Thursday, July 30, 2015

My Mini-Me

I have this picture from years ago that has been in my pictures to scrap forever!  Inspiration hit when I was thinking about a layout for the Fun Kits group that I am a member of on Facebook.  The month of June, the inspiration was PinkFresh Studios.  I had a few embellishments from previous Hip Kits, a 6x6 paper pad from Heidi Swapp's Dreamy line, and an embellishment kit full of Pinkfresh Studio embellishments that I got for a steal at Simon Says Stamp.  Since I didn't have any 12x12 papers, I decided to make my own background with Liquitex acrylic paint.  I love this stuff!  I always wait until I have a coupon for 50% off though to make it a better price for my budget. 

For my background, I mixed the turquoise with white to create an ombre effect on the background.  I then used my Amy Tangerine flower stencil with texture paste.  I love how it turned out!

 
I love the texture that the stencil gives to the background.
 
 
I popped the banner up so that the house could be tucked in behind it.
 
 
My favorite part of this layout is the sequin hearts. 

 
If you would like to take a peek at my process I have a video.
 
 
 
Supplies used:
Liquitex Heavy Body Acrylic Paint in Bright Aqua Green and Titanium White
Teresa Collins Modeling Paste
PinkFresh studio sequins, die cuts
Tag from Target $1 spot
Twinery Gold Shimmer twine
Amy Tangerine Rise and Shine Brooklyn stencils
Amy Tangerine Rise and Shine Alyx pink foam Thickers
Heidi Swapp 6x6 Dreamy paper pad
MME gold sequin hearts
Freckled Fawn flair badge
 
 

Tuesday, July 28, 2015

Confirmataion

This is a layout that I made in response to a monthly challenge on a Facebook group.  The group is called Fun Kits and each month focuses on a relatively new line.  This month the focus in on PinkFresh studios Up in the Clouds  collection.  You have the option of using the specific product or pulling items from your stash that have similar colors and embellishments.  I had some embellishments but not much in the way of paper, so I pulled some random 6x6 papers and a Heidi Swapp Dreamy 6x6 paper pad to work with this month.

 
I will often cut my doilies so that I can use them in more than one place on the page.  I love my doilies!
 
 
I stitched over the fabric tag to make sure that it stayed on the layout.  Adhesive was tricky plus I like the look of the stitching.

 
I added stitching under the journaling and stitched the arrow in the top right corner.  I love the extra texture that it gives to the page without adding any bulk. 
 
 
I did staple the twine in a pretty loop.  I knew that it wouldn't stay put if I didn't and I like the look of the staples.
 

 

I love the way that it turned out.  Soft colors can be used on a masculine layout!!

Here's my process video if you would like to take a closer look at how the page came together.


Supplies: PinkFresh studios flair, fabric tag, wood veneer saying, pink circle and arrow
Heidi Swapp paper and gold Color Shine
Crate Paper Craft Market puffy hearts
American Crafts letter stickers
Glassine envelope, twine and doily unknown
Gold glitter washi from JoAnn's
Recollections photo corners
Freckled Fawn dictionary vellum strip

Friday, July 24, 2015

Kayak Fun

I bought this Basic Grey collection after seeing it in person.  Sometimes you need to see things in person to appreciate just how much you like them! The colors are absolutely gorgeous and since I tend to gravitate more to girly colors this is perfect for my boy pages. 

I was challenged to use a background other than white cardstock by my friend, so I pulled kraft for the  background of my layout.  Kraft is perfect since the colors of the collection have shades of brown although I think that navy would be striking as well.





 
If you'd like to take a peak at my process, here is the video.
 




Supplies used: Basic Grey Adrift Collection pack, washi tape unknown (I think Freckled Fawn, but I am not 100% sure), kraft cardstock, MME enamel dots, Amy Tangerine Thickers , sequins, wood veneer and stamp from Studio Calico. anchor puffy stickers Twine & Ink.

Monday, July 20, 2015

Seriously....

I was cleaning up my computer and I found a video that I hadn't edited or posted from several months ago and decided to still publish it.  I love telling the stories of our lives, and I feel that scrapbooking is the perfect way to do so. 

Last year my daughter begged for locker accessories.  What?!  Really?!  I decided to give her a budget and she did great.  I told her that I was willing to spend $10 (not really, but this girl really wanted a cute locker).  We found several things at A.C.Moore on sale and she was a happy girl.  I was a happy mom because the total was less than $10.  Apparently other moms weren't willing to purchase the overly priced items either, because I got them on a BIG sale. So what this scrapbooking mom going to do....take pictures and make a layout! 

 
I love how the title fits over and on the photo. 
 
 
Enamel dots...yes please!!
 
 
 
I love this flair and am happy that it made its way onto a layout!

 


When I was in middle school the big thing was passing notes back and forth undetected in class.  Anyone else remember those cute notes that were folded up so neatly with our friends names on them?  Of course if they had an "i" in their name it was great because you could put the cute heart over the "i" instead of a dot.  I know that I still have a few and if I can find them, I'm going to create a page about it.

Supplies used: WRMK teal acetate, Amy Tangerine Plus One PL cards, Amy Tangerine brads, flair, brad, Thickers, and letter stickers.  Pretty much everything on the layout is Amy Tangerine.  The enamel dots are from MME.  The heart stamps are MIA...so at this moment I can't tell you which set it belongs with, however if I had to guess I would say it was an Amy Tangerine set.

Wednesday, July 15, 2015

Meet Me in the Sunshine

I love scrapping pictures that are current, but I love using older pictures as well.  Lately, I've been on a kick to document some of the older memories and it is bittersweet.  My babies are growing up and I swear time is just flying by so quickly.  I remember being a new mom and then a mom to two little ones.  Older women would tell me how quickly time passes and to cherish the moments in the here and now.  Sometimes though that is hard between wiping noses and bottoms.  I would love to go back even for one day.

This layout uses the Hip Kit May 2015 kit.  I cut the 6x6 papers in strips and decided to line them up from the top to the bottom.  I love machine stitching, so I added some along the edges of the strips.

 
The wood veneer is embossed and I love the texture that it adds.  I am not sure who makes the yellow ribbon along the sides of the strips.  That has been in my stash forever.
 
I love these gold Thickers...I have a hang up with titles and I love it when I can use a premade title.  Easy peasy!  The background has mist that was applied with the packaging technique.  I love that it is so easy and gives such a pretty watercolor affect. 
 
Enamel dots make me happy....these were pulled from my stash.
 
 
I love how it turned out.  If you would like a closer look at the process, click on the video below.  I will warn you that it wasn't pretty getting to this point...but it was worth it in the end!
 
 
Supplies: Chickaniddy - Yippe - 6x6 Paper Pad 
 Evalicious - Life's Sweet - Puffy Stickers,
          Evalicious - Life's Sweet - Wood Veneer Words
                                                Pink Paislee Citrus Twist - Chipboard Accents and ephemera
                                                Ribbon unknown
                                  Lindy's Stamp Gang mist - Pop Rock Purple and Bonjour Butter
 

Thursday, July 9, 2015

Taking the plunge....

I have been scrapbooking ever since my son was born 15 years ago.  This hobby has been my therapy through many events that have happened in my life...pregnancy, moving, loss of a loved one, graduate school.  You get it and that's why you do it.  Please be patient with me as I learn this world of blogging. 

I can't write my first post without pictures of a recent layout.  This layout is actually a re-do.  I don't make a habit of making over pages, but I had to do this one.  The story is so important and I wanted it to be easily read.  The papers that I chose were not my favorite, but I had bought them and I was making an effort to use things that I had in my stash.  The end result though was a layout that I didn't like and it never made it into an album.  So when the April kit from the Hip Kit club came, I knew that the time had come to make a page that I would love.

This page is one that I love now.  My daughter's bug prayer has been documented.  This child still says the funniest things and I am just so thankful that I took the time to write this prayer down.

I have a love affair with doilies, so it is fitting that I make this page with one.  The yellow heart paper is from Amy Tangerine's Rise and Shine line.  I think I need more sheets of this paper.  I. Love. It.  The sequins are Maggie Holmes, the yellow alphas are Basic Grey, and the pink alpha is Amy Tangerine.
Could this be any cuter?  I don't think so, but I know that I'm biased.  Finally, her prayer is a central part to this page.
 
I'm not much of a stamper, but the Elle's Studio stamp set with this kit was perfect. 
 
If you would like to see how this layout came together, I have a video on YouTube.

Look Mommy!


If I had a nickel for every time I heard that phrase called out to me, I'd be vacationing in Hawaii right now.  So when it came time to redo this layout and tell the story, this title was perfect.  I forgot to post the picture of the layout that I re-made. 

Ick!  I didn't like the page the entire time that I was making it. Why I continued is beyond me.  Sometimes though perseverance pays off and you end up with a layout that you love.  This never made it into my album, and somewhere along the way the "g" was lost.  I kept this layout in a stack of layouts that needed to find homes in albums, and finally decided to give it a makeover.  The first page highlighted her bug prayer (see previous post) and the story for the second page talks about her love of showing me her bugs that she would find.

 
I'm so much happier with these two pages!  Seriously!  The stories are documented and the layouts make me happy.
 
 
I'm content making pages that complement one another as opposed to a double page spread.  I used to always make double page layouts, but now I find that they stump me.  I like to use similar colors and papers without having them necessarily match one another.  In this layout, I used the Elle's Studio paper (pink and orange polka dots) and the Maggie Holmes sequins to tie these two pages together without having them be exactly like one another. 
 
I am so happy now to have these sweet stories documented and in my albums now.  I won't make a habit of redoing my layouts, but I don't think that I will wait so long next time if I find myself unhappy with my finished page.
 
If you would like to take a closer look at my process, here is the video. 
 
 

#Awesome

My daughter keeps us laughing all the time.  I mean ALL THE TIME!  We were on a mini vacation in Washington D.C. and this lion statue was outside of our hotel.  I was fortunate to capture this little moment....I'm usually not that quick with the camera.
 
I used the May Hip Kit for this layout.  I love the bright colors of these papers and embellishments. 
 
 
The enamel words from Chickaniddy are awesome (couldn't help myself).
 
 
I thought that these embellishments worked with the story of this photo.  I have a hard time using embellishments like this, so I'm happy to be able to get a few on a page.
 
 
This yellow doily made the page for me!  I love doilies and could use them on every page if I let myself. 
 
If you would like to take a closer look at my process I have a YouTube video that you can check out.
 
 
Supplies used: Pink Paislee Citrus Bliss , Chickaniddy Yippee, Dear Lizzy Fine and Dandy washi tape, Chickaniddy enamel words, Pink Paislee Citrus Bliss chipboard accents, Doodlebug doily, and Zing embossing powder.
 
 

The time has come....

My soul needs to be surrounded by beauty.  I love to sit on the beach and watch the waves break.  I'm content to sit on a deck and watch the sun set at the end of a day.  Mountain views take my breath away.  Flowers make my soul sing.

This year I stumbled upon several plants that were on clearance.  The most I paid was $3 per plant.  I came home with a car full of new things that made my heart happy.  I knew the perfect place, I put them there, and then my husband planted them for me.  All was well.

Then creatures came and one of my newly planted plants was gone.  This had me a little confused because I knew that deer did not eat these and wasn't sure what happened.  The next day I found a hole with a few leaves sticking out.  I made my husband help me investigate and he told me that it was the voles that were wreaking havoc on the grass.  That was it.  I was on a mission.  I didn't care what the voles did in the grass, but they crossed the line when it came to eating my flowers.  It was time for them to die and so Operation Kill the Voles started at my house. 

I decided that I needed to make a layout about this story.  Our scrapbooks don't need to be filled with just pictures of children, birthdays, and holidays.  They need to occasionally have the story of our lives.  The things that make us who we are is what is so fascinating for our families.

This page was heavily inspired by the talented Missy Whidden.  I had watched a couple of her videos and was so inspired that I went and played.  I love the end result even though it is different from the pages that I usually make.  We need to occasionally branch out and try something new.

 
This picture is of the first missing coreopsis.  I layered the vellum and folded it over onto itself (Missy inspired). 
 
I just love those letters from Any Tangerine.  I need more!
 
 
The torn washi is also something that Missy does quite frequently.  I love the texture that it provides.
 
 
 
If you would like to watch the process, I have a video that I would love for you to check out.
 
 
Supplies used: Webster's pages (green and yellow paper), AC vellum, Doddlebug doily, Recollections washi, Elle's Studio stamp, Amy Tangerine Alyx Thickers , puffy stickers, and word stickers, AC Confetti Thickers, PL roller date stamp, Freckled Fawn puffy stickers and paperclip arrows, Studio Calico cork cameras