Regan's Gift

Regan and I decided to swap swivel clasps and I just opened hers. It's very beautiful and no words will do it justice. My pictures don't do it justice either but I must try. :)

She added beaded charms, including beads that are "crackled", fuzzy (the light pink one), crackled, and crystal. She used lots of buttons and tulle...love them! Regan UTEEd (I think) a flower and put an eyelet through the center, making it a charm. How cool is that? She added a key, locket, and journey (Tim Holtz) charms. The fragment charms have my girls names and their meanings on them; so sweet!!

I love it, Regan. I absolutely love it. It's going on the tree and when we take it down I will have to decide where to display it then. I am already planning a very special mini for this but I have a feeling that it will take awhile to get this mini completed. It needs to be super special to carry off this swivel clasp! :)

I have to add that she filled my box with goodies! Prima, and paper, and charms, oh my!!

Shellacked Nails

So I got my nails shellacked on Friday evening. A friend of mine got a promotion at work so we went out for mani/pedis. She got to choose the place and this salon happened to have all their technicians trained in this process. Long story short, I got pampered to say the least.

Here's the process:
1. Clean nails. If you don't already have the shellack on this is a quick easy process, involving nail polish remover. If you do have the shellack on the process takes about 10 minutes and involves wrapping each nail in a small piece of cotton ball soaked in acetone and then in foil. After the foil comes off, the nails are scraped with a wooden cuticle stick and the shellack comes right off.

2. Shape the nails.

3. Gel coat. They put this clear gel coat on your nails and then you have to cure the gel with a light. It takes about a minute and half.

4. Apply color. The only downfall to this technique is the color choices. There  are not many but they are beautiful. Paint nail and set with the light; three times.

5. Top coat. Apply the gel-like topcoat and another round of light.

That's it. This is supposed to last 3 weeks without chipping. I can't wait to see what happens. I took before photos and I plan to update with the after as well.

I know this is a little random but i just think it's so cool. I always leave the nail salon (which isn't very often but this applies to home manis as well) very careful with my nails for at least 2 days. OK, so not 2 days but you know what I mean. And inevitably, the polish starts chipping after 3 days. Anyhoo, I still have perfect nails and I am a week in. I'll let you know. :)

UPDATE!! I am on day 14 and still no chipping but I do look like I need a fill for my nails. I have quite a bit of nail bed showing. Still, if you don't look close, it's hardly noticeable. I still think it worth the money and time, so far! :)

Zibbet Shop Items

So I just wanted to take a minute to share with you all the items available in my Zibbet.com shop. I have mini albums and a kit, charms galore, coin envelopes, and chipboard die cuts.

Charms "kits":
*Christmas - 7 charms including Santa, snowflake, wreath, "joy", tree, stocking, bell
*Halloween - 5 charms including skeleton hand, howling wolf, witch hat, bat, jack-o-lantern
*Zoo, African animals, Safari - 6 charms including lion, giraffe, tiger, zebra, coyote, elephant
*Travel - 2 charms including a camera and the Eiffel Tower*Beach, aquatic, aquarium, SeaLife - 9 charms including starfish, fish (bead), anchor, ship steering wheel, seahorse, crab, seashell, turtle, flipflops (inscribed "Made with Heart & Sole")
*Tea - 2 charms including a cup and saucer and a teapot
*Spring, Garden - 5 charms including watering can, butterfly, flower, rose, ladybug
*Fashion, Crafting - 4 charms including hanger, singer sewing machine, handbag, and small handbag
*Western, Rodeo, Cowboy, Texas, Ranch - 5 charms including horse with colt, guitar, horseshoe, boot, hat

I will sell these charms individually upon request.


Here are the visuals:

9 different charm collections available (also sold individually)

Whimsy mini album and a kit (not shown) are available

Baby mini available (personalized after purchase)

Set of 6 coin envelopes in 4 different sizes

Dress, overalls, and onesie die cuts; all available in 3 different chipboard options (shown in medium weight chipboard)

Check out my store and tell a friend...I would greatly appreciate it! :) Have a great day!

Swivel Clasps

So I have completed my first two swivel clasps but in my excitement I totally forgot to take stills! Sorry about that! If you would like to check them out, use the links below to see the videos on YouTube.

Kathy (Canadianscrappergirl) was my swap partner for Regan's Swivel Clasp Swap. In this swap, you completed a swivel clasp in it's entirety and sent it to your partner.

Regan (EmoraDesigns) and I just swapped for fun! :)

Have a good one. :)

Kathy's Swivel Clasp

Regan's Swivel Clasp

Sweet Sisters Mini Album

I created this mini for my two little girls, my very own "Sweet Sisters". I am an only child and I have found it absolutely fascinating to watch this relationship blossom and grow. I thought that it would be nice for them to have and look at. With that being said, I kept it pretty simple and used embellishments sparingly.

I used #3 coin envelopes, which measure 2 1/2 x 4 3/4, and the K&Company Berry Sweet line and embellishments. I created the tags using my Tags, Bags, Boxes, and More Cricut cartridge.

I made 4 of these total; all a little bit different but basically the same. They are going to 3 special ladies, who also have two little girls. Enjoy!

If you would like, you can watch the video HERE. :) 

Have a great day! 

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving everybody! I hope your day was filled with family, friends, and food. :)

Zibbet Shop

OK. So I was going back and forth about opening an Etsy.com shop. I really wanted a place, other than my blog, that people could see and buy my work, mostly the buying part. I feel more comfortable buying from a "legitimate" site, so I just assume others prefer that as well.

Anyhoo, I found that Etsy had so many fees that I would have to jack up all my prices just to break even. I want my products to be accessible to everyone and, in this economy, I just couldn't see the point in higher prices to pay a website, know what I mean?

Here's what I have found in my first week:

Zibbet.com Cons:
*It's not as well known as Etsy (yet). Products seem to move a little slower because of this. 

Zibbet.com Pros:
*IT'S FREE!!!
*You can pick your shop. For example, I can have a free shop and get all the basics. Or I could pay $9.95 a month and "Upgrade", get more perks and amenities. Or I could go even further and pay $69.95 a year ($6ish a month) for an even further upgrade and get every perk they offer. I chose to start on the free end and see how it goes.
*It's easy to use. Literally, just like Etsy.com.
*Once you open your store, there are all kinds of helpful hints that you can use it promote your business. For example, the link on my sidebar (with the owl...really, how can you miss it? :)). Super easy. 

So I wanted to share this find with you. Regan (Emora Designs) gave me this hint and I can't keep quiet about it. Super excited! Check it out and tell me what you think!!