2013 Smash Journal January to April

i decided to complete a smash journal for 2013 and because I've only just discovered it i had to go back  and complete pages from January to now. its more fun then i thought and i complete it in between layouts or when I'm not feeling like crafting.

 

 we had a great New Year and for once it was lively but January was a cold month with the snow and ice lasting about 3 weeks, this was the month Ant injured himself clearing the ice from under the car.

February was followed by even more snow and ice making it impossible to travel unless it was necessary.

 

March saw the closure of our local social club which means there is one less place to go now.

May was the month i decided to go for it and complete a load of Challenges from various craft sites. something i am going to continue doing over the next year.

Grumpy cat is so funny and Timmy gets himself into trouble a lot

its very satisfying to make something by hand and is sometimes cheaper then buying it from the shops.

The Memory Nest May Colour Challenge

The colour challenge at http://thememorynest.blogspot.co.uk/2013/05/may-color-challenge.html. For this months colour challenge i have chosen a fun and very bright layout of my day trip to Great Yarmouth. I had a fun but exhausting day beside the sunny seaside which was most likely our only day of summer if i know what British weather is like.

 I've been experimenting with mixed media on my layouts which i some cases has gone horribly wrong so i decided to keep it simple and used a Bobunny distressed textures stamp and painted it with acrylic paint instead of using ink. I then sprayed misting ink into the corner of the page and let it run down it.

 I've taken a shine to chipboard flourishes latterly i like to paint them or distress them with ink and sandpaper.

 I used American Crafts Amy Tangerine papers and The paper company Secret Garden Blossoms 12X12 paper in this project which a quickly becoming my favourites.

It wouldn't be a seaside layout without a bunting which i made using a joycrafts diecutter and scraps of Pebble inc and Papermania papers.

Summer is here get your Smash on!!

I've just been caught up in the new phenomena called smash which is basically taking a pretty note book and turning it in to a pretty collection of photos and well anything you think is pretty. I've used mine like a mini scrapbook by adding journaling and photos and i find it helps to keep the creativity flowing while you think up your next project. I've been using the K&CO smash range and Papermania All aboard range as it can be cut up and used in a smash book.

 I have two smash journals, one for my holidays that i take with my and complete at the destination and one for 2013 where i record events and daytrips and everything else that comes to mind.

My 2013 smash book where anything and everything goes.

 Most of the stuff i used has been printed off pininterest or I've recycled from my scrapbooking stash.

Once upon a Sketch May Challenge

 

 

This months challenge by Once Upon A Sketch  is about Numbers so i decided to make another heritage page about my grandparents wedding. i used the date of the wedding as the title. Here's the link http://onceuponasketchblog.blogspot.co.uk/2013/04/challenge-reminder-5-days-left.html. If you use chipboard you can submit your layout to berry71bleu at  http://berry71bleu.blogspot.co.uk/p/challenge-rules.html, so a chance to enter their challenge.

 I used HOTP Roses in Harmony papers and papermania pampered pets because the colours blend well. i used Prima and Bobunny stamps for the background.

 For the flower i used Tim Holtz tattered florals dies and embossed the petals using a balling tool, i then painted around the edges with white acrylic paint and added a chipboard flourish and beading .

 For the corrugated card effect i used a paper crimper and then inked the card with Tim Holtz Vintage photo ink and then mixed some white acrylic paint with a little water and blended them together.

I used something called paper mesh to tuck behind the tear.

The memory Nest DT Challenge

 

This is my entry for the design team call at The Memory Nest http://thememorynest.blogspot.co.uk/2013/05/summer-challenge-design-team-call.html

 

 i wanted to document my trip to the Stratford  Butterfly Farm on the edge of the River Avon. I had a lot of photos to show and 1 page wasn't enough so here it is my interpretation of the above sketch.

 I made the flowers by cutting out flowers using the Tim Holtz Tattered Florals die and inking the petals with Antique Linen distress ink and then inking the edges with the Tea Dye distress ink. I then glued a button into the centre. These buttons are from the Papermania Capsule Collection Spots and Stripes.

The backing paper is from the Papermania Pampered pets range. I like the soft colours and the subtle patterns didn't over power my photos, sometimes they can get lost amongst the busy papers.

 I wanted the butterfly to look like it was flying across the page so i added a swirl to look like a trail had been left.

 I used a chipboard flourish to neaten the edge  of the page and bring it together a bit.

                                                       Thank you for viewing my page

May Sketch Challenge at The Memory Nest

Hi here is my entry for the May Challenge.

 i decided to make a layout about my kitten Timmy who is growing so fast, i guess they don't stay small for long. I've experimented with two new techniques misting and paper folding.

 i ran different withs of paper through my paper crimper and then folded it accordion style to make the rosettes, i then decorated them with chipboard buttons from Pebbles /inc.

 I used Papermania Happy days and Pampered pets for this project.

to make the folder i printed out a template and then laminated it, so that it would be sturdier and so  i could keep using it with out it becoming tatty.

Life.paper.Scrapbook May colour Challenge

http://www.lifepaperscrapbook.com/2013/05/may-colour-challenge.html

i saw this month's colour challenge and immediately thought of this seaside layout i made using scraps of pastel coloured paper.

This is my favorite picture of the beach at Dawlish a small coastal town in Devon UK. its home to the Black swans who dwell on the river which runs through the centre of town. There's an old railway line which runs along the beach and you will often hear  the sound of a train roaring through, breaking the calm.

 to make the buntings i cut a triangle out of scrap paper using fancy edged scissors.

i used alphabet stickers from an American Crafts kit

Distressed edges tutorial

Hi all
I've been asked about how to  distress the edges like the ones on my layouts. Today i will teach you how to get this simple effect.

 First you will need some water and a sponge.

 dab the edges with water but be careful not to soak it or your page will end up limp and with disintegrate.

 let it dry a little so it is a bit damp and the roll the edges between your fingers, you may need to wet your fingers to stop the paper drying out.

 you should have something like this, don't worry it doesn't have to be perfect.

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 to make the tear, make a cut in the paper and wet the edges and roll the paper over itself.  you can then stick coloured card or other materials behind it.

to  get this effect i wet the page in a semi circle shape and made a small tear in the center and just rolled the paper down the page.

 

Please let me know if this tutorial was helpfull by leaving a comment and if you would like to share your layouts with me leave me a link and i will comment on your blog.