  It was pre-spring.  We need this soppy mess in order to get to the good stuff - green leaves!  That is what I like about taking photos. 

Looking through my lense makes me focus and see things in a new way.

That's it.  My deep thought for the day, lol!  This is not a new discovery for me - my love of taking photos and how it changes the way I see the world but today I got to appreciate it again.

And then look what I discovered.  Something that really made my heart sing.

Burried under the garden mulch some early daffodils & tulips.  **insert heart singing here**  Planted just for this reason - so I would know that after a long winter that spring eventually will come.

Ahh.

So I guess spring is on the way for me now. 

I know that some of you who read this have had spring already start in your area (grrrr) and are probably thinking - what?   Just know that you are lucky.  Enough said.

So I'm much better these days.  That was a killer - I realized yesterday as I left the house that I hadn't been outside in 6 days!  What?  I had the windows open a few times for fresh air but nothing else!  Yikes!

So anyway, I feel like I have so much to tell and show you.  I have been blogging in my head as I lay around getting better.  I will start slowly though, lol.

Today will be a sneak peak of a new class I am offering at the GASC this year.  It will be at all four conventions - see below for a list of times.

This class is going to rock!  It is brought to you by Cloud 9, Fiskars and Memory Makers and is just jammed with cool stuff!  We will be using the adorable 6"x6" chipboard books that come in their own box from Cloud 9 - wow!! I could make a lot of projects with these board books.  I love that the one we will be using is white so no worrying about sanding the edges or making sure the paper covers everything completely.  Love that!  This class is called Summer Fun in a Box because the album will be perfect for any summer photos - lots of green and blues which look great with just about any photo.  The album doesn't have to be summer themed if you don't want - you could just create your own title - I'm flexible that way ;)

Here are some peaks of the project.

Can you see in the last photo all the cool textures?  There are gel stickers that look like stitching, glitter papers, shimmer papers, etc. 

So those is the cool parts from Cloud 9 - but what about Fiskars you may ask?  LOL. Well, the amazing people at Fiskars have done it again.  They came up with a great new tool and you will get a chance to try it out - the Fingertip Craft Knife.  Now I had heard some buzz about this tool but I had never used one so I wasn't 100% sold but thought - let's give it a work out!  So, so, so, so, so, so LOVE this TOOL!  I hate cutting with a craft knife and will usually try to get away with as much as a can with sharp tipped scissors.  I just can never get it to go where I want - well, I can, but I hate every minute of it.  I actually shouted out to my family when I tried out the Fingertip Craft Knife - I cannot believe how easy it is to use!!!  (OK. I am going to stop now cause this tool really deserves a post all of its own so I will save more gushing until another day since this is supposed to be about the class...)  OK so you will get to use this tool plus a few others from Fiskars - the Treading Water border punch (way cool punch!) and some of the super-easy-to-use-that-even-Magnus-can-use-Squeeze-Punches. (I really think the marketing people at Fiskars should ask me to name stuff!!).

Can you tell I am excited about this class? (I am long-winded when excited!) When planning classes I usually plan everything in my head.  I am a totally visual person and will work on the design and everything without even touching the paper when planning classes.  So I planned this whole class without ever actually touching the stuff - just looked at the images of the product and let the ol' brain do all the work.  So when all the product arrived this week and I got to actually play...well, I got really excited!  This little book rocks - I really love this project and I hope everyone else will too.  I mean how can we go wrong - Cloud 9 and Fiskars!

• Class schedule: All GASC shows
• Saturday at 3:00-4:30pm (registration is open for Arlington, TX)

So anyway...will be back soon with more posts of all the things I have been blogging about in my head.

Friday started with a cold and by Saturday I was fully sick.  I slept all day Sat and then some!  Easter dinner was to be at my house this year so I was determined to be better on Sunday.  My hubby got the house ready while I napped and I was awake when people starteed arriving.  I got the appetizers heated and then decided that I should lie down for a bit.  Well, I woke up hours later and dinner was over and everyone had already left!  My hubby had made the ham dinner and everyone had enjoyed the meal and I slept through it all! 

I tell you ladies, I seriously have the best husband ever!!

So weird to have had a houseful of people and had them happy and fed and not know anything about it! 

I have to say that I barely even made it through the egg hunt with the kids in the morning.  It was sheer willpower that kept me upright. 

Yesterday I went to the doctor cause suddenly my throat was killing me and the cold symptoms had gone away.  I was right - a throat infection but what surprised me was that my lungs were infected and I had no idea.  The doctor kept asking me if I was coughing a lot and I had to keep telling him that I wasn't coughing at all!

So now I am just about sick of being sick!  I can't do anything cause as soon as I exert myself I get the shakes.  The doctor said three days and I will start to feel better. 

So that is it for now.  I wanted to say thanks to everyone who posted links to their galleries or  blogs.  I am going to go through them soon and check everything out.  I am just not up to it right now :)  I am sure there is tons to be inspired by so it will be perfect once I am feeling better.

I hope everyone had a great holiday weekend and that spring is on the way in your area!