A Few Cards

I am a terrible hoarder.

There I've said it! I am frugal with paper, anyone who has been to one of my classes is likely to have at some point sighed with the realisation that I have asked them to gut paper from behind to make the most out of the supplies.

My craft room is filled with 12x12 baggies with the bits and pieces from left over ktis and then there is the huge box of scraps.

Well as I finished the last Virtual Crop class I decided that enough was enough and challenged myself to use up the remains of the kit making some cards rather than adding to the pile of left overs.

I rarely make cards. Mainly because I don't get as much crafting time as I would like and so I rather selfishly like to spend it making things for me to keep!!! However I decided to make some cards and remembered how much I enjoy it, it didn't take very long and I managed to use up most of the paper that I had left from the class kit. I actually made three cards but sent the third one to my uncle without photographing it first!

So none of them will win cardmaker of the year and that's not the point, I had fun making them, used up some paper that otherwise would be cluttering my craft room and not get used AND when I had a couple of birthdays I was able to send a handmade card.

Over on the ATDML # Create Facebook page we love to see your creations and if you have any cards then do upload and share, if you are one of our Virtual Crop customers do look at the leftovers in your kits and see if you can whip up a card or two with the remainder of the kit, it is remarkably satisfying!

Mixed Media - make your own background

I have been playing a lot more with my messy scrapbooking products including my inks, stamps and infusion stains. I see so many wonderful layouts where designers are making their own backgrounds and I wanted to have a play. What this meant was that instead of my usual three or four layouts for the ATDML gallery, which I make from the kits sent by Mel & Jill, I did six for March! It certainly makes your supplies stretch further that's for sure!

My adventure layout was the first I made where using a sheet of white cardstock and some watercolour paints and distress stains I made soft sweeps of blues, greens and greys across the page. What I learned from this is that I should have primed my paper first with a wash of Gesso to prevent the colours from seeping in to the cardstock and causing it to warp! (nothing however that a night with a album on top didn't flatten out for me!)

Once my page was dry I drew on my circles using plates, and cups and lids of different sizes. Next came some stamping of leaves using similar coloured inks so they didn't stand out too much but blended into the background. I then flicked some splats of ink and finally added some sprinkles of infusion stains for the darker, inkier patches.

This was my background completed and I then built up the rest of the page with my layered photo on tissue paper and then off-cuts of coordinating cardstock, held together with some tiny attacher staples for more interest. Small elements from the papers including words, anchors and envelopes and lots of doodling completed the page.

Journaling Prompts - April

Welcome back to the next instalment of our Journaling Prompts. I hope you have been enjoying them and that they are proving to be a useful and interesting way to change up your scrapbooking habits.

Don't forget that each month you can add your layouts in response to the prompts in the Journaling Prompts Gallery over on the ATDML # Create Facebook page.

This month's prompt is:

Choose and use a single word title and use the shape of the word as the main design feature on your layout. If desired add journaling in the white space around the word.

The word JOY served as the main title for the layout and the O offered me the perfect place to display my photo!

This Paige Evans die cut word AWESOME worked beautifully for photos of Izzy on a rollercoaster and was back filled with assorted papers and accented with a brightly coloured washi strip along the bottom.

Clean & Simple

I have always admired those who can scrap a beautiful clean, simple page (I bought Cathy Zielske's Clean & Simple Book and loved it) but I always struggle with needing to add a bit more here and there so I rarely manage to make a clean and simple page even if that is my purpose when I set out.

I cut this title on my silhouette probably about 2 years ago and I knew I wanted to use it with this photo - (I just love those eye lashes in the photo!!) However I have spent a long time faffing about not knowing what to do with it all.

In the end I had a firm word with myself, stuck down the title, added a strip of camera washi tape and added the photo. It felt like it needed more (of course it did I told you I can't keep it too clean and simple) so I added the heart to pick out the pink on Izzys top in the photo.

And then I made myself photograph it and file it away! I kind of love it but I am am afraid that if it is out on a desk I might add more and more.

In the interests of full disclosure I should confess that after I took the photo I did handwrite Isabelle - August 2014 above the photo on the right because I don't like to leave my layouts dateless!

It would be great to see your take on the Clean & Simple look, or perhaps try a style you love and admire but find hard to do. Don't forget to share what you are creating over on the ATDML # Create Facebook Page.

March Sketch Challenge

Hello, hello - Karen here with the March Sketch Challenge.

This is the sketch I have chosen this month .

And this is how I interpreted it.

I would love to see your take on the sketch so please post them on our Facebook page.

March Virtual Crop Class 3 with Ann

Banish those winter blues and don't look out of the window this afternoon! The weather here is sunny and warm along with the Hello Summer papers we are using for my class today. There is no snow!

Couple of summary pages for you today from me, nice and easy ones to pull together. I hope you enjoy them.

Instructions can be downloaded here and you sure don't have to have a kit to join in, just grab some coordinating papers and scraplift away from the images shown.

Have a great crafty day.

March Virtual Crop - Class 2 with Mel

Hello and welcome to the second class of this months virtual crop. I hope you are enjoying a cosy day of crafting, looking outside here we are experiencing very cold temperatures and the mini "Beast from the East" with yet more snow! To me that is a day that screams crafting.

My class kit featured the Bo Bunny Alora range, it is a collection which I have owned for a while and found that while I love the zingy zesty colour palette it can seem a little overwhelming so in my two layouts I tried to get that balance between letting those funky colours pop and sing but without the papers overpowering the photos.

To see both layouts and download the instructions click here.

Don't forget that you can share your creations over on the ATDML # Create Facebook page.

Come back at 2pm for the last class of the day with Ann Freeman.