Introducing Pencil Me In...

Today is a fun group post with the Papertrey Ink team, and we are all introducing some cute new products that are great for personalizing gifts for your little book worms or your favorite teachers.

First up is a quick card. I used the new Pencil Me In stamp set and Pencil Me In Patterned Paper Collection on the card. The edge of the card was cut with the new Moments Inked: Edged die. The pencil on the card was die cut with the Pencil Me In dies.

Also above you can see some customized pencils I made. The cute patterned papers I used, Pencil Papers Patterned Paper Collection, are adhesive-backed and have a little open label where you can stamp a name or icon on the front. I used the Pencilgrams stamp set to stamp my daughter's name (Kati) on all of the labels before wrapping them around my pencils. What's fun is there are other icons in the stamp set, one of them being a heart, and Kati always signs her name with a heart at the top of her "i". So I had to replicate that on her pencils! She'll love it!

Write Stuff card and Customized Pencils:
STAMPS: Pencil Me In, Pencilgrams
INK: Aqua Mist, Orange Zest, Classic Kraft, True Black, Hibiscus Burst, Pure Poppy
PAPER: Pencil Me In papers, Hawaiian Shores
DIES: Pencil Me In
OTHER: Copic Markers.
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Last is a felt pouch made with the new Pencil Pouch dies and Papertrey Ink felt = Lavender Moon and Summer Sunrise. My pencil pouch was made to fit over the cover of my PTI planner. Actually I would consider it more of a "pen" pouch, with it's shorter length. Pens fit perfectly. It has magnets stitched in under the circles to hold it closed.

Erin has a terrific video that you must bookmark if you are going to make one of these. She explains it so well, and I followed her instructions exactly. A couple of tips for you to keep in mind while you are making one of these: one is to mark your magnets that you'll be using (if you are using magnets to hold it closed like I did on mine) with a + and - so you'll know which side up when placing them in the spots where they get sewn in. I found some tiny magnets at Michaels by ProMAG. They are 1/4" and strong enough to stick to each other through the two layers of felt. (Couldn't find the Basic Grey ones locally that she used.)

And second, the magnets WILL stick to your needle, so stitching them in can be a challenge! My needle constantly wanted to stick to the magnet! My tip here is to stitch the circles on at least half way and then insert the magnet and stitch the rest of the circle. It's a little bit easier than having your needle pulled by the magnet the whole time you are trying to stitch the circles on. (Watch Erin's video - she will explain the directions much better.) :)

This pouch was made with an elastic band that wraps around my planner cover and holds it on, just like Erin did in her video. (My rectangles on the back are orange to match the circles in the front, sorry I forgot to get pics of the back of it.) I love it! So much fun. It's a happy little pouch.

Pencil Pouch:
STAMPS: none
INK: none
PAPER: none
DIES: Pencil Pouch dies
OTHER: Papertrey Ink felt, floss, magnets.
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Be sure to visit the rest of the Papertrey Ink team to see more with these new products!

Nichole Heady
Amy Sheffer

Ashley Newell

Betsy Veldman
Dawn McVey
Heather  Nichols
Laura Bassen
Laurie Willison
Maile Belles
Melissa Phillips

keeping organized and accountable...

Well, have you recovered from the February release yet? I've been so inspired by all of the new products this past month and projects by the team. And I'm ready to see what's next! Are you?

I've finally started writing in my new Moments Inked planner after three weeks. I think I feared it because I wasn't sure what I'd use it for. Laundry? Dishes? My life is pretty boring outside the occasional school play and dentist appointment, ya know? But I decided it would hold me accountable for exercising and meal planning (or just being more aware of what I eat, as I can keep track). So far, so good! Did over 9 miles the past 3 days on the treadmill and am eating healthier, and now I can be proud to write in those accomplishments! It's holding me accountable, which I love! If you want to read more about the planner, visit this link: Moments Inked Planner.

I've also been working on photographing my cards for the Craftsy class, so if you are taking the class be sure to check into the Class Project section to see them in closer detail. And please, please upload your cards as well! I want to see them! If you haven't purchased the class and still want to, you can still get 1/2 off by clicking here: Cards With Dimension: Lovely Layers, Textures and Embellishments.

This is one of the cards I made as an extra sample to share at the end of the "Machine Stitching chapter". There are 7 lessons with about 3 chapters in each lesson. I make one card in each chapter (= about 21 new cards you'll see me create on camera) and then at the end of each chapter, I share at least 3 MORE card ideas using those skills in that particular chapter (= over 75 cards shown in my class)!

On this card, I've used a Pink Paislee - Color Wash paper in the background, Beautiful Butterflies dies by Papertrey Ink and a sentiment from Feather Finery.

Winter has finally hit Colorado, and we've been getting snowfall after snowfall this month! I'm so ready for spring and colorful flowers, bright green grass and spending time outdoors again. How about you?