Mixed Up Chipboard Mini - Clear Scraps

Hi everyone!  Today I want to share with you a fun album I made using the All Mixed Up chipboard album from Clear Scraps.   What?  You didn't know that Clear Scraps had chipboard albums?  Clear Scraps makes a fun variety of mini albums; acrylic, mixables, and chipboard.  So much fun.

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I filled my mini with papers from Authentique and lots of beautiful trims, flowers, and doilies.  And of course lots of inking to age everything just a bit.

The doilies were made using a new die from Prima.  Not sure if I need new plates, but I had to run the papers through my Sizzix machine a number of times to get it to cut.  sigh  Of course, they are so beautiful, it was totally worth it.

I love the Harmony collection from Authentique...mixed with a few items from my stash and lots of ink, they fill my need to make things shabby.  

Of course, I couldn't keep the pages flat, so many flowers, resins, and pop dots, I had to add my own binder rings.  Luckily you can purchase them in many different sizes.  lol

I hope you enjoy this project.  And be sure to check out all the album types that Clear Scraps makes.

Friday

Hi everyone!  Well, it is the end of November and that means the holidays are upon us.  Eeek!  After being sick for a week I just feel like I am so far behind and can't believe that so much still needs to be done.

I wanted to share with you a few projects I made for a call that didn't get picked up....sigh.  I did have one...so now I have two pubs under my belt.  woo hoo, me!

These are both based on sketches from Northridge Publishing.  The first is the family sitting around the fire in the back yard when my dad and step mother were here.  Gorgeous Simple Stories papers with bits of Prima bling and Petaloo flowers.  I added a bit of machine stitching and of course lots of pop dots.

 And here my little (eh, eh) darlings on the beach in Hawaii.  They grow up so quickly.  Authentique Genuine papers with a few ZVA crystals, Prima flowers, and Webster's Pages trim.

Well, it is a cold, wet, rainy day here.  And Mackenzie is swimming at the Junior Olympics all weekend, so I best get moving.

Hugs.

Nancy

Tuesday - Two Page

Hi everyone!  Well, our first day of school went really well, as well as can be expected anyway.  I really need to get a new schedule together on getting stuff done around here.  I have been trying to get the children to help out a bit more around the house, but with school starting....

Anyway....I wanted to share with you a project I made this weekend for the Authentique color challenge using a sketch from Susan Stringfellow.  These are photos from Phil and Brighton's 50 mile Yosemite hike.  They had a great time and took some amazing photos.  I left the journaling blank so that Phil and Brighton can tell their own story.

I used a roller stamp with some ink and a white Studio Calico mist to texturize the cardstock.

I love this Authentique collection, Genuine.  The colors are just perfect for my boys and have just enough pretty to keep me happy.

Well, time to get back to work.

Hugs.

Nancy

Tried & True

Hi everyone!  I hope you are having a great day.  Me....not so bad.  Having a bit of a problem with Photoshop...but nothing new there.  lol  DH is home today as he hopes to get the chance to do some work on his climbing wall and outdoor kitchen.  Of course, that isn't happening as he is sitting playing on his computer.  lol

Today I wanted to share with you a project I made using more of the Genuine Collection from Authentique and lots of gorgeous blooms from Prima.  (yep...all these pretty much came from the boxes we were allowed to dig in while at the NSD crop.

I took Ainsley and her friend to an Earth Day celebration at our Whole Foods Market.  They had an amazing petting zoo....goats, rabbits, chickens, lambs, alpacas...yep...alpacas.  Of course, I didn't get a good shot...but I promise there were two of them.....

I am really loving the blue and yellow combination in this line from Authentique.  Works so well for many subjects.

Well, I have bunches of things to get done and while dh is busy sitting on his computer, I can't have him thinking this is all I do all day.  hee hee

Hugs.

Nancy

Genuine and a Giveaway

Hi everyone!  Hope you are having a great day.  Me?  not so sure as I am actually typing this up the night before it goes live.  Tomorrow I am getting canned lights put into the ceiling in my scrap/office/guest room. So, since I may not have a computer I thought I would jump ahead....just in case.  hee hee

Well, other than sharing that bit of information, I wanted to share with you a project I made at the Prima NSD crop.  Did I mention that we had access to tons of flowers and trims...well, and paper?  I am saving some of those for another day.

But for today....here is Brighton.  I have had the Genuine collection from Authentique sitting in my stash for quite a while and was really excited to get a chance to play with it.

I did quite a bit of distressing with my Prima distress tool and the Prima chalk inks.  I really like the chalks, but I think I may still be a Distress Ink girl.  And I am so digging the chevron pattern.

I found lots of gorgeous flowers in the bins available to us at Prima...and the lace trims...to dye for.  This time I used pan pastels.  Maybe I do need to invest in a set?  hmmmmm

Love the Prima bling I found, and the metal flowers.  Just yummy.

Well, time for bed.  I am going to be dreaming of what color to paint my room when it is done.  I have some toile pattern in the room and a denim futon.  I am thinking a bright, sunny yellow, but then I saw a beautiful Tiffany blue.  What do you think?  Maybe pink?  hmmmmm Leave me a comment on what color you think I should paint and become a follower.  I will pick a winner to receive this older, but brand new book.  (US and Canada please).

Hugs.

Nancy

Happy Wednesday

Hi everyone!  Happy Wednesday.  It is a beautiful day here after a long night of rain.  Life here is still a bit crazy, but I wanted to share with you a quick card I made for my nieces third birthday on Monday.

I tried to keep it super simple by using my Londonerry A4 paper from Prima.  I love that the backside of the paper is white, so I didn't need to use a liner.  I added a few Prima roses and little snip of a Prima bling flourish.  A few Authentique letters for my sentiment and a tiny Prima butterfly accented with a bit of stickles and I was done.

Don't forget you can still sign up for the Sweet Retreat from Your Memories Here.  I am just crushed that I probably won't be able to attend since airfare is so expensive from California, but if you are in the area.....

These kits are only available from the Sweet Retreat, they will not be taught in any other classes in the US!  sigh.....

OK, pitty party over.....back to work for me.

Hugs.

Nancy

Rainy Days and Sundays....

Hi everyone!  Well, it has been a crazy weekend so far, with my nieces birthday party yesterday and tons of rain it is busy, busy, busy.  Hoping to find some time today to play, but wanted to share a few things with you before hand.

My cute little niece playing with those silly paper mustaches again!  Love, love, love those bling pieces I picked up at my LSS from ZVA.  This was made using more of the Authentique Loyal paper I picked up there as well.

And over in The Sampler news....seems we have some extra products from this month's kit.  You can pop over to the blog, and leave a comment on this post, for a chance to win some!

In the news at Your Memories Here.....All the winter 2012 grab bags are sold out!  I sure hope you got yours.  Kristina is working now on getting some new things loaded into the store but is really busy getting ready for.....

Oh, how I wish I could go to Sweet Retreat. Airfare to Pittsburgh is just more than I have in my budget right now.  But it looks like it is going to be an amazing event.  (can't tell you how often I have checked airfare hoping for a miracle).  If you are in the area or in easy travelling distance, or have a bigger budget than mine......

This is your chance to work with some of Prima's top educators to make projects like this...

Imagine an entire weekend devoted to crafting with some of the latest and greatest Prima products.  Sigh...guess I am off to check airfare again.

OK, time to get started on my busy day.  Hope yours is great.

Hugs.

Nancy

Monday...

Hi everyone, Monday here and I am by to share more projects I recently made.  It has been cold and rainy for the last week which has meant lots of time to play.

I made this one using the new Loyal collection from Authentique and threw in some bits and pieces from other manufacturers to create this Pagemaps design.

I can't believe how big Brighton is getting, so mature, so...well "big"!    I am so proud of him!

And here is Phil and I at the annual Bridge School Benefit!  I love this concert and don't know why we don't try and go every year.  I used a sketch from my good friend Heather who keeps coming up with the most amazing design ideas.  Lots of older Basic Grey papers and a few Prima embellishments.

Well, it is a busy day around here and I really should get a few more things done.

Hugs.

Nancy

Hooray for Long Weekends

Hi everyone.  Lots planned here today, not all fun...totally need to tidy my office/scraproom.  With all the scrapbooking, school starting, and the end of swim season...goodness...the mess!  But, there is some fun in store and I plan on doing a little mess making today and tomorrow as well.

Before I am off to do some errands tho, I wanted to pop in and share a few recent projects.

This first one is Ainsley playing in the beaver pond in Stanley Park (Vancouver).  They had a few docents with lots of little goodies including a telescope, nets, and microscopes so that the children could explore the environment.  Ainsley of course jumped right in and was ready to play.  She didn't catch much in her net, mostly bugs...but it was very scenic and there were pretty flowers, turtles, and the beaver dam to look at.

Pink Paislee Daily Junque collection, Prima flowers, Maya road flowers, American Crafts alphabet, Misc. lace.

And you have seen this photo before.  This is the South Sawyer Glacier in the Tracy Arm, Alaska.  Stunning.  Simply amazing how massive these glaciers are.  Such a shame that many will never have a chance to see them as they are rapidly receding.  To give you some perspective, the crevasses are 300 feet deep and the seracs are also a few hundred feet tall.  Needless to say, the idea of walking on these glaciers is not smart.  You need some serious ice climbing equipment.   I promise, it is straight in real life.  I wish I could get my scanner stitching again, but alas, for now I must deal with photos and keystone distortion.  sigh

Authentique papers, Pink Paislee alphabet, vinyl.

Anyway...off to run a few errands.

Hope you are having a great weekend.

Hugs.

Nancy

Distress Inks Make me Happy

I know, I use distress inks a lot...they are really one of my favorite products.  I seem to use them almost daily.  Why?  because I feel they add so much to my projects.

I was recently working on this layout of my son.  The papers are beautiful, but they don't have much depth and in my option, and for my scrappy style, they don't blend together.  They are beautiful, but......

Tim Holtz Kraft Resist paper, Authentique patterned papers

So, I used my foam inking tool and a few different colors of distress ink in blues and browns and came up with this.

Tim Holtz Kraft Resist paper, Authentique patterned papers, Basic Grey alphabet,  Tim Holtz Distress Inks, Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist and Tag.  Custom dyed seam binding

Now the colors blend seamlessly.  I was also able to add a quick swipe of ink over some naked chipboard to blend it into the layout.   I also added a bit of ink, as well as some Tattered Angels Glimmer mist to my tag to blend it in as well.

I really like the inked layout so much better.  That said, my dh...he likes the one without the ink.  I guess it takes all kinds.  So....which do you like better?

Hugs.

Nancy