Challenge #1

I'm So Excited!! I posted our very first challenge on Facebook last night.  I will probably try and keep the length of the post on Facebook somewhat short and we can refer to here for any of our lengthy conversations.  That way we won't tie up our friends status'.  I thought I would keep the first challenge small because I know that we all have very busy lives and not much room to crowd in any more activities or we wouldn't all still be feeling behind.!

I am looking forward to having some company on this journey and hoping that Julie J and Rita will join us.  (My new friends from MN. and YES I too wish we lived closer!)

So, the first challenge is to get our "bling" in order. I don't really know why I chose to start where I did but anyone that knows me knows how I love bling! Boy do I have lots of it.  Problem is at times its all over the place. Hanging on the door still in a sack, still in unpacked project totes from the last crop. My idea, okay we all know that at times I can be an over-achiever, I could just put it in a plastic snap top container; but then again a pretty container would be so much fun and fun to use too! So my dilemma is do I want to take the time to decorate "bling up" a cigar\pencil box (did I just use those two words together?) with awesome Graphic 45 paper and add a little 7 Gypsies knob to open it? I am going to a crop tonight....hmmm I could work on it there.  My only other consideration is that it has to remain portable because when I pack for a crop, I pack my project envelopes and just take the whole bling box and my other embellishments to finish up my pages. 

Some things I have considered:

1. Mine needs to be portable as I love going to crops and don't always have the time to chose the right embellishment or I just might change my mind once I get there.
2. What kind of container do you want to use and where will it be stored when your not using it.  Will it fit? Mine goes into a certain drawer in my scrap room.
3. I plan on organizing my bling by color once I get it all together.  If I am looking for something in particular....it is usually a certain color and then I take into consideration the size and shape.
4. As you go through your stash....are there any colors that you are running short on or don't have but think that you will use.  Make note of them. ANOTHER EXCUSE TO GO SHOPPING!  LOL  I usually keep a small notebook in my purse with notes on it for what I am shopping for. You'll never know when the shopping opportunity my arise and you  will know just what you need. 
5. Lastly, when you are putting it all away....purge the things that you know you won't use! Not as in throwing it away, but I have a bin I am constantly keeping for holding my items that I don't LOVE anymore.  (you know the ones that were an awesome idea when you bought them...and all of the sudden you are asking yourself....what was I thinking....hahahaha.....I have quite a few of those.) Price them before you toss them into the bin and then when the next "garbage" sale or should I say garage sale comes around you will be ready

Just a closing thought....Do you scrapbook pictures or do you scrapbook stories?  A bonus challenge...I am working on my binder that I have labeled "My Book of Stories".  Obviously, I now scrap by story rather than pictures.  (Before you freak out, yes you can still scrap chronologically and scrap by story if you are one that scraps chronologically  LOL)  Gather a binder, I started with a used one.....and some dividers that I had laying around the house. Doesn't have to be a big one....  I think mine is an inch or inch and a half. Have dividers enough for each member of your family plus maybe a couple of extra. Get it into one spot and we can to from here next week! Most of all have fun....and do not stress!!! If you don't get time to get something done it is no biggy....Remember this is supposed to be FUN!!