And, I'm back!

I finally arrived in Washington, and my stuff arrived shortly thereafter. This has been my most difficult and traumatic move yet. About half of my shipment got wet at the warehouse. Thankfully it wasn't the half that contained my scrapbook supplies. I moved from a three bedroom apartment in Mexico to a one bedroom apartment in Virginia. I'm really sad that I don't have the same amount of space to spread out all my supplies, but I am determined to get creative with my storage and workspace available to me. I would post some pictures, but my house is still a huge mess and I wouldn't want to scare anyone. Hopefully I will be totally organized by the end of this weekend and ready to get back to work.

Moving to Washington, DC

In about two weeks, I'll be moving to Washington DC for work. While I'm really happy to be moving to a fun city, the move is sad for two reasons. First, I currently live in a huge apartment and can spread my scrapbooking supplies all over my dining room table, which seats 10. My new apartment will be about 1/3 of the size of my current place which means I will either have to become even more organized about my supplies, or I will have to sacrifice living space for scrapping space. The second reason that the move is sad is that I just found a few people in Tijuana who like scrapbooking and now I have to leave them. Scrapbooking with friends is the best part about my hobby, so leaving my new scrap friends is really disappointing. I just hope that I find some new ones in DC.

Even though I'm moving I still plan to keep my Scrapbook Fairy business going. It will take a couple of weeks to get settled and find a place for everything in my new house. But as soon as I'm set up I will be ready to get going again on projects and orders. So never fear, no matter how far I move I will keep on scrapping!

Tawnie single-handedly brings scrapbooking to Mexico

Since I last updated my faithful readers on the goings on of Scrapbook Fairy, I have successfully led my first scrapbooking class. And in Spanish, no less! One of my friends invited me to give a class at her church's women's group in Tijuana. The class went very well; everyone was super enthusiastic and loved the supplies I brought. The class expanded beyond the normal womens' group and we even got a few men to participate. I was so thrilled that everyone had a good time. Below are some pics from the class.

Paper frenzy!

Providing consultations on color combinations.

Teaching people how to use a paper guillotine without cutting off my own fingers.

My favorite - a student puts her husband to work!

Professional photography is amazing!

In my last post I mentioned that one of my friends' husband, Danny La, is a professional photographer. He took some pictures of my scrapbook pages for me to use on my website. I've seen some of Danny's work in my friend's house, and its absolutely amazing. His fine art photography is stunning. I took a look at his website, www.dannylaphoto.com, and I was totally impressed not only with his fine art, but also with his photo journalism and professional credentials. Danny has won many awards and accolades for his work. He has also been featured in various local and national publications.

If you ever have the need for a professional photographer, I highly recommend Danny La. He can be reached at dannyla@gmail.com.

New galleries on my website

I'm really excited about some new photos that I posted on my website. A friend's husband is a professional photographer and he was kind enough to take some wonderful pictures of my scrapbook pages. I was amazed at the high quality of the photos and the detail that they allowed me to show on the website. Take a look at the galleries for new images! www.scrapbookfairy.net/Gallery/html

oooohhhh, ahhhhhh!

I feel as though I have just made a revolutionary discovery. This weekend I purchased a "Crop-a-dile." I know, dumb name. But this is the coolest invention ever. It sets eyelets, and snaps, and all manner of other things. Now I can stop ruining my eyelets by smashing them too hard with a hammer. What are eyelets you ask. Eyelets are like grommets, the metal holes that your shoelaces go through. They look really cool on scrapbook pages. You can add them alone or run ribbon through them (see the example to the left). Anyway, I feel that I must go add eyelets to every page I have ever made now. Gotta get back to work!

Allow me to introduce two amazing women

Two very good friends of mine are also owners of their own businesses. In fact, they inspired me to start up Scrapbook Fairy. They are Rebecca Jew and Neda Brown.

I have known Rebecca Jew, owner of Jewel Couture, www.jewelcouture.net, for at least 15 years (we used to walk home from junior high together, but I digress). Rebecca designs and creates unique and stunning bridal fashions. Photos of her work are available on her website. Rebecca is dedicated to pleasing her customers, sometimes to the detriment of her friends. We want her to come out and play, but she spends a lot of time working. Her focus is impressive and I know that any bride, bridesmaid, or flower girl who has a dress made by Rebecca can't help but fall in love with it.

Neda Brown, co-owner of Brownskin Clothing Company, www.ilovemybrownskin.com, and I have been friends for almost 5 years. Neda's company, co-owned with her brother and sister, inspires us all to love ourselves a little more each day. Her unique t-shirt designs feature uplifting messages about pride in our brownness. Neda makes casual, chic clothing for women, men, and kids. Please check out her site and wear her shirts proudly. I know I love my brown skin!