Sunday, August 31, 2008

Babyface

Just a series of silly faces Noah made while wearing his hoodie. He looked like a baby gangster, making the signs with his hand and everything. I believe he was about 4 months old at the time. Title, scalloped circle, and corners are from Storybook.
Thanks for looking!

Saturday, August 30, 2008

Twinkle twinkle

This layout was my entry for the third Chirper Challenge. The instructions were to use a star, some form of "bling" and white space. The stars I used were from Graphically Speaking. The Twinkle twinkle is from Storybook and Opposites Attract. The silver and gold paper has a metallic sheen to it, and the stickles for the swirls give it that extra sparkle.
Here's another view:
Thanks for looking!

Friday, August 29, 2008

{today}

Here's a layout I did of a day at the park earlier this spring. I wanted to keep it really simple and fresh looking, keeping the pictures as the focus. I just love the way the sun shines through Noah's hair on the swing, and the pictures of Jonah and Scott really show the way they love to spend time together. I used Printing Press for the title. Skittles are used throughout both pages (72 in all). I used small rub-on letters on the top picture on the right hand page. It says, 'Today was good Today was fun Tomorrow is another one.' You can see it better in the bottom picture. I think it took about 2 hours to cut out all those tiny letters and rub them on in the right spot. Sheesh! The floral stamp, clearer in real life, is from Fancy Pants stamps, and I stamped it in light blue.
A closer view of both pages:

Thanks for looking! Have a great 3-day weekend! :)

New Link: Scrapping Mommy's blog

If you check out my blog roll, you'll notice that I've added a link to Scrapping Mommy's blog. Check it out! She is from the Cricut Message Board and she is very talented. I love her style! She does really nice work on both her scrapbook pages and her cards. Plus, right now, she is offering a chance to win some blog candy: some beautiful paper from K&Co, some primas, and the Threading Water punch! Go take a look!

Thursday, August 28, 2008

World Peace

This page is all about the story behind it. Journaling reads:
"One evening, over a bowl of ice cream, I thought it might be fun to hear your answers to 'deep questions.' So I asked you if you had a solution to bring about world peace.
You surprised me by quickly answering, 'Everyone should have some schhhhhhow' (which is the sound you make to imitate whipped cream coming out of the can...
...'AND,' you continued...'Everyone needs to take their naps!' You know, Jonah, you just might be onto something! I like your logic! :) --Jonah, age 2 1/2"
If you look closely at the picture, you will see that Jonah is trying on my glasses, which makes him look very philosophical!
I used Storybook for the font. The world is my own design.

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Delicious

Well, since I posted yesterday about Noah's food struggles, I thought I'd balance it with a post today about a success story during that time...Noah could handle carrots, and he actually enjoyed them, too (sometimes)! These pictures were taken during one of those rare "I'm enjoying my food" moments. The 'delicious' is done with the Word Jumble feature on Graphically Speaking, and the MmmmMmmm...is also on the GS cartridge. The journaling is done in between strips of different patterned ribbon from American Crafts.

Thanks for looking!

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Food Fight

This layout chronicles the time we had with Noah's food intolerances. Definitely not something I would want to do again, but it is something worth remembering because we have come so far since that difficult time. It has been quite awhile since we've had to force-feed him and now he will eat whatever we do without getting sick, and he does so voluntarily! What a turn-around and we know that God has heard and answered our prayers concerning this.
I used Alphalicious for the title and Fabulous Finds for the hinges on the journal that open up to the journaling.
Here it is, opened to the journaling:
Thanks for looking!

Monday, August 25, 2008

GOTCHA!

Journaling on this tells the story. "Oh, Jonah, did you really think we wouldn't notice?!? The pudding (and the guilt) is written all over your precious little face!"
I don't know why he thinks he can get away with such things, but I guess when there's chocolate involved, it's worth the risk of getting caught! Okay, maybe he gets it from his mother. Maybe.
I used Mickey font and its silhouette for the title.

Thanks for looking!

Sunday, August 24, 2008

Smile...

I was recently able to capture a bunch of cute shots of my little Noah when he was in a particularly good mood. We were actually at a dog show, and I think the picture of him sticking out his tongue (middle row, left side) is him trying to imitate them. So funny!
Well, for this layout I knew the pictures had to be the star of the show and I wanted to bring out the primary colors in the background and on his hoodie. I think this also may be a record for the most number of pictures on a single page I've ever used. The 'journaling' in the circle is just smile*smile*smile* written over and over and highlighted in the middle. I surrounded the circle in skittles and mounted it on dimensionals to make it stand out. I also wrote *smile* to outline one of the yellow circles on the right hand side. Easy!

Thanks for looking!

Saturday, August 23, 2008

Sweet Pea

Last week I went through a stack of old pictures. I found these ones taken from my niece's first Halloween, 7 years ago. Yes, I'm more than a little behind. I don't scrapbook chronologically (obviously)...just whatever comes to me at the time. I used the New Arrival for the pea in the pod and for the title. The scallop behind the square is from Storybook. The green strip behind the title is embossed with Swiss Dots.

Thanks for looking!

Friday, August 22, 2008

Play Time

Well since I posted Jonah playing with the train yesterday, I thought I'd post Noah's layout playing with the same train today. I used Design Cuts With a View (DCWV) paper from the Nana's kids pack. The design came from Pages by Design. The train engine is from Mickey and Friends, and the monkey and elephant are from New Arrival. I'm not sure if it shows up well enough to tell, but the animals are similar to the animals on the background paper riding on the train. The elephant's head and the monkey's mouth are mounted on dimensionals to make them stand out just a little bit. "Play time" is done with Thickers, which are chunky stickers. I put buttons on the wheels of the train.

A closer view:

Thanks for looking! Happy Friday!

Thursday, August 21, 2008

Choo-choo

This layout is of my Jonah playing with the train from when I was little. I loved that circus train, and now both my boys do, too. I also did a layout of Noah playing with it. Perhaps I will post it tomorrow.
The paper is a little bit hard to see, but it has letters and toys on it in primary colors. 'Choo choo' is from Mickey font and the train for journaling is my own design. I used buttons for the train wheels and then again along the bottom of the page. I cut out photo corners in different colors to frame the pictures. I thought it gave it a childlike, whimsical feel and the colors matched the train in the pictures, making it really stand out. The red stripes at the top are ribbon.

Thanks for looking!

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

Blue Eyes

These are some of the first pages that I ever did with my Cricut. I really loved how Jonah's blue eyes stood out in these pictures, and I knew I wanted to scrap them. 'Blue Eyes' is done with George and layered with the Silhouette feature. 'Look Here' is from Printing Press and shadowed. I put little eyeballs in the 'O's of 'Look' and over each letter of 'Blue Eyes.' The words across the top are heat-embossed. The edges of everything are distressed with ink.

Here's a close-up view of both sides:

Thanks for looking!

Splitcoast Stampers

It's Wednesday, and that means that I will be checking out Splitcoast Stampers for their new tutorial! They post a new tutorial every Wednesday under the 'resources' tab on the upper right hand side of the page. Sometimes it's a different stamping technique, and sometimes it's a unique card design fold, but whatever it is, it is sure to provide creative inspiration! I've tried several of them and they always get great reviews. Be sure to check it out...it's already saved as one of my bookmarks, and now it will be in my links list. Have fun, and thanks for stopping by!

Tuesday, August 19, 2008

CHIRP!

One of my layouts, PickyPickyPicky, was highlighted in the latest edition of CHIRP, the newsletter that the Cricut website puts out. I am so excited! Click here to go to the layouts section of the Cricut message board, where people post layouts and other members can comment on it.

Going Buggy

Enfys from Going Buggy has a really great blog with lots of great card designs on it. Right now, she is offering some blog candy as a celebration of 65,000 hits in 8 months! Congratulations, Enfys! Visit her blog and you'll see why she has so much traffic! I am also adding a link to her blog on the right column.

Brothers

This is a very simple and clean design. It was a challenge for me to use so many pictures on a single layout, but I think it works. The title was stamped with a Scrabble alphabet stamp set, and I designed the brackets. The journaling is from my perspective looking at the relationship between my sons. If you look closely at the pictures, you'll notice that sometimes it looks as if Jonah is hugging Noah, while at other times it looks as if he's strangling Noah with his hugs. It is a fun privilege to watch their relationship develop and I do have a hunch that they will be close friends as they grow up.

A closer view of each side:

Monday, August 18, 2008

Explosion Box

An explosion box is like a mini-scrapbook in a box. When you take off the top, the sides of the box fall open, revealing the pictures. This one is a family scrapbook that contains pictures of my family as well as my siblings' families. It is 3 layers deep, so it contains 22 pictures in all. This can vary depending on how many layers there are, as well as if any spots are reserved for journaling or other memorabilia.
If you want to make one, there are several tutorials online. I used this one. This one was unique in that it used a complete 12x12 piece of paper for the top of the box, resulting in the patterned paper folding back on itself to be visible both from above and underneath, giving it a more polished and complete look.
A close up of the inside of the box top: the word 'Family' is cut with Alphalicious.
Thanks for looking!

Sunday, August 17, 2008

Noah's 1st Birthday

Here's one of the first layouts I did after I got my Graphically Speaking and Storybook cartridges. The connected 'ones' are from Graphically Speaking, and 'Birthday Boy' and the flourish on the top left picture are from Storybook. I used the Happy Birthday Cuttlebug embossing folder and ran blue ink over the embossed part of the image.
This was Noah's first time eating chocolate cake. He really liked it! And for those of you who may know about his problems gaining weight, the chocolate cake has helped him out of that predicament! :)

Thanks for looking!

...and After Stickles

This is the result of adding Stickles to the cupcakes. It's more dramatic in real life, but hopefully this gives you an idea. (For comparison, the cupcakes without Stickles are pictured in the post below.)

Here's a closer view:

Thanks for looking!

Saturday, August 16, 2008

Celebrate

This is my entry for the Chirper Challenge (see post below). We had to do something birthday-related, and use green and a cupcake. After I completed this, I realized we were also supposed to have buttons somewhere on it. I tried to replace the red skittles on the cupcakes with red buttons to make them look like cherries, but it would have ripped the paper.
Also, after I completed it, I went to my scrapbook store and bought my first bottle of Stickles. I'm hooked! After this picture was already taken, I added the Stickles to the swirls on the cupcakes. I will post the 'After' picture in the next post so you can see the difference!

Thanks for looking!

Friday, August 15, 2008

Chirper Challenge Site

Jackie from the Cricut message board recently organized a group called Chirper Challenge. I referenced it in a post on August 5th, when I entered my layout called 'Together.' I am adding the website to my links on my sidebar. Once again, the challenges are issued biweekly, and the second challenge is due today so it should be updated at some point throughout the day. There are many different styles represented among all the designers. You're sure to find something you like.

Thursday, August 14, 2008

Spinner Card

I made this spinner card for my niece's birthday. The Donald Duck head is a stamped image, and it spins across the greeting as you tilt the card from side to side. It sounds a lot creepier than it is in real life. It's actually pretty cute. :) A video would have done it more justice, but I didn't take one before I gave it away. Oh well, you're going to have to use a little imagination on this one! The spinner mechanism is made with 2 pennies...one on each side of the word oval cut-out...with a piece of foam mounting tape between them. This allows the pennies to roll across the cut out and the image to spin.
The idea for this came from this YouTube video but there is a written tutorial at Splitcoast Stampers. Give it a try! This simple card gives a big impression!!
Another view with Donald a little further down to show the movement:
Thanks for looking!

My Links...A Work in Progress

If you check out the column on the right, you will see a list of craft-related links. This is just a beginning list, and one that I will add to on a semi-regular basis. When I add to the list, I will also highlight it by a new post. If you have a craft-related website that you would like me to feature, feel free to post a comment with a link to it somewhere on my blog. So what's there so far? Let me introduce you to a few websites:
  • The Cricut Website is a place not only to find out about Cricut-related products, but also to get ideas on how to use it. There is a message board there with lots of subcategories. There, I look for scrapbook layout and card design ideas, participate in swaps (more on this later), get informed (and sometimes enabled) regarding sales or coupon codes, and get to know other people who enjoy the same hobby as I do.
  • Page Maps, Papertake Weekly, and Pencil Lines, and are sketch sites. Sketch sites give a basic design that you can then use for picture and embellishment placement on your projects. This can eliminate a lot of the time it takes to plan a page or card, because if you start out with a solid design that is eye-catching, you are bound to create something beautiful. I am a beginner when it comes to actually following a sketch, because apparently I like to reinvent the scrapbooking wheel, as it were, every time I come to the table. But I am told that it can actually save a lot of time, so I am giving it a good old try!
Keep an eye out for more links coming your way! I am excited to share some of the tools I have found with you so that you may hopefully be inspired as well. And speaking of links, feel free to add my blog to your list!
Thanks for stopping by!

Wednesday, August 13, 2008

So This Is Love


This is another page that I made Scott for our anniversary. The picture was taken last year on our 5th anniversary, when he took me for a marvelous 3 days away to beach house in Laguna Beach. Soooo beautiful and relaxing! It is kind of hard to see, but the mat behind the picture is embossed with the Cuttlebug using the Script Texture folder. The title is done in Opposites Attract. The corners and the heart are from Storybook, and the heart is also heat-embossed, which gives it a shine in real life. The paper is from the Spring 2008 stack of Design Cuts With a View (DCWV).

Thanks for looking!

Tuesday, August 12, 2008

Picky Picky Picky


I knew I had to scrap these pictures of my 2 year old son when he went up to a statue and picked his nose! I'm amazed at the workings of a toddler's brain!
Journaling is around 3 circles. It says, "Oh Jonah, I'd love to know what you were thinking when you saw this statue...First, you wanted to know what he was reading...Then, you actually tried to pick his nose!! Eww..."
The "Picky Picky Picky" on the arrow is more clear in real life and came from Graphically Speaking. The patterned paper is Basic Grey.

Thanks for looking!

Monday, August 11, 2008

Anniversary Card

Here is the anniversary card I made for Scott. I got the idea from 'lucydaubney' on the Cricut message board. I used Alphalicious for the ampersand and the letters, and Graphically Speaking for the heart and outline. The key is a sticker and I finished it off with a ribbon that represents our 'tying the knot' 6 years ago.

Thanks for looking! More to come tomorrow!

Sunday, August 10, 2008

He's Still the One!


Today is my 6th wedding anniversary! In some ways it seems like it has gone by so quickly and in other ways it seems like we've been together for a lifetime. Our love is strong, and I am thankful for him.
I made this scrapbook page for him, along with a couple more that I will post in the next few days. The picture was taken last year, on our 5th anniversary, where we celebrated with a wonderful 3 days away at Laguna Beach.
I used Opposites Attract for the lettering and Storybook for the flourish above the title. Simple, but I wanted the picture to be the focus.

Thanks for looking!

Saturday, August 9, 2008

Welcome Baby Card

Here's a baby card I recently made. It is a surprise pop up card. It lays flat and when you pull the ribbon, the carriage pops up and reveals the sentiment below. The baby carriage is from New Arrival. The stamped sentiment, more visible in real life, says, "Thank heaven for little girls"
Here it is opened up:

Thanks for looking!

Friday, August 8, 2008

Blog Background

Someone from the Cricut Message Board suggested this site for blog backgrounds. I think I changed my background 6 or 7 times today...just for the fun of it!!! So, don't be surprised if there is a different background next time you visit!

I worked on an anniversary card for my dear hubby today. I'll post it on Sunday, since that's our anniversary. Don't want him to get a sneak peak!! :)

Thursday, August 7, 2008

Dream


Here is my little guy, all tuckered out when he was just about 2 months old. I used Graphically Speaking for the moon, cloud, 'dream,' and 'Shhh...' The scalloped circle behind the photo on the bottom is from Storybook. The 'Baby Boy' across the bottom is a stamp from Scrappy Cat.

Now that same baby is almost 14 months old and has just learned to crawl. Time goes by so quickly. He still sleeps with his legs tucked under him and his bottom high in the air though!

Thanks for looking!

Wednesday, August 6, 2008

Happy Birthday Card

Earlier this summer, I was delighted to find several helpful video tutorials on YouTube for various cardmaking techniques. This card is called a double slider card and when you pull the ribbon on the top, one panel slides out of the top and another out of the bottom.
Here is a picture of it open:
Instead of "reinventing the video tutorial wheel" (RTVTW), I will simply refer you to the one I viewed.
I used the Happy Birthday Cuttlebug folder for the embossing on the front of the card and some stamps for the "Happy" and "Birthday" on the top panel.

Thanks for looking! :)

Tuesday, August 5, 2008

Together


This is the first challenge for a group I recently joined. The coordinator will issue a bimonthly challenge in which we have to use a Cricut cut and various colors or elements. For this one, we had to use blue somewhere on the page as well as flowers. We were given a sketch to use--a circle in the lower-right side of the page. I used my new Storybook Cricut cartridge for the letters and for the hibiscus flowers. This cart is loaded with images! I also used 'skittles' to complete the circle outline. The lettering below the pictures may be a little hard to see, but it is the subtitle. So, the whole thing reads, "Together...is the best place to be."

Thanks for looking! Have a great day!

Monday, August 4, 2008

Baby Boy Card

This is a really quick and simple baby boy card. I used the Cuttlebug, Swiss Dots folder for the background and inked the edges. The image is a House Mouse stamp. Finish it off with a bow and it's ready to send! I made a few of these in blue and a few in pink.

Some detail:
Another view:

Thanks for looking!

Sunday, August 3, 2008

this is me

Thought I'd start off the blog with a scrapbook page that would also help introduce a little bit about me. I used Cricut Printing Press for the title, Fancy Pants stamps for the flourish and border, and Memory Makers stamps for the words.
A closer view of the details:
Edges are inked. I used the scalloped sleeve from the Fancy Pants stamps as a stencil and inked over it with blue.
Thanks for looking!

You'll be seeing a lot of these!

Before I start posting my projects, I thought I'd introduce you to two of my 'most used' tools that I use to create them. I'll be referencing them often, so you should know what they are!

Aside from the basic tools (paper, adhesive, trimmer, journaling pens, etc.), I use my Cricut, a personal die-cut machine put out by ProvoCraft, the most. I have the 'baby bug' which cuts any image included on a cartridge anywhere from 1" to 5.5". Since receiving it in February, it has revolutionized the way I scrapbook and inspired me to get lots more accomplished. It looks like this:
Another tool, also from ProvoCraft, is the Cuttlebug. It accepts both cutting templates and embossing folders. I use mine almost exclusively for embossing, and it is especially quick and easy to make cards with it, though I also use it on scrapbook layouts occasionally. It looks like this:
Look for these in upcoming posts!!