SUNDAY SKETCH WITH EVE

Hello,

It's Eve, new DT member from France :)

For my first layout, i use this beautiful sketch :



I used the main kit and the embellishment kit to do this layout :

 

Hope you love it :) Thanks again Trina to invite me to this fabulous team !

To play along with our sketch challenge, upload your layouts to the gallery by 01/25 to get your name in a drawing to win a $5 GC to the store. When uploading to the gallery you can name it as you would normally but please include "Sketch 01/19".

My Approach to Pocket Life 2014

Hi everyone! It's April again.  I'm back to share my approach to pocket life for 2014 as well as share my first week using the January PL, PL Embellie, and Main Embellie kits!

I had been getting bored with my current 2013 format as of late, so like many others, I was considering switching it up for 2014.  There are just so many options when it comes to size, format, etc, that would make it different (and therefore, a little more "fun") for me, but when it came down to it, I needed to stick with a system that would work consistently for me.

That being said, I decided to stick with my 2013 approach.  It's just what works for me.  I'll be doing a 12"x12" format with a two page spread for each week using Design F page protectors.  The small differences in 2014 are:

• I definitely won't be doing a "week in review" card like I did in 2013 - I always dreaded writing those out.
• I'm going to try to incorporate more fun elements like stitching and die cuts.
• Hopefully, I'll be able to incorporate more of my husband's voice on my spreads.

I still haven't finished my 2013 album (slowly but surely.. I will finish it), but I'm planning to keep up with 2014 while I finish up 2013, so here's my week 1!

I'm actually not sure what I was thinking when I planned this page and when I actually started putting it all together.  I meant for this first week to be a short week: Jan 1-5.  I even stamped my week card Jan 1 - Jan 5!  But somehow, I incorporated the full week (which included Dec 30 and 31)... and I didn't even realize I did this until after the spread was complete!  (I may go back and re-do this spread completely, but we'll see!)

Some close-up shots:

In case you were wondering, I haven't done a title page for my 2014 album yet. It'll most likely be the last thing I do for my album (I still don't even have any title/end pages for my 2013 albums)!

Thanks for stopping by!

Playing with Pocket Life with Jen

Happy Pocket Life Friday!I'm sharing my Week 42 today...yes, from 2013! I'm still playing a bit of catch up with last year's album and that's okay. As it turned out, some of the prints and colors in the January kits? Absolutely perfect for my autumn throwback week. Those adorable little toadstools? Yes! I think it's safe to say the SC Print Shop is my new favorite paper collection.

This week I took my boys on a visit to a local pumpkin patch, indulged in a Pumpkin Spice Latte, hung a new fall wreath and attended my oldest son's first preschool field trip. Packed with fun activities!

The biggest news of this week was making an offer on a new house and having that offer accepted the next day! After a 2.5 year search, we finally found our home. I combined a digital brush with the large Daily Flash stickers to make that simple, yet powerful statement with just one word.  For the bottom left split photo, I combined iPhone shots of each of our boys from the day we submitted the offer, added a two digital brushes and accented it with one of the heart/geotag wood veneers from the PL kit.

I wanted to keep my weekly card light and bright for such a happy week. The white and taupe sketchy print is so pretty was easily embellished by punching out a few holes and adding three separate punched patterns in their place, layering labels and using one of the PL kit stamps.

The story of finding our new house and how we knew it was "the one" is slipped in this fabulous SC clear, stitched pocket that was in the PL Embellishment kit this month.

I print my photos at home and, when using Instagrams, print two to a 4x6. This week I tried trimming them to look like mini polaroids to allow for journaling.

The chalkboard bubble stickers in the PL Embellishment kit are too fun! I use my white Sharpie poster paint pen to add text and an outline to this one, quoting my younger son.

And here are your sketches for the week:

Be Inspired with Amélie

Hi there! Do you need some inspiration today because I have a new inspiration for you! Do you like doilies?? As far as I'm concerned.. yes, I love them!
So, this is a part of my inspiration for you. Look at this!

Source

Source 

 Source

 This one come from Pretty Little Studio's blog:

 Source

And now, my layout inspired by these pictures:

Some details:

For this layout, I used January Add-On Kit. Some doilies come from my stash, one is cutting with my Silhouette Cameo.You can also find some embellishments from previous kits like enamel dots, washi tape, sequins and transparency arrows. Crochet doily and wood stars come from my Citrus Twist Christmas kit.

I hope this will inspire you!
See you soon,
Amélie

6x6 Paper Play with April

Hi CTKer's! :) April here to share a penpal mini book that I made using the 6x6 paper pad from the January PL kit, the PL Embellie Kit, and the Main Embellie Kit.

Late last year, I picked up a new hobby of penpalling.  I love being able to connect with other girls from all over the world who have the same interests as me, who appreciate the time and effort put into crafting and pretty packaging, and who reciprocates the same time and effort to make something pretty for me.  It's also a plus getting a pretty package in the mail that isn't a bill! ;)

Often times, I get stuck with a bunch of leftover sheets from my 6x6 pads, so I had an idea of using the leftover sheets to make a mini book that I could write my penpal letters in.  I constructed the mini book using techniques I learned in making mini albums which was to adhere two sheets back to back, then bind them together using washi tape!  I make my pages different sizes and I like to add pockets to add interest and interaction to my books.  Then I embellish with leftover scraps, alphas, and stickers that I have laying around.

Here's a look at the completed (blank) book that I made for my penpal, Lily:

Here's a small peak at what the book looks like after I've written in it and added some extras to my pockets. (Sorry for the small photo, but I did it intentionally in order to maintain some privacy with what I've written in the letter.)

Thanks for stopping by! :)

PS.  The library card pocket is from my stash!

Tuesday Tutorial

Hello Angie here to share a fun, yet simple tutorial with you today.  I know a lot of us (including me) don't have "extra" time to add all those little extra details to layouts but if we did here is a simple technique that took an extra 15 min. *Layout is main kit only except the mini brown alphas are from my stash)*



First, I strung my needle with the thread that came in the January Main Kit. 


Next I took a pencil and made stitch marks on my layout.  And I hand sewed the layout.  Super simple and in my opinion is kinda relaxing.

Here are some different stitches you could do:

Zig Zag:

Cross Stitch:



Straight Stitch:



Straight Stitch around the bubble:



I hope this little sewing tutorial inspired you to sew on your next layout. If you do I would love to see them in gallery!

Simple Strategies- Just Start Stacking!

Hello, and happy Monday, everyone! Melissa here with a Simple Strategies post to get your week off to a good start.

When I started the layout above, I actually didn't have a clear idea of where I wanted to go with it or even what photos I wanted to use. I did have a vague idea that I wanted to stack up lots of embellishments from the Printshop vellum die cut pack in January's Main Kit, so I decided to start with that and see where things went.

I used the colors in the scalloped paper (also in the Main Kit) as inspiration for the pieces I chose to layer, and I also decided at this point to pull in some of the Chic Tags paper clips that matched. I arranged the elements in a loose line down the center of the page, not really in any order- just stacking and playing until I was happy with the look.

I decided to try out the exclusive butterfly next, thinking that it would be a great way to tie all of the pieces together. I also added a few of the exclusive wood veneer clouds from this month's kit.

Remember that up to this point I had just been playing with the layout and simply piling things on- no pressure, just creative fun! Once I got it to a point where I really liked the look, I started to stick everything down.

First I cut out the middle section of the scalloped paper so I'd have some pieces left for other layouts, then I layered an 11.5x11.5 in the middle and stitched around the edges.

I had one more idea I wanted to try before putting everything together- arranging the die cuts in the same color order as the background paper. I loved the orderly look this gave to everything!

I keep lots of photos printed and ready to scrap, so it only took a few minutes to flip through them and find two to use that worked with the colors and theme that I already had going with this page.

All that was left after that was to add a title and some journaling!

Not every layout has to start with photos and journaling. Sometimes if you're stuck for a place to start, begin with the embellishments and paper that most inspire you and simply play with layering them up and arranging them on a page. It might be just the creative kick start that you need!