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Friday, September 30, 2011

burger farm {a scrapbook layout}

As promised in my last post, I wanted to share a couple of autumn layout with you. Before finding Neiderman Farm here in our county, we used to travel to one of our eastern counties to another local pumpkin patch-Burger Farm. Which was also very cool-lots of fun kids rides and activities, in addition to the traditional hay ride and patch activities.
I used more Bella Blvd paper on these layouts-a couple of things I really loved about this line of paper-the chevron pattern of the B side (so cool right now) and the color scheme. Love the blues and pinks mixed in with the traditional fall colors. Good stuff!
For my first layout, I kept it simple, just added a Making Memories alpha to it.

That layout will join a couple of other in the album which include journaling about finding the right pumpkin and riding some rides, so I didn't really need more than a title.

Supplies: Cardstock-Bazzill, Patterned Paper-Bella Blvd, Letters-Making Memories
For my next layout, I added some Doodlebug letters and Bella cardstock stickers.

I love these little Bella alpha stickers...
And the B side of another Bella paper has a really cool wood grain-perfect as a background for a title.

Ummm...can you tell that I'm a HUGE fan of the new Bella line ? ;)

Supplies: Cardstock-BBP; Patterned Paper-Bella; Cardstock Stickers, Small Alpha-Bella; Blue Letters-Doodlebug; Ink-CTMH; Small blue letters-October Afternoon

Be back tomorrow with the beach layout...it's cold and dreary here in Ohio, I need a little sunshine right about now!

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

neiderman farm {a scrapbook layout with the coolest alpha ever}

Okay, that might be a bit dramatic but as soon as I pulled out the new Amy Tangerine American Crafts Thickers at scrap night, I had about 4 women ask me where I got them. They are THAT cool. I've said it before, sometimes it's hard to tell if you will like something until you see it in person and let me just say these are AMAZING in person.

What? You want to see the layout attached to those letters? Okay. Okay.

It's been very crisp here in Ohio in the mornings and I've had pumpkin patches on my mind. This new Bella Blvd paper is perfect for scrapping our annual trip to Neiderman Farm to pick out a pumpkin and get lost in the corn maze.

That tag there on the bottom is made with cardstock, a Bella sticker and a hand-stamped heart.

I stamped a background on a piece of transparency, used some alcohol inks to get that purply-red color and then punched a heart. Very easy and fun way to add a little extra touch to your tag.

Stay tuned, later this week I have another fall layout to share and a little bit of beach love to wrap up the week.
Happy Wednesday Friends!

Supplies: Kraft Cardstock-Paper Company; Patterned Paper, Cardstock Stickers-Bella Blvd; Letter Stickers-Amy Tangerine for American Crafts; Stamping Ink-CTMH; Twine-WRMK; Blue and Green Cardstock, BBP; Alcohol Inks-Tim Holtz; Pen-Sharpie

Tuesday, September 27, 2011

a stamped frog {a scrapbook layout with stamping and watercolor}

 I've been busy working on my new blog look. What do you think? I'm still learning my way around backgrounds and banners and such but I'm really starting to like the look of it.
And because I just can't post without sharing a layout...here's a quick one.

Super simple and quick, just some patterned paper cut with a Creative Memories wavy trimmer, some Mind's Eye journaling/embellies and  clear buttons. I stamped the frog and used mineral spirits to blend in the color of my watercolor pencils.
 
I rarely stamp on a layout, so this was a real departure for me; but he was just too cute to send off on a card.

Let me know your thoughts on the new blog look-love it or hate it? :)

Sunday, September 25, 2011

conan {a scrapbook layout-challenge!}

No, not THAT Conan. {Although, he's cool too.}
Our dog, Conan. Who is actually named after Conan the Barbarian. You see, when we adopted Conan, 13 years ago, he was just 6 weeks old. He had these giant ears and a ton of energy. You could just tell that he thought he was a German Shepard trapped in the body of a little Mixed Terrier.
Conan, or Coney, as we sometimes call him, has been an awesome dog. He's so sweet and gentle with kids and he just loves to snuggle up on the couch and watch Top Chef with me. :)
I realized I haven't really done a layout of Coney, so I knew the time had come to fix that.
Mary Pat had issued a challenge over on the Burlap & Buttercups Blog to use this sketch and some sewing and see what we could come up with:




I didn't follow the sketch exactly, but I stayed pretty close to it. Here's what I came up with:

I used the Bazzill In Stitchz tool to make my circles {I'm hopeless with a sewing machine} in three different sizes and colors to match my patterned paper. I made the heart embellishment with a Heidi Swapp ghost shape and some bling embellies.
I have to say I really loved this sketch and used another variation of it on a vacation layout for our beach album. It's really versatile and can be easily adapted for a double page layout.
Lots of layouts to share this week-stay tuned! 

Supplies: Cardstock-Bazzill; Circle templates, thread-Bazzill; Patterned Papers-We R Memory Keepers, Basic Grey; Letter Stickers-American Crafts; Felt Embellies-Sassafrass; Ghost Shape-Heidi Swapp; Bling-Unknown; Pen-Sharpie

Thursday, September 22, 2011

brody {a scrapbook layout}

My baby is turning three today. I'm both sad and happy about this. Because he's my last baby. {And at three, technically not really a baby anymore.}He is such a joy to have in our lives. I truly can't imagine our family without him.
I created this layout with a photo from his 3 month pictures (taken by his Aunt Bobbi). It's probably my favorite layout in his baby album. It's pretty simple, just a large 10 x 8 photo, the lyrics to a song I listened to frequently when he was a tiny little baby, and a bit of journaling. I just love it though.


I used a SEI "Chick a Doo-Boy" kit to create this the patterned papers, title and rub-ons, all coordinate.

I actually had 6 x 6 kit in this same line that I did a mini album of his 1st year. I displayed that at his birthday party that year. Might have to do that again this year! Hard to believe this tiny baby is a rough and tumble toddler!

The only thing {besides cardstock} that isn't SEI, is the journaling card-which is from October Afternoon. I originally had a SEI journal card on there but I misspelled 2 words {hello, sleep deprivation!}, so I swapped it out.


In case you were wondering-the song I journaled about is "Morning Lullabies" by Ingrid Michaelson. Great song for a new momma. 
Happy Birthday Moosey! We love you so much little man!

Supplies: Cardstock-Bazzill, Patterned Papers, Rub-ons, Letters-SEI, Journal Card-October Afternoon

Monday, September 19, 2011

us {a scrapbook layout using elle's studio}

I was recently lucky enough to win some goodies from an Elle's Studio blog hop. I've been interested in Elle's Studio products for some time but I'm one of those people that need to see something in person before I buy it.

I was super excited when my package of goodies came in the mail. {Just days after I won-those ladies at Elle's are totally on top of things-I was VERY impressed!} I immediately feel in love with everything I received:
Pieces of Life Note Tags
Handmade Layers Date/Place Strips
Owl Love You Forever Scallop Circle Tags

And the other day I had the perfect layout to use two of the three products on. I started this layout as a make and take at Archivers but immediately did the sewing incorrectly {it's supposed to be on opposite corners}. Being the rebel I am, I left it the way I did it and brought it home. :) The imperfection made me remember a photo I had of our little family that wasn't perfect but that was so "us".
 I grabbed it and got to work.


Can I just tell you how much I love these scallop circle tags? So sticking cute. And the colors matched my layout perfectly. Love that my journaling becomes a design element.


And here's the other Elle's product-the Handmade Layers Date/Place tag-looks perfect at the top of the kraft cardstock!

Lots of scallopy goodness in this layout!!
I loved my Elle's goodies so much, I placed my first order this weekend. I have a feeling it won't be my last. :)

Supplies: Cardstock-CTMH, Kraft Cardstock-The Paper Company, Patterned Paper-Echo Park, We R Memory Keepers, Buttons-CTMH, Twine-We R Memory Keepers, Sewing Template-Sew Easy by We R Memory Keepers, Journal Tags-Elle's Studio

Monday, September 12, 2011

a hair raising good time {a scrapbook layout}

Have I ever mentioned that my youngest son, the one we call the Moose, is a bit of a trouble maker? After 4 boys, you'd think I'd be used to that. And for the most part I am. But this little guy; boy, oh boy. It's not that he's intentionally bad, trouble just seems to find him.
You can pretty much guarantee if he's quiet, he's getting into something. And one particular night he was very quiet.

Now, here's the thing about the Lakes men. They have a thing about their hair. It has to look perfect; all the time. And that requires time and a certain amount of hair product. Our oldest boys are ten and "do" their own hair in the main floor bathroom. They use a product called Garnier Surf Gel. It's sticky. VERY sticky.

Moose has witnessed the boys "doing" their hair many, many times. Moose is also potty training, so anytime he independently goes into the bathroom, we are thrilled. As we were the night these pictures were taken.
Except he wasn't going potty. He was "doing" his hair. With a whole tub of hair gel.


I wish I could say this is the first time this has happened, nope. Sneaky little Moose. It took about a half an hour and a LOT of shampoo to get that gel out. The funniest part? About a week later I got a text from my husband while I was grocery shopping. All it said was "He did it again. Get Hair Gel. And More Shampoo."


Supplies: Kraft Cardstock-The Paper Company: Patterned Paper, Letter Stickers, Embellishments-Echo Park; Twine-We R Memory Keepers