Wednesday, December 31, 2008

Scrapbooking Myth #3

Continued from my previous 2 blog posts about Scrapbooking Myths. (Excerpts taken from a Stampin' Success magazine article by Lisa Mabey.)


 


Myth #3: Pages are supposed to start with photos that tell a story.


 


Truth: Photos are just one way of triggering your memory and telling your story. There are other ways to start and finish scrapbook pages. When you think of preserving one memory at a time using your photos as illustrations, you’ll find inspiration in the smallest things, and you’ll find that a


single photo or series of photos can trigger powerful memories. Think about these three alternate ways to start your creative juices. 



  1. Concentrate on people in your life or your feelings about a person or event. Maybe your favorite part of being a mom is the myriad facial expressions your child pulls on a daily basis. Capture your thoughts and a few choice expressions for the page page. Photos can come after the idea for the page! 
  2. Using a “Top 10” gives you a venue to really share who you are and what you like, but if it doesn’t work for you, find another way to express your likes and dislikes. Pages don’t always have to be about a specific photo.
  3. Be willing to change your approach any time you need to. Don’t limit yourself to one type or size of album or page. Why not try an album with a mix of portrait and landscape pages?


Scrapbook page 3 Jan 2009 SS


Even though years have passed since my scrapbooking rebellion began, I still love breaking the rules. I love changing the shape of my canvas, trying challenging color combinations or accessories I usually wouldn’t, and including unusual bits and pieces that tell my story how I want it told. I cling to simplicity, and I feel freedom in knowing that my scrapbooks and pages are not dictated by anyone else’s rules. I invite you to do the same.


What stops you from scrapbooking? Allow yourself the freedom to break some of these unwritten scrapbooking rules and enjoy scrapbooking again (or for the first time).


..........I hope this series of scrapbooking articles has encouraged you to try some new things, and dive into scrapbooking! I know it has inspired me!


Have a great New Year!


Jo-Ann



Monday, December 29, 2008

Scrapbooking Myth #2

Continued from my previous post.....let's get rid of these scrapbooking myths that hold us back!


 


(Excerpts taken from a Stampin' Success magazine article (for Stampin' Up Demonstrators) written by Lisa Mabey.)


 


Myth #2: I’m never going to get caught up.


 


Truth: Let’s get one thing straight: if you think you need to scrapbook every event or every photo in this age of digital images, you’re right—you’ll never get “caught up". But the good news is that you don’t have to, nor do you need to make multiples of every page you create, make all your pages the same size, scrapbook your life chronologically, or anything else you don’t want to do.


 


Scrapbooking is extremely personal, so why do we feel compelled to abide by “rules” that burden us? Don’t get discouraged by the details of scrapbooking. Some people don’t even start scrapbooking because they feel like they have to do some or all of these things all of the time to have a meaningful scrapbook. Not true. Your scrapbook can be meaningful and inspiring when you are


selective in what you scrapbook and let any guilt, pressure, or feeling of obligation you may have about scrapbooking go (like exhaling all your negative thoughts in yoga—cleansing, isn’t it?).


don’t worry about scrapping every event, holiday, and milestone in your children’s lives. All they really need are the highlights.....


 


Scrapbook page 2 Jan 2009 SS



Saturday, December 27, 2008

Scrapbooking for the non-scrapper

For those of you who have been afraid to start scrapbooking, I wanted to share this great article I found  in the January issue of Stampin' Success,


a free magazine for Stampin' Up demonstrators. Over the next couple of


blog posts, I will give you some excerpts of this awesome article.   


 Scrapbook page Jan 2009 SS


Here's the first scrapbooking myth:



(by Lisa Mabey)


Now, I realize that everyone scrapbooks differently, and that stereotypes


are not universal (thank goodness). However, scrapbooking “rules” still


exist, and they sway some people into believing that scrapbooking is not


for them. But it can be. So let’s debunk a few scrapbooking myths


(in a not-so-silent rebellion) and break free from these so-called rules


that you or your customers may feel bound by.



Myth: Scrapbooking is too overwhelming, so I might as well not even


start.


Truth: I have one word for you: Simplify. Scrapbooking should be fun, inspiring, and a way to tap into your creative energy every time you see scrapbooking supplies (doesn’t seeing a new Designer Series paper make


you want to just create something stunning?). Start simple and take your scrapbooking one page at a time. Having a few meaningful scrapbook


pages completed is a lot better than never  scrapbooking because you


think you can never be “done” or don’t know where to start. Here are a


few simple ideas to get you started. 1 Get creative! Take pictures of (and scrapbook) the mundane, everyday stuff you do. Make a “day in the life”


page of your or your kids’ average day so that the page expresses a cross-section of who you are. This would be a perfect introduction to your


album!  Think of scrapbooking a favorite memory (instead of broadly focusing on all the photos you’ve taken). What would you need to


capture that memory? Say you go to the park with your children


frequently. Sum up your park visits with one or two well-planned pages


that capture your thoughts, feelings, and the delight your children feel.


Once those pages are complete, you’ll no longer feel compelled to


scrapbook each outing to the park, because the important story and


memories are already recorded. Of course, if something really special happened on your latest trip to the park, feel free to scrapbook the event,


but you’ll be able to move on to other memories and other stories more easily. If you take away the pressure and overwhelming size of


“scrapbooking your whole life,” it can become creative and pleasurable


like it was meant to be. Scrapbooking isn’t a chore—it really is fun!




Tuesday, December 16, 2008

Beautiful Christmas Cards

I wanted to show you these gorgeous Christmas Cards brought as show & tell items to the last stamp club night 2 weeks ago. They are made by customers of mine, and I am always learning new things from my customers!


This one is made by Jennifer, and I love how she added little jewels to the Christmas Tree! It really makes it pop! It uses the Snow Swirled stamp set, Pretty in Pink & Chocolate Chip cardstock, and the small oval punch.


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Beautiful job, Jen!


The next two are made by Louise, with the first one showing some amazing sponging of ink over top of White Embossed images. (The tree is actually cut out and placed on top, with some markered accents added between the swirls.)


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This one is so pretty also, I just had to share!


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Thanks for sharing, Louise, they are lovely!



Monday, December 8, 2008

Christmas Tags!

Here are a couple Christmas Tags I wanted to share with you....


The first one was made using Bashful Blue, White, and Night of Navy cardstock.....


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It is about 2" X 3", and I used the Punch Pals stamp set. Even though it's hard to tell from this pic, I stamped the white circle in Versamark, and embossed it in Silver. I used the Corner Rounder on the edges, and the handheld Rectangle Punch for the White Taffeta Ribbon.


The next one is made using Baja Breeze cardstock, Old Olive and Real Red ink, and the Ski Slope Designer paper.


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The medallion shape is made using the Scallop Edge Punch. You have to start with a piece of 2 3/4" X 2 3/4" cardstock, and punch the Scallop Edge punch along each side. It makes a really neat shape! I then added the patterned paper over top, trimmed with my scissors, and stamped the sentiment from Punches Three.  


I love making handmade tags for Christmas gifts, and we recycle ours every year in our "Tag Box". We love to look thru the past year's tags, and remember the times we spent making them, and who we made them with.


Happy Creating!


Jo-Ann 



Friday, December 5, 2008

Reverse Masking

The card below is using a neat technique called Reverse Masking to make this cute Christmas ornament card.


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It was designed by Kim for my Downline Shoebox Swap, and here's how she did it......


Stamp the green background with snowflakes in White Craft Ink. Allow to dry. Cut a circle out of scrap cardstock. Hold it over the Red cardstock piece, and stamp some larger snowflakes inside the circle, overlapping the edges here and there. Then, being careful not to move the mask, sponge some white ink inside the circle, concentrating the ink around the edges. Remove the mask, allow to dry, and embellish as you like!


(The ornament looks a lot prettier if you put only a small amount of white ink in it. Don't cover it too much.)


Thanks for the great idea, Kim!



Thursday, December 4, 2008

Christmas Cards!

Here are a couple of cards made by fellow demonstrators at my Whimsical Impressions Downline Shoebox Swap a couple weeks ago. They are so cute! Each demonstrator designs one card, pre-cuts all the supplies for everyone else to make it, and brings all the supplies to complete it. We set shoeboxes of supplies out on the tables, and move from place to place making each card. What a fun night of stamping! 


The card below was designed by Julia....


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The one below is by Charlene, using Mr. Twigster stamps, Felt Flurries, Versamark and Iridescent Ice embossing powder, among other things.


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I will share a few more tomorrow, so come on back!



Tuesday, December 2, 2008

Christmas Table settings

Here are a couple of neat table setting ideas for your Christmas Dinner this year. They are very easy to make!


Below are some matching placecard and table favors that I made for a Women's Christmas Brunch I attended last Saturday morning. There were 10 ladies at our table, and I got their names ahead of time, so I could make the placecards. I whipped all these up in about 1 hour. (For those of you who were at Friday night's Stamp Club get-together, I started the treat favors after you went home!) Oops :)


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These are made using the Sizzix Top Note Die and the Big Shot machine. I cut with that on Bravo Burgundy textured cardstock (only available in 12X12 assorted packs), as well as I cut the strips of Brushed Silver cardstock, so the edges would match perfectly. (It's also faster than using scissors!) I used the 1 1/4" circle punch, 1 3/8" circle punch and Scallop Circle Punch to make the medallion on the front.


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This little favor box was made by cutting out overhead transparencies (available at office supply stores), using the Pillow Box Die on my Big Shot. To close the side and one end, I used Sticky Strip (must have!), filled with chocolate-covered raisins, and then wrapped the Bravo Burgundy 5/8" grosgrain ribbon around. Secure with a brad, and it stays closed until ready to eat! The image stamped on the front is from the Best Yet level-one hostess stamp set.


At this brunch, every year, there are about 300 ladies. Every table is decorated differently, by one of the ladies who reserve seats there. Our table was decorated by my good friend, Maria, and she did a fabulous job! I co-ordinated my little creations to her color combination on the dishes. Here's how the place settings looked when we were done:


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And here's the whole table. It was beautiful, and we felt like princesses!


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Below is a similar table setting idea, made by good friend, Karina. They are made with Bella Rose designer paper, Deer Friends hostess stamp set, Riding Hood Red cardstock, and Chocolate Taffeta Ribbon.


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Here's a closeup of the napkin ring, made using the Top Note Die...


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If you are looking to make handmade Personalized Christmas Crackers to add to your decor, see my Nov 7th post here.


Enjoy your holiday decorating, cardmaking, and baking!