Belle Papier {pretty paper}

Grab your coffee! I don’t usually write so much but…this is going to be one of those longggg posts.First of all…I’m super excited that the Scrapblocks release day has finally arrived. Here they are, almost as large as life. Scrapblocks are 6″ x 6″ square unmounted red rubber and are perfect for cards, altered projects and scrapbooking.

Vintage Text Scrapblock

Stitches Scrapblock

You can find these Scrapblocks in the CHF store: Vintage Text, Stitches Scrapblock

The Challenge:

I’m back with another Ways to Use it Challenge today. This week we’re focusing on a look that I think it big in the industry right now…text. It’s amazing how many places it is popping up. What’s it inspired by? I’m not quite sure as it is a great vintage trend as well as looking great on more graphic style designs. Perhaps all the interest in fonts and the computer generation has brought it to light. However you want to use it…it’s a great look. Use text as a background layer, stamp on it, add a definition block, use a vintage book, computer generate your own…use it however you wish and have fun with the challenge! Check out the details here.

 The Project:

I love scrapbooking and altered projects. Frequently though…I’m so short on time, I just stick with cards. The solution? Make a small mini-album. This little album is only 4″ x 4″ square but I’m just bouncing as I had so much fun making it. Ever done that? Create a project that you’re thrilled you finally got a chance to make? This is it for me.

This little album may be small but it’s packed full of love…it’s a mini album of all five of my babies. The really fun element in this project for me was all the clear elements. The covers of this project as Zutter Acrylic Covers. I stamped on them with my Vintage Text in Stazon Ink. I used the Text to tie the project together. Text is a great versatile look and it really doesn’t matter what it says…it’s all about the style.

Quick Tip: Crystal Accents and other dimensional glazes are great adhesives for Clear Card Sheet projects.

Inside my book, I alternated binding pages of stamped Clear Card Sheets cut to 4×4 size and patterned paper. On the paper pages, I adhered a 3×3 picture of each child, keeping it simple because of the mini size. The Clear Sheets are where the fun is. They are each stamped with a different Scrapblock or Backgrounder for a little variety. These pages hold the info and embellishing…an initial and birth date of the child. I love the way they give a peek at the baby underneath.

and so on….

Supply List:

Stamps: Sweet Bee (The Rummage Bin line), Vintage Text Scrapblock, Stitches Scrapblock, Sophisticated Swirl Backgrounder, Spanish Script Backgrounder by Cornish Heritage Farms

Ink: Black Stazon by Tsukineko

Paper: Patterned Paper by MME, Clear Card Sheets by Cornish Heritage Farms

Other: brad by Making Memories, flowers and lace by Prima, bling by Basic Grey, dymo label maker,  chipboard by American Crafts, Zutter Bind-it-all

And finally….

The Winner:

Thanks so much everyone for your wonderful ideas for using the Scrapblocks. They are really so versatile.  I used the random.org integer generator to pick one lucky winner….number  62  .   Tracey Gordon, that’s you!  Congrats! Please e-mail me with your address and I’ll get that rubber in the mail.

Thanks for stopping by and thanks for staying with me through a very long post!

Julia

It’s my third day of sneak peeks for the Ornamental Beauty set. To date I’ve shown you two different card designs and so, today I wanted to show you something a little different. While this set is lovely for making cards, I really wanted to make this set very flexible for scrapbooking as well.I love incorporating stamping on scrapbook layouts. One of the hang-up that a lot of scrapbookers have is worrying about not stamping a great image the first time around. The CHF stamps are beautiful deeply cut red rubber and you shouldn’t have to worry about a poor impression, but if you do…you’ll find that a lot of the stamps are great for stamping on layers before adding them to your design.

 Beauty

Now I have to apologize. It seems as though I’ve really gotten into a pink groove over the past few days. I’ll be sure to mix up the colors for tomorrow’s post! To create this layout, I used four of the stamps from my Ornamental Beauty set. One of them, you’ll have a hard time seeing in this picture as I stamped it all over some SEI metallic sheened paper and then covered most of it up with my photo and other goodies. Sometimes that happens when you just go with the flow when creating.

I mentioned the other day that the big ornate medallion image was one of my favorites. This Life is Beautiful is my other one. I simply stamped it onto some grey SEI paper and added small touches of color with my Copic Markers for a quick accent piece.

I admit it…I always struggle with the journaling. This little journaling stamp makes it easy to make the journaling pretty but keep it small and very doable. You may also have noticed my creative spelling of the title, Beauty. I totally ran out of y’s , so why not put an accent over the e for a unique look? Works for me!

Quick Tip: If you love the look of die-cut paper but don’t have a sheet that is what you are looking for in style or color, create your own. For this design I traced a large shaped piece of patterned paper unto the back of this beautiful glittered paper for my own custom look.

Have a beautiful Sunday!

Supply List:

Stamps: Ornamental Beauty (The Rummage Bin line) by Cornish Heritage Farms ..release date Tuesday

Ink: Rich Cocoa Memento Ink by Tsukineko

Paper: white cardstock by Prism, patterned paper by SEI, stapler, sewing machine, ribbon, crocheted flower by Imaginisce, chipboard by American Crafts, flowers by Prima, chipboard letters by Basic Grey, paper to trace outline - Making Memories

The holidays are such an important part of our lives. A time of celebration. A time of family and friends and food and traditions. A time for decorating and a time for giving. These special times deserve a place in your scrapbook and that is what today’s scrapbook challenge is all about. Usually I challenge you everyone week to a layout challenge but today we’re putting a little different spin on it and making the challenge about the holidays. Scrap your favorite holiday tradition or ornaments for this challenge. I know it will be something that you and your family look back at over the years and cherish the memories.

Kim, Carole, & Lesley have created beautiful layouts for this challenge. Check them out!

Holiday Cheer

Now in a household full of so many rambunctious Y chromosomes,  I don’t have too many special decorations for Christmas. Those boys seem to come hard-wired for destruction. I’ve tried, yes I have, but have finally given up and our tree is now decorated with ribbon, lights, bows and UNBREAKABLE ornaments. In short… nothing special! LOL I do have a few things I really love though that I keep on a counter way out of range… this darling little ceramic snowman that holds a tealight inside. My mom gave it to me and I often light it during the holidays on the counter while I bake and get ready for Christmas.

This simple layout uses just a small amount of stamping to add details to the design. The dark brown cardstock actually looks black in the photo but I love the warm cozy look with the blue, white and silver accents.

Quick Tip:  Stamp a Scrapblock™ onto a Clear Card Sheet to make a mat for your photos.

Wishing you some holiday joy!

Supply List:

Stamps: Pin Dot Scrapblock™, Heart Warmers(Kim Hughes line) by Cornish Heritage Farms

Ink: White Stazon by Tsukineko,  Black by Stewart Superior

Paper: Brown and blue cardstock by Bazzill, patterned paper by Basic Grey

Other: silver paint dabber by Ranger, Clear Card Sheet by Cornish Heritage Farms,

Yikes it’s been a while since I last scrapped! I’m so thankful for these challenges that help give me a push. Once I get started I’m always having so much fun and thinking…why HAVEN’T I done this in SO long! This is a layout sketch I designed for this challenge. We’d love you to play along so please…take up the challenge! We have a few more samples for you using this layout so take the time to check them out as well…

Lesley, Kristine

Here’s my layout using the sketch for inspiration. I followed it fairly closely using a love theme for my niece’s wedding photos.If you look closely you can see one of the latest CHF Scrapblocks, Distressed Grid. I’m especially excited about this Scrapblock™ as I designed it. My first CHF stamp! So fun! I thought it would make a great “anchor” for scrapbooking layouts as well as adding texture to cards and altered projects. It’s also stamped on the painted grungeboard heart.

LOVE.

The other stamp set I used to create this layout is the new Wedding Centers stamp set. I just love the beautiful phrases and sentiments and they were perfect for this layout. LOL I just realized that even though I created the project I showed you yesterday and today’s layout almost two weeks apart…they both use the same quote. Sorry about that. I usually like to try and mix things up a bit!

Quick Tip: To improve photos that are less than perfect, do some digital photo editing. Crop close to limit distracting backgrounds. I also used the Dodge tool on these photos to fade out the background elements  that were taking the focus off the special couple. This also works great in eye areas that can be really dark when shot in strong light.

Happy scrappin’!

Supply List:

Stamps: Distressed Grid Scrapblock™ by Cornish Heritage Farms, Wedding Centers (Mona Lisa Moments line) by Cornish Heritage Farms

Ink: Black Palette Ink by Stewart Superior, Rich Cocoa Memento Ink by Tsukineko

Paper: cardstock by Bazzill, French Market paper by MME, Basic Grey

Other: circle punch, rhinestones by Doodlebug Designs, chipboard letters by Chatterbox, pin by Fancy Pants Designs, felt bird by Maya Road, flower and velvet trim by Prima, Worn Lipstick Distress Crackle Paint, grungeboard heart by Tim Holtz for Ranger

My husband came running in the house Monday night telling me to grab my camera. Now this is not an ordinary occurrence…he usually shuns the thing but after a day of rain, there was the most stunning rainbow I have seen in years.Across the road and fields of Fall wheat this rainbow was just radiant and spanned in a complete arch from side to side. There was no way to capture it with my camera as my lens is not wide-angled. Here’s one of the few pics I managed to take right before my camera battery died.

Now image my surprise this morning to wake up to everything well-blanketed with snow! Hmmmm…are those costumes for Friday night going to fit on top of snowsuits?! I totally can’t believe it because I had the boys standing out waiting for the bus for a long time. The delayed the bus by two hours. What a day!

Now as for the layout part of the post…it’s layout challenge day again.

We’d love to have you join us for this layout sketch challenge! Jennifer Roach has also created a sample for this layout…check it out here!

The Story of Us

Thanks for stopping by! Have a wonderful Wednesday!

So I’m done! Wow!Where did four weeks go? I am incredibly glad I took this digital course! So if you want a resounding recommendation…I want to sign up for each and every Jessica Sprague class that comes up! If you’re new to my ramblings…I’m just finishing up my second Jessica Sprague on-line digital class called Now You’re Rockin with Photoshop. Very aptly named…this class rocks! I’ve also completed Up and Running with Photoshop which is now a self-paced class you can take anytime. So….why do I think these classes are so fabulous?

• Very reasonable and affordable
• Each class has four lessons and layouts that teach you a myriad of things
• each class builds on your knowledge
• each class is taught in video and audio format…you can listen to Jessica teach while watching EXACTLY every step she makes on the computer to get the results
• Weekly extra assignments reinforce your knowledge and challenge you to design your own layouts
•  Each class builds knowledge at a great pace…enough to challenge you but not enough to overwhelm
• Daily e-mails from Jessica Sprague
• Great mini book tutorial links each week
• Forums and Gallery to share and ask questions…I’ve always gotten the support I need
• Free digital downloads come with each lesson that you can use again and again
• Jessica teaches lots of great hints and shortcuts
• Lots of photo editing tips
• You can see the class taught in either Photoshop Elements or in CS, CS2, C3s versions
• You always have access to the class tutorials so that if you forget, you can always come back and relearn your skills
• links to great digital scrapbooking sites and many times great coupons

Summer Evening

Lesson Four Layout - this is a double spread layout…to see the detail, click on the image

{love} week four Wed. assignment

WALL-E just a quick fun layout

Quick Tip: Digital elements can be used over and over again. Did you notice that layouts 1 & 3 and 2 & 4 use the same flourishes?

Just in case you think I sound a little TOO effusive…I am not affiliated with Jessica Sprague in any way…just a huge fan! I’d been dabbling in digital (self-taught) off and on for about a year. It took FOREVER for me to learn each little thing by trial and error. When I think of the time I’ve wasted…sigh. I’ve learned so much in a few short weeks that I know this is one hobby I’ll be enjoying for a long time to come. If you’re interested in “growing you skills”…this is a fabulous place to start!

While I’ll always be an ink and paper girl… maybe, just maybe, I’ll be a bit of a digi girl too.

Have a fabulous day!

A little peek into my world…..

Some digital designs for you today that I’ve created over the past couple weeks…the first two, I was just playing around trying to put my newly learned skills to practice. If you’re having trouble reading the journaling, you can click on the photos to enlarge.

Quick Tip:  Don’t be afraid to try something new! Take a class, ask a friend, search the web. Never stop growing.

the little things

a layout about my friends’ daughters on the beach…

I found some digital photos from three years ago and just had to create a layout. Isn’t he precious?!

Sweet Cherish

Saturday 30 min Start to Finish assignment: October 5th

Class 3 layout: Sweet Days

Just a little peek into my world. Enjoy each moment of yours!

It’s time for another scrap layout challenge! I know you’ve been seeing a lot of digital layouts I created lately but this one is mostly paper. Actually…it’s a hybrid layout, a little digi trick, papercrafting and stamping too. This week the layout is a fun simple design to highlight a special photo. I thought it was the perfect layout to scrap this beautiful picture of my friend’s daughter. To make the layout work better for this layout, I simply flipped the layout vertically. Lesley Langdon designed this layout sketch for us this time and she has a great sample as well here. I hope you’ll play along with us.

Here’s the layout..sorry…you’ll just have to picture the outline of the layout. White on white doesn’t quite work.

 {emily

Quick Tip: Just because the sketch is fairly simple, don’t forget you can add your own embellishing and stamping to break up the design and give it your own style.

Design Notes:

• Brushed on layer of Distress Crackle paint gives you a place to “ground” your image and embellishments.
• Journal on a stamped Scrapblock­™ area
• ink up part of Scrapblocks™ to get a faded in and out look
• pair up unusual combos such as reds and purples for a rich, unique look
• If you look close I added a digital paper element over the top of the photo background. You can do the same thing with stamping using a mask over the face and stamping a Backgrounder in White Stazon ink.
• This photo had a date stamp on it. I covered it up with a flower to prevent it from taking away from this beautiful photo.

Thanks for stopping by!

Supply List:

Stamps:
-Aged Sheet Music Scrapblock™ by Cornish Heritage Farms
-Vintage Ledger Scrapblock™ by Cornish Heritage Farms
-flower and beautiful sentiment from Beautiful Stamp set (The Rummage Bin) by Cornish Heritage Farms
-quotation from Motivational Centers (Mona Lisa Moments line) by Cornish Heritage Farms

Ink:
-Black and Burnt Umber Palette Ink by Stewart Superior

Paper:
cardstock by Prism
-KI Memories lace paper

Other:
-ribbon by Prima
-flowers by Prima
-chipboard by Fancy Pants Designs
-chipboard letters by Basic Grey
-brad by Making Memories
-rhinestones by Doodlebug designs
-stapler

Well…this is NOT a football post. Actually this is a milestone for me. Today is our 19th anniversary and we’ve been married half of my life. I guess that gives my age away but I’m really not one of the people who hide it. While we’ve had hard times, we’ve had lessons, we’ve also had many, many joys that far outweigh them. I know I am incredibly blessed.

the better half

OK I will admit this “recent” photo is a couple years old. I really wanted to create this layout today to remember my thoughts and I just couldn’t find anything more recent of us together.

Take care!

Happy Thanksgiving to all my Canadian friends! We’re enjoying an absolutely gorgeous fall day here. I’m busy with the turkey stuffed and in the oven, the squash and the pies baked and am just starting to work on some salads and veggies. Yummm! I was hoping to have a Thanksgiving card to share with you today but a busy weekend just seemed to fly by! Instead, I just thought I’d share a “blast from the past” with you today. A design I created two years ago for the Dirty Dozen Gallery. I’m thankful for so much today! My family, my husband, my home, a relationship with God, plenty to eat, my health, my job and being able to do what I love. Truly I am blessed!

Time to Give Thanks

I’ve made my Dutch Apple Pie yesterday…yummmm and some pumkin pie too. I thought I’d share another requested recipe I get for special occasions…Raspberry Cream. I’ve made some alterations to the original recipe to make it fit our family. Even if you don’t have a large family…make it big anyway! You’ll want leftovers!

 Raspberry Cream

3 - 3oz packages of Raspbery gelatin

2.25 cups boiling water

3/4 cup sugar

2 cups Frozen raspberries

2 cups small marshmallows

1 large tub of Cool Whip

Dissolve gelatin in boiling water in medium large bowl. Add sugar. Stir to dissolve. Stir in frozen raspberries. Chill until syrupy stirring a couple times. Fold in marshmallows and Cool Whip. Pour into serving bowl. Chill.

* * * * * * * * * * *

We’ve been having a fabulous weekend. Spent a lot of the day Saturday on the lake. On Saturday’s, as part of the Jessica Sprague Now We’re Rockin class, she challenges us to create a 30 min. quick layout. This week it was to design a layout featuring photos you took on Saturday on the theme, this makes me happy. Here’s mine…

Happy

I hope you’re having an absolutely wonderful day!