Itchin' & Scratchin'

Tuesday, February 12, 2019

You Are Pulchritudinous

Hello again on yet another snowy, wintery day here in Southern Ontario! We are under a Winter Storm warning again and it looks like a nasty one. All of the buses were cancelled in my area again, I think we are on Snow Day 9 or 10 since January now? I've lost count honestly. If this keeps up, tomorrow might be another one!

Let's talk about something nicer - CSI has a new "Cold Case" up! A Cold Case is something new we started last month and it's meant to be a bonus challenge for those who want to try to resurrect some of their old stash. You don’t have to only use old stuff, but try to make your older stuff prominent.

I'll admit it for this case, I didn't really use much of anything that was "old", except for the title rubons and stickers & a few Basic Grey buttons that I've had in my stash for a while now. But I just LOVED the inspiration photo so let's get into Case #274.

Here's the Freestyle Prompts :

And a closer look at the inspiration image, which comes from Claudia Tremblay.

I LOVED, LOVED, LOVED this photo!! Isn't she beautiful??

Since there's no "tradtional" clue sets or colour scheme to go along with this image, here's some more prompts to help you get started :

PRODUCTS

Find older papers that match the palette.
Find older papers that have a winter theme.
Use buttons—lots of them.
Use ribbons.
Dig out some of those old flowers and use them.
Remember when owls were a trend? Surely you have some in your stash—use one! Sassafras Lass used to have them on their papers. Use some old Sass paper, even some without owls.
Use the older Webster’s Pages papers with the floral designs.
Use feathers.
Use mulberry paper.
18 is the magic number—grab the 18th paper or embellishment pack (or something else) in your stash and start there.

DESIGN

Grab some of your mixed media stuff you haven’t ever used (or haven’t used in a while) and use it on the background.
Use a stencil you haven’t used and add paint to your texture paste.
Create a wreath as the base of your design.
Use a red floral paper on the bottom half of your page.
Stamp in the background.

And here's what I created with this case:

This is my oldest daughter and I wanted to create something for her this time around. But I have no recent pictures of her, so I went snooping on her Facebook and Instagram and stole these ones. On the largest picture, I noticed that her boyfriend used the title word in describing her, so I decided to use it as the title of the page.

Here's how I solved the case:

COLOURS

From the image I chose to use the following colours :

Green (from the leaves in her hair)
Red (well, it turned out more pink in the end, from her dress)
White (from the owl)
Yellow (from her buttons)
Black (a good neutral)
Peach (from the top of the skyline)

PRODUCT

Buttons
Flowers
Feathers

DESIGN

I recently started trying out some more mixed media on my pages and started there with this idea. I follow Vicki Boutin and one of her design team members Nathalie is very inspiring. She made a layout called "Reason to Smile" which I love, and she made a process video explaining how she made her layout. So, I watched the video while I was making this layout, pausing it after she explained each step so I didn't miss anything.

Here's the video :

Doesn't Nathalie make amazing art?

As always, here's a closer look at my layout :

I spent quite a bit of time fussy cutting these flowers out of my patterned papers - one from Vicki Boutins Field Notes, and the other from Pinkfresh - Holiday Vibes collection. The Pinkfresh paper came in my SCT Sampler December 2018 kit. There's also a diecut or two from Vicki Boutins collection in there. Then I added LOTS of pop dots, a few yellow feathers and some petals from one burgundy paper flower. I wish I could say that there was a method here, but I really just kept adding until it looked right. Since I'm fussy, this took me quite a bit of time, plus I may or may not have walked away in frustration a time or two..... In the end, I LOVE how this came out. The buttons, ribbon, enamel dots and tiny Martha Stewart plastic flowers finished this corner perfectly.

Here's a look from the bottom of the layout up. I used the same process in this corner as I did in the upper left, just on a smaller scale.

And finally, this is a closer look at a little of the background work. I stenciled with gesso, and then watercoloured over it. In hindsight I wish that I had of flicked more of my colours onto the bottom half of the layout. It just seems kind of bare and less interesting. Something to correct the next time I make a mixed media page.

And, just in case you were wondering here's the definition of "Pulchritudinous" :

To create the title on this page, I used rub on letters on velum and then cut it out. There was a long end left after I finished, so I chose to roll it up slightly, rather than cut it off. I think it adds the perfect little "something" on that side of the layout.

As in the past, we will continue to have many wonderful sponsors! This month, we have six generous sponsors, but we will be adding more as we acquire more sponsors. Click HERE to read more about our sponsors and the prizes they are donating. Winners will be selected randomly from all of our players, with a few exceptions where sponsors have asked us to choose from certain geographic regions.

We've moved our sharing over to Facebook! And new for this month, there's going to be separate albums for each Case, making inspiration even easier to find! Head on over to our CSI Scrapbook Challenge Page for more details and to participate!

Thanks for popping by today - I can't wait to see what you've created!!

Friday, February 1, 2019

(Hello, my name is) Soup - erman!!!!

Well I can officially say that I survived the #2019PolarVortex!!

This was the view from my bedroom yesterday (2019/01/31).

My area was hit by a winter storm that essentially shut down the city and surrounding area. For the last two weeks, I've been having snow days at home more than I've been driving my school bus.

But now, it's February!! And a new month brings new inspiration from Color, Stories, Inspiration!

Let's take a look at Case #272.

Here's the Freestyle Case Prompts :

And the Tradtitional Case File and Clues :

EVIDENCE (Embellishment or Element Inspiration)

plaid
stripes
dots
distressed patterns, e.g., BasicGrey
border
trees, leaves
winter elements
woodland creatures, birds, or other animals
mushrooms or other vegetables
string
fringe
mist/splatters
metal
wood
cut file

TESTIMONY (Journaling Ideas)

Topic: Document something about winter
Prompt Idea: Choose a February Question.
Presentation: Create a little book to hold your journaling.
Writing Format: Write your story in the form of a haiku.
Inspiration Words: up, cozy, nourish

THE SCHEME (RGB CODES)

187.203.202 – blueish gray
244.227.171 – yellow, somewhere in between cream and flax
156.46.33 – brick red
254.254.252 – white
161.164.121 – green—in between a khaki green and olive

And here's what I made with it :

This is my son whom, ever since he was small, has LOVED soup. Like really loved it. When he was small he used to say the word "soup" in such a cute little boy, sing song way, that I looked forward to soup days just to hear him say it. When I saw the soup bowl in the photo I took the opportunity to document this fun thing about my boy.

Here's how I solved this case:

COLOURS

All of the colours are there, but I've added in an extra shade of yellow, mostly because I liked the way it looked. Also, there was some orange and brown in the ribbon & embellishments I chose, and I've added a neutral kraft as the "border" for my layout.

EVIDENCE

Stripes
Dots
Border
Leaves
Woodland creatures
Mushrooms
String
Metal
Wood

TESTIMONY

I used the INSPIRATION WORD prompt this time. The word "Nourish" helped inspire this page.

Journaling

you love soup. like I mean really, really love soup.
all kinds of soup, but mostly homemade.
when you were small i loved listening to you say the word soup - it was so sweet in your little boy sing song voice.
when you went to high school & you came home for lunch, you would have soup - so often, in fact, that i would keep cans of it on hand, just for you.

photo : March 2008
journaling : Jan 2019

Here's some closeups of my page:

I loved this little squirrel & he was just about the right colours! The piece was originally bigger, with the words "time for giving" on it so I cut it in half and rounded the corners. It made the perfect place to add my diecut mushrooms and leaves.

Here's a closer look at my title work. This came about in trying to use up some of my letters stash. In fact, the "A" isn't actually an "A" at all! It's a "D" that I cut down to make the "A" for the word. The "O" and the "N" are capitals because that's all that I had left in the pack, but I think that it makes the title fun! When I first set it down, I was just going to use a little dot to separate the 2 parts of the word but then I remembered a page that I made that had silverware on it, so I found it and stole the spoon for this page! The string clue inspired the little twine bow, and the little fox satisfies 2 clues - woodland creatures, and metal.

This little corner was created because I felt that there was too much white space in that corner, but I couldn't find anything in my stash that made sense to put there. So I tucked a small square or red behind the white, folded it over and glued it, and topped it off with the heart circle. I think it's cute and it really breaks up the white.

Here's a closer look at my journaling.

Tuesday, January 1, 2019

Love is....

HAPPY 2019!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This past year has been one that was full of changes for myself and my family - some of them hard, but most of them good. I'm looking forward to what 2019 will bring us!!

Quickly, here's my updated page from Case # 268. I've added in our 2018 #christmasselfie and changed the layout a tiny bit.
I'll post the original page underneath.

A new year marks CSI : Colour, Stories, Inspirations 7th Birthday!!

And what better way to celebrate than with a new case?

Let's have a look at Case #269.

Here's the Freestyle Case Prompts:

And the Traditional Case File and Clues:

EVIDENCE

polka dots
plaid
floral pattern
chevron
stripes
stitching
banner
hearts/bunting
camper or other vehicle
flowers
multi-colored title letters
signs
decorative border
string/twine
hang something
cursive font
bows
rub-ons
birthday accents
tea/food accents

TESTIMONY (Journaling Ideas)

Topic: Document a birthday or other celebration
Prompt Idea: Choose a prompt from Paper Wishes.
Presentation: Create a little sign to hold your journaling.
Writing Format: Write your story in the form of an invitation.
Inspiration Words: wishes, beginnings, new

THE SCHEME (RGB Codes)

141.201.191 – light turquoise
217.69.103 – cerise (sort of a fruit punch pink)
7.117.140 – blue with a touch of teal
254.254.254 – white
159.124.105 – paper bag brown

And here's what I made with it:

The "Prompt Idea" from the testimony clues inspired this layout. I scrolled down the page from Paper Wishes and used prompt # 11 - "Describe love using all 5 senses". I then tried to find pictures of my husband and I to match the sense. These photos are from our 12.5 anniversary, which was almost 10 years ago now, but they just suited the subject so well!!

Here's how I solved this case.

COLOURS

All of the colours are there, with the addition of a little bit of black. I tried my hand at creating a blue watercolour background and, since gold is my favorite, flicked a bit of watered down gold glaze through the background as well.

EVIDENCE

Stripes
Hearts
Flowers
String/Twine
Cursive Font
Bows

TESTIMONY

I used the PROMPT IDEA this time. I chose prompt #11 "Describe LOVE using all 5 senses"

Journaling

So this page is very journaling heavy. To make it easier to read (hopefully) without adding tons of text to this post, I put all the journaling on one page in Word, printed it out and then scanned it as a photo.

Here's some closeups of my page:

Here's a look at my title work. I love making my titles really stand out on my pages and this time it's no exception to that. I started out with the heart and then kept adding and adding until it just felt finished. And then I added just one more thing! Also here you can just see the spots of shiny gold glaze that I added to the background of the page.

These are the other two embellishment clusters scattered around the page.

And finally, a close up look at my "oops!!" on this page. After I printed this block of journaling I noticed that the "O" on the word "OF" was missing. So, rather than reprinting the whole block, I reprinted just that line, cut the word out, and glued it down.

Thanks for popping by and checking out my page today!
I can't wait to see how you solve this case!

Sunday, December 23, 2018

Better Late Than Never!!!

Hello all again!

I'm late, but back with another new case from CSI : Color, Stories Inspiration!! This case opened up on December 15, and will remain open until the end of December. The lovely Scene for this Case File was found on decorating website House of Four.

Let's take a closer look at Case #268!

Here's a look at the freestyle case prompts :

And the traditional case file and clues :

EVIDENCE

Wood background
Plaid
Christmas/holiday elements
Deer/antlers or other animal
Frames
Car
Mason jar
Wood
Buckles
Chalkboard elements
Circles
Tie something
Vintage elements
Ribbon
Trees/greenery
Metal
Poinsettia/other flowers
Light bulbs

TESTIMONY (JOURNALING IDEAS)

Topic: Document something about the holidays
Prompt Idea: Choose a Christmas prompt.
Presentation: Frame your journaling.
Writing Format: Use a song lyric as part of your journaling.
Inspiration Words: dreaming, merry, know

THE SCHEME (RBG Codes)

247.244.239 – cream
171.181.131 – olive green
207.96.102 – red
102.101.106 – dark gray, charcoal
159.122.95 – tawny brown/ peanut brown

And here's what I made with it:

About 5 years ago, I solved a different CSI case that started a new Christmas tradition in my family. That was Case #150 and you can find that File HERE on Pinterest. Now every year before we open gifts, we take a Christmas #selfie. The topic clue prompted this layout, documenting 5 years of selfies. I've left space for the 5th picture and I'll post the layout with the last photo on it after Christmas is done. I'm still not sure how big the photo will be or where I'll be putting it on the layout, but it will be fun to complete this page.

Here's how I solved this case :

COLOURS

All of the colours are there. There's a tiny bit of blue added, but only because it was in the background of my patterned paper that I chose for this layout.

EVIDENCE

Christmas elements
Deer
Car (truck)
Wood
Circles
Tie something (the little bow around the deer's neck)
Vintage elements (the patterned paper has a vintage feel)
Ribbon
Trees/greenery (again, the patterned paper)
Poinsettia
Frame

TESTIMONY

The TOPIC clue "Document something about the holidays" inspired the layout this time.

Journaling

Five years ago we started a new tradition thanks to a CSI challenge back in 2014.
Now before we open gifts on Christmas Day, we get together and take the annual Christmas #selfie.
Someday soon, there will be more faces in the picture.
I am so glad that we’ve kept up with it.
Love you all, so very much

11.24.2018

Here's a closer look at this layout :

Here's my little reindeer - He's actually a sticker that I popped up off the page. It was my sisters idea to tie the little twine bow around his neck and I just love how it looks!!

The wooden "Polaroid" frame made the perfect spot to highlight this little vintage girl from my patterned paper. I added the red phrase sticker to finish it off. Also here you can see that I've stamped the year using Staz-On right on the corners of the photos.

Here's my journaling spot. I've used the RGB codes provided to get the right shade of red for the #selfie word. Backing the journaling block in red gives me a triangle of red around the page. This technique helps keep your eyes moving around the layout.

I love singing this song at Christmas. So when I saw it in one of my patterned papers, I made sure to include it! There's actually four different papers here - The Santa / doily paper is one, the song strip is another, I fussy cut the truck out of a Thanksgiving (fall) themed paper, and the phrase strips are from some really old Scenic Route papers I had in my scraps stash.

This circle was punched from another patterned paper - the "5" represents 2 things. Five years of selfies, and also five people in our family. Also here you can see that I've added in my hashtag with wooden letters from Studio Calico.

And, finally here's a look from the bottom of the layout up at the title layers. I love, LOVE, LOVE layering and try to have some on every layout that I make!

Thanks for popping by and checking out my page today!

Don't forget, if you play with this case and link up over at CSI using the Mr. Linky tool on the right-hand side, you'll be entered into the draw for prizes from our awesome sponsors pictured above!!

I can't wait to see how you solve this case!

Friday, November 16, 2018

Through Thick and Thin

Hello again!

I'm back with another awesome case from CSI : Color, Stories, Inspiration! This one is so bright, cheerful and super inspiring as well!

The cool image from this month's second Case File was found on decorating website DoceObra.

Here's a look at the freestyle case prompts :

And the traditional case file and clues :

EVIDENCE

Geometric patterns
Bricks
Embossed or textured paper
Stars
Hearts
Birds (or other animals)
Frames
Clock
Puffy stickers
Telephone or other gadget
Flowers
Phrase sticker
Bottle or jar
Mimic the boxed shelving as a design element
Fabric
Dangle something
Add something (or many things) completely unexpected to your page.

TESTIMONY (JOURNALING IDEAS)

Topic: Document something you do every day.
Prompt Idea: It’s Thanksgiving month. Thank something unexpected. Check this out for ideas of what I mean.
Presentation: Display your journaling in a frame or on a shelf-of-sorts with some other decorative elements.
Writing Format: Write a list of random things about your subject.
Inspiration Words: vibrant, quirky, unexpected

THE SCHEME

252.225.30 – bright yellow
21.173.178 – right between aqua and turquoise
205.73.24 – in between orange and red
248.250.249 – white
30.23.17 – black

And here's what I made with it this time :

I LOVED these bright colours this time, and that boxed shelving inspired me to make all the boxes you see here. I wanted to make kind of a "teenage boy-ish" layout and I loved these pictures of my son and nephew taken at my parents 45th wedding anniversary weekend, so this is the result of mixing those 2 ideas together.

Here's how I solved the case :

COLOURS

All the colours are there with the addition of a little bit of green, pulled from the pillows in the inspiration photo.

EVIDENCE

Geometric patterns
Bricks
Stars
Hearts
Frames
Puffy stickers
Other gadget (camera)
Phrase sticker (in the title)
Mimic the boxed shelving as a design element
Add something unexpected to your page

TESTIMONY

I used the WRITING FORMAT clue this time : "Write a list of random things about your subject" inspired the journaling this time.

Journaling

the two of you were born exactly 4 months apart - Ethan on August 10th and Tyler on December 10th

you both have 2 middle names that are in memory of very special people

you both have an older sister

you are both very “punny”
(like super annoyingly so)

you are both gamers

random snapchats - enough said.

you are both sneaky and mischievous and we love you both SO very much

As always, here's some close ups of my page :

First, just a quick look at one of the boxes that I created for the middle section of the page. I used some 140 pound Vicki Boutin Foundations paper to create each box. I just cut random sizes and then scored each edge at 5/8ths. Then I folded up the edges, cutting out triangle pieces out of the corners. Then I used double sided tape around all of the edges to "stick" the boxes together. Finally I used thin pieces of lighter weight black cardstock around the outside edges to finish them off. Each box has a different black and white patterned paper in it.

I wanted to show you how very 3D this layout actually is! There are 5 (that's right, FIVE!!) layers of foam tape holding the smallest photo up over the boxes! Maybe it's too high, but I LOVE how it looks!

A closer look at my title work - I used rub on letters for the word "cousins", and the "through thick and thin" is a phrase sticker that fit perfectly with the theme of the page. I was inspired to make the rainbow of colours underneath the title by another crafter on Vicki Boutin's Mixed Media Community over on Facebook. I simply cut the acetate cover of the foundations paper to size, and glued it down! Simple, but striking!!

A closer look at some of the boxes.

And finally, here's where I hid the journaling. The "so much fun" tab can be used to lift the top layer up. In addition to my list, I printed some more pictures of my son and nephew together throughout the years. It's been so fun watching them grow up together!

Don't forget, if you play with this case and link up over at CSI using the Mr. Linky tool on the right-hand side, you'll be entered into the draw for prizes from our awesome sponsors pictured above!!

Thanks for popping by and checking out my page today!
I can't wait to see how you solve this case!!!