Through the Trees Layout

It's time for another challenge at Lasting Memories, but their challenges are so addicting that I'm still playing around with the last one! I couldn't resist using up the last of the blue ink in my spray pen to mist the background of this layout, but I also had fun playing with their new challenge: stamping. I'm a long time stamp lover, but I used the stamps in a little different way this time. There was nothing in my stash that seemed to go with the green patterned paper in the middle of the page, so I pulled out a leaf stamp set and repeatedly stamped it until I had a new background to match - voila! The title is also stamped, as are all the trees. For the title circle, I even used some masking to create a denser look for the trees rather than the evenly spaced look elsewhere on the layout. Hopefully you now feel inspired  to pull out some stamps and join in the fun challenge over at Lasting Memories!

Recipe:
Intrinsic Backgrounds, True Happiness & Pen Pal Alphabet stamp sets
Dutch Blue, Whisper, Olive, Creme Brulee & White Daisy cardstock
Dutch Blue, Whisper, Olive, Creme Brulee & Crystal Blue ink
Steel Grey marker (Zig)
Silver washi tape
Durables Artisan Studs - pewter
Cricut Artbooking cartridge: banners
Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge: semi-circle cut-out (welded in Design space)
Pattern: Scrapbook.com November 2 page sketch challenge
Challenges: The Studio Challenges die-cuts (I cut both banners using my Cricut and backed them with patterned paper, plus I welded the semi-circle to the rectangular block in Design Space)

SCS Variety Challenge 184 - Glimpses Along the Road

It's the fourth Wednesday of the month, so time for another Variety Challenge for Splitcoast Stampers. Hopefully this is an easy one for everyone to play along with! Just click on the link below to go to the challenge page on SCS.

SBVC184 - Scene It
Whether you are commemorating an everyday event, looking back on a fun vacation, or celebrating someone special, get ready to pull out the stamps, load up the die-cutting machine, or scrounge up some stickers to create a scene that coordinates with your layout.

Recipe:
True Happiness, Urban Alphabet, Vintage Type, Neighborhood & Adventure USA stamp sets
Pemberly Level 2 papers
Whisper, Black & Colonial White cardstock
Black, Slate, Indian Corn Blue, Outdoor Denim, Barn Red & Versamark ink
Black & Silver markers
White embossing powder
3-D foam tape
Pattern: Scrapbook Generation sketch

Rock Climbers Layout

The design team challenge from Let's Scrap is to create a monochromatic layout with one added color. Since this layout is mostly neutrals with the pop of blue, does it qualify? Hmmm . . . My favorite part is the title; I cut out the letters on my Cricut, sponged them with grey ink to make them look like rock, and popped them up to give more dimension. For a closer look, click on the photo.

Recipe:
True Happiness & Journaling Jots stamp sets
Black, White Daisy & Sky cardstock
Grey Wool & Sky ink
Black marker
Paper-clip
3-D foam tape
Pattern: Let's Scrap 1-11-12 sketch
Cricut Artist cartridge: notepaper, title

Moonlight Card 3

My friend Maria has been bugging me for weeks that I really need to get a kitty. She's even taking to posting pictures of darling kittens on Facebook, hoping to tempt me to take the plunge. So far, I've resisted, but I couldn't resist this cute kitty die-cut from the Cricut Artiste cartridge. This simple card was created in honor of Maria, my cat-loving buddy! I added a little bit of baker's twine to it, so I am entering it into the Southern Girls Tie a Ribbon Around It challenge.

Recipe:
Word Balloons & True Happiness stamp sets
Moonlight Level 2 papers
Goldrush, Black & Colonial White cardstock
Goldrush & Olive ink
Black baker's twine
Cricut Artiste cartridge: cat

Week 10 Layout Linky + EMS SKetch Challenge 25 - The Real Story Behind the Ruins Layout

I'm really late posting my layout again this week, but I have a great excuse - pneumonia! Yes, I have been in bed all week, coughing, wheezing, chest pains, etc. Not a fun week. I managed to put together a layout in spite of that (plus having my parents-in-law here and a birthday party to plan), so I'm pretty proud of myself. This week, the Heart 2 Heart Challenge blog asked us to create a scene using three or more stamps, which was perfect for this layout. (Actually, I just went back and checked and it was supposed to be a scene on a card, but hopefully they'll forgive my illness-induced confusion!) I used the mountains and clouds from Beautiful Things, the grass from True Happiness, and the bricks from Around the Block, three totally different style stamp sets, yet I think they came together really well. I also used a sketch this week, so feel free to check it out for next week's layout if you like it. Can't wait to see your layouts for week 10, ladies!

The Sketch:

My Layout:

Recipe:
Classmate Alphabet, Extreme Caps, True Happiness, Beautiful Things, Around the Block & Picture Perfect stamp sets
Roughing It stamp set (SU)
Indian Corn Blue, Heavenly Blue, Desert Sand, Autumn Terracotta & Colonial White cardstock
Desert Sand, Garden Green, Grey Wool & Bamboo ink
Grey Wool & Bamboo markers

***If you are participating in the challenge, please use the link below to link your layout to this post. You have until Friday at 11:59PM PST to post your tenth week's layout. The link will allow you to post a title and thumbnail that link to your site, where we can see the layout in all its glory! Note: please do not post from a password protected site that will require us to input a password before viewing.

LOAD #22 - Life Afloat

Another Midway layout. I created the clouds by masking cloud shapes on White Daisy cardstock and then brayering over the paper with Sky ink.



Recipe:
Tiny Typewriter Alphabet, Flyin' High & True Happiness stamp sets
Zippidee Level 2 papers
Dutch Blue, White Daisy & Bamboo cardstock
Sky, Cranberry, Bamboo, Dutch Blue & Black ink
3-D foam tape

Glacier Point Layout

I never got around to posting my layout for Sketch Challenge 16 yesterday, so here it is. I didn't have B&T paper that really went well with the pictures, so I created some (the Ponderosa Pine dot paper on the left), and then clear embossed the clouds on White Daisy cardstock before brayering over them in Crystal Blue ink. The finished product isn't fancy, but I wanted to let the pictures take center stage, and hopefully I accomplished that. Isn't my husband a great photographer? Click on the layout if you want to see his marvelous pictures up close!



Recipe:
Chocolate Alphabet Small, Spot On Backgrounds & True Happiness stamp sets
Twitterpated Level 2 papers
White Daisy cardstock
Ponderosa Pine, Crystal Blue, Desert Sand & Versamark ink
Desert Sand marker
Clear embossing powder
White Daisy embroidery floss

Fishing Layout

I feel like I have been MIA on my blog for a week! Aren't thing supposed to calm down so we can take it easy during the summer? Not a chance in our home. I have been doing some scrapping, though, so here's my latest layout. I have no idea where that water paper came from (Creative Memories, perhaps?), but the rest is from CTMH. I just realized that the stamped fish on the left hand page looks like it's flying. I was going to draw some movement lines so it looked like it had jumped into the air, but I forgot. Too lazy now to re-scan it, so I guess you get a flying fish. LOL! Don't forget, you have until July 31 to leave a comment regarding your favorite piece of artwork from my blog, and I'll be picking a winner for blog candy on August 1.



Recipe:
Dream Big, Family Ties Adults, Family Ties Children, True Happiness, Headline Alphabet Large & Tiny Typewriter stamp sets
Felicity papers
Water paper (unknown source)
Desert Sand, Bamboo, Cocoa, Chocolate, Brown Bag & Colonial White cardstock
Brown Bag, Cocoa & Crystal Blue ink
Twill ribbon
Crystal Blue brads
White gel pen (Marvy)

EMS Sketch Challenge 4 - Family Hike Layout

Here is the latest sketch challenge for all you creative people to use. Remember, this is not a competition (there are no prizes), so you can use the sketch as is or tweak it until it fits your needs. No deadlines, just have fun with it. I had a lot of trouble picking papers for my layout, so it sat on my desk for three days while I tried different combinations with it. You know what finally helped me make my decision? Studio J. Studio J is a soon to be released product from CTMH that you can use to create digital layouts, and CTMH will print and ship them to you. There's no upfront cost to use it; you simply log into the website and start creating. I picked out a pattern (Studio J uses patterns from Jeanette Lynton's Cherish and Imagine books) and a paper kit, and started arranging my pictures on it. The first kit I picked didn't quite work for me, so with a click of a button, I was able to substitute another kit. I went through about 6 kits until I found one I liked, and it was so much easier than hunting through my stash to find the perfect papers. I won't be ordering the layout I created in Studio J because I already had all my pictures printed out at home, but what a great design tool! I'll keep you posted about the release date of this great new product, because I'm sure many of you will want to try it out.

The sketch:

My layout:

 

Recipe: 

Holiday Hoopla, Chocolate Alphabet Small & True Happiness stamp sets

Stardust Level 2 papers

White Daisy, Dutch Blue & Bamboo cardstock

Moonstruck, Dutch Blue, Cocoa, Desert Sand & Garden Green ink

Garden Green marker

3-D foam squares

Kailua Beach & Pali Lookout Layout

We had taken some random pictures to finish up the day and I didn't want to scrap two layouts with them, so I challenged myself to figure out how to scrap them on one layout. The hardest part was the title, but (after re-reading the tourism guide 3 times) I finally hit on using the Hawaiian words Makai (towards the sea) and Mauka (towards the mountains), which is how residents give directions on Oahu. It fit because we first went to the sea, and then drove towards the mountains. The pattern is Creative Team from Imagine. I used an embossing stylus and the channel in my Fiskars trimmer to create the lines above and below the title. The background cardstock on both pages is Bamboo, but for some wierd reason it looks lighter towards the bottom of the page. Must be something to do with scanning the layouts. I've been able to use up bits and pieces of my older paper packs while doing this album, so maybe I can clear out some room for the cute new paper packs in the Winter Idea Book!



Recipe:
True Happiness stamp set
Summer Celebration B&T Combo paper pack (discontinued)
Bamboo, Crystal Blue, Desert Sand, Olive & White Daisy cardstock
Crystal Blue, Desert Sand, Olive & Ocean ink
Autumn & Winter craft buttons
Natural hemp

Man for All Seasons Birthday Card

This week has certainly been a card-making week, and there is no end in sight. I've made cards for Mother's Day and for my BSF leader (I'll post that one tomorrow after my Thank You stamp set arrives!), and tomorrow I am doing a 20 card workshop with my friend Lisa for a charity event. I still need to make cards for Teacher Appreciation week, and in the meantime, I put together this card for my husband's birthday. The idea came to me earlier this week as I was sorting the junk on my scrapbook table. Some die-cut snowflakes happened to find themselves next to a scrap of Hawaiian paper, and eureka! an idea was born. I went to work with my Monthly Word puzzle stamp sets, picking images that seemed to represent each of the seasons. Using the On Your Left pattern from Jeannette Lynton's Originals book, I created this card. The inside says "Happy birthday to my man for all seasons." Greg really liked it, and even thought I should make more (not for him, though!), so I guess the hard work I put into it paid off. Happy birthday, Honey. You truly are my man for all seasons.





Recipe:
January, March, April, August & November Word Puzzle Stamp Sets
Happy Birthday, Moments in Time & True Happiness stamp sets
Barn Red, Twilight, Bamboo & Colonial White cardstock
Barn Red, Twilight, Honey, Bamboo & Topiary ink
Barn Red & Bamboo markers
Blending pen
Edge distressor