Busy hands are happy hands

This past weekend I had the wonderful opportunity to host 2 art friends who brought some of their favorite toys so we could all try new things.  Over the next few days I'll share the tags, art journal page and mousetraps I made.  But today I'll share some 'crime scene' photos.  Nah, not really.  But if the ink on our hands had been red instead of blue or green......

hard at work

more art supplies

spray booths and lots of sprays and stencils

We set up our art supplies on our enclosed porch.  Plenty of room, great natural light, nice ventilation, lots of inspiration outside...bird feeders with plenty of hungry mouths and lots of colorful plants and flowers.  The spray booths were out in the garage.

I have two tips to share with you.  Tip #1 I found quite by accident.  Tip #2 is useful if you struggle to keep your card backs clean while creating.

#1:  Cut out the large TH/Sizzix Styled Label in shrink plastic.  Stamp; shrink.  Cut out the mini Styled Label from cardstock of your choice.  The shrink plastic one creates the perfect border for the mini.  Who knew?

#2:  Save the cellophane sleeves from the cling mounted stamps.  Slit one end.  Slide your card back inside.  Now you can work on the front and the back won't get dirty.  Sure beats putting a large sticky note on the back or Eclipse tape!  The cellophane sleeves are also great to use as a palette when gluing; it can be moved to another location while the item is drying and your work surface is free to continue with other projects.  I sometimes will slide a sheet of chipboard inside the sleeve if I need stability when I move it off my desk.

Hope you have time to get your hands inky this week!