A new release by Studio Buttercup!!

Wow, it just seems like everytime Courtney comes out with a new Template pack I love each one more and more. Well, she has done it again in her 4th volume of the Basic Buds collection at http://www.scrapbookgraphics.com/ She has created another four templates and they are all spectacular! I hear tale that there could be a special grouping of the templates coming out as well, but Shhhhhhh about that LOL Here is the preview of her newest set.

I have also already used one of the templates to create this awesome layout below!! Can you guess which one I choose to start with?

Isn't it spectacular??? How could you resist a temptation like these templates? Hurry over to SBG and get them while they are new and on sale for 20% off. HERE!!!

New Layout of a Beautiful Magnolia Tree at the Los Angeles Zoo

Just completed this layout of a beautiful Magnolia tree at the Los Angeles Zoo. I purchased some great new papers from Studio Vivarant at http://www.scrapbookgraphics.com/ for $2.99 and I wanted to use them right away they were so pretty.

Credits:
Studio Buttercup Template: Autumn Spendor
Studio Vivarant: Springtime Romance Papers
Studio Manu: Signs of Spring Freebie
Also:
NY Doodle Girl: Nicole Young
Blooming Morning: Collab @ Digiscrappersbrasil
Dear Valentine: Verena Designs
Sweet Memories: Danielle Engebretson
I will Always: Rene Alexeeva
 
I have been slightly AWOL as I have begun a paper scrapping album that is taking up a lot of my time. Here are some previews of the album in the process. The album is not near complete yet but i am having a great time putting it together.
 

The tutorials I am watching to complete this album are located HERE. If you would like to take part feel free to join me in the process. The album is the Paperbag album mini.

Another Hybrid Project Completed!

I have really been enjoying the hybrid challenges at http://www.scrapbookgraphics.com/ because the projects are not overly time consuming and give me some experience in creating something from scratch. I am planning to venture out and try an actual album here in the next week. I found these great videos that I will share here when I get started for creating it and I think a few of the girls from a Yahoo group I am in are going to join in as well. This project I just completed is a puffy box made from a template handed out at SBG for the monthly Hybrid Challenge. At first I shied away from this one because it looked rather hard, but I finally decided to give it a try and WOW was it simple. The most important step I think is the scoring of your paper in order to make folding the paper easier. I used regular 8x11 Card stock and it turned out spectacular!! Tell me what you think.

So I am a little anal and I placed the completed project in a cute layout to show it off. The paper in the BG of the layout is the digital paper I used in the project itself and let me tell you it is so pretty on this box!! I had the flower laying around the house. I think I ripped it off something I was throwing away and decided to hord it until I found something useful for it. Voila!!

Everything used in the creation of the product and layout are from Studio RoseyPosey at http://www.scrapbookgraphics.com/. I have really begun to enjoy her products tremendously, I love the shabbiness of them all! If you want to give the project a try yourself you can download the template HERE at SBG. Don't be shy about it like I was it really is simple. No glue required even! Just scissors, card stock, and a ribbon.

Just completed my graduation announcements!

Blue Letter Graduation Announcement

To view our top graduation card designs, click here.

View the entire collection of cards.

SBG is having open applications to join the Studio Crew!!!

I am so excited! http://www.scrapbookgraphics.com/ my ultimate fav store is holding an open application process for CT members. These are the crew who are allowed to work with all the designers kits in the store. WOW! You know I put in my application. So now I sit and wait again and stress out over it. LOL I have always wanted to be a member of this crew and now I have my chance! Wish my lots of luck, with so many talented digital scrappers out there my chances are pretty slim.

In the meantime I just finished another layout of some photos I took at the lake last year when DH and I took a drive. We decided to stop at the lake and rent a boat for a couple hours. It was very nice and relaxing.

I love the color palette of the layout, I think it works well with the water of the lake. Isn't this kit to die for gorgeous? I have to admit this is one of my most recent favorites right now. Below is the journaling and credits:

Lake Isabella

Journaling: In May, Brad and I decided to take a drive up toward Lake Isabella and Kernville. We stopped at the lake to rent a small party boat for a few hours. It was such a nice day and the water was very smooth. While out we saw lots of wildlife, including a mama hawk caring for her babies in a nest on the lake.

Credits:
Studio Buttercup-Template-Autumn Splender
Studio RoseyPosey-Kit-Distinct Hush and a few elements from Shabby Summer.

New Layout to share with you all!

I am missing Italy right about now and I decided to head back to some of my Italy photo's and see what I could dig up to use with a new kit I got at http://www.scrapbookgraphics.com/ last night. I choose a kit (Actually 2 new kits) by Studio RoseyPosey who creates wonderful shabby designs. I tend to drift toward the shabby side of scrap so I have loved just about everything she has created. This is a layout I did with her new kit ShabbyShanty which happens to be a collaboration with Shabby Miss Jenn.

As you can probably tell I am really loving the reds and blacks together right now. I think they really make the layout JUMP off the gallery boards and I like the contrast as well. Let me know what your favorite colors are right now to mix up I would really like to know.

Journaling: "In Rome Italy, Aunt Mary and I stopped at a small Trattoria near the Trevi Fountain. We had a wonderful meal Al Fresco (outside). I endulged in a glass of white wine while enjoying my meal and listening to the strolling musician serenading us as we dined."
Credits:
Studio Buttercup: Template Autumn Splender
Studio RoseyPosey: Shabby Shanty
Both available at http://www.scrapbookgraphics.com/

Scrapbookgraphics Smitten with SBG Blog Train arrives on 02/14/2011 ! Do you have your ticket?

I am so excited for this years Valentines Blog Train from the designers and crew of SBG. This being my first time participating while part of Studio Buttercups creative team makes it even more exciting!! Make sure and mark your calendars because you dont want to miss all the FREE stuff you can get by following the blog train of the SBG designers. Of course Studio Buttercup has created another of her marvelous templates as a gift on your train trip as well.

The layout below is made with that particular template!!!

Smitten with SBG Blog Train Template by Studio Buttercup

(Available 02/14/11 @ http://studiobuttercup.com/ )

Credits:

Spring Impressions: Emeto Designs

Play with wordart for DAM: Natali Design

Feelin Springy: Catherine Designs (Butterfly only)

Breath: Helly (Paper only recolored)

New Layout and Pet Adoption

I just finished this new layout of my beautiful cocker spaniel  Mistyblue. We got her at the pound a few years ago and she has been a part of our family ever since. When we picked out Misty we were told she had been in the pound for months. The employees could not figure out why such a beautiful dog had not been adopted yet. I think people shied away from her, because she had been abused and was a ratted up mess. The pound had to bring in a groomer to shave all her hair to get all the matting out of it that was pulling her skin and tearing it. She was a skinny little thing afraid of everything and everyone. She had an extreme fright of men though and every time we would bring her around a man she would bark and cry and try to hide.

I am happy to say that Misty has thrived in her new home and she has become a wonderful, loving, and trusting addition to our family. She loves us all and is very much loved in return. I completely recommend and beg even that if you are looking for a pet, please, please check out http://www.petfinder.com/index.html to find a shelter near you and adopt an animal in need of a loving home. You won't regret it, just look at my beautiful baby.

Credits:

Template by Studio Buttercup Punched Petals Vol. 2
Kit by Micheline Martin Paper Hearts
Green Leaf by NY-Doodle Girl-Nicole Young

I also want to provide you with a great video for creating a digital layout using a template in PS Elements I found today. I hope this will help those of you that are new to the program and to digital scrapping. Click HERE for the awesome video tutorial,

Hybrid Challenge posted below completed!

So Wyatt and I completed out Corner Bookmarks and we had a great time doing it! These were really fun to make and I really think it was fun for my son Wyatt who is 9 years old as well. We both used the same elements and such on our bookmarks, but moved them around and used them in differing ways. Wyatt wanted his bird to look like it was flying out of the birdhouse and I decided to pile mine on top of some flowers and put a small pop-up under it to add some depth. Here is how they turned out.

Wyatts is the one you see large in the upper corner of the page being used as it would be in the actual book. The bookmark actually slides over the corner of your book and holds your page. Its really cool! The most time consuming part was cutting out all the elements since I printed them from digital images to add them to the final product. You have to fold two small flaps and then use a glue stick to apply your elements. So fun! I could totally see a class sitting down and completing these together.

If you want to complete it as well the link is in the post just previous to this one. I completed mine as a challenge at SBG but you can complete yours for yourself or someone else if you do not want to participate in the challenge. I'm thinking these could make really cute Valentines gifts too now. Hmmmmmmmmmm.

Huggles to you all!

I am totaly going to give this hybrid project a try!!

SBG is hosting another Hybrid Challenge and this one looks like so much fun and simple all at the same time. Those of you that are avid readers will appreciate this new project as well. In the challenge you get to create a Hybrid Corner Bookmark to use in your reading. I can just imagine all the great things I could think of to do with this. How about a  bookmark for every book I'm currently reading in the theme of the book. I could even see this being great to create for my students at work with some great inspirational quotes to keep them going during their educational reading. Harry Potter lovers create a Harry Potter theme, mystery's, romances, thrillers, I can see a bookmark for them all. What about some sort of an inspirational quote from the bible? Below are a few pictures that Tanja posted to give you some ideas.

See how awesome they can be. I think I will work on mine at my Mother-n-Laws today while the guys watch Super Bowl. I bet my son would love to make one as well ya know. I will post the completed project when I get back or maybe tomorrow. If you participate (Even if you do not turn it in at SBG for the challenge) I would love to see your creations. Grab the instructions and the template HERE at the SBG challenge gallery!!

I was just trying to think of other uses for these as well and I was wondering if they would work to change the look of those ugly desktop calendars we all have. You know how they have the corner bindings you slip the ends of the calendar into. I bet these would make it much prettier sitting on your desk. Now my brain is trying to formulate how to make that work. I would love to hear any ideas you have to make this work in other ways as well.

Happy Hybriding!!

Smooch!

Just completed this layout of my son blowing kisses a couple years ago on Fathers Day. Wanted to share it with you all and get any feedback you would like to offer. I am finding that when using Courtney's templates I can really whip out the layouts much faster then before. I also think they are helping me to better understand the correct placement and rules of building attractive layouts. My shadowing is getting more realistic as I am moving along in my opinion as well. Its much harder to get accurate shadows on black backgrounds though and I am still struggling there. Any hints would be greatly appreciated!

Credits:

Template: Buttercup Designs Punched Petals Vol. 2 at Scrapbookgraphics

Verena Designs: Dear Valentine (Green foliage)

Nicole Young: Smoochy Doo kit and Vintage Show kit (Rose)

 

You can see my layout also at Scrapbookgraphics in the Gallery HERE.

 

Thank you so much for taking a look!!

Toot Tooting my own horn!! Yippee for me.

What a great surprise I found when I visited my E-mail box today. I got a note from Libby Pritchett one of the designers at Sweet Shoppe Designs that my layout "Family Fun Night" had been chosen as one of her favorite layouts using Libby Pritchett products. How exciting! What an honor! Thanks Libby!
You can see the post at Libby's blog here.
You can locate Sweet Shoppe Designs here and Libbys store here if you want to take a look. I have been a long time customer of SSD and love most all of their design teams work. I am sure you will as well.
Now remember that awesome layout was created using a template from my wonderful friend Courtney at Buttercup Designs! The template came from her BasicBuds Vol 3 Templates available at Scrapbook Graphics HERE. So Congrats to Courtney as well! Yeah!!!!