Two new layouts

Two new layouts this week! (Actually 3, but I decided not to post the third for privacy reasons.) I am feeling uber-productive!

#1) LSA annual meeting
I was inspired by this episode of the Paperclipping Roundtable to create a layout about my work. This layout is about the linguistics conference that I attend every year and some of the highlights from this year's conference.

I have had the lined patterned paper for a while, along with cardstock in coordinating colors, but was waiting for the "perfect" topic and finally decided this was it!

#2) Having fun with paper

I was sifting through the pile that is growing on my workspace and came across some stickers that I saved from a kit I received from Studio Calico. I decided it was now or never -- use them in a layout somehow or throw them out. I made this about how I am inspired by Studio Calico kits, saving 2 stickers to use on it and tossing the other 2. I used this sketch (also from Studio Calico) and entered it in their Sunday Sketch Challenge! Fingers crossed for a giftcard :)

December Daily album cover

As I mentioned in a previous post, I am using this album from Stampin Up! in Real Red. I found the candy cane ribbon at my favorite scrapbook store in Wisconsin, Making Memories and More. Unfortunately, I don't know who makes it, but I immediately thought of my December Daily when I saw it in the store this past October and snatched it up. It is adhered all the way around the cover using the Xyron sticker maker.

Here is what the album looks like when you open it up:



The tags were made by putting this snowflake sticker from Paper Source (all of their stickers make me drool) on to a round metal tag and then adhered to the cover with glue dots. Unfortunately, the glue dots don't stick super well to the fabric cover, so I have had to re-adhere and apply lots of pressure to make them stay. But I love how the tags look on the album - it makes it look so polished and less bland.

And since you could see it in the picture of the open album, here is a close-up of the intro page:


The star letters are from Jenni Bowlin, purchased at the same time as the candy cane ribbon, and the rest of the product comes from my stash. I covered a piece of semi-chipboard cut to size with a piece of ivory paper that I inked with Antique Linen distress ink (the "chipboard" came in a package of pillow protectors). You probably can't see it very well in the picture, but I stamped stars into the background using the same Antique Linen distress ink. It looks really subtle in person. The December strip came from a sheet of 12x12 paper that had all the months on it -- I originally got it to put in my honeymoon album. And the 2010 comes from a set of alphas that I have had for a while. I don't remember who makes them.

I am loving the process of making my album -- it is so putting me in the Christmas spirit. And I am proud to say that I finished the foundation about 2 weeks before December 1!! I think that's the first time I have ever finished something ahead of schedule!

A peek at my process

What it looks like when I can monopolize the dining room table! You can see at least three layouts on the table - this post focuses on layout 1 which is in the center right and layout 2 which is in the upper left corner.



Here's a close-up of these two layouts in their "early stages":

Layout 1: Black/Red/Swirl line


Layout 2: Orange and Navy


For both of these layouts, I started with the product first. Layout 1 is a set of patterned papers that were all sold together and that I absolutely loved at the time that I bought them. I bought the ribbon at the same time, but it's not part of the original line. I already made two layouts using these papers (pictures to come soon), and I have been keeping all of the papers together to continue to use them together, especially since I didn't use the ribbon on either of those first two layouts. Recently I decided I was kind of done with this paper (I bought it over a year ago!) and would do one more layout using the coordinating products (plus the ribbon) and then distribute the papers into my organization system, which is organized by color, not by product. I tried to think of some pictures that would go with the styling of the paper and decided on these from our trip to Prague in 2007. Here is the final product:



For layout 2, I had it in my head that I wanted to use orange and navy together. I pulled out everything that I had that was orange and navy and started to scheme up a layout. Then I thought of a picture that would coordinate and have an upbeat feel (something I associate with orange) and got this:



You might recognize it from this blog post.

Recent layouts - trying new things

Finally spending time with my paper again! Here are some of my latest projects:


Title: Nurture this relationship

There are several new-to-me techniques in this layout:
1) Write your journaling about something other than what is conveyed in the picture. The picture is from our trip to Canada, but the journaling is more about how my sister and I want to live closer to each other.
2) The 6x12 size.
3) I used Tim Holtz distress ink in Antique Linen to dye the paper that I journaled on.
4) I purposely used ribbon in a new way.
5) Not a new technique, but a new mantra - I am trying to use up what I have. The "nurture" epoxy sticker is part of a set I have had *forever* and I am glad to finally be using it!



Working Title: Grape Stomp

Trying something different with this one as well. I used brown rhinestones to continue the strand of lights in the photograph and clustered my photos in a way I don't normally do. I am debating whether this needs a title above the rhinestones -- I don't know what it should say though and none of the letters I currently have would work. I don't really want to hand write it either, so I'm leaving it as is for now. I consider it an experiment in white space : )


And a sneak peek at Week in the Life in its current form - I'm getting close to done!