Downsizing

Hello, world.  Did you miss me?  I missed you.  Here is what I look like, in case you have forgotten.  :)

~another library photo, of course~ :)

Due to my wrist problems, it has been a few months since I last blogged.  Over the last few months I have come to realize just how necessary wrists are for day-to-day living.  Wrist movement is involved in turning doorknobs, using scissors, grasping utensils, pressing buttons, etc.  Although, my wrists have gotten better over the last few months, I still feel a degree of pain when doing all of these things, and more.  Does this mean that I am ready to give up scrapbooking?

No, of course not.  :)  It just means that I am working on ways to make scrapbooking easier on my wrists.  After all, a hobby is no fun if it causes pain.  Right now my main strategy is to scrapbook on a smaller scale.  Those 12x12" albums are HEAVY, right?  So for this year's album I am trying a 5.5x8.5" spiral bound paper pad, which is much lighter and easier on the wrists.

Supplies: all paper & stickers from October Afternoon (they recently had a warehouse sale); pen from Zig.

Here is a sample page.  So far I have only scrapbooked January and February, and this is a page from February.  The photo on the left is a selfie from the Science Museum, and the photo on the right is from Valentine's Day.  Even though the paper pad is for mixed media, I have not felt like doing any mixed media work in it yet.  Maybe someday.  I'll keep you updated.  :)

Thanks for stopping by my blog today to catch up with me.  Have a great day!

Making Greeting Cards with 3x4" Cards (November Destashing Post)

Hi, everyone!  For those of you who celebrated Thanksgiving last week, I hope that you had a nice holiday.  Mine was great--over the course of the long weekend we saw both sides of the family, plus we found time to celebrate with friends, too.

Supplies: 3x4" cards from Jillibean Soup, teal chevron paper from Bella Blved, thin white cardstock from Pulp, woodgrain paper from Fancy Pants Design, corner punch from Creative Memories.

But before I run out of days in November, I had better share my November de-stashing idea.  It's a simple one this month, because we all need a little more "simple" in our lives at this busy time of year.  My idea is to turn leftover 3x4" cards, be they journaling cards or pocket page "filler cards," into greeting cards.  In the photo above I have a his-and-hers pair of greeting cards for your viewing pleasure.  I've mentioned in other posts that I have some relatives who are really into camping, and these cards were a big hit with them.

Additional supplies: striped paper from Fancy Pants Design, journaling cards from Jillibean Soup, clear photo corners from Scotch/3M.

Besides decorating the fronts of the cards with pocket-page leftovers, you can also use journaling cards on the inside, as a writing surface.

I like to use clear photo corners to hold the journaling cards in place.  That way, you can remove the journaling cards in order to write your message more easily, and then replace them in exactly the right spot when it's time to mail the greeting card.

Hope you like this idea!  Take care and enjoy this last day of November.  :)

Pleasant Surprises

Sometimes, life brings us pleasant little surprises.  Like when you just happen to go shopping on the day when the store is giving out free samples of peppermint mocha.  :)

Or when the day you visit the Science Museum just happens to be "Star Wars Day."  :)

Supplies: cardstock from Neenah Paper; all decorative paper from Echo Park; stickers, enamel shapes, and flair badge from October Afternoon; thread from Singer; ink from Hero Arts; pen from Foray.

As I mentioned on this scrapbook page, Darth Vader seemed interested in the museum exhibit on Minnesota natural history.  :)

Boba Fett, on the other hand, seemed to like a puppet show about the life cycle of a butterfly.

"Star Wars Day" was actually in February, but I hadn't gotten a chance to share this scrapbook page on my blog until now.  With all the hype surrounding the new Star Wars movie that's coming out soon, this seems like a good time to share this page.

Whether you are doing ordinary things like shopping or special things like visiting a museum, I hope that life will bring you some pleasant little surprises, too.  Linking up with T Stands for Tuesday.

More Library Love

Hmmm, so far this month I have not written much about the library...until now.  :)  The library scrapbook page that I'm sharing in this post is just my style: it uses bright colors and lots of scraps.
 

Supplies: red & yellow cardstock from Neenah Paper, blue cardstock from Bazzill, dotted paper from American Crafts, plaid paper from Bo Bunny, striped & floral papers from Pebbles, alphabet stickers from October Afternoon, punch from EK Success, journaling line template from Creative Memories, pens from Zig.

I've already scrapbooked and blogged about how much my son loved his summer library project.  But I also wanted to make a page that tells how much *I* love the library.  On my scrapbook page I wrote: "I think I enjoyed the library project just as much as A. did.  I explored parts of the county that were unfamiliar to me, checked out lots of library materials...& took lots of photos!  Clockwise from top: Brookdale (photo by A.), Pierre Bottineau (selfie), and Southeast (selfie).  A. & I had so much fun!"

Brookdale, Pierre Bottineau, and Southeast are all branches of the Hennepin County Library (HCL) system.  Librarians gave out HCL stickers to patrons this past summer, and I used my sticker as part of my title: "I Really Do Love My HCL."

There is nothing better, in my opinion, than sipping a cup of hot tea or coffee and reading a book.  The last book I read was a library book, which you can see in this photo.  It's hard to wait for the new Star Wars movie to come out, so I've been getting my fix by reading some of the old novels.  This one, called The Crystal Star, was very good.  As for tea, lately I've gotten into cinnamon vanilla herbal tea, from the same company that makes the pumpkin spice tea that I wrote about a couple weeks ago.  The cinnamon vanilla tea has a rooibos base, and the tea is so aromatic and scrumptious!

If you are a tea aficionado, why not check out the T Stands for Tuesday blog hop?  I'm going to link up now.  See you soon!

Free Sketch--Great for Using up Scraps

Hello!  It's been busy around here lately, and I have so much to tell you.  I want to share some vacation photos with you, update you on my son's library project (yes, he finished!), and show you what I've been making lately.  Those will all be future posts, though; today it's time for my monthly de-stashing post.  This time around I have a scrap-busting sketch that I drew for you.  I don't know how to use any fancy graphics programs, so it is an actual hand-drawn sketch.  :)

There is a story behind this sketch.  It all began one evening when I was out cropping with a group of friends.  I had packed some old paper scraps that I wanted to try to use.  Among these scraps I found a tall, thin piece of Pink Paislee house-patterned paper that seemed like a good match for a trio of backyard photos.  I put the photos and paper together on a layout, and my friends told me that they really liked the design of my page.  I figured that if people like the design IRL (in real life), then it would be a good idea to share the design online as well. 
 

Supplies: cardstock from Bazzill; patterned paper from Pink Paislee; burlap from Canvas Corp.; alphabet stickers from Basic Grey; pen from Zig; corner punch from Creative Memories; household mini stapler.

This sketch is very flexible.  It works for cards as well as scrapbook pages.  You can substitute patterned paper rectangles for some or all of the photo slots if you wish.  That's what I did for the Thanksgiving card below; I used up a handful of scraps from a Doodlebug Design 6x6" paper pad.

I hope that this sketch inspires you to create some projects with scraps.  Use the sketch however you like and have fun with it.

A Sunny Yellow Page

Supplies: cardstock from Echo Park, Bokeh papers from Webster's Pages, sentiment paper from Bella Blvd, all other papers from American Crafts, stickers & enamel shapes from October Afternoon, tape from Scotch/3M, pen from Foray.

*Squeak, squeak!* That is the sound of me squeaking in with my Berry71Bleu entry, just a few days before the deadline.

http://berry71bleu.blogspot.com/2015/08/august-challenge-yellow-mood.html

Here is the mood board for this month.  It inspired me in the following ways:

• Yellow as the main color (of course)
• Yellow flowers
• "You Are My Sunshine" title
• Bokeh/dotted/speckled patterns
• Designer Tanya Palarmachuk's exhortation to "Try to add other colors..." 

This scrapbook page features a photo that is a recent favorite of mine.  The journaling lists three things for which I am thankful: my husband (in the photo with me), my son (who took the photo), and all the beauty of nature that our family experienced while on vacation.  It was fun to create this bright, sunny page.

Big Adventures

I mentioned in my last post that I've been going on lots of fun summer outings lately.  I thought you might like to see a bit of what I've been doing.  Here is a page that documents some "big stuff" that I have seen on my outings.  This "big stuff" includes giant Lego sculptures at the local arboretum and Japanese spider crabs (the largest crab species in the world) at the local aquarium.
 

Supplies: patterned paper, alphabet stickers, & enamel shapes from October Afternoon; corner punch from Creative Memories; decorative tape from 3M/Scotch; flower from Prima; pen from Zig; household pencil; button & thread from my stash.

Would you like to see a couple more photos of Lego sculptures from the arboretum?  Here you go.  The artist, Sean Kenney, took hundreds of hours and thousands of Lego bricks to build each sculpture.

These summer outings have kept me so busy that I have not had time to link up regularly with the Summer of Color posts.  However, I am finishing up with the color prompts slowly but surely.  The "Big Stuff" layout in this post was inspired by the color prompt for week five.  I'll be back soon to share my layouts for weeks four and six.  Until then, take care!

A Cat from the Past

Hi everyone, I hope that you are all doing well.  I have been enjoying summer to the fullest, spending time in the sun, and going on lots of outings.  This does not leave a whole lot of time for scrapbooking.  But, when I saw that Berry71Bleu's current challenge is to use die cuts, I decided to play along.  Those pre-packaged die cuts make scrapping quick & easy, so this is a perfect challenge for busy summer days.  I decided to make a page about Toby, the cat that Scott's grandparents had when he was growing up.
 

Supplies: cardstock from Neenah Paper; floral paper from Crate; typewriter word paper from American Crafts; arrow die cut, round die cuts, tab die cuts, & enamel shapes from October Afternoon; label & banner die cuts from Elle's Studio; alphabet stickers from Simple Stories; flower from Prima; pen from Foray; twine from my stash.

I used die cuts from two different packs.  The label and banner die cuts are from the "Everyday Moments--Bits and Pieces" pack by Elle's Studio.  The arrow, tabs, and round die cuts are from the "Public Library--Tidbits" pack by October Afternoon.  I layered together die cuts of different sizes to enhance my layout. 

I also added die cuts along the sides of the photos.  To complement the offset photos, I also offset my journaling.  It says: "One day Toby just walked into Scott's grandparents' house and 'adopted' them.  This spunky cat brought big smiles to many people, both young and old.  He knew how to be in the right place at the right time."

I enjoy hearing my husband's stories about Toby.  And I was glad that I could make this page for him.  I'll add it to the scrapbook that I'm making with photos from his childhood.  Thanks for popping by my blog today to take a look!

Summer of Color Week 2: Easy-Breezy Card

I am continuing to create with the weekly color palettes from Summer of Color.  I made a card again this week, but my approach was different this time.  For Week One, I splashed around with watercolor paints.  This week, however, I embraced a simpler, much more orderly look. 
 

Supplies: cardstock from Neenah Paper; patterned paper from Jillibean Soup; cut-apart paper from October Afternoon; ribbon from Scrapbook Fantasies; glitter from Ranger; pen from Zig.

The color prompt for this week is 1 pink + 1 pink + 1 orange.  I have a sister-in-law who adores the color pink, so this card is for her.

For the most part, the lines of this card are straight and orderly.  But, to add just a touch of contrast, I swiped on a little bit of pink glitter.  You can see it better in this detail photo than in the main photo.  Hope you like the card!  Thanks for stopping by my blog today.

Summer of Color Week 1: Birthday Tag/Bookmark

It's summer, hooray!  And that means it's time for the Summer of Color.  For week one, the color prompt is 1 blue + 1 blue + green.  To get started, I opened a watercolor set and chose three colors: sky blue, indigo blue, and apple green.  I've approximated these three colors in the borders that I've added to my photos.
 

Supplies: patterned paper from DCWV; watercolor paints from Angora; pen from Zig; washi tape (used for masking) from 3M/Scotch; ribbon from Scrapbook Fantasies; puffy sticker & sequin from my stash.

To create the stripes, I simply masked areas with washi tape.  (The grid lines in the background paper made it easy to keep the tape straight.)  As I painted, I let the colors run together.  This always creates such a pretty effect with watercolors.  I love the contrast between the crisply masked lines and the blurred, flowing paint.

This is quite a large tag.  After I took these photos, I wrote a birthday greeting on the white (masked) lines, and then I taped it to my friend's birthday gift.  This particular friend loves to read, so I figure she can use the tag as a bookmark in the future.

As a finishing touch, I added a bit of shine--a sky blue sequin and an indigo puffy heart.  I also doodled around the borders and tied a ribbon through the hole of the tag.  And now...I'm off to see what everyone else has been creating for the Summer of Color.  I'm sure it will be interesting, as it is every year.

Party Time!

I have a Christmas page to share today.  I know that Christmas was a while ago, but I thought I might not be the only person who is still scrapping holiday photos.  Plus, even though my subject matter may not be up-to-the-minute, my inspiration is.  I love all the new party-themed scrapbooking supplies that debuted at CHA 2015 last month.  But being me, I decided to go the "green" route and decorate my page with actual party supplies instead of purchased scrapbook embellishments.

Supplies: patterned paper from Little Yellow Bicycle, cardstock from Neenah Paper; ink from Clearsnap; pen from Zig; reused Christmas wrapping supplies.

Side note: yes, my son is wearing shorts in that Christmas photo.  He always wants to wear shorts at home, even in the dead of winter.  I think it's because he's so active, he never seems to get cold.  We do make him dress warmly when we go out of the house, though.  Anyway, back to the scrapbook page.

As much as possible, I try to save and reuse gift wrap. That includes these green paper shreds, which were used as packing material in a gift that I received.  Most of them went into my gift wrap box, to be used again next Christmas.  However, I did set aside a few shreds to use in scrapbooking, and they made their way onto this page.

I also try to save gift bows to use again.  Instead of reusing this one to adorn a gift, though, I placed it on my page.  It makes a fun dimensional embellishment, and it squishes down well to fit in my album (as this photo shows).

Are you excited about the "party trend" in scrapbooking supplies?  I think these supplies are cute, and I'm sure you'll see me using them again sometime soon.

Simple Detashing Idea for January: Mosaic Patterns with Scraps

ETA: I'm also linking up this week with Shopping Our Stash,  where the challenge is to make a love-themed project, and Snippets Plaground #161, the place where scrap (snippet) lovers play.

Supplies: cardstock from Neenah Paper; patterned paper from My Mind's Eye; stamp from Unity; stamping ink from Clearsnap; edging ink from Autumn Leaves/Stampology.

Hi, everyone!  It's time for my first de-stashing post of the year.  In keeping with my plans to simplify things in 2015, I'm bringing you an idea that is simple yet versatile: using scraps to create a mosaic effect.  I used this mosaic technique to make the Valentine card that you see above.

The idea for the Valentine came from this card, which is one of my favorite creations from 2014.  I used boldly patterned scraps for the 2014 card, but I got a totally different look by choosing romantic/shabby chic scraps for the Valentine card.

I left the 2014 card unembellished, but I added a tidbit of decoration to the 2015 card, with this doily cut-out and stamped heart.  Really, you can get so many different looks from this one mosaic technique, just by varying the size and pattern of the paper scraps and adding (or not adding) a little embellishment.  Plus, this technique is a quick and fun way to use up scraps.  Let me know if you give the technique a try.

Toward a Simpler 2015

Christmas is over, but here is a scrapbook page that gives you a peek at how I decorated for Christmas 2014.

Supplies: border stickers, alphabet stickers, journaling card, die cuts, & flair badge from October Afternoon; doily from Royal; photo mat paper from Provo Craft; striped background paper from Little Yellow Bicycle; check list sticker from Bella Blvd; pens from Zig; upcycled tabletop confetti snowflakes.

Have you put your holiday decorations away?  Some people like to put them away quickly, while others like to leave them out for quite awhile.  I fall somewhere in the middle, usually putting my Christmas decorations away the first weekend after New Year's.  This year, I didn't have much to put away...

As the journaling on this layout indicates, our family didn't put up our big tree for Christmas 2014.  We all had bad colds at the beginning of December, and decorating just seemed like too much of a hassle.  So we put out Santa Bear and a tiny tabletop tree instead.

I kind of feel like this sticker was made for this page.  :)

You know what?  I actually liked the simplicity of not decorating much for Christmas.  I'm not saying that I'll do it this way every Christmas, but it is nice to go easy on yourself every now and then.

Blog-wise, I am also simplifying.  My life is about to get a lot busier, as I'll be taking a graduate course during spring semester.  Some of my normal blogging time is going to turn into study time.  Basically, there will be three changes to my blog: 

1. I'll still be blogging, just not as often.  
2.  I won't be seeking any design team positions at this time.
3. I'll still write monthly destashing posts, but they will no longer be scheduled for the tenth of each month.

Simple can be good, and I'm looking forward to this new year.  I hope you'll stick with me as my blog changes and evolves.  No matter what happens, my love for papercrafts will never change.  :) 

CPC Lite Brite Reveal

Dear readers, I have some good news and some bad news for you today.  The good news is that it's time for the mid-month prompt to go live on the Child's Play Challenges (CPC) blog.  The bad news is that this is the final CPC challenge...ever.  CPC is closing down at the end of 2014.  But as they say, "Don't cry because it's over.  Smile because it happened."  I think that our final CPC challenge is sure to bring a smile to your face.  In fact, my sample page is all about joy.

Supplies: orange cardstock from Wausau Paper; black cardstock from Bazzill; dotted paper from Echo Park; bokeh paper from Lawn Fawn; scalloped paper from Crate; paper confetti from October Afternoon; stickers from Bo Bunny; pen from Foray.

 
For this challenge we invite you to create a scrapbook page inspired by the Lite-Brite toy.  I do have Christmas memories associated with this toy.  (Thank you, Santa Claus!)  However, I don't have any photos of myself playing with the Lite-Brite back in the day.  That's okay, though.  At CPC, we encourage everyone to interpret our challenges broadly.  And that's what I did, this time around...

For my page, I used photos of my son and husband preparing cupcakes.  Although my page topic has nothing to do with Lite-Brite toys, you can see how the Lite-Brite influenced my page design.

I imitated the look of the Lite-Brite by scattering confetti across a dark background.

I call this page "The Joy of Cooking," and the journaling reads "Who knew that making orange cupcakes could be so fun!  We should all approach life with this much enthusiasm."

I hope that you'll consider approaching our final Child's Play challenge with enthusiasm.  I'd love to see your interpretation.  You have until the end of December to link your page up on the CPC blog.  Happy scrapping!