Oopsie

My brain doesn't work the way it used to. I blame it on having kids. Pregnancy and childbirth have been scientifically linked to the loss of brain cells. Really!

Aaaaanyway...

These are the three layouts I created with the Say Cheese kit from The Little Blue House.

I used the plastic rings in the kits as masks and sprayed over them with Maya Mist to create the background.

See the wooden camera piece? I created that patina effect by first misting it green and then pressing it onto a black stamp pad.

Fun and quick layout using the Sn@p collection from Simple Stories and layering my Instagram photos onto the printed frames. 

These Maya Road banner pieces were fun to layer with papers and fabric.

I struggled with this one a bit because the "Say Cheese" title was originally a deep golden yellow and it just wasn't working for me. So I misted over it with blue to get more of a turquoise color. It was a "Make It Work Moment" in my craft room.

 

I've been playing with paint droplets lately. The trick is to dilute the black acrylic with a tiny bit of water to get a nice fat drop. I haven't mastered it yet, but I'm getting better.

I had some ribbon scraps left over, so I stapled them around the paper clip.

I seriously thought I'd posted these, but no. Never happened. Sorry about that. Better late than never, I guess.

Have a great weekend!

Life documented

Sometimes I look at the growing collection of scrapbooks on my shelf (and the growing stack of pages waiting to be put into said scrapbooks), and I think: why do I keep making these things?

Well, (a) it's fun! It's my little creative blast of energy after a long week of delivering the mass emails and corporate-sounding videos that make my work customers happy.

But the more visionary answer is (b) I'm capturing little moments in our lives that are fun to look back on. Because they go WAY too fast!

Case in point: I made this layout for the CHA show back in January, using the For The Record collection from We R Memory Keepers.

I listed out the likes/dislikes of each member of our family.

So my list hasn't changed, but Avery now thinks Webkins are "so yesterday."

And Cecily is done with Gap. Apparently Old Navy is where the cool kids are shopping now. Guess I missed the memo.

Thank goodness I captured these important, yet fleeting, moments of "likes." Three months later and this page is completely out-of-date.


Oh, and in case you're wondering how I made that cool notched punch at the top of each tag, We R Memory Keepers has a punch for that now. It's called the Euro Hook Power Punch and it's shipping now.

Thanks for stopping by!

Good Friday

Happy Good Friday to those who are celebrating Easter this weekend! I have a few spring-themed projects to share from the We R Memory Keepers Simply Spring collection.

This is a Cinch book I made to hold Easter photos. I love using the binding spirals with the Cinch -- so easy to get this really professional looking binding!

Next, a couple of layouts I created using WRMK's awesome punches. This one uses the Classic Wreath Lucky 8 punch. I also punched the journaling spot center out of the frame so I could use it for the photo.

This layout features the Doily 2-Edge Punch, which they debuted on HSN in February. The cool thing about this punch is you can do a circle, oval, border, or even just punch one corner, as I did here. I backed it with a patterned background paper for extra pop.

I altered this round gift box by making a 3-D flower to go on top. I just punched some circles, pleated them at one end to form the leaves and layered in a circle to get this effect. I finished it off with some ribbon and chipboard tags.

And finally, a cute Easter card that shows how all these beautiful patterns can be mixed together. I used a Kraft base to keep the background neutral, then went crazy playing with all the colors. It's a bit hard to see, but I used the Sew Easy tool to create the looped stitches along the left side.

Thanks for stopping by, and have a wonderful Easter weekend!

Front Porch Friday

Happy Friday! It's Front Porch Friday at The Little Blue House, which means I get to share one of the projects I created with the Say Cheese kit for this month.

In this kit were two pocket folders, and I quickly got out my scissors and started cutting into them. I cut them long ways in half and unglued the pockets to create this mini book.

I covered the outer folder with the yellow chevron fabric, just like a fancy journal.

Then I used the wide ribbon to cover the seam and wound black cord around the various folders, inside and out, to secure the pages to the inside of the book.

I embellished the cover by painting the chipboard camera black and creating a pleated fabric flower to put behind it. I finished it off with a button and the "Oh Snap" speech bubble that I cut from the patterned paper.
 

The inside is fairly plain, just waiting for me to add some of my favorite Instagram photos. I used the Simple Stories papers to stay with the photo theme and still stay true to the pocket folder style.
 

Have you purchased your Say Cheese kit yet? Better hurry...last I heard they were flying out the door at The Little Blue House. You can order online, too!

Have a great weekend!

A few more sneaks...

I hate Mondays. Seriously. Hate them.

But there is one glimmer of happiness on this particular Monday.

ONLY ONE MORE DAY TO THE BIG REVEAL OF:

 
It's such a fun kit, and every time I look at the projects I made with it, I just feel happy. Even on a Monday.

How about a little sneak?

And for those who hate Mondays as much as me, how about I throw in an extra bit of sunshine in the form of an extra sneak!

Tomorrow's the BIG day! Full kit reveals will be on the Little Blue House blog where you can enter for your chance to win a kit for free. You can purchase your Say Cheese kit here and visit the Gallery for photos of all the design team projects.

I'll be posting more projects -- full details -- throughout the week, so be sure to visit me again soon!