In My Studio with Leigh

Hello crafty friends! I am so excited to reveal my new craft room, and share my creative space with you.

We just moved in and I have been working hard to get my craft room up and running. I did all the design and installation myself, except for the Sugar Paper LA desk above, that my husband helped me with. 

This craft room is smaller than my previous room, but my gold striped pegboard DIY project is still definitely a necessity. I used the new Heidi Swapp Gold Foil Flakes to foil the "Shine" word from Hello Heidi Wall Art line.  

The view from the doorway as you enter the room. For my craft room to work for me, I need to have separate stations or zones for each step in the creation process. The desk along the back wall features:

• Computer zone for editing and printing photos and using the Silhouette Machine
• Sewing and Heidi Swapp Minc machine station
• often used supplies on the pegboard
• Citrus Twist Kits Design Team binders and schedules 
• printing supplies stored near printer

The Sugar Paper LA desk from Target in the center of the room features:

• We R Memory Keepers Typecast Typewriter 
• this month's CTK kit in the drawers 
• adhesives and paper trimmers in the drawers

The back left plastic drawers hold paper scraps by color, and the wire cart next to it holds the Minc Foils and Bible Journaling supplies.

Inside the room looking back at the door, you can see my planning and Traveler's Notebook Station along that wall. Everything in the Michael's wall organizers above the desk is used for planning and Traveler's Notebook specific tasks. This planning and TN station features:

• daily hand lettering supplies like brush pens and Rhodia paper pads 
• planner stamps and inks
• small scale punches
• labels
• page flags and Post-it Notes
• favorite travel washi
• rotary stamps
• planners and TN's
• monthly planning kit subscriptions 

Close up of the wall organizers. You can see my bullet proof( aka water proof ) Noodler's Inks for fountain pens, and travel related stamps. 

All my planner pens and highlighters are close by in the Michael's pen/marker storage, and some clear dollar store bins. 

Love the Heidi Swapp wall words, and I spray painted this one with my favorite gold spray paint by Rustoleum (from Wal-mart). Ikea Kallax unit here for scrapbook supplies. Lots of Heidi Swapp goodness here as well as past Citrus Twist Kits in large plastic storage bags inside the white bins. 

The closet holds tools and embellishments, and extra supplies like adhesives and paper trimmer blades. All my Project Life supplies are also stacked in here. I have white curtains and am waiting on the other half of my curtain rod to show up so I can hang them. :)

Inspiration wall above the computer. 

Details: 

Wall paint: Sherwin Williams Amazing Gray

Floors: Dal-tile Porcelain tile River Marble in Silver Springs 12x24 size

Modular Desks: Pottery Barn

Desk Lamp: West Elm

Clear plastic storage bins: Target( aqua lids) and Michael's

Thank you so much for stopping by to see my room reveal today! 

Hugs, Leigh

Tuesday Tutorial with Emma

Hi everyone!  Emma here with this weeks tutorial post!

This week I'm doing to do something a little different than usual "tutorial" post - I thought it might be fun to show you a few of my storage ideas that I use in my craft room.  When we renovated back in 2015 I was lucky enough to get (err, claim) a room just for my craftiness.  It's not changed a great deal since I've been there but I have been adding a few personal touches and fine tuning how I store my "stash" so I actually use it.  The one thing I've discovered about my scrappy style is that if I don't see what I have, I won't use it.  I need things in front of me all the time so I use them.

First up, here's a look at my desk.  Nothing too special about it, just a plain white desk.  I use tiered baskets/trays to store other small containers that are full of die-cuts, clips/pegs, ribbons, etc.   Most of the bowls/stands I use actually come from the kitchen department :)

On the left side of my desk is this wire basket (from the kitchen department; meant for fruit...ha!).  The top has a few stamp pads (OK, this would be my entire collection, ha!) plus a bowl full of paper clips.  On the bottom I've got a ceramic dish full of die-cuts and a clear jar with ribbons.  I have a thing for buying "pretty things" for wrapping presents- when I get little bits of ribbon I like to wrap them around a wooden dolly peg so they don't get tangled (plus they're super cheap!).

On the right hand side of my desk is this little spinning tray.  The bottom is a plastic turning tray and on that I've put a cake stand and filled it with more smaller bowls.  I use this to store more die-cuts and tags on the top and pegs/random "stuff" sits along the bottom.  I love this little thing because it spins around making it super easy to see everything.

In the middle of my desk are more tiny bowls (condiment bowls from..you guessed it...the kitchen department!) with those little pretty things I can add to any layout/mini/planner page.  And just to the right of that are my tools/pens/pencils.  Again, everything is out in the open so I can see it!

 

Just to the right of where I sit is the window ledge and I use it as a storage/display area as well; I use the glass apocrathy jars to store alpha's, die-cut words - not only do they look pretty but it means I can see them as well!  The wire basket stores small alpha's, enamel dots, stickers, etc.  Guess what area that came from ? ;)

Another storage method I've found handy is for my stamps!  I had been leaving them sitting in a tray on my desk but because I'm actually using them more (well I'm trying!) I thought it would be easier to pop them inside a 6x8 album and I could just flick through that to see what I have.  So far this storage method is really working for me!  

The CTK backing paper is a little too tall for the 3x4 pockets but I just trim it to fit and pop them inside (I like how they look and I keep track of which stamp came from what kit on the back ;) ).  For the most part the stamps always stay inside the pockets (just don't flip too fast or they might slide out the top!) and I keep the album stored on the desk behind me so it's easy to just grab and flip through the pages to find the stamp I want.

My storage system for my CTK kits is similar to how I store everything else - I use a circle tray and more bowls!  I try to keep each kits embellishments in it's own bowl (for atleast a week, ha!) before I end up mixing it all together.  Here's a look at how that works (below are photo's from July & June, August kits are not quite with me yet, sorry!):

I find putting all the kits in one tray super handy!  It's easy to pick up and carry from desk to desk when I'm using/not-using it.  I tend to just put the papers underneath the tray (although once they are cut down to my 6x8 size I usually pop them in the tray too!).  And here's how it plays out on my desk when I'm using it - I know it looks a little crazy but everything has it's own little bowl and it's all super easy to pop back into the tray once I'm done for the day.

And here's a look at my room layout just incase you were curious :)  I've got 3 desks - LHS has computer/silhouette (and where Zack sits when he's in my room), centre is my main work space and the RHS has my sewing machine/more work space (mostly where I do "messy" things because the white top has already been stained hehe).

And that's it!  I hope you find some of this helpful (even the tiniest bit!) for how to store your precious scrapbooking goodies in your own space.  If you have any questions at all, just leave them below and I'd be happy to answer!! :)

Thanks, Em xo

Meet our Guest Designer Lucia

My name is Lucia, I’m 29 (will turn 30 on 14^th Jan!) and I come from Slovakia. I live with my sister, a bunny Cookie and a cat Pepsi in my lovely hometown under the mountains in the north of my country. I love white chocolate, Agatha Christie’s detective stories, Les Misérables musical, the smell of lilac, home décor and I love to feel warm spring air on my face.

After an awesome experience - nine years of travelling, living and working in different European countries I’ve decided it was time to come back home and start following my dream.

I’ve completed a British e-course about designing pretty patterns last year and then designed some digital scrapbooking papers, journaling tags and clear stamps in Slovak. My dream is to become a surface pattern designer and do what I love – anything scrapbooking related.

http://luciabarabas.com/

https://www.facebook.com/LuciaBarabasDesigns

http://www.youtube.com/user/luciabarabas

http://instagram.com/luciabarabas

  

1. How long have you been scrapbooking and why did you start? I started scrapbooking in the summer of 2011. I used to live in Rome at the time and one lovely afternoon me and a friend (a Texan!) were sitting in St. Peter's Square, chatting about what we would love to do in life as a dream job. I wanted to make and sell cards (I always loved paper crafting) and have cats. I had really starte dto make cards in the end and while googling "cardmaking" it's obvious that I found "scrapbooking" too. It was like I could finally give a name to something I loved to do since I was a child! (Scrapbooking is not well known in Europe yet, compared to the U.S.) Today scrapbooking takes most of my (not only) free time. And I have a cat and a bunny. :)
2. How would you describe your scrapbooking style? It's clean, loose and simple in mostly white and pastel colors. Layers, white thread and some glitter, sequins or at least paint splatters are a must! I also like use and re-use things like frames or packaging that I use for layering or confetti from punching holes for example.
3. What scrapbookers have influenced you most? In the beginning I was influenced a lot by Rahel Menig. Now it's mostly Stephanie Bryan, Allison Waken, Marcy Penner and Anna-Maria Wolniak. And I love Paige Evans, too. :)
4. What is your favorite thing about kit clubs? It's that little magic - to open the kit and find a variety of all the pretty papers and bits and pieces that go well together. I love the fact that the only thing I have to think about is what I will use them for (and that I don't need to put those things together first :) )
5. If you departed on a week-long trip to CHA Anaheim 2014, what are your 5 favorite scrapbooking items you would bring with you (besides your camera and photos)? Definitely foam alphabet thickets. I LOVE them! Then it would be tissue paper, white acrylic paint, some lovely patterned papers in pastel colors and (I will cheat on the last one) a box full of pretty little rounded embellishments like brads, flairs and sequins.

Here is a peek at here scrap space:

Lucia's Citrus Twist Kits box is on its way to her and she is hoping she gets it any day now! Watch for more of her work this month.

**Remember to leave some love for a chance to win ONE of her favorite items!**

Meet Our June Guest Designer

Hi Everyone! I'm Katie Ehmann. I live in Michigan with my awesome husband and two dress-wearing, super frilly, always girly, princess obsessed girls, Lily and Maya. I'm not quite sure how that happened because I love playing soccer and wearing anything but dresses. I am a school social worker, scrapbooker, wanna-be photographer and do-er of all things crafty. I love vintage cameras, typewriters, spray paint and estate sales. You can also find me watching really super intellectual, high quality reality television on a regular basis. I am on the Crate Paper Design Team and a member of Write.Click.Scrapbook. I am so very happy to be Guest Designing for Citrus Twist this month!

About my Studio: My work table was crafted by a local woodworker who builds furniture from reclaimed Michigan barn wood. It is the perfect height to stand or sit while working and big enough that I can keep many supplies organized into vintage glassware within arm's reach. The dresser is filled with Crate Paper supplies and other embellishments and my Raskog cart hold supplies for Project Life. I purchased my metal tanker desk and chair from an estate sale for $25 each. A few coats of spray paint on the desk made it look brand new! The frames above my desk were also estate sale finds, which I spray painted in fun colors. Finally, I found this antique Hoosier cabinet on Craig's List. It holds more supplies and albums. The globes and vintage cameras are also from my thrifting, estate sale-ing adventures!

Blog: www.neverlandcrafts.blogspot.com

1. How long have you been scrapbooking and why did you start? When I was a little girl, I made scrapbooks by ripping out pictures in magazines and glueing them into albums. I'd entitle the pages things like Future House and My Kids. It's fun looking back through them because they are 80s-riffic! After my husband and I got married in 2004, I made a few pages, but really started scrapping when my oldest daughter was born in 2007.

2. How would you describe your scrapbooking style? My Scrapbooking style is generally on the simple/graphic side, but every once in awhile I'll layer on a bunch of papers and embellies and call it good. I love adding unexpected, fun, whimsical details to my pages. Also, when I scrap I always start with the photos and go from there.

3. What scrapbookers have influenced you most? In January 2012 I discovered the world of online Scrapbooking galleries and I have found so much inspiration through designers who share their work online. It's such an awesome community! Also, my fellow design teammates at Crate Paper and Write.Click.Scrapbook never cease to amaze me with their talent!

4. What is your favorite thing about kit clubs? I love working with a fun mix of products that are delivered right to my door and it helps me to think outside of the box while using supplies that I may not have chosen myself. Kit clubs definitely have made me a better scrapbooker!

5. If you departed on a long family vacation this summer, what are your 5 favorite scrapbooking items you would bring with you (besides your camera and photos!)? I'd bring white card stock, my sewing machine, patterned paper, Thickers and chipboard stickers ( I am obsessed with Crate Paper chipboard from any and every collection!). Besides my sewing machine, these are the exact items I hauled across the world last summer on our nearly three week family trip to Serbia to visit my husband's family!

6. How would you describe the Citrus Twist June kit and what do you enjoy most about the kit? The June CT kit is pure Summerific fun! I loved working with all the fun, bright colors, patterns and embellies. It really was happiness in a box! Thank you so much for having me--it was a blast working with such a fun kit!

Here is a layout Katie created using the June kit.



This is where you get to leave a comment for our Guest and be entered to win ONE of her favorite things!!