"Dream Come True"

It was such a joy to our family when Elizabeth and Andrew announced their engagement last May. Elizabeth decided at an early age that she didn't want to date a lot of guys, but would wait for the Lord to bring just the right man into her life ~ Andrew, her "Dream Come True." Here are the details on my final page created with the wonderful February ScrapThat! Kit. 

"Dream Come True"

MK, EAO, FAO

I flipped Amy's fabulous February ScrapThat! Sketch for this page:

I hope you will create a page for our Sketch Challenge using this sweet sketch. The details can be found here.

Tips and Techniques:

Full Open Rose ~ The tutorial for the focal rose using Donna Salazar's Grand Peony and Bitty Blossoms Spellbinder dies can be found here. I used the Smooch Accents included in the kit to color the edges of the rose. 

Chipboard ~ I tinted texture paste with Distress reinker and spread it across my chipboard piece. When dry I went back and inked the edges for more depth and visual dimension. 

Cluster ~ Aren't these sweet pink flowers in the main kit just darling? I coiled the wire snipped from the blossoms to create the vines. 

Beads ~ I was inspired by a project created by ScrapThat! designer, Tracey Gregory, to add some scattered beads to my page. I also dabble in creating jewelry and have lots of seed beads in my collection. I used tweezers to dip each bead in Glossy Accents and place on the page. The Glossy Accents is a great glue for this. Just a little dab has a lot of holding power and dries perfectly clear. 

Hearts ~ The canvas heart included in the main kit were stamped with different designs and the edges inked. The little charms were from a package of charms I found clearanced at my craft store for a mere 50 cents a while back. 

Sparkling Strip ~ I created this sparkling strip by placing a 12 inch piece of Crafty Power Tape on my craft mat. I then sprinkled some different embossing powders and mica flakes on the adhesive. I melted them with a heat tool. The back of the tape remains sticky, so I just pulled it up and placed it down the center of the hearts. 

Title Block ~ I fussy cut one of the notebook pages and inked with Distress ink. I used texture paste over a doily stencil and stamped my title in the center of the doily.

Distressing ~ What is a page without pulling out my Donna Salazar/Zutter Distrezz-It-All? I love the texture I get with this machine. 

Cluster ~ More of the sweet Main Kit flowers spilling out of the peak-a-boo tear. I tied some charms with the silky pink baker's twine also included in the kit. 

Hand Stitching ~ You can see my hand stitching around the page border. I also stitched around the photo mat. 

ScrapThat! also has our DT Challenge to create a page with at least 4 layers of patterned paper. I hope you'll come on over and add your project. Details can be found here.  

Be sure to come back tomorrow to see my guest designer project for Scrapping Everyday Memories. Here is a sneak peek from my page featuring my stash of Donna Salazar goodies:

Thanks for stopping by! I treasure your comments. 

~ Blessings ~ 

"A Perfect Day" Details ~ ScrapThat! Feb. Kit

I'm back today to share the details of "A Perfect Day" Created with the February ScrapThat! Kit. As you may remember, Elizabeth brought Andrew into our family back in October. We were delighted to receive the wedding photos last month just in time for me to use one to create the final LO with my gorgeous February Kit. Aren't they a sweet couple?

Before I share the details, I have some exciting news to share. My Misted Rock Salt Chipboard Tutorial has been published by Scrapbooking.com. They have taken my photos and created a wonderful video tutorial. I hope you will stop over there to check it out. Here are the links:

YouTube Channel ~ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BGboDCx7K5Y

Facebook ~ http://www.facebook.com/ScrapbookingMagazine?sk=wall

Pinterest ~ http://pinterest.com/scrapbookingmag/misted-rock-salt-chipboard-february-2013/

"A Perfect Day"

MK, EAO

Tips and Techniques:

Ribbons ~ I used the cream cardstock in the kit to cut ribbons. I then used a foam applicator to apply Distress inks to pull out the colors found on the focal background paper. Finally I distressed the edges with my Prima distressing tool and edged with a darker distress ink. To make them look more like actual ribbon, I gently bent and crumpled them until they had a soft fabric like appearance. I then snipped some pieces from two of the kit ribbons to layer over top of the paper ribbon strips. Our former DT, Marilyn Rivera, is a master of transforming paper to look and drape like fabric and I got this idea from her. You will be inspired by a visit her blog, Treasuring Memories.

A side view:

Netting ~ The kit came with gorgeous netting that works so well to add extra dimension. Here I tucked some behind my flower cluster.

Wood Heart Flourish ~ I painted the KaiserCraft Heart with gold metalic paint and when dry stamped across the piece with a script stamp using black Stazon.

Chipboard Frame ~ I added this Dusty Attic Chipboard piece from my stash. I love this photo, but Andrew's had around Elizabeth's shoulder a bit pronounced when placed on a scrapbook page. Using the chipboard piece to frame and layer over the photo took care of that little "problem." The technique here is so easy peasy. I simply painted with metallic paint and when dry took some Distress ink in a darker shade to add dimension on the edges. 

Puffy Hearts ~ These Green Tara hearts are included in the EAO kit. They were just a little bright for this page, so I spritzed them with some cork Glimmer Mist to get more of a burgundy color. 

Distressed Layers ~ I framed the photo with two of the kit cardstock papers and used my Donna Salazar/Zutter Distrezz-It-All on the edges. Behind the top right corner, I placed a corner from the gorgeous square doily found in the main kit. 

Medallion ~ The kit includes these kraft journal spots which made the perfect base for my medallion. The pearl ribbon slide is also in the kit and the paper ribbons are described earlier. The metal heart is from my stash. 

Hand Stitching ~ I drew a swirled line around the border of my layout in pencil, then went back and pierced stitching holes, erased the pencil mark and stitched with coordinating embroidery floss. I used to cross stitch, so I have an entire box of DMC floss to choose from. 

Mixed Media Butterfly ~ What is a page without some mixed media? I used some Martha Stewart White Texture Effect over one of her butterfly stencils, then sprinkled on some gold microbeads. 

Title ~ This really was a perfect day, so this title worked perfectly for my page. Originally, I cut it out in the beautiful bracket frame from the page. I brushed on some Ranger Rock Candy Distress Paint. I didn't set it aside far enough to allow it to dry, because I accidentally laid some scrap paper on top, ruining the edge. It was one of those happy mistakes, since I like the words cut out better than I did in the frame. I'm here to tell you, always look for the lemonade when those scrappy lemons happen. 

The February Kits are now in the ScrapThat! Store, so be sure to drop by and get yours before they are sold out. 

I hope you will have a chance to stop by and see my Misted Rock Salt Video over at Scrapbooking.com. 

Thanks for stopping by! I treasure your comments.
~ Blessings ~

"True Love Stories" ScrapThat! Details & Prima BAP

Hi everyone. We are having a couple rare warm January days here in Ohio. It reached the low 60's yesterday and is expected to reach those temps again today before dropping back to normal freezing temps tomorrow. I don't even mind the accompanying rain.

I wanted to share some of the details from my "True Love Stories" page from the February ScrapThat! kit. I have to admit, as much as I enjoyed creating each of my pages, this was my favorite this month. I was so happy with the dreamy effect of the mixed media background. Originally I was going to do some more textured stenciling over the misted gesso, but in a rare move for me decided less was more this time. ;-)

"True Love Stories"

MK, EAO, FAO

I turned the Prima BAP Sketch for my design inspiration:

Tips and Techniques:

Resin Cherub ~ Aren't the Prima Cherubs in the EAO kit darling? I rubbed distress ink onto the bird, robe, and cheeks to add just a tiny bit of color, then rubbed the wings and hair with some Viva Inka gold rubbing compound. 

Chipboard ~ I painted the leafy chipboard flourish, then inked the edges before using a permanent marker to doodle the leaf veins. 

Fiber ~ I colored a narrow gauze strip from my stash and tucked it around the cluster. 

Prima Darlings ~ The FAO kit contained these gorgeous Prima flowers and I added the sweet glass heart charm from my stash. The centers of my hand crafted roses are also Prima crystals from my stash. 

Butterfly ~ I used the Donna Salazar/Spellbinders Wonderful Wings die to cut this sweet butterfly from a scrap of paper. I lightly inked the edges and added this charm from a package in inexpensive clearanced heart charms I picked up a while back. 

Mixed Media Background ~ This was actually quite easy to accomplish. I spread a thin layer of gesso over the center of the page with a credit card, leaving some grooves and texture. When dry, I came back and misted with Tattered Angels Cork, in some places a bit heavier and in others with a lighter misting. In the heavier areas I also spritzed on just a little water so that when I tapped the page, I got the beautiful little drips. Next to the photos I stamped the vines with a retired Prima Build a Frame stamp. I wanted the vine strips to blend into the background, so used Distress ink, which gives a somewhat distressed and mottled image when used on clear stamps. Hint ~ once the mixed media work is done, the page can be somewhat warped. I find that if I very lightly mist the back with water, place beween paper towels, then lay a large glass mat on top stacked with a pile of heavy books and let it sit over night, it is much flatter the next morning. Also use thin layers of media and dry completely before adding the next layer or you can get major warping that no amount of "pressing" can flatten. 

Extending Your Paper ~ I've mentioned it before, but you can get so much mileage from one sheet of paper. After distressing, I trimmed out only about an inch around the page for the border and used the inside for all my die cut embellishments and handcrafted flowers/leaves. It is much easier to distress the edge of an intact sheet of paper, than trying to distress after it has been trimmed down. (Ask me how I know!!) ;-)

Heart Die Cut ~ This heart piece was trimmed out of one of the hangers from my Spellbinders Elegant Posts Dies. 

Sweet Open Roses ~ The tutorial for these sweet little roses can be found here. I used the crystals rather than the stamen and no gesso. 

Leaves ~ One of my favorite ways to add texture to my clusters is to cut leaves from my paper scraps, fold them down the center and pinch creases where natural veins would lie on them. Then a bit of inking highlights that texture. 

Distressing ~ The mat and photo as well as page edges were distressed with my Donna Salazar/Zutter Distrezz-It-All. You really can use any distressing tool or even the sharp edges of your scissors, but this handy tool gives the thick edges so quickly. 

Heart Flourish ~ These KaiserCraft wood heart flourishes in the EAO kit are so sweet and can be added to a cluster or as photo corners. I painted this one with gesso, stamped with a script image, then lightly inked. 

Title ~ I have a set of love stamps by Cloud 9 that I have used over and over with the wedding and engagement photos I've been scrapping. A simple paper scrap is easily transformed to a beautiful title/sentiment with some embossing powder and a heat tool. The gold embossing really has so much dimension that doesn't quite show up in the photo.

Prima products used to create this page:
Prima Romance Novel ~ Messenger
Prima Romance Novel ~ Harlequin
Prima Shabby Chic Treasures Resin Cherubs #891404
Prima Say it in Crystals #551452
Prima Vintage Trinkets #930042
Prima Flowers Kennedy Vintage #558406
Prima Stamps Build a Frame Collection #1
Prima Stamps Build a Frame Collection #2

Thanks for stopping by! I treasure your comments.

~ Blessings ~ 

ScrapThat! February "With Love" Kit Sneak Peeks

It's almost reveal day at ScrapThat! Only two more days until you get to see the amazing ScrapThat! February Kit ~ With Love, and the creations by our talented design team. Until then here are some sneak peeks. Be sure to return on Friday for the full reveal. 

You will want to be sure to hop along for a chance to win our grand prize, an April 2012 ScrapThat! Main Kit ~ Serendipity, featuring KaiserCraft's Sweet Nothings collection.

Thanks for stopping by! 

~ Blessings ~