What a blast!

I had a blast teaching at the scrapping retreat this past weekend organised by A Trip Down Memory Lane.  I taught four classes over the weekend, so I was busy, busy, busy, but I had really great feedback from the ladies which is always a good feeling.

As ever, it was great meeting up with old friends and chatting and making new ones. Plus the chance to stroke (and buy) (yet more) goodies from well stocked shop. This was the 9th retreat organised by Mel and Jill and (again as ever) it was totally fabulous. I was really impressed by the restaurant staff who went above and beyond to provide me with scrumptious gluten free options (very appreciated it was).


My first class uses My Mind's Eye Lush products. I was given quite a generous kit to work with, but I was a bit OMG! when I saw it, as I would never have picked these papers myself in a million years (and all but two of the ladies in the class agreed with me). Though it does go to show that stretching yourself with new product can give you suprisingly great results! I decided to do three layouts in the one class (very ambitious) each layout focusing on a specific design technique.

The first was 'what white space?' as in the white space was taken up by patterned paper, so it was there, but not obvious at all.

The second was 'little and large' the use of contrast (size of photos in this case)

The third was 'again and again' being repetition of design elements (pattern, butterflies and text across the page). A simple page to put together making great use of scraps and my butterfly dies and punch! (though someone completed theirs using snowflakes and that was STUNNING!).

My next class was a double layout, quite simple in construction (though there was quite a bit of cutting out and layering images from the patterned paper) as this was a technique based class where the ladies got to play with shrink plastic to create their own unique embellishments (on mine the shrink plastic is the smaller butterfly and flower centres). In the class they used different colouring techniques as well as stamping and die cutting the shrink plastic. The papers, trim and fabric labels are all from the Webster's Pages All About Me range and are totally gorgeous!

The third class was a home decor item of a chipboard star created from scratch, with a bonus card (as I felt guilty that the star didn't actually use up much of the kit contents lol!). I chose to work with the St Nick range from Fancy Pants as I like to use traditional colours myself for Christmas, yet there are enough whimsical touches in the papers (not those I used, but in the selection given to the delegates to choose from) if anyone wanted something more fun than traditional.

My final class was more technically challenging, it involved lots of measuring and cutting out to make best use of the beautiful Bo Bunny patterned papers (plus they had to cut a great big circle in the background which caused a few palpitations lol!), as well as creating flowers from fabric and paper.

Phew! A busy weekend to say the least!

Huge thanks to Mel and Jill for asking me along and to EVERYONE who was so friendly!

My class is up

Over at the A Trip Down Memory Lane cybercrop.

Sneak peek

Using the really fun Ad Lib range from Bo Bunny. See it on the blog here (and follow the link to download the pdf).

My next go I think will be either Ann's triple frame card or the sketch challenge.

Blogger isn't liking me today, it won't let me comment :(

Cybercropping today!

A heads up that there is a cyber crop this weekend over at A Trip Down Memory Lane. A no pressure, use up your stash and create beautiful pages cybercrop. Four classes are up already and two challenges have been issued. I'm a bit behind (so, what's new?) - I've just finished doing Ann's wonderful double layout class. Now to decide on which to do next!

Photos to follow :)

A freebie fruity framework for you!

I do love alliteration lol!

Things have been incredibly hectic this end. Seen far more of the Royal Derby hospital than I ever felt I needed to, and for far too many times too!

Josh's birthday came and went as has Mia's (my baby is TEN! - how did that happen?!) Chiara's is next on the list in May. FIL is still very poorly in hospital (thank you everyone for all your thoughts and wishes, they do mean a lot to me).

I have been doing a lot of creating in some form or another, whether it be baking and decorating, creating party pieces, cards, paper scrapping or digital scrapping. I just haven't really had the time to sit down and get all my thoughts together and bits and bobs organised for sharing properly.

Updating my slide shows is moving up my list of priorities (as should be clearing my paper scrapping space).

Just for now though I wanted to share a digital scrapbook template freebie with you. Bear with me, I haven't shared a download on my blog before so I am really hoping that I have it all figured out right. It's a .psd layered template, based on this digital page:



Credits:
Two Peas in a Bucket: Eggstravaganza and Kitschensinque by Polka Dot Pixels
Owl Tree Studio: Iced Cookie Alpha by Wild Blueberry Ink
Sweet Shoppe Designs: Itty Bits alpha by Danni Mogstad
Fonts: Dancing Script OT and Vintage Typewriter

Which, in turn, was based on this paper page made for A Trip Down Memory Lane for a monthly DT gallery using My Little Shoebox papers:

Scraplifting your own pages is in no way cheating! Nope, it's making the best of what you've already done and can be a great timesaver too.

Download the digital template here

Please let me know if you have any problems and I'll try to figure them out.

Oh and, if you don't digital scrapbook, here's the sketch for you instead :)

7Gypsies yumminess

This month Mel and Jill at A Trip Down Memory Lane sent out a selection of 7Gypsies goodies to create with for the shop design team gallery.

I have to admit that 7Gypsies papers aren't the first I think of when creating layouts as I generally like to use more colourful and/or playful papers. However, being given something different from the norm really does help to give a push outside of your comfort zone and normal creative boundaries. And the proof of the pudding is in the eating, so to speak, and I absolutely love all the projects I created this month!

I made three layouts with the Paddington papers, another using the Conservatory papers and then I decorated a beautiful decorative heart I bought from the local garden centre. So double whammy for me then because I don't usually do off the page pieces either!

The gallery is up over at A Trip Down Memory Lane (be sure to click over all three pages to see everything) where you can see a whole range of beautiful pieces created by the design team. Some sneakies from my submissions to whet your appetite are below:

On this page I used the packaging tag from a roll of 7Gypsies tape and added some of the steampunk style rub-ons to it and layered over some of the phrase stickers (I absolutely adore those sheets of 7Gypsies 97% complete stickers, I have LOTS of them and use them LOTS too!).

Here I used some more of the rub-ons, a couple directly onto the sheer journaling block and a third onto a button. Oh, and I wanted that splash of red in the bottom corner but the words on the tape didn't 'fit' the page at all so I simply cut it down into smaller pieces so you get the effect without the distraction of uncomplimentary text.

I already had a pile of these die cut butterflies sitting on my desk from my previous post over at It's a Creative World. Some more of those rub-ons on buttons, layered them on a selection of the journal blocks from a Pink Paislee notebook and there is a very easy (but striking) embellishment for a very simple (but striking) page.

You know, I really probably wouldn't have bought the rub-ons either, I'm not much into the grunge or steampunk look, but I feel a need to buy more of them because I have loved how they add such fun and interesting detail to the pages. The actual ones I used are these but there is a whole range of 7Gypsies rub-ons available in the shop here.

Yet another of those butterflies (well, two actually, the sheet music one was rather flimsy so I layered it over a corrugated card one to make it more sturdy).  I absolutely love these little typewriter words, the set I had was Family but there are other themes too - and just how perfect was the 'gather' one for a page about my daughter's snail collecting habit?!

Finally, a peek at the decorated heart. I  added in quite a few bits and pieces onto this item. The key and quote sticker are 7Gypsies, the bird/oval frame was cut out of some very delicious My Mind's Eye Lost and Found papers, the sticker heart is Webster's Pages and the little love embellishment is from way back when when I first started scrapbooking, as are the little metal pins (which I added some beads to).

Lucky Me!

I won a cute digital kit for a facebook comment this week. It's this one here at Two Peas Me and You kit by Edeline Marta. And here's a quick page I did with it as I was eager to play (and also I used a freebie template by Chrissy W, also at Two Peas ). I love this kit and I can't wait to play more with it, but I have other things I have to do first! And, unfortunately, tomorrow I'm at the Accountant's so no time to play *sulk*.

I've done lots of scrapping over the weekend, enjoying the challenges over at Two Peas as they celebrate CHA. Lots of new goodies coming out, I can't wait to see what Mel and Jill get in over at A Trip Down Memory Lane. Lots of lush stuff to be added to my wish list I'm sure.

Here's a couple of the pages I have done. I admit to starting them at crop but not actually getting very far with them. For all of these three I used the Sugar Rush collection by Basic Grey (a wonderfully generous prize pack sponsored by Basic Grey and issued by Two Peas for another challenge quite a while ago).

This snap of Chiara posing in a replica turtle shell at Chester Zoo a couple of years ago came out great (with a little PSE tweaking!). I love the look of pure enjoyment on her face. The colours of the kit were perfect for the photo and I couldn't help using that corny title! The journaling is about how Chiara was growing in confidence at that point in her life, so the title did double duty.

I used some Hot Off the Press stamps (that I seem to recall were another prize, I know, I've been so lucky in drawings and challenges!) to add part of the title to a handcut banner, to fit the Scrapbook Stamping class that was running over at Two Peas in January (to include stamping in your title and journaling). This is a year long class (February's is to add heat embossed images to a layout) and I'm already getting a lot more use out of my stamps than they have seen in like .... ummm .... forever!).

I loved these fun pics of Mia at a local park last year and, of course, the purple dress was another great match for the papers. I always get a bit 'blah' over journaling these park play photos, just how many times can you talk about having fun playing on the swings or whatever? So for this one I used the photos as a link to something that is very dear to Mia's heart and that is animals. She loves all animals, but has a special dream of having a horse, or pony, or donkey or dog! Like the title says ... Dream on!

These photos are from the same day as the Dream on layout. We don't always get the chance to go out much as a family (and even on this day, Josh didn't want to join us at the park - not fun enough for a fifteeen year old any more I guess) and especially last year as it seemed to be permanently raining! Mia is such a happy and loving little girl and she really is a joy to be with (well, mostly!).

These layered embellishments from Basic Grey are such fun, I thought off setting them was perfect for the cloud shape and it gave me more room for the title too. As you can see, I'm working my older stash a lot at the moment. These rub-ons are by Crate Paper and the paper flowers are years old and by Making Memories - I love them and happily bought a lot when they were on clearance.

xxx's
Suzanne

Shock! A blog post!

Yes. Really. It's been a long time since I last posted, I know. Not that I've not been busy creating. In fact I've done lots. I've just been a bad blogger.

Christmas and New Year went without a hitch. The snow was a bind (the kids got fed up after just a couple of sessions playing in it - they didn't like getting that cold!) but I took lots of pictures, some of them even quite good!

I'm going to start sharing stuff again on a more regular basis. Starting with stuff now and then going back and adding more from the past couple of months.

Firstly a shout out that the A Trip Down Memory Lane gallery for January is up and available for viewing here. We used a variety of lines from October Afternoon. Loved working with those bright, fun colours and patterns.

Also, I had a class up online over there for December, mixing up products a bit rather than relying on everything from one line. This is my page (look at those eyes, bless!) and you can access the pdf here.



This week I've made a big effort to get some of those layouts from the unfinished pile out, finished and put into albums. Well, they're not into albums just yet but all but two of the ten have had the finishing touches and journaling added. Mostly from classes (the last UKS cybercrop and the ATDML retreat) - I'll get them photographed and uploaded another day with details.

I've also done three pages from scratch for various manufacturer blog challenges. All were sketch challenges and here are my takes on them.

Bo Bunny

I used the Love Bandit line that I recently bought (a bit behind the times, I know, but it's only just appeared on the stall I visit when I'm in Derby), plus a couple of bits from the Persuasion line. How cute are those little creatures? Such fun and happy papers, perfect for scrapping my two girls having fun together in the garden.



I've added red Stickles to lots of the red hearts and also dotted some crystal gems and hearts around the page too. The one journal block was cut out and made double duty - as a base for both the title and journaling. As you can see I was pretty faithful to the sketch, except I used the lines of the trees in lieu of patterned paper strips down the left hand side and used different sized photos.

Little Yellow Bicycle

I usually struggle with blocked style pages (I'm not too hot getting everything the same size and aligned neatly) so this is a bit different to me. This Zinnia range was perfect for the photos, as you can see.

The embellishments in this range were beautiful. I used a variety of rub-ons and chipboard - the butterflies are using the same punch as was used in the project created by Chiara in the photos. Some of the smaller butterflies and journaling strips were from cardstock sprayed Radiant Rain.

And the banner is made using some transparent acrylic embellishments - a couple of flowers cut in half and a heart (which I mounted onto white cardstock to enhance the colours of it). Look at the glitter, gorgeous!

My Mind's Eye

A fabulous sketch from Anam, love the use of the different shapes. I used a selection of papers and other goodies from the Lost and Found series. I wouldn't have naturally thought to use them with Winter pages, but that was the theme, so I worked it in there. I'm really happy with how well it worked too, helped greatly by the snowflakes, tinsel trim and all the glistening glitter and bling.

I love this huge snowflake die (by Sizzix, bought secondhand from a friend just before Christmas - great purchase as I used it LOTS for Christmas cards, tags and ornaments - thanks Katie!). I also bought a new border punch - that heart lace one from Martha Stewart - with my Christmas money. I was gutted that my Fiskars Apron Lace punch broke (as in the metal die part actually cracked all the way through). Advised Fiskars who wrote back saying that it wasn't guaranteed for cutting through Bazzill so, basically, tough. Hmmm. Anyhow ...

I used lots of layering, distressing, stitching and distress inks on this page. Time consuming but I love how it turned out so it was well worth all the effort.

Oh and finally My Mind's Eye put a card sketch up too

I found it with perfect timing as I needed to make my Mum a birthday card last week. Again, more of the Lost and Found ranges and the hearts border punch. The stamp is by Papertrey Ink (another secondhand purchase - thanks Debbie, love them!).

Thanks if you  made it to the end!

xxx's

Creative Scrappers toot and Basic Grey goodies :)

I made the sketch team, I'm so thrilled to be continuing with this inspirational site! There is also a call out for the next design team - give it a go, the sketches are all fabulous to work with and Kristine welcomes a whole range of scrapbooking styles!

Whilst I'm here I'll share a few of the projects I did for A Trip Down Memory Lane for July. These four projects use the Max and Whiskers range from Basic Grey. Some really cute stuff in this range, seriously!

This first one is a very old picture of Josh on a visit to Whitepost Farm. He loved the small animal and bird handling sessions. I can't get him interested in going any more (he's 15 now) but at least my daughters still love to visit there.

Another older photo. The cats used to absolutely love going to sleep in the 'comfy' double pushchair which was kept up in the conservatory ready for walks in the village (the fold up double buggy was kept in the car all the time). They are British Blue Shorthair cats, hence the play on words for the title.

I had this plain wooden box from IKEA for YEARS! That long I can't remember buying it! Anyhow, I painted it with a dusky blue paint and added distress inks for an even more muted look. It's a great little container for keeping together the fish food and drops next to the tank - and saves the bottles getting knocked off the table when the cats jump up to watch their very own 'cat tv'.

Lastly this card. I have to admit that it hurt sending this card - only because I loved it so much, not because of who it was sent to - it was sent to one of the teachers at the end of year. I absolutely adore that bunny die cut.

Next shares will be more digital scrapbooking as well as the next reveal over at Creative Scrappers.

The August gallery over at A Trip Down Memory Lane went live a couple of days ago. We had yummy new papers and stickers from Echo Park to play with. Such a fun range!

Here are sneak peeks of some of my pages - I did four layouts altogether - just click on the previous link to go and see them (and the gorgeousness by the other DT members) up close and personal :)

They also have LOTS AND LOTS of yummy new goodies now in stock. I adore the 7Gypsies rubbings (rub-ons in other words), they are such beautiful designs and they actually DO rub-on and so easily too (even the very old ones I have in my stash).

I have my eyes on this set in particular.

And what about the Conservatory collection? I'm still loving butterflies in my scrapbooking so this one caught my eye straight away but, really, all the papers in this range are particularly beautiful and perfect for using on altered projects especially.

And some new stamp sets from Autumn Leaves. Loving this Silhouette Blossom set.













All the new products (this is only a taster) can be found in their New Products section (unsurprisingly!).

Basic Grey Bonanza

The DT gallery for July is now up over at A Trip Down Memory Lane. I played with products from both the Cappella and Max & Whiskers ranges this month. This is a couple of close ups ... to see all four layouts, one card and altered item I created, as well as all the other lovely DT creations, visit the gallery here (remember to click on both pages).

Summer Lovin'

Keeping in with the sunshiney weather we are lucky to be experiencing here in the UK (okay, fingers crossed I haven't just jinxed it), I am sharing a couple of pages I created for A Trip Down Memory Lane gallery in May, these two are using the beautiful Rusted Sun collection by Fancy Pants.

For this first one, I cut apart the glitter transparency title and used it across both sides of the main photo - this not only frames the focal photo but also adds movement across the page. I doodled scalloped edges on the background cardstock and cut around for an extra whimsical touch.

Patterned paper - Fancy Pants
Glittered transparency - Fancy Pants
Cardstock - Bazzill
Chipboard alphabet - American Crafts
Pen - American Crafts
Stamps - Art Warehouse (circle sentiment), journal block unknown
Stamping Ink - Stazon
Other - stick on pearls
Font - Fineliner script

I stamped a circle sentiment to frame the 'a' section of the title to add interest and cover up unwanted white space in the photo.

This next page is a simple design but with lots of added layered embellishments for interest. I stamped the bracket shaped journal blocks direct onto the background cardstock by masking the areas around them and also each other. The oversized photo corners are created by cutting up a VERY old leather frame.

Patterned paper - Fancy Pants
Label Stickers - October Afternoon
Word Tickets - Tim Holtz
Letter Stickers - Adornit
Phrase Sticker and rub-on - K&Co
Leather scalloped frame - Making Memories
Stamping Ink - Stazon
Stamp - unknown
Border punch - Fiskars
Others - buttons and brads

I added interest to the centre of the sun by embellishing with buttons and brads (the large green concho framing the largest button is another very old embellishment, by Scrapworks).

I'm off now to take advantage of said sunshine by getting as much laundry as possible outside drying! Hope you have a much more fun day planned :)