Page Drafts May Challenge

I finally found a bit of time on my hands to join at Page Drafts this month! I love Em's sketches, and this month she has FIVE awesome new ones. The theme for this month's challenge is celebrating "One of a Kind", and I couldn't go past my boys for this one. You can find all the challenge details and the sketches HERE.

Here is my layout...

{Papers by Graphic 45; Cork print alphas by American Crafts

Published: Scrapbooking Memories magazine - Vol 17 No 12}

This is the sketch I used...

And here are some close-ups...

{Cork moustache embellishment from Francheville; and yes, that's my homemade texture paste at work again with a Heidi Swapp mini stencil. You can find my tutorial on making it HERE}

{Flutterby Designs flair; D-lish Scraps wire; Amy Tangerine peg; Lovelybug Bits n Bobs sequins & heart}

{Charms Creations book page map marker; Lovelybug Bits n Bobs sparkly heart} 

{Photo cut-out tab from Flutterby Designs}

Thanks for stopping by and for everyone who leaves me comments on my work. Your feedback makes me smile and is really appreciated! X

Off the Rails - Stripes & Polka Dots Challenge

As you may have guessed from the heading, the latest challenge theme at Off the Rails is Stripes & Polka Dots. I must admit, I'm not really a stripey kind of girl on my layouts, but polka dots? Hell yes!

Here is my take on it...

I began this layout with good intentions of clearly demonstrating the theme. But, (as so often happens when I create), the layout took over and I went slightly "off the rails"...hehe. Fortunately, I think there is still enough polka dots visible (and a few stripes too if you look closely) to say that I DID meet the criteria! ;)

Here's a few close-ups...

{Flair button from Flutterby Designs; assorted flowers including Manor House Creations & Green Tara}

{Polka dot mushroom pin from A little bit fANTsy; Heidi Swapp Hello Today clear pop heart embellishment}

{Dusty Attic chipboard mushroom - sooo cute, painted simply with gesso; 

flag sentiment cut from Echo Park paper - all papers used were Echo Park}

For everyone who saw my homemade texture paste tutorial on the Off the Rails Scrapbooking blog, here is a close-up of some of that texture paste at work. (I was VERY happy with the result!) For anyone who missed it that is interested, you will find it HERE

{Metal leaf embellishments from Lovelybug Bits n Bobs - I primed these with gesso, then spray painted white}

I seem to have been in the habit of journaling along the bottom edge of my layouts lately...

I do hope I have inspired you to join in the challenge at OTR! Remember that you can create just about anything (layout / canvas / card / Project Life / OTP) as long as you meet the criteria. You could win a fantastic prize pack from our very own DT member Rachael Funnell! If you aren't familiar with Rachael's amazing work, please visit her blog HERE.  If you are looking for more inspiration for this challenge, you will find more HERE from our amazing DT!

Thanks for stopping by! X

PS - Let me know if you have a go at making the texture paste, and what you think of it!

Show Us Your Stuff May Challenge!

Can you believe it's May already? The year is sure whizzing by!
Anyway, I'm here today to share my take on the May challenge for Show Us Your Stuff, and this month it's a sketch challenge. (Who doesn't love a sketch?)
Here is my layout...

{I used some vintage Prima for this layout, and teamed it with lots of flowers, altered chipboard pieces & 

just enough sparkle & shine.}

Besides using the sketch (shown below, designed by Amanda Hartmann), the challenge criteria is to also include flowers. And, as always, your layout must contain something handmade (doesn't have to be the flowers).

Some close-ups...

{Fabric bird button from Lovelybug Bits n Bobs; satin viola from D-lish Scraps}

{Another satin viola from D-lish Scraps; decorative pin from A little bit fANTsy}

{LOVE this gorgeous Dusty Attic chipboard butterfly! To achieve this effect I first primed with Gesso, then sprayed with Heidi Swapp Color Shine, then used a brush to apply some Kindy Glitz and dab on Glimmer Mist.}

{This chippie butterfly had the same treatment as described above; the chipboard bookplate was primed with Gesso, then I used Gelatos to apply some light shading along the edges}

I hope I have inspired you to join in this month's challenge. For more inspiration from our DT, pop over to the SUYS blog HERE. The winner of this challenge will receive an awesome prize pack from Molossi!!! 

Happy scrapping! X