Greetings from Clayton!

This one's for the family...

Isn't he just as cute as a bug's ear? Growing and learning everyday, and so much fun to be around. I'm so lucky to get to spend time with him every week...he really is the light of my life! He is obsessed with his cars and trucks, can't be bothered to eat much, and says at least 25 words or so. And check out those two teeth...finally!

xoxo,

Auntie and Clayton :)

SD4U January Kit Projects

If I'm being 100% honest, ME + MASCULINE paper = Total Panic!

I like a lot of it....it's pretty cool for the most part, sure, but give me some to scrap with and I get brain freeze...!! What? No flowers, hearts, cute little owls and NO pink? Oh NO!

So needless to say, when I first opened the Urban Ink kit, I was super intimidated. But after I found a few cute sketches and started cutting it all up, I was amazed how much easier these layouts came together than I expected! The patterns made the paper selections easy, and the colors look so great together, I totally ended up loving this line!


Unique: These photos belong to a friend of mine...they are photos her daughters gave her of themseles as a Christmas gift (what a cool idea!). I borrowed them because I wanted to do a layout that featured girls instead of boys, to show just how versatle this kit can really be. Aren't these awesome photos...grungy and edgy and perfect with this paper and those barbed wire rubons! Thanks Linda (and Kathy)!


100% Boy: I fell in love with the WRMK foil border sticker roll in this kit...totally adorable and easy to apply...not too sticky, but sticky enough! I covered the large chipboard star with some paper from the kit, sanded the edges, and backed it with another pattern...I love how it became a catch-all for embellishments and the epoxy sticker title.

My Handsome Hubby: These are a few of my favorite photos of my hubs. I cut the scalloped border with my apron lace punch (yep! still loving that thing!). "Handsome" is cut from Plantin and "My" & "hubby" are cut from my NEW Don Juan cartridge on my cricut, I just love that font! Instead of covering or painting the chipboard stars on this, I simply sprayed them with gold glimmer mist...fast and easy!


Read to Me: This is based on sketch #105 at Sketch Inspiration...their sketches are awesome and make getting started so much easier! The chipboard stars on this one were painted with a light blue acrylic paint, then inked with a combination of chesnut and charcoal. I love the versatility of chipboard, and how you can get so many different looks depending on the media you use. That's what scrapping is REALLY all about for me...getting messy and having fun!

Thanks for taking a peek, and please don't forget to share what you do with YOUR fabulous January kit over on the SD4U Message board...whichever one you chose! You could even win a prize :)

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?