3Muskateers

I know I declare this regularly, but I'm serious when I say this is my latest favorite page. Maybe even my most favorite page ever!

I had so much fun putting this together and I'm so glad I decided to film the process. Here's a process video of how it all came together =)

Products used: [Acrylic Sunglasses] [Marie Alphabet Stamps] [Jonah Alphabet Stamps] [May Kit] [Thankful Paper Collection] [Little Moments Paper Collection] [Little Moments Paper Stack] [Letters & Numbers--White] [Letters & Numbers--Light Gray] [Letters & Numbers--Teal] [Tim Holtz Distress Stain--Peacock Feather] [Color Theory Inkpad--Pink Lemonade] [Color Theory Inkpad--Inky Black]

Here's the original sketch which was a bit hard to see in the video:

And the original inspiration!

cheers & besos,

September 26, 2015

In September, I decided I would do a [Week in the Life] type project in the week leading up to my birthday. Each day I'd tell a story about a different aspect of my life: work, family, friends, home, etc. 

I took all the photos, printed them, put them in pocket pages....and then nothing. Well, not completely nothing, I did do [one spread] using a Scrapbook Circle kit and another as my [31 facts at 31] post for the year. The rest of the pages have just been hanging out in the album unfinished. 

Until I received the Elle's Studio Documented products which just seemed perfect for a few of the pages! I used the [Documented Stamp] [Documented Journaling Tags] [Basic Journaling Tags-Gray] [May Monthly Kit] [Marie Alphabet Stamp] and [Little Moments Bits & Pieces] for this page. You can read more about it on the [Elle's Studio Blog] today!

cheers & besos,

Today Birthday Card

One of my besties is having a birthday today! So I threw together this quick card yesterday morning before I left for work. I cannot stress how quick and easy this card was to make! It's just a bunch of stamping in a variety of colors which makes it bright and graphic, I think. I used the new Elle's Studio [Documented stamp set].

One of my favorite things to do when I make birthday cards is to use the person's actual birth date. It's simple but it makes it so much more personalized.

I went a little non-traditional with this card. In the sense that I didn't actually use the phrase "happy birthday". And I think that's ok! Today is an equally good sentiment to use on a birthday card. Inside I stamped "You're Old(er)" just to be cheeky but I think it goes with "Today".

Also something I do whenever I make a card for someone, I decorate the envelope. I want people to be excited about opening it up! I used the [Jonah Alphabet Stamp] and again, a ton of inks to make it bright and fun!

cheers & besos,

Don't Forget

It's the little things that we tend to forget. I think we can all agree on that. Life can change slowly or quickly. Sometimes you don't see it coming. Sometimes you plan for it to change. 

For me, it's always so odd to plan for a change. I find myself going back and forth, weighing options and also just deciding in a flash. Hoping and praying that I've made the right choice.

This page is all about documenting life on the precipce of a change. It's not a huge change, but it's one that's definitely going to change our everyday lives. We've decided to adopt a kitten! New pets always make life exciting. And current pets meeting new pets is going to make for an interesting experiment for sure. Here's hoping that it's changing our family for the better!

I used the new Elle's Studio [Documented] items for this page, which is about five things I don't want to forget about what life was like as a family of three--mama, papa and puppy. There are [Journaling Tags] and [Stamps] and also [Acrylic Words] but I didn't use those here.

My favorite detail and really the start of this whole page are the little "don't forget" tabs. I wanted them to be reminiscent of an old idea. In order to remember something, people would [tie a string around their finger]. You know, in the days long before we had phones to alert and remind us of everything. So I stamped [don't forget] on a strip of patterned paper and tied a string around it.

Here's to hoping that I've made the right decision for my family! Can't wait to share more about the little creature that will soon be coming to our home.

cheers & besos,

Lisa Frank Love

Oh Lisa Frank...how I loved your products! I had a collection of stickers, stationary, notepads, folders. The first two were completely hoarded, the later two I used at school. 

Lisa Frank was super popular doing the 80's and 90's, and this month's 80's theme at [Simple Scrapper] had me remembering all of that colorful goodness!

I went online and pulled images for this page. Each one was something I stared at nearly every day, because it was on a folder or a notebook or a binder. I vividly remember each of these! I also did some hunting around that day, for anything about Lisa Frank! But her website was and still is in development. Although, since then, I was so excited to see that she's now on instagram! [Lisa Frank Instagram]

For this layout, I wanted to include a nod to the 80's by using neon. I have these really old Studio Calico neon mini misters. So I sprayed some scrap white cardstock with each of the colors and layered them with the rest of my patterned paper strips.

I used more of the Amy Tangerine Sketchbook collection. Look at the circle flowers I cut out of one of the patterned papers! How did I now notice how awesome they were before??

I knew when I was making this page that it would face the previous [Skidamarink] layout, so I used a few of the same elements on both, to tie them together. Mainly that blue grid background and the teal with small x's. It's obviously not a double page layout, since the design isn't continuous. But in my mind they're really cohesive.

cheers & besos,

Skidamarink

Do you know this song? "[Skidamarink a-dink, a-dink, Skidamarink a-doo], I love you. I love you in the morning and in the afternoon. I love you in the evening and underneath the moon!" 

There may be nothing that transports me back to my childhood as quickly as this song. It was the theme for [The Elephant Show]. Something my brother and I watched religiously when we were little kids. I couldn't tell you anything about the show or what it had to do with elephants, but man is that song ingrained in my brain!

This month's [Simple Scrapper] theme is all about the 80's and one of the Story Starters sparked the idea for this page. I only have vague snippets of what my life was like in the 80's...in December 1989 I was only 5. So I made a page about the things I did remember: being baby sat by Great Aunt Lucy...taking trips to the "little store" for candy and treats...watching The Elephant Show on the big pillow...and loving craft and stationary supplies!

I really wanted to make the song the focal point, so I die cut it out of white cardstock and backed with this lovely watercolored patterned paper. It's big and bold and I like it!

I put together a small photo collage of images for each of the four things I had talked about in my journaling. And I used bright/bold colors in honor of the very colorful 80's! I think most everything is from Amy Tangerine's Sketchbook collection.

cheers & besos,

The Good Life

You guys, this month's [Elle's Studio kit and exclusives] are live! And they're all bright and colorful and summery and fun! Here's a page I made using the [monthly kit] with the [ice cream wood veneer], [stamp set] and [cut file]. 

I loved those little ice cream cones! I knew instantly that I wanted to use this old photo from my London days. I was 22 in this photo and seriously living The Good Life!

So of course, I wanted to use Taylor Swift lyrics on the page! I added them directly to the background and included my journaling around them.

This [month's kit] had these great circle die cuts, so I opted to make them into more ice cream cones by using the [stamp set]. There's no such thing as too much when it comes to ice cream ;)

To nab the goods, head over to [Elle's Studio]. The [monthly kit] is available for $9.99 today only, so if you know you want it, get it today :)

cheers & besos,

Beach Going Life

Happy interNational Scrapbook Day my friends! I'm hosting an event on the Simple Scrapper Facebook page. We're chatting, I'm issuing challenges and also playing along! Here's what I did for Challenge No. 1! [Read more here]

I was so inspired by these, I knew I wanted to use them for a page. This is what I came up with! I filmed it, so expect a process video here soon!

cheers & besos,

Charleston Mini

MT and I visited Charleston last October for his birthday. We were only there for a few days but in that time we ate some good food, did a bit of sightseeing and then I got food poisoning and wanted to die. It was bad! Clearly I survived, but it definitely was a speed bump to what was shaping up to be a very nice trip!

I used the Elle's Studio [Travelogue] mid-release products for this micro-mini. There were a lot of photos so I ended up putting together a slide show for your viewing pleasure. To read more about it, head over to the [Elle's Studio blog]!

cheers & besos,

Kit Challenge NSD 2016

Hi friends! I wanted to share that I will be hosting a challenge this upcoming interNational Scrapbook Day, May 7-8, 2016, over on the Simple Scrapper Facebook Group. You can RSVP for it [here]!

I wanted this to be a fun, low key challenge to help you use some stash, make time to scrapbook and hang out with your fellow scrapbookers! The challenge itself is easy: using the "recipe" listed on the  [event page] pull together a kit of items from your stash. Then, over NSD weekend, make some pages, head to [Facebook] and share what you've made! I'm planning to issue a few challenges to help you get on your way. And I'm hoping it's a fun time and an opportunity to meet some new people :)

I already have my kit pulled together and I'm so excited to play with it! Especially after I made this video.

Head to the [event page] for the recipe to put your own homemade kit together. If you're around on Saturday & Sunday, be sure to pop in! We'd love to have you!

cheers & besos,