Happy Birthday, Brynn! And blog candy!

Welcome to your final stop on Brynn's Birthday Blog Hop! You should have arrived here from Sandra's blog at 365 Days of Cricut. If you are swinging by my blog today and haven't checked out the blog hop, go to Brynn's blog to start.

In honor of the 30th birthday of the amazing Brynn, here is a birthday card in her favorite colors: pink, black, white and silver.



Not only is this a special birthday card because of the special honoree, but this is my first project made with an incredible new line, Authentique Paper. The striped and newsprint papers are from the 6x6 paper pad in the Uncommon Collection, and the type stickers are from the Blissful Collection. How awesome are they? And the price point is amazing, too.

In fact, I am giving away an Authentique 6x6 paper pad to one lucky reader! Simply become a follower of my blog and leave a comment here with your contact info before midnight on Saturday, July 2, 2011. I will pick one winner. If you are already a follower (first of all, thank you!), just let me know in the comment.

Oh, and the inspiration for this card is from a sketch in the first Quick Quotes Link-up. How cool is Rhonda's sketch?

Brynn at Flair and Frills Creativity
Elizabeth at 217 Creations
Nicolette at Beyond Scrappin
Lisa at Scrapaholic22
The Scrapbooking Queen, Theresa at The Scrapbooking Queen
Michelle at Michelle Granger
Emily at Create Serendipity
Cheryl at Capturing a Moment in Time
Alyssa at My Thoughts Exactly
Sylvia at Bella Scrapbooking
Sandra at 365 Days of Cricut
Rachel at Dillybelle Media

Now head on back to Brynn's Blog. Be sure to check out her incredible giveaway! Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies:
Cardstock: CTMH (Hollyhock), Bazzill (Black Dotted Swiss)
Patterned paper: Authentique Paper (Uncommon)
Ink: Memento (Tuxedo Black), CTMH (Hollyhock)
Glitter: Stickles (Cotton Candy)
Ribbon: CTMH (Hollyhock twill)
Type stickers: Authentique Paper (Blissful)
Flowers, crystals: Prima
Stamped image: Unity Stamp Co.

Get ready for a fun blog hop!

Join me starting tomorrow to celebrate Brynn's birthday!

Choir Formal

Time for another lovely sketch from For the Love of Sketches.



I hopped in the way-back machine this week and dug out some 18-year-old photos. Dang, we were young!



Thanks for looking!

A walk on the Cedar River

Yay! We have a 2-page layout sketch at For the Love of Sketches. Here is my take:



I love how photo-oriented this sketch is, so I used several of my favorite photos from earlier this spring. For the embellishments, I pulled from the yellow hues in the photos. I kept the background simple so as not to detract from the lines and images in the photos.



Thanks for looking!

My ball

Time for another layout based on a fabulous sketch by Donna at For the Love of Sketches!

And here is Donna's fabulous sketch:

Thanks for looking!

28 Days of Sketches - Day 12

I have been meaning to scrap these two photos for a while now, so I was very excited to see this sketch.



Supplies:
Paper and cardstock stickers: CTMH (Jingle)
Ink: CTMH (Olive)
Sparkles: CTMH
Glitter: Stickles
Number stickers and foil tree: American Crafts (Thickers)

28 Days of Sketches - Day 7

Just a little walk down memory lane for Day 7 of the 28 Days of Sketches. This photo was taken on Sophie's 10th birthday while we were aboard Royal Caribbean's Enchantment of the Seas. The obvious choice for background paper would have been something nautical, so I chose something from Pink Paislee's Butterfly Collection.

I made the flower myself by fan folding a strip of the same paper. Then I layered it with a Prima flower and a brad from My Mind's Eye. The camera embellishment is from the Butterfly Collection also, and the alphabet stickers are from Basic Grey. Thanks for looking!

28 Days of Sketches - Day 6

I hardly can believe that our Moose is more than a year old. Seems like just yesterday I took these photos of him as a puppy.



I made the base of this layout last summer at the Creating Keepsakes Convention in Des Moines. The class was taught and sponsored by embellish It! Inc. So, all I had to do to update this to reflect the sketch was to add the photos and alphabet stickers. Easy and cute!

Supplies:
Paper: Basic Grey (Max and Whiskers)
Large alphabet stickers: Basic Grey (Basics)
Mini Alphabet Stickers: My Little Shoebox (Blackberry)

28 Days of Sketches - Day 1

A little out of order, but here is the layout I put together for the first sketch of 28 Days of Sketches, a class I'm taking over at Big Picture Classes.



I've had these photos for almost a year and purchased all the embellishments at the Creating Keepsakes Convention in Des Moines last July. I finally put it together using the Day 1 sketch from the class.

The original sketch called for six photos across the middle of the page, but I modified it to five. Visually, I like the odd number. The five I used are action shots, but none of them had a clear glimpse of her face. So, I used a wallet-sized posed portrait and placed it in the bottom left corner to balance the trio of softballs in the upper right corner.

My favorite part of this LO (aside from the gorgeous subject) is the big ol' ric-rac! I love how fun it is, and it reminds me of Charlie Brown.

Supplies:
Cardstock: Bazzill Basics (white and red), CTMH (black)
Ric-rac, team name die-cut and embellishment transparency: Boxer Scrapbook Productions
Journaling stickers: Basic Grey

28 Days of Sketches - Day 5

Our class sketch for today involved lots of white space (love!) and one special photo (love!). 



Two summers ago, Sophie and I did a photo shoot at a park on the banks of the Cedar River during the magic hour. The result was a collection of amazing portraits.  I am so glad I have these photos to show me what Sophie was like during the months before she started junior high.

Supplies:
Patterned Paper: Fancy Pants Designs (Wishful Thinking)
Title letter stickers: Basic Grey (Green at Heart)
Flowers: Prima

Miss Atlantic City

Day 4 of 28 Days of Sketches



Sophie's paternal grandmother was Miss Atlantic City from 1962 to 1963.

Supplies:
Patterned Paper and sticker frame: Webster's Pages
Cardstock: CTMH (Black)
Title letter stickers: American Crafts (Thickers)
Ink: Copic
Subtitle letter stickers: Basic Grey
Flowers and Pebbles: Prima
Border sticker: The Girls' Paperie
Felt die-cut border sticker: Recollections

28 Days of Sketches - Day 3

For the third day of the 28 Days of Sketches class at Big Picture Classes, I showcased a photo I took last week on a country road drive.



And since the Quick Quotes Blog debuted today, I used some background paper from their Paint It Black collection. Head over to their new blog and become a follower today for your chance to win a prize package for you and your mom!

Supplies:
Patterned paper: Quick Quotes (Paint It Black)
Flowers: Prima
Felt border: Recollections
Cardstock: Core-dinations
Alphabet letters: Tim Holtz Grungeboard
Ink: Copic

All You

It's Saturday, which means it's time for another sketch challenge from For the Love of Sketches. Sketch number 11 kicks off a month-long challenge with an awesome prize from Scrapbook Express.



Again, I've used photos from Sophie's portrait session last month. I didn't plan it, but doesn't her top go so well with the Pink Paislee / House of 3 Soiree paper?! Loving the green.

Supplies:
Patterned paper: Pink Paislee / House of 3 (Soiree)
Fancy Pants Designs (Wishful Thinking)
Flowers: Prima, The Girls' Paperie
Crystal swirl: Prima
Sentiment: Quick Quotes
Alphabet stickers: American Crafts

28 Days of Sketches - Day 2

I'm taking an online class from Big Picture Classes called "28 Days of Sketches." I love me some sketches! And here is my creation for today:



The original sketch is based on an 8x10 grid. I modified it a bit by taking the entire 8x10 and pasting it on a 12x12 background. And don't you just love the light green bling! That's a 12" strip from Prima.



Supplies:
Patterned Paper: Pink Paislee / House of 3 (Soiree)
Flowers: The Girls' Paperie (Paper Girl)
Butterfly, crystal design and crystal pebble: Prima
Title letter stickers: Basic Grey (Green at Heart)
Mini alphabet stickers: My Little Shoebox (Blackberry)

Bird of spring

The snow is finally finished around here, and it looks like we have had our last frost (fingers crossed). Each morning I awake to the birds singing.

Here is a card I made for my Cardigans club at Backroads Plum Crazy. Our theme for this month is birds and cages.



The centerpiece stamp is from Unity Stamp Company. Isn't it adorable! Coincidentally, the Unity Stamp Company Challenge for this month is all about birds!

And, of course, I needed some sketch inspiration for this card, so I turned to The Sweet Stop.

Supplies:
Stamp: Unity Stamp Company
Ink: Versafine
Ribbon Cardstock: CTMH
Patterned Paper: Kaisercraft

Americana morning

A drive through the country just north of my home.

Twisted Sketches Number 98

I'm having so much fun scrapping the portraits recently taken of Sophie!



The basis of this layout is sketch #98 from Twisted Sketches.

The twist with this week's sketch is to use paint, any how, any way. I used some turquoise acrylic paint on the edges of the photos to frame them.

Using these portraits had me stumped as to titles for the layouts. Since they aren't action shots and don't define a specific event, I had to dig a little deeper for an idea. My daughter has Bieber fever right now, so I borrowed one of Justin's song titles to use on this layout, "Born to be Somebody." Someday I will make a layout and journal her birth story, but for now you'll have to trust me. This girl is a miracle, and she has exceeded all hopes and dreams I ever had for a child of mine. She really is somebody.

Supplies:
Cardstock: We R Memory Keepers (pre-stitched)
Patterned paper: Fancy Pants Designs (Wishful Thinking), Pink Paislee / House of 3 (Soiree)
Crystal swirls and fabric flowers: Prima
Crystal flowers: CTMH
Acrylic Paint
Letter stickers: Making Memories
Green flocking: Doodlebug Designs

FLS 10

Today is Saturday which means a new sketch over at For the Love of Sketches!

For my layout, I snagged some Echo Park paper (Springtime). Since this LO is in honor of my sister who loves stickers, I used matching Echo Park stickers. I'm usually more of a stamping or trimmed paper kind of gal, but I found these matching stickers so much fun and so pretty on the LO.

Supplies:
Patterned paper and decorative stickers: Echo Park (Springtime)
Green border sticker: The Girls' Paperie
Flower: Prima
Cardstock: CTMH
Letter stickers: American Crafts
Ink: Copic Markers

Wedding invitation

For the last few days, I've been concentrating on making wedding invitations for a friend. Finally, I have a finished product!



I designed the birdcage monogram using Photoshop, printed it on white cardstock, trimmed then embossed it with my Cuttlebug. And don't you just love the ribbon? It goes so well with the base cardstock, Bazzill Basics Crabapple.



Inside is the official invitation on the left and a pocket containing various cards on the right side.



There is a reply card, a card with directions, and one with general instructions. Elegant and functional!

Since these invitations were for a friend, I only charged her the cost of the materials.  However, this got me to thinking about possibly designing and making invitations to sell.  I wonder, though, how much people would pay for invitations like this.  So, I ask you, dear readers.

FLS Sketch 9

Over at For the Love of Sketches, Donna has created a fabulous sketch for this week based on an old Coca-Cola ad. This sketch blends different layers and shapes and is excellent for two photos or one larger photo. Much like I have been doing lately, I chose to spotlight one big photo.





Every year of my childhood, I would get my portrait taken at J C Penney where my grandmother worked. Check out 5-year-old Rachel and her crooked bangs! These home-snipped bangs were courtesy of my mother and have become somewhat of a family joke. I had to capture this memory on paper.

A 1970s plaid outfit deserved to be scrapped on some plaid paper. So I pulled out some "Lavender Plaid" from My Mind's Eye Life Stories. I love the kraft paper base of this line.

Supplies used:
Cardstock: Core'dinations
Patterned paper: My Mind's Eye (Life Stories)
Ink: Quick Quotes (Amaretto)
Cardstock stickers: Webster's pages
Flowers and canvas alphabet stickers: Prima
Felt die cut: Recollections
Brad: My Mind's Eye (Stella & Rose)
Retro card: Cosmo Cricket (circa 1934)