My NAV Centre Retreat

Yes, I have been a bad blogger. I haven't updated my blog since June. In my defence, it was a busy summer. We were trying to (unsuccessfully) potty train my little guy. Plus, I discovered that I was pregnant! Anyone who has ever been pregnant knows the state of exhaustion that accompanies the first trimester.

 

Anyway, enough excuses! I'm back know and I have lots of scrapbooking stuff to blog about. This past weekend, I went with a group of ladies to the NAV Centre in Cornwall for a scrapbooking retreat. I was super productive. I completed 1 single page layout and 8 double page layouts for a grand total of 17 pages! I'd like to share the pages I made with you.

 

 

My Previous NAV Centre Experience:

 

Between my friends and myself, there were a lot of pictures from my previous NAV Centre experience in April 2012. I decided to go through my stash and use leftover papers to create these pages.

 

 

 

 

 

 



Of these pages, the last one is probably my favourite, mainly because of the people in the pictures!

 

Meeting baby Coralie:

 

My friends Sylvie and Eric went through a lot to be able to have a baby. For that and many other reasons, I was very excited to meet their baby Coralie. Sam was excited too. He loves babies!

 

I had recently bought the Vintage Finds collection by Teresa Collins and I thought it would be perfect for these pictures.

 



A Family Photo Shoot:

In May of this year, I hired a very talented photographer named Julie Hearty. I was thrilled with the results. Sam isn't the easiest kid to deal with but she managed to not only get him to look at the camera but also smile!

For these pages, I used the Pemberley collection by Close to My Heart, which is simply stunning. I also used a few Prima flowers

 

 

 

Summer Fun:

 

We did a lot of fun things this summer, including a few trips to a splash pad. This layout featured pictures of Sam having fun at the splash pad near my parents' house. He LOVED the splash pad!

 

I had leftovers from the Splash collection by Echo Park and thought this was the perfect opportunity to use some of them up. I also used up most of my blue buttons!

 

 

 My 30th Birthday at Auntie Em's:

For my 30th birthday, the Divas invaded Cornwall for our first crop at Auntie Em's Scrapbooking and Beading (btw, I'm now 6 months past my 31st birthday so I'm a little behind in my scrapbooking!)

I have no idea what collection I used. If anyone can tell me, I'd appreciate it!

I love these scrapbooking retreats. I'm seriously considering going back in November with another group of ladies. I know that my time to go to these things are limited as I'm expecting baby #2 in late March 2013. These weekends are a great opportunity to focus and get stuff done. But they are also good for getting away from your everyday and spending time with friends. The best part of this weekend was getting to spend so much quality time with my bestie Diane.

 

Until next time, happy scrappin'!

 

  

 

My NAV Experience

In mid-April, I went with the Scrapbooking Divas to the NAV Centre for my first scrapbooking retreat. I wanted to blog about my experience before now but time just did not permit. I have 3 blogs to update people! Still, I have managed to blog about projects that I completed while at NAV. You can read about Anabelle's Album and my Buffalo pages on my blog and on Auntie Em's blog.

Anyway, getting back to my experience at NAV, it was fantastic! It was 2.5 days of scrapbooking goodness! It was so nice to be steps from my room and food. The scrap space we had was wall-to-wall windows so the room was nice a bright. I got lots of scrapbooking done but best of all, I spent quality time with the Divas and met some great people.

Here is a picture of me taking a booze break from scrapbooking. See the great windows?!

Other than the projects I already blogged about, I made one double-page layouts and one single-page layout. Here is a picture of the double-page layout:

This layout features recent pictures of Sam and I playing in the backyard this spring, just after the snow had melted.

On the first page, I kept it simple. I started, as always, with a piece of cardstock. I then layered two pattern papers from the Country Drive collection by Echo Park. It's no secret, I love Echo Park! This is one of many Echo Park collections that I own.

I distressed the edge of the blue pattern paper and used Distress Ink afterwards. I also distressed the edges of my pictures and glued them on the pages slightly overlapped. I added the cream ribbon vertically.

Next, I used the Big Shot to create a journalling box. I added my cluster of flowers. I made most of the flowers myself!

For the title, I used Close to My Heart cork letters. I love these letters! Bonus: they are self-adhesive.

I kept it pretty simple on the second page as well. I used the 'vertical band' photo placement.

On the right side of the vertical band, I used a detailed border punch. The paper was originally white. I used Glimmer Mist in Crème de Cocoa to change the colour. I repeated the same ribbon as on the first page but I placed it horizontally here.

I used the Big Shot a lot on this layout. I used it to create the butterflies, the journalling box and the small doilies.

The last page I made during the scrapbooking retreat was a one-page layout featuring my little guy with his toy guitar. Music is in Sam's genes. My husband Matt is a guitarist and was in a band for years.

My friend Natalie says that I embrace white space. Yes I do and I'm proud of it! White space, if properly used, allow the pictures to stand out and not the technique. Still, I did use techniques on this page!

I wanted to tone down the pattern paper so I used Perfect Pearls in Perfect Pearl. I cropped my pictures and a piece of the sprayed pattern paper to the same dimensions and glued them in a square pattern. I added the blue ribbon for a pop of colour. I created my own journalling box using white paper, a piece of the same pattern paper and a border punch.

I added two clusters of embellishments by using buttons, corrugated cardboard and twine, aka 'manly' embellishments,

And there you have it folks, my NAV experience. I can't wait to go again in the fall. The Divas will take over Cornwall again! 

Cari Fennell here I come!

This week marks my 29th birthday...for the 3rd time! Do the math and you figure out pretty quickly that I'm turning 31....EEEK!

Even though the thought of getting older isn't my favourite thing to ponder, I still like to get together with my friends to celebrate the day I was born. Really, it's an excuse to have a party and I'm always up for a party to celebrate me...even though it means that I'm now fully entrenched in my 30s.

A few months ago, Auntie Em's Scrapbooking announced that Cari Fennell would be coming to teach a few classes. Cari designs for Prima and is uber-talented! Bonus: Cari would be here on my birthday weekend!

The Scrapbooking Divas and I are signed up for the mini-album class this coming Saturday. I'm SUPER excited! I'm looking forward to meeting Cari, going to my favourite scrapbooking store and, most importantly, spending time with my divas.

Photo evident of the mayhem that will obviously ensue will be available next week.

Happy scrappin'!

My Top 10 Tools

My good friend Natalie loves lists! She good at making them and you can read them on her blog My Two Left Hands. Being with Natalie yesterday afternoon reminded me that I wanted to do a blog entry about my top 10 tools...scrapbooking tools that I cannot live without.

Here we go.

10. Craft Heater

A craft heater is essential to me because of some of the products I use. Waiting for Glimmer Mist to dry is painful! It would take me forever to finish a page is I had to wait for stuff to air dry. Also, I recently started heat embossing (much to my dismay - I always said that I would NEVER get into heat embossing!). Heat embossing is difficult without the heat!

I use the Heat It Craft Tool by Ranger Ink:

 

9. Sponge

Inking edges of pictures and/or paper is more controlled and a lot easier with sponges. I use dabbers like these:

 

I also use Inkssentials Ink Blending Tool and Foam:

 

8. Die Cut Machine

Die cut machines comes all sorts of shapes and prices. If I had to pick just one, I couldn't. I'm the current owner of a Cricut Expression. I have the first generation. The link brings you to the Cricut Expression 2. You have to buy cartridges and they can be quite expensive. Regardless, the possibilities are endless with this machine. I should really take a class to get to know all its uses.

This is the one I own:

I said I couldn't pick just one because I really really REALLY want a Big Shot. Instead of cartridges, you have to buy dies. This is Big Shot (small pictures...sorry!):

 

Really, I could live with just one of the two but I'm a princess and I want both darn it!


7. Ruler

I'm no scrapbooking perfectionist but I still find many uses for a ruler. Especially one designed as well for scrapbooking purposes as the Tim Holtz Design Ruler:

 

The ruler is double-sided. One side has the traditional 0-12 inch markings. The other side is split in two: 6-0 (the centre is 0) and then 0-6. Very useful!


6. Edge Distresser

The edge distresser is great for distressing paper (the paper edges can then be inked or not). It's very simple, the harder your press, the more the edge is distressed.

Distressed is a great look. I often use it on one or two elements on a layout. My friend Nathalie from The Creative Cellar is AMAZING at the complete distressed look.

I use the Close to My Heart edge distresser. The CTMH catalogue did not allow me to save a picture of it. If you're interested, see their idea book. The best part about this particular edge distresser: the price! Only $2.50!


5. Piercing tool

I love my piercing tool! I use to make holes for brads, to make a mark for placement (of paper, flowers, etc) and glue small items. I use it on every scrapbook page I make.

I use the Tim Holtz Craft Pick:

 

4. File

I love to file the edge of my pictures. It gives the impression that the pictures are matted without using any cardstock. You can also ink the edges of the pictures afterwards for more drama.

I use the Basic Grey Precision File Set and cannot scrapbook without it!

 

3. Craft Mat

When you use inks, mists and/or do heat embossing, a craft mat is essential. My advice, invest in the biggest one you can find...but they are expensive. I use the Inkssentials Non-Stick Craft Sheet. The thing is practically indestructible!

2. Scissors

As I left-handed person, scissors have always been the bane of my existence. But I use them on every layout so it was important for me to find a good pair that worked for me.

I seem to be repeating myself in product lines but I use Tim Holtz Non-Stick Scissors:

 

They are the best scissors I've every used.


1. Trimmer

This is my #1 tool. I use it constantly. Good thing replacement blades are available. Buy any Fiskars trimmer and you'll be happy with it!

Honourable Mention

I finished this list and I realized that I hadn't even talked about punches! I love punches, especially borders punches. So, I would like to give an honourable mention to punches. My favour border punches are made by EK Success. Here is an example of one:

I hope you liked my list! Do you agree or would you have a different list?


Happy scrappin'!

First Design Team Meeting Recap and My Introduction to Copic

So, yesterday I made the drive to Auntie Em's Scrapbooking for my first design team meeting and introduction to Copic markers class. I learned three things: 1) Being part of the design team is super cool! 2) Copic markers are probably not for me, and 3) Driving back and forth to Cornwall from Aylmer by myself is BORING!

1) Being part of the design is going to be awesome! I got my first assignment yesterday. I have no clue whether Emma wants us to keep what we were assigned a secret so I'm taking a bit of a risk here. We were given elements of Little Yellow Bicycle's Paradise Collection. Funny, when I walked into the store, I saw some of the line and really liked. Anyway, the results of my first page done of behalf of the design team will be on display at Auntie Em's at the end of the month. I'm super excited to start this page! I just have to pick my pictures.

2) Yeah, Copic markers are not for me. Lorena, our teacher, was so excited to show us all the techniques and, although I had a good time playing with the markers, I know it's not for me. I don't really make cards or stamp much so their uses are limited for me. Lorena did show us that you can colour of gems (super cool btw) and use them to colour letters cut with a die cut machine in white cardstock. I will most likely use the markers for those types of techniques.

This is what I love about taking a class: It's a great way to try a technique to see if it's something that you'll want to continue without having to invest a tone of money. When you have a good teacher, it also helps. I would gladly take another class with Lorena anytime!

3) I was lucky that the drive was so smooth because this is Canada in February. It was a bright sunny day with clear roads. But I was so bored! I hope some of my friends will join me for future trips...

Kat, Diane...I'm looking at you!

Happy scrappin'!

 

First Design Team Meeting

I'm so excited! Today is my first Auntie Em's design team meeting. I'm looking forward to meeting all my fellow design team members and getting my first project.

In all this excitement, I'm feeling a bit guilty. My little guy Sam has been sick for the last 3 days and he's still under the weather. My kid wants his maman when he's sick and here I am leaving the house for most of the day. He'll be fine with papa but I can't help feel like I'm leaving him when I shouldn't...

Back to the excitement! I'm also attending my first Copic class this afternoon. I'm pumped to be learning a new technique today. I'll report on my day in my next blog entry.

Happy scrappin'

 

The newest member of Auntie Em's Scrapbooking design team is...

...ME! Can you believe it?! I can't!

I checked my gmail account right before leaving work this afternoon and there it was: Emma asking me to join Auntie Em's Scrapbooking's design team! I'm so excited for this opportunity. I even did a little happy dance in my cubicle (I'm sure I looked pretty silly and I'm glad none of my co-workers saw it!).

This is how excited I am:

P.S. Ignore the messy kitchen...

Okay, so this picture was not taken right after I found out...which you can totally tell because I don't dress in exercise gear to go to work. I was getting ready to go to my kettlebell class later (which you can ready about on my other blog Getting to 175lbs.) But I just had to take a few moments to blog about this amazing opportunity.

Contrary to what people might believe about me (those who have met me anyway), I'm not a confident person. I care too much about what other people think. That's one of the reasons why I never applied for a design team. It's not that I wasn't interested. It's that I never felt that my scrapbooking was good enough.

Recently, I've had a bit of a change of heart. Who cares what people think of my scrapbooking? Do I do this for other people?! Heck no! I do this for me because I enjoy it. Boy, is that realization ever freeing! It's only when I realized this that I had the confidence to think about applying to Emma's design team. If Emma didn't pick me, oh well...I would still like me stuff. Whereas in the past, the rejection would have been devastating.

That being said, it all worked out and I'm super happy!

Happy scrappin'!

Applying for a design team...YIKES!

Okay, so I've decided to apply for a design team. YIKES!

Yesterday, I went to an all-day crop at Auntie Em's Scrapbooking. By the way, if you're within driving distance from Cornwall, ON, I highly suggest attending their crops. Emma's store is great, Emma is great, Emma's staff is great (a shout out to Laura!) and, last but not least, there are a bunch of interesting and very friendly people who attend. I'd like to point out that I'm totally not sucking up. I would say (and have said) this even if I wasn't planning on applying for the design team. That being said, if it helps...:D!

Anyway, I'm getting off topic...during the crop yesterday, Emma mentioned the design team. I have never had any desire to apply for a design team. Frankly, I don't think my scrapbooking is good enough. But I enjoy my time at Emma's store so much that I'm willing to try. Don't worry Emma, I'll come back even if you don't pick me! The rules to apply are on Emma's blog if you're interested.

On of the conditions is a blog about scrapbooking. I already blog about my weight loss called Getting to 175lbs so what's another blog? I love to write so this is just plain fun!

My next blog entry will be my submission for the design team. I went through all my scrapbooks this afternoon and took a bunch of pictures of my favourite layouts. Honestly, I had a harder time picking the layouts to submit than I thought I would. I realized how much I love my layouts...not because they are so beautiful like some people I know are able to create. I love them because they remind me of happy times, of funny moments and of time spent with the people I love. Hence the name of this blog because scrapbooking, for me at least, is about preserving memories.

Loving my layouts helps mitigate my fear of rejection. That fear is real. But I have to get over it because I'll never know if I don't try.

Here goes nothing...