Cascade Canyon Layout

For my final train trip layout, CTMH's Snowhaven paper seemed like a perfect fit, and I was excited for Heart 2 Heart's Cold Hands, Warm Heart challenge because it gave me a chance to use the cute mittens die-cut from the Cricut Artistry cartridge! My journaling reflects how cold it was at Cascade Canyon, but we were able to warm up by doing some things as a family.

Recipe:
Charm Uppercase, Charm Lowercase, Whooo's Your Valentine & In the Background stamp sets
Snowhaven Level 2 papers
Whisper, Cranberry, Crystal Blue, Black & White Daisy cardstock
Whisper, Cranberry, Crystal Blue & Black ink
Black marker
Slate polka dot washi tape
Cranberry organdy ribbon
Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge: tag, journal box, hearts
Cricut Artistry cartridge: mittens, snowflakes, scalloped border
Mini heart & snowflake punches (EK Success)
Pattern: EMS Sketch Challenge 30
Challenges: Lasting Memories ribbon, washi tape, or paper strips challenge (I used one piece of ribbon, three strips of washi, and I picked a paper that looks like paper strips, so you could say I used all three!); Bitten By the Bug 2 Snow Much Fun challenge

SCS Variety Challenge 188 - Birthday

The fourth Wednesday of the month always signals a new variety challenge for Splitcoast Stampers, so come join in the fun and play along using the link below!

SBVC188 - Control, Alt, Delete
For this week's variety challenge, I want you to scraplift yourself! There's a twist, though. Once you've picked your layout, you must also pick one item you want to delete from your original layout. For example, use one less photo, or don't add one of the photo mats, or use one less embellishment cluster. Be sure to post a link to your original layout so we can see the changes.

For my layout, I scraplifted my Dinos and More layout, and I deleted the ribbons, since they didn't really seem to go on a guy's birthday page.

Recipe:
Charm Uppercase, Charm Lowercase & Numbers, Connections & Holiday Hoopla stamp sets
Fanfare Level 2 papers
Sky & Sunny Yellow cardstock
Pacifica, Cranberry & Black ink
Cricut Accent Essentials cartridge: arrows
Pattern: Designer's Eye from Cherish
Challenges entered: CAS-ual Fridays Birthday Bash challenge,  Scrap It Girl's Angels or Arrows challenge

The Best Day Layout

Paper Secrets has a challenge this month to create a layout using lyrics from a Taylor Swift song. I thought it sounded like fun, but I know next to nothing about Taylor Swift, so I Googled her and found a song called The Best Day. It's actually a tribute to her mom, but I loved the line in it about her father, so I decided to use it for this layout from last Father's Day. Heart 2 Heart challenges also asked to see Father's Day cards and layouts this week, so I'm entering that challenge, too!

Recipe:
Charm Alphabet Upper, Charm Lowercase & AP Tags stamp sets
Grace Level 2 papers
Sky, Cocoa, Twilight & Colonial White cardstock
Barn Red, Cocoa, Twilight, Honey & Olive ink
Barn Red marker
White gel pen (Marvy)
Honey BIgger Brads
Twilight brads
Natural Twill
Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge: flower border
Pattern: Let's Scrap Sketch 3-28-12

Keep On Movin' Layout

Another fun layout of my kids skating. I used a technique I haven't tried for a while. I wanted to add some brads but didn't have any in Dutch Blue, so I used embossing powder and Versamark ink to color the tops of two silver brads. The powder doesn't quite cover the top of the brad evenly, so if you look at the brads closely, you'll see that they have a cool speckled appearance.

Recipe:
Charm Uppercase, Charm Lowercase, Dream Big & Connections stamp sets
Magic Moments Level 2 papers
Sunflower, Desert Sand & Colonial White cardstock
Sunflower, Cocoa, Barn Red, Dutch Blue & Versamark ink
Cocoa marker
Silver brads
Dutch Blue embossing powder
Pattern: Understudy from Imagine

LOAD #4 - Marionette Show

Another clean and simple layout, although I did emboss the stars on this one.

Recipe:
Charm Uppercase Alphabet, Charm Lowercase Alphabet, Christmas Story & Shining Star stamp sets
Bamboo & White Daisy cardstock
Cranberry, Black, Bamboo & Versamark ink
Cranberry & Black markers
Gold embossing powder

Layout Linky #21 + LOAD #22 - Pool Party

The June issue of Scrapbooks Etc. had the cutest little banner on the cover, and I tried to scraplift it. Unfortunately, my letter stickers on the banner didn't show up well when I scanned the layout, but trust me, they look cute in real life! I created the sun using a cardstock circle that I stamped with a pattern, then I put the title and window charm on top, and finally I trimmed the outer edge into rays. Fun and not too difficult. The layout pattern is Mesmerize from Magic.



Recipe:
Charm Upper Alphabet, Charm Lowercase Alphabet, Hot Diggity, Dream Big, A Little Everything & Spot On Backgrounds stamp sets
Summer Fun papers & Stickers (KI Memories)
Chocolate, Crystal Blue & White Daisy cardstock
Chocolate, Crystal Blue & Creme Brulee ink
Chocolate Grosgrain ribbon
Embroidery floss (Making Memories)
Window Charms - Circles

***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 21 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 21 & LOAD #13 - Climbing Half Dome Layout

I promised a sketch challenge every other Wednesday, so here it is. I'm scrapping a lot of panaromic pictures because my husband just loves to take them, but if you don't have a single picture to fit the bottom 2 spots, you could use 3 4"x6" photos. My panoramic photo ended up being a little shorter than 6", so I was able to add the "mountains" to the bottom of the page. I hauled out my old deckle scissor (remember when those were all the rage?) and cut a border, and then hand cut at irregular intervals to make the mountains taller.

The sketch:

My Layout:

Recipe:

Classmate Alphabet, Charm Uppercase Alphabet, Charm Lowercase Alphabet, Beautiful Things, Journaling Jots, & True Friends stamp sets

Stardust Level 2 papers 

Bamboo & Dutch Blue cardstock

Bamboo, Topiary & Moonstruck ink

Moonstruck marker

Deckle scissors (SU)

LOAD #11 - Fisherman's Wharf

If all goes as planned, I should be up to my elbows in scrapping supplies when you read this. Yes, I'm still at the scrapbook weekend, and I'm looking forward to checking my blog when I return so I can see what you other busy bees have been up to. Post away, LOADers!

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Monday evening, and I'm almost caught up with posting my layouts for the month! Here's one of my favorites so far this month. I especially had fun creating the fish on a line. I used the scalloped border from the "A Little Everything" stamp set and turned it upside down to create waves, and the fish is popped up above the waves using a 3-D foam square. The design is another Becky Higgin's sketch.



Recipe:
A Little Everything, Daydream, Charm Upper Alphabet, Charm Lowercase Alphabet & Spot On Backgrounds stamp sets
Moon Doggie Level 2 papers
Bamboo, Indian Corn Blue & White Daisy cardstock
Chocolate, Indian Corn Blue, Cranberry, Honey & Bamboo ink
Chocolate marker
Tan Hemp
Chocolate Bigger Brad
3-D foam squares
Blender pen

April LOAD #2 - Fish House Vera Cruz

One of my favorite places to eat fish is the Fish House Vera Cruz. If you're ever in San Marcos, California, it's well worth visiting. The food is delicious! There's always a wait for a table, so the kids entertain themselves by watching the fish in the huge fish tank in the lobby. We went there with friends in March 2007 to celebrate Elliot's second birthday. I was so happy to capture a sweet moment when Elliot was staring fascinated at the fish tank while his older brother gazed solemnly into the camera lens. It's one of my favorite pictures of them.

On this layout, I used the stamp set "At the Aquarium," long discontinued but still one I pull out to scrapbook anything fishy! To highlight the two larger photos, I dry embossed a square around them and then sanded the cardstock to reveal the white core underneath. It's a fun and not too difficult technique to help make your pictures pop!



Recipe:
At the Aquarium, Charm Upper Alphabet, Charm Lowercase Alphabet & Say It In Style stamp sets
Rustic Trails Level 2 papers & My Stickease
Indian Corn Blue & Goldrush cardstock
Cocoa ink
Cocoa marker
Photo hanger
Hemp

Pattern: Unified Whole from Cherish

LOAD #19 - Our Little Hairy Man

I have my layout all ready to go, but I can't post it because we're having computer problems. Boohoo!!! I'll try to get it up tomorrow. Hopefully my hubby can figure out what's wrong with my computer!

It's tomorrow, and the computer is still not fixed. I heard from a friend that she's having the same problem (hard drive won't boot up), so maybe all the rain we're having in Southern California is affecting my computer. I'm posting this from my husband's laptop, which doesn't have a scanner hooked up to it, hence the less than stellar image of my layout today! It's the best photo I could take of it. This is another layout for my son's baby album, this time with a humorous look at how much hair he had all over his body as a newborn. I didn't use any really cool techniques on this, but I do have a tip for those who are into getting the most mileage out of your supplies. I had used a journaling box from the Dazzling Diecuts package, and I had the leftover frame from where I punched out the diecut. I cut around the edge to create an outline frame, which I then inked up with Sorbet ink to use as a frame around part of the bottom picture.



Recipe:
Tiny Typewriter Alphabet, Charm Lowercase Alphabet, Extreme Caps & Simple Stitches stamp sets
Twitterpated Level 2 papers
Colonial White cardstock
Cocoa & Sorbet ink
Cocoa marker
White Daisy Dazzling Diecuts
Dimensional Elements in Color: Organic
Sweet Leaf embroidery floss

Punchbowl Layouts

I didn't quite meet my goal of scrapping the remaining two layouts for my Hawaii album this weekend. I did finish one layout on Saturday night, and I had laid out the papers for a second one, but then on Sunday I got lazy and just read a good book after church. Ever feel like that? Today I woke up with my creative juices flowing, so I buckled down and finished the last layout. I totally changed the papers I had set out on Friday night, but I like the result much better this way. For the first layout, I created masks for certain portions of my layout, attached them temporarily to my background cardstock, and brayered over the cardstock using Dutch Blue ink. I was able to achieve a much lighter background shade than if I had used plain Dutch Blue cardstock, plus I got the look of patterned papers. I removed the masks and used the Simple Stitches stamp set to create the journaling lines, the borders around two of the pictures, and the large stars. For the second layout, I had made up my own sketch, but I kept moving things around until I got the look I wanted. In case you're wondering why I listed all those Word Puzzle stamps, I used portions of them to spell out the word "price" so it would match the font for "remember." I love how the twill ribbon I used to attach my tag is formed into a V for victory, an unintentional result that really fits the theme of the layout: the cost of freedom. I've always found the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific (Punchbowl) to be pretty impressive. Seeing all the graves and realizing that the people buried under them gave their lives to preserve our liberty is a sobering thought. I only showed a small portion of them, but the memorial contains mosaics depicting battles (mostly naval) of WWII and the Korean War. Definitely worth seeing if you are visiting Oahu.


Recipe:
Simple Stitches, July Word Puzzle, Charm Upper Alphabet, Charm Lowercase Alphabet & Classmate Alphabet stamp sets
Colonial White cardstock
Dutch Blue, Desert Sand & Outdoor Denim ink
Desert Sand marker
Foam squares
Brayer



Recipe:
Friendship Alphabet Small, Tiny Typewriter Alphabet, January Word Puzzle, July Word Puzzle, August Word Puzzle & September Word Puzzle stamp sets
Free Spirit Level 2 papers
Cocoa, Indian Corn Blue & Colonial White cardstock
Cocoa & Indian Corn Blue ink
Twill & Cocoa grosgrain ribbon
Photo hanger
Pewter brads

Polynesian Cultural Center Layouts

I'm back with a few more Hawaii layouts, this time featuring pictures we took at the Polynesian Cultural Center. I used several pocket pages, which I usually don't show on my blog because they are just pictures, but I decided to post them this time since I actually did some decorative titles and journaling. In case you didn't already figure it out, the Canoe Pageant pocket page continues onto the Marquesas pocket page, with the two top photos belonging to the canoe pageant. Too many photos, not enough space! I especially like my Marquesas layout because I made my own background paper (the diamonds) using cardstock, an embossing stylus, and sandpaper. I have done staight lines before using this technique, but never a diamond pattern. It took a bit of work, but I really like how it came out.

PCC Overview:

Recipe:
Postcard Travel Series, Playful Caps & Playful Lowercase Alphabet stamp sets
Moon Doggie Level 2 paper pack
Cranberry, Desert Sand, Indian Corn Blue & White Daisy cardstock
Cranberry, Chocolate & Indian Corn Blue ink

Canoe Pageant:

Recipe:
Picture Perfect, Boutique Borders stamp sets
Majestic Blue Level 2 papers
Bamboo & White Daisy cardstock
Cranberry & Outdoor Denim ink

Marquesas:



Recipe:
B&T Combo paper pack (discontinued)
Charm Uppercase Alphabet, Charm Lowercase Alphabet, With Love, Picture Perfect & Boutique Borders stamp sets
Bamboo & Cocoa cardstock
Ocean, Cocoa & Versamark ink
White embossing powder
Metal-rimmed flower tag
Chocolate brads
Natural Hemp
Heat gun
Sandpaper
Embossing stylus
Scallop scissors (CM)

Time to sing - or not!

As an avid singer myself, I have always hoped my sons will follow in my footsteps, but it's getting less likely for Adrian. He really likes to sing, but is seldom on key, and he dreads the thought of anyone actually listening to him. When I give him positive feedback, he responds as if I were Simon on American Idol telling him how ghastly his performance was! Although I hope he grows out of this phase, I just had to document it for posterity's sake, hence this layout about his recent school performance, during which he mostly just stood mute while his class sang. Afterwards, his teacher came up and told me how enthusiastically he sang during rehearsals, but apparently the sight of all those people scared him speechless - literally! I'm pretty proud of this layout because I actually stitched on it, something I always admire on other people's artwork but seldom take the time to do on my own. And in case you're wondering, yes, the stitching is supposed to be crooked!





Recipe:
Charm Upper and Lowercase Alphabets, Hodge Podge Alphabet & April Word Puzzle stamp sets
Animal Cookies Creative Basics patterned paper
Moonstruck & White Daisy cardstock
Moonstruck, Tulip & Sunflower ink
Moonstruck marker
Tulip Embroidery Floss
Foam Squares
Threading Water scalloped punch by Fiskars

Some Bunny Loves Me

I am so blessed! I had a wonderful Mother's Day, thanks to my husband and two boys. My favorite part of the day was when Adrian came out of Sunday School and handed me a card with a coupon for a good attitude inside! I never had to use it because the boys were in such a good mood all day. Hope everyone had a great day, too. This morning, I was catching up on scrapping some old photos, and I just love these pictures of Elliot hugging the bunny. I used the Stardust paper pack as my accent paper on this layout; if you scrapbook a lot of boys, you have to get this paper pack. It is perfect for anything boy themed! The layout design is copied from a Lisa Bearnson kit I purchased several years ago and never used, but I was able to adapt the pattern and use it here. I included a couple of fun techniques that I'd like to point out. The title uses the rock and roll technique, where you stamp your image in a lighter color and then roll the edges in a darker ink to get a two-toned image; and I used my pivot point stapler to make the stapled "X"s. The head of this stapler swings around to eight positions, so I can always turn it to the correct position and reach across a long expanse of paper to make the design I want. Too cool!





Recipe (all products CTMH):
Charm Alphabet Upper and Lowercase stamp sets
Stardust paper pack
Sweet Leaf, Dutch Blue, Desert Sand, & White Daisy cardstock
Desert Sand & Holiday Red ink
Dazzling Die Cuts textured hearts
Pivot Point Stapler
Staples