Citrus Twist: June Sneaks

Wow! June 1st already??? Are we sure it really isn't still March?? Ha ha.

Well, since it is indeed the first of June, I want to share some sneaky peeks of the new kits from Citrus Twist. I worked with the June Main and Embellishment Kits, along with both of the patterned paper add-ons.

My heart sure did a big flip flop when I saw the gorgeous colors in the June Kits and the combination of manufactors-Pink Paislee, Studio Calico, Amy Tangerine, and Chickaniddy-is a match made in papercrafting heaven! Wow, I am thinking I might love paper products a little too much ;).

Michelle

Winner!

Good morning!  As promised I am here to share the winner of the cutfile from The Cut Shoppe from yesterday's post:

MARY ANN JENKINS

Yay! Mary Ann, I will be contacting you so that you can claim your prize!  Meanwhile, I would like to mention that The Cut Shoppe is having a One Year Anniversary right now.

Wishing you a great weekend!

Michelle

The Cut Shoppe

Today I am so happy to announce that I have jumped aboard the Design Team for the months of June through August for The Cut Shoppe!

 

The Cut Shoppe, an Etsy store owned by Ashley Horton, offers a variety of Digital Cut Files in PNG and SVG formats to be used with your electronic die cut machines for paper projects and scrapbooking.

 

This fun announcement comes on the 1 Year Anniversary of the opening of The Cut Shoppe and in celebration I am giving away one of my favorite cutfiles:

To be eligible, just leave a comment at the end of this post. Tomorrow morning I will randomly pick a winner and announce it here! Good luck!

 Michelle

Hip Kit Club: Three

Patterned paper is by far, my favorite scrapbooking supply and when I open a kit the first thing I do is slowly go through each beautiful piece of paper imagining the possibilities. So you can imagine, that when I set out to make a layout, my initial instinct is to "use all the patterned paper." LOL. Luckily, my inner-logical-voice tells me to narrow it down a bit and today I want to share some insight into how I do just that. When I start a project, I will first pull out all the paper. This time, I not only pulled out the paper from the May Main Kit, but I also pulled out the 6x6 Chickaniddy paper from the Embellishment Kit (I like to have choices!).

   

My first paper pick is always a big, bolder pattern with lots of color. For this layout I chose the multi-colored striped paper from Dear Lizzy's latest collection. This piece of paper will be what I base the rest of my decisions. When deciding on my secondary picks, or my "supporting papers," I look for a variety of patterns that do not compete with each other and colors that will compliment the first paper. I also will include at least one paper that is neutral in color. Here is what I ended up with:

 

By narrowing down my choices and following some basic rules when selecting papers, I was able to put together a combinations of papers that worked together as opposed to competing with one another for attention. Here are some details from my layout:

 

 

So how about you-how do you narrow down your patterned paper? I would love to hear from you!

Michelle          

Make a Wish & Bath Time

Hello! Playing around with colors and patterns is always a fun endeavor when I set out to make a project and these next two layouts are an example of where I did just that by trying out a new color combination: pink, copper, red, and orange.

Pink, copper, red, and orange?? Yes, I just said that and it does sound a little crazy to me too! LOL. The pink, red, and orange combo all come from Dear Lizzy's latest collection Fine and Dandy. I had planned on adding in another paper that included more white with an addition of green, but I could not get it to work right, so I eliminated it. Here is a look at what I did:

 

I think this is a crazy color combo, but I like it ;). The addition of black plus a white background mellowed the colors out a little bit.

Copper is GREAT. Really, I am hoping this is going to be the new metallic.

For Bath Time, it really helped that the picture was very neutral in color. I definitely picked my photos carefully when I knew I was going to use these colors. 

Nothing quite like stepping out of your comfort zone, right??  Wishing you a great last week of May!

Michelle

Elle's Studio: Let's Eat

Today, Elle's Studio's latest collection "Let's Eat" is now available for purchase!

 

 I received my box of Let's Eat two days ago and I will tell you this--it's delicious! Really it is! I got hungry just looking though the stamps and stickers! Ha ha. To see this yummy collection in its entirety, head on over here!

 Michelle

Hip Kit Club: Sunshine

Do you ever have that one favorite photo where you are almost afraid to scrapbook it because you want to do the photo justice?  Well, that was me recently. During a recent zoo trip I snapped this perfect picture of my youngest daughter and as much as I was so excited to get this picture documented, I was a little nervous too. Often times, when this mental block pops up, my go-to response is to start simply. I nix all the grand plans I have in my mind and start with some basic blocks of patterned paper and go from there. This is exactly what I did for this next layout using a combination of May's Kits from the Hip Kit Club:

   

 This layout came together relatively quickly. I purposely went with a comfortable design to ease some of the self-imposed pressure, yet this layout is still unique and different from my others. By going with an "easier" design, I gave myself room to play with the details. Here is a closer look at them:

   

The flamingo washi tape that is included in the May Embellishment Kit is so incredibly fun and really mimicked the good time that my daughter was having at the zoo.

 

The combination of the Pink Paislee chipboard pieces and the puffy Evalicious shapes from the May Main Kit is a perfect match. I love the variety of textures that they bring to the layout. I also added a different texture by cutting hearts out of the Chickaniddy woodgrain paper and adhering them with pop dots.

   

 The addition of the wood veneer "Life is Sweet" was a last minute decision. To make it shine a bit, I sprayed it with a gold mist, something that I almost always do with my wood veneer. By removing the pressure of coming up with a design as fantastic as my photo, I ended up creating a layout that has since then became a favorite. Most importantly though, I have a fun and special memory documented. Wishing you a great day!