I love living where there are 4 separate and distinct seasons. Where you can feel the temperature change, and see the effects of the season upon the plants and trees. You know when Autumn is on it's way, it's when it starts to feel a little brisk in the evenings but not cold.
Moving time has always been in the Autumn for us, it was when my husband and I got to decorate our first place together. I love the bright colors of Spring and Summer and the cool crispness of Winter colors but Autumn holds a very special place in my heart. The richness of color from the fall foliage, and the warmth that it brings to a room is amazing! I'm looking at quilt patterns and all of the new rich Autumn hues the fabrics are now available. I saw a quilt pattern for an Acorn wall hanging- I am drawn to this thing like a moth to a flame! I think that I better order before I regret not getting it for myself!
One of my favorite pictures of my of children is of them in these beautiful hand-knitted sweaters (made by my mother-in-law) sitting in a pile of just raked leaves in my parents from yard. This of course is before I went digital and I will have to look through my thousands of filed negatives to find it so I can blow it up to a larger size so I can hang it on the wall of my next house. I did make a layout with this photo- I should dig it up and post it here.
One of my other favorites is a series of close up photos of the rich hues in the leaves while still on the trees. I took the pictures in 1990 while we lived in Maine- it was my first Autumn and winter up there and the seasons were nothing less than spectacular! And yes I also have these photo's in a layout.
* note to self- go through scrapbooks and locate these layouts and post them here to my blog.
You better start taking pictures now of the changing colors of the leaves on the trees- the colors can change so quickly! Hurry before the leaves start falling off!
Showing posts with label scrapbooking. Show all posts
Showing posts with label scrapbooking. Show all posts
Friday, September 17, 2010
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
My Life...in Pictures
A picture says a thousand words- or so the saying goes. Here's a scrapbookers confession...I've not printed a single picture since moving here. Nope, not a single one. I must have thought about it a hundred times or more but I've not done it. I loved getting my photo's printed at Walgreen's, but alas they don't ship to APO addresses :-( I've not found a place here that's local so I figure that I have enough "other photo's" to keep me busy. Not to mention that the exchange rate makes the pictures pretty darn pricey.
Now as being a true scrapbooker, I always have photo's to work with. Although I do remember a time when I was totally caught up, that was the summer of 2000- what strange thing that was! So I hope to break free of my chains so to speak and get back to business at hand and get some scrapbooking done!
Now as being a true scrapbooker, I always have photo's to work with. Although I do remember a time when I was totally caught up, that was the summer of 2000- what strange thing that was! So I hope to break free of my chains so to speak and get back to business at hand and get some scrapbooking done!
Wednesday, February 03, 2010
Somthing silly
Want something funny to do? Go to Urbandictionary.com and look up your name. here's what I came up with...and yes my first name is actually Sandra.
A strong name for a strong woman--A Sandra, especially one born under the star (sun) sign of Aries tends to be intelligent, witty, extremely open, honest & passionate and will do whatever it takes to uphold her morals. While these are extremely admirable traits, they also mean that they should never be crossed. Hope you are paying attention, you... See More have been warned!!
On the flip-side, if you do the right thing (and why wouldn't you?) a Sandra will go out of her way to make your life beautiful.
While fiercely independent, a Sandra has both a strong sense of community and family and will do whatever it takes (regardless of personal cost) to defend and protect those that she cares about.
Do yourself a favour – find a Sandra; stocks are limited and they are (rightly so) in high demand.
Need a friend? Look no further than Sandra
A strong name for a strong woman--A Sandra, especially one born under the star (sun) sign of Aries tends to be intelligent, witty, extremely open, honest & passionate and will do whatever it takes to uphold her morals. While these are extremely admirable traits, they also mean that they should never be crossed. Hope you are paying attention, you... See More have been warned!!
On the flip-side, if you do the right thing (and why wouldn't you?) a Sandra will go out of her way to make your life beautiful.
While fiercely independent, a Sandra has both a strong sense of community and family and will do whatever it takes (regardless of personal cost) to defend and protect those that she cares about.
Do yourself a favour – find a Sandra; stocks are limited and they are (rightly so) in high demand.
Need a friend? Look no further than Sandra
Now wouldn't this make a great scrapbook layout? toss in a picture or two of yourself, some great background papers a couple of embellishments and there you have it!
Saturday, November 28, 2009
Our Bed
I've been heart broken since the first day the movers showed up with our furniture. Why? Because our beautiful bed was damaged beyond repair some time during the course of the move. I'm not one to go out and just "buy" furniture willy nilly, never have been. Of course there are utility pieces that come from big box stores like my chrome shelves in my scrapbook nook. I did my research on them and thought out and planned on how I would use them. I can tell you where we bought each piece of furniture that is in our home.
I love my friends for trying to console me, trying to cheer me up by telling me that now I can shop for a new bed here in England. For me, buying furniture is not like buying a new scarf, for me it's a process. It's like hunting around in an antique store with a million and one items in it and finding that one little 'gem" of an item be it a teapot, a towel rack or a wine carafe that just speaks to you. The part that no one realizes is that it took us 11 years to find "that bed" our bed. My husband poured his time and soul into finishing the bed, sanding it, staining it finishing it. It was a labor of love. I've made the decision to just get a basic metal bed frame and find a simple headboard and that's it. We'll look again when we get back to the states for a bed.
And yes, this will also get a scrapbook layout made all about it. I've got plans for a series of layouts all to do with the subject of "HOME". How many of us are guilty of taking things for granted? Of over looking something as lovely as a favorite jacket, handbag or pair of shoes? Heaven knows we overlook our furniture all of the time. It's not that I'm at a loss of subject matter to scrap pages about- heaven knows I have even Christmas parties to attend in December that I can make an entire scrapbook about (last count there were 7), LOL! Just remember this...It's the every day things that matter most!
I love my friends for trying to console me, trying to cheer me up by telling me that now I can shop for a new bed here in England. For me, buying furniture is not like buying a new scarf, for me it's a process. It's like hunting around in an antique store with a million and one items in it and finding that one little 'gem" of an item be it a teapot, a towel rack or a wine carafe that just speaks to you. The part that no one realizes is that it took us 11 years to find "that bed" our bed. My husband poured his time and soul into finishing the bed, sanding it, staining it finishing it. It was a labor of love. I've made the decision to just get a basic metal bed frame and find a simple headboard and that's it. We'll look again when we get back to the states for a bed.
And yes, this will also get a scrapbook layout made all about it. I've got plans for a series of layouts all to do with the subject of "HOME". How many of us are guilty of taking things for granted? Of over looking something as lovely as a favorite jacket, handbag or pair of shoes? Heaven knows we overlook our furniture all of the time. It's not that I'm at a loss of subject matter to scrap pages about- heaven knows I have even Christmas parties to attend in December that I can make an entire scrapbook about (last count there were 7), LOL! Just remember this...It's the every day things that matter most!
Friday, November 27, 2009
The Heart of it all...
Every house has a room or a piece of furniture that is the "heart" of the home, mine is the kitchen table. All great things start there- be it coffee with girlfriends, making out grocery lists or having breakfast with the kids before they dart off to catch the bus for school. It's a gathering place that's always full of love. I've done quilting, scrapbooking, rubber stamping/card-making and book reading at that table. I've written some awesome recipes while sitting at that table and our children do their homework there, make arts and crafts projects for school or scouts at that table and have just hung out with their friends...all at that table. It's a place where we all gather to talk about the start or end of our day. I can't help but to smile when I look at it. As strange as it sounds, I've decided to do a scrapbooking layout on it. Now that My Scrapbook Nook is almost all together, I finally feel as if I can finally get on with my creative side and start some new creative projects. Are you ready for a scrapbooking adventure? I know that I most certainly am!
Saturday, November 29, 2008
Scrapbooking stores in MA to check out!
Believe it or not, I still scrapbook! And when I'm visiting family in MA I check out as many scrapbooking stores as possible for stamps and scrapping goodies that I'm unable to get where I live in SD. So when you find yourself in Massachusetts check some of these places out!
Right at Home Scrapbooking
560 Kelley Blvd.
N.Attleboro, Massachusetts 02760
Scrapbook Cupboard
516 N. Bedford
St.East Bridgewater, Massachusetts 02333
The Stamp Act
58 Main St.
Marshfield, Massachusetts 02050
A Time for Memories
78 Worchester St.
#2N. Grafton, Massachusetts 01536
Leave a Legacy
1470 New State Hwy Unit 6Route 44
Rayham, Massachusetts 02767
THe Scrap Shack
208 College Highway
Southwick, Massachusetts 01077
Scrapbook Village Inc.
930 American Legion Hwy.
West Port, Massachusetts 02970
Memory Lane
449 Washington St.
Weymouth, Massachusetts 02188
Right at Home Scrapbooking
560 Kelley Blvd.
N.Attleboro, Massachusetts 02760
Scrapbook Cupboard
516 N. Bedford
St.East Bridgewater, Massachusetts 02333
The Stamp Act
58 Main St.
Marshfield, Massachusetts 02050
A Time for Memories
78 Worchester St.
#2N. Grafton, Massachusetts 01536
Leave a Legacy
1470 New State Hwy Unit 6Route 44
Rayham, Massachusetts 02767
THe Scrap Shack
208 College Highway
Southwick, Massachusetts 01077
Scrapbook Village Inc.
930 American Legion Hwy.
West Port, Massachusetts 02970
Memory Lane
449 Washington St.
Weymouth, Massachusetts 02188
Monday, November 03, 2008
Scrapbooking and Quilters Unite!
I know something that you may or may not know...many of the patterned paper companies that we scrapbookers love and adore also have fabrics done up with those same designs- no joke! Please check out The Fat Quarter Shop. This place rocks! I love it all!!! It's such a crack up seeing Basic Grey being offered in a fabric line.
Go see for yourself and enjoy!
Go see for yourself and enjoy!
Wednesday, October 08, 2008
Creating the ultimate Scrapbook Room- flooring
What is the #1 things we over look when creating our scrapbooking space? Hands down it has to be the flooring! I don't know about you, but I'm a messy scrapper! Paper snip-it's all over the place and to be perfectly honest I drop things on the floor- more frequently then I'd like to admit. I do more than just scrapbook in my space, I sew, knit, crochet, do counted cross stitching, there's general paper crafting, painting of small to larger projects, there's also water color painting and a few other things. Needless to day the floor gets quite the work out!
I crack up when I see carpeting in 3 rooms- the kitchen, bathroom and a craft room. carpeting in any one of these rooms is a mistake! My friend Liz had carpeting in a house she and her husband rented when they were stationed in Oklahoma, the little base house we lived in before moving here (aka The Cottage) had carpeting in the kids bathroom- HUGE mistake! And when I used the formal living room as my scrapbooking area in our house in Virginia, it too had wall to wall carpeting. I found myself having to go into the kitchen and breakfast nook and do my stamping, inking and heat embossing.
When creating my latest scrapbook nook, I wanted a durable yet easy to clean up kind of flooring. My floor is a laminated wood flooring by Wilson Art, similar to Pergo - the only true difference it that it was less expensive :-) Since my room is on the ground floor, I wanted an insulated pad underneath of it- makes for a cushy walking surface and keeps out the cold. Clean up is a snap! If I drop and ink pad I get a baby wipe (which I keep on hand) and simply wipe up the ink! It's easy to keep clean, a quick swish of the broom or my floor vacuum and all of the paper snip-it's and blue tabs from my adhesive are quickly picked up. If I'm doing some heat embossing, I can get the blown off embossing powder off the floor with my swiffer duster or my swiffer wet mop quickly and easily. But don't think that you HAVE to get a laminated floor, there are many types of vinyl flooring or even tile flooring for that matter that are made to be long lasting to wear and tear, and to messy crafters such as myself this stuff is a blessing! LOL!
Can you imagine trying to get needles out of carpeting? I've dropped my container of sewing needles more than once on that floor! How about trying to pick up tiny eyelets and brads that have fallen on the carpet? Can you hum the tune to mission impossible? Or the worst- embossing powder and ink that's gotten on the carpet? Start crying now because because those things are almost impossible to get out!
Going with a nice washable flooring that has a good surface that's not textured is the way to go!
I crack up when I see carpeting in 3 rooms- the kitchen, bathroom and a craft room. carpeting in any one of these rooms is a mistake! My friend Liz had carpeting in a house she and her husband rented when they were stationed in Oklahoma, the little base house we lived in before moving here (aka The Cottage) had carpeting in the kids bathroom- HUGE mistake! And when I used the formal living room as my scrapbooking area in our house in Virginia, it too had wall to wall carpeting. I found myself having to go into the kitchen and breakfast nook and do my stamping, inking and heat embossing.
When creating my latest scrapbook nook, I wanted a durable yet easy to clean up kind of flooring. My floor is a laminated wood flooring by Wilson Art, similar to Pergo - the only true difference it that it was less expensive :-) Since my room is on the ground floor, I wanted an insulated pad underneath of it- makes for a cushy walking surface and keeps out the cold. Clean up is a snap! If I drop and ink pad I get a baby wipe (which I keep on hand) and simply wipe up the ink! It's easy to keep clean, a quick swish of the broom or my floor vacuum and all of the paper snip-it's and blue tabs from my adhesive are quickly picked up. If I'm doing some heat embossing, I can get the blown off embossing powder off the floor with my swiffer duster or my swiffer wet mop quickly and easily. But don't think that you HAVE to get a laminated floor, there are many types of vinyl flooring or even tile flooring for that matter that are made to be long lasting to wear and tear, and to messy crafters such as myself this stuff is a blessing! LOL!
Can you imagine trying to get needles out of carpeting? I've dropped my container of sewing needles more than once on that floor! How about trying to pick up tiny eyelets and brads that have fallen on the carpet? Can you hum the tune to mission impossible? Or the worst- embossing powder and ink that's gotten on the carpet? Start crying now because because those things are almost impossible to get out!
Going with a nice washable flooring that has a good surface that's not textured is the way to go!
Saturday, October 04, 2008
Creating the ultimate Scrapbook Room- storage
Oh, is my scrapbook nook ever a mess! I've got "stuff" spread out across the my main work area and all over the smaller work area. It's obvious that I need to put my toys away after I'm done playing with them :-)
A place for everything and everything in it's place. That's where organization and storage come into play. You can't really become organized until you make a list of things you want to accomplish in your scrapbooking space. What all are you going to be "doing" in that space? It is just scrapbooking? Or is it more? If it's more than your room will have to accommodate more than one hobby. Not everyone has the same organizational needs, that's why I asked the question "what all are you going to be doing in your scrapbooking space? For me it's a bit of everything, the obvious is scrapbooking, there's card making and general paper crafting. As for my other hobbies; I store my needlework stuffs in the laundry room, my quilting & sewing stuffs have moved to the formal dining room (they are in plain view but hidden at the same time) and of course my cooking and baking are in the kitchen. But each area where my "crafting" takes place is organized, making it easy for me to find what I'm looking for at a moments glance.
P-Touch Label Maker- if you don't have one, get one! These are a MUST HAVE item in any household! I think that my husband and kids use it as much as I do!
Plastic Shoe Boxes- These are the back bone to organization! In my Scrapbook Nook I use them to contain my stamps, my collection of acrylic blocks, ink pads and embellishments. In my quilting corner I use them to contain my fat quarters, fat eighths, fabric scraps and patterns. They work for storing needlework projects and all kinds of embroidery flosses. Use that label maker to it's fullest potential and label that container!
Okay after all this talk on being organized, I better get down in my scrapbook nook and put my toys away!
A place for everything and everything in it's place. That's where organization and storage come into play. You can't really become organized until you make a list of things you want to accomplish in your scrapbooking space. What all are you going to be "doing" in that space? It is just scrapbooking? Or is it more? If it's more than your room will have to accommodate more than one hobby. Not everyone has the same organizational needs, that's why I asked the question "what all are you going to be doing in your scrapbooking space? For me it's a bit of everything, the obvious is scrapbooking, there's card making and general paper crafting. As for my other hobbies; I store my needlework stuffs in the laundry room, my quilting & sewing stuffs have moved to the formal dining room (they are in plain view but hidden at the same time) and of course my cooking and baking are in the kitchen. But each area where my "crafting" takes place is organized, making it easy for me to find what I'm looking for at a moments glance.
P-Touch Label Maker- if you don't have one, get one! These are a MUST HAVE item in any household! I think that my husband and kids use it as much as I do!
Plastic Shoe Boxes- These are the back bone to organization! In my Scrapbook Nook I use them to contain my stamps, my collection of acrylic blocks, ink pads and embellishments. In my quilting corner I use them to contain my fat quarters, fat eighths, fabric scraps and patterns. They work for storing needlework projects and all kinds of embroidery flosses. Use that label maker to it's fullest potential and label that container!
Okay after all this talk on being organized, I better get down in my scrapbook nook and put my toys away!
Saturday, September 06, 2008
creating the ultimate scrapbook room
I get news letters of all kinds from various companies. I was reading something from Better Homes and Gardens yesterday on (what else) Organizing your Scrapbooking Supplies/Scrapbooking Room. The ultimate scrapbook room in this article was 15x15- damn! What my kids wouldn't give to have their bedrooms this size! To be honest most of us have a closet or a corner in a room. Since moving here I've upgraded from a utility closet (that was at our last house) to having an actual room designated from the beginning to be my scrapbook nook.
So I'm comparing my scrapbooking space to the space in the article. They have tons of custom cabinetry. One thing that caught my was the pull out shelves inside of the cabinet, similar to what I have in my kitchen for my pots and pans- but in the article it was used it for paper and cardstock. I'm not sure how practical that would be in my scrapbook nook, not to mention that it's on the pricey side and I'm not so sure that the shelf unit could take all of the weight from my hordes of cardstock, LOL! The other thing that caught my eye was the spice jar organizer located in a drawer. For most of us, drawer space is at a premium and putting a spice jar organizer in there is just not an option.
So this article got me thinking...I'm going to undertake an Autumn clean sweep this weekend! I'm gutting my scrapbook nook of ALL unused items- be it organizing materials or actual scrapbooking merchandise. It's outta here! If it doesn't have an actual use at that very moment it has to go, no question about it! I need to be brutally honest with myself and rid the room of items causing it to look cluttered. I'll enlist the help of my daughter and take input from my husband. Here we go! And yes, I'm taking pictures along the way:-)
So I'm comparing my scrapbooking space to the space in the article. They have tons of custom cabinetry. One thing that caught my was the pull out shelves inside of the cabinet, similar to what I have in my kitchen for my pots and pans- but in the article it was used it for paper and cardstock. I'm not sure how practical that would be in my scrapbook nook, not to mention that it's on the pricey side and I'm not so sure that the shelf unit could take all of the weight from my hordes of cardstock, LOL! The other thing that caught my eye was the spice jar organizer located in a drawer. For most of us, drawer space is at a premium and putting a spice jar organizer in there is just not an option.
So this article got me thinking...I'm going to undertake an Autumn clean sweep this weekend! I'm gutting my scrapbook nook of ALL unused items- be it organizing materials or actual scrapbooking merchandise. It's outta here! If it doesn't have an actual use at that very moment it has to go, no question about it! I need to be brutally honest with myself and rid the room of items causing it to look cluttered. I'll enlist the help of my daughter and take input from my husband. Here we go! And yes, I'm taking pictures along the way:-)
Sunday, August 17, 2008
At the Central States Fair
The first day of the Central States Fair kicked off yesterday. Hannah and I went for a couple of hours to look at all of the exhibits.
One the neatest things I've ever seen was the huge crocheted framed piece- a picture of the Last Supper. I can only imagine the many hours of work that went into making such a lovely work of art. The next one that caught my eye was the orange and black crocheted pumpkin afghan, that was pretty cool!
The quilting division was something to behold- I am in awe at all of the beautiful quilts on display. All I can say is that I aspire to be :-) I had entered 2 items in the quilting division- my chocolate dreams
quilt that came in 3rd place in the medium sized quilts and my orange and 
pink cone-flower quilted table runner that came in 3rd place in table runners. I feel honored to have been awarded a ribbon, especially so with some many wonderful quilted items on display.
On to the Scrapbooking division- it's hard to say what goes through the mind of someone judging the work of another. I know that it must be a very hard job to try and decide who gets top choice and who doesn't. Then there's awarding the Judges Choice awards and the Best in Show awards. I entered several layouts in the various categories, 15 in all. I didn't know what to expect when I walked into the building that held the scrapbooking entries and was surprised to find a small crowd gathered around in that area. Hannah and I wondered and said to one another "what are they all looking at?" we went over to check it out and someone said to me "that's you in that picture, isn't it?". Okay that felt weird, so I replied "excuse me? I'm not sure what you mean"... then I was show what everyone was gathered around- the layout of me and my Dad. It had won the judges choice award. Since it's hidden journaling I had printed it out and had it available for everyone to read in a separate page protector. Needless to say I was quite surprised with the reactions to my layout. It also made my heart soar that I could honor my dad in such a wonderful way!
One the neatest things I've ever seen was the huge crocheted framed piece- a picture of the Last Supper. I can only imagine the many hours of work that went into making such a lovely work of art. The next one that caught my eye was the orange and black crocheted pumpkin afghan, that was pretty cool!
The quilting division was something to behold- I am in awe at all of the beautiful quilts on display. All I can say is that I aspire to be :-) I had entered 2 items in the quilting division- my chocolate dreams
quilt that came in 3rd place in the medium sized quilts and my orange and pink cone-flower quilted table runner that came in 3rd place in table runners. I feel honored to have been awarded a ribbon, especially so with some many wonderful quilted items on display.On to the Scrapbooking division- it's hard to say what goes through the mind of someone judging the work of another. I know that it must be a very hard job to try and decide who gets top choice and who doesn't. Then there's awarding the Judges Choice awards and the Best in Show awards. I entered several layouts in the various categories, 15 in all. I didn't know what to expect when I walked into the building that held the scrapbooking entries and was surprised to find a small crowd gathered around in that area. Hannah and I wondered and said to one another "what are they all looking at?" we went over to check it out and someone said to me "that's you in that picture, isn't it?". Okay that felt weird, so I replied "excuse me? I'm not sure what you mean"... then I was show what everyone was gathered around- the layout of me and my Dad. It had won the judges choice award. Since it's hidden journaling I had printed it out and had it available for everyone to read in a separate page protector. Needless to say I was quite surprised with the reactions to my layout. It also made my heart soar that I could honor my dad in such a wonderful way!
Saturday, August 16, 2008
Clothes shopping weekend- ugh!
Here it is the weekend- WOW the week went by rather quickly! Last night when talking to my son (we were talking about the fact that school starts next week) he told me that summer vacation is not long enough (don't we all think that when we were kids?). I let him know that 3 months is plenty of time to get over whatever trauma he thinks that his teachers did to him during the school year, LOL!
So that leaves me shopping for school clothes with my kids this weekend- ugh! I used to love shopping for school clothes for my children- that was before it became "uncool" to have your Mom picking out your clothes. So Lucien started taking them out for the Back to School stuff and by November/December time frame our kids were wanting "me" their Mom to pick them out jeans and sweaters. Same goes in the spring, it's me then too but then it switches back to the kids wanting to shop with their Dad for their summer clothes- go figure, LOL! I've done it before- brought my camera on one of these shopping expeditions and documented our outing. I've even made a detailed layout about one of our trips- including the pitching a fit scenes of things too tight, too loose or too itchy (I laughed so hard I had tears rolling down my face). Now why haven't I shared this layout? Only because my daughter would have a royal cow is I ever posted it to the internet and to preserve our family harmony I have kept it private :-)
But it's things like this that make for great scrapbooking pages- personal ones that you would only share with the person you made the layout about. It's these kinds of personal feelings that should fill your journaling- this is what makes a scrapbook a more than just a lovely coffee table book, it makes it an heirloom. Many years from now when future generations of our family look back through the pages of the many volumes of albums, I hope that they get a good idea of who I was and who my children were when they were younger. I hope that they get to know us through pictures and the journaling- the memories shared will last a lifetime!
Now for me to get it together, to have some more coffee and pour over the sales fliers in today's news paper-wish me luck!
So that leaves me shopping for school clothes with my kids this weekend- ugh! I used to love shopping for school clothes for my children- that was before it became "uncool" to have your Mom picking out your clothes. So Lucien started taking them out for the Back to School stuff and by November/December time frame our kids were wanting "me" their Mom to pick them out jeans and sweaters. Same goes in the spring, it's me then too but then it switches back to the kids wanting to shop with their Dad for their summer clothes- go figure, LOL! I've done it before- brought my camera on one of these shopping expeditions and documented our outing. I've even made a detailed layout about one of our trips- including the pitching a fit scenes of things too tight, too loose or too itchy (I laughed so hard I had tears rolling down my face). Now why haven't I shared this layout? Only because my daughter would have a royal cow is I ever posted it to the internet and to preserve our family harmony I have kept it private :-)
But it's things like this that make for great scrapbooking pages- personal ones that you would only share with the person you made the layout about. It's these kinds of personal feelings that should fill your journaling- this is what makes a scrapbook a more than just a lovely coffee table book, it makes it an heirloom. Many years from now when future generations of our family look back through the pages of the many volumes of albums, I hope that they get a good idea of who I was and who my children were when they were younger. I hope that they get to know us through pictures and the journaling- the memories shared will last a lifetime!
Now for me to get it together, to have some more coffee and pour over the sales fliers in today's news paper-wish me luck!
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Picture a Day
Starting in September I'm going to once again pick up my "picture a day" or what others might think of as "a day in my life" kind of album and being working on adding to it's pages. Having gone digital a few years back has made this really easy for me- doing the picture a day thing while using a 35mm camera , well this would have been a tedious task to say the least! Waiting to get the film developed would have put me over the edge, LOL! But the digital age has made this very easy for me plus with my handy dandy little picture printer, I can print out pictures every day and work on my journaling every day. Who knows, I might just back it up and start on the 10th of this month :-) Heaven knows that I have enough pictures!
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Scrapbooking 101
When you sit down and take your pictures in hand what do you see? You see the people, the place or the object you took a picture of. Now putting it on paper shouldn't be all that difficult or complicated, right? Wrong!
Selecting colors-
For years I never realized that I had a gift, an ability to select colors that make pictures pop from the page. It wasn't until I started teaching classes on color theory and how to make your pictures pop at a scrapbooking store in Virginia that I realized that I really did have a "gift". Actually I was surprised at first, I never realized that most folks don't have an eye for color, that some people no matter how hard they try can not seem to get the appropriate color pallet going on- not just in scrapbooking but in the clothing they wear, LOL! Hence the reason why most folks wear jeans because they figure that everything goes with denim- wrong answer! But we'll discuss fashion later (Clint and Stacy are you watching?)☺
Layering-
Another HUGE mistake waiting to happen! I've seen dozens of trends come and go but nothing takes away more from a photo than over layering of patterned paper. My philosophy is to KISS the layout, now you're wondering "I've heard that before but what does that mean"? KISS- keep it simple sweetie! I still to this day love Becky Higgins approach to scrapbooking, keeping it clean. You don't needs tons of embellishments or 5 different patterned papers piled on a page to make a beautiful and eye catching layout.
The Photo(s)-
What to do when all we have to work with are crappy blurred pictures? For me this is especially true when I'm working with older pictures -ones my Mom took back in the 1970's. You make the best of it! That's when you embellish with your journaling! Not everyone can have those beautiful pictures that look like they've been taken by a professional photographer, but we can give it a good try! Basically we work with what we have- there's no point in 'wishing" the pictures were better because it just isn't going to happen.
Stayed tuned as I will add more to all of this...
Selecting colors-
For years I never realized that I had a gift, an ability to select colors that make pictures pop from the page. It wasn't until I started teaching classes on color theory and how to make your pictures pop at a scrapbooking store in Virginia that I realized that I really did have a "gift". Actually I was surprised at first, I never realized that most folks don't have an eye for color, that some people no matter how hard they try can not seem to get the appropriate color pallet going on- not just in scrapbooking but in the clothing they wear, LOL! Hence the reason why most folks wear jeans because they figure that everything goes with denim- wrong answer! But we'll discuss fashion later (Clint and Stacy are you watching?)☺
Layering-
Another HUGE mistake waiting to happen! I've seen dozens of trends come and go but nothing takes away more from a photo than over layering of patterned paper. My philosophy is to KISS the layout, now you're wondering "I've heard that before but what does that mean"? KISS- keep it simple sweetie! I still to this day love Becky Higgins approach to scrapbooking, keeping it clean. You don't needs tons of embellishments or 5 different patterned papers piled on a page to make a beautiful and eye catching layout.
The Photo(s)-
What to do when all we have to work with are crappy blurred pictures? For me this is especially true when I'm working with older pictures -ones my Mom took back in the 1970's. You make the best of it! That's when you embellish with your journaling! Not everyone can have those beautiful pictures that look like they've been taken by a professional photographer, but we can give it a good try! Basically we work with what we have- there's no point in 'wishing" the pictures were better because it just isn't going to happen.
Stayed tuned as I will add more to all of this...
Sunday, August 10, 2008
Scrapbooking
In case you're wondering if I do scrapbook any more...fear no more because yes I do! I started working on some new layouts yesterday afternoon. I was really feeling inspired and ready to create something fun. I've told myself that I've got to get through this stash of patterned paper before I allow myself to bring any more into my scrapbook nook. I've got "3" one gallon cracker jars filled with chipboard letters and shapes to use up, more Prima flowers than anyone I know in this area and a ribbon collection that is almost sinful. Yesterday I let the Genie out of the bottle and I'm ready to start Scrapping!
Friday, July 04, 2008
3 Scrappy Boys - up for sale
Here it is, the official news from my friend and neighbor. This just goes to show you how hard it is being married and having your husband being career military (regardless of rank). My heart goes out to Cindy and Allen, I know how hard it was for them to come to this decision. Deployments and moves, it seems that our lives revolve around them these days, add to it having a successful business, a happy home life and children that are active in many different things- sometimes the choices we have to make in order to keep on top of it all are not easy. I know of what I speak, believe me I do, heck I live it every day. I've condensed the e-mail she sent out, it's below please read.
Store News from Owner Cindy Husted
I hope everyone is enjoying their summer! I can't
believe it will be half over soon!
...
On a sadder note...
Unfortunately, the time has come for 3 Scrappy Boys to be for sale. We have not made this public announcement because up until recently have just been thinking about the idea. My husband who is an officer in the Air Force was told in the last few days that he can be expecting orders possibly this month for a fall or winter move and that we will definitely be moving by next summer. He only has a few more years in his career and this assignment which could be our last, may take us overseas. He is currently in Iraq for his 4th deployment, which if we get orders soon, is going to leave me to prepare for another move by myself. In addition to this, our 3 boys are getting older and more involved in their activities. I also have started a photography business that I plan to continue growing at whatever destination the Air Force sends us to.
3 Scrappy Boys will not be closing! I stress that I love this business as if it were my child and I will not leave it until the right new owner is found. If we do not find a new owner, the business will go with us to our new home and we will continue offering our fantastic kits! This announcement in no way will affect our current relationship with our customers.
Anyone interested in pursuing this transaction may contact me at info@3scrappyboys.com
I hope everyone has a fantastic and safe 4th of July!
Cindy
I hope everyone is enjoying their summer! I can't
believe it will be half over soon!
...
On a sadder note...
Unfortunately, the time has come for 3 Scrappy Boys to be for sale. We have not made this public announcement because up until recently have just been thinking about the idea. My husband who is an officer in the Air Force was told in the last few days that he can be expecting orders possibly this month for a fall or winter move and that we will definitely be moving by next summer. He only has a few more years in his career and this assignment which could be our last, may take us overseas. He is currently in Iraq for his 4th deployment, which if we get orders soon, is going to leave me to prepare for another move by myself. In addition to this, our 3 boys are getting older and more involved in their activities. I also have started a photography business that I plan to continue growing at whatever destination the Air Force sends us to.
3 Scrappy Boys will not be closing! I stress that I love this business as if it were my child and I will not leave it until the right new owner is found. If we do not find a new owner, the business will go with us to our new home and we will continue offering our fantastic kits! This announcement in no way will affect our current relationship with our customers.
Anyone interested in pursuing this transaction may contact me at info@3scrappyboys.com
I hope everyone has a fantastic and safe 4th of July!
Cindy
Sunday, May 04, 2008
Scrapbooking versus Quilting
My quote of the day reflects my feelings about scrapbooking magazines and the vibes I get from some of those scrapbookers that think about nothing but being published.
Some days I find myself being glad that we no longer have any bonifed scrapbooking stores in our area- it was such a "dog eat dog" mentality when we did have the 3 stores. No one ever gave out any tips of the trade, shared their secrets on how to make a certain thing work better or told where they bought a certain item. I remember one shop owner always complaing about croppers ruining tools. I Do on the other hand miss having an active Scrapbooking Group and having them meet in my home once a month (I'm going to try again in the fall). I loved spoiling the ladies with a gourmet lunch, and at their request I made recipe page kits for them (of the days recipes) and showed them "new to them" techniques. We laughed, we cried and we enjoyed our time with one another. There was never any of that trying to show one another up we were all equals, all of us had something to share. I miss the days of scrapbooking our photos and sharing the stories that went along with the photos....somewhere along with the quest for being published and of course constantly more new product that basic idea got lost. Maybe that's why I don't share my layouts as much as I should...basically, I don't like the attitude that some people have taken- it's a huge turn off for me. I'm seriously wanting to get back to "the basics" and get with scrapbooking again.
The reasons I started Quilting....The two people who unknowingly had an influence on my wanting to quilt are Susan Vité and Ginny Johnson. From years ago I remember my friend Susan having this quilting project laid out in pieces from Longaberger cloth napkins (the Longaberger Company only used Waverly brand fabrics at that time). It was such a beautiful work in progress. The napkins were costly and came in a 2 pack, My thought is that it must have taken an awful lot of napkin packs to complete that quilt, but oh how lovely it will be when it's finished! There's Ginny Johnson, oh is she ever a bargain hunter when it comes to fabric! She could spot something, know how she would use it in the future and buy yards and yards of it! I do have to admit that I regret not showing a better interest in quilting while both of these ladies lived near me. To think that I didn't start quilting earlier out of plain ol fear...the fear that I would start to stock pile fabrics (as I am now).
I remember the going away/retirement gift that Ginny made and gave to our friend Liz M. was without a doubt the most exquisite quilt I had ever seen! Everyone was in awe! Now of course Ginny is a prankster and the look on Liz's face when Ginny told her that she got the fabric for $1 a yard...I had to hold myself back from laughing. Knowing now what I didn't know then, I know that Ginny didn't get any of that beautiful fabric for $1 a yard, for the fabrics she used on that quilt were in the $8 to $10 a yard price range and at best she got them for maybe $5 a yard. Maybe she found the backing for $2 a yard but it still cost her some big dollars to make it. Then Ginny sent it off to be professionally quilter by a long arm quilter...again not inexpensive. But WOW was it beautiful! I know that this quilt will be cherished by Liz for the rest of her life.
The one thing I have felt with quilting is this genuine love of the craft by others, and how they want you to be able to make something beautiful too! Every time I step foot into a quilt store (there's one in particular I love to frequent) you are always greeted with a smile and a warm welcome. The owner is a charming woman who is ready to help the most advanced to the absolute novice quilter with any problems she has with a project. She takes her time with us and I can tell you that it has made me a better quilter. Everyone in this one quilting store is friendly, always wanting to show you a trick or technique that makes quilting more fun, interesting or just a little easier. None of that snobbery stuff that you find so prevalent in the scrapbooking industry going on here. There's also none of that "I'm being published so my work is better than yours" attitude going on either, I find that seriously refreshing.
Now the popularity of quilting versus scrapbooking...lets face it, scrapbooking for the most part is what I like to call a "quick fix". But if you don't watch out, scrapbooking will get you hooked in a heart beat and before you know it, you're in over your head with expensive tools and some of those tools (and their accessories) are way more expensive than quilting tools and sewing machines, LOL! Quilting on the other hand ...it takes a bit of time to complete a project but it also leaves you with such a sense of accomplishment. I can leave a quilt draped on the top of the sofa or over a chair and people are drawn to it. I can have a quilted table runner on my dinging room table and friends want to know more about it. Now if I leave a scrapbook out on the coffee table- people will ignore it unless I force them to open it and look through it. Why is that?
Some days I find myself being glad that we no longer have any bonifed scrapbooking stores in our area- it was such a "dog eat dog" mentality when we did have the 3 stores. No one ever gave out any tips of the trade, shared their secrets on how to make a certain thing work better or told where they bought a certain item. I remember one shop owner always complaing about croppers ruining tools. I Do on the other hand miss having an active Scrapbooking Group and having them meet in my home once a month (I'm going to try again in the fall). I loved spoiling the ladies with a gourmet lunch, and at their request I made recipe page kits for them (of the days recipes) and showed them "new to them" techniques. We laughed, we cried and we enjoyed our time with one another. There was never any of that trying to show one another up we were all equals, all of us had something to share. I miss the days of scrapbooking our photos and sharing the stories that went along with the photos....somewhere along with the quest for being published and of course constantly more new product that basic idea got lost. Maybe that's why I don't share my layouts as much as I should...basically, I don't like the attitude that some people have taken- it's a huge turn off for me. I'm seriously wanting to get back to "the basics" and get with scrapbooking again.
The reasons I started Quilting....The two people who unknowingly had an influence on my wanting to quilt are Susan Vité and Ginny Johnson. From years ago I remember my friend Susan having this quilting project laid out in pieces from Longaberger cloth napkins (the Longaberger Company only used Waverly brand fabrics at that time). It was such a beautiful work in progress. The napkins were costly and came in a 2 pack, My thought is that it must have taken an awful lot of napkin packs to complete that quilt, but oh how lovely it will be when it's finished! There's Ginny Johnson, oh is she ever a bargain hunter when it comes to fabric! She could spot something, know how she would use it in the future and buy yards and yards of it! I do have to admit that I regret not showing a better interest in quilting while both of these ladies lived near me. To think that I didn't start quilting earlier out of plain ol fear...the fear that I would start to stock pile fabrics (as I am now).
I remember the going away/retirement gift that Ginny made and gave to our friend Liz M. was without a doubt the most exquisite quilt I had ever seen! Everyone was in awe! Now of course Ginny is a prankster and the look on Liz's face when Ginny told her that she got the fabric for $1 a yard...I had to hold myself back from laughing. Knowing now what I didn't know then, I know that Ginny didn't get any of that beautiful fabric for $1 a yard, for the fabrics she used on that quilt were in the $8 to $10 a yard price range and at best she got them for maybe $5 a yard. Maybe she found the backing for $2 a yard but it still cost her some big dollars to make it. Then Ginny sent it off to be professionally quilter by a long arm quilter...again not inexpensive. But WOW was it beautiful! I know that this quilt will be cherished by Liz for the rest of her life.
The one thing I have felt with quilting is this genuine love of the craft by others, and how they want you to be able to make something beautiful too! Every time I step foot into a quilt store (there's one in particular I love to frequent) you are always greeted with a smile and a warm welcome. The owner is a charming woman who is ready to help the most advanced to the absolute novice quilter with any problems she has with a project. She takes her time with us and I can tell you that it has made me a better quilter. Everyone in this one quilting store is friendly, always wanting to show you a trick or technique that makes quilting more fun, interesting or just a little easier. None of that snobbery stuff that you find so prevalent in the scrapbooking industry going on here. There's also none of that "I'm being published so my work is better than yours" attitude going on either, I find that seriously refreshing.
Now the popularity of quilting versus scrapbooking...lets face it, scrapbooking for the most part is what I like to call a "quick fix". But if you don't watch out, scrapbooking will get you hooked in a heart beat and before you know it, you're in over your head with expensive tools and some of those tools (and their accessories) are way more expensive than quilting tools and sewing machines, LOL! Quilting on the other hand ...it takes a bit of time to complete a project but it also leaves you with such a sense of accomplishment. I can leave a quilt draped on the top of the sofa or over a chair and people are drawn to it. I can have a quilted table runner on my dinging room table and friends want to know more about it. Now if I leave a scrapbook out on the coffee table- people will ignore it unless I force them to open it and look through it. Why is that?
Saturday, May 03, 2008
Scrapbooking and Quilting with Susan Branch
The more I get into quilting the more I'm thrust into seeing a different side of scrapbooking. Some of my favorite scrapbooking people are in fact Quilters! The other fun thing I'm finding out is how some of my favorite scrapbook paper designers also deigns quilting fabric (it totally makes sense to me). Last week while I was in a local quilt shop I came across some of the cutest fabric and while I was looking at it I said "wow this looks an awful lot like Susan Branch and you can only imagine how excited I was to discover that it was! Susan Branch has a line of beautiful quilting fabrics, cool books and other great items PLUS, patterns and quilt designs, and my favorite...FREE Quilting Patterns!
And yes I admit it, Susan Branch has always been one of my favorite scrapbook paper designers. I loved the colors and designs and wished that I could use them in other applications, and now I can! I'm seriously stoked! This has made this VERY snow filled weekend filled with extreme happiness at just looking at these wonderful fabrics and patterns! I might not be able to get out of our house due to the amount of snow we have everywhere, BUT I can check out all kinds of cool stuff on line!
And yes I admit it, Susan Branch has always been one of my favorite scrapbook paper designers. I loved the colors and designs and wished that I could use them in other applications, and now I can! I'm seriously stoked! This has made this VERY snow filled weekend filled with extreme happiness at just looking at these wonderful fabrics and patterns! I might not be able to get out of our house due to the amount of snow we have everywhere, BUT I can check out all kinds of cool stuff on line!
Sunday, April 13, 2008
Scrappers Block
It's early, way too early for me to be up and awake on a Sunday morning. So here I am with my faithful kitty and a steamy hot mug of coffee in my favorite pink mug. I'm contemplating the day...what I'll do after church.
If you all haven't figured it out yet...I've got scrappers block. I've had it for a couple of months now. I've got these great pictures from our cruise (even had them printed) and nothing. I've got a layout sketched and I know what I want to do for a title and so forth but alas, that's as far as I've gotten with that bundle of pictures.
Quilting on the other hand...Holy Catfish Batman! I've taken off with it and there's no turning back! I've gone and quilted two table runners yesterday, hand sewn the binding on one and am half way through sewing the other binding on. One of the draw backs of hand sewing...oh is my right middle finger is ever sore for being poked with the quilting needle! Obviously I should be using a thimble, LOL!
I had recently bought a few quilting magazines in my quest for more knowledge of the craft/hobby. One of the table runners I made came out of the "Fons & Porter's Love of Quilting- Easy Quilts" summer 2008 issue. The project that I chose is called "Paisley on Point- table runner". I liked the pattern but the colors and such that was used on the project although were pretty they were not to my personal tastes- not to mention that I didn't want to be on a treasure hunt of sorts trying to find those fabrics (this is so very much like trying to copy a scrapbooking layout). The really funny part with this is that I had bought the fabric for this project while my m-i-l was here and I thought that I liked it all...I did buy 2 different fat quarter prints for the "cream" colored sections and would make my final selection at home. The funny part is that I ended up not using either one, instead I went with a piece of fabric that I bought at the so called discount fabric store. Although I saw no real discounts on any fabric in the place I still managed to spend $30 there on a few choice pieces of fabric, LOL! Okay so no real true money saving bargains BUT there was a HUGE selection of beautiful fabrics to be found! Okay back to my project...I found 2 out of this world floral fabrics at this store, and I bought them! I ended up using both of them to make table runners. I am in love with how they both turned out! I showed you one of the fabrics (see my Tuesday April 8th post) and the project I made using that fabric (it's now quilted with the binding on). Flowers are my thing, always have been always will be!
My m-i-l went home on Wednesday and that's when I got to work on my 2nd table runner. It too was a challenge for me, I've never worked a project like this, on point process was new to me, the working with triangles was the biggest challenge and getting the points to match up and adding borders... well needless to say my trusty seam ripper proved to be a most handy tool! But I made ti through the process and am proud to say that I'm nearly done sewing on the binding! Look for a picture later on today or tomorrow of my latest little quilting project!
If you all haven't figured it out yet...I've got scrappers block. I've had it for a couple of months now. I've got these great pictures from our cruise (even had them printed) and nothing. I've got a layout sketched and I know what I want to do for a title and so forth but alas, that's as far as I've gotten with that bundle of pictures.
Quilting on the other hand...Holy Catfish Batman! I've taken off with it and there's no turning back! I've gone and quilted two table runners yesterday, hand sewn the binding on one and am half way through sewing the other binding on. One of the draw backs of hand sewing...oh is my right middle finger is ever sore for being poked with the quilting needle! Obviously I should be using a thimble, LOL!
I had recently bought a few quilting magazines in my quest for more knowledge of the craft/hobby. One of the table runners I made came out of the "Fons & Porter's Love of Quilting- Easy Quilts" summer 2008 issue. The project that I chose is called "Paisley on Point- table runner". I liked the pattern but the colors and such that was used on the project although were pretty they were not to my personal tastes- not to mention that I didn't want to be on a treasure hunt of sorts trying to find those fabrics (this is so very much like trying to copy a scrapbooking layout). The really funny part with this is that I had bought the fabric for this project while my m-i-l was here and I thought that I liked it all...I did buy 2 different fat quarter prints for the "cream" colored sections and would make my final selection at home. The funny part is that I ended up not using either one, instead I went with a piece of fabric that I bought at the so called discount fabric store. Although I saw no real discounts on any fabric in the place I still managed to spend $30 there on a few choice pieces of fabric, LOL! Okay so no real true money saving bargains BUT there was a HUGE selection of beautiful fabrics to be found! Okay back to my project...I found 2 out of this world floral fabrics at this store, and I bought them! I ended up using both of them to make table runners. I am in love with how they both turned out! I showed you one of the fabrics (see my Tuesday April 8th post) and the project I made using that fabric (it's now quilted with the binding on). Flowers are my thing, always have been always will be!
My m-i-l went home on Wednesday and that's when I got to work on my 2nd table runner. It too was a challenge for me, I've never worked a project like this, on point process was new to me, the working with triangles was the biggest challenge and getting the points to match up and adding borders... well needless to say my trusty seam ripper proved to be a most handy tool! But I made ti through the process and am proud to say that I'm nearly done sewing on the binding! Look for a picture later on today or tomorrow of my latest little quilting project!
Sunday, March 30, 2008
Dad, Me and Alzheimer's-a scrapbook layout
For those of you who wonder if I scrapbook (with all my talk of cooking and quilting). Why yes, yes I do scrapbook. This picture of my Pop and me was taken last year. It was one of the hardest topics that I have ever addressed scrapbooking. Alzheimer's is a terrible disease that robs you of your precious memories. And here my Pop is battling it and advanced Parkinson's disease. Please hug your parents/grandparents and tell them that you love them...you can't do it enough!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
