~ Crafty Scrapper Designs ~

Recipe Holder

2010-10-29T08:25:00.006-05:00

Hi Everyone! I wanted to share a project I created. It was inspired by the recipe album Katie Watson taught at the Artistic Journey. You will also see bits and pieces of inspiration from Lisa Pace... pearls here and there... and Aubrey Rives... doodling on the details. I learned so much that weekend! All the paper is from the Little Yellow Bicycle Savor Collection and the chipboard accents are from Maya Road. If you have any questions... just let me know!

Receipt Holder

2010-06-21T14:03:00.003-05:00

I'm sure you have seen these at the store and thought they were really cool. I know I did. I had to have it! Of course, I wanted it covered in paper. So I figured out a way to do it that was easy, peasy, lemon squeezy!

The secret to how it was covered is over on my blog. I loved altering this so much I made one for my classroom at school as well.

Now for some fun. I love playing with Maya Road goodies. So leave a comment here with all the Maya Goodies you think were used in this project and next Monday, Sam will have a drawing for a little gift certificate to The Crafty Scrapper from me to you.

Beach Book

2010-05-08T17:35:00.003-05:00

A couple of us have had some fun with this new album from Maya Road. This is one of the completed albums. It is a beach theme, but perhaps isn't one you have seen before. The wavy book brought beach to mind and these papers were just so pretty-I had to use them!

We used the Anna Griffin Calypso paper along with some of the Inspired Traveler line. Embellishments include real seashells and Mudd Puddles. The Mudd Puddles are fun to play with. It is a sand and adhesive mixture. It dries pretty quick and is a nice texture when dry.

The flowers & button centers on the front are from Bazzill. We also used some of the little Kraft tickets and ruffled ribbon from Maya Road to trim things out.

Isn't it fun to play with texture combinations?

My Springtime Church Ladies

2010-03-31T00:23:00.002-05:00

Just wanted to share a project I worked on today for the mantel at Stolen Moments Inn.

I call these beauties my Springtime Church Ladiesl

The base is (of course) from Maya Road. Everything else is a little bit of this and some of that. I think they are all ready for Easter Sunday.

Susie

Non-Stop Inspiration

2010-03-12T21:21:00.005-06:00

I wonder sometimes if all the ideas around the store can be overwhelming. Especially the first time someone walks into the store. There are layouts everywhere, books, purses and many other altered items. I am trying to put many of them out here so that a person doesn't have to try to remember it all, and has a spot to come to remember what they saw.

Another person who provides these great ideas for us all to view is Jennifer. Since she lives on the other side of the metroplex, we often transport items via mail. I'm not sure what thoughts might have come to mind as she opened the box and found a large stack of various mixture of papers. Thankfully, she is able to come up with some great items out of the mixed bag of goodies. I am sharing a few of the layouts here that she has done recently.

The first layout is on a diecut paper - using the circle as the full background of the layout. I love the saying she put onto this layout. Cousins are really lifelong friends when we grow up together. I also like the texture she has put onto this page as well. Ruffled ribbon, stars and more.

In the second layout, she added some great touches of texture as well. It is amazing how just a little item like this can add so much to a page. I have put a close up here of one of the sections with embroidery floss wrapped around it. See what I mean? I also like the handmade flowers. A great look and a great way to save a little cash in the process.

She has a son and a daughter and was able to make the soft colors of lavender, blue and pink work for a photo of her son as well. She pulled out the greens and blues so nicely in this paper. Such softness in the photo and the layout.

This last layout is on paper that will be showing up at the store in the next week. (Basic Grey Kioshi). Don't you like the way the photo is balanced with the large floral element? Something that is very hard to capture in the photograph of the layout is the use of little bling jewels throughout the floral portion. Click on any of the photos to enlarge them. It will especially help see the little jewels on this photo.

As always I picked up some new ideas from these layouts and I hope you have too.

(would love to hear your thoughts)

Creativity Is A Team Sport

2010-03-06T20:51:00.006-06:00

The football season is over. The olympics are now over. Baseball season hasn't begun yet. Perhaps you think there are no team sports to watch. Good thing you popped over here to this blog.

As you walk around the store, you notice lots of layouts, projects and other items which give inspiration and show some ways to use the papers and products sold at the store. There are several folks who prepare examples for the store. It takes several people and a lot of work. I have been trying to show some of the great items out here and to showcase those people who take the time to create some items for our walls and shelves.

These five layouts are the work of a lady named Penny. Her boys fill the majority of her pages. The pictures here are of the last group of layouts she completed for us. Above, you see that the guys are her world. Don't you like the way that she used the travel type of paper for that thought? And, the brown stripe is velvet ribbon. Perfect on this masculine layout.

When the team members pick up a packet of product, they don't always know what they'll find. Usually, they have to just make a call based on a color or something showing at the top of the stack. I'm not sure if there would have been a better person to pick up this stack of product. The layout "Massey Men" is a perfect match for the Graphic 45 papers in the Perfect Gentlemen line and the Bo Bunny Mamarazzi papers she used.

Many may struggle with patterns and colors for BOY pages. In this layout, I think she really gives a great way to show off a fun photograph while providing her thoughts on the large journal section. This next layout provides the same sort of inspiration. The pride of the scrapbooker shows in the way the paper and photograph work together along with the journaled notes.

Penny does a great job on layouts and she especially pushes me to journal more. This is a strong point of all of her work.

I am sure that these layouts will inspire all of you too.

So Many Fun Projects!

2010-03-01T19:04:00.003-06:00

The store received it's shipment of Jillibean Soup Papers today. The design team has been working on some samples using the lines already.

Take a look at this great layout Gena did using the New England Chowder papers. Don' you love the way the paper is used? Gives a real movement, yet uses very straight lines. Very cool.

Isla took several of the papers from Chicken Noodle Soup, Old World Cabbage Stew as well as some coordinating papers from other paper lines and made this VERY cute Recipe book.

Cute little clips hold the recipes in place, next to photos of the actual food.

The way she used other pieces such as Maya Road cupcake coasters and Crafty Secrets stamps really works well.

Of course, these are on display at the store and look SOOO much better in real life than with my photographs.

Great Big Power, Itty Bitty Living Space

2010-02-25T00:43:00.005-06:00

You might remember that the mighty Genie in the movie Alladin lived in a teeny little space. This phrase seemed to fit the subject today. Mini Books. Have you noticed that people will pick these up and look at them more readily than they will pick up your larger photo album? I have also found it fun to have a small album of a specific event or trip even though I might have it recorded in a larger album too.

Some folks just whip out a mini book in no time. Others struggle with making one. Thought I'd share a couple of ideas we used in a book and maybe they will be of use for your next book!

This is the Maya Road album that is approximately 4 x 4 inches overall, the pages are about 3 x 3 in size. I think that a tendency in these smaller books is to only use small prints. There is certainly nothing wrong in that, but thought this might give you a variation. Here we have used the 4 x 6 and 3.5 x 5 inch size prints for the book.

As you can see in the photo above. the entire page is covered with a print. This focuses on the subject, who happens to be large and center in the photo. Since not all of your photos have the subject so perfectly placed, there are a couple of other ideas within the book.

The photo on the right sided page has been torn to give some interest to the page. The tearing worked well for the beach shot-fitting in with the waves and sandy look of the original photo. We could also add a stamp which could have been journaling just as easily.

Again, in this view, one page is the full photo. The other page (left side) is just paper. A stamp was used for the quote and the sea shells, picking up on the mood of the day and the photo used on the right sided page.

On this last example, neither of the photos are kept in their full size. Cropping the photos with your scissors allows you to get the larger photos in the book while keeping the focus of the picture. These two pages just give other examples of using the paper with the photos for interest.

Hope this sparked a new thought for you. Would love to see some of the books you do. If you are interested in more on this book, it is at the store on display. Thanks.

Super Fun Layouts!

2010-02-13T18:31:00.002-06:00

Gena has done such a great job on these layouts. I love the way she has focused our eyes on the photos in each. They tell a story even without the words. The words provide an additional piece of the story though.

Strips of paper are so sharp looking on the page. A great way to use just a smidge of favorite papers or perhaps to use up some scraps.

Don't you love the layered circle on this layout? Thanks for doing these for us Gena!

Promises of Spring

2010-02-07T10:59:00.002-06:00

Even though the groundhog saw his shadow, we know Spring is coming. Despite the cold days right now, I look forward to the flowers and birds of Spring.

I really think that Dee Dee captured the feeling of Spring in this banner. She started with the Maya Road flower album, the Maya Road Canvas banner (brand new this month). She painted the flowers a soft green then sanded the edges. Applied a lot of beautiful layers of flowers, brads, stickers, made little pinwheels of paper, painted and glittered the chipboard alphabet. Strung on lovely ribbons with soft bows, it pulls together perfectly.

Clicking on the picture will enlarge it if you want to see it in more detail.

Continual Inspiration

2010-02-03T20:18:00.003-06:00

A yearly event is the Ranger Challenge Wall at CHA. This year, the challenge was to use the melting pot with UTEE and the ticket. This is a picture of the wall. WOnderful results and all so different. Although two of the appear to have popcorn on them, it is UTEE, not real food.

Suze Weinberg is the genius behind the melting pot art. Check out her blog for close ups and more info.

On the store blog, there is a contest/challenge going on. Be sure to take a look and leave comments for a chance to win a prize.

Non-Scrapbook Inspiration

2010-01-24T23:56:00.007-06:00

Another piece of inspiration. An effective ad for this craft. Not sure about you, but it makes ME want to learn to knit and/or crochet.

This is a display for Lion Yarns... It takes up a size of about 15 x 15 feet. I only wish I could have gotten a better picture for you.

Keeping an Eye Out for Inspiration

2010-01-24T00:27:00.002-06:00

I appreciate so many decorative endeavors. You can imagine that there are a lot of creative people here at CHA. I am always amazed when someone takes a skill and does something unexpected with it.

I hope to share more of these with you, but had to post this one for you today. Check out these balloon flowers. So bright and cheerful. I thought they were quite cute. They are being used as a divider between an aisle and a crafting area. Practical and yet provide a diversion for the eye.

Design Challenges

2010-01-05T22:56:00.002-06:00

As we start this new year, I'm curious. What sort of things challenge you? Color matching, titles, perfect embellishments....etc.

Maybe challenge is too strong of a word, but I think you know what I mean. What part of the page or project do you focus on, and fixate on until it is "right"?

Anxiously awaiting your responses. Later!

12 Tags Continued....

2009-12-30T22:41:00.004-06:00

well, it has been more than a few days, but here they are...

Instead of using the crying child, this picture is of Carolyn's son as a child. Since she did not have access to the metal numbers, she used chipboard, metal tape and the cuttlebug to make the numbers. Worked fine!

Here are the roses made for the last tag. Did you do them too? We used a diecut approximately the same in size as the one he used on the flower. We made our flowers green and red vs. the aqua-blue color he used. Tricky to make, but pretty overall.

11 of the 12 are on display at the store. We'd love to know if you did any of them and to see them if you did. Enjoy!

12 Tags of T!m - In Review

2009-12-14T14:16:00.006-06:00

We thought we would share some of our tags and other information regarding the 12 tags of Christmas done by Tim Holtz this year. We found that we didn't have all the supplies and imagine that is how it was for most people.

Day 1:
We thought we'd try doing similar techniques on a non-tag surface.

FUN!

Day 3:
Making plaids was a lot of FUN too. We made both cards he showed on his blog. We also did blue and other color backgrounds.

Day 4:
We didn't have the German scrap, so took glittered cardstock and a border punch to make an edge for the tags.

Day 5:
Slight adjustments on this tag included the Snow Marker on the tree and stamping on a scrabble tile. One of our favorite tags. Carolyn is going to put it on the front of her December daily book.

Day 7:
Carolyn was home with sick child, and no keys at home, so she adapted and used the letter "R" with her family name hanging from it. Very cute huh?

Well, I don't want to get too far ahead of you....I will post more in a day or so. In the meantime, all of them are on display at the store.

We Have A Winner!

2009-12-10T09:21:00.001-06:00

The Clock on the wall says about 9am and the list on the computer says 174.....ALISA guessed 175. VERY close. Wonder if she came in and counted around the store!

Congratulations Alisa. The packet of Little Yellow Bicycle goodies is ready for you at the store.

Stay tuned for another contest....Hint: it will involve "followers" of the blog.

Here's To A New Year

2009-12-10T00:05:00.003-06:00

You'll notice that we have a new look to the design blog. Thanks to the design team members who have posted this year. There were so many wonderful things made, thought of and shared, that it is too bad we couldn't get them all posted. Our #1 New Year's Resolution at the store is to make more posts and to make them more regularly.

Steps have been taken to make that a reality. Since you stopped by today, I hope you will remember the blog is beginning regular posting AND that you will stop back by to see what is happening here.

Carolyn's blog will continue to include a little of everything - new product, some great projects, store announcements, her own personal stories and all the things you like over there. This blog will continue to have ideas, projects and other talk to stimulate that creative bug deep down inside of you.

See you soon!

Maya Road T-shirt Book

2009-09-23T21:47:00.006-05:00

This has to be one of my favorite chipboard books of all times. It was so fun! I love it. I was able to use it in so many different ways. Here is a LO for Cody. The pict was taken right before he went off to school and have new adventures.

The boys are always wearing funny t-shirts, so I made a book of the boys wearing all of their funny tees. I love that the pocket pops out of the front page and the button can peek through from page two.

This is my favorite. It is a card. I cut the sleeves off of one shirt and slicing it down the middle. I made a cute little collar and added buttons. Lots of fun. I hope you grab this great book at the store. I would love to see what you do with the book. Share your links here!

It's time for Fall Frolic at The Crafty Scrapper!

2009-08-31T17:29:00.002-05:00

OMG, the design team has outdone themselves. The girls stayed and played late into the night on Saturday and what they created. Oh my... Oh my! You have to see their new creations along with al the goodness that is pouring into the store! It's Fabulous!

Summer Pre-Teen Crops

2009-07-09T14:07:00.004-05:00

As you can see we have been having a blast this summer!
I look forward every week to Wednesday's to teach my girls!
They are full of inspiration every time!

They always have a blast and are excited with what they have created! We are at a halfway point and some of the classes that are coming up are 15th-Message Central Door hanger and stamped Journal, 22nd- Card Class, 29th-Flower Power Chip board book, 8/5-My Crazy Summer Journal and keepsake holder, 8/12-Scrapped Back to school Pencil Box and Binder...... In that order. Call the store to sign up.

Rockin' the Baby.

2009-06-09T21:25:00.008-05:00

To our new friends from GASC, sorry this took so long to get up here. We were hoping for Monday, but alas, it took until today.

For our regular followers, this is one of the items taken to GASC last week. There are so many awesome things to post here. Most of the customers were able to get pictures of the other items themselves, but we had a couple of ladies who asked if we would post this for them.

We will still be posting some of the other awesome projects, so stay tuned. For those of you wanting to mimic this book, here are the rest of the pages. Clicking on any picture will enlarge it. If you have questions, leave a comment and we'll get back to you.

A Little Photo Challenge

2009-04-13T13:24:00.002-05:00

I have a little challenge today. Take picture from your child's (pet's or anything else's) point of view. After you take the picture you can post a link here or in the forum here .

On April 24th I will draw a name and the winner will recieve a nice little RAK from me.

Being Green and Beautiful

2009-03-16T10:31:00.004-05:00

Saving the environment doesn't mean we all have to wear hemp and clunky huarache sandals made of old tires. This is my new shopping bag that I made so I don't have to collect all those annoying little plastic bags. This bag is very environmentally friendly. I reduced my stash, reused some scraps and items I had around the house and recycled this tired old bag. If you would like to know how I made it check out my blog.

Creativity Runneth Over...

2009-02-28T01:50:00.009-06:00

Just wanted to share a few things that are at the store! These are made by members of the design team as well as some guest designers. There is so much new product coming into the store, the team has been hustling to get some examples done. There will be more coming, but here are a few to hopefully jump start you on a project of your own.

Made with the new Maya Road Tag Book. Love the way it is turned and the dog house he is peeking out of!

Believe it or not, there are a couple pictures even cuter than this one in the book!

Using the new Maya Road Mini Banner Set....cute as a little book too!

Perfect with the boy/man paper coming in from Cosmo Cricket.

Such a great layout with the new line of Pink Paislee.

Another adorable layout! Have you used the sheer sheets yet? Here is a great usage.

A twist on the recipe book. Using papers from the new American Craft line as well as some of the Heidi Grace valentine paper.

Show us what you are working on!

I'm Loving Ten Second Studio

2009-02-16T01:46:00.004-06:00

These are some new papers that are at The Crafty Scrapper or soon will be. I didn't have elements though.....so I made my own using Ten Second Studio's metal. For this Skateboarder that I made to go with Pipeline from Moxie, I turned the metal upside down. Then I place my paper on top of it. I used a stylus and traced over once of the skaters. I freehanded some designs. Cut him out. Sanded him. Then I used popdots to add him to my LO. In this Snorkle and Another Fish in the Sea line by Cosmo Cricket, I loved the Current Paper...but I didn't have enough of the paper. So I freehanded som e currents on the metal and used the balls and cups as well as some other tools to make my own currents. I think it turned out really cute!

If you would like to see the rest of these projects, you can check out my blog.

A Quick and Easy Item

2009-01-29T06:21:00.002-06:00

And it was inexpensive too!

Using a $3.99 frame from Walmart I took one piece of Flair paper and a clear sticker and framed it. While I cut the paper and put the birds in a specific order, the paper would actually do this without cutting it. I thought it could make a nice gift for someone or nice to hang in my house. The cost was under $5.00, it took very little skill and took less than 10 minutes to put it together. In real life the sticker is not visible like it is in this picture.

What kinds of things are you framing?

New Class

2009-01-04T03:40:00.001-06:00

This is a book that I made for a class at The Crafty Scrapper. I will be teaching the class on February 28th. This is a sweet little KI composition notebook. I used my new Dream Cuts to create this really cute memory book.
I did some doodling and some Cuttlebugging.
I don't want all of Sam's picts to get messed up, so I drew some picts of him to help you visualize.
This is a page for friends. There is a place for four friend picts. Then you lift the flap to write about each friend.
This little page was made so all Sam's interests could be recorded and when we lift up each triangle, we will see Sam.

This is a pop-up box that will have pictures of Sam throughout the year so we can see how it changes.This is an accordian album where I can put all the picts from his field trip.
This page has many layers. It is a 3-D page.
This book is just a lot of fun. I love it!

Tuba Christmas with Maya Road

2008-12-30T22:12:00.000-06:00

I may have mentioned before that I think that Maya Road chipboard can be used on just about anything. Here I inked my letters, lined them up very neatly in a cuttlebug embossing folder and then reinked. Then I threaded them through the swirl. One of the thinks that I like about using the cuttlebug on the chipboard is because it comes out so thin. For the full LO you can go to my blog. I am having a little contest. If you can name all the products used in the LO, I will give you a five dollar GC to The Crafty Scrapper.

Maya Road Sheer Album

2008-12-22T15:49:00.001-06:00

I love these albums. They are the perfect size to be used as a datebook to fit in your purse. I used Andrea Gold's Forever and Ever Calendar templates and kits from After Five Designs. Sam's teacher really loved it. It was a fun hybrid project!

Distressed Stickles and Chipboard

2008-12-08T19:47:00.004-06:00

I may have mentioned before that I really love using the Cuttlebug and embossing the Maya Road chipboard. But now I have added another favorite, the distressed stickles. The peeled paint stickles were perfect for holly leaves. It added great sparkle with a little grunge. Just perfect. I have bought a few more to play around with. The rest of this LO is on my blog.

Merry Christmas

2008-11-29T00:30:00.005-06:00

Christmas isn't just red and green any more. Look at all these fun colors. I was feeling a little clever here. I had some chipboard pages that I hadn't used in one of my Maya Road books. I used them as covers and cut pages to fit. This is another gft that I am going to give to one of my relatives. This cousin happens to have a little girl that will look great on the colorful pages. I do have to tell you...that I had a great time using the cuttlebug on these die cuts. I also inked like crazy.

You can see the full book on my blog.

Monthly Kit For December

2008-11-26T23:36:00.007-06:00

Actually, there are two kits for December. Classic Christmas and Past & Presents.
A choice for you!

The first kit is classic green and reds with a little twist of blue. These papers have more traditional images like trees, poinsettias, etc. The colors are brighter and have a little contemporary look as well. There are many wonderfully fun things in this kit as well: A vintage Lay-Away tag, a glittered word, packages of felt hearts and rub-ons. Lots of buttons and little chipboard pieces as well as large tags.

The papers in this kit have been popular this year. The countdown paper and the journaling tag paper have really cute flip sides too! Below is a layout done with some of the pieces from the kit.

The second kit is a little more elegant and a more vintage styling. These papers do not have traditional images and although they would make lovely holiday pages and projects, but they could work for things all year long.

This kit has lots of fun things too though. It has lots of ribbons, vintage lace, vintage looking tinsel, metal key hole & metal sign. These are in addition to lovely rub-ons and letter stickers. These are all on top of the beautiful papers in this kit. Here is an idea for this kit. Using one of the Maya Road Pennant Books, you could make a fun banner. (The banner shown here has some things not in the kit)

Can you make up your mind? OK. Maybe you'll need both! These are in the store-online and in Waxahachie if you wish to purchase them. As usual, we'll do a give-away for project pictures sent to us. More on that later though!

On Dasher

2008-11-23T17:48:00.002-06:00

Have I mentioned that I loved the Maya Road Petal book. I just can't get enough. I wanted to make a reindeer album for a gift. I think this idea works great with any two contrasting colors. I used Cosmo Cricket here....but there are many other brands that would work.

You can go to my blog and see all the pages inside. Click HERE. Thanks for looking.

Trash and Some Imagination

2008-11-18T23:40:00.006-06:00

I am a fan of using anything for projects. Joanna had to buy a BUNCH of vintage Christmas balls for a class she is teaching. Many of them came in these adorable little boxes. Once the balls were out of the boxes though, the question became what to do with the little boxes. We couldn't bear to throw them away, so they were kept.

Here is what Joanna has done with one of them. A very cute little shadow box decoration.

She has also used random objects to make other groupings. Thought you would enjoy looking at these!

The class she is teaching is to make a lovely vintage looking paper tree with the little vintage balls. The second class is coming up in December. Check the Events page for all of the information.

PS: the Sonic cup is not part of the project, although, hmmmm, there's got to be a use for it:)

"Merry"

2008-11-14T01:02:00.003-06:00

One of the items at the front of the store as an idea is this banner made from pages from the accordion acrylic house album by Maya Road. Maya Road has so many great chipboard, sheer and acrylic pieces. It is fun to pull the albums and sets apart and make them into something new.

Here are instructions to make one of these for yourself!

*Take the metal rings out of the book, leaving the acrylic shapes separate.
*Choose 5 shapes you want to work with.
*Cut out the shape in the desired paper. Cut it out so that the front of the paper is what will be against the acrylic shape. You may decide to use different papers for the house and the roof or for the chimney.
*Peel the protective covering off of the back of the house pieces.
*Glue the paper to the acrylic piece. You want the paper design to show through the acrylic. The paper is glued to the back of the piece. Several adhesives work for this. Diamond dust and glossy accents are two that work well.
*Once the glue & paper is dry, sand the edges lightly. This will blend the paper into the piece.

Take each house piece and decorate it as follows:
*Peel the protective cover off the front of the acrylic piece.
*Use a white paint dabber and dab the edges of the acrylic piece. Slide it a little here and there to give it a rough, random design. You are trying to simulate a snowy look.
*Once dry, take an appliqué pen. This one has the white/off white one. Place this along the roof line and chimney and any other place you want a thicker snow look.
*Use a heat gun and heat the paint used from the appliqué pen. Do not get it too close to the acrylic, but close enough to make the paint puff up.
*Place rub-ons or stamped images where desired on the acrylic pieces. Staz-on ink, Copic pens and any rub-on will be essentially permanent on the acrylic. (unless you scratch it off with your finger nail or use some sort of solvent)

Glue the houses together in a banner. The one here was done by gluing wide ribbon to a strip of wood (wood rulers work). The wood will help secure it in a hanging position. The ribbon shows through. If it was not covered with the ribbon, the wood would show through. Just to keep in mind as you decide how you want to do yours. The ribbon on this one is long enough to cover the ruler & to then be used as the hanger for the piece. (4 ft is a suggested length-it can be trimmed down as needed)

In the example, we used zip dry glue to attach the houses to the ribbon, but most glues will work for this.

Prepare other chipboard elements for decoration. (this can be done while other parts are drying)
*paint swirls with desired color (red in the example), stamp with white ink, or draw on it with white pen.
*paint snowflakes with white paint. While still wet, sprinkle white glitter over them. You can repeat once dry by using a glue such as diamond glaze.
*paint letters red (or desired color)

Use these elements to complete the decoration of the front of the houses. In the example, the swirls were placed to where they overlapped the houses. It actually provides a little bit of stability, but not enough to just use by themselves.

Put rhinestones in the center of the snowflakes and strips of them at the bottom of the houses. Add any other little words or decorations desired. Let the banner dry overnight before hanging it.

We'd love to see yours and how you made it unique. :)

Gift Ideas

2008-11-06T22:03:00.003-06:00

Betty, of the design team made some games from Maya Road Items. At the front of the store is a table full of ideas for gifts &/or home decor items that the design team has prepared for our customers. The hope is that it will give some inspiration for great gifts on a low budget. Most can be made in a small amount of time as well.

This first game is travel tic-tac-toe. She used an empty Maya Road Tin, placed ribbon inside for the grid. She then made two shapes to play with and put them in other smaller Maya Road Tins. The game shapes are magnetized so that they don't slide around even in travel. Clever idea made from left over items.

The second game is one she came up with on her own. Designed to be played by smaller children, it is a matching game. The instructions are pretty clear in the pictures. She used Maya Road Coaster book in a box along with the Maya Road Stamps for the animals.
As you can see, there is an animal stamped on the coaster from the box and in the bag is the same animal stamped on the animal shaped key chain by Maya Road. Again, an easy to make game for children and great for travel or home play.

The design team has been thinking about and preparing items for a month or so to provide inspiration to shoppers. I hope you will take time and visit the table at the front for more clever and inexpensive ideas for your holidays.

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas

2008-11-01T20:48:00.002-05:00

At the Crafty Scrapper, it is totally looking like Christmas! I was so excited today at the store that I couldn't wait to create this little Maya Road book. I used the petal book and another book. I added the yummy Christmas papers to create a fun "Christmas Together" book. I think that the petal book is perfect for use with those childhood hand prints to make a great little ornament as well.

I could even see making a pendant using reindeer and snowmen. I hope this gave you a few ideas.

Woo Hoo. We Have A Winner

2008-10-31T23:36:00.005-05:00

Congratulations Linda. You are the winner of $25.00 worth of product from the Crafty Scrapper. Here is what Linda did with the October kit. I love the way she incorporated the map and little playing card so perfectly. The colors worked out really well for these pictures. Here is where the kit is displyed. You will see how Linda used these items so creatively.

So what's next? The November Kit named Autumn Treats is in the store (both online store and the brick & mortar store). The colors of this kit are more standard fall colors-browns, oranges, reds. The kit was put together keeping in mind all the activities that take place in the fall. Halloween, Hikes, Football, Thanksgiving, etc. You'll see that there are some fun fibers & ribbons, stamping tool, chipboard words and vintage items along with the papers.

For this kit, we'll do the same as we offered in October. Complete a project using this month's kit. Send pictures or link to us by midnight November 30, 2008. We will draw a name randomly & that person will win product from the Store. Hope you are enjoying some cooler weather and lots of fun activities.

Excitement is Building

2008-10-29T02:55:00.004-05:00

This month is coming to an end. This means a lot of different things. Bills might be due, reports might be due. This month Halloween occurs. The thing I am looking forward to is the fact that the OCTOBER KIT CHALLENGE participants will turn in their projects. We know how many kits sell each month, but never know how many will turn in pictures of their projects. We know that the duties of life can interfere with the plans to scrapbook. We know that sometimes people don't think their projects are presentable. We know that the end of the month can sneak up on people.

SOOO, with all of those things in mind, I want to encourage you to finish your project, to do that thing that has been popping around in your head for the month and to send the pictures to us. This month the winner will be picked by a number pull. If one person submits, well then guess who will win? In months past, the most we have had submit is five. So even with that, your odds are VERY good for winning.

Hey, too bad the lottery doesn't have those kind of odds! We're anxious to see what you came up with and just as anxious to pull a winning number for the Crafty Scrapper products. Submissions are due October 30 at midnight. (So you don't have an excuse NOT to take the kids trick-or-treating)

Thanks. Sherri. (photo by corporate canvas)

Gifts for Some Special People

2008-10-20T12:26:00.012-05:00

Over the weekend of the 10th to 12th, the store had Wendy Vecchi teaching several classes. The Maya Road Design Team also came in for the weekend. They shared some ideas and took some classes too. It was a busy, fun weekend. Knowing that they were coming, Carolyn thought it would be neat to make each of the group a box or something that could be filled with some candy and given to them as a welcome. Several of the design team worked on these. I think they turned out pretty neat and am sharing them here as ideas to springboard off of.

Carolyn made this vase for Caroline. It turned out really great and you don't ever get the full effect from a photo.

This one was done by Annette for Wendy Vecchi. She used one of the flower boxes by Maya Road for this and personalized it with her own items.

Heidi decorated this Provo Tin for Aubrey. She used a lot of ink techniques along with paper on this tin.

Sherri decorated an old cigar box for Lisa Pace. The majority of the items used are old ephemera from her stash.

This one was for Jessica. It is a box with smaller box trays inside. There are Sassafrass Lass papers on here as well as prima flowers and page bubbles.

Hope you find some inspiration here. Let us know what you have made.

The Winner of The September Kit Challenge

2008-10-13T21:56:00.008-05:00

Five people joined in the challenge with the September kit. Participant number one is the winner of $40 worth of Maya Road product that was offered as a prize. Caroline Lau and her design team selected the winner. Caroline also personally picked out the prizes to be given. They said that they picked participant one. Who is participant one? It's SONIA. Congratulations Sonia. There is a package at the store for you with these items. Sonia did a 2 page layout, a one page layout and a tag. To see hers and all the entries, please check them out on the Gallery under Challenges, September Kit.

Thanks to all five of you who played this challenge. I will attempt to get the file names on the gallery changed to reflect the names of those who participated. Each month seems to grow a little bit more. Don't forget to check out the kit and challenge for October.

Maya Road Gear Book

2008-10-06T19:32:00.001-05:00

This chipboard album was so much fun to use. The cover of the album actually comes apart to make a frame. You can then use the gears in all sorts of creative ways. I backed some of the gears with papers. I also used the cuttlebug to emboss the letters. I wish you could see how shiney everything is with the Maya Mist.

The rest of the album is on my blog. I hope this will inspire you to try one of these little cuties.

September & October Kit Challenges

2008-10-03T12:32:00.002-05:00

We had to extend the deadline for the September Kit Challenge to October 13. See the full details of the challenge here. What this means is that many still have time to complete a project or layout and submit pictures to us. It also means that those who have already turned in project pictures have to wait another 10 days or so to find out who will win the Maya Road Products that are being given by Maya Road. Caroline Lau, co-owner of Maya Road picked out $40.00 worth of product to be given away to the person that the Maya Road design team chooses as the winner.

The October challenge is on track and is due the end of the month. The winner for that will be chosen by random number draw (generator). Thanks for participating in the challenges and just ask if there are any questions!

Haunted House ala Brook

2008-09-29T22:41:00.002-05:00

So I had the best time making this little Haunted House. This is a class at The Crafty Scrapper on October 25th. This house uses a great deal of Maya Road and has some really cool techniques. There is a lot of layering of Maya Mist and layering of UTE as well. I always love using Ten Second Studio metal on the roof. My favorite part is the little bat on a spring flying above the house. It is a little hard to see in these picts. I hope to see you on the 25th!

The October Challenge

2008-09-29T19:05:00.005-05:00

Again, we have a kit for the month and are offering a prize for the winner of the challenge. To purchase your kit, go to the online store or the physical store. They are available in both places. For October, we will draw a random number to determine the winner. As with the other months, send pictures of your projects to us (Carolyn at thecraftyscrapper dot com or Sherri dot field at sbcglobal dot net).

They are due October 31 at Midnight. We will draw a number the next day and post all the entries out on our store gallery. The winner will receive $25.00 product from Crafty Scrapper!

This kit is called Finding My Way.....there are some fun vintage & repurposed items in the kit as well as several papers to hopefully stimulate your creativity.

Tuesday night is the deadline for the September challenge remember. Look forward to seeing your projects.

September Kit Challenge

2008-09-29T05:49:00.002-05:00

Just a quick reminder about the Kit Challenge. Edited: The deadline has been extended, so go ahead and send in your projects!!

Card Swaps

2008-09-23T22:08:00.003-05:00

Out on the forum for the store, several types of swaps happen. On September 15, cards were due. Only four people did the card swap this time, but it is still fun to see what people do. As you can see in the picture, each has kind of fall coloring, but are very different from each other. The criteria for the swap was to use black somehow on the card, use floral paper and two stamps. This led the four people in very different directions.

If you like swaps, go over to the forum and check out all the swaps. There is also a lot of other information out there as well and a lot of fun, sometimes silly fun.

Weddings are such happy times!

2008-09-22T23:37:00.006-05:00

A while back a friend at work asked me to do a canvas for her son and new daughter-in-law. The colors of their wedding on the beach were SO wonderful.

Before I could get it done (mostly because of my car accident and the fact that I don't have as much stamina right now), she asked me to do a frame for them too.

Today I finally completed both. And I just love the finished projects. I can't wait to take them to her tomorrow.

It made me think that it just isn't too soon to start thinking about Christmas presents. Canvas art and framed 12x12 layouts make WONDERFUL gifts.

What will you do creatively this holiday season?

Susie

Spooky Days Ahead

2008-09-20T21:32:00.001-05:00

I had so much fun making this little witches hat. This Little Yellow Bicycle Halloween paper is too much fun! On the black base, I used the flocked web paper. Then I made a cone out of the black haunted paper. The bottom is a freehand scalloped circle. Then I painted the hat with the new dual color glitter glue at the store. The little skull button and the glittery bat scrolls made great accents. You can leave the top of the hat pointy or bend it for a little character. Either way, it is a fun project.

It's Starting to get a little Creepy!

2008-09-14T11:05:00.001-05:00

This is a great little punch out book by Little Yellow Bicycle, is is super easy, fun, and extremely affordable! At just $2.99 all I added was a few snips of ribbon and a Maya Ribbon Clasp and some keys, everything else is INCLUDED! You may have missed it walking by as it looks like a piece of paper but look a little closer!!!

BOO! hehehe, there it is. Great teacher present, grandparents, friends. Just a quick easy way to capture the moment. It even has a journaling pull out so you do not miss the details! I am ready to make some new memories this Halloween, but what shall I wear????

A little challenge from Brook

2008-09-11T20:14:00.000-05:00

Ok....I have a strange little family. This is my dog Kipper way up high in a tree. Do you have any funny...or strange pictures? Photo quality obviously doesn't have to be wonderful.

Scrap that picture and then either visit me on the forum or reply to this thread with a link where I can find the LO and I will do a little drawing for a RAK from me to the Crafty scrapper.

This Month's Challenge Kit

2008-09-10T17:44:00.004-05:00

AWESOME NEWS!!. Maya Road is providing the prize for the winner of the challenge this month will receive $30.00 worth of Maya Road Product. Exciting, huh? Well, I thought so anyway.

So pick up a kit and send us a picture of your project. The Maya Road Design Team will judge the projects/layouts. (Yay, I like having that taken out of my hands too)
Send us the pictures by September 30 at midnight, we'll put out the winner by October 2nd. The kits are on sale both in the store and on-line. Supplies are limited though, so if you want one, get it soon! Thanks.

Trick or Treat Express

2008-09-04T22:52:00.004-05:00

Brainstorming always ends up with such great things. Isla and I were talking about the little Maya Road train one afternoon and I was showing her a baby train I had been working on. Well, her creative mind started thinking and she said I bet it would make a great Halloween train and then she went right home and made one.

This is a fabulous project and several people have bought papers to make their own now. The pictures do not do it any justice, but trust me it is Fabulous! She used K&Co diecuts and the animal & cage key chains from Maya Road as well as the Maya Road chipboard train album. Isn't it Great!

August Kit Challenge Winner

2008-08-31T17:49:00.004-05:00

Only two brave scrappers decided to submit their projects. WOW. The projects are marvelous. They couldn't have had much better odds to win, unless only one of them had done it! (ha).

I put the two names in a bowl & swirled them around & then picked one up. The winner of a September kit is Dorothy Duff. Congratulations Dorothy.

I hope everyone will take a look at the submissions out here and see how wonderful these creations were.

The September kit will have a different process and prize. I will post that tomorrow so it doesn't take away from these ladies efforts. Thanks so much ladies for playing!

What are YOU doing during the Labor Day Weekend?

2008-08-30T01:44:00.013-05:00

I hope whatever your plan, you have a safe and happy holiday.

After church on Sunday we are going to visit a neighbor who has a precious newborn baby girl. You can see an album I made for her here.

On Saturday, we are hosting our Sunday school's Labor Day ABC Picnic. Here is the invitation:

The premise is that everyone brings food that starts with their initials. Since we are the Moores, we are providing the meat.

Even if we end up with a weird combination of food, it should be fun.

We have between 45 and 55 people coming to the Inn for this event and I can hardly wait. Randall is already there smoking the brisket. I am going in the morning to get everything ready.

I am doing a make and take for the teenagers. I found these wooden plaques at Michaels for 25 cents each. I just added some paper and embellishments and voila - a cute doo dad. Of course each person will pick his/her own paper and "stuff". I can't wait to see what they come up with. So for a quarter and a bunch of leftover scraps and a bit of this and that, all the older kids will go home with something fun.

I couldn't leave the little kids out. There is a diversity in ages, so I really made it an easy and quick craft project. I just bought some of those foam kits from Michaels and if they don't add TOO much glitter, they can wear their masks about an hour after they make them.

One of my friends is bringing a bounce house, there will be tons of food and I am expecting a fantastic Labor Day picnic!

I hope your holiday is a great one too.

Susie

Reminder Regarding the Challenge

2008-08-26T19:50:00.003-05:00

Don't miss your chance to win $25.00 worth of product from Crafty Scrapper! Only a few kits remain, and there is not a way to know how many people will participate, but I would say that the odds for winning are pretty good for entries. A name will be drawn from those who submit their project pictures. Turn them in by August 30 at midnight. Winner will be announced September 1st. Full details are in this post.

Thanks.

More Than Scrap"BOOO"king

2008-08-25T19:55:00.006-05:00

Granted, most of us do some sort of scrapbooking but I think we have all started to delve into other uses for the wonderful things out there. This is just one great example of using the materials for a home decor item. Isla, who loves to decorate for Halloween, made this adorable banner using Maya Road Pennant Chipboard Shapes. The background is sprayed with the new Maya Road Mists. A fast, pretty way to get a nice background! She then used some K & Co shapes and sweet ribbons to create this fabulous project. It is hanging in the front of the store. It is not Halloween yet, but it is time to start thinking about decorating projects!!

A Pink ATG?!

2008-08-23T21:46:00.001-05:00

Who is bold enough to try altering yours? Here are some examples. They are pretty cute. I know a bunch of us have gotten these lately. Who will go first?

Inspiration

2008-08-23T13:16:00.005-05:00

Have you ever had a paper line that totally inspired you? Well with me, it is the Graphic 45 paper line. I recently was given several heritage photos of my family. I knew right away which papers would use. I teamed the G45 paper with Maya Road alphas and swirls and birds. I also used the Cuttlebug to texture the chipboard though you can't really tell from my picts. I used the paper edge puch to add a little umph. I was very please with the results.

Canvas Art

2008-08-12T22:06:00.003-05:00

Many of you have seen these as you shop at the store, but we never did get them all posted out here, nor have we explained their purpose.

Carolyn & Annette saw that in the Ranger booth at the CHA last winter, they had challenged a lot of the designers to show how they distress. People like Heidi Swapp, Tim Holtz and others took an 8x8 canvas and decorated them. They had been given the additional challenge of using only certain colors of Ranger products. The display was quite outstanding. This caused Carolyn to think and to challenge our design team to do something with an 8x8 canvas. The only instructions our team had was to do something with the canvas.

As you can see, each one is different and each one is so cool-each in it's own way.
Several people have asked about how to do things on canvas and we have started to put classes together to teach some of these canvases. The first class is on the Owl Canvas.

The artists for the canvas art are (left side top to bottom): Sherri, Heidi, Annette, Susie, Isla (right side top to bottom): Betty, Brook, Joanna, Carolyn, Mary Lou

I am on a roll!

2008-08-09T18:13:00.001-05:00

Creative juices have been flowing lately, I whipped out this canvas using TH crackle paint, distress ink, mister and brown reinkers. Also used a fabulous pack of TIED UP IN RIBBONS emphemera sold at the store, some Maya flowers and a cool antique typewriter up at the store. I am so pleased with the result! My daughter is 18 and at a rough time..... almost made her cry! Now go scrap SOMETHING!

Recent Designs

2008-08-08T19:41:00.000-05:00

Well I have been in a card making mood lately and while I seem to be buying up the store, as of late. These are all very inexpensive cards. After the garage sale I took all my 1st run American Crafts paper and made a "to be made" Card basket. This is what has been coming out of it! Also my very first word chipboard books for 4th of July, loved the results.

Lots of Classes

2008-08-05T21:59:00.005-05:00

You may or may not have been aware that some of the design team members also function as the teaching team for the store. Just this week, Heidi, Annette and Brook have done classes. In the next week or two, they along with Sherri will do more classes. Joanna has some scheduled too.

Although we have some more famous teachers coming, the design team definitely is coming up with some great items to teach and they always come up with great ideas for showing customers new products & new ideas. Way to go team!!

Want to see what all is coming up? Check them all out HERE.

Kits, Challenges and Other Winning News

2008-07-31T00:00:00.010-05:00

Although I know more people bought the kit than sent in pictures of projects, I am excited that three people chose to submit their project for the challenge. I can see from the pictures sent and comments made with them, that you guys really did find this out of your norm and it did stimulate you to do something different. I find it thrilling to think that it did that.

The pictures of the challenge submissions have been posted in the gallery on the store's website. When you click the link, it will give you thumbnail pictures. Open the first one and then you can select 'next' and go through each page of the submissions.

I'm glad I was not the judge. I would have had a REALLY hard time deciding. I found it interesting that everyone did an album of some sort. I guess with that many papers in the kit, it lends itself to those. We asked someone who is not affiliated with the store, doesn't know any of the participants but is a scrapbooking person to judge.

The winner (you thought I'd never get to this didn't you) is KIMBERLY. She is participant 1 in the gallery. CONGRATULATIONS Kim! The gift certificate will be waiting at the store for you! Thanks to all who did the challenge!

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

The Kit for August has a theme of Celebrating Summer. The colors remind me of summer. They would work for any type of layout or project, but to me the colors look like summer times: back yard bar-b-ques, family get-togethers, a day at the lake, celebrating a special person or a birthday or an anniversary. I hope the kit inspires you to make something...maybe to even make something you haven't made before.

For August, we will do a give-a-way of a September Kit (approximate value $25.00) to the winner. I will draw a name from all of those who submit their project or layouts. I want to remove the excuse some people might use-thinking "oh it is not good enough & will never win". All submissions have an equal chance of winning.:) Stop by the store and pick up a kit or buy it on line here. Submit your pictures to us by midnight August 30, we will draw the name and announce the winner September first right here on this blog. (there are a couple of the July kits left too, if you wanted one) Here is a picture of the August Kit.

This time, we will post some ideas the design team came up with to use elements of the kit. I hope they will spark some ideas for you. Feel free to use any ideas from these in your projects if you want. Come up with something totally new if you want.
by Brook

by Joanna

by Sherri

For September, we will be putting together actual project kits as well as the paper kits, so stay tuned. Also, there are a BUNCH of classes and crops going on in August and September. Check them out here. Hope to see you soon! Hope to see a creation made by you soon as well! Email them to carolyn@thecraftyscrapper.com.

Thanks & Happy Scrappin'!

More Alaska - digital -quick and easy

2008-07-29T14:06:00.003-05:00

I am at home today getting my homework done for my upcoming trip to Utah CKU. It is not like me to procrastinate...but I guess I did because I leave next week and I am just now starting my homework.

I am taking a digital class and the pre-work is necessary in order to get everything done during the class time.

I came across this photo that my son-in-law took as we were leaving Seattle. I just LOVE it. I slipped it into a Quick Page template and 2 minutes later - here is the layout.

Today, I am also working on my challenge for the store. I can't wait to see what everyone does with the same materials.

Susie

Store Kit Challenge

2008-07-28T02:40:00.002-05:00

Pictures of projects have begun to come in. I can't wait until we can reveal them and announce a winner of $25.00 at the Crafty Scrapper. Kits for August are ready too, and those will be shown on the first as well as the projects from July's kit. There is still time to pick up a kit and participate in the challenge. All details are right here. Check it out and Stay Tuned for exciting news coming Friday.

Radio Days aka: Can't get enough of Graphic 45

2008-07-27T12:28:00.003-05:00

Have I said that I love this line? I was just totally inspired by the vintage feel. It went perfectly with all my heritage photos of my mom as a little gal and her family. (Don't tell her I called her picts heritage! I have a very young mom!) I just got back from visiting my MIL and she gave me some great photos to scan of my husband's family! They are so cool. So be on the look out for my pig farmer lay out coming soon!

Let's Have More Cake!

2008-07-22T22:00:00.004-05:00

Today was Heidi's birthday as you see below. Thought we'd just post a couple more good pics. Notice that she didn't spit on the cake as much as Joanna did trying to blow out her candles. Of course, these were the nice, simple kind of candles that blow out easy, not the sparklers that won't blow out without gale force winds...hahahaha. Just one more example of a fun day at the Crafty Scrapper!

My Black B-day!~!!

2008-07-22T21:43:00.001-05:00

I just want to thank you guys for my celebration! And Cheryl and her hubby, thanks for hanging w/us and singing! It was a great day; for having a Tuesday birthday, we had awesome food... funny (2thextreme-Sherri), awesome and purposeful gifts (hard 4 the girl that has everything!!!!) You guys SOOOO rock. I am so glad to have you as my friends!

Because I Couldn't Help It!

2008-07-22T09:56:00.002-05:00

I love the Graphic 45 and wanted to share this LO. What do you do when there is one tricycle and 2 girls? Taking turns doesn't work when one can't reach the pedals! LOL! I have always loved this picture. I am so glad I was able to find the pirfect paper for it.

Alphas- Thickers

Ribbon- Maya Road

Journaling-Prima

Scallop punch- Fiskar

Buttons and Brads-hmmmm

Everything else- you guessed it....Graphic 45.

Update on Challenge

2008-07-21T21:06:00.002-05:00

There are only 4 kits left -- so if you were wanting one, you might want to head on down to the store or call and order it for shipping. The response has been even better than we hoped, so next month we'll up the amount of kits we make. We will continue to have kits and hopefully, have some more challenges with them. I hope it is a fun way for people to combine things they might not have before, find papers they didn't know about and to learn techniques from each other. Read the details here for this month's challenge.

Sweet

2008-07-21T08:53:00.000-05:00

All I can say is this Graphic 45 is just too awesome for words. I have some great pict of of my mom and aunt when they were little. This is my aunt. I also added a Prima journaling page and some Maya Road ric rac, and some Thickers (which are on sale at the Crafty Scrapper).

No Frill Crop

2008-07-20T12:07:00.000-05:00

No Frill Crops at the Crafty Scrapper are anything but no frills! We had the best time last night! It was even more special because it was our friend Joanna's b'day celebration. Here you can see her TRYING to blow out the candles of the cake Heidi is carrying as Debbie and all the other gals sing and look along.

I really felt the creative juices flowing. I made a book for a class I will be teaching. I did the challenge that Sherri posted earlier! What fun! And made 4 LOs with some fabulous new paper from Graphic 45. I will be posting those later!

My Current Love Affair with Basic Grey & Cosmo Cricket

2008-07-16T00:22:00.003-05:00

I admit it - I am fickle. If there is a new paper line - well that's all it takes - it is my new favorite.
.
I am not sure if this Basic Grey is all that new, but I am totally truly madly in love with it. I also want to give a shout out to Cosmo Cricket too because I am two timing Basic Grey these days with Cosmo.
.
This card is truly easy breezy. I created a grid with my computer and then just adhered squares of the different papers. A layered and stamped sentiment, and I was done. It took my longer to think it up than to execute it!
.
Is it a paper-sickness? Maybe. I'm ok with that.

Susie

Something Fun

2008-07-15T05:25:00.016-05:00

Last week we told you that we would have a challenge of sorts and details would come out on the 15th. Today is the day!

We have put together a summer Summer Birds and Butterflies Kit of 8 papers, 5 ribbons, letter stickers, a stamp, buttons, brads Maya Road jewels and birds on branches. Also included is a vintage fold a note and bird cards. All of this is packaged and for sale at the store. Most of it is also available separately at the store as well. We are hoping that something in this broad array of items will call to you. It looks much better in person, but if you cannot pop by the store-the picture is here. If you want to order the kit-send an email to the store indicating you would like to purchase the July kit. Cost is $18.99. Shipping would be additional and is actual shipping costs.

What we would like to do is to challenge anyone/everyone to use this group of supplies and show us what the end result is. A couple of the design team members will also participate, but will not be eligible to win the prize we have set up. I didn't want them to post their ideas at this point, because I'm anxious to see what everyone comes up with for this individually-I think that it is so fun to see what everyone comes up with using similar/same supplies.

To show us your work either put a comment here with a link to your work or email it to carolyn@thecraftyscrapper.com. Put 'July Challenge' in the subject line of the email. We will review all submissions on July 31 (so have your picture to us or tell us where to find it by Midnight July 30)and announce the winner of a $25.00 gift certificate to the Crafty Scrapper on August 1, 2008.

The Fine Print: Projects may be layouts, altered work, books, etc. Decision made by the judges is final. By submitting you allow us to post your work on our blog and you allow us to ooo and ahhh as necessary.

Thanks! Have FUN.

Our Home by the Sea

2008-07-12T22:36:00.027-05:00

A book of seasons...is the name of this album that I made the other day at the Crafty Scrapper. The album is a sheer house from Maya Road. I really love the look that the sheers have when you place paper behind them. The papers I used today were mainly Creative Imaginations, but I also threw in some Flair and some K&Co papers.

It is so easy to write on these sheers using a Slick Writer. And every once and a while, I have used some Icing from Glitz.

Since I so do not have a house near the beach....I used the pictures of my Uncle Jim's family. He sent me precious pictures of his family all through the year on the beach. I hope you enjoy them.

Spring

Summer

Fall

Winter

I hope you enjoyed the little journey through their year!

Pre Teen Crop

2008-07-10T08:57:00.012-05:00

We had another fun pre-teen crop.
We made a mosaic frame to match our rooms. Everyone incorporated their own style to make their frames. We had a blast and the pizza pick of the day was sausage and cheese. Of course the Texas girls love their Dr. Pepper and Miss Carolyn brought delicious M&M cookies. We are having a blast with these young scrappers this summer!

We

2008-07-09T20:04:00.003-05:00

Having a fun time scrapping this summer! I have just been celebrating my boys accomplishments this year. I couldn't be any prouder of my Luke. Now...he is a good sport. Not everyone is used to their mother jumping coming up to them during a performance and taking a self portrait. (They were on the gym floor and the parents were leaving.) He is a really shy guy but I think he secretly likes it. This is a LO using Cosmo Cricket. The only hard time I had was deciding which side of paper to use because I wanted to use the reverse side or keep the saying on the reverse! Every inch of the paper is simply FABOO!

Team Challenge

2008-07-06T17:04:00.009-05:00

Isn't it interesting how each person sees things so differently. For a fun challenge three of us took the same products to see what we would come up with. The direction we set was that we were to do a layout, we had to use all of these products and we could not add products to the layout. We would allow use of a pen or something like that to work on the layout.

The products chosen by one of us (ok, me) was a sheet of the Simply Luxe red polka dot paper--one side is red with white dots and the other side is white with red dots. There was a sheet of the Daisy D paper with the little monkey faces on one side and taller monkeys on the other side. There were Creative Imagination (Creative Cafe) sticker sheet with the alphabet and other stickers and two ribbons from American Craft. Also put in the mix was one chipboard tag from a Maya Road Album and 3 black buttons. These items were not patterns that are often put together and so it made them a little more difficult to use, or so the plan was.

A couple things happened that affected the results, one bag did not end up with the tag in it, so it didn't get used. one of the sticker sheets was short a 'y' and an 'o', which was corrected, but the picture I took didn't have those on it, you'll see where that was. Anyway, here are the three layouts.

Each is very unique in the styling. Not a surprise was that each of us used a picture of a child in the layout. I think the monkeys called for that. Anyway, we had fun doing it. Hope it inspires you to do new things---1) try some papers that don't fit your normal scheme for layouts 2) try something new with the style, 3) have fun. You can see there is no right or wrong, just our own style.

To try to help with motivation, we are going to do another design team challenge with specific products to be used-like we did here. There will be packets of the products at the store to allow anyone else to join in that wants to. At the end of the time allowed, we will post all of the different layouts and will vote on our favorite done by someone not on the design team. This person will win an awesome prize! All of the details will be announced next week (July 15), so Stay TUNED!

Luggage Tag Project

2008-07-03T23:52:00.007-05:00

Just wanted to share a project I did for some of us who went on the Alaska cruise last month.

If you have ever been on a cruise, you know that at the end of your trip, your luggage sits in a sea of other luggage that looks JUST LIKE YOURS. So I made luggage tags for four of the families who cruised to Alaska.

I was surprised at how quickly we all found our luggage when it was time to leave the ship.

Oh how I miss that ship! No one here cleans my room, makes my bed or serves me dinner on fine china!

I plan to make some even fancier tags for my upcoming trip to Utah with my friend Rebecca. CKU here we come!

Susie

pre-teen crop

2008-07-02T22:03:00.004-05:00

We are in for the summer time fun! Croppin about ourselves in a book we made by ourselves! We learned a LOT of new techniques and had fun with Love Elsie, and Carolle's Creations. Journaling is the FOCUS of our album because our handwriting is our STAMP on life! But we also played with chipboard, lots of embelee's , we made our own album's!!!!! And did I mention Pizza and Soda Pop???

OK girls.... we decided July was the month to do this EVERY week! So ....sign up, get your Mom to crop while you are having FUN creating a one of a kind project!!! Let's Have a blast!!!! Goodness Knows there is plenty to scrap about!

Heidi

2008 Book

2008-06-29T20:23:00.001-05:00

My oldest just graduated....so I made this 2008 book. This book would be great for your New Years celebrations or just recapping what has happened during this year.

The book was made by:

The papers were Bazzil Bling and Reminiscence

I used Glitz Frosting, Thickers Alphas and Sticklers.

Maya Roads- ribbons, sheer paisleys, sheer journaling spots and chipboard.

UTEE

I did a little experimenting with this. I stamped the Maya Roads Sheers and then used perfect medium and UTEE on them. You can see the effect on the paisley. I then used a little frosting to add some dimension.

I Have Always Loved

2008-06-25T17:41:00.003-05:00

A friend at the Scrap Shanty made an album "I Have Always." She had things that she loved and hated. I decided that I wanted to do an album about the things that I have always loved.

Materials:
Maya Road: Album, Ribbon, Letters, Hearts, Crowns, Rub-ons and felt pieces
Paper: Basic Grey "Sugared"
Alpha: Luxe Rub-Ons
Ranger Inkablitlies Opaque marker, Vintage Photo and Paint Dauber
I have always loved looking at my Granny's old photos. I love looking at them to this day and can just look at them for hours. I always wanted to see what it was like when my mom and granny were little.

Reading has always been a passion. Like Abraham Lincoln, "The things I want to know are in books." When I was in Jr. High, I asked my mom what her favorite book was. She told me "Jane Eyre." It instantly became my favorite. I have read it innumerable times. I have seen every movie ever made of it.

I believe I have been a constant source of entertainment to someone in my family all my life. I love singing and musical theatre.

I can't say enough about paislies. This is one of my favorite dresses. When I see paislies...I think it reminds me of what an awesome childhood I had.

I am most passionate about my family. My Granny is a special favorite of mine.

I hope you like my book! Thanks for looking

Birthday Cake Mini Album

2008-06-24T17:11:00.000-05:00

This is a Creative Imaginations BE cake mini album I did to showcase a few pictures from Porter's birthday party. The paper was perfect with the bright color of her suit and the water slide was bright orange as well. All the paper was Creative Imaginations and K&Co embelies. Plus my new LOVE Tim Holtz Grungeboard with his crackle paint and distress inks. This stuff RAWKS! Hope you enjoy!

Jotters Anyone- Deep Thoughts

2008-06-22T15:52:00.003-05:00

I can't get enough of thes jotters. What a way to have a great time. The jotters are all different sizes and patters so it is a great way to add some interest and depth on a LO when paired with glue dots and pop dots.

I gathered several of these and just wrote down the things that Sam was thing one day. It doesn't take long to gather the thoughts. I just called Sam on the phone and asked him what he was thinking about today and all these ideas spewed forth. Some are very insightful.

I paired these with some Jenni Bowlin and some more Luxe paper, stickers and letters plus Maya Road chipboard letters. I think this will be a wonderful memory to keep of Sam's active mind.

Road Trip

2008-06-21T21:04:00.002-05:00

This layout was made using Luxe and Maya Roads.

To find my guy...you can look at the great Luxe arrows that I stamped. If you haven't used the Luxe stamps...you must! The ink lays down on the paper like butter. I am so not a stamper...but these stamps are just the bomb!

The Jotters made it easy for me to document what we did on the trip!

My favorite part of the LO besides all the picts of my cutie...are the chipboard letters. They are painted with Ranger's Crackle Paint. If you were to see it in real life, it does look like asphalt. I think used the most wonderful opaque marker around from Ranger and made the dotted lines. Luke loved the way that it turned out.

More Stunning Word Books

2008-06-19T01:11:00.013-05:00

Two of the other word books that were extremely popular at the convention were these. First is a picture of the CRUISE book. It has been a big hit at the store for a month or so, but the convention goers were seeing it for the first time. I heard many wonderful comments on this and many, many people buying the papers to make their own.

I hate to limit you to only a couple pages of this book because it is quite awesome. Susie did this book & if you notice in this second photo you will see an acrylic page added into the book. She did this in a couple of spots and really made this a unique book. Looking at the book, I wish I was on a cruise right now--cool water in the pool...ahhh. All the papers in this book are Moxxie papers & I think there are still some left at the store. (with the sale, things are flying out of there)

This second book is the Fourth of July Book. The letters say JULY4 and then if you look on the '4' you will see the "th" completing the cover. Isla did this book as well for us. She scurried right up until 3 or 4 in the morning of the day of the convention working on projects for the store.

On this book, she used the Rusty Pickle Papers, which have nearly all escaped the store. We took them for mini store in the crop room and not many were even left after that. Since Rusty Pickle was at the convention, we kept what was left for the store. I have said to Isla that I think she sold more Rusty Pickle paper than they did with this book.

I hope these give you some ideas on what to do with some of your photos. Even though I couldn't get the full project in here, you can see that the books will hold quite a few photos AND can be expanded with extra pages. Need help doing your first one of these? Come on by the store. We'll be glad to talk you through it!

Patterned Paper

2008-06-18T08:03:00.005-05:00

I have this passion for patterned paper. I love mixing and matching them. I have matted with card stock....but I like using patterned paper too!

I made this LO of my little cousin Maisy. I know that the bolder paper in the background is Luxe Every Day. The other is Pink Paislee. The solid breaks can often be made with ribbon. I believe in this case it is Maya Road's Velvet Ribbon.

I added a Luxe rubbon on top of the patterned paper as well.

Then I added lots of flowers and and some bling from Glitz. So...if you don't have any solid cardstock....don't panic.

Stars of the Show

2008-06-15T22:19:00.008-05:00

One of the big hits at the Great American Scrapbook Convention were the word books. Some are called Word Bloom books and some have different names. They are made by many places. Many booths had these books and they are pretty popular in general, but I felt like ours were extra special because of the examples made by the Design Team members. There were some other cute examples around the floors, but I didn't think any were any cuter than the ones made by our team. OK. I know I'm biased, but really, these were very very cute.

First off is this COWGIRL book.

Coordinating both Carolee's Adorn It and Moxxie paper lines, Isla made this a beautiful book. She added just the right amount of great embellishments from the lines and made some of her own. The great star on the front of the book is from 10 second studio metal and molds. She outlined it with Glitz icing. Really grabs the eye, doesn't it?

Stunning, sharp and stylish were words that were used to describe this book by attendees.

The heart shape is a Heidi Swapp mirror with a rub-on.

Isla always does a great job on any project. I'm sure it also helped to have so many adorable pictures of her granddaughter.

The great flower of studs is from Prima Marketing.

This is just one of the great books from the show--AND just some of the pages. I'll have to post the others in separate posts. I can't show you all of them on here--you may just have to head to the store to see them all.

Card Makin' Mood

2008-06-10T22:11:00.007-05:00

I have been in the mood to stamp and create lately. And that works out well because so far this week, I've needed five cards. Here are two that I did tonight and will be off in the mail tomorrow morning.

You know I am a card maker who loves to use scraps and left over do-dads. Both cards fit this description. I do need to add some red Stickles on my father's day card...but then I'll call it a night.

Have a great week.

Susie

Convention!

2008-06-09T09:11:00.013-05:00

I have to say that I had a blast working the convention. I had the most hectic and fun filled time meeting new people telling them about product and sharing my love for scrapping.

I didn't get there until day two. Here we can see Carolyn still looking quite chipper.

Here are some pictures of the booth. It was gorgeous, filled with eye candy and product. Sherri and Carolyn really out-did themselves on the design.

Here is the bain of our existance. There was a power surge and it took our cash register out. So for two hours while Nolan was out getting a new cash register, we had two calculators. We were counting out change old school. My brain has never worked so hard! Oh and did I mention even with a calculator, the line was wrapped around our booth?

Thank goodness for Ruthe. She stepped right in and helped us. She has a way with a crowd. She was calm cool and collected. Ruthe is my hero!

Nolan was a hoot! He was hawking for us. "Let's hear it for the Crafty Scrapper!" "Come on in to The Crafty Scrapper!" Plus he was putting in big plugs for the Waxahachie Chamber of commerce and tourism there on the square, so I think the whole town of Waxahachie owes him a debt of gratitude.

Once Nolan got back with a new register, he was able to get the old register working as well so we had two registers going!

Here we are at the end of day 2. Still smilin'.

Notice there are no pictures of day three. I only got out of the booth to go to the restroom and visit the bra ladies. (I needed to get two things at convention and managed to come home with neither!)

Carolyn decided to work the crop that night....so we did that. Here we are after the crop. Heidi is looking peppy still.

Joanna helped with tear down and the crop. Here she is helping Nolan load the truck.

Carolyn is all business here with Nolan's handy dandy all purpose knife.

By the time I was finished with only two days of convention....I was toast. It has taken me a day and half just to gather the energy to post about it. I'm tired, but still filled with my scrappy high! I hope that all the new friends that we made will join us in Waxahachie soon! It was really awesome to be part of the most popular booth at the convention!

Two LO's for GASC

2008-06-01T09:51:00.000-05:00

These are two layouts I did last Sunday for display at GASC. Sherri gave us all a challenge to see how many different manufacture's we could get on a layout. As any of you who know me this can be a big challenge, especially in regards to paper. I am not the best at mixing it up. Which I did not do on the BFF layout but grabbed for the "Simply Luxe" for the 100% American girl LO. I have been grabbing for the Luxe alot lately. And I could not resisit the Flip Flop line, which I believe Carolyn will have paper packs of at the booth. I LOVE all the new Prima's and thanks to Joanna have started a glitter addiction!

Happy Sunday everyone. We are beat after jumping from one sunny activity to the other yesterday. I am happy though this afternoon will be another photo op for the Brownie (Girl Scout) album with Court of Awards. Have a scrappy day!

Men in Trees

2008-06-01T00:01:00.000-05:00

When you have a bunch of boys around a house with a six huge trees...it is hard to keep them out of the trees. But I didn't think I would have to worry about the dog!

I made this LO using Luxe papers and Maya Roads.

ONE MORE SAMPLE (GASC)

2008-05-28T07:29:00.002-05:00

Here is another sample that will posted in the booth next week at the Great American Scrapbook Convention in Arlington, TX. This was so easy, and I was able to complete in one evening (in between interuptions from Matt and his friends, they had to make flags out of something other than paper). The main reason for this sample was to showcase the Maya Roads ribbon. Just about everything is Maya Roads: ribbon, flowers, chipboard letters. The rest is from my stash! And the hangar is from Crafty Secrets. I scraplifted this idea from Keisha Campbell's blog, check it out here http://abiteast.typepad.com/. I also used a flat canvas board and really, really liked the end design. I will be making more, no doubt about it. Get inspired, and you never know what you might come up with. This one will hang in my studio forever....I mean who wouldn't be inspired by all that COLOR!

Thank Heaven for Little Girls

2008-05-26T16:32:00.003-05:00

I am framing this for a gal I work with. She had this precious baby girl 6 weeks ago and is now back at work. I can't wait to give it to her tomorrow.

Everything is from the Basic Grey Sugared line. Just added some Stickles and it was done.

Complete doesn't HAVE to be fancy. Sometimes just plain and simple can make a layout perfect. I am calling this one done.

Susie

U.S.A.

2008-05-26T14:14:00.002-05:00

Happy Memorial Day! I thought I would share a LO that I did the other day. This is a LO of my two great uncles home on leave from WWII. I had uncles in every branch of the service. During WWII, two were killed and two were injured. So on days like today, it is nice to remember those who came before.

The journaling says...those that stand it now deserve the thanks and love of every woman and man-Thomas Paine

I used Jenni Bowlin and Simply Luxe papers. Luxe alphas and the doodle roller. Glitz Icing.

Scrappy Weekend

2008-05-25T19:32:00.001-05:00

I had the most awesome and productive weekend. I had the fantastic opportunity to spend a free day at The Stolen Moments Inn with several of my good friends and my mom scrapping and creating. Thank you Susie for such an awesome weekend.

While I was there I created a few LOs. This first LO is for my Son's Band Competition down in Austin. I only wanted to use one page, but I wanted to use the
the four pictures. So I made it into a pull out and a flip boook.

The big star pulls out to show another picture. I don't know why I don't have a picture of it. I also see that I need to cover the back of the star.

I used Jenni Bowlin Paper and Simply Luxe. The stars are Jenni Bowlin and the treble cliff is Maya Road.

I always feel recharged and ready to create even more!

Computer Woes

2008-05-22T00:51:00.013-05:00

I have spent the last 2 days enjoying the wonder of a computer that was just not feeling too well. The worst part - it wouldn't let me access certain sites that I love - LIKE BLOGGER! .

So now I have restored my computer to its original state, installed (hopefully) all of the software that I use and tweaked and poked and adjusted until I think I have nursed it back to health. Last night it was 3 am. when I finally gave up. Tonight I will be thrilled to be in bed by 1am. And tonight I feel like I actually accomplished something.

But before I head off to bed, I had to share this project with you. This is a 24 x 36 canvas that I did for a lady at my office. She wanted me to come up with a large piece of art highlighting her son and his family. So here it is.

I was inspired by the 6x6 canvas art that each member of the design team created. So find some inspiration like I did and branch out. Enjoy!

Susie

PS: pop over to my blog if you have a moment. I posted a digital layout that I recently completed. I am just learning digital and I THINK I love it.

Create

2008-05-18T21:17:00.000-05:00

My class with Ten Second Studio was awesome. My mother and I totally had a fantastic time. The gals were so wonderful that when mom and I had to leave for our family reunion, we were able to take what we had learned and finish our projects at home that night.
I took Sherri's challenge and used my handwriting to create a border around the plaque. Working with metal is out of my comfort zone. As I was working, I kept griping about all the individual letters. I was really hard on myself and didn't like the way it was looking. But....when I put it all together, added my cherry bling, my flower and my border and sanded a little, I really liked the way it looked. I think it will look great in my new scrapbook room.