Lovely Music Fills the Air Layout

My hubby and I have loved the music of Steven Curtis Chapman since we were in  college, so it was fun to attend a concert featuring lots of his songs from over the years. I didn't have any papers that perfectly matched the purple in some of the photos, but I did the best I could.

Recipe:
You & Me and Star Power stamp sets
Life's a Hoot papers
White Daisy cardstock
Wisteria, Eggplant, Lagoon & Bamboo ink
Crimson fineliner pen (iBayam)
Gold metallic pen (Staedtler)
Old Soul ephemera (American Crafts)
Butterfly Bits ephemera (49 & Market)
Lagoon baker's twine
Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge: stars, frame & ticket
Challenges: Love Those Pretty Papers - anything goes with lots of patterned paper; One More Page - anything goes with a scrapbook page; Paper Rocks Scissors #16 - used scissors to cut the baker's twine and fussy cut the guitar.

Take Your Daughter to Work Day Layout for LM #796

This month has flown by, and we're already at the last Sunday, which means the final Lasting Memories challenge for April is here. Today's challenge is to choose between THIS: use brand new, whole pieces of paper or THAT; use all scraps except the base. I decided to go with THAT, and pulled out some papers from an old kit. I did have one full piece that I used as the base, but the other piece and all my cardstock are scraps. Feel free to join us over at Lasting Memories to play along with this and any of the other challenges before the link-up closes on May 2nd!

Recipe:
You & Me stamp set
You & Me scrapbooking kit (patterned papers, chipboard)
Smoothie, Desert Sand, Chocolate & Colonial White cardstock
Smoothie, Desert Sand, Chocolate & Creme Brulee ink
Sienna fineliner pen (iBayam)
Brown Ribbon (Michaels)
Raffia (recycled from a gift)
Floral embellishments (The Paper Studio)
Yellow paper flowers (Recollections)
Cricut Design Space: title using Wall Decor & More, Simply Sweet & Thick fonts
Pattern: scraplift from Scrapbook.com
Challenges: Heart’s Quest Challenge Blog #84 Anything with a heart goes; Little Red Wagon #855 Happy Earth Day - used recycled raffia off of a gift; Love Those Pretty Papers - Anything goes with lots of patterned paper + optional twist of spring flowers; Neglected Stuff Challenges - the You & Me kit I used has been gathering dust for years! Triple B - used 8 blossoms, and even managed to get some yellow ones on here.

Happy Birthday 2 You {Bri} Layout

I have been neglecting my stamps lately, so for this layout featuring photos from my daughter's birthday dinner at In-n-Out, I pulled out six sets and added them around my page!

Recipe:
Happy Everything, Limited Edition, Today's Date, Typeset and You & Me stamp sets
The Flower Emporium paper (49 and Market)
Party Time paper
White Daisy cardstock
Lagoon, Flamingo & Black ink
Black marker (SU)
Mod Titles Great Lengths sticker (CM)
Party Time border sticker
Heartstrings Sentiment Bits (Simple Stories)
White Acrylic Hearts
I Heart Christmas Shape Sprinkles - hearts (Doodlebug Designs)
Lagoon Ribbon
Pattern: scraplift from Scrapbook.com
Challenges: As You Like It: Favorite Embellishment - mine are enamel hearts because they are so easy to add to a layout, plus I am usually scrapbooking about my family, so they always go with my  theme; NBUS #85 - my never before used stuff is the enamel hearts; Heart's Quest Challenge Blog #84 Anything goes with a heart option; Heart's Quest Celebration of Love #4 - celebrating a birthday; Krafty Chicks Challenge #814 Birthday theme; One More Page - April challenge; The Outlawz Anything But a Card

EMS Sketch Challenge #127 + B-Day Breakfast Layout

I hadn't created a new sketch yet this year, but Sharon over at Splitcoast Stampers asked for one for the virtual crop (VSBN) they are having this month over there, so here's what I came up with. After I finished it, I realized it features 4 vertical photos just like my last sketch, but hopefully the simplicity will  appeal to those who didn't want to add all the banners next to the photos! Feel free to rotate it, flip it, use different sized photos, or just use it as is, but be sure to share your layout in the comments below. And we would love to have you play along with the crop at Splitcoast; it's easy and free to sign up for an account, and there are 7 love-inspired challenges to help you get some scrapping done.

Here's the sketch:

And here's my layout:

Recipe:
Noted Backgrounds, Hodgepodge Alphabet, You & Me, Love Life & Whooo's Your Valentine stamp sets
Field Trip papers (American Crafts)
Pet Shoppe Cat paper (Simple Stories)
Candy Apple, Toffee & White Daisy cardstock
Candy Apple, Capri, Outdoor Denim & Honey ink
Prussian Blue fineliner pen (iBayam)
Monograms 2 Chippies (Mintay Papers)
My Happy Place Shape Sprinkles (Doodlebug Designs)
Cool Summer Night enamel dots (Altenew)
Red Dot Essentials washi tape (Echo Park)
Seagull decorative scissors (Fiskars)
Cricut Artiste cartridge: hearts
Challenges: Heart’s Quest Challenge Blog #82 Red and/or gold hearts; Crafter’s Café #326 Anything goes with optional twist: one for the boys; The Outlawz Anything But a Card Anything goes.

Dragonboat Races Layout

Every summer, my husband loves to participate in the dragonboat races. In 2018, his team placed second, and someone was nice enough to take some pictures of the team so I could scrapbook them!

Recipe:
Save the Date and You & Me stamp sets
Summer Vibes papers
Glacier, Candy Apple, Lemonade, Kraft & White Daisy cardstock
Glacier, Candy Apple, Sunny Yellow, Nectarine, Fern & Black ink
Black marker
Color Kaleidoscope sticker (American Crafts)
Sweet Rush Collection - Loving This puffy stickers (American Crafts)
Color Kaleidoscope Thickers (American Crafts)
Star Attraction Shape Sprinkles (Doodlebug Designs)
Cricut Accent Essentials cartridge: curvy arrow
Cricut Design Space: title, boat, dragon, arrows
Pattern: EMS Sketch Challenge #87

Challenges: A Cut Above Anything Goes with a die;-cut; The Outlawz Anything Goes in a Card Free Zone; Double Trouble #193 My Guy - includes  boat and oars for optional twist of how my guy likes to spend his time!

EMS Sketch Challenge #116 + Family Fun Night Layout

Merry Christmas, everyone! Hope you all are having a blessed time with family or friends. My Christmas gift to all my scrappy pals is a brand new sketch. As usual, it features multiple photos, but if you only have a couple of photos, you could replace one or two with fun pocket cards or embellishments.  Enjoy, and be sure to post a link in the comments if you are able to use the sketch.

Here's the sketch:

And here's my layout:

Recipe:
You & Me stamp set
Jingle papers
Juniper, Kraft, Tulip & White Daisy cardstock
Juniper, Tulip, Olive & Creme Brulee ink
Brown fineliner pen (iBayam)
Merry Little Christmas Ephemera - Words (Bella Blvd)
Red pearls
Challenges: Crafter's Cafe #314 Anything Goes; Scrap With Stacy Tic Tac Toe December 2024 (I used the top row with Tag + Ticket + Pre-made title)

Tower of London Layout

My hubby and I went to London in 2017 and took over three thousand photos, so every once in a while I pull out some photos and try to get some layouts scrapped. On this particular day, we visited the Tower of London, so here are the photos of the exterior walls, the drained moat, and the entrance at the Middle Tower. Hopefully I can get on a roll and finish scrapping our Tower photos this month, but we took a lot of pictures so no guarantees!

This layout also includes a Flip-Flap that opens up to reveal another photo and my journaling card. Here's the other photo:

And here's the journaling card:

Recipe:
Love Life, You & Me, Cherish the Day & Vintage Type stamp sets
Sage & White Daisy cardstock
Sage, Honey, Pewter & Black ink
Black marker
Silhouette & Zippidee My Complements cardstock stickers
Storybook PML cards
Happiest Place Acrylic shapes
Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge: ticket
Pattern: EMS Sketch Challenge 3 (The bottom two photos on the left were a panorama but not quite perfectly lined up, so I decided to ditch the straight lines of the sketch and stagger everything slightly, plus I added a bunch of PML cards to the background.)

Challenges: Park Hopping My Happy Place (inspired by Cinderella's Castle at Disneyland); The Outlawz Anything Goes in a Card Free Zone with optional twist of travel (our trip to London); Time Out Challenges #268 On Vacation (to London!)

Going Up Layout

Since he's a recent high school grad, scrapbooking my son's elementary school photos sometimes seems like an exercise in futility, but he seems to enjoy it when I call him over to see whatever photos I'm working on, so I persevere! These photos were taken at his 2nd grade school luau (more like a carnival but with a slightly tropical feel), where the climbing wall was a huge hit with the kids. I scrapped the left page while the right hand page is actually a pocket page, but to show it here, I stitched the photos and journaling card together on the computer to avoid the glare of the plastic page protector.

Recipe:
Stitched Journaling panels stamp set (Autumn Leaves)
You & Me stamp set
The Summer Stack papers (DCWV)
Goldrush & White Daisy cardstock
Goldrush, Green Apple & Desert Sand ink
Sienna fineliner pen (iBayam)
Color Ready Kraft Borders
Matte Sprinkles Zoo assortment (Doodlebug Designs)
Cricut Artiste cartridge: title, arrows
Pattern: EMS Sketch Challenge #64 (rotated right) + pocket page

Take Me Out to the Ball Game Layout for Lasting Memories #645

Welcome to this Sunday's Lasting Memories challenge, featuring a sketch with a twist: use summer themed photos. Although I just started scrapping my 2017 photos, I peeked ahead to July and found a cute photo of my hubby with two of our boys at a minor league baseball game, so I used that instead of two smaller photos. If you have summer photos you need to scrap, come play along with us through the end of the month. Even if you have an event where you took more than two photos, this sketch could be used as one side of a double page layout. The options are unlimited! Here's the sketch:

And here's my layout:

Recipe:
Cherish the Day and You & Me stamp sets
I Heart Us & Summer Vibes papers
Let's Wander Mixed-Media paper (American Crafts)
Bluebird, Candy Apple, Canary, Sweet Leaf, Black & White Daisy cardstock
Bluebird, Candy Apple, Canary, Sweet Leaf, Lagoon, Mint & Whisper ink
Black marker
Candy Apple striped grosgrain ribbon
Stars & Strips Shape Sprinkles (Doodlebug Designs)
Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge: banners, tag
Cricut A Child's Life cartridge: title (edited in Design Space)
Cricut Artbooking cartridge: baseball
Tickets (cut on my Wishblade many years ago, source unknown)
Challenges: Cut It Up Challenges #275 Starts With a B (B is for Baseball & Blue & Boys & Bunches of Banners!)

You Are My Sunshine Layout

I just did a layout featuring my little girl, so here is one giving my little guy some page time. This was a fun yet challenging layout to assemble! I cut out the sunburst pattern on my Cricut and went though my stash of papers to find blue ones in the correct shades, and then I had to trim them to fit in the openings of the Cricut cut. A bit of work, but I like how it turned out.

Recipe:

You & Me (2011), Quotable Words (2019), & Neighborhood (2010) stamp sets

Caboodle, Central Park, Emporium, Jeepers Creepers, Skylark & Twitterpated papers

Lagoon, Canary & White Daisy cardstock

Creme Brulee, Crystal Blue & Lagoon ink

ShinHan Touch Twin marker

Childhood PML card

Craft buttons (source unknown)

Cricut Artbooking cartridge: sunburst

Pattern: Sketches in Thyme #429

Challenges:

Heart 2 Heart Sunny Days; Little Red Wagon #559 Spots or Stripes (I used both in my patterned papers); Retro Rubber Challenges #139 Buttons Galore

Time to Explore Layout

This week's plant theme over at Lasting Memories is palms, so I pulled out a few pictures I had been saving from our visit to Balboa Park and got to work scrapping palms. There are palms on the photos and patterned papers, and I also included a palm die-cut. The challenge runs until the end of the month, so feel free to join in. My title was inspired by the fact that I took the kids to see the Dora movie on Friday, and she loves to explore, just like my kids!

Recipe:
Pack Your Bags, This Way 2 Paradise, You & Me stamp sets
Expedition papers
Garden Green, Olive, Saddle, Bamboo & Colonial White cardstock
Saddle, Olive & Chocolate ink
ShinHan Touch Twin markers
Olive frame, brackets & photo turn - old Connections Club reward
Mocha Opaques pearls
My Crush Wildwood Assortment
Autumn Terracotta striped grosgrain ribbon
3-D foam tape
Cricut Artbooking cartridge: title
Cricut You Are Here cartridge: palm tree, geometric shape
Pattern: EMS Sketch 25
Challenges: Heart 2 Heart Adventure Awaits (all products on here are from my old CTMH stash - who recognizes them? LOL!); Lasting Memories #460 - Palms; Splitcoast Stampers VSBN challenge #3 - 3 photos, 3 patterned papers, 3 word title, 3 embellishment clusters

Adrian's 13th Birthday Layout

For these photos of my son's 13th birthday, I used some papers that I think came in my CTMH consultant kit when I signed up back in 2008. They are really cute papers, but I didn't have much that matched the exact colors. I finally decided to just use them even if they're not a perfect match, because I really need to make room in my stash for new paper! Can anyone relate?

Recipe:

Pennant Alphabet & You & Me stamp sets

Good Times papers & My Stickease

Buttercup & Colonial White cardstock

Chocolate, Twilight & Pacifica ink

Pure Brown marker (Zig)

Chocolate baker's twine

Twilight brads & Bigger Brads

Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge: pennants

Pattern: Sketch-n-Scrap #107 (rotated left)

Challenges: Lasting Memories #448 - Stamp Free for All! (I chose to use alphabet stamps again, but with the twist that they were pennants)

Happy Together Layout

For this bunch of photos of the kids riding scooters and skating around our cul-de-sac, I decided to feature three photos on a traditional layout and put the rest in a pocket page. The design is actually a scraplift of Sandra's "Biker Dawls" layout from over on Scrapbook.com. Down the left side of her page, Sandra had a bunch of sayings she had cut out of a piece of pattered paper, but I chose to ink up my stamps and get to work stamping and cutting! I used the rainbow paper from my brand new "I Heart Us" paper pack from CTMH, and that gave me a whole rainbow of colors to chose from when stamping the little sentiments.

And here's the journaling card from the pocket page:

Recipe:
Boys at Play, Framework Alphabet, Friendship Word Puzzle, It's Your Day, Just for Boys, Kid Power, Later Sk8r, Take Note, This & That, Whooo's Your Valentine & You and Me stamp sets
I Heart Us papers & My Complements stickers
Canary, Bluebird & White Daisy cardstock
Canary, Pixie, Thistle, Key Lime, Lagoon, Sweet Leaf, Raspberry & Bluebird ink
ShinHan Touch Twin marker
Hopscotch PML card
Stargazer and Cats & Bats Dots
Thistle striped ribbon
Staple
Star punch (EK Success)
Challenges: Heart 2 Heart Happy Times challenge; Lasting Memories #444 alphabet stamps (used to stamp "happy" in my title); Double Trouble Something, Anything, Everything challenge (for Thing 1, I pulled out a bunch of stuff I have never used before - the I Hearts Us papers, Bluebird cardstock, Bluebird & Raspberry ink pads, and a roll of Thistle ribbon, then for Thing 2 I played along with Heart 2 Heart, and finally I used tons of word stamps for Thing 3).

Hampton Court Artwork Layout

This series of pictures from the final rooms of William III's apartments at Hampton Court didn't seem to have much in common, so I struggled to find a title, but since they all showed some of the artwork displayed around the palace, I decided to focus on that. This ended up taking a lot of my time, since I hadn't taken pictures of the labels telling what the paintings were! I went on a treasure hunt to find out the names and subjects of these painting and of the ones on the facing pocket page. Most of them were listed on the Royal Collection Trust's website, but I didn't manage to find the title or artist for the view of Hampton Court on the upper right. If anyone is visiting Hampton Court in the near future, please let me know what it is!

And the facing pocket page pictures:

William III as Prince of Orange

Mary II as Princess of Orange

View of the Tudor facade of Hampton Court circa 1665-67

Mary Scrope, later Mrs. Pitt, one of Sir Godfrey Kneller's Dining Room Beauties

Recipe:
You & Me stamp set
That's Amore Level 2 papers & My Stickease
Colonial White cardstock
Garnet, Chocolate & Blush ink
Durab;e Artisan Studs
Pattern: EMS Sketch 64
Challenges: Lasting Memories Paper Stash (use at least 5 patterned papers) - I managed exactly five and they were all scraps, so I feel a huge sense of accomplishment - LOL!

Sweet Dreams Layout

I vacillated between several titles for this layout featuring King William III's royal bedchambers at Hampton court, but I finally settled on Sweet Dreams due to the ceiling painting of Mars, God of war,  sleeping in the arms of Venus, goddess of love. I knew I wanted to include a moon and stars plus a cloud or two to go with the theme of the other painting, but the Lasting Memories' Paint/Mist challenge inspired me to add pearly paint to the clouds (swirly) and moon and stars (brushed). Love the texture and shimmer it adds to this element!

And here you can see the paint detail a little better.

And since I am adding a pocket page opposite, here are the photos and journal cards for that!

Fireplace in the Little Bedroom

 

The kin'gs potty

The king's Closet

The Orangery

Recipe:
Distressed Backgrounds, You & Me, Solos "S" & Eclectic Edges stamp sets
Sky, Sapphire, Desert Sand & White Daisy cardstock
Sapphire & Desert Sand ink
Navy marker (Zig)
Create a Shade Pearl paint
Cricut Artistry cartridge: moon, stars, clouds
Cricut Wall Decor & more cartridge: books
Pattern: EMS Sketch 64

EMS Sketch Challenge 65 - A Pirate's Life for Me Layout

It's been a couple of months since I managed to create a sketch for my blog, but I really needed a design for some pictures so that got my creativity kick-started. If you're able to use the sketch, please link up your post below!

The sketch:

I had lots of fun creating the background of my layout, starting with brayering Sky ink on white cardstock, then sponging on hints of Sorbet, Crystal Blue, and Cocoa. I then stamped the corners, and my canvas was ready for all the other elements to be added.

Recipe:
Live Inspired, Lucky, You and Me & Universal Backgrounds stamp sets
Majestic Blue Level 2 papers
Cocoa, Indian Corn Blue, Bamboo & White Daisy cardstock
Sky, Crystal Blue, Outdoor Denim, Bamboo, Cocoa & Sorbet ink
Outdoor Denim marker
White gel marker (Sakura)
Cocoa brads
Ribbon from my stash
Cricut Wall Decor & More cartridge: skull, monograms, ship, swirls, compass
Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge: tag, title (lowercase letters), scalloped border
Challenges: Fantabulous Cricut Challenge anything goes (lots of "anythings" on this layout!)

EMS SKETCH CHALLENGE 65 - Link up your layout here!

An InLinkz Link-up

Retreat Time Layout

For this month's sketch for Splitcoast Stampers, I experimented with some diagonal lines, a little departure from my usual style. On the sketch, I think it looks daring, but after creating a layout based on the sketch, I kinda think it just looks lopsided. Hopefully someone else will come up with something fabulous that will make me like it more! For my layout, I really didn't want to try to match the bright reds found in two of the photos, so I went with more muted tones. Still working on silencing that inner voice that says it all has to match perfectly!

The sketch:

Click here to play along with the sketch!

My layout:

Recipe:
Make It Count & You & Me stamp sets
Typeset Level 2 papers
Black, Vineyard Berry & Juniper ink
Vineyard Berry, Juniper & Colonial White cardstock
Black marker
My Crush Wildwood Assortment (Juniper notepaper)
Pewter brad & bitty brads
Creme Brulee ribbon
Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge: title, title box, arrows, flourish
Cricut Artiste cartridge: clock
Challenges: Heart 2 Heart Hip to Be Square challenge (all my photos plus the Juniper notepaper are square)

Loved Faces @ the Canyon Layout

Happy February, everyone. Hope you're having a fun day watching the Superbowl or scrapbooking, or whatever else takes your fancy. I was able to sit down and create another Grand Canyon layout that incorporated a few fun challenges.

Recipe:
Live Inspired, You & Me, Victory WOTG, Star Struck & Today's Date stamp sets
Lucky Level 2 papers
Outdoor Denim, Desert Sand & Colonial White cardstock
Outdoor Denim, Desert Sand, Sunset & Cocoa ink
Cocoa marker
Cocoa grosgrain ribbon
Brown sparkles
3-D foam tape
Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge: title, hearts
Pattern: EMS Sketch 22 + my creative brain!
Challenges: 4 Crafty Chicks Anything Goes challenge; Frosted Designs Directions challenge (arrows, @ symbol); Scrap It Girl Recipe challenge (arrows, numbers, blue)

SCS Variety Challenge 203 - Frosty Fun

Time for another Variety Challenge for Splitcoast Stampers. Click on the link below to join in the fun!

SBVC203 - Viva La France
Using paper strips or ribbon and brads or buttons, create a French memo board to house the pictures and journaling on your layout. Not sure what one is? Here’s a link to some examples.

I started with the arrangement of the pictures and then added embellishments, tucking them under the ribbons like I would ephemera on a real French memo board. I really love how mine turned out because it reminds me of an eclectic bulletin board with lots of fun stuff to be discovered.

Recipe:

Take Note, Pair-a-Phrase, Alphabet Solos "H" & "O", January Word Puzzle & You & Me stamp sets

Elemental Level 2 papers

Cranberry, Pacifica, Honey, Chocolate & Black ink

Cranberry, Pacifica, Honey, Sky & Black markers 

Cranberry grosgrain ribbon

White Daisy Bigger Brads
Cranberry brad

Decor Journaling Spot
Cranberry baker's twine
All the die-cuts were from my box of left-overs, so I'm not sure which cartridges I used!
Challenges: Lasting Memories It All in the Colors (I colored in the stamped snowman and tag, and drew doodle lines on all the snowflakes)

My Star Layout

I almost never use a Let's Scrap sketch the same week it's posted, but this time I got my act together and so here's my layout based on this week's sketch! I adapted it for the pictures I had, but I loved the little banners and the blocks of paper across the page, so I focused on those elements of the design. I also got to use some of the paper pack I received from CTMH when I first became a consultant 5 years ago, so that was exciting! (I still have more, but I'm happy to use up a little bit.)

Recipe:
You & Me stamp set
Good Times Level 2 papers & My Stickease
Sweet Leaf & Sky cardstock
Chocolate & Sky ink
Hodge Podge Color-Ready Alphabet stickers
Silver star brads (from my stash)
Pattern: Let's Scrap 7-3-13 sketch
Cricut Artiste cartridge: pennants
Challenges: Creative Belli star challenge & 2 Broke Girls Sprinkles challenge - use stars, stripes, gold or silver.