#Snapchat || Scrapbook Layout || Dovecraft 'Kiss & Make Up'

Hi all,

I have a scrapbook layout to share today using the Dovecraft 'Kiss & Make Up' collection from Trimcraft. It's just so cool, right? I also used some machine stitching on this. It's optional but gives such a great effect (except when it comes unthreaded and the air turns blue.... ). There's a tutorial on how to make it below the picture. 

So, the pictures. My cousin Caroline and I were messing around on Snapchat at our grandparents' house at Easter. At the time I had a Windows phone so didn't even know what Snapchat really was.... I know, right?! On the day of writing I should be getting an iPhone.... not my birthday yet but my OH doesn't want me "crying" over a glitchy phone any longer... 

Instructions!

1.       Using an old credit card or a palette knife, spread a layer of gesso across the centre of a 12x12” sheet of textured, coloured cardstock and allow to dry.

2.       Spray red ink across the centre of the page. You can use a stencil if you want.

3.       Print your photos at 2x3”. Mount them onto tissue paper and then onto patterned paper.

4.       Stick both onto a piece of patterned paper and mount onto another. Stick this onto white tissue paper.

5.       On the left side of this, stick three patterned tags so they are peeking out from behind. Stick the whole thing in the centre of the layout.

6.       In the top left and bottom right, stick lengths of washi tape and ribbon.

7.       (Optional) Using a sewing machine and various colours of thread, stitch along the ribbon and washi tape with straight and zigzag stitches. Also stitch around the photos and a zigzag down the left side.

8.       Ball up your offcuts of thread and stick behind your photos.

9.       Finish with brads, tags and chipboard stickers.

Thanks for stopping by!

Emily xx 

Betsy Ann Poole || Scrapbook Layout || My Botanic Garden || Cherish The Memory DT

Hello!

Today I have a layout to share using a photograph of my great-great-grandmother, Betsy-Ann Poole. I was shown the picture when I was at my grandparents' house a couple weeks ago. I took a picture of the picture on my phone - I love to scrap old photographs, and family history really interests me. Not sure why, I think I am just curious.

I recently got on the 'Cherish The Memory' design team, and the 'My Botanic Garden' collection by StudioLight was in my kit and it was perfect for a layout using an old photograph.

This layout may look complicated but it really isn't if you break it up into little steps:

1. Cover the area behind where you know your picture and ephemera will sit, with gesso.
2. Use the packaging technique to smoosh co-ordinating watercolours onto the background.
3. Stamp around the area with a pattern stamp.
4. Print your photo and mount.
5. Cut a selection of patterned papers and arrange behind the photo, along with tags and other ephemera. Most of what I used here is from a 12x12" sheet that I cut apart. 
6. Add more pattern stamping and embellish. 

 I don't think I'd do vintage all the time but it is a nice change when I do do it. I love all the layers and ephemera in this collection - there are die cut and decoupage sheets available as well as the 12x12" papers. You can buy the collections from Cherish The Memory HERE.

Thanks for stopping by!
Emily xx

You Are The Sunshine In My Soul || Scrapbook Layout || Cocoa Vanilla Studio 'Wild At Heart'

It's Saturdayyy!

Today I have a layout to share using the 'Wild At Heart' collection by Cocoa Vanilla Studio. It took a while for the collection to become available here in the UK and as soon as it arrived I ordered some things from Hey Little Magpie. I got a sheet of the 12x12" paper, the chipboard frames, die cut ephemera and sticker sheet. Cocoa Vanilla is one of my favourite scrapbooking brands, everything is so gorgeous and a pleasure to work with.

The pictures are of a recent 'date night' (read: Nathan really wanted a Wagamama, I am just, and I quote, a "by-product" (when my mother commented that he spoils me)) . I was taking selfies before we set off. This is the first selfies we have taken since Nathan had his hair cut. He brushes up quite well :0). I can't say why I'm laughing in the second picture. I just kept pressing the shutter on my phone.

I chose this paper because I am obsessed with watercolours. Need I say more! I added some of my own behind the picture and embellishments by using the packaging technique. I tried to emulate the colours that were on the paper already. Once dry I grabbed a heart stencil and painted select areas in 'Payne's Gray' (the best watercolour shade!) 

After that, the layout was super simple to make. I stuck the photos onto the large chipboard frames and layered them up with foam tape, then arranged the embellishments around it. 

Right, it's Nathan's birthday today. He's 22 now. Way to make me feel old. (He was 14 when I met him!!). As I write this ((April 1st)) he's not decided what to do for it so hopefully by now we have something planned. If not then we'll probably end up in Wagamama again...! Would have liked to have gone away but the final uni deadline is less than a week away and it wouldn't have been wise to plan anything.

Thanks for stopping by!
Emily xx

Bloom & Grow || Scrapbook Layout || Life In A Snapshot Challenge || March 2017

Hi all

On the Life In A Snapshot team we've had a little break over winter but now we are back with our first challenge for 2017. However, sadly this will be our last challenge. Thank you if you have played along with it. To see everyone else's makes head to Katie's blog http://whatkatiedid2.blogspot.co.uk/
 Here is my layout:

The challenge was to follow a color scheme and we chose this one by Seeds.

I chose to make a spring themed layout using the 'Take Me Away' collection by Pink Paislee/Paige Evans. I ended up weaving strips of the striped paper from the 12x12" paper pad (it took a long time to get it right!).

The puffy stickers are We R Memory Keepers 'Flower Girl' and the bird and quote are Pinkfresh Studio 'Felicity'.

Thanks for stopping by!

Emily xx

Bee-autiful! || Scrapbook Layout || Simply Creative Country Garden

Hi all,

I have a layout to share today and it's super easy to make! I used the Simply Creative Country Garden papers from Trimcraft to make this. 

Last summer I spent an hour trying to get a decent picture of the bees in our garden... this is one of the three good ones I got....!

To find out how I made the layout, head over to my Trimcraft gallery (LINK)

Thanks for stopping by!
Emily xx

Nathan's Seat || Scrapbook Layout Using An A4 Photo

Hi all,

I have a scrapbook layout to share today using my new favourite picture ever, Nathan at the top of Arthur's Seat on our recent trip to Edinburgh. 

Seeing it on the train into the city we thought it looked too big to conquer, but after failing to find the smaller looking Calton Hill, we set our sights on Arthur's Seat. 

It was a glorious day, at the bottom it was -4 degrees but the sun was on us on our climb (silly me left my sunglasses in the hotel!), and eventually we made it to the top (I had to keep stopping to get my breath back). I was a bit shaky near the top... and it was very high up. Nathan took some pictures while I had 'five minutes' (a rest!). Then I took out my phone and took this. I love how you can see the city, including the castle. And I love how Nathan is smiling at the camera. That's the most smile you'll ever get! We've never climbed a mountain before but we really enjoyed it. Next time though I think we'll need proper walking gear. I'm sure I'm not the first person ever to climb up in a skirt but I wouldn't recommend it..!

I printed my photo to A4 size (very glad I got a phone with a decent camera - It's bad at everything else but the camera is good!). The paper is 'Hike', from Shimelle 'Go Now Go' and I cut along the triangles at the top and bottom to slide my picture in between.

The embellishments are a real mix. I got the flair from a bookstore in Edinburgh. The title is from a cut apart sheet by Jen Hadfield 'Warm & Cozy', the 'hello world' is OneCanoeTwo 'Hazelwood', and then the rest are just bits and bobs I thought went well with the picture and papers.

Thanks for stopping by!

Emily xx

'Strike A Pose' Scrapbook Layout

Hi all,

So I'm still trying to finish off my 2016 scrapbook. I've been holding off because I'm a magpie and I'm waiting for all the new goodies to come out at Creativation (big trade show in Phoenix, AZ where anyone who's anyone in the crafting world is currently at and of whom I am currently extremely envious).

Anyhow, here's a layout I made using some bits I got at the end of last year - there's We R Memory Keepers 'Urban Chic', Pink Paislee 'Moonstruck' and Cocoa Vanilla 'Love Always' on here. 

The picture was taken on Christmas Day during lunch, we were being silly, pouting for the camera in our posh party hats.

I really enjoyed making this layout, my mojo took a hike over xmas and then I've had lots of projects to make for Trimcraft so it was nice to try and get back into scrapping.

Thanks for stopping by!
Emily xx

Go See Do || Scrapbook Layout || First Edition Storyteller

Hi all,

I have a new layout to share today using the First Edition Storyteller paper pad and tropical dies from Trimcraft.

The picture is of Nathan paddling in the sea when we went to Spain last year. My favourite picture ever, I never expected to ever see him in the sea without me having to ask very nicely if he'll come in with me. We had a lot of fun on that holiday. 

Here's a close up of the lettering. In truth I'm not that happy with it, I would have liked to use something bigger but as this is a DT project for Trimcraft I had to use their products. Looking at it now though it's not so bad. Understated! 

To find out more about how I made this layout, head over to my Trimcraft gallery (LINK)

Thanks for stopping by!

Emily xx

'Let The Light Of The Season Shine In Your Heart' || Scrapbook Layout || Pinkfresh Studio 'Oh Joy!'

Hi all,

I have a festive layout to share today using the 'Oh Joy' collection from Pinkfresh Studio. 

 This picture was taken on Christmas Day just before we had our Christmas lunch. Nathan and I went to Liverpool for Christmas with his parents and it was a lot of fun. We stayed at the Pullman hotel and it was very posh. Like, iPad in the room posh. 

I was desperate to use the acetate cut apart sheet from the collection so I used it on this layout along with some gold sparkly washi tape I picked up for a grand total of fifteen pence for a pack of two from the 'cheap rack' in Sainsburys.

On the background I simply used Nuvo embellishment mousse through a DecoArt stencil. 

The little snowflakes are from docrafts and I covered them in white glitter. 

The flair are from Fancy Pants 'Merry & Bright'.

Thanks for stopping by!

Emily xx

You're My Silver Lining || Scrapbook Layout || Simply Creative 'Sweet Dreams'

Hi all,

A new layout to share today using the Simply Creative 'Sweet Dreams' paper pad from Trimcraft.

This took a lot longer than it looks - my silver thread and my sewing machine do not get along so I had to stitch that bit by hand...

I used a picture of Nathan and I in York on my birthday last August. I had already saved it in black and white for another layout so I just had to print it out again.

Here are some close ups. 

To find out a little more how I made this layout then head over to my Trimcraft gallery (LINK).

The title is from this song.... "Walking In My Sleep" by Andrew McMahon. It goes "I'll never stop trying, you're my silver lining". I like the song very much. Here's a video if you fancy a listen...

Thanks for stopping by!

Emily xx

Whitby Layout Using Cocoa Vanilla 'Hello Sunshine'

Hi all,

A new layout to share today using a picture I took in Whitby a few weeks ago. Hard to imagine now as the weather's so cold and gloomy.
On the radio on the way there it said that it was the hottest September day in over 100 years. It was really busy there, we nearly turned back after a 2 hour drive as there was a huge queue to the full car park, but we saw a Park and Ride on the outskirts of the town and it cost the same as a car park ticket, plus we could spend all day there without worrying about the time. It was a beautiful day and I got some great pictures. Nathan had never been to Whitby before and was unimpressed by the amount of steps to everything... but we had a lovely day. We had fish n chips from The Fish Box opposite the co-op. Lovely and definitely beats the queue to Trenchers!  Anyway, on to my layout...

The background paper is from an old Elle's Studio collection, I think it's called 'Shine'. I stitched lines of blue, aqua and yellow up some of the.... radiants? I scribbled a blue gelato around where my picture would go, went over with water and then outlined where my picture would go with blue Distress Paint. I used the cut apart sheet from the Hello Sunshine collection by Cocoa Vanilla Studio - I bought it to use with my holiday pictures and never did, but it went really well with this picture. I also used the wood veneers from the same collection. Finally I used my absolute favourite ever Amy Tangerine thickers for the title.

Thanks for stopping by!

Emily xx

Peacock Layout Using Resist Techniques

Hi all,

A new layout to share today showing how to make a scrapbook layout using some resist techniques.

I did have a video for this but I wasn't happy with it, so I'll explain the resist techniques I used here.
Firstly I took a white wax crayon and doodled leaves up the page. I then stuck down some peacock outline stickers and went over the whole thing with watercolour. The white of the crayon shows through. I removed the outline stickers and the white of the page behind them shows up brilliantly.

I took a board (packaging from a shirt) and embossed it with an A4 peacock embossing folder. I went over it lightly with Gelatos and rubbed them with my finger to blend them together. The embossed areas stay white.

The feathers are made with dies by Xcut and the ends coloured with a silver Sharpie.

Thanks for stopping by, any questions then leave a comment!

Emily xx

Stitch 'N' Scrap!

Hey everyone,

A little step by step tutorial to share today on how to use stitching in your layouts.
Don’t worry if you don’t have a sewing machine, you can use a needle and thread, it will just take a little longer.
Here's the layout I made (using the 'Felicity' collection by Pinkfresh Studio)

To start with I cut two centimetres off the top and a side of a sheet of white cardstock so I can mount it onto a sheet of 12x12” later on.

I then measured an inch from the edge of the paper as a guide for my stitching. I selected colours I wanted and set up my sewing machine. 

With each colour, go around the square. The line you drew is only a guide, it looks better if you wave the stitching a little, that way all the colours show up.

Now spatter inks over the paper.

I die cut some hearts for a layout I made last week and I have some left over so I stitched them onto paper.

For this layout I cut 4x4” squares from patterned paper. To save paper though, for the bits that are behind, I cut a minimal amount as this wouldn’t be seen.

The picture I’m using is of Nathan and me at Chester Zoo, I set my camera up on the timer on a sculpture and then ran to join Nathan... I figured it was a nice change from taking selfies all the time.

I added some washi stickers and ephemera...

and finally stuck the layout onto patterned paper, from the ‘Shine’ pad by Maggie Holmes.

Thanks for stopping by!

Emily xx

Limited Palette Layout

Hi all,

A new process video to share today, showing how to make this layout using a limited palette of monochrome with a pop of yellow.
I normally post these on Tuesdays but I'm going to Chester next week with Nathan for our anniversary so I wouldn't be here to share it.

Thanks for stopping by, any questions then leave a comment! 

Emily xx

Bunny Layout

Hi all,

Here's a layout I made using the Forest Friends collection by Grace Taylor/Trimcraft. 

I took the picture in a park in Benalmadena in Spain, it was full of animals and birds and I saw this TINY bunny sitting there eating some lettuce and it was so cute I nearly cried...

Thanks for stopping by!

Emily xx

A New Layout

Hi all,

I was suffering a bit of crafter's block this week... not because I didn't have any ideas, but because I had so many! 

So, what I did was write every idea down and number them. I got to 18, and used a random number generator to choose which project I would start next. 

One of my ideas was to make another layout with the Quirky Kit from Jan/Feb this year. I still had a pack of Heidi Swapp sitckers unopened, along with some other bits so I put together this layout. 

I took the picture in the zoo in Fuengirola, I told Nathan to stand under this huge building that was in the Asian area. One of the many things I loved about Bioparc was how each area had authentic looking landscaping and architecture. 

This layout uses project life cards. I love how they can be used as backgrounds as well as pockets in a pocket book.

Thanks for stopping by!
Emily xx

Beach Layout Using An A4 Photo

Hi all,

My first layout using my holiday snaps from Spain is something I've wanted to make for a while - a layout using an A4 photo. 

I was worried quality would be an issue with this - the picture I wanted to use, the one I did use, was taken on my mobile phone - I learnt the hard way to never take a camera on to the beach! 

Luckily it printed out great - probably no different to if I printed out something from my camera.

We spent the morning on the beach and then got some lunch at the galleria in Fuengirola, then packed and flew home that night. I sent Nathan to test out the water and I took the picture - it was the perfect shot! The lovely morning on the beach made up for a week of rain. Nathan's sunburn was bad enough with one day of sun so perhaps it was good it wasn't like it the whole time we were there! 

When I started this layout I thought the background looked too plain - but a patterned background paper might have distracted from my picture, so instead I arranged some small clear stamps onto an acrylic block, and stamped repeatedly down the page using a ruler as a guide to keep the line straight. 

Most of the stickers are by Simple Stories 'You Are Here'. The acetate is from a sheet from Crate Paper 'Poolside'. The enamel dots and wood veneers are from Cocoa Vanilla Studio. 

Thanks for stopping by!

Emily xx

Humber Bridge Layout

Hey everyone,

The layout I'm sharing today is a really bright one using a picture I took of the Humber Bridge back in February on a visit to Hull. We were driving home and it was a lovely sunny day so we stopped off at the country park next to the bridge and I took some pictures. It's so strange standing under the bridge as it's so tall, just looking at it made me feel dizzy!

I had trouble getting the title to stand out against the bright paper so I painted an area with white acrylic to provide a clearer base, plus another area in the corner for the date, and also to add a bit of balance to the layout.


Thanks for stopping by!
Emily xx

York Layout 'Back To Basics'

Hi all,

Here's a layout I made using pictures I took in York on Valentine's Day... February seems so long ago now. When we went it was a cold day but the flowers were just starting to bloom, crocuses, daffodils, snowdrops and tulips. Beautiful.

I struggled with this layout. I spent an afternoon making a background and I hated it. I wanted to use purple paper but though I've boxes of paper, I didn't have ANY purple. I don't know why. 

So I put the layout aside.

Then I went to The Range and found this... Back To Basics by Trimcraft

They had other colours too and I wish I had got the teal one too but here we are...

I like it because there's a bit of everything in this kit. I don't like buying full packs of the same thing as I never use it all but with this it's just enough to keep the stash topped up. 

I challenged myself to try and use only what came in the pack on my layout, so all I really added was some yellow paper to contrast the purple, plus a button, brads, tag, tape and a 3x4 card.

Thanks for stopping by!

Emily xx

By The Thames Layout

Hi all

I love to do layouts with lots of pictures on but it can be hit and miss sometimes whether they work or not. If they're in uniform lines it can look a bit boring but I've found if you randomly place them it makes the page so much more interesting. 

On this layout I used pictures I took on our visit to London in March, I printed off a walking tour that visited places along the river we hadn't visited before along the South Bank. As always by the Thames Nathan and I had such a fun evening following the tour.

(We passed a Wagamama and thought... nah, we're alright)

(We passed another and thought.... mmmmm)

(Then we went over Tower Bridge, by the Tower of London... and there was another Wagamama and we walked straight in.... addicts! We had it again a couple days later near the hotel in Ealing!)

Making this layout was so simple, I used the Windows photos app to crop all my pictures into squares, then I printed them out, selecting A4 and then 'wallet' which prints 9 to a page. Perfect size for a layout with multiple photos. 

The little cards are from the My Mind's Eye Jubilee Tangerine collection, another little gem I found in TK Maxx.

The arrows are hand draw and I wrote the place names on myself too, I think if you have alright-ish handwriting you're good to go if it's just a couple of words.

Thanks for stopping by!

Emily xx