American Crafts Guest Designer!! - Oh Happy Day!

I would say I am speechless to be the Guest Designer today for American Crafts, but most of you know, that would be impossible for me!!  :)  So I will just say, that I am completely blown away!  I love all things American Crafts and was extremely excited to be invited by Paige Evans, to work with the Amy Tangerine Stitching Templates that coordinate with her Yes, Please collection.  I received a box full of goodies including Amy Tangerine Yes, Please, Dear Lizzy Lucky Charm, and American Crafts My Girl.  I had so much fun coordinating all of the fabulous patterned papers and having the chance to work with the Stitching Templates.  I really love to hand stitch on my layouts and the Stitching Templates are perfect for creating fun designs on your pages.  

I will share one of the layouts I created for today's post, and I hope you will go over to the American Crafts Blog to see the rest of my layouts and projects, featuring the Stitching Templates.

  
I thought the Flower Stitching Template was perfect for this layout, featuring a photo of the beautiful Azaleas that start blooming every Spring.  I used the Flower template to create my own unique background paper.  I also used some of the Alphas from the Inspire Stencil Kit, to add a little bit of whimsy to my Title.  Thanks for stopping by today, and I would love to hear your comments on the American Crafts Blog!!
 

On Trend with Arrows

There are always a lot of fun trends to keep up with in Scrapbooking.  Some come and go and some stick around or make a reappearance here and there.  One of my favorite trends for a while, has been Arrows.  Get It Scrapped! is sharing an article today, based on the Arrow Motif.

We live fairly close to New Orleans, LA, and love to visit a few times a year and go to the Zoo, Aquarium, and enjoy the good food.  Since my photos were travel themed, I thought the Arrow motif would be a fun way to embellish my layout.  Arrows are great for showing direction and movement.  I used Arrows in several different ways - word Arrows, Washi Tape Arrow pattern, die cut negative Arrows, and a positive and negative Arrow shape.  Arrows are great for embellishing your everyday layouts, also.

Supplies:  Patterned Paper, Paper Clip, & Wood Veneers:  Studio Calico; Patterned Paper & Letter Stickers:  October Afternoon; Washi Tape;  Glitz Design; Flair Buttons:  The Paper Bakery; Baker's Twine:  The Twinery; Cut Files:  Silhouette Cameo

Thank Goodness for the BIG Flower! & Let's Get Sketchy

Today, I have a new layout to share using the April Kit from Artful Delight!  I can't share this page, without telling you about the huge mistake I made on it, when I was more than 95% finished.  I decided I wanted to add a few...just a FEW...drops of Heidi Swapp Color Shine to the right hand side of the page.  Well, for some stupid reason, I was holding the bottle right over the layout and tipped it a little too far when I took the spray nozzle out, to make my drips.  A huge glob of the Color Shine dumped all over the page. I think I sat there in shock for about 10 minutes after it happened, because I really loved this page and wasn't about to trash it or start over.  My first thought was, just leave that way.  But I had a problem.  About a 1.5 inch section of the White thread in my Baker's Twine bow had been turned Yellow...and it wasn't looking so hot.  So, I decided to take on of the large Prima flowers that came with the Kit and just plop it right over the Color Shine spot.  It covered the mist and the piece of the Baker's Twine I needed to hide.  I am just so GLAD, that the bottle wasn't directly over my photos when the spill occurred.  Fortunately, I was able to fix it and still ended up liking the end result of the layout.

So next you have an "accident" occur on your layout or project, look for creative ways to fix it or make it a part of what you were already doing.  Most of the time, no one will ever even know it was there!

If you are interested in purchasing this month's Kit, make sure you head over to the Artful Delight Blog.  I have a feeling this one will go quickly!!  And you can play along with our Layout and Card Sketch this month, for the chance to win a Kit and be an Artful Delight Guest Designer!  

__________________________________________________________

And I also have a second layout to share today!  I am up with my first reveal at Let's Get Sketchy!  You can play along with a new sketch each Monday, and here's what I came up with for this week!

I have to say, that I am completely in love with the Nautical trend.  I used the Uncharted Waters collection from Glitz Design on this layout, and Dear Lizzy Lucky Charm and Fancy Pants Down by the Shore also have some really cute Nautical themed embellishments and papers.  I layered papers and several different types of embellishments on my layout to create texture.  And I wanted to add a touch of modeling paste to my layout so I used one of The Crafter's Workshop masks.  That cute Anchor is a cut file created by my scrappy friend Heather Landry.  You can find several Free cut files on Heather's Blog, Miracles Momma Designs.

Supplies:  Patterned Paper & Paper Garland:  Glitz Design; Wood Veneers:  Studio Calico & Freckled Fawn; Spray Mist:  Studio Calico; Washi Tape:  Love My Tapes; Flair Button: Ormolu; Modeling Paste:  Liquitex; Mask:  The Crafter's Workshop; Anchor Cut File:   http://miraclesmommadesigns.blogspot.com/; Other:  Shipping Tag

Paper Issues Insta Love!

WooHoo!  Today is my first post with Paper Issues and I am so excited to have you "hopping" along for our Insta Love Theme!  Our Sponsor is Origrami, and they are giving away 3 Retroprints packs!!

You should have arrived her from Aimee's Blog.  If this is your first stop, be sure to head over to Paper Issues to start at the beginning!  Here is the Hop order:

Paper Issues

Sara

Kelly

Cassie

Amiee

Ashely <----- You are Here.

Now for the fun part...I get to share my layout, using one of my Retroprints from Origrami!  And most of the product used on my layout, came from the Paper Issues Etsy Shop!

  
Love the new Here + There collection from Studio Calico, and I picked up the papers, Thickers, Washi Tape, and Freckled Fawn wood veneers all from the Paper Issues Etsy Shop.  The fun thing about the Origrami prints, is that they also print on the backside of your photo.  I wanted to show off the cute Camera on the back of my photo, so I decided to make it flip, and it also gave me a perfect spot for some hidden journaling! 
  

And don't forget, when you're shopping, use the Code ASHLEY75 at checkout to save 20% off of your order!!

Now, that you have completed the Hop, make sure you visit and like the Paper Issues Facebook Page.

And thanks for hopping with us today!  Make sure you:

1.  Like Origrami on Facebook (tell them Paper Issues sent you)

2.  Like Paper Issues on Facebook

3.  Leave a comment on the Insta Love post on the Paper Issues Blog 

  

It's Time to Flip Out!...and a Little Bit More!

I am up today on The Paper Bakery Blog, with a Flip Book using the March Kit Soda Shop, and featuring some Elle's Studio products.  Here is a look at the front cover of my Flip Book...

To check out the rest of my Book, head over to The Paper Bakery Blog!!

I also have a layout and card to share with you today!  I loved the Cut Files that were included with the Soda Shop Kit and I used the Triangle Cut File on my Elle's Studio background paper for this layout!

I added texture to my page using some hand stitching, some of the cute Paper Bakery Flair Buttons, and the Studio Calico wood veneer Chevron arrows that are included in the Kit.

Last up, is a Card, using some of the Exclusive Elle's Studio Mash Up Flair!

I loved the fun Aardvark Paper Straws that were included in this Kit and I used it to make a little lolli embellishment with the Elle's Studio Flair and Allison Kreft Ribbon.  I tucked two of the Elle's Studio tags into the Chevron glassine bag, and finished off with a heart border cut on my Cameo.

I hope you enjoyed all of the projects and layouts I posted using the Soda Shop Kit!  You won't want to miss the April Kit, which will be revealed on April 15!

A Little Bit "Off"

That could be the understatement of the year, but we aren't here to talk about me, just my layout for Get It Scrapped!  :)  Today's article focuses on Off the Edge with Clusters and Bits.  I'm sure most of us use clusters on our pages, but have you ever thought about placing them where they are "bleeding" off the edge of your page?  Let's take a look at how I used this technique on my layout:

 
I really wanted a cute photo of all three kids together for Valentine's Day this year, and actually managed to accomplish it...it's definitely not an easy task!!  I used Off the Edge clusters, to create a visual triangle on my layout, to guide your eye around the page.  This offered plenty of space for clustering elements on my layout, while still showcasing the photo and mix of patterned papers.  And the Off the Edge clusters are fun for mixing and layering lots of little bits like doilies, buttons, twine, Washi Tape, Flair Buttons, etc.

Supplies - Patterned Paper:  Crate Paper; Flair Buttons:  Ormolu; Clothespin:  Amy Tangerine; Buttons & Thickers:  American Crafts:  Washi Tape:  Prima Marketing; Baker's Twine:  The Twinery;  Stamps:  Teresa Collins. Ink:  Stampin' Up; Doilies:  Hobby Lobby; Font:  Pacifico

Happy Go Lucky!

All I can say about the April Kit from Artful Delight, is WOW!!  It is filled with some of the beautiful Lucky Charm collection from Dear Lizzy and the fun Color Me Happy collection from Glitz Design.  I couldn't wait to open this one up and start creating with it!!  I actually took this photo on Friday afternoon and came home that night and got this page completed.  It was so quick and easy, since I had all of the fun papers and embellishments in this Kit and I also used the April Sketch.  You can come play along with the layout and card sketch at Artful Delight, for the chance to be a Guest Designer!

 

Aside from the amazing papers included in this month's Kit, there is also a totally adorable Memory File Clear Stamp set from Heidi Swapp!  Even though my stamping skills are somewhat on the not so great side, I knew I had to use these fun stamps on my layout.  I especially love the little arrow stamp and repeated it three times, pointing to the wooden heart embellishment.

If you missed the reveal of the April Scrapbook and Card Kits, here's a look at what you'll get:

Scrapbook Kit:

 Card Kit:

 

 

For a complete list of all of the items included in both Kits, visit THIS POST on the Artful Delight Blog.