Thursday, December 3, 2009

Sneak Peek!


Looking back over the past year I can see how much I've grown as a scrapbooker and now paper crafter...I am enjoying this artistic journey immensely! After my hubby and kids, what brings me the most joy is creating something memorable for someone else. This is a little peak at some delicate pink and green crepe rosettes that will make a beautiful holiday banner for my good friend at Mommy Mafia Designs.

Wednesday, December 2, 2009

Yulemart was a Blast!!



















The holidays are such a busy season for us crafters and I finally have a few minutes to update you on my recent endeavors! What's consumed my life for the past 2 months or so? My first really big holiday craft fair! Yep, I took the big plunge and had a booth at the Yulemart right before Thanksgiving. I can't tell you how many all-nighters I pulled preparing for this thing and while it wasn't as profitable on the spot as I would have liked, the exposure has generated several custom orders. So, for any of you contemplating a big fair and not sure about profits, if you do custom orders you will probably see a return on your investment in the near term! The downside of being so sleep-deprived is my brain was just a tad numb during the fair which is why I don't have many pictures! I made good friends with some incredibly talented artists, like Tandra from Prim and Proper who inited me to sell some items in her shop! Along with providing motivation for new art, like the hand-colored and -glittered digital stamp tags, I have a sense of what the "popular" items were. Overall, this fair was a wonderful experience...I'm already planning for next year!

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

I'M BACK WITH A SPOOKTACULAR GIVEAWAY!!!!

And the winner is Vicky from Shore Debris! Congratulations! Check Back for my upcoming Holiday Giveaway!



After a little summer break from blogging, I'm marking my return with a ghoulish giveaway! Looking for some freaky favors for your Halloween bash? Or some embellies for your scrapbook page? This reusable little bucket is jam packed with creepy ribbon, handmade hang tags, mini notebooks, stickers & more. Would even make a great gift for your crafting compadres! To win this party pail, visit Cinnamonspice Papercrafts and view all my paper products. To enter leave a comment about your favorite item! Giveaway ends at midnight 10/20 EST!

Extra Entries
1 entry- Place a Sweeten Up Your Gift-Giving button on your personal blog
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1 entry- Follow CinnamonScraps on Twitter
1 entry- Update your Twitter or Facebook account with links to this giveaway (New: you may twitter about this giveaway once a day. Please leave a comment each day!)

Monday, July 6, 2009

New ~ Pretty Journals for Your Pretty Notions!

Summer is in full-swing in our house! In-between hanging and crafting with the kiddos, I've found some time to add a couple of new lines to my Etsy shop! The first are these altered composition book inspirational journals and address books. As every indie artist and crafter I know has tons of ideas floating around in their noggins on a constant basis, what better way to capture them but in an attractive journal???


If you've followed me for any length of time you know I love all things beachy, hence the beach-inspired notebook.


I'm putting my Wild Saffron paper to good use with this All a Flutter Creativity Book

and this "Full Bloom" Address Book. They were tons of fun to make and will be available in my shop soon! Sneak Peeks of my new crafting kits are on the way...check back soon!

Friday, July 3, 2009

Friday Faves ~ Beach Bum



Going on an impromptu beach trip...wish I could take these items created by my crafty Cafemamas with me! Which one is your fave???

Friday, June 19, 2009

Friday Faves ~ Throwback Goodies

I was feeling a little retro flavor today, so I'm sharing some vintage goodies from my Cafemom Team sistas! Which one is your fave?

Saturday, June 6, 2009

Friday Faves - Cupcake Freak!

You can tell by this week's favorites that I am a total cupcake freak...love all things cupcake and this way I get to enjoy them without the calories...lol! Which one is your fave?

Saturday, May 30, 2009

Friday Faves

While in search of the perfect little black dress I didn't make it past this shop! Clairelafaye's dresses are exquisite, the lace and frills are so feminine and sexy!


Sunday, May 24, 2009

Craft Fair Tips for Papercrafters

Ensure your packaging has your shop name/url on it


Just getting your feet wet with craft fairs? Here are some thoughts and insights I gained from my recent multiple-day fair experience.

  • The 1st tip, unfortunately is, stay away from venues that are not specifically geared towards "handmade". While the press release for this event called for "handcrafted vendors", out of the 12 booths onsite, only 4 of us actually made what we were selling. I ended up next to the lady who sells really inexpensive mass-produced jewelry at one of the local flea markets, whic is exactly what the fairgoers were interested

  • So, how do you find out info on upcoming shows in your area? There are many online eventlister services, some are free and others provide you a list of fairs a few months in advance for a membership fee such as Eventlister. Your local Etsy Street Team will probably also have a list on their blog or forum. Start looking early, at least 2-3 months in advance as some shows have a fairly large list of established vendors and are very competitive to be selected for. For example, applications for Ft. Bragg's November Yule Mart go out in the summer and are usually due by September.
  • When choosing a venue, seek as much info as possible about the fair, ie., is it new? Been around for several years? Is there an admission price for fairgoers? Will there be onsite concessions? All of this will affect your potential sales, especially in this economy.


  • If possible, set up your booth in advance, either in your yard, or wherever you have space (I used my living room) and take pictures to facilitate quick set-up at your event. Be creative with your booth, afterall, it's HOW your booth looks that will draw people in. Look around the house for interesting items, like baskets, picture frame stands, you can use for display. Use on-hand items like boxes hidden under your tabloth to create "risers" or heighth on your table. Check out Etsy for great banners, design your own (with cardstock and vinyl lettering that you can have laminated) or take advantage of free offers from internet marketing companies like Vistaprint. I use their free rubber stamps to stamp the back of all my cards. For smaller items, I print my shop info on a mailing label and adhere it to the outside of a clear resealable bag. Business Cards with a punched hole can also be tied to bags and larger items.

  • Draw more attention by offering freebies or having a drawing to win some of your wonderful goodies. Use up those scrapbook paper remnants by creating little matchbook notepads. Sometimes I enter people in the drawing just for signing up on my email listing (have a clipboard set up for this and one for custom orders too).

  • Set up a Make N' Take Station. Big Kids as well as wee ones enjoy craft-making so why not set aside a little space to let them make a card on the spot. Since the fair opened just before Mother's day, I assembled several card kits from leftover paper and cardstock and sold them for $2.00. I printed out various Mother's Day sentiments on cardstock and let the kids choose their desired phrase. Be sure to advertise your station and the price for making the craft.


  • Photo Memory Board came in handy to protect against wind.
    Elevated photo trees make an eye catching dislay

  • Prepare for varying whether conditions. We had to contend with rain and strong winds, either could spell catastrophe for our fragile papergoods! Relied on this memory board to keep cards from being blown away. I displayed cards with a greeting inside on this board. I hung blank cards in clear resealable bags (to protect fragile ones from too much handling) from this photo "tree". Don't forget to snap pics of your booth for future craft fair applications if needed.
Memorable experinces? Please share! For more great tips, check out Etsy's blog, the Storque and happy fair-going!

Saturday, May 23, 2009

Reflections of an Eclectic Crafter


I'm supposed to be cleaning my house right now for friends coming over for a cook-out tomorrow, but I just had to blog about a question that I've been grappling with for some time now...WHAT IS MY STYLE??? Why does this matter? Well, in my hours and hours of blog-hopping and virtual window shopping on Etsy, the most successful sellers are branded and seem to have a style. If you see their work, then you automatically say, hey that's Papercakes' shop, or Boodybabies, or Wylesstyle or Rockerchic or whomever the seller may be. Is the same true of my work? Does it need to be? I go back and forth on this, because some days I feel like a little vintage, some days something polka dot, strawberry and chocolate will tickle my fancy, and then some days I can go totally rustic. Deep down inside, I think I prefer all things cute and sweet. So, why don't I just focus on this? All my life I've been told, I'm so cute, which is fine when you're 8 years old, not nearly 40. Funny how my own cuteness seeps it's way into my work. I've tried to do edgy or beautiful, but it just keeps coming back to CUTE. At the craft fair I recently did, someone wanted to buy a card and asked if I had anything not so girly and cute...I thought, nope, that's what I like, so that's what I make! I think I've been stretching myself too thin trying to create a little of this and that for everybody instead of a lot of what I love for the people who will love it too! What's your STYLE?

Friday, May 22, 2009

Cuttin' Up with Cricut..My 24-hr Word Book


Some of you might remember, about a year ago Hubby got me a Cricut Expressions machine. Thought it would be great for churning out greeting cards and scrapbooking embellies...well, I have been slow to realize it's full potential until a couple of nights ago. I had two days to make a "BABY" Book for my sisterfriend. Typically I use the precut ones from Bo Bunny which are great, but I've seen some pretty creative ones while bloghopping and really wanted to have the ability to do it. And for anyone who's used the precut books, you know how time-consuming it can be to cut the paper for both sides of each letter, trim, sand edges, etc. So, in a panic, I decided to give cutting my own book a whirl...and wound up creating this in just over a day. I followed the detailed tutorial found on this fab blog, "Invincible Summer" . She graciously walks you through creating your own Word Book with Cricut Design Studio Software, which is about $90. Being thrifty, for now I'm just the free trial version of the software which allows you to cut with the cartridges that came with your machine. Ain't no stoppin' me now...I'm on the move!

Saturday, May 9, 2009

Friday, May 8, 2009

Showin' the Teachers Some Love!




While bloghopping the other day, I came across a fabulous site: the "Cutting Cafe" and did she ever save me in the knick of time! I needed something quick and easy for the end-of-the-week teacher gifts; we'd already given them cards made by the kiddos and "sweet treats" (based off Stamper's Dream's tutorial), so we continued with the handmade goodness! Remember my pack of K & Company "Wild Saffron" paper? Well, I put it to use with these monogrammed notecard holders, aren't they delish??? The look of surprise and delight on the teachers' faces made it all worthwhile! Need some crafting tips or gift-making guidance? Check out TipJunkie's Blog; it's chock full of helpful ideas for any occasion.

Saturday, April 25, 2009

Cute Handmade Stuff Inside...Going Fair Crazy!

custom mini lunch sacks by celestefrittata

greeting cards monogram notecards little ladybug journal
So, I've been tweeting quite a bit about my upcoming 2-week fair preparations...found out about it kinda last minute and I've been working like a mad woman to have "enough" stuff. Just what enough is I don't know, but I figure I better have enough to actually turn a profit! Wanted to share these incredibly cute handmade promo mini lunch sacks...celestefrittata's shop is one of the many reasons I adore the etsy community. She's making 50 of these sacks for me to send home with customers the many, many goodies I will sell at the fair! Above is a little peek at what I've been creating...now, off to make more stuff like cupcake toppers and scrapbooking supplies!

Friday, April 24, 2009

Friday Faves on Etsy Day

Spent a few days at Myrtle Beach and still have the sun, sand and surf on my mind! If you share my love for all things BEACHY, you will get lost in all of the wonderful HANDMADE beach-themed art on Etsy. If you haven't heard, Etsy is the VIRTUAL MARKETPLACE of choice for thousands of indie artists worldwide. So take a break from twittering, plurking, facebooking etc. and get over to ETSY!


Tuesday, April 14, 2009

Poetically Speaking

I was inspired to write a little poetry today! In honor of National Poetry Month, an awesome Etsymom, Daisycreekdesigns, posted the weekly promo theme asking us to promote other Etsymoms with a poem. I got such a kick out of it I decided to post my promo here!!! Alright, my poetry might not be that great, but these shops sure are!
Take time to enjoy the morning sun
Treasure your days, one by one

Sunday, April 12, 2009

Happy Easter!


What a wonderful Easter! We just arrived home from our Easter program at church and dinner with friends...boy can she cook! I baked Nana's peach cobbler and it didn't turn out too bad! Hope your Easter was just as special...God bless.

Friday, April 10, 2009

Friday Faves

Etsy: Your place to buy & sell all things handmade
cinnamonspice.etsy.com


Today I want to give props to my sister paper crafters! While some might not consider paper crafting an art form, I truly believe it takes an artistic eye to create works as beautiful as these. Which one is your fave?

Tuesday, April 7, 2009

100th Blogpost and eenamaria Tote Giveaway!


I just stumbled upon Redsoxmommy's blog and boy does she have some incredible giveaways. I just entered her giveaway for this fierce eenamaria totes. It's an "I Mean Bizniss Travel Tote in blue", like the one pictured above. This bag is a $69 value and is perfect for packing for a weekend getaway or even a picnic to the park this summer. Visit Redsoxmommy's blog for more details and to enter!

Thursday, April 2, 2009

Friday Faves!




Check my blog out every Friday to see the new Etsy shops I've hearted during the week. You never know, your shop could be one of my favorites! This week I'm in search of the perfect tutu for my new little bambina. I want something different from a traditional Easter dress and look at all of the fabulous choices! Now, I just need to decide if I want full-on color or something a little more subtle...which is your Friday fave?

Tuesday, March 31, 2009

I'm addicted...

to buying scrapbooking supplies!!


I just bought these new opaque 3-D pens, beautiful double-sided "Wild Saffron" papers by K&Company and these gorgeous Prima flowers...and then admitted that I have a problem! So, I'm on a mission to use up my current stash before I buy anything new (unless of course it's custom-ordered by a client!). It has actually been pretty fun to see what I can create from remnants from other projects as well as from paper packs I've previously bought. The scrapbook paper was on sale and I used a coupon for the 3-D pens, but I did allow myself to splurge a little on the Prima flowers since I'm a first-time buyer! This "Dare to Dream" card is the first item I've made with the flowers. You can tell I've got visions of the surf and sand running through my mind! So, check back to see what else I'm cookin' up over here in the Cinnamonspice crafting space!

Saturday, March 28, 2009

Handmade Baby Shower Essentials

Need some fresh, new ideas for a baby shower?

1. Opt for a "destination" shower:
My girl, Kelli, and I hosted one for a really sweet friend of ours today. Like me, she's having her 3rd baby and didn't really want a traditional shower with a lot of people; so we went for something more intimate and held it a cute little tea house, McDuff's Team Room and Emporium. It saved me on time and money because I didn't have to clean my house or buy and prepare all the food, decorations etc.


2. Focus theme on the guest of honor:
Instead of a baby-centric theme, we wanted this luncheon to be all about the mommy-to-be, so I went with this cute, but stylish pregnant lady because she fit Julissa to a T! Little bitty arms and legs and nothing but belly! Create your own invitations to match your theme. Need a little help in the wording department? Try Birth Announcements Galore for free ideas.


3. Handcraft or buy a handcrafted gift:
I wanted to have as much of the shower items made by hand as possible, so I purchased this beautiful diaper cake from my lil sis Aisha over at Gifts for All NC. For the DIYers, here's a tutorial for making your own: http://cinnamonspicecrafts.blogspot.com/2008/04/baby-shower-bliss.html



4. Create a babyshower keepsake book:
And I made my first babyshower memory book, where there's room the invitation, for photos and a place for each guest to write a message to the mom-to-be. I blinged it up a little and I think it turned out well. I am so lovin' the brown, green and pink "Spumoni" colors!


5. Give the guests party favors they can eat or will actually use! Let's be honest, sometimes we leave the shower with some cute baby-oriented momento that we'll never use again... I used take-out boxes and accented them with the expectant lady, a circle tag stamped thanks, curling ribbon and color-coordinated satin ribbon. I filled them with hershey's kisses.




6. Last, make sure you leave the mommy with a set of thank-you cards. These are a pocket-style card, stamped thanks but they can be monogrammed with a stamp or on the computer. Instead of purchasing cards, you can make your own inexpensive ones by using textured cardstock and scrapbook paper. Each guest can self-address the envelope for mom so all she has to do is fill out the card! Got any great tips? Leave 'em here!

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Sweet Surprises


Yesterday I woke up wishing hubby could play hooky and stay home...but I didn't say anything to him. Imagine my surprise when he walked through the door after dropping our daughter off at school and said "let's go to breakfast!" I truly cherish that special connection we have. And what timing; I had just finished feeding the baby, so the kiddies, hubby and I went to our favorite downtown spot, Horne's. Not that I needed the french toast and sausage but it was extra yummy all because it was totally unexpected!

Sunday, March 22, 2009

Name These Tins!!!!


In honor of my grand reopening, not only am I having an "Oh Baby, Baby's Here Sale", I decided to do a giveaway of one of my Handcrafted Keepsake tins. These tins are perfect for that lock of baby's hair or your little one's 1st tooth. I've added these larger sized ones (3 in. diameter by 1 in. high) in new themes and colors but I need a little help in naming them! To enter, leave a comment with your suggested names for 2 of the 4 tins. Two winners will be chosen 1 week from today and will get to have a specially-designed custom tin. Visit Cinnamonspice Papercrafts for available styles. Please leave contact information in the comments; no obscene or rude remarks please!

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Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Thankful for My New Life

So, how is life with a newborn, a 2- and a 6-yr old and running a business? Surprisingly, I think I'm adjusting pretty well, at least that's how I feel today! I think that since the pregnancy was so physically challenging, I was apprehensive about life with 3 itty bitties. I'm working on making sure we carve out a little "one-on-one" time for the older two. But what's hilarious is that my daughter oftentimes prefers to stay home with her brother when I ask her to accompany me on an errand...Not quite what I had envisioned...My hubby grows more and more wonderful with each child...no, really, I'm serious! I thought I might have to have a nannie cam or something the 1st time I left him with all three, but he rocked it out! I was gone a couple of hours and came back home to 3 happy, well-fed kids and that gorgeous smile of his! So now when he tells me on my way out the door, "Go do your thing, I got this," I can leave and enjoy some well-deserved me time! As for fitting in time for crafting, I read a good philosophy on the blog of fellow Etsymom, Yellow Finch Designs. She said she doesn't work during the day because she chose to stay home with her boys, so she spends a couple of hours a night working. Now that baby Spice is sleeping through the night, that practice is definitely one I would like to adopt...will keep you posted!

Getting My Groove Back

Well, in just a few short days I will be reopening my Etsy shop. I'm revamping a few things for a fresh new start. The shop was established as a partnership a little over a year ago and now that I've been flying solo for a while I've made a few tweaks. I've slightly modified the name, it is now Cinnamonspice Papercrafts. I want people to know exactly what the shop specializes in, just by seeing the name. I'm also having a "Baby's Here" sale beginning March 21st, where I'll be offering 30% off items for baby. There's a few other things in store but you'll have to stop in to see what those are! As far as crafting, I held off until my brain was close to overloading with a host of new ideas. I'm still figuring out how to get my work done without sacrificing time with the kiddos...it's becoming easier now that baby Spice sleeps through the night. So, here's what I've been up to... a set of new, larger Keepsake Tins! I love the brown, pink and green...reminds me of the Spumoni ice cream I used to get as a kid from the Old Spaghetti factory...More sneak peeks to come, so check back!

Tuesday, February 24, 2009

Welcoming Baby Etsy Style!

She's finally here! Our little Bundle of Joy arrived in January and it has been a whirlwind of activity around the house since she came home. My mom and dad arrived the day after we came home from the hospital and spent about 5 weeks with us. It was fabulous! I know, a lot of people are thinking those must have been 5 very long weeks but we all get along well and my folks love my husband. Plus, with three little bitties in the house, there was plenty for all to do! Another highlight was the 1st ever Etsy Virtual Baby Shower. What a fantastic idea! Another Etsymom told me about the Baby Shower, so I registered for it before the baby was born. Several Etsy shopowners graciously signed up to donate gifts to recent moms and moms-to-be. Then on January 28th, an online baby shower was held, introducing the moms, featuring some of the donor shops, and even playing "shower" games! I've already received 2 of my gifts. We got this cute, soft little "Brownie" bear from panapizza. And this sweet little bunny rabbit from Auntiejill. My good friend Melissa from Petal Heads sent me this gorgeous pink headband for our little bambina! We're blessed to be a part of the Etsy family and will no doubt be contributing as donors in the next shower! Welcome baby Spice!

**My Etsy shop will be reopening within a few weeks. Check back here for details on my huge reopening sale!

Wednesday, January 28, 2009

Just to say thanks...

Wanting to impress upon my six-year old the importance of being courteous and sending out proper thank you's for gifts, we sat down together and made thank you cards! She thanked her friends for birthday gifts and I wanted to show my appreciation for my baby shower presents. My daughter always enjoys crafting and I love that it's something fun we can do together. It's cool for her to be able to express her personality through her work and I'm excited by how much she's grown artistically!
I also got to try out a great Christmas gift I received, a portable light studio! Hubby completely surprised me with it; I had no idea he even knew they existed. He said he wanted me to be able to take pictures of my work any time of day, without having to worry about the "right" lighting and weather conditions. Yay hubby!!