Hi,
I want to share with you what I think of as my essential crafting equipment. These are the things I pull out onto my desk before I even decide what I want to create, and why I love having them around…
These are a great starting point for anyone who is starting out crafting and wants a few peices of equipment, and they’re also great quality tools for anyone looking at replacing older items 🙂
1 – Stampin’ Up! Grid Paper
This is the first thing I pull out when I sit down to craft. It’s a big pad of gridded paper with metric and imperial measurements (just flip the pad over). I use it for measuring out projects; planning layouts; writing notes, ideas, lists. It’s a great surface to stamp on, and protects the desk from stray ink and adhesive.
2 – Stampin’ Trimmer
As the name suggests, this is a paper trimmer… it is also a scoring tool! There are metric and imperial measurements along the top, and along the cutting guide. An extendable arm that measures up to 15 1/2 inches. It also has storage compartments underneath to hold spare cutting blades, tools and accessories. The other bonus is the guide lifts up, so you can line up narrower pieces easily, and pesky little offcuts don’t get stuck. It offers clean cuts in either direction, and I won’t need to buy a whole new trimmer when the blade dulls down! Replacement blades come in sets of 2, and they are easily stored underneath. There is also a rotary cutter attachment available that fits straight, perforated and scalloped cutting blades.
3 – Simply Scored
As much as I adore my Stampin’ Trimmer for it’s scoring capabilities, I also love my Simply Scored scoring board. This easily fits 12×12 inch papers, and has imperial measurements at 1/8th inch increments, making measuring and scoring easy! The board comes with a double ended scoring stylus, a wider end for use on paper, and a smaller end for cardstock to ensure you can score either without tearing through. There are also handy scoring guides that attach to the top of the board so scoring multiples of the same project can be done effortlessly.
4 – Bone Folder
To create neat folds in my projects I burnish any score lines with a bone folder. I’ve had plenty of bone folders, and this one is by far the best I’ve ever used. It is a nice weight, and doesn’t cause the paper or cardstock to ‘shine’ once burnished.
5 – Crafting Scissors and Paper Snips
The crafting scissors are the larger of the two, and have a 3 3/4 inch blade. The thick, heavier blades make light work of cutting through cardstock and ribbons. The longer legth is also helpful when fussy cutting. The Snips have thin 2 1/2 inch blades, and are great for trimming smaller pieces. These are a great duo for getting clean cuts.
6 – Stampin’ Scrub and Stampin’ Mist
The Stampin’ Scrub is essential for any stamping! Its a dual sided tray with fibre scrub pads. One side is for using with Stampin’ Mist, which cleans and conditions the stamp, the other side is for drying the stamp. There’s even little sun and rain motif in the corner to remind me which side is which. Makes clean up a breeze!
7 – Clear Mount Stamp Blocks (and Caddy)
I have the full set of Clear Mount stamp blocks all living in their very own storage caddy. These stamp blocks fit all of Stampin’ Up’s clear mount, and photopolymer stamps. I personally prefer clear mount/photopolymer stamps as they take up less storage space than the wood mount (And save money in the long run!) These blocks are big chunky things, easy to hold, and are a good weight to give a nice crisp, evenly stamped image. Another bonus is the foam used within the storage caddy… I’ve kept the extra pieces (that you take out to put in the blocks) and I use them as mini piercing mats!
8 – Stamp-a-ma-jig
This thing has such a fun name! It’s a thing-a-ma-jig for stamping! This is a great little tool, and helps line up your stamps on your projects quickly and easily. There are 2 parts to this. The black ‘block’ is a guide for lining up the stamping block and sheet, and a clear plastic sheet so you can see where your stamped image is going to go.
9 – Paper Piercing Tool
This little tool is handy for more than just piercing holes in paper or cardstock, I also use it for lifting Candy Dots, Mini Glue Dots and other small items onto projects.
Well, there’s my kit! There are a few other pieces I have and love to use too, but these are what I use the most. I may not use every thing in every project, but I like to have them close to hand just in case.
If you would like more information on any of the items click on the picture and it will take you to the online store, or you can contact me either here, or through my Facebook page
See you soon,
Happy Crafting!
Debbie xoxo
Larli Crafts 