Join me for an online chat at MyCreativeClassroom.com in the new student activity center! I’ll be chatting from 10pm-11pm EST. See you there!

As seen in Ready! Set! Create! Magazine…

Let the special people in your life know just how special they are by sending a handmade card! In this card making class you will learn fabulous techniques and some great ways to use your existing stash of supplies to send a personal greeting that everyone will remember and cherish!

Join me, and together we will conquer creativity, making 12 unique, and super cute greeting cards sure to leave a smile on the face of the lucky recipient.

Cost:
$22.00 + Kit Shipping

This course will contain instructional audio/visual presentations (slide or video), a general forum for discussion, and a gallery for sharing your creations as you apply the lessons. No special tools or supplies are required.

Included in your class kit you will find envelopes for each card, all the materials and embellishments needed, and select adhesives.

* Prerequisites: Basic understanding of card-making
* Skill Level: Beginner to Advanced
* Enrollment Period: Now through April 19th, 2008
* Start Date: April 29th, 2008
* Course Length: 2 weeks

An enrollment key code is necessary for access to this course and will be e-mailed to you several days prior to the class start date.

Special Offer: Create Cards! Class

Would you like to win a seat in this months Create Cards! class at My Creative Classroom?

Or how about a discounted class fee, or even free shipping? Well you can! Here’s how…

Rules:
Must be present and participating during the MCC online chat* during my time slot of 10-11 PM EST in the student
chatroom. Must place at least three posts on my blog from April 17-24th with a tip, trick, or technique used on either a card or layout. Feel free to share photos of your creations also! (Continue random postings through the rest of the month and on to May 23rd and win free shipping on your next MCC Create Cards! class kit via a random drawing.

Prizes:
Winners will be determined according to the number of blog posts from April 17th-24th.

1st place: a free spot in this months class at MCC.

2nd place: $5.00 off your class fee for the April Create Cards Class at MCC.

3rd place: free shipping on your MCC Create Cards class kit.

You can find my blog at http://www.scrapbookhut.com where I share card and layout ideas along with sample project sheets you can download and other tips.

See you on the blog and in tonights chat!!!

*Note that you will need to register at MCC in order to get into the chat!

Happy Thursday!!

~j

It’s pretty quiet here right now. Both Shelby and Dylan went with my mom to the library and my mom is going to feed them lunch. I love the sound of silence, seriously, love it. I’ve cleaned the bedrooms already and the living room. Things move a lot faster when I don’t have to break up a fight every five minutes!

I still have to tackle the mess that has devoured my scrap room. If it was clean I think I’d be more able to just walk in and work on something. I tried to bribe Michelle to come pick it up for me and told her she could keep any good scrapbook goodies that she found buried in my mess. She didn’t bite. Oh well… I really need to clean out and reorganize some of the shelves. There is so much stuff on those shelves that it makes the rest of the room look a mess even when it isn’t all that bad. If I can get motivated enough to clean up some today maybe by the end of the week I’ll have some goodies to pass on to another scrapper! Let’s face it, we all have something we bought and just don’t use. Or a pack of something that we’ve used some of and then don’t have any use for the rest.

Denny set up a nice pull out shelf for me to put my Creative Cutter Pro on and that frees up A LOT of counter space for me. If I get a chance and things are presentable enough I’ll take a picture
of my cutter on it’s nice new shelf and post it. Keep in mind that
I’ve been asking him to do this for about 4 years now. Anyway, I love it and would really like to find a good way of getting my sewing machine off the counter too, yet keeping it readily accessible.

I don’t post TOOTS on here much anymore. I don’t know way. I figure if people want to know they will look at my resume right. But I wanted to post this because I’m pretty excited about it and being its a new publication that makes it a even better… The other day I mentioned Michigan Scrapbooker, which will debut in May and how I would be writing articles for the publication. I had submitted a layout for the cover of the premier issue. It was something custom based just on their “call” and a size you’d probably never use for anything else unless you later incorporated it into another layout. So I got an email from the editor yesterday asking me to sign a photo release so that what I submitted could be used in the magazine. (The layout has a photo of Shelby on it, and being she is a minor I have to give parental consent for it to be used in prints.) The email said the layout was being used but not where it was going to be used in the mag. So if it’s cover material I don’t know… but either way, to see it in print is always AWESOME. After it’s been released I’ll post it here.

Tomorrow night there is an open chat going on at MyCreativeClassroom.com and I’ll be on between 10-11pm EST chatting. I’ll be running some class promos and doing some giveaways that will be available to those participating both on my blog and the chat area at MCC while I’m there. I hope to see you there and will offer up more details tomorrow.

Oh, and before I forget, (I’m a little late in posting this), Sarah has a card challenge posted on her blog for this week. If you have time take a look. It’s a back to basics challenge and if you consider yourself “embellishment crazy” and always need that extra postage when you mail a card, lol, then this one is for you!!

Enjoy your Wednesday! (Until late yesterday afternoon I thought yesterday was Wednesday, lol, and I must admit I was a little dissapointed to find out it was only Tuesday!)

~j

Never a dull moment around here I tell ya. I am now sporting a pretty black eye after a rough Friday and Saturday. I’m pretty sure this is my first black eye and as much as I’d love to say I was doing something exciting and injured myself, I can’t. Long story short… I took a 1×10 in the face. Yup, you read that right. Later that day Denny fell off the ladder outside while working on our gutters. After that both of us decided to call it a day.

There is a new scrapbook magazine on the horizon. Michigan Scrapbooker is due to debut May 5th. They are targeting the local scrapbook stores and not the big box stores. I know you’ll be able to find it at Scrap Palace too. I’m also very excited to say that I’ll be writing articles for the publication also. The articles will focus around projects step by step with detailed photos. It’s a great opportunity and I’m really looking forward to it. Woo hoo! That being said, I need a photo to go with my byline information, and unless they can use the one I have on hand it will be a little while before I can take a new one… black eye and all, lol.

A few things… sign ups for April Card Kits/Classes is still open. I have one running online this month at MyCreativeClassroom.com and then the usual local stuff. If you are interested in a home card party let me know.

I know, a boring blog update… what can I say? It’s Monday, and I don’t like Mondays!

~j

It’s been a long time since I’ve blogged. I’ve been busy around here and a lot has been going on. I won’t go into it, just stuff. Anyway, I’m here, just pretty much in hiding.

It has been spring break around here so all the kids have been home, and if Ethan hasn’t had friends over here, he has been somewhere else. He’s having fun and enjoys the break but goes back to school on Monday. School on Monday is good because Shelby and I have been working on the whole “potty thing” this week, and one less kid to interact with means I can focus that attention on Shelby getting to the potty in time.

I went out with Michelle to Archivers yesterday. I haven’t shopped in AGES for scrap supplies as I’ve been on a self-imposed use what I have rule. It’s worked out well, and I’ve used up a lot of old stuff. I only bought a couple sheets of paper and a few other things… i.e. Bazzill Chipboard Brackets. Gotta love chipboard, it’s just so versatile. I love raw chipboard myself, I think because it really forces you to dress it up and try new things. Trying new things is always a good thing if you ask me. Challenge yourself people, and comment with a link to your creation, I’d love to see it. Here are some of my favorites:

• Paint it. It’s a tried and true method, and I use it a lot. I paint. I paint and ink. I paint and distress. I paint and outline. The list goes on.
• Glitter it. If you are starting from a raw chipboard base I’d paint the chipboard first in a color to match or compliment your glitter color. If the glitter is thin or doesn’t stick well in one spot or another the paint makes up for that and you can’t tell.
• Add some shine. Any chipboard shape or letter looks nice with some gloss added to it. Someone, and off the top of my head I can’t remember who, (it’s 6am gimme a break), sells chipboard letters already coated with a shine. They are a bit pricey if you ask me so do it yourself. Invest in a bottle of Diamond Glaze or Glossy Accents and coat it on. For this purpose I prefer the Diamond Glaze, but whatever works for you, go for it. I think I’ll talk more about the difference between the two tomorrow, because they are different believe it or not.
• Ink it. You can cover the entire visible portion in one color or stamp all over it, or both. If you are going to stamp it and it’s raw, you might paint it first in a complimenting color.