Stepping Back - Travelers Notebook Challenge

Hello, there!  Let's talk travelers notebooks!  Let's talk about pushing ourselves a little bit.  How about we step back, back into our crafting.

We often buy products, tools in particular and don't get around to using them.  Well, how about we change that this week? I'm talking about paper punches!  This week, I'm using my hexagon punch in my travelers notebook.

I took a couple of the patterned papers from the February Love Stories kit, and used my hexagon punch to accent my photo and the 3x4 card.

I love spreading the punches around the page, which mimics movement. I also love how these colors are all working so well together!

A super cute page I'm so excited to have in my Favorites travelers notebook insert, thanks to my hexagon punch!  However, I couldn't stop there!

I also had a bunch of border punches that I haven't used in SO many years, but I decided today was going to be the day I dusted at least one of those off.

I thought it was a fun way to use this border punch!  It's not the common way, but it created a little bit of texture layering these patterned paper pieces with my photo.  I'm thinking I'm going to try this again with a couple of my other border punches, too!

Are you going to give this challenge a try?  Please do, we'd love to see!  Make sure you tag us on Facebook, Instagram or leave a comment here on the blog!

Citrus Twist 2019 Creative Team Announcement

I am very excited to finally be able to announce the brand new 2019 (March-August) Creative Team. This post is to celebrate this talented group of artists that are joining Citrus Twist to bring their creations to you. These ladies cover scrapbooking, project life, traveler’s notebooks, faith art and more. 

Thank you to everyone who submitted for our call. There was so much beautiful work submitted for consideration.

Please join me in welcoming these creatives.

Amanda-Jayne Baldwin |  Laura Rahel Crosby | Lydia Cost | Nathalie DeSousa

Marsha Farris | Alena Grinchuk | Theresa Moxley | Kira Ness

Kelli Rich | Patricia Roebuck | Suzanna Stein | Ana Uhras | Diane Williams

Their March Life Crafted kits (and albums!) are on their way to them and I can’t wait to see what they dream up in their crafty spaces.

Xo,

Trina

Let's Get Scrappy with Adele

Hey peeps!

I have been swooning over this month's Life Crafted kit and was excited to have fun with some of the 6x8" papers included in the kit!

I recently purchased a new medium sized heart punch and wanted to bust it out on this layout. I think it's nice to use lovey themed products in February, not just for Valentine's Day layouts, but also on pages of the other important people (or pets) that we love!

This page was really easy and quick to put together and I will definitely be giving my new punch a work out for the next few weeks!!

I have created a process video for you all showing how the layout came together - I hope you enjoy it!

Adele :)

Sunday Sketch

Hey everyone!  It's Alena with  layout for Sunday Sketch.

Here's a look at the sketch this week:

Instead of creating a traditional 12x12 layout, I wanted to show you how easily these sketches can translate into a Life Crafted Album's pages.

I just divided the layout exactly in the middle and shifted the right photo a little. I replaced one of the large rectangles with a machine line.

These pages are quite simple and has lots of white space.

Love how this turned out, the colors of the kit are perfect for the cute pictures of our boys. 

My absolute favorite of this Kit is Exclusive Acetate.

Well, then it is time for you be inspired by the sketch to create a page of your own.  Remember to share your creations with us on the Citrus Twist Kits Friends page on Facebook or by using #CTK, @Citrustwistkits on social media.  I cannot wait to see what you create with this sketch.

3 to Inspire with Kira

Hey again!  It's Kira and I am back with another 3 to Inspire.  The prompts I have chosen for today are:

1.  Use a cut file
2.  Incorporate stitching
3.  Puffy stickers

And here's a look at the 8.5x11 layout I created using these prompts:

I started by using the Love Stuff cut file (which you can find on the Citrus Twist Kits website).  I cut out the word "love" from white cardstock and then backed it with my favorite floral paper included in the Life Crafted kit.  Then I used some white embroidery thread and handstitched around the cut file.

I decided to scrapbook this adorable photo of my oldest son.  He is just standing outside, using his blankie as a scarf and looking a little like a hipster.  But I absolutely LOVE this photo of him.  I tucked the picture into the V of the cut file.

Since one of the prompts I chose was "use a cut file", I decided to search through the exclusive cut files to see if I could find even more to use.  I absolutely loved the August 2018 Daisies, but never got around to using them.  I thought they would work perfectly here.  I backed all of the daisies with patterned paper from the LC kit and positioned them in a vertical pattern on my page.

The flowers added so much to my page that I didn't have to include too many embellishments after that...but I still needed puffy stickers!  I'm obsessed with CTK puffy hearts and was thrilled to see an ENTIRE sheet of them included in this months LC kit.  I scattered a few up my page.  And since more is more in my scrappy world, I also grabbed a puffy sticker from the scrapbooking add on kit to include on my page.

I finished off my page with a tag stamped with "another day. another story." and the date, some typed journaling I included at the lower left corner of my page, and some very delicate splatters made with my Shimmerz Coloringz Night Moves mist.

I can't wait to see how you use these prompts!  Share with us in the Citrus Twist Kits Fan Page on Facebook!

xo, Kira

Life Crafted LOVE with Amanda!

Hi CTK Friends!

Amanda here, and boy oh boy have I been having tons of fun with my new Life Crafted Album!
The new February Life Crafted Kit - Love Stories - is all kinds of awesomeness! From pretty pattern papers to the divine ephemera & even the acetate shapes, this kit has my heart!
But enough chatter, let's take a lil looksee into my album.....

Missed my first post with the opening "Getting Started" pages? You can check it out here.

Here's the next installment...

CTK Supplies: Life Crafted January Fresh Starts Kit & die cut ephemera from February Love Stories Kit. 

This month I have been able to really embrace how Life Crafted is going to work for me & my stories! You'll see that I have now divided my album into 3 key sections: A Beautiful Life - memory keeping & story telling, Give Yourself Time - dedicated to self care and personal growth, & Random Thoughts - fun, random bits n pieces from daily life, as well as a bit of creative play. It's kinda like 3 albums in one, which will grow & develop as the year unfolds. I used my January Fresh Starts Kit for this, and then continue to mix and match the two kits because the kits have been so beautifully curated that everything coordinates together perfectly! 

My album will be an eclectic mix of scrapbook pages, pocket pages, traveler's notebook spreads and all things in between! Ultimately, it will become a beautiful mini album that reflects me & my stories! Perfect! 

Here's a few pages from my A Beautiful Life section.....

CTK Supplies: Life Crafted February Love Stories Kit, Life Crafted Album - black. 

This IS my why! Such a treasured memory, & so beautifully documented. Love the soft color palette & the gold foil accents. On the left hand side of my album, I have a more traditional scrapbook style page with lots of pretty layers & embellishments. I trim the pattern paper to a 5" x 8" size, and hole punch the side so it fits into my ringed binder. To the right, I have created a more TN / pocket style page - doing things my way & loving how it looks! 

The stamps included in the Love Stories Kit are amazing! I use them subtly on both pages. 

CTK Supplies: Life Crafted February Love Stories Kit, January Life Crafted Fresh Starts 6" x 8" Pattern Paper.

How awesome are these TN style pages?! Love This, indeed! Documenting the everyday moments never looked so good! Here's how it fits into my album...

Yes, This!!! 

For these pages, I mostly used the February Love Stories Kit, but I also added in the powder blue pattern paper from the January Kit. The 3" x 4" cards were perfect for these fun photos of my husband, son & new puppy - just look at the facial expression on my son, hear the love, indeed! The die cut acetate shapes in this month's kit are such a fabulous edition too! 

CTK Supplies: Life Crafted February Love Stories Kit, black puffy alphas from the January Kit. 

Nawww! Another wonderful moment documented! So sweet!

I have mixed up my memory keeping style again & I have to say, I am having so much fun! The 5" x 8" title page is a fave of mine, & I love the mix of the January black puffy alphabet stickers with the February ephemera & acetate shapes! 

Here's a close up of my TN style page...

Isn't this darling?!!

I loved the bold colors, but as most of my album will be soft & full of pastel pretties, I used plain white paper as my base. The white helps to balance the yellow & red, and adds a 'clean' look to the page. 

Best part, it looks gorgeous and I documented it in minutes! Life Crafted is fitting memory keeping into my busy life! LOVE!

Next up, my Give Yourself Time feature....

For my opening page,  I use a clear vellum overlay which I embellish with the you've totally got this ephemera & a puffy heart sticker from the Love Stories Kit. But it's what's underneath that has me....

CTK Supplies: Life Crafted January Fresh Starts Kit. 

Ga ga gorgeous! Nothing says self care like encouraging affirmations! That pattern paper is totally swoon worthy! 

Over the page, you'll see more from the February kits....

CTK Supplies: Life Crafted February Love Stories Kit

Each month the Life Crafted kits include an exclusive 3" x 8" book mark & this month's was perfect for my self care album! I embellished mine with die cut ephemera & acetate shapes as well as foiled chipboard & puffy sticker hearts! (All are from the Love Stories Kit). 

Peeking behind the book mark is a pocket page affirmation....

CTK Supplies: Life Crafted February Love Stories Kit

Sigh! SO pretty & so heartfelt! A little reminder to self kinda page! 

Tip: To keep the dimension of the die cut butterfly wings, I adhere the butterfly onto the outside of the pocket, not onto the paper. This prevents bulging, out of shape pockets and looks just as effective. 

Also in my 'me' section, I am trying to document more of lil' 'ole me....

CTK Supplies: Life Crafted February Love Stories Kit. 

Nawww, puppy love & evening beach walks! My best Summer, right here! This makes my heart happy!

As the month's progress, so will my stories & self care - but oddly enough, I have already created the closing page to this part of my album.....

CTK Supplies: Life Crafted February Love Stories Kit

As soon as I saw the I AM ENOUGH label, I knew I wanted use it for the closing page of my Give Yourself Time album. I foam mount it onto a pretty pink label,& that divine floral paper. Pretty! I also add one last reminder to self...Breathe! Those gold puffy alphas are errrrrything!

And last, but by no means least, here's a very quick peek into my Random Thoughts part of the album.....

CTK Supplies: Life Crafted February Love Stories Kit

How fun is this?! Bright, colorful & creative play! Love it! 

And there you have it! 

Life Crafted  - my album, my stories, my way! 

If you're keen to hear more of the how-to, tips & tricks on crafting my album, join me in this quick album walk through video HERE

https://youtu.be/qOcmtKgymv0

I hope you enjoy watching and please press the subscribe button for future inspiration! 

Thanks so much for joining me today, 

I hope I have given you some ideas for how to use your Life Crafted Album & Kits! 

til next time, 

Happy Arty Days, 

Amanda xo

Love. Plain & Simple.

Hello loves, Ashley here.

This is my last post with CT - and I can't even be sad. I have loved my year on the design team creating & hopefully inspiring you. The CT February Kit is here and it has us all feeling the love. The soft colors, the floral pieces, the patterned papers, the puffy heart stickers, and pops of gold - it all, inspires LOVE!

I loved this stripe paper so much I had a hard time cutting into it. I didn't have enough to cover my whole Bible page and use it in my TN album so I decided to echo the colors in watercolor. The pattern of color has no pattern and I love that. My brain designs in repetition so it was a good challenge to let go a bit. I mean, who is laying all these pastels and then BAM using a soft chocolate brown - not me, but I LOVE IT!

One trick I do when watercolor is to dry the paint with a piece of paper in between to help flatten the page. You can see above how crinkly it starts. You have to wait until the page is almost dry - but don't wait too long otherwise it will be dry and won't cooperate.  This time, instead of just using a scratch paper I used the JUMBO tag that came in the kit. AGAIN, I LOVE that stripe - had to use it again. The watercolor leftovers made a cool pattern on the tag that I can use for another project/ another page.

Here is a peek at my coordinating album page. I love that I have more room to journal in the album than I do in my Bible. They complement each other so well!

 

I hand lettered the COME - but everything else is from the Kit! YA. wowsers is right.

(large date stamp not included)

Loving this kit.

Loving these colors.

Loving the corresponding faith journaling

Loving my time blogging for you.

Loving crafting with Citrus Twist with you.

Loving that scrapping can be so easy with these kits!

Loving it all! 

THANK YOU.