Christmas Cards 2012

 

Merry Christmas ALL! I started making my cards as always on Halloween night, after getting 20 or so made, I started a Christmas card list, and was getting ready to address the envelopes in December, then illness happened in this house.  I has not been pretty here, so the beautiful box of cards have sat on my desk, it is now December 26th, and I just got these photos up. I hope that you enjoy, maybe I will get them mailed out late.  Everyone who will be getting one, knows that we have all had some sort of illness.  From Stomach flu to Tonsilitis... Not fun !

 

Almost Moved In...

Sigh of Relief... We are moved into our new place, and the craft room is coming along... I can't wait to start creating again, and just get normalcy back... I use to create layouts, cards, projects all the time, but in our temporary living situation, I didnt have much space, my craft stuff, what little I brought, was in our bedroom, tucked in boxes, I had in total 45 boxes of scrapbook/crafting supplies. Carefully I have been planning, where to put stuff, is it in sight, in reach. I think I am ready to start crafting, and this time I'm going to do it a bit different.. I think I'll be taking pictures as I go, where as before, I'd post once in a while, and I'd really try to get out there and try more of teaching/sharing ideas. We just got back from a mini vacation to the coast, so I have about 100 photos that I need to scrapbook, or put into Project Life. Im also making a scrapbook album for my Mom of our trip, its going to be her Christmas gift, but I want to get it done ASAP, as, when the holidays hit, I will be really busy, on Halloween, I'll be making my Christmas cards, I've been working on a design, Im just hoping time allows me to get to the store sometime to get Bo Bunny's Blitzen pack... I don't know if I've offered this up, but if you have questions, ask away, comments, love to hear them.

Scrapbook Stores

Due to financial cut backs, I hadn't been able to go to any actual scrapbook stores. My favorite being Scattered Pictures in Portland, Oregon, I recently found that Nancy was closing her store. I was crushed, because just when I thought I could get back to going, I didnt have a "homebase".

So what to do? I started calling stores and found that only a few were still open, A Joy Forever in Clackamas, Oregon is where I was going to be headed. I have been wanting to get Bo Bunny's Barefoot and Bliss Collection, so I called, and they had it.

Yesterday I had a couple of hours to myself and headed over, its about 15 miles, but with heavy traffic, it takes a while. Anyhow, I arrived, walked in, and found my new "homebase".

They literally have everything that I wanted... I am in love, so for those of you that are in the Portland are, please stop by and see them. Paper galore, and not just the standard supplies, but they have almost all designers, and how its organized is perfect, by theme!!!!

I got my Barefoot and Bliss, and have been trying to work on a few beach layouts...

*note*... I have a injured tendon in my hand, and my hand is in a cast until Monday, but the pain is no more since having it stabilized... thank you Providence!!!



anyhow, if you have time, check our A Joy Forever, you will love it!!

Mothers Day Cards...

As usual, I wanted to make cards for every Mom I know, but that is just not realistic, so I made 9 cards, out of one 12x12 sheet of paper, and a few invitation size cards. Lemon/Butter yellow, and brick red. To go with my Paper Loft 12x12.

I love simple cards, especially for making more than a few. They can be different styles, just have the same theme.

Let it snow

This layout came out of know where, I was going thru my winter paper and found this snowman with orange flakes, thought it would go great with my sons blue hoodie.  I sprayed the snowflakes with glitter, hope to take a better photo to show the sparkle better...

Technique Tuesday

I am at the Portland Convention Center @ the Creating Keepsakes Scrapbook Convention... Having a blast...

CK Portland Scrapbook Convention 2011

I got to go this year, and you know, I wasnt as impressed as I have been in years past... More kits than paper, more "stores" than actually companies. I was hoping to see more companies, and I didn't, it was vendors selling stuff that they bought at foreclosured scrapbook stores, or a giant swap meet. And some of the vendors were so rude. One stand, the cashier was also the pitch man for a "new" product. She had 20 people in line that wanted to pay, but she was pitching to one lady. I also said to the vendor... " if you ring all of us up, you will make the sale for one item you are trying to push"... but I didn't, I was just grateful to get the time alone to play at the show. There were a few companies there, SEI, Technique Tuesday, two of whom I love dearly and was glad to purchase from, but the wholesale people, if they arent crafty, how can they sell this stuff.. just because you read the directions and know how to use the product, doesn't really mean you KNOW how to use it to the fullest...

I get the whole, gotta make a living, but really people, you should be or try to scrapbook, before trying to sell me a product that I have no desire to buy.

Better luck next time CK...

Project Life Arrived

As a treat to myself, I ordered project life.  Upon opening my treasured white box, I already was swirling with ideas... Which way to use it, what photos, theme, etc.  so I decided on a weekly account of our lives...i tried ordering a month ago but they ran out so I had to wait a bit, so in the mean time I planned which pictures I would use, and started last night.  Pictures to follow...

Posting from my Android phone

I love this smart phone, and for a penny it has paid off, lol. I can blog, load up scrapbook layouts that I take a picture with my phone and not have to wait. 

Scrapbook Websites

I have a new love.. Technique Tuesday.. I am looking forward to meeting them at the up coming Scrapbook convention in Portland, Oregon. I will be posting photos. Have no fear!!

Family Love!!!

I was noticing that this is a scrapbook blog, and I rarely post scrapbook pages, well that is going to change, more layouts. I am a crafty person, and for some reason this year, even though we are super broke, I am paying attention to the scrapbook, paper medium world again. I need to say, that it has nothing to do with the fact that my man got a job offer... woohoo!!! We are extremely thrilled that one of us found a wonderful job in this tough economy... ok, enough about that, its time to talk about Scrapbooking. :)

Starbucks.... Patrick is taking orders

This is my son Patrick.. Christmas 2009, our cousin Jennifer asked him to come with her to her room, having not been around her more than twice, he went with her, willingly. She took him into her room and out he walked with his very own Starbuck Barista Apron.. what a site, I think I'm the only one on both sides that doesn't drink coffee... he was playing in Aunt Linda's kitchen cupboards, and found her Starbuck cup, very cute photos, and it took me a while to make this lay out, but so very glad that I waited.

Scrapbooking the Scrapbooker

I started out scrapbooking the things that I did and the places that I went and it filled my need. Now that I am a mother I spend my scrapbooking moments, working on layouts of my son and the things that he sees, does, experiences. I have gotten behind on his pages, approximately 8 months behind. I was sorting through all the photos today and came across my "old life".

The single life, the travels and journeys that I took in my younger wilder days. I know that eventually I will make my life's book, and pass it on to my son, what I am thinking though, is telling my story, for him. I have had quite the adventurous life, and now that he is here, the adventures are just expanding.

I have two photo boxes that are completely full of photos, and to be honest, I have no idea how I want to do it. It will be in a 8x8 book, I have a lot of photos but just want to minimize all the photos. One or two per page, and share the story, the moment, and possibly the dream or nightmare that followed. The friends that I have/had and their stories.. Life is a journey and I think I am going to try and scrapbook my journey. Not sure where I start, but as long as the dates are in order, I think that will be easy to organize.

I should probably tell my bf to go get my a refill ink cartridge for my printer, since my story is going to be long. LOL

Never Cry Over Spilt Milk... even if its all of your cards..

im over it.. but wow.. the other day I had just finished stamping out 100 pieces for my 25 cards for Christmas... was getting ready to do the assembly line put together, when my little son, walked up and dumped a whole glass of milk all over my cards.. i was hurt at first, but after a few minutes, shrugged and said... oh well.. i am back at it and making my cards, just stamped and colored every piece, got a few already in envelopes and ready to mail.. but they are well out of milk shot... :)

Choosing Color

nearly every day I am working on something new, a card, a layout, a gift album, and I am so picking with my colors, i will put off a project til I can get to the store to find that perfect color match.. anyone else out there that can confirm this ?? I am sure there are... Just makes me laugh sometimes that I simple card will take me sometimes an hour to make LOL Right now I'm working on a wedding card.. the perfect paper, its not quite pink, not quite lavender, and i dont have any stamp ink that will match or even go with the flow... so what do I do, I use dark brown, because that is also in the paper... and it works.. I hope to finish the card sometime soon, the wedding is Saturday, August 5th, 2009... today is monday, we will see what happens. I have also been known to change the whole project and make an entirely new card...

Scrapbookers Block...

Lately I have pulled out photos, and I get the paper out, and then i just stare at them, not sure what to do. Is it possible to have scrapbookers block??? i think that is me right now, i am usually on top of this and never have to take more than a day to do a few layouts, but wow, lately the creative juices haven't been flowing as fast. I can make a card, or a layout, but they are usually boring to me. i am really hard on myself and "perfection". i usually let it go, or I hide the layout before putting it in an album for sometimes months, cause there just might be something I can add or change later. I am a simple scrapper, i dont do huge layouts with a lot of fancy "frill", I do however add a few embellies, but that is about it, the art work is my own, and no one else's. If you feel that you need to spend 5 dollars on a page that is just great for you, but for me, the photo is the artwork, the scrapbooking is just the binding to tell the story.

Here I am, sitting at my desk, with three photos and a piece of paper. Two photos are of my son and the other is a giraffe. With giraffe paper for the background... pretty simple stuff, but from there, my brain just doesnt see what I want to be there. A nice layout, simple, that I can be proud of...

Some of My Layouts..

If you look at my sons outfit there is a little snowman that I turned into a LO. I like to match things, especially when its fun and there is an added kick, I think my favorite part of the snowman is the lime green fiber that I used for his scarf.



There is no rule as to how many photos can be put on a page, I have done as many as 15 small ones to show a full sequence, but this time, four will do. This is our son, about a month old.. A true gem.




Do you ever fall in love with a color combination? For me, it was light purple and celery green. As you look through my blog, layouts, cards you will notice that celery green is my favorite color. This LO is of my Grannie holding her newest Great Grandson...

This is the first layout that I made for our son's scrapbook. He is about 26 weeks inutero and just the greatest joy. I hope to follow with the rest of his Sonogram photos that I got. But I was just super happy with this one.

My Crafty Stuff...

Some people think that you need thousands of dollars worth of stuff to scrapbook, and you dont. I always tell the newbies to go basic, and then as you get use to scrapbooking and finding your niche, then modify.

I started out with 8x10 albums, and didnt care for them after a while, and discovered 12 x 12 several years ago, and love them to this day. Then I went thru a period of only 8 x 8.. there are so many things that you can do on a sheet of paper of any size, it really doesnt matter. I still have the same basic tools that i started using 15 years ago, one of the newest that I added was the Cricut, I love my cricut, and use it almost daily. I dont spend hours on one page/layout, I just dont have the time, I like quick pages, and if all my pages look the same, then that is ok, there is no rule of thumb.

Basically I started with my album, some card stock for a background page, pretty papers that I found for which ever occasion i was working on, and embelishments. You can go simple, or you can go extravagent. Some pages I have spent litterally days on, I pull it out and work on it, or take it apart and start over. I still use glue sticks to glue my pages together, but have become a great fan of the PinPoint Roller Quickie Glue Pen. Oh and dont forget your photos. Cant forget those, as you progress you will add to your collection.

I scrapbook at my computer desk/craft table, and all around me is all of my supplies, I have a one year old who thinks pulling out paper is a fun thing to do... so I usually keep the first few pages just for him to pull out over and over...

Just remember when you are starting this or any hobby you are going to make mistakes, and that is ok, dont let any one tell you how to scrapbook.. these are your thoughts and your ideals of what you like.