What is a crop?

What is a crop?  We get asked this from time to time. 

Crop.....definition: a collection or group of persons or things appearing or occurring together.  In this case, a fabulous gathering of scrapbookers (and from time to time, cardmakers) who want to join together and complete their projects....

Personally, I find crops refreshing....It's nice to hang out with a wonderful group of women (and sometimes men) that have a common interest.  Picture working on a layout and having a case of "scrapper's block".  It happens to the newbie and the seasoned scrapper alike.  Normally, I would grab a magazine or hop online to see if I can get my creative mojo going again...But, if you are at a crop, you have an advantage....Because no two scrappers scrap alike, you can get all kinds of fresh ideas and techniques in one night.  It's no odd occurrence to see scrappers walk around the table and browse the projects, asking questions about techniques and design....What a great way to get rid of a case of scrapper's block!!  We've even had crop attendees do mini demos!  And another advantage: you are at a scrapbook store.  Run out of glue or need a different color of paper?  No worries...It's all right there at your fingertips!  And the best thing, you even get a little discount at our crops!  How cool is that?!

Crops also are a place to get away from daily life for just a bit...a place to take a breather...Come work on scrapbooks, cards, sort pictures and supplies, or just come for the chatting and friendship....In all the crops I have hosted, I have met some wonderful, dear people, who I am honored to consider dear friends...

We always have a blast at the crop. We play games (sometimes silly), eat good food, win prizes, and laugh....It's always an absolute blast!!  There's definitely never a dull moment!!  :)



For all you ghouls and goblins out there, our annual Halloween Crop is coming up Saturday, October 15 from 3-11pm.  It's always a blast to see everyone show up in their favorite costumes. Last year, we had a cow, the wolf from Lil Red Riding Hood, a pair of salt and pepper shakers, and Flo, from Progressive.  The year before we had witches, cats, and Bella from Twilight (whom I portrayed, but was mistaken for Howard Stern...LOL. And looking at the picture on the 'Wall of Fame' at the store, I definitely look more like Howard Stern...hehe)  We'll have a prize for best costume and of course, prizes for games, good food, and great friends....

So come join us for the Halloween Crop on October 15!  Can't make it then?  Be sure to keep checking the e-mails for the dates of the next crop!

Happy Scrappin!

Featured project

Sorry we have been missing the past few months....It's been a crazy (good kind of crazy) summer!!  We're going to start posting more inspirational projects on here, like the one by Sherrie below.

We just love this layout done earlier this year by Design Team Member Sherrie.  She used Pink Paislee papers, a Prima vine, and one of our fave embellishments: Thickers.  The butterfly in the top left hand corner was cut out of some of the left over paper. 

For this and more inspiring layouts, be sure to stay tuned to this blog.

Happy scrappin!

Storing Ribbon

Ribbon...easy to store when it's on the spool, but what do you do when you have a yard or so left?

I have a large ribbon bag with probably 100-150 different ribbons in it.  The ribbon bag is made of a clear vinyl-like material with holes punched it so the ribbon can be threaded through.  The majority of the ribbon stays inside the bag and a little sample is outside for you to see.  The best thing about this purse is that it will 'smash' down in to bags.  My ribbon bag is always the last thing I pack in my rolling tote, it always goes on top and is always smashed, but the bag holds up well and the ribbon is protected.

But what if you're not a ribbon person or you want to keep the ribbon handy at your work table?  I recently bought about 7 different colors of the same ribbon to use on a current project.  I wanted it handy, yet organized.  At the store here, we carry these craft doll pins.  I took each of my ribbons and wrapped them each around their own pins and threw them in a basket on my table.  Easy and inexpensive because I bought a dozen of these for less than a dollar!!  And when you run out of the ribbon that is on the pin, you can recycle it and use it again!!  How cool is that?!?!


Happy Scrappin'!

Easy Breezy Cards

Since I'm heading to London next summer on vacation, I need some extra funding. I have quite the stash of paper and stamps, ink and embellishments, so I decided, with a little prodding by Laura, to start making some cards to sell at the fall and winter craft shows. 

Now, the utter idea of me selling my crafts scares me...why you may ask?  I am always unsure of my color choices...I'm never good at seeing if this blue looks good with that green....and don't get me started on pink.....I don't use pink normally because I don't like pink... (Actually, not liking pink isn't correct.  Hate is a little better description of my feelings about the color pink. LOL) I've recently discovered the wonderful little stacks of paper, in both 6x6 and 8x8 sizes.  Lots of companies like Basicgrey, Bo Bunny, Webster's Pages, Graphic 45, and many more are packaging their collections on a smaller scale, for both scrappers and cardmakers.  

What a wonderful idea!  So to assist me in my color matching abilities, I've bought these smaller-scale collections of papers..  It's great for the non color coordinating sort, such as myself, because all the papers in the packs coordinate.  So your battle with picking the right green to go with that blue is already won.  Then, it's just a matter of picking the right cardstock and embellishment if desired.  Easy breezy and also a great way to use all the collection instead of just one or two sheets.  I've gone through one stack and I would guess that I used about 95% of the pack and made 18 cards.  And not a single one is alike, which I love!!  Not too shabby I'd say.

Try this at Christmas.  It's a sure fire way to make Christmas cardmaking less stressful!

Happy Scrappin'!

Oh...and while I'm at it...  Congrats and Best Wishes to my coworker and friend Laura who is gettin'

hitched tomorrow!!  Hugs!

How to make Envelopes from Old Magazines

Found this over at the Secret Pie Shop: Soooo handy! Recycle your old magazines and send out cards in envelopes that your friends won't want to throw away :)

Packing for a crop getaway....

Jen, Sherrie, and I are headed out to a scrapbooking getaway in Michigan this weekend.  Loads of fun!  Anyways....trying to get three scrappers in a car with all the stuff is quite an ordeal. 

To help the situation out, I decided to get a new tote.  Granted, I had a new Crop In Style tote in mind, but the hubby was not too thrilled on my wanting to drop $100 on a new scrapbooking tote.  A dear friend told me that she had gone to an office supply store and purchased a wheeled file tote for a scrapbooking tote...She raved on how much 'stuff' you can fit in the thing and I decided to check it out.

Let me tell you....I'm a completely sold!  Talk about roomy!   I bought one on the spot at Office Depot and the best thing....only $22!  Yep, I said $22...I was shocked!  So it was a win for both the hubby and myself!  Packed it the other night and got TONS of tools and accessories in it and was even able to get the lid on the thing!  Yes, it comes with a plastic lid....And it stacks nicely on top of my other rolly tote!!  It does roll easily on carpet and it is easy to manuever....You can check it out here: File Cart


Happy Scrappin!

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