Scrapbookers Anonymous Design Team...

Just waned to share some of my fellow design team's blogs for Scrapbookers Anonymous.  Check them out for great inspiration!  

New Team....

Elisabetta Colavero  http://scrap-colors.blogspot.com/

Anne Pennington  http://raggedyannie1.wordpress.com/

Julie Tucker-Wolek  http://thetuckerwolekclan.blogspot.com/

Frank Garcia  http://www.magicscrapbook.blogspot.com/

Julie Jeavons  (Julie J doesn't have a blog yet... but here are some of her albums)                                                https://www.facebook.com/media/set/fbx/?set=a.1793663614005.98928.1612112877&l=1558b46331

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/fbx/?set=a.1190505055418.29901.1612112877&l=d7ec4dc6c7

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/fbx/?set=a.1818378711867.100202.1612112877&l=d3520b39a7

Existing team...

Lynnda Hosni

Yara Freytes

Lena Schreijenberg

Sue Althouse

Deb Hickman

Karen Williams

Check out their blogs and stay tuned for challenges and inspiration!  So excited to be working with this great group!

Frosted Designs...

Happy Friday Everyone!  The challenge this week at Frosted Designs is polka dots or stripes.  I decided to go with the polka dots for this layout.  I used a dot screen and glimmer mist to make my background.  That along with some journal cards, scrabble tiles, and my new label maker made this layout just right for me.  

Ian is my middle boy.  He has a real sweet personality and a tender heart.  I had a converstaion with him not too long ago that kind of started this layout.  His brothers (older and younger) have a special bond and sometimes I feel that Ian is on the outside of it.  I loved this picture of him and really wanted to document these thoughts.  

I hope you'll stop over to Frosted Designs and play along with us this week.  I can't wait to see what you come up with!  Happy Friday!!

Today and Pencil Lines...

Today was so....well, pretty much perfect.  My parents arrived from the States this morning and we spent a day reuniting.  We moved to New Zealand 11 months ago and it has been that long since we've seen my parents in person.  Skype is wonderful but a hug from my mom.....I'm not sure I can put into words how special and awesome that was.  Now don't get me wrong, I enjoyed the hug from my dad just as much but there is a special bond between a girl and her momma.

The boys kind of forgot that they weren't suppose to go past that security point.  Thankful they didn't get stopped by security!

We visited the ocean and picked up shells.  I remember those first days here and the excitement of finding shells and seeing the NZ ocean for the first time.  I was glad that the weather was so perfect.  More fun and pictures tomorrow.

I love this picture of Aron.  He has always loved water and the ocean is no exception.  I started this layout for a challenge somewhere.  Not sure where it was so instead I have another memory in a layout.

This layout however is the sketch this week at Pencil Lines.  And because its a favorite memory about a favorite food, I'm going to enter it over at What is your fave thing.  As I was becoming familiar with my new teammates at Scrapbookers Anonymous I found this blog challenge.  I'm excited to have another place to play along with.

This is my Grandma's carmel corn.   Thankfully she is still living and makes it for special occasions.  I am so glad she taught me how to make it.

Last but not least......

My dear, sweet friend Lynne left this yummy cake on our back doorstep as a welcome suprise for my parents.  Despite it being night time, I had to take a picture of it before we cut into it.  Such a sweet thing to do!  It was so yum and enjoyed by all.  Just like the card says....it sure did make us smile!  Thanks so much Lynne!

Scrapbookers Anonymous...

Remember when I said I was going to enter a layout for the design team call at Scrapbookers Anonymous?

Well........I made it!!!!!  I'm going to be designing for Scrapbookers Anonymous!  I love that this is a "use your stash" challenge site.  I'm sure all scrapbookers have a stash that could be used up.  :)  I am so excited to be designing with a great group of talented scrapbookers!!!  Stay tuned for upcoming challenges!

Recent projects...

I've been working on finishing up some projects around here.  Some that are gifts, some that are ones that just never got finished.  Here's a look at what I've been up to.

First up is a frame I made for my Mom.  I can post it now because she is on an airplane as we speak to come HERE!  :)

I am not a card maker!  But I was pretty happy with the way this one turned out.

Love this layout!  Its been sitting on my table for weeks trying to get it just right.  I'm so happy with the end result!  Love these photos of my boys in the sunrise.  The title reads....I see beauty when I see you.

This frame is for a friend that recently got married but I thought it photographed better with a picture in it!  :)

I've had this book for ages!!  So I thought it was time to add the finishing touches and get it posted.  Love mini albums!!

And these two layouts I just really like so I wanted to share them.

I made this little note board to catch all those lists I have!  Or it might end up holding a favorite photo or two.

Thanks for stopping by!  I am working on a layout now as I'm killing time till bed.  Its gonna be hard to sleep tonight.  The excitement of my parents coming tomorrow is about all we can stand.  :)

Scrapbook challenges...

As the boys have been on holiday from school, we've had lots of play dates, sleepovers, and lazy days at home.  In between getting snacks for hungry boys, vacuuming, and getting the laundry done I've been scrapping.  Oh, and taking plenty of pictures for new pages!  :)

I've recently found a site called Kraft It Up! thanks to my good friend Lynne.  How did I not know there was a place for kraft challenges???  Kraft is my go to paper for my layouts.  I actually have to make myself not use it sometimes.  Thankfully my mom is bringing me some more kraft paper when they visit this week!!!

This month's challenge is a recipe challenge.  How ironic that I chose to use pictures of my favorite cake for this challenge?  Spice Chiffon....mmmmmm....imagine a cinnamon, clove, nutmeg angel food cake.  Yum!  My mom would make this cake for my birthday and now I make it for my boys.  Well, who am I kidding....I make it for me!  :)

On to the challenge
1 piece of kraft cardstock or kraft patterned paper
2 photos smaller than 4x6
3 different alphas
4 different patterned paper
5 embellishments (love that little cat cookie cutter!)

Check!  You can bet that I'll be playing along with the challenges at Kraft It Up from now on.  So glad to have an "excuse" to use my kraft!  :)

Next up is the sketch challenge at Design Dollies.  These pictures catch two of my boys in a rare moment.  Ian and Aden can get along with each other but tend to get on each other's nerves quite often.  When I saw them pouring over a lego catalogue together, I knew I had to capture it.

Well, that's it for today.  I'm working on a layout as I write this.  Hope to get it done soon!  Oh, and finish up a project for my mom.  Only 3 days until they are here!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Happy Easter...

Today we....

Went to church...

Had an egg hunt....

Saw pretty flowers...

Had a scavenger hunt to find Easter baskets...

Found them and excited boys...

Painted eggs for our egg tree tradition...

The real reason for today...

Happy Easter!!  Hope your day is a blessed one!!!

This picture....

Says it all........

its school holidays,

Easter is tomorrow, 

and

Grandma and Grandpa come in 4 days!!

All things to be thankful for!  

Happy Easter Everyone!!

Frosted Designs...

Hello Everyone!  Here in New Zealand autumn is in full swing but for this Friday's challenge at Frosted Designs I was thinking spring!  The challenge is birds and butterflies which seemed perfect for a spring project.  My American brain still hasn't adjusted to Autumn in April.  :)

I decided I was going to make them into a banner of sorts.  Something that I could hang up when it was spring and welcome it in.  I started with these chipboard birds from Maya Road.  Actually, this is the backside of them because I forgot to take a picture before I started.  :)

  I wanted to have something between the birds so I dug out these wee spools to use.

I put them into a plastic bag and used some glimmer mist to change the color of them.  That is a great trick for lace, ribbon or other embellishments.

 
And for me it was ok if the ends were not quite perfectly covered because they were not going to be seen.  I cut some thin strips of paper to cover them with.  Unfortunately I didn't take any other pictures of my work in progress as I was intent in getting it together.  I added a patterned paper wing, buttons, bling, fussy cut butterflies, and some other bits.  Here is the finished project and some close ups.

It started out as one long banner but was really hard to get a good photograph of so I made it into two.  Now I can have two to hang in my scrap room!

Here are the spools covered with paper and a flower added in the middle.

Head on over to Frosted Designs and check out the Birds and Butterflies challenge this week.  I can't wait to see what you come up with!  And even though its Autumn here, the weather has been very spring like.  Loving that!!  Happy Spring....or Autumn....to you all!

Frosted Designs...

Hello Everyone!  This week's sketch at Frosted Designs is a really good one.  I couldn't wait to get started on it.  I've had these pictures of my boys in one of our favorite forest playgrounds for months now and just couldn't figure out how to use them.  Nothing seemed right until I saw this sketch.  I was so glad to get them down in a layout.  

The tag is from a piece of clothing that I've had for ages.  I've just always loved the birds and flowers on it and thought it was perfect for this page.

My sister-in-law sent me these bingo tiles, flowers, and the coolest label maker.  I couldn't wait to play with them!  I was pleased that they complimented my photos so well.

Thanks for coming by to take a look.  I hope you'll stop by the Frosted Designs site and play along with this sketch.  I'm pretty sure it will show up in my layouts again!  :)

Pencil Lines...

Good Morning Everyone!!  Its a beautiful morning here in Dunedin.  Last night we had breakfast for tea (dinner) including streaky bacon, which is a special treat here.  Bacon is quite expensive so we've only had it a couple times in 10 months.  This morning when I woke up and could smell bacon and fresh coffee, it took me back to memories of Grandma's house.  There is just something about that memory that has me in a great mood.  Maybe it also had to do with the sunshine, the heat pump running (a warm house is SO nice!), and that my parents are coming in NINE days!!!!!!!!  But I'll take it.  I feel so happy and productive today!  Ahhhhh......


This layout is for the sketch challenge this week at Frosted Designs  As soon as I saw it, I knew what I wanted to do.  I've had this layout in my head for awhile but just needed a clearer picture of it to get it onto paper.  I love this photo of Aron and Aden.  Despite their 4 year age difference, they are the best of buds.  They share a bond that is so evident and will stand true for years to come.  

I was so into creating this layout that I didn't notice until I was all finished that its crooked!  Oh well.  Its the memory that counts.  :)  I am so glad to have this layout out of my head and onto paper!

Autumn, Sketchy Thursdays, and Design Dollies...

Autumn is definately here in Dunedin.  Yesterday I asked Bryce to take me on a photographic, scenic drive.  We were only 10-30 minutes from home but found some beautiful leaves.  I have always loved autumn and autumn in Apirl is no different.

I love this picture of my boys.  It will be fun to scrap too.  They are so sweet.  Yes, I did have to bribe them with lemon heads (candy from the States) but it was worth it.  :)

Design Dollies and Sketchy Thursdays...
Friday night I had several friends over for scrap night.  I was working on the sketch from Sketchy Thursdays and it just wasn't coming together.  So instead I worked on a project for my mom.  I'll post it after I've given it to her so it stays a suprise.  I finished up my layout this morning and was pretty pleased with the outcome.  It feels a lot cleaner and simplier than what I've been creating but I think this is good too.  I used to do a lot of two page layouts but have gotten away from them.  So I was happy to see this one and use my Easter pictures from last year.  Glad I got them scrapped 6 days before I take new Easter pictures!  :)
 

I sewed the buttons on a length of baker's twine for part of my boarder.  The challenge at Design Dollies this time around was to use buttons in an interesting way.  Well, not sure if buttons as a boarder is all that interesting but I'm going to submit it for their challenge.  The bunnies are from pages of a book that my sister-in-law sent me recently.  I had meant to take some pics of what she sent but was so excited for it to find a new home that I forgot!  So instead I'll just make something with it and show it that way.  Thanks Michelle!!!

The boys are on school holiday for two weeks.  Right now I have 5 boys 11 and under in my house.  Getting ready to take them to the indoor pools.  Its cold outside!!!  We're going to have to get creative over these next couple of weeks but it will be good for them to have a break.

Frosted Designs...

Hello Everyone!  Time for another Frosted Designs Fabulous Friday Challenge.  This week's challenge is handmade embellishments.  There are so many cool ideas out there for handmade embellishments!  For my layout, I used a pair of my son's jeans to make my circle "flowers".  I've always hung onto their ripped up or "too dirty" to be donated jeans just in case I wanted to use them for something.  (you'll have to come back for another really cool jean project coming in a month or so!  I'm excited about that one too!)

I just traced the circles on the jeans with my circle cookie cutters, cut them out, and then just pulled on the edges a bit to give them that frayed look.  Then I sewed them together with a bead and a little embrodery thread.  A little paint for my background, some bling, and my page came together.

I hope you'll stop over at Frosted Designs this week and play along with us!  I can't wait to see what you will come up with!  :)

My Core'dinations Creative Frenzy...

Hello Everyone!  This post is specifically for the Design Team call at Core'dinations.  I have always enjoyed their cardstock and since its hard to come by here in New Zealand, I thought why not give this DT call a try.  These 3 layouts are made primarily with their cardstock and for this call.  Sanding, ripping, and distressing are the techniques I used.

And just to clarify.....I love being on the Design team at Frosted Designs!  And will most certainly still be creating for them.  The Gals over there are so great!

Ok.....here are my pages.....

Thanks for taking a look!  I am pleased with my end result no matter the outcome.  :)

Some sun....Design Dollies and Sketchy Thursdays...

Today was SO nice!  As much as my last weather post might have been about cold, this one could be about warmth.  It is amazing how much warmer it is when the sun shines all day long.  The house is warm tonight too.  So nice!

The day started with a gorgeous sunrise.  It took my breath away!  The day was warm enough that I went without a jersey (jacket/sweater) and even was barefoot in the house (usually my feet are cozy in my slippers).  I was soaking up the sun as much as I could.

And the day ended with a pretty sunset.  Hoping for more sun tomorrow.


Design Dollies and Sketchy Thursdays...
I decided to combine challenges for this layout.  I used the colors from Design Dollies and the sketch from Sketchy Thursdays.  The boys have always been helpful in the kitchen and of course if knives are involved, they want to be in on the action.  One day, Bryce taught them how to cut vegetables properly by keeping their fingers tucked back.  They paid close attention because it meant cutting with a knife.  :)

You might notice from the bottom left photo that my husband is missing part of a finger.  Not from cutting vegetables though!  :)

Happy Today!  Hope the sun is shining where you are today!