In the background

I think I'm evolving. Not in the Darwin kind of way, but in the scrapbooker kind of way. I notice little things I do differently on my pages. For example, I've started to gravitate toward patterned backgrounds instead of plain cardstock. And even when I start with plain cardstock as a base, I have this innate need to do something to it -- mist it, stamp it, rough it up a bit -- before the layers start going down.

Case in point:

I started with french vanilla cardstock as a base, but I wanted a subtle background. So I used Versamark ink to stamp the medallion image as border for the rest of the elements.

It's subtle...maybe a little too subtle because it's hard to see in the photos. This is one that looks a lot prettier in real life.

In other news, I found out this morning that my layout "She" is featured on the Ormolu blog today! Check it out here.

F.R.A.K. (giveaway closed - winner posted)

It's Friday, and you know what that means...

This week's F.R.A.K. is a little shout-out to American Crafts, who very graciously agreed to sponsor one of the classes I'm teaching at the Great American Scrapbook Convention this summer. If you aren't already a fan of American Crafts, head on over to their Facebook page and "Like" them -- they do tons(!) of giveaways and Facebook is the best way to find out about them.

But back to MY giveaway:

I've put together a little package from the American Crafts Abode collection, which includes paper, Thickers and embellishments, along with a few extra buttons, flowers and measuring tape ribbon I threw in.

Leave a comment by 5 p.m. Central on Monday, February 27, telling me what you would do with this package of goodies. Be sure to include your email address in your comment if it's not already in your Blogger profile.

Good luck!


FINE PRINT: If you don't have an email in your blogger profile (or you aren't sure what I'm talking about), please be sure to leave your email addy with your comment. After 5 p.m. Central on February 27, I will randomly draw a winner from the comments  on this post and list the winner's name/ comment at the bottom of this post. I will also contact the winner by email if possible. If you live outside the U.S., you are welcome to enter, but I'll ask that you cover the extra postage cost. Thanks for reading!  

This week's winner is Cassie! 

 Congratulations, Cassie! Watch your email!

 

Ode to a short week

I had Monday off for President's Day, which made for a wonderful 3-day weekend. But even better, it resulted in a 4-day work week this week. And this is how I feel all weeks should be set up: 4 days on, 3 days off. Wouldn't the world be a lot happier with that arrangement? I know I certainly would. Maybe I should start a petition...

But back to blog business. Today I have a few more layouts to share from my scrapbook retreat weekend. These two were created with the February kit from JBS Mercantile.

I love the color combo in this kit -- rich primary colors with some grays mixed in. And all the circles! That vintage record reminded me of a sun peeking from behind a cloud, so that's what it became.

The vintage key is so cool -- my immediate tendency was to hoard it. But I loved it too much not to give it a happy home on a layout.

This is another that mixes in elements from the mini album kit and the artisan add-on. Most of these papers are from Studio Calico and they are gorgeous! I like the neutrals with just a pop of red here and there.

I used the Jenni Bowlin blue ribbon punch to make these flowers. I love that this punch is so versatile -- you can do a lot more than blue ribbons! I added an Epiphany Crafts Round 14 to the top of each flower for some shine and dimension.

I'll be back tomorrow with another F.R.A.K. See you then!

Staying positive

Positivity is the word I chose as my one little word for 2012. I talked about the reasons why and some of my goals in this post. But it's now February, and I don't have much to show for it. Well, that's not exactly true.

For the past few months, I've been pinning inspirational quotes on my Pinterest board. All kinds of memorable sayings that speak to me and the person I want to be. When I have moments of negativity, I remind myself of these sayings and they help bring some perspective to what's good -- actually great! -- about my life.

I've been thinking it would be fun to start a journal about the ways these quotes have inspired me to be more positive. So I built my own Positivity Journal for a feature on the Epiphany Crafts blog. (Check out the post for your chance to win the tool I used.)

It's a pretty simple concoction of chipboard, patterned paper, graph paper (for writing on) and images from Pinterest. To be clear, I did not invent any of these quotes or create any of the artwork. I simply pinned them, downloaded them and printed them onto photo paper. Then I added some patterned paper and stickers -- 'cause that's what I do -- and bound it all together.

And to give myself a little further structure, I created some tabs for the different sections using my Epiphany Crafts Shape Studio Round 25, layered onto a tab die cut (from Papertrey Ink).

 

There are six sections, and my goal is to write at least once a month for the next six months. Each month, I'll let a new set of quotes inspire me.

Thanks for letting me share my approach to one little word. But now I'd like to hear your approach. Did you choose a word for 2012? And if so, how are you keeping it top-of-mind?

Just curious.

Scrappy weekend

The scrapbook retreat was so much fun! Thanks so much to Kathleen, Amy and Karen for inviting me into their scrappy family. In addition to finishing two books and a lot of pages (maybe 10?), I now have a renewed appreciation for 80's music, heating pads and tiny ham sandwiches. You just can't put a price on that.

Here's one of the pages I did, using pieces of the March kits from JBS Mercantile. 

Some of the paper and embellishments were actually from the mini album kit, but they were screaming "layout" to me, and I just couldn't ignore the voices in my head.

I love how it came together. This photo absolutely melts my heart, so I'm happy that I turned it into a layout that does it justice.

I have a whole slew of other projects that need to be edited and posted, so they'll be making appearances on the blog for the next several days. Stay tuned!

Another F.R.A.K. (winner posted)

Happy Friday! And welcome to another FRAK (that's Friday Random Act of Kindness for the newbies).

Last week's FRAK  was so much fun that I'm going to keep on doing it until I run out of things to give away. (Which will be approximately, um, NEVER!)

So are you ready to see this week's FRAK?

This week, I'm giving away a big package from the Imaginisce Bon Voyage collection, including 13 sheets of double-sided patterned papers, 6 snag 'em stamps,
sticker stackers, canvas stickers, chipboard stickers and die-cuts. Disclaimer: some of the embellishments have been picked over, but there are plenty left to create some amazing travel or masculine pages. All the papers are full 12 x 12 sheets.

UPDATE: This giveaway is now closed. Thanks for your comments! The winner is:

Congratulations, Maria! I will email you for your shipping information.



FINE PRINT: If you don't have an email in your blogger profile (or you aren't sure what I'm talking about), please be sure to leave your email addy with your comment. After 5 p.m. Central on February 20, I will randomly draw a winner from the comments  on this post and list the winner's name/ comment at the bottom of this post. I will also contact the winner by email if possible. If you live outside the U.S., you are welcome to enter, but I'll ask that you cover the extra postage cost. Thanks for reading!

Looking forward

This week is dragging. I knew it would. That always happens when there's something to look forward to for the weekend. I'm heading out to a scrappy retreat -- my first in many years!

The girls I'm going with are so good at planning out what they want to work on and putting together all their supplies into matching kits, etc. Me? I'm just going to throw a bunch of stuff in a bag and hope I get there with something I can work with. It'll be a Tim Gunn "Make-It-Work" weekend. Hopefully, they won't kick me out.

Before I begin my packing frenzy, here are a few projects I created for Epiphany Crafts, but never posted.

I used the Epiphany Crafts metal settings with the Round 14 shapes to top the layered punched flowers on the banner. The silver settings add a very vintage feel to the page.

On this one, I used the Epiphany Crafts Square shapes in between the hexagon chipboard shapes from Pink Paislee. The square tool is so versatile for creating borders!


Be sure to check back tomorrow for another F.R.A.K. -- I think you'll like it!

Simply fabulous

Sometimes I think (okay, I know) I don't give my kids enough credit. Especially Cecily. As the second-born, she's subject to all sorts of comparisons to her older sister. It's usually unintentional. I don't mean to compare them, but it sneaks into my mind and I feel so guilty for it. They are two completely different children. I want to celebrate their differences, not compare them.

Supplies: Ruby Rock-It patterned paper and chipboard, Epiphany Crafts
felt flowers and Round 14 shapes, My Little Shoebox alphabet stickers,
October Afternoon mini alpha

This layout celebrates the Cecily I know and love. I jotted down five examples of what makes her amazing and unique -- little things that I think are simply fabulous and so completely Cecily. There are many more examples, but I will save them for another day and another layout.

And I will keep reminding myself that there is nothing that can compare to her.

XOXO Blog Hop (winner posted)

Do you feel the love? Only two more days until Valentine's Day, and to celebrate, Pretty Little Studio is having a blog hop, a one-day sale and lots of giveaways!

To shop the sale, visit the Pretty Little Studio store and enter the coupon code bemine to receive 14% off your order. This code is only valid today, February 12.

Now for my project. This is a very old photo of us, but it kind of fit with the theme of the layout. The days of the week flashcards were the inspiration, and it came together from there.

The most interesting thing about this layout is that it came together entirely from 4 x 4 sheets of paper. Except for the kraft cardstock and flashcards, all the other papers (including the heart shape and the vintage cutout) were from a Love Notes 4x4 paper pack from Pretty Little Studio.

I pieced together scraps around the outside to form a patchwork border, and I brought in more of the patterns with the flags on the left of the photo. 

Ready for some more lovey-dovey projects from the Pretty Little Studio girls?

Visit each of these blogs for additional Valentines projects, and be sure to leave a comment at each stop. Each of us will be giving away our favorite Valentines product from Pretty Little Studio.

Leanne Allinson 

Katie Cavanaugh 
Jen Chapin

Elise Lindsey 

Celine LeGuay

Robyn Schaub  YOU ARE HERE!
Irit Shalom

 Keri Babbit

Pretty Little Studio Blog

I'm giving away the Be Mine Shipping Tags. Aren't they adorable?!

And the winner is...

Congratulations!! I will be emailing you today for your shipping address!


I've had such a great time working with Melissa at Pretty Little Studio for the past few months, and I can't wait to see what the new designers do when they take over next month. There are so many exciting things in store at Pretty Little Studio...I know I'll be watching!

FINE PRINT: If you don't have an email in your blogger profile (or you aren't sure what I'm talking about), please be sure to leave your email addy with your comment. After 5 p.m. Central on February 13, I will randomly draw a winner from the comments  on this post and list the winner's name/ comment at the bottom of this post. I will also contact the winner by email if possible. This giveaway is open to international entries. Thanks for reading! 

F.R.A.K. (winner posted)

It's Friday!

And that means it's time for my first-ever FRAK! Here's what I have to send to one lucky blog reader today:

Apologies for the flash in the photo. I haven't been home during daylight hours any day this week.

This FRAK includes a full Cosmo Cricket Chipboard Alphabet, American Crafts Letterhouse fleece shapes, Basic Grey woolies, chipboard fruit tags, October Afternoon journaling die cuts, 2 sheets cardstock and 9 sheets coordinating patterned paper from Cosmo Cricket, October Afternoon, Basic Grey and 7Gypsies.

And the winner is...

Congratulations, Sue!! I'll be emailing you for your shipping address! (EDITED: Sue, please email me at robmab(at)yahoo(dot)com. Your email address is not going through.)


FINE PRINT: If you don't have an email in your blogger profile (or you aren't sure what I'm talking about), please be sure to leave your email addy with your comment. After 5 p.m. Central on February 13, I will randomly draw a winner from the comments  on this post and list the winner's name/ comment at the bottom of this post. I will also contact the winner by email if possible. If you live outside the U.S., you are welcome to enter, but I'll ask that you cover the extra postage cost. Thanks for reading!

Cleaning (and a tease!)

I've been on a cleaning kick lately. Not my house -- that's still a wreck, as usual. And my laundry...well, let's not even go there. But my craft room is getting a nice purging right now. I have way more stuff than I'll ever use, and I know there are scrappers out there who can give my things some love.

The main motivator for my purge was a local scrapbook garage sale last Saturday that I decided to join at the last possible minute (thank you, Shelley, for letting me in!). I spent a frantic two evenings throwing things into boxes, and I recruited my two best employees (Avery and Cecily) to stick on price tags. By Saturday, we were READY!

The sale went great, and I met some really wonderful scrappers that I hope to see again sometime soon. But I still came home with a lot of stuff. So once I have a chance to sort through it, there will be some giveaways a-happenin' on this blog.

Because I always work better with a schedule, I'm going to start a new feature called FRAK, which of course stands for "Friday Random Act of Kindness). And it's also fun to say. Try it: FRAK, FRAK, FRAK

See?

Be sure to check back here on Friday for the first FRAK and your chance to win a wonderful box of goodies.

In the meantime, I'll leave you with a couple of layouts. I had fun playing with the January kit from Jenni Bowlin and this fabulous Fiskars punch.

Journaling idea inspired by a layout I saw on Pinterest.

I love the pleated chiffon flowers...so soft and sweet!

And using the same kit, here's the full view of the layout I created for the Go Red feature on the Ella Publishing blog.

Hope to see you back here on Friday for the first FRAK!

Go Red!

Ahhh, the month of love is upon us. But February is more than paper hearts and boxes of chocolate...

February is National Heart Month, and Ella Publishing is celebrating with three days of heartfelt stories and projects leading up to National Wear Red Day on Friday, February 3. Learn more by visiting http://www.ellapublishing.com/blog.

Here's a peek at the layout I created:

The entire layout is up on the Ella blog today, so I hope you'll check it out. It's a very personal layout that deals with my struggle to lose weight -- something I haven't really talked about on this blog. I guess I've been afraid I would jinx myself or pull an Oprah and gain it all back. Which I might. But I don't think so.

The truth is: I am stronger. And not just because I created a layout that says that. I've learned some things about myself and about food that I will carry with me for a very long time. Hopefully forever.

But back to today. Or more specifically tomorrow. I have a special request for you:

Please join me tomorrow, Friday, February 3, in wearing red to bring awareness to heart disease in women. 

 Wear a red shirt, red ribbon, red lipstick, red shoes -- anything you have that's red! I know you will look FABULOUS!

Go Red for Women is a cause that is very near and dear to me. I know women that are my age or younger whose lives have been threatened or taken by heart problems. The fact is that more women die each year from heart disease than the next three causes of death COMBINED (including all forms of cancer).


I don't mean to get all Debbie Downer on you today. Just want to use any means available to make the women in my life (and that includes you, dear blog reader) more aware of their heart health. Get your check-ups, know the warning signs and take steps to live a longer life.


If you'd like more information on warning signs or how you can spread the word, visit the Go Red for Women website or "like" Go Red for Women on Facebook.