24/7 Layout

Good morning fellow crafters!  Today's post is a page made for Berry71Bleu's May Challenge.  The Berry71Bleu DT had the honor of collaborating with Once Upon A...Sketch (OUAS) this month!  So to enter this month's challenge you must first use the sketch provided by Nadia from OUAS & incorporate their challenge of using numbers anywhere on your project.  The number can represent anything from your age, to birthdays to an anniversary--anything with numbers will work.  Second you'll need to incorporate chipboard into your project which is Berry71Bleu's challenge.

I decided to use numbers as part of the sentiment behind my page.  This would be my son at approximately 1 1/2 months of age giving me one of his more 'pensive' looks.  :-)  Part of my journaling states how he's in my heart '24/7'.

Here's the sketch provided by Nadia from OUAS that my page is based on.

I added much more texture to my background by combining several stamps & creating a sort of collage.  I used approximately 6 to 7 stamps & created the collage by overlapping the stamped images & by using different inks to do so.  I've used black, green, purple & gray inks just to name a few.

All papers are from Lucky7 Factory & all the chippies are from Scrap FX which are also a few of Berry71Bleu's sponsors for the month of May.

I created simple circular embellishments throughout my page by using a circle punch to punch out circles & adhere them to the center of my circular stamped images with a foam dot.  I inked all the edges of the circles to make them stand out more & added dots of acrylic paint to sections of the circle borders. 

The spiral tissue flowers were also sponsored by Lucky7 Factory.  The transparent butterfly is a new embellishment that will soon be available in my Etsy shop.

I'm a big fan of owls & love placing them in my pages whenever I can.

This lovely tag was handmade by Marivic & my journaling is stored in the scroll right next to the tag.  Storing my journaling in the form of scrolls has almost become my trademark.  I tend to use these on just about all of my pages.  I have a tutorial on how I make these scrolls here if interested.

Finally, my cluster of embellies consisting of a flocked black teddy bear, spiral tissue flower by Lucky7 Factory & ribbon flowers that are from my own stash.

Thanks for stopping by & do take the time to visit both the OUAS & Berry71Bleu blogs for more inspiration.  Play along with both if you can!  There are prizes to be won by a few lucky winners on both challenge blogs!

Home Is Where The Heart Is Layout

Hello once again fellow bloggers & scrappers!  Today's page is one I'm submitting for the April challenge going on over at Once Upon A Sketch (OAUS).  The theme of the challenge is 'home'--to scrap however you'd like to interpret what 'home' means to you.

So here's my interpretation of both Nadia's sketch that she provides along with the challenge & the theme of 'home'. To me, home is my husband & my little fur-baby Toby.  Wherever these two are--that's my home.  They provide all the comfort & love I need.

I used papers & a couple of embellishments from the April kit by C'est Magnifique.  Most of the papers are by the ScrapCake.

Here's the sketch Nadia provided for this month's challenge.

My journaling is tucked away in the form of a tag.  The cute tag along with the envelope are embellishments that came with the C'est Magnifique kit.  I added a bit of tulle to the tag & inked it's edges with Tea Dye distress ink.

The rhinestone flourish is by Prima.  I left the flourish adhered to the transparency it comes packaged in.  I simply cut around it.  TIP:  If you want to add flourishes on top of bulky layers of paper or other embellishments, leave them adhered to the transparency they come on & just cut the flourish out.  This way you can place the flourish just about anywhere on your page.

The splatters seen randomly around my page are stamps.  I bought this 'splatter' stamp set at my local Michaels.  The set is by Recollections & I use it frequently on my pages.

The hearts are a combination of a Fiskars heart punch and a Spellbinders Nestabilities heart die.  I hand sewn along the center of each heart in order to lift either side up & give the page a bit more dimension.

The edges of the page were all distressed with my Zutter Distrezz-It-All then lightly inked with Tea Dye distress ink.

This wooden sign is by Kaisercraft & also came with the kit.  I painted it with yellow acrylic paint & then heat embossed it with Star Dust transparent embossing powder by Stampendous.  I added 3 dots of Liquid Pearls on either side of the sign to further decorate it.

The floral cluster is a combination of mulberry, resin & fabric flowers.  The two large light pink/yellow mulberry flowers came with the kit.  The two small yellow flowers are from my own stash.  The large purple flower is by Prima & the resin flowers are by Webster's Pages.

The chippie frame is by Dusty Attic.  I treated the frame the same way I treated the wooden post.  I really like the shimmer that the Star Dust embossing powder adds.  In person, items treated with this kind of transparent embossing powder really give off a nice shimmer & adds lots of texture/dimension to your pages.

The cute little mushroom bird is from my stash.  I have several of these & love tucking them around my pages!

Thanks to all of you who stop by for a visit!  May you all have a great weekend!

Pieces of Me II Layout

Hello once again fellow scrappers and bloggers! Today's page is one I did for the latest Once Upon A Sketch (OUAS) challenge. The challenge was to scrap yourself.

I realize that for many this can actually be a difficult task--but to be honest--scrapping myself comes very easy to me. I'm a very strong believer in leaving behind a legacy for the generations that will follow. What better way to do that than by scrapping yourself! Your quirks, your talents, your strengths & weaknesses. What makes you...well, YOU!

This is a part two of my first page 'Pieces of Me' done back in 2010 about myself. It was also very cool to see how much my scrapping style has evolved since then. One of them being my choice of color. I'm definitely more into brighter/happier colors now and don't do as many dark/vintage pages as I used to. For this page, I followed the same concept as my first page & made the main photo into a puzzle by utilizing Photoshop. As for the journaling--my first page consists of many bullet points each representing a 'piece' that composes the puzzle that is me. For this page, I concentrated on one main 'piece' or personality trait of mine which is my love for being a kid at heart and challenging those around me to do the same.

I used papers from Bo Bunny's Enchanted line.

This is the sketch provided to us by OUAS and what I used to design my page.

I took some inspiration for this page from a recent layout Irene Tan (Scrapperlicious) just made with the 'Enchanted' line titled 'Whisper'. The 'Enchanted' papers by Bo Bunny is all in black & white. I added color to mine by utilizing the tip Irene provided on her blog. With a small brush I 'painted' the large swirl in by swiping Worn Lipstick distress ink on a non-pourous area and then spritzing a bit of water on it. This mixture created a water based paint that I can then use to color my pages.

I then further added more pink to my page by randomly spritzing a bit of Pink Sprinkles Smooch on my page.

The butterflies on this page were handmade. You can find more butterflies like these in my small Etsy shop. Feel free to visit it here if interested.

I used a Prima vine and then randomly added a bit more flowers from my stash to it. I also intertwined a light pink pearl around it.

The charm hanging from the large mulberry flower I bought from an Etsy shop titled Beyond Charms. This store has several cute little dangle charms like this one that add a very cute touch to any project.

I once again stored my journaling in the form of a scroll. I think I'm in love with this scroll concept! I've used it in several recent pages. I just find it to be a really convenient way to store lengthy journaling and it also adds a really cute embellishment to your project.

Here's a photo of the journaling un-rolled. TIP: Always remember to leave at least one side unobstructed when utilizing a scroll to store your journaling. This way you can slide your scroll in & out whenever needed. For more details on how I made this scroll, you can refer to my "It All Began With a Promise" layout here.

The title was made with my Dymo caption maker. Most of the random mulberry flowers are from my stash. The resin cabochon is by Webster's Pages. The pen nib & glass vial are by Tim Holtz.

Finally a close up of the main photo--here you can better see the puzzle effect. I love my Photoshop!

Before wrapping this up--I'll share my journaling. It reads:

I consider myself quirky; most would call me simply crazy. What can I say? I simply love to have fun! I don't embarrass easily & I'm still a kid at heart. This personality trait is just one of the many pieces that make up the puzzle of who I am. I challenge those around me to stay young--to keep the child at heart--to remind them to laugh once in a while 'just because'--to be able to laugh at themselves & not take life so seriously.

So what if I challenge you to race down a flight of stairs with me--or to play a brief game of tag--how about we watch cartoons for a bit? I'm old school though--you can't beat toons like Bugs Bunny or Tom & Jerry in my book--how about I ask you to dance because...well...do you really need a reason to dance!?

Most don't take my 'challenges' seriously. But the few who have end up considering that moment of silliness the highlight of their day!

Random question: When was the last time you thumb wrestled? For me it was last week.

So what if we are no longer children...yeah, yeah...I get this whole concept of us having to be role models once we are no longer children & have children of our own. But who's to say you can't be a little silly when they're not looking?

So I challenge you to stay young my friends & to be able to laugh at yourself once in a while. After all--life is so very short. Might as well enjoy it as much as we can--& let's face it, our most carefree time in life was when we were kids...

Thanks to all of you who stop by for a visit & enjoy the rest of the weekend...

The Journey Awakens the Soul Layout

Happy TGIF fellow scrappers! I can't say that I'm not thrilled that it's Friday & the weekend is ahead of me. Just being able to sleep past 6:30 a.m. is such a treat!

Today's page is based on a vacation to Puerto Rico my husband & I went to just this past September. It was our very first vacation where we actually went with friends. It was different for us--but a good kind of different. You definitely bond in ways you never thought of when you travel with others who are not family. You learn from one another & you simply get to know each other better! We all work in large corporations where stress is a common part of our daily routine. So this trip truly did 'awaken our souls'. We so very much needed the escape. I'm glad our trip went well and we hope to do another one soon!

This photo shows all six of us in Fort San Cristobal in Old San Juan. I have very limited photos where all six of us are together since it was usually one of us taking the group shots. For this photo I remember positioning the camera on top of a trash bin & setting the timer! Hey...it worked right?

I'm submitting this page for two challenges. Bird is the Word (BITW) for their Journey challenge & Once Upon a Sketch (OUAS) February 15th challenge. For OUAS the challenge was to scrap vacations. Either a recent vacation...one I'd like to go on or a favorite vacation.

Here's the sketch provided to us by Nadia over at OUAS.

I went with green embellies/accents to go along with my page. The papers are a combination of Prima & BoBunny.

The large swirls on the side are actually stamps by Prima. I stamped the swirls with Staz On Jet Black Ink--then cut along the flourish to create the border. I then further decorated the swirls with Stickles.

Lime green trim by Websters Pages was tucked underneath my scroll border.

The light green/silver flourishes are by Tim Holtz & made out of grunge board. They were first painted with a lime green acrylic paint. I then randomly dabbed a bit of Silver Paint Dabber on them. Finally, they were inked with embossing ink & heat embossed with transparent Star Dust embossing powder by Stampendous. In person, these flourishes give off a fabulous dimensional shimmer.

The journaling was made with my Dymo Caption maker and the title is actually a stamp by Tim Holtz (Stampers Anonymous). I stamped the image onto a transparency with embossing ink & heat embossed it with black embossing powder. NOTE: You have to be a bit careful when heat embossing on transparencies--you don't want to melt or warp the transparency. So it takes a light hand and a bit of patience. However, the end result is worth it. It's hard to tell from the photo but in person the title has a dimensional, almost epoxy look to it.

I punched a few holes into my large black circle & tied some lime ribbon through the holes. The transparent compass and globe is by Tattered Angels. The mulberry flowers are from my stash, the resin flowers are by Prima and the fabric rosette is by BoBunny.

Thanks to all of you who stop by for a visit...your time is always very much appreciated! Have a great weekend.

Charming Adorable Sweet Layout

Good evening fellow scrappers! With Valentine's Day around the corner, it felt very appropriate to play along with the February 1st challenge going on over at Once Upon A Sketch (OUAS). The topic of the challenge was none other than 'Love'. We had to scrap a male in our lives that is very special to us.

Well, I have two very special guys in my life. One would be my husband--the other would be my fur baby Toby. Technically Toby is the special little guy in both our lives. He gives us unconditional love & happiness...he's our little ray of sunshine. As you can see in this photo--Toby is quite the ham. He always seems to smile in his photos.

Here's the sketch the page is based on...I sorta flipped it and used the large acrylic heart for the circle in the background.

The large acrylic circle is by Clear Scraps. I inked the edges with Red Pepper alcohol ink--then further decorated it by adding gold Stickles, eyelets, black pearls & a couple of Prima Pebbles.

The film strip is by Tim Holtz. I twisted it & adhered it as such in order to give my page more dimension.

I punched a few holes into my heart & added a touch of tulle.

The title was part of the paper itself. I cut it out & then adhered it with some foam dots. I didn't want this part of the paper to be covered up with my heart--plus it was the perfect title. Cutting it out was a way to salvage it & use it as my title.

Here are all of the bits & bobs I used. The glass vial, Love Key, clasp, pen nib & memo pin are all by Tim Holtz. Tim Holtz products are still the best in my book to add masculine touches to a male themed page.

I once again used a scroll to hold my journaling. I first used a scroll to hold my journaling in my 'It All Began With A Promise' page.

I created the 'straps' that hold my journaling from 2 strips of strong card stock. The journaling itself is printed on plain white paper & then matted with vellum in order to give it the look of an actual scroll. The scroll itself measures approximately 3 3/4" x 6 3/4".

TIP: If you have a story to tell and don't want to take up too much room on your page--try using a scroll to hold your journaling. This also adds a unique embellishment to your page.

Here I'm displaying the scroll unrolled--as you can see you can store a good sized story, thoughts, poems, quotes etc. this way. NOTE: Remember to not obstruct your scroll once you decide where to put it on your page. You need to be able to slide your journaling out so always leave one side unobstructed.

Thanks for taking the time to visit! I hope you all have a fabulous Valentine's Day alongside your loved ones.

Remember 2011 Layout

TGIF fellow scrappers! Today was one of those Fridays that I refer to as 'Fiesty Friday'. Everybody was hyper at the office...not much work got done & we were all for the most part simply happy! Not sure if we're all burnt from the amount of work we've been having lately or we're all anticipating our supposed first 'snow storm' of the season or if there's just something in the air--but it was a great Friday!

I was also able to wrap up this page that I'm submitting for several challenges.

The first is for the Once Upon A Sketch (OUAS) January 15th challenge. The challenge was to journal about New Year's. Either 'Hello 2012' or 'Goodbye 2011'. I decided to journal about the one memory that most stood out in my mind for 2011--so I guess I went with 'Goodbye 2011'. I absolutely love this one photo me & my husband took while vacationing in Puerto Rico. The time, the place & the meaning behind it--just meant a lot to me. I've already scrapped it once before. You can see my first take of it here.

This is also being submitted for Case #2 going on over at C.S.I. I'm really enjoying their Alice in Wonderland theme.

Finally, this page also fit the requirements for the Bird Is The Word (BITW) 'Remember' challenge.

Here's the sketch provided by Nadia over at OUAS. I'm a fan of circular elements--so this sketch got my cogs & gears going as soon as I saw it. :-)

This is Case #2 for C.S.I. The colors for this case took me a little out of my comfort zone. I tend to be more of a 'grungy girl' & lean more towards the brownish/vintage colors & I don't tend to mix too many different colors on one page. However, all these bright colors just seemed to work/blend well together!? Who would've thought!

Ok, let's start with the close ups. The circle frame chippie is by Dusty Attic. I gave it the iridescent paint/embossing texture that I'm quite fond of when it comes to chipboard. I first painted the chipbard with metallic teal/green acrylic paint. With a white Sharpie paint marker I highlighted the edges of the flourishes on the circle frame in order to define them a bit more. Next, I inked the frame with embossing ink & heat embossed it with Kaleidoscope clear embossing powder by Stampendous. This particular embossing powder gives off this shimmery iridescent texture that is so very pretty in person & hard to truly capture with a camera.

The yellow butterflies I cut out from a Hambly overlay that I've had in my stash since before time. I finally found a use for it! :-) I wanted the butterflies to look as if they were flying out from behind the photo.

TIP: Want to try out a dimensional way of matting your photo? Simply rip & tear scraps of paper with your hands & layer them!

I ripped & tore several pieces of two sided paper straight & in angles. NOTE: This works best with two sided paper that has one light side & one dark side. I inked all the torn edges with Tea Dye Distress ink. I then layered all of these torn pieces one on top of the other in different angles & curled the edges on some of them. As I adhered the layers I tried to alternate the sides of the paper I used (dark versus light). This gives the effect of having many pieces of paper matting the photo when in reality it's just bits & scraps that are just layered one on top of the other.

One of the main reasons I love this photo so much is that I find it sweet & romantic. Sweet & romantic = tulle in my book. Tee-hee. There's something about tulle that 'softens' a page. So for the first time, I've incorporated a bit of tulle in my layout. I kept it simple. Just took a piece of tulle, tied it with a knot & then adhered it to my page. Done.

I also made the New Year's resolution to use up the tons of ribbon I have in my stash. So once again I've intertwined a piece of ribbon amongst all of my floral embellies.

The brick wall I traced with a fine point black marker and a Prima brick mask.

The random yellow misting was done with Yellow Daisy Glimmer Mist.

The gate stamp is by Prima. As I tend to do--I stamped my image on a transparency with StazOn Jet Black ink. This way I can place my image anywhere I wish & I don't have to worry about stamping it on crooked. I have total control of how my image will display! Yay!

A close up of the other cluster of embellies. The resin bird is by Prima. You can see my second tulle accent here as well.

I also used two small white doilies on either side of my matted photo. Since they're white like my background they add a soft subtle touch.

Finally...my hidden journaling. Ta-da! Turns out that one of those torn edges on top of my photo is actually a pull out tag where I hid a bit of nostalgic journaling. Journaling reads:

This was it. This was the defining moment of 2011 for me. This is the one memory I do not want to forget. One the eve of our 4th wedding anniversary we took a 'classic' photo during our vacation to Puerto Rico. One that I hope our future son or daughter will maybe one day try to reproduce. It's timeless. It's romantic...it's us.

Hope you all have a fabulous weekend & a big thanks as always to those who stop by for a visit.