Zva Creative February DT Blog Hop!

Zva Creative and the Design Team welcomes you to join us this month for a blog hop that we feel is always extra special!

There is now an added twist to our blog hops, YAY! As you know, Zva offers so many beautiful color groupings for pearls, flowers and crystals. We want to make sure that they shine bright for you, so each designer was asked to share a creation using a specific color or color combination on their blog hop project.

The Blog Hop begins at Kim Hughes' blog. She will have the complete list of all blogs that are participating in case there is a glitch along the way. If you would like to play along, just follow along the blog path. I am linking to one of the Zva designers and that designer is linking to the next and so on. Be prepared to be inspired along the way. Hidden on FIVE of the blogs is a Zva Creative prize package ...YAY! Winners will be randomly chosen after the hop is over, so it's important to leave a comment on as many blogs as you can along the way.

The Blog Hop starts today, February 28th and runs through midnight US Eastern Standard Time on Tuesday, March 1st and the 5 winners will be announced on Wednesday, March 2nd on each of the five winning blogs. The full list will be found on Kim Hughes‘s blog as well (linked above). We will do our best to notify each winner, but it's best if you can pop in to all of the blogs once again on Wednesday...plus, you never know what kind of inspirational creation that you may find there. All you need to do is leave a comment on this Zva Blog Hop post... you do not need to leave a comment on each and every designer's blog post to qualify. The more times you leave a comment along the blog hop path though, the more chances you will have to be one of the lucky winners.

My colour this month was brown/ginger. I decided to pair with a punchy colour to help pop all the elements and bling. The flourishes are brand new from CHA - just love them!! The flowers are also from ZVA - bulk 3D roses. Lots of layers and textures as always - hope you like!

The blog hop begins here: Kim Hughes

Your next stop is here: Windy Robinson

Thank you SO MUCH for joining us!

Scrap That! Blog Hop!

Welcome to Scrap That's! February Blog Hop Adventure!

First stop on your “hop” is the Scrap That! blog so if you have arrived here first and want to participate in the hop, please head on over.

We have 8 AMAZING blogs for you to visit today, each with a some beautiful projects that were created using the Scrap That! March "SECRET GARDEN" KIT.

There will be a randomly drawn comment winner from each blog who will win a yummy package of Prima goodness, so be sure to visit all eight!

**When you visit each blog be sure you leave a comment and become a follower so we know you have joined in. **

While you are hopping you will want to be looking for the special word on each blog.

My Special Word is: CELEBRATION

Once you have visited all the blogs and collected all the special words, create the sentence and email that sentence to SCRAP THAT!.

All qualifying entries will be entered into a draw for the GRAND PRIZE, a Scrap That! "SECRET GARDEN" Kit, which is loaded with all new releases from CHA!

I made 4 layouts with this month's kit - but can only show you three of them. (I'm saving' the last for something special :>) Of course I was totally IN LOVE with all the gorgeous Graphic 45 papers from their Once Upon a Springtime collection included in this kit!!

LOVE, LOVE anything that I can fussy cut and transform into an embellishment. These papers were simply perfect for fussy cutting.



My second layout was inspired by the most darling photo ever! Lori Brown, owner of Scrap That! Kit club, gave me a few gorgeous photos of her darling daughter to scrap. SOOOO fun to play with other people's pictures! Hope you like it Lori - already in the mail :>

Lastly, this wonderful kit has some coordinating Basic Grey papers which I love, love! Again, most of the embellishments are from fussy cut papers. I added the doilies to this layout (were not in the kit).


I took apart most of the flowers in this kit and transformed them into my own embellishments. Here you can see the lovely lace flowers layered behind the paper flowers. Just love the texture the different materials add!

Now head over to Lisa's blog for some more amazing creations using the Scrap That! "SECRET GARDEN" Kit.

Thanks for stopping by!!

@ 35

With over 20 years experience in floral and craft products, it's no secret that Petaloo is the industry leader in innovative and unique floral embellishments. Their NEW Color Me Crazy Collection is no exception. I ADORE these mini blank canvases on which to create! Each flower comes 'bare' and ready for you to transform with markers, inks, mists, paint and so much more.

The layout I created displays the beautiful new releases from Winter CHA 2011. Each package was filled with the most elegant and dainty flowers - to leave as is or to cut and arrange as desired which I've done here.

The Beaded Berries were one of my favourites! Originally white, like all of the Color Me Crazy blooms, I coloured with some Fabric Spray Paint by Tulip. The colour was initially a little too punchy for the subtle tones in the papers so I simply wiped the access paint off and was left with the softest of pink hues.

The Color Me Crazy Collection not only offers the most beautiful flowers and sprays but also alphas and numbers!

Here I altered my numbers with Scribbles 3D paint and then finished with some distress ink around the edges for a more 'worn' look.

Petaloo Products Used:
Color Me Crazy 3D Foam Stickers, Numbers/Symbols
Color Me Crazy Handtyes, Beaded Berries
Color Me Crazy Handtyes, Rosebuds x5
Color Me Crazy Petites, Pansies x10
Color Me Crazy Petites, Violets x10
Floradoodles Bristol Box, Pink/White/Black/Grey

Puppy Love

The Design Team over at Bo Bunny decided to do a photo swap among the DT members and man - was it ever a blast!! What a fantastic idea, I thought, to have someone else scrap photos that you would not normally have scrapped in an alternative style from your own? In addition, if you normally have little boys to scrap, how fun would it be to receive photos of little girls, etc with which to be inspired??

I got to scrap the most adorable photos from a dear friend as well - Janis Medina. Her beautiful daughter Nat and newest puppy Logan were EASY subjects to create with!

I paired the Winter Joy collection from Bo Bunny with flowers from Petaloo's Celebrations Collection as well as some of their unique and delicate Candies.

The chocolate ruffle wraps are also from Bo Bunny, as are the chocolate swirls and large alphas.

A simple butterfly punch by Martha Stewart and added a little doodling with a white journal pen...

Thanks for the visit today - will see you again tomorrow with some more Petaloo CHA Releases!

Scrap That! March Kit Sneak

Come back on February 26th for the full reveal of Scrap That's! March Kit!

Feeding the Bunnies

It was a beautiful day out! The sun was shining, the air was crisp and I had just dropped the boys off to school. I had a few hours with my daughter so we decided to go to the park and feed the ducks. When we arrived, to our delight, we happened upon several adorable bunnies! I told my daughter that it must be the Easter bunny and his helper bunny rabbit friend - Peter Cottontail!

She was clearly excited to meet these furry creatures and to our surprise, rather than run away, they came even closer to us! What a wonderful day it was to feed the rabbits - not the ducks! (By the way, rabbits do not like bread, they much prefer grass....)

I used some of the beautiful new Color Me Crazy Blooms from Petaloo as well as their new Spring Dazzlers! Don't you just love those delicate, purple Candies? The papers are from Bo Bunny's Winter Joy collection - just love that turquoise/purple colour combo!

See those adorable little eggs in the top?!

How could I create just one layout with such a memorable moment?? Here we are feeding the rabbits some bread.... didn't last long - hee, hee

Loving the adorable Spring Dazzler bunnies from Petaloo!! So perfect for these photos. LOTS of layers on this layout - ribbon, crochet doily (of course!), flowers, swirls, paper!! LOVE IT!

The papers are from Bo Bunny's Crazy Love collection.

My Peter Supplies:
Spring Dazzlers, Rabbit & Carrots
Color Me Crazy 120pc Value Pack, Pink
Mulberry Street Mini Magnolia, Fuchsia

Conversation with Mr. Cottontail Supplies:
Color me Crazy 120pc Value pack, Purple
Flora Doodles Candies, Purple/Lime
Flora Doodles Peony Box Blend, Blue/Gold/Peach
Spring Dazzlers, Easter Chick & Eggs
Color Me Crazy Velvet Leaves, 50pc, White
Color Me Crazy Embossed Leaves

Thanks for hopping by today (LOL!)

...My Baby You'll Be

Just love that book so much - can't finish it without a tear in my eye (at the very least)! The challenge at the Bo Bunny Blog right now is "Flashback Friday". The DT was prompted to scrap about something in their past or to do a heritage layout. I chose this photo of my eldest son. Just LOVE that angelic look in his face - so innocent. He was about 7 months old in this photo and is now 6!! My nanny knit that sweater for him (it was so adorable!) and I've since passed it down to his younger brother and sister!

Still totally in love with the crochet doilies and the textures they lend to my pages!! I tried to mimic the feel of the knitted sweater. The papers are all from Bo Bunny's Learning Curve collection. Again, you wouldn't normally think of these papers for a baby page, but the colours and tones just worked so wonderfully with the photo that I couldn't resist.

All about the layers!! I just love it! The fuller, the better! You can see the lace at the edge of the photo - it was actually a Bo Bunny Antique Lace Petal which I took apart and used as a trim :>


Because this is a boy layout, I tried to avoid the use of flowers, bling and butterflies which is REALLY hard for me considering I use these embellishments on 75% of my layouts!! I love making my own tags, layering papers and of course, adding things like doilies to fill in the space. I think I need a lesson on white space - LOL!

Stay tuned tomorrow for some new Petaloo Spring projects! Have a happy weekend!

Love Day in Pics

Just wanted to show a few photos from our Valentine's Day on Monday.

Every year I make these shirts with the kids for daddy and he adores them -wears them to the gym, to get groceries, etc. - a very proud Papa. Sooooo this year I hinted (very heavily) that I would LOVE one of these special shirts too! Note how 'still' we're standing... this must have been the 10th photo that my son tried to take - and the only one where our heads aren't cut off....

yea!!
Dressed up all pretty in our Love day outfits.

Eden looking slightly less than pleased to be having her photo taken with the boys. (love the laundry pile in the background - LOL!)

Ahhh yes - a VERY uninvited guest!! There were actually 2 in our backyard and when I went out to shoo them they just STARED at me! NOT loving this at all. Will have to make sure these bad boys are relocated come summer - no way I'm taking a chance wih my babies trying to 'pet' the 'cute little thing'.....

Titles Can be Tricky

I often turn to song titles (& lyrics), poem titles, proverbs or famous quotes for inspiration when choosing a catchy title for my layouts. I prefer using the short and sweet approach - anything further that I want to include I normally do so with a hidden journaling tag.

Today is catchy title Tuesday at the Bo Bunny blog and a few of the design team have come up with some fantastic creations to help you when chosing titles for your layouts.

This photo was taken this past summer and although not the best of shots, it reminded me of how simple life was when I was younger - stress free, no worries, no responsibilities; just live your life to the fullest, have fun and be carefree. I thought the imagery/movement in this photo captured the above description perfectly. I used the beautiful papers from Bo Bunny's Midnight Frost Collection and NEW CHA releases from ZVA Creative!

Supplies Used:
Bo Bunny Midnight Frost, Stripe
Bo Bunny Midnight Frost, Snowfall
ZVA New CHA Self Adhesive Crystals, CRB-04CA-121, CR-04CA-131
ZVA Bulk 3D Roses, FLBK-03CB-122, FLBK-03CB-120, FLBK-03CB-109, FLBK-03CB-141
Edge Scraper, Making Memories
Distress Ink in Black Soot, Tim Holtz
Butterfly Punch, Martha Stewart
Chipboard Alphas, Kaisercraft
Doily

Peek

A favourite pass time of ours is to head to the nearby pond and feed the ducks. The kids ADORE doing this. On this day, the boys were in school so I decided to take Eden, bag of bread in hand, to go and visit our feathered friends. She had such a great time watching them eat 'her' bread and fighting over the little pieces that actually ended up in the water.

Loving the flowers? I'll bet! They're new CHA releases from ZVA Creative and they are gorgeous!! The smaller rose blossoms are also ZVA - originally cream - I simply painted with crackle paint to match my colours a little better.

I love fussy cutting! I use scissors - no exacto knife for me - just really fine scissors and it takes forever - but I love the results!

Webster's Pages Hollywood Vogue collection - delicious! I've seriously fallen completely in love with all of their newest CHA releases and cannot wait to play with all those amazing designs. Have to settle for the 'older' stuff for now - LOL!

Ahhh yes - the beautiful bloomers - Websters as well. Me likey! The chipboard pieces are from Imaginarium Designs and I've painted them with Distress Crackle paint as well.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend lovely readers!!

Love Day Tags

I wanted to make something sweet for the boys' teachers so I whipped up these adorable little tags - seriously took me no time at all. Once I created the one I was like - wow, that was easy - and just duplicated the others....
I used Bo Bunny's Crazy Love collection as well as some pretty rose blossoms from ZVA Creative.
Enjoy your Saturday!

Wanna Win a Bo Bunny Prize Pack?

I'm having an easy and fun little contest.... This is what you need to do:

Choose your favorite layout from the three listed below and blog about it! That's it! How easy is that!?

To be entered into a drawing for a Bo Bunny, Crazy Love Prize pack, ensure you include a link to the Scrap That! Blog (http://www.scrapthatchat.blogspot.com/) and leave a comment here on this blog post with your blog address.

BONUS: If you leave the same comment on the Scrap That! Blog (just copy and paste the same comment you left on my blog), you could be chosen to win a Scrap That! April Kit!

Layout 1: Nite & Day

Layout 2: (Look of) Love

Layout 3: Picasso

You have until February 18th!! Have fun!

Ode to Graphic 45

It's no secret that I'm a fan of Graphic 45 - and that's putting it mildly. I ADORE every inch of every sheet of paper they've ever created. Of course now, they've introduced everything from metal hinges, flowers and accessories, chipboard flowers, trims, envelope albums and they're staples sheet of stickers and alphas.

ADORE.

If I could choose a manufacturer with whom I'd love to design, one which compliments my shabby chic/rustic vintage style seamlessly, Graphic 45 would be the winner - hands down.

During the recent CHA Winter show held last month in LA, I had the opportunity to actually MEET the owner of this amazing company, Diane, and her gorgeous and equally talented daughters Charee and Aimee. What an absolute pleasure they were to speak with - so genuine and so gracious for all the success they've received over their award-winning products.

I've waited an entire year for this announcement - their annual Design Team call. Will I be applying??? HELL yes!!

Please take a peek below at my favourite projects, in no particular order, created with an assortment of Graphic 45's breathtaking collections. These are my DT application submissions. I hope you love them as much as I loved creating them.















And now I wait.... with fingers (and toes) crossed...