Hybrid Scrapbooking - first entry in Random Album

Well if you read the post last Thursday, you'll know that these are print outs of a digital page.

I ended up printing two out because in the first attempt (on top in the picture here) I noticed that the word "Deep" was going to end up with a hole right through it when I put the rings in it to start my "Random" album!

So I printed another, once I had shifted the offending word over a bit.

So as I had two copies I decided to stick them back to back and make a pocket. I added some ribbon and buttons to embellish and below is the finished Hybrid page and tag - upon which I will write later!

The tag, by the way, was just some of the same digital patterned paper printed onto some cardstock.

Inspiration from Children's books

I was in the local library recently in the children's section with my daughter and came found this book on the shelf.

What caught my eye was the lovely illustration on the cover.


I really like Art Nouveau and these illustrations are akin to that sort of design.


Inside the double page layouts are sumptuous in their illustration, not only of the picture depicting the story, but also of the "frame" surrounding the main picture.

I have made some notes regarding the design elements of the illustrations in this book and plan to make a scrapbooking layout - maybe a double page layout (in the same way these are DPLs) - and, of course I will post the resulting layout when I have done.

I may also produce a ScrapBuddies sketch based on these lovely drawings too.

Scrapbooking animals

I love the title of this layout!

It's from the "A True Friend" blog and the post is about using a piece of music, or lyrics, or somg title to portray your pet.

What a great idea.

This layout is by Karen aka Scrapdolly. Great use of the song title "Bat out of Hell" by MeatLoaf (some Meatloaf graphics in the background I see!)

The "A True Friend" blog is a good one for pet lovers, lots of layouts including man's best friend, cats, and more... there is even a grey parot much Scrapbooked!

Now where's my dog.....

Scrapbooking Sayings

There are many phrases or quotes that are used a lot in Scrapbooking, not so much in cardmaking though.

One common one, which gets used on layouts of children or young people is:

Dare to Dream

This is one that was initially inspirational to me... then just familiar, but then I started to "think" about what it "actually" means.

Do you know what it actually means?

It doesn't just mean "think big", "go for your dreams", "follow your heart" and all that. It's the "Dare" part of the phrase that really calls in the attention!

We all dream of things we would like to have, but most of us never "believe" we can have them. And it's not the physicality of "how" we could get those things, or experience such things... it's much more likely to be because in our subconscious, we don't believe we "deserve" such things!

Think of something you REALLY want, and watch what pops up in your head! All sorts of obstacles as to why not, I'll wager! Have you ever said to yourself "Well exactly WHY can't I do... have... be?" whatever it is?

Try making a scrapbook page about something you really want, and call it "Dare to Dream", but this time... scrap it as if it is "already yours", write about it in the present tense, and be thankful you have it now.

The Dare doesn't refer to the Dream....

It refers to the BELIEF!

Try it... explore your feelings... it's enlightening I assure you!

Simple Digital Scrapbooking Page

This is a very simple 6x6 scrapbooking page!

Or so you would think!

It's a classic case of "simple when you know how"! LOL

On the back of the hybrid pages I made for the circle journal (see Monday and Tuesday's posts) I decided that my pictures were a bit "washed out" once I had "Blended" them with the background paper.

So I decided to have another go and chose some patterned paper by Amy Teets "Sunporch" collection and this picture of my husband, Miles!

I googled for some more Photoshop Elements tutorials (good old Google, now a verb!) and found this tutorial from Photoshopessentials.com.

This information, couple with that from a tutorial from ScrapGirls I managed to work out why my pictures hadn't been clear and managed this layout with a clear image of my hubby's face, gently blended into the patterned paper.

I have printed it out and will embellish a little - thereby it will become a hybrid scrapbooking page. I am then using it to start a "Random Images" album, of no particular size thanks to the idea from Ali Edwards (see this post).

Pep up your photographs for your scrapbooking layouts

I came across a website which is great for tips on taking, and using great photos.

It's called http://photojojo.com/ and is an amusing read... below is an excerpt. It is actually a free subscription newsletter site, but you can check out the archives.

Here's an amusing entry...

How To Take Group Photos That Rawk!


The goggling stares. The stiff, tortured stances. The false grins. The symptoms are all there.
You’ve got a bad case of Group Photo.
Fear not! Dr. Jojo, photoologist, at your service. And I’ve got a patent-pending, never-fail, miracle cure that’ll have you taking happy, fun group portraits whenever you want!
Here’s how:

Step 1: Set the timer on your camera. Make it short, like ten seconds.
Step 2: Arrange everybody in your shot, making the sure the camera’s zoomed out enough so you won’t cut off anybody’s head.
Step 3: Here’s the tricky part: have everybody that’s going to be in the photo come around behind the camera.
(Except Great Aunt Lily who don’t move so good. She can stay.)
Step 4: Ready? Press the button! Now everybody has to run to get into the photo before the timer goes off. Yikes! Hurry!
Now wasn’t that fun? And we can almost guarantee you’ve got a picture of smiling people actually enjoying themselves. Maybe even injuring themselves!

Now if you can just convince them all to do it one more time...

Circle Journal - "The Little Things" - my pages continued

Ok, here are the close ups of the pages, and... a picture of the tag used in the sign in page.

You can now see more clearly that the tag on the left hand page has been printed and then cut out, adding flowers, brad and ribbon.

On the right hand page I included the text onto a digital journaling piece of paper. I added a drop shadow to this, so even now, in the photograph here, it's still difficult to see that it is actually part of the background image on the layout.

The photographs I "blended" into the patterned paper... thanks to a tutorial at ScrapGirls about "layer Masks" using Photoshop Elements.

What they were blending in the example wasn't quite the same as what I was trying to use, so my pictures are not as crisp as I would like, but the general effect was achieved.

I have since found another tutorial useful, a link to which I will post shortly with another quick digital scrapbooking page I have made recently, specifically to work out how to blend properly!!!

The tag (which is added to the "sign in" pages at the back of the circle journal) was made in the same hybrid way. But this time I changed the texts on the oval tag element and printed it as part of the background!

Circle Journal - "The Little Things" - my pages

I finished my double page layout for the last Circle Journal in my group.


Again, it's something that turned out unexpectedly nice! LOL


I did indeed decide to attempt some more hybrid scrapbooking and this is the result!


The digi part is the background paper merged with a photo on each page. And the journaling paper on the right hand page is also digital.


The oval tag on the left page is a digital element onto which I placed the title for the DPS, but I printed it separately and cut it out, to then embellish and adhere to the layout using foam pads.

The journaling reads...

Little Things that Lift My Heart
To just watch the wildlife in the garden - oh to be
absorbed by the simplicity of the moment.To experience the calm and serenity of
gazing upon fish slowly gliding through clear waters.To see raindrops on roses
and to smell their perfume, which seems that much sweeter when they are picked
from one’s own garden.To be outside on a still warm summer’s night and gaze at
the stars.To hear the first song of the Skylark in Spring, singing of the
certainty that summer is on it’s way.
Such things I am grateful for now and always.

Now I was going to list all the items I have used here but the papers and elements have cryptic file names and I can't remember from where I bought/downloaded them... so apologies to the designers! And maybe some designers names in the file names wouldn't go amiss!

I will have to make sure I rename the files (if necessary) when I separate the kits next time!


More detailed pics tomorrow.

Card Maker's Blog

Scrapbook Inspirations magazine slapped onto my door mat yesterday morning!

Hooray I said... ooh I can look at that while I drink my tea this morning!

Ah... well that didn't work very well... things like "the" daughter meant I snatched a glimpse of the content of this months issue, in between getting a drink, sorting out snacks and generally getting sidetracked.

However, I have had a chance to look at it for a bit longer now and like to check out their blog recommendations.

One of them is http://lilybeanpaperie.typepad.com/ and is for card makers mostly. But many of the processes for cardmaking are the same as for us scrapbooking people! I was going to say "ladies" then... but there are a few men that partake!!! Don't like to leave them out! LOL

Anyway, worth taking a look at Melissa Phillips' blog

Great Mini Album idea

On my travels over the web recently I came across a blog which had a great idea for a mini album. It's Ali Edwards blog.

The reason I think it's great is because it uses up scraps... yay... we like ideas on that subject, don't we!

Show me a scrapper without a big heap of scraps, and I'll show you someone who's hiding it all somewhere! LOL

Anyway, Ali's blog is particularly good, lots to look at and lots of inspiration.

Scrapbooking "The Secret"

A while ago, I spoke about "The Secret" (See this post) - it's about the "Law of Attraction" - in other words... what you focus on you get! and it doesn't matter whether you focus on good or bad things (or lack of things) that is what you get come into your life.

So it makes sense for us to focus on good things... right?!

Good things mean all those things we like and love, everything from the beauty of nature to the appreciation when someone has done something for you, even if it's just making a cup of tea for you!

And Scrapbooking pages or even albums are a great way to show this.

I will be posting various pages, large and small, over the coming weeks, just random pages I make showing my appreciation for the things/moments/people/places in my life.

I hope that it will inspire you to do the same, because when we focus on the good things around us, it does make us notice lots of other things to be grateful for... I know this from experience!

The first pages to be produced will be a double page layout for a circle journal which is entitled "The Little Things"... and the rose in the photograph here (plucked from the bush in the front garden on Tuesday) will feature in those pages... Hmmmm... I think I may even do some Hybrid Scrapbooking for these pages too... watch this space.

By the way, last year there was a workshop/blog set up for about 6 weeks all about Scrapbooking the Secret - you might like to check it out.

Scrapbooking... it's all in the journaling

I posted my last scrapbooking layout on the UK Scrappers site yesterday and a fellow member left the comment...

"This is great........I particularly love your journaling!!! After all, isn't the journaling and the photos what it's really all about?"

How right this lady is!

I wasn't sure about doing pages about my feelings towards my, for, or about my daughter because I wrestle with them in my mind and maybe I shouldn't make them public, in the way of a published scrapbook page layout!

But scrappers all over the world do, and actually after I read this lady's comment it reminded me that I enjoy reading other's inner most thoughts and feelings, and far from judging them harshly as I suspected I might be, I often feel a kindred spirit. Their journaling being somewhat moving emotionally.

So I made the decision that I will indeed do more pages about how I feel as there must be others out there who, like me, cannot "gush" over their offspring, or anything else for that matter.

I personally find it difficult to show my feelings, something I am working on, but maybe being honest on my pages with my journaling means I can use all those hundreds of pictures I have of my daughter, and maybe in time, when she is older, she will come to understand her mother a little better.

Scrapbooking Page Layout - My Hope

In my continuing quest to complete some of the pages I have either half done, or just "put ideas together" into a folder, I finished this one Monday night!

The smaller of the picture was already framed by an embellished card, and it was that which I was trying to "work around".

I looked up at the papers and the framed photo in it's "to do" bag and thought... "nope, I just don't like that frame... it has got to go!"

So I ripped it (carefully) out of its surroundings and made up the page you see here.

This is another Layout that has been waiting for a long time to be "done"!

The journaling says...

My Hope

…for you, is actually a hope for me!
It is the hope that I am able to teach you the life skills that I myself am only just discovering.
I so want to give you an advantage which wasn’t open to me as a child.
These are not the skills of how to cook, or how to sew, but skills of how to create the world around you, to be happy and follow your passion whatever that turns out to be.
As an adult I am struggling through years of ingrained negativity, but I truly hope, my love, that if I start to try to teach you when you are young it will become second nature by the time you are a young woman and will help you for the rest of the your life.

Prompts for scrapbooking pages

Here is a link to a page which has a weekly "prompt".

For those of you who don't know what that is, A "prompt" is a "starter" for a project, usually a page layout (although in this case for cards) which acts in the same was a a set challenge. It is to get you started in a focused direction, rather than just sitting there wondering what to do next! We all need a direction and this is one way!

The prompts are actually for ATCs (Artist's Trading Cards), but these prompts are just as good for Scrapbooking pages, be they 4" or 12" in size.

You may like to make up a 6x6" page for each prompt and place them all in a a mini album just by putting a couple of book rings through them.

I know it's June but here's a Christmas Album!

Yes Yes, I know... the sun is shining, the sky is blue...well it is somewhere, right! LOL

Anyway, despite all that lovely summery stuff, I have just finished (yesterday) a Christmas 6x6" album which I started last year! It then went on the back burner as the mojo for it left me.

The mojo hasn't really returned, but I'm on a bit of a...

"Clear up the unfinished stuff first" quest, so I 'made' myself finish this!

So I kept it simple, which is actually hard for me! I find myself often falling into the time consuming trap of "over doing" stuff.

I think the main problem I had with this album was my choice of papers, etc (which was actually a summery kit) wasn't the best choice as the colours were odd for Christmas. However, it's done now and I can move onto the next scrapbooking page idea that has been hanging in it's "LAYOUT TO DO" folder on my wall!

Father's Day, for us a day of firsts!

This is the card Honey made for her Daddy! I wish I had been able to make use of all those sparkly bits when I was 4 years old!

However, the firsts were not to do with this card, indeed they are nothing to do with father's day really!

No... the first "first" was the achievement of the milestone of Honey riding her bicycle without stabilisers for the first time!

The second "first" (!) was that she went to a swimming pool in this country and had a play around! Doesn't sound too great that last one, but the only time Honey gets to go swimming (up until today) has been by getting on a plane and spending a week at a hotel in Majorca!

I think she was thinking that you had to do that every time she wanted to swim!

Anyway, it was good for her... she went in with her Daddy of course and Daddy helped her with her bike riding achievement so I suppose he had a good Father's Day after all!

Printables

I was looking for something to do with digital scrapbooking last night and came across a site which has a lot of "printables".

For those of you who don't know what that is, it's where you can download a file (usually a Jpeg) that you can just print out using your own printer, then cut out and make up a craft project of some sort.

This particular site seems to have a large amount of printables (there are lots of other products too) and there are lots of different types or printables, from straight forward cards through to complex boxes and whole kits, such as party kits to include invitations, labels, thank you notes and more... check out the site, It's called daisiecompany.com

And, if the files are jpegs... this means that you can easily insert the files onto a page in something like Word, you don't have to use a photographic program. And even in a word processor you can use a text box to personalise items before printing them!

A different way to ride

Last weekend my daughter, Honey, had a "vaulting" lesson!

Yes, she is only 4!

But she did love it so! She wanted to canter on a horse and, because she is not that practised at riding yet, the only way to achieve that goal was to put on a horse "with" somebody.

So a vaulting lesson it was! She had a ball!

She did all sorts of fun things, like cantering without holding on (as in the picture) and dismounting over the horses bottom (!) and riding the horse backwards, along with the more gymnastic (circus act type stuff) such as kneeling and standing on a moving horse!

I actually fancied having a go myself! And the weather was great too!

Big Bertha, the horse, was very well behaved and patient and the teacher and her young assistant were caring and attentive of Honey... so well done again to Pakefield Riding School in Lowestoft!

ScrapBuddies Sketch 3 Finished layout

Ah... bubbles, it's a kid thing isn't it?! A popular theme for a scapbooking page or 5!

But there comes a time in a scrapbooker's life when... well you just can't resist the temptation any more!

At least mine is a little different as the pictures are of my daughter playing with bubbles in the garden, as opposed to having a bubble bath.

Not that such layouts are not wonderful... I just like to try to be a little different!

Paper from "Dazzle Circles" by Paper Adventure and the velum circles are cut with an X-Cut Circle cutter from a 6x6 velum pack by Dovecraft.

Sticky Dots to the rescue

For those of you with children already, you will probably identify with what I am about to say..!

For those of you who are yet to partake of the wonders of parenthood (hmmm, maybe a teensy bit of sarcasm there! LOL), take heed of this 'ere warnin'!!

Don't get rid of your stash when the kids come along... you're gonna need it!!!

My daughter was given a children's magazine by her auntie and within it's bright colourful pages was a die cut racing car. My daughter of course, wanted to make it, and for the most part it was ok, but very fiddly, and needed sticky tape to stop it all springing apart while you tried to put the next "tab A in slot B" sort of thing!

Well, luckily for me it was bathtime for daughter just before we embarked on the wheels (daddy does the baths!), so I continued without her as they looked a bit fiddly... well there was an understatement!

The instructions called for some sticky tape, but there is no way these wheel would have stayed together without the use of my sticky dots!

I had to put sticky dots on all the tabs around the circumference of the wheel in order to keep them from sliding straight out of the treads before I had even managed to get the requested sticky tape anywhere near them!

There is no way that a older child would have successfully made these wheels, let alone a 4 year old!

I wouldn't mind but I have never even heard of "Roary" the Racing car!!!!!

So be warned... you'll need your scrapbooking tools for all sorts of things... this isn't the first time my crafting equipment has come to the rescue!

Denim Greetings Card

This is a card I have made using the material from a girls skirt I found in a charity shop for 50P!

I actually bought the skirt because of the lovely embroidery all around the hem of the skirt. But when I was cutting up the material I thought I could make use of the front of the garment and this is the result.

I did rather make it up as I went along!

The middle picture shows the pencil marks I made on the front of the card so that I could then make holes through the card before starting to sew.

You may wonder why I didn't just sew the material onto another piece of card and then stick that onto the greetings card blank! Well the reason I didn't was because I wanted the higgledy piggledy sewing to show through on the inside of the card. (bottom pic)

When I have a recipient in mind I will put the greeting, or some quote or other within the stitches, thereby using it as a frame.

You see there is always a method in my madness! LOL

A trick for handwritten journaling

Here is a tip for getting large handwriting onto your layouts.

If, like me, your natural handwriting style is to scribe with quite large letters, try writing onto a larger piece of paper - placing some lined guides underneath to help - and write in your normal style.

When you are finished, make a photocopy of your journaling and reduce it's size. Most 3-in-1 printers have this facility. Just use the program on your PC (the one which will have come with your printer) and reduce the size down.

In the photograph here, there is my original handwriting at the top and the photocopy at 50% reduction at the bottom. I have placed a pen in the picture to give you an idea of size.

Also, you can use this technique for printing your handwriting onto any coloured paper or card that you can fit through your printer. This is great if you are nervous of writing onto "good paper".

And... wait there's more!... you can use your scanner to scan in your handwritten piece and use the scan on a digital scrapbooking page!

Scrapbooking stats! Amazing figures!

I was interested to find out the following facts and figures regarding our Industry... because that is what it has become... a huge industry. Here is a link to some information gathered from surveys run a few years ago now, but the industry is still expanding so the figures are probably more mind boggling now!

These are stats for the United States... has there been a proper survey for the UK, I wonder?

Scrapbook Inspirations magazine ran one last year, but only within scrapbooking itself, ie, it's readers, so there are no figures for how many households in the UK may scrapbook, for instance.

Still this article gives you an idea...


Scrapbooking Industry Statistics Reveal a Growing Phenomenon
Did you know that Mark Twain was an avid scrapbooker? Although scrapbooking has been around for centuries, the hobby continues to grow in popularity. Some people attribute the increased interest in scrapbooking to a renewed passion for genealogy, while others say it’s a natural outlet for people who are interested in photography and graphic design to express their creativity. The widespread available of digital cameras may also play a part in promoting scrapbooking, since Americans now take more than 30 billion photos per year.

For evidence of the increased interest in scrapbooking, consider the following facts. ... MORE>

Making use of those "dodgy" cards

This is an anniversay card I made this week. Just a bit of a collage thing going on there!

However... this isn't the "dodgy" card (even if I do say so myself LOL!)

No the picture below is the dodgy card, and with it the album it came in.

I liked the album design, it had pockets inside for each month and holds 2 cards per month and cost £4.99, thereby I calculate that each card (of varying sizes) costs just 20p including the matching envelope!

Firstly the cardstock quality is up there, if not a little better than the standard card blanks you can buy for the same or less, and of course you're getting the holder.

It's just that the pictures on them - this particular set anyway - are so boring I yawn just looking at them! LOL

So, I am using them as card blanks, they have no words inside so are truly versatile, they have the matching envelope and often I completely cover the front of my cards with patterned paper and such anyway.

These particular cards all have a white border around the front image so, as with the anniversary card above I have made use of that.

On the back of this type of card there is often a thumbnail print of the front picture and the copyright details, etc. As you can see in the final pic... I just cover the text and graphic with some paper!

If I was really sorted, I could make up all 24 cards in advance and place them back in the pockets provided in the album... but I'm not sorted... so I won't be doing that then! LOL

Father's Day...it's close

Ah, it's that time again in the UK calendar when all us mum's have to organise our little and sometimes not so little ones to make, buy or "do" something for Daddy, Dad, Father, 'Im indoors!

So to help those of you who actually make the effort to create a handmade little something for your dad, here are some quotes you may find useful.

I found these on the Scrapbook-crazy.com site:

• My dad can beat up your dad!
• For many people, God is just Dad with a mask on.
• The most important thing a father can do for his children is to love their mother
• Every boy's father should be his hero When a father gives to his son, both laugh;
• When a daughter first meets her father, she makes room in her heart for the first significant man in her life; she becomes Daddy’s little girl. - From the book “Daddies & daughters” by Carmen Renee Berry
• You don't raise heroes; you raise sons. And if you treat them like sons, they'll turn out to be heroes, even if it's just in your own eyes. - Walter Schirra Sr.
• We can't all be heroes because somebody has to sit on the curb and clap as they go by. - Will Rogers
• The great man is he who does not lose his childs heart - Mencius
• I'm so lucky as can be, the world's greatest Dad belongs to me. - unknown
• Blessed indeed is the man who hears many gentle voices call him father.
  - Lyndia M. Child
• A man finds out what is meant by a spitting image when he tries to feed cereal to his infant. - Imogene Fey
• A father is someone you look up to, no matter how tall you are. - unknown
• A day with dad - priceless!!
• A father is a banker provided by nature. - French proverb
• A man never stands as tall as when he kneels to help a child. - unknown
• My father didn't tell me how to live; he lived and let me watch him do it. - Clarence Budington Kelland
• Nothing is as strong as gentleness, Nothing is as gentle as real strength
• A legend in his own mind.
• A father - the most important man in a child's life
• Dad knows best, but no one listens
• My fingers may be small... but I can still wrap my dad around them
• The wisdom of a father
• Life doesn't come with an instruction book - that's why we have fathers.
• Like father, like son
• A fathers love is not a duty, to him it's a privilege
• Anyone can be a Daddy, but it takes someone reallyspecial to be a father. - Unknown
• My dad, My hero
• Dad - a sons first hero, a daughters first love
• A father's love is like a rainbow - you can never find it's end.
• By the time a man realizes that maybe his father was right, he usually has a son who thinks he's wrong. - Charles Wadsworth
• A truly rich man is one whose children run into his arms when his hands are empty.
• Anyone can be a father, it takes someone special to be a dad.
• Dad's the boss, mom said so.
• Father's day is when the whole family takes time out to remember the forgotten man

Photo Stamps - exquisite!

This is card made by Jak Heath, and it's from her blog Crafters Kitchen.

What caught my eye was the photograph... well it isn't a photograph... it's a STAMP! Yes both the images on this card are stamped images.

How fantastic is that!

This particular one is from a company called The Stampsmith, but they are avialable in online shops, just google the name Stampsmith and some retailers should surface! Graphicus for instance.

The image here ("Maude) is available for £4.95 and is 3.25" x 2.5". I believe all of these are unmounted rubber stamps (hence the inexpensce price tag for such quality detail) although you can get mounted ones, but why bother!

Exquisite... am writing out my list as we speak!

Another EASY way to record your Stamps

Yesterday, I explained a way of recording what stamps you have in your stash by actually stamping the images.

Well here is another way of doing a similar thing.

Photocopy your stamps!

A lot of us have 3-in-one printers nowadays, and this technique is really only for those with easy access to a photocopier.

The photo here shows the actual stamps in their packaging on the right and the photocopied image on the left. It may have been worth taking them out of the cellophane wrapping to avoid the reflection, but by photocopying the packaging I will know what sort of packet I am looking for when I start to rummage!

Another point to remember about this way of doing things is that the stamps pictured have a printed acrylic sheet to which the stamps are stuck! The stamps themselves, being clear, don't photocopy that well! Used clear stamps with residue ink still on them can, however, provide a clear enough photocopied image.

But this is a good technique for the solid rubber unmounted stamps too, such as "See D's".

One EASY way to know what stamps you have!

How many stamps do you have? Do you know?

Can you remember what all your stamps look like?

Have they been tucked away somewhere and rarely see the light of day, so you have forgotten what you have?

Well, a solution to that little dilemma is to "Stamp your Stamps"!

Make a stamped image of all your stamps onto pieces of A4 (or 8.5 x 11") and then you can place the paper into a folder (or just clip them together) and keep that handy so that you can see quickly and easily what you have. Once you decide on the stamp(s) you want... then you can play "hunt the stamp" LOL.

If you have your stamps in difference places, ie, "box 1.", "box 2.", etc, you can easily write a note on the sheets of stamped paper about the whereabouts of each the stamps for ease of retrieval!

The stamped images do not have to be perfect, they are literally to give you an idea of what the image is and how big it is!

The photograph shows a some stamps (Anna Griffin) still on their background acrylic storage sheet. All I did was roughly ink up all 5 stamps at the same time and then just make a rough print. If I wanted to I could have filled the whole of the sheet of paper.

This is great for alphabets too... especially as you can see what the actual size is straight away and can "offer up" the printed sheets to a scrapbooking page-in-progress to check a stamp's suitability before the rummaging begins!

Crafty Storage!

This is a link to a blog all about storage... for crafters - craftystorage.blogspot.com

Now some of it is "how to make your own..." sort of thing, but some of the posts on this blog show photographs of some crafter's craft spaces which are mind-blowing. I think our friends in the US would use the word "awesome!".

This particular post... well just go take a look. The owner of this craft room has thousands of dollars wrapped up in her stash!

However, talking of storage... I will soon be launching My Step-by-Step full colour guide "How to make your own Ribbon Storage System virtually free!" It's the simple to make, use and take anywhere way to store your ribbons...

So Watch this Space!

ScrapBuddies Sketch number 3

Here is the next ScrapBuddies sketch for you all.

It's got a circular theme, and these can be anything from hand drawn lines - to the patterned paper having circles already on it - to cutting out circles to layer ocer the background paper!

I m already working on this one, and my theme is that of "Bubbles", but it has nothing to do with babies in baths, which is the usual sort of photo you would find on a layout of that theme... am I right?

If you haven't seen the other ScrapBuddies Sketches yet, then the quickest way to keep an eye is to scroll down to almost the bottom of this blog where you will find on the left hand side, a list of what are called "labels". It's a bit like an index of the whole blog really.

Click the "ScrapBuddies Sketch Series" and you will be taken to a page with all the sketches - one underneath the other. And this will include any finished pages that I have posted which have been created from the sketches.

I hope you enjoy the sketch.