Happy Father's Day

My dear friend Cynthia posted a photo of her and her dad on her blog the other day...and it immediately reminded me of the photo above. (Note the same paneling and same harvest gold "dad chair" recliner.) I love Cynthia's style and her ability to work her most nostalgic memories and treasured photos into her writing, journaling, scrapbooking and memory keeping...and have it feel so fresh and new and interesting. And yes, Miss Cynthia, I am long overdue for some SCRAPPIES and you so inspired me to get crackin' on some layouts!

But first - the photo above (haven't done this scrapbook page yet....but the ideas are perking!) The photo is from the 70's, of course. It is my dad (the day he came home from the hospital, hence the heavy beard and moustache - he was usually clean shaven.) Perched on his knee is my baby sister, Niki. I took this photo as part of the one roll of film I shot to earn my photography badge in Girl Scouts. It is the only photo I ever took of my dad (he died in April of 1975 - not long after this photo was taken.) The only other photos I have from that roll are of our cherry tree in the front yard. I have no memory of the other photos....sisters...any ideas? Wonder what became of them....(see how important memory keeping is!)

The things that I see in this photo:

• Our dad always had a pen in his pocket (appears his glasses are in there too!)...he always wore a watch and his wedding band...and Niki was his favorite! (hee)


• That yellow and red book in the magazine rack on the right is from the circus...not sure what year was the last time our dad took us, but I remember looking at that book over and over again. My dad loved the circus.


• The flowers in the bottles on the divider wall were my creations...I used empty vanilla extract bottles and any other little glass vessel I could salvage (upcycle!) to hold these flowers. It was a craft kit I got for Christmas - I think they were called "Dip It" --you formed a wire petal or leaf and dipped it into the goo...it then hardened into a transparent film. {This site is the closest thing I could find for it. Mine looked NOTHING like those! I only had red and green "goo" - but my kit came with red-tipped yellow stamens and green floral tape, too! I remember it was VERY smelly. Probably toxic! eek!}


• I had forgotten the kitchen wallpaper design (harvest gold and orange and avocado green--oh yeah.) I still love cafe curtains (tho' I don't have them in my house).

And so...inspired to keep jotting down my memories and cobbling together minutes (hours!) to create scrapbook and journal pages. Cynthia and Sandy, I promise to upload my pages to SISTV!

In the meantime, here is one I just did early, early this morning....Little Miss's hands at play. Love that she is a LEFTIE! xo (sorry the scan is so crappy)

Hitchcock Blonde Kit Layout {#3}

Oh I am SO IN LOVE with the STRING OF PEARLS paper. Had a hard time CUTTING INTO IT....but once I did I loved the look of a few strands here and there on this layout.

This photo is my mom and dad, Thanksgiving 1960. They had been married for a year by then, but my oldest sister would not enter the picture until the following December. I don't recall ever seeing this photo until very recently (thanks, Nik!) How gorgeous are those pearls on my mom?

Love her smile in this pic.

They only had 16 married years together before my father died.

What we all wouldn't do for another Thanksgiving with him.

Technicolor Postcards Hitchcock Blonde kit items: Black fibers (from burlap piece); heart cut from red burlap, Hambly transparency screenprint (Gold) and paper (Black Brocade), String of Pearls patterned paper; vintage pearl button and silk flowers; Thickers "Jewelry Box" letters in gold and black.

Hitchcock Blonde Kit Layout #2

Ok---here is one of the photos I could NOT WAIT to use with Cynthia's Technicolor Postcards Hitchcock Blonde kit. I knew it would a perfect match.

Oh yeah--my mom was indeed SKINNY FABULOUS. Her wedding portrait? Teeny waist (I couldn't have worn her gown if I had gotten married in SEVENTH GRADE!) I remember her always saying "it was a size five. Taken in." (And you wonder where I get the sarcasmo?)

hee.

Seriously--that platinum hair? Wish I could pull it off!

Pretty Maids All in a Row...

...how much you wanna bet my nieces will think I am referring to them as "cleaning ladies" rather than "maidens" -- 'cause you KNOW they won't get the Eagles song reference. Sigh.

But I wanted this for my title - only wish I could have found the dang Cheeseburger in Paradise business card or coaster that I snagged that day.....would have stapled it right onto the page!

Wasn't sure when to stop on this one...I think I went a bit overboard--but we'll see how the girlies like it.

Hugs to the pretty maidens! Thanks for being such pretty pretty princess subjects! xo

Ode to Kelly : )

In keeping with the CREATE SOMETHING EVERY DAY - I am steadily filling my latest binder with 8 1/2 x 11" layouts of my favorite photos that I have set aside to 'scrap this next!' -- JUST DOING IT. Trying not to overthink it and that is serving me well lately. (And yes--this one has hidden journaling on the back, too!)

Love you, Kelly! You are a wonderful friend and a STYLE GURU and gorgeous and funny and fun and a great inspiration to me.

{I need more PHOTOS OF ME AND MY BFFs!! }

Double Shot Espresso Energy Drink is to blame!

.....for my being awake until 3:30 a.m. last night (this morning). But I got through a few hours of taped TV shows and gathered up all the PURPLE I could find in my immediate stash surroundings and this is the result. Posted it to SIStv for the weekly Fashionista Challenge.

Not a big fan of PURPLE PAPER for layouts....but somehow I have acquired quite a bit of it (for specific projects and for the nieces, of course!) - so in keeping with the spirit of the challenge to 'use a color you normally wouldn't'---I went PLUM CRAZY (oh yeah. had to say it.) and slapped on all the PURPLE bibs and bobs and bits and pieces I could lay my hands on (well...without venturing too far away from my current corner crafting sector....that is, I did NOT venture into the belly of the beast that is the BASEMENT and start rooting through all THAT.)

I kinda like it! Not the 'purple crayon' color so much- but all the berry and plum colors out right now are calling to me. (Have you been in Anthropologie lately? PLUM YUMMY.)

Also -- I've taken to journaling on the backs of my layouts, too, when I don't have room on the front and/or when I don't want to post the "too personal" stuff. (Also leaves something for family and friends to find when they look through the actual scrappy books--rather than the online images.) I like Ali's idea of "love notes to the future" and the hidden or extra journaling tucked away appeals to me.

Digi attempt,Take one.

Seriously---how cute is that FACE? that TONGUE? I had to do it...tried it DIGI....I think I'd like it if I could only figure out how to use/load BRUSHES....

But I still prefer my organic style of paper and scissors.

But seriously--don't you want to SQUISH HER?

The parade of the niece & nephew scrappies continues!

More scrappies to share! Emily is the oldest of my sisters' children....how she can be TWENTY YEARS OLD is beyond me. She is in her second year of college (again--wha? college?) and these photos are from her visit in May over Memorial Day Weekend. Love this girl!

Loving the poloroid frame on Picnik...and the fonts. That is the extent of my 'photoshopping' expertise. I am SO not good at the digi stuff. I like the IDEA of it...but not gonna blow out any more brain cells trying to fight my way through that learning curve!

And so, I will stick to my papers and rub-ons and stamps and Mono-adhesive. Worked on this one all day on and off...was having trouble with my layering and angles - still not happy with all the wonky slanting....but in the end....I thought it wasn't half bad! (The bling is all pink--didn't scan well.)

And so to bed!! Tomorrow is another day, Scarlett!

She Shines : )

OK - working on a series of layouts of my gorgeous and much beloved nieces & nephews!! Here is Miss Mikayla, a few years back. As always, she shines...wish I were as photogenic as this girl! How pretty is this pose with the light hitting her hair? Thanks, Uncle Frank, for this photo! xo

They are COHEEESIVE

Love having nieces in COLLEGE (Em and Jess!) - so proud of them going forth so bravely and (in Jessie's case!) FIERCELY! Love that they are so excited about being away from home and in school, and that they have made friends so easily.

Jessie's first email to me about her roommate was that they felt like they knew each for forever--that they were "coheeesive" -- love the lingo : )

This layout came together quickly with scraps and bits from my craft table and lots of inspiration from the SIStv gals'---lots of bright color and fun - which is how these smiles make me feel!

Love ya, Jess! xox {Photo by Jessie :)}

Now which niece/nephew wants to be next?

Layouts for Looksies!

So inspired by Cynthia and the Leading Ladies that I have been getting some pages done & posting things on SIStv! SO ITCHING TO GET MY HANDS ON THE KIT!! In the meantime...here are some scrappies.

I am noticing my favorite "style" right now is more art/journal-y than "clean scrapbooking" - and I really am loving it. SO LOVE the doodling and all these SHARPIES and WRITING ON THE PHOTOS and FAUXLAROIDS and just messing around with all my stash. Sometimes it is just about the PLAY. I think what had kept me from getting more layouts done was that I didn't have a story ready to tell or the perfect journaling figured out or all the "gotta haves" that trip us up and keep us from JUST DOING IT. So I decided to JUST FORGET ABOUT the self-imposed rules and do it for FUN for a bit. I still will document the stories that need to be recorded....but there is plenty of room in my EMPTY BOOKS for these kinds, too.

And that is making me happy.

Scrap Your Day - JUNE 25 (and May!)

Ok...catching up this weekend....last week I transferred my "homemade" pages into the Making Memories calendar (ooohh that scalloped edge!) - worked a bit on the cover today -- TOTALLY copied Shimelle's idea (why fix it if it ain't broken?) - LOVE this textured paper from Doodlebug...wouldn't it be great wallpaper?? YUM. Three months down! Using the inside front cover to tack on the reminder pics Shimelle posts each month (cause I love these!) and the first page is going to be a collage of spare photos I print but don't use each month....I am getting LOTS on each page - but I want to get into the groove of repeating the same shots month to month to make it more about the details....(added a shot of the car odometer and the price of a tank of gas...will be interesting in ten years, no? Also love the shot of the shower products....don't know why, but I do! Finding most of the details I tend to capture about are only interesting to me---but that makes me love this book!)

All done!

Ahhhh....nothing like having something fun to do during the NFL DRAFT ENDLESSLY DRONING ON...(not there is anything wrong with that, if that's your thing, of course.)
So here is my APRIL 25th Scrap Your Day layout.

Notes to self for next time: TAKE MORE PICTURES! And pay more attention to the PHOTO PROMPTS (I didn't do enough of the "step back" for the landscape shots)....other than that....I am pretty happy with the first layout of this project!

Hey Cameron---I figured out a way to recapture some of the "hidden" pretty paper---back the photos in the "flip book" with the patterned paper - can journal right on it or just leave at as a pretty surprise (like that nice treat you get when the purse you LOVE has lining as yummy as the outside!)

Can't wait to see everyone's!

Scrap Your Day pages.....

OK! OK! I am sharing the pics of the pages I prepped for our "Scrap Your Day" project....note I have not decided on BINDING yet....maybe tomorrow I will figure that out!

Just slapped down some favorite patterned papers...just like Shimelle's sample (if it ain't broke, and all!)....How much do I love the new Daisey D papers?? Like watercolor/mixed media/collage pieces of ART! I could barely stand to CUT them!!

I didn't take NEARLY enough pictures yesterday! (Note to self for next month!) but I did get that damn alarm clock shot in.....

more shares later!

Marching on toward SPRING.

Bring on the Spring flowers and MORE BUTTERFLIES (thank you ALI! we are SO going to make these when you come, Nik!!) This is the photo for my FRIDAY tag...done in PhotoShop Elements - how impressed are you, Aim?? whoohoo!)



Marching through my project lists:

Cathy Z's tag book: A few shares from my first week's worth of tags....(and I got the template to work in PhotoShop Elements. WhooHoo! Thank you Cathy Z!)

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2. Check us out, Molly-Mo! Not too bad for the camera phone : )

3. JAM! When we hit the lottery we will buy up Pottery Barn : )

So many projects...so little free time. Did you know laundry multiples if you ignore it for a week or so? So wrong.

OH! For my scrappin' pals---the latest page for the 'me and Rob' book: I must say I am BORED with our SAME DUMB PICTURES ....gotta switch it up this month!! LOL.

For my scrappin' pals!

I have to say....this is my favorite of late. The pic of the roses? Taken with my CAMERA PHONE at work. They were three lovely shades of PINK...beautiful. xo Have been HOARDING this paper for eons...love the way it turned out. (Note: Heidi Swapp chipboard alphabet letters have the WORST adhesive. This was a brand new package - love the color and the font...but the adhesive was completely dried out. Had to peel it off to get my tape runner to adhere to the raw chipboard. Not good!)

Diggin' Paper Flowers.

Have you seen these at Target in the scrappin' aisle? A whole tablet of punch-outs---bright colors - different patterns on each side....I want to plant them in pots and line them up in a row somewhere....for now..this yellow duo made it to a page for our Two of Us book (diggin' the FauxtoBooth strips, too, Art Journal Army brat that I am!)

Sidebar please.

Yes--I need one of those cool sidebars with "scrap- book pages" so I can get a nice GRID of these going.... I'll get right on that. In the meantime... here you go, Nik!! More layouts. {Is it wrong to love the PAPER more than the pictures? I am guilty. Loving this Scenic Route "Loveland Garnet Street" paper on the "Together" page - one side is that fuschia swirl and the other all hearts.}

And I again apologize for the crappy photo quality of these pages. Will somebody please explain to me why I did NOT get the printer/scanner that can do 12x12 pages? Anybody?

2008 Scrapbook page layout #'s 1, 2 and 3

This picture STILL cracks me up. From New Year's Eve-Rob took it of us (our silly 'holding the camera at arm's length' style). Sorting through photos earlier this month I realized we have lots of these shots (comparatively. nothing like the real scrappers with their hundreds a month.....) and I decided to commit to a "2008 Just the Two of Us" book - at least ONE photo a week - of us together - taken in this manner. (PS - Aimee--I really do do that kissy face thing! Can't stop myself! hee hee)

Heidi Swapp clear frame, edges painted with Copper Liquitex paint; purple cardstock, chipboard letters and fibers from Portafolio Scrapbooking tote kit (thanks, Cohens!); acrylic journaling stamp from dollar bin at Michael's; Micron black fine point pen.

Two more pages.....Saturday the 19th and Thursday the 24th...I love getting pages DONE and in the BOOKS!