Enjoy Together | June 2021 Hip Kit

 

Hi everyone, today I have a layout to share that wasn't created for anyone other than myself. (Yes, sometimes it actually happens!) If you watch my YouTube channel, you may have recently seen that I did an unboxing video of my very first kit from Hip Kit Club. Subscribing is something I have been wanting to do for a long time, so my sister Mandy and I decided to bite the bullet and just do it. (It helps that we can split the shipping costs.) So I subscribed to the Scrapbook kit, and she subscribed to the Pocket Life kit. 

The layout I am sharing today is the very first layout I created from my very first kit. I was working with the June 2021 main scrapbook kit, as well as the add-on embellishment kit that I also purchased, which gave me TONS to work with!

The photo I was documenting is of me and my family when we were out celebrating my boys' birthday with lunch at the local pub and I think it worked well with the contents of this kit. The June kit consists of a mix of Pinkfresh Studio 'Happy Blooms' collection as well as Hip Kit exclusive products and they all coordinate beautifully.

For my layout I decided to create some subtle, pretty mixed media as the basis of my design. I used Kitsch Flamingo Distress Oxide mixed with water and then brushed it across my cardstock to create a light pink wash. I also used Mowed Lawn Distress Oxide mixed with water and a fine paint brush to add splatters.

I used the purple crosshatch style patterned paper from Pinkfresh Studio to back my cardstock and create a border for my layout. I then used a mix of the Pinkfresh papers to create layers on the focal area of my page. I also added a paper doily and some frayed gauze for texture before adding my photo on top. 

Alongside my photo was a small pocket style envelope from the Pinkfresh Studio Journaling Bits pack, with a journal card tucked inside.

 I used pieces from the Pinkfresh Floral Ephemera pack to add clusters in the top right and bottom left corners of my photo, with a third floral element (the flower tucked under the edge of the pocket) coming from the Hip Kit ephemera pack. The little heart button was also a Hip Kit exclusive. Along the top edge of my photo I added the pink banner to help cover up some of the background distraction.

For my title, I used one of the large Hip Kit chipboard phrases combined with the green Pinkfresh alphas. I also used several phrases from the Hip Kit clear sticker set to add some extra text to my page.

On top of the journaling pocket I added one of the sweet little Hip Kit fabric bows. These bows come deconstructed in a pack (which I didn't mind), and only require a minute and couple of dabs of glue to put one together. I also used my typewriter to add my journaling to the journal card.

I was really happy with how this pretty page turned out, and very happy with my first Hip Kit! I am looking forward to getting stuck into it again as soon as I have a chance. 

If you would like to see how this page came together, then you can watch my process video here:

Thanks for stopping by today, happy scrapping! X

Ho Ho Ho | Scrap the Girls December Challenge

 Hi everyone!

Popping in today to share my take on the December challenge for Scrap the Girls, which (not surprisingly) just happens to have a bit of a festive theme. It's called "The Story of Christmas" and besides the overall theme, it features a colour palette and an inspirational image.

Here's a look at the board...

And here is my take on it, using the new 'Merry & Bright' Christmas collection from Cocoa Vanilla Studio...

The photo I was documenting was a photo of my daughter with Santa that I took last year. Yes, I know Santa isn't a girl, but we make a special exception to our "no boys" rule for Santa in this challenge. (So if you have any Santa photos with your girls, this is a great time to get them scrapped!)

I decided to use a mix of two patterned papers for my background - the tiny spots on the Happy Holidays paper, combined with the candy stripes of the Jingle All the Way paper. I also added some tearing and distressing for texture along the top join between the two. 

Next, I cut a couple of pieces of patterned paper from the A5 Paper Stack to create a double layered matt for my photo. I then added some frayed gauze before sticking my photo down on top.

With my photo in place, my plan was to embellish along a horizontal line on either side of the photo, right where the lower join between the two patterned papers was. For this, I wanted to use some of the gorgeous little gingerbread style houses from the range to form a bit of scene to frame the photo.

The two larger houses were both fussy cut from a couple of the new Pocket Cards, whilst the third smaller house was from the Die Cut Ephemera pack. I also used the Hey Santa card from the Pocket Card pack. I then extended the line of embellishments out further by adding two tags from the ephemera pack that I had tied with small pieces of twine. The final large piece I added was the Christmas tree, which I tucked in behind the house on the left side of the page.

With all of my main embellishments in place along the line, I then decided to add a little bit of extra colour using a light peach watercolour paint which I just gently painted in around edges of my embellishments.

For my title, I fussy cut the words Ho Ho Ho from another of the Pocket Cards and stuck it down above my photo. A few little touches to finish my page off included a die cut flower tucked in along the top join where I had folded back the paper and secured it with staples; a small die cut heart down near the bottom of the page; a stamped date; and my handwritten journalling. 

I am really happy with how this sweet layout turned out and I hope you will join us for this challenge. You can grab all the challenge details as well as see what else the design team created, on the Scrap the Girls blog HERE

Until next time, happy scrapping! X

Yum | Kitaholic Kits November 2020

 

Hi friends! Sadly, this is the last of my Kitaholic Kits guest designer layouts for the month using the November kit and mixed media add-on. This is the fourth layout I have created from this kit, along with some extra pocket pages, and I still have some left to create with!  

For this layout, I decided to document some photos of my daughter that were taken almost 10 years apart - to the day! The focus of my page was the remaining pieces I had of the cut apart sheet from the Crate Paper 'Marigold' collection and one of the subscriber exclusive cut files designed by Anita Bownds.

I used white cardstock as the base for my page, and added the Pebbles Jen Hadfield black and white checkered paper from 'The Avenue' collection over the top.

For my embellishments I used a mix of the Pinkfresh Studio floral ephemera, puffy alpha stickers and one of the subscriber exclusive cut files,which I coloured using watercolour paint.

I also used some stickers from the Heidi Swapp 'Old School' collection and added some sparkle with Ranger Stickles Glitter Gel.

I have a process video available for this layout on my YouTube channel if you would like to see how I put this one together. And if you haven't already, I would love it if you subscribed to my channel while you are there. 

Until next time, happy scrapping! X

Living the Dream | Cocoa Vanilla Studio

Hi friends! Popping in today to share a recent layout I created for Cocoa Vanilla Studio using the 'Unforgettable' collection and some photos of my gorgeous girl at the beach. As my daughter gets older (she’s now 12), I am finding it increasingly difficult to get photos of her, as she doesn’t enjoy posing for me as much as she used to. (Unless she is dressed up in a costume, but that’s a whole other story!) So you can imagine my delight when I managed to capture these photos of her, and I couldn’t wait to scrap them.

I chose to use the ‘Unforgettable’ collection because I just can’t pass up the opportunity to create something gorgeous and girly whenever I have the chance. I began my page with one of my favourite papers from the collection – the fabulous aqua diagonal stripe print on the reverse of the Sprightly paper. Instead of keeping the sheet as a whole, I decided to add some extra interest by cutting off a strip along the left edge and flipping it over to reveal the abstract watercolour pattern on the other side. Before re-joining the two, I also added a narrow strip of the Unscripted paper between them. I also distressed the edges of the joins slightly to add some extra texture.

With my page base constructed, it was then time to create a focal area for my layout. I layered several smaller pieces of paper (Sprightly; Garland; and Pretty Bits) to form a mat for my photos, adding some cardboard behind the left photo to lift it up a little higher than the other. Then it was time to play with some pretties!

I decided on three main embellishment clusters placed in the bottom left, top right and bottom right corners of my photo mat. Beginning with the top right cluster, I used a die cut circular frame and a large floral piece from the Die Cut Ephemera pack as the anchors for the cluster. It was at this point that I realised I really needed to draw in the stunning blue colour of the water in my photos. Unfortunately, this colour didn’t feature in the collection so I had to come up with another solution. I found a small floral cut file called Flower Bunch (designed by Paige Evans) that I had cut previously, and coloured it using watercolour paints.

Once dry, I cut it into three pieces so that I could use a portion of it in each cluster. I tucked the largest of the three pieces in underneath the die cuts I had started my first cluster with. I then added two smaller die cut flowers; and a small tab and phrase from the Accessory Sticker sheet. I then finished the cluster with a beautiful die cut butterfly.

My third and final cluster was to be my title cluster. I had already picked out the living the dream die cut from the ephemera pack for my title piece (it was an easy choice – just look at that beach on a perfect Queensland winter day). I added another die cut flower and leafy branch, as well as the remainder of the painted cut file. I used foam tape under the title, which allowed me enough room to add a watercolour style Clear Sticker under the edge.

I finished off with a small die cut heart alongside my title cluster and then some tiny splatters of blue ink scattered around my page.

Thanks so much for stopping by today so I could share this with you. I hope I have inspired you to get some supplies out and create something pretty too. (Besides, we all need to make room for the new ‘Daydream’ collection coming soon, right?!)

Until next time, happy scrapping! X

Live in the Moment | Cocoa Vanilla Studio

Hi everyone!
I know things have been a bit quiet around here, I have been super busy the past couple of weeks with lots happening with my boys' birthday, school holidays, etc. So today I thought I would kick off my catch up with a mixed media layout I created for Cocoa Vanilla Studio as part of the recent scraplift theme that our team did. For this theme we were challenged to choose a layout from all the International Scrapbook Day challenge entries to inspire us to create our own version. There were so many amazing layouts I found it really hard to choose, but I kept coming back to this super cool page by Rachel Dutko...

There were so many elements I just loved about this page - the textures of the torn, layered papers; the eclectic mix of embellishments; the use of white space; and the touch of mixed media - it just drew me in. For my scraplift, I really wanted to capture some of Rachel's main design features, whilst still creating a layout that was my own style. I even decided to re-visit one of my all-time favourite collections, 'Bohemian Dream'.

Here is my layout...
(Click on photos for better view)

I decided to create my page with a similar theme to Rachel's, by documenting a selfie and focusing on the message of being yourself and unique. (This pic probably accurately represents me...haha) I then grabbed some white cardstock and added a splash of colour, just as Rachel had on hers. I used blue and purple Distress Oxides, which I mixed with a little water and then applied to my cardstock to achieve an abstract watercolour background.

Next, I chose three patterned papers, which I tore and layered across my page. The papers I used were Dreamer; Gypsy Heart; and Abstract. I also added a few torn pieces of a washi tape sticker from the 'You Rock' collection and an extra paper strip cut from the reverse of the Dreamer paper.

Just as Rachel did, I used two layers of paper to mat my photo (these were from the 'Bohemian Dream' 6x6" paper pad); along with a small yellow paper doily and some frayed gauze for texture. I then began working on the embellishments to cluster around my photo. 

I had a sheet of the gorgeous floral print Abundant paper that I had already cut into previously, so I fussy cut three floral pieces to tuck into the layers around my photo, adding a couple of extra little leafy branches from the Die Cut Ephemera pack. 

Then it was time for a little stash-busting treasure hunt as I looked through my stash of Cocoa Vanilla embellishments for some extra bits and pieces. I found a couple of gorgeous blue paper flowers I had left over from the 'Hello Sunshine' collection that matched with my blue ink perfectly, so I added those to my clusters, tucking the edges under my photo. I also found some cute little blue puffy stickers from the same collection, so onto the page they went too. 

The one of a kind Flair Button that I added to the corner of my photo was from the 'Bohemian Dream' pack, and was perfect for my page theme! The small mint acrylic heart was left-over from the 'Free Spirit' collection; and I also used some blue enamel dots from 'Life is Beautiful'. 

Rachel had some pretty little butterflies on her page, so I had to include some on mine too. (I know, since when do I need an excuse for butterflies, right?!) I added a blue one from the 'Bohemian Dream' chipboard near the top of the page; then a smaller pink one from the Die Cut Ephemera pack near to the bottom. 

To finish off, I added the live in the moment sticker for my page title (popped up on a little foam tape), and a few small phrases from the Accessory Sticker sheet. A little splatter of some navy mist and I was done. 

A big thanks to Rachel for inspiring me with her fabulous layout, I am really happy with how mine came out. (Even though I am clearly incapable of showing the same level of restraint that I so admired about Rachel's page...haha)

Until next time, happy scrapping! X

Congrats | Dust It Off Challenge | March Homemade Kit

Hi friends!

Today I have another layout to share for my Dust It Off challenge that I created using my March homemade kit. (In case you missed it, you can see my kit in this post HERE) That takes my tally with this kit to three so far - which is awesome! 

For this page, I decided to document some photos of my siblings and I celebrating my older sister's birthday last year. And, thanks to my brother's shirt and my hair, it seemed like purple needed to be one of the feature colours. 

Here is my layout...

(Click on photos for a better view)

I had the perfect paper in this kit - an old one from the Studio Calico 'Lemon Lush' collection paper pad that featured a colour gradient ranging from purple through to orange. I also wanted to include some mixed media though, as I hadn't used any of the Gelatos I had included in the kit. My solution was to create a watercolour wash on some white cardstock using the purple Gelato, then add a strip of the patterned paper down the side of the page. (Best of both worlds, right?) Using this strip design also gave me a solid anchor point to create the focal area of my page. 

I then took a few pieces of some of the other papers from the kit and cut a variety of shapes and sizes to form a layered mat for my photos. I also tucked in a small paper doily and some pieces of one of the Hambly Screen prints transparencies, before I stapled the bundle together and secured it onto my page. I then added some messy black cotton before popping my photos down on top.

Now it was time to embellish my layout. I started by reaching for the Pebbles 'Patio Party' by Jen Hadfield die cuts, as I thought there would be several pieces that would work for this birthday themed page. The first piece I pulled was that fabulous black and white striped balloon, as it matched perfectly with my younger sister's top. I also grabbed a cute cake and the party this way arrow; as well as a matching floral bouquet from the coordinating sticker sheet. I then clustered them all together and placed them to the right of my photos, adding foam tape under some of them to add some dimension.

On the other side of my photos I created a second cluster using a floral die cut and another cake, which I topped with number fabric Thickers from my kit to make 50. (These were so old I had to use glue on the back because the adhesive was no longer any good. 

I then balanced things out by adding a third small cluster using yet another floral piece, and a small banner. (Even though the banner featured fruit pieces - kinda weird, but he, whatever works to make it feel festive, right?)

Next, I needed a title and the gold word congrats from the 'Patio Party' puffy sticker pack was perfect. To tie it in, I also added a couple of other coordinating puffy floral stickers to my embellishment clusters. 

To finish off, I used one of the Dear Lizzy roller stamps and black ink to stamp some phrases around the page. I also added some tiny splatters of the 'Black Cherry' Glimmermist; then larger splatters of gold Heidi Swapp Color Shine that I pulled from my stash. 

And with that I was done - three pages down from my kit!

I am really hoping to have a process video available for my next kit page - wish me luck that the tech gremlins don't interfere with my plans again!

Until next time, happy scrapping! X

Remember ~ a mixed media layout

Hi all!

You probably already know of my love for all things Vicki Boutin (and if you don't, you must have been hiding out somewhere), so today I am here to share another layout featuring some VB goodness. This layout was created after I played along with Vicki's Facebook Friday night live last week (which is Saturday morning for me here in Australia and usually means I am still sitting around in my PJS! haha) I actually did the background for this page in real time, creating along with Vicki. (If you would like to see her video you can watch it HERE)

So this is the background that I finished up with after the video...

To create it, I used a combination of Faber-Castell Gelatos (as I don't have any of Vicki's art crayons), Dina Wakley 'Night' acrylic paint (one of my fave colours!), a stencil from StencilGirl, and Vicki's brand new 'Prism' glaze. I love how it turned out! (I adore those hard water lines in watercolour work.) You can see in the photo that I had already stuck a VB sticker on there as well before I thought to take a background shot. 

And here is what I did with it...

(Click on photos for a better view)

You will see that I kept the remainder of my page relatively simple, so as not to cover up too much of that beautiful background. The photo I used is one of my boys in my sister's pool during the Christmas holidays - we were celebrating the fact that after working very hard at swimming lessons that he had finally reached the stage he was competent (and confident) enough to swim in the deep pool without his swim vest on. A great achievement!

After adding the sticker horizontally across my page, I added some layers behind my photo using papers from the 'Color Kaleidoscope' collection, a small paper doily and some frayed gauze. I also tucked in a tag from the coordinating ephemera pack that I tied with a small piece of twine and used to write my journalling on.

I used the large lightbulb die cut with so very brilliant printed on it as I thought it was the perfect piece to go with the theme of my page. To the right of my photo I added another die cut, this time a black and white floral piece, along the horizontal line I had already created with the sticker.

I then used the sticker as the anchor point for my title word, which was the word remember from the VB Puffy Thickers pack, and I also popped a small heart from the same pack onto my journal tag. Below my title I added the attitude is everything phrase sticker from the 'Color Kaleidoscope' sticker book. Then I finished off my page with a few hearts that were fussy cut from one of the papers.

This was a super simple page to throw together after all the background work was already done and I love how it turned out. I am so excited that I now have the new VB 'Let's Wander' collection in the house - I think that will be getting a run on my table VERY soon!

Until next time, happy scrapping! X 

My Kind of Day ~ a mixed media layout

Hi everyone!

Popping in quickly with a bonus share for you - hot off my desk! I watched Vicki Boutin on her Friday night Facebook live (Saturday morning our time) as she was creating some beautiful watercolour backgrounds. I found it really inspiring, and being a wet, miserable day here, I decided to pull out some of my own supplies and spend some time creating too. Unfortunately I don't actually have any of Vicki's mixed media products (as much as I would love them!), so I just used what I had on hand in my stash.

Here's what I created...

(Click on photos for a better view)

On a sheet of heavyweight white cardstock I started by applying some yellow watercolour (made by mixing Colour Blast by Bee Arty 'Sunflower' Colour Shimmer Dust with water) and painted it onto the page with a wide brush. If you have followed me for some time, you will already know how much I love my wide brushes. (The one I used for this was a #4, which measures 2 inches across.) 

I then added some green watercolour, which I just "smooshed" over the top - straight from my messy mat. (I used 'Lush' Colour Shimmer Dust also mixed with water.) Next, I added some darker green splats and splatters, using 'Mowed Lawn' Colour Artist Ink and a brush.I also tipped my page up, which allowed some of the pooled ink to run down. 

I couldn't stop at that for my background though, so my next step was to grab a stencil and some Colour Blast by Bee Arty 'Envy' Colour Paste. The stencil I used was called 'Leafy Doodle Border' from StencilGirl, and I simply moved it around the page to apply the paste using a palette knife. I then allowed it to dry before adding some stamping using my 'Doodle Dots' stamp from Viva Las VegaStamps and black ink.

Now it was time for some papery layers! Fortunately I do have some of Vicki's papercraft products, so I chose the 'Colour Kaleidoscope' collection to work with. First I added some small pieces of torn washi tape from my stash; then I layered pieces of patterned paper (both cut and torn to provide contrasting textures); as well as a paper doiley and some messy black cotton thread. I then added my photo on top, using some scrap cardboard behind it to pop it up from the page.

To embellish my page I used Ephemera pieces from both the Icons and Frames & Journaling packs. I also added the label and number stickers to the top edge of photo - both from the 'Color Kaleidoscope' Sticker Book.  The small celebrate phrase sticker was from the Cardstock Sticker pack, and I finished with the die cut My Kind of Day phrase from the Frames & Journal pack and some handwritten journalling. 

That's all from me today, I hope you are also inspired to create something with some of your own mixed media supplies!

Until next time, happy scrapping! X

She Was a Wildflower - Art Journal Page | Viva Las VegaStamps

Hi everyone!

Time to share another design team project with you. Today I have a simple, but fun, art journal page that I created for Viva Las VegaStamps using a variety of stamps; Distress Oxides; a Sharpie; watercolour pencils and inks.

I began my page with an A4 sized sheet of white cardstock and Distress Oxides in the colours of Twisted Citron and Cracked Pistachio. I began using a foam blender to apply the Twisted Citron to an area in the centre of my page. I then blended some of the Cracked Pistachio into it to give it some extra depth.

Once I had the colour down, I grabbed the Doodle flower/garden stamp to form the base of my focal image. I then stamped Skull stamp on top of one of the flower stems so it appeared as though it were growing in the garden.

I then used the Row of scribble circle/eyes to add "flowers" to the tops of the remaining stems.

I then added some extra detail by using a Sharpie to doodle some "petals" and also to add some grass amongst the bottom of the stems.

Next, I took the Striped pattern circle and stamped it out onto some extra white cardstock. I then fussy cut around the image before using watercolour pencils to colour it, and then blended it out with a water brush.

I then stuck the flower I had made onto the skull (like a flower in her hair). 

With the flower in place it was time to add my sentiment. I chose the She was a wildflower stamp and placed it alongside the skull.

I then added a little extra detail to my background by splattering some inks around the page using a small brush. I used 13Arts Ayeeda Ink in white and Colour Blast Colour Artist Ink in Slipper.

To finish off, I used the Sky of stars background to add some fine stamped detail.

That's all from me today, thanks for stopping by so I could share this with you. I hope I have inspired you to get inky too! X

VLVS stamps used:

- Doodle flower/garden

- Skull

- Row of scribble circle/eyes

- Striped pattern circle

- She was a wildflower

- Sky of stars background