Family Love Layout - Layout of the Week

This week I'm sharing another layout I created Plus Corp's CHA booth at the Winter 2014 show.  When I saw the new Vintage Camera Decorative Roller Stamp from Plus Corp., I almost jumped up & down!  I LOVE anything with a camera on it!  I immediately knew which paper I wanted to combine with this awesome stamp.  The Camera Bag paper from October Afternoon's Travel Girl collection was the PERFECT paper to complement the camera stamp.  Once I had the stamp and my paper, I headed to Whimzee's Scrapbook Studio (the LSS where I work here in Beaverton, Oregon).  I knew that we would have some great solids to coordinate for my layout.

When I first started planning this layout, I didn't know which photo I would use, only that I just HAD to make a layout with this super cute camera stamp.  I started to consider photos and realized that we had just had our family photos taken right before our Disneyland trip.  I have a friend who is an AMAZING photographer and a teacher too (in her spare time...ha ha!)  If you're in the Portland-Vancouver area, please consider her for your family and senior photos! Check out her website Stacy Major Photography.

I decided to use my shiny silver metallic paper as the background and layer gray and aqua on top of it.  I mounted my photo on a black matte and placed it on a horizontal strip of gray textured paper.  Next, I rolled my Decorative Roller Stamp with its cute cameras across a piece of textured white cardstock from American Crafts.  I really like the vintage look the textured cardstock gives to this stamp.  What would normally be a solid black impression is distressed using textured paper.  I worked at getting the stamp straight by laying my paper down next to a ruler and making every effort to roll my stamp perfectly along the ruler.  I think it took about three tries to create a camera strip to my liking.  And, just in case you have one of the Decorative Roller Stamps from Plus Corp. and are unhappy with the impressions you get at first, be sure to grab a piece of printer paper and roll the stamp around until your image is clear and perfect.  The images on the stamps I used did not come out perfectly on the first try.  Some black ink was printed in between the cameras and other images on the other stamps I used for my projects.  After rolling them around on printer paper a few times, the images began to come out perfectly clear with no black ink in between. To create a focal point, I used a vertical strip of the camera paper behind my photo, tearing and distressing its edges by rolling them back & forth between my fingers.  

Even though we are wearing gray and white in our photos, I decided to print my photo in black & white for this layout.  I really love the look of black and white and it looked perfect with the palette of aqua, gray and silver I chose to go with my October Afternoon paper.  I used my SMASH date stamp next to my photo, so we'll remember when we had this fun family photo shoot.  After stacking and adhering my papers, I used my sewing machine to machine stitch aqua, gray and white thread in a combination of zig zag and straight stitches.  I like the effect the stitching adds to my project, it coordinates with the vintage look of my camera stamps stamped on textured paper.  It also contrasts with the shiny silver paper and bold sans serif  Bebas font I used for my title.  Last summer, it seemed like everyone on the internet was hashtag (#) crazy, so I thought it would be fun to use one of the hashtags I use on Instagram as my title.  I used my Silhouette Cameo to cut the title.  #familylove is a hashtag I try to use on all my family photos, so I will be able to easily find them when I want to share them.

For embellishments, I chose a couple groupings of sequins and one tiny wood veneer camera from Studio Calico.  I painted this camera just like the cameras I used in my Wood Veneer Camera Shadow Box blog post.  I used pewter mist from Luminarte as paint, read about it in my shadow box post.

This was another fun chance to create with a brand new product.  I have some more projects created for Plus Corp.'s booth at CHA and I'll share them soon!  In case you missed last week's post, I shared my Disney Carsland Layout using another new roller stamp from Plus Corp and 2014 winter release stamps from Technique Tuesday.

Sharing this project over at 

The Link Party Palooza!

So much fun over there, be sure to stop by & check out all the great St. Patrick's Day & Easter theme projects!

DIY Shadow Box with Studio Calico Wood Veneer Cameras

Sometimes inspiration strikes right there in the middle of the scrapbook store!

When I was in the store one day, checking out our new arrivals, this package of tiny little cameras from Studio Calico practically jumped out at me.  Being a HUGE fan of cameras, I knew I had to use them for something special.  With their unique shapes, I wanted to create something where I could see each one.  And being a designer who LOVES color, I wanted to make each one a bright, vibrant color.

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So, as I sometimes do, I wandered the store, waiting for the idea to jump into my head.  Just being around so many papers, embellishments and creative products tends to inspire me.  I have the very best ideas in the store!  Try it sometime, I'm sure your scrapbook store can work magic too!

As I passed our display of Luminarte mists, it came to me.  I should use the mist on the cameras.  Over the last couple of years, I have taught workshops, designed projects for the store and written blog posts on the versatility of mists.  When I came up with this idea, I hadn't used the mists as paint very often.  So, I thought this would be a perfect project to venture into new territory.  Mist, whether Luminarte, Mister Hueys, or made by other manufacturers, comes in a multitude of colors and finishes.  For this project, I love that the Luminarte mists have a sparkly, metallic finish.  If you'd like a similar look using Mister Hueys, just grab the SHINE bottle and apply it over the top of the matte colors.  It will look great!

After coming up with a way to get my little cameras all colorful & sparkly, I thought the best way to display them would be to mount them in a shadow box.  I picked up an 9" x 9" shadow box at IKEA.  I liked the white frame so the cameras would really be the focal point.

With a rainbow in mind, I arranged my mists by color.

Then I opened the lid and used a brush to drip a little mist onto a regular sheet of printer paper.

The actual color of the mist is often different than it appears in the bottle.  I was also sure to shake the bottle vigorously before opening it.  The metallic flakes settle to the bottom of the bottle very quickly, so be sure to shake your mist often.

Next, I sorted through the veneer cameras putting them into little piles by shape and size.  I wanted to be sure to include a variety in my final product.  Being a big fan of symmetry and having a square shadow box, I decided to use 16 cameras in my design.  Originally, I had planned to use more, but when I laid out the cameras on a 9"x9" sheet of white paper, the white space between them was perfect with 16 cameras.  My original layout was approximate, I would use a ruler later when it was time to apply the photos to my mounting paper.

After letting my dots of mist dry, I chose the 16 colors I liked best and began to paint each camera.

I used a small paint brush to apply the mist, letting it sink into the wood veneer for a few seconds, then applying more, until the color reached a vibrant depth on each piece.

After applying a few coats of mist, I let each camera dry a bit so I could check the shimmer.  The Luminarte mists I used sparkle more as they dry, so it's necessary to wait until your project is dry to see if you like the amount of shimmer.  Apply another coat or two if your project isn't "shimmer-y" enough.

As I completed each camera, I placed them back onto my printer paper to see how the colors looked next to each other.

After all the cameras were painted and dry, I used a ruler to place them.  I started with the right column and placed the largest camera 1" away from the edge.  Since all the cameras differ in size, I moved up the right column, centering each camera in an area of space dictated by the largest camera.  As I measured the rows, I tried to keep the bottoms of the cameras in line with each other, as if they were sitting on a shelf.  I liked the look of this, except when I placed the tiniest cameras.  For those, I felt lining them up with the bottoms of the other cameras left too much space above them.  So, I moved the tiniest cameras up a bit centering them more in their spaces. (Feel free to message me if you would like a more detailed explanation of my spacing.  It was much easier to do in reality than it is to explain in writing!)

After placing the cameras, I used a pen to trace their "lenses" onto my printer paper.  If you're using different veneer shapes, you could trace outside the shape instead.

In order to attach my cameras to my mounting paper, I placed my printer paper with the circles down onto a light box.  Next, I placed my 9" x 9" mounting paper (Bazzill Basics Swiss Dot Cardstock in Salt) on top.  I used mini Glue Dots (about 2 per camera) to attach each camera over the circle.  I kept my ruler handy to make sure the bottoms of the cameras were straight.

After applying all the cameras, I placed the paper inside the shadow box...and VOILA!

A simple, vibrant, graphic piece of art!

I'm in the middle of designing some fun products to sell in scrapbook stores and on etsy!  My company is called Creatively Custom and I'd love it if you'd stop over and LIKE my new business Facebook page.  My first products will be custom Project Life style cards for high schools, complete with names, colors & mascots!  I'd love to know what you think of them.

Thank you!!

Check out my fun idea and TONS of other amazing ideas over at the link party on Today's Creative Blog!  Tuesday is 'Get Your Craft On' day!  You'll find SO many cool ideas there every week, you'll wonder why you hadn't found it before!  Oh, be sure to tell Kim (Creator & Diva of TCB) HI and that Julie from JulieChats sent you!

Layout of the Week - My Happy Place

Most of my layouts come straight out of my own mind.  I usually get inspired by my photos or new papers & supplies at the store.  But from time to time, I see a layout I just have to "scraplift"!  There are just some layouts that appeal to me so much, I have to honor them by recreating them, with a little Julie-spin.  Lately, I've been getting a lot of inspiration from Instagram.  I stumbled across the Chic Tags blog just this way.  After seeing the fun creations from Chic Tags on Instagram, I've been checking their blog for inspiration.  And a couple of weeks ago, I found a layout that begged me to recreate it!  Created by Kasia, who lives in Turkey, the "Today was Awesome!" layout had me smitten!

I love everything about this layout!  Now, someday, I really do plan to recreate this layout in the colors that Kasia used.  But, in this case, I had already chosen papers & photos and just needed to use this layout for its design...as more of a sketch or plan.

Being obsessed with color, I chose to add my Julie-spin by creating a layout full of bright colors, letting Kasia's overall page design guide the placement of my elements.

To start, I hand trimmed my dotted paper and used my sewing machine to stitch it to one of my very favorite colors of cardstock, Ruby from the Vintage Collection of Core'dinations.  I liked the idea of continuing the dot theme, so I searched the Silhouette Online Store until I found the Linked Welded Rings cut that I could duplicate, rotate and weld to create a background similar to Kasia's.

I cut it in a dark teal, Stargaze from American Crafts.  Then I went back and deleted out the center of all my circles and cut that in white to create a background.  I love using the Luminarte Mists from Splash of Color (previously Creative Imaginations), so I used a paint brush and water to wet the white background and then dripped four colors of the mist onto the paper.  I let the white pieces dry before adhering them to the circle pieces.

Next I gathered some tags & other embellishments, some old, some new to give my page a graphic look similar to Kasia's. I chose some stickers from the Fancy Pants kit, along with a couple Technique Tuesday stamps and my SMASH date stamp.

I love how my page turned out, with tons of color and lots of layers & textures.  If you're having trouble layering your embellishments, just remember to lay everything down and move it around a lot until you like the result.  THEN start from the bottom adhering the back pieces first.  Adding pop dots to a few of your embellishments gives some depth to your creation, just be sure to pick only a few.  Everything doesn't need to be "popped up"!

I hope this "scrap-lift" shows you how you can use your inspiration layout as a sketch and think of its design elements in your own way to create something original that shows a little bit of you!

Check out my fun idea and TONS of other amazing ideas over at the link party on Today's Creative Blog!  Tuesday is 'Get Your Craft On' day!  You'll find SO many cool ideas there every week, you'll wonder why you hadn't found it before!  Oh, be sure to tell Kim (Creator & Diva of TCB) HI and that Julie from JulieChats sent you!

Supplies:

Paper:

Core'dinations Vintage Collection Ruby

Fancy Pants Down by the Shore: Colorful Days

American Crafts Textured Cardstock: Stargaze

Colormates Non-Textured Cardstock: Light Heritage White

Stickers:

Fancy Pants Down by the Shore: Sticker Fundamentals

Tags:

Peterson Arne: White & Yellow Mulberry

Creative Cafe: Together

Stamps:

Technique Tuesday: Awesome and Studio AE: My Life

K & Company: SMASH Date Stamp

Ink:

Versamark Watermark

Tim Holtz Distress Ink: Walnut Stain

Splash of Color Luminarte Radiant Rain Mists:

      Bashful Blue

      Ginger Peach

      Key Lime

      Sunburst

Embossing Powder:

Ranger: Rich Red

American Crafts: Zing in Cricket

Misc.:

Scrapbook Adhesives: 3D Foam Squares

Yellow Thread

Silhouette Class...Lesson 1

OK, I was more than EXCITED to have WON a Silhouette Cameo from Kim over at Today's Creative, back in January!  If you've got one on your Wish List, you'll want to move it to the top, as quickly as you can!  And remember to check over on Kim's blog, she just gave another one away last week and who knows when there might be another giveaway!  (Follow my JulieChats Facebook page & I'll be sure to let you know when I see another giveaway!)

Since receiving the machine, I've created some small projects...pieces for kits I'm designing for a workshop series at the store, some cute Project Life cards (no, I'm not doing PL, but these cards are TOO cute to pass up) and I even created some theme party items for my daughter's 11 birthday Rock Climbing Party.  I promise to share all the details of the Rock Climbing Party in a separate post, very soon!  There are just too many photos and details to create a post right now.

After some experimentation with my brand new Silhouette Cameo, I read a Facebook post from the Queen of Online Digital Scrapbook Classes...Jessica Sprague where she announced that Kerri Bradford would be teaching a Silhouette class.  The class is called Silhouette: Getting to Know You and you can find it HERE.  I signed up for the class and started Lesson 1 today.  Right now, the class is on sale for $19 and it's a bargain!  You have access to it FOREVER and it comes with tons of great Silhouette patterns too!

Now, being a person who gave her best effort with the Pazzle machine (The store where I work owns one and I had it at home for year and wished I could throw it out the window at least a couple times a week!)  So I did have a rudimentary knowledge of the type of program that comes with the Silhouette.  So I moved very quickly through the first few parts of Lesson 1.  But WOW, there were so many tips and new things to learn about organizing my files, the Silhouette store (I didn't know there were files on sale each week!  HELLO!) and I learned some great things about the program that I didn't know before that will make using it SO easy!

Well, at the end of Lesson 1, we cut out a circular flower card and the sentiment Thanks.  Given my current love of mist (I used Luminarte Radiant Rain mists in Ginger Flower and Blue Flame), I couldn't resist misting the petals (they were meant as negative space to be tossed out) and sticking them back over the die cut card.  I also inked the edges of the card with some fun Eggplant chalk ink from Inkadinkado.  I cut my card from some white card stock with small white flecks in it...not sure where it came from...and my Thanks. out of some amazing shimmering purple cardstock from Peterson Arne...don't have any details on it either....

I think the card turned out pretty cute and I can't wait to get to Lesson 2 of the class!  I'll try to share my creation after I complete that step too!

If you own a Silhouette, you should definitely give this class a try!

Here are some step by step photos of my little card...

Such a fun little card!  It would also be cute for Christmas, as a card or gift tag!

 This photo shows the box after the petals were removed!  Remember to always mist in a box,

and for an even shimmer of color, spray at the BACK of the box

and let the mist "rain" down on your die cuts.

I LOVE the finished product!  A few of these tied with a ribbon would make great teacher gifts!

Layout of the Week: Halloween Headstone

Even though it seems like summer only just arrived here in Oregon, the calendar says it's time to get ready for Fall!  Never one to miss out on seasonal decorating, these extra large pennant banners just jumped right out at me during the EK Success Craft Fest this fall in Portland.

These large arched chipboard pennants are 10" x 16" and when flipped upside down it just screamed Halloween headstone!

I gathered some fun Halloween papers & embellishments, some new, some older...

I think I used all these papers, except the tiger stripe.  After laying everything together and deciding which to use, it just didn't seem to fit into the look I was creating.  For my first step, I used the Soot Ink Pad from Tim Holtz, rubbing it along the sides and over the enter front of my headstone.  Then I cut strips of paper and attached them with spray adhesive, before adding some fun embellishments like self adhesive strips, ribbon, twine, a tag from 7 Gypsies, punched bats and a piece of jack-o-lantern flair.  We're planning to use the Halloween Headstone as a fun place to attached little notes in our booth during this weekend's Scrapbook Expo.  After the Expo, I'm planning to add some orange glittered THICKERS announcing Happy Halloween!

Tips:

Sand double layer cardstock, such as Core'dinates, to add a distressed look to your Halloween projects.

Don't be afraid to give your tags a distressed look too!  Wad them up & rub with ink to give them that "just found in the haunted house" look.

Trim your patterned papers and lay them over another coordinating pattern.  This diamond pattern takes on a banner look when trimmed.

Punch a strip with your favorite punch and mount it over a thick ribbon for a custom embellishment!  The bats have also been sprayed with Luminarte black shimmer mist (difficult to see in the photo) for and added texture.

Supplies:

Paper Accents

Tim Holtz Ink Pad

Papers-Teresa Collins, Authentique Paper, Core'dinates

Various Ribbon, Paper Twine & Yarn

Tag-7 Gypsies

Spritz-Luminarte

Sticker Strips-K & Co.

If you're looking for other creative Halloween inspired ideas, stop by Today's Creative Blog for Get Your Craft On Tuesdays.  100's of creative types submit their creations each and every Tuesday, I'm sharing this project and I'd love to see yours over there too!