Wednesday 31 August 2011

Memories of the World Cup Layout {Bird is the Word} and Important Bird is the Word Details!






There's a new challenge up at Bird is the Word & the word this fortnight is MEMORY or MEMORIES!

As usual the winner {voted for by the Design Team} gets to choose a complete kit from Tidbitz in Time (based on available stock obviously!), 
and the winner & top 4 all get a sidebar badge to show off until the end of time 
- Featured Winner - woohoo!

The LOVE challenge closes in TEN DAYS so get those LOVE projects rolling in & linked up soon if you want a chance to win.

PLEASE link to the ACTUAL POST not your ENTIRE BLOG 
as it's quite tricky to find the relevant post if you don't do so!
All you need to do to do this is CLICK ON THE TITLE OF YOUR POST then copy & paste the URL you see into the Inlinkz tool - 
Okay, great, 'cos otherwise you could be lessening your chances 'cos we can't comment or vote if we can't find your layout!

Also, Sylvia, whoever you are, your entries come up with an exclamation & the warning MALWARE! so it's not possible to click into them - I'm quite sure you are unaware of that - so if anyone knows Sylvia I'm sure she would appreciate a heads-up on that one!

Lastly, to be considered as a Featured winner you MUST mention & link up to Bird is the Word in your post - please - 
that way we are all helping each other & news of Bird is the Word will spread - keeping it an exciting & growing community of participants!  

And growing it sure is - we had a record 58 players last round - wow!!


I used this environmental portrait shot of my son Jack enjoying one of the many FIFA World Cup matches he was lucky enough to get to watch right here in South Africa last year!  
Wow did we have a blast at World Cup time - doing things we never dared do before (or again) 
as they would simply be far too unsafe - 
but at World Cup time the vagrants miraculously disappeared off every street corner 
(rumour has it they were locked in prison for the duration!) 
and policemen were EVERYWHERE - in absolute abundance - 
don't know where they came from or where they went LOL!  
But we were safe to walk the streets at any time of the day or night & it was WONDERFUL!!


Kept it simple as he's 16 now & doesn't appreciate my flowery additions!


Finally got to use that "Memories" rub-on that has been lurking in a drawer for years...


And my giant scallop punch that was possibly my worst buy ever!
I hardly have the occasion to use it sadly...


More rub-ons that got utilized - yay!


So glad I could finally use some "travel paper" as I don't generally do a lot of traveling (sadly) 
so don't usually purchase it but had some World Cup pages in mind when
 I bought a couple of sheets of October Afternoon - Boarding Pass - "Amsterdam" 
(not sure of the name seeing it's of the whole world but aaaanyway...)


Supplies List:-

Orange paper - Dream Street - Heartsong - Lighthearted
Green paper - Little Yellow Bicycle  - Decorative Die-Cut paper
World Map Print plus yellow grid (reverse side)- October Afternoon - Boarding Pass - Amsterdam
Scallop punch - Creative Memories
Rub-ons - Scrapbook King
Checkerboard Ribbon - stash
Staples
Ric-rac - Studio Calico April 2011 kit
Circular Die-Cut - Basic Grey - Curio
Circular Alphas - October Afternoon - Sticky Keys - Red & Black
Red Alphas - Dear Lizzy for American Crafts - Puffy Letter Stickers - Berry
Tiny numerals - Making Memories




Giveaway Time!!





Wow, lookie here!  What a great give-away!!  
Head on over here to my Bird is the Word teamie, Lisa Amiet's blog & give her some support!!  
There are some rules you need to follow if you want to be in the running for this giveaway & quite honestly who wouldn't?  
I mean just LOOK at all this stash!!


I am doily mad at the moment & would have entered just for those alone LOL!!

{I NEED to know where she got those!!}




Tuesday 30 August 2011

Color Combos Galore Combo 206 - Just Enjoy the Show Layout Plus a Tutorial on how to turn any internet image into a Stamped Print!





Last Friday saw the unveiling of this monochromatic colour combo at Color Combos Galore - if you want to play along before the next challenge goes live you need to get your layout in before Thursday noon EST.


I was a bit apprehensive about this combo but I like to give it a go most weeks so I printed out some suitable photos & had a look through my stash for appropriate papers & found quite a few!


I just started layering it up, ensuring that I had all the ingredients required in the recipe & it came together trouble-free :)


For my striped element I used my base paper - Sunshine Broadcast by Sassafras.


The cross-word paper inspired the theme of my page.
I always look at the photos while I am scrapbooking them & think about what message I want to relay in my layout.
The cross-word paper got me thinking of the song "Enjoy the Show" by Lenka
- I remembered the lyrics -
 "Life is a maze & love is a riddle" 
so I googled the rest of them & saw that they were very suitable to use on this page about my youngest daughter, who - at only 11 - is very keen to grow up & is paying far too much interest in boys for her own good!


So the message from me to her is to slow down & "Just Enjoy the Show" -
 I want her to enjoy her childhood & not give it up before it's necessary.
She is after a Blackberry now as all the kids here use the Messenger function to socialize,
but I want her to learn to communicate in person before she resorts to spending hours on the phone in BBM, on M-Xit or Facebook, so the rule in our house is that kids need to be 13 before they get their own mobile phone & Facebook account.  


The embossed metal plaque you see above serves as my "ledge" for the recipe, so I have rested my butterfly on it.
I used a Pink Paislee Daily Junque metal flag minus the pole & finally used that black Lily Bee flower!

Supplies List:-

 Striped base paper - Sasafras Lass - Sunshine Broadcast
Grey spotted paper - Lily Bee Designs - Stationery - Mushroom
Crossword Paper - Crate Paper - Emma's Shop - Playhouse
Grey & white print/Black & white print - offcuts - stash
Black cardstock/silver cardstock - Bazzill
Black printed transparency - Anna Griffin
Giant Bling - Glitz Design
Chipboard sun - Studio Calico Kit
Stick Pins & black & white gingham ribbon - local haberdashery
Butterfly & black scroll sticker - K & Co.
Metal embossed plaque - Pink Paislee Daily Junque Flag
Plain chipboard alphas - American Crafts Thickers
Black alphas - October Afternoon - Mini Market stickers
Black alpha stickers for "show" - stash
Font - Mom's Typewriter

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INTERNET IMAGES TRANSFER TUTORIAL

As I needed to use wood as part of the recipe for this layout - and had nothing suitable - I decided to settle for printing out some woodgrain from the internet.
 Initially I wanted to print it out onto a transparency sheet but I couldn't find my pack of transparency sheets so I decided to try using a sheet of plastic like the packaging used for scrapbooking products.


I save the packs that we buy our cold meats in from the supermarket, as they are a good size, so I wash them out, cut off the sides & the flat section from the base gets stored in a drawer.
I've never been sure what I was going to do with them - just that I knew they would come in handy one day!  So I stuck the sheet down to some computer paper, using thin double sided tape,
 in the centre of the A4 sheet of computer paper,
then I googled "woodgrain images" and saved a suitable image,
 imported it into Picasa, then printed it out in the middle of the paper as a 10 x 15cm jpg, directly onto the plastic.


I was {stupidly} hoping it would act as a transparency but of course it wouldn't absorb the ink so when it came out of the printed I could see that all the ink was sitting on top of the plastic
(as in the first image)
so I thought quick & grabbed an offcut of white cardstock & laid it on top of it
(see picture directly above)
 then I grabbed that big bottle of glue & used it as a brayer to rub over the top of the cardstock to help the ink to transfer.


And Voila!  Look what I got!!  A perfectly "stamped" image!
I am so excited about the possibilities of this accidental discovery as I will now be able to transfer ANY image off the internet & onto paper, or even fabric, which I find very exciting indeed!
I hope you enjoyed my little tutorial & let me know if you try it out!





Sunday 28 August 2011

Sneak Peeks of Upcoming Attractions!!






I spent 30 minutes on Friday, getting this little post created, pressed publish & Blogger gobbled it all up!!  Naughty, greedy Blogger...gosh I was annoyed, but I have hardly sat down here since so let's hope Blogger is less hungry tonight & it's second-time lucky for me!


These are some sneaks of my page for Bird is the Word, which goes live with a new word challenge each Sunday evening!  It's not up yet but it should be here any minute now!



This week I've just felt the need to create simpler, more meaningful layouts. 
 "Purposeful" is the word that keeps coming to mind.  
I don't want to be boring but I don't want to lose focus of my motives either.



This layout is for Scrapbook Kits with Jules - the new kit club I'm designing for now - based in Australia & owned by the multi-talented Jules McKenna De Lumen.  
She is having a massive 40% off sale in her online shop so click on over & see if there's anything you fancy stocking up on!!
ONLY 3 DAYS LEFT!!!


Every month there are 2 challenges up on the Scrapbook Kits blog - one sketch & one inspiration challenge - so bookmark the link I gave you so that you can join in when you can.  
There is a randomly drawn winner & a prize pack for each challenge so give it a go if you can.  
As soon as it goes live I'll put you out of your misery & upload my full layout :)  

Wishing you all a wonderful week xx





Thursday 25 August 2011

A Coupla Crazy Chix Layout - Stuff 2 Scrap Colour/Chipboard Challenge






Thursday already & all you've seen from me are a couple of sneaks!  

Well, good news!  
Tonight Color Combos Galore goes live with a new challenge so I will be able to share my layout created for Combo 206 with you all here SHORTLY! 

 I have actually created 6 layouts this week but can only share this one with you today - the Color Combos Galore one with you soon - the Bird is the Word one with you on Monday - and the 3 for Scrapbook Kits with Jules NEXT Friday!

I was missing the blog so squeezed this one in so that I have something to share with you all today 
{and to support a bloggy friend's challenge!}


All the white & colourful text on the black background paper is pre-printed so you can see that this was not a complicated page to make.
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I am entering this page in Chantal Vandenberg's challenge over at Stuff  2 Scrap.  You can get all the details here but I've also screen-snipped the main details for you below!
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If you want to play along you have until the end of the month to support Chantal & Stuff 2 Scrap!
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I enlarged a photo of my daughter Cami, together with her best friend, taken recently & at night.  
As night shots are rarely crystal clear I sharpened it up & converted it to black & white, 
a good trick to crisp up a slightly fuzzy image.


I tucked in a couple of doilies sent to me by super cool scrapper Rachael Funnel, all the way from Australia & also used a piece of chipboard picket fencing (take note of the sweet hearts instead of the points!) courtesy of Imaginarium Designs Chipboard - 
who recently sent me a humongous envelope of free chipboard - woo hoo!   

If you would like to buy some of this BEAUTIFUL chipboard it is available EXCLUSIVELY through Seriously Scrapbooking in Adelaide, Australia 
but you are able to buy online from them & they ship internationally!  
Chipboard is small, flat & light so postage is cheap!


I adhered sand onto the fence before painting it, to give it some texture, then varnished it with some glitter varnish for some sparkle!
I cut out the 4 little birdies from a greetings card that I bought especially to cut up. 
{I'm sure you've all done something similar!} and raised the top ones up on pop-dots for a 3D effect.


Supplies:-

Backing paper - Stemma
Red cardstock - Colourmates
Pink cardstock - Bazzill
Doilies - Grocery Store
Stick pins - Little Yellow Bicycle
Glitter Nail varnish - Essence Multi-Dimension XXXL Shine
Alphas - American Crafts "Remarks" Porter - Aqua
Birds - cut from greetings card
Sticker - Hambly Screen Prints Clear Sticker
Tiny alphas - Making Memories
Chipboard fence - Imaginarium Designs
Paint - Acrylic Paint Dabber - Pool - Ranger
Font - Arial Unicode MS





Tuesday 23 August 2011

Sneaks of my latest kit creations at Scrapbook Kits with Jules {and some bad news}



I received my kit parcel in record time recently - 12 days from Australia - containing 2 months worth of kits from Scrapbook Kits, the kit club in Australia recently bought by Jules McKenna De Lumen
 I'm not able to share my full layouts with you just yet but am able to give you a couple of sneaks.
Bright stuff indeed! 

 I did my best to use as much of the product I was sent on the 2 layouts I was asked to create, without being able to add any extras from my own stash 
- simple on the one hand, challenging on the other, but,
given the specifications I think I did as best as I could :)


It's not easy scrapbooking with products that aren't of your own choosing but it's something I need to learn :)


I've also tried to use some simple techniques on each page -
so that someone buying the kit is inspired to try something different.

Yes these kits are actually page kits - sold together with instructions on how to recreate them so I am getting experience in writing up instructions too.

On the one page the purchaser will learn how to :-

1.  fussy cut
2.  Raise up some elements using chipboard
3.  Create an "aura" around the edge of some elements using an ink-pad
4.  Journal around the edge of the elements (for a change from straight-forward hand-journaling)
5.   Customize chipboard die-cuts so that they can be used in different ways.

On the second page (within the same kit) the purchaser will learn how to 

1.  create a border edge around a layout
2.  Mock-stitch using a pen
3.  Doodle leaves using a journaling pen & colour them in with pencils
4.  Make a Picasa photo collage or create a square grid using various photos
5.  Strip-journal

I enjoyed having to think of someone else for a change, whilst I was scrapbooking.

It was a totally different experience. 

 I wasn't scrapbooking for me at all, I was scrapbooking to sell a product & to make the customer want to come back for more - in other words, teach them something new & have them wanting to buy more of "my" kits again in the future!

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***The bad news is that I'm sick again, and it's worse than  before :( 
My neck is as stiff as a tree & I'm coughing like a  hobo again.
Me & the boys have all had bronchitis & now it looks like we are set for round 2 - not good news...    

I've been trying to fight it for days now so that I could get my layouts done in time but I think I'm going to have to get an early night now & come back in the morning.  ***




Sunday 21 August 2011

Inspired Blueprints Sketch 80 {Beautiful Creature Layout - Little Black Dress Kit Club}






Inspired Blueprints has a fresh dose of inspiration for you weekly here on their blog.  Their sketches provide a great starting point for getting going on your layouts & if you do use one for inspiration you can upload it to their gallery here.

There are 4 sketches each month, split over 2 teams, so I create 2 layouts a month for them.  
Earlier this month I was sick, along with 2 of my kids, and my husband was away on business, and various disastrous events meant that I had to combine the layout for Sketch 78 with a Colour Combo at Colour Combos Galore, so you've already seen that one but so you can compare it to the sketch here it is again.

I think it was a great sketch & I love how my layout turned out!


My latest layout for Inspired Blueprints is based on Sketch 80, which was quite an unusual sketch but I loved it!
The reason I have been so excited to share this layout with you is because it is created ENTIRELY out of my new kit from Little Black Dress!
Firstly, my kit arrived here in 10 DAYS - that is a phenomenal record!!
Secondly, I am SO EXCITED as it's THE FIRST TIME I have actually used a kit properly!

Never before have I liked everything in a kit enough to use ONLY THE CONTENTS OF THE KIT and it made it SO QUICK & EASY!!

I know there are a lot of kit clubs around & I have had encouragement from some of you to sign up with them, but honestly there isn't another one out there that I fully believe in as the perfect fit for me so finding Little Black Dress  has been like an epiphany for me.


I completed this layout in 1.5 hours instead of my usual 3.  
Now that is a HUGE time-saver in my book!  
All my favourite things were right there on my desk, inside the packet - the kit contents - oooh I'm in love!


My only additions were a bit of red paint for opposite corners of the photo matt & the ink drops that I splattered on the music sheet paper.


For the long thin photos I printed out a collage in Picasa but left it in one piece, as opposed to splitting it down the middle, as there didn't seem any point.  
I cut out a central 1cm slit instead of splitting the printed papers behind the photo, then I rolled the 1cm strip around my awl so that it curled up into a tight paper roll - quite a cool effect I think.
I added a strip behind the central section & roughed the edges up a bit.


Creating the tag embellishment cluster was definitely fun!

 I started with the sweet little birdie tag & offset it on top of the red tag, then offset it again on a pretty red print card then threaded the grey ribbon through & cut it into V shapes (as is a very popular trend right now).

Before sticking these down  I threaded the baker's twine through the centre of that lush embroidered ribbon, gathered it up & knotted it top & bottom, created a bow at the top & flattened out the centre section so that the tag could lay nice & flat on top of it.  

1.  I fussy-cut the cherry design out of a sheet of Jenni Bowlin paper & adhered that first.
2.  Then I added the embroidered ribbon gathered with twine.
3.  Lastly I laid my offset tag on top & added a button to the bottom corner in place of a pop-dot to raise the tag up for some dimension.
4.  At the top of the card I threaded the baker's twine through a cute little star-shaped button provided.


Supplies List:-

Backing paper - Crate Paper Portrait Collection - Pearls
Black & white spotted paper & centre strip print (reverse)- Jenni Bowlin Studio - Haven Accessory sheet
Music Sheet paper, bird tag & fussy-cut cherries - Jenni Bowlin Studio - Haven - Cherries Ripe
Title sticker - Glitz Design - Cardstock Stickers - Love Games - Journaling
Alpha stickers - Glitz Design - Teeny Alpha - Burnt Orange
Red paint - Making Memories "Red Wagon"
Mist - Memories Mists - Pale Ale
Twine, ribbon, buttons, braid & all tag elements - Little Black Dress Kit Club - August 2011





Saturday 20 August 2011

I chatted with Charm {albeit 3 months ago!} My interview & how it compares to "where I'm at" today...






Well I could kick myself now because I have a layout I am DYING to share with you - that I created yesterday for Inspired Blueprints, that goes live every Saturday - but I forgot to photograph it today!!  
I photographed it last night to send in 
{and while I can take a decent night photo with an elaborate set of daylight lamps I still prefer nice day time shots when at all possible - there is just no substitute for natural light} 
but I didn't take all the close-up shots as I told myself I would do that the next day!  
***Will be posting it soon!***

Being a Saturday I had kids coming out of my ears as we'd had several sleep over, DVD's to return to the store, gifts to wrap & parties to get kids off to, soccer matches to attend, the gardener to organize and a coffee date with my bestie!  
So all thoughts of photographing layouts flew out of the window until I returned in the evening, when it was too late.  
Oooops...

Anyway, I do have quite a few things still to share that I haven't had a chance to slot in yet & one of them is a copy of my Chat with Charm interview.  
Charmaine Koch is well-known amongst the Aussie online girls as she makes embellishments under the name of Charm's Creations & they are darling & very popular.

The Design Team at Inspired Blueprints were all invited to submit their answers to a set of questions posed by Charm, which were then posted on her forum & most of us made it in there to have a little chat with the girls that hang out there & it was super fun!

I screen-snipped my content there just so that I have a record of it all here for myself. 

 In fact I'm even interested in having a re-read of it now as I may answer some of those questions differently if asked them today!  






Well having read that already there are a few changes.  

Chelsea has turned 18.  Cami has turned 11. 
 I have now left Scrapbook Challenges & joined Scrap-it-Lah, Color Combos Galore & Scrapbook Kits with Jules.  

I'm no longer a challenge junkie, 
in fact apart from my DT work & some manufacturer challenges I don't really have time any more for a lot more than that 
& lucky me 
I'm now designing for the challenge sites that I really love the most!

As for my latest scrapbooking purchases now, 
I've just received the complete set of Echo Park "Country Road" & "Victoria Gardens" 
(so much for me being selective but I just couldn't chose between these 2) 
& have lots of bits from all my fave manufacturers now that I've received my first order from 

Much as I love Pinterest my initial interest has already waned because
  I want to CREATE more than I spend time being INSPIRED 
& there's simply not enough time to do both!  
But I'm glad I have my account & I do still "pin" occasionally!

Right now I am in the middle of a bit of a Studio sort out.  
Sometimes I need to get to grips with my storage before I can create any more layouts.  
I seem to have had a bit of an influx of new stash lately & need to get it packed away nicely so I can find my counter again...not to mention that I need to get down to ordering some new CHA product now that there are a few lines in at the online stores I shop at.  

Good thing is that these days I am actually pretty much depleting all the stash I buy so I don't feel so bad stocking up on some new wonderfulness :)  
What are your CHA must-haves?





Friday 19 August 2011

Color Combos Galore Combo 205 {Zambia 2011} Crate Paper Neighborhood Line





Yesterday Color Combo 205 went live at Color Combos Galore with this lovely color scheme.

As you can read the Designer's challenge was to use mesh or woven fabric on your project.


So I used the only bit of mesh I could find!  
A small piece of plastic mesh that I cut in half & used above & below my photograph.
I also used Webster's Pages "Yacht Club" {Sandy Shore} paper for my background because the design looks like loosely woven fabric with a knotted design on top, that was in keeping with the theme :)


I used mostly Crate Paper Neighborhood Line that I recently received from the States 
{online shopping - woop!}


Because the photo was so large there wasn't room for an elaborate design & the most obvious way to go was to layer up the borders above & below the photo, so that's what I did, using papers & ribbons from the same line & my new Martha Stewart Crafts Vine punch.


I'm loving all the big organza bows I'm seeing online right now so I tried one myself & placed a Crate Paper Restoration chipboard piece over the top of it, together with a Crate Paper Neighborhood brad 
{I cut the back off & secured it with a glue-dot instead}.


I love these American Crafts Subway Thickers but they are all but finished now {I got them in January so they've done pretty well...} but I had to make the 2 "A's out of "D"s & even the D's are finished now :(

Sometimes I love to use giant photographs on my layouts.  
Some photos need to be big to see everyone/all the detail clearly.  
As this was a night-time photo it wasn't the best, but converting it to black & white improved it substantially {as it always does - I've learnt from experience}.  
Another good thing about it is that there is often space on the photo to add elements on top of it - like I've done with the title here, and that often hides unwanted background elements so it's a win/win situation.

Supplies:-

Background paper - Webster's Pages "Yacht Club - Sandy Shore"
Printed paper - Crate Paper "Neighborhood - Chores" (both sides)
Red cardstock - Colormates
Felt scallop ribbon & pink ruffle-tape - Crate Paper "Neighborhood" ribbon 
Banners - Crate Paper "Neighborhood" border stickers
6590 sticker - Crate Paper "Emma's Shoppe" stickers
Brads - Crate Paper "Neighborhood"
Mesh - stash
Train Sticker - Crate Paper "Toybox" border stickers
Fence & other border stickers below photo - Crate Paper "Neighborhood" border stickers
Red organza ribbon - local haberdashery
Chipboard piece on ribbon - Crate Paper "Restoration"
Tiny alphas - Glitz Design 'Teeny alphas - Brown Block'
Large alphas - American Crafts "Subway - Thickers"
Vine punch - Martha Stewart Crafts
Red stitching

Now I've just realised {after typing all that LOL} that I have actually used FOUR different Crate Paper lines here -
RESTORATION
EMMA'S SHOPPE
TOYBOX
NEIGHBORHOOD

I think that's definitely a testament of my Crate Paper Love don't you?! ♥♥♥
Have a great weekend Creative Peeps :)




Wednesday 17 August 2011

Scrapbook Trends Latest Submissions Call & a big shout out to all my Followers!





Today I have spent 6 hours in my e mail...
Don't ask me what I do in there but there are 1120 e mails in there at the moment & that is greatly reduced from where they were a month ago.  
Gradually I am whittling them down...It doesn't stress me out in the least but I don't believe in "just pressing delete" as so many people have recommended.  
I am way to responsible for that...
So I am dealing with, filing, deleting, etc & getting it all into it's place. 
 I haven't signed off all the newsletters I've signed up for because I want them, need them & learn from them, but I am just hoping that when I eventually get to the bottom of my huge pile of e mails I'll once again be able to take (and keep!) control!!
(I do read & deal with all the urgent stuff of course, but a few different instances of computer problems over this year have meant my pc has been in for repair several times & that is how I find myself in the situation I'm in...it's literally something one has to keep on top of at least a few times a week...)

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I'm now busy blog-hopping & firing my way through all my favourite blogs so if I haven't hit you yet don't despair, I'm heading in your direction, in case I've forgotten about you...ooops...so if you don't hear from me send me a gentle reminder here...I try at least once a week to go through all my posts to double-check that I haven't left anyone out but my "go to" method is just to go through my list systematically...and after several hours I get to the bottom of it LOL...

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I want to thank you all for being such faithful commenters.
When I post without having done the blog hop rounds myself I expect to receive no blog love in return but it doesn't happen!  
You all still faithfully visit me & leave your encouraging words that are like water to my thirsty soul...really....you have no idea how much your thoughts, words, comeraderie & encouragement mean to me & literally how your blog love spurs me to keep on going when I'd rather go to bed LOL!

There was a time...and it doesn't feel like so long ago...when I would be happy to receive 5 comments per post...
Now they just keep rolling in & it is quite surreal actually...
You see I've been working away here on this little blog of mine for quite a few years now & really just got used to faithfully posting & not really getting a lot of feedback, but I just disciplined myself to keep on going...
and finally I am seeing the fruits of my labour.

I hope that this is an encouragement to anyone out there who feels despondent.
Eventually what goes around does come around...
I started this blogging journey completely clueless as to what I was doing & now I feel like I could do this all in my sleep!
{okay sometimes I am actually kinda asleep LOL...}

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I took the advice a few of you gave me & submitted yesterday's layout today to Scrapbook Trends.  
Well the whole truth is that I submitted 14 layouts today to Scrapbook Trends, for their February 2012 call.  I have submitted in the past before, but very sporadically, mainly because the submission process is a time-consuming one & so often leads to nothing.
Nothing ventured nothing gained though so thanks for prompting me to keep on trying & let's hope if I bombard them enough they'll eventually give in to me LOL!

I'm totally used to rejection so it's no biggie if they don't get back to me 
but as they are working on 2012 already (and I've already missed January's call!) 
I forced myself to buckle down to it today & at least throw my hat in!

Having a layout published in Creating Keepsakes has been my ultimate dream for a long time now
(I recently had a photo published & that was a real high point for me!)
but honestly I think Scrapbook Trends may be more interested in my style.  
After all, double-page layouts featuring lots of layouts really don't do it for me & 
at the end of the day I want to enjoy the creation process first & foremost.

So here's a heads up on the call for all my scrappy friends out there.


You still have plenty of time to work on your creations.
To be honest I never design for a call.  I just do what I do then see afterwards if anything fits...
Probably explains why I haven't been published....yet :)




Tuesday 16 August 2011

Once Upon a Sketch has a new Reveal up! {Breakaway Layout} Featuring Pretty Paper Petals!





I hate having to post when I have hardly commented on a blog since Thursday...but truth is I am SNOWED UNDER this side & hardly coming up for air!!  Have a few new things going on...lots of Pretty Paper Petals arrived on my doorstep the other day so I have been creating with those & will have more to share on that soon!  For now you can see my first blog post up there today here!  

Bloggy friends...you KNOW I will make it up to you! 
For now though I'm here to announce the new reveal up at Once Upon a Sketch today - here are all the deets!!

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AUGUST 15th CHALLENGE

Journalling Criteria: Write AT LEAST 2 sentences from the lyrics of your favourite song. Journalling can be in any language and can be any type i.e. handwritten, alphas, printed, rub on. 

You MUST combine our journalling criteria with the following sketch. 

We have some awesome Guest Designers this month & the Reveal is out of this world - I strongly suggest you head on over there as your next stop!  I've copied & pasted all the sponsor loveliness here as well as all the challenge rules - just because I'm cool like that...{wink!}

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PRIZES and SPONSORS

Our first sponsor is the truly AMAZING...

Imaginarium designs,  is a new chipboard company founded in 2010. It is the combined collaboration of  a Mother and Son team who both work in the paper craft industry.
Please visit the blog for inspiration and to see what the design team has been up to   www.imaginariumdesigns.blogspot.com and you can  purchase this amazing chipboard  at Seriously Scrapbooking (they ship anywhere in the world at actual postage cost)

Thank you SO much to our lovely sponsor Imaginarium Designs. We couldn't do this without your support!

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Imaginarium Designs have so generously offered this prize to our  winner as chosen by our Design Team..

...a pack of their latest and most popular chipboard. The best thing about this, is that the pack will be different each month and will be customised to fit the winners needs. So if you have girls, you will be sent girly chipboard etc. And don't forget that they also sponsor our entire Design Team so please see the examples above for all the creative uses of this awesome chipboard. 

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This month we will have 2 RANDOMLY CHOSEN winners who will receive the following 


  
Pretty Paper Petals is an Australian based, online blog store that started out a year ago. A simple tissue paper flower started it all off.......one was made for a layout and people kept asking where they could get it.....All of our flowers are carefully handcrafted by Vicki (the founder), and we are adding new items to the store every month

One randomly chosen winner will receive this EMBELLISHMENT KIT from Pretty Paper Petals 

The other randomly chosen winner will receive the August Kit from Tidbitz In Time

Tidbitz In Time is a US based monthly scrapbook kit club designed to bring you the latest papers and embellishments every month -- right to your mailbox.  Your pages will go together easily but your creative opportunities will be endless! Our goal is to make each and every kit an incredible value jam packed full of new products and wonderful ideas. 

Crate Paper - Potrait Collection - Papers, Alpha Labels Stickers, Border Stickers, Custom Trims, 
Prima - Flowers and Say It In Studs packs.  

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Things to consider when playing along... 

**This is an international blog, so anyone can enter 
**You are allowed to create a card, layout or off-the-page item based on the provided sketch and additional journalling criteria. If you are creating a card or altered item you only need to include a quote. 
**You are also allowed to flip or rotate the sketch or alter it to suit your needs, but please make sure its still recognisable. 
**Post your creation on your blog or an online gallery and link it on the bottom of this post  using the Link tool. Please provide a direct link to your post, not your entire blog.If the link tool is down, please leave a comment on the comments section and link your layout there. 
** The deadline for this challenge is midnight August 31st , Australian Eastern Standard Time . The Design Team will vote and the winner and the Top 5 project will be announced soon after the challenge has finished.
 **You may enter as many times as you like and combine this with other challenges. 
**Also, please consider turning off word verification for comments on your blog. For a complete list of the rules please see the top of this page.


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PLEASE TAKE NOTE OF THAT LAST LINE & CONSIDER GETTING RID OF YOUR WORD VERIFICATION - 
PLEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAASE :)

{I got rid of mine MONTHS AGO and have had no funny business on my blog...}

Just imagine trying to visit 90+ blogs to comment & show our support on your beautiful entries...  
I've heard that everyone really appreciates the Design Team taking the time to comment on each & every entry - and we love to do it - so please make it a bit easier on us guys!!

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I'm sure you all know the song BREAK AWAY by Kelly Clarkson...this is a very special song to my daughter Chelsea, featured here, with her best friend, as it was the "leaving" song for all the Grade 7's at her primary school, that played when she finished up there, during their final assembly, when she knew that we were emigrating to South Africa from Zimbabwe, and it was a really emotional time for her.


I took a leaf out of the Colour Combos Galore book & limited my palette here & I really think it helps keep things classy...


I used some of the gorgeous new blooms available over at Pretty Paper Petals right now.  
"Like" them on Facebook & you can buy right there from their Facebook store...how cool is that?!


I painted those raw chipboard Thickers with silver paint to match the beautiful DIANA BUD bloom from Pretty Paper Petals.


I've used photos from this shoot for 3 layouts this week already...sorry for boring you folks but I'm on a roll with them right now!


Supplies List:-

Cream Cardstock - Bazzill Swiss Dot
Green Cardstock - American Crafts
Brown Paper {backing} - Basic Grey "Hello Luscious" {reverse side of Dandy}
Prints - Studio Calico promotional cards
White filter papers - Fancy Pants
Butterfly card - Basic Grey "Curio" die-cuts
Stickpins - Maya Road {Courtesy of Pretty Paper Petals}
Silver flower - Diana Bud from Pretty Paper Petals
White flower - Sheer Beauty from Pretty Paper Petals
Dress-pattern flowers - Notions from Studio Calico
Bling swirl - Prima
Vintage button - Jenni Bowlin Studios
2 Journaling Spots - Cocoa Daisy
Alphas - Thickers Natural Chipboard Letter Stickers {Sunrise} by American Crafts
Silver Paint - Heritage
Punch - Vine by Martha Stewart Crafts
Font - Vladimir Script