Hello lovely scrappy chocoholics!
Today I'm sharing a layout I shared the other day on Instagram. I'd love you to follow me there if you aren't already! I created a layout using the negative cut from this lovely Valentine/date night layout, also using Fancy Pants Designs' Sweet Nothings collection - it's so pretty! I created a background of hearts cut file using a Scrapbook & Cards Today cut file from Feb. 2016.
Here is the full layout. Please pardon the shadows - I popped up those hearts and you can't get away from photography shadows when you do that. :)
Isn't it fun? I adore hearts...I remember filling up pages of notebook paper in junior high (and into college) with them. I loved doodling them!
Scrappy tip: When I cut out the original cut file, I used the cut file as a template for where to place the inside of the hearts to make sure they were centered. You may not be able to tell in the photo above, but there's black cardstock under the Sweet Nothings hearts. I wasn't yet sure how I was going to use it, so I went ahead and placed them with the original cut file as my guide.
I love sewing on my layouts, so when I cut the new hearts out I lightly scored them in the center and adhered them to the black hearts underneath. Then I zig zag stitched down the center and pulled each side of the hearts up. Here are some close ups.
I love those puffy stickers in the collection too!
I tucked a tag behind the photo, which I printed out using my HP Sprocket pocket printer...it's so fun to use, and I didn't even need to use adhesive since each photo is backed with it already!
That's all for today! I hope you enjoy using your negative die cuts.
Here is the cut file I used to create my background.
Enjoy your week!
Majken
Hello crafty friends!
Today I'm on the Creative Scrappers blog sharing a layout for sketch 304. I am highlighting my adventure into starting my bullet journal, and I'm using Simple Stories Posh collection since I also use some of the Posh planner items my bullet journal.
One of the best ways to create the squares in the sketch was to pull out my 6x6 paper pad. I chose patterns with different variety: a floral, some arrows, a solid light pink with polka dots, and a dark blue with polka dots.
Scrappy tip: something I learned in a quilting class I took is to squint at the fabrics (in this case, papers) and if you see a lot of contrast, that's good. If the papers are too similar in tone, pattern, colors, then see what else you can substitute for a good mix.
Once I chose my papers and decided where to place them, I trimmed them to save what wouldn't show. Most non-rotary trimmers are great for trimming out centers or angled cuts. In the blue paper below, you can see I trimmed a 4x4 piece from the bottom. You'll never know it's missing! I did the same for all the pieces behind the pink polka dot one that is in front.
Here's the layout again, and I opted to photograph it with a background setup as well. I usually don't but wanted to test this technique out.
Here are some close-ups. You can see the distressed edges of the 6x6 papers as well as the stitching. I love those enamel dots, bits & pieces, and decorative brads. I printed my photos using my new HP Sprocket pocket printer.
Journal strips, the pencil and that "Shine" ephemera piece...fun!
I created a little banner by trimming the journaling tags from one of the 6x6 papers, sewing, and then adding some more bits and pieces. There's Winston, the Simple Stories doggie, on a brad!
Don't forget to create your own rendition using sketch 304 and post to the CS InLinkz and share with us on Facebook and Instagram using #creatingwithsketches and #cssketch304.
Thanks for stopping by today. Have a great weekend!
Majken
Love is in the air! Happy Valentine's day everyone.
Hubby and I recently have been going on a few fun date nights, and I thought I'd test out my new HP Sprocket pocket printer to create this heartfelt layout with the gorgeous Fancy Pants Designs "Sweet Nothings" collection. <3 <3 <3
I had so much fun with this layout! What better way to start a date night layout than with a hearts cut file? I used the free hearts bonus cut file from Scrapbook & Cards Today February 2016 and merged two sets together to create the look I wanted, and then I cut my background from black textured cardstock using my Cameo. The cool thing is I now have the negative cut to use on a second layout in the future!
I then used my Cameo to do an internal offset of the hearts, cut hearts out slightly smaller than the outlines with different patterned papers, and then adhered it all down. And I love the textured look of stitching with cut files!
And my photo turned out just how I wanted it to! The only thing I changed was muting the colors to near black and white so the blues in our clothes didn't clash with all the pretty reds and pinks in the papers. I layered several different papers to create the photo mat. I created scallops on the main pink piece and distressed the edges of another piece, then added more stitching. I also added a little half-circle tab and a puffy sticker.
The puffy stickers in this collection are so fun! I had to use them for my title on the bottom right corner, among other strategic spots.
When I was done, I felt it still needed a little something, so I stitched around the edges to give it a frame.
I also created a few of my own embellishment spots to help fill in some of the extra white space I had leftover. Here's one in the top right corner I created with a puffy heart outline sticker, some paper, a piece of ephemera that I stitched, and another heart:
And here's one on the left that also has a quick journal spot. I used two pieces of ephemera, a scalloped circle punch, stitching, a puffy sticker, and ribbon.
Finally, I created the one on the top left by cutting the bottom of a tag and layering a sticker on it. Try to layer different sized pieces and different textures together and you'll always have a fun area of interest for your embellishment spots.
So glad you could stop by today. Enjoy your day, and I hope you get a bit of chocolate as well!! It's the perfect day for it. See you soon!
Majken
Hello everyone! It's the end of July (already?!) which means it's time to scrap some of our stash and showcase in a blog hop. You may have arrived from Audrey's blog - she always has lovely projects, doesn't she? If you don't follow her blog, you should. :)
This month I dipped back into my BasicGrey stash. I just ADORE the Vivienne collection - those colors rock! Here is my layout:
I can't really describe to you how much fun I had with this layout (a TON!!) - but I loved seeing these photos of my daughter from around nine years ago. #ReminiscingIsFun. Plus, isn't the Delicate Florals cut file from Just Nick awesome?? I cut the file out of CTMH Chocolate cardstock and backed it with the BasicGrey patterned paper that I also cut out with my Cameo using different patterns for different pieces.
Here's a close up so you can see the "grass" I sewed as well as my journaling and a few sticker, enamel, and gem embellishments. I made a garden! And this one will stay colorful and green (I do NOT have a green thumb in real life, y'all).
I dripped a few spatters of inks on the layout as well.
I created my photo by grabbing the four I wanted, organizing them in PicStitch (I put 3 in a vertical column and one square one on the right which I trimmed off to save for another time).
For the title, I used an alpha cut file from Scrapbook & Cards Today for the "Love" (cut in two different colors to create a shadow, and then sewed through the middle. Then I created "her" using my own handwriting! I'll share a tip on how to do that below the pic.
Scrappy tip: To cut a word using your own handwriting
- Write your word using a Sharpie or other marker in the width of your choice.
- Take a photo of your word and copy it to your computer
- In Silhouette Studio, open the .jpeg of your word
- Use the "trace" feature to trace the cutting edge around your word.
- Cut!
Here is what my pic looked like - I liked the one on the bottom best:
That's it! Simple right? I loved this because I wanted the word "her" in a scripty font so it would contrast the chunky alpha above it, but I couldn't find one that suited my needs.
I hope you have enjoyed the hop so far! Your next stop is Alison.
Have a great weekend! Love and chocolate,
Majken
Materials used:
12x12 and 6x6 Paper, Ephemera, Stickers - BasicGrey Vivienne collection
Cut files - SCT, Just Nick, my own word
Mists - Heidi Swapp (Patina, Salmon, Bronzer)
Enamel Dots - BasicGrey
Sequins - Pretty Pink Posh (Tangerine)
Droplets - Queen & Co (Orange)
Hello, hello! So glad you stopped by. Today I have a new page that I did hand-stitching on for the first time. While a bit time-consuming, it definitely adds a pretty and defined texture to papercrafts. This layout is my darling daughter when she was one and a half. And who *doesn't* unload dishwashers with their sunglasses on, anyway?? :)
I had the concept of this layout started on International Scrapbook Day, but I sadly didn't get to finish then. But I did take the time to visualize how I wanted the page to end up, and I knew I wanted to hand-stitch on it after seeing my friend Heather's page come together during a scrappy weekend. Isn't that gorgeous? I love her watercolor effect with it too.
Usually I don't have a specific title in mind when I start a layout, but in this case I did. So I used the Just Nick Outline Alpha cut file to pull SMILE into Silhouette Studio and cut it out with stitch holes (see below for instructions). I used an embroidery needle and floss to backstitch around each letter. What a relaxing task to do during a bit of television!
Then I used a folder file cut file from the Silhouette Store to cut out my folder "mat" on that beautiful aqua heart paper. Isn't the Bella Blvd She Blooms paper adorable?
After I had the basic photo area done, I placed it temporarily where I wanted it to go, removed it, and splattered a bit of white mist on the top left and bottom right areas. After it dried, I put the photo area back on and did some embellishing. Here's the bottom right area with a small bit of journaling.
I normally will machine sew on my layouts but because I did hand-stitching on the title, I wanted to keep that the focus. Instead I incorporated a few messy-thread areas with my stickers and enamel hearts - and a fussycut flower.
Here's a close-up of the stitching:
And all that created layers both underneath the stitching and on top using 3D foam tape!
Here's a quick tutorial on how I created hand-stitching holes around my letters using Silhouette Studio and my Cameo. I found this video helpful as a start.
- Trace your alpha cut file letters in the size you want the stitching to be.
- Align the letters to be evenly spaced horizontally and centered, keeping a little distance between them to account for the holes.
- Do an internal offset of the letters, and move the internal offset cut lines out of the cutting area for now.
- Create a text box with Times New Roman periods sized at 36. Grab the crosshair circle and drag it to your first letter and the periods will "snap" around your letter. Fill in the remaining periods until you have covered the letter.
- Repeat for each letter.
- Remove the cut lines for each letter, leaving the periods.
- Move the internal offset cut lines back to the center of each letter and send to your Cameo to cut.
I hope this inspires some hand-stitching! I'd love to see your creations if you decide to use this fun technique, so feel free to share them with me in the comments or on social media. If you found this helpful, I'd love for you to Pin it!
Have a super weekend filled with a bit of chocolate and scrapping time!
Majken
Hello everyone! I have this crush...I've had it for awhile. I'm talking about Simple Stories. Their collections are so much fun to play with. I had pre-ordered a few collections after the Winter CHA, and Simple Stories was one of them, but I hadn't had a chance to bust out Let's Party yet. So when I saw Kristine Davidson's Instagram challenge to use Just Nick Studio Dreamcatcher Background 1, I had the perfect chance. What a fun match-up between collection, challenge, and cut file!
I started by enlarging the Dreamcatcher Background to approximately 11", traced it in Silhouette Studio, and the cut it out of white textured cardstock with my Cameo.
I used the pieces that fell out of the circle to cut slightly larger pieces from the different patterned paper that I wanted for each section. I adhered them on the back using little dots of my Martha Stewart glue pen - I love it for small amounts of adhesive like I needed here!
I then adhered the full circle onto another white textured cardstock piece, about 11 1/2" x 11 1/2". Then I busted out my sewing machine! I used white thread to circle the outside edge and all the straight edges within the circle.
I adhered that onto a piece of Cranberry Red CTMH cardstock and sewed along the inside edge of the white cardstock.
I had three photos I wanted to include on the dreamcather, so I matted them with white cardstock and then different pieces of the patterned paper from It's A Party. Coincidentally, there were three tab stickers with the collection, and I used one on each of the photos!
With that base down, I decided on my title. I used the Birthday from the ephemera pack and some red alpha stickers from Simple Stories' Snap collection for "BOY". I tucked the boy from the ephemera pack next to the title for a fun accent. Isn't that gray curlicue from the photo sticker pack cute?? I sprinkled a few of those along the circle.
I used some ephemera, New Bradz, enamel dots (borrowed from Simple Stories' Say Cheese Collection!), and stickers to create different embellishment spots. There's so much to choose from - I know I'll be making some birthday cards with this collection.
To journal, I typed and printed a few strips to sew along the page.
TIP: To use a matching color for your journaling:
- Open a web page that shows the color you want (I browsed to a photo of It's A Party)
- Take a screen shot of the page that has your color
- Open it in Paint
- Use the dropper tool to "grab" the color you want to use for your font (I grabbed the gray/brown color)
- Change your font color in Word to the RGB values shown in Paint.
I decided to add some embellishments to the top left and bottom right corners outside of the Dreamcatcher circle. I just HAD to use that banner sticker and sew along its seam!
And that's a wrap for this layout! I hope you will also take part in Kristine's challenge and use the cut file - Nicole has some really awesome ones in her shop.
Thanks for stopping by - enjoy the rest of your week!
Majken
