Digital Challenge #2

There is such a learning curve to digital scrapbooking. I've been watching videos from Sande Krieger on some great "how-to" digital skills, but I couldn't figure out how to drag and drop items into Erica Hernandez's awesome templates. And today I FINALLY GOT IT!! Which makes the process so much EASIER!! I just love the way Erica thinks--her designer's brain is my twin so I love her templates so very much.

But because I just can't leave well enough alone, I discarded some of her layers and added my own elements. I spent more time on this layout than I should have--a couple of hours, but it's so relaxing to put something down, move it around, and then change my mind--all without the use of a paper cutter of evil forever-sticking adhesive.

(Supplies: The Sweet Vintage Charm Collection kit, Letter Template Value Pack II kit, Bright Birthday Mini Kit, Dream Big kit, Feeling Bookish Collage Elements, Elemen-tary Stitches No. 1 kit,

Flora kit, Monkey Do kit, Limoncello kit, and Vintage Photo 2 Tool Kit.)

Just a couple of notes on how I created this layout.

* I changed button sizes.

* I placed a bookprint circle behind the orange circles.

* I changed the opacity on the birds so you could read my journaling.

* I changed the levels on the orange paper which make the circles to make it darker.

* I erased part of the "tomorrow" title so it was a one word title.

If you have a great website with more tips and tricks, please share!! I can't wait to learn more about this genre. :)

I am so dang tired!!

What a crazy couple of weeks! Sheesh!!

Last week was FHE (family home evening) - Monday; 6th Grade Track Meet & Young Women (youth church group) - Tuesday; Early Out Day & Track Practice - Wednesday; Anniversary, teach 6th grade class for 1 hour, Jimmy's water day, Track Practice, and Enrichment (church activity group) - Thursday; Tend friend's munchkin, Kindergarten Graduation, hanging out with my brother who's staying with us - Friday; laundry, laundry, laundry - Saturday.

Then this week: Memorial Day, visit Joey's grave, take a LONG nap - Monday; 6th grade Field Trip, husband to first meeting with new church job - Tuesday; Water party, church meeting, church errand, Track Practice, and Book Club - Wednesday; sister to visit, work, church meeting, dh to his church meeting, and horrible allergies - Today.

I HATE schedules like that and thankfully I believe it's due to school getting out tomorrow. Thank goodness because I can't handle more days like this. I'm wiped out. In fact the sweet husband is bathing Jimmy and then we're off for a treat run--my favorite kind of outing. Then I'll come home and crash with some more heavy duty allergy meds.

Before I go to bed, I thought I'd share a QVC project--one about my Dad's awesome cat! Still stamping and working away with cool new die cuts from QK. I love happy projects!!

Rather than do a Digital Layout this week . . .

I'm working on some fun stuff for Quickutz. Do you have a Silhouette machine? I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE mine!! And every Thursday Super Awesome Kerri Bradford releases some new images for purchase from QK. At $1.99 per shape, it's hard to resist. I thought I'd share some of my favorite images she's created so far.

How about this "Fancy Frame"? You can ungroup the pieces to cut each piece separately. I will be using this baby A LOT!!

And this image is one of her signature pieces. She has several graphic word shapes that just speak to me! (This would be awesome for a birthday card or birthday layout!)

And then Miss Genius has loads of background shapes. I think this grid one is uber cool!!

And then this one is not from Kerri, but I love it! How cute is this bird?

Right now, 2Peas is having a HUGE sale on die cuts. You can see them here in the shopping section!

(And as soon as I can share my current projects, I'll let you know.) ;) Oh, and be sure to check out QK's latest Silhouette release tomorrow!!

Happy Memorial Day!

I'm still in my pj's. Just relaxing. The dh is still asleep and so is the daughter. Of course, my son has already completed his chores, found a few bugs, and headed off to play at his friend's house. He's my early riser. :)

Hoping to scrapbook today. Working on projects for 2Peas and Little Yellow Bicycle, and some fun other stuff.

Brett decorated Joey's gravesite on Saturday, and I haven't had a chance to see it yet. I will head over today. It's a hard place for me to be, and I've said it before but I feel him less there than any other place. Still I want to see the little Clone Trooper that stands guard each day. And I love seeing the little figurines and toys other people leave for Joey. How sweet that so many people remember and honor his memory. I'm so grateful for them!!

One thing I'm working on that's loads of fun is as one of the writers for the new Scrapbook Trends Magazine blog. Look for upcoming giveaways and fun things. I've already filmed one "class" for the website, and we're looking to do more. (The class has yet to be released.) Filming is NOT my favorite thing, but I am up for the challenge. LOL!

Wanted to share the current call for my article: "Make Me Laugh." Use journaling to tell or show me something funny. Can't wait to see what you come up with. The submission information can all be found at the blog!

Hope you have a wonderful day. I'll leave you with a QVC project about my youngest to celebrate this tender day!

Digital Day #1

Ok, so I'm going to challenge myself to do one digital layout each week to try and learn some new skills. I know only the basics at this point, but perhaps you'd like to play along with me?

I downloaded a few kits from 2Peas to give it a whirl. One kit that I thought would be really handy is Erica Hernandez's "Letter Template Value Pack II". This kit has a bunch of templates to drag and drop elements. I changed mine up a bit to fit my style, but you get the idea. I love her templates and am having so much fun trying them out.

I also downloaded the "Feeling Bookish" kit because I love the vintage book pieces.

I downloaded a new one that I'm so in love with . . . "The Sweet Vintage Charm Collection." This kit is jam packed with stitching, papers, cute frames, and elements.

I use the Borders one from Rhonna Farrer ALL THE TIME as you know I love decorative scissors and punches. (But it looks like it's no longer available at 2Peas).

And Kate Teague released two new kits: "Happy Spring" and "Sunny Days" which are both so colorful and awesome!

I'm learning a lot and realize I have WAY more to learn before I would ever consider myself proficient. But it's still fun to do and easy to correct any mistakes I make so it's good for me. :)

Wanna Learn something for the Silhouette?

Then you really need to check out Nichol Magourik's class at 2Peas on welding script fonts. I begged (and I mean begged) her to show me how to do this, and now she's got an awesome video to watch on how to do it. This feature for the Silhouette is what made me fall completely in love with my machine. It's so awesome to add a gorgeous script font on projects. :) It's got me playing a whole lot more with this die cut machine!!

I also told you I'd share some QVC projects. The first is a card from the Scenic Route kit "Sumner." It's a paper pieced card:

And here's another from the same kit:

And here's a layout using the exact same kit:

It really was a fun kit to work with as I love Scenic Route! :)

I am heading out in a few hours to watch my dd participate in her 6th grade track meet. She's running the 800 meter race. She's a distance runner (and I totally say that with complete pride as I'm NOT a runner). It will be fun to watch, but I'm lathering up on the sunscreen and taking lots of water because yesterday it was 91 degrees here! Yikes! From snow and cold to the dead of summer. :( Gotta love Utah! LOL!

The Mid-Month Garden is UP!!!

I love a good day of eye candy. And the 2Peas Mid-Month Garden is up today. You can check it out here.

Here's my Seasonal Layout for "Spring." I thought it would be appropriate to do one on allergies since ours seem so awful this time of year. :( You can see the supply list here.

And my last contribution to the theme of die cuts this month was this one on using digital objects printed out on paper and then added to a project. Don't you think those little robots peeking out are cute? Here's the supply list for this one here.

Here are a couple of other ones that tickled my fancy:

* This layout by Shannon Tidwell on Twitter. So cute!!

* Kelly Purkey's layout on her spring wardrobe. Genius!!

* Moon Ko's photography on this one is stunning!

* And Nichol's use of the anime monkey die cut on this layout is DARLING!!

And hopefully throughout future posts I will start sharing some of my QVC layouts. I held them back in case they were published in the QVC idea book but it doesn't look like that will happen so I can't wait to share. :)

Wanna Meet Some Card Makers?

Ok, I have to share some crazy awesome card makers. These gals just amaze me. I can't imagine what some of these cards take to make in terms of hours and skills. But I have to share some more links with you. :)

Lisa Spangler is an artist for Hero Arts. I often see her amazing work on the Hero Arts Blog. But I recently discovered her blog and have been drooling ever since. Gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous!!

If you haven't checked out Melissa Phillips, I MUST share her with you. This woman is the queen of layers and all things beautiful. She is a sweetheart to boot!! I'm dying to meet her in person if I can ever get her up to Utah for a visit. :)

Roree is another card making genius. Happy colors, beautiful embelishments. Just complete and total inspiration.

Lea Lawson is the bling! Seriously. She can work gems onto any project, and I will buy them because of her. :) She was a runner up in CK's Scrapbooker of the Year, and I was so excited to meet her last year at CKU. Sweet as honey and uber cool!!

Miss Kim Hughes is not only an awesome card maker, but a stamp designer as well (although she is no longer desining with Cornish Farms any longer--que sad music here). You've seen her darling owls, fawns, and other cuteness on many projects in mags such as Cards Magazine.

Ok, this isn't just one designer, but I have to link you. It's a card sketch website. And those designers can really work a sketch. I'm always impressed. It's Card Positioning Systems.

(Note: the card above was recently seen on QVC.) :)

Happy Mother's Day!

Anything special planned for today? Think it's ok to want a day of "nothing"--no activities, no chores--just resting, reading, and relaxing. That's what I want most for the day. LOL!

Did you hear Lisa's announcement on QVC? She's retiring from doing the shows. I'm sad. I really enjoyed working with her and the QVC team. It was sometimes a challenge to work with product that I'm not typically drawn too, but I always loved the challenge. :) I also loved working with Marci and Angela and Kerri (they were wonderful bosses, and I'm going to miss them TONS!!!). I hate to see doors close. Doors that I loved.

I was also sad to hear that Memory Makers will no longer be printing their magazine. :( This economy is so awful. So many awesome designers and editors losing the jobs they love. My heart goes out to everyone in any industry affected by this economy.

On a happier note, I wanted to share some designers work that I just love. These gals styles just make me happy. And since there are so many of them, I'm going to break this up into a few posts.

One gal, that I read her blog as much as possible is Laura Vegas. I'd love for her to photograph my children. Her photos are always phenomenal and her layouts are lovely. She's one of the gals that turned me on to twine on my layouts. I got to meet her in person and she's absolutely AWESOME. She works for Making Memories and rocks their lovely products like crazy.

Another gal I just love is Mary MacAskill. She has this awesome graphic style and always knows just when to stop adding embellishments. She can work vellum like crazy. I still want to know how she prints stuff out without smearing it. She is a sweetheart, and I'm always inspired.

Susan Weinroth is one of my happy places. Her darling family provides her with countless yummy photos. She's such a positive person and I admire her for that. I love her playful, graphic style. She works the Queen and Company and Fiskars like a pro, and I love her lovely color schemes.

Want to meet THE die cut queen? Then you MUST check out Nichol Magourik's blog. I'm hoping she'll become my own private tutor for all things die cutting. Nichol is always an AWESOME stamper. And she can work a double page spread like a master. Seriously one amazing gal!

On another note, the above layout was recently published in the May issue of Scrapbook Trends Magazine. They were looking for extra Mother's Day layouts, and I knew that I wanted to journal about my concerns over unfinished business with Joey. I can't help but wonder if I did enough or taught him enough or loved him enough in the short time we had together. You just never know if this moment will be the last. Got some mail for him yesterday and it just made me sad. Miss my boy on days like this. :(

The Swiss Dots Winner!!

Is Brianna B. Please e-mail me your address so I can send it out to you. (js_gallacher@hotmail.com)

Want to win a 2Peas GC?

Then come play along in my weekly challenge "Make it Masculine." You can find the challenge here.

I'm keeping this post short as I am off to the zoo with my youngest today for his Kindergarten field trip. I'll be surrounded by a bunch of wild animals in more than one way today. LOL!

Sharing Some of My Favorite Stampers!

I am a blog nut, and I love to follow other's work and see their inspiring designs. So I thought today I would share a few of my favorite stampers with you.

The first is Betsy Veldman. We served together on the Inque Boutique stamping team. Now that IB is no longer its own company, she is working with PaperTrey Ink. And man can she rock the stamping. She is drawn to rich colors and feminine designs. I love all of her work.

The second is Robyn Werlich. Robyn has been a rep with Stampin' Up for quite some time, but she rocks any and all stamps. Her designs have intricate details, sophisticated color palettes, and loads of techniques. I'm constantly inspired by her Garden Seeds at 2Peas each month.

The third is a recently discovered blog that I will be stalking a great deal from now on. Amy Yingling works for Stampin' Up. You will see her designs in the catalogs and often in publications. She has a straightforward design style that incorporates simple shapes for a sophisticated look. She and Robyn are friends and they come up with some very awesome projects when they put their heads together.

Jennifer McGuire has been sharing her stamping skills with the publication world for quite some time as an editor for Creating Keepsakes Magazine. She works with Hero Arts and often writes their blog and contributes to catalogs, videos, and just about everything. But Jennifer can work any stamp as well. Her designs are colorful, happy, and playful.

Kristina Werner is a fellow Garden Girl. She also worked with SU for many years. Her blog includes fun weekly color challenges. She teaches a weekly class each Friday by video at 2Peas. She has an eye for design and product.

And lastly, Kandis Smith just knocks my socks off. She has a creative eye for combining products with stamping. I love it when she stamps on pattern paper. She often creates for Hero Arts and was featured as a Guest Garden Girl at 2Peas. She is a constant source of inspiration.

Do you have a favorite stamper? I'd love a link to their blog or gallery. These gals teach me new things all the time, and I wanted to share some of those ideas with you.

Don't forget to watch QVC today! There are some products going up and a special announcement (which I don't even know) from Lisa Bearnson today.

Quick Clarification!

Sorry, here's where you can find the polka dots and other embossing folders! They're made by Quickutz! :)

What's in My Cart?

(and would you like to win one too)

Ok, there's just way too much cute stuff being released these days. It's really harmful to my budget. LOL! But I thought I'd still take the time and enable my friends. ;)

First off, have you tried embossing templates yet? They are seriously addictive. I bought a Cuttlebug machine for that very reason and it's the primary reason I use it. I seriously use it every day, though. I thought I'd share a few that I recently picked up because they're so awesome.

The first is this Polka Dot folder. How fun is that?!!

And then I envision filling the holes of this baby with brads, or photos, or hearts, or whatever:

And then I since I'm also in love with border punches, I recently adquired this baby:

And this awesome digital kit just popped up at 2Peas today, and I think I "need" it as well:

And I KNOW I'm going to regret showing you this one, in case you buy it. :) But how awesome is this stamp?!!!

Ok, and because I'm a total enabler, how about a giveaway?!! Want one of these:

A Swiss Dots embossing folder? I have a brand new one waiting to go to a loving home. Just leave a comment by Friday midnight MST, and I'll draw a name out to receive it!

Happy National Scrapbook Day!

I think I lost a day last month! I swear I thought May 1st was Saturday. Now I forgot all kinds of things because in my mind I had today to finish them up. Good grief! My brain is just shot. I hate it when time gets away from me.

Are you doing anything special for the weekend? I'm playing a little today (or working rather) but then I don't know what we'll do tomorrow.

If you're in the mood to win a fabulous prize from one of our awesome 2Peas sponsors, then check out the GG Blog today. The Garden Girls have posted all kinds of challenges that start today and end Sunday night. You can enter more than once but win only once.

My challenge is to use embossing and stamping on a project. Any project, any kind of embossing and stamping. Easy peasy. Right?!!

Here's my sample for the challenge:



We also got as Garden Girls, to select three scrapbookers in the forum that we admire and are inspired by. Oh my goodness!! My list could go on and on and on. Seriously!! I'm completely inspired by so many people. I chose, however, sasha_f, Carolyn Peeler, and walesk. These gals just knock my socks off in the gallery every time.

Here is my layout inspired by Sasha:

Here is my layout inspired by Carolyn:

And here is my layout inspired by walesk:

On another note, we survived the anniversary of Joey's passing better than I expected. I was so busy all day that I fell into bed exhausted. I believe it to be a blessing. My daughter asked me if we're supposed to feel sad, and I told her no. We're allowed to feel whatever we need to feel on any given day. I'm glad it didn't turn out as negative as I feared it might. And thank YOU for taking the time to post such loving comments. Whether I know you personally or not, I am VERY grateful for each of your messages. They are wonderful!!