Who Says

Who says it has to be complicated? I always admire people who can make cards with very few elements and still have that wow factor. When I try that, my cards usually just look empty, but here's one I came up with where I really think less is more. Enjoy!
Patterned Paper is from Jenni Bowlin Studios, as is the butterfly.

All About the Story

Today's layout is all about the story. On my oldest's first day of school, my youngest said something pretty darn funny, so I wanted to make sure I got it down on a layout. Of corse, I tell myself that it was so funny I'll never forget it, but chances are I will. Making this layout makes it certain we'll never forget!
The page:
The Story:

I used Crate Paper's School Spirit line again today to create this layout. The twine is one of my new favorite accessories and is from The Twinery. The wavy border above and below the photos were created with the EK Success Bracket Edger Punch. I also used some Cosmo Cricket Tiny Type Stickers for the title.

Those Moments

There are certain moments, that when I sit down to scrap them, I feel more pressure to scrap well than others. Usually it's because the moment is extra special, or I really love the photo. My oldest started pre-school this year, and I know that over the years, I'll want to revisit these photos and reminisce. My oldest, thank goodness was in the mood to ham it up for the camera, so I got some great first day photos taken in front of the house. Between the special moment and the fun photos the pressure was on. Now that the layout is completed, I can say that I think I'll be happy looking back at this one for many years.

I decided that Crate Paper's School Spirit line was perfect for preserving this big milestone. Between the chipboard shapes, the fabric and epoxy brads, and the journaling tags, this layout came together pretty easily. I really ended up having a fun time scrapping this special moment.

Bloom Project and an Announcement

Alright, this frame I created has been posted a few places now (including Crate Paper's blog!!!), so I think it's time I posted it here with a few directions.
This project was truly easy to create, it just takes a little time. The frame measures 12" x 12". I just happened to have an old frame in the right size that wasn't being used. It was black, so I used some Claudine Hellmuth paint to make it white. The background is a 12" x 12" piece of kraft colored card stock. I used my Silhouette to cut the brown outline of the flower and the word "Bloom". For you Silhouette users, the file is Chrysanthemum_CO583_20508. There are only 2 flowers as part of that file (the center and right hand flower), so I copied, pasted, flipped, and shrunk the flower on the right so it became the flower on the left. Then I used 1 piece of every paper from each of Crate Paper's new lines; Restoration, School Spirit, and Snow Day to fill in the petals. I only had small pieces of each of these papers, so I traced and cut each petal by hand (easy, but it does take a bit of time). The tracing and cutting don't need to be exact, because you attach the petals behind the brown outline of the flower, so you don't see the edges of your hand cut petals. I really love how this project turned out, and can't wait to do it again. I think the same technique would look really cool with Christmas ornaments, trees, or one large flower (no stem). If you have any questions about how this was done, please feel free to ask. If you want to see this project in real life, it's on display at A Walk Down Memory Lane in Rock Valley, IA.

Now on to a quick announcement. As some of you may know, I've been on the in store Design Team at A Walk Down Memory Lane for about a year now. Recently Lisa, the owner, asked me to be her Social Media Coordinator for both the physical location and the on-line store. What does that mean? Well, I'll be coordinating posts and hosting giveaways on AWMDL's Facebook Page, I'll be writing a few newsletters for the store, and I'll be posting projects, info, and all sorts of fun stuff on AWDML's blog every day (Monday - Friday). I'm excited to be starting this new position, and hope you'll join me in the fun!

Not quite ready

I'm not quite ready to let summer go just yet, and even though school has started for my oldest, we're still spending plenty of time outside. Here's an ode to outdoor fun:This fun time is framed in Jillibean Soup papers. I'm in love with her corrugated alphas. You can do so much with them. For this layout I stamped on every other letter.Backyard swinging is also brought to you by Jillibean Soup.
The corrugated alphas on this layout have been sprayed with ink mist.Here's to spending a little time hoping summer will last just a bit longer.

Time

Time...it goes quickly, and there just never seems to be enough of it. That's why I was thrilled to have the time back in June to get some professional outdoor photos done of our family. I know that in just a matter of time, my boys will be all grown up, and I'll cherish these photos even more. I also was thrilled to be able to take the time to play with this fabulous sketch for Crate Paper's August Sketch Challeng.

I used Crate Paper's Brook Collection, a little bit of cork, and a new family photo to create this layout:What I love most about this layout is that there is so much texture, from glittered chipboard, to cork to epoxy brads. I also learned that yes, you can uses rub-ons directly on cork. It just takes a little extra rubbing.
Thanks for taking the time to check out my creations today!

Summer Sketch

It's My Mind's Eye sketch time once again. I don't know if it's cheating, but I loved the sketch so much that I actually made 2 layouts. The theme for the sketch this time is summer. My first one uses summer colors and the Breaking Free Collection.
I love hand stitching on layouts, so stitched some water inspired spirals on the background and stitched in the outline of the orange splashes coming out from the photos. It's a little hard to see, but to add something a little different, I popped all the photos up on foam dimensionals.
The second layout is a big step outside my comfort zone. I usually don't do a lot of paper tearing and distressing, but it just seemed to work.I again used My Mind's Eye Breaking Free Collection. The star background was cut using my Silhouette SD. I like to play around with journaling, so on this layout I journaled inside a few of the red stars....and yes the big kid in that photo is my wonderful husband! You have until the end of Thursday to play along if you'd like to, as well. All of the details can be found here on My Mind's Eye's blog.