Calling All Locals

Why not take a break from all the Holiday hustle and bustle and join me for an afternoon of scrappy fun this Saturday, December 19th at The Scrapbook Garden? We'll be making this cute holiday banner for you to display on your mantle or door this holiday season, and for many Christmases to come. This "NOEL" banner features gorgeous products from Basic Grey, Creative Imaginations, Prima and more. As always, there will be music and munchies...and of course, prizes!

This class is filling up fast, so call the Scrapbook Garden today to reserve your spot! See you there!

My December SD4U Kit Projects

This month, I designed with the SD4U "What's Cookin" Kit...and while it's not Christmas-y, it was still such a treat! This kit features two great paper lines: Nook & Pantry from Basic Grey, and Farm Fresh from October Afternoon. Check this baby out:

And while the lines really are geared toward cooking and recipies (which I have zero experience with, seriously...ask my hubby!), I was able to make some really cute stuff that wasn't cooking themed at all!

Mr. Sweet Cheeks: The title says it all, doesn't it? Have you ever seen more pinch-worthy cheeks in your life? Special shout out to my friend Alice for loaning me her new EK punch to make that great big blue scallop...I really gotta get me one of those!




Friends: This one was based on one of Becky Flecks fabulous December Pagemaps sketches. There's that great scallop punch again! The flower cluster on the journaling block was totally fun to put together using all the great embellies included in this kit: Glitter brads, BG layered flower stickers, BG Opal bling, and some yummy white Primas!



My Buddy: This one is based on a skech I found on a new sketch site called Sketch Inspiration. It's a fun little community with lots of scrapping talent and inspiration!



Pure Bliss: A step by step tutorial of this one can be found on the SD4U Message Board if you feel like scrapping! If not, stop by anyway and just say Hello! There's some great Xmas Inspiration being shared over there right now!

Card & Gift Box: I made this great little gift box in about 10 minutes! The box itself is from Creative Imaginations, and it's precut and scored already so all you have to do is tack it together! These would be so cute decorated for Christmas to hand out candy to your friends, wouldn't they?

On a side note, how's that Christmas shopping coming along? I haven't even started yet!

My November SD4U Projects

I decided to skip the sneaks, and get right to the good stuff!

This month I was thrilled to design with the "Sam" kit! I'd seen this paper in the LSS, and was dying to get my hands on some. I adore it's teal/brown/rust color combo, and of course...whoo doesn't love a cute little owl? When I ripped open my bag, I was blown away by what Martha paired this adorable paper line with...Prima swirlies & posies, a fun Bo Bunny chipboard alphabet, plus diecuts, rubons, and cute little felt doo-dads! What fun I had creating my projects!



Whoo's Cuter than You?: This was the first layout I made with a candid photo of my nephew in the middle of showing off some new talent he seems to think is pretty cool. I cut my paper into strips for this one, inked the edges with Chestnut Roan, and pieced it together. The subtitle is made using some rubons I had in my stash, and I used my cricut to cut the scalloped border. It's a little on the simple side, but really leaves the photo as the focal point, and I'm liking that!



Family: There's that new Prima swirlie I was talking about, isn't it gorgeous? For the background here, I used this great big Ellison die from my LSS to cut the cardstock into that fun shape. I mounted the title with foam dots for a little dimension, and punched that brown scallop strip using my Fiskars Apron Lace punch (still LOVE that punch!)



Cards: Is there a better way to use up paper scraps? Nope! For the "what's up" card, I used a little glitter to jazz up the sentiment, and then stuck on some little googly eyes on the owls...doesn't it just give them the cutest personality?

Lastly, I made this little mini album to show of the latest collection of pictures I've been snapping of my nephew when I visit every week. The book is made from a PineCone Press flip book that I got for $5 at my LSS that looked so fun to make. I did add a couple rhinestones from my stash, and a small rubon font, but everything else here is in the fabulous November kit!












Those of you that are getting this kit...I just know you're going to love it as much as I did! Have fun with it, and don't forget to share what you make with us in the Kit Layout Contest forum...you could even win a prize!

October Kit featuring Amber Road at Scrapbookdeals4u.com

Have I mentioned yet that I just LOVE the Amber Road kit? The color palette was a bit more muted than I'm used to working with, so I'll admit I was a bit intimidated at first glance. But the more I played with the patterned paper, the more I fell in love with it! And guess what? I ended up with some layouts that I really love when I might not have created otherwise...just another benefit of being a kit club member!

So here are the layouts I've been dying to share:





Beauty: This is a photo of my mother from high school, and I just thought it had the perfect nostalgic feel I was looking for in this layout, especially being black and white. And how gorgeous is this black and white prima rose? I layered it onto on of the sheer journaling spots in my kit, and cut the flourishes out of kit paper using my cricut...giving it the attention it deserves!





Grateful For You: Ok, I'll admit my fingers were about to fall off after cutting all this tree-flower detail with my craft knife. But when it was all said and done, I love the effect, and it was well worth the effort. I added the cute Jenni Bowlin red pearl clusters to the tree branches, I thought they looked like little cherry clusters :)





Tradition: This is my sister-in-law's Thanksgiving table...isn't is beautiful? For this layout, I used 4 of the journaling spots that come on an entire 12x12 sheet to create a paper strip along the left side of the page. Then I inked the fun fabric patch's edge with some chalk ink and frayed the edges before I tucked it behind the photo...I love the texture it lends to the layout!



And of course, a simple card with some of my scraps!

Whatever kit you choose this month, have FUN with it, and be sure to share your creations with us!

Five Fabulous Kits!!

Yep, you heard right! ScrapbookDeals4U is offering FIVE fabulous kits this month featuring FIVE fabulous must-have paper lines from FIVE fabulous maufacturers:

Kit #1 Features Cosmo Cricket's Snorkel line, just waiting for your summer beach and pool photos :

Kit #2 is stuffed full of the bright and cheerful "June Bug" collection by Basic Grey and is busting at the seams with coordinating embellishments:

Kit #3 features the bold, bright graphics of Scenic Route's "Garden Grove" collection:

Kit #4 is filled with the "Delight" collection by Fancy Pants, and the fabulously talented Kelly Goree has agreed to guest design with this adorable kit! Pop over to the message board later this week to see what she's done with it. It's sure to be inspirational and wonderful!

And finally, Kit #5 features the bright, beautiful "Cherry Hill" collection by my personal favorite, October Afternoon. And because I have friends in high places (thanks Martha), I was lucky enough to design with it this month!

I opened my kit, pulled out all the pretties, and from that point on, the layouts practically designed themselves! Everything in this kit coordinates so perfectly, making it easy to throw together wonderful pages in a snap! Here are my designs:

A Grandmother's Love is For Keeps: I just love this photo of my grandmother and my nephew, and in black and white it really pops off the colors in this kit, since they are mixed with black as well. I love the romantic feel of the dictionary background paper, and how cute are those teeny felt butterflies? I did add some tiny alpha's from a previous kit, and a couple of rhinestones from my stash...gotta use that stuff up!

The Wonder of it All: This is another favorite recent photo of my nephew as he stares out the back door longing for freedom. I wonder all the things he's wondering, hence the title. Everything here is in the kit, with the exception of the blue buttons I pulled out of my button jar. Isn't that yellow scallop border on the left side of the page super cute? I cut along the pattern of one of the papers in the kit, and voila! Looks just like one of those fancy punches, huh?

It's a Good Life: This is my brother, sister in law, and nephew on his first birthday...the paper in this kit is perfect for photos on a summer day in the park! And seriously, how cute is that die cut bird? Cool little FYI about the die cuts in this kit is that they're double sided, so no matter which way you want things to face, it's fine...just flip them over!

42...It's Just a Number: It's the mantra I've been repeating to myself since my birthday a couple of weeks ago...*sigh*. Really, I'm still 41 in this photo....don't tell anyone! I had to add some alpha's from my stash, after I ran out of e's...truth be told, I'm a major sissy when it comes to mixing alphabet fonts and colors.

And to celebrate the kids' return to school, SD4U is hosting it's own 3 week long back-to-school contest that sure to challenge and inspire you! It's called SD4U's Cramfest (like cramming a year's worth of classes into three weeks!!) and I promise it's going to be a ton of fun! Join us, won't you?

Getting Back on the Horse

I won't bore you with excuses about why I haven't blogged in over 3 months...suffice it to say things got a little hectic and something had to give. Things have calmed down a bit now, so I'm getting back on this horse I loosly refer to as my blog.

Ok, that being said:

SD4U has revealed it's August Kits, and they are awesome as usual! The first one features the Bloom & Grow line from My Mind's Eye, and to say this paper is beautiful is an understatement. Just look at this gorgeous kit:

The other kit features the super fun Summer Soiree line from Fancy Pants, and as usual it's packed with adorable, perfectly coordinated embellishments. Check it out:

What a blast I had playing with this kit! I'm really into orange right now, being summer and all, and this kit packed a punch of it. Paired with navy, yellow and red, the color palette screamed HOT, HOT, HOT...And HOT it is!

Here's how my one year old nephew is beating the summer the heat. He's at Sea World playing in one of those spicots that shoots a stream of water straight up from out of the ground. I think he was more impressed with the water than all the things that swim in them...sorry Shamu!

This is a shot of my Grandma sitting on the beach in Puerta Vallarta last April...man that beach is gorgeous! For this layout, I cut the sheet of journaling blocks apart and scrambled them all around the page so I didn't have to cut into each paper separately to get all the patterns in there.

This is my nephew again, playing in his new sandbox...it should get a lot of use this summer, he adores it!

And a quick little card...I'd been dying to try making one of those cute pinwheels I've been seeing all over. Aside from a poke or two on my finger from the paper piercer, it was pretty easy, and so cute!

If you decide on either on of these kits this month, I promise you're going to love either one!

Let's Make Some Cards!

Join me on Thursday, April 16th at the Scrapbook Garden for this fun class featuring greeting cards for several occasions including Hello, Birthday, Thank You, and Easter! The class will be from 6-8 pm and, as always, will include snacks and raffles while we play! Hope to see you there!

Besides your basic tool kit, make sure to bring the following supplies:

• Favorite Liquid Glue
• Chestnut Roan Chalk Ink
• Creamy Brown Chalk Ink
• Scissors
• Corner Rounder
• Black Detail Pen
• White Gel Pen
• Glue Dots
• Quickie Glue Pen
• Clear Star Pen (Stardust)
• Foam Squares or Pop Dots

Kazan's Sketch #23

2S4Y makes card making so fun and easy...I never get bored with it. And so does this new "Alyssa" patterned paper collection from BoBunny...isn't it fabulous? Something about pastel colors paired with black just looks so stunning, I never get tired of it. Here's my entry for this week's sketch:

I hand cut some of the flowers from the patterned paper, and added them onto the original flowers with little foam squares for some dimension. I added the teeniest bit of stickles onto the little dots around the flourishes for an understated touch of shimmer. The journaling spot is a CTMH stamp, cut out and mounted on black cardstock, then stamped with a Heidi Grace "thank you" sentiment.

As always, thanks for stopping by and taking a peek! :)

Laugh Everyday Card

I got a couple of samples of the super cute Cosmo Cricket "Girl Friday" paper while I was at CHA, and I finally busted out last night for this card based on Laura's Sketch #21 at 2Sketches4You:

The color combos is *so* up my alley with pink and green and soft blues...it's gonna be perfect for Easter! And lucky you...I hear it's coming to a SD4U kit very soon!

Also, it was a loooong time coming, but I finally updated my slide show at the left! Check it out if you get a chance :)

Gettin a little scrappy!

I've been dying to use the "Night Light" Collection by October Afternoon. I got it from my Secret Santa (Thanks, LY!!) for Christmas, but I got so busy in January and February that I never got a chance to play with it. So the other day I was over at Julie's site, 52 Sketches 52 Weeks, and was immediately inspired by this week's sketch, and finally grabbed my OA collection to make this cute layout of Clayton:

He's sportin' his dope new baseball cap, and these pictures just make me want to say..."Yo baby, wassup?".

I also played around with this week's Inspired Blueprints Sketch (#11) and came up with this layout of my homegirls and I:

I just love this quote I got from a Mini Book the girls and I made at our scrap retreat (Thanks again, LY...you're just so darned inspirational girl!).

I got NO cards, can you believe it?

I'm looking forward to the April Kit from SD4U...I heard there's Basic Grey and Bella Blvd involved...can you say "sweet"!!? In the meantime, there's lots of Birthday activity going on over on the message board! A challenge every other day until the 24th or so, plus games and prizes....fun stuff! Pop on over and take on a challenge or two, if you're not doing anything :)