Back to the Blog and a Society6 shop, too!

Hello, friends! It's been ages since I've blogged. Although my last post stated I was (mostly) done with traditional scrapbooking, I've decided to rethink my position on that. I'm working through all my albums and scrapping all the photos I had placed (chronologically) in my albums. I was truly surprised by the amount I still have left to do. I even had to order some scrappy supplies, believe it or not.

I've been busy creating art and loving every second of it. As I've been selling art pieces, several people have asked if they can purchase prints, so I opened a Society6 shop and will be adding items weekly. I love that you can order prints, pillows, canvases, and so much more. Here are the pieces I added today! Pillows are on sale today, too! Click here to visit my shop!

We had a taste of fall a couple of weeks ago and then summer came back with a vengeance. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the temps will drop in the next couple of days, as predicted. I have tons of fall pages to scrap and I need the weather to cooperate! Thanks for stopping by my neglected blog. I plan to get busy and share things more frequently. Until then, have a blessed day! xo

"To Every Thing There Is A Season"

Hey, Friends! As you are aware, it's been months since I've shared anything on my blog. To be honest, it's been ages since I've scrapbooked in the traditional sense. I did scrapbook with Paper Issues for NSD weekend and thoroughly enjoyed the process. I've been scrapping since 2001 and NSD will always hold a special place in my heart. Here are two of the layouts I created and I think they are two of my all-time faves!

Now let's get to the heart of this post... Scrapbooking has been such a huge part of my life, for the last 16 years. It gave me a creative outlet while staying home with my children and it connected me with amazing women, all over the world, who have inspired me daily. I've watched their families grow and change over the years and it's been an amazing journey with them, creatively and personally. Scrapbooking also led me down a creative path that I never imagined possible. When our local scrap store closed, I continued my passion through on-line communities. The desire to be selected for design teams kept me on my toes and pushed my creative process. For the last couple of years, I've felt my enthusiasm waning a bit, in spite of the fact that I was finally achieving the goals that I had desired for so long. Don't get me wrong, I was THRILLED to be selected for design teams and gave 100% effort in that regard, but realized, after some time, that it was no longer my dream.

Fast forward to Jan 2017, I had an epiphany on New Year's Day to get back to the basics. When I started scrapbooking, it was before the digital age, so traditional scrapping was perfect for me. I could combine my cherished photos with pretty paper (#winning) and get lost in the fun process. On 1/1/17, it dawned on me that I could include TONS of photos, tell the stories, and condense all this into a digital photo book. I still love scrapbooking and enjoy seeing all the fabulous layouts out there, but (for me) this season of my life is ending. It's definitely bittersweet but I know in my heart, it is the right decision for me. I think I will still make mini albums from time to time and have kept all of my absolute favorite supplies in case I get the urge to create a layout! Here is a layout from my 2016 photo book. I love the over-sized photos and the ability to create fabulous collages with text.

As you may have noticed, I've changed the name of my blog to reflect my passion for art. I hope to be sharing art journaling, art, home decor, and the occasional papercrafting project. As always, thank you for stopping by my blog. I'm excited about this new season of my life Wishing you a blessed and creative day! xo

Quick & Easy Cards (with Clique Kits)

Hello, friends! Welcome to the Clique Kit Pep Rally. Today I thought I would share some quick and easy cards using Clique Kits "Bee You" kit. I'm trying to challenge myself to create cards with bits and pieces left from creating layouts. To keep things simple, I'm using white and kraft cardstock (from my stash) as the card bases. The ephemera pieces from the Hazelwood collection were the starting point for the first card. The mason jar was popped up with foam adhesive and I tucked the flowers into the jar.I fussy cut the "love" and attached it to the front of the jar. I love this card because it's so versatile.

For the background of the "Thanks" card, I used a journaling block from the Hazelwood cut apart sheet. The pretty, gold Thickers from the kit are layered on mint-colored foam, so it works beautifully with the paper.

The last card was inspired by the cork cloud from the kit. I created the falling hearts with Whipped Spackle and a stencil from my stash. I felt the card need a tiny pop of color, so I grabbed a butterfly rub-on and adhered it to vellum. I then fussy cut the butterfly and used a tiny strip of foam adhesive to pop it up.

I hope you've been inspired to create cards with leftover pieces from your kits. Be sure to check out the Clique Kit blog for tons of inspiration today! Thanks for stopping by my blog!

You Do You - Creating with Clique Kits Feb Sketch

Today I'll be sharing my second layout as Guest Designer for Clique Kits using the gorgeous "Bee You" kit. The starting point for the layout is the Feb sketch, designed by Kristine Davidson.

I've done several feminine layouts recently and thought it would be fun to mix it up and create a "manly" project. I love the colors and arrows on the b-side of the Hazelwood Woodland Plaid paper and the "You Do You" acrylic piece is perfect for the title.The coral corrugated paper (Fancy Pants) really pops of the page and is a great backdrop for the neutral colored elements on the layout.

The cork pieces in the kit add such a fun texture to the layout. My son's number is, "0" so I painted the cork piece with a white paint dabber. I felt the left side of the photo needed some white for balance. To make the green arrow work, I drew over it with black ink. The chalk banner and black enamel dots are from my stash.

I adore the flair in this month's kit and layered it over a cork piece. I really love how all the elements came together on this layout. Thanks for stopping by my blog. I'll be back next week with one more layout using this kit!

January Chat

Hello, friends! I want to share what's going on in my scrappy world. Several months ago, I was asked to join the Noel Mignon Design Team, for the Jan-Jun term! Obviously, this was very exciting and I couldn't wait to get started. Here are two of the layouts I've created with the Little Bird Classic Kit. If you'd like more detail, hop over to the Noel Mignon blog.

It's been great to be back in my scrap room, playing with pretty paper! I'm one of the guest designers for Clique Kits for February, so be watching for that next month!

I had an epiphany a couple of days ago... As much as I ADORE scrapbooking (and will always do it on some level), I realized there were so many photos that I love and would never have the time or space to scrap them all. Rather than printing photos and sliding them into photo albums (again, takes up space) I decided to make a 12x12 photo album annually. It's so easy to upload photos from your computer, Facebook, and Instagram. In just a few hours, I had a completed album with all of my favorite photos from 2016! 59 pages in a pretty, THIN book. When I receive it, I will be sure to share some photos with you. This is the cover of my book; I can't wait to receive it!

I'm only going to scrap my absolute favorite photos and stories, which should keep the process fresh and exciting. Now that I'm paring down my process, it's time for a BIG purge. Thanks for stopping by my blog today!

My Favorite Layouts of 2016

Hello, Friends! I can't believe it's already time for my favorite layouts of the year! This year was an absolute whirlwind and I'm hoping 2017 is a little more calm. :) My scrapbooking came to a screeching halt, with the move and house renovation, but I did manage to come up with my 10 Ten Faves of the year.

Now that things have settled down, I'm looking forward to creating again. Wishing you all a blessed 2017!

The Heart of the Home (Kitchen Renovation)

The holidays are upon us and I'm thrilled to be finished with our kitchen renovation! Today's post is just a quick before and after. We took out a wall and fireplace between the kitchen and great room to create an open floor plan. As you can see, it was quite the construction zone and I almost lost my sanity trying to live here through the process.

Now we have a bright, cozy kitchen to enjoy. I've been inspired to cook, bake, and don't even mind cleaning the kitchen now. My favorite thing is when the family gathers around the island for chats or just to keep me company while I'm working.

Feeling grateful and blessed beyond measure - I'm ready to settle in to our new space and make lots of memories. Happy Holidays! ♥

House Renovation (Dining Area)

Hello, Friends! It's been ages since I've blogged because life has been crazy (and exciting) with a house renovation. I thought I would share some before and after photos of rooms, as we complete them. We bought a house mid-August and started renovating immediately. We loved the house, but needed to open up a couple of rooms to make it work for our family. We tore down walls between the kitchen and great room and between the kitchen and dining room. We love big, eat-in kitchens because everyone always wants to hang out there. This photo shows the space during the tear-out phase. If you know me at all, you know I don't do well with chaos, so this is not my favorite stage of the process.

This is the space now. The wall color is my new favorite - It's so fresh and pretty and it just makes me happy! (Benjamin Moore North Shore Green #456) Since the kitchen and dining area are one space, we also painted the kitchen the same color.

We are thrilled with the end result. It's warm, cozy, and inviting. This (and my craftroom) are the only 2 rooms completely finished, so that's where I tend to hang out. The kitchen will be completed next week and we're hoping the great room will be finished shortly after that. We are beyond ready to get back to our "normal" lives and kick back and enjoy the holidays.

Happy Labor Day from a Happy Camper!

Hello, Friends and Happy Labor Day to my fellow Americans! Although it appears from by blog that I have dropped off the planet, that is not the case. We moved to a new house last week and needless to say, life has been a bit cRaZy! Today I am thrilled to be a guest designer for The Cut Shoppe blog! Cut files are such a great way to add impact to your layouts. Ashley creates the most fabulous and versatile cut files; be sure to stop by her shop! Here is a little snippet of my layout on the blog today.

Thank you, Ashley, for this opportunity! I'm hoping to get my craft room set up in the next couple of days... I'm getting the urge to be creative!

Coming Full Circle

Many years ago, I signed up for Shimelle's class, "Blogging for Scrapbookers 2", and it gave me the tools I needed to develop my blog... I even created my first YouTube video for that class. It definitely pushed me out of my comfort zone but it was so worth it in the end. I also participated in her "Journal Your Christmas" class starting in 2010, and I've completed a December album every year since then. Her "Pretty Paper" class taught me to use product while I love it and quit hoarding it for the perfect layout. As you can see, Shimelle has been a great influence in my scrapbooking journey and I thank her for that.

Fast forward many years and I am a Guest Designer on Shimelle's blog!!! I was lucky enough to get to pick my date and subject so I chose stars and July 4th (of course!) Click here to see the post and layout.

It's an honor (and a bit surreal) to be able to design for someone that has had so much impact on my creative journey. Thank you, Shimelle, for your inspiration and this opportunity. I've definitely come full circle and it's a great feeling! ♥

Inspired by Nature - Challenged by Paper

For the past month, I've taken many photographs of nature's beauty (mostly flowers), because the blooms and colors have been so breathtaking.

Last week, Melissa from Clique Kits, challenged us (Clique Kits Facebook group) to use the bold and beautiful Fancy Pants Attwell floral patterned paper. Although I love the paper, it's tough to use as a background because of the scale of the flowers and the explosion of color.

In my opinion, the best way to showcase patterns like this is to fussy-cut the flowers. That way, you get the effect of the big blooms without it taking away from your photos. I cut a few flowers out and played around with the composition until I was happy with it. Bold titles cut from these types of papers is another great way to let the paper shine- I'm thrilled with the impact it gives. I used a strip of photos so that your eye would still be drawn to the photos.

This is now my new favorite layout! ;) My advice is to take photos!!! Eventually inspiration or a challenge will come along and you'll be ready for it! Thanks for stopping by my blog! ♥

Bloom Where You Are Planted

When I saw Hip Kit Club's May kit, I was smitten and had to have it. Computer photos don't do it justice; it's absolutely gorgeous and I was instantly inspired to create with it. This year has been a year of learning to be still, learning how to handle things that are out of my control, and most importantly, learning how to thrive under those circumstances. It wasn't easy (at first), but once I "let go" my attitude shifted and I started focusing on things that bring me joy. This layout represents this little chapter in my life.

May's cut files (designed by Ashley H.) were the perfect starting point for my layout. I cut the bloom cut file from the She Blooms paper and also from Bazzill ombre' cardstock. For the background, I created a cut file with the phrase "Where you are planted", and used it as a stencil with Ranger Texture Paste. I love the light and airy look of it. I layered the bloom cut file with some of the die cuts from HKC's exclusives and some She Blooms chipboard. I really love the end result of this layout and I love the reminder, to myself, to focus on good things and something wonderful can happen.

Thanks for stopping by today - I hope you've been inspired to bloom where you are planted! ♥

"Inspiration Exists" So Get Busy!

Hello, friends! I know it appears that I have been doing nothing lately, but that is not the case! My Design Team term has ended and although I was a bit bummed (initially), I decided to delve back into creating art. You know that famous quote by Picasso that says "Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working" - I have found that to be the absolute truth!

A few months ago, I kept fighting the urge to take an online class from D. Downey. I've been to her studio for workshops a couple of times and loved every second of it, but I couldn't hit "buy" on the class. The deadline to purchase the class passed and I felt such a sense of sadness, like I was supposed to be taking it. I humbly reached out to them and begged to be let in the class and they agreed! I soaked that class up, like a sponge, and started painting. Would you believe that I already sold a large canvas? I'm still pinching myself. Lots of babbling and rambling to announce that I'm reopening my Etsy shop!

Of course, I have continued to scrap but I'm excited to see where this path leads! Thanks for sticking with me and I promise to have something scrap related here very soon! ♥

Mood Board Mixed Media

It's Pinspire Me Monday at Paper Issues. I was instantly smitten with the image of the beautiful flowers on the mood board. To see the stunning mood board, check out the Paper Issues blog. I thought it would be fun to do a mixed-media project and the Bella Blvd. Illustrated Faith (She Blooms) patterned paper was perfect for the project! I had an old canvas lying around that was never finished so I grabbed it and put a coat of gesso on it. I fussy-cut several flowers and hand-cut stems, leaves, and the vase. I played around with flower placement until I was happy and took a quick photo with my phone for reference.

I pulled out acrylic paints and started layering paint on top of the flowers to make them pop and add dimension to the piece. I wanted to keep the clean, fresh look of the inspiration image, so I didn't get too messy with it. I absolutely love the end result. I decided to hand it on my craft room door because it makes me happy!

As you can see, I also painted on the sides and wrapped some flowers & leaves around the edge. It's a fun, little detail that I love to add, especially if the canvas will be seen from the side. I adore this paper so much that I also created a layout with it! It will be on the Paper Issues blog in a couple of weeks. Lots of fun things happening at Paper Issues... ISpywithPI started a few days ago. Be sure to join the FB group and share all your gorgeous spring photos. You'll definitely be inspired to scrap and more importantly, have beautiful photos to jump-start your mojo!

Into The Woods with PI

It's New Issue Monday at Paper Issues. This month's issue is "Into The Woods", which encompasses many fun themes: wood veneer, camping, outdoors, woodland creatures, etc. I chose some photos from my daughter's week at camp last year. I started with the new, fabulous Cocoa Vanilla Totally Rad collection. The embellishment pack has wood veneer, acetate stars, and a blue and white twine that I love. The patterned paper (Say What) is the perfect neutral for the colorful elements on the layout.

I colored some of the wood veneer with Distress markers so that the wood-grain would still show. To adhere the acetate elements, I used Ranger's Multi Medium Matte. The colored tags are from Fancy Pants Attwell collection. I love the blue and green color combination; it reminds me of summer days! To see more lovely inspiration for this issue, be sure to check out the Paper Issues blog here. There's still quite a bit of Cocoa Vanilla in the shop - grab it while you can! For 20% off your entire purchase, use discount code, "sherry20".

Sugar & Spice

Today is Product Spotlight at Paper Issues blog and we are working with the gorgeous Pink Paislee C'est La Vie collection. I was inspired by the soft pink, black, and white color combination and found the perfect photo to use with it.

I love the dotted circles on the paper but wanted to add some dimension, so I used a circle punch and popped them up on foam. Lately, I can't complete a layout with hearts, so I punched some small hearts and scattered them over the layout. The puffy stickers from the collection are beautiful and added a touch of hot pink and softness to the layout.

Be sure to check out Pink Paislee in the Paper Issure store... Use discount code, sherry20, to save 20% on your entire purchase. Thank you for stopping by my blog; have a lovely day!