Bright Ideas Part 2

There have been some great ideas during this class at Studio Calico - not necessarily new, but it's always good to see a fresh take on something that you haven't done for a while.

This time it was an ad inspiration  which you can see in on this Pinterest link (as the class is sign up only) here.  I liked the combination of shapes and the way some of them overlapped the edge, but I didn't want to scrap with a small photo as I didn't have any, so I tried to work out how I could use the placement ideas with a large photo.  This is what I came up with:

Now yellow is not my first go-to colour when I'm scrapping, but I had a sheet in a kit with Lily Bee papers from Sarah's Cards last year which I was trying to use up and the yellow door in the photo led me to make the decision.  The 2 card matched the door perfectly and I was off!  I needed to keep the palette under control as I'm not a big fan of multicolour madness so stuck to the two shades of yellow, pale grey and black, with some small wooded touches (I couldn't resist the tree button).

I wanted to replicate the title in the bottom corner as seen on the ad, to mix shapes and to add some dimension as the ad shows little 3d boxes.  I decided sewing would do the trick, along with some layered embellishments on the shapes.

The top right shape is cut from Prima wooden button packaging with a Studio Calico stamp backing acetate added to it.  As ever there is ancient stash included - the flower centre has been hanging around so long I can't actually remember who made it!

Thanks for looking.

Studio Calico Bright Ideas class

... and some layouts from the recent North Cheam Crop.

Inspired by some of the ideas in the classes, particularly Shannon Tidwell's Colour Pop, I had a go at a neutral background with some small additions of colour.  I'm afraid I didn't tart up my background with stamping, sewing etc. to make texture - I can only carry so much to a crop!!  I'm really pleased with the result though, especially having the batik butterfly on the layout - I have had these for at least 18 years - from my card making days - I have a couple left and have always wanted to incorporate one onto a layout -tada! it's happened.

The title is from a My Minds Eye sheet which I have had for a while, but wishful isn't a word I'd use on its own as a title - however, as the journalling reads, 'wishful thinking' sums it up much better '... I wish she would get rid of that fringe and she wishes I'd let her follow fashion in peace!'  Definitely wishful thinking as neither is likely to change our minds in a hurry!  Thanks for looking.

The next layout is also of my DD, in full beauty - I absolutely love this photo (and she does too, for once).  She was outdoors in the snow, happy as can and ready for any snowballs coming her way.  I love the smile in her eyes and the glow in her cheeks.  Teenage years can be wonderful!!

The paper is SEI from a couple of years ago - can't remember the line.  Gorgeous rose ribbon and Prima buttons - chipboard star shapes and snowflake stamps, a bit of K&Co lacy tape and a die cut from my Cameo, lettering from Sassafras.

Inspired by.... Sainsburys Magazine

I'm not one to see inspiration in everything I see, and I often have trouble even interpreting sketches beyond the most literal copy, but I saw this on the side of a page in the Christmas Sainsburys Magazine, I was immediately inspired to have a go at a layout.

In typical me-style, it has taken a while for ideas to percolate - I do this with many of my layouts, but this is my first attempt at using the inspiration.  I think there will be another one in the 'series' using smaller items but as I was sorting through stash I 'found' the chipboard - long forgotten - which forms the base of the design.  Add that to some snow photos from January and I had the beginning of a layout.

This is how it turned out:

The extra embellishments are - remaining bits after I had cut some Christmas lanterns on the Cameo - most of the scraps were miniscule, but these were retrievable and reminded me of snowflakes, so I hoarded them with something like this in mind.  Ancient snowflake brads - I am down to my last couple now, and they will probably be used up on PL given that we are having more snow right now.  I stamped little snowflakes directly onto the paper and the little red dots came with the Cosmo chipboard - they add just the right touch of another colour.  The silver snowflake is another negative from a Cameo cut which I couldn't bear to throw - that glitter paper is soooo precious :)  The chevron heart is a precious new embellishment I had in my Advent Swap - thank you Santa!! and the little turquoise heart and camera (on main photo) are digital embellishments from American Crafts.  And thank you MA for the gems :)

I don't seem to move far away from White Bazzill at the moment - this is a Swiss Dot version, but I'm running out so I'm going to have to challenge myself to use something else - or buy more!!  My Bazzill stash is dwindling and is probably less than 1 inch high now for all colours!

Some simple cards

I've been inspired to make cards recently, with so much internet inspiration, there's almost too much choice, so I started with something simple - a couple of birthdays coming up, and a friend who recently had an op are the likely destinations of these cards.

I made full use of some Bazzill scraps, plus scraps of Anna Griffin (ancient), Echo Park and I think it might be October Afternoon papers.  I inked a Pink Paisley mistable card and stamped it with a message, and I raided my collection of washi tape to add coordinating stripes to each card.  Stamped messages and gems finished off the cards.  Thanks for looking.

A card from my Silhouette!

Well, sketch pens are the bomb as far as I am concerned.  They can do just what I can't - draw!!  and they can size things that stamps can't - I can have my cupcakes any size I like!! The drawings can  much more detailed than a cut file and I can choose from the various coloured pens available.

I printed this on the Silhouette using a Sketch file and pen instead of a blade.  Then I added Promarkers, beads, gems, glitter and ribbon to make them prettier.

I love it when a whole new world of possibilities opens up!

Project Life my way!

Well, I've started, and so far so good, and fun!

I decided to do this year as my eldest DS will be 18 this year, DD 16 and DS2 13 - so a big year for us in the sense that it probably is our last year at home living as a normal family.  Next year DS will hopefully be at uni and things will change.  For this reason I wanted to take a closer look at our lives this year.  Part of me is very regretful that I didn't know about PL when they were little.

Armed with an album and a load of page protectors - a big Becky Higgins variety pack - like this - and some other smaller ones I had spare.  I'm hoping that one album will do me for the whole year but I may have got my maths wrong!

The only other thing I bought - mainly through sheer laziness - was two sets of gridded white cards - 6 x4 and 3x4 which will help me with the bulk of my journalling.  Other than that I plan to use existing stash, printables and my trusty Silhouette.

Actually, it isn't the only other thing I bought - I did invest in a typewriter this week.  Partly because I wanted to!, and partly because I'm hopeless at going to the computer and journalling, then printing it off, my printer doesn't particularly like cardstock, and I generally have to join a queue behind my children for the computer in the first place!!  This way it sits on my desk and I can tap away as the mood takes me.

It's gone well so far, but I need to invest in some Tippex as I do make mistakes and they don't just disappear like they do on a screen :)

I can't quite get my head round the week thing though, I mean NewYear's day was a Tuesday, and I never know what number a week is anyway so I'm just going to add stuff as I please in more or less chronological order.

There are so many ideas out there it is hard to fit them all into one little life document, but I'm loving all the input and have a page on my Pinterest here if anyone is also doing PL.  I have some stuff, but there are lots of links to other people who have loads more.  There is also a board of printables and another of Silhouette files for additional interest.

I am still going to scrap in 12x12 for the momentous occasions of the year, but I'm also hoping to catch up on past years' scrapping as well.

Finally a big shout for Photobox who sent my photos so fast that they arrived this morning having only been ordered yesterday - my kind of service!

Happy New Year - belatedly

Well it's been an age since I wrote on my blog - I've just been too busy, with Christmas and various other things - illness, darling daughter's English Revision - what horrid people schedule GCSEs in the first week back? - not to mention boring chores like getting new tyres for the car.  But I'm back and the new year is beckoning with lots of exciting new projects to do.

Most of them will include my Silhouette - already a valued part of the family :) - and pulling its weight in terms of contribution over Christmas.  I made my cards with it and a pile of delicious lanterns which held LED tea lights which doubled up as cards for some of my friends.

My new best friend is now helping me with Project Life and yesterday I discovered how wonderful the sketch pens are - they printed me some gorgeous bits and pieces for my PL (of which more another day) - and since I am a hopeless artist most of the time, will help me no end in creating beautiful things.

I am trying a new sock pattern  (called Hermione - free on Ravelry) as well, using metal needles this time.  I thought it would help if I had 2.25 needles in a different medium to my 2.5 bamboo ones as I can't tell the difference, but I'm regretting the choice as they are much longer and poke into my cuffs when I'm trying to knit.  DD wants them for her birthday at the end of March which shouldn't be a problem in theory, but with these needles ....