So I'm Going to Try Something Rather New For Me. . .

For the last month or so, life was increasingly busy, and all around crazy. As a result, I seem to have fallen behind, like way behind, on my Project Life. I even considered just giving up on it, as I'm sure many who do PL have done in the past. However, seeing as how I just started it at the beginning of April, that seemed like the easy way out. It wasn't that I found the process too daunting or that I didn't have enough pictures, It's just that for the month of June all my pictures seemed to be lost in the mix somehow. I actually blame the fact that I got a new phone as the main reason I have very little to show for June. I went from an iPhone 4 to a Galaxy S4, and while I love it so much better than my iPhone, it took some time to learn how to operate a phone that runs completely different than my iPhone did. After thinking about it (a lot!), I came to the conclusion that I really do like everything about project life. I still create traditional 12x12 layouts, and don't think I'll ever give that up, but doing project life is something completely different to me - it's like the Cliff Notes version of our lives. So, because I like the process, the creating and the end product of project life, I've decided to stick with it. As for now, I've picked it back up starting in July, as well as trying to round up as many pictures as I can find for the month of June. Seeing as how there are only

Proof That Scrapbooking is Completely Subjective

So often it seems that so many of us scrapbookers, myself included, become hyper-critical of our own creations. I know for a fact that, when it comes to scrapbooking, I am a perfectionist and need things to be a certain way. This type of self-induced stress may seem all for not to those who do not understand the joy we get when our creations meet or exceed our expectations. It wasn't until I saw my son and his friend scrapbooking that I felt a bit silly about how much I dissect some of my pages, even re-doing the parts that aren't perfect in my eyes. The boys started with Sn@p! albums, purchased at Michael's. After they decided that they wanted the cardboard portion of the cover decorated, they began going through my stash to find the perfect papers for their newly acquired scrapbooks. Of all the papers I had, and there are quite a few, both of them decided on the only shiny paper I had. Then, they set out picking out a ribbon to cover the seam where the paper met the fabric, and some washi for the edges. Here's the end result.

Personally, I think it looks like the 4th of July threw up all over their books. But, the important thing is that my "clients" were happy with the design of their books. Then, they set off to decorated a cover page - that is, after I explained to them what a cover page was and why they needed one lol I helped them pick out a sheet for their cover page, then they went through my Thickers stash to find the perfect font in the perfect color. After they settled on a title, and put everything down (by themselves), they decided they wanted to put stickers on it. . . and the stickers kept coming.

To say there was a sticker sneeze on their pages seems to be a huge understatement. The boys found every sticker they liked, and put them on their pages. The point of all this? Nathan and Zach absolutely LOVE the pages they've created, and can't wait to get started on putting pictures in their albums. Yes, they took their books to everyone that would look at them to show what they've made. But, to those boys, that's the best thing they've ever made - no matter what anyone else thinks. They put everything they like on that one page. They didn't worry if it would match. They didn't agonize over the placement of things, or whether it was "perfect" or not. They were creative, and enjoyed every single minute of it. I was supposed to be teaching them how to scrapbook, but Nathan and Zach taught me to enjoy the whole process and appreciate the imperfections.

Don't Tell Me What To Do!

Generally speaking, I really don't like to be told what to do. And really, does anyone like to be told what to do? lol Don't get me wrong, I'm all about abiding by "the rules" most of the time. I don't go around stealing candy from kids and pushing elderly people into oncoming traffic, but thinking outside the lines is good for the soul every now and then. Ok, so what's the point? When I do creative things like scrapbooking and making cards, I tend to stay away from paper that only has one image on one side/corner of the paper. This kind of paper becomes problematic right off the bat because 1.) I feel it confines my creativity, something that I never want to happen when I'm scrapbooking, making cards, and/or being all around crafty; and 2.) I'm still using a lot of the old Creative Memories 12x12 albums, the ones that require you to cut off about 1/2" off one of the sides - this means losing part of said hindrance. I guess I could just avoid these types of papers altogether and just go on with my life, which is what I've done up to this point, but I subscribe to kits and sometimes they come in those. Yeah, I know, totally overthinking it, but it's what makes me me. :-) Last October, I ordered a special add-on Halloween kit from Scraptastic Club, as well as some papers I picked up along the way. Last week, I decided to scrap some Halloween pics. . . from 2005! (It's so great that I don't scrap chronologically, or this might really stress me out. lol) In my stash, along with the Scraptastic Club kit, I found the cutest paper with an owl in the corner - I've tried to find out the name of the company that makes it, but just couldn't. I also found this paper from the October Afternoon Witch Hazel 8x8 pad:

Always being one to want to challenge myself creatively, I decided to stop avoiding these papers, and finally use them. Thanks to an episode of Glitter Girl that I was watching, which can be seen (here, I felt empowered to use at least the OA sheet. I have to say, I absolutely love the way it came out, it was so much better than I imagined.

Here's a closer look at how I actually layered with the sheet:

After this layout turned out so well, these types of papers became a lot less intimidating. So, I took out the aforementioned cute owl paper, and decided it was time to make it a part of the scrapbook, too. Admittedly, it was much more difficult to use, but I like the way it looks, too.

I used a glittery piece of the My Mind's Eye Hallows Dots, and thought it might be too much, but the rest of the layout seems to tone it down.

The title is also made using a rub-on from about the same time the pictures were taken, so I feel like I get a triple word score for that layout - I used paper that intimidated me, overly glittery paper, and something from my stash that is at least 6 years old. Go me! ETA: I have no idea why there are no paragraphs, and that one picture is so stinkin' huge. I've redone it THREE times, and it still won't work. SOrry!

My Favorite Stamp Ever!

Oh my, it's been awhile since I've posted. So why now? Why not! lol In the past couple months, I've scrapped more than I have in the last 5-6 years. It's amazing how much more a person can craft when they have their own designated craft room, and I am so thankful for having the room I have. Maybe one day I'll clean it up and get brave enough to post pics of it here. . . maybe. :-) When I first started making cards, in 2000 (oh so long ago), I bought the cutest stamps. They were wood mounted, as all stamps were back in the olden days (haha), and the wood resembled a book. Each one had a cute little dragon on it, doing things like playing with a butterfly, and looking through a magnifying glass. At the time I bought these stamps, I was living in Alaska, and there was only one store that sold rubber stamps - Arctic Stamps. My friend Heather and I went there at least once a week, and every week, I hoped they would get more stamps in this collection, but they never did. Here's one of the stamps, so you can see how cute they really are.

See, it's cute, right? Well, I googled it and looked on eBay, but there are no stamps to be found. At least I have three of these, and I'll be stalking eBay regularly, looking for more. Btw, the last one sold on eBay was in 2007, so I'm not exactly holding my breath that I'll find another one. Last week, I decided that I wanted to use this stamp to make a card. Since I haven't used it in many years, I no longer had any of the stuff I used to put over the magnifying glass part to make it shiny. Heck, I couldn't even remember what the stuff was called, let alone where to find it. So, I posted about it on the Two Peas message board, asking for any kind of help I could get. The peas quickly pointed me in the direction of Michael's, and said they would have Glossy Accents - the one by my house did not. *sigh* I ended up buying some kind of acrylic glaze, hoping it would work the same as the Glossy Accents that I just could not find. But, I didn't want to use the stuff I bought, I wanted the real thing. So yes, I drove half an hour away, to another Michael's, just so I could use this stamp and make a card. It was worth it, though, at least in my opinion. Here's the finished product:

This picture better shows how/where I used the Glossy Accents:

All in all, I'm pretty happy with how the card turned out. It was so fun to get out my watercolor pencils and stamps to create this card, so I'm sure I'll be making more cards like this. In the meantime, I need to figure out who to give the card to. . .

I'm Baaaccckkkkk!!!

... and hopefully I'll be more consistent this year. I've decided that I want to be more consistent with everything crafty in my life. So, from now on, I plan to scrap and stamp more often, and also to blog on a regular basis - I'm hoping for at least twice a week, but it will more likely be only once a week. We shall see how everything goes. I made these for my first ever swap I've participated in over at twopeasinabucket.com. The categories I chose were "bugs" and "traditional Easter." For these twinchies, you had to take a 2x2 inch piece of cardstock, and design it according to your theme. These are what I came up with:

I enjoyed this project a lot more than I thought I would. Decorating a 2x2 piece of cardstock is more difficult than it sounds, but I think they turned out beautifully. The best part about the project is that it inspired me to get back into stamping, I was able to use some new tools I got for Christmas, and I used up some of my stash. All in all, it was a very enjoyable process.

Scraptastic Club Challenge #1

The rules for this challenged seemed very easy: * you can only use one sheet of patterned paper * you have to use word stickers for your journaling (no hand written paragraphs here!) Sounds easy enough, right? Not so much, not for me at least. Don't get me wrong, I love the layout. However, it's so hard not to just start journaling away. Granted, there really isn't a whole lot to tell. I took Nathan to one of those places where you paint, then they fire it off and it's ready for you to pick up. But I.journal.everything! lol Despite it's challenges, I loved a challenge that took me outside my comfort zone. And, I'm really pleased with the layout. :-)

The Trouble With Cub Scout Layouts

Ever since my son joined cub scouts three years ago, my biggest struggle with scrapbooking his activities has always been being able to find any kind of Cub Scout embellies. I've found a few different ones online, but shipping for a couple packs of stickers and things is just so expensive. Michael's isn't much help either, they have one (yes, only one) pack of stickers - but it's for an Eagle Scout. Although my son insists he will become an Eagle, that's a long way off. I did find a couple things, too, at Tuesday Morning and was ecstatic about that. However, it does make scrapbooking Cub Scout related activities very challenging and has definitely made me become very creative. For this layout, I used a few things I knew Nathan would want to preserve, and would help me "fill space" in this layout. So, I was able to use his participation certificate, participation patch (because he can't wear it on his uniform), and leatherworking bead holder. I absolutely love this layout and am highly impressed by the super sticky, Super Tape. I was definitely pessimistic that it would work, but it holds the necklace on the page like a boss. lol