Thank you bouquet

My friend has been spending a lot of her time (happily, I’m glad to report) driving my son around to different events. I have been very thankful for the extra set of wheels to get him where he needs to go. I made a quick and simple bouquet out of one of our early spring flowering shrubs and wrapped it up with some ribbon and a tag. Easy, easy.

Recipe
stamps, cardstock, punch: Stampin’ Up
ink: Tsukineko
markers: Copic
die cut machine: Cricut
other: ribbon, jump rings

I keep a supply of various size tags that I cut out on my Circut. This allows me to grab a tag, stamp and go when I need a really quick accent for something.

Convention & Contest

My daughter and I went to CKC this past weekend and we had a really good time. We haven’t really done too many mother-daughter specific activities, so this was special. Ignore my goofy smile. This photo was taken on my cell phone which has an abysmal lag so we never know when it will really take the photo. Any hints on improving the Android system phone would be much appreciated (and I did try downloading some different photo software with no luck)

While at the show I got a few things done. Not as much as I would have on my own, but it was more fun to have company there this year. I don’t have any scrappy friends so every year I go alone. So again, this year really was special! Check out the layouts I go finished for my kids’ October layouts.

For this first one I chose a bunch of girlie products and went with The Paper Variety’s current challenge prompt of Tic-Tac-Toe

I used the bottom row with stitching and a die cuts (flowers) on a layout.

And here are my next two pages. Just simple pages that captures the photos and stories.

September layouts

And here is September… my favorite layouts since they bring me many happy memories of a warmth while I am in the midst of our typical cold dreary winter.

This brings us up to date with what I have finished of my layouts from 2012. I will post the rest of the year as I get them done. I will likely finish up at the Creating Keepsakes Convention event I am soon going to. I am especially excited this time as my daughter just turned 10 and she wants to go with me. We will see how much scrapping I actually get done now that I have someone to hang out with at the convention!

August Layouts

And now for August layouts! For these I used collage prints in a couple of ways. I am a fan of 8.5 x 11 photo collages but that doesn’t mean all my layouts need to be the same. You’ll notice that I used the collage prints in a number of different ways.

This first one I did not fill up the entire 8.5×11 space with photos. I varied the sizes of each photo to allow uneven borders around the edges. I then cut them apart, lined them right up against each other and outlined each photo with a pen to add definition to the collage.

For this next one I just left the collage print alone with its simple white border and I used the entire space to fill with photos for an even border all the way around.

And finally, I used the uneven outside border style from the first photo but an even border between photos. Instead of leaving the white photo border I cut the prints apart and layered them on a piece of patter paper for a more interesting photo mat.

July layouts

Another run of layouts for you. These ones are from last July.

For this one I purposely took a photo of my daughter standing in the exact same place at a vacation spot that she had stood 5 years previously. I also took a photo of my youngest daughter who was the same age as my middle daughter in the “then” photo. I plan on using those two photos for a “you and her” sister layout at some point.

And this one is a super simple layout with a photo collage and some journaling labels made using my new EK Success label punch. So easy! I just wish “moments” could have been split up better. Ah well.

And for this one I pulled out a bunch of stamps. I haven’t used stamps as primary elements on a page in a very long time. I rather enjoyed it. I think I may have to try and get more stamping into my layouts.

Layouts 2011

I have more of my kids’ layouts from 2011 for you today. This time we are covering June. For these I just used bits and pieces from kits and other projects that I never got around to using. Just some simple layouts that get the job done!

Wedding Card

My husband and I are going to a wedding at the end of March and when The Paper Variety’s challenge photo came up, I thought now is the time to make that wedding card!

I took two pieces of inspiration from this photo: the marriage theme and the color green. The actual wedding invitation’s theme of hydrangeas gave me the other piece of inspiration for this card.

Recipe

card size measures 5.5 by 8.5!
die & machine: Sizzix (paper sculpting lilac die)

cardstock, chalk: Stampin’ Up
stamps: Stampin’ Up (sentiment), Hero Arts (background)
ink: Ranger
glue stamp pad: Tsukineko
glittter flock: Hampton Arts
ribbons: Stampin’ Up (grosgrain, sliver cord), stash (sheer)
sealant: Krylon
other: stick

I re-purposed the lilac die from Sizzix into a hydrangea. I cut 4 of the base lilac shapes and trimmed them down to a more circular shape then overlapped the four circles to build a much larger circle. I hid the seams on the large circle using the many small flowers cut with the die. I cut the smaller flowers with a purple cardstock, chalked the edges a different shade of purple and chalked the flower centers a light blue shade. This gives the flowers more depth. I just kept layering on flowers of different sizes to add depth and then I sealed with a matte sealant spray. For the background I used my glue ink pad to ink up a leafy type background stamp really well. I quickly added sparkle flocking to the glue to give it texture and shine. Once my background was dry I adhered it to my card. I then glued the real stick in place and added the flower head over the stick using multiple layers of foam adhesive. I tied on some lovely ribbons for elegance and stamped my sentiment on a flag shaped tag. I chalked the edges of the card and flag for a final touch and adhered everything together.

Try re-purposing your dies to make a shape different than what they were originally intended for!

Valentines Donation

I am the leader of a 4-H club and we do several community service projects every year. This time we created cards for Valentine’s that we will donate to a Assisted Living Facily. I made a few sample cards for the kids to see from the selection of materials I chose. Here were my examples…

And here is what the kids came up with…

Supplies: card bases, big box of paper scraps, heart punch, scallop punch, paper trimmer (and due to requests a circle punch and a flower punch). It is pretty easy to craft with kids if you give them a finite collection of materials to choose from.

Retirement Card

I got word in the mail last week that our dentist has decided to retire. She ran a one-woman dental office with very personal service. The staff has been fabulous and knows us by name and asks about our kids and our vacations. It is sad to have her go but know that she has given much service over the years. I decided to make her a happy retirement card and turned to The Paper Variety’s current sketch challenge to come up with my design.

Check out the sketch

And my interpretation…

Recipe
stamp, cardstock, blue pattern paper, paper flowers: Stampin’ Up
punch: Martha Stewart Crafts
resin flowers: Making Memories
pearls: Want 2 Scrap
ink: Ranger
other pattern papers: stash

I scaled the sketch down to fit the size of a card and eliminated a few elements to prevent overcrowding. As you can see I replaced the stars with flower elements for a feminine feel and I chose colors and patterns with a more vintage feel since her whole office was decorated in vintage items: doll houses, curios and wall papers. I will drop it off in her office for the staff to deliver to her as a new dentist has already taken over her practice. Here’s hoping the new dentist is just a nice!

Super Quick Valentines

My kids are not thrilled with the typical Valentine’s cards for kids that get exchanged every year. This year we decided to forgo the work and paper waste of Valentine’s cards and cut to the chase. The candy! So I pulled out a bunch of file folder labels, stamped them with a sentiment, had the kids sign them and wrapped them around some candy sticks to make them into little flags.

Recipe
Stamps, ink: Stampin’ Up
labels: 3M
candy: Pixie Stix

You could use traditional candy sticks for these little flags. You could also cut a triangle out of the end of the label to make it more banner like. Easy, easy!