The Wild Wild World of Ebay

Yup, I must admit, I'm an Ebay virgin. It's a whole new world for me. Should I jump into it with both feet or test the waters first? The idea of buying something in ebay is exciting yet scary at the same time. Not so, my DH. DH is what you would call an ebay denizen. Even when it was in its infancy, DH was glued to the screen, waiting to bid on the last second, to snipe some complacent individual out of his/her bid.

I remember one of the worst fights we ever had. The year was 1998. Our computer was then a bulky desktop that was parked in the small landing between the stairs and our room. Our internet connection was through a dial-up modem, which was connected to our phone downstairs. Thus, if either of us was online, it meant that our phone was busy. It also meant that you had to be very careful walking down the stairs because of the cords snaking through the steps.

DH is an avid collector. He collects action figures, McDonald's Happy Meal toys (remind me to tell you about the time when he just had to have all the 101 Dalmatians, and no, he didn't go to ebay for them), antiquarian books about the Philippines... The list is endless. That summer he was into collecting vintage toys. Specifically, the toys he remembers playing with as a child. He even browsed his mom's family albums to search for photos of him with toys. He had these photos tacked in a board behind the computer and he patiently searched ebay for them.

That time it was a tin tank that runs over a flat giant gorilla. He had been waiting for days to bid on this item. And at 3:00 that morning, he patiently waited for his opportunity to make the tank and the gorilla his. I awoke from a deep slumber feeling very thirsty. I said "hi" to him as I groggily walked towards the stairs. And then disaster struck! In my haste, I tripped on the telephone wires on the floor. I heard him yell and while I steadied myself, he scrambled to re-connect the wires. Yes, my gallant husband didn't even care that I almost fell over the stairs. He was more concerned with his bid. And unfortunately for him, in those precious few seconds of disconnection someone outbid him by a mere $0.01. He never lets me forget about that. And I never let him forget that I almost died (okey, I am exaggerating) because of his preoccupation with outwitting, outsmarting and outbidding other toy collectors.

Fast forward to now. I finally got a paypal account, so now I could ebay. But as I said earlier, I was not sure how to go about the whole thing. So I kept bugging DH to help me. I wanted him to bid for me using his account because he has a feedback of 100%. I have yet to build a record and I was concerned I'd make a big boo-boo and be branded negatively forever.

It seems I have to test the waters on my own. So tentatively, I placed a bid for a Quickutz Moxie SkinniMinni Die set. It was less than 30 minutes before the close of the bid and it was still $9.50. I put in a maximum bid of $10.50 and then I waited. For what? I do not know. Hehehe. I guess I was trying to check if someone had set an automatic bidding for this item. I then got engrossed looking at other stuff in ebay and when I came back, the auction was over and I had been outbid by 50 cents. I had an a-ha! moment. I have to set a higher maximum bid if I wanted to win something. (Obvious ba? Hehehe.)

My next foray was another learning experience. The bid was at $9.50, so having learned previous lesson, I typed a maximum bid of $19.50 (medyo nagdalawang-isip pa ako bago ako nag-confirm, pero sige na nga...). Less than a nanosecond later I had feedback that I was outbid. Again. Wah??? So fast? How did that happen? I realized then someone had set a higher maximum amount than my $19.50. I didn't bid again. It was much too expensive for my taste already. I didn't want that diecut so badly anyway.

Three more attempts and I finally got the hang of it. I was having fun. I bid here and there, always stopping short of actually winning. So if you saw unusual activity on Quickutz items these past two days, that was me. LOL.

Bidding is actually quite exciting. It's a little bit like gambling so I can understand why some people are so hooked on ebay. And I know if I'm not careful, I could be like my DH was 10 years ago.

My Own Scrapfest 5

I missed one of the most awaited scrapbooking events of the year. Most of my friends went but I have many other things going on in my life right now that something had to give. So I decided not to attend Scrapfest 5. I think this and the very first Scrapfest are the only two that I've missed.

Instead, I had fun exploring the Manila Ocean Park with the KiDS. It was a great bonding time for us. We got four tickets for free. Thanks to Diego's quick eye. He caught the advertisement on TV last Friday that SkyCable was giving away free tickets to the first 75 callers. We were number 72 and I had to pick up the tickets that same day but it was all worth it. We were quite lucky as the tour was very organized - we had our own guide and there was a short program where prizes and snacks were given away by the organizers.

Still, I had a feeling I was missing out on some fun and excitement of the adult kind, so when I got home I decided to play with the stuff DH brought home for me. I pretended I had my own Scrapfest. We even had chicken (not Max's) for lunch.

Here are some of the stuff DH got me:

DH always goes to bookstores so I made sure that he got me Becky Fleck's Page Maps at Barnes and Noble. He also brought home my subscription copies of scrapbooking magazines that was addressed to my friend there. Early for once.

Some Colorbok and DCWV chipboard packs that are not on my list but are certainly appreciated. They were on sale so he got them.

Cardstocks for every season. And a Ki Memories kit. A scrapper can never have enough cardstock.


The Fiskar's circle punch and the controversial circle cutter. And an unexpected surprise - a Darice melting pot ! He said he got me the thing so that I can have my hands free while scrapping. So I won't have to hold a glue stick, I just have to simply dip any item that I have to adhere in the melting pot. So thoughtful, eh? I like those alphabet stamps, too.


He bought this discounted goodie bag from Joann's. Ssshhh...don't tell him it wasn't really a great buy. Some of the stickers were about fall, winter and snow tubing. And there were mini-envelopes in colors I can't use. But I didn't want to hurt his feelings cause he thought he got a bargain so I just oohed and aahhed.


And these are my prizes from A Peek Into Yesterday. They almost didn't make it home with DH because I gave Peek the wrong address. I assumed the family friends DH stayed with still lived in the same place. Good thing the package was forwarded to the post office and the family friend's son just happened to work there. I have to credit Pat, the owner of Peek, for being very patient with me as I tracked down my order.


And last, but not the least, yes, I did manage to sneak in some purchases from Joann.com at least a month before DH's trip. I addressed them to the same friend who receives my magazines for me. I couldn't resist the Heidi Swapp chipboards which were on sale then for less than $2.00.

Oh, happy day!

DH's Home

Christmas in the summer. Well, that's what it felt like when DH arrived home last Monday night. He brought home two balikbayan boxes full of toys (yes, scrapbooking and otherwise). The KiDS had a marvelous time diving into the boxes and surfacing with one toy or another. I dove in with them, too, lest they crumple my scrapbooking papers that I knew would be there, of course. I felt kinda guilty when I saw that most of the stuff were for us, but that quickly passed. Hehehe.

If you have been following this blog, you would know that I sent DH out on a mission. A mission to infiltrate all the Michaels' and Joann's stores in San Fernando Valley. You'd think that armed with photographs and descriptions, this would have been an easy task, but nooo.... Let me tell you why, and I assure you, it's not for his lack of trying.

1) The aforementioned scrapbooking stores don't necessarily have the same stock that you see in their online stores. In fact, I would guess that they have more stuff online. I should've taken the suggestion of a fellow scrapbooker and just ordered online and addressed it to where DH was going to stay. Unfortunately, DH was in the US for a very short time only and I was worried the shipment would not reach him before he had to leave.

2) Different branches have different stocks, and have different items on sale. If I were to believe DH, he visited around 4 Joann's and 1 Michaels. He said Michaels items were more expensive than Joann's.

3) Not all the sales personnel know what they are selling. "If it's not in the racks, we don't have it." So, DH had to manually search for the items on my list. Kawawa naman siya, dinugo daw ang ilong niya sa Joann's Superstore. I though he was being sarcastic but our friend, Uncle Johnny told me on YM that it really happened. Hmmmm....must find really nice way to say thank you to DH then. :-)

He didn't get me all the items on my list, but he got me more than enough (must...say...thank you...in a very nice way.) He got me DCWV cardstocks which were on sale. A scrapper can never have enough cardstock. The horizontal paper organizers he got me didn't turn out so bad, although I think I will use them to store the discounted embellishments he got me. And oh, he did manage to get me the Fiskars punchers I asked him to buy. Although I am still not sure what I would do with the Fiskar's circle cutter.

I will try to post photos later, but in the meantime, with all he brought home for me, I feel it's almost okay that I am missing Scrapfest next week. Almost...not quite. Hehehe.

Never Send a Man to Do a Scrapper's Job

As some of you may know, DH is now in the U.S. on official business. I thought of joining him but since he will only be there for 10 days, it isn't worth it. My airfare would be better used for buying scrapbooking stuff. And to be honest, we don't have money set aside for an unplanned trip. He is being sponsored as it is.

So I gave him a list, complete with photos, description and prices of the things I wanted him to get for me. All he has to do is go inside a Joann's or Michael's, and he will be all set. (Too bad there is no Hobby Lobby in California. I heard from Marj that the latest Basic Grey releases are 50% off! $10 for a collection pack and I can't get my hands on them. Waaahhhh....)

Since DH left, I wait for him to go online every morning and the second I see him on YM, I buzz him to ask, "what did you get for me today?" Grabe, di man lang kinumusta muna, ano?

I asked for the Fiskar's circle handheld punch. He got me a Fiskar's circle cutter. Hello? Punch? Cutter? Sabi ko, ay di ko kailangan yan (imbes magpasalamat), isoli mo! Now, even if returning or exchanging merchandise is fairly common and accepted in the U.S., DH hates it. So sabi niya, hindi akin na lang. Ako na ang gagamit. At ano naman kaya ang pag-gagamitan aber? Mag-scrapbook din siya?

He also proudly told me that he got me 12x12 paper trays (not on my list). I asked vertical or horizontal. He said horizontal, with lids. Now I don't know about you but I don't like horizontal containers for papers because you have to pull out your entire stack just to choose paper. I prefer the vertical type where I can easily flip through the pages to find what I want. So guess what I said? And guess what he said?

I guess I should be thankful I have a DH who indulges me in this hobby. See? He even thought of getting me something he thought I might like even if it wasn't on my list. But maybe I should have gone with him instead. That could have saved us more money...not...hehehe.

I Heart Book Sale

My DH and I are Book Sale denizens. Since I started sending three KiDS to pre-school, I could no longer afford to have my monthly (when I was single, weekly) fix of brand-new, crease-free books. I learned not to be so picky when it came to reading the latest bestsellers, especially if I could get them at 75% less than the bookstore price. I figured, the quality of a book does not diminish with every reading it got. Also, I get a kick trying to guess who the earlier owners of previously-owned books are. You could learn alot about a person on how they lovingly write their names on the first page, or how they underline, sometimes double-underline, words or phrases that struck the very core of their souls. I have as much fun reading one unknown person's marginal notes as the author's rambling narrative.

So, with all their cheap books, no matter how musty or dusty, or even if the covers had been stripped, I heart Book Sale.

It was only recently though that I began haunting (yes, that is the perfect word to describe me as I hover between shelves and shelves of books and magazines) Book Sale for their scrapbooking magazines. It was mostly hit or miss, as I think there are not that many issues of Creating Keepsakes as OK or Yes Magazines to begin with. Sometimes, I'd get lucky, but most of the time, I went home magazine-less.

Until this year, I cooked up a plan. A plan to get all the scrapbooking magazines I can get my hands on on from every Book Sale branch I can visit. And was I successful? See for yourself.

7 on January 12

4 on January 16

3 on January 17 (DH got these for me)

And I didn't even have to spend more than a few minutes in each store or get my hands dusty.

At the risk of depriving myself of future scrapbooking loots such as these, let me share with you my strategy:

1) Don't waste your time going through the magazine bins. Ask the Book Sale (BS) personnel if they have scrapbooking magazines. They (usually) know their inventory. They even know if it's sold already. The really good ones even help you locate the magazine from memory.

2) Tell the BS person what items you usually buy. Ask them their names and their numbers. (I have a directory of all Book Sale branches within lakwatsa radius.) Leave your name and number with them. Ask them to call you when they have a delivery of scrapbook mags. (An actual call will depend on your relationship with them though.)

3) In connection, know the schedule when fresh stock is delivered. This is usually on Tuesdays and Thursdays at around 3 pm. They would have managed the inventory by 4 pm so that's a good time to haunt.

4) Befriend the senior BS person so that a) when s/he goes to the warehouse, s/he will remember to get you the items you like and b) when the inventory gets to their store, s/he will reserve these for you and call you. (Again, this depends on your actual relationship with them.)

The plan didn't really pan out for me at the start. I mean, who am I anyway, to demand reservations. During a hard day's work, I am just another customer for the sales person. So when I failed to elicit any encouraging response from the Book Sale nearest our studio, I decided to play my trump card. I brought in...hubby.

Now those of you who have met my DH know that he stands out in a crowd. With his long hair, he is quite easy to remember. The BS may not recall his name but there is instant recognition when he walks into the store. BS personnel rotate and get re-assigned in different branches so I am always pleasantly surprised DH is warmly welcomed at the most obscure Book Sale store. Note though, that my DH has a good track record with BS. When he buys, he buys in bulk. And when he makes a reservation, he gets them at the agreed time. So there is never any worry on the part of the BS personnel that s/he will be left hanging with unsold inventory.

So anyway, no amount of flirting with the sales guy helped. (OK, admittedly, I am not as young or as desirable as I was - mwahahaha). I did steps 1 - 4 but no can do. He went through the motions but he was very lukewarm. I knew I was never gonna get a phone call anytime soon. So I went out and asked DH to meet me at the Book Sale. When I came back, DH was already there digging for books. I called him honey, and I made sure the guy heard me, no, not to make him jealous, but simply to let him know, I'm with this guy. And guess what, the BS guy dug through his mags and asked me, "Ma'am nagbabasa kayo ng Paper Crafts?" I said, "Oo pero meron na ako niyan." Then he said, "Next time po may scrapbooking ma'am, ibibigay ko na lang kay Sir."

Oh, yes, being married to this long-haired guy certainly has its perks. :-)

Last Minute Madness

I really only meant to pick-up the firecrackers I ordered from Joyleen. But somehow, last December 31, through a force much powerful than my resolve, I ended up at Helen's Memory Lane store. My mantra was "get in, get out" but seeing all the scrapbooking goodies at the shop, it became "get in, spend, get out."

I have only been to Helen's store once in 2006, and I was pleasantly surprised to see that she has expanded her space. She has more items in her inventory, too. It was much easier to browse and therefore easier to be tempted by all she has in store (pun intended). I also didn't know that she has a wide selection of the latest scrapbooking books and magazines. She has some titles that I have in my Amazon cart and I don't even have to wait for the items to be shipped to me. She also allowed us to open the books and magazines from their plastic covers so we can actually browse them. Nothing turns me off more than a book wrapped in plastic telling me "off limits." I need to see what I am buying into.

This had a heady effect on Nita, Joyleen and I, and as against all resistance from our respective conscience, we purchased at least eight books between us. And these were not planned purchases at all. Truly, there is something about the pull of being able to preview a book to make you decide that you want it. While Amazon has this nifty feature that allows you to "search inside" a book, nothing beats seeing all those wonderful layouts up close and personal.

We did our darndest to ignore the call of the scrabooking items begging us to take them home, but Helen's cajoling and discounts made us go for broke. Pun intended again, broke being the operative word.

I spent more than the cash I had in my wallet. Helen accepts credit card payments but at a lesser discount and even if that was just a minimal amount, I couldn't justify that extra expense to myself anymore. Then I made the mistake of asking if she accepts EPS payments. She wasn't sure but after much trial and error, we were able to complete a transaction. Hurray for cashless shopping. Cashless being...never mind. :-)

Anyway, that was definitely my last scrapbooking purchase for the year 2007. I hope I get to put them all to good use.

Guilty Pleasures

Before we proceed with the unveiling of the contents of my balikbayan boxes, I have several disclaimers to make:

• Not all two and a half boxes contained my stuff. Neither are they all filled with scrapbooking materials.
• I bought these items intermittently in a course of one year. I'm sure that I spent less than most of you did in the past year.
  
• Some of the contents were given my sister and friends, and I am grateful to them for indulging me in this hobby.

I counted 3 Sizzlits alphabets (Funky Brush, Cherish, Funky Brush), 3 original alphabars (uppercase Pigeon-Toed Charms, lowercase Doodle Block, complete set of Doodle Tag), 21 various shapes die-cuts, 2 Sizzix Bigz (I hope they work with my Cuttlebug), 3 Sizzlits, 3 embossing folders. Where in my scraproom will I find room for these?

Three K.I. Memories kits worth P500 each, containing over 600 pieces of paper, stickers, and ribbons. The design may not be the latest trend but this would be great for making albums.


Provocraft slabs, again, good for making coordinating albums and cards.


DCWV stacks - Once Upon A Time, Old World, Far East, Glitter, Pocketful of Posies and Luxury Stack. I am loving the papers of the Luxury Stack so much that I wish I had more wedding photos.


Making Memories and Li'l Davis foam stamps, self-adhesive foam stamps (certainly will come useful to my goal of making more LOs with dimension), foam flowers - lots of them.


Pearl Ex powders (can't wait to experiment more with these powders), rubber stamps, Stickles, Martha Stewart glitters (yummy), ribbons, scissors, tool kit, corner puncher, acrylic paints that I can let my KiDS have as they were so cheap.


Manang Marissa also sent me these unused plastic test tubes (she used to work as a clinical researcher). Perfect for storing glitters, UTEE, embossing powders that you plan to share. If you want some of these, just leave a comment here. I think I can spare five per person and I'm sure Manang won't mind. Good only while supplies last.

See, not much, isn't it? I know some scrappers who have more stuff in their boxes. Tee-hee.

Sneak Peek

The whole week, from our studio-office, I would call our helper and ask, "Have the boxes arrived yet?" I'm sure I sounded like a broken record, or at the very least like my kulit KiDS when we are on a long road trip. Before we left the studio at around 7:30 pm last Friday, I called up Ate again to ask if they (you know what) have arrived. She answered in the negative, as usual.

Thus, it was a very happy surprise when I saw three balikbayan boxes in our garage when we arrived around 8 pm. Woo-hoo... I was so excited! I wanted to rush in, tear open the packaging tape and dive into the boxes. But I had to restrain myself (admirably, I might add) because I had committed to attending the mini-EB at Nita's place. I was already late as it was.

So amidst a lot of ribbing from my DH, he drove me to the EB venue where I finally met Me-Anne. I was expecting to do a lot of cutting to help Mitch prepare the mini-kits for the PS EB but they had already finished that. So to take my mind off my boxes, I persuaded the others to go to Au's house to look at the stuff she planned to put up on sale.

Major disaster for the budget and the wallet. It did take my mind off the boxes though. For awhile.

DH fetched me at around 12:30, and we got home around 1:30 am. And although we have to be up at 5 am the next day (Scouting Investiture at the school), I opened all the boxes, neatly placing all the scrapbooking stuff on top of our stereo.

What I saw astounded me, and for a brief moment, my conscience bothered me, how could I have accumulated so much stuff? I'm sure when I get to play that feeling will disappear. For now, I am literally living with guilty pleasures.

This day has been full (I've had only 4 hours of sleep). A long-winded meeting for the volunteer work I am doing followed after the investiture, and the traffic today is totally unbelievable. I still had to prepare for the EB tomorrow, so my EQ will still be placed under severe test. I hope tomorrow night, after the EB, and a work-related dinner meeting, I will finally be able to play. If, the KiDS did their homeworks as instructed. Otherwise, I will be one grumpy mommy.

I'm So Excited

They were supposed to arrive last week but because of the holidays, Customs didn't release the balikbayan boxes. I was sooo looking forward to playing during the long break. Konting tulog na lang.

Thank you, Manang Marissa!!!

My MIL Went to the U.S. and Here Are What She Brought Me

My mom-in-law was in New York and L.A. for two weeks recently to attend the graduation of her second son from grad school and for some R&R. I immediately seized the opportunity to use her as my personal courier. I ordered some items online and had them shipped to our family friend in L.A. so she can bring them back with her. She arrived last Sunday night. I was never more excited to pick someone from the airport than I did her. :-)

Here's what's in my box:

Scrapbooking books from my younger brother, Nani.

Acrylic stamps from college roommate, Mitch.

DCWV paper packs and corner adorner stamp from my sister Marissa.

Cuttlebug, dies and embossing folders and PC Silent Setter from our family friend.

Two pairs of loafers from my MIL.

Making Memories books from www.thescrapbookclub.com - $21.63
Autumn Leaves and Sassafrass Lass stamps, American Craft rub-ons from www.amillionlittlethings.com - $97.78
Paper stacks from www.joanns.com - $47.98
Cuttlebug machine and accessories from www.creativexpress.com - $160.87
Using other people's credit cards - PRICELESS

I can't wait to play with my new toys. Now if I could only find the time between child care, homeworks and house work, I would be one happy scrappy mommy.

A short anecdote about My Little Attic

Since MLA was sponsoring the Fancy Pants challenge, I deemed it but proper to buy the papers from them. So I went online last April 13, Friday to order the papers I wanted and the much-touted white uni-ball signo pen. Nette's e-mailed response was quite quick and I asked her if she could send my order to their office in Tektite so I can have my nephew who works at the same building pick it up on Tuesday, April 17. Yes, I was trying to save on the shipping charges. It's small I know, but I can't help but think that's another 2 pieces of PPS. Hehehe.

Our arrangement was quite clear, so imagine my surprise, when on Saturday, after a long and tiring day at my in-laws', I arrived home to find an Air21 package waiting for me. I thought, oh, she must have misunderstood. But then excitement overcame me and I dismissed the minimal shipping fee. I eagerly opened my package and inside was a note from Nette, telling me that she wanted to surprise me and that she was not charging me for the shipping. Oh me, oh my. Such kindness. Such generosity.

I told my DH that was so sweet of Netter but I was also a little embarassed so I told him, "Maybe I should still pay for the shipping. May free papers pa ako. (The few times I've ordered from MLA, Nette sent free papers. I think she does that for everyone.) My DH told me," Accept it for the very nice gesture it is. Mas nakakahiya pag isoli mo. Repay her some other way na lang." I immediately grinned and responded, "Yeah. I should buy more papers." Natawa na lang si DH.

But seriously, this is just one of the many nice things that Nette Madero has done for her clients. And it is much appreciated by many. No wonder she was voted the scrap retailer of the year.

Look What I Found!

Scrap shopping is always exciting for me. What's even more exciting is when I find scrapbooking items in the most unexpected places and at very cheap prices.

Big bags of multi-colored foam die cuts - alphabets and numbers, animals, shapes and flowers for only P55 each. Buy one take one packages of multi-colored buttons and wooden flowers at P55. Dome alphabet stickers for P55 too. No, I didn't get these from the 55 peso store, if such even exists.


The best find? Acrylics in various shapes and colors. Each bag contains 28 acrylic pieces. At P88 per packet, that comes down to P3.15 per piece. Even my DH can't afford to complain at that price.


Look at the many designs available. And I should mention that these weren't meant to be used for scrapping. They're really parts of a DIY curtain pack. How cool is that?


It was actually the @ sign that drew my eyes in at first. The price made those same eyes open wide. I have seen an LO titled "Where I'm @" and I have always wanted to make one just like it. The flowers, musical notes, bears, pac-man ghosts, hands, feet, L-O-V-E, chicks, and diamond shapes filled my mind with endless possibilities.

If you want to know where I found these lovelies, leave a comment or read this entry again. The answer is right in here. :-)

Ordering Scrapbook Items Online

Temptation not only lingers in scrapmeets and scrapfests, but in cyberspace as well.

It really is so simple that it's very easy to get carried away. No matter that I told myself that I would not spend more than $25 (that's the least you can buy to get free shipping), I clicked and I clicked and I clicked and pretty soon, I had many items in my virtual shopping carts.

I cringe in virtual pain for the moment I receive my credit card bill. When I pay my dues, the pain will be excruciatingly real. It doesn't help that the bill will be arriving before my shipments do. So to make the days go easier, I'll just put myself in that happy place where I am surrounded by idea books, acrylic paints, foam stamps, cardstock and patterned paper. Or maybe I should just start scrapping and put what I have already hoarded to good use. Hmmmm...there's an idea.

I will not write how much damage this little online shopping spree caused my bank account lest my husband read this post. While I control my own funds, I will be out of a job by the end of the month, so my practical self was practically screaming - STOP! But I just have to have those things I ordered. Who knows when I will have my own funds to spend for my own stuff again?

In the meantime, can anyone tell me how to block joanns.com and amazon.com from ever appearing on my browser?

My Personal Shopper

Who can live without them?

Early this year, I resolved that I would finally get scrappin'. Pressure from my DH (dear husband) is mounting. Also, I know that the longer my photos remain in the magnetic albums, the sooner they will deteriorate. It's like an acid time bomb.

But first, I must learn more about the latest trends in scrapbooking. I surfed the net and browsed through endless image galleries for inspiration. Finally, after weeks of relentless research, I came to an iron-clad conclusion: I need more stuff!!! I mean, who can scrapbook without eyelets, brads, ribbons, die cuts, punchers, templates, fibers, wires, beads, stamps, stickers, (add more here as you wish)? No decent scrapbooker should be caught without those. My stacks of paper, scissors, glues, and multi-colored pens are severely lacking. They're not just enough.


As my daughters put it, "I am in paper heaven!"

Enter my blood and scrap sister, Manang Marissa.

Manang Marissa's U.S. address is like a P.O. box for me and my DH. Stuff we order online - amazon.com, e-bay, etc. are shipped to her house. She is cool with that.

But this time, I needed something more. I needed her to actually go to the stores and scour the sales bins for items that I wanted. With her talent and love for scrapbooking, it was no hardship for her. She has an eye for what works and a radar for cheap finds. I'd like to believe she had fun shopping for me. She was able to get me Chatterbox, Memory Makers and Deja Views paper at three for a $1.00. She also got me stamps and stickers at half the original price. She was indefatigable. She shopped up a storm and everything was quite a find.


Stamps and ribbons galore

Each night, she showed me the things she bought by webcam. Thanks to her, I didn't have to be in the U.S. to be able to shop U.S.-style.


Charmed, I'm sure.

I never really thought to fill up a whole balikbayan box, but the many stacks of paper (I also ordered online at Jo-Ann's) took up precious cubic space. Add to that the two books on scrapbooking from Creative Keepsakes (also on sale at around $5 each) and 12x12 sterilite drawers. She also thoughtfully provided me with a box of Frango Mint chocolates - to reward myself with everytime I completed a layout. (That was, of course, the idea.)


Scrapbook paper and chocolates don't mix.


It's like Christmas in the summer.

Some of my friends tease me that they want to borrow my Manang. Sure! But they have to fall in line.

Shopping for Scraps

For a long while I haven't been updating my photo albums. The albums were safely in the cabinet while the digital shots were religiously copied to disks. But that's just about it.

It was my sister Marissa who got me into scrapbooking again. Long distance this time. She sends me copies of layouts she made through e-mail. As usual, they were creative and interesting. She does both paper and digital scrapping. Though lately, she has concentrated on the latter. It is her way of connecting with loved ones here in the Philippines. We would e-mail her our latest pictures and she would get our stories about them. Then she would scrap and send her finished products back to us.


A sample of Manang Marissa's work

When I went to visit her last year, the first store we visited was Michaels Arts and Crafts Store. I went ga-ga over the stuff that were on display. I was like a kid in a candy store. So many paper to choose from. No. Not choose. I want them all!!! But as always when I am in the U.S., I mentally converted the prices to pesos and I ended up not buying much. I did zoom in on the sale bins which had the Slabs for half the price. Slabs are a collection of 180 sheets of patterned paper with 60 designs of 3 sheets each. At $19.95 less 50 percent, it was a very good buy. Roughly P3.00 a page. At the time, they had Slabs IV and V on sale.


Paper from Michaels and Jo-Ann's. Stocker boxes from Japan (Everything P88) Home Store

I also placed quite a number of The Paper Company 8 1/2" x 11" cardstocks in my basket. At $1.99 for a value pack of 50 sheets, it came out to only P2.00 per sheet. And the colors were already color-coordinated.


Cardstock from Michaels

I just picked up some Pioneer 12x12 albums ($9.99), extra protective sleeves, photo-safe glues and I was done. I was very happy with what I had.

My sister was giving me a set of Kraft Edgers scissors, Sharpies, gel pens and more paper so I didn't really need to buy any more. Also, at that time, I wasn't really into scrapbooking mode yet. Thus, I concentrated on the basics.


Stackable shelves from Japan Home store, contents from Manang Marissa

I thought I was a very prudent shopper but it still came out to more than $100.00 at check-out. It does add up - the "few" items here and there. And of course, there was the sales tax. I just consoled myself, "Hey! I may never pass this way again."

Post-script: My dear husband says that in terms of opportunity costs, the stuff I bought actually cost me more. That's because I didn't take them out to use until a year later. (Thank God, the paper are acid-free so they are still as good as new). Well, that's what hoarding is: accumulating things and hiding them away for future use. Let's just say, the future is now?