It's That Time of Year

It's the time of year where we are reminded how blessed we are to live in this country. We're also reminded of the amazing men and women who give so much for others. This past weekend I was blessed to be a part of an event at my local scrap store that was sponsored by a number of companies (including We R Memory Keepers) to make cards for Operation Write Home. These cards will be sent (along with many, many others) to the men and women of our armed forces. If you're not familiar with Operation Write Home, you can check them out here. They are a very cool organization that has sent out over 1 million cards to date. If you're feeling especially blessed this 4th, you can also check out Anysoldier.com. It's another awesome organization where you can find info on sending notes of thanks and care packages to the troops.

Ok, now on to the details about the cards! I finally got around to cutting fabric with my Silhouette. Let me tell you, it was so easy! If you can cut paper with your Silhouette, and you can work an iron, you can cut fabric. I found patriotic linen napkins that were just too cool to pass up, so I used them here for the stars. I paired the stars up with My Mind's Eye's American Made paper, added a button or 2 and some ribbon, and ta-da some star-spangled cards.

Wishing you a blessed weekend and beautiful 4th of July!

We Cally You Trouble

I played along with Crate Paper's sketch challenge this month. There are some layouts I like, some I'm just happy to have done, and some I love...this is one of those that I really love. It's clean and simple, but truly catches the essence of my little man.


The patterned paper is from Crate Paper's Toy Box line, as are the border stickers (the red triangle accents), and the brad in the bottom right corner. The alphabet stickers are from Jillibean Soup, and the journaling was done on my computer.

Fun in the Sun

I had to share 1 last Simple Stories 100 Days of summer layout. This one is so much better in person! I added Stickles to the sun in the title strip and the word "sun". I added Glossy Glaze to the "fun in the sun" and blue swirl part of the title. It was a simple way to really make the title strip pop, and add some texture.

Summer Parade Mini Album

Thanks to the generous folks over at Little Yellow Bicycle (I won a contest a while back), I now have in my possession Sweet Summertime. I wasted no time creating a summer mini. Every year we walk in a summer parade with the company my husband work for. It's one of my favorite summer events, and the kids love being in the parade. The bright colors of Sweet Summertime were perfect for capturing the fun!

Simple Stories Layout #2

I wanted to chat a bit about Simple Stories today since I've been working with their 100 Days of Summer line quite a bit. There are a lot of scrapbook companies out there, but Simple Stories does scrapping a bit differently. Simple Stories is a system that contains pre-designed element pices (journaling tags, photo mats, quote blocks, and titles) that are printed on double-sided 12 x 12 sheets of paper. All you have to do is cut them apart to create a custom page. You can use the pices as you normally would on a layout, or you can slip them into specially sectioned page protectors (check out We R Memory Keepers 12" x 12" divided page protectors). You're pages go together really quickly!

Simple Stories

A Walk Down Memory Lane is now carrying a company called Simple Stories. I fell in love right away with 100 Days of Summer (however, the name starts me singing the Phineas and Ferb theme song). The colors are gorgeous, and I've found this line so easy to create with. So easy, in fact, that this is the 1st of three layouts I've made from that line that I'll be sharing! Love it!


2 Years
Paper: Simple Stories 100 Days of Summer
Accessories: Simple Stories 100 Days of Summer Alpha Stickers, My Mind's Eye Stella and Rose Buttons, Tim Holtz Tissue Tape
Tools: EK Success Edger Punch Bracket, We R Memory Keepers Corner Chomper

Helping a Hero with...

“Operation Write Home” I wanted to share some information on a project I feel honored to help with. Check it out:

Reserve some time on Saturday, June 25, 2011. This Saturday will be a SPECIAL day with you, our customers, joining us to send some special handmade love to our troops. A Walk Down Memory Lane is teaming up with international crafting supplies manufacturer, We R Memory Keepers, powerhouse magazine Scrapbooks Etc’s Craft it Forward program, and vacation company Cruise and Crop, to launch a major initiative, Operation We R Grateful, to bring cheer to active duty soldiers of the US Military. Operation We R Grateful is a large campaign designed to collect thousands of cards to send to deployed troops, through the organization Operation Write Home. OWH sends blank cards to troops to use to send home. The Operation has multiple components to the campaign: card classes, album workshops, contests and events. A Walk Down Memory Lane is sponsoring a full day for card makers at the store located at 1418Main Street in Rock Valley, Iowa. Starting at 10am there will be a card class for beginners to learn how to make cards. At 12pm the workshop/classroom area will be open for the public to come in and make their own cards, use our card templates or ideas to make cards, and there will be pre-made cards to send to the troops in appreciation for their sacrifices. A Walk Down Memory Lane is also a collection center for people who already made cards, and just want to drop off their completed cards. The last day to drop off cards is July 5, 2011. HOW CAN YOU HELP? 10 – 12. . . Join us for a free beginners class to learn how to make cards or some simple stamping techniques (PLEASE call by June 23 to register for the class) 12 – 5 . . . Our workshop/classroom will be open for people to make some cards to send to the troops. If you are new to card making, we will have some templates ready for you to copy and make some cards. All you need to do is purchase the paper/embellishments for your cards, we’ll provide the ideas! If you are a seasoned card maker, bring your supplies and make some cards for as many hours as you would like. 10 – 5 . . . Come in and sign a card to say thanks to a member of our military. We will have pre-made cards for the public to come in and voice their thanks in a handmade card. 5 – 11 . . . We have a scheduled workshop this evening. If you make or bring 5 cards to send to the troops, you can crop for free during this crop. Please call us to sign up for the crop so we can reserve a spot for you. WHAT ARE THE RULES? They are looking for all types of cards. You can make birthday, thinking of you, love, thank you, holiday or get well cards that are blank inside for the troops to send back to family and friends. These need to be blank inside, so the troops can write in their message to their loved ones. Also, if your card has a dark inside, please line it with a light color for them to write on. One more note…NO GLITTER on these cards please! Night Vision goggles can pick up a spec of glitter on a uniform miles away! We will also be collecting cards for you to send your appreciation to the troops. Make any type of Thank You card with a short message from you inside. Deadline for dropoff is July 5, 2011. ONE LAST KICKER Our sponsors are giving away a CARIBBEAN CRUISE to one lucky winner! When you make your cards, bundle them up with an ENTRY FORM to be entered for the drawing. Each “type” of card needs an entry form. So, you can make 10 birthday cards but you only need one entry form. If you make 5 birthday cards, and 5 holiday cards, you need 2 entry forms. Click HERE for a link to more details about the contest. Click HERE for the rules and regulations Thanks so much for helping us support the troops. I know they will love getting handmade cards from home, that they can send to their friends and family. If you have any questions about this event, please feel free to call us at the store at 712-476-3443