ames designs

Since I last posted...

2009-12-05T06:45:00.005+10:00

I have been creating:

Kreative Team Layouts like this:

and this:

and this:

and this:

and this:

Christmas card challenge cards like this:

and this:

And a few layouts "just for fun", like this:

and this:

and this:

I have been creating the above in between everything else, including putting in my official paperwork to do my Masters by Research next year... eeekkk!!!

And now it's off to an all day crop. Oh happy day!!

I Hope...

2009-09-23T19:16:00.005+10:00

Long time, no post... again. I've been busy these past 6 or so weeks working on something big (and non-scrapping related) that I'm not quite ready to share with the world...

I took some time out though to do a layout for the My Mind's Eye challenge. This was a great catalyst for me as lately Mike and I have been having a lot of deep discussions about the injustices of the world, and our role in making a difference. So this challenge was a great kick-start to get some of those thoughts out on paper.

From the Stash: MME patterned papers and diecuts (Penny Lane and Breaking free collections); AC thickers and pen; 2crafty chipboard; MM paint.

And now to get cracking on my DT stuff for this month... I've only managed to get 2 layouts done, and the first is fast approaching!

The Productive Month of July (with August Sneaks)

2009-07-21T21:08:00.006+10:00

July has been a very productive month for me, scrapping wise. I'm not entirely sure why, but I've just been in the zone. I had my DT stuff for August done in the first 2 weeks... a record for me. Usually I get most of it done, but there's always one or two layouts which are done at the last minute. So with this productiveness means I have done a number of layouts that are non-DT.
Firstly, I was very excited to be a winner of a Collage Press "Sweet Shoppe" collection pack after commenting on their blog. Even though it's a lot of pink, I just love this collection. And I have added most of the "Knave of Hearts" collection to my stash. Collage Press have definitely made their way onto my fav manufacturers list.

July has seemed to be the month of circles for me, perhaps inspired by those diecut circles, but it seems every second layout I've done has circles.

In other happenings, Mike and I spent most of Sunday afternoon rearranging the spare room, where my scrapbook corner is. Mike has recently taken up electronics (or re-taken up as the case may be) and had been doing it on the dining room table. We decided he needed a desk of his own. We've rearranged it so he has a desk next to my scrapping desk, so we can sit side by side and "hobby" together. Awww...

2009-07-02T08:15:00.003+10:00

Before joining TSK, I'd never played around with scrapping kits before – I thought they were too restrictive, and that I'd much rather buy things that I'd actually use. Joining the design team changed that. As I used these page kits, I began to realise that rather than being restrictive, using a kit actually forced me to “think outside of the box” and use things (colours, embellies, product lines) that I normally wouldn't have selected myself... great example of this: flowers and the colour pink... especially the colour pink. I had never scrapped with pink before, and I rarely used flowers.

I had to smile when I was putting together my July KT page kit and found myself choosing some pink AND flowers... how times change.

Here is my layout using my kit.
I tried something a little different, and printed part of the photo on swiss dot for a different look. It doesn't line up with the rest of the photo as well as I was hoping, but it was fun to try.

Products: Bazzill swiss dot cardstock; Pink paislee diecut paper and patterned paper; Elle's studio tags; Kaiser pearl strip; A2Z chipboard; grosgrain ribbon; brads; green tara flowers

A few weeks back, mum gave me a box of Grandma and Grandpa's old photos. I loved going through them. I have many more ideas for layouts I want to do, but here are a few that I did for July...
The first two are both created from a page kit available soon at The Srappin Kats. The kit was perfectly suited to older photos.

The third is using leftovers from my page kit, with the addition of the background bazzill cardstock and using my new favourite punch: Effervescence.

Remember to go and check out the rest of the Kreative Team's July offerings at The Scrappin Kats

Life of Late

2009-06-03T05:16:00.000+10:00

Wow... it's been awhile since posting. A lot has happened in those 6 weeks or so, the majors being:

A colonoscopy/endoscopy procedure, the results of which I still haven't got because...
We had to rush to the US after receiving the news that Mike's brother, Pete was tragically killed
Spent two weeks in the US with family
Came down with the flu on the way home and spent 4 days in house quarantine waiting to be cleared for swine flu... which we were yesterday (thank God)
Our budgie, Piper, passed away suddenly yesterday morning.

Needless to say, we are looking forward to life returning to "normal". Despite the awful circumstances, it was great to see Mike's family and friends, and meet some I hadn't yet met.

Grief is still raw for everyone. I know I'll be exploring it further in some layouts in the near future. I have realised that I have very few layouts of Mike's family, and I need to change that, as I want to be telling both our stories.

I didn't get to complete all my design team duties this month, but had finished a few finished before we went away, and got a few more projects finished in the early hours of Monday morning (yaay for waking up at 3 to 4am the last 4 days!). Go check out everyone's fantastic work in the gallery.

In other scrapping news, I did a little cleaning/rearranging of my scrap area yesterday, particularly my stamp collection. As I sorted through all my clear stamps, I realized there were one or two (okay, 4) sets that I hadn't even opened, let alone used. So I'm challenging myself to 1) stamp something (no matter how big or small) on every creation I make for the month of June, and 2) use those stamps I haven't yet used!

2009-04-19T07:40:00.005+10:00

It was 12.30pm yesterday afternoon, and I was at our monthly scrapbooking morning. I had already completed one layout (my last KT layout for next month... which in itself is amazing. I've never been finished this early), and had some fun using mum's Sizzix and cutting out a few bits and pieces. That's a productive morning for me. I usually barely get one layout done. Anyway, I challenged myself, with the gals as my witness, to finish a layout in the remaining 30 mins... and I did it with 5-10 mins to spare. Yaay!

From the stash: Bazzill cardstock, Kaiser craft scrap; My little shoebox letters; zig pen; EK success ticket punch.

Ok, admittedly it is only a 6x6, and the photo grid was already done for me (I just printed out the grid I posted below... great idea, Mel). But still, it's a record for me. Usually I take at least 1.5 hours to finish a layout, and that's a quick one.

This week, I also completed my "All About Me" challenge. This was a great excuse to use up some of those scraps I've been hoarding... I have a hard time throwing any reasonable size scrap away.
From the stash: Making memories, Kaiser, Sassafras, American Crafts, SEI, Basic Grey & Fancy pants patterned paper scraps; Bazzill cardstock (Kraft and white); KI Memories alphas; Carolees creations mini alphas; zig pen; assorted buttons.

Oh yeah... and the title is from Fat Boy Slim's Rockafella Skank song. I can not hear the phrase "Right about now" without feeling the need to follow it up with "funk soul brother".

Photo Sorting

2009-04-10T09:41:00.003+10:00

Finally getting around to sorting some photos for printing that have been back logging.

Here's a grid I just whipped up of my conference trip a few weeks back. I took a few self portraits there, just for fun. The dolphin cruise was amazing, but hard to get photos with a little point and shoot. This was a mother and calf who swam beside the boat for a good 15mins or so. Oh and btw, that pizza was one of the best pizzas ever had. Seafood marinara, with beautiful fresh seafood. Mmmmmm.

May you and yours have a blessed and safe Easter break.

A day off; a new do; and a layout

2009-03-16T14:59:00.004+10:00

I had the day off today... yaay! It's amazing how good it feels to wake up and know the rest of the world is off to work, and I have the whole day ahead of me to do what I want.

And what did I want? A new do. It had been waaayyyy to long since I had a trim, and I wanted a change and decided today would be the day. My DH obligingly took some before and after pics - he's learnt what it means to be married to a scrapper.

So here are the before pics:

Yeah... I really needed a tidy up. Way too many split ends.

But before I show you the after shots (oh the suspense!), here's a layout I did on the weekend:

Recording this conversation was the perfect way to use those radish stickers.
From the stash: Kraft cardstock; SEI papers; AC thickers; BG offbeat chipstickers; ribbon; zig pen; Fiskars circle punches.

Ok... so here are the after shots:

Just a bit of a change... :-). I am loving it, but adjusting to it. For one, it's way lighter; I haven't had hair this short since highschool and I haven't had a fringe of any kind for years before that. And I may just have found a hairdresser I like and will stick with (after 3 years in the Ville, I still haven't found a regular hairdresser).

Playing...

2009-03-11T21:50:00.003+10:00

...with new products. I should be working on April DT stuff, especially considering I'm away for the last week of March, but I just couldn't resist playing with new BG Marrakech and new MME Penny Lane that recently arrived at The Scrappin Kats.

From the stash: MME Beauty collection pack; Carolee's Creations mini alphas.

From the Stash: Coredinations CS; BG patterened paper and chipstickers; AC thickers; KI Memories alpha stickers and Carolees Creations mini alphas; scrap of fabric.

2009-03-05T07:14:00.003+10:00

I discovered Qtea kits back in January after following some links around the web, and was smitten... they are filled with "non-traditional" scrappin supplies that are just so arty and awesome.

My first Qtea layout... using the Feb QTea kit "Hearty Gelati", with the addition of bazzill cardstock, lil davis chipboard letters, carolee creations tiny alphas, and a gel pen.

March Sneaks...

2009-02-26T21:32:00.000+10:00

...bring on the first!

Argh

2009-02-26T07:27:00.003+10:00

Don't you hate it when you get up half an hour earlier to take photos of your March layouts in decent light, so you can post sneak peaks, only to have your camera batteries die on the very first layout...

I really need to get into the habit of charging a spare pair of batteries. Totally one of my bad habits.

Sneak peaks will come... but not today. They are still a sneak if they are posted the day before upload, right?

Happy Valentines Day

2009-02-14T08:05:00.003+10:00

Mmmmm... love me a piece of lime tart. We had our first ever cypercrop last weekend over at The Scrappin Kats. Lots of fun with chat on Friday night, and Tracy set three fantastic challenges - the results posted in the gallery are amazing. Check them out here. This is my take on the sketch challenge.
From the Stash: Bazzill swiss dot cardstock (love this!); Bella patterned paper; RW chipboard circle (painted with MM paint); BG chipboard heart (painted with MM paint and covered in Pink Paislee glitter); MME transparency border; AC thickers; note paper; flowers; assorted buttons; white flourishes cut using mum's sizzix.

2009-02-01T15:35:00.003+10:00

This is a simple and fun layout I did last week. I was re-organising my layouts, and couldn't help but take a photo of the stack. And you know, I've since been thinking that probably about 50-60% of these layouts have been done in the last 5-6 months since joining The Scrappin Kats.

And of course, today being the first, The Scrappin Kats gallery is all abuzz with the latest uploads from the Kreative Team. Check it out.

2009-01-26T10:07:00.005+10:00

I promised a sneak peek of my kit... and here it is...

The kit is all about journalling, and will include journalling prompts, hints, tips and ideas to help you record your special memories.

Looking forward to sharing the full reveal with you on the 1st!

Tune in tomorrow...

2009-01-25T17:50:00.003+10:00

...for sneak peeks of my February Kreative Kit.

I was really quite nervous putting my kit together; that I'd get it and not be able to create anything with it. But having been busy with it for the last 3 weeks (hence quietness on here), I'm really pleased with how it's all coming together. I just hope others will enjoy creating with it.

Tootsies

2009-01-12T20:23:00.002+10:00

This photo was taken about an hour ago. It's mid January, in Tropical North Queensland, and I'm in winter pj bottoms, and socks (and a tshirt)... what the!! It's been raining all day, and instead of the usual make-you-even-muggier rain, it's a quite chilly rain. Perfect for a hot chocolate, reading the latest Creating Keepsakes magazine, and maybe a little scrapping later.

Belated Seasons Greetings...

2009-01-04T09:45:00.006+10:00

I had every intention of posting timely seasons greetings, but time got away from me. I trust everyone had a lovely Christmas, and have a happy and healthy new year ahead. We had a lovely Christmas in Brisbane with the family.

January 1st heralded not only a new year, but a new month of TSK inspiration. Check out the gallery.

And I'm sorry for tooting my own horn, so to speak, but this had me practically jumping up and down on Friday morning:

In the last few months, I have uploaded a handful of layouts to two peas. For those who don't know, two peas is about the biggest scrapbooking site/community online. When I first got into scrapbooking (and still), I would spend hours on two peas, being inspired. To see one of my layouts in the top ten (be it ever so briefly, it was gone by Friday arvo) was a thrill.

Our Couch This Week

2008-12-18T07:31:00.003+10:00

This is what our couch has looked like (or, admittedly, even worse) for most of the week (yes, I have a very patient husband). I've been busily working on Christmas and DT projects and by setting up at the couch, I am: 1) able to watch tv while scrapping and more importantly 2) directly under a fan, which is a necessity for these Townsville summer evenings. One draw back of my scrapping desk is that it is in a corner of the spare room, and doesn't get much of the ceiling fan.

2008-12-16T07:23:00.003+10:00

I have been playing with Tracy's gorgeous December DT kit. I never got the "big deal" about Basic Grey until recently when I started really playing with their products, and I have to admit, I'm becoming more and more a fan. And this kit just seals it. Such great value, and Tracy's projects are so inspirational.

Here is a layout I created with the kit:

I have also made a few cards, but haven't yet managed to get a photo of them...

Absence

2008-12-10T20:31:00.004+10:00

It's been quite a few weeks since posting. There's been a few "life" things we've been dealing with, which I care not to go into here. We had a major computer crash. Mike is still working at getting everything back up and running. It would appear we've lost pretty much everything on the hard drive. Reminder to everyone: BACK UP your photos! At least I'd printed off a lot of the best ones for scrapping.

In other news, we are well into December, which means our December Design Team creations are up in the gallery. Go take a peak. We've also had a Christmas card challenge - lots of fun, and getting the creative juices flowing. I just wish I had more of the thing called time.

I've been busily working on putting together my DT kit (which isn't until Feb, but I've got to have it together by the end of December). Stay tuned for clues and sneak peaks... :)

I leave you with a little project Mike and I did together last week (that's right... Mike helped. I had him rolling up the strips of paper as he watched TV).

From the Stash: Cone; Kaiser patterned papers; Bella chipboard; ink and glitter

Gets you in the Christmas spirit... right?

First DT layouts...

2008-11-02T17:11:00.006+10:00

...were posted yesterday over at The Scrappin Kats. A little bit nerve wracking, as it was my first time ever doing something like this, but I'm so happy to be a part of it. I can see this being a really motivator, as well as challenging me outside of my little scrappy comfort zone.

The kits this month are just so gorgeous. I'll post the sketch layouts later; or you can go the the gallery and check them out.

Busy, busy, busy

2008-10-16T21:16:00.002+10:00

So I've been busy these last few days working on November layouts for The Scrappin Kats. Absolutely love the kits, and can't wait to share them with you. The sketches are awesome as well. Did manage to do one layout with the October kit this week. It's a really simple layout; and was nice'n'quick to put together:

News...

2008-10-09T20:15:00.002+10:00

I'm on a design team! I was accepted at Scrappin Kats as a part of their design team. I'm so excited! I literally whooped with excitement when I found out and scared poor Mike in the next room.

Here is my second round challenge as part of the selection process:

Owl card

2008-10-05T18:58:00.005+10:00

I loved the cards on the Pink Paislee's blog for WCMD. I especially loved Davinie Fiero's card, particularly the pleat detail. I was inspired to make a card using this pleat idea.

Supplies: Bazzill Cardstock; Pink Paislee & K&Co patterened paper; Pink Paislee Rubon

WCMD card

2008-10-04T18:47:00.003+10:00

Supplies: Bazzill & Coredination cardstock; See D's stamp; Fiskars threading water punch.

Just a quick post to show my WCMD creation. Simple card using the DT challenge colour scheme and two of my current trends: 1) stitching and 2) Fiskars threading water punch.

Happy World Cardmaking Day!

2008-10-04T12:50:00.004+10:00

I've managed to make one card this morning, and hoping to get another one or two done this arvo and tonight.

Last night I completed my layout for the final round of the Design Team comp at Scrappin Kats. The challenge was a great one:

1. White, Yellow and Turquiose cardstock - can be any shades of those colour families - you can cut this in any way and use for journalling spots, shapes - this will not be considered an embellishment. No patterned paper is allowed.
2. Hand or machine stitching
3. 3 photos (any size)
4. A title - completely your choice of type, colour, texture
5. Must contain expressive journalling (not just date and who it is) - you can cut your cardstock to create your journalling spot/tag.
6. 2 types of embellishments of your choice (you can use multiples of each type) (eg: flowers and brads) (does not include patterned paper)

This whole challenge was right up my alley. I'm all about machine stitching right now (as you know); I love expressive journalling; and I don't often over embellish, so sticking to only two wasn't too hard. The biggest challenge was using yellow - it's a colour I don't often use too much on my pages. I'm really happy with the resulting layout. Don't want to give too much away until the judging, but here's a little sneak peak.

Creative Holidays

2008-10-01T07:36:00.006+10:00

I am loving these holidays. Mike's been busy with uni work, so I've been creating virtually non stop for the last few days. It's been so relaxing. Yesterday I had a sewing lesson - just covering my machine basics. The shop does dressmaker's lessons, so I'm thinking of giving that a go.

Monday's creation:

Kat kindly sent me some of the new AC travel line papers. I love these - and was almost too afraid to cut into them. This layout was done for the lyrical challenge posted (by moi) at Scrappin Kats. I based it on the song "(I'd go the) Whole Wide World" by Wreckless Eric (made famous by the Monkees). I know this song from Stranger than Fiction. It suited the subject of this layout perfectly, as did the papers.

Supplies: Bazzill Cardstock; new AC travel line patterned papers (thanks Kat!); AC thickers; foam tape; zig writer

Tuesday's creation:

This was the first layout I've done with machine stitching. It doesn't show up as well as I'd like it to in the photo, but believe me, I went a little stitching mad. It was a take on the third and final Sept sketch at Scrappin Kats. I changed it up quite a bit, the biggest change being from a 8.5x11 to a 6x12.

Supplies: Coredinations CS; Making memories and Creative memories patterned paper; Kaiser rubons; AC thickers

I also used my brand spankin' new Fiskars threading waters punch which I love, love, love! I can see myself using this on a lot of projects.

2008-09-28T20:39:00.005+10:00

Yesterday was our monthly scrapbooking morning. Our last one was in June due to a bub arrival, and so I was really hanging out to this Saturday. All in all, it was a productive morning. I completed two layouts, which is about one to one and a half more then I usually get done.

Products: Bazzill cardstock; scrapworks paper; American crafts thickers

This was an ad challenge posted over at The Scrappin Kats. I spent one lunch break at work this week, looking through magazines not for articles, but for ads. It was a simple but fun layout, and a relatively quick one.

Products: My Little Shoebox paper; Bazzill cardstock, Vandoros ribbon,Green Tara flowers, brads, American crafts thickers, zig writer.

And this was using one of the monthly kits at The Scrappin Kats, and tells the story of my cunning swap as a preschooler, to land the role of Mary in our Christmas play.

Sewing goodness

2008-09-22T06:47:00.003+10:00

It has been a busy last week with mum's visit, Mike's birthday, a movie premiere and various other things. Great, but busy.

One of the highlights... mum surprised me with a new sewing machine! I had been talking to her about getting a very basic machine and what I should be looking for. She told us she was going for a walk on Saturday (nothing unusual there), and on her return, said we needed to go pick something up... that something being this:

(by the way, that is not a picture of my actual machine, I just googled for a pic. There's something up with our camera batteries - I think we need new ones)

I'm loving it! I just now have to get back into sewing. I haven't sewn much since home ec days in highschool. Can't wait to use it on layouts, too.

Scrappin' Kats Sketches - September

2008-09-13T11:16:00.009+10:00

Two of the three sketch challenges over at The Scrappin Kats. Also tried to use some of my older stash as challenged to do so in the forum. Feels good to use stuff that I've had stashed away for awhile.

.
Credits: Bazzill CS; Kaiser PP; Scrapfx chipboard (stash item - had for about 6 months); AC remarks letter stickers (inked).

Credits: Pink Paislee PP; Coredinates CS; AC Thickers; BG chipboard (stash item - had for about a year. I inked and clear embossed it); BG brads (stash item - had for longer then a year)

I'm hoping to get the third done sometime this weekend... hopefully. I need to get the spare room tidied up ready for mum's visit this week. My little scrap corner of the spare room has overtaken half the room!

Friday Night Paper Therapy

2008-09-06T10:56:00.000+10:00

After a relatively stressful day at work, I needed some paper therapy. I sat down and pulled out my scraps and my AC shapes and after an hour, this is the result. Very simple cards, but I think they're quite fun. (I think I almost spent longer setting up this photo, then actually making the cards...)

AC Goodness

2008-09-04T21:53:00.004+10:00

I love bargain buys, and my latest bargain buy arrived in the post yesterday... 12 packets of American Crafts Clubhouse, Fieldhouse and Treehouse chipboard, plastic and foam shapes. Fans of AC will know that each packet of these wonders cost between $4-6 each. I picked up all 12 packs for $10.50 on ebay. Oh yeah.

I wish I had have taken a photo before dismantling all the packs, but I didn't so instead you get a photo of my categorizing. Not the best photo by any stretch, but aren't those colours just gorgeous.

I know it's weird, but I find categorising cathartic.

Scrappin' Kats Sketches

2008-08-30T17:58:00.008+10:00

I've recently joined in the ever-growing community at The Scrappin Kats. In their gallery, there are monthly sketch challenges. I thought I'd bite the bullet and do 2 of the August sketches. I've never really worked off sketches before, and I found that I changed a fair few elements, especially in the 12x12 layout. But I kept the overall "look" of the pages, and am quite pleased with how they turned out.

Supplies: Bazzil & Bazzil bling; PP: Bo Bunny; KI Memories Lace; AC Thickers (Please note: I embossed the thickers in copper, but in the photo they appear brown, so imagine copper!)

Supplies: CS: Bazzil; PP: Cosmo Cricket; Making memories journalling paper; Letters: Making memories (noteworthy); Other: Ribbon, buttons, zig writer

Mum recently gave me most of my baby/kid photos to scrap, so I'm hoping/aiming to scrap at least one page of these photos every month. We'll see how that goes.

Gotta love...

2008-08-30T08:18:00.001+10:00

... American Craft Thickers!

At last count, I had 21 packets of them. I just can't seem to get enough. I use them on probably every second layout, at least.

I can see clearly now...

2008-08-25T20:53:00.001+10:00

I've had a ball making "clear cards", using acetate as the base. They make for a very funky and different card. The only problem is to cover adhesive, I needed to adhere cardstock/patterned paper to all four faces of the card.

Credits: American Crafts Thickers, Playhouse acrylic shapes, Minimarks rubons; Bazzill cardstock; M&MBI patterned paper; Heidi Grace patterned paper