Sweet Summer

How do you feel about August?  Do you find those last days of summer are the sweetest?  Or are you already eying your fall fashion favorites and counting the minutes until the weather turns?

I am savoring mine!  Although I do love my fall boots, I want to make all of these last summer moments count.  My kids start school at the impossibly early date of August 15th this year!  I cannot believe that it is already time to send them back to the teachers.  We need to enjoy every last sweet summer day.

Looking for something to savor in some of your summer moments?  Check out this month's mini magazine for fun and inspiration.  We have plenty of bright and bold layouts to help you enjoy your latest warm weather pictures.

Ready for this month's free kit?  Talented designer Heather, known as Digi Junkie, created a gorgeous kit for all of our readers.  Her bold and clean design style makes her a personal favorite of mine.  I absolutely cannot get enough of her kits.  Take a peek at her blog or in her shop at Zig Zag Scrap.  Thank you, Heather!

Downloads:  {Paper} {Elements}

Please respect this generous gift and do not upload/share this kit.  Friends are welcome to download it here for the next month.  Thank you!

We hope you will join in with so many talented scrappers and share your art with us this month.  Take a peek at our calls and send in your creations.

Today I'm sharing a little beach time with you.  Going to the beach is one of my favorite pass times.  When hubby and I was first married we lived in Florida. Since I wasn't working I headed to the beach every day with a book, diet coke, and a bag of Doritos.  It was a tough life back then ;)

But today my beach has no sand, saltwater, or seagulls.  But we do have a whale!

This card was super easy to make.  I basically used a few stickers from Echo Park, created a whale using my Cricut then embossed him with my Cuttlebug. The cute stamp image is from The Greeting Farm and I colored it with Copics.  You can find all types of card tutorials on YouTube and that is where I got the idea and instructions for the rounded stair step card.  I will admit, I did have a hard time creating the card, I'm challenged with folding, but I did get it on my fourth try.

Happy Crafting,

MelissaO

Anniversary Card

Today I want to share an anniversary card I made for our son and daughter in law as they celebrate their third wedding anniversary.  I used my Silhouette Cameo - papers used from the Loyal Collection by Authentique

I designed and printed the inside sentiment using Corel PSP X4 - cut the paper out using the Silhouette, then ran it through my printer.

Added a little bling and the ribbons and voila - card complete.

I hope this card has given you inspiration today ... thanks for stopping by!

Recycled altered box k-cup holder

Today I wanted to share a little project that I made using some packaging from some Prima flowers. They came in this cool plastic box, which I saved. I decided to use it to make a gift of K-cups for someone. 6 k-cups fit in here just about perfectly. (I added a little padding in between the bottom and top layers to fill it out better)

The paper, chipboard, button and pins are My Mind's eye. I used my Lacy Labels cricut cartridge to cut out the scalloped circle and the green detail. The stamps are Joy's Life, stamped with clearsnap stephanie barnard dye ink. I then colored in the image with some prismacolor markers.

An Olympic-Sized Celebration

Hello fellow ScrapStreeters! Yesterday kicked off the biggest sporting event across the world - the Olympics. Athletes from all over gather together to compete for the coveted gold medal. They push the limits of their physical and mental strength. They live for the day they can challenge their skills.

Today, you have a chance to challenge your skills. It's no Olympics, but it's a chance for you to put your crafting skills to the test. The winner may not receive a gold medal, but lots of prizes are guaranteed!

You are invited to join Pink by Design in celebrating its two-year anniversary, where the design team will be posting challenges throughout the day. If you want to push your crafting skills to the limits, you too can win a prize because anyone who completes them all will get a free stamp set mailed to them!! That's on TOP of the prizes we are giving away for playing along-- Are you up for a challenge?

The design team has been exercising their skills in preparation for the big event. Below are some sneak peeks. Can you guess the theme of the challenges? Head over to Pink by Design to find out how you can compete and win!

Things I love about this layout

Things I love about this layout...

-these patterned papers from Authentique's line, Genuine. I could wallpaper my house in these papers--and I don't usually love a whole collection, but with this one, every sheet makes me happy.
So, Authentique, if you are listening (or watching or looking or reading), how about starting a line of wallpaper?

-the yellow polka dot paper from Close to My Heart...
polka dots make me happy too

-the sandpaper I used to cut out the letters in BEACH.
Guess what they remind me of? SAND, sandpaper, get it?

-the pattern from this grid stamp (from Stampin' Up) that I stamped with clear embossing ink under the glitter

-the triangle banners at the top of the layout, with the twine underneath. The shape is from Fiskars new XXXXL "Banner Year" Lever Punch. I had previously questioned why I would need a punch that makes triangles when they really aren't that difficult to hand cut, but let me tell you...pop, pop, pop--3 triangles all the same size in 3 seconds, I was wrong...I LIKE it!  By the way, this layout design is from Smitha Katti's Quilt Block of the Month over on the Fiskars site.  I've been playing along each month, but recreating her quilt block with paper (because I am NOT a seamstress).  Go check them out here...she's going to have a beautiful quilt at the end of the year.

-the white lacy leaf from Kaisercraft tucked under the right side of the photo

-this cute photo of my son sitting in one of the many holes in the sand that he made that day

-the compass overlay from Me and My Big Ideas that is to the right of the photo

-the mini alphabet, Tiny Type, stickers from Cosmo Cricket--
I could collect these in every color!
-did I mention the papers from Authentique?
Oh, so worth mentioning again.

-the sparkly gold glitter, with that grid pattern, ooh la la!
In Florida, the sand really is sparkly!

OK, now things I don't like about this layout...

there is just one...

-the sparkly gold glitter

Oh, did you notice the sparkly gold glitter ended up on both lists?
(I bolded it for you just in case you didn't notice).

Actually, that sparkly gold glitter ended up on my barefeet, on the photo, on my fingers, on my clothes, in my hair, all over my scrap dungeon, on my camera, on the front porch (where I took the photo of the layout), do you get the idea?

I am reminded why I don't like glitter and why I don't use glitter. I tried that old high school art class trick of spraying hair spray over the glitter to help it set--didn't work. Maybe I need to use super duper Aqua Net, circa 1987?

Oh well, this layout is one of my favorites.
So much so, I could almost forgive and forget about the glitter.

Almost.

Hope you have a sparkly day!

~Kelly

Stamped and Embossed CAS card

You may or may not know that I tend to like the clean and simple (CAS) look. Sometimes I feel like it is a cop out, making a card with so much whitespace. This card is an example of how a CAS card can still have a lot of work and technique behind it.

I used a background stamp for the 'gingham' panel. The background stamp that I used was checks, so I tilted it a little to get the skewed look that I wanted. That meant that I had to tile the background stamp, because it wasn't large enough to cover the whole panel once it was tilted.

For the flowers, I stamped them with clearsnap clear embossing ink, then heat embossed them with white top boss embossing powder. I stamped and embossed 6 flowers, then I cut three of the petals out of 3 of the flowers and layered them with foam tape on top of the other flowers. I used my thumb nail on the back of the petals to create a curved shape. (do this carefully so that the embossed design doesn't come off)

I layered the white panel on red cardstock and then stamped the sentiment in black dye ink from stephanie barnard for clearsnap. Finally I adhered the flowers and added the jewels.

A simple clean card, with quite a few steps and techniques behind it.

It is Christmas in July!!

I decided to keep the Christmas spirit going  from yesterday's post.  I've never figured out how the "Christmas in July" thing got started.  Is it because it is the half way month before December?  Or was it created to remind you to start your shopping early?

I don't take nearly the amount of pictures I used to take when I scrapbooked everything the kids did so my selection of pictures aren't always the best. Last night I was actually going through photo files on my computer getting them organized when I ran across this picture of my daughter sporting her special holiday attire.  (OH gone are the days of beautiful dresses, ruffle socks, and matching hair bows...) When I saw we were on the subject of Christmas, I decided to create with her photo.

I headed over to the Digitals store and shopped through their great selection of digi goodies.  Trying to stay focused on Christmas wasn't easy with all the choices available, but I did settle on two sets.  Digital scrapbooking is new to me and I'm learning by trial and error.  I'm finding I like it because changing your layout around is super easy as is changing embellishments.  I think this layout turned out pretty basic but not bad for a newbie.  However, I think a lot more practicing is an order.  This layout was made using one of the set's I purchased called Christmas Cheer by Jen's Cropping Creations.

Happy Crafting,
MelissaO

Christmas In July

A surprise for you digital scrappers this month. Over at Digitals we have a Christmas in July sale with a storewide sale of 30% discount on most items over $2 and a Facebook and blog hop going on from the 24th to the 31st July. Now is the time to treat yourself!

 You can visit and like the participating designers FB pages and receive freebies and then do the blog hop to get coupons, so you can grab some real bargains!


You can find the list of FB and blog participants here or on the Digitals Blog.

You can shop my store here using coupon code PSK_xmas30 to get another $3 off your order of $10 or more! That makes a fantastic discount with the sale prices! Be sure to be logged in before shopping and have a great time gathering freebies and coupons.

Shadow Perfection

I love to browse online galleries of other digi-scrappers and a few months ago, I came across a gallery filled with the most awesome pages - each of them created with shadow perfection!!

Today I wanted to share some of the awesomeness created by Jenn, aka Catgoddess at Gingerscraps and Scrap Matters.  Every time I look at Jenn's pages, I am just blown away ... I think you will be too!

Created using Chill by Sugar Kissed Designs

 

 Created using Neutralized Kits by Craft-tastrophic

Created using the Chic collection by Jen C Designs

Created using First of May by Stolen Moments

 

Created using Spirit Wild Child Bundle by Kim B Designs

Thanks for stopping by today - I hope that you are inspired by Jenn's pages as much as I am!!  Have a great day digi-friends!!

Feeling lucky

A recent trip to Archiver's found me feeling lucky. Lucky to find this great page kit from Echo Park called Grand Slam. I knew it would be perfect for scrapping some baseball pictures from last season. Sometimes a kit is just what I need to give me some quick and easy layouts. Complete with double-sided baseball-themed papers and a big sheet of cardstock stickers, this kit is a home run!

You know with this heat, sometimes the creativity brainwaves are a little sluggish. With a twist on a sketch, some stamps from Close to My Heart, and the "Ticket Please" Fiskars border punch, this two-page layout came together with minimal brainwaves needed. The journaling under the photos describes how my son was lucky to end up on the championship team his first season of playing Little League. We are both lucky!

Stay cool!

~Kelly

Tutorial: Action Wobbler

Hello everyone. I'm sure you've seen these around lately. They're one of the latest crazes in the scrapbooking industry. They have a silly name and a silly function, but they are very fun. They are action wobblers.

You can find them at your LSS or order them online, but did you know you can also make your own with a few supplies you probably already have on hand? This tutorial will show you how it's done. I've also included a video of the wobbler in action.

Here's what you'll need:

• Heavy cardstock (scraps are perfect!)
• Small circle punch
• Exacto Knife or scissors
• Light gage wire (Tip: The higher the number, the thinner the wire. Likewise, the lower the number, the thicker the wire. I used a 32-gage wire in this tutorial.)
• Redline tape or foam mounting tape
• Pencil or wire coiling pliers
• Wire cutters or heavy duty scissors

Step 1 - Cut two circles from heavy card stock using a small circle punch.

Step 2 - Cut a slit starting from the center and going outward. Do this to both circles.

Step 3 - Wrap the wire around coiling pliers or a simple pencil will do just fine, too, including a Lightning McQueen mechanical pencil you stole from your son's stash. LOL! I wrapped it around five times.

Step 4 - Insert the coil into the slit of the punched circle, leaving only one coil on the outside.

Step 5 - Adhere redline tape or mounting tape on the outside.

Step 6 - Snip off the edges of the tape.

Step 7 - Repeat steps 4-6 on the other side. Your finished wobbler will look like this:

You're probably wondering "That's great and all, but does it wobble?" Well, see for yourself.

Dr.Seuss Landing

Hello everyone, Nicole here. Today, I would like to share with you a fun mini that I created for my mother. Just recently, she went on vacation to Florida and while she was there, she got to see Dr. Suess Landing. She absolutely loves Dr. Suess, but who doesn’t right?

For this mini, I wanted to make it fun and playful so I kept the mini simple by using lots of pastel colors and punches to make the album pop. To add to the playfulness of the mini, I decided to use different size alphas and some decorative tape. This was the first time that I got to play with the Zutter Cover It All and Cove It All pages and I love them! I love the fact that these album covers can be left naked or one could ink them to a desired color. I love the different textures of this mini and I can’t wait to give it to my mom. I think it will make her happy.

  

  

 

Mom gave me some pamplets from when she visited Disney and I decided to cut them down and put the pages in a 4x6" Movable Pre-Punched Page Protector sheet. Love these!

 

  

  

 

 

Supplies: Zutter: Bind-It-All Zutter: 6X6 Bamboo Spine Cover-All Zutter: 4"X6" Movable Pre-Punched Page Protectors Zutter: Owires 3/4" in Pink Zutter: Wire Cutters Other: Cardstock: Creative Memories Patterned paper: G.C.D Studios Chipboard: Maya Road (Window Frames), Imaginarium Designs (Clock) Chipboard alphas: America Crafts Jewels: Zva Creative, Doodlebug Design Rub ons: Hambly Journaling tag: Jenni Bowlin Studio Stickers: Creative Memories (stars, hearts, quotes), Hambly (Owl, bird), Sticker alphas: Bella Blvd., My Little Shoebox Foam alphas: American Crafts Decorative tape: Queen and Company Epoxy stickers (hearts): Epiphany Crafts Spray mist: Tattered Angels Pens: Creative Memories Punches: Creative Memories (car, heart)  Scallop rotary blade: Creative Memories Adhesive: Creative Memories Foam Squares: Creative Memories Glue: KI Memories, Clearsnap I hope you've enjoyed your visit today. Please come back again.