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A Surprise Find

Many of the local scrapbook stores have been closing in the Twin Cities Metro Area over the last year or so. We're now mostly surrounded by Archiver stores and other large chains selling scrapbook product. There's been a loss in selection with the closing of the little shops. It's getting harder to find specialized scrapbook product and smaller company items. So, when I visited "Anchor Paper" today, I was pleased to find "Kaiser Craft" product and various other new products being sold on their store shelves. I brought home new Prima Belle Fleurs, lots of new Kaiser Craft product, gold foil stickers, new American Craft chipboard, Basic Grey paper and stickers, Making Memories letter stickers, and more. I will add, that we are fortunate here in the cities to have some awesome scrapbook stores still with us, those include "The Scrapbook Shop", "The Pine City Scrapbooking Company", "Scrapbooks Ltd.", "Artsy Tartsy", and other various small scrapbook stores in the area.  All of them offer something different and unique, which calls for an occasional visit. I love collecting scrapbook "stuff". Smile.

Love these colors!!!

Metallics..lots of possibilities here.

The Keiser Craft paper flowers have a distressed look. They're also available in unique colors, such as this Dusty Pink color. Very vintage.

Keiser Craft Rhinestones are very affordable for those of you that like a bargain. They're also available in an array of colors that have not been available previously.

Wood Butterflies. Need I say more? So delicate and whimsical.

Paper from K & Company, Kaiser Craft, and Basic Grey. Num.

Cute Chipboard Sticker Animals from Basic Grey's new "Sugared Line". Normally, I wouldn't have an excuse to use these, but I'm a softy when it comes to animals. I couldn't pass these ones up :)

Lastly, I'm thinking about posting a weekly technique session on my blog for those of you looking for new ideas using various scrapbook products. I would focus on one product a week and show various ways in which to use the product. If this is something that interests you, please mention it in the comment section of this post. Thanks so much!

2:00 a.m.

2:00 am. When was the last time you stayed up till 2:00 am? Are you able to stay up till 2:00 am? I didn't think I was capable of staying up this late anymore, but last night, I finally retreated from my desk at around 2:00am to go to bed. I gave myself permission to spend some late evening hours scrapbooking. I spent the earlier part of the evening working. I recently accepted a new position with Crate Paper. I can't share the full details just yet, but I'm excited for change. I'll share a little bit more about that later. So, after enlisting in a few hours of work, it felt appropriate to sit and create late into the evening. I pulled out some Prima product along with some Amy Butler stickers, and the new Fancy Pant's transparent die-cuts. I kept it simple. One pattern piece of paper, a couple photos, and one small section of embellishments. I also went with soft, muted colors; Mint Green, Yellow, and Bird's Egg Blue. Here's a close-up of the layout:

Most of the layouts I create have at least one or two flowers on them. Flowers lend texture and dimension to a page. They can be used in a multitude of ways and can be further embellished with buttons, rhinestones, ink, paint, rub-ons, and more. They're extremely versatile in nature. At Winter CHA, 2008, Prima released these gorgeous, silk flowers called "Belle Fleurs". I've been using them a lot lately on my projects (including on that mini album I just posted a few weeks ago). They're shiny and have a nice reflective quality about them. They combine well with matte paper flowers and rhinestones.  I combined the silk flowers above with a light green paper flower and a fabric rhinestone embellished brad. I surrounded it with white rhinestone swirls and a few other embellishments.

There's been one technique I've been wanting to try these last few weeks. It's a simple graphic design technique where two elements of the same color are combined to create a design. Above, I combined two pieces of ivory cardstock and sat them side by side on the layout. Even though they're identical in color, because one sits higher than the other, they feel separate. This technique is  a crisp, clean & subtle way to create layers on a layout . This same technique can be applied with letters, flowers, borders, shapes, and more.

On the Prima Blog, you'll find a host of beautiful Mother's Day cards on display. You can see them Here. I contributed a card to the collection. I've posted it below:

Thank you to everyone that left me a link to their favorite inspirational blog (or their own blog). I've been looking at them today and adding new blogs to my faves list.  Feel free to keep sharing. :)

Comments & Links

I enjoy reading the many comments that are posted on my blog. I know there are a lot of talented people that visit and leave comments. Sometimes, a viewer will leave a comment with a link to their blog. Because I'm an avid blog addict like the many of you out there, I visit these links whenever I get a chance. Yesterday, Aida Haron left a sweet comment for my last post. I went and checked out her blog and immediately fell in love with her work. I also noticed she designs for Luxe Designs & Cocoa Daisy Kits (and a few other companies). Why is it I didn't notice her sooner? She's another layer & detail scrapbooker. Thank you Aida for leaving me a comment. I'm so glad to have found your blog. Your work is beautiful! So, if you're leaving a comment and you have a blog or a gallery, I'd love to see it. Leave me a link and I'll be sure to visit..In the coming months, I'm going to be sharing other scrapbook blogs I enjoy reading. There's a lot of inspiration to be had and stories being told that I visit on a regular basis. I want to share some of those here..

If you would like to share a blog that inspires you creatively, please post the link in the comment section. Maybe it's your own site or someone who lives on the other side of the world. Whoever it is, share it here below.

From Aida's blog, I navigated my way to a Singapore scrapbook store called "Made With Love". They have a blog and they update it with photos of new, incoming product (by the way, the store looks sooo inviting). While checking out the photos, I noticed a photo of wood mounted stamps. I hadn't seen them before (and maybe it's because I live a sheltered life..laugh.), but the manufacturers name was familiar to me - "Memory Box". They're a stamp/paper manufacturer and their stamps are adorable. I realized after much thought that the reason I may not of remembered this company is because I'm not a "big stamper". I don't do a lot of stamping (even though I enjoy collecting them) and Minnesota doesn't have a lot of stamp stores. When I saw the photo of stamps, I immediately went searching for the company. I also found a great online store to buy them from called "Stamping Cottage". My fave so far our their "swirl" style stamps. Very pretty. I think I might get a few of them. I also noticed a few more lines coming out from K & Company. You can see photos of the product at "Made With Love". It's a fun place. Go visit.

This is what I've been working on for the last week. I created the three layouts using the "All Moments Remembered" May Kit. I believe it's sold out already. I was late on turning in my layouts, so that would explain the delay and "sold out" part. I had a wonderful time putting these layouts together. I really pushed myself to do some different things here, including using Tim Holtz Crackle Paint, which I've not used before (and now I'm addicted).

The large newsprint scallop circles were sent to me as part of the kit. I distressed and layered with them to create the large circle flowers above. First, I crumpled each of the scallop circle into a ball. I opened them up and used a Ranger Distress Ink Pad to distress them (pad to paper and swipe). When I glued each of the scallop circles to the layout, I left the edges unglued. I didn't want the edges lying flat on the page. I like the dimension of them coming "off" the page. I freehand cut imperfect orange cardstock circles. I curled the edges of them and distressed them with ink. I then adhered them to the scallop circles as shown. I cut out more circles from various kinds of paper and used Creative Imaginations circle frame cardstock stickers to further embellish the flowers. I added glitter using Diamond Glaze and Martha Stewart glitter to finish the flowers off.

Crackle Paint. I had to prepaint the oval chipboard and let it dry for a few hours (if you have a heat gun, you can get it dry and crack faster). I distressed it with Ranger Distress Ink (Walnut). I attached a Making Memories white metal tag to the chipboard, which was distressed with Ranger Distress Ink and Making Memories Chocolate acrylic paint, using a brad. I punched a 1.5" scallop circle using Marvy's Scallop Circle Punch from a pattern piece of paper. I distressed it, cut it in half, and glued it behind the chipboard Oval as shown above. These are some of the simple details that are a part of this layout.

The cut-out butterfly and twig was adhered to the page using Foam Core Pop Dots, providing depth to the layout.

This is a very simple layout for me. Only a few small details and the photo says the rest. The black flowers are a Bo Bunny rub-on that I used on a cream color pattern paper. I placed the rub-on on  paper first and then I trimmed it to size to fit on the page as shown.

Can you tell that I love the Uchida Scallop Circle Punches? They're an economical way to decorate and embellish flowers. They're also great for doodling on and using as frames for plain circles and buttons.

That's all for today!

Progress

I can't officially say that I'm caught up on work. I don't think we're ever "caught up" on anything. Each day brings a whole new set of tasks that need undertaking. My list of "tasks" is smaller than it was a few weeks ago. I'm feeling good about it and hoping to move onto some new things over the next month or so. My goal today is to share my last set of layouts for Studio Calico using May's kit. They were showcased at Studio Calico's Design Team Gallery last week. Once again, I want to send a huge thank you to everyone at Studio Calico for your support and friendship. A lot of great times were had and as I move forward, I promise to continue to visit the message board and gallery. If you've not seen the Studio Calico User's Gallery, go check it out. It's one of my favorite online galleries and I'm always inspired by the work I find there.

This layout came as a surprise to me. It's clean, simple, and not overly complicated. For me, it's refreshing to try on a new style. Do something different. I enjoy looking at layouts that aren't reflective of what I normally do on a day to day basis. I'm attracted to "graphic" style layouts. They're appealing to the eye and easy to absorb. Usually, my work is overly complicated and busy. It can take  a day or more to see everything in one of my layouts. So, when I create a layout like this, I'm at ease. I wish I could do this everyday. I'll admit, I'm not very good at it. When it happens, I surprise myself. It's never planned. I love stuff on my layouts. I have a hard time creating anything without lots of stuff. It's an unavoidable affection I can't go without.

The usual details and layers. Transparencies, rub-ons, stamped images, etc. The photo above is of my two adorable nieces. They're a lot of fun to be with and I only get to see them once in a while. They're farm girls and they live in the country about an hour in half from me. I absolutely love them.

I got lost in this layout. Stuck. I wasn't sure where to go with it and I gave myself permission to leave it as is. The story is captured without the extras. Ethan is a "Phone Guy". He loves to talk on the phone, even if nobody is on the other end. Laugh. It's entertaining to listen to him talk and make conversation while on the phone. He often hands it off to me and I know he enjoys mimicking "mom". We have a great time talking to all kinds of people on the phone..he's even managed to make a real phone call or two. Laugh. One happened to be long distance..oh kids :)

I finished three layouts for All Moments Remembered Kit Club last evening. I'll be posting those later this week along with some close-up photos and more tips & ideas.

One last thing I'd like to mention is that I created a new email account. If you email me using the provided "email" link above, don't be surprised to see a new email address. I'm in the middle of moving to a new computer. Hope all of you are having a good week! Take care.

   

Transition

Not entirely sure where the week went, but thankfully, we're starting a new one. Ethan's health is finally turning around. He's almost back to his old self. Not quite sure how much longer I could of gone on with Ethan that sick. This single parent deal is much harder than I expected. Some days, I wonder how I'm going to do this for the next twenty years. I have no clue. Just glad the little guy is better and back to his old tricks. Life is much easier this way for both of us.

Trying to finish up a few layouts for "All Moments Remembered" kit club. I'm sharing a sneak peek of one of the layouts. I'll post pics of all the layouts once they're completed and after they're showcased at "All Moments Remembered" later on this week.

I usually spend Tuesday and Thursday late afternoons at one of the local coffee shops. My lovely father watches the little one while I take some time to relax and enjoy myself for a while. I had thought about purchasing a laptop for these moments, but didn't want to rush it. It wasn't until I realized that I might be doing some work from home that I thought it was a good idea to purchase a laptop. I asked my BIL which laptop he preferred (he's a programmer like my husband was) and he suggested the MacBook Pro. I went out and test drove it, fell in love with it, and brought it home. I've had it now for a few days. I have a ton to learn. It's a superb computer and I'm really enjoying it. It definitely handles better than any pc I've worked with in the past. The only drawback is having to transfer files and getting everything organized on the new computer. I think once I have that part taken care of, all will be well.

It was beautiful outside today, so I decided to visit one of the local outdoor malls. I hit up Archivers and ran into a few things. I found Elsie's new recipe card book. I also found more Noteworthy stuff (I grabbed a bunch of it a few days ago at "The Scrapbook Shop" in St.Paul) to bring home. I did take a peek at Elsie's cards and I was a tad bit disappointed. I have a number of her old publications and I love them.  This publication was restricted to mainly KI Memories and Love Elsie product. The layouts don't feel the same for this reason. I think the card set is a great option for teenagers or young people who love to scrapbook.

During our trip to the mall today, and because the sun was out and beaming it's rays, I bought Ethan a new outdoor summer hat. He wore it around the house while playing outside. It's super adorable and wanted to share a picture of him wearing it:

Taking some time to scrapbook this evening. Hope all of you had a wonderful weekend. More later.

Almost Forgot

A few cute kitty photos I captured yesterday. They're now 5 weeks old and soon, they may possibly have a new home. Enjoy!

The Rotavirus

It hasn't been a typical week for us and that's why you haven't noticed a recent update from me. Ethan picked up the Rotavirus and it presented itself on Monday. Since Monday, I haven't been able to separate myself from Ethan. He's not been feeling well and his sleep schedule is erratic. I have a pile of dishes a mile high in my sink and my laundry machine has been working non-stop since the plague entered our home. Laugh. I'm finally taking Ethan into the doctor's office today (four days of this stuff is enough for me and Ethan). Not sure if he'll be able to offer much, but at least we'll be on the same page. Ethan's also got a cold, which doesn't help matters much. I want so much for him to get better and get back to his old self. I miss watching him enjoy life. His daily activity since being sick has been lots of "Elmo's World", sleep, occasional food, and bath time. The rest is hanging with mom.

To pass the time, I came across a few new places online that I wanted to share with you guys. I've been thinking a lot lately about 2008 "Fall" colors and wondering what to expect come next CHA for Fall product lines. I would love to know what colors you'd like to see this fall on your pattern paper favorites. Share your thoughts on this topic in the comments section. Thanks!

One of my favorite fabric designers of all time - Kaffe Fassett (Website: HERE)
Check out his gorgeous and inspiring fabrics at eQuilter
When I think of 2008 Fall colors, this is what I want to see (above photo).

Anna Maria Horner's latest blog update has me thinken' Fall also. Love the lamp and the couch!
Find her blog HERE & her store (check out the bird fabric) HERE.

"Yummy Goods" oh yes!~ Found this blog last night during the usual travels online. See the blog HERE.

Saw some of this product while in Hawaii back in October. The colors and designs are so up my alley! Check out the site HERE.

And for all you owl lovers out there (you'll also find some beautiful personalized note cards here that even I'm tempted to buy for my own personal use), check out this SITE.

Off to the doctors. More later!

What Routine?

I'll admit that I have no routine in my life right now. My day to day living is without structure. I lost routine after Eric died. I didn't give it much thought right away, but over the last few weeks, it's become increasingly apparent to me that not having a routine is wearing me down. Not having a routine has made it challenging for me to identify what I truly enjoy in this new, unfamiliar life. So recently, I gave myself permission to take my life in a different direction. I'm trying on old habits and collecting new ones. What do I want to bring back into my life from my past? What haven't I tried in the past that might be good for me right now? It's all a part of establishing a new pattern in the hope of finding some stability and predictability. It's been a long time since I've had either and I'm at a point where I feel it's time to find both. Change is in progress...

One of the things from my past that I haven't done in a while is scrapbook solely for myself. I'm realizing I need to find balance between scrapbooking and designing. Both play a huge role in my life and the challenge is often trying to figure out how to do both without having to sacrifice one or the other. I recently decided to leave Studio Calico's Design Team. It was a really difficult decision for me. Being a part of a design team isn't just supplies and creativity. There are relationships involved and investments made. In the end, the experience realized is amazing. One you never forget. So many great friends and shared stories. I know many from "The Studio" come to visit my blog. That's why it's so hard to share the news here today. It's a decision that I'm hoping will allow me to find time for personal scrapbooking. It's what I seem to need the most right now..plus, it's an old habit and it's one that brings me great satisfaction. I'm looking forward to seeing how it fits in with my new life.

I did mention "new habits" in the first paragraph of this post. I'm looking at new "roles" within the scrapbook industry. They're a little bit different than what I've done in the past. I'll be able to share more on this topic later on.

A quick last note, I'm guest designing for "All Moments Remembered" in May. The kit arrived at my front door last week and it's lovely. They included a lot of paper from one of my favorite pattern paper manufacturers. I'll be working on layouts using their kit over the next few days. I'll also be joining them for an online chat the evening of NSD. Feel free to join us.

Note: The blog will continue with the changes. I'll still be posting new ideas and scrapbook projects here along with the usual day to day stuff. The only real difference you'll see is more personal work from me. :) 

Curious

There's something to be said about kids and purses. They love looking through them and finding hidden treasure. Ethan is always navigating through my purse and taking stuff out of it on a regular basis. We don't go a day without going through mommy's purse. He enjoys my cell phone, wallet, make-up, and all the little pieces of paper. One day, he's going to look back at this post and cringe. He won't believe that his own mom wrote about this personal childhood experience on her blog. Well, it's an enjoyable story and one I think is worth sharing. I think we can all relate to having our kids go through our stuff, whether it be in the bathroom drawer or the hall closet. Kids are naturally curious and want to investigate just about everything. Ethan couldn't resist playing with my new purse today. He took it the minute it came out of the box. He even stuck his head in it a few times because he wasn't really sure what it was for...after all, there was nothing in it. My purse is never empty, so what's up with this purse not having anything in it? Hey mom?!

I picked up this purse at Etsy a week ago. It's from the shop/seller "Purseona". I fell in love with her handbags immediately. The colors are beautiful and so are the patterns. The handmade handbags are very high quality and stitched with the greatest of care.  I was really impressed with it when I tried it on today. The inside length of the strap was perfect (not to long/not to short) and the bag itself had great stability. The little black label makes it look professional. She even included a small bag of Lilac in the purse upon shipping as an extra bonus. I was very pleased with the purchase and would definitely buy from her again. Love the bag.

Now for some scrapbook news. I visited the local Michaels today and ran across Amy Butler's new scrapbook product line. Gorgeous stuff! Picked up almost all of it.  Not sure how the chain got a hold of this line first, but it's worth the trip to Michaels if you want to check it out. Here are some pics below:

Yes, that would be Ethan's little finger in the photo at the top. He couldn't resist grabbing the product from the floor. I had about two seconds to get a photo of this stuff. Laugh.

I really like this silver foil flower sticker at the bottom. Simple and elegant.

Now that scrapbook companies are becoming eco-friendly, they're getting creative with product design and packaging. K & Company printed labels on the back sides of all Amy Butler product packaging to promote package reuse and recycle. How cool is that? They're of great design and use. I will be cutting these out...

Final Pages...

It's complete.  The photos below are of the final pages belonging to the mini album that is selling as a kit at the The Scrapbook Oasis on National Scrapbook Day. My next project is writing instructions and organizing photos for the instructions. Once that task is done, I get to start working on some personal scrapbook projects. There's been a lot I've been wanting to record about my life over these last few months via scrapbooking. I've experienced many changes, both good and bad. My goal is to make more time for personal work and to capture the authentic story that is my life. I feel like I've lost touch with that lately. I need to revisit that place.

Just for fun...a few kitty photos. I used some new Photoshop actions on these photos. I picked them up at Brenda's new Photoshop Action website. You can find it: HERE. Her two color pop actions are beautiful, user friendly, and have great results. I was really impressed with the actions after trying them out (and trust me, I've tried a lot of actions in the last few months). I really like these actions because they're practical, affordable, and adjustable. They're also good at preserving skin tone, which is one of my biggest pet peeves when working with color boost actions. Here are some photos I altered with one of her color boost actions:

Here's a before and after shot using Brenda's "Vibrant Color" action: