... just Laura

Kerri Bradford Studio: Love You Girls

Hey everyone! I've got a new layout up at Kerri Bradford Studio today. I just love these photos my daughters and I took on Mother's Day, and knew I wanted to get them on a layout right away. When I sat down to work on my next layout for Kerri, I knew it was the perfect time to I collaged my photos together using a template from Kerri's Half Pints #1 kit, and got to work designing the page around my photo collage. 

I wanted to keep my background simple, to let the colors in my photos and patterned papers stand out, so I went with a white-on-white die cut background. I die cut a heart background from white cardstock, using a cut file from the Heart Backgrounds kit, and adhered it to another sheet of white cardstock to create the base of my page. I spritzed the entire page with mists in colors that coordinated with my patterned papers, to add just a bit of color to the background.

When deciding on titles for most of my layouts, I start by just browsing thru Kerri's files within my Silhouette library, and I'll usually come up with several options to choose from. For my title on this layout, I combined the "love you" (taken from a freebie "love you mom" cut file) and "girls" (taken from the All In The Family kit), and die cut each from patterned paper. 

While the patterned papers I picked out for this layout are new (all from Shimelle's Little By Little collection), the embellishments I picked out to add to the page are old. I had fun digging thru my stash of embellishments from years and years ago, and pulling out some fun pieces to finish off the page. 

I always loved these plastic flowers from Making Memories, and I remembered that I used to add a flattened metal rimmed tag to the center, finished off with a button. I thought that would be fun to do for this layout, and dug around for some flowers that would match. I have tons and tons of the metal rimmed tags, but turns out I didn't have many smaller sized ones. I had to use a few that had the paper inside the metal rim (like an actual tag, as opposed to just the rim), and take out the paper. 

I also added two pieces of Magic Mesh to the sides of the layout. Such an old product. If some of you aren't sure what Magic Mesh is, it's the pink dotted piece stapled to the right side above. I always loved the dotted mesh, but still have lots of the regular mesh as well. Adds a fun texture without much fuss. 

And a totally random fact. This had to be the hardest layout ever to photograph. I tried three different times before getting some semi-decent pics. I want to say it had something to do with all of the white, but I've had plenty of layouts with lots of white. So that doesn't make much sense. The girls and I look super white, and while I might be white, my girls are definitely dark skinned ;)

Just Because: You Rock

Two posts, in two days. I'm impressed with myself ;) So, I mentioned that a week or so ago, I put together some photo collages to use on layouts. Most of the photos of the girls these days don't really scream "make a layout with us", seeing as how most of them are just random photos, selfies, etc. But I have done little "photo shoots" with both of the girls here and there, and I knew I wanted to get some of those photos scrapped and in their albums. 

These photos of Alyssa were taken this past January, right before she went back to college for the spring semester. I collaged a few favorites together using a template from Kerri Bradford's Picture That [Squared] kit. The template I used actually has six photo openings in it, but I tweaked it to make it five, as I wanted a large square photo. The templates are easy to customize when needed. 

I didn't really have a title in mind, so I browsed thru my Silhouette library, looking for something that jumped out at me. And "you rock" did just that. I knew that I wanted my journaling to be about her college life and what all she was doing when these photos were taken. And since she's in the music conservatory, and majoring in Music Management, I knew the "you rock" title would work well. 

I knew I had to have at least one or two music note patterned paper in my stash. It took me a while to find, but I did find this black patterned paper, from Die Cuts With A View, that I used for the background of my page. Once again, I used some dotted embossed cardstock from Core'dinations. And then I added in the green dot patterned paper and the blue grid patterned paper, both older papers from Scenic Route. 

Since I had a music related title, it was a good opportunity to use some of the music themed cut files I've never had a chance to use. I've always loved the heartbeat music note design, as it's very simliar to a tattoo Alyssa got when she turned 18. It took me several attempts to get it to cut though. I finally had to use the "offset" to make the design a bit thicker, as it was the only way I could get it to work in the smaller size. 

Since I was on this kick to use some older embellishments/products, I went digging around for something fun to use on this layout. I came across these metal grommets from Making Memories. Now, I have the tool to add/attach them to projects, but for the life of me, I couldn't remember how to use it. Lol. What I did remember was that if you use the tool, it would punch a hole from your paper, so that essentially, you'd be able to see thru the circle, or thru your page. And I didn't want that.

So I simply flattened the prongs on the back of the grommets, and added tiny pop dots to the backs to adhere them to the page. I also added a few blue and green brads, and some tiny little silver dots to help embellish the left side of the page.

I also added some of these metal photo turns to the top and bottom of the page. Are they called "photo turns"? I'm not even sure. That's the first thing that popped into my mind, so that's what I'm calling them ;) 

I'll be back next week with another new layout. Hope you all have a great weekend!

handsfree kit for the slice

i know i have talked several times about how much i love my handsfree kit for my slice. and i have mentioned how, if you own a slice, you absolutely, without a doubt, need to have a handsfree kit to go with it. but sometimes, things are worth repeating ;)

 

"zoo fun" is an older layout, that i don't think i ever got around to sharing. i used the zootopia design card to create this layout. at the time, it was the first design card that had the layering feature on it. since then, making memories has come out with quite a few newer design cards that have this layering feature as well. btw, the adorable tiger face belongs to my good friend, lynn.

this layout is a great example of how handy the handsfree kit comes in. this layout has a TON of slicing on it. with the layering feature, you're cutting multiple pieces for each shape, that you'll then layer together. i had to have sliced at least 18 pieces for this layout, from what i can see here.

obviously, then handsfree kit is fabulous, because it's magnetic. before, you had to hold the slice in place while it did the slicing. which wasn't a huge deal to me. it's not like it takes forever to cut the shapes. BUT. once i had the magnetic mat, and i didn't have to hold my slice while it did it's slicing, i realized how nice it was that i didn't have to hold it in place. i don't know about you, but i can get a lot accomplished in 20 seconds. lol!

 

this gives you a little better look at the layering. you can see on the tiger and the giraffe, that there are two pieces to them. each shape on the design card has multiple pieces that can be sliced, and then layered together. some shapes have more pieces to layer than others. just depends on the shape.

it's a fun feature to use, since you can use different papers and colors, and mix them together. just like paper-piecing, back in the day. on the palm trees, you can see that i sliced the entire tree first, with the kraft cardstock. then i used the layering feature, to slice just the leaves on the palm tree, from some green pattern paper. i like to use lots of pop dots, when assembling my layered pieces together, to really show off the layering of the papers.

my second biggest reason for recommending the handsfree kit, is for the accuracey of the cuts. you will get MUCH more accurate cuts, when you use the handsfree kit. no matter how great you are at holding the slice in place while it's slicing, there's always going to be those moments where it shifts or moves. just enough to mess up your cuts. the magentic mat is so strong, that your slice isn't going to go anywhere. i guarantee it.

now, that's not to say you can put a little 4x4 square of paper down, and put the slice over that and have it cut properly. you definately need to have the paper you're working with, be larger than the slice, so that the magnetic frame clamps down on the paper from all four sides. as long as it's holding down the paper, it's strong enough that the paper will not shift. 

there you go. my two biggest reasons that you NEED a handsfree kit, if you have a slice. anytime that someone asks me about it, those are the two reasons i give them, without a second thought. if you don't have one already, you might want to think about investing in one. it will make your slice even better, than it already is! 

end of school year gifts - bravissimo projects

this is my second post of the day. wanted to sneek this one in, in case tomorrow is the end of your school year and you need a gift idea. scroll down for my layout share from this morning.

it's that time of year. the end of the school year. time for teacher gifts and graduation gifts. i managed to sneak one of each in this week, just in time to hand them out.

 

most of us have family members or friends that are graduating from junior high school, high school, or college. i think one of the most given gifts for graduates is good old fashioned cash. it's usually my gift of choice. and while opening up a card to find a $20 bill or a $50 bill is pretty cool, i wanted to come up with a more unique way of giving the gift of money.

 

so i picked out a few pieces from the bravissimo collection, by making memories. you can find these at your local michaels store now. i picked out a small rosette, a medium streamer, and a medium sentiment. i choose the silver and white sentiment first, and then matched the streamer colors. then i picked out a rosette to compliment them both.

 

these pieces are so easy and simple to assemble. they come with glue dots or foam dots, depending which piece you're buying. it even tells you, "place sentiment here", "place rosette here". you can't mess up. i adhered the sentiment to the rosette, and then rosette to the streamer. 

 

then i glue dotted the ribbon to a glass jar. this is just like the jar i used for my oreo cookie jar, last week, except it's taller. they were both from target. then i filled up the jar with money.

 

instead of giving a $50 bill, i asked for all one dollar bills. i loosely rolled each one, and placed it in the jar. i just thought it was a fun and different way, to give the gift of money. i have a certain neice, who is graduating from high school tomorrow. i think she'll like this ;)

 

next up, is a fun teacher gift. i started this one, by choosing the sentiment. the "A+ Teacher" sentiment came in a 4 pack. you get 3 sentiments, and one metal piece. the teacher sentiment had a touch of green around the outside. so i choose this fun green ribbon. this ribbon was all assembled, and i just had to add the sentiment to it.

 

i had bought a few boxes of pencils. i knew i wanted to bunch them up, or put them around something. i went in search for a container and found this. it's from a wall vinyl piece that i had gotten in the mail. i took the vinyl piece out, to find a spot for on my wall. the container is made from a thick chipboard type of material. once i took the lid off, it was the perfect height for the pencils. 

 

i used a hot glue gun to adhere the pencils around the container. it took me about 5 minutes, and 36 pencils, to cover the container in pencils. then i hot glued the ribbon to the front. the inside of the container is empty. so you just have to come up with something to fill it with. i figured it would make a cute pencil cup. and i still had a box of pencils left. so i stuck all the remaining pencils inside. you could also stick candy inside, extra school goodies, or even flowers. some daisies would be cute. not in water of course, but just for presentation.

 

i think you really have to see these in person, to appreciate how nice they are. i'm super impressed with the quality of the ribbons. each one has lots of layers to them. fun papers, chipboard pieces, and really cute ribbons. and they're durable and strong.

 

in fact, i was actually trying to bend this ribbon a little bit. i wanted to see it curve a little more around my pencil covered container. but it's made with such quality, that it won't budge. which is a good thing, in my book.

for more fun ideas, check out the bravissimo blog. it's called a daily dose of happy. how fun is that! and if you're on facebook, make sure and become a fan of the bravissimo facebook page, to keep up with ideas, news, and giveaways. speaking of giveaways, i saw that maggie holmes is hosting one on her blog today, for a chance at some bravissimo goodies ;)

slice: teacher cards

this week is the end of the school year for my girls. seems to early to be going on summer break already. but the school calendar does not lie, so they're last day is friday. being that it's the end of the year, i needed some teacher cards. i created these this morning with my slice, by making memories.

a while back, i had shared some cards i created using the new bravissimo design card. you can see them HERE. i really loved making those cards, and how easily they came together. i love how you can create the base of your card, and then add a fun "award" to the card, along with a sentiment. and you're done.

so i decided to use this same idea, for my teacher cards. these are for sarah's teachers. her original teacher from the start of the year got a promotion within the district and had to move on. so then she got her new teacher. and for the last month or so, she's also had a student teacher helping in her class. this is a recent college graduate, that gets to sort of practice and take these kids on a trial teaching run. lol! but sarah's been telling me that i need a card for him too. so i made a girlie version, and a dude version. 

 

i'm still loving using the ledger papers for the base of my cards. they're just such a great neutral background to work with. it's an older pack of 8x8 papers, and i'm starting to run out of it. i'm not sure what i'll do when it's gone. i used some pattern papers from the just chillin collection, and from an older spring collection. 

 

for the top piece, i sliced it twice from the teal glitter paper. i pop dotted the top piece, and offset it just slightly when adhering it to the bottom piece. i sliced the "number one" sentiment from brown cardstock, and added my favorite tiny alphas for "teacher".

 

for the dude version, i choose some pattern papers from the just chillin collection also.

 

same deal on here. i pop dotted the top piece, and slightly offset it, when adhering it to the bottom piece. i used the same "number one" sentiment, and added some tiny alphas for "student teacher".

if you're on facebook, make sure to become a fan of the slice facebook page, so that you can stay up to date on all the fun project shares, tips, and even giveaways.

speaking of end of school gifts. i have 2 more that i'm going to share this week. they're both using the new bravissimo collection. i have a teacher gift and a graduation gift. look for those on wednesday.

slice: tips for maximizing paper

i wanted to share a few tips today, on how to maximize your paper, when using your slice. i know when i first started using the slice, years ago, i went through a TON of paper. i was randomly slicing shapes all over my papers, without any thought or planning. and in the end, i was wasting a lot of paper in the process.

 

here's a great video on getting the most out of your paper, done by miss jenny weston of making memories.

 

here's a sheet that i was slicing on months ago. like, forever ago. i'm actually quite clueless as to why i saved it. lol! it shows some pretty good cutting. but there's still a lot of wasted paper there.

 

this paper is from last week, when i was working on THIS project. one big tip i have, is to work in rows. when i slice, i go from left to right, and from the bottom of the paper to the top. i like to work from the bottom, since the majority of the shapes start slicing towards the bottom of the shape. if you work from the top of the paper, you'll have to pay more attention to how much room you'll need, so that you don't cut into the space above. i also work in rows, so that, once i'm finished, i can simply trim off that strip of the paper if needed. makes more sense then to slice randomly all over the paper.

 

another tip i have, is to really learn to judge the size of your shape and how much room you need to slice it. this seems obvious, in some ways. if you're slicing a 2 inch letter, you need 2 inches of space. right? this is true. one way you can judge where the slice is actually going to cut, is to use the measurement guides on the mat and on the slice itself. the other way, is the way i do it. i eyeball it. after lots of use and a little trial and error, i think you can just really get a feel for how much room you need. i can tell you what 2 inches, 3 inches, or even 3.5 inches looks like. it just becomes familiar.

this isn't really a huge tip. but i don't usually put my paper directly up to the edges of the mat. half the time, i just drop the paper and slice where it lands. i don't really line it up with the grid lines. BUT. having said that, the grid lines are great for checking your measurements. one reason i tend to start with the paper in this position, is that i can start slicing directly in the corner of the paper. if the paper is all the way to the edge, you can't always start out as far down on the paper. 

 

ignore my first "a". it cut a little too low. just shows you i make plenty of mistakes. lol! after you choose your shape, and choose "select", the blade will get into position and the screen will show you an "x" on the shape. this tells you where the machine will start slicing. on some shapes, this will be directly in the bottom corner of the shape. but some shapes, it will be a little higher up, or a little to the left or right. this is what happened on my "a". it didn't start in the bottom corner, like i thought it would. it started halfway up the left side of the "a". so this photo shows where i'm started my new cut, leaving room for the bottom part of the "a". 

 

when i went to cut my next letter, a "b", i started out right next to my last letter.

 

usually, i would keep going, straight across the paper. but i wanted to show how i would go up to the next row. i'm cutting a "c" next, which starts the cutting halfway up the letter. so i positioned the blade to start cutting a little above the "a", leaving room for the bottom part of the "c".

 

and then i started the "d", directly next to the "c", since it started slicing in the bottom left corner of the letter.

 

i think this shows pretty good usage of my paper. i could have gotten these letters even closer together, if i tried. but i think this is good. we all love our paper and want to get the most out of it. so, with a little practice and learning to judge our shapes and how much room they'll need, you will be able to get so much more out of your papers.

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a fun award for my girl

a certain 14 year old in this house picked up some awards at school this week. if you guessed alyssa, you'd be right. partly, because she's the only 14 year old in the house. lol! the high school band had a concert on monday evening, and afterwards they had an awards ceremony. they handed out the participation awards, and then moved on to a few special ones. she picked up one of the two "director's awards" for the freshman band members.

then, on wednesday evening, they had the academic awards at the school. she snagged three awards. a honor certificate, for a GPA of 3.0 and higher for the year. a honor pin, for a GPA of 4.0 or higher (her's was higher ;)) for the year. and a baby buff scholar award (their school mascot is the buffalo) for freshman earning a GPA of 3.5 or higher for the year. we could not be more proud of her, and how well she has done in high school.

 

i think maybe a certain someone deserves a little something from her family. something fun, to let her know we think she's pretty cool. and do you know what she thinks is pretty cool? oreo cookies! she's not big on candy or junk food. but she is all about the cookies. it's an easy way to make her smile.

 

have you seen the new bravissimo collection by making memories? it's a fun reward and recognition collection, that can be personalized to fit your occasion. they are perfect for all the big occasions, like birthdays, graduations, and weddings. but they're also perfect for all the little occasions in between. just like giving alyssa her own little award from us, in recognition for all the awards she got at school this week.

the bravissimo collection can be found in michaels stores. they come in a variety of styles and sizes. you can pick out all your own pieces, and assemble them from start to finish. you can find semi-finished ones, that you just add your sentiments too. you can find finished ones, that are ready to go right out of the package. there are extra add-on pieces to really personalize the awards. there are even wands, medals, and shadow boxes. so much to choose from.

 

the semi-finished bravissimos can be customized with the perfect sentiment to fit your occasion. i chose this red and white semi-finished piece. there are 4 pack sentiment sets, that have 3 sentiments and one metal piece to adhere it too. i chose this fun "you are awesome" sentiment. all the pieces come with little adhesive dots as well. so it really is super simple to assemble these. i added my sentiment to the metal piece, and adhered that to my bravissimo piece. and i was done. 

 

i found an empty jar, and filled it with almost an entire package of oreos. i added my bravissimo ribbon to the front of the jar, and used some coordinating ribbons to decorate the lid of the jar. super simple. but sometimes, simple is all it takes to let someone special know how proud you are of them. i wanted to get a photo of her with her fun little jar of oreos. but the poor thing is so sick right now with allergies. so i'll have to snap a photo of her later.

for more fun ideas, check out the bravissimo blog. it's called a daily dose of happy. how fun is that! and if you're on facebook, make sure and become a fan of the bravissimo facebook page, to keep up with ideas, news, and giveaways.

slice - cheer up card

i want to share a simple card that i created yesterday, using my slice from making memories. one card that i don't have a lot of in my stash, is get well cards. i loved the font and look of the "cheer up" sentiment. it sort of feels like a more casual take on the standard "get well" card to me.

 

for this card, i used my slice, the dilly dally design card, and the greetings design card. the pattern papers are from the great escape collection.

 

i started by slicing my sentiment, using the new greetings design card. my cards are standard size, at 4.25" x 5.5". so i went with a 2.5" sentiment.

 

then i switched over to the dilly dally design card, to slice my flower. this design card has the new layering option. this breaks down each design into several different pieces and cuts. this allows you to cut the different parts of each shape seperately, from different papers, so that you can then piece them back together. this flower i choose has two layers. this is the first one, which i sliced at the 4 inch size.

 

if you push on the double arrow buttons at the bottom, this takes you from the normal cut, to the shadow option, then to the mirror option, and then to the layer option. once you get to the layer, this is where you'll find the next set of cuts for this flower. the circle piece goes over the actual flower, and the small piece is for the leaf.

i sliced the base piece of the flower from green pattern paper. since i was slicing the layered pieces from two different papers, i decided to go ahead and make two cards. i just swapped out the pieces. so one card will have the pink flower and leaf, with an aqua flower center. and one card will have the aqua flower and leaf, with a pink flower center.

 

to add a little texture to the layered pieces, i ran them thru my cuttlebug, using my swiss dot embossing folder.

i then inked the edges with a brown ink pad, and also rubbed it over the embossed areas of each piece. i added mini pop dots to the back, to give some extra dimension to the cards.

 

for the actual card base, i started with white textured cardstock. i decided to take out this background grid stamp from hero arts. i stamped it to the card front, using some peach parfait ink from stampin up.

 

the new greetings design card has some cute little borders to choose from.  these are perfect for card making. i choose the 4 inch size at first, knowing my card was 4.25" wide. but it was a little too long. i think it ended up cutting a 4.5" border. most slice shapes only cut to 4 inches, so this is kind of nice to have a larger cut on this. i decided to use the 3.5" size, which was perfect for my cards.

 

i adhered my sentiment in the upper right corner of the card. then i adhered my border strip directly across the bottom of the card. i adhered my flower base, tucking it behind the border strip.

 

then i adhered my pop dotted, layered pieces, on top of the green flower base. i added the circle outer flower piece first, and then added the flower center right in the middle. a few rhinestones and some staples finished off the card.

 

and in less than thirty minutes, i had two super simple, but cute cards to add to my card stash. if you want to see some cute easter cards, using the layering options on the dilly dally card, check out wendy sue anderson's cute idea.

dilly dally cards - making memories

i had some new cards up on the making memories blog yesterday.

 

i used the new dilly dally collection for all of these cards. it's such a fun, bright spring collection. full of flowers and butterflies.

 

this sheet of pattern paper, has all sorts of title blocks and journaling spots. i found that it was perfect for making cards. on five of my six cards, i used one of the blocks from this sheet.

 

 

i love adding new cards to my stash. it's nice to be able to have a nice assortment of cards on hand, ready to be given out at any moment. considering how big my card collection is right now, i'm guessing it might be time to randomly send out some cards ;)

slice - fabric cutting

i get asked a lot about cutting fabric with the making memories slice. they recently came out with the slice fabrique, which is geared towards quilters. but you'll be glad to know, that you can cut fabric using your original slice or your slice elite.

 

here's another look at some fun fabric flowers i made last year, using my slice and the spring has sprung design card.

 

if you take a minute to watch THIS VIDEO, it will show you just how easy it is to slice fabric.

 

having the right accessories makes cutting fabric much easier.

 

you'll need some fusible webbing to start out with. you iron it onto the back of your fabric, so that it stiffins up the fabric for slicing. once you slice your shape, you can peel off that fusible webbing and then iron your shape onto your project. or use it as is, which is what i did for the flowers above.

 

the hands free kit is a must, in my opinion. it's not only because of the fact that you don't have to hold the slice in place while it's doing the cutting. it's more due to the fact, that you just get more accurate cuts all around. and with fabric, it just really gives that extra hold that you need to keep the fabric from sliding around on the mat.

with that, you'll also want to be sure you have a nice, sharp blade to work with. the blade will dull a bit faster, when you're working with fabric. and have a good amount of the spray adhesive on your mat as well, since the fabric and fusible webbing are more textured than your normal paper or cardstock, and need to really stick down in place.

if you havn't tried using fabric with your slice yet, think about giving it a try. it's another really fun way to add a cool touch to your projects!

slice bravissimo design card

have you seen the new bravissimo collection, by making memories. it's a really different type of product for them, and is something that we really havn't seen before in the marketplace. it's a really fun concept, and i think it's pretty cool. a huge collection of personalized keepsakes and awards, for all occasions. it's full of ribbons, wands, awards, and shadow boxes.

 

making memories is also coming out with the bravissimo design card, for the slice, which compliments the bravissimo collection. you can get the same look of the awards and ribbons, using paper and/or fabric. and then embellishing them with all sorts of things from your scrap stash. i played around with this design card over the weekend, and made a few cards to share with you.

 

first up, is my "have a great day" card. i used papers from the noteworthy collection, and some older slice ledger paper. for embellishing, i choose some pearls from the gem collections, and a few pebble brads. 

 

i chose a really cute scalloped circle shape for the main part of my design. i sliced it at 3.5 inches. the center is cut out, so i also sliced a 2.5 inch plain circle, which is also found on the design card. for the ribbon tails, i chose a design that has all 5 of the strips cut as one piece. once again, i sliced it at the 3.5 inch size, but i cut it from two different pattern papers.

 

i lightly adhered the two circle pieces to each other, and then machine stitched them together. since i'm not talented enough to make a clean, straight stitch, i tend to do very random stiching. i just go several times around, purposely going a little wonky, so that it's a very carefree stitching. anyways. i adhered this piece with pop dots to the card front. i then sliced a 3 inch butterfly, also on the bravissimo design card, from some brown woodgrain paper. i adhered the butterfly with mini pop dots, and added some pearls along the center.

 

i mentioned that i sliced the ribbon tails from two pattern papers. i just trimmed two of the strips from the green pattern paper, and then adhered them directly onto the same spots on the orange piece. i adhered the entire thing onto my card, before doing the machine stitching down each strip. i pulled out this old MM tag, and added it for my sentiment, securing the ends with mini brads.

 

next up, is my "sweet baby girl" card. this is obviously another take on my first card. i loved that scalloped circle, and had to use it again. i used papers from the dilly dally collection and the pitter patter collection, as well as some older text paper that was designed for the slice. i used an older making memories rub on, and an epoxy sticker as well.

 

same sliced cuts on this one. the scalloped edged circle, and the ribbon tails are both sliced at 3.5 inches. i thought about doing three different pattern papers for the ribbon tails, but ended up only doing two paperes. and the circle was sliced at 2.5 inches. "girl" is also found on the bravissimo design card, and i believe i sliced it at 3 inches.

 

same idea here. machine stitched the circles together, and adhered using pop dots to my card. since the font on "girl" is fairly narrow, i choose to simply adhere it to the piece, instead of using pop dots. i added the "sweet baby" rub on. i lost track of dot to my "i" during the process of making this card. normally, i would add a mini brad, but i had already adhered this whole piece down. so i just used an epoxy flower sticker to dot my "i".

 

same thing on the ribbon tails here. i pieced the two papers together, and machine stitched it to the card.

 

lastly, my "sweet baby boy" card. for this one, i used papers from the pitter patter collection and the animal crackers collection. once again, i used an older making memories rub on. and the gems are from hero arts.

 

i'm not sure what to call this fun center design. maybe a starburst, of some kind. i sliced it in the 3.5 inch size, once from the orange text pattern paper, and once from kraft cardstock. the ribbon tails are another design that cuts all 5 strands in one piece. i sliced this two times, at the 3.5 inch size, from the green pattern paper.

 

i adhered the kraft starburst shapes to my card first. i did some very wonky machine stitching around the center of the orange pattern paper starburst, and then adhered it with pop dots, directly on top of the kraft starburst. i bent up the edges all the way around, to give it some extra texture. i sliced "boy", also found on the bravissimo design card, from a woodgrain paper, and adhered it using mini pop dots. i added the "sweet baby" rub on right above "boy".

 

i used mini pop dots to adhered the two sliced ribbon tail pieces together, directly on top of each other. adds a really subtle touch of interest. i added some blue gems to a few of the strands.

 

keep your eye out for this super fun design card. it should be out in stores any day now. i think it's a super fun way to add a new look to your cards and gift giving projects.

to see some fun cards and hear tips about using the layering option that can be found on some of the design cards, check out wendy sue anderson's blog post from last friday. and tomorrow, wendy bretz will be hosting a fun slice related giveaway. if you're on facebook, make sure to become a fan of the slice facebook page, so that you can stay up to date on all the fun projects we're going to be sharing :)

some older slice layouts

i was cleaning out some files on my computer, and i came across a couple of layouts that never made it to blogland. i'm actually not sure these layouts ever made it anywhere, to be honest. lol! 

 

i created these layouts over two and a half years ago, for making memories. this was back when a handful of MM designers were working on the slice inspirations box, and using the slice for the first time. i only had a few design cards to work with, so i used a lot of hearts, stars, and circles. these two layouts (along with a few other projects), didn't make the cut into the box.

 

this was also the time when MM was getting ready to come out with the speciality papers for the slice. so i used a lot of printed transparencies, metallic paper, and glitter paper. do you like how that metallic heart looks all bent? lol! i remember adding the mini brads, as an afterthought. but it was already adhered down. so i worked those brads onto the heart, without removing it. no idea why i didn't just cut a new heart. lol!

 

i'm seeing a lot of swiss dot embossing on my projects from back then too. that must have been when i had first gotten my cuttlebug. i remember i used to swiss dot everything i could run thru that machine.

 

 

i actually think this bottom piece was quite clever. i randomly used the slice to cut circles in a strip of red metallic paper. i discarded the actual circles, and just used the negative piece that i had sliced them all from. i adhered it with pop dots, so that it was raised up. i had added some metal grommets and metal rimmed tags to each circle, and tossed a few metal flower charms on for good measure.

i might have to dig up a few more older projects to share this week, since i can't share any of the stuff that i've been working on the past few weeks. i'll see what else i can come up with tomorrow :)

spring canvas set - a making memories project

a few months ago, i created this fun project for making memories, using their new dilly dally spring collection.

 

i knew i wanted to create a canvas project of some sort. when i went shopping at michaels, i intended to get a 12x12 canvas to work with. i'm more of a square person, and can't really get into the rectangle shapes, such as the 8x10 size. anyways. i came across this set of three canvases, by artist's loft, with each piece being 4x12. i loved the idea of it. creating three seperate canvas pieces, but having them all hang together, to still give the look of one complete project. 

 

i started out by painting each canvas with some light yellow acrylic paint. not super light yellow, but not super bright either. yellow can be a hard color for me, but i happen to have a few decent ones in my stash. i knew i was covering the fronts with pattern paper. so i just painted the edges on top, and then all four sides of each canvas. i then choose my pattern papers, and trimmed each to fit the front of the canvas, leaving some of the painted edges to show. i sewed a zigzag stitch with my sewing machine along the edges of each paper, and inked the edges with brown ink. i then adhered them to my canvases. i used glue dots, and they held just fine.

 

these fun rhinestone "spring" stickers come in the cute banner kit. i wasn't using the other banner pieces, but decided to use the rhinestone stickers. i pulled some basic white tags from my stash, inked the edges with some brown ink, and cut the bottoms of each tag at an angle. i took my floral fabric piece (also from the banner kit i believe), and ripped it down the middle. i love the frayed edges on here. i tied small pieces to the top of each tag, and then adhered them to the first canvas in the set, adding the "spring" letters on top of the tags.

 

i wanted the butterflies to appear as if they were flying off the canvas. i'm not sure i totally captured that feeling, but i tried. lol! these cute die cut butterflies come in all different shapes and colors. i folded each one in the center, and then bent out the wings a bit. i used mini pop dots behind each wing, to lift them up off the canvas.

to see a short video, that shows part of the making of this project, visit making memories. there's a "video inspiration" section on the right side. you can also watch it HERE on youtube, where you can find all their videos.

altered "love" box: a making memories project

i have a project up on the making memories blog today. a valentine's project. which just made me realize it's only a week until valentine's day. 

 

i used the new jet' adore collection to alter this paper mache box. i thought it would be a fun little box, that you could tuck little candies, lovenotes, or trinkets into. or you could even use it to store valentines cards from over the years. you can find these paper mache boxes at any craft store. don't quote me on this, but i'm 83% sure this box was about 8 inches x 8 inches, and about 3 inches tall.

 

i started out by painting all the edges and corners of the box and lid, with white acrylic paint. i cut all my paper pieces to size, to fit the sides of the box, the sides of the lid, and the top of the lid. i inked all the edges of the papers, and then decoupaged them onto the box. after they dried, i brushed on an additional coat of mod podge over the papers. this helps secure them even more to the box, helps them hold up to the wear and tear of being an altered project that people like to touch, and gives the papers a nice shiny look to them. you can watch a little video on the making memories blog, that shows you the basics of decoupaging the paper onto the box.

 

then i added some fun embellishments to the lid of the box. i love the little ticket stubs. i picked out four of them, and stapled them together in a row, adhering them to the lid with pop dots. that sheer polka dot ribbon is so cute, and i tied it all the way around the lid. the heart frame is made of a ceramic sort of material, and i adhered it with mini pop dots. then i simply added a heart die cut in the center, and the gold glittered "LOVE" to the die cut. and it's all ready to give to that special someone.

CHA: making memories "tie the knot" collection

making memories has come out with a new wedding collection, called "tie the knot".

 

 

keep your eye on the making memories blog for the duration of the show. they're holding a virtual party, where they're giving lots of peeks into the show, and doing lots of giveaways.

CHA: making memories "dilly dally" collection

how about some new making memories. they have a fun new spring collection, called "dilly dally".

 

this is a 6x6 layout, that i created for the booth. they have us do a lot of our samples in the smaller size.

 

i love all the fun butterfly die cuts in this collection.

 

 

the "hellow sunshine" on this layout, and the "laugh" on the first one above, are from a sheet of preforated pattern paper. it's filled with little title blocks and journaling blocks.

 

make sure and check out the making memories blog over the next few days, where they are having all sort of peeks at the show and lots of giveaways.

infomercial vacation - a layout

i finally got around to scrapping my infomercial trip that i took, a year and a half ago. it's been on my to-do list for a while now.

 

i actually had an entirely different layout started, for this trip. with a ton more photos. but i just couldn't get myself to finish it. so i decided to start fresh, and narrow down my photos to the ones that summed up the trip.

i decided to focus mainly on the photos of the girls that i spent the most time with on this trip, cindy and carla. and then included photos of us throughout the experience. i will add some divided page protectors directly after this layout in my album, so that i can include the rest of my photos from the trip.

 

i've been making a huge effort to not use so much white cardstock on my layouts lately. i take out a sheet of white cardstock, every time i start a layout. but i was starting to feel like some of my layouts were starting to look too much the same. i have created so many layouts that i can't share with you for a while. but my plan has been working, and i've been very proud of myself for mixing it up more.

and i like to think i accomplished this on my layout here. part of me wonders if those bottom papers really match. but part of me just loves the randomness of them, and how they look together. so i'm cool with it. i mixed a few manufacturers together, instead of just pulling from one travel collection, which was my originally intention. the map paper on this first page, is actually a transparency. i simply adhered it to the white cardstock that i built the entire page on. 

 

i dug out some older flowers and journaling spots from my stash, and layered them together using pop dots, to use in a few spots on my layout. for this smaller flower, i also added the suitcase rubon to the journaling spot.

 

i love these larger flowers. i layered two flowers together, using pop dots. and then hand journaled on the journaling spot, before adhering that with pop dots too. have i mentioned that i LOVE pop dots? lol! i plan on printing out my blog post, all about the trip, and including that on the back of my layout. so i didn't feel the need to do a huge amount of journaling on here.

 

i printed all my photos seperately, and then adhered them to white cardstock to make my collage. i believe all the photos are about 3 x 3 inches in size.

 

the second page is pretty simple. tried to keep the focus on the photos. i did add another flower, with a journaling spot pop dotted in the center. i added the light blue airplane rubon to the journaling spot. and i also tucked a few decorative pins in between the journaling spot and the flower.

merry christmas eve

i know i've been a little sparse around the blog this week. but i wanted to stop in and wish you all a very merry christmas eve.

 

here's a quick 6x6 layout i created for making memories a while back, using the noel collection. the photo is from last christmas.

 

we usually have a quiet christmas eve around here. the girls are with alyssa's dad, and going to her grandparents to celebrate christmas. so they'll be back tomorrow morning. so our christmas eve is spend doing housecleaning and laundry, finish last minute grocery shopping and gifts we might have missed, and wrapping presents late into the night. can't wait until the girls get back tomorrow.

photo holders: a making memories project

i had some other layouts to share, and started to type one up for you. but then i had this nagging feeling that i should only be showing christmas projects. lol! so, i came up with this one. i think i showed a quick photo of this project i created for making memories, back in july. in the summer. because that's when we all think about christmas, right? lol! figured i would re-show it, now that we're actually IN the christmas holiday.

 

i used the new making memories noel colletion to make these photo holders. i have made these before, for valentine's day. these are wooden blocks, with the curled wires already in them, all set for holding photos. i found them at michaels, for about $1.50 each.

 

i started out by painting the unfinished wood block, with brown paint. then i cut some pattern papers to size, for the front, back, and sides of the blocks. i used mod podge, to decopauge them onto the blocks. after that had dried, i added another layer of mod podge over the papers, to give the entire block a nice, shiny finish.

 

then i simply added a few embellishments to the fronts of the blocks. on two of them, i used a noel rosette. that was as easy as peeling and sticking. and they have a ton of dimension, with all the layers to them. on the third one, i layered together a few paper flowers, a glitter foam pointsetta sticker, and a snowflake brad.

 

then all you need to do is print out a few smaller photos, and stick them in the metal spiral clips up top. then set out to enjoy, with the rest of your christmas home decor :)

together in one spot: a CK/MM layout

i was asked to create a layout for making memories a while back, that was to be featured in an upcoming creating keepsakes publication.

 
as seen in 101+ Creative Ways To Use Your Scrapbook Supplies, by Creating Keepsakes magazine. copyright creative crafts group. posted with prior permission from the publisher.

another two pager. yes, i do create a LOT of two pagers for CK. i used some favorite photos from our christmas 2008 get together with my family. i know, at first glance, this isn't necessarily a christmas layout. these photos were all taken on christmas, so i guess it kind of takes the place of one for this particular year. and want to know a secret? i NEVER scrap christmas photos. maybe one or two, for a sample layout here or there. but i never take the time to scrap our christmas holidays. i have years and years worth of christmas photos, just waiting to be scrapped.

 

sometimes, i honestly have no clue how i come up with my titles. lol! usually, it's partially decided by how much room i have left myself to put my title. since it's one of the last things i do. sometimes, it's decided by what letters i have to work with. i came up with the "one spot", and then later worked in the "together in", which i think made for a cute title.

 

i was asked to focus my layout around their new metal embellishments. just about ALL the metal embellishments on here, except the photo turns, were from a new release at the time i created this. one of my favorite things were the pagemarks. i went back and forth on how i was going to work them onto my layout. then i had the idea to make flaps for extra photos, and to use the ribbon pagemarks as the "handle" to lift up the flap.

 

my photos underneath the flap, take up the same space as the photos on the top. to make the flap, i adhered my photos to a piece of cardstock. then i trimmed it down, so that i had an extra 3/4 an inch on both ends. on that extra cardstock right beneath the photos, i adhered my ribbon pagemark.

 

on the other end, i scored the cardstock right above the photos, and then folded it over, and adhered that behind the photos on the layout. you notice the photo turns there on the left side of the photos? i added those, with some rhinestone brads, to hold the flap shut.

 

i did the same thing on the second page of the spread. 

 

the only difference, is that i flip-flopped my flap. say that ten times fast. lol! i used the pagemark at the top, and had it open downward.

making a flap, is a great way to get additional photos on your layout. sure, i could have used these inside photos right on the pages. but one reason i wanted to hide a few, is so that i didn't have to worry about the colors matching. or the santa hat that sarah's wearing look out of place with these papers and products. or the blurry photos, that didn't turn out great. i just tucked all those photos inside, and worked the favorites onto the main part of the page.

want to know another secret? i actually scrapped our 2007 christmas this weekend. and because of all the color issues, i changed everything to black and white. you'll see it on friday ;)

christmas frames: a making memories project

my christmas tree is not only up, but it's decorated as well. i have a few decorations sprinkled around the house, and a wreath hanging on my front door. it's starting to feel a little bit like christmas. so, how about a christmas project share. i created these for making memories, last summer, when the new christmas collection was announced. 

 

i used the noel collection for this set of wood frames. i found these frames at joanns, and thought they were so cute. they are unfinished wood, and about 4 inches by 4 inches in size. the backing does open, but there is no glass or front piece to them. so i loved that they were sort of like shadow boxes.

 

i started by painting them with a sage green acrylic paint. then i choose my pattern papers. i used a solid piece in the back of the frame. and for the front, i used a pattern paper, which i cut to fit around the frame. i adhered these to the frames with mod podge, and then painted another layer on top to give the frames a nice, shiny look to them.

 

for the centers of two of the frames, i simply added some paper flowers. i adhered the green flower to the back of the frame using a pop dot. then i adhered the music flower on top of the green flower, using a few layers of pop dots, all stacked up. since these are shadow box style frames, i had plenty of room to "pop" out the flower. i finished them off with a threaded button.

 

i wanted to add a word to one of the frames. i went with "noel", since it was a short word, and would fit nicely in the frame. these are chipboard alphas, and i used mini pop dots to adhere them to the backing of the frame. i'm almost positive i used 2 layers of the pop dots.

such a simple and easy project. i really need to head back to joann's, and pick up some more of these wooden frames. they'd be cute for any holiday.

making memories slice fabrique (part 3)

how about i share the last of my slice fabrique projects with you today? i think this next one was my favorite out of all my projects. 

 

it's an art box, and i think it's just adorable! when i saw the little monster girl on one of the four new slice fabrique design cards, i just knew i had to use it on something.

 

i kept telling wendy that i was so jealous that she was working with baby clothes for the majority of her projects. they could all be sewn onto. meanwhile, i had frames, wooden boxes, and hair accesories to make. most of which could not be sewn directly onto, so i had to do some creative thinking too. i was also painting, decopauging, and using papers and ribbons. so it was sort of a mix of fabric and scrapbooking.

 

but this art box was fun to make. how could this adorable monster girl NOT be fun to work with ;) she was created with seven different cuts on the slice, and then all pieced together.

 

i also sliced the letters for "ART", and hand stitched them all before adhering them down.

 

and last, but not least, another favorite. a vase of flowers. i choose one of the flower designs, and cut that design from about 12 different fabrics. numerous times. i believe i ended up using 24 flowers total, for these 3 flowers.

 

each of the flowers had 8 seperate fabric flowers, all put together. each flower was machine stitched, thanks to my mom. i fused two flowers back to back for the center part of the flower. then i bunched up 3 flowers and stitched them together, adding a button to the centers. to put them together, i hot glued the center, and 2 bunches of flowers all together. the stems were made by twisting a pipe cleaner around a small wooden stick.  

 

and with that, i was done. 4 days later, and hours and hours of crafting. when i got that email with final approval of all my projects, and those magic words "love them. send them in", i just about screamed with excitement. lol! everything got boxed up, and sent off to the making memories office to be photographed. and then they traveled to the international quilt market, in texas, where they have spent the weekend in the making memories booth. i can't wait until they get back from the show, so we can see some photos of the booth and how all these rooms looked put together. don't forget to check out wendy's blog today, to see a few more of her projects :)

making memories slice fabrique (part 2)

i have some more projects to share that i created with the new slice fabrique, by making memories. if you're wondering what i'm talking about, check out yesterday's post. here are some more additions to the "little girl's room" section of the booth.

 

a fun headband. i've admired so many of the cute headbands, with fabric flowers on them. so here's my take on the style, complete with layered sliced flowers.

 

i covered the headband with pink ribbon, and added the flowers off to the side. i handstitched all nine flowers, and then layered them in groups of three with buttons stitched in the centers.

 

a little bumble bee hairclip. i think this bee is the cutest little thing.

 

i made him puffy too. i cut the four parts of the butterfly with my slice fabrique, and then fused them onto a piece of white fabric. then i trimmed it down, and cut another piece of white fabric to the same shape. i handstitched the two pieces together, adding a little stuffing inside each section as i went along.

 

it might be hard to tell what this one is. lol! i really wish one of the girls had been home when i made this, so that they could have modeled it for me. it's a ponytail holder. i was thinking about the ribbon ponytail holders that you see on the soccer field all the time, and thought it would be fun with the fabric.

 

i tore TONS of strips of the fabric, and tied each one onto a regular black ponytail holder. then i cut some butterflies with the slice fabrique, and hand stitched around each one. i added a button to the center of each little butterfly, and stitched them randomly onto the ends of some of the fabric strips.

 

and this one is pretty simple. just a quick and easy bracelet. i used this same green and pink ribbon throughout all my projects.

be sure to check out wendy's blog, for her second round of projects. and keep your eye out on the making memories site for more information on the slice fabrique. more projects to come tomorrow :)

making memories slice fabrique

guess where making memories is this weekend? they are at the international quilt market in houston, texas. they are there to introduce their brand new slice machine that is specifically designed for cutting fabric. the new slice fabrique, and the new slice fabrique design cards, were designed with the fabric appliqué quilters in mind. want to see this new machine? here's a photo, courtesy of making memories. 

 

the first thing i have to tell you, is that i don't sew. i don't stitch. i don't even iron. i actually do own a sewing machine, that i bought years ago, so that i could machine stitch on my layouts. never learned to use it. i LOVE the look of machine stitching. and i do LOVE fabric projects. i have done all of 2 fabric projects in the past, which were for the slice infomercial last year. but i didn't stitch on those.

so when i got asked to work on this assignment with the slice fabrique, i was a little worried as to whether i could actually pull it off. but i'm always up for any challenge that comes my way, and of course, i said "yes". i was excited to learn something new and push myself to try new things. and that's exactly what i did. for hours and hours on end. lol!

i give some major props to anyone that works with fabric. or makes quilts. or hand stitches anything. it takes patience. lots of it. it was also tons of fun. but working with fabric is an involved process. once i got started, i was fully invested in it. for 4 days straight, all day long. every waking moment. ask my family. nothing else mattered for those 4 days. lol! i felt better, knowing that my BFF wendy, was also fully into the same project. we kept each other on track, compared updates and notes, gave each other tips, asked each other opinions, laughed together, and i'm pretty sure we even cried together at one point. lol! seriously, i love when we work on things like this at the same time. we keep each other sane :)

ok, enough rambling. on with some projects. i was assigned to create some projects for one of the "rooms" in the making memories booth for the show. and my room was a little girls room.

 

first up, a lampshade. i'm sure they have a cuter lamp base at the show. this is one i found in my garage, so i could get an idea of the overall look as i worked. i was going to adhered the butterflies randomly around the frame, as if they were fluttering all over. but i'm so glad that i decided to adhered them all in a row, around the frame. i'm going to use this same idea for a lampshade in my family room, except with flowers ;)

 

how cute are these butterflies! and the fabric is just adorable. it's all from my mind's eye. i'm going to be honest on this one. my mom machine stitched the butterflies for me. i did ALL my own hand stitching, but she did help me out with the machine stitching. but i really do plan on learning how, because i love the look. and because now, i have this weird desire to make fabric stuff again ;)

 

i adhered each butterfly to the lampshade, using a glue dot in the center of the butterfly. then i used some glue dots on the outer edge of each wing (top and bottom), so that i could curl the wings slightly before adhering them down. this way, they're not totally flat on the lampshade.

 

next up was a picture frame. this picture of alyssa didn't stay in the frame. they had a little girl in mind for the booth. i just stuck this in there, so that i could take a picture of it :)

 

the new slice fabrique design cards have a fun cutting tool. most of the cards do have the mirroring and shadowing options (MS+). but the fabrique design cards allow you to cut shapes in different pieces. like this pinwheel on the frame. it has 6 pieces to the design. the 4 triangle pieces for the main part, the stem (which i left off of here), and the center of the pinwheel. and because you cut each piece individually, your shapes can end up larger than the typical 4 inch slice size. the largest choice on the pinwheel, will actually give you a 5.6 inch tall shape.

 

isn't this pinwheel so fun! i cut all the main pieces twice. so i had 8 pieces total. then i ironed 2 pieces back to back, and hand stitched them around the edges. i folded the corners over, just like the design quide showed me, and stitched that down too. i added a few fun buttons to the center, and a pipe cleaner for the stem. there's more pipe cleaners on another project, that i'll share later. so they tied together. i also sliced out the letters to spell "FUN", and hand stitched those as well. 

 

and how about a cute tote bag? giving credit and props to my mom, who machine stitched this for me too :)

 

i have to tell you, that i did fix his button eyes, after taking these photos. i have no idea why i stitched them right there, in the middle of his face. it wasn't until i was looking at some of wendy's project peeks that she shared with me, that i noticed HER frog's eyes were on the top of his head. i had to ask her about it, because i suddenly couldn't remember where a frog's eyes are. this is where the "asking each other for advice and opinions" comes in handy. lol! his button eyes are now nicely stitched where they belong.

 

another example of the pieced together cuts. the frog is actually made from 6 different cuts on the slice fabrique. his head, his body, each leg cuts seperately, his hands cut together, and his eyes cut together (i didn't use those). so it makes it really easy to cut pieces from different fabrics, and then tie them all together. the kite is made from 4 different cuts. the 3 pieces for the kite, and then the tail piece (which i cut 3 times).

 

these flowers are one of my very favorite parts out of all my projects. i LOVE these flowers! i used the largest size cut on these, so they are 4 inches wide and 5.8 inches tall. good sized flowers. each one was 4 cuts. the 3 parts of the flower, and the stem. we stitched down the outer flower, and the center of the flower. i left the middle flower as it was, so that the edges lift up and give some extra dimension to the bag. i hand stitched on the buttons to the centers of the flowers.

ok, it's almost 2:00am here. and i have to be up at 7:00am for the girls soccer games. so i'm calling it a night. i'll be back tomorrow (sunday, since it's technically saturday right now) with some more of my slice fabrique projects. and make sure and check out wendy's blog, to see her projects too. her "room" was a baby boy nursery. and she did some super, duper cute stuff. and make sure to leave her some loving comments. we both worked so hard on these, and we really hope that you like them. we both love making memories, and are so grateful to work for them. we hope that they are getting an awesome response to the new machine and the new design cards at the quilt market this weekend, and that our projects helped make their booth a little cooler and prettier :)

my 11 year old - a jillibean soup layout

here is my other layout that went up on the jillibean soup blog yesterday.

 

this is one of those layouts, where the photos were one of the last things i decided on. every now and then, i will create entire layouts, without any particular photos in mind. i had this idea for doing a grid of pattern paper squares along the bottom of the layout. so i trimmed an assortment of pasta fagioli pattern papers, into squares. these are all just under 3 inches x 3 inches. i want to say 2.85 x 2.85 or something, if you want to get really specific. lol! then i inked the edges of all the paper with a brown ink pad, and adhered them down. the inked edges really seperate all the patterns from each other.

 

next, i trimmed off a strip of the filmstrip pattern paper, and adhered it above the squares using pop dots. i used  a small hole punch to make a few notches on either end of this filmstrip piece. then i wrapped white string around the layout, about 7-8 times. the notches help keep the string in place, so that it doesn't slip off your finished layout. i added some corrugated flowers to the left side of the layout. for the center of the smaller one, i simply added mini silver brads to the center of a button and glue dotted it down. for the larger flower, i added a journaling sprout and a decorative brad to the flower using a pop dot.

 

i created this flower using my making memories slice and the basic elements design card. i choose one flower shape, and sliced it from kraft cardstock, pattern paper, and a specialty glimmer paper, all in varying sizes. i inked the edges of each flower, and bent the edges upward just a tad. i layered them all together, using lots of pop dots. then i arranged three of the sugar picks on top of the last flower (with a few glue dots underneath them), and then adhered a journaling sprout over the ends of the pins. this is an easy way to make sure the pins stay in place. a quick threaded button finishes off the flower. 

 

it was at this point, that i figured i should choose some photos and a title. lol! i had created the rest of the layout, without anything in mind. no theme, no story. so i dug around in my photos, looking for some that i wanted to scrap, and that would match my layout, and that had a story i could tell. i decided to go with a few photos of sarah that i took shortly after her 11th birthday. i went with the space i had left for photos, and sized my photos to fit that space. then came up with a title that would fit the space i had left, after adding the photos. it's all so random when i do it. but it comes together in the end :)

 

this looks pretty blurry to me. but if you click on the photo, it should come up larger and you can read the journaling.

supplies: pasta fagioli italian seasoning pattern paper by jillibean soup, pasta fagioli romano cheese pattern paper by jillibean soup, pasta fagioli meatballs pattern paper by jillibean soup, pasta fagioli clove fresh garlic pattern paper by jillibean soup, pasta fagioli shell macaroni pattern paper by jillibean soup, pasta fagioli blended beans pattern paper by jillibean soup, atomic soup minced molecules pattern paper by jillibean soup, pasta fagioli journaling sprouts by jillibean soup, blue corrugated alphas by jillibean soup, red corrugated alphas by jillibean soup, baked beans alphabeans by jillibean soup, red cool beans buttons by jillibean soup, brown cool beans buttons by jillibean soup, flowers corrugated shapes by jillibean soup, orange/turquoise sugar picks by jillibean soup, green/quartz sugar picks by jillibean soup, red/brown sugar picks by jillibean soup, brads by making memories

i also wanted to let you know about a great deal over at two peas in a bucket. i do my best to link all the supplies that i use, in case you want to pick it up for yourself. if you have been stashing anything in your shopping cart, now would be a great time to check out ;)

after a rough start this morning, it put a smile on my face to see this on 2peas. i know this changes often, and i just happen to get lucky on being on all three spots at once. but i'll take it and enjoy it. until more gorgeous projects take my place. lol! 

 

 

 

a halloween share and some links

first off, i have a little challenge up over on the little light studio site today. i'm sharing a few 15 minute halloween home decor projects that i created last year. and i'm challenging you all to try your hand at making a fun halloween decor project of your own, and share it with us. want an incentive? if you leave a comment and link us to your project, one lucky person will be chosen to have their project featured on the little light studio blog, and to be highlighted in the newsletter. that's cool, right? check it all out HERE. 

and while you're there, check out THIS post, about a fast and frugal fall family room makeover. it's simple touches, like tiffani shares, that can really add a lot to your home decor. now if only i had some fun, colorful leaves around these parts of california. or pine cones ;)

 

since we're talking halloween, i thought i would share a card i created this summer. yes, that's the beauty of working in the scrapbook industry. i was creating halloween cards in june. and now that it's halloween, i'm actually getting ready to work on summer stuff. lol! all product is from the toil and trouble collection by making memories.

 

i loved the spider web stamp, so i stamped it with versamark ink in the upper corner, and heat embossed it with some black glitter embossing powder. then i "hung" a glitter foam spider sticker from it. and i really love those glitter bling alpha stickers. i like how all the letters are different sizes, and fonts. and how some of the letters have a little bling on them.

supplies: toil and trouble pattern striped pattern paper by making memories, toil and trouble waving skeleton pattern paper by making memories, toil and trouble spider web pattern paper by making memories, toil and trouble clear stamps by making memories, toil and trouble trims by making memories, toil and trouble glitter foam shapes by making memories, toil and trouble epoxy glitter stickers, toil and trouble glitter bling alphas by making memories, zing black glitter embossing powder by american crafts  

treat bag tutorial - little light studio

i have a new tutorial that went up at little light studio today. i created a fun fabric halloween treat bag, using some fabric i've had laying around for years, my slice, and even my super old foam stamps. here's a small peek for you. head over HERE, to see step-by-step photos and full instructions :)

 

some making memories halloween shares + a winner

i just now remembered that i had said i would share my top product picks, when i announced the winner of 101+ creative ways to use your scrapbook supplies. but it's almost 1:00am, and i'm too tired to make my picks and write about them. lol! so i will have to get that over the weekend, or next week. i'm thinking my 10 favorite tools will be a good thing to cover too. so, on to the winner. the random number generator (who thinks it's 8:00am, but it's 1:00am here) has choosen:

 
Do I really have to choose?? What a hard decision.....I guess I have to go with patterned paper.....But that can always change! ;) Can't wait to get my hands on this magazine! Love your LO & Jennifer's ideas are always awesome!! Posted by: Sara Rossi | October 04, 2010 at 03:49 PM

congrats sara! email me your mailing address, and we will get that mailed out to you :)

 

i was really excited to see these lanterns up on the making memories site, and on the blog. i had such fun making these last month. i never tried putting lights inside of them. i just held them up to the window as i was creating them. so i loved seeing that they worked so well, and am thinking i might need to make another set to display in my own house. lol! you can watch THE VIDEO on the making memories blog, to learn how one of these was created.

 

i had shared a few 6x6 halloween layouts around CHA time. but in case you don't remember them, you can check them out HERE.

 

and here's another VIDEO, on how to create this fun halloween card. i thought the little paper doll pattern paper was so cute. takes me back to the days of punching out the dolls, and all the clothes, dressing them, and then pushing the little tabs down on the back to hold them in place. so cute.

MM vintage groove jewelry

have you heard the news? the vintage groove jewelry collection, by making memories, is now available at select michaels stores. this morning, i went to the modesto, CA store, and set up the display. so any of you local to me, go check out my handi-work. and the rest of you can check out this list, to see if there's a michaels store by you that will have the jewelry.

 
and for those of you that are not fortunate enough to live close enough to one of these stores, remember you can also purchase the collection HERE. after unpackaging and hanging up all that jewelry, i'm now feeling the urge to make something pretty of my own. might have to make a little time for that today ;)

slice kitchen frame project + winners

first up, the winners of the stampin up stamp sets. i used the random number generator, and it choose #8 and #26. congrats joanna and michele! email me your mailing addresses, and i'll get those sent out to you this weekend :)

I love the color book idea. It sounds like it would be super helpful. And thanks for doing such a neat giveaway! Posted by: JoannaG | September 22, 2010 at 06:10 AM

Love the detailed instructions you have provided on this layout. I love using stamps on my layouts...as you can see by my email address. Posted by: Michele Marshall | September 22, 2010 at 09:19 AM

yesterday, one of my projects went up on the making memories blog. i used my slice and the bon appetit design card, to create 3 fun little frames for the kitchen. you can see more photos of the frame set HERE, and even watch a video about how they were created. and in case anyone is wondering, the colorful frames are from target :)