Friday, January 28, 2022

YUM - Sketch N Scrap #241

 Hello, everyone! Happy Friday to you! We have made it to the weekend once again and I am ready for it. I'm not sure what our plans are but at least it's supposed to be a bit warmer.

Today I am sharing a layout that I created using Sketch #241 from Sketch N Scrap. Here's a look at the sketch that Heather created for us to use:

And this is what I came up with:


For my layout, I used 4 - 3x4 photos and I moved the title over above my journaling. I also added a cluster to the bottom left corner. I used one of the page kits that I had included in my January Stash Bash Kit. I didn't have any embellishments to speak of so I put the stamp set that I included in my kit to use and made my own. 

These photos are of Ada putting her new Easy Bake oven to use and making some pretzel bites. She did it all by herself, well, she may have had a little help from Mom, but then it turned out she was not a fan of the finished product! Abby and Shawn thought they were delicious.

Here are a couple of close-ups:


I stamped the oven mitt on one of the patterned papers and die cut it out. I kept the mixer and measuring cup pretty plain - stamping them on white cardstock in pink. I added a tiny enamel heart to the measuring cup. The "from the kitchen of" was also a part of the stamp set and was just what I needed to finish out this cluster.


I added foam tape to my die-cut title and layered another of the sentiments from the stamp set on top of it. I stamped the rolling pin on the wood paper that I had included in my kit and added a tiny enamel heart to it. I love how this all turned out!

Be sure to stop by Sketch N Scrap and play along with us before the end of the month!

Thanks so much for stopping by my blog today! Have a great day!


Friday, January 21, 2022

Sketch N Scrap Card Sketch #210

 Hello, everyone! Happy Friday to you! I hope your day is off to a good start. It is a cold one here this morning. The temperature is a whopping 2 degrees but at least the sun is shining. The cold has brought the turkey out. As I type this up I am watching about 30 turkeys down in our field walking about. They have been regulars this winter and will sometimes spend all morning walking back and forth across the field.

Today I am sharing the card I created using the January 20th sketch from Sketch N Scrap. Here is a look at the sketch:


I always like these types of sketches that have an element repeated across the middle of the card. This is what I came up with:


Since Wednesday was our wedding anniversary, I decided to go with hearts instead of circles and make hubby a card for the occasion. I tried to keep it simple and not use too much pink on it. I had included these papers in my January Stash Bash kit and I managed to use a couple of heart stickers off of the sticker sheet. I was too lazy to go through all of my stamp sets to find one that said "Happy Anniversary" so I just typed it up on the computer and printed it out. I also doodled some tiny hearts and dots amongst the bigger hearts and I added in some tiny blue gems. I really like how this turned out. 

I added some foam tape to the blue hearts and the sentiment just for a bit of interest:


Be sure to stop by Sketch N Scrap to see how the rest of the design took on this sketch. I would love to see your take on it, too!

Thanks so much for stopping by my blog today! I hope you have a fabulous Friday!

Sunday, January 16, 2022

2022 Project Life Title Page

Hello and Happy Sunday! I hope that you are having a good weekend. We've had a pretty low-key weekend - which is what I like! We were supposed to get 2-4 inches of snow yesterday and wound up getting a dusting. We have more grass showing than snow so I will be happy to have it warm up this week and for it to melt away!

Today I am sharing my 2022 title page for my Project Life album. I finally had a chance to sit down and work on it this weekend and it came together pretty quickly. 


I decided to put some of my Elle's Studio stash to use on this layout. I kept to the black and white color scheme - photos and all - and only used color by way of embellishments on each of the photos.

Here are a couple of close-ups:


My trimmer blade is in need of a new blade so when I cut the cards down it left frayed edges in places so I just embraced it and distressed all of the edges of the cards.


I used the same type of items when I embellished each photo - a label with our ages written on it, some sort of phrase, and a puffy heart. 


The family selfie die cut along with the love these people die cut could not have been better to add to our family photo! It's not the best photo of us all, but it is my favorite!

I've been keeping up with editing my photos so far this year and once February rolls around I will be ready to put in my January photo order. I do have a home printer but it has made me lazy in getting my photos edited - I only edit as I need the photo - and I hope with trying to order photos every month that it will help me to keep up with the editing process. Right now I have half of 2020 that still needs to be edited, and February through December of 2021 that needs to be edited. And it is not my favorite thing to do at all - especially when you're looking at 300-400+ photos to edit each month! It's so time-consuming! I am going to try to do a month each week until I get all caught up. Wish me luck!

I did have a little scrappy shopping fun on Friday. Scott bought something off of marketplace in Springfield so Shane and I rode along and I hit up Tuesday Morning and Scrapbook Generation. Since Tuesday Morning is right beside Vintage Stock - Shane and Scott can go do their shopping while I do mine! I was a little disappointed in what Tuesday Morning had. Their scrapbook area now is only about 4 feet long and they still did not have a lot. I did pick up a couple of packs of American Crafts alcohol markers to try out and that was it. I didn't have a lot of time at Scrapbook Generation - which is a good thing - I can easily spend an hour or two in there if I am by myself and not even realize it! I knew exactly what I was looking for and only got those things, so I am sure it saved me some money, being on a timeline! This is what I picked up there:

I got the 3x4 and 4x6 cut apart papers from Simple Stories Hearth and Home and Carta Bella's Gather at Home collection, along with the sticker sheets and a couple of papers just in case I need to make my own cards. I'm thinking title pages for my 2018 and 2019 albums for these collections, but we will see. I also picked up the Good Stuff collection from Simple Stories and the sticker book. I'm not as crazy about this collection as I was their Hello Today collection - I could have multiples of every paper of that collection, but I'm not as crazy about the Good Stuff. The dark greens and bright pinks together are going to have to grow on me - but there are several of the cards that I really like and know I will use. It was just fun to actually shop in-store for scrappy supplies instead of online!

That's about it for today! I need to plan out what scrappy project I am going to work on next.

Thanks so much for stopping by my blog today! Have a great day!

Saturday, January 15, 2022

Sweet Little Love Note - Sketch N Scrap #240

Hello, everyone! Happy Saturday to you! I hope that you are having a good weekend - and if you are lucky enough to get Monday off for MLK day - enjoy!

Today I am sharing the layout that I created using the January 1st sketch at Sketch N Scrap. I love it when a sketch has big blocks of paper on it and this one is sure to go into my favorites! Here's a look at the sketch:


And this is what I came up with:


For this layout, I used my layout kit #1 that I created for our Stash Bash challenge this month. It's a little busier than what I tend to make but I like how it turned out and it was fun to put together - AND I  got a few more papers used up from this collection! I now only have the cut apart papers and a few scraps left to use. Maybe I'll try to make a card or two from it.

These photos are from Valentine's Day last year. We'd had a stretch of super cold weather - cold enough for our swimming pool to freeze over - and some snow. Scott went out on the ice and shoveled a heart out of the snow for a sweet little love note for my valentine!

Here are a couple of close-ups:
 

I used one of the cut apart cards from the 6x6 paper pad for my title base. I added the rest of my title by way of tiny alphabet tile stickers and an enamel heart to finish it off. 


I fussy cut the stained glass heart from a cut apart card and used up a few more stickers from the sticker sheet. 

I made sure to mat all of my patterned papers with black cardstock since they were all so busy. This helped them to stand out a bit off of that busy background. 

Be sure to check out Sketch N Scrap for more inspiration. I hope you have some time to play along with us this month!

Thanks so much for stopping by my blog today! Have a great day!


Monday, January 10, 2022

Sweet Happy Moments - Sketch N Scrap's January Crop Challenge #3

 Hello again! 

I am back this evening with the layout that I created for Sketch N Scrap's January Crop Challenge #3. We kicked off our January Crop in our monthly challenges group on Facebook on Friday and we have one more challenge to share with you tomorrow. We would love it if you joined us - just click this link to get to the group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/SNSmonthlychallenges.

For Challenge #3, I picked Sketch #192 (from Jan. 1, 2020):


This is what I came up with:


I used one of the layout kits that I put together for my January Stash Bash kit for this layout. I love that I was able to take a winter-themed collection and make a non-winter-themed layout! The only thing on this layout that was not in my kit is the pink polka dot paper. I felt like I needed another color and I didn't want to cut into another full sheet of paper just for a strip, so I dug through my scraps and found this one. 

I took these photos of Ada last spring right before Easter. We had all gone to Springfield for a little shopping and when we dropped Abby and Ada back off at their house Ada could not wait to show us how she could ride the new scooter that her Papa John had gotten for her. She really was quite good at it!

Here are a couple of close-ups:


I didn't have any set embellishments for this layout in my kit but I had included my die-cut notebook and 4x6 boxes of random bits for that purpose - hoping that I would have something in them that would work. I got lucky and found quite a bit that worked. I was pretty happy with how this all came together.


I even had a few pieces of wood veneer and a few enamel dots in one of the 4x6 boxes. 


I needed something more for this upper cluster and found the flower die-cuts in my notebook. Luckily, I had enough to add to each cluster. I used a 3x4 cut apart card - that I am pretty sure I got in a Paper Issues swag bag a few years ago - for my title. It just seemed to sum up the feelings of the day! 

Be sure to check out our January Crop Challenges in our monthly challenges group - I would love to see your take on the sketches, too!

Thanks so much for stopping by my blog! Have a great evening!

TN Time With Lisa & Lori January 2022 Challenge

 Hello, hello! Happy Monday to you! I hope that you had a good weekend. We had a nice quiet weekend and I was able to spend some time in my scrap room. I haven't quite gotten back into my scrappy routine yet, so it was good to get in there and get some things done. 

I am so excited that Lisa and I are back with our TN challenge for the new year! This is one of my favorite challenges to do each month. If you don't know what it's all about - here is how it works - this is a just-for-fun monthly challenge that starts on the 10th of each month and ends on the 9th of the following month at midnight CT. If you complete my random challenge for the month - link your TN, bullet journal, or planner spread below. If you complete just Lisa's sketch challenge, link up over on her blog - My Creative Endeavors. If you combine both challenges - be sure to link up on both Lisa's blog and here on my blog.

Here is my challenge for January:

For my challenges this year, I will be challenging you to use a stash item on your spread, and for January that item is enamel dots/shapes.

Here is the fun sketch that Lisa has created for us to use:

And this is what I came up with:


I am back to working in my 2021 52 Favorites TN and this spread is for Week 2. Yeah, I don't have very many spreads made in this TN yet and I thought it was time to show it some love. I also wanted to use some of the Simple Stories Feeling Frosty collection that I had included in my January Stash Bash kit.

I love this photo of Ada throwing a snowball at Abby. Abby snapped the photo at just the right time to see the snowball coming at her - and just look at that smile on Ada's face. Too cute!

Here are a few close-ups:


I stamped my week number using Elle's Studio Mini Days of the Week stamp. This is one of my favorite stamp sets to use in my 52 Week Favorites TN's and in my Project Life albums. It gets a lot of use! 

I am so happy that I made it a point to use washi tape on this spread! I think I need to pull a roll or two out every time I work on a layout and add it somewhere! I always love the look and I really need to get some of it used up!


I love the snowflake die cuts and stickers that are in this Feeling Frosty collection. There's a snowflake stamp just like the die-cut above in the stamp set - which I totally forgot to pull out - so I am sure I will be showing it lots of love when I need a snowflake!


The label is the only thing that was not included in my stash bash kit. 


I love it when I can use stickers from the sticker sheet to make my title - so quick and easy! I added in a few small snowflake stickers around my title. 

One more spread done for 2021! Here's to getting many more done this year!

Even though this is a just-for-fun challenge we do have a few rules:

1. Create a TRAVELER'S NOTEBOOK, PLANNER, OR BULLET JOURNAL spread based on the CHALLENGE THEME and/or our sketch. 
2. Create a new, not previously posted project.
3. You are welcome to combine with other challenges.
4. If you have a blog please include the challenge graphic & a link to our challenge in your post.
5. You can link to social media if you don't have a blog. If you show your project on Instagram, please make sure to use #TNtimewithLisaandLori 
6. You can submit multiple projects but they must be posted to InLinkz or social media separately.
7. Most importantly have FUN!

Be sure to stop by Lisa's blog and check out her beautiful spread for this month's challenge. I hope you have some time to play along with us!

Thanks so much for stopping by my blog today! I hope you have a wonderful day!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Thursday, January 6, 2022

Sketch N Scrap Card Sketch #209

 Hello, everyone! I hope you are having a good week. It has been hard to get back into the old routine but it is kind of nice, too!

Today I am sharing the card that I created for Sketch N Scrap's card sketch #209. This fun sketch is courtesy of Sketch Artist Lisa and I can't wait to use it again! Maybe I'll do a feminine card with it next time! Here's a look at the sketch:


And this is what I came up with:


Both of my boys' birthdays are later this month and I have a nephew who has a birthday this month, so this card will be going to one of them! I used Crate Paper's Cool Kid 6x6 paper pad for this card. I thought these papers worked well enough for an older guy card. I didn't take the time to look through my stamps to find a sentiment - I took the easy route and typed it up on the computer and printed it out. This card came together so quickly and I really like how it turned out.

I do hope that if you find you have some time to get creative this month that you will play along with our challenges. I would love to see your take on the sketches! You can stop by the Sketch N Scrap blog or the Sketch N Scrap Facebook page for more inspiration using this sketch.

Thanks so much for stopping by my blog today! I hope that you have a great day!

Saturday, January 1, 2022

Lisa and Lori's Great Stash Bash January Kit

 Hello, everyone! Happy New Year to each and every one of you! It's hard to believe it is the start of a new year but I am looking forward to seeing what 2022 has in store for us!


I am so happy that Lisa and I have decided to continue on with our Great Stash Bash in 2022! As I said in my post yesterday - I am on a forever quest to use up my stash and this challenge helps me to get at least a few things out of my stash and onto my layouts each month! I got quite a few fun scrappy things for Christmas and I am ready to start the new year off by using what I have instead of buying any more.

Before I get to my kit for January I wanted to share what I learned about myself and this challenge this past year. I am so much more successful with using my kits if I sit down and actually plan out what pages I would like to make for the upcoming month and plan my kit around those photos. I still love going through my stash and pulling pretty papers to go together for a kit, but if I have an idea of the photos I want to use and can pull papers for those photos, then I am much more successful. Pulling the random pretty papers - while fun - can also make me procrastinate on making layouts because I don't have anything specific in mind and I spend a good chunk of the month searching for photos! That's just how my scrappy brain works. So, my kits this year will more than likely be broken down into 2-3 layout kits.

Now on to this month's challenge. If you don't know what the Great Stash Bash is - it is a challenge that my good friend Lisa and I do every month. We pull items from our stash based on a "recipe" (which you will see below) in an effort to get our scrappy stash used up! Here is January's recipe:


Our "recipe" is to pull 10 patterned papers, 5-7 scraps, 3-4 embellishments, and our focus item for January are - alphas.

Here is my layout kit #1:


The new year is just getting started and I am already thinking about Valentine's Day! This kit is made up of the Simple Stories Love and Adore collection. The striped paper and the word paper are the only full sheets of patterned paper that I have left. I do still have most of the cut apart papers but after this month I will cut them apart and add them to my cut apart card stash.

Here is a look at the papers:


I added in the 6x6 paper pad for matting or for embellishments. I have 10 sheets left - most of which are the scaled-down cut apart cards. Whatever is not used this month will probably go in a give-away pile or in the trash.


I have two sticker sheets from this collection. I'm not quite sure how I ended up with two, but alphabets and word stickers are always good! I also added in a couple of the cut apart papers to see if  I can use anything for embellishing or maybe even a card or two.

Kit #2 is made up of Echo Park's Cupid & Co. I got this in one of my kits from The ScrapRoom last year and I have no plans on using it for a Valentine's Day layout! I will be using this on a layout about Ada making goodies with her Easy-Bake oven.


Here is a look at the papers:


I included both a piece of black cardstock and a light woodgrain paper. I'm thinking if I use the grey paper I will not use the woodgrain, but if I don't use the grey, then I may go with the woodgrain paper for a background. 

I don't have a lot in the way of embellishments for this kit. I included a sticker that I might use and a stamp set. We will see how it goes! I am adding in one of my die-cut books and a few embellishment cases in my kit so I will see if I have something that will work in those, too. 

I could have stopped there, but I had enough photos picked out for a few more layouts, so I kept going!

Here is kit #3:


This kit is full of Simple Stories' Feeling Frosty collection. I got this collection for Christmas and I cannot wait to use it! I did pick out a few papers from the collection and I just threw all of the embellishments in there for now.  I have at least two layouts planned for this kit and maybe even a double-page spread!

Here are the papers that I have pulled:


Here are the backsides of the above papers:


:My embellishments for this kit"


While looking for some alphas, I came across this Snow and Cocoa 12x12 chipboard. It has a lot of the same colors and I thought I might be able to use it!

Kit #4:


This kit has a mix of Simple Stories' Feeling Frosty and a couple of Bella Blvd papers. I have plans for a layout of Ada riding her scooter so I pulled a lot of stickers in hopes that I'll be able to make it all work!

Here is a look at the papers:


I forgot to get a photo of just the embellishments but I pulled some Amy Tangerine's Brave and Bold stickers and die-cuts and some Vicki Boutin Color Study that might work.

Here are the die-cut book and embellishment boxes that I thought might have something in them that I can use:


Our focus item for January is alphas so I have pulled a variety that will work with the layouts that I have planned:


I can't wait to get started using this kit! 

Now, be sure to stop by Lisa's blog to see the fun kit that she has pulled together for this month. This is a just-for-fun challenge, but if you do play along and put together your own stash bash kit - add it to the linky below and we will be sure to check it out and cheer you on! Here are the rules:

1. Follow the challenge prompt to create a kit to work with throughout the month. You may use other items, but please concentrate on using your kit. 
2. Create new, not previously posted projects using your stash kit.
3. If you have a blog - please include the challenge graphic and a link to our challenge in your posts. 
4. You may link to social media if you don't have a blog. If you share on Instagram, please make sure to use - #lisaandlorisgreatstashbash2022

Thanks so much for stopping by my blog today! I hope you have a great day!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter