Time to Go Out of My Comfort Zone!

Hi! If you are a regular reader, you will have noticed that I have been participating in a lot of new challenge sites and I think this trend is going to continue!

There are so many challenges out there from color challenges, sketches, page recipes...Keeps it exiting! I find that these challenges really encourage me to get more pages done and they help foster ideas that I may not have come up with on my own!  Even more than getting more layouts done, they encourage me to go out of my comfort zone and try some great new techniques and ideas and products!  Today's layout uses the #15 Sketch from My Scraps and More Sketches as inspiration and the Paper Girl's Challenge is Twine so there are lots of little Twine goodies on this page!  I surprised myself with the final product on this layout because it is not really my "style" but I LOVE IT!

Washi Tape is my new Best Friend!!

I hand sewed the buttons on, then wrapped the twine around them!

I love the Chevron pattern on the journaling block.  I followed the lines with my writing.

I secured the twine along the top banner by tying it around a straight pin and inserting it into the paper.

And a little twine bow!

Hope this inspires you to get a page done!

Come join the fun at the Paper Girls Challenge

 and

My Scraps and More Sketches

You might be amazed at how inspiring it can be!

My First Card Sketch

One of the ways scrappers come up with inspiration for projects is by taking a sketch designed by another scrapper and making it their own.  I have never attempted a sketch of my own until now.  I have always wondered how hard it would be to create a sketch for a layout or card and was surprised at how quickly it came together.  I used Microsoft PowerPoint and it was very simple.

Here is the card that I created using this sketch.

and some close ups of the details

We used this Sketch for a Post on the design team over at Practical Scrappers.  Make sure to check out what the other designers came up with!!  It was very exciting see my card translated into several different cards!  Beautiful job ladies!!

Double Christmas Layout: Get those Pictures on the Page!

It is hard to come up with a layout that you love that includes more than one or two photos!  I know!  I created this versatile layout for 4 4X6 photos.  I hope to give you an idea for getting all your Christmas (or any other) photos out of their boxes and onto the pages of your scrapbooks for everyone to see!

I am guilty!!  I have several years worth of pictures to scrap and most of my pages have only one or two pictures on them.  At that rate, I will NEVER catch up!!  It was time to come up with a layout that will display more than one or two photos at a time.

I found that if I took four 4X6 photos and laid them out in a square formation like this they fit with a perfect one inch border.

I placed the word Christmas between the pages to bring the viewer's eye together to see this as one layout.

A few other embellishments really brought this layout together!

Have fun with it!  You could even use one box for journaling and use 7 pictures!  This layout can be used for any event that you have numerous photos for that you want to get out of their boxes and onto the page!!

Check out the feature over at Practical Scrappers!

 

Sticky Gem Journaling Spots

Sticky Gem Journaling Spots:

We are talking about bling over at Practical Scrappers today and how we can creatively add it to our layouts!

 I thought it would be fun to use the circle gemstones as journaling spots to mimic the design of the background paper.

Again, I let the vibrant colors of my picture dictate the color palette for this layout.  

Come on over the Practical Scrappers and see what the other designers came up with!

In Mimi's Arms Layout

In Mimi's Arms Layout

This layout is based on the sketch from The Studio Challenges:

This is the first Sketch challenge I am participating in.  I have never really used sketches for my layouts and was interested to give it a try.  It was easier than I thought it would be and I LOVE the final result!

Here are some detail shots!

I love how the colors worked together in this layout.  I try to use the photo as a guide for choosing colors and the orange and green in the photo really jumped out at me.  There contrasting quality really made this page stand out!  I made the corners like the sketch by punching them off with a circle punch.  Neat effect!

Check out The Studio Challenges for more great Challenges

My Black Pen: Make Journaling Your Focus

My Black Pen: Make Journaling Your Focus

Over at Practical Scrappers today we are talking about ways you can use your black pen on your layouts, to really make your layouts stand out.  I do not know where my layouts would be without my black pen!  I have said before how important I think that the journaling on a layout is as it tells the reader the story behind the photograph.  It preserves the history for future generations.  I used my black pen to make the journaling on my page the focus:

As you can see, about half of my layout is journaling.  I used the black pen to write all about my one of a kind sweet girl Brynna Mae and what makes her so unique.  I added a touch of color to some of the letter as well.

I added some rub on words and bling to the photo.

I accented the photo with some unique accents including a fun, pink, feather!

It does not have to take a lot of time and product to make your pages one-of-a-kind!  Sometimes, cardstock and a simple black pen can do the trick!  Head over the Practical scrappers and see what the other designers came up with for ways to use your black pen on a layout!

Family: Other Things May Change Us...

Family: Other Things May Change Us But We Start and End With Family

CSI: Case 28 Submission
Family: Other Things May Change Us But We Start and End with Family -Anthony Brandt

I used a painting technique on this page that I had never tried before and I am very happy with the results.  After cutting the circle for behind the photo, I found a bowl that was about an inch bigger and I placed it centered on the page.  I dipped a dry brush in some paint and painted the paper around the bowl to create another layer to the layout.  I used a dry brush so that the paper behind would not get too wet, and so that the print from the paper behind could still shine through.

This layout was inspired by Case File #28 over at CSI:Colorstoriesinspiration

My layout includes the following evidence: Circles and repetition with the brads, which are a metal object, and the last bit of my repeated Quote for a title is upside down under the picture.

The testimony included is the journaling in a circle. I apologize that the journaling is difficult to see.  In person, it  is darker and says:This family picture was taken the month before we added Miss Avery to our family.  We were celebrating My Mom-Mom's 80th birthday and we hired a photographer for the occasion.  We took the opportunity to have our family pictures taken too.  My sweet girls are growing up so fast! I want them to always remember the value of family.

The journaling is tough to see in the scan...

My title begins with the printed chipboard letters seen here and continues hand written around the page. It repeats 2 times.  This layout it quite a bit more simple than most of my pages but after adding the few details with the brads and the painting, I could not bring myself to add anything else.  I think this layout shines in it's simplicity.
Come play along at

My Best Gifts Call Me Mom

OMG!!! So tired of the scans making my layouts look like junk!  Making it look crooked and have lines though it! AHHH!   I have had not luck using a camera to photograph them either...Why can they not make a scanner that is 1 inch wider and then I would only have to deal with it stitching 2 photos instead of 4!!!  Thinking of scrapping 11"X11" just to make this easier!!  Ok, I am done ranting!

The challenge over at Lasting Memories this week was "Diggin for Gold":  to use gold in a layout.  Gold is definitely not my favorite but that is the idea of a challenge right? Go out of your comfort zone? Well, I included gold in my photo mat as well as in the crossed gift ribbon on the layout.  The gold string is tied in a bow around the initial pins.

I placed my journaling sideways and secured with a pretty fabric covered brad!

Goodnight Avery Layout

Goodnight Avery Layout

This layout is inspired by the wonderful Children's classic book: Goodnight Moon By: Margaret Wise Brown
The title, green color and the placement of the fireplace were inspirations for my final product.   

I am playing along at Child's Play Challenges again!  The title and the Click the picture of the book to play along too!

As you can see, Miss Avery got all tuckered out helping me bake at Christmas time!  She was only about 2 months old and conked right out on the kitchen counter!  I used lots of fun little embellishments to accent this adorable picture I was lucky enough to catch!

I used glitter letters for her name and added some rub ons behind it to dress it up a bit.

This corner was achieved pretty simply by cutting the corner off of the green paper and adhering the pink paper behind it!  The corner was inspired by the fireplace on the cover of the book.    

Just a Girl? Such a Girl! Child's Play Layout

Just a Girl? Such a Girl! Child's Play Layout

The inspiration for this layout is a good old fashioned Snoopy SnoCone maker!  I had one of these as a kid and loved to play with it in the super hot summer months!

My layout was inspired by the colors of this great little toy.  The page is about what a girly Girl my Ella Grace is!  She would wear a dress EVERY single day if I let her!  She starts school soon, I am sure we will be battling it out many a morning!
My journaling is on kraft paper because I felt it coordinated best with the other elements on the page.  When I do journaling on each page, I try to tell about more than just the picture, but about "who" the person in the picture is when the photo was taken.  I want to be able to look back and know "who" she was at that moment in time.

The whole title for this page is: Just a Girl? Such a Girl! Some of it got lost under the flower petal in the scan!  Each of the flowers are layered variations of red flowers, stacked and joined to the page with different brads.  Some vellum, some paper, and even one fabric flower were used. I added some paint around the photo mats and the journaling spot to add some interest.  My ribbon and rick rack accents completed the page.  I am very happy with how it came together.

This layout is being submitted to

Wish me luck!

CSI: Case 27 Layout Challenge

CSI: Case 27 Layout Challenge

This color palette ended up being one of my favorites to work with so far on the CSI:ColorStoriesInspiration Challenges.  It did not begin that way!  I saw it and was less than inspired.  They release a new challenge each Friday and my layouts for this challenge are usually done before the weekend is over.  Not this time.  I put it off because I just was not sure about these colors!  It ended up being pretty and cheerful and it makes me happy just to look at it!  Yay again CSI for challenging me to think outside the box and try colors together that I would not have even thought about!
I was so lucky to capture this moment of pure joy with my camera!  Just looking at this picture puts a smile on my face every single time!  The color of her shirt made this picture perfect to tie in with this color scheme.

I decided to keep the title simple for this layout because I really wanted to keep the focus on the photograph.  "True Wonder Revealed in the Eyes of a Child" really expresses what you see in the picture.  I did not want the title to distract the eye from the photo itself.

The page accents I used were pretty subtle too.  I found some great embellishments to compliment the color palette but I did not use a Ton of stuff as I wanted the photo to stand out!

Check out CSI for a great weekly challenge and play along with us!

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