OMG the Goodies Just keep coming!

I don't know about anyone else, but with all the CHA sneak peeks that are coming out lately, it feels more like Christmas now than it did in December :) So far, some of my absolute favorites are (in no particular order...):

1. BoBunny's Ad-Lib Line - Love that it all has this very Retro feel but still bright colors!!! And those puzzle pieces! I'm drooling over here!
2. Graphic 45's Le Cirque - Anyone who knows me knows that I have an obsession for Circuses (or more specifically, the side-shows) and this collection has to be my #1 Must-Have of all of these new releases. I mean, how cool is this! It's all vintage circus banners! By the way, I also am in love with Once Upon a Springtime, but I already raided my LSS and nabbed all those papers...
3. Echo Park's For the Record - This line is very quickly becoming one of my absolute favorite manufacturers (second only to my beloved Sassafras, of course) - their papers have all been beautifully coordinated & wonderfully versatile! I can't wait to get my hands on these...
4. Webster's Pages- well, I tired to pick A line to favorite here, but I really like them all! The odd thing with these is they are all so beautiful, and it's easy to get overwhelmed with them and think, "Wow, what do I do, these are totally against my usual style." But really, they're not. As I have been finding by playing with my existing papers of theirs that I have, you really don't need to add much to make gorgeous layouts with them! And please do check out all the coordinating embellishments they have with these! They totally rock!

Now, so far, there have been no Sassafras sneak peeks  yet, but I am sure their new lines will be spectacular as usual. Unfortunately, I still have yet to get my hands on Mix N' Mend & Count Me In... nobody around here carries either of those lines, and my usually online retailers didn't, either :( Any suggestions? I'm thinking Ebay... 

I think I may have to set up a separate savings account for my scrapbooking addiction... 

I'll be back later today with some more layouts and a couple sketches because I am feeling super inspired lately. Must be that after-Christmas energy because lord knows I had no energy between Halloween & New Year's. 

Until then, Happy Scrapping!!!!

New look!

I saw the big banner that Shabby Blogs had changed servers and that I needed to get my blog background again, so I decided to change things up a bit. I am absolutely crazy about damask, lately, so I'm glad they had this... I'll be posting more layouts tomorrow. No scrappy time today :(

Challenge Day #2

I got two of the challenges done today:
Chiara's 2nd Challenge was to create a layout using ribbon & buttons. I did just the thing with this Easter layout. I used paper from Crate's Restoration line. The ribbon is just plain, white ribbon that I stamped with acrylic paint to create the swirl. I also stamped the "Precious" in the corner and traced it with Stickles.

The second challenge that I got done was Karen's Flower Challenge (#2 for those of you playing the home edition). This one gave me the chance to use some insanely old Daisy Ds paper in my stash as well as really pushing my limits (extra points for using flowers on a Manly layout). I also used some papers from K & Co. and chipboard from Colorbok. To make the flowers n here, I cut circles in three different sizes on my Cricut, sanded the edges, and then attached them together with a brad. After that, I sprayed them with a distressing ink and some pewter Glimmer Mist. While they were wet, I crumpled & folded them to distress them more.

I have also managed to finally finish our vacation album, so hopefully I will be able to post some of those layouts later :)

Happy Scrapping!

And so it begins...

The Use Your Stash Challenge has officially begun at the House of Paper! I think I really need this, because I have acquired so much product and have scrapped so little with it. Here is my page for Chiara's Challenge #1, which was to create a birthday layout using Glimmer Mist or Stickles. On this one, I used everything Sassafras, but because I didn't want the paper to look too girly for pictures of a teenage boy, I used some Glimmer Mist to grunge it up a little. Shiny, yes, but it had the desired effect. I used Stickles on the chipboard "B" to make it stand out a little more.

I also have a sketch to share :)

I used this sketch for some great pictures from the Pacific Science Center's Tropical Butterfly House. For the layout, I used papers from BoBunny as well as some die cut butterfly paper (not sure of the manufacturer) that I cut apart, layered, and stickled to create some great dimensional butterflies. I also used some butterfly stickers from Studio 112 and metal embellishments from Making Memories. The titles were cut with my Cricut.

Since this is my last blog post for 2010, I wish all of you

Need a little push?

I know I certainly do! I feel so un-accomplished in the scrapbooking department as of late, so the House of Paper January Use your Stash Challenge is coming at the perfect time for me!

I can't wait! I certainly have enough stash to play with at the moment... today is a play with paper & reorganize day. I may also be posting some layouts and /or sketches.

Wow...

I haven't purposely neglected this blog, just busy. Being a photographer, this is our busiest season, so I have spent my days off just recuperating from my work. I have also had very little time to craft anything for me, as I am working on some presents for Christmas, which I may post after they have been given to their recipients.

I will try to post something this weekend, as I am out of work with pneumonia at the current moment and have the time (though maybe not the energy) to work on some of my personal projects.

Happy Crafting!

Been AWOL & In Denial Lately

First off, I am sooo in denial that Thanksgiving is NEXT WEEK?!! (And my birthday is Friday, but that's another thing completely). I still have all my Halloween decorations up, and today is too much of a stormy, dreary day to even think about taking anything down at the moment. This is also why I have been a little AWOL lately- no friggin' time! I am making time today, though!

I have a couple new sketches to share as well as some layouts I have been working on. Also, in my blogging absence, I did see that Graphic 45 is doing sneak previews of their new spring line and I have to say- "IWANTIT IWANTIT" (think like a two-year old tantrum). Hop over to their blog & see for yourself!

Okay! On to todays sketches:

This one, I do have an example for... I used papers from K & Co. as well as banner stickers from Sassafras and some stickles (for the title). The shell tag is one I bought at a dollar store years ago and never had occasion to use. These scallops didn;t want to stay stuck to the paper long enough for my glue to take hold, so if you like the idea, I suggest sewing them on (I used my machine). This one makes me miss summer... *sigh*

This is one of those spare, top-of-the head sketches that I really have nothing to scrap for at the moment, but love how quirky it came out! I would love to see some takes on this, so please, post your versions in my comments so I can see!

I had to share this layout... probably my favorite as of late... I used papers from K& Co., a journal ticker & cloud sticker from Sassafras, a sticker from Bella Blvd. and flowers & bling from JoAnn (I think they are all from the dollar spot).

This last one I wanted to share is a attempt at hybrid scrapping, which I don't usually do, but should probably do more often... I printed out Pinocchio. Papers and alphas are from Echo Park, journal spot from K & Co., Stickers & additional papers from Sassafras.

Hopefully, I will be able to share more soon!

Happy Scrapping!

Happy Halloween!

A scrappy day?

Well, I had every intention of getting lots of pages done today... this kitten has different ideas...

She is sitting on my shoulders or curled up on my arm so I can't do anything... or she has been attacking my letters that I have been cutting on my Cricut and losing them, or sitting on my laptop & making it open random windows. I think she's just happy that someone's at home besides the dog. Anyhow, no sketch this week, so I'm sharing a layout I did for this week's sketch on Pencil Lines instead.

I used papers from K & Co. and DCWV, stickers & banners from Sassafras and a ghost shape from Fancy Pants.

I'll post more layouts later if I'm allowed to scrap more...

Time Flies

When you have computer problems... My laptop has been suffering some issues and all my layouts and & sketches have been held hostage by it. Luckily, it's fixed! Yay! I have a great sketch to share today, as well as a couple more layouts that I love...

Here's the sketch:

And my version of it:

For this layout, I used everything Sassafras Indie Girl, with the exception of a border from Cherry Delicious and alphas from We R Memory Keepers.

And now for the other one I wanted to share... I am in love with Crate's new Restoration line and found it the perfect complement to this layout:

I also used papers from Basic Grey & We R Memory Keepers, chipboard from Colorbok, tin frames & photo corners from Making memories and flower from Heidi Swapp.

I as gonna share a couple other layouts, but apparently Blogger has other ideas, so I guess I will have to share them later...

Oh yeah, check out my Flickr for some great Urban Exploration pictures that I have been taking.