Scrapbook & Cards Today Blog

Project Summer wrap up!

Welcome to the last edition of Project {Hello} Summer!  Summer vacation is at an end so it's time to wrap up my summer mini album. Truth be told, I still have pages to do, but it's been easy and a lot of fun, and a wonderful opportunity for my family to contribute.

The first page I wanted to share was our trip to the fair this year.  I didn't bring my DSLR, only my phone, which was nice because it's always super hot at the fair and who wants to lug a great big camera around the whole time?  Instagram pics were the easiest way to capture our day.  Payton also drew a picture of her favorite ride, the spinning bears (I forgot the ride's actual name) and I LOVE having it in this album.

I'm still using my Chevron journal.  I created a kraft overlay for one of the journal pages with my Cameo.  I put some of the chevron pieces back in to make it a little less busy, and added some scraps of paper in the color palette of the photos to add some fun.  I'm obsessed with this background and have used it on layouts as well as utilizing the little arrow pieces on other projects.   

The title was cut with the Pacifico font from my Cameo again, that's a recurring theme, and stitched to hold it down. 

The second page I wanted to share today was a mini triathlon for kids that my girls participated in.  It was called the Li'l Rat Race, a spinoff from the adult RAT race happening the same day (Redmond Area Triathlon).  There was a water obstacle course, a 1 mile bike ride, and then a 1/4 mile run at the end.  It was so crazy it was hard to take photos and I completely missed that Morgan crashed in the bike to run exchange, but my little trooper kept going and sprinted to the finish line. I couldn't be more proud and the kids are already talking about doing it again next year.

I knew this was going to be another two page spread, so I used stamps to help bring cohesion to the page.  I used a chevron border stamp to add the detail, along with my American Crafts stamping markers and my stamp press.  I really like how it turned out.  Just for fun I outlined a couple of the arrows with a Precision pen.

Because it was a Triathlon with three events, I trimmed some numbers from my Cameo and layered them with tags around my layout. 

I also thought it would be fun to include the little racing bibs with this project.  That's one of the things I love most about this adventure.  It's been fun to include drawings from the girls and also memorabilia from our summer fun.  We went to the lake the other day and Morgan caught a fish in the kayak out in the middle of the lake without any help.  It was her first fish and I'm really excited to have her write her fishing story to include with that summer page.  Down the road that type of thing is going to be the most treasured parts of our albums.  We wouldn't want to forget that she named her fish Mr Bubbles, right? 

I hope you have had a wonderful summer!  Have a great school year! 

~ Davinie

P.S.  Raise your hand if you'd like to see more Project 12.  I'm wondering if it would be worth it to share Project 12 layouts again and if there's interest in a monthly layout roundup again.

Be sure to join us TOMORROW as we reveal the brand new, redesigned and beautiful fall issue!  Our most inspiring issue yet!  Don't miss our celebration starting tomorrow morning! 

Project 12 for May!

Hello there and welcome to Project 12 for May!  Are you still capturing your month in this fun easy way with me?  For Project 12 this month I wanted to share my process in creating a layout inspired by The Colour Suite in addition to the PageMaps sketch by Becky Fleck.  The first thing I do is shop my stash based on the color palette given.  I have found this type of challenge to be the perfect way to utilize the "stash".  What’s the point in keeping it all if you aren’t going to use it?  Based on the colour suite we are challenged with this month (just released today so check it out here), this is what I came up with:




If you are familiar with these products, you’ll notice that flower paper hails from…2008.  It was definitely time to put it on a layout!

It is only after I have the products picked out that I shop my digital files to put it all together on a layout.  Because this is Project 12, obviously that means going through my April photos and choosing those that represented the month for me.  This month that meant digging through my digital files as well as my camera photos, as I use my Iphone a lot in documenting our life.

I had previously decided to use the January 2010 sketch for this layout.

I got carried away with piecing paper for this layout and utilized several different prints. 

My girls are still busy helping me with school, we celebrated Easter, started softball, and have been enjoying the everyday.  The month just flew by.  For fun I wanted to see what my layout looked like when I utilized this sketch the first time in January, 2010. 

I hope you are still busy documenting your everyday on a layout.  Be sure to check back next month.  I will have a new Project 12 layout to share with some fun tips and tricks, and also a new "idea" I think you’ll like to document your summer!

The next sketch I plan to use to document May, 2012, is this sketch, from March, 2011:

Before we go though we want to let NinaN know that she has won a one year subscription to Scrapbook & Cards Today magazine for playing along last month!  Nina, send your address to us at [email protected]. 

I hope you’ll play along with the challenge this month ~ it's very easy!  If you are new to this challenge, here's how it works:

1.    Choose any of the PageMaps sketches from our website HERE.  Becky has created 24 sketches to inspire you with!

2.    You are recapping the past month so you will be working on your May layout now and linking it to this post by June 14th. That gives you two weeks once the month is finished to complete your layout!

3.    To increase the challenge level you can use the current Colour Suite challenge for the month.  So, for your May layout you would use the May Colour Suite challenge:

4.    We have added a prize feature so be sure to link your May layouts to this post by June 14th and I’ll randomly draw a winner for a prize. 

Enjoy the rest of your May!  Keep taking those photos and documenting those memories.

~ Davinie 

http://davinie.blogspot.com

Project 12 - April PageMaps sketch!

When it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.  Project 12 in the traditional way has worked for me for years, so there is no reason to change things.  This month I am sharing a layout documenting our March, 2012, as I have traditionally done.  I believe Project 12 is the perfect scrappy challenge for the working person who still wants to document the every day and also be crafty, but doesn’t have time to do so daily.  That’s ME.  With that said, this is the PageMaps sketch I chose to work with for this month, the May 2011 sketch:

And this is what I came up with:

Following the Colour Suite challenge was easy as I’ve seen similar color palettes in product collections in recent years.  I was able to pull out some BasicGrey and some Crate paper and come a bit close to the color selected for this challenge.  Have I mentioned how I appreciate the color challenge and how it helps you focus on utilizing your stash?  I love that.  It makes it easier to focus on older product that is still lovely, even with the new stuff to tempt you.

A fun embellishment I made for this layout were confetti pockets out of vellum.  I was able to punch vellum with a circle punch, fill it with confetti, and then carefully stitch around and seal it up.  I think it offers a fun surprise to this layout, and as March happens to also be a month of birthdays in our house, it adds a bit to the festive feel.

For fun I thought I’d start sharing what I have previoulsy done with the sketches.  This is the layout I came up with for the PageMaps sketch in May 2011 when it was first released.




Thank you to Tracy Moore for playing along this month.  You have been randomly selected to win a subscription to Scrapbook & Cards Today magazine! Please send your information to us at [email protected] and put "P12 winner" in your reference line.

I will see you again on May 15th with my April layout.  Next time I plan to use this PageMaps sketch, from January 2010:

That’ll work great with those Easter photos.  My girls were also in a play and I can’t wait to document that as well.

I hope you’ll play along with the challenge this month.  If you are new to this challenge, here's how it works:

1.    Choose any of the PageMaps sketches from our website HERE.  Becky has created 24 sketches to inspire you with!

2.    You are recapping the past month so you will be working on your April layout now and linking it to this post by May 14th. That gives you two weeks once the month is finished to complete your layout!

3.    To increase the challenge level you can use the current Colour Suite challenge for the month.  So, for your April layout you would use the April Colour Suite challenge here.

4.    We have added a prize feature so be sure to link your April layouts to this post by May 14th and I’ll randomly draw a winner for a prize.

Enjoy the month!  Capture the month. See you back here on May 14th!

~ Davinie

Project 12 March...and Colour Suite too!

Project 12.  Capture your life.  Episode March.  2012.  Be advised:  Spring is around the corner, but we’ve been getting snow here in Central Oregon, the first snow of the winter, really.  What on earth?

March has been a crazy month so far for our family.  When it came to documenting it, I found that it was my phone doing all the work, and telling a wonderful story, so I used the Instagram App and printed everything 2x2 for a layout about our world this month.

Got any fun phone apps?  I have an Iphone 4.  My husband has a 4s which has a better camera, and if it wasn’t his love affair with his girlfriend Siri, I’d convince him to swap me.  Alas, I’m going to have to wait until the 5 comes out.  In the meantime, some fun apps I use are:

Instagram

Camera +

The Camera + app has some editing functions that helps improve the look of my photos a wee bit.  They still don’t look as good as they would if I had that other phone though.  Phooey.  That said, Project 12 is about documenting your life, and if that makes for grainy photos, then grainy photos it is.  I have 16 of them on this layout.  16!  And the story they tell makes me smile, and doesn’t require a lot of journaling, although I still used the journaling blocks I love so much.

The sketch I chose to use from the Project 12 stash hails from February 2010. 

I was drawn to this one because I liked how each photo was the same size.  It ended up working really well with my layout, and I hope you can still see the sketch in my work.

I also utilized the March Colour Suite. 

I really liked the palette this month.  Those are my two FAVORITE shades of blue.  They go so well with the green and pink.   I kept the overall design simple, because it doesn’t need to be heavily embellished, and yet I still enjoyed the process. 

I like the change for 2012 using colour.  It forces me to dig through my stash, and we all have a stash of goodies to use, and yet I was able to mix in new products too.

A tip for this month is how I organize my thoughts for my photos and journaling.  I have a day planner, and when something out of the ordinary is happening, Morgan was home sick for two days, Payton and her friend Harley were having a fun conversation, etc., it’s easy to jot it down really quick and then look back at it later when I’m going through my photos.

I encourage you to give this type of memory keeping a try if you’ve never done so before.  I find I’m enjoying the process, documenting the mundane.  One of those photos was taken at dinner one night when Payton slapped her napkin on her forehead and told me she was angry, creating a furrowed brow.  You betcha I grabbed my phone and made her hold it there so I could snap a photo.  Ha!  Not only did I get to document my daughter’s personality, I was also able to mess with her a little bit, and it’s fun to irritate the children sometimes, a role reversal if you will.  Ha!

I hope you’ll take time to play along this month and share what you’ve been up to, how you are capturing your world in a layout.  Be sure to link it here below!  I’m going to check them out and randomly select a winner for a subscription to Scrapbook and Cards Today magazine.  Wouldn’t it be great to get SCT at your doorstep?  I think so!!

Enjoy the rest of your March!  Be sure to wear green this weekend so you don’t get pinched!

Davinie

P.S.  I’ve already decided which sketch I’m going to use in April.  I’m going with May 2011. 

That will be a fun one to revisit.  See you next month!

Project 12 for February!

Hello Friends!  It’s the February edition of Project 12 in 2012.  How do you feel about the new challenge? (for all the information on Project 12 in 2012 click here!) I hope you are taking the opportunity to be free with your photos, to save the memorabilia if it strikes your fancy, and are finding inspiration by digging through 2 years of sketches put together by Becky Fleck here and here. 

The sketch I chose to use this month came from October 2010:

 

I really liked that big circle and was excited to use this sketch again.  I had considered making a big heart for Valentines Day or trimming out a big doily with my die cut machine, but instead, went with a couple of smaller doilies and more photos.

 My layout:

 

Can you tell how I was inspired by the sketch?  A sketch is a great starting point, but for me, it’s always fun to use that as a guide and then let the photos and embellishments finish the design.  With this new challenge, we are also working with the monthly Colour Suite, and for February, it looks like this:

With that color palette in mind, I dug through my stash and came out with some perfect prints from Crate Paper, as well as colored cardstock and stamps.  Don’t have that purple?  For some reason, I have Ranger distress ink in milled lavender, and was able to stamp some cardstock before trimming out my smaller hearts.  I also used it to stamp the banner with a new My Minds Eye stamp set.  Don’t forget to look to your ink when searching for a color you are missing!

 My layout closeups:

 

With this sketch, I added a few extra photos, because as I was looking through my phone photos, there were a few I had forgotten, random moments like the way Payton was sitting while working on her Valentines (she sits just like her dad, with her feet crossed), a photo I took of my books as I was studying, and even the wreath I made for February on our front door. 

Previously with Project 12, I would look through my digital files and choose what best captured the month.  In 2012, I’m working hard to really capture the everyday too.  I think you can see my life in these photos and that makes me happy but I put no pressure on myself and there are certainly days when no photos are taken.  This is supposed to be about capturing your life, and about art.  It should be fun.  The only preplanning I did was to slip in an extra Valentine for Payton to sign just so I could use it for my layout.  It was a covert mission and she had no idea.  When you are 5 and have to sign your name 22 times, does it really matter if it ends up being 23?  :)  It really was quite convenient that the extra heart was purple. 

Speaking of previous, we need to button up 2011 and hand out some prizes.  If you played along with the December 2011 sketch and linked your work at my blog or at the SCT blog post that revealed the December sketch (or emailed your layout), you were in a drawing for a prize in December!

Cynthia B is the winner from SCT

And

Vanessa

Is the winner from my blog.  Congratulations ladies, you won the Snow Day Collection from Pink Paislee!  It’s just adorable.  Just email [email protected] with your mailing address and Pink Paislee will get that right out to you!

Thank you again for joining us this month for Project 12 in 2012!  I hope you found something to inspire you and I’ll see you back here on March 15th sharp!  Why don't you hop over here or here now and choose your sketch for February...a great place to start!

And be sure to check out February's Colour Suite and Summer's inspiration too.  Just click here to see the beautiful cards Summer created from this month's colour palette!

~ Davinie

 

It's here! Project 12 in 2012!

Project 12 in 2012.  I know many of you are anxious to hear about the new challenge for 2012, and today is the day!! 

Project 12 has always been about capturing the moments of our everyday life, to use the less than perfect photos that capture our stories, and to tell those stories in our journaling.  One of my favorite thing about all the sketches Becky Fleck has created for this challenge was the great BIG journaling box.  I’m addicted to that large space and love using a large journaling block on most two page layouts I create.

Life has a way of changing, and with the new challenge in this new year, it was time to make that change.  The first one is a change to the 15^th of the month instead of the first.  That’s doable.  That change is easy enough to adhere to.  The new challenge is easy as well.

Scrapbook your life.  Whether you take 1 photo, 100 photos, or no photos, get it down on paper.  But this year, let’s include our memorabilia as well.  Let’s declutter our world of those things we save but don’t have a place for, tickets and receipts and programs and race running bibs, and lets incorporate them into our work.

Taking a photo a day has always been an overwhelming task for me to take on.  There are 365 days in a year (366 this time).  I could never do it.  But I do like the concept of Project Life, developed by Becky Higgins to incorporate your daily life in page protectors and journaling cards.  I’ve taken on that challenge for 2012.  I like the idea.  I also think it’ll be fun to involve my husband and my kids and have them tell their story with their own words.

But I still think an album like this has a place for art on a larger canvas.  So I think it’s perfectly fine to mix the two.  I also don’t think it’s necessary to do something to document every single day.  That’s too much pressure for many of us.

For Project 12 in 2012 we don’t have a new sketch to work from every month.  In fact, Becky has created 24 fabulous sketches for this challenge the last two years, and SCT has done a great job capturing all of them in one place on the website and YOU can choose the sketch that speaks to you each month!  You can see them all here:

http://www.scrapbookandcards.com/project-12-sketches  (2010)

http://www.scrapbookandcards.com/project-12-sketches-2011

For my layout this month, which incorporates memorabilia and random photos from my January, I chose to work with the August 2010 sketch:

 

Oh, and did we mention there is another twist too?  We're going to use a colour palette!  Also revealed on the 15^th every month on the Scrapbook & Cards Today website is Summer Fullerton's Colour Suite challenge.  Paired with Project 12 in 2012 you have a perfect challenge to creatively inspire you.  Here is January's Colour Suite challenge:

So with the sketch I chose and the January Colour Suite in mind, this is what I came up with:

 

 

As you can see, I included receipts, coupons, my racing bib from a 5k I did that weekend, and even a snippet of a letter I got in the mail regarding Orientation for grad school.  All of these are elements that will be fun to look back on down the road, as part of my history.  There will be a time when loading your Starbucks card for $20 will barely cover the cost of a latte...lol!

You’ll also notice more random photos, like the one of my husband’s suitcase.  This is part of the new challenge to myself to document even MORE of the everyday than I usually do.  By the way, did you see how we mark our luggage?  I have a fabrip wrapped around the handle. 

TIP:  See the “splatter marks?”   If you are like me and want more control on where the mist splatters, especially when your photos are already adhered, try this:  dip a pencil eraser into a bottle of mist or stamp it on an ink pad, and stamp the splatter onto your page.   I also used the end of a Basic Grey file.  There are a lot of tools in your stash that would double as a quick and easy stamp.  Try it! 

The new Project 12 challenge is to document more of YOUR every day on a layout.  Because some days we take more photos than the last, you can choose your own sketch among all the fun sketches that Becky has created for this challenge.  Utilize The Colour Suite as an additional challenge for yourself, and enter that monthly challenge for a subscription to the magazine, the best and most inspiring craft publication available, if I do say so myself!!

The Project 12 in 2012 challenge is supposed to be easy to incorporate into your life and your albums.  I wanted to be able to share an inspiration piece each month when I list the new challenge, and I love that I can do that with this new format.

The amount of time you choose to document is up to you.  For this layout, I chose a week in our life.  Maybe next month it’ll be just a few days, or maybe 10 of them.  The point is to grab a piece of time in YOUR life and get it down on paper for future generations to get a glimpse of your life, one layout a month.

I hope you will be inspired and play along and of course we would love to see your Project 12 in 2012 layouts to inspire others!  Just link up your January layouts to today's post and we'll randomly choose one layout to feature each month and a subscription giveaway too! 

I’ll see you back here on February 15^th!  Have a great month!

Davinie