This is a personal blog. All editorial content and projects are intellectual property of ashleyhortondesigns.com. I do receive compensation and material product from Pink Paislee to develop my craft posts, but all ideas and opinions are my own. Pink Paislee's bringing the party to you with the fun, new Birthday Bash collection! I have plenty of birthday photos to document every year with three kiddos in the house. For this layout, I decided to use a photo of our eldest daughter on her 10th birthday, posing with her Barbie birthday cake.I knew right away that I had to use the fun Party Thickers to create a large title for my layout. I chose the #11 patterned paper for my background because I knew the horizontal lines would be perfect for lining up my title. I adhered the word “Birthday” first so I could get the spacing right for the full title and once all of the letters were in place, I machine stitched through them.The photo I chose for the layout had a lot of contrasting colors with the Birthday Bash collection so I decided to make it black & white. I really liked the look of the black & white photo with the bright colors from the collection. I added some ephemera and stickers around the photo to help it stand out more from the colorful background.Since this was a birthday themed layout, I couldn’t finish it without a little bit of confetti! I used the Birthday Bash sequins in a diagonal design on the layout. Once I had all of the sequins adhered to the layout, I decided to add a bit of black Color Shine to go along with the splattered confetti look and to add a bit of contrast to the bright colors on the layout.Next time you’re planning to document birthday photos or create some party decor, make sure you grab the Birthday Bash collection! It will definitely make you feel like celebrating!
This is a personal blog. All editorial content and projects are intellectual property of ashleyhortondesigns.com. I do receive compensation and material product from Crate Paper to develop my craft posts, but all ideas and opinions are my own. I'm stopping in today, to share some fun, new Crate Paper products to share with you! The CP Storage collection is just what I needed to get my desk organized. This is a great way to keep all of your supplies on hand, and the products aren’t just functional…they’re also super cute! You can’t beat fun and functional!I love having my newer products close by, so I used the Paper Storage for the new Maggie Holmes Gather collection. This is a great way to store your patterned paper and also chipboard sheets. The Paper Storage holds a lot of paper, so you can keep your favorite designs all in one place.One of my favorite storage products included in the CP Storage collection is definitely the cute Ceramic Organizer. I love the soft Teal color and there are six spots for storing the embellishments you like to work with the most. I love the way it looks on my desk, filled with clothespins, ephemera, buttons and tassels. This makes it so easy to find exactly the right embellishments for your layouts or projects, and it’s easy to change them out according to what you’re working on at the time.The CP Craft + Office Storage line also includes one of my must have storage items…a cute mason jar, perfect for storing pens and pencils on your desk. I love to write down lists and ideas, so I need to have a pencil or pen close by at all times. This cute jar keeps them right where I need them. I also love that the jar is made of hard plastic, instead of glass, which is great when you have kids around the house.If you’re looking for a way to organize your craft area, then make sure you check out the CP Storage collection. You’ll love having your room organized, and you’ll love the way the products look on your desk!
I'm SO EXCITED that the Oakley Avenue collection will begin shipping in just 3 weeks!! I can't say enough, how much fun I've had working on my first collection with Melissa Ross of Pretty Little Studio! I hope you've had a chance to check it out, but if not, here's a look at what's included. There's so much to choose from:Wood VeneersClear Stamp SetAcrylic PiecesJournaling CardsFlair Buttons20 Patterned PapersDie Cut ShapesDie Cut AlphasLetter StickersFramesCut ApartsSticker SheetsClear StickersSequinsStencil CardsThis collection is perfect for documenting Fall photos, and you could also use items from the collection for everyday photos. I love having a versatile collection to work with!Right now, you can save 15% off of your Pre-Order with the Discount Code SEPTEMBER. Stop by the Pretty Little Studio shop ASAP, because the discount ends on September 9th! And keep an eye out, because my Christmas collection, Tinsel Town, will be coming to the Pretty Little Studio shop soon!
This is a personal blog. All editorial content and projects are intellectual property of ashleyhortondesigns.com. I do receive compensation and material product from Pink Paislee to develop my craft posts, but all ideas and opinions are my own.Summer is coming to a close and school days are fast approaching. If you’re like me, you have to snap some photos of the kiddies every year to document their new grade. We homeschool, so I always try to take photos every year, and even throughout the school year, to document school days. There are so many fun ways you can display your Back to School photos and I have a tutorial to share with you for a Chalkboard Photo Tray.This is a great way to display multiple photos, if you have more than one child to document, or if you take multiple photos of an only child. ere’s how I created the tray.Step 1: Gather your supplies: Wood Tray (available at local craft store), Pink Paislee collection (I used a mix of Memorandum & C’est La Vie), Chalkboard Paint, Foam Brush, ChalkStep 2: If your tray includes clips, remove them and put them to the side. Pour your chalkboard paint on a paper plate and begin painting the tray. Add your first coat of paint in a vertical direction and allow to dry for 1 hour before adding a second coat.Step 3: Add your second coat of paint, this time painting in a horizontal direction. I painted over the string on my tray, but you could lift them up and paint under them, if you want them to remain white. Allow your paint to dry 24 hours before the next step.Step 4: After your paint has dried for 24 hours, you can lightly rub chalk over the surface to condition it. Then you can wipe away the chalk with a cloth or paper towel. Step 5: I wanted a dusty, chalky look to the tray so I didn’t wipe away all of the chalk. You could add a clear coat sealant to your board, to seal the chalk. I left mine unsealed, in case I wanted to change things up in the future. After you have your chalk look completed, you can start adding your Pink Paislee collection with the clips. If you don’t want to use the provided clips, you could substitute small clothespins and decorate them with patterned paper.Step 6: Get your photos ready to add to the tray. I used a mix of patterned papers from the Memorandum 6×6 paper pad to layer behind my photos. For a finishing back to school look, I used a notebook punch along the edge of each photo before clipping it on the tray.Step 7: Complete your tray with a few finishing embellishments, such as puffy stickers and cork hearts.
If you’re looking for ideas for displaying current Back to School photos or photos from previous school years, I hope you’ve found some inspiration from today’s tutorial!
This is a personal blog. All editorial content and projects are intellectual property of ashleyhortondesigns.com. I do receive compensation and material product from Crate Paper to develop my craft posts, but all ideas and opinions are my own. I was on the Crate Paper Blog earlier this week, with a fun Travel Mini Album. I love that the Cool Kid collection has a variety of uses, so I went with it for the album. I created my own base pages, which was really easy. I started by cutting White cardstock to 8x6 inches. This way, when I folded my album in half, the page sizes would be 4x6. I chose several patterned papers from the Cool Kid collection and cut them to the same size of the cardstock. I adhered the patterned paper to the front and back of the cardstock. Once I had each of the base pages completed, I folded each one in half. To secure the pages together, I machine stitched through the folded center of all of the pages, while holding them together.Since I wasn’t working with a specific travel themed collection, I decided to keep the embellishing to a minimum. For the front cover, I added an album title using the Play Thickers and fussy cut letters from the Superhero patterned paper. I also added one of the paper clip stars from the Embellishments pack for texture on the front cover.Inside the album, I added photos from a trip to Arizona. My photo sizes range from 2.25x2.25, 3x3 and 3x4. When I create a mini album, I like to layer embellishments right over my photos to add interest and save space on the pages. I had White space in several of the photos in the album, so this layering technique worked perfectly.I also wanted dimension throughout the album, so I used some of the thicker embellishments from the Cool Kid collection. I chose wood veneers, chipboard, stars and puffy stickers that went with the theme of the album. I like how these type of embellishments give a “chunky” look to the finished album!This type of mini album is perfect for documenting a day trip, vacation or staycation. And they are quick and easy to put together, so you could make additional albums for family and friends if you’re traveling together!
