December challenges....

Hi all,

Just in case you find yourself at a loose end over the next couple of weeks..( ! ) I thought I'd link you up to the current challenges running on the Scrapology blog this month.....

Here's the layout challenge " 5 of anything "  click HERE

and my version..

 

And here is the current card " Colour" challenge   ..click HERE

with my card....

I hope you get some time to play along, especially if Santa brings you some lovely new stash on Christmas day!!

Wishing all my blog friends a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, and I look forward to catching up with you all in 2015 xx

Karen xx

Colour challenge card .....

This month at Scrapology, the new card challenge was set by ... me  !!

I chose a fabulous colour board and you can see all the georgeous cards created by my Design Team buddies over on the BLOG.   

You have from now untill 15th of Dec to enter your card....good luck everyone....

Hope you like the colour board as much as I do and it inspires you to have a go at our challenge.

Thanks for stopping by

Karen x

H is for Hearts......

The new challenge at SCRAPOLOGY is up and running till 5th December.

This month we have a lovely bold and bright layout and sketch to inspire your creations...pop over to the BLOG for all the details, Design team layouts and prize on offer .

Also this month if you don't fancy hearts on your layout, you are welcome to use any other repeated shape .

My A4 page uses hearts but in a different way to the L/O and sketch, but suited my need to put lots of photos on the page !

this is the sketch....

Thanks for stopping by

Karen x

Scrapology Christmas card challenge....

Here's an easy one for you, just create a Christmas Card using Blue and Silver....

This months Scrapology card challenge runs until 15th Nov so you've plenty of time to get cutting and sticking!  

POP over to the BLOG for all the details and take a look at the prize on offer from our October Sponsor.....  

Here's mine....and don't forget check out the fabulous Design Team cards on the blog for some inspiration to get you started :)

Thanks for stopping by, and I look forward to seeing your creations....

Karen x

L is for Labels...... Scrapology.....

The new challenge at SCRAPOLOGY is now running till 5th November.... Hop over there to find all the details of how to enter your layout and take a peek at the super prize up for grabs.  

The Design team have been busy  too , to provide some fabulous inspiration to help get you started.....

As usual I rotated the sketch to fit into my 8.5 x 11 layout, and dug deep into my Basic Grey stash to find these perfect papers from the Wander collection....

...and here's the sketch....

You can use the sketch or the featured layout as your starting point or even a mix of the two, It would be lovely to see what you create.  

All projects submitted are published on the blog, so don't forget to share what you've made with us, we love to see how varied everyone's work is.....

thanks for stopping by

Karen x

Anything goes....

That's the current card challenge on the Scrapology BLOG, what could be easier??

Check all the details for the challenge, the DT inspiration and the prize for one lucky entry on the blog. 

Send us your links or emails and you'll be in with a chance - all the cards submitted are published on the blog too :)

  Here's my offering featuring a folded flower made from punched circles.

Thanks for stopping by

Karen x

T is for Trio.......of photos......

This is the latest scrapology challenge now starting over at the BLOG. You have until the 5th October to submit a scrapbook page which has been inspired by the featured layout , sketch or Design team layouts.

Pop over to the blog for all the details and check out the super prize just waiting  for one lucky entry.

I rotated the sketch in order to fit my 3 photos on my smaller scale layout....

All the papers are from the Crate Paper - DIY shop collection. The tiny chipboard camera is from a set from Dusty Attic, and there are still 11 more to use...Yay!

......and here's the sketch.....

I hope that once you've seen all the DT inspiration  over at Scrapology, you'll be tempted to have a go.

Thanks for stopping by,

Karen x

Die Challenge... !!

The latest card challenge has been set over at the SCRAPOLOGY BLOG and features the work of Sue Wilson.  We would like you to create a card with die cuts as the focal point or use them in an unusual way. Sue has donated an amazing prize for the winner and all the details and super Design team inspiration can be found on the BLOG.

You have till 15th sept to submit a card......

As I only have a few basic sets of dies my card was created very simply.  I used a heart to make the flower and circles to make the rings.

I hope you join in and send us a card or two !  It's great to see how everyone interprets the challenge in their own way :)

Thanks for stopping by

Karen x

Hello....

What is the fascination with cardboard boxes, especially with children or in this case big hairy dogs?

I thought this photo would suit the layout for the newest challenge over at Scrapology.........

"E for Exposed" and using a layout by Ingvild  Bolme as a starting point.

All the patterned paper, including the eyeboggling black and white paper comes from the Happy Days collection kit from Echo park.

Rather than tearing the aperture for the photo, as in the original layout (see below) I just randomly cut into the paper and folded the pieces back.

Pop over to the Scrapolgy blog to see the details of the challenge, all the amazing design Team layouts and details of how to enter your project. As always we have a super prize for the winning layout.

This is the original layout  by Ingvild Bolme and our sketch....

Thanks for stopping by

Karen x

Dreams and Delights....

That's the theme for the latest card challenge over at the SCRAPOLOGY BLOG.....which is being sponsored by Tracy Dutton of Lavinia Stamps.

Now I'm not a great stamper as you may have noticed , however I was lucky to see a set of very pretty Lavinia stamps free on the cover of Papercraft essentials Magazine !

So armed with a silver ink pad, ribbon , black glitter paper and some little letter stamps, I made this....

If you'd like to see how the rest of the Design team got on with their challenge, all the details for entering your project and prize details pop over to the BLOG x

                                                           Good luck

                                                  Thanks for stopping by

Karen x

P for Punch outs......

This is the new challenge set by the Scrapology team for this month. 

The layout to scraplift is by Stacey Cohen and the sketch from the LO, Design Team inspiration and ALL the details of how to enter your project can be found right HERE

My layout, uses mostly cardstock and a tiny bit of blue floral patterned paper from the Echo Park - for the record 2 - collection. The cute little clothes peg stickers were also in the collection. I used my beloved glitter A/C thickers and raided my stash for the rest.

I loved this challenge, but as you can see I was limited with space for the actual punchouts! Given the size of my layout and photo :)

This was the sketch

This is a really fun challenge, and it will be lovely to see just how many different  shaped punches will be used on your projects.

Look forward to seeing you over at Srapology. The current challenge runs till 5th Aug.and as always there's a great prize for the winning layout.

Thanks for stopping by

Karen x

Sketch N Scrap #58

I've had some very sweet photos of my niece and nephew sitting in my photo box for a few years now......and have finally managed to complete a layout with them. ( They 're both teenagers now so probably won't thank me :)  )

I 've used one of the super sketches from the Sketch N Scrap blog ...you can see all their  June challenges HERE.  

and here's the layout...using American crafts papers . 

I made this and another layout in the company of some lovely ladies in Bradfield yesterday, so big thanks to Kerry for inviting me, I had a great day :)  

The black camera was cut using Kerry's sissix die --- It was so cute I just had to cut a few more for future use!

I will add some journaling to the back of the layout and the date to the front when I can work out when the photos were taken :)

Thanks for stopping by,

Karen x

All about Fay .....

I have 2 projects to share today, both recording my eldest daughter's 18th birthday :)

Although I missed the deadline for the Scrap365 sketch challenge, I did use it to create my 8.5" x 11" double page!  I think I've only done 3 double pages in this size, but I wanted to use lots of photos.

 I've seen this done on a couple of blogs I visit...I'll add the links when I've found them!

Here's the original sketch :)

The next project is the New Scrapology Card challenge which launched today and is open till

15th July.  Check out the blog HERE for all the details of the challenge, fabulous Design Team Inspiration and a look at the amazing prize bundle.....

Our Challenge this month was to create one of the very popular "Card in a box" folding cards.

Mine turned out slightly differently as I wanted to include  photos....

This metric sized version was demonstrated to us at the papermaze crop by Karen Curd, who is an independent stampin up demonstrator . You can find her here x

So, get sticking and enter your card over at scrapoplogy . Good Luck x

Thanks for stopping by

Karen x

Blog Hop with a difference....

Last week I was invited to join a Blog Hop Tour by Mary Anne  of UKScrappers fame :) It's a different sort of blog hop than you generally see and the idea is to answer a few questions and then pass the batton on to 3 more  friends for the following week so it spreads out as it goes week by week... So, here goes...


What am I working on?

I always seem to have a few different things on the go at once. This week I'm dividing my crafty time between my design team commitments for  the Scrapology challenge blog, which is a card and a layout every month (which I can't share!), my pocket album, which is a page a month, and making all kinds of papercrafty goodies to sell on my shelf at The Thrifty Thistle. (The Thrifty Thistle is a fabulous shop in Felixstowe where crafters, not just papercrafters, can rent a shelf to sell their handmade items). I'm making peg notice boards, pencil pots, gift boxes, peg magnets and lots more!

It's amazing what you can make with a baked bean tin and some scrapbook papers!

How does my work differ from others of its genre?

Well I guess the obvious difference is that I choose to work in the American A4 size, 8.5 x11" and always in portrait. The majority of Scrapbookers work in 12x12, which I now find incredibly difficult.
I don't buy huge selections of ready made embellishments for my pages, although if some come in a kit, I'll happily use them!
Most of my pages have a 'home made' look to them, I don't use lots of fancy complicated techniques or tools, and I love to recycle found/saved trinkets,tags and momentos. Cutting and sticking is what I love....
I make the patterned paper work very hard for me, and nearly always let the photo dictate my colour combinations.
I love pretty patterns and my work has to be NEAT and coordinated.....  I'm hopeless with inky, splatty, art-journaly or ecclectic styles!

Why do I create what I do?

I'm like alot of other scrapbookers that I've met in person or through blog-land, who say they've always been crafty.  It wasn't till I discovered Scrapbooking in 2006, that I actually felt at home. I've always kept photo albums, and loved my sugar paper scrapbooks, but had never combined the two.
Scrapbooking for me is FUN, its what I love to do....well it beats housework every time:)
Of course, I'm preserving memories and satisfying my creative side at the same time with something I can KEEP.
My latest layout is always my most favourite, and I stick them high up on the wall in my craft room untill there's no room left and then they have to go in an album.
If my layout doesn't have much in the way of journaling on the front...then I always write all the details on the back for future reference.

How does your creating process work?

My starting point these days is more often than not a sketch. It really means that the hard work of designing the page is already done and I can concentrate on the fun stuff .
I rarely stick completely to the original and always try to do something a little different. I pick a photo, choose my colour combinations, and dig around in my stash till I'm happy.
If I'm honest, my finished layout doesn't end up how I imagine it in my head...it just evolves.

Sometimes I get stuck with a title if it's not obvious, and that's one of the really great things about attending a monthly crop. You can bounce ideas around with other like minded folk and not just your long-suffering family!!


So, that's all from me for now..

Next week it's the turn of  Sadie  and  Elaine. Click on the names to visit their blogs... and pop back on Monday 9th June.

Sadie is one of my Scrapbook buddies at the monthly Papermaze crop in Otley. She hasn't been posting lately on her blog but I get to see her work in real life!  She is a lovely, kind hearted , fun loving family person which shines through on every layout she creates :) She takes some fabulous photos, and clearly loves creating, on and off the page.

Elaine is a fabulously busy scrapbooker who I  know from UKS and blogland. She loves challenges, is never afraid to try something new and tackles some fairly scary looking sketches whilst managing to make it look easy! She so obviously loves scrapbooking; every post on her blog is like a mini tutorial, always full of hints and top tips so it's well worth a visit.

Thanks for stopping by, and don't forget to pop back next week to see what Sadie and Elaine have to share.

Bye for now
Karen x

Scrapology layout for June.....

This month we are challenging you to scraplift a  gorgeous layout by Gabrielle Pollocco, all the details can be found HERE, along with a sketch to get you started and some beautiful creations from the Design team as added inspiration. The additional challenge is to use Trellis on your page, or something similar.

My layout shows our poor dog Bazzil when he was subjected to a make-over!  He did look hillarious, and had to walk around like that for days as we couldn't get the eyeliner off his fur!

The big flowers were the starting point for this layout ( unusually for me) which I needle-felted , having been shown how to do it by my friend. We used cookie cutters as a template and they were surprisingly easy to make.

As you can see , my layout is in a completely different style to the original , but you can see the main elements from the sketch quite clearly......

The patterned paper is all from the DIY shop collection by Crate Paper, apart from the background sheet which has been in my drawer for a long time.

I hope you feel inspired to have a go and enter your layout. There is of course a lovely stash prize for the winner and all the layouts are published on the blog. 

The sketch...

Please visit Scrapology to see the original layout x

Thanks for stopping by

Karen x

Catch - up .....

Just thought I would share a couple of layouts that appeared in a recent issue of The Scrapbook Magazine.....

This one is "5 random facts about Me " .  Tricky.

I don't have that many photos of myself - something I really should rectify- and don't actually like talking about myself so I decided on a very small photo and kept the facts very light-hearted.

I kept the colours to a minimum and chose some patterned paper from Jillibean soup. I used the computer to print out the journaling, and coloured in odd sections to give the impression of an old typwriter.

The 2nd was a layout for the "Scraplift Challenge", and I liked the idea of a graphic/block style layout after perusing pinterest !

 I made the task easy for myself by using a 6"x4" block of Sn@p cards by Simple stories. I scanned the original photos but didn't alter them, I rather like the 70's orange tinge!

Thanks for stopping by

Karen x

Character Stamps....

Now, character stamps are not something I'm used to dealing with so when some images arrived for me to work with for the current Scrapology card challenge I was more than a little "challenged" !  

Anyway, it was fun doing something completely different and I would recommend everyone pops over to the BLOG HERE to check out all the details for the May Card Challenge.

There's a great prize  from  Visible Image stamps for the winning entry and some fabulous Design Team inspiration to get you started.

Here's my card..

Thanks for stopping by,

Hope to see you over at Scrapology...

Karen x

May Day 2014.....scrapology challenge

As it's the 1st of the month the new Scrapology layout challenge has been posted on the blog.
You can find all the details, and Design Team inspiration right HERE to get you started....

You can use the layout or the sketch as your starting point but you must use corrugated cardboard somewhere on the layout.

Here's mine..

I raided my stash and used some saved packaging to create my layout. The main features from the sketch are there but my finished piece has a very different feel to the original layout.

The photo is yet another one taken in my kitchen!  My youngest daughter and 2 friends all dressed up for a Birthday meal out in town....how things have changed...it's not how I remember 16th birthday parties :)

Anyway, you've got a whole month to create a new layout and enter it for a chance to win a stash prize, so why not give it a whirl?

Thanks for stopping by
Karen x

Gorgeous girls.....

The first ever layout I made was titled "Gorgeous Girls"  and I couldn't think of a better title for the page I created yesterday at the Papermaze crop, when I scrapped a recent photo of my daughters.

I used the April sketch by Sue over on her blog, Me and Mine and simply rotated it to fit my photo and page size.

 I was able to buy the perfect 2 shades of Bazzil at our lunch time trip to the Papermaze shop to coordinate with Amy's floral top and also bought some of the new " Sew Lovely" papers by Carta Bella, which are undoubtedly my new favourites !

Here's the sketch....

Thanks for stopping by,

Karen x