scrap and stamp saturday.

Saturdays challenge over at scrap and stamp Saturday was this great sketch by our very own Lacey from the design team. this truly is a very versatile sketch that can be interpreted in so many ways...if you want to see some of the fabulous takes by the girls head over here

and here's my layout. yesterday being my official birthday...i did a little reflecting on my 36 years here on earth. i had a great day with so many friends who blessed me with beautiful messages and gifts.

and some of my favorite stamps from Shamela that you can order form her here

a beautiful glitz design transparency with a gorgeous cake on it...

that i adhered with some sewing..

have an awesome day and a really creative week.
today is back to reality with some much needed commissions and class projects that need to be finished before tomorrow morning. this all needs to happen with a house filled with lots of dust and cement...a real big mess - but that's a story for another day when i will share some before and after pics with you. until then have a fabulous day!

broken.

there are a lot of things broken in my life and this photo is a bit of a reflection of those things. needless to say i think i have found my word for 2011 - TRUST. i have to learn to trust people again, learn to trust God again and learn to trust my own instincts again. in fact i trust that i will not make the mistakes again that i have made in the past but that i will overcome all of them and set on my own journey from now on. i am itching to scrap these photos i took about a week ago. outside it is pouring with rain again, as it has for the last couple of weeks. Now i love the rain and am not complaining. But we have not been able to mow the lawn for weeks and things are looking really shabby around the garden - but i look past it and for now am thankful that we live quite high up the mountain and flooding is not a threat.

in the meantime i am working on mending my brokenness.
hope you have a wonderful week creatively.

amazing news.

you know you are really blessed when you get an e-mail like i did today!
a mail from my publishers with stats about my latest book sales.
My book was rated by Nielsen Bookscan as the 4th best selling book of South African Titles
since release up until 15th January 2011! this really is an honour and that's when you realize people are actually taking you seriously.
in first place: John Platter's South African Wines
second place: Ena Murray Omnibus 28
third place: To the point by Herschelle Gibbs
fourth place: Scrap-Boek by Jowilna Nolte
thank you to everyone who supported me through this journey and all those loyal supporters and followers for purchasing your copy! it really is appreciated!
going to bed with a happy heart tonight!

birthday invitations.

every year in January it is time for a new set of birthday invitations for my mom. each year i try and make something nice, something that she will like. having said that, my mom is not a fan of my weird creativity and more than often frown upon my paper and colour combinations. so i try and play it safe. but this year i did throw in some tim holtz patterned paper for good measure. I made little matchbook invitations with a current favourite bird stamp from Glitz Design! love those girls!! they are simple and quick but at least they are in the post and that is all that matters for now.

supplies: patterned paper by mme, tim holtz. card stock by Canson, bazzill basics. stamp by glitz design. ink by tsukineko. flower by prima. tiny attacher by tim holtz. other diamante.

websters...with love.

some quirky and unusual valentines day cards...or cards just to send some love! these just happened while clearing my desk of the scraps and trying to find a gap to work on a layout. i had fun making these spontaneous cards - as i haven't really made cards in a while.

chipboard hearts covered in dictionary paper and inked with distress ink and two layers of dimensional glaze! yum!


giant green pearls for fun and because i can!


and my all time favorite thing to use on projects - old stamps!

hope you spoil your loved ones each and everyday with some crafty goodness!

sketch 237.

its Monday and that means another great sketch from Scrapbook Challenges! this week is a fun sketch with so many possibilities. the single sketch as well as the double page version can be interpreted in so many ways to suit your own scrapping style. here are the sketches...
and the double page sketch...

and here's my sample. for my layout i used a bunch of photos that i had printed and some left-overs from other layouts. I combined various photos together to create a fun layout about the things i really love in my life.

some photos are raised for dimension...

sewing to define the edges between the patterned paper and photos...

and some sweet Webster's pages lettering for a sweet title...

to see more samples by the fabulous design team members go here. to win some awesome prizes upload your layout here. hope you like it.
thanks so much for popping by and all the comments. to all my followers, thank you so much for sharing my creative journey!
supplies: card stock by bazzill basics. patterned papers by making memories, prima and mme. lettering by webster's pages. other diamante and thread.

scrap and stamp layout.

for the next two weeks over at scrap and stamp Saturday the challenge is anything goes! well that said...the possibilities are endless - especially when stamping is involved. in July last year i taught a layout in Jeffreys Bay at Scrapbook Studio that i simply loved. it is one of those layouts that just worked, plus it had loads of stamping on it. This is the second version about my nephew, the first about my niece. there is loads of stamping using bubble wrap as well as acrylic stamps and real red rubber. so this is my anything goes layout...

the circles are made using a self made stencil and distress inks. The brown spots are colour wash from Ranger Industries - love that stuff! scattered on the background is stamping using bubble wrap and diamante. the only patterned paper used were for the flags that i freehand cut and added some sewing. the number stamp in the top left corner is from the ooh soo talented Glitz Girls! the title stickers and rub-ons, as well as the other rub-ons used elsewhere are really old but also found a home. so there you have it!
remember that you have 2 weeks to enter your "layout" and win some stunning prizes. so head on over to scrap and stamp today!

paper scraps for a layout.

just for fun...and for the sake of using up all those beautiful scraps of patterned papers we collect and are too *scared* to throw out i make a layout that consists out of them. This was a fun layout. i literally took whatever scraps were close at hand and cut them into strips of 1.5x3.5 inches. these strips are interspersed with photos, accented with sewing and there you go! quick and simple with stunning effect! and best of all it can be done all for the cost of printing a few photos and R16 for two background pieces of card stock here in South Africa.
the chipboard swirls is an old one from my stash reinvented with an embossed layer in silver. the circle journaling sprouts from Jillibean were a gift from sweet generous Pamela, and the butterflies are making memories.

the little letters are a design by Rebecca Sower for EK Success from way back when...many moons ago and finally they too found a home!


hope you enjoy this fun *up-cycled* layout!
supplies: cardstock by bazill basics. patterned paper by cavallini, webster's pages, glitz designs, jillybean soup, teresa collins and making memories. butterflies by making memories. journaling sprouts by jillybean soup. other embroidery thread, diamante and embossing powder.

sketch 236.

well its Monday and that means it is time for another wonderful sketch over at scrapbook challenges. after a wonderful weekend of blog hop fun the inspiration just keeps on coming. this weeks sketch is so versatile and you only need to look at the wonderful selection the design team have come up with to realize that - so head on over to Pamelas blog or scrapbook challenges to see all the gorgeous samples.

and here's what i did with the sketch. this is also a great sketch for a card and very versatile...

and some closer details - rub-ons, journaling and my title

clusters of diamante

and some 7gypsies stickers for good measure...

hope you have a fabulous week as we really get into the swing of things in the new year.

bloghop.

it's that time of year again when Scrapbook Challenge announces their fabulous new Design Team Members and also welcome back some old design team members. it promises to be a grand affair lasting all weekend long with loads of creativity! so here we go....if you have joined us then head on over to Pamela's blog for the start....

i am Jowilna and i am one of the returning design team members! i love scrap booking and photography and am passionate about paper - yes i am a true paper addict! i am currently having a love affair with patterned paper and love throwing together odd combinations as a surprising element on my layouts and cards! so without further due here is the fabulous sketch for this blog hop....

and here is my version! see i told you i loved patterned papers! this layout is a favourite and i love the outcome...see that purple mixed with red, ochre yellow an blues...yum! i hope you feel inspired and adventurous by now.

and a couple of close-up details of the layout...


kaisercraft pearls mixed together as a creative border...

some stamping, rub-ons and pearls to spruce up my journaling...

remember that by hopping onto all the design team member's blogs you stand the chance to win some fabulous prizes including patterned papers by Webster's pages, Unity stamps (gasp) and fabulous adhesives by Helmar!
remember to leave a comment as you hop along and WIN!

now it is time to head on over to Patricia's blog for some more inspiration.
take it away Patricia

valentines day class.

wow...the first week of January and we are already thinking valentines day projects!
here's a little peak at the project i will be teaching at Sweet Scrappins late January and early February. this is your chance to spoil your love ones with a little something that will say "you are loved" everyday of the year and not just on Valentines' day. i could never quite figure out why we celebrate love on a single day when it should be celebrated each and every day? i hope you will join us in this fun class and get the creative juices flowing for the rest of the year.
visit Sweet Scrappins here
or contact Carla on 012-329 9175
to book your seat for this class filled with love.
PS. remember that valentines' day gifts are not just for your partner - they can be for mom, dad, brothers, girlfriends and special customers too! so spread the love in 2011.

happy new year.

wishing you all a happy new year. may it be filled with love and laughter, blessings beyond all you can ask or dream of! and always remember it really is the little things that make the trip worthwhile, for in the end you will realize that they are really the big things in life.
artwork by rhonna farrer

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