Thankful for Our Complicated Family Layout

I wasn't sure what to title this layout until I stumbled across a blog called Time Out Challenges and noticed they were asking what we are thankful for, which made me reflect on how grateful I am that the biological half-siblings of my oldest adopted son have become family to my two youngest adopted kids, even though there is no blood relationship. I'm also thankful the kids happened to be wearing matching colors so I didn't have to struggle to figure out a color scheme for my layout - LOL! Thanks for a great challenge, Time Out!

Recipe:
Lucky & Zippidee papers
Toffee & Sapphire cardstock
Cranberry, Pacifica & Sapphire ink
White gel pen (Sakura)
Fineliner pen (IBayam)
Burlap & Cranberry grosgrain ribbon
Love This Wood titles
Wood Hearts
Cricut You Are Here cartridge: Thankful
Pattern: Sketch-n-Scrap #258

Challenges: Time Out Challenges #225 Thankful theme; Double Trouble # Let's Get A-Round to It (this time I just participated in Thing 1's circle challenge with three sizes of circles)

Quirky Love Layout

My cat Thor is a handsome dude, and his funny habits make great subjects for layouts. Here, I documented his love of lying in the sink, at least until someone turned on the water!

Recipe:
Spot On Backgrounds, State of Mind, Glamour Uppercase and Lowercase Alphabets & Besties - Zoey stamp sets
Caboodle & July/August 2021 Mix-In papers
Desert Rose, Shortbread, Almond & White Daisy cardstock
Sorbet, Sage, Black & Almond ink
Sagebrush marker (Zig)
ShinHan TouchTwin markers
Sorbet ribbon & rick-rack
Gold heart paperclips (American Crafts)
Bestie - Zoey Thin Cut die
Heart punch (EK Success)
Cricut Simply Sweet cartridge: heart
Pattern: Sketch-n-Scrap #259

Challenges: Heart's Quest Challenge Blog #8 Love + animal image; Use Your Stuff #469 Die cuts; Color My Heart #518 (I didn't have exact color matches, so I used some Sorbet and Sage products in lieu of the Melon and Rosemary)

Colorful Fun Layout

There were already a lot of colors in these photos of my kids participating in a kids' craft at Home Depot, so I decided to go with a colorful theme by using the Fresh Paint papers from CTMH and a puffy sticker title from American Crafts.

Here's a close up of the journaling card I created using the current Atlantic Heart's sketch (see below):

Recipe:
Watercolor papers (Recollections)
Fresh Paint papers
Color Kaleidoscope papers (American Crafts)
Pear, Nectarine & Flamingo cardstock
Pear, Nectarine & Black ink
Clover Meadow marker
Later Sk8r PML card
Color Kaleidoscope Stickers & Puffy Phrases and Icons Thickers (American Crafts)
Let's Wander Thicker (American Crafts)
Pattern: Splitcoast Stampers Sketch16Apr3 

Challenges: Double Trouble #123 Let's Get A-Round to It (Thing 1 = used multiple circles + Thing 2 = used Atlantic Hearts' sketch #495 to create a journaling card for my layout)

Forever Friends {Thor} Layout

My cat Thor is the perfect companion for me, and I love that my hubby snapped these shots of Thor hanging out with me while I read on my Kindle!

Recipe:
Stargazer paper
Ruby, Sapphire, Canary & Almond cardstock
Sapphire embossed cardstock
Ruby, Sapphire & Toffee ink
Moonstruck marker
Sienna fineliner pen (iBayam)
These Are My People cardstock stickers
Heartfelt Whimsy shapes
Tan brads (from my stash, source unknown)
Canary baker's twine
Ruby chevron washi tape
Magic Mesh (Creative Imaginations)
Cricut Artbooking cartridge: frames
Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge: curved rectangle
Cricut Artistry cartridge: pawprints (used as stencil)
Pattern: EMS Sketch Challenge #69 (altered somewhat!)

Challenges: Critter Crazy Challenges #67;  Heart 2 Heart Stencil It (used my Cricut Artistry cartridge to create a paw print stencil, which I then inked and used on the Almond cardstock die cut); Heart's Quest Challenge Blog #8 Love + animal (used the word love in my journaling plus added a heart in place of  the word love in I love you felt die cut). 

Bird Houses Layout

My hubby took several pictures of my daughter and her friend on a playdate, but this is the only one that came out well, so I took the opportunity to do a single photos layout, something rather rare for me!

Recipe:
Dream Big stamp set
Life Delights papers & cardstock stickers
Chocolate, Spring Iris, Blush, Sweet Leaf & Colonial White cardstock
Chocolate, Spring Iris, Blush, Sweet Leaf & Desert Sand ink
Sienna fineliner pen (iBayam)
Let's Wander cardstock stickers (American Crafts)
Spring Harmony Bigger Brads
Polka Dot brad (from my stash, source unknown)
Yellow button (from my stash, source unknown)
Lilac Mist embroidery floss
Cricut Artiste cartridge: title
Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge: flowers
Cricut Artistry cartridge: vine
Challenges: Crafter's Cafe #290 use some pink; Lasting Memories #620 Mood Board Inspiration (used the pink, white, tan, green & yellow plus flowers)

This Memory Makes Me Happy Layout

This is the companion page to the pumpkin patch layout I posted last week, but since there will be a pocket page between them, I didn't feel a need to make them coordinate. I was inspired by a few challenges to add various elements to the layout (see below), and even though it's not super complicated, it makes me smile!

Recipe:
This & That stamp set
I Love Halloween papers (Echo Park)
Paprika, Buttercup, Eggplant & Black cardstock
Sunset, Buttercup, Eggplant & Black ink
Fineliner pen (iBayam)
Jack-o'-lantern faces stickers (Suzy's Zoo)
Honey triangles washi tape
Black enamel dots
Orange buttons (from my stash, source unknown)
Olive embroidery floss
Cricut Artistry cartridge: pumpkins, stars overlay
Stitched Circle metal die (Art Impressions)
Pattern: EMS Sketch Challenge #69 (rotated left)

Challenges: Double Trouble #122 Fall Colors (used orange, purple, yellow & green, and included  pumpkins)

Festive Friday #120 (I used pumpkin, orange, stars & black)

Scrap With Stacy October 2022 Tic Tac Toe Board (used the top row with circles, stickers & some orange/black)

Defense Layout

Since I didn't have the perfect patterned papers for this layout. I decided to pull out a bunch of stamps to create a background. The only pieces of patterned paper are the dark blue strips like the one under the title; the rest of the patterns are stamped on cardstock in various colors of ink. I also backed some clear buttons with stamped images or patterns to add some extra dimension to the layout, and now I'm wondering if I should have put embroidery floss bows through the patterned ones. Oh well, at least it's finished, and I can always add the floss later, right?

Recipe:
Background Builders, Noted Backgrounds, Spot On Backgrounds & Play Hard - Soccer stamp sets
Sapphire textured cardstock
Bluebird, Carolina, Pebble, Grey Wool & White Daisy cardstock
Bluebird, Carolina, Pewter, Greg Wool & Sapphire ink
Fineliner pen (iBayam)
Clear craft buttons
Enamel stars
Clipboard (Rob & Bob Studios)
Ribbon (scraps from my stash, source unknown)
Liquid Glass
Cricut Artbooking cartridge: title, star
Pattern: EMS Sketch Challenge 69 (I'm also playing along with a challenge over at Scrapbook.com to use the same sketch 5 times, so you will be seeing this sketch again this month!)

Challenges: Heart 2 Heart Technique challenge: create a cool background; Lasting Memories #619 Mood Board/Color inspiration (I used a range of blues and greys)

EMS Sketch 104 + Pick o' the Patch Layout

Here's a new sketch for all my scrappy friends out there! I created a sketch featuring four 4" x 6" photos and a couple of fun circle elements. My layout adhered to the sketch almost exactly, which is unusual for me, but I did add a couple of extra die-cut pieces. Feel free to play along and, as always, post a link to your completed layout in the comments so I get to enjoy it, too! Here's the sketch:

And here's my layout:

Recipe:

Fall Favorites stamp set (purchased in 2013)

Babycakes & May/June 2022 Mix-in papers

Kraft, Chocolate, Sweet Leaf & White Daisy Cardstock

Chocolate, Nectarine, Buttercup & Black ink

Pure Brown marker (Zig)

ShinHan TouchTwin markers

Autumn Terracotta button brads

Cricut Artiste cartridge: title, flourish

Cricut Artiste cartridge: bracket

Challenges: Let's Craft and Create #188 Colors of Fall (I used red, yellow, orange & brown); Retro Rubber Challenges #193 Anything Goes using a stamp over a year old (used a stamp set from 2013)

Boo at the Zoo Layout

Fun times at the "haunted" Los Angeles Zoo with my family! I've never used the tiger and monkey die-cut from the Cricut Artistry cartridge before, so it was fun to finally add them to a layout.

Recipe:
July/August 2021 & May/June 2022 Mix-In papers
Black, Paprika, Toffee & Chocolate cardstock
Autumn Terracotta, Nectarine & Peach ink
White gel pen (Sakura)
Fineliner pens (iBayam)
Cricut Artbooking cartridge: Boo, bats
Cricut Art Philosophy: title
Cricut Artistry cartridge: pumpkin, eek!, tiger, monkey
Pattern: Splitcoast Stampers Sketch15Feb3

Challenges: Use Your Stuff #468 Fall Themed (our zoo was all decorated for Halloween );  Color My Heart Color Dare #515 - I chose the diagonal with Nectarine, Peach & Paprika, plus I used Toffee and Chocolate (because I didn't have Mocha) for the monkey.

Sharing Joy Layout

Although I would like to say it's a treasured tradition in our family, taking our annual Christmas card photo is probably more of a dreaded occasion for our kids as the adults fuss around with getting the camera set up just right to frame our family, not to mention the multiple retakes due to someone having their eyes closed or my hubby not making it back into the scene before the timer ends! Nevertheless, we usually end up with that perfect pose, and it sure makes for a fun and memorable layout.

Here are a couple details of the layout. Just wanted to show the Gold Stickles, the crimped cardstock, and the eyelets with the ribbon threaded through.

Recipe:
Holiday Jingle, A Typeface & Spot On Backgrounds stamp sets
Pear & Partridge papers and PML cards
Cranberry, New England Ivy, Kraft & Colonial White cardstock
Cranberry, New England Ivy Olive & Desert Sand ink
Black marker
Carmine ShinHan TouchTwin marker
Green organdy ribbon (Offray)
Gold brads (Making Memories)
Gold Stickles (Ranger)
Scalloped border punch (Fiskars)
Paper crimper (Fiskars)
Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge: title box & poinsettia
Pattern: EMS Sketch Challenge #88

Challenges: Scrap Our Stash Wheel of Challenges Seldom Used Tools (I used my paper crimper and my eyelet setting kit of mini hammer, punch, setter, and setting mat)