Monday 23 November 2015

Happy Heart | D-lish Scraps Design Team Layout

Hello there!

I'm back today with my final D-lish share for the month. This layout is loaded up with lots of D-lish goodies!!

"Happy Heart"


I really love this photo of my kids and I that was taken on Mothers Day this year. I don't get in photos with my kids as much as I should, so Mothers Day is always a good excuse to have a photo taken with them... It's kind of mandatory in our house! This year was extra special because it was my first Mothers Day that I celebrated with my little Eleanor!

To start my layout off, I added some stamping to my background using a Kaisercraft stamp, and then layered some patterned papers as a base for my photo. Behind the photo you can see that I added a paper doily.

Let's take a look at some closeups so that you can see all of the D-lish goodies that I've used...


Along the top of my layout I've laid two strips of patterned paper as well as a strip of the black skinny washi tape. Then in the top left hand corner of my layout, I've added a black sequin bow along with a tangelo starflower. These are really pretty, and I especially love this tangelo colour!


I tucked a shipping tag between the paper layers and used this to journal on. I also tied some black and white cotton twine to the tag. To the top right hand corner of my photo I've attached a natural wooden peg. You can also see here one of the words from the black Minifetti sheet. These sheets are awesome - I think I need to buy them in every colour!


To the left of my photo, I added a die cut from the November Just Add Paper kit, another starflower, and a Freckled Fawn arrow paperclip.


To the right of my photo I created a pretty flower cluster that includes a black wild rose, another starflower, and two white sweetheart blooms. I LOVE the wild roses... they are one of my faves at the moment!!


In the bottom right hand corner of my layout I included a couple more phrases from the black Minifetti sheet. You can also see here that I've added a heart wooden button.

I finished my layout off by scattering a few black sequins (these were from the current Just Add Paper kit).

Thank you so much for stopping by today and taking a look at my layout, and for any lovely comments that you leave also!

Mandy

Sunday 22 November 2015

My Lovely Girls | D-lish Scraps Design Team Layout

Hi there,

Today I'm sharing another one of D-lish design team layouts with you and it's quite different to the one that I shared yesterday - it's bright and it's colourful!

"My Lovely Girls"


I took this photo of my girls at Eleanor's 1st birthday party recently and I just had to scrap it straight away because I love it! They both looked so beautiful! I went complete girly with this layout, using lots of flowers and pretty things from the D-lish Scraps store!

Lately I have been trying to start some of my layouts off with white cardstock and creating my own backgrounds rather than always starting with patterned paper as the base. I am by no means a mixed media, messy kind of scrapper, but I do like to try different techniques. One of my favourites at the moment is using distress inks with stencils. I think I like that I still have a fair amount of control over how it will look as opposed to using more wet mediums. I also like that there's really no drying time, and it doesn't warp your cardstock like wet mediums do. Plus it's really easy for someone like me who isn't very experienced with mixed media. So that's how I created my background for this layout! I really didn't use much patterned paper at all on this layout apart from a couple of layers behind my photo. (You can also see that I tucked a journal tag from a previous Just Add Paper kit in amongst the layers behind my photo as well).

Let's take a look at a couple of closeups so that you can see all of the gorgeous D-lish embellishments that I've used...


Up in the top left corner, I added some wood veneer bunting which I covered with embossed cardstock in hot pink and lime green. I also added some twine (from a previous Just Add Paper kit) to the bunting. I love how the bunting adds to the party theme of the layout! Up in this corner you can also see that I added a Freckled Fawn chipboard heart sticker, a couple of wooden butterfly buttons, and two word strips from the green and pink Minifetti sheets. These Minifetti sheets have recently been added to the store, and I love them!! They are great for adding words and sayings to your layouts and come in quite a few different colours! In this picture you can also see that I have tucked a small felt doily under the top left of my photo and added a beautiful crochet flower on that corner as well.


I have discovered a new love in the D-lish store... the wild roses!! I used one here on this layout and also on my layout that I will be sharing tomorrow... they are just gorgeous!! So I started this cluster off with the wild rose and then I added a couple of hot pink large roses, and a few pistachio pastel petals. Surrounding the flower cluster, I have added other pretty embellishments including a flair button (from the Washi Hearts Set A), another Freckled Fawn chipboard heart, a wooden butterfly button, enamel dots, and one of my favourite embellies... a sequin bow! I love how all of these items came together to create such a pretty cluster!

Thank you so much for stopping by today and taking a look at my layout, and thank you for any lovely comments that you leave also! I will be back tomorrow with one last D-lish layout to share with you for this month! Until then, happy scrapping!

Mandy

Saturday 21 November 2015

Shine | D-lish Scraps Design Team Layout

Hi there!

I'm kicking off my D-lish projects this month with my take on the November Inspiration Board! Let me just say that this was definitely different for me because I have never created a black and white layout with no colours before! But that's why it's called a challenge right? And I am so glad that I attempted it, because I'm really happy with the end result!

So, here's what I came up with...

"Shine"


I initially had another photo that I had planned to use for this layout, but my husband and I attended a wedding last week, and before we headed off my Mum snapped this photo of us, and I thought that it was perfect for the 'After Five' Inspiration Board.

Here's a reminder of what the board looks like...


I was obviously inspired by the black and white theme of the board. I also gained inspiration from the stack of cushions... I liked how the different patterns looked stacked on top of one another... I tried to mimic this with my different layers of black and white patterned paper. The diamonds have also found their way onto my layout! And you can see that I also used the optional sketch.

Almost everything on my layout was included in this month's Just Add Paper Kit! Although this kit has now sold out, some of these items are still available to purchase individually.

I started my layout off by choosing two different patterned papers for my background and joined them together with the gorgeous washi tape that came in the kit. Once this was done, I then added a little bit of stencil work to my background using the Scrap FX Star Confetti Stencil and some black distress ink. I then created my layers using the Black Polka Dot Tissue Paper and the Doily from the kit, as well as some more patterned paper. Once I had placed my photo on top of the layers, I was ready to start embellishing!

Let's take a look at some closeups of my layout...


I love this wood veneer word that came in the kit! I gave it a coat of white gesso and then once dried I rubbed some silver Kindy Glitz on it to give it some sparkle! It was the perfect title for my layout! Here you can also see the super cute wood veneer diamonds, which I painted with black Color Shine. To the top right of the photo, I added a little cluster of flowers including a Black Midi Rose and a White Mini Rose from the kit, as well as a Medium White Rose.


Here you can see some of the layers behind the photo as well as the stenciling. In this little cluster I included a Flair Button as well as a couple more roses, all from the kit.


I added the larger of the Wood Veneer Diamonds to the left hand side of my layout to balance it out.

Thank you so much for stopping by and taking a look at my layout, and for any lovely comments that you leave also! I hope that you will play along with the current Inspiration Board over on the D-lish blog!

I will be back tomorrow with another share for D-lish... This time it will be something bright and colourful! Until then, happy scrapping!!

Mandy

Monday 16 November 2015

Stuck?! Sketches November 15th Design Team Layout

Hi there!

This year just keeps flying by at a rapid rate and here we are already half way through November! The good news is that that means that it's time for a new sketch challenge at Stuck?! Sketches! Laura has designed another really pretty sketch for us and for this challenge we are once again partnering up with Scrap it with a Song. They have chosen "Stairway to Heaven" by Led Zeppelin as their inspiration song, you can find out all of the details about how to play along with their challenge over on their blog. So first up, let's take a look at the sketch...


I decided to play along with the Scrap it with a Song challenge as well. I was inspired by the song title "Stairway to Heaven"... It made me think of my beautiful mother-in-law who is no longer with us and is now in Heaven. I was also inspired by the song lyrics "all that glitters is gold"... I included a glittery gold title on my layout. So here is my layout...


The papers that I've used are from the Heidi Swapp Wanderlust range. I really love this colour combo... It's probably not one that I would use very often, but seeing as I was using a black and white photo, I think it looks really pretty! Can I tell you a secret... This photo was terrible quality, it had a horrible yellow colour cast that I just couldn't seem to correct and it was quite dark. After brightening it up, I still wasn't happy with the colour, so I turned it black and white, and now I LOVE it! I don't often use black and white photos, but I think I should more often, because I was really happy with this one! Plus when you use a black and white photo, you have more freedom to choose the products that you want to use as you don't have to worry about perfectly matching your papers and embellishments to your photo. So, don't dismiss a photo just because it isn't perfect quality - try turning it black and white!

I kept my layout fairly clean and uncluttered as I really wanted the focus to be on the photo and the journalling.

Let's take a look at some closeups...


To the right of my photo I added a couple of paper flowers from D-lish Scraps.


Here you can see some of the layers behind my photo. I love the banners in the sketch. I added a doily behind my photo as the circular element. I also added another paper flower to the top left of my photo.


I LOVE these gold thickers!!! This was the perfect word for my title, and I love the elegance that the gold glitter adds to the page!

If you haven't done so already, I hope that you'll pop on over to the Stuck?! Sketches blog and take a look at the gorgeous layouts created by my fellow design team members! We would love you to play along with us by creating a layout inspired by this sketch and linking it up on the Stuck?! Sketches blog by November 29th! The randomly chosen winners will win a prize from one of our very generous sponsors:



We will also be choosing one scrapbooker from each of our challenges to be a guest designer with us at a later date!

Thank you so much for visiting my blog and taking a look at my layout! Thank you also to those who take the time to leave me a comment - it is very much appreciated!

Mandy

Monday 2 November 2015

Stuck?! Sketches November 1st Design Team Layout

Hi there!

I'm excited to share with you the latest sketch challenge at Stuck?! Sketches! It's a fun sketch, and for this challenge we are partnering up with Scrap it with a Song. They have chosen "Octopus Garden" by the Beatles as their inspiration song, you can find out all of the details about how to play along with their challenge over on their blog. So lets get started, and take a look at the sketch...


I decided to combine the two challenges and play along with the challenge at Scrap it with a Song as well. I was inspired by the underwater theme of the song "Octopus Garden", and so I scrapped an underwater photo of Isaac from when we were on holidays recently.


I started my layout off by "smooshing" some ink onto my background using plastic packaging. I then added some texture paste through a stencil, which I think looks a bit like bubbles!

I've used a combination of papers from Heidi Swapp, Graphic 45, and We R Memory Keepers. They are all scraps that I've had in my stash for awhile, and the colours all seemed to work well with my photo.

So, lets take a look at some closeups...


I added some cute little felt sea themed embellishments from Sassafras that I've had in my stash for years, and I thought they were perfect for this page! In this cluster here you can see that I also added a die cut from Heidi Swapp, and a flair from D-lish Scraps. Up on the top corner of the photo I added a Freckled Fawn arrow paperclip (love these!).


For my title I used a die-cut word from Simple Stories and a black thickers word. I think they work well together to create an eye catching title! I used black thread to form the circles on my layout.


Here's one last closeup to show you the layers and details on my layout.

If you haven't done so already, I hope that you'll pop on over to the Stuck?! Sketches blog and take a look at the fabulous layouts created by my fellow design team members! We would love you to play along with us by creating a layout inspired by this sketch and linking it up on the Stuck?! Sketches blog by November 29th! The randomly chosen winners will receive a prize from one of our very generous sponsors:



We will also be choosing one scrapbooker from each of our challenges to be a guest designer with us at a later date!

Thank you so much for visiting my blog and taking a look at my layout! Thank you also to those who take the time to leave a comment - it is very much appreciated!

Mandy

Sunday 1 November 2015

Scrap the Girls November Design Team Reveal

Hi there!

I can't believe that November is here already!! I don't know where this year is going... But the start of a new month does mean new scrappy challenges to get us inspired!! Yay!!

So, this month over at Scrap the Girls we have a sketch challenge for you. Lets take a look...


And here is my layout that I created based on this sketch...



I love this photo sooo much... My two girls just look like they are in their own little world together! What a joy it is to see how much they adore one another!

I've used some pretty Heidi Swapp papers for my layout.

Lets take a look at some closeups...


 I created some layers underneath my photo with patterned papers and a doily, and I raised the photo up with some foam tape. I also tucked some tangled thread under the photo for some added texture. To the right of the photo I added a flair button from D-lish Scraps.


I used a Heidi Swapp word sticker for my title... It was the perfect colour and the perfect word for my layout!


My little flower cluster includes a couple of flowers from D-lish Scraps and some leaves that I cut on my Silhouette Cameo.


And here is one final closeup of the photo and embellishments.

If you haven't done so already, I hope that you'll pop on over to the Scrap the Girls blog and take a look at the gorgeous layouts that my fellow design team members have created with this sketch! I hope that you get inspired and join us this month by creating a layout based on the sketch!  Link it up on the Scrap the Girls blog by 30th November to be in the running to win a prize from one of our very generous sponsors!

Thank you for taking the time to visit and for your lovely comments also! I will be back later today with my design team reveal for the Nov 1st challenge at Stuck?! Sketches!

Mandy