Chickaniddy Crafts Design Team 2014-2015!

Happy Friday, friends!  I'm so excited to announce that I've been invited to continue on with the Chickaniddy Crafts Design Team for 2014-2015!  I couldn't be more excited!  The past six months have been awesome, and I'm really looking forward to creating with Heidi's amazing products.

The team is just beyond amazing...there are some seriously talented ladies on the team!  Check out the DT announcement on the Chickaniddy Blog.

Here is a little sneak peek of what I've been working on with the new Scrumptious collection!  We'll start revealing our projects in September.

Thank you SO MUCH to Heidi and Pam for having me back another term!  I'm just thrilled!

Thanks for stopping by, and have a great day!

Hello Cutie Buns / My Scraps & More

Hey scrappy friends!  I have another layout to share with you today.  I created this one for My Scraps & More last week.  I hosted yet another summer challenge which was to TEAR SOMETHING.  I almost always tear my paper layers and washi tapes.  I just like the uneven look tearing gives.  It's so weird that I like tearing because I'm so detail oriented and want everything just perfect.  You'd think I'd want all the edges just perfectly cut, but I really like the uneven look!  It's my Jekyl and Hyde personalities of scrapping...haha!

Anyway, I used mostly the Brighton Pier line from Studio Calico for this.  I really love this sunburst paper and decided to only use a piece of it.  I used some other papers for my layers.  I added tapes from my own stash, as well as cord, rhinestones and buttons.  That wooden "hello" is also SC...isn't it SOOOO cute?!  The cute little puffy pink scallop is from Pinkfresh Studio.

I used some gesso and watercolors on my background.  I wanted it subtle and light, and I think I achieved that pretty well.  I didn't want the background to compete with that sunburst paper, but I didn't want to leave it stark white, either.

Here you can see the benefits of layers.  It makes it very easy to tuck things underneath.  I also like to crinkle up my layers...that makes it even more dimensional.

I have a secret about this striped washi tape....I got it from the Dollar Tree!  It was a year or so ago, but I found it there.  It's really cheap, but the color is fabulous.  You can see that it doesn't stick really well, but I actually like that it doesn't.  It makes the torn edges stand up and gives it more texture.  I have to add some adhesive to make it stick, but I still love it.

See how it curls up?  I like the effect of that.  This cute stamp is a new one I found at Michael's by Heidi Swapp.  I love that you can fill in the blank!

Thank you so much for always stopping by to visit me!  I love sharing my projects with you.  I hope you are somehow inspired to tear something...it's a lot of fun!

Have a great Thursday!

She's Wild / My Scraps & More

Hey there!  I have another project to share with you today.  I have really been trying to use up some of my stash.  It's seriously out of control...my shelves are full.  I get a collection, and usually, I'll make one or two pages and then I put it away.  It's like I need a break from it.  So away it goes, and in the meantime, new collections get bought and the old stuff gets forgotten.  I don't mean to forget it...it just takes a backseat to all of the newer goodies.  I'm sure you know exactly what I'm talking about, right?! :D

Well, I decided to peruse my shelves and realized I still have a lot of my Glitz collections.  I won this Wild & Free collection last summer by leaving a blog comment.  So I pulled it out and created this layout for a challenge at My Scraps & More.  I challenged everyone to use at least three patterned papers and use them to back a hole created from a die cut.  It didn't have to be a huge die cut like this one...it could be from a simple punched shape.

I just love this circle cut from the Silhouette store, and I chose lots of papers to back it with.  I think there is even one sheet from the Color Me Happy line in there.  I love this blended watercolor-ish background paper, and I just love how this turned out.

Backing die cuts is really so easy.  To me, it's like putting a puzzle together...trying this paper here, and that paper there to see what looks good.  One like this where there lots of holes to fill is just so much fun.  I layered some stickers & a rhinestone on the corner of my photo.

I love this heart die cut...I used several pop dots to raise it up.

If you haven't tried this technique, I highly recommend it.  It's not only fun, but it's also fast.  If you use a big one like this, it sort of takes the place of having to decide what goes where.  Once you get the die cut finished, you only need a little bit more to add to it.

I hope this gives you a little bit of inspiration.  Thanks so much for stopping by today!

Back to School sneak at Chickaniddy Crafts

Hello, scrappy friends!  I just wanted to hop on really quick and show you a fun sneak peek at a project I created for today's blog post over at Chickaniddy Crafts.  It's a back-to-school layout, and if you'd like to see the entire page, you can click HERE :)

Have a GREAT Monday, friends!

Creative Scrappers & The Cut Shoppe Reveal!

Hey, y'all!  Happy Sunday.  I'm so excited to share the new Creative Scrappers' reveal with you!  It's a very special one.  The CS team partnered up with The Cut Shoppe this time and used some of the amazing cut files from the store!

Our fellow CS Design Team Member (and my good scrappy friend) Ashley Horton owns The Cut Shoppe and personally designs all the cut files.  Let me tell you...if you haven't checked it out, you MUST.  They are all awesome and make scrapping even more fun!
 

 

Here's Sketch #276.  It's a grid style, and it's awesome...especially for you scrappers who love Project Life or do pocket pages.  I do traditional scrapbooking, so I took this design and shrunk it down a bit.

I used the gorgeous Good Day Sunshine from Simple Stories to make my summer page :)  I used two different cut files.  One is my title "summer lovin" and the other is the the center half-circle design.  It was hard to narrow down which ones to use.  I still kept the grid design for this, but I made it smaller and toward the center of the page.  I added in strips at the top and bottom and added some stickers and brads.  I also used a confetti punch on the sides and backed it with yellow paper and then used the actual dots to scatter around the page.

Isn't this cut file awesome?  I love that you can back it with anything for a different look every time.  You can shrink it or make it large.  Cameos are SO awesome like that!

A little bit of layering here with paper, washi tapes and thread.  I think I have this style of striped tape in almost every color.  I use it so much!

Here you can see the other cut file I used.  It's such a fun border shape!  I layered a lot of embellishments here...chipboard, stickers and enamel dots.  Such a fun (and full) collection!

Be sure to link up your layouts HERE for your chance to win $20 worth of awesome cut files from The Cut Shoppe!  **The winner must have an electronic cutting device in order to utilize the files.

Also note the following:
Deadline to submit for sketches 274-275 is August 31st at midnight ADT.  Visit Pinkfresh Studio on the following sites:  Facebook / Shop / Blog

Deadline to submit for sketch 276 is August 31st at midnight ADT.  Visit The Cut Shoppe on the following sites:  Facebook / Shop / Blog

Thanks for stopping by today, and I hope you've gained a little bit of inspiration to get creative!

She Explores / My Scraps & More

Happy Friday, friends!  Our first week back at school is over, and my girls really enjoyed it!  Thank goodness tomorrow is Saturday and we can sleep in a bit.  This week has been crazy trying to get used to getting up early again.  All in all, it has been a great week, though :)

Have you seen the latest sketch on the My Scraps Sketch Blog yet?  It's definitely different and challenging but really fun!  I panicked at first...but once I got an idea in my head it went pretty smoothly.  The triangular design was the toughest part for me.  I decided to use the MeOlogy line from Fancy Pants on this.  I used a 6x6 Crafter's Workshop stencil and modeling paste to create the parallel lines design.  After it dried, I put the stencil back down and used acrylic paints to paint the lines different colors.  Once that dried, I traced around each one with a black pen.  I think it turned out pretty neat!

I also added some gesso to the background and used some green acrylic paint to add some messy splotches to break up the white space.  I also added some stamping and some black splatters.

I know I sound like a broken record here, but layers are just so much fun to create!  You can layer just about anything...not just the papers.  Layer die cuts.  Layer Thickers,  Layer flair!  It's all good!

More layers....I added some washi and thread here.  And just by adding pop dots, that little pink bird now has a little shadow behind him.  I love that depth and dimension that is created.

Okay, here's a close up of the painting and paste.  Kinda messy up close, but I like it that way.  It was an experiment, and at first I said to myself, "what the heck are you doing?  this looks hideous."  But I kept working at it and now I like it :)  It's out of my comfort zone and something different, but that's the beauty of a challenge, right?!

Here's the sketch....I hope you give it a try!

If you play along, be sure to upload your layout HERE.

Thanks so much for visiting me today!

How Do I Love Thee? / Chickaniddy Crafts

Hey there!  I hope your Wednesday is going well so far :)  Today, I'm sharing a layout inspired by this month's gorgeous Pinspiration Mood Board over at Chickaniddy Crafts.  This project was shared on the CC blog last week.  This gorgeous flower bouquet jumped out at me, and I was immediately drawn to the beautiful colors.

I pulled out the beautiful Date Night collection and started fussy cutting these flowers.  I knew I wanted to recreate the bouquet around my photo.  I printed the photo in black & white so it would pop against the corals and oranges.  I've also been wanting to use the numbers in this collection, so I worked them in here.  I layered all the flowers under the photo layers and added a fun circle die cut and some thread.

Here you can see all the dimension.  By layering shapes on top of one another, you can get really nice depth to your layouts.  I went a little layer crazy here...I tried to incorporate lots of different things here, and I really like how it turned out.  I love mixing up the alphas in my title, and this was a good time to use lots of different ones since it's a longer one.

Another angle of the layering.  I really love tucking things here and there, and I love how my vellum printing turned out.  I just ran it through my printer, and it worked great!

I used more little stickers, a few brads and a sentiment sticker here at the bottom.  Sweet and simple :)

Thanks so much for stopping by today!  I hope you have a wonderful week :)

Supplies Used: DN140S10 Backwoods Lovin', DN140S01 Awesome Blossom, DN140S08 Wallflower, DN140S12 Plaid Is Rad, DN140S07 Spiffy Tags, DN14EB01 Alpha Stickers, DN14EB02 Sticker Sheet, DN14EB03 Mini Sticker Banners, DN14EB04 Mini Sticker Tags, DN14EB06 Brads; Other--Liquitex Gesso, Silhouette Cameo, Stampendous Ink, Pop Dots, Thread, Recollections Vellum, Heidi Swapp Color Shine, Studio G Washi Tape

Natural Beauty / My Mind's Eye

Happy First Day of School!  Also known as Monday.  Today I have a layout to share that I created for My Mind's Eye.  It was up on the blog last week.  I have been wanting to scrap some photos from Reese's 5th Birthday photoshoot for a while, but the colors in her clothes have made it difficult.  It's like a pinkish-purplish color.  I decided to use the Necessities Wood collection to really make the photo pop.  I had this idea in my head, and I'm pleasantly surprised that it actually turned out like I imagined it.

I went through the 6x6 paper pad and selected several patterns.  I found this beautiful flower design in the Silhouette store and used those papers to back the cut outs.  All the woods are very neutral and muted, and they allow the photo to really shine, which was what I was going for.  I embellished with the wooden shapes, brads, glitter tape, alpha and word stickers, cord and the big monogram letters.

Here's a close up of the die cut, the cord and the layers.  You can see by building up layers, you're able to add things like cord and tape underneath it all.  Plus, the dimension and texture is so cool!

I love the wooden pieces in this line...so raw and natural.  And they're adhesive and stick really well.  I cut "beauty" on my Cameo and added "natural" by using the small alpha & word stickers.

More brads, wooden pieces and grey thread to finish off this side of the layout...

I hope this inspires you to give this Necessities Wood collection a try.  I didn't think I'd like it at first, but clearly I was wrong :)  I love how it allows bright colors to really be showcased.  I definitely recommend trying it.

Thanks for stopping by today!

Love These Moments / My Scraps & More

Happy Friday, friends :)  This is our last weekend before school starts on Monday...I think I might be in the minority here when I say I'm actually going to miss my girls when they go back!  I've enjoyed having them home with me the past few months.  We've been working on getting up early the past few days...and even I'm having trouble doing it...haha :)  Once you get used to sleeping in, it's hard to break that pattern.

Anyway, today I'm sharing a layout I created a few weeks ago for a challenge over on the My Scraps & More boards.  Our Got Talent contest is winding down at the end of this month, and then we'll be back to our regular daily challenges.  For this challenge, the rules were to use stamps to create an embellishment.  I used a circle heart stamp from Jillibean Soup.  I stamped it a few times in different colored inks, cut it out, added pop dots, and that's it!  A handmade embellishment :)  I also created one using the "hello life" stamp, but I can't for the life of me remember what brand it is.

I used some gorgeous My Mind's Eye products for this...it's a mix of Necessities Wood, Record It and Now and Then.  There's also some American Crafts goodies thrown in the mix.

I know I say it every time, but I just love layering.  I don't think I could create a layout with layers!  The "love" part of my title is a Cameo cut.  I used white cardstock and then watercolored it the pink to match.  I layered in some AC Mayberry die cuts as well as some chipboard from Cut & Paste.  My big white circles were cut from my Cameo and I backed each one with MME papers.

I just love the color mix here.  That green is from the watercolors I added to the wood background.  I'm kind of obsessed with watercolors....but you probably already knew that...haha :)

Another angle of the layering and texture....here you can see where I added gesso to the background.  And that cute arrow paper clip was from a clearance pack at Hobby Lobby several weeks ago.  You just never know what you may find while browsing around!

Thanks so much for stopping by today :)  I hope you have a great weekend!

A little sneak for Chickaniddy Crafts

Hey there, friends!  I have a layout up over on the Chickaniddy Crafts blog today.  It's based on our August Pinspiration Board.  Here's a little sneak peek at my page.  You can see all of it HERE.

I hope you have a wonderful day!  Thanks for popping in :)

It's Rough Being 2 / Hip Kit Club

Oh, the days of little toddler temper tantrums!  Haha!  My sweet Paige is now five, but in these photos she was only two.  And in her defense, we were stuck and stranded waiting on her pediatrician in those tiny little doctor rooms.  We waited and waited and waited...so naturally she got antsy.  Of course a whiny fit was bound to happen.  I almost had one myself...haha!  What to do when this happens?  Break out the camera and snap away, of course :D

This is my fourth layout using the July Kits from Hip Kit Club.  I really wanted to use the October Afternoon sheet with all these cute speech bubbles, so I fussy cut a lot of them out.  They seemed to go perfectly with her facial expressions :)

I used the Sweet Cherry Heidi Swapp Color Shine (included in the Color Kit) and my own Mister Huey's Water Coolor and Gold Color Shine to make my messy background.  I'm really loving squirting the color onto plastic packaging and then using that to press it onto the paper.  I added splatters, too.

I love these speech bubbles!  I used pop dots on a few to really create a fun layered & dimensional look.

That big 2 is from the Teresa Collins chipboard sheet from the kit, and I mixed up my alphas using Thickers and little Lily Bee stickers.  I did add in my own washi tape in several places.  I think I used four different tapes!

More Teresa Collins chipboard and stamps from Simple Stories.

This was a fun kit to work with.  I know the August kits are already out!  I really enjoyed this one because it was made up of things I didn't already have.  It challenged me to work with colors I don't normally choose, and the papers really gave me fun ideas (like the speech bubbles).

Thanks so much for stopping by today!

Creative Scrappers #275

Happy Sunday, scrappy friends!  It's time yet again for another amazing reveal over at Creative Scrappers!  I tell you, I just can't get enough of these sketches.  I'm always so inspired by them, and I always love what I created based on them.  Check out the latest one!



Here's what I came up with.  I used goodies from the July Kit from Hip Kit Club.  I started with some white cardstock.  I used the Heidi Swapp Color Shine and the Ingvlid Bolme Chalk Ink to create the background.  I used some plastic product packaging to smudge it everywhere.  I just sprayed some of the Color Shine onto the plastic, added a bit of water, and then laid the plastic down onto the cardstock.  It created a messy watercolor effect.  Then, I stamped the chalk ink onto the plastic, added water, and did the same thing.  I added a bit of Mister Huey's Water Coolor color (from my stash) to the blue in the background as well.  VERY fun way to make a messy background :)

I layered some Teresa Collins papers, some vellum and some chipboard elements around my photo.  I just love how it turned out...I really love the colors mixed together.

I just love adding thread to my projects...I love the look and texture it gives.

Lots of layering going on here!  You can't have too many layers...even with chipboard :)  I cut my title on my Cameo and messily (is that a word?!) outlined it in black pen.

A close up of the background paint job...I love that the texture of the cardstock shows through so well...LOVE that so much!  The "Love" border stamp is one I got from Michael's last year in a Valentine's Day stamp set from Recollections.

Be sure to head over to the Creative Scrappers blog and check out the rest of the DT's inspiration.  You should definitely be able to get some ideas of how to use this awesome sketch!  And don't forget to upload your layout for a chance to win a prize from Pinkfresh Studio!

Thanks for stopping by, and have a great day!

Camera Shy / Hip Kit Club

Happy Friday, friends!  I have another layout to share with you today.  I used the July Main Kit from the Hip Kit Club.  I like that this kit has such a full range of colors and patterns.  I decided to use yellows and greens on this one.

This is made up of Studio Calico, October Afternoon, Crate Paper and Teresa Collins.  I created some interest on my white cardstock background with a Crafter's Workshop template and modeling paste.  I added some stamping and then traced around some of the triangles.  I think my favorite part of this layout is the fun blue star vellum!   I layered it in amongst all the other patterned papers, and I love the effect.

I rarely scrap the same photo twice on one layout, but I like the effect of one in color and one in black and white.

I added in some of my own film strip washi tape and thread, but the rest is from the kit.  Lots of fun chipboard and stickers to add in!

My title contains alphas from Teresa Collins and American Crafts.  I like layering them on top of the modeling paste.  The stamping in the lower right corner is from the Stamp Add-On...some Simple Stories stamps and Ingvlid Blome chalk inks...they're awesome!

Another angle of the paste texture and a Cameo circle cut.  I also added in some watercolor.

This was so much fun to create!  I still have two more layouts coming from this kit...I was very impressed with it.  I would definitely recommend the Hip Kit Club if you're looking for one to join :)

Thanks for stopping by, and have a great weekend!

Heidi Swapp Color Shine at its best!

Hey there, lovely scrappy friends :)  Today I'm sharing a layout I created for a challenge over at My Scraps & More last week.  The challenge was to use embellishments to completely surround a photo.  I've collected a ton of Heidi Swapp goodies over the last several months.  Some of it bought through My Scraps, and a lot of it I purchased over time with my coupons from Michael's.  I'm sure many of you Heidi fans have that pack of the Color Magic die cuts.  I decided to pull that pack out and use as many as I could on this layout.

I used several colors of Color Shine and spritzed all of the die cuts here.  I love watching the white shapes turn all these pretty colors!  A made a layered cluster around the photo with only the die cuts.  The only patterned paper I used was the Studio Calico strips at the top and bottom.  I also used some American Crafts bits and pieces to accentuate.

I drew a messy outline around my cluster once it was complete.  I love doodling on my pages, whether it's outlining or shading or just making lines.

This is a Jillibean Soup stamp.  I stamped "everyday" onto vellum in silver ink and then went over it with a silver pen.  Love the subtle look to it.  I splattered a few Color Shine colors on the page and added a few rhinestones.

Another close up of the die cuts.  I love the colors...these are so fun to play with!

Thanks for stopping by today...have a great Wednesday!