December GIVEAWAY!!

Where did November go?? Seriously - an entire month has come and gone in what seems like only a few short days. Seems like I've missed my November Blog giveaway completely (oops)! I've been crazy busy with DT assignments, getting ready for the holidays, etc, etc. that the month of November is but a mere blur.....

I feel bad.... really bad actually. So, to make it up to you - all my faithful, amazing, sweet blog readers and followers, I've decided to do an extra awesome giveaway this month!!

Its paper heavy (17 sheets to be exact - mostly Bo Bunny with a titch of extras) with a chipboard album and chunky charms from Bo Bunny, Chipboard stickers from Bo Bunny, a few cool Petals from Bo Bunny, some flowers from Petaloo, bling and of course - one of my favourite things - doilies!! I've also thrown in a page from a vintage children's story book - looks very cool on those shabby chic layouts.



If you'd looovvee to win this yummy prize package, please leave me a comment on this post and become a follower (if you aren't already) and I'll draw one lucky winner on December 15th!!

Good luck ladies - this is a PERFECT prize pack for all of those fantastic holiday photos you'll be taking in the next little while.

Zva Creative November DT Blog Hop!

We have a NEW Zva Creative Design Team and we welcome you to join us this month for a blog hop that we feel is extra special!

There is now an added twist to our blog hops, YAY! As you know, Zva offers so many beautiful color groupings for pearls, flowers and crystals. We want to make sure that they shine bright for you, so each designer was asked to share a creation using a specific color or color combination on their blog hop project. We anticipate that our hops will become even more breathtaking with such stunning products to showcase by concentrating on color..

The Blog Hop begins at Kim Hughes' blog. She will have the complete list of all blogs that are participating in case there is a glitch along the way. If you would like to play along, just follow along the blog path. I am linking to one of the Zva designers and that designer is linking to the next and so on. Be prepared to be inspired along the way. Hidden on FIVE of the blogs is a Zva Creative prize package ...YAY! Winners will be randomly chosen after the hop is over, so it's important to leave a comment on as many blogs as you can along the way.

The Blog Hop starts today, November 29th and runs through midnight US Eastern Standard Time on Tuesday, November 30th and the 5 winners will be announced on Wednesday, December 1st on each of the five winning blogs. The full list will be found on Kim Hughes‘s blog as well (linked above). We will do our best to notify each winner, but it's best if you can pop in to all of the blogs once again on Wednesday... plus, you never know what kind of inspirational creation that you may find there. All you need to do is leave a comment on this Zva Blog Hop post...you do not need to leave a comment on each and every designer's blog post to qualify. The more times you leave a comment along the blog hop path though, the more chances you will have to be one of the lucky winners.

The first project I'd like to share with you today features some of ZVA's beautiful crystal flourishes. Hard to tell, but my colour to focus on this month is ORANGE... I used some papers from Graphic 45's Steampunk Collection (who'd have thought you could use on a 'boy' page - LOL!)

The tones in the layout are very striking and the patterns busy. The orange bling alone did not stand out like I wanted it to so I ended up layering it with some black flourishes as well.

I adore the two tones in these flourishes - the orange and ginger compliment eachother so perfectly.

I also have an altered wine box to share with you today. LOVE thrift store shopping!! I remember feeling embarrassed to go into stores like this (once upon a time) but now I jump at the chance to find a great deal!! This was purchased from Value Village for $1.00 (originally some god awful gold/white).

Funny what a little bling, patterned paper and lace can do eh?

The papers are all Graphic 45. Once I saw the swirls on this paper I knew it would be perfectly suited for the beautiful orange flourish from ZVA!

Thanks so much for stopping by today!! To keep you on track... The blog hop begins here: Kim Hughes

Your next stop is at Lisa Johnson's blog.

Thank you SO MUCH for joining us !

Altered Wine Box:
Self Adhesive Crystal - CRS03CB107

Love You:
Self Adhesive Crystal CR01CB118
Self Adhesive Crystal CR03CA117
Self Adhesive Crystal CRB03CA109

Scrap That! Holiday Magic Kit

Crisp white mornings, a cozy fire, twinkling lights, the smell of pine and fresh baking. Surrounded by family and friends, the holidays are a magical time of celebration. Scrap That! is pleased to present their "Holiday Magic" kit featuring the Night Divine paper collection by Iron Orchid Designs. With rich, romantic colors and floral elements, this collection transcends the holidays and can be used for themes such as, heritage, romance/wedding and Winter!

My first layout with the kit. I was really trying to hilight the beautiful gold flowers so decided on a very vintage/distressed look to compliment the tones. By keeping the papers and embellishments quite monotoned, the photos just pop right off the page. I added the doily from my stash and the piece of white cardstock which I stamped a few images in the four corners as well as distressed (a lot - LOL) with Vintage Photo Distress ink by Tim Holtz.

There are so many fun tags and cardstock stickers in this kit - perfect for those tiny embellished areas and to add punches of colour here and there. Many of the tags included gold flocking - just gorgeous!


I distressed the white flowers as well by lightly brushing my distress ink over each of them so they weren't so strikingly white against the aged papers.

My second layout features lots and lots of layering!! Love doing this in my projects - I just feel that it offers so much more deapth to a project and its a great way to introduce touches of colour and pattern without overpowering your layout.

Of course there's that photo I couldn't resist!! My daughter wearing one of my old jackets from childhood. I actually dulled the colours in the photo (originally a very punchy red) to match the papers and flowers better.

A little nest with some holly tucked under the paper roll. Decorative scissors created the pattern on the cardstock which I used to frame my photo.

The beautiful holiday vine from Prima. The soft colours in this were a perfect compliment to the woody tones in the photo.

In the kit, there were several holly leaves and berries. I took them apart and used the berries for the centre of my bloom - mixed in some gold brads as well.

My third and final layout with this gorgeous kit also incorporates a heap of layers and fussy cutting. I adored the framed design on one of the Night Divine papers so cut it out and layered overtop of my project. This is a great technique so that you can customize the background papers to anything you like.

I added the butterflies to this layout to offer a softer touch. Again, lots of distressing and aging using the distress ink. Just love this look!


With the leftover papers I created this sweet little star ornament.


If you would like to order this kit, be sure to check out the Scrap That! store!!!

Main Kit Contents

6 IOD Night Divine Papers
1 IOD Gold Music Notes Foil Paper
Bazzill Basics Forest Green Cardstock
Bazzill Basics AMM Barkley Cardstock
Bazzill Basics Birchtone Dark Cardstock
Daisy D’s Timeless Holidays Papers
1 Sheet IOD Night Divine Elements
1 IOD Night Divine Die Cut Pack
1 Bo Bunny Cranberry Rose Trim
1 Prima Gala Holiday Poinsettia
1 Prima Winter Branches, Grapes
1 Handmade Green Organza Flower - ETSY
1 Ranger Stickles Holly
4 Prima Snowdrop Holiday Celebration Flowers
4 Bazzill Flower Pot Flowers - Red Carpet
3 Making Memories Mini Gold Brads
Length of Green Tara Lace
4 Pieces May Road Chipboard

Petaloo's 12 Days of Christmas!

Double Your Pleasure!

Its official! I've now come to actually enjoy creating double page layouts. Rather than getting completely freaked out over the huge space to fill, I simply think of my project on a larger scale. I use larger embellishments for example and more of them. Huge flowers and chipboard pieces may seem out of place on a regular 12x12 layout but look completely perfect on a 24x12 project.

I also tend to use much larger photos. An 8x10 photo would be fantastic and still leave plenty of room to embellish. In addition, if you want to create a multi-photo layout, use several 4x6 photos and again, these work perfectly. I personally find these little tips helpful in bringing the layout down to a more workable scale.

I created this double pager with Bo Bunny's Crazy Love Collection - adore this line. Such a sweet mix of pinks and browns and perfect for those upcoming love day shots!


Thanks so much for the visit today!! Be back tomorrow with some more cards to share and on Friday - the December reveal for Scrap That's! Night Divine Kit!!

Scrap That! December Sneaks!

Crisp white mornings, a cozy fire, twinkling lights, the smell of pine and fresh baking. Surrounded by family and friends, the holidays are a magical time of celebration. Scrap That! is pleased to present their "Holiday Magic" kit featuring the Night Divine paper collection by IOD. With rich, romantic colors, and floral elements, this collection transcends the holidays and can be used for themes such as, heritage, romance/wedding and Winter! Please be sure and check back with us on November 26th for the full reveal - and order your kit before they are all gone!

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow....

Yes, I'm one of those freaks who loves the snow - ADORES it actually - especially around Christmas time! Its snowing right now and I'm actually getting giddy watching it! I SO hope it sticks so we can play tomorrow!!!

Today was just one of those awesome days.... put up the trees (yes, we have more than one - LOL) and decorated with the family while listening to Vince Gill's Christmas CD (awesome!) and I am in love. Don't you just love the way your home looks all 'prettied up'?



Be back soon with some more projects!

Cards, Cards, CARDS!

Bo Bunny had the Design Team work with their fantastic Card Kits and 'revamp' them a little - adding whatever else we wanted to them. I adored working with the Crazy Love Kit - and would have been more than happy to leave each design as is. Here are the cards I created with this kit - simply changing the design and adding a little lace, ribbon and faux stitching.






I'll be adding these cards to my ETSY shop later this afternoon!! Enjoy your Thursday (I am so excited - its suppose to SNOW tomorrow!!!!)

Oh the Weather Outside is Frightful...

...but these two little ones look so very warm and delightful! Couldn't resist snapping this photo of my kids cuddling up to eachother on our daily excursion!

The balmy weather we all embraced a few short months ago has now been replaced by the crisp morning air - the kind where you can see your breath escape in a soft, white cloud like the smoke from your grandpa's pipe; the kind of coolness where you wake to a blanket of snow covering the ground or at the very least, covered in a dewy veil. Brrrrr.... Let's get warmed up shall we?

I created this layout with Petaloo's gorgeous Holiday Dazzlers and Candies. ADORE the delicate feel that the Candies give against an otherwise worn/rustic layout.

The Holiday Dazzler Snowflakes and Reindeer compliment one another seamlessly. I just love creating winter layouts using cool tones found in the blues, silver and white.

I inked the edges of the snowflakes to lend a more 'comfy' feel and accented with some of Petaloo's sequins - perfect for those tiny accents and details!

Thank you so much for stopping by today!! If you haven't already checked out Petaloo's new BLOG - head on over. They have lots of great inspiration and details about our upcoming 12 days of Christmas event with Pink Paislee!! Have fun creating your winter wonderland projects!

There's a New ETSY Store in Town....

Yep.... finally got my act together! I simply do not have the room in my house to store all the hundreds (yes, hundreds) of layouts, cards altered items and mini albums that I create each year so I have decided to start selling some things!

If you'd like to take a peek at my brand spankin' new ETSY store - click HERE!!! So cool - I'm totally excited! There are so many unique things to be found on that site. I have only just started posting my projects. I plan to add several more cards, layouts, altered items and mini albums in the next little bit so please be patient.

I am also more than happy to create customized projects if anyone is interested. Just fire me off an email with your desired project, photos if applicable, preferred style and we can take it from there :>

Also wanted to share a sweet card I created using Bo Bunny's Crazy Love Collection. I actually made this with their Card Kit - but revamped it slightly by adding ribbon, faux stitching and altering the shape of the card. Never thought there would come a day where I actually enjoyed creating cards...

Enjoy your evening!!