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Finishing my 5 on Friday!

Posted on May 25, 2011 by daydesigns

Due to Blogger issues (and the fact that we were packing up to leave for a few days) I only got 2 of my 5 random things posted on Friday. Please indulge me in completing this list today. (It’s now Wednesday and I started this “completion” post on Sunday night!! Yikes!! Let’s get it on!!)

I did add a supply list and a tiny comment to the Year of Days project I posted on Friday (check out that post here.)

3. Ballet Recital Sneaks

This all happened while Greg and I were away and I owe a HUGE thank you to my friend Trish for helping my girls get ready for their ballet photos. Of course picture day was the day we left for San Fran! The girls needed to be in their costumes with performance hair done for these pictures. It was a bit much to expect Grandma and Grandpa to do all this so Trish offered to take the girls in the morning and get them ready along with her girls. Here they are …

Marley (on left) and Amanda are going to be Lilac Fairies in the upcoming production of Sleeping Beauty.

And Sarah and Paige (on right) are Little Beauties. They also have a white layered tulle skirt that goes under the pink skirt of the bodysuit.

We have been growing out Paige’s hair all year but it’s a painfully slow process. Poor kid has baby hair still! While Marley’s has grown about 8 inches, her’s has only grown about 2. Still, Trish managed to get it into a bun as required. They called it the TimBit! (If you’re not Canadian there’s a good chance you won’t get that!! LOL)

4. LOAD Day 15

I am seriously behind in my LOAD challenge! I knew I’d get behind while we were away but thought I’d be able to get right back at it once we got back. Somehow that didn’t happen … hmmm

But I did do the following layout for Day 15’s prompt.

We were to scraplift one of Stephanie Howell’s layouts. I chose this one … “Every Single Moment”.

Here’s my take on it.

I had a lot of fun with this. I think I am discovering that my style may lean towards having larger amounts of white space than I thought. I admit to poo-pooing those scrappers who “wasted” an entire 12×12 sheet of cardstock just to surround one 4×6 (or gasp! a 2×3) picture with tons of flowers and die cuts and other emphemera. My most humble apologies!!

I am still learning how to curb my enthusiasm for covering the paper with photos and, for the near future while I’m still trying to play catch up with the girls baby albums, I will likely lean towards multi photo layouts over large expanses of white space but … time will tell.

But back to the layout … I stuck to the original quite closely at first. I liked the line up of 3 pictures with the embellishments tucked in on either side. Stephanie also placed her title words among the pictures and that was where I departed the sketch so to speak. Once I’d placed my title where I did I tried journalling in the same spot that she had but it didn’t seem to work so I moved it to the right hand side.

But then the left hand side looked too plain (still a novice at this embracing the white space stuff!) I had some extra punched out butterflies so I thought I’d see how they look if I misted over them. I LOVE it!!! And then I added a couple smaller butterflies and traced around a couple and then added some bling.

Supplies: Cardstock (Bazzil I think), striped paper – American Crafts, doiles – Martha Stewart, butterfly punch – MS Punch All Over the Page, border punch – EKSuccess Open Scallop, alphas – AC Thickers, mist – Walnut Ink in Java.

5 … I think it’s a little late in the week to be thinking of a 5! Sorry.

Okay Blogland. That’s all for now. I have been scrapping up a storm trying to get caught up on my LOAD challenges and Project 12 and OLW and …. Oh, I also signed up for 28 Days of Sketches through Big Picture Classes which I have yet to do even a single layout for so …. I think I may have bitten off more that I could chew in 3 months let alone one!! Today the girls have their first rehearsal for their upcoming ballet recital and I have someone coming to the preschool to check out some of our items for sale. Thankfully it’s a short day for Marley so we have some time this afternoon to prep.

Speaking of Marley, I’d better go get her from school.
See you soon!

Posted in Five on Friday, layout, LOAD, Paige's Baby scrapbook, Scrapbook | Comments Off

5 on Friday – May 20th

Posted on May 20, 2011 by daydesigns

I can’t believe it’s Friday again already. Greg and I have been back for a week, yet it feels like longer! The time away from the kids was wonderful. I missed them like crazy, and it was very strange to be apart from them on Mother’s Day, but the feeling of renewed parenting energy I had when I first got back (which is all too quickly being replaced by parenting fatigue … sigh) was worth every moment away.

1. To finish up our trip journal here are a couple pictures of our last night and our arrival into Vancouver.

We arranged to have dinner with my friend Bonnie and her husband Darryl. It was a fun way to spend our last evening on board!

Here are Greg and I.

The next morning I got up before 6:00AM so I could take picures of our arrival. Here are some of the best (IMHO!!)

This is us entering Burrard Inlet. How gorgeous is that view?!

We truly live in the most beautiful city in the whole world!

Approaching the Lions Gate Bridge. On the right is Stanley Park. On the left, North Vancouver.

Going under the bridge.

Downtown Vancouver. After leaving the industrial wastelands of Long Beach in LA – coming into Vancouver’s cruise ship terminal I was full of pride for how beautiful it is.

Oh, and here are 2 of the 3 other cruise ships docking that morning. It was a WEE bit busy in the terminal!

Only Marley and LC would put on and pose in the outfits I bought for them in Chinatown in San Francisco. Paige was being … well … Paige!

2. True Scrap

In April I took part in an online Scrapbook Retreat called True Scrap put on by Lain Ehman of Layout a Day fame. One of the virtual make and takes was a mini album using mini calendar cards. I didn’t have the exact cards but decided to have a go at making my own. It worked and here is what I made – I decided to make it for my Mother-in-Law as a birthday/Mother’s Day present.

Supplies used: cardstock from my stash (sorry can’t remember the manufacturer now), Sassafrass Lass patterned papers from their Nerdy Bird and Cherry Delicious 8×8 paper pads, Sassafrass Lass layered blossoms, buttons from my stash, tags cut out on my Cricut, various border bunches and shape punches, ribbons and inks.

Okay, sorry to do this to you but we have to hit the road. We are heading to Vernon for a wedding and I will have to finish the commentary on this post when we come back. Have a great weekend everyone!

We are back from Vernon and I decided that the pictures didn’t really need to have commentary added but I did add a supply list (such as it is). Oh, and the hand prints on the back are my girls’. The red one is Marley’s, the purple one is Paige’s and the yellow one is LC’s. Thanks!

Posted in Five on Friday, Mini Albums, Scrapbook | Comments Off

5 on Friday – May 6th

Posted on May 6, 2011 by daydesigns

This is going to have to be another quick post. Greg and I are leaving tomorrow (at the crack of dawn! Yuck!) for a week away … wait for it … BY OURSELVES!

No kids?! What is that like? What will we talk about? What will we argue about? What will we worry about?

And when someone asks “what’s for lunch?” I won’t be expected to prepare it!!!

The past couple weeks have been stressful ones for me – especially this week – as I try to plan for all contingencies. Make sure all clothes are washed and put away. Make sure the house is clean-ish (with 3 little kids that’s pretty much all I can strive for!) Make sure there’s milk in the fridge and gas in the van. Make sure I shower them with a weeks worth of love before I leave. Hmmm … probably failed on that last one. Stressful Mommy is not so nice!

One of the ways I had to take a few minutes for myself and de-stress was to scrap. I ambitiously signed up for Lain Ehman’s LOAD Challenge (LOAD stands for LayOut A Day). I managed to keep up this week but today`s layout will have to happen when I get back. My 5 this week are my 5 layouts.

Here they are …

Day 1. Create a layout using only the basics – cardstock, patterned paper, photos, title and journalling.

I used my Cricut to cut out the circles in different sizes and also the brackets around the word “aah”. I inked them all to help them stand out but other than that I stuck pretty close to the prompt. And I love the results! So simple, yet I find it allows my eyes to rest and enjoy the pictures. And it`s got to be all about the pictures, right? It wasn’t easy keeping it so simple though. I really wanted to dip into my buttons, flowers and ribbon stash!!

Day 2 – Create a layout using contrast but not colour contrast.

Another toughie for me but once again I am happy with the results. In case it’s not obvious (and it may not be but I’m okay with that!) my contrast is with the size of the photos. I tried to make the top photo of the 4 of us stand out by making it larger than the other two and not only framing it but popping it off the page with pop dots. The title is a secondary element so I kept it as close to the colour of the cardstock as I could.

Day 3 – Emphasis – Pick one element to be the star.

Can you guess what my star element is? That awesome title!! I had purchased these stickers ages ago planning to use them in just such a layout. So glad to finally use them!

Day 4 – Embrace the whitespace!

Okay, I just love how this layout turned out. The photos are a tiny bit blurry and even though I’ve loved them since first seeing them, I’ve always thought they weren’t “perfect” enough for a scrapbook page. After my sojourn into embracing imperfection I am not so afraid of those “imperfect” photos. So I decided to scrap them for this prompt knowing they needed a light touch.

Day 5 – The Visual Triangle

I honestly don’t know if I was completely successful with this one. I was trying to use the green ribbons and the green grocery bag as one triangle and the yellow title, yellow tag and yellow chick as the other.

Okay, since it is now almost 10:00PM and I still have laundry to fold, a case to finish packing and lists to double and triple check, I am going to sign off. For the next week I will be using my blog as a way to stay in touch with the girls. If you are interested in Greg and my trip to San Fransisco, Napa Valley and our 3-day repositioning cruise from LA to Vancouver, then check in for daily updates. If not, I’ll see you next Saturday or Sunday after I’ve unpacked my suitcase, done some more laundry, and hugged my kids for hours!

Posted in challenges, Five on Friday, layout, LOAD, Paige's Baby scrapbook | 1 Comment

Project 12 – March 2011

Posted on April 26, 2011 by daydesigns

I’ve been so caught up in life and other scrappy projects that I almost forgot about my Project 12! Since yesterday was a Stat and Greg was around to handle requests from the girls, I took the opportunity to tackle my March layout.

This was the sketch we were given.

And this is what I came up with.

It actually came pretty easily this month. I knew my pictures had a lot of deep pink (when don’t they!) and I also wanted to playup on the yellow in LC’s rain coat so I looked through my Basic Grey stash and these papers from their Lemonade collection seemed to fit. Also, LC’s birthday cake and cupcakes were made with cherry flavoured cake and the cake had cherry pie filling inside!! How perfect are those cherries then, eh?!

Here’s the left side of the layout.

And the right side. Do you notice anything different about the top right corner?

Here’s a close up.

When I was punching out the edges, the Martha Stewart corner punch and edge punch didn’t quite line up so I thought I’d just fix it later. You know, cover it up with something. Then I forgot, until I was taking the pictures. Doh! So I scrambled back to my craft room and came up with this quick fix.

What do you think? It works, doesnt’ it? Plus it gave me another journalling opportunity.

Here is a close up of the first flower embellishment I made. I coiled another bit of the sequin ribbon I’d used already onto a 1″circle of the yellow paper. But it looked too plain so I punched out 6 hearts and adhered them to the back, scrunched them up a little and voila! A pretty cool looking flower if I do say so myself!

In fact, I liked it so much I repeated it here in the title and again at the top – see the photos above.

Well, there you have it. Another month done … 9 to go! LOL!

Better get it submitted before I miss the deadline!

Thanks for stopping by.

Posted in layout, Project 12, Scrapbook | 3 Comments

Happy Easter!

Posted on April 24, 2011 by daydesigns

Just a quick post to share some crafty goodness with you. We are heading off to Abbotsford soon for a family Easter celebration. But I have a few minutes to get this up.

Here goes … first up are my Easter cards to the girls. I whipped these up last night which is why they are so simple. I LIKE simple, but I think if I had thought about it before yesterday and had more time I could have made them a bit “fancier”. Not that the girls care!

Then there is the card I made for Paige’s 5th birthday – again, very simple.

And last but not least, the Happy Birthday banner I made for the girls. Paige got to be the first to use it but I have made it in such a way that all the girls can use it year after year. Yay for reusing!!

Thanks for checking in again. I hope you have a very happy Easter with your families!

Posted in Cards, Scrapbook | Comments Off

Apron Strings Challenges & the Start of Paige’s Album

Posted on April 3, 2011 by daydesigns

Today marks the last day to enter the Apron Strings Birthday Party Challenges. I have been crafting like a crazy woman the past few days to get these done. I think I will just squeak in under the wire!!
Last week I combined all the challenges onto one layout. This week I tried to do each challenge on a different project. I almost succeeded but ended up combining two onto one layout.

First up, Day #19 – create a layout using multiple photos (6 or more) with none larger than 4×6″. I combined this with Day #20 – create a whimsical layout and don’t take longer than 60 minutes to complete it. I completely failed with the time limit (I actually forgot about that part until I was checking my list to make sure I’d hit them all!) but here it is for your perusal.

This also coincides with the official start of Paige’s Baby Album. Something she has been bugging me to do for ages! Now that I’ve finished the Maui album I feel ready to tackle this project. So, scrapping friends, expect a lot of baby themed pages featuring a thinner, younger me! Sigh!

My whimsy came out in the form of some painting, some misting, some cute cut outs and some buttons with bows.

When I saw this stork (on one of my friend’s Cricut cartridges) I had to use it! I know I’ve mostly hidden it behind her name but I still like it!

Okay, so next was Day #21 – use whatever’s out and on your scrap table. I kind of cheated here and did this one last! Apart from the plum cardstock and the black paint, everything was out. I meant to take a picture of my drafting table before I started, to prove it, but forgot. Sorry!

Next up, Day #22 – scrap something you are thankful for. This came easily but is not a layout. When I sat down to do this one I had just brought LC back from the hospital. I confess that I dislocated her elbow in an attempt to remove her against her (overwhelmingly strong – wonder who she gets that from?) will from the office. I pulled on her hand, she pulled back and then dropped and I heard (and felt) a nasty popping sound. She cried a lot and then fell asleep so I wasn’t totally sure if I’d really done anything horrible. Until she woke up crying and not using her left arm at all. So, off to the local hospital we went where a very kind (and tired looking – I wonder if he was pulling a double shift?) doctor gently twisted and bent her arm up. She cried again but about 2 minutes later ran over to the toys in the waiting room, hauled herself up on the chair using both arms and started pulling all the books out of the basket. All better!

To say I was relieved is such an understatement! My sick feeling stayed with me for the rest of the day though and I was extra nice to her!! Cookies? Sure. More juice? Absolutely!!

So I made this to remind myself always.

I don’t ever want to forget how fragile my kids are. How much bigger I am and how a seemingly innocent power struggle can do real damage. And not the “I’ll be paying my shrink for this when I’m all grown up” kind of damage! Although, that may factor in too!!

I also want to remember the bigger hands than mine that are looking out for my kids too!

Last but not least is Day #23 – Use one of the given photos as inspiration.

Here is one of the photos:

And here is my layout.

I was inspired by the strong horizontal lines and the large fonts. I also tried to create the feeling of a frame by drawing all around my elements.

Okay, there you have it. Thanks for checking these out!

Posted in challenges, layout, Paige, Paige's Baby scrapbook, Scrapbook | 4 Comments

Apron Strings Week 3 Challenges

Posted on March 27, 2011 by daydesigns

Okay, so I’ve been trying to participate in the Apron Strings Birthday Party Challenges for the past few weeks and did a couple in week 1 (see this post) but life has been interfering with challenge entry a bit since then. Darn kids, husband, ‘real life’ committments!! LOL!
Yesterday I decided enough was enough and sat down to answer the week 3 challenges. This is what I came up with …

Added March 28th – YAY!!! Blogger is finally working properly. All the pictures are now on this post.

The challenges this week were:

Day #14 – Do something new to you on your layout. I misted with my brand new Tattered Angels Glimmer mists (Forest Green on the base and Pearl on the title letters, if you’re interested). I’ve done a tiny bit of misting before but just recently found a scrapbooking store that sells mists so bought a few and this was my first time trying them out. I am VERY happy with the results!

Day #15- Use at least 3 different patterned papers. Check!

Day #16 – Balloons = round items; use at least 2 round items that are at least 3″ in size. I kind of went literal with this prompt. Since I knew I wanted to scrap the pictures from LC’s birthday balloons seemed appropriate. I have 3 on my layout and they are larger than 3″.

Day #17 – Incorprate a box or block onto your layout. I create a pseudo present box using 4 pictures mounted on a square of cardstock. I then tucked a tag behind it with my journalling. If you squint, the ribbon kind of looks like a bow, no?

Day #18 – Use a recycled item on your layout. This was a toughie until I remember a cream ribbon I’d kept from a pair of pajama’s I’d purchased around Christmas time. Voila! Both a recycled item and it became the ribbon/bow on my “present”.