Hi, folks! This year I'm starting a new thing on my blog. I have been a member of an online group of Stampin' Up! demonstrators for several years now. It's a great group from which I get lots of inspiration and ideas for classes and stamp camps, as well as Stampin' Up! product "how-tos." Each month members are invited to write articles for a subgroup, the Newsletter Co-op. Writing articles for the Co-op allows the authors to share articles written by other Co-op members. These articles often contain great "Quick-Tips" and information about how to use Stampin' Up! products, instructions for new techniques, or new project designs, and many of them include detailed instructions. So . . . this is the first in a series of articles I plan to intersperse among my regular posts. I hope you enjoy them!
USEFUL TOOLS USED DIFFERENTLY!
So, what is a useful tool? In the Stampin’ Up! world we have many tools to help us with our stamping projects: paper snips, paper cutter, Stamparatus, and small tools such as the bone folder, Take Your Pick tool, grid paper, etc. Today I want to talk about ways that I use the bone folder and Take Your Pick tool for non-stamping purposes.
Bone Folder. I have a part time job in the office of a church in Cincinnati. Once a week I send out a SNAIL MAIL newsletter to church members who do not have internet or smart phones. This requires folding, stuffing envelopes and mailing. Plus, I also print and fold bulletins for Sunday worship. One day, as I was folding a bunch of things to mail and distribute, I had a sudden flash: I could bring in a bone folder and make folding easier and crisper! Well, hallelujah! There is nothing prettier than a neatly folded letter or bulletin that lays flat when you open it! I thought I was brilliant to think of that idea. So now I use a bone folder not only for folding, but also as a letter opener when my office letter opener goes wandering. True, it’s not quite as neat in opening mail, but it certainly gets the job done quickly.
Take Your Pick Tool. After my bone folder made an appearance in my office, I decided that the Take Your Pick Tool might also come in handy, and it has! I have used the flat blade for opening the prongs of staples to remove them from paper, then flip over the paper and use the flat blade under the staple to pull out—very handy if someone has rifled your desk and your staple puller has disappeared. I have also used the flat blade to turn small screws when I need to replace batteries in a mouse or my computer. The putty end is great for picking up small items off the floor like small bits of paper, stray staples, even small food items when you’re messy. The paper piercer has come in handy to poke a hole in a stack of paper for a metal brad to hold papers together as well as poking a hole in a cork bulletin board when a tack pin won’t make a hole. (I won’t mention the time I accidentally poked a small hole in my desk!) And the scoring tool...what can I say? If a thicker piece of paper or envelope won’t fold, just score it with a ruler and the scoring tool option and fold away! What about the die brush tool, you ask? Well, it gets lint off your clothes very quickly, just make sure to use a light touch, so you don’t snag anything.
I hope these little hints have shown you how versatile these tools can be and not just for stamping projects!
Enjoy!
(Submitted by Kim Innis)
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