Saturday, December 29, 2012

Got Christmas Cash...Stock up on supplies

PC150535 - Craft Corner
(Photo credit: _kristin_)
One of the joys of Christmas is getting money to play with.  That I got, and I am ready to go.  But wait.  before you go spend that hard earned Christmas cash that great aunt Emma on your hubby's side gave you, because you are a loving great niece in law, think about what you need first.  After all, if she is not a crafter, you do not want her to think you are a spender.  If she is a crafter, go for it, but still think about something nice in the craft department you want to spend it on.  Next think about your supplies, and what is it you consume the most on.  For me, that is score-it tape.  It seems I do not have enough of it, and I need an extra roll in case the big blizzard of 2012 (or is it 2013) comes and snows me in.  Last, if you have anything left, either save it (if the aunt is not a crafter) or use a coupon and buy what's on sale.
So I got my cash present from my dad, and first of all I need a house phone.  Like many people, I still use this thing, and current one has been messing up.  I have not broke down to just use my smartphone as the primary phone, but I am getting one that does not have an answering machine attached to it.  My dad is not a crafter, so that would make him proud.  Next, i need a new score board.  Again, I have not used my trimmer as a score board, and I have the old Score-pal, and it is driving me bats when I follow the instructions on where to score the project, and I do not have that score line.  I have not decided if I want Martha's or the new Score-pal.   The advantage of Martha's over Score-Pal's is the envelope feature, which I really do not need since I have at least two Cricut Cartridges that have envelopes on them.   I have a 30% coupon from Archiver's, so I will see.   Whatever's left, I may get a couple of supplies or save, or go to the casino with it next week. (Yes Columbus has a casino and a racino (horse track casino).
So you can have your supplies and have fun at the same time.  Look for deals, but stay within your budget,and enjoy your new toys (I mean supplies).  Be blessed.
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Saturday, December 22, 2012

In Abbreviated Mode


Hello, this is to let you know that I am on an abbreviated work schedule from today through the New Year.  I will be back in full swing of things starting January 7, 2013 (I cannot believe it is almost here).   I am also putting my Etsy shop on vacation until that time as well.   In the meantime, you all have a Merry Christmas, and a happy 2013. 

Monday, December 17, 2012

Interesting Garland Making Ideas

English: Christmas Ornaments inside a Las Vega...
(Photo credit: Wikipedia)
..."The stockings were hung by the chimney with care, in hopes that St. Nickolas will soon to be there."   This is one of the lines in The Night Before Christmas and rightfully so.  Today, I have invited a guest blogger Named Rita, who will to show you some interesting garland idea for your tree or around the house.

Christmas is probably the most sparkly and fun holiday we have the pleasure of experiencing every year. It is a time when families get together, religious people express their faith, everyone shows their love and affection by presenting gifts, trees light up, colourful lights flicker all around and the walls get new garland outfits!

Today’s markets present us with ample choice when it comes to Christmas decorations. New and more intricate designs are brought forth every year making the shopping and decorating process all the more fun. There are some enthusiasts among us, however, who like to do some of the things themselves. If you are one of those and are wondering what kind of garlands to make this year, you might want to review these simple yet beautiful ideas.

If you prefer the natural approach to things and the lovely smell of evergreens on Christmas day morning, you can fashion an evergreen garland using only evergreen trimmings, scissors, floral wire and twine. First you need to cut the trimmings to about 6 inches and collect them in small bundles with the stems pointing in the same direction. Cut a piece of the twine as long as you want your garland to be, make a loop at the end of it and attach the wire there. Then attach your evergreen bundles one at a time, securing them to the string with the wire. When you are done, make a knot between the wire and the string.

Another great garland idea is with pom poms made of yarn. Of course, it can be done with any type of yarn but to remain true to the Christmas spirit, you should use a sparkly one. You can use a pom pom making tool, or you can make one yourself: First you need to cut two “doughnuts” out of cardboard. Keeping them together, you wrap the yarn around until you make a nice big fluffy doughnut. Then you cut the yarn between the two cardboard pieces with scissors and add a string of yarn between them. Then you pull the cardboards on each side, fluff up your pom pom and you are done. After that all you have to do is tie your pom poms to another yarn string and your garland is ready.

A similar technique is used for paper or tissue pom poms. You can use holiday paper napkins, or wrapping paper, cut them into rectangles, tie them with a string in the middle and then spread the separate layers to make it look like a pom pom. Again, you then tie the separate pom poms to a string of your choosing.

Anything you attach to a string can become a Christmas garland. After all, all it takes is a little sparkle so stock up on gold and silver spray paints, colourful brocade and anything else you can think of and turn, for example, ordinary white print paper into golden leaves hanging above the family portrait. All you need to make a garland beautiful is a large number of similar patterns stuck together. You can really get creative and put anything you like – Christmas cards, popcorn sprayed with silver, snowman pictures, flowers, etc. In order for your Christmas decorations to be truly yours, they have to come from within your own hearth and mind.

Rita Rova writes arts and crafts articles for Oz-Coupons.com, the Australian coupon code website that lists the latest discounts for arts and crafts supplies.  
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Saturday, December 15, 2012

expenses




They say that running a business is not easy, and they are right.   I did not want to post this, because I thought that if I have enough people coming to my Etsy shop, then I would never have to ask for a donation. Well here I am .   I am finding out that if I get a service that is free, they are not going to give you what you want from the same service that cost you say $5 a month.   In fact, they are going to barely give you what you need, and as soon as you click on a service, the company is going to tell you that it is part of the paid service.
So if you like what you see here, I would love it if you can make a donation.  I will have it up until January 14 as a trial, and if I get enough I may switch up to a Paypal button.   Thank you for what you can give.
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Friday, December 14, 2012

The Beauty of Christmas Snow

Hello, today, I am presenting to you, "The Beauty of Christmas Snow.  I love snow, but the thought of driving in it scares me.  Here in Ohio, the weather is divided into 8 seasons:  Spring, road construction, still more road construction, blazing hot where's the air conditioner, Autumn/summer (can't make up its mind on which Real season it wants to be), rainy season/winter, and are you crazy I am not going out there in THAT weather.  Well, snow here qualifies in two of them:  Winter and are you crazy, I am not going out there.
Well, today's card reminds me of a Christmas that used to be.  I am talking Norman Rockwell with the old time feel about it.  To some, it may even remind people of that Charlie Brown Christmas tree the rest of the kids fixed up after he thought he killed.  My first battery operated toy was when I was 5, and I had a doll that walked and talked.  Her official name was Swingy, but you may call her Carol.  I actually had three Carols.   The first one did not last that long.  I danced her legs off, The second one, same deal, but she lasted until 1977 when we moved to Columbus, Ohio, my father throw her away.  And the third one?  It was my friend, Lonnie's, and I claimed her (whose name was actually Billie Joe), and renamed her every time I would go over to Lonnie's house, while still carrying mine.  Anyway,  back to 2012 and this card...
The materials you will need are:


  • Half a sheet of cardstock (cut 1 8.5" x 11" into 8.5" x 5.5")-any color.  I wanted a night scene.
  • white paint in a dauber bottle or paint and a sponge.
  • Versamark ink pad
  • embossing powder (clear and green)
  • Snow flake and tree stamp (I am using a retired Close to My Heart stamp set, The Beauty of Christmas, hence the name of the card)
  • Computer or stamp. with red ink.


I have 10 minutes to post this so here goes: (spent too much time getting some chocolate)


  • Cut the cardstock in half.  Fold
  • Dab white paint on the bottom of the card.  I did it horizontal, but either direction is fine.
  • Take the snowflake stamp and with the Versamark ink stamped the remaining card blank.
  • Sprinkle the embossing powder over the stamped images, flick off the excess.
  • Heat emboss to melt the embossing powder.  set aside (6 minutes to post)
  • On a separate sheet of cardstock, stamp the tree, and put a combo of green and clear embossing powder on and do the same thing.
  • cut out the tree, and pop it up on card .
  • Type or stamp out a sentiment  (I used a printer a Publisher for this task) (3 minutes)
  • Done, and enjoy your card.
  • A lot of work, but it is easy.  

See you next time, and be blessed.




Monday, December 10, 2012

Thinking of a name change

Etsy
(Photo credit: Scott Beale)
The new year brings about so many things.  First of all, if you were to ask me 11 years ago if I ever wanted to go into business for myself, I would have to call you crazy, or think that going into business was only for the very rich and the people whose bills were only their utilities and retired.  I never thought that I would be sitting here writing on a blog, selling things that were only for those who could afford.  I was one of those, "I  could only afford it if I can charged it to a credit card" people.
So the past few weeks have been a series of ups and downs.  My mom was sick for a couple of those weeks, resulting in her going to the hospital, then having a procedure done, that left me and my dad fixing thanksgiving dinner.  This week alone has started out on a sad note.  One of the young adults in my church congregation past away yesterday while we were in worship.  Her name was Angenea Dejarette (I think I am spelling the last name correctly, forgive me, family if I did not).  She was so sweet, and she has a young child who is 6.  She died of bone cancer and other complications associated with the disease.  Yesterday I never felt so sad except when my grandparents passed and my friend Lois Cooper passed from complications of breast cancer in 2002.  To me, dying should be left to the old, but if you live even one day in your life (after you are born), you are sure to die.  It may take 1 day or 103 years, but it will happen.  I know this is hardly a paper crafting subject, but I just wanted to let you know how things are going with me. That is all I have to say about the subject, I feel my eyes wailing up and I type this.  On to something happy.
Back to the new year...
2013.  I was thinking about my businesses a lot lately, and I am finding some things that I do not like.  Don't worry, this is not the complaint paragraph, although I feel like it.  I would loose the few readers I do have.  Most of the complaints I have are with me and the way I am doing business.  It has nothing to do with the business itself.  I am finding some things that other people are doing to be successful, and leaving me wondering why I am not doing them.  For instance, I am not crafting enough.  I need to find time to craft more.  It would help me with my Etsy shop.  I am also not advertising more.  I am networking more, and starting to ask to partner with people on the local level.  This is bringing about some changes that will be implemented with this company.  This may also bring a change to the company name.
Before I started writing this post, I was going through my contact list on LinkedIn, and I saw something that brought on the thought of changing the name MDN Creates.  I was not connected to this person (at least not yet), and she used her name as the company name with the word "designs" behind it.  So I started playing with my name Patricia Lynn Logan, and I came up with the following company names; Patricia Lynn Designs (name taken), Patricia Lynne Designs (open), Designs By Patricia Lynne (so close to another company), P.Lynne Designs (open).
I love coming up with a company name, and I can use a spelling that my parents would have a hissy fit over.  I went though a period in the 10th grade, where I did not like the spelling of "Lynn".  In fact, I did not like "Lynn" at all.  I thought my name would be cuter if it was "Patricia Lynnette". See, I thought that my name was not complete, because I had an "a" at the end of "Patricia", and no vowel at the end of Lynn.  My parents were furious, and told me that they will not sign off the changing of my name to Lynnette or adding an "e" at the end of Lynn.  I kind of got a little revenge, and had an "e" added to Lynn on my high school diploma, and three of my newly minted credit cards.   I have since then gone back to the original spelling of Lynn (growing up helps), and I can always give my child the middle name Lynnette. (hum, Patricia Lynnette Designs, nah, too long, LOL).
Well, I will be bringing these changes, including the possibility of changing web platforms.  Blogger is good for a beginner, but WordPress has more to work with, and even though I am still considered by all means a novice in the programming world, I feel that I can advertise better in WP than Blogger, but I will see.
So that is me in a nutshell for right now.  My plans are not my plans for I rely on God to guide me, and who knows what 2013 will bring.  I just know that my company cannot stay the same as is.  I will not grow and learn that way.  I do have some people to thank for that, especially those that have shown me that I can  make money while blogging, without losing my shirt while in the process of doing so.  If this is making sense to you, than let me know, so I can comprehend what I just said.  ROTFL! (That Rolling On The Floor Laughing for those of you still trying to figure out all of this abbreviated jargon.)   Have a good evening, keep smiling and be blessed.
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