Project Life

Hello all! Apologies for the silence in blogland, but I've been busy with my new love!

Yes, I bought a 2011 Project Life kit, and it arrived on the 18th!! See that slightly maniacal grin on my face? I think I frightened the postman a little when he delivered it, I was grinning like a crazy person and trying not to snatch the box from his grasp. Discovering Project Life was like a lightbulb moment for me. I've always wanted to scrapbook but found it way too difficult. This way, I get to put my photos together, be all matchy-matchy (you know I love matchy-ness) but don't have to worry about layouts. I decorated the cover of my album with some black vinyl, which is just awesome to use. And quite addictive.



Wanna know a little secret? I bought a 2010 Project Life kit, too. *blush* I just couldn't resist, the colours were so "me" and I love the design. Obsessed? Probably. Ambitious? Possibly. I'm using the 2011 kit as a weekly scrapbook for the year, while the 2010 kit is intended to be a scrapbook about me, with no timeframe in mind.



Love that vinyl! So, I spent all of last weekend catching up on my journaling and sorting/editing photos. Am up to date for the first 4 weeks of the year!

So, there probably isn't going to be a card up this weekend either, as I have some work to do and am sorting/editing photos to go into my album. Normal transmission should resume shortly. Thanks for stopping by! :)

Soaring by to say hi

I have several cards to make this weekend, and this one is for someone who inspires me and who could use a pick-me-up at the moment. Love bright colours! I used the FTL 123 sketch again, just 'cos I love it so. :-)



Colours courtesy of the SU! colour coach, but I grabbed Cherry Cobbler by accident, instead of Riding Hood Red.



Also, a big shout out to those who stopped by and left comments, you guys brighten my day! Thanks for taking a look!

FTL 123

Have I mentioned how much I loooooooove sketch challenges? The Clean & Simple sketch challenges, in particular. Love what the team does each week!! This week is no exception.



I had a look through my "inspiration" folder and came across a past challenge over at PPA. Love the colours!


And here is what I ended up with.



The colours look a bit off because the lighting wasn't very good. Love PTI felt!! :-)

Thanks for stopping by!

FTL 122

Clean & simple sketch challenges have started for 2011!! Here is the first sketch for the year.



I pulled out the Urban Garden paper from the previous SU! catalogue and threw in some stitching with the sewing machine. It was only after I had happily stitched everything that I realized I didn't have anything for the flower elements, so I resorted to cutting out some of the flowers from the DSP.



I made a small blunder with the sentiment, which is why you can't really see it at all. Thanks to the C&S blog for another great sketch!

U r awesome!

Thought I'd share some cards I made last week but couldn't upload because the recipients hadn't received them yet. The first one was made for a friend's birthday, using my brand new Banner Builder set from PTI. Love the matching dies!



I was playing with the SCAL2 software for the Cricut and decided to try incorporating a word into the card base, inspired by this card by Kristina Werner. It was surprising how easy this was to make! Love the Cricut and SCAL!



I was reading Michelle Wooderson's blog the other day, and discovered Becky Higgins and the Project Life phenomenon. I was completely blown away by the idea and have promptly jumped on the bandwagon, having ordered my 2011 kit two days ago. So now I'm impatiently waiting for it to arrive. I've wanted to make scrapbooks for ages, but have always found it difficult. I've already started taking photos for this week, and I can't wait to start! Will update once I receive the kit and start. :-) Thanks for stopping by!

My new baby!

After much umm-ing and ahh-ing, I gave in and bought a Cricut Expression!! It arrived before the Christmas break, so I've been having a lot of fun during the holidays experimenting with cutting stuff. It's so awesome!!!! I love it. :) I also bought Sure Cuts a Lot, and it's just mind-blowing what you can do with the software.



Introducing the first card I made using the Cricut Expression! I wanted to keep it really simple, and cut into some yummy Bo Bunny paper. I've also started dabbling in glass etching, which is so easy and quite addictive. :)



Anyway, that's all I have for today before I run off and finish something for a friend. Wishing you all a happy new year, and thanks for stopping by!

Merry Christmas!!

Hello all! I hope you've all had a wonderful Christmas!! :) Mine was awesome, spent with family and with lots of food. Mmmm. And big news!!! I bought myself a Cricut Expression and have been busy spending time with it. Happy birthday and Merry Christmas to meeeee!!!

Apologies for the lack of blogging over the past month, but I was frantically finishing off Christmas cards and making Christmas presents. I made cards of two sizes this year with the smaller 10cm × 10cm card given to those I don't know as well (such as my colleagues) but still wanted to give cards to. This year's card was inspired by this card (about half-way down the post) created by Nichole Heady who is the awesome co-owner/creator of my fave craft store, Papertrey ink. Seriously, I think I mention PTI in every single post. :) The smaller tree was punched out using a Martha Stewart punch. I dragged out my mother's sewing machine and taught myself to use it (the user manual is great!) and I think sewing on cards can get quite addictive!



And this is what a pile of ~46 odd Old Olive die-cut trees looks like. That's a lot of crankin' through the Big Shot!



I also made calendars for my friends using PTI's calendar page die, which also meant more cranking through the Big Shot. 6 calendars (including one for myself) and one cover for each = 78 calendar pages. I was really, really bored by the time I finished die-cutting them! Here's what they look like, all bound with my Bind-it-all! The one at the end was the prototype, hence the wonky-ness. All subsequent calendars (and the original) were reinforced using re-purposed cereal boxes. :D I love how they turned out. Well worth the time spent stamping and trying to figure out stuff. I haven't made mine, though. Ran out of time. :)







I used the same stamps for each calendar, but mixed up the order so no two calendars are identical. I also embossed half the pages and nearly toasted my fingers in the process! I still haven't started on my own calendar yet as I ran out of time, so hopefully I have it done before 2011 rolls around. :D

I have yet more photos of cards etc., but I'll leave them for the next post. Before I go, I'll share this photo I took of 60 (of the 78) die-cut calendar pages, arranged by month. So pretty!



Thanks for stopping by!!