Wednesday Wonder – Scrapbook Planning

Planning for Fun, planning scrapbook pagesToday is an excellent day to talk about scrapbooking, because I am heading out tomorrow afternoon to go with one of my daughters and some friends to a scrapbook retreat! This will not be quite the pampering event that Kathy and I are accustomed to with another group of friends, because at this location…. we all have to be responsible for a meal! YIKES. Can scrapbooking be fun if we have to cook, too? I’m sure we’ll manage. Thank goodness for things like lasagne that can be made ahead, to take and toss in the oven! Can you guess what I’m taking? wink, wink

My sweet Aussie friend, Melissa Shanhun, from Digital Scrapbooking HQ, has a great guest post about scrapbook planning and scheduling over at the The Daily Digi blog. Even though Melissa teaches digital scrapping, the info she shares in this post is appropriate for any method of scrapbooking.

I have to admit, there have been very few time I have planned a scrapbook.  I mostly create pages from photos that I love, or from prompts I receive at events like the Layout A Day challenge, which begins again, February 1. However, Melissa talks about pages she plans for through the year, and I think that without really thinking about it, many of us create our scrapbook pages like this. We DO have a plan for some pages, in the back of our mind.

It would be silly of me to tell you everything Melissa said in her post about scrapbook planning and scheduling, so run on over and check it out!

You can check out the LOAD215 Challenge here. 

Cheers to YOUR Artful Adventures!

KS

Scrapbook Page a Day – Prepping for LOAD215

Creating at least one scrapbook page each day of the month is not as difficult or crazy as it may sound at first. Especially if you are doing it with a group of people! LOAD 215 is just around the corner and that is exactly what we will be doing, creating a LayOut A Day. Each day we receive a prompt to interpret any way we choose, or we can just create a page of whatever we like. The goal is to get at least one scrapbook layout done each day.

LOAD215 Blog Hop

 

How in the world can you be prepared to create scrapbook pages for ideas yet to come? That’s a great question and here are some things I wish I had known before my first LOAD event.

  • Whether you are a paper scrapper or digital scrapper, I think one of the most important things is to take a look at what you have for photos and supplies. Even though I think I am a faster paper scrapper, I usually create digital pages during LOAD. I guess I like the flexibility it affords me, because of the number of kits I have available.
    • Browse through your kits and supplies for a brief review of what you already own! There is no need to spend more money if you already have a stash! You will find that by just reviewing your supplies, you’ll retain that info and be able to more quickly pull together a page.
    • Look at your photos. The same holds true about browsing your photos, and being able to think of a photo that may fit a prompt. When you’ve recently looked at your photos, you’ll think of something that will fit a prompt.
  • If you are paper scrapping, make sure you have plenty of adhesive and sharp blades for your paper trimmer!
  • Listen to the prompt as early as possible each day. That way, it may give you some extra time to process an idea before you actually sit down to create your page.
  • Join the Flickr group and share your pages! It is so much fun to see individual pages, and learn more about our online friends!
  • Don’t compare your work to other people’s. It’s not a contest. If all you did was put the photos on notebook paper and wrote something about the photo, or the story behind it, it would be a perfect page. In the end, it’s all about the photos and the words!
  • If you fall behind, don’t beat yourself up. Life happens! Just pick up and move forward. No matter how many pages you complete during LOAD, it will probably be more than if you had not participated. So be proud of yourself!

If I decide to do some paper scrapbooking during this LOAD, I am excited to already have some of my Close To My Heart Workshop On the Go kits on-hand. They not only include a paper pack, but even have layout instructions for two double layouts, along with embellishments and a special stamp set. How easy can it get?

If you are participating in LOAD 215, I wish you many completed pages!

Here are more helpful hints I’ve talked about before other previous LOAD events: LOAD212  LOAD 213

Be sure and check out what some of my other LOAD friends have to say about getting ready for LOAD.

Karen Fitting from Photos Kept Alive
Nicole Gray from Nicole’s Scrapbook
Alice Boll from Scrapbook Wonderland
Lisa Hausmann from  Recklinghausen Musings
Wendy Aebi from  Life in the Button Factory
Connie Hanks from Clicky Chick Creates

Kristie Sloan from Artful Adventures {You are Here}
Kelli Panique from Use It Scrapbooking
Lain Ehmann from Layout A Day
Christy Strickler from My Scrapbook Evolution
Lynnette Nagle from The Sassy Scrapper
Danielle Leonetti from Scrapper on the Street
Danielle Hunter from Ecoscrapbook
Leslie Smith from Out of the Mire

Heather Dubarry from No Excuse Scrapbooking
Melissa Kay from A Day in the Life Of
Valerie Smith from From Valerie’s Heart
Marcia Fortunato from Musings and Memories

Cheers to YOUR creativity!

KS


Disclosure: Links to products or events may be affiliate links. I only share items or events I use or love myself. If you choose to make a purchase, I receive a small commission for sharing with you.

DIY Ultimate Bundle

By now, you probably know that I am a big believer in the fact that we can do more than we think we can. We just have to be willing to give something a try and learn! I believe that is true for so many things, not just arts and crafts.

DIY ultimate bundle 05Do you ever look at the bare wall in a room, that tired and sagging couch, or a favorite piece of clothing that needs mending, and feel absolutely overwhelmed by the thought of tackling any of them?

Which one do you start with? And then once you’ve decided, how do you know which steps, instructions or advice to follow? Just getting to the point where you’re ready to start can often take so much time and effort!

It’s frustrating, because you know just how satisfying it can be to create something of your own – that sense of accomplishment and fulfillment can’t be beaten. What you need is for someone to pull together everything that you need to get started, to make it as easy and painless as possible.

Good news – when the Ultimate Bundles team created The Ultimate DIY Bundle, they had you in mind! The Ultimate DIY Bundle is your instant go-to library for a whole range of carefully curated DIY and crafting eBooks and eCourses.

DIY Ultm Bndl shelf

No more trawling through the internet looking for good-quality, easy-to-follow information and advice: it’s all right here! For the crazy low price of just $34.95, you get access to a carefully curated library of over 76 eBooks and eCourses from the world’s leading DIY and crafting bloggers – enabling you to pick a project and jump straight into it with confidence. It’s the perfect tool to skip the information overload and throw yourself straight into a new activity.

Hurry though! The Ultimate DIY Bundle will only be on sale for 6 days – from 8am EST on Wednesday, January 21 until 11.59pm EST on Monday, January 26.

You can buy with complete confidence because you’re covered by the Ultimate Bundles 30-day money-back guarantee. That means you have a full 30 days to enjoy all the eBooks and eCourses in the bundle, and if you don’t think they provided enough value, you’ll get a full refund.

The Ultimate DIY Bundle comes with 4 awesome bonuses, worth over $118. That’s 3x the price of the bundle alone! These include:

  • A free $15 Store Credit PLUS 8×10 Art Print from Hope Ink ($43 Value)
  • A free online class from Craftsy (up to $60 Value)
  • Free $15 store credit to Fawnsberg.com
  • Free sewing pattern PLUS a Premium Video Class from UpCraft Club ($19.99 Value)
  • Free, full digital copies of Where Women Create Magazine and Greencraft Magazine ($20 value) from Stampington and Co.

So, don’t miss your chance to grab The Ultimate DIY Bundle, and get 76 incredible eBooks and eCourses for just $34.95. All you need to do is take action by midnight on Monday, January 26!

This amazing deal ends in just…

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Pick up your copy right now, before it’s too late. Or, learn more here.

 

 

Disclosure: I have included affiliate links in this post. Read the fine print about this bundle and read the answers to frequently asked questions about the bundle.

Tool Tip Tuesday – Cosmetic Sponges

Have you ever thought about the fact that using colored cosmetics is like doing artwork on your face? Well, I think so, anyway! One of the tools of makeup application is the cosmetic sponge. It may be a lowly little tool on its own, but it can work magic with application techniques. Not only are sponges handy in front of the mirror, they can be just as useful on your art table!

Cosmetic sponges can serve a multitude of purposes in arts and crafts.

Cosmetic sponges can serve a multitude of purposes in arts and crafts.

 

Sea sponges and synthetic, manufactured sponges that are made to resemble sea sponges are often used in art. However, a bag of cosmetic sponges is usually rather inexpensive in comparison. Plus, the are often already available in our makeup bag!

What can you do with a sponge? Here are some ideas:

  • Use damp to apply and smooth on paint
  • Remove paint as needed
  • Create texture by using different motions with the sponge
  • Snip the sponge into a shape for a “stamp”
  • Use to apply paint or ink with stencils
  • Apply ink to edges, or buff over a project
  • Use as a blending tool
  • Use as a blotter for your paintbrush while watercoloring
  • Use for an extra applicator with PanPastels
  • Use as disposable applicator for any product

What else can you think of that may be a good idea to use a small sponge for? We would love to hear your ideas.

Cheers to YOUR Artful Adventures!

KS

Celebrate Winter – Card and Scrapbook Layout

Winter can seem like a LONG time when you live somewhere cold and snowy.

L in snow

Fun in the snow

Every year seems to take on a personality of its own, and you never know what it will be like. You may have a year with a lot of snow, or maybe not much. There are places in the USA that have had more than their share of snow this winter. Ours hasn’t been too bad, so far. We haven’t had a lot of snow, and it hasn’t been nearly as cold as it was last year, so far. No matter what it’s like, there will still be many days to figure out something to do, and if there’s enough snow, it is so fun to watch kids go sledding! I was reminded of this as I was going through some photos. Once again, I realized there was a story that needed to be told and saved!

When I first started scrapbooking, I wanted to get as many photos on a page as possible! I couldn’t image why anybody would use up a whole page and only put one single photo on it. I guess I felt like it was wasting all that precious scrapbook page real estate! Now days, I often have a story that only has one photo to go with it. Sometimes there is a lot to the story, and other times it is just one sentence or paragraph. In the end, it’s all about the photos stories!

I have really enjoyed the Close to My Heart Snowhaven papers and embellishments, and thought it would be fun to create a winter layout using that set.

When I decided to print out my photo, it just wasn’t coming out right! I finally gave up and decided to use the Snowhaven kit in the Studio J online digital scrapbooking website. All the papers and Complements pieces were right there online, and I was able to still use them all together. In the end, I was able to create my page, and ended up having my physical products to use for something else. I’m not sure what I’ll do with them!

Here is the page:

Snowhaven kit in Studio J used for winter scrapbook layout.

CTMH Snowhaven papers and embellishments are available in both physical or digital!

Why can I not catch the typos until I am already posting my layout here for the world to see? I really do know how to spell “friends.”

I hope you will take time to celebrate each season of your life, and those who are close to you! Capture even the little stories that will be fun to look back on and remember.

I promised a card in this post. The SnowHaven card kit was so fun to use to make some Christmas cards. All the materials were gathered and directions put together so I didn’t even have to plan them out!

There were left overs from the kit, and I thought they would be fun to use in part, for a card.

A few scraps can be pulled together for a quick card.

A few scraps can be pulled together for a quick card.

  • White card stock was the base of the card, and snowflakes from the SnowHaven card kit stamp set were stamped in Glacier.
  • A little strip of red and white design from one of the kit papers made a great accent.
  • Silver Shimmer Trim and the red heart were left over from the kit as well.
  • I stamped the “Have a day filled with…” and “Fun” from one of the stamp sets that accompanies the Cricut Art Philosophy bundle.
  • I used a shimmer mist on the card, and got too close.
  • Then I added some bling by attaching some little sparkles to the center of some of the snowflakes.

I think it still needs something, but I’m not sure what. Moving on…. What do you think you would do it at this point? Comments are welcome!

make it monday-pink logoIf you are following the Make It Monday blog circle, you arrived here from Jen’s site, where she is sharing a template for another one of her 52 week pocket pages.

Next, stop by and see how to Celebrate 2014! Create a layout with your top photos from last year. Alice shows you how!

 

Feel free to shop my Close to My Heart online store!

Cheers to YOUR Artful Adventures!

KS