I Got It!

So when I put my mind to it, I do it or should I say " I Get it".

One of my goals for this New Year is to try Heat Embossing. I knew nothing about it until a gal on one of my myspace groups posted a tutorial and hey it looks fairly simple!

I went out to Michaels today and went on a well deserved shopping spree and picked up a heat tool by Marvy Uchida.

The picture here is a bit deceiving because let me tell you it is pretty big! Almost the size of an old fashioned curling iron or a girls little friend **blush** :)

There were tons of Embossing Powders to choose from, metallic, non-metallic, sparkly, etc. I have no clue right now which I choose but I know I got, red, blue, green, silver, gold and black. Now this is one thing you need to know about me, I can't just get one color, I have to have them all! I hope I like this technique because I have enough supply now to last me a good while.

I can't wait to try this out and show you what I have done.

School Layouts

My son started Nursery school this past Fall and as any parent would say, it was a bitter sweet milestone.

3 Picture Layout:

I took tons of pictures of his first day of school but I only choose a few for the layout: getting ready to leave the house, he shows off his new CARS school bag, at school he waits outside of his classroom holding Papa's hand, and in class his desk with his name on it. He is on the Elephant team and shares his desk with two other classmates in the AM class.

I used this really cute 12x12 green paper that had chalk drawings in each corner but due to the amount of pictures I was using, I ended up covering 2 of the corners. The other 2 corners, I went over the chalk drawings with yellow stickles for some extra brightness. I used a scalloped piece of black paper in the center, almost like a chalkboard. I used my new Dymo Caption Maker to give some extra facts that I could not fit on the journal card. I used chipboard school embellies from K&Company and Soft Spoken. The yellow apple straight pin is something I found on Oriental Trading and I finally got to use it!

2 Picture Layout:

His first school photographer picture was a very exciting day! When I picked him up from school and asked him how his pictures went, he told me he said "CHEESE" with a huge grin on his face. I was so happy and anxious to get the pictures. About a month or so later, we received the pictures and I was surprised not to see the big Cheese grin he told me about!

I wanted to do a layout featuring his school picture as well as his class picture. It is something I am hoping to do every year. The background 12x12 paper is phrased with classroom sayings. I matted each picture on white and punched the corners out of the mat and picture to a scalloped corner. I also antiqued the edges of the mat in a silvery gray. I wanted to do something different with the journaling, so I literally ripped out a piece of paper from a mini notebook I have and I used a distressing tool to make the paper look worn. I antiqued the edges in a light blue. I took a piece of journal paper that looks like notebook paper and did the same, distressed and antiqued the edges. I stamped the apple on and used stickles to outline it. A pencil and crayon stickers were perfect for a little extra. I had an apple altered paper clip that was made by a fellow scrapper to make it look like it was holding the two notebook papers together. On the journaling I listed all the names of his teachers and classmates in the group photo. A nice memory for the future.

The other two chipboard embellies are from K&Company and Soft Spoken. The 'Nursery' title, I used a piece of white scrap that was leftover from the mats of the pictures and I used rub-on letters. And I have to say those rub-on letters are adorable and were a dollar store find!

I hope you like them!

The 1st for the New Year: 1 Picture Layout

So why wait to get started? Ok, well I did wait 4 days into the new year to do my first layout! lol...

This is what I did and I am really happy with it.

I finally got to use the Making Memories Noteworthy Collection Ava RicRac Ledger Paper that I got a few months back. I was hesitant to use it because it has pink details on it and scrapping for my son never requires any pink but this time I made it work. This was the perfect picture for this paper. So I ran with it... pinks, purples and a brick red to make it a little more masculine. The journal sheet is from the Making Memories Noteworthy Collection as well.

The chipboard letters in "Work" and "Play" are from K&Company Marcella's Anastasia's line and they are purples and browns, very pretty and they have been in my stash for quite sometime now and never knew how to work them into a layout - this was the perfect time! I put those down with 3D-dots. I cut out "All", "&" and "No" using my Jasmine Cricut Cartridge and used black stickles on them for a little sparkle.

Over the photo I have a clear frame that is from Miss Elizabeth's (a dollar store find) as well as the purple circles I scattered around.

The flowers are paper and I put little purple buttons in the middle of them... I like the way it looks :)

The picture is adorable... I took my son to work with me last year in April and he sat at my desk with my cell phone to his ear and "typing" on my computer! It was just too cute and too funny!

I hope you like it and I hope this layout will set the tone for the 74 to come.

Goals for 2009

Happy New Year!!

In 2008 I set out a goal to complete 75 layouts in the year and unfortunately I wasn't able to meet it. I know people who have done hundreds of layouts and I couldn't get a few done. My life is a bit hectic and the time I have to scrap I end up crashing in front of the TV.

This year, I plan to keep the same goal of 75 layouts and I am hoping I can pass that goal. I have pledged not to get involved in myspace swaps (other than box swaps because I love those), like tag swaps, etc. If I need tags, I can make my own, I have never used something someone else has made (no offense). I think if I do not join these kinds of swaps, I will have more time to do layouts for myself.

I even have a pregnancy scrapbook to make for a friend which I have not started yet. It is also on my to-do list. It will be an 8x8 album which I have never done. I am pretty nervous about this. No one has ever asked me to make them anything before and I don't think my work is that great that I should be sharing it! But I am honored and will try my best at it.

Some pictures that I have floating around that I never got to in 2008 are:

- making pizza

- 1st day of nursery school

- school picture

- Christmas 2008

- playing with Cars

- birthdays (I have yet to scrap any of my sons 3 birthdays!)

... and all of the 2009 pictures that will be taken.

And all of these are of course of my son. I would also like to try to do some more adult layouts of my friends and my husband. I even have a nice new 12x12 album waiting for such layouts!

I would also like to try embossing. I don't know much about it. I think there are 2 embossing techniques (please correct me if I am wrong), dry embossing and heat embossing. I see a lot of layouts using this technique and right now I know nothing about it but I hope at some point in this new year, I can learn about it. Any help and advise would be greatly appreciated!

And lastly in this New Year, I want and desperately need to get re-organized! My scrap supplies are in such chaos! I am running out of room and unfortunately just keep buying and buying more with no where to put it! So I am hoping to come to a happy medium with my 'stuff'!

Wish me luck!

New Years Eve

So let's face it, there is no way I am going to get 33 more layouts done today to meet my goal. Yes I am hung up on this goal that I have not met!

Here are the last 2 layouts I have done for the year.....

3 Picture Layout:



I did this layout, almost rushed through it just to get it done and I have to admit I hate it. And I am not the type of person to re-do layouts. This is how it came out and this is how I will leave it.

I wish I would have done the title differently. It is hard to see but the title is in silver glitter stickers and just says "Our Tree ~ 2006". I think if I would have matted the stickers there would have been a better effect and obviously would be able to read it more clearly.

Other than this layout being terrible, the pictures sure are cute!


2 Picture Layout:

Thanksgiving 2008... I finally got a family picture! But my husband had to spoil it with his Nike sweatshirt! LOL!

I like the way this layout came out. I used more of the Me & My Big Ideas Cornucopia line (the papers, letters & some of the embellies). The only things on this layout not from that line are the turkey sticker and the felt adhesive border at the top of the page, which I love so much!

I used my oh so famous 3d-dots behind the 'Thankful' title. That is the only thing raised in this layout.

Overall it is a basic layout, no fancy techniques used here (not that I know many anyway!).

Enjoy and Happy New Year!

I Forgot!

I am soo angry! QVC is having a major scrapbooking segment today featuring "Creating Keepsakes" and I forgot to DVR it. I am at work and by the time I get home I will have missed it all!

I will go to their website but it won't be the same :(

I Got It!!!

I GOT IT! I GOT IT! I GOT IT!

The Dymo Caption Maker

I am so excited! I was able to find it online and not a Dymo's website. I found it for a few dollars cheaper and FREE Shipping. Yes, you read correctly, cheaper and free shipping!

I ordered it from LabelValue and I paid $18.95 for it! I also bought a 4 pack of multi-colored refill tapes for $7.95.

I can't wait to use it!

Christmas Layout: 3 Pictures

aCheck. Another one off my to do list!

So there is about a week left to this year and I only got 1 more layout done! So it is officially that I will not make my goal. I tried....

This weekend I put together this layout "Cookies for Who?". These pictures were from Christmas 2006, my son was just 1 years old and when he came out of his bedroom Christmas morning, instead of being in awe of what Santa left him, he was too busy eating Santa's left over cookies! It was the cutest thing ever!

I used my Cricut to cut out the letters using the Zoobaloo cart. I antiqued the edges of the letters with green Cat's Eye ink. I placed the letters on circle cuts out that I made with my Fiskars Side Punch. And I was so happy to find in my "food" sticker stash, the big chocolate chip cookies that I used as the O's in Cookies.

The Cookies and Milk sticker set is from Jolee's and it was something I bought I believe last year to use for these pictures. Yes, I know it took me this long to get to it!

I typed my journaling and printed it from the computer and attached it to the layout using Candy Cane brads.

I like the way this came out, I hope you do too!

And in case I am not back before Christmas, which is less than 3 days away...

Merry Christmas!

No Luck...

I went to Michael's today with my 40% coupon in hand... I wanted to buy the new Dymo Caption Maker that blogged about yesterday. But they don't have it. It was not sold out, just are just not carrying it yet.


I know this is silly, but that really ruined my day! I was soo excited to get it. I may just have to order it on Dymo's website.

I will let you know when I get it!

Gotta Have it!

I received the latest issue of Scrapbooks Etc. and there was an advertisement that caught my eye and now I am obsessed! I have to have it!

The Dymo Caption Maker

When I was younger and in Jr. High School and High School, I had a, what I called 'label maker' back then. It was so very similar to this and I used to go around and label everything, from my father's checkbook cover to my notebooks. It wouldn't surprise me if it is still at my parents house buried somewhere.

But this I can use solely for scrapbooking - from what I see and hear, it is the latest trend!

This new set, comes with 3 interchangeable disk or wheels (not sure what they are referred to) that are a combination of lower case, upper case and punctuation and maybe script even. I am sure it comes with label tape, but I know you can buy different colors separately as re-fills.

This is the first item on my scrapbook supply shopping list. I just have to try to find it in a store and if I can't I will be sure to order it online.

I can't wait to get my hands on this and caption away :)