Let's Get Loud

 Hello! It's been a while! I have some catching up to do. Today I have a layout based on this sketch from Rochelle Spears:

I started by flipping the sketch horizontally to make it work with my photos. My photos are bigger and one is vertical, so a little different than the sketch, but I made it work. The background cardstock has clear resist stars, so I sprayed it with some red spray ink and added a few gold splatters. I pulled a bunch of scraps of red patterned papers for the collage behind the photos. For the borders, I used a strip of washi tape and ribbon. I used my Cricut for the title. To embellish the page, I used some pearls and gems. The flowers were red pink and a golden color, but I wanted to incorporate more of the shiny gold color, so I painted over the golden parts of the flowers with gold Liquid Pearls.

I also did the Scrap with Stacy Tic Tac Toe challenge:

I did the bottom row: multi word title, white base paper, and gold.

Cards!

Hi all! I have several cards to share today, most of which I used the Cricut for! 

First up is a graduation card. I had the hat already cut from last year, so I cut the sentiment and layered them over dry embossed cardstock with a slim mat in the school colors. Quick and easy and could definitely be mass produced!

For my next card, I used the current card sketch from Stick It Down:

I had those thin strips of patterned paper left over from another project and decided to select my colors from there. I found the purple background paper in my stash and cut the panel. I then found a couple of pieces of coordinating cardstock that I cut into strips. I used the MISTI to stamp the flowers and heat embossed them. I cut the sentiment using my Cricut. Once that was all assembled, I decided we needed a slim frame around the panel, so I found the dark purple cardstock (which is actually two strips, but since most of it is covered, you don't notice the seam).

Next up is a wedding card. I found the cuts for this first and got them cut. I then created the background by stamping and heat embossing with clear glitter powder. I layered that over black cardstock, again leaving a slim border. I glued my cuts over the top. The cut of the bride and groom go too close to another cut I had done in that cardstock and there was a line across the bottom of the skirt. I covered it up by adding the border with silver Nuvo drops. I then added a few more details on the dress and hair.

I started this card with scraps that I glued together to make the background. I then found a Cricut cut to coordinate with the flowers and added a vellum circle behind it to make the sentiment stand out a bit more. That sentiment was a challenge to get glued down because it was so fine! I finished off the card with some silver glitter paper sequins.

For my last card, I did not use the Cricut, but some newer products. I started by used the leaf and berry masks from the Concord and 9th Merry Mix pack. While they are technically Christmas masks, I thought they would work well for the masculine card, paired with the leaf stamp and die from the Vicki Boutin Cut and Paste collection. I stuck with greens and blues for this card. I punched the tag from light green cardstock and stamped and heat embossed the sentiment. I finished off the card with a little floss bow on the card.

 

June Calendar page

Hi all! I have my June calendar page to share! I started with the double page sketch from Stick It Down:

I had lots of photos so I made the large photo spot on the right side into a photo collage. I used my Cricut a lot on this layout- for the large scallop border, the photo mats and the title. I used a Project Life card for my journaling. To label the photos, I used the circles that were cut from my border and then colored the numbers with chalk to match the dots. I used some stickers from the Vicki Boutin Cut and Paste collection- I love the embellishments from this collection!

 

May Calendar Page

Hello! I'm back today with my May calendar page. I started with the double page sketch from Stick It Down:

I loved how much space there was on this sketch for photos! May is such a busy month, so I needed the space! I started by printing my photos and laying them out on the page. I trimmed the patterned paper for each end of the layout. I used strips for my journaling. I had a great time embellishing my layout with die cuts, stickers, and foam stickers from the Cut and Paste collection by Vicki Boutin.

 

Disco Medley

Hello! I have a new layout to share! I started with the current sketch from Rochelle Spears (see below). I rotated the sketch to work with my photo. I used all acetate for the triangles in the background. I used my Cricut to cut the title and the disco ball in the background. To embellish the page, I used washi tape, ribbon, ticket stamps and punch, and some paper sequins. 

 

Some of my design decisions were influenced by the the Scrap With Stacy Tic Tac Toe Board:

I used the center row: twine/ribbon, triangle, and ticket.

Fall Sweet Fall- Lasting Memories Guest Designer

Hello! It is my final week as guest designer for Lasting Memories. This week's challenge is: THIS-use never before used pieces of paper or THAT: use all scraps. 

I ended up using all scraps for my layout (except for the base cardstock). Most of the papers I used are from Creative Memories, which is also where I got the sketch that I based this layout on (see below). I stuck pretty close to the sketch, adjusting it a bit to work with the size and shape of my photos. I cut my title useing the Cricut. To embellish the page, I used some stickers, die cut flowers, and fussy cut leaves.

Here's the sketch I based the layout on:

 

Soccer Layouts

Hello! I have two soccer layouts to share today. We missed the day that the kids had team photos this year, so I just took a photo of the kids and my husband (who helped coach their teams) together and then took individual photos of the kids. 

First up is my oldest daughter. I started with this sketch from Scrap a Sketch: 

I started with some splatters of grey ink. Then I cut some patterned papers into banners in colors that matched the photos. I found the title cut in Cricut Design Space. To embellish the page, I used some paper sequins, washi tape, and an enamel flair.

For my other daughter's page, I pulled out a couple of sheets of patterned paper and made two large blocks behind my photos. I once again found the title on Cricut Design Space, as well as the silhouette. I embellished the page with some fussy cut soccer balls, washi tape, an enamel flair, and green gems. 

Finally, we have my son's page. I used this Page Maps sketch for his:

 I rotated the sketch 90 degreesto make it work with my photos. This was a pretty quick layout to make- patterned papers, photos, sticker letters and die cut word for title and die cuts and homemade enamel dots for embellishment.

Dance Layouts- Lasting Memories Guest Designer

Hello! I'm back with my layout for this week's challenge at Lasting Memories: THIS: Use alphabet stickers for your title OR THAT: Create your own title using die-cuts or stamps.

I chose THAT and used my Cricut to die cut my title. I also used my Cricut to cut the backgroud. I used scraps of gold glitter cardstock to back some of the holes in the background. The leaves are a stamp and matching die. The flowers are a die.

 I just finished another dance layout, so I figured I would include it in this post as well. I used this month's single page sketch from Stick It Down:

The brick wall in the sketch went well with the photos I was going to use, so I kept that. I cut a piece of kraft card stock and ran it through a brick embossing folder. I then took a couple of ink pads and rubbed them over the texture to add depth. I used my Cricut for the background circle cut and the title. To add further texture to the layout, I used some old mulberry paper to mat my photos. I really like all the texture on this layout!

A Week in Illinois- Lasting Memories Guest Designer

Hello! I'm here to share exciting news today! I am guest designing for Lasting Memories for the month of April! This month's challenge theme is "This or That." This week's challenge is THIS: Use a sketch OR THAT: Scraplift one of the Design Team's layouts. I decided to use this sketch from the March PageMaps:

I started with two different colored sheets of cardstock and went to work finding patterned papers that went with my photos. I adjusted the photo spots a bit from the sketch to work with the photos I was working with. I also moved the journaling area because my photo on the bottom right was bigger than the one in the sketch. I used my Cricut to cut the title, large blue train, the tracks and the railroad crossing sign. I also used some stickers, die cuts, and dimensional embellishments from various collections to embellish the page. To bring the dark blue to the right hand page, I used a couple of pieces of blue washi tape in the embellishment clusters.

I hope you play along with this challenge and the rest of the challenges throughout the month!
 

Water Park Layouts

Hello, today I have a couple of water park vacation layouts to share. My first layout was based on this PageMaps sketch:

I found some fun patterned papers and got to work laying them out. I used several Cricut cuts to embellish the page- the word "Splash," the water gun, and the tube and splash. The rest of the embellishments are stickers, puffy stickers, and a chipboard piece.

My second layout started with this sketch from Sketches In Thyme:

I took this single page sketch and stretched it across two pages by keeping the line of banners going. I used my Cricut for this layout as well, for the words "Water Park" and for the giant beach ball. I used a white gel pen and a letter template for "MEA" and hand wrote "at the" to finish off the title. I embellished the page with buttons, a couple of stickers, and some canvas flair.

 

Scrapbooking Retreat- Halloween Layouts

Hello, I'm sharing a couple more layouts from my scrapbooking retreat last month. Today I'm sharing Halloween layouts.

Several months ago I had purchased a couple of Halloween collections by Doodlebug. I was excited to use them on some layouts. My first layout was just about playing with the products. I used a few of the patterned papers and came up with my own design for the page. For the title, I was searching Cricut Design Space for a cute title and this one came up. I didn't end up using the cut file for this phrase, but I used some stickers and a cut file for the word "knight." To embellish the page, I used some washi tape, stickers, puffy stickers and paper sequins. One of the collections I purchased came with some ribbons and trims, so I used one of the trims across the bottom of the large patterned paper block.

My next layout started with this sketch from Paper Issues: 

I started this layout by finding a fun pumpkin cut file. I once again searched Cricut Design Space for a clever title and this time used a cut file from there. To embellish this page, I used stickers, puffy stickers, and a short length of ribbon.

Thanks for stopping by to check out my layouts.

 

Scrapbooking Retreat- Wedding Layouts

Hello! I went on a scrapbooking retreat last month, but haven't shared many of the layouts because I haven't wanted to spend the time blogging them. I'm currently sick with strep, so sitting with a laptop is more doable and appealing than crafting, so I figured I would work on getting some of these layouts blogged.

Today I'm sharing a couple of layouts I made for my son's book from his aunt and uncle's wedding in 2014. He was one of the ring bearers so it was special for him. First, is a layout about being the ring bearer. I used this skech from PageMaps:

I used papers from Christmas collections since the wedding was two days after Christmas and the colors worked. I cut the title and rings on the right hand page with my Cricut. I used a tag from one of the collections for the journaling. To embellish the page, I used stickers, washi tape, and puffy stickers. I kept this design pretty clean and simple to let the adorable photos shine.

 Next up in the layout of his photo booth photos. I lifted this layout from Paper Issues: 

I made four clusters on my page, three with the photos and one with the title. I again used Christmas collections, this time sticking to mostly black, white and red designs. It was fun to find stickers and bits and pieces to tuck behind the photos. I used my Cricut to cut the title, cutting the camera a couple times and stacking the pieces for dimension. I finished off the page with some red Nuvo drops.

Stick It Down Guest Designer

Hello! I am here today to share that I am the guest designer for Stick It Down this month! I made a project for each of their sketches for the month. 

First up was the card sketch, which I used to make Valentines for two of my sons. I started by stamping the wood background on kraft cardstock. I used a die to cut the brown frame and my Cricut to cut the hearts from various papers. I layered the hearts over the frame and attached them to the card front. For the sentiment, I stamped on a strip of white cardstock and trimmed the end into a banner and tucked it under the hearts. To embellish the card, I used a metallic pink paint pen to drw the hearts on some of the "logs" and made dots with pink Nuvo drops.

Next is the double page layout. I used some really old October Afternoon for this one. This sketch is all about blocks, so it is a great one to use up a collection or use 6x6 papers on. I ussed my Cricut to cut the title and embellishments. For the journaling, I used vellum and hand wrote the captions and recap. I used washi tape across the bottom of my layout and red Nuvo Drops as accents on my embellishments.
 

 Finally, I have the layout using the single page sketch. I started by creating a vertical "block" on the page with ink blending and a mask. I then used patterned paper and stickers from the collection to embellish the page. For the title, I used the combination of a sticker and a Cricut cut. For some added dimension and fun, I sprinkled some enamel dots over the page.

March Calendar Page

Hello! I'm back today with my March calendar layout. I started with the February double page sketch from Stick It Down:

I started with white cardstock. Then I went to work finding patterned paper that I had two sheets of that would go with the photos. I landed on this wood grain paper that had colors that went with the rest of the patterned papers I wanted to use on the layout. I layered everything up on the layout. For my title, I used my Cricut. I inked the edges of the offset to make it stand out a bit more. To embellish the page, I used some white chipboard flowers and a floral sticker that went with the colors of my layout. For the centers of the flowers, I used enamel dots in coordinating colors.

 

Dance Layouts

Hi all! I've been busy making layouts! Today I have a few to share. For my first layout, I used this sketch from Rochelle Spears:

I found some fun patterned papers to go with the colors and theme of the layout and cut them into blocks. These were both scraps, so the dimensions are different than the sketch because I went with what I had. I cut the wheel and title using my Cricut. To add some dimension, I used gold brads on the wheel. For embellishments, I used a tag and die cut, puffy stickers and washi tape. 

I also did the tic tac toe challenge from Scrap with Stacy:

I used the center column- metal, stickers, and 2 photos.

My next two layouts were inspired by products and weren't for any specific challenge. For this layout, I started with the white cardstock that I had pressed a masked that had been misted onto. I then found the patterned papers and layered them over the top. When I was looking for ideas for the title, I saw the hot air balloon cuts and decided to add those to the layout in coordinating colors. I finished off the embellishment clusters with fussy cut rainbows and gold paper sequins.

For my last layout, I started with the patterned paper that I used on the background. I loved the design of it, so I went looking for a set of photos with colors that worked with the paper. I found these two and thought they would be perfect. I adhered them to the background. Then I added rub ons over the top edges of the photos and in the top left corner. I cut the title with my Cricut and holographic cardstock. I fussy cut the journaling spot from patterned paper. To finish things off, I added a sprinkling of gems.

 

February Calendar Page

Hello! I have my February calendar page to share. I started with the January double page sketch from Stick It Down:

I adjusted the photo spots a bit to fit a couple of extra photos onto the layout. Since it is February, I decided to go with a heart theme. I started by cutting a bunch of hearts with my Cricut. I used my sewing machine to stitch a large circle on my left hand page. I then glued the hearts around that circle. I matted my photos with scraps of the cardstock I used to cut the hearts. There are things cut out from several of these mats, I just strategically adhered my photos over the holes- this is a great way to get the most from your paper! I used my Cricut to cut the title from the same papers I used for the hearts. I have a pack of white cardstock borders that I went through and found the flower borders and added those. I used strips for my journaling and embellished my right hand page with leftover hearts.