Hippity Hoppity through the snow

There may be snow and ice covering the ground right now, but the Design Team has great things for you for February that will make it feel like it is Spring! Our pick for the month of February is Hippity Hoppity, a new line of bright and happy paper (some with glitter!) and embellishments by We R Memory Keepers. Think dots and stripes, flowers, and eggs and bunnies. Wait...did I just say eggs and bunnies? Yes I did! This line is perfect for your Easter projects whether they are cards, mini albums, or scrapbook pages, or any other paper crafting project. Stay tuned for all the wonderful samples...

Cindy

Photo Scraps is closed today due to the Snow

Hi Everyone,

I just wanted to let you know that we closed the store for the rest of today, Saturday January 30 due to the poor road conditions. We will reopen on Sunday at Noon.

My Mind's Eye Valentines class

Ready for some Valentine's themed cards? Come join me on Saturday, February 6th where you will make 6 pretty cards perfect for friends, family, or that special someone. All the cards use lovely paper from My Mind's Eye and, as always, have ribbon and bling to dress them up. I love working with hearts all year round, there is just something about the shape that always appeals to me. The majority of these cards do not have a sentiment on them so even if you aren't specifically sending Valentines out, these could be used for "thinking of you" or "thank you" or even "just because" cards. Hope to see you on the 6th!

Cindy

"Necessity is the mother of invention!"

I think I have that quote correct....but how true it is! I had to laugh as I was finishing this layout of my daughter's softball All-Star game and realized that the red star paper that I had so carefully picked out had the phrase "100% boy" inside a lot of the stars!! oops! That clearly will not work for this particular page. So, counting on my paper crafting skills and remembering that decorative paper offers the very best matching embellishments for itself, I decided to painstakingly cut out blue stars to cover all those stars that had the boy phrase in it. Worked like a charm. Had I not confessed this, you would have forever thought those stars were purposely there. Raising them on pop-dots further showcased them. Sometimes mistakes are opportunities for hidden creativity. Otherwise, this layout is very easy to duplicate. Just some cardstock, polka-dot ribbon and fab fuzzy letters from Doodlebug (my very favorite company). I also love the Journal Tablets by Little Yellow Bicycle (they come in many themes like family, birthday, everyday, etc.) and you'll see that I use one of them on most of my layouts. Hope your weekend is a great one! Lisa H.

Don't you wish you hit like a girl?!?!

I am loving all the new sports lines coming out from Reminisce. They will arrive in the store in February, so look for great papers and embellies for softball, football, baseball, tennis, basketball, swimming, and more! I love the phrase stickers(obviously!) because I used them all over the layout. What a fun way to add some humor! Their 3-D stickers (the title and the 2 softballs) are fab also...the huge softball which I divided between my two pages is from their 12x12 sticker sheet. Love the big image! These pictures of my daughter's softball season from last year worked perfectly with this line and I am so pleased with the result. Notice how I inked the edges of the 12x12 cardstock and the journaling block with green ink to make it pop. It helped define the edge. Such a simple layout to do....mostly cardstock but still cute! It's the most wonderful time of the year at our store now because there is LOTS of new stuff to order....it's like Christmas everyday. The next weeks will bring so many amazing products...stay tuned! Off to Grey's. Lisa H.

Love notes

Hi everyone! Sorry this one is so late. long couple of months. I am finally back on track!
First up I have just covered an old style pencil box... it will make a great Valentines box for my daughter for school.




second I have a candy or gift box. I used a dollar stamp from studio G. and rhinestones from Kaiser Craft. These papers are a must have.


I got my papers a bit late this month... I will try and squeeze something else out before the end of the month. The colors make you wanna play with them! Go and get some of your own! Now! :) You wont regret it. This is one of those lines that will not stay in your stash long!
Chrissy

SWEET

Good AM to you from Gina P.
I have gotten some grief over using this line for pictures of my youngest son, but I am sure this won't be the most embarrassing thing I do to him! (He actually wore pink one year for his soccor teams uniform!) I think the colors worked perfectly with the pictures as soon as I saw this line. I've had these two lonely pictures of him sitting on my desk for some time, not sure what to do with just two random pictures from his early pre-school years.

Making my first page was easy with the formal picture from school I had to work with. I usually then make a mirror of page one to tie them together, but I had an issue with this. I like to have my base or bottom piece of paper match my first pages base, but I didn't have another piece of that solid color to work with. I didn't want to use a similar cardstock because it would not have looked even close to the "solid" from this Basic Grey line. So I took a chance and went outside my box by using another paper from that line with the same color background but it has a print to it. I know, this may seem small, but it's all about baby steps! I was happy with the finished product because finised is better than perfect! (my mantra!) I used some of the same prints from page 1 to tie them both together and "build" up my single small photo. I also used a huge overlay to add visual interest and take up some dead space on my page. Thank you Basic Grey for helping me get out of my box!

A little Sugar

I just finished up a quick and easy card using our Design Team paper this month, Basic Grey's Sugar Rush. The hearts were cut out using Sizzix's Tipsy Hearts die on my Cuttlebug. No stamping on this card, just beautiful paper, some pearls, and a little ribbon. This is one of those layouts that I like to use over and over because it is so simple to do.

Don't forget to check out our Design Team wall while you are in the store for Demo Day tomorrow!

Cindy

Generationz: MVP

I could not wait to play with Little Yellow Bicycle's Generationz line! This line has something for any layout you might wish to create for the young man in your life - sports, music, play. The left page of my layout is actually scraplifted from LYB's catalog. My photo sizes differed from theirs so I made a few changes. Doesn't matter who you are - even Photo Scraps Design Team members scraplift!! Page 2 of the layout is my own design using lots of elements from this spirited line. My favorite element on each page is the black Vinyl Silhouette Stickers! I love how unique they are! I cut the blue circle from a Clear Cut Film Strip to draw the eye to one of my fave pix of my son playing first base. The Black Metallic Numbers Acetate adds a rugged, yet fun touch to the mid-section of the page. A square cut from the Silver Metallic Wing Acetate serves as the base to the star Vinyl Sticker in the corner. As I am always searching for "word" items to help with my journaling I had to use the Fresh Verse stickers as well as the Epoxy Stickers. I love this layout so much I think I will hang it in my office before it goes into the scrapbook! You have got to see this AWESOME line to believe it!!!

Basic Grey has done it again!!

Well, I have to confess that I am not always a huge buyer of all the Basic Grey lines but this one......it is divine! Called Origins, it is fresh, natural and happy! Love it! The papers and embellies spoke to me. They said "hey, those pictures of Emily from Outdoor School would be perfect with this line!" Luckily, the voices quieted after that!! With paper names like Seaweed Wrap, Aloe, Henna, and Hot Stone, you can get the idea that they are going for an earthy vibe. I am totally loving the combo of the 4 different decorative papers on this layout. Notice how I did my journaling a bit different. I hid 2 journaling blocks behind a tag from the diecut pieces pack. They are held together by a simple large brad that you can turn to see what's behind. Great way to add a story without using up the space! I am also loving the layered sticker Pops--I am a sucker for a dimensional sticker! Hope you like it...see you in the store soon. Stay warm everyone!! Lisa H.

First Sugar Rush

While my kids were busy with Lego Rock Band (quite possibly the most addictive game in the universe for kids and adults alike!!) I took the opportunity to have some Sugar. The patterns are so pretty and warm that it feels like Spring in my studio. I have 3 different Sugar Rush patterns on this card plus a bunch of pearls, some ribbon of course and even a button which is unusual for me since I don't use buttons a lot in my cards even though I really like the look. I used a brand new Basic Grey stamp for the sentiment and stamped it in Pear Tart Memento ink then stamped my iris, a Penny Black brushstroke stamp, using 2 colors of chalk ink. The tiny butterfly is a punch and the ovals were cut using Nestabilities dies.

While its great to look at all the projects from the comfort of your own home, there is nothing like seeing them in person. Come on out to the store and check out our Design Team display wall!

Cindy

Upcoming Class

Hi everyone! I hope all of you are off to a good start to the New Year. I am playing catch up after being gone over and through the holidays. I have not had an opportunity to touch the Sugar Rush yet, so I thought I would share some cards with you that I will be teaching for my next class on January 23rd.

Anyone who knows me knows I can't resist a good butterfly stamp. We got this great Hero Art cling butterflies set in a couple of months ago and I was itching to make a card or 2 with them. Well, one card turns into 5 and before you know it it becomes a class. This class will have a lot of cutting so make sure you bring some sharp detail scissors. We will also be playing with Copics, ribbon, and bling. Hope you can join me!

Cindy

"Old" Friends + Sugar Rush

Hello from Lisa C!

How many times in life have we run into someone and said we should really get together? Too many times with too few attempts at actual follow-through! At my 25^th high school reunion in October 2008 my “old clique” said that very thing, BUT we have stayed true to our promise by getting together about once a month. God works in mysterious ways. Shortly after my friends and I reconnected, we would need each other to lean on with one of my girlfriends losing a parent and another battling breast cancer.

The new Sugar Rush line from Basic Grey boasts all the soft, feminine colors and designs perfect for this special photo of my dear “old” friends at one of our outings. The Laser-cut Doily in Confectionery/Grey was the inspiration for this layout. I hand cut the outline of this lacy paper to frame the page carefully leaving some of the flowers for each corner topped on Big Cherry paper for my base. Extra pieces of the doily were cut and pop-dotted on to my border. I cut strips from Fireball and Nerds multi-stripe papers then used my Dotted Wave Slim Edger punch from EK. Next I covered a chipboard heart from Technique Tuesday with a scrap of Sugar Rush. Add a few Bloomers, Buttons, and pieces from the Writer’s Block Journal Set and I was finished!! Basic Grey helped to capture all the feelings of warmth and happiness that I wished to convey from this meaningful picture. Thanks Basic Grey!

I'm feeling a little SUGAR RUSH

Hi everyone,
Lisa Hetrick here. It's a Sugar Rush kind of month. Just when you thought all the sweet goodness was over with the holidays, nope, nada, it's BACK in the form of a super SWEET new Basic Grey line. SUGAR RUSH.

This month, you'll see some super cool projects from the design team using this new line. I have some fun schtuff to share with you, too.

This triad of cards use several of the new Sugar Rush papers and brand-spanking new stamps from HERO ARTS. YUMMO! I love HERO. Just love it. And if you know me.... I love, love, lovey my copics. So, these are all colored up with copic lovelieness. You too can color like a pro. Join me for Copic 101 and 102 this month.


And, did you ever just want to make something for yourself? Well, this little project is just for me. I used a Kaiser pencil box, covered it with some SUGAR and copic colored stamps by Hero, bling, a little teapot chipboard piece and SHAZAAM. I made myself a cutie pie reminder of why I love to create little pieces of art. HAPPINESS. It's either going to go on my desk with some markers (copic, of course) or I'm going to store my tea in it. Happy!


Don't forget demo day is coming! I'm going to preview one of my NEW stamps sets. Tracy has been very busy getting NEW, NEW, NEW in. My new Unity sets will be in the store SOON. I also have a card class coming up at the end of the month using THREE of the new sets. PREVIEWS coming.

Stay warm. Have a cup of TEA with a little SUGAR!

EDITED to AD:
For anyone who would like to have the teapot pattern, please feel free to contact me via email at:
lhddesign@comcast.net
I have a .pdf, .eps, .jpg and and .svg cut file of this pattern.

or, stop in the store and pick up a print out.

Design Team from Lisa H.

It's Design Team time again!! Check out what Basic Grey has done now.....I couldn't love the color scheme of the Basic Grey's Sugar Rush papers. The pink and gray combo is fab for me. I was thrilled that I had some pictures of my "Girl's Night Out" from last summer that would match this line perfectly. I am so happy with how the layout turned out. The laser cut paper is divine....cutting it into pieces in several places allowed it to shine. Notice how I pop-dotted 4 of the leaves on the bottom right corner of the layout. Gives it nice dimension. The gray shabby-chic letters are "Thickers" from Am. Crafts and I was so happy the use them with this layout. The sheer pink ribbon that I tied onto 3 different places was another way to add texture. I also used the white Liquid Pearls to accent in several places. This layout is another one that is going into my personal album--yeah for me! I am trying to do more layouts for me personally, rather than only layouts for my children's albums. My friends mean the world to me and I am so lucky to have such a wonderful set of gal-pals in my life. This layout will always be one of my favorites! Lisa H.

Extreme dude here!!

The freezing cold weather has made me a hermit the last couple days and I have done several layouts that I am so happy with. These pictures of my son and his friend from this summer were so fun, and for me, it was such a blessing to have natural smiles from my camera-avoidance teenager. Rain + bikes + teenage boys mean a mountain of fun!! I just had to do something fab with priceless photos. This new line from Little Yellow Bicycle (it's coming soon....keep a lookout for it!) called "Generation" fit the bill perfectly! It had just the right amount at attitude for teen boy layouts. That is sometimes hard to find, god knows you can't have anything too whimsical or "cutesy!" By the way, the silver Uniball pen that I used for journaling is the greatest...it writes like a dream! See you soon- Lisa H.

Love is in the air!!

Awwwwww, it's a layout of the happy couple, after all these years. I had a blast doing these pictures of my husband and me through the years using the brand new Valentine line from Little Yellow Bicycle. Since pink is my favorite color, it wasn't too much of a sacrifice to use all the shades of pink in this layout. I am lucky to have a wonderful hubby and I really enjoyed doing this project for us. My resolution, by the way, for 2010 is to do more layouts for my own personal scrapbook, not just layouts for my children's albums. That means more layouts of my friends, my husband, my likes/dislikes---yikes, it all sounds very "Ali Edwards" to me. I guess the whole idea of making myself a priority in my own scrappin' is here...time to walk the walk. It is what I encourage our customers to do (the talk the talk part of this story!) Now it's my turn!! Hope you like this layout; come check out all the awesome "Love" products we have at the store now for your favorite sweetie!! Lisa H.

Little Yellow Bicycle did it again!!!

Little Yellow Bicycle did it again with their Dog Album Elements Paper Tablet! Add the tablet to the 9" x 5" Chipboard Album and your album almost finishes itself. The papers have all the corners perfectly rounded to match the album's corners and the holes in the paper are already punched to line up with the album. LYB even includes the book rings!



I just had to "throw" one of these books together as a Christmas gift for my sister who recently got Maltipoo puppy named Max. Each paper in the tablet is 2-sided so I had plenty to cover the pages & make photo mats - many of which were pockets for hidden journaling and extra photos. The fabulous acrylic cover included with the album allowed me to add extra panache with a photo of Max and a little peek-a-boo into the next page. For the acrylic cover I used my favorite clear adhesive (for vellum and transparencies too) - Therm o Web's Vellum Adhesive Runner. Bo Bunny's Double Dot Chipboard Alphies was just the dimensional look I wanted for the title "Max". My final step on the acrylic cover was American Crafts rubons topped with Stickles, of course. The Paper Tablet even includes plenty of stickers for embellishing! I added LYB's Dog Journal Tablet to allow plenty of space for my sister to tell Max's story.

Now which of LYB's other Paper Tablets will be my next project . . . Family, Faith, Girlfriends? (One I will definitely NOT be using? The Pregnancy version!!)

Gina A. is on a "Sugar" high!

Happy New Year! I had a great time scrapping at the all-day crop here yesterday This was my second year participating with my sister-in-law, Brent. This year we were joined by our friend, Margie, along with a roomful of good sports (who endured my loud and crazy comments all day!) As with all events at Photoscraps, we had a blast! What a great way to start a new year. I suggest everyone make it a new year's resolution to join us at some of the Photoscraps crops this year - it's always so much fun! (And I promise it's way easier to fulfill this resolution than the "lose weight/exercise more" variety of resolutions!!)

The first project I worked on yesterday was my Jan. Design Team layout. Oh my, I did get a sugar high working with the Basic Grey Sugared line! I may have overdone it with the embellishments, but I just couldn't resist using all the fun stickers. I love the "swirlies" - they are thinner and I had fun draping one between both my pages to connect the layout. My journaling spots are actualy the line's adorable "post-it" notes. I loved the dimension of the felt-flowers. And the colors and designs on these papers are so beautiful! I'll be creating some more layouts with the other papers,too. They are too fun to miss including in my albums.

Hope all of you enjoy working with the Sugar Rush line as much as I did .... have a SWEET new year, everyone!