Using Staples on your cards and layouts

Posted on October 16, 2012 by daydesigns

Today over at Practical Scrappers we are sharing 10 ways to use staples and paper clips on your cards and layouts. Here’s mine …

As you can see in the picture below, I attached my twine to the card using staples. The added bonus is that I created a pocket to slip the stamped doily image into.

Thanks for stopping by today. Be sure to check out all the other wonderful projects on the PS blog today.

Posted in Cards, Practical Scrappers | 4 Comments

Let’s Get Sketchy Reveal Day

Posted on October 15, 2012 by daydesigns

I totally forgot about last week’s reveal (bad DT member!!) but since I am on tap for this week I figured I’d better not let that happen again!! I hope you’ve had a chance to check out all the wonderful examples over at Let’s Get Sketchy today. If not, what are you waiting for? Click the link and then come on back to learn more about my layout!

Here’s this week’s sketch.

And here is what I came up with.
I flipped the sketch to suit my pictures and the colours were inspired by Apron Strings Croptober #8.
 I am participating in LOAD (as of writing this I am 13 for 13! Woot! Woot!) and the prompt for today (Saturday the 13th – yes, I’m a last minute kind of gal!) was to create embellishment clusters. Well, gee, that’s something I know a fair bit about!! So for this layout I gave myself permission to go crazy!!
Here are some close ups of said craziness.

My title cluster.

The other cluster.
The doilies were sprayed with Mister Huey’s Plum Thumb. There are some glitter diecuts from Crate Paper (been in my stash for WAY too long without being opened!), some chipboard buttons from Studio Calico and some Sassafras Blossoms as well as a few punched paper circles. 

My journalling. This is NOT what I originally thought I was going to write but somehow this is what came out of my pen! Go figure. Has that ever happened to you? Guess it was in my heart and needed to get onto paper!
The pictures are from Thanksgiving last Monday. Ina “forced” us to take a family pic and I’m ever so glad she did. We don’t take nearly as many of these as we should!
Thanks for stopping by. Don’t forget to hop over to the LGS blog to see all the other lovely layouts. Remember that you now have until the 30th to submit your layouts for any of the sketches. To be eligible for the monthly prize you do have to do 3 of the 4 sketched now but having all month to do them is awesome, right? This month the prize is from Apron Strings (that was NOT planned!!) and you can see it here. One other thing that’s new at LGS – you now have the chance to be a Guest Designer!! Check out all the details on the blog. Hope to see you there!!
Leave some love if you liked what you saw. I always appreciate it!!

Posted in Apron Strings, challenges, layout, Let's Get Sketchy, SHO LOAD1012 | 5 Comments

S.H.O LOAD1012 – Day Two Prompt

Posted on October 2, 2012 by daydesigns

I was totally floored to be asked by my pals over at ScrapHappy to come up with a prompt for this year’s S.H.O (ScrapHappy Only) October LOAD (LayOut A Day challenge). It took me awhile to figure out what my prompt/challenge was going to be but I eventually decided to do a Starting Point layout like the one’s I’m such a fan of over on Shimelle’s Lain’s site. Her last Starting Point challenge was on my “scrappy to do” list but life got away from me and it never happened. Anyway, here’s what I came up with.

The opening credits of this month’s LOAD had a very Theatre-esque vibe to them so my added challenge to everyone was to use this Starting Point AND scrap some live event photos plus memorabilia. I’ve had the programme and tickets from Marley and Paige’s first dance recital in my “to be scrapped” pile for a while so this was the perfect opportunity for me to finally get them onto paper!
This is what I wanted to include on my layout.
Originally I went in a very sweet pink, purple and yellow direction but it wasn’t feeling right. Then I found the MME Lost and Found collection that I won ages ago and it all fell into place. Gotta love that!!
Here’s the layout I submitted.
As I was writing up my post for the group I realized that I’d forgotten to do any journalling. What?! I’d love to say that I have the revised version of my layout for you right now but that is just not the case. I will add it to my formidable list of things to do today and post it to Flickr.
Thanks for stopping by today. If you are new to my blog I’d love for you to poke around and perhaps become a follower. I just celebrated my birthday and am having a giveaway – read all about it here. If you are a ScrapHappy member and you win, I may even throw a little something extra into the mix!! Family perks so to speak!!
Posted in layout, LOAD, Marley, Paige, SHO LOAD1012 | 1 Comment

It’s Let’s Get Sketchy Reveal Day!

Posted on October 1, 2012 by daydesigns

We’ve got another awesome sketch for you guys over at the Let’s Get Sketchy blog today. Here it is – Challenge #31.

Before I show you my layout I thought I’d share a little of my thought process with you.
When I saw this sketch I was taken by it’s playfulness so I went hunting through my pictures for a fun photo to use. Back in the old days (LOL!) when we used (gasp) film I used to take it to a particular developer who offered one free enlargement per roll of film you brought in. So in my “pile o’ pictures to be scrapped or otherwise dealt with” there was this one ….

I think it fits the “fun factor” bill, don’t you! This was from my wild and crazy University days – some Fraternity party or other. I had to search to find me in the picture! I’m in the centre, looking down at “John Travolta”, wearing gold lamé and sporting pigtails.  
Once I had my picture of choice it was pretty easy to pick out some fun, loud colours and prints for my papers and embellishments. I used some Mister Huey’s mist on the background card stock (Piglet) but it sort of disappeared against the lime green so I got creative and got out my paints. As I was going for a fun vibe I used old packaging to give the paint a lot of texture.
Here’s a close up of that texture.

My friend Roxy recently posted a layout where she had to MacGyver some letters together from what she had left in the pack. I pretty much did the same here. I was short an ‘s’ and an ‘e’ from the glittery black letters so I took them from a set of glittery white ones and sprayed them with Mister Huey’s Warm Calico. they are not a perfect match but it’s close enough!! I anchored my picture and all the banners with two different washi tapes, some black ric-rac, a flower embellishment and a chip board tag.

I felt a disco party picture needed a whole lot of bling so I dug out this from my stash and attempted to put it on straight. For those of you who use these flourishy bling embellishments regularly, I’d LOVE some tips on how to apply them properly!!

Last but not least I added this little cluster to hold a bit more info about the party. I would normally put the date here but I have no idea when this party was (or where even!) so … this will have to do!
Thanks for stopping by today. Hope you have a chance to check out all the lovely layouts over on the Let’s Get Sketchy site! We have changed the rules for entering your layouts. Click here for all the details. The biggest change is that starting today the upload links will be left open all month. You will need to complete 3 out of the 4 monthly sketches to be eligible for the monthly prize but you have all month to do the sketches. 
Have a great week everyone!!

Posted in challenges, layout, Let's Get Sketchy, ME (Alison) | 9 Comments

A Practical Scrappers Feature Post – Are you Scrapping Yourself?

Posted on September 28, 2012 by daydesigns

Hi there! I have a feature over on the Practical Scrappers blog today and I’m asking the question “Are you Scrapping Yourself?” I’d love for you to head over there and check out what this …

and this …
have to do with my answer.
If you’d like to come back and tell me which of my ME layouts was your favourite and become a follower, I will pick a random winner to send a little surprise. Not sure what it’s going to be yet. Maybe 39 punched butterflies!! LOL! Just kidding, I’ve got quite the stash to pull from so it’ll be good, I promise!! 
Posted in 365 to 40 SMASH, layout, LOAD212, ME (Alison), Practical Scrappers | 2 Comments

ScrapHappy Pre-LOAD Blog Hop

Posted on September 26, 2012 by daydesigns

Welcome to the ScrapHappy Pre-LOAD Blog Hop!! I’m so glad you’re here. You should have arrived here from Heather H’s site but if not, why not start at the beginning and work your way back to me! If you get lost there is a list at the bottom of this post to set you straight.

Today we are sharing our words of wisdom (well, others may have wisdom, I pretty much just have words!!) about the LOAD (LayOut A Day) process and what we typically do to get ready. If you are not a member of ScrapHappy I’m sorry but you will not be able to participate in October’s LOAD as it is only for ScrapHappy members. If you’re interested in finding out about ScrapHappy please follow the link and listen to the message from our Fearless Leader Lain Ehmann.

Okay, so you’re interested in participating in LOAD are you? Awesome! It is so much fun!! I have participated in some degree or other in 3 previous LOADs – May 2011, Feb 2012 and May 2012. You can see my layouts in my Flickr Gallery and there is a slide show in my side bar of my LOAD212 layouts you can watch. In May 2011 my husband and I took a week long trip away without the kids so LOAD got interrupted and then in May 2012 we all went to Disneyland so my participation was a bit hit and miss that month too. But I loved getting the daily prompts from Lain and checking out what the other LOADsters were adding to the gallery. I am pretty determined to get 31 layouts done this October though!! I’d like to be able to take more pictures like these ones.

This is the stack of layouts I created during LOAD212. Isn’t it awesome?! SOOOO satisfying! Here are 29 stories that are now recorded thanks to Lain’s prompts!
So, what can I tell you to help you prepare to create a stack like this of your own? Here are my 5 tips for a successful LOAD.
1 – Make the Commitment. This may sound silly. You may be thinking, “but I already committed when I signed up!” which is true but you really need to make it official. Tell yourself and those around you that you will be making a layout a day for 31 days and there are no ifs, ands or buts about it! 🙂 Get your head 100% in the game. If you for one second allow the “well, it’s just one day, I’ll catch up tomorrow” attitude to creep in you won’t make it. Now, before I go all Drill Sergeant on you, it is totally okay to only do 30 layouts this month. Or 3 for that matter!! But if you want to do all 31 then you need to make sure it happens in your head first. Now I’m sounding like a coach “visualize the finish line people!”
2 – Stock Up on Basic Supplies. In  my world, this means adhesive, card stock and letter stickers because that is what I use on every single layout. I never have to stock up on patterned paper because I frankly have too much of that! Whatever else you use all the time, make sure you have enough to last the month. there is nothing more frustrating than having to run to you LSS mid-layout because you ran out of your favourite colour mist! I have learned to stock up on adhesive whenever my LSS has a sale. They have a 40% sale 3 or 4 times a year so I buy in bulk on those occasions. Everyone has their favourite adhesive – I use Be Creative Tape (in both 12mm and 5mm size) to stick my larger pieces of paper down, Scrapbook Adhesives E-Z Runner tape for smaller bits and pieces and whatever glue dots are available for everything else. Oh, and for popping things off the page I LOVE my Stampin’ Up Dimensionals but admit to being almost out of them right now so will be using some other Dollar Store variety this LOAD!
Here’s a look at my current stash of adhesive …
This is where they live (yes, I label stuff!)

This is my stash – the Be Creative tape is at the back.

And this is my drawer for my glue dots, pop dots and rolls of tape currently in use. 
3 – Prep Your Photos. This may mean printing off a stack of photos that you want to scrap (if you have a specific project in mind this is a great way to go) but if you want to follow along with the prompts where ever they may take you then this may mean familiarizing yourself with your photos so you can quickly and easily find ones to match the prompts. I like to follow the prompts. I find it can take me to places I never imagined going and telling stories I never thought I’d tell. Hard stories. Funny stories. Crazy stories. It doesn’t seem to matter what the story, I always feel a HUGE sense of accomplishment once it is told! Take 30 minutes to scroll through your digital photos or flip through your already printed ones sometime over the next 4 days. You’ll be so glad you did!
4. Prep Your Space. Do you have a dedicated scrap room? Do you pull out your supplies and sit at the dining room table every time you want to make a layout? Either way, tidy that space so it is ready for action! If you can, leave out your basic supplies for the entire month so making your layouts will be easy every day. If you have a dedicated scrap space, why not pull out a piece of your favourite neutral card stock and lay it on your scrapping table in preparation. You may not end up using it for prompt #1 but the fact that it’s there will spur you to action when the time is right! I am lucky and share a little home office with my husband and his computer (although I would really like to boot him out!!) This is what I hope to get my desk to look like by the 30th!! ( I will NOT be showing you what it looks like right now!!)
Well, something like this anyway. The wicker basket is no longer on my desk but everything else is there still. 
5. Have Fun!  Remember why you got into this scrapbooking thing in the first place? Was it to feel pressure to create beautiful, perfect layouts or was it to be creative, document your stories in a beautiful way and to have fun doing it? I’m going to guess the latter! If you find yourself getting stressed about finishing a layout, don’t panic! Walk away. Take a break. Have a cup of tea. I promise you, the layout will still be there when your head is cleared and you can finish it then. If this means you don’t get a layout done on Day 17, then you don’t get a layout done on Day 17. No worries! 

All right ScrapHappy Sisters. Feeling motivated? Ready? Got the juices going? Keep on hopping for more wonderful words of wisdom from Cathy H!

Lynnette http://sassyscrapper2010.blogspot.com
Leslie http://lcsmithsaved-outofthemire.blogspot.com
Katrina http://k84mansramblings.blogspot.com
Kelli P. www.scrapbookgirl71.com
—YOU ARE HERE — Alison D. http://adayinthelifeor5.blogspot.ca
— GO HERE NEXT — Cathy H. http://pikespeakscrapper.blogspot.com
Dani www.acoffeeaddict.com
Heather H. http://heathazscrapz.blogspot.com
Alison C. http://scrappinginsingapore.blogspot.com
Heather D. http://heathersdragonsden.blogspot.com
Danielle H. http://ecoscrapbook.blogspot.com

See you on the message boards!!

Posted in LOAD, ScrapHappy | 14 Comments

LGS Challenge #30 – Grade 3 Girl!

Posted on September 24, 2012 by daydesigns

Once again I was too late to get my layout posted on the Let’s Get Sketchy blog today but I DID play along with this week’s sketch so I thought I’d share it with you.

I have a confession … I’m not completely in love with it. I’m not sure what it is – probably that aqua card stock background – but something about this layout makes me cringe. Sigh. They can’t all be winners I suppose!

Continue reading →

Posted in challenges, layout, Let's Get Sketchy, Marley | 6 Comments