February Add-On Kit with Nathalie & Trina

Hello everyone,

Nathalie and I are popping into today to share some of the pages we made with this month's beautiful February 2020 12" x 12" Scrapbooking Kit Add-On. This kit has a delightful mix of products primarily from Crate Paper Magical Forest and Pinkfresh My Favorite Story. February 2020 kits begin shipping out tomorrow.

Trina's Projects

I went on a recent girls' road trip on the central coast of California. There is nothing like blue skies and sunshine to bring out the inner artist.

My first project didn't start out as a tribute page, but quickly morphed into one. I was working with a photo I took on my brother's birthday right after I saw a plaque set into stone that read "Sit and relax. Enjoy the moment." That plaque, those moments along the 17 Mile Drive and thinking about my brother turned into this page. The triangles and enamel dots became pieces of my fractured heart. I loved working on this project even though it was unexpected. The italic title is from our new Upper and Lower Case Italic Alphabet & Number stamp set. (NOTE: I pulled the antique lace and book pages from my vintage stash.)

Here's a close-up:

My next project took on many different forms before it became this. Primarily it was made by playing around with small pieces of the pattern paper that comes in the February kit.

Here are a couple of close-ups:

Now it is time for Nathalie to share a bit of inspiration!


Nathalie's Project


Hi there!

This month's add-on kit is the perfect combination of color, design and sentiment which is the key to enhancing your memory keeping.   I wanted something soft and dreamy to document a recent picture of one of our Goddaughter's first day of dance school, so  i pulled some watercolor and just played with papers to create this page.

I wanted a background that was going to make everything else stand out, so i pulled a bit of Licorice liquid watercolor from Pinkfresh Studio ( available at the CTK shop) and using a large brush just added a few strokes on the page.   I followed this  with a bit of texture paste and a simple circle stencil, and set it aside to dry.

I pulled all the Pinkfresh Studio - My Favorite Story collection- papers, in the add-on kit, and vellum to create all the butterflies using a metal die.   I layered the vellum atop the paper butterflies to create the soft look on the images.  All the negative pieces of papers were then used to create the layers behind the picture.

Once i set the picture on the background, i used the butterflies to create three clusters surrounding the page.  I added a bit stamped sentiments around the clusters using the Traveler's Notebook  and  Life Crafted: Possibilities stamp sets, as well as some enamel dots from the add-on kit.

To make the color of my baby's tutu stand out, i simple folded the background and added small pieces of the Beauty of Simplicity paper and a few fussy cut flowers from the Bloom and Grow paper  -both from PinkFresh Studio-.  With so many beautiful embellishments, it was so easy to add a title and embellish the page.

I hope you stop by the  CTK shop to check this gorgeous add-on kit ( kits start shipping today)!  There is so many possibilities in this little bundle of paper and embellishments that it will sure enhance your stories.

XO

Product Highlight - THIS IS LIFE: GOOD VIBES Digital Stamp

Hi there!

Nathalie with you today with a few projects created with the new POSSIBILITIES Life Crafted kit.  I love this month's kit, but every month one of the first products i reach for are the Digital files.  So, today i want to share with you a few layouts created using my hybrid approach:

The new This is Life "Good Vibes" Digital Stamp set ( just like its physical format) is filled with possibilities that can help you create one of a kind projects in  a short amount of time.

I started with this layout all about our youngest Goddaughter's 1st birthday.   I love seeing all the yellow on the pictures i received throughout the day, so  i chose three of them that tell the story of the day and printed them in a photo strip design.

I chose a large title so it balances the photo strip.  This was  easily created by using Photoshop to print two of the sunburst designs on white cardstock. I made sure to leave a space between them so i can add my title. Once i printed the design, i used a paper piercing tool to create a holes at the ends of each of the lines and used yellow embroidery thread to stitch over the design.

I then used the Spencer Solid 6x8 stamp set to add the word one in between the stitched lines.  Then used  purple ink to stamp the "Awesome" word image and the butterfly outline from the This is Life Stamp set on white cardstock and fussy cut it.  I just glued these on the page to complete the title work.

On the other side of the layout, i used the Digital TN Papers to create the base for the page and then added my picture.   Once again, i used the This is Life "Good Vibes" stamp set to create the butterfly images and small circle sunburst that embellish the pictures.

For my next page, i once again reached for the This  Is Life: Good Vibes Digital Stamp set and used Photoshop to create the large butterfly images and stars you see on the page.  I size them so that they create the illusion of movement and dimension on the page.

To bring color to the page, i diluted  ink to resemble watercolor and added a splatter of it on each butterfly followed by smaller splatters around it. Since i used very little water, the paper did not warp, and the ink from the printer did not run either.

To finish this page, I chose to type my journal and added one of the large foam words as the title for the layout.   I then enlarged the picture of my other Goddaughter and their new pet to fit the page and added pieces from the cut apart elements page ( free for subscribers) and more stamped images to complete the page.

I hope you stop by the Citrus Twist Kits Digital shop to check all the new digital files especially the new This is Life:  Good Vibes Digital Stamp set.   Having the option of creating your background and printing them at home surely stretch your kits and create one of a kind pages!

Cannot wait to see how you use this ideas  on your pages.

XO

MEET OUR FEBRUARY GUEST DESIGNER - ASHLEY HORTON

Hello everyone!
We are so happy to share our February Guest Designer with you  - ASHLEY HORTON!  We are fans of Ashley's love for color and clean lines, and love everything she creates.  But before we share what she has created with the Possibilities kit, let's get to know her.

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Q & A with Ashley

·  When did you start scrapbooking?

I started scrapbooking in 2006, when our daughter was born.  I thought it would be a fun way to document photos, rather than doing the typical baby book.

·  What is something most people would not know about you?

I love bagpipe/Celtic music.  Most people find bagpipes annoying, but I LOVE to hear them!!

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

Wood Veneers, Clear Stamps and Chipboard

·  What do you love about the February Life Crafted kit/ Life Crafted Album?

The February Life Crafted Kit has a fun mix of products and can be used for a lot of different themed projects.  And I love that I can create outside the page protector or add my pages to the various page protectors that come with the Life Crafted Album, if I choose to.

·  Finish this sentence “If you could see my desk now . . . “

You would think I’m hard at work…but it probably just needs to be cleaned!

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When I opened up and looked through the February Life Crafted Kit, I was so excited to get started with it!  I love that the products can be used for various themed layouts.  The notebook patterned paper and wood grain patterned paper jump started the idea for this layout in my Traveler’s Notebook.

I started by cutting a heart shape in the center of the notebook patterned paper and then backed it with a bit of the wood grain paper.  Then I stitched around the edge of the heart to add some texture.  I debated what I wanted to do in the center of the heart and decided on adding my title there.  I used the AMAZING It’s All About the Numbers Stamp Set.  I LOVE THIS STAMP SET!  You will notice, I used it a few more times on the layout.

For my photo, I chose to document a cute one of our doggie Baxter.  He is a pro at naps!  I changed my photo to black & white and sized it to fit across the 5 inch span of my patterned paper.  Before I printed the photo, I typed in “I” and “Naps” in a typewriter font to coordinate with the It’s All About the Numbers Stamp Set.  Then, once my photo was printed, I placed a heart sticker from the Puffy Stickers sheet in between the words.

Once I had my photo in place, I felt like I needed another patterned paper to separate the photo from the wood grain paper.  I cut a thin strip of the heart patterned paper and then used a notebook punch to give it a fun look.  I also decided to add another strip of the heart paper on the left-hand side of the layout, to give it some balance.

I finished my layout, by going through the embellishments in the February Life Crafted Kit.  I used some of the die cut pieces, and Puffy Stickers to create a visual triangle on the layout.  And here’s a fun tip – when you’re looking through the die cut pieces, if there’s something you may not use as is, cut it up and just use part of it.  I did that for the Keepin’ It Real phrase at the top of the page on the left side.  I wanted another word phrase there, and I thought it worked out perfectly after I cut it from a larger die cut piece.

Thanks so much for stopping by today to check out my project.  I hope you found some inspiration for using the Possibilities Life Crafted Kit!  I’ll be sharing more inspiration later this month, and make sure you’re visiting the Blog and Instagram to see how the Design Team is using the Kit!

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Thank you Ashley for the beautiful layout and sharing a bit of you with all of us.  We are so lucky to have you as a guest this month.  Remember to stop by Ashley's Instagram feed to be amazed by her pages.

XO

Sunday Sketch with Kira

 Hey there!  It's Kira and I am back with another Sunday Sketch!  I am using the February Life Crafted Kit and working in my Life Crafted album.  Here's a look at the sketch I am using today:

And here's a look at my completed layout:

I have been starting every layout in this album with journaling, some of my journaling is a story I am telling to Folsom (my dog who passed away, and who the album is focused on), but a lot of my journaling is a letter to someone whom the story relates to.  In this layout, it is a letter to Hobbs, my dog that was a few years older than Folsom, who died a few years back.  I typed out the letter on white cardstock and cut down to 4.25x8.25. 

Then on the reverse page, I stuck fairly close to the sketch.  I had one photo of Folsom, sized at 3.5x3.5.  I used some patterened paper from the LC kit, and placed my photo tilted on the paper.  Instead of a label, I used the die cut bird as my embellishment. 

I used some more patterned paper as the bordered strips on the layout.  And I used some machine stitching to add some texture. I also brought some of the strips of paper to the journaling page, since I had about an 1" of white space at the bottom of the page. 

I wanted to include a photo of Hobbs dog to the layout, so I printed out a photo that would fit in the die cut frame.  Then I adhered that on top of a journaling card that I punched to fit in the LC album

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Thanks for stopping by!  I can't wait to see how you use this week's sketch!

xo, Kira

3 to Inspire with Marsha

Hey friends!  It's Marsha here with this week's 3-to-Inspire challenge.  This is always one of my favorite challenges to host, and it's even more exciting today because the new kits for February just released!  To join in, be sure to use all three prompts on your project.

Here are this week's prompts:

1. Use ephemera or die cuts

2. Add a large title

3. Do some stamping

Here's my take on the challenge using the NEW February "Possibilities" Life Crafted kit and the Spencer Solid Alpha Stamp:

To begin my layout, I printed two traveler's notebook ledger papers from this month's digital TN papers.  I chose to use a neutral background because I knew I wanted to add a large stamped title.  Using the Spencer Solid Alpha Stamp, I stamped the word "Driving" using blue distress oxide ink.  This is one of my favorite alpha stamp sets- LOVE the bold look it provides!  I did a bit more stamping using black ink and the kit stamp.  Next, I layered a few ephemera pieces, also from the Possibilities kit.

I couldn't resist using the ephemera keys and banner from the kit in a small cluster at the top of the page.  They worked perfectly with this story documenting my son driving. 

For the other side of the spread, I typed my journaling on the computer and printed it directly onto the ledger paper.  I trimmed the multi-pattern kit paper into three strips and adhered them to the edge of the page.  Next, I layered my photo over a journaling card and trimmed the top of it into a ticket shape, following the ticket print on the top of the card. To embellish, I stamped a few sentiments onto labels using the kit stamp and layered ephemera and chipboard circular pieces over the edges of the photo.  To complete the spread, I added some puffy heart stickers to a few areas on the layout.

I hope I have inspired you to create a page using this week's 3-to-Inspire prompts!  I will see you again soon!

xo,