Back!

Hello! We arrived home yesterday morning and already last night I was working on a page. And you won't believe this, but I did a page with a picture from our trip! So that means I have another album in the works! Quent laughed and was teasing me about how this picture was from a place we went to and I wasn't really enjoying myself, but I chose to scrapbook it first! Ha! It was raining at the time and I wasn't excited about getting wet. But the awesome thing about this trail (besides my attitude being adjusted--yeah!) was that there were these beautiful cactus roses. I snapped a lot of pictures of them. I was blog-hopping last night and I saw what Rhonna had created and right away my creative juices were churning, so I started this page.

It's good to be home! We really enjoyed our trip! We saw SOOO many things in the two weeks we were there. Last night I was looking through the June Creating Keepsakes magazine for the first time and all of these ideas were coming to me. I sketched out a page idea I have for the introduction page for our trip. I'm excited! I really want to enjoy this process, this journey, this passion, this hobby of scrapbooking. I don't want to be in a rush about it. In my eyes, I have 4 scrapbook projects I am working on right now. I want to enjoy the journey and not think I have to get things done in whatever order (although it would be nice to get last year's vacation completely scrapped).

Also, Ro from Scrap Girls has been posting some pretty cool stuff on her muse blog. Check it out!



This is a digital page using elements from Jen wilson, Little Dreamer, and Designer Digitals. If you have any questions about what I used, please feel free to leave a comment and I'll get back with you. I'm not always good at listing what I used, but I can always look things up if you would like!

Hello there!

I thought I would show some pictures of some cards I made the other day when I was at the scrapbook store. These are not completely finished cards.


I bought this purple shirt from American Eagle just so I could have some pictures with purple to scrapbook. Isn't it funny how we can start to plan out our pages before we even have the pictures for them?

The butterfly was made from a Quick Kutz (sp?) die-cut machine. The top layer of the butterfly wasn't letting me punch out all of the parts, so I just left it as is. I didn't have my good scissors with me.

This was one of those cards where the whole time I was making it, I had someone in mind that I want to give it to. I think this one needs a touch of glitter, too.

Um, this card didn't turn out quite how I would have liked, but I still think it's cute. What a fun kid card!

I so wish I had packed my Fiskars cutter with me because I would really like to create more today. Now I know for next time. Too bad my husband's work laptop didn't have Photoshop, huh? I'm hoping to walk over to the Barnes & Noble sometime today to see if I can find a Cards magazine.

About Memories & More

Quent is taking a training class in Flagstaff, Arizona, so I came along and we are making it a vacation. Whoohoo! Yesterday was the first day of his class. Before his class started he dropped me off at a scrapbook store. I was there for almost 6 hours making cards, shopping, and chatting with the store owners. It was a lot of fun!


(Click on the picture to check out the store's blog)

Being that I am from Southeast Alaska, we don't see 'real' storms (with thunder and lightning), so I was pretty excited when I heard thunder when I was making a card in the store. I didn't have the greatest camera lens with me for pictures of the clouds, but this is a glimpse of what I saw.

I made cards with what I purchased. It's kinda fun having limited products to work with because then it's a challenge. I worked in their back room where they do their classes and crops. They said I was welcome to use their die-cut machine, punches, scissors, etc. They were so sweet!! I think I made 6 cards. Most of them aren't completely finished since I figured I would add the sentiments when I get back home. It was just fun to create!

This one needs some glitter! Haha!

I think it's so neat that a total stranger (who loves creating) can walk into a scrapbook store, ask if they can play there for awhile, and feel right at home. It was really neat! So if you are ever in Flagstaff and you need a place to relax and create, About Memories & More is your place!

Smile

This is a page for our 2008 vacation scrapbook. I thought I would post it before we leave for vacation 2009.


This is another digital page created with a lot of fun stuff from the Flutter kit from PC Layers.

Dream a little

Today I was cleaning the bathroom...ugh...and I was thinking about how when I was younger I never thought "I want to be a scrapbooker when I'm older". I never had this huge desire to go to college and have this big ole career. I'm not sure why. I guess everyone is different in that regard. I remember how scared I was when I was a senior in high school and everyone kept on asking me what I was going to do after high school. I didn't really *want* to go to college, but with a fantastic scholarship from my step-father's employer and the pressure from everyone around me, I went to college. It was a community college and I went for 2 years. I never got a degree. I thought I wanted a degree in psychology. But honestly, I didn't know what I wanted to be 'when I grew up'.

Now I know. I want to touch lives through scrapbooking and creating in general. I want to touch the lives of the women around me, whether it's in person or over cyberspace. I have seen lives change through scrapbooking. I see how scrapbooking/card-making has changed my own life. I have been blessed! Being a Stampin' Up! demonstrator has made it possible to touch lives, but I feel that's the tip of the iceburg. I have this huge desire to do more. I'm not sure what exactly it is I could do, but I have ideas. My husband has been encouraging me to write my ideas down. So this is part of my notes.

What do you dream about? What are you passionate about? God has given each and every one of us gifts...are we putting those gifts to full potential? Maybe it's just a matter of time.

Let's dream a little...I'd love to hear your dreams too!

Manly Cards

Quent asked me to make some cards for him. I have a hard time making guy cards. It wouldn't be so bad if they could have flowers, butterflies, and fun, bright colors. The first 3 cards are thank you cards and I only used brown, kraft, and sometimes white. They are simple, simple, simple.

This is a card I made for my father-in-law. I finally made a card with the Polka Dot stamps from Papertrey Ink. The 'happy birthday' stamp is also from Papertrey Ink.

Workshop

Yesterday I had a stamping club workshop. I thought I would share the cards we made...


This is a waterfall card. It's quite challenging. There a lot of parts to it. The demonstrator even forgot to cut some of the paper. Oops! (That would be me!)

When I first started the club this year I thought I would pick more simple cards for the year, but um, that hasn't really happened. *blush* One thing I love about having the stamping club is that we can get down to the nitty-gritty techniques. We don't mess around! Ha!

Another transparent moment: I'm not sure what my deal was yesterday during the workshop. Maybe it was knowing that I'm moving in a few months and won't be spending time each month with these wonderful women. Or maybe it was just 'one of those days'. There were some things bothering me. Anyway, I noticed that instead of just helping as I walked around to see how everyone was doing with their cards, I was helping a little too much. Like I was trying to do some of the steps for them. I remember at one point thinking, "Ok Christina, what is your deal here?" I think I felt like things were out-of-control, so I was trying to BE in control. Once I realized what I was doing I had to just step back. Isn't that weird? I've never noticed myself doing that at my stamping parties before. Usually I demonstrate and help when they need me. I'm thankful I noticed that about myself. When I told Quent about it he said that's what I do when I feel out of control. Interesting, huh? Ok, so that's really being transparent and I totally want to delete all of that, but I feel like I need to leave it, so I will. *wink*

I thought I would share a little glimpse of something we will be making at the June club workshop. At least I think so...

And another glimpse. This one is a definite!

Raspberry Suite Challenge #5

This is a digital page, using the Flutter Kit from www.pclayers.com.

Together

It feels like it's been awhile since I last created something, or even posted something on this blog that I've created. This was a page I started last night. I needed to relax today, so I finished it before I move onto other things.

Preach it, girl!!

Each morning I check Ali Edwards' blog. Today she is talking about creative fears. Number 3 was People not appreciating what we create:

Here's the plain truth: people will either love, hate, or be indifferent to what you create. You are the one who needs to love it, feel good about it, and not worry about what anyone else thinks. Most likely your family is going to either love or be indifferent towards your projects...and indifference doesn't mean they don't love you any less. Some of the things we create now may not be appreciated until later on - and that is ok too. This is why I encourage you to get to a place where you enjoy the process now - where you are filled up by what you are creating or by the friendships you are making through scrapbooking or by the stories you are telling and the memories you are recounting.
"Eventually I discovered for myself the utterly simple prescription for creativity: be intensely yourself. Don't try to be outstanding; don't try to be a success; don't try to do pictures for others to look at - just please yourself."- Ralph Steiner

Can I get an 'Amen'? I'm going to be transparent here: Just recently I was feeling down on myself because I haven't been picked for any of the color challenges. I have entered Kristina Werner's color challenges many times, but I've never been picked. I was having a hard time with it the other day and told myself that I would never participate in them again. (Never say never) A dear friend of mine pointed out to me that a Kristina has a certain style and when she's looking through the creations to pick the 'winners', she's looking through the eyes of her own style. I don't have Kristina's style. And I have decided I will not bend my style to fit another's style. No way! I have to be 'true to my style'. So everything I've been preaching about has definitely been put to the test in the last few days.

So often I hear women scared to create because they wonder what others will think. They don't want their work looked at under a critical eye. I go through that too. There were times when I was doing a color challenge that I would try to make a card that I thought would fit Kristina's style. I would end up not liking the card. Sure, I like to try new things like that every once in awhile, but if I'm only doing it to catch someone's eye, then it's wrong!

I really really like what Ali said about how people may not like what we create, will be indifferent, or won't appreciate it until later on. That's SO true!! I want to create for me. I enjoy scrapbooking and card-making for ME. I'm not doing it to please others. I need to remember that. I've decided that I have to look at the color challenges as my own little challenge, not a competition. I was letting the crazy girly, competition, jealousy stuff get to me. Sometimes we women get way too tied up in the crazy feelings/emotions. We just need to chill! I need to chill! Haha!

Whew!

Enjoy the journey, even if it's not in chronologial order...

Recently I read something about scrapbooking that got my attention. The author was saying how she doesn't scrapbook in chronological order, but just scrapbooks what she feels like scrapbooking. She said she also only scrapbooks the pictures that mean the most to her. She said she doesn't want her children to haul away boxes of scrapbooks because she had to scrapbook each and every picture taken. I had to laugh when I read that because I can totally see myself having rooms full of scrapbooks of my children someday.

I used to think that I had to scrapbook pictures in order. It depends on what I'm working on, but I've pretty much let that thought go. Once I let that idea go, I felt free to scrapbook in any order, and scrapbooking became even more fun! I am a person who likes to have a plan...for as many things as possible. Because scrapbooking is a hobby and something I do to relax and enjoy life, I'm so thankful I let go of the pressure to scrapbook in chronologial order.

An amazing product that helps with not scrapbooking in chronological order is ring-albums. That way you can pop in a page at any time.

Scrapbooking shouldn't be a task we check off our list. It should be something we enjoy.

Sometimes I'll have a set of pictures I want to scrapbook, but I'm having a hard time with a layout. So I'll just save or set aside the page until later and then start working on something else. And then later when I go back to the page it's like starting fresh and it's more enjoyable.

Midnight Page

There's midnight snacks, but this my friends, is an [almost] midnight page. Right as I was laying my head on my pillow, this idea popped into my mind of a page. I thought I was too tired to actually get up and create, so I sketched the idea. But then I just laid there with my head buzzing with the idea, so I got up and before I knew it, the page was done. But because I am entering this into a contest, I don't want to post the entire page. Maybe you'll see the larger view published in a Creating Keepsakes magazine someday. *wink*

Tree

Last week I got a book called Step-by-step Projects [for] Fabric Scrapbooking by Donna Downey. I have been curious about fabric and this book is inspiring me to do more and more with fabric. This morning my friend Katrina brought me some printable fabric sheets and I couldn't help but get started. (Thank you, Katrina!!) The pictures didn't turn out as bright as I would have liked, but I have ideas on how to improve that for future fabric printing. This page was inspired by a page created by Cindy Tobey from the April 2009 Creating Keepsakes magazine (scroll down a little and you'll see it). The tree trunk was cut out of some brown sweatpants that I had cut up this past weekend (for capris). The yellow background is fabric I sewed onto some scrap paper, which I painted a yellow-orange color on.

Sunday Card

I created this card last night. I just love these colors together (Baja Breeze, Kiwi Kiss, Orchid Opulence)! This isn't the greatest picture of the card. The ribbon looks brown, but it's actually Kiwi Kiss-colored.

Mother's Day Album

A few months back I bought a circular 7-inch chipboard album. I thought I would put it to good use for a Mother's Day gift. I designed the pages on Photoshop, printed them, cut, and adhered them. I really like the way it turned out!

Excited!!

This is too exciting not to share!! (Megan, thank you so much again!) I feel so blessed!