Best Day Ever

There are some days when I take at least 30 photos, if not more.  Thirty or more photos on just plain 'ol ordinary days...but not on the Fourth of July.  Nope.  I only took ONE.  ONE photo.  What is wrong with me?  I'm blaming it on the fact that we were having way too much fun and I wasn't worried about getting a ton of photos.  Plus, I was scared to death that I would lose my phone in the strip cut and I just wasn't willing to risk it :)

Here's my ONE photo in a layout about how we spent our Fourth of July...

I used my new Elmwood Park Kit +Add On's for this layout. 

The arrow, which I cut out using my Cameo, is pointing to Avery and Jubal in the water.  I left a lot of white space and layered directly around my photo to make it pop.  It's hard to tell from the picture, but I added a little bit of white paint over the stars to tone them down.

I really liked how this l/o turned out...it's definitely one of my faves.

It's Monday again...already...have a good one!  TFL!

Signs of Summer

It's still as hot as can be around here so we've been taking it easy and staying inside where it's cool.  I've been spending way too much time on Instagram and in my craft room, but hey, that's not a bad thing :)

Here's another layout I did for Summer Stamp School over in the Studio Calico classroom.  I got the design idea from a poster on Pinterest.  I think I pinned it under "design ideas", but I can't really remember, lol!

I had a lot of random "summer time" pics on my phone so I decided to put them all together.  I can't remember the last time I used this many photos on a layout!
 
I used SC's new July kit Elmwood Park +Add On's for this layout.

The chevron stamp is from the Summer Stamp School set.  I inked it using SU!'s new Midnight Muse.

I also played around with the Summer Stamp School set to make a few Project Life journaling cards for my album...

I used all of SU!'s new 2012-2013 In Colors for these cards...love.them.all.

Happy Friday!  TFL :)

Let's Go On An Adventure...Right Now

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

I used both May and June's kits from SC for this layout.  I took the sketch and rotated it to the left.  Most of the elements from the sketch are there, just in different locations :)  The photo was taken over the weekend using my iPhone and edited in my Picfx app.

 I added a little bit of (film) washi tape and folded it over the opening in the camera veneer that I painted black.

I adore the days of the week washi that was in this month's kit from SC...it's the perfect shade of aqua.

I hope you're having a great Fourth of July!  TFL!

Project Life - Week 16

Here's my Project Life spread for the week of June 25th - July 1st...

I had a bit of extra time to spend on this week's spread because of the heat wave...over 100 degrees for almost a week!

All of the journaling cards and elements came from Studio Calico's new digital line of products.  So excited about that...

My week was filled with dentist, doctor, and eye doctor appointments.  No one's sick, just getting all the school medical requirements out of the way for Jubal and Avery.

We took the kids to St. Louis on Saturday and got some shopping done for my hubby at Cabela's in the Mills Mall.  That's where the turtle pic came from :)

We ate out several times this week, which is rare, but we were wanting to get out of the house and stay cool at the same time.  As you can tell by the forecast up there it's been miserable.  And we're still dry as a bone.

I hope everyone has a safe and happy Fourth of July!  We won't be shooting off any fireworks because of the drought, but I'm sure we'll find something to do that's patriotic ;)

Here's to another week in the books!  TFL!

snack time

I rarely get to participate in the Weekly Challenges on the SC blog due to lack of time, but not this week!  My husband has been working nights and it's been so gosh darn hot outside that we've been camping out in the cool basement so we don't have to have the AC cranking constantly.  All this means more scrappy time for mama!  YAY!

Here's my take on this week's challenge, it's all about using circles...

For this layout, I used a bokeh effect on my photo, a confetti-filled glassine envelope, punched circles, sequins, a yellow striped badge, and some resin flowers to represent the "cirlces" for the challenge.

All of my paper and supplies are from Studio Calico.

I love the colors of this layout and I think they complement the photo quite nicely.  Super fun challenge!

Thanks for looking!  Have a good one :)

You Right Now

Summer Stamp School is now in session over at Studio Calico!

Yesterday, I downloaded each lesson and the Silhouette files and I'm ready to go!

Here's my first layout...

This layout came together as I was cleaning off my craft table and going through some supplies that were piling up.  I literally just started placing these scrap pieces of patterned paper on top of one another as I was tidying up and ta da!  I had the perfect photo of Avery and one of our baby kitties already printed out just waiting to be scrapped.  I love when things come together like this (which is rare)!

 I used some black StazOn ink to stamp the chevron stamp (from the Summer Stamp School set) on a piece of patterned paper.  Then I cut the image out and attached it to my layout using some dimensional foam adhesive.

I stamped my title on this tag using two different stamps from the set and then colored the "you" in with a SU! marker.

Easy peasey!

Happy Monday!  TFL!

OLW - June Prompt

I haven't posted much of my One Little Word album in quite awhile, not because I forgot to or didn't want to, but because a lot of the previous prompts were all about writing and words and I just didn't feel comfortable sharing them...at least not right now.

This month's prompt, however, is all about getting creative with paper and ink so I feel a little more comfortable sharing this with you :0)

I misted, painted, stamped, embossed, and embellished nine rectangle pieces of cardstock to slip into my album sleeve.

Each one means something different to me that pertains to my word (which is "Fresh").

From left to right, top to bottom:

1.  I painted the cute camera veneer from SC and wrapped it in some baker's twine and added the chipboard phrase to represent my new love for photography and to never give up on my dreams of having a bigger presence in the scrapbooking community (sounds cheesy, I know, but it's true :).

2.  I embossed the white cardstock with my Big Shot and a new chevron pattern from SU!.  I added my word with some letter stickers and a few drops of Mister Huey's Water Cooler and Inky Black.  This one represents the word itself.

3.  I put five different patterns of washi tape on this one and it represents finding my word in the "everyday" and it coordinates with my color scheme for my word.

4.  This one is self-explanatory...one of my favorite sayings or mantras.

5.  The No. 5 represents my family.  All five of us.

6.  For this piece, I used some Mod Podge, gold glitter and added a chipboard element that says "dream big"...good advice, I think.

7.  The "smile" was cut out using my Cameo.  I stapled it to the misted cardstock and it's my little reminder to smile more :)

8.  For this piece, I stamped the sentiment "Hello Adventure" and the arrows with some StazOn and added a little washi tape border to set it off.  This is my reminder to be more welcoming to adventure and travel.

9.  The final piece is my favorite.  The chipboard element says "unique" and it's my reminder to stand apart from the crowd and just be myself, with no fear.

I'm pretty sure you can still sign up for this class over at www.bigpictureclasses.com.  You don't have to be a crafty person to take it, just willing to take a good look at your life and yourself.  It's a great class and isn't overwhelming because it's set up over the course of 12 months.

Well, it's over 100 degrees in my neck of the woods and we're trying our best to stay in where it's cool. Hopefully, I'll get some extra time in my craft room this weekend ;)

Wherever you are and whatever you're doing, have a safe and happy weekend and if you're here with me in the Midwest, please take extra care of yourself, your family, and your pets in this outrageous heat this weekend.  Have a great afternoon!

TFL!