On Crystal's Creative Mind

Winter Bliss SSC is over, Easter Extravaganza coming up fast!

Crystal Trunzo — Mon, 03 Mar 2008 21:47:27 GMT

The Winter Bliss Shop, Swap & Crop is now over. It went well, even though there was less space than the Moose. It was very nice to drive up to the door to unload/reload and not have to worry about the stairs.

Here is our group picture:

Although there were other make-and-takes, the make-and-take I had was a layout using the new Prima Paintables paper. I took a picture of Luanne and Helen working on my make-and-take:

I am now working on the Easter Extravaganza SSC and also some weekend classes at Bambinos. Classes will be listed on my website soon! Come and shop on the weekends. Times will be listed soon along with the classes! I have been working really hard to prepare for all that I will have going on in the next couple weeks!

I am VERY tired now!...I am heading to bed..... Goodnight!

Winter Bliss Shop, Swap & Crop is almost here!

Crystal Trunzo — Sun, 10 Feb 2008 13:17:22 GMT

Well, the new year is going by fast...so much to do...so little time.... It is already going into the middle of February! I have been working hard on the new changes to my business. We moved my website and storefront recently to my husband's web-hosting site.   I have a lot of work to do yet on my shopping cart. There are lots of missing product pictures. I have to get working on it. Then we are trying to get my Quickbooks set up more effeciently to process orders through it....so no more handwritten receipts!   Woohoo! My handwriting isn't the best, so I am sure those who purchase from me will be relieved as well...LOL! I have added some new pics to my gallery on some projects I have worked on recently.

The Winter Bliss Shop, Swap & Crop is almost here! It is filled up, and has been for about a week or so. I have been working on getting things ready for the crop. My husband will be cooking us supper again! Lunch is not included in the crop price, but lunch can be ordered in, or lunch can be purchased next door at Fairview Fuel.   I hope that this location works out alright for the crop. It is hard to find a place to hold them at a reasonable price.   It is definitely easier to get in and out of Bambino's, being that we will be on the same level as the parking lot. We can drive up to the door and drop our items off and then park our cars! Much more convenient in that way! My husband, Den, will be VERY happy about that! He got quite a workout helping me get my items into and out of the crops previously.

New products have been ordered as well and should be in this coming week and the following week. I hope for most of them to be here in time for the crop! I just received some paper from Scribble Scrabble that was just released for Winter CHA 2008! I love them!

Along with my business keeping me very busy, I also still, work at my other job...and of course there is always my personal life. My children have been keeping me busy when I am not working...and Kenzie keeps me busy day and night no matter if I am at work or home. I take her to work with me, and she is my little helper.

Tonight I have the Cub Scout Blue and Gold Dinner for my son Nick. He is bridging up to Boy Scouts and will receive the Arrow of Light! I am so proud of him! I hope he sticks with Boy Scouts atleast for a little while longer. My oldest daughter was in Girl Scouts for years, but did not go any further than Juniors. Interest had been lost by that point unfortunately, as Girl Scouts is a wonderful program as well. There is just so many new things that the preteen age group can get involved in once they transfer to the Middle School.   I was happy to see that she choose to get involved in other constructive activities, and that dance remains a constant interest. She has been in that since was 4 and truly enjoys it.

Soon it will be soccer season, and my youngest son will be involved in that.   What would life be like without any kids???...I can not even contemplate anymore. I do know one thing: I love having my children and when it comes down to it...they are my life and I am very happy with it! Busy or not, I would choose busy with my children any day!

Now, back to working on more business stuff...not much time before the dinner!

New Year, New Changes

Crystal Trunzo — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 12:32:00 GMT

Well, a new year is here and I am in the process of some new changes to my business.

My husband and I are working on changing my website and hopefully it will go smoothly for us.   When it is done, I would love to hear what anyone thinks about the new site. I have some new brands on order. I already got in some Scribble Scrabble paper to see what everyone thinks about it. Prima is here as well. (I absolutely LOVE Prima!) My store is now updated with some new products and I am working on the pics today!

As for my next crop, it is February 16th at Bambino's Restaurant in Kersey, next to Fairview Fuel, on Route 948. Registration can be purchased through my storefront online now.   It took me a while to get it all figured out. I have some really neat make and takes to do! Although, I like to make it more of a surprise what the make and takes are, I will share that the one will made using the new Prima Paintables Paper!!! You will get to try out this fabulous new product that everyone is raving about in the industry!

..........AND.....I will have some exciting news to share at the crop as well!!!

Already the end of the year...

Crystal Trunzo — Mon, 31 Dec 2007 11:55:00 GMT

I seems like just yesterday was Thanksgiving, and now Christmas has come and gone. It is already the end of the year. This year has gone by so fast. I have been so busy with work and family that I feel like I never have any personal time lately. I have been wanting to update my business site since the end of November and I am only getting around to it now.

The Merry Christmas Shop, Swap & Crop went well. We had some new attendees at this one too! I love meeting new people, especially people who are into scrapbooking. My wooden block make and take went over well. It makes me so happy to know that I was able to teach others something new that they really wanted to learn. Here is the group photo from the crop:

Of course, my sister, Amy, is missing because she took this photo for me.

I have been working on the next crop and I should have all the information on it by the end of this week. I will be posting the new crop information on the website.

I have a lot of new items to list in my storefront as well, and of course, new orders will be arriving in the next week or so as well. I will get my storefront updated this week at last. I have been waiting on having a bit of time for myself to work on it.

Have a Happy New Year!

November is going by fast!

Crystal Trunzo — Sun, 18 Nov 2007 22:43:00 GMT

It amazes me how fast the months go by. I remember being told as a child that as you get older time passes by fast. I also remember not believing it and thinking they were either just kidding or crazy.  Time went by oh so slowly as a child and I felt like it would take forever to even get to the next day. Well, as I am getting older I am realizing that it does go by faster and faster every year.   Those older people were not kidding and were not crazy either! So here it is already nearing the end of November.

I have been working on the crop in my free time, which doesn't seem like much.   I have almost all of my make and takes ready.   I am really excited about these make and takes because I think that most everyone will learn a thing or two that I have learned over the years. It makes me feel good to teach others new techniques. (I just updated my website forum for the one make and take. All important information is listed there for those who are attending.)

Today I stopped what I was working on and I spent a couple hours enjoying my children. Of course, I took pictures as well so that they would have pictures to go along with their memories as well as mine. I have to keep reminding myself to slow down a bit and enjoy those moments that go by so fast. My children are getting older and it wont be long before they will be all grown up. I think that is why I love pictures and scrapbooking.   It brings me back to those little things in life and helps me not take them for granted.

Here are a couple of pictures of them playing the snow:

It was a good snowball day, even Kenzie had an easy time rolling her own snowballs (well until they got too heavy for her to roll by herself.) The kids started wanting to make snowmen, but they had so much fun making super large snowballs that they couldn't lift them onto each other. They ended up just having fun trying to see who could roll the largest ball.

I know when I look back at my childhood pictures it just amazes me how much one or two pictures flood my brain with memories. If I close my eyes, I can go back in time and relive those moments in my mind.  I hope that my children will appreciate the pictures I take of their childhood as well. Even more so, I hope they feel a secure, happy feeling when they reminisce about the experiences they had growing up and to know how much they are truly loved.

Well off to bed I go...

I wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving!

And, for those of you attending the Merry Christmas Crop, we will see you all soon!

Fall Harvest Crop is over, Merry Christmas Crop is posted!

Crystal Trunzo — Sat, 27 Oct 2007 14:42:00 GMT

The Fall Harvest Shop, Swap & Crop is over. We had a lot of fun! I really enjoyed seeing everyone. I felt like I had a little more time to socialize because of my time consuming make and take (the bandaid tin project). It was really nice to spend some time with everyone! Here is the group photo:

My husband cooked supper for us again! It was really good! Most people who attended did not know, but it was our Anniversary. He brought me in a bouquet from both him and the kids. I was really surprised! These crops are so much work and he never complains about helping :>

The Merry Christmas Shop, Swap & Crop is now posted on my website. There should be brochures at Slip On Appeal, Salon Beyond Basics and Armstrong Accounting and Notary (in Brockway) if anyone is looking for them. I already have some people signed up for the Christmas crop. I am keeping max attendence at 20 due to the time involved in completing the make and takes. I have three I am doing myself this time! Of course, the other vendors will have make and takes as well. Supper at this crop wont be as involved for my husband as it is usually is, as we are going to make it an easier supper this time due to the time of the year and other obligations. I am going to make up for the meal with more make and takes. I have so many things I want to show everyone how to do anyways :>

I am always interested in hearing what everyone would like to see in my store. I have many new things on order, and I am willing to order in those items that you may want that I don't have.

Now, I have to get back to work...

Back from our trip...

Crystal Trunzo — Thu, 20 Sep 2007 20:39:00 GMT

Well, we are back from our trip to the Outer Banks. Here are some pics of our trip:

Here is the whole crew without me, of course. We stayed with two of my nephews, Jay and Greg, and my sister, Carol, and her husband, Tom. We also took Kearsten's best friend, Rodeisha with this year. She is a long time friend that might as well be family!

Here are Den and my nephew, Greg, surf fishing:

And, of course, the kids had a blast:

And here is Mackenzie with a washed up jelly fish of some sort, or at least we think, (it lost it tentacles somehow):

Here are pics from our visit to the lighthouse:

My nephew, Jay, climbed the lighthouse with the kids and me.

Kearsten and me:

The wild horses which roamed the 4x4 area in which we stayed:

The first pic is of the horses wandering into our yard and driveway.

The second pic is of a stallion walking down the beach.

Every morning, we had a beautiful sunset to wake up to, and every evening we had just as beautiful of a sunset:

Lastly, we went to the North Carolina Aquarium on Roanoke Island. The kids are sitting outside in front of a fish sculpture at the entrance:

We had our trip planned for many months, and it seemed to come and go all too quickly. I think this was the first time I ever really needed to get away from my everyday life and relax a little (although, it did take me a while to feel more relaxed). It was a breather from my everyday stress that fills my life. I am so glad I was able to spend such wonderful quality time with my family. Now that I am refreshed, at least somewhat, I am ready to take on more challenges that intrigue me. So much to do, so little time. Life is too short!

I have so much I want to do. I have been actively completing layouts in circle journals from one of the web groups I belong to. Those ladies are wonderful inspiration. I will be posting the last layout I did for someone on my website soon. My fall crop is coming up in less than a month and I have a lot to do in preparation yet. I also have some new product to get listed in my store. And I promised both of my boys that I would finish the quilts I started for them before the end of the year. Busy, busy, busy...such is the life of a person who has many interests!

Back from Washington D.C.

Crystal Trunzo — Fri, 17 Aug 2007 23:48:00 GMT

Well, it has been a while since I had the time and energy to update my blog. It has been a very busy summer this year, and along with my busy schedule there was an unexpected change at my job. I recently went to Washington D.C. with my son, Nick, with his Cub Scout Pack. We took a Fullington bus and stayed overnight for one night. It was a wonderful trip, although it was VERY hot with temperatures in the mid 90's. It gave me an appreciation for our military unlike any I had before, and I did have a lot before I went. I truly believe all citizens of the U.S. should visit the capitol at some point in their life, especially the Arlington Cemetary. I was deeply moved by the changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. All I can say is that it was a trip that I will never forget. I will make it a point to take all of my children there at some point in the future. I think I will make more cards to donate to the Letters From Home Program. Here are some pics from our trip:

Now that the summer park program is over, as well as our trip, I need to get working on some new orders for the store. I just recieved a new order from Maya Road which I will be adding to the storefront hopefully later in the day today. They have some wonderful items! I will also be working on the October crop as well. I already have some ladies registered! They will be getting an extra goodie from me for early registration!

Tropical Shop, Swap & Crop was a Success!

Crystal Trunzo — Tue, 24 Jul 2007 08:21:00 GMT

The Tropical Shop, Swap & Crop was a success! The day went well, and according to the questionnaires, everyone had a good time. My husband cooked a wonderful tropical-style supper for all of us. There were six make and takes, and Ruthie did a demonstration on heat embossing as well. We took a group picture. Here is the one from my camera (I am not in the picture because I took the pictures):

We had a last minute vendor addition to the crop this time: Barb Lewis with Close To My Heart. I asked her at the last minute if she would attend due to 2 of the other vendors (Kristen and Barb) not being able to attend. She was wonderful! I am so happy she was able to make it in such short notice!

I am finishing the details for the next crop and should have them posted on my site by the end of the week!

June was a very busy month here for our family!

Crystal Trunzo — Wed, 11 Jul 2007 00:44:00 GMT

Well, June was a very busy month for me here at home. I had CKC in Buffalo, then end of school year activities with the kids, then it was my oldest daughter's dance recital, and it ended with my son's (Cub Scout) Webelos Camp.

My daughter's dance recital went extremely well. It was her 8th recital this year. She has been attending dance school since she was 4 years old. Here is a picture of her (on right) with her friend that I took at her recital:

I recently attended Webelos Camp with my oldest son, Nick. It was three nights/four days at our local Boy Scout Camp - Camp Mountain Run in Penfield, PA. I helped my son's den leader with the boys there. It was an exhausting, but very fun weekend! I really enjoyed spending the time with my son, as having four kids leaves little time for any one of them. It is very hard for me to give any of my kids a lot of one-on-one time. At the end of camp my son said that he had wished it wasn't over yet. I agreed as I think I had just as good of a time, if not more than he did :> The other den leaders we were with were A LOT of fun! Here is a picture of Nick with two friends (he is in the middle) and a picture of me (second from left) with some of the other adults we were with at the Pirate-themed Webelos Camp:

Back from CKC Buffalo and working on July crop...

Crystal Trunzo — Sun, 10 Jun 2007 21:05:00 GMT

Well, I am back, of course, from my trip to Buffalo. The Creating Keepsakes Convention was a lot of fun! I took 12 classes total. My favorite experience was the Saturday morning walk with Stacy Julian. She invited me and others who were taking her classes to walk with her. On Saturday I took her Finish Line Scrapbooking class. Here is a picture of me with Stacy Julian:

And, here I am with my mom and sister, Amy, in our first class Thursday:

Now, I am working on my July crop! It is coming up soon. There are many who have already registered for it. Early bird registration is almost over. I just received a donation from Junkitz for the crop.

Getting ready for Shop, Swap & Crop and CKC Buffalo

Crystal Trunzo — Tue, 29 May 2007 16:37:00 GMT

Registrations are already coming in for the July 21st Shop, Swap & Crop in St. Marys. I have a few ladies who already registered and because of their early registration will be getting an Early Bird extra goodie! Early bird registration is still going on until June 21st, and anyone who is paid, and of course registered, by that date will also receive an additional goodie too! Plans are going well for the next crop, and should be even better than the first!

In the meantime, I am getting myself prepared for my trip to the Creating Keepsakes Convention in Buffalo the end of this week. After all the conventions I have been to, I am surprised that I still get just as excited as I did the very first ones! I am looking forward to learning new techniques and ideas. I hope to come home refreshed and more creatively energized!

More items I ordered are coming in as well, and when I get back, I will be working on my storefront adding more items. I hope to have Junkitz on tonight...

Crop was a success!

Crystal Trunzo — Sun, 13 May 2007 22:08:00 GMT

We had our Shop, Swap & Crop yesterday and it was a success! Although I have been to many crops, both as a vendor and cropper, over the years from Ohio, New Jersey, New York and various places across Pennsylvania, this was my very first time to host one.   I was a little nervous, but all seemed to go well from the feedback I recieved from those attending. The ladies and their daughters who attended were wonderful, friendly people who I would enjoy scrapbooking with myself. I couldn't have had a nicer crowd!

Here is a group photo that we took:

Throughout the day each vendor took a turn having make-and-takes. The make-and-takes demonstrated different techniques and ideas.  They were page layouts, cards, and even a cute little mini gift bag. The vendors were wonderful at teaching their projects, and all were creative.

Here I am with the other vendors:

There were many donated prizes given away. The prizes were generously donated from Around The Block, Adornit, Diane's Daughters, 3 Bugs in a Rug as well as each vendor who attended! Everyone who attended ended up winning atleast one prize!

My husband prepared all the meals for the day. My sister, Amy, and I made some desserts.

Extra cards from the card swap will be donated to the Letters From Home program. I hope the next card swap will go even better, and I really love the idea of cards being donated to those serving us and our country away from home!

I have already scheduled our next Shop, Swap & Crop for July 21st at the Loyal Order of the Moose in downtown St. Marys. It will run the same time frame from 9:30 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.   I hope to see ladies from the first crop come to this one, as well as some new ones! I believe that scrapbookers are the friendliest people anyone could ever meet and that is one of the things I love about this hobby!

Preparing for the Shop, Swap & Crop

Crystal Trunzo — Mon, 07 May 2007 22:15:00 GMT

Well it is the final days of preparation for the crop this coming weekend. It has been a lot of work, but I don't regret the time I have put into it. I feel like it is what I should be doing. I have several ladies coming, and some of them with their daughters. It is such a nice, as well as constructive, way to spend some time together for Mother's Day! I am still taking registrations at this point, we aren't quite filled up yet. One of my very best and dearest friends, Lisa, surprised me with all the newspaper advertising! She is an ANGEL! (If you read this Lisa....THANKS SO MUCH FOR ALL YOU DO FOR ME!!!)

I am waiting on some more packages to arrive this week. Two of my orders won't be here in time...bummer! (I think I need to expand my storage area in my home.) I have a lot of new and exciting products arriving. I will be adding them to my storefront this week if I have enough time...otherwise, it will have to wait until in between my work days next week.

All the ladies who have been working with me to make this happen have been wonderful. I can't wait until Saturday!!!

I still have a lot to do in preparation of the crop...so I better get working!

Updated Website!

Crystal Trunzo — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 11:07:00 GMT

There are some new items on the website now. I have added a new album to my Gallery on my website. It is titled "Paperpiecings" and includes some of the paperpiecings that I have made for various swaps over the past 9 years. When I get time I will be adding more, as I have hundreds of them! Wonder how many people are out there who have used my items in their albums?! I will be adding page layouts and altered art pieces in the future as time allows me to scan them in.

In the near future we will be implementing a user gallery area for anyone who would like to create their own album to show off their work! Until then, I can manually create an album and add anyone's work for them if they let me know!

I added our business phone number so if anyone needs one-on-one help, they can call, and if we don't answer, leave a brief message and we will get back to you as soon as possible.

In the forum section, I have information now posted on our Pre-National Scrapbook Day Sale! There is a coupon code I have created to give anyone who orders 25% off next week!

I love scrapbook-related swaps!

Crystal Trunzo — Fri, 20 Apr 2007 21:43:00 GMT

I love swaps! I am in several online scrapbook groups, and over the years I have participated in hundreds of swaps. Swaps are a great way to come up with new ways of doing things, and by saying that I don't necessarily mean copying other people's work...what I mean is that it is amazing what you can come up with in your own creative mind when given a goal and put on a schedule. I just sent in my items for a Cub Scout themed swap. I posted my items in my gallery under "Miscellaneous."

Crop Registration is Open

Crystal Trunzo — Wed, 18 Apr 2007 10:56:00 GMT

I have been working really hard the last month to get everything set up for a crop here my area. The crop will be held in DuBois, PA at the Hampton Inn on May 12, 2007 from 9:30 am to 10:00 pm. Besides my company, there will be 3 other vendors that will have a booth set up for both supplies and educational projects. The details are listed on my website under the forums area. I will also be adding more information to the home page of my site soon. So far, I will be getting a donation from 3 Bugs in a Rug. I am waiting on some other companies who may also be donating.

I have been to many crops across the state, as well as in Ohio, New York and New Jersey. Crops are so much fun! Although there are crops across the state, there hasn't been any larger ones in our area. It has been a dream of mine for many years to host crops in our area.

So...off I go to work on the final details...

My Bottle Swap

Crystal Trunzo — Tue, 03 Apr 2007 11:01:00 GMT

Well, I just sent off my bottle swap. I have participated in many scrapbook related swaps over the years, but this was the very first bottle swap. It was really fun and I now ask myself why I never participated in one before. My husband couldn't believe I was actually going to mail it out. He couldn't believe the postal service would allow such a container to be used as a package. I got compliments from my post office lady. I hope when my swap partner receives it, she also will like it.

I cut a fairly neat U shape in the side of the bottle and sanded the edges of the opening. I used painty pens to make the design on the outside. After all the painty pen paint dried, I used clear craft spray sealer to help keep the paint on there. I hot-glued the lid on the bottle and then hot-glued fabric over it to cover it up. Since it was an Easter bottle swap, I also hot-glued some purple Easter grass to the inside bottom. I put all the items I was swapping into a plastic ziplock bag and placed them inside the bottle. Along with the swap items I sent a stuffed bunny which I changed the original ribbon to a much prettier ribbon I purchased separately. I then took a little bit of additional plastic to protect the bunny from the opening in the bottle. To help keep the bottle closed as it made its way through the postal service, I also hot-glued around the opening and added some packaging tape. It was a lot of fun!!!

Hello Spring!

Crystal Trunzo — Thu, 29 Mar 2007 13:41:00 GMT

Well Spring is finally here, and it has been beautiful where I live. I took a short break a couple of days ago from the madness of my responsibilities to enjoy my youngest daughter playing outside in the snow. She was having "snow much fun" that I couldn't resist taking some photographs of her. Yes, we still had snow in our yard, even though it was nearly 70 degrees outside. She was having a blast making snowballs from the melting snow...

I have been actively planning a crop, which I should have all the planning done by this weekend. Although I have attended many, both at expos and private crops around the state, this will be my first crop that I will be hostessing. I am a little nervous, as there is a lot to be responsible for. For years this has been a dream of mine, but due to personal situations I was not able to go forward with it until recently. Compared to other areas that I have been to, the area around where I live is farely new to industry and is only now picking up interest for the most part. I hope to expand interest in my area.

My Storefront is UP!!!

Crystal Trunzo — Sun, 12 Nov 2006 12:22:00 GMT

Yeah! My storefront is up and my website is starting to look pretty good! I am so excited that it is all starting to come together. I have lots more to add to my storefront yet. I will be working on that some more today. I hope to have my whole website and storefront done by the end of this month. I will be adding some pics of things I have made. We added a user gallery on my website for others to post their own creations if they want. Here is a link to my website:

www.appleofmyeyescrapbooksupply.com

Come and check out the work that has been done:>