Variation on a Chevron

Hello everyone.  Are you enjoying the good weather we are having ?  I am loving it but funny thing to come from a Malaysian, I have to confess, I might melt.

This month I have been working with the Crate Paper Pretty Party Collection.  Such pretty colours but not limited to pretty girly layouts as I will show you today.

Chevron is on-trend right now.  I haven't looked at a every single scrapbooking collection out there but I think I am not far wrong to say every single collection seems to be featuring chevron. I love chevron!

I had a pad of paper with me in the car.  Whilst waiting for my boys to come out of school, I started experimenting.  What happen if the chevron is not straight ?  What does it look like, slightly swirly ?  This is what I ended up with.

I then photocopied this drawing onto slightly thicker card and  cut out all the coloured parts to end up with a template.

I then used this to draw the patterned on a background cardstock.  I also used it to transfer the chevron to patterned paper which I cut out.

I added some paper aeroplanes ( using the smaller tags ) made with this paper folding instructions. I did make one minor adjustment though, I cut out the first triangle folded to minimise bulk. The tag shape gave a nice back ends to the paper planes.

The layout finished like this. It features a photo of my boys trying out the flying car at Harry Potter Studio Tour.

I also made another layout with more muted colours ( I am suprising myself! ), featuring a photo of my son running.  He is always cheerful when he runs even though he never does very well.

Curiosity got the better of me (again!)

Have you ever looked at the thumbnail of a product but not really been sure what is in the packet? I have... and when it happens to me I do one of two things:

1.)           Do not buy it – I can’t see what it is so I don’t want it.

2.)          BUY IT – simply because I’m curious.

As I was ordering some Cosmo Cricket 2wenty Thr3e papers I saw this element deck:

The picture is simply of the cover of the pack -the manufacturer hasn’t given much away with that picture have they? So, on this occasion, curiosity got the better of me and the element deck found its way into my basket. When they arrived I was rather happy they had as they are very cute. I have used them in different ways on 3 layouts to share with you today.

Two of the element cards were just perfect for this photo of my best friends and me on my birthday. We were stopped by the in-house photographer on the way into a club for a quick photo. The “Say Cheese” page and the page covered with the image of a camera were perfect. I used a couple of the Stacked Stickers to add dimension and also cut a couple of the word blocks from the Photo Booth paper. I added some old eyelets to these to thread the bakers twine through and then journalled along the curves of the twine.

I am loving creating pages for my little niece and the pinks in this range cried out to be used on one of her pages. This adorable photo is little Ro with her Grandad (my dad). Although it only appears to have one of the Element Deck pages on it I actually used three of them. I used the “Things I Love” page to create the title, adding some Bella Blvd Sophisticates High Five Alphabets to it. I then cut a 2” circle from a pink Element page and hand cut the pointing finger from another. I layered them up under the title and added a bow of Bakers Twine. I didn’t see the need for journaling on this page – the title says it all for me.  

My third page is not pink and girly at all. I have to admit I bought this range with this photo in mind because of the “Paperback” sheet. My eldest was a reluctant reader until he discovered the “Diary of a Wimpy Kid” series. This page documents his new hobby and how like me he is becoming as I was a book worm at his age. I used a page from the Element Deck that had numbers 1-5 on it, then highlighted the 1 by covering it with a Stacked Sticker with a 1 in the centre (because he was reading Book 1.) The “Hello” from the title is also a page from the Element Deck tucked behind the photo. I added a couple of stickers from the sticker sheet from the 2wenty Thr3e range along with some Bella Blvd Sophisticates High Five Alphabets and my favourite Bakers Twine again.

After these three pages I still have all of these Elements left to use:

I especially love the “LOVE” page and will be using it asap.

Have you bought one of these Element Decks yet? If so please do share with us how you have used them. And if not – why not? Go grab yourself one now!

Hope you are all enjoying the weather! Happy creating xxx

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* * Using Washi Tape in Scrapbooking * *

Hello, it's Laura here and I want to share with you my new love addiction... washi tape.. but in particular the gorgeous Bella BLVD designer tape. 

Washi tape orginated in Japan but quickly became very popular with scrapbookers all over the world.  Washi tape is basically colourful masking tape.  It is low tack like masking tape which means that it can safely be stuck down and lifted back up without making a mark.  It is traditionally made from rice paper. 

Washi tape is perfect for the lazy scrapbooker like me as it is just so easy, quick and simple to use!

 You can rip it, cut it, write on it, stick with it, decorate with it,  reposition it....

It seems that the scrapbooking manufacturers have realised the HUGE hit that washi has become and slowly the tape is finding it's way into several company ranges.  I adore the Bella BLVD tapes, the colours are so vibrant and bright, the tape itself is slightly silky making it gorgeous to write on and add to your paper projects.  I would recommened using a permanent pen (like a Sharpie) to write on these though to make sure that your writing stays put!

So what do I use this new love for? Like many other scrapbookers out there I am completing my own 2012 Project Life album, a huge undertaking to complete every week.  Washi tape is just PERFECT for this project as it can be added to photos so quickly.  I mainly use the tape as a quick journalling sticker, writing directly on top with a permanent pen.  Or I use it as a "lift" underneath small letter stickers to make a title stand out.  Or I use it like I would a border sticker or a scrap of paper and it becomes an embellishment in it's own right.

Did I already mention how quick this is? And how I love it for that.  I love creating but I love creating quickly, my scrap time is limited and I need to maximise the time that I have.  Washi tape works so well for me, it's already the perfect width, no need to cut it down or find the right size.  It's sticky already, no need to add glue, or tape, or find another way to stick it down.  It's ready to go right on the roll.  But it's also re-positionable, so I don't need to "plan" where to stick it down, because if all goes wrong and I need to start over or move things around, well then this washi tape will just lift right up, leaving no nasty sticky residue!

I made this layout in 30 minutes.  Using three pieces of 6x6 patterened paper, a journalling block and the Bella Blvd washi tape filled any gaps, it served as a "jointer" between two different types of patterened paper.  I also used the tape to provide a base for my sub-titles made from smaller letter stickers.

I probably used about 6 inches of each colour tape on this layout, the rolls come with 360 inches of tape!!! whoop! For only £3.25, that's a fantastic bargain right!!

A few of the colours are currently out of stock at Sarah's Cards, but there are a few remaining here, so grab them while you can.  They are a wonderful, useful, colourful and wonderful (yes, I know I said that twice but it really is) addition to your stash!

Bella Blvd Designer Tape Teal Stripe	Bella Blvd Designer Tape Pink Stripe	Bella Blvd Designer Tape Yellow Chevron	Echo Park Hello Summer 6x6 Paper Pad
Jillibean Soup - Alphabeans - Roma Red

InLinkz.com

Jubilee Mad!

Hi everyone, Vanessa here with my first project in a while and I've gone all patriotic as the Olympics and the Jubilee are coming up very soon!  I've seen a all sorts of versions of the Union Jack out and about in the shops etc, which inspired me to show how you can get all patriotic using any kind of paper or design.  For this project I have used papers from the Cosmo Cricket Evangeline range.

The main products I have used are :-

Cosmo Cricket Evangeline - Dandelion
Cosmo Cricket Evangeline - Rose
Cosmo Cricket Washi Tape
American Crafts Microbeads (Rouge)
American Crafts DIY Thickers (Poolside)
MME Follow Your Heart, Be Amazing Twine

First up is my layout "Bat It".  For the background I've used an old rose and script stamp on some American Crafts Kraft style card and Ranger tea stain ink and I've machine stitched around the edge of the card. 

 I covered the DIY thickers with the washi tape, inked the edges and used glossy accents on the top.

The bunting is hand cut and the Union Jack stripes are hand drawn with a brown journalling pen.  I then machine stitched the bunting to the page and drew over the Union Jack lines with glossy accents.

I used another piece of washi tape on the bottom right corner, pleated, and then machine stitched over the top.

Next up is a card made up in the style of the Union Jack.  I hand stitched the twine in the shape of the cross, using a WRMK Sew Easy.
 

I cut out butterflies and roses from the paper, layered the rose and used drops of glossy accents on the top.

My next layout is a simple and straight forward page, Girl Explorer, which again has some stitching, this time freehand using the twine, along the bottom.  For the title, I covererd the DIY letters with the micro beads, which gives a lovely spongy look and feel.  I used the washi tape for the main cross on the Union Jack patch.

The small butterlies are cut from a small woodware punch.

For my last project, I decided to jazz up a 39p notebook from Tesco.

Again, it was a simple case of cutting out the strips and layering them, however, for the main cross, this time I used two strips of double sided sticky tape and sprinkled the micro beads over the top.  I wasn't too sure it would work well on a notebook, but it worked really well.

  

 Thanks, hope you enjoy! :) x

Single Purchase Kits

Hello Lovely Crafty Ladies

This month for my blog post I would like to draw your attention to the fantastic kits that are available over in the shop. If you do not subscribe to Sarah's kits but you would like to purchase the occasional one or two then check out the SINGLE PURCHASE KITS on offer here.

I have used the April kit to make 3 layouts for you this month. The kit contains some really lovely Aqua, lemon and soft grey colour combinations from Lily Bee - The embellishments introduce a bit of peach and consist of some lovely stickers, threads and gems. If you have some arty pictures to scrap (pictures of yourself or family friends - crafting or painting) then this kit is perfect.

Here is the first Layout I have created for you with the kit ( I have 2 more to share with you over the weekend)

And a closer look at the embellishing...The little hedgehog is from my own stash - it was an old Sassafras chipboard, the clouds came in a goody bag from a previous Sarah's Cards retreat, I think they are by Pebbles, the flags are from Heidi Swapp Sugar Chic Collection.

As promised editing to add in a couple more layouts I made from this kit.

 

 

Hope your weekend is fun XXX