Tutorial Tuesday (Individual Style)

September 20, 2022 by

Spotlight Challenge: Recipe

Have you ever taken part in the Recipe Challenge? It’s a lot of fun! Hosted by Sweet Pea Designs‘ Penny, the basic objective is to take the Ingredients List and create a layout. Sometimes, there are additional Directions – for example, “Place one of your photos in the top left quadrant of the layout” – that are required to meet the Challenge goals. Participants can add to the Recipe if they want to, but MUST follow the basic Ingredients List. Let’s take a closer look. Here’s the September Recipe.

There have been quite a few layouts posted for this Challenge. We’ll check them out and see how each GingerScrapper has met the requirements. Each layout is in the order it was uploaded and is linked to the Challenge Gallery so you can see them in greater detail and leave some praise, if you’re so inclined. Just click on the GingerScrapper‘s user name.

First up is Windswept. Her first-day-of-school layout has each of the required ingredients, and she’s added an extra journal card.

This layout from alexandergirl68 ticks all the boxes, and then some. I needed to take a good look to see the ‘bling’ – gold lettering on the large flair. Very subtle!

KatherineWoodin‘s layout seems to be missing the pocket card. Do you see one? I love the visual impact of her arrangement.

I had to look for the bling on jenazs‘ layout too; it’s a subtle glitter spray behind her clusters. The pocket card is the size of a postage stamp, so it’s there but not center-stage. That crocheted border though!!

I LOVE this one from ElkFan! The kit she chose coordinates perfectly with her photo. The glittery paint, the little fishes, the lacy border… just beautiful!

Jill‘s layout just jumps out of the Gallery. The bright colour palette against that dark background is stunning.

The beach photo that inspired khoskins‘ layout really pops and is beautifully supported by her tiny clusters. The very narrow white border around the photo was the right choice. Simple elegance.

Could this layout be any cuter? I’m not sure I see a flair, but kristal has all the other goodies in there.

Using a paint swatch as a pocket card, as basketladyaudrey has done, is genius! And her interpretation of bling, a pearl dangle, is also brilliant.

Lisa Campbell chose to pull colours from her photos, then supplement them with themed elements. Love the sparkly crown that suggests the Magic Kingdom.

Daydreamer understood the assignment. Such a cheerful, colourful layout is an attention-grabber. Glitter paper… YES!

The woodgrain and plaid papers and hinges play to all the fallen leaves in the background of robinoes66‘s photo. Is there a hidden pocket card somewhere?

And last but not least, curio has created a simple but eye-catching layout. I like how she’s used the offset purple frame to draw the eye to the focal point of her photo. And the paper lanterns are amazing!

Have you been playing along with the monthly Challenges? Which one is your favourite? Maybe we’ll feature it next month!

Filed Under: Be Inspired, Behind the Scrapbook, Challenge Spotlight, Creative Style, Digital Scrapbooking, GingerBread Ladies, Tutorials Tagged With:

Tutorial Tuesday (Individual Style)

August 16, 2022 by

Challenge Spotlight: PINTEREST CHALLENGE

The Pinterest Challenge is a new-to-you-in-’22 challenge, brought to us by Lisa Minor. I’ll confess, when I first read the premise for this challenge I wasn’t sure how it would work, although I LOVE Pinterest and have to actively discipline myself or I’d never get anything done. I digress. The August 2022 Pinterest Challenge Gallery shows us how well the challenge works – really well. It works really well. Let’s have a look. In no particular order… the scrappers’ names are linked to their layouts in the Gallery, in case you’re inclined to leave them a comment.

The basic premise is that Lisa provides a pin (or several) she’s saved to one of her Pinterest boards as inspiration, with a brief description of what she’d like to see contained in the layouts participants create. For August 2022, she provided this image, followed by: “This pin says to me “beach, seaside, vacation time, travel, elegant, relax and make memories”. So what does it say to you? Scrap it!” 

First out of the box is this layout by garrynkim. Can you see which aspects of the pin were chosen? Of course you can… the mood, the water and the colour palette are right there.

This layout from bkasko also features water, and the theme of rest and relaxation. I really like how her photos all have the waterfall in them, and how she’s masked her large group photo.

Oh look! B2N2Scraps has water photos too! I sense a trend. She’s also incorporated the colour palette from Lisa‘s photo. I just love the water droplets in the background here.

More water! These underwater photos are amazing!! The tropical sea elements robinoes66 has clustered around her photos mesh really well with the topic of the photos and she’s also pulled colour from Lisa‘s image. Strong work!

I’m starting to think water is an integral part of vacation… if I only had these layouts to define the word, that would be the most obvious aspect, amirite? I’ve gotta say kristal, that’s one HUGE pond! The colours from Lisa‘s image are there too.

Water sets the scene for basketladyaudrey too. She was inspired by the making memories part of Lisa‘s impressions. That woodgrain paper reminds me of a dock, and she’s pulled colour from her photos into her choice of papers and elements.

Even mary-lynne has included water in her layout, but more as a backdrop to their leisurely breakfast. Her colour choices echo her photo beautifully and she’s masked her large photo perfectly.

pjm117 took her inspiration from both the watery view and to a lesser extent, the colour palette. I love the quotes she’s used for her word strips… as I wiggle my bare toes.

Ah! A layout that was inspired by the food in the image… both are focused on breakfast. route66 kept it simple, with the breakfast photos taking the spotlight.

KarenDiamond really understood the assignment! Beach, vacation, relax, memories… they’re all in there – without literal water – and the kit she used screams summer and heat.

The summery colour palette of grannyNKy‘s layout, and  yes… water, meet the criteria for the challenge too. They look like they really had a great time on the lake.

Last, but not least, this layout from DianeInOz went all the way down the vacation-making-memories path. The incorporation of a lot of photos tells a story of a busy, fun-filled day and the few elements she used to embellish them kept the overall impact from being overwhelming. Truly a case of less-is-more!

What would your layout look like if you took up this challenge? I’m not a beach person, but I do enjoy breakfast overlooking a scenic view.

Filed Under: Be Inspired, Be Pinspired, Behind the Scrapbook, Challenge Spotlight, Creative Style, Digital Scrapbooking, Tutorials Tagged With:

Tutorial Tuesday (Individual Style)

July 19, 2022 by

Challenge Spotlight: Daily Download

PDF Version : https://bit.ly/3zE9jwD

GingerScraps is, without a doubt, the most generous digital scrapping store on the web. There are SO MANY freebies!!! The monthly Daily Download is just one of them. Each day for the entire month, pieces of a FREE kit are provided to readers on the GingerScraps Blog (right here!) so by the end of the month, you have a whole kit. (Don’t worry, If you missed a few days’ DLs, the kit will be available for purchase in the GS Store later.) But it gets even better… the following month, that same free kit is the basis for a GingerScraps Daily Download Challenge. For the month of July 2022, the kit in question is CarolW Designs‘s Way to Grow (linked to the bundle).

It looks to me like Carol‘s kit was a huge hit with our scrappers. There are 20 layouts in the Daily Download Gallery already and there are still 12 days in the month! Let’s check them out – in random order. (Each layout is linked to the Gallery via the scrapper’s user name so you can drop in a little praise for the ones you like best.)

Our first sample is from willow. I love all the white space here. She’s taken only a small handful of the elements in the kit and created a beautiful, calm layout.

I like how chigirl has melded some grunge via her choice of papers and paint splatters with the flowery prettiness of the elements into this loveliness.

wendeeds has pulled colour from her photos and used coordinating elements and papers to create her fun Date Night layout.

I salute the dedication of people like makeyesup who create a new themed desktop for their computer every month!

202207 Calendar

How sweet is this? PixyGirl has used the Artsy Bits from the bundle to create a secret garden with a delightful little person in it.

This layout by NHSoxGirl is another gorgeous white space layout with a sparing use of elements. When you don’t have photos that work well with a kit, but you’re dying to use it anyway, you can always convert a fave photo into black and white.

Lucky for hiddenartist, she had a perfect photo! Her clusters and shadowing are top-drawer.

This layout from Danissa makes good use of the Artsy Bits and one of the grungy Edges in the bundle combined with a lovely cluster.

Sweetpea2020 lets the papers do the heavy lifting here. The stitching adds an earthy touch.

Look at how Alasandra has clustered these flowers so the kitty seems to be sniffing one. Beautiful!

The paper strips tie all of roxana‘s photos together and the clusters enhance them, leading the eye from photo to photo.

The vintage feel of this layout from kabrak1207 is quite pleasing. I’m such a sucker for old photos…

But then… bagheertje pops up with this brand-new photo of a brand-new human showcased by a lovely, grungy but extremely simple layout.

The kit’s palette seems tailor-made for this chipmunk’s portrait and bumblebeee has framed it exquisitely with papers.

For another delectable white space layout, look no farther! The photo dhariana chose pulls colour from the kit, her choice of background paper makes it pop, and her brush use enhances the overall image. Spectacular!

LidiaG has created another grungy-gorgeous-great-white-space layout here. The large cluster draws the viewer right to the eyes of that sweet child in the photo.

I’m at a loss for words when I look at this layout from Jill. She’s skillfully clustered the elements in a natural arrangement, and divided the photo over two frames in such a way that it’s the focus. There’s a lot going on, but in the BEST way!

Every picture tells a story, but sometimes it needs a little support from the wings. AJsRandom explains and balances her photo in a minimalist layout full of movement.

in her layout, wvsandy has created a beautiful frame for her prayer, and I’m pretty sure she’s used every element in the basic kit but the flair, bead spill and bottle cap.

Last but not least, alta2014 has pulled from various parts of the bundle to create a lovely, soft layout that enhances her photo. The messy stitching adds a nice casual touch.

Are you enjoying the monthly Individual Style/Challenge Spotlight posts? I find myself inspired every time I write one. Seeing how others interpret a challenge and use a defined set of tools so creatively really gets my mojo motor revving. Time to get some scrappin’ done!

PDF Version : https://bit.ly/3zE9jwD

Filed Under: Be Inspired, Behind the Scrapbook, Challenge Spotlight, Creative Style, Daily Download, Digital Scrapbooking, Digital Scrapbooking Freebies, GingerBread Ladies, Tutorials Tagged With:

Tutorial Tuesday (Individual Style)

June 21, 2022 by

Challenge Spotlight: Back It Up with ADB Designs

PDF Version: https://bit.ly/3R85Xdc

Today we’re going to dig into the Back It Up Challenge brought to you each month by Diane of ADB Designs. She likes to remind us to BACK UP our photos so they don’t disappear into the ether and has built this challenge around that reminder. Each month, she chooses a theme for participants to think about while they’re reviewing their files. This month the theme she chose is “reflection”. There are two main definitions for “reflection”, the main one being the concrete “image seen in a mirror or shiny surface”. The other is  “serious thinking or careful consideration”. The layouts you’ve created for this Challenge very closely conform to one or the other of those definitions, as you’ll see. As usual, each layout is linked to the Gallery so you can offer the scrappers your praise. Click on the scrapper’s name and you’ll zip right into the Gallery.

We’ll start with the shiny surfaces. Branma‘s layout doesn’t actually SHOW a reflected image, but she describes one pretty clearly in the text she added to her post in the Challenge thread, “My sister’s and I all favor each other and our lovely mother, even facial recognition program mistake us for each other. It’s funny to catch a glimpse in the mirror and think one of my sisters has come to visit.”

If there’s anything more beautiful than a waterlily, it’s a waterlily AND its reflection, as kabrak1207 shows us here.

I love how mary-lynne has this photo of reflection that she’s both blended and cleverly overlaid on her title. That’s running away with a theme right there!

I don’t know anybody who doesn’t love seeing autumn’s best colours reflected in still water. kimberlyschiehahn lets those colours take centre-stage here.

This layout by TheLethargicPoet (aka Shilo) is stunningly gorgeous. And it covers both definitions!!

Katherine Woodin‘s layouts are ALWAYS given serious consideration; she documents all the minutiae of life in Project 52-style. With this layout she’s also giving a nod to images in a shiny surface.

And then we have gnana96. She’s been very creative with her title here, creating a reflection of it, as well as showing off the reflected images of these flamingos.

basketladyaudrey has laid out the process of choosing which of her son’s t-shirts deserves a spot on his quilt, which was through serious consideration of their merits.

This lemonade stand was the subject of some serious thinking for Kristi Martin. Probably both before and after the fact. 😉

Rhewko chose the lyrics of a song to act as her journaling for this wedding layout.

Weddings seem to trigger a lot of reflection! Daydreamer reminisced about her own wedding while looking at her sister’s wedding photos.

And what is more likely to bring about reflection that our relationships with the Creator, as etycz has documented?

I often find myself giving serious consideration to what needs doing in my garden. much like grannyNky does with her layout.

I feel like pjm117 is sending us all a message about finding the silver lining in the COVID cloud.

And finally, ranchcreations takes the most literal reflective approach to a quote to derive some inspiration and guidance.

Wow. This is the 10th Challenge Spotlight post. Do you find them interesting? Have you seen something you’d like to emulate? Are you inspired to bring your own Individual Style to a challenge? It always amazes me the different ways each scrapper interprets a Challenge. Awesome!!

Remember, if there’s something you’d like to learn and can’t find a suitable tutorial, you can reach out to me via Private Message any time. Here’s a link to my mailbox: ObiJanKenobi  I get email notifications that I have a PM waiting, so I’ll see it right away and can start planning for you!

PDF Version: https://bit.ly/3R85Xdc

Filed Under: Be Inspired, Behind the Scrapbook, Challenge Spotlight, Creative Style, Digital Scrapbooking, Spotlight Challenge, Tutorials Tagged With:

Tutorial Tuesday (Individual Style)

May 17, 2022 by

Challenge Spotlight: Perfectly Paired 

PDF Version: https://bit.ly/3NEtX4Y

Have you given any thought to taking part in the Perfectly Paired challenge brought to us monthly by Dandelion Dust Designs? We’ve already talked about combining two templates into a single creative layout earlier this month, so let’s look at five layouts and see how the scrappers did it. Each layout is linked to the Gallery via the scrapper’s user name, so please check them out and leave them some love. [Editor’s note: Jan had some issues with the Gallery today and might have missed some entries. She blames the two firmware updates her laptop forced this week. Mea culpa!]

First up is this artsy blend from Karen Diamond. For her layout she melded a template from Neia Scraps Artsy You Volume 2 and Jumpstart Designs Caught in the Act: Friendship. Take a minute and see if you can figure out which parts are which.

Next is khoskins‘ layout, where she’s used a template from the GingerBread Ladies’ Fruity Fun and Connie Prince’s Travelogue Hawaii. I think you’ll see instantly how she’s combined them.

Pixel Palette mashed up a template from Kristmess’s Single Page Layered Templates Volume 5 with a Miss Fish template I was unable to find in the Shop, but I have an image for it. You’ll easily see what came from which.

I like how Katherine Woodin melded two templates and still has a clean and tidy layout with lots of white space. She uses one of Connie Prince’s Full Circle Volume 11 templates with a free template from Miss Fish that was part of the A Love for Layout Templates Blog Train in December 2021*.

And last, we have this beauty from glee. The templates she blended came from Miss Fish’s Just the Basics and her 2017 Holiday Swap templates. Both those sets have been retired.

Now that you’ve seen some examples of how this template mash-up game is played, does it make you more confident in your ability to do it? I really hope so! You can really expand your repertoire and your stash.

* So… if you’ve never heard of A Love for Layout Templates, you’ve been missing out! If you’re a Facebook member, you can find the Group with the link above. The Group‘s purpose is to showcase the infinite versatility of templates, as laid out in their Group Rules. Every other month they run a Blog Train or Hop, and each stop has a free template attached. Of course, like with all freebies, there will be some you would never use, and others that just don’t suit your style. But you won’t know if you don’t check it out, and if you only download the ones you love, you still come out ahead!

Next week I’ll be sharing another Quick Trick with you. See you then!!

PDF Version: https://bit.ly/3NEtX4Y

Filed Under: Be Inspired, Behind the Scrapbook, Challenge Spotlight, Creative Style, Digital Scrapbooking, Digital Scrapbooking Freebies, Tutorials Tagged With:

Tutorial Tuesday (Individual Style)

April 19, 2022 by

April Quote Challenge with CathyK

PDF Version: https://bit.ly/3vkBOym

Yes, we’ve made it to the third Tuesday of April – time for the monthly Challenge Spotlight! Last weekend we had a rare confluence of high holy days with Easter, Ramadan (which is ongoing until May 1) and Passover. I daresay a lot of us were busy!! But even so there are some great examples of individual style in the Quote Challenge Gallery. Each month CathyK provides a quote around which the layouts are to be based. In the past she’s created word art with the quote, and the last couple of months, she’s had some very cool message boards with the quotes on them. If the quote isn’t actually used in the layout, the scrapper must explain how it inspired her. Let’s take a look… [narrator’s note: Each layout is linked to the Gallery; click on the scrapper’s user name and you’ll be whisked off to the layout so you can indicate your admiration.]

This layout from poki04 is stunning! She used the quote as a border around that amazing long-exposure photo of the night sky. The use of muted cool colours creates a beautiful, monochromatic layout.

I like how at first glance this layout of dragonstarr‘s looks quite abstract, with so many repeating shapes. then, once you read the text border, you see beyond the obvious.

khoskins‘ layout just POPS! She’s got starry skies everywhere. I love her use of complimentary colours, blue and orange. Eye-catching for sure!

What does one do when one hasn’t any photos to match the quote’s theme? Go photoless and let the quote do all the heavy lifting, as Got2Scrap did!

NHSoxGirl really ran with the rainbow theme! We lived in Montréal for 3 years, but it was before the Biosphere was constructed. My daughter has visited it with our grandchildren, who loved it. Here it’s showcased by both the rainbow and the elements arranged around it. Cleverly, the dark navy band of paper hints at its location on Ile-Ste-Hélène.

Look at how nimble4u has used some symbols in place of words in the quote. It’s pretty clear from the photos they’re looking for rainbows.

It’s not often one is able to see both ends of a rainbow, and gmae even points that out in her journaling! She’s created a journal card with the quote to support the theme.

Look at all that white space! 01lousmith has highlighted her whimsical photo so perfectly, and the use of the paint swatch as a journaling tag is genius.

DianeInOz has taken the rain angle and run with it. She kept the embellishment to a minimum, which is a good idea when the background paper is boldly patterned as this one is.

Is there anything more joyful than a child jumping in puddles? Windswept has captured that joy in so many ways. Her nod to the quote is the sticker she created.

And finally, this masterpiece by hichchei… it’s so moody and just a little spooky. The stars are there, but not obviously so, which works beautifully with her vision and with how she’s used the quote.

Don’t forget to let the ladies know you like their layouts! See you next Tuesday.

PDF Version: https://bit.ly/3vkBOym

Filed Under: Be Inspired, Behind the Scrapbook, Challenge Spotlight, Creative Style, Digital Scrapbooking, Tutorials Tagged With:

Tutorial Tuesday: Individual Style

March 15, 2022 by

Making Magic with Brushes

Yes, it’s the third Tuesday of March already. It’s a sad day here, as our daughter said goodbye to her furbaby Lucy this morning. We knew this day was coming, and tried to prepare, but it’s not that simple, is it? I’ll be working on a tribute layout later as my therapy, and seeing all the amazing ways our GingerScrappers have created magic with this month’s Challenge Brush has given me some inspiration.

When I chose these layouts to show you, I was looking for uniqueness, and I had a lot to choose from. Each layout will be linked to the Gallery; the GingerScraps user names are your links so if you’re inclined, you can pop over and give them some praise. But first, let’s talk about the Challenge. This year, the host for our Brush Challenge is Alexis Design Studio. She’s brilliant with creating brushes, so we’re all very lucky she’s giving them away! The Challenge is to use the brush she provided (free) on a layout, and there are some very creative ways to use brushes. Let’s have a look.

This layout by wendeeds is filled with shamrocks. I had to look hard to see the brush – it’s behind the journaling! I thought she’d used patterned paper.

Here, pippin has turned the brush into confetti and it’s showering the couple with luck.

I love how Rhewko has blended the brush into her background and added a touch of gold leaf to it. It’s both subtle and obvious.

Here, jcfdelaware has overlaid the brush with her photo mask, blending them. The little boy blowing on the dandelions is blowing the brush’s shamrocks into the universe.

Look at the tone-on-tone beauty of this layout from ysgbo! The brushes are randomly positioned, with the layout divided diagonally. The upper right are embossed and the lower left are debossed. Brilliant!

Dannisa has the brush repeating and gradually shrinking, with the shamrock pouf overlapping and creating a cloud of parachutes.

My eyes went right to this layout in the album. The way Grace has turned one of her photos into a pencil sketch is lovely, and who isn’t drawn to sunflowers right now? But it’s the way the brush seems to mingle with the paper scatter that is the real genius here.

The way barbaraj has duplicated the brush is clever; it looks like she die-cut them from paper and carefully positioned each tiny piece.

Macsandy makes the brush an integral part of her background, and has pulled the green from other aspects of her background to create a seamless image. Using a black-and-white photo was a great idea.

For her layout, Effie4037 used the brush in a very subtle way. I like that she chose to echo the mint green from her border paper rather than the more traditional green of her title strip. The brush ties her photos together and grounds them to the background beautifully.

The way willow‘s brush explodes into the layout makes it so hard to know where the brush ends and her photo begins. Great choice to invert the colour where the brush extends into the central gray paper strip too!

To me, the brushwork on garrynkim‘s layout looks like a stencil applied with a very gentle hand.

At first, I thought Jill had put her layout into the wrong album. So I took a closer look. The brush is there… russet and blended into the old wood background and providing a landing pad for that gorgeous cluster.

At first glance, you might think this layout from PixyGirl has popcorn on it. But it’s the brush, in white and with a pearl glued to many of the shamrocks.

Tsubasa went to a lot of trouble to blend the brush into her photo. Look carefully at how she’s lightened the main part of the photo, framed that focal seedhead and then augmented the blowing seeds with the brush. Amazing!

By blending the brush into this dreamy, soft watercolour paper, wvwendy has really added oomph to her layout.

I saved this version from linweb for last. She used it very cleverly to create a St Patrick’s Day card and I LOVE it!!

I hope you’ve gotten some flashes of inspiration from this stroll through the Gallery. I know I did!

PDF Version: https://bit.ly/3KKY6Oz

Filed Under: Be Inspired, Behind the Scrapbook, Challenge Spotlight, Creative Style, Digital Scrapbooking, Digital Scrapbooking Freebies, Tutorials Tagged With:

Tutorial Tuesday (Individual Style)

February 15, 2022 by

Challenge Spotlight: INSPIRATION

Yes, it’s the third Tuesday of February already! This month and next start on a Tuesday, so here we are… looking at a Challenge and the Individual Style each of us brings to a common goal. With the month really only halfway over – and both the Olympics and the Super Bowl squeezed in there, it was a challenge in itself to find one with enough examples to make a good post. But not to worry, the Inspiration Challenge, with Memory Mosaic, fills the bill. Before I go on, these Challenge Spotlights aren’t only meant to encourage you to give them a try, but also to help with the logistics. There are several layouts displayed in the thread that aren’t found in the Challenge Gallery. Posting your layouts to the Challenge Gallery is a required element for proper credit toward Challenge Rewards. So don’t forget that step! Now, let’s talk Inspiration…

Joy’s theme for this month’s challenge is SHAPES. But she also wants a brief explanation of how the participants decided which shapes to include. There are some unique takes on this one, and my descriptions aren’t going to replace the scrappers’ own words. You’ll have to check out the layouts in the Gallery to see those. Each layout is linked to the Gallery through the scrappers’ names, so please do drop by and leave them some praise.

First up is this one by B2N2Scraps. She has a variety of geometric shapes here: circles, rectangles and parallelograms. (Thank you, Google, for helping me out with the names of some shapes that I’ve forgotten.)

What has Pippin got going on here? I see hexagons, triangles, trapezoids, pentagons, circles and rectangles. Oh, and some square gems too!

In SusanSays‘ layout the predominant shape is the triangle, but it isn’t the only one. I see squares, rectangles, circles, trapezoids, a couple of ellipses and a star.

Tbear has used lots of circles, but she’s also got some pyramids there, some trapezoids and rectangles too.

This layout by greenfiend27 is too clever by far! There are a plethora of trapezoids, triangles, rectangles, squares and at least one pentagon in there. I almost overlooked the tiny circles!

I like how simple mdusell’s layout is, but still contains a number of shapes: triangles, a parallelogram, rectangles, circles and two overlapping trapezoids.

Trapezoids seem to be a very popular shape! pjm117 has included some circles and triangles, as well as a couple of rectangles too.

There’s a lot going on in Lisa Campbell’s layout, but a close look shows triangles, parallelograms, circles, rectangles and some overlapping trapezoids.

Dovedesign made it easy. Circles and rectangles are obvious; ellipses are less-so… they’re the beads!

Basketladyaudrey made it easy too, big squares, rectangles, a big circle and two overlapping trapezoids are there.

Here, lousmith went with just the square of her background and LOTS of circles.

Last but not least, princess-scrap has circles and rectangles and one solitary square photo.

Great layouts, ladies!!

PDF Version : https://bit.ly/351E7f8

Filed Under: Be Inspired, Behind the Scrapbook, Challenge Spotlight, Creative Style, Digital Scrapbooking, Tutorials Tagged With:

Tutorial Tuesday (Individual Style)

January 18, 2022 by

Photo Mask Challenge with PrelestnayaP

Omigosh, the 2022 Challenges are fabulous! There are some new ones that I’m still familiarizing myself with, but I wanted to highlight the new-for-2022 Photomask Challenge brought to us by the incredibly talented PrelestnayaP Design (Irina). I’m always intrigued by how each of us interprets a Challenge based on a single, specific element and how we arrive at such unique results. For this Challenge, Irina has provided this photo mask that must be part of the layout.

I visited the Challenge Gallery and randomly (well, not exactly) selected a dozen layouts to share with you. I’ll offer my critique and why it caught my eye. Each layout will be linked to the Gallery so you can take a closer look if you like, and maybe leave a little praise for the scrapper too. Just click on the scrapper’s name!

The first layout is from etycz. She’s blended the plaid paper with a snowflake paper quite seamlessly by placing the mask the full width of the page. I suspect there’s another mask at play here too, under the Challenge mask. Then she concealed the edges of the mask with clusters. Beautiful!

PixyGirl has used the mask to create a paint swatch, and then used it again for her photo. See how the photo follows the contours of the larger painted mask?

The way chris01 has used the mask is to focus the eye on the heron in her photo, an effect she amplified by framing it with foliage. It looks like it could just fly away!

I love this layout by HalinaMiga. She’s used the mask to make the skier look like he’s surrounded by blowing snow. The stone cottage, fir tree and leafless bush with birds in it create such a charming image.

What drew me to Pippin‘s layout is the overall vintage look she’s obtained by using the mask to blend her sepia-toned photo into a dark brown background. It’s hard to tell where the photo ends and the cup-and-saucer-pitcher cluster starts.

Jill‘s layout is another example of flawless blending. The grungy paper she chose for her background is an inspired choice. Her clusters enhance the overall look of the layout and the whole effect is amazing.

Here, gmae has created an echo of sorts with the build-up of colour variation. It reflects the principle behind the cairns in her photo, careful stacking to achieve a stable foundation. And what a whimsical touch, tucking the photographer behind her cluster.

Wait! What?!! How clever of fontaine to cut the mask and rearrange the pieces to create a mask map of California! (Please tell me I’m not the only one who sees it…) Her layout is super-simple, but eye-catching nonetheless.

Katherine Woodin documents all the little moments of each day through photos and layouts. Here, she’s used the mask to frame that beautiful snow-covered mountain. The kit she chose pulls colours from her photo so accurately!

I’m positive Karen Diamond has used multiple brushes and masks for her layout. I zoomed in on it and there are so many layers of paint and snippets of paper, then a stack of paper pieces, the Challenge mask and her photo. That cluster is exquisite – balancing out the photo stack without taking centre-stage.

For her layout, Lisa Campbell has used the mask to create a paint swatch that ties the the whole layout together. Her clusters are perfectly positioned to put the focus on her photo.

And finally, NHSoxGirl has evoked a sense of dreaminess and imagination with both the photo she’s masked and the elements she’s surrounded it with that wouldn’t be there if she’d simply framed her photo.

Examining all these layouts has given me some inspiration for my own Challenge layout. Off the dig through my supplies!

PDF Version : https://bit.ly/3GIbxx8

 

Filed Under: Be Inspired, Behind the Scrapbook, Challenge Spotlight, Digital Scrapbooking, Digital Scrapbooking Freebies, Tutorials Tagged With: ,

Tutorial Tuesday (Individual Style)

December 21, 2021 by

Challenge Spotlight: Miss Fish Memory Mix Up Challenge

Here’s the fourth installment of Challenge Spotlight. This month we’re going to dive into Miss Fish’s Memory Mix It Challenge. Every month, Juli (aka Miss Fish) presents us with a different Challenge focusing on preserving our memories. For December, she said, “This month’s challenge is a Recipe Challenge. No, not the kind where I give you different “ingredients” to put on your page. The kind where you scrap your favorite recipe. It can be one for the holidays, a family hand me down recipe or a new favorite. Your choice!” I thought it was the perfect topic for this month and also for this Blog post! I’m going to share a baker’s dozen (plus one – see what I did there? 🙂 ) of YOUR recipe layouts. Some of them sound pretty tasty! [Each layout is hyperlinked to its location in the Gallery in case you’d like a closer look or to leave some love.] Let’s have a look at how this Challenge shakes out!

First up, gmae shares her taco seasoning with us. It’s pretty similar to the one I make, and her “recipe card” is packed with taco-related embellishments.

I LOVE this one from jam-on-toast! The colour palette is so wintery, and that photo makes my mouth water. The tag tucked behind the recipe is telling the truth. And can we talk about the way she created her title – it looks like meringue!!

What caught my attention with curio‘s recipe is the rustic look it has. It’s a brilliant choice for a cobbler recipe, right? But that photo… yummmmmmmmmm!

How amazing is it that linweb has this recipe in her mother’s handwriting? (With one small addition. 😉 ) She has a lovely memory of the first time she made the pie and has embellished her layout with some pecans.

I think most of us have made sugar cookies as children or with children at least once. chigirl has photos to prove it for her family. The kit she chose for this layout is particularly appropriate, and let’s talk for a second about using a striped paper border to pick up on the striped sweater!

Everybody has their own favourite hot chocolate recipe (and some of us make it from a tin) but how many of us has a beautiful winter layout with ours printed on it? I’ll have to try hichchei‘s method one of these days.

CathyS has cleverly provided us with a bakery-worthy recipe for chocolate chip cookies. I love how she’s surrounded her photo with all those baking-related elements.

This one is a historical recipe dating back to 1914! The original pecan pie wasn’t the syrupy custard packed with nuts that we know today, and it had meringue. The way fontaine presents the recipe has a heritage look to it.

<record scratch> Time to move away from the sugar for a second. Daydreamer‘s recipe is a savoury one, set in eye-catching yellow.

Okay, back to sweet! Flighty-188 makes her own animal cookies using a 60+ year-old recipe from her mother-in-law. I love how she found a baking-themed kit to match the cookie colours.

Pups-r-Paps has a savoury recipe for some luscious lemon chicken; it sounds similar to a scampi recipe I’ve made and loved. She kept her layout simple so the photos could be the focus.

Family traditions are what connect us to both the past and the future. Reading alexandergirl68‘s journaling brings that message home pretty clearly! On special occasions when I was a child my mom used to make lime Jell-o salad with apples and celery in it. None of us liked it and it eventually faded into memory to be replaced by peanut brittle, of all things! I found a fool-proof microwave recipe and became the maker-of-peanut-brittle-for-all. I could make it in my sleep.

What could be more “holidays” than snickerdoodles? This is basketladyaudrey‘s version. I notice she doesn’t put nutmeg in them, so I might have to try them! [But I’d halve the recipe, since I should NOT eat 8 dozen cookies before they go stale…]

And lastly, Pixel Palette brings us a recipe for lemon cookies that sound am-AZING!

The Studio Recipe Card II template

I didn’t have lunch and now I’m STARVING!! What family favourite recipe do you know off by heart? Which of these will find their way into your collection?

PDF Version : https://bit.ly/3EVLYXL

 

Filed Under: Be Inspired, Behind the Scrapbook, Challenge Spotlight, Creative Style, Digital Scrapbooking, GingerBread Ladies, Tutorials Tagged With:
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