T-Rex.

I've been a busy, busy bee the last few days!! Yesterday (Friday) I went crazy with the heat press and made a ton of stuff. One of the things I made was this wicked T-shirt for a friend's sister, Jessie. Here is my beautiful husband, Adam, modeling the shirt for me!

The front/outside.
He made that face on purpose.
Told you he was beautiful, didn't I? ;)

Aaaaand the inside! 

I double checked that I had the placement right about 298 times. Knowing me, I would've put the T-Rex on the inside of the backside, upside down. That's how brilliant I am. /nods.

I posted this on my business Facebook account and a long-time friend was super excited about it and wanted me to make a bunch of them for her to give as gifts! She said she'll get back to me as soon as she knows the sizes she needs!

Today I used that glitter that I talked about last post. Seven different colors of glitter has now claimed half of my kitchen table, the entire floor beneath it, every piece of clothing I'm wearing, and every inch of my skin. I would agree that

"glitter is the herpes of crafting. It never goes away".

<3

Groups.

It's about time to be honest. I'm just gonna jump right to it and tell you the big secret I've been keeping.

I'm addicted to Silhouette Cameo Creations, a group on Facebook. 

For people that have the cutting plotter, Silhouette, it's for people like those to share ideas, projects, and ask and answer questions and advice. I'm constantly on there, looking at other people's creations and sometimes I offer my wise wisdom to those in need. LOL.

Since being in this group for several months, it has increased my creativity, insight, helpfulness, knowledge, and sheer desire to craft. Happy. has REALLY become a business since I joined. I now have started crafting with vinyl instead of paper. I bought a heat press to make my creations professional instead of mediocre. I've thrown Hobby Lobby out of the window and invited API into my world and made them my best friend. I've created a Facebook site for Happy.. (thought to self: I should've really updated my blog AND FB at the same time to keep up with the blogging half of the world!)

I've invested SO. MUCH. into this, it's crazy and I love it. Sitting behind me are shirts in every size from newborn onesies to adult XL (soon to carry bigger sizes),  wine glasses, towels and towels and towels (dish ones), 2 different kinds of ring dishes, tons of plastic storage bins, stuffed animals, tote bags, tote bags, tote bags, and tote bags (SO many different colors, sizes and even patterns!), and in the kitchen are 72 mugs (red, white, and black) ready to be beautifized!

"Funny story" about those mugs... I opened up the first box and pulled out a mug. There was a giant paint "drip" down the side of it, like the color wasn't even and it looked awful and I couldn't sell that! So I went through that box. And the next one. And of course the next one. I found 24 (ONE THIRD) mugs that were defective, had drips like the one I just described, one had a chip out of it...

Most were not TERRIBLE, but definitely not sell-able!

I ordered everything online, and luckily, after several days, they are re-shipping a full box to me and it should be here in the next few days.

Speaking of the next few days.... Yesterday I asked my Facebook friends to choose a color from these options:

and didn't tell them what it's for (I love doing that). They picked the bright pink on the bottom, the dark purple on top, and then Adam chose the dark blue up top.

I'll be posting what I'm doing with the goods soon! I can't wait!! I love glitter!

<3

Decal.

How to Apply a Vinyl Decal

Forewarning: I suggest you read the entire page before adhering your decal. If you think you don't need to and just slap it on, just let me tell you the number one rule:

GO SLOW!

Step 1: Clean and dry the desired area using rubbing alcohol or soap and water. Do not use Windex or similar products because it will leave a residue behind that will prevent the decal from adhering well. Decals will stick best to clean, smooth surfaces. *This step is crucial for application on things like a mirror because if left, dust will be noticeable on the other side.

Step 2: Rub the decal with the card provided or a credit card to be sure the transfer tape is properly adhered to the graphic. This removes any air bubbles that may have formed and makes the decal cling to the transfer tape.

Step 3: Remove the paper backing slowly, making sure the graphic stays adhered to the transparent transfer tape. If the decal clings to the backing, slowly replace the paper backing and repeat Step 2.

Step 4a: For a "dry" method application, use the card provided or a credit card to make sure the entire graphic is fully adhered to the surface. Don't attach it all willy-nilly, because this will cause bubbles or wrinkles, which will cause you to cry. Make sure you position your decal where you want it before adhering, because once it's down, it's down. For best results, wait 24 hours before moving to the next step.

- - OR - -

Step 4b: For a "bubble proof" application, (and the only application I personally ONLY use),  you can use the "wet" method: Mix 1 cup of cold tap water with one drop of dishwashing liquid (Dawn, Ivory, etc.). I suggest pouring this mixture into a clean spray bottle, though a lint-free rag or sponge can be used instead. Apply the water mixture liberally to the surface to which the decal is being applied. This wet method permits you to work from the center to the outside, smoothing out the decal and eliminating wrinkles or air bubbles.

Once the decal is in place, let it dry for about 15 minutes and then carefully peel off the backing paper. If an edge of the decal lifts from the surface, use the credit card to smooth it back down and wait a couple more minutes for the further drying.

Step 5: Slowly remove the transfer tape at an 180 degree angle, making sure no part of the graphic remains on the transfer tape. If the decal pulls away from the surface, repeat Step 4.

Step 6: Check for air bubbles or wrinkles. In most cases, air bubbles can be worked to the edge of the decal with the card you've been using, but if not, a pin hole will allow the air out and become virtually invisible once the bubble is gone. You can also try to use a hair dryer to heat the surface, and then try to work out the bubbles as before.

Tips:

• Go slow. If you think you're going slow, you're not going slow enough.
• Seriously MAKE SURE that you clean your surface properly. This extends the life of your decal.
• Do not apply in extreme hot or cold temperatures
• If applying to a car, do not wash your car for at least three days after applying the decal, which will permit all of the application fluid to evaporate completely.
• If you need a replacement decal, possibly because you didn't read the instructions ;), you can purchase another one for either half the price you originally paid or at cost of the materials, whichever is greater.
• Go slow.

Let me know if you have any questions!

-T

Email: happyhappytessa@gmail.com

or you can message me on my facebook page: facebook.com/tessaishappy

Enormous.

This turned into an unexpected, unintentional, enormous post. However, I have pretty pictures, and that makes it okay.

I should really be working right now, but I'm not. I'm here to say "TWENTY-FIVE (25) VISITORS ON MY BLOG TODAY SO FAR!" Whuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuut? Since when did I have anyone looking at my blog besides the 52. (52 Reason I Love You) post!? I'm an internet sensation! Ha. I'm hilarious and you know it.

I also see that I'm getting some visitors via Pinterest to my Legoman. post where I shared this awesome card I made for my brother last year:

It's a Lego!

The visits on my Legoman. post are from a pin with over 70 repins! You know what that means? It means that other people like my work. It means I have something in me somewhere that can come up with good stuff now and then. It means that I'm getting better. It means all of the fails for the past (almost) 28 years have been worth it because I have learned from my mistakes and I have grown from them. It means I'm awesome.

How exciting is that?! This used to be a nothing blog. A place where I put my thoughts down and sometimes a picture. I documented a lot about my crafting failures. NO ONE visited my blog. No one except for a dear interweb friend from Australia (I can never spell Australia), Michelle from Amusing Michelle. She's sincerely nice and personable, and very, very good at what she does.

My real joy and excitement in regards to visitors is my Etsy store. One day in June I got 250 views!!!!!211)%$@*&W$)%!!! I have screenshots to prove it! That's a lot for me! I only have a few items in my store, and they're not very common items that everyone is looking for, y'know? 

I just about died when I saw that number go up and up. As you can see, I stayed up past 1:00 A.M. the following day to see what the final number was for that day.

Not only that, but there's a Pinterest pin out there that has 500 some repins! NO JOKE.

----------

I think I've done enough bragging for today. I think now I'll get back to work.

Today will consist of:

• Mailing out a chalkboard coupon book (maybe I'll tell you about that drama tomorrow), which looks a little something like this on the inside:

(I'm paranoid about other people stealing my work, so I put a huge watermark
over any screenshots I take. Sorry for the annoyance.)

• Cutting white vinyl for a HUGE project, which I'll share later,

• Applying to 4 jobs as required by the State of Wisconsin for those unemployed that are receiving unemployment benefits,

• Taking pictures of 2003974 pieces of paper for a custom order to create a custom sized binder. Yes, yes. I have to take pictures of pieces of paper, edit them, upload them to a photo sharing website, then the customer gets to choose what she likes, and THEN I can make the binder. SO. MUCH. WORK. I didn't charge enough... lol...

• Continuing work on my second order of my new Vintage Pink Love Coupon Book (!!!), which will look something like this:

• Sanding a deck of teal colored cards for a 52 Reasons I Love You order, which will look similar to this: 

• Typing reasons into the computer for a reverse blue deck of cards for a 52 Reasons I Love You order, which will end up looking a little something like this:

• Doing other things that I forgot,
• Kicking Nuke (my cat) out of the Craftination Station a few dozen times. He likes my beads. and to jump in my light box. and pens. and my Silhouette Cameo. and stepping on paper. I may or may not want to strangle him sometimes.
• And hopefully I can do the dishes like I've been meaning to for two days. (DO NOT judge me. I will smite you with a curse if you do.)
• Oh, and hopefully do a load of laundry.
• And fold Adam's laundry that he refuses to put away.
• Maybe a little food in there too. 
• Probably a panic attack or three.

If you were me, what priority would you set these items at!? I DON'T KNOW, EITHER! 

/off to go turn in slow circles a few times, trying to figure out what to do first, and then sitting back down with a feeling of dread and hopelessness. Where to begin?

/sigh

Returned.

Well that whole Adoption blog was a bust. I wasn't sure what I could post and if anyone would be interested and if **I** would even be interested... so I never bothered posting anything. lawl.

Despite me deserting my blog for the better part of the year, this place has been quite active. How? Thank you, 52 Reasons I Love You (most colors, blue/teal, & Star Wars)! Dude, those things are so popular! All I did to get where I am was blog about it and link up to 52 Reasons I Love you original maker's website. And because I linked up, tons of people are clicking on my picture and coming to my blog! Not even just that, but some people are going to my Etsy store from my blog! And visitors, as we all know, equals sales (sometimes), which equals money, which equals a newly unemployed Tessa very happy!

There has been SO MUCH crafting going on 'round here. SO MUCH AWESOME with little fails mixed in. Okay, a lot of fail (wait until I talk about the dreadful purple binder). 

I want to document all of this so bad, and I thought Facebook was a decent way of doing so. But it's just not cutting it. I'm pretty sure that I can share whatever I want about my crafts and the sales on Etsy that I've gotten, as long as I don't give names. Right? Does anyone know anything about this? 

Here's to hoping I don't get sued. 

/cheers

Sucks.

Yesterday was a bad day. I was going through photos of my cards and trying to find ones to list on Etsy. I found very few out of a lot of cards. I came to the realization that I make a lot of crappy stuff.

I'm not looking for sympathy here, just stating facts, ranting and moping. That's ok, I suppose. Everyone has their bad days.

When I first started out, I said it was ok because everyone starts out somewhere, and I was convinced that I would grow from everything and make less crappy things. I am reminded of this post where I talked about this image I found on Pinterest:

It's been two years since I posted that. I craft a lot. I guess I should've done more cards, because I do a lot of non-card related crafting and my cards still generally are not good. Maybe they don't super suck some of the time, but the fact that I found very few cards that I felt proud enough to list on Etsy really depressed me!

So yesterday and today I've spent a lot of time stamping. I've thrown out a lot of stuffs. Sucks. I did make one that I am ok with. Not proud, but it's decent I suppose.

Step your game up, Tessa.

In SUPER HAPPY news, my friend in Australia, Michelle, lost her dog, Coco, almost 20 days ago. She was found in a park by a loving family who brought her to RSPCA. Coco didn't have a collar on, but luckily is micro chipped. She was returned to Michelle yesterday. I heard about it on her Facebook page. I was so happy for her that I started bawling. Cried like a baby. Coco has lost so, so much weight but looks so happy to be home.

Michelle, I can't tell you how strangely happy and relieved I am for you.

The. Craftination. Station.

Everybody seems to like uniformity, lots of white (see examples here, here, here, here, here... the list goes on), and probably lots of $$$... probably more of the latter than they will actually admit. Don't get me wrong, I love the look of uniform white with a colorful wall, but it's just not what I choose for myself. Personally, I cannot get enough of color and I seem to have a problem with white. I just want to color it or cover it with pretty fabric or paper. If you were to ask me what my favorite color is, I would answer with "rainbow". Maybe with a slight lean towards red/pink. I like to call my room eclectic. 

Now, I'm going to talk about the entire room because I love it. And what I love, I love to share. And sharing is caring! If you don't care, then *I* don't care. Just peruse the pictures and I'll be none the wiser. Maybe leave me a comment and tell me if you like it and if something inspired you.

Before you get any further, remember that I have slowly accumulated these items in the span of several years. All I did was rearrange and put things in places; I used what I already have on hand.

Also, I apologize in advance:

1. For not being a very good photographer. I only retained so much since my one class in high school;
2. For not having a better camera (although I DO love what I have!);
3. For sucking at editing pictures (I only have the free Photoshop CS2 [if you click on the link, you may have to create a login before you can download]); and 
4. For leaving the lamps on to blind and distract you (although honestly I didn’t have much of a choice… it was nighttime and I refuse to spend additional time with the camera, and also I'm not waiting for this weekend [when I'll be home when there's light outside] to take more photos).

ALAS!

BEHOLD!

THE CRAFTINATION STATION!

Entrance.

Before and After - the entrance.

I'll give you the main walk through before I go into detail about my organization solutions. I think I came up with some pretty nifty things.

The table/main work area.

Before and After - the table!

The computer workstation.

The closet.

Storage - DIY railings and media shelves.

Peace sign wall.

The workstation.

Table shot.

Now, onto the details:

THE PEACE SIGN WALL:

(SHELVES)

I made a whole picture of the peace sign wall, full of arrows and descriptions of what was where, and how this solution to this problem was great, and how these products easily fit in here or there, yadda, yadda, yadda.... but now I see the conversion of large to small for the blog makes the writing so tiny that you can't read it. So... that sucks.

Peace Sign Wall.

So I just numbered a few shelves. That's all you're getting, folks! Four tiny numbers!

1. This damask bulletin board a friend got me when I moved from Colorado to New Jersey when I was 14. Thirteen years later, I still have it! It mostly holds photos from my wedding that I still haven't scrapbooked.
2. This is my solution to Project Life cards. These plastic, stacking bins (as seen here from Office Max) that I got from Hobby Lobby I found are perfect for separating and storing groups of 4x6 and 3x4 vertical, horizontal, multi-directional cards. These bins make it super easy to finger through the cards to find the perfect one.
3. I have too much ribbon. And I keep buying more. I'm addicted. This is one of my ribbon containers. It's an antique wooden box that I got at a thrift store and I love it. It fits in the media shelf perfectly. 
4. I store my embossing powders in a space rack that I purchased on Amazon. I swear I didn't spend that much money on them... but Amazon suggests otherwise?? The powders fit in there with just enough wiggle room! I found that putting glitter in a jar is just a mess and a bad idea all around. Those stay in their original containers.

Other things that these shelves store are my Cuttlebug and plates, some Martha Stewart punches, some fabric flowers, Martha Stewart glitters, glue sticks, Inkadinkado Stamping Gear, etc.

I purchased these black media shelves recently from Walmart for $15 each. I had been looking for a bookshelf with really shallow shelves, but couldn't even find a regular bookshelf that would fit in the area (I thought) I wanted them in. These fit perfectly in the corner and were perfect for my needs. This weekend we moved them from the corner to under the shelves, but they’re perfect there, too.  They fit just under the lowest shelf and they don’t protrude out and in the way. A happy accident!

The red railings up above are made from scrap wood from Menards, which were $2 per board (8 boards total), and I used leftover paint from the opposite wall. Total project cost: $10. They store miscellaneous small things: brads, eyelets, loose gems, safety pins, and just about every Tim Holtz trinket there is (I may have a crush on Tim). Not only do I love them because they’re functional, cute, have adorable containers on them, contain a million and two things I like, but I love them specifically because they were $10. Talk about a steal! Read more about them here.

THE WORKSTATION:

The workstation.

The workstation is a makeshift table made from two storage cubes from Walmart and a piece of wood that used to be the only shelf in the closet. Read on to hear a little more.

This workstation is tall enough that it hits above my waist, so I don't have to bend over while cutting, using the Cuttlebug, laminating, or whatever else I need to do here.

Lisa had the idea to swing the workstation 90 degrees to make the room much more open. I love it. There is no wasted space, as the area in the corner holds a few items that need to be stowed and out of sight, like a garbage can.

Ribbon storage area.

I have way. too. much. ribbon. The shelf was purchased at a thrift store and spray painted. The chest box was ~80% off at Hobby Lobby.

Heating area.

I have an area to the right of the workstation table that may not look pretty, but is functional and works for me. There's a non-stick craft sheet (always useful), a piece of cardboard (that I like to use for heat embossing), and a silicone mat (for hot gluing). Next to those is a container thing (I call it my non-moving Lazy Susan) that I inherited from a friend. It's nice to have an extra set of regularly used tools nearby (scissors, pencil, pen, tweezers, craft knife, ruler, etc), even if they're dull or otherwise not as nice as the main items I use.

Under the workstation - one way.

These bins are filled with things like stamps, raffia and other strings, washi tapes, fabric flowers, acrylic paints, dies, and the top left bin holds my finished cards, organized by type of sentiment.

Under the workstation - the other way.

This side holds embossing folders, alphanumeric stickers, fabric, trinkets/spare parts that won't fit on the red railings on the peace sign wall, envelopes, a box of screws and nails, along with a box of other small tools like a screwdriver set, hammer, needle nose pliers, etc.

The boxes of hand tools is handier than you might think! Not only useful in my craft room, but it’s a great place for us to store simple tools on the first floor of the house, rather than having to go down to the basement every time we need a screwdriver.

THE TABLE STATION:

View from the back of the room.

When Adam and I first moved into our home, we got a gift card for Shopko from his grandmother. We had no other use for anything at Shopko, so we got a computer desk and I started working off of that. You can see that in the "before" picture above. Working off of such a tiny space was awful. I remember utilizing the majority of the floor just to function, which you can also see in the "before" picture above.

When I finally talked Adam into creating this spare room specifically into a craft room, I told him the first thing I wanted was a frikkin huge desk with a ton of space, and I wanted it deep so that I could put organizational pieces on top. These two pictures were my main inspiration: DawnMcVey and Ana White via MACTANYA.

Dawn McVey’s table was deep, deep, deep. She was able to put so much storage on top of the desk to have the main items she always uses right at her fingertips. I loved that. I wanted that.

MACTANYA’s project that’s posted on Ana White’s site is really what gave me the case of the envies. LOOK at all that desk space! If I had to choose between the deep or the long, I’d choose the long in a heartbeat.

Luckily I was able to get the best of both worlds. I went to Lowes and got a slab of 1” x something x something slab of wood. LOL. I don’t have any idea what the size was, because we got it cut down to what I wanted: 1” high, 30” deep, and 96” (8 feet) long. There were two employees helping us cut the wood, and they both thought I was crazy… of course they thought it was way too long and way too deep. I told them I knew what I wanted and I went on my way. Read more about it here.

(This is the best shot I have of the underside of the table)

As you can see, we used a piece of wood, approximately 1.5” x 1.25”, to "anchor" the desk to the wall. The guys at Lowes said that would give it the stability it needed. WRONG! It didn’t feel stable at all - especially not for what I was going to be using it for! I went back and got four table legs, painted them, and screwed them in. It may not be the best construction there ever was, and of course there are i27d64 different ways to do it correctly, but this baby has held up nice and strong for the last three years! (knock on wood).

Left side - on top of shoe organizer.

To the left of my work area, I have an awesome tool box that I got at a garage sale for $2 which stashes my adhesives. 

Left side - under shoe organizer.

The two coordinating boxes at the top of this image are each split into 9 units inside, all 18 of which are filled with random junk that I don’t use often. The yellow box holds regular household items which I find extremely useful: items like a red Swingline stapler, lint roller, command hooks, my glasses (which I never wear), etc. I use my laptop sometimes when I want to craft and look at something directly in front of me to copy off of. The red bin is full of pads of paper and sticky notes.

Main work area.

I love my main work area. It is so perfect for me. I love looking up to seeing some of my favorite photos, some of my recent cards that I have in the window sill (not pictured), and every important tool that I need for any kind of project in my (off-brand) Lazy Susan.

Right side - on top of the shoe organizer.

To the right of my work area, I have my beloved Ranger blending tools, along with a 9-box container that I altered. I think the plain box came from Oriental Trading. Of course, like me, no one box matches the other. The paper all came from the same paper pack, but that's about the only thing I meant to be in common between them. I love all of the different knobs!

Right side - under the shoe organizer.

This is basically the stamping corner. I have like 982 ink pads behind all of this which I inherited from a friend that are all dried up and I’m too lazy to buy reinkers for. The pink box contains projects that I've thrown to the side due to me not being inspired enough. I do that a lot...

The inspiration for these white organizers can be found here. When it's warmer outside, the plan is to nail pallet wood on the backside of these so that they're more stable. I've had them for a few years and you can see they're bowed. I don't know if it'll work, but I have pallet wood for free, so there's no harm in trying, right?

UNDERNEATH THE TABLE STATION:

Under the table storage.

1. You know what that thing is. It’s a crappy plastic drawer for organizing, and it always comes off-track when anything is put in it. Anything. This one has held up pretty well, probably because I know they suck and I don’t really use it except for storage itself... I don't go into the drawers often. This weekend I tried changing up the contents, so we'll see how well it holds up now. The bottom shelf has some Martha Stewart punches, then the others store my backup stash of various tapes, sandpaper, cutting blades, ink blending foams, etc.
2. To the right of the drawers are binders that I call my “reference books”, which have things like some inspirational photos, templates, and a binder index of some of my stamps so I don't have to go searching for the perfect stamp. I can just look under the category and compare the images. The stamps are then assigned a number and stored. This is still a work in progress... it takes a long time!! Lastly I have a smashy-type of binder that I use for random things that I really want to "smash". I like to have my K & Company Smash Books themed, or at least a little more planned out than just gluing on a comic strip that I find humorous.
3. I have a 15 unit organizer, normally used for holding shoes, which was gifted to me by my awesome brother in law! This holds things like colored pencils and markers, stencils, Tim Holtz Crackle Paints, dictionaries that get ripped up for art projects, buttons, tiny gift boxes, cards leftover from my 52 Reasons ILove You deck of cards for my mother, bling/sparkles/diamond thingers, and my Dymo Label Maker (LOVE that thing!!).
4. On top of the organizer, I have a large dictionary and a “world book” which is like an encyclopedia, a heavy duty 3 hole punch, a ream of Neenah cardstock, (80 lb), smooth copy paper,  and a box with cords (headphones, ipod chargers, blank CDs etc).
5. To the right of the organizer, I have various dictionaries, books for inspiration (Tim Holtz' and Tao Te Ching), and my Kindle.
6. To the right of that is a box of tulle spools and scrap fabrics. The idea is to make a quilt when I have enough scraps.
7. My computer is to the right of that, and in between my computer tower and computer desk is where I keep my Silhouette mats.

COMPUTER WORKSTATION:

The Computer Workstation

My computer desk is perfect and I’ve had it for years. It was a floor model from Ikea so it was like 60-75% off the sticker price. It holds just what I mainly need: my huge monitor, a lamp, and my Silhouette in a convenient and compact place. You can see the Silhouette on the bottom, right behind the foot stool. I love that my Silhouette is somewhere that I don't have to move it to use it. Yes, it's annoying bending down to use it, and yes, I've bumped my head a few times against the bottom of my desk, but it works, really! I like having it out of the way enough that I don’t run into problems wishing that there were a better place for it. Also, I love my antique tea tin can. Like at my workstation, it's super handy to have a small bundle of tools handy. I use my ruler, notepad and sticky notes every single day.

The unit that my printer is on is called a microwave table, whatever that means. Adam’s mother gave it to us when Adam and I moved in together. We put the huge (52” or so) TV on top of it. It looked ridiculous! Now it just holds some cardstock, copy paper, photo paper, labels, a Silhouette Vinyl Starter Kit, and my itty bitty sewing bin. You can tell I don’t sew very much!

THE CLOSET STATION:

I really like the way the closet turned out. Three of the shelves I got for $33 total somehow on Amazon. I don't have any idea how it got marked down so low, but I'm not asking questions! I've had the three shelves up for quite a while; Adam helped me put them up a year or so ago. If you remember, we had a hard enough time figuring out how to put THOSE dang things up - so forget about us doing any real type of construction! After we put those up, I thought it would be a great idea to get another shelf to go along the side of the other, so I bought one. And that's all she wrote.

lol... I finally caved in over the weekend with Lisa and we put it up. It was much easier this time around. Plus, this shelf was a different brand than the others, and the instructions were 29,466 times easier than the other's. It's funny that the shelf fits *perfectly* alongside the others. That means I have to buy two more to go alongside the others!

The organized mess in the closet. If I had all white containers instead of mixed colors,
YOU KNOW you would say "Ahh! So organized!"

This closet was awful, as are all of them in this house. It just had a single shelf, which was as deep as this closet. This should've been a walk-in closet to begin with! I took out the shelf by just a little push of the hand (literally), and made it into the workstation.

Neenah cardstock stash.

Stacking cubes to store paper from Hobby Lobby.

SMALL ITEMS:

Yes, that is a pimp hat. I found it at a thrift store!

Behind the door is my step ladder and ironing board. I plan to replace the ironing board with this one. I need my step ladder handy because I am short and I always need things off of the shelves in the closet.

"Antique" stove.

The best thing about the room, over and above pretty much everything else, is my space heater! It’s a cute faux stove oven with a corny fake fire. Adam got it for me a few Christmases ago because it’s always FREEZING in the Craftination Station! Love it.

Loose ribbon held together with a clothespin.

I fell in love with the hanging baskets on clearance at Hobby Lobby. I hadn't found a use for it until this weekend, when I found I could wrap loose ribbon and secure it with a clothespin. The white and pink ribbon on the side are trims that will be going on a box one of these days. 

Crate from Hobby Lobby. I spent way too much on this thing, and it even was 50% off...

I purchased the Ford box that holds my twine at Hobby Lobby. Even though it sounds CRAZY, I spent about $65 on the five spools of twine when I first started my stash about three years ago. I figured $65 for a billion yards was better than spending $5 for 20 yards in the ribbon section in Hobby Lobby for the same thing. Even though it costs more in bulk, I'm pretty sure I’ve saved tons by spending a lot up front! 

Shutter picked up from the side of the road.

This shutter is cool. I didn't do anything to it except spray it down with a hose.

Antique tin can from the 70s.

I got these antique tins at a thrift store for about a buck each. LOVE em!

Antique tin can from the 70s.

Antique tin can from the 70s.

Lego storage boxes from Think Geek.

Although a lot smaller than what I thought when I purchased them, it turns out these Lego Boxes are the perfect size for paper clips.

FRUGAL:

As you can see, there a few ugly, brown shipping boxes. Little do you know, little bunny, that just a piece of fabric makes this ugly duckling into a beautiful swan. You can see half of my boxes that I have are covered with beautiful fabric! I purchased about 20 (read: too many) boxes before I found tutorials via Pinterest and went on a boxing spree. I made 21 and two halves boxes (two still don’t have liners) in just a few weeks. I am ever so grateful to my mother for teaching me what she did about sewing because I have to sew the liners. I have about 15 more boxes all ready to be covered and then I just have to get something to put in them, which naturally will only come with time. Read more about the start of my adventure here.

The purple chair is just a kitchen table chair that I got for free off the side of the road. It fits my large butt, so it works perfectly!

The desk my husband helped me put together wasn’t much… the wood slab and legs was apparently $38, after going back and figuring it out. Read more about it here.

I already talked about them, but the microwave table and the workstation tabletop were free! I love free.

As I explained before, the red railings were only $10!

JUST PLAIN NIFTY:

There are a lot of solutions online for organizing wrapping paper. They're just so big and awkward, you really have to be creative and work with what you've got. My mother has a really short, long plastic tote that fits perfectly under the bed that she puts hers in. Works great. I do have one of those, but it has other things in it. Before we put the shelves up last year, I had two bike racks installed in there that held the paper, and it worked beautifully (as similarly seen here). It would've been fine, had I put the rack back up after that, but I didn't. I'm lazy. However, with the new shelves added, there wasn't room for the bike rack! Did you see what I did with them in the big-shot picture of the closet?

BAM.

BAM! I haven't seen this solution anywhere! Lisa and I awed out loud - it's such a cool idea, don't you think?

From above. Can you see it better?

Since I have two more shelves, I can buy more wrapping paper now! ;)

Solution for tissue paper as well!

I have my 205 different types of tissue paper under the new shelf in the same fashion.

Stickers.

Have you heard of the Clip It Up organizer by Simply Renee? It's a pretty cool concept, and you can read about it here. I bought one when I thought I was getting a great deal on it ($45), right before the item was discontinued. I REALLY wanted the wall unit, but it was already discontinued and I could not find a used one anywhere. Now I'm really glad I couldn't find one. Once I got it, I clipped up everything that I ever had, found things that I completely forgot I had, and then was really surprised at how much room it took up. For some reason I just didn't realize how much room it would actually take up. Over the weekend, I asked Lisa if she could think of a solution to replace that. She didn't, but I did. On the new shelf in my closet, I was trying to utilize all of the new space, and wanted to hang something from the railing. *DING DING*! I tried one of the hooks, and BAM. I tried it on the other shelves (remember, a different brand), and the hooks didn't quite fit. What a happy coincidence! I am super excited about this organization solution. Now I'm trying to get rid of the base unit. Anyone interested? :)

"Clip It Up" Tessa-Style.

THERE WERE A FEW SPLURGES...

The jars for the shelves.

Those are pricey, but I wanted something that looked really nice and I didn't want to have to re-purchase anything. I didn't care so much about uniformity, as I never do, but these just fit the bill.

The ink column spinny thing.

I was having a heck of a time keeping my regularly used inks together, in front of me, and organized. To me, this was an investment and worth every penny.

The white Closetmaid organizers.

To me, these were splurges because they ended up being expensive when added all up together. I don't know what brand people normally get, or how they get their husbands to build them these monstrosities. My husband (admittedly) isn't very handy.  The workstation cubes were from Walmart and were about $45. The shoe racks on top of the table were about like $13 at Lowes, however the shoe organizer below the table was free. The four modular units in the closet were from Hobby Lobby with a 40% off coupon, and even with that they seemed expensive... $24 each! That's a total of about $165 on storage ALONE. Sheesh.

What's worse is that those modular paper units are kind of falling apart. One shelf already has started - it won't hold one of the shelves anymore. Also, as you can see, the units on top of the desk are bowing from the "weight". That stuff weighs hardly anything. It's like it can't even hold gravity.

I wouldn't consider purchasing the media shelves as splurging. They were about $20 at Walmart. I guess that adds up to the storage costs... so that makes it a little over $200 on storage.

I don't count my laptop, desktop or printer. That's stuff I would have if I was crafting or not. If I were to count them, then I would definitely say I went over budget :)



To sum up, I would like to share the progression frames from the last three years:

I told you this was going to be a long post. HUGE. Now that I have these pictures up, I don't have to post such detailed photos about what's around me. I can just refer back to this post!

Comment and let me know what you think of my "eclectic" room!