Gone Fishing * Studio Calico Kit

I am not typically a themed scrapbooker. This layout is not my typical style as far as themed die cuts but when I saw this cute little Nemo looking fish in the Silhouette store, I knew I had to have it for a layout of my niece.  She has loved Nemo since she was only about 1 or 2 years old. She has a stuffed Nemo that she has carried since then and she is now 8! Nemo has been around the world! 

So I thought it was only fitting that I use him on this layout of her at the Aquarium Restaurant when she came to visit last month. 

I used the Studio Calico Summer of "69 kit.

I love the bug-eyes on this little fish! Isn't he cute!

Needless to say, my niece thinks I'm the greatest thing since I could cut Nemo out of paper!

I still tried to keep to my style even though I was using a fun element. I like that challenge.

Of course, loose threads and sewing had to be in there somehow!

The arrow stamps are from the Summer Stamp School class at Studio Calico.

I hope you enjoyed this! I thought it was just a cute fun layout to share!  It was worth it to know my niece thinks I'm a hero!

Happy Wednesday!

Instagrammed * Studio Calico

Thought I'd kick off the weekend with another layout from the August Studio Calico main kit, "Summer of '69".  Having so much fun with this kit. I'm trying to make myself fully "kill the kit" before the next one gets here. I'm doing a pretty good job so far, even though I got a late start.

This one is just a bit more messy with crackle paint, mist and ink.

I love this picture of my niece that my daughter grabbed one morning. They had just finished covering the patio with sidewalk chalk drawings and she was just sitting and looking at her artwork!

So sweet and serene!

Also used several layers of Silhouette cuts for dimension.

The "Just a Note" stamp was part of the kit this month. I know! Pretty awesome huh?  It also has the matching frame stamp and lined stamp. 

Oh my stars! Love the SC wood veneers!

So there you go! Hope you have an amazing weekend! Enjoy!

Supplies Used:

More Bubbles * Studio Calico Main

I'm still working on killing my August main kit from Studio Calico, Summer of '69. So many great elements in this kit!

I love color! I chose this bold background paper that came in the kit. I just love the variations in color you can see throughout the paper.  I love how everything just pops off the page!

I even used the glassine bags that the diecuts came packaged it. Love those for layering.

Added some splatters and ink spots.

The "together" strip was cut from a Silhouette polaroid frame and used here.

This cute little sun cutout was the negative space from the Hello Summer cutting files from Daniela Dobson. She has them free on her blog. She's really offering some great files for the Silhouette!  You'll find a specific link for the file used here shown below at the end of the post.

The weather is beautiful here lately so hopefully we'll be heading out to enjoy it a bit! Hope you have a fabulous weekend! Whatever you do, make it fun!

Supplies Used:

Sweet Summer Smile *Studio Calico

I'm just now tearing into my August Studio Calico kit, Summer of '69.  Love the colors in this kit! And after my family being together this past month, I had plenty of summer pics to choose from!

I went with this large photo of my niece. I have to give photo credit to my daughter, Ashley (because she made me...lol).  She snapped a few pics of the girls when they were playing outside in their kiddie pool. I just love the angle on this picture!

Everything is from the kit except the Smash stamp, thread and digital file of the arrow behind the picture. That is a free cutting file from Daniela Dobson found here.

A couple close  ups....love the bunches of thread. I'm a thread hanging, loose sewing kind of girl. And it suits my sewing failures just fine!

I've been making layouts right and left so I'll be back with another share tomorrow! 

Have a great day!

Happy Little Moments *Studio Calico Class

Finally! It's completed!  I enrolled in Maggie Holmes "Happy Little Moments" altered book class at Studio Calico in March and have just now been able to work on it and get it completed.  I ordered the kit to go along with the class which was packed with such yummy goodness! I love the color scheme of the kit and I chose to go strictly with Maggie's design because it just made me happy!  My book ended up being many more pages than she covered in her class but by the time I reached those pages, I was well on my own anyway with my own design and embellishment choices.  

As I shared in my last post, my family surprised me with a visit, so that is what my book is about....that surprise visit!  I actually started this project while they were here during our crafting sessions. While everyone else was doing some sewing, I took out this project to focus on.

Love the little confetti pocket sewn on in a glassine bag. 

I put a special quote underneath so when you lift up the bag, you see that special quote.

I have never created an altered book before. The thought of cutting sections out of a book scared me honestly.  That's why I love these classes. They really get you out of your comfort zone. I have to say, this has been one of my favorite projects to date! Now that I know how, I'm sure I will be searching for old books to cut apart! (Shhhhh don't tell the book lovers!)

There are lots of bits of paper and embellishments....

layer upon layer of goodness....

Confetti is the craze along with banners and Silhouette cuts...

And the punches through the book pages creating windows with peeks into the next pages....

I love the look of the thread hanging....guess my style is just a bit more messy.

Another one of those windows! Love this idea.

I just love hanging on to bits of paper and scraps for this kind of project. You can really use those pieces up. 

I would highly recommend taking a class like this if you feel like you have lost some of your creative mojo. I have been fighting with that for some time now and this really helped get me back in the groove again. I loved the process of this book and love the finished product!

Now, anyone want to come help me clean up this mess? 

Happy Monday!

4Ever Mine and other fun stuff

Holy cow! I've been a bad blogger lately! I've had good intentions but life keeps getting in the way! Which is a good thing! I'd certainly rather be living and enjoying life than just blogging about it.

I have been creating though....that hasn't stopped.  I am happy to say I am completely current with Project Life, though I haven't shared all the weeks here.  They are done and I'm just working on this current week. So proud of myself for keeping up with it. I usually bomb on long term projects by now. I am still loving it!

I realized I have a layout that I haven't shared here yet.  This layout is using the May Studio Calico kit add-on called Holga. I squeezed a lot of layouts out of that kit! One of my favs...loved it.

Isnt' that background paper just awesome! I love the wood planks and grey colors. I even used some of the brown bag the kit was packaged in for layers.  Along the left , I used some of the left over cut outs from the Silhouette image used on this layout. I love that! Just turned them over for a different pattern.

Now that little ruffle is the paper towels used to clean up after misting. I've heard of people saving them and using them on projects but just never did.  These colors were just too yummy and were screaming to me to use them.  The mix of bright pink, yellow, making orange....yum! Reminds me of those summertime popsicles we used to eat as kids!  Used the "together" frame cut from my Cameo.

Piled some thread on....just love the looks of loose thread, which happens to be a good thing because I'm a horrible seamstress....paper or otherwise!

So there you go! A quick layout share.  

On another note, I just wanted to share my congratulations for my sweet friend, Sophie. I'm so stinkin' proud of her.  She just this week announced she was selected for three very prestigious design teams, Elle's Studio, Crate Paper, and American Crafts!  Woohoo! That is HUGE!!!  Though, we have never met in person, we have been friends thanks to blogging and email for a few years now.  She has always been so supportive of me and has always left the most encouraging comments! She is truly a sweetheart of a person and I'm so proud of her. She has truly developed a style all her own and her jaw dropping layouts just get me every time! It's no surprise these wonderful manufacturers are snatching her up....it was just a matter of time!  So, congratulations Sophie! You certainly deserve it! 

Ok, gotta run....my daughter is throwing a surprise birthday party for my hubby tonight (he turned 50 this week!).  Crazy to think we met when he was only 19! Yeah he's a keeper!  But shhhhh, don't ruin the surprise, he has absolutely NO idea!

Have an awesome Friday!

On The Go ~ Studio Calico Challenge

Where is the time going this summer?  The days are flying by. Lots has been going on but I've managed to squeeze in a few layouts using the May Studio Calico add-on kit, Holga.  I think this is the first kit I've managed to kill. I don't have one piece of paper left and most all the embellies are used too, just a few things left. 

I created this layout for the member challenge a couple weeks ago. The original used a sort of grid style background so I just went with it and cut a grid on my Cameo.  Backed it with a few photos and embellies. 

This style is way out of my norm. I am not usually a grid style scrapper and this is much more toned down than I normally create.  That's what I love about challenges though. They force you outside your normal box and get you to try things that you wouldn't otherwise. I'm always on the lookout for good challenges!

Love this little flair button!  This wasn't part of the kit but was ordered from Findingnana's Etsy shop 

She has some of the cutest flair buttons!

The title was cut with my Cameo (which I'm still getting to know) and sprayed with Pretty Pink Mister Huey mist.

And here is that adorable ampersand stamp that was part of the kit! One of my fav stamps ever and really the reason I snatched up this kit.

The little chipboard button is from Pink Paislee in the London Market line. They are color resist so when you ink them or spray them, the resist pattern comes through. Love these! They were part of the kit.

Added some tags and splatters.....

I love this layout because it captures my niece, Madi, the way I see her most which is on the go! (Hence, the title....lol).  She's hard to get pictures of because she is always running away! But I think I've grabbed some pretty cute ones of her running away so I just put them all on a themed layout! Love how it turned out!

I'm hitting the scrap table with some Project Life today. I've fallen a bit behind but will certainly catch up soon. Still loving that process!

Hope you're doing something crafty today!