Stuck?! Sketches May 15th DT Reveal

Welcome!

It's time for another sketch to be revealed at Stuck?! Sketches!! Do you love working with sketches when you create?? I do! I love how they are a great jumping off point and can give you fresh design ideas! I really enjoy browsing through all the wonderful entries by our participants at Stuck?! and seeing how everyone puts their own spin on the sketch!

So without further ado, here is the next sketch designed by Laura Whitaker for Stuck?! Sketches...



And here is my take on the sketch...

"You are Precious"

How sweet is that photo?!... Eleanor's cute little feet when she was 2 weeks old... Just so adorable!!

I used Heidi Swapp papers for this layout, from both the Dreamy and Serendipity collections. I love the combination of pink and mint together! I felt like this layout was calling for some haberdashery items and so I included some lace, ribbon, pearl string, a button, and a crocheted heart. I even pulled out a needle and thread and did some hand stitching which I haven't done in ages! I love how all of these elements work well together to give the layout a soft and textured feel.

Here are some closeups...

I used a Heidi Swapp word combined with some thickers for my title. In my little cluster next to the title I've included a crocheted heart and a couple of paper flowers from D-Lish Scraps.

In place of the second photo in the sketch, I used this card that I cut from a sheet of Simple Stories patterned paper. I just love this phrase - its so appropriate for the photo!

And to finish the layout off I've created a cluster of sweet little things on the right hand side of the photo. I chose some more D-Lish goodies including the paper flowers, the resin flower, the peg and the doily. The 'Loved' die cut was from a pack of American Crafts project life embellishments.

I am also entering this layout into this month's challenge at Scrap Around the World. The challenge is to be inspired by this mood board...

I was inspired by the colours in the picture of the ice cream and also by the image of the feet which inspired me to scrap a photo of my baby's precious little feet!

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 amazing layouts 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! The randomly chosen winner will receive a prize from one of our very generous sponsors:

Thank you so much for taking the time to visit and for your lovely comments also!

Mandy

Isn't She Lovely - The Studio Challenges Blog

Hello!

Today I'm popping in to share a layout that I created for the current challenge at The Studio Challenges blog. The challenge is to be Inspired by a Song - Choose a song a take inspiration from the title or lyrics.

I wanted to scrap a photo of our baby girl Eleanor, and the first song that came to mind was Isn't she Lovely by Stevie Wonder. Here's my layout...

"Isn't she Lovely"

I love this photo of my hubby and I with our new baby girl - my 10 year old daughter snapped it for us just before we headed home from hospital!

The lyrics of this song were just perfect for this layout - they put into words exactly how I was feeling when the photo was taken! I usually hand write my journalling, but I decided that because I was using song lyrics for my journalling that I would print it instead. Here's a closeup...

I included just the first two verses of the song. I did change one word in the lyrics to make it more applicable to the photo... where it says "Less than one minute old" I changed to "Less than one week old".

Here are some more closeups of my layout...

I created the word 'Lovely' using a Silhouette cut file and mounted it with some foam tape to give it some height and dimension. The little letter stickers are ones that I've had for a very long time, I think they are Making Memories.

I just love this clear acetate butterfly by Heidi Swapp - it came in a pack of Ephemera from the Dreamy collection, and sadly I think I've used up all of the butterflies now! The purple flower here is from Prima and the wood veneer arrow is WOW.

Here I've used a selection of stickers and die cuts from different manufacturers... The 'Sweetheart' sticker is from Grant Studios (which I mounted with foam tape), the heart is from Bella Blvd, and the bird cage is a Kaisercraft die cut. The doily and the sequins are from D-Lish Scraps. I also popped some tangled thread in behind this cluster to add some different texture.

And one final closeup of the main area.

I also used a sketch designed by Laura Whitaker for Scrapmuch? as inspiration for my layout design...

(This challenge has now closed but I really liked this sketch and wanted to use it anyway!)

Thank you so much for visiting my blog today, and also for the lovely comments!

I hope that all of the Mums out there celebrating Mothers Day tomorrow have a a very lovely day!

Mandy

Stuck?! Sketches May 1st DT Reveal

Hi there!

Today I am sharing my design team layout for the May 1st sketch at Stuck?! Sketches.Take a look at the wonderful sketch created by our very talented sketch designer Laura Whitaker...

The photos that I wanted to use for this layout were vertical so I decided to rotate the sketch like this:

And here is my layout...

"Hey Rock Star"

I just love these super cute photos of Isaac pretending to be a rock star! I don't know about you but when I purchase papers and embellishments I don't usually have in mind the exact photos that I'm going to use with them, but this time I did! When I saw the Max collection from Bella Blvd, I knew I had to purchase it just so that I could scrap these photos!

I started my layout by applying inks to my background using plastic packaging. This is an easy yet effective technique that I picked up from watching Missy Whidden's process videos. The inks that I used include Heidi Swapp Color Shine (green), Dylusions Ink Spray (yellow), Glimmer Mist (blue), and Distress Ink (orange). I love the fun and messy look that this created! I then painted black Color Shine around the rim of a plate and pressed it down onto my layout to make the circle.

Here are some closeups of my layout...

At the top of my layout here I used a couple of stickers from My Minds Eye, as well as one of the coordinating stickers from Bella Blvd. I mounted a couple with foam tape to give them some height and added interest.

I only wanted to use two photos on my layout so I replaced the third photo in the sketch with this 'Rock Star' card, which I also used as part of my title!

Here you can see that I used some more stickers from the Max collection as well as some sequins. The tab at the side of the photo that says 'be yourself' is attached to my hidden journalling tag.

And here is my journalling!

I am also joining in with the challenge at Artastic Challenge Blog. The challenge criteria is to use stars on your project and to be inspired by this artwork:

What a cool challenge, and just perfect for these photos of my little rock star!!

If you haven't done so already, I hope that you'll pop over to the Stuck?! Sketches blog and take a look at the amazing layouts by my fellow design team members! We would love you to play along with us by creating a layout with this sketch and linking it up on the Stuck?! Sketches blog. You will be in the running for one of the fabulous prizes from our lovely sponsors:

Thank you so much visiting and also for any comments that you leave - I do enjoy reading each one!

Mandy

Stuck?! April 15th Sketch

Hello!

It's already the middle of the month and that means that its time for the April 15th Stuck?! Sketches reveal!!

I am absolutely loving creating for Stuck?! Sketches!! Laura's sketches are awesome!! Here is the April 15th sketch...

Here is my layout that I created using this sketch...

"Swim"

We were very lucky to be able to go on a cruise in 2012 and these photos are of Abigail and Isaac heading to the pool for a swim on our cruise ship. I wanted to create a layout that was bright and fun for these photos! I started by swiping some blue (Tumbled Glass) Distress Ink on the background to create a base for my layers. Using the sketch as a guide, I then layered up my patterned papers and embellishments. The patterned papers that I've used are Simple Stories and I've also used quite a few die cuts (Bits & Pieces) from the same range.

Here are a few closeups of my layout...

I really struggled with the title for this layout, I just couldn't seem to find the right wording and when I did, it just didn't seem to fit! Eventually I just settled on "Swim" as my title... Its simple and to the point! I used some Bella sparkly chipboard letters for the title. I've also layered a couple of Simple Stories die-cuts next to the title with the sun mounted on foam tape for some added dimension.

Here I've clustered some embellishments from a few different manufacturers... An October Afternoon sticker, A D-Lish Scraps flair and resin flower, Bella Blvd stickers, and a Maggie Holmes chipboard button. I've also done some journalling on a tag and tucked it under this strip here (You can see the top of the tag with the hearts on it).

In this cluster here I've used a couple more resin roses and flair from D-Lish Scraps, Simple Stories die-cuts, and an October Afternoon sticker.

I am also joining in with the challenge at Scrap Our Stash Challenge Blog this month which is:

I've included the following items:

S - Stickers, Sun, Simple Stories

T - Tim Holtz Distress Ink

A - Anchor die-cut

M - Maggie Holmes Chipboard button

P - Polka dot Patterned Paper, Polaroid frame

I hope that if you haven't done so already that you'll pop on over to the Stuck?! Sketches blog and take a look at the super inspiring layouts by my fellow design team members! We would love you to join us by creating a layout with the sketch and linking it up on the Stuck?! Sketches blog. You have until April 29th midnight EST to link up to be in the running for one of the prizes from our fabulous sponsors:

Thanks for taking the time to visit and for any comments that you leave! I do appreciate each one!

Mandy

Stuck?! Sketches April 1st DT Reveal

Welcome!

April 1st is here already and that means that its reveal day over at Stuck?! Sketches!!

Laura has once again wowed us with a fantastic sketch to work with! Here's what it looks like...

I loved using this sketch! Here's my layout...

"Delight"

This is my little Isaac when he was just 10 months old... he's now 7 1/2 years old!! Still working on his baby photos!!

I started my layout by applying modeling paste through a TCW template and then flicking a small amount of ink on the background (Black & Citron Color Shine and Aquamarine Glimmer Mist). For the circle in the top left, I traced around a cup with a black pen and then painted over it with green (Crushed Olive) Distress Ink.

Here are a some closeups of my layout...

In my small cluster here I added a Prima flower, a Bella Blvd sticker, and a Heidi Swapp die-cut ticket that I applied Crushed Olive Distress Ink to.

The patterned paper that I used was from the Kaisercraft Bow & Arrow collection and these flag/bunting stickers are from the same range. I used these in place of the scallops on the sketch.

For my little cluster in the bottom right I used an October Afternoon flair & sticker, a Kaisercraft sticker and a Simple Stories die-cut.

I used this Heidi Swapp word sticker as the title for my layout... "Delight".

I love this Maggie Holmes chalkboard sticker! I popped some foam tape underneath it to give it some dimension. I also included another Prima flower and an October Afternoon sticker here as well.

I hope that you pop on over to the Stuck?! Sketches blog to be inspired by the amazing layouts that my fellow design team members have created! We would love you to play along with us this month by creating a layout with this awesome sketch and linking it up over at the Stuck?! Sketches blog! You will have the chance to win some great prizes from our sponsors:

Thanks so much for visiting today! As this weekend fast approaches, I'd like to wish you and your families a very blessed Easter! For us, Easter means reflecting on the amazing act of love and sacrifice that Jesus has displayed for us on the cross! And we'll be devouring far too many chocolate eggs I'm sure!

Mandy

So Many Smiles - Show Us Your Stuff March Challenge

Hello and welcome!

I have another layout to share with you today, and it is my entry into the Show Us Your Stuff March challenge! The challenge this month is to use this quote on your project (as well as including a handmade item)...

Here is my layout...

"So Many Smiles"

These photos were from the newborn photo shoot that we had done when Eleanor was 2 weeks old... So precious!!

Here are some closeups of my layout...

My handmade items are the epoxy circles that I made with my Epiphany Craft tool :)

I created the title for my layout using a Silhouette cut file - it was perfect for this challenge!

The roses were also cut using my Cameo - I love this cut file!

Can't get enough of flairs at the moment - they seem to be my go-to embellishment! This green chevron one is by Fancy Pants :)

Thank you so much for stopping by and taking a look at my layout. Thanks to those who leave me a comment as well - I do enjoy reading them!

Mandy

Love - Sassy Scrappers and Picture This March Challenges

Hi there!

Today I am sharing my layout that I completed for the March mood board Challenge at Sassy Scrappers and the March 1st Challenge at Picture This!

The challenge at Sassy Scrappers this month is to be inspired by this mood board...

Isn't it just beautiful!! I was inspired by the gorgeous colour palette as well as the lovely flowers!

And the challenge at Picture This! is to use: 1 Photo + Circles + Tilt

Here is the layout that I created...
"Love"

I adore these colours and thought they would be perfect for a layout of my newborn baby girl!

For the Picture This challenge criteria, I used 1 photo, circles (including a flair and a couple of stickers/die cuts), and instead of tilting my photo, I tilted my title!

Here are some closeups of my layout...

I used my Silhouette Cameo to cut out these roses from white cardstock. Then I created a bit of a watercolour effect behind the cut out roses using distress inks... I really like the effect of it showing through and its super easy!!

My journalling :)

I'm really loving those gold thickers!! They make it so easy to create a really striking title!

I hope you enjoyed looking at my layout! Thank you so much for visiting!

Mandy