it's that crazy time of the year again so soon after Christmas and new year where the commercial and fake side of life kicks in - where flowers and chocolates are way over priced and everyone thinks they have to show love with something red and expensive instead of something real and from the heart. i made this little mini album last year and never sort of finished it - yes i have issues with mini albums and finishing them off - seems like a lot of work for little reward (in my opinion). anyways, so i made this last year. i used playing cards as the base for my pages and covered them with scraps of Simple Stories and Crate papers, and then added some webster's quote cards and some Kaisercraft pearls, the odd strip of washi tape and sticker and that was about it.

for my cover i added this beautiful epoxy heart sticker - remember those from a million years ago...and to this day i love it! a simple concertina fold was made using grey and white simple stories stripe paper and the pages where then adhered to them to create the view you see below - colourful and happy. oh i forgot the point i was making way in the beginning of this post - i have this thing, if you cant show someone you love them everyday, then why bother on a single specific day of the year? only my opinion...so no chocolates or fancy gifts or dinners for my DH...only an old mini made a year ago, fileld with sentiment and real stuff!

the pages are decorated simply and without fuss

beautiful quotes = real

a map, buttons, pearls and a flower or two

a close up of the pages as they sit inside the cover

some sewing this time before hand...i normally sew through everything and then cover all evidence

and a peek at the washi tape under the red heart

something simple and real - uncomplicated like my love for him - honest, true, faithful, 

flawed and non-judgmental...

hope you have a wonderful valentines day!

Convenience and creativity go hand in hand and with today’s time being a luxury it makes sense. So when Couture Creations released their new 3in1 sets of embossing folders, die-cuts and stamps it made so much sense. Creatively these sets are perfect for creating beautiful cards and elements for your scrapbook layouts in a single setting without having so search for things that match each other.

Stand by me
I love using bits and pieces on my projects so the Pattern embossing folder set is sure to be a firm favourite. For this card I used one of the wide border stamp and then embossed it using the matching embossing folder to add some texture. The beautiful rosette stamps was stamped onto pink patterned paper and cut out and finished off with some buttons. The stamped sentiment is part of the stamps and included in the sets so it makes it extra convenient having everything at hand.

These cards are so easy to make simply because I had everything at hand in one easy set. These 3in1 sets are sure to be a firm favourite in my stash – easy and convenient with exquisite designs.

Products used
Couture Creations Dream Boat 3-in-1 Set - Floral (Embossing Folder, Cutting Die & Clear Stamp) [ADCO 723403]
Couture Creations Dream Boat 3-in-1 Set - Pattern (Embossing Folder, Cutting Die & Clear Stamp) [ADCO 723404]
Memento Dew Drop Ink Pad - New Sprout [TMD-704]
Memento Dew Drop Ink Pad - Cottage Ivy [TMD-701]
Family Stories Double Sided Paper – Family [TC FS1007]
Mister Huey's Colour Mist - Pretty Pink [AC 331083]
Mister Huey's Colour Mist – Sunset [AC 331048]
Mister Huey's Colour Mist - Water Cooler (Aqua) [AC 331019]
Vintage Bliss 6x6 Paper Pad [SS 3001]
Versafine Ink Pad - Onyx Black [TVF-82]

it's Monday somewhere in the world and time for another sketch over at Scrapbook Challenge. This week is a double page sketch and one that i love...because i could use my scraps and papers i love so much. i used mostly Kaisercraft papers with some Simple Stories thrown into the mix. here is the sketch that the talented Chanell gave us to work with - all created from a print she pulled of Pintrest - she is amazing when it comes to making things digi!

pops of colour, ink, stamping and lots of patterned papers - all the things i love and enjoy so much!

for my title i combined stamping with perfect pearls - love!

some washi tape peeking out from underneath the paper strips and hexagons.

inking and stamping with some of the new kaisercraft stamps - so versatile and fun!

hop on over to Scrapbook Challenges and see what the other design team members came up with - such amazing inspiration - and play along why don't you?

wishing you a creatively wonderful week filled with blessings! 

...as i type i am listening and looking at the 30 odd guinea-fowl roaming around not even 10 meters from my front door - so blessed!

Hello everyone! jip another week of being MIA - i have been in the studio for 7 days solid photographing for a magazine - yip...me...myself and i and some studio lights *gasp* photographing for a magazine! and so another dream comes true - another bucket list thingie can be crossed off - not permanently but just as it finally happened. off course i am not happy with all the shots but there are some that just made me all warm and fuzzy inside! i love what i do!

but in the meantime - here is week 33 of PL. i combined some PL cards with some home printed and designed cards and then some patterned papers by Basic grey and Simple Stories.

i am not an orange kind of girl but somehow it has grown on me in PL. it seems there are a lot of oranges in the kits. the nice thing is that you can go as colourful as you want and mix and match to your hearts content!

in the meantime i am trying to catch up on life. i have also ticked off another lesson learned in life - hopefully! just say it, never mind what they think, just say it - because as i learned yesterday if you don't you will pay a lot more in the end if you don't!

wishing you a wonderfully creative weekend! may it be colourful and joyful either way. be back on monday with more shares and more layouts!

i used mostly scraps from the Sunshine in my soul range of papers by Glitz, Simple Stories, stamping and washi tape. layouts using scraps are still my favourite - economical and using all those pretty bits and pieces instead of throwing them out!

i even added a dotty paper from Project Life in the mix. the little camera sticker is from the Simple Stories range with a little diamond added for some sparkle.

the dots on my background is a stamp - i stamped it directly onto the background and then added some colour selectively using my water-colour paint.

i made some very tough decisions this week - and with some loving support from my DH we will get through even the toughest of times. but as i suspected when you give God and opportunity to open bigger and betetr doors in your life, you sometimes have to walk away from your comfort zone. but human nature is a funny thing and sometimes walking away is very difficult until you do it. so excactly 12 hours after i took action the first door has opened - and may i add....

it's one that i am very passionate about!!! here's to serving a MIGHTY GOD and many more miracles! Thank you from the bottom of my heart and never forsaking us!

Welcome to another Scrap Africa challenge. This month Marelize is challenging you to create something with a patchwork background. I used some of the beautiful Vintage Bliss paper by Simple Stories to create my card background. I used my square punch to punch the paper scraps into squares, inked the edges and adhered them to my background.

a quick sew with my machine to add texture to the seams did the trick to make it more authentic

the so happy sticker is from the Vintage Bliss sticker sheet matted onto grey cardstock and finished off with a pretty bloom and leaf

the pink square is a scrap from a technique i was playing with - markers and water to get a funky new look - nothing special but just the way i like it

and if you play along this week - you can win an awesome set of washi tapes in black and white. so head on over to the blog here and see what the rest of the design team came up with

it's time for another sketch challenge over at scrap Africa.i loved working with this sketch - maybe because of my thing i have with circles - i just love them! and maybe because i used most of my scraps from a left-over layout done the week before.

here's the original sketch by evgenia...

i used the beautiful Prima paper - perfect for fussy cutting and layering with different elements like tags, stickers and washi tape.

i used some mister Huey ink to splat on my background picking up on the colours in the patterned papers and stickers from simple stories. my title was done using stickers and dressed up with a little heart sticker and a diamante.

don't forget to play along with us this challenge - you can win some awesome stencils and a chipboard pack - plus we would love to see how you interpret this sketch! so head on over here to see what the other design team members have done and play along...wishing you a creative week filled with colour!

I am slowly getting caught up with my version of project life - week 2. And it just so happens that today is the day we can start ordering the "real project life" stuff here in South Africa. As i said before, it will never take over my traditional scrapping but i am really in love with the fairly quick and easy way i can include all those experiments i normally throw away and everyday stuff i collect.

this week i teamed my left side with a single page layout designed for Scrapbook Challenges. I love how it worked out. and as you can see i in my ignorant and sheltered life discovered TYPO by accident. i happened to look for a photography shop in Brooklyn Pretoria and the center which had 2 very good shops now have none but they do have a typo. so it turned out to be a good and a bad day.

i also found these amazing digital wood grain images and also photographed a few pieces of wood around the farm - LOVE! I used the wonderfully versatile 24/7 range by Simple Stories for my accents. I ended up dismantling the dimensional stickers and ended up with 3 of almost everything - now there's value for money. the foam dots pulled apart really easily and the residue cleaned up well with my TW 4087 Therm-O-Web Adhesive Pick-up Square.

The pink heart is one of my favourite Hero Arts stamps embossed in Blush American Crafts Zing embossing powder. I embossed 2 layers - adding the second layer of embossing powder while the image was still hot. this gave me a nice solid embossed heart. I also did some stamping directly onto my photo using Brilliance ink and a swirl stamp.

hope you are having a wonderfully creative week. thanks for stopping by and leaving some love! you are appreciated and loved!

Heat embossed sticky accents in a flash I love quick and easy accents for cards and layouts. The problem is I also love heat embossing. But sometimes it’s just too much effort to gather all the supplies needed for heat embossing. If you are lucky enough to have a set up studio area and everything is always on display – it’s a different story, but even then I have yet to find that person with the perfect studio to make use of techniques all the time. So if it’s something that can be done easily we are more likely to do it! With the Sticky foam squares from Purple Turtle I can make square embossed accents in a few seconds. The fact is that with heat embossing you need a sticky surface for the powder to adhere to before heating it up – right? Well that’s exactly what sticky squares can offer. The sticky surface lets the powder stick to it before heating it with your heat gun. This is the quickest way you can emboss and make fun little accents for layouts and cards. No mess no fuss – just simple. For more info on the products used head on over to The Wholesaler

Tips and tricks 

• Do not hold the heat gun too close to the foam squares. You do not want to heat it up too much so that the sticky bit on the back separates from the card front

 • The embossing powder will melt quickly

 • Because you are making use of the sticky part on the foam square, you will have to add a clear embossing ink over the first layer if you want to add another layer of embossing

 • The single layer of embossing gives a textured look to the squares which I like for added texture and dimension

 • Sticky foam squares can also be used with other techniques requiring adhesion No more excuses for not wanting to emboss – adding a little embossed texture to your next project is worth it.

the texture of the embossing is combined with the texture of the flowers for a beautiful look

I love the mottled texture this type of embossing gives - the single layer embossing powder settled into a 'separated' state for a funky look

Products used 

Purple Turtle Sticky Foam Squares - 12mm x 12mm (96) [PT 33SQR 12MM] 

Simple Stories 24/Seven Double Sided Paper - Journaling Element 1 [SS 3110] 

Teresa Collins Summer Stories 6x6 Paper Pad [TC SUM110] 

Petaloo assorted flowers Zing embossing powder [27144]

Capturing memories are fun! And we often have so many great photos, fantastic trips, good memories and special occasions captured on film (so to speak) that it’s not always easy to have them on display. It’s great to scrapbook them but how many of you actually have an album or two out on the coffee table for the kids to peruse whenever they want to? I can honestly say that I really have layouts all over my work area and the lounge for that matter, so there’s always a memory floating around for anyone to see. Having said that… I am always on the lookout for cute ideas and things that can be altered with photos that can permanently be on display – but also changed at a whim when I get bored. I have a couple of framed photos in the lounge all in the same frames so they are pretty great and we see them every day.

Then I found these cute little photo cubes at a discount store the other day – and all I could think about was how amazing they would look stacked up in different configurations all over the house. They could hold different memories, can be dressed up with a couple of easy stickers and pretty paper, or even just photos added without any decoration. They are super cool, versatile and economical. Did I mention they would make for great gifts?

I also spotted this cute “earth globe” and having wished for a vintage one for my home I settled on this little guy. The colours on the map were just not me so I pulled out my pot of chalkboard paint and took to it without thinking. I cut a camera from one of the sheets of paper and sprayed it with water to soften the fibres in the paper which will make for easy handling and shaping around the contours of the globe. While the camera image was still damp I adhered it to the globe using gel medium and left it to dry thoroughly. A few more decorations and a scribble or two with chalk and I had a funky and fashionable travel item to display with my travelling photo cubes.

It's time for another great sketch reveal over at Scrap Africa.I am not really a single page scrapper - i love them and when other scrappers do them they are always so amazing...and then i sat and played and made this layout literally from scraps off of my desk and floor. you know the feeling when things just fall into place - well they did at least for me. it's plain and simple but i love it.

here's the original sketch i used

an arrow cut from the patterned paper and a simple line sewn through it. the 'believe in yourself' card was cut from a teresa collins paper from another project - can you see i didn't even trim the top edge in the end - and that's ok - it kinda fell into place with the overall look.

sewing with my machine adds that uncomplicated care free look and feel - totally creative and a no-brainer.

life has been a tad bit hectic - so sorry for not hanging out as much. but thanks for staining so faithful and visiting. i promise to do a give-away in the near future in celebration of life and friends and creativity!

i am working on a little project that involves lots of organizing, purging and cleaning out stuff that clutters my creative soul! yeah i know you know the stuff. i often look at what i have accumulated over the years in my profession, and then i think of the girls who are on like 10 design teams who gets tons and tons of free stuff to work with - how do they manage all that stuff - does the stuff give them security and make them feel special - and will the one with the most supplies really win in the end. lets face it - with all that stuff, you still won't take it with you in the grave and will have no use for it anayways once you are dead. you might as well use it now and share the wealth with others! what are your thought regarding this? look forward to hearing from you!