Sunday Sketch, Guest Designers and Me

Happy Halloween! It's time for all Ghosts, Goblins and other Creatures to come out for some candy! This is the last sketch of the month and I will leave the October Sketch Challenge up for another week so people can use this sketch to enter. Let's see what the guest designers did this week, we only have a few weeks left for this amazing group of crafters and then I am not sure what I am going to do for 2011...something I am sure!

Shamma Parvin is the featured designer this week and her work never disappoints. Here is a little bit about her, "I'm from the sunny island of Singapore. I live with my two blessings and a wonderful husband who is ever so supportive of my hobby. I've been scrapping for 4 years now and is still enjoying the process. I don't have a definite style of layouts. My layouts usually goes with the paper that I worked on. I t can be something very simple, flat and clean to something with layering, misting and tearing. Scrapbooking has been a very wonderful journey so far as it nourishes the creative side of me. I create, I scrap and I love every effort that I've invested in every page that I've done."

Isn't Shamma's layout just stunning??? I love the contrast with the black background. This is what Shamma had to say about working with the sketch, "When I first saw this sketch, I was like "Wow, this is so pretty" Liz always come up with wonderful sketches and this is no exceptional. She never fails to add on flowers and swirls and that's my favourite part of it. I tried working as close as i can to the sketch. I did not add any journaling because as you can see, this page is about me. I choose the title dream because I'm sure we all have dreams in life maybe... like being a billionaire standing next to Oprah and the Queen in Forbes magazines.lol I believe every day is another chance to make your Dreams come true. I also add on some platinum stickles to the yellow roses to enhance it further. To complete the page, i add on the red butterfly and some rhinestones and pearls. I'd like to take this opportunity to thank Liz once again for all her wonderful sketches."

Close Ups of Shamma's Work

Please visit Shamma's blog Creative Momma for more information about her and details about her work.

Sheila Danforth is back again with her third and final project for this wonderful group of designers. Here is what she had to say about this adorable layout and how she used the sketch, "I didn't want to change anything about this sketch, I really love the layers and the different shapes used in this design. Everything came together so perfectly. I used Prima's new Jack and Jill paper line as it compliments the photo I used of my new Grandbaby. I distressed the edges of all the layers of paper, I feel it softens and adds much texture to the lo. I really enjoy using Liz's sketches, her designs are so beautiful and fun to work with! I feel some of my best layouts were created using them. Thanks Liz."

Please visit Sheila's blog Luv 2 Scrap for more information about her and details about her work.

Sheree Power had the same idea as me to use this week as an opportunity to scrap some "scary" photos for this MAJOR holiday in the states. This is what she had to say about working with the sketch this week, "The minute I saw this sketch, I knew what I wanted to use it for... My daughter Kaitlyn just had her 10th birthday and the theme was Halloween... So, I decided instead of one picture to add two 6x4s, but kept the sketch the way it was and just moved the journaling to the other side of the photos instead of on the bottom...thanks for another great sketch Liz..."

Please visit Sheree's Just the 2 of Us blog for more information about her details about her work.

Me - I think some of you have seen this layout, but it is the one that I based the sketch on and perfect for the day. I used Little Yellow Bicycle's Boo-ville collection to create the background for this Scary Witch who has actually decided to be Padme Amidala this year. Quite a change from last year, but I guess that is how it goes :)

Thank you so much for stopping by and have a wonderful time trick or treating if you celebrate this rather strange and fun holiday.

Happy Halloween

Aren't these Boo-tiful papers and embellishments from Nikki Sivils so much fun???  I love the bright colors mixed with the distressing and the ghosts are pretty darn cute, if I do say so myself.   Perfect for my spooky little girl.  She loves this holiday as much as I do and still insists on wearing her costumes all year round.

I mixed one of Nikki's cute little Craft Flags in with the ghosts and added the sentiment, "Boo!"  I also inked the edges with some chalk ink to make the white flag stand out more against the spooky white ghost.  Then I tied on a little polka dot bow for some added fun.

Nikki's Burlap Buttons make the perfect finishing touch by adding a little interest and texture to the layout.  The thing I love most about these, is you just stick the little suckers right onto the project.  No sewing necessary and no need to add adhesive.  I also used my Cricut to cut this shape in the striped paper to break up the squareness of the layout and then used the shadow feature to cut the black mat.

Nikki adds so many cute embellishments right into her papers.  I used a 1 1/2 inch circle punch to pull this pumpkin out of one of the papers.  Then I inked the edges and pop-dotted it to make it stand out more.

This card completely cracks me up!  I used one of the chipboard ghosts from Nikki's awesome Ghost Mini album that is currently being featured in this month's Creating Keepsake Magazine (see below).  I am a big fan of Nikki's 6x6 patterned papers and this striped paper is the perfect background for this spooky little guy.  I cut the sign from the embellishment page in Nikki's Boo-tiful papers and added the sentiment with some of her sticker letters from the Tree Love Collection.

Can you see it in the Number 1 spot???  We are all very excited about being featured, especially since we know how much fun Nikki's Chipboard Mini Albums are.  Make sure you check out the others HERE.

I'll close it out with one more card.  I can't seem to get enough of these frightening little ghosts, so I had to add them to the bottom of this card along with a big "Boo" sentiment which I cut with my Cricut using more of the 6x6 Boo-tiful patterned papers.  Hope you all have as much fun creating this month as I am...and don't forget to grab some of Nikki's Boo-tiful collection before it is all gone :)

Thank you so much for stopping by -

Imaginisce Creepy Crawly Blog Hop

How would you like to win an Imaginisce i-top and a ton of accessories???  Would it put a smile on your face like the little munchkin above?   With a new i-top, you would be able to make some special little lady in your life her own kitty headband, just like the one above...   All you need to do is read through this blog post, leave a comment and then "crawl" to the blog of the next person listed at the bottom of this post.  Tut, tut...you must leave a comment on all blogs in the "crawl" to be eligible to win.  But don't fret, there are only a few hops, so no need to worry about blog hop "burn out".  Trust me...you will be very, very, very happy you hopped :)

To see the Imaginisce i-top in all of its glory and to drool over all of the super cool accessories, please click HERE.  It could really motivate you to keep hopping.

So as I was saying (before we got distracted by the prize and time commitments of this hop)...would you like to make your own Kitty Headband for someone dear?  It's really an easy process.

Halloween is the perfect time to make little critters with your i-top tool. Imaginisce is now offering some really fun products like headbands and bobby pins with a twist attachment that allows you to change your look from season to season. This Kitty Headband can easily become a little Gnome when Christmas rolls around. It is just a matter of unscrewing the special Twist iTop Brad and replacing it with a new idea.

For this project I used the To Love and Cherish collection along with the 28mm Twist Daddies to make the body of my kitty and the 18mm Brad Daddies to make the head. Then I used a small leaf punch to create the little ears. Next, I used my i-rock tool to adhere the little green gems as eyes and added some plastic as the whiskers. The flowers are a combination of Imaginisce Cupcake Fabric Flowers in Bright and To Love and Cherish Soft Elegance in black. There are just so many possibilities for the i-top and i-rock....

Thank you so much for stopping by and for the very sweet comment and please have fun hopping to the blog of my talented friend Melinda Spinks!  She has another project idea waiting for you, especially if you happen to win the i-top.  Good Luck!

Spooky Imaginisce Card Challenge

Pop over to the Imaginisce blog to check out our Spooky Halloween Card Challenge hosted by Aphra Bolyer, Melinda Spinks and myself.  You could be the winner of some seriously fantastic prizes, but you have to play along to win!  This is my version of a spooky card using some of my Imaginisce Stash and my Cricut Celebrate Flourish cartridge.  Can you believe how awesome To Love and Cherish works as a Halloween palette?  For this card, I cut the adorable Jack O' Lantern with my cartridge,  then added a little bling with my irock to dress it up a tad.  Pumpkins are one of my favorite parts of Halloween.  The orange patterned paper for this little guy is from the Splash Dance collection and the green patterned paper is from the Live Loud collection.  Isn't it fun how you can use everyday papers and materials to create a Halloween project?


Hope to see one of your creations at the Imaginisce Blog!  Thanks again for stopping by -

Woohoo - Two Page Layout!

It is not often that I create two-page layouts, but recently I came across a very inspirational sketch book from Allison Davis and Debbie Sanders that has my brain churning.  I just adore all of these photos from a recent trip to the pumpkin patch and since I had so many vertical 4x6 photos, there was a perfect sketch to help me scrap them clean and simple.  I know some of you are wondering, why I am looking at someone else's sketch, when I sketch?  Well, I don't sketch two-page layouts and I really wanted to make one, so there you go - hee, hee.  The papers are from Nikki Sivils My Friend Birdie collection and I think the color palette is perfectly fall.

Here are some closer views...

 

More Close ups...

 

This is an old school Scenic Route alphabet, but it was the perfect match to the sticker letters in Nikki's collection.  I used the negative space that was inside the letter 'p' to create these little pumpkins.  Yah, I know...one of those super late night inspirations that you just chuckle to yourself about regardless of whether anyone would notice or not.  Then you say to yourself, "I think I am a genius, not to mention in desperate need of sleep!" 

 

Nikki has the cutest journal cards included in this collection.  I opted to keep the project simple with just some buttons and a journal card for embellishment.

Thank you so much for stopping by -

Sunday Sketch, Guest Designers and Me

Sometimes a very simple sketch can lead to a very complex or dramatic layout.  Check out what the guest designers did this month with this very simple design.  Also keep in mind that the October Sketch Challenge is up and running and that we will have one more sketch after this one that is eligible for this month.  Hope to see you playing along...

Ellen Magnette joins us this week as the featured designer.  Here is a little bit about her, "I am 30 years old and live in Brussels, Belgium with my partner. I discovered scrapbooking almost 5 years ago, but only dared to give it a try one year later. I kinda do all styles, but my favourite one is definitely shabby chic as I am a really sentimental girl ;-) As I am working more than full time as an employee and a freelance medical translator, I do not have as much time as I would like to for scrapbooking, so I am not very productive, or at least not as much as I would like to be!"

Here is what Ellen had to say about working with the sketch this week, "I have the bad habit of being totally unable to interpret a sketch other than verbatim… so for a change, I used it verbatim ;-) I did not use any ink on my LO but instead sanded all the papers as I really love the effect with dark coloured papers. For the choice of the photo, I immediately knew it would be this one, taken by the hotel photographer during our vacation last week!"

Please visit Ellen's blog L'univers de Caladhiel for more information about her and details about her work.

Luzma Bruna is such a prolific and inspirational designer to feature.  I love everything about her work.  Here is what she had to say about working with the sketch, "Well, I have to say that when I saw the sketch I thought "wow" this is totally my style and this beautiful collection by Lily Bee would be perfect and then I found this beautiful picture of a trip that we made to Paris some years ago that goes perfect with those papers."

Please visit Luzma's blog Luzma's Scrap Place for more information about her and details about her work.

Me - I know....what is up with all this playing along???  I guess I have found a bit more time to scrap...hee, hee.  For this layout, I used the gorgeous and decadent Vintage Groove papers from Adornit.  These are must haves!!!  The combination of black, red, cream and sage are a beautiful palette to dress up an occasion, especially like tea time.  I added some simple embellishments like buttons and flowers so the focus would stay on the photo.

Thank you so much for stopping by -

A Boy and His Pumpkin

Never come between a boy and his pumpkin!  This is one of the pics I took of my son when we visited the pumpkin patch this month.  He had the time of his life and picked out a really pretty one.  The Lily Bee Catching Fall collection and especially the Pumpkin Pie Paper was also the perfect paper to scrap these photos, not to mention all of the other goodies that Aphra has loaded, yes I mean loaded, The Paper Poppy Kit with this month.  It has been a pleasure working with all of the wonderful materials.

The Lily Bee cardstock sticker flags are so darn cute!  I just inked the edges and pop-dotted the string of flags on the left and then stuck the off white flags on the right flat on the paper for some contrast.

I thought the journal tag and its hole would make a really good dot for my 'i' and like how the string embellishes the title a bit.  I also love the font of the foam Pink Paislee alphabet.

It wouldn't be right if we didn't use some of the absolutely awesome Lily Bee chipboard.  These are so easy and fun to add to a project.  Please visit the Paper Poppy store for a kit before they are all gone!

Thank you so much for stopping by - 

Little Yellow Bicycle Contest - Please Vote

Hey all - just wanted to let you know that both of my Boo-ville projects have been chosen as semifinalists in the Little Yellow Bicycle Contest and that you can visit either their blog or their Facebook page to vote for your favorite project.  I am really excited because I just adore this collection.  All of the projects are wonderful.  Please go check them out.

 Thank you so much for stopping by -

Sunday Sketch, Guest Designers and Me

This week's sketch is a little bit of a hodge podge, but I kinda like all of the elements and the freedom of angles.  I have already posted the October Challenge and this sketch is eligible.  Can't wait to see what you create.

Carly Blaiss created a really fun winter layout with the sketch.  Love how she tucked her photos together.  Here is a little bit about her, "I started scrapbooking at the beginning of 2009, and my passion for the craft was immediate. In addition to 12x12 layouts, I enjoy making mini books and altered items.  I live in Atlanta, GA, and I have 2 and a half year old son.  I am a Design Team member at Crafting Jewish Style and I design for local scrapbooking store, EMI Scrapbooking, in Cumming, GA." 

She also had this to say about working with the sketch, "This sketch was great for me because it had multiple photos and plenty of small embellishments.  It complimented my layered style so well.  I was able to use several different papers along with the border strips and jounraling cards from Cosmo Cricket Mitten Weather.  I didn't have any holiday pictures handy, so I went with a winter theme. "

Please visit Carly's blog Blaiss of Glory for more information about her and details about her work.

Me - I have to admit that I made this layout a while ago and then went back and created the sketch.  Sometimes when the mojo is low, you have to go with what you've got.  I do love the Little Yellow Bicycle Free Spirit Collection and adore the little pocket die cut, which is what I based the concept of this layout around.

Thank you so much for stopping by this week -

October Sketch Challenge

Please link up any sketches you have used for the month of October to Mr.Linky below to be entered into a Random drawing. Any sketch used from the current month (Sunday or Bonus) is eligible to be entered and linked to this post. Everyone, including guest designers, can play along and the more sketches used, the more chances to win. So be sure to link up each sketch used from the current month.

Eligible sketches include: 10/3/10, 10/10/10, 10/17/10, 10/24/10, 10/31/10

Thank you so much for playing along -