I always struggle with shaped papers but love them which is why I have a cropper hopper full of them! But this sketch allowed me to matte one on a 12x12 paper and suddenly it made my design aesthetic happy!


And that's a real giraffe sticking his head right in our van at the wild animal safari. It was the total highlight of that trip!




and Kristin's sketch

Posted in CreativeSoup, scrapbooking

Ok so I am slowly catching up! Here is my take on Sketch #7 for Septembers Class.



And here is the sketch I started with-
As you can see I stuck pretty closely to the sketch and it was perfect for a little timeline layout of a mini trip we took to Chittenden Locks in Seattle.

Posted in CreativeSoup, scrapbooking

Moving right along with this months AMAZING SKETCH CLASS...(and really this class is every bit as good as some of the classes I have PAID to take.)

Here is sketch #6


And this layout came out really really well for me. I knew immediately what I wanted to do and for once it actually came out exactly the way i saw it in my head. Im super proud of the way this turned out!

Posted in CreativeSoup, scrapbooking

As part of trying to catch up with the Sept Sketch class series I am only going to blog the ones I did layouts for. For all of the amazing sketches please check out our free class section!

Here is sketch 4


And my take on it.



i had a lot of fun changing this one up a bit and using the actual layout of the photos to help tell the story. (And a shout out to Theresa for her suggestion I do the Underground Tour. It was absolutely amazing).

Posted in CreativeSoup, scrapbooking

ok so K has been doing this amazing class all month on the creative soup and I did a ton of layouts for it. I LOVE using sketches to jump start a layout. I am usually so pressed for time when I scrapbook in the evenings after work that I find these to be a HUGE help to get me started. K has done an amazing job with this class with full color downloads so I hope some of you pop over and take a look.

Unfortunately life has gotten in the way of me posting them here to my blog. So in the better late than never category Here is Sketch 1!



And here is my take on it. I stayed pretty close to the sketch (which i usually do. But i did use two photos with the same lighting and tone to give the illusion of a larger photo in the same spot.

Posted in CreativeSoup, scrapbooking

Todays Get Meaningful focuses on our school memories. As kids head back to school (or are already in school for those of us in the south!) I wanted to take this opportunity to go back to your school days and reminisce about a favorite subject or teacher. Something that you really really loved about school (and no recess! lol)

i took this opportunity to celebrate a wonderful substitute teacher I had throughout my junior and senior years in high school. Cammie Malloy was truly an inspiration and really taught me so much about life and myself. I wish I could find her and tell her thank you. I often thing about her and wonder if she knew as a substitute teacher just how much she could touch a students life.

Posted in CreativeSoup, Get Meaningful, scrapbooking

The amazing Kristin has come up with yet another beyond amazing class for this quarter focusing on Sketches! I LOVE a good sketch to get my mojo flowing! I hope you stop over and check it out!


And just a couple of sneaks:

Posted in CreativeSoup, scrapbooking

I actually got a ton done 2 weeks ago and wanted to take a moment to post. Totally inspired by all the amazing challenges that were part of the Fun in the Sun crop at Creative Soup.

It felt so good to get in my studio and really work. i haven't scrapped like this in a long time and I was actually really happy with the way they turned out. I'm getting better about layering and using stuff vs just hoarding it! And not stressing about journaling if I don't feel the layout needs it.





(ignore the missing R in Flower. i didn't notice it had fallen off till after I took the pic) Im going to journal about my relationship with my mom and how it has grown over the years but its sort of personal .

Posted in CreativeSoup, scrapbooking

Posted in CreativeSoup

Creative Soup is having a week long crop and a blog hop tomorrow that kicks off at noon! Tons of fun challenges to get those creative juices flowing! So I hope you all can stop by!

(I was a dork and totally forgot to take sneak peeks of my projects. doh!)

Posted in CreativeSoup

I realy have a love hate relationship with this blog. I get super excited about it then i get bored or resent feeling like I HAVE to post.

So here is a quick recap of the last :gulp: 3 months.

The big thing is I went on a tour of the Pacific North West and fell head over heels in love with the place. If I could I would move to Portland tomorrow. (I also loved Seattle, and the coasts too). Something about this place just totally resonated with me.


And I didn't just randomly go. I went specifically to attend BlytheCon 2011. I had an absolutely amazing time and spent most of the trip hanging out with Melissa and having an absolute blast getting to know people I had only talked to online. And the dolls. the dolls, dolls, dolls!!! It was overwhelming and fun and exhausting all at the same time. I scored my first ET helmet and met Ruth who was an absolute delight. I met Roz who did one of the classiest things Ive ever seen and stepped back from bidding against me so I could buy my first Sammy Doe. I got to hang out with so many fun people in line before BC and during the event!


And I loved it so much Im planning the next one! Yep Im nuts. Luckily I have tons of help from Erica and Morgan. We are doing it in Dallas at the fabulous Gaylor Texan. It was a HUGE amount of work to get it up and running but we are doing really well and have close to 90 registrants and are just under a year out! Not too shabby! Oh and Lirije did the most amazing logo for us! Maybe if I get skinny enough I can wear a matching outfit!



Oh and I have been scrapping some. Not very much as things have been sort of weird and hectic. Here a re the last couple of layouts I have done:




Next on the horizon: A Blog hop this weekend, more crocheting, more dolling, and soon oh so very soon a trip to see my growing family!! (and maybe some more blogging)

Posted in blythe, CreativeSoup, family, scrapbooking, traveling

Here is this weeks Mojo Monday at Creative Soup!

I am loving that there are so many bright colors that are in right now. I love the look of pairing bright colors with neutrals to get a fun spring look. This month your Get Crafty challenge is to use yellow, turquoise and gray on your project. These colors are all over and really in for spring.

I can't wait to see what you do with this color palette!


I did this for our grand reopening gala and I absolutely LOVE this color combo!

Posted in CreativeSoup, MojoMonday, scrapbooking

Welcome to the Creative Soup’s Spring Forward Blog Hop!

To kick off our new enhanced site we thought it would be fun to have all of our creative team members complete one of the fun Mojo Monday challenges from the first quarter. Here is my take on the layout as well as a showcase of a Creative Team member’s original project!

Ok to be honest I cheated a little! I couldn't decide between Mojo Monday challenges as there were so many awesome ideas to chose from so I combined two! I used this sketch from Nuts about Sketches. They were our featured partner for the 2.14 Mojo Monday Get Sketchy. I so seldom do 2 page layouts that this was a real challenge to me! And I of course needed a topic and looked no further than the very next weeks Mojo Monday Get Inspired - Television!


So here is the original sketch:

And My take on the challenge:

It was so great to be able to get such inspiration from the Creative Team
members!

Check out Laura's take on the same sketch! I love how she turned it into a one page layout and I love the twine stitching!




To participate in the blog hop leave a comment for me and follow the link to Kristin's amazing blog to see what she came up with! Go through and leave comments on all 9 blogs and be entered into a drawing for an amazing prize pack. (If you found my blog in the middle and want to make sure you get them all please head on over to The Creative Soup Blog and start there!

The blog hop runs from tonight Friday April 8th at 8pm EST through Monday April 11th at 11:59pm EST. Winner will be drawn on Tuesday! Don’t forget to register at http://www.thecreativesoup.com/ to join in all the fun!

Posted in CreativeSoup, MojoMonday

Posted in CreativeSoup

Posted in CreativeSoup

This weeks Mojo Monday Challenge at Creative Soup is to use an Irish Proverb as part of your layout. As soon as I came across this proverb "Two Shorten the Road" I knew just what i wanted to do- My race with T of course!!!

Im also trying very very hard to use older product on my pages instead of only using my new stuff. I have SOOO much stuff that I just feel super guilty about it just sitting there. Several of the papers I used on this project are from 2005. (I know I know! Bad paper hoarder!!!)

So here is my project (And don't forget to check out the other amazing Creative Team projects HERE)

Posted in CreativeSoup, MojoMonday, Running, scrapbooking

Today's Mojo Monday at Creative Soup features Architecture!

Architecture is all around us. For March's Get Inspired challenge, I'd like us to take a deeper look at the ways in which we can incorporate architectural ideas into our projects.

- Look at photos of great architecture. Use similar design elements in your project.
- There are lots of architecturally inspired products out there, chipboard windows, house mini albums, blueprint paper
- Scrap about your dream design house

I LOVE LOVE LOVE the mid century modern look. If I had $$$$ (even $) I would live on craigs list and thrift stores hunting done mod goodness for the house. I love the clean lines, the color, palette, the extensive use of wood. I just love all of it (even shag carpet)

So here is my layout based on my layout showcasing my love:






The chimney is made by tearing washi tape into little pieces and layering them. Since the tape is semi-transparent you can achieve the look of mortar just by overlapping pieces.



Im really in love with the way this turned out. Just artsy enough, I created a new technique, and got to scrap about one of my favorite topics. Perfect synergy.

Posted in CreativeSoup, MojoMonday, scrapbooking

This week's MM is a fabulous sketch from Sketchy Thursdays. If you are a fan of sketches or looking for new inspiration please be sure to give them a visit, leave a comment, and let them know you heard about it from Creative Soup! (link is above)

The sketch:

and my take on it

Thats me and my adorable nephew Noah! He is such a total sweetheart!

Posted in CreativeSoup, scrapbooking

Ive been really bad about not posting my design team work for creative soup so March starts a new month (Hush! I realize we are almost halfway through it!)

I am hosting a challenge the first monday of every month on Creative Soup as part of our Mojo Monday inspiration. Each and every monday we bring you an awesome piece of inspiration to get your creative mojo going!

For March our topic is stress!

This crazy whirlwind we call life often comes with it's fair share of stress: Stress from work, stress from family, stress from our selves etc...

For this month's challenge I want you to document how you deal with stress. Do you meditate, have a quiet spot to go think, play a video game, eat, shop etc..? We all have different coping mechanisms, some healthy others not so much. Does your method change with the stress you are feeling (or the person causing it?)

Create a layout on your stress management. Why it works (or doesn't) How you came across it, how it makes you feel etc. Document and write journaling of at least 40 words to complete this challenge.


I did mine on how much I love playing with my Blythe dolls when I get stressed (and yes i realize I have a ton of them!) But I really do get so much joy from them and the people I have met through this community that it makes it all worth while!

Posted in CreativeSoup, Get Meaningful, scrapbooking

This year I will be heading up an All About Me challenge called Get Personal as part of Creative Soup's Mojo Monday's!!! The goal is to dig a little deeper and scrap about our memories, our personalities and ourselves! To give a small glimpse of who we are and how our lives have shaped who we have become.

At the end of the year you will wind up with 12 projects that will shed some light on who we are! If you want to make an album this is the perfect chance to do it! Chose a format you want to scrap in (12x12 8x11 or any size you want!) You could even do a large-ish mini album! Or if you are like me and want a little flexibility (or have other previously completed AAM pages from other challenges) Pick a flexible format like a 3 ring binder. I am using this one from American Crafts so i can 1- decorate it and 2- Not have to settle on one size all year.

The most important part of this journey is to really journal and document your memories and feelings so most of the challenges will have a small minimum word requirement. (Don't panic Ive let you off the hook for this first one!) So without further ado:

11 for 11
As we start the New Year off most of us make resolutions or pick one little word to guide us or maybe generally just think about what we want the year to hold for us and our families. So for this challenge I want us to be a little selfish!

For this inaugural Get Meaningful challenge I want you to scrap your wish list of 11 things you want in 2011! Big or small – serious or fun think about what 11 things you would want this year if you could have anything at all! What is it about these 11 things that make the top of your wish list? Any chances for them becoming reality??

Posted in CreativeSoup, GetPersonal