My new step-mom (I say new because they just got married, but she's been in the family for over a decade and out ranks my kids and hubby...lol) and my son Nick have a special bond. She has been his Noni since the day he was born. More than a grandma, she is his best friend. I tried following a sketch on this one, but it started to find it's own way and I decided I liked it better than the sketch.
Thursday, July 31
Noni and Her Boy
My new step-mom (I say new because they just got married, but she's been in the family for over a decade and out ranks my kids and hubby...lol) and my son Nick have a special bond. She has been his Noni since the day he was born. More than a grandma, she is his best friend. I tried following a sketch on this one, but it started to find it's own way and I decided I liked it better than the sketch.Tuesday, July 29
Following an 'Egg"-cellent Sketch
This is another landscape digi layout. We took my daughter to the park for the city wide egg hunt and she got to sit on a real fire truck. She was very excited about that. Meeting the Easter Bunny?? Not so much. My husband barely got the shot off before I nearly dropped her from her nails clawing into me to escape. Hahahaha.
The layout itself was one of my first digi layouts. I struggled a bit. I was following the sketch below and trying to duplicate the ribbon on the left was hard with limited supplies. I ended up just using two of the buckled ribbon and trying to place it in a way that concealed as much of the bottom buckle as possible. I really enjoyed following the sketch. It made a big difference. I had to boot the journaling from the sketch because it didn't fit in the layout size I was doing.
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Friday, July 25
Vacation Photos part 2
For my dad's 50th birthday we spent the day at the Missouri Botanical Gardens. The color combos on these two layouts isn't really my favorite, but I was ready to shake it up some. I did a lot of altering and layering the items here. I liked the flowers, but the centers didn't match. So...I covered them with buttons that went with the set. I also layered most of the buttons with other smaller buttons.
I loved the background used for this layout. My dad is an engineer and a tool addict so I loved the gritty, graph paper, workshop-y feel of this layout. Hard edges, torn pieces, stencil stamping, random paint swipes rather than ribbon. It all added to the effect that was exactly what I was going for.
Vacation Photos part 1
We made a trip to Jacksonville to visit friends for the fourth of July. We had a great day at the pool. I used a sketch for this layout, but first rotated it 90 degrees to the right then flipped the image to it's mirror and now it doesn't even resemble that thing.
We took a day trip to Cocoa Beach while visiting Florida. This is a digital layout from the vacation album slideshow I am working on. I really liked how simple the colors are allowing more photos to be showcased. I also liked how the white items had the appearance of rub-ons.
There are much more photos from our trip to Florida and the week we spent in St. Louis afterwards that are in this same slide show. I'll post soon.
Wednesday, July 23
Happily Ever After (part 2)
I really loved the blue in this set, as I'm sure you can see. The varied hearts were also among my favorite pieces. These were just misc photos from the ceremony. I used the arrows to show the order the photos were to be viewed in, but is now occurring to me that I mixed up the order of the third and fourth picture. I should be worried about it, but I was cheating anyway. LOL. I needed a photo of my dad greeting my children who were the best man and flower girl and couldn't find one. So I used a photo taken just after the ceremony.
These were all misc photos from the ceremony with my dad and Alisa's friends. I threw in there a picture of my kids making a speech because it went with the photo of Alisa's friend, Blake, making a speech.
The beautiful cake my Aunt Peggy made was absolutely delish. It deserved it's own page. LOL. The colors I used on the layouts don't go with the colors or theme of the wedding at all, but I am hoping it doesn't clash too terribly much. The wedding was a tropical, beachy theme.
The last page of the wedding layouts had a whole lot of photos crammed in. I thought about splitting them up into another 2 layouts, but on the actual page, it's at least twice the size as it's shown here and all the photos show just fine. These are mostly photos of family that attended the wedding. All one family from one side...there are a whole lot of us. LOL.
Happily Ever After
This is the front page of a 6 page digital scrapbook I put together of the wedding. All the pages are from the same set, but I used a variety of items in a variety of ways to try and make them each unique. On this page I decided to use the lyrics to 'their song' rather than journaling. I'm not too wild about the flowers, but that's what went. Those still may get booted if I find something better.
The journaling here says, "The week before Rick and Alisa (my parents) got married, we spent the week exploring Kansas City with friends." Darn it...re-reading that I see I forgot the comma. Oh well. Alisa's best friends from several different states came into town to celebrate the big day with us, so we took them out and about the city to see the sights before and after the wedding day. I did follow a sketch on this layout, but can't seem to place it now.
Tuesday, July 22
Noni and Pappy
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In preparing to scrapbook all of the pictures from my dad and step-mom's wedding last month, I decided to get my feet wet by scrapping my favorite photo of them. I hope it's obvious to anyone seeing the photo that I love them more than just about anything. That and I really love loud, contrasting, jump through the page and slap ya color combos. LOL. I followed the sketch below the photo. I didn't have to change it up too much even though the sketch is 8 x 8 and the layout is 8 1/2 x 11 landscape.Next up are the wedding layouts......
Monday, July 21
SCRAPESSENTIALS
I figured no better way to start out this blog than to give a heads up to anyone interested in taking up the best hobby ever!! Okay, I may be partial, but below you will find a post detailing everything I think one needs to know to get started!
SCRAPESSENTIALS LIST
So you are thinking about starting in scrapbooking or maybe you are already an addict but know someone who is looking into it. There is no need to drop 1000 bucks into the trade. Though most scrappers spend this the first year anyway. Here is a list of tools that everyone needs when starting out.
1. Album with Page Protectors -- These come in a variety of sizes. First determine how many photos do you want to put on each page. Is this going to be a larger yearly album where the 12x12 pages offer a great amount of flexibility to make each page it's own theme. Is it already going to be a themed album for a vacation or holiday and you only plan on showcasing 1 or 2 photos per page. In that case an 8x8 is your best bet. Either way, the last thing you want is to create a beautiful layout then have it ruined because you didn't put it in an album right away. I recommend 12x12 if you are going to try a family album because you can get more on each page, there is more help out there for that size as far as ideas online and MUCH more selection in all the stores. Before you buy an album check your Sunday paper. They almost always have a Michael's and JoAnns 40% off one item coupon and those are like gold to scrappers. LOL. Everytime you need a bigger tool like punches, trimmers, books....those are the best.
2. Paper -- You are going to need solid card stock in many many colors. You will use this for backgrounds, matting, borders, journaling, etc. The last thing you want to do is start a project and have to use a color that doesn't really go. You will discover patterned paper soon enough, but for starters you need to pick up cardstock. Once you have your photos together I would get a shoebox and separate photos stacked up and that way any memorabilia you wanna add can be stuck with the photos and then make a list of the photo sets you have (ie beach pics, school field trip to wherever, Christmas etc) that way when you decide to go scrappin shopping you can buy what you need and not just what you think you may use. Once you find embellishments and patterned paper to match you are ready to scrap. My BIGGEST advice would be in the beginning only buy for a handful of layouts at a time. As you do them you will get better and learn what you like and don't. Much better than buying tons of stuff to decorate pages that you think you may like and then once you do a few pages find out you hate that technique or can't pull it off. LOL.
3. Paper Trimmers -- You will need both a 12x12 trimmer and a nice pair of scissors. Nice sharp scissors are a must to create sharp smooth lines on your photos and papers. It will also make detailed cuts easier. For straight lines and even cuts a paper trimmer is a must. You will use this on virtually every layout. They are like 20 bucks but cheaper with your coupon if you get one. These are the long and you slide the paper in and then there is a blade you slide up and down to create a straight line cut. Get 12x12. The smaller ones are cheaper but you will regret it. LOL.
4. Adhesives -- The tops in my opinion are double sided tape (Scotch brand in yellow package is what I use and it's cheaper in the office supplies dept at Walmart and it's acid free) and Glue dots. Steer clear of glue sticks. These seem to be great as they are repositionable, but all that really leaves you with is a layout where the photos refuse to stay down and when you go check the book a month later all of the photos have detatched. Glue pens aren't my fav either.
5. Writing Tools -- You will need a nice black scrapbooking pen. If you feel the need to stock up on more, stick with blue, green, red and even brown. You won't find much use for the lighter colors. They seem like a good idea but they are really hard to read. Gel pens are okay if they are darker colors but they don't last for long at all and are hard to get even results. Scrapbooking pens are like 2 bucks a piece.
6. Alphabets -- You will be able to use pens for journaling and subtitles, but to really make your titles pop you need diecut letters, larger alphabet stickers or pre-cut titles.
Some techniques and tips I HIGHLY recommend.
Always matte your photos. Meaning once you crop them just how you want them glue/tape them to a piece of cardstock so that 1/8-1/4 inch of the cardstock shows all the way around. It is a simple thing that makes your layouts look more professional. Matting your titles and journal areas in other colors rather than putting them right on your background is great too.
Look around for sites that have layout sketches. I have TONS and will share a few in the course of blogging if you pay attenion..lol. These are basically sketches of layouts others have made and you just add your own theme and pictures in the area they did and I have found it made my layouts 100% better because they seemed to be less of a random mess and more like something beautiful.
Computer journaling is a great thing too. You want to use a pen and handwrite some things because you will look back and wish you had, but for many layouts computer generated looks awesome. Even simple Word Processors have tons of fonts to choose from. If you cut your cardstock down you can run it right through the printer. My cheapo printer even lets me send paper that was just a left over scrap as long as it's bigger than 6inches and even on all sides. Once you run it through THEN you can crop it down to the size you want =) There is a whole world of handmade things and cool ideas for shaped journal boxes and embellishments once you get in your groove.
Lastly...shop at Michaels, and Joanns first because they are cheaper and you can get great deals during their sales. GREAT deals. Don't rule out a local scrapbooking store though. Some of the larger ones will have some of the best selection and cool stuff you would never find at other stores. They are about 25% higher than the other two stores regular prices, but sometimes you just gotta splurge to really get the effect you want sometimes.
SCRAPESSENTIALS LIST
So you are thinking about starting in scrapbooking or maybe you are already an addict but know someone who is looking into it. There is no need to drop 1000 bucks into the trade. Though most scrappers spend this the first year anyway. Here is a list of tools that everyone needs when starting out.
1. Album with Page Protectors -- These come in a variety of sizes. First determine how many photos do you want to put on each page. Is this going to be a larger yearly album where the 12x12 pages offer a great amount of flexibility to make each page it's own theme. Is it already going to be a themed album for a vacation or holiday and you only plan on showcasing 1 or 2 photos per page. In that case an 8x8 is your best bet. Either way, the last thing you want is to create a beautiful layout then have it ruined because you didn't put it in an album right away. I recommend 12x12 if you are going to try a family album because you can get more on each page, there is more help out there for that size as far as ideas online and MUCH more selection in all the stores. Before you buy an album check your Sunday paper. They almost always have a Michael's and JoAnns 40% off one item coupon and those are like gold to scrappers. LOL. Everytime you need a bigger tool like punches, trimmers, books....those are the best.
2. Paper -- You are going to need solid card stock in many many colors. You will use this for backgrounds, matting, borders, journaling, etc. The last thing you want to do is start a project and have to use a color that doesn't really go. You will discover patterned paper soon enough, but for starters you need to pick up cardstock. Once you have your photos together I would get a shoebox and separate photos stacked up and that way any memorabilia you wanna add can be stuck with the photos and then make a list of the photo sets you have (ie beach pics, school field trip to wherever, Christmas etc) that way when you decide to go scrappin shopping you can buy what you need and not just what you think you may use. Once you find embellishments and patterned paper to match you are ready to scrap. My BIGGEST advice would be in the beginning only buy for a handful of layouts at a time. As you do them you will get better and learn what you like and don't. Much better than buying tons of stuff to decorate pages that you think you may like and then once you do a few pages find out you hate that technique or can't pull it off. LOL.
3. Paper Trimmers -- You will need both a 12x12 trimmer and a nice pair of scissors. Nice sharp scissors are a must to create sharp smooth lines on your photos and papers. It will also make detailed cuts easier. For straight lines and even cuts a paper trimmer is a must. You will use this on virtually every layout. They are like 20 bucks but cheaper with your coupon if you get one. These are the long and you slide the paper in and then there is a blade you slide up and down to create a straight line cut. Get 12x12. The smaller ones are cheaper but you will regret it. LOL.
4. Adhesives -- The tops in my opinion are double sided tape (Scotch brand in yellow package is what I use and it's cheaper in the office supplies dept at Walmart and it's acid free) and Glue dots. Steer clear of glue sticks. These seem to be great as they are repositionable, but all that really leaves you with is a layout where the photos refuse to stay down and when you go check the book a month later all of the photos have detatched. Glue pens aren't my fav either.
5. Writing Tools -- You will need a nice black scrapbooking pen. If you feel the need to stock up on more, stick with blue, green, red and even brown. You won't find much use for the lighter colors. They seem like a good idea but they are really hard to read. Gel pens are okay if they are darker colors but they don't last for long at all and are hard to get even results. Scrapbooking pens are like 2 bucks a piece.
6. Alphabets -- You will be able to use pens for journaling and subtitles, but to really make your titles pop you need diecut letters, larger alphabet stickers or pre-cut titles.
Some techniques and tips I HIGHLY recommend.
Always matte your photos. Meaning once you crop them just how you want them glue/tape them to a piece of cardstock so that 1/8-1/4 inch of the cardstock shows all the way around. It is a simple thing that makes your layouts look more professional. Matting your titles and journal areas in other colors rather than putting them right on your background is great too.
Look around for sites that have layout sketches. I have TONS and will share a few in the course of blogging if you pay attenion..lol. These are basically sketches of layouts others have made and you just add your own theme and pictures in the area they did and I have found it made my layouts 100% better because they seemed to be less of a random mess and more like something beautiful.
Computer journaling is a great thing too. You want to use a pen and handwrite some things because you will look back and wish you had, but for many layouts computer generated looks awesome. Even simple Word Processors have tons of fonts to choose from. If you cut your cardstock down you can run it right through the printer. My cheapo printer even lets me send paper that was just a left over scrap as long as it's bigger than 6inches and even on all sides. Once you run it through THEN you can crop it down to the size you want =) There is a whole world of handmade things and cool ideas for shaped journal boxes and embellishments once you get in your groove.
Lastly...shop at Michaels, and Joanns first because they are cheaper and you can get great deals during their sales. GREAT deals. Don't rule out a local scrapbooking store though. Some of the larger ones will have some of the best selection and cool stuff you would never find at other stores. They are about 25% higher than the other two stores regular prices, but sometimes you just gotta splurge to really get the effect you want sometimes.