Chit & Josephine

Hi everyone! 

Today I’m sharing a layout of my Great-Great maternal Grandparents, Chit & Josephine Hebert, (‘He’ is pronounced like the letter ‘A’; and ‘bert’ like bear).  I don’t know the date that the photo was taken, but as you can see, apparently the original had cracked down the middle and was taped together.  This, along with the many blemishes, really maintains the vintage age of the photo.  I distressed the photo using a wire brush. I sure wish I had the original, but either way, it is way cool! 

After pondering for quite a long time trying to decide how to scrap this photo, I saw Heather Jacob’s beautiful vintage layout “LOVE YOU”, which can be found on her awe inspiring blog, Art & Life.  Her influence really helped me create this layout and I was also able to use some of her techniques!  Check out her blog to discover beautiful creative art!   Thank you so much Heather for your continued inspiration!
 

Plain kraft paper is perfect for a vintage background!   The Paper Studio’s “Haberdashery” paper collection is all kraft paper, with only one side printed, so I was able to use a plain side.  From this collection, I chose prints containing jet black (black really ‘pops’ on kraft paper) and red brick tones.  The stamps & inks used on the main background are listed at the end of the post.

Here is what I did with the printed papers I chose:

• tore & distressed black & red floral prints to go under the photo in the focal area
• die cut oak leaves in black w/kraft colored text (oak trees are very prevalent in Louisiana)
• made a tag shape using black floral print
• cut a couple of wavy pieces in black floral print for edging the LO
• cut hexagon shapes in black and red prints (applied some to chipboard)
• printed the LO title on kraft color with tiny black printing

To start, I distressed and inked a piece of gray chipboard giving it the color of antique linen; then applied crackle just along the edges.  (Heather Jacob's technique to use a palette knife to avoid brush strokes)

After the crackle completely dried, Vintage Photo Distress Ink was used along the edges and on the crackle area to darken and enhance the cracks, wiping off excess ink (technique used by Heather Jacob).  I LOVE this effect!  I then darkened the very outer edges with Distress Ink Black Soot for a more dramatic look.  

The earth tone cosmos daisies in this close up are from Wild Orchid Crafts. 
 

Check out how awesome the crackle turned out!  Soooooo vintage!

After rummaging through my stash, I chose various metal embellishments, flowers and chicken wire chipboard to decorate with.  

Chrysanthemums from Wild Orchid Crafts were recolored using Lindy’s Stamp Gang Moon Shadow Mist Bucket o’ Blood Red.   I rubbed some Gold colored wax on the dark brown berry stem and added a gold metal Fleur de Lis safety pin.

I put together a flower cluster and hung a metal bird nest on a swivel clasp for a unique look.  A hexagon shaped chipboard was inked jet black and Antique Linen Distress Stickles applied. The title was printed and placed inside an ornate metal plate.   Thanks so much for visiting and I hope you have a wonderful day!  Lisa : ) Products used: Prima – Ingvild Bolme Distress Tool Ranger Distress Crackle – “Clear Rock Candy” Tim Holtz Distress Inks – “Antique Linen”, “Black Soot”, “Vintage Photo” The Paper Studio – “Haberdashery” collection Bo Bunny stamps – “Distressed Textures” (chicken wire & corrugated texture)     ~used Tim Holtz Distress Inks “Black Soot” and “Vintage Photo” Recollections cling stamps     ~used Colorbox Pigment ink “Red Barn” The Dusty Attic – “Chicken Wire Panel”     ~used Tim Holtz Distress Ink “Black Soot” & Distress Stickles “Antique Linen” Tim Holtz Alterations Die – “Tattered Leaves” Metal embellishments:     ~Tim Holtz idea-ology “Ornate Plates”     ~Michael’s – Fleur de Lis safety pin; bird nest charm; oak leaf & acorns     ~The Paper Studio Spare Parts – swivel clasp; metal clock; antique brad (used in the clock center) Prima – “Wood Embellishments” (clock) Floral:     ~Wild Orchid Crafts – earth tone Chrysanthemums; brown/white mix Cosmos Daisies     ~The Paper Studio Mixed Media – “Burlap Sunflowers”     ~The Paper Studio Spare Parts – “Pink Vintage Paper Flowers”     ~Hobby Lobby – brown berry spray Lindy’s Stamp Gang Moon Shadow Mist – “Bucket o’ Blood Red” Viva Décor Inka Gold - "Gold"

Harvey

Hi!  Thanks for stopping in for a peek at my handsome Grand-Kitty, Harvey!

On a recent visit to my daughter in Houston, Texas, I was able to capture these special moments with him in the morning while everyone was still asleep. 
With gorgeous light chartreuse colored eyes and a beautiful gray coat that feels like velvet, we believe Harvey may be a Russian Blue Mix.  He has some white on his face & chest, as seen in these photos, as well as on all four paws and the very tip of his tail.  Cute as cute can be! 

The Maja Design Vintage Spring Basics “1^st of May” paper had the PERFECT colors to coordinate with Harvey’s baby pink nose and gray coat.  Lindy’s Stamp Gang Starburst retired color “Gregarious Grey” was sprayed in some areas to reduce the amount of pink in the page.  I sure wish Lindy's would bring back this stunning color!

My first idea was to create an argyle pattern in an effort to "masculinize" the layout, but it didn’t turn out as I had envisioned, so instead, I just outlined the pattern with pink squares and decided to place the title there.  

The custom chipboard title from Want2Scrap is heat embossed with Lindy’s Stamp Gang “Spring Leaf Chartreuse”.  Natural sunlight captured the gorgeous pink shimmer of LSG's Gregarious Grey Starburst spray in the photo below.  I love the two-tone effect in the Starburst sprays!

The beautiful mulberry flowers are from my favorite UK website, Wild Orchid Crafts. 
I just received these in a recently placed order with them.   

                   Chrysanthemums (Pastel Set B)         Cosmos Daisies (Pastel Set A)

Here are close-ups of pretty boy, Harvey  ^..^



Products used:

Maja Design – Vintage Spring Basics “1^st of May”

DCWV – Neutral Metallic Cardstock & LeTres Chic Cardstock

LSG Starburst – Gregarious Grey (retired color)

Want2Scrap – custom chipboard title & Swirls Maxi Girl rhinestones silver

LSG Spring Leaf Chartreuse embossing powder

Recollections – Bling on a Roll & tiny white pearls

Crystal Stickers – Mosaic silver, pink & white

Tim Holtz alcohol inks – Slate, Pearl & Citrus

Wild Orchid Crafts – mulberry flowers: chrysanthemums & cosmos daisies

Martha Stewart punch – Zigzag

Pigment ink - charcoal



Marcy

On a recent visit to see my daughter, son-in-law and of course my “Grand-kitties”, I was able to take a fabulous close up photo of Marcy!  She is the most stunning Calico I have personally ever seen.  I LOVE the thick ‘eyeliner’ she was born with around her left eye.  Isn’t it so cool?!   

 

These gorgeous colors of orange and black run along her back and her tail like they were poured over her, leaving her tummy and most of her face & legs all white.  She is super stunning!  She has an attitude, but Gwamma (that’s me) doesn’t let that get in the way of love and kisses. : )

Marcy and her best-friend/sister, Greta (85 lb German Shepherd) lived with us for many months until my daughter was completely settled and ready to bring them home with her.  I spent a lot of time getting to know little Marcy, so her growling scare tactic, even today, doesn’t deter me much.  She loves her Gwamma – no matter what she says! LOL    

I wanted to use bold colors, so I looked at my Graphic 45 Couture collection and fell in love with the page full of flowers & leaves set on a jet black background.  This became my color inspiration to show case Marcy’s vivid markings.  After seeing an impressive layout a good friend of mine recently made on a solid black background, I knew this was the way to show off Marcy’s beauty.  Thanks for the inspiration, Lorna!   

I chose 3 colors of cardstock from various collections to add some punched strips on the main page.

A few color-matching flowers, butterflies, bling and the title completed this LO.  The chipboard title and the bling are from Want2Scrap.  Using alcohol inks, a clear flourish bling became terra cotta and cute paw prints turned into pitch black.  I heat embossed the title with a verdigris color because I love the green-blue patina tone as well as the specks of black in it. 

 

Here is a close up of the mixture of stunning colors against black.  I LOVE it!

 

Thanks so much for viewing!  I sure love my Marcy and am so happy that I have this fabulous photo of her.

Have a wonderful day!  Lisa : )

 

Products used: 

Recollections – Black cardstock & ‘Habitat’ collection green paper; orange & golden bling

Graphic 45 – ‘Couture’ collection – 8x8 paper (12x12 page name: Gorgeous)

Bazzill cardstock

DCWV - ‘Mariposa’ collection cardstock

Martha Stewart – punches ‘Swirling Lace’ & ‘Cherish’

Want2Scrap – custom chipboard title; Finesse flourish bling; Paw prints bling

Ranger – Antiquities embossing powder “Verdigris’

Tim Holtz – alcohol inks “Terra Cotta” & “Pitch Black”

ColorBox Catseye pigment inks – Teal, Butterscotch, Picante

Recollections – butterfly 3D sticker

Ashland – Fall velvet butterfly

Flowers: Prima, Martha Stewart, Recollections, The Paper Studio

 

So Pretty and Nice

I just had to scrap this recent photo (9/26/14) of my gorgeous Gali (officially named Galadrial). She was lounging in her most favorite spot on the corner of the breakfast table next to the bay windows where she watches doves & sparrows feed and then falls asleep in the process (hee hee).  Before we lucked out to have her in our home, she was a show cat and also a breeding queen, who kept the perfect Birman genes going in her bloodline with two litters!  It is difficult to photograph her because she has such a very dark chocolate face mask and her demeanor is so sweet, innocent & girly that she doesn’t open her eyes nearly as wide as her baby daughter Lucy does. 

Gali is very mellow and laid back.  I am so blessed to have the best of both worlds – rambunctious & hilarious (Lucy) and loving, sweet, mellow, who becomes a big kitten sometimes (Gali).  Mama Gali & her baby daughter, Lucy, really love each other and get along so well.  They are playmates (as long as Miss Gali tolerates Lucy’s relentless playfulness).  Guess their opposite nature complements each other. : ) 

I always say to Miss Gali that she is “So Pretty and Nice” – thus the title of this LO of my sweetie heart!

I chose Kaisercraft’s Lavender Haze collection with its dainty pink and blue colors.  This particular page had some black splatter print on it, so I used black gesso to stencil some Tim Holtz splatters on some of the edges of the main page. 

 

I incorporated jet black color throughout this layout to stand out against the pastel colors. The chipboard cursive script title custom made by Want2Scrap was heat embossed with pure black.

Check out the stamps I used. 

The round doily is so cute and very intricately detailed. 

I used a pink color pencil to fill in the hearts in the stamp design. 

I got this idea to add color with a color pencil from my sweet friend, Tracy Funk.  Even though she uses watercolor pencils (in such an artistic and beautiful way), the thought of coloring in something really inspired me! 
Visit her totally awesome blog My Funky Scrapbook Blog.  

 

I found this dragonfly stamp in the $1 bin at Michael’s!  It is so incredibly detailed!  I never leave Michael’s until I’ve carefully scanned through the bargain bins : ).

I used ready-cut outs from the Lavender Haze collection for decoration; one being a tag, dragonfly and flag that I glued together with a word block by Recollections; made a double layered dragonfly; and also placed a dragonfly with a foam circle on top of a bottle cap to place in the center of the doily stamp.  All made neat embellishments for this LO.

 

 

 

 

Well, it's time to move on to the next project – scrapping my Grand kitties : ).

Thanks for stopping by for a peek!  Have a fabulous day!  Lisa : )

Products used:

Kaisercraft Lavender Haze collection

    ~ pages named “Mulberry” & “Jacaranda”

    ~ collectables (ready cut-outs)

Martha Stewart circle punch - “Triple Loop”

Tim Holtz layering stencil - “Splatters”

WeRMemory Keepers stamp - “Round Doily”

Michael’s  $1 bin stamp – dragonfly

Recollections – metal jeweled flowers

Wild Orchid Crafts – Pink toned sweetheart blossoms

Pigment ink - black

 



You Brighten My Days Lucy

I photograph my sweet pets often.  Along with their beauty comes a bit of a task getting the right pose and also the right lighting.  Their dark chocolate colored face mask will hide their beauty if you don't get them to look up and remain still for a split second to snap the camera. LOL!   I photograph them without a flash mostly to allow their stunningly gorgeous blue eyes to be the natural color they were born with, instead of having to fix red eyes on my photo program.

I’m so excited about this recent photo of my Lucy (officially named “I Love Lucy”)! 

She was lounging on the kitchen bar.  There was perfect light streaming in and she just looked absolutely precious!

 

Drum roll please…….Tah-Dah!  

I am so proud to show you my precious baby, Lucy!

Normally, I scrap Lucy in very bright colors because she has the rambunctious personality to match!  This time, she looks so sweet and dainty in this photo, so I went with these feelings.  I chose paper from the DCWV “Primrose Stack” because of the buff color background and tiny pale blue flowers – both colors are found on Lucy : ).

 

Lucy really does brighten my days with her playful antics – like jumping up right in the middle of my scrapbooking (usually every single time I’m scrapping-hee hee), stealing flowers in her mouth and running off with them.  It is HILARIOUS!  So, because she is my little bright star, I used the mini North Star stencil and randomly added navy & baby blue bling to some of the centers.

 

The beautiful chipboard script words are custom made by Want2Scrap.  I LOVE ordering customized words and quotes!  I first coated them in gesso; followed by Vanilla acrylic paint then decided to change the color and topped them with pigment ink color “Blue Iris” with highlights of archival dye ink “Frosted Plum”.  This color inspiration came from the beautiful colors in the butterflies I chose to use on this layout. 

 

The flower vine was heavily sprayed with LSG Moon Shadow Mist “Buccaneer Bay Blue” (a gorgeous color! Wow!) – check out the blue in the leaves seen so clearly in the photo below! I also added spritzes of LSG Moon Shadow Mist color “Gossamer Gold”.  To lighten up the dark colors, I brushed the tops of the flowers with pigment ink color “Spring Pansy”; then added Prima pastel roses to the vine for pops of color.

If you look closely you will notice that a very fine cat hair rests among these flowers! LOL!  Lucy is on top of my things every time I scrap looking for something interesting to play with or steal, so I decided to leave it on my page where it belongs : )!

Thanks so much for the visit and hope Lucy made you smile!

Have a great day!  Lisa : )

Products used:

DCWV – The Primrose Stack collection

Recollections – textured paper & blue flower

TCW 6x6 stencil – Mini North Star

Liquitex Flexible Modeling Paste

Recollections mini bling

K&Company - "Brenda Walton" butterflies

Prima – Fairy Belle collection Pixie Vine

Prima flowers – Lil Missy, Mini Sachet “Plum” & “Lagoon”

Lindy’s Stamp Gang – Moon Shadow Mists “Buccaneer Bay Blue” & “Gossamer Gold”

Pigment ink colors - Blue Iris, Spring Pansy, Frosted Plum & Chestnut