Little Foal

Here's a layout I created for Graphic 45 using their new collection, A Proper Gentleman. I had this great photo of a mare and her little foal which I had to scrap. And I realized that the papers from A Proper Gentleman would work perfectly. I love the colours on this layout, the green argyle print, the countryside browns, highlighted with splashes of earthy yellow and ochre. If you're a true Graphic 45 fan you'll be able to identify the yellow patterned paper as being from the Domestic Goddess collection. I love how the little bit of yellow pulls the layout together.

The story behind the photo. This little baby foal was born in Singapore, which is extremely rare because breeding of horses isn't allowed here. Apparently the mare was pregnant when she was brought into Singapore and no one knew. The foal is the sweetest thing. :)

A showjumping diecut tag which is just right for this layout. I really like those Prima flowers, leaves and bling swirls.

I love all the layers here - border punches, lace, mat... And that Prima chipboard alpha in a perfect colour.

Did I mention I love the colours on this layout? ;)

Supplies:

Patterned Paper: Graphic 45 A Proper Gentleman (Man About Town, Sporting Aristocrat)

Graphic 45 Domestic Goddess (Domestic Goddess, Quilting Bee)

Cardstock: Bazill

Tag: Graphic 45 A Proper Gentleman Diecut Tags

Flowers: Prima Marketing - Baroque Bloom, Camelot Roses, Primrose Spice

Leaves: Prima Marketing

Crystal Swirls: Prima Say It in Crystals

Lace: Prima Marketing

Alphas: Prima Chipboard Alphas, Jenni Bowlin Sticker Alphas

Nook March Kit & Specials

Look at what's in My Scrapbook Nook's March Kit - Pink Paislee's Bayberry Cottage collection! This is one hot collection and the Nook's getting it fresh from CHA. Everyone's so excited about it. Also included in the kit are:

10 Double Sided Pink Paislee Bayberry Collection
2 Die Cut Sheets From The Bayberry Collection
1 Bayberry Ambrose Cardstock Alpha
1 Bayberry Decorative Tape
1 Pkg. Bayberry Ribbon Pleats
1 Handful of Buttons-Buttons Galore
1 Pkg. Jenni Bowlin Pins
1 American Crafts Alpha-Thickers
1 Pkg. Maya Road Sew Cute Mini Chipboard Set

This is going to be a great kit. Love the Jenni Bowlin pins, Bayberry ribbon pleats and Maya Road Sew Cute chippies.

And there's a special going on for new subscribers. If you subscribe to a one year membership now, you'll not only enjoy a free 13th month kit free, you'll get the current Feb kit thrown in as well, while stocks last. Details here.

And for existing subscribers, there are the Deep Discounts. March's special is on Pink Paislee's hot new Queen Bee collection. Receive 2 sheets of each paper and 2 sheets of the die cut sheet. Plus one set of punch outs and one ribbon pleats for 40% off retail! Your price $9.56. Details here. I know the Special is selling out very quickly, or even sold out as we speak. :)

I love the Nook. :)

Prima's Big Secret

I just read on the Prima blog that they have some BIG news coming up soon. I can't wait to find out what it is. :)

Guest Designer at Pencil Lines :)

Yes, you heard right. This week the design team from My Scrapbook Nook are guest designers at the awesome Pencil Lines sketch site. What a great opportunity!

We got to play with Sketch #175, a beautiful one created by Anna Bowkis. Here's the sketch:




And here's my take on it:


I used the Nook's February Kit on this layout, adding just some of my own flowers. If you know me, you'll know I'm not a sketch person. I can't stay true to sketches or scraplifts; never could, and I suspect, never will. I think it's got to do with me wanting to always add my own take on layouts. You should've seen the original layout I came up with. It was SO different from the sketch I decided I had to rethink it completely. I think this one came a little closer to the sketch. :)

A close-up:

I enjoyed using my Martha Stewart border punch to create the paper lace edging for this layout, even if it meant very gluey fingers afterwards.

You've got to hop over to the Pencil Lines blog and see what the other talented Nook and Pencil Lines DT members created with the sketch. Very inspiring. I loved seeing everyone's interpretation of the sketch and how different and unique each one was. Check it out here: Pencil Lines Sketch 175.

Little Italy

Here's a layout I created for Graphic 45 for CHA-W using their new On The Boardwalk collection. I really like how it turned out. The combination of teal, scarlet and beige go together so well.

And I really like this photo of my dd by the sidewalk. The setting sun gave everything a beautiful golden glow and the reflection off the lake was exquisite.



My favourite thing to do with Graphic 45 papers is to frame the layout with the border designs. And of course my favourite Prima flowers. I found just the right shades to go with the layout. :)


List of materials used:
Graphic 45 On The Boardwalk papers: On The Boardwalk, Summer Crush, Malt Shop.
Graphic 45 Christmas Past paper: Ode To Joy
Flowers: Prima Marketing
Alphas: Prima Marketing
Trim: Own stash

Graphic 45 DT Call

Graphic 45's having a design team call. I know some of you have been waiting a year for this call so jump right in and give it a shot. Graphic 45 has some of the most beautiful paper collections in scrap world right now and I've always found them such a pleasure to work with. Somehow, the layouts always come together so easily for me.

If you'd like to give the call a shot, check out all the details here: Graphic 45 DT Call

Closing date for entries is 1st March 2010.

Good luck!

Altered Notebook

I like making altered notebooks. They're fun to make, pretty and useful. And they make lovely little gifts.

Here's one I made using Basic Grey's Origins paper from My Scrapbook Nook's February Kit.

I like the browns, greens and yellow of the paper. Earthy yet bright. I also added a little ribbon on the side of the notebook which functions as a decorative bookmark. :)



Lots of layering here. I found the perfect Prima flowers to go with the patterned paper, topped off with the lovely BG glazed brad. And who wouldn't love that punched out butterfly? Cute! The only question remaining is, shall I give the notebook away or keep it for myself? ;)

Welcome to the new DT at My Scrapbook Nook

My Scrapbook Nook held a design team call recently and the response was overwhelming. We had 119 talented scrappers from all over the world apply and Leah had a really hard time picking the eventual team. Congrats to all the new DT joining us as well as the returning DT from last term.

Returning Design Team Members:
Stacey Michaud - USA
Camilla Ekman - Sweden
Susan Lui - Singapore
Lady Grace Belarmino - Philippines
Zarah Peterson - Sweden
Becky Williams - USA
Leah Killian - USA

And a warm welcome to the new members:
Amy Coose - USA
Jenny Svensson - Sweden
Nicole Martel - USA
Celeste Smith - USA
Trish Harwick - USA
Lori Mancini - Canada
Tanya Tahir - Australia

As you can see, we have a really international design team, which is reflective of the fun community we have at the Nook. This is going to be a great term and I'm looking forward to working with all of these wonderfully talented ladies. :)

Altered Bird Tag

I just did this up a couple of days ago for the Tattered Angels and Webster's Pages blog relay - an altered bird tag using the brand new Tailored Tags from My Tattered Angels' new CHA release. I love these tags which are the perfect size for altering. I went with a shabby chic look on this and I love it. :)

I misted the tag with Lemon Grass, Caribbean Blue, Burnt Red and Vintage Pink, then cut out the bird and leaves images from the very pretty Postcards from Paris paper.




I added a lace trim in ecru, a velvet green ribbon and a pleated brown satin ribbon to the tag, and set that off with a custom-coloured flower. I wanted the flower to match the tag perfectly, so I misted the originally-white flower in Moonlight.

To complete the tag, I added a Glimmer Glass dragonfly from the Nature collection as well as some lace trims and a pearl brad to the top of the tag.

I designed the tag with a pocket so you can slip in a little message or greeting into the pocket. Here, I’ve slipped in a Paper Tag from the new Rockin’ Renaissance collection.

Grads

This is a layout of my dd and her friends immediately after receiving their PSLE results. As you can see, they're all smiles. I used the lovely February kit from My Scrapbook Nook, which features Basic Grey's Origins collection.

This kit practically scraps itself because the papers are so easy to work with. When I saw the Sea Salt patterned paper, I knew I wanted to cut along the edges of the corner image, then insert my photo into the cut out area.

I wanted to keep the layout relatively clean, so layered all the embellishments on the top right corner. The Basic Grey journalling spots, die cut elements and chipboard shapes are really fun to layer. I like the bright yellow alphas that came with the kit. They add just the right pop of colour. Here, I've outlined them and raised them with some dimensional foam dots.

To add some glitter, I applied some Rangers stickles to the botanicals. Love the sparkle!

Supplies (all from the Nook):

Basic Grey Origins Patterned Paper - Sea Salt, Cucumber, Paraffin

Basic Grey Origins Chipboard Sticker Shapes

Basic Grey Origins Pieces

Basic Grey Origins Writer's Block

Alphas - Bella Boulevard

True - Graphic 45

I created this layout for Graphic 45 using their newest CHA release, Le' Romantique. I love the soft colours, the peach roses and those butterflies! I went for a soft romantic look and basically let the papers do all the talking, with minimal embellishments. I have to say this collection is so easy to work with. It practically scraps itself. :)

I complemented the roses from the Le'Romantique papers with a couple of Trellis Roses, leaves and Say It In Pearls from Prima.

Just a little touch of stickles adds a sparkle to the butterflies. Love the diecut tag from the collection.

I handcut the roses and leaves from the patterned paper and stickled them.

The layout from another angle to show the dimensionality.