100th Birthday!

It is so incredible to know someone that is 100 years old! We celebrated my husband's Grandmother's birthday on Sunday. She turned 100 on March 25th. She has been through so much! Just think of it, she was born in 1910!!! The history she has been through.........it is just amazing to me.

We had a huge party at La Reunion in Helena.....very cute coffee shop! So many friends and family members were there. We wanted to have a record of all those people. Of course, I just pulled out the handy dandy Scripts kit and went to work! I LOVE how it turned out! I used the AccuCut machine to cut out the covers and inside pages for the signature book.
We would love to cut albums for you. Just let us know what you are looking for and we can ship it straight to you!!

Thicker Storage (and all those other alphas, too)

So, I have this bad habit of collecting scrapbook supplies. I'm fairly certain that I'm not the only one. My scrap supplies are taking up residence in my guest room. My guest room is also full of laundry! All my clean laundry is sorted and stacked nice and neatly (well, mostly neatly) on the guest bed. This is just out of control. I can't find my supplies. I can't find my favorite jeans. Cole can't find his favorite pj's. IT'S JUST TOO MUCH.

I think the best way to tackle this problem is first - to get rid of the laundry. Put everything away after it's folded - not just leave it there forever. And then second - I need to find a way to organize my favorite things - the things I use the most and go to over and over. I've decided these things are:

my kits
my paper
my letters
my go to embellishments
my tools

Now, I need to weed out everything else. I'm not sure how I'm going to do that - but I'm going to really really make some drastic changes in my guest room this week!!

In my attempt to organize my favorite things, I thought I would cook up some storage for my letters. This is what I came up with:



I found this fabulous cereal of Target. It's so good, I could seriously eat it for breakfast, lunch and dinner, seven days a week. It's just that good. But what makes it better - the container is so cute. It's harder cardboard than a regular cereal box and it has a plastic top - instead of just the typical cardboard fold up top.

I used the February BlackBird kit and covered my box and added some embellishments to the front and a label with THICKERS, as well.



Now I need to make a few more with my faves. I'm not sure if I'm going to do this by brands, though - I mean I have enough Thickers to fill up more than one container but the rest of my sticker letters are cardstock stickers and much thinner so I think I'll just group them all together. I can't wait to make a few more and have my letters a little more organized.

Now, if only I could find super easy ways to organize the rest...................

Lisa

It's Hidden!

Loving this month's kit. When I picked my kit up this month, this bingo paper from Glitz was the first thing I noticed. Perfect for some great boy pages...which is exactly what I've been wanting to scrap.

I loved the grid pattern of the paper, and it gave me an idea. I pulled out my exacto knife and did some cutting. I cut a big section out of the middle of the paper (and saved the rest. I used this paper on two more layouts. I love the versatility, but I digress). Then, using the grid pattern as a guide, I cut a little flap a little right of center.

I don't know if you can tell from this photo, but I also put a coat of the Copper Glimmer Mist from this month's kit on the paper to give it a little oomph.

Then, I backed the opening left by the flap with some notebook paper (lined - easier to write my journaling on). I used one of the Jillibean soup tab stickers as a little lift for the flap.

So easy and just a little bit different from your usual journaling spots.

The Happiest Race on Earth!

What fun I had with this month's kit! Why, oh why am I just now using these Tiny Alphas from Glitz Design?! They are the cutest!

I love this photo. I could scrap it again and again! I know this layout is kind of "plain" but that is intentional! The photo says it all!!!

**My challenge to you....get your Happy Photo...and make something with it!

Color Combination Challenge!

When certain colors are mentioned together or used together, our minds usually think of a particular holiday or occasion, such as red and green for Christmas, black and orange for Halloween, or pastel pink for a baby girl. My challenge to you is to use a color combination that is usually associated with a holiday or special occasion on a layout or project for something else. In my example, I used red and green for a layout about a game the kids made up and played while we were on vacation in Florida. They didn't have a name for it, so I called it "The Random Game".
Once you have created your layout or project, let us see it by posting a link in the comments and I will send a prize to one lucky winner! Become our fan on Facebook and I will put your name in the drawing twice!! If you are already a fan, let me know, and I will put your name in twice as well. I will draw a name on April 7th-- that gives you two whole weeks to come up with an idea. Can't wait to see what you do. Try to use product from the Scripts Kits-- any month, or months! It doesn't all have to be from the kits, but try to make at least half of your layout/project from Scripts. We love to see what you create!

Cookies Jars in the Springtime!

I needed to spruce up my cookie jar for Spring. I have this really cool jar that has black and white polka dots all over it. You may have seen them at The Spotted Zebra in Trussville! They are made by Coton Colors. This company has the cutest stuff! I wish I had every piece of pottery. It's just all so colorful!

So, I have several attachments for my cookie jar. Each season you can change out what attachment you use. My collection consists of all Fall attachments?! Odd.....I have a School Bus, a Witch, a Turkey (so cute), and a Christmas Tree. I do not know why I haven't bought something for Spring or Summer. I guess I need to head out to The Spotted Zebra to get one! OR.......make one out of the newest kit!!!!

Brittney was over this morning and I was showing her how cute it is. She made the suggestion that I make a new attachment...hello! Great idea.

I ran downstairs, cut out a scalloped circle from the AccuCut machine, a few flowers, used a butterfly from last month's kit and voila...the perfect Spring attachment!

A little Slice of heaven

You may have seen several of us mention our Slice - I'm pretty sure that we all love our Slice, most of the time!!



Picture from Making Memories

I got my Slice when they first came out and couldn't wait to play with it!! I started off with just the Slice and the Design Card that came with it. I eventually got the Basics 3 card and Fa La La. I was also lucky enough to buy my Slice at the right time and get the offer for the free Design Card - Seasons. So within just a few months, I had enough Design Cards to keep me busy!!

I made several fun things right away - like this December Daily Album and our Christmas Card for 2008! I made this Countdown to Christmas and decorations for out little Alabama tree, too!



I really loved cutting things out - since this was the first die cutting system I had, I went a little crazy, obviously!! But, it was so fun!!

I had a few issues with my Slice, mostly operating issues on my part!! I wasn't always patient and when it wouldn't do just what I wanted, I tended to just unplug it and walk away!! I did end up watching several of the videos on the Why Slice website and that helped a lot. I still tend to have a few problems with it now, but sometimes you just have to give the machine a rest and take a break!!

Now, I've added several Design Cards to my stash! I have Basics 2, Spooky Alley and Mix and Mingle. I've used my Slice for accents on layouts, cards and altered items. I've used it for Banners - for Birthdays and Baby Showers. I've used it on three diaper cakes now, too!

Here's the breakdown on my thoughts on the Slice:

Pros:

• Super portable
• with the recent upgrades to the machine, it's much faster
• design cards are affordable, especially when they are on sale
• endless options with the extra things they've added recently - shadowing, mirror imaging, etc
• cuts paper and cardstock easily
• cuts vinyl

Cons:

• battery runs out quickly to me, so even if it's portable, you still have to plug it in to get the best results
• temperamental - sometimes I really do just have to unplug it and walk away when it won't cut all the way through the paper, or cuts wonky - coming back to it later seems to make it work again though
  
• the Design Cards and accessories aren't on sale often enough for me (although I've recently discovered that the accessories aren't excluded on JoAnn's coupons - YAY)
• when cutting tons of designs, I hate that I have to hold the machine, but the good thing is they've now come out with a Hands free option and I'll be looking into adding that to my stash soon!
• adhesive is pricey and my last tube clogged up and was a pain to fix
  

What I hope they come out with in the future:

• the ability to cut your own designs (I've heard this will be available in the future though)
• the ability to use the new features (mirror image and shadowing) on the old design cards
• Disney design cards (oh my gosh - I hope this happens!!!)
  

Things the Slice does that I haven't tired:

• embossing (I really want to try that)
• drawing (I don't know if the pens are out yet, but I know they showed it at CHA)

Overall, I love my Slice!! I love that I can cut out any title for a page (that is, when I'm not using all the alphabets that come in my Scripts kit - Thickers are tough competition for the Slice). I love that I can cut multiple sizes of shapes and layer them for some fun accents. I love that I can cut vinyl now. I cut out a name and stuck it on a cute pink pail for my future niece. Her first Easter bucket is ready (she isn't arriving until after this Easter, but I just couldn't help making a cute pail for her). I've also cut my initials for my back window on my van. I feel like the options are endless - there are so many things I get excited about doing!!

Making Memories sales vinyl that's marketed as Slice Vinyl, but it's patterned and that doesn't always work for what I want to cut. They haven't come out with solid vinyl yet, that I know of. The Slice does cut the vinyl for the Cricut and Silhouette. I also picked up a scrap of vinyl from a sign shop and it cut that, too!

So, back to the OVERALL part, I love it!

Extreme Make Over : Calendar Edition!

This is what my $1 spot planner looked like when I bought it. I liked it as it was, but decided to personalize it a bit!



I really liked how it came out. The Jenni Bowlin stickers were perfect for making flowers/suns and I have been drawn to orange lately, so I loved that the orange paper matched the design already on the cover. The strips at the bottom are from a previous kit. I {heart} using the kits together!!
I hope this will help me stay organized!!
Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Hey Jude - March Kit

So, I'm packing kits for March and I just had to take a fun picture and share the details here. I am totally in love with this kit. First - Glimmer Mist!!! I am new to the world of Glimmer Misting and LoVe It!! The paper is so so fun!! I already have a photo ideas scribbled in my planner just to use with some of this paper. The coffee filter is a bonus I threw in for fun. I just really wanted to dye some and told Lucy about it and she said go for it. Well, I didn't have any tea. Can you believe that? Who doesn't have tea? Well, us - apparently. But, just so you know - you can totally dye coffee filters with Coke. So, that's what I did. I love the raffia and those little buckles are so so cute. All the paper is adorable and when you get your hands on the core'dinations - you will be in heaven! It's a creamy color on the front and a brown on the back. It's embossed with polka dots. When you distress the cream side - the brown pops through!! I can't wait to play with that!!

Okay - so here's the details:

Patterned papers:
Glitz, from the *new* Kismet Collection: Stripe, Numbers and Ledger
Jillibean Soup, from the *new* Chicken Soup Collection: Chicken Bouillon
Cosmo Cricket, from the *new* Garden Variety Collection: Sunday Picnic and Measuring Up, Elements

Cardstock:
American Crafts in Sunflower and Evergreen
Jenni Bowlin, core'dinations Whitewash Collection in Grandpa's Trunk

Alphabets:
Cosmo Cricket Chipboard
Glitz Teeny Alpha in red

Embellishments:
Glimmer Mist in Copper
Jillibean Soup Cardstock Stickers Sheet
Cosmo Cricket Elements Sheet
Glitz Distressed Rub-ons
Brown rickrack
Red and Brown Chipboard pieces from Creative Cafe
Red Gingham pocket
White and Red tag
Brown polka dot stationary
Hand died coffee filter
Natural Raffia
Vintage brown metal buckles
Jillibean Soup canvas flowers
Pink blooms

If you haven't signed up for Scripts yet - you should!! This kit is a must have!!

Lisa

Springy colors make me happy!

I'm so glad that all the stores are starting to break out all the springy stuff. It's nice to see the cheerful colors. But, here's the deal - I haven't spent much time out shopping lately. I've been at home and on the computer. So, I decided to look around for some springy colors online.

First, I was flipping through my Google Reader and came across this. Here's my favorite image from that post:




Check out these cute water bottles:



Those are from Potter Barn Kids - so cute and springy - I always love polka dots, but it just seems like they fit in better in the spring!

Check out this link from the Land of Nod but before you click, plan on spending a bit of time there - their stuff is adorable!

And look at this:



This is from Martha Stewart - love these colors together - but the kicker is she calls this a Craft Punch Glossary. Check out directions on how to make this here.

So, what spring colors are you wanting to break out? What colors make you squeal with joy?

Mix n Match

I think my favorite part of the Scripts Kit, is that I can mix and match it all so well.

I used some of the My Little Shoebox paper from the Blackbird kit, but then used some of the Jenni Bowlin and the October Afternoon from the September Kit. I love how it all works out!

These pictures have been sitting on my desk, just waiting....so I love having them done! And, he's super easy to look at too :)

More Fashion Inspiration

I was ultra inspired by Lucy's Oscar Fashion post the other day. So, I decided to go with the theme.

Earlier this week, I purchased a cute little dress from a Consignment Sale at a friends house. Cream with scatters of brightly colored stars. I just fell in love with it. It's a little small for Cam, but I am going to let her wear it as a tunic.

I don't have a normal hole punch. I have a hole punch that makes butterflies. I know. I have a problem. Anyhoo, I punched out a ton of tiny little butterflies from some Lily Bee, SEI and Cosmo Cricket patterned paper and scattered them in little bunches just like the stars on the dress.

Note to readers: Since I used patterned paper instead of cardstock, I had to place each butterfly by hand. You can see the little shiny dots of Glossy Accents. This was kind of a pain, but I am thrilled with the effect. The SEI paper had a glittery side so that added a little bit "extra" to it as well. For a variation, you could use Stickles to glue the butterflies down (which would add glitter if you wanted it and didn't have any glittery paper).

Thanks also to the Fabulous Lisa Tanner for the new Blog Siggies : )

My favorite tool for inking

I really like the whole "distressed/vintage" look (shocker, I know), however, I'm not a big, fancy tool kind of gal. I like to just make do with what I have most of the time... plus I'm a cheapskate and don't like to spend my paper spending money on tools. Ha!

However, about a year ago, I was in Hobby Lobby and was buying some new Tim Holtz Distress Ink (I like the Walnut Stain color a lot!) and I found these little sponge daubers. For some reason I was compelled to buy them, and I'm so glad I did.

You can tell I've used the one on the far right a lot. This is actually a new package I bought recently. I'll be digging out those fresh ones soon.

I like them because they give you more control on how much ink you can put on a page. I know there are other tools out there that can help with inking, but the selling point for these are that they fit on my finger like a thimble. I can get into all the nooks and crevices easily, and add "blurry edges" on things.(Cards made with the Blackbird kit)So next time you see some of these, grab 'em! I bet you'll like them.

(I was not endorsed by Tim Hotlz or Tsukineko to post this! I just like the stuff!) :)

I googled Scrapbooking Sketch....

And was quickly absorbed in to many wonderful sites FULL of fabulous sketches that will be sure to help any scrapbooker who is lacking inspiration!

I picked this one to use:




And this is my finished product:



Instead of using just circles, I incorporated hearts and flowers into the design as well. And I moved my journaling to the spot above the title, because the title was part of it. Overall, I liked how it turned out, and loved following a sketch.

ETA: I found this sketch here!

Oscar night.....roll out the red carpet!

I love watching the Oscars. I do not really care who wins what. I love the fashion! Oh, the Dior, Chanel, Oscar de la Renta and Marchesa and even Donna Karan.........the best and worst dressed is so fun to play. I tuned in a few minutes late on Sunday night. The first person I saw was Penelope Cruz. Is this girl gorgeous, or what? Wow, I saw her and decided immediately she was at the top of my list......(I hadn't seen anyone else). As the night progressed, I never changed my mind. Of course, Demi Moore and her awesome plastic surgery looked beautiful. I loved the ruffles on her gown. Cameron Diaz looked beautiful, styled by Rachel Zoe. (I need her to be back on tv.......NOW) After looking through all the websites today, my original best dressed still stands......Penelope Cruz. Can someone let her know??

I was very inspired by all this fashion and pulled out my Black Bird kit. What to make? I have been very inspired by this artist lately. I am so excited to say that I will be attending her Book Art Painting Party at the end of this month!!!! YIPPEE!! So, I pulled some energy from her, the Glitz Eye Candy flowers and Glitz paper and started creating! I will tell you this was so easy and fun to make! All I did was crinkle up the piece of paper, did a little folding here and there and covered it in Mod Podge. I took ALL of the flowers on the Eye Candy sheet and started sticking them all around the bottom. The leaves made the perfect sash at the waist.. I struggled and struggled with the words. I tried painting them in red. I covered that up....twice. I wanted this quote on there but didn't want it to overpower the painting. I decided to write it with an American Crafts Galaxy Marker in white all the way around the canvas. I like the way it turned out. It stands out a little more than I would like for it to. I'm taking it to my friend today. I hope she likes it!
The quote reads, "Fashion is not something that exists in dresses only. Fashion is in the sky, in the street, fashion has to do with ideas, the way we live, what is happening. -Coco Chanel

New Favorite Blog

Have you guys seen this: Dollar Store Crafts

I must credit Virginia for showing me this blog. I love it.

This is one of my favorite things and I really want to make these!! and these and then, these don't even look like coffee filters and check this one out! I have a wall of T's in my home and that last project would be a great way to bring the T's in the room, and off the wall.

The blog is set up with different sections - like under $1, under $5 and then a section that's inspired by high-end designers.

I love it. The past few days she's been showing birds - birds that were made from the dollar tree but inspired by places that were more expensive!!

So, go check it out and come back here and tell me what you liked the most!!

lisa

A little copycat.... Christmas Cards

A while back, Brittney did a post called "I Love Christmas Cards", and I loved it! I started copying the idea right away...but didn't finish. It sat on my desk, and got buried....for over a month. I found it last night, and knew I needed to sit down and finish it! So I did. So thanks, B, for the idea! And thanks Scripts-- for having the exact prescription for my needs! :)

Event Scrapping

I confess, I am an AWFUL event scrapper. Usually, my pictures from events aren't "perfect" and I hate that I can't control all the outfits and the background. However, I am pretty happy with how this layout turned out. The awesome colors in the Glitz chipboard flowers were PERFECT with all the bright colors from Cam's party at Pump it Up. I tried to pick a good cross section of pictures from the party (who was there, all the different things we did) and I created a bunch of 4x3 pictures (one half of a 4x6 picture) to showcase it all. I cut out some of the hearts from the Glitz heart paper to use as accents also. The My Little Shoebox paper was perfect for the background since it already had lines for writing.

Color Inspiration

My friend Jana has introduced me to several blog that are GREAT eye candy, and perfect for choosing color schemes for layouts & projects.

This site is a wedding site, but just look at all of these great colorboards from their "Inspiration Binder."

They have lots more to look at, too! Just click on the "Inspiration Binder" link.

This beautiful image is from the site, Creature Comforts. It is full of lots of color combos and inspiring photos. It's such a great jumping off point for when you are ready to scrap, but don't know where to start. Color always puts me in a certain mood...

Image link: Creature Comforts.

I found this entry on Creature Comforts and I loved the sweetness (no pun intended!) of the colors.


Then I realized- oh, this fits the Blackbird kit perfectly!

My Jenni Bowlin letters were kind of disappearing into the banners, so I used a little penwork to make them stand out. I also cut out the inside of one of the JBS label stickers to remove the green border since it didn't fit into my color scheme.
I wanted a nice white space to journal in, but it was late and I didn't feel like pulling out the white paint. I dug around in my scrap tool bag and pulled out a roll of masking tape- aha! It's great for adding texture and a cool place to journal on.

And one more site before I go: Colour Lovers has lots of lovely color pallettes!