Fall Leaves

Fall has yet to arrive in southeast Louisiana. In fact, this past weekend I was poolside at an outdoors swim meet, applying sunscreen and hiding under an umbrella. Don't get me wrong; I'm not complaining.  I just had to dig a little deeper for a photo to scrap with the Leaf It To Me cut file from The Cut Shoppe. This gorgeous tree in Philadelphia, photographed years ago, fit the bill perfectly:

My page began with a maple leaf from the Leaf It To Me file, cut large from the center of a woodgrain-look paper. 

Next I pulled out patterned paper in colors ranging from golden yellow to deep russet red, decided on four, and cut the same leaf design in various (smaller) sizes. I adhered them in layers on my background sheet, added the foreground, photo, pen stitching, ink splatters, and a few embellishments:

Leftover leaves were adhered along the perimeter:

And the Tall Type cut file, was used to create a simple title:

Before cutting from the dark, woodgrain-look paper, I had my digital cutting program remove the center pieces from the letters. Afterwards, I fashioned each into into a small notched flag and backed with patterned papers:

Supplies: Patterned paper-American Crafts, Simple Stories, Basic Grey. Stickers-Simple Stories. Flair badge-Studio Calico. Mist-Heidi Swapp, Maya Road.

Happy Fall!

On Beach Time with the Riptide Kit

I thought I'd be using the colorful Riptide kit from Scraptastic to scrap photos that were also colorful, but what I've found is that the papers of this vibrant kit are perfect for pictures such as the one below. 

This picture, sitting around my desk since summer, didn't immediately inspire me; however, the amazingly vivid papers of the kit brought my photo to life.

A couple of cuts from the October This Life Noted digital files were used to connect the various parts of my page. The awesome weave gave me an interesting background on which to layer my title,

paper and transparency die cuts, and a journaling tag.

I added a cluster of embellishments to one corner of my double-matted photo, and direct two arrows to my daughter and I, relaxing on our perch overlooking the beach.

The happy colors of the Riptide kit were perfect for scrapbooking our happy summer memories.

Thanks for stopping by today. I'll be back at the end of the week with two more pages from this beautiful kit.

Happy World Cardmaking Day!

I love giving a heartfelt homemade card. I also love that creating them gives me something to do with my scraps, leftovers from previous projects, bits and pieces that never quite made it to a scrapbook page. 

Below I combined a cut file from Scraptastic's Counting Stars kit with the pretty pinks, black, and white from the Elastic Heart kit for a feminine card: 

So pretty! And so appropriate for today, World Cardmaking Day. For further inspiration, check out all of the cards created by the Scraptastic Design Team on the Scraptastic Club Blog.

Aarcade Games

Creating the background for my layout, Arcade Games, was incredibly fun, and it all began with Gelatos. I chose a variety of colors to coordinate with the vellum Pac-Man-like "ghosts" and Space-Invader-like "aliens" from Scraptastic's Centerfield kit. They were blended with water, layered and splattered, until I had the background sheet below:

Topping it with the cardstock that I had cut with the Scraptastic's Centerfield cut file was hard to do, as I hated covering up so much of that beautiful color! But it sure did make a pretty background for my page:

Here are a couple of closeups:

Now I'm on a mission to use those Gelatos again...and maybe not cover up so much of the fun. ;)

Supplies: Scraptastic Centerfield kit and stamp set, white cardstock, Gelatos.

So Brave

Believe it or not, my oldest son's recruit class had hundreds of photos taken during their several month's long training to become firefighters! What a treasure...especially for this scrapbooking mom. After a day of tower drills, the guys posed for a couple of class photos-one serious and one silly. Of course I had to scrap them both:

The Centerfield kit from Scraptastic sports colors that worked well to compliment my photos. Strips of the various patterned papers were arranged along the top with a trio of chipboard frames whose only function is to decorate the page. The "Ready For Action" flair couldn't be more appropriate! I also borrowed a look I've seen before, punching stars from each of the papers and popping them up over the page.

The bottom holds all the details: two photos, title, and a tiny bit of journaling. If you saw some of the other pictures taken during training (hose drills, ventilation, fire tower drills, auto fires, flammable liquids, etc.), you'd know the reason for this page's title. Yes, they are brave!

Laissez Les Bon Temps Rouler-Pinterest Inspired

It's Scraptastic's Pinterest Monday, and Nathalie and I have chosen to work with the following pin:

:Source:

I love the scattered circles, sequin clusters, and central display area. My page, created with Scraptastic's Centerfield kit, makes use of these three concepts, adjusting them slightly. Large circles are cut and punched from patterned paper. Tiny hole-punch circles take the place of sequins. 

The small center area is packed with fun details: die-cuts, wood stars, enamel dots and a chipboard frame. Plaid figures prominently as my son was a plaid aficionado in his late teens. ;)

Since this photo was taken at Mardi Gras, I used a French phrase popular during this celebratory season. Translated, my title means "let the good times roll"! Indeed.

Good Times

The page I'm sharing today features a photo taken at our favorite "beach or bust" restaurant. Lunch at Felix's has been a delicious on-the-way-to-Destin tradition, but one that may go the way of the dinosaur after this year. Taking so much time out of our drive for a sit down meal at a busy, busy restaurant just isn't working, especially when it has us in the thick of traffic 2-3  hours later. 

Anyway, this year I happened to capture a picture of my parents after our meal, ready to head back out to the car, and on to our destination. 

I layered papers and a photo on the left side of the page, then journaled about our week at the beach on the right. The gold accents are awesome...but it creates havoc when trying to capture a decent photo. Everything is from Scraptastic's Elastic Heart kit from August. Catching up! ;)

To complement the picture of my parents, I took particular care to note events in which they participated...although I don't think any of us will forget the day my Dad rode out a frightening thunderstorm under a tarp on the beach. Yikes.

Several embellishments from the kit were tucked into my paper layers above: chalkboard flags and tabs, transparency tags and banners, a pretty pink tag, and flair that coordinates with one of the patterned papers. So fun!

Thanks for stopping by today. :)