Hello

Something I struggle with EVERY SINGLE MONTH is the card part of my Hip assignment. Seriously, I can put together 4 completed LOs in less time than these things take me. I am not sure why and I know that sketches can be a great help but even then, I find I am always fiddling around with them until I finally give up and photograph them. These were finished 2 weeks ago, then sat on my mantle and I looked at them daily, knowing they

were still not quite 'right' but not sure what

else they needed.

Do you do that with your projects?

Finally, I decided that some small yellow elements might

be the clincher, so I set to work with my Martha punches

& yellow cardstock. Not sure if I am 'there'

yet but these are more finished than they

were and I just need to let it go.

All cards made with April Hip 2-b Square kit + Add-ons.

I would love to know if you have any tips for making cardmaking any easier.

Maybe I am just over-thinking it.

Thanks for popping in!

Have a great day & happy surfing!

Inspired by Pinterest...

Sometimes while surfing Pinterest, I get so inspired that I have to get crafty straight away. The below quote is one of those things that got me playing with paper, alpha stickers and glue.

(Pinterest Credit HERE)

Supplies: White (71081) - Cardstock, Lavendar Grill Paper (35535) - Garden Cafe, Fancy Geiser (53113) - Thickers, Doll Waterfall (53169) - Thickers

I saw this idea shared on Facebook (source can be found HERE) and broke out my new Shoreline kit from American Crafts. This idea is a sure hit if your child is visual (mine is). He loves clipping his close pins over after he polishes off a task and successfully received allowance last week for completing his chores daily.

Supplies: 6x6 Paper Pad (35743) - Shoreline, Remarks Pelican Mini Alpha stickers (42248) - Shoreline, Remarks Flamingo Journalling & Phrase Stickers (42249) -  Shoreline, Delights Surfboard Paper Flowers (85584) -  Shoreline, Rockabye Leaf (42956) - Thickers

***Additional supplies (Border stickers & mini clothespins) from Crate Paper

Thanks for stopping by :)

HUGS & Happy Surfing!

Bucket List

Supplies: White (71081) - Cardstock, Hazy Horizon Paper (35639) - Dear Lizzy Neapolitan, Fresh Blooms Paper (35630) - Dear Lizzy Neapolitan, Silver Lining Vellum Paper (35635) - Dear Lizzy Neapolitan, Breezy Garden Paper (35613) - Gardenia,  6x6 Paper Pad (35658) - Dear Lizzy Neapolitan, Fabric & Epoxy Brads (78074) - Dear Lizzy Neapolitan, Printed Variety Tags (78069) - Dear Lizzy Neapolitan, White Woodgrain Muse (53344) - Amy Tangerine Sketchbook Thickers, Die Cut Cardboard Shapes (77290) - Amy Tangerine Sketchbook, 24 Pack Premium Ribbon (58817) - Amy Tangerine Sketchbook, Plastic Buttons (85561) - Nightfall  

Supplies: 6x6 Paper Pad (35658) - Dear Lizzy Neapolitan,Silver Lining Vellum Paper (35635) - Dear Lizzy Neapolitan, Sweet Sundress Paper (35634) - Dear Lizzy Neapolitan, Printed Variety Tags (78069) - Dear Lizzy Neapolitan, Remarks Books Stickers (42232) - Dear Lizzy Neapolitan, Remarks Parakeet Letter Stickers (42234) - Dear Lizzy Neapolitan, 24 Pack Premium Ribbon (58817) - Amy Tangerine Sketchbook

Winter Carnival 2012

This LO is about the 2012 Winter Carnival at Little Man's school this past year.

I knew I wanted this LO to be super colorful and that when I saw the new Amy Tan Sketchbook line that it would work perfectly for this LO although it is not a winter design.

Most of the banners/pennant shapes are made using sheets from the 6x6 book.

These are my new addiction in scrapbooking - they have the same design as the 12x12 versions but smaller, making these perfect for card making or adding that little bit extra to a LO. The 6x6 pads are also a steal of a deal since they cost a fraction of the price of the 12x12's (which is really great if you are a paper hoarder like me - you still get all the designs you can't pass up, they are less expensive, take up less room when storing them and is much easier to utilize. PLUS I feel alot less guilty cutting into these sheets  (as opposed to the 12x12's) if I just want to use a small part of the paper.

It's really a win/win all around! 

Supplies: Honeycomb (71633) - Cardstock, 6x6 Paper Pad (35714) - Amy Tangerine Sketchbook, Bailey's Brush Paper (35675) - Amy Tangerine Sketchbook, Gwyneth's Graph (35694) - Amy Tangerine Sketchbook,  Remarks Dimensional Stickers Draw (42244) - Amy Tangerine Sketchbook, Remarks Fabric Stickers Pigment (42241) - Amy Tangerine Sketchbook, Scene Cascade (53341) -  Amy Tangerine Sketchbook Thickers, Muse White Woodgrain (53344) - Amy Tangerine Sketchbook Thickers, Bits Printed Cardstock Shapes (77290) - Amy Tangerine Sketchbook 

Thanks for stopping by :)

Have a Happy Victoria Day/Monday!

TIP: Did You Know...?

Did you know that American Crafts sells cardstock?

About a year before I made the American Crafts Design Team, I made a WONDERFUL discovery about their brand of cardstock. It is very comparable in quality & thickness (seriously, I didn't even notice the difference) to the other industry brands that you may be familiar with, comes in just as many colors BUT BUT BUT!! it is sold in packs of 60 for about $20 retail!!  That averages to about .33 cents a sheet!!
If you use alot of cardstock (I use white AND black on almost EVERY LO) this is definately something you should think about, especially if you like to plan ahead and stock up. You can find these packs at Winners (I found it for about $15 CA), your LSS (mine special ordered it for me) and sometimes Michaels. I also spotted  a great deal at Scrapbook.com this morning HERE. Check it out!
 
HUGS & Happy Surfing!
 

3 Minis

Last week was a busy craft week, with my sweet little neighbors birthday & then Mother's day, so I decided to streamline my projects and put together a few little mini albums. I got the idea from a team member's blog from the Papertrey Ink team but have never been able to find the post again. If anyone know's who I should be crediting, please PM me or drop me a line.

There are only a few componants to these Minis and the Mom & Nanny minis were both constructed out of one sheet of cardstock (including the protective cover) and scraps. The photos really take center stage here, so I left the embellishments as minimal as possible.

The dimensions of the albums are 4x4" and then the outer cover is about 4x10".
I started by scoring a 12" sheet at every 4" and then turned the sheet 90 degrees left and cut at every 4".
I then folded 2 of these retangle shapes accordian style and then adhered 1 full 4x4" block to another 4x4" block on the second rectangle. This gives you your album base.

You can then add to the album and leave it accordian style which will give you about 10 pages, but I adhered every second page to make mine into a book format (leaving  me with 4 inside pages and a front & back cover)

Here is a pic of the 3 albums with the protective covers.

I added buttons & brads to secure the string and then just loosely wrapped it to keep it closed.

I also added a protective strip to the outside of my album to act as a binding (see far left).

(and please pardon my finger in the corner of the pic, I couldn't get the cover to lay flat otherwise.)

This is the album I made for my sister in law (again, using mostly scraps and follwing the same format).

My SIL has a big personality, so I went a bit more wild with color on hers and added pops of yellow.

And lastly, this is Miss Michaela's mini.

She has 4 birds, a cat and a dog which she loves dearly, so I borrowed some pics, scanned them & and cropped them for her so she could carry a reminder of her 'babies' when she is at school.

(I cut the dog from a piece of Basic Grey paper that I have been hoarding for several years but I just knew I would have a chance to use it some day! ;)

Hopefully this inspires you to dig into your stash and make some inexpensive, yet wonderful little gifts.

Please link me in the comments section if you do!

Thanks for popping by!

Have a wonderful Tuesday!

HUGS & Happy Surfing!

Journey

Hello Scrappy People!

How was your Mother's Day?

I had a wonderful day, I got toast & jam in bed (complete with a tall glass of cold Diet Coke)

along with a potted bunch of mums & chocolates.

Life was pretty good yesterday although it went MUCH too quickly. :(

And today is back to the grind.

I have a quick post today, sharing one of my new favorite trends of the moment: Woodgrain paper.

I left a hefty amount showing on this LO - it was much too pretty to cover up and added some wood veneer frames to create a border along the side.

I have to say this has been one of my favorite Hip kits to date!

(you can find the April Hip kit details HERE)

So, I am very interested to know, what's your favorite new trend?

Or do you follow the trends?

Thanks for stopping by!

HUGS and happy surfing!