ANOTHER exciting thing...

...that is starting in october... is my ETSY shop!!!

this is something i've been dreaming about, plotting and planning for the last year or so, and it's finally come true! i've started small, but hope to add more--and different--products as i go along. eventually, i'd like to have some journals and other things i've *MADE* in there, but at the moment i'm focusing on supplies for papercrafters, specifically, themed ephemera packs for collage, art journals, cardmaking, scrapping, etc! my "product line" (if i may be so bold) is called "JUST ENOUGH STUFF" and the packs look something like this:

see, everyone knows how much i ♥LOVE♥ using this sort of ephemera in my cards and artwork-- everything from music paper to playing cards to foreign text paper, vintage illustrations, leftover board game pieces, even bits of lace and ribbon and old millinery supplies! well, being the sort of person who likes that kind of stuff, of course i am drawn to garage sales, flea markets, thrift shops, rummage sales, etc. basically if you're in central new jersey or eastern pennsylvania and you set a sign out in your yard or at your church or firehouse, and you wait long enough... eventually, i *WILL* show up!!!

so of course over the years, i've amassed quite a cool collection of goodies. more, in fact, than one crafter could use in a lifetime... or ten!!! :) but here's the thing i realized a couple of years ago: the fun part is to have a nice SELECTION! especially if someone else can do the time- and space-consuming part that involves finding ten--or twenty--DIFFERENT books of sheet music, so that as crafters we can have the fun of lots of VARIETY, without all that "hunting and gathering"!

in the photo above you can see how many different sources i used to make my "deluxe sheet music assortments". here is what it looks like when you grab one sheet from each:

and HERE is what it looks like when someone (that'd be ME!) packs them up neatly into a notebook-ready page protector, and puts a pretty topper on them:

so far i have three different themes: sheet music, foreign text, and nature... but i have LOTS more ideas for the future!!!

currently, each theme is available in two different sized packets: a petite assortment (10+ sheets in each) and a deluxe assortment (20+ sheets). i also have "eclectic decks" of cards in which you get more than *52* different cards in a "full deck" (these include playing cards, flash cards, vocabulary cards, game cards, etc) or 26+ in a "half-a-deck". those look like this:

all of these different selections are in my etsy right now and available for purchase. ...OR... if that's a bit more vintage stuff than you'd like to start out with, i'm VERY pleased to announce that in addition to loads of lovely BRAND NEW product, some of my own personal ephemera collection is featured in this month's pixie dust paperie kit, BLUE MOON. that goes on sale tomorrow, in the pixie shoppe, at which time i'll be talking a bit more about it!

finally, if you're the sort of person who likes to SEE things in person before buying them, and you happen to live within travelling distance of new york city, i am beyond happy to announce that a range of "JUST ENOUGH STUFF" packets are available at the ink pad, in their new location at 37 seventh avenue. even if you have ZERO interest in my vintage bits and bobs, if you're able to stop in there, i highly recommend the trip, as anna and barbara and the whole gang are some of the nicest--and most creative--folks in new york city, and the selection of rubber stamps and papercrafting supplies is UNBEATABLE! if you go... and trust me, you SHOULD GO... tell 'em lauren sent ya!

i'll be bragging more... or rather--AHEM-- "discussing my new etsy venture in further detail" (yeah, that sounds better!) in future, so stay tuned! in the meantime,

♥wish me luck, darlings!♥