Geek Lab: Happy

Hello there! What makes you happy? As a stay at home mummy, the opportunity to hang out with my two little darlings certainly ranks high on my happy-o-meter. I thought it would be perfect to create a page using these photo booth photos we took during one of our excursions to the art museum.

I decided that for the background of this particular page, I would work my ruler a little more than usual and create a quilt effect using the branding strips on my patterned papers.

To create this effect, I first divided my cardstock into a grid of 3 X 3. Using the natural width of the branding strips, I layered the strips around each square. I also added some of those cute pineapple washi tape from Little B in each square, as well as some other strips from my leftover patterned papers.

Once I was happy with the effect, I adhered these securely to the cardstock. To anchor my photos to the background, I cut a large banner and used it as a photo mat on one side of my page. Because the quilt effect is already rather busy, I kept things simple on this part of the page and allowed the photos to speak for themselves.

I decided to write my journaling on black cardstock to make it pop against the background. To finish off the page, I used my liquid pearls to create some enamel dots.

Thanks for joining me today. I hope by utilizing your ruler, your scraps and branding strips will get a good stretch on your next layout!

Yearbook: Chill

Is it just me, or are these days really, really hot? Here in Singapore, we have Summer throughout the year, but it is this time of the year that the mercury in our thermometers soar sky high. It is times like these that we try all ways and means to keep cool. And the best by far – eat some watermelon!

Every time this little man of mine spies me slicing up this yummy huge green fruit, he gets all excited and without fail, would be begging for some. I think he is real clever in knowing what keeps him comfy. Because of all the stuff we have been doing in an attempt to keep this crazy indoor temperature of 32 degree Celsius at bay, I thought that for the journaling of this page, it will be cool to write it as a recipe, of all that we have tried to manage the temperature.

I like how in so doing, while the journaling may be brief, it packs a punch in reflecting how desperate we have been to be comfortable. I snuck in the lovely fan die cut, light bulb paper clip and that prinatable that reads “moments like this” from my December kit and I think they work perfectly here.

In order to reinforce my journaling and theme on this page, I decided to create a huge slice of watermelon, using folded cardstock for the red watermelon flesh, with grey sequins mimicking the pips. The patterned papers from Pink Paislee worked beautifully to be the peel and rind here. I tried to create the effect of taking a bite into the melon by adhering a scallop punched circle to the side of this paper melon and adding some drops of juice to it.

I also love the pineapple gold foil vellum and used that not just in the background, but also to create a pinwheel to add interest to the page. Top that with that gorgeous gold alpha stickers and I think it’s the perfect touch for this page. Sprinkle on that really cute resin orange and some die cuts, and I’m done!

So what’s your recipe to keep the heat at bay this Summer? Do share!

Study Hall: Eden – Hello Paradise

 

Don’t you love a good Summer holiday? I do! Hello, Sophie here and thanks for joining me today. One of our favorite trips was one we took to the coast in Australia, to a place called “Eden”. The view was spectacular and there were hardly any one else around! We had loads of fun and one of my favorite photos was that of the hubs walking with our little girl to the gorgeous beach, flanked by these amazing rock formations on both sides. I knew I had to do something special on a page for this photo and here’s the end result:

Here, I created a sunburst effect around the photo. I used the gorgeous ombre pink patterned paper for this design and I loved how the gradients of the color helped to strengthen the design for my page. I cut triangles from the patterned paper and layered these with more triangles cut from the lighter blue paper. These would mimic the sun ray effect I was after. Once I was happy with the layout of the triangles, I adhered these to my kraft polka dot background, before placing my photo right in the middle of these sun rays. For added interest, I also used pens to draw stitches around each ray.

The page came together when I added a cluster of embellishments on the bottom corner of the layout. I love all the beautiful embellishments that came in the August kit and had so much fun selecting which of the items to use for this particular cluster group.

To tie all parts of the page together, I hand cut some clouds, stamped on them randomly using a word stamp and adhered these to the page. I used my glitter glue and sprinkled on some bright pink and yellow dots on the page and decided that I was happy with the overall result. I love that acrylic “paradise” piece and think it truly adds so much charm to the page.

I am so glad to have all these lovely items to use for my page. Perhaps you would like to scrap a favorite Summer vacation picture as well?

Locker Room: Hello There Sunshine

 

Click —–> HERE for the Clique into Summer ’15: I Am Gold Wrap Up Post

Salutations everyone! Sophie here and I am so happy to be sharing with you my first page using the wonderful, wonderful August kit, “Ambrosia”. I love the images and colors in this kit very much and had so much fun matching my pictures to all the wonderful yummy colors found in my kit.

To create this page, I first decided that I would go with a grey and pink color scheme to match my pictures. I love the patterns of those polka dots, but could not get past that ledger paper design as well. So, to get the best of both worlds, I decided to flip a strip of the ledger paper right down the middle of my layout. I also took a similar approach by adding some of those gorgeous grey floral prints down both sides of the page.

Once the background was in place, I placed my photos and the “Hello There” journal card in the middle of the page. Because I wanted to draw further attention to the title, I decided that the transparent tag would be a wonderfull addition to the page. I cut this is half in order to have it long enough to peek out at the top and bottom of my title. I added a handmade tassel and that totally cute flamingo flair for added interest.

I kept the embellishments on this page simple. I used the stickers from Pink Paislee and those cute wooden buttons to create a banner for the top of the page, attached some butterflies and flower images and adhered some heart stickers onto the gold edged tag and decided that those were ample for this page.

Finally, for my journaling, I thought it would be fun to write it along the edges of my decorative patterned paper at the bottom of the page. In so doing, this arrow shaped patterned paper continue to help draw one’s eyes to the photos, while allowing me a space to write my thoughts as well. Toss on a flamingo and a bloom and I was done!

Thanks for joining me today. I hope you have fun creating a page that shows off the gorgeous prints of both sides of the same patterned paper.

Clique Cards Spring Edition: Create your own background

Salutations everyone! I always love a challenge of creating my own backgrounds on my pages. When I first laid eyes on the Clique Cards Spring Edition, it was no exception – I had to create some background, especially with that gorgeous Altenew stamp set and I had some layouts in mind.

For my first page, I decided to cut large, narrow triangles to create a repeat pattern on the top and bottom of my page.

I love the bold effect this created and I went on to adhere my photo and embellishments. I thought a sprinkling of some of those lovely white sequins helped to soften the overall effect. We were at the museum when this photo was taken – I am grateful for the daily reminder from my kids on the importance of being curious and to learn continually.

For my second layout, I used the “hello” stamp from Altenew and covered the entire background with it. I decided to create an ombre effect, so it was certainly fun switching colors and stamping on the entire cardstock.

I thought it was appropriate to create a background of this nature for this picture in particular – one taken on the day we discovered that we have been blessed with Bub #3. We can’t wait for his/her arrival come this November! This page is very special for me, as it will be the first  layout for my third baby’s album.The embellishment found in the kit were also ideal for this page as I had the numbers 1, 2 and 3 in the kit as well as that lovely calendar diecut.

Thank you for joining me today. Here’s a tag to round it all off, as we celebrate our everyday (and also because I can’t seem to stop using all the lovely stuff in the kit. There’s so much!). Hooray!

Clique Cards Spring Edition: All Occasions Cards

Hello there everyone! Sophie here today to share some cards I made with the awesome Clique Cards Spring Edition. I love the refreshing color palette of this kit and the tons of stuff packed into it. So here are some cards I have created, which I kept flexible, so I can use them for different occasions.

Here’s the first, “Everything is Awesome”.

When I found out that a good friend was expecting her second child (one she has been waiting for), I was so thrilled and decided that a card was in order, especially one using that gorgeous piece of patterned paper from My Mind’s Eye with all those gold crosses! So loads of confetti, sequins and a gold banner to celebrate the occasion. Love the stamps in the set from Altenew. So much potential! I stamped the word “celebrate” using different tones of inks to create and ombre effect, before outlining the word in gold. While I made it to celebrate a pregnancy, I think it will work well for a birthday or happy event too (just tweak the number accordingly!).

 

For the next card, I kept it simple. I cut strips of paper and created a 3D bloom before adhering the circular die cut “love” in the middle. I also layered vellum on top of my cardstock to soften the colors.

 

Finally, to toss things up a little, I made a gift tag. See that rosette? I used the glassine bag found in the packaging to create it. Nothing like upcycling! I think those puffy gold crown and moustache stickers are reminiscent of photo booths that are so popular at parties these days. So on they went, for a touch of fun.

Thanks for stopping by and I look forward to sharing you other fun stuff I created with this wonderful kit in my next post!

 

Yearbook: Highlight What You Write

Love pocket style pages? I do! I like that it allows me to include numerous photos and gives me the space to journal as much or as little as I wish. For my pages today, I decided to highlight my journaling by literally highlighting them.

On these pages, I recorded our Christmas spent in Sydney with my sister. The colors in Happy Everything are really cheerful and I like how they make my photos so much happier. To further lift the colors and my journaling, I used a yellow marker to color all the words on these pages that I wanted to standout. This definitely added an additional pop of color to these pages. Give it a try!

I enjoyed including the printables from this month on these pages. They make these pages come together real quick! Those circle spots are really all you need to add interest to a photo and I loved how I could caption my pics with those horizontal tags.

Here’s a closer look at the two pages:

Do join us again here at Clique Kits for our Pep Rally tomorrow. Loads of fun in store and great prizes to be won! Can’t wait!

Yearbook: Journaling in the Title

Salutations everyone! Being a stay at home mummy, I often marvel at how much energy little kids have and their amazing imagination to make the ordinary fun. My two little darlings often get into all types on antics together – including making it tough for this mummy to get a good shot of both of them together. So I celebrate when I actually succeed in taking a picture that I like and scrap it! Here’s “Fun, Fun, Fun”.

I thought it would be interesting to journal in the white spaces of the letter ‘F’, ‘U’ and ‘N’ on this page. By so doing, I could continue to embellish the rest of the page as much as I would like, without there being too much text. Also, all the writing in the title itself added texture to the letter.

Thank you for stopping by and I hope you have time to doing something fun today!

Art Studio: Wooden Stencil Anyone?

Hello Everyone! What’s your favorite item in the amazing Happy Everything April Kit?

For me, the huge wooden heart veneer is a standout, besides all the gorgeous gold in the kit. I decided to use it as a stencil for my background and to color it thereafter.

I placed the wooden heart on a piece of white cardstock and went on to color parts of it with water color, using the wooden heart as a stencil.

Once the paint dried, some of the hearts were outlined with a grey pen before I drew a few bold brush strokes on the left side of the page and stamped some gold spots using a daubber. By this point, my lovely wooden heart veneer was a beautiful mess. So I painted it black to make it stand out on this page.

Throw on some patterned papers, embellishments and this totally adorable photo of my little girl and I was done! A dreamy page, I think all the elements on the page is reminiscent of a kid’s world, just like how my girl fell asleep with her googles on because she insisted that she would be going swimming in her dreams and she had to keep her eyes dry!

Thanks for joining me today and do share your arty pages too!

 

Geek Lab: Styling with a Stylus

I am generally a low tech type of crafter. Yup. I love my scissors and another tool – my stylus. You know, that double sided silver ball thingy that was handy once upon a time to do embossing with brass stencils (it was a long time ago!)

I have found my stylus to be really effective, especially when working with vellum and here’s my page today that I created using it:

First, I placed a piece of vellum over that wonderful mint background paper on the bottom of the page.  I traced over the white lines with my stylus. To get darker white lines, I folded along each line. And once all that was done, I colored in some of the triangles, punched out a couple of circles and I had some customized patterned vellum for my layout!

I found this to be the perfect complement to these photos of my little girl. One afternoon, after I had settled her brother in bed, I came out of the room to find her fast asleep with her drawing board on her lap. Turns out she was busying drawing, hence the title “Dream Artist”. I cut the patterned vellum into circles to mimic her drawing.

Thank you for joining me today. I hope you will consider picking up your stylus once again and have some fun with it!