Sketchbook 2015: Sketch #7

Hello and Happy Monday!! I can't believe that July is just two days away now! How crazy is it that half the year is over!! I was watching some Hallmark June Wedding movies this past weekend and they had an advertisement for the 2015 Keepsake Ornament premier in stores and with that they were going to be showing their holiday movies starting this Saturday at 2p. It's like Christmas in July and one of my favorite times of the year! I LOVE Hallmark Christmas moves and tend to watch them every waking moment from when they start at the end of October or beginning of November until they stop running them around the first of the year...so I will totally be watching every chance I get next week. With that I have just shared some total randomness here and now onto the topic at hand!!

I am going to try to keep a regular blog schedule and try to have regular posts Monday through Friday with the weekend off. Maybe I'll use that time to prepare the posts for the following week!! I wanted to share the layout I made for Studio Calico's Sketchbook 2015 Sketch #7. I actually want to make another layout using this sketch, but at this point, it's just been added to the ever expanding to-do list!! For this layout, I lifted the layout that Peppermint Granberg did for the sketch. I really loved how she translated the sketch and couldn't help but lift it with some Amy Tangerine Rise & Shine papers showcasing the photo I took with her during the class at Whim So Doodle that she had in May. Loving how it turned out and that big bold word print pattern paper!! Such a fun layout!!

The lighting where the photo was taken was not the greatest but in real life the photo is not as dark as it appears!! And I'm not going to lie...I loved the original layout so much I feel like I'm going to lift it again!! I'll be back tomorrow with another layout share, the last of the Sketchbook 2015 layouts. Until then, thanks for stopping by!
deb

Five on Friday: Scrapping on the Road

As I mentioned yesterday, I am out of town in NY (going to CT today) and I am scrapbooking while on the road. I decided to use the Amy Tan class album that we put together for a mini book for this trip!! I pre-built all the pages inside. I followed the class PDF that we were given and added in a few more. I'll share the album once I get home and I'll try my best to take in-progress pics to share as well!! It's my first time scrapping on the road so I wanted to share what I packed!!! Keep in mind I searched tons of blogs to find out what can and can't be carried on and I did my best to really limit my supplies while still feeling comfortable with having enough. Besides the album that I shared yesterday here's five things I brought along with me on this trip...

I used an old zip loc bag I got from and Amy Tan class to hold the supplies I was going to pack into my carry on suit case. I do have two small pouches in my purse with adhesive, roller stamps (date and phrase), ink, a stamp block, and some pens. I didn't take a picture of those since they're basic supplies. I plan to take a trip to the local hobby lobby later today by my parent's house to pick up some scissors and a paper trimmer. I'll just leave those in my room at the house or ship them back to my house before I leave next week. Either option is good. I also thought about bringing my mini stapler, crop-a-dile, and fuse tools, but I wasn't 100% sure they would make it through security, so I opted to not have those confiscated and left them home. I don't figure I will need them. And if I do, I can just make a note on the post-its I also packed and take care of those needs when I get back home next week. No biggie to me!!

This is a closer look to what I packed without taking the majority of it out of the bag. I brought along the pdf file from the class, just as a reference, and it made a nice smooth top to the inside of the bag...made it nice and flat! So...five things I've got in there besides the pdf...stamps, embellishments (die cuts, word stickers, wood veneer tags, puffy stickers, and enamel shapes), thicker word stickers, paper scraps (I think I only have one maybe two full sheets of 12x12 in there), and washi tape (strips from Amy Tan's latest line and full rolls).

It was a little hard to keep my supplies limited, but I already had the base of the album pages completed, so there wasn't a whole lot that I needed. I just packed this stuff so I could have a little fun while scrapping on my trip. I did pare it down a little too as I packed.

Hope y'all are having a wonderful Friday!! Here's to a great and relaxing weekend ahead!! I'll be back tomorrow with another layout share. Until then, thanks for stopping by!
deb

Good Things

Back on May 14th, I had the opportunity to take a class was Amy Tan at Whim So Doodle in St. Petersburg, FL. It's a bit of a hike for me to get there from Orlando, but every so often I make the trip. It's nice to see product in person verses online. It's also nice that they bring in some great people from the industry to teach classes.

We used paints, paper, and stickers to transform an A5 album into a super cute mini album. I am headed out of town later today to visit family in NY and CT, and I am planning to take this mini book with me and scrapbook on the road. I was planning to take along my Canon Selphy, but I recently found out that my mom got one for Christmas, so I am happy that I don't need to worry about packing that. I've got two smaller pouches and a Studio Calico kit pouch that I am planning to pack with a limited selection of supplies, and I will likely stop at a Hobby Lobby near my parent's house to pick up a few things that I won't bring (think paper trimmer, scissors, etc...since I am carrying on...don't want to chance anything with blades and such). I may bring along a pair of rounded tip scissors since those can be carried on. I am debating on my Fuse tool. I've been told you can carry that on, but I am not sure I want to test TSA!! I figure I can always fuse pages when I get home next week.

Can't wait to be crafty on the road!! I am thinking I'll be taking my traveler's journal as well, but I will have homework (in grad school) so I don't want to stretch myself too thin. It's certainly going to be nice to get out of town (alone as the hubby is staying in FL). I wonder if I will get any funny looks if I break out my crafty supplies on the airplane!! I'll definitely document plane crafting if I do it!! Have a fabulous day!! Thanks for stopping by!!
deb

amy tan class projects

I promised that I'd be back today to share the projects I made in the Amy Tan class that I took last week, and true to my word, here I am to share!!! You'll have to forgive the photos. My computer crashed a few weeks ago and the only way to get it working was to reset it to factory settings...that meant that photoshop was gone and we just haven't put it back onto the computer yet. So these photos were all taken with my iPhone and edited with the PicTapGo app (one of my favorite photo editing apps on my iPhone)!!

Up first we made a layout. I lifted the design pretty close to the sample that Amy had. Love this layout and you might laugh at the photos with the title...but if you know me then you know it fits perfectly!!!

Yes, the title is "oh hello there my darling friend" and my photos are of Starbucks!! LOL!! I love my Starbucks that's for sure!! There is a barista, Cindy, at our local Starbucks that knows my hubby and I, and our drinks very well so we occasionally get notes written on our cups!! So much fun and I am so happy to have it documented!!

Our second project was a set of 3 mini journals. Again, I stuck pretty close to the samples for my journals and I can't wait to put stuff in them!! That craft one with the camera and xoxo...that's the one that Amy wrote in and signed! She put a message on the first page and then signed the bottom on the last page. So cool and I can't wait to get some fun stuff in these!!

Last year, when my hubby and I planned our summer trip to Minnesota, I had 2 similar sized journals that I used to document the planning and the trip, along with ideas of things I wanted to document!! That white one with the "here we go" on the front is going to be used for our planned summer trip this year to Boston, MA!! So excited to have this done and ready to go for that trip!! I am thinking I might make a few more of these cute little journals!!!

And then I wanted to make another layout to go across from the Starbucks layout in my album. This one I lifted from the fabulous Janna Werner!! 

I lifted this layout pretty close to the original that I saw on my instagram feed. I did change out a few things and made a journaling spot in the bottom right corner using a technique I had seen her do a while ago using chalkboard paint. I tucked that idea away as a "I want to try that" and pulled it out for this layout!! Will be doing that again!! Used my white gel pen to journal and it turned out perfectly!!

Hope you had or are having a fantastic Monday!! Thanks for stopping by!!
deb

class with amy tan

A few weeks ago I was checking out some of my favorite blogs and saw that Amy Tan had updated her sideboard with some classes, and one of those classes happened to be at a local scrapbook store that I was planning to visit while on vacation...and she just happened to be teaching there while I was on vacation!! Perfect fit if you asked me and I called right away to see if there was still room left in the class!!! As luck would have it, there were 2 spots left when I made that call. Of course I scooped one of those spots up right away!!

Since the store (Whim So Doodle if you're ever in the St. Petersburg, FL area) is about a 2 hour drive away, I planned for traffic and arrived about an hour before the class started so I could do some shopping. Since I only visit this store every few months, I like to make it worth the drive and also I like to support local small businesses. I certainly did both on this trip and brought home some fun stuff in addition to the kit left overs!!

The class was on a Thursday night for 3 hours and the projects included a 12x12 layout, 3 journals, and a set of project life cards that could be used for a 2 page spread. The kit was chock full of Plus One, Studio Calico, and a few exclusives to us in the class (a few acrylic pieces which were fabulous).  My apologies for the glare on the photo of the kit!!

It was a full classroom and a lively bunch that's for sure!! I got to know a few really great women during the class. Amy also went around the class while we were working and signed things like her Signature Series book, the journals we made, or other items brought. She was SOOO generous to everyone with getting in photos and signing things!! And she was really down to earth!!

 (above photo credit: @whimsodoodle on instagram)

So happy that I got out to my favorite local scrapbook store (yes I consider a 2 hour drive local...HA) and take this class!! So much fun and a great way to spend some time on vacation!! I'll be back tomorrow to share the projects I made in the class plus one more that I made with the Plus One collection!! Until then, thanks for stopping by!
deb