Love at 1st Sight

Still scrapping Summer of 2012. After playing in the surf, we strolled the Boardwalk and had some icy treats. I love being on the Santa Cruz Boardwalk at the end of the day. It has such a lazy feel, everyone worn out from a day in the sun. Yet another Double Take sketch, one which I haven't attempted thus far. I find the nine squares on the left side difficult to use. I liked this Funhouse paper by Tina Higgins from GCD Studios a lot so I featured it in most of those squares. 

Water Baby

Another sketch from Double Take class and another from the Summer of 2012 with Lexi and Mom. After we left the Hearst Castle area, we traveled up Highway 1 through Big Sur country, finally landing in Santa Cruz. I swear, I think it was the first time we coaxed smiles out of Miss Lexi. She loved frolicking in the surf at the water's edge. The paper is from Cosmo Cricket's Salt Air collection which I could just eat up with a spoon. Tried to make a little cluster in the style of Shimelle. Not sure I succeeded but it's my version of one. Thanks for looking.

La Cuesta Encantada

I know it's difficult to believe, but I'm still working on my Double Take class from Big Picture Classes. I love these sketches and I am still determined to make a couple of layouts from each one. They are all in my room, in various stages of completion. So as I get my act together to complete each one, they will appear here. This one is a simple one but I liked it because it features the Hearst Castle scrapbook kit I bought while visiting the Castle last June with Mom & Lexi. Doilies, ribbon and brads from my stash. Thanks for peeking in.

We Had It All

Believe it or not, I'm back to my Big Picture Double Take class "skitches." This one is from Week Two, Sketch One. It's one of my favorites from the class and I decided to go way outside my comfort zone by using a lot of patterned paper on this layout. It's a stack from We R Memory Keepers called Travel Light. While I was travelling on a road trip, I chose these papers because I thought the colors went well with the photos. These pictures were taken in Castroville in October during my road trip with my sister. We stopped at a landmark restaurant called the Giant Artichoke. And, of course, we had to get the Sampler Platter. The layout is primarily photos which is why it's one of my favorite sketches. However, I did cut the artichoke on my Silhouette and colored the pieces with neon paint and Distress Inks and sprays. I am happy with this layout. Thanks for looking.

Beverly Hills Supper Club Fire Museum

The Beverly Hills Supper Club on Route 27 in Southgate, Kentucky, was one of the most luxurious venues of its time. On May 28, 1977, there was a terrible fire resulting in the deaths of 165 people. In my youth, this place loomed large in my history. It was THE place to go for a big night out. Gambling was never legal there but it did flourish for several years. I, personally, only attended one event there, a wedding in 1974. It was, much to my dismay, the one night of my life that I drank and drove. I was young and never did THAT ago. 

But it was a sight to behold up on the hill with that long sweeping driveway. I'm sure I passed it thousands of times during my youth. I actually didn't live in the area at the time of the fire but I was interested in visiting the Museum on my last visit home. Since it was an elegant musical showcase featuring stars such as Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Liberace, Steve Martin and Eydie Gorme, I figured this layout would work into Julie's Music to My Ears challenge over at Club Scrap. And, of course, I used Club Scrap's All That Jazz paper for it. The sketch is another one from Double Take, the two year old class I am still struggling to finish. Thanks for looking.

Kentucky Quilt Barns

In the fall of 2011, my Mom, sister Chrissie and I drove to Cumberland Falls in south central Kentucky in search of the elusive Moonbow. Along the way, we snapped photos of many of the Quilt Barns we saw from the roadway. You know me. Always thinking out of the box. I used the Common Threads quilt-y kit from Club Scrap to create this layout. Another layout to suit the Curvy challenge for Week 3 of PSL. I used some die cuts sent to me by my scrappy sister Chrissie, made with the Stampin Up Lattice die. Perfect for this layout. I was going to go to the trouble of designing a tobacco quilt shape (as shown in one of the photos) to represent Kentucky, but I felt this ready-made die cut resembled that shape to some degree and, hey, I used my stash. Another BPC Double Take sketch, too. Thanks for looking.

Sweet Treats

Back to multi-tasking. This is a Double Take sketch used for Week Three of the Pro Scrapbooking League contest. The challenge this week was to use curves on our layouts. This layout has many buttons. Clear ones which were colored with alcohol ink as well as two bingo buttons. There's a lot going on here as I was trying to follow the examples set in the Double Take class. This was the first sketch from Week One of the class.  I like it a lot and will be using it again. I used washi tape and strips of paper for the strips. A Martha Stewart punch to get the doily look on the border. The papers used were all from Club Scrap's Sprinkles kit. Thanks for looking. 

So Long, Farewell

My first entry for the 2013 Club Scrap Pro Scrapbookers League. This season, I am a Tripod. This is a sketch from Double Take, a Big Picture Class in 2011. The Club Scrap kit used is Raku. The star paper is from a DCWV pad called Stardust. All edges inked with Seedless Preserves. The gold spray is Perfect Pearls Sunflower Sparkle. The title and stars were cut on Silhouette. Thanks for looking.

Sunshine Plantation

The layout is about our visit to the Sunshine Plantation in Queensland in 1989. Most supplies are from Club Scrap. Layout base is Castaway. Green and gold are from the Paradise remix (Refresh and Avant Garde). I created the border on left side by masking with an 11x11 piece of Bristol Smooth and then spraying with Memories Mist (Orange Juice and Vivid Yellow). I then used that piece to cut the other pieces used for the stencil, etc. All edges inked with DI Tea Dye. Stencil image is from Polynesian inked with Distress Inks. Letter stickers from my aging stash. Computer generated journaling. The sketch is another one from the Big Picture Double Take class. Still determined to make two layouts from every sketch. 

Always the multi-tasker, I have posted this in the Tropical Paradise challenge at Club Scrap and a challenge involving sprays at Paperartistsonline.

Murphys

Just noticed I haven't posted anything since St. Paddy's Day. Doesn't mean I haven't been doing anything but, wow, with the final weeks of PSL, it was all I could do to get things completed and uploaded to Club Scrap. Anyway, this layout was created for a challenge over at PaperArtistsOnline for a layout using three shades of green. This one uses all Club Scrap materials from the Celtic kit (which is actually Asian Artisan and Evergreen) with some mats from Dream in Color. The borders are punched with the Martha Stewart Garden Gate punch. The shamrock doily is from Michael's (courtesy of my little Sis) and the journal tag is from a Smash pad. Covers a day trip up to the gold rush town of Murphys which celebrates all things Irish. Used another one of the Double Take sketches from my Big Picture Class.

PSL Continues

This week for PSL, our projects must include Club Scrap stickers from their kits. I struggle with this one every time as I'm not a huge fan of stickers. However, I did find a couple of layouts which could accomodate the challenge so I post them here for your viewing pleasure. All supplies are Club Scrap.

This first one illustrates photos taken of a freshly groomed Denni in May of 2005. Stickers on both sides are from Collections, as is the tag. The blue base is from Framed. Blue mats from Concrete Jungle. Orange chevrons from Tilescapes cut with punch and outlined with black pen. Base page sprayed with Vivid Yellow Memories Mist for texture. DOES ANYONE OUT THERE have as much trouble with those mists as I do? Oh, I'd like to throw them all in the trash except I love the colors so much. They are a lesson in frustration. I had to switch tops for another color to get this one to work.

This second layout covers more photos to my visit to my brother's beautiful home. The stickers on both sides are from Pure & Simple. Layout on Lotus Pond base with purple from Sonoma and green strips from Painted Desert embossed with Tim Holtz folder and inked with Forest Moss Distress Ink. All other edges inked with Seedless Preserve Distress Ink. Stickles on lilies though the photo doesn't really reveal it. Twine from stash and handwritten journal strips on right. The Sketch from Big Picture Double Take class. 

Mosaic Sculpture

Another layout from the December visit to Cornerstone in Sonoma with Hubby and Mom. This funky sculpture garden was such a fun place to spend a warm winter day. All materials are Club Scrap. Cardstock from the Tilescapes kit, ribbon from Centennial and the letter stickers are from an oldie called Fiesta. The sketch is another one from the Big Picture Double Take class. Still whittling away at that class. My goal is to do two layouts for each sketch, one with Club Scrap materials and the other from my stash. Wish me luck.

Coffee and Cream Counterfeit Results

A few weeks ago, I posted the Counterfeit Kit sent to me by my Squirrely friend Nancy. You can see it here. And a day later, I posted the “photo-less” layouts I created from that kit. You can check them out here. I have finally matched up photos to those layouts and finished embellishing them. I am very please with them. Certainly out of my usual comfort zone for scrappin’. I don’t usually use patterned papers like these. Most of my layouts are created with Club Scrap materials. But I am really liking these and I hope they will boost me to continue, using up the stash I have amassed over the past ten scrappin’ years.

These are photos from a December visit to the Napa Valley with my Hubby and Mom. I talked DH into a short detour to see the Grape Crusher on the hill. The flowers were made with my Spellbinders Peony nesties. I added a few sticker letters from my stash. Otherwise, everything else was in the kit provided by Nancy.

This second layout covers a trip to Mission Santa Clara on the campus of the University of Santa Clara. This was my 21st and final mission to visit in the great state of California. I have now photographed all of them. Thus, Mission Accomplished. This layout, again, was completed solely with materials provided by Nancy with the exception of the Sticker Studio Alpha Tags which have been in my stash for at least ten years. Hooray. USE YOUR STASH!!! Most edges in both layouts were inked with Tim Holtz Distress Ink. Both sketches are from the Big Picture Class called Double Take which Nancy and I took together in September/October of 2011. This has been a wonderful experience. Both using materials that I probably would not have chosen as well as sketches which were assigned to me. I have created some layouts that are totally different from my usual presentation. Nice to switch it up a bit, now and then. Thanks for looking. We can’t wait for the reveal of the February kit at Counterfeit Kit blog so we can start the process again.

What a Ride!

Julie over at Club Scrap is hostess for the Monthly Challenge. She suggested a Winter-inspired layout for January. I created this one on Orient Express cardstock, using OE digital stamp images and a snowflake border cut on Silhouette and painted with Snow Cap Adirondack Paint Dabber. Train sticker is from my ancient Mrs. Grossman stash (will I ever use that up?). Sketch is based upon Week Two/Sketch Two from Double Take class by Nic Howard and May Flaum at Big Picture Classes.
Layout features photos taken on a December train trip with my Mom to Reno, through a little bit of snow. Not as much snow as I was hoping to see but certainly illustrates Winter Wonders in the Sierra Nevada. I apologize for the photography but I couldn't get a sharp photo without flash and with flash, you can obviously see hot spots on the photos.. Thanks for looking.

Double Take Sketches

I recently participated in an online class called Double Take at Big Picture Classes along with my friend and fellow Squirrely Girl Nancy. The class started before my trip to Kentucky but I wasn’t really able to participate until it was completely over and I had returned to my scrap cave. These first two layouts were created with the Double Take sketches. As always, I was multi-tasking and made them to suit some other challenges at PaperArtistsOnline.

This first one is from Week One, Sketch 1. It covers a recent visit to Lancaster, Ky, where I spent my first summer out of high school volunteering for three months with the Christian Appalachian Project. I was a tender eighteen year old and stopping by this place where I spent so much time was a touching experience for me. So much had changed and yet so little. It's a small town of 4,000 now so it was probably a lot smaller in 1972.
Supplies used:
Cardstock: DCWV from Mariposa and Immortal Love stacks
Flower cut with Tim Holtz Tattered Florals die on Cuttlebug
Tape strips from Heidi Swapp
Butterfly border strip from Martha Stewart Punch
Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist Garden Fairy
Button from Eddie Bauer
Doily and twine from Michaels
Computer generated journaling
CAP title is Ranger Distress Ink over a sticker which is then removed

This second layout is about visiting the levee in Newport, Ky, where I grew up and taking in the view of majestic Cincinnati across the river. My sister Chrissie and I are pointing at the buildings where we work/worked (I left in 1974).
So with the PAO Croptoberfest Challenges, I have been inspired to get out my sprays which I love collecting but rarely use. On this one I went crazy by spraying just about everything in sight. The page on the left was yellow American Crafts cardstock when I started. Love that Orange Juice. There wasn't a cloud in the sky that day but I added a few to fit the challenge on PAO. I think it works.
Supplies used:
Cardstock: American Crafts yellow, Wordsworth Tangerine Wash patterned paper
Cloud shapes and letter circles cut on Silhouette digital cutter; inked with Weathered Wood Distress Ink
Memories Mist Orange Juice used on white cardstock along with Spiced Marmalade Distress Ink
Computer generated journaling