Non Traditional Pages About Places I Want To Visit

A while back, I did two non traditional pages for my This Is Me project, and last week I realized that I never shared them.  They were both simple and could be adapted for a lot of themes.  Today I'm sharing my page about travel dreams. 

The first was for a class challenge.  I chose to do a page about all the places I wanted to visit.  But I wanted to do more than a list - I wanted to document why I wanted to go visit those places.  I started with a glassine bag, printed a world map on blue handmade paper to put in the bag, and added pockets on the front and back to create the base of my page.  And then I added embellishments to make a bright, fun page.

The front

The back

To finish I used individual Project Life cards to document the places I wanted to go and the reasons why I wanted to visit those place.

Now the truth is, there are more than 10 places I would like to see, but this is a great start.  And I ended up loving this approach because it's so flexible.I can easily add other cards in the future for different places.

• If (hopefully when) I visit some of these places, I can create a similar page for places I have visit and I can use the back of the same cards as a brief documentation of taking the trip (at least when and a brief summary.)

•  I can easily add more cards to the page as other places make my priority list of places to visit.

Hope you're having a great Tuesday!

Going Pink with Atlantic and Lily Bee

I've never been a big fan of pink - it was just too over the top girly.  And my daughter was never very into pink either.  So the color pink rarely found its way into my stash or on to my layouts.  But then I got the papers in Studio Calico's new collection, Atlantic.


I love all of the papers - the kraft and gold is amazing and the vellum is my all time favorite vellum.  But I can't get enough of the pink and yellow papers in the collection.  They remind me of a sunrise on the beach. 

Seabrook

New Haven

South Hampton - I love the B side

Rockport - again I love the B side

And this piece of Lily Bee paper could have been made to coordinate,

Sweet Shoppe - Marshmellow

I've dug out lots of old beach pictures of my daughter when she was young to scrap with them - the soft colors in the photos and papers seem to be made for each other.

This is one of my favorites - I actually used the Heidi Swapp gold lame color shine like a pint to add the gold glimmer to the base sheet.  And I combined cameo Mister Huey's with the Color Shine to color the arrows to match.  And of course, no layout is complete without sequins and enamel dots (from Theresa Collins Summer Stories Line).

I'd love to know what papers are inspiring you lately.  Have a marvelous Monday!

Layering with Pop Off The Page

This month's class at Studio Calico is Pop Off The Page 2 - I missed the first class, so was thrilled to have a chance to take this one.  I am always trying to add dimension and texture to my pages and am excited to try new things.

This week's challenge was about layering with patterned papers. I love to add layers, but struggle with keeping a clean feel to the layout.  I tried layering in a horizontal pattern across the page for this layout.  It ends up adding lots of dimensions without getting too busy.

I started with this picture of my daughter - I love the vintage feel of the photo (even though it is only a few years old).

 I thought I'd share some lessons learned (even thought they may be obvious to you.)

1.  When you don't like an effect you create, don't give up.  I started this page by using gold lame color shine with a mask to create a background texture on white cardstock.  I hated the effect.  But when I wiped the mist of with a paper towel, I love the soft, beigey-gold color I ended up with.

2.  If your picture is dark, add some darker papers to balance the feel.

3.  Repeat patterns and colors.  I used some of the patterned papers more than once and repeated the gold color shine on the doily.

4.  Not everything has to glued down  - loose edges and pieces of trim add lots of interest and texture.  For instance, this gold ribbon is much prettier loose than fastened flat to the page.

5.  Add embellishments after you finish your layering.  Cluster small embellishments for bigger impact.  And mix up your embellishments - variety is way more interesting to the eye that a single style of embellishment.

6.  Repeat elements to tie the layout together.  I added a new piece of trim to the top of this layout, but layered with the resin flowers and the gold ribbon to tie it together.

I'd love to hear your tips and tricks for layering and making your layouts pop.  Hope you have a great Sunday.

This Is Me (Still)

Last month I took a great class at Studio Calico - This is Me.  The class was intended to help you put together an album about yourself.  I loved the idea, loved the class -- and got almost nothing done during the month. But I found even thinking about what to include a really rewarding way to think about where I am and where I want to go in the future.

I decided to use a SNAP binder for my album, but turned it on its side so it had a landscape orientation.  I shared the cover and my title page here.  I also did a couple of non-traditional pages about places I want to visit and how things change last month.  But mostly I didn't get past the cover.

The dividers I did broke my album up into a section on the basics (sort of just the facts), The Good (things I feel good about), Needs Work (things I want to improve on in the short run) and Goals and Dreams (big wishes, bucket list, and long term goals).   I don't think I shared these when I did them.

I used gesso, spray inks, washi tape, wood veneer and my favorite Amy Tangerine alphas on these.  And let me admit now that I love picking colors and patterns that appeal to me without considering the personality of people I'm scrapping about.  It is so fun!

Since I didn't get very far in April, I did promise myself that I would work on doing a few pages each month til I felt like I had a finished project.  Because the pages are small (6x8) they really go together quickly.  So yesterday I did two pages about things I feel good about - baking and my nook.

Dear Lizzie, Heidi Swapp, Studio Calico, Freckled Fawn, Simple Stories, Elles Studio - and inspired by the color challenge at Life Paper Scrapbook

Simple Stories, Heidi Swapp, American Crafts, Dear Lizzy, Elle's Studio, Basic Grey, Studio Calico.

Both of these projects started with Planetarium kits and add-ons which I supplemented to finish my pages.  And I have to admit that I am currently addicted to those Heidi Swapp arrows that resist spray inks. 

I have lots more to do in this album and will share as I get pages done.  I'm working hard to keep it fun and not become a task, so you never know when I'll have more to share.

Hope you had a chance to play today.  Enjoy the rest of your Saturday.

Using Project Life Cards on Traditional Layouts

I was excited to start Project Life this year.  I wanted to like it.  I had a hard to get subscription to the Studio Calico kit.  I bought an album, page protectors and grid cards with my Christmas money.  I bought little calendars to document what happens each day. 

But sorry - I know its not fashionable - but I hated it.  We don't do interesting things everyday- with teenagers, kids in college and 3 jobs between parents we don't even see each other every day.  And figuring out PL cards in pocket pages didn't give me the creative outlet I use scrapbooking for.  So I quit.

But I love the Studio Calico Project Life Cards.  The colors, patterns, and text are so fun!  And I like Elle's Studio cards and find other patterned paper intended to be cut into cards that I really love.  So I started thinking - grid design layouts are some of my favorite.  They tend to come together easily for me, they provide lots of opportunities for layering and using bits and pieces and always seem to look unique.  And wouldn't project life cards make those grid layouts even faster?  They would cut out lots of cutting.

As an experiment, I picked a piece of background paper, a photo and picked a theme - the end of my son's senior year.  Then I got out my PL cards and went to work.  This grid layout came together in about an hour, is visually appealing and says exactly what I want to say.

Here are some tips that seemed to make the process work for me.

1) Pick a base sheet and a color scheme before you pull out your cards. 

2) Make sure you use 1 card that can hold journaling.  (This is a great way to push yourself to add journaling to your pages.

3)  Pull some possible embellishments and scraps for layering before you start.  Don't forget vellum - your best friend when adding layers.

4) Don't be afraid to overlap your cards, embellishments and pictures - it adds depth and lots of visual interest.

5) Plan for your title - it should be part of the grid design, not an afterthought.

So try playing with those PL cards - I'd love to see your projects where you used PL cards in unexpected ways.  Have a fantastic Friday!

Simple Thank You Cards

I don't make cards very often - I just have a hard time getting the proportions right.  But I needed a couple of thank you cards and didn't have time to go to the store.  And I have a room full of supplies.  So I dug in and got to work.

The first card was for one of my daughter's friends. Elisabeth had some health problems this year and she brought her the homework on every one of the 30+ days she missed this year.  We wanted to give her an ITunes card to show our appreciation.  And the card needed to appeal to a  year old girl. 

So I dug out a kraft card base and an assortment of washi. I covered the card base with strips of washi to create a bright fun base.  Then I decided to use a shipping tag to add the sentiment.  I attached it with some bright color twine that was secured inside the card. 

I used a glassine bag on the inside of the card to cover the place where the twine was attached.  The gift card fit in there perfectly and created a finished look.

I also needed a card for her mother who drove her daughter to our house to drop off the homework all those days.  I wanted to make something pretty and sophisticated.  I started with a card base with a decorative edge on the front.  I added a strip of that beautiful ombre washi from Studio Calico to the insided of the card so the edge really stood out when the card was closed.  Then I went for these Amy Tangerine stitched vellum embellishments (some of my favorites and created a simple border design.  I added a layered sticker from Simple Stories and used Heidi Swapp alphas for the sentiment.

 

The end result was pretty and feminine.

And I had so much fun making these cards that I asked for a score board for Mothers Day.  I think I'll be making more cards in the future.

Hope you have a tremendous Thursday.

A Sparkly Sports Layout

My newly discovered passion for sequins is certainly no secret.  But I do lots of boy layouts and lots of sports layouts.  I need to figure out how to incorporate those sequins into those layouts.  So first I shopped (no surprise right) - I got sequins in some jewel tones including navy and red (my son's school colors) and some fun patterned sequins (I love the white ones with silver stars). 

Then I played - hereis what I came up with.

I think the gold and red sequins were a perfect touch here.  But I think they worked because I kept the layout design and materials simple. 

Have you used sequins on a layout where they would be unexpected?  Link me up - I'm off on Thursday and Friday and would love the inspiration.

Have a wonderful Wednesday.

Atlantic and Arrows

 Mothers Day Giveaway here

I love the new Atlantic collection by Studio Calico.  And my favorite part is the soft pinks, yellows and peaches used in some of the patterned papers.  This totally connects with my girly side.  So I was thrilled when the weekly designer challenge at Studio Calico was a color challenge focused on those colors.  And since I am currently loving arrows, I was equally excited to see that the Sunday challenge at Chic tags was to use arrows.  So I thought I would try to combine the challenges.

I dug out an old photo of my daughter at the beach for the layout and went to work.  I pulled patterned papers in the colors I wanted to use to get started - mostly from Atlantic, but the heart paper is from Lily Bee.  I used pink and gold spray ink to soften the background paper and emphasize the colors.  I used the same inks to color arrows from Pink Paislee.  Here's what I came up with.

 I even painted the sunrise thickers with some gold ink to add that glimmer.  Here are some close-ups of the embellishment clusters.

This cluster uses the Atlantic vellum die cuts, sequins and enamel dots from the Theresa Collins Summer Stories line/  The vellum die cuts are the perfect soft touch for this color scheme.

The pink pasilee arrows took the gold and pink colors perfectly.  And by layering the inks, I was able to get different shades with just two ink colors.  I attached my sequins with mini glue dots.

The mix of pink and gold inks on the page with ink spatters, sequins and enamel dots reminds me of sunrise on the beach.  (Wish I was there.)

I'm loving these papers and have a pile of scraps on my cropping station that I keep going to. I think I'm going to have to print more of these old beach pictures.  I love the way they work with these papers.  Working on these layouts is bringing back memories of those lazy beach days when my daughter was young.

Hope you have a terrific Tuesday.

Actions Speak Louder Than Words - Lets Get Sketchy Design Team Call

Mothers Day Giveaway open here 

So whenever I think about creative challenges I want to try, design team participation is always near the top of the list.  But I'm a chicken - i read the posts, think about it and then decide that I'm not good enough.  If one of my kids pulled that trick, I would have plenty to say -- but I keep going down that path.

So today, I saw a design team call at Lets Get Sketchy - and I'm trying to talk myself into really trying.  Want to try with me?

Here's the information they posted on their blog.

 

Lets Get Sketchy is looking to add 2-4 more members to our already fabulous Design Team.  The DT term will run from June 1 through Sept 1.  You will be responsible for at least 2 layouts a month as well as commenting on entries each week.  I am only looking for dedicated members.   If you are interested and would like to be considered for a position then here is what you need to do:

Why apply for our team? 

• To be inspired and to inspire others 
• To be on the ground floor of an up and coming blog 
• You will be a part of an amazing group of women and develop lifelong friendships with women from all over the world. 
• Your work will be featured on Facebook and Pinterest. 

What is expected of our Design Team? 

• You MUST be a follower of our blog
• Complete 2 projects a month (you will be given challenges at least a month in advance). 
• Comment on participants entries (THIS IS A MUST!).  Any team member not adhering to this rule will be promptly removed from the team so please make sure you can do this before applying. 
• Commit to a 3 month term (Beginning of  June to the beginning of September) 
• Keep an active blog that is updated frequently 
• Post our challenge and your project on your blog on reveal day and link back to the LGS blog.

How to apply:

• Leave a comment below indicating you would like to apply 
• Tell me a little bit about yourself to include your style and whether or not you are on any other design teams. (no previous DT experience required) 
• Add our link and DT call to your blog
• Provide links to your blog and any online galleries. 
• Include 3 projects that best represent your style. 
• Create a layout from the sketch below
• Place our DT call on your blog to help get the word out.
• You MUST have a Facebook account as we will have a private DT group on Facebook

Design Team Call Sketch

All interested applicants will be invited to our Facebook Group where you will meet and interact with members of our current Design Team.  This is so we can all get to know each other a little better.  Anyone interested in applying please send your application to letsgetsketchy@gmail.com.  Make sure you put DT call in the subject line.

We are accepting applications through May 24^th.  New design team members will be notified by May 25^th.  This is an open call, what that means is, I have the right to close this call at any time if I feel all the positions have been filled.    The first reveal will be June 1st. I know this is a short turn around however; the first challenge will be easy. I promise you!

No previous DT experience needed.

I'm going to work on my fear of failure and push myself to try.  Consider this a blatant request for encouragement. 

Have a great Monday! 

Happy Mother's Day, A Layout Using One of Those Wallets, and a Giveaway

Today is Mother's Day which made me think about becoming a mother.  So when I saw Shimelle's small photo challenge, I thought about those photo packages of baby pictures including a thousand wallets.  So I pulled one out and did this fun layout using last week's Studio Calico card sketch.

I started with a piece of Heidi Swapp color resist paper and used the new Navy and Seafoam Mister Huey's to create an ombre effect for the base.  Then I layered bits of pieces in the bottom to provide a foundation for the small photo.  Adding the Maggie Holmes fabric polaroid frame really helped draw your eye to the photo.

 

But my favorite part is the gold mesh streamer.  I glued sequins on top to add a little something extra and really loved the effect.  

Giveaway

I have a small giveaway to celebrate the day - just be a follower and leave me a comment explaining why Mother's Day is special to you.  I'll leave the comments open til midnight on May 19.  The winner will get the stamp from the Neverland Main Kit.

 

Chalkboard Paper and Transparent Elements

I love looking at and playing with the new supplies and trends.  Two things that have caught my eye lately are chalkboard paper and transparent elements.  They are both so fun. 

Chalkboard paper can be bought by the sheet -but comes in lots of other fun forms too.  I found shipping tags at the Container Store and great labels in the Martha Stewart line at Staples.  Add some white ink (stamp or pen) and you have a really eye-catching element.  And manufacturers are using chalkboard effects in patterned paper too.

The transparency elements are lots of fun too.  They can be layered over pictures or other elements in your project to add so much depth and interest with little effect.  Basic Grey, Heidi Swapp and Little Yellow Bicycle have had some of my favorites.  Glitz has some great transparent element packs too.

Since both these trends are so fun, I wanted to combine them in one layout.  I started with a sheet of Glitz patterned paper from the Uncharted Water collection that used the chalkboard effect.  I added a 5x7 black and white picture with lots of blank space.  Then I played with the transparent elements, layering them over the blank space in the photo.  I finished the layout off with some spatters from the opaque white Mister Huey's. 

Other embellishments were from Fancy Pants, Cosmo Cricket and Studio Calico.  And the end result was a fun layout capturing one of my daughter's favorite sayings today.

Mixed Media

Its no secret - I love online challenges.  And one of the biggest reasons is that they push me to try new techniques, new color combinations, new products or new designs.  This year some of the NSD  challenges pushed me way out of my box into trying a mixed media layout.

I'd been admiring mixed media layouts for a while - and even had acquired supplies (gesso, watercolors, brushes). But I never really worked up the nerve to use them.  So I bit the bullet and tried a mixed media layout.  I combined gesso, watercolors and those really cool water brushes for a layout using an old picture of Stephen and Elisabeth building sand castles at Walnut Beach.  Here's what I came up with.

I had previously cut a Jillibean placement into pieces to use as a mask.  I got two of those pieces out and put them in the corners of a piece of white cardstock.  Then I applied a thick coat of gesso to the circles to create texture and dimension.  Before the gesso was dry, I used peerless watercolor papers to color the circles.  I let the project dry most of the way, peeled up the placemat and was left with a bright circle pattern - maybe brighter than I wanted.

So I dug out some vellum scraps to cover the circles and began to layer pieces of pattern paper - some under the vellum and some on top of the vellum.  I added a clear Heidi Swaopp tab to the top of the picture, some studio calico vellum polaroid frames and lots of bits and pieces (mostly wood and paper).  I colored the wood pieces and the Pink Paislee stars with Heidi Swapp color shine, mixing colors as I went.  The soft feel of the Heidi Swapp shadow letters were t he perfect finishing touch.

When I was done, I was glad I'd tried - I probably won't get this messy very often, but it was fun and I ended up with a unique layout.  Its high praise when your teen age daughter says, "it looks better than I thought it would."

So try something new and let me know how it worked out.  Have a great Thursday!

A Simple Page About A Big Decision

My son is 18 this year and will graduate from high school at the beginning of June.  Needless to say, I am very proud of his accomplishments and the man he has become.  He is bright, focused and caring.  But this is a tough time in his life - he is faced with decisions about what comes next that will impact the path he takes for the rest of his life. 

One of the things that has impressed me the most about Nicholas in the last few months is his refusal to be pushed into a decision.  Instead he has been thoughtful about his choices and making the one that best fits the path he wants to take.  So I wanted to capture the care he is using to make those decisions in a layout. 

I love that the simple grid design focus on him - and I love this photo which captures him in a moment of thought.  I can't wait to see what comes next for him!

Note: Nicholas accepted a position in the Capstone Scholars program at the University of South Carolina - go Gamecocks!

My Happy Place and The Pier - and A Winner

Last Friday I realized that I had less than a month to finish my son's senior album.  I was immediately overwhelmed and had no desire to work on that album (in spite of the stack of soccer pictures I had just picked up.)  My first instinct was to turn around and walk out of my scrap room - I'm really good at avoidance.

Then I opened a box of goodies from My Scraps and More.  There were a few sheets of paper and a few embellies from Crate Paper's new line, The Pier.  It was love at first sight.  So I made a deal with myself - I could do one layout for fun with my new goodies - then I had to do a soccer layout or 2 or 7.

I used the Crate Paper line to make this layout about Walnut Beach, my preferred summer hang-out when growing up.  (I still try to take my daughter there every summer for a few days.)

The picture makes me happy and the layout makes me happy.  Most of the papers and embellishments are from the Crate Paper Line (the yellow paper is from my scrap pile and the picture is mounted on cardstock),  The title card is from Dear Lizzy and those enamel dots are from MME.

And before I forget, I have a winner from my NSD drawing.  My daughter picked number 3.

Anonymous said:

How kind, thanks for the chance to win and Happy National Scrapbook Day, can't wait to see what you create! Rhonda

Rhonda, please send me your mailing info so I can get your prize out to you.

Hope your Tuesday is happy.

Shades of Blue

I have this picture of the harbor in Ashtabula, the town where I grew up, that I seem to use in layouts over and over.  Its not that I don't have othr pictures printed.  I just am drawn to this photo.  I've used it in color and in black and white.  I think it just goes to show that the things we love are inspiring when we get ready to create.

This time I started with a black and white 4x6 print.  I knew I wanted to play with layering and use a soft color palette.  The first thing I did was choose the Amy Tangerine base paper and soften the pattern at the edges with gesso (boy, have I come a long way).  Then I hit my scrap pile for pieces of paper in blue, gray or white and played with the layers-  I added some project life cards, an SC Sundrifter journal card, some shipping tags, a small envelope and a transparency from Basic Grey.

After I attached the major pieces I added a title using naked chipboard thickers, a piece of Dear Lizzy flair, some arrows, some vellum hearts and sequins.  It still needed something at the bottom to balance the layout so I added a Cosmo Cricket fabric sticker, more vellum hearts and some sequins.

I have more projects from this weekend's festivities to share later this week.  Hope you have a great monday!

The Best Day of the Year

I have some Glitz washi to share and an assortment of sequins (I have to admit that my sequin collection has grown to an embarrassing size, but I'm willing to share. 

I told a friend that National Scrapbook Day was the best day of the year - better even than Christmas.  She doesn't scrap so she thought I was nuts.  But you know what I mean.

There are so many fun challenges, great deals on the newest supplies and lots of chances to win prizes that add to your stash.  It really is the best day of the year!

And this year I want to get in the spirit in a big way.  Of course, I will be doing challenges as fast as I can - I've got lots of pictures and paper to play with.  But I want to be one of the people giving a prize for NSD for a change.  I've won so many great things over the past several months - and its time to give back. 

So I am going to give a couple of my favorite things to play with to one lucky follower who leaves a comment. 

I have some Glitz washi to share and an assortment of sequins.  Washi and sequins seem to show up on most of my layouts these days, so I thought they made a perfect prize in honor of NSD.  So if you want to enter, just make sure you are a follower and leave a comment before midnight on Sunday May 5th.  I'll pick a winner on Monday.

Happy National Scrapbook Day - I hope you celebrate in style!

Chic Tags Color Challenge - and A Non-Traditional Halloween Layout

Chic Tags posts a challenge every Sunday.  I don't always have a chance to complete them, but I always check in for some inspiration.  This week's challenge is a color challenge - full of springy colors.  So I did a Halloween layout - I think it is so much fun to use unexpected colors on seasonal layouts.

 My layout is a two pager, but each page can stand on its own from a design perspective.  I accomplished this by using a common paper for the center block that runs across each page and using a uniform paper and ribbon border across the bottom of the design.  Here's the first page:

And here's the second page:

I also used common embellishments across the pages to tie them together - rubons, wood veneer, and sequins.  I especially like the way the rubons worked when I applied them across multiple papers.

 

 Do you have tricks for creating two page layouts?  I'd love some tips.  Hope you had a marvelous Monday!

This Is Me

There are almost no pictures of me in the albums I do.  In fact, there are almost no pictures of me at all.  If you look at our albums it looks like I don't exist.  That's the reason this month's Studio Calico class originally attracted me.  It was going to force me to document my existence.

But I have to say, its turned into much more than that.  I haven't gotten many pages done, but thinking about what to include and how to organize the album has turned into a journey where I am learning about me. And I'm experimenting with things that I might not try in my albums ordinarily, taking the opportunity to play with feminine colors and products, and generally stepping out of my creative box.  This might be the best class ever!

So I thought I'd share the start of my album.

I chose a SNAP album for my project, but am using it with a landscape orientation.  I'm really liking this format.  I decorated the cover with Heidi Swapp Color Shine, Prima wood veneer, October afternoon washi, divine twine, and Amy Tangerine.  Those Amy Tangerine alphas are my all time favorite.

The first page I did was the title page - I originally started with the gray and white Heidi Swapp paper just because I like the bold gray and white stripes.  After I cut the page to size, I had a scrap left.  I sprayed it with some mint color shine and silver Mr. Hueys just to see what would happen.  I loved the end result and ended up using pop dots to apply it to my page for an interesting dimensional effect.  I added some of my favorite embellishments - shipping tags, flair (from Fancy Pants) and sequins plus some Glitz giant rhinestones. One of my biggest challenges is letting go of control, so I pushed out of that box and used random squiggles of glossy accents to attach sequins - they landed where they landed.

I'll share more from my album later - its slow going but lots of fun.  I'd love to know what fun projects you are working on.  Have a great Tuesday!

Organizing My Stash

As my husband likes to say, it seems like I'm always trying to come up with a better way to reorganize my stash.  This weekend the spring cleaning bug hit and I was at it again.  I'm really happy with the end result, so I thought I'd share what I ended up with along with some pictures of my scrap space (with lots of pictures).  (This post is kind of long but I tried to use headings in case you were looking for a particular section of it.

My Desk
Last fall my husband built me a great custom desk made so that I can work comfortably while standing (since I seem to do most of my scrapping that way).  It has cubbies down both sides of the front and shelves along both sides.  Technically, it can be used by two people (like a partner's desk) but I really use the whole space by myself.  The fun stool came from World Market

.

The top of my desk is my primary workspace.  I use a magazine holder on its side to hold file folders with inspiration pieces and memorabilia related to current projects.  And I have two spinning racks to hold small embellishments and adhesives that I use frequently.

The Spinning Racks
Just before Easter I asked my husband about making a run to Harbor Freight to get a Harbor Freight spinner.  We didn't have a chance to go before the holiday, but on Easter morning I found six round divided trays in my Easter basket.  I call the poor man's Harbor Freight Spinner.  They are each divided into six compartments and are stackable.  I divided mine into two sets of three and love them. He got them at Home Depot where each tray was only $2.50. Roll of washi  that are current favorites sit on the top post of the spinner And the best part is that I can easily add additional tiers if my stash grows (not that anyone can see that happening :))

 Thickers
I have a real weakness for alphas and my collection of thickers might be out of hand.  They were taking up tons of space, I couldn't keep track of what I had and they were everywhere.  Because they are so bulky, my alpha storage was totally inadequate.  Organizing my thickers was a priority this weekend and I ended up with this basket where they are sorted by color.  A few other favorites are along the side and mini alphas sit in front.  The basket fits perfectly on one of my shelves so the thicker problem is solved - they are organized and accessible - and there is room for a few more.

Cardstock
I'd been keeping my cardstock mixed with patterned paper (sorted by color).  But as my paper collection has grown, this has become less functional.  When working on a layout and looking for coordinating cardstock, it was cumbersome to dig through those piles.  And it was difficult to know what colors I had.  This was a problem because I like to stock up when cardstock is on sale and I want to be able to identify what colors I need quickly.  A smaller version of the thicker basket now holds cardstock, sorted by color.  I can find what I need quickly and get a quick idea of colors I need when cardstock goes on sale.  This basket sits nicely on the same shelf as the Thicker basket.

Embellishment Tray
I made a brief attempt at Project Life and had acquired this melamine tray to hold my supplies for that project.  But I'm a project life failure, so the tray was just taking up space.  I filled it with baskets holding some of my favorite embellishments - tags, envelopes and bags, sequins, PL cards, and enamel dots.  The tray serves two functions. First, it is deeper than my shelves so it extends my shelf space.  And when I'm working on a layout I can pull the tray out on my desk and have my "go to" supplies easily available.  It makes cleaning up after a project easy too.

Sequins
My newest addiction is sequins - they are inexpensive, so much fun and add so much interest to projects.  But I like to keep them sorted by color.  I bought these clear plastic tubes on etsy to hold my sequins.  (The tubes are intended to hold seed beads but they work perfectly.  The tubes fit neatly into a basket (see above).  I can see the colors, check out different combinations and not worry about my colors getting mixed.  (I do use one of the compartments on my spinner to hold a mix of my sequins too because sometimes a random selection works better - and they are so pretty.

Wood Veneer
Wood veneer is my other addiction - I can't resist.  But I like to take it out of the package and store in a way that is easy to use and sort.  I found these divided plastic boxes at the container store.  You can get them in a variety of sizes and with different compartment sizes. (I have four now and need to add one more.) They work perfectly to store wood veneer.

The Rest of My Space
I'm not showing you here, but I have a cropping station along the wall behind my desk.  My most commonly used tools sit along the top and it holds my patterned paper, other tools and less frequently used supplies.

Now if only I could get motivated to organize the rest of my house.  In the meantime, I'd love to hear your storage tips for supplies. Have a great Monday.