Scraplift Saturdays || 22 Feb

Happy Saturday morning to you!  Our weather here has been so nice for a brief little window.  It's supposed to turn icky again in a couple of days, so everyone here is trying to take advantage of it while they can!

 

Today's scraplifted layout is one that I posted not that long ago.  It quickly became a favorite of mine because it was easy to make and the subject matter (my nieces!) was so darn cute.  This layout was a scraplift of Corrie Jones, so this installment is another "scraplift-of-a-scraplift"!

 

I changed up the shapes and added some bling, but other than that, I followed the design pretty closely.  Like I said, this is such an easy layout to make and may become my go-to layout when I need to jumpstart my creativity a bit.

 

Thanks for stopping in...have a wonderful weekend!

 

Layout 1: Cardstock: American Crafts; Patterned Paper: Studio Calico, Teresa Collins, Colorbok; Alphas: American Crafts, Jillibean Soup; Word Stickers: Crate Paper; Mist: Studio Calico

 

Layout 2: Cardstock: Bazzill; Patterned Paper: Elle's Studio, Studio Calico, Alison Kreft for Webster's Pages; Frame: Basic Grey; Alphas: American Crafts; Cork Asterisks, Mist: Studio Calico; Bling: Bo Bunny

Gift Wrap Goodness: Paper Pocket

Good morning!  I am stopping in to share my latest gift wrap project. This was inspired by a Martha Stewart tip that I pinned a while back.  If you follow the links, you will see step-by-step directions for how to fold a pocket into your gift wrap.  The links recommend using the pocket to store a card, but I decided to use it for so much more!

 

I gave this gift to a friend's daughter who was turning 12.  She is currently obsessed with mustaches, so I made a few out of cardstock and paper straws and included them in the pocket along with an envelope holding an iTunes gift card and some lollipops.

 

If you don't feel like following the links to get directions for making the pocket, I created a rough mini-tutorial for you:

 

Step 1: Choose the paper you want to wrap your box in.  Make sure that you cut a little bit extra so you have enough room to make your pocket.

 

Step 2: Fold the paper up.  The fold should be where you want the bottom of your pocket to fall on the package.

 

Step 3: Fold the paper back down.  This fold should be where you want the top of your paper pocket to fall on the package.

 

Step 4: Insert pretty things into the pocket!

 

Supplies: Package: Wrapping Paper: Target Dollar Spot; Envelope: Fancy Pants; Cardstock: Recollections; Paper Straws: Queen and Company

 

Tutorial: Patterned Paper: American Crafts; Washi Tape: K & Company; Paper Bag: Queen and Company

PL: Cocoa Daisy vs. Studio Calico February Kits

Good morning, everyone!  If you are in the U.S., I hope you enjoyed your long holiday weekend!  I wanted to pop in and quickly share 2 weeks worth of PL.  One week was made using the February Cocoa Daisy kit, Color Swatch, and one was made using the February Studio Calico kit, Sugar Rush. 

 

First up is Week 7 of 2014, using the Cocoa Daisy kit:

I focused on the "love" aspect of this kit, since it was Valentine's week.  I love all the bright fuchsia that this kit is rocking.

 

Then, it's Week 49 of 2013, using the Studio Calico kit:

Even though this week was in December, the SC kit still worked with the subject matter.  This was the first week back home from my 7 month work-cation and we celebrated my birthday, so there were lots of happy, bright memories to include.

 

I loved both kits this month.  I think I loved Cocoa Daisy's just a little bit more because I thought the colors and Evalicious assorted tags were so much fun.  But I also really loved the chipboard shapes and some of the unique journaling cards in the Studio Calico kit.  Really, it was a win for both kits this month.  For week 8, I think I'm going to mix the contents and use them together to create a spread...it has the potential to be my most colorful spread yet!

 

Week 7: Page Protectors: Becky Higgins (Design G and Design A); Journaling Cards: Evalicious, Studio Calico, Cocoa Daisy; Alphas: Studio Calico, October Afternoon; Tags: Evalicious; Patterned Paper: Cocoa Daisy; Camera Clip: Prima; Staples: Tim Holtz

 

Week 49: Page Protector: Becky Higgins (Design F); Staples: Tim Holtz; All Other Products: Studio Calico

The Studio || No Photo Challenge

Hey, everyone!  Yes, you read the title correctly: the challenge this week at The Studio is to create a layout using no photos.  Umm...that was really hard for me.  Luckily, I'm a bit of a pack rat (or so my dear husband says) and I keep a lot of random ephemera from trips and random events we attend.  In the end, I settled on scrapping my plane ticket to Hawaii:

I hope you'll join us over at The Studio for this challenge...I know it's a bit hard this time around, but it could really get your creative juices flowing!  Plus, there's a gift card to AbsoluteSCRAP up for grabs this month!

 

Cardstock: Bazzill; Alphas: American Crafts; Patterned Paper: Bo Bunny, Simple Stories for Cocoa Daisy, Cocoa Daisy; Wooden Shapes: Studio Calico, Sodalicious; Mists: Studio Calico, Heidi Swapp, Tattered Angels; Journaling Card: Cocoa Daisy; Label Sticker: Simple Stories

Chevron Canvas Art (Take Two - This Time in Ombre!)

Hey, everyone!  A few years ago, I created this Pinterest inspired art piece.  I had a lot of fun making it.  Flash forward a few years and you will find my wonderful niece, Lilly, trying to gather art for an "art wall" in her bedroom.  Of course, I told her I would make a piece or two for her.  As I was brainstorming ideas, I kept coming back to my chevron painting and ultimately decided to create a version of it for her bedroom.

For this project you will need:

a canvas at a size of your choosing, paint, paint brushes, a wooden letter (I had already painted mine black when I took the picture), glitter glue, sequins, scissors, painters tape and a paper triangle made from scrap paper

Step1: Paint a canvas in a solid color.  I chose pink.  To get the ombre effect, I blended in white paint at the top of the canvas and red paint at the bottom.

Steps 2 & 3: Tape off your chevron pattern using painter's tape and the paper triangle.  I used the triangle to ensure that my chevrons were created at the correct angle.  This is totally optional.  It would probably look cool to "eyeball" the chevron pattern and end up with something a bit more wonky and unique.

Step 4:  Tape of the entire canvas.

Step 5:  Paint the canvas in your second color.  I chose purple.  Once again, to get the ombre effect, I blended in blue paint at the top of the canvas and white paint at the bottom.

Step 6: After the paint is dry, remove all the tape to reveal your chevron pattern.

Step 7 (This can be done while paint is drying between the steps on the canvas): Cover your painted letter in glitter glue.

Step 8: Add sequins to the letter before the glue dries.  I had a variety of sequin colors and types to choose from, but ended up going with silver circle sequins in varying sizes.

Step 9: When the letter is dry, glue it on to the canvas...and there you have it!  your work of art is complete!

I hope this tutorial was beneficial!  If you end up trying it out, please leave me a link...I would love to see your finished product!

Scrapping with Elle's Studio and Studio Calico

Good morning!  This weekend I was able to sit down and use a Studio Calico sketch that I've been holding onto for a few weeks now:

I also decided that it was a good time to use up some of my Elle's Studio tags.  The day after Thanksgiving, Elle's Studio had a big Black Friday sale, so I bought a whole bunch of their products to have waiting for me when I got home in December.  They've been burning a hole in my scrap desk ever since!  When I saw the SC sketch, I knew that all the little tags would work perfectly.

Have you played with any fun sketches recently?  Please share in the comments!  I'm always on the lookout for some good "sketchy inspiration"!

Layout: Patterned Paper: Elle's Studio, Cocoa Daisy; Tags: Elle's Studio; Alphas: American Crafts; Puffy Stickers: Twine & Ink

PL 2014 || Week 6

Hey, everyone!  My project life spread for last week isn't that exciting.  I barely took any photos and really, not much happened.  So, I used a smaller pocket page than normal and included things like the Super Bowl and Groundhog Day.

 

Even though this spread is not very exciting, I did want to bring your attention to the title card.  I actually scraplifted it from a post on the Simple Stories blog.  I had all those Simple Stories months cards lying around and didn't quite know how I was going to use them...but Pinterest came to the rescue (as always)!

As always, thanks for stopping by. 

 

Page Protector: Becky Higgins (Design G); Alphas: Basic Grey, American Crafts; Journaling Cards: Studio Calico, Simple Stories; Wood Veneers: Studio Calico; Enamel Dots: Queen & Company, My Mind's Eye; Stickers: Simple Stories, My Mind's Eye; Paper Label: Life, Love, Paper

Scraplift Saturdays || 8 February 2014

Good morning, everyone!  It's Saturday!  Thank goodness.  This past week was a very looooooong work week for me.  I surely do love the weekends!

 

The layout that I chose to lift today is one of my favorites.  I created it last year for a Studio Calico scraplift contest.  So, technically, today is a scraplift of a scraplift...

 

Here is my new take:

I didn't stay monochromoatic this time, but instead used a bunch of Springy colors...which is something that I am definitely ready for: Spring!

 

Thanks for stopping by...have a lovely weekend!

 

Layout 1: Cardstock: Bazzill; PL card, Tag, Mist: Studio Calico; Day Card, "Not This" Tag: Evalicious; Doilies: Maya Road; Patterned Paper, Clothespin: American Crafts; Washi Tape: Freckled Fawn; "Remember" Circle: October Afternoon; Staples: Tim Holtz

 

Layout 2:Cardstock: Bazzill; Patterned Paper: Elle's Studio, American Crafts, Cocoa Daisy; Diecuts: October Afternnon, Evalicious; Hello Tag: Pebbles; Journaling card, Mist, Wooden Clip: Studio Calico; Corrugated Word: Jillibean Soup; Staples: Tim Holtz

Project Life...in pink!

Good morning!!  I wanted to quickly share week 5 of my 2014 Project Life album with you.  My original plan had been a two-page layout heavy in turquoise and blues to adequately represent my snow week.  Instead, it morphed into a pink spread...I'm still not quite sure how that happened!  I do like it, though.

Last week I missed 4 days of work because of the snow.  It was pretty sweet having a 6-day weekend, although I did start to get a bit stir crazy half-way through.  And I managed to make it through the whole first season of Once Upon A Time in a two day period, which is, admittedly, sort of impressive, but also makes me feel like a lazy bum!

 

Thanks for stopping in!

 

Supplies: Page Protector: Becky Higgins (Design A); Cardstock: Bazzill; Journaling Cards: Studio Calico; Diecut Paper: KI Memories; Alphas: American Crafts, Basic Grey; Label Stickers: Simple Stories; Puffy Stickers: Studio Calico; Wood Veneers: Studio Calico, Freckled Fawn; Enamel Dots: Basic Grey, Freckled Fawn, My Mind's Eye; Mustache Clip: K & Company; Paper Label: Life, Love, Paper; Craft Bag: Webster's Pages; Staples: Tim Holtz

Stitch Fix Review #2 (Maybe I can find a pose besides just hands-on-hips?!)

Hey, y’all! My second Stitch Fix box came a few days ago.  As promised, I stalked the postman until it was delivered!  Ha!
 

For an in depth run-down of Stitch Fix, click on my first “review” here.  Here are the basics:
 

1.  Fill out a style profile.

2.  Schedule a fix!  This can be as frequent (or infrequent) as you would like.

3.  Pay $20 – this is the “styling fee.”  However, if you keep anything from your box, it is automatically applied to your purchase.

4.  Get the clothes and try them on in the comfort of your own home with stuff you already have.

5.  You have 3 days to mail everything you don’t want back to Stitch Fix in a pre-paid shipping envelope.  If you keep all 5 items from your fix, you get a 25% discount.
 

So, this time around I requested bright colors and fun patterns.  Here is the first look at my box:

No bright colors or fun patterns!  My receipt said “grey, grey, dark green, black, brown.”  Haha!  Oh well.  I was still willing to give it a try.

Here’s a closer look at everything I received (and as the title suggests, I probably need to find a pose besides just hands-on-hips!): 

Colibri Solid Tab Sleeve Blouse

The color on this was quite pretty, but the neckline really bugged me.  I don’t know if you can tell from the pictures but the neckline goes up pretty high on my neck on the sides.  I felt like it was a bit restrictive and I felt like it would look odd if I wore my hair up with this neckline (is that weird?!?!).  I don’t like being limited in that way and I actually wear my hair up about 85% of the time. 

Denna Colored Skinny Jean + Mission ¾ Sleeve V-Neck Blouse

First, the jeans: I saw these and I thought I would hate them.  But ohmygosh, they are so COMFORTABLE and I love the way they look with flats.  The only downside?  They are outside the price range I would normally pay for a pair of jeans.
 

The blouse:  Unfortunately, I didn’t think this was anything too special.  If the shirt had been in a fun, bright color, I might have been more sold on it.  Plus, I think the sleeves look a bit funny on me…what do you think?
 

Jerrard Heathered Open Front Cardigan

This was another thing I thought I would hate.  It also ended up being really comfortable and it’s so soft.  And I definitely don’t hate it.  But I’m not sure I love it, either?  My stylist suggested that I try it with a white t-shirt and the skinny jeans. 
 

Minée Half Floral Rhinestone Necklace

I love it.  It’s adorable.  But it’s totally NOT me.  I want to keep it because it’s sparkly and it’s pretty, but if I’m honest with myself, I know that I will never, ever wear it.  Sad face.
 

Final thoughts:  This box included a bunch of basic pieces that I feel like I could have gotten at most places.  Staple pieces are important to any wardrobe, but that’s not really what I am looking for from Stitch Fix.  The clothes are a bit more expensive than what I normally pay, so I’m looking for fun, unique pieces.  In the end, I only kept the skinny jeans.  Since they were the only thing I kept from this fix, I decided that it was okay to splurge a little…plus I didn’t want to lose my $20 styling fee!  I left a bunch of feedback on this fix, so I’m hoping to get something a little different next time.  It was still fun, though!
 

If you are interested in Stitch Fix, just follow thislink!
 

*I have no affiliation with Stitch Fix except that I am one of their customers.  I will not receive any compensation for this review.  However, the link provided is a referral link that will give me Stitch Fix credit if anyone decides to use it.*

The Studio Color Challenge

Happy Groundhog Day!  I'm really hoping that little Punxsutawney Phil doesn't see his shadow this morning...but if this past week was any indication, I think we are in for a long winter...

 

On the plus side, there is a new challenge posted at The Studio today...and it's a color challenge.  I haven't done one of those in forever.  Here's the pallet: 

And here is my take on it:

The orchid was a bit hard for me to work with...it's not a color that I normally gravitate towards in scrapping, but it is such a pretty color.  I definitely get why Radiant Orchid is the Pantone color of the year.  I'm going to try to use a bit more of it, if I can.

 

Head on over to The Studio to see the other fabulous layouts and to play along for a chance to win this month's prize!

 

Layout: Cardstock: Bazill, Recollections; Patterned Paper: October Afternoon; Alphas: American Crafts; PL card: Becky Higgins; Script Stickers: Jillibean Soup; Wood Veneers: Studio Calico; Transparent Banner: Heidi Sapp; Mists: Studio Calico, Tattered Angels; Kraft Tag: Pebbles