Old stuff and new stuff

I've been a very busy scrapper this year! Trying some different things, mixing old and new products. Check out the "my crew" lo. I used some old MME paper dolls and dresser, along with new faux stitches and Chatterbox paper, stickers and tags to make this lo. I think it turned out really cute. Just because the stuff is old, doesn't mean it doesn't have a life! We just have to think of creative ways to use it. So what if it's not in style either. The important thing is that we like it! I have a little journaling on the index card tucked in the pocket.

I absolutely adore this lo of my dear mother's wedding portrait. She is so stunning, and I wanted to keep the focus on the portrait, but create a delicate layout around it. Still have her dress in a box in case dd wants to wear it! This is a Becky Fleck sketch in case anyone was wondering. I like having the journaling on the delicate shade of yellow. Reminds me of daisies, which are our flower. No one else might get that, but I do!!!

OOOOPS Removed for publication in June Scrapstreet magazine. Will be back later!

Birthday Photo

Today is my birthday. Here is my birthday portrait. Self portrait. I tell you one thing, I have great hair!
Tragedy at Virgina Tech yesterday. Very sad. Disturbing, but I know that God was there for His people. It's still unfolding, the whole story. We may never know since the crackpot killed himself. Very sad.
On to a brighter note: another year, another bit wiser? One hopes anyway! No complaints on my part. Main goal last year was to be published in a mag. I've hit that goal so I'm tickled pink.
What am I going to do today? Probably clean out the pool from all that crazy windy weather we had. Many leaves. Lucky no trees down. Not the same for everyone around here.
May scrap some. Not sure. I've got 106 more layouts to do towards my scrap goal for 2007 of 272. You know I'll make it. That's the kind of chick I am. Set a goal. Do it! Get 'er done, as they say!
Hmmm. Should apply that philosophy towards scrap room. Oh, but that isn't fun!
Want to make that lap board. Cool idea from my friend, Kelly, who will be moving to NC here soon. She's a cool chick. No obvious issues (she knows I'm kidding here)! Regular chick. Very creative. Fleece is her medium. She rocks it.
My bff, Mandy, is bringing my card by today. Last year she sent it to me in August. Bff's don't make ya mad, do they? Nah, life happens so you just don't even think about it. I just thought it was sweet she sent it after all that time. Even sweeter, she doesn't want to do it again. Worried postal service might not get it here. Chose to deliver to make sure it got on time. That's nice, isn't it!
Waiting for school to get out. Not much longer. Ds has project for landscape class. Dh is in charge. He's the science dude. Not me. I'm there for the creative aspect. Camera. Paper. Layout. Those types of things.
That's all my comments for today. Except one, Kearnsy...you're next, dahling. Can't hide. We're a month apart. Birthday's coming! And I'm going to remind you every day! Cuz I love you!

Just Chatting

I didn't make the next round in an online contest, but that is alright. I'm still applying for the mag staff spots they have open. Maybe I'll get one of those. If not, it won't slow me down!

I'm thinking of teaching some classes again at the lss. I've got some pretty nice books we can put together. High impact visually, but fairly easy to do!

Other than that I am waiting so much for summer! We are having another cold snap. It was just 80 deg. the other day...now morning temp expected of 37! It's crazy!

Photography etc.

Had to post a challenge at a website so I posted one using silhouettes and reflections. I love when things are reflected in windows and water. I think it is just fascinating. This is my favorite picture from the ones I took. I just photographed some different shots around the pool.

Speaking of the pool. I cleaned the pool furniture today. It was a gorgeous day, and there was no way I was going to be inside. I hosed off the porch, too. That pollen was just digusting. I'm glad that has passed. I'll finish the porch tomorrow or another day. I need to go over all the wood trim with some bleach. It gets so dirty over the winter.

The pool chemicals have been ordered, and they are on their way. As soon as they get here, the pool will be officially opened, although it really is since Matt has actually been in twice already!

It's definitely time for the weather to warm up. I'm tired of it being cold! I'm sure all the dogs are too!

I'll post the layout that goes with this picture as soon as I get it photographed. I tried this evening, but the photo was blurry. It's just easier during the day, and I get better, truer colors.

DD and DH are both snoozing. Such company I have for the night. What am I going to do with them. I'm thinking of scrapping. I did some scrapping today, but I really had to think to hard about it. I'm not sure why, but I hope it passes. It was driving me nuts.

My Wedding Album

Scrapstreet is publishing an all wedding e-zine in June. I'd love to end up with something in there. In that light, they had a lift challenge last night so I decided to scrap my wedding song that Lou and I first danced to as Mr. and Mrs. I guess it is corny, but what girl doesn't dream of that her whole life? I've known from the time I was in 2nd grade and heard the Carpenter's "We've Only Just Begun" that I wanted that to be the first dance at my wedding.
An additional bonus is, this e-zine has given me the prompt I need after 18 years of marriage to get my wedding scrapbook done. I want it to be informal with writing and notes and such. That way, when I'm old and gray, I'll have lots of fond memories to stare at and little notes along the way to jog my memory!

Video of Recent Pages - It's fun to go back in time!

Okay, i hope this works! I made a video at photobucket with music and everything. I used my recent prize package of Flair papers from Dora at Scrapstreet to make all of these pages. Well, except the cat one. I just like that picture because my cat is so nosy every time I bring my camera out!
These photos are from 10 years ago. Hard to imagine my kids being that young. Time does truly go by fast. Matt's baseball team won the championship game in a squeaker. The soccer photos are a riot as Caitee was a no fear goalie, but she had to pose in her ballet poses!
Makes me want to do some more older photographs. It's nice to relive those moments, which is after all the reason we scrapbook. To share and relive!
Enjoy!

Changes and New Web Ring

I made a few changes to my blog. Added some links, put up a funny pic, and joined the Scrapstreet web ring, for which there is also a link.
I didn't know what a webring was until last night when Lindsey started the Scrapstreet one, and I decided to join it with my blog. Now you can cruise around if you want and see what some of the other chicks I hang with online are doing.
I also added a link to my Scrapstreet gallery. Although I do post most everything I do there here as well. I think I might link to my old galleries at Scrapvillage, Scraptalk and maybe even Scrapjazz. It just depends on how bad that stuff looks compared to now! LOL!
I do like the 2peas gallery as well. I haven't posted very much there. I need to post more stuff there. There are alot of great ideas. I skim it every day and add stuff to my favs to get inspiration when I am brain dead, which at the rate I am scrapping this year, happens more often than I like.
I still need to figure out how to add a banner, but all things in due time. The fact that I have made a few changes and added some stuff is pretty cool for now.
I will be scrapping this weekend because it is the Scrapstreet Star 3rd round. Even if I don't make round 3, I will do the challenge. Also, I want to see what is up for Saturday Night Scrap there. Do the lift and the sketch probably.
Although I'm not as excited as I was to scrap becasue my OTT light just shipped yesterday so it's not going to be here. Major bummer. My scraproom is just so poorly lit. And I splurged on that stinkin' light. But the main thing is that its on its way, and I can hardly wait for it to get here.
I hope if any of you read my blog that you will leave a comment so I know you were here. Just for fun. Please be nice! LOL!

Andy Warhol-ish scrapbook page or Modern Art

I have some fun recently doing some different things. This month at Scrapstreet, my favorite scrapbook site to hang at, the "street" is in Kyoto, Japan, a place I have actually been. Of course, I was 3 1/2 so I don't remember it, but I thought it was kinda cool anyway. The colors for the challenge were red, black and white. I had a picture of dd that I had digitally altered that just begged to be used for this challenge. Looking at it made me think of the song, "China Girl", for some reason by David Bowie. Maybe it was how funky the photo was and that song is very funky. I love the quote I used on the lo from the song, too, "I can hear your heart beating loud as thunder." I used circles, which are my favorite shape right now and lots of brads. I think it turned out really neat. Lou says it looks like something Andy Warhol would have done. I was a bit concerned with the red and yellow that it might look like a mastercard so I had to make sure I arranged the circles in such a way that it wasn't making me think of that!
I also finished a page of my Nana and my great-grandmother, Nana-P that I had started over a year ago! I just could never get the page to click. So I took it out of the drawer it was stored in and took it all apart. I trimmed the photos' corners to soften them up and rematted them, which improved their look greatly. I love the bouquet of flowers I made to replicate the corsages the "Nanas" are wearing. They are so cute together, mother and daughter. The occasion was my mother's wedding, which I have a photo on the page taken when my parents came home sometime when they were engaged. I also have the hat Nana was wearing. It was saved all these years, and ended up at my house. Crazy!
Finally, I had those two black and white photos, one of which is blown up and hanging in my dining room. I scrap so many beach photos! But we love the beach so what do you do! I mean where else do we go on vacation? Nowhere! I lifted this lo from my DW calendar. When I applied my ink to the chipboard letters, it made the two-toned effect, which looks like ocean water. I really do like this lo! And the best part is, I used all old supplies from my stash! Woohooo! Making room for more stuff!

Gin X Scientifically Weird

Gin-X is some nice paper! I'm serious! I haven't had any experience with their stuff until our lss had a 40% off sale of the entire store! I bought this kit and a few sheets of coordinating Bazzill cardstock. I've made another lo beside the two here, but it is part of a 5 week contest so I can't post it!
We sure do go to the beach alot! I guess it's a good thing. It seems like I take so many pictures of dd during the year, but at the beach it is mostly ds, so I guess it all comes out in the wash.
Skimboards or skurfers sure are alot of fun. I even tried it, and nearly killed myself, but hey! What kind of mom would I be if I didn't give it a shot!

When Did I Start Looking OLD

When did I start looking old? It seems to have snuck in out of nowhere! Those laugh lines so etched in the corners of my eyes. The lines above my forehead, which I have had since I was 10, from years of lifting those eyebrows. The furrow between my eyes from the years my mother was so ill and worrying. The puppet mouth. I even notice that my neck is finally going. What is happening? I'm wearing make-up and it's not helping. Ah, age!

Lots more layouts done

My friend, Mandy, and I have been scrapping so much this year that we are caught up on our current photos and are going back. It's all thanks to a great site called Scrapstreet and some fabulous crops, along with two weekends away doing nothing but scrapbooking and cropping Friday nights at our lss.

It's amazing to have that much done. I feel so good because I don't have all that current stuff hanging over my head. I know it shouldn't feel that way, but it does. The few photos I have left from last year are all in bags, sorted by topic, and ready to be scrapped. I only have about 4 of those left! Isn't that great!

Now by no means am I anywhere close to being caught up! I have boxes and boxes of photos and memorabilia. But at least the current things are done! I am looking forward to going back and working on the kids baby books some more. It's fun to relive that time!

Exciting Getting Published AGAIN!!!

I submitted a few pages from a Garden Journal that I keep. I take photos of pictures of flowers and I scrapbook them in a gate hinged album from Kay & Co. This is a very simple little book I have that I can doodle in or write poems or I can scrap more elaborately in, but I am leaving it fairly flat. I want it to be a free form, random thing so I can just enjoy the fabulous flowers nature provides in all their colors and shapes and sizes!
Anyway, Scrapstreet's E-zine picked up my little sample for publication in May, which is very exciting to me. I have some drawings in this garden journal that I am rather proud of, and those were in the pages I submitted. I wonder if that counts for art?
My great Uncle Arthur was quite the artist. We have some of his work here in my house. I have a charcoal drawing he did of his grandfather, Cockety, a pastel of a kitten and a few oil paintings. He had a wonderful eye and was very talented. My mother was artistic, but with floral design more so than anything else. Although she did decoupage in her younger years and made some terrific things, along with a needlework phase.
I guess Uncle Arthur rubbed off on me a little bit too with my limited drawing ability. Nothing too defined. I think that Matt has that talent, more along the lines of Uncle Arthur, but he doesn't want to take any art classes.
Arthur's brother, my Pop-pop, was a doodler all of his life. Not serious doodles, just silly drawings. He would do those for me all of the time. He would start drawing, and we would have to guess what he was making. He was a funny guy so it was always something funny like a fat lady from behind or a jalopy.
Anyway, this has made my day. When June comes, I will post a few of my pages so you can see what I submitted. Can't have them up anywhere for the month of May!!!
BTW, thanks to Meesh for picking it in case you ever read my blog. I'm never sure if anyone reads it really, except for a few friends. But that's ok. It's my window on the world, and if I"m the only one that sees it, so be it!!!

birthday card

Someone in my family has a birthday today. Growing up and changing. Sometimes it is hard to be the mom and be left behind because they don't need you so much anymore. But it is also a blessing. To celebrate, I made this card. Very simple.







I made this lo the other day based on a sketch by Dora Phillips. I really liked the sketch, and of course, I have plenty of photos to use! This was a fun sketch to do. I bought Chatterbox Poolhouse kit because it was more boyish to me, and I knew I had these pictures to do.
I'm trying to scrapbook as much as possible. I've made 137 layouts towards my goal of 272, which means I'm more than 1/2 way there now. Think of the amount of paper and supplies I have used!
I'm really trying to not buy alot of stuff just to have in my stash. It gets outdated so fast and new stuff is always coming out. I have been enjoying using these smaller kits that companies put out with paper and embellies. You can do several layouts with one kit and use all the stuff. That way you aren't sick of it!

My Celebrity Look-alikes

My cool celebrity look-alike collage from MyHeritage.com. Get one for yourself.



Holy crap. Joan Collins? Are they kidding me? Well, it's only a website's opinion! YIKES! It was a little chuckle. You ought to try it!

Going cropping tonight with my scrapping friends. Can hardly wait. Hmmm...will definitely have some more to post tomorrow! I have printed out my crop weekend photos to and will do a layout about that. That definitely was a fun time!

Contest at Scrapstreet doesn't start for another month, but we do have a challenge coming up next weekend. That will be fun. I love those. They get the ole brain thinking along new lines!

My Celebrity Look-alikes

My cool celebrity look-alike collage from MyHeritage.com. Get one for yourself.


I've just been playing at this website that my friend found. It's not really on that much, but it's a fun thing to do. Mostly people tell me my dd looks like Christy Brinkly. Maybe she's not one of their picks. I'm also trying to see who they say my ds looks like and then me and my dh!

Editing Photos for a Different Look

Here are two recent lo's. I submitted the one of my ds. We'll see. I like the journaling, which I lifted from Starbucks website - their make your own coffee. The other lo is a scraplift challenge, which I edited one main photo two different ways. Something I don't do very often. I really like the effect.

More Layouts Done and Some Shopping Too

Well, I have about 120 layouts done so far this year towards my goal of 272. The first layout you see is an 8x8 that I did for a scraplift challenge. I printed right on the cardstock with a new font I found, Depot. I really like it. It's typewriter-y.
I love the colors in this lo, too. Strictly straight off teh color wheel! Orange is opposite blue so it makes it pop! I also used 3 ribbons slides from my stash of stuff. 3 down. Have to make room for more stuff. Sick of looking at the old stuff!

I submitted the beach lo. Not sure if it will get picked up or not. I really like the colors in it, too. Very summery. It just reminds me of being at the beach, which is what the lo is about.

The last layout is a heritage book lo of some photos of my brother from 1971. It was a sketch challenge. I love those. They always get my creative juices flowing! However, I'm not in the dark color mode lately, so I might put some heritage stuff on the back burner for a while. I'm just really feeling the color lately.

The last pic is of my ds. I'm planning on scrapping this photo tomorrow. He's such a cool kid. I have a great idea for my journaling, too, which I lifted right off of Starbucks website. You'll have to wait and see!

I went to Hobby Lobby today. I nearly bought some paper, but controlled myself since the new Crate Paper is supposed to be released on Monday. It was tough, but I just don't want all that paper lying around. Use it and get some new stuff is my new motto.

I did get some new MAMBI glitter alpha rubons for 50% off. I felt a small tinge of guilt as I had put them on hold at the lss, but they are $20, so 1/2 price is an awesome deal. I got over it real quick. I also bought one pack of jumbo brads. I don't need to go crazy and get them in every color. I'm sure I'll use them this weekend. That way I won't have them in my stash forever and get sick of them.

9 Layouts at the Crop Last Night

I made 9 layouts at the crop I attended last night. Yes, it is much easier to crop at home than to have to cart my stuff up to the scrapbook store, but I have learned that if I stick with one theme at the crop, I significantly cut the junk I bring with me in 1/2! Now I just have to cut that in 1/2, and I will be fine!

More layouts...222 to go!!!

Here are the layouts I did over the weekend. I only did 4, but now I am up to a total of 50 lo's completed this year. That means I have 222 to go towards my goal of 272! Not bad. I'll be at a weekend crop this weekend so I know I will be under the 200 mark by the end of the weekend. I'm secretly trying to get them all done in the first half of the year, then anything else I do is gravy! Not that it's about just getting them done, but I'm very goal oriented and this method is really motivating me. If you are not goal oriented, then having a goal will not work for you!

I did some scraplifting on all of these except one. I'm really on a scraplifting jones right now. Not sure why, but it is working so why fight it!

A new way to plan layouts

Well, I'm tickled pink. I've been picked again to have a layout published in Scrapstreet's online mag in March 2007. I'll definitely have a link to it here in case anyone wants to see it. It was a scraplift called A Boy's Fun, which I had posted on here and had to remove since it is going to be PUBLISHED. WOOHOOOOOOOO! That is just so satisfying.

I went through a stack of pictures and followed some layout planning advice I had read somewhere. It said take your pictures and match your embellies first, then match your paper because it is easier to match paper to embellies than embellies to paper. I'm not sure why, but I did it. I'm not wild about the lo I made today, but it used stuff from my stash so that is always a plus for me! However, I will say this method does work, although I only have matched one set of stuff with paper. I'm a bit under the weather, and I think my inspiration is flagging. It's kind of a busy layout, but let's face it, it's done!