Create!

Aly and I had some success yesterday with scrapbooking. It had been a long time, but I spent several hours going through boxes and unpacking new purchases (what? just because I haven't scrapbooked doesn't mean I haven't bought supplies.) to prep for our session. For all of the layouts, we used Sassafrass Lass papers (purchased at Your Scrapbook Superstore and Clearance Center last spring), Martha Stewart and Creative Memories markers, Stickles (from ScrapFreak), various chipboard, random ribbon, and the photos from Aly's pottery experience in Gatlinburg. I did most of this first page, though Aly convinced me to use a chipboard arrow for the "T" in the title and slightly tilt the photo. Her favorite part is the way I highlighted some of the words behind the sheer ribbon by coloring them in with markers. I love the pop the Stickles (in Diamond and Cinnamon) gave to the chipboard flowers at the bottom.

Aly did this one entirely by herself. Actually, she did some of it while I was napping, and I was surprised to see the chipboard numbers added to the photos. They look really great. I recommended the ribbon and the library pocket, but the rest was all her. Mom says she is as good as me. Aly says, "um, better." Here is a closeup of the library card with her journaling. She makes sure to journal on all of her layouts.

The last LO showcases her finished bowl and her teacher, Miss Amanda. Lots of glitter here (Martha Stewart pens and Stickles). Oh, and we used our Crop-a-Dile to set the eyelets on the vellum quote. That is calligraphy, but we used a secret technique I learned from a co-worker ... print a calligraphic font in grayscale and go over it with your pens. Viola!

I'll say that using a paper line that already matched made things so easy. I've sorted my paper by color theme now, so when we are ready to scrap, we can grab a stack of paper and pick out the matching embellishments. We took over the dining room table yesterday, and it gave us lots of room -- room for at least one more if anyone's up for visiting! I hope I'm able to keep scrapping through the year, even with all the travel I'll be doing. Having the paper already matched will make the planning process easier, so I hope so. Thanks for looking!