Thursday 31 December 2015

Show Us Your Stuff December challenge!

Eeeeeeeek! I just realised I haven't shared this layout here, so I am just scraping it on the last day of the year!
This layout was created for the December challenge at Show Us Your Stuff, which is a sketch challenge designed by Chloe Nielsen. (You will find Chloe's sketch and all the details about this month's exciting prize HERE)

{Papers by Crate Paper}

I went on a bit of a layering binge on this one, but it was all so pretty! Crate Paper 'Confetti' papers & ephemera; Heidi Swapp wood veneer; gold glitter cardstock; resin flower; enamel dots...


More gorgeous layers, including a beautiful D-lish Scraps dip dyed tag and enamel dots...


And the 'awesome' script word flair is from D-lish Scraps too...

I loved this title. I made the # for it from some of my glitter card scraps, just to give it a bit more impact (and street cred!)




Thanks for stopping by today. If you are planning a final scrap session for 2015, then make this challenge the one you do! There are some really cool prizes up for grabs for our winner this month.
Til next time, happy new year - may it be filled with love, luck & laughter for us all! X

Tuesday 22 December 2015

Christmas Memories - Project Life Spread For Cocoa Vanilla Studio

Hi all!
Just popping in to share my last official project for Cocoa Vanilla Studio that was featured on the blog yesterday using the Tis the Season collection. With Christmas only a few days away, I have been feeling a little nostalgic, so I was inspired to create a Project Life spread featuring some photos of our first Christmas as a family of five.


Whilst I don't often venture into this style of scrapping, I had so many photos that I really wanted to document and this style of page made it easy! (I think there will be another page or two to come yet.)



Many of the Cocoa Vanilla Studio embellishments are perfect for this style of scrapping, as they sit relatively flat on the page. For my spread, I used die cut ephemera, accessory stickers, alphabet stickers, flair buttons and enamel dots. (You could also use sequins, wood veneer, lucky charms or little stars which are also available in this collection.) I added a couple of paper doilies and some cotton thread from my stash.
I used several of the papers from the collection, which I simply cut to size to fit the pockets.




A quick tip: don't forget that you can also embellish directly onto your photos - stickers and die cuts are ideal for this!




The Merry & Bright cut apart paper features several pieces that are ideal for slipping straight into 3x4" pockets.


For this card that went alongside my post-present aftermath photo, I simply printed an appropriate quote directly onto the mini postcard from the ephemera pack.


Thanks for stopping in today so I could share this with you.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank Zoe, my fellow Cocoa Vanilla design team girls, and all of you - for all the support, encouragement and friendship you have given me throughout the year. Wishing you and your families a very happy and safe Christmas!
Sue X

Thursday 10 December 2015

Hello Sunshine for Cocoa Vanilla Studio

Hi friends! A spot of catch up blogging from me today, and I am here to share my first layout featuring the brand new Hello Sunshine collection from Cocoa Vanilla Studio. I chose to scrap this photo of my daughter with her new friend at the beach, as it sums up exactly what this collection is all about - sunshine, fun, cute and colour! Just PERFECT for all those summer photos!


My starting point was the amazing paper I used for my base sheet - it's called Solar Flare, and I was drawn to it instantly. The title was easy - it came straight from the Summer Hits cut apart paper. Layered behind it is another piece from the same sheet, which I clustered together with a cute die cut sun and cloud from the ephemera pack. The sweet little heart is one of the brand new embellishments to the Cocoa Vanilla range - puffy stickers. (And boy, are they super cute!)


Also new to the Cocoa Vanilla embellishment range, are the Woodies. (I think these are going to be a personal favourite of mine!) These gorgeous little wood buttons feature epoxy centres with cute coordinating patterns and images. I layered this anchor one with pieces from the ephemera pack and added a round enamel shape. (There are 50 pieces in the pack including hearts and stars as well this time!)


More ephemera and another Woodie (I told you I loved them!) form this sweet cluster alongside my photo. And I love all the beautiful colours in the layered papers too! The tiny triangle print is from the Sunny Spot paper, and that divine floral is the Full Bloom paper.


I couldn't resist adding a touch more of the stunning floral print along the top edge of my layout. It served as a good grounding point for my journaling cluster as well. My journal tag came from the Summer Hits cut apart paper, and the sweet tab and hi there speech bubble were both from the ephemera pack.


Thanks for stopping by today. If you love what you see and would like to get some Hello Sunshine for yourself, it is available in the Cocoa Vanilla Studio store now. Alternatively, please ask your favourite scrapbooking retailer if they have it (and if they don't, ask them to order it in!)
Til next time, happy scrapping to you all! X

Tuesday 8 December 2015

Scrap the Boys December Challenge!

Hi friends! I hope this finds you all well and not too frazzled by the silly season...yet. Just popping in to share my take on the December challenge at Scrap the Boys, which is a nice, easy sketch designed by Rikki Graziani...


And here is my take on it...


The papers used on this layout are a mix of Crate Paper and Heidi Swapp, along with some torn strips of sheet music. After layering together all the "flat" parts of my design, I added some circles of messy machine stitching over the top to represent the circular element of the sketch.

Here's a closer look at the details...

{Die cut ephemera pieces by Shimelle and Heidi Swapp; stamp by Heidi Swapp}

{Flutterby Designs flair; ephemera by Heidi Swapp & Shimelle; Freckled Fawn wood chip arrow from D-lish Scraps}

{D-lish Scraps enamel dots and wood veneer heart}

{Flutterby Designs photo cut out tab; D-lish Scraps wood veneer star}

Thanks for stopping by so I could share this with you. Make sure you link up your entry on the Scrap the Boys blog by the end of the month to be in the running for one of THREE fabulous prizes! 
Til next time, happy scrapping! X

Thursday 3 December 2015

D-lish Scraps November Projects

Hi all! I hope this finds you all well as we head into the festive season? Just popping with a quick re-cap of some of my November projects I created for D-lish Scraps.

The first layout is one that I created based on the "After Five" Inspiration Board challenge, which featured a colour palette of black and white. Luckily, I had my Just Add Paper kit at hand, which was bursting with coordinating embellishments to make the job easy!

{Papers by Glitz Design and Bo Bunny}

Here's a closer look at some of the D-lish Scraps embellishments...

{Flair button, black coloured wire, paper doily, Freckled Fawn wood chip arrow, phrase strip cut from a Journal It's - Wordfetti sheet}

{Corbett Creations wood veneer word and diamond, more paper doily, sequin bow}

{Black diagonal stripe bitty bag; pieces from the JAP journal pack}


My second layout (which features a photo of my kids dressed up as fairies) is very different to the previous one - all pretty pastels, with lots of shiny silver accents.

{Papers by Prima}

I used so many gorgeous D-lish embellishments on this layout - I wonder if you can spot them all?

{Silver foil doily; paper flowers; silver coloured wire; layered feathers; Journal Its - arrow word tab; glitter washi tape; and silver punchinella}

{More silver foil doily and paper flowers; silver sequin bow; silver coloured wire}

{Grey tag; woodgrain print vellum bag; cotton twine; punchinella; Journal It's date tab}

{Flair button}

Thanks for stopping by today so I could share these with you. I will be back again soon to share some of my December projects with you.
Til then, happy scrapping! X

Friday 27 November 2015

Scrap the Boys November Challenge!

Hi all! Time for another DT share from me, and this one is for Scrap the Boys. This month's challenge at STB is a fun one (I certainly had plenty of photos for this one!) 


As soon as I saw it, I instantly thought of the TV show "Man Vs Food" and so I came up with this layout featuring a photo of Kaden destroying a cupcake... 


This layout was VERY unlike my usual style, so minimalist and graphic! But I love the result. The papers on this layout came from Studio Calico kits; the flair is from D-lish Scraps; the alphas were some old Bella Chipz I borrowed from my sister's stash; and I also popped on a couple of pieces of Heidi Swapp ephemera.
Fastest. Layout. Ever.
I couldn't believe how it all just fell together. What do you think?

If you haven't entered this month's challenge at Scrap the Boys yet, there is still time! Entries close 30th November, so get scrapping!
X

Monday 23 November 2015

All I want for Christmas for Cocoa Vanilla Studio

Hi all! Just popping in to share a new layout I created using the Tis the Season collection from Cocoa Vanilla Studio.

The photo in this layout was taken in 2013, when Brielle was 5 and the boys were 18 months. I was doing a mini shoot for our Christmas greeting photo for family and friends. I lost count of how many photos I took that day trying to get everyone to face forward with their hats on. In the end I gave up trying for the "perfect" picture and this was the one we used that year.


I started my layout with the Merry & Bright paper (which is actually the cut apart sheet, but I used the B side) as my base. I then layered this with a piece of the All is Bright paper as my focal point, as I liked the contrast of the stripes against the small spots. Layered on top of this was a vertical strip of the Jingle Bells paper and some of the Merry & Bright cut apart pieces. I also added some machine stitching for subtle texture.


The title block was created using pieces from the cut apart sheet, along with alphabet stickers, a die cut from the ephemera pack, and a wood veneer piece. I also machine stitched over the top of it and then added the word "memories" from the ephemera pack to my photo.


I wanted to maintain a sense of balance with the design of this layout, so I added clusters of similar items to the opposing corners surrounding my photo. Here, you can see how I layered some of the accessory stickers with wood veneer pieces and enamel dots.


I then used similar items (stickers, a die cut and wood veneer pieces) in the opposite corner to balance it out.
I finished the layout simply with a small cluster featuring a scalloped strip from the ephemera pack, a sticker, flair button and a couple of enamel dots.

Thanks for stopping by today and for all those wonderful people who take time to leave me comments, your kind words are very much appreciated!
Til next time, happy scrapping! X

Saturday 14 November 2015

Show Us Your Stuff November Challenge!

Hello lovely people! Back again today to share another of my November design team layouts with you. This one is for Show Us Your Stuff and this month's challenge looks like this...


And here is my spin on it...


I found this photo of my kids back when the boys were still rear facing in their carseats, and boy, am I glad I don't have them like that any more. It really was a squeeze getting them all in and out of there! The journal card I used was from the Crate Paper Open Book ephemera pack.


To cover the challenge criteria I used an Amy Tan map paper I had from the Rise & Shine collection as my base, along with some other pieces from the same collection in my layers. I also included a paper doily and some gold glitter cardstock die cut shapes I cut with my Big Shot.


I paired all of this with a flair from D-lish Scraps, some Heidi Swapp wood veneer pieces, Cocoa Vanilla Studio alphas and some cotton thread.


Last of all, I finished it off with a sprinkle of Heidi Swapp black Color Shine.


I am really happy with how this layout turned out, and that it's another everyday moment I managed to capture and document. (Time goes so quickly!)
Thanks for stopping by today, I hope I have inspired you to enter the challenge and put your own spin on the criteria.
Til next time, happy scrapping! X

Monday 9 November 2015

The Good Stuff - Life is Beautiful for Cocoa Vanilla Studio

Hi all!
Just popping in to share my layout that featured on the Cocoa Vanilla Studio blog over the weekend using the gorgeous Life Is Beautiful collection.

This layout features a photo of my partner and children that was taken on Fathers Day. (I love that Fathers Day provides me an excuse to get some posed shots of the four of them together - and he isn't allowed to object! hehe)


My aim when creating this layout was to try to achieve the right balance between the prettiness of the collection, whilst still maintaining enough of a masculine edge. In order to do this, I focused on the blue tones using the Heart Song and Blossoms papers, which I complimented with accents of orange.


To add to the masculine feel I was looking for, I decided to incorporate lots of wood veneer, which I layered with Accessory Stickers and pieces from the Die Cut Ephemera pack in a cascading effect beside my photo. I also included one of the coordinating Flair Buttons.


The title came from the Mixed Bag cut apart paper, and seemed the perfect sentiment to sum up my feelings about this photo. I used stickers and wood veneer pieces to draw the eye to it.


I often like to include embellishments featuring words on my layouts. I use these to provide subtle messages about my thoughts or feelings towards my subject, such as the way I have used the wood veneer pieces pictured below.


Thanks for stopping by today.
If you have used Life Is Beautiful (or any of the other Cocoa Vanilla Studio collections) to document your own moments, remember to share them with us! You can do so via the Facebook page, or on Instagram tag @cocoa_vanilla_studio and / or use the hashtag #cocoavanillastudio
Til next time, happy scrapping! X