Who Says You Can't?!

When deciding that I was going to write a blog again, I knew that  I wanted to have a segment that I did weekly or bi-weekly. Something with little hints, ideas, and things I have learned along the way to share with my readers. The hard part was not coming up with what to write about, the hardest part was the title! There are so many great blogs with wonderful information and clever titles,  but I didn't want to just copy one of those. I needed something that was going to be more me. The thing that I love about blogs are that there are really no rules. It is almost a online smorgasbord of thoughts, rambles, and rants, some with pictures thrown in. Any one can have one, for free, that you can  set up and promote with very little effort. And that got me to thinking? I can write about what ever I want,  who says I can't ?!  Want to write exclusively about how much you love cheddar cheese? Who says you can't? Need to vent about the current state of political affairs? Who says you can't?  Have a opinion on spring fashions? Who says you can't ? Need to shamelessly plug your facebook storefront (right here)and Etsy shop (er..yup, right here) (hint hint)? You got it,who says I can't?  Well, I say I can, and I did!

So, welcome to first edition of my bi-weekly  post aptly titled...are you ready?

Who Says You Can't?!

   Alright, maybe you are not so excited about this. But I AM! Let's get started, shall we?

This week I wanted to talk about repeating your designs. When creating cards or scrapbooking pages the first thing that I am usually set on is my colors. I am inspired by colors and patterns so that comes easily, but the actually design of the card at times escapes me. I consider myself to be a wonderful "scraplifter"", but I do not lift designs that I sell. I think that would be some sort of "card creating plagiarism".

I have been lucky enough to have two local stores carry my cards, so I have personal deadlines set for when to have my projects done and for deliveries. It is not always an option for me to create one of a kinds, as a matter of fact it is not really an option at all. (25 or more different Valentine's Day cards for two different stores not counting what I have on the internet, right when I am getting over the Christmas rush? NO WAY!) So, I often have to come up with something that I can quickly duplicate. But, doing the same card over and over again is well...boring! To keep the designing from just dragging on and on, I change my paper choices and add or remove little design elements. You would be surprised how adding or removing a little piece of ribbon can make a major change. Add a eyelet, round the corners, ink the edges... it creates a the whole new look! There are times that I have to remind myself that there are no rules when it comes to your own craft. So repeat designs? Who says you can't? Well, I say you can! Crafting is about enjoyment, take what ever short cuts you must to keep it easy for you.

Here is an example of some repeats! 

 These are 3x3 gift tags and I love them! By repeating the design I was able to save myself tons of time and I already know what part of these elements that I want to repeat in standard sizes cards! Give it a try, I would love to see what you come up with!

Happy Crafting!!!