You Make My Heart Skip a Bark: A 12 x 12 Scrapbook Layout

Do you have pets that you scrap about? We have an adorable but mischievous dog named Dexter and an ornery cat named Brownie, that I occasionally scrap about. This layout features that cute dog.  He's seriously so cute and spoiled rotten. 

I started with the idea of using a heart on this layout and it kind of morphed into stitching around the heart and making it look like a scalloped heart. I absolutely love how this layout turned out though. I used the 'Fur Fusion Soup' collection from Jillibean Soup and a few items from the 'Bark' collection by Echo Park. 

I cut out the heart by hand and used different patterned papers from the collection to make strips across the heart. I doodled around the edges of the heart and inked it lightly using Tim Holtz 'Distress Ink' in Tea Dye. I then traced around the heart and stitched into the card stock using some embroidery floss from DMC. To make the scalloped look, I simply punched some circles using a circle punch and then cut them in half. I placed them around the edge of the stitching and lifted up the edges of the scallops to give some dimension and to create a shadow. 

I used some of the embellishments from the 'Fur Fusion' collection to create an adorable little scene on the heart. I placed the dog house and the dog up on some fun foam for some dimension and added the banner under that cluster to act as a 'resting place' for the embellishments. I used Nuvo Crystal drops in gloss white to add some interest as well. I used those same drops on my title, the banner and the larger hearts. 

I created a cluster of embellishments at the top of the layout using a die cut label that I cut into a banner. I also used my banner punch by The Paper Studio to create another banner. I added in a button from my stash as well a heart from the collection. 

I created several clusters of embellishments around the layout including one on top of and beside my  photo. I did add in an enamel dot to each cluster as well. 

I typed my journaling on my computer, cut it into strips and placed it at the top and bottom to help balance out the layout. 

I hope this layout will inspire you to scrap about your pets.

Sheetz Nachos: A 12 x 12 Scrapbook Layout

Do you use sketches when you scrapbook? I personally love to use sketches as it takes some of the guess work out of scrapping. There are several websites that offer free sketches. One of my favorites is Page Maps and there are a ton of sketch inspirations on Pinterest. 

I used a sketch for this layout from Stuck! Sketches. They have a blog and an Instagram if you interested in playing along with them.

The sketch called for a long title, so I knew exactly what photo I wanted to scrap. My son Xander loved to eat but nachos were one of his very favorites. For MONTHS, I heard him talk about the wonderful nachos at Sheetz. I just knew those nachos were going to be amazing. But when I took him to our local Sheetz,soon after they opened, I realized those AMAZING nachos were actually nothing special!!  They were the same nachos you could get at any baseball field. But he didn't care. He loved nachos of any kind and he was thrilled to finally get some from Sheetz. 

I used some large alphas that I picked up from Target a few months back. I traced the letters on my patterned  papers from my scrap bin and cut them out. I wanted the title to stand out a bit more, so I hand stitched around all of the letters. Hand stitching does take time, but I love the look of it. 

Before doing the stitching, I used some water colors and some Tim Holtz Distress inks to make a water colored look on my background. I just put  the distress ink on some plastic packaging, added a little water and pressed the color onto my card stock. I did the same thing with the water color paint. I used some Heidi Swapp 'Color Shine' in navy to make some splatters as well. I love how the color behind the title makes it pop even more and it's such a fun technique. 

The 'Good Times' card that I purchased from Elle's Studio was a perfect addition to my layout. The color matched perfectly and well, the saying did too!

I stamped the banner on the card using Tim Holtz 'Distress Ink' in the color Chipped Sapphire with a Pink Fresh Studio stamp.  I added the 'Right Now' rubber charm on the top. I purchased that charm from Freckled Fawn. 

I also added in a few labels from Elle's Studio. Elle's Studio has amazing grab bags on Black Friday and I stocked up this past year. 

I added in a few stars in three places around my layout. The small stars were made using a punch and I just traced and cut out the larger stars. The letters that spell 'Sheetz' are from Studio Calico. 

All of the papers I used on this layout are really old bits and pieces from my scrap drawer. The paper with the stars is a new paper from the Bella Blvd. collection called 'Oh My Stars.' 

I hope this layout will inspire you to use a sketch and make it into your own. 

Keepin' it Real: A 12 x 12 Scrapbook Layout

I will admit that I'm  more of a 'clean and simple' kind of scrapbooker. I love clean lines and minimal embellishments. The photos and the story are mainly what are most important to me in my scrapbooks. With that being said, I went embellishment crazy on this layout!!! I just couldn't stop adding "all the things!!" 

All of the papers that I used to make the tags are older papers from my scrap drawer, which is a great way to use those up. I just traced the shape of a tag on the papers and then cut them out. 

For my title, I used the newer 'Dream' Thickers from American Crafts. It was the perfect title for this layout which has journaling pertaining to my marriage. The photo is of me and my husband, way back at my 16th birthday party. Yes, we are high school sweethearts and we have been together since I was 15 and he was 16. Let's face it, marriage isn't easy, it's worth it, but not easy. It takes work to make it last. 

I did a little stamping around the layout. This 'love doing life with you' stamp is from Pink Fresh Studio. I used the 'Emeline' stamp set from Felicity Jane as well. 

I used so many embellishments that it's hard to pinpoint where each one came from. I used some 'Posh 'and 'Sunshine and Happiness' embellishments from Simple Stories, some really old rub-ons from Love, Elsie, some bits and pieces from Fancy Pants newer line called 'Joy Parade', a Heidi Swapp bow and a cute purple bow clip from Bella Blvd. If you have any specific questions about an embellishment, leave me a comment and I'll try to find the answer for you. 

My journaling, since it's a little more personal, is tucked into that purple envelope seen behind my photo. I finished off my layout with some black and gold Heidi Swapp 'Color Shine' and little doodling around the edge of the page. 

We all have packages of embellishments needing to be used. Break them  out and make something fun to look back on. 

Remember Today: A 12 X 12 Scrapbook Layout

I created this layout for the Design Team call over at My Creative Scrapbook and I LOVE the way it turned out. I used the 'Emeline' kit from Felicity Jane for the majority of the layout. I fussy cut all of those beautiful flowers out of one of the patterned papers in the kit. 

The photo on this layout is of me and my youngest son, Xander. For those that don't know, Xander battled cancer for five years and heartbreakingly passed away at the end of 2015. These pictures were taken in 2013 through a project called 'The Gold Hope Project' which entailed photographers donating their time to take pictures of children fighting cancer. I'm so very grateful to have these precious pictures. You can find out more about The Gold Hope project here: http://goldhopeproject.com/

As I stated earlier, I fussy cut all of the flowers out of one of the patterned papers and layered them up using some fun foam. I added in a few wood veneer leaves from my stash and used my Nuvo Crystal Drops to add some color and interest around the layout. The colors I used were Gloss White and Bright Gold. 

I placed those flowers in several different areas around my layout and I added some wood veneer hearts as well. Those hearts also came in the Felicity Jane kit. The 'love this' sticker seen above is a darling puffy sticker from the kit. 

I added in some hand stitching in several places around the layout using some gold thread that I bought from Michael's. I love the added detail of hand stitching. 

I placed my title on the bottom of the photo. There was some open space there and it was the perfect place for my title. 

The gold letters are from the 'Gather' collection by Maggie Holmes/Crate Paper and the white puffy alphas came in the kit. 

I hope you enjoyed looking at this layout and I hope it inspires you to scrap your photos, even the 'hard' ones. 

Be You: A 12 X 12 Scrapbook Layout

If you've been scrapping for many years like I have, you have probably amassed a huge stash of goodies. Once you have this huge stash of goodies, it's sometimes hard to break out those older products and use them up--but I've been trying to do just that. The paper that I used to punch out the circles from on this layout is actually ten years old!!! (GASP!!) Some people wouldn't dare use anything 'that old' on a current layout, but I seriously doubt you can look at this layout and know that the paper is ten years old! 

I used some watercolors and the 'packaging technique' on the background of this layout. If you aren't familiar with that technique, I will explain. You basically take some clear packaging from a pack of stickers or any other embellishment, place some of your watercolor on the packaging and basically 'smoosh' it down on your paper. So technical, huh? I did use some clear gesso on the textured card stock before putting my watercolors on top. Gesso just helps to keep the color from soaking directly into the paper and keeps your paper from warping and tearing,  plus it keeps your colors truer to their natural hue.   I also used a stencil that I bought from Michael's to add some dimension and interest on the right of the photo. I used Heidi Swapp metallic texture paste in black with that stencil. I also used Heidi Swapp stamps to add some interest around the layout. I used black Staz-on ink to stamp those images and to stamp the circles. For the circles, I used the top of an empty face wash bottle!! It's a great idea to use 'found' items from around your house in your scrapping.

. 

For the title of my layout, I used my Silhouette Portrait. I used a font called Lemon Tuesdays, which is a free font and can be found on DaFont. 

I used a circle punch for the dots of paper around the page, a Bella Blvd. enamel heart on the photo and just simple 'encouraging' words for the journaling. 

I hope this layout will encourage you to use old some of the older supplies you having laying around and to use some 'found' items as well.