Art Girlz Scrapbook Nook

SBPS #10 -- Puppy Love Scrapbook Pages

I participated in a "secret scrapbooking sister" swap at Split Coast Stampers. I received photos from Cathy ("tahitiancat" on SCS) and made pages for her. Sent them out ... and I'm waiting to hear how she likes them!

I received great pages from Kerry ("kerry3k" on SCS). My boyfriend's dog was pregnant ... I took her in, gave her a home, loved her and kept her. Cammie had 7 healthy puppies -- all of them found good homes. We kept "mommy" (Cammie) and she is now my dog. My sister has Marley. Not sure where they got that name from, but that dog is very loved by my niece and nephew.

The pages that Kerry made for me are GREAT! I only need to add a few journaling notes -- it's complete. It is already in my photo album. I'm waiting for some inspiration for the journaling.

Here's the 2-page layout (12x12 size) that Kerry sent me. LOVE it!!!!

Couldn't be more excited. Now the girls and I all want these pages in our album!

Grandma's Roses

I have very few photos of my childhood because my father always used slide film. They have tons of slides, but unfortunately with moving several times, humidity and age (ok, not THAT old!) they are fading. I also remember those flash bulbs and how they were so HOT!!!

I don't think I have any photos of me and my grandmother together as she passed away when I was only 13. But I remember this photograph of her in the rose garden ... it always sat on the fireplace mantle. For as long as I can remember, this photo was there.

Grandma's Roses didn't come out exactly as I had planned. But it's here. I will make other pages for my daughters books. My niece is named after Grandma -- "Naomi".

I used Stampin'Up! stamps: Roses in Winter (which is my VERY favorite stamp set EVER), and the collage alphabet. The background paper was lighter, but I took a sponge with some re-inker and smudged it all over to make it look old.

I didn't have any rose flowers, so I added these Prima flowers. I have seen some wonderful cards & other items made with "Roses in Winter" where they made the flowers 3-d. I'm going to have to try that.

So, today I share with you Grandma's Roses.

"Name that Page" a regular feature!

We've had such fun doing "NAME THAT PAGE" these past several weeks. We've received wonderful comments, great title suggestions, e-mails and more. Didn't realize there were so many cool ideas for page titles ... honestly, it will be difficult to choose they are all great.

Each month (by mid-month) we'll post a scrapbook page without a title. You'll have until the end of the month to leave comments with your ideas of a great name for that page.

The winner will not be drawn at random, BUT ... your name will not be attached to the title. One of my daughters or friends will choose the title they like best (and I'll match it up with your name).

WIN FREE BLOG CANDY -- right here -- each month!

Check back for our June "NAME THAT PAGE" contest.

Don't forget, you still have time to post your suggestion for THIS SCRAPBOOK PAGE. We'll be choosing a winner June 2nd.

Hope you all had a safe Memorial Day weekend.

High School Chorus Concert filled with Heavenly Voices

I didn't realize it's Memorial Day Weekend. So much going on this week (and weeks past). Last night we attended the last chorus concert of the year. There are about 5 different choral groups, and in each group the teacher announced the Seniors and the other students presented them with little gifts.

It was really nice. I love the sound of voices singing. This choral teacher always has her best groups do a cappella (no music). Really beautiful.

My daughter did not tell me that one of the songs her group was singing was "Bridge Over Troubled Water". As soon as I realized what they were singing, I started crying. The song is beautiful, but has a lot of personal meaning for me. Closed my eyes -- it was like angels singing.

The last song of the night was the "elite" choral group -- the East Men, the Chiefs of Staff, and the Alley Cats (all names the kids gave to their small singing groups). I couldn't read the program because I forgot my classes ... and it was another tear jerker. They sang "Oh Shenandoa". A melody so beautifully mellow and haunting. I have played both of these songs on the piano many times, and I could picture my fingers going over the keys as they were singing. Closed my eyes and their voices were heavenly. No piano accompanying them -- just voices.

I will miss attending the chorus concerts. My younger daughter said she'd still like to go next year because she has friends in the groups. Maybe I can "tag along"!

To Swap or Not to Swap? Part 2

Still undecided if you should join a swap? Our May 20th post, To Swap or Not to Swap? shows a 2-page spread that a secret scrapbooking sister made for one of my daughters. Loved it as it arrived, but added some bling.

Today the scrapbook pages are also from a swap, but these came without photos. The idea of these swaps is to make a layout that someone can just drop their photos into and go. A little more on this idea later.

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This page is from a "Bohemian-look" Page swap. The only items I added were:

* cork letters for title

* chipboard word "girl"

* a few jewels (thanks to Doodlebug Design)

The rest of the page was already here. Stamped flourish, large flower, and even intricate cutting of the paper (which I slid the bottom photo under. It reminded me of one of my daughters, and she loves it.

Would I have ever created this page on my own? No, because I have a different design style, but I really like this premade layout (and would like to CASE it sometime). Here is the benefit of pre-designed layouts: you just grab a few photos, add a title and some embellishments (if there aren't any already).

We hold Crop @ the Beach weekends and have a lot of fun. To make it more productive and to be able to bring less STUFF, we encourage the scrappers to come with pre-made layouts. Each time we hold one of these weekend crops we teach how to make a pre-made layout. Usually you are making for 4x6 photos -- and this makes it much easier too.

Here is the second page (right hand side). Notice how different it is from the first page? Notice the use of completely different papers? At first, I was not sure what to do, but I showcased one photo, and had some fun with the ages & names.

What do you do if you run out of alphabet letters or numbers? Improvise. Here I ran out of 7's, so for the year (2007) I used 200 ... and the word seven. Quite a departure from my usual style, but I'm lovin it.

That is another reason to swap -- an opportunity to leave your usual style behind. It can also help you break out of a creative rut and give you the opportunity to scrap pages you would never have created on your own (even if you DO follow a sketch).

I need to add some journaling, but the only thing I added to this page was a photo, a few jewels (on right hand side of photo), cork numbers and name tags. The gorgeous center flower was already attached and layered!

I do not know who created these two pages, she did not sign the back. If you made these pages for the Bohemian Swap, let me know!

I love them, my daughter loves them.

The Wind in Your Hair ...

Just came across this website and thought it was fun. At least it was interesting enough to break the stress level here at work (budget NOT looking good).

Guess what type of car I am?

I'm a Chevrolet Corvette!

You're a classic - powerful, athletic, and competitive. You're all about winning the race and getting the job done. While you have a practical everyday side, you get wild when anyone pushes your pedal. You hate to lose, but you hardly ever do.

Take the Which Sports Car Are You? quiz.

Funny it should come up as a Corvette. I suppose I would like an old stingray model Corvette. But I own a Mustang Convertible ... yellow, black LeMans stripes, white leather interior and white ragtop. I used to have a Mazda Miata ... and she was WONDERFUL. Red with camel (tan) top and interior. Mimi (my Miata) and I went everywhere -- until I got the 'Stang. Miss my Miata.

Anyone have a car they dearly loved? Have you scrapped your car(s)? I scrapped the Mustang's transformation from "Mild to Wild" ... I'll have to share these soon!

Play *Name that Page* and WIN Blog Candy

There is STILL time to send us your ideas for a title for the pink crocs page.

Post a comment to THIS POST (before May 31st) and we'll pick a winner on June 2nd -- my daughter's 16th birthday!

The blog candy surprise will feature papers from ScrapWorks, chipboard and more.

Come on and play along ....

To Swap or Not To Swap?

THAT IS THE QUESTION!

Swapping: the act of exchanging scrapbook pages, stamped images, cards, etc.

I'm not sure how swapping got started, but it sure is fun. I have a whole stash of cards from swaps. I also have many 6x6 scrapbook pages. Why do I swap? Why should you try it?

I swap because I get stuck in my own "style rut". My scrapbook pages tend to be more linear and usually more simple than some of the pages I see in magazines. These pages are more works of art than scrapbook page. But beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

So ... to swap or not? Scrapbook pages usually take more time and paper to make than cards. There are different types of swaps ... I've shared some of my swap ideas with you previously: "scrap page in a bag", 12x12 page layout (no photos), and one of my favorites is a Secret Sister Scrapbook page swap.

You send photos to a hostess -- they might already be printed or sent electronically. You take these photos and any ideas that the "little SB Sister" has -- like what colors they like / dislike, who is in the photos, dates, places, etc.

I find this type of swap fun because you actually receive completed pages. And your big sis will probably have a completely different style from yours. To really get the most benefit from a swap like this, you need to be open to differences in ability and style.

I recently swapped some winter photos from 1993 (yes, I'm a LITTLE behind). My big sister was "Buckeye Stamper" (Caroline) on Split Coast Stampers. While this site started out to be a site for Stampin'Up! demonstrators and SU! JUNKIES (!) to share, many of the stampers and scrappers have branched out and use other materials & stamps.

I received my pages and totally LOVED THEM instantly! I could have just added a little journaling and put them in the scrapbook as they arrived.

But ... you CAN change some parts of the pages, add embellishments, etc. That's what I did with these pages. Remember, I loved them just the way they were ... but I felt I needed some BLING! on them. And I didn't think I could do a winter page without STICKLES glitter glue by Ranger. You just GOTTA have some Stickles on the page. "Buckeye Stamper" had made a half circle design of die-cut snowflakes. I wanted to show them off a bit more, so I put a dab of STICKLES in the center and placed a small rhinestone in the center (glitter and glue at the same time). Used a mix of Doodlebug Design Jewels and Queen & Company Jewels. Doodlebug's are self-adhesive, and Q&Co are not. But still no mess with the easy to use stickles.

 

The rhinestones and crystal stickles are easier to see in real life (IRL), but I think you get the idea here ... I alternated between pink and clear rhinestones.

The adorable penguin die-cut is a QuicKutz die. Used Doodlebug Design "Sugared" papers (glittered paper -- YUMMY!) to make him really pop. A dimensional glue dot also helps! He got a rhinestone at the top of his hat and his nose.

Then I took out my PINK STICKLES and wrote over the title with the pink glitter glue. The title was just fine as it was, but like I said ... I just HAD to add the bling. Using a fine tip black marker, outlined the letters. I added the words "Having" and "much" with an American Crafts' Galaxy marker. These markers are SO cool! These pens have an opaque paint-like ink that allows you to write with no mess on both light and dark surfaces. Like a paint pen, only way better (no smell). Added a large (flower) clear rhinestone for the "O". Added a journaling note, a blue gingham background to the center photo, and photo corners made of paper & ribbon. A few of my favorite embellishments.

Added some embellishments to this page too:

* used blue gingham paper like on first page. Used it for photo mats.

* Added journaling in the block that was left blank, it was perfect.

* added a large die-cut snowflake (using the Doodlebug Design SUGARED PAPERS again). Added some pink and silver ribbons and added a bow to one of the photos.

* carried the rhinestone & stickles to this page -- added one to the center of each snowflake die-cut.

I added embellishments not because the page needed them, but to add some bling -- that's my favorite embellishment right now, can you tell?

A big thanks to BUCKEYE STAMPER for the great 2-page layout (12x12) that she made for me. My daughter loves these pages, they've gone into her scrapbook for all to see.

To answer "To Swap or Not to Swap?", I say have some fun and SWAP.

My Blog Candy from Jen!

Came home from a LONG, LONG day at work (been too many of those lately). Last day of purchasing and I think I approved over $300,000 worth of items. eek!

But, it was all worth it when I came home there was a package waiting for me. It was from Jen at FStop Memories.  Yes, it was my blog candy winnings.

This is SO cool, just love chipboard, and the PINK shimmer chipboard is perfect. The mini DCWC book with black cover is probably going to go on my daughter's graduation page (asa pull out). I can put all the extra photos in there without having to add 100's to her book! The school colors are Black & Silver. And I have some of the paper printed for the High School. That's so cool.

And, RIBBON! I am a total ribbon junkie. This ribbon has cute chocolate & cupcake designs. I'm thinking of the perfect way to use it. Love Heidi Swapp stuff!! And a card too.

Thank you Jen!!

You "CROC" Me Up!

See the WIN BLOG CANDY post for all the suggested titles for my daughter's pink crocs page.

Some REALLY great title suggestions. It is going to be difficult to choose the winner!

Keep the ideas coming -- post your comment to the WIN BLOG CANDY post (with the pink crocs scrapbook page).

There is still a lot of time to post your title suggestions. We're going to pick a winner on her BIRTHDAY!!! June 2nd will be her 16th birthday.