The Tombs Layout

I haven't done a lot of scrapping this month, so I'm easing myself back into it with this super simple layout featuring a few photos of the Egyptian exhibit at the British Museum. Baby steps!

Recipe:
Felicity Alphabet stamp set
Florentine papers & cardstock stickers
Goldrush & Colonial White cardstock
Cocoa, Indian Corn Blue, Goldrush & Bamboo ink
Brown marker (Zig)
Cuttlebug embossing folder: Wicker Weave
Pattern: Sketches in Thyme #457 (rotated left)

Challenges: Heart 2 Heart Borders (added borders at top and bottom); Lasting Memories #533 Embossing (dry embossed the borders at top and bottom)

Holy Land Experience Layout 2

Completed another Holy Land Experience layout today. I realize I kept these layouts very simple, but I really couldn't figure out what else to add to complement the photos. On the flip side, the photos are scrapped and in my album, so that's a plus for me! Sometimes I get so caught up in the design that I forget it's okay not to add the kitchen sink to my layout, if you know what I mean. Looking back at even the simplest of layouts will bring back memories, and that's what counts.

Recipe:
Felicity stamp set
Huntington Level 2 papers
Champagne, Cashmere, Chocolate, Cocoa, Desert Sand & Olive cardstock
Cocoa, Desert Sand & Olive ink
Cocoa marker
Cricut Artbooking cartridge: palm tree
Pattern: EMS Sketch 52

SCS Variety Challenge 200 - Eaters of the Cake

It's time for a Variety Challenge over at Splitcoast Stampers, and I'm so excited to be hosting the 200th challenge! Who wants to celebrate with me? Join in the fun by playing along with our challenge using the link below.

SBVC200 - Mixed Messages
For today's challenge, I want you to use stamps, markers, die-cuts, your computer, etc. to create a title or journaling spot on your layout. Sound easy? But there's a catch: you have to either use at least three fonts, or intersperse symbols or pictographs amid your regular fonts. If you are creating your title or journaling by hand, you can use cursive, printing, all caps, or outlined letters (just to name a few ideas) to get the look of various fonts.

I decided to use both options, so I added some pictures to my hand written journaling, plus I used Tiny Typewriter, Polka Dot Alphabet & Felicity stamp sets to create the title. I always struggle coming up with titles for birthday layouts (how many times can you use Let Them Eat Cake?) so the title is a play on Michael Crichton's book "Eaters of the Dead."

Recipe:
Tiny Typewriter Alphabet, Polka Dot Alphabet, Felicity, Take Note, Perfect Fit - Birthday & It's Your Day stamp sets
Zippidee Level 2 papers
Bamboo, Cranberry, Indian Corn Blue, Honey & Colonial White cardstock
Cranberry, Indian Corn Blue, Honey & Desert Sand ink
Desert Sand marker
Honey Triangles washi tape
Cranberry conchos
Natural hemp
Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge: number border, tab
Pattern: Let's Scrap 10-30-13
Challenges: Heart 2 Heart CTMH challenge (C = cardstock & cake, T = tab & washi tape, M = metal conchos, H = hemp & happy); Frosted Designs Polka Dot challenge; SCS Stash January Busters challenge week 2

Ink & Die Backgrounds Tutorial - Floral Beauty Layout

Welcome to my second challenge for Virtual Scrapbook Night over at Splitcoast Stampers. The fun is going on all week, so be sure to join us to learn some new techniques or re-discover one you haven't tried in a while.

Tech VSBN 06
1. For this technique, you will need stamping ink, a sponge, cardstock, and the die-cut of your choice.

2. Decide where on your cardstock you want to create a background. You can either create a background using your whole piece of cardstock, or you can pick a smaller section or two that you want to use. Using a pencil, I lightly marked the section of cardstock that I wanted to use to insure that I got good coverage. Once you've decided, place the die-cut on your cardstock, ink up your sponge, and start sponging around the die-cut.

3. When you've inked around the die-cut, move it to another, overlapping spot and ink around it again. Repeat the process until you've completely covered the section of cardstock you wanted. Notice that some areas will be darker and others lighter based on how much they are covered by the die-cut.

 

4. Remove the die-cut, take a moment to admire what you've done, then pull out whatever other stamps or embellishments you want to finish the look. You can even use your very-inky die-cut as an embellishment!

And here's my sample layout with all the pictures and embellishments added. I think you can tell the three rectangles of cardstock on which I used this technique. Hope you come play along with this challenge so I can see your beautiful layouts!

Recipe:
In the Background, Distressed Backgrounds, Universal Backgrounds, Felicity & Baroque Borders stamp sets
Ruby, Sweet Leaf, Desert Sand, Buttercup, Smokey Plum, Gypsy & White Daisy cardstock
Ruby, Sweet Leaf, Desert Sand, Creme Brulee Twilight, Sky & Smokey Plum ink
Black marker
Sweet Leaf Craft button
Window charms (JoAnn's Scrap Essentials)
Liquid Glass
Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge: flowers, flourish, butterfly
Pattern: Allison Davis August 1 sketch for Simple Stories

Celebrate Easter Layout

Hmmm. . .  Have you ever created a layout and couldn't quite decide whether you liked it or you wanted to tear the whole thing apart and start over? This is one of those layouts for me. I was kinda stuck for paper since I didn't have anything that perfectly matched that bright pink dress, so the Sweetheart papers were the closest I could come. I wanted to use my Cricut to cut out the egg shapes and have the background paper showing through, but I'm not sure that really worked either. And the yellow. . . There's lots of yellow in my pictures, but I don't know if it looks quite right on the layout. Is the big journaling strip right in the middle too much? Should I have framed the two 4x6 photos on the left page and the 4x6 on the right page in light pink? This is one of those "Let me have it, ladies" layouts. Should I leave it as is and call it done, or are there small fixes I can do to make it much better? Help!

Recipe:
Eastertime, AP Celebrations & Felicity stamp sets
Sweetheart Level 2 papers
Colonial White, Buttercup & Black cardstock
Black, Cotton Candy & Creme Brulee ink
Black marker
Bitty sparkles
White embroidery floss
Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge: eggs, butterflies
Pattern: EMS Sketch Challenge 30b

Week 35 Layout Linky - Shower

The monthly challenge from the Chicas Gettin Crafty blog is to create a wedding themed layout, so here is my entry. It is from a bridal shower, not a wedding, but hopefully it counts! I had a bunch of Life Delights Level 1 paper packs that I had purchased on clearance, and the colors matched my photos perfectly, but not the pattern, so I cut up one of the papers (Front and Center - Blocks from Reflections) and used the pieces on my layout. The pattern I ended up using was one of my favorites - Conclusion Combo from Imagine. I also ran out of room for my journaling, so I used the journaling space to add a subtitle, and then I popped up a picture on the right hand page and slid a journaling tag behind it.



Recipe:
Friendship Alphabet Small & Felicity stamp sets
Life Delights Level 1 papers & My Stickease
Colonial White, Blush & Chocolate cardstock
Lilac Mist, Blush, Chocolate & Sweet Leaf ink
Blush craft buttons
Lilac Mist embroidery thread
3-D foam tape

***If you are participating in the 52 Layouts Challenge, please use the link below to link your layout to this post. You have until Friday at 11:59PM PST to post your week 35 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.

EMS Sketch Challenge 29 + LOAD #18 - Family Fun in Sedona

I know, my second sketch challenge in a week! Didn't plan it that way, but now you have two different layout plans you can use this week (or when ever). Don't forget, if you use one of my sketches, leave me a comment and I'll give you a shout-out on my blog.
These pictures almost drove me nuts figuring out how to scrapbook them. What was I thinking, dressing my family in red to go see Sedona? I went through all my paper twice, and none of my patterned papers really worked. I finally pulled cardstock for the predominate colors from the pictures, and this is the color combo I came up with. I am not a fan of Taffy (the color, not the candy), but it seems to work for this layout. What do you think? I used the Connections stamp set to create some random stamped paper on the Tulip cardstock. Hope you like it.

The sketch:

My Layout:

Recipe:
Connections & Felicity stamp sets
Taffy, Tulip, Pacifica & Sky cardstock
Tulip, Pacifica & Sky ink
Pacifica marker
Tulip brads

Something Old Something New Layout

I know this title seems like it should have wedding photos involved, but it was the perfect fit for Mother's Day this year. We combined the old and the new for a thoroughly enjoyable day. The design of the layout is based on 2 sketches by Sally from Split Coast Stampers: #216 & 217. Of course, I revised them a bit, as I can't seem to help doing, but you can still see the bones of the original sketch. Here's a fun stamping tip I picked up somewhere that I want to pass along to you: if you ever want to use a stamped image but it's facing the wrong way, simply stick the design side of your stamp to your acrylic block and stamp the back side of your clear stamp! This will only work with images that don't have words on them and that are cut out closely following the design (as CTMH's are). You can see how I did it with the bird on the right hand page. He's now facing right instead of left, and since there is no design on the back of the stamp, I was able to use a patterned paper for his body without it looking too fussy.



Recipe:
Hodgepodge Alphabet & Felicity stamp sets
Bella, Grace & Stardust Level 2 papers
Bamboo cardstock
Dutch Blue & Desert Sand ink
Antique Copper brads

EMS Sketch Challenge 14 - Aquarium of the Pacific Layout

Another Monday, another sketch challenge. I'm posting this one rather late in the day, but I wanted to finish my layout to go with it yet I was having a hard time with it. Finally got it done to my satisfaction, and I took several liberties with the sketch, but I'm okay with that! In honor of two colors that are retiring from CTMH's lineup this fall, I used Ocean and Orange on the layout. I don't use these colors a lot, but I sure am going to miss having the option to use them! To create the background, I used a technique I saw earlier this week on Nona's blog. Thanks for the inspiration, Nona. As always, you can click on the pictures if you want to see a larger view of them.

The Sketch:

My Layout:

Recipe:

Hot Diggity, Dream Big, State of Mind, Building Block Alphabet & Felicity stamp sets

White Daisy Textured cardstock

Desert Sand cardstock

Desert Sand, Ocean & Orange ink

Ocean marker

White Daisy ricrac

3-D foam tape

EMS Sketch Challenge 9 - Precious Pups Layout

I've been pretty busy with my LOAD challenge this month, so I really haven't had time to think up new sketches, so this is the first one in several weeks. Hope you get a chance to use it. Remember, if you create a layout this week based on this sketch and post it online, leave me a comment on this post with a link to your layout, and I will give you a shout out on my blog this week. Also, if you are a card-maker and prefer to create a card using this sketch, I would love to see it. Happy scrapping or carding!

The Sketch:

My Layout:

  

Recipe: Friendship Alphabet Large, Friendship Alphabet Small, Alphabet Solos "P" & Felicity stamp sets
Grace Level 2 papers
Twilight & Bamboo cardstock
Twilight, Bamboo, Cocoa & Honey inks
Cocoa marker
Barn Red Bigger Brads
Twilight brads
Dimensional Elements Booksmart
White Daisy Just Blooms
Heart punch (CM)
Scalloped scissors (Fiskars)

LOAD #9 - A Room With a View

I'm sorry to say LOAD #9 will not be posted until Monday. I'm leaving for the mountains in just one hour, and I still have to pack. Please post your layouts, and I'll catch up when I get home. I did get the layout for LOAD #7 posted this morning, so feel free to check that out. Hope everyone gets lots of scrapping done this weekend - including me!

*************************
It's Monday, so here's LOAD #9 as promised! I used one of Becky Higgin's sketches for the design.



Recipe:
Felicity, Key to My Heart & Boutique Borders stamp sets
Free Spirit Level 2 papers
Goldrush & Chocolate cardstock
Chocolate & Autumn Terracotta ink
Chocolate marker
Clear Sparkles & Bitty Sparkles

EMS Sketch Challenge 7 + LOAD #5 - Sea World Layout

Here's LOAD #5 plus my weekly sketch challenge. I took a bit of a risk in using the Perfect Day papers with these pictures, but I wanted to try something a little different from my normal classic blues. Hope you like!

The Sketch:

My Layout:

Recipe:
Felicity stamp set
Perfect Day Level 2 papers
Juniper & Colonial White cardstock
Cocoa & Juniper ink
Cocoa marker
Connections Club metal tokens

Owl Always Love You Layout

I have subscriptions to two scrapbooking magazines, and I usually read them avidly when I first receive them, but then I put them aside and forget about them. I was feeling a little guilty about that, so I took out my January issue of Creating Keepsakes Magazine and browsed the pages, looking for inspiration. I found it in Jennifer McGuire's Tools & Techniques column: a darling paper owl created using various punches. I loved her title (owl always love you), so I decided to scraplift that, too. My owl is bigger than the one Jennifer made, so I couldn't use punches, but my circle and oval cutters worked fine. Jennifer also used googly eyes, which I didn't have, but I made do with some black brads. I didn't use any patterned paper on this layout. All the patterning is done using cardstock, stamps, and ink. I gotta admit, I'm loving this layout!



Recipe:
Tiny Typewriter Alphabet, Love Tags, Spot On Backgrounds & Felicity stamp sets
Cocoa, Dutch Blue, White Daisy, Bamboo, Desert Sand, Cranberry, Clover Meadow & Autumn Terracotta cardstock
Dutch Blue, Desert Sand, Cranberry, Clover Meadow & Autumn Terracotta ink
Black marker
Black brads
Cranberry grosgrain ribbon
Heart punches (Marvy Uchida & EK Success)

Pattern: Open Forum (Imagine)

True Friends Card

In between all the scrapping I did last month, I managed to squeeze out some cards, so I thought I would share them with you all. The one was a farewell card for a lady who has attended my church for years and is now moving to another city. I thought the sentiment went perfectly, since she will always be a friend even though I won't be seeing her very often now.



Recipe:
True Friends & Felicity stamp sets
Perfect Day Level 2 papers
Tulip & White Daisy cardstock
Juniper, Sorbet & Cocoa ink
Cocoa marker
Sorbet brads
Creme Brulee Ribbon Rounds
3-D foam tape

LOAD #29 - Together

I usually try to get a nice picture of our whole family around the holidays each year. These pictures were taken this Thanksgiving. Thanks to my upline Jenni for suggesting my title. I had used "Family" several times in the past week, so she helped me come up with something different. Tip of the day: if you want the look of twine threaded through clear buttons, be prepared for a long, frustrating session of trying to push the twine through the cardstock and into the buttonholes! I probably could have threaded the buttons before adhering them to the page with Liquid Glass, but I wasn't sure they would lie flat. Live and learn, I guess!

Monica, Linda, and Beth, could you each e-mail me using your personal (not Google) e-mail address? I have a question I want to ask all of you privately. Thanks.



Recipe:
Charm Upper Alphabet, Hodge Podge Alphabet & Felicity stamp sets
Felicity kit
Crystal Blue, Desert Sand & Bamboo cardstock
Twilight & Desert Sand ink
Clear Buttons
Twine
Liquid Glass

LOAD #15 - IFL Halloween

Hi everyone. Well, I had planned to do laundry and scrapbook today. My husband wanted me to help him clean out the garage. Guess who won? Anyway, I haven't even started my layout for today, but I wanted to post something so Monica, Linda, and Beth could get their layouts posted if they were ready. Hopefully I will stop aching long enough to complete a layout tonight!

Saturday morning . . .
I finished last night, but didn't have the energy to post, so here is my layout #15. I tried a variation on one of the layouts featured in the Felicity brochure, and added some details to make it more Halloween-y. I also added several more pictures, and even a Flip-Flap. Thank you, CTMH consultant Krista Ritskes, for your version that inspired me, too. I discovered something cool about using Flip-Flaps: if you have a photo that you really want to include on a layout because it tells part of the story, but its colors clash with the rest of the layout, you can hide it under a Flip-Flap. That way it still is part of the layout without being featured. Cool, huh? And yet another great reason to buy Flip-Flaps!



Recipe:
Felicity, Spooky Smiles & Thoughtful Seasons stamp sets
Felicity papers
Bard Red cardstock
White Daisy Textured cardstock
Barn Red, Garden Green & Autumn Terracotta ink
Barn Red & Autumn Terracotta markers
Antiqued Copper brads
3-D foam squares
Flip-Flap

LOAD #10 - Carving Jack

I'm taking baby steps in this whole business of using my Felicity kit, so today's layout uses a 4" x 12" strip of one of the Felicity papers. Woohoo! Not up to using a full page yet, but the day is coming. I love this layout because it uses a couple of cool pictures of my hubby carving the pumpkin. Too often he takes a backseat to my cute kids, so it's nice to see him front and center for a change.



Recipe:
Spooky Smiles, Chocolate Alphabet Large, Rustic Flowers, Felicity, Express Postage, Celebrate the Everyday stamp sets
Felicity kit
Dutch Blue, Desert Sand & Colonial White cardstock
Desert Sand, Autumn Terracotta, Bamboo & Cocoa ink
Desert Sand & Autumn Terracotta markers

LOAD #8 - Posing at the Patch

Can you believe we're already at #8? At this rate I may run out of pictures to scrap! Just kidding; there are plenty more just waiting to be scrapped. This is normally a layout I would not post, since I don't love how it came out, and the pictures are not the greatest, but I don't have time to do another today. The Christmas tree ornaments are sitting in the middle of my living room, begging to be put away, so I have plenty to do with the rest of my day. Okay, back to the layout. Does anyone else have the same problem I have when you get a new paper pack that is "only available this month?" I can't wait to open it, and I try it out with numerous sets of photos, but I can't bring myself to cut into any of the paper. After all, what if the perfect layout comes along, and I've already used the piece of paper I needed? I'm trying to force myself to get over this quirk, so I broke out a piece of paper from the Felicity paper pack, and I used it on this layout. I know, it's a really small piece, but it's a start. Maybe I'll cut up a full piece (gasp!) in the next week.



Recipe:
Felicity, Hodge Podge & Thoughtful Seasons stamp sets
Felicity kit
Autumn Terracotta & Buttercup cardstock
Autumn Terracotta & Barn Red ink
Barn Red Bigger Brad
Autumn Terracotta My Accents
Autumn Terracotta marker

LOAD #2 - Our G

2 layouts in 2 days - I'm keeping on track! This one was tough for me, since I almost never scrap only 4 photos on a double page spread. I was hard pressed to come up with ideas for the rest of the space, but I kept playing with my supplies until I was satisfied. In the process, I used the last of my Silhouette Level 1 paper pack I've had for a year and a half, so call me a happy camper. By the way, even if you don't scrap 9"x9" albums, the Simply Snapshots pages make great photos mats and journaling boxes. Just cut them up into three sections, and you can frame two 4"x6" photos, plus have a long journal box left over.



Recipe:
Felicity & Key to My Heart stamp sets
Silhouette Level 1 & Level 2 papers
Silhouette 9"x9" Simply Snapshots album pages
Silhouette My Stickease
Bamboo & Barn Red cardstock
Barn Red, Bamboo & Black ink
Black photo hangers
Barn Red Bigger Brads
Colonial White brads
White Daisy paper flowers
White Daisy Dazzling Diecuts "G"
Ribbon (Michaels)
Edge distresser

Mom's Mini Calendar, Part 2

I just finished my mom's mini calendar, and I'm happy to announce that I cleaned up my scrapbooking desk, too. Woohoo! Now I have a clean surface to use for my next project: wrapping Christmas presents. Here are the pictures of the last 6 months' pages. A couple were inspired by Anne Chek's samples, while I found inspiration for others from cards and layouts in the CTMH catalog. Thanks to CTMH for inspiring me, too. On a sad note, all the Word Puzzle stamp sets (the ones I used for the names of the months in this project) are retiring on December 31st, so if you love them but haven't bought them all, this is your last chance. They will no longer be available after this month. CTMH will have a new collection of monthly stamps, but they will not have as many images as these, so don't miss out on getting the Word Puzzles!













Recipe:
July Word Puzzle, August Word Puzzle, September Word Puzzle, October Word Puzzle, November Word Puzzle, December Word Puzzle, Moments in Time, Spot On Backgrounds, Felicity & Just for the Holidays stamp sets
White Daisy, Moonstruck, Tulip, Desert Sand & Dutch Blue cardstock
Moonstruck, Dutch Blue, Tulip, Clover Meadow, Sunflower, Desert Sand & Versamark ink
Tulip & Sunflower markers
White Gel pen
White embossing powder
Sunflower buttons
Sunflower & White organdy ribbon
Scalloped scissors (CM)