A little diversion

We interrupt this onslaught of holiday-themed red-and-greenery to bring you...

...Easter?!

Yes, I know I'm getting WAY ahead of myself by posting spring-themed projects. But Imaginisce just released a brand-new collection: Hippity Hop. After four weeks of December Dailies, cards, tags, ornaments and holiday-themed layouts, it was a welcome change to play with something pink and blue and springy.

The idea for this layout came from a sketch I saw on the October Afternoon blog. When I saw the birdcage die-cuts, I thought they'd look cute hanging along some twine. Then I added some patterned paper flags, a canvas Maya Road banner and an Epiphany Crafts heart. The twine is hanging from two iTop medium brads.

 

I've had the mini clothespins for a while, but kept forgetting to use them. They were the perfect size to clip on the photos.

One of my favorite things about this collection is the kites. I hand-cut some clouds to play into the kite scene on this layout.

Be sure to "hop" over to the Imaginisce blog each day this week to check out more projects with this fun, new collection -- and a chance to win it all!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas

On my blog and in my craft room. The crafty projects are piling up...and I haven't even started the cards yet. (Uh oh)

Before the month flies by and everyone has O.D.'d on red and green, I figured I'd share a few of the projects I've been working on for the past few weeks.

This is a gift tag that I'm planning to attach to a wine bottle for a hostess gift. I used a Pretty Little Studio shipping tag and added some of the vintage embellishments, like a bingo card, train calendar tag, ornament journaling tag and small vintage tag. I finished it with a sentiment stamp from PaperTrey Ink.

A new ornament for my tree, using a Maya Road mega bottlecap and pleated ribbon, paired with paper, vintage tag and bingo card from Pretty Little Studio. 

And finally, a layout. (Yes, I still do layouts.) This one features the Imaginisce Santa's Little Helper line, with some iRock details on the ornaments and package.

The photos are from last Christmas -- by the time I got them uploaded, I was out of the Christmas mood and wanted to scrap other stuff. Now I'm happy I waited. It reminded me of how much fun Christmas morning is and I'm really looking forward to experiencing it again in a few more weeks. (Wow...really? A few more weeks?) 

I really need to get going on those cards.

Blessed

I have loved reading everyone's Facebook posts this month about what they are thankful for. I wish I'd been more on the ball and posted one of my own each day, but there's always next year, right?

With or without Facebook, the month of November always gets me thinking about the many ways we are blessed. It's overwhelming, really. I could probably write a book with all the big (and little) things in our life that I am grateful for. Hmmm...now there's an idea.

But back to the subject at hand...

I created this layout for an Imaginisce assignment about Thanksgiving. So many ways to go on this one, but I decided to focus on the relationship between my girls. Because watching them together, I can't help but feel blessed that I have them in my life. They teach me so much about myself and the person I want to be. And they inspire me every single day.

The other reason behind this assignment is the release of the new and improved iTop tool. If you've ever used the iTop, you know how addicting it can be. But you also know that the old tool had a bit of a learning curve. Getting the brads to shape just right was tricky. You'll be happy to know that Imaginisce has fixed this with the new tool. Not only is it lighter weight and easier to hold, the rubber heads that form the brads are much stronger and better at shaping the paper, fabric or whatever else you're using to cover the brad. Even the small brads that used to give me fits are a breeze with the new tool.

One of the things I've always loved about the iTop is that you can add texture to your layouts by covering brads with fabric or other materials. I used a scrap of Heather Bailey fabric and some bleached burlap to cover some small brad daddies and they became the tops of the banner. 

 Using brads makes it easy to wrap twine around each one to connect the pieces of the banner.

If the new iTop is on your holiday wish list, check out the deal at Oh My Crafts on the iTop Bundle. It's a great deal on a tool you will reach for over and over!

And now I'm off to pack for our Thanksgiving trek to the lake cabin. Many blessings to you and your family this week.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Outside the box

Are you an "outside the box" kind of person? If so, you should check out the challenge on the Imaginisce blog today: create a shaped layout.

I have to admit that I struggled with this one a bit. When it comes to layouts, 12x12 is my comfort zone. So coming up with a shape that wasn't a square or rectangle or circle was a little daunting. I kicked around several ideas, but here's where I ended up:

As I started pulling supplies, I came to the Bon Voyage collection, and I immediately thought of a suitcase. Not the new, modern hardsided roller bag. I'm talkin' about the old-school, worn leather box with the handle that's just a little smaller than your hand.


The shape is really pretty simple: a 9 1/2" x 12" rectangle with rounded corners and a smaller 4" rectangle with rounded corners (and the center trimmed out) for the handle. Then add the two strips of paper for the straps and build the layout from there.

I added some inking around the edges because a good suitcase always shows signs of the places it's been. And I finished it off with some luggage tag embellishments and a bit of twine on the handle.

By the way, if you're interested in trying out for the 2012 Imaginisce Design Team, the call is open now. It's a wonderful team to be a part of, and I've thoroughly enjoyed working with the talented women on the team for the past two years. I've decided to let my spot go this year, but I know that it will continue to be an amazing team and I'll definitely be an Imaginisce fan for life. Good luck to all who apply!

Hey, I CAN sketch!

I'm typically one of those scrappers who just starts throwing elements down on a page and moving them around until it "works." While I sometimes have an idea in my head for where things should go, I never commit it to paper. Frankly, I've just never been that organized.

But this month, Scrap-Friendzy asked each of its Design Team members to create one original sketch for the January Sketch-a-Thon. My first thought was to take the easy way out and sketch something I'd already created. But that would be cheating, right?

So I figured "what the heck?" and created a sketch. Don't laugh.


Aside from the goofy bird, I'm pretty happy with it. And it worked perfectly for some photos (taken by Jacqueline Reitz) that I'd been struggling with.

See, there was a reason for the goofy bird after all! :)

Most of the materials are from Imaginisce's new Lucy Bird line, which is full of bright, flowery prints and, of course, birds. I personally love birds, so I decided to have some fun with it.

For those of you keeping track, we're up to sketch #17 on Scrap-Friendzy's Sketch-a-Thon, and I'm offering a RAK for one lucky scrapper who completes this sketch. Check out Scrap-Friendzy's "Sketch-a-Thon" forum (click on Sketch #17) for more details on how you can be in the running.

Thanks for stopping by!