Amazing Family Layout

As I sat in my scraproom today with the rain drizzling down outside, it was very cheering to be using such a bright color scheme to create my layout! I combined a variety of papers from different CTMH kits to scrapbook this photo of my beautiful family. Hope it brightens your day, and Happy New Year, everyone. May 2017 bring many blessings and lots of scrap-worthy moments.

Recipe:
Tiny Typewriter stamp set
Buzz & Bumble, Dotty for You, Jeepers Creepers, Skylark, & Timberline Level 2 papers
Lagoon, Cocoa, Desert Sand & Buttercup cardstock
Lagoon, Cocoa & Creme Brulee ink
Sunset grosgrain ribbon
Paradise & Flutter Just Blooms paper shapes
Sunset, Sunkiss & White Daisy craft buttons
Lagoon & Sunset baker's twine
Sunset corduroy brad
Mocha Opagues pearls
Cricut Artbooking cartridge: family
Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge: tag
Pattern: Sketches in Thyme 255

2nd Christmas Layout

I know most people are counting down the days until 2017, but I'm counting down the layouts until I'm done scrapbooking 2013 (only two to go), so I kept this one pretty simple! Ever since we saw The Lord of the Rings movie wherein the two hobbits are astounded that Aragorn doesn't seem to know about "second breakfast," it has become a catch-phrase in our family for any time we do something twice. So it seemed perfect to adapt the idea as the title for this layout featuring our second Christmas celebration of the day! I started with a sketch from Stick It Down and added a bunch of closely-cropped photos, then looked through my Cricut cartridges to find the fun font for the title. A few embellishments and I was done.

Recipe:
A Timber & A Typeface stamp sets
Mistletoe Level 2 papers
Cranberry, Olive & Colonial White cardstock
Cranberry, Olive & New England Ivy ink
Black marker
Cranberry baker's twine
Gold Stickles (Ranger)
Gold brads (from my stash)
Cricut Simply Sweet cartridge: title, tab
Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge: banners, postage stamp frame, heart
Cricut Artbooking cartridge: hugs frame
Pattern: Stick It Down December single page sketch
Challenges: Splitcoast Stampers Run, Run Rudolph lyrics challenge (my journaling is from the song)

Dog Days of Christmas Layout

Hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and are enjoying some much needed time off. As I was scrapping Christmas Day pictures from 2013, I noticed I had quite a few pictures of our dogs, so I created this layout to remind myself that they are part of our family celebration!

Recipe:
A Typeface, Notice the Details, and Cherish the Day stamp sets
Pear & Partridge Level 2 papers
Cranberry, Desert Sand, Saddle, Champagne & Cashmere cardstock
New England Ivy, Cranberry, Desert Sand & Cashmere ink
Sap Green Shin Han Twin Touch marker
Cranberry grosgrain ribbon
White Pines Assortment flair
Red Glitz Glitter Gel
Red Glitter gem
Cricut Artistry cartridge: wreath, holly leaves, dog
Cricut Teresa Collins cartridge: Christmas
Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge: tags
Pattern: Scrap Our Stash December sketch + 3 (I used bows, red, flair, green, glitter, and tags)
Challenges: Rochelle Spears Glitter challenge (I added glitter glue to all the berries for an extra-festive touch)

With the Dawn Layout

December has been the month of double page sketches for me, since this is the senocd one I have created and posted for Splitcoast Stampers. Feel free to play along! For my sample layout, I had no idea what title to use  (I've probably used "Christmas Morning" and "Opening Presents" each several times!), but the Music Challenge over at Scrapbook.com came to my rescue. Amanda challenged us to use lyrics from "Silent Night" as inspiration for our layout, and I found the words "with the dawn" in the second verse. Although my layout has nothing to do with Jesus' birth, the phrase seemed to reflect my children's propensity for rising at dawn on Christmas morning. Can anyone relate?

The sketch:

My layout:

Recipe:
In the Background & Spot On Backgrounds stamp sets
Jingle & Key to My Heart Level 2 papers
Tulip, Juniper, Olive & Creme Brulee cardstock
White Daisy textured cardstock
Tulip, Juniper, Olive & Creme Brulee ink
Black marker
Animal Cookies My Stickease
White enamel star
Green Epoxy bubbles
White Daisy embroidery floss
Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge: stocking, presents, ticket
Cricut Artistry cartridge: title, tree, arrow
Cricut Artbooking cartridge: sun
Challenges: Another Freaking Scrappy Challenge Christmas (this is a new challenge site for me, and I'm excited to participate in more challenges in 2017!)

Adrian's 12th Birthday Layout

I was invited to be the December guest designer on Stick It Down sketch challenge blog, and the sketch they sent me was a doozy! I had several ideas about how to use this sketch, but I finally settled on scrapping the tons of photos we had taken at my son's 12th birthday party. With the big heart in the center of the sketch, this seemed like a great way to create a photo montage and use lots of pictures.

• I cut a heart on my Cricut using the "fit to page" function, and then used the negative space as a frame for the photo montage.
• I replaced the banner with more photos, and shifted my title to the empty space on the other page.
• On the right side of the page, I added a rectangular photo and journaling mat to balance out the rectangular photos on the left hand page.
• I had to piece together the blue sections of the background because of the heart cut-out in the middle of the layout, so that's why I allowed a piece of the background to show through on my right hand page. Plus it accents the matted photos of my son quite well, don't you think?
• I used no patterned paper on this layout because I didn't want anything competing with all those photos, but I did use a random dot stamp set to add a little texture to the Lagoon cardstock.

The sketch challenge is open until December 31, so be sure to check it out and play along!

The sketch:

My layout:

Recipe:
Itty Bitty Backgrounds stamp set (SU)
Lagoon, Goldrush, Autumn Terracotta, Tulip & White Daisy cardstock
Lagoon, Goldrush & Autumn Terracotta ink
Black marker
Aqua Dots
SIlver bitty brad
Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge: hearts
Cricut Artiste: title, bow

Mall Madness Layout

The grungy look is not my normal style, but it seemed to fit this photo about a youth group event. I started with a sketch from Let's Get Sketchy that had some fun diagonal strips, and, contrary to my usual instinct,  I challenged myself to not straighten them! It gave the finished layout a fun, funky vibe that I'm really enjoying. Hope you love it, too.

I also made a card with a couple of the left-over scraps, and this one has some fun diagonals, too!

Recipe:
Wide Journal Block stamp set (Scrappy Cat)
Red Infuse paper (Basic Grey)
Stripe & polka dot papers (KI Memories)
Floral papers (DCWV)
Argyle paper (SU)
Cocoa, Twilight, Black, Blush & Colonial White cardstock
Cocoa, Twilight, Whisper & Fern ink
Black marker
Ruby sparkle button
Ruby baker's twine
Lollydoodle Assortment bling
Cranberry grosgrain ribbon
Cricut Artiste cartridge: title
Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge: decorative square, banners, circle tag
Pattern: Let's Get Sketchy December week 1
Challenges: Lasting Memories one photo

Card Recipe:
Thank You stamp set
Floral paper (DCWV)
Pear, Cocoa, Lagoon, Ruby & White Daisy cardstock
Pear, Cocoa, Lagoon & Ruby ink
Cricut Artiste cartridge: thanks
Cricut Artbooking cartridge: hearts
Cuttlebug embossing folder: Swiss Dot
Pattern: Scrapbook.com December card sketch #1

Buzz & Bumble Thanks Card

My mom is one of those lucky people who have a birthday right before Christmas, so in the midst of my hectic schedule I've been trying to come up with a gift for her. I finally decided to send her a bunch of hand-made cards that she can give to friends, a gift she's really appreciated and used in the past. Here's one I came up with using the Atlantic Hearts weekly card sketch! I went with a vertical rather than a horizontal orientation and I tweaked a few elements, but it was great having the sketch as my inspiration point.

Recipe:
Buzz & Bumble Level 2 papers
Cocoa, Goldrush, Sweet Leaf & Colonial White cardstock
Cocoa & Goldrush ink
Colonial White grosgrain ribbon
Cricut Artiste cartridge: thanks, flourish
Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge: flowers

The Stockings Were Hung Layout

This layout was a real challenge for me, but it was fun overcoming the creative obstacles in order to get it completed! I knew I wanted to create a fireplace scene with stockings, but my first idea to use full size 4" x 6" photos didn't look that great, so I decided to  crop the photos to 3.5" x 5". This meant I couldn't add extra photos behind the main photo using Flip-Flaps, so instead I stuffed the stockings using photo tags that pull out of the stockings. Next I built a fireplace using cardstock mantle, bricks, and mortar, and cut flames on my Cricut for a cozy scene. I was just going to use the quote from 'Twas the Night Before Christmas as my title, but I ended up adding my own lines because I realized the pictures focused more on opening the stockings than on them hanging. Hope you enjoy viewing the finished product as much as I enjoyed making it!

Recipe:

Cashmere, Saddle, Autumn Terracotta, Goldrush & White Daisy cardstock
Cashmere, Saddle &Whisper ink
Black marker
Green stocking recipe:
  Christmas Brights Plaid patterned paper (BoBunny)
  Ponderosa Pine cardstock
  Ponderosa Pine ink
  Green grosgrain ribbon (Offray)
Blue stocking recipe:
  Everyday Celebrations Level 2 papers
  Dutch Blue cardstock
  Dutch Blue & Chocolate ink
  Sweet Leaf Ribbon Rounds
Red stocking recipe:
  Poinsettia patterned paper (Paper Adventures)
  Cranberry cardstock
  Black ink
  Black Ribbon Rounds
Pink stocking recipe:
  Unknown patterned paper scraps from my stash!
  Blush cardstock
  Blush ink
  Blush Ribbon Rounds
Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge: stockings, bricks
Cricut Artistry cartridge: flames
Challenges: Lasting Memories 4 Photos; Bitten By the Bug 2 holiday symbol challenge (stockings may be stretching the definition of symbol a little, but when I see this shape, I certainly think Christmas!)

'Twas the Night Before Christmas Layout

For this Christmas Eve layout, I combined some old paper from 2005 and a brand new sketch I created for Splitcoast Stampers with photos from 2013. If you would like to play along with the sketch, please be sure to leave a link to your post in the comments below so I get to see what you created!

The sketch:

My layout:

Recipe:
Tiny Typewriter stamp set
Scrap'n Fun patterned papers (Creating Keepsakes)
Ruby, Saddle, New England Ivy, Cocoa, Goldrush & Colonial White cardstock
Ruby & New England Ivy ink
Black marker
#Life cards
Red Glitter Glitz Gel
Gold star brads (Creative Impressions)
Green grosgrain ribbon (Offray)
Green gingham ribbon (Offray)
Wicker Weave Cuttlebug folder
Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge: round tag
Cricut Artbooking cartridge: arrow, scalloped border
Pattern: Splitcoast Stampers Sketch16Dec1
Challenges: Picture This shapes challenge (I used rectangles, a triangle, a circle, stars, and squares); Use Your Stuff layers challenge (I managed to get lots of layers in this layout!)