Be Mine Valentine's Day Card

It can be challenging coming up with a unique Valentine's Day card every year when you've been married for over 30 years, so I turned to a few challenges for inspiration (see below) and came up with something that I hope will express my love for my hubby on this special day and everyday! 

Recipe:
Thoughtful Seasons stamp set
Love sentiments paper (from my stash, source unknown)
Spring 2020 Mix-In papers
Pomegranate & Black cardstock
Pomegranate & Smoothie ink
Black marker
Stuck on You puffy stickers
Woodgrain washi tape
Paper crimper
Cricut Artbooking cartridge: love birds
Pattern: Try Stampin' on Tuesday #593

Challenges: Double Trouble #131 Love Is In the Air (Thing 1 = hearts are in the air + Thing 2 = entered my card at TSOT + Thing 3 = use TSOT's sketch); Heart's Quest Challenge #23 Love/heart + romantic Valentine; Inspiration Station #46 (inspired by the sweet couple on a swing with hearts in the air above them - I couldn't reproduce the people so I used love birds instead)

Hedgehog Birthday Card

Upon recently realizing that my stash of birthday cards is seriously depleted, I set out to create at least one card using the wavy scrap pieces from this layout. I was inspired by several challenges (see below) but please, hedgehog owners, do not be inspired to try ballooning at home with your pet - LOL!

Recipe:
Happy Forever & Thoughtful seasons stamp sets
Splendor & These Are My People papers
Raspberry, Pixie, Harbour & White Daisy cardstock
ShinHan Touch Twin markers
Heavenly Blue & Black markers
Pink ribbon (American Crafts)
White enamel dots
Cricut Artistry cartridge: flowers
Pattern: Sketch-n-Scrap#225 (My hedgie kinda changed up this card! I did a vertical card instead of horizontal to give him more room, plus I didn't include the tag because the hedgie was already kinda big, but hopefully you can still see the bones of the sketch in my final product)

Challenges: AAA Birthday Card Challenge #41 - mood board (the yarn colors matched some scraps I wanted to use, so I added extra colors from the mood board plus a hedgehog)

Stash Busters October Week 4

I am hosting the new Stash Busters challenge over at Splitcoast Stampers for anyone who has tons more scrapbooking supplies than she could use in the next 10 years - LOL! I would love to have you create a layout using the listed items and then link up at SCS using the link below.

STASH13Oct4
If you are anything like me, you have tons of older product stashed away in corners of your scrapping area, gathering cobwebs while you concentrate on newer items. This month, I am challenging you to use up certain items from your stash. I'll post a new list each Thursday this month (except the 31st), and you have until the last day of the month to scrap your layouts using the products. If you complete all four layouts, you will get an honorable mention for the month! Sound fun? Let's get started.

Since this is our final challenge this month, I'm mixing it up by giving you two options from which to chose:

Option 1
• 2 Patterned papers that are older than one year
• Felt or fabric
• 3 Buttons
• 1 Rub-on

Option 2
Find a layout that you completed at least a year previously but never put pictures on, and get some pictures printed and onto the layout!

You can use additional products, but you must use at least one of each of the items listed. If you don't have an item in your stash, please don't rush out and buy it! Just substitute a similar item from your stash. Happy hunting!

I went with Option 2 for my layout and used an incomplete layout that I've had in my stash for several years. Woohoo!

Recipe:
Chocolate Alphabet Large, Grown with Love, Thoughtful Seasons & Picture Perfect stamp sets
Twitterpated & Magic Moments Level 2 papers
Crystal Blue, Chocolate, Bamboo & Colonial White cardstock
Chocolate, Crystal Blue, Sorbet, Sweet Leaf & Versamark ink
Chocolate marker
White embossing powder
Sorbet brads
Chocolate ribbon
DE In Color - Organic (chipboard)

Christmas Luncheon Layout

This layout started out with a sketch by Becky Higgins, but it soon mutated into something else entirely! I used to love Becky's sketches a lot, but for some reason I now find myself frustrated when I use them. This was my third and final attempt at pulling photos off the page and moving everything around, but at least now I'm done and can move on to a new layout

Recipe:
Thoughful Seasons & Just for the Holidays stamp sets
Evensong Level 2 papers
Black & Colonial White cardstock
Cranberry, New England Ivy, Honey & Bamboo ink
New England Ivy marker
Cranberry Button Nail Heads
Cranberrry grosgrain ribbon
Colored Sparkles
Liquid Glass
3-D foam tape

LOAD #23 - Happy Birthday Kaden

I couldn't find the perfect papers for this layout, so I decided to create my own. In the process, I also used the Variety Challenge from Split Coast Stampers: to create a monochromatic page. Mine uses shades of brown. This is harder than it sounds; I kept wanting to add red or blue to the mix! Hopefully the browns tone down the bright colors in the pictures. The layout didn't turn out quite how I hoped, but it will have to do! The pattern is Beauty in Repetition from Cherish.



Recipe:
Cocktail Alphabet, Friendship Alphabet Small, Fanfare, Holiday Hoopla, Thoughtful Seasons, A Little Everything, Boom, Happy Birthday & Celebrate the Everyday stamp sets
Kraft, Bamboo & White Daisy cardstock
Chocolate, Cocoa, Desert Sand & Bamboo ink
Chocolate & Desert Sand markers
Metal-rimmed circle tags
Chocolate brads

EMS Sketch Challenge 10 - So Fun Layout

It's back! I took a break from doing sketch challenges for several weeks, but here's a new one for you to enjoy. If you're in a hurry to get a layout done, this sketch is perfect since it uses uncropped 4x6 prints. Here are 3 fun things to point out about my layout:
1. I was able to use some Zippidee Level 1 pages as my layout bases. I don't order these as much as I should, considering how versatile they are. You can either place your photos within the neutral sections of the pages, or get creative and let your photos spill out all over! I did the latter, and I'm happy with the results.
2. I wanted to make Mickey Mouse ears using buttons, but I didn't have any black ones, so I used Liquid Glass to adhere black cardstock to the back of clear buttons, and then cut out the buttons when they were dry.
3. I love the look of the Irresistibles Lots of Dots alphabet stickers (seen here sponged with Cranberry and Indian Corn Blue ink to make the dots appear), so I wanted to mimic it on other areas of my layouts. I stamped dots onto a piece of Colonial White cardstock and embossed them using white embossing powder. Then I stamped over them using the back side of an arrow and a heart stamp, which left me a dotted image. Fun and easy!

The sketch

My Layout

Recipe:
Thoughtful Seasons, Ticket to Ride & Spot On Backgrounds stamp sets
Zippidee Level 1 papers
Indian Corn Blue, Honey, Black & Colonial White cardstock
Cranberry, Indian Corn Blue, Black & Versamark ink
Black marker
Irresistibles Lots of Dots alphabet stickers
Clear buttons
Liquid Glass
White embossing powder

A Little Everything Card Workshop

A few friends are coming over tomorrow night to make cards. It's a small workshop, only four cards, but I know we'll have lots of fun. I really love the March Stamp of the Month, A Little Everything, and I think it is so versatile, so I decided to use it on all my cards. In the interest of keeping the cost down, I used mostly scraps, and I'm not using major embellishments, but I had fun with the Liquid Glass and Bitty Sparkles. I'm open to feedback, although I won't have a lot of time tomorrow to change anything, so please tell me if you have any minor tweaks that would improve the cards. Thanks to all the ladies who participated in the March SOTM Blog Hop. Their creativity totally inspired me! Special thanks to Annette Green for her Easter card, which was the basis for my Easter card.





Recipe:
A Little Everything, Love You Forever, Star Struck, Connections, Holiday Hoopla, Simple Stitches, State of Mind, Thoughtful Seasons, Grown with Love & Dainty Thoughts stamp sets
Twitterpated Level 2 papers
Sweet Leaf, Sorbet, Crystal Blue & Colonial White cardstock
Sweet Leaf, Sorbet, Crystal Blue & Chocolate ink
Sorbet & Chocolate grosgrain ribbon
White Daisy Just Blooms
Clear buttons
Bitty Sparkles
Liquid Glass

LOAD #20 - You Make Me Smile

Another layout for Elliot's baby album. I used a few non-CTMH supplies (the buttons and zig-zag scissors) on this one, and I think they really work with the CTMH products. Hope the layout makes you smile as much as it does me!



Recipe:
Thoughtful Seasons, Classmate Alphabet & September Word Puzzle stamp sets
Stardust & Animal Cookies Level 2 papers
Moonstruck & White Daisy cardstock
Moonstruck & Dutch Blue ink
White organdy ribbon
Star buttons (JoAnn's)
3-D foam squares
Zig-zag scissors (Fiskars)
Edge distressor

LOAD #15 - IFL Halloween

Hi everyone. Well, I had planned to do laundry and scrapbook today. My husband wanted me to help him clean out the garage. Guess who won? Anyway, I haven't even started my layout for today, but I wanted to post something so Monica, Linda, and Beth could get their layouts posted if they were ready. Hopefully I will stop aching long enough to complete a layout tonight!

Saturday morning . . .
I finished last night, but didn't have the energy to post, so here is my layout #15. I tried a variation on one of the layouts featured in the Felicity brochure, and added some details to make it more Halloween-y. I also added several more pictures, and even a Flip-Flap. Thank you, CTMH consultant Krista Ritskes, for your version that inspired me, too. I discovered something cool about using Flip-Flaps: if you have a photo that you really want to include on a layout because it tells part of the story, but its colors clash with the rest of the layout, you can hide it under a Flip-Flap. That way it still is part of the layout without being featured. Cool, huh? And yet another great reason to buy Flip-Flaps!



Recipe:
Felicity, Spooky Smiles & Thoughtful Seasons stamp sets
Felicity papers
Bard Red cardstock
White Daisy Textured cardstock
Barn Red, Garden Green & Autumn Terracotta ink
Barn Red & Autumn Terracotta markers
Antiqued Copper brads
3-D foam squares
Flip-Flap

LOAD #8 - Posing at the Patch

Can you believe we're already at #8? At this rate I may run out of pictures to scrap! Just kidding; there are plenty more just waiting to be scrapped. This is normally a layout I would not post, since I don't love how it came out, and the pictures are not the greatest, but I don't have time to do another today. The Christmas tree ornaments are sitting in the middle of my living room, begging to be put away, so I have plenty to do with the rest of my day. Okay, back to the layout. Does anyone else have the same problem I have when you get a new paper pack that is "only available this month?" I can't wait to open it, and I try it out with numerous sets of photos, but I can't bring myself to cut into any of the paper. After all, what if the perfect layout comes along, and I've already used the piece of paper I needed? I'm trying to force myself to get over this quirk, so I broke out a piece of paper from the Felicity paper pack, and I used it on this layout. I know, it's a really small piece, but it's a start. Maybe I'll cut up a full piece (gasp!) in the next week.



Recipe:
Felicity, Hodge Podge & Thoughtful Seasons stamp sets
Felicity kit
Autumn Terracotta & Buttercup cardstock
Autumn Terracotta & Barn Red ink
Barn Red Bigger Brad
Autumn Terracotta My Accents
Autumn Terracotta marker

Grateful Layout

I've been really busy preparing for 2 workshops this upcoming weekend. You've already seen the Christmas card one, and we'll be creating this scrapbook layout plus the card at my other workshop. The layout pattern is Clear Dimension from Cherish, and the card is based on the Twitterpated Workshop on the Go. My friend Lisa really wanted me to use the tree from the Grown With Love stamp set, so this is for you, friend! And of course, I had to use the darling hedgehog (he is a hedgehog, right?) on the card.





Recipe:
Grown with Love, Twitterpated WOTG, Chocolate Alphabet Large, Thoughtful Seasons & Picture Perfect stamp sets
Titterpater & Magic Moments Level 2 papers
Chocolate, Crystal Blue, Colonial White & Bamboo cardstock
Chocolate, Sorbet, Crystal Blue, Sweet Leaf & Versamark ink
White embossing powder
Chocolate Ribbon Rounds
Liquid Glass
Heart brad (unknown source)