new toy

I finally broke down and bought a die cut system. What is that, you ask? Well... it is a way to cut alphabets and shapes quickly and easily. There have been many different die cut systems marketed towards scrapbookers in the past 7-8 years. But I never bought in. Just couldn't justify (to myself) spending the money.

The "early" machines required purchasing actual dies, which are expensive and take up lots of space, which were then pushed thru the machine with your paper to cut the shape. In the past couple years, new alternatives have cropped up . Some machines require a computer hookup, which is bad for portability, but great for flexibility, since all ttf's (true type fonts) can be cut with those systems. Some machines still require proprietary equipment (cartridges, memory disks) that hold the alphas and shapes that can be cut; these machines are great for portability since they need no computer. Machines come in a variety of sizes too, from one that cuts max 2.5 inches, to others that cut up to 23.5 inches.

Well, as I said, I finally broke down and bought one. And man, am I loving it! :-) I bought a Cricut Expression, (pronounced like the cricket, therefore folks call them Bugs) which "is a way to cut letters, shapes, and phrases from .5" to 23.5" simply by touching a button. No computer is required, just plug it in. Place your favorite cartridge in your Cricut and choose from hundreds of designs." So yes, there are proprietary cartridges that can be purchased at an additional cost - but wow! these cartridges have tons of options. AND... drumroll please... there is 3rd party software that enables the Cricut to be attached to a computer, to print any ttf. For folks who are really into this, it is even possible to create your own design or shape in other software and cut it with the Cricut.Two of my most recent LOs had assistance from my new Bug. I'm still in the basic usage state, but as I get more comfortable with it, I look forward to trying not only more fun and funky features, but also using that 3rd party software to cut fonts that reside on my computer.

post 200

woohoo!! ;-)

I hope my 4 blog followers enjoy my blog almost as much as I enjoy sharing my photos, scrap layouts, thoughts...

amidst all the political brouhaha

While I keep my eyes and ears on the presidential campaign this year, I'm still trying to get some scrapping done. I met up with a couple friends this past Saturday to scrap. We didn't stay nearly as long as I expected, so I didn't get much done. But I've worked a bit here and there since then, and have 3 LOs finished. woohoo!!

This first LO is based on a sketch from DYL (Design Your Life) online class. The subject was asymmetry. The sketch she created is a one pager - and is the basis for my G page. I flipped her sketch to create the M page. And of course the two LOs combined become a symmetrical LO. Isn't this fun?! lol

I had been planning on doing Greg/Marcia pages for a LONGGGG time. I've had that cool rockin' paper for at least a year, probably two. Greg helped me come up with some of the comparisons and helped choose photos for his page. The journaling:

YOU
love to motorcycle
want to travel the U.S.
play racquetball and golf
enjoy playing cards
like full-bodied red wines
prefer fruit pies
watch the news
are a practical realist

I
love to cruise
want to see the world
play volleyball
enjoy scrapbooking
like dark "chewy" beers
prefer chocolate desserts
watch sci-fi
am an imaginative idealist

This next one is all about the last bike, the one we got in Sept '07 and which is now toast. Greg spent many hours (and $$) adding accessories on the bike - for comfort, safety and just plain fun.

And the third LO is about the first Iron Butt ride we did. Ok... the only one I did. lol Greg has done several more. This particular ride, a special version of the "Saddle Sore" called the "Lake Michigan 1000," necessitates riding around Lake Michigan, for at least 1000 miles, in less than 24 hours. We did it in approx 18.5 hours. Why'd we do it? As we frequently say "Because we can."

I must be sick... very very sick

lol

I've continued my fall cleaning into the office. I found my desk under the pile o' crap - there was actually wood under there! hahaha And then I cleaned out desk drawers and my one drawer in the file cabinet. I actually have an EMPTY drawer now... not for long of course.

Whaddya wanna bet - some day soon I'll be looking for something and have no clue where it is, when I would have known exactly what layer of which part of my desk it was in before!

It feels amazingly good to have gotten rid of so much unneeded crap. It's like weight has been lifted. Literally!

spring cleaning

oops... wrong season. lol Is there a fall version?

I've been purging unwanted stuff (aka crap) from my studio the last few days. It isn't 100% cleaned out, but I put it back together and it looks lots better than it did. My projects actually have a little breathing space around them and can be seen easily! woohoo! I'll have to post pics in the next couple days. Too bad I didn't take some "before" shots.

The next purge/clean project will be my desk in our shared office. Now if THAT isn't a mini nightmare...!! lol But it has to be done, and quickly. I'm expecting my new scrap toy this week, and I'll be keeping it connected to my computer, so I need space on my desk somewhere. And right now there isn't even space for a memo pad!

sunshine... on my shoulders....

makes me happy.

And happy I was this past weekend. What absolutely amazing weather!! It actually broke the 80 degree mark on Sunday and was in the upper 70s on Sat. omg, unbelievable.

We rode to the Dells Fri - the group went out for fish fry, about 44 of us. Saturday we went to breakfast as a group - 82 folks! That's probably about 55 bikes. Then we split off into groups for different rides. Greg and I rode with one group from approx 11am - 4pm, then we split off. My back was killing me, so I needed some break/stretch time. So we slowly headed to our friends' place - another hour of riding. Then on Sunday when we came home, we took a meandering route that was about 4.5 hours of ride time. whew!!

Here are some photos of the bike event:

working for the weekend

yep, that's a Loverboys song. And yep, it's pretty much my motto. Well, or working for early retirement. But that doesn't fit the tune as well. ;-o

We're heading to the Dells this weekend for a GL1800riders event. What is GL1800riders? It is an online group of folks who love to ride, mostly Goldwing 1800s (the current model), but all riders are welcome no matter what their ride is. The GL1800riders folks put together events around the country, very loose events, basically get together, ride, eat, chat... There are now two events in the Dells, one in spring, one in fall. We've been there two or three times. It's fun to check out the bikes - almost everyone accessorizes their bike to some degree, and it's cool seeing the different ideas. And it can be fun talking to these folks, most are heavy duty riders, more so than Greg even!!

Anyway, we're heading up this afternoon in time for group dinner, spending the night at "the hotel," joining the group breakfast Sat and then going on one of the various rides. As far as I know we're heading home Sat night, but you never know. Things change.

I'm hoping to spend time Sun doing more studio purging (getting rid of no longer wanted crap) and working on more class assignments so I don't fall even further behind.

I hope you all enjoy your weekend... and that you have great weather like we're expecting - highs in the mid- to maybe even upper-70s!! omg! Fab for October!

starting a new class

I decided kind of last minute to join another online scrap class. This one is with my fave scrap "celebrity" Cathy Zielske. She has the Clean and Simple style, usually quite linear, that I love. It's a 3 month class called Design Your Life, a study of graphic design as it applies to scrapbooking. woohoo!! Since I started a bit late, I am already behind... and it's a pretty intensive class, so I'm going to have to work hard and lots to keep up.

Our first lesson was on symmetry. Basically easy, mirror image top to bottom or side to side, right? Well, yes and no. The foundation can be symmetrical, but you can use different things in those spaces, and it still works. Cool stuff.

Anyway, this is my LO for assignment 1. See how the journaling box is opposite a photo? - since it still occupies approx the same space, it is still considered symmetrical. And things like titles and embellishment don't change the foundation either.


CZ gave us a sketch that we were to follow. I'm not used to using large photos - I love how it looks, but that means preplanning pages so I know what size to print which picture. And THAT ain't gonna happen. lol I just print all my pictures 4x6 and work it out. (hehe - that's in my best Tim Gunn imitation - Project Runway for those who don't watch it) So anyway, I just printed this big boy at home - woohoo for inkjet printers!

The journaling reads: Of all the pictures I took on a swamp tour, my favorite is the one with a splash of color among the greens and blues. Using an artsy filter made it even more interesting... way better than a big ol' ugly alligator!

another biker LO

wow - it seems so hard for me to do layouts for bike weekends and events. A couple months ago I had 17 sets of photos from all different events to scrap - and the last four were all bike event weekends. But that's ok - only two left! Time to do another big photo printing order - pita (pain in the a**) that is!

Anyway, I did this LO combining a sketch I was following with a challenge from my class:
create a 2 pg LO
Use something heart shaped
Use action shot photos
Use something clear
Use at least 1" of ribbon
Mix up your title

And I did it!! woohoo!! Got it all in.

Glittered brown heart on the photos of G and I
Action shots of cooking and eating
2 clear buttons backed with patterned paper
Blue with brown dot ribbon (by title)
Two types of letters in my title

:-)