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Tuesday, January 29, 2013

Social [Media] ButterfliesBlog hop!

Hi!  Welcome to my blog.  This is my first time to join the Social [Media] Butterflies blog hop, and I'm super excited!  Here's how it works: on the 29th of each month, we will feature paper-crafting projects that center around a theme.  Each of the members of the blog hop is unique in their own interpretation of the theme.  Check out everyone's blog.  If you are one of my blog readers, start here at the Social Media Blog Hop Hub to follow the blog hop!  You can also find us on facebook, twitter, instagram, and other social media sites.  Search for the #SMBiGBlogHop hashtag to be inspired!

This month's theme was TIME.  I will admit, I struggled with this one.  I came up with many, many ways to use time, but none of them seemed good enough!  (Um, yeah, I'm a perfectionist!  I want my projects to be as good as the ladies on this hop!  I'm hoping that by being a part of this hop,  I will push myself outside of my comfort zone in order to make awesome projects!)  I decided to go with my most comfortable comfort zone: a card.  I started off as a scrapbooker, but when I was stressing about each layout, I moved to cards.  They were small canvases, and everyone seems to love them!  I decided, for my first hop, I would create something I was comfortable with! 

 
 

 I ended up with a masculine birthday card- something I often need, but don't have many of.  Trust me, I'm pretty sure I know exactly who this card will go to!  I stamped kraft paper with all the clock stamps I had.  I just made that random background.  Then, I used my Silhouette Cameo to cut out my lettering and the brown matte to separate it from the card.  I added the little "Time to" section to complete my TIME theme.  Then I used pop dots of lift the title off the card.  I also added a small pennant at the bottom with my sentiment on it.  Simple, but effective.  I love the way it turned out!

I hope you enjoyed my card.  If you came from the other members of the blog hop, visit my blog soon to see what else I'm up to. 

I'm very honored to pass you on to the next member on this blog hop: Corrine!!  She is a wonderful paper-crater and is so sweet.  Visit her blog to see how she decided to interpret the theme!!

Saturday, January 26, 2013

Project Life Love

If you have been following my blog, you know I started Project Life.  I LOVE it! I love all the little things we can add to the simple set up!  Fun stuff. . .

Anyway, I wanted to share my week 2 of Project Life.  (For the record, I don't like this "week thing." I know it helps to keep track of where you are and what you are working , but I don't like that label on every page.  I'm trying to find ways to differenciate my weeks, but I'm striking out.)
 
I had so many pictures this week, so I decided to make collages using the PicFrame app.  It is really cool.  You can do collages in either 3x4 and 4x6 in either landscape or portrait.

 
 
I loved adding the extra cards to my layouts.  They are quite fun.  In an attempt not to use the "week" thing, I decided to add a quote and a calendar. I decided to look on Pinterest to find quotes.  Check out my Quotes board for inspiration!
 
 
This card was just fun and simple!
 
 
I also use a digital version of the Cobalt Core Edition.  It is nice to be able to print the cards I really like and not worry about the cards I'm not too excited about.  Plus, I added some day of the week stamps from Studio Calico.
 
 
To make this flip-up card based on this tutorial.  Fun and a way to include more photos/journaling.
 
 Thanks for checking out my PL spread.  I'm loving this, and I look forward to doing more and more weeks!



Friday, January 25, 2013

Currently Blog Hop

The Currently Journaling Challenge takes five minutes out of your week to document your story.
8 Questions. 52 Weeks. Embracing Right Now.  Currently is a weekly journaling challenge created by Kristin from rukristin papercrafts. Currently fits in perfectly with Project Life and can easily be tailored to whatever your needs are. Every Friday, Kristin shares her Currently list journaling card on her blog, as well as on various social media sites like Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. Join the Currently community, use the hashtag #CurrentlyList to share your list and find great inspiration from others.







I added my Currently list as part of a flip-up page.  It is under the Hunger Games movie poster.  That way, I could include the movie poster and a picture of the rain.  I love the way it turned out.
 
 
 
Ways to play along:


Enter for a chance to with the Currently Journaling Cards: Color Edition. Each blog on the hop is giving away one set of journaling cards to a lucky reader!  These journaling cards come in both an easy to print .pdf file and individual high res .jpg images for use in digital scrapping. Leave a comment below for your chance to win a set, or purchase the cards here for $1. 
currently color edition journaling cards
Look for new sets of Currently Journaling cards each month; each set will retail for only $1 and will be available in the rukristin papercrafts shop
Thank you so much for stopping by and checking out the Currently Journaling Challenge blog hop. Make sure to hop along to all the other participants for more inspiration and more chances to win a Currently Journaling card set. 
In case you get lost, here's a link back to rukristin papercrafts and the entire list of blogs participating in today's blog hop. 

Friday, January 11, 2013

Happy New Year!!

First of all, yes, I realize it has been quite some time since I blogged.  For anyone who follows me, I'm deeply sorry.  That IS going to change!  I've accepted a few challenges.  However, before I talk about those, let me catch up a bit.

Happy New Year!  I know it is January 11, but I still wanted to say it.  Aren't new years the best?  I don't know about you, but I feel like this year is going to be different.  I always feel that way, but isn't that what makes the new years great?  A new beginning!  I hope you are having a marvelous 2013!!

Last year, I decided I was going to try to tackle Project Life.  (Click here if you have never heard of Project Life)  I wasn't sure how it would work out, but I was ready to try.  Last Sunday, I editted my photos and used Marcy Penner's Project Life planner:
Using Marcy's planner was a life saver for me.  It helped me to see where I wanted to use certain photos, and it helped me when it came time to print my photos out.  You can download her planner for free.  It is a great resource.
 
 
I printed my photos out and went to work.  I knew my plan was fairly close to what I wanted.  I rounded the corners and slid the photos into the correct slots.  I was amazed how quickly the whole thing went together!!  I had planned a few spots for jounralling cards.  I was in a PL card swap where we made cards and swapped them with an assigned partner.  (Check out this thread on the Studio Calico Message Board if you would like to participate in the next round!)  I made these below:
 


I knew I wanted to use my New Year's Eve card for my layout.  I added that one, and then I created one more for my spread.  Then I decided to add a Currently card from Rukristin Papercrafts.  Here is my final project:


 
 
 
 
 
 
Not bad for a first try!  Come join the fun and start Project Life!
 
As far as blogging more, I told you I took on two challenges, so keep an eye on my blog to learn more!