1 Kit, 4 Ways – Summer Template 21

Wait. What happened to Wednesday? Oh, well. It’s Thursday, and I’m thrilled to be bringing you this week’s 1 Kit, 4 Ways! Today, I’ll be showing you just how much you can do with a template, specifically, Summer Template 21, by Tiffany Tillman:

When reading this thread in the scrap room a few weeks ago, I was surprised at how many people don’t like circles on their pages. So, we’re all set to show you how fabulous circles can be, whether they’re softening the lines of harder edges, or even (gasp!) your favorite photos cropped into this versatile shape!

Layout by Gennifer Bursett, Photo by Barnwood Photography

When scrapping this photo of my parents, siblings, and me, I used subtle circle touches throughout. The coffee cup stains, clock rub-on, and plaid scalloped border pair nicely with the rounded edges of the tags and butterflies. Adding a little family-themed word art and my title finishes up the page. (Credits: Make It Count, Basic Kraft, Vanity Fair Cerulean Tags, Siblings Vol.1, File 13 Alphabet)

Layout by Katherine Hansen

Katherine Hansen created this stunner: “I love the versatility of templates! Rotate them, add or remove elements – and voila! A page is complete. I already had a large photo in mind for a page, but wasn’t sure how to incorporate it – until I saw the large, rectangular space on this template. By rotating the template, and removing one of the photograph placement spots, I was still able to highlight two photos.” (Credits: Simply Boyish, Paisley Pop, Summer Picnic, Life:June)

Layout by Jennifer Valencia

Jennifer Valencia says this: “I wanted to think outside of my usual box, and Tiffany’s circle-filled template was the perfect solution. I clipped pictures of my daughter to the circles and the big rectangle, and added colored paper and accents to match the colors and shapes of her butterfly lollipop. I love how the white space in the template really draws attention to the photos. I used a neutral-colored background paper to make the colors pop.” (Credits: Color My World; Summer Sweetness; Simply Girly)

Layout by Renee Fink

Renee Fink, our original anti-circle girl, shares this: “After beginning our recent discussion in the forum confessing my “prejudice” toward circles on layouts I took on this template challenge with zeal. Our summer vacation provided a strong focal photo to serve as the centerpiece of this page. The Happy Camper set by Sara Schmutz provided the rest of the elements needed to document our family memories.” (Credits: Happy Camper)

Would you like your very own Summer Template 21 to play with? Comment here, and tell me your favorite thing in the shape of a circle. A peony? The dial on your iPod? Me? Well, since I’m trying to slim down a bit before a family wedding next month, I’m super craving my mom’s cinnamon rolls. Circles of pure deliciousness, just trying to tempt me!

(Congrats to tatsiana, our winner from last week! I hope you had a blast on the go-carts!)

How to Make a Personalized Hybrid Pencil Pouch

I have been in love with office and school supplies all my life so when I saw Jen Allyson’s September Kit,  I just had to have that lined paper.  I’ll show you how to make a personalized pencil pouch just in time for back to school. *disclaimer, I am not a seamstress, I’ve never had sewing lessons. I’ve taught myself by reading patterns, reading tutorials so there may be a different or better way to construct the pouch but this is what worked for me if you have any additional tips, I’d love  to hear them! Let’s get started!

I started with Jen Allyson’s Design 365 September Kit:

Print on photo transfer paper according to package directions:

Iron design on to fabric.  I used plain canvas because I love the look and it’s inexpensive!

Trim edges of fabric as needed.

Machine baste top seam where zipper will go. (straight stitch with a long stitch length)

This is when I figured out I needed to cut the front and back into separate pieces because I would not be able to sew the zipper on.

Press open top seam with press cloth. (iron may damage design with out cloth)

Place and pin zipper in place.  I used a 7 inch white zipper.

Use a zipper foot and sew zipper in place.

Put wrong sides together and stitch around  3 edges.

Trim close to seam.  I used pinking shears to minimize fraying.

Remove basting, unzip and turn pouch inside out.

Stitch another seam around 3 sides.

Turn right side out again.

I hand stitched an American Crafts crocheted flower next to my name.

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial, I sure am loving my little pencil pouch! If you have any questions or other sewing tips, I’d love to hear those in the comments.  Thanks for stopping by!

1 Kit, 4 Ways – Life:June

It’s  Wednesday, which means we’re back with another 1 Kit, 4 Ways. If you’ve never joined us before, it’s where four of us (me, and three Design House Decorators) start out with the same kit, and see just how different our pages turn out. This week, we’re working with Kate Teague’s Life:June kit:

I know… you’re thinking we’re a bit behind the times, since it’s almost the end of August. But, no, we’ll show you just how versatile this kit can be, all year long!

Layout by Gennifer Bursett

I created this layout to document my daughter’s first day of school yesterday. I loved all of the patterned papers in Kate’s kit, and couldn’t possibly limit myself to just one; The trick to using them all together is to keep them in small doses. Bunting from Jen Allyson’s Vanity Fair Cerulean Elements matched perfectly, and added a bit of whimsy, while stitching (Carina’s Essentials-Stitches v.1) and some crystals (Audrey’s Butterfly Fancy Elements) provide a little texture and detail. Everything stays fresh on a kraft background from Basic Kraft by Karen Funk.

Layout by Kym Tsukamoto

Kym Tsukamoto says, “Life:June is filled with a beautiful color palette of yellow, brown, and turquoise. The first thing I grabbed from this kit was the super cute word art. It really was a great starting point for my journaling as it reflected my feelings about this summer. I then began to build my layout. I knew I wanted 1 photo to take center stage then add on some of the cute floral paper from this kit and a solid paper (Basic Cardstock by Karen Funk). To finish it off, I added some stitches from Carina Garner (Essentials-Stitches v.1) and gave it a pop of color with some of the Life:June paper, flowers, and date hardware.”

Layout by Katie Richards

Katie Richards shares this: “When looking through Kate’s June kit I fell in love with the floral paper. Then when I got to the sweet summer word art I knew I wanted to find a picture of one of my kiddos eating some type of summer treat. I added the green circle to make the word art stand out from the paper. I didn’t add too many embellishments because of the busyness of the paper, so I called it good with a couple staples, color dots, and the 2010 date.”

Layout by Allison Waken

Finishing us up is Allison Waken, who says, “Blues and greens are my favorite combination, but when I look at this June kit by Kate Teague I noticed the sweet feminine accents that I knew I wanted to use it for a photo of my niece. I LOVE that circle tag and knew I’d use it right away for my date tag. I wanted to add some layers with this fun distressed paper and thought that a circle was the perfect accent to soften up the strips of patterned paper. I topped the layout off with the perfect fun alpha and tag.”

Super cute layouts, with a super cute kit. You want it, right? How would you like Life:June free?Comment here, and tell me what your last summer activity was (or is, if it’s still planned) and you could be playing with this kit next week! Me? We snuck in a last-minute camping trip, which is always a good way to end the summer!

(Congrats to Karen, who win’s last week’s kit. Yikes, that’s awesome!)

How To Use Ephemera in Your Hybrid Layout – Tutorial

I was immediately drawn to the bright stripes, polka dots and glasses in Sara Schmutz’s My Shades Collection.  I wanted to create a hybrid layout using these items to document a trip to a 3D movie and incorporate the ticket stubs too.

I also used MaryAnn Wise’s Taped Frames (I love the tape and the white curled frames!):

1. Start out in Photoshop with a blank 4×6″ 300 dpi document.
2. Add a picture from the theater.
3. Layer a square taped frame over the picture
4. use (M) square  marquee tool to draw a selection on the picture layer just larger than the opening in the frame.
5. invert the selection (Ctrl-Shift-I) to select the area of the picture outside of the frame then delete.
6. add a patterned paper under the picture.
7. print on 4×6 photo paper.
8. drag papers over the frame layer so only the patterned papers show, print.

Use the frame to make a Journaling spot:

1. Select the (G) Bucket tool
2. sample the color of the frame
3. Fill the inside of the frame with the color
4. add journaling on a layer above the frame
5. add patterned paper under frame
6. print

I lay out the picture and the tickets in a line, then determined the sizes of the other pieces and cut to fit.  The best part about printing all the pages on 4×6 you know all are the same width.  You could also skip the hassle by laying out the block in ps and printing as one sheet then adding to the layout.

I chose a few pieces that would be mounted with foam adhesive and removed them to adhere later.

I adhered these pieces down and then sewed down every seam with a green zig zig stitch.

1. I added some embellishments to the 4×6 document
2. Add text to the labels.
3. Print

Using Spellbinders pinked Circle dies and my big shot die cutter I cut a out one pinked circle with patterned paper and cut the two labels.

1. I trimmed the tickets with a paper trimmer on the straight sides then used a fiskars postal shaped scissors on the edges.
2. I wrapped some divine twine around one ticket and used dimensional adhesive to mount.

The last movie ticket stub was mounted to a pinked circle and then to the page for dimension.

I added the title with some yummy yellow Thickers:

I hope you are inspired to add ephemera to your next hybrid project!  I’d love to hear if you have any questions or if you use this idea, I’d love to see your project!

Thanks for stopping by!

Joscie, rhymes with bossy

1 Kit, 4 Ways – Blue Haven Papers

We’re back, and this week, we’re happy to feature Blue Haven Papers, a brand new kit debuting 8/19 by MaryAnn Wise:

With such a great mixture of patterns, this kit is sure to have a plethora of uses. (Yes, I said ‘plethora.’ I like that word!) Let’s jump right in, and show you what our Design House Decorators did with it!

Layout by Tiffany Bodily

Tiffany Bodily starts us out this week: “I loved the water themed paper in this paper pack and knew that I just had to use it for our recent vacation photos of my niece. I layered the water graphic paper over the matching solid to create a border for my page. The layout only needed a few embellishments to compliment the theme because the gorgeous paper did so much to set the mood for the layout!”

Layout by Carey Bridges

Carey Bridges says, “I just love the masculine feel of Blue Haven, with the fabulous combination of blue and brown. When I saw the brown paper with the square patterns, I knew I wanted to use some small photos to fill those squares. The addition of a few embellishments from some of MaryAnn’s other kits (Taped Frames, Beach Days Brush Stamps, Word Stickers) plus my journaling finished off the page nicely. The gorgeous patterns make putting together an elegant page quick and simple!”

Layout by Theresa Marie Goon

Theresa Marie Goon shares this: “I started with the papers because I loved them! I knew I wanted to use at least two of the patterns, so I laid them on my page and then found the photos I wanted to work with and added the Photostacks to bring more focus to my fave photo. Then I added a few elements from some of MaryAnn’s other kits: Stitched Grids and Spring Vines Borders. I love how versatile these Blue Haven papers are!”

Layout by Lori Pickens

Lori Pickens wraps us up with this beauty: “I was so excited to see these, because the teal and brown color combo is one of my very favorites! The papers coordinate really well together so it was easy to use several of them on my paper strips. I even used a couple of them as masks on top of my elements for some extra interest. I added the striped paper with different shades of teal over my background mask so it starts out dark at the bottom and fades to the top. I added the brown and teal diagonal stripe paper over my swirl for a mix of color. I love to find ways to use my papers in a non-traditional way, and adding them as a clipping mask is the easiest way to turn you favorite elements into matching colors for your new, favorite papers.”

Are you ready for your chance to win your very own set of Blue Haven Papers? Comment here, and tell me about your favorite word. You know, the one you always try to sneak into conversations, just because you like the way it sounds? Yep, I want to hear all about it!

MaryAnn is also our Featured Designer this weekend, which means amazing deals! Be sure and stop by Friday, Aug 20, at 7 PM (MST) to chat with MaryAnn, and throw some good words into the chat, just for me!

(Congrats to Barbara, who wins last week’s kit. I’m glad she won’t have to resort to mugging to get it!)