Project Life Week 23

Oooh, it's finally Friday...whoot, whoot!  This has been a huge week for me.  My oldest son started fifth grade, my middle son started Kindergarten, and my youngest girl will be going to Pre-K on Monday.  All of our schedules are mixed up and different and we're trying to establish some sort of routine.  

Tonight, I get to whisk away all by myself to stay with my sister and her family because tomorrow we're doing The Color Run in STL!  I'm not a runner (apparently you don't have to be to run this 5k) but I'm super excited to be a part of all the wonder, color, and just to hang out with my lil' sis :)  If you get a chance, you've got to check out The Color Run video on YouTube...super cool!

Also, I have some very BIG news that I can't quite share with you just yet...but I will very, very soon...so.excited.about.this!

Ok,  here's my PL spread for the week of August 6th - 12th...

Keeping it real simple still seems to be working for me.  I like using bigger photos and I tried to add a bit more journaling this week.  Yes, I do realize I stamped the "xoxo" backwards, lol!

I didn't take very many photos throughout the week so I filled up one side of my Project Life spread with the photos I've been taking for Photo-A-Day August.

The one thing I forgot to mention in my "10 Things" was that we watched a lot of the Olympics.  I really enjoyed having something decent to watch on television in the evenings with the hubby and the kiddos.  I didn't have to worry about language, content, or violence, which was nice!

My favorite product from this spread has to be the "birds on a wire" washi tape from Freckled Fawn.

Wish me luck tomorrow!  I just wanna make it across that finish line...can't wait to share photos!  Have a great weekend and TFL!

Bringing Home the Gold

Here's a layout I completed yesterday for my Trendspotting class over at Studio Calico...

The challenge was to use something metallic on your page.  I used some glittery gold Thickers in my title and I transformed the wood veneer arrows with some gold embossing powder and my heat gun.  I also added a bit of gold sequins at the top and under my journaling tag.

I used my August SC kit for this layout and that super cute "house" badge is from Ormolu.  

Happy Thursday!  TFL!!!

Up, Up, & Away!

Here's my take on this week's Sunday Sketch Challenge at Studio Calico...

I had some fun photos of my brother, hubby, and oldest son from when they went parasailing on our vacation that I couldn't wait to scrap.  I took this week's sketch and turned it upside down because I wanted the title on the top.  I used the banners to represent the tilted angles of the sketch.  

 
I added the wood veneer stars from SC to carry out the theme from the star on the parachute and all the products I used for this layout are from the Summer of '69 August Kit +Add-ons from Studio Calico.

I couldn't help myself from using doilies on my "boy-themed" page...they reminded me of the fluffy parachute, too!

I hope you're having a great week...I can't believe it's Wednesday already!  xo

I Love The View From Here

Here's a layout I made for my Trendspotting class that I'm currently taking at Studio Calico...

I used one of my favorite photos from our Florida trip as my inspiration for this layout.  The picture was taken while we were eating at a local Destin seafood spot, The Back Porch.  I think the colors in the photo are just AMAZING!

For this assignment, we had to use an ombre effect on our project.  I took the little notebook paper pocket that came in my August SC kit and used three different shades of Mister Huey's Color Mists on it to create the effect.

The "HERE" arrow is a Silhouette cut file I purchased a while back.  

Here's a better shot of the ombre effect on the paper pocket that I used to hide my journaling tag.  I also used some Mister Huey's to brighten up a few of the SC wood veneers I used on my layout.

Hope you're having a great day!  Thanks for looking :)

My Cutie Pie

Happy Monday to everyone!  My kids start school today and I'm so glad we can get back to a more "normal" schedule!  We've had a great summer, but everyone around here can tell that it's time to get back into the swing...and we're all ready for Fall.  This year I've got a fifth grader, kindergartner, and a pre-schooler.  Wow!  This year is going to be very different for this stay@home mom and very busy to say the least!

Here's a layout I made late last week using Studio Calico's August Kit +Add-ons and their latest cut files that coordinate with their kits...

My mom bought all of the kids waterproof cameras to take on our Florida trip and they had such a great time taking their own pictures.  Avery couldn't stop clicking even after she used the last exposure!  I'm hoping to pick the photos up today...can't wait to see what they captured!

I kept this layout fairly simple, but with a lot of tiny embellishments...I just can't help myself ;)

I hope you have a great day!  TFL!

This Is Where I Want To Be.

First and foremost, I want to give all of my blog followers a big XO for all the support and wonderful comments I've been receiving lately :)  I'm so glad you're enjoying my posts and layouts and I just want you all to know it means so much to me that I can provide a little inspiration for you in your own crafting and scrapbooking endeavors.  I'm truly honored that you take time out of your day just to stop by and check out my little blog :)  Thank you all so much, from the bottom of my heart!

Ok, ok...enough of the mushy stuff :0)

I played along with Studio Calico's Weekly Challenge this week.  This week's challenge was to use a black and white photo on your layout so you wouldn't have any color matching issues with your photo and paper.  

Here's my layout...

I have to admit that I had a hard time with this challenge at first.  I've been using very brightly colored photos in my layouts all summer long (thanks to my Snapster app on my iPhone :) and I honestly couldn't remember the last time I scrapped a black and white one.  I spent at least an hour scouring my pics looking for the perfect black and white contrast when I found this photo of myself my shadow snapping a pic of the beach while we were on vacation.  When I found it, I knew it was the one.

I intended to use a lot more colors and patterns, but the photo wasn't matching up with anything I liked so I went a little more monochromatic.  I still really like the way it turned out though ;)

I used my Summer of '69 kit +Add-ons for this layout.  I used my Cameo to cut out the "geotags", "HERE arrow", and the "THIS IS WHERE I WANT TO BE" sentiment.

Have a great weekend everyone!  TFL!!!

Oh Happy Day

I signed up for August's class Trendspotting at Studio Calico and our first assignment was to use triangles on our page.  I have to admit that I've never really focused on the shape, but after creating this layout, I will definitely be using them more often!  

I cut the triangles out of my background paper using a craft knife and a little patience.  Then I slipped pieces of black and white polka dot patterned paper behind them and adhered them with tape on the back of the page.  I think it adds a really nice "pop".

I used the multi-colored hexes to add another triangle element to this layout as well.  The background paper is also comprised of tons of tiny triangles which helped me in lining up my cutout triangle shapes.
 

I used my new SC kit +Add-ons for this page and the "oh happy day" and "arrow and heart" journaling cards were bonus downloads from the class.  

Well, it's Thursday already!  This week has flown by :)  Have a good one and TFL!