Happy Holidays

I just wanted to say Happy Holidays. I hope everyone's having a wonderful holiday season. I'm still plugging away at my Daily December book. When it's done, I'll post pictures so everyone can ooh and aah ;)

That would be the Christmas morning aftermath. And this? This is a super cute puppy. He's almost one. Say "hi!" Connor! "Woof?"

A little Phineas and Ferb for a Tuesday morning.

If I could buy a Phineas and Ferb soundtrack, I would.

This makes me think of Mom. Love you :)

Latest layout from class

I just wanted to share the latest layout I did in class. It follows one of Cathy Z's layouts pretty closely, but it really shows my style as well. I hope you enjoy it:

Caught in the Act

I love when I manage to catch a little piece of someone's character in a photo. Don't let this boy's cuteness fool you: he's really a mischevious 3 year old, and he'll smother you with smooches and squeezes with just a moment's notice. Then he'll bug you for something to drink. And maybe a snack. And after the bowl of checkers is gone, he'll breakdance with Hip Hop Harry. And then bug you for another drink.

Christmas projects

I'm doing an open house on November 8th. Email me if you'd like more information about it. We'll be working on Christmas cards and projects. Here are a couple cards I've done before:

They're from ideas I've gotten from various catalogs and things. I'll have more ideas we can play with by the 8th.
Below is a project people can do if they want. Since supplies are limited, I will have to charge $5 for it, but it's pretty cute, I think.
front:back: And that's all I've got for today. Hope your day was a good one.

I like Fall

I just thought I'd share a layout from my DYL class, and my thoughts on Fall:

The journaling reads:
Fall is my favorite time of the year. I love the colors of the leaves in the bright sunshine, and on gloomy days too. I love the smells of fresh baked goods and apples and squash ripening, and I love the sounds as leaves crunch under foot, and fires crackle in the evenings. Every fall is an opportunity to start over, and to finish what I’ve started. It’s hope and familiar comforts, wrapped in brilliant color.

Short and sweet and to the point. How's your Fall going?

The reason why...

I'm really enjoying the class I'm taking at BPS. Cathy's worked hard and given us some great information, and the handouts are useful, too. I can definitely see reusing quite a few of the pieces she's designed.

There are a lot of reasons I signed up to take class. Primarily, I teach scrapbooking, and I wanted to be better able to explain why a layout was working or not. While I know what the basics are, doing this class will give me samples to show people when my mouth disconnects from my brain. (A not uncommon occurance, unfortunately.)

Another reason I signed on is because I love her design sensibilities. I like the simple, structured approach to scrapbooking. While I appreciate the more artsy things you see in magazines lately, that's not the style I'm comfortable with. I want to create things with lasting beauty, and that's more likely to happen with a simple design approach.

And the final reason I signed up? I wanted to make more pages. I have made hundreds of scrapbook layouts, but have very few of them here. Most now live with other people, and while that was the intention when I made them, I miss having the tangible reminders of what I've done. I want pages for myself, and for my family. And it's working. Tonight while he was supposed to be going to sleep, my eldest came in and read the journaling from every layout I've done so far, and exclaimed over the pictures. He got real enjoyment out of the pages about himself and his brother. This is why I scrapbook.

Thank you BPS and Cathy Z, for helping me get our stories told.

An "aha" moment

So I just have to share this with you:

Learning from a pro

As you may have heard, I'm taking an online class at Big Picture Scrapbooking from Cathy Zielske, who's one of my all time favorite scrapbookers. I thought I'd share my layouts as we go along, and try to explain what I was trying for with each one. (And some legalese for you: Layout and concept provided by Cathy Zielske's Design your Life workshop at BigPictureScrapbooking.com)

This was the layout assigned before class actually started. Cathy said to get it all out of our system, so I went project happy, and turned each square into a little canvas. (Not actually canvas, but the idea of each as a separate work.) I did alcohol ink techniques and stamped on the upper left, and stamped the fabric flower on the upper right. I added some of my favorite new products: grungeboard, stickles glitter glue, and those jewel like pebbles. I tried to use all scraps, or papers I hadn't looked at in ages. I had fun. I even wrote on the photos the idea behind them. Create Art, Cherish Moments, Remember, Share Love, Find Beauty, and Be Me. That's pretty much why I scrap. Any questions?

This is the first layout, where we're working on the concept of balance. I chose papers and product with my hubby in mind. Masculine papers, distressed grungeboard, and tanks. What more could a Tank Man need?

This is the second assignment about symmetrical balance. It's purpose was to be more about the time that my brother and BIL spend with my eldest, rather than about play sword fighting. He adores his uncles, and they get that he'd rather play with them than have expensive presents (although presents are cool too.)

This last assignment for the week was a real world color challenge. We were to try using colors from something in the real world, in this case an ad for a cool modern rug. This one was easy. I had the colors on hand. The one for this week is hard: Orange and pink and brown. I'm not much of a pink person, in case you didn't know.

Well, I hope you enjoyed these. If you ever get a chance to take a class from Cathy Zielske, do it! She rocks!

Like father, like son

I get a lot of comments about how much my oldest looks like his father. Most of the time, I don't really see it. Hubby looks like hubby, and number 1 son looks like himself. But this photo really nails it:I have seen that expression on my oldest's face so many times. This may be where he gets it from. He is a pretty handsome boy:

But sometimes he just doesn't want me to take any more pictures:

I'm not sure I can really blame him. But at least he smiles for most of them:

Where did September go?

I had big plans for this month. I was going to post more how-tos and pictures of projects and get lots of exciting things done. And I have gotten lots of things done. Finally finished my wedding album. Made birthday presents for my sister and sister-in-law (I'll post pictures after they've been given.) Gone to PTA meetings and scrapbook socials and had an open house at my own home. Already visited my niece (and my bro and SIL) once this month, and get to go again this Saturday. Yay!

On our first visit we all crammed into my mother's car:


Aren't my guys just the cutest, cuddliest boys you've ever seen? Connor didn't really want to ride in the back, and at one point climbed over the seat and sat on Ethan's lap. Such a cute dog.


At one point while we were there, all the small animals decided to gang up on my brother. And yes, I do include my sons in that description. (Ross has Brownie and Simon hugging him, and Ethan's probably regalling him with video game information. Or asking if he can turn on the XBox.)

This was the first time Simon met Josefine. He decided this was how she needed to be entertained. She thought this was very interesting. My brother worried about germs.

So that's the tip of the iceberg for September. Hopefully I'll have a decent picture of Jessica with Josefine after this weekend, not to mention Nancy. (Nothing I've taken so far has been really nice.) If either of you read this before Saturday, plan on posing!

Play Time At My House

I'm going to host my first open house/ scrap and stamp play time next Saturday, September 13 between 12 and 5pm. I'll send out an email with details on how to get here. If you're going to be in the area and I haven't sent you an email, let me know. We'll play with stamps and paper, maybe do a card or two. The first ten people who come will be able to make a little purse shaped card from this set of diecuts. If anyone has any techniques they want to experiment with, let me know, and I'll make sure I have the materials ready. Otherwise, we'll play with watercolor stamping techniques. Check out Tim Holtz's blog for inspiration. I don't claim to be as good as he is, but we can play with his techniques.

And for anyone interested, I've signed up for Cathy Zielske's Design Your Life class, to pump up my design savvy. It starts October 3, and runs thru Christmas. I'm really looking forward to it. Anyone else want to take it?

Oh, and a word of warning for visitors next Saturday. I have 4 cats, a dog, two rambunctious boys and no offstreet parking. So, yes, kids are welcome. I'll have a table set up with kid stamps and stickers, and number one son will be on entertainment duty. (Now he just has to keep his room picked up between now and then.)

First Day

Today my eldest started second grade. I now officially am old. (At least according to my kids.Ed-In my son's defense, he read this and said, "you're not old, Mom!") Here he is in all his almost-7-year-old glory:


Only one more month to go before his birthday. What am I going to do? And how can I stand this cuteness on a daily basis, and not squeeze those cheeks? (I apparently was meant to be an annoying distant relative, only seen on major holidays.)
And yes, he just lost his first tooth. He was very excited about it. The tooth fairy paid him a visit, and left him with a 50 cent piece. I'm dreading the possibility that he will loose his teeth the same way he got them: all at once. He literally went from no teeth to 5 teeth within the space of about a week. At nine months old. Immediately after minor surgery. On a holiday weekend. It was fun.

So the next time you see this guy, ask him how school's going, and count his teeth. They may not be there very much longer.

Schemes/Plans/Blueprints/ Design planning

One of the things that makes my life easier when I'm putting together an album or mini-book that has a theme (ie vacation album, birthday album, baby book, favorite things, etc.) is to take the time to plan a layout that I can use repeatedly throughout the album. This can help unify an album, even if you don't use the same colors or products from page to page. I don't have to use the exact same layout on each spread, but can modify it as needed.

What exactly is a layout? Well, think of it as a blueprint for your page. Photos go here, different papers go there, an embellishment or two or three go here, and so on and so forth. For example, the pages I did for my niece can be summed up by this plan:

To do the second page, I simply rotated the plan 180 degrees, and replaced the title and journaling block with another photo.

The fun thing about approaching scrapbooking design this way is that you can find inspiration anywhere. A label on a piece of clothing that you like, an ad in a magazine that catches your eye, a piece of furniture with interesting lines are all places where you can find inspiration. Beautiful design is everywhere, you just have to be paying attention. Once you notice it, you can apply it to your own designs. Just remember the basic components: a focal photo, a title, and a place for you to write. Everything else is icing on the cake (or page, as the case may be.)

As one final note, I told you I was going to make a page about the Police concert I went to, and as threatened here it is:

I really like the way it came out, but you may not be able to see it very well. It does have a little structure, but this was a more organic process. This was more of a move everything around until it works page.

So, take a look around you, and look at the structure of things you like. Then go mimic it. It'll be fun. Try it!

Point and Shoot Beauty

I just wanted to share a few photos I've managed to take with the macro option on my little point and shoot camera.

Hibiscus:

Echinacea: Hydrangea:
Hydrangea again:
Black Eyed Susan:
Not bad for a point and shoot, don'tcha think? I haven't even photoshopped them (yet).

Quick and Easy Card

Materials:

Floral Favorites stamp set
Basic Birds stamp set
Juliette SWIC
Ultra Smooth White Cardstock
Juliette coordinating cardstock pack
Versamagic-perfect plumeria

Tools:

Paper trimmer
acrylic blocks for stamps
adhesive

Instructions:

1. Cut a sheet of white cardstock in half to measure 8 1/2 X 5 1/2. Fold in half to get a 4 1/4 X 5 1/2 card.
2. Cut a 4 1/4 strip of paper from the striped paper in the Juliette SWIC paper pack. Tear about a 2" piece off. Adhere along top edge of white card.
3. Cut a 4 1/4 strip of paper from the light tan cardstock in the coordinating cardstock pack. Tear off a 3" piece. Adhere along bottom edge of white card.
4. Ink oval flower from Floral Favorites set with versamagic perfect plumeria, and stamp on left over piece of white ultrasmooth cardstock. Trim to small rectangle. Rub ink pad along edge of rectangle to add hint of color. Adhere over joint between striped and tan papers.
5. Ink "enjoy" from Basic Birds with versamagic perfect plumeria, and stamp on small tag from Juliette SWIC. Adhere on bottom right-hand corner.
6. Rub ink pad along edges of card front to add color and definition.

Fill the inside with a favorite quote or a short note, then share. Repeat as needed.

Waking Simon (a vignette)

After getting out of the shower, I found Simon had crawled back in bed with Jonathan and had fallen asleep. I had to document the cuteness.

I love my baby.

The Police Rock!

Hubby and I went to see the Police last night at SPAC. It's the last week of their reunion tour, and I'm so glad I was able to see them. They're playing one night in New Jersey, then 2 nights at Jones Beach, then finishing out at Madison Square Garden on Thursday. If you can manage to get tickets, go! Unless you despise them. Then you probably wouldn't enjoy yourself.

As proof that we were there, and that I shouldn't quit my day job to become a concert photographer I offer:




I know these are just awful pics, but I'm still going to use them on a layout. I'm crazy like that.

Love this layout!

I had to do something with the photos I took of Josefine, and I had some lovely Heidi Grace papers I wanted to use. I've been looking for an excuse to use some Stampin Up Rub ons, and I found some alpha stickers that I hadn't been able to come up with a use for before now. Fran, one of the women who also teaches at JoAnn's kindly gave me the glitter stickers, which added just the right touch of glam. And the buttons were the final touch.What do you think? I thought it came out nice. Oh, and the felt flowers and ribbons were from the dollar bins at Target. Yay Target! On a trying to be more thrifty (but not doing too well) note, I used a left over piece of cardstock to mat the picture on the left. This is the back. Jess and Jason might recognize the letters, since I used them on a Christmas gift for them 2 years ago. And yes, I do keep everything. I have a box full of baby food jars in the attic that I just know I'm going to find a use for someday, just wait and see.

Lazy Sunday

Today has been a weird mix of indolence and productivity. I did 6 zillion loads of laundry (only slightly exaggerating) and never got out of my pajamas. I worked on a layout, and still managed to fit in some reading and also waste time on the computer. I did no dishes (Have I mentioned I hate dishes? No sooner do I get caught up on all the dishes, when some one decides to make something and not clean up after themselves. In spite of the sign.) but did give the kids a bath. Like I said. Lazy Sunday, but strangely productive. How was your weekend?

Introducing Josefine!

Meet my new niece, Josefine. She was born June 26, a whopping 5 pounds, one and a half ounces. She's cute! And tiny. And the collecting of future blackmail pictures has already begun ;)

Page Review

I just thought I'd share with you one of the scrapbook layouts I've done. I'll occasionally post more, when I think something I've done is interesting or pretty.

The letter stickers are some I'd gotten for the kids one time, but on seeing them again, realized they'd go perfectly with this picture. The "attack" letters are some of Tim Holtz' grungeboard. I love his stuff. The stamps are from Close to my Heart. The stamps from CTMH are clear polymer, and are very sticky. They can be a little difficult to peel off the storage sheet. But they do have some nice designs. The papers are from DieCuts With a View. While I'm at it, I'll post one of Ethan, too. Here:

Either Mom or I took this photo when she was having her pond installed. These are all Angel Company papers and stamps, and the transparent shapes are from Heidi Grace/Fiskars. I love this paper. I want about ten pieces of this exact paper, but I'd have to buy 10 sets to get that. And while all the papers and tags in the set are beautiful, they don't make me say "I need you" like this particular design does. Oh well. Reason not to spend money.

Hope you like the pages :D

I got lucky!

So I read a few different scrapbooking and stamping blogs, and sometimes the ones hosted by people with connections in the industry have giveaways. Sometimes the winners are chosen by the host, and sometimes they use random chance.

Tim Holtz had a giveaway last week of various Ranger products. I won a complete set of the distress inks. So completely cool and amazing. They arrived today. Look:

How cool is that? What do you think I should do first? I'm thinking grungeboard or chipboard. What do you think?

Does this make me a bad person?

So today's been pretty rotten. I'm sick, I'm tired and grumpy, and I didn't sleep well. (Okay who's playing the world's smallest violin? Louder now!)

The point is that I'm not dealing well with being a Mom today, ie telling my 3-year old to stop crying because it's just a scrape on top of the scrape he got yesterday, and keep walking cos I can't walk dog, and carry him and keep his big brother going too when I'm sick. It's just pain! Suck it up and deal.

Anyway, after dinner we go outside and play with chalk on the sidewalk. The dog tries to eat some chalk, and in playing keep away, I notice the chalk leaves nice bright lines on his black coat. So I write DOG on both sides of Connor, and am beset by helpless giggles.

Does that make me a bad person?

Simple Layout

Last weekend I taught a 30 minute class to 30 seniors with some help from my mother. (aka SuperMom!) There were two basic ideas I tried to get across: You are your family's historian, and scrapbooking is flexible. You can make it as simple or as ornate as you like.

The case in point: A very simple layout I used as a demo.

As you can see, it's very simple. I'll probably jazz it up later. It needs more pop. I brought in another layout I did not finish so I could show how a picture and papers could be rearranged to suit different ideas. For example:

As you can see these are little variations that give slightly different impressions to the page. Just a thought. Now go play with some paper. Or candlesticks. Or your garden tools. Rearrange until "happy."