Valentine's Freebies at Studio Calico!

There are some fun Valentine's freebies available over on the Studio Calico blog here.  So cute - thanks  SC!!

I decided to make a card out of one of the printables.  I used the Bella Blvd patterned paper from the January kit which was the perfect color and it had cute little tiny hearts on it.   I replaced the "o" in you with a pink heart SC chipboard. 

Super cute and easy!  Have you made any Valentine's cards this year?

Have a good week everyone!

SC Card Makers Challenge

Dana from the Studio Calico card design team posted a "Lift the person above you - card makers edition" challenge this week.  I thought it would be fun to play along!  I had Jennifer Picard as the person whose gallery I had to find a card to lift.  I chose this one:

I may have been drawn to it because it was a Halloween card and I just adore Halloween cards, but it also seemed like a nice, clean design that could easily be used for any occasion.  This is what I came up with:

I left the washi in the same place.  Added my sentiment there also, although I used a stamp and a die cut  instead of a badge.  The bats became butterflies and I used mist to mimic the scattering of wood veneer stars.  

I had a lot of fun with this challenge and now have an extra birthday card on hand!

Have a great week everyone!

Studio Calico CHA challenges

CHA was last weekend and Studio Calico always hosts some fun challenges during it.  I had planned to get as many challenges in as I could, but I only got one done and it was too late to enter it.  At least I got a fun project done!

The challenge was to use a project from your inspiration book as inspiration to create a project.  I loved this layout by April Foster and knew that it would be perfect on a page about my New Year's Eve menu.

The page was pretty easy to put together once I had the idea in my head.  I used a Studio Calico star acetate sheet from the Story Time line so the background had a subtle pattern to it.  I used the wood veneer circle piece from the January SC kit that I covered with gold ZING.  I've been playing around with gold ZING and wood veneer and I LOVE it!

There are no photos on this page, but the menu that me and hubby cooked for our New Year's Eve party was scrap worthy in my opinion!

Were you able to complete any of the Studio Calico CHA challenges?  I'd love to hear if you did!

Have a good week!

December 2013 Studio Calico kit - Blue Note

Today I'm sharing all of the projects that I created with the December Studio Calico kit from the time I got the kit until I received this months kit.  Hopefully, this will be a monthly feature and I will not be posting four months worth at a time like I did last week!

I ended up creating four layouts and one card with the kit.  Not bad - especially for a very busy month!

Holiday Cards 2013

This layout was inspired by the "make" clothes pin.  I kept thinking that I would never use it, but then I realized that I had just made LOTS of holiday cards, so why not document them!

dance like no one is watching

The brick patterned paper by Studio Calico that was in the kit made me think of a trip to Barcelona for some reason.  The girl in the photo was crazy dancing to a street performer - she didn't seem to mind the large crowd of people that were watching her.

Happy Birthday 10

I'm going to try to be better about making cards this year.  I have a nephew turning 10 this week and his card is ready to mail!  I should add that I count any project that I used ANY item from the kit.  This card used just the puffy stickers. 

I don't eat tomatoes

The third layout in my Random Fact series.  This layout was inspired again by a product.  I was looking through my stash and saw the tomato pin.  I'm thinking - why would I ever put a tomato on a layout - I hate tomatoes!!!  

GO TOPPERS!

The red and blues in this kit made it perfect for a layout of my niece's basketball game.  The school colors are blue and white with a red accent.  In my journaling I added that I learned what a walking taco is at the tournament.  They all thought it was strange that I had never heard of it before.

So, my question for you is:  do you know what a walking taco is??

Have a great week everyone!

Catching Up

I've been a really bad blogger lately, mostly because of the issues a glass of spilled wine has caused to my poor little computer (see story here)  So today I decided to catch up on a monthly feature that I am behind FOUR MONTHS on!!  I'll be sharing all of the projects that I created with my August, September, October and November 2013 Studio Calico kits that I created during the month of each kit.

August 2013  - Marks & Co

love u - this one was actually picked up for publication - but putting this here as a placeholder!

card - you're the peanut butter to my jelly

card - love u

Puppy Love

September 2013 - Double Scoop

card - Happy Birthday 15

SPIDY & Ice Cream

October 2013 - Antiquary

Enjoy the Ride

card - Happy Pumpkin Season

I love you more than ice cream

This one was based on a Sunday Sketch by Studio Calico. 

November 2013 - Cuppa

This is the only layout I made with this kit, but I made lots of Christmas cards with it.  You can see some of them HERE.

Well, I'm feeling much better getting caught up!  Next week I'll be sharing my December projects as my January kit will be coming this Tuesday!

Happy New Year everyone!!  

Brenda

Pinterest Inspired Holiday Cards

Merry Christmas!   I thought I'd share a few cards that I made this year to send out to friends and family.  I actually made all of the Christmas cards I sent this year - about 50 of them!  I relied on my pinterest board "card inspiration" for the inspiration for my cards, but made them each my own.

For this card, I used the phrase from a card by Lisa Spangler from Studio Calico but then cut out a snowman using my Silhouette Cameo.  The idea came to me from seeing a package of six adorable Studio Calico bows sitting on my desk and thinking that I could use them all up making six holiday cards.

This poinsettia card was inspired by this card on my pinterest board.  I didn't have any other use for the gold doilies from a Studio Calico kit from a few months ago, so I thought this would be a good way to use them.  I used the Silhouette again for the poinsettia.

Finally, I was inspired by this card to create four of these cards using different holiday words from Heidi Swapp.  I actually used bits from the Heidi Swapp "Believe" line on each of these cards.  

I hope every one has a wonderful holiday!

Halloween Cards

For whatever reason, I just love Halloween scrapbook products and making cards for Halloween!  I just don't like anything else about the holiday - I don't even pass out candy!

Here are two Halloween cards that I made recently :

Both cards use shapes cut from my Silhouette and some Studio Calico wood veneer stars that I inked black

My collection of Halloween cards from last year can be seen HERE if you are interested in a little more inspiration

Have a great week everyone!

Brenda

Scrappy Resolution 2013 - September

My scrappy resolution this year was to create something each month with products from an older Studio Calico kit from that same month.  I started the year out strong, but I faded over the summer.  I've decided to pick it up again for the fall as I really did enjoy the challenge. 

This month I created two cards and a layout with products from 

September kits from 2010, 2011, and 2012

This card uses four products from last year's Central High kit - the sequins, the pink paper, the ribbon and the red letters.

The stitching template and the journaling card are from this year's August kit, Marks & Co.

This card uses a patterned paper from the September 2011 Studio Calico kit, Glee Club. All other products were from this year's August kit, Marks & Co.  The photo is my hubby and I this August - I think I'll give it to him for Valentine's Day next year.

The layout that I made uses products from the 2010 and the 2011 September kits.  The photo is my dad on the day he got his new springer spaniel puppy, Duke.  I got to spend a few days with Duke and he is just the most adorable thing ever!

Have a great week everyone!

July 2013 Studio Calico kit - Valley High

I'm a bit behind in my posting again - it is time to catch up!  My excuse is kind of funny.  I spilled wine on my computer a few weeks ago and now several keys on my computer don't work.  I took it in to get fixed, but the $800 estimate  was a bit to much for me to spend on a five year old computer.  So to type, I have to copy and paste the letters that don't work from other places and it is a major PITA!!!  So typing out a blog post is not as easy as it seems!

For today's post, I'm sharing the projects that I created with my July Studio  Calico kit, Valley High.  Most of the projects that I created this month have lots of other stuff thrown in from older kits or my stash.  I also just noticed that EVERY SINGLE layout has Crate frames from the Pier collection.  I love them!

Iconic

LHR

4th of July

Lots of Crate Paper from the Pier collection on this one.  

N.E. Aquarium

I  realized that I was kind of on a grid rut when I look at these layouts, but I love grids!  

Have a great week everyone! 

4th of July Projects

I thought I would sneak in these two projects before the month of July came to an end.  Craig's brother, nephew, and his nephew's friend came from France to spend three weeks in the USA during the month of July.  They arrived in Boston on the 3rd and spent the 4th of July holiday with us.  We took them to a Red Sox game, out for BBQ and to the Boston fireworks.  It was great but it was so extremely HOT! We snuck in to see a movie in between the dinner and fireworks just to cool off.

I started with the Crate Paper "The Pier" collection because I want to use as much of my supply up of that before the next collections come out.  I added a few items from July's Studio Calico kit and a few older kits as well.  One of my favorite items on the layout is the "4th of July" printable.  I had never printed or used one before and I may be hooked!  It added just the right touch to my page.  This one was a free one from the Two Peas digital store.

I made this card a while ago in an attempt to use up a huge roll of washi tape.  I put two strips of washi tape on the cardstock and then used my Silhouette Cameo to cut out the flag shape.  I backed the card with the red and blue patterned papers.  Unfortunately, I forgot to send the card out this year.  

Did you create any projects for the 4th of July holiday?

Have a great week everyone!

Gettin' Digi

I took the August class over at Studio Calico called "Toolbox."  The class had four sections - Digital, Mixed Media, Stitching, and Mists.  While I was interested in all the topics, I had the most to learn in Digital and I really tried to get a lot out of it.  I've tried to play around a bit before but I just never got the hang of it.  I have to say that I did learn quite a bit and I did create two hybrid project using the digital supplies from the class.

The first project that I created was this card.  I created the circles using the digital papers from the class.  I changed the colors of two of the papers, which was a technique I loved.  Then I just printed it out and added some embellishments and it was done! 

I really liked the color scheme of the card, so I decided to keep with the circle theme but turn it into a layout.  This is the digital background that I created.  I wasn't quite sure where I was going with this, but I wanted to create a layout for me and my husband's ten year wedding anniversary that we celebrated in August.

I printed it out on a piece of patterned paper that coordinated perfectly with the circles that I created.  Then I added a bunch of photos of us that had been taken this year.  I added a few embellishments, stamping and journaling and this is how it turned out.

I had printed the background on a piece of test paper before I printed it out on the patterned paper.  I decided to cut the word "love" out and adhered it to the background for a little dimension.

I had a lot of fun creating these hybrid projects and will probably experiment a little more.  I like that I can play around with scrapbooking even when I don't have my supplies around.

So, do you do any digital  scrapbooking?

Have a great week everyone!

June 2013 Studio Calico kit - Roundabout

I'm a bit behind in posting my projects with last month's Studio Calico kit - but better late than never!

I have only created two projects with June's kit - not because I didn't like the kit, but it has been a pretty crazy month with not much time for scrapping.

My first layout that I created was "Boston Strong."

I wanted to do something with the photos that I have been taking of the make-shift memorial for the victims of the Boston Marathon bombings. It has been in Copley Square, across the street from my office, since the square reopened after the bombings, so I walk by it all the time. The city took all of the items away a few weeks ago to be archived.

My second layout uses a great piece of patterned paper from the Crate collection "The Pier."  The paper really reminded me of a vintage wallpaper pattern, so I tried to think of some photos that would work.  I remembered these photos taken with my IPhone from an afternoon tea while my hubby and I were in London this May.

I added some pops of gold which has become one of my favorite things to do lately.  

Hopefully, I'll have a little more time to play with July's kit and have more to share next month.

How many many projects did you create with June's kit  - or did summer fun get in the way?

Have a good week everyone!

  

  

May 2013 Studio Calico kit - Planetarium

Well, I don't know where the month has gone, but it is way past time for another "what I did with the month's Studio Calico kit from the time the kit arrived until the next month's kit arrived."  So here it is!

This first one is my favorite of the month.  The photos are from a cruise that my hubby and I went on several years ago.  

The page just didn't seem complete until I added the hemp twine across the top.  I think it looks a bit like a fisherman's net - perfect for an ocean page!

This next page documents our New Year's Eve tradition.  We always make Cioppino (a seafood stew) for our dinner.  Sometimes it is the two of us and sometimes we have a party, but we always serve Cioppino!

This next page just documents a Saturday we spent together recently.  I told my hubby that we could do whatever he wanted to do for the whole day.  We ended up going to a concert, going out for lunch, and then going to a movie.  My hubby loves to be out and about!

My last page has a lot of gold, glitter, and sequins!  We went to see the musical "Rock of Ages" when we were in London last month.  Towards the end of the production, there was gold confetti being thrown into the audience.  Of course, I had to pick some up to save for a scrapbook page!  The next day, we went back to take a few pictures of the front of the theatre since we couldn't take any pictures the night before.

I decided to play up the gold and cut my title out of gold POW glitter paper, used the gold and craft paper from Studio Calico, gold sequins and I punched out some more confetti out of the POW glitter paper.  Not my "normal" style (which I'm not sure what that is), but I think it turned out fun!

How many projects were you able to make with Studio Calico's May kit?

Have a good week everyone!

April 2013 Studio Calico kit - Spencer's

Another month, another "what I did with my Studio Calico kit from the time it arrived at my door until the next month's kit arrived" post.  This month, I purchased the main kit and SC patterned paper.  I loved the corkboard paper and I also love vellum and wanted extra of that.

This first layout is some pictures of when my husband and I were staying in Florence, Italy for a little vacation. One day we took the train to Sienna for lunch at a Slow Food approved restaurant. (Slow Food is an organization all about authentic, traditional food.) My husband ate tripe and spaghetti with wild boar sauce!  The snail is the symbol of the Slow Food organization and I was able to cut it out with my Silhouette.

This card I made for no reason other than I thought it wood be a cute way to use that little BasicGrey smily face.  Clean and simple!

This layout uses almost a whole sheet of the vellum I am so happy that I bought extra of.  I trimmed it down a bit and then backed it with a gray piece of cardstock.  I thought it was the perfect base for a guy page.

This layout I made for a NSD challenge at Studio Calico.  The challenge was to use a number on the page.  We had just seen our nephew, Paul for the first time in two years and he has changed so much!  I   thought using his age in the title was perfect for a layout about him.

This layout was made for the Week #2 challenge for the POP II class at Studio Calico.  See more about the class and the technique I used here.  

I also made my niece a birthday card with some of the leftover stars that I had from the "Paul @ 15" layout.  (Happy birthday, Olivia!)  Sorry about the bad picture, but I had to get it in the mail before I was able to take a better one. 

That's it for this month - a pretty good month I have to say!  I'm not doing so well this month making projects with the kit - only one so far.  How are you doing with Planetarium?

Have a good week everyone!