June 2016 Projects From the June Gossamer Blue Main Kit

I had to wait a few days to break into my June Main Kit from Gossamer Blue. Summer just started, and we are already having a blast at a our house. The girls and I crafted quite a bit today, and here is what I ended up with!

I loved this Pinkfresh paper. It went perfect with this lovely black and white photograph of the wonderful spot in the painting studio of my alma mater. The flair is from my stash, and the sequins are from an older GB Life Pages kit.

This photo sums up my littlest to a tee. She's funny, she's silly, and she's all mine. I added a little bit of black cardstock and a print and cut file by Simple Stories.

We have spent much of our Spring at some lovely T-Ball games. My little player is fierce, bold, and such a good team player.

I think I craft about this little monster every time I have a set of projects. The past month or so, he has put us through the ringer. A few issues and a few visits to the vet. Thank goodness that's over now. I love all of the pops of black, and the enamel dots.

And of course a few cards. I snagged an older GB Life Pages card, using some Glossy Accents on the balloons for a great birthday card. The other two use another print and cut, this one by Amy Tangerine.

I think I will try to figure out how many extra cards I can make with the little bits and pieces that are leftover from the June Main Kit. I'm guessing about eight more :)

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GOSSAMER BLUE: Delight in the Details Class and Class Kit!!!!

I am SUPER excited to share with you that I was asked earlier this summer to help contribute for a Gossamer Blue class. The fabulous Jill Keller put together this course, and chose all of the contributors: Monika Wright, Emily Spahn, Sabrina Alery and ME! It's called Delight in the Details.

From Gossamer Blue: Delight in the Details: a class focused on taking your layouts from good to gorgeous! Learn to layer and embellish while focusing on techniques for enhancing page backgrounds, clustering embellishments, creating dimension and all of the little things that will make your finished projects stand out and be noticed. Register now, as class begins September 28th!! And best part, if you register soon, you get a fantastic stamp set designed by One Little Bird.

There's also a class kit! And seriously... This class kit is AMAZING! I really loved all of the details, the embellishments, the sequins (oh, the sequins!!)...

I couldn't resist snagging you a little sneak of one of my four (4!!) projects that I created using this kit. Let me know if you join the class! I'd love to see what you come up with.

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Quick Cards from Gossamer Blue Kits

EEK! Sometimes I seriously just take the last little bits of a kit and toss it with some cardstock and card bases to see how many different cards I can make. This set was made using the Gossamer Blue March Main Kit waaaaaaay back from March 2014. I've been hanging onto these beautiful leftover bits since then.

How do you use your scraps? Leave me a link and I'll come check them out!! Pin It

Sketchy Saturdays with Paper Issues (June 6th Edition)

Now that I've found some scrapbooking mojo to actually sit down create (and blog the many things I did make...) I have grabbed some of the fun sketches to get some memories jotted down. This fun layout was inspired from Paper Issues' Sketchy Saturday. I started with some fun Crate Paper patterned paper and October Afternoon die cuts that I had purchased from PI the month before, adding in some enamel dots and sequins that I snagged a couple of weeks back.

The title is actually from a Pebbles 12x12 paper that has 12 3x4 cards with gold foil. LOVE! Anyway, here's the great sketch inspired from Sasha Farina for October Afternoon. Some of the additional die cuts are from the Gossamer Blue kit printables.

 I also created a fun card using the Paper Issues Card sketch. 

I love using up those fun Sassafras Lass papers whenever I can. I also added a few Elle's Studio pieces and some Studio Calico sequins.

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December Pocket Pages Kit and Covered Christmas Notebook using Xyron Products

For thirty days, the Xyron Design Team is creating and sharing various tutorials focused on the holidays. Today, I have two projects: my December Pocket Pages kit that I created to document the holiday season, and a Christmas notebook that I can use to keep myself organized throughout the season. Make sure that you keep checking back on the Xyron Facebook page daily for more inspiration.

To start today's post, I want to share my December Pocket Pages kit that I created. I love all of those fantastic kits that are all around, but really wanted to create my own. I had a few pieces of amazing Christmas paper from the Gossamer Blue Get Happy line, and a great mini kit from Paper Issues.  

The kit is pretty basic. I really wanted to have something that I could take with  me, so kept everything fairly easy to work with and portable. If we do something great over the holiday, I wanted to be able to write about it in the moment. This means that I also kept my Xyron products portable as well. The Iris 12x12 Portable Project Case was a great holder for everything. From my Xyron items, I included  my Xyron Mega Runner, Xyron Double-Sided High Tack Tape, Xyron 3" Sticker Maker, and Xyron Wedge Shaped Glue Stick. 

I also found some great things in the Target $1 Spot that I could add to my kit. I LOVE the gold!

 And some fun, bright papers!

So to make this fun cover, I pulled out my Xyron 9" Creative Station and got to work. The thing that I really love about Xyron products, is that because the adhesives are edge-to-edge, they completely cover vellum, without seeing any of the adhesive. So that gorgeous gold vellum is in perfect condition.

I manual die cut the circles, then ran those through my Xyron 9" Creative Station.

Then I stacked those and adhered them to the Simple Stories 8x6 Sn@p Binder. 

To add some interest, I then took the die cut from the Merry Memories Limited Edition Swag Bag and ran that through my Xyron 3" Sticker Maker. This way, it wouldn't peel off of the cover.

Those $1 Spot stickers aren't the greatest sticking stickers, so I took a strip of Xyron Double-Sided High Tack Tape and placed it on a piece of striped paper. Then I adhered the stickers to the Xyron Double-Sided High Tack Tape, and cut it out and adhered it to the cover with some more Xyron Double-Sided High Tack Tape.

Add a quick die cut, some Thickers and a red nose (Liquid Pearls) on the reindeer, and there's my cover!

And of course it needed a title, so to make sure that the little title stuck in place, I made sure that it wouldn't move or shift by adding some Xyron Double-Sided High Tack Tape to the back of the die cut.

I also wanted to share my fun way to keep organized throughout the Christmas season. I love small Moleskine cahiers, as they have enough pages for a larger event, but not too much that I don't use most of the pages. Plus, if I see something I really like, I can always sketch something out.

These are super easy and quick to cover and decorate. I started by running a piece of paper through my Xyron 9" Creative Station. Once that was sticky, I adhered it to the journal, making sure that it would still open easily and lay flat.

Once it was positioned correctly, I trimmed the edges with a kraft knife. If you overcut, just scrape the knife around the edges to rough them up and hide any imperfections.

To start decorating the book, I cut a strip of paper, ran it through my Xyron 3" Sticker Maker, and attached it to the book. 

To add some decoration, and again play with some non-traditional papers, I ran a die cut and a piece of glassine envelope through my Xyron 9" Creative Station. Just like the vellum, the glassine can be difficult to work with as most other adhesives you would notice. 

Once that was attached to the book, I tied it off with some Lawn Fawn (Lawn Trimmings-Gold Sparkle Single Cord) and stamped a sentiment using the Catslife Press stamp (1185B). 

Thank you for stopping by to see today's tutorial. Make sure that you check out all of the Xyron's Design Team member's blogs (links are to your right), and the Xyron Facebook page regularly this season to see all 30 Days of Holiday!

Supplies Used:

December Pocket Pages Kit

Xyron 9" Creative Station, Xyron Mega Runner, Xyron Double-Sided High Tack Tape, Xyron 3" Sticker Maker, We R Memory Keepers Nesting Circles Die Set, Memento Tuxedo Black Ink, Target $1 Spot (tags, striped tags, mini gold alphas), American Crafts (Shimelle-Haynes, Daiquiri gold Thickers), Elle's Studio (Good Cheer paper), Crate Paper (Notes and Things-So Simple; Maggie Holmes-Openbook), My Mind's Eye (Necessities-Metallic Stripe), Gossamer Blue (Get Happy papers and envelopes), Liquid Pearls (Rouge), Catslife Press stamp (1185B), Paper Issues (Merry Memories Limited Edition Swag Bag), Iris 12x12 Portable Project Case, Simple Stories 8x6 Sn@p Binder

Covered Christmas Notebook

Xyron 9" Creative Station, Crate Paper-Sleigh Ride (papers and chipboard), glassine envelope, Catslife Press stamp (1185B), Lawn Fawn (Lawn Trimmings-Gold Sparkle Single Cord), Moleskine cahier

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Celebrating 100 Posts for Creating Us!!!

My lovely (and über-talented) friend Jill Keller is celebrating her 100th Blog Post on her blog today! I met her through the Gossamer Blue community, and she has recently started to design for them. She does a fabulous job and is one of the reasons that I decided to re-sub starting next month!! Make sure that you check out her blog today, as I know that she is having a super-fabulous giveaway! Pin It

Using Up Those Old Kits... (Gossamer Blue August 2013)

It's probably ironic that it took me an entire year to use up this kit (Gossamer Blue August 2013). It was just too darn pretty to use quickly. I even added a little more cardstock to complete these. The first two are baby cards for school. We had (and more are on their way!) quite a few babies on staff this last year. A few were, and are to be born this summer. It's super exciting!

The first is rather unisex. The blues and pink balance out, and the touch of yellow makes it not too gender specific. The second is obviously for a boy. I love the Lawn Fawn dies (Scripty Hello and Stitched Party Banners) and think that both of these shine because of them.

The last card is really not specific. It's a congratulatory card... But for what? I'm not sure yet, but I'm sure that it will be used somehow.

And that finishes the August 2013 Gossamer Blue kit. I think there are just a couple of buttons left, but I'll find uses for those at a later date. Pin It

UPDATED: August Shop Your Stash Kit

UPDATE: Check out THIS PAGE on how to "Shop Your Stash"!!

While I've been making stuff off and on this Spring, I realized that I wasn't using my Gossamer Blue Life Pages kits. Or crafting unless otherwise necessary or needed. I had lost my mojo. I've been working on a ton of stuff lately, including a TON of wedding decorations (post to come later!!)... But my poor GB LP kits have been sitting. And stacking up. So I cancelled them. They are gorgeous, amazing, as in, I am kicking myself that I won't have the new stuff... But the deal that I made with myself was that if I wasn't going to use my products in that month, I had to cancel. And I gave myself a bunch of leeway while completing my National Boards, but I haven't created a weekly layout since March. Not. Good.

So, I'm back to using up all of my fun stuff in my stash. And I challenged myself to make a Counterfeit Kit that was reminiscent of August's AMAZING!! Gossamer Blue kit. I mean, bokeh, and woodgrain, and OMG that blue!!!! Seriously, Lori Gentile has an UH-MAZING eye for mixing (and her customer service is insanely awesome).

For my Counterfeit Kit, you'll notice that I pulled from a ton of different lines, companies, and seriously, two of the patterned papers are Christmas! Who knew! Rather than the bokeh, I went with polka dots, and pulled one of my favorite pieces of Sass paper that I have squirreled away for rainy days. I thought I could stamp on the kraft or even the cork sticker for a similar effect to the pieces that she put in the kit, and finally have a good reason to use up my woodgrain enamel dots! I can't wait to start using it!! (Just in case you were wondering... my craft room has a cork floor that's peeking out on both sides...)

Paper Top Row L-R:
Love Letters - Amy Tangerine for American Crafts
Be You (Lime Twist) - My Mind's Eye
unknown - Stampin' Up
Foundations Two (Classique-Elegant) - Authentique
Family Ties (So Sophie) - My Mind's Eye
Winter Wonderland (Sleigh Ride) - Crate Paper

Paper Bottom Row L-R:
Robust (Suave) - Authentique
Twinkle (Glistening) - Authentique
Friends Forever (Stella & Rose) - My Mind's Eye
Textile (Random) - Crate Paper
Playhouse (Emma's Shoppe) - Crate Paper
Golden Hour (Sunshine Broadcast) - Sassafras Lass

Embellishments:
Star Stick Pins - Maya Road
Layered Clouds chipboard - UmWowStudios
DIY Envelopes - Simple Stories
woodgrain Enamel Dots - Studio Calico
Cork Label Sticker - Fancy Pants
Hey You Vintage Buttons - Basic Grey
Decorative Stickers, Label Stickers, Tiny Word Stickers (Collectable) - My Mind's Eye
Assorted die cuts - My Mind's Eye & Crate Paper
Everywhere Thickers - American Crafts
Wish You Were Here Stamp Set - Lawn Fawn Pin It

Just a Fun Card

Sometimes I really just need a card. In this case, it was actually to place a long set of stickers that I had purchased for one of my dear scrappy friends. I needed a long card, so measured one that would fit in a long, traditional envelope. I also had snagged a set of the Lawn Fawn Stitched Party Banners Lawn Cuts, and wanted to play with those on the card.

Like many of my cards, I used the leftovers of a Gossamer Blue kit from August of 2013. I don't subscribe to the Main Kits anymore (I do the Life Pages kits now), but when I did, I would toss all of my leftovers in a Ziploc bag and pull them out for cards. That way, I could toss anything together and it would all go.  In this case, I pulled a few other pieces from other items together as well. I think the green patterned paper was from something else, I cannot remember.

Anyway, it's a cute card. I still love that My Mind's Eye floral paper. <3 br="">

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Drink Love (Gossamer Blue September 2013 kit)

Life has been a bit crazy lately. So much so, that I had these layouts sitting in my "Drafts" folder until today... That was since October 13th. Yeah... I'm just now catching up :)

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Gossamer Blue Life Pages (January 13-19)

Sometimes, weeks don't go the way that you plan...We watched the football game, got Guinness groomed, hung out a bit, and my friend figured out what colors she wants for her wedding. A little bit of illness (it's been a bit crazy as of late) and the week was done.

I really loved all of the Gossamer Blue printables this month, and used them throughout the layout quite a bit. Xyron's Adhesive Dots made them a breeze to apply.

And those sweet wood veneers by Elle's Studio are pretty fantastic.

I'm not sure who makes that sweet kraft envelope, but I love it. My wonderful friend Brenda sent me a couple of them and I have been hoarding them for uses like this. Pin It

Gossamer Blue Life Pages (January 6-12)

This was a fun week. Mostly. We got back into the routine of non-Christmas vacation. Had a bit of 12th Man fever. GO SEAHAWKS! Miss I was able to go to TinkerTopia (and be on local TV!) and I figured out how to comb those My Little Pony dolls from Build-a-Bear (wig brush, warm water and detangler).

In the midst of the January Gossamer Blue kit, I mixed in some of my Elle's Studio stash, and whatever letter stickers I could find. This month uses some Fancy Pants chipboard, Cosmo Cricket Tiny Type and Basic Grey stickers.

If you are in the greater South Sound area, I suggest checking out TinkerTopia. It's a "Creative Reuse Center" that blends recycling and art. It's pretty darn fun!

I loved the sweet pics from this week. I love capturing honest, wonderful moments of pure joy. Pin It