Scrap 365-6 Today...

Is it really Sunday already?  Where did the weekend go??  We had a busy, but awesome weekend filled with friends and lots of time outside, hiking, swimming, grilling, gardening...blissful early summer weekend for sure.  We also had a wee bit of drama with the Little Lady literally getting her tooth knocked out during a mishap on a rock climbing wall of a friend's play yard. Stay tuned for that story in a scrapbook page coming soon. ;-)

Now, on to the actual purpose of this post.  CSI and Scrap 365's new collaborative case file.  Fabulous colors and evidence prompts on this one.  Here's my layout featuring the Toothless Wonder back when she first started sprouting those cute little baby teeth. Hehe. :)  This is a shot from our first year family photos.  Man, time really flies.

Here's a look at the case file.  CLICK HERE to see what the rest of the design team came up with for this file.

And some closeups of the page.  I used a lot of chipboard ephemera on this one, with some spatterings of enamel dots, pearl dots, and sequins.  From the case file, I chose bows, flowers, ombre effect and frames for my evidence.  Then I chose 6-word memoir and wrote "Our little love is almost one!"

Tell me this isn't the cutest little flair button in the land of EVER.  Courtesy of October Afternoon's Daily Flash tin pins.

Loved that the evidence included bows this week.  I love the girly touch this peach colored bow gives to the page.

And there you have it!  Now, I am dragging my exhausted self off to bed.  Back to work tomorrow!  Goodnight everyone!

xoxo,

Shawna

CSI #120 Live...

We have a magical case file at CSI this week!  Fun colors, fun evidence prompts, and great journaling inspiration!

Here's the file.

And here's my take on it.   CLICK HERE to see what the rest of the talented design team came up with.

For my evidence, I chose a mixed media background, gesso and wet medium (gelatos, Heidi Swapp mist in chartreuse, and Mod Podge magic medium in clear).  Then I chose the inspiration prompt to write a haiku...I used that prompt liberally, as the sentiment is more than 3 lines, but it's still where I pulled inspiration from. ;-)

I handcut part of a photo of my daughter kissing a hummingbird that we use as garden decor and popped it up to give it dimension.  Then I made some clouds using modeling paste and the remnants of a sheet of chipboard clouds as a stencil.  I put some directly on the background, and some others on paper, which I then handcut.  The sun and moon are a great little stamp I've had forever, colored with a yellow marker and then glazed with the Mod Podge.

My mom grabbed the flower stamp for my sister's shower (we gave the guests little packets of wildflowers) and I loved it here with the sentiment about growing and laying down roots and memories.  I colored a few of them with gelato.

And there you have it!  I hope you will play along with us.  

Have a great weekend!!

xoxo,

Shawna

CSI Case File #118 - Puppy Lovin'!

It's that time again!  CSI is back with another great casefile, and this one is accompanied by a fab Em Stafrace sketch!  CLICK HERE to see how the rest of the design team cracked the case!

Here is the case file:

And here's my layout.  Oddly enough, when I saw these colors I envisioned doing a much different layout...but sometimes things decide to go in a much different direction than expected.  That's life, isn't it?  ;-)

So all the colors are there, and for evidence I chose hearts, arrows, animal print, and doodling. I used the "all about me" prompt about what makes me truly happy and wrote about puppies. (I am a serious animal lover and would have a houseful of dogs if the hubs would let me!) Hard to see on the photo but journaling says: "Nothing beats kisses and cuddles from a chunky little puppy...except kisses and cuddles from two chunky little puppies!"

Here's a couple of closeups:

 Happy FRIDAY!  Thanks for stopping by!!

xoxo,

Shawna

Butterfly Kisses...

As promised, it's time for another fabulous case file reveal over at CSI!  The colors were a bit of a challenge for me, but I ultimately ended up with one of my favorite layouts ever!  CLICK HERE to see the rest of the design team's awesome creations and to play along with us!

Here is my layout.  For evidence, I chose circles, metal, ransom style lettering, flowers and butterflies.  Lots and lots of butterflies. :)

I'm still learning about mixed media and it's still blowing my mind.  The imprecise nature of it is so freeing.  While scouring Pinterest for inspiration I came across this tutorial by Ayeeda over at Zeuss and Zoe.  It never ceases to amaze me the way the artists who post these tutorials make everything looks so effortless.  Here's the  video if you are interested in watching!

I thought the use of the tissue weight kraft paper was genius, and I recreated it using a leftover paper bag which I crumpled up and layered with mists and glass bead gel under the photo. For my metal, I took two little plaque like metal embellishments and tucked them under the photo so only the ornate edge detail was exposed.

For my journaling, which I added digitally, I chose a poem I found online (author unknown).

Flutter by,

Butterfly, 

Floating flower

in the sky.

Kiss me with your

Petal wings - 

Whisper secrets,

Tell of Spring.

Then on the back of the layout I told the story of this photo, as follows:

I love that Heather captured this moment between you two girls.  Sitting on the trampoline, in your dress up clothes and with crazy static hair, you decided to show Addison what a butterfly kiss is...such a sweet tender moment captured...but a little bit of humor too, as your conversation went like this:

Ireland: "This is a butterfly kiss, Addi!"

Addison: "That's not a butterfly kiss, that's a kiss from China!"

You girls crack me up.  Leave it to the both of you to turn a sweet tender moment into one of giggles.  - Summer 2013

The blue butterfly was fussy cut from some Heidi Swapp paper and covered with antique tinted All Night Media liquid embossing medium.  I stamped a butterfly off center underneath the blue one, and popped the blue embossed butterfly on top of it.

Lots of fabric trim on here, with ribbon and some doily scraps I had laying around.  For the clock, I fussy cut some more elements from Heidi Swapp paper and repeated what I did with the butterfly using the All Night Media liquid embossing medium.  The swabs of white are modeling paste, misted with Heidi Swapp Color Shine in teal, and then layered with glass bead gel.

Thanks for stopping by and visiting me!  I hope you have found some inspiration and that I will see your layouts in the CSI gallery this week.  In the meantime, enjoy the weekend!

xoxo,

Shawna

Special Scrap 365 Case File at CSI!

We have teamed up with Scrap 365 again to bring you a case file that you will have all month to solve!  The file is fun and bold and I had a blast putting my layout together for this one.  Here's the case!

And here's my take on it.  For my evidence I chose buttons (flair button and soda pop top) and string. (The curly string is actually a sticker that I cut in half and split between the top of the page and the bottom.)  For my journaling, I used the inspiration word "fun" and wrote about our trips to our local library.

Here are a couple of close ups.  I kept this layout fairly simple because I felt that the cut out circle paper and the handcut sunburst with the candy pattern were pretty dominant and I didn't want the rest to look like...a circus freak show. ;-)  Hehehe!

I hope you will play along with us!  In the meantime, don't forget to stop back here tonight to check out my take on CSI's casefile set to be revealed this evening around 6pm...I've done another mixed media layout and will be including a great video tutorial that gave me lots of inspiration!  Have a great Friday!!

xoxo,

Shawna

Hope

I never thought I would put these colors together, but I've learned through CSI to never say never to a color palette!  And I'm pretty happy with the way it came together!  You can see what the rest of the design team came up with by CLICKING HERE.

 And here's my take on it.

For my evidence I chose grid/mesh, pen work and mixed media background.

Love this photo taken by my very talented photographer friend, Heather Vavra.  You can check out more of her work by CLICKING HERE. 

For "mesh" I painted a piece of burlap white, and then I used black acrylic paint and crisscrossed a grid design onto the paper with a rubber fringe-like tool thingy that I got with a Making Memories distressing kit years ago. (I'm so good at explaining things.  LOL)  I colored some glass bead gel gray and filled in some of the circles with that.

I started out with my primrose and blush Heidi Swapp mists, and then I added some Tattered Angel Plain Jane mist in baseboard (a semi-opaque mist).  The dark red is also Plain Jane mist. Then I scraped some modeling paste across the page.  To add a different texture behind the photo I layered brown jute twine and embroidery floss behind there.

The other circles modeling paste and black sharpie that I wet a bit to blend.  It was never meant to be that thick of a black border, but I had some issues...

For my journaling, I used the inspiration word "imagine."  It got pretty lengthy, so it's secured to the back of the layout on a full piece of paper.  But it all ties in to my title word "hope."  Here is what it says:

When I look at you, I often find myself trying to imagine what the world will look like when you are a grown woman, and maybe even a mom yourself.  What it will look like for your children.  There's no denying how quickly the world is changing…and although everyone seems to think it's changing more quickly than ever, I think that change has always come at warp speed.   And I truly embrace some of it.   But there are things about the direction the world is moving that I don't love; in fact there are quite a few things that terrify me and make me worry about the fate of future generations, including your generation.  There are so many children growing up without core values, without respect for themselves, the earth, and each other.  Morality has become an afterthought.  We have forgotten the beauty of interacting with one another as human beings; instead more often interacting with electronics and other inanimate objects.  We, as a people, have become detached.  Disconnected.  We've stopped caring. 

At the same time, despite the direction we have been moving, I know that we can reverse the route and take our change in a more positive direction.  And it starts with the you.  I used the Maria Montessori quote for this layout because she fundamentally believed in the ability of the child.  While many in her day saw children as empty canvases to be molded into "productive citizens," she saw children as intelligent and capable little beings from birth.  Just the way I have always seen you.  This belief, among others, is one of the reasons why we enrolled you in Montessori School.  Maria Montessori's method supports the education of the whole child, and fosters fulfillment to the highest potential – spiritually, emotionally, physically, and intellectually.  The greatest teaching that Montessori gives you is a deep understanding of the fact that we are all connected; to each other, and to our earth.  Nothing we do is without purpose and nothing is without effect.  From your youngest years we have supported what you naturally have known to do: to love, respect and take responsibility for yourself, for your community, and for this earth.  And I know that those very things are deeply ingrained in you already…right down to the deepest depths of your soul.  And that, my sweet little munchkin, gives me hope for the future.

xoxo

**side note I saw something on Facebook this afternoon about the direction our earth is going because of human greed and disregard each other and for nature, etc. Timely, because I had just finished the journaling for this layout this morning.   Let's hope that future generations do a better job of caring for this earth and for each other than we and the generations before us have. Stepping off my soapbox now!  LOL

xoxo,

Shawna

CSI CF# 114 - How Many?

TGIF!!  No, seriously...T.G.I.F.  OMG not a moment too soon.  It's been a crazy couple of weeks around here and I am ready for the weekend!  But first, it's time to reveal CSI's latest case file, complete with an amazing and inspirational sketch from none other than Em Straface of Page Drafts!  CLICK HERE to see the full reveal and the rest of the design team's amazing layouts! Here's the case file and sketch:

And here's my take on it.

I switched up the "v" and put it left to right vs. up and down.  Other than that, I stayed pretty true to the sketch.  The photo was edited with Aviary and then I covered it with a layer of All Night Media's Liquid Embossing in Antique Photo.  I have had this stuff in my stash since I started scrapbooking about 8 years ago!  My evidence is circles and...crap I just realized I only have one piece of evidence. Sometimes I get carried away working on a layout and completely forget to follow the prompts! Can we take the "numbers" piece of evidence and count that since I journaled about "how many?'  Please?  :)

I started out with a layer of teal Heidi Swapp Color Shine spray behind the photo and then added some drops of black here and there.  The "Je T'aime" stamp is a great little $1 Michael's find and the gorgeous butterflies on the jute twine are a handmade item from a prior month's Citrus Twist Kit.

For the arrows, I alternated vellum floral arrows with stenciled arrows that were covered with modeling paste and then colored with another circular stencil.  I've done this on a few layouts (made arrows from stencils and modeling paste) and I really like the dimension it gives.  Man I love modeling paste. <3

Finally, for the journaling, I used International Question Day as my inspiration.  My journaling touches on something I find myself wondering more and more every day as I watch my daughter grow...she has so quickly gone from being a baby to a big girl and I am holding tight to the little moments of toddler-hood that we have left.  I think that most moms can relate to these musings...

Anyway, come play along with us at CSI!  I can't wait to see what you create!  Have a FABULOUS weekend!

xoxo,

Shawna

So Pissed!

No, not me...my spunky little lady!  Haha!

Hi everyone!  It's Friday and as usual CSI has revealed a fabulous case file for you all!  CLICK HERE to see what the rest of the fabulous design team and special investigators did with this file!  I had a blast working with this color scheme and the evidence requirements were easy because my stash was full of lots of goodies that fit the bill.  (Love when that happens!)

Here's the case file:

And here's my take on it.

This kid had me in stitches over her absolute disdain for the seagulls. She's an animal lover, but NO ONE messes with her chips.  When she wasn't screaming at the scavengers, she was chasing them a way, full speed down the beach.  My journaling reads:  "This is you at 3 1/2 telling off the sneaky seagulls that kept stealing your chips. I love that you made it your personal mission to safeguard the food and chase away the seagulls for the rest of our beach trip (all the while screaming at them to "shoo!") Love your spunk, kiddo."

Here are a couple of closeups.

I hope to see some of your creations in the CSI Gallery this week!  Enjoy the weekend!

xoxo,

Shawna

CSI/Archi-scraps Collaboration!

Great news!  We have an extra case file for you this month at CSI!  This month we have teamed up with Archi-scraps, a very cool challenge blog that takes inspiration from architectural images and challenges you to create layouts inspired by those images.  CLICK HERE to check out their blog!  This month, CSI has taken the Archi-scraps image and added the traditional "evidence and testimony" categories and come up with a special case file for you all to solve...the best part is you have the entire month to put your layout together.  Here is the case.

Be sure to upload your take on the challenge HERE as well!  Here is mine.  I used a decorative border and clouds as my evidence, and for the testimony I used the sun rays as borders for my journaling.  I hope you will play along!

Enjoy the rest of your Monday!

xoxo,

Shawna

CSI Case File #112!

Hello again, hope everyone had a great Friday and is looking forward to the weekend!  The hubby and I went out last night to celebrate the birthday of a dear friend and I'm exhausted today!  LOL I don't hang quite as well in my old age. ;-)

Here is CSI's latest case file.  Beautiful, soft colors gave me the perfect opportunity to scrap some newborn photos of our little lady.  Here is the case.  CLICK HERE to play along.

For my evidence, I chose frames and flowers.  For my testimony I used the Inspiration Word "sleep."  These are some of the first baby photos I've scrapped of Ireland...here she was just 3 days old.  Itty bitty perfection, if I do say so myself. ;-)

Thanks for stopping by and I hope to see you again soon!  

xoxo,

Shawna

CSI Case File #111 - Friend

Finally sitting down after a busy week and realized I hadn't yet posted CSI's latest case file reveal!  Here it is...and it's a yummy one!  CLICK HERE to play along!

No closeups this week because, well, I just sat down...and realized I never took any.  Did I mention I just sat down?  And I'm too lazy to get back up and photograph the details?  Anyway it's dark out.  And it's Sunday!  LOL  Anyway, I hope you enjoy and that you will come play along with us at CSI!

xoxo,

Shawna

CF#109 - The Book Adventure

If you like vibrant colors and books, you're going to LOVE this week's case file over at CSI.  CLICK HERE to play along!  Gorgeous red and blue and yellow and green....and journaling prompts and a scene that challenge you to talk about books...glorious books. :)

Here's the case file:

And here's my take on it.  The good old gelatos and some green acrylic paint set the backdrop for this page, which once again features a good amount of Citrus Twist Kits product.

For my evidence, I used a book page (behind the photo) and heat...and here's where I reveal a little gelato secret.  If you use gelatos, you're probably familiar with the little chunky flecks you get when you try to smush the gelatos and mix them with water to use in liquid/pour form.  Well, if you stick your chunk o'gelato in the microwave with some water for about 5-10 seconds, you get silky smooth, perfectly pourable, paintable sprayable gelato.  (NOTE:  stand watch...I left mine in a bit too long - like 5 SECONDS too long - and bam.  It exploded and I had a lovely blue gelato covered microwave to clean.)  You're welcome. ;-)

For my testimony, used a Roald Dahl quote about books.  I love this quote so much...it is truth.

Here are some closeups:

And there you have it.  Now come play along! :)

xoxo,

Shawna