Happy 65th Birthday (for the 29th time)! Another card-making idea for beginner scrapbookers.

Remember my post about birthday cards?  Well people, I've done it again.  Done what, you ask.  I've made another birthday card.  This isn't rocket science ~ and I'm hoping that my lovely readers have learned to deal with "questions o' rhetoric" and dryyy sarcasm.

Soooooo, this time, the lucky recipient is my fabulous (fabulous = classy, elegant, always ladylike) Nanny.  I think she's celebrating her 65th birthday for about the 29th time.  I wanted to create a card that showed my Nanny the two generations of lovely ladies who have learned so much from her and aim to follow in her ever-graceful footsteps.

Here are some simple steps to fabulosity...

1. Using Picnik.com, I chose to create a horizontal collage.  I found four pictures of Nanny, mom, myself and my sis and cropped them to similar size (2x2.5 - which is a particular setting on Picnik's cropping), then changed them to black and white.  All the photo editing was done right on the Picnik website. 

2. Then, still in Picnik, I created a collage.  This is really simple to do and is basically just drag-and-drop.  Picnik sets up the spacing and the cool black lines in between the photos.  Save.  Print.  *Love* 

3. Select the paper you want to use and fold it in half... again, I like top-to-bottom folding because it's easy to stand the card up.  Set your photo strip off-center for the cool artsy effect.

4. Add some whimsical words or phrases... The three I used came from a sticker set (yes, these are awesome stickers that look like typewriter font and are even somewhat embossed) on Scrapbuck.com for, you guessed it, about a buck.  Isn't life wonderful?

5. I also used my favorite butterfly punch and drew some squigglies and dots to give him some character.  Also note, the butterfly adds some repetition and coordinates with the butterfly image on the main paper.

6. Add a few more embellishments and dots.  I love little black dots (and little black dresses, and little black purses, but not little blackheads) -- they outline things really well without the harshness of a line.

ONE MORE THING:  Why is it that we make cards?  So we can give them away to people who will frame them and show them off in their house, of course. Try putting your beauuuutiful photos on the outside of the card; make it easier for the folks who are going to be displaying your wonderful creation.

Discreet Journal Pockets for Beginner Scrapbook Pages

On Valentine's Day this year, Matt's mom asked her kids write "love-grams"... She hired this hilarious actor to come to dinner dressed as a cupid and sing love songs and distribute the love-grams.  I kept the love-grams that Matt & I received, knowing that they would make a really great scrapbook page addition (and to help jog my memory of that awesome evening).  Thanks Marsha, for being a wonderful host and putting it all together!

If you remember from my post "Scrapbook Kits & Coordinating Paper", I discussed velum tear-outs as one way to create a title.  In this layout, I took that idea one step further and created a pocket to hold those love-grams.  Here is the two-page spread (grrrr... I obviously had not yet learned my lesson about being a beginner scrapbooker and the difficulty of two-page layouts).  Instructions for the pocket are below.

The other details of this page are pretty basic, so let's focus on the vellum pocket.  (BTW:  Vellum is slightly transparent, foggy looking paper that can be plain, or, in the scrapbooking world, come with cute pictures or sayings.)

1. I picked up a spiral book of vellum quotes at Michael's (approx. $7).  They have books for all occasions.  It's also smart to buy vellum tape which allows you to adhere the vellum paper without the adhesive showing through (approx. $4).

2. I picked a coordinating paper (for beginner coordinating paper tips, see Scrapbook Kits & Coordinating Paper) to serve as the back of the pocket. 

3. Measure how big the front of the pocket needs to be based on what needs to go inside.  Make sure you leave some flaps to wrap around the two sides to the back, and fold under the bottom.  Use your trimmer accordingly.  Crease the flaps well.

4. Finally, adhere the flaps to the back of the pocket using your choice of adhesive (note: vellum tape is not necessary here because the part that you are adhering will be on the unseen backside of the pocket).  Insert love-grams or any other special note!

To finish of the page, I added heart shaped embellishments and journaling in the center (made using a circle-cutter and by sewing a ribbon around the circle... more on those techniques later.)

Beginner scrapbooking tip: Pockets are a creative spot to discreetly place notes or journaling that has special meaning, and perhaps that you don't necessarily want everyone to read.

Friday Flip Offs!

Yay! It's Friday and I'm ready for my flips!!!  Thanks Gigi at Kludgy Mom.... this has become one of my favorite and most therapeutic weekly posts.  FYI, Gigi has created a 6-week course to improve your blog and guess what?  It's FREE-NINETY-FREE!  Check it out for sure... it starts in a few weeks and should be very informative and helpful.

Flip #1: Waking up at 5:00 a.m. unable to remember a particular actress in this movie.  WTH?  Who even cares?  Why would this be something that I just HAD to know at 5 in the morning.  BTW, the actress was Claire Forlani... but Flip Off to my brain!

Flip #2: To my veggie garden.  I planted you FOREVER ago... you were a "salsa" garden... I planted all the seeds at the same time.  How was I to know that the peppers would take 3 months longer than the cilantro?  Flip Off.

Flip #3: To the lady who was going 10 under the speed limit, then decided to turn her signal on for about 1/4 mile, then turned it off... I passed you and you were busy texting.  Really?  FLIP OFF

Flip #4: To summer.  Thanks for showing up.... in August.  Glad to have you back... now that it's nearly Fall.  Where have you been sunshine?  You're late to your own party.  Flip Off.

Everyone pleeeeease link up... and Hive readers, please post your flips in the comment box!  Happy Friday!

Black & White & "Read" All Over: Simple but bold cards for beginners.

Try making a card using a photo(s) on the front.

I made this card for my sweetie for our anniversary... Here's to one year... and many more to come.  I wanted the card to be elegant, dramatic, and to make a bold statement.  And considering the recipient is a dude, I decided flowers and butterflies might not be appropriate. 

I lightened the exposure a bit on this picture using Picnik, but it didn't show up too well when I took a picture of the card with my iPhone, but you get the idea.  The black background with a bright photo gives some nice contrast.

Obviously this is the same photo, but I printed it twice and chopped part of our heads off.  It feels sorta weird cutting your own face in half. 

I like to make the text of my cards simple.  Hallmark has tons of cards with beautiful language, but in the end, don't you really just want to say "I love you. I mean it."?  That's the point.  I love you.  I mean it.  There you have it.  Done deal.  Finito. 

BTW, I got the idea for this card from Lizzy Kartchner's book 52 More Scrapbooking Challenges.  It's my absolute fav.  She had the suggestion of printing the same photo twice... brilliant!

More simplicity and black/white was in order for the inside of this card.  I wrote the gushy stuff on the inside of the card, which is for Matthew's eyes only... but I also put a cute little tag with our "love date". And, always a fan of repetition, I added another bold statement in the same font as was used on the front.

June 15, 2009:  That was a really good day.

Fancy Photo Borders for Beginner Scrapbookers

One of the ways novice scrappers can begin fancying up their pages is by creating cool borders and mats for photos. This next page showcases an awesome day at the Padres game with my three favorite guys: Matthews, my dad, and my brother.
The beginner kit that I bought included some fun stickers (see the "family" sticker). I really wanted this sticker to stand out on the page, but it sorta blended in with the other colors that were on the background and block papers. So I decided to extend the dark brown photo mat on one side in order to accomodate the sticker... easy, but so effective!

The next border I did was a little trickier. Now normally, I don't measure my photo mats to precisely fit the photo -- I'm just not that patient. "Eyeing" it usually works just fine. But for this mat, I had to measure because I was actually cutting the photo. Here are the steps:

1. Measure 1/2" around all sides of the photo and draw a connecting line on the back of the photo (ends up looking like a box).

2. Measure another 1/8" from where the line is towards the middle of the photo and draw another line (now you've got one box inside the other).

3. The space you have between the two boxes is what you'll be cutting out.

4. Use your trimmer to cut on the lines - being extra careful to keep the outer border in tact.
5. Select how much of the mat you'd like to extend beyond the photo (then trim the mat accordingly) and use your glue dots to stick in place. Tada!

6. If you are a measurer by nature, follow this link for some fantastic tips: http://scrapbookingforbusymoms.blogspot.com/

Finish up the page with some "home-grown" embellishments -- like having your artistically-inclined boyfriend draw a baseball for you, hand-drawing bubble letters old-school style and cutting them out (yes, I know some of the pen lines are visible), and use that left over brown mat paper to make a cute "x" shape behind a pre-cut dimensional sticker.

Novice tip: Many of the other fabulous blogs out there are for more advanced scrappers who have invested quite a bit of money into die-cut machines and the like. For us novices, if we hone in on some of those scissoring and lettering techniques we learned in grade school, we can actually end up with some pretty cool looking layouts... and for a fraction of the price. Being the impatient Aries that I am (year of the Rooster, too... I'm doomed), I'm always in a hurry to have all the "stuff" needed for decadent layouts. But I think any scrapper would agree, using whatcha got aint all that bad either!

Another novice tip: Journalling doesn't have to take place in a conventional box. On this page, I scrawled some thoughts and wrapped them all around the page.

A little faith...

Sometimes you gotta just have a little faith... I'll take a lesson in faith from sweet Bun Bun, perched in the bicycle basket, high, high, high above the ground. 

I need some faith right now... Faith that my life path is headed in the right direction... Faith that every dark moment leads to something light... Faith that the universe is aligning the way it should... Faith that I'll never forget lessons of humility.

So I'll learn from my Bunny, I'll perk up my ears, I'll keep my eyes open for what lies ahead, and I'll be sure to hold on tight, because it might be a bumpy ride.

Faith, hope, love.

~ KeKe ~

So many mistakes, so little time... Embracing mistakes as a beginner scrapbooker

Oopsie daisy.

I made so many mistakes on this page.  Can you tell?  Here, I'll point them out to you and show you how I covered them up... or didn't, in some cases.

First of all, I made this page for my mini-scrapbook dedicated to Bunny.  That scrapbook is tiny, like 5"x5".  So how big did I make this page?  8"x8", because duh, an 8 inch page will for sure fit into a 5 inch sleeve.  Not so much, actually.  So, now I need to make it into a 12x12 page, but that's for another day.

2nd mistake: I used a little black marker to trace the scalloped edge and I went out of the lines twice.  I'd for sure be kicked out of 1st Grade for this type of error.  But *tada*!  I covered up the mistake using a heart! 

3rd mistake: I used an edge puncher for the photo mat and have QUITE obviously not mastered the skill of making the corners match up.  I didn't fix this mistake.  I.didn't.even.try.so.there.

I also went out of the lines on the bottom scalloped edge.  Let's highlight that mistake with a big yellow arrow.  Quick fix: put a flower stem close to the mistake... sorta like the "taking your eye off the ball" theory.  In law, we call that a red-herring.  (Gagging that I know what that means, and gagging that I used a legal expression on a scrapbooking blog.)

So people.  The short but sweet lesson for today: Embrace mistakes, hide mistakes, don't hide mistakes, whatever you do with them, mistakes are part of what makes paper scrapbooking unique.  I never said I was perfect.  But, if you were thinking I was, just stay in that dreamland... it's a warm, happy place... I'm there myself.


Today I'm linking up with Christine at MBC Scrapbooking!

Thanks for hosting a crafting link party, Christine!  Please link up if you have a craft or DIY project.  Don't forget to add Christine's button!!  Happy Thursday =)

Flippin Off and Feeling Good!

Friday the 13th... just a perfect way to start the weekend.  I personally am going to wear a crash helmet and mittens all weekend, for safety sake of course.

Gigi from Kludgy Mom, you have created a gift that keeps on giving... weekly therapy that costs nothing but a few keyboard strokes.  Thank YOU!

For readers from Creating the Hive: I'm still working on figuring out if Blog-Hops are possible through the Hive, but until then, please leave your Flip Offs and your blog link in the comments section on the Hive post... or visit Kreate by KeKe or Kludgy Mom for the link code.

And now for the flips...

1) To my healthy 2-espresso-shots-per-morning addiction:  You didn't fail me yesterday, did you?  I didn't have you by 8:30 a.m. and my head felt like it was going it implode.  You're demanding and a real pain in the you know what.  Flip off for being such a necessary evil.

2) The laundry pile... that's seeping, no spewing over the basket, onto the floor... essentially, I have laundry crawling up every wall in my house.  I hate laundry.  I detest it.  I always have.  I always will.  Flip off.

3) People who talk on their cell phone while driving but use the "speaker" setting and think it's "hands-free".  Folks, if you have to still hold your phone in your hand, it does NOT matter that it's on speaker.  Where are the police in this great state of California to give you a $350 ticket?  Better yet, why don't you learn the law and FLIP OFF.

4) While we're on the subject of drivers, the carpool lane is for carpools.  You sneaky, sneaky people who have no passengers but still use the all coveted carpool lane can FLIP OFF.  I'm just mad because I know if I tried to do it, I'd get caught. Boooooo!

Okay I'm feeling MUCH better!  Please link up and have a wonderful weekend!

So many mistakes, so little time... Embracing mistakes as a beginner scrapbooker

Oopsie daisy.

I made so many mistakes on this page.  Can you tell?  Here, I'll point them out to you and show you how I covered them up... or didn't, in some cases.

First of all, I made this page for my mini-scrapbook dedicated to Bunny.  That scrapbook is tiny, like 5"x5".  So how big did I make this page?  8"x8", because duh, an 8 inch page will for sure fit into a 5 inch sleeve.  Not so much, actually.  So, now I need to make it into a 12x12 page, but that's for another day.

2nd mistake: I used a little black marker to trace the scalloped edge and I went out of the lines twice.  I'd for sure be kicked out of 1st Grade for this type of error.  But *tada*!  I covered up the mistake using a heart! 

3rd mistake: I used an edge puncher for the photo mat and have QUITE obviously not mastered the skill of making the corners match up.  I didn't fix this mistake.  I.didn't.even.try.so.there.

I also went out of the lines on the bottom scalloped edge.  Let's highlight that mistake with a big yellow arrow.  Quick fix: put a flower stem close to the mistake... sorta like the "taking your eye off the ball" theory.  In law, we call that a red-herring.  (Gagging that I know what that means, and gagging that I used a legal expression on a scrapbooking blog.)

So people.  The short but sweet lesson for today: Embrace mistakes, hide mistakes, don't hide mistakes, whatever you do with them, mistakes are part of what makes paper scrapbooking unique.  I never said I was perfect.  But, if you were thinking I was, just stay in that dreamland... it's a warm, happy place... I'm there myself.


Today I'm linking up with Christine at MBC Scrapbooking!

Thanks for hosting a crafting link party, Christine!  Please link up if you have a craft or DIY project.  Don't forget to add Christine's button!!  Happy Thursday =)

{Squiggly brackets}..... mysterious, magical, monumental symbols for beginner scrapbookers

Can anyone please tell me what these things are called?  {  }

Are they brackets?

Parentheses?

Squiggly vertical lines?

Hold please, I'll ask Google.

(returning three minutes later)... Here is what Wikipedia says: curly brackets, squiggly brackets, definite brackets, swirly brackets, birdie brackets, Scottish brackets, squirrelly brackets, braces, or gullwings: { }

Whatever you choose to call them, they are used A TON in the scrapbooking world.  I wasn't quite sure what made them so damn important until I created the layout above.

The photos were perfectly in place...

I had my title and letters all picked out...

I knew I wanted to create a little flower garden in the bottom corner...

But there was no cohesion between the title and the rest of the elements... (back to Google for a definition of cohesion: [kəʊˈhiːʒən] n. the act or state of cohering; tendency to unite)

It then occurred to me that I needed some way to frame the title of the page (queue music and enter squiggly bracket things stage left)

I don't know why squiggly bracket things are so magical, but they pretty much are the cat's meow, the unicorn's horn, the best thing since sliced bread.  They have a strange way of bringing it all together when something just seems to be missing.  Give them a try... you'll be hooked on the squiggles faster than the disappearance of Coach purses at a 50% off outlet sale...

...and here are a few more layout pics, for the die hard fans.

Negative Space is a Positive Thing! A beginner scrapbooker's guide to using stencils to "positively detract"

Today I want to tell you about the great world of negative space.  As scrappers, we are so often piling on embellishments to add dimension.  But dimension can also be added by taking some stuff away.  This is sounding a little like a math tutorial, but hang in there.  In this layout, I cut out a large heart from my main 12x12 page and put a smaller dark piece of paper behind the cutout.  I guess I could have just put a heart on top of the paper, but then I'd have nothing new to blog about.  So here's the finished product:

The first thing you need to do is really, really, really plan your layout first.  You don't want to cut a huge hole out of your main page and then have to throw it out because the hole is in the wrong spot.  Once you've got your layout planned, lay each of your pictures down (but don't adhere yet) and lay your stencil down on top (even if it overlaps the pictures).  Use a pencil to lightly add a few tick marks to where your cutout will be (on the heart, I marked the point at the bottom and the two places where the curves were widest).  Once you've made your markings, remove the unadhered pictures and lay your stencil back down and cut out your shape.  I suggest you cut the shape out before adhering everything else so that the only thing that will go to waste if you mess up is the blank 12x12 paper. 

If you want to get fancy schmancy, and risk becoming a nine-fingered scrapper, you can sew a grid pattern onto the paper you are using to fill the negative space.  Do the sewing first (before you attach it to the 12x12), and also be sure to trace your shape (using the same stencil, of course) prior to sewing, so that you are sure to sew a large enough grid pattern.  Adhere it to the backside of the 12x12 and see your negative space now filled with an awesome pattern.

I also did some slight inking around the edges of the heart.  It occurs to me now that it looks like it's bleeding, but oh well.... Hopefully some gore will be good for ratings.

Here are a few other features of this layout.  I combined both text and pictures for the title.  No, no, the title isn't "I Left My In" - although that would make perfect sense - the title is "I Left My Heart In San Francisco".

Matthew and I took a trip to San Francisco and Napa Valley as a joint celebration for our 1 year anniversary and his sister's big 3-0 birthday.  What an amazing trip!  The sun seemed to follow us everywhere we went and I'll do a future post showing more pictures of the Napa portion of the trip.

I spent a LOT of time on this layout and even hand sewed the buttons on top of the butterfly (courtesy of the fantabulous punches from Marsha) and hand sewed a button on top of a paper flower on top of another button.  The time spent doing these things was definitely worth it... and I'm finding that some layouts require a bit more TLC than others.

I also used a border punch on the side of the bottom picture and sneakily made a pocket behind the picture so that I could insert the anniversary card that my sweetie gave me.

Truth be told, this layout probably took me about four hours.  Time consuming, yes, but hey, it's not like I have any cooking or cleaning or gardening or random-other-non-scrapbooking-chores to do, right?  Let's get our priorities straight here, please.

Best.Organizer.Ever: A beginner scrapbooker's dream.

For months I've searched for the perfect embellishment/tools/everything else organizer.  Friends, I have finally found one.  It's by Creative Options (who are not paying me to review this product, nor did they send me any swag) and it's basically a tackle box on crack. 

It's a multi-tiered self-contained box, sturdy but also light enough to carry around.

The main compartment contains three shelves which each house a smaller plastic organizer with compartments that can be altered to your needs.  Here is what the inside of each smaller orgainizer looks like...

Ribbons, ribbons, ribbons...

Letters, letters, letters...

Tape, buttons, and pens. 

And on the top, there is another large compartment for miscellaneous larger items that don't fit in the smaller units. 

Love, love, love.

Seriously. 

After much online searching, mental anguish, and overall hand-flapping, I found this little gem.  The website lists several retailers, or you can purchase online through Amazon.  But I wanted to see it for myself before making the purchase.  One day, I went wandering into Michaels (okay, so actually I drove several miles off the beaten path, on purpose) and right there in the front of the store, on the first shelf you see in the dead center, was the case.  And then (can I get an Amen?) I saw a 40% off sign.  I immediately ran over to the clerk and asked her to pinch me, I was for sure dreaming.  But nope.  I was just experiencing a rare moment of shopping bliss when you find the perfect item and IT'S ON SALE.  My debit card has never been swiped faster. 

THEN, I got to go home and dump out all my stuff all over the place and *RE-ORGANIZE* it all.  Cue angels singing and light shining down from heaven. 

This beginner scrapper has arrived!

Flipping-off on Friday!

Ahhhh, Friday Flip-offs.  How I've missed you... I've missed the past few weeks and it's soooo nice to be back. 

Thanks to Gigi, who recently featured me on her blog, and who is the fabulous creator of the flips.  Her blog is Kludgy Mom and I highly recommend checking it out.

Let the flipping begin:

1. To my sudden need for all things chocolate.  Where is this craving coming from?  Why can't I just crave carrots or apples?  Why does it have to be Snickers and Butterfingers?  Craving, FLIP OFF.

2. To my little chihuahua Bunny.  My darling, you are seven years old.  You have always gone to the bathroom in a litter box... why have you insisted (these past SIX months) on using the carpet as your place to do your business.  It's so NOT ladylike.  I love you, but you and your behind can FLIP OFF.

3. To the California DMV website.  Thank you for announcing that the wait was only 36 minutes on Wednesday.  I flew down there like a bat out of hell to pay my registration.  Apparently in your world, 36 minutes really equals one hour and 36 minutes.  Time to revise your "system".  FLIP OFF.

4. To the health insurance system.  I'm quite a diligent and organized person, but trying to get you to process a claim dispute which was submitted four months ago seriously makes me want to poke my eyes out with a dull pencil.  Enough already.  I pay you, you pay the doctor.  That's how it works.  Get.it.thru.your.head.Blue.Shield.  And in the meantime, FLIP OFF.

Now it's your turn to link up! And have a wonderful, wonderful weekend!!

Inflatable collars, power tools, and one determined chihuahua: story-telling through scrapbooking.

Scrapbooking has to be one of the very best ways to tell a story.  Imagery combined with words, some fancy paper, and embellishments... really, what could be better?   The lesson for today: think of a story you'd like to tell and create a layout that illustrates that story.  I promise, you'll NEVER forget it.  Here's my example.

This layout tells the story of little Miss Bunny whose greatest goal in life is to sneak out of the gate and run free, as nature intended.  The gate at our house used to be suspended several inches from the ground and the bottom was unfinished... resulting in scary dagger-like poles which Buns would nearly impale herself on every time she squeezed under that gate to chase after another dog or small child.  Vicious chihuahua!

Matthews, who loved Buns the moment he met her, decided it was time to fix the gate.  Here is why Matthews is amazing: He first dismantled part of the gate to take to the hardware store so they could match the paint.  Then he bought a long piece of aluminum, used a spray gun to paint it, and then sawed it to the perfect length to cover the unfinished bars at the bottom.  All the while, Bunny looked longingly out the gate, knowing her days of running free would soon be over.

KeKe (me) has known the Buns for seven and a half wonderful years.  I am not fooled by that sausage-like physique.  I know that she can turn herself into a flattened pancake in 0.2 seconds if she wants to pull a Houdini.  I said to Matthews, "I'm pretty sure she'll be able to fit under  it still..."  "No, no," he reassured me, "this will do the trick."  But alas, just as we were installing the final screws, another dog walked by and Bunny showed Matt what she's made of (which is Silly Putty, apparently).  The look on Matthew's face was priceless... but not quite as priceless as the photo of him holding the paint gun...

Ooooh, such a scary man with those power tools.  So, after Bunny slid under the newly modified gate, we did what any smart human would do: we took BOTH gate doors off the hinges and lowered them by about three inches.  Take that, Bunny!  With the gate now sitting literally centimeters from the ground, we knew, we just knew, there was NO way she was squeezing under it.  Silly humans.  Bunny, apparently, can also squish her skull and shoulders and fit THROUGH the gate.  You have got to be kidding me.  I had no idea this dog had so much talent.  We sat on the other side of the gate and tempted her with a few Cheerios (her favorite treat, BTW) and she sailed through the gate like a dainty mid-leap ballerina. 

I appropriately named this layout "The Great Escape".

These past few months, we've had to keep a watchful eye over BunBun, knowing that even with the gate shut, she could leap through.  The only thing that surprises me is that she doesn't try to jump right over the top of the gate!  The final solution, an inflatable dog collar, turned out to be the simplest... and may have saved us from going through all the commotion to fix the gate.  But hey, it makes for a great scrapbook layout, right!? 

Here's is a fabulous photo of Buns in her inflatable collar, and Matt, in a make-shift inflatable collar (so that Bunny has a sympathetic fellow fashion victim, of course).

Don't you just love a story with a happy ending?