Sketchabilities #118 - Epic Photo Fail

Happy Monday!  Well, it's happy for me because I'm on vacation and getting lots of R&R!  To make the day even better, it's time for another fabulous sketch from Sketchabilities!

Here is my layout.  I seriously had way too much putting this layout together.  I think I pretty much giggled the whole time thinking about the circumstances of this photo of me and my silly friends trying to take a group photo with the camera on auto-timer.

And here is the awesome sketch.

CLICK HERE to see the rest of this fabulous reveal.

Here are some close-ups.  I dug deep into this month's Citrus Twist Kit for this one - almost everything on this layout comes from that kit.  CLICK HERE to check out June's awesome CT kit!  

Of course, like most of the Sketchabilities sketches, this one made me think of mixed media, so I layered up lots of texture on this page.  For the  background, I started with paper from the Studio Calico South Market collection (the paper is called green acres), then I laid down some gesso and went over that with a Tim Holtz mask misted with Heidi Swapp Color Shine mist in navy.  Then I layered the same mask with white ink over that.  THEN I grabbed another mask (it's actually a cardboard mask meant for home improvement projects but whatevs-I love it- and applied that with modeling paste.  I also added some splats of Tim Holtz distress stain in Crushed Olive.

Of course, for my title I fell back on my trusty canvas Thickers, and mixed them with American Craft Thickers that came in my CTK kit.

I cut these library cards from Crate Paper Open Road paper called Drive-In, and then stenciled over top of them with a Heidi Swapp mini stencil.  I used the floral pattern on the flip side of the paper as a layer behind the photo.

I still chuckle over my repeated use of the doilies I once despised, but man they do come in handy!  The stamp is a Citrus Twist Kits original.

For the bottom corner, I repeated the background work that I did under the photo and added a frame from a Basic Gray ephemera pack from the Capture line.  And then I added another Citrus Twist Kits original stamp for the camera, which I fussy cut and layered over the frame.

And there you have it, folks!  You have 2 weeks to play along and link up your creation to share with us over at Sketchabilities.  Hope to see you in the gallery!  

xoxo,

Shawna

35.75...

So when I got my Citrus Twist goodies this month (Picture Perfect main and Enchantment add on), I was totally in LOVE with the colors...and they go perfectly with this month's mood board over at Life.Paper.Scrapbook.  Been awhile since I've had the time to play along with one of their challenges so I was excited to put this layout together.  Here's the mood board:

And here's my layout.  I was inspired by the triangle shape of the trees, the colors, and the brush script and what it said.  Something that is important to me, is me.  Obviously what is most important to me is my family, but without taking care of me, I can't give my best to them.  The story behind this photo is a fun one, and I will eventually tape the story to the  back of the page.  I won a "Super Mom" photo shoot by the talented Alexis Emm Photograffi and we had a blast breaking the rules, and getting some awesome shots...we may or may not have squeezed through the fence of a closed train station and hopped the train to get this photo.  ;-)  Shhhh....

I didn't go crazy on background work or any mixed media for this one, because the papers had so much going on, and I didn't want the end result to be too busy.

I loved the chalk board background paper from We R Memory Keepers and added a chalk circle around the photo area by tracing around a large bowl.  The little arrows are a fab cheap find for $2 at Michaels.

One of my favorite simple techniques is to line edges with word stamps and I have about a million of them from CTK.  These ones were perfect.  The mistable Heidi Swapp heart was covered with gelato and the large words (celebrate and enjoy) are also Heidi Swapp.

I used my butterfly punch to punch some small butterflies out of the text paper and popped them up on the page.

Come check out the mood board at Life.Paper.Scrapbook. and link up your creations!  Thanks for stopping by!

xoxo,

Shawna

CSI #119 - Explore...

No mixed media for me this week!  The "feel" of this case file felt more vintage-y to me. :)  I loved this case file because it gave me a chance to use many of the older papers that have been sitting in my stash for quite some time.  Plus I had so many fun travel elements that had previously gone unused because, well, we don't really go anywhere!  LOL  

Here's the case file:

CLICK HERE to see what the rest of the design team has come up with!

And here's my take on it.

For evidence, I chose wood, globe/earth, and a tag.  Then I chose to journal on a tag and tucked it behind the photos.  It says:  "You are fascinated by all of the places in the world that we have never been, and each time you learn about a new country, you ask me if we can go there.  One of my wishes for you is that you have the opportunity someday and travel the world and see how much there is "out there" besides our tiny little slice of the earth."

Here are a couple of closeups:

This was the perfect time to use my map letter Thickers and I love the banner stickers that have the airline schedules on them!

Studio Calico wooden veneer sayings always come in handy, as does that 7 Gypsies hot air balloon stamp.  I've gotten soooo much use out of it.  The globe sticker is Heidi Swapp and the kraaft and chalkboard circle behind it is (I think?) The Paper Company.

The stamps you see are from Citrus Twist Kits, and the great scrabble letter stickers are from last month's kit from The Memory Nest.

Thanks for stopping by!  Can't wait to see what you create!

xoxo,

Shawna

Sketchabilities #113 - Magical Fairy Princess...

Sketchabilities has just revealed its latest sketch and it's a beauty!  CLICK HERE to see how the rest of the design team interpreted the sketch, then play along with us for some great prizes!  This month we're being sponsored by Creative Embellishments, an absolutely fabulous company which designs chipboard, wood veneer and stamps.  CLICK HERE to see all of their wonderful products!  Here is the sketch:

And here is my take on it.

I flipped the sketch to the left side of the page and layered up some fantastic papers and Studio Calico ephemera from my Citrus Twist Kit.  The stamps are also Citrus Twist originals, which I layered up and repeated in 2 corners around the main portion of the layout.  I also added some Heidi Swapp Color Shine on the background paper and the photo frames.  The letters are DIYS Thickers, which you can peel and decorate.  I covered them with green shimmery perfect pearls and glitter.  The sticker on the left of the top photo serves as my journaling, as this was my daughter's first fairy dress up outfit, and at this time she became obsessed with fairies and Tinkerbell.  Here are some closeups.

Thanks for having a look!  I hope to see your layouts in the gallery this month!

xoxo,

Shawna

Tuesday Tutorial Time at Citrus Twist Kits!

Hi there!  I'm up on the Citrus Twist Kits blog today sharing a tutorial on adding typewrite to your paper crafts.  Come visit me by CLICKING HERE and see a bit about how I put this layout together using Citrus Twist Kits' Main Kit for February.  Have a fabulous day!!

xoxo,

Shawna

Coffee, anyone? ;)

Late night post to share my layout I created for the current sketch and journaling challenge at Once Upon a Sketch.  This is my first time playing along with the girls over at OUAS but I have been seeing their name all over blog posts so I had to go over and check it out.  I love it!  Although you are given a sketch and a journaling theme, there is so much room for interpretation.  Definitely check them out if you haven't already.  Here is the sketch.  The journaling prompt is "Totally addicted to _____."  And yeah.  Lattes.  Sweet, delicious, lattes.  Yummmmmmo!

This layout is another "a little bit of everything" layout.  I started out with black cardstock, and misted the Heidi Swapp sunburst stencil with Plain Jane Baseboard semi-matte mist in Ivory.  Then I just started layering a bunch of scraps-paper, cardboard, burlap.  The heart and arrow wooden piece is a Citrus Twist Kit exclusive, and there is some random Studio Calico ephemera, and two Recollections buttons.  I LOVE thew chalkboard one with the cardboard circle around it.  I stamped one of my favorite Citrus Twist Kits stamps (cutest little steaming cup of joe ever!) on the chalkboard circle and wrote "Latte Love" using a white gel pen (also used for journaling).  Up at the top, the cork board exclamation point is Studio Calico and the "Ultimate" is Heidi Swapp.  And I think that's it!  I hope you enjoy the closeups below.  Thanks so much for stopping by!


xoxo,

Shawna

Thumbs Up (dude). Citrus Twist Sunday sketch!

Happy Sunday!  It's Sunday Sketch time over at Citrus Twist Kits and I'm sharing a layout I made using the sketch and February's main kit.

To play along with our sketch challenge, upload your layouts to the gallery by Feb. 15th to get your name in a drawing to win a $5 gift certificate to the Citrus Twist Kits store. When uploading to the gallery you can name it as you would normally but please include "Sketch 02/09" so we know which drawing to put your name into.

Here is the sketch:  

First I laid out the October Afternoon frame chippies (which were perfect to highlight a few shots of my daughter giving her famous "thumbs up" sign).  The one on the bottom left was the tealish colored frame, which I painted using some navy acrylic paint.  Then I marked a grid around the frames, added a doodled border with my Sharpie, colored in with some red, green, and yellow markers. (The "gold" star and the numbers are from my stash.)

Then I added some fussy cut conversation bubbles, and outlined and colored them as well (popping some up and leaving some flush with the paper).

Then I worked in some of the wooden bits from the kit, and the denim fabric as well.  Added my title (Thickers from a prior month's kit), a few splashes of navy Heidi Swapp Color Shine from my kit, and my journaling.  Voila! Layout complete.  I literally used every bit of February's main kit on my projects this month - all which are completely different from the others.  LOVED this kit!

The Sweetest Soul - Guest Designer layout for Citrus Twist Kits

Hey there! Hope your Saturday has been relaxing and fabulous.  Sharing another layout today that I created as February's Guest Designer for Citrus Twist Kits.  I love this page and all of the elements, which are a mix of January and February's main kits (with the exception of the Studio Calico sticker on the far right side, about halfway down).  One of my favorite things about February's main kit is how well it mixes with past months' kits. On the subject of favorites, one of my favorite things about my daughter's beautiful face is her eyes, which are truly a window to her soul.  Love this kid so much. :)

Thanks for stopping by!

xoxo,

Shawna

LOVE is in the air over at Challenge YOUrself!!

Today is the reveal of our next challenge over at Challenge YOUrself!  Since it's February, the month of L.O.V.E., we are challenging you to scrap about someone you love.  As always, you need to scrap a photo of YOU...but this time, scrap a photo of you with your love bug. :)  We also have this fabulous color palette to challenge you even more!

Here's my layout, featuring one of the loves of my life, my mini.  Lots of bits and pieces from past months' Citrus Twist Kits here, with my usual splash of gesso and acrylic to tone down the patterned background a bit.  I absolutely loved working with this beautiful color scheme!  Hope to see your work throughout the month over at Challenge YOUrself!  Enjoy the weekend!

xoxo,

Shawna

Citrus Twist Kits Guest Designer for February!

Hope you are all enjoying the Citrus Twist Kit blog hop!  As you've probably figured out by now, I have the honor of guest designing for Citrus Twist Kits this month!  Here are some closeups of my first layout - featured in my Q&A/Intro post, which you can read by CLICKING HERE.  February's kit is fantastic and so versatile...the colors and products are perfect for so many different kinds of layouts and I'm excited to share with you throughout the month all of the layouts I made from the kit.  Anyway, here's my first page showcasing one of many reasons my hubby is awesome. :)  Hope you enjoy!

xoxo,

Shawna

Citrus Twist Kits Organizing Blog Hop!

Hello, hello!  I hope you are enjoying the Citrus Twist Kits Organizing Blog Hop!! This hop is full of fun inspiration, great organizational ideas & awesome prizes! I will be sharing a couple of organizing tips with you to help you get your crafty space organized and more functional, then you can hop to the next designer's page for more awesome tips.

Before I get started though, I just want to let you know about the awesome deal Citrus Twist is running for new subscribers.  Starting today, anyone who signs up for a 3- or 6-month main kit subscription (or for subscribers who refer someone who signs up for a 3- or 6-month subscription and that someone mentions the subscriber's name in the comments section at checkout), Citrus Twist will throw in a FREE 6x6 Studio Calico Printshop paper pad, as long as supplies last.  If you want to sign up before the 5th, leave me a message below and I will let you know how to do it during the pre-sale period.

Now back to the hop!  Here are the prizes:  Two lucky commenters who hop to ALL design team blogs will be entered to win a $10 GC to the Citrus Twist Store...plus we are giving away one Main scrapbooking kit to a third winner!

You just need to leave a comment on EVERY designer's blog to be entered to win. Come back to the main Blog Hop blog post over at Citrus Twist and comment that you hopped to each blog and we will pick a winner from those that commented. CLICK HERE to go to the Citrus Twist Kits blog! Comments end Tuesday February 4th. Winners will be announced on the main Citrus Twist Kits blog by Friday February 7th.  Good luck!

Here are a couple of organizational tips from my scrappy space.

Now, I am not one to spend a fortune on storage and organizational supplies...in fact, I put my scrap space together (including desk and shelving) for less than $100 at good old Target. I do like to re-purpose common household items to work for storing my supplies, and I have a thing for tiffany blue mason jars, so storing items in mason jars is a no-brainer for me.  I have 2 jars that hold all of my gelatos and it's easy to see what colors I have to work with because they're in clear (well, blue) jars.  I also have a larger jar that I use to store my washi tape.  Works great and looks decent, too.

I have to give another Target shout out for this cute little desktop organizer.  The spaces are large enough to fit all of my mists nicely, and they're right within an arm's reach, which is great because I use them so frequently.

Finally, if you have kids you are probably familiar with Melissa & Doug toys and products.  Often their products come packaged in this great wooden packaging with compartments.  We have a ton of these floating around so I snagged one and put it on my desk to hold whatever bits and pieces of paper and embellies I am using on current layouts.  It's great because the compartments are different sizes, and you can lay everything out and see it all very easily.  Beats digging through my actual storage bins, that's for sure!

I hope you have found these tips useful!  Hop on to the next designer via the links below.  Happy blog hopping!

Amelie Mordret

Angie Gutshall

April Hill

Eve Limacher

Evelyn Yusuf

Gina Rodgers

Jen Boumis

Jennifer Chapin

Kasia Tomaszewska

Melissa Stintson

Nathalie Leonelli

Nina Ostermann

Sandy Ang

Tanya Batrak

Waisam Ho

Shawna Saucier

Citrus Twist Kits