New blog!

It's time to make it official: I started a brand new website called Paint It Bright! So make sure to head over there to see what I am up too. I am slowly transferring the old photos over there so please be patient if some of the content isn't showing up. I will keep this blog here for reference but won't be posting any new content, nor fixing the broken images. So head on over to Paint It Bright - I'll see you there!

Kill My Studio Calico Kit: June 2016- Film Club

Hello and welcome back for another month of Kill My Studio Calico Kit! This is the 14th installment of this series, and in total I have made a whopping (151) layouts. Yay me!

Kill my Studio Calico kit is a monthly series I started on my blog to hold myself accountable and use up my kits. You can subscribe to the Studio Calico Scrapbook kit here.

This month I'm using the Studio Calico scrapbook main kit for June 2016, Scout ($34.99 - but I got it when it went for sale for $10).

Notes: I really, really love the kit this month! I loved every single embellishment and found them easy to use,  I also loved the papers, especially the back sides not shown in this photo, except for a couple that were a bit too busy and harder to use. The stamp is great, I love the transparent pieces, chipboard stars, and the gold script words. I loved the specialty paper with the gold foiled constellations! Since I bought the kit on sale it didn't include the large alpha, but I am never a fan of those.

Status: killed!
I made 11 layouts (6 12"x12", 5 8.5"x11"), for a total of $10, or $0.91/page. I supplemented the kit with some items from my stash (stamps, ink sprays, and the odd embellishment). Here's a roundup of all the pages I made:

And here is what I have left:

Leftovers: I have some scraps of paper left, some alpha stickers and chipboard stars, and washi tape. Pretty much killed!

And here is what I made with the kit.

I made a process video for this page, and you can see it here.

I had so much fun making the background for this page! I recently bought ten colors of the Dylusions ink sprays by Ranger, and they are awesome! They blend incredibly well when you add a bit of water, and I love the vivid colors! So as soon as I got them, I made this background to try them out.

I love how this page turned out - I made it to celebrate our 10th wedding anniversary.  I used ten puffy stars, one for each year of marriage, and a bunch of other stars for the years we have ahead. I backed the wood veneer star embellishment with card stock that I misted pink, so it stands out more.

I used the cooler tones of the pretty watercolored labels to add some interest to this page from our trip to Hawaii. I miss this place!! I also added some stamping but it's hard to see that in the photo.

I love how the specialty paper pops against the kraft background! And yay me for using up some of those pink alpha stickers I'd bought in a sale and never used! :)

I had some more fun with the Dylusions ink sprays by Ranger. Also, I used Distress Oxide ink for stamping on the wood veneer and I love how well it worked - no feathering!

Here I added some tags I die cut from leftovers of the previous page - mopping up the excess Dylusions ink sprays by Ranger. And also some embossing on the background.

More leftovers of Dylusions ink sprays by Ranger - I LOVE how this page turned out!

Bunnies are pretty much my favorite thing ever. :) I'm so happy this cutie is hanging out in our backyard this year! I was out of "n"s so I turned two "u"s upside down instead for the title.

This was my favorite paper in the kit and I really wanted to hoard it, but I ended up using it on this page and I'm so glad I did because I love it! And I did some more stamping on wood using  Distress Oxide ink.

On the other hand, this was my least favorite page of the kit, so I'm very proud of myself for using some of it! I cut it into strips and I like the look.

And that's it! Another kit killed! Thanks for stopping by, and do leave me a comment if you like this series!

You can subscribe to the Studio Calico Scrapbook kit here.

The Struggle Is Real

Hello and happy almost Friday! The new Mixed Media Monthly collection is in the store at The Lilypad, and it inspired me to tell a story about my health struggles I don't normally document in my scrapbook pages - that's one of the reasons I LOVE the Mixed Media Monthly products. But the main reason is that the products are absolutely gorgeous... check out that painted background!

Credits:

Mixed Media Monthly - June '17 from The Lilypad

Have a great rest of the week!

Weekly Sale at The Lilypad

Hello and happy Wednesday! I'm in between two work trips this week so I've been doing some catching up on the many photos I have to scrap from the past few weeks, and here are two pages I made using some of the products that are 50% off today at The Lilypad:

Credits:
Press Play 01 templates by Lynne-Marie
RSVP bundle by Lynne-Marie

I added some touches of blue to the page to match my photo, and I love how it turned out!

Storyteller 2016 :: No 1 Dad - June Add-on by Just Jaimee and Two Tiny Turtles

Here I added a pink accent to match my shirt.

Sakuralala 365: FRIENDS - Cat & Dog

The two latest stamp sets at Sakuralala are cat- and dog-themed, and I find them 100% adorable!
I used the 365: FRIENDS - Cat stamp to embellish this spread in my weekly traveler's notebook:

With the 365: FRIENDS - Dog stamp, I made a 12"x12" scrapbook page:

These stamps are just too cute!

Here are some more details.

So fun!

I also shot a process video of this page, you can check it out here:

Have a great rest of the weekend!

Jenn Barrette Is Back!!!!

I am thrilled to share the news that Jenn Barrette is back to designing after a couple years' hiatus! Boy have I missed her designs!! And she is now back with a focus on illustrated designs - just my cup of tea!  You can find her shop at Sweet Shoppe Designs.

I am in the middle of a crazy busy time (lots of work trips coming up) but I just had to make the time to use a couple of her new kits! I love them!

Credits:

You're So Prickly by Jenn Barrette

I used this adorable succulent-themed kit to make a page about Hawaii - why not?! :) I love all those floral embellishments!

Credits:

Bro Squad Kit by Jenn Barrette, Shawna Clingerman and Studio Basic

This kit was so fun to use! I realized I had the perfect photo for it! :)

June BYOC at The Lilypad

Hello and happy June! I have a busy month ahead, with lots of travel, but I'm still scrapping my mom's visit. The products in the new BYOC in the store at The Lilypad were perfect!

Credits:

Sea Glass {Dressed Down} Templates by Fiddle-dee-dee Designs

Origin Papers and Origin Elements by One Little Bird

Evening Glow: Elements by Kristin Aagard

I am also anxiously awaiting for my first peonies to bloom!

Credits:

Sprout Paper Pack and Sprout Elements by Lynn Grieveson

Evening Glow: Elements by Kristin Aagard

Happy Friday, and have a great weekend!

May Adventures

We had my mom visiting for 10 days in May. We had such a great time! She left on Tuesday, and I'm already looking forward to our next get-together. Of course I took lots of photos, and I started scrapping some with the newest releases at The Lilypad:

Credits:

Stick With Me | Collection by Sabrina’s Creations

This month's Memory Pockets Monthly collection is so much fun! And it was perfect to start documenting our little adventures!

Credits:

Memory Pockets Monthly: Curious from The Lilypad

Have a great weekend!

Foxy Fix Moccasin Sandstone

Nearly a month ago I received my latest Foxy Fix notebook cover. And it is my absolute favorite!!
Unlike my previous 3 covers, which were couture with pockets, this one is a single, #3 size, with stitching and gold foil embossing on the spine.

Here is the inside:

The single notebook cover comes with only one elastic, but they also sent me a jump band that I can use to fit two additional notebooks.

The moccasin leather is super soft, and I couldn't love this notebook more! It's also a great size -  it's size #3, which is A6.
Here's my round up of Foxy Fix notebooks:

Left to right: #6 Sugar Grapefruit, #3 Mocassin Sandstone, #1 Mocassin Tiger Lily, #0 Sugar Lemon Drop (this color is discontinued).

I use the #1 as my wallet, and the #0 to hold loyalty cards, etc. The #3 holds a notebook for everyday notes. And the #6 is holds my traveler's notebook inserts.

All notebooks except the Moccasin Sandstone are couture (i.e., they hold 4+ inserts, and come with reinforced spine for these leathers). I love that look, but I found out that the couture is a tad too big for my taste - the single size suits me much better!

I chose foil embossing on the spine of all my notebooks: gold on all, except for the Tiger Lily, which has silver.

If you want to make a purchase at Foxy Fix, you will get 10% off your first order (above $50) if you use my referral link.
I haven't decided yet what my next Foxy Fix purchase will be, but I am eyeing a Moccasin Raven (black) - even though I always opt for color, the softness of the Moccasin leather may push me over. And today, Foxy Fix launched ring planners!  So many pretty options!

And you can read about & see more pictures of my first purchase (#0 and #1 sizes) here, and my second purchase (#6 size) here.

Kill My Studio Calico Kit: Apri - Film Club

Hello and welcome back for another month of Kill My Studio Calico Kit! This is the 13th installment of this series, and in total I have made a whopping (140) layouts. Yay me!
This month I got the Studio Calico scrapbook main kit, Film Club ($34.99 - and only $5 with a promotion that started that month with the code SCKIT5).

Notes: I really love the colors this month, and the epoxy stickers. The rest of the embellishments were a bit hard to work with at first, but I made them all work in the end.

Kill my Studio Calico kit is a monthly series I started on my blog to hold myself accountable and use up my kits. You can subscribe to the Studio Calico Scrapbook kit here.

Status: killed!
I made 10 layouts (7 12"x12", 2 8.5"x11", 1 9"x12"), for a total of $5, or $0.5/page. I supplemented the kit with some embellishments from the Project Life kit, plus some items from my stash (stamps, paints, and the odd embellishment). Here's a roundup of all the pages I made:

And here is what I have left:

Leftovers: I have some scraps of paper left, several chipboard letters (but I'm out of A's and O's, and I used the "1" flipped over to double as an "L" on a couple pages).

And here is what I made with the kit.

For the first page, I cut up the specialty floral paper with gold foil accents.

I love this one! I cut up some of the washi tape strips because I didn't have a use for them, and I used the words to make up my title.

Here I used the rest of the floral paper.

This was so fun to make! I used my new oxide distress inks to make the watercolored background.

Again using my distress oxide inks for the stamping - this was my first time using them and I wanted to map out the colors. I added some puffy stickers and washi tape from my stash.

The floral paper and the embellishments are from my stash.

I knew I wanted to use the gold star sequins on the red cardstock. I also sprayed the cork "you've got style" gold, and added some navy enamel dots from my stash.

I wasn't sure what to do with the yellow stickers from the kit, but here I paired them with some blue and pink chipboard embellishments, and mounted them on foam dots to give them dimension.

I love how this page turned out! This paper with the labels was my favorite in the kit, but I didn't like the look of it full page, so I cut out a strip here and used it for my long journaling.

This is a 9"x12" page for my travel album. I used up the rest of the ticket die cut numbers to mat my photo.

And that's it! Thanks for stopping by, and do eave me a comment if you like this series!

You can subscribe to the Studio Calico Scrapbook kit here.

Good Night - Stamping & Watercoloring with Sakuralala

Hello! I used one of the latest stamps from Sakuralala - 365: FAMILY - to make this scrapbook page.

I love how versatile these stamps are - they are great for cards, traveler's notebooks, scrapbook pages, and more!

I shot a video of how I made the watercolored background for this page, you can check it out here:

Supplies:
Sakuralala stamp sets: 365: FAMILY, 365: CELEBRATION, 365: HIKARI, 365: DAILY, 365: KIRA KIRA.
Watercolors: Distress Oxide ink pad (Faded Jeans), Kuretake Gansai Tambi, Finetec
Ranger Jet Black Archival Ink