Social {Media} Butterflies Jan Blog Hop | Time

Hi all! Suz here joining in with Shay and the other SMB contributors on this month's blog hop!

Here is this month's blog roll:


Jenny Gecos
Ellie Augustin
Kristin Doughtie Long
Corinne Smilovici
Malika Kelly
Shay Tibbs
Trisha Grace Galang
*Kristin Tweedale
>>>YOU ARE HERE>>>>>>>Suz Mannecke
Amanda DeJong


**Note:If you are following along the hop, you came here via the lovely Kristin Tweedale's blog. If you are just getting started, be sure to stop back at the SMB website and hop along from the beginning here: http://socialmediabutterflies-papercrafting.blogspot.com !)

This month our Creative Team has been focusing on something we all wish we had more of; TIME.
I don't know about you, but I am constantly wishing for more!! Seems like there is never enough time in my day to get to all of the things I need to do and then the things I want to do! So this month I have been focusing on finding more time by participating in the "30 days 30 Bags" challenge that has been posted on Instagram and other Social Media Sites. The basic premise of this challenge is to go through one's house, garage, etc and gather 30 bags of items to donate, sell, or throw away within those 30 days. Now, granted, I didn't read anywhere that one had to complete these 30 days consecutively (ahem) so I am doing my best to keep on track but if I miss a few days here or there and I end up taking 45 days to complete the challenge? Well, I am confident I will still be pleased and happy with the results of my efforts. And I am certain I will then have more time in my life for work + play. And that, makes this busy momma happy. If you decide you want to join in on this challenge, follow others and myself along this journey on Instagram/Twitter with the hashtag "#30days30bags. Feel free to link me up here in the comment section with your progress. :)

Also, another way I have found to stay on track in my day and to save time in one area  AND to make time in another, is with cleaning and tech time. Basically, I set a timer for 20 minutes to check email, surf etc. When the timer is done, I move on to the next chore, say folding laundry. This really helps me keep on task and not procrastinate. Do I do this every single day? No. (But let me tell you, the days I do??? SOoooo much more productive!)  BTW:**I first heard of this idea at flylady.net I believe. She has lots of helpful everyday hints there. ;)

Now, on to a few scrappy items related to time.  :)
First up is a quick card I made from the upcoming February@lbdkitclub (which is fabulous and has some of the latest CHA releases in it).

 I love that the dimensional heart collapses for easier mailing. ;) The hearts are a little rugged as they were cut with an exacto knife from some patterned paper; but I like the effect with the kraft paper and the design. This card saved me time as I made it from remnants of other layouts and projects I was working on! ;)



And some sneaks of a layout created with Little Black Dress' Feb Kit whose journaling focuses on how things change and don't change with time. :)

Here's to finding more time in your day. Hope you have had fun hopping along here today and picked up a few little nuggets that might just help you shave time off in the work area and more time into you play time. ;)

I will be hosting an Instagram giveaway today, with some new CHA releases. Be sure to follow me along on Instagram and Twitter "@SuzMannecke" and #SMBiGbloghop for a chance to win. Tag a friend and have them follow me and they could win some goodies too!

Have a beautifully productive, time-saving day! :)
xoxo
Suz

CHA-W 2013

Hi All1 I had hoped to get a blog post up whie I was away at CHA-W 2013 Anaheim, but alas it did not happen. Hopefully you followed along with me anyway on Instagram.

CHA, Craft and Hobby Association, for those who are unaware, is the largest craft and hobby convention going. (At least I believe it to be true). The winter show has been said to be decidedly larger than the summer, which has most often been held in Chicago. Having now been to both locales, I would concur. It is an absolute overload of crazy creative people and products all crammed into one huge convention center that lasts for several days. And it is this life artist's idea of heaven on earth. One cannot help but leave there seriously inspired and seriously overstimulated by all of the creativity housed there.

Anyways, there is so much crammed into the days one is there, that I really can't give it the proper accolades, but I will try to share a few (or many) pics I took along the way.

From my airport shuttle window:

 My lovely roomies for the week; Sweet Shay and Sweet Sierra:

 The huge convention center:

 First off, never in my life have I met soooo many crazy talented people, with crazy sweet, kind and lovely personalities! I felt it such and honor and a privilege to have met each and every one of them.

Meeting up with Ali Edwards and Katie? A dream come true. They are the epitome of authentic. True blue lovely human beings. Loved our chats. So seriously inspired in their presence.

 (My other new to "real life" scrappy friends from the @Studio Calico community; Malika and Sweet Sierra. So crazy fun getting to know you in real life. So excited about the future of Social {Media} Butterflies with you on board Mal!

And this was my scrappy partner in convention crime (JK) for the day; seriously talented and uber sweet; Allison Waken. You know when you meet someone in real life and they are just what you imagined they'd be? Yep. That's Allison. Serious Soul Sisters here; (and obviously I am the oldest sister! LOL) Non stop laughter and giggles. Especially the pocketbooth outtakes. Seriously could not stop laughing. Great times.

 Moving on to the Studio Calico Crew (well -quite a few of them anyways) along with Freckled Fawn's lovely and hysterically funny "Doe", Shanna Noel (another of my Soul Sisters) self, April Foster (sweet as southern syrup, beautiful, and the genius that is Studio Calico), Sweet Sierra, crazy fun and lovely Lisa Mack, the one and only Miss Amy Tangerine, Sweet Shay and the gorgeous and uber talented Maggie Holmes.

{You are starting to understand the inspo overload now-yes? And I am just getting started!}

 Stephanie Howell. What can I say? She was so darling and witty and funny. A true gem. Loved that she was there and that I got an opportunity to say hellp and chat for a bit.

 And my stunning Sista from another mother; Miss Ashley. You know when you feel loved? When someone you haven't seen for two years sneaks up behind you at a trade show, gives you a huge hugs and proclaims how much she loves you. Yeah. I was blushing. But admittedly, it feels so good to feel loved. Love you Ash! Miss you already!

 And miss Emily Pitts. We were seriouslyy both so happy to catch up with one another after one huge CO snowstorm and one crazy Christmas season cut our plans to meet up in Denver shot. "No worries, though, we said, there's always CHA." Indeed! I could not love this girl more. She. is. awesome!

Every time I walked past this icon in the industry's booth she was busy. Understandably so with the huge launch of several sets of Project Life kits and the partnership with American Crafts and Studio Calico. 

Becky Higgins? Genius meets genuine. Couldn't make for a more perfect combo. When I finally got the nerve to say hello, it was towards the end of the show and it was just Becky and two others in the booth. She wasn't rushed and we got a chance to talk about her brother whom she lost to cancer only a few months ago and my sister whom I lost to pneumonia secondary to chemotherapy treatment wiping out her immune system. 

Heartfelt words and moments of human bonding. 

Truly special. 

Another human being I highly respect and look up to. 

All the best to you Becky. All the best! 

Continued prayers for David's brother. 

Truly.

So that was just a few of the mannnnnyyy lovely old and new friends I met. I will be back with another post soon of the rest of the CHA gang and some product pics!

For now, I must finish the unpacking, the laundry, the bill paying. Back to reality. Back to life as I know it. Have a lovely day!

xoxo Suz

CHA-W 2013 Bound to So Cal | Little Black Dress Jan Kit

Hi All! Stopping by really quick as tomorrow I leave for So Cal and CHA-W 2013. This has been on my Bucket List for several years now, so I am really stoked that I can check it off my "to do" list. But I am here to show you the designs I have created(so far) with January's kit. As you may already know, the kit has arrived a bit late, but it was well worth the wait! Trust me? One of the gems of this kit, besides all of the pretty Glitz designs and pp? The Studio Calico woodgrain roller date stamp. Oh yeah!! Swooning here!

So, moving along, here are my designs:

Loved the Flakey woddgrain Thickers in the kit and the Studio Calico Abroad pp along with Allison Kreft Everyday Eclectic herringbone. I punched out the circle sentiment from the Glitz stickers (it was a doily) to mimic the Florida sun. I popped up the top of the palm tree and the photo for added dimension and to make the pic stand out a bit more. Journaling is on the shipping tag tucked behind the red pp.

This layout was inspired by the GLitz sentiment sticker for the title. I have made a goal to read 26 books this year. I love to read but oftentimes my other recreations get in the way...like scrapbooking, tennis, taekwondo, the lake. Ahem. Still love to get carried away in books though. The people, the places, the fiction! :)

 I used the roller date stamp on the cut up pieces of the Studio Calico Yearbook paper and layered. Silhouette die cut was cut up even more to make the little chevron arrows. (Click on pics to view larger).

 This layout was inspired by the "I Promise" Glitz sticker. Initially I was going to scrapbook about me and my oldest leaving the hospital as I remember thinking as we left the hospital and the 90 degree plus heat hit our faces, the feeling that I would do anything to protect him, to keep him safe, and to take on the world with him. But then, I came across these pics of my boys with my Mick, sharing time together at baseball games (one professional) and my nephew's T-ball game, and I knew they needed to be scrapped. Plus, the pp was begging for masculinity! :) First I cut out the Silhouette globe die and then used the negative to mist a blue circle.Then I place the positive image (the globe die) over it and adhered. I adhered the cool Glitz garland around the globe, added some layers, title work, and journaling (again with the shipping tag) to the layout.

*note: The Geo tag stamp "We Are Here" is a Studio Calico stamp and is not included in the kit.

Did I mention I am also testing for my recommended black belt tonight and fly out to Cali tomorrow morning? Yep. Still packing and practicing my form meaning and forms.

Gotta run. Seriously!

Please let me know what you want to see from CHA and check my Twitter and Instagram feed for the latest and greatest products being debuted. I will try to post here to if I can steal a few minutes away! 

My user Id is: SuzMannecke (no spaces)

Have a beautiful weekend everyone. See ya on the flip side! :)

Suz

Social {Media} Butterflies December Blog Hop | Goals/Resolutions

Hi All! Hope you are enjoying some time with family over the holidays and that you are also geting soe scrapping in! ;) If you have been hopping along, you got here via the lovely & talented Kristin Tweedale. If you are just getting started be sure to head over to the Social {Media} Butterflies blog and start at the beginning! :) Here is the blog hop order for this month:

Trisha Grace Galang
Shay Tibbs
Amanda De Jong
Jenny Gecos
>>>you arrived via Kristin Tweedale if you have been hopping along ;)
>>>>>>>>YOU ARE HERE Suz Mannecke

This month, we "Butterflies" have been working on layouts/projects that get us thinking about the new year. For my contribution, I decided to create a layout that documented some resolutions, goals, or things I want to work on in the coming 365 days.
Sorry the pics are all rotated. Working on correcting now. I plan to add a pic taken on 01.01.13 to the little Polaroid frame. ;)

I cut the title out with my Cameo and placed the POW paper beneath the chevron pp for added dimension.

I decided to break into my recently acquired Scrapperin products (Felicitas Klink-you rock it girl!) and my Studio Calico starburst mask. Lots of stamping, misting and a bit of layering here and there. And of course I had to turn my Cameo on and cut into some of that gorgeous POW paper. Love the special effect it gives to this layout celebrating a new year of resolutions! My journaling was done in silver gel pen as I wanted my resloutions to show up subtly on the layout. Lots of stamped arrows. Lots of stamping in general (ha!)

Anyhoo, what are your goals, dreams, and/or resolutions for this year? Have you written them down? Were you specific? **I've been told that the more specific you are, the more likely you are to achieve them. Or at least to come close!

Thanks for stopping by today. Please be sure to head on over to Corinne's blog for a looksee at what she is resolved to do in 2013! And leave her and the others a little love to welcome in 2013 while you are at it!
xoxo 
Suz

Guesting Today at October Afternoon

Hi All! Stop on over to the October Afternoon blog today where I have a holiday layout up and several images from my "25 Days of December Merry" album. Hope your visit leaves you a bit inspired to scrap today!

BBL with some pics of our Christmas Colorado Trip and some more Dec Daily pages!!!

Hope y'all are enjoying time with friends and family! :)

October Afternoon LAST & BEST Santa Sack! On Sale Now

While they last! Get your's here:http://octoberafternoon.typepad.com/october_afternoon/2012/12/week-5-santa-sack-is-available-now.html#comments

I have purchased these Santa sacks in the past, and they never disappoint~ especially the last one! :)
Happy shopping! Merry Christmas! Happy Hanukkah!

Guest Designing for October Afternoon :)

I was beyond excited when Kim, Creative Director for October Afternoon, contacted me and asked if I'd like to guest design for the month of December.

Would I? Umm..yes please!!!!  I l-o-v-e crafting for the holidays! Pair that with all of October Afternoon's scrapbooking goodness and you have the perfect way to get into the Christmas spirit!

If you are at all like me, you have been anticipating the arrival of the holiday season and have been bustling around shopping for gifts, trimming the tree, sipping some cocoa ... and hopefully, setting aside some time for holiday merry “crafting!"

In the past month, I have been busy channeling my inner holiday s{ELF} in my scrap studio.  The bad news?  My studio has officially been categorized as being in a disastrous state of creative chaos; Category 5.  (My family will whole-heartedly concur with this categorization). The good news is, I will spare you the frightening photos of said space (eep!) and instead, show you the photos of the result of the perfectly imperfect creative storm. J

To start things off, I created this home decor mixed media owl canvas.(*For those of you who follow my blog or Social Media Butterflies-you already got a peak at this little fella). ;)

 I have an affinity for owls, so it only seemed logical that I would craft up an owl for the h{owl}idays. (*Now the blog post title makes a bit more sense, yes?)

This little fella was created with lots of Make It Merry and a bit of Holiday Style. I used a few Silhouette die cut designs to create him. I began with hand cutting a basic owl form from my favorite wood grain card stock and some pretty patterned paper for his beak, face, and wing.  Then I cut two leaf Silhouette dies, and trimmed off the stems for his "eyebrows."  For his eyes, I used the adorable rub-on OA red snowflakes to mimic pupils and irises.  I layered a die cut snowflake with a doily, patterned paper and that adorable holly Tin Pin.  A bit of machine and hand stitching was added for dimension. And for his tail feathers, I created a chevron pattern with my Silhouette Cameo, duplicated it three times, and then grouped them together and cut.  And here he sits, at his perch, on the wall of my scrap studio.

Moving on to a traditional layout.  First, I spray misted the background cardstock with a few whites to mimic snow falling. Then, I opened up my Silhouette library and found this design of nested circles.  Little bits from the Very Merry December Mini Book Kit were added into the circles. Silver Zing embossing powder was applied to the chipboard bell and number. And a touch of Stickles (glitter glue) was added to the snowflakes and gift in Santa's bag.  Love adding little extra touches like that. And lastly, a little hand embroidery in metallic silver thread finishes off this layout about my boys and their contagious holiday spirit!

Next up? Several gift wrap items. Many of which took only a few extra minutes to make but added a nice little handmade touch.

When I saw this little metal woodgrain gift box on Amazon, I knew I wanted to alter it. Here is what it looked like before alteration and most of the supplies/tools I used:
I simply cut a small piece of patterned paper to cover up the Amazon logo,(because I want it to be a bit of a surprise where the gift is from) adhered it to the gift box, and embellished. Quick, easy, and oh so merry!

I recycled and altered this fun wood grain gift bag as well. (Evidently, not only do I have an affinity for owls, but wood grain items too!)

Below is a fun and functional gift. A festive holiday-patterned chevron beverage container, chock full of some Dove Peppermint Bark Promises. Included in this design from the Make It Merry line is the flag, candy cane die cut, bow sticker, green ribbon and "Make It Figgy Pudding" patterned paper from the 8x8 paper pack.  I definitely will be making a few more of these!

Entering upon the aforementioned Category 5 Creative Chaos, my dear hubby asked if I would create some cards/envelopes for his reps/colleagues gifts. I got straight to work (as all good lil’ elves do) and opened up my Silhouette library to a gift card die, customized it with the "joy" text, grouped the design together, and cut.

I stamped the "Seasons Greetings" sentiment and adorably cute Santa (from the exclusive stamp set in the Very Merry December Mini-Book Kit) on some Project Life grid cards, and added Make It Merry washi tape to the bottoms of each card as well as to the back of each envelope.

Since my youngest son is completely engrossed with origami, my brain has been positively saturated with inspiration to draw from! This ornament was a result of that inspiration. I watched a You Tube Video of how this star pattern is created and set to work.  Then I added a doily, baker's twine, and Tin Pin from the mini-book kit, a bit of Stickles/glitter glue to some of the snowflakes and called it done! I’m definitely planning on making more of these and getting my boys involved! These would also make for a lovely bow atop a gift.

Next up? A quick card that was made using the Make It Merry banners to form the mosaic star. A bit whimsical, yes?

And lastly, a mini album of December Instagrams that I will be completing throughout the holiday season.  At the heart of this mini is the sheet of the "Make a Countdown" patterned paper cut into squares and backed with machine-stitched paper squares for added support. The cover of this mini is made from wood veneer shapes I spray misted and added a red book ring to. Each day I am adding one Instagram pic to the mini. I plan to have family members take a few pics to get them involved too.  Such a simple, totally doable, efficient way to document December (daily)in a "very mini" way!

So, that's it for today! I will be back next week with a post on the other mini album I am working on; the Very Merry December Mini-Book, as well as several cards, layouts and other home decor items.

(If you simply can't wait until then to see more October Afternoon scrappy goodness, follow  me on Twitter and Instagram (user ID "SuzMannecke -no spaces) for extra sneaks.

Happy holiday merry "crafting" to you all! See you next week!

- Suz