Inspiration Station - Getting in shape!

Hello, everyone! Aurelie here today for another round of Let's Capture Our Memories' Inspiration Station - where I aim to inspire you by being inspired. This time around, it's all about choosing a shape and running away with it. Oh, yes! I recently saw a scrappy challenge sent out by a friend of mine, Michelle Arseneault Gallant, about using 10 of the same shape on one project. She specifically asked for triangles, circles or squares, but when I rummaged through my punches, I found heart punches and just knew I had to use those instead. Wanna see what I made? Here it is:

Now, instead of using all punched hearts from patterned papers, I also used some heart rubons, a heart-shaped enamel sticker and a heart-shaped button. It so perfectly went with the three hearts on Éloïse's little onesie she wore when she was a mere three months old. Set on a piece of white Bazzill cardstock, I mostly used a new Pebbles collection hitting the Let's Capture Memories store soon called Winter Wonderland - 6X6 patterned papers, stickers, and alpha (that glittered 3 is awesome in real life!). I also added some Heidi Swapp Color Shine, American Crafts alphas and ribbon (thanks, Elisa Delora), My Mind's Eye rubons and chalk ephemera (thanks, Stampy Pam!), a Prima button, a Jen Hadfield by Pebbles enamel sticker, a Stampin' Up paper clip, and some stiching using Crafter's Workshop and Bazzill Basics stitching templates with DMC floss.

Wanna see what Michelle made with her own challenge? It's a beauty!

Hope you're inspired to "get in shape!" Happy scrapping!!

Aurelie

Inspiration Station - Challenging each other!

Hello, everyone! Aurelie here to let you in on how I've been inspired lately which in turn will hopefully inspire you!! I recently participated in Scrapbook & Cards Today's Crop & Create Cornwall event. As this was out of province, just a few of our scrappy group were able to make it. However, while we were there, thanks to modern technology, we were able to communicate quite easily with scrappy friends from home. With this in mind, LCOM's very own Jocelyne Roy messaged us during the weekend to see if we'd like to do a one-hour challenge while we were cropping - she would send us a sketch, and we'd get one hour to get our scrap on and get it done. Doing these types of challenges often at LCOM crops, we knew how fun these are and how amazing it is to finish a layout in one hour. So, that's exactly what we did - not once, but TWICE! Now, for Jocelyne, designing two layouts in one hour is a common occurence (Crazy, I know! Hee!Hee!), but for me and the others, we had to do two separate one-hour challenges to get these done (although Cécile did get one done in 30 minutes! WOW!). Here are my two designs:

Easy peasy, lemon squeezy. The first sketch was one by Becky Fleck and the second, by Jocelyne herself. So that 's it! Get together with some scrappy friends, physically or via your favourite social media, and challenge yourselves - may it be a one-hour challenge like this, or using particular items on your designs, or even designing something using a particular collection. Make it fun! And guess what!? You just might see one of these challenges pop up one of these days on the LCOM Facebook page right here. Wouldn't it be fun to all scrap together at the same time? YAHOO!

'Til then, happy scrapping!

Aurelie

Inspiration Station - Layering à la Terhi Koskinen!

Hello, hello! Aurelie here today for another round of Let's Capture Our Memories' Inspiration Station - where I aim to inspire by being inspired. With so many scrappy video tutorials out there these days, finding inspiration is as easy as a few clicks on the internet. That's exactly how I found the fabulous Terhi Koskinen. 

I'm a scrapbooker from Finland. Mother. Wife. Friend. Sister. Daughter. Horsebackrider. I'm a paper crafter with lots of inspiration and addiction to make beautiful things.

Scrapbooking is more than a hobby for me, it's a lifestyle - it starts with photograph session and ends when I get my creation where I wanted. And then it starts again. Surrounding myself with pretty things and my family is how I want to live my life. My creations are filled layers, straight lines, and techniques I want to try out. My biggest passion is to make scrapbook layouts (12" x 12"), but sometimes I'm inspired to alter some daily used objects.

I've been very lucky and honored to get myself into several design teams, you can find all current and past design teams and my published pages here. Lately I've done some tutorials too, hope you get inspired by them. 

Now, for those of you who know me, you must me thinking, uh, Aurelie, you always layer. But Terhi brings layering to a whole other dimension, adding in mixed media elements to her work. And after watching a few of her tutorial videos, I fell in love with how she takes pieces of one collection (or two, or three!) and just starts piling one piece on top of each other with no worries. How many hours have I played with paper trying to find the right combo even when the papers all come from the same collection and perfectly match? It's fun, I know, and definitely part of the process, but following Terhi's lead, I dared myself to let go and not sweat the small stuff. And it totally worked! I didn't even use my cutter - just took my scissors and chopped pieces free-hand. Oh! And the doodling of circles with a pencil, embossing some more circles and creating texture with some stencils and gesso/paste!! Be still my beating heart!! I did have to pump myself up to get that going, but as soon as I started, I thought to myself, this is SO fun! Here's my layout followed by a few close-ups:

Tons of My Mind's Eye On Trend collection on this layout - patterned papers, stickers, chipboard buttons, and die-cuts. I also used a bit of Stampin' Up cardstock, Fancy Pants patterned paper, Cosmo Cricket Tiny Type alphas, Elizabeth Craft Designs Peel-Off stickers, Prima crystals, Tattered Angels Glimmer Glaze, Close to My Heart and Scrapbook & Cards Today stamps, Stampin' Up clear embossing powder and vellum, Magenta mesh, Freckled Fawn star paper clip, MME wood dots, Heidi Swapp stencil with some Liquitex light modeling paste, and yup, you guessed it, hand-stitching using a Crafter's Workshop stitching template and some good ol' DMC floss.

Wanna see some of Terhi's work up close? Here are a few close-ups of some of her work that totally inspired me for this reveal (I've included the link for Terhi's video tutorials below each photo):

https://youtu.be/eiV4ykiqUrk

https://youtu.be/YkgSclGYwnU

https://youtu.be/Zohf-_SaMAg

If you'd like to see even more of Terhi's work, just hop along right over here:

Blog: http://tellimaria.blogspot.fi

Social media: Facebook, Instagram (terhi_koskinen), YouTube, Twitter (@terhi_koskinen)

Online galleries: Scrapbook.com, CSI, Pinterest, Flickr

Huge shout out to Terhi who so kindly allowed me to lift some of her ideas and post some of her own work onto today's feature. You are truly an inspiration and I look forward in seeing what you come up with next! ;)

Happy scrapping!

Aurelie

Inspiration Station - Pocket Scrapbooking à la Nicole Harper!

Hello, everyone! Aurelie here with July 2015's Let's Capture Our Memories Inspiration Station feature. I have a confession to make: I L-O-V-E the concept of pocket scrapbooking and I actually do envy those who take the time to record the everyday happenings of their lives. I just haven't found the way to incorporate that in my own life. H-O-W-E-V-E-R, the pocket scrapbooking concept has already entered my scrapcave - I've done a travel book of a trip we took to San Diego, and I've also done a gift or two for my brothers who have been travelling abroad these past few years. I just haven't found my comfort zone, yet, that's all.

Now, when our sweet Éloïse was born in 2013, I knew that I wouldn't be able to scrap the way I had done it for Louis-Olivier. My style had changed, the industry had changed and frankly, my scrappy time had been cut a bit. I recognized that the pocket scrapbooking concept was going to help me out with this predicament and so I set off in gearing myself up with tools and supplies to get me going... Almost two years later, and a few attempts in starting Éloïse's baby book, I have finally figured out how to go about this. And this has a LOT to do with the fabulous work of Nicole Harper. 

Nicole Harper has been playing with paper since elementary school, when shopping for new supplies quickened her heart a beat. She spends her crafty time creating layouts and mini albums, but loves hunting for vintage finds whenever she can. She lives in Northeast Ohio with her husband Mike and their daughter Allison…and is a proud soccer mama, medical professional and trusty friend. She wears her heart on her sleeve with her journaling and loves to share the everyday moments that mean the most.

I've had the chance to assist a few of Nicole's pocket scrapbooking classes via Scrapbook & Cards Today's Crop and Create events, and I have fallen in love with her pocket scrapbooking style over and over and over again. She is a genius at mixing elements to add depth and interest onto her pocket cards and projects without adding bulk. L-O-V-E her work! And she is as sweet as can be, too! Here are a few samples of her work:

See what I mean? I just love how her pocket scrapbook pages aren't filled up with photos, but rather a combination of photos with tons of journalling. Now... do you wanna see what I came up with? Here we go (my goodness - I'm actually nervous! Hee!Hee!):

Using Simple Stories' SN@P! concept, I opted for the 6X8-ish version. Armed with the pink 6X8 SN@P! album, the Simple Stories Baby Girl SN@P! pockets, stickers, as well as the 3X4 and 4X6 cards, along with some Simple Stories Vintage Bliss, Pebbles Special Delivery, a Heidi Swapp photo mat, and a piece of Cosmo Cricket's 2wnty-thr3e collection, I gathered my Nicole Harper examples from classes I took with her and images of her work I found via her Gossamer Blue gallery (right here), and I plunged in. Following Nicole's examples, and using rub-ons, markers, Heidi Swapp Color Shine, stickers, wood veneer pieces, washi tape, tranparencies, and hand-stitching, I decorated some of the cards in order to add some interest to them.  I also FINALLY took out the brand-new typewriter Mathieu bought me for Christmas and typed on some cards, but also used hand-written journalling (Nicole's suggestion to use the ZIG Photo Signature pen to write directly onto photos is AWESOME!). Finally, the corners of the cards were rounded, while I left the photo corners squared. 

And there you have it! The beginning of my pocket scrapbooking project for Éloïse. Can't wait to continue!! And a huge shout out to Nicole Harper - You are a scrappy force to be reckoned with for sure, Nicole. Thanks for all you do to share your scrappy process with others. I want to pocket scrapbook like you when I grow up! Hee!Hee! To see Nicole's work, please hop on right over here.

Happy scrapping!

Inspiration Station - Pocket scrapbooking cards on traditional layouts

Hello, everyone! Aurelie here today for another round of Let's Capture Our Memories' Inspiration Station - where I am to inspire you by being inspired myself. This month, it's all about using pocket scrapbooking cards on your traditional layouts. Yes, you know what I mean! All those lovely 3X4 or 4X6 cards that manufacturers are creating for the pocket scrappers out there, but are SO awesome and match oh, so perfectly the rest of the collection, that us traditional scrappers are buying them, too! I was determined to use some on a layout, and when I saw this layout by Anna Kossakovskaya, I was instantly inspired to try it out. Here's her layout, using some Fancy Pants yumminess:

And here's what I came up with:

Set on a piece of Basic Grey patterned paper from the Fresh Cut collection, I then turned to tons of the Simples Stories' I Am collection - a piece of one 6X6 patterned paper, SN@P! cards, brads, chipboard stickers, bits and pieces, enamel dots, and chipboard frames. I also used a piece of Studio Calico transparency, added some Pink Paislee alphas, and did some hand-stitching with a Crafter's Workshop stitching template and some DMC floss. Photos by Philippe Dumas. And there you have it! Hope this layout will inspire you to get those leftover pocket scrapbooking cards and start using them as elements on your traditional designs.

But before I go, I'd like to extend a huge shout out to Anna who so graciously accepted that I lift her layout for this feature. Here's a little something about her:

Hello! I'm Anna and I live in Saint-Petersburg, Russia. Wife, mom of baby Alice and cat Diana. Scrapbooking is my passion since 2011. I love paper - love to work with it! I create everything: traditional 12x12 layouts, cards, mini albums... and in January of 2014, I started pocket scrapbooking. I love bright and clear colors and I love to tell my stories through the materials while saving my memories for my family.
You can find Anna on her blog at right here.

Happy scrapping!

Inspiration Station - Pie-Charts

Hello, hello! And a very Happy Mother's Day to all of you - mothers of children and pets, aunts and grandmothers, and role models. Aurelie here today for another bout of Let's Capture Our Memories' Inspiration Station - where I aim to inspire by being inspired. For a good three years now if not more, we've seen pie-charts become a true go-to scrappy staple. And I truly believe that Canadian scrapbooking guru Nicole Nowosad is the scrappy pie-chart pioneer, integrating them in all kinds of ways on her layouts since the hey days of pie-charts. Here are a few of my favourite of hers:

She even integrated some in the most recent LCOM Color Spot:

But this next pie-chart design of hers, designed for Jillibean Soup, is my all-time favourite:

As soon as I saw that layout, I K-N-E-W that it was THE pie-chart design that was going to inspire me to give pie-charts a go. With that in mind, when the time came to prepare for this reveal, I asked Nicole for her blessing (she said yes! Hee!Hee!) and off I went in my scrapcave to start prepping my design. And here it is:

Set on a Cosmo Cricket patterned paper, I made my pie-charts using my Silhouette, some Stampin' Up cardstock and the new Simple Stories collection (6X6 paper pad, stickers, chipboard frames, cardstock die-cuts, and chipboard stickers). I then hand-stitched them using a Close to My Heart stitching template and some DMC floss. I also used some Christy Tomlinson by Pink Paislee rubons, Elizabeth Craft Designs peel-off stickers, Basic Grey, Heidi Swapp and Pink Paislee alphas, American Crafts cork butterfly, a resin butterfly given to me by fellow LCOM designer Jocelyne Roy (thanks, Jocelyne!), and some good ol' Tattered Angels Glimmer Glaze. Loved how it turned out. Huge shout out to Nicole Nowosad for being the inspiration behind this piece and her H-U-G-E devotion to this fabulous hobby of ours. Cut and commit! Hee!Hee!

Happy scrapping! 

Inspiration Station - Creating with stamps à la Tatiana Yemelyanenko

Hello, everyone! Aurelie here today with another instalment of Inspiration Station - where I aim to inspire by being inspired. Today, it's all about seeing that one layout and saying to yourself, "I have got to figure out how to do this layout!" I was recently looking through an online gallery, and found this gem by Tatiana Yemelyanenko:

Isn't it absolutely G-O-R-G-E-O-U-S?!? It seriously made my scrappy senses go crazy and I immediately began my search to find Tatiana to ask here if I could showcase this layout on the LCOM blog. I was so happy when she accepted! Here's a little something about her:

"My name is Tatiana Yemelyanenko, I'm from Dnipropetrovsk, Ukraine. I hold a PhD and worked at the University but now my work is my sweet little daughter. I fell in love with scrapbooking and mixed media in the end of 2011. I love that scrapbooking helps me to capture the moments of my life and brings feeling of creativity in ordinary days. I like to experiment with different styles and techniques and use mists, paints, texture pastes and stencils in my projects. Now I'm in design teams Imaginarium Designs, C'est Magnifique kit club and Scrapki-Wyzwaniowo. My blog is http://timeforscrapbooking.blogspot.com"

Now, for those of you who know me, you realize that stamping is usually not my go-to thing. Sure, I have stamps, but they are mostly sentiments and images I can use as background elements. SO... I thought of two scrappy friends who are amazing stampers, showed Tatiana's layout to them, and asked them if they could help a scrapper out. And of course they did! Thanks, Cécile and Pam!! And here's what I came up with:

So yes, stamping was the game, but fussy-cutting was my name! Using different Stampin' Up stamp sets, I stamped the flower images with some Tim Holtz Distress Ink and then cut them out one by one. Some were heat-embossed using Stampin' Up clear embossing powder. And some were highlighted with a Wink of Stella clear Glitter Brush by Zig. Popped some up using dimensional adhesive. I did a bit of background work using a Heidi Swapp stamp with gold Brilliance ink and a Lime Citron stamp with Claudine Hellmuth Studio gesso. I also stitched a branch/leaf pattern through the flowers with one of my Bazzill Basics stitching templates and some DMC floss. Added a few embellishments, too - a My Mind's Eye label, Pink Paislee and My Mind's Eye alphas, My Mind's Eye wooden dots, and splats of Tattered Angels Glimmer Glaze, Heidi Swapp Color Shine, and Tim Holtz Distress Spray Stain. And all of this was done using patterned papers from Carta Bella's It's a Celebration collection. Are your scrappy senses tingling, yet? Hee!Hee! Get out those stamps and start creating! 

Happy scrapping!

Inspiration Station - Celebrating with scrapbooking

Hello, everyone! Aurelie here today for another instalment of Let's Capture Our Memories' Inspiration Station - where I aim to inspire by being inspired. Today, it's all about being inspired by celebrating those we love most. You know, the ones for whom we make cards for those special occasions. Before I started scrapbooking, I always LOVED to go shopping in card stores to find that perfect card for that perfect someone on that special occasion. But ever since scrapbooking has become such an integral part of my life, cardmaking has become somewhat of a ritual for me for certain people in my life. This past week, such a friend celebrated her birthday. And even though I am a bit late in offering her this card, I thought I'd show it to her first here, with all of you - So, Isabelle E, you are the best and I love you to bits! Can't wait to give you this card in person!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!

Now, for those of you who know me best, you know how much I L-O-V-E patterned paper. But for this card, I opted to go snoop in my stash of washi tapes to liven things up. Quick and easy, I chose a few rolls in the same kind of colours, stuck them on a piece of vellum which I then hand-stitched on a smaller piece of cardstock. After adhering that piece to a cardstock card base, I then die-cut a corrugated cardboard heart using a Tim Holtz die and my Cuttlebug, inked in with some Ranger Distress ink, tied a piece of DMC floss around it and stuck it directly onto the washi tape. A few splats of Tattered Angels Glimmer Glaze later, I found those two Studio Calico heart wood veneer embellies, and stamped my sentiment on cardstock using one of my favourite Stampin' Up stamp sets. And there you have it. Hope she likes it! ;)

Happy scrapping! 

Inspiration Station - Ode to Paige Evans

Welcome to another Let's Capture Our Memories instalment of Inspiration Station - where I aim to inspire by being inspired. Have you ever seen a layout and instantly thought to yourself, "I am SO lifting this?" That's exactly what happened to me a few weeks back when I saw this gorgeous Paige Evans layout she designed for Basic Grey:

I mean, isnt' that G-O-R-G-E-O-U-S?!? As soon as I saw this beauty of a layout, I immediately Facebooked Paige and asked her if I could lift it for this month's Inspiration Station - and she agreed! WOO!HOO! I mean, with Valentine's Day right around the corner, it was absolutely the perfect inspiration piece to make my scrappy senses tingle - Hee!Hee! Here's what I created:

Used oodles and oodles and oodles of Echo Park's Head Over Heels on this one - lots of patterned papers and element stickers. I used the same Silhouette die-cut heart background Paige used for her layout (by Alaa'K - design ID #15615) and hand-stitched across the 1X1 square pieces glued on the background (yes, I hand-stitched the whole thing! I know! I'm crazy! Wanna know what's crazier? I have a sewing machine, but I've only used it twice! Hee!Hee!). I also added some Stampin' Up vellum and tiny paper clips, Tattered Angels Glimmer Glaze, Studio Calico wood veneer hearts, and American Crafts alphas. Oh! And TONS of 3D foam squares!! And all those die-cut hearts I made? They are stored in a nice, little Ziploc bag with the rest of the Head Over Heels collection just waiting to be used on another layout! ;)

Wanna find out more about the scrappy genius who is Paige Evans? Here's a bit of info on her and her work:

"I’ve been scrapping since I was 16 (that was waaaay back in 2001!) and got my very first job at a scrapbooking store in Redmond, WA called Yesterdays. They didn’t even have an application, just took my name and phone number. I wonder what my life would be like now had I not walked into that store that fateful day because so much of my life has revolved around scrapbooking since then. I work from home as a mom by day and by night I manage the American Crafts blog and design team, am on the Studio Calico Contributing Team, the Ali Edwards Digital Creative Team, a blog contributor for Elle’s Studio, and a freelance scrapbooker for Amy Tangerine. I love guest designing and teaching scrapbooking workshops near and far. Basically, I LOVE scrapbooking! I’ve been married to Chris for 7 years and we have a 4-year-old son named Fox and a 2 1/2-year-old daughter named Jane. Currently we’re living on an Army base in Grafenwöhr, Germany for 3 or 4 years. My husband is a dentist for the Army and we’re loving our adventures here and traveling as much and as often as we can."

It was truly SO much fun lifting this layout, Paige! Thank you, thank you, thank you for everything you do for scrappers the world over! You are a true, true, oh! so true inspiration for us all.

Happy scrapping!

Inspiration Station - It takes two, baby!

Hello, everyone! SO sorry I'm a tad late posting this Inspiration Station, but we are just coming out of a nasty bout of stomach flu and cough and colds! We are all on the mend, though, which is awesome, so here I am with this month's instalment of Inspiration Station, where I try to inspire you by being inspired.

I've been admiring the work of a few, particular ladies now for some time. Scrappers who scrap a whole lot different than me and achieve absolute perfection every time. There are actually too many to name, but you know who I'm talking about - the scrappers who whip out mixed media products and make a layout without any paper but the background piece. YIKES, but YES! It looks like so much fun!! 

I've been wanting to try this for a long time, but have always had a hard time trying new scrappy techniques by myself. So, with that in mind, I invited a friend of mine and fellow Let's Capture Our Memories designer, Elisa Delora, to the house over a week or so ago and we dabbed a bit into the world of making backgrounds without paper. Wanna see what I came up with? Hee!Hee! I'm excited to show you!

I took out a Tim Holtz stencil and dabbed it with some Versamark. And then, get this, poured some clear embossing powder over it and made it melt with my heat gun! I've had that thing for years, but rarely use it! I think Elisa had an epiphany! A little birdie told me that she's since procured herself one for her own!! Hee!Hee! 

Now, I know! I know! I did use some paper, but very little. It's from Carta Bella's Winter Fun collection. I also used a few of its sticker embellishments. You also see a few snippets of Stampin' Up patterned and transparency papers , American Crafts corrugated paper and alphas, a Heidi Swapp title sticker, October Afternoon alphas, Studio Calico wood veneer, Magenta mesh, Cosmo Cricket tiny text, Tattered Angels Glimmer Glaze, a Lime Citron badge (thanks, Elisa!), and stitching using a Close to My Heart stitching template and one strand of DMC floss. Oh! And that background piece? A B-side of a My Mind's Eye patterned paper!! 

And there you have it! Sometimes, it really does take two to get the ball rolling. Thanks, Elisa, for the great evening of scrapping, and the inspiration to try something new on a page!

Happy scrapping!

Inspiration Station - Jazzing up stashbusting!

Hello, Let's Capture Our Memories fans! Aurélie here with another instalment of Inspiration Station where I hope to inspire you by being inspired. As of late, I've heard many fellow scrappers say that they are attempting to use the scrappy stuff they have accumulated through the years. You know what I mean. Oh, yes. All those scrappy buys we've made, telling ourselves it'll be for this or that. I know you know what I mean. ;) Honestly though, I am totally into doing some stashbusting myself. However, sometimes, I just want something new. Some people want a new pair of shoes. Others want a new mascara. Me? I want new scrappy supplies! Hee!Hee! SO, with that in mind, as of late, I've been a "bit" more strategic while scrappy shopping... I try to find pieces that will go with all those beautiful collections I already own. Really! Still don't believe me? Here's the proof!

Last Saturday, while at the LCOM Happy Holidays crop, I noticed that Jocelyne was using some beautiful pieces of Carta Bella's Hello Again collection. It reminded me that I had that very same collection sitting at home just waiting for me to sit down and start scrapping with it. Well. ;) I mean, I was at a crop. And Isabelle just happened to take some brand new products out of a box. Hee!Hee! No, nobody had to twist my arm, but I found some awesome add-ons that look like they were made for that line - or any line for that matter. See it? Or them, actually? Yes, that's right! American Crafts' Dear Lizzy Printed Foil Letter Stickers (to be added to the LCOM very, very, VERY soon!!) and Jillibean Soup's Mix the Media Smile Wire Word . Those products have versatility written all over them and then some. They go with absolutely everything and make using older collections just a tad more exciting. I also used Simple Stories' DIY Shop Chalk Speech Bubble Stickers, a few pieces of patterned papers by Fancy Pants and House of Three (now, that's old! Hee!Hee!), a Studio Calico frame, Stampin' Up and Bazzill cardstock, American Crafts alphas, Tattered Angels Glimmer Glaze, Stampin' Up denim ribbon, stitching using, now get this, a new stitching template (!) by Close to My Heart and some dear ol' DMC floss, and hearts punched from Creative Imaginations corrugated paper using punches by Stampin' Up and Epiphany Crafts. Sketch by Becky Fleck over at PageMaps.com. 

The moral of the story? There's always room for a scrappy pick me up purchase once in awhile! We are all in this together!! Hee!Hee!

Happy scrapping!

Inspiration Station - The One-Hour Challenge

Hello, everyone! Aurélie here today to inspire you by being inspired. Now, I don't know about you, but for me, there's nothing quite like heading to a crop to get my scrap on. I just love the energy generated from a room full of scrappers papercrafting the whole day through. Since the beginning of October, I've been to three crops hosted by Isabelle and Let's Capture Our Memories and boys o' boys, I tell ya, the scrappy mojo has been plentiful. From day sketches, single-page layouts, double-page layouts, cards, mini-albums, you name it - my fellow scrappers and I have been having some good ol' scrappy fun. And in my neck of the woods, an LCOM crop is not quite complete without a one-hour challenge. Yes, that's right! A one-hour challenge. Isabelle gives us a sketch (that we can only look at when she says, "Go!") and we have one hour to design our layout. Sounds crazy, I know, but it's SO much fun! I have been known to have minor heart palpitations and shaky hands while participating in these challenges!! Hee!Hee! However, most importantly, I have realized that "sometimes", I really am too frugal when it comes to cutting my patterned paper, and that I really do fuss a "tad" too much on where I adhere my embellishments. When you have one hour to get 'er done, you get 'er done. No time to think twice about anything. As I mentioned in the October Inspiration Station, as Nicole Nowosad would say, "Cut and commit!" Hee!Hee!

This past weekend, I attended a LCOM crop and participated in not one, but two one-hour challenges. Once again, for me, it's not about following the sketch to a 't', but rather having a starting point to... get 'er done! Here are the layouts I created during the one-hour challenges:

Now, I will admit, I did take some time after the challenges to hand-stitch those straight lines as well as fussy-cut that chevron pattern. However, most of the elements were cut and committed in one hour. YAY!

What products do we have here? Most are from the Fancy Pants' True Friend collection (patterned paper, 6X6 paper pad, sequins, sticker fundamentals, label stickers, button set, and ephemera pack). I did add some Jillibean Soup Soup Staples III patterned paper along with some pieces from some Crate Paper and Echo Park collections. I also added a Pink Paislee circle grid, Maya Road chipboard hexagons wrapped in My Mind's Eye washi tape, Elizabath Craft Designs peel-off stickers, American Crafts alphas, Tim Holtz rubons, We R Memory Makers staples, a Wilton doily, and yes, stitching using my Bazzill Basics stitching template with some DMC floss (big shout out to my sister, Ginette, who had the perfect shade of orange floss!). Sketches by Becky Fleck over at PageMaps.

So, with this all of this in mind, I totally dare you to scrap a layout in one hour. You can ABSOLUTELY do it! Choose a sketch and a photo or two or three or... and GO! The clock's a ticking! Hee!Hee!

Happy scrapping!

Inspiration Station - Ode to Nicole Nowosad!

So happy to be here with you for another instalment of Let's Capture Our Memories' Inspiration Station - where I aim to inspire by being inspired. This week, it's no secret. It's all about Nicole Nowosad. A very popular name in the scrapbooking industry for quite some time now, Nicole has designed and is still designing for some top-notch scrappy manufacturers and suppliers out there such as Jillibean Soup, Bella Blvd, Fancy Pants amd Cocoa Daisy, not to mention being on Scrapbook & Cards Today's regular line-up. I mean, that alone says a lot!

I first started noticing Nicole's work in 2012, when I seriously fell in love with hand-stitching on most of my layouts. I could always recognize Nicole's work by noticing her unique ways of stitching elements on her pages. Here's an example:

Amazing stuff, eh? I know! LOVE!! I've often said that Nicole invented the infamous pie-chart design element on layouts. Here is one of my absolute favourite layouts of hers with one of my all-time favourite Basic Grey collections, Highline:

Stitching and a dimensional pie-chart on one layout - REALLY! Who could ask for anything more? Hee!Hee! But wait! There's more! Nicole has been a pioneer in showing scrappers from all over the world on how to use die-cut elements - she actually has her very own collection of Silhouette free cut files to download right here (she designs for Silhouette, too!).  Here's an awesome example of hers on how to balance a layout with such an element using some quilt-like features:

I recently got the chance to meet and take a class with Nicole at a Scrapbook & Cards Today Crop & Create event. It was absolutely FABULOUS to see how she uses patterned paper to create her designs. "Cut and commit," she would say. I must admit, I was a bit intimidated by meeting such a well-known scrapper, but boys! Was it ever nice to see how "normal" she is and how she genuinely loves to scrap just as much as the rest of us. Enjoyed speaking to her and learning from her so very much that I instantly thought of this blog post and asked her a day into the event if I could create a design based on her work. She agreed! WOO!HOO! Excited was not the word! And imagine just excited I was when I showed her my design and she stamped it with her seal of approval!! My goodness! Just like opening a new box of scrappy goodies on Christmas morning, I tell ya. Hee!Hee! So... without any further adieu, here is my Ode to Nicole Nowosad:

Used tons and tons and more TONS of My Mind's Eye Jubilee - Sherbet collection on here along with a Jillibean Soup placemat, Queen & Co. washi tape, Prima Sculpture Flowers, American Crafts Pow! Glitter Paper, Tattered Angels Glimmer Glaze, Making Memories staples, and yes, hand-stitching using DMC floss with CTMH and Tim Holtz stitching rulers. And be still my beating heart! Do you see what I see? Yes! Unstitched holes!! Holy camoly! Living on the wild side! I must have been channelling the inner Nowosad in me - Hee!Hee!

On that note, I want to give a very special shout out to Nicole Nowosad for giving me the OK to do this post. It was truly a great and "humbling" experience to meet you and speak to you. Thank you for letting me see a bit of the real you! ;) You are such a great example for all of us scrappers. Thank you for all you inspire and all you share with us all. Hope to see you REAL soon! ;)

Happy scrapping! 

Inspiration Station - Getting back into the scrap of things!

Hello, everyone! Aurelie here with another instalment of Let's Capture Our Memories Inspiration Station feature - where I try to inspire you by being inspired. Having a fabulous September so far? This is truly, truly, TRULY my favourite time of the year. It's like everything is new again. And for me, this September is truly that - full of newness! One week ago today, I returned to work after a year-long maternity leave. YIKES! And scrappywise, I needed to get back into the swing of things, too! Over the Summer months, I would actually sometimes look at my scrappy stash and try to convince myself to get scrappin', but it just wouldn't work. But then, September came rolling by, I started a new routine, and boom!, on Sunday, I saw a new sketch over at Creative Scrappers and thought to myself, "Bingo!" That's just what I needed. A great sketch to get the creatives juices flowing again. And here it is - the awesome sketch that got my mojo working again, by Jenny Evans:

And yes, of course, I just had to flip it to its side, making it look like this:

And here is my finished product, done in less than two hours from start to finish (after a scrappy slump, I'd say that's pretty darn good!):

Used tons and tons of Echo Park's Head over Heels collection on this one (patterned paper, alpha stickers and element stickers) as well as some Tattered Angels Glimmer Glaze, American Crafts Thickers, Studio Calico wood veneer hearts, Stampin' Up silver-foiled paper, Making Memories staples, DMC floss, and be still my beating heart, washi tape from Lord knows where! ;) And for those of you who know me, did you notice anything? No journalling and no stitching! The photo of my niece with my daughter said it all, really, and the element stickers along with the title were just perfect in explaining the sentiment. Didn't see the need to say anything more... WOW! A new routine is right!! ;)

So that's that! It was so great to get scrapping again!! Can't wait to do it again!!!

Oh! And now, with a new routine at home and at work, instead of seeing me every week, I'll be trying to inspire you every 10th of the month. But, no worries! New fun things will be happening on the LCOM blog - you'll just have to visit some more to find out! Hee!Hee! Nice way to keep you on your scrappy toes, eh? Hee!Hee!

Happy scrapping to YOU!