Thursday, March 31, 2011

My "Scrapbook Page" Gig

I am truly enjoying my DT gig for "The Scrapbook Page" here in town! It's been a lot of fun to push myself creatively and jump back into traditional scrapping. Last week the fabulous store owner, Carolyn, asked me to create a layout and a couple of cards with a birthday theme. (Hmmm...do I know anyone who might have recently had a birthday?) She typically will give me a theme and perhaps a piece or two of patterned paper as inspiration, and then lets me loose in the store to grab whatever else I might need to create the layout and cards. I'm in heaven. **sigh** I've learned that it helps to have a layout idea in mind when I'm "shopping" around the store, otherwise I end up at home wishing I had a few more embellishments. Sometimes I'll even bring some layouts from magazines to help get my creative energy going.

I am dropping off these little goodies this afternoon:




I had to do a close-up of this Tim Holtz "Trimmings" ribbon. It is my latest obsession. It comes in an off-white color and you can spray it with Glimmer Mist to create any color imaginable! I used "Tattered Rose" which just happened to match the cardstock in my layout PERFECTLY. I did the same thing with the ribbon on the "Blow Out The Candles" card below. The "Trimmings" package comes with a yard of 3 different styles of ribbon and they are all just yummy. 

Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Studio Girls

So I've decided to call the girls I am doing as a result of Christy Tomlinson's mixed media class "Studio Girls". Christy has copyrighted the term "She-Art Girls", and besides, no one likes a copycat, right? ;)

I created one for my mom last week on a 12X12 metal sign that I picked up for $1.40 at Hobby Lobby. Gotta love that place! It had a horrendous picture of a cow on it, so I spray painted it with white primer and went to work. Really wishing I had bought about ten of those ugly cow pictures now! Although I will say that the bigger canvases do stress me out a bit as there is a LOT more background to fill up. Somehow they always just come together though and work out. I used a light blue acrylic paint for the base of the sky and strips of green paper for the grassy hills. My parents love to vacation in Scotland, so I wanted to give it a "Scottish" feel, hence the plaid skirt and the attempt at rolling hills. :) My mom had given me a photo of herself at about age 4 that she asked if I could use as the model for her girl. This was my first go at actually trying to create a Studio Girl from a photo and it was fun! As I am typing this, I am realizing I forgot to put buttons on her little coat...

So here is the photo of my mom...I love it because it looks so much like her now, in miniature! What a sweet girl. (And she is just as sweet now!)



And here she is as a Studio Girl. I included a little dog on the hill because she ADORES dogs:



I really like the quote she chose: She never forgot a kindness. It's the truth. She remembers sweet things her college roommate's mom did for her.

I mailed this on Monday so I'm hoping it arrives this afternoon. She has already seen a picture of it and says she loves it, but don't all moms love their kids' art?

Happy Wednesday!

Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Birthday Pics and Baby Gifts

I am having so much fun scrapping Kendall's sweet birthday pics. Jan, The Queen of Quirk, released a fabulous new paper pack this week called "Cora" which was just perfect to showcase the darling photos from Kendall's preschool party. Kendall's teacher is amazing--I love her! She has a special hat for the birthday girl or boy to wear which is beyond adorable! 


I spent some time this weekend working on baby gifts for two of Kent's coworkers. There are so many great kits for kids and babies on Jessica Sprague's site--almost too many to choose from! I picked  up some inexpensive wooden frames from Hobby Lobby and went to town. On the "Oscar" frame below, I used Echo Park's "Playground" collection which I can't get enough of! On the "Lydia" frame I used EP's aptly-named "Little Girl" collection. I used Glimmer Glam for the first time on the heart embellishments and it added just the right touch of sparkle!


I also made a couple of quick onesies using some of Cosmo Cricket's "Candy Candy" kits. 


Thanks so much for stopping by! Have a wonderful week!

Monday, March 28, 2011

I still {HEART} my Jayhawks


SO SO sad that my Jayhawks are not moving on to the Final Four! I wanted to cry yesterday afternoon after they lost to VCU. I still ADORE them though and am keeping the tiny Jayhawk that my fabulous nail guy, Tom, painted on my pinky nail last week. :) My daughter loves my Jayhawk and makes me show people everywhere we go (restaurants, Wal-Mart). A little embarrassing as I am a tad old to be painting mascots on my nails--but you only live once, right? We'll get'em next year, Coach Self!


Monday, March 21, 2011

Meet and Greet

In The Making Designs debuted a beautiful new line this week called "Meet and Greet". It includes a gorgeous paper pack, a fab set of labels and some lovely word art. I really like how masculine it is--just perfect for a layout featuring Cale. It is so rare that I am able to capture him on "film" at all these days so I like to scrap whatever pics I get. He is WAY too cool to pose for me anymore. This is one of the first pages I have scrapped that focuses on an aspect of our lives that is not necessarily pleasant. We're going through a bit of a rough time with Cale right now and he has essentially been grounded for the entire month of March. It has not been easy, but I know we'll get through this phase and back on the right track. I know it's important to scrapbook both the good and the not-so-good of our everyday lives, and I think it will be interesting to look back at years from now.


Right now, I'm working feverishly on pendants for The Global Orphan Project! Every year they have a big fund raiser at Mother's Day featuring the art of one of the girls they help. This year they selected me to make glass tile pendants using a beautiful flower drawn by Viola, a sweet 13 year old in Haiti. I am so honored to be a part of this project and am excited to get the word out about this amazing organization. You can learn more about them here. (One of the logoed scrabble tiles I make for them on a regular basis is on the home page as a "featured item".) Such a great cause! I'll let you know when the Mother's Day pendants become available. Here's a sneak peek at Viola's stunning artwork (aren't the colors she used incredible?):


Friday, March 18, 2011

Birthday Pics!

This birthday was such a big deal for Kendall. I think age 4 is the first year you really "get" what it's all about. I can still very vividly remember my 4 birthday party in the lower level of our home in Tacoma, Washington. I remember who was there and what my cake looked like. I even remember blowing out the candles. I hope that Kendall has fond memories of her 4th birthday party too. Here are some pics:

My friend, Amber, designed this amazing cake! Isn't it stunning? Absolutely delicious too!

I love this genuinely thrilled reaction to opening a baby doll from her great-grandmother, Grandma Lou! It was such a blessing to have her here from Tampa for the celebration.

Getting ready to blow out the candles!

Kendall and her girlfriends!

Kendall and Grandma Lou (modelling some of Kendall's sporty sunglasses)!

I finished Kendall's little "She-Art" girl last night. I told Kendall that the canvas was a bit busier than I wanted, but Kendall said that was ok, she loved it anyway! The colors are pretty bright but they match the palette in her room. Thanks so much for looking! :)




Wednesday, March 16, 2011

slacker!

Wow--it has been way too long since I posted on here! Things have been crazy busy with Kendall's birthday, my family in town, Cale on spring break, working on the amazing 'She-Art" class...and then my "real" job as a mortgage planner has picked up 200% this week! I am so thankful for that! The real estate market slows down so much during the winter months. I am thrilled to be busy for a change!

Quick layout to show you using the new mini-kit from Cosmo Cricket: Love Notes. I love how they are releasing some of their original lines like "Wanted" and "Love Notes" digitally now. These papers are just gorgeous in person.



I finished up my third "She-Art" girl last night. This is the most fun I have had in a long time--and I can't say enough about this fabulous class! Christy Tomlinson is so darling and REAL--and such a great teacher. This is the third and final (sob) week and she is showing us how to really personalize the backgrounds and our girls. I used a 10X10 canvas this time and found it to be a challenge to fill up all that space! I am happy with how it turned out, though--and it's always good to stretch a bit creatively, don't you think? **wink** Tonight I am starting a 6X12 canvas for Kendall that will (hopefully!) look like her. I am using a quote from a card my Aunt Patti sent for her birthday that says something like, "When you were born, the world had to make room for a little more fancy". That is so Kendall. :)







Thanks so much for stopping by! Tomorrow I will post some pics from Kendall's 4th birthday extravaganza!



Monday, March 7, 2011

6 more days!


Kendall has the serious birthday countdown going on! I made her a little 12-day countdown calendar last year (thank you, House of 3!) and she is really into it as she is turning 4. This is the first year we are having a "real" party where we are inviting friends and celebrating at a venue other than our house. (Whew--I have to admit I hate having parties at my house. It is so stressful to me for some reason. I have several friends who love entertaining and have always admired them!) My parents and grandmother are coming in from Charlotte tomorrow and are so excited to be here for the big day! A friend of mine is a brilliant cake-maker and is putting together a beautiful "princess castle cake" for her. I think she may just lose her mind when she sees it! I'll be sure to post some pics.

Over at Jessica Sprague today, Cosmo Cricket has released one of my favorite collections EVAH: For The Record! It is so versatile...there were several of the creative team girls working with that line this week and it was incredible how different each of the layouts looked. I used a cute photo of my dad from 1965 for this layout. This is what he looked like when he met my mom and in the journaling I mention that she says this is the smile she fell in love with. They are still so adorable together. Click here to check out "For The Record".


Friday, March 4, 2011

She had it in her to do amazing things!

Happy Friday! I am so excited that I finished my very first "She Art" canvas last night! Given that it is my first attempt, I am pretty happy with the way she turned out. I tried lots of fun techniques like creating texture with bubble wrap and shelf liner (who knew??) and using gorgeous background stamps. Next time I will move her up just a bit on the canvas...there's a lot of space above her head. Oh, and her legs are a little long, but overall I think she's not bad. :) Ready to start my next girl this weekend...can't wait to see what's in store for the class next week. Thank you so much for looking!







Please say a little prayer for my good friend, Suzanne, who is having extensive surgery this morning. Love you, Suz!

Wednesday, March 2, 2011

She Art Class and a Layout


If anyone out there is on the fence about taking Christy Tomlinson's She Art Class, you need to get off that fence, girlfriend, and sign up immediately! Class started on Monday and I have to say that I am a woman obsessed this week! She has put together the most amazing videos (11 of them--in bite-size pieces) walking step-by-step through the creation of 3 different canvases with her "girls"--and that is just for week 1! She filmed herself from above (looking down) so you are able to see every single thing she does to her canvas. It's a very casual, fun, get-dirty, anything goes kind of class...no rulers, no symmetry...and she has shown us how to have a "do-over" if we mess up! LOVE! Christy's next class starts on April 11th and it is just $35--trust me, it will be the best $35 you will spend on yourself all year! Click here to get signed up!

I am working on some Easter layouts for The Scrapbook Page this week. It's been fun to go back a few years to find pictures to use! These are from 2009 when Kendall was 2 1/2:


I love that flower! It was just a simple, white paper flower until I sprayed it with Glimmer Mist Chalkboard in Peacock--then, SHAZAMM! Hard to see in a photo, but it has a beautiful, bright, opaque color, but with tons of shimmer. I'm definitely going to have to pick up more Chalkboard inks!

Happy Wednesday!

Tuesday, March 1, 2011

New Template!

Liv.E Designs has done it again with another fabulous template! I love templates because they do so much of the work for you! I rarely scrap, digitally or traditionally, without at least a picture of a layout I like. I may tweak the template or design idea a bit, but they always give me a good starting point. Click here to see the template. At $1.99 it's a must-have!

I used this little pic of Kendall eating a popsicle (in the middle of winter, no less):



On another note, I was so proud of my son's basketball team this weekend! They had their end-of-the-season tournament on Saturday and played their little hearts out! They won their first game in double-OT and lost the second game in OT. It would have been so amazing for them to have won the second game, of course, but we had so much fun watching them play...and they won the league award for "Best Sportmanship". (ok-- not as exciting as actually winning the tournament, but it makes a Mom proud :))




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