a change in plans

I got 2 sheets of this Studio Calico paper during their last call sale earlier this month because I loved the B side. It's the plano pattern in an orange/yellow color. I didn't think for one second that I'd use the A side when I ordered it!! Change of plans when my box arrived. I fell in love with those words and decided to add a photo with a few layers to the side. I didn't add any journaling really, just the date on a label. Instead, I let the words on the paper do all the talking. The photo is one I wasn't planning to scrapbook because it's a bit washed out. It was a selfie my husband and I took on Christmas day this past year while at his parent's house. For some reason, we always sit in the same spot in front of their big window every year. In 2014, we took a similar selfie with our niece and nephew and got a similar washed out look. I guess it's sort of tradition now. Just a few simple layers of Shimelle's Christmas Magic line and embellishments to make a quick and simple page. Here's hoping I use the second piece of this paper with the B side!!

Thanks for stopping by!
deb

#fallcoffeecupchallenge

Happy Wednesday!! I wanted to pop in to share a project I finished up just last week. I shared it on my instagram (@sideshowdeb if you're interested). I put it together for a challenge that Wilna had over on her blog!!

I love Starbucks (and Dunkin Donuts)...that's NO secret. So I was super excited when I saw their fall cups on Instagram. Much to my dismay, I would never get one when I ordered at the famed coffee shop!! Then, one day when my husband went to get some afternoon pick-me-ups (what we call them when we grab coffee in the afternoon...usually after work), I told him he better come back with a fall cup or he's in deep doo-doo!! It's a good thing we know several of the barista's at our local Starbucks by name (and they know us too), because when he told the barista I had said that, she not only made sure my coffee came in the fall cup, but she double cupped it so I'd have a clean one to use (yes...they know I repurpose them at times as I've asked for an extra when waiting for my drink)!! I kept the clean one on display in my office for a while until I saw the challenge. Perfect way to use that cup (and I'm planning a red cup one too...red cup season is the most wonderful time of the year afterall)!!!

Having said all of that, I live in FL, so fall for me is virtually nonexistent!! There are no changing and falling leaves, no crisp air, and no sweater weather (not until possibly December if not January that is). Heck, just yesterday we hit 90* which broke the record that was set in 1929! 125 days in 2015 of 90 or higher. Ugh...I'm ready for those cooler temps for sure!! But the one thing there is in the fall now matter where I live...football. I have been a long time fan of the NE Patriots...so that's what I decided to make my album about. I take pics of my shirts and my cat (aptly named Gronk), so I featured those photos in this little, chunky, coffee cup album!! I decided to use some of Shimelle's True Stories line for the pages, since the colors went with my theme. Lots of leaves, frames, diecuts and doilies too! I had so much fun putting this together (and I used my glue gun for it...made it SO much easier to move along quickly on this). Here's some photos I took of the little book. FYI...I used a venti cup, because really, for me there is no other size for coffee!!

Hope y'all are having a great week so far!! Thanks for stopping by!
deb

the pickle tree

Have you ever seen a pickle ornament? They're big in German tradition, and since my husband and I are both German by blood (he was actually born there and my grandfather was born there) we obviously have a pickle ornament on our tree every year. If he'd let me, I'd get another, but he thinks one is enough. I may try to sneak another on the tree this year though! We don't follow the tradition of the pickle mainly because we don't have any kids. You're supposed to hide the pickle ornament in the tree somewhere and the first person to find it wins a special present. We just hang it up near the top close to a few other ornaments that are traditional ornaments on our tree every year.

In the German pavilion in Epcot, the ornament shop has an entire tree dedicated to the pickle ornament. I'm not sure exactly when it became a tradition for us to take a selfie with the tree, but lately on every visit to Epcot (which always includes a trip into Germany) we take a selfie with the pickle ornament tree!!!

I pulled out some of the green papers from Shimelle's Christmas Magic collection, and used the tree pattern paper too for the bottom strip, to put this layout together. I kept it pretty simple with the design as well. I also pulled out the green thicker's from the older Garden Party collection (I think that was the name of that collection). I always buy thicker's in sets of two so I have plenty of letters to use, but that means that I have plenty of letters to use for quite a while!!! These went with the green theme of the layout really well.

This layout (and the one from yesterday) are really starting to get me into the holiday spirit. I can't believe it's less than two months away now. How time flies that's for sure!! I feel like we just did this. The years are going faster and faster!! Thanks for stopping by!
deb

For the love of blogging

Hello and happy Monday to my much neglected blog!!! I am hoping to change that. Wouldn't you know that the last several months I've had a much easier schedule than I do now, but I have been meaning to get back to blogging for some time now. Might as well just jump in!!! I would love to say that I am planning to keep a regular schedule but as evidenced from my previous plans for that, I'm not so good at keeping to a regular blog schedule. For now, I'm just going to give it my best effort!!!

I wanted to stop in today to share a new layout that I made last week. I am super busy with working full-time and being a half-time graduate student, but I still find it necessary to fit in some craft time each week. Even if it means I have to stay up late to finish a paper when I have to work the next day. When the crafty mood strikes, I'm not going to turn it away!!! Some might wonder if my priorities are in line with that way of thinking, but if it keeps me sane to take a crafty break from school, that's what I do!!

I had decided a few months ago that at the end of the year, I would likely discontinue my membership with a kit club I've belonged to for several years. The company has made changes that, as a business, I understand they must make to survive, but as a customer I just didn't agree with. I didn't agree with the changes and the way those changes were communicated. Besides that, the kits haven't really felt like me for a few months. When there's a kit I love and can't live with out one month, and then there are several months that I just don't connect with for one reason or another, for me, it's time to move on. That meant that I decided to stock up on some new collections that I might not have added to my stash had things worked out differently. One of those collections was Shimelle's Christmas Magic. I think I picked up almost the entire collection. I'm still wanting to get the die's that go with this collection because, HELLO, paper chains are such a think I remember from my childhood...and really I just think it would drive my husband nuts to decorate the house with them!!

The circle pattern paper from the collection was just begging to be punched out!! I used the woodgrain pattern from the collection as a base for the layout. The holly leaves is actually the branding strip from that patter, but I loved it so much that after I trimmed it off, I just decided to use it right away. The photo is from our trip to Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party last December. My husband and I live about 40 minutes from Disney in the central Florida area, so this 'party' has become a bit of a tradition for us every year. This year, we're going early in November when my parents are in town visiting. It's really a great time and totally gets you into the holiday spirit!! Plus, nobody does Christmas like Disney!!! The photo taken by the Disney Photopass photographer came out so great that we decided to use it for our Christmas card last year!! I put that into our December Daily album. I'm hopeful we get a good one again this year to use. We always go see Santa after the second parade and then go to the flag area for this pic with the frozen castle.

I'm looking forward to creating more with this collection and if all goes as planned, I'll be back tomorrow with another layout to share using it!!! Until then, thanks for stopping by!
deb

Sketchbook 2015 - Sketch #6

I am back today to share the layout I made for sketch #6 as part of Studio Calico's Sketchbook 2015 class. I had a bit of trouble with this one as it's not typically a design I would use. It's a bit too blocky for me. But I loved Stephanie Bryan's layout, so I tweaked it a bit to fit the photos I had from Epcot's Flower & Garden Festival. I wanted to get the Pulled Pork Slider, Maple Bacon Cupcake, and Maple Bacon Stout I had from The Smokehouse onto a page!! I also really wanted to use some of Shimelle's new True Stories line, so I went for it on this layout. Overall, I am pretty happy with how it turned out, even if making it pushed me outside of my comfort zone.

Hope you're all enjoying your Sunday!! Thanks for stopping by!!
deb