Bash your Stash | Blog Hop!

25 Monday Feb 2013

Tags

Bash your Stash, Basic Grey, Blog Hop, Scenic Route, Scrapbook Layout, Strawberry Shortcake

Since Cathie, Krista, and I had so much fun a couple of weeks ago with the impromptu Bash Your Stash blog hop, other people wanted in on the fun too so today you’re getting a bunch of us!

For this week, I pulled out some super old, 2008 or earlier old, Basic Grey (Bittersweet) and Scenic Route (Loveland) paper. Both are Valentine’s themed but I used them to scrap one of Miss M’s 4th birthday pics.

Once again I did a bunch of layers – really starting to get the hang of it now and loving it!

I stuck on some gold chevron washi tape:

and some Uniball Signo Gold gel pen:

Added some pink twine because Krista has me hooked on that technique:

finished it off with some hidden journaling (because, as usual, I forgot the journaling until the LO was done!):

and called it done!

I love how it turned out with the browns and pinks, perfect for my brown-eyed girl and her Strawberry Shortcake birthday cake!

The Paperie is next on the hop so head over there and see what they have!

If you want to start at the beginning and see all the “old made new again”, here’s the full list of participants:

Cathie Reed

Deanne Clarke-Saunders

Sara Case Strickland <– that’s me!

The Paperie

Enjoy the hop and if you “bash your stash” leave me a link or comment so I can check it out!

Here we go again!

20 Wednesday Feb 2013

Posted by Sara in Classes, ScrapBook, Yearlong Album

≈ 17 Comments

Tags

Classes, The Paperie, Yearlong Album, YLA2013

Another year of the Yearlong Album class is about to start and I’m super pumped about this one! It’s going to be less monthly themed than in the past, though it will still work perfectly for documenting each month, and it’s going to be a fun mixed media journey!

For a teaser, I thought I’d show the cover page we’ll be doing for the album. I won’t get into all the details, I’ll keep those for class right now, but I love how it turned out!

Most of the pages we make this year will be adhered to or made directly on the page protector itself, giving us the page protector as a large pocket to house memorabilia.

As you can see, the cover page is on canvas, not paper!

We’ll be using stencils along with fun and different media…

There will be some great shimmer and layering…

And awesome texture!

The only thing not included in the class are all the wood veneer pieces since I really want people to personalize this LO. So, if you’re signed up, start hunting for bits and bobs that you want to add to make the cover page really you!

I’ve also just learned that there may be a kit or two left! We upped the numbers this year to make sure everyone who wanted to could take part and there’s still time to sign up! I’d love to see you there – it’s going to be an amazing, messy, creative, and wickedly fun year! Trust me, you don’t want to miss out on this one!

We’ll also be doing our first two page spread for the year and it’s a very cool one – follow me on twitter or instagram or search #YLA2013 to see the peeks I post while creating.

Mini tutorial for the kiddies! | photo frame

12 Tuesday Feb 2013

Posted by Sara in Kid's Crafts, ScrapBook, Tuesday Techniques, Tuesday Tutorials, Tutorials

≈ 7 Comments

Tags

birthday gift, Canvas, kid's crafts, Tuesday Tutorials

I have a home daycare. That means kiddies running around and kiddies mean parents with birthdays. And we always try to do something about birthdays around here!

Last week, one of the moms had a birthday and so her daughter (she’s two) and I sat down to make a gift. And I think it’s one of my faves so far!

Years ago I bought some great frames, I think they’re by EK Success, and of course, I forgot all about them. Such is the life of a crafter, hey? Anyway, I rediscovered them a couple of weeks ago and thought they would be perfect for this type of project. They’re actually primed canvas board frames, ready to alter, and I bought two different sizes – one has a 3.5×5 opening and the other, the one we used, has a 4×6 opening.

I sat Miss I down with some crayons and said, “Have at it!.” And she coloured up a storm, loving every minute of it! While she was doing that, I looked for a picture of her and couldn’t find quite what I wanted.

So we took a break and had a little photo shoot to get the pic I was wanting for the frame. Then she went back to colouring and I sat down to edit her picture and although I tried not to, I just had to add an Ali Edwards overlay from Designer Digitals. Love those overlays just a bit too much!

Once the frame was coloured, I printed and added the photo and we were done! It was super easy, meaningful for the mom, and a great project for a two-year-old.

Isn’t that the sweetest face ever? Love her.

If you want to re-create this and can’t find frames, I’d suggest a primed canvas. All you would have to do is mount the picture to the top after the colouring or painting is done and you have a fabulous gift for aunts, uncles, grandparents – something that would mean so much for those hard to buy people!

Let me know what you do for gifts from kids – I need more ideas!

And remember – today is 12onTwelve and Pancake Day – yummy!

Bash Your Stash aka Use-it-or-Lose-it Blog Hop

11 Monday Feb 2013

Posted by Sara in ScrapBook

≈ 9 Comments

Tags

Bash your Stash, October Afternoon, Scenic Route, Scrapbook Layout

A couple of days ago, Krista decided to join Cathie on her regular Monday post about using up her stash. Since I was working on a LO using super old product I asked if I could crash the party too and Cathie’s first Bash Your Stash blog hop was born!

I had this hilarious picture of Mr.G from Halloween, with an equally hilarious story to go along with it and had to scrap it, even though holidays are my most hated scrapbooking events. Unfortunately, this hatred does not extend to paper and so I have quite the collection of Halloween paper that is wasting away in the Scrap Cave. Time to put it to use!

As you can see, I’ve also been playing with layers. I love the look of them but it’s never been the way I scrapbook and so I struggle with it. But I think I’m starting to get the hang of it!

I really bashed the stash on this one – the papers are from Scenic Route, Carolee’s Creations for AdornIt, Scrapworks, and Making Memories. I also threw on some Scenic Route chipboard, word stickers, and rub-on arrows. I really want to use this stuff up!

There are some new things – a bit of washi tape, a flair badge, and those “so awesome I have them in every colour” October Afternoon letter stickers:

But overall, it’s old, old stuff. I mean, I know Scenic Route is long gone but I couldn’t even find paper for AdornIt or Scrapworks when I searched. Are they still around? Anyone?

If you want to check out some more amazing LO’s, make sure you go see what Cathie and Krista did with this challenge today. All of our styles are so different that it’s fun to see our work together!

Cathie – with Coffee in Hand

Krista – Confessions of a Twenty Something Artist

Are you a scrapbook hoarder (aren’t we all!)? I challenge you to Bash Your Stash and link up your projects in the comments – we’d all love to see how you make your old product new again!

For these things, I am Grateful…

06 Wednesday Feb 2013

Posted by Sara in Mini Album, ScrapBook, Simple Scrapper

≈ 6 Comments

Tags

Blessed, Grateful, Mini Album, One Little Word, Simple Scrapper

I have never taken part in Ali Edwards’ One Little Word and had no intentions of doing so this year.

But then the word Blessed (and to a slightly lesser extent, Grateful) began following me around. Seriously, they just popped up everywhere! So I finally gave in and decided to see where One Little Word would lead me this year.

The reason I mention this now is that Simple Scrapper played a role in those words cropping up. First, I did a giveaway for the Home Blessings Class at Big Picture Classes and that came through Simple Scrapper. Second, Jennifer asked me to work on a new Gratitude mini album that debuted in the shop today.

See? Blessed and Grateful were definitely meant to be mine for 2013. And that’s only two examples of how these words have infiltrated my life!

This mini album is going to be an ongoing project for me during 2013 and I’ll be sharing updates here and there as I add to it. It’s everything I’m grateful for and feel blessed to have from Signal Hill, to my kiddies, to teaching classes, and all the other things in between.

I’ve turned my book on its side since most of the pictures I take are landscape orientation. The problem is that many of the journaling cards are portrait so I’m having to be creative to make them work!

Check out the Flickr gallery to see more closeups of my pages, plus the albums some of the other DT members made. And then go get this kit – it’s a good one, and if you live outside the US, shipping is pretty reasonable, especially considering the price hike from USPS recently!

I love how easy and stressfree this album is – whenever I have a photo during the year of something I feel blessed to have in my life, I’ll simply tuck it into a pocket, add a precut journaling card and embellish if I want.

I’d love to see what some of you make with this kit – whether you use it for One Little Word or to make a Gratitude Album, it’s bound to be a mini that really means something to you and aren’t those the projects we love to look through the most?

In other crafty news, I’m binding my Card Organizer this evening and will be back tomorrow with pics of it and the 4 cards we’ll be making on Saturday. Last time I checked, there was one spot left so hurry and call the Paperie if you want it! If you can’t wait until tomorrow to see what we’re doing, I’ve posted a couple of pics on Instagram and Twitter.

Simple Scrapper Blog Hop & GIVEAWAY! | February 2013

05 Tuesday Feb 2013

Posted by Sara in Giveaway, ScrapBook, Simple Scrapper

≈ 12 Comments

Tags

Giveaway, October Afternoon, Simple Scrapper, stickles, Studio Calico, Wood Veneer

It’s time for another Simple Scrapper blog hop with the Design Team and we’re showcasing the new February templates and/or Story Starters – as usual, Jennifer has outdone herself!

I used one of the Story Starters for my first LO. I had this picture of M during the first snowfall this year and it was perfect for this one:

Inspired by a Simple Scrapper Premium Member Story Starter; Template – Simple Scrapper Premium Member Template (April 2011); Patterned Paper – American Crafts, Fancy Pants, Vintage Book Paper; Transparency – Fancy Pants; Vellum, Wood Veneer – Studio Calico; Tag – Elle’s Studio; Metal Word Bands – Ranger; Stamp – American Crafts; Glitter Glue – Ranger; Stain – Ranger; Ink – Staz-on; Adhesive – Ranger, Glue Arts; Sewing Machine – Singer

Instead of writing my own list of things for her to remember as she grows, I used the Tim Holtz Idea.ology Word Bands – the sentiments were perfect for this!

I rubbed a little bit of white paint over the words to make them stand out better and then handstitched them to the LO – they’re so heavy I wanted to make sure they would stay put!

I also used some October Afternoon chipboard to make custom purple glasses just like hers:

I then coated those and the wood veneer words with Glossy Accents to make them pop.

Finally, I really wanted the snow to shine, so out came the Stickles and I added small dots to the flakes falling around her, as well as the wood veneer snowflakes:

Love the extra sparkle it gives the photo!

For my template LO this month, I pulled out a couple of photos of Mr. G that made me laugh. He’s beginning to hate getting his picture taken and his face in these is priceless!

Template – Simple Scrapper Premium Member Template (February 2013, Letter #1); Patterned Paper – Crate Paper, Studio Calico; Card Stock – American Crafts; Fabric Stars, Wood Veneer – Studio Calico; Letter Stickers – American Crafts; Washi Tape – Freckled Fawn, American Crafts; Mist – Studio Calico; Punch – Jenni Bowlin for Fiskars; Stain, Ink – Ranger; Stamp – American Crafts; Adhesive – Glue Arts; Thread – Coats; Sewing Machine – Singer; Kits – Studio Calico (Handmade, Story Hour)

I used one of my all time favourite alpha sets, which I misted and then sewed to the page – they’re not going anywhere!

And I finished it all off with lots of stars – if Studio Calico ever discontinues those wood veneer stars I may cry!

If you want some more great inspiration, I recommend you check out the other Design Team Members, they did some really awesome LO’s this month!

Simple Scrapper (Jennifer Wilson)

Margrethe Aas Johnsen

Van Nguyen

Sara Case Strickland (this is me!)

And now, the giveaway! Use this link to enter a giveaway for a one-month trial subscription to Simple Scrapper. Entries will be pooled and one winner selected at 11:59pm CST on Wednesday, February 6. You may enter from multiple blogs so go check them all out!

The Premium Membership at Simple Scrapper provides skills and shortcuts to help you simplify and find more meaning in your memory keeping. Each month members receive a new collection of sketch templates and Story Starters, story-focused prompts for pages and projects.

Final Yearlong Class 2012 – Part 2 (and some awesome news!)

30 Wednesday Jan 2013

Posted by Sara in Classes, ScrapBook, Yearlong Album

≈ 6 Comments

Tags

2012 Yearlong Album, Classes, Kelly Purkey, Simple Stories, Studio Calico, The Paperie, Wood Veneer, Year.o.graphy

So, yesterday got away from me and I didn’t post the LO’s I promised – oops! And there was a big exciting announcement made by The Paperie which caused a Twitter frenzy among the local scrapping crowd. I’ll get to that bit later!

First, here’s how I added my own personal twist to the final bonus pages of the Yearlong 2012 album. (You can see the original LO’s here).

The things I use the most lately are wood veneer shapes and stitching and on these two LO’s, I loaded up!

For the first one, I added little birds (for my two chickies!), a bunch of stars (because they are the best wood veneer pieces ever), and a few other random pieces.

I loaded up on the stickles and the Metallic Gold Mister Huey so there’s lots of bling. I also stitched over the sticker letters so they would stay put – I hate letters that end up floating around your LO!

The second LO also has a ton of wood veneer, stickles, and stitching, but I matted it on a 12×12 background too. Normally I place all different sized LO’s in the same album but my wedding album is all 12×12 so I decided to stick with that.

All I did to make the original LO flow into a 12×12 is spray the background with coordinating mist and add stitching to the top left corner. This is my go-to quick and easy way to switch a letter size LO in a larger square – simple add a couple of elements like mist or embellishments that tie the two together and no one will ever know it’s a mashup!

I added the wood veneer doilies to tie in with the stamped doily border:

And of course, since it’s a wedding LO, I had to add the potty people and a heart!

Now, onto the exciting Paperie news….

Kelly Purkey is coming! And Krista and I get to share the teaching stage with her over the weekend! My class, naturally, is technique based so we’ll be making 4 cards with Ranger products and I’m going to try and fit in as many different products as I can – including the new Distress Paints!

If you’re in NL or are looking for a super fun weekend full of classes, cropping, and good times, sign up now and join us! Plus, it’s over St. Patrick’s Day weekend and since we do boast about George Street having the most bars and pubs per square foot in North America, you can bet there will be a party happening!

I do have to curb my excitement about Kelly a little and design and teach a few other classes before then – lots of fun and awesome things are coming your way!

I’ve been AWOL… (and the final Yearlong Album 2012 Class)

28 Monday Jan 2013

Posted by Sara in Classes, ScrapBook, Yearlong Album

≈ 7 Comments

Tags

kids, Salmon Cove, Scrapbook Layout, Yearlong 2012, Yearlong Album

Yes, I vanished sometime last week, totally without notice.

Sorry. 🙂

Let’s just say that a week of prep work and then two very full days of teaching, followed up by a couple of “undone but deadlines looming” projects led to me taking an unscheduled blog break.

But I have the assignments finished, photos taken, edited, and uploaded. And I have instructions written and about to be sent, along with photos, for the final January class and, more importantly, the final Yearlong 2012 class.

For the first time ever I put pictures on the pages for the Yearlong Album. My goal with this class has always been to give a base that each student’s monthly pictures could work with so I’ve never put my own photos on. This past year has been a little different since I’ve made several Bonus Pages that aren’t part of the core album. So, for the final two bonus pages I designed, I added pictures!

The first one is an oldie from my wedding day. Love the series this shot came from since it’s on the newly built deck of the family cabin. This cabin has been in my dad’s family for a very long time and although other family members have gotten married in Salmon Cove, I was the first to get married on the Sands (the beach), and, as far as I know, the first to have the cabin factor into the wedding at all. So my dad built a new deck and freshened the place up with a new coat of paint and we had a bunch of pictures there. I like these of only me at a cabin I loved coming to as a kid.

The next one features M & G having a fun time and insisting I take a pic while they hug – sometimes, they really are cute! 🙂

My idea is to take these base LO’s and add my own extras to them – planning to have them done tomorrow so stop back for the reveal!

Simple Scrapper Blog Hop & GIVEAWAY! | January 2013

08 Tuesday Jan 2013

Posted by Sara in ScrapBook, Simple Scrapper

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

Blog Hop, Giveaway, Simple Scrapper

It’s time for the Simple Scrapper Blog Hop and I can finally show you the two LO’s I did with the Premium Members templates and Story Starters!

I actually scrapped some Christmas photos, never one of my favourite things to do but the template made it quick, easy, and painless! 🙂

Santa, I want…
Supplies | Template – Simple Scrapper Premium Membership; Cardstock – Stampin’ Up!; Patterned Paper – Bo Bunny, Crate Paper, , My Mind’s Eye, Pebbles, Studio Calico; Wood Veneer, Badges, Alpha Stickers, Mist – Studio Calico; Button – Crate Paper; Glitter Glue, Ink – Ranger; Pen – Sakura; Adhesive – Glue Arts, Glue Dots, Ranger; Kit – Brooklyn Flea by Studio Calico

Of course, having some awesome wintery wood veneer and glitter helped make doing the Christmas pictures enjoyable as well!

And really loved discovering that the tiny star was a perfect fit for the tree top!

I used one of the new Story Starters for January and an older Premium Sketch to get another LO completed for my Book of Me:

My Favourite
Supplies | Inspired by a Story Starter from the Simple Scrapper Premium Membership; Template – Simple Scrapper Premium Membership; Cardstock – Bazzill; Patterned Paper – My Mind’s Eye, Bo Bunny, Studio Calico; Stencil – The Crafter’s Workshop; Wood Veneer – Studio Calico; Badges – Evalicious; Mist – October Afternoon; Ink – Ranger; Pen – Pilot; Adhesive – Glue Arts, Glue Dots, Ranger; Kit – Handmade by Studio Calico

Some awesome Evalicious badges on this one, great wood veneer Word Bubbles, and I only adhered the papers in the centre so there would be lots of dimension and layers:

Some handwritten journaling, a necessary component of a personal page, written with the erasable Pilot Frixon pen so I didn’t have to worry about mistakes!

Do you want some more inspiration? Visit the other Simple Scrapper Team members to see what they’ve done with this month’s Premium Collection of sketches, templates, and Story Starters:

Margrethe Aas Johnsen

You are here >>> Sara Case Strickland <<< You are here

The Premium Membership at Simple Scrapper provides skills and shortcuts to help you simplify and find more meaning in your memory keeping.

And of course, I did promise a giveaway! If you’re interested in seeing more of what a Simple Scrapper Premium Membership can offer you, use this link to enter a giveaway for a one month trial membership!

Thanks for stopping by!

And the exciting news is….

10 Monday Dec 2012

Posted by Sara in ScrapBook, Simple Scrapper

≈ 24 Comments

Tags

Simple Scrapper, Sketch Template

…I’ve been asked to be a part of the Simple Scrapper Design Team!

See the badge over there? ————> 🙂

I’m super excited and can’t wait to get started with Jennifer and her team! As a little preview, here’s a new LO using one of the Premium Member Templates from December:

Super easy with a Paperie kit and Simple Scrapper sketch – I was done in no time! Seriously, I set up, scrapped, and cleaned away in less than an hour! Those of you who know me know that’s a miracle!

I stamped and popped up the “this” circle and stamped the words directly on the photo:

I hope you’ll come join the fun over at Simple Scrapper and see what the rest of the Design Team and I do every month – they’re an awesome group of talented ladies!

Oh, and it’s definitely worth your while to stop back here tomorrow. There just may be a very awesome giveaway – hint, hint!