Kitt Peak

Well, HELLO there! It has been forrreeeever since I've posted.
I have a good reason though. Well, they might not be all that good: ;)

1) March was so physically and emotionally draining, that it has taken this long to recuperate.
2) I had to step down from the design team at Scrapping 4 Fun Challenges 
for personal reasons.  :( 
3) The creativity juices were completely dry and it was difficult to get inspired.
4) I have been SO drained after work that I barely have enough energy to eat dinner (especially on nights when I tutor).
5) And my weekends have been too busy.

So how have you been lately?  :D
Well, folks, I finally had enough of this no-crafty-inspiration thing, so I decided to search for a challenge blog to spark my creativity and I came across this sketch from scrap-challenge-yourself.



The purpose of this challenge blog is to include yourself in your layouts. Kind of a difficult thing when I prefer to be behind the camera. ;)

Now, I must confess that I almost decided against this challenge because the sketch was a bit too "busy" for me.  I know, I know: there's lots of "white" space. I think the circles were throwing me off. 
Anyway, here is my interpretation:

See that sweet, little, old lady? That's my husband's granny. She was 90 at that time! She is 99 and STILL travels alone.  Oh, and that large dome behind us? A telescope. :D

(Supplies: cardstock; scraps; "wooden" stars, star stamp, & large sticker letters- Ali Edwards; washi tape)

The journaling reads:
On my 2nd trip to Arizona, my hubby (boyfriend at the time) surprised me with a trip, on my birthday, to Kitt Peak observatory. We had to walk around quietly due to the astronomers & scientist sleeping. Seeing those gigantic telescopes was pretty amazing. By the way, getting there required us to go around & around the edge of the mountain. Scary!

Well, that's all for now.  I SO appreciate you hanging in there till the end. :D

Happy Crafting,
Angie

Buttons, Bows & Butterfly

Hello Y'all!

How is your week going?  Raise your hand if you're already experiencing Fall in your neck of the woods.  Would you mind sending me some cooler weather? ;)  Our "cooler" weather of high 90s to low 100s is NOT cool enough for me.

Ok, enough about the weather. :D   I am stopping by to share my latest design team project for Scrapping 4 Fun Challenges.  The theme is buttons and bows and I created a layout using my cousin's engagement pictures.  Check out the scrumptious inspiration picture on the blog. 

Let's begin with some detail pictures:

I traced the design on the button with a gel pen.  Love the bit of sparkle.

I love this picture.  It's so sweet and tender.

I used my Silhouette to die-cut the circles/bubble pattern.

(Supplies: cardstock; pattern paper- Carta Bella & scraps; circle die-cut-Silhouette Cameo; wooden buttons- Prima; bows- La Petites; stickers- from my stash & Me and My Big Ideas; butterfly punch- Martha Stewart; gel pen)

Ok, friends, go get your crafty groove on and then link up your project(s) here.  I greatly appreciate your visit today!  :D

Happy Crafting,
Angie

You Are Amazing

Howdy Friends!!

How are you?  Got any big plans for the weekend?  Whatever is on your schedule, I hope you enjoy it.  My plan is to avoid this horrendous 100+ heat.  Some of you in blog land are already talking about Fall and the cooler temperatures, but apparently it hasn't arrived in our town.  :(

Anyways, I am stopping by because I was able to sneak in a tiny bit of crafting throughout the week.  :D  Plus, I still had some pretty paper left over from my previous DT project.  Let's begin!

I used a glitter pen to add some shine and pizzazz.

My precious niece back in 2009.

(Supplies: cardstock; pattern paper- Carta Bella; wooden buttons- Jillibean Soup; banner punch- Fiskars; butterfly punch- Martha Stewart; stickers- Me and My Big Ideas; twine; sewing machine; glitter pen)

By the way, want to know what inspired my colors?  Go check it out here. ;)  Ok, friends, time for me to skedaddle.  Please know that I completely appreciate your visit. :D

Happy Crafting,
Angie

Pretty Primas

Good Golly Miss Molly!!!

I can't believe I've been absent for 2 weeks!!  I shared earlier in August that I got a new job, but I didn't realize how drained I would be each night after work.  I'm still trying to find my crafting rhythm with this new job.  I'm hoping I find it soon.  :)

Anyways, how are you all doing?  Today I am sharing my project for the new challenge at Scrapping 4 Fun Challenges.  This is a "picture inspiration" challenge.  There's lots of great inspiration here, but I love the soft colors and that's what inspired my layout, as well as the slips/dresses hanging on the door. 
 

Let's begin with some detail pictures:

I fussy cut the flower and leaves.  The pink lettering is stamped with Versa Mark ink and then brushed with some Perfect Pearls. 

I die cut the flowers using pattern paper and vellum.

This is the very first layout I've ever done with LOTS of white space and no journaling.  It felt incomplete to me in the beginning, but I'm trying to step out of my comfort zone.  :) 
By the way, the title- Primas, means cousins in Spanish. 

(Supplies: butterfly punch- Martha Stewart; pattern paper- Carta Bella; embossing folder- Anna Griffin; banner punch- Fiskars; Distress Ink pads- Tim Holtz; stickers- Me and My Big Ideas & stash; gel pen; Perfect Pearls; Versa Mark ink; stamp- Tim Holtz)

Ok, dear friends, this does it for me today.  I am so glad that you stopped by to visit.  Hope to see you soon and don't forget to post your projects here.  :D

Happy Crafting,
Angie

Prom Memories

Howdy Y'all!

How are you?  Are you staying cool?  Are you getting lots of crafting done?...  
My crafting time has been sporadic due to headaches, mini road trips, and now Jury Duty.  So I apologize for the long pauses between my posts.  Hopefully, I'll get back to a crafting routine soon. :D

Well, on to the crafting!  I am sharing a layout that I scrap-lifted from the super talented Mendi Yoshikawa.  I love her clean, colorful style.

Let's begin with some details:

 I used a silver gel pen to create faux stitching.

These are old high school prom pictures, so no matter where I placed the layout to photograph, I kept getting a glare.  My apologies. 

(Supplies: cardstock; pattern paper- Teresa Collins & scraps; round and star paper punches; gel pen; letter stickers)

Ok, did you catch my embarrassing mistake?  I didn't even notice until I was editing the pictures that the red strips aren't straight!!  Horrors!  I considered cancelling this post, but since I have to be at Jury Duty bright and early, I knew that I wouldn't have time in the morning to fix it and type the post.  {Use a ruler, Angie!!!  I'm scolding myself, just so you know.  ;)}

Well, dear friends, thank you so very, very much for your visit.  Hope to see you soon.

Happy Crafting,
Angie
 

Seaside Adventures

Howdy Friends!!

How are you?  I feel like I have been absent for years.  In reality, the heat has been horrible.  Therefore horrible heat= horrible headaches, which= little craft time.  Well, enough about me!  Let's get to the crafty stuff. :)

I am stopping by to share my project for the current challenge at Scrapping 4 Fun Challenges.  The new challenge is "Anything Goes." 
Warning: this post is picture heavy.

Since we have an upcoming trip planned, I decided to make a mini album (6*6).  Now all I have to do after the trip is print my pictures and stick them in.  Can you guess where we're going?  ;) 

I used pattern paper by Graphic 45 and a few of my scraps for the album. 

This is the inside of the cover with a flap and the 1st page.  The "Beach Rules" card is part of a sheet with various cards that I cut and included throughout the album.

Here is the open flap.  I added a tag with a quote by Mark Twain. 

I added little banners/flaps throughout for extra journaling space.

I sewed a pocket page for the cards and any mementos we collect (tickets, pamphlets, etc.)  

I altered a plastic page protector for more memento storage.

Here is the front cover again.

And this is the back cover.  I added a journaling card so I can write a summary of our trip.

(Supplies: chipboard; pattern paper- Graphic 45; scraps; ribbon- Celebrate; tag; page protector; decorative card- Crafty Secrets) 

I would love to link this project to the following, please:
*Paper Issues - sweet days of summer
*Pumpkin Spice Blog.- red, white, and blue

If you've gotten this far, thank you for sticking around. :D  Well, what do you plan on making for this "Anything Goes" challenge?  Stop by Scrapping 4 Fun Challenges Blog and check out my teammates awesome creations and then link up yours.  And as always, I greatly appreciate your visit.  :D

Happy Crafting,
Angie

P.S. Here is the quote on my tag:
Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did.  So throw off your bowlines.  Sail away from the safe harbor.  Catch the trade winds in your sails.  Explore.  Dream.  Discover.  -Mark Twain

Cheering for the Cheerleaders

Howdy Folks!

Happy 1st of July!  Are you ready for Independence Day?...  Me?  Yep!  ;)
By the way,  I was revamping/ updating my blog this weekend and it went through a few changes, so if you were a bit confused, I apologize. 

Well, today I have a layout that was pretty simple to create.  Since I've been having issues with my Cameo, I decided to draw and cut by hand.  Let me tell you, I have a hard time drawing a straight line, so I knew it wasn't going to be easy-breezy.  I had to keep it simple. :)

 

One of my sisters was a cheerleader in Junior High and I finally got around to scrapping her pictures.  I attended their Championship competition and I was blown away by these Junior High cheerleaders.  They were AH-MA-ZING. 
Since my sister was one of the skinny, tiny ones, she was being repeatedly tossed into the air and performing splits, twists, and turns.  Pretty impressive!

(Supplies: cardstock; twine- We R Memory Keepers; sequins; scrap paper; machine stitching)

Well, dear friends, have a fabulous day and thank you so very much for visiting. :D

Happy Crafting,
Angie

Growing & Growing

Howdy Folks,

I am popping in real quick to share another layout that I created during National Scrapbooking Day.  I followed the advice of Ali Edwards when creating this layout, which is to create a grid under the picture(s) for journaling and embellishments.  Simple, yet genius, also. :)

The layout in my previous post, Kinder Kid, is about my "baby" sister.  Well, here she is again.  All grown up, almost. ;)

She loves the camera now, but HATED it when she was little. :D  (I apologize for the terrible lighting.  It was photographed in the middle of the night.)

(Supplies: cardstock, stamps- Unity & Recollections; flowers- from my stash, marker)

 

Well, friends, time for me to get going.  Thank you soooooooooo much for stopping in.

 

Happy Crafting,

Angie

Kinder Kid

Happy Monday!

I hope everyone enjoyed a wonderful Mother's Day yesterday. 

Today I am stopping by to share another layout.  I created a Project-Life type of layout, minus the pockets.  I haven't jumped onto the PL bandwagon, but I like the journaling cards and the concept behind it.

This layout is about my "baby" sister's Kinder graduation & it came together fairly quick and simple.  Always a good thing. :)  She's now finishing her junior year, so I am extremely behind.  Yikes. :-/

(Supplies: cardstock, stickers from my stash & Heidi Swapp, machine stitching,  embellishments- from my stash)

 

I'm so glad that she adjusted to Kindergarten and had a great year, because the first day was tough for her.  Poor thing was so nervous that she puked on the way to school. :(

 

Well, that does it for me today.  I always appreciate you stopping by. 

 

Happy Crafting,

Angie

BRRR..., Baby!

Happy Wednesday!

How is your week going so far?  I hope you're enjoying it!

Today I am stopping by to share another NSD (National Scrapbooking Day) layout.  Creating layouts tends to take me a LONG time, but it was soooo freeing to follow Cathy Zielske's wisdom (part of the star line-up at Big Picture Classes)- that my layouts DON'T have to be 12*12.  So with that in mind, I cropped my paper to 8 1/2* 11 and used a sketch from Stuck?! Sketches.

Here's the end result:

It's hard to see, but the paper behind the pictures is a "winter" paper.  It has snowflakes.  But I thought it was fitting for these pictures.

(Supplies: cardstock, pattern paper- from my stash & Webster's Pages, banner punch, stickers- from my stash, machine stitching)

There you have it. Quick and simple.  And the best part was documenting these cutie pies, because I've had these pictures in my "scrap-now" pile for oh, maybe months. :-/

Well, dear friends, I thank you for spending some of your precious time with me.  See you soon. :D

Happy Crafting,
Angie

4 Generations

Howdy All!

Happy Monday!  Well, how many of you were able to participate in National Scrapbooking Day (NSD)?  This was actually my FIRST year ever participating and I completely enjoyed it.  I joined Big Picture Classes during their event and learned quite a bit from their star line-up.

So today I am sharing a layout I created during NSD.  I used the sketch for the current Unity Be Inspired Challenge and a tip from Maggie Holmes (part of the star line-up), which is to use neutral scraps behind the picture.  Simple tip, yet profound.


Let's begin with some detail pictures:
I colored the bird house and added some glossy accents.

(Supplies: pattern paper- Basic Grey, My Mind's Eye, & from my stash, stickers, image & sentiment stamps- Unity Stamp Co., colored pencils, ink- Gray Flannel by Memento, glossy accents)

Well, that does it for me today.  I'll be sharing more of my NSD layouts throughout the week.  Thanks for sharing some of your time with me today. :D

Happy Crafting,
Angie

Earthly Angels

Hola Everyone!

Today I am popping in to share my project for Scrapping 4 Fun Challenges.  It's a Mother's Day challenge.  Create a project that uses the word "mother" in your native language.  Yes, I should have used "mama."  :/  My original title was going to be "Mothers are Earthly Angels in Disguise" but had to reduce it due to limited space.

I created a layout using pictures of my mom when she was younger.  The original pictures are teeny-tiny and one was torn, so I did my best to edit, correct, & resize the pictures for my layout.

Let's begin with some detail pictures:
See that tiny vial?  I added "wishes" that I want for her life, such as peace, health, & joy.

I used alphabet stamps & stickers to create the title.

Hidden journaling.

The word strips on the sides are some of her characteristics. 

(Supplies: cardstock, pattern paper- from my stash, ribbon- Celebrate It, embossing paste, flowers- Recollections, stencil- Prima, butterfly stamp- Recollections, Perfect Pearls in Sour Apple- Ranger, cork vial- Tim Holtz, charm- Charmalong, stickers- from my stash, alphabet stamp- Hampton Art, "Beauty" stamp- Unity Stamp Co., tag, typewriter) 

So what will you create for this challenge?  Go get crafty, link up here, and check out my teammates and guest bloggers projects while you're there. :D

I would also like to add this project to the following challenges:
Use Your Stuff- flowers
Avenue 613- Anything Goes
Thank you for stopping by. :D

Happy Crafting,
Angie