I do What With Washi? (And You Can Too!)

As most of you who have read my blog for the last little bit know I find comfort in all things washi tape.

What IS washi tape?

"Washi is a style of paper that was first made in Japan. Washi is commonly made using fibers from the bark of the gampi tree, the mitsumata shrub (Edgeworthia chrysantha), or the paper mulberry, but also can be made using bamboo, hemp, rice, and wheat. Washi comes from wa meaning Japanese and shi meaning paper, and the term is used to describe paper made by hand in the traditional manner.

     Nowadays masking tapes are widely used for decorative purposes. They are printed with different patterns, some Japanese tapes are made of washi paper." - wikipedia.org/wiki/Washi

I use it in my planner, for crafting, for covering up ugly pieces of house, you name it I can use it! But -- when I get a new roll, or five I post it on social media I'm always asked "what do you do with it?"

Well, here is the last 5 things I've done with washi tape!

5. Light Switch - My daughter asked if I could make her light switch in her bedroom fancy! Of course I can, and she chose this beautiful Mermaid Scales washi to use! I didn't create this, I saw it of course on Pinterest (brilliant!)

4. Crafting - I had these boring "H O M E" letters on my shelf, so I decided to pretty them up a little bit and put washi on them. It took all of 5 minutes and looks super cute!

3. Envelopes - I will not mail an envelope that looks plain and ordinary anymore. How cute does this look? It never hurts to get pretty, happy mail!

2. Planner - I use it in my planner. To break up days, to decorate, and to just make the days brighter to look at. This is something I do weekly, and its relaxing and gives me that half an hour to myself once a week to start decorating for the weeks ahead to be filled. It's much nicer to look at and always makes for a cheery week!

1. iPhone cord - I didn't think this up either, but I did it because we have 3 iPhone's in our home and 2 of which use the same cord, and mine ALWAYS goes missing. No denying who this cord belongs to now!

So if you happen to just have a roll laying around, or you see a pretty pack at the store grab it! Not only can these little projects brighten up these boring plain items - you can do LOTS of kids crafts with them, use them to decorate photo frames that are boring solid colors.. ANYTHING!

Welcome to Canada!

Sorry I've been slacking a bit here on the blog. We've been dealing with major issues with the kids school. We had to pull them out, and today they finally started at a new school... so I'll be back to normal now!

Alright, now I know Target has been in Canada for a little bit now (a year or so I think?) but I've never had one near me or close enough for me to get to easily so I have never been. That is until one opened up right around the corner from me 2 weeks ago!

Oh boy, am I hooked now! I've been at least 5x now since the opening, and every single time I leave with at least one or two things, if not 20 from the One Spot. How much fun is One Spot?

I've been buying a ton of stuff for my planner - and I'm always checking for Washi there which I can't ever find. But everything else I've found and I stock up. Lots of page flags, pens, paper, pads, note book, OH MY GOSH it's like planner crafters heaven! I love it.

I've gotten lots of stuff like I mentioned for my planner, but also another little adventure I am planning in the next couple of months. Although its a "dollar" section I find the stuff great quality, and nothing like Dollar Store items I've gotten in the past. LOVE IT..

Forget the rest of the store, One Spot is my absolute favorite!! I won't lie though, I checked out the kids clothing yesterday for the very first time as well and I was impressed. While I think Wal-Mart still has a bit better prices, Target has a much bigger variety and MUCH cuter clothes. Ava was with me yesterday and went nuts over the girls clothing section. 

The toy section also blew her mind. She wants nothing but a Target gift card for her Birthday in August so she can go pick her own stuff for her big day. Talk about easy to please! 

The only thing I'm disappointed in with our Target? No Scrapbooking section, no Washi tape and it's so big it will be hard to get used to. Those aren't really big issues, they are minor and most definitely not stopping me from going there all the time and loving it! The employees are beyond nice (much nicer than the down the street Wal-Mart) and because it's so new its SUPER clean, like really clean.... Wal-Mart? Not so much. I hope it stays that way. It's also in a new mall that's opening very soon so I'll be there a lot for just about everything as the new mall has Carters, Bulk Barn, Micheal's, The Children's Place, Dollarama, Winners.. etc!

Welcome to Canada target, I'm one happy shopper here!

The Life Planner & Washi Tape Addiction!

I've known about Erin Condren and the wonderfulness of her planners and notebooks for quite sometime now but I never bought one because the shipping to Canada is quite large. ($39.99 to be exact - but SO worth it!)

Well, I finally decided to purchase my very 1st Erin Condren life planner. I was told by friends it could be in production for a short time but then shipping to me could take a few weeks... Boy was that wrong!

I ordered on a Friday and I had it the next Thursday! Less than 1 week. I was very very impressed. But a little disappointed too because thinking it would take a while I had my planner start in April. So I am waiting until I can fill it up!

It arrived in this beautiful box, wrapped in some gorgeous tissue paper smelling wonderful of gardenia, tuberose, white florals perfectly balanced by ginger, spices and fresh greens. the scent created to smell of Bora Bora where Erin and her husband honeymooned. It smells heavenly. It also came with some a sample pack of Gift Labels. Which I absolutely ADORE and need to order, and will be ordering. I should have read the website more clearly because I had no idea they were coming, however - it was a nice surprise!

I ordered this bright beautiful planner called Happy Stripes. I loved everything about it. All the colors, the writing and although you could add a photo to the front and back I chose to leave it blank so I could enjoy the happy colors.

The pages are fabulous. There is a month at a glance calendar of the month, then turning the page you get your weekly days for planning. Now this is where the excitement comes in!

Stumbled upon the hashtag #ErinCondren on Instagram and was immediately blown away at what people were doing with their planners.

Washi Tape? What the heck was that? Well it's gorgeous tape often made of rice paper (or masking) that come in many colors, patterns and sizes. People were using them to brighten up their days, make their planners cute and creative. I was in awe.

So of course I had to go on the hunt for some too. I found some at my local dollar store. But that made my need for these so much more. This was my first time out looking for "Planner goodies"

 My SIL was heading to Michaels and offered to grab me some. Now here is my full stash of washi..

I have 12 more on the way I bought off etsy, and another roll on the way from a co-worker that our Michael's didn't have. It may be addicting but look how adorable the days look what them..

Right?
LOVE.

Well even though I chose my planner to start in April, I have started to add Birthdays, doctors appts and things I already have planned into it. Even started using the washi, and stickers to things I know are coming up.. It looks so cute. But I can't wait to get all my blog plans into it, and all my weekly day to day plans too!

Do you have a planner? Would you like to try Erin Condren too? Why not sign up and get $10 off your 1st order with my code: CLICK HERE

Once I am able to use mine regularly I will post again. I'm excited to washi washi washi and decorate it weekly! So cute and gives me something to do at night when the kids are in bed!