Sunday Sketch with Nathalie

Hi there!
Nathalie here with this week's sketch challenge, and i am in love with all the layers that it showcases.  Having a sketch always makes a project come together easily in a short amount of time.  So, before i show you what i created using the Life Chapters kit and a few pieces from the add-on kit, let me share the sketch with you all.

I was inspired by the layers and positioning of the elements  to create this page about my youngest sister and her lovely story (trust me she herself is an adventure for us!)

I tried an stayed true to the sketch, but as you can see there are a few minor changes that make it more my style.  Firstly, i switched the location of the label and the small paper strip from the bottom to the top of the page, and added a bit of mixed media to the background, hence adding texture to this page.

While the texture paste dried, i used the Notebook Edge cut file to cut one of the Pinkfresh Studio papers with it, at the same time a few of the floral images from the Sunny Days papers (Maggie Holmes) from the add-on kit were fussy cut.

I pulled all the blue elements  i could find in the cut apart elements, ephemera and labels to bring the pops of color to this page.   Once i had everything ready, i followed the sketch to create the layers behind the picture using papers from both the Life Chapters and Add on Kits.

The ripped layer of paper was replaced with the fussy cut florals, and all the blue elements were used to create the small clusters that create the visual triangle on this page.   Gotta love the small alphas included in the Life Chapters kit, as they are the perfect font to combine with all die cuts, and so on, just like featured in the title of this page.  The following video will show you how it all came together:

As you can see this page is a reflection of my sister's story and it came together rather easily with the  inspiration the sketch provides.

Now it is  your turn to put the sketch to use in a project of your own.  Remember to share with us what you create, tag @citrustwistkits or #citrustwistkits when sharing it on social media or just upload your picture to the CTK Friends page on Facebook.  We love seeing your creations.

XO

3-to-Inspire with Amanda

Hi CTK Friends! 

Welcome back for more March Kit inspiration!
Amanda here, & today I am sharing a few projects for the awesome 3-to-Inspire challenge!

Before we get started here's the 3 things you'll need to feature in your projects to play along;

1. Use pattern paper. There are so many gorgeous designs in both kits this month - so use them up!

2. Include chipboard embellishments. Again, there's a vast array of these in both kits!

3. Add Die Cuts / Ephemera. An easy one to keep things light hearted, &  just get you creating!

Now, onto the good stuff!
Firstly, here's what I've created with using my Life Crafted Album & March Life Chapters Kit!

Sigh! Sweet dreams, indeed! 

Such darling pages & a great design to showcase that fabulous pattern paper! 

Here's a closer view....

On closer inspection you'll spy that I have also used the 3 x 8" book mark as part of my page base too! The vintage appearance of this book mark softens the boldness of the pattern paper, and also adds a more masculine feel to the page! 

The chipboard sentiment circles, combined with the star ephemera are the perfect finishing touch! 

I also created a new 'tabbed' section for my Life Crafted Album using the March Life Chapters Kit too.....

Sigh! Isn't this pretty?! I instantly fell in love with that floral paper and knew I'd make a real feature of it! The cream scalloped pocket is also a fave of mine from this month's kit! 

(Especially as I love hidden journaling and interactive album pages!) 

& speaking of interactive elements, the "Did you ever hear the story of..." journal card is the BEST prompt card for this new section of my Life Crafted Album. A place to record all life's little chapters & stories! 

The hearts are such a soft take on chipboard stickers, and really add an elegant touch! Beautiful!

Next up is a super pretty layout that I've created using the March Scrapbooking Add On Kit,

"Happy"

Oh!!! Such loveliness! 

You'll spy pattern papers Happy Place & Good Times from the Pinkfresh Studio Everyday Musings collection. I may be a lil biased when it comes to Pinkfresh Studio, but this line really has my heart! Oh.so.pretty!!! 

To showcase more of these gorgeous pattern papers, I also fold up the edges to reveal the B sides....

I layer & embellish this page with lots of the Everyday Musings ephemera too! 

For the chipboard element, you'll spy more of those exclusive ones from the March Life Chapters Kit, as well as a chipboard frame from the February Scrapbooking Add On Kit. 

Such a gorgeous photo cluster! 

Love it!

And there you have it! 

Three very beautiful projects for today's 3-to-Inspire challenge! 

I hope you'll join me and play along! 

Don't forget to share your CTK projects with us in the Citrus Twist Kits Facebook Fan Page HERE! 

We really love seeing what you create and love to talk all things paper craft!

Thanks so much for visiting today! 

til next time, 

Happy Arty Days, Amanda xo 

MAud | Life Crafted with Lydia Cost

I'm still in a little shock that I get to play with the amazing CTK goodies each month!  What a blessing I feel to be welcomed to this amazing team!  For my first project, I'm working through my Life Crafted Album.

This spread is all about achieving Master level on my Audible membership last year.  Audible had re-posted to their Instagram account someone who had joked about adding MA to their post-nominal initials, and I just thought that was so funny and clever, so I had to document that myself in true papercrafting fashion!

Using the amazing white-scalloped pocket that comes with this month's Life Chapters kit, I slid in a selection of books I'm currently reading, and stitched it down on my spread.  I then layered on a screenshot of my master level to document the achievement.

I finished off my spread by adding a great 3x4 card from this month's kit.  I wanted to document my book count from last year, because it was quite a feat for me!  This pretty, little yellow card summarizes the idea behind my title, Lydia Cost MAud!

If you want to see how this spread came together, feel free to check out the process video below!  I'm so excited to get to know all of you over the next couple months!

Travelers Notebook Challenge with Diane

Hi Guys! Diane here with another Traveler's Notebook Challenge for you!

Sometimes I really struggle with journaling, I know the story I want to tell but often I don't know where to start writing or how best to tell it. One technique I do love, is to use numbered journaling and today I'm challenging you to try it as well!

February isn't only the "love" month because of Valentines Day, it is also our anniversary month so a love themed spread in my TN seemed appropriate! I had these amazing cork numbers from the March Life Crafted kit and a bit of 6x8 grid paper but that was about all (man, did I use up every little scrap of that kit this time!), so I grabbed the March Scrapbook Add On kit too.

I placed my numbers on my grid paper and draw a really light line in pencil to give me a guideline for where NOT to type on my typewriter! Then I erased the line and glued my numbers down. It's not perfect but I love how the journaling isn't straight and sort of merges around the numbers.

The rest of the page is pretty simple, but very bright thanks to that amazing Color Fresh paper. I LOVED that die cut from the Everyday Musings pack. The font couldn't have been more perfect with those numbers.

I really do love how easily the journaling flows once I put some numbers in front of it! Here's how this page came together in my TN...

I can't wait to see what you do with this challenge so don't forget to post your layouts in the Facebook Fan Page so we can see!

"Chapters" with Marsha

Hello friends!  It's Marsha, here with my first post as part of the Citrus Twist Creative Team.  I am so happy to be here!  The March Life Chapters kit, is absolutely gorgeous, and I am excited to share with you the layout I created using the kit, Life Chapters Cut Aparts, and Traveler's Notebook Stamp Set.

To begin the layout, I chose a black and white photo of my husband and me, taken last month at a Valentine's Day Banquet.  The geometric heart patterned paper from the kit is my favorite, so I decided to use the full sheet on my layout.  I cut it in half and layered it over some white card stock, machine stitching around the edges for interest and texture.

I layered the "chapters" ephemera piece along the edge of the patterned paper to serve as my title.  Next, I stamped on a label using the Traveler's Notebook Stamp Set.  The sentiments on this set are perfect for my layout!    I used some of the cut aparts, and one of the chipboard circle pieces to complete this section of the page.

For the other side of the spread, I used one of the journaling cards from the kit as a mat for my photo.  I layered a label behind the photo, stamped the date on a tab, and added a couple of chipboard pieces.  I trimmed another one of the 3x4 cards into a tag shape to use for my journaling and tucked it behind the photo.

Here's another look at my completed layout.

Thank you so much for joining me today.  I hope I have inspired you to use the March Life Crafted kit and Traveler's Notebook Stamp Set to document your stories!

Meet our March Guest Designer - Krystal Becker

Today we are so excited to share with you are next Guest Designer for March, Krystal Becker.  If you are not already following Krystal then you really should - her Instagram feed is an absolute delight to scroll through!  You can see more of Krystal's amazing work on her blog and YourTube channel!

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GET TO KNOW KRYSTAL

My name is Krystal Becker, and I live in a small, rural, college town in Indiana. I have been with my partner, Jesse, for nearly 19 years, and we have four furry children (two dogs and two cats). They are my everything! By day I'm a librarian. I currently work as the Marketing and Communications Director of our local public library.

I've been crafting nearly my entire life. I used to spend hours with my grandmother making little gifts for other family members out of painted wood, paper, fabric, pipe cleaners, or whatever else she could find in her closets. My style today is a little bit eclectic. I used to be very minimalist and only used clean white backgrounds, but I've been dipping my toes in the mixed media pond lately, and I'm starting to embrace a "messier" look. However, I always select limited color palettes for my projects to keep things cohesive and to prevent them from looking too overwhelming to my eye.

Q&A WITH KRYSTAL

When did you start scrapbooking?

I made my very first scrapbook when I was in high school (in the mid 90's). I didn't know that there were special products for scrapbooking back then, so I just used whatever I could find around the house (construction paper, confetti, bits from magazines, etc.). It wasn't until around 2005, after I graduated from college and had some spare time, that I discovered the world of papercrafting. I've basically been addicted to pretty paper ever since. 

What is something most people would not know about you?

Scrapbooking is not my only hobby; I also sing. I've been singing my entire life, and even spent a year touring with a production company right out of high school. I'm currently in a local jazz band and also sit in with an old-timey band at times. 

What are the 3 scrapbooking products you can’t live without?

Only 3?! This is going to be difficult. I definitely need patterned paper, and I use labels on nearly everything I create, so I would definitely need some of them. Then I'd probably want something with some kind of dimension. Enamel dots are usually my go-to. So yeah, I'd say patterned paper, labels, and enamel dots.

What do you love about the new Life Crafted kit?

I am seriously in love with the Life Crafted albums! I struggled with the idea of traveler's notebooks for a long time. I like the size, but they seemed so limiting to me. With the Life Crafted album, you get the same size but with the flexibility to add in smaller bits and lots of dimension. The Life Crafted kits make it so easy to put together pages for the album. They have everything you need, all perfectly coordinated. I can sit down and create multiple pages in no time at all, which is important when you have limited time to create. 

Finish this sentence "If you could see my scrapbooking space right now . . . "

...you might be appalled. :) My space is far from ideal. I have a wall of make-shift shelving in the sun room of our tiny cottage and an Ikea desktop precariously perched on some small wire shelves. Our two cats spend a lot of time in this room, so I'm always fighting a battle with cat hair (and usually losing). It's generally a hot mess. But I make it work. :)

And here is just a little peek into her creative space:

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The pages I created are in my "Books in 2019" album. (I had previously posted the cover page I made for the album using the February CTK kit on Instagram). I made four two-page spreads documenting four of the books I've read so far in 2019.

Thanks so much for having me as a guest designer!  Krystal

"Just Us" with Suzanna

Hey there, crafty friends! I'm so excited to share my first post as a member of the CTK design team! I used the March Life Crafted kit to create a layout that, if you ask me, screams of spring vibes. I am so excited for the start of a new season right around the corner.

I created an 8.5x11" layout and really love the way it turned out. The patterned paper from the kit made the perfect background for my photo, journaling, and embellishing.

I'm a big fan of clustering embellishments and did so in three places around the layout. This "design triangle" guides the eye, so the layout flows well when you're looking at it. I clustered die cuts, chipboard pieces, and labels.

On the right side of my photo, I used a journaling card to hold all of my journaling - which looks like a blob to you because I had to blur for privacy reasons. But under that blurry blob there are lots of words that talk about what made this memory special.

To finish the layout, I added a bit of gold craft mist splattered around the same places I put my embellishment clusters. It really brought the layout together and added just the perfect amount of messy!

I hope this layout gave you a bit of inspiration on how you can use your March Life Crafted kit. I'll be back later this month with more crafty goodness! Until then, I'll be peeking at the CTK hashtag on Insta to see all the beautiful projects y'all are creating!