Wednesday, February 10, 2016

Hatitude

Many, many years ago, my parents took us on vacation to the Grand Canyon and all places in the United States' southwestern region.  In Sedona, Arizon, we stumbled upon a hat place and the proprietor was a very outgoing sales man.  My brother and I tried on every hat in the place and like usual, he looked adorable.  My mom (love her heart) does not have a head for a hat.  The salesman, however, chalked it up to her lack of "Hatitude."  You know, the attitude required to rock a hat and not look goofy while doing it.  I am sure I had it in my younger years, but do not currently have much.

Last summer, my brother snapped this sweet pic of my husband and son with their "hatitude" inside a beach store.  It is one of my favorites!




To make this layout, I started with two pieces of white card stock.  I cut one to 8.5"x11".  I used the bottom piece with the textured side up and the top piece with the smooth side up.  When you get close, you can see the difference in the two papers.  I also mounted the photo on a piece of white cardstock.  I dotted around the edge of the top paper.  

I did use my cameo to cut the stars out of two different papers from the Amy Tangerine Better Together paper line.  I glued them down in an angular fashion.  I added a sticker and a die cut underneath the photo and did a touch of journaling.  

To make the "hatitude" phrase, I used my Cameo again.  I typed the word out and used the font Susie's Hand.  I scooted the words closer together and welded them.  Once  they had made a single cut file, I cut it out of black cardstock and glued them onto the white paper using liquid adhesive!

I loved the way that this turned out!
Happy Scrapping!
Lesley

Tuesday, February 9, 2016

Beer on a Boat

One of the most stressful parts of scrapbooking is the special picture.  Sometimes, I have a picture that I love so much (or a memory I love so much), that the pressure to have a perfect page is almost insurmountable.  
I always feel better if I can start with a clear idea of a paper line... then I just have to master the layout.  And when I took this picture last summer, I knew that this was the perfect paper for it!  I loved this idea of a tiny pirate on an inflatable raft.  And when his Uncle and Dad gave him a beer, it just didn't get any better!  

I used Echo Park's A Pirate's Life paper.  The center line of skull and cross bone paper is lifted up with pop-dots.  It gave me a great avenue to layer paper and stickers.  I used a one inch punch to pop out the circles from a different paper line - I did not fussy cut that madness!  I am quite thrilled with how it turned out and I feel like it really celebrates this memory!

Happy Scrapping!
Lesley

Wednesday, January 6, 2016

A Few Inches Different

I have always been a 12x12 layout kind of girl.  I did some experimenting with Project Life and pocket pages.  I like the pockets for certain pictures and layouts, but there is just something special about a fully "crafted" layout.  I love the way it highlights certain moments in time and in space.

So, when I started my baby's album a used a combination of sizes and styles of pages.  And, one style I wanted to try was an 8.5x11 layout.  I still use 12x12 papers, I just trim them down.  While it is only a few inches different, it makes a huge change in the look of a layout!  

The first time, I was also surprised about how much less space their was to embellish... a blessing and a curse.  I have to be really intentional with what I use and the space it takes up.  But, I love the way it looks for a special page.  



Happy Scrapping!
Lesley

Monday, January 4, 2016

Nerds Like To Scrap

I have an inner nerd that is quite large.  I used to teach middle school science, am married to a chemist, and watch Mythbusters religiously.  In this house, we use periodic table placemats and tell math jokes.  So, the math and science of my heart has inspired this layout... there is nothing better than a pie chart, except maybe pie?!?
I used Echo Park's Creative Agenda line.  Even though it has a lot of pinks and pastels, I think it made a really nice "boy" layout without looking girlie.  Although, I think you could totally put a little girl's picture in this layout and it would still be super adorable!  

I am off to get ready for a crop in a few weeks!  
Happy Scrapping
Lesley

Thursday, December 31, 2015

Happy New Year's Eve!

I hope everyone has a happy and safe New Year's Eve!  I know that we will be counting down twice, once to 8:30 with little bit and then down to midnight as adults.  Perhaps, with a bit of football (and scrapbooking) in between!

See you in 2016!
Lesley

Wednesday, December 30, 2015

Washi Tape

Is anyone else hoarder collector of washi?  I love it and use it all the time in layouts and around the house.  But, I also have A LOT of it.,, like more than I would care to admit or let me husband know I have.

In the past, I have always used it as an accent on layouts and pages, but recently, I completed this piece that features washi tape on a piece of plain cardstock.  I think it makes a unique look and really makes the picture stand out.
It was also a great way to make a small dent in my stash!

Enjoy and happy scrapping!
Lesley

Tuesday, December 29, 2015

But What About The Video?

The camera on my phone gets quite the workout.  I am constantly snapping pictures of my little playing and being silly.  I love the freedom and flexibility I have without lugging around a huge camera.  But perhaps my favorite part is taking short videos.  I think they are clips that really show his development and new milestones to share with family that live far away.  (Plus, I am secretly hoarding them for his my childhood reel when he competes on Dancing with the Stars.)  However, like pictures, they build up on my phone and no one ever gets to see them.  I scrap my pictures and now I scrapbook my videos!

I use QR codes in my scrapbook layouts that link to different videos.  They look very cool on my page and are easily printed and added.  I use the website QR Stuff to create my codes.  It is free(!) and very easy to use.

This is a layout I did, featuring QR Codes.
The paper is Cameron by Elle's Studio.  It has a young boy feel and really works well when broken up in this style of pocket page.    It is like 5 tiny layouts in one.  When I flip through the album and want to see the video, I simply scan the QR code with my phone and it pulls up the video and plays.  QR reading apps are free and plentiful and so easy to use!

Enjoy and happy scapping!
Lesley