CK Inspiration

So lately, I've been exploring the galleries at 2Peas and CK. It feels like it's time to bust out of the DST bubble. DSTers - you know what I'm talking about here! Anyway, after posting a few pieces over at CK, I was thrilled to included in their Weekly Inspiration.

Here's the layout they mentioned, which made me feel completely homesick all over again.

iNSD blog hop!

I hope you are having a wonderful start to iNSD weekend. Personally, I am so excited for all of the shopping, scrapping and, of course, the freebies!

Here's my own little freebie from me to you, made with the fabulous May BYOC goodies at The Lilypad.
Download the quickpage version here.



Your next hop on the blog train is over to Katrina's place. Have a great weekend! :) If Katrina isn't available yet, go onto Kate's fabulous blog!

Yeah, so...

I really stink at blogging. But, something great is coming tomorrow... :)

Tooty Toot!

One of my favorite sites for scrapping inspiration is gallerystandouts.com. I love the variety of styles in the layouts they feature and always manage to add a few pages to my favorites from their selections.

I've had a couple of pages featured there recently. I have to say it's such a good feeling to see my work among their selections. Since things are pretty quiet on the homefront today, I thought I would share the layouts here as well.


Est. Date,Everyday, Worn Scuffed Chipboard alpha, all by Sahlin Studio at ScrapMatters
Font is DJB Liz by Darcy Baldwin at Sweet Shoppe Designs
Polaroid by Andrea Burns (retired)

Everything from Love and War by Holliewood Studios at Oscraps; Photo by Stephanie Saujon Baltz at LaPhotographieNashville.com


Paper, flowers, ribbon, frame, glitter splat from Innovation by Sahlin Studio at Scrap Matters
this perfect day from Scratched Notes by Sahlin Studio at Scrap Matters
Stamped frame from Antique Journalers by Sahlin Studio at Scrap Matters
Border from Outer Limits by Karah Fredricks at TLP
Journaling reads:
Julia was 1 week old. It was Elizabeth’s first day of Third Grade. It was my first day out of bed. It was when it finally sunk in that Elizabeth was no longer an only child. At long last, I was the mother of two.


I will say that I got quite a bit of mail/PMs/messages about the miscarriage layout. Yes, that's really what happened. Yes, it was horrible and heart-breaking. Yes, I am OK. As you can see by my other layouts, the much-prayed-for-baby did eventually happen. She's beautiful, healthy and she blesses me every single day. The layout was very therapeutic for me, but I also hope it encourages others to scrap beyond just the happy, easy times. Of course those times are important and scrap-worthy, but we are shaped by difficult events in our lives too. Don't be afraid to scrap them.

I Digi Dare Ya!

Late last year, I was invited to join the uber-creative girls at The Digi Dares. If you are looking for fun challenges or to get out of a scrapping rut, this is the place! I've always enjoyed the Dares and I'm thrilled to be helping scrappers to get out of their boxes at bit!

In Dare 167, we are asking to scrap about your feelings:

Totally Emotional

It’s the week of Valentine’s Day, a day about love, romance, and emotion. But as we all know, it’s not always rainbows and butterflies, is it? So to spare us the normal “what does love mean to you” challenge… let’s focus on emotion in and of itself. The word emotion is defined as: a mental state that arises spontaneously rather than through conscious effort and is often accompanied by physiological changes.

So give me a list of at least 5 emotions you’ve recently experienced or seen someone you love recently experience. 5 emotions you or someone you know has felt today, this week… this year? Reiterate those emotions with journaling if you like, but it’s not required, as long as the feelings are shown on your layout.

Dare Flairs:
- Your layout must contain at least 5 “emotion” words. (may include word art).
- Photos are not required, but if you choose to use them, personal and/or stock photos are allowed.
- Make the color RED stand out on your layout in some way. Whether it is the main color, or a pop of red on an otherwise monochromatic layout.
- Use at least one symbol of Valentine’s Day on your layout somewhere. (a heart, an arrow, a valentine card, love birds, angel/cupid wings, etc.)

Here's my take on the challenge:


Credits:
Fire heart paper from Love and War by Holliewood Studios at Oscraps
Red background paper from by Summer Sun by BZB Designs at FPD
Paper curl from Breakthroughs by Helena Jole at NDISB
Staples from Fix It by Bohemian Arts at SA
Metal alpha from 6k74 by Flergs at SBG
Blackmail Stamped alpha by Blythe Evans at Scrappity Do Dah

Come and post your own layout over at the Dares for a chance to win!

The Lilypad Blog Hop

Here it is, the last stop! By now you've collected some amazing quickpages, but here's one more by another Polly, Carolee

Download it here!

If you haven't shopped the new BYOC yet, it's super yummy this month. It's also on sale this weekend at 20% off. The rest of the store is 30% off, so don't miss it.

Here's my layout with the BYOC:


Credits:
From the fab Jan BYOC at The Lilypad!
White paper from Feelin' Friendly papers by Karah Fredricks
White labels, stitches, checked stamp from Feelin' Friendly by Karah Fredricks
Pretty patterned paper by Jenna Desai
Fun Striped alphas by Designs by Lili
Green Jelly alpha by Kaye Winiecki
Swirls from Doodle Art by Jenna Desai
Frames from Frame Me! by Valorie Wibbens
Ribbons from Froggy Remnants by Gina Miller
Paper flowers from Gleeful Garden by Amy Wolff
Paper Sprinkles by Amy Sumrall
Also:
Stapled Silly hearts by Kaye Winiecki
Pony bead alpha by Kalo designs
Fonts are DJB It's Meeeegan by Darcy Baldwin, Wish I Were Taller and Century Gothic

The Lilypad is 3!!!

Hop on over and check out the great sales and the new BYOC

Oh Sadly Neglected

Back-to-school time is always crazy and more poor blog has gone by the wayside.
I promise to get everything caught up this week!

New & Newsworthy

My blog has been neglected a bit lately because real-life has been too wild for words. That's a story for another day. Today, I just want to make sure that all of you know the big news: my favorite designer has moved! Karah Fredricks can now be found at The Lilypad!

Here she is with some of her new schtuffs and below is a LO I made with it.

Digital Artist Magazine...and Tweeny Bop

If you haven't check out this month's issue of DAM, you should go and snag a copy. The wonderfully talented Laurie Ann (Heaven's Gate Designs)is the featured designer and her exclusive kit, Summerville, is perfect for scrapping those pics you've busy taking lately!

Here's my layout with the kit, as seen on page of Digital Artist Magazine.


In other news, tonight is the night that my 11 year old has been waiting for "all of her life"...we are going to a Jonas Brothers concert. I can't decide if this means I am a really nice mom or simply a really crazy woman. Maybe a little of both! At least I'm smart enough to bring ear plugs, which just might drown out the screaming tweens to a mangeable level. Or not.

So I leave you with the Jonas Brothers...

Art Room Redux

I've been working on getting my art/scrap room organized and beautified. It's my birthday this week, so I put some of my bday cash to a major overhaul of the furniture in it. Check out my new work table!



My lovely DH assembled it tonight and as soon as everything is in situ, I will take a pic of the whole room!

It's a Pickle Party!

This upcoming week marks the 3rd Birthday of Pickleberrypop. All of the Pickleheads are gearing up for a huge, fun bash. Make sure you stop by for the games and prizes.
Also, here's a sneak peek at the awesome collab, Playful Reverie that the designers have created for the party.

Last Baby

So here, it is my first official layout as a Polly at The Lilypad. (Also featured on GalleryStandouts.com today!)


Almost everything from Ruby's Room by Kaye Winiecki
*new today at TLP*
Paper Trails: Hearts by Anne deJong at TLP
Alpha scraps by Anne Dejong at TLP
Mat from Fancy Cuts: Half Ripped by Amy Wolff at TLP

Wire WA from W&W
It's Meeeegan font by Darcy Baldwin at SSD, coming tomorrow

Journaling reads: Even before Julia was born, I knew she would be my last baby. Going through the flutters of pregnancy, the thrill of holding her for the first time was joyous but also bittersweet. I would catch myself thinking this is the last time we will bring a baby home from the hospital or see those first teeth emerge. I know it was the right choice for us but it is sad too..the end of our baby season.

On a side note, the last baby did not want a diaper for nap today, so she is wearing her big girl panties. Since I just washed the sheets on her bed yesterday, let's hope for good things here. Otherwise, potty training is going well.

I'm a Polly!

So, I got crazy and decided to apply for The Lilypad Creative Team. I just found this morning that I made it! Woohoooo!! Look for more TLP layouts here soon.

Pics from St. Louis

We had heard so many good things about the Magic House, which is the Children's museum in St. Louis. We decided to check it out on Friday during our trip to St Louis. Sadly, it was a Target-sponsored free night, so it was too insanely crowded to be enjoyable, but the kids still had a few moments of fun.

Back from St Louis

We made it home from St Louis tonight. Regular blogging and pics from the trip will resume tomorrow!

The Multi Size Album Obsession

Even though I love hybrid projects, I always thought I would be a die-hard digi album girl until I saw the mixed size albums some of the hybrid scrappers are doing. They incorporate digital layouts, paper layouts, memorabilia, kid's artwork...you name it. Divided page protectors are a handy tool in these albums. The style is fun, funky and oh-so-liberating.

Ali Edwards is completing a mixed size baby album for her daughter.
It rocked my world! Here's a pic with a mix of different size LOs and memorabilia. The hospital hat in the divider pocket killed me. *sigh* Here's Ali's blog if you want to check out all the pics and info.





Here are few more that I found really inspiring:

This one mixes in different size LOs, as well as full 8 x 10 pics, some of her kids' artwork, etc. Full description and pics.






12 x 12 LOs mixed with 4 x 6 pics and journaling...easy to stay caught up chronologically. Full description and pics.


My friend Dawn came over today so that we could give this a try. I am soooo in love with this style! Hopefully, I will have pics to share in a few days.

Insomnia

While insomnia has its benefits (more time to scrap, a quiet house, etc), it can also be really frustrating. Right now, my insomnia is going full force, so here's a moody tribute to it with Holliewood Studio's new Queen Bee kit at Oscraps.

It was a rainy Sunday morning, perfect for sleeping. It ended up being a nice, quiet day. We sat on the new front porch furniture, read the paper and drank our Starbucks. *sigh* It was much needed relaxation after our busy, long trip. I still need to take a good pic of the new furniture, but this is the set I bought.



In scrapping news, the "fishing" LO I made for Kaye was a Gallery Stand Out at DST today, which was cool. I'm working on some QPs for Laurie Ann's new collab, due out on Tueday. You won't want to miss it! I'm also working on a crazy fun hybrid album. I should have pics in a few days.

Vacation Layouts

The Lilypad had a great BYOC this month that was perfect for my new beach pics.


Kaye Winiecki at TLP has a cute fishing kit out too, but since I, well...uh, don't fish, I had to do something a bit creative with it.


Another recent fav with Karah's Sultry Summer kit, available at Oscraps