one last layout

...before the new year ends. this is a layout for sketchy thursday's secret sketch challenge. off to a friend's wedding. in case i don't get to post before the year ends, i hope this year is something you are grateful for and looking forward to a better year and a better us ahead. 

and then there was a layout

after a long hiatus from scrapbook pages, i have finally created a layout for creative scrappers sketch 128. the break must've done me good because i am playing with a new color scheme i don't usually work with. no hint of pink, green or blue, my usual colors! anyway, i have a headache that ruined our dinner and possibly my plans to scrap tonight. oh well, i will probably sleep early tonight. have a great week ahead everyone.

creative scrappers sketch 128

when it rains, there might be a storm

there's a storm heading our way and the cool weather brought by the rains makes me want to snuggle under the covers and stay in bed the entire day. but alas there's work to be done before i take my break in a couple of days. as promised, i am sharing more of the projects i completed.

this is from an art tray class by one of my scrapping idols iris uy a few months back. i finally got to finish it two months ago when we moved in to the new place. i wanted to have something i made to use as a decoration for the house. so what do you think? 

anyway, if you're in manila, stay safe. will be back tomorrow to share more projects.

remiss but not idle

i know i haven't been updating this blog for a while. i started another blog but couldn't seem to write much except about crafting. perhaps it's my paranoia about sharing too much personal information. but i haven't been idle, i've been working on several projects, mostly mini-albums and altered projects. i seem to be stumped when faced with a scrapbook page so i decided to take a break and work on these projects. anyway, here's the first of my project, our first wedding mini-album. let me know what you think. 

the early bird

gets to blog first? my body clock is messed up and i can't seem to get a proper night's sleep. i have to be early though to process some papers for a possible work trip abroad early next month. here's crossing my fingers that i get to complete the documents.

anyway, remember the class with my idol iris babao uy i told you about here? as promised, here are the layouts we were supposed to complete. i managed to finish less than half during the actual class and had to work on finishing the rest at home. i had so much fun in this class and i learned a lot of new techniques.

i can't wait for the next class this saturday. if you have a chance to take iris' class, i would strongly recommend it as aside from all the fantastic projects, iris is a wonderful teacher.

that's all for me, i have to start getting ready, it's a busy day ahead.

the good, the bad and some scrappy

just a quick one as it is kinda late. i have been mia for the last week as i was studying for a certification exam. and after 3 weeks of training, a week of downing cups of coffee and being a fixture in coffee shops with my heavy books, i passed!hubby has been supportive as always - keeping me company, pacifying me when i have bouts of anxiety attacks and generally making me laugh when i felt like hurling my books. i have the best husband.

the downside to this week was that my phone was stolen in our office. i left it on my desk while i went to lunch like i always do and someone swiped it. i was so upset because it was a gift from hubby. lesson learned.

i hate to end on a bad note so i will just talk a bit of my scrapping. during the week of the exam it took a lot of self-control for me not to scrap so i can focus on studying. so when the exam i planned to go on a scrapping frenzy. but alas, i had to work over the weekend. but i tried to get some scrapping time in between lulls. these are two lo's i finished over the weekend.

the first one is for sketchy thursday's gdt challenge. i love love love how everything turned out and the colors are close to our wedding motif.

the second one is for my mind's eye challenge #11:anything goes. i love this line and was loathe to cut it but i had to remind myself to use up my stuff.

anyway, it is getting late. i need to get some zzz's.

sketchy thursday's gdt challenge

my mind's eye challenge #11:anything goes

too early

hubby wasn't too pleased when i woke him up really early so i could take pictures of my lo's. but it's (inter)national scrapbooking day so i should get a free pass right? as soon as i am done i have to start preparing for my prima class with none other than iris babao uy.

anyway, before i dash, here are two lo's i created for creative scrappers sketch # 100 and creative scrappers sketch # 101. i managed to complete all 5 sketches for this month!

i actually cheated with the first lo as i "redid" it after i said i was done with it. i changed the journaling spot and added more embellishments. i told you i couldn't keep it simple.

for the second lo, i made the flowers i used from tissue paper. the orange flower was actually white but i sprayed it with glimmer mist. then i coated all flowers with opal dust. they're actually very sparkly and pretty.

enough chatter for me, i still have a long to-do list. enjoy the weekend everyone.

creative scrappers sketch # 100

creative scrappers sketch # 101

girl friday

it's friday! the weekend is almost here. i just have 3 hours of work left to do and i am done! monday has been declared a holiday here in manila but i am in training and our instructor from india decided to stick with the original schedule as he is scheduled to leave next saturday.

anyway, this is my take for creative scrappers sketch # 98, one of the outputs of my creative weekend. this is not my usual color scheme, i just wanted to try it out. the orange and purple combination is a favorite of one of my friends in the picture. i rarely but orange and purple pares unless they come in a kit or in some sort of set.

i've also been trying to use up my old stuff as i am plagued with guilt over my still unused recent purchases. the papers are old mme papers from the tres jolie line. classic line don't you think so? when i started out with this, i thought the page would really be simple so i started putting in a bit of flowers, a chipboard, some stickers and before you knew it, it wasn't so simple anymore! i guess i can't make clean and simple pages. i always seem to be itching to add something new.

finally, the picture was taken back in december 2008 from a friend's wedding in pampanga, she and her husband have migrated to australia last february.

i think i have said too much. back to work for me. the sooner i finish my tasks, the earlier i can start with my weekend.

creative scrappers sketch # 98

splendid is a state of mind

...and so is everything else. from the 7 habits seminar i attended a few years back, our instructor told us that we make our own weather. but the heat has been getting too intense to ignore.

i suspect that this heat has finally gotten to me and is causing me to have these headaches. it started yesterday around lunch but i dismissed it thinking i was just hungry. but even after eating, the headache persisted even until the movie. hubby and i went to watch kick-ass but i slept through about a quarter of it because the pain was unbearable. when we got home, i decided to take a nap and guess what? i woke up the next day!

up until this morning, my head was aching - yes i think i should go see a doctor. i found some advil in my purse and after about half an hour, the pain was gone.

i am a firm believer that pain makes one stronger and any sickness you have just develops your immune system. so i put off taking medicines unless i absolutely have to.

anyway, i am rambling when all i wanted to say was i have an lo i finished two weeks ago. i managed to complete 3 lo's + half of an album during the weekend so i am really thankful for all the creative energy i seem to be having (must be the heat?).

this lo is for creative scrappers' sketch #87. anyway, off to bed, i have an early day tomorrow. have a great week ahead everyone.

creative scrappers' sketch #87

mojo overload

so my mojo has taken a leave for a month and has decided to return (and return with a vengeance it did) last week. i managed to complete 3 los (that is a record for me) and a card last week. the first lo was from the class i attended taught by no less than iris uy. come to think of it, maybe the mojo jumpstart was from attending her class? if that is true, i am happy i was able to sign up for 3 more of her classes from may-july.
i have to take a picture of the last lo i finished in less than 3 hours - probably the fastest i scrapped outside a competition. and did i mention i used scraps for this, except for the base cardstock? anyway, i am off to try to complete more cards and probably an lo. who knows, i might get lucky right? have a great week ahead everyone.


scrapbook deals 4u's scrappy anniversary challenge #4

butterfly crafts' march written challenge

pencil lines sketch #179

scrapbook deals 4u's scrappy anniversary challenge #11

scrapbook deals 4u's scrappy anniversary challenge #5

natasja is doing a giveaway here.

pamela continues with her week-long raks. do drop by her blog to check out her great projects and of course, her fabulous raks.

day 2 - mls' imaginary friends line

day 3 - jillibean soup stamps

day 4 - over 200 sheets of rusty pickle papers

day 5 - unity stamp

day 6 - fancy pants designs' my family line

day 7 - my tattered angels' kit

love is in the details - a wedding-related post

i shared this post in our wedding blog but i wanted to share it here as well where i have previously shared all my other creative pursuits. do let me know what you think. :)

when people asked me why i needed a year to prepare for the wedding, i couldn't tell them that i needed the time for my diy and all the details i wanted. truth be told, i enjoyed the diy most and now that the wedding is over, i miss it terribly. anyway, i digress i guess the following pictures can justify why i needed that year right?

all the pretty pictures are courtesy of our wonderful photographers from imaginenation - jasondeg, jamie and lianne with the exception of the closeup of the birdcages which was taken by a dear friend and photographer/choreograper/performer marco esguerra. the pictures of the inspirations for the gowns and shoes were taken from the designers' site.

the invitations were a 100% handmade - from the pink and blue band, the map, even the diecut and embossed tag with our names. i also went crazy with the albemarle swash font for my invites and all the diy's during the wedding.

i did the layout for our invitation, the printing was done by a friend, corner rounding and embossing was done by hand as well. hubby glued the pink and blue heart-shaped gems on the map to indicate the venue. hearts mark the spot!

the arrhae which contains coins to symbolize wealth. this was bought from a local wedding store. i originally wanted to use a wooden basket with coins from all the countries we've visited but i wasn't able to have the coins cleaned to be shiny. and the holes from the basket in the local daiso were too big.

the cord was supplied by my designer. i love the white backdrop.

the candles were also purchased from a local wedding shop. i wanted to alter the embellishments and decorate the candles in our color but i figured it was better this way.

instead, i focused my creative efforts on the unity candle which was also purchased from the same local wedding shop. it was originally plain and bare, just white but i embellished it myself to be in line with our theme - pink and blue with flowers and birds.

our wedding rings. hubby's ring is not the original one from the pair, he lost it one day while cleaning the bathroom. the jeweller we bought it from didn't have any other one on hand. hubby found the exact same ring in his size two days before the wedding.

pillows in pink and blue provided by my designer as well. the blue and pink silk flowers are the same ones used in the entourage's dresses.

rag dolls dressed in pink and blue dresses to adorn the flower girls' baskets. my cousin was playing with her doll during the ceremony.

martha stewart butterfly punch outs used as confetti together with fresh blooms when we had the recessional after the ceremony.

pink and blue jellybeans for our favors. everything was done manually - from the packaging, tying of ribbons, even the tags were handmade!

pink ribbons for blueberry jellybeans. blue ribbons for bubblegum jellybeans

chocolate and vanilla cupcake favors in our colors - pink and blue. the tags were handmade as well, similar to the tags on our invites.

pink and blue icing flowers on our cupcakes.

birdboxes that contained sheets of papers and envelopes where guests can write their messages. birds were purchased from bangkok, all other supplies sourced locally. each one is unique and no two are alike.

placecards with stamped birdcage in the background.

colored pencils to go with the birdboxes doubling as guest books. tags were handmade and similar to tags used in jellybean favors.

wooden monograms on kraft boxes. these are similar to the birdboxes guestbook except for the wooden letters. letters bought from japan.

couples' table, blue glasses matched out motif. centerpiece was reused from the flowers in the altar during the ceremony.

couples table with our monogram bird boxes.

a close-up of the birdcage centerpiece. each birdcage was created by me and each one is unique.

birdcage centerpiece with birdbox guestbook and colored pencils. cage bought from japan, birds from thailand and all other materials sourced locally. flower arrangement was specifically created by florist with centerpiece in mind. even while i was being gussied up by the makeup artist, i was anxiously asking our photographer about the birdcage. as soon as i was beside hubby during the ceremony, the first thing i asked about were the birdcages.

a closeup of the birdcage. most of the guests took home the birdcages - must mean they love it right?

my shoes are custom made in the same shade as the entourage's dresses. this was inspired by aqua manolo blahniks. the bejewelled center was originally a brooch which i got at half off.

my shoes against the stained glass doors of the bed and breakfast we stayed in.

my shoes.

my shoes amidst a sea of jellybeans.

the blahniks that inspired my shoes.

my bouquet. i specifically requested for peonies, the same flower i used as background in my invitation. i fell in love with peonies during the process of making my invitations. i was afraid i couldn't have them because my florist warned me they were hard to come by especially since they were seasonal.

aside from the peonies, i also asked for pink carnations and a mix of blue roses and white liliums.

another lovely sight near our cottage - a victorian inspired statue.

i loved the homey feel of the cottage we stayed in.

my gown. the first time i saw the gown from a simone carvalli ad from martha stewart weddings, i knew this was the gown for me. never mind that more than one designer told me this did not suit my frame. lucky for me, i found a designer that made it work for me.

my gown in the stone path leading up to our cottage. hubby had to close his eyes when he was passing by.

my gown with our cottage as a backdrop. the weather was perfect that day - bright and shiny but cool and breezy. perfect tagaytay weather. the next day, it was overcast with a slight drizzle.

another shot of the gown i found from the designer's site.

the simone carvalli gown i saw in martha stewart. i never had any doubts, the first time i saw it i knew this is my gown
the bejewelled shrug that was a nice addition to the original simone carvalli design. i was supposed to take it off during the reception for a different look from the ceremony. but my makeup artist suggested i use it as a ruffle over my chest. i finally took off the shrug after the program so i can move around as much as i wanted. so instead of two looks, i ended up with three!
the inspiration for the versatile shrug that was the addition to the original simone carvalli design.

more pictures to come with more people. i am just really giddy with all the details so i wanted to share them first. hope you liked what you see!