Homemade Holiday Blog Hop Giveaway Winner!

Thank you everyone for all your kind words about my blog hop project! I really appreciate them and enjoyed reading each of them. I am glad to see that a lot of you have similar memories as I do attached to ribbon candy!  It's funny how little things like that bring the memories flooding back, isn't it!  As promised I have drawn a random number using the Random.Org webiste and the winner is lucky number 5!

Congratulations Steffanie! Please send you mailing info to jenniferdewolfe (at) gmail (dot) com and I will send your package out to you!

I noticed a couple of questions in the comments as well as some things I forgot to mention so I figured I would do it hear and now!

• For my ribbon length I didn't really use a specific length. Each ornament I made is made using what ever the length of ribbon I had seeing as I was using leftover pieces. I did have a minimum size as I wanted more that two loops so I made sure they were at least 6 inches long.
• To create a mostly uniform loop I used a finger width between the pearl and loop.  If they weren't exactly the same size I did not worry about it.  I thought it gave it character, plus I've never seen a perfect asymetrical piece of ribbon candy either.
• Every couple of pearls I would knot the fishing line into the ribbon.  This would give the ornament some stability that made it way easier to work with.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank Amanda again for hosting another fantastic blog hop! I always enjoy participating and seeing what everyone else does.

Homemade Holiday Blog Hop

Hello and Welcome to the Handmade Holiday blog hop! I am so happy to have you stop by my humble little blog! If you did not arrive to my blog from the uber talented Becky's blog please return to Amanda's blog to follow the hop in order so that you don't miss any wonderful inspiration from the amazing ladies participating with me!

This year is our second year doing a homemade Christmas in my family.  It is something we started last year because we decided to take a family vacation to Jamaica over Christmas and it was done in an effort to save a little money.  It ended up being one of my favorite Christmases!  I do come from a crafty family so all of the gifts were super creative and had such heartfelt meaning!  So much so, that we decided to do it again this year and this blog hop is perfect with that goal!  We were challenge by Amanda to create a handmade project using our scrappy stash or tools.  It can be a gift, home decor item, food/recipe that somehow uses our scrappy items.

So for this blog hop, I had hard a bit of a hard time because all of the projects I am working on have to be kept under wraps until I can give them to their new owners at Christmas!  So I had to come up with an idea just for this blog and something that will be just for me!  I have always had a fascination with Christmas candy.  I think it's because it reminds me of my beloved Grandmother.  I remember bowls and bowls of candy all over her house at Christmas, especially ribbon candy!  I went through my stash of ribbons and looked for a bunch of striped short pieces of ribbon that I could use to make my own ribbon candy ornaments. 

Using some fishing line and pearl beads I got at my local dollar store I stung together these super cute ornaments for my Christmas tree! I love them! I am actually thinking that I might make a garland or swags for my tree when I have more time and can get some pretty ribbon on sale in large enough quantities to go around my tree!

And now you have your chance to win! I am doing a giveaway to one of you. Simply comment on this post and become a follower. I will do a random draw on Monday morning for all the materials you need to make one of these adorable ornaments and maybe I'll even throw in one I made; make sure to check back then to see if you won.

Now for the next stop on your blog hop, please head on over to very funny and super talented Shanon!

Supplies: Embellishments: Ribbons, Pearls, and Fishing Line.

Field of Dreams

This post is kind of a continuation of yesterdays post with more photos from our anniversary photo shoot. All of these photos were taken in one of my works canola fields. I love the bright yellow of all the canola flowers and how it pops against the bright blue sky!

I had to enlist the help of my dear scrappy friend to help me narrow down which of the many photos I should use on my layout. Thanks Haley!

I really liked the demask patterned paper but I found a little bit much for this layout but I still wanted to use it.  I didn't like it just as a strip because not matter where you cut it in the pattern you were cutting away parts of the design.  I'm not one for fussy cutting but I found it came in useful in helping me to incorporate it on this layout simply without over powering it.

Supplies: Patterned Paper: Authentique - Blissful Collection; Cardstock: Bazzills; Alphabet Stickers: American Crafts Thickers and Dooblebug Alphas; Embellishments: Twine, 7 Gypsies - 97% Complete Stickers, Buttons, Authentique - Blissful Die Cut Words, and Ribbon; Inks:Colorbox Chalk Ink; Sketch: ; Tools: .

You Make Life Blissful

For our anniversary this year I told my hubby that I wanted us to have our pictures taken seeing as we hadn't had any nice ones taken since our wedding 11 years ago. He granted my request being the sweety that he is and I got some new photos to frame and scrapbook. These were actually taken at my work which from certain angles made for a beautiful backdrop!

I thought this paper line worked beautifully with the photos. 

Supplies: Patterned Paper:Authentique - Blissful Collection ; Embellishments: Ribbon, Buttons and Authentique Die Cut Words; Inks: Colorbox Chalk Ink; Sketch: Sketches for Scrapbooking.

Happy Happy B-Day

One of the reasons I make cards is cause they are always there for me when I am caught in a bind where I forgot about a birthday and need a card in 10 minutes!  And true to form I needed a card quick the other day.  I went through my scrap bin and picked out some matching bits and pieces.  It went together quickly and I topped it off with some sequins and I was done!  Cute, quick and easy ... that is why I make cards!

Supplies: Patterned Paper: Close To My Heart Paper Scraps; Cardstock: Bazzills; Alphabet Stickers: Basic Grey Alpha Stickers and American Crafts Thickers; Embellishments: Sequins; Tools: EK Success Notebook Edge Punch.

WFL Golf Day

How do you feel about using acronyms on layouts?  The company I work for has a really long name Western Feedlots Ltd but everyone uses WFL as an abbreviation.  Of course this is only used among those who work there and too me it's instantly recognizable so I used it on this layout.  After I finished the layout though, I started to wonder if using the abbreviation was wise on a layout.  Anyone perusing my scrapbook or this blog for that matter would have not idea what WFL stood for.  So, I'm curious, what would you do?

Supplies: Patterned Paper: American Crafts - Night Fall Collection and Basic Grey - Wisteria Collection; Cardstock: Bazzills; Alphabet Stickers: American Crafts Thickers; Embellishments: Basic Grey - Indian Summer Woolies and Pink Paislee - Fetching Petals ; Inks: Colorbox Chalk Ink; Sketch: ; Tools: Creative Memories Corner Rounder and Dymo Label Maker.

Last Minute Weekend

I love ribbon, just ask anyone who has been in my scrapbook room! I have been collecting it for years and probably got at least a years worth without buying another inch and still not run out! I'll admit, I might be a little obsessed! My tastes over the years have changed slightly though. I used to buy a lot of printed patterned ribbon (strips, dots, swirls, etc) but lately I have been gravitating towards what I call structured ribbon. I'm sure that's not the technical term but that is what I call it, okay? So let me explain. I like ribbons that have a structured pattern (pleats, stitching, shape, natural fibers, etc) instead of a printed pattern. I just find them more flexible because typically you are not fighting with both pattern and colors, if you get what I mean.

I also like ribbons that have been around the block a few times and are still trendy, like the Ric-Rac ribbon I used on this layout. Isn' that large Ric-Rac ribbon just awesome! Ric-Rac has become my new obsession and now that my local fabric store carries it by the yard ... I might be stocking up on some!

Supplies: Patterned Paper: Cosmo Cricket - Wanted Collection, ; Cardstock: ; Alphabet Stickers: Basic Grey - Alpha Stickers and Jolee's Woodgrain Letters; Embellishments: Ric-Rac, Reminisce Camp Sayings Stickers, and Cosmo Cricket - Mr Campy Journaling Spot; Inks: Colorbox Chalk Ink; Sketch: Sketches for Scrapbooking Volume 1;.

Vanessa's Bachelorette Party

This past July I made the trek up to Edmonton to go to my cousin's bachelorette party. It was a great time with lots of laughs and I wanted this layout to be just as fun as I remembered the night.

Does this layout look vaguely familiar? It's actually using the same sketch as this layout that I did when I was designing for Sketch Support. That's why I love sketches, change one or two things and it looks like a different layout!

This cute little banner came with the paper collection and I really wanted to use it but the banner spelt out happy which didn't work for me.  So I hit my stash looking for something to cover the letters.  I found these metal letters that I think we done by Making Memories years ago and you know what?  They worked perfectly and now my banner says Party!

Ok, so I went a little nuts with side panel, I'll admit!  There's a lot to see!  I just kept finding things, as I digging for the above mentioned letters, and it all went great with idea in my head.  I absolutely love how it turned out!

Supplies: Patterned Paper: Basic Grey - Life of the Party and Cosmo Cricket - Garden Variety; Cardstock: Bazzills; Alphabet Stickers: American Crafts Thickers, October Afternoon Mini Market, and Making Memories Metals Alphas; Embellishments: Jillibean Journalling Spot, My Mind's Eye So Sophie Die Cut, Bakers Twine; Inks and Basic Grey - Life of the Party Clips: Colorbox; Sketch: Sketches for Scrapbooking Volume 8; Tools: Creative Memories Corner Rounder.

Another Dam Dive

When I saw this collection from Bo Bunny, I fell in love. I loved all the colors and patterns and because most of them were designed to look like it was underwater I knew they would be perfect for the photos I took of my hubby and brother scuba diving this summer!

One of the patterned papers came with this cute little turtle on it.  I didn't want to cover him up but the way my layout worked the photo on the left was going to cover half of him!  Yes, I didn't plan properly when cutting my papers, otherwise I would not of had this problem!  Anyways, I sitting there trying to figure out how to rescue him from being covered up when it dawned on me ... if I cut him out a little bit, I could slide the corner of my photo underneath him.  Tada!  Problem solved and turtle rescued!  I them added a little bit of glossy accents to his shell to give him some dimension.

Supplies: Patterned Paper: Bo Bunny - Barefoot and Bliss Collection; Cardstock: Bazzills; Alphabet Stickers: American Crafts Thickers; Embellishments: ; Sketch: Sketches for Scrapbooking - Volume 7; Tools: Dymo Label Maker and Creative Memories Corner Rounder.

Mad Skills

Those marketing people sure know what they are doing. Those little bins by the tills are what I am referring to. Pure genius! Let's put a lot of little cheap items right by the till so that while people are waiting to pay for the items they have already picked out, they can continue to shop! Normally I avoid these little bins like the plague but I was at Michael's a while back and the line was quite long. Standing there staring into these bins while I wait my turn, my resolve disappeared. That's when I saw this little bag of multi-colored sequins. I decided I needed them, plus it was only $1! I wasn't sure how I would use them but knew I would find away. I laughed at myself on the way home ... how silly am I. They sat on my desk for a couple of weeks until I came to this layout and decided to give them a try. They look like bubbles after all! Now I am hooked! I have plans for them for my Christmas cards and layouts ... think ornaments on a Christmas tree or snow flakes falling from the sky!

And here's a close up shot of those pretty little sequins!  They didn't show up to well in the full layout shot but they sure look great in this close up!

Supplies: Patterned Paper: Bo Bunny - Barefoot and Bliss Collection; Cardstock: Bazzills; Alphabet Stickers: American Crafts Thickers; Embellishments: October Afternoon - Fly A Kite Word Stickers and Sequins; Inks: Colorbox Chalk Ink; Sketch: Sketches for Scrapbooking - Volume 8.

Blog Hop Winner!

Thank you everyone for all your kind words about my blog hop project! I really appreciate them and enjoyed reading each of them. As promised I have drawn a random number using the Random.Org webiste and the winner is lucky number 10!

Congratulations All About UNC!  Please send you mailing info to jenniferdewolfe (at) gmail (dot) com and I will send your package out to you!

I would like to take this opportunity to thank Amanda again for hosting another fantastic blog hop!  I always enjoy participating and seeing what everyone else does.

One Fall Day + Blog Hop

Hello and Welcome to the Leafing Memories Behind blog hop! I am so happy to have you stop by my humble little blog! If you did not arrive to my blog from the uber talented Ashley's blog please return to Amanda's blog to follow the hop in order so that you don't miss any wonderful inspiration from the amazing ladies participating with me!

The idea for the blog hop this time around is pretty simple this time. The requirement for this project is that it must have leaves (or a leaf) in it in some way shape or form. I went with my go to project, a layout:

I placed my title on the layout but I found it was just floating there, completely disconnected.  So I took to my needle and thread and created a swirl effect surrounding my title all the way down to the floating leaf.  I then added a little more stitching to the right as well.

For the leaves on my layout I created them myself using felt with stitched veins.  It worked out great because I could make them any size I needed, in any color I wanted!

And now you have your chance to win!  I am doing a giveaway to one of you.  Simply comment on this post and become a follower.  I will do a random draw on Monday morning; make sure to check back then to see if you won.

Don't forget about Amanda's giveaway!  Take the inspiration we've provided you and create your own project that is leaf inspired.  Post it to your blog, gallery or Flickr and share the link here in the Mr Linky widget on Amanda's Blog.  You have until the end of day Sunday, Oct 23 to post!  

Now for the next stop on your blog hop, please head on over to very funny and super talented Kathy!

Supplies: Patterned Paper: My Mind's Eye - So Sophie Collection; Cardstock: Bazzills; Alphabet Stickers: American Crafts Thickers and Doodlebug; Embellishments: Felt and Embroidery Floss; Inks: Colorbox Chalk Ink; Sketch: Sketches for Scrapbooking Volume 3; Tools: Creative Memories Corner Rounder.

He's An Outlaw Now

I remember when Stickles were the hottest thing and I think I had bought them in every color!  I used to use them on almost every layout but for the last couple of years they have sat on my shelf collecting dust.  I couldn't bring myself to get rid of them because I might use them some day.  Do you find you do that with supplies?  Well for this layout I decided to break them out again.  I wanted the yellow letters to look like they were wet so I applied some Distress Rock Candy to each of them.  And like most things, I couldn't stop there so I added a bit to the edge of the journalling spot.  It just gave things a little bit more umph.

Supplies: Patterned Paper: Fancy Pants - Beach Bum Collection; Cardstock: Bazzills; Alphabet Stickers: American Crafts Thickers and Doodlebug; Embellishments: Fancy Pants - Beach Bum Journal Embellishments and Distress Rock Candy Stickles; Inks: Colorbox Chalk Ink; Sketch: Sketches for Scrapbooking - Volume 7; Tools: Creative Memories Corner Rounder .

Fright Night

I had a really tough time with these photos! They were all really dark and most of them were blurry. But it was a fun night and I still wanted to scrap them. Most Halloween collections have a lot of black in them which really didn't help the photos. Then I remembered this collection by Cosmo Cricket that my friend had given to me after she had used what she wanted ... I love leftovers! It was perfect because it wasn't dominantly black! I think the strong oranges and greens helped to contrast the crummy photos so that I could scrap them and not look at the layout and be disappointed.

Supplies: Patterned Paper: Cosmo Cricket - Haunted Collection; Cardstock: Bazzills; Alphabet Stickers: American Crafts Thickers; Embellishments: Cosmo Cricket - Haunted Blackboard and Cosmo Cricket - Haunted Stickers; Inks: ; Sketch: Sketches for Scrapbooking - Volume 8; Tools: Dymo Label Maker.

Happy Thankgiving!

I just wanted to send a Happy Thanksgiving to all my fellow Canadians today who are celebrating with family and friends! May you all take a moment to be thankful for the things in your life that make you smile and eat lots of turkey and pumpkin pie!

Springtime

Our first spring with no landscaping work to be done ... Yippee!  Instead we could sit back and watch everything grow.  This year it was a long winter followed by a late spring so to say we were excited to see the tulips, in mid-June, is an understatement!

This Springtime collection from Echo Park was perfect for my spring time photos and I was dying to use it!  There were so many pretty papers to choose from that I had a hard time deciding!  I love the sticker sheet too and had to use the sun and cloud on this layout!  I thought the rain drops needed a little umph so I added some Glossy Accents to them and then sprinkled them with glitter.  Now they look like they are glistening!  Warning -  If you use glitter don't make the same mistake I made and sneeze over top of an open bottle.  Trust me ... huge mess!

Supplies: Patterned Paper: Echo Park - Springtime Collection; Cardstock: Bazzills; Alphabet Stickers: Echo Park - Springtime Sticker Sheet Alpas; Embellishments: Echo Park - Springtime Sticker Sheet, Glitter, Ribbon, Jewels, Making Memories - Chipboard Flowers; Sketch: Sketches for Scrapbooking - Volume 2; Tools: EK Success Dotted Scallop Edger Punch.

It's Finally Official

My hubby has spent the last three years working on his Master's Degree in Computer Information Systems. It has been a long road but this spring he finally completed all of his graduation requirements! I am so very proud of him and all the hard work he had to put into completing this daunting task! I am even more proud at how well he did, warning ... here comes a bragging moment, achieving a 98% overall grade! Because a lot of his course work was done by correspondence he received a lot of communications from the University via mail, including his Degree. This layout is about the day he received his piece of paper in the mail

Banners are really hot right now scrapbooking. I always have a hard time incorporating them. For some reason I always associate them with birthdays but this collection came with a little sticker banner and I thought I would give it a shot. I found it just a little plain on it's own so I pop dotted it and then put the year on each pendant just to give it a little more umph!

Supplies: Patterned Paper: Pink Paislee - Old School Collection; Alphabet Stickers: American Crafts Thickers and Basic Grey Alpha Stickers; Embellishments: Pink Paislee - Old School Die Cut Stickers, Buttons, and Twine; Sketch: Sketches for Scrapbooking Volume 8; Tools: Dymo Label Maker.

My First New Car

This is one of the layouts I started at my crop last weekend but didn't finish.  Well this weekend I finished it after pulling a lot of it apart.  One of my main problems were my photos were getting lost on the layout so I pulled them off an then inked all the edges with black ink.  This really seemed to make them pop of the page a bit better.  The funny thing is, once I started I couldn't stop!  All my papers needed black edging and then so did my journalling spot ... even my title got traced around with a black marker!

Supplies: Patterned Paper: My Mind's Eye - Abbey Road Collection; Cardstock: Bazzills; Alphabet Stickers: American Crafts Thinkcers and Basic Grey Alpha Stickers; Embellishments: Jillibean Journalling Spots, Smash Box Washi Tape, Tim Holtz Grungeboard - Iconic, My Mind's Eye - Abbey Road Epoxy Brads; Inks: Adirondack Ink; Sketch: Sketches for Scrapbooking Volume 1; Tools: Sanding Block.

Day Hike

Last camping layout for a little bit ... I promise!

I really liked this map background paper and really didn't want to cover a bunch of it up.  So I found a sketch with lots of white space and then modified it so that the journalling and title floated in the lake instead of on large journalling spot that was called for by the sketch.  I really like how it turned out; still allowing the full background to show!

Supplies: Patterned Paper: October Afternoon - Campfire Collection; Cardstock: Bazzills; Alphabet Stickers: American Crafts; Embellishments: October Afternoon - Cardstock and Chipboard Stickers and Authentique - Splendid Diction Stickers ; Sketch: Sketches for Scrapbooking; Tools: EK Success - Diamond Lace Edger Punch .

Fairmont Hoo Doos

Another camping layout?! I know you must all be getting tired of camping layouts but to be honest I have so many photos. We had 10 camping weekends this summer which I think is a new record for us! I'm not scrapping them all but several of them I am because each trip was with someone different or we did something we hadn't done before. So please bear with me as there are still a couple more camping layouts to come!

I loved the simple grid of photos on this sketch. It allowed me to get a bunch of photos on it quickly while still look stylish. I cheated a bit too.  The sketch called for three strips of paper along the top of the layout but I got creating and used the collections border strip paper.  I picked 3 borders I liked that were all together and then simple cut them out while leaving them still all attached to each other.  Sure made the top strip super easy!  The panel on the right hand side is my nifty thrifty tip I told you about awhile ago where I used the product packaging. The background is actually the backing to the sticker pack that went with collection. I love it when manufacturers do this! It's like recycling! Plus is co-ordinates perfectly!

Supplies: Patterned Paper: Imaginisce - Happy Camper Collection; Alphabet Stickers: Doodlebug Alphs and October Afternoon - Mini Market; Embellishments: Cosmo Cricket - My Campy Stickers, Imaginisce - Happy Camper Chipboard; Sketch: Sketches for Scrapbooking; Tools: EK Success Open Scallop Edger Punch.

Potluck & Fire

Wow! Has a week really gone by since my last post?! Where does the time go!? I have been pretty busy lately with both work and trying to get the house ready for a long winter. I know some people are cringing but winter can come early here so I like to be prepared. If it doesn't come - great, but at least I'm ready. Last year we had unexpected snow on the ground in early October and all my hoses froze and my annuals didn't get pulled until this spring. What a pain! So I vowed to not let it happen again!

On top of doing some chores this weekend I did manage to get some scrappy time in. I can still say that my mojo is not back full force but I didn't struggle as much and I actually managed to get several layouts done! So watch out this week! There will be more than one post!

I used a sketch from Sketches for Scrapbooking to spark my creativity and it really helped me to kick things into gear.  I must admit that I had never thought of taking a sheet of patterned paper and cut it into identical blocks to space as my background.  I really like how it turned out!  I also like the title, photo, and journalling strip on the right side.  I find my eye is automatically drawn there.

Supplies: Patterned Paper: October Afternoon Campfire Collection; Cardstock: Bazzills; Alphabet Stickers: October Afternoon Mini Market and Basic Grey Alpha Stickers; Embellishments: October Afternoon Campfire Chipboard and Glass Beads; Inks: Colorbox; Sketch: Sketches for Scrapbooking Volume 2; Tools: Creative Memories Reverse Corner Rounder.

1 Week Later

Its been a couple of long weeks for me at work lately which means that I haven't had many opportunities to scrap. I have missed it! Last night a couple of us girls got together for a crop and it was long over due. I didn't get much done. In fact, I don't think I got anything done! I got two double page layouts half way done but I just wasn't feeling the mojo to finish them. I figure it was mainly because it had been a while since I called on the mojo and apparently I was getting a busy signal!

I wanted a big number 1 on the layout but I did not have one.  So I cut my own out of cardstock and then used my Cuttlebug and the Swiss Dots Embossing folder to add some dimension to it.  I then took some ink and lightly brushed the raised parts and edges to make it it really pop.

Supplies: Patterned Paper: My Mind's Eye - Alphabet Soup Collection; Cardstock: Bazzills; Alphabet Stickers: American Crafts Thickers; Embellishments: Basic Grey Dollie Ribbon, American Crafts Just Write Journalling Card, Jillibean Journalling Spot, Pink Paislee House of Three Soiree Stickers; Inks: Colorbox; Tools: Cuttlebug and Swiss Dots Embossing Folder.

Family

I have an addiction for crochet flowers.  I just wish I could make them!  Trust me I have tried, but it is one thing I can't seem to get the hang of!  The local scrapbook store has a little old lady who makes these beauties for something to keep her busy and the store sells them for her.  They aren't expensive really and I don't mind helping to support a little old lady, I just wish I could figure out how to make them.  It's very frustrating for me when I can't figure something out!

Supplies: Patterned Paper: Imaginisce - Happy Camper Collection; Cardstock: Bazzills; Embellishments: Imaginisce - Happy Camper Chipboard, Jillibean Soup Journalling Spot, Flowers, Basic Grey - Fort Lauderdale Brads and Crochet Flowers; Sketch: Sketches for Scrapbooking Volume 3; Tools: Creative Memories Corner Rounder.

Hardest Day of Our Lives

As scrapbookers, we always tend to scrapbook family events, holidays, and vacations. Very rarely do we scrapbook the hard moments of life. At least that is how I operate. This summer my husband and I had one of the most difficult days of lives when our dog ended up being rushed in for emergency surgery. When we brought him home, it broke my heart to look at him in the condition he was. I seriously sat there and said I was not going to take a picture. This is not something I want to remember, let alone scrapbook. But then I remembered the vet telling me to watch to make sure the swelling goes down and the only way I could think to compare would be to take a picture. So I took the picture but with no intentions of scrapbooking it! When I went to pick up my last batch of photos from printing, there is was, my swollen faced puppy preserved in a photo. I had printed it by accident. I figured this must be a sign and then a few day later I saw a post on a blog I follow about scrapbooking the good and the bad. So I decided to scrapbook it. It was hard but it was also therapeutic, especially while writing the journalling. I can honestly say that I am happy that I did it and can now say that my scrapbooks contain both the good and the bad!

Supplies: Patterned Paper: Bella Blvd - Tail Waggers Collection and Basic Grey Solids; Cardstock: Bazzills; Alphabet Stickers: American Crafts Thickers; Embellishments: Bella Blvd - Man of the House Border Strips, My Mind's Eye - Lime Twist Accessory Sheet, Pearls; Inks: Colorbox; Tools: Computer for Journalling.

Going Home

Every time we travel somewhere, I have an obsessive need to take photos while we are driving. I'm not sure why, I just do, and then I print them always wonder what to do with them. The pictures always seem so random to me. I decided to make this layout just about the drive home and showcase some of my photos in their random glory.   I didn't journal as I really didn't have much to say other than we were heading home.  I figure it's ok because it is the last layout in a series of layouts that I did about a summer camping trip.

I have become a huge fan of die cut pieces that manufacturers have started coming out with recently.  They make embellishing a layout super easy and quick!  One of my favorites are Basic Grey's Pieces.  A cute little package filled to the adhesive edge with fun little paper embellies!  For this layout I used the Pieces from the Hopscotch Collection, layered a couple and then pop dotted one for dimension and then added my own little touch with adhesive pearls.  Turned out pretty good if I do say so myself!

Supplies: Patterned Paper: My Mind's Eye - Good Day Sunshine Collection; Alphabet Stickers: Thickers; Embellishments: Basic Grey - Hopscotch Pieces, Basic Grey Pearls, My Mind's Eye - Stella Rose Layer Stickers, and My Mind's Eye - Good Day Sunshine Border Die Cut; Inks: Colorbox; Tools: Kitchen Plate to trace the large circle.

Sketch Support Gallery Week

This week it is Gallery Week over at Sketch Support.  Have you checked out their Sketch Support Flickr gallery yet? Well if you haven't, you are missing out!  There are so many great examples of how different scrapbookers interpret the Sket Support Sketches.  It's a great place to go to get some inspiration and I bet you even think at some point "now why didn't I think about that"!

Well today on the Sketch Support, one of my gallery layouts was chosen as a favorite by Design Team memeber Jennifer Larson and her comments about my layout are so sweet!  Why don't you head on over there to check it out!

Have a great long weekend everyone!

Camp Visitor

We love to camp because we feel like it's our chance to get back to nature. It's not very often that we come face to face with nature! This little guy wondered right into our site and didn't care if we were there or not. Perfect for a picture snapper like me!

I chose this paper line by October Afternoon just because of the chipboard deer that came with the collection and the background paper. Do you ever do that?

Supplies: Patterned Paper: October Afternoon - Campfire Collection, Basic Grey - Life of the Party Collection; Alphabet Stickers: American Crefts Thickers; Embellishments: October Afternoon - Campfire Chipboard Elements and My Mind's Eye - Stella Rose Label Stickers; Inks: Colorbox Inks; Sketch: ; Tools: .

The Great Outdoors

I'm loving the new trend of layering die cuts and chipboard elements.  I find it gives so much dimension to a layout and it is really easy to do.  Plus it is so easy to do.  The one tip I have is when possible, pop dot some of the die cuts if you are using a few couple (like I did with the green sleeping bag).  I find it gives them a little more depth.  I also added glossy accents to the glass shade of the lantern to give it a shiny look like glass.

Supplies: Patterned Paper:October Afternoon - Campfire Collection ; Cardstock: Bazzills;  Embellishments: October Afternoon - Campfire Chipboard and Die Cut Elements;  Tools: Dymo Label Maker.