Crafty Hauls August 2014

I thought I would share what I have been spending my money on this month.  I don't know about you but I want just about everything I see.  As I have mentioned before I love watching YouTube videos and I see all these amazing products and want them all!!

So I have decided to keep a wish list so I can slowly build up my stash with the items that I really want rather than spending money randomly late at night after watching YouTube!

So in August I bought the following items to add to my craft stash:

Artbin Super Satchel double deep box £16.50

Artbinz marker storage tray £6.26 x 2

Neenah Classic solar white cardstock £3.99

Ranger Archival jet black ink pad £5.60

Claudine Hellmuth Studio multi medium matte £2.66

Tonbow mono multi liquid glue £3.65

All from Amazon.co.uk

I also bought 2 x Curver baskets for organisation purposes £2.99 from my local Morrisons supermarket.

I then discovered Clearly Besotted stamps were having a 50% sale, which is bad news for my bank balance as I love the quality of these stamps and they are a UK company, I did restrain myself....I think, I got the:

Tasty Treats stamp set £6.75 and matching die set £5.59

My Cup of Tea stamp set £4.50 and matching die set £4.10

Stepping out stamp set £2.00

Not stopping there I bagged a bargain on EBay:

Stampin Bella Golfinfella £0.99

Stampin Bella Merrybella £0.99 with £1.00 shipping!

And lastly my favourite: 

Mama Elephant Bootastic stamp set £10.50 with matching dies £15.95 from Makethedayspecial.com

So I have spent a small fortune but all essential for my crafty hobby I feel, drop by again to see what crafty delights I purchase next month......

Card Kits.....which one!?

I finally decided and chose to subscribe to the Studio Calico card kit recently.  I saw the card kits as a way to build up my stash with bits and pieces I may not consider to purchase.  I also saw it as a good value way to build on my collection of different colours of cardstock, different paper pads and mainly stamp sets.  With stamp sets I have to hold my hands up and admit I love the cute ones so with the stamp sets in the kits it helps me vary my collection.

Even though I chose the Studio Calico kits I am drawn to the Simon Says Stamp card kits.  I watch a lot of YouTube videos (too many probably) and see lots of videos creating cards with the SSS card kits and not so many with the SC card kits! However I decided that I would swap after six months and try out the SSS card kits as well, I will then be able to compare the two and let you know which I think in my opinion is the best choice and value for money!

So far I have received three kits from Studio Calico and in these I have received:

Kit one (June): 6x6 paper pad ft papers from Dear Lizzy, Tim & Beck, American Crafts, Maggie Holmes and Fancy Pants.  4 x A4 sheets of cardstock, 2 x green, a grey and a white piece.  A Studio Calico stamp set with a coordinating die.  2 x pieces of felt and 1 piece of self adhesive cork (6x6), a pack SC buttons, Queen & Co. blue frosties, 2 x lengths of twine and tag.

Kit two (July) Penny Arcade: 6x6 paper pad ft papers from Studio Calico, Ashley Goldberg and Life. Love. Paper.  4 x A4 cardstock including kraft, white, grey and yellow.  A Studio Calico with Life. Love. Paper stamp set with a banner die.  1 x pack of wood veneers, 2 x packs of buttons, 1 x length of twine and some black & white ribbon.

Kit three (Aug) Sandlot: 6x6 paper pad ft papers from Studio Calico, Life. Love. Paper, Hello forever and Shanna Noël.  4 x A4 cardstock with Kraft, white, blue and yellow.  A Studio Calico with Life. Love. Paper stamp set.  A piece of acetate.  A wooden cat veneer, 1 x pack of buttons, 1 x pack of sequins, some pink twine and a tag.

I would love to hear if you subscribe to a card kit or used to and how you find/found them, so leave me a comment I look forward to hearing your stories.  Also I would be really interested to know how you got started, do you have a blog and how you built up your craft stash.......Thanks for dropping by!

Getting Started

Wow can't believe I have done it!

I have wanted to start writing a blog for so long now but did not know where to start.  I have always liked crafting and all things stationery.  In 2010 I got married and decided to make all the wedding stationery myself and loved it but never really knew where to start.  Then in 2013 I had my new kindle and plenty of time on my hands, thanks to a major knee operation, that's when I discovered You

Tube and card making videos and I've been hooked ever since!!

I was glued to Starofmay, Kristina Werner's channel, her videos are amazing. I am now a huge fan of hers aswell as Jennifer McGuire, Amy R, Laura  Sterckx and many more. 

As much as I would love their supplies and craft rooms I don't have the space (not yet anyway), so I have slowly been building my collection here and there and have reserved a couple of shelves in a random cupboard to store it on.  It's not Ideal but I am hoping to get it a little more organised.

That's why I wanted to start my blog now, at the very beginning.  One, so I have a purpose and a reason to create some cards as this will be my outlet and two so I can see how far this takes me.  I've made a couple of cards so far to test out some of my purchases but really want to get creative on a more regular basis so we will see.....blog post number one done and I have an idea for blogpost number two so see you then!