Product Review: We R Memory Keepers: Envelope Punch Board

Over the past year, I started to make greeting cards because I realized how much of a craft supply hoarder I’ve become.  There is only so many rhinestones and embellishments you can have.  Now that I’m focusing on Cindy Ho Designs, I realized I need larger then average envelopes to ship vinyl sheets.  Finding the right sized envelope on small quantities was nearly impossible without breaking the bank.

As I realized the need to have every size envelope available on the planet, I found the Martha Stewart Score Board isn’t fulfilling my small business needs.  Then, I stumbled on the We R Memory Keepers Envelope Punch Board

Pros

• Easy to use.  As long as you score the first fold accurately, then the other four sides will be accurate
• There is a measurement template on the board for easy reference for the starting paper size to the final envelope size
• If you are not accustomed to the Imperial System.  A metric template sticker is included
• No corner cutting.  The Martha Stewart Score Board requires to hand cut notches so they fold.  This tool does it for you with it’s punch
• Easy to store.  I use this tool a lot so I use a letter sorter and it stands straight up and at arms reach

Cons

• I find that the board is too short to score paper larger then the standard letter.  I have to fold the paper just to get the crease required to start the second score.  Not great when you are in a rush or mass producing larger envelopes.
• The A2 size envelope measurements is not accurate.  Cards don’t fit the one suggested by the board.  I found that for me, the best is starting with a 8 inch x 8 inch size square and starting the first score @ 3.5 inches

Final Thoughts

I love this tool.  After figuring out the cons, this is my most used paper crafting tool aside from my Fiskars Folding Rotary Paper Trimmer.  It’s nice that I can use regular scrapbook paper (which I’ve also hoarded) and find a practical use for them with little waste

Martha Stewart Scoring Board - Additional Measurements

If you own the Martha Stewart scoring board, I’m sure you made some custom sized envelopes. Recently I had orders for several different cards and there’s a few envelopes not listed in the included size chart. With a little trial and error, figured out some options that works best for my needs. I hope these will work for you.

Product Review: Scotch CAT 085 Advanced Tape Glider

There’s a Michael's on West Broadway that visit by each time I’m in the area.  Glad that I did.  On their clearance table, was a damaged box with a perfectly good tape glider for only $10.  The only thing wrong was it was someone stole the 2 rolls of tape that supposed to come with the gun.  I happen to have a 50% coupon used to purchase refills.  The regular price for the glider is $40.  Michaels always overpriced their product, but that day, I got both the gun and tape for $15.  You know when you get a rush when you find a bargain?  That day was my rush.

In the long on, this will save you money on the tape refills.  I used to buy dollar store brand tape runners but they run out quickly.  For me, $5.00 roll will replace 30 dollar store ones.  I went ‘cheap’ and purchased double sided tape rolls but they were not acid free and the adhesive started to soak and show through on many of my cards that I didn’t put to market right away.  I won’t sell sub-par product, so all that hard work down the drain.  And I shutter on the ones I did sell as those customers may not come back to my store.

So I needed a acid free tape adhesive that will last me for many paper related projects.  I’ve been eyeing this glider for a while, but when I saw that damaged box with a perfectly good gun inside, I jumped at the opportunity.

Pros:

• acid free
• bonds permanently over time, but if you make an error right away, you can rub the tape off if you are careful
• will last you many projects
• tape will ‘break’ where you want it to stop if you apply a little pressure.  A plus if you have experience with the tape stretching and snapping onto the paper in little balls

Cons:

• It’s big.  There are competing products that is smaller.  It took some time to get used to with my small hands.  And I can’t ‘throw it into the tape drawer’.  Had to find a special home for it in my craft room
• The gun itself is a little tricky to load.  I had to look it up on YouTube.  The instructions on the box is a little vague
• You have to hold the trigger to dispense the tape, this took a few projects to get used to.

I’ve been using this glider for a few weeks now and haven’t the need to refill it.  I highly recommend it even if the gun is oversized and tricky to load.  It’s worth the learning curve. 

Martha Stewart Crafts Scoring Board and Envelope Tool

Last year, I was making a lot of handmade cards and boxes.  Hand folding the cardstock in half wasn’t giving the crisp clean look that store bought parts have.  When I hand scored with a ruler, well, that was even worse because I was very inaccurate due to paper sliding and I got lazy to measure twice.  My sister in law who runs Lucky Charms Cards purchased this same board a while back and she liked it a lot.   There was a 50% off paper crafting tool sale on Joanne’s website so decided to order one.

Pros:

• has a built in compartment to store the envelope template so you won’t lose it

• has a built in compartment to store the bone folder and will house thin items you may use like a glue pen or erasers

• In the bone folder compartment, there’s a ‘cheat sheet’ reference for paper sizes to score envelopes for popular card sizes

• great for projects that require accordion folds like fans or rosettes

Cons:

• Large footprint – This accommodates a 12 x 12 sheet and I use this board very often.  However, it takes up too much room on my working space if it’s left out.  I did get around this buy using a letter sorter.  I also use it to hold my other often used tool like my cutting board and my paper trimmer

• Envelope Maker – after scoring per instructions, I don’t like how you have to hand cut the notches.  Most of us can’t cut that straight and even though most people wouldn’t notice, I notice how they are not lining up perfectly when folding.

Tip:

Apply a light, consistent pressure when storing.  Too light of a touch, your bone folder will ‘jump the rails’.  Too heavy will rip your paper

Overall, this is a great scoring tool.  I personally don’t make a lot of envelopes with it as I have an easier to use tool, We R Memory Keeps Envelope Punch Board. 

Boss Kut Gazelle: The First Test Cut

The manual had a tutorial for a heart.  So I followed it and hit ‘cut’.  The first surprise was how loud this machine was.  When I researched, alot of users who had multiple machines said this one was one of the quieter ones.  That is not my opinion.  If you have young children, this will disturb them during their naps. 

The heart was symmetrical and had clean edges.  Basic shapes and text that comes with the Funtime software, it was easy to get those from sketch to cut.  Here’s another example with a flower that came with Funtime:

I’ve read with any cutting machine, it takes time to get used to the settings for good cuts.  I’ve been practicing and this is true for the Bosskut.  I’ll write about my experiences in a different post, but there is a lot of testing and experimenting to find out what works for you.

I highly recommend you watch the videos on the disc that came with the machine and read up in the Bosskut forums when you start to get to know yoru machine.  I tried design without watching the videos and I don’t recommend it.  The videos shows you all the basics.  So far, very happy with the result of the cut quality

Do not leave paper on your cutting mat when you are not using it.  I left mine on overnight and the tackiness bonded to the paper.  When I did more test cuts, it was very hard to take off the paper and I ruined many pieces.  And there was little bits of paper stuck to it.  I had to wash it with soap and water.  What a pain!

Boss Kut Gazelle: Placing the Order

When I decided for this machine, the Boss Kut website stated their machine was on preorder and wouldn’t ship until January 1st, 2013.  I wanted the machine before Christmas so I looked around and they were out of stock everywhere!  The retailer I found it at was charging $600!  No way!  So went for the preorder.

The website isn’t as fancy as the more mainstream ones like Cricut, Cameo or even a lesser known like Pazzle with nice landing pages with flash pictures that change every 3 seconds to showcase their products.  To be blunt, they need to revamp the website to showcase their product properly.  The layout is cluttered and there’s inconsistent font type and size.  A retail website is supposed to draw you in to buy more. 

The price was $389 with $30 deposit.

When I did manage to place the deposit of $30, I didn’t realize it but it invoiced me something link $8 shipping.  So I emailed them.  They acknowledge their error and asked if I wanted to apply to the final payment, which I said ‘no problem.’  At the end of it, they just charged me $30 and then $359 when they shipped.

Clearly the company is more focused on their customer service and product (which is a great thing) which does make up for a website but did make me wonder what I was getting myself into. However, I’m convinced this is still right choice.  I’m committed.  I already have the machine!

My Memories Suite Designer Pack Freebie–Quick Page Kit

Back in August 2011, I hosted a Giveaway on my West Coast Origami blog to give away a My Memories Suite Digital Scrapbooking Software.  It was a small success and I’ve been enjoying utilizing it for new layouts for my photos for my blogs, my Instagram.  

My Memories Suite has offered me a free designer pack to share with any My Memories user!

The page you see is a quickie one that only took me 5 minutes.  Don’t you love it?  Click here or on the preview image to download your own!

Don’t have the software?  Try it yourself and get $10 off your purchase!  Click here or on the banner below and enter Promo Code STMMMS36954 when you check out

Promo Code STMMMS36954

I love Instagram

My co-worker got me hooked onto this iPhone App.  It’s a free download one called Instagram.  It’s like Twitter, but instead of sharing the written thought, you share photos.

It’s real time photo sharing exactly when you want it.  I’ve been behind in my blog writing, photo uploads and Facebook simply because things are busy for me right now.  My Completely Random Photo Blog has been very ignored. 

Instagram is innovative and It’s all based on the notion that a picture truly equals a thousand words.  You can add filters to make them look retro or enhance them and share them with several social media sites.  All in the few minutes you are waiting for your cup of coffee to be served or in between meetings!

If you decide to download the App to your phones, you can follow me.  My user name is cindyhodesigns.

P.S. This is my own review.  I’m raving about the app because I really like it.  I’m spending more and more time away from my blogging and sometimes, I just want to share a quick picture with you!

CSN Product Review: Aladdin Tea Infuser Mug

Back in November, I wrote another teaser post that I was given another opportunity to do a product review for CSN Stores.  I actually ended up getting three products this time.  This Tea Infuser Mug is the first review

One of my personal goals is to cut back on my coffee drinking.  Since returning to full time work, I have been increasing my intake to 3 or 4 mugs per day.  We all know that can’t be healthy. 

The reason why I didn’t drink more tea at work because it’d get cold before I finish a cup.  My work has been terrible for the past few months and l always have major distractions so I often forget about my tea.

It was wonderful when I stumbled upon the Aladdin Tea Infuser Mug. 

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Pros

• Lever strainer allows to control the strength of the tea and preserve more seeps
• Clear mug shows how much of your beverage is left
• Mug keeps the beverage hot much longer then traditional mugs
• Large capacity – I like alot of tea

Cons

• The tea leaves sometimes get caught in the strainer when cleaning
• Moving parts, always potential of wearing out
• The basket catch did come loose once and tea leaves fell out

Overall, I love the mug.  The convenience is the best thing about the mug and it’s spill resistant.  I actually cut back my coffee consumption from 3 mugs a day to 4 or 5 mugs a week!  Best result, I’m finding my clothes are fitting better and my nerves are more calm.

Update:  The day after I wrote the above review, the inside part of the cup came right out!  I filled it up with hot water and when putting the lid on it got stuck, and then the inside came out.  My husband managed to fixed it using pure strength.  My love of the mug when from great to merely ‘okay’ as I’ve had the mug for one month.  However, it’s as good as new.

CSN Product Review: Nostalgia Electrics Hard Candy/Sugar Free Cotton Candy Maker

In my October product review teaser post, I mentioned that CSN Stores requested me to review one of their many products they offered. I was having trouble narrowing down what I wanted to get until I stumbled upon this commercial cotton candy machine.  I mentioned to my husband jokingly to get one but his eyes actually lit up!  I didn’t know this but he always wanted one! 

Obviously, a commercial grade machine isn’t practical so we looked and found that CSN Stores carries personal machines.  We picked this one because it was the only one that mentioned that can make the cotton candy out of hard candies.  Also, we found this demo video that won us over! 

Nostalgia Electrics Hard Candy/Sugar Free Cotton Candy Maker

Shipping

It took about a week and a half to be delivered by ground.  My husband picked it up for me and he said it was packaged well, suitable for this type of product.

Design

I was a little surprised how big this machine was even though it was for personal use.  This is one thing that you need to consider if you live in a small space or limited storage.

It comes with the machine itself, a manual, two plastic cones and a scooper.

 

The Fun Part: Making the Cotton Candy 

As recommended by the video, we heated up the machine for a full five minutes.  Once we added the candy it started to web immediately.  It was very quick, after a couple of minutes, we got cotton candy! 

The spinning plate gets very hot so you must supervise your children.  Clean up was very easy.  You do need to wait for the spinning plate to cool down and soak in hot water if there’s candy stuck in the cavity.

Heating up for 5 minutes	One scoop of crushed candy.
Candy starting to web	After half a minute
After a couple of minutes	This is from 2 pieces of crushed hard candy

Anything Negative?

Nothing particular to the machine itself, just that it seems to work better with certain brands of candy.  We read a few of online reviews noted that Jolly Rangers didn’t yield as much.  We found depending what kind of candy you use, you may get a little bit of a mess.  The ones we used in the photos was Trebor brand and it worked great.  We tried Knorrs brand and some of the webs became airborne settled on the table.  That didn’t happen with the Trebor brand. 

The Verdict

It’s a great product!  My daughter had so much fun making it with us.   We found that the cotton candy satisfied our sweet tooth more then the same amount in its original form because it seems bigger due to volume.  If you are a diabetic or watching your weight or even avoiding calories, use sugar free candy.

Making it was quick and clean up was easy.  The best part, you can have any flavour you want! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Verdict

This is great for personal use.  I read a few one line complaints of how slow it was to service people at parties.  That is interesting since

CSN Product Review: Golla Sabine Smart Phone Bag

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 Golla Sabine Smart Phone Bag in Black

In this product review teaser post, a few weeks ago, I mentioned that CSN Stores requested me to review one of their many products they offered.  I really needed something to hold my iPhone, IDs and small amount of cash when I didn’t want to carry a purse,  but convenient enough that I can throw the whole thing in a purse or bag without  it getting lost in there.

I eyed the Golla Sabine Smart Phone Bag for awhile because I liked the flower motif.  Originally I wasn’t going to get it because it was made with polyester, nylon and a had Velcro front closure.  Similar cases I’ve seen in stores looked ‘cheap’ and I really didn’t want to review anything that I wouldn’t really use myself.  However, at a birthday party, I saw the flower design on a purple Golla camera bag.  I didn’t touch it because I didn’t know who owned it, but just from the visual, it looked great!  So I placed the order.

Shipping

Quick!  I was emailed delivery confirmation within 2 days.  My husband picked it up for me so I didn’t actually see how it was packaged, but I wasn’t worried about damage since it was a soft item. 

Visual Appeal

The flower motif is repeated in the inner cover and even on the back.  The lime green accent colour in lining of both the bag and the front cover pocket complemented the visual appeal as a whole. 

Design

The stitching is clean and reinforced where there would be a lot of wear and tear like the belt loop.  Included is a carabiner so you can attach it on your person or purse for easy phone access.   I’m not a big fan of Velcro because over time it wear out.  It’ll be interesting to see how long the closure will last.  However, this bag is supposed to give easy access to your phone, so Velcro is really the best for this design.

Overall, it was a good choice for me and it made all of my expectations and it’s visually appealing as well.  I recommend it.  They do offer different colours and styles of this item so it’ll be easy for you to find one that suits your tastes!