Creative Goals

It seems like every New Year’s day we tend to come up with things we want to do for the upcoming year.  It doesn’t have to be anything specific, it can be anything that is important to YOU!

creative goals for 2018

What will you make a creative priority this year?

What creative plans, goals or projects do you for 2018?

Maybe you want to continue doing something you love. Perhaps you want to delve in and learn something new. Whatever you decide, I wish you the most amazing creative year!

In February, I will once again attempt to create a scrapbook page each day of the month, during the LayOut a Day (LOAD) challenge. Even if I fall short, I will have completed more pages than if I didn’t even try!  If you want to join in, you can find information here:   LOAD218   If you just want to join in, you can do that without being a member of ScrapHappy, but it IS included in a membership.

Rag quilt for great-grandson.

Rag quilt for great-grandson.

Something else I want to tackle this year is a quilt. Last year, I completed a simple “rag quilt” for my oldest granddaughter to have for my great-grandson. I made it larger than a baby blanket so it could be cuddly for both mommy and baby. This year I would like to try a different kind of quilt. I know there are a variety of quilt-as-you-go ideas, and that’s what I want to do.  If you have any ideas to share about that, please let me know!

That is just the tip of the iceberg for my creative plans for the year. I want you to know that I am still here, and will be updating the site with much more regularity. You can plan to see crafty projects, as well as scrapbook ideas.

What kinds of creative plans do you have for this year? Don’t be shy, let us know!

Cheers to YOUR Artful Adventures,

KS

 

Hello September 2017!

september sunflowersIt is hard to believe that summer is winding down. Many of you have children who have already headed back to school, and others will start back after Labor Day weekend. How did the summer fly by? At our house it has included some very special family members moving in with us! My oldest daughter, her daughter, and my granddaughter’s new baby all moved in with us during the summer. You never know what kind of a curve ball life is going to throw your way, and life can sure be interesting. So, during this phase of their move to Texas, we are fortunate to have a place in our home to make it all work!

Having a new little one in our family has been a reminder of making sure we have a great plan in place to keep our photos safe. Do you have a plan in place? I have alway worked to make sure that my photos are backed up in several places, and urge others to do so, too. Now I have a great way to help you do that, too! FOREVER is a company devoted to helping people keep their most precious photos safe. I will be telling you more about what FOREVER has to offer, and how to use it. Besides saving photos, I’ll also have a great way to offer you digital scrapbooking again! Lots of fun info will be coming soon!

Also, I’ll be announcing new CTMH Scrapbook Club kits this next week.

For now, I just wanted to pop in and say “Hello” and wish you a happy holiday weekend.

For many of those in Texas, who are suffering from the effects of Hurricane Harvey, our thoughts and prayers go out to them, and many of us are working in relief efforts in ways we can. Please consider donating to reputable charities to help. If you are in Texas, please check out volunteer opportunities!

Until next time,

KS

Baby Shower Adventure

I know you are not going to believe it, but I’m going to be a great-grandma. Although I was invited to the baby shower, my daughter and granddaughter never expected I would travel from Texas to Minnesota just to come for the shower. But I did it anyway! When they found out I was coming, they were so excited. Who wouldn’t be, right?  The problem with being crafty is the fact that your family can put you to work. Right away, they gave me a list of things they wanted to know if I could help with, hoping I had some crafty way to make quick work of what they wanted done. Of course I said I would help! They wanted special corsages for the grandmothers and aunties, and I even figured out a way to make those and bring them. In the end, my carry-on bag for the plane was basically a shower-in-a-suitcase.

shower in a suitcase

Shower-in-a-suitcase.

One of the requests was to make a diaper cake – but not the usual cake. It was to be a tricycle “cake.”  Thank goodness for YouTube and all the wonderful people who share how-to videos!  I put this item together to make sure it was right, and then I partially disassembled it so it would fit in the suitcase. With minimal effort I put it back together on arrival.

Diaper tricycle, complete with baby elephant to complete the theme

Diaper tricycle, complete with baby elephant to complete the theme.

artful adventure baby shower kristie sloan diaper tricycle back

Back view of diaper tricycle.

 

I was asked to make some signage for various things going on at the party. Thanks to a great brush font I found online, I was able to pull off a hand lettered look. And thanks to my Cricut die cut machine, I was able to find all kinds of things to for the elephant theme.

The elephant on the tricycle was set on the gift table with this sign.

Gift table sign

Gift table sign

 

Advice for the mommy-to-be is always a good thing. These cards also included guest’s predictions on the actual birth day, the babies weight and length.

Advice to the mommy-to-be, including some fun guessing on birth day, time and baby's weight

Advice to the mommy-to-be, including some fun guessing on birth day, time and baby’s weight.

This was a fun game — trying to guess the size of the mommy-to-be’s waist.  Believe it or not, there were two people who were so close, and one was almost exactly right!  Most guesses were off by about 8 inches or more!

Guess mommy's waist size

Guess mommy’s waist size!

 

Shhh, don’t tell anyone, this is probably not proper etiquette, but sure will be a time saver!

self address thank you

Self addressing the envelopes for thank you notes can be a big help.

 

Baby info to answer the questions that are asked over and over.

basic info

The basic info

Mommy-to-be got a special large corsage in the form of a maternity belly sash. When I started researching this, I found that many of these are made and used for pregnancy photo shoots, and then the flowery sash is used for a newborn photo shoot! Great multi-use item.  By the way, I watched 30 minutes of a video in Spanish to figure out how to structure the support on the back of one of these large corsages!

Maternity belly sash

Maternity Belly Sash, as asked for!

 

What party would be complete without some type of photo booth fun? I was such a proud crafty mom/grandma to see they had made this.

Photo booth decor

Photo booth decor.

 

They were also proud of this Pinterest win, and who wouldn’t be? Isn’t this the cutest thing ever — a baby buggy watermelon fruit bowl!

Baby buggy watermelon fruit salad

Baby buggy watermelon fruit salad.

 

For a little party favor, the elephant theme was continued.

Thanks for coming party animals!

Thanks for coming, party animals!

 

Party treats for elephant themed baby shower

Party treats for elephant themed baby shower.

 

We had a lot of fun, and I was glad I got to attend! Nothing is better than family. Love them!

family

Nothing is better than family!

Hope you enjoyed a recap of an Artful Adventure baby shower!

Cheers to YOUR Artful Adventures,

KS

Artful Adventures Podcast EP 06: Everyday Artist, Alice Boll

Listen in on this conversation with Alice Boll from Scrapbook Wonderland. We’ll step through the looking glass and find scrapbooking inspiration and creativity, and also hear about her Scrap Happy online scrapbooking community. It is always a pleasure to chat with these creative woman, no matter what type of create hobbies they pursue as everyday artists!

Alice Boll and Kristie Sloan

Alice Boll and Kristie Sloan at the 2016 ScrapHappy Reunion.

Listen right here on this page, or look for the Artful Adventures Podcast on iTunes.

Cheers to YOUR Artful Adventures!

KS

Create a 15 Minute Layout with Cut Above Kits

Today’s Artful Adventure can take you on a quick journey into creating a beautiful layout without investing much time or money! Close To My Heart’s Cut Above Layout Kits are on sale during April 2017!
Cut Above Layout Kit Sale April 2017
Save 50% on each of these kits. Each kit includes:

  • Two 12″ × 12″ printed base pages
  • Die-cut paper pieces
  • Title and embellishment stickers
  • 12 coordinating pocket cards
  • Two 12″ × 12″ Memory Protectors™
  • Two pocket-style Memory Protectors™

Watch how easy these can be!

Pop over to my online store and grab yours!

Cheers to YOUR Artful Adventures!
KS