Totally been slacking on this blog thing. I told you I would. I'd be able to keep p with it for awhile then it would slip away from me. It's not like I haven't been crafting either! I have been. Not as much as I'd like but hey money is kind of tight right now and swapping is something I'm trying to hold back on a little. 

   So what have I been crafting when I can and do splurge a little? Well it has to do with kawaii of course! I mean I am better off killing 2 birds with 1 stone after all. I need my kawaii fix as much as I need my crating / swapping fix. LOL

   I hosted a swap on Swap-bot that required everyone to go to their local craft store and try to get a cardboard box as close to 3x3x3 as possible. That way everyone was semi doing the same amount of work. 

   You have to then take kawaii loose items. Like mini memos, 4x6 memos, sticker flakes, and whatever else you liked to decorate the box all up in kawaii. Not just slapping it together. No no no. Try to have some order to it. The whole outside. Not the bottom of course though. Inside was optional as well. Then take some of your goodies and embellish the lid a little if you liked. Again not required. 

   After all the way done or before you can spend time sitting in front of the tv folding origami paper stars and filling your box with them. Yay...so much fun. Let me tell you. That took way longer then I thought it would. Boy was I happy I only made it a 3x3x3 box. Haha.  

   Once your box was all decorated up and filled with stars off to your partner it went. Making sure it was packed well of course. 

   

   ^ There is the box I made for my partner. I had so much fun making it. Didn't take no time at all...for the decorating the box part. The stars on the other hand. Man. LOL But totally worth it. My partner loved it so that is all that matters. I am thinking of doing another on in the future. Maybe a little bigger though and instead of stars maybe some kawaii goodies!? Like a whimsey box instead?  Possible once I can splurge again. 


   That was a swap made well before I got to seriously cutting back on my postage spending. So since then I've been trying to come up with flat creative kawaii swaps. 

   I already had my deco tape covered postcards so what else could I do? :light bulb:

   ^ That is when I remembered once of my very 1st kawaii swaps I ever did. This was also when I had hardly no kawaii so I was limited on to what I could do swap wise as well. Someone had done a public sticker flake postcard swap. I was in. I wasn't too worried about flakers. It was only sticker flakes. 

   I decided heck why not! Something different and easy and quick and cheap to send. I didn't want to make the postcard the same as my 1st one. I had lined the sitckers up all nice and need in rows and what not. Not this time.  Nope. Not this time. I am going to see exactly how many I can get on there without overlapping them too much. 

   Wow! That took a long time. I swear I was working on it for a good 1.5 - 2 hours. LOL I did it though. I got as many on there as I could nicely done and only overlapped a tiny bit towards the end. I was very proud of myself! Partner loved it so another well done job! 


   I needed another swap. Something creative yet flatish. I have to keep the creative part of the group going. I need to do what people like but add different fun things in here and there. What to do? What to do? 

   ATC! I LOVE doing them! Others mentioned they would like to do them too. Yes! 

   ^ Kawaii themed senders choice ATC swap. Simple. Make 1 kawaii themed ATC featuring any character you choose and send to partner. I waited until I assigned partners before doing my ATC. I like to do that sometimes. Make swaps profile based. I just loved the ATC. I actually had a hard  time sending him off. Haha. He sat here done waiting to be mailed for probably 3 days. I am still waiting to be rated. I sure do hope she likes him! 

   It's the end of the month so I need to get ready to throw up some more crafty swaps soon. People seem to like the quick deco tape or sticker flake postcards. I'll keep them going. Think it will be round 4 for deco tape and round 2 for sticker flakes. I can keep going with the kawaii matchboxes. A nice little group has had fun doing them. This will be the 4th round on them. What to do what to do though? Hmmmmm.....somethign to think about. 

   We have a new officer who is happily throwing up tons of swaps right now. I'll have to see when those are going and when they end. Try not to overwhelm the end dates too much for swaps. 

   I should come up with a different type of crafting swap maybe. Or try the ATC again. I'm not quite sure. I tried to switch it up and did a PVC flake swap instead of regular flakes. Not too many joined that one. Poor PVC flakes no love. No love. T-T 

   Well now since thinking about it I have a few ideas roaming around in my head now. Haha. I should get to posting them and what not. More creative chaos to come!
 
 

   Well it's been quite some time since I've been on here. Ugh. I'm finally 100% back to feeling healthy again. I caught a nasty little thing on the 21st of April. Let me tell you that was not fun. My lovely 4 year old son got it. Then he gave it to my 8 year old daughter. Luckily for them and myself they had it for a day and only a tummy bug. I on the other hand had the full blown thing. So not fun. 

   Since  then though once I started to get better I did nothing bu lay around and read. Lots of reading. I think about reading a lot lately. HAHA. Since being sick it was hard to get back into my creative mindset for my swaps. Though I wasn't in any. Good thing to with me getting sick like that. 

   Today it hit me though. I've been in a creative mindset all day. Without even knowing it. Without trying the creative world was talking to me. Haha. 

   Saw this on the way home from getting groceries. I couldn't get into my apartment fast enough to get my camera! Everyone was looking at mall crazy standing in the middle of the parking lot of my apartment complex snapping pictures. They changed their minds once they saw what I saw! Isn't that how it happens anyways? Haha. 

   Since then I've been is a music funk. Listening to all sorts of musicians I enjoy. Now that's some creative chaos for you. After all music is art! 

   
    If you've never seen a violinist rock out then you are missing out on something. I love Lindsey Stirling.  She is just EPIC! She even does music game songs. Like Zelda! Yeah dude how awesome is that? Pretty awesome for us gamers! That's some creative mojo going on right there. 

   To think she was on what? America's Got Talent and they told her she would not make anything out of herself? ROFL! Looks like someone was quite wrong. 

   Not really into that stuff? Well fine forget you too! LOL jk jk. How about some awesomeness in another direction? 

   Maybe you are into some Dub Step? Pretty awesome group if I do say so myself. Check out some of the other videos. Oh I would not recommend watching the above video with kids around. the little kid might freak them out some. 

   Or maybe you are a little more old school? That's okay. I've got you on that one too. A song that I just love! Who wouldn't like them some Prince!? 

   Now there is something for the old school people. Now did you know this song was dedicated to his mother? Well now you know! Knowing is half the battle. 

   What's your favorite artist? Favorite song? It's Friday people! Go on and put it on and turn that good stuff up! Get those creative juices going! 

   Mini zine. What comes mind when you hear or read those words? Confusion? What the heck is that? Blank.... You are not the only one. I had no freaking idea what that was at all when I first came across it. The only thing I knew what there was some crafting factor to it since I ran across is via Swap-bot. 

   Wikipedia defines it as:

 A zine (pron.: /ˈziːn/ ZEEN; an abbreviation of fanzine, or magazine) is most commonly a small circulation self-published work of original and/or appropriated texts and images usually reproduced via photocopier.

   Now what does it mean to you? Still have no freaking idea? That's fine. Until I saw an actual picture of one it didn't click either. Don't feel less intelligent because you have no idea. Some of us learn something by seeing not reading. You're more normal then most people. 

     ^ My first even kawaii zine. This was done in the I LOVE Kawaii group. Thanks to the wonderful hollycopter who did all the hard work. She came up with the template then blogged about it so everyone could click her template, print, and go. 

   The blank template itself is fairly easy to master. It's the theme of the zine itself. Okay so you've come up with a theme. Easy. Now come up with something different to put in each box. Something EVERYONE can answer in a creative fun way. Not so easy is it! If you said yes (whatever and be gone :p lol) good for you. 

   Okay, you've got your zine. Time to get creative. Fill it in! Go on. This is the easy part. Fallow what each page says. 

   I personally like the keep certain aspects blank. That way when I go to photocopy it some parts will be individually unique. Like the stickers section. I kept blank and did that by hand for each on. Also the deco tape parts as well. Let's not forget about the glitter pen parts too. I'm pretty sure glitter doesn't photocopy so well. You don't have to be picky like I am. By all means go right ahead and photocopy the whole thing. It's up to you. It's your zine! 

   Alright, so you've got your mini zines ready to go. Now how to make it into a booklet? I've decided to not fail at explaining this process to you. So I found a YouTube video with great music to entertain you while learning. Cliky.    Tada! You are all done and ready to show the world your new mini zine! 

   Okay now the reason I've made today's blog is for the Kawaii Mini Zine swaps I plan to host. LOL I needed somewhere to link my zine for people to print off. So two birds with one stone! Blog done and Clickable template for my swaps. Ta da! LOL If your not in the group and still want to use the template for your own fun by all means go ahead. I'm not stingy...on somethings. ^.^ Haha. 

   For those in my lovely swaps needing a zine. Click the image. Right click and save. Open and print. Make sure to set it to full screen printout. When I made the zine I made sure it was the exact size of standard size printer paper. So you don't need to make it bigger or smaller.

   Kawaii Mini Zine: 

   ^ Spring Edition.

   So, I've been really trying to figure out what to put on here next. I have covered so much over the shirt time I've had this blog. Which I now realize was a really idiotic idea. I should have spaced everything out intelligently and I would not have this issue. However, growing a pair have allowed me to set up for today's blog! Woots.

   Altered Playing Cards. What fun. I've wanted to do these since I joined Swap-Bot. Though I never did. Hell I even went and got myself two decks of cards to use for this craft and am NOW just deciding to jump in head first! 

   These are just like ATCs. You can go to town with them. The ONLY major rule is the suits at the corner can NOT be covered. That way people can see what card it is. Though I highly doubt anyone uses these to play Poker. LOL 

   Other then that they have the same rules as your ATCs. Use whatever to decorate and ta dah! You are done. I was really nervous about my 1st set. Yes, I joined a swap where we were doing all of the 10s. Very nervous. 

   Shit! It's not just one or two. No, it's four. So if I mess up I really mess up. Though if you fallow the rules how could you mess up? It's not like it's my 1st ever craft either. How hard  could this be? Not hard at all.  Okay, pick your theme. We have to do a theme because we are doing all 4 of the 10s. What to do what to do? Shit! You need to buy printer ink damnit. Okay fine what do we have to work..... :light bulb: 

   OMG! You have vintage black and white along with vintage color Alice in Wonderland printouts from a swap you did a LONG time ago. That's it Alice in Wonderland vintage. Hmmmm? Black and White or Color? Let's see what we have.

   :Wonders to crafting area and finds print outs: COLOR! We are doing this in color I have 4 perfect pictures to use. Now what else? Hmmmm.....Let's just do this! 

   LOL Yes, there was absolutely NO planning to these. I just went with. I LOVE them! 

   There they are. I love how I was also able to find a different ticket for each picture and they match wonderfully with the character! I was also so excited to remember about the gears as well. Can't wait to do more!  

   Okay. Today is kind of different from what I normally talk about. But hey I'm chaotic and this is a creative way to get people active. 

   What comes to mind when you see, read, or hear about a 5k run? Well I know I get sleepy right away. Like OMG! Who would do that? Why? I can run when I want to but I'm not running anywhere. Haha. Maybe in my dreams. 

   What about a Color Run though? Anyone up for a Glow Run? WTH are those? Awesomeness that's what. Someone came up with creative as hell ways to get people on the move. No, you don't have to run. You can jog or walk. It's not timed. So who cares. These are meant to have FUN! 

   Color Run Is one I'm loving right now. Though I've never done one sadly. Though just by looking at it and the pictures and what not OMG! They even have a facebook page. Yes, I know almost everyone and anyone who is reading this right now has a facebook page. So yeah here is there facebook page: Color Run FB  Check it out. LOTS of pictures. They have them ALL over. It's like huge! 

   Glow Run Is another good one. I'm going to actually do this one. OMG!? I know right. Haha. It was either the Color Run or the Glow run. I was more for the Color Run but right now financial wise I can afford the Glow Run. However, I will be back for you Color Run! They also have a facebook page too: Glow Run FB Another must check out. 

   Now the Glow Runs don't seem to be as popular as the Color Runs? They don't have as many sites posted. I don't know. Maybe the just do less bigger ones? Though Color Run does Tours so...I don't know. They both look fun and something to do. You don't have to run. These are not timed events. At the finish line you have more fun! Like a little party. 

   You can go solo or with a friend or two. However if you plan to go have a party with your friends go in packs of 4. You can register as a group and you get a discount when you register. More fun for less! So if you can talk some friends from getting off their bums do it. Steal their game controls, paint brushes, or whatever and tell them they can get them back after the run. 

   Also there is no age requirement for these.  Anyone can go.  Get your kiddo in that walker or roll grandma out of bed and into the wheelchair! Make it a family event if you can. Don't forget to take pictures of your fun times! Then you show all your friends who didn't go what a hell of a time they missed out on! 

   So there ya go. That's my new thing. Haha. I've been working out lately to try and not be as lazy. Haha. So I figured why not have some fun with and do a run. That's what I found. Be chaotic while other are figuring the creative part out. Either way it's still Creative Chaos! 

   Today I feel like going off the path. We've all done it so whatever. I'll find my way back don't worry. I'm going to talk about another addiction I have beside crafting! 

                            ~ KAWAII ~

    If you have no idea what this stuff is then either 1.) You're a guy 2.) You are clueless let me bring you into the light or 3.) you do and don't care.....GET OFF MY BLOG! JK JK not seriously....Heehee

   I sadly had been living under a rock until last year beginning of February. I found out what kawaii was thanks to Swap-bot.  I <3 IT! I can not get enough of it! Total ADDICTION! 

   Kawaii means cute in Japanese. Though there is one thing you need to understand. Not everyone thinks cute the same way. Over in Japan they have Japanese brand kawaii but they also like American cute. Which to them is SpongeBob, MLP, Disney, Care Bears, and all that good stuff. Also Diddle. That's not the kawaii I swap. I swap the Japanese brand kawaii. 

* Mind Wave * Crux * Fortissimo * San -X * Kamio * Q-Lia * Sanrio * Pool Cool * and I'm sure there are new brands I've missed or old ones....

   Still confused? Fine. Then check out some of my favorite kawaii places to shop online. You've got KawaiiYa Then you've got KawaiiGifts  and Kawaii Shop Japan All places I have bought from. Some more then others. Don't forget you can check out Etsy too! 

   I love it all! I can not get enough. As a kid I loved stickers. I collected them.  Sadly I have no idea where my sticker collection is. It's gone missing over a couple moves T-T However, there is kawaii and kawaii stickers! OMG! Win win chicken dinner! You have your sticker flake sacks and your sticker sheets. There are different types of sack. Paper stickers. Just your plain flat paper flakes. Then you have the PVC ones. Which is showed below. Now they also have puffy flakes. 

   Depending on flake type and design you get  anywhere from 35 - 100 flakes.  Same with sheets. Depends on the sheet on how many sticker are on there.

   Sack ↑ Sheet ↓

   I love penpalling. So what better then to write one a lovely kawaii letter set!? Though I would recommend a kawaii letter pad if you have a pen pal where it will take more then 2 sheets to get out whatever you say. Though I've seen people use more then 2 sheets. Nothing wrong with that. Not my cup of tea though. That leaves extra envies with not letter paper to go inside T-T  So I use the letter pads for those moments. Letter sets come with anywhere from 2 - 6 designs. Depending on seller. You might get a bigger letter set. 40 - 50 sheets with envies or you may get a smaller set. 8 - 13 sheets with envies.

   Also You've got the mini memo pads! Who doesn't love mini versions of items? I know I do! I have a mini / tiny thing. If it's mini or tiny OMG! The cute factor just went +100 LOL I'll use those to write a very short note on to someone for a swap. Maybe put someones address on it then stick on an envie. Or just stash away if they are too cute to use. Mini memo pads will have 2 designs in them. 100 sheets 50 of each design is the norm.

   Don't forget the 4x6 memo pads. Those are great for leaving longer notes for people. Making bigger address labels for your mail. Grocery list. I like to use them to make kawaii slams as well. These pads will have anywhere from 6 to 8 designs. The about of memo sheets vary. 100 to 160 pages. 

    Also another love of mine! Deco tape. I have tons of mini rolls! A few large rolls and a hand full of medium roll! I could always use more though! You can use it to decorate so many things. Or to help close an envie. 

Small / Mini rolls ↓  These are like demos. You get a little but enough to want more.

Medium rolls ↓  You get way more then the minis and they last longer

Large rolls ↓ These have less deco tape but are wider. Cover more area.

   Don't forget about all the other kawaii goodies! Plushies, squishies, cell phone charms, key chains, Coin purses, book bags, totes, towels, folders, pens, pencils, erasers, pen cases, rulers, and SO many other things!

   Well Good Morning there! Yeah, yeah. I know it's past 1:30pm but I am just getting up so Good Morning. Now say it back...Thank you. Haha. I'm kind of lazy. I LOVE my sleep. I need like 10 hours minimum to function so yeah. Whatever. 

   Today I've decided I'm going to share of the things I use to craft with. My supplies. Why not. I use a lot that probably most people do. Though who knows I might use something someway you've never thought of. It could happen. 

   So lets get started. I've decided to use lots of pictures. Never know someone might not know what something is. Though I'd feel really sorry for someone if they didn't. YOU NEEDZ TO CRAFT MORE! Okay moving along. 

   

   Buttons! Lots of buttons. Different sizes and different shapes. I love using buttons. They are great. You can just go ahead and glue them on or you can use some ribbon or something and tie them down. Whatever floats your boat. They are a great embellishment since you can get them in any color to match your theme. Must have in my honest opinion. 

   

   Glossy Accents. This is used to add that glossy glass like affect to things. Put some on over top, let it dry, and ta da! Glossy finish. I also use this to fill in my bottle caps once I have everything inside I want. Now for the part most people don't know about. I also use this as a glue! What? Yes, I use it as a glue. It is by far the best glue ever. You only need a little bit too because of how EPIC it is. A little dab and your golden. I use it to glue everything and anything. Minus the magnets on the back of my bottlecaps. Then I use some realyl smelly stuff. Ugh. It's in a blue tube the 9001 Clear stuff.  

   When using Glossy Accents as a glue I would recommend knowing exactly where you want to place something. Because once you have it down and push it down it's stuck. It's not coming back off without taking something with it. 

   Of course I use your basic modgepodge when I need to a lot of something down. Like the backgrounds to an ATC or something. Though I've found that your blue dries clear Elmer's glue stick works WAY better! It keeps your stuff from curling. 

   Also if you do use modgepodge or something and find out your stuff is curling....I have a secret. Take a piece of paper same size and shape. Take your Elmer's Gluestick and put it all over the piece of paper. Nice and good. Then stick it on your ever so curling piece. Then go and stick that under some books. Something heavy to flatten. When you go back later to it you'll find it's perfectly flat AND sturdy as hell! Awesomeness. 

  

   Now these ^^^^^^ I LOVE! I use them a lot as well. You can get them in any color, shade, shape, and size. They don't all look like this either. Some look like other flower species. Very cool. Also who said they had to be a solid color? I love them. Put that down and then take a flat back pearl or bling jewel and you've got a flower. Oh, don't forget a small button even a brad or eyelet will work! These also make great matchbox stuffers as well. Let's not forget extras to send to partners since they are flat they wont bulk your envie unless you send a ton of course. Haha. 

  

       Flat back pearls. These are lovely as well. They come in different sizes and colors as well. I love to use these as well. They give that extra little pop I think. I also like to use these for embellishing my matchboxes because they come in tiny sizes as well. Perfect size. Let's not forget about how perfect the tiny ones are for those inchies you are working on! Something tiny to go on a  tiny piece of artwork! Win win! I also use the regular ones as well. The non pearled ones along with the clearish ones too. 

   

   Don't forget about your chipboard cut outs either. Those are really nice and they add a little chunk to your work. I personally don't like just boring flat artwork. Let's get some dimension to it! Of course this stuff comes in all shapes, sizes, colors, and what not. The possibilities are endless on this nifty supply.

   Since that chipboard looks like a high quality sticker I'm going to talk about those too. I LOVE stickers. Always have since I was a kid. So I use stickers too at times for my projects. However, I use the higher quality stickers. You know  the kind. They are the sticker that are like $2-$3 for a semi tiny sheet of stickers. The stickers people use for scrapbooking and what not. Yes, those stickers. Don't get me wrong some of the cheaper regular stickers work too. Though with high quality work you need high quality supplies, duh. 

   

   Acrylic Jewels. These are what add the bling to your crafts. So many colors, sizes, shapes, and they add that "Oh, shiny!" factor. Haha. Don't forget the round ones can be used as  the middle to those Prima Got paper flowers. Now these either come self adhesive or they don't. I'm lazy so I personally like the self adhesive ones but that wont stop me from buying what I want. Haha. This is where the glossy accents comes in real handy. It'll glue it down and make sure it's not moving. 

   

   BRADS! Lots of shapes, sizes, and colors. Again you use these as the centers of the Prima Got paper flowers. I like to also use them as  the handle for the matchboxes as well. These you can use just like buttons. Find a good place they fit and ta da. You've got some embellishment going. 

   Scrapbooking papers. Lots of colors and designs. Great to use for backgrounds or whatever. I also really love making my own envies out of these. Any size and shape. Really great for making some cute handmade envies. Who doesn't like something different then plain white envies in their mailbox!? 

   

   Ribbon! Lots and lots of ribbon. Again repeating myself. Different colors, designs, styles, and thickness. Love the stuff. Also don't forget about using that string people use for felting projects. That works great too. I love to take that and put it through a needle and sew around the edge of an ATC. Ah makes it look great. You know like in the image below......

  
    Now that idea of sewing around the edge was a fly of the moment idea. I wanted to do something different. I got tired of doing the same things. I wanted something different. So I thought hey I wonder if I could sew and ATC! So, I did it and love the technique. So have a lot of other people too. Oh by the way the theme to those ATCs were Altered Text. Make some kind of phrase or what not out of a bookpage. Those are fun! 

   Eyelets. These are fun to play with. Though I still have trouble getting them to go on nice and smooth. Ugh. Sometimes they come out craptastic. Grr.... Of course they come in different color and what not. Also you can use them to give that dangle factor to a charm or something. Sting the charm, wrap the string around the eyelet, then punch the eyelet into place, and ta da! Movement. It's great. Or you can string yarn or something through them. Whatever tickles your fancy. 

   Glimmer mist! This stuff is great. I love things that glimmer and sparkle. Also no one said you had to buy the kind that has the glimmer affect to it. They do make just plain boring ones. I love this stuff because it gives that spray affect to your artwork. Also it makes it shimmer. Win win. You can also make your own instead of buying them. Just check out YouTube and you'll see how. WAY cheaper. 
   
   Now of course there are TONS of other things to use for crafting. I'm just talking about my favorite things. If I keep going I'll be working on this forever. I mean hell in 15 minutes I will have been working on this for an HOUR already. Haha. 

   I'm pretty sure this is a good start to get your crafting supplies up to par and a lot of it is cheap. I mean buttons and ribbons are not hard to find nor will kill the bank. You can get scrapbooking paper by the  sheet if you want. Which is really cheap like only 59 cents or something for this big ones.  Of course make sure to always watch for the deals your local hobby lobby and Micheals is having. Don't buy it if you can wait for a discount. Also hitting some friends or family up for their extra doesn't hurt. Haha. That's how my button collection started. 

   So get creative and cause some chaos. You have to get into some trouble to have some fun!