Santa with Doodlebug Designs Inc.

My great niece was not impressed with Santa! At 13 months old, on what should have been a special trip out to see him, she showed her displeasure! 

I was inspired to create this layout seeing some of the Doodlebug Designs Inc. layouts shared on Pinterest. As I had stickers leftover from the advent calendar I made I thought I would give it ago. It was quite straightforward once I got my template for the heart cut to the shape and size I wanted.

               

I used some of my older papers and stickers by Doodlebug Design Inc. For the frame I gutted a piece from the centre of 'Dear Santa' from the Milk and Cookies collection.

I trimmed a piece of Avalanche Bazzill to 11" x 11" and inked the edges with Festive Berries Distress Ink. This was glued in place centrally over the frame.

From a piece of 12" x 12" scrapbook paper I didn't want to use I cut myself a large heart shape, once happy with the size and shape I drew round it lightly with pencil. I mounted my photo onto a piece of patterned paper from the same collection and stick in place on the layout. I then set about lining up the lettering and used various letter stickers to do this. They are also all from Doodlebug Designs Inc.

I arranged the stickers from several Christmas collections around the heart shape, overlapping the pencil line and making sure I kept the same true. I carefully rubbed out any pencil marks still showing.

Finally I added the year at the bottom of the page.
Thanks for looking
Lynn x

Christmas Cuddles.

Merry Christmas!


 Hope you had a wonderful day yesterday with lots of lovely company, food and gifts all round.

Here is another quick and simple Christmas layout using the fabulous festive Peace and Joy Collection from Kaisercraft

I used a sheet of Festivity for the base of the layout and cut out some flowers and birds from the sheets of Frolic and Cheer

Once again I added some Stickles for some pretty sparkles just to finish the page off.

I hope you managed to take lots of super photos and that you look forward to scrapping them.

Don't forget there is a dedicated CHRISTMAS SECTION in the shop for all your scrappy needs.


Warmest Wishes
Anita xx

Papermaze December Kit - Part 2 - A Little Extra Layout

Hi Lynn here with a little extra for Christmas. I have two more layouts using the December kit to share with you after Christmas, but found I had plenty left to make this layout as well.

For this page I used a black and white version of a photo my nephew had taken of his one month old baby last Christmas.

I used the sheet of Natural Bazzill as a background and splattered some inks and stains in three areas (Top left corner, bottom left corner and right side), in preparation for building up the clusters of flowers and foliage later. I used Dylusions Black Marble Ink Spray and Distress Stains in Festive Berries and Evergreen Bough.

I cut a strip of Cajun Bazzill 2cm x 30cm, inked the edges with Vintage Photo Distress Ink and stuck this vertically 2.5cm in from the left of the page. 

Using the little frame in the kit, I place my photo behind it and mounted it onto the layout with double-sided foam pads, about 7cm down from the top and 1.25cm in from the left of the page.

The clusters of Christmas foliage were made with two sets of dies. Tim Holtz Sizzix Thinlit's s Holiday Greens for the Holly Boughs and the Rainforest Bazzill. Then I used the Festive Greens set to cut the bows from gold card, pinecones from brown card, foliage from scraps of Rainforest Bazzill and other scraps of green card. The Poinsettias were also cut using the Festive Greens die set and I used more of the Cajun Bazzil for the petals and gold for the centres. These were then all arranged and some stuck flat with glue and others built up with double-sided 3D foam pads. Berries and sparkle were added with Nuvo Crystal Drops.

For my title I used several different letter stickers from my stash including some glitter AC Thickers.

Thanks for looking,
Have a wonderful Christmas and I will be back with more from this kit later.
Lynn x

Santa Run!! ....Kaisercraft's Peace and Joy

Hi There

It's Anita here with you and I have got a quick and simple layout today using the festive Peace and Joy papers from Kaisercraft

I wanted to document a charity event that our youngest daughter took part in with her Dad, back in 2014. Hundreds of people donned Santa suits and ran a course to raise money for a hospice local to my Husbands workplace.

I based the layout on a sheet of Delight, using the wood-panel side and then used a script stamp and dabbed with white acrylic paint. I stamped a few patches that would show around the edges of the photos and flowers.

Using a sheet of Frolic and also a sheet of Cheer, I cut out a few flowers and a couple of birds and the scattered them around the page.

I finished the page off by adding Red, Icicle and some Champagne Stickles to the flowers and birds.

This paper collection is perfect for your Festive scrapping and card making and you can a complete section for all your Christmas needs right HERE.

Scrappy Christmas to you all!

Warmest wishes
Anita xx

Christmas Cottage Explosion Box..... Simple Stories Merry & Bright.

Hello There.

Its Anita here today with you to round up the end of the week. I really cannot believe how rapidly Christmas is approaching..... Do you make lots of your Christmas cards? I have to be honest and admit that I am rather naughty and only hand make some for a few of my friends, they are all crafty ladies and I know we all appreciate a handmade card... I have a couple of large boxes full that I have saved over the years of ones I have been lucky enough to receive and I love looking at them.

I wanted to make something different for some very special friends of mine this year and decided to make an explosion box and use as a card for them.

I have been working with the Merry and Bright Collection from Simple Stories, its a vibrant mix of red, green and white with a mix of plaid, polka dots and various other patterns and also lovely decorative panels to choose from.
I used 2 sheets from the range.... 4 x 4 Elements and A Simple Wish along with a sheet of Red Hots Bazzill and a sheet of Ivy

There are lots and lots of tutorials on Pinterest, You Tube and Google, to create various size and shaped Explosion boxes depending on what you want to do and so much inspiration for decorating etc. I went for a simple, single layer box based on a sheet of 12 x 12 cardstock. It was scored at every 4 inches, this meant the sheet was split evenly into 9 squares. I cut the top right and left panels out and the same on the bottom right and left. This left a basic cross shape and when the sides were folded up it creates the lower part of the box.
I picked 5 panels from the 4 x 4 Elements sheet and used them to decorate the inner base and each empty side ( you can of course use photos if you prefer) I also added some Stickles to pretty the panels up and give some extra festive sparkle!
The outside of the box was decorated with panels of one side of the A Simple Wish sheet.

I wanted to make a little 3d scene inside and found these sweet little wooden cottages and a mini bottle brush tree which were perfect for the job. Along with some teeny polystyrene snowballs to finish it all off.

I used the 2nd sheet of card-stock for the lid. This was cut down to an 8 x 8 " square and then measured in at 1" 7/8 " along each corner, sliced inwards to 1" 7/8 and then folded to make the lid. This was covered with panels of  the reverse side of A Simple Wish and the very top of the lid had a 4 x 4 Element Panel added to it and Stickles added.

With the left over card stock I made a simple little mini album for some special photos to be added into.

These little boxes are lovely to make and are great for many different occasions.... why not pop onto Pinterest, Google etc and see what ones you can find!

Hopefully my friends will be pleased with it!
Thank you so much for looking at my project today, I hope that maybe you are a little bit inspired to have a try yourself.

Merry Christmas and a Crafty New Year to you all

Anita xxxxx

December Papermaze Kit

I can't believe it's time for the last Papermaze kit of 2018, but here it is! Another well co-ordinated collection of papers, cardstock and embellishments ready for us to make Christmas layouts. Much of the content could also be used for non-Christmas layouts too.

For this first post I have created two layouts to share, one with my daughter and her fiance when they became engaged last year on Christmas eve and the second with George choosing a Christmas tree the year before.

Before telling you how I made these layouts, here are the details of the kit.

The December Kit

Double-sided Patterned Papers:
Carta Bella - Christmas collection - Merry Snowflakes & Winter Floral
Kaisercraft - Peace & Joy collection - Rejoicing & Elation
Kaisercraft - Christmas Edition collection - Snowcapped
Simple Stories - Merry & Bright collection - A Simple Wish
Bazzill Basics - Kraft & Natural

The reverse side of the papers

Extra Bazzill Basics Pack - Rain Forest, Watermelon, Cajun & Raven

Embellishments:

2 Jolee's Boutique word stickers, 5 heart buttons, 3 Tim Holtz beaded berries, 4 Tim Holtz Christmas Quote Chips, 1 frame, 18" black lace, A5 sheet corrugated card, strip of pearls, 6 strips of word stickers, 2 red flowers, 2 exclusive chipboard stems.

Christmas Eve Engagement

For this layout I wanted to create a wreath to 'hang' on the wooden panels. So I worked with two sheets of patterned paper - Merry Snowflakes and Rejoicing.

Cut the photo into a circle (mine was about 19cm in diameter), then cut a circle from the centre of the Merry Snowflakes paper, a little smaller than the photo. With the wooden panel side up mount the photo over the hole. Keep the circle cut from the paper for the next layout.

Take the Rejoicing paper and fussy cut the bird, the bird house and white flower from one side then turn and cut lots of red poinsettia and the leaves from the other side. (Also cut out the holly and set this aside for another layout - to come on the next post). Arrange these paper elements all around the photo, curl the leaves and petals with the blade of your scissors. Use double-sided 3D foam pads to give dimension to the wreath. Add a gem to the centre of each flower - I found some golden ones in my stash.

Add the Papermaze exclusive chipboard stems, I broke a piece off one of the stems then tucked them all in among the leaves and flowers. I added a dot of Glossy Accents to each bud. Add quote chips and word sticker strips to the bottom of the photo.


I cut my title from Gold miri card using an alphabet die set from Die-namics. The date was added with some old sticker dies from my stash.

Oh Christmas Tree

My first job was to gut the Rainforest Bazzill, making a frame of 1". I stuck this to a sheet of scrap cardstock to make a stronger base for the layout.

All the edges were inked with either Gathered Twigs and Forest Moss Distress Ink.

Then checking to make sure the trees are running in the right direction, I cut two pieces from the Elation paper, they were both 11" wide and one measured 2" deep and the other 5" deep. After rounding the corners at the top of the 2" piece and the bottom of the 5" piece, I added them to the top and bottom of the layout leaving a dark green border of 0.5" showing.

To fill the gap and make a contrasting band across the page - I cut a piece of Cajun Bazzill 11" x 4.5", and a piece of the plaid side of Winter Floral paper 10.7" x 4.3". I stuck the paper centrally over the card, then put it into place between the strips of Elation paper.

I mounted my photo onto some white paper and then positioned to the right of the layout (The white surround helps to lift the photo from the surrounding papers). From the Rainforest Bazzill I cut six trees (two of each) using the Tim Holtz Sizzix Woodlands Thinlits die set. I used the sheet of corrugated card in the kit to die cut three deer using the Sizzix Woodland Deer Thinlits die set. I mounted these onto the layout with double-sided 3D foam pads.

Selecting one of the quote chips I stuck it to the bottom right of the page, I added a date with some stickers from my stash. For my title I die cut letters from the circular scrap of wood panel paper from the first layout. I also used some old glitter Thicker alphabet stickers from my stash.


I have more layouts to share with you very soon.
Thanks for looking.
Lynn x

Pebbles Cozy & Bright - Christmas sELFie

Hello, Karen here with a layout to share using the wonderful Cozy & Bright collection from Pebbles Inc. This is a Christmas themed collection in traditional bright red and green colours with some pale blue and wood grain thrown in.

The starting point for my layout was a sketch from June 2013 by Pagemaps.

I started with a 12 x 12 sheet of white Avalanche Bazzill cardstock and onto this I stuck a sheet of the Fa La La La paper which I had trimmed to 11¼ x 11¼. Another 10 x 10  piece of the white Bazzill cardstock was then added at a bit of an angle and I machine stitched around all the edges with red thread.

My photo, which measured 4 x 4, was double matted with white cardstock and a piece of the Christmas Magic paper, trimmed to look like a polaroid. I created a strip across the layout with my photo and some tags cut from the Give Joy and Merry Little Christmas papers and tucked some red Doodlebug doilies behind.

Green eyelets and red Bakers Twine were added to the tags and also some Wood Flourishes from Kaisercraft which I painted with green acrylic paint.

To give the layout some sparkle and shine I added some gold foil  to the bottom edges of the tags and dotted some gold die cut stars and sequins around the layout.

Cozy Chipboard Thickers were used for the title and I painted the letters E, L & F with green acrylic paint to make them stand out.

In the bottom right corner of the page I created a cluster with a couple of  die cuts from the Echo Park 'A Perfect Christmas' ephemera pack, another wood flourish, die cut gold star and sequins.

The layout was finished off with a few enamel dots and the date.

I'll be back soon with more from the Cozy & Bright collection and hope that I've inspired you to pop over to the shop to see the whole collection and all the other gorgeous new  products available.

Take Care.
Karen x x

Happy Christmas with Doodlebug Design ~ Christmas Town

Hi all, it's Anna here wishing you a very happy start to the festive season, I hope you're all enjoying everything that's special about this time of year. For the month of December I am going to be working with Doodlebug Design Christmas Town, take a look at the whole collection here.

I have created a layout for my post today...

 

I used some white bazzill cardstock as my base, then trimmed down various strips of patterned paper down to the same length - mostly from the 'Berry Christmas' paper and aligned them together on the cardstock along with some strips of gold paper.

I then backed my photo using some green bazzill cardstock and a red doilie.

Doodlebug always have cute stickers in their collections and Christmas Town is no different. I used a few of these on my layout and I still have lots of spare.

Thanks for looking!

 Have a wonderful Christmas if I'm not back before and remember to take lots of photos for your scrapbooking!

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you all!

Anna

X

November Papermaze Kit - Part 2

It's time for second part of the November Papermaze kit, and two more layouts I made to give you some inspiration. Two separate layouts which will be displayed side by side in my scrapbook much like a double layout. They feature photographs from our holiday in the Lake District two years ago, and a day spent at Near Sawrey visiting the home of Beatrix Potter.

Here is a reminder of what you will receive in the kit:

Here is the first or left side layout.

For 'Hill Top Farm' I layered up two sheets of Bazzill and two sheets of patterned paper to start. I gutted the first three of these layers. The base is Hazard Bazzill, followed by floral side of Echo Park  - Autumn Floral. The next layer of Bazzill is Desert Coral Dark and finally leaf side of Simple Stories - Gather Together. All these edges were distressed and inked with Distress Ink.

Cut some strips of patterned papers in various lengths and widths and layer these so they would be parallel to the base of the photo and vertically just under the right side of the photo. Layer a 21cm strip of the hessian across the strips of paper before adding photo.

For embellishment I added the two wood slices to the bottom left of the photo and built this area up with paper flower and lots of die cuts made with scraps of Bazzill and the Sizzix Thinlits Funky Foilage and Funky Floral # 2 sets. You may want to create these shapes after cutting cardstock for the other three pages using this months kit - so you know what scraps you have to play with.  At the bottom right of the photo I made some oak leaf branches using the same method. I then laid down some Baker's Twine loops across the
base of the photo with some die cut daisies. 

The five jewels were added to the vertical paper strips. Journalling was written onto the papers and the title was created with the remains of a pack of Pink Fresh Simple & Sweet puffy alpha stickers in gold, which I had in my stash.

***

For the second layout I wanted to present several photos of the Hill Top Farm garden - affectionatly known as 'Mr. McGregor's Garden'.

For this page I printed nine small landscape images onto a sheet of A4 and cut and arranged them on a piece of Natural Bazzill 10" wide x 8". This was mounted to the far left of the Simple Stories - Autumn Love paper, 2" down from the top - when sticking in place don't glue right to the edges, allowing the leaves to be tucked underneath later.

Using the American Craft's leaves cut these up and arrange on the Autumn Love paper,
tucking under the Natural Bazzill. Using scraps of cardstock die cut leaves with the Sizzix Thinlits - Skeleton Leaves die set. Arrange these on the layout and stick in place when happy with the placement.

For the title I used fonts from two old sets of stickers from my stash. A little journalling was added using the label plate from the kit and a little more Natural Bazzill.

Thanks for looking.
Back with the December kit very soon.
Lynn x

Christmas Cropping!

There was a lovely atmosphere at the Christmas crop on Saturday, although we were sad to missone or two of our regulars for various reasons. 

Our Challenge Kit contained papers from Echo Park's Merry and Bright, Pebbles Cozy and Bright and Kaisercraft First Noel, along with some glitter card, and a range of embellishments including a red poinsettia, gold dotted ribbon, a flair badge, washi tape and a wooden ornament.

It is always interesting to see the different layouts that the ladies complete using the same 'ingredients' - and some choose to add some of their own stash.  Take a look through the inspiring Christmas layouts they produced here:

We always have a couple of make and takes, and this year we thought it would be fun to have a go at paint pouring!  Aprons and gloves were donned and some beautiful mini canvases were made!

 The other make and take was designed by Lynn, some fabulous little Christmas tree tree decorations made from buttons...

Our first crop of January is on Saturday 12th - if you would like to come along and join us, just drop me an email :)