Here Comes the Sun...

A baby boy album for the grandson and I had so 

much fun doing it and it was way

out of my comfort zone.

(I did crochet a blanket too)

I wanted to make a 6x6 album because most

people print their photos 4x6.

I used fun enamel paint colors that I tried to match

with the papers 

on a 6x6 chipboard album I got 

from scrapbooking.com

I really dithered about between wanting and album

with page protectors and a boring

baby paper pad I had

OR

Using this fun bright paper that I can't remember

the name of and I thought I wrote down yet

here we are. 

Using all kinds of dies and stamps.

Had a lot of fun using the critters

and that's when I found that the giraffe-

Gertrude - I some how lost the itty bitty dies

for his face.

So I winged it.

I can't begin to express how annoyed I am

about losing that die.

I am careful.

I put it in a dish.

I count them twice. 

Tore everything apart looking.

Hoping they show up.

Tucked in tags and made envelops

because there were not a lot 

of journaling spots on the pages

I sort of got carried away.

I did a lot of hand drawing which I

normally don't do - because I don't do it well.

I wanted it to bright, fun, happy

and cute.

Love how it turned out 

and if you know the mfg of the paper I used

I'd love it if you'd let me know.

 

A title to be determined...

 This is the new album covers for our stay in FL. Since we're there for 3-4 months I thought it'd be neat and just do that again. So I wanted to do something different than just inking and stamping, I painted and stamped and glued and die cut. The flowers and "lattice" looking thing are TH thinlets and the other 2 are quickutz 4x4 dies. 

I have no clue what I wanted to do with the insides and let it "plain" for a bit and then I decided NOPE 🤣 and because I was still bored I added some more dots and splatters . This size allows for the HL 6x8 page protectors. 

So I grabbed some paint and ink and splattered and the

used a mall dot stamp for more dots.

The title is being pondered.

Mixed Media page - Greats

This is my album where I do what I want

no rhyme no reason.

Anyway, I was playing around because I had

run out of mojo and started fussy cutting

things out because I needed something to do.

So this is a photo of my great grandmother and great uncle.

It's printed on regular printer paper, actually scanned - I think.

I did a bunch of them because one of the creative

geniuses that I follow Suzanne Rose (I think) had the

idea of doing B&W's of your heritage or any photo actually,

on regular paper so it can incorporated into

a junk journal - use your relatives instead of someone else's.

So I did.

I thought the fussy cut flower and bee and the photo

just went together.

The orange paper with holes is a TH die cut. 

I'm not really sure what to do with it but I used both
negative and positive space.

Laid down some water colors and wa-la.

Traveler's Notebook - This life

Love that bow, and used some die cuts that 

look a bit more messier in the photo than on the page.

Oops.

I tucked that tag in the bag because the colors

work so well and there's no journaling on it because

there is no need to be that windy.

 And that owl.

I've been eking out that paper because

I do love the owls - and like to tuck them in.

Also making more use of my stamps.

Love that.

Captured out day in the lava forest.

So much lava.

Everywhere you look, step.

Studio Calico, Tim Holtz die (the orange honeycomb thing)

and my pal Holli's bow punch.

Love grows here-Studio Calico Stamp

Love this paper and went a bit old school here with

the gold topping the paper as a layer.

It was plain so I did some gold stamping over it

with a circle background stamp

to give it a bit of dimension.

Love the heart die cut (however annoying to punchout)

It's just cool.

 Spread some butterflies around with some

little flowers and enamel dots.

 Had fun with the stamping and used some

navy blue to tie it all together.

Sam being dapper in his cool hat and Easter outfit.

Love this page - may be a bit 'girly' 

but Sam can handle it.

Studio Calico, Tim Holtz die cut.

8 inch circle page

I haven't done a circle page in a long time and

I need to do it more because they are fun.

It actually started out as a mat on a 12x12 page but I

just wasn't feeling the love so....

When I tossed this photo on it as I was passing by it

just flew together like in 15 minutes.

Whew!

 I rounded the corners because it looked like I needed to.

It just looked right.

 Behind the photo for some dimension are

my Creative Cafe stamps.

Love those stamps.

I need to figure out how to reink them without making a mess.

A fun page, for a fun photo - worked out well.

It was a different kinda page - I didn't really obsess about

embellies or where to put them.

Its one of the fastest pages ever.

Not like I'm looking for speed but sometimes I get

completely anal about everything and

it becomes tiring.

It fits really fine in an 8x8 page protector too.

Give it awhirl.

I need to find a bigger circle to cut a 12x12.

Forgot to add a title

Titles are important - if they're good they draw the reader into your page.

For some reason I didn't title this page

and as of this minute my mind is blank so I'm

gonna just roll with that because...

well, the photos are pretty obvious and I kind of like

it without a title being that in the

design especially as there's not a lot of room leftover for one.

 Trying to use up my Basic Grey stash - and there is 

a ton as well as a bunch of PL cards.

That swirly thing and splat are from my new

Tim Holtz die cuts - love them and as promised I'm

using them a lot.

I'd ask for a title but I have sent this off.
Oooopps
But I'd love to hear what your title would be.
I can always jack it for the next snowy one LOL.

Altered jumbo clothespins

Saw these bad boys in M's and decided why not.

It was great to use up scraps and

bits and bobs.

Even though they're plastic they are pretty sturdy

I used a folded 8.5x10 recipe on one

as a test and it held up really well it didn't tip over

or wiggle or flop about.

See the red one with the heart and "scribbles" behind it? That's my new die cuts I purchased at HL with my 40% off coupon. They are very intricate and after using it in my revolution, I changed things up by adding wax paper between the die and paper and also used it in the sissix (doh) and the wax paper actually helped in getting them out with a minimum of damage - you still had to poke out the remnants but since I don't have a fancy cutting machine, these are cool because I get the same result.

Jillybean Soup, Basic Grey, Recollections flower and fussy cut PL cards.

Another page gone wrong- SALVAGED!

I love this paper and had intended to use it with these photos

that became another page altogether - for the better!

I designed the page around them and then

turned myself loose.

I stamped, slapped down some bar strips off the paper

and glued them down.

What I discovered was that the stamp was upside down.

The strips weren't in the correct position for the photos (you can see

pencil marks where they were laid out.

Flipping the paper was not an option.

Therefore plan B.

Scrap that adventure (pun intended) and move on.

 But I LOVE THE PAPER - wailing loudly.

So I broke out the gesso and smeared it all over the paper.

 And that worked out - covering all my sins. LOL.

I then broke out the watercolors.

I had no colors in mind but just went with it.

After all - It worked the first time. (insert eyeroll)

However, no guts - no glory.

And didn't that work out nicely.

So nicely that I broke out some scraps from my scrapbox.

I have been taking May Flaum's "use your scraps" class and

didn't that session work into this page nicely.

And went to town.

 Layering everything up without a photo in mind

and adding embellishments from all kinds of piles I have accumulated.

 Changed up the final version a bit.

Omitted the tags, added the birdcage because it just fit.

And it took a few days, but I dug around for the

perfect photo.

And it became a heritage page. 

I have done pages on Ida Susannah before because

she's a fascinating woman.

And I wanted this original photo protected.

On the back it says "mom in church - 1955."

She is 93 in that photo and lived to know me and my brother.

She actually wrote about what "little noisemakers"

we were in a letter to a friend.

She lived with her daughter until her death in 1957.

My aunt had date books, a book of sayings that she kept over the years.

She was a prolific letter writer and also wrote short stories

that were published in newspapers.

She also took shorthand notes (that I'm having a terrible time transcribing)

and I shouldn't - as we have that in common.

I did a beautiful little mini album titled "love as ever, aunt ida". 

Title is in her own handwriting, If you'd like to check it out.

Studio Calico, Pink Paislee, a dictionary page, tim holtz die, 

QK magnolia and lemonade, water colors, paper issues swag bag.

Could've done a 6x12 page

And why didn't I you ask?

I love all the words and they would've been cast aside.

Never to be really seen.

And that would've been a shame because these words rock.

So does the paper.

And its perfect for the picture.

Along with the stamp.

More words.

It just sort of happened to be vertical because I normal don't do that.

Used a bunch of die cuts I had previously cut out.

There's alot.

Some were made into tags, but they don't work with this.

Oh gee, I need to do another page.

LOL.

New Studio Calico paper, old stamp, older stars.

Tim Holtz dies, some punch negative space

and a border/edge I forgot I had.

and didn't it all work out.

The color white has many different shades

I decided that I wanted to challenge myself and do an all white 

scrapbook page. I do have the perfect photo.

How hard can it be.

Well. I knew I wanted some flowers on there, but I wasn't loving the flower dies that came with the branches. It took a long time to find "white" ones. There is soft white, grey white, off white and only 2 white white. I tried to paint an off white flower and it looked "off white. 

After I put it mostly together on a design I had going on in my head I decided it looked plain and I wasn't sure how to fix that. I found that white enamel paint isn't "white white" nor gesso and I was afraid to slap it on there because I had a limited amount of this white bazzill cardstock.

WHITE RUBONS! Now I had to find them. So digging around in the old stash I found some Making Memories and did a sample that really looked good.

Embossing might have done it as well only I wasn't sure how to apply it to the majority of the page. 

I then discovered I had some "white white" puffy stickers from MAMBI as something more was needed. Also the corners I felt were a little bare.

I filled in the corners trying to not get real carried away.

Found some "white white" rick rack and from the scraps I punched

out some butterflies.

I also agonized over the alphas because I pulled out the ole white white thickers and didn't both sets  lack some important vowels with no way to frankenstein any of them soooo..... *head slap* 

I do have alpha dies. 

QK Emily came to mind and its perfectly girly for what I wanted on this page and eked out the letters, again from scraps.

The only color other than the shadows are Amelia's pretty blue eyes.

And yes..I went with angel eyes.

I couldn't be helped.

I used bazzill cardstock from my Studio Calico stash, Tim Holtz birdcage die, Sissix dies, Martha Steward butterfly punch, Paper Studio rick rack, Mambi puffies, MM rubons, Michaels wedding ribbons, Bazzill flowers and QK Emily alphas.

Another challenge: DO an all white page. 

Using cardstock as a base

I have to admit that with all the amazing, gorgeous and awesome pattern papers available, I forget that cardstock can be used as a base and will absolutely be the perfect fit in assembling your page. 

I remembered that for this page.

 I had chosen a blue/turquoise pattern paper that matched the dots in the October Afternoon paper. And it didn't quite work. 

And I just so happened across the same color in cardstock. 

The reason I loved October Afternoon PP is that it made my photos pop and I wanted that paper

to be the mat rather than the blue/turquoise pattern paper.

 The blues in my photos were just jarring against any other paper but the taupe/blue/green.

Therefore, CARDSTOCK as a base and a bigger mat for the photos.

The rest of the embellishments worked out well, however, I'm so not feeling the splats I made.

It just looked so BARE. Oh well. Too late now. LOL.

I did break out the sewing machine and did some stitching.

We stopped at St. Mark's wildlife refuge that also had a lighthouse.

A total win-win. Love them both. Wildlife and lighthouses.

This was a slight detour on our way home from Tallahassee and I got to take

photos, admire a lighthouse (they make me swoon) and critters. 

The critters actually stood still long enough for me to snap them, even the lighthouse.

JillyArt journal

And here it is....

My son's girl is not only an amazing photographer

and pretty

and a great mom 

she also draws.

I'm hoping it'll rub off on me. bwahahaha! How annoying that she's so talented and I'm totally jealous. 

She didn't get back to me on the title so I took the liberty. And I think it fits. I also went old school with foam stamps and it appears that I need to practice maybe. Or not. It kinda fits.

And now the pages. I added some colors and tags and buttons.

Mists and a Tim Holtz mask that I had forever and some avacado bag mesh.

Tried some stamping and had some issues where some white paint actually saved the day.

I had a great time smooshing and swishing.

Watercolors are very forgiving and I used a spider stencil, fern stamp and the flower stamps and some swirls.

I thought the white clever and pasted some snowflakes down and just smeared some color over them. Sort of an embossed look.

Tim Holtz gear masks, and love the drips. Don't the make you swoon. And of course the Tim Holtz die cut houses with a map stamp overtop.

I used some modeling paste and another stencil.And one of those gold doilies.

Another stencil with the bird cages that I really adore because its not perfect. And those clouds look better in the photo than in person. Maybe Jill can do something about them. I didn't let robin's red breast dry enough before I turned the page.

My bad.

More stamps and stencils.

Used these paintable butterflies with some gear mask and added some snowflakes and sequins. The swirls are all mine. 

More stencils and stamps and a cute Martha Stewart doily. 

And the back I added some stamps and a touch of white paint.

I'm hoping to get it out to her and I'm hoping she actually uses it and sends me photos so that I can update you with how it REALLY turned out in the end.

I'm really excited.