3 Page Layout and NSD

Saturday is National Scrapbooking Day.  Yeah!  So many challenges and giveaways will be going on sponsored by most of the scrapbooking supply websites and message boards.  I hope you will get to participate.

I'll be creating a layout for LOAD - Layout a Day.  Think of LOAD as National Scrapbooking MONTH.  There is a challenge or prompt every day plus opportunities for prizes as the month goes along.  LOAD starts on Thursday, May 1.  You can still sign up and use code ASAP for $10 off:
Click here to view more details


My layout today is actually a 3 pager!  I have one traditional page and two pocketed pages to hold photos of all the pretty birds I saw at the Sylvan Heights Bird Park in eastern North Carolina.

One of my favorite parts of the park was the Landing Zone.  You purchase a $1 popsicle stick covered with birdseed and entered a large netted area.  The beautifully colored parakeets know exactly what that stick is for and soon cover your hand hopping over one another for the snack.

I wasn't all that organized and my purse kept falling down toward my left hand which held the stick.  I was trying to take photos with the right hand.  Finally I put everything down to get organized.  When I went to pick the stick back up, it was gone!  They had flown off with it.  It was a lot of fun and I did get a couple of good photos

For the layout I used Stampin' Up!'s Sale-a-Bration paper from this year called Sweet Sorbet.  The colors are perfect and I love all the small prints in this collection. They worked well cut into 4 inch squares for my pocket pages.

The collection had a matching stamp set so I used it to stamp out some flowers.  The journaling is typed on vellum.

I have a process video on this layout at YouTube and here:


So what are your plans for National Scrapbooking Day?  Thanks for watching!

So what if you don't have a photo?

Do you have a story to tell and no photo to go with it?

My next project will be out in just a few days and addresses just that.  This is a project very near and dear to me.  I started working on this about 2 years ago and then put it aside, brought it back out, put it aside and finally I'm almost done!

I will soon have a new e-book called

No Photo, No Problem: 

10 Techniques for Scrapbooking Your Stories 
without the Perfect Photo

Originally, I was going to do this as a class but finally decided it worked best as a book - a PDF.  There will also be a video accompanying with some techniques for a few of the 17 layouts in the book.

This is very personal to me because I have few childhood photos. So I've had to get creative in how to scrapbook my story without a photo - or with a really blurry, overexposed photo :-).

And I wasn't much of a photographer myself in my 20's so the problem continued.  Then I started scrapbooking but mostly taking photos of the big events and missing the everyday.  It really wasn't until my 40's that I started taking a lot of photos.  I doubt any of us have nearly the number of photos of our own childhood and early adulthood that we take today so there are always plenty of stories that don't have a photo to go with them.

Sometimes even today, I can't get a photo as we may be on a tour or in a museum where they don't allow photography.  I have one example in the book where I just plain forgot to take a single photo of a party I'd given.  I was so mad at myself for missing those snapshots but still found a clever way to capture the night in my scrapbooking.

The PDF shares several techniques for finding photos when you don't have any, finding photo substitutes and doing pages without photos.

Now, if you do have a story and no photo, I bet you have quite a bit of story.  So the PDF also talks some about journaling as these types of pages can be heavy on the journaling.

I look forward to making this available no later than next Monday, May 5. 

Also, I'll soon be starting LOAD for May.  The theme is Past Perfect and should put some of the ideas from the book to good use.  Here's the info on LOAD; I hope you can join us to get lots of pages done about your past life, too!  Click here to view more details
ETA: Just found out there is a special discount of $10 off using code ASAP

Thanks for stopping by!

Saved Paper

One of the things I tend to save for the perfect occasion is paper.  Of course, paper is the thing I have the most of and the thing I least need to save!

Now in my defense I will say that I come from a fabric world.  In decorator fabrics, you can usually order a fabric for 2 to 4 years before it is even discontinued some even longer.  In paper, 6 months and that's about it.  You may be lucky and find an older collection you love still in stock somewhere but with the dwindling number of local scrapbook stores that gets even more unlikely.

Still how often am I likely to go hunt up an old collection?  No, that isn't really the reason.  I just keep thinking the perfect project will come along or it would be a crime to punch out one little circle from a full sheet.

In this case I was saving 2 pieces I'd bought on sale of all things.  These are Valentine papers I bought for the B sides but they were just so pretty I kept hoarding them.  Well, I suppose I did finally find the perfect fit - this Valentine photo of Jaime getting a surprise treat at work.

One of the pieces was chevron and a great choice for doing accordion flowers or rosettes.  There is a link up in the video to my video on making those flowers and the steps are covered quickly in this video as well.


Video at YouTube:




Here are a few closeups of the chevron paper at work.

The chevron on the upper left and the one in the right photo are the same exact cut just a different fold.  I hope chevrons never go out of style as the are so versatile.

Thanks for stopping by today!

Alcohol Ink Cards

Hi!  I just returned from a visit with my best friend, Karen.  We had such a good time as always.  And we got in a ton of crafting time over the long holiday weekend.  It rained so we just stayed in and did mixed media canvases and played with all kinds of products.

She has the Ranger Alcohol Inks and I'd never used them.  We first tried some on transparency film.  These are my cards with some of our experiments.  We also did some backgrounds on glossy paper, but I don't have those finished up yet.  We discovered that the stamping on top must be done with permanent ink or it never fully dries.  

I do have a scrapbook video for this week but it isn't edited yet so hopefully later in the week.  Got a bit of catching up to do after being out of town.

Thanks for stopping by!

Guess what the Easter bunny brought?

When I was a little girl, after church one Easter Sunday and my friend Sandra was showing off her new doll.  "The Easter Bunny brought it!" she told me.  Easter Bunny?  I knew about Santa Claus who brought me toys at Christmas, but gifts at Easter?  from a rabbit?

In the car, I announced loudly from the back seat that I was going home to check under my pillow to see what the Easter Bunny had brought me.

I raced into the house and down the hall to my room.  I found a pack of chewing gum.

I was happy with it.  I don't remember being disappointed that Sandra got a doll and I got gum.

What I found out a few years later was that my Mother had panicked and rooted around in her purse to find the only thing she could possibly pass off as a gift from the 'Easter Bunny.'   Somehow she beat me in the house to get to my bedroom before I did.

After that year, the Easter Bunny brought really nice stuff!

This gift arrived a few days ago via Fed Ex not the Easter Bunny.  The Silhouette Cameo is an early birthday present from my parents.  I'm having so much fun with it!  The cuts are crisper and more precise than my Cricut.

I had the SCAL - Sure Cuts a Lot software that was originally sold to work with the Cricut.  You can't buy it to work with the Cricut anymore but having it entitled me to a free upgrade to a version that works with the Silhouette. So between the Silhouette software and SCAL, I have a lot of cutting options.

The card above uses Miss Kate's Cuttables for the clouds, sun, and butterfly.  I got the arrangement from this video by Christina Thomas I was watching on learning to use the Silhouette.  I did my version as an Easter card.  The grass is from the Silhouette store and I use SCAL to create the eggs.

I've also cut several things for layouts for my next project coming along in just a couple of weeks.

Thanks for stopping by today!  Hope you have a happy Easter and find all the eggs!

Close Encounters

Cabin fever can inspire all kinds of creativity and maybe a little competition.  The cardinals were so pretty at my bird feeder during one of our snowy winter days yet they would not let me take their photo.  I complained that after putting out fancy bird feed (they refuse to eat the Walmart kind) they could at least let me take their photo through the window.  Did not work.

I went on up to my scraproom and a little later, Lenny showed up with the camera and several great photos including the closeup.  I was still determined so I finally 'snuck' up on them by staying to the side and snapping a photo of a group of them just as the snow was tapering off.

The page shows our two best photos.  I cut thin black frames from black cardstock to make them look like professionally framed photos.

This page uses a lot of stamps for the background and the embellishments.  The little birdcage which looks a bit like our feeder is from Hobby Lobby back in the crafting department.  I got about 6 different ones for $2.  I painted over with a bit of white craft paint so it would match the white and gray color scheme.

Here's the video on YouTube:


and here is the sketch:

This page was done back in March.  I just hadn't gotten it posted yet.  I am still on my 'using stuff I've been saving kick' however I am also working on my next project - an e-book - to be out in just a few days so I haven't filmed as many process videos.  The e-book will have a video with it also.  It is a project very near and dear to my heart so I look forward to telling you about it in just a few days.

Thanks for stopping by today!  There is still time to join me and many others for LOAD514 starting May 1.
Click here to view more details

True Scrap Pocket Pages

Hi!  Hope everyone is getting a good start to the week.  I have a deal I wanted to share with you.

A few months ago Lain Ehman hosted her first Pocket Pages classes.  The classes are now available for individual sale at a discounted price of $9 per class through April.

Click here to view more details

I have not taken any of these as I don't do that much with Pocket Pages, but I wanted to make you aware of this deal.

I'm running a bit behind this week but will have a new Process Video up probably by Wednesday.  Also if you are a recent sign up for my newsletter, I'll send you a copy of April's this week.

Hope you have a great day!

More Dots Wanted

We have a map in the house with little pins in it for all the places we have visited.  We haven't added a lot of points in recent years though we did go to Michigan last fall.  Both of us would like to change that so I did this page to celebrate a few of the places we have been and remind us to get out there and travel!

One of our habits is to take a long walk on our first day in a new place - and get lost.  Of course we don't plan to get lost but it has happened so many times it is expected.  Oh, that would make a good page, too.

I put dots on this map with a permanent marker and that inspired the title.

The map is created using Crafter's Workshop Mini US stencil and several different craft paints.  I matched the paint to October Afternoon's Travel Girl papers.  I match things close but not perfectly.  I think mixing paint is fun.  I love seeing what you can get.  This time I used a light tan rather than white to lighten colors and it dulled them just enough to match the papers closely.

Some Washi and a few stickers from the collection finish it off.

Here's the video on YouTube:


And here's the sketch:

Do you like to travel?  Where in the world do you most want to go?

Don't forget May Layout A Day starts in just a few weeks.  Get a lot of scrapping done.
 Click here to view more details

Thanks for stopping by!

Easy Masculine Birthday Card - Video

Guy cards can be the most challenging, can't they?  I have all these flower stamps and papers that just scream girly.  My husband loves flowers but I don't think he wants them all over his birthday card. So for this card, I used a new stencil from Crafter's Workshop called Stripes Explosion and some more masculine colors of rust, navy and green.

Some wood veneer pieces are dressing up the center of each 'explosion.'

This card went quick!  I can tell you how fast it was because the video is real time with no edits.  I made two of these for my stash.  Maybe one of them will be my husband's birthday card this year.

This size fits into #10 business envelopes.  I buy the linen resume type though I'm not sure how many people actually mail in a resume anymore. Still they have them at the office supply store.

Here's the video at YouTube:


Thanks for watching today!  Don't forget you can find a LisaEDesign page on Facebook now which is an easy way to keep up with new videos.  Just click the "Like" button.

Triple the Mist, Double the Stencils and tons of fun

Three mists, two stencils and such a fun background to create.  I love seeing the colors come through.  This background starts with Crafter's Workshop Ring Doily stencil and a plain piece of ivory cardstock from Hobby Lobby.  I did not film this one, but have lots of process photos.

The layout photo I'm using is of my best friend Karen and me.  I wanted to convey how we have some differences yet still see so many things the same way.  Starting with the left side of the layout, I applied some ink over my stencil to start.  The mist I will be using is fairly light and I needed a stronger depth of color.  A layer of Stampin' Up! Baja Breeze ink adds color and then an overspray of mist blends the color and adds shine.

Here is the left side of the layout after misting.

 Next I used the same Ring Doily stencil on the right side with Mary Mary mist from Studio Calico.
 

For the last misted layer, I switched to the Crafter's Workshop Byzantine stencil and gold Heidi Swapp Colorshine.

After everything was very dry, I trimmed down and distressed the edges of the ivory cardstock.  I've sewn it to some pattern paper for a little bit of color on the edge and for stability.

For the word "Best," I stenciled my cardstock before cutting with the Navajo stencil and some Victorian Velvet distress ink.  It just adds a little more interest to the letters cut with the Cricut.

The rest of the page has some Maggie Holmes vellum pieces for Crate Paper and some gold rhinestones I picked up at Hobby Lobby in the jewelry department.

I think the background gives this great photo taken by Karen's husband a pretty palette.

Thanks for stopping by today!

April Theme - Stop Saving and Start Scrapping!

(The free April newsletter with exclusive video goes out this week.  Are you signed up? See sidebar.)

Each month this year, my videos have had a theme.  This month I'm celebrating life by using things I might have been saving.

Do you hoard your supplies waiting for that perfect project to use a special paper?
Do you hang onto an old photo waiting for the day when you will have hours and hours to create the perfect page?
Are there techniques you love but just don't use that often?

It is that last one that today's video addresses.  I love grid pages.  I like seeing other people's grid pages and I always like the ones I create.  Yet I don't make them all that often.

I think part of the reason is that I usually crop and print my photos as rectangles.  Now you can do a grid with rectangles but I just typically don't.  I usually think of grids with square photos and I don't have square photos so the grid design gets ignored.

Well in my stash of photos, I had these 5 taken last year as part of Project Life/ Project 365.  I took or had my husband take photos of me busy doing things.  These were photos of my hands only and I'd already cropped them into squares.  Perfect for a grid design!

For this one, I didn't put anything between the rows.  I got to use some brand new product - BasicGrey's Mon Ami collection.  I also got to use buttons something I love and don't use nearly enough especially considering how many are in my stash.

For the edges, I used a Crafter's Workshop stencil, some ink and a little Washi to finish off the page design.

Kraft background is something I tend to be a bit sparing with as well.  I think I'm going to overdo it and then don't use it when I could.

Here's the process video at YouTube


and here is the sketch:

I'll have more videos using things I'm saving up as the month goes along.  Thanks for dropping by!

LOAD Page Share

When I did LOAD - Layout a Day - in February, I was making more pages than I had time to film.  I shared all but the one above on my blog.  I didn't get them all on YouTube though so I made the video below that goes through 5 layouts - a bit about the challenge and process of each one.

Soon it will be time for LOAD514 starting May 1.  Honestly, I hadn't planned to do this again so soon.  I was going to wait until next February as I definitely wanted to repeat LOAD.  It is just May is a busy month.  However, when I saw the topic, I could not resist.

May's LOAD is about making pages about your own past.  I did quite a few pages about my younger days in February.  This is an area where I haven't made nearly as many pages over the years.  In fact for 2 decades almost, I only did pages about our lives as a couple.  Finally I started doing the occasional page about my life before my husband and about things that concern only me and he isn't part of.  I enjoy these pages and they present their own kind of challenge.

One of the challenges is my lack of photographs from childhood through my 20's.  I'm going to be addressing that in my next product available here on my blog later this month or in early May.  I'll have more about that later on.

For now though, I hope you will join me and many, many others for LOAD514 to capture memories about yourself and your past.  Here's the info.

Click here to view more details

  For the next few days there is an early bird special of 30% off.  The cost is less than most weekend crops and you get prompts all month long.  I think of LOAD more like a crop than a class.  Except you

• get prompts each day to inspire you and challenge you.
• opportunities for prizes
• feedback and lots of love from other participants via the gallery and the message board
• have all your stuff to work with - nothing to pack up and cart to some other place

I really enjoyed the experience in February and am looking forward to May.

Here's my video of pages on YouTube:

Thanks for watching!

A Crop of Cards

I attended a fun crop last Saturday with a group of ladies I met via one of the message boards.  Everyone was from NC or Virginia.  It was such fun.  We had a lot of laughs.  I enjoyed seeing what everyone was working on.

I'll admit though that I can not scrapbook away from home.  I never quite know what I'm going to need.  Today for example I pulled out 3 packs of Thickers to do a title and ended up putting them all back and getting 3 other packs because I didn't have the letters in the first ones that I needed.  I'd only just figured out the title so it wasn't something to really pre-plan.

Cards, though, I can do.  These are some from Saturday and they will go in my Operation Write Home box.

Thanks for visiting today!  Have you signed up for my newsletter?  Signup is on the sidebar.  I'll be sending April's out probably sometime next week.