Wednesday 27 November 2013

My Happy Place.

Hi scrappy friends, as it's cold and wet in the UK at the moment (and for the foreseeable future!) I thought what better to cheer me up than a lovely photo of my favourite holiday destination Ibiza!
I originally made this layout for a challenge but I have missed the deadline due to not having the time to create (insert sad face!). But I thought you might still like to see it before I pop it into my holiday album.

 
I was using a larger photo so there was not a lot of room left so I kept it fairly simple (for me!). Still has some doodled edges to the papers and a smudge of watercolour.
 

I love wooden embellishments at the moment don't you?
 


I got these Thickers in a sale and they look right on this page as I think they have a Mediterranean feel to them as though they were styled on some Greek ruins! (ok so it's just me then?).
 
I must make a start on some Christmas cards soon but I'm not feeling too Christmassy yet! I'm usually almost set for the big day by this time of year but it's just not happening for me. Hopefully after some serious shopping tomorrow I will be back on track.
 
Thanks so much for dropping by.
Hugs, Kerry. xx

Monday 25 November 2013

IT'S A HARD LIFE!

It's my turn to share my layout over on the Scrap Our Stash blog today and of course I will share it with you too.

 
This is the sketch, which is also posted at Stuck Sketches as we are joining forces this month.  From your stash, you must Include any type of wood - veneers, stamps, paper, etc.

 
Our cat Ginger is the star again today (he is just so darn cute!).  For the wood element I first hand cut a border from balsa wood, made my title from Studio Calico wooden letters and added the little wooden cat that I have had in my stash for more years than I care to admit!
 

A close up of all the wooden pieces. 
 

A few hand cut pieces and a spritz of ink for the bottom corner because it was feeling neglected!
 
 

Don't forget to pop over to the Scrap Our Stash blog and check out the other designers pages and there are a few days left for you to play along with either of our challenges this month.
 
TTFN. xx

Sunday 24 November 2013

Bring on the Bling!

Hi everyone, sorry I have been MIA lately but our computer has been out of use for a few days. I am here today to share a card I made using the latest card sketch at Sketch N Scrap.

 
 Here is sketch #14, designed by the multi talented Lisa Hidy.
 
 
Here is my card and it is very girly as I made it for one of my daughters birthdays.
The sequins were adhered individually (thought it was a good idea at the time!) which was very time consuming but as it was for one of my girls I didn't mind the time spent on it.
 

Here is the side view showing the layered vellum butterfly. You will have to excuse my fingers as the wind kept trying to blow the card over!!

I hope you can find the time to play along with us this month at Sketch N Scrap. We have two layout sketches and two card sketches to choose from and there is a great prize draw for $25 gift certificate to  Kiwi Lane Designs! 

I will be back with a layout to show you tomorrow so please stop by again. Until then I hope the rest of your weekend is fabulous. xx 
 
 

Thursday 21 November 2013

Designing for Challenge YOUrself.


Hey you! The one who likes to snap hundreds of pictures of everyone else. Yes, you know who you are! It's time to start getting in front of the camera and scrapping memories that include YOU in the photo! 

 
Please join Lynn, me and the rest of the new design team at Challenge YOUrself  on the 7th of each month to scrap about YOU!
 
You know by now that little 'ole me doesn't appear on scrapbook pages very often so being a part of this new and exciting challenge blog will help me to focus on the one person who is neglected - me!
 
It's time to get out from behind the camera and start including YOUrself if those pictures!
 
Please pop over to the Challenge YOUrself blog and become a follower. The owner Lynn has fabulous giveaway and there are links to the blogs of the rest of the talented design team . 
 
Looking forward to seeing the pages all about YOU!

Friday 15 November 2013

A New Challenge @ Color Me Scrappy.

Welcome to my little piece of blogland and I have the second challenge reveal for November over at Color Me Scrappy to show you.


Here is the colour combo for challenge #50 and the twist is that you need to add texture to you page.
 
 
Here is my take on the challenge and as well as using all the challenge colours I added some gold to link in with the photo. This is a page about my youngest DD who was so thrilled at finding this little bear in her stocking on Christmas morning!
This is another older photo that I have scrapped but I am frustrated with trying to find the dates that I took them as I have to go into my backup files and search for the photo amongst thousands!
My conclusion - I need to start making a better filing system for my photo's with the dates added!
 

For the texture on this page I started by covering the background cardstock with a sheet of light brown tissue paper then stitching my title before adding these micro beads. (that I have had for too long!)

 
I added some handmade paper under the photo mat and made this embellishment cluster for the corner.
 
This is a beautiful, calm colour combination and I would love to see what texture you add. So if you would like to play along (and who wouldn't!) all the details and the rest of the DT beautiful and inspiring creations can be found HERE. 
 
 Our sponsor this month is The Memory Nest.
 
 
All that's left is for me to do is to wish you a wonderful weekend. xx 
 


Sketch N Scrap Challenge #45.

As promised I am back today with the page I made for the Sketch N Scrap challenge #45. What a fun sketch to work with but don't take my word for it have a go yourself!


Here is the sketch designed by Kelly Holifield.
 
 
 
Here is my take on the sketch and the photo's are some snaps I took of my eldest DD and some friends whilst trying out the different settings on a new camera.
I substituted one of the photo's for a frame in which I placed my title (my first ever Silhouette cut!!)
 
 
A dear friend  bought me these two washi tapes that have a sanded effect and they were perfect for this page with some chevrons and gold sequins added. (thanks again Sara. x).

 
To go with the camera theme I placed a Studio Calico wooden camera on top of the banners in the top corner. (more gold sequins!).
 
I know you must be chomping at the bit to get going on this challenge and you can find all the details and the awesome examples from the rest of SNS Design Team HERE.
 
This month's sponsor is  Kiwi Lane Designs, make sure you check out their store and blog for great design inspiration.
 
 


Back soon. xx
 


Thursday 14 November 2013

Sketchbook 365.

Hi and happy Thursday to you! I am back a bit earlier than I thought I would be as I discovered in the nick of time that I hadn't posted my entry for the November sketch challenge over at Sketchbook 365!

 
Here is the sketch and just look at those lovely layers!
 
 
Here is my take on it and this is the last photo that I needed to scrap from my Ibiza holiday last year. Using lots of My Minds Eye and some doodling along with some free printable's, this page came together nice and quickly. (makes a change!).
 

I remembered that I had this cute little sun die from Sizzix, so I doodled a couple of clouds to tuck it inside and added a Studio Calico wooden plane.
 


Don't you just love washi tape? Always a great little embellishment to add a finishing touch!
 
 
This sketch challenge over at Sketchbook 365 is only open until 15th November 11.59 GMT so you haven't got a lot of time left to enter. All the DT examples and the details of how to enter can be found HERE.

 
Thanks for popping by and will be back tomorrow with another page to share. xx
 
 

Wednesday 13 November 2013

Friendly Challenge.

As you know if you have been following me for a while, my friend Helen and I set each other a different challenge every time we meet at her house for scrap/chat/eat time. Well this time we have another friend Jackie join us in our challenge.

 
The challenge was to use this kit, which was the first issue of a new sewing collection.
 

This is the part we were interested in, the three pieces of fabric and the embroidery threads. 
 
 
As I am trying to scrap my older photo's at the moment I needed to do a double page and these pics of a little holiday by the sea were perfect for the fabric theme. You may have to click on the image to get a better look.
 

As you know stitching is my go to technique at the moment so having to use threads in a challenge was fine by me!
 

I die cut  pieces of the patterned fabric to use as embellishments. 
 
 
An idea that was suggested by one of my daughters was to make mini bunting.
 
 
Another beachy theme going on with Helen's photo's and some lovely texture added into the layers.
 

Some hand cut felt starfish with hand stitched detail.
 

 
Helen has made a mixed title with rub-ons and stitching.
 
 
I love how Jackie has cut and placed the fabric (edged with blanket stitch) to give a feel of waves coming ashore against the sand effect paper.
 

Jackie used the other fabrics stitched together to make a feature down her page.
 

A mix of stitching, rub-ons and buttons combine to make a great cluster at the top of her layout.
 
I hope you enjoyed seeing three different takes on the same theme. It's always fun to challenge friends and to see the different outcomes.
 
Thanks for stopping by and I will be back in a couple of days with Sketch N Scrap's 2nd reveal of the month. Until then have a great week. xx 

 

 
 
 

 
 
 
  

Tuesday 12 November 2013

Cake O'Clock and a Winner!

Hello crafty friends, I have a few layouts to share with you today that were done over the weekend by the ladies at my craft club but first I have the winner of the Rak I was offering during the Sketch N Scrap Holiday Blog Hop. I put all the names of the commenters on strips of paper and got my eldest daughter to pick a winner.

                 And the winner is................... Golden Goddess Designs!

If you would like to email me at Kerry.bruce@btinternet.com with your postal address I will send the prize out to you.

I want to thank everyone who left wonderful comments on my New Year page and hope you enjoyed Sketch N Scraps Holiday hop!

               ..............................................................................................

Now onto the layouts I have to share with you.
During the Bradfield Craft Club crops most of us make handmade cakes to bring along for 'Cake O' clock' which has become a bit of an event with so many wonderful cakes being produced.
During this last weekend retreat I decided it would be a bit of fun to take a photo of all the cakes that everyone had brought in and set a challenge to scrapbook a page using the same photo!
Here are the pages that were made.


My layout.
 
 
Helen's.
 
 
Pauline's.
 
 
Sara's.
 
 
Joan's.
 
 
Jackie's.
 
 
Sandi made a journal page.
 
I hope you enjoyed seeing our little challenge, we had fun making the pages and eating the cakes was a struggle, but we coped!!!!  
 
Thanks for popping by. xx
 
 
 
 




Monday 11 November 2013

SWEET DREAMS.

Hello and I hope your weekend was as fabulous as mine - I had organised a weekend crop with added camping over in the hall (a frugal scrappers retreat!). We had a fun and productive time so all's good.
I have some pages to share with you tomorrow of a challenge I set my croplets (my new name for the ladies that scrap with me).

For now though it's time to share my page that I created for the first November challenge over at Scrap Our Stash. The challenge is to use only 6x6 papers and also to add 6 of one type of embellishment.

 
Here is my page and I used just three sheets of a really old birthday 6x6 paper pack. It had just the right colours for this photo of my youngest daughter asleep with her new soft toy.
 

The papers had glitter on them so I added extra glitter to my wooden embellishments and a glitter card border.


I love putting stitching on my pages lately and I wanted to make a stitched feather so armed with my template from American Crafts I stitched one in light blue, cut around it and added glitter glue for some more sparkle.

 
Here are my 6 embellishments - cute little wooden stars (with added glitter glue as well!). More stitching in the form of clouds for that dreamy feel!

Have you got some delicious 6x6 papers you could scrap with for this challenge? I was surprised how easy it was to use the smaller papers even though I think this is the first time I have used them to scrap with.
If you want to see some fabulous inspiration from the other Scrap Our Stash DT members then all you have to do is drop in on the SOS blog everyday for a different take on the challenge.
HERE is the LINK.

Back tomorrow hopefully, with some fun pages to share.


Wednesday 6 November 2013

Now There is a Challenge!

There is a new challenge blog on the block starting in November called Challenge Yourself, and the star will be...... yourself! It's all about scrapping about little ole you! Also they are having a DT call and a little giveaway, so pop on over and check out the details HERE.


Family Sketch Challenge.

Hi and happy Wednesday! Definitely turned chilly here in the UK, Mother Nature seems to have almost by-passed Autumn, it seemed such a short season this year due to the warm temperatures in October!
I'm sure you remember the challenges I have been posting through the year that my cousin Jan, my mum Joan and I have been having fun with. Today I have another one to share with you, we thought that each of us could design a sketch and we would all make a page based on them in turn.


It was me to go first and here is the sketch that I made. Nice and simple to interpret as we liked.
 
 
I couldn't resist using a photo of me and my brother and Jan and her brother as the subject of my page! I kept basically to the sketch and just added a little extra for interest.
 
 
A tag to hold my journaling tucked behind my photo, with an assortment of co-ordinating buttons and brad.

 
At the bottom of my page I copied the embellishment cluster from near the tag and added in some more of the ripped patterned papers.
 
 
My mum has altered the sketch ever so slightly at the top and gone for a bright sunny page in blue and orange. (one of my favourite colour combo's).
 
 
She has fussy cut these lovely flowers from some older paper and they are the perfect colours for her page. 
 
 
Mum has even done some machine stitching that co-ordinates beautifully.
 
 
Jan's dog Barney and his little friend Dolly are the stars of Jan page, obviously enjoying the summers day together! Lots of ripped paper goodness going on here and can you spot the little collar on her page? 
 
 
The corner embellishment cluster features some awesome negative strip, I have some in washi tape but in acetate it looks great!
 
 
Some more of the negative strip and a sweet number 2 tag.
To see more of Jan's fabulous work check out her blog HERE.
 
Well I hope you enjoyed seeing the 3 different takes on my sketch and it is Jan's turn to create a sketch next so I will post the results from that challenge when we have all completed it.
 
 
Hope you are having a great week so far. xx
 
P.S.  Don't forget that Sketch N Scrap are have a design team call and you have until the 21st November to apply. For all the details click HERE.
 
http://sketchnscrap.blogspot.co.uk/2013/10/design-team-call_9065.html