Dolphin Encounter - Creative Scrappers Sketch 295 Reveal!

Hello scrappy friends!  I'm so excited to share my first layout as part of the Creative Scrappers design team.  It's such an honor to be a part of this team!  And how great is it for Kristine to bring back the sketches - they are so fun to create with.  You can rotate them, mirror them, change the # of photos, etc. though mine usually end up around 90% similar to the original sketch.  

For this layout, I dug back in to some more honeymoon photos.  Remember, I'm still on a honeymoon bloggy time warp!  Don't be shocked if you see more honeymoon getting scrapped in the next six months.  :)  In April I shared another honeymoon layout also using Simple Stories You Are Here - it's so pretty!  It captures the laid back beachy feel that makes me think fondly of that trip 16 years ago.  Okay, so on to the layout!

I had such fun with this sketch creating all kinds of texture.  First up was trimming some CTMH Lagoon cardstock for the main mat area and then trimming a couple of the Simple Stories papers for the base of the photos.  After pulling together those main pieces, I distressed the cardstock, sewed it to textured white cardstock close to its distressed edges, and then curled up a few edges with my finger.  

Then I adhered the Simple Stories papers and my matted photos.  I felt something was missing, so I trimmed a strip of Heavenly Blue cardstock.  But it seemed "flat".  Inspiration came in the form of Martha Stewart fringe scissors.  I used them on another summer layout in 2014.  Doesn't it make you think of a tiki bar and a refreshing drink with an umbrella in it?  Ahhhh....

So the base part of the layout came together quickly, but I knew I needed some embellishment areas.  Enter in Just Nick Studios' Broken Heart Background.  I cut out three in different sizes to use in lieu of the stars on the sketch.  After I cut them out, I backed each "window" with different papers from the collection for a fun mosaic look. I also popped them up with foam tape! Here's the large one at an angle (and I love the Simple Stories New Bradz and photo stickers!):

Now that I had the main part done, I felt the bottom left corner was sparse.  Yet, I didn't want to deviate from the sketch drastically or draw attention away from the photos.  I decided it would be a cool effect to cut some waves in white and sew them to the bottom.  I used an Echo Park cut file and modified it to stretch to 12".  White on white can be powerful!  But in this case, I felt it still needed something.  Enter in some watercoloring -- using Tim Holtz Distress Inks (Peacock Feathers and Evergreen Bough) and my CTMH watercolor pen -- along the stitched edges, similar to some cards I did recently.

I think the subtle color was just enough to anchor the layout.  I love it when a plan comes together!  I then used the alpha stickers from the collection for the title, and you can see another heart here, too.  Note to self:  go put a dab of glue under the rebel orange letters that don't want to stay stuck.  ;)

All that was missing now was the journaling strips, and I printed some out using the brown/gray color on more textured white cardstock.  If you are stuck on how to match font colors to your layout, I have a little how-to tutorial.

That's it for me!  I hope this inspires you to grab that sketch and link up on Creative Scrappers InLinkz for a chance at some goodies from our sponsor, Jillibean Soup.  Don't forget to check out the other design team members' layouts for more inspiration, too!

Have a great day!
Majken

{Paradise Adventure} April Stuck?! Sketch & Simple Stories

Hello!  Today I have a layout for you that uses some foiled shapes I created using both my Silhouette PixScan mat and my Heidi Swapp Minc (I have a tutorial here showing you how to do this at home).  Grab some chocolate and come along!

I used Simple Stories You Are Here collection to highlight some photos from my honeymoon back in 2000 (no, I am still working on scrapping the trip 16 years later! And the time warp continues!).  

Here are some close ups.  I love sewing on my layouts.  Aren't the photo stickers and New Bradz awesome?

Here you can see the gold foil anchor I created using my PixScan mat and Minc, along with another New Bradz, enamel dots, and photo sticker.

How cool is this fussycut flower cluster popped up with 3D foam tape?

And here's a close up of the title and journaling.  I used CTMH stamp set "Hello Paradise" and then print/cut/foiled the "adventure" and the heart I stuck on top of the chipboard camera.

I used the April sketch from Stuck?! Sketches.

Thanks for joining me today!  I hope you have a wonderful weekend.

Majken

Exploring Freeport - A Two-Page Layout along my Scrappy Time Warp

Hi everyone!

I have a new two-page layout to share with you that I created during my last crop visit to Archiver's (not sure I'll ever get over my sadness about it closing) where I dug out my honeymoon pics to focus on.  Well, here we go back in time again along my scrappy time warp to the year 2000.  The place: Freeport, Bahamas.

I chose some photos of my husband and me exploring the city of Freeport.  To pull out the blues and reds in the photos, I dug into my stash and loved the Simple Stories Urban Traveler collection to go along with them.

I chose to use the red in moderation to complement the photos, and to offset the red, I chose to use the blue papers as my background.  I chose red for my stitching and used the gray paper and some gray embellishments to help ground the photos separately from the blue backround.  To help round out the layout, I included my favorite vellum - the chevron vellum by Studio Calico from the Darling Dear collection, which you can see on the left of this close-up:

I love the look of the stitching on layouts.  The nice thing is that it doesn't have to be perfect or straight!  It can overlap, zig zag, etc.  Below I machine stitched over the vellum frame from the Basic Grey Capture photo frames pack and topped it using my Tim Holtz Tiny Attacher (one of my favorite scrappy gadgets!!).

On the right-hand page, I put a subtitle of "Look, See, Do" by fussycutting the circle letters from the patterned paper. layering them over some fussycut arrow borders, and stitching over them.

I finished the layout with a title cut using my Cameo ("Exploring") and the letters from the Simple Stories Sn@p! letter pages ("Freeport").  Finally, I did some journaling in the photo frame in the bottom right and stitched around that one as well:

I hope you enjoyed today's 2-page layout!  Thanks for visiting.  

See you soon!
Majken Pullin

Bon Voyage! A Scrappy Time Warp...

You know that time in 1999 when I became a "DOTS" (now Close to my Heart) consultant so I could earn money for my wedding?  Yeah....I did earn money, but I spent my fair share, too (on crafty goodies, of course!).  I couldn't get enough of the stamps, papers, inks, and accessories.  I kept up with my pre-wedding pages somewhat, but then...IDon'tKnowHowButItGotGroupedInAStorageBoxForLater.  It was like the crazy aunt you don't want to acknowledge.  Oh sure, you know it's there, but you repress the thought because: new house.  Baby girl.  Life.

Fast forward to October 2007 where Heather Leopard and a couple other of my friends go to a scrapbooking retreat.  I bring almost nothing except for wedding stuff to *finally* scrapbook!  I get quite a bit done, actually, and am very proud of myself.  Then.....well, you know -- TheWeddingBoxWentBackToItsHideyHole.  

Now it's 2010 on this scrappy time-warp.  Heather and our friends decide to make our own retreat at a local Residence Inn, and we split the cost and food.  I grab my Wedding Box (and a few other projects) and voila....I get a little more done. But...BackToTheHideyHoleItWent.

Fast forward yet again to January 2014, where it's finally Scrapbooking Season.  Heather and I along with Krissy go to a bittersweet Archiver's crop (our last....still so sad....not over it at all....WAAAAH!).  I decide the easiest way to pack is to have specific projects in mind. So out came the Wedding Box O' Stuff.  And as I looked through it I realized I have successfully captured the pre-wedding (showers, bachelorett party, bridal portrait, etc.), the wedding AND the reception.  Success.  Progress.  Memories saved, ready to cherish.  But then my eye catches a Barnes & Noble bag.  I open it.  My eyes gleam.  Because it is....the honeymoon.  With notes. Sidenote:  my husband actually teased me about taking notes on what we did each day of our honeymoon, but wow, I'm so grateful I did!  I never once thought I'd be scrapbooking my honeymoon almost 14 years after the fact, but guess what?  I'm really glad so much time has passed because scrapbooking has come a very long way, my friends.  A looong way. 

So.

My husband and I went on a cruise for our honeymoon.  Wanna see my Bon Voyage layout?  Okay then, check it!

I had so much fun creating this layout.  I used Fancy Pants Designs' Happy Go Lucky collection because the colors were sooo happy, and they called my name.  I wanted to pick up that light blue color and happened to also have two sheets of an older Fancy Pants collection, The Daily Grind.  I loved the hexagons and decide to use most of the hexagon paper on the right page.  But I wanted to carry the shape over, so I cut out a large hexagon with my Cameo, traced it onto the left hand page, and then sewed the hexagon onto the right hand side of my left page.  You can see the top of it here.  

Don't we look cute holding our beers and giggling during muster training?

I love the striped paper too, so I used that in the top border of my left page as well as the banner on my right page.

I mat the photos on the left page with CTMH Colonial White cardstock and the photos on the right in red Fancy Pants cardstock.  To add dimension, I distress the light blue cardstock on the right page and sew along the top and bottom.  Under photos on both sides, I layer CTMH Cocoa cardstock, the ticket patterned paper, and some chevron vellum by Studio Calico.

I use a tag from the Happy Go Lucky collection to journal on, and for my title I decide to cut out "Bon Voyage" on my cameo, except for the "O".  Instead, I fussy cut the hexagons to use as my "O".

After I adhere the title, I sew over the "BON", and then add the Maya Road "love" clip over the center of the "O".  Finishing touches are the arrow stamp and the "Epic" stamp.

I have more honeymoon to show you, but for now, our scrappy time warp comes to an end.  I hope you enjoyed the layout.

Chocolate scrappiness,

Majken Pullin