A New Class

If you're looking for a one-of-a-kind handmade gift for mom this mothers day, why not join me in making this frame on April 26th at the Scrapbook Garden? It features Karen Russell's Honeydew collection, femine florals, and just a touch of sparkle, and is sure to make mom smile and know just how much she means to you. As always, there'll be munchies and give-aways, and we're sure to have fun hanging out together. Melissa is taking signups now, so call (714) 841-1801 to reserve your spot today! See you there!

I'm Diggin the Cardmaking Thing

Since the Itty Bitty Scrap Shack teamed up with Caardvarks, I've been scrapping outside my 12"x12" box, and trying my hand at cardmaking, and lo and behold, I'm diggin it! Who'da thunk? The current challenge at Caardvarks is to make a card featuring fruits or veggies. Here's my take:

If you haven't checked out Caardvarks yet, you totally should! There's some great talent over there, and they're also venturing out into the kit club world and their first kit is adorable! It's called Rainbow Sherbert and features lots of Sugar Coated cardstock from Doodlebug, and a one of a kind stamp designed by IBSS DT member Bethany along with all this other yumminess:

How much fun is that? Totally gonna get me one of these before they're all gone! And finally, the April kit is posted over at Itty Bitty. It's called Window Box, and it's full of Springtime goodness from Fancy Pants, another custom item...this time a transparency full of doodles designed by Bethany, Bazzill's In Stitchz cardstock, a needle and floss, and as always, an alterable item:

And here are just a couple of things I've been doing with it:

Aren't those big flowers from Petaloo just the cutest with their big ol' beaded flower centers? And the "In Stitchz" cardstock...how did I live without this?

Ok, I guess that's it for now. Check back for a photo of my next class at the Scrapbook Garden, it's gonna make a fantastic Mother's Day gift, so if you're local, you may just want to scratch that gift off your list early!

A Thousand Apologies!

To everyone who joined me for my tag book class this past Saturday at the Scrapbook Garden...The photo for page 6 in my instructions was the wrong one. Though the kits were fine, the photo that goes with the page was accidentally a duplicate of page one. As promised, here is a photo of how page 6 should look when it's finished:

As always, if you have any other questions regarding your class kit or putting it together, please email me at NicoleinHB@yahoo.com.

See you next time, and I'll try really hard to get the instructions right! hehe.

New Challenge at IBSS!

Got this straight from the horse's mouth:

SHACKIN' UP WITH THE DESIGN TEAM

Here at Itty Bitty Scrap Shack, we think our Design Team is the best! If you think so too, then have we got a contest for you! Here's how it will work: Every week beginning March 30th we'll highlight a different Design Team member for you to scraplift. It's YOUR job then, to browse that DT' member's gallery and choose a layout that you *love* and scraplift it. You will be given an entire week to lift as many as you like, and post your versions in the contest gallery Then we'll all vote as a community for the winner (similar to how we've voted for the other big contest. This time, you will have a week to vote! Meanwhile during that voting week, another DT member will be announced and round 2 begins! Throughout the week following the deadline, The entries will be judged according to the number of comments left by your fellow scrappers, and then a final vote via PM to the famous IttyBittyJudge. At the end of the voting period, the contestant with the most number of votes will win a CUSTOM LAYOUT designed by that week's featured Design Team member! There will be 7 Design Team Members so that's 7 chances to win. You can participate in every round, 5 rounds, 2 rounds or one round, it's up to you! The more you play, the more chances you have to win! This is sure to be a lot of fun, so mark your calendars for March 30th and join us, won't you?

How fun is THIS gonna be?!?

Poor, Neglected Blog

March has been a crazy-bizzy month, yo! No time for a blog post in eons, but the big stuff is slowly winding down, and hopefully I'll be able to start getting back to my daily life and the fun stuff, like creating, blog posting, and actually getting out of the house for some girl time!

Here's a layout I made for the final part of my TOTW on transparencies and overlays over on the Itty Bitty blog. It's built on one of those thick transparency sheets that Hambly makes, and it was really quick and easy!

I'm also looking forward to playing with the Itty Bitty April Kit this week, called "Window Box" and will start sneaking a couple peeks when Tiffany's not looking...soon! There are some yummy custom surprises in this kit, some stuff I've never seen anywhere else, and I can't wait to share them with you! (I just love that about the Itty Bitty Scrap Shack kits!) The message board over there is totally off the hook busy, and there's always a challenge to be found to spark the creativity. Check out this list of what's happening over there right this minute:

•6-Week Sketch Challenge: A new sketch every week by our talented community and

design team members.

•Jen's J Challenge: Use the letter J in your title!

•Sara's Movie Inspiration Challenge: Create a layout inspired by a character, quote, or

movie title.

•Cards with Stickers Challenge: Yep, we're diggin' into that stash and making CUTE cards!

We're down to the top 3 finalists in the "So You Think You Can Scrap" contest, and the final challenge is one where the finalists will really be able to shine and show their true colors as scrapbookers. This is so exciting! Be sure to come over and vote for the winner, it's going to be an unbelievable difficult decision, as each finalist is super talented and unique!

And once that's wrapped up, it's onto the next big thing...Shackin' Up with the Design Team! There's always something shakin' at the Shack, that's for sure! Stay tuned for details on this one, you won't want to miss it!

March Kit Eye Candy

So after moving (and tearing) heavy furniture and cleaning long forgotten corners in the old apartment all weekend, I finally got to sit down and get messy with the IBSS March Kit last night. I just gotta say that the October Afternoon paper is quickly becoming an all-time favorite! The colors are rich and bold, and the patterns are classic and still fun! Here's what I finished last night:

The layout is based on a sketch from IBSS design team member, Bethany, that's posted in the "We Challenge You" forum over on the message board. I just *adore* how sketches really jump start the creativity, and get things flowing quickly.

Also, my Technique of the Week is up on the Itty Bitty blog, and it focuses on tranparencies and overlays...I had SO much fun with them! Check out the first part here, then keep checking back during the week for more ideas!

I swear I'm getting to the next Costa Rica trip post!

IBSS March Kit is UP!

And packed with awesome October Afternoon patterned paper and goodies! There are tons of diecut shapes and journaling spots, a bottle of the uber-popular Glimmer Mist, and lots of little flowers and embellishments. As always, an altered project is included with the kit, and this month it's a cute little chalkboard! Stop by the site today and check out all the awesome projects the design team made using this totally adorable kit! By the time you're done, I guarantee you're gonna want one!

Yay, Martha!

A friend of mine, Martha, has followed her heart and opened an online store called Scrapbook Deals 4 U this weekend! A message board is set up and ready to roll, and her first "introductory" kit is available for purchase. Look at this yummy Easter paper from Imaginisce:


She was sweet enough to ask me to join her design team, and how could I say no to that? So while you're surfing, pop over and say hello, we'd love to see you there! In the meantime, I've got some Easter photos to scrap!