Christmas 2011 Layout

My favorite pictures from this year's Christmas.  I used a bunch of snapshots on the right, and stacked them to balance out the single photo on the left.  I used mostly CTMH's Elemental and Typeset papers, and a variety of stamps.  Nothing is over-the-top Christmas, but by this time every year, I'm pretty much over red and green.

This picture of Jess & Neal was my favorite, so I highlighted it on a page by itself.  All the pictures and papers are lightly distressed with brown ink.

This collage is definitely top heavy, but I it balances with the first page.  I wouldn't use this layout for a single-page layout.  Also, carrying the stamped leaf/flower image over the two pages brings them together.

You're Sweet Thank You Card with Elemental

This card came together in minutes.  The papers are from CTMH's Elemental papers, and the apples and sentiment are from the stamp set "So Sweet."  The apples were inked with cranberry ink, then "kissed" with a newsprint stamp to make them a little more old fashioned looking.

The apples are raised with dimensional adhesive.  Everything is distressed with cocoa ink.

Chicago Layout with Elemental and Typeset

This layout was so fun to make and I'm really pleased with how it turned out.  (The sound you hear is me blowing my own horn.).  The idea was copied straight from my current favorite creative inspirational book, Playing with Paper by Angelia Wigginton.  (I plan to do a post later today dedicated to how great this book is.)

I needed lots of patterns of paper that would compliment each other.  Elemental and Typeset, both new from Close to My Heart, work GREAT together.  Elemental papers are shown in the pic toward the left, and Typeset are in the upper center.

What really makes this layout representative of Chicago, is the shape of this building.  It definitely looks like the Sears Tower with its two big antenna things.  Technically, it's called the Willis Tower now (I had to look that up, because I couldn't remember the new name and probably never will).  And, technically, it's the John Hancock Building that is shaped like the building in my layout with the sloping sides, but oh well, it looks like Chicago.

I made this Sears/Willis/John Hancock Tower/Building by adhering many 3-inch wide pieces of different patterned papers together.  Once I had a long enough piece of paper, I used my paper trimmer to make the base of the building three inches wide and tapered the sides to two inches wide at the top.

Also, the background paper I used, the Lagoon grid from the Typeset paper pack, really helped me keep my buildings and title straight on the page.  I didn't plan it that way, but it really made it easier.  I cut it 11x11, so there would be 1/2 inch of the black base showing around the edge.

When I finished the skyline, I almost didn't want to add anything else.  I was so proud of myself, and I was afraid I'd ruin it somehow.  I think I'm going to try some more skylines.  Maybe a French Quarter feel for New Orleans, and a Des Moines one with the State Capitol Dome (yes, I'm in Iowa).  San Francisco, New York, and St. Louis would be fun cities to try too.  If I make this a two-page layout, I think I would try to come up with some kind of Wrigleyville theme, with maybe the Ferris wheel from Navy Pier. 

All the elements of the page are sparingly edged with CTMH Cranberry ink.  I think it helps tie all the competing patterns together.

The bottom border is from this punch for EK Success.  It's CTMH Pacifica cs, which is in some of the Elemental cs and also brings out the Cubbie blue in my daughter's sweatshirt.  It represents Lake Michigan, or the Chicago River, or both.  The "2008" shown in this picture is from the retired CTMH stamp set "Save the Date."  I used Colonial White ink on black cs.

I didn't want a huge title drawing too much attention to itself, so I used CTMH's "Vintage Type" stamp set for the letters and punched them out with a 1/2-inch punch (edged in Cranberry ink.)

The completed page again.  The black mat is flat on the page, and then the white mat with photo (all edged in Cranberry ink) are raised with dimensional adhesive.  

Retro-Look Coffee Cup Card

A coffee or tea lover's card for sure.  The colors here remind me of a 1950s kitchen.  All materials are from Close to My Heart.  The B&T paper is from the Elemental paper pack.  The cup is from the new stamp set, Winter, and the sentiment is from the new set, Remarkable Wreath.

The center square is raised with dimensional adhesive.  The pink mat, which is CTMH's Cotton Candy cs, was embossed with my Cuttlebug.  Thanks for looking!

Gulf Islands Nat'l Seashore Layout with Elemental

The LAST layout for my Feb. 2011 vacation.  I used CTMH's new Elemental B&T papers on a black background.  Not the typical color scheme for a beach layout, but it was a cloudy day, and I think the muted colors work well with the Fort Pickens ruins.

This page started from an idea from Angelia Wigginton's book "Playing with Paper."  I drew, then cut out the flower and leaves, then stamped over the flower with some words.  "Explore" is made with the new Vintage Type stamp set.  I even got out the messy colonial white pigment ink to make the flourish from the You and Me stamp set.

The second page is the layout turned a quarter turn (kind of).  I used more Vintage Type letters--definitely one of my new favorites for titles.  The label is from the You and Me set again.  I also added some misc. metal embellishments and bling.

Gnome Card

This card was stamped with CTMH's Gnome Garden stamp set.  The sentiment is from Remarkable Wreath.  The background is the yellow pattern from CTMH's new paper pack Elemental.  The gnome, sentiment, and butterfly are attached with dimensional adhesive, and there is a little silver glitter gel on the grass and the butterfly.  The images are all colored with copics.