Happiness Found

The last in my little run of Websters Page - and this time I went for a more mixed media style of page, I started with a studio calico chevron mask and some light blue cosmic shimmer mist, I then added some hints of other colours just carefully applying chalk inks to the page and then stamped over the top with an American Crafts stamp I picked up at Homesense (that's also where the wood veneers came from).  I used some vellum from the Strawberry field paper - it has blue wood panels on it, and I embossed it with a woodgrain folder - it's hard to see from the photo.  I layered up lots of different papers, added some muslin, die cut the word Happiness Found using a spellbinders label die, then a paper clip from Ikea, some hearts and stickers and black ink splodges.

The photo is from our holiday in the Alps and at the coffee shop at the bottom of the Aguille du Midi (an amazing trip with stunning views - but also quite petrifying if you aren't good with heights!) you have to get there early to get the tickets for your trip up in the cable car so you end up with a bit of time to relax.

'cos this is my dream

Some more Websters pages but this time Strawberry Fields - I bought lots of these bits with some birthday money.  I've seen lots of triangles lately and decided to have a go with the design - yes it is hard to cut a 12" triangle as it wouldn't fit in my guillotine!

I layered up the papers, added some of the vellum sheet and a little glassine bag pocket behind the photo.  I also used some Prima resist canvas and inked it in oranges and greens with distress ink, then wood veneers and buttons...lots of colour as this is a happy page.  

My youngest had the opportunity to be in a play at the end of the summer -Adler and Gibb by Tim Crouch - and this is a shot of the after show party for all the kids that joined in - so all the cast, children, chaperones, writers, technical people are in this photo and my little man in the middle with a big smile.  The title is from a conversation I overheard him having with his brother about why he enjoyed and wanted to do this.  It was a few late nights be he absolutely loved it and the cast and crew were great and told a thought provoking story in a clever way on stage.

Love that Smile

My 2nd page from the Scrapmates Crop - more Oceans Melody by Websters Pages (and possibly my favourite sheet of paper from the range).  I did freestyle a little bit on this page - but kept the same sketch idea that Ann had, and then added some of my own kit like the little badge and the wood veneers and sequins.

This is another holiday shot and my youngest practising his beautiful smiles!

I love the little things you do

A couple of Saturdays ago I went over to Ann Freemans crop - Scrapmates - it was great fun....and it is the first ever crop I have ever been to!  It was great fun, and I knew some of the ladies from the ATDML retreats and Ann had chosen to make some pages with some of my favourite summery papers by Websters Pages (Ocean Melody).

Here is the first page - I love the idea of outlining your paper with distress inks, and we got to use some of the vellums in the Ocean Melody range as well as lots of washi tape.  Under the right hand4 by 3 is another photo and some journalling - which you can see in the photos.  I'll be back with the 2nd page we made tomorrow.

Rafting

This is one of the single pages that I did for my Project Life style holiday album (you can see a bit more about it over on the ATDML blog here with my tips).  I love all the triangles that are about at the moment - so had a go at a page cutting off the corners with lots of patterned paper.  It doesn't actually use that much as with the double sided paper you can just turn the pieces over and layer them  up and then trim them.

As the page was watery themed...and really I need no excuse...I used some broken china distress ink and a water brush to create the background - the page didn't get very wet with the water brush and I like that you can let it dry and then ad a few more layers.  I used Simple Stories Good Day sunshine collection and some of the bits of ephemera that come with the papers too, washi tape, buttons and stickers and lace - just lots of layers.

The rock that we were rafting towards is know as the 'Whale' the idea was to land on it - which we kind of did, but then the back of the boat slid around the side of the rock with the current and there was a bit of falling (not out the boat) - so a dramatic element to our rafting which was great fun!

The Alps

Our main purpose here at IE is to challenge ourselves, each other and YOU to take the creative process to the next level;  to inspire growth and change in our scrapbooking beyond the mundane.

You can see all of Inspiration Elevator's previous challenges at our blog and catch us on Facebook .

We are thrilled to welcome back as a guest designer with our team, the very talented Christine Meyer!

This month's challenge is issued by the creative Christa Uttley. Here is her challenge for us, in her own words:

 GO BIG OR GO HOME: Scrapbookers as a rule use what photos they have on hand or if you are designing, whatever pictures allow you to best showcase your lines or express your paper lines. This month's challenge is to be very deliberate about your photo choice because we are going BIG! Bigger than 8x10 if you can do it. Recently, I saw a friend using a 12x12 she had printed at the local
Costco and was stunned at the power this GIANT image had on her story telling. (If you'd rather not spend any extra on your photo then scrap those large baby pictures or a wedding shot you have lying around.)  Think scenic vistas or think about all the details that go missing in your world and blow them up. Be brave!

Here are the MUST DO's: Must be at least 8x10 in size. We want this GIANT photo to take centre stage and tell the story in a big way.

So here is my take on the challenge:

On our holidays my husband took some gorgeous pictures of the Alps - we went up Aguille du Midi and you just get the most amazing views...so they were perfect for a giant photo.  I had them printed 12" by 8" so I only had 2" on either side of the photo to fill...I went with some woodgrain paper by Simple Stories from their Good day Sunshine papers - I used some of their embellishments and also a globe die by sizzix, some Baker Ross air dry clay that I used in a Martha Stewart frame mould, then sequins and buttons - just little piles of embellishments in the corner.  The alphas are by Glitz and American Crafts.

For more inspiration check out these wonderful ladies

Christa Uttley

Wendi Robinson

Lisa Moen

Lisa Speigel

Ann Jobes

Jayne Morgan

Guest Designer: Christine Meyer

Carousel

Here is the page that my previous 3 photos were meant to fit on!  It is full of October Afternoon Midway and also a fantastic free silhouette cut file by Nicola Nowosad - I love the piecharts and they went perfectly with the October Afternoon papers - it was a little fiddley backing the pie charts and sticking it all onto the page, but I love the result. I used lots of stickers too - some Simple Stories DIY Shop triangular banners and then OA stickers on the top, a prima wood veneer and sequins.

I love the photos from this ride as it is such a traditional fairground attraction and the weather and sky were just beautiful...somewhere amongst the throng of people is my husband and son spinning around!

Things that make you go Ahhhhhh!

I actually took some scrapping away on holiday with me and here is one that I managed.  The photos were originally for another page - as an additional 3....but I couldn't fit them all on so popped them on a page of their own.  They are all from one of those big swings - and it is one of those rides that just makes my stomach go - hence the title!

I started with a spritz of October Afternoons pumpkin mist, and then layered up papers from the October Afternoon Midway collection - with a doily underneath.  I kept it all very minimal - just added a flag and punched some hearts, and then a few stickers and buttons....you would think that this page took no time at all - but somehow I can spend ages pushing pieces of paper around!  I also added a few drops of perfect pearls too just to add a little bit of glamour!

Lego Parties

This happened a while back, but I thought I ought to post some of the pictures as most of the ideas were from other peoples sites and pinterest (so thank you to all those creative people out there)....so after lots of choosing which bits we could do this is what I came up with

Lots of cheap red table cloths - though any primary colour would have worked.  I printed off some printables and made the Birthday Banner (here is a link to my pinterest board with all the ideas on and some more...here).

Then yellow balloons withe lego faces drawn on using a Sharpie

Then yellow plates and cups....and more lego faces on the cups - each one different

The kids helped with the cutlery pots

Onto the cakes - some biscuits cut into rectangles and iced and then decorated with smarties to look like lego bricks.  I also made cakes, and little chocolate lego men from a mold I got on ebay...then the flags from the printable set and stuck on cocktail sticks.

The real masterpiece was the cake by my sister in law Lucy...amazing - her 1st lego cake, I picked up a brick mold though I don't think that bit worked so well so I have a feeling she freestyled the lego bricks and gave her a few lego men and this is what she came up with.

The main activities at the party were programming some lego models that you could build...food...then find your lego mini-figure (scattered around a large room in little bags again using the embellishments from the lego printable) followed by pass the parcel with lego as the prize and then just balloon fun!