Pie & Paint Swatches

Sugar, salt, cinnamon, cloves & ginger. Can you guess what I made yesterday? Here's another very important clue...

I made pumpkin pie!! I have been craving this yummy dessert & just HAD to make it. And this might sound strange, but I have NEVER made pumpkin pie before! It was very soupy & weird & I had no idea how it would set up. But, it eventually baked to perfection.


I took this pie to a movie/munchies night with some ladies. We watched Arsenic & Old Lace, starring Cary Grant. I'm not a total fan of old movies (this one was released in 1944), but it was a great movie! Perfect for Halloween too.

My friend Tia & I went on a super-paint-swatch-snaggin' hunt earlier this week. Our kidlets wanted to make those paint swatch notebooks. Look at my adorable little crafty class!

I've made a bunch of these notebooks & they'll be available for a buck at the Christmas bazaar! I'm also thinking of giving them as a "free gift with purchase" while supplies last. They turned out really cute & they're so fun to make. (Are you sick of hearing about these notebooks yet?)


Today I'm working on a tutorial to post tomorrow. To fill my crafty fuel tank, guess what I had for breakfast?

Happy Weekend!

Paint Sample Notebook Tutorial

These wee notebooks are super easy to make & you'll want to make, like, a million of them because they're so cute!!
I recently received an awesome package of these mini notepads from the president of my Eastern Washington Etsy Street Team, Randi- a.k.a. Ragnazidnar. They're part of a swap our team has organized to promote each other's shops. As our orders go out, the little freebies get tucked inside each package. To see Randi's version of these notebooks, see the last photo in this post.

The SUPPLIES you need are: various sized paint sample cards (found at Home Depot, Walmart, Lowe's, etc.), stapler, ruler, computer paper, scissors or paper cutter.

The first thing you'll want to do is fold & crease one end. You don't have to be exact here. Just fold it up about 3/4" or so.
Then , take the top edge & catch it under that little flap on the bottom to form your little matchbook-style notebook.

Measure your book to see how big you need to cut your papers. I just cut the papers about 1/4" smaller than the actual book.

Cut your papers. I got this paper cutter about a year & a half ago. And MAN! It makes life so much easier. I really couldn't believe I'd lived without one. If you don't have a paper cutter--go treat yourself! You'll thank me & think I'm so awesome for recommending it.

I used 20 pieces of paper inside the books.

Tuck the bundle of papers inside your paint sample card...

...& staple the bottom flap to the papers inside. Fold the top flap down & tuck it under--like a matchbook. If the cover is too long & won't tuck nicely under, just slice a little off & try to tuck it under again.

Use all sorts of stickers, brads, jewels & bits to decorate your notepads.

Randi stamped all her pads with her shop & email info. Great little business promos! Thanks Randi for the inspiration!