The bandwagon came...

...and I jumped on! I've been seeing a lot of ladies use this poky kind of item to hold up their cards for pictures. Check out Dawn McVey's blog and you'll see what I'm talking about. Turns out that poky thing is called a "floral frog" and is used to hold down flower arrangements. I hadn't really given much thought to getting one, but then I came across one at Michael's the other day, and it leaped from the shelf into my little hand basket! They're jumpy little buggers...

While showing you all my new frog, I thought I'd also share a great find from Staples. I found these pens on clearance for $2 (with tax). They're perfect for keeping in your purse because they're only four inches tall, but better yet, they're ideal for including in handmade paper crafting stationary sets. At 40 cents a piece, you can't beat it!

Today, I'm pooped. I ran nearly three miles last night in the sweltering heat (it's still around 90F when I go for my runs in the evening time) and my body is letting me know that we had a good workout. I'm actually going to get crafty now since I have some pre-orders to fill. Pre-orders of what, you might ask? Well, here's another sneak peek.

I can't wait to share what I've been up to!!

I like the sound of crinkled plastic

Heaven help me it's true! The sound of plastic crinkling as I examine a new pack of paper at my favorite scrap store is just as alluring to me as the "cha-ching" of a slot machine is to a gambler. I was at Michael's yesterday and as I picked up the new Making Memories Halloween pack, I realized that the sweet sound of plastic crunching together in my hands makes me want to buy, buy, buy! LOL! My hubby chuckled at me as I told him this realization, and he likened me to Rebecca Bloomwood of Confessions of a Shopaholic. We had just watched that movie that night before, so it must have been fresh in his memory. Yes, not only does my hubby sit with me through chick flicks, but he tags along for the shopping ride, too. I'm a lucky girl :) I didn't end up buying the paper pack since I'm saving for other things right now, but I couldn't turn my back on these great stamps from Inkadinkado. I can't wait to unwrap them...

In other crafting adventures, I'm diligently working on making some really fun items to sell here soon. Here's a sneak peek.

Are these little guys cute or what?! I'm especially fond of this one.

Lastly, I have my panda bear spread to share with all of you. This layout is part of my scrapbook about my trip with my BFF to the San Diego Zoo last year. Who doesn't love cuddly panda bears?

It's back to the drawing board or bead board or design board...whatever it is, that's where I'm heading now. Ciao for now!

Goodies!

Okay, I've been a bad blogger. I used to be "in the groove" of blogging M-F, but life gets in the way of crafting, and I haven't made any cards or scrap pages lately. It makes me really sad that I'm not really in the mood to scrap, but perhaps my new goodies will inspire me to get some things done! I recently placed my first order with Stampin' Up, which I got to pick up yesterday. I was so excited! You see, my wonderful friend gave me those cool rolling stamps for my birthday back in March, but she didn't realize I didn't have the wheels for them, and three months later, I finally got around to ordering some! LOL.

I also grabbed myself a few other SU! items like this great set called "Pun Fun." Can't wait to use these bad boys!

I had also been wanting some SU! punches, which, of course, I put in my nifty punch organizing system (BTW, I got that over-the-door shoe holder from a store called "Home Goods" for $5.99 in case you were looking for one that has clear pockets.).

I ordered a few other things - the mat pack to do paper piercings and some dimensionals. I wanted to get some ink pads, but those will have to wait for another day. All in all, it was a pretty good haul of stuff!

As if all that wasn't enough, I came home to find that my blogger friend, Tammy, from Stamp Happy sent me the latest and greatest Cosmo Cricket 8x8 paper pad called "Hello Sunshine." I unknowingly was her 1000th post, and she decided to send me a little RAK to honor her blog accomplishment. If you haven't been to her blog, I highly recommend you stop by and take a peek at her cards. She's an amazing artist!

Lastly, if you haven't been to your local Michael's in a while, you should stop by one of these days. They are now carrying Prima flowers, and they're just gorgeous! With a 40% off coupon, this "Calypso Tin" of flowers was a little over $4. Can't beat that!!

I also spied with my little eye ScrappyCat clear stamp packs at Michaels as well. They are normally $4.99, but were on sale for 40% off last week. I didn't buy any as I already had similar designs at home, but I thought I'd pass along the info!

And here's another fun tid-bit for all of you. I stumbled upon a fun blog called The Pink Stamper. She has all sorts of video tutorials on how to use .cut files for your Cricut machine and how to put together fun cards. I'm not all the way through her videos, but I did find them fun to watch late last night.

Here's hoping that I get scrappy soon! I will definitely let you all know when that time comes :) Have a great weekend, and thanks for stopping by!