Well Hello There...

It's Wednesday and I just found out that my Studio Calico kits AND my Scrap in Style order are BOTH coming tomorrow!!! That will be a grand happy mail day! Yeayyyyyyy!!!!!!

I finished some masked background paper for The Next Step challenge, but I haven't made it into anything yet, so I think I will wait to share til it's a finished layout.

So, I moved onto the current challenge at "These are a Few of My Favorite Things," which is to scrap your favorite flower. That was a no-brainer for me because I LOVE LOVE LOVE Gerbera daisies. They are so big and bright and cheery! I have a few pictures of gerbera bouquets that I've gotten as gifts, but I had the vision of one solitary gerbera for my layout, so I decided to paint it. Here's how it turned out...
I wanted to keep it simple to focus on the flower. I used acrylic paint, gouache and oil crayon to paint the flower. Then I cut it out and popped it up with foam adhesive dots. The word is stamped with my fave Stampin Up alphas. And that's it!

So, looking at my beloved project list, I'm going to be working on the "O" page for my "A Year In The Life of an Art Journal" next. Maybe I can work in some misting or masking...

I will be back tomorrow with another update. Have a wonderful Wednesday and thanks for stopping by!

Project 365 - Week 31...

And off we go with last week's photos...

Monday, July 27: Stevie is taller than Michael now!

Tuesday, July 28: My stash of Artist Trading Card Supplies...

Wednesday, July 29: Happiness is a stuffed fish, a soft carpet, and plenty of birds and squirrels to watch in the yard...

Thursday, July 30: Happiness is also an afternoon nap with a big snuggly pillow (you probably already saw this one)...

Friday, July 31: I bought these 6x6 mini-albums for photos of my clients. I think they will be perfect..

Saturday, August 1: Willie is not real keen on the music I have playing (note the position of the ears)...

Sunday, August 2: The world's smallest placemat...

and here's how the layout turned out...
I incorporated a couple more techniques to streamline the 365 process. First, I stamped the days of the week on the photos with stazon, instead of backing the round stickers with colored paper and gluing them on. I've also started including one 3x4 photo in the extra journaling spot, instead of coming up with a quote or design for that space. Both of these things are saving me precious time, and making it easier to stay caught up with this major project!

for more information on Project 365, click on the link in the right-hand column ===>

Next on my list is a project for the new technique at The Next Step. This month the focus is on misting and masking! Yeayyy! That should be a lot of fun! Now I just have to decide what kind of project to do my masking on.........

Oh, p.s. there is one more day to vote over at Scrap The Boys. My layout is currently in third place. I'd love your vote but no pressure ;0)

I will be back tomorrow with another update. Thanks so much for stopping by, and for your comments - they make my day!!!

All She Wants to Do is Scrap...

I've been singing "All She wants to do is Scrap" lately (to the tune of Don Henly's "All She Wants to Do is Dance"); cuz seriously that's how I've been feeling! It's crazy! Ever since I made my project list I feel like I just can't stop scrapping! LOL. I'm sure it will wear off at some point, but for now I'm just enjoying it.

I finished my "N is for Now" page, just in time, because tomorrow the "O" prompt goes live! For this one, I just decided to capture the everyday "now" of my life. I had these prompts from an article on journaling by Ali Edwards, and I thought it was the perfect time to use them...
It's probably pretty difficult to read the journaling on the page, so here it is:

Now outside my window: the sun is shining, the wind is blowing and it's 81 degrees. I am wearing: yoga pants, a sweatshirt that says "we are one" & my orange polkadot readers. I am thankful for: Sundays with nothing on the agenda. I am creating: every day, and it feels great. I am reading: "Life is a Verb" by Patti Digh, "Wide Open" by Randi Feuerhelm-Watts & all my daily blogs and forums. I am hearing: the soft whir of my emac in an otherwise silent room. I am seeing: lots of little bits of paper all over the scraproom floor, Willie looking out the window & Johnny is chewing on a plastic patterned paper sleeve. It's another wonderful Sunday.

I can finally share my Scrapping The Music layout for the week too. The song is the Mary Tyler Moore theme, which is one that is close to my heart, because, not only did I grow up with that show, but her character lives in Minneapolis, and the whole concept of starting over all alone rings true for me too. In fact, when I started over and bought my own condo, the famous Mary Tyler Moore house was right in my neighborhood. Anyways, here's how my layout turned out... (click on the photo to enlarge it)

The journaling reads:
It was April of 2005. My divorce was behind me. I had new friends, an awesome new condo in the heart of Minneapolis, and my buddies Johnny and Willie by my side. I knew, finally, that everything was going to turn out great.

Come on over and play along - it's such a fun song to scrap!

I will be back tomorrow with a Project 365 update. Thanks so much for stopping by!

The Voting Has Started and another Project to Share...

The three-days of voting has started over at the "Scrap The Boys" challenge blog; and my "Real Men Live, Laugh and Love" layout is in the running. Actually all the layouts that were turned in are in the running, which is kind of cool cuz we all have a chance. I love that. In any case, I'd love it if you feel like checking out the layouts (click here), and vote for the one you like the best! If it just happens to be mine then yeayyyy! But seriously, no pressure. :0)

I'm still playing in my ABC art journal and I'm almost caught up! Yeayyy! I finished my "M" page today, and the group is only on N. Wait... I guess that means I'm COMPLETELY caught up now! Double yeayyyyy!!!

Anyhoo, the prompt for the letter "M" was left open to choice, so I chose Magic and Miracles...
It reads "Both magic and miracles need only for you to believe for them to happen." ~Harry Quadracci.

I used acrylic paint, gesso, vintage sheet music, a magazine image, Jenni Bowlin patterned paper, brown oil crayon, and Stampin Up alpha stamps. Oh, and the small words were typed on my new (old) typewriter! So fun!

Next on my list is the letter "N" journal page, and I also want to put together a travel journal kit. I've been wanting to do that for some time, and then Julie Fei-Fan Balzer's post on the subject really inspired me. Check it out here for lots of good ideas!

I'm off to look for the perfect container for my travel kit - see you tomorrow for another update! Thanks so much for stopping by and for your comments - they mean alot to me!

I'm So Glad for the Weekend...

It's calendar-changing day again - Happy August my friends! How did it get here so fast???

Ooh - the fact that it's August 1st, means that the Studio Calico kits will be shipping soon - YEAYYYYY!!!!! That is so exciting!!! I've made eleven layouts and five artist trading cards with the June SC kit - so far; and I still have a TON of stuff left to make more - I love it!

Tonight I worked on my layout for this coming Sunday's Scrapping The Music song; and it's almost done. I just have to do the journaling, and I will do a much better job with that after a good nite's sleep!

So I'm making this post short and sweet. There will be more to come tomorrow, but for now, from me and my little friend Johnny - nitey nite!

L is for Laugh...

Tonight's project got me one letter closer to being caught up with my "A Year In The Life of an Art Journal" project. The prompt for the letter "L" was Look, but I felt compelled to change it to laugh...
I used acrylic paint, white eggnog thickers (my favorite style!), magazine images (the laughing kids), BG June Bug paper (bird), Heidi Grace rubons, 7 Gypsies gaffer tape, vintage houndstooth fabric, misc ribbons, Rusty Pickle tag, and black and white sharpies.

The journaling reads: "Since I met Michael, my world has become filled with laughter, and it makes every day feel bright and sunny. We giggle about our little quirks, the funny things that happen in life, and even the ridiculousness of bad situations. I never knew how good it feels to laugh your way thru life before, but now I couldn't live without it."

I'm almost half-way thru the prompts now, and it's fun to see my journal filling up! The letter prompts go on every other page, and I still have to fill the in-between pages with random journaling, which I haven't been very good about. Guess I better get busy on that!

Next on my project list is a layout for this Sunday's Scrapping The Music song. It's a fun one! I won't be able to share the whole thing tomorrow, but maybe I can post a sneak peek!

So, in other news, I was looking through my latest Oprah magazine looking for images for my project, and I came upon an article about music, and a place where it said something about - if you like Neil Young, you would probably like this band called The Avett Brothers. Being a long-time Neil Young fan, I had to check it out. Turns out The Avett Brothers are an Americana Band and I absolutely fell in love with their music! They have a music player right on their website, and I spent the whole evening listening to them while I worked on my page. I think I will be investing in some Avett Brothers tuneage very soon!

Who have you been listening to lately? Anyone new inspiring you?

Project 52 ATCs for July - Weeks 26 thru 30

I have discovered that I absolutely LOVE doing Artist Trading Cards in sets, rather than one at a time. There's something really fun about coming up with a theme, and trying to make each one different while still having some continuity throughout the set. Plus, I love seeing them all lined up together!

Anyhoo, I made my Project 52 ATCs for July as a set done with the June Studio Calico kit. Here's how they turned out (click on the image to see the details)...

Here's how the backs look. I used these fun vintage playing cards that I got at the thrift store, and then I totally forgot to make sure the cards were right side up when I designed the front - AARGH! Oh well, mistakes just give it charm, right? LOL
Next on my project list is the "L" page for my "A Year in the Life of an Art Journal" project. I can't wait to work on that tonight!

Did you see the prompt over at The Next Step this week? It's a cute little mini-album made to hold your sewing needles and pins. What a fun idea! I really hope to get time to do that one! It's not on my Project list, so I may have to sneak it in this weekend.

Today is the day that the new challenge goes up at the "These are a Few of my Favorite Things" blog. I can't wait to see what it is!

That's all the news for today. I hope you have a completely awesome and inspired Thursday! I will be back tomorrow with another update!

Project 365 - Week Thirty...

It was a really fun week...

Monday, July 20th: I got an awesome happy mail package from my friend Denise. Vintage children's book pages, mostly cat-themed; and there was even one about a cat named Willie! How awesome is that?
Tuesday, July 21st: Willie discovers my lunchbox full of yo-yo's during an evening scrapping session...

Wednesday, July 22nd: My retro typewriter arrived...

Thursday, July 23rd: Rummaging thru an old box of memorabilia, I came across this photo of me at four years old...

and the last three are from Saturday, July 25th:

Willie looks down at us from the second floor landing, as we're on our way out the door for a walk. The picture's not upside down. This is what we saw when we looked up...

Looking up from the trunk of a very tall tree...

and the smile that melts my heart...

and guess what - I even finished a layout this week! Here's how it turned out...

Did you hear the news? SiSTV is closing their online boutique. I'm sad to hear it, but it sounds like it's going to be best in the long run, because Jeanette (the owner) will have more time to devote to the online community/website. Can't wait to see what exciting things she has planned for the future! In the meantime, there is a 40% off everything sale that started at midnite, so head on over and check it out if you're interested.

The big reveal at Studio Calico was a lot of fun! The kits this month look absolutely beautiful. I ended up ordering all three add-on kits, plus a bottle of lime green maya mist! I am so excited!!! I can hardly wait for them to arrive! When they do, I will be sure to share pics.

So, next on my ever-lovin list are my Project 52 ATCs for the month of July. There were five Wednesdays in July, so I need to come up with a set of five. I've got a number of theme ideas in mind. Hmmmmm.....

That is it until tomorrow. I wish you an absolutely beautiful, happy and creative Wednesday! Thanks so much for stopping by, and thank you for your comments!!! They really make my day!

BASB and Lotus Paperie... (Hey - that rhymes!)

Challenges are really inspiring me lately - I just can't seem to get enough of them! The current challenge at Lotus Paperie is a sketch, and the BASB challenge is to scrap a summer layout. I combined the two to make this...

"Summertime...and the livin' is easy."

I used the June Studio Calico kit (again!), plus my orange crush bottlecap, orange fabric from my secret sister Andrea, acrylic paint, Pink Paislee alpha stamps and 7 Gypsies gaffer tape.

Journaling reads:
It was a beautiful day so we decided to go for a drive. We discovered a sweet place called Coon Lake Beach, and came upon these horses, who were so beautiful we had to stop & take a picture.

The BASB challenge is a two-parter this time; and the second part is to share an organizational item for your scrap supplies. Something you re-purposed. Well, I love to store my scrappy supplies in all kinds of odd containers, especially really old ones. One of my favorites is this old metal lunchbox that I got at a garage sale that is now home to my various tapes...

It is just the right size to hold the rolls comfortably, and I love how it looks sitting on my scraproom table.

Do you have any ideas for repurposing items for storing/organizing your scrap supplies? I'd love to hear about them!

Thanks so much for stopping by and for your kind comments you've been leaving - I appreciate it so so much!

Oranges Smoranges - WHO SAYS...

Did any of you watch H.R. Pufnstuff as a child? I did. LOVED IT. There was a character on it named Witchie-Poo, and she once sang a song that went...

Oranges, Smoranges.... WHO SAYS?
Oranges Poranges....WHO SAYS?
Oranges Smoranges.... WHO SAYS
there ain't no rhyme for oranges?

I still think of that song whenever I think about the color orange, which is ALOT becuz it's my favorite color! Anyhoo, that is probably useless information, but I just thought I would share, cuz I'm a sharing kind of gal.

So, I did my layout for the first challenge at "These Are A Few of My Favorite Things." It's my friend Julie's new blog, and I'm really looking forward to playing along. The first challenge is to scrap your favorite color. Hence, the reason my mind was on "Oranges Smoranges." LOL. Here's what I came up with...
I was inspired by the layouts Georgia Visacri and my friend Penny D'Autremont did for the challenge. They both used a grid-like format, so I thought I would try a grid. The layout is mostly photos, but I also added some acrylic paint, patterned paper hearts, fabric swatches, a Sassafras deer, crocheted flower, and I pinked the top of the paper.

Next on my list is the BASB challenge, which is to scrap a layout about summer. I should be able to do a little bit with it tonight, but it won't be finished til tomorrow.

The new song at Scrapping The Music is "Good Guys Win" by Jimmy Buffet! Perfect for scrapping those layouts about the good guys in your life! Head on over and check it out!

That's it for today, but I will leave you with the Oranges Smoranges video for your viewing pleasure, and I will be back tomorrow. Have a wonderful Monday...

I am Loving my New List!

Hey there and Happy Sunday! I've been having so much scrappy fun this weekend! I think overhauling my list helped to declutter my mind too, because I have been feeling really inspired and energetic! I finished three projects today!

The first one is the "K" page for my "A Year In The Life of an Art Journal" project. As you can see - K is for Karma...
My journaling reads: "Karma is just the universe giving you the lessons you need.

The quote reads: "Every word sets off a charge. Every action small or large takes the planet for another spin, hard as it is to observe." ~Peter Himmelman

I used acrylic paint, magazine images, rubber stamps by Comotion, Stampin Up and Rubber Moon, and vintage sheet music.

The next one is my Gretchen McElveen scraplift for the Lotus Paperie challenge. The challenge was to lift one of three layouts posted in this post. I chose the "I believe" layout to lift. I love Gretchen's work, and I especially loved how she did the background on her layout, so that is what I focused on for my lift...
I used the June Studio Calico kit, plus acrylic paint, Stampin Up alpha stamps and stazon ink.


And finally, a layout just for fun...
The little journaling tag at the top says "magical things always happen on our walks."

Only one more day til the August Studio Calico kits go on sale! Since I have a subscription now, I will automatically get the main kit, but there are THREE fabulous-looking add-on kits this month, and I can't wait for the reveal to see the full photos! Yeayyyyy!

Well, I'm off to bed now but I will be back again tomorrow with another update. Take care my friends, and thanks so much for stopping by!

List Overhaul Time...

Well good morning my friends - er afternoon I guess! I was up til 3:30 this morning updating my project list. I usually do that once a month, but I did it a little early last night because it needed a major overhaul.

For one thing I've been enjoying doing challenges lately, so I wanted to include a few of them on my list.

Another thing I needed to do was to find a way to break down Dina Wakely's Masterful Art Journaling class lessons into chunks so that I have enough time to complete ALL of the assignments in each lesson in a deep and meaningful way. There is seriously SO MUCH packed into each lesson it's incredible! I printed out the lessons and numbered the assignments in each one. For example - lesson two is about journaling prompts inspired by the life of Van Gogh, and there are EIGHT separate assignments in that one lesson - and they are ALL so inspiring! So I am scheduling them in to my project list, one at a time.

What I ended up with is a scheduled project every day from now until the end of September. There are a few exceptions because of other scheduled events, but not too many. For me it is SO EXCITING to have all these projects to look forward to! Does that make me obsessed? Hmmm.... maybe, but that's okay!

So, anyhoo, no projects for today's blog post, but I'd love to hear how you organize your projects - do you keep a list? Do you set aside certain days to create? Certain times of the day?

I'm off to create my project for today - and if I have time maybe I will do tomorrow's too! HA! See you again tomorrow for another update! Thanks for stopping by!