Challenge yourself...

So I never want to look at my scrapbook and think "oh gosh it's all the same!". So every now and then I like to challenge myself, to use a new technique, or style or idea.

This time the challenge was to use plain cardstock and layer up! I rarely use plain cardstock, just because I love the patterned exciting papers. However, so many people do such beautiful layouts with plain cardstock, I wanted to try! I also don't always use that many layers, I over did it on this layout though, and found it really does make a fun layout.

SO I started by picking out all my orange and blue papers, embellishments and scraps I could find.

I started out with that plain background and then got to add some fun patterns and went from there...

Using the faithful doiley to add a bit of texture and yet another layer, I added two more plain colours and a strip of orange and blue flowers. The title was easy as this page was depicting our one campsite for our week holiday.

I used a frame for one photo, cut using a Grand Caliber and dies, with the a rub on saying "happy campers". It's all about the layers on this page but that doesn't stop from adding tiny little details such as the rub ons and the trusty washi tape. Basically it was one big experiment but it's turned out ok.

The summer and arrow cut out are from the cricut, it wasn't a die I had brought but instead one that just appeared on my craftroom program. I'm guessing they give out seasonal freebies that you can use for a trial period as I've had this summer cut out, plus others through out the year come and go. It's a really good program I recommend for cricut users, it has it's benefits such as reducing paper waste, allowing you to see other dies, and merging lettering together.

Anyway I'm up to 11 pages in the Isle of Man scrapbook, the aim is to finish it by Christmas...watch this space! This idea of challenging myself did help with inspiration, this page turned out quite well I think, and I had fun making it. I think, as crafters and in life in general, we should step out of our comfort zone and go for something totally different.

Doing this challenge has pushed me towards attempting others challenges, such as the hundreds of challenges published by other crafters and blogs as monthly competitions. Maybe I will have  a search for one soon!

For now, it's back to to the Isle of Man scrapbook and pushing out a few more layouts.

The map theme continues...

Hello!

Oh my goodness is being a full time teacher, time consuming! I'm exhausted and in need of a holiday already, Mr Gove you have no idea! I swear!

Anyway enough moaning and onto the crafting, it's been forever, but when I'm not posting I am still crafting my arse off so to speak!

It was my boyfriends birthday this week, and he is obsessed with maps. I mean seriously our living room has boxes and boxes of maps he is organizing at this very moment! So due to this there is a running theme of maps through my crafting and his birthday presents, or Christmas presents.

This year it came in the guise of a card:

The card is a plain brown square card, which I covered with a square of old map (one the boyfriend did not want anymore!!!) and then surrounded it with a washi tape, map print boarder. The lettering is outlined with metallic blue pro-marker.

He loved the card and it has pride of place in the middle along with a range of motorsport and other map themed cards! When we find something they love we tend to stick with it!

Here is my mums card for him, it's stand mum, huge, too big for the envelope but really well made and looks fab! Show off!

The 2013 Scrapbook!

So since 2011 I've been creating a scrapbook for each year, I've only just finished 2012 and my Ireland scrapbook (which I will show a few layouts from later!). So now it's time to start the 2013 scrapbook, and I am super excited!

Why?

1. Because the scrapbook I got for it is from ebay (£6.99 in a bidding war!) and it is my favourite one so far. It's created by Creative Imaginations and is leather bound with vintage map print on it, it's also 8x8 to continue the theme of 8x8 albums though I do miss 12x12. SO here it is 2013 scrapbook album.

When it comes to planning for the yearly scrapbooks there isn't much I do! I create one simple contents list for myself, eg. all the events/places/things I've done and then that becomes my holy grail!

So here is the first layout:

A cute title page, where I just went a little bit "Whatever" and had fun. There's no technical skills here, instead I used up little bits and pieces. My favourite idea was using the tiny strips of prints you get when you order photos as borders because it showed the whole year (or select events up to now!) on the title page, giving a good snapshot.

I also used some of my favourite lettering stickers that I buy from The Range, for  £1 but I'm sure you can find anywhere they are really great for bright, eye catching layouts, in my opinion.

The paper is by K&co, stupid 112, as is the owl sticker which matches the once 12x12 paper! I used a set of stamps from Carol's Crafts which I brought a while back (I know they go to a lot of UK craft shows and have a shop in Bristol) for the 2013.

Super simple layout but it's the start!

Here we go...

"I don't know about you but I'm feeling 22, you don't know about me, but I bet you want to..." 

So here goes, my first blog! I hope to base it around one of my favourite hobbies, scrapbooking, but I know like everyone else it will end up with a lot of little sneaky extras such as; baking, card making, craft reviews, book reviews, and general creativeness that I adore. 

A bit about me then. I'm 22, a high school teacher, from England. I have a degree in geography, so can colour in but can't draw to save my life.

I got into scrapbooking in my second year of university, though my mum is a huge crafter and I'm extremely jealous of her card making talents, not to mention all the other creative things she does. She got me into it and accompanies me to many a craft show. I decided to document all the wonderful things in my new relationship, and it ended up being a scrapbook. I have created one each year, and then one for the holidays I go on. 

I started off with one cute little 8x8 scrapbook,  a pack of plain 8x8 paper and a pack of flower paper(The brand name escapes my memory), all from WHSmith's. I look back at the 2011 scrapbook and still love it, granted if a scarpbooking goddess saw it she'd laugh but it means something to me. I guess I've definitely stepped up from two packs of paper, I have boxes of embellishments and huge piles of paper now that have to be placed under the bed, in our one bedroom flat. One day the dream is the have a spare bedroom we can convert into a craft room, cause right now my hobbies and my partners take up a lot of space! 

So there's a little about me. 

Why am I doing this blog? Because I want to share the crafting fun I have...obviously and hopefully share ideas and got a few as well!  From what I see in the crafting world, it's all about inspiring and sharing ideas.