FleursByDesign

Folded Paper and a Video

2012-02-02T10:00:00.000-08:00

I love coming up with new ways to use paper on my layouts and cards. I used this quick folded paper technique for my "Sweetie Pie" card I posted a few days ago and was playing around with the idea of using the same squares to make different patterns. I realized just laying out the squares in a different way I could create a chevron zig zig pattern.

For this card I used the Amy Tangerine paper collection. Here is the card I made (love the canvas flower). I love how the folded paper gives this card so much dimension.

Here is the video showing how I made the pinwheel design and the chevron design using these simple folded squares - I hope you enjoy it!

Thanks for stopping by.

Smit{h} Paper Designs Class - Love Notes

2012-01-30T10:00:00.000-08:00

Our new class is filled with ways to show the people around you how much they mean to you. From your spouse to your Children to your neighbors there is something in this class for everyone. We will be making a photo frame, a gift card holder, cards and more.

Class will be:
Saturday, February 4th, 2012
Time: 7-10 pm
Where: Flagship room, Ladner, BC
Cost: $25.00

You can head over to our Facebook page or email me for more information.

Thanks for stopping by!

Love is in the Air

2012-01-27T10:00:00.000-08:00

It's that time again - to think about celebrating all the things you love on Valentine's Day. This year I made some tags for my sweeties using the new Yours Truly collection from Echo Park.

The first tag I punched a bunch of hearts and added them to the circles on the patterned paper. Add a pretty ribbon and a sentiment and you have a cute tag.

For the second tag I misted some paper and trim with glimmer mist, added a sticker heart and sentiment and some buttons and twine. I love how this tag turned out.

Show your sweeties some love this Valentine's Day - thanks for stopping by and showing me some love too :)

Sweetie Pie

2012-01-23T10:00:00.000-08:00

When I have time I love to do the "Create" blog challenges on Thursday with Paige Evans. Her cards are always so beautiful and she has some pretty cool challenges. This week the challenge was to use squares on a card. My first idea to do a heart from squares didn't work so I did some surfing and saw a pinwheel pattern. I loved the way it turned out - here is the backround before I added my sentiment...

And here is the finished card. I just added a Crate Paper journaling card and some twine.

The card is a little thicker than a normal card with the added dimensional background so keep that in mind if you plan to mail it.

Thanks for stopping by.

Crate Paper Love

2012-01-20T10:00:00.000-08:00

I am in love with Crate Paper right now. I ordered a bunch of it from Two Peas In A Bucket as my LSS doesn't carry it and I had so much fun playing with it.

I created a few layouts and they are some of my all time favorites. I especially love this one of my cousins little girl.

I hand cut some flowers for the border and added some buttons.

I cut these scallops from the SKU part of the paper - love that!

Isn't she adorable :). Thanks for stopping by!

Sugar and Spice...

2012-01-17T10:00:00.000-08:00

and everything nice that's what little girls are made of. Sunshine and rainbows and ribbons for hair bows, that's what little girls are made of. Tea parties, laces and baby doll faces, that's what little girls are made of.

I love the words in this poem but having two boys I don't get to scrap girls very often. Luckily I have friends and family that have girls and don't mind me borrowing photos to scrap with.

I loved the blue jean look of this paper from the Crate Paper Random Collection and the flower paper was perfect for cutting out and turning into a cute border complete with buttons of course.

It's so fun to be able to make girl layouts every once in a while. Thanks for stopping by :)

Snowflake fun and my first video

2012-01-14T20:59:00.000-08:00

I decided to try my hand at making some tutorial videos this year and after finishing this layout I thought this would be a great way to start off so I hope you enjoy it.

I made this layout using the Crate Paper Peppermint collection which I loved and wanted to use up my scraps so I thought I would try and make some snowflakes for my layout. I made them using a scallop circle puch and I love how they turned out.

Here is the video on how I made the snowflakes. I would love to hear what you think of the video!

Thanks for stopping by!

Handsome

2012-01-12T10:00:00.001-08:00

I fell in love with this little guy when we visited Prince George last year. This paper collection from Amy Tangerine was perfect for these fall photos.

I was so inspired by Kelly Purkey's layout with leaves across the bottom of her photo that I did the sam thing here but covered the entire layout. I handcut the leaves from paper, punched a small hole in the top then threaded them onto twine. I love how it turned out.

Thanks for stopping by :)

Winter Fun

2012-01-09T10:00:00.002-08:00

With January come thoughts of Skiing and Snowboarding and hopefully some snow. We haven't had any yet so far. Here's a layout of my son Linden Skiing at Cypress Mountain from last year.

I love the scallop paper from this Echo Park line, I cut them out and layered them.

I also loved the ski ticket paper how cool!

I am keeping my fingers crossed for snow in January :). Thanks for stopping by.

A few last Christmas Cards

2012-01-06T00:23:00.000-08:00

I always find I am rushing around a few days before Christmas making extra cards for family and friends and this year was no exception. I know Christmas is over and everyone is moving on to CHA news (I can't wait to see some sneak peeks) but I wanted to share them here on my blog.

The first three were made with the Crate Paper Peppermint Collection and the last one was made with the Echo Park Paper Holly Jolly Christmas Collection.

Thanks for stopping by :)

Santa Came :)

2012-01-03T10:00:00.000-08:00

I find Christmas is one of the hardest thing to scrap but I really wanted to do a layout about our "special Santa" that comes to our house just before Christmas with a special delivery for the boys.

I am so grateful to Santa (you know who you are) for making Christmas even more magical!

Thanks for stopping by!

Happy New Year!!

2011-12-31T23:30:00.000-08:00

Should old acquaintance be forgot,
and never brought to mind ?
Should old acquaintance be forgot,
and old lang syne ?

CHORUS:

For auld lang syne, my dear,
for auld lang syne,
we'll take a cup of kindness yet,
for auld lang syne.

And surely you’ll buy your pint cup !
and surely I’ll buy mine !
And we'll take a cup o’ kindness yet,
for auld lang syne.

Happy New Year from our family to yours!

Eleven in 2011

2011-12-29T10:00:00.000-08:00

As the year wraps up I always try and take a look back at the year and relive all my favorite moments.

One of my dreams came true this year with a trip to CHA in 2011. I had so much fun and loved meeting some of my favorite scrappy people.

Our yearly ski trip to Whistler was on my birthday this year and they still had the 2010 Olympic sites up so we got to take a picture

We also went to California and had some fun at Disneyland, Sea World and at the beach this year, this is one of my favorite photos from this year.

Every year we spend one week at our friends cabin on Savary Island and every year we love it. It's so fun to hang out with friends and family with no video games or tv around!

This year we surprised the boys with a trip to the US to see the American Idol Tour and we were amazed when they all came out to sign autographs and say hi :)

We sae a BC Lions game at Empire Stadium while their regular venue was being renovated and we had so much fun!

Our school put on The Wizard of Oz this year and Linden had a singing role as one of the munchkins he was so cute - Rhys also did an excellent job on the lights.

We had a visit with Aunty Barb in Prince George - it was so nice to see her and GGMA as well as seeing Cam and meeting his beautiful twins. We miss you Aunty Barb.

I have the most wonderful bosses and this Christmas they invited us on their boat to be a part of the Carol Ship parade - we had so much fun.

One of my biggest passions is paper crafting and this year I was so blessed to have my projects featured on paper manufacturer's blogs. This is my favorite layout from 2011 and was featured on the Crate Paper blog in December.

I was also featured on the Echo Park Paper blog for a few of my December Daily pages and some gift tags. So exciting!

All in all 2011 was a prety great year. I am looking forward to 2012 and all it has to offer!

Scrapbook Star's New Years Eve Bash

2011-12-27T10:00:00.000-08:00

We are bringing back the Scrapbook Star New Years Eve online crop. It will run from Tuesday, December 27th to Tuesday, January 3rd. There will be lots of challenges, games and prizes.

Here is a layout I did with the December kit for one of the challenges!

Hope you can stop by and join us for a fun festive bash!

Merry Christmas

2011-12-25T10:00:00.000-08:00

May you have the most wonderful holiday with friends and family.

Merry Christmas from our house to yours!

December Daily Album

2011-12-22T10:00:00.000-08:00

I had created quite a few December Traditions pages over the last month and I finally got all my pages bound in an album using my Bind-It-All. Here's what the end result looks like and a peek at some of the pages inside.

I can't wait to print off my Christmas photos and add them to my book!

Thanks for stopping by.

It's Christmas Time

2011-12-20T10:00:00.000-08:00

Time to Deck the Halls...

Trim the trees...

And wish everyone a Merry Christmas.

I had so much fun creating these projects with the Echo Park Paper Holly Jolly Christmas collection!

For the first project, Deck the Halls, I made a string of ornaments using the Dash Away paper. First I cut out the ornaments then punched a hole in the top to thread the twine through. I then added them to the bottom of the layout hanging them like you would on a tree. I added my title with the fun ornament stickers and also added one of the gorgeous Decorative Brads at the top.

For the second project, Merry and Bright, I made a tag using the Snowy Tree Tops paper. I cut out several trees from the paper and then made some fake snow with cardstock by cutting it in to a hill shape and distressing the edges. I used foam tape to pop up some of the trees to give the card some dimension and also added the sentiment from the sticker sheet with foam tape.

For the last project, Merry Christmas, I made a card using the Jolly Border Strips paper. I used the backside with the snowflakes for my background and cut out the Santa, Reindeer and Snowmen from the frontside. I also added some fake snow to the card and used foam tape to pop out Santa and one of the snowmen.

I hope your holiday season is Merry and Bright!

Boarding Cypress

2011-12-18T15:20:00.000-08:00

I love that my kids know how to ski and snowboard, coming from Saskatchewan (which is flat) I never learned to ski myself. This is my son Rhys snowboarding at Cypress Mountain.

I used the Little Yellow Bicycle "Winter Twig" Collection to create this layout. I knew as soon as I saw the pine cones I would have to get this line. I cut them out and added some glitter and snow to them and made a branch from the paper as well.

It's such a beautiful collection!

Thanks for stopping by.

Scrapbook Star December Kit reveal and challenges

2011-12-15T10:00:00.000-08:00

It's December 15th and that means it's time for the December kit reveal over at Scrapbook Star. This months kit is full of Echo Park goodies and sparkly embellishments perfect for Christmas.

Also the Design Team Challenges went live today.

Hope you can stop by and play along.

Must be Christmas

2011-12-13T10:00:00.000-08:00

I love the song Must be Santa by Raffi - we play it alot in our house at Christmas and my son is playing it at his Christmas piano recital this year. When I was making a mini album for a family member I wanted a different title and the song was playing so I thought "Must Be Christmas" would be perfect for this mini.

Head on over to the Bind-It-All blog to see more details of this mini I made using the Peppermint Collection from Crate Paper.

Thanks for stopping by!

Christmas Tags

2011-12-10T10:00:00.000-08:00

I am so excited to be sharing some tags I made over at the Echo Park Paper blog today. I loved playing with the whimsical Holly Jolly Christmas collection and these tags were so much fun to make.

Stop by the Echo Park Paper blog and check them out.

Oh Christmas Tree

2011-12-09T10:00:00.000-08:00

I made these really cute Christmas Trees for my mantle with my Bind-It-All and some patterned paper. Head on over to their blog to see the details. You could make these as stars, ornaments, just about any shape and your imagination!

Thanks for stopping by.

Winter Wonderland

2011-12-07T16:07:00.001-08:00

This time of year I am so busy making gifts and cards for everyone, it's crazy but fun! Here is a card I made with the Echo Park Holly Jolly Christmas collection. I love the colors and the whimsical designs.

Thanks for stopping by!

Christmas Photo Shoot

2011-12-05T10:00:00.000-08:00

Instead of going to get the kids portraits done professionally every year I take the photos myself - we always end up cracking up halfway through the shoot and having a great time.

Here's some of the outtakes from this years shoot:

Hope you are having as much fun as they are :)

Thanks for stopping by!

Handmade Holiday Gift class

2011-12-03T10:00:00.000-08:00

Lindsey and I have one more class before the new year. Join us December 10th for a Handmade Holiday Gift class. Some of the gifts we will be making in the class are a perpetual birthday calendar, a sewing kit, an ornament and more. For more information you can check out the Smit{h} Designs facebook page or email me for more information.

Thanks for stopping by!

On the first day of Christmas...

2011-12-01T10:00:00.000-08:00

Today we are starting a 12 days of Christmas Tags event over at Scrapbook Star. We will be sharing some fun techniques and ideas for making tags for the holidays.

Hope you can stop by!

Just a little excited...

2011-11-29T09:30:00.000-08:00

I am just a little excited today, Echo Park Paper is featuring some of my December Traditions Mini Album on their blog.

I always found it hard to do a December Daily album as a lot of times I would have nothing exciting enough to journal or photograph for that day so instead I create my December Traditions Mini Albums around our families traditions. I also leave a few extra blank pages in case a new tradition gets started or something new happens (like last year my son performed in a play).

Here's a few sneaks of my pages but to see more of a few of them head on over to the Echo Park Paper Blog.

I will be sharing the entire mini album once it's completed. Thanks for stopping by.

I want candy!

2011-11-28T10:00:00.000-08:00

I love peppermint candy, I am so excited when I see it in the stores - it's looks as good as it tastes. I was even more excited when I saw the new Peppermint Collection from Crate Paper, they had some really cute peppermint journaling cards!

First I made a little brown paper bag that will be filled with peppermints for my son's music teacher:

And here is a little candy jar I made for my son's school teacher - perfect for her desk!

I hope these last long enough to give out :)

Thanks for stopping by!

Gratitude and Grace

2011-11-24T10:00:00.000-08:00

It's the American Thanksgiving today - so for all my friends south of the border have a wonderful Thanksgiving full of gratitude and grace!

I made this card with the Scrapbook Star October kit, full of wonderful colors and paper and I loved the feathers too.

Thanks for stopping by!

Scrapbook Star Design Team Challenge

2011-11-21T10:00:00.000-08:00

I am in love with Baker's Twine right now and what better challenge than to add some of it to your next project? For my layout I added twine around the hearts and I also made a small heart and covered the entire thing with twine. This is now one of my favorite layouts to date :)

Thanks for stopping by!

Have a Crafty Christmas

2011-11-18T10:00:00.000-08:00

Head on over to Scrapbook Star for some Crafty Christmas fun and ideas from the Design Team. It starts on November 15th and runs through the 26th. Here's a sneak peek at one of the projects I will be posting.

Thanks for stopping by.

Holiday Greetings

2011-11-11T11:00:00.000-08:00

I love to hand make holiday cards for my friends and family using my leftover paper from my layouts and scrapbook pages. This year I started early and made a few cards with last years Echo Park Christmas Collections.

This first card is my favorite! I die cut the mug with my Slice and covered it with Glossy Accents then sprinkled in a little glitter to give it some shimmer. To finish it off I added a paper straw, some felt marshmallows and some bakers twine, so cute!

The second card is a rolled paper Christmas Tree which is super easy to do just roll the patterned paper and adhere the rolls to a triangular piece of cardstock. To complete my tree I wrapped twine around it and added a snowflake star. I stamped a Hero Arts bird carrying an ornament to the tree then to finish it off I added some glitter snow and glittered and flocked snowflakes.

For the last card I wanted to make a card that was fast and easy so I covered a chipboard snowflake with silver paint then while it was still wet I added some glitter to make it shimmer. To finish off the card I added a sentiment from the Echo Park Journaling sheet and a button. Super fast and easy.

I had so much fun making these cards and can't wait to use the new Echo Park Christmas Collections to make even more holiday cards and projects.

Thanks for stopping by!

Winners!!

2011-11-07T20:11:00.000-08:00

Thank you so much to everyone who stopped by during the Handmade Holidays Blog Hop and left a comment! I appreciated all of them!

The winner of the Zutter Spinner Album kit is:

Chelsey said...

What a neat idea!! I love this and I'll have to try it out myself! Thanks :-)

November 4, 2011 9:16 PM

The winner of the Score-It-All Mini for following my blog is:

Chris - Creations in Bloom said...

Love your album! It's so fabulous. I'm a new follower. Excited to be inspired by your creations.

November 4, 2011 5:53 PM

Congratulations to both of you! Please contact me with your mailing information.

Handmade Holidays Blog Hop

2011-11-04T00:01:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the Handmade Holidays Blog Hop!!!

Calling all crafters! We’ve gathered designers from some of our favorite manufacturers to show you ways to create something from the heart this holiday season. This 3 day Hop includes over 60 stops with inspiration brimming from every corner. Explore all thoughtful and frugal handmade gifts you could make for the holidays, all in one place on this Hop!

To sweeten to Hop, we’re offering a gift for you! For every comment you leave on the blogs in the Hop, you’ll be entered to win a prize pack from one of the participating manufacturer sponsors!

Visit the list of blogs below and leave a comment on each by Nov 7, 2011 at 11:59 PM PST. Each day we will be sharing a brand new list of blogs with brand new projects for you to explore, be inspired by, and create from!

I love making handmade gifts for the holidays for family, friends and even teachers and coaches.

This year I wanted to create handmade frames for our close family members with photos of our boys inside. For my project I used the Zutter Bind-It-All Cover-Alls in the 4" x 6" size with the curved spine and covered it with the new Crate Paper Peppermint Collection.

To make these handmade frames cover the entire Cover-All with patterned paper but before adhering the back page completely down add a piece of twine under the paper for the closure. Embellish the cover and add a button for the twine to wrap around to keep the frame closed.

For the inside of the frame I added a photo on each side of the Cover-All and used the words from a sheet of paper and twine to make the banner at the top. To attach the banner to each side of the frame I used a small snowflake from the Peppermint chipboard. I also wanted to add the cute chipboard Santa from the collection and made him pop out when you open the frame.

These handmade frames would be great to make for anyone on your Christmas list and what better keepsake than a photo of their favorite people.

Thanks for stopping by on the hop. Don't forget to leave a comment on the blog to be eligible for the amazing prizes. Here's a link of all the blog participants for today's hop:

Nov 4th
Clearsnap – http://clearsnap.blogspot.com/
Spellbinders http://www.spellbinderspaperarts.com/Community/Blog.aspx
Hampton Art - http://blog.hamptonart.com/
Zutter – http://binditall.blogspot.com/
Graphic45 – http://g45papers.typepad.com/
Donna Salazar Designs – http://donnasalazar.typepad.com/
The Twinery - http://www.thetwineryblog.com/
Authentique Paper http://authentiquepaper.blogspot.com/
Sherry Cheever – Graphic45 http://sherrycheever.blogs.splitcoaststampers.com/
Claire Towle– Hampton Art http://studio1975.co.uk/
Emily Leiphart- The Twinery http://www.leiphartonart.blogspot.com/
Andrea Budjack – Glue Arts http://andreascreativepapertrail.blogspot.com/
Lesley Langdon – Spellbinders http://www.lesleylangdoncreative.blogspot.com/
Daniela Dobson – Clearsnap http://danieladobson.blogspot.com/
Natasha Naranjo Aguirre – Donna Salazar Designs- http://mymomentsoftranquility.blogspot.com/
Lisa Day – Glue Arts - http://www.lisaday.typepad.com/
Lynne Forsythe – Zutter http://lynneforsythe.blogspot.com/
Jennifer Priest- Clearsnap http://hydrangeahippo.blogspot.com/
Tifany DeGough – Authentique Paper http://inkblotsbytrd.blogspot.com/
Holly Simoni – Spellbinders http://www.hollysimoni.typepad.com/
Fleur Smith - Zutter http://fleursbydesign.blogspot.com/
Stephanie Johnson- The Twinery http://www.parkersprints.blogspot.com/
Robyn Weatherspoon – Clearsnap http://robynweatherspoon.blogspot.com/

To thank you for stopping by my blog I am also giving away a mini Scor-It-All. All you have to do is become a follower of my blog and let me know you are following me in the comments by Nov 7, 2011 at 11:59 PM PST and I will draw a winner to win this fabulous scoring tool.

Cheers to creating gifts from the heart this holiday season!

Happy Hopping!

Fabulous Friends

2011-11-02T10:00:00.000-07:00

I am so lucky to have some fabulous friends. I met these ladies while working at my local scrapbook store many years ago and even though it closed down we continue to get together as often as we can.

I love getting together with them and laughing about old times - what could be better?

Thanks for stopping by.

Happy Halloween

2011-10-31T11:00:00.000-07:00

Hope you have a fun, scarey and safe halloween!

So excited for this...

2011-10-28T17:46:00.000-07:00

Join Clearsnap and 8 of our favorite crafting companies for a Handmade Holiday! Spellbinders, Hampton Art, Donna Salazar Designs, The Twinery, Glue Arts, Authentique Paper, Graphic45, and Zutter will all be showing you innovative ideas for gifts, decor and more to jumpstart this holiday season. Join us beginning November 4th, 2011.

I will be one of the guest designers on November 4th - so excited :)

A Haunting We Will Go

2011-10-25T10:00:00.000-07:00

We love halloween in our house, getting dressed up, scary movies and pumpkin carving what could be better. This year I made a quick Halloween mini album to showcase my son's costumes. Head on over to the Bind-It-All blog for more photos and details.

Happy Crafting :)

Holiday Greeting Class

2011-10-24T10:00:00.000-07:00

Lindsey and I are busy preparing for out next class Holiday Greetings. Come and join us for a night of card making and goodies just in time for the holiday mailing list.

Here's a peek at one of the cards we will be making in class.

For more information on classes you can join our Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/SmithPaperDesign

Hope you can join us.

Something Wicked

2011-10-20T10:00:00.000-07:00

This way comes...

Join us over at Scrapbook Star for a week of fun Halloween projects and ideas. I love halloween and decided to make a gift box to fill with treats for a friend who loves halloween too.

I painted the box black, added some fun halloween paper and the a few tags and of course some twine.

Don't forget to check back all week for more spooktacular ideas :)

Merry and Bright

2011-10-18T11:28:00.000-07:00

I love the new Holly Jolly Christmas paper line by Echo Park Paper Co. The colors are so pretty and the patterns are amazing. I knew as soon as I saw it what I wanted to make with it.

I started with this old box that I had sitting around just waiting to be used. I love keeping old packaging to re purpose into something fun!

the first thing I needed to do was cover the front so I measured and cut a piece of brown cardstock then a piece of Snowy Sidewalks patterned paper and carefully cutting out the window in the front.

Then to create the scene inside the box I cut out the snowman from the Journaling Cards paper and some fun snowflakes from the other side of the Snowy Sidewalks paper.

Then I added some hills hand cut from cardstock and used pop dots to make the scene have some dimension. I also added some twine around the window of the box to give it a more finished look.

To complete the box I added the Merry and Bright sentiment and some presents both from the Journaling Tags sheet. I also added some more twine as a bow around the ribbon.

I had so much fun creating this little shadow box and I know I will create many more cute projects with this line.

Scrapbook Star Design Team Challenge

2011-10-17T10:00:00.000-07:00

For this months challenge over at Scrapbook Star I thought I would do a stamping challenge as October's Kit has some really fun stamps included. Here's my layout, I stamped the leaves and the acorn on the title.

Head on over to scrapbook Star and join in the fun!

Scrapbook Star October Kit Sneak Peek

2011-10-13T11:56:00.000-07:00

Buttons, doilies and stamps Oh My!

Here's a few sneak peeks of the October Kit at Scrapbook Star.

Remember

2011-10-08T11:41:00.000-07:00

Sometimes when a friend or family member is having a hard time remembering that there are people around them that love and support them can make all the difference in the world.

I wanted people to leave little notes of encouragment and love so I created a mini album with pockets and added lots of tags. I also included a few photos and memento's from the past to bring a smile to them.

What a great way to brighten someone's day :)

A mini, mini album

2011-10-05T11:33:00.000-07:00

I love that most lines of paper now have paper that has journaling cards on them, they are perfect to cut up and use in mini albums or use as the base of a mini, mini album.

I used the Crate Paper Toy Box line for this little mini about one of my boys Linden.

Just add some wallet size photos and word stickers and voila a little mini.

Thanks for stopping by!

Lucky Number Seven

2011-10-03T16:55:00.001-07:00

Congrats Victoria - I picked lucky number seven in the draw. I will contact you and send you out a RAK - thanks to everyone who played along with our blog hop!

Happy World Card Making Day

2011-10-01T01:00:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the first ever Scrapbook Star World Card Making Day Blog Hop. Hop along with us for some awesome inspiration, new techniques, prizes and most of all fun! Along the way the participants will be giving you a word – when you get to the last stop at the Scrapbook Star message board and have figured out the sentence send an email to store@scrapbookstar.ca and you will be entered in a draw for a prize. If you leave a comment on my blog I will enter you to win a RAK from me.

My word is WORLD

I am the first stop in your blog hop but if you get lost along the way the links to all the participants are located below.

I started card making a few years ago to use up my left overs from doing layouts or mini albums and I love it. They are a nice quick and easy way to get my creative fix for the day. I made these cute cards with a kit from Fancy Pants and loved the cute birds and thought they would make great baby cards. I wanted to make a nice background and used a scallop edge puch on several patterned papers to make a layered look. I added some twine to the image which I popped up using foam tape.

Your next stop along the way is at Shirley's Blog Chillys Cakes and Scraps

Here’s all the links to the blogs in case you get lost along the way.
Fleur -http://www.fleursbydesign.blogspot.com/
Shirley - http://chillyscakesandscraps.blogspot.com/
Janet - http://janetsjoy.blogspot.com/
Karen - http://breathenowsmile.blogspot.com/
Jemma - http://jemmasjourney.blogspot.com/
Tina - http://cyberbumz1967.blogspot.com/
Melissa (SS Forum) - http://www.scrapbookstar.ca/phpbb/viewforum.php?f=5

Don't forget to leave a comment to be entered in a draw for a RAK from me. Have fun hopping!

BC Crops for Kids

2011-09-23T11:25:00.000-07:00

It's one week until the BC Crops for Kids weekend starts. Here's a little bit of information about the weekend.

BC Scrapbooking Crop for Kids is an annual charity scrapbooking event benefitting BC Children's Hospital Foundation. Since 2008 it has become BC's most popular educational & inspirational paper crafting weekend. We offer a weekend-long crop with amazing classes designed and taught by talented designers. All of these classes are generously sponsored by local scrapbook retailers and scrapbook manufacturers. Proceeds from the sales of crop seats, class seats and any other products offered will benefit BC Children's Hospital Foundation. We hope you'll join us in 2011, when we raise funds again for BC Children's Hospital Foundation.

2011 Date: September 30, 2011 - October 2, 2011

Location: Ramada Plaza Conference Centre, Abbotsford, BC

Lindsey and I (with the help of Noreen) are honoured to be a part of this fundraising weekend and are looking forward to our "Year In Review" mini album class.If you live in the area we would love to see you there!

For the love of buttons

2011-09-21T11:31:00.000-07:00

I love buttons - they are one of the most versatile scrapbooking embellishments. I love finding new techniques for using them on my layouts and when I saw them used in a banner style I had to try it.

On this layout I used the buttons to highlight the photo on my layout and strung them with twine to create a banner type feel. I love how it turned out.

Thanks for stopping by!

It's a Party

2011-09-19T11:08:00.000-07:00

and I'll scrap it if I want to :)Head on over to the Zutter blog to check out a mini album I made as a gift for my boss' 70th birthday!

Thanks for stopping by :)

Tips, Techniques and Tutorials

2011-09-16T11:02:00.000-07:00

Over at Scrapbook Star we decided to change things up and we started a Tips, Techniques and Tutorials. For this week I wanted to show a cool stamping technique that instead of using inks uses mists.

For my layout I used a wood grain stamp and blue and green Glimmer Mist. I misted the stamp and ended up with a watery look that was really cool.

I loved this technique and will definitely use it again.

Thanks for stopping by!

Back Pack Tags

2011-09-04T09:42:00.000-07:00

Every year I have made the boys tags for their backpacks. This year my oldeest son said he didn't want them so I only made one set for my youngest son.

I used some clothing tags, an Old Navy gift card holder, Maya Road sheer robots, Studio Calico Journaling cards, an old Riff Raff chipboard tape, a piece of old film and some old brads and letter stickers. I tend to keep everything and eventually use it on a project.

I used blue and black Glimmer Mist for the tape so that it would match the colors scheme which is my son's favorite color.

I love making something fun for back to school so hopefully it makes their first day even better!

Trying something new!

2011-09-01T09:34:00.000-07:00

I am always willing to try something new, a new technique, a new way of doing things, a new craft. While I was surfing through my usual sites last week I came across the CK Summer Camp and one of the challenges was to use a coffee filter on your project. Well this was a new one to me and luckily my husband drinks coffee so I grabbed some filters and went to work.

I have to say this was really fun. I used Glimmer Mist on the coffee filters to color them then I used this yellow one to make my sun (You could also do this and make it into a flower). I love how it turned out and will have to do this even more in the future.

So don't be afraid to try something new - you might just have some fun :)

Back to School Cool

2011-08-28T09:04:00.000-07:00

So this is the Back to School Cool looks for 2011 and I had to laugh. It seems like the past, especially the 80's, is back in fashion. Here's what's hot...

Hot colors - jade, teal, bamboo, coffee, orchid, & phlox
• Nail polish colors - graphite, péridot and quartz
• Crackle nail polish
• New scented nail polish
• Chunky funky bracelets - MeBands are cool & collectible
• OppoRings
• Cool high tops, bold and bedazzled
• Funky jewelry - plastic bracelets
• Chunky rings
• Backpacks, multi-style and color
• Large watches
• Toms shoes - shoes that give back
• Retro sunglasses
• Trendy scarves (yes they are still in, and make great belts too.)
• Ballet flats
• Funky lunch bags - very eco-friendly
• Feather earrings
• Crochet detailing
• Blazers

Slap Bracelets are making a come back - I loved these

Retro Sunglasses - love both of these - Linden wants the shutter shades :)

Converse Hightops - so 80's

We are doing our back to school shopping this weekend can't wait to see what we end up getting LOL

Who will be Ms. Scrapbook Star 2011??

2011-08-25T11:48:00.000-07:00

This will be my last challenge for the Scrapbook Star 2011 Beauty Pageant. I decided to make it an easy one and all you have to do is upload your favorite layout so far for 2011. For me it is this one...

Not because it's the best design or the best colors or any of that - for me scrapbooking is about keeping memories alive and everytime I look at this layout I think back to the day when my son and his grade 6 class won the Delta Pin Guard Tournament. He said to me after that it was the best day of his life and it was such a rush. It was the first time we both got caught up in the competition of sport and the amazing feel of a victory.

So what's your favorite?

Lovin' the Canvas

2011-08-23T11:56:00.000-07:00

Right now I am loving canvas. It's so fun to work with and adds such a nice element to my mini albums. Here's one I did for my friend to thank her for inviting us to spend the week with her family at Savary Island. It is so much fun to be there and we love it more every year.

What are you loving right now?

Back To School

2011-08-19T10:05:00.000-07:00

I can't believe school starts again in a few weeks - this summer has flown by! I wanted to make a Back To School Countdown Calendar to remind me and the kids how many days we have left to enjoy summer and get organized for school.

I used my Bind-It-All to make a little mini album for the countdown and attached it to a larger board and decorated it with the school theme paper from Crate Paper.

Head on over to the Bind-It-All blog for more details.

Banners

2011-08-18T09:32:00.000-07:00

I still can't get enough of the trendy banners I am seeing on a lot of projects they are so much fun. Here's one I did for the Scrapbook Star Beauty Pageant contest today.

I used the striped paper and cut them into banner shapes and added them as a border along te bottom of my photos.

I hope you can stop by and play along with us.

Paper Crafts Magazine

2011-08-16T09:34:00.000-07:00

I was so excited to get this in the mail yesterday...

One of my Bind-It-All projects was featured in it - my first one for Paper Crafts. WooooooHoooooo!

Scrapbook Star Beauty Pageant

2011-08-15T09:26:00.000-07:00

Another challenge is up at the Scrapbook Star Beauty Pageant. In the Miss World Pageant the contestants come from all over the world so for this challenge you have to scrapbook about anywhere other than your home town. Here's a layout I did with two of my favorite photos from our recent trip to California.

I wanted the photos to be the focus for this layout so I rolled some papers and wrapped them in twine to add some fun embellishments. I also added a calendar to show the date.

Hope you can drop by and play along.

Echo Park Love

2011-08-05T13:22:00.000-07:00

A lot of people ask me what is one of my go to scrapbook paper companies and right now I would have to say one of them is Echo Park. I don't think there is a collection they have released that I didn't like.

This love affair started with their very first release Sweet Summertime. I spotted it in my LSS and fell in love. I came home and made a few layouts and projects with it and I was hooked. It's still one of my favorites!

Next came A Walk in the Park. I loved the colors in this line and the trees - just beautiful!

Then I was working on some Christmas projects and fell in love with both of the collections. The Merry Christmas collection was a gorgeous traditional collection with a hint of vintage.

The Everybody Loves Christmas collection was so cute and bright. It was perfect for some fun projects. The shadow box below was featured on Two Peas In A Bucket and you can find instructions on how to recreate it on their website here http://www.twopeasinabucket.com/gallery/member/274818-fleursbydesign/1684835-merry-christmas-shadow-box/.

Then came the Wintertime collection perfect for those snowy theme photos and I loved the stickers that came with the collection especially the snowman.

The Little Boy collection was perfect for me as I have two boys. I loved the colors and the planes and trains in this collection - so cute!

The Be Mine collection had some fabulous papers in it and the sticker sheet was amazing. Loved it!

The Little Girl line was so pretty - I loved the cupcakes and pretty colors from this collection.

Ahh Springtime, I love it when a paper comes along that I can spend hours cutting out all the pretty images like I did with the flowers in the card below.

Next came For the Record. This was another one of my favorites. I loved the vintage feel and the colors were perfect for pretty much any layout and project. I love it when a collection comes out like this that is so versatile. I can't show much for this one as they have been picked up for publication :)

Last but not least was Summer Days. I loved the bright papers and fun stickers always perfect for my bright summery photos.

I can't wait to see Echo Park's new collections in my LSS as they always inspire me to create amazing layouts, cards and projects!

Thanks for stopping by!

Scrapbook Star Beauty Pageant Challenge

2011-08-04T11:37:00.000-07:00

Todays Challenge is all about congratulating the winner. My challenge is to create a "Congrats" theme card. Here's mine using the new Sassafras Lass Sunshine Broadcast line.

Hope you can play along:)

Fun in the Sun

2011-08-02T10:12:00.000-07:00

I made a really fun, interactive summer mini album with my Bind-It-All for all my summer photos. Head on over to the Bind-it-All blog to see more details :)

Thanks for stopping by!

Scrapbook Star is looking for a new Design Team

2011-08-01T11:40:00.000-07:00

Check out all the information on the Scrapbook Star message board.

Hope you apply - can't wait to see your work :)

20 YEARS!!

2011-07-27T09:35:00.000-07:00

I can't believe it's been 20 years since the day I married Mike - yes 20 Years. It sounds crazy to me that we have been together that long. Happy Anniversary honey - I love you!

Summer Time

2011-07-25T09:51:00.000-07:00

Is so much fun - I did one of the monthly challenges over at 2 peas this month and it's the first time I have done a 2 pager in a loooong time. I love how it turned out!

I used the summer line from Echo Park which is always full of colors and awesome papers. This one came together so fast it was great!

Thanks for stopping by!

Scrapbook Star Beauty Pageant Challenge

2011-07-21T09:52:00.000-07:00

I have another challenge up at the Scrapbook Star Beauty Pageant - this one is about Miss Congeniality. Known by her peers as the most friendly, helpful, genuine and outgoing contestant in the pageant this challenge is to do a layout or project with a "friends" theme.

I did my layout about my son and his best friend. They are like two peas in a pod and love hanging out together. I always joke that they will end up together one day so this layout is a possible "GLIMPSE" into their futures.

Thanks for stopping by!

It's my turn

2011-07-15T09:44:00.000-07:00

Head on over to the Bind-It-All blog for the Zutter Zummer blast and take a peek at my project. I used the new Sassafras line Sunshine Broadcast which I am in love with!!

Here's a peak...

Thanks for stopping by!

It's Zum - Zum - Zummertime

2011-07-12T09:50:00.000-07:00

It's Zummer Time! Join the Zutter Zisters Design Team for some summer themed project ideas, shopping specials and a dose of hot weather inspiration. The fun is on the Bind-it-All blog Monday, July 11, and runs daily through Friday, July 15. There will be daily drawings for Zutter giveaways, and tips for staying cool. You don't want to miss it!

American Idol Live 2011

2011-07-10T16:15:00.000-07:00

This weekend we went to the American Idol Live concert in Everett, WA. The show was awesome - the kids were all amazing and sang really well live. The best part of the concert was when James sang the Muse song Uprising. He really is an incredible singer. After we decided to stick around and see if we could meet anyone. Linden really wanted to meet Casey and Rhys wanted to meet James. We were shocked when most of them came out and signed autographs and took photos with everyone. They were all really nice and we were so thankful to them. Here's some photos of the day.

Scrapbook Star Beauty Pageant Challenge

2011-07-08T09:52:00.000-07:00

My first challenge is up at the Scrapbook Star Beauty Pageant. If you complete this challenge you will be eligible for the "Dress" badge.

In beauty pageants it's all about the special occasion/evening dress so instead let's scrapbook about a special occasion. My layout is photos from my husbands family reunion. I made an extra flap to add more photos and some journaling.

Hope you come and play along!

Here She Comes - Ms. Scrapbook Star

2011-07-01T09:18:00.000-07:00

I am so excited - I have been planning the Scrapbook Star summer beauty pageant for months and finally - it's here!!

Head on over to the Scrapbook Star Message Boards to become a contestant in the run for the Ms. Scrapbook Star 2011 title. There will be loads of fun, challenges, games, prizes and surprises all summer long. Come and join in the fun!

Life

2011-06-28T09:16:00.000-07:00

Here's another project done with Scrapbook Star's kit - The embellishments were so fun in this kit.

Thanks for stopping by!

Create Each Day Anew

2011-06-25T09:52:00.000-07:00

I knew I wanted to use the negative piece of chipboard from the Webster's Pages buttons in the Scrapbook Star kit and I ended up making a wall hanging for my craft room. I put a piece of patterend paper or fabric behind each button hole then added some cut out flowers and butterflies. I also wanted to find a quote to use about creativity and came upon this quote by Morihei Ueshiba and knew it woulde be perfect.

Thanks for stopping by.

Cover-All Love

2011-06-21T10:17:00.000-07:00

I really love the Zutter Cover-Alls for making my mini albums look clean and finished. Today on the Zutter Blog I show a few examples of how you can alter your Cover-All.

Have a wonderful day!

Scrapbook Star June Design Team Challenge

2011-06-15T10:48:00.000-07:00

I loved this kit it was so beautiful - I knew which photo I wanted to do right away. These are two of my friends, Jeannine and Nicki, they have known each other and been best friends for 30 years. I love being around these 2 they are so funny and I never stop smiling and laughing. Trust me everyone should have a friend like this!

My challenge for this month is to add some accordion flowers to your layout. They are a fun, easy way to make your own embellishments and add some depth and interest to your layouts.

If you want to play along head on over to Scrapbook Star where I have posted a quick tutorial on how to make an accordion flower.

Thanks for stopping by!

A House is a Home

2011-06-13T16:40:00.000-07:00

I had so much fun making this mini album/home decor piece for my husband for Father's Day. Head on over to the Zutter Blog for more pictures and instructions.

Have a great day!

Scrapbook Star Online Crop

2011-06-10T10:19:00.000-07:00

Scrapbook Star June Online Crop starts this evening. I wanted to do a challenge using some hidden journaling. I made this layout about me at 42 (yikes) and the journaling is hidden behind the photo.

I used the June Scrapbook Star kit which will be shipping on the 15th. This kit is so pretty and lots of fun embellishments so head on over and play along!

Ms. Scrapbook Star 2011

2011-06-07T10:14:00.000-07:00

Here she is Ms. Scrapbook Star 2011.

Come and Join the Scrapbook Star online community for a summer filled with Beauty Pageant themed challenges, competitions, badges, games and other fun. The Scrapbook Star Beauty Pageant runs from July 1, 2011 to August 31, 2011 with the winner being announced Monday September 5th. All challenges must be uploaded by midnight (PST) August 31st to be eligible for prizes and badges. To view a schedule of challenges and to become a contestant, please register at Scrapbookstar.ca.

We are getting ready for Summer...

2011-06-05T10:10:00.000-07:00

Join Lindsey and I for some Summer Fun in our next class. Here's a sneak peek of the Summer themed mini album I created.

More details to follow!

Scrapbook Star June Kit Sneak Peek

2011-06-03T09:32:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I got the June Scrapbook Star kit in the mail and it is gorgeous. Here's a few sneak peeks:

The reveal of the kit and the Design Team challenges go live June 15th - hope you stop by!

Date Book

2011-05-30T10:22:00.000-07:00

I needed to make a quick date book for my purse so I used what I had leftover from the Scrapbook Star April kit and made this quick mini.

I printed the calendars from Microsoft Publisher onto regular printer paper and cut them out. Then I took a piece of cardstock and folded it to fit over the calendars. I bound it together with my Bind-It-All and threaded ribbon through the holes. It came together really quickly and now I have a nice date book for my purse.

Thanks for stopping by!

Buttons

2011-05-27T11:05:00.000-07:00

With a house full of boys I rarely get to do girly layouts, except about my cat Buttons. She is so full of character and craziness I couldn't imagine a day without her.

To make the border of swirls I used the straw from the bottle of Color Wash and free handed them. Then I used a paper piercer to make holes along the swirl to add some texture. I love the way it turned out.

Thanks for stopping by!

Shoreline Cleanup

2011-05-25T17:38:00.000-07:00

Today my sons' school took part in the giant shoreline cleanup today at centennial beach and I couldn't make it so I asked my son (he's 8) to take some pictures for me. He took all of them except the last one which was taken by his teacher where he is doing his best Jack Sparrow imitation LOL.

For the Record

2011-05-22T09:34:00.000-07:00

It was so fun to surprise the kids with a trip to Disneyland this year. You can see by their expressions in these photos they were a bit perplexed at first but eventually they got it and were totally flabergasted.

I hope we can do this again!!

Thanks for stopping by!

My next class...

2011-05-16T09:05:00.000-07:00

Lindesy and I are getting ready for our next class - Here's a sneak peek of the mini album/home decor item you will be making using the Zutter Bind-It-All and of course some fabulous cards with Lindsey.

Thanks for stopping by :)

Publications

2011-05-11T23:56:00.000-07:00

I am so lucky to have had many projects picked up for publication by Northridge Media. They make the Scrapbook Trends, Cards, Simply Handmade, Bead Trends and Cricut Magazines. They always make the projects look amazing!

As anyone who knows me can tell you I love Coke! For this notebook I used a can of Coke for the cover and used my Bind-It-All to bind it. It was published in the April/May issue of Simply Handmade.

Thanks for stopping by!

Sorry for the long delay in blog posts...

2011-05-09T09:29:00.000-07:00

My computer died and it took a while to get another one up and running. Hopefully now I will be good for a long time.

My Design Team projects are up at the Bind-It-All website. You can go and check them out here.

This is one of them - I made a little brag book for my friend Maria who had a baby girl recently. I covered the spine with ribbon and I love how it turned out. For more details go to the Bind-It-All website.

Thanks for stopping by!

Soccer Wind Up

2011-04-26T12:03:00.000-07:00

Soccer is over for another season and to thank the coaches and parents for all their hard work Linden and I made mini albums for all the kids.

Linden helped me glue the photos in the books and bind them together with my Bind-It-All. Head on over to the Zutter Blog for more details.

Thanks for stopping by!

Happy Birthday Rhys

2011-04-24T20:09:00.000-07:00

Today my baby is 12. I can't believe how fast it has gone by. Happy Birthday!!

Easter Treats

2011-04-18T12:06:00.000-07:00

Here's a quick Easter treat container I made with my Bind-It-All. I filled it with spring color jellybeans and added some paper flowers.

Head on over to the Zutter Blog to see more details.

Thanks for stopping by!

Scrapbook Star Spring Fling Online Crop

2011-04-17T11:55:00.000-07:00

The Scrapbook Star Spring Fling crop is this week at Scrapbook Star.

My challenge is April showers bring beautiful flowers. Here's my layout with the beautiful April kit.

Hope you can join us!

Scrapbook Star Design Team Challenges

2011-04-15T09:52:00.000-07:00

It's that time again - the Design Team Challenges are up at Scrapbook Star. Come on over and join in the fun.

My challenge is to add some borders. Here's my layout.

Thanks for stopping by!

Some Favorite snaps from California

2011-04-13T11:41:00.000-07:00

I was so lucky to be able to go to California twice this year. Once with my friend Lindsey in January for CHA (I didn't see the sun at all as we were inside all the time) and again last week with my boys. This time we saw sun and lots of it. We went to Disneyland and rode my favorite ride Pirates of the Carribean 7 times, we went to Seaworld in San Diego, Balboa Park and the beach. We had a blast!

Sneak Peek for Scrapbook Star's April Kit

2011-04-11T09:24:00.000-07:00

Scrapbook Star's April kit is gorgeous. Here's a few sneak peeks.

Thanks for stopping by!

Baby Boy Banner Album

2011-04-06T15:59:00.000-07:00

I made this Baby Boy Mini Album with sticky back canvas for the covers and Echo Park paper. Head on over to the Zutter Blog for more details.

Thanks for stopping by!

365 - Week 12

2011-03-29T16:33:00.000-07:00

12 down, 40 to go :)

March 19th - We have started walking every night after dinner - it's a great way to reconnect with the kids.

March 20th - The Cherry trees have started to blossom and I love watching them come into full bloom.

March 21st - Linden loves going down the driveway on his skateboard - me on the other hand not so much.

March 22nd - So much for the diet - I can't resist the Peanut Buster Parfaits at DQ.

March 23rd - I saw these Snow Geese on Westham Island and the snow covered mountains in the background - so beautiful!

March 24th - Linden loves to clean the windows when we go fill up for gas.

March 25th - These two look like they are cooking something up - they couldn't stop laughing all the way home.

Thanks for stopping by!

Surprise...

2011-03-27T15:54:00.000-07:00

We (hopefully) surprised the kids today with a trip to Disneyland. I will be taking the week off to enjoy some time with the family. Have a great week!

365 - Week 11

2011-03-24T09:04:00.000-07:00

Some weeks are harder than others to take pictures every day but I have really enjoyed doing it so far and hope I can keep it up for the whole year! Here's another peek into my life this week.

March 12th - I had to do 2 pictures today. It's the last day of soccer for this season. Linden had his Fun Day (which wasn't so fun in the cold rainy wind) and Rhys had hos gold medal game - they lost but Silver is great too!

March 13th - My mom dropped off a Corned Beef Pie for us for dinner tonight - It's been so long since I've had one and they are so yummy!

March 14th - I got him!! I finally got a picture of the Blue Heron, it took a few months but he didn't fly away from me :)

March 15th - The cherry blossoms are coming out - can't wait until they are in full bloom.

March 16th - Linden wanted to make a St. Patricks Day goodie for his class so we mage a baggie of Lucky Charms with a bag header that said "Have a Magically Delicious St. Patricks Day"

March 17th - One of my goals this year was to be published in Paper Crafts Magazine and today I got the most amazing news - they picked up one of my projects - WOOT!

March 18th - Celebrating Nicki's Birthday - these girls are so much fun!!

Thanks for stopping by!

What a Character

2011-03-21T09:59:00.000-07:00

Linden really is a character. Here he is at Disneyland a few years ago trying on all the hats and acting out the characters.

He really does brighten up my life!

Thanks for stopping by!