PL Sketch Friday with Marie Lottermoser

Hi Everyone!  It's Marie Lottermoser back today to share this week's Pocket Life Sketch with you.  This week's sketch uses a full page photo on the left side of the page, and smaller photos and journaling cards on the right side.

What makes this spread unique is adding your title and small embellishments right on top of your full page photo.

You can just drop your embellishments straight into your pocket page and fuse it together to make one large shaker pocket, or you can adhere everything directly on your photo.  Either way, it's a fun way to add some detail and sparkle to a larger photo.

I had more photos than journaling for this weekend spread, so I documented everything on one 3x4 card and then added photos to the rest of my pockets.

Here's one more example of this week's sketch.  This spread is all about fall.  I love the changing of the seasons.

Once again I layered my embellishments straight on to my larger photo on the left side of the page.  This time I added a few gold sequins from my stash to make more of a shaker pocket.  The right page contains my smaller 3x4 pockets.

 Here's a look at this week's sketch.

Thanks for visiting Pocket Life Friday, where every week we share PL sketches and a chance to win. For your chance to win, create a layout based on the sketch in this blog post, post your layout to our Gallery or our Facebook Fan Page by Friday, October 14 2016. Be sure to include PL 10/07 in the title!

Creating a Fall Layout with the October Kit

Hello everyone! Jen here, and today I am sharing a fall-inspired layout that I created with the October Pocket Life kit. This layout was inspired by the die cut leaves included in the kit. I thought they would be perfect to scatter across a layout.

I had these photos of my son at the farmer's market from last weekend. and knew they would go with the kit perfectly. I used a piece of Crate Paper patterned paper from the main scrapbook kit to put across the layout, then layered one of the 4x6 cards and my photos on top. I also knew I wanted to use the cork circles, but the sayings didn't work with this page so I simply flipped them over.

The alpha stickers included in the kit from Pinkfresh Studio are so fabulous! I added them then stitched through for extra texture.

I added my journaling by using my typewriter and cutting it into strips. I stitched through a few of the strips as well. After adding a date stamp and a few puffy dots from the sprinkles kit, my layout was complete!

I hope you have a great day, see you soon!

In My Studio with Jen Chapin

Hi everyone! Today I am sharing a few pictures of how I organize my kits and products, plus a pocket page created with October's Pocket Life kit and a process video.

When I receive my kit, I like to take all the items out of the packages so I can see everything. I get these shallow trays from a local grocery store, but I'm sure you can find something similar at Target or Ikea. I organize all the flat items in the tray, then put all the loose embellishments in a small bowl from Anthropologie.

After I'm done with creating projects from a kit, I like to split the remaining products out by type. I have lots of different bins that are labeled and sit on my shelves. This one houses chipboard embellishments.

Here is a look at my supply bins with the tops off. Sorting them by type allows me to quickly grab the embellishment I need without much searching!

Here is a video that goes over my kit organization, as well as my process for putting this page together.

I used items from the main Pocket Life kit as well as the Sprinkles kit to create this page. I used a mixture of color and black and white photos, as well as some contrasting bright colors with black and white.

Here are a few closeups. The puffy circle sticker fit perfectly inside this card, and I embellished it simply with a staple.

The foam glitter stars in the kit are fabulous! I used all of them very quickly :)

Lastly, I created this card using a piece of the 6x6 patterned paper along with the diecut and hello weekend phrase.

Thank you for stopping by the blog today, I hope you are having a great week!

Tuesday Tutorial

Hello! Super happy to be here today to share my little trick for adding journaling on the occasions I don't have the space on my layout to do so. 

Seventy-five percent of the time I journal directly on my layout. If I don't it's because I either have already written enough on an adjacent page or, like on this layout, I have a busy background and know that my writing will be too hard to see. If the latter is the case, my solution is pretty simple: Make a hidden pocket and add a tag! Using the beautiful October "Waverly" Scrapbook and Embellishment Kits, I am going to show you just how easy this is!

I knew right away after picking the really great woodgrain patterned paper as my background that my journaling, which I do with a fine pen, would get lost on the busy pattern. With this thought in mind, I worked on my layout keeping an eye out for a good hiding spot for my tag. The design of my layout actually came from one of our Sunday Sketch Challenges from last month; I had seen the sketch and layout done by fellow designer Emma, and I just had to give it a go myself. With that being said, the obvious place for the tag was under the polka dot patterned paper and to do this I glued down three edges of the paper, leaving the right side open. To finish off the pocket and add a little bit of extra detail I stitched around the opening. This also helped to make the pocket more snug, so the tag would not fall out.

My final step in the process was to "lock" down my stitching. I very rarely will do this with the actual sewing machine since the back stitching would not look as neat as I would like. Instead, I placed some of the washi tape from the kit over the ends of my stitching lines. This will keep my stitching from unraveling. Here's the final project:

Wishing you all a fantastic day!

Michelle

Kit Love with Jen Chapin

Hello everyone! Jen Chapin here, and I am excited to be back on the team here at Citrus Twist. I'll be working with the Pocket Life kits this year, creating a mix of pocket and traditional scrapbook pages. Today I have a kit unboxing video to share with you, as well as a layout. Let's get started!

Watch the video above to see what's included in the October main Pocket Life kit, as well as the sprinkles kit.

Here is the first layout I created with the Pocket Life kit this month. I love that it's so easy to create traditional layouts as well as pocket pages with the PL kits as they include 6x6 paper! As you can see, I used 4 sheets of the 6x6 paper to create my background for the 12x12 page.

After adhering the patterned paper to a piece of cardstock, I stitched around the edge of the page using my sewing machine, then layered on a piece of vellum from my stash to house my photo and title. I also loved the cut-apart sheet this month, such great sayings and icons to include on your projects.

The puffy stickers from Pinkfresh that are included in the PL kit this month are fabulous! I love that some of them are large enough to use as a title. I also included some of the glitter gold stars in the kit as well as enamel dots from the sprinkles kit.

Thank you so much for stopping by the blog today! You can check out my blog here and YouTube channel here. I look forward to bringing you more projects and inspiration soon!

Sunday Sketch

Hi all and welcome to this weekend's edition of the Sunday Sketch Challenge! Today's sketch features two photos and looks like this:

I worked with the lovely October "Waverly" Scrapbook and Embellishment kit for my layout and I stayed pretty close to the sketch:

I moved my title and journaling slightly because there wasn't enough room between the patterned paper and stitching for both. I also pulled two tags from my stash to compliment the papers and embellishments from the kits. 

Now it's your turn! To play along with this week's sketch challenge, create a layout inspired by the sketch, upload it to the CTK Gallery with today's date (10/2) in the title, and you will be eligible to win a $5 gift certificate to the CTK Store!

Michelle

Meet Our Guest Designer & 3 to Inspire

Hello everyone! Today we would like to take the time to introduce you to our guest designer for the months of October and November. Say hello to Laureen Wagener!

Hi crafty peeps-my name is Laureen.  I am 22 years old and I am delighted to be this month's guest designer for Citrus Twist Kits!  You are going to fall in love with the October Kit-it is super fun, full of fall colors, and has amazing exclusives included! As soon as I got the kit I created my four projects with it I couldn't and wouldn't stop.

Before we get to Laureen's beautiful project, let's get to know our guest designer a little bit more. First, here's a peak into the space where Laureen creates:

Now for a little Q&A with Laureen:

How long have you been scrapbooking and why did you start?

I discovered scrapbooking in 2013 and for whatever reason only made a few pages and then got into cardmaking.  I rediscovered scrapbooking in March 2016 shortly after I got my cancer diagnosis and it helped me rock through the tough days when chemo really hit in.  Scrapbooking helped me focus on something different other then cancer and always makes me feel great!  I was always a very creative person, needing something to do with my hands-as a kid I loved Window Color, crafting with napkins, and painting!  Scrapbooking now lets me get messy and also scrap and display the gazillion of pictures that otherwise would get lost on the computer or phone.

How would you describe your scrapbooking style?

Since I've started my style developed and drastically changed.  I am a traditional scrapbooker getting my fingers all sticky and my table messy.  I really love the look of bright pages using die-cuts and patterned paper and also completely fell in love with stitching on my layouts. 

What scrapbookers have influenced you the most?

I would say Paige Taylor Evans was one of my biggest inspirations!  I loved her video from back in the Two Peas in a Bucket days-her colorful layouts and usage of patterns is just divine and makes me want to create!  I also had the pleasure of meeting her twice already and she is just a total sweetheart.

What is your favorite things about kit clubs?

The variety is incredible, especially all those amazing goodies for the amount of money you pay!  You always get the latest and greatest stuff out there and it makes creating so much easier-everything has been coordinated for you already!  Also, I adore the exclusive products that now come in kits!

What are your 5 favorite scrapbooking items you can't do without?  

What a tough question as I love everything about scrapbooking!  I would say that patterned paper is my top pick, directly followed by ephemera and chipboard.  I also love enamel dots and buttons for a little extra something on your pages!

How would you describe the Citrus Twist October "Waverly" Scrapbook Kit?

All the heart eyes!!  This kit has awesome colors that work for a variety of projects and different styles! I especially loved the little amazingly cute goodies inside the little bags-talk about eye candy there!

To learn more about Laureen and to see more of her work you can stop by her blog, find her on Instragram @madamerosenrot, and check out her boards on Pinterest

Since today also happens to be a Saturday, we are delighted to have Laureen set this week's 3 to Inspire Challenge!  

Here are this week's prompts:

1. Layer in a piece of vellum or other sheer material.

2. Use a piece of patterned paper for your background.

3. Add some flair. 

For this first layout I made, I decided to focus on the Indigo Hills bits from the kit.  I decided to use a picture of a bracelet my best friend gave me during chemotherapy to wish me luck and all the best results and therefore the small sentiments from the Indigo Hills ephemera pack work great for this picture!  I beat cancer in June when I received  my last chemo and a call from doctor at the end of the month saying that I am cancer free.

 The background paper I used is just too gorgeous to be cut apart and therefore I used it as my entire background.  I placed a cut file over it and softened the look by layering vellum behind the cut file. The blue acrylic letters are so awesome-I used them to spell a part of my title and one of the die-cut hearts to finish the title: Love This. 

Thank you so much Laureen for joining us here at Citrus Twist Kits! Your projects are both beautiful and inspirational.  It has been a real pleasure getting to know you better and we are looking forward to seeing more of your projects!  

To play along with this week's 3 to Inspire challenge, create a layout based off of the three prompts, post it in the CTK Gallery with today's date (10/1) in the title, and you will have a chance to win a small prize from the CTK Store.

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**Make sure and leave a comment at the end of this post for a chance to win one of Laureen's fave scrapbooking products! Good luck!!