Getting Started

I've really been going strong in my scrap room lately, but this past week I slowed way down.  I had a stack of sketches on my desk and lots of pictures, but I just couldn't seem to get started on anything.  Then last night I came across the latest Creative Jumpstart.

Creative Jumpstarts are challenges published (I think bi-weekly) by Marcy Penner and Stephanie Bryan - two of my favorite scrappers.  The challenges vary but this one was a recipe challenge - striped paper, chipboard and washi.

This was just the push I needed.  I had a picture of my cube-mate at work where she is looking between the glass panels that separate our workspaces that I had wanted to scrap and a fun striped paper from the Studio Calico Lisse Street kits that reminded me of her (I don't know why - it just .did).  And I had a sketch from My Scraps and More I really liked but had been struggling with

I thought it was perfect for my photo because the stripes reminded me of the way the cubes are lined up and the way we look for the glass panels.  But I finally figured out that the angle of the stripes was throwing me off.  I am a pretty lazy scrapper and its a lot of measuring and work to get those angles straight for a whole page.

So I turned the sketch 90 degrees, straightened out the stripes (sort of) and ended up with this.

Most of the papers I used were from the 4x6 paper pad - the smaller scale worked well for the size of the strips. 

I layered some of my paper strips for added interest.  And I used foam tape to adhere some of the strips and the photo - this created some dimension which I really liked. 

Next the washi - one of my favorites right now is a whide tape with navy hearts.  It was perfect, but I wanted a less perfect strip.  So I adhered one side of the tape to the paper and then tore down the middle for an uneven strip at the bottom of my page.  I finished it off with some chipboard thickers. 

If you try the creative jumpstart, the sketch or both, I'd love to see.  Link me up!

Thanks for stopping by.

Using Scraps - Banners

Not everything in December can be about Christmas.  And over the weekend I really needed a break from the holiday rush.  So I decided to do a layout that is not about Christmas.  

When I'm working with my Studio Calico kits for the current month, I save every scrap - no matter how small.    So as the month ends, I tend to have lots of bits of patterned paper.  And I know I will throw some of them away when I mix the kit in with my stash, so I feel pressured to use them.

So this month I decided to mix lots of scraps to create banners to set off a photo block.  

The mix of colors and patterns created a fun, bright layout that was perfect for these pictures celebrating the one year anniversary of "gotcha day" with our sweet Jerry.  We adopted him from our local animal shelter, and he has brought us so much joy. 

But I was a bit stuck with title placement.  I finally decided to use the large wood veneer number like another banner and really love the way it works with the rest of the design.