a day for me {us}

a day for me.... well actually a day for us. the sweet little notepad below is my inspiration for this post. when i saw it yesterday at anthropologie i just couldn't pass it up. the kraft paper is such a trend right now and i decided to do a small journal/scrapbook about all the "days i take just for myself" and what i do on those days. yesterday my mom, sister and i all went to cinci for a few appointments and made a shopping day of it. what a blast!

we visited so many of our favorites, it was almost too good to be true: anthropologie, pottery barn, west elm, restoration hardware, tj maxx, ikea

i finally caved and splurged on this candle i have loved for a long time at anthropologie. the lid is very ornate and the soft pink etched glass is dreamy. not to mention the scent, there are no words for how lovely this candle smells. heavenly. i also couldn't pass up these great turquoise knobs. i don't even know what piece i can use them for, but they called to me.

couldn't help ourselves at Restoration Hardware. this amazing little basket is soon to be my tool basket for my scrap studio. the 3 section basket can move around to whatever suits you best. there were 6 or so colors to choose from. i chose celery, mom = pink, and kristyn snatched up the aqua. what a useful find.

decided to paint stripes in my living room ...finally. chose a delicious color called SLATE from Restoration Hardware to add to the existing SILVER SEA background. pictures soon to come.

a must have design book for interior decorating. my favorite part? i love the way it sums up different "styles". with this book's help i now have a name for my style. vintage bohemian.

as promised to beth....i am posting some pics of my funky kitchen and style. sorry it took so long! this piece i love love love. it is the perfect color and size for my kitchen. i have looked a long time for something that would work in there. it now houses my wine glasses and mugs....clearing much needed space for the rest of my dishes.

not the best photo of my couch, but you get the idea. funky yellow floral print with blue accent. it is actually really comfy. also...that yellow bench is from BLOOMSBURY LOFT and has some hilarious history. love things like that. that particular bench was salvaged from a YMCA men's locker room. lots of CLOROX later...perfect.

another view of my new blue piece and kitchen.

what a mess...oh well. anyway i decided some time ago to have things around that make me smile. that explains why i have pendant banners hanging for no particular occasion and my shabby tree is still up.

soon to be striped living room. enjoy. more posts to come....very soon

so sorry. a thousand times sorry.

We are back! It has been a long beautiful summer...in which I have been so busy I have neglected this poor little blog. We are very sorry...but be assured there is more to come and much more often. I have soooo many delicious ideas to post for you from the latest convention. Also the new shop is blossoming with lovely things more and more each day. Come on by, check us out. New items are arriving daily.I do not believe I have ever posted photos of the new shop....

so here you go. A buffet of photos for you to enjoy. Hooray.

Our little nook of specialty items. Full of sweet little pieces just waiting for a home. We now sell delicious lotions, box sets of exquisite cards, frames and many things that are perfect for gifts. We are sooo much more than just a "scrapbook shop". We are an hmmmm...

"ALL THINGS THAT ARE LOVELY SHOP"

We love this little vintage bike. The basket is overflowing with the wonderful assortment of posies made just for you by McMaster and Storm. They are great for cards and layouts.

The front counter. Can you tell we adore striped walls???

Brand NEW trims and ribbons have just arrived. Get them while they are here.

You can even pick up a sweet little gift box perfect for those little items at Christmas or Birthdays. And I have to mention the industrial cart. With his sweet orange exterior, he tries to sneak home with me a lot...but he must stay at the shop. We need him there! We found it at one of my very favorite places....Bloomsbury Loft in Powell Ohio. Check them out.

OOoooh and don't forget, banners are so it right now. We have them available for purchase in the shop. Hang them for your next party, or all the time like me!

By the way, classes are in full force at the shop right now. All of your favorite DESIGNERS for live.love.scrap are back in action and we even have some NEW designers. A designer highlight and classes to come....

More views of the shop. Don't forget CROP on Saturdays. 11 am to midnight with your friends. We have space for 11 and they fill up fast as space is limited.

Wanted to sneak in this little layout photo as a teaser of more to come. I LOVED this at the latest convention. It was by a very talented designer at BASIC GREY. They have so many wonderful lines coming soon...look for them at the shop.

found

wow.

today was a one of those days. frustrating, long, exhausting... but productive. this was the LAST week we had before we turn over the keys to the OLD shop. we had lots of STUFF to move out, and we finally finished! 6 people, 2 trucks and determination. so anyway, what does this have to do with "keep calm and carry on" or the title FOUND? ill tell you:

as I said....today was a doozy. the above saying really meant something on this particular day and i kept repeating it in my head! this is soon to adorn the walls at the new shop, just for a sweet little boost. i fell in love with it when i saw it on the MATILDA JANE sight. love their stuff...check them out by the way.

AND...on to the FOUND part. well the day started early and busy. my dog is sick, and my to do list HUGE. i arranged for a group to meet me at the old shop to start the CLEAN UP. i thought i would arrive early and get some things done, but soon realized that my key was nowhere to be found. i decided to kill some time and went across the street to the car wash to clean Nate's truck. i scrubbed and cleaned the outside and interior...was sweating like a maniac and regretting this "time killing project". i was going to skip cleaning the area under his back seat. it lifts up and is usually stuffed with tools. thought to myself, dont be lazy, just clean it. lifted it up and waaa-laa MY LONG LOST CAMERA! have no idea how it made it under there, but so happy to have it back. long story short....more posts to come and photos. hooray.

a lovely town indeed.

{www.curiousgourmetcupcakes.com}

Nate has been in Nashville for the last few weeks on business {actually Franklin}. I ventured down there to surprise him on his birthday and we had a wonderful time! Franklin is a sweet little historic town filled with everything I LOVE! Brick sidewalks, lovely shops and antique markets, cupcake cafes and delicious restaurants! The best part was the homes in the area, lots of wonderful "cottages" straight out of the pages of country living! We definitely found a place we could move to {it made the list} and I would take any of the houses! More pictures to follow. Still need to find that camera!

{lost}

well...here is the truth. I have not been posting lately because i have misplaced my camera. aaaah. i say misplaced because i refuse to believe it is truly lost yet. hope to find it soon, and in the meanwhile i will post with some "ok" shots from my camera phone. blah!

love love love

quick peek at some recent treasures. i love love love this new shop recently discovered with the help of my sweet friends Darcy & Kara of McMaster&Storm. The shop is called Bloomsbury Loft, and they are AMAZING, very creative ladies... in which we hope to do some upcoming events with!

i do, i do. I DO LOVE THIS. someday it may hold a wedding photo...but for now it holds some other sweet items i cherish. hand crafted by Bloomsbury Loft girls. Check out their blog below {and I am going to figure out how to cleverly link people soon, i promise}

also, this vintage aqua dresser has a new home in my studio, and check out the hand painted canvas to the right. wow, i really love these things {so indulgent i know}

and these sweet vintage books found a place in my heart. they have the cutest images, even polka dot pages. and the stripes on the green one...too cute. {its a recipe book!}

{gypsies}

I have always liked that word. My parents called our family gypsies when we were little because we traveled so much....and I love the scrap company 7gypsies. So, when my mom and I found these cute as ever pendants at the Bloomsbury Loft...we fell in love. So today's topic is PENDANTS! The soon to open new shop will carry our handmade pendant banners.

Hard at work in my studio. What a mess!

Sweet banners filled with my favorite fabrics and delicious vintage appeal.

glass glitter, fabric, and stamping...OH MY

We are getting back into the GROOVE. We hope to see you at the new shop. You are going to LOVE it, we do! Don't miss out on May 9 at 10:00am. GRAND OPENING hooray!

{coming along}

wow, it has been a CRAZY few weeks! we have been working like maniacs to get the new shop ready and it is ALMOST complete! we hope you will join us on MAY 9 at 10:00 a.m. to be the first to see our new location. the early birds will receive an exclusive door buster gift. and everyone will receive a chance to win with purchase. win what you ask? you will see!

more photos coming soon. we just had to take a small breather from blogging, but we will be back soon {and better than ever} once all this crazy store opening settles down.

{make 'n' take}

Take a gander at this cute make 'n' take we did Saturday

at the Spring Retreat!

{a little looksy}

Oh my! We have been extra busy getting the new shop together! I apologize for our absence! New and wonderful things are coming together...and we cant wait for the big reveal on MAY 9! Lots of new items are on the way to be featured at the new shop which will be located at....DRUM ROLL PLEASE.

17 w. Main Street in Fairborn, Ohio!

We are very excited about being a part of the downtown atmosphere. And we know it will be an exciting new journey for all of us! Feel free to call us with any questions you may have, and hurry in to the store... WE ARE HAVING A HUGE WALL to WALL CLEARANCE.

all work and no play

we have been scrubbing, priming, painting and building away! we are all sore and a bit weary, but the new shop is coming along! i am so sorry i do not have more to share right now...but there truly has been ALL work and NO play! soon i will post lovely photos and make the formal announcement of where the move is to. also, don't forget...if you sign up for our spring retreat, we will be taking an exclusive tour of the new location!

{for denee}

thought this would be the easiest way to show you the piece! {and let everyone be jealous...cause you get first pick!} you just let me know what you think...so shabby! here is a closer view of the details of it. love love love it! don't get too upset ladies...denee is on the hunt for that "perfect piece"...if this is not the right fit, you can purchase it at live.love.scrap on April 17 & 18 at our vintage trunk show sale.

{ideas}

Realizing today that I have been very busy on other things...I decided to get back to the point a little! IDEAS. So here we go... a bunch of photos for a healthy dose of inspiration. Take an old book and cut your own titles from the pages. It makes the best funky letters, and they will be one of a kind! trace around the edge with a fine sharpie and even doodle a bit on the inner edge. instant amazing-ness.
don't forget to sew. a page really look "done" with a little stitching. also...practice your handwriting and JOURNAL! Find an inspiring shape {mine was a chipboard piece from Crate Paper...trace that shape over and over onto kraft paper, and cut them out. next: layer until you have the desired effect.}

use the small journaling letters from making memories to create a story on your page. they look great sanded or given dimension with glossy accents.

mix it up...if you usually scrap in 12x12: try an 81/2 x 11. It is a fun way to get another look to your designs

ooops. sideways shot. anyway...i love this layout for its simplicity. Many lines have a great piece of "lined journal" pages. just add your photo and a few embellishments , small sentiment and some trims...and its perfect. I framed this one for our office

not finished yet...but this funky picture of my Nana and I was taken in North Dakota. I caught her off guard and told her to look up! She was in the middle of eating a peanut and some of the shell is still on her tongue. As weird as this is...its not a perfect picture, but it is LIFE. It is part of the moment. Remember that, scrap a few of the funky ones...just so you can remember. Also, take notice of the "quilting" effect on the side. Very simple. Perfect for scraps.

So many paper lines have a built in edge that you can use, or a design that can easily be cut into a "paper trim". I love these ones by Sassafras Lass. Layer, sew and go! Easy layout about a funny picture. A.J had been chasing Peanut the dog around since he was able to crawl. She knows the danger of a small kid and how they love to pull...so she darts and runs away! But this split second in time, they came face to face...and we snapped a shot. It was like they forgot their roles for a split second {chaser and runner} and they paused...and then they were off again!

Punches are back baby! pull out those punches and dust them off. I love the scallop circle one... scallops are so it right now! Just punch and cut in half for a sweet little spin on a Christmas Tree.

take a looksy

Sharing a few things around my house today...and a few things from in my headI love this collection on my bar top. An old light fixture serves as a candle holder... love turquoise and birds right now {as you can tell} and a plant that is thriving despite me.

dress up an old lamp before you decide to pitch it. What a great way to save some $ and express your personal style.

And yes...your eyes are not failing you. My tree is still up and I love it! and I think that I should share: its OK for you to leave your tree up all year round, and recently I decided that I am probably going to do just that.

{oh bebe} cards

This is a good argument for keeping your scraps! I pulled together these sweet cards from a pile of scraps hanging out in my "scrap box". I just love the eclectic look this combination of colors gives. Also all the texture from the different trims, punches, staples and of course German foil storks. Also...I wanted to show you how I use the petite posies. I love them!

Check out the mini staples...if you haven't heard of these...you will adore them as we all do. The Italian Stapler comes in 5 lovely colors and fastens beautiful antique gold staples. Call the shop today to get onto our waiting list. They arrive {hopefully} the end of March!

Ooooh. See how sweet the Foil Storks are on this baby card! So chic and lovely, perfect for the special expecting mother. These would be great as shower invites, baby announcements or even just for a single card. Cards available also {already completed} at my etsy shop.

www. etsy.com then check out polkadotowl

{petite posies}

They are back! These sweet vintage style posies are back in the boutique. Our favorite girls from McMaster and Storm met us for a lunch and chat! And hand delivered these favorites to us. There are 10 delicious colors to choose from...for $12 each. Jam packed...so you wont run out anytime soon, BUT you will want to collect all the lovely colors. Perfect addition for any cards or layout, a must have.

{countdown} 58 days

Here it is...the first real hint of where we are moving to. It is a sweet little shop with loads of potential. We have lots of work to do before the grand opening. We cant wait! Can you guess where this may be? Let me know what you think...the reveal is coming soon. I just have to put my thinking cap on for a cutesy way to do it. P.S Only 58 days until the Grand Opening at the new location. So get yourself into the current location to savor the final days!

{sign up for our upcoming IN-STORE RETREATS. The last ones at that shop}

Tip alert! We are making lots of changes at the new space. We even chose the color palette yesterday, which was very exciting. It went from a vision in my head to reality. Now I just cant wait to get my hands on a brush! The Benjamin Moore shop was a blast...and we left with colors like: Pale Avocado, Marry Me & Linen White.