Hello Blue Eyes (Lets Get Sketchy)

Hello Hello, can you believe that today is the final for the year over at Lets Get Sketchy!  Its been an amazing 7 months since I joined the Design Team, and I'm so excited about continuing to create with the girls next year.

This week is the 5th Monday of December, which means a special reveal.  Brenshevia Baker came up with an awesome Bingo board, and the challenge is to scrap a row.  I chose the bottom row (butterflies, chipboard, frame, stitching and doily) as it contains several of my favourite things.  Here is my layout, all about my daughter as a baby and her blue eyes (before they turned brown):

I used Crate Paper's Close Knit Collection, with a Maggie Holmes for Crate Paper frame, some tissue paper, and white cardstock which I machine stitched around the border.  I just adore the chipboard pieces from Close Knit, and this challenge was a great opportunity to use some of them.  I made by butterflies with my Stampin Up Punch, and sewed vellum over white cardstock.

Here is a close up:

And here is the Bingo card so you can play along.

This was such a fun challenge, do make sure you play along and link up your layout over on the blog.

Have an awesome New Years!

Melissa x

Lets Get Sketchy Christmas Edition Now Live!

Good morning!  I hope you had a lovely Christmas wherever you were in the world!  We had a different Christmas this year as Sam had the chicken pox, which started on the Sunday, which meant only Azaria and I went to Church Christmas Day as I was singing, and poor Sam had to stay isolated. He's still in isolation now, but at least hes distracted by playing with new toys!

Well I'm very excited to tell you that the special Christmas Edition of Lets Get Sketchy Sketch Inspired Magazine is now live!  Make sure you head over there and check out, the direct link to the magazine is here.

I'm on page 28 with a photo from my 2012 December Daily, and here are a couple more photos:

December is such a crazy busy time of year, that I don't really get working on my December Daily until January.  So far I've started to make my cover for this years mini album.  

Make sure you get your entries into our next magazine.  Details can be found here.

Have a wonderful holiday!

Melissa x

'Dec 25" (Scrapstuffz)

Good morning!  I'm up on the Scrapstuffz "Inspired by" Challenges Blog with my second reveal for December and final reveal for the year.  Make sure you head on over to the blog full details.

This time I chose to scrapbook a Christmas layout about my daughter, with non-traditional supplies and I love how it turned out!

I used Flea Market by Maggie Holmes for Crate Paper and I took my inspiration for placing the pieces of patterned paper from the grid like arrangement of the photos on the inspiration piece:

Here are some close ups:

Well its been awesome inspiring you to create this year.  Make sure you play along with this month's challenges, and also keep playing next year!  Have a blessed Christmas and New Year!

Melissa x

Kaisercraft Confetti Layouts (Artfull Crafts)

Hello, can you believe its one week until Christmas today!!!

I'm on the Artfull Crafts Blog today sharing two layouts I designed with Kaisercaft's recently released Confetti Range.  Confetti is really contemporary and playful, and I had lots of fun creating these two pages about my daughter's new haircut.  Both pages are designed to be placed side by side in her album, and whilst they are single pages, could be viewed as a double.  I kept them similar by using a mask with gesso on both pages.

Head over to the blog for full details.

Be blessed 

Melissa x

Lets Get Sketchy - Taking Submissions Now!

Now taking submissions!

Hello, today I want to let you know that Lets Get Sketchy are NOW taking submissions for the next full issue.  Here is what we are looking for:

Submissions are now open for our next Sketch Inspired Magazine.  This issue will go live online Feb 1, 2014.  We are looking for the following projects:

Layouts:
·         Gallery pages – Any theme

Special Section Gallery Pages

·         To “Die” For­

Layouts creating using that fun die cutting machines

·         Paint the town

Using paint in some form or fashion

·         Not so picture perfect 

Layouts showcasing a not so perfect picture

·         Selfies 

Go ahead and scrap yourself.  We as scrappers are always scrapping others but never ourselves!

·         Let’s Get Sketchy

Layouts created using sketches from LGS

·         Mixed Media 

Any theme

·         Mini Albums

·      Project Life Pages

Any Theme

·         Mini Albums

Any Theme

The deadline for submissions to our February 1st Issue is January 10, 2014.

Previously published work will not be accepted (print or digital).  You may however, submit work that has previously appeared in online galleries or blogs.  All work submitted must be no older than 60 days.

PLEASE SUBMIT TO:  LETSGETSKETCHYSUBMISSIONS@GMAIL.COM

MAKE SURE YOU CHECK OUT OUR FIRST ISSUE NOVEMBER 1ST, ITS CHUCKED FULL OF GREAT PROJECTS!

Best Ever (Lets Get Sketchy)

Hello!  Can you believe that we're up to the third week of December already?  That means its time for another reveal over at Lets Get Sketchy.

My layout this week is a non-traditional Christmas layout about my husband and I and the best scrappy gift ever, which was a voucher in US$ that he gave me for Two Peas in a Bucket last Christmas!  Here in New Zealand we don't have easy access to the huge range of products without paying a small fortune!  Here is my layout:

I used an older Studio Calico kit, and must admit once again that I've been hoarding the Elle's Studio paper!  It was almost a relief to get it scrapped!

Here is this weeks sketch, designed by the lovely Bev Code.  I loved this sketch as it allowed for layering.

Thanks for looking.  Make sure you play along, and head to the blog to check out the other awesome layouts by the DT.

Have a super blessed Christmas wherever you are in the world!

Melissa x

Glitter Girl's Scrapbook Survival Guide

A few months ago I signed up to an online class over at Two Peas in a Bucket called Glitter Girl's Scrapbook Survival Guide taught by the fabulous Shimelle Laine.  I'm really good at paying for classes, watching the videos, and then not completing any of the assignments.  

Shimelle's style is quite different to mine, but I just love learning from her as she is so passionate about our hobby.

Chapter One was all about scrapping multiple photos, and how to deal with having so many photos that we don't know where to start.  I created two layouts.

The first layout is all about my daughter's love for baking, and I used an older Studio Calico kit.

The second layout is also about my daughter, this time about her riding a scooter at Grandma's house.  I used a Paper Bakery kit.

I can't wait to get started on Chapter Two.

Have a great weekend, and thanks for looking!
Melissa x

Home Decor Christmas Frame Tutorial (Artfull Crafts)

Good morning!  This week is all about Christmas gifts over on the Artfull Crafts Blog, so I made this home decor piece with a $5 frame that I purchased from The Warehouse.  Sequins are so trendy in the crafting world right now, so I knew I wanted to feature them!  Here is the frame in our lounge, amongst our other Christmas treasures (which Azaria rearranged yesterday while I was in the shower!):

The following photos show how I made it, step-by-step.

1. First up I selected a large wood veneer star, and covered it with gold glitter using Glossy Accents.

2. I just love this patterned paper from Heidi Swapp's Believe Collection called Pepermint Stix.  I cut it to size, and then placed double sided adhesive around the edge.  

3. In order to really make the sequins pop I needed to tone down the paper so I layered some vellum over the top.  I made sure that the adhesive would be hidden inside the edge of the frame.

4. Being a bit of a perfectionist meant that I wasn't too keen on free-handing the sequins, so I made this tree template and traced around it with a pencil.

5. The final step was to glue the sequins down with Glossy Accents, making sure that I erased the pencil lines as I went up the tree. I used sequins from Teresa Collins.

And here is a close up of the finished frame.  I contemplated adding a trunk, and a word with letter stickers like American Crafts Thickers, but I decided I love the simplicity of it just like this.  I love how the gold sequins shimmer and shine!

Thanks for looking, and head over to the Artfull Crafts blog to play along with our Christmas challenges!

Have a great day

Melissa x

Merry & Bright (Scrapstuffz)

Good morning!  December has become so busy that I nearly forgot my reveal over on Scrapstuffz 'Inspired by' Challenge Blog today!  I'm so relieved that here in NZ we're a day ahead, which means I still made it in time!

Here is my layout about my kids last Christmas.  It's the typical morning photos of present openings, but the special thing was that both my parents and my husbands parents were there.  

Here is the inspiration photo:

I struggled with this layout, I think because I find themed products hard to scrap with. I was inspired by the lights, and knew that I wanted to use sequins. The best thing is that I got to use up some of some older product in my stash, including some of the My Minds Eye chipboard.  Here are some close ups:

Make sure you head over to the blog and play along.

Have a great day

Melissa x

Christmas Place Setting Cards (Artfull Crafts)

Good morning on this lovely December day!  I'm up on the Artfull Crafts blog today with some Christmas Place Setting Cards that I made with the Kaisercraft St Nicholas collection.  Head over there for the full details.  Here are some photos:

And some close ups:

Thanks for looking. Have a great day!

Melissa x

Sweet Moments (Lets Get Sketchy)

Happy December!  Its starting to feel like Christmas around here, the weather is hotter, things are more busy, and we've been practicing heaps on our annual Christmas Play at Church!

This week we had this awesome sketch by Ashely Horton, and I love that it is so simple, allowing as much or as little embellishment as we feel like.

I've been scrapping lots of older photos that I've had printed off for ages lately. This photo is of my daughter when she was less than a week old, being read to in Sam's bed.  I used the Beautiful Life collection from Echo Park Paper, and I also used a Heidi Swapp memory file which I cut in half, to mat my photo.

Here is a close up.  I doodled around the "Sweet Moments" banner to help it stand out as the title of this layout.

Thanks for looking, make sure you check out the blog for the other awesome creations by Team A.

Be blessed

Melissa x

Christmas Cards and Tea Break (Artfull Crafts)

Happy Saturday!  Its starting to feel like Christmas around here, with so much on.  I was up on the Artfull Crafts blog on Monday sharing some Christmas Cards and some layouts.

All Design Team members were sent a package of Christmas product with the challenge set of making cards.  These are my cards:

And I also made this tag:

For November I was given some of the lovely new Kaisercraft Tea Break to play with.  I made the following two layouts at our annual Queenstown Scrap Camp, and was challenged by fellow DT member Sharon to use my gesso.  

For the first layout I layered some gesso behind my photo.  The layout is about my kids and their cousins and the aprons they got for Christmas last year.

For my second layout Sharon encouraged me to stamp onto the wet gesso, and I love how it turned out.  This layout is about me with Sam when he was a baby, and I chose to scrap it because I look tired, which is very realistic memory of having a new baby!

Thanks for looking.

Melissa x

Oh Boy! (Lets Get Sketchy)

Hello hello!! Can you believe that its Team A's second and final reveal for November already over at Lets Get Sketchy?!  This week we had this awesome sketch by Tabitha Triplett:

I recently purchased some of the Close Knit collection by Crate Paper, so I was really keen to use it.  I decided to scrap an older photo of Sam when he was in hospital aged 1.  The photo is of him and my sister in the Pediatric Ward play room.  Hard to believe he was so little!

Close Knit is a lovely homespun collection which reminds me of my Mum who does amazing cross stitch.  I decided to flip the sketch, and use one landscape photo with a journalling tag.  I wanted my paper strips to take on the homespun feel, so I machine stitched around them.  I added my ink splatters, some chipboard, a fussy cut oval, a second smaller tag and some of the wood veneer and I was done.

Here are some close ups, I had to leave the date blank as I need to track down exactly which month this photo was taken.

I just love the chipboard that Crate makes.

Thanks for looking, make sure you head on over to the blog and check out the other creations by the Design Team.

Be blessed

Melissa x

Delight

Happy Saturday afternoon!  We've been having a great family day today, and I've had some time to upload and edit some layouts.  Today I just want to share another layout I made with Heidi Swap's Mixed Company line.  

This one started with me playing with the coral Colour Shine.  I misted the colour magic paper goods, and painted the Colour Shine onto the frame with a paint brush.  I will admit that I was tempted to leave the frame white, but I'm happy with how it turned out.  I also used bits and pieces from the ephemera pack.

The photo is of Azaria attending a party as a guest at 3 months old.  So cute!

Have a fabulous weekend!

Melissa x