Archives for September 2016

Distress Ink Storage and Organizing Time

distressink1 Hello! One thing about running a small business with an employee of one, me, is that I have been learning ever so slowly how to incorporate more organizational systems to keep things moving. Sometimes its fun to come up with my own solutions, other times, why re-invent the wheel? There are great storage solutions out there so I took the opportunity during one of those big online sales at Joanns and bought these cute storage tins that are made to hold the mini Distress Inks.

distressink2The clear top is great to see quickly what colors I have and they stack nicely for storing.

distressink3

I switched a while back to use the round daubers with these ink pads and after searching online, I saw a great idea online where someone stored the pads right inside the ink case. So I put them right in the bottom of each ink pad so that I don’t have to worry about accidentally mixing colors. The fit in and stay put until I am ready to use them.

distressink4When I am ready to use them I just turn the ink upside down and press down lightly and the foam sticks to the velcro and off we go!

distressink5One more look at the cases so you can get an idea how compact they are. I like these more than my larger ones because I can see everything at a glance more quickly but if I use a certain color more I may either buy a re-inker or just get the larger ink pad. For now, this works nicely.

Hope you found an idea or inspiration to keep on organizing your craft supplies.

Have a blessed day.

Belinda

Ebook Bargains: Scifi and Fantasy Edition

ebookscififantasy1Let’s face it, I have plenty of books in print that I own and have not read yet. But the booklover I am, I can’t pass up good eBook bargains. I bought these three within the last two weeks at deep discount. Although some of them may have gone back up in price, most aren’t too much higher than what I originally paid for them. They don’t take up physical space in my home so it’s quite easy to collect a heap of books. These three are the latest in the scifi/fantasy category.

The most recent is called “A Mortal Song” by Megan Crewe. Is a stand-alone fantasy that some have described it as “Japanese folklore meets Percy Jackson/Harry Potter-ish” story.  I was first drawn in by the cover art and then the description and then the price of 99 cents sealed the deal. The author has won some awards and has written quite a few books so that also was a selling point.

The second one is called Curse” by Dale Furse, an Australian Female Science Fiction author. This book is the first in a trilogy. The cover is more stunning in person, the three books all cost $2.99 each and I can loan them to others on Amazon Kindle accounts. The book is a bit of Scifi/Fantasy and maybe coming of age story. The main character finds out that she is a mix of two warring alien species. I think it will be fun to give this one a go.

The final one is called “Fool’s War” by Sarah Zettel. I bought this one for 99 cents a few weeks ago. This blurb kind of sold me on this one:

“Displaying “the influence of Asimov’s robot stories and C. J. Cherryh’s elaborate, sophisticated spaceship adventures,” this is a science fiction masterpiece that asks the thought-provoking question, “What if the next great life-form with which we must contend isn’t from the stars but from our hard drives?””

So those are three. I will try to pull together my finds by genre to make it fun and easy to share with you all. Perhaps it will get me to read them sooner when I pull them out and take a look. In my mind, they can always be read on the go (trips, appointments, in-between print books) so I don’t mind collecting them at such deep discount.

Happy reading my bookworm people!

Belinda

Happy Monday!!! The Pats Won and Other Happenings

meinstudioGood morning everyone! Happy Monday! That’s me today and do you see that fan in the background? Well it is muggy today and I refuse to use my air conditioner on September 19th. Ironically Leao and I talked about removing the window units last week. Then today happened. I am hoping the rain will cool it off. Either way, it’s me and my fan today.

I had a great weekend. Can I first recap with a football update? Well yesterday’s game had me on the edge of my seat the whole second half. Why you ask? Because our backup quarterback (Jimmy Garoppolo) was in the zone. I mean, he was delivering the mail baby! We reached a 21 nothing lead and then what happens? A three hundred pound player landed on his shoulder and that was all she wrote. So he had to get pulled out of the game and our backup’s backup (Jacoby Brissett) came in the game. Now, in pre-season I saw him play and he was solid but there’s nothing like an unexpected entry to a game in the real season. So he didn’t have his most stellar performance but we still managed to make a win of it. However, it was one of those, where you are biting your nails down to the last minute.  Thankfully the football gods answered my prayers and we won. So although I was so devastated that Garoppolo was hurt during his time to shine, I am glad we still managed to pull off a win.artfestivalOn Saturday, Leao and I took the boys to Revere’s Art Festival. It took place across from Revere Beach. So it was fun to walk along the water on our way to the event. I love seeing artists display their crafts. One day, I would like to organize my art to sell at a craft fair but it requires a lot more effort than I would like to put forth at this time.artfestiva2The weather was fantastic and I got into a lengthy chat with an artist who also uses alcohol inks to create her art. Can you find my in the picture?  I bought this piece from that same artist and I am trying to find the right place in my craft room to place it. For now, it is on my desk.artfindsAfter the festival we headed on over to a favorite, Kelly’s, for some naughty fried food. I decided shrimp and fries would fit my appetite. kellysThe first time I went to Kelly’s was at this location with my friend Natana, way back during the college years. They have since opened a few more locations. One of which is in Saugus  but I rarely go because I try to limit the fried goodies in my life.  Which makes each occasion truly yummy.kellys2This weekend, I completed a book and started a much anticipated sequel by Tahir Sabaa. I will be sure to write up some reviews for the Nook soon.

Hope you are having a Happy Monday!

Belinda

Happy Read an eBook Day!!

Read an Ebook Day, ebooks, overdrive, libraries, digital reading

Hello everybody! Wahoo it’s Friday! Doesn’t it make you happy? What a perfect day for Read an Ebook Day. I have my Kindle loaded up with some goodies and ready to dive right into some stories.ebooklove1I just completed reading “Behold the Dreamer by Imbolo Mbue” for a publisher. It took them a little while to deliver the ARC (advanced reader’s copy) so I took the audiobook out while I waited from Overdrive. I will post a review about it today if time permits.

I still love my e-reader. I have to say I have a nice mix of eBooks and books in my collection.  I love being able to carry my books around with me so an e-reader makes it possible. But don’t get me wrong. I still love holding books in my hand so I still check out physical books in addition to my ebooks from my library.ebooklove3My book club met last night and although I missed it, they informed me of the next read, “The Star-Touched Queen by Roshani Chokshi”. It has been on my TBR so it was a lovely surprise that they picked it.  I  love when that happens! I downloaded it today.

But what I am reading right now is rocking my world and I am reading it in eBook format but I will be buying the physical book is “The Fire This Time by Jesmyn Ward. Wow, I will definitely write a review for this book. So stay tuned my friends.ebooklove2So I hope today you get an Overdrive account or a Hoopla account or just use Amazon and get yourself a good weekend read for your e-reader!

Have a blessed weekend and happy reading!

Belinda

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