Bee U-Ti-Ful

I've had this mist-able bee hive sitting my work table for quite a while, and I finally thought of a way to use it and convey meaning. It just adds a little touch of whimsy, which I like, but sometimes have a hard time using. For this layout, I used a 8.5 x 11 Page Maps sketch converted to 12x12.

Here's my layout:

and close ups:

 I used my Cuttlebug hexagon embossing folder to create this beehive look on a piece of thin striped paper. I then applied Butter ColorSnap ink to bring out the pattern. My leaves behind the flower and butterfly in the corner is a paisley Sizzix die cut.

Here's the beehive mistable I finally got to use! I created the bees with a circle punch and Studio Calico wood vaneer hearts for wings.

Medals are a Boy's Best Friend

I ran across a quote for scrapbooking pages: "Baseball diamonds are a boy's best friend", but I wanted to scrap the pictures I took of the medal ceremony, not the game. It spurred me to think of gold is a boy's best friend and then the resulting final title: Medals are a Boy's Best Friend. Last year, JJ did the same thing when he got his medal: kiss it!

My format inspiration came from Paper Bakery's sketch:

I used a border of elongated circles and a long title in place of the circle rows. The 15 cent chipboard is for his age (15!). I loved putting together the little embellishments on this layout.

Thanks for stopping by!

Pancakes & Potatoes

Some of my son's favorite foods: Pancakes and Potatoes! A new place to practice public behavior is Omelet House. We love going there for their pancakes, crispy potatoes (like chips almost), pumpkin bread, or their famous omelets. JJ has a favorite booth where he can watch the cars go through the drive-thru McDonalds next door and the kitchen at the same time. I wanted to scrap these pictures right away, and I found just the right sketch on Page Maps.

I like how I could use random borders, trims, and tape to form a background. I threw in some new Basic Gray flair, Studio Calico wood vaneer hearts, and some old Queen & Company brads to add some pop and dimension.
My resulting layout:

Thank you, Ashley Horton, for the idea to use 3's upside down when I run out of E's for my titles! I really like how it looks!

Flower Power

Scrap Our Stash has a great sketch and challenge--use at least 3 pre-made flowers on a layout. I have plenty of flowers, but I don't use them very often since my house is full of males! Luckily, we recently went to Bellagio's conservatory, and I took plenty of pictures! I love the flowers there; nothing blooms in Las Vegas like their garden.

supplies used: Imaginisce flowers, trim: Karen Foster. pp: ep, DCWV. gems: Queen & Co, me and my big ideas. ink: Colorsnap. stickers: mm. tag: Jillibean Soup. leaves; AC. butterfly: gilded bee. centers of flowers: websters pages.

Sketches and Page Maps

I love using sketches and page maps as a starting point for my layouts. By using sketches, I scrap by what fits--what events do I have just 1 photo I want to highlight, or do I have a 3-4 photo event and sketch that works? I scrap out of sequence and sometimes i reuse photos in the creative process. I think it's not just about getting the pictures in the albums, but having fun creating!

I joined Big Picture classes 28 days of Sketches. Here is Sketch #1:

Here's what I did with it:

Instead of squares, I used the patterned paper as a block, added journaling stickers, buttons and stars.

I have always loved Page Maps, and I recently stopped by the blog! OMG! I love what she has going on there! I completed this layout with the color mix provided:

I turned this so the scallops are at the top and I used some Pink Paislee rub-ons to embellish the layout:

Out to Sea with Color Me Scrappy

My second layout for Challenge 38 on Color Me Scrappy was so fun to make! I used these fun fish stickers to support the theme. I loved using the blue, green, and black spray inks to get messy and relate to the water.

The challenge this week used the following color challenge and spray ink or painting.

Here's the resulting layout, which you can also find posted on Color Me Scrappy!

Close ups:

Thanks for looking!

My Kids

I have a 15 year old son and 2 cats that act like kids! Since today is Mothers' Day, I thought it was fitting to focus on them this weekend when I scrapbooked.These two layouts use sketches from Creative Scrappers and Paper Bakery. Inspiration also came from Club Ck: using a map, stamping on a background, Studio Calico: using a quote for a title, and Scrap Our Stash: using pattern paper scraps and rubons.

Here are the results using Paper Bakery's sketch, a quote title, and maps:

 And here is the result using Creative Scrapper's May sketch with a stamped background, pattern paper strips, and rub-on for journaling (Scrap Our Stash). The papers are from Hot Off the Press and Ki Memories. The bird patterned papers are from their pets line, but the stripes and diamonds are from a different one, I believe. They are at least 5 years old!

 Thanks for looking!

Hand in Hand

Happy May Day! May 1st kicks off National Scrapbooking Month, one of my favorite months of the year for good reason! This year, I'm even more excited! I was selected to be a Guest Designer at Color Me Scrappy this month!

Please stop by the blog at Color Me Scrappy for two color challenges each month. They also throw in twists-a sketch or a technique.

This month's first challenge:

 with a sketch:

Here's my layout that you can also see at Color Me Scrappy:

For the peachy and light brown colors, I used two washi tapes and adhered them on the right edge going in two different directions. For extra detail on the main photo, I border punched the white matte and used gold stickles to form a weird shaped heart around our hands. This patterned paper was perfect for this challenge--gray, white touches, and gold!

Thanks for checking it out, and don't forget to check out Color Me Scrappy!