I Heart You / Hip Kit Club

Happy Saturday, friends!  Today I wanted to share my newest layout for Hip Kit Club. I was up on the blog on Wednesday as part of a Product Focus using the 2018 January Hip Kits.  I had a blast creating this page using lots of the Crate Paper Main Squeeze Ephemera.  It’s all so cute and perfect for any project about love.  I started with a white cardstock background and added some of the Peacock Feathers Distress Oxide from the November Color Kit.  I wanted blue on the background since the embellishments were mostly pink, black and gold.  I printed three small photos and used lots of the die cuts in between, under and around them.  I used many of the hearts and three of the tags.  I layered in a black & white striped Project Life Card and one big Vicki Boutin Watercolor Sticker from the Main Kit.

This smaller tag was perfect for adding to my line of photos.  I added some cord at the top to finish it off as well as a fussy cut heart and some of the Studio Calico sequins.  I also added one of the American Crafts Memory Planner Stickers.

I fussy cut the XOXO from one of the Main Squeeze tags and used it as a secondary title.  I did a little mixing and matching here with a Vicki Boutin Watercolor Sticker that I left black & white and a Pinkfresh Studio label sticker.  That's my favorite part about a scrapbooking kit....all the different pieces from different collections!

Here you can see more of the detail from the tags.  I tucked this one underneath the photos upside down and added some cord to it.  I really love how you can just see the blue background paint peeking through here along with the blue thread.

I love the “i heart you” piece.  It serves as the title, and I layered in another Vicki Boutin Watercolor Sticker which I colored with the Distress Oxide.  The arrow sticker is from the Pinkfresh Studio Stickers.

Here are more of the Main Squeeze die cuts.  I layered this pink heart right on top of the photos and machine stitched through it with gold thread.  I used one of the Crate Paper Good Vibes Stamps from last month’s Project Life Kit as well as a Pinkfresh Studio Puffy Heart.

Here's one more close-up of the top area.  Check out all the glorious gold glitter on those hearts!  Can't get enough gold glitter :)

I hope this inspires you in some way…it was a lot of fun to make!  I didn’t use any patterned paper…just embellishments.  Check out my process video here if you’d like to see more details.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and have a wonderful weekend!

You Are Pretty Great / Maya Road Guest Designer

Hello again, friends!  I'm back again today with another Maya Road Guest Designer project.  I was inspired by the beautiful pink Small Vintage Paper Flowers that I was sent, so I built my color scheme around them.  I wanted to create a soft and girly color scheme, so I pulled out some papers that I thought would compliment the flowers.  I used the XO Heart Steel Die and cut several hearts from pink, blue, coral and peach patterned papers from my stash.  I cut the XOs on vellum and placed them on some of the hearts, and I love how they turned out!  I used lots of Shimmerz Paints on the background using plastic packaging to spread it around as well as spraying the ink directly onto the paper.

To create some layers behind my photo, I used two floral die cuts I’ve had sitting on my desk for months.  I tucked the hearts in around the photo as well as the pink flowers.  I used matching ink sprays on the background using the packaging technique as well as splattering with the nozzles.  I love how the watercolor peeks out from behind everything. 

These small flowers are easy to manipulate and tuck in behind things.  I created lots of layers here with the hearts, flowers, die cuts and tangled thread.  I also added a few sequins from my stash.

Here you can see more of the sequins.  My title is an Amy Tangerine On a Whim chipboard sticker.

Here's one more look at those pretty flowers :)

I used some of the hearts to create a little cluster on the upper right side.  I love how the vellum XOs look on the patterned paper.  To add a bit more gold sparkle, I machine stitched through some of the hearts and around the edge of the layout.

I hope this gives you some inspiration to go create something beautiful!  Thanks for stopping by, and thanks to Maya Road for having me this month!

Have a great day!

Using Older Supplies / That Summer Feeling

Hello again, friends!  I'm so excited to share a fun layout today using some of my older supplies.  I started this stash busting series back in 2016 and then got so busy I didn't have time for it.  It's been a full year since I created a layout just for fun, and it felt so good to just sit down and make whatever I felt like :)   Since I'm on fewer design teams now, I'll have more time for stash busting layouts and videos....yay!

I began this layout with the Dear Lizzy Lovely Day and Amy Tan On a Whim collections.  I pulled out the chipboard stickers from both lines and noticed how huge they all were.  I studied them and realized that I don't really used giant chipboard words or titles.  I thought to myself, "why did I even buy these?"  So I challenged myself to use them in some way, shape or form.  See all that background work?  That is chipboard.  I pulled the biggest pieces that I knew I'd never use and cut them up into random shapes.  I made a little puzzle collage out of them and glued them down.  I painted over the whole thing with white acrylic paint and then white gesso.  I used watercolor paper as my background, so it's pretty thick and able to handle water.

I used my Jane Davenport watercolors along with some Shimmerz and painted over the chipboard.  I added paint and sprayed it with lots of water and just let it blend together.  I love how it turned out!  The texture is awesome, and the colors are just beautiful.

Of course I had to add in some Heidi Swapp Gold Color Shine :)  But look how cool this is...you would never know that those were brightly colored chipboard titles.  If you're not going to use it because it's too big or the wrong shape or color, then try something like this!  At least it's getting used, right?

I did some fussy cutting on one of the Amy Tan papers and tucked the flowers around the photo.  I used a few papers from the Amy Tan 6x6 Paper Pad to layer behind the photo.  I used some sequins from my stash and from SpiegelMom Scraps in matching colors.  The little tab above the photo is from an old Echo Park summer collection, and the FUN sticker is from Crate Paper.

I love how you can see the texture of the gesso beneath the watercolor...so cool!

I created a little cluster down at the bottom with more fussy cut flowers, some thread and sequins and a Dear Lizzy phrase sticker.  Again...all from old collections just sitting on my shelves.

I mixed and matched my title.  I used some Amy Tan alphas from a while back and stamped the rest of if with the Crate Paper Oasis Stamps.  I keep those out on my desk because they're perfect for anything.  I wrote my journaling down below.

I love to layer and create dimension.  I added foam adhesive under the photo and yellow flower, and then the striped flower is on top of the photo.  Instant depth!

I hope this inspires you in some way...I honestly loved every minute of making it!  It felt awesome to get rid of some older stuff.  We all have plenty of scrappy goodies hoarded, so my mission is to work through a lot of mine this year.  I have a video down below of this page....woo hoo!

Thanks for stopping by, and have a wonderful Monday!

Fave Moment / Maya Road Guest Designer

Hello again, friends!  I hope you're having a relaxing weekend so far.  I'm the Guest Designer this month over at Maya Road, and I created this layout using some really fun products.  I love starting with plain white cardstock and building a layout from that, so I decided to start my design with some of the Ken Oliver Vintage Trim.  It’s a very sheer ribbon, and it’s made to be colored if you want.  I used yellow, blue and green ink sprays and went to town coloring the trim.  I even splattered on some gold Color Shine, and the ribbon strips turned out so pretty!

I created a striped design with some black and white striped paper strips and the ribbon.  I cut the ribbon into strips and then sprayed each one with some blue, green and yellow Shimmerz sprays.  I added in some Heidi Swapp Gold Color Shine as well.  Once they dried, I lightly glued them down and then machine stitched through them.  I did go over the background with white gesso first before adding lots of watercolor.  I machine stitched on the background with black thread.

I used the Banner Steel Die from Maya Road to create those cute little pieces under the photo.  I cut them on white cardstock and then watercolored and stamped on them.  I tucked in a cute little clear banner sticker to add more pops of black.

I also layered in some of the Ken Oliver Yellow Lemon Waxed Hemp for an extra pop of color and texture.  I embellished with lots of stickers from MAMBI, Crate Paper and American Crafts, and that cute camera paper clip is from Evalicious.

This cute flair button is from A Flair For Buttons, and I added a black scalloped puffy sticker from Crate Paper at the bottom and top.

Here are a few more closer looks at all the details.

I hope this gives you some ideas to try with ribbon...this was a lot of fun to color and customize.  Thanks so much for stopping by, and stop back in soon to see another project I created for my Guest Design spot.

Have a great day!

This / Cocoa Vanilla Studio

Happy Saturday, friends!  I have a layout to share today for Cocoa Vanilla Studio using mostly the Bohemian Dream collection.  Before I get to the layout, I want to thank Zoe, Sue and the rest of the team for having me this year.  This is my last post as a design team member.  I’ve had an amazing year, and every collection I’ve worked with has just been off the charts awesome.  I will miss posting here each month, but I will definitely be continuing to use these gorgeous products!  I began this layout with the Bohemian Dream Abstract paper.  It’s so messy & artsy, and I love all the colors.  I used the Loopy Circle cut file from Just Nick and cut it on my Cameo.  I used white cardstock as my background, and I used some pink, orange and blue ink sprays to create a watercolor effect.  I splattered it a lot and used a palette knife to scrape it down.

I love the mix of colors here!  I couldn’t resist using some of the gorgeous Bohemian Dream floral die cuts.  I also used a little floral cluster from Hello Lovely that I fussy cut.  It matched perfectly!  I also punched a few blue flowers from the Abstract paper.

I popped my photo up off the page using some adhesive foam, and I love the dimension that creates.

I added a fun circle die cut at the top here…I believe that is from the Life is Beautiful collection.  I really love how you can see the ink splatters through the cut file.

I went simple with my title and used “this” from the Bohemian Dream White Chipboard Words.  I did my journaling on two Bohemian Dream label stickers.

Aren’t those vellum flowers just breathtaking?  Those are also from Bohemian Dream, and I just tucked a few under the left side of the photo.

Here's one more close-up just because it's so pretty to look at :)

I hope this gives you some new ideas to try on your next layout…it was really fun to put together!  Again, thank you all for your sweet comments and support for the last year.  It was truly an honor to serve on this team.  Be sure to check out my process video down below.

Thank you for stopping by, and have a great weekend!

Free Spirit / Paige Evans DT

Hey, friends! Happy FRIDAY!  Today I wanted to share my newest layout for the Paige Evans Design Team.  I’m having a blast creating with Paige’s new Pick-Me-Up collection! It really is beautiful and pairing it with her cut files is even better. I used her Folk Art Flower cut file available in the Silhouette store. I knew right away I wanted it to flow across the page with my photo in the lower right corner. I cut the flower design on white cardstock using my Silhouette Cameo and then used various patterned papers from the collection to back the flowers, stems, and leaves. I wanted to add some watercolor behind the photo, so I smudged on some white gesso first. I also smudged some over parts of the flowers and leaves to add some variation and texture. I added a bit of matching ink sprays behind the photo using the packaging and splatter techniques. I also splattered across the page to add some subtle interest on the white space.

Here you can see where I added the gesso.  At first I wanted to make the flowers all one color, but there were just too many gorgeous colors in the papers to choose from.  I decided to use them all and I love how it turned out. I machine stitched around the three larger flowers with different colored thread and then I used white thread to stitch the flight paths of the butterflies. I used some of the Pick-Me-Up Mini Thickers for my title. I love the white tone-on-tone look with the smaller letters.

I used bits of Pick-Me-Up Paper 04 and Paper 07 as layers behind my photo. I layered in some of the floral Pick-Me-Up Chipboard Stickers and Stickers on and around the photo to enhance the flower theme. I did pop the photo up with some adhesive foam to create some depth and that made it easy to tuck in some pink thread for an extra pop of color.

This cut file is so pretty. Here you can see how detailed it is. This collection is perfect for backing it because the colors just really bring it to life. I didn’t want to take away from the design by adding a big title, so I went small. I also added in a Pick-Me-Up Sticker that says “born to fly” because she was flying high in her swing. I did a bit of messy machine stitching along some of the stems for added interest and texture.

I love these beautiful floral cluster stickers...they're just so pretty!  I want to use them on everything :)

Here's one more look at the cut file and the messy stitching.  I can't stitch an even circle to save my life, so I just embrace the wonkiness...haha!

I hope this gives you some more fun ideas to try on your next layout. You simply must pick up the Pick-Me-Up collection! It’s my favorite collection so far!  Here's my process video if you'd like to how I made this.

Thank you for stopping by!  Have a wonderful weekend :)

Sweet / Hip Kit Club

Happy Tuesday, friends!  I hope you all had a great weekend.  I wanted to share my newest layout for Hip Kit Club today using the 2018 January Hip Kits.  This is my first page using the new kits, and my assignment for this was to focus on the Vicki Boutin Watercolor Stickers in the Main Kit.  These kits are so pretty and colorful, and so I chose to watercolor the flowers and leaves from the Sticker Sheets.  It's super easy to do, and you can customize any color scheme you want.

I used the Distress Oxides from the Color Kit and my water brush to paint the flowers.  I also pulled in the Distress Oxides from the November Color Kit.  So I had pink, orange, green and blue to work with.  I also added a few drops of some Shimmerz sprays from other Color Kits and my stash to add some shading to the flowers.

I wanted the centers of the flowers to be darker to make them look more realistic and to create some depth.  I also used some of Vicki's stickers to the right of the flowers and watercolored a little over them.  I wanted them to stay mostly white so they'd pop against the background.

These stickers are great for layering just like this.  There are a ton of different shapes...not just flowers.  The possibilities are endless.  I used a few torn strips of exclusive patterned papers behind my photo.  I love the black and white stripes, and it inspired me to scrap this photo of me and my daughter.  I love how her striped shirt matches the paper :)

For my background, I used a sheet of the Ocean Breeze Cardstock from the Cardstock Kit.  It's smooth and thick and handles mixed media very well.  I smudged a lot of white gesso down over the background, including the torn patterned papers.  Once it dried, I used more of the Distress Oxides.  I stamped them onto some plastic packaging and smooshed it down onto the paper.  I also used a brush to create splatters.  The black ink spray is from my stash.

I used a Project Life card behind my photo as well as some tissue paper and adhesive foam.  Here you can see some machine stitching I did along the edge of the paper.

I used a few of the American Crafts Memory Planner stickers from the Project Life Kit on this layout...they're so cool.  They're colored but clear, and you can definitely use them on layouts and not just planners or calendars.  I added a few of the Pinkfresh Studio Puffy Hearts from the Main Kit and a label sticker.  I went simple with the title and used a big Thicker, which is in the Embellishment Kit.

Here's one more close-up of all the texture and dimension.

I hope this inspires you in some way!  It was fun to get messy and paint those stickers.  I can't wait to use them again soon!  Be sure to check out my process video here to see how I created this.

Thanks for stopping by, and have a great day!