laying it out | cropping

I am still playing along with the Cropped competition - not competing of course - and we're up to round 3 now. Things are heating up, I have to say. The mystery basket this week was a real challenge. Added on top of that was the conditions stipulated by the boss lady (the über fabulous Gennifer Bursett) that made things even a little trickier.

Here's what she said:

Round Three is Soup&Salad. Contrast can make the simplest things truly spectacular, so for this round, our contestants are encouraged to emphasize opposites, and consider showing contrast in scale, color scheme, topic, etc.

If you want to play along, you have a few more hours, and you can download the mystery basket here.

 

My layout is about the contrast of good days and really bad days due to my migraines.

(Supplies: Scarlet Letter | Papers and Scarlet Letter | Elements by Gennifer Bursett, Life 365 | the butterflies and Take Note | the elements by Karla Dudley, Everlasting | Collaboration by Mye De Leon, This & That - Elements by Robyn Meierotto)

I know I go on and on about our lavender. I just love these couple of weeks when they bloom so much. I needed to do another layout about it.

(Credits: My Paintbox Vol 2, Painted Frames, T+Mini 02-Adoration, Photo Stories-Washi Tapes, Needs & Wants Stitchies Vol 3, Tape It Up Krafty, Shabby Chevs Paper Pack, Little Dancer by Liv.e Designs, Life 365 The Buttons, Butterfly kit, Stamp Press Life by Karla Dudley)

Digital Project Life

Did you hear the news? Becky Higgins' digital products for Project Life have moved to a new home! All the digital PL products are now available at DigitalProjectLife.com.

And guess what, I am part of the creative team! Hooah!
PS. I adore the ladies on this team. Amazing talent right there.

Now you might say Hey now, wait a minute Linda, you don't do Project Life. You might even say I've said it's not my style. And you are so right. The pocket style scrapping isn't my style. I don't think it ever will be. And I usually scrap feelings and thoughts, specific moments and photos rather than documenting chonologically.

But. And this is a huge but!
I am turning 39 next week, and I have this idea to document my last year as a 30-something a little differently than with just regular old layouts. Yes, I do know that I have Project 52 going. And yes, I do know that I also have the 40 Before Forty project. But I am still eager to give this idea a go.
So here is my plan:
Starting on Monday next week, and finishing on August 3, 2014, I will do my own version of Project Life.

The one thing that I plan to do differently in my day to day life is to use some kind of aid to jot down events, thoughts, feelings, food, clothing and so on (if someone has any great suggestions for this, I am all ears). I already use my camera and my phone (mostly my phone to be honest) every day so I am hoping that will not have to change too much.

Once a week I hope to put together my weekly page, just like every other Project Lifer out there. Where I differ is in the look of the layouts. I will not pocket scrap. I will use the Project Life products to create layered, clustered layouts with white space - much like my usual style.

I am so excited to start this journey. I may be coming late to the party, but I finally feel like I found a way to make it mine rather than just jumping on the hottest new trend.
I hope you will want to follow along on this journey with me!

laying it out | back up and running

OK, so I am finally back up and running with my new computer, and am working really hard to make up for lost time. That means goodies to post on the blog! Yay!

Incidentally, all the photos in this post were taken in Italy. What can I say, it's a place fit for photography!


(Supplies: Skyscraper Templates, Walt's Park Kit by Scotty Girl Design)


(Supplies: Everlasting by Scotty Girl Design and Mye De Leon)

laying it out | morphing

I participated in a digi morph challenge over at Pixels and Co. Ever heard of such a thing?
Well, it starts out with one inspirational layout. The layout is sent to the first participant, who creates a scraplift. That layout in turn is then sent to the second participant who does the same thing, and so on. Once the last participant has finished, all layouts are revealed and the morphing from the inspirational layout to the very last one is shown.

It was great fun (even though I had to send my work to the fabulous Karla Dudley - talk about nerve wracking). Here is my layout:


(Supplies: Kraft Essentials, Card Love | Set 1, Jumbo Sentiments | Set 1, Life Cards by Karla Dudley, He Creates | Full Kit by Dawn by Design, Penny Kit by Creashens, Digi Basics | Neutral Smears by Mye De Leon, Silver Lining Collab by Pixels & Co designers)

This is my layout for the second round of the Cropped competition at Pixels & Co. I'm not competing, but the members of the Creative Team are graciously allowed to play along with each challenge of the new rounds. In this round there were four new products that had to be included and the layout had to have 75% white space. Right up my alley! :)


(Supplies: Mystery basket products, Life 365 | the papers by Karla Dudley, Homebody, The Good Life Collaboration, Let's Go Collection by Scotty Girl Design, Fly Away, Toolbox: Mists V.10 by Gennifer Bursett, This & That - Full Kit, Cottontail - Elements by Robyn Meierotto, He Creates | Full Kit by Dawn by Design)

As a follow up from last week, my new computer arrived and I am busy getting it set up like I want it, installing everything I had on my last one, and making sure I'm properly backed up. I'm also trying to get the hang of Windows 8, which I think lacks seriously in user friendliness.

laying it out | today's special

Are you into the chalkboard rage that has seemed to be going round for the longest time?
If so, you will really love the new template and mini kit from Liv.e Designs!


(Supplies: T+Mini 07 Today's Special Chalkboard by Liv.e Designs)

You can pick up the Today's Special Chalkboard T+Mini today at JessicaSprague.com. There is also a coloured chalk version that you don't want to miss!

laying it out | trio

My sisters are so precious to me. They are my babies, my confidantes, my loves. They are smart, and funny, and pretty. They are strong, and courageous, and amazing. I love them with all my heart. My life is better with them in it.


(Supplies: WordArt | Love Notes, This & That - Full Kit, Krafty - Labels by Robyn Meierotto, {i}NSD 2013 Grab Bag by Crystal Livesay, Hello Love by Mye De Leon, Basically - Full Kit by Mommyish, Butterfly by Karla Dudley, Carefree | Full Kit, He Creates | Full Kit by Dawn by Design)

I started running last year. All through the summer and autumn I went running two or three times a week. I didn't exactly turn into a super sprinter, but I kept at it. Then winter hit, and it was just way too cold to run. Come warmer weather this year and I tried, twice, to pick back up. Thing is, I never got back into it. I didn't instantly succeed or become a master, and that made me feel miserable. It's a character flaw of mine; I put a lot of pressure on myself, and when I don't excel I feel horrible and quit. I need to stop that. That's what this layout is about.

This layout was created for the "Cropped" competition at Pixels and Co. Are you participating?
Since I'm part of the site CT, I am not eligible for the prizes, but it's fun to take on the challenge.


(Supplies: Homebody by ScottyGirl Design, Snippets | Love, Free Love by Robyn Meierotto, Wide Washi Tape - Digital Elements by Karen Funk, Digi Basics | Neutral Smears by Mye De Leon, Stamp Press | Life, Kraft Essentials, Life 365 | the buttons by Karla Dudley, Free Love by Mommyish, He Creates | Elements by Dawn by Design)

As you know the husband and I love food. As you know, I like to snap a few shots every now and then of that food. I think you also know that I like to scrap about it. So nothing new about this layout! We had grilled prawns one day, and it was quite Lovely. Messy, but lovely.


(Supplies: Point Of View Arrows, Woodoodled Paper Pack, T+Mini 02-Adoration, Shabby Chevs PP, Photo Stories-Everyday Pebbles, Joy of Childhood Paper Pack, Tagged For Life, Photo Stories-Dymo Labels by Liv.e Designs, Winter Wonderland Collection by Jessica Sprague and Heidi Swapp)

shabby chic 40th birthday invitation

A friend of mine is turning 40 next month and she asked me to create the invitations to her birthday party. She was very specific about two things; she wanted pink, and she wanted shabby chic.




With an all script font, a rose pattern background, and some pink dotted flags to set it off, I think it met her description pretty well. To finish it off, I added an intricate doily and a satin ribbon for the guests to slip off and reveal the card. I backed the card with a pink paper in the same texture as the front so the card was really thick and lovely. The card was sent in a pink envelope, of course.

And yes, my birthday is at the very beginning of August. And yes, my name is Linda. But no, I don't turn 40 this year. I really do have a friend with the same name as mine, and with a birthday very close to mine. She is just a year older! LOL!

p52 | halfway point

Well, I made it through yet another six months of Project 52. I never thought I would. I remember at the start of the year, I felt like I was kind of over it and not really rearing to go. But I decided to give it a go anyway, and see how far it took me. Now that I've made it through half of the year I feel like I might as well push onwards and get the next six months done.

I said last time I posted that it was time for something other than plants. Well, out of the four I have to post today, only one is of a flower. Pretty chuffed about that.

We had our nephew on an overnight visit a couple of weeks back. This kid is probably the most happy go lucky person I have ever known. He is happy 99% of the time, and so easy and fun to be around. Truly adorable. In this shot he was very busy checking the husband's lawn mowing action. What a cutie.


Midsummer's Eve was celebrated with family in a traditional style, with dancing around the May pole, good food, and lots of love and laughter. The happiness on the kiddos face in this shot is priceless to me. I hope my mother and sister will forgive the butt shots. :)


I think I could go on forever about the loveliness of our sea of lavender. Every summer when they bloom I feel like all is right in the world. We might not be good gardners but at least we have the most fantastic lavender bushes. I love how the bees and butterflies go completely crazy for our place for a few weeks. This shot was taken last week right before the blooms burst.


I've had a couple of really trying weeks (oh, who am I kidding, it's been months) with learning a new job and I think it's finally starting to take its toll on me. I am so ready for some time off. This past week I had no energy to do anything but the things that I truly had to do. The rest of the time I spent face up, just staring into the sky, trying to clear my mind of all that was buzzing in there. That's why I thought it fitting to get a shot like this in.


In other news, my computer broke this past weekend. I'm currently waiting for a shiny new one to be delivered from Dell. It wasn't at all what I wanted or needed at this Point in time; I kind of had other plans for that Money - like getting lounge furniture and new plants for the garden - but I can't deny that a new computer always is a nice thing once it has arrived and everything has been installed.

This means that I'm currently confined to using my phone for all my online activities. I have a few things to catch up on here, but after that, things might continue to be scarse around these parts for a little while.