Scraptastic This Life Noted PL Kit

I recently joined Scraptastic's Project Life monthly kit club. I love it so much! I had been getting Studio Calico's Project Life monthly kits -- and while they are great, they often feature muted colors and very eclectic designs that weren't always to my taste. I like brighter colors and things that "go" together. I'm a dork like that.

So Scraptastic's monthly kits really fit the bill for me. The August 2013 PL kit -- This Life Noted -- is full of bright, fun colors and elements that I really loved. It was perfect for creating this PL layout. I added in a few bits from my stash here and there, including the wood veneer frames from Lawn Fawn.

I'm in love with all of Scraptastic's monthly kits so far. Can't wait to make more projects soon.

Thanks for looking!

Pillow Slipcovers

I'm back today to share a home decor project. It's been awhile since I've had a new project to share.

Last year, I recovered our brown ottoman in a nice blue corduroy. Since then, the pillows for our couch have been driving me nuts. They came with the couch -- and while I do like purple normally, they don't match anything in our home.

So the time finally came for me to recover those pillows. I had been hoarding the fabric from a shopping trip a few years ago -- and I was so happy to finally use it. And of course, prove to hubby that the purchase had been for a reason.

I used two coordinating fabric prints -- a blue dot and blue floral -- with the same blue as the ottoman. I used this incredible Easy Envelope Pillow Cover pattern from Teal and Lime. So easy to follow and customize for any pillow size. I was amazed at how fast I was able to get these pillows finished.

Okay, I seriously love them so so so much. So much better than that crazy purple. And I love that my recovered ottoman finally looks like it belongs in our family room.

I love how clean everything looks in this photo, but I missed the Kindle sitting on the side table by the lamp. LOL. Oh well -- that's just real life creeping in. Our family room is never this clean. But at least our pillows look great.

 
Thanks for looking!

Love You to the Moon and Back

Today I'm sharing a layout I love. I recently discovered Miss Kate Cuttables - available through the Silhouette store and her website - and I love them. She has so many amazing cutting files available, and I especially love her boy designs.

On this layout, I used the Love You to the Moon and Back set with my Silhouette Cameo and my Kiwi Lane designer templates.

These are photos of Nathan just before he turned one - now he's 10, making these photos extra special to me. I miss my baby...

I pop-dotted the elements to give them dimension off the page.

Love how this turned out. So fun. This is a great set for boy layouts.

Have you created any layouts with layered die cut files? I would love to see them...

Fall Fun with Glubers and Kiwi Lane

One day at the scrapbooking store, I found a pack of Glubers by Cosmo Cricket. I know these aren't a new product, but I had never tried them before. For some reason on this shopping trip, they struck me as something fun to try out.

I tried them out for the first time on this layout using lots of patterned papers from Crate Paper and my Kiwi Lane designer templates.

I used a piece of burlap to create a little fabric flower embellishment. It was a bit of a challenge to get the burlap to cooperate, but in the end, I won.

Love those Kiwi Lane Nature accessory templates...

I love how this turned out. I will definitely be using Glubers on another project soon. Such a great way to add handmade texture and pop to a scrapbook page.

Have you tried using Glubers yet?

Embossing a Background

Recently, I took Jen Gallacher's class Scrapbook Stamper's Workshop at Two Peas. Loved that class. Jen's layouts are always inspiring, and she had a ton of ideas for using stamps on your layouts.

I was especially drawn to one technique Jen highlighted -- to use embossing powder to create a background for your layout. So I grabbed two different camera stamps (one from Amy Tangerine and one from a Lawn Fawn alpha set) and my white embossing powder to create this layout.

The rest of the papers and embellishments are from the Front Row kit from Studio Calico. I also used some zig-zag and straight stitching to add some texture.

I really love how those embossed cameras turned out. They look beautiful on the vellum. I need to remember to bring out my stamping supplies more often.

An easy way to add interest to a large strip of paper. I'll be doing this again soon.

Now it's your turn: When was the last time you embossed on your scrapbook pages? I challenge you to dig out those supplies and create something today...

Layered Die Cuts from the Silhouette

There are so many ways to use your Silhouette machine -- one of my favorites is just to make simple layered embellishments to custom match your page.

On this layout, I created several very simple layered shells. I also cut my title with the Silhouette and used my Kiwi Lane border templates to add some layered dimension.

I inked the edges of the shells before layering them together, to give some additional depth.

 

Super simple, but a layout that I love. For me, there's nothing else to add here to help tell the story.

The next time you need just a little something for your page, create a few layered shapes for your page and call it good. :)

Legoland Vacation

I'm back today with a few more vacation layouts -- this time from our trip to Legoland last summer.

While at the park, I was able to buy a scrapbook collection set made for the park. I was surprised to see it there, but glad to grab it while shopping. I used those papers to create a very theme-y layout.

I used my Kiwi Lane border templates to layer the papers, leaving lots of room for my photos. Stickers from the kit and elements already printed on the paper added the embellishments. 

Next, I created a layout for our two days at the Legoland waterpark using the same papers and templates.

We love those little bricks at our house, although I think the boys might have outgrown Legoland. We'll have to see what they think the next time we head out to California.

Easy Paper Accents

I love creating layouts with collection kits -- where everything's coordinated and all the accents are included. However, sometimes I find a few papers in my stash that I want to use, but I don't have any coordinating accents. On those layouts, I love using my Kiwi Lane accessory templates to create quick and easy accents.

On this layout, I used papers from the Basic Grey Oliver collection. And since I didn't have many coordinating embellishments, I used the Playtime, Rings, and Wildflower accessory sets from Kiwi Lane to create custom pieces from the paper set.

And of course, I used the border sets to layer the papers. Love the layers.

A super easy layout with custom paper accents to match perfectly...

Fun and Bright

I am really drawn to super bright and fun colors right now. They're the perfect accent for happy, playful layouts.

I created this layout to showcase my boys and their best friends - our dog, their babysitter, and the next-door-neighbor. I miss these days...

I used a collection kit from SEI, Thickers, and my Kiwi Lane designer templates.

Those Kiwi Lane templates make it so easy to use a lot of papers on a layout without overwhelming the photos.

Fun and bright - just like I like 'em. What fun and bright things have you been creating lately?

Simple Designs

As you know by now, I love my Kiwi Lane designer templates. They make it super easy to put a layout together. But I also love that I can play with the same basic page design and end up with such different layouts.

On this layout, I used a 4-photo collage and my Kiwi Lane strips to create a basic design with a few embellishments. The strips create a straight shelf across the page that grounds the photos.

The Silhouette cut files are from a Kerri Bradford page kit that came with a class from Nichol Magouirk.

 Love those birds...

This next layout follows the same basic grounded shelf concept but adds some organic curves into the mix.

Again, Silhouette cut files from Kerri Bradford. I love love love her Silhouette designs.

The next time you want to create a quick page, try using a grounded shelf to hold your photos. Straight or curved, the design is one that works well.