Stuck?! Sketches

It's time for another sketch at Stuck?! Sketches and because this month is their birthday celebration they are offering an extra prize! A big thanks to Just Nick, which is offering a $25 gift certificate to their online store.

And now here is the September 15th sketch...

And here's my take on it...

I used lots of my goodies from the Clique Kits September kit to create this. There is still so much product left in this kit that I'm sure I'll be able to create several more pages to share as well.

I hope this has inspired you to join in with our birthday celebration. There are seriously so many fabulous prizes up for grabs this month that you don't want to miss out. Head over to the Stuck?! Sketches blog now for all the details!

Stuck?! Sketches Anniversary Bash

Hello, Friends! As you have likely heard, Stuck! Sketches is celebrating with a month long Anniversary Bash, this month! Today we are launching a joint hop with our sponsor Clique Kits!

In case you missed it, we are fortunate to be able to offer extra prizes for both of our challenges this month! As we mentioned Clique Kits is offering a prize for our hoppers specifically so be sure to hop to all of the links that follow and leave some love along the way, one winner will be chosen from the commenters to receive a September Clique Kits kit! Half of our team and some of the DT from Clique Kits are supplying gorgeous inspiration for you, as you hop! Thank you to Clique Kits for sending our team members a September kit to play with!

Now, let’s get this party started! Here is a reminder of our sketch ...

And here's how I used the the September kit from Clique kits with the sketch...

And here is your hop order!

Stuck Sketches http://stucksketches.blogspot.com/

Aliza Deutsch - http://peopleofthescrapbook.blogspot.com/

Janice Daquila-Pardo http://www.theconstantscrapper.com/

Caroli Schulz - http://www.carolinaschulz.com/

Monique Liedtke http://moniquesscrapbook.blogspot.ca/

Jenessa Franco http://www.jenessafranco.blogspot.com/ YOU ARE HERE

Leeann Pearce http://thepaintbrushgoesspottie.blogspot.com.au/

Kerryn Fry http://www.harrysscrappinmum.blogspot.com.au/

Maryam Perez http://maryamperez.blogspot.com/

Danie Ramirez Diakun http://scrappydanie.blogspot.ca/

Nicole Martel http://nicolemartel.blogspot.com/

Vivian Lake http://www.viviansdesk.blogspot.com/

Clique Kits https://cliquekits.wordpress.com/

You can read the Stuck?! Sketches sketch reveal post, to find out more about the other prizes being offered for this challenge.

Don't forget to link up your layouts by September 29th 2016 at midnight EST to be in the running for one of the prizes! 

Happy hopping and creating!

Creative Scrappers #298

Hello everyone and Happy Tuesday! I just wanted to pop in and show you a page I did last week using the current sketch at Creative Scrappers. I was so happy to see them back after their hiatus...I just love Kristine Davidson's sketches! So here's the sketch I worked with...

And here's my interpretation of it...

For the most part this was a simple layout to put together. I spent most of my time handstitching the circles and fussycutting all the flowers, leaves and title. Getting everything in place only took a few minutes. I love it when my creative juices are flowing and pages come together easily like that!

Thanks so much for looking!

Stuck?! Sketches

Hello everyone and happy Thursday! If you follow the Stuck?! Sketches blog then you already know that due to unforeseen circumstances the blog hop will be delayed. But never fear! I still have the September 1st sketch to share with you...

Unfortunately due to the rescheduling of the blog hop I am unable to share my layout based on the above sketch with you today. But I still encourage you to go ahead and start creating with the sketch yourself, Because I can promise you that there are lots of extra prizes this month that you just don't want to miss out on! Check back soon for more information about this month's blog hop.

Stuck?! Sketches Anniversary Bash Preview

Stuck?! Sketches is celebrating it's 3rd Anniversary, so all through September there will be more prizes, more sponsors and more fun!

Check the Stuck?! Sketches blog on September 1st for all the details.

Stuck?! Sketches

Happy Monday everyone! I cannot believe how quickly time has slipped by since my last post. We were in California when that went live, and let me tell you, our trip back home was too short and seemed to absolutely fly by! Next time we go back I feel like we need to be there for a minimum of two weeks, just to adequately spend time with all the people we love and to go all the places that we miss. We only got back to Texas last Monday, late that evening,,,and I've done almost nothing but play "catch-up" since then! Whoo!

Now judging by my bi-monthly posts this summer it would seem that I didn't get any scrapbooking done. In truth I accomplished a fair amount given that the kids weren't at school, we had a houseguest in July and then we took a trip back to California for 10 days. However, between having no desire to stand outside in the 100 degree Texas heat to photograph my pages, as well as my limited time for writing up posts, the only layouts that made it here are those for Stuck?! Sketches. Thank goodness for the responsibility of being on their Creative Team to at least hold me semi-accountable for the upkeep of this blog! And speaking of which, that's why I'm here today...to share the August 15th sketch, and how it inspired me.

I flipped it and came up with this...

If you know my kids at all, you will understand how especially sweet this photo is. Paolina isn't super affectionate with anyone except "Mami and Papi". She'll hug her friends if they initiate it, she shies away from hugs from extended family members, and she absolutely hates her brother to (what she calls) give her "slobbery kisses." Poor Santiago...he loves hugging and cuddling, so it's been nothing but frustration for him since she became old enough to refuse all of his loving, which basically began when she was old enough to sit up on her own around 4 months. Soooo...it's super special when not only do I see Paolina hugging or snuggling with her brother, but I also catch one of these rare moments with a photo.

I know these Crate Paper Hello, Love papers are Valentine themed, but they really suited this sweet moment. The background paper is Amy Tangerine...something that's been in my stash for too long. And not because I was hoarding it exactly, but because I just didn't have the "right" sketch or photos for it. When I saw the August 15th sketch, I knew that if I flipped it it would be perfect. Don't you love the stitching on it? It was nice that I didn't have to spend the extra time adding in that detail myself.

Enough gabbing...I hope you found some inspiration and are ready to create your own page using this sketch. For more details on how you can be entered to win a randomly drawn prize this month, and to see what the rest of our awesome Creative Team did with this amazing sketch head over to the Stuck?! Sketches blog.

Have a great week!

Stuck?! Sketches

Happy Monday everyone! A new week, a new month and a new sketch at Stuck?! Sketches...

And here's my take on it...

In case your August is as hot as ours, maybe looking at this layout will help you cool off (at least in your mind). Check out that gorgeous sparkly background paper! I picked up a Winter paper pad on clearance at Michaels at the end of this past Christmas season because I knew these papers would be perfect for all the pages I have to do of Paolina in her Elsa costume. Not only was she Elsa for Halloween back in 2014, but she frequently plays dress-up in her costume and she also had a Frozen themed birthday party in 2015. So I know paying just a mere $5 for an entire pad of paper was a wise investment! 

I hope you will find some inspiration from my layout, or go check out the Stuck?! Sketches blog to see what the rest of our talented Creative Team did with the August 1st sketch. We would love for you to join along! As usual, you will have until the 29th of the month to link up your layout for a chance at a fabulous prize.

Stuck?! Sketches

Hello everyone! It's time for another amazing sketch at Stuck?! Sketches. Check it out...

And here's how it inspired me...

It's so hot here in Dallas, that I thought I would try cooling off by thinking "cold" thoughts. It didn't really work, but hey, I got another Christmas page done! This sketch had so many layers that it really helped me make a serious dent in my winter/holiday stash too. 

I hope this sketch inspires you to create as well. Please share your layout by July 29th for a chance at a fabulous prize. You can read the details and see what the rest of our Creative Team did with the July 15th sketch on the Stuck?! Sketches blog.

Thanks for looking and have a fantastic weekend!

Stuck?! Sketches

Happy Friday! I can't believe it's already July...our summer has really been flying by! I haven't had as much time as I would like to scrapbook, but I've been having fun with the kids swimming in the pool, doing crafts and teaching them to do some cooking & baking. We've also had a dear friend, who is moving to our area, stay with us while he found a house and as he waits for the movers to arrive. Good times!

Maybe some of you are having a less hectic summer and are itching to get busy in your craft area. Lucky for you, Stuck?! Sketches has a brand new sketch up on the blog to provide you with some scrappy inspiration...

And here is my interpretation...

When I saw this sketch I immediately thought of a filmstrip diecut that my mom cut for me a few years ago with one of her diecutting machines. For what ever reason I have been hoarding it, but this sketch made me decide to finally put it to use. I've also been hoarding that cute little tricycle embellishment ever since we bought Santiago his trike. And as you can see by the date on the layout, that means it's been in my stash for about five years. Seriously, am I the only one who has such horrible hoarding tendencies with my scrapbooking supplies? The rest of my life does not reflect that...I'm constantly purging and giving to charity, selling or throwing away. But those scrappy goodies just accumulate. I digress...

Back to the awesome sketch! As you can see you are not constricted to using all photos. I replaced the line of three small photos with the filmstrip diecut. If you would like to see more inspiration as to how to use the sketch, I encourage you to check out the Stuck?! Sketches blog. I also hope you will decide to join in. If you link up your layout by July 29th you will have an opportunity to win an amazing prize from this month's sponsor.

Thanks for looking...have a fabulous weekend!

Stuck?! Sketches

Happy Wednesday! I know it's not officially summer yet, but for a lot of us it is summer break from school. I hope yours is going well so far. Ours has been a bit busy these first two weeks because the kids have a day camp and then evening swim lessons, but next week the swim lessons are done so I'm hoping for life to slow down just a little bit! I've barely had any time to get any scrapbooking done...maybe two layouts in the last ten days. So sad. Maybe you're more free than I am to scrapbook. In which case, you will be delighted that Stuck?! Sketches has a brand new sketch up on the blog...

And here's what I did with it...

I stayed pretty true to the actual sketch. I had this series of small photos that I've been wanting to get onto a layout for awhile, so it was really perfect for them!

Please take a moment to head over to the Stuck?! Sketches blog and check out what the rest of our Creative Team did with the sketch. I'm sure you will find tons of inspiration to create your own layout. Just make sure you link up to the blog by June 29th for a chance at an awesome prize.

Stuck?! Sketches

Happy Wednesday. Can you believe it's the first day of June? Where has the year gone? And where has the school year gone? The next two days my kids have early release and then tomorrow is the last day of school!

While my scrappy time is more limited when the kids are home for breaks, I know that some people have more time over the summer. Do you fall into that category? Well then here is a brand new sketch from Stuck?! Sketches for you to get your creative juices flowing...

And my take on it...

Speaking of summer, this photo was taken last summer. I don't remember what we had been doing, but I'm pretty sure we had all been out and about staying busy. When we got home Noé said he was going to take a nap and asked Paolina to join him. She lay down on his chest with an impish little grin, pretending to sleep, but then about 5 minutes later they were both down for the count. I couldn't resist getting a photo of them...such a super cute picture!

I hope you take the time to head over to the Stuck?! Sketches! blog. Our creative team has some awesome inspiration for you. And while you're there, check out the info about how you can win a prize for linking up your own layout!

Stuck?! Sketches

Happy Sunday everyone! Who's ready for a new sketch to play with this? If so, please check out the May 15th sketch from Stuck?! Sketches...

Here's what I did with it...

I had a lot of fun with this page. The photos are my favorite part...they are pictures of Paolina a few weeks after she had turned one, completely buried in all of the kids' stuffed animals. At first all you could see was her face, but then she popped up and said "Boo!"

I had fun working with the sketch too. At first I looked at the circle elements, which is an aspect of the design that I love, but I wondered how I could achieve a similar effect since the only electronic cutting machine I have is a basic Cricut, Then I had an "Ah hah!" moment when I remembered my stash of KI Memories lace cardstock. I found a sheet of white hearts, used some of my Glimmer Mists to make it a coordinating shade of pink, and then trimmed it down to the desired size. I also did some minimal mixed media work on the background paper...just a little gesso to tone down the busy pattern and then some ink splatters. Normally I don't gravitate towards pastel color schemes, but I like that this paper had a few pops of bright pink mixed in, and it really went perfectly with the colors in the photos.

I hope this gave you some inspiration. For tons more, please head over to the Stuck?! Sketches blog to see how our talented Creative Team interpreted this amazing sketch. Don't forget that if you play along and link up your page by May 29th, you will have a chance at an awesome prize.

Hope you have a great week!

National Scrapbooking Day

Happy Tuesday! Did anyone get an opportunity to scrapbook on National Scrapbooking Day? I wasn't able to get a lot done on Saturday, but between then and yesterday I completed a lot of challenges that were floating around. Today I'm going to share with you the page I made for the combined Scrap Our Stash and The ScrapRoom challenge.

The SOS portion of the challenge was to use a pre-selected stash item from each of the letters in the word STASH. For this page I chose Sequins, (Washi) Tape, Arrow, Striped Print and Hashtag. The ScrapRoom part of the challenge was to choose from five sketches. I chose this one...

Thanks so much for looking.

Stuck?! Sketches

Happy first day of May everyone! I hope each of you had a fabulous weekend. Are you ready for another sketch from Stuck?! Sketches?

And here's what I did with it...

For me, the words "fun" and "playful" immediately popped into my mind when I saw the sketch. So I knew I wanted to use these photos of Paolina and Santiago playing dress-up. I also immediately knew that these bright papers from Amy Tangerine's "Better Together" collection would be perfect as well. Last year I bought some of Bazzill's "The Adventures Of..." collection that I wanted to use when I finally got around to scrapbooking one of Santiago's birthday parties which had a Avengers theme. Of course I've never gotten around to working with any of those photos, so I used a few of the stickers that came from that collection on this page. As a final touch I used Heidi Swapp gold Color Shine and some sparkly gold Thickers to play up the gold in the kids' costumes.

Please head over to the Stuck?! Sketches blog to see what the rest of our Creative Team did with the sketch. Hopefully you will be inspired to join in. Make sure you link up by May 29th for a chance at a randomly drawn prize!

Thanks for looking!

ScrapMuch?

Happy Wednesday! Today I want to share a page I did using the April 1st sketch from ScrapMuch? It's seriously hard to find good two-page sketches, but Laura Whitaker and Becky Fleck (PageMaps) nail it every time.

I changed up the number of photos but pretty much stayed true to the sketch...

These photos are from Halloween 2012. Check out that awesome title...it's a custom diecut. Photos don't do justice to how amazing it is in real life. If you're looking for super good-quality diecuts I encourage you to check out my friend's etsy shop The Dancing Daisy. I can't recommend her work enough!

Thanks so much for looking...have a great day!

Sketches in Thyme

Happy Monday all! I hope everyone had a good weekend. Are you ready for some scrappy inspiration this week? My sketch is up at Sketches in Thyme and I would love for you to join in the fun...

You have until April 30th to link up your take on the sketch for a chance at an awesome prize! Happy scrapping!

Stuck?! Sketches

Happy Friday everyone! Do you have scrappy plans for the weekend? If so, then please check out the April 15th sketch from Stuck?! Sketches...

And here's how I used it...

For this page I used a photo of Santiago and Paolina with the Easter Bunny when we went to an Easter Egg Hunt at a local church last year.

I thought the background paper, which is from the Dear Lizzy Serendipity line, was perfect with the colors in Paolina's outfit. I faded the center out a bit with some gesso, and then I used the packaging technique with my gelatos to get a bit of a watercolor effect peeking out from behind the layers of paper. I also took a watercolor brush and splattered a bit of the paint around the layout. Since I don't have a sewing machine, I just did some handstitching. Most of the layers and fussy-cut embellishments are also papers from the Dear Lizzy Serendipity line, but the glittery pink & turquoise circular/floral paper is a scrap from an older SEI line. I think it might have been a birthday-themed line?

Thanks so much for looking. I really encourage you to head over to the Stuck?! Sketches blog to check out what the rest of our Creative Team did with the April 15th sketch. And we would love for you to join as well! Make sure you link up by April 29th for a chance to win our monthly prize.

Scrappy Friends

Happy Saturday everyone! I hope you're enjoying your day. We have some fabulous weather here so we've been getting some yard/pool work done. And now that those chores are done I just wanted to pop in and share a layout I put together last night. I was inspired by the April challenge at Scrappy Friends that was just posted yesterday.

I loved all three of the sketches and had a difficult time deciding which to use! But in the end I was especially drawn to the unique design of the sketch on the lower left, and I set to work...

Along with using one of the sketches I also used Rochelle's "This or That" challenge.

I did a little thinking outside of the box for this one. I didn't see a place in the design of my layout for me to use an entire "card" so I decided to fussy cut two Project Life cards. I used one as an element in the top right corner (the "hello there" speech bubble"), and I used the other as the title (Star Student). I was very glad for this challenge as I have quite the stash of PL cards that have come with paper pads or kits. Since I don't do Project Life style scrapbooking it was helpful for me to find a creative way to use them on a traditional page.

Thanks for looking and enjoy your weekend!

Stuck?! Sketches

Happy Friday and Happy April Fools Day! Have any of you fallen prey to jokes or pranks today? I thought for sure my son would get me this morning...seven-year old boys love that kind of thing. But I guess he just forgot about it. Of course the day is not over so I suppose I had better keep an eye on him after I pick him up from school!

On a "serious" note I am super excited to share with everyone my first layout as a Creative Team member over at Stuck?! Sketches. Here is the fabulous sketch I had to work with...

And my take on it...

Instead of using two photos, I decided to use a single picture from our family photo shoot at Crystal Cove Beach, California, back in 2011.

I got pretty messy with the background. First I covered the entire paper with clear gesso. Then I used the packaging technique with my gelatos for a watercolor effect, Over that I used some white acrylic paint with a stencil by The Crafters Workshop. I finished it off with splattering some Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist and Heidi Swapp Color Shine. I created the layers behind the photos with lots of scraps from my stash...Basic Grey Kioshi and some older 7Gypsies papers.

I decided to move the embellishment cluster that's on the right side of the sketch to the opposite side for my page. The little chipboard clock is Prima, both of the dimensional butterflies are K & Company, the doily is from Hobby Lobby and the alphas are American Crafts Thickers.

I really hope that you will take the time to head over to the Stuck?! Sketches blog. We have such a talented team, and I would love for you to see what they have all created with the April 1st sketch. We would also love for you to join in by linking your layout over in the blog's sidebar. You will have until April 29th to link up for a chance at winning one of our randomly drawn prizes.

Thanks so much for looking!

Sketches in Thyme

Happy Wednesday everyone. I hope you all would take the time to check out the Sketches in Thyme blog. I've recently become a Sketch Designer at their site and my sketch is up on the blog this week!

Tomorrow, March 31st, is the last day to add your links for the chance to win this prize...

Have a great day!

ScrapMuch? Part 3

And now for my final installment of ScrapMuch? inspired pages for the month of March. This layout was based on their March 18th sketch.

And here is my take on it...

Let me start off by saying how much I am in love with these papers. They are so bright and make me feel so happy! A few weeks ago Michaels had this ridiculously amazing sale. Their Hot Buy paper pads which are regularly priced at $19.99, were only $5 each! I've been eyeing this pad for months, but even when I had my 50% off coupon I just couldn't justify buying more paper. I was especially nervous that even though I was attracted to the bright tropical colors, I would never have pictures to use with it. Boy was I wrong! I've already used it for three layouts and have "bookmarked" it for two more. Oh and not only have I been using it like crazy, but I've also been using the papers from the pad exclusively on the layouts. You heard correctly, my friends. I did not mix and match with other collections. I've barely even used embellishments. I've just been fussy cutting the flowers & leaves.

Anyhow, I did do a bit of mixed media work on this page. First I applied some gesso to tone down the extremely bright background.Then I used some gold Heidi Swapp texture paste on a circular 6x6 stencil from The Crafters Workshop to add some shine and texture. When the page was almost complete I splattered some white and gold Heidi Swapp Color Shine.

Thanks for looking at yet another page today. Have a great one!

ScrapMuch? Part 2

Next up is a page I created using the ScrapMuch? March 11 sketch...

And here's my take on it...

I started this page by choosing the background paper from the Heidi Swapp Hello Today collection. If you've followed me for any length of time then you know that I rarely create pages from a single collection. I love to mix & match! So my next step was to go through my scraps to see what would coordinate with the background. Lo and behold, that blue dotted paper (leftover from my last layout) was still sitting on my desk, and it looked perfect with it. Score! An entire sheet used up on two projects. I also used some paper scraps from Echo Park's Creative Agenda, Amy Tangerine's Finders Keepers, and some older Basic Grey & Dream Street Papers. I had just purchased some new washi tapes from Michaels that I was itching to use, and they also coordinated perfectly. I didn't do much mixed media on this page...just a few paint splatters at the end.

Thanks again for looking and please stay tuned a little bit longer for my final installment of ScrapMuch? inspired pages.

ScrapMuch? Part 1

Happy Tuesday! Wow...another month has completely gotten away from me. And once again I'm trying to share all the pages I've made throughout the month in the last few days of said month. Today I have three layouts I created using inspiration from ScrapMuch? The first was based on theitrMarch 4th sketch...

And here's my take on it...

For this page I used pictures from my 30th birthday when my sweet hubby surprised me with a little belated get-together at my favorite Indian restaurant.

When choosing the papers for this page, I started with the Dear Lizzy Serendipity line and then pulled some of my paper scraps to coordinate. I didn't have enough of the Serendipity collection to a create a two-page background, but I found that some pink paper from My Mind's Eye Abbey Road matched perfectly!

On the background paper, I used the packaging technique with my gelatos. And then I splattered some white and gold Heidi Swapp Color Shine. Photos never do justice to how shiny that gold ink is!

Thanks for looking and please stay tuned for two more pages I created using ScrapMuch? sketches...

Let's Get Sketchy!

Happy Monday everyone! I hope you all had a wonderful weekend. Yesterday was my birthday, so between celebrating that and Easter, ours was busy and fun! I didn't have time to scrapbook, but last week I got several layouts done and today I would like to share one I did using a sketch by Let's Get Sketchy!

Often times sketches are just a jumping point for me. Sometimes I will flip or rotate them. Sometimes I rearrange the title, journaling or embellishment placement to suit how my page has evolved from the sketch, But in this case my layout looks nearly exactly as the original sketch. See for yourself...

Santiago has been going to a summer camp the last two years and each year they have a Talent Show. This photo was taken of him and his friend, who also attends the camp, doing their comedy routine for the show.

I wanted a simple background that wouldn't overpower the triangles in the design of the sketch, so I chose white cardstock and then just did a little messy mixed media work. If you haven't tried the packaging technique to create a watercolor effect you really should. I love it! I sprayed some of my ink sprays (Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist and Shimmerz Spritz) onto a small piece of plastic packaging material, diluted it a bit with water, and then just "smooshed" it onto my cardstock. Then I added a few splatters with the same ink spray as well as some Heidi Swapp black Color Shine.

The rest of the layout came together in no time as I just followed the sketch. I wanted to use that Amy Tangerine "leaf" patterned paper, so I just went through my scrap stash and pulled different pieces that coordinated. I love that the American Craft Thickers were the exact shade of orange-yellow to match the page!

Thanks for looking and have a great day!

Stuck?! Sketches

Happy St. Patrick's Day everyone! I'm here today to share some exciting news...a secret I've been keeping for about a week now. I know I haven't been blogging much lately. Life has just been especially busy. It's always a struggle to balance real life with my creative time. Somehow or another, for the last seven years I have managed to serve on various design teams. Sometimes I was unsure of how I would juggle those duties alongside running a (since closed) small business and being a stay-at-home mom to two small children. But scrapbooking is my passion and serving on those teams not only challenged me, but helped me develop friendships with ladies all over the country (and even the world) so I just made it work. At one point I was serving on four teams at once. I quickly came to the conclusion that serving on two teams was the maximum time I could devote to the attached responsibilities. And then this past July I made the decision to resign from my one-and-only design team. It was summer (so the kids were home) and we were packing, remodeling our new house and then moving in to the house. I didn't even have my scrappy supplies available to create, so resigning seemed like the logical path to take. Once I unpacked my supplies, jumped back into creating, and I was not distracted by design team duties, I was on a huge roll. I was cranking out about five layouts a week, which for me is impressive. I was even pretty good about sharing consistently here on my blog...for a few months. I soon realized that while not serving on a design team freed up more of my time to actually scrapbook, it was not holding me accountable to consistently sharing my layouts. It dawned on me recently that I went the entire month of February without a single blog post. I also really miss the camaraderie that is developed between design team members. I feel a bit disconnected from the scrappy world when I'm not constantly communicating with my online scrappy friends. Now hopefully you've managed to make it through this lengthy monologue to hear about my exciting news...I'm so thrilled to announce that I an now a member of the Stuck?! Sketches Creative Team. This is truly an honor for me. Laura Whitaker creates the most amazing sketches, and I use them frequently. Sooooo how awesome is it that I get to be a part of this team and share the pages I've created with those sketches twice a month?!

Here is the layout I submitted for my team application...

Last year we happened to be enjoying a beautiful day at the park on National Siblings Day. I did what any good scrapbooking mother would do and requested a photo of Paolina and Santiago together. Not only did they oblige, but the kids gave me some pretty good pictures.

The sketch is, of course, from Stuck?! Sketches. The product is, as usual, a mish mash of different manufacturers and lines. The background paper is from a pad I picked up from Wal-Mart (?) a year or two ago. I think it might be Colorbok? The paper scraps are Studio Calico, Crate Paper and American Crafts. The heart washi tape I found at the Dollar Tree around Valentine's Day, The title is done with two different types of American Craft Thickers. For the background, I just used a little gesso to tone down the busyness of all the phrases and then splattered a little Heidi Swapp Color Shine. I also handstitched some circles and then added some additional ones using a Sharpie. I'm pleased that all the colors worked so well together, given that they came from so many different product lines.

Thanks for looking! And make sure you check out the Stuck?! Sketches blog to meet the rest of the new Creative Team members.

Pixels and Paper

Happy Tuesday everyone. I can't believe how long it's been since I posted! I've actually been doing a lot of scrapbooking, but just have not found the time to get on here and share it. However, today I have the perfect reason to get back in the swing of things...I'm so honored to be the March Guest Designer over at Pixels and Paper Challenge Blog.

This month's challenge was to use create a monochromatic layout or other project using inspiration from the following image. It does not have to be brown like the photo, but it must be monochromatic.

The first thing I noticed about the photo was the latte art, which inspired me to create a page with lots of circles with hearts in the middle. My mind then wandered to a layout created by Missy Whidden, that I had seen some months ago. Quite honestly, I've wanted to lift her page ever since I laid eyes on it and to also try the technique she used to create her circles. And this is what I came up with...

If you would like to see her technique for creating those super cool mixed media circles, she made a tutorial that's on YouTube that you can check out here. And of course I hope that the Pixels and Paper March challenge will give you some inspiration as well. You can play along and link up your project through March 31st.