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

Craft Consortium Gypsy Gypsy Layout - Let Me Introduce You....

Hi everyone,

A new layout to share today. I'm currently in the midst of Christmas card making for Trimcraft but I found some time to have a play with the Gypsy Gypsy 12x12 collection kit from Craft Consortium.

The papers have a very vintage feel so to complement this I felt I would need an old picture. 

I went through some old pictures with my mum and we decided I would use this one of my great-grandparents, George and Alice Butler. Upon scanning the picture to copy it, I saw on the back: 50th Anniversary, and the date 3rd April 1915, so this would have been taken on the 3rd April 1965. 

I love the Gypsy Gypsy paper pad because it's not just papers. There's a gorgeous rub-on sheet and also little bits and bobs to cut out, as well as cut-apart sheets of vintage postcards. Some papers are from my scrap box, and the embellishments are from The Works.

Thanks for stopping by!
Emily xx

Vintage Floral Makes!

Hi all,

Some more makes to share today using products I was kindly sent by The Works.

This first one is my favourite, using the shabby chic cardstock patterns pad, a die cut butterfly and some bits left over from the MDF heart I decorated in a previous post.
Half the papers in the pads are glittery and the other half are embossed.

The next one is a scrapbook layout using another of the cardstock patterns pads, this one is a floral pad with lots of pinks and blues. I chose this picture I took in York at the Treasurer's House near the minster, the back gate was open so we snuck into the garden...! 

The papers are super high quality, they didn't buckle when I added the ink spatters on the layout.

And finally a hexagon box painted with Distress Paint and decorated with more of the shabby chic papers.

Thanks for stopping by!

Emily xx

Using Up Old Stash!

Hi all,

Been sort of out of action this week - my right ear is playing up so I can't hear well, or hear myself properly to record videos, or go out as it's so disorienting! But I have a doctor's appointment later this morning so fingers crossed it just needs flushing out and it's nothing worse. I have made a few things this week though, just waiting on decent weather to get some pictures taken. Anyway...

If you're anything like me you've probably got some collections laying around from years ago that you never use because you don't like the theme or the style but you can't sell/give them away because they're just odds and ends... But you have to use up old stuff to make space for (and justify buying) new stash!

So, I picked out a box of die cut toppers from my shelf. This box had, Papermania Sew Lovely, Vintage Notes, Craft Collection as well as another haberdashery collection that came with a magazine years ago and some other bits and bobs. I challenged myself to use up as much as I could.

This first card uses up pretty much all of the haberdashery bits I had. I did make another but I'm saving it for another blog post, but this is my favourite anyway.
To start with I just picked out the large mannequin die cuts and just added more and more until I found a layout I liked. Then I had to take it all off again to stick it down! I adore this card, it's got so much going on and I loved making it.

Then I made a layout with Papermania Vintage Notes. This collection was always a bit pale for me... but I had the bits left and I used every one. 

It's an 8x8" layout and I used a picture of Nathan and I in Newcastle a few years ago, our friend Sam took the picture and they told Nathan to look into my eyes, and his expression looked so funny and I burst out laughing... Thankfully his hat has since gone to the charity shop! 

Thanks for stopping by! Why not challenge yourself to use up some old bits too?

Emily xx

Tutorial Tuesday - Shabby Chic Heart Frame by The Works

Hi all,

I was kindly sent some products to blog about from The Works.
I have a new video to share today showing how I decorated this frame - I feel like decoupage can be intimidating when faced with a bare object and a pack of paper so here I show you how easy it is to make a beautiful home decor piece like this.

Stay tuned as I have a few more makes to share soon featuring more products from The Works.

Thanks for stopping by!

Emily xxx

Things To Alter Guest Design Team - Steampunk Pirate Layout!

Hi all,

A new make to share today using some of the MDF shapes by Things To Alter.
I was asked to be on the guest team at the last minute and luckily I had some steampunk bits left over so I was able to make this layout and I am so pleased with it!

Here's what I made.

I created the background by using matte medium with a stencil with gears on it. Once it was dry I went over areas of the layout with watercolour - crimson mixed with a little burnt umber. I also used white acrylic paint and a honeycomb stencil. Around the edge of the paper I used a border punch and then tore around it. Finally I went around the edge using the zigzag setting on my sewing machine. 

The crosshatched MDF pieces are just one larger piece cut up and coloured with metallic Sharpies. I coloured the bird like this too.

The accordion flowers are so simple to make, I just took strips of patterned paper and scored at centimetre intervals and then folded them into a concertina and stuck together with hot glue. There is some sturdy card on the back of them to stop them popping up and then an embellishment glued in the centre. With this one I used an MDF steampunk heart I painted gold. 

This layout features a picture of my dear friend Sam dressed as a steampunk pirate at Comic Con last year. Don't they look so incredibly cool! To keep with the pirate theme I searched for a sea-type quote, printed it out, cut up and stuck down with matte medium (no messing about with fiddly tape or glue) and then drew around with a fine liner.

Thanks for stopping by!

Emily xx

A new mixed media layout

Yesterday I made a new layout using a lovely photo of my boyfriend, Nathan.

I'm one of those incredibly annoying people who are constantly fiddling with camera settings and taking too long to take photos and then taking a lot of photos... hence why he doesn't look too impressed.

This time I was messing around with 'creative control' on my camera (most bridge cameras have something like this) and used the 'film grain' setting for this photo and it's given a really nice effect.

For this layout I wanted to make it quite vintage and steampunk, so after a base coat of white acrylic I used the gears stencil by Scrapberrys with my home made texture paste. I seem to have got the consistency right now so the gears look really crisp. I sprayed the textured areas with Luminarte spray mist in bronze.

I ripped the edges of the page and inked them with a beige and then dark brown ink for a more aged effect. 

The compass was cut from the background paper and brought forward, it really suited the vintage theme.

For the embellishments I used Kaisercraft Mister Fox and Santoro Willow pieces. 

Now... all my scrapping is up to date for the moment - ish - I'm banking on my next docrafts kit to arrive soon as I have a great idea for another page. 

In the meantime I have more blogs planned and I'll be posting some cards, too. Stay tuned!