Category Archives: LOAD

LOAD-ivated!

LOAD-ivated!

Chugging along with the first full week of LOAD. I love dedicating myself to creating every day, regardless of how busy the day is, or how much energy I have. This past week has been one of those weeks that started out busy and just got more hectic as the week went on. But there’s always time to squeeze in a  little creative play.

This first page started with 1920s design, which led me to fiesta ware, which led me to concentric circles, which led me here:

Fashion Queen

Since my niece is into fluffy, fuzzy and soft, the various ribbons seemed like the perfect addition to the page.

The next prompt was all about the lean years in the 1930s, which made me think of my father who was born during the 30s, and then to my grandfather, who I never met because he died when my father was 16. The amount of info I have about him is very lean, so that led to this page:

Mysterious chap

Love that I used the tear strip (including the name of the line!) on the page!

Another day, another prompt, this one about innovation. (Zippers people! Only since the 1930s. Can you imagine?)

The idea of innovation led me to how cities are finding ways to add beauty and interest and history to their streets, and the huge silly and fun clogs my local city recently commissioned.

You know you're in Albany when

The design is really simple on this, so the clogs take center stage.

Mend, Stitch and Patch was the next prompt. That was an easy story to come up with, since last fall we were inundated with repair projects.

when it rains it pours

The journaling is on the  tag in the bag. The clouds are rub-ons, and the raindrops are stickles.

I went off prompt the next day, because, while looking for photos, this one jumped out at me.  This is how messy my craft room is on a regular basis. Thought you might like to see it in use. 😉

working

The color schemes of the 1940s was the following day’s prompt. The teal and pink on the list just screamed my niece’s name, and I had the circles left over from making the fiesta ware inspired page, so created this:

daddy's little angel

You don’t need to journal a lot on every page, and in this case, the title is the journaling.

I read the last day of the week’s prompt super early in the day, and then went down a rabbit hole trying to find a favorite song of my father’s. When I discovered that it was actually from the 60s, I had to stop and go spend hours doing other errands, and by the time I was able to sit down to scrap I couldn’t remember what the prompt was, and I was so tired, I just scrapped the first story that appealed to me.

using an overlay

Once again I made use of the name strip to add some coordinating pattern. The acetate chevron is supposed to mimic the up and down of falling while learning, as well as the energy and motion of skating. Think it worked?

This week was super busy, filled with an overnight trip to Boston, a birthday party, birthday shopping for two of the most important people in my life (including finding 70 things to wrap for my mother’s 70th birthday!), yard work, hospital visit for tests, and a very painful dentist’s visit, proving it is possible to scrapbook, if it’s something you want to do.

Go make something. You won’t regret taking the time to feel and be creative.

 

LOAD in Action

LOAD in Action

The ScrapHappy Layout a Day Challenge is under way, and lots of gorgeous pages are being produced by the lovely members of ScrapHappy.

Want to see how the prompts get turned into pages?

Day one’s prompt was to create a page in memory of one of the ScrapHappy members who passed away this past summer. She was a cheery and supportive person, who contributed a LOT to the group, and she will be greatly missed. She always used a lot of butterflies and flowers and gorgeous textiles common to places she lived on the pages she created.

Thinking of her reminded me of one of the most creative people I know, my mother, and so a page was born.

Creativity can be taught!

This started with a Heidi Swapp color magic resist card stock, and a Dylusion spray mist in purple, and a bit of gold Color Magic mist as well. Then I added in some paper scraps, and leaves made from toilet paper tubes, and a tiny bit of inking. The heart was too dark as it was, so that got brightened up with a paint dauber from Ranger Inc. A little bit of journaling, and the page was done!

Day two’s prompt was all about the Arts and Crafts movement in the first part of the 20th century. As soon as I read that, I knew I needed to do a page about our former house. There were so many things to love about that house.

arts and crafts prompt

More scraps and kit leftovers got used on this page. I love using up stash!

Today’s prompt was inspired by the bob, the hairstyle that first became popular during the 1920’s. For me, the bob was revolutionary. Before I got a bob in college, I had gone through so many attempts to have decent hair. Perms. Feathering. Pin curls. Really short, boyish cuts. The boy cuts were okay, but the other hairstyles? Disastrous. And then I found a great hairstylist and let her play. That bob was the best haircut of my life. Seriously. So now, if I want a decent haircut, I try to have someone replicate it. It’s never as good as that first cut, but it’s still better than looking like a poodle.

the bob saved my hair

For this page I decided to start using the kit I put together. I want to use that up this month, so you’ll be seeing a lot of it. I’ll share some sketches and project ideas about the kit with you as the month progresses. After all, what good is creating a kit from your stash if you don’t actually use it?

Are getting crafty this month? What are you creating?

 

A Process for Creating a Layout a Day (LOAD in Vogue Bloghop)

A Process for Creating a Layout a Day (LOAD in Vogue Bloghop)

Welcome to the ScrapHappy LOAD in Vogue bloghop! This should be your third stop on the hop, after Christy, and before Lisa. If you want to start at the beginning, head on over to Lynnette’s blog! Everyone’s site is listed below if you want to jump and skip around. Now on with the show:

As some of you may know by now, I am a big proponent of periodically participating in a Layout a Day Challenge. (Or LOAD as we regulars like to call it.) What is a LOAD? It’s when you commit to making one scrapbook layout each day for a month. Lain Ehmann runs this twice a year in February and May, and then the members of her ScrapHappy community put together a members only challenge in October. Which means another challenge is rapidly approaching.

I’ve already told you how I got on the LOAD bandwagon, how I prepare for it, and why I think it’s an important part of anyone’s scrapbooking journey. However, I’ve never told you how I manage to fit LOAD into my daily life, and the process I go through when participating in the challenge.

Each morning, after the kids get off to school, I check the prompt. If it immediately triggers an idea, I’ll sit down and start working on it right away. If, however, a related story or photo doesn’t pop into my head immediately, I let the prompt marinate for a bit.

Sometimes the prompt just doesn’t work for where my head is on that particular day.

Not that it matters. The wonderful thing about LOAD is not that you’re creating pages based on various prompts, but that you’re committing to making pages. THAT’s the important part. The commitment to yourself and your creativity is what’s inspiring and empowering. The prompts are just the delicious icing on the cake.

Alright-y then, time to get off the soap box…

At some point in the day, I make time to sit down and start a page. I don’t always finish it in one sitting. However, I do try to have a story idea and photos and papers chosen before I move on to the next task.

Some days, I’m so busy I completely forget about LOAD until 10pm, and then I don’t worry about the prompt at all, and just make a page with the first story that comes to mind. I scrap fast. I can make a page in half an hour. That’s one thing I’ve become good at with LOAD.

For the slower days, if I don’t create a page from start to finish, I come back and work on it in chunks. Choosing supplies in one step, and then building a design, writing the journaling, and finally adding a title and embellishments.

It’s a very organic and relaxing process actually.

If you want more details on how I create, I made a video last fall of one of the pages created during the ScrapHappy LOAD  based on a prompt. You can find the video here: Process

idea to page

Now on with the show!

Next on your bloghop is Lisa.

And if you want to hop, skip, and jump around, here are our participants:

Lynnette

Christy

Heather <– You’re here now! Hi!

Lisa

Cathy

Dani

Nolwenn

Kelli

Theresa

Leslie

Thanks for stopping by!

 

Here Comes LOAD 513!

Here Comes LOAD 513!

May is just around the corner, and with it comes one of my favorite things to do during the year: the Layout A Day challenge. (Or LOAD, as the regulars call it.)

LOAD has been a part of my life since October 2009. It’s made me more productive, inspired my story telling in new ways, and helped me figure out my own design style. Most importantly, it’s led to some wonderful new friendships with people who share my love of scrapbooking.

It’s that community, that sense of support and camaraderie that keeps me coming back for each new LOAD.

LOAD513 sidebar small

The theme for this LOAD is based on the board game Clue. The idea of becoming a detective in your own life sounds like fun, doesn’t it? I’m looking forward to seeing what Lain comes up with.

If you need more convincing that LOAD is worth your time, money, and effort, check out these previous posts I’ve written about the experience.

Why I LOAD and you should too.

How to succeed at LOAD without really trying.

Finding your creative self with LOAD.

Style review: or how LOAD has increased my confidence.

LOAD makes me (scrap) happy!

LOAD really is a fun and rewarding experience. I hope you’ll join me and the other 400+ people who have already signed up. There are only a few spots left, so sign up for LOAD 513 now before they are all gone!

If you sign up by April 10, you can use coupon code FNF to get $10 off the cost of the class. It’s worth every penny!

LOAD overload: LOAD Makes Me (Scrap) Happy! (LOAD 213 bloghop!)

LOAD overload: LOAD Makes Me (Scrap) Happy! (LOAD 213 bloghop!)

Welcome to the LOAD 213 bloghop! We’ve got a special treat today, with a bloghop featuring both veteran and brave new LOADsters.

If you’ve never been on a bloghop before, this is how it works: after you are done here, I’ll have a link for the next person for you to visit on the hop, and she will have a link on her blog for the next person, and so on, until you get all the way back here. It’s a great big circle of LOAD-loving scrappiness! Sound good? Let’s hop!

I have been participating in Layout a Day for a long time. I just realized this week that this will be my tenth LOAD! That’s a lot of pages! As I was going through previous collections of pages, I kept noticing how many of the pages I’ve made during LOAD are some of my favorites. It occurred to me that a LOAD Hall of Fame might be in order, so here they are: One favorite from each LOAD I’ve participated in. These are the pages that make me scrap happy:

My first page for a LOAD, ever.

My first page for a LOAD, ever.

1. The first page I made for the first Layout a Day I joined. The night before LOAD started, I dreamed this page. It came out pretty much the way I wanted, with the self-deprecating humor, the internet-sourced thumbnails, and a photo my grandfather took of me when I was applying for a job on a cruise liner. Bonus? It’s just one piece of paper run through my wide-format printer.

capturing the everyday, including the mistakes

capturing the everyday, including the mistakes

2. My wide format printer isn’t always kind to me. Especially when something gets stuck in it and smears the print, like on this photo. Love that I dealt with it by adding some stamp flourishes. Mistakes are just problems looking for a creative solution.

almost monochrome!

almost monochrome!

3. I can NOT get a decent group family photo. These individual shots will have to do. Love this design; it’s one of my go-to layouts.

paint everywhere!

paint everywhere!

4. I love the imperfections of this. The messy handprints, the incomplete rolled “happy” stamp, the not quite in focus pictures. I also love that I have these pictures, because they really show my youngest’s personality.

peek a boo!

peek a boo!

5. This is one of those photos that sneaks up on you and makes you laugh. I really wanted to let that happen by letting the photo be the most important thing on the page.

I love a bad joke.

I love a bad joke.

6. I love drawing odd conclusions from a group of photos. If I can turn it into a bad joke? I’m even happier. As a side note, this is another one of my go-to designs, albeit slightly askew. 😉

I love to experiment.

I love to experiment.

7. I love to experiment with new techniques. I began seriously dabbling in paper crafts with rubber stamping, which can be a very technique-happy field. Being able to play with new ideas is one of the many reasons LOAD makes me happy. Bonus: I made this nametag and took this picture right before MotherLOAD when Lain tweeted about having a nightmare about needing nametags for everyone, and not being able to find them. Inspiration truly is everywhere.

this will never change. unfortunately.

this will never change. unfortunately.

8. When my previous house was on the market, I cleaned my house ALOT. It got very frustrating to do all that cleaning, and not get any positive feedback. I also have four cats and a dog, so as soon as I got done cleaning, I’d find a dust bunny drifting by. Made me want to shave my animals. 😉 It also made good fodder for a page, because it is such an everyday and always type of theme.

sometimes a page comes out just the way you planned!

sometimes a page comes out just the way you planned!

9. The number one reason LOAD makes me scrap happy is because of this. Not because it’s a great page (which I happen to believe, but then I’m biased) but because this is a case where, the more you do something, the better you get at it, until what you make matches your vision. This is one of those rare pages that came out just as I envisioned it, all thanks to LOAD.

Layout a Day is one of the best challenges out there. You stretch your creative muscles, and get into a very productive routine. If you haven’t signed up for it yet, give it a try. scraphappier slide  You won’t regret it!

Now it’s time for you to hop on to the next blog: my very creative friend Alison Day

If you get lost, you can head back here, and find all the participating blogs:

Julie Shepler: www.sheplerfamily.com
Marcia Fortunato: mfortunato.blogspot.com
Jessica Baldwin: www.inkyaddict.com
Have fun blog hopping!