Heidi Swapp Mash-Up

I wanted to participate in Heidi Swapp's Mash-Up!  What a super fun idea!!!  So what is a Mash-up?  It's when you take two different lines and combine them together to create a wonderful layout - Hooray!  Check out more information on Heidi's blog - and create your own Mash-up :)

So here is the list:

At least 1 Day Glow Photo Corner
Sentiment Stickers
Color Magic Paper
Note Card (either Vintage Chic or Color Magic Notes)
Buzz Words
Color Magic Chipboard Alphas
At least 2 Pattern Papers from Different Heidi Swapp Collections
Neon Glow Tape
Staple
Handwriting – either your own or Heidi’s digital words

And my caveat is:  I created my Day Glow Photo Corner from the Neon Glow Tape :)  And I used the Color Magic letters in place of the Chipboard Alphas (since neither are available in HK!) - the results of the collaboration is here:

Family Ties

 

I used the Heidi Swapp Adore paper from Sugar Chic and the Beautiful Songs paper from Vintage Chic, plus the Color Magic paper (spritzed with Tattered Angels Aquamarine).  I spritzed a Color Magic tag with a Golden color and created my title using the 'family' buzz word and 'ties' from the color magic letters.  Added a few sequins, a definition sticker and two tags (tucked under my photo) and viola'.

Those of you that know me well will be SHOCKED that this is a one photo layout - double-pages are my typical and the Heidi Swapp folders are too die for!  However, in this case only one photo was necessary to tell the story...  my Dad passing on his love of the guitar to my daughter - priceless family ties.

Be sure to share your creation too!  Cheers!

Angela

Good Stuff - DOCUMENTED!

It's been a hectic couple of weeks for our family - along with the Thanksgiving holiday!  We've had scrapbook classes to teach, gymnastic shows to attend, busy school schedules, travel, and lots and lots of extra activities...  so to I have to say it was LOADS of fun to take a break from teaching some different scrapbooking techniques & layouts in order to take a fun mini-album class from Kelly Purkey this weekend!  You have to check out her blog and all the fabulous new acrylic stamps she is designing...  you may know her from Studio Calico or as a designer for American Crafts.  However, recently she has ventured out on her own and I am lovin' the newest items!!! 

We mixed some of her stamp sets with the gorgeous bright colors from the Amy Tangerine Sketchbook line and created - well...  instead of tell you I'll show you :)

 

I've created this mini-album to capture my favorite photos from our upcoming trip to Krabi, Thailand!  So excited to have it put together - this title was created using one of KP's favorite techniques:  place the thicker letters on the page and spritz your favorite mist over them...  it creates a beautiful 'mask' when you remove the thicker letters.  This is GREAT for when you don't have the right color on-hand, etc...

 

 

 

 

 

On the back cover I've used a shimmer mist from Mister Huey - LOVE IT!  It gives just a nice shine over the paper and this cute swirl paperclip I picked up at the office supply store - perfect!

 

Great fun at the THINK Cafe' in Wan Chai!!!  Thank you Kelly for sharing your time with us!

Now, I'm really excited about our upcoming trip to Thailand - I'll catch you next time.

 

Angela

Advanced Composition Photography

Thought I would let you see some of the pictures that I captured for the new Advanced Composition Photography class that I'm taking from Candice Stringham at http://www.jessicasprague.com!  I've taken a couple of Candice's classes and WOW - she really does a great job sharing her insight and technical knowledge about photography.

Our first assignment was to capture a location and 'tell a story' about that location with your pictures.  I decided to showcase our island, Discovery Bay.  Here are some of the photos I took.

D-Deck provides alfresco dining

 

Restaurants and shops around the DB Piazza

 

Residents enjoying the piazza :)

 

Cafe' and shops line the circular piazza where residents can gather to enjoy the beautiful day.

 

Discovery Bay Ferry transporting commuters from DB to Hong Kong Island twice an hour all day.

 

 

I enjoyed this challenge - these are images I might not of considered taking otherwise.  When we look back on this time in our lives, these images will help tell the story.  It will be interesting to see how things change over time.  Check back for more photos over the next few weeks! 

 

 

Check it out:

Travel Fotoflip Class with HK Memory Chest

Spooky House

WOW!  Annabelle (my 6-yr-old) and I had so much fun creating a spooky house today with Angela Collingwood and Carla Keating - it was such a fun kids class.  It's always interesting to see the age differences (Annabelle is the youngest in the class with most of the girls aged 8 and 9, and there were a couple of guys too!).  Check out these photos as Annabelle was creating her house...

Kids "Spooky House" Class

 

Painted the Sissex 3D House and the roof tiles

 

 

Two pieces were taped together to create a 2-story house, then it was painted black.  In addition, several chipboard pieces were painted silver as roof tiles.  Once the black paint was dry, she spritzed on Perfect Pearl silver spray over a tree stencil from Crafter's Workshop.  It's starting to look spooky!

 

 

Annabelle used a BigShot and a chandelier Framelits Die to create a 3D chandelier (using three cutouts glued together as a triangle.  She enjoyed using this cool tool!  She is holding the pieces together as the glue dries to keep her dangling jewel glued in the middle...  all the girls wanted to wear the jewel instead of putting it in their houses, of course!!!

 

Next, she painted crackle paint onto the roof tiles to add some texture.  These tiles are all different sizes to create a 'condemned' look.  Once they were dry, we hot-glued them from the lowest one up to the tip of the roof - just like real roofing!  (This is where the adults pitched in to keep everyone safe.)

 

Each person chose what to put on top of their house: a cat, bats, or a moon.  These were diecut and then distress stained purple.  Then a glossy crackle paint was painted over them for texture and to make them more realistic.  Don't forget the dangling shutters and the condemned boards!  And ta-da...

 

Spooky Houses

 

 

 

 

Annabelle is all finished, but I'm feeling inspired myself - hmmm... let's see what I can create today!  Have a fabulous weekend -





 

Capture the Memories

There are few things more precious than our memories!  When we think about sharing a funny story or a silly saying, who is the first person you turn to:  someone in your family - or your best friend - or the first person you see?  Sometimes the memory is too painful to share and other times it's so insanely crazy that only your best friend will understand...  but how do you capture those memories and pass them on? 

My family is my inspiration.  I am very blessed to have a loving husband and three beautiful children.  All three of my little ones (ages 6, 4, and 4) often give me funny stories to share and I love to capture their personalities in photographs and then tell the complete story in a scrapbook page or altered artwork.  This is a special time in our lives and I cherish each moment. 

No matter what your preferred method of memory saving and sharing happens to be - make certain to capture all that you can.  Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook and Twitter are great quick ways to click and share memories with your friends and family.  In addition, special photos and interesting mini-books make great gifts!   

For some people a simple click of the camera captures that moment. For others, they may write a book (or a blog) and add photos to help tell the story. And then the crafty ones, well, they may create something for a scrapbook or a sweet card or a DIY project. There are so many different ways to tell the story and I look forward to sharing some of my favorites with you!


Top Priority:  Adventure

 

This 12x12 double page was created for a local kit club with HK Memory Chest in Hong Kong, using Heidi Swapp 'No Limits' papers and embellishments.  I learned some wonderful techniques from an online class I took with Heidi in the spring/summer from Big Picture Classes and LOVE the back-to-back minibook idea - I was able to get 19 photos on this one double layout!  Take a look at how I created this.

 

One of the first things I wanted to do was use one of the color magic banners by Heidi Swapp.  I didn't have an orange spray that matched the papers, so I used one of my sponges and ink to create a gorgeous banner - check out how the resist shines thru - brilliant!!!  I set this aside to dry...

 

 

Then I created my minibooks...  2 books - the top one holds five (5) 3R photos and the bottom book holds five (5) 4R photos.

 

 

 

One book is 3 pieces of 'No Limits Traditional' paper cut to 4.5 x 6".  Score each piece in the center and then run your tape runner (or glue) on the back of one folded sheet and attach it the front of the second folded 4.5 x 6" piece.  Repeat this once more to add the third folded piece - tada, a gorgeous minibook to add to your layout!  The top book was created the same way, but on a smaller 5.25 x 4" scale.  Add your photos in and your are on your way :)  Finally, attach each booklet to your page (I added a ribbon behind it - it added a nice closure).

 

Next, let's create the title.  I love the Heidi Swapp Buzz Words - and wanted to use the 'Adventure' word as my part of my title.  One of our kit add-ons was 7Gypsies postcards and 7Gypsies roll of tape that I loved - so I wanted to include them in the layout.  I used my circle cutter to round the postcard into a circle.  Also - to keep the pop of orange color, I cut one size larger circle from the 'No Limits Smarty' paper.  Then I used my 6-year-olds curvy scissors (sshh!  don't tell her) to cut around and create a fun wavy edge.  Once I overlaid them - I decided that it would be a great "hidden journaling" spot, so I used the washi tape to attach the top postcard to the orange circle and allowing a flip - TOO FUN!  Here's how it looks:

 

The title reads:  Top Priority Adventure - To Travel Is To Live with Kaisercraft Check-In rub-ons. 

 

Now I can start attaching my photos and other embellishments.  I added in the orange banner to help the eye move through my layout.  Also added the 'discover' pennant from the Heidi Swapp Wood Stick pennants - destination.  Added in some handcut banners on the right-hand side.  It still seemed to be lacking something... 

 

I saw this cool technique for flowers in one of my scrapbook magazines, to fold a paper in half length-wise and then cut the fold in small sections almost all the way through.  Once you've cut your paper, roll your paper into a roll - if they are large sections you might need to secure it with some glue dots along the way.  You can hot glue or use a glue dot to secure it to your layout.  Different widths and lengths of paper make different size 'flowers' - they turned out REALLY cool and just the right thing to finish off a fun layout. 

 

Enjoy creating your own - I'd love to hear about it!