Those Eyes

It's only Friday, but for us the long Memorial Day weekend has already started.  Our local school district decided to close my girls' schools today to save a few bucks.  That's fine with me!  I got to sleep in this morning, and now I get to spend some extra time with my sweet girlies.

Here's a layout I created with the FUN and vibrant "Hello Sunshine" line from Lily Bee:

I added some Shimmerz Spritz to the cardstock and Prima flower.

A lot of people have asked me how I  make the crocheted borders like you see on the layouts in some of my earlier posts.  I'm not the best person to give crocheting lessons because I learned how to crochet years ago,  but I never learned the names of all the different stitches.  Thankfully the VERY crafty and  talented Lolly Chops has come to the rescue with an awesome video tutorial on crocheted borders.  Lolly also has a fantastic blog, so be sure and check it out! 

Have a wonderful long weekend!!

A "Lovely" Day

The first time I saw Lily Bee's new "Lovely" paper collection my heart went pitter pat.  The color combo and the patterns are just gorgeous!   I love every single piece in this line, and they all work so well together.  Here's a layout I made featuring my little princess:

She's getting close to the age when princesses aren't "cool" anymore (I know because my older daughter reached that stage last year), so I wanted to capture the little princess inside of her before it's too late.  Here's a close-up of the journaling:

I hope you have a LOVELY day!

Happy Monday!

Happy Monday!  I hope all you mothers had a nice Mother's Day!  I had a great day myself.  We had a lovely brunch with my mom, stepfather, dad and stepmom (yep, we're all one big happy family!).  And I got lots of wonderful snuggles and kisses and homemade goodies from my darling little girls.  For Mother's Day my hubby wanted to buy me the new camera lens I've had my eye on for a while now, but I wasn't sure if the cost is really justified.  Well, it doesn't matter at this point, because the freezer portion of our old refrigerator is on its last leg, so we have to go buy a new fridge today.  Fun, huh?  Since we have to make this big purchase, I decided to hold off on the lens for the while.  That means that my photos won't look any sharper, but at least I won't have to eat mushy ice cream anymore.  And as a girl who NEEDS her bowl of Dreyer's Grand Light ice cream every single night, mushy ice cream just wasn't workin' for me.  

I have a little share for the day.  I've really been into crocheting on my layouts again lately.  Here's one I made with all Prima goodies:

The wording says:  "My Wish for you is that you have as much joy in your life as you have brought to mine."    Here's a little close-up.  I curled back the paper and stuck some tulle and other netted fabric behind there.  I lined the curled-back paper with lots of Prima flowers:

Thanks so much for stopping by!  Have a great week!

Joyful

My intended little scrapping break hasn't quite started yet. I got an idea for a page last night and I wanted to jump right in and begin working on it.  I'm hoping to finish it up tonight or tomorrow night. Maybe I can start my little scrapping break this weekend.

In any event, here's a layout I created with Prima's April BAP:

The journaling says: When I was a little girl, I was happy and playful just like you.  But somewhere along my path to adulthood, I lost a little part of that fun-loving little girl inside of me.  You have brought out that joyful, playful side of me again.  Thank you for that, my sweet Rebecca.

Now go take that playful little child inside of YOU and have some fun today or tonight!!

Sisters

This is another layout that I made for Scrapbooking m.m. (the March/April issue). I used almost all Prima goodies:

I've been really into crocheting on my pages again lately, and this time I used some pretty teal yarn. I used Shimmerz to create the rainbow of color on the background:

I have a small stash of vintage rhinestones buttons and broaches, and I save them for special pages. I really need to find a good (and cheap!) source for more of these treasures. Here's a close up:

Things are quiet for me right now in terms of my DT and other scrapbooking assignments, so I'm going to do something I haven't done in a very long time . . . I going to take a little break from scrapping for the rest of the week and weekend.  I think it will be just what I need to recharge my creative batteries!

Free Spirit -- Scrapbooking m.m.

Earlier this year I was honored when the editor of Scrapbooking m.m., a beautiful Swedish publication, contacted me and asked me to do a few assignments for the magazine.  Here is one of my layouts that was just published in the March/April 2010 issue.  I created it for an article about symmetry and balance on your scrapbook pages.  I used Webster's Pages papers and a sprinkling of Prima goodies, and I added some crocheting for good measure:

 

I was even more honored when I got my copy of the magazine and saw what good company I was in . . . some of my favorite scrappers were in there too!!  If you can get your hands on a copy of this magazine, you  should definitely take a peek because there's SO much inspiration in this magazine (even if you don't speak Swedish!).

On another note, we're having a fun NSD crop party at A Million Memories this weekend. Even though I just stepped down from the AMM Design Team (last month was my last month), I'm still going to be actively involved with the site. . . 'cause I just love all my peeps over there!!  In fact, I'm hosting a sketch challenge for the crop this weekend. Come join the fun here: AMM NSD crop.

Prima and a gauze technique tutorial

I have another family photo layout to share today.  This one features lots of Prima goodies:

One of my favorite non-scrapbooking products to use on my scrapbook layouts is gauze. You can either use regular gauze or cheesecloth material (I found some cheesecloth-like material at a local specialty fabric/upholstery store).  I used Shimmerz Spritz and gauze to create the ethereal-looking background here:

I put together a little tutorial for the A Million Memories blog a couple months ago.  Here's a recap of the step-by-step:

1. First prepare your background. Start with a piece of heavy cardboard and coat it with gesso:

2. Once the gesso is dry, brush/spray on Shimmerz paints and Spritz:

3. Spray your gauze or mesh with Spritz (I used two different colors here). I like to spray on waxed paper so that I can mop up every last drop of the Spritz:

4. Once the gauze is dry, adhere it to your cardboard with Mod Podge:

And there you go!!

Lily Bee Time!

I recently received a big box of all the new Lily Bee products and WOW . . . everything is just GORGEOUS!!   Here's a layout I made with the new Hello Sunshine line:

I often frame my layouts with patterned paper, and this beautiful Lily Bee paper was perfectly suited for a family photo frame.   I simply cut out the inside piece, machine-stitched around the inside and outside edges, and then I adhered two different types of lace trim to the back of the frame to give it some dimension:

And a close up of the various flowers and glittered leaves:

  I'm lovin' all these Lily Bee goodies!

Prima Masquerade Ball Masks

I was asked to make a couple creative projects for Prima a while back, and here is one of the things I came up with.  I made these Prima-adorned masks:

If I ever get invited to a fancy masquerade ball, I'll be set!

Cosmo Cricket layouts and A Million Memories DT news

Thank you Cosmo Cricket for sponsoring the A Million Memories DT again!   Here are a few of the projects I created:

I cut out a dress form and used it as a mask with Shimmerz Spritz:

Yes, that is my hand in a turkey's butt:  I had to call my mom halfway through the process because at first I couldn't find the bag of turkey parts you're supposed to take out before you bake the turkey.  She told me to try the other end. :)  The turkey turned out great, if I do say so myself!  The paper strips on this page were inspired by Jen Jockisch's style.  And here's a little card:

Thanks, Cosmo Cricket!

Also, A Million Memories is currently having a Design Team call!! You can check out all the details here:  A Million Memories DT call.  

That leads me to my next bit of news . . . this will be my last month on the AMM Design Team.  I've been on the team for a year now, and I've had a blast creating with Michelle's beautiful kits and working alongside some amazingly talented and super sweet ladies.  Thank you SO much for the opportunity, Michelle!  I love AMM and it's become my scrappy home, so I'm still going to be an active member of the boards there.  I can't wait to see who makes the new team!

Ole!

Hi everyone!  I have a festive layout to share today.   It features pictures of my girls during a little shopping trip while we were in Mexico a few years ago.  Oh how they LOVE to shop!  Yes, I know I'm going to be in big trouble when they get older.

I created a little fringed edge on the background cardstock and painted it with Shimmerz Glimmer Blingz.  Love that stuff!

This page was featured in the February 2010 issue of Scrapbooks, Etc.:

And I'm tickled pink to say that I also have my work published in the current issues of these fabulous magazines -- Creating Keepsakes (March/April), Scrapbooks & Cards Today (Spring), Somerset Memories (Spring),  the GORGEOUS Swedish magazine, Scrapbooking m.m. (March/April), and Scrapbook Trends (April):

Thanks for letting me share!

One of a Kind

My share for the day . . . a layout using Shimmerz Vibez and paint:

It's fun to see the different effects you can get by using Shimmerz products on different types of paper. For the background on this layout, I started with a sheet of kraft cardstock and cut out a decorative shape, then I sprayed it with Hermit the Frog Vibez.  I love how the Kraft cardstock absorbs the Vibez color.  It almost makes the cardstock look like soft suede or velvet, don't ya think?  I used Tickle-Me-Turquoise Shimmerz on the chipboard alphas.  For the patchwork I used scraps of fabric.  And of course no layout would be complete without some Prima goodies.

Happy Birthday to my not-so-little girl and some AMM kit layouts to share

Today is my oldest daughter's 8th birthday.  Seriously?  I'm saying this in the same intonation as my now 8-going-on-15-year-old daughter would say it (with a little bit of teen-like attitude thrown in):  SERIOUSLY??  Where in the world does the time go??   This morning as we were standing side-by-side in front of the bathroom mirror getting ready together (I swear she grew another inch last night while she slept!), I remembered our morning routine when she was a little baby . . . I used to set up a soft blanket and baby toys on the bathroom rug next to me, and she would happily play alongside me while I got ready.  Time flies!  Before I know it she'll be off to college.  *sigh*   In any event, it's shaping up to be a nice birthday for her.  We made her breakfast in bed, and then I'm bringing donuts to school for her class birthday celebration.   We'll have a nice birthday dinner tonight, and then I need to start preparing myself for her slumber party this coming weekend.  Happy Birthday, my sweet girl!

Turning to scrappy stuff, here are the layouts I made with the A Million Memories March kit:

I added some Prima flowers and colored them with Shimmerz paint and Spritz.

This next layout features pictures of my younger daughter on the day before her 6th birthday last year:

The journaling on this "Stay 5" layout says:  I took these photos of you on the day before your sixth birthday. I must have taken at least 50 photos that day. I think it was my feeble attempt to try and freeze time. It’s not that I don’t enjoy watching you grow into a lovely little lady, it’s just that I wish you would slow down a bit. As I was snapping all those photos I kept thinking, “Can’t you please stay five for just one more day?” 

This last one was based on the monthly sketch created by the very talented Rachel Hall:

Thanks for stopping by! Have a great week!

A Million Memories March Kit mini album

I've been playing with my AMM March kit this past week.  Here's a little mini album I made with the Maya Road chipboard album that comes with the kit.  It's so TINY!  I love how it fits in the palm of your hand.

This mini album features pictures of our family photos from 2005 to 2009.

The last three photos (from 2007 to 2009) were taken by a fantastic photographer here in Los Angeles, Melissa Walker-Scott.

I made this for my husband for our anniversary next week, so I had to keep it hidden from him while I was working on it.   And Robert, if you decided to pop on my blog this week, then you've discovered my little anniversary surprise for you. Darn it! Well, I hope you like it!  Mwah!!  Happy "saversy" (that's a word my hubby and I made up).

I'll be posting my AMM kit layouts here tomorrow!

Lily Bee!!!!!

I'm so excited . . . I made the new Lily Bee Design Team!! I just ADORE Lily Bee's gorgeous collections so I'm over the moon!.  Thank you so much, Kristen!   And look at this amazing team: Lily Bee Design Team. I'm honored to be working with such an incredibly talented group of girls!

Here's one of my Lily Bee layouts that was just published in the February issue of Creating Keepsakes:

I fell in love with Lily's Bee's newest collections at CHA.  Such a gorgeous mix of colors and patterns.  I can't wait to get started!!