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.

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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.

Merry and Bright: A 12 x 12 Scrapbook Layout

Last year was my niece Riley's first Christmas. Her and my nephew had some adorable Christmas pictures made together. I finally got around to scrapping a few of them. 

The background paper is just a piece from a paper pad that I bought at Michael's. The paper that I cut the banner strips from is an Illustrated Faith paper from their newest Christmas release from this year. 

The "Merry and Bright" is a card from a Simple Stories Christmas collection from a few years back. It was the perfect title for this layout and it was an easy option as well. 

I added this beautiful gold stitching around the layout in three different places. I love the added sparkle and texture. 

I stamped the date on this layout using the awesome Dated Stamp Set from Elle's Studio. I've been wanting the Mega Date Stamp from Studio Calico for some time now but I can never catch it when it's in stock. This stamp set will work exactly the way that date stamp would have. 

My Heart: A 12 x 12 Scrapbook Layout

Do you use mixed media on your scrapbook pages? I don't use it often but I love the way it looks when I do. 

I used my watercolor paints on the background of this layout. I just made the colors I wanted to use, placed the paint on a piece of plastic packaging and "smooshed" the color on my paper.  I repeated that process until I was satisfied with the way the paint looked. I also used some mists and paint to make splatters around my layout. 

All of the bits and pieces that you see scattered around the layout are from Elle's Studio. I bought a few of Elle's grab bags that she had on sale on Black Friday. Her grab bags are awesome and so very cheap.

The blue letters that spell "Ethan" are from Pinkfresh Studio and are their Indigo Puffy Alpha Stickers. I used my Tim Holtz tiny attacher to add some extra detail. I also did my journaling right above those alphas. 

The black word 'my' and the stars and hearts around the layout are from the Dear Lizzy  Hello Thickers. 

The star stamp that is seen around the layout is from Felicity Jane stamp set called Emeline. I used my Wink of Stella clear glitter pen to give them some sparkle as well. 

I finished off my layout with some black doodling around the edges and some enamel dots. 

I hope this layout will inspire you to break out those mixed media products and create something unique and beautiful.

Snapchat is his fave: An 11 x 8.5 Scrapbook Layout

Yes, me and Snapchat again!!  I just can't help it--the filters are just so much fun. And then there is my 8 year old nephew who thinks Snapchat is hilarious!! He's at the age where he doesn't want me to take his picture, but he's always ready to play on Snapchat. 

I've never done a layout in this orientation before but I have to say it was a lot of fun. All of the papers and most of the bits and pieces are from the Bella Blvd. collection called Alex. 

I added some hand stitching in a few places around the layout just to add some texture and interest. I love the look of stitching on paper projects.  

I love all of these word stickers and die cuts that I found on the sticker sheets of the Alex and Addison collections from Bella Blvd. I thought they added just the right touch above my strip of photos. 

My title was created using some really old Making Memories stickers and Dear Lizzy Snapshot Thickers. The star chipboard is from Pinkfresh Studio and I added in some enamel dots. The star stamp and the "Now What" stamp are from the Emeline  stamp set from Felicity Jane. 

Break out those funny and silly pictures and record those moments. 

Just Wonderful: A 12 x 12 Scrapbook Layout

What is your favorite season? I love fall. I love the beautiful changing leaves, the cooler temperatures, Thanksgiving and all things pumpkin. Do you know another great thing about fall? Most of the time I can still wear my flip flops! (Flip flops are my favorite shoes!!)

This layout documents just that--wearing my oh so comfy flip flops in the fall. I used a cut file on this layout from the Just Nick store. That store has some awesome cut files that you should check out. The cut file was all one piece, but I cut it up so I could use it in several places on my layout. I used water color, markers and some spray mists on my leaves and greenery. I also backed them with patterned paper.

I mainly used the new fall collection from Simple Stories called Hello Fall. 

The word wonderful that I used in my title is a chipboard piece with a gold coating from Studio Calico.

I love the dimension that the cut file leaves give my layout. I layered in some other leaves and some flowers and brads from Hello Fall as well.

I hope you enjoyed this layout and that it inspires you to scrapbook a layout about your favorite season.