Craft Room Tour


Tuesday, February 28, 2017

Today I'd like to give you a glimpse into my craft room - aka my happy scrappy place! And it's not so much a "room" as it is basically "the entire house" ;)
Click to enlarge so you can see exactly what's what:
Almost everything I use to craft is stored in a white IKEA Kallax unit in colorful IKEA boxes, bins, baskets, and drawers. These shelves below are also from IKEA. This little section of the wall above our kitchen table has had many purposes over the course of our 3.5 years here in Germany. First it held a magnet frame, then it was a space to hang projects, then this past October I wanted a place to display Halloween things like I would on a fireplace mantle (which we don't have) and I saw a set up on Pinterest that sparked the idea of getting these three shelves. So now I rotate holiday decor and scrapbook projects on these shelves. I don't really decorate for any holidays after Christmas and before October, so January through September it will look like this (except we're moving in June... so who knows what it'll look like next!):

Not only is my scrap stuff taking over the first floor, in the basement I also have all of my cardstock in 6 big wire shelves. I worked in-house at American Crafts from 2008-2009 while Chris finished up at BYU and before I left I bought 50 of every color of cardstock. I've had to replenish a few colors over the years, but I still have most of them and it's great to have a rainbow of colors to choose from. Yet why do I always pick the same 3 colors for backgrounds?!? Hahaha!

 Also in the basement is where I keep surplus scrapbooking supplies, kits and product for upcoming classes, bookbinding things, photography props, "flea market" items, and more, all in big plastic bins.

This mint IKEA Fabrikor cabinet filled with scrapbooks below used to be a prominent feature at the base of the stairs, but then I needed to get another one because I filled this one up. They don't make the mint anymore so I got a cream one - I want to paint it pink!
My scrapbooks now frame the TV stand and a floral painted German cabinet took the original spot. Above the TV is a garland I made for a class I taught at Studio Calico a few years ago. Say hello to Rachel the cat!

When I create pages I bring what I need to the kitchen table and make a ginormous mess. I usually scrap with one collection or kit at a time. Since I'm currently mostly using my Oh My Heart collection I have it stored in an acrylic organizer that stays permanently at the end of the table (see below) so I can easily access it and don't have to clean up after myself too much.

I tape all of my layouts up on the wall above my computer so I can admire them for a few weeks before they go onto a shelf waiting for about a year before I carve out the time to file them away chronologically in their right scrapbooks. There are 35 layouts taped up at a time and once it's filled I take them all down and start fresh!

On top of the closet on the main floor I keep 1 of every single thing from each of my scrapbooking collections with Pink Paislee in its own basket or box or organizer. No touchy!! :)

When I need to film something, which has been more often than not lately because I'm trying to post more to YouTube, I bring out my Cowboy Studio lights and tripod and set up shop on the kitchen table. There are quite a few windows on the main floor that let in a lot of natural light and is great for photographing layouts. But when the days are short and dark during the winter I need the help of studio lights. There have been times where I've needed to film all week long so we've had to eat in random places. My family really is amazing for putting up with me!

Now let's take a virtual tour through all of this fun stuff!

I'd just like to take a minute to say how grateful I am for a husband who supports me in ALL of this - the numerous weekends every year I'm gone teaching, the late-night meetings because of the time difference so he has to take the kids somewhere, the stress I take out on him for no reason when shipping fiascos ensue... I'm sure I'm not easy to deal with sometimes! So thank you to Chris - it's because of him that all of my dreams can come true in more ways than one!

I hope you've enjoyed taking a peek into my craft space! I'd love to see yours too!



You Are My Home Mini Album by Steffi Ried


The queen of mini albums (Stefanie Ried!) is back today to share a cute little book with a masculine theme - this week I want to share how my collections, even with lots of pinks and florals, can be used to create pages and projects about the guys in our lives by using certain papers and embellishments - with the occasional flower and pink thrown in there ;)!
I have a lot of mini books about my daughter, our family trips, etc. Why not make an album for my husband? He was equally enthusiastic when I told him this. He immediately told me that he wanted to have a lot of blue and absolutely metal book rings. Just typical male, right? First I chose the papers. I used many papers from the collections Take Me Away and Fancy Free. A lot of blue, turquoise, and white. These fit perfectly with the pictures. Next, I selected the matching stickers, chipboards, stamps, and more, and put them into a bowl. It was great fun to play with other colors. My husband was very happy about "his" album :)
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For the cover I wanted to create layering with different papers. I painted white cardstock with watercolors. After that I cut the title with a Silhouette Cameo. Then came the must-have metal rings.
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For the inside pages, I created a pocket for each side. Now I can use more photos for my mini. On the first page I created a small pocket. For this I used Paper 04 with the dots from the Oh My Heart collection.
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On the next page I made a pocket with an opening at the top. Another photo and journaling are hidden in it. The Wood Veneer Shapes from Take Me Away fit perfectly into the album. On the left side, I even added a flower Puffy Sticker. A little bit of pink color and flowers also fit into a male album, right?!
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On the large photo on the right I used the glasses stamp from Oh My Heart. I LOVE the stamps. Additionally, you can open the left side. There is another photo behind it.
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Here again my watercolors were used for the background. The Buttons are one of my favorites from the Fancy Free. To make it appear that the buttons were attached to the paper, I sewed thread through the holes with a needle.
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From a tag of a newly bought jeans I sewed the pocket. I like to put fabrics in my albums. There are more pictures of our vacation trips in the pocket.
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The last double side is kept very simple because the patterned paper is very dominant. Also I like this combination with the photo.
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Thank you for looking! I was quite surprised how great the Paige Evans collections are for "boys" projects! I love it!!
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Blog: steffiried.blogspot.com / Instagram: @steffiried / Pinterest: @steffiried / Facebook: stefanie.ried.96 YouTube: Steffi Ried
Every time I see a mini album by Steffi it makes me want to make one too! How 'bout you?!

Big Picture Classes - Paige's Pages 11


Sunday, February 26, 2017

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Paige's Pages 11 just went live at Big Picture Classes! This is probably my favorite set of pages to date, I hope you enjoy them too!
Big Picture Classes (or BPC) is an online learning platform for all things crafty, offering classes that cover all the fun and important topics about crafting, creating, and documenting memories that you'll need to excel, and then some! Get access to as many classes as you want for only $9.95 a month - and there are hundreds! Each class brings you a variety of topics and ideas, PDFs, cut files, printables, prompts, homework, and so much more! Check out the Big Picture Classes website to find out more about how you can learn everything you need to know to document your memories beautifully every time.
Paige's Pages 11 features some techniques I had never tried before and now I can't wait to try them again, along with a few tried-and-true techniques! In the first lesson I share how to create flowers from punched and folded hearts.
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Do you hoard baker's twine? Guilty as charged! I have spools and spools of baker's twine just sitting in a box, waiting to be played with. In the second lesson I show a fun way to use up some baker's twine to create an eye-catching and dynamic border.
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I have never used modeling paste before, but now I'm hooked! In the third lesson I share my first attempts at this art form and now that I have a bunch of stencils in my stash I can't wait to use modeling paste more and more! It creates such a beautiful and textural background - swoon!
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In the fourth and final lesson of Paige's Pages 11 I show how to die cut & stitch a large focal element - one of my current favorite techniques!
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Catch up with all of my other classes at BPC: Paige's Pages 01, Paige's Pages 02, Paige's Pages 03, Paige's Pages 04, Paige's Pages 05, Paige's Pages 06, Paige's Pages 07, Paige's Pages 08, Paige's Pages 09, and Paige's Pages 10, as well as Spring Decor, Spooktacular Projects, and Afternoon Crafts!
I love teaching, I love making layouts & scrapbook videos, and I'd love to see you in the Paige's Pages 11 classroom over at Big Picture Classes!

German Clock Museum


If the Black Forest region of Germany is famous for something, it has to be it's cuckoo clocks! We wanted to learn more about the history of clock-making in the region so we drove to the town of Furtwangen to visit the German Clock Museum.

The morning view from the airbnb. Promising such a lovely day!!
Anybody have the time???
Starting with Stonehenge (which is thought to be a celestial calendar) and early sundials, the exhibit takes in the full breadth of of timepiece history. 
Black Forest clockmakers achieved a breakthrough when they simplified the timekeeping mechanism so that it could be built almost entirely of wood, allowing the clocks to be sold at a much lower price. The museum traced the evolution of these clocks from rough-hewn wood to delicately painted white lacquer faces and into the famous cuckoo style that we all know today.
This lead to a worldwide boom in clock sales. Between 1800 and 1850 alone, 15 million Black Forest clocks were sold around the world.
The exhibit was exclusive about Black Forest clocks, but also looked at clocks from other countries such as these fancy schmancy ones from France.
This gigantic Astronomical World Clock by August Noll was fascinating. It showed the time in several different time zones and has a scene of Jesus blessing the 12 Apostles who shuffle past on the hour.
Clocks of every type, size, shape, and color. 
Jane in front of some awesome midcentury modern clocks.
We had a great time... get it? One of the most fascinating exhibits explained how faster and faster transportation in the late 19th century brought about the need for standardized time across locales. In the past, each town used its own local solar time. As the railroad advanced, this made a wreck of train schedules and connections since different towns and countries were all a few minutes off from each other. When the telegraph was invented, that cemented the need for the world's clocks to be in sync. In the 1870s, scientists finally pursued standardization leading to the creation of the prime meridian as a starting point for the world's time zones in 1884. Isn't it crazy to think that TIME as we know it was only standardized in 1884?
Lovely grandfather clocks down in the demonstration area.
Compilation of short videos from the museum, and a fair warning, it is LOUD at the end!
Our family at the German Clock Museum on Sunday February 19th 2017.
Then we went and picked out a traditional cuckoo clock in Triberg - recap coming next!

Freiburg, Germany


After a fun time in Staufen, our next adventure was to the capital of the Black Forest: Freiburg.

Pretty shot on the drive between the two towns. 
Aren't these doors trippy?
Freiburg is home to 210,000 people, 30,000 of whom are students at the local university.
My people.
Embedded in the cobbles in front of many shops you'll find mosaics made from river stones. These usually represent the type of business the store does. I thought the scissors where a fitting symbol for me.
Admiring some of the other mosaics.
At Rasthausplatz, the old (on the right) and new (on the left) townhalls front the square.
The Church of St. Martin. | Cool Giacometti-esqe statue.
Another view of Rasthausplatz.
The square used to be the enclosed cloisters of the church and you can clearly see that architectural heritage along the periphery of the square.
Shortly after I took the above picture some man started screaming at the top of his lungs in German and wouldn't stop so we high-tailed it outta there... never can be too careful these days...

Eventually we moseyed down to the Münsterplatz where a local market was just finishing up.
This is the main square of the city and holds the bustling market six days a week.
Pretty white and pink granary building.
The main attraction at the square is of course the gorgeous cathedral. The distinctive pink color comes from a soft local sandstone that is easy to work with, but also extremely fragile. The decorations on the building need to be replaced every 30 to 60 years! Keeping the church from falling apart is a never-ending task.
The stained glass windows are originals from the 13th and 14th centuries. These were hidden away and protected during WWII. Good thing, because about 80% of Freiburg's buildings were destroyed by an Allied bombing run during the war.
The colors on the entryway were awesome!
Also on the square is the historic Merchant House. This was the trading and customs center in the 16th century and briefly housed the state parliament after the war.
This line was for a bratwurst stand! Bratwursts are everywhere in Germany, so if you can get Germans to stand in a big ol' line for one, it must be good!
They were selling the distinctive Freiburg lange Rote brats. Delish!
Our silly kids just meandering through old-town Freiburg.
Jane!
So cute.
The absolutely darling Konvikstrasse lined with the little canals called bächle that run along many of the city's streets.
In the spring and summer the street is draped with fragrant purple wisteria.
The Swabian gate, one of two surviving tower gates from the old town wall.
Sharing a pretzel!
The pretty riverside quarter of town. While it was once the smelly tanners' and millers' quarter, now it is a charming low-key neighborhood.
I guess the "love lock" thing hasn't really taken off here yet, lol.
Walking along Grünwälderstraße. 
Craft store! 
We were surprised by how pleasant and fun this city was. Definitely worth a stop if you are traveling in the Black Forest.
After enjoying our day in Freiburg, we loaded up and drove through picturesque German country side to our Airbnb.
A compilation video of walking through Freiburg and the beautiful drive through the Black Forest region of Germany to our Airbnb. We listen to Harry Potter on road trips. We finished book 5 on this trip and started book 6. I think we'll be able to finish the series by the time we leave Germany, we have lots of road trips planned!
Our family in Freiburg, Germany on Saturday February 18th 2017.
Next - a visit to the Clock Museum!
Paige Taylor Evans © // Quinn Creatives DESIGN