My Trophy "Husband's" Scrapbook Page

Hello!

 

As I am a regular on Studio Calico I have been following along with One Scrappy Doctor (Natalie Elphinstone) for the monthly reveal with her Trophy Husband filming the kit unpacking video.  Which has made for good viewing!

http://onescrappydoctor.blogspot.co.uk/2014/07/sandlot-reveal.html

 

In passing I mentioned it to my partner and I should preface this with that ever since he knew I was a scrapper, he has sort of taken the piss when I ask him sometimes how he's going to spend his evening or afternoon.

 

"I'm going to do a bit of scrapping and then smashing.  Or maybe, just to switch it up a bit, do some smashing and then scrapping." (Mind you this is said by me now in that sort of mocking Bert & Ernie voice, that's meant to be his voice, that all us girlfriends & wives take on when answering questions for them, asked by us, to our significant others).

 

So, in mentioning Natalie's Trophy Husband video to him this week, as I only just watched it yesterday, he said to me tonight when I asked whether he was going out this evening, he replied with "no, I'm going to stay in and finally do that smashing scrap page I've been planning on doing."

 

Okay, Mr. Smartypants I said, let's see you do it then!  I threw down the gauntlet.  I figured he would just say I'm too busy which he actually did "I've got a busy evening ahead of me" but then proceeded to sit down at my scraptable and say "whatta ya got" (albeit not in that Bert & Ernie mocking tone).

 

Very well then, game on! We proceeded to select a picture that he was happy to scrap.  I cropped it, printed it and cut it to a 4x6 size with my paper cutter.  We then picked a background paper.  I offered him a multitude of choices - plain, cardstock, patterned: striped, swirly, polka dots, etc.  You name it, I offered it.  He went with the American Crafts wooden fencing, as I call it.

(Sorry not sure on the actual name.)

 (The Planning Process - trying to decide if he liked this sticker.  He thought it appropriate as it says "you've left paw prints on my heart".)

I then asked if he wanted to include a journaling card and showed him a few examples of where I've used them for actual journaling or when I've just used the tabbed word(s) along the top of the card.  I got out an overabundance of supplies - stickers, mini alphas, big alphas, enamel dots, chipboard stars, tags, chipboard buttons, flair.  Again, you name it, I pretty much got it out.  Just to show him what his options were.  Admittedly, maybe I was a tad bit too excited that he was actually scrapping! 

 He picked a few more dog appropriate stickers, mostly from the Simple Stories Dog line.  We added one (me & my dog) along the bottom and then another (love me, love my dog) along the top.

He then decided that he needed something along the top right of the picture as it was a bit bare there, so he selected a 2x2 Insta Square piece from the Sn@p dog line by Simple Stories. (To be honest I was quite proud that he 'saw the hole' and decided to put something there.) 

(The Final Page)

 

 I asked if he wanted to add any embellishments, again a lot of my stock came out.  He said it was too much to choose from and sometimes "less is more".  He did however want to play around with my dog paw print stamp and add some pawprints to the page.  So I showed him how to do this and then we finished it with the date stamp in the upper right hand corner.

 

And there you go!

His first (and to be honest) probably last scrap page.

 

He did conclude this by saying "see, now I've smashed".  Whereby I said, "hold on a minute my friend, I'm afraid you haven't. That is something entirely different."

 

The look that crossed his face was priceless.

 

I did ask if he could see the enjoyment in it to which he replied yes but he said to be honest he felt there was too much choice.  Maybe I should take a page from his book as I know a lot of us scrappers are always saying we spend more time planning and organizing than we actually do scrapping.

 

A thoroughly enjoyable evening for me!

 

Thanks Natalie for the inspiration.

 

Christine x

 

Dog Tired & Goofing Around

Well, the Muse is still in the house so I have been scrapping away today. 

 I have actually been contemplating whether I will continue with the whole PL style aspect of scrapbooking.  I was never really a big fan of the actual Project Life product line when it first came out and found that I instead leaned more towards the Simple Stories Life Documented range.  I just preferred the 6 x 8 size, liked the bright colours and the products they had to offer in that line.  However, in the past few days when I've been creating the "traditional" layouts (even though they are only 6 x 8) I find that I am enjoying these more than the detailed pocket page layouts.

 Granted I am already documenting monthly, although I did start out weekly, so this is or should be a more laid back way of keeping track of the day-to-day things.  But I am finding that I still fall behind, even though this is a more looser approach and I just don't like feeling guilty over something that is meant to be relaxing and help me de-stress from the woes of day to day life.  Yes, I know we only put upon ourselves what we allow.  But even the giants, the old pro's and the dinosaurs of the industry (if you read their blogs) they too feel guilty as well when they fall behind or cannot keep up. So it almost seems inevitable, the feeling guilty that is. That's why I've been thinking that I may just go back to scrapping when I feel like it with no time or calendar restraints adhered to. Not keeping track of my day-to-day weekly or monthly but just whenever.  Plus, if you look at the way the PL style was marketed it was supposed to make scrapbooking faster and easier but it has become so involved now (and yes again, it is what you choose to make it).  If you look at all the giants or gurus that everyone follows, most of their PL layouts are not simple and basic, a lot of time and work goes into them.  But again, these are just my thoughts.

 

Moving along.  I have put the journaling about this layout hidden behind it as one, there wasn't enough room to include it along with the photos and two, its kind of a bit private.  In short it talks about how in my 20's I was starting to learn to love myself, figuring out who I was and what I was about, developing self confidence and building my self esteem.  Eventually I got to a place where I liked who I was with a healthy dose of self confidence but not arrogant about it.  However as of late, I haven't been loving myself very much and was pondering as to whether this is due to circumstances - being made redundant over a year ago, struggling with money, have relationship problems and finding a place to live OR whether it is just a stage in my life, such as age and being in my 40's, learning to re-adjust and find myself again.

SUPPLIES | The black and white background paper is from my stash, old 7 Gypsies Paddington Paper called Piccadilly. The stickers spelling out "Goofing" and "Selfies" are both by Simple Stories - the first from the D.I.Y. line and the latter called Typeset.  The pink and white love heart I cut out of the middle of a PL card. The tiny alphas are by Kaisercraft. The "Today" circle, the three pink hearts on the grey background and the pink polka dot paper are all scraps from PL cards that I cut up.  As well, the "Read Me" tab is a scrap from a PL card stuck onto another PL card to create the journaling.  The lettering for that is by Simple Stories. The pink camera is from the Borders paper by Bella Blvd.

 

Nonetheless I am trying to get better, or get back to, loving myself.  As we (scrapbookers) typically don't include ourselves in our scrapping and as well, being our own worst critics I thought it might help me in some way, especially right now to include myself more in my layouts/pages.  So was goofing around (hence the title), taking some pictures of myself and trying to love what I saw or what was captured. I wanted the goof part of goofing to stand out (as that's what I am!) so used the pink letter and grey letters to make it pop more.  Trying to have a bit of fun with it.

 

For something a little bit less "serious" I have also included a layout today called Dog Tired.  Simon has been working really hard lately as he's been full on with work.  He has also been working some Saturday's just to stay on top of it.  This particular Saturday he came home and crashed out on the sofa.  As per usual, whenever and wherever Simon is, Rupert has to be right along side him.  Captured this moment as they were sleeping as I thought it was so heart-warming. Decided to keep this one simple, don't think it needed much detail.  

SUPPLIES | The "Cherish" sticker is by Simple Stories Typeset and the "Life is Ruff" sticker tag is by Simple Stories Dog pack.  The background mock notebook paper that the photo is mounted on came from the original Simple Stories Sn@p kit. The brown and white polka dot washi tape is by Queen & Co.

SUPPLIES | Black alphas spelling "Dog" are by LilyBee Designs called Sweet Shoppe.  The love heart and the letters spelling "Tired" are by Simple Stories Dog pack.

Thanks for stopping by to have a look and letting me share my layouts with you!

Christine  x

Retro Style

Hello Fellow Crafters!

Rare for me to create another post so soon. I wish I could be like some of these people that do blogging and scrapping for a living, having time for it on a regular basis, with no outside work distractions or life in general.  Although I suppose at the moment, with not working full time, I don't really have an excuse for something keeping me busy all day and not allowing me to be creative as I like.

So moving along! 

As well, the Muse has been in residence consistently as of late, which is rare so I thought I would take advantage of her visit.  Work with it while you can!

I have always been mad about polka dots and as well enamoured of the whole retro style "pin-up" girl look but have never really embraced it till now.  I wish I had sooner!  At this age I can now understand those 'write a letter to the 16 year old you' exercise.  I never really got it before, sounds stupid I know and thought what is the point.  It's me, writing to me, what am I going to tell myself?

  Well, I guess what I would now say is embrace who you are.  Don't ever let anyone sway you from being the way you want to be simply because they don't approve of it or think it might be ridiculous.

Be who you are meant to be and be proud of it!

I originally started out the layout with just the pink and black but wanted to add a tertiary colour to give the layout a bit more pop, so thought the green would be a nice accent.  I will probably also add some journaling behind the layout about embracing the retro style and as well about having more of a presence on Instagram . Was never really interested in it when it came out but have now found some great female role models on there that I now follow (Miss Victory Violet, The Cherry Dollface, Curve Creation, Curvy Kate, Redhead Without a Cause, Honor my Curves, Hot Rod Steffie and Hennney) 

SUPPLIES | Background paper is Simple Stories D.I.Y. Boutique, black & white polka dot paper is Bella Blvd "Borders", pink & white polka dot paper is a PL Blush card.  The black profile figurine is cut out from Barbie paper by Creative Keepsakes. The B&W puffy letters spelling out "Retro" are Making Memories. The "style" letters are October Afternoon called "Daily Flash". The black "inspire" sticker is Dymo style by K&Co.  The green "look" sticker and the "remember this" sticker are by Simple Stories.  The polaroid photo frame over the shoes is by La De Dah. The enamel dots are by Simple Stories D.I.Y. Boutique. The flower is from my stash & not in its original package so not sure the brand.  The green chipboard button is by Webster Pages. The B&W heart shaped brads are by BoBunny. The B&W mini button brads are by Making Memories. The green "nifty" sticker is Marcella by Kay and finally the brad in the middle of the flower is by Cart-us.

4th of July (Simple Stories)

Today I am sharing a recent layout I created about the 4th of July. Living in the UK the 4th of July is something I really miss celebrating.  Friends here say "you can still celebrate, if you want to."  Yes, this is true but it is just not the same when 1) everyone else isn't celebrating as well and 2) you don't get the big fireworks display somewhere or can go to an open air 4th of July concert.

 This year I was planning on getting back to the states to celebrate properly but unfortunately it just didn't come about for a couple of reasons, so I was quite disappointed about that.  

 

So here is my layout dedicated to the 4th of July.

 At least the day turned out to be sunny, which is always a good thing here in the UK so Rupert and I spent the afternoon at the park, on a long walk.

 

Then in the evening I joined Simon for a round of golf, in the buggy, at the golf club with a nice dinner afterwards.  Going out with him in the buggy is always good for a laugh or two.  So although I didn't get to celebrate "American style", it was all in all a great day.

 Left Page

SUPPLIES | Background paper is Simple Stories I {Heart Summer}. I cut a 6x8 piece and then mounted it on a bit of white cardstock, running Studio Calico washi tape (from Sugar Rush) around the edges.  Wanted to bring out some of the stripes in the bunting banner on the paper. The little gold stars are Studio Calico. The yellow sun face in the I heart Summer banner is soo old I wouldn't even know the brand, from my super early days of scrapbooking.  The "Sunny Day" tag on top of the Keep Calm photo is by Bella Blvd from their Playdate sticker sheet.  The gold glittery arrow is by Freckled Fawn. The blue "completely awesome" round sticker is from the Simple Stories D.I.Y. line and the red star from the Daily Grind pack. The blue star is Studio Calico and the white enamel dot is also Simple Stories D.I.Y. as is the "look" sticker. The green "park" sticker is from Bella Blvd. Playdate.

 

 Right Page

SUPPLIES | Background paper is Simple Stories I {Heart} Summer. Again I cut a 6x8 piece and mounted it on the reverse of Fancy Pants Be.Loved. Sentiments paper.  The "celebrate" banner at the top is from Studio Calico as is the blue star.  The red glittery #4 is an American Crafts Thicker called Pantry as is the J in July.  The other lettering is from Bella Blvd. off the Playdate sticker sheet.  The t&h are Simple Stories Typecast.  The red & white striped journaling card is by Teresa Collins Stationery Noted. The "freedom" sticker is a super old Making Memories Defined sticker that I painted with blue watercolours. The blue circular star sticker is Studio Calico and the blue Friday tag is Simple Stories Daily Grind. The red "smile" tag and the blue "real life" tag I cut out from Simple Stories paper.  The corner of the lined card with the red star on it is a snippet of a 7 Gypsies card and the dark grey geotag is by Studio Calico.

 

Not sure why my pictures look so washed out today, don't know if its the light I used or if my camera is playing up.  Tried retaking them but they seemed to come out the same.  

 

Thanks for stopping by to take a look!

 

Christine  : )

Simple Stories D.I.Y. Collection (Inspired by Kristine Davidson)

Hello Fellow Crafters!

I haven't crafted or scrapped for a while as I just don't feel like I am getting out of it what I used to, which is sad for me and I'm not really sure why.  I am still making sure to take my daily/weekly pictures and jotting down notes, just in case I do want to pull together a month of PL or Life Documented with Simple Stories but haven't actually sat down at my scrap table for over a month now.

 

As my table sits right at the entry to my lounge I do have to pass it, numerous times a day, to sit on the sofa or watch a bit of telly.  I somehow don't feel right passing it by, my supplies strewn about the table, sitting there forgotten.  I have to admit I have thought about getting rid of everything in its entirety and no longer scrapping but something stops me. 

 

Today, to my surprise, I found myself sitting down there, working with some of the new stickers and paper by Simple Stories from the D.I.Y. line.  This bit of crafting was inspired by Kristine Davidson. With TwoPeasinabucket closing down I have been downloading some of my saved bookmark images to my computer as there are too many wonderful creative projects online that I don't want to lose.

I have to admit I have been a big fan of Kristine Davidson's work and it was actually a post she did in May, (http://kristinedavidson.blogspot.co.uk/2014/05/life-documented-simple-stories.html)

 with the new Simple Stories D.I.Y. & D.I.Y. Boutique collections that inspired me to create these cards myself.  In downloading her images, I visited her website again (okay, in all honesty, it's something I do a lot, not just simply because I was downloading her projects) and was then inspired to create these cards.

 I genuinely had a lot of fun creating these cards and just letting them come together. Playing around and doing whatever felt good. I like how they turned out.

I placed the cards I made in a page protector along with a picture of Rupert to see how they would look in an album.

 All of the supplies used are Simple Stories D.I.Y. collection with the exception of the pink glittery stars alongside the "It Is What It Is" tag.

 

Thanks for looking.

Christine  : )

March Simple Stories Sn@p - Part 4

This is my last post for March!  Funnily enough this layout actually captures the start of March.

If you are a regular reader of my blog (this means you Tessa and maybe one other!) I have a catch-up usually once a month with a couple of close mates of mine.  This month we decided to try a new place in Windsor called Bill's, a sort of shabby chic down to earth place that is right up my street.  We met there on a Sunday afternoon for brunch and it was fabulous!  Time with Sembi and Dan is always time well spent and such good fun. 

They truly are good for my soul!

SUPPLIES | For the top insert the background paper is simply brown cardstock.  On the left hand side I used a bit of yellow polka dot paper and on the right a 3x4 journaling card, both by Simple Stories. The sticker letters and the @ symbol are both by Simple Stories. For the bottom insert, the background paper is an old Chatterbox scrap I had stashed away.  The "eat" letters are Simple Stories.  The gold star and gold camera are both Studio Calico.  The circular "hello there" sticker is from the D.I.Y. line by Simple Stories. 

 

For the opposite page I used one of the heavy card page inserts that come with the Simple Stories Sn@p albums.  We took a couple snapshots that day so I picked a few of the best and used them.  I love the pic in the centre of the page, such a great shot.  These two can make me laugh like no one else can!

SUPPLIES | For this page I wanted a collage look so once I had the photos where I wanted them I just started layering things around them. From the top the blue polka dot paper is a PL card, the red "smile big" bingo card is by Simple Stories, the red Sunday tab on the top left is from The Daily Grind line by Simple Stories. All the stickers - genuine, life is great, captured, hello weekend and the heart this arrow are all Simple Stories. The orange polka dot tape is by Simple Stories.  The strips of paper down the right hand side are all PL and Simple Stories. The number 3 tab is by American Crafts.  The black washi tape is by Queen & Co.

 

The next insert is just a simple insert I did to document having a Diet Coke at McDonald's, for the first time in a long time! I used to drink Diet Coke like it was going out of style but eventually weaned myself off of it a few years back (after many attempts I must admit), once I learned how bad it truly is for you. My preference used to be Diet Coke in a bottle, then a can if a bottle wasn't available but typically not a fountain Coke, as I don't really like the way it tastes watered down.  But with McDonald's Diet Coke I find that it has a very distinctive taste to it, unlike any other fountain Diet Coke.  On this particular day I was driving back from signing up with a recruitment firm in Uxbridge when I found myself gagging for a drink and also a bit peckish.  So I pulled into a drive-thru McDonald's, the only one around for miles. Drive-thru's are not that frequent here in the UK as they are in the US!

SUPPLIES | For the insert on the left the striped background paper is Simple Stories and the grid paper with the journaling on it is the middle of a Project Life card.  The green "Wednesday" tab at the top is from The Daily Grind collection by Simple Stories. On the right I mounted the pic of the Diet Coke on simple white cardstock and then put green polka dot washi tape by Queen & Co around the edges.

(Shot of full page layout)

 

The pic below is a snapshot of Rupert and I in the car at Braywick Park, right before we got out to go for a walk. We were watching a couple dogs playing around on the grass near the car and I was whispering secrets into Rupert's ears  At the mention of certain things his ears perked right up, I loved the look in his eyes and how attentive his gaze became. I quickly whipped out my phone and captured the moment.

SUPPLIES | All the stickers are Simple Stories with the "Cherish Everyday" sticker from the D.I.Y. line. The pink and orange flowery background paper is by Dovecraft called Garden Party, something I found at Wilko's.

 

 (Close up of detail in upper right hand corner)

SUPPLIES | Stickers are by Simple Stories. Enamel dots are from the D.I.Y. line by Simple Stories and the enamel heart is by October Afternoon from the line called "Milk Money".

That's it.  I am officially done with all my posts for the month of March!  On to April!!

 

Christine

 

 

March Simple Stories Sn@p - part 3

SUPPLIES | Tried to use up a few scraps with the insert card above.  The top (lined) half is by Simple Stories and the bottom is Project Life Honey. The stickers spelling out "American BBQ" are called Sweet Shoppe Letter Stickers by Lilybee Designs. The star was cut out of old 7 Gypsies paper and the "It's All Good" red sticker is by Simple Stories.

Finally finishing off my March Project Life.  I had hoped to be half way through April by now, but c'est la vie! Anyway, this is part 3 for March. We returned again to The Bluegrass for another American "southern" meal!  And it was just as good as the last time! This time in addition to dinner we also had some dessert, the salted caramel cheesecake. Absolutely sinful! It was served with a handful of salty popcorn which seemed odd at first, until you had a couple bites of cheesecake & then popped a few pieces of popcorn in your mouth. Perfect together. I also love the old style white & blue enamel dishes they serve them in.

SUPPLIES | The orange "Looking Good" insert card is Project Life Honey.  The brown sticker on the picture in the upper right hand pocket is by Simple Stories as are the stickers spelling out "Salted Caramel" on the picture on the bottom on the left.

A snapshot of Rupert at Braywick, resting from a game of fetch, during a warm sunny afternoon. So warm he had to take a break in the shade underneath a bench until he caught his breath again. A photo opportunity!

SUPPLIES |  On the right the background chevron paper is by Simple Stories.  The giant green arrow card is a 3x4 Project Life card that I cut the bottom inch off of and turned it sideways. The pink heart stickers are by Simple Stories.  The green brads are by Papermania. The bigger pink striped and checked hearts (one on each insert) are punched out from scraps of PL cards.

(Close up of detail on top of photo)

SUPPLIES | The "you make me smile" sticker is by Simple Stories. The green asterisk is by Papermania and the pink enamel dot is by Freckled Fawn from the Studio Calico Sugar Rush kit.

Hard to believe that we were still having roaring fires in the middle of March and Rupert's favourite spot is always directly in front of it.

SUPPLIES | Background Paper from Dovecraft called Garden Party.  All three stickers "charmed life", "delightful" and "fabulous" are by Simple Stories. The blue and pink stars are by Studio Calico. 

 One evening while we were in Marlow for a personal appointment we realised it was getting near dinner time and that by the time we arrived home, made dinner etc. it would be quite late.  So we decided to stop at The Marlow Donkey, which was just around the corner and grab a bite to eat & a drink. It has been a while since we have been there but it always makes for a good night! 

SUPPLIES | Both the blue polka dot paper and the faded blue chevron paper are Project Life cards.  All the alpha stickers are by Simple Stories. The blue starts are Studio Calico. The blue enamel dot is by Freckled Fawn.

Now that I have been working a bit more consistently it is nice to get back in the salon again more regularly.  One way that will definitely always make you feel better about yourself, is to go to the salon to have a cut and style! I was talking to my hairdresser about maybe doing something different, a new style or cutting all my hair off, maybe a radical tint, but she suggested something a bit less radical yet still daring.  A touch of the colour pink in my hair! With all that is going on with me at the moment she suggested that a few streaks like this might be more suitable, and sensible. I like it!

(Close up of detail on insert card)

SUPPLIES | Bunting is by Helz Cuppleditch called Riverbank Revels, something I picked up at Wilkos, believe it or not. The black and white polka dot card is a Project Life insert card.

(Top half of layout)

This is a bit about the bizarre weather that you get here in the UK.  We were standing out in front of the Cox Green post office, on a warm sunny day and all of a sudden a dark gray cloud rolled through the sky over us, raining down small pellets of hail on us, making us quickly retreat to the safety of the car. Moments later, the cloud was gone and the hail quickly melted away on the windscreen.

(Shot of full page layout)

That's it for this post.  Another short one, but at least another completed layout!

Onwards and upwards! 

Thank you for stopping by to have a look and let me share my layout with you!

Christine   : )