Tips on Organization

I mentioned in the last newsletter that I was interested in your organization tips. I mentioned how well the Clip-it-Up worked for decluttering my scrap space, and I wanted to know what worked for you. Here are a few tips from our customers:

You can use the Cricut to cut out letters to put on the tabs for the Clip it Up. The Making Memories spinning carousel is great for markers, glue, scissors etc. I have storage bins for my papers and have arranged them according to theme. Also the Art Bin plastic containers are a way to store your scraps, arrange according to color or theme. Buy more than one and have extra plastic dividers to divide the sections. - Alicia F.

I love the Crop in Style storage cubes! The file cube holds completed layouts that have not yet made their way into albums. The drawers are labeled with their contents: loose stamps, paper trimmers, etc. Large tools, such as a heat gun, have their own drawer. I keep pictures and certificates for specific events in paper holders for each of my four children until I can scrap them. That way, the pictures don't get separated from the memorabilia, and then everything becomes a bottomless pit. The large cubes hold fabric and yarn for sewing projects, and I keep my writing utensils in cups on top of the units. I also have a pegboard, which I painted to match my decor, and it holds jars of loose items and spools. My embellishment containers and stamp kits are in a Crop in Style cube which has shelves in it. I keep my patterned paper and cardstock in paper holders in a large bookcase, organized by color. - Mary B.

Large metal rings work well for organizing your packaged embellishments. You can hook them all on rings, grouped by brand or theme, to keep them together. I then keep the rings in baskets in my craft space. - Sue S.

Here's an addition: The bottom line for me is filing everything by topic, just like Chris's store. This system has worked beautifully for me for years. I used to use the old Cropper Hopper Sticker envelopes, which worked great, but then I ended up with too much stash. Now I use these cool, large, sturdy bags with real zippers. The bags are quite big and have a good 2 inch section above the zipper at the top that is colored. I keep Anna's stuff in the green bags, and Jack's stuff in the orange bags (their favorite colors). All other categories like birthday, Halloween, Fall, Thanksgiving, Easter/Spring, Pool/Summer, etc. are in the yellow bags. So essentially I have a whole bunch of "kits" in my cropping cart and I have a green, orange, and yellow section. I go to that section, grab the bag I want by vendor (like Zach's Life) or theme (like girly flowers) and crop away. All my "kits" are in my cart and remain there always; I always crop right out of my cart. When I purchase new items, I try to faithfully file them away in the bags. For other non descript items that are not boyish or girlish, that could go with anything, I do have a ribbon box, a misc. embellishments box, and tote bags that hold all my scrap pads of 12x12 paper that are not theme related. Organization is everything. Filing by topic for me helps me to get what I want, crop, and move on without finding some great embellishment after the fact that I could have used! Also, having your stuff filed by topic allows you to lug less stuff to crops. If you are working on Oct to Dec photos, you bring the Halloween, Fall, and Xmas bags and leave summer, spring, Easter, Valentines day behind. I now have so many bags that I have two carts filled and I bring my Anna/Jack bags to all crops and just bring whatever "other" bags I need leaving one cart at home! - Renee B.

These are some great ideas! What do you think? Vote for your favorite idea by posting a comment, and I'll give the on with the most comments a prize. Happy organizing!

Another interesting blog...

One of our customers, Beckie Thompson, recently started her own blog, and I think it's one worth visiting. She posted photos of her scrapbook space, and I have to give kudos (I love the shabby chic, obviously). But she also gets to meet some interesting people, so it's a good read. You can find her blog at http://www.beckonmelrose.blogspot.com/.

Do you know of a scrapper's blog worth mentioning? I'd be interested in hearing about it.

New Making Memories Passport line & more Thickers

We just received the new Passport line from Making Memories, and the whole thing is amazing! There are die-cut papers, most travel-related, all adorable. The embellishments come in a little suitcase, and the kits are wonderful. Erin loves the canvas flowers, too. The stamps coordinate with the Passport line, and there are some other amazing sets. They've come out with their own acrylic stamp binder and blocks (very cool). We also received their new line of alpha stickers - felt, puffy & mini shimmer! Fans of MM letters - these are a must see!

We also got the whole new line of Glitter Thickers from American Crafts - too many to choose from, so I got 'em all! Stop in soon to check it all out!

It's Official

Ok, I've kept a lid on this for a while, and only those who have asked about it already know. But we're getting close now, so I can let you know that Scrappy Chic is expanding! We are adding on the empty unit south of us, which will add both retail space and a classroom (and 2 more bathrooms -hooray!). We're very excited about the space, and I couldn't have done it without my Mom! She's done so much work over there (most of it by herself), so be sure to give her a pat on the back when you see her. Look for some changes over the next couple weeks as we cut openings to connect to the other side. We just have some finish work to complete, and you'll be able to take a peek. I'll keep you posted as we get closer to opening it all up!

I See the Signs!

On our street, that is. It's been over 1 1/2 years, but we finally got a street sign on 8 Mile! I'm so excited, and we're currently the only ones on it! But it's a wonderful sight. Now those who don't know where we are can find us!

All Kinds of New!

Here are several images of what's come in this week... We have the new flocked line from Doodlebug - solid flock, patterned flock & flock in jars - Cherry Arte (new to us), Scenic Route & Rusty Pickle red white & blue lines, new (gorgeous) chipboard designs from Tattered Angels, new Happy line from Cosmo Cricket, and Jet Setters state/country stickers from Reminisce. I'll let the photos speak for themselves.

Pics of New Products

Ok, I had a chance to take a quick photo of some of the new Prima products we received (Staci style photo). We still have quite a few boxes of deliveries to get through, so keep an eye out for more new product this weekend.

An interesting blog...

I came across a blog posting today that really caught my eye. Sarah Hodsdon is a mixed media artist in Michigan. She happened to be blogging about the closing of Scrap Tales, and had some great things to say - things I think everyone should keep in perspective. Thanks, Sarah, for understanding why/how small businesses exist. You can find the blog posting here:
http://sarah-n-dipitous.typepad.com/sarahndipitous/2008/05/farewell-to-scr.html?cid=116108534#comments

New Prima & Home Accents in Stock

We received a new shipment from Prima yesterday, but it's still in the box (we had an abundance of deliveries!). We also received the remaining shipment of Cricut cartridges, which includes Home Accents. Get yours while they last!

I'm a busy gal...

Which is why I haven't blogged in a week. Now that the Yard Sale is complete, I can move on to new projects, some small and some very large. Speaking of new, here's what we've received since my last post: Fancy Pants clears - full sheets and small die cut layovers w/glitter - a new line of Soft Spoken embellishments (not like the older ones at all), the new Helen Dardik line of baby paper & stickers from Creative Imaginations, K & Co. Exposed mini book kits, and some new Tattered Angels chipboard shapes and Glimmer Mist. We are now carrying the Epson PictureMate Zoom, which is the portable, high-quality photo printer that comes with the CD reader/burner. This post, even as packed full as it is, will be short & sweet. School wraps up this week, so I will try to stay on top of blogging, but I think I need to teach my son how to type so he can do it for me. Wouldn't that be nice?

New Flair Designs Paper

We received the new Keep On Cooking line from Flair Designs today! It's adorable. There's even a recipe cards page, salad paper, spice gardening and pasta papers... yum!

Scrappy Chic's Bus is Full!

I spent the day at Mega Meet on Saturday, which the girls from Maggie's Scrapbooking made fun. We signed up many people over the weekend for the Summer Fling Shop Hop, and the bus leaving from Scrappy Chic is now full! Hooray! If you'd still like to participate, we will have a bus leaving from Scrapbookers, Inc. in Commerce, on which there are still seats available. You can sign up at Scrappy Chic for the other buses, but keep in mind you'll be departing from a different location. That's ok, though - they are also a fun store, and they're only about 25 minutes from our store. I'm really looking forward to the bus tour, and wish I could go along for the ride! But I'll be at the store to make your event run smooth!

More Creative Imaginations

We got a very cool shipment of Creative Imaginations products last week. They include Old Guys Rule (think old beer t-shirt), Aged to Perfection (2-sided modern birthday paper), more cooking paper/stickers and Holey Cardstock from Samantha Walker.

We also got some new shimmer papers from Sticker King, which are great affordable sparkle papers. We also received an assortment of embellishments from American Crafts which coordinate with the ones we already carry - you should stop in to check them out! I received notices that we'll be receiving several shipments this week, so keep your eyes peeled for new products!

New Heidi Swapp, Tim Holtz, Jenni Bowlin too!

We got a few things in yesterday and today. The rest of our new Heidi Swapp & Tim Holtz products finally arrived, and they are cool! Felt flowers & butterflies, large foam alphas to coordinate with the 3 new Heidi Swapp lines are here, as well as more of the new Idea-ology line from Tim. I also noticed the box with the new Jenni Bowlin line in it - way too cute! It's red, cream & navy, scalloped & more.

I'll be at Mega Meet on Saturday from 10-5 promoting our bus tour. If you're planning on being there, stop in and see me at Maggie's Scrapbooking (booth 412). We'll be giving away a prize to one lucky winner each day who's interested in the shop hop! Of course, you'll have to stop by the booth for details.

Delightful & Elsie are Here

We received a couple new lines today. We have the new Little Yellow Bicycle Line called Delightful from Sharon Ann (adorable). Plus, we received our first products from Love, Elsie - Forrest and Daisy (puppy lovers beware the cuteness!).

We also got some Making Memories stock back in that's been out for a while, like the Desktop Organizers - in white - along with some more 5th Avenue journaling books! Get 'em while they're here.

National Scrapbooking Day Coming Saturday!

If you haven't checked out our schedule for Sat 5/3 yet, be sure to read up here. We've got tons of specials and demos planned for, including several make & takes! We've added a few since I sent out the email about NSD. We'll be demonstrating products in the afternoon as well, like Grungeboard make & takes and more! We have some featured items on sale, like the Cricut & cartridges (yes, the new Solutions ones), ArtBin large storage containers, Fiskars Stamp Press, Making Memories & XXL Totes and Rollers. You should plan on stopping in on Saturday to check it all out. But don't worry - if you can't make it Saturday, you can still save on deals all day Sunday.

Plus, have you heard what we're doing on Friday? One cropper will win 1/2 of all their merchandise for the evening FREE! How cool is that?! But you have to sign up to participate, so call to reserve your spot.

So Many Deliveries

And so little time. We're working hard trying to get things ready for this weekend (National Scrapbooking Day), and have received a ton of deliveries of goodies to put out (and put on sale)! In the midst of all this, we also received some new items, like paper and (heavy duty) acrylic tabbed albums from ScrapWorks. We also have the new Making Memories Noteworthy 2 line - so awesome!!! We have some new desktop supply totes, more Cuttlebug dies & embossing pockets, and the Bo Bunny Stamp & Store acrylic stamp sets. We also have the Epson Zoom printers in stock. These retail for $199.99, and allow you to do everything our other printers did, plus read from and write to a CD! Make plans to stop in this weekend and check it all out!