SCRAP A LITTLE!

Complete family

2011-12-16T16:05:00.000-08:00

If you were wondering, I'm doing just fine:)

We have been busy here, preparing for my hubby's homecoming and after a few delays, he is finally back after 7 loooong months.

This is our happy family a few days ago.

I haven't had time to scrap lately,but I did bring out the Cricut and some vinyl to make this:

Now, when John is back I'm hoping that I will finally get some well deserved ME-TIME and my wish for Christmas is plenty of time to scrap and blog.

How about you? What do you want for Christmas?

Giveaway winner

2011-11-24T13:52:00.000-08:00

Thanks to everyone that left a comment on my latest giveaway!

I drew a random winner that turned out to be PATRICIA! Congrats to her!

She will receive this in the mail:

(Patricia, please email your address to scrapalittle@gmail.com)

I wish everyone in the states a Happy Thanksgiving!

Until next time:)

Basic Grey giveaway

2011-11-15T14:51:00.000-08:00

I'm so sorry that I once again have been missing in action.

I've had family visiting from Sweden and we were trying to see and do everything on Okinawa in two weeks.

Now everything is back to normal again. The kids are doing school and I'm back on Weight Watchers;)

(I have to look hot and skinny when my hubby comes back next month, you see.)

I want to show you some layouts I made a few weeks ago. It's with Basic Grey's line called "Lauderdale". It has to be one of my all time favorite from Basic Grey. I LOVE bright colors!

It's perfect for all those summer and beach photos.

Now you can make the same layouts with this Basic Grey kit:

One lucky winner will receive this!

All you need to do is leave a comment to this post and why don't you tell me about the best memory you have from Summer 2011.

My best memory has to be going to Sweden and see my family. We had such a great time for a whole month.

I will draw one random winner next week.See you then:)

Sketch # 52 / Guest designer Kayla Du Pont

2011-10-13T16:36:00.000-07:00

It's about time that I share a new sketch with you and introduce a new guest designer. I want to welcome Kayla Du Pont to my list of talented designers.

Here's a little bit about her:

My names Kayla. I'm known as Mustangkayla on-line. I've been scrapping for many years off and on. About 4 years ago I started scrapbooking with two other friends who got me into the 'on line world' of scrapbooking! Since then I've dove into the message boards, blogs, etc and LOVE how inspiring the on-line world is. I enjoy making layouts, cards, mini albums and altered items. I am a stay at home mommy to 2 little rugrats who like to keep me on my toes. They appear in 95% of my layouts and projects. Other than scrapbooking, I enjoy spending time outdoors with my family, reading, camping and crafting.

This is sketch # 52 that Kayla worked with:

And her two pretty takes on it:

Take a look at some more layouts from Kayla. All based on my sketches. Doesn't she make my simple sketches look so good?

Sketch # 47

And here are Kayla's two favorite layouts:

Thanks Kayla for sharing your talent with us.

I love how you have found the perfect balance for your pages. They are not too simple or too "overworked". Just fun to look at with the photos as the focal point. Just like it should be.

If you want to see more of Kayla's beautiful work and creations, be sure to check out her blog.

Winner for latest giveaway

2011-09-23T22:27:00.000-07:00

Thanks to all of you that left a comment on my latest post.
It's good to know that I'm not the only one lacking time and mojo.

I just don't know where time goes. It's just flying away...which is good of course, because that means my dear husband will come home faster, but it also means that I don't get everything done in a day that I would like.
Like blogging and scrapping.
This homeschooling takes more time than I anticipated. I'm constantly on the hunt for good books, science project, field trip, art projects, educational movies, you name it!
Long gone are the days when I could sit and catch up with all my friends on Facebook.

Right now I honestly feel that I might not be able to keep this blog updated. I'm not short of ideas, but I just don't have the time anymore.
So bare with me if the blog post are long and far in between.

Anyways, I drew a winner for my latest giveaway...and it was not random...I just took the first person who left a comment and that was PAPERPAPIER! Congrats!
Please email your address to scrapalittle@gmail.com so I can send this to you:

And I hope it will help you a bit to get you mojo back:)

Take care you all. Until next time.

Is it just me?

2011-09-09T23:40:00.000-07:00

Have you noticed that when you finally have some spare time to scrap, you are totally lacking inspiration?

And when you are swamped and can only dream about scrapping, your mojo is overflowing.

That's the case for me at least.

I hardly have any time to scrap anymore. With hubby being gone and me homeschooling, I'm exhausted at night and rather sleep than be creative.

WHEN I do find some time to scrap, I don't have time to mess around. That's when I use my sketches. I don't have to come up with a design that works; just grab some photos and hopefully find some matching papers.

Here's three examples of my latest layouts. Nothing really good, but hey, I scrapped:)

What's the case for you?

Are you lacking time to scrap or inspiration to scrap?

Maybe you are a lucky one and have plenty of both (I wish).

Leave a comment to this post and I will draw a random winner who will get this gorgeous paper pack from SEI.

What's new?

2011-08-27T17:15:00.000-07:00

When I started this blog, I promised myself to only blog about scrapping.
Sometimes that's hard when there's not a whole lotta scrapping going on in my life.
I'm not part of any design teams.
I'm not trying to promote the latest kit from a club.
I can't show off my latest layout that got published in a glossy magazine.
It's just me and all those family photos that I'm trying to get scrapped into an album.

If I hadn't promised myself to keep this blog strictly scrappy, I could tell you about:

1. how I joined Weight Watchers online a month ago, and how I have lost lbs 10 by doing basically nothing else but counting points (and how fabulous I feel and so much more energetic)

2. or I could go on about homeschooling and what I like and don't like about the curriculum I chose ( and how I'm so happy I made this decision, because I love teaching my kids)

3. or I could go on (and on) about how to survive when your husband is gone ( in a frickin' war) for 7 months and we have just done half of it (and how the only way not to go totally nuts, is to stay busy. See #1 and # 2)

BUT this is a strictly scrapbooking blog, so I will only talk about that.

Many of you have asked if I will have a new design team or new guest designers for my sketches. The truth is that I haven't made up my mind yet. I have only two guest designer left on my list and after that I don't know what I will do.
One thing is for sure. I will keep on doing sketches and if I want someone to help me create with those sketches, I will let you all know here on the blog.

I want to show you my latest layout. I really, really like how it turned out.

I stamped, misted, stitched and used the Cricut.

All the flowers are cut out with a new Cricut cartridge from Close To My Heart (CTMH). And then, they were so smart to make matching stamps to go on top of the flowers.

This "Art Philosophy" cartridge has 700 shapes, many of which coordinate with the CTMH stamp sets. There are circles, flowers, snowflakes, leaves, tags, cards, 3-D images, ornaments, frames, hearts, acorns, brackets, borders, birds, trees, Christmas trees, flourishes, decorative corners and tabs, arrows, keys, lace images, and a font with a font layer.

When you get this cartridge you also get 3 matching stamp sets and 3 sheets of dimensional elements.
The price for all this is $ 99 and you can only get it from a Close To My Heart consultant. Not from EBay, not from Provocraft or any other website you'd normally buy your Cricut stuff from.

If you are smart (like me) you will host a CTMH party and you will get it HALF-OFF! Click here to contact my friend who sells CTMH.

That's it for today.
I'll be back soon with a giveaway.
Take care!

Sketch # 51/ Guest designer April Walker

2011-08-22T20:52:00.000-07:00

Hello my dear blog readers!
I have not forgotten about you or the blog. I know it hasn't been much inspiration going on here lately and I will try to change that.
I started homeschooling the kids last week and it has taken up all my time.

Even though I can't inspire you today, I want to share some inspiration from one of my fabulous guest designers. Her name is April Walker and here is a little bit about her:

I’m April, 33 and live in the beautiful mountains of NC. I’ve been married for almost 13 years to my amazing hubby Mark, and we have two gorgeous daughters, Emily & Madison. I started Scrapbooking a little over 3 years ago and I am SO thankful for that! Before Scrapbooking, the only hobby I truly enjoyed was photography, but taking tons of pictures and just sticking them in album after album got pretty boring. I knew that I wanted to start doing something more special with my pictures so one day I started looking around online to see what I could discover. I stumbled across the scrapbook.com community, started looking around at all the amazing creativity posted there, and I was totally hooked! I went out the next day, got some supplies, and got to work. Since that day, each and every time I sit down to start creating a layout, I feel so happy and blessed that I discovered a hobby that I could enjoy doing, while at the same create memories for my family. There’s nothing better!

Here's the new sketch that April worked with:

And her two gorgeous takes on it:

Here are more pretty layouts from April. These are based on some of my earlier sketches.

Sketch # 7

Sketch # 28

( This is my favorite! I just love that photo and those muted colors together)

Sketch # 30

And last, but not least, enjoy some of April's own favorite layouts:

Thanks April for sharing your work with us. I feel very inspired to scrap now. I think I will go and make something in pink;)

To see more of April's creations, be sure to visit her blog here.

My Top Ten list # 9

2011-08-03T14:19:00.000-07:00

Another thing I can't scrap without...

# 9 Scrapbook.com

I joined scrapbook.com (Sb.com) in 2006 and that's when I started with scrapbooking.
Back then I didn't know what a layout was, nor patterned paper or embellishments.
I have come a long way since then.
It's thanks to Sb.com that my scrap style has developed into what it is today. That place is just bursting with inspiration, ideas and positive atmosphere!

I have also met so many awesome people there from all over the world and some of them I have met in real life and consider close friends.

Scrapbook.com is not only filled with TONS of inspiration and wonderful people. They have challenges, tips, classes, forum, videos and of course they have the superstore.
Sb.com has decent prices on a huuuge selection of scrapbook brands. Their costumer service is outstanding and the best part is- they ship international!!

I used to hang out at sb.com for hours every day just to look and comment on other peoples creations. Plus I would host monthly challenges.
Today I will pop in there once in a while to see what I'm missing;).

I still use the gallery, mostly as a "storage". Every time I make a new layout I will post it there.
At first I wanted people to comment on my scrapbook pages and give me feedback. Nowadays, I really don't care if others do or do not like my work. Know what I mean? I scrap only for me and my family and that's all that matters.
But hey, if I can inspire someone on the way, of course that's a bonus.

Here's some of my earliest layouts from 2006. Not all that bad, but not all that good either.

If you've never been to scrapbook.com you are truly missing out. It's free to join and I know you will not regret it:
www.scrapbook.com

My top ten list # 8

2011-08-02T15:19:00.000-07:00

I'm finally getting around to blogging and I want to start with finishing off my top ten list. "Things I can't scrap without".

I only have a few left and here is:

#8 (My) sketches

I'm not saying that my sketches are better than anybody elses, but I do like them and there is still so many of them I haven't tried yet.

I print all of my sketches and put them in a soft binder.

I always have them close by and bring them to every crop and retreat.

When your mojo is gone and you haven't scrapped for a while, sketches are a must-have. They give you inspiration and a jump start to your layout.

Here's a few layouts that I made this last week:

The good thing with sketches are that you can use them over and over again. Just twist and turn them and you will have a new version.

My sketches can be found here

and there is plenty of awesome sketch blogs/websites that you can find by using google.

So if you haven't tried it before- scrap with a sketch today-they are all free!

Sketch # 50 /guest designer Kristie Coleman

2011-07-16T22:42:00.000-07:00

A month or so late, here is a new sketch and my latest guest designer. Her name is Kristie Coleman and this is what she has to say:

Shortly after the first of my five beautiful children was born, I began my foray in the wide world of scrapbooking. That was back 14 years ago when it was all decorative scissors and stickers. I still love my early scrapbooks but I do fight off the desire to tear them apart to "update" them. I just remind myself that their style is a reflection of that time, and that too, deserves preservation.

In the last couple of years, scrapbooking has moved from a hobby to a consuming passion for me. Now I happily design my pages in my very own scrap room overlooking my somewhat neglected back garden while my children frolic in our forest. I enjoy designing clean and graphic layouts as well as shabby layouts filled with flowers, inking and distressing. So I guess my style is eclectic. I find inspiration everywhere: photos, family, magazines, menus, photography web sites and in beautiful products. I have been crafty for as long as I can remember but scrapbooking gives me that soul sustaining creative outlet while enabling me to create something of real value for my beloved family.

Here is sketch # 50 that Kristie worked with

and her fun take on it:

Here are 4 more fabulous layouts from Kristie's gallery.

I asked Kristie to send me her all time favorite scrapbook

page and I can see why she couldn't choose between these two. They are both so beautifully decorated:

Besides being an awesome scrapper I know Kristie is an awesome mother! I just love how here layouts are filled with love for her family. And I'm amazed that she can ever get any scrapping done with 5 children. I'm thinking that she is one of those super women.

Thanks Kristie for sharing your talent with us. I'm sure we will see more of you in the future:)

Still in Sweden

2011-07-05T05:48:00.000-07:00

Hello out there!

I just wanted to inform you all,that me and the kids are still in Sweden.We go back to Japan next week and then you can look forward to some activity here on the blog again.
I'm behind with sketches, guest designers, tutorials and everything else.

Hope that you are enjoying your summer as much as me.

Giveaway winner!

2011-05-27T04:05:00.000-07:00

Busy,busy,busy...me and the kids leave for Sweden next week and I have a gazillion of things to get done before that.
Then Mother Nature decided to throw a SUPER Typhoon our way that is suppose to hit us tomorrow, so I had to prepare for that.
Anyways...I just wanted to let you know who won the latest giveaway.

Congrats to:

http://tqmnurse.blogspot.com/

Please email your address to scrapalittle@gmail.com so that I can send you this prize:

Hopefully we will not lose power due to typhoon Songda,so that I can scrap and blog all weekend:)

Take care!

Fabulous giveaway!

2011-05-18T01:17:00.000-07:00

Here's a photo of my latest giveaway!

It's pretty awesome I must say.

One lucky winner will get:

4 card stocks

6 double sided patterned paper

2 ink pads

3 sponge daubers

1 set of acrylic stamps

1 stamp block

This is all from Close to My Heart and you can read about the ink and daubers here.

To be in the drawing for this giveaway, click here and see what you have to do:)

Grab blinkie- giveaway!

2011-05-16T00:41:00.000-07:00

How are you all doing?

It's a gloomy day here; it's pouring rain ( rain season has started) and my dear husband left this morning ( and will be gone for the rest of the year) so, yes, it's a pretty miserable day:(

Last weekend was good though, when I went scrapping with my girlfriends. We stayed in a cabin overlooking the ocean and I don't think I went outside once. We scrapped, chatted, ate and watched movies non-stop.

Here's some of the layouts I made:

I thought it was time for a new giveaway!

This is for everyone of you that has a blog.

To be in the random drawing you have to do the following:

1.Look for "Grab my blinkie" in the right sidebar.

Copy the text under the blinkie.(Highlight and Ctrl C )

2. Go to dashboard on your blog and click "design".

3.Click "add a gadget" and then scroll down to "HTML/JavaScript".Click +

4.Paste by right clicking.

5. Now you should have a Scrap A Little blinkie on your blog.

6. Come back here and tell me your blog address.

I will show you a photo of the prize shortly:)

I just wanted to let you know that I have pulled my kids out of school and started homeschooling. That means I have absolutely NO TIME to myself whatsoever.

Gone are the days when I could scrap,blog and facebook all day long.

If I don't keep up my blog with tutorials and sketches as before, you know that I'm pulling my hair out over some 4th grade mathproblem. Wish me luck on this new adventure...

I'll be back soon to show you the giveaway:)

May sketch-Guest designer Sharon Knopic

2011-05-04T05:43:00.000-07:00

Welcome to May and the international scrapbook month!
I want to share a new sketch and a new guest designer with you. The latest talented designer is Sharon Knopic and here's a little bit about her:

My name is Sharon Knopic, and I live in Pennsylvania USA - just outside of Hershey (yes, where they make the candy!) I live alone with my two Siamese cats and a dachshund, but am the mother of a wonderful grown son, Joe. I have been scrapbooking for almost two decades now - I began when my mother passed away, and I was "just going to learn enough to put the photos in scrapbooks for my siblings." All the photos still aren't scrapped, because I decided I LOVE this hobby, and have been playing with every technique out there, and made up some of my own which I've taught at several conventions (Great American Scrapbook, Memories Expo). Playing with Helen's sketches and flowers were a wonderful change, and I plan on using them in the future. So I hope you enjoy them as much I did making them.

Incidentally, I did a few pages of current events, season, and even a few "Twilight/Harry Potter" layouts. I am a firm believer we need to stick to the scrapbook idea, and not just make our layouts photo albums. We need to document how we felt when events happen to us that are universal. I truly believe that these are the layouts that generations from now are going to be the most valuable - not so much the picture of "Aunt Mary" or the kids in the sandbox. I try to think how I'd feel if I had the photos I have in my possession taken aboard the Titanic of my uncle scrapped by someone who could write how they felt when it went down. Please keep this as a little thought as you do your pages.

And again - I'm so honored for you to view them, and Helen to have allowed me to post my pages!

And here is sketch # 49...

and Sharon's two creative takes on it:

Here's a few layouts from Sharon, based on my sketches.

This first one from a very recent event-the British royal wedding. Fabulous indeed!

Sharon made my ribbon rose and the layered lace flower as you can see.

Sketch # 41

Sketch # 37

Sketch # 35

In this pretty layout she made my vellum flowers.

Sketch # 21

And in this last page Sharon made my origami flowers.

Sketch # 8

Wow! I feel so flattered that she uses so many of my sketches and flower tutorials.

Thanks Sharon for sharing your work with us! It's truly inspiring and I love how you scrap more than just friends and family.

Celebration!

2011-04-27T04:08:00.000-07:00

Two years ago, I had one of my brighter moments- I started this blog!

I want you to know how much joy this blog gives me and I'm so grateful to everyone of you that reads it and keeps coming back!

During these 2 years

I've posted 20 flower tutorials + lots of other tutorials.
I had a design team and guest designers.
I changed my blog header 4 times...
I have made 48 sketches
I've had tons of giveaways
I have over 1000 followers. WOW!

Since people seem to like what I'm doing, I will just keep on doing it...

My first post from April 2009 had 5 comments.
I want to give my first "fans" a small gift as a token of my appreciation.
These are the ladies that was with me from the very beginning:

"StrawberryPia"
Paulien Van Den Bosch
"Queenofboyz"
April
Hannie

If you are any of these five and you still read my blog please email your address to scrapalittle@gmail.com
( if you are NOT any of these ladies, remember: you just never know when it will pay off to leave a comment:;)...just sayin'...)

I will end with a few of my favorite layouts:

Thanks again to all of my readers and followers. You are the best!

Layered lace flower tutorial

2011-04-25T01:42:00.000-07:00

I want to share another flower tutorial I came across.

I found it in this e-book first and that was taken from this blog. Lisa's blog "What a beautiful mess" is packed with gorgeous inspiration and she has TONS of stunning flower tutorials...and I know you love those,right:)

You have to check it out and make sure to become a follower. I know you don't want to miss anything she posts.

Back to the tutorial...for some reason I struggled more with these flowers than any other flower I've made before. So don't give up if it doesn't look good the first time.

You need;

thin patterned paper
border punch
flower centers
paper crimper
ink(optional)
circle punch (optional)
glue
cardstock scraps
scissors
paper trimmer

Start to cut out two ( same or different paper) strips 12 inch x 1 inch

Use your border punch for the edges

Run the strips through your paper crimper. If you don't have one, it will still work.

Punch or cut out a circle. I prefer 1 inch, because I don't want my flowers too big.

Take one the strip and start folding it around the outer edge of the circle. You will not need the whole 12 inch so just cut off the remaining when you're finished all around.

Add some more glue on top of the first layer

Take the other strip and do the same thing.

You will need less than 6 inch of the strip for this layer.

Add a flower center and bend up the top layer and you're done!

Isn't it pretty?

To see the original tutorial click here.

Come back in two days when me and my little blog celebrates TWO YEARS!!!

I will have a surprise giveaway to some of my readers:)

My Top Ten list # 7

2011-04-21T23:54:00.000-07:00

I'm continuing with my scrappy top ten list. I only have 4 left. Here's my next favorite:

# 7 Ink from Close To My Heart (CTMH)

I'm not a huge stamper,but I still use my inks almost every day.

My favorite inks are from Close To My Heart.

They come in 60 different colors,

they have a smart design where the lid flips over

and they are stackable.

I invested in the ink organizer ($69.95) since I started to get a lot of inks.

The swivel tower stores 60 ink pads.

You can buy a tray separate( $ 8.95) and place on top. It's meant for re-inkers, but I use mine for glue and other fun stuff.

Another awesome ink accessorie from CTMH is the sponge dauber. They come in three packs for $3.95. I just love them and use nothing else to ink with.

You simply put a dauber on your fingertip,rub it on the ink pad and ink away.

Here's some inked flowers from a recent layout.

So even if you are not a stamper, I would totally recommend that you buy yourself some ink pads in basic colors. I ink all my homemade flowers and often my patterned paper as well. I think it gives the layout depth and a more finished look.

The ink pads from CTMH are only $5.25 and you can buy them here.

April sketch # 2- Guest designer Bev Code

2011-04-15T19:06:00.000-07:00

Again, I have the honor to introduce a new talented guest designer. Her name is Bev Code and here is a little bit about her.

Hi everyone,

My name is Bev Code ... a Canadian who loves my winters in Florida.

I am a retired wife of 40 years, mother of two amazing sons with families and gramma to the best ever grandson and 3 granddaughters ranging in age from 7 to 15 and loving every minute of it. I am blessed with amazing family and friends who are the subjects of my scrapping.

I have been scrapping since about 2007 and am addicted. My online scrapping only started in April of 2009 and I have never looked back. There are so many amazing inspiring sites, some I now call my home away from home. My only wish is that I had found this fabulous avenue of creativity much earlier in life.

Helen with Scrap A Little was my first ever DT. She gave me the opportunity to share, learn and expand my venture into scrapping. I will be forever thankful for the opportunity. That is why I jumped at the opportunity to be a Guest here. Her sketches are amazing, inspiring and motivating along with her fabulous and beautiful floral tutorials and those too cute boxes... only to mention a few.

Layouts are my favourite but I now do cards, altered items, misc. projects and even tried ATC's. I have learned so many new techniques and look forward to learning even more.

It's sites like Scrap A Little and people like Helen that make all this possible. Many thanks for the opportunity to be your Guest.. always a pleasure.... hugs Bev

Here is sketch # 48 that Bev worked with:

And her two lovely takes on it;

Here's a few more examples of Bev's layouts, based on my sketches.

Sketch # 39

Sketch # 41

Look at this one with the stitches and the misting.

(I really have to try to mist like that soon. I just love how it looks.)

Here's a gorgeous two page layout.

Sketch # 2

Sketch # 22

Sketch # 3

Don't you just love Bev's feminine scrap style with all the flowers, swirls and bling?

Be sure to check out Bev's blog, Bee Cee Creativity, to see more of her beautiful work.

Giveaway winner(s)

2011-04-14T17:14:00.000-07:00

Thank you to all of you that left a comment on my latest post. Doesn't it feel good to complain and feel a bit sorry for yourself sometimes?
I feel sorry for myself because my dear husband will leave (again) next month to "you-know-where" and will be gone for the rest of the year:(
It just s*cks , but there's nothing I can do about it, besides staying strong and keep myself busy.

When I read all your comments, I still feel kinda lucky. At least I have a husband and we have a steady paycheck coming in.
So many of you complained about not being able to afford to buy scrapbook stuff. Especially those of you outside the US.
I totally understand.

As you can guess, it was extremely hard for me to pick a winner. I wish I could send you all a prize!

I decided to pick TWO winners and they are Crystal and Kiera.
Crystal was recently widowed and can't afford to spend money on scrapbook paper and Kiera works as a RN in Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and makes signs for the newborn babies and their parents.

So Crystal and Kiera! Congrats to you!
Email me your address at scrapalittle@gmail.com and I will send you this bright paper pack from American Crafts:)

For all of you that didn't win,don't give up. It's always a next time.

Come back tomorrow for a new sketch and inspiration from a new guest designer.

American Crafts giveaway

2011-04-09T23:51:00.000-07:00

Here you have the chance to win an awesome paper pack from American Crafts.

"Heat Wave" contains 48 sheets of paper in 12 different patterns. All in bright and summery colors!

I'm gonna do something different this time; instead of picking a random winner I will handpick one lucky person to receive this prize.

Tell me why you deserve to win this more than anybody else. I want to hear whining and complaining!
The one I feel most sorry for will be the winner:)

To my email readers

2011-04-08T16:20:00.000-07:00

Hello to all of my 379 email readers!
I just wanted to let you know that I will cancel this service.
It's not free and I pay monthly to have my blog posts sent to your inbox. Since I don't make any money on my blog, I can't justify this anymore.
So make sure you bookmark my website or become a follower so you don't miss any new posts.

My latest layouts

2011-04-07T23:12:00.000-07:00

How are you all doing?

We started spring break today and couldn't ask for better weather. We just came back from the beach and I hope that we'll have plenty of more beach days next week. How's your weather?

Here's a few layouts I finished recently..well... I've actually made more, but the other ones are not worth showing...

You can look forward to another flower tutorial soon, as well as a giveaway tomorrow! YAY!

So, see you real soon:)

Tutorial for simple dahlia flowers

2011-04-03T19:53:00.000-07:00

Here comes an easy tutorial for a paper flower that I call "simple dahlia".

You will need:

double sided patterned paper
1 inch punch
glue
brads or something else for flower centers
optional: ink, stickles

Start to punch out 6 circles

Fold 5 of the circles as the picture shows. ( You can fold the circles in half first so you get a guide line for the "point folds". I don't do that because I don't like the look of that fold there, when the flower is done. You what I mean? )

Add glue under the petals and add them one by one to the unfolded circle.

Actually, BEFORE you glue them down you should make sure that your flower is even. Most likely you will have to adjust the folds a bit. So do that before the gluing part.

This is how it will look when it's even and glued down,

and this is how it looks after I inked it, added a brad and some stickles.

Here's how the other dahlia flowers looks like. They just have one more fold.

Click here to see that tutorial.

April sketch- Guest designer Missy Whidden

2011-04-01T18:03:00.000-07:00

Welcome to April and a new designer. Her name is Missy Whidden and this is what she has to say:

Hello there, fellow scrappers! My name is Missy Whidden, and I live in Florida. I’ve been married to Marshall for 11 years, but we’ve been together for almost 18. We have two beautiful little girls, Reese (4 ½) and Paige (2). They are the inspiration behind most of my layouts. I began scrapping in 2006, just a few months before Reese was born. My mother-in-law asked me to help her create a baby scrapbook for my husband, and I was instantly hooked. It’s amazing how much my style has changed since then! I started with plain cardstock and deco scissors, and now my “scrapcave” is overflowing with patterned paper, inks, mists, ribbon…the list goes on. I love bright colors. I almost always let the colors in my photos dictate my papers, and I try to scrap my pictures in order (or at least all the pictures from one month) so I can put them into albums. I love the creative release that comes from scrapbooking, and I love the photography aspect as well.

I am currently on the Design Teams for ScrapFIT and Sassy Lil’ Sketches.

I had so much fun working with Helen’s sketches. They are all so wonderful. I chose a few of her older sketches for my layouts here, along with two takes on sketch #47. Thank you for looking! You can check out my blog at http://littlenuggetcreations.blogspot.com/

And here is sketch #47 that Missy worked with:

And her two takes on it.

(I have to say that these two layouts are the cutest thing I've seen in a long time! Notice all the hand stitching. WOW!)

And here's more of Missy's fabulous work based on older sketches.

Don't you just love Missy's style?

It's so magical and dreamy! Makes me think about faeries for some reason.

Thanks Missy for sharing your creations and talent!

Be sure to visit Missy's blog for more inspiration.

Save on scrapbooking now!

2011-03-27T23:25:00.000-07:00

I want to share something fabulous with you!
It's an ebook filled with scrapbooking tips.

I have read the 192 pages and I'm amazed how much this book covers. It has everything and anything that you can possible want to know about scrapbooking.

It's filled with tips on how to save money on this expensive hobby and it's PACKED with useful links. And get this: you will have information at your fingertips on how to make 100 different kinds of flowers! WOW!

This book is easy to read and I would say it's a must-have for new scrapbookers. But it also has lots of useful information for more experienced scrappers.

Not only will this ebook save you money, but TIME!
The author ( Kaye Grieve ) has done all the work for you.

To find out more about this book click here.

Right now you can get an awesome deal; there's a launch price for only $14.99!

Head over to Save on scrapbooking now!

My Top Ten List # 6

2011-03-21T18:28:00.000-07:00

I have shared the first half of my top ten list and now I will continue. Here's another scrap favorite:

# 6 Power Layouts kit from Creative Memories

You know how life is easier if you are well organized and if you plan ahead. At least so I'm told.
Well, it applies to scrapbooking as well. I'm getting better at it and I can see the results. I get more scrapping done since I purchased this thing:

It's simply a plastic box that measures 12.75 x 12.75 x 2.25 and has 15 dividers.
What you do is plan your layouts and stack them on top of each other in this box.

I take one day...yes, that's usually how long it takes me...to print my photos in my printer and then look for matching papers and embellishments. I go through my stash by manufacturer until I find the perfect papers.

And then I continue on with the embellishments.

I usually pick a few solid cardstocks, for background and matting and then a couple of patterned papers so I have something to choose from when it's time to create.

When I'm done with planning one layout I just put the plastic divider on top and continue until the box is filled.

Now when I go to a crop I basically only have to bring this power layouts kit and some tools and I'm all set.

I don't know if any other companies sell something similar to this, but you can buy it here from my friend who sells Creative Memories. It's only $29 and I promise you it's so worth it.

Giveaway winner

2011-03-20T05:10:00.000-07:00

Thanks for all the comments on my giveaway post.

And thanks to all of you that have donated money for the tsunami victims. Every single dollar counts.

As always I went to random.org to get a winner for my latest giveaway:

And the winner is Lauren Baker! Congrats to you Lauren!

Please email your address to scrapalittle@gmail.com so I can send this to you asap.

I will be back later this week to continue with my top ten list and I think a tutorial is long overdue:)

March sketch # 2- Guest designer Theresa Amlong

2011-03-15T03:12:00.000-07:00

Time has come for me to introduce a new guest designer. This lady is not just a guest designer, but more importantly a dear friend of mine. Her name is Theresa Amlong and I "met" her on Scrapbook.com a few years ago. Both of us had lived on Okinawa before and last year when we both lived here again, we could finally meet in real life.
Theresa is the most creative person I ever met! I'm telling you, she can make a scrapbook out of anything. I've seen albums she made out of flip-flops and sea shells for example. She has taught me so much:)

This is what Theresa has to say:

Konichiwa!
Hi, I’m Theresa. I’m a Florida resident who currently lives just one block from the beach in Okinawa, Japan. When I’m not out exploring Japan, I can be found enthusiastically creating in my scrapbook room. I love to inspire others to scrapbook and encourage the belief that there is truly no right or wrong way to go about it.
Besides my husband, I have three adorable grandsons and two pretty kitties whose lives I love to document in the pages of my scrapbooks. I find that scrapbooking helps me share my stories with my family in the states; it’s so hard to live half-way around the world from them. Such is the life of a military family!

Besides my family and scrapbooking, I love traveling, the smell of ocean air, sitting beneath the trees on a sunny day, the colors purple and turquoise, and Happy Hour with a few good friends.

I currently am a Creative Contributor for Mosaic Moments and I am a Close To My Heart consultant.
I would love for you to visit me on my blog at Sunshine Memories where I share my latest challenges, creations or adventures in Japan.

Dozo Yoroshiku!

Here's sketch # 46 that Theresa work with:

And she created three unique layouts based on it:

Here's a few of Theresa's pages based on some of my older sketches:

Sketch # 24

Sketch # 17

Sketch # 28

I asked her to share some of her personal favorites and here they are:

Isn't this one so cool?

I have seen this in real life and it's absolutely stunning!

Here it is open:

Thanks Theresa for sharing your work! You are such an inspiration:)

Be sure to visit Theresa's blog to see more of her creations.

Time for a giveaway

2011-03-14T02:38:00.000-07:00

I think I watched the news too much yesterday. I had such a hard time falling asleep and I was tossing and turning all night. I want to see what's going on in Tokyo and Sendai, but at the same time the images are so disturbing and makes me sad.

We are suppose to go to Tokyo for spring break, but I'm not so sure now. With aftershocks, radiation and everything else going on there, I think I rather go somewhere else.

The kids' school is collecting warm clothes and blankets to send up there, but as always money is the best donations.

I encourage you all to donate to the American Red Cross. The minimum amount to donate is $10 and I think everyone can afford that.

Here's the link to donate. Click it.

Everyone that leaves a comment to this post will be in the drawing for this paper pack from Fancy Pants. It has 48 sheets with the theme "Family"

Tell me if you have donated money to the tsunami victims or if you haven't, will you?

I will draw a random winner in a few days.

Layout makeover

2011-03-12T19:51:00.000-08:00

Hey there!

I wanted to start with a few words about the earth quake. Many of you have emailed me and asked if we are OK here in Okinawa. Yes,we are:) Thanks for your concerns.

If you look at this map you can see how far away we are from "mainland" Japan. Okinawa is where the arrow is and the X is the epicenter.

We did not feel the earthquake nor did we get a tsunami.

It's absolutely terrible what happened and I will continue to pray for everyone that lost their homes and loved ones.

I have this thing- if I'm not happy about a layout, it will bother me forever and I HAVE to redo it. I know most of you think that this is a waste of time and rather move forward. I can't do that you see...

Here's an example of a layout that I don't like. It's simply not good.

Scrapping is of course not science with right and wrong. Scrapping is art and it's all about opinions, but in my opinion this layout is not good.

The colors would have worked, but the page is totally lacking a focal point, something that I'm obsessed about.

By moving the photos closer together and putting the embellishments in clusters (rather than spread them out) the page gets a natural focal point.

Here's another page I recently finished that did not turn out great. And I tell you why.

First, it's too plain and boring (for my taste). Second, the color of the papers I chose is too similar to the photos, so the whole layout looks like a big blur.

I switched to papers with more contrast, which make the photos stand out more.

What do you think? Was it an improvement or not?

At least I'm happy and I can finally MOVE ON;)

Come back tomorrow for a nice giveaway!

Busy with Basic Grey

2011-03-09T18:52:00.000-08:00

Well,I might just be back in the swing-of-things. After my last blog post, I went into my scrap room and started to clean and organize. And it worked! I felt my fingers itch to start scrapping again.

While I was sorting my stuff, I realized that I have an embarrassing amount of Basic Grey papers!!

So this is what I've done the last couple of days; scrapping and trying to make a dent in my BG stash.

These are all photos from 2009 (when we lived in CA) and I'm almost done with that album.

And do you know what that means? I can start focusing on LAST year's photos. I never,ever before been this CAUGHT UP with my scrapping. I guess my new years resolution is paying off:)

I'm thinking I should have a giveaway soon, so stay close:)

Different crafts

2011-03-03T16:13:00.000-08:00

I don't know what happened to me?

I started the year so strong, scrapping almost every day and now all of a sudden I haven't scrapped in weeks.

I don't know if I have lost my mojo, but I just don't feel like scrapping at all...same thing maybe?

But I've still been a bit crafty though and I wanted to share my simple projects.

For the first one you'll need some cheap pens, a glue gun, silk flowers from the dollar or craft store and you'll need a nipper, I think it's called ( never heard the word in my life before, but I googled it)

Use the tool to pull out the stopper in the pen and fill some hot glue in there and immediately push down the flower (also use the tool to cut off the stems of the flowers)

Isn't this pretty? A bouquet of pens!
Spray some of your favorite body or room spray on them if you wish.

Then I wanted to show what Conrad and I made for his Valentine's box. We made this out of a cereal box and plenty of cardstock. I think it turned out so cute and now I will keep it in my scrap room forever. It makes me happy!

Last, I wanted to show what I did with some of all these paper flowers I've accumulated over time.

You'll need magnets, a glue gun and some of your paper flowers. I prefer the flatter ones like dahlia, fan fold flower and this flower.

Look here what a pretty company the Swedish royal family got on my fridge.

Well, I'm gonna head into my scrap room now and see what happens...I'll keep you updated:)

March sketch- Guest designer Vanessa De Bonis

2011-03-02T04:25:00.000-08:00

I don't know about you, but I don't understand how it can be March already??

Wasn't it New Year's yesterday...

Anyways, March IS here I've been told and it's time for me to share a new sketch as well as a new guest designer.

Her name is Vanessa De Bonis and this is what she says:

My name is Vanessa De Bonis, I'm 34 years old and I'm from
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. I work as a radio chemist for the Brazilian government, but once I get home, "scrapper mummy" shows up!!

I have a three-year-old son who is my biggest inspiration. And although I had my first scrapbook lesson on August 2009, sometimes I feel like I have been doing this all my life. I just couldn't stop creating ever since and I love it!! Last year I had some of my work published in a Brazilian scrapbooking magazine for the first time and this year there will be more in April!!

l'm also a member of the Design Team of Sketches inThyme blog: as you can see, I have so much fun using sketches, because it is just amazing how imagination works.
Lots of different takes on the same idea!! And our dear host Helen has wonderful ideas!!

And hey, I used sketch #1, too!! LOL.

Thank you Helen, for the wonderful opportunity of being here!!

My blog: http://scrappinessbr.blogspot.com
My home page: http://www.scrappiness.com.br

Lots of kisses for you all!!

And this is sketch #45 that Vanessa worked with:

And her two colorful takes on it:

And here comes a whole bunch of fabulous layouts from Vanessa using my sketches:

Thank you so much Vanessa for sharing your talent with us and also those adorable photos of your son.
And congrats to your publication. Yay!!

February sketch # 2-Guest designer Kanako Sakurai

2011-02-16T02:55:00.000-08:00

It's time for me to welcome a new guest designer. Her name is Kanako Sakurai and here is her greeting from Japan:

Hi, everyone!!
I'm so happy to be a guest designer on Scrap A Little. I love what Helen makes every time and I really had fun working with her awesome sketches!! I'd like to thank Helen for giving me such a wonderful opportunity!!

My name is Kanako Sakurai. I live in Miyazaki, southern part of Japan. We have beautiful mountains around here, but recently we had a big eruption at Mt. Kirishima, which is quite near from here, and we have been busy gathering volcanic ashes everyday. More than 2 weeks have passed since the first eruption, but the children still cannnot play outside. Things are getting better here...I hope this will end soon!!

I've been married to wonderful and supportive husband for 8 years and we have two beautiful girls, who are 7 and 4 years old right now. I've been scrapbooking since 2004, when my first girl was born, and I've been addicted to this creative hobby ever since! I love to see my girls smiling when they look at my layouts!

I am a SAHM, and never worked as a guest designer or anything like that before, so I'm so excited to share my layouts with you.

If you want to see more of my work, my blog is "My Sweet Scrappy Time" but it's mostly in Japanese.

Here is sketch # 44 that Kanako worked with:

and her two takes on the sketch:

Here are more fabulous layouts from Kanako:

sketch # 12

This pretty one is based on sketch # 40

sketch # 37

and these two are based on sketch # 10

Aren't they all so lovely and playful?

Last, are two of Kanako's favorite layouts

Did you see the flowers she made? I love it!

Thanks Kanako for sharing your creativity with us and I really hope all the volcano ashes are gone by now.

Matane!

Love is in the air!

2011-02-12T16:40:00.000-08:00

I totally meant to post some cute Valentine crafts for you,but I lost my scrapping mojo. Just temporarily, I'm sure.
Plus I had dental surgery the other day so I've been drugged up;)

So instead of something new I'm posting old stuff. First some sketches that are perfect for all your Valentine photos.

And click these photos to go to the tutorials. Great little chocolate containers as I call them.

This one, I found in Scrapbook Etc Magazine and I thought it would be a perfect craft for the kids. Click here to see the tutorial for the lollipop cards.

And now to the winner for my latest giveaway.

The lucky winner is Karen in Houston!! Congrats Karen! Please email your address to scrapalittle@gmail.com.

I wish you all a happy Valentine's Day with lots of chocolate and flowers!

I'm gonna spend a few more hours with my dear hubby before I take him to the airport. He is leaving us again- 6 weeks this time:( Life is swell...

My Top Ten list, # 5 (long post)

2011-02-03T17:27:00.000-08:00

I want to continue with my top 10 list; things I can't scrap without.

I'm now at number 5 and this will be a rather long post with many photos, links and information.

There is just so much to say about about...

#5 Cricut machine by Provocraft

I now own my third Cricut!?

I bought my first one in 2006, my second one in 2008 and my latest in 2010. And no, I will not buy another one next year. I'm completely happy with the one I have.

The first one I bought was what they now call "baby-bug". Just a normal Cricut. Two years later I sold that one and upgraded to a Cricut Create. It cuts 6 inch but has some of the same features as the Cricut Expression.

And last year I sold that one and did my final upgrade to the Expression.

And needless to say I just love it!

There's so much you can do with it.

Sometimes, but not too often do I use it to cut out shapes like here. The letters are also cut out with the Cricut ( the "Jubilee"-cartridge)

Mostly I use it for titles and my all time favorite letter cartridge is "Don Juan" ( The hearts are cut out with the same cartridge)

Circles are something I very often use the Cricut for. Like here. I used it for the flowers and leaves too.

For many of my flower embellishments you can use the Cricut.

Like the cardstock daisies

and the cardstock roses

So just for scrapbooking, I use the Cricut for titles, diecuts, shapes and flower embellishments.

But there is so much more you can use it for.

Look what my friend made for me. Isn't it pretty?

She used the Cricut to cut out templates and then fill it in with paint.
You can buy plastic templates at any craft store, but you can also use cardstock, though it won't last as long of course.

The other day I made this and I absolutely love,love,love how it turned out. I have always been intimidated to cut out in vinyl and now I wonder why. It's nothing to it!

I used another favorite cartridge called "Songbird" and it's awesome because the letters connect.
I used the provocraft vinyl, though I'm sure you can find cheaper brands. And I did not use the transfer tape. It drove me nuts.
I just eyeballed and put the letters on the wall.I messed up a few times, but the stickiness did not disappear at all.

In my daughters room I cut out another quote, but I just used pink cardstock and ran it through my xyron

If you want ideas for wall words go to wallwords.com

There is just so much you can do with the vinyl. Cut out your favorite bible verse or make car decals.
My hubby now wants me to make something to put in his office.
See how the whole family gains from my obsession:)

Another thing that the Cricut is perfect for are school projects. Here I used it for my daughters Science project ( she won an award for it) I cut out the title and the bananas on the bottom.

So in between scrapbooking, home decor and school projects, a Cricut is totally worth every dime!!

And lets talk about dimes and dollars.

I paid $250 + $50 shipping for my first Cricut 2006.

In 2008 I paid $ 199 for my Create

and last year I paid $189 (including 2 cartridges) for my Cricut Expression!!

Do you see the trend here? Prices are going down!!

Don't ever pay more than $100 for the little one and no more than $200 for the Expression!!

Ebay of course is a good place to find great deals. I have both good and bad experiences with Ebay.I have shopped a lot there for myself but also for the retreats we've been planning. Some of the sellers take their sweet time to ship your order. They want their money within three days so you would would think they should ship within three days too. But not always.

I would say that one of the biggest seller on Ebay for Cricut and cartridges is "Proudparents2005". I have bought from them and not had any problems, BUT 5 (five) of my friends didn't actually get their orders. Like never!

"Proudparents2005" would not respond to emails nor pick up the phone.

They have a 99.2% positive feedback which might seem high but, those 0.8% represent A LOT of unhappy customers!

I don't mean to badmouth anyone. As I said I never had a problem with them, but I just want to raise a warning flag here.

So where should you buy your Cricut and cartridges?

I bought my last Cricut from Cricutmachine.com and they have a lot of good deals.

I bought 5 cartridges there yesterday and they were $17.95 each! Don't ever pay more than $25 for a cartridge. That's a ripoff!

Diecutcentral also have awesome prices.

SO GET THIS! You will get a kick out this: "Proudparents2005", Cricutmachine.com and Diecutcentral are ALL THE SAME COMPANY!!???

They are also the same company as Papercraftingpro.com

How do I know?

Well, when I order from one of these above, I will get the bill from another one. Isn't that weird?

I don't really care how many websites they have as long as we can get our cheap prices, right?

Another thing I bought from Cricutmachine...or was it ebay... I can't remember now...is my CGull tote for all the cartridges. This cute thing holds up to 72 cartridges! I have a lot of empty spots left. I only own about 25 cartridges.

The last thing I want to mention about the Cricut is this:

Yes, it can get pricey with all the cartridges that you want to have, but have you heard about Make-the-cut??

It's a software you download that allows you to cut every true font that you have on your computer.

It's $ 58.36 and you would never need to buy another cartridge again.

The latest I heard was that Provocraft had sued the owners to Make The Cut. I can see why, but also not.

I don't think Provocraft needs to worry and I'm sure they make enough money.

So the deal with Make-the-cut is that you connect your computer to the Cricut and they you can cut ANY font you have. And you know there's 1000's of free fonts to get:

http://www.1001freefonts.com/

http://www.dafont.com/

are just a few.

I really should use my Make-the-cut more often. I have used it only once or twice.

This title here is the true font "Beach"

Can you see that the letters are welded together? That's what I like the most.

I know you can do the same thing with the Designstudio.I have it too, but haven't even opened it. Hubby gave it to me two years ago for my birthday and he is not so happy...

The designstudio and Make-the-cut are two different things. With the Make-the-cut you only need ONE cartridge to have plugged in your machine and then you never have to buy another cartridge again.

With the Designstudio you work with the cartridges you have.

If I had a bigger scrap desk -or less stuff on it-I would always have my computer plugged in to the Cricut and I know I would use Make-the-Cut so much more.

I think I covered everything I know about the Cricut machines. I'm far from an expert so if you want to correct me or add something, please feel free.

I didn't mention anything about Cricut Imagine or the Cake Cricut, simply beacuse I have never worked with them.

Oh, one last thing.

So my hubby wants me to cut out something for his office wall and he asks if I can cut out the Battalion logo? And I'm thinking...Sure, if you have the logo on the computer then I can cut it out with Make-the-cut. How awesome isn't that?

With Make-the-cut there really is no limits for what you can do with your Cricut!

Winner plus new giveaway!!

2011-02-02T23:39:00.000-08:00

Thank you to all of you that added Scrap A Little as a friend on Facebook!

I just want to clarify something; Facebook is not at all a requirement. If you don't like Facebook that's perfectly fine.

I just thought it would be a great way for me to interact with all of you.

If you don't have FB and read my blog you will not miss anything. I promise!

I also want to say thanks for all your sweet comments! It really makes my day and warms my heart. I have too many days when I don't think I'm any good at all:( So when I read your nice words I'm thinking; if all these people think I'm that great, I can't be all that bad, can I? So again, thank you!

I drew a random winner for the latest giveaway that you can see here. And the winner turned out to be;

Dawn Montagano. Congrats to Dawn!!

Please email me your address at scrapalittle@gmail.com so I can you send you the K and Co papers:)

Yesterday, I had my scrappy friends over and we worked on the Basic Grey kits. I made these two layouts:

Don't you just love those old photos. It's my mom in 1966 and me and mom in 1967.

And guess what? I have an extra kit leftover so I thought one lucky reader could win it.

If you want to have a chance to win this gorgeous page kit from Basic Grey, all you have to do is leave a comment on this post. And please tell me what photos you would use.

Me and my friends all ended up scrapping old photos, because it works so well with the colors.

So if you had this kit, tell me what photos you would scrap.

February sketch- Guest designer Lizvette Pacheco

2011-02-01T23:07:00.000-08:00

February is here and I have a new guest designer lined up. Her name is Lizvette Pacheco and this is what she has to say:

Hi everyone! My name is Lizvette. I'm 38 years old, married for 16 years and mother of an adorable 4 year old boy. I'm from Puerto Rico, currently reside in Maryland. I love scrapbooking, reading, movies and travel. I started scrapbooking about 7 years ago, when my husband was deployed to Iraq. Most of my layouts are centered around my son and our travels. My style is clean and simple but I'm not afraid of trying new things. I love to work with sketches, different textures, supply and colors. This is my first participation as a designer.

I hope you enjoy my layouts! If you want to see more, here's my gallery.

~Lizvette Pacheco~

This is the new sketch that Lizvette worked with, # 43:

And her two takes on it:

And here are some more of her fabulous layouts.

Two based on sketch # 32

And this cute one is from sketch # 16

This last layout is sketch # 29

Don't you just love Lizvette's bold and colorful style?

Check out her gallery to see more of her work.

Thanks Lizvette for sharing your layouts with us.

You have a special place in my heart, since I figure you are a military wife:)

Bonus sketch

2011-01-27T05:39:00.000-08:00

I kinda like how this layout turned out

so I made a sketch after it

and made two new layouts based on the sketch

If you use the sketch I would like to see your take on it:). Could you please upload it to Facebook.

And if you added Scrap A Little as your friend, don't forget to leave a comment here so you can be in the drawing for a nice giveaway:)

Budget friendly layouts

2011-01-23T01:07:00.000-08:00

Me and some scrappy friends meet once a month at my house to work with Basic Grey page kits.

Everything is precut and numbered in these kits, so you really don't have to think at all when you scrap.

We can focus on chatting and eating instead!

Just as important as scrapping I would say:)

Here are some examples of the kits:

Aren't they gorgeous?

These kits cost $18 so that makes it $ 4.50 per layout.

Would you say that's cheap or expensive for a scrapbook page?

I would say that's a pretty decent price since they all come with rub-ons, stickers and chipboard.

Have you ever done the math regarding how much you spend on each of your layouts?

I haven't really...until today when I looked at my latest pages.

My pages ARE CHEAP! Hopefully not cheap-looking, but they don't cost much at all to create.

Look at this one:

I used one sheet of cardstock, some scraps for the green mats and the hand cut leaves.

I only used two thin strips of patterned paper and the flowers are hand cut from patterned paper. That's all.

The green border is a stamp. Add a few brads. I would say this page cost about $2- $3. Tops!

Same thing with this one: very little patterned paper, some buttons and that's about it.

This last one has a bit more patterned paper. I hand cut all the flowers and circles and added Stickles. Still I don't think it adds up to more than $3 total.

Do my pages look cheap to you?

I know that I hardly ever use "bling", simply because I don't like how it looks.

Same thing with flowers from Prima Marketing. I prefer to make my own;)

I try to use more than one photo per page, which gives me less space to fill with embellishments.

I'm curious to find out approximately how much you spend on your scrapbook pages.

Will you do the math for me, please?

Invitation and giveaway!

2011-01-18T19:52:00.000-08:00

I've been thinking!

You know that I really like my little blog and everything, but I DO MISS the interaction with all my readers.

Remember when I started the Ning network and then the next minute they decided to charge for it.That was a short adventure!

But now it hit me! I have a Facebook page for the blog!!! DUH!!!

How about if you all become friends with Scrap A Little!!

That way you can upload your photos of your layouts that you've done based on my sketches.

Or show me how you used all my flowers.

We could even CHAT!!

Click on the Facebook badge on lower left corner and add as friend.

If you do that you can be in the drawing for an awesome prize.

I'm giving away 18 double sided papers + 7 sticky borders from K and Co.

front

back

I really love this paper pack! So full of colors.Totally my cup of tea!

Here's two layouts I made with it.

Another reason to add Scrap A Little as your friend, is this:

I have guest designers until July. I need a whole new bunch of designers for the rest of the year. This time I will not have a call, but I will handpick them;) So I need to see your talent, right?

So again;

1. Click the Facebook badge.

2. Add as friend.

3. Come back here and leave a comment so you can be in the drawing.

4. If you already are a friend, leave a comment here and let me know.

(I ask that you keep the conversation as well as the photos on Facebook scrap-related and blog-related.

This is not the place to promote your own blog or website)

See you over there!

My Top Ten list, # 4

2011-01-15T15:12:00.000-08:00

I wanted to continue with my top ten list and next I have:

# 4 VersaMat from Close To My Heart (CTMH)

I haven't had this thing for many months, but I love it and it makes my scrapping so much easier.

It's a self healing mat measuring 13 x 13 inch.

I have a tendency to "eyeball" everything rather than measure, so this grid comes in real handy.

I also have a habit of making a MESS when I scrap and now when I have this mat at least I have enough empty space to work on my layout.

I know that other companies, such as Basic Grey and Fiskars, make similar mats, but I don't believe they have what this one does;

The VersaMat is cushioned and the back of it has that foamy surface that you need for stamping.
Not that I am the biggest stamper in the world, but when I do decide to stamp something I have the mat right in front of me and just turn it over.

I would call this mat a must-have for all scrappers!

I can't scrap without mine and always make sure to bring it to crops.

It's only $14.50 and can only be bought from Close To My Heart.

If you don't know any consultants you can buy it from here.

There's also quite a few CTMH representatives among the guest designers.( you can click on their names in the top left sidebar )

January sketch # 2- Guest designer Kathy Ahlsman

2011-01-15T03:16:00.000-08:00

It's time for me to introduce the second guest designer this year. Her name is Kathy Ahlsman and this is what she sais:

Hi!

My name is Kathy and I am a scrappinpsycho. I spend much of my time in The Psycho's Asylum where I create scrapbook albums to capture the lives and memories of my 3 beautiful grandchildren. I live in Austin, Texas with my husband of 37 years and our 7 year old grandson. I am very fortunate that my other 2 grandchildren (and #3 on the way) live here in town.

I have been scrapping for about 15 years - or as far back as I can remember. I also keep busy with my challenge blog: Scrap Our Stash and my personal blog The Scrappinpsycho - News from the Asylum.

I really enjoy Helen's sketches and was honored to chosen to be a part of the Guest Design Team. One of my goals for 2011 is to complete at least 1 layout with each of her sketches.

I completed 2 different layouts using Sketch #41 - I have another one in the works - but time has not allowed me to finish it for this post.

I have also included some of the other layouts I have done using Helen's wonderful sketches.

The 100th day - was actually a scrap lift from a magazine - and then later I scraplifted it a second time for "Beyond Words". I used an advertisement from a Hobby Lobby magazine for the printed paper on this layout. It wasn't until later that I discovered Helen and her sketches that I realized that this was actually one of her sketches.

I love Helen's clean simple style. She is my "go to" sketch source. I don't normally use the same layout or sketch more than once - but have found Helen's to be so versatile and adaptable that I tend to repeat them.

Thanks so much for this opportunity.

Later,
Kathy
The Scrappinpsycho

This is sketch # 41 that Kathy worked with,

and her two awesome takes on it:)

Here's some of Kathy's layouts based on my earlier sketches;

Sketch # 1

sketch # 19

sketch # 7

sketch # 35

Aren't they all just so lovely?
I like how Kathy's style is so clean and simple, where the photos are the focal point- just as it should be!

Thanks for your kind words Kathy and also for sharing your work with us.

Be sure to check out Kathy's blog for more inspiration.

Tutorial for cardstock Daisies!

2011-01-13T02:13:00.000-08:00

I'm so excited! I have a new flower tutorial to share with you! I found these flowers on YouTube and I think they're just fabulous!

This is what you will need:

cardstock (without white core)
Cricut or something similar
wooden skewer
spray bottle with water
glue
bling (pearls, beads, Stickles...) for flower center
ink ( optional )
glimmer mist ( optional )

In the video I saw she used Sizzix to cut the flowers. I used my Cricut and a cartridge called " Walk In my Garden" ( the first flower- Daisy)

You will need 6 flowers in three different sizes.
I chose

1 3/4 x 2
1 1/2 x 2
1 1/4 x 2

Lightly spray the flowers with water.

Use the skewer to bend up the petals

For the really thin petals I use a piercing tool instead.

This is what you will have now:

Gently pinch the petals in between your fingertips.

Let them dry for 15-20 minutes before you glue them together. Perfect timing to start a new flower:)

After they are dry, glue the 6 layers together starting with the bigger ones.

Add some bling in the middle.

When you're done you can spray glimmer mist all over the flower. Click here to see how to make your own glimmer mist.

Aren't they gorgeous ?

I used some of them here on this layout based on my sketch # 3.

I'm working on two more flower tutorials right now:)

If you wonder how come I blog so often, I guess you could say that I am a bit bored and lonely :(

Hubby is gone and the kids are busy with school and playing.

I don't know why I have so much time on my hands all of a sudden. I can't remember what kept me busy last year?

Oh well...scrapping and blogging is not a bad way to spend your time I guess...

Latest giveaway winner

2011-01-11T00:05:00.000-08:00

How's everybody doing with their New Year's resolutions?

I'm doing awesome...at least with my scrappy one;)

I have done 10 layouts so far this year. If I keep up this tempo, I will reach my goal (104 layouts) by March-April:)

Here's a page I recently made with my sketch # 5

and this one I did today- all made with SEI's "Addison" collection.

I drew a random winner for the latest giveaway and the winner is......

....Maria Castillo!! Congrats Maria!

(I need your address so I can send you this paper pack. Email me at scrapalittle@gmail.com)

I'm so happy that so many of you liked the latest flower tutorial. You can look forward to another one very soon.