Last ScrapFIT Reveal: It's the Simple Things

The Workout:
Here are the guidelines for January's second workout on ScrapFIT.

Workout #60- It’s The Simple Things

Sometimes it’s the simple things in life that mean the most!  Show us what simple little thing means so very much to you!  Is it a picture your child drew, a family heirloom,  a special recipe or a book? We are dying to know! Join us for this "simple" workout by linking your creation to Mr. Linky at the bottom of today's post by January 31st.  


My Reveal:
I wanted to show that taking time out of the day to stop and spend time with a loved one was one of life's simple pleasures.

Workout #60 - It's the Simple Things

Sometimes you have the photos that match the topic, but this time I had to recreate the moment. Kevin and I took these photos on the front porch using a ladder and the camera's self timer. 

The Details:
Since this was about the simple things in life, I decided to also keep the page relatively clean and simple. This was difficult for me and I had to keep stopping myself from adding more elements and using more colors and patterns. I started by using white as the background and not misting that blank canvas or adding larger patterned paper pieces.

Title Block

I  used pieces from Pebbles' Happy Go Lucky collection, so everything would look cohesive. For the title, I chose a sticker from the collection for a simpler look, instead of having a long multicolored title made from alphabet stickers that I would normally be inclined to do. 

Flower embellishments

I used some flowers from the collection along with some rhinestones that I placed throughout the layout. 

Bird embellishments

It still looked a little barren to me at this point, so I cut out some birds from the patterned papers and place them in three different places along with the rhinestones.

 I stitched a large heart to anchor all the elements together so it didn't look like squares floating in space.

Journaling

The Prize:
Hope you enjoyed my simple little layout. If you have something you want to document, link your creation to this post on ScrapFIT by January 31st, and you just might win the following collection from this month's sponsor, Boys Rule Scrapbook. 

The Sponsor

The Prize

Thanks for stopping by,

ScrapFIT Reveal: Love is a Battlefield

The Workout:
This is my last month on ScrapFIT as my term is quickly drawing to a close, and this is my second to last reveal. I have to say I found all the challenges very interesting it made me create things I normally wouldn't have made. Here is the latest challenge as posted today on ScrapFIT:

#59- Be Inspired By The Music! 

"I love 80’s music and we are working out with Pat Benatar this week!  Her song ‘Love Is A Battlefield ‘ is your inspiration for this workout!  I can't wait to see how this makes you move!  You can find the lyrics here. Now its your turn to show us how this song makes you move!  Link up your layout or card to Mr. Linky by January 31st for a chance to win!"

My Reveal:

I read through the lyrics of the song, watched the video and then read some articles about it.  It was very different from what I remembered as a kid when I watched the video back in the early 80s. I didn't have any photos about teenage rebellion, so I went in a different direction.

Workout #59 -  War is a Battlefield

My sister sent me these photos of my nephew participating in Jedi training at Disneyland. It is like a mini-show where they choose kids from the audience, let them borrow a Jedi robe and light saber, and teach them some fighting techniques. At the end they battle Darth Vader or Darth Maul. 

The Details:

In terms of the challenge, I changed love into war, sorry, and placed a main star in front of the title, so the title actually reads (Star) War is a Battlefield, sorry also for incorrect subject verb agreement but it can't be helped. I cut out a yellow star and layered it on top of a black one for a shadow effect. I then stitched silver embroidery floss around the layered stars to tie in the silver metal star pendant I glued on top. The silver star is from Prima Marketing and looks like a piece of jewelry. It even has the hole for a chain so I tied a piece of ribbon there to make it look more like an embellishment. 

Title - (Star) War is a Battlefield

I used a travel themed collection from Imaginisce called Bon Voyage which has a masculine color scheme. Also the compass points in the patterned paper looked like stars to me so I thought it tied in nicely with my theme. Besides the patterned papers, I also utilized the matching die cut sheet. I liked a tiny die cut that said, "Welcome to our land, you are now in" and I added Tomorrow Land which is the location of the Jedi training. 

There was also a larger die cut entitled "Day Pass" which was perfect for my journaling block, it reminded me of the entrance pass. I actually made this layout when I was at an all day crop and I was sitting next to my friend Becky who had a tower of brads. One layer had star brads and she graciously gave me some, so the itty bitty gray stars are from her collection. The layout design is based from a sketch from Allison Davis' one page layout sketchbook, but you can find other sketches designed by her here. 

The Prize:

The prize for this month's workout is sponsored by Boys Rule Scrapbooks Kits which is a monthly scrapbook kit club for those who love to paper craft boy subjects. 

This month's sponsor

The actual prize is pictured below. 

The month's prize

Thanks for stopping by and I wish you a wonderful new year,

ScrapFIT Reveal: Mini-Pics

The Workout:
It is time for another scrappy workout! The guidelines for today's workout at ScrapFIT are as follows:

Workout #58- Mini Pics 

     It seems when something is smaller than normal size, it makes it better or cuter!  For this Workout you will need to work with Mini Pictures!  They need to be wallet size or smaller – you can have any many or as few as you would like. 

     You will have until December 31st to link up your layout or project to the Mr Linky for a chance to win!  Don't forget about Workout #57 - Word Of The Year - you have until December 31st to enter this Workout as well.

My Reveal:

I love layouts with multiple photos, so I decided to try and see how many I could get away with on one page. So without further ado, let me introduce you to my doggies who graciously posed for this photo spread.

Workout #58: Mini-Pic Layout

The concept behind this was that I've seen a lot of photo templates for sale, especially for digital scrappers. I decided to make my own photo collage using QuarkXPress. Here is a screenshot of what I came up with:

Designing a Photo Collage

I can now change out the photos if I like these measurements for another layout. The photos print out as one giant photo which make it really easy to work with on the page. Usually I have to glue all the little pictures individually and try to get them to line up straight. 

The Details:

At this point, I thought the photos looked too grid-like on the page and needed some cute elements to balance it out. I decided to build a doghouse to surround the collage. I used several different Bella Blvd. lines that had the patterns I wanted, like wood grains and stripes to paper piece the doghouse. 

I cut strips of striped paper and then tore them into smaller pieces to simulate sawed off planks of wood. Then I used Imaginisce Glam Rocks to look like nail heads. 

Wooden planks in the doghouse roof

I raised different elements of the page to make it look more 3D, like the roofline and the doggie door. I also used the door as my title block which I also designed and printed from QuarkXPress.

Doggie door and title block

For the embellishments, I created a scene by cutting out different designs from the patterned papers. I popped up some pieces for a layered look and used Glossy Accents on the dog's eye. 

Scenery embellishment cluster

There wasn't a lot of room for journaling since the photos took up most of the space, so I grouped some journaling spots in a cluster and labeled the basics. 

Journaling spots

The Prize:

If you like working with mini-pics, then link your creation to today's post for a chance to win another great kit from Paper Lovelies, an online crafting supply site.

Sponsor for this workout's prize

The prize this week will feature the "Old School" collection from Pink Paislee.

The prize for Workout #58

Hope you are getting your crafting and Christmas shopping done.

Thanks for stopping by,

Do You Have What it Takes to be ScrapFIT?

Repaired bears

Let There be Light:
Yeah electricity! We finally got power back after a week of no cell service, internet or electricity. It felt very primitive and Little House on the Prairie like, trying to get all the chores done before the waning light. It really gave me an appreciation for connectivity and extended daylight. At least I had family members who let me visit their home in the evenings.  I don't know how the Amish do this on a daily basis. 
The gale force winds were really powerful, besides all the trees and power lines that were knocked over, my wooden hanging bears both had their arms severed and blown away. I had to search for it among the tree branches littering the lawn. My hubby repaired them with wires so they are fine now and can withstand the next attack. 




                            ScrapFIT Design Team Call:

My six month term is rapidly drawing to a close with ScrapFIT and now there is an open call for anyone interested in applying for the new term which will begin in February for another six months. The basic requirement is to turn in two challenges a month. You can read about all the details here on ScrapFIT's blog post. I really enjoyed my time on the team and found the workouts both fun and challenging. The experience really allowed me to utilize my creativity and grow as a scrapper. 

Here is a traipse down memory lane to give you an idea of what transpired on the team for me:

Workout #49: Put a Banner on It

Workout #50: Be Inspired by a Book

Workout #51: Salt and Pepper

Workout #52: Sketchy Thursday's sketch

Workout #53: The Journaling Goes Round

Workout #54: It All Adds Up

Workout #55: Christmas Card

Workout #56: Technically Inclined

 Workout #57: Word of the Year

If this is something you are interested in, please try applying for the team. 


There are still three more reveals so it isn't all over yet for me.
Take care,

ScrapFIT Reveal: Word of the Year

The Workout:
Here are the details to the workout challenge posted today on ScrapFIT's blog:

Workout #57 -  Word of the Year

Its almost a new year!!!  What single word best describes how you want to embrace the new year?  Here is your chance to think about how you want to change, improve, create, define or challenge the new year! Share with us a layout or altered project that showcases your Word Of The Year! I hope you join us in our newest Workout!  Simply link your layout to Mr. Linky in today's post by December 31st. 

My Reveal:
I was brainstorming words of the year - challenge, create, dream... and finally decided on dare. It seemed more like a command and it encompassed all the other words. I could dare to challenge myself and dare to follow my dreams. 

ScrapFIT Workout #57: Word of the Year

I wanted a multi-photo double paged layout that was a summary of the year so I printed out 2.25 x 2.25" pictures from throughout 2011 that were a bit daring and fun. Since they were of varying colors and themes, I printed them in sepia for a more cohesive look. I wanted a sketch that could incorporate 19 photos, so I went with an Allison Davis desgin from Sketch Support.

Two Page Sketch #14

The Details:

Here is a close up of each page:

Left Page

Right Page

The main variation from the sketch was I added vertical banners. I thought that would match my heralding in the new year's theme. I machine stitched around the main banners to give a separation between photos, so they can be viewed in a strip since there was so much going on. Otherwise I kept the photo size and placements basically the same. 

Title Block

Since the workout is on a "Word of the Year", I wanted to emphasize my main word, dare. For this layout I used Echo Park's For the Record collection. There is a sticker page of letters and I used the round typewriter keys one and placed them on buttons that matched the colors in the collections. I made a mini-banner, wrapped some baker's twine around that, glued the buttons on top and placed it horizontally to emphasize my main sentiment. "Dare" seemed a bit vague by itself, so I added "to herald in the new year 2012" to finish out the sentiment. 

Here are some close up shots:

The Prize:
If you want to scrap your Word of the Year layout, please post it on ScrapFIT's blog for a chance to win an Echo Park "For the Record"scrapbooking kit from Paper Lovelies. That just happened to be the collection I used in today's layout. Paper Lovelies is an online crafting site specializing in monthly scrapbooking kits for only $15. 

This month's sponsor

This month's prize

If you find that you don't have the time to make a whole album for a large event like entire year or a long vacation, then just make a summary page with numerous smaller photos almost like a collage page. If you don't have the energy to write an essay with feelings and details, then just make a list of the places or people in the photos. Then you'll feel better for getting something down on paper. 


Take care,

A ScrapFIT Giveaway

ScrapFIT is Giving Back:

During this Thanksgiving season, Sara from ScrapFIT is thankful for all the supporters for her site, and is hosting three giveaways. Just hop on over, leave a comment on today's post for two chances to win, and follow the site for another chance to win a collection of scrappy goodness. There is a total of three collections that she is giving away.

Giveaway Prize

Away from Home

I'll be sharing more crafty projects next week. This week I'm away from my desk as I'm cruising around Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. See you all soon and have a wonderful Thanksgiving. 

Self Portrait near El Arco and a pirate's cave

Take care,

A ScrapFIT Reveal: Technically Inclined

The Workout
Here are the details to the workout challenge posted today on ScrapFIT's blog:

Workout #56 -  Technically Inclined 

Oh, how we all love our technical gadgets!  Computer, iPods, iPads, Wii, DS, Smart Phone, Digital SLR Camera and soooo many more!  What technical gadget do you hold dear to your heart? Show us and tell us why you can't live with out it! You will have until November 30th to link your layout to today's post for a chance to win a kit from Burlap & Buttercups!

My Interpretation

I did have a hard time with this topic, even though I use these items, I don't really feel like celebrating them. Usually I'm frustrated with them and admire the Amish and Luddites. This week we had a lot of trouble with our internet and kept getting dropped. After a lot of trouble shooting and text support, our provider sent several technicians out and one ran a new line to our house due to squirrel damage as the line runs through some trees. Who would have thought that was the source of the problem? Nature and technology collide.

Technically Inclined Layout

The Details
After a lot of brainstorming, I finally settled on an iPad game app. I chose the pet theme purely from a design standpoint as I wanted a cute layout. If I chose just the iPad, I didn't want to scrap a photo of an inanimate object. I did paper piece a white iPad and made that my title block. I put letter stickers on a piece of transparency and popped that up over a mirrored silver paper so make it more like a screen. The letters reflect on the surface below. I used some brads and Glam Rocks for the buttons. 

iPad Title Block

For a related embellishment, I made a wifi signal strength icon. I used a felt flower sticker as the base and hand stitched the curved lines for the reception strength. 

Wifi Signal Strength

 To balance out the embellishments, as I like to have three groupings, I put a cluster of hearts along the main photo. There was blue button on the felt heart sticker, which didn't match, so I colored over it with a violet Copic marker, which actually made it look brown. I hand cut two hearts, one slightly smaller than the other and hand stitched them together along the middle seam, for an accompanying 3D embellishment.

Heart Cluster

The paper collection and metal Glam Rocks are from Imaginisce and the felt stickers are from Pebbles. It is actually from a pack of cat themed stickers (don't tell the doggies), but the colors matched so perfectly so I used them in conjunction with Imaginisce's fall line. I used a single paged sketch from Sketch Support. 

Journaling Strips

The Prize

If you are unlike me and really love technology and want to scrap about it, please do so and link your creation by November 30th to today's post on ScrapFIT for a chance to win this gorgeous kit from Burlap & Buttercups. 

Burlap & Buttercups' Prize Package

Take care and happy scrappin',