pretty paper. true stories. {and scrapbooking classes with cupcakes.}

Fancy a new scrapbook page starter? Here’s a starting point for this week! I used three papers: one for the background, one for a 4.5×6.5 inch block (for a photo mat? Or maybe you have other ideas!) then I added six 2” circles – three in the same paper as the box and three from another sheet.

But where will you go from here? Layers of embellishments on those circles? Or a nine-letter title? Will you add more to the top and bottom of the layout or keep everything in the centre? That’s the game: start here but then finish wherever your crafting creativity may take you.

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This weekend, one commenter will win a very stylish pair of enamel earrings made by Alisha Louise.

Alisha began working with metal and enamel in 2000 at Seattle’s Pratt Fine Arts Center. Soon after, she began assisting local jewelers and honing her skills on production work while working towards her goal of debuting her own line. Alishalouise.com was launched in August 2005 and her pieces have been featured in Bust Magazine, Teen Vogue, Daily Candy and Mighty Goods.
Her newest line focuses on graphic silhouettes of romantic Art Deco and Nouveau patterns in a spectrum of colors.

You can follow Alisha on facebook to keep up to date with her latest projects and designs.

To enter, just leave a comment on this post describing your favourite era of style from history.

Entries close at midnight Sunday UK time and the winner will be posted Monday evening, so be sure to check back to see if it’s your lucky day!

Good luck!

xlovesx

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Before I even start, let me just say Youtube and I seem to be on a very slow friendship this week. There is a new sketch and a new video but it’s been uploading all day and then some. It’s getting there. Goodness me, it’s taking forever. Anyway, onward.

Every year I try so very, very hard to make it to the first of November, which is the day on which I deem it socially acceptable to start openly talking about Christmas. It is also the first day of the year in which it is acceptable in our house to watch Elf or listen to A Very Special Christmas 3, in case you were ever curious about such things. But it seems the world wants me to move a few days ahead, so here it is: my first blog post about Christmas 2011, and not even a dose of Will Ferrell in tights to add extra sparkle to my Christmas spirit. Are you ready?

That picture up there? That’s a look at the supplies I’m using this year for Journal your Christmas. If you’re new to my little world, Journal your Christmas is kinda a big deal. It’s a class that runs every year from the first of December to the sixth of January, and it’s all about making Christmas completely magical. I talk more about that on the first of November, but you can still find the details and sign up at any time really. Anyway, back to the supplies!

The supplies I’m using are available in a kit – and this year I have an answer for both UK and non-UK crafters. I have a limited number of kits packed right here in my very own craft room and they will go on sale on the first of November to UK addresses only. However, at that time you’ll also find an easy way to order the same kit for a US address – or opt for international shipping from a US supplier. All of that info will be available right here on the blog on the first of November. Even if you decide to order other supplies, it might be worth stopping by that day for a little something special that could help your pocketbook.

So that’s the first date to put on your calendar: on the first of November, I’ll take you through all the new additions and details for this year’s Journal your Christmas and there’s some potential shopping. But how about a second date?

Mark the 11th to the 13th of November on your calendar too. Over those three days, you’ll find a bit of a special Christmas-preparation version of our online crop weekends. The 11th to the 13th will include tutorials (both written and video) for several different ways to prepare a Christmas journal or December album, along with some other Christmas crafting projects you might enjoy. If you want to prep your Christmas journal before the first of December arrives, this is a fab time to do that. And if you order a kit on the first of November, it will be with you in time to put it to use! (For those of you who are super early-birds and have already prepped your books, stop by to join in with some other challenges and be part of the fun. You can offer your advice to those who are brand new to the Christmas journal adventure.)

Okay – I’m going to go back to my rule now and not talk about Christmas again until the first of November. But know these three things:
…YES, Journal your Christmas will run again this year, alumni do not have to pay anything extra to participate and all the new details will be posted on the first;
…YES, I am offering a kit for this Christmas and there is a way to order it both in and out of the UK and it will be posted on the first;
…YES, there will be an online crop devoted to prepping your Christmas journal and other Christmas crafts – it’s on the 11th to the 13th of November!

Fabulous? I hope so. Now back to autumn and October and all that non-Christmas stuff for just a few more days please. Thanks!

xlovesx

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As it’s almost Halloween, I just wanted to post a quick round-up of Halloween projects from the archives! This shadow box is something that could be made for Halloween or the idea could be reworked for any other theme of decoration you might need in your hallway. Clearly every hallway needs a handcrafted, themed decoration. These are the laws of the land.

I’ll warn you – this is pretty much the first scrapbooking/papercrafting video I ever filmed, and that is pretty obvious. There’s a section where the focus is completely off. But it does come back into focus and you should be able to get the general idea. (At least it shows I have learned a bit in the last year!)

For supplies and a printable PDF with the instructions, click here. That shadowbox is still available and is now on sale, by the way.

If you need to throw a party, this printable kit is perfect for making everything match in a jiffy. It includes cupcake flags, posters and cards – perfect for a class party but useful for something at home or on Halloween night too.

And I’m working on an entirely pumpkin-themed post, but in the mean time you can find my favourite pumpkin cupcake recipe should you wish to bake up a bit of autumn in single serving size.

What are you doing for Halloween?

xlovesx

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Congratulations to Jennifer, who wins the fabulous polaroid camera necklace from Cute as a Button.

Jennifer, please email me (shimelle at gmail dot com) with your address.

There’s a new giveaway every Friday night, so check back next week for another chance to win just by leaving a comment.

Have a great week!

xlovesx

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From this starter with a sheet and a half of paper to this finished page, and it goes into the high school section of my early years album! Growing up near Kansas City meant a summer trip to Worlds of Fun, the big amusement park north of the city. This particular summer I took quite a few photos but I was always behind the camera and never appeared in the images, so I’ve started scrapping them anyway and documenting some of the things that made up the day to day back then. I haven’t been to Worlds of Fun in years – actually, my last trip was the day before I moved to England in the spring of 1999. This past summer it came up in conversation and we talked about all the rides that were new and fabulous when we were kids but have since been retired or moved to other parks. I couldn’t quite remember all the names but it turns out there are roller coaster fans who keep track of these things and post them on Wikipedia, so I can now write about how it seemed completely amazing to survive the double-loop of the Orient Express and verify the year the wooden Timber Wolf opened and how naming that coaster was a contest open to all the local school children. More than a few of us are sad that Worlds of Fun decided the Zambezi Zinger was no longer cool enough for the park and sold it. Admittedly, the Zinger was completely tame in comparison to most roller coasters, but it held the novelty that it didn’t require a seatbelt or harness of any kind and somehow this always made you feel you were living on the edge. While it isn’t exciting enough for Kansas City, it is apparently open to ride at a coffee-themed theme park in Colombia. Wikipedia, I salute your ability to fill my head with completely random factoids!

And just to make myself feel old, I looked up the price of a ticket to Worlds of Fun these days. I’m pretty sure it was between $20 and $22 for a day ticket when I was in high school, but they ran special two-for-one deals on certain days if you brought in a Coca-cola can, so we usually arrived in even numbers and full of sugar and caffeine. Today the standard price of a ticket is apparently $48.35! Yes. That does make me feel old and thrifty and I may start calling teenagers ‘whippersnappers’ at any moment.

Let’s quickly move to favourite pages from last week before I feel any older, okay?

Here are four of my favourites from last week – starting point nine. Clockwise from top left, they are by Deb, Maja, Maya and Jude.

If you give this week’s starting point a try, please share what you create on this post. Can’t wait to see your version!

xlovesx

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What a funny little week this was – so much fun with Pretty Paper Party and True Scrap that the hours seemed to escape from me. But can’t complain about anything but wishing there were more hours in the day, so that’s okay in my book.

The good news is this week’s Scrapbook Starting Point is super quick and easy! You’ll need two papers – one in a full sheet for the background and another could be a half sheet, as long as it the full width. The papers I used are from the new Chap collection, but of course pick whatever papers you like! From that second pattern, cut three strips: half an inch, one inch and three inches – all the full width of the page. Then grab your favourite border punch and punch the edge of what you have leftover. Take that punched piece and line it up with the pattern in the three inch strip. Small, repeating patterns work best for this – stripes also work really well. Once the pattern is lined up, adhere the punched strip there and cut off the excess so this layered piece is still three inches by twelve (or the full page width, if you’re working in another page size).

Attach the three strips to the full sheet with the smallest strip at the bottom and the largest strip in the middle, and just a small gap between each. When you attach the strips, be sure the pattern is all lined up in the same direction so there’s no jarring reverse of the design.

What you do next is completely up to you! Start here and create your own page, then take a picture and share it with us when you’re finished. Stop back to see my finished version of this page plus some of my favourite submissions from last week. Have a fabulously crafty day… or evening… or whenever this may find you!

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This weekend, one commenter will win a quirky polaroid necklace from Cute as a Button.

Beckie of Cute as a Button makes some seriously funky and modern jewellery. “I’ve studied applied textiles and fine art for five years now and I’ve been pining to be able to do what I love as a way of supporting myself. I hope you find my shop delightful and my handmakes make you smile.” To keep updated with the wonders of Beckie’s shop, become a fan of her facebook page.

To enter this weekend’s giveaway, just leave a comment on this post telling us what in your life is as cute as button, even if it is a cute button!

Entries close at midnight Sunday UK time and the winner will be posted Monday evening, so be sure to check back to see if it’s your lucky day!

Good luck!

xlovesx

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