Q&A with The LBH Blue Crew

Good morning Blue fans! Thanks so much to those that commented with questions for us. We cannot say it enough: we have the BEST fans. We love reading all of your comments and appreciate your support of our blog so much. We are over 400 likes on our Facebook page. 400!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We launched this blog not even a month ago. So, again---THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU. The winner of the Little Blue House gift card is.....BECKY BLANN.  You can pick up your GC at the register.

Cat and I had a fun Friday night hanging with Miss Tracy and some of our friends at the LBH for a Front Porch Kit project night. Want to know more, click here? We will share pictures of the projects we made next month. A little birdie told us there is a new FPK in the works right now. Cat and I LIVE for new FPKs. eeeek!

So, let's get to those questions you asked us!

What is your favorite Easter tradition?
C: The egg hunt!!!  Every year we have a big celebration with my family and friends, the more the merrier.  The men man the grill, the ladies brings all the sides, and my sister and I are always in charge of the eggs.  We fill a bazillion, give or take 53.  Some with candy, some with money and some with golden tickets.  I walk around with an enormous bag of prizes the kids can exchange their golden tickets for.  Kites, butterfly nets, bug catchers, bubbles, hula hoops, craft kits...just a big ol' bag of fun.  After we eat and hunt eggs, we just hang out and visit for hours.  Its the best.  I HEART my family.
N: I hate to admit it, but we don't really celebrate Easter in a traditional way. Our plans generally change every year. We've spent an Easter with Cat and her family (loads of fun), Jerry, Carter and I have celebrated just the 3 of us and there have been some years where we've been with our own families. This year, we are celebrating Easter with my brother in law / sister in law and niece. They came up last night; Jenny (SIL) and I got our scrap on at LBH, today we are driving to Ennis to play in the bluebonnets, then a stop at Klyde Warren Park (weather permitting), then a casual dinner out. Sunday, Jerry's parents are making the drive up, we will have a small egg hunt for Carter and Maddie (niece) and have a nice lunch. A great and relaxing weekend with the family.

Do you have a favorite line of cutting dies or companies that you would recommend or feel are superior?
N: I am an equal opportunity die purchaser. But I do tend to prefer the wafer thin dies (metal dies) as opposed to the rubber backed dies. I LOVE LOVE LOVE the Reverse Confetti stamp/dies sets. Those can be purchased at LBH. I also love the new Taylored Expression dies that have been released this year. I really think all wafer thin dies are created equal. I think? There isn't a brand I would stay clear of. Also, Taylored Expressions has a new shim (available for purchase at LBH) that works GREAT with any brand of the metal dies that ensure a clean and precise cut.
C: I ditto Natalies response above.  I will add that I saw on Echo Parks Facebook that some of their new lines would have matching thin metal dies, and that makes me happy!!!

while card making do you prefer stamping over using pre-printed, manufactured die cuts? (I'm not meaning things you cut yourself)
C: I have a lot of stamps, but sadly I rarely pull them out.  I am more of a 'quick & easy' card maker.  Paper, stickers and some embellies and call it a day.  I am trying to make an effort to use my stamps more though.  And the more Reverse Confetti stamps Miss Tracy gets in store, the more I am inspired
N: For me, it just depends on the card. If I want a quick card, I will pull from a sticker sheet or ephemera pack to use my sentiment. Sometimes, just getting out my stamps, inks and blocks can be a real hassle. Other times, I really do enjoy stamping on a card. I have so many stamps, I really do need to stamp more. Sometimes, I just get lazy.

would you girls each like to bring a friend and retreat at my very vintage retreat in graford tx?
N: Did someone say retreat? Cat and I love to retreat. And even more so when our calendars allow us to retreat TOGETHER. We would love to check out your retreat and rally up some of our friends.
C: What she said.  Woot!

How do you pack your punches when you go on a Retreat?
C: Ahhh, good one Miss Linda.  This has always been a problem for me, until recently.  I found this awesome little container at Target.  Its by Itso, will set you back less that $10 and its great.  It holds plenty of punches, seals shut, has handles and its sturdy.  I prefer it over a plastic containers because the heavy punches won't crack the corners (ruined 2 containers this way) and its easier to handle. 

Punch storage

N: great question. I'm actually deferring this one to Cat as she has a GREAT system for this. Personally for me, I don't pack all of my punches for retreat. I generally pack those punches that are on trend at the current time (hexagon, triangle, etc). I will just toss them in a storage container that I have. Nothing organized at all. I will say, I NEVER pack square punches. Why? It takes up unnecessary space; you have a paper trimmer, make your own squares. Save that space for something else!

How do you girls get your creative juices flowing when you are trying to put together a layout and it's just not working??
C: Pinterest!!!  It always inspires me.  I like to select my pics, select my paper and then look at Pinterest.  Or ask Natalie.  She is good at telling me what to do.
N: There are so many ways to my thinking process. But it all ties back to what is inspiring me at that current time. For instance, is there a paper in a collection I like? I would want to show case that and make that my focal point. Is there a picture that I love? I would probably want to do a lot of white space and then have the photo and embellish around it. Is there something on another blog that I saw that inspired me? Pinterest? I'm also not afraid to just go on the good ole' Google and type in a certain collection I'm working with to get ideas using those papers if I'm really in a rut. I just always tell myself..........there is NO right or wrong way to scrapbook. These are your captured memories. These are the stories YOU want to tell, so tell them how YOU want. and just have fun! a LOT of fun!

What is your go to crafting snack?
C: Large vanilla root beer from Sonic and peanut M&Ms.  But if I am crafting with Michelle (the asker of this question) I would say pizza or taco bell or birthday cake from the Kroger bakery!! Te he he he.
N: Depends on my mood. But if I really had to choose, I would say sour patch kids and m&ms (I go back and forth with plain and peanut). I also enjoy a nice Sonic beverage; Sweet Tea, Vanilla Coke and Cat got me hooked on Vanilla Root Beer.

What are your favorite colors to work with?
C: Since I primarily scrap my nieces, I lean towards he pinks and teals and purples and sparkly stuff.  When I am scraping my vacations with the hubster my color pallet is all over the place, depends on the location and such.
N: Boy-y colors. My primary subject is my 5 year old son. So, lots of oranges, blues, greens, yellows, etc. It's a good thing, I guess. I've never been a fan of pink.

how did you two get the process going to start the LBH Blue Crew with Tracy? Did you two bring up the idea to her and she hopped (Easter pun!) on board or was it something different?
C: Let me let Nat explain...
N: We are SO glad someone asked this. Cat and I have known Tracy for a few years now. We spend a lot of time at the LBH. We take as many classes as we can, we try to have all the latest products the shop is carrying, etc. We always joke with Tracy about how one year, we WILL make it to CHA with her. It was seriously all a daydream of ours. Cat and I would act so silly with all of these scenarios; "when we are Tracy's assistants, we will do this...." OR "when Tracy has us on her design team, this is what we will do..." I'm talking crazy, silly things we NEVER thought would even come into play. Tracy had returned from CHA and Cat and I had a gift to give her from our trip to NYC. We met for dinner one night and had great conversation. Talked about all the fun, pretty stuffy she saw at CHA, we talked about how we took NYC by storm, our families, etc. Tracy started talking about the future of the LBH and really where she wanted to see them in the next 5 or so years. Cat and I just ran with it. We pitched all of our daydreams to her. It wasn't planned or anything. We felt an opportunity was somewhat open to offer some input, so we ran with it. Of course, as we were explaining all of this, we weren't sure if she was really buying it or a little bit terrified. or maybe both? lol. It was soon after that, we started having our secret meetings before the live launch, we planned out an entire month of stuff we wanted to chat about on the blog, the future of the blog, etc. Cat and I are seriously so blessed to have been given this opportunity and for our fearless leader, Miss Tracy, to believe in us. It was so hard to keep it from our friends as to what we had been working on. Yet funny at the same time that so many that do know us personally had suspicions that we were behind TBC. Our only hope is that you have as much fun with this blog as we do! We are here for YOU! and we appreciate YOU. so, again, I say THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!

We wish you all a very Happy Easter. Enjoy your weekend with those dear to you.

Check back tomorrow; Cat has the line up for the week! It's going to be a busy one with LOTS of inspiration. In the meantime, comment below as we are STILL giving away prizes. Tell us; how are you celebrating Easter this year?

The winner from the Q&A is CLAUDIA. Please email us at lbhbluecrew@gmail.com

Have a great weekend, Blue Fans!

Stay True Blue,
Nat