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Saturday

Great day ahead

Great day ahead

Great day ahead...happy Saturday! Here's my take on Card Patterns Sketch 49...made full use of my scraps for this...:) The flowers were cut from Sassafras patterned paper, Adorn It letter stickers, ribbon, lace, brads, Chinese butterfly button, white pen and some handstitching.

Friday

Muchas gracias

muchas gracias

Okay, so I really wanted to say "thank you very much" on my card but I didn't have the right letter stickers...so "muchas gracias" it is....:)

A scrap piece of patterned paper, doiley, ribbon, Prima flowers, brads, Adorn It letter stickers and handstitching. :)

Inspired by CPS.

Thursday

Treasured times

Treasured times

First of all, thanks for the lovely comments on my last post...:) My nephews stayed over the weekend which meant little crafting time :(I craft on Sundays)....I did manage to make this card..Treasured Times..using the sketch from 2S4Y and incorporating animals from Basic Grey challenges..:)

Patterned paper from EK Success and Basic Grey (dogs). Leaves from Prima. Sentiment was cut from Stemma paper...and some handstitching.:)

Wednesday

What


What

"What" is the first prompt at A year in the Life of an Art Journal. I decided to play along this year! 2 prompts a month sounds totally doable and I can get a little messy! :) I used a 9" x12" sketch pad.

This was surprisingly easy to put together...just gesso and Maya mist...some paper scraps from my friend K...:)

Tuesday

Happiness is...

Happiness is..
Happiness is like a butterfly which, when pursued, is always beyond our grasp, but, if you will sit down quietly, may alight upon you.  ~Nathaniel Hawthorne
 Cosmo Cricket papers, some handstitching, heart buttons,Sassafras owl feltie...inspired by the challenge at Caardvarks.

Monday

Missed


Missed

I'm so glad I discovered scrapbooking. The need to document has certainly opened my eyes to possibilities and made me see things I would have otherwise missed...:)This layout was inspired by this week's challenge at Scrapping The Music - Give me your eyes... and features my recent trip to Penang. I've been there many times but this time I made it a point to eat local (aka eat at roadside stalls) and it was an interesting experience to say the least...(but I had a tummy upset by day 3...lol).

Some misting, handstitching and a lot of cute travel stickers. My journaling is hidden in the library pocket. Patterned paper is from Teresa Collins, mounted on black cardstock...the white dots were done with a white pen. American Crafts vinyl stickers, Adorn It letter stickers.

P/s: Note to Cindy Lee - I will certainly take up your offer to show me around the next time I'm in Penang! :)

Sunday

Happy 2 C U

Happy 2 C U

I love these two dogs (from Basic Grey)...they remind me of my two Shitzus at home...always happy to see me..:) Especially in the mornings...they follow me around like my very own entourage...because I'm the only one who takes them out for a walk...:) They are my darling boys...besides the nephews of course...:) Happy 2 C U is my take on this week's sketch at Card Patterns. The felt was actually mounted on an old CD (to make it easier for me to cut the circular shape), some handstitching and butterflies...the dogs were given a little glitter glass treatment (Stickles in Rock Candy)..

Hope you are having a great weekend! :)

Friday

3 things I learned from 1 year of blogging


3 things I learned from 1 year of blogging

Okay, I've definitely learned more than 3 things from 1 year of blogging but these 3 things stand out.

1. Comments. Comments. Comments. The mainstay of a blog. I think I'm better at commenting than I am at writing posts. Especially answering questions. I've stopped leaving single word comments because when people leave me those, I wonder if they actually read my post. So if I comment, it's actually at least 2 lines. More if I like the person and we've become friends. Way more if you ask a lot of questions. I leave a comment on every blog I visit (unless there are technical difficulties) and I visit return blog visits unless the person hides their profile.

2. Google reader is the best invention after cable tv (in my opinion :). It's a time-saver...really helps you organize the posts you want to read ( I hit the blogs I follow FIRST). You can share posts with friends and bookmark items you want to revisit. The only scary thing is when you go away and have no internet connection and then check back to see that you have 1000 + unread posts...lol..

3. Playing in carnivals is possibly the single best way to make new friends with a common interest. I started playing in photo memes, then card carnivals and blog hops. It is a lot of work but the fastest way to network.

What have you learned from blogging?

This layout was inspired by the challenge at Method Playground to go green. I used a mirror (from an old compact), a key (spoiled lock) and a brown paper bag. Patterned paper from Collage Press, vinyl letters from American Crafts. Some pearls, buttons and bling.

Thursday

Penang 2010

Penang 2010

As promised, here's the layout I did (Penang 2010) using the lovely digital kit by my friend Aimee. (You can still go to my last post to download the kit...it's free!:)  The photo was a view from my hotel room...when I was in Penang Malaysia last week..I printed the files on white cardstock...added ribbon, lace, stickers and handstitching! What do you think? Feel free to share your links with me if you use the kit! :)

Now on to the RAK winners!
1. From the Creativitae post #7 Jeanet
2. From the A little bird told me what I already knew post  #1 Tamaroo
3. From the Three Boys post # 10 Courtney Baker

I'll be contacting you via email to get your mailing addresses!

P/s: Just wanted to thank my friend Duchess of Tea for this lovely blog award! :) :) :)


Wednesday

Creativitae



One of the coolest things about blogging is the creative people you meet online. Aimee McEwen was the very first blog friend I made....so she will always have a special place in my heart...:) We "met" through decor8blog in 2009...through the comments section! I loved what I read and went to her blog to tell her so...and that's how we became friends. We touch base regularly through our blogs, tweets and emails...I love that I can vent to her (something I don't do on my blog) and she totally gets it. Creativitaeblog features her cool finds on the web, links to artists' blogs that she loves, recognition of great causes, her self-designed freebies (gift tags, desktop calendars and recipes) and a little about her struggles and triumphs in life. She is an ardent supporter of handmade products and recently started a little Etsy store too...(she designed the calendar pages in this project of mine!) Here are some samples of her work...these are freebies available on her blog!



I asked Aimee: "What inspires you?"


Honestly, when Yvonne asked what inspires me creatively I went blank. After a few days, (yes-days) of thinking, I realized that what inspires me is the blank canvasses of our lives, new experiences and fresh starts. Every blog post I write or piece of art I create is a new beginning for me. I'm creating in a space that was previously empty and nothing then becomes somethingI spent 7 years in a relationship where I felt trapped. Because of this, I suffered severe creative block. I stopped creating art because I feared it would be destroyed (torn up or worse) by my abusive spouse. I couldn't bear the thought of that, so I hid my creative self away. After I was free from Him, I started a new life and found new beginnings in every corner of my world. Healing and sharing of myself through my art and writing is something I strive to do every day. My hope is that my creative self shines so brightly that it can never be hidden away again. The most important thing I can tell someone about nurturing their creative self is: do not let anyone or any bad situation consume you...continue to share your light.



I love how real she is... Aimee was sweet enough to design a little something for my blog friends -  2 patterned pages, a page of scrolly plaques and a page of February mini calendars! :) Thanks so much Aimee! :) 





Instructions for download:
1. Click on this link Creativitae Kit in Pink
2. Select download.

All images and artwork by Aimee Elizabeth McEwen.



I will share a little project I did with the kit in my next post! And a list of RAK winners too! :)





Tuesday

Perfect fit


Perfect fit

There is nothing like the perfect fit. I love to look at pictures of my younger self and check out some of my fashion faux pas and fashion victories...Turns out my mother dressed me well..I was always in pretty dresses with matching purses and shoes, pretty bow in hair and minimal accessories. Things changed when I could dress myself. My teenage years were typical fashion victim years...photos of which my sister suggested I should burn since she believes that we should only preserve the "nice" photos of ourselves...lol..

What's your fashion story?

Some masking/misting (Tim Holtz mask & Maya mist), handstitching, patterned paper from Studio Calico (Homefront collection courtesy of Sherry:), lace, ribbon, crochet flower & flower center bling (courtesy of Juhi:). Journaling printed on transparency. Title prompt was inspired by Category Stories.

Monday

A little bird told me what I already knew..

A little bird told me what I already knew..

Oh yes, a little bird told me what I already knew...my littlest nephew, J is the cutest and happiest little baby! (at least to me!) It doesn't hurt that he adores me (judging by how excited he usually is when he sees me :)...all I need to do is call him names...yeah...I called him "Sleepy Head!" the other day and he started giggling hysterically. He cracks up when I go "Peekaboo!"...it doesn't work when the grandparents try the same thing. ..[ insert evil laugh here ]. Oh well, it could totally be because I'm the only one who recognizes his "I just crapped in my diapers! " look...the rest of them do the "smell" test (ewww...)...lol.

Anyway, this layout was inspired by this week's song at Scrapping the Music -The Little Birds. I took consecutive shots of J and loved all the cute expressions! :) Some handstitching...Sassafras feltie (thanks Amy!) and American Crafts letters. I used 12 closeup photos so really didn't have space for anything else!

Sunday

Home is where one starts from

Home is where the heart starts from

" Home is where one starts from." T.S. Elliot

Hope you are having a splendid Sunday! Just wanted to share this week's card for Card Patterns. Cosmo Cricket papers, animal stickers, buttons and some handstitching.

Friday

Us


Us

Hello! Today I want to share a little dreamy project I did for my friend Cindy Lee...Us...featuring her wedding photo...it's got lace, pearls,ribbon, tulle, flowers, doiley, bling and glitter! The round base is from KaiserCraft. I adhered patterned paper, spritzed some maya mist, painted it with crackle paint in rock candy, then added stickles in rock candy. I wish I had taken some closeups of the background...imagine subtle cracks with a really sparkly glass glitter finish.....Some pleated lace and ribbon, bling flower centers (thanks Juhi!), flowers (thanks Amy!) and of course, some tulle and pearls for some drama.

So, what do you think? And yes, I'm on a lookout for my next project *hint*..:)

Wednesday

Three boys

Three boys

Okay, here's the second page I promised to show (you can see the first page here)...check out the expression on their faces! These three boys totally crack me up! All in four minutes! :)

I used sketch #85 from Creative Scrappers. I kept to the same papers and handstitching so that the two pages match even though I used two different sketches. My circle punch really came in handy for the photos! The stitching around the photos took forever (and ever) but I think it looks awesome! (no modesty here...lol). What do you think?

Tuesday

Four happy minutes


Four happy minutes

These were some of the photos of my three nephews taken in four happy minutes...:) It was a hilarious shoot...which totally warrants a two-page spread... for this page, I used the sketch from this month's challenge at Scrap It Lah....using my Graphic 45 scraps and a whole lot of handstitching!

I'll show you the second page tomorrow....I used the same papers but used a different sketch (who says two-pagers need to be from a single sketch? ) Happy Tuesday! :)

P/s: I'm out of the country and experiencing really slow internet access :( I will get to visiting your blogs in a few days!

*Edited* I won the challenge at Scrap It Lah! :)

Monday

Hey!


Hey!

Hey! "What are you doing?" I asked.

"We are smoking! Smoking lollipops! " exclaimed Sean.

"Yes! We are smoking lollipops! " echoed Ocean.

Just a typical Saturday conversation with my nephews... although the "smoking" part got me worried...which resulted in a lengthy lecture (3 minutes actually) on the ills of smoking actual cigarettes...lol...

This layout was done for this week's challenge at Scrapping the Music. Cosmo Cricket papers, flowers (thanks Juhi!), letters from American Crafts....some distressing along the edges and handstitching along the edges (it's in a pale yellow and didn't show up on the photo..bummer!). Come play along! This week's prize is an online art journaling class by Marit's Scrapworld!

P/s: Just want to say thank you to my friend Jesse Mendez for giving me two blog awards!:)





Sunday

Love...


Love..

First of all, thank you for all the lovely comments on my last post...I've the sweetest blog friends! :) This month is my blog's first birthday (yay!) so I'll be doing random giveaways on my blog posts. If you leave a comment, make sure your email address is linked to your profile so I can contact you if you win. The random generator picked #2...so congrats to Papertrails by a paper lover...Amy Duff! I'll email you for your mailing address!

This is my card for this week's sketch at Card Patterns......heart bling, a lot of lace, glitter and some handstitching..:) Come play along!

P/s: Speaking of blog candy, my friend Melissa at Scrap N Stuff wants you to start 2010 with a Basic Grey calendar...go to her blog for a chance to win! :)

Thursday

Happy birthday E!




Happy birthday E!

It's my sister E's birthday today! Happy birthday E! :)

I had a little fun with my favourite animal stickers, October Afternoon paper, Adorn It letter stickers, handstitching and the card sketch from Get Sketchy.

Some other card related news...I've had some cards published this month in Scrapbooking.com...:) You can see them here. And I've just made my first Card Design Team over at Card Patterns! :)

Monday

Thank you for being you


Thank you for being you


This week's challenge at Scrapping The Music is the theme song for the Golden Girls - Thank you for being a friend. A really great song to scrap about friendship or whatever inspires you! My layout features S, my charming nephew at age 5. It's amazing what you can learn from a kid's antics...:) The background paper is from Cosmo Cricket and the fussy cutting was done on a Bo Bunny paper...:) A little distressing and inking and handstitching. American Crafts foam letters.



If you have been wanting to play along but haven't yet, here is an added incentive - there's a weekly prize up for grabs at Scrapping The Music. Not only do you get your name in the Hall of Fame, you get a pretty cool RAK too! This week's prize is sponsored by the kit club Studio Calico. The winner gets the entire HomeFront paper and sticker collection! Now that's a fabulous RAK!


Sunday

Sun fun

Sun fun

Here I was in a two-piece pink swimsuit at a beach in Malaysia. Enjoying a little fun in the sun. :)

Lily bee patterned paper and tulle flowers, some lace, American Crafts vinyl letters, kraft paper, paint (applied with a sponge) and handstitching.

Inspired by Let's get shabby.

* Edited to add: This layout was featured in Friday Faves at the Lily Bee blog! :)

Friday

Happy 2010!

Happy 2010!



Happy 2010 friends! :) Wishing you and your family a wonderful new year, filled with good health, love and creativity!

A little photo holder to store memories of a new year! 7 Gypsies accordian file, K & Co (background) and Sassafras papers, American craft letters, glittered flowers are from Making Memories and a deer iron-on.