CS Craft Studio

If you were a crayon what color would you be?

Have you ever seen those surveys you get in your email asking you all kinds of questions? The "let's get to know each other" type of emails that circulate our email boxes... I saw this question and thought it would be a great contest question! :) I always answer "gold" because I just love things that sparkle! I even went so far as to order a box of metallic only crayons earlier this year to use in my crayon papers... What an exciting day that was when my box of 64 metallic crayons were delivered to my door!

So, tell me what color you would be and why. I'd love to know! I'll pick two winners at random who will receive 5 quarter sized sheets of my crayon papers. I will draw 2 names on July 31st!

My how time flies! (July)

Well, here we are in July! My how time has flown by! It's been a busy Summer with camps and vacation. We spent a week in Louisiana visiting family and hanging out by the pool. Very relaxing visit! Just enjoyed a fun Fourth of July! We took a drive to see the fireworks. They were everywhere! I forgot to take my camera though... Hoping you are all having a great Summer so far! :)

My daughter is an aspiring artist and had a chance to work with her Grandmama's charcoal.

I love taking pictures of flowers and my Mother-in-Law had some pretty flowers growing around the pool.

HAPPY MEMORIAL DAY!

What a wonderful day! Not only do we get some time off from work (Yeah!) but we get a chance to honor the men and women who have died for our Country and our freedom. Today we went to the cemetery to place flags on the military graves. A wonderful experience for our scouts.

Scrap!

Paper scraps... We all have them. Leftover bits and pieces from our creations. What do you do with your scrap papers? Well, some members of the EtsyPaper Street Team decided to send their scraps to some of their members who make handmade paper. I was asked if I wanted scraps for making paper and I said "Heck Yeah!" :) So, a pile of scraps like this... (you can click on each photo to see it bigger)

Gets turned into lovely paper like this...

Oh so pretty!

You can see this EtsyPaper Handmade paper in my Etsy shop. I have a nice box full of scraps and will be posting new papers soon.

Think about what you do with your scraps. Use all the pieces if you can. Inchies are a great way to use little bits of paper. Or, recycle that paper. Go Green!

And the Winner is...

Well, I am feeling generous so the three people who answered correctly will all receive a package of paper from me. :) Yes, the answer to the question is Post, Texas. I live about 40 miles from there. They use to have a trade days weekend once a month but stopped doing that in February of this year. I never went. Kept putting it off. Guess I waited too long. So, congrats to Katy, Alice Marie and Angie! I'll get your packages in the mail this week. :) And for Brenda, who did leave a comment, I am sending a package of my crayon paper tags. :) Thanks for playing and for reading my blog.

Picture Re-take Day

Do you remember those days when you were in school? Having a chance to get your picture taken again for the yearbook because you closed your eyes in the first one? :) Well, my papers are having a picture re-take day. However, the Lubbock wind is crazy today and when you have a product that will blow away in the even the slightest breeze, it is hard to get outside and take those pictures. I had to improvise this morning and set up a little area by our back door hoping to get the morning light. I have to say that I believe Lubbock would rival Chicago as the windy city. Really. It is always blowing here. Drives me crazy!!! And if it is dry (like it is now) you have brown skies from the dirt blowing in from the cotton fields. Here are some before and after shots of one set of my crayon papers...

Before

After

What do you think? Better? Worse?

I think we are going to go have a lunch of Mexican food. And then some craft supply shopping is in order! :)

Maybe this evening the wind will calm down and I can get some re-takes taken.

Don't forget I have a contest going on. I'll be picking a winner at random on Monday, April 7.

The last week of March

I just can't believe that March is almost over! However, it is so nice to see the trees in bloom and hear the birds sing. This was a busy week full of Choir concerts and Girl Scouts. I organized my studio a little bit last night. When I get it done I will post photos. :) So I wanted a snack while I worked and decided to make some trail mix. Doesn't it look yummy? It is made with a box of granola cereal, plain m&m's and pecan pieces. Mmmmm! Not low calorie by any means but it sure does taste good. I use to make it with C.W. Post granola ceral but that was discontiued so I had to find something else. Now there is a trivia question... Who can tell me the name and location of the Utopian town created in C.W. Post's honor? Leave a comment with an answer and on April 7th I'll draw a name from all the correct answers. The winner will receive a pack of five sheets of my handmade paper (size 5 x 7 inches). Good luck!!!

HAPPY EASTER!

Today we woke up to cloudy skies and a little rain. I am not complaining though, we really need the rain. In fact, I wish it would rain more. There are Easter Eggs being colored at the kitchen table right now. So much fun!

Friday night I was able to get some green paper made. I think it turned out pretty well and it dried fast so I was able to list it on Etsy this morning.

Earlier this year I had planned to have a weekly routine. Thursday night I would shred and soak some paper. Friday night I would make the sheets and hopefully they would be dry enough to list on Sunday. That was the plan... However, I made this plan right before Girl Scout Cookies went on sale so I spent a lot of weekends working cookie booths... Once that was over, other life events came up. This is the first weekend I have been able to get back on the routine. I have to say I really had fun making the paper. I was also able to experiment with some of my crayon papers. I'd like to get some cards made but it's laundry day and I have to make a trip to the store so the cards will probably get put on hold until next weekend.

I wish you all a Happy Easter!!! :)

An Introduction

Hi! My name is Chrystal. Welcome to my Craft Studio. I've decided to just jump into the blog world with both feet! I've always felt the pull of craft supplies. As a little girl I would take my Mom's scissors, tape, paper, pencils and any other supply I could find and keep them in my room. I've tried many different types of crafts, some of which I'd like to try again as an adult. My adult craft-life started almost 12 years ago, on the eve of my daughter's birth. I was "nesting" and had cleaned the house from top to bottom in one day. And I wasn't even tired after all that, so I decided to try my hand at papermaking. I had purchased a kit the year before but had not even opened it so I pulled it out of the closet and blended up some paper and made about 6 sheets. I had the mold upside down so I had to dig the paper out with a butter knife and the sheets were really, really thick. I still have those sheets. After my daughter was born, I didn't have a whole lot of time to create but after a couple of years I found a group of wonderful ladies on the internet and they got me interested in making envelopes and greeting cards. I started making paper again and haven't stopped since. My craft supplies have grown. They use to fit all in one box, now they take up half of my bedroom! I am sure some of you out there have the same "problem". :) So, here I am, making paper and cards. My interests have expanded and now I also enjoy making beaded necklaces as well. I was introduced to ETSY through my friend Angie (who is a big inspiration for me). Through ETSY I've met more wonderful and talented people who give me more inspiration everyday. I hope y'all will enjoy reading about my crafting journey. I've got so many ideas! I can't wait to get started!!!