Friday, December 12, 2014

In Knee Deep In December Daily

We are almost half way through December, yup can you believe it? Maybe you can, maybe your days have been filled with tons of activities celebrating the holiday season. Maybe your days have dragged on and you are finding it hard to find the true joy this time of the year. How is your December Daily coming? Are you already behind and feeling overwhelmed with documenting the festvities? Or are you right on schedule plotting along adding your daily photos at the end of each perfect day? 
If  you are anything like me, it's been a mix of both throughtout this journey called December Daily. Documenting my families fun daily routines and traditions has been fun and challenging. Some days I have been so tired sitting at my craft desk even for an hour just made me tired. Some days I just couldn't wait to get started sorting through my papers and embellishments to retell my day. 
But now my question is how do you keep this momentium going, and not get off track? How do you keep your Christmas spirit alive for another two to three weeks? 
For my familiy some of the fun about the holidays has begun but the busy stuff is still about to happen. I don't know about you but I am truly happy to be documenting our traditions but I don't want to get in a rut either. Some things I have tried to help me not feel overwhelmed is not to push myself. I had a few days this week where I was so tired. But I decided to put the guilt of documenting behind me. If I finish my December Daily in December that is great but it isn't the end of the world if I don't. The key to this process is to fall in love with christmas, each time you look at the album. Each time you relive those special moments through photos. Another thing I am doing is trying to keep it simple. My family doesn't care if my album looks like all the albums in magazines or other blogs.  By keeping it simple the pictures from that day can be the stars along with the stories behind it. 
Also don't be afraid to use prompts from other places, such as pinterest, blogs, or other social media sites to guide you through the hard days where you aren't sure what to document on a day where nothing major or christmasy has happened. Using other places as inspiration can take your album to another level.  
Also don't be afraid to chage the way you re doing things in the middle of the project if it isn't working. If taking pictures everyday is something you are having a hard time remembering, take a few throughout the week and pick out a few of the more meaningful ones. This is your Christmas story, you don't have to put it together the same way as the crowd. 
I am gonna wrap this up, or I may talk all night. But I hope everyone is remebering why christmas is special to their families. I hope that whatever your process is you make it yours, whether simple or overdoing it. Don't be afraid to change things up as the season gets busier and more is on your plate. Time will slow down at some point and you can work it out later. 
When Ali thought about this new way of documenting the season that is traditional rich in stories and warm feelings, it was meant to be easy and simple. As a scrapper myself its hard to slow the reigns down and make something simple, but we are knee high in the Christmas season with lots to enjoy. If we aren't enjoying the season how can that flow into our projects. Let your joy for the Holidays overflow into all that you are doing this months, in all your projects and memory making!! 
I hope eveyrone has a great Christmas and find inspiration in the little details!!
Hannah

Thursday, December 4, 2014

Reflections during this Holiday Season

This week as I start to work daily on my December Daily album, it has me thinking about the past, present and future. Thinking about goals I want to make for next year, things I want to accomplish this christmas season to encourage a love for the holiday in my children.  Thinking about the past and wondering what new changes will occur in this year to come. 
Lately this week I have been thinking a lot of how much the scrapbook community as I have come to know it as has changed. I started learning from so many great scrappers on Two Peas and then just as I seemed to get a good ground that resource was gone. Of cource I can go on Youtube and watch all the old videos they made, and I still do. But there was something about finding all this inspiration at one place. I miss that. 
Two Peas closing opened up a whole new door for me though. Opened me up to the whole world of online community that I hadn't known before. Yes I watched many amazing scrapping on Youtube. I ate that up actually. I hadn't actually interacted with any scrappers at this point. Then I strolled on Facebook and started looking up a few groups I had heard on YouTube, and that was it. 
I have started meeting and connecting with so many great ladies who love scrapbooking as much as I do.  I love talking with them seeing their work. It inspires me to keep creating myself and even to try many new things I would have never tried on my own. When the days get busy and I am not able to et on visit with these ladies I miss them. 
So this december I start to think about habits I want to make for myself, to make me a better scrapbooker. Journaling, I think we all at times feel like we need to pick between a beautiful layout or great journaling, at least I do. I want to in this coming month and this next year work on more intental journaling. Making sure I am telling the story behind the scenes especially before the background stuff gets blurry. I know I have left out my blog, and that is something I want to work on too. Scheduling time to sit and write how my scrapping is going. Telling the behind the scenes thought process when it comes to my scrappy process. 
I also hope to get more connected to other scrapbookers to help form better friendships with the ladies I have met through my journe scrapping already. These ladies inspire everyday and I want to let them know how much I appreciate them. I want to help encourage them when they are down like they do for me. 
I hope in this holiday season you take the time to think about the things you want to change about your craft and think about the ways you contribute to your craft. Take the time to smell the roses and intentally make time for yourself in the midst of a busy and fun time. Encourage your friends in a new way! 
I plan to keep you better updated on my holiday journey, I look forward to seeing what everyone else is creating and learning this holiday season as well.
 Hannah
P.S. To see what I am creating head over to my YouTube channel and check it out. I hhope to be posting lots of my December Daily album as I work on it. I am also creating other layouts when I am not busy with my DD album.



Tuesday, September 2, 2014

Falling in Love with Watercolors

In July I started experimenting with watercolors. Pulled out my low stock of white cardstock and looked in my cupboard for something I could use to paint with. I borrowed my kids paintbrush and started mixing water to the gel food coloring I had to see if they would in fact work as a watercolor. To my surprise it worked, and really well. I loved the vibrant colors I could capture on the starking white cardstock. Since that day I started watch youtube videos on watercoloring and mixed media. And I starrted playing some more. Using the kids sketchbook paper, backs of one sided cardstock that was outdated and scraps of colored cardstock.  I really just wanted to see what worked and what didn't. It was totally fun. I bought mists to try that along with the watercolor, and started playing with those. This concept of mixed media reminds me what it's like to be a kid. To create something without having a goal, without somone forcing you and doing something fun just because you want something to look pretty. Since that first day I started using watercolors I have added many more layouts to that list. Im am definitely am not ready to stop either. In fact my curiousity is causng me to want to try other mixed media items. Gesso, Gelatos, Modeling Paste, Stamps, Stencils, more Watercolors. the list could probably go on further. I wanted to share with you a few layouts I did recently that had watercolors on them. I also plan to continue growing and learning and adding more mixed media to my albums, I hope you do too!!!
  In this layout, I used a sketch from Creative Scappers, which I worked on a couple of days ago, I used watercolors on a wet tag to let the colors bleed into each other. Then I used a silver ink pen to write he date and doodle hearts. I love the tie dye look it has. Also one of my layers under the photo I used a piece of sketch paper that I watercolored and then added salt on the wet watercolor. When it dries you can see the shape of the salt crystals and the texture of the paper is altered. All you do is wipe the salt off the paper when it is dried (it takes a few hours to dry all the way, I left mine over night) ad you can use the paper. I used scissors to cut the paper so my trimmer didnt get an residue on it and make it rust.  
I am working on a process video for this layout and it should be up this week. 

 I this layout, called Summer Visitor, I used watercolors, a Simple Stories page pocket cutout as a stencil and mists. I blended my watercolors to get new colors. I love how the stenciled look turned out. It puts this summer layout over the top.  I then tried to match my layers and embellishments to the watercolors for a fun look. I have a youtube video sharing this layout on my YouTube channel, https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ivynNpKflis


 This is the first Layout I did with watercolors, using strips of colors lending well for beach layout. I matched colors in each section of the strips of color with the embellishments. It was really fun to make and pretty simple. I layered with papers from my July Scraptastic Kit. I love how the blus strip of watercolor brings out the blues and greens from the ocean water in my photo.  

I hope you enjoyed seeing a few layouts I made with using watercolor, and I hhope to show you many more as I continue to make new layouts!! Feel free to head over to my new youtube channel and check my layouts out.  Subscribe if you like me, and want to see me more.  I am also on instagram too, Especially if you want to see bits and pices of projects I am working on or pictures of Hawaii. Have an Inspired my scrappy friends!!!
Until next time Aloha!!
Hannah 

Saturday, August 16, 2014

Back To School


It's that time of the year, Back to school!!!  In my household it means the days get full of worksheets, crayons, books, and pencils! This will be the second we homeschool. Last year was a blast, and I am lookng forward to this year as well. Both my girls will be in school and they are so eager to learn. They soak things up like a sponge. But back to school also means more planning for me, away from scrapbooking and away from other things I enjoy. Like baking, reading and getting inspiration. I am hoping that I can udget my time wisely this year. I have so much that I want to share. 
I have been busy the last couple of weeks with not only getting ready for the girls to do school, but my little brother was married!! I was lucky enough to be apart of the festivities! hopefully it means lots of pics to document since I was able to family I haven't seen in years. The military life has many perks but the pitfalls sometimes means family can't be so close. I was thrilled to see family and have a mini vacation too. I will definetely be sharing bits and pieces from these special moments with you.
The other thing I have been working on is starting to put together process videos of my layouts. This has been such a learning experience. It is a fun cance to share with you how I go about creating!! I get so uch inspiration from other scrapbookers in the scrapbooking community to give back I would love the chance to inspire others!! 
I also have a blog about cupcakes coming up soon too!!!


Girls Night Out!!






So Little Time




I hope all you scrappers have an inspired week!! I put the links to these three process videos I did up this week. Hope you enjoy them!! 
Aloha until next time!
Hannah


Friday, July 25, 2014

Afternoon Fun in the Sun

As a newer scrapbooker my biggest resoursces have been layout sketches and within the past few months a kit club membership!! I can not say enough about these two things as important tools to new scrapbookers and maybe even veteran scrapbooker too! At first I was so intimadated with making a layout, I wanted it to be perfect, but I sat infront of my collected papers and wondered how I was going to but them on my page. after hours of watching videos and days roaming the wb for scrapbooking blogs I decided I had to get over the pressure I was putting on my self and started looking for layout sketches. 
I am SO Glad I made that choice, it took away the pressure of creating everything and to focus on learning and playing. I found that many times I changed the layout quite a bit and I was learning. I was finally making pages and liking most of them. 
Then a few months ago I finally decided to join a kit club, it has been so nice to get new stuff that was actually new and and try products that maybe I hadn't used yet. I found I love wood veneers! I definitely recommend joining a kit club if you have a hard time picking out ppers that go together or if you want to stick to a budget. 
I started this layout a couple of nights ago, that is when I get the most scrapbooking done. After the kids go to bed, even if I spend a lot of the day thinking about what I want to do on a page. With kids in bed, trying to go sleep I sit down with a sketch, which I actaully hadn't done in a couple of weeks just I had been taking some Shimelle classes and actually making layouts without sketches. I thought that I would go back to my roots, and use a sketch I found SketchSavvy.blogspot.com by Susan Stringfellow, I flipped the sketch upside down and cut two strips of paper from my Scraptastic July kit. I looked at the sketch, thought about how I wanted to chage it up to fit me, thought about what papers would work with my photo and yeah the sketch wasn't working. I decided I wanted to use a triangle in the corner, the green lined paper from Fancy Pants looked kinda like grass and it went really well with the grass in my yard.  Then I started to think about what other embellishments would work with my picture and the papers I had. I wanted to use greens and blues and I needed texture. 
Fast Forward to the next day, Yes I had to wait almost a whole day to work on my page. It sat in my room, that is where I craft, calling out to me. I thought about some things I wanted to do all day. When I sat back done I actually decided to work on the title first, since I thought I had an idea of where I wanted it. Added some emphmera near the title with some hemp twine and buttons. The space under the title was to open for my liking and I thought the title needed something to ground it so it wasn't hanging. I made more strips of paper like the first strips I already had on my page. I wanted to use a tag for the journaling and ended up cutting using three tags. I again added twine and some buttons to match the first grouping of embellishments I had made. 
I really wanted to layer some papers under my photo. I printed my picture at home off our photo printer but this time I just printed it on regular paper to get a different look. I like to try printing on different kinds of printer or photo paper to see what looks cool and what doesn't. Sometimes how I print a photo works and sometimes it doesn't. I mostly used pieces from my kit, but I did add a brown peice of paper from my stash, the flower woodgrain from Simple Stories and a teal dot paper from 3 Bugs in a Rug. I added some circles I punched out to add to the layers and a banner peice from the cutapart sheet from my Scraptastic kit. I added some another grouping of embellishments to the corner of the photo after I had taped it down in the bottom right corner. I added a few more embellishments to each of the groupings like enamel dots, wood stars and burlap hearts all adding texture to my page. 
This layout came together so well, And it was so much fun to make. JUst like the picture of my son trying to drink the water from the sprinkler outside. I did keep the journaling small because I am hoping to make another layout of all my kids from this day. They were so excited that I actaully put the sprinkler on for the first time here at this house. The day was hot and sunny and I was so surprised at how wet they actually got. 
I have learned that it's ok to use help where you need it, like using a sketch. When you are ready to play around you will know it, and it will feel like a great achievement! I hope you have a great day and can create some spectacular today too!!
Hannah

Wednesday, July 23, 2014

Down by the Shore

Let's get to the fun, scrapbooking!! I'm super excited to share my first layout with you all!! Being inspired by all the watercolor layouts, I thought I would try another one of my own. Being a newbie scrapper there are so many new to me techniques to try. This was one of them. I wasn't even sure if I could make it work for me. I mean I love bright colors and to be honest I don't even own my own set of water colors. Yeah my lovely children have a watercolor set that's all one color now from being loved!! But I thought, hey I have stuff to bake with right. Why not try those gel food colors that are mostly sitting looking pretty in my cabinet. Not sure if it would work but part of this journey in scrapbooking is trying something. Maybe it won't work at all, maybe I will have to throw it away. But I think I would learn from it too. I would know why it didn't work and it would help me figure out what is going to work. Being a newbie scrapper I know I'm not perfect but I want to learn. Get my hands dirty! And this self discovery is what I love about scrapbooking!! Well and the pretty paper too:)
As I am rambling I will get on with my layout. So I toke out those gel colors and looked through what colors I thought would go with a picture I had of one of our favorite beaches. The amount aims surrounding this beach are gorgeous, Every time we go I take pictures of these same mountains, it never gets old either. The greens and the blues in this picture screamed out to me. Those would be perfect. So I played, let the water and gel colors drip. It was fun. I still wasn't sure how I liked it, but I have found out that you also have to keep playing sometimes a layout starts out rocky. Sometimes it takes time to get the scrapbook mojo juices flowing.
So now it's time to start putting on the picture and papers. What next.. I debating for a while if I wanted a background sheet of paper to border the watercolor page I just finished, which by the way, I used My Minds Eye Bluebell Smile as the background. White probably would have looked nice but in the back of my mind I though I might do some kind of grid design with the papers and I thought that maybe the slight yellow grid lines might work with the colors I had in mind. I ended up not doing that, yes it would have stopped my eyes flowing off the page because of the angle in which painted on my page. But I really wanted as much open space as possible. So yes I'm thinking again about this grid design I might want to use, and I'm thinking about the open space I wanted. I did just paint all




pretty colors on my page and I wanted to see some of it. So I thought about doing two squares above my picture and one square on one of the sides, having my photo in the bottom corner. I look through papers to find mostly blues and greens in summer bright colors, with pops of other summery colors too. Cut out a ton of 2 and a half inch squares and started layering. I used my circle punch on some, I used a corner round on one, decided I didn't care for it too much. I found a cute AC photo overlaying to add as a layer too. This part was fun, it took time to find colors off course because I had to go through a lot of my stash. But picking out the papers is fun!! I went with a lot of papers from the good day sunshine collection from simple stories and I used some old paper from Echo Park, the paradise beach collection too. I added a few paper scraps from last months Scraptastic kit that matched too.

As I layered and taped the layered boxes to my layout I realized I didn't like the open space left open in left corner. So I quickly made another square group of papers and added it to the page and hanged it off, cutting of the extra. I added lots of embellishments that were summery in color or theme. Some tabs, tags, etc and add to the layering. It was so much fun just adding things to these boxes. And the boxes let me add as much embellishments as I wanted but it was contained in one small area so I didn't go too crazy. Which can be so easy to do. I used a lot of simple stories good day sunshine stuff it just went so well color wise, also some older ek success stickers, and old jillibean soup stickers. I used old echo park letter stickers in colors that matched and some green jillibean soup letter stickers too, for my title.
In the end I was happy with the space I had left over. I journaled underneath the photo and embellishment squares, the lines really helped keep it neat too. Over all I think for my second watercolor layout it turned out good. I think now looking at it the title would have been better some where else but I learned a lot. And I was happy I didn't have to use a sketch, which I do a lot just because I am learning about where things work.
I hope you all enjoy this and are inspired to try watercolor techniques or anything you haven't really tired before. Play with your scrapbooking stuff, use tons of embellishments in a contained area so you can go crazy!! Also let your surroundings inspire you!! Aloha and have a awesome scrap session!!!

Welcome

Welcome, I'm so excited this is my very first blog post!! I'm hoping to share with you all my journey as I'm learning to scrapbook and I just love cupcakes too, so maybe I can share some of my favorite recipes along the way too!!! I mean who doesn't love a mini cake to munch on, right!! To start out I will introduce myself, I'm Hannah! I'm a stay at home mom and army wife. I started scrapping a little more than 6 months ago!  I fell in love with this process of putting paper and embellishments on a page. As time as went on I feel in love with journaling process too. I have healed and learned more about myself in this process. But it has been a journey. I'm hoping to share this journey along the way. I'm hoping to maybe help and grow with other scrapbookers too!! Getting started in a community where everyone has been scrapbooking forever has been intimidating, but I had to learn to use their knowledge to propel me to grow!! Once  I got past that, my creativity has been soaring. Some pages come out better, sometimes I go crazy and add to much embellishments, paper, but I'm learning and I had to learn to be ok with that!! I hope I can inspire some others to put aside there fears and go for it. Scrap something hard, do a technique you have never done before, go embellishment crazy!! Be yourself!! I'm so excited to share my journey and I hope you are excited to come on this journey with me too!!!