Scrapburbia

Fancy Pants Simplicity...

It is very nearly torture to buy fabulous products, sort them into kits.... and then rarely get to use them. There just aren't enough hours in the day to use all of the beautiful stuff we get in.

But the floral paper from the "Simplicity" line by Fancy Pants was relentless!

I also used Basic Grey Solids from the kit that we sell... pretty sure I could scrap with just those fro the rest of my life... okay, not really... but almost. The colors are divine!

I had all the scraps on my table as I was cleaning up and they were so pretty together I just couldn't help but make another...

Ta-Da!

Sheesh, it's been a while, huh?

I actually did this page a "while" ago... before homeschooling, summer and moving completely took over my life. In fact I think I posted you the inspiration months ago and said I'd post the layout soon. And,  really, if you think about if we're talking a 6 month period then 3 months ago is a long time... but in the grand scheme of things...

And we are grand schemers, so it's not so long. Right?

Hmm... thanks for letting it slide.

Actually as we speak (or at least as I type) I am supposed to be setting up my scrapbook room and getting all psyched to scrapbook... so maybe I'll get to it so I don't have to embarrass myself and wait another few months before I share another layout:)

Same, Only Different.

It seems quite appropriate to share these layouts now, the photos from both are from San Diego... which is where I am at now. Of course today will be no picnic, it's set-up day. We just turn on the the music and get to work so we can go crash at the hotel. We are staying a couple of extra days to rest, relax and squeeze in a field trip for school (wink wink!)

The first layouts sort of ...just happened. The second was obviously an intentional copy but they remind me of the paintings I shared a couple weeks ago and I wonder if the design is still floating around my sub-conscience.

Don't forget to come say hi at the scrapbook expo if you're in the San Diego area!

I don't feel like scrapbooking today...

I started a book while I was with my sister in the hospital.

The Billionaire's Vinegar 

I grabbed it in paperback at Barnes & Noble a few months ago. It begins with a little history about Thomas Jefferson's time in France in the late 1700's. He's "on business" for the United States and gaining an education on French Wines while he's at it. Fast forward 200 years and several old bottles of wine are found behind hidden walls in a French flat with the initials Th.J. engraved into them, along with other clues that lead several people to believe (or choose to believe) that they once belonged to Thomas Jefferson. I'm only a third off the way through, and while I know nothing about wine(well I know a little bit now)... I am interested and intrigued my the mystery. I am such a sucker for a true story.

I do this... I switch gears (from scrapbooking to reading and back again) without notice, and now I have a layout halfway finished on the table and a book to finish... what to do?

Well, I think I'll put on my Pj's crawl in bed, finish the book and resume the scrapbook page this weekend. 

Oh, and I do have a "Same, Only Different." for you... but I still need to photograph the second layout. Want a sneak peek?

I'm excited to share the second "same" layout, and posting this one will shame me into getting the camera out and snapping shots of the other layouts that I want to share!

Not so Digital Monday

What a crazy weekend, so busy. When we do these conventions we go at mach 3 for four days straight, then crash for the entire next day. Which I am glad to say I did today. Jim let me sleep in and we just chilled out all day long. 

Needless to say... there was no digital scrapping going on.

Instead, here is a recent favorite.I was in a creative groove until about a week or so ago, it didn't vanish, I just got busy so i'm hoping I'll slip back into this week when I sit down to scrap again. I think the new Crate Paper and Basic Grey I bought this weekend should help...

This is the layout that I had to run out and get the Martha Stewart punch for. Amelia's shirt has little butterflies which I knew would be perfect with the flowers that I was already planning to use (from Sassafrass Lass), the butterflies were ESSENTIAL!

Besides, I know I'll use it all the time... and I have been wanted to make a butterfly box like these for a LONG time!

Layle Koncar made the last one... she did it a couple of years ago for a magazine and I have always loved it and intend to do something like it soon. (Which reminds me... I finished a typography project a couple weeks ago that I need to show off- I just have to get it photographed:))

Happy Monday! See you tomorrow!

Digital Monday

I am still getting the hang of digital scrapping...I'm not finding embellishments that really float my boat. The extras on this page are really some of the few that I really loved.

I found Labels, Brads, and borders all by Sande Krieger at  www.twopeasinabucket.com

And, these fun Bingo Cards from Kenner Road also at TwoPeas.

I also love these papers and frames by Katie Pertiet at Designer Digitals.

Where do you find digital "extras" that you really love?

Digital Monday

WARNING... ADORABLE baby ahead... proceed with caution!

 

I found this little hat on clearance for $5, I'd been wanting to get a cute little hat for Christopher just so I could take his picture in it and there are a lot out there, but I couldn't justify $20 or more just for a picture. But I tell you what, after seeing how they turned out I would have spent a whole lot more! 

The window in our front room has great light for most of the day, but the mornings are perfect. On the morning these were taken I put Christopher standing on the couch (I was next to him the whole time), facing the window and snapped away. It was snowing, and there were cars passing by so he was having a blast and completely ignoring me! It's so rare when photo shoots actually go BETTER than you expected... it made my whole day. I know I'm a dork... I've learned to live with it.

I am not really sure the Sketch does this layout justice... the texture of the papers is what makes the layout really great...in my humble opinion.

Well, wait a minute I take that back... the baby in the photos is what makes the layout great (in my not so humble opinion) 

And, as a side note, this layout would be really difficult to achieve with traditional scrapbooking. You just can't find papers with that much texture and character that are acid free, not to mention they'd be in an antique shop and cost a fortune. I do suppose you could print your photos with a white border then distress them... but would you do that? I know I wouldn't.

Grid paper is found here at Designer Digitals.

The frames are here and here, also at Designer Digitals.

The Solid Green background is here at The Digichick.

The Crumpled paper is here(SKU118) at mscraps.com

The "ring" element and duct tape are here(SKU111), and the flowers are here(SKU191) also at mscraps.com

Happy Monday! I hope you get a chance to do something creative!

-Sarah

Scrap-habits

I finished this layout and then wondered..."Hmmm, I wonder if tearing paper is SO five minutes ago?" Oh well, ta-done... I tore the green paper :)  I'll just call it a retro technique!

I am realizing that with each layout I feel like I am making a confession or validating some scrapbooking habit that I have... I think eventually I'll make one long post of my scrap-habits... but for now, I'll just mention this one, I stack photos. 

Whether it's side by side or right next to each other I like the bigger "impact" that it has.  Because I don't scrap with enlargements very often, I have found that it kinda has the same effect. 

I frequently made the point in classes that making photo mattes 4x6 and trimming photos to a slightly smaller size allows for "stacking", otherwise the photo mattes would be too big... KWIM?

Pattern Papers: brown - Bo Bunny, blue, fuchsia & diamonds - Basic Grey, Orange - My Mind's Eye, Ledger - Making Memories

Chipboard, stickers - Basic Grey

Same...only different.

Hey! Happy Thursday!

You know when your explaining something and the only thing you can think of is something Kinda like it, only not quite the same, close but not exactly? Well around here we sum that up by saying "Same...only different." and somehow that makes perfect sense.

I now dub Thursdays as our 'Same...only different' day. I'm gonna post two layouts that have something in common... maybe the color palette, sketch or supplies used. Keeping the same supplies on my desk as I scrap a couple pages from the same event isn't unusual for me. I like not needing to come up with a new idea for every layout AND the they have a "go together groove" in the album (assuming I ever get them into albums...in chronological order)

 


See what I mean? Same...Only different.

Plus I only used one of each of the pattern papers to complete both layouts... same stickers, felt, stamp, flowers, etc...

Pattern Papers - Basic Grey, Flowers - Prima, Stickers - SEI, Felt - Creative Cafe, and Cardstock - Bazzill Basics