Random Fact Series #2 - I took shorthand in high school

I had the idea to start a "random fact series" of scrapbook layouts about myself quite a while ago.  I finally got a start on the project with Random Fact #1 - I don't ski.  You can see it here.  Actually, you can't see it because it is out for publication (woot!), but you can read about it.  

An topic for Random Fact #2 has been floating around in my head for a bit, but I hadn't come up with any ideas for a page.  Then my July 2012 Studio Calico kit came with this fun paper by October Afternoon.

How perfect!  

I don't actually have any photos of me that would have anything to do with me taking shorthand, so I used one of the few photos that I have of me in a classroom.  I was caught sleeping!  Judging by my hair in the photo, I was probably a junior or senior.  And just to date me - that is a GUESS watch on my wrist!

There were a lot of fun items in the kit to pull from the colors in the October Afternoon paper - it was really fun to create!

Have a great week everyone!

Happy Mother's Day!

I wanted to share this Mother's Day layout today that I created about a year and a half ago.  I had submitted the layout to Scrapbook Trends and it appeared in the May 2011 issue, so I haven't shared it here before.   The call was for Mother's Day layouts and at first I thought - I haven't spent a Mother's Day with my mom in the past twenty years or so, I don't have anything for this call.  That made me think that maybe I should create a Mother's Day layout about just that - that just because I'm not with my mom on Mother's Day, that doesn't mean that I'm not thinking about her and that I still love her very much.  

The photo of my mom is probably from about 1968, so before I was even born.  I love the photo because it reminds me how much I look like her!

I used mostly Crate Paper's Restoration line on this layout (my favorite line, EVER!)  I made hand-rolled flowers that were perfect for this page.  I created a hidden journaling tag, as I wanted the note to be more private.

I'm having the layout framed for her for Mother's Day.  I hope she loves it!

Happy Mother's Day, everyone!

Ho ho ho!

I thought I'd share a Christmas card today that I made quite a while ago.  I had received the reindeer sticker on the card in a care package from Making Memories when they sent me a new Slice to replace the broken one that I had.  Around the same time that I got the reindeer sticker, Cards was having a style challenge to use green, red, brown, and reindeer on a card, so I thought I'd try it out.  This is the card I came up with.

The green and red patterned papers are from a company called Memory Box.  The background die cut stamp and the fabric brad are both from BasicGrey.  The pin is from Maya Road.  I cut the "ho ho ho" shape out with my Slice.  

I'm so glad that I saw this challenge otherwise I don't know if I ever would have used that sticker!

Have a great week everyone!

Thanksgiving Menu

I'm never very good about getting photos of our Thanksgiving Day and this year was no different.  I took one photo and it was of the turkey that we smoked.  I decided to make a layout with a post card that my mother sent, the photo of the turkey, and our menu.

Just a disclaimer - that 11 pound turkey and the entire menu was for two people.  Just me and my husband!  We've been doing really good eating the leftovers.  My favorite way to use Thanksgiving leftovers is to make turkey empanadas.  So yummy!

I used mostly the November 2011 Studio Calico kit for the layout.  The frame was from an earlier kit and   I used some older Making Memories letter for the word 'pull.'  My mother had written a note on the back of the postcard and I wanted to include that on the layout.

I created a little tag with her note printed on it and hid the journaling behind the postcard.  

Have a great week everyone!

Where did the summer go?

This past summer seemed to go by sooooo quickly!  At the beginning of the summer, I told my husband that I wanted the two of us to come up with a list of things that we wanted to do during summer.  Well, we never even got around to writing out the list and the summer passed by with most of the things that would have been on the list not getting done.  This layout is my list for next summer - no excuses this time!  

I used the Studio Calico October 2011 kit, Field Guild for this layout.  Field Guide is one of my favorite kits so far!  The kit included two rolls of washi tape and I used a bit of each on this layout.  I don't find washi tape really easy for me to use on layouts, but I really like the way it looks as part of the title under the word 'summer.'

I used some photos on the layout of previous summers that make me smile.  The two on the left are from a weekend that we spent in Vermont two summers ago.  One is a covered bridge and the other is a field of sunflowers.  The photo on the right is of my husband taking our niece out sailing for the first time  on Lake Michigan.  

I hope that we are able to accomplish more on our summer bucket list in 2012!

Have a great week everyone!

Happy Birthday to Me!

November is my birthday month, so I thought that I would start out the month by sharing two birthday layouts that I created recently.  The first one I made using an older Studio Calico kit, Paper Moon.  I had never made the folded pleat flowers before and I LOVE THEM!  I went out the next day and bought the Martha Stewart scoring board, which I didn't know that I needed until I discovered these flowers. Honestly, I had to watch a video on how to make them several times before I could figure them out, but now that I have the technique down, I will be making them often. 

For this next layout, I used the most recent Studio Calico kit, Field Guide.  I used lots of blue and yellow on this layout to match the shirt that I was wearing that was blue and yellow and a big '9' on it.

I did some sewing and stamping on this layout and I used my Slice for the 'happy birthday' and the '9.'

I never use original photos on layouts if they can not be replaced.  I scan the originals and print them out, which I did for both of these layouts.  I have a super cheap scanner and I have to say that the scans come out great, so I'm happy about that.

Have a great November everyone!

He Plays Guitar

My husband loves to play guitar and he usually does 3-4 nights a week.  He usually plays with a friend or two, so it gets a little loud at our house some nights!  I really enjoy listening to them though.  They play a lot of Rolling Stones, Grateful Dead, and Pearl Jam.  I usually hide away in my scrap room on these nights, so it's all good.

A couple of weeks ago, he came home on a Friday night, started a fire and played all night outside.  He so enjoyed himself!  I love the way this photo turned out with just the fire as the lighting.

I used the September 2011 Studio Calico kit for the layout.  I really had a hard time cutting into some of those papers - I liked them so much!

Enjoy your weekend everyone!  

Brenda

Happy World Cardmaking Day!

I don't know if I will be making any cards today to participate in World Cardmaking Day, but I thought I'd share a Halloween card that I made a little while ago.  

 I opened a box of goodies from Northridge Publishing this summer for being published in Scrapbook Trends magazine.  When I saw the mini Maya Road chipboard trees and I immediately envisioned one on a Halloween card or layout, covered in Tim Holtz crackle paint.  This is the card I ended up making.

The patterned paper is from Memory Box.  The "BOO!" and the bat were both cut from my Slice.  I used black Coredinations paper with an orange core and sanded just a bit of the black away.  I inked the edges of the card and I also inked the entire tree in black before applying the crackle paint so that the black would show through the cracks when it dried.

Happy World Cardmaking Day, everyone!

Brenda

Favorite Farmer's Market Recipes

When Craig and spend a weekend in Vermont, we usually head to the farmer's market in nearby Rutland on Saturday morning.  It is the largest farmer's market in Vermont with almost 100 different stands.  I love it there!  We were there one weekend in August and I took a photo of some baby squash in an egg carton that I thought was adorable!

We usually go to farmer's markets at least once a week during the summer and fall have have lots of different recipes that we like to make with the produce.  When I saw the American Crafts chalk labels that came in the August Studio Calico kit, Boardwalk, I thought it would be a fun idea to post some of my favorite recipes on them for a layout.  All of the supplies are from Glee Club except for the green American Crafts thickers were from a previous kit.  I used my Slice for the cob of corn and for the picket fence around the word recipes.

Hurricane Irene hit Vermont pretty hard last weekend.  We are not able to go to our condo until further notice because the only road that leads to it was washed away.  I have no idea if that means days, weeks, or months.  I really hope that the roads are repaired soon.  Leaf peeping is right around the corner and the tourism that it brings to the state is very important to the economy.  Vermont in the fall is amazing if you have never been there!

Have a great Saturday everyone!

Almost Twenty Years Later

Almost twenty years ago me and my now husband were in college and ended up at the same house party drinking.  That's all I'm going to share about that night....

I used the July Studio Calico kit on this and LOTS of butterflies and flowers.  I love the background paper from Sassafrass.  I hand cut the yellow flowers from a piece of American Crafts paper.  I love my new photo printer (well, not that new, but recently began using) as I can use it to print journaling on a 12"x12" page.  

Have a great weekend everyone!

Gerber Girls & Their Stories

I posted a layout this past January of the "Gerber Girls" - my great-grandmother, my grandmother, and my six great aunts (their last name was Gerber.)  You can find the post here.  My mother had told me that she would write a little bit about each of the Gerber Girls and I planned to incorporate her stories into a second page of the layout.  I finally finished the layout this week.

My mother wrote such great stories about her grandmother, mother and aunts.  I am so glad that she did this for me.  Thanks so much mom!

I used mostly BasicGrey Curio collection on this page.  I made the rolled flowers with a 7 Gypsies paper and a beaded flower embellishment that came in my April 2010 Studio Calico kit.  All of the letters, the bird, and the nameplate were made using my Slice.  I used Tim Holtz crackle paint on some chipboard on the leaves and vines.

Here is a close up of the left-hand page:

A close up of the right-hand page:

My mother's jounaling reads:

The Gerber girls have all left this earth.  Anyone who ever knew them, the first thing they will say is what hard workers each and every one was. That is the trait they were most known for. Was it their Swiss ancestry that made them that way, I do not know.  They were also known to be very frugal. I remember at a family get-together at my mother’s house, I walked into the kitchen to find them busy talking and washing Styrofoam plates we had used!  All of the Gerber girls married dairy farmers and all lived within 20 miles of each other. Aunt Leona – I called her Aunt O-nie for lots of years. My dad and Leona’s husband were brothers (brothers married sisters.)  The brothers shared their farm equipment.  Therefore, I got to spend lots of time at their house. I loved it ‘cause they had eight children, so I had lots of cousins to play with. Besides, they had more toys to play with! Aunt Katherine – All my aunts had a distinct brogue. That is one thing I remember about her. She was a religious person.  When she was in her 90’s she even went to China on a missionary trip. She wanted to die in her later years. So every year she made up a theme for the year.  When she was 97 her theme was “I’m 97 and going to Heaven.” My Grandmother Leah – Granma’s husband  (my grandfather) died in a car accident in 1935. Grandma was left alone to raise 7 daughters and to run the farm. I have heard stories of granma plowing the fields with a horse and walking behind the plow. During the years I knew granma she would live with elderly people to help them and also make an income for herself. When I was married she would help me sometimes. I remember her helping me peel apples for freezing or making pies. She was so frugal! She would get every tiny little bit of the apple that was possible to eat.  Granma fell and broke her hip. Then when she was in the hospital she fell out of bed and broke her other hip. She lived to be 6 months short of 100 years. Oh, yes, and how could I forget – granma was well known for her excellent pie making. I hate to brag, but I do believe I inherited that trait from her! Aunt Mary – Her husband (Uncle Fritz) was one of my favorite uncles. The story goes that I was so bashful when I was little that I would not go to anyone except Uncle Fritz. Aunt Mary only had one eye.  She lost the other one in the car accident that killed my grandfather. Aunt Selma – I remember her being tall and thin like granma was. She had seven children, but they were all older than me.  I do not remember spending much time at their house playing with the cousins. All together my aunts and uncles gave me 31 first cousins. (I also had 21 cousins from my dad’s side.) My mother Ruth – to describe my mom in a few sentences is hard to do. If only I could be half as ambitious as her at my present age of 65 I would be happy! We lived on a farm. She milked cows morning and night and also helped with the fieldwork. When they retired from the farm she started an antique business.  She would even drive into Minneapolis with this huge ugly van to buy antiques from estates. After probably 20 years of being an antique dealer she opened a Bed and Breakfast. I could go on and on about all my mom did in her life. I loved her dearly and miss her. Aunt Pearl – She died of stomach cancer when I was about 5 years old. All I remember is the funeral which was held at her house, with the dead body being there.  All of us kids had to play outside. Aunt Florence – She was the youngest and also my godmother. She married an Irishman who was 20 years older than her. They lived on a farm that was kept immaculately clean.

Have a great Saturday everyone!

Dry heat my a**!

I had to go to Phoenix for three days in June for a annual training for my job.  I kept my eye on the weather, and it was forecast to get up to 113 degrees!   Around here, everyone says "but it is dry heat - you'll be fine."  Like 113 degrees would feel cool without all the humidity that we have here.  I've always wondered if it really would be tolerable.

Well, now I know.  Dry heat is HOT!  I did not like it at all.  I didn't even leave my air conditioned hotel.     I normally love to go out for dinner if I have to travel and I ended up eating from the hotel restaurant three days in a row, breakfast lunch and dinner.

I took one photo on the trip and that was of the palm tree just outside my balcony.  I used the latest Studio Calico kit, Paper Moon for my layout.  I misted the palm tree with Mister Huey.  I cut it out with my Slice and then used it as a mask.

Happy 4th of July everyone!

Crate Paper June Sketch Challenge

I've been having a difficult time coming up with ideas for layouts the last few weeks.  Actually, I've come up with lots of ideas, but they all involved my Slice which has been at the Slice hospital for the last few weeks.  It never made it home - died in surgery - but a new one arrived at my door this Thursday.  Yay!  In the mean time, I thought I'd try out the June Sketch Challenge from Crate Paper to help my creativity.  Here is the sketch:

I loved the sketch - it was very easy to work with.  The only thing I really did to it was to turn it on its side.   I used papers from the Pink Plum Collection and from my most used line ever, Restoration.  

I used my new Slice for the leaves and for the word "autumn" and the letters "V" and "T."  I ended up cutting the letters out and then using the cut out as a mask to mist the letters.  That wasn't what I had planned, but my new Slice did not like the thickness of the Crate paper, so I had to do what I could.  Here's a close up of the stitching:

In Killington,Vermont they decorate hay bales in the fall.  There are pigs and panda bears and caterpillars, etc.  The center photo is of hay bales decorated as an owl.  It was the best creation that we saw last fall.

Have a great week everyone!

Happy National Scrapbooking Day!

I hope you are enjoying you day, whatever you may be doing - especially if you are having fun with National Scrapbooking Day!  I really hadn't planned on joining in, but Studio Calico had so many fun things going on that I had to join in.  I actually combined two challenges and came up with a layout that I love - and in less than 24 hours!  I am generally a super slow scrapper.  I started with this challenge from Waleska - "outside inspiration."

The challenge was to use this magazine advertisement as inspiration for a scrapbook page using the theme, the list, the design, the colors or whatever inspired you.  I was inspired by the colors, especially the charcoal, the pinks and the yellow.  I pulled out my latest Studio Calico kit and found pretty much everything I needed.  I wanted to combine this challenge with a sketch challenge, so I looked through the choices and found the one that worked best with the photo I had chosen.  It just happened to be from Waleska also.

Here is my finished layout:

I used patterned paper from Crate Paper, Cosmo Cricket and The Girl's Paperie.  I used my Slice to cut out the flowers that replaced the circles from the sketch and I also cut the butterfly out from it.  I added a little stitching and a few buttons to finish off the page.  The photo is my niece, Elisabeth who lives in France.  I am excited that I get to go visit her in two weeks, so that is what made me think of creating a layout of her.

Have a great Saturday everyone!

Happy Birthday!

I made a card this weekend for a friend of mine that is having her 29th birthday this week.  My inspiration for the card came from this post of the Scrapbook Trends blog. 

My general rule when I make cards is that I can only use scraps to make them.  The patterned paper and the ladybug are from the BasicGrey Lemonade line that I loved so much and have lots of scraps of.  I used my Slice to cut out the '29' and dangled them from matching embroidery floss.

I'm also sending her this little guy.  Isn't he adorable?  I made one for myself several months ago and he sits on my scrapbook desk holding pretty little Jenni Bowlin pins.  I had started another one, but hadn't finished it until last night when I decided that my friend would love one for her birthday! The pattern comes and the material comes from Heather Bailey and is available in her store here.  I love her stuff!

Happy Birthday, Jen!  

(I made her promise not to look at my blog until her birthday - I bet she sneaks a peek anyway!)

Out for Publication

I'm really excited to share the news that I am going to be published in the next three issues of Scrapbook Trends magazine (see sidebar for titles and issues)!  I had never submitted anything, anywhere before, so I was thrilled beyond belief when the very first page that I ever submitted got picked up.  Then I submitted the following two months and got picked up for those two layouts also!  I had never shared the layouts that I submitted on any public website, so I never had to take it off a website and replace it with an "OUT FOR PUBLICATION" notice.  I'm kind of bummed about that!

I decided that on the off chance that I ever get a layout published again that I would create an "Out for Publication" layout to use.  I got this idea from somewhere on Two Peas, but I can not find the page now.  (I can't believe I didn't bookmark it - it was such a great idea!)  

I hope that I will get to use this sometime and that I didn't totally just jinx myself!  Even if I did, the layout will be a nice way to remember that I did get published and will try again.  I used all Crate Paper patterned paper (mostly Restoration)and used by Slice for the word 'publication.'

I hope everyone is enjoying CHA this weekend!

Have a great day!