SISTER Sunday - September 30th

Welcome to our new sister, Wendi Wright!

Tell us about your family: I have been married to my wonderful husband for 14 years and we have 3 children ages 8, 6, and 4. We also live very close to our extended families so we spend a lot of time doing activities with our families. We love spending time together and love the outdoors. All three of my kids are involved in sports and I am a high school cheerleading coach, so we spend a lot of time at practices and games of some sort. We are also animal lovers and have 3 dogs, a cat, 2 hamsters, and a bearded dragon.

How/Why did you start scrapbooking? I have always collected things for scrapbooks for as long as I can remember. I didn’t really get into scrapbooking the way it is now until the birth of my first son in 1998.

How long have you been scrapbooking? About 9 years
What is it about scrapbooking that you really love? Being able to take time to focus on the moments of life that fly by way to fast.

How many hours a week do you scrapbook? I aim to spend at least 2-3 hours each week, but between practices and homework, and the store, sometimes this is difficult.

How long does it take you to complete a layout? Anywhere from an hour to 2-3 hours depending on techniques, inspiration, etc.

Where do you get your inspiration? My kids, Nature, music, - lots of places

Anything else you want to share? I am privileged to be the owner of the online scrapbooking store and community – Scrapbook Playground. I absolutely love being a part of this industry, plus having the store sure helps feed my addiction!!!

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Here is Wendi's layout from Week 23:

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Check out Wendi's gallery and blog. Don't forget to leave a comment and let her know you've stopped by :-)

Sisterhood.... a celebration of the he{ART}

A Little about Timi....

How long does it take you to complete a layout? It depends on my mood and the kind of layout I am making. It can be as short as 30 minutes or as long as one whole day!

Where do you get your inspiration? First and foremost, from my kids…beautiful things (ribbons, fibers, papers, buttons,etc.) and seeing wonderful scrapbook pages from magazines and websites.

Describe your scrap space. Do you like/dislike it? When we moved to our new house last April 2007, I made it sure that I would have a scrap area. I have three layers of shelves that hold all my scrapbook stuff. The lowest layer serves as my working table. My collection of ribbons, buttons and flowers are contained in jars, sorted by color. I also have different sized boxes which contain photos, stickers, greeting cards, post cards, etc. My papers are sorted by manufacturer and/or color.

What are your favourite colours to scrapbook with? I don’t have a particular favourite, It mainly depends on the mood and theme of my layouts.

Do you enjoy other crafts and/or hobbies? I love reading self-help books.

What scrapbook magazines do you read? I just love reading Memory Makers, Creating Keepsakes and BHG Scrapbook, etc.

Are you an organized or messy scrapper? I’m trying to be organized but always end up being messy. LOL!

SKETCH Saturday-Sept. 29-Jen del Muro

Jen del Muro is our featured sketch artist today! She has a great sketch for us-a card sketch. She also created a card as an example.

Here what Jen says:

Hi there! My name is Jen del Muro, aka "genie1314" over at SCS. I live in Saginaw, TX with my most wonderful husband, cutie-patootie daughter, 2 dogs and a cat.I have a passion for all things paper crafting, but my true love is stamping. What once was all bundled in a 3 drawer organizer, has turned into an entire room packed with paper, stamps, ink, tools and embellishments.

If you would like to see more of what I create in my studio, head on over to my site, I HEART to Stamp.

I also am honored to say that I am an alumni of the Dirty Dozen Design Team on SCS. I currently design for My Favorite Things and Verve Visual. In addition to design work, I also write as a Staff Reporter for Craft Critique.

A big thanks to Dea for inviting me here! Have fun creating with this sketch. I am looking forward to seeing what everyone comes up with. Happy stamping!!

Here are Jen's sketch and card! I challenge you today to do a FALL-related card using her sketch.

Look at her awesome card! I love it!Thanks Jen!!! And as always be sure to let us know that you have tried Jen's card! Post it to your blog or gallery and leave us a comment with your link so we can see it too!

Sisterhood...a celebration of the he{ART}

FOTO Friday

During my time spent scrapbooking, I often notice that there are not too many pictures of ME! Usually this happens when one adult in the family is the one that always has the camera. Lately, though, my hubby has been taking a bigger interest in photography, and I like it! He has different ideas of what makes a good photo, and he also gets some pictures with me in them :-)

So, if you're the one always behind the lens, think about letting someone else have the camera for a bit. Hand it over to your partner or, if you're brave, to one of your kids! You just might be surprised -- kids offer a fresh, new perspective on things.

TEXT Thursday-Sept 27th

Thanks to Timi for our challenge today!!!

This for a blog journaling challenge:
Was there ever a time in your life when you believed in fairy tales or even wished that you would be a princess living happily ever after with your Prince Charming or a damsel in distress being saved by a brave prince from the wicked witch?
Let this wish of yours come true…All you have to do is create a scrapbook layout based on your favorite fairy tale or better, make your own. Journal about it and remember to include it in your layout. Don’t forget that it is YOUR FAIRY TALE so you take the center stage. You can be the princess that you wish to be or a fairy godmother who grants wishes or any fairy tale character of your liking.

Here is the my real-life fairy tale that I would like to share with you…

Once upon a time, a baby girl was sent from the Heavens to the Land of Two in a castle where King Benjamin and Queen Elnora lived, two people chosen by the Divine Being to be the parents of the baby girl whom they named Maria Fatima, the Princess of the Land.Two years later, another addition to the royal family came. This time a baby boy whom they called Benjamin, Jr. Unfortunately, the Queen fell ill so there was no choice but to entrust Prince’s care to the Queen’s parents -–Teofisto and Patrocinia in a land not so far away from the Land of Two. The Queen’s two sisters, Brenda and Nerissa painstakingly took good care of Prince Benjamin, Jr.Several years passed and the royal family was already complete with the addition of two more boys - Princes John Dominic and Jerome whom the Princess played with, fought with and basically grew up with.The Princess turned out to be a fine lady admired by many because of the two qualities she possessed - intelligence and leadership. She was always on the top of her class and held top positions in school organizations. She attended one of finest universities of the land and studied Science.When the Princess was already of age, she fell in love with her Prince Charming - Danilo whom she married on the 2nd month of the year, the love month of February. After two years of blissful marriage, they were blessed with two wonderful children, James Genar and Dannah Marie. Life was not always a bed of roses for the Princess and her two children because Prince Danilo had to be away for years in a very far land for a mission. She kept herself busy with her two great passions - teaching and scrapbooking.Fortunately, two months from now, the Princess’ family will be reunited for good and surely they will all live happily ever after. MFOM OCT.2006

**Note : This is the journaling of my LO (The Land of Two) for the challenge.

Be sure to let us know if you try Timi's challenge! We'd love to see it and read about your fairy tale!

Sisterhood...a celebration of the he{ART}

WEB Wednesday

Wow!!! Look at this blog!! LOVE all the LOs with multi-pictures!!
Mulit-Photo Scrapbook Layouts!!

Go check it out!! What inspiration!!

Here's another AWESOME site I found!!
Who doesn't love a little SCRAP PRAISE??

Sisterhood...a celebration of the he{ART}

Timi's Favorites

Favorite Snack: Pizza and Pasta (with pesto sauce), chocolate cake/brownies

Favorite Drink: Coke, Strawberry Shake

Favorite Paper: Basic Grey, Fancy Pants

Favorite Technique: Hidden journaling (use of hinges and tags) and stitching

Favorite Embellishment: flowers, buttons, ribbons and fibers

Favorite Scrap Tool: Carl paper trimmer

Favorite Adhesive: UHU Twist & Glue, Double-sided tape

Sisterhood.... a celebration of the he{ART}

TEACHING Tuesday - Sept 25

Today's tip comes from our sister, Timi.

One of my favorite techniques to use on my scrapbook layouts is stitching. It gives dimension and texture to my pages. It also adds color and helps in defining lines and borders.

Not only that, if you have buttons to attach to your layout, you can also use this technique. I just love stitching and I'm sure you will, too!

What you need:

a deckler (sort of a ruler with holes),

a paper piercer,

a needle,

threads of different colors

Some tips on stitching:

• Use only colorfast threads like DMC and Anchor so as to avoid fading.


• Avoid using threads intended for sewing clothes as they are sharp and may damage you paper.


• Use a paper piercer to poke holes on your paper. Do this before stitching.


• Do not stitch directly on your paper.


• To save time, you may use a sewing machine to make holes on your paper, just don't thread the needle.

What are the basic types of stitches that you can use on your layout?

running stitch

back stitch

zigzag stitch

you can also attach buttons like this:

Sisterhood.... a celebration of the he{ART}

CHALLENGE Monday...Sept 23rd

Good morning everyone! It's the beginning of a brand new week, the last week in September, can you believe it!!! Wow! And guess what, I'm feeling miserable!!! Yuck, it may be the flu!

The challenge this week is to use the number "2" in the title of your layout OR in the sentiment of a card.

Email your layout to Susan at scoish3ATrogersDOTcom (change the AT to @ and the DOT to . ) by the end of the day, Sunday, Sept 30th to have a chance to become our sister.


Timi's layout:

Deanne's layout:
Here's the link to mine.(It's actually one of my Design Team layouts, so I'm not allowed to post it anywhere yet, hehe!)
Listening to 2unes (I used the "2" instead of a "t"because it's a layout about my twin nephews!)


Carla's layout:

Susan's layout:

Have fun with this challenge!!!!!

Sisterhood...a celebration of the he{ART}

SISTER Sunday - September 23rd

Yeah! Time for a new sister!!

Please welcome Timi Mercado as our "Sister of the Week"!

Timi and her family live in the Philippines.

"I am married for 12 years to my husband Danny. We are blessed with two kids, Jigs (age 12) and Dannah (age 10)"

How/Why did you start scrapbooking? I started my journey to the world of scrapbooking in the year 2000. That year, I completed a scrapbook for my husband as a gift on his 30th birthday, our 11th Valentine’s Day as a couple and 5th Wedding Anniversary. I completed my second scrapbook in 2002 for my son’s preschool years. The following year, National Bookstore (a leading bookstore in the Philippines) launched their first scrapbooking product line (All About Scrapbooking). I happened to purchase one kit and that started my “addiction”. After that time, things have never been the same for me. I started working on my children’s scrapbooks. In 2006, I was introduced to acid free supplies and 12x12 LO’s. Before all my pages were 8.5x11. To date, I have already completed 16 albums for my family.

What is it about scrapbooking that you really love?
Through scrapbooking, I am able to capture and preserve the fond memories of people I love (my family and friends) and document important life events. I believe that the scrapbooks I have created will be a legacy to the future generations of my family. Scrapbooking also sees me through during not so good times. Just seeing what I have accomplished in the past seven years is enough to take my blues away as well as all those stresses.

How many hours a week do you scrapbook? I spend around 2 hours of my weekday nights scrapbooking. During weekends, around 6-8 hours are spent creating scrapbook layouts when I am just at home.

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Here is Timi's layout that she created for Week 22:

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Timi's Blog

Timi's Gallery

Sisterhood.... a celebration of the he{ART}

SKETCH Saturday-Sept. 22nd-Lora Brinkman

Happy Saturday morning everyone!!! Hope you are having a great one so far...

We have a great sketch for you this week! I know, I say that every week but it's so true EVERY WEEK! I must admit I LOVE sketches and they are so inspiring especially when I get in a bit of a rut and don't totally feel like scrapping. A sketch will jump-start me EVEY SINGLE TIME!!!

We have a sketch artist today by the name of LORA BRINKMAN !

Here's what Lora has to say...

Hi all!! My name is Lora Brinkman and I live in Columbia, Missouri with my wonderful husband, Chris, and his 5 year old daughter Callie. I've been scrapping 4 years and I fell in love with it the moment I started. Over the past 4 year years I have really tried to "find myself" through working with various types of products. Finally, it is the decision of everyone that knows me that I am definitely a flower girl. Very few layouts do I create without a floral patterned paper or flowers of some sort. I also LOVE to layer patterned papers and I actually find it more difficult to work with cardstock than anything else.

I love what scrapbooking has brought in to my life. I have made so many great friends. I love staying up late to scrapbook by myself and crop parties with friends are always a blast, but I find I don't get much done! Currently, I am the owner of Sketch Shak. I post a new sketch every Thursday. You can find my work in the galleries at 2Peas, Crop Addict and Ally Scraps (Lora, need the link for this gallery! You didn't provide the link for this one)

I haven't really pursued being published until about a month ago. Shockingly enough, one of the first layouts I submitted was picked up and will be in the January 2008 Memory Makers Magazine. It's amazing how that feeling of recognition can just make your mojo flow!

I am so very honored and excited to be a featured sketch artist for the Sisterhood Of Scrap. I hope you enjoy the sketch and I can't wait to see what you do with it!!

Lora, we are glad to highlight you!

Here is Lora's wonderful sketch! Hope this jump-starts you!!! Get scrapping today, try this sketch! Create a layout, or how about trying it as a card. Let us know if you try it!!!

*I created a layout today based on Lora's sketch. You can see it HERE. I turned the sketch to create my layout!

TEXT Thursday - Sept 20

Seems the Autumn season is almost upon us. Days are cooler, nights are colder! Here in Newfoundland, we've seen some tree leaves turning color already. We're done our last lawn-mowing. The flower beds have been partially cleaned out, except for the fall-blooming flowers. Berries have been picked. Vegetable crops are being harvested.

Ahhhh, Autumn ..... I love it!

For your BLOG challenge this week, why not relate some of your favorite feelings/memories about autumn. You could also share a favorite poem, or a favorite quote.

Here's a poem I like:

Leaves
by Elsie Brady

How silently they tumble down
And come to rest upon the ground
To lay a carpet, rich and rare,
Beneath the trees without a care,
Content to sleep, their work well done,
Colors gleaming in the sun.
At other times, they wildly fly
Until they nearly reach the sky.
Twisting, turning through the air
Till all the trees stand stark and bare.
Exhausted, drop to earth below
To wait, like children, for the snow.

Autumn poems and Fall poems -- There are some nice quotes and short poems here. Great for scrapbook pages!

Don't forget to post a link if you do our blog challenge. We'd love to stop by and visit with you on your blog!

Sisterhood.... a celebration of the he{ART}

About Mandy....

How/Why did you start scrapbooking? I was in a Joann's Fabrics back in 1997..they just started stocking some scrapbook supplies. I looked through some of the magazines and I was hooked. I bought some Paper Pizzaz paper, and some Mrs Grossman's stickers and haven't stopped scrapbooking since.

What is it about scrapbooking that you really love? I love playing with paper, glue and scissors, I love photographs, and I love documenting and preserving the lives of my family. It all comes together with scrapbooking. And it is also social..I have friends in real life that I scrap with, and many on-line friends, too.

How many hours a week do you scrapbook? Maybe two to five hours per week.

How long does it take you to complete a layout? I spend about 10-20 minutes planning a page, then it takes me 30 minutes to an hour to finish.

Where do you get your inspiration? From magazines, websites, and blogs such as this one. I love challenges, too. They inspire me the most.

Describe your scrap space. Do you like/dislike it? When I moved into my present house, it came with a built-in bar in the basement. It is chock-full of my supplies. I love that there is plenty of storage so I can access my things easily, but it's not always fun scrappin' in a basement. Right now, there's a cricket down there, and I can't seem to find it.

Do you enjoy other crafts and/or hobbies? I enjoy cooking, reading, and geneology.

What scrapbook magazines do you read? I have been subscribing to Creative Keepsakes since 1998.

Sisterhood.... a celebration of the he{ART}

WEB Wednesday-Sept. 19

Mandy shared this with us:

"This site has some good ideas for photography. I especially love the craft ideas..a great place to go to do some cool things with your photos.
http://photojojo.com/content/page/2/ "


And, I found this blog last week. I'm not into digital (mainly because I'm on dialup and it would take FOREVER downloading the kits!!!) but I thought those who are digital scrappers would enjoy this blog---
Raspberry Road Designs

Have a great Wednesday, everyone!!!

Sisterhood...a celebration of the he{ART}

TEACHING Tuesday - Sept 18

Today's technique comes from our "sister" MANDY!! Here's what she has to share with us today!!

My scrapbooking technique to share...
Try wiping the back of a transparency with Walnut ink. Let it dry, then you can cut out letters or shapes.
Here is a layout I did using this technique for my title. It would also make nice accent squares or rectangles. Hennepin View. Great technique for nature or masculine pages.

Thanks so much Mandy!!

Sisterhood...a celebration of the he{ART}

CHALLENGE Monday - Sept 17

Hey everyone :-) Time for another challenge!

Your challenge for Week 23 is to add some sort of frame around your photo...... use buttons, flowers, transparency, ribbon.... there are lots of choices. Show us what you can come up with!

Email your layout to Susan at scoish3ATrogersDOTcom (change the AT to @ and the DOT to . ) by the end of the day, Sunday, Sept 23rd to have a chance to become our sister.

Here is what your sisters have created for this challenge.

Mandy's layout -- she handcut a frame out of felt and edged it with paint. Then she used ribbons on the inside. Looks GREAT!

Carla's layout -- I applied paint around my main photo. Also used a wooden frame around a smaller photo.

Deanne's layout -- She added a small frame using a Technique Tuesday piece of chipboard that she inked.

Susan's Layout - She made a frame out of buttons. What a great way to use your stash!!

Sisterhood...a celebration of the he{ART}

SISTER Sunday - September 16th

Time for a new sister!!

Please welcome Mandy Gilbert, from Upstate New York.

Tell us about your family: I am a divorced single mom of three girls-Holly is 11, Gracie is 9 and Miranda is 5.

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Mandy's gallery at Two Peas

Day's Flying By - Mandy's blog

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Favorite Snack: CHEESE AND CRACKERS

Favorite Drink: Dunkin Donuts Caramel Iced Coffee with cream and sugar

Favorite Paper: Die Cuts with a View, Bazzil

Favorite Technique: hand-cutting my own titles and elements, painting everything

Favorite Embellishment: Flowers

Favorite Scrap Tool: My Creative Memory cutting tools and punches. They make great tools.

Favorite Adhesive: I have not graduated beyond the sticky tabs.

Here is Mandy's layout for the challenge for Week 21:

We'll learn more about Mandy during the week.

Sisterhood...a celebration of the he{ART}

SKETCH Saturday-Sept. 15th

Today's sketch artist is Chris Greiser! Check out the beautiful sketches HERE!!!

Here's what Chris has to say:

I've been sketching for a couple of years and have designed for several sites. Currently, I design and sketch for A Page In Time Scrapbook kit club -- Amy's kits totally ROCK!!!

Also, I will be offering my templates for sale at Divine Digital in the near future, too, so please be on the lookout for them! Not to worry, though, I'll still be sketching on my blog!

Of course, I also scrap;) You can find my work at Scraplovers...

Thanks for featuring me!!!

Here's a great sketch for you all to try today!!!! If you don't get around to it today, be sure to bookmark it and try is SOON!!! I just might get a chance to do it today, if my hubby doesn't grab me to do some work around the house! Yuck!!! haha!

Post a link to your layout in the comments if you try Chris' sketch!! We'd love to see it!

Sisterhood...a celebration of the he{ART}

Speaking of black/white photos....

... that is one of Willow's favorites :-)

Anything else you want to share? I love using black and white photos at the moment, and one photo per layout...the black and white photos go so well with any colour, esp bright pink!!!

Describe your scrap space. Do you like/dislike it? It's in the corner of our living room, and is slowly expanding outwards!!!I love that area, but would totally love a whole room!

What are your favourite colours to scrapbook with? I like dark cardstock and bright colours...my fave at the moment is using bright pink posca pen!

Do you enjoy other crafts and/or hobbies? I like altering 'my little ponies'!

What scrapbook magazines do you read? Scrapbook Inspirations and Scrapbook Magazine(UK based mags)

How thick is your cardstock and paper stash? Too thick!..I cannot stop buying cardstock and paper!!!

Are you an organized or messy scrapper? Messy!

Sisterhood.... a celebration of the he{ART}

FOTO Friday-Sept 14th

Do you take black and white photos?
I am absolutely in love with the mood and atmosphere that black and white shots evoke.
Do some experimenting with black and white photographs and post an image or two on your blog or gallery and post a link here for us to see!

TEXT Thursday - Week 22

I was searching around the net the other evening trying to decide on what I wanted to post for today!!

I thought about my own blog and how I seem to have a hard time writing things in it regularily to keep it interesting. I did a search for blogging tips and came upon this site that gave AWESOME tips on how to improve your blog articles!

A lot of it makes sense even to us with the scrappin' blogs!! Hope you find it helpful!

Sisterhood...a celebration of the he{ART}!

About Willow....

How/Why did you start scrapbooking? By accident...I was searching the internet for those big old 'scrapbooks' for kids to put their pictures and stuff in, and found this style of scrapbooking(more expensive, but a lot more fun!!!)

How long have you been scrapbooking? 3 years now.

What is it about scrapbooking that you really love? Everything about it! It is so relaxing, I LOVE it!..The shopping bit is cool too!

How many hours a week do you scrapbook? I scrap every evening, quite often until the early hours..so about, 21 hours a week..Jeez!

How long does it take you to complete a layout? Depends on how 'involved' I get! But on average I complete one layout per evening.

Where do you get your inspiration? Everywhere!...My children are a great source of inspiration, and also other scrappers..I love looking at other peoples work, and their different techniques.

Sisterhood.... a celebration of the he{ART}

WEB Wednesday - Sept 12

Willow shares her favorite website today:

"The website has to be the website i use most often..this is UKScrappers. There is a whole host of information on that site, its HUGE! If you need inspiration, then you won't do wrong in checking that site out! There is also a huge forum on it with hundreds of different threads. I have made loads of friends on that site too!"

Thanks, Willow!

I checked out a few scrapping blogs out there. Take a look :-)

Diaries of a Stamper

By Samm

Hot Digi Picks

Sisterhood...a celebration of the he{ART}

TEACHING Tuesday-Sept 11th

Here is a tip from Willow!!!

Technique...easy! Paint! Acrylic paint on everything! Its great! No matter what papers/C/S you have, you can always co-ordinate using paint...I love the acrylic paint dabbers from Adirondack...I love to scrape these across my papers/cardstock...mixing the colours on as I go. Mistakes never happen, as you can always keep on changing it until you are happy with the result!

Thanks, Willow! I use paint at times on my LOs as well. Here's one where I used paint:

And ,of course, take a look at Willow's gallery! Lots of paint there! Great inspiration!

Sisterhood...a celebration of the he{ART}

CHALLENGE Monday - September 10 WEEK 22

Welcome to another Challenge Monday!

Here's your challenge for this week:

Use flowers in a masculine layout

Email your layout to Susan at scoish3ATrogersDOTcom (change the AT to @ and the DOT to . ) by the end of the day, Sunday, Sept 16th to have a chance to become our sister.

Here is what your sisters have created for this challenge.

Willow:

Deanne:

Carla:

Can't wait to see your creations!

Sisterhood...a celebration of the he{ART}

SISTER Sunday - September 9th

We are pleased to introduce our newest "sister", Willow Spruce!

Willow makes her home in England with her husband, Jason, and their 3 sons: Dane(10), Kiye(9) and Raven(3).

They also have 1 french lop rabbit called Roman, 1 continental giant rabbit called Mo, 1 boa constrictor called Scooter and about 40 giant african landsnails! Quite the assortment :-)

~*~*~*~*~*~

Check out Willow's blog - shunkyscraps

Willow's gallery

Here is Willow's layout for Week 20:

~*~*~*~*~*~

Favorite Snack: Got to be chips...with mayo!

Favorite Drink: Coffee...the stronger the better!

Favorite Paper: At the moment it is Rouge de Garance.

Favorite Technique: Using acrylic paint...I use it on everything!

Favorite Embellishment: Ribbon.

Favorite Scrap Tool: Pritt stick glue!!!(and my scissors!)Acrylic paint!

Favorite Adhesive: Ha,Ha!...Pritt stick glue!

Sisterhood...a celebration of the he{ART}

Erika's Favorites!

We asked Erika about some of her favorite things. Here's what she told us :-)

Favorite Snack: Trail Mix

Favorite Drink: Coffee (any way)

Favorite Paper: I only wish I had only one!!! Scenic Route, Junkitz, Daisy D’s, Rusty Pickle, Doodlebug

Favorite Technique: Sanding

Favorite Embellishment: Rub Ons

Favorite Scrap Tool: Crop - a - dile

Favorite Adhesive: 3M Dots

And speaking of favorites, I checked through Erika's gallery and picked out one of my favorites of her layouts. I love the mix of patterned paper and the bright colors. Also, love the big arrow!!

Sisterhood...a celebration of the he{ART}

SKETCH Saturday-Sept. 8-Laura Shreve

Hi everyone! Here's a new layout sketch for you today!

It is from one of our "sisters" from a few weeks ago- LAURA SHREVE!

Here's a mini-bio on her:

My name is Laura, I am true Jersey Girl, born, raised,& still here. I am married to David, and together we have four fabulous kids, Connor-11, Caleb-11,Rachel-10 and Kailey-9.

I have been scrapbooking for about ten years now, but only seriously obsessed with it as an art form for the last four years or so.

I just became a "Sister" on July 29th & I am just loving it here!

I currently design for The Untamed Scrapper, The PaperPotamus and Scrapdragon. I just started doing sketches to share & thought I would enjoy designing a sketch just for Sisterhood of Scrap.

My best buddy Gabi & I just started a challenge blog & you can see one of my sketches featured there on August 15th.

Here are Laura's sketch and layout that she is sharing with us today.

Thank-you so much, Laura.This is a super sketch. And your layout is "yummy"!!! Ladies, if you try this layout (I'm sure I will!!!), please post a link to your creation in the comments. We would love to visit you!

Sisterhood...a celebration of the he{ART}

FOTO Friday - Sept 7th

This summer, I have been trying to better my photography skills. One of the first places I started was online :-) There are so many photography sites out there that it can be difficult to narrow down your search. So, I thought I'd post a couple.

Here is one online book that I found interesting.
PhotoSecrets: Tips For Better Photos -- How To Improve Your Photography. It's a free, online guide by Andrew Hudson.

Here's another that has some great tips. The Top Five Photo Mistakes And How To Fix Them, by Jean Fleming.

Digital Photography Tips -- I found some great information here.


So, after reading about various tips, now I need to go out and actually practice, and learn all the aspects of my camera. Maybe I should read my handbook first ;-)

~~~~~~~~~

Why not share some of your favorite photography tips and/or sites!

Sisterhood...a celebration of the he{ART}

About Erika....

How/Why did you start scrapbooking? A friend of mine invited me to an all day crop at a local scrapbook store. I walked in with a cheesy starter box, saw all the supplies and I knew this was the hobby for me. I love capturing more than just the picture, but the emotion behind it, the meaning of life, and the memories held.

How long have you been scrapbooking? I have kept some type of journal or album since I was a kid, but avidly scrapping for over 7 years.

What is it about scrapbooking that you really love? I love the fact that this is one area in life where there is absolutely no right or wrong!!!!

How many hours a week do you scrapbook? Anywhere from 10 to 20

How long does it take you to complete a layout? Most layouts start at night and don’t get finished until the next day. Remember I have a baby at home, so it is a lot of scrap and run for me.

Where do you get your inspiration? I get inspiration from my photos, paper lines, music and the internet.

TEXT Thursday-Sept 6th

Since we are all still trying to get back into the routine of Fall again, this one will be pretty darn easy! I hope!

~~~Update your blog!~~~
Add some things about your summer, what you will be doing this weekend and a pic or 2 from the summer or back-to-school photos of your children.

*If you don't have a blog, post in the comments here or email a few friends with an update. They'd love to hear from you, I'm sure!

Have a great day everyone.I'm heading out in a few minutes for my first FULL teaching day of the new school year!

Sisterhood...a celebration of the he{ART}

WEB Wednesday

Thanks, Erika, for providing a favorite link for Web Wednesday!

"Right now my favorite site has to do with editing photos. Ever wonder how they do that - black and white, sepia, remove the wrinkles, make a photo look grungy, well it's called ACTIONS.

Actions can save time and increase productivity by automating repetitive tasks. They can also be used for reproducing techniques and creating special effects that can be shared with other Photoshop users.

So my fav site right now is Action Central. There is so much on this site that I haven't even made it through a quarter of it. So if you are like me and have ventured into editing your photos, you are going to love this site. Feel free to ask questions, I won't mind helping anyone!!! "

Enjoy!

Sisterhood.....a celebration of the he{ART}

TEACHING Tuesday - Sept 4th

Today's tip comes from Erika!

I love including many pictures, but sometimes you only want the best showing, or maybe you are scrapping a larger photo.

Here are my favorite ways to include more photos.
1. Library Pockets (not just for journaling anymore)
2. Flip out photos
3. Fanning photos together
4. Hidden pockets on the sides or back
5. Make a circle collage
6. Barn doors (have a picture open up to a picture)
7. Make your own mini album (made from double-sided patterned paper, eyelets and fiber)

Here's my example that I did on my challenge layout.

Sisterhood...a celebration of the he{ART}

CHALLENGE Monday...Sept 3rd

This week, your challenge is...

Use at least 4 different patterned papers on your layout,card or altered project.

Email your layout to Susan at scoish3ATrogersDOTcom (change the AT to @ and the DOT to . ) by the end of the day, Sunday, Sept 9th to have a chance to become our sister.

Here is Erika's layout...

Here is Deanne's layout...

Here's Susan's layout:

Here's Carla's layout:

Sisterhood...a celebration of the he{ART}

SISTER Sunday - Week 21

Can't believe we're into September already! Time for our newest Sister of the Week :-)

Please welcome Erika Schumacher, from Chesapeake, VA.

Erika has been married for 10 years and is mother to Ethan, 11, Kendall 7 and Coda 18 months. Her kids now call themselves the 7-11 Schumacher’s. She is a SAHM, who works two jobs from home, other than being a full time mom, wife, friend, mentor and referee.

Erika's blog, Personally Me.

Erika's gallery

Here is Erika's layout from Challenge 19:

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A little about Erika:

Describe your scrap space. Do you like/dislike it? My scrap space is in the hub room of the house. The family room. I installed a shelving system to the wall, the bottom shelf is a little wider, and I use it as my desk. From there, the most important items are next and then so on. I love that I can still be in where the action of the family is, but spend my time how I love to. I feel like I am not missing out, but being inspired and reminded why I scrap.

What are your favourite colours to scrapbook with? Greens and Browns. Brown with anything!!!!

Do you enjoy other crafts and/or hobbies? I am a craft-a-holic cross-stitch, knit, crochet, origami, sew and I am sure there is more.

What scrapbook magazines do you read? I do not have any magazine subscriptions, so anything that I read has been either passed down to me or bought individually off the shelf. I really prefer to browse the internet and go to Scrapbooks Etc., Memory Makers, and Creating Keepsakes.

How thick is your cardstock and paper stash? Probably 2 feet high

Are you an organized or messy scrapper? I am an organized scrapper. I like to put things away after I am done and start with a clean slate.

Anything else you want to share? I cannot express how honoured I am to be a “Sister”. So many things have been happening with this hobby and me and I am so overwhelmed with excitement. It really is a creative high. From the bottom of my heart, I thank you, Deanne, Carla and Susan, for choosing me to join such an elite, creative and talented group of women. My heart will forever hold this bond of “Sisterhood.”

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We are glad to call you a sister :-)

Sisterhood...a celebration of the he{ART}

SKETCH Saturday-Sept 1st

...will be little late today as I'm not home. I'm sitting here in a hotel on my son's laptop. If I had thought about it,I could have had the info I needed saved in a draft and posted from here,but I totally forgot to do it. So it will go up when I get home later this afternoon.




OK, here ya go!


The sketcher for today is Rae Clevett.

Here's what Rae has to say:

I’m married and share my home with hubby and our two dogs. I'm lucky enough to work at home so that allows me some flexibility in my scrapping time. I started building my scrap stash in 2002 and took my first stamp class in 2003. I was hooked and have been incorporating stamping into my cards and layouts ever since. I tend to be somewhat seasonal in my projects; because of summer activities and being outdoors, I create more cards and easy altered items in the summer but in the winter when I’m stuck indoors I get my photos out and start scrapping. I always have something on the go in my scrap room and my table is what I consider an organized mess. I also enjoy being a part time scrapbook store instructor and have taught many classes in my home along with being in direct sales w! ith a stamp company.

My galleries can be accessed at 2 Peas & Splitcoaststampers under the user name of bcgal00.
My blog is www.scrapdribbles.blogspot.com

Here is her card sketch and a card she created.

Thanks so much,Rae! As usual, if you try Rae's card, post a comment with a link so we can see it!

Sisterhood...a celebration of the he{ART}