Remember December: SANTA

Merry Christmas, friends!

I am up on the Paper Issues blog with some Remember December inspiration.

A trip to the mall with Ryan to visit Santa was fitting for today's post!
He is always so excited to see Santa and tell him his Christmas list
and to talk about the Gopher football team. 
Santa sure seems to know a lot about MN sports!

I used the December scrapbook kit. The kit is sold out, but many items can be purchased separately in the store or found in the December Swag Bag kit. I love the background of the mall's snowflake cut outs behind Santa, and used the light blue as my first color to bring out in the watercolors. 
(Grab similar flair buttons here from Pretty Little Studio.)
I used glittery snowflakes from an older Pink Paislee collection,
but even a cut file of snowflakes could be used in your design!

The Elle's Studio puffy titles and mini label stickers were the perfect little touches to layer and add the pops of color I needed in the horizontal grouping.  The Pink Paislee Together for Christmas paper number 9 plaid made a beautiful background border!

I love that the Together for Christmas ephemera from Pink Paislee also coordinated with Elle's Studio stickers and Pretty Little Studio Glitter and Ice trees. With little bits of foam adhesive squares, the little bits were easy to layer against the watercolor background. The iridescent acrylic paint added little snowy dots that were scattered over the watercolor layer.

I hope you are inspired to carve out some creative time
 over the next few days to join in the December challenges at Paper Issues!!
Tag us on social media when you complete a challenge.

Post your creative additions to the December challenge album on Facebook
in the Friends and Fans group now through January 5th!

If you missed out on the Pink Paislee Together for Christmas or need a
December Swag Bag (with the Elle's Studio mini labels I used today),
be sure to grab yours today!

Save 20% with my code: Stacie

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!
Thanks for stopping by!

Take 5: The Boo Crew

Hi! Today I am up on the Paper Issues blog to showcase this month's Take 5 challenge!  

The list had lots of fun options, but I was drawn to using the

 free Paper Issues cut file  patchwork pumpkin and the word, Boo.  

Check out the rich autumn tones and patterns from the  Forever Fall line from Simple Stories. 

It is hitting my heart strings with the Elle's Studio wood grain paper in the background.  

Hello, Fall beauty!!

From the Take 5 October list, I selected:  Boo (cut file title), patchwork pumpkin cutfile, large title, stitching, border, and a tag

With cut files of this size that dominate the layout design, popping them up with foam adhesive adds a slight shadow and depth to add more interest against the rustic woodgrain background.  I adore when you can paper piece cut files and use up your favorite paper scraps as well!

This cut file and title was cut out of another Simple Stories collection tone on tone patterned paper.

  It adds subtle interest with the slight pattern and is a fun change from standard cardstock.

 I also splattered the cut file with gold mist drops before I added the paper backing pieces.

As for my photo, my crew of trick or treaters was unposed 

and unaware I was snapping their picture.  

Love when you can just capture a small moment in time!

The stitching added to the rustic look of the Elle's Studio background wood grain paper and the colors used in this Forever Fall collection.  It added a basic border around the layout and finished it off. The baker's twine secured the cute fox tag and was easy to add to the pumpkin stem!

Definitely grab this wood grain paper (it's in stock!!) and 

the Simple Stories Forever Fall collection for any kind

 of autumn celebration or photos of fall!  

It is beautiful and so very versatile even for Halloween!

Thanks for stopping by my blog today.  

Get your October challenges submitted in the Facebook

 group anytime before November 4th!

I look forward to seeing your Take 5 challenge entry or

 any of the others that are waiting for you!

Tag us on social media when you use a Paper Issues

 cut file or play along with a challenge. 

 I look forward to gathering inspiration from you!

Get your SHOP on and stop by Paper Issues for all of the best!

Save 20% with my code: Stacie

Fall Crop is just a few weeks away...

be prepared and get some new items to inspire you!

Happy creating, friends!

Smile: Disney Aulani

It's all about Take 5 October today!  I love the fun prompt list and getting products out to use to meet the list that Mary Ann has posted each month. I used new Elle's Studio Family Fun for this project. The prompts I used: orange, blue, white, sticker, and enamel dots.

This striped paper is just bold and dreamy for background paper.  I loved matching up the ephemera shapes to overlap the color lines and swap the light to dark. 

Tone on tone is a favorite design technique.

 Puffy Stickers and enamel dots= instant dimension! Loving the white acrylic paint splatters to make the white stand out against all of the bold color.

Get Elle's Studio and much much more at Paper Issues online store.  

Use code: Stacie to always save 20% off of all the things!

Notable Quotable May

Check out the new Notable Quotable challenge to get you inspired and ready to create this month!

I love this quote that Michelle inspired us with!

I went with the flowers and explained how on vacay, I always stop for hibiscus.  These tropical flowers make me feel like I am back in Hawaii or on some other amazing island! I used a free cut file from PI called Tropical Orchid and Elle's Studio Live Laugh Love mixed with wood veneer from Cocoa Vanilla Studios.

Elle's Studio newest collection, Live Laugh Love is pretty and full of fun color for spring/summer.  I love the backgound paper.  The green is such a beautiful color and the mixed media brush strokes makes it fabulous and fast to create with!

The Elle's Studio coordinating enamel dots and puffy stickers are so perfect for quick embellishments.  I love the brush script alpha wood veneer from Cocoa Vanilla Studios Wild Heart.  I love how this looks paired with the cut file.

Save 20% when you shop at Paper Issues and use code: Stacie  

There are sooooo many new collections in the store, so do not delay and go fill up your cart!

I hope you have a wonderful day!

Elle's Studio Tis the Season

Today on the PI blog, we are giving you a dose of holiday cheer with the product spotlight on Elle's Studio, Tis the Season collection!  I hope you grabbed some of this earlier in the fall and are able to use it as you capture and document your December memories.  

Tis the Season for capturing sweet memories like this one of my daughter helping with the sugar cookies.

I love the bold green in the collection and backed the cut file in the green stripe paper.  I added lots of stitching and wove the machine around several times to get it giving it a wreath-like resemblance.

  I love the Christmas flair from another fave small shop Feed Your Craft,and it coordinates so well.  I love my mini stapler and added the ephemera onto the layout with the tiny attacher.

I love how the wood veneer are meant to look like the darker version of the cookies she just made.
We can't wait to see all of your layouts or paper projects that use Elle's Studio.
Save 20% all shopping at Paper Issues with code: Stacie  Don't forget the gift card sale, too!

Mix It up- the Red Cup Edition

Today it is all about mixed media at Paper Issues for a new Mix It Up Monday with Dona!  This month she is challenging us to keep it mainly a gray, black, and white LO with a pop of color. 

I focused on using some of my Elle's Studio Tis the Season items for this layout.

Here's the quick process I did for this mixed media LO:  

 I started out by applying clear gesso on my white cardstock.  I dry it immediately with my heat gun to minimize warping. 

 Next, I applied layers of silver mist from Mr. Huey's and black ColorShine mixed with water for the packaging technique. 

 Then, I added splatters of gray and white watered-down, acrylic paint.  I added splatters of paint on my black cardstock before I cut it into circles.

I stamped my title using the fun Malia alphabet stamps from Elle's Studio.  I cut the Elle's Studio Countdown paper into smaller circles to break up the red and black.

Elle's Studio has such cute acrylic pieces to go along with their collections.  I loved this good cheer piece and how it worked so well to be part of my title.

I used some flair from Feed Your Craft.  I love the black and white love sentiments!

The stitched silver metallic thread stars were fun to sprinkle throughout.  The metallic thread is always a struggle to work with, but I love the results!

I covered up the big green Starbucks logo on the larger cup circle.  It ended up being too distracting!  Elle's Studio Countdown paper to the rescue!!

 One last close up pic!  Thanks for checking out the details on this fun Mix It Up Monday at Paper Issues!  I hope you are inspired to get messy with your projects!

I hope you find some time this holiday season to include some of the details of your December into your projects!  Upcycle a red cup, napkin, ticket stub, business card, receipt, etc...  It is fun to see these items on your projects to compare and reflect back on in a few years!

Get messy and don't forget to stock up with all the fun supplies at Paper Issues.

September's Sketchy Saturday

The new sketch of the month has been posted at Paper Issues.  It is a fun one as it involves triangles, and I love when they are in designs!
Here's the sketch designed by Amy Coose:

Here's my version of the sketch using Elle's Studio Sunny Days line.

The wood veneer are no longer in the shop, but I love using my stamp ink pads to change their color to coordinate with the papers.

For the title, Awesome Little You, I also used Crate Paper Cool Kid chipboard.  I can't wait to see what you create this month with Paper Issues' sketch.  

Don't forget to check out all of the gorgeous new shop items and save 20% with the code: Stacie

Love: Forever & Always

Ah, the sweet month of love! This is a fun peek-a-boo heart cut file from Elle's Studio. This was created for Paper Issues TakeFive Challenge.

The fun peachy pinks in Crate Paper Hello, Love were fun to color match paint splats to!

Lots of dimension and textures to add some pops of fun!

 

I Love You- All the Things!

For Paper Issues current issue, Chip off the old Block, this layout of my sister and I came to mind. 

I used lots of sentiments from Elle's Studio. I scattered little bits from Paper Issues Swag Bag.

The Cut Shoppe has this "all the things" cut file. Sister time makes us cherish all the things as we catch up on life!

My Little Firecracker

Ryan at 16 months was on the go. Here's a series of pictures of him at the lake over the 4th of July.

I watercolored the stripes to provide a layer for my title from Miss Kate Cuttables.

I used a grid of 2x2 pictures and Elle's Studio cards and transparencies.

The Paper Issues store has fun Celebrate cut files in the free section. My stars and double stars are from these files.

Thanks for taking a peek at this red, white, and blue layout!

#Smitten

I loved these pictures of Ryan kissing Princess Sofia at Hollywood Studios Disney Junior meet and greet.

The cut file was from Studio Calico. I did the sketch pen first and cut it next with several papers.

The Thickers are Amy Tangerine and washi tape from A Beautiful Mess.

Little sticker sayings are by Elle's Studio. Lots of color works for Disney pages!

Thanks for looking!

#1 Fan

Since it is the start of the MLB season, I figured it was the perfect time to pull out a baseball themed picture!  The Pinspired Board on Paper Issues Facebook group, gave me the extra inspiration to get it done.

The cut file, Dancing Circles, by 17 Turtles, had the overlapping circles which I added details to two of them to mimic the baseball look.

The "all about that Base" printable card can be found in Paper Issues store in the free files section.

The "right now" and # sign stamp are from Elle's Studio and the numbered paper is from the Odyssey kit from Studio Calico.

Batter Up!  Hope you are able to catch a game this season with your loved ones.  I love going for the beautiful outdoor weather and the delicious food (...baseball, too.)