Welcome Laura Vegas our April Guest Designer!!

Hi there! I'm Laura Vegas, from Northern California, where I live with my husband Joe, and my two gorgeous daughters, Alyssa (17) and Sarah (14). I have been scrapbooking for over 20 years now, which seems like forever. I work full-time in my home as a daycare provider, and also work part-time as the Design Team Coordinator for Bella Blvd. I have been fortunate enough to design for some amazing manufacturers in the industry over the last 8 years, and have also had my work published in a variety of publications for the last 10 years. I was also a proud member of the 2010, 2011 and 2012 Creating Keepsakes Dream Team. I am currently serving as the Design Team Coordinator for Bella Blvd, designing for Kerri Bradford Studio, and have been a member of the 2013 & 2014 Scrapbook & Cards Today design team. When I’m not scrapping or working, you can usually find me driving my girls around to all of their school, sports, music, and social activities, or relaxing on the couch catching up on all my favorite shows and trying to clean off the DVR.

 

1. How long have you been scrapbooking and why did you start?  I have been scrapping for over 20 years now. I started scrapping before my oldest daughter was born, after getting introduced to the hobby at a Creative Memories workshop. I love photos and I love the idea of preserving our memories, so combining those two things in a creative way was a perfect fit for me. I mainly focus on scrapping my family, but often times you will find me creating layouts about family friends and my daycare kids as well.

 

2. How would you describe your scrapbooking style?  I am a very linear scrapper, and love having things neatly organized on my pages. All of my layouts and cards start with a white cardstock background. That often gets covered in patterned paper along the way, but I always start with white. I like texture and dimension on my projects, but I don’t like too much bulk. I love creating photo collages to use on my layouts, as they’re a great way to get a TON of photos onto the page, in a neat and organized way. I love including die cutting on my projects, and use my Cameo as often as I can. And I always like to include a little (or a lot) of machine stitching to my projects to give them a finished look.

 

3. What scrapbookers have influenced you most?  One of my all-time favorite designers (who sadly, doesn't scrap anymore) is Erin Terrell Clarkson. Years and years ago, she was the one that taught me all about creating photo collages and incorporating them into my pages and I was always a fan of her clean and linear style. I also love the styles of Susan Weinroth, Summer Fullerton, and Jennifer Gallacher.

 

4. What is your favorite thing about kit clubs?  I love the convenience of having everything hand-picked, coordinated, and assembled in a fun bag to scrap with. While I love to dig through my own stash as I work on projects, it's nice to have all of that done for me sometimes. I also love the challenge of working with pieces that I might not ordinarily choose for myself.

 

5. If you departed on a week-long trip to the beach, what are your 5 favorite scrapbooking items you would bring with you (besides your camera and photos!)?  First off, I will just assume that they would have a trimmer and adhesive for me at this beach ;) I would have to bring a pack of American Crafts white cardstock (my favorite). Then I would need an assortment of patterned paper, buttons, my Cameo (although that would also require my laptop), and my Tiny Attacher. I would have no problem creating layouts with just those items.

6. How would you describe the Citrus Twist April's kit and what do you enjoy most about the kit?  The April kit has such a fun mix of patterned papers. I was able to get a wide variety of color combos and looks out of those papers, which lead to all of my projects having a different feel to them. I think my favorite item in the kit had to be the fun tags from Amy Tangerine, with the colorful die cut words stitched on them. I used a different tag for each project, which really helped me pick out just the right mix of papers and embellishments. I also loved that there were plenty of embellishments to choose from.

**Be sure to leave some love, ask a question, or just a fun comment for Laura and you will be entered in to win ONE of her favorite things!!**

Now for a look at Laura's beautiful work using the April Kit.  I just love everything about this! 

 

Here is a close up:

And now for a look at Laura's scrap space.  I love how neat and organized it looks!

Thanks for stopping by, you will see more of Laura's work later this month.