laying it out | good things

I have three layouts to share today that all celebrate good things in my life. I figure one needs to grab hold of good things in life and savor them. They bring energy to get through the not so fabulous moments.

I try not to drink too much soda, I usually have a glass of Coke Zero a day. But then there are days when more than that is needed. Those are the days when I get a can during my lunch break and enjoy it at my desk. It is a life saver - or at least a burst of energy.


(Supplies: Paintbox Vol. 1, T+Mini Vol 4 So Blessed, Shabby Chevs Paper Pack, Splatters Vol 1, Loopies Vol 4, Photo Stories Everyday Pebbles, Photo Stories Dymo Labels, Photo Stories Washi Tapes, Photo Stories Krafty Papers, This & That Stickers Pack, Texture Magic, Winter Breeze all by Liv.e Designs, Note To Self Kit and For the Record Documented by Echo Park)

Quiet moments at the beach, a warm breeze, beautiful rays of sun. How can this not be wonderful?


(Supplies: American Crafts Shoreline at AC Digitals, Hello Love by Mye De Leon)

Ah, Friday nights in the summer. A nice glass of wine on the patio, some music, and the husband beside me. Those are some of my very favourite moments.


(Supplies: Photo Clusters, Photo Tabs, Ink Spots, Wanderlust Cardstock, Homebody by Wild Blueberry Ink, Kraft Essentials, Butterfly, Life 365 Stamp Sheet by Karla Dudley, Carefree Full Kit by Dawn by Design, In Stitches Neutral Basics, Krafty Labels by Robyn Meierotto, Let's Go Elements by Scotty Girl Design, Silver Lining Part 3 by Gennifer Bursett)

I'm not a chronological scrapper. I don't feel like telling my life story in a diary kind of way would be neither inspiring nor very good. Least of all would there be any variation. I find that telling my life story by picking moments, stories, and photos that strike an emotion in me is much more interesting. Hopefully I will be able to look back at all my pages when I am old and see that my life was full of good things, bad things, funny things, sad things, amazing moments, dull moments, delicious moments, and disastrous moments. Do you scrap favourite moments, just because, or are you a chronological scrapper?

laying it out | totally awesome and wonderful

I was away on a work related trip last week. Well, it wasn't so much away actually, only about a 30 minute's ride from my house. But still, I was there for two days and stayed in a hotel. The place was right by the water, only 200 meters from the beach. I took the chance to walk along the beach before breakfast one morning. It was glorious. There was not a soul in sight, and the fresh sea winds were so refreshing. I wish I could do that more often in the mornings.


(Supplies: Free Love Collaboration Kit Freebie by Pixels & Co, Love You Kit Freebie, Toolbox: Mists V10 by Gennifer Bursett)

The Free Love Kit can be found at the Facebook page of Quality Digi Scrap Freebies. The Love You Kit can be found at Gennifer Bursett's Facebook page.

I wanted to create a layout with the beautiful shots of the cherry tree outside my work. The tree has no blooms left by now, which is kind of sad I think. The pictures will have to suffice.


(Supplies: American Crafts Amy Tangerine Yes Please! Kit, Kraft Essentials by Karla Dudley, Layered Layouts Vol 7 (title wordart) by Deena Rutter)

laying it out | trio

When I saw the beautiful parts of the Yes Please Kit from Amy Tangerine I knew I had to do a layout with some of the photos from our trip to Rome last year. There were a few shots I felt fit perfectly and that have a fun feeling to them; especially the one of the guys pretending to hold beers wile posing. The story behind that is that we have a ton of photos of them together toasting the camera. So even though they didn't have beer on hand while we visited the Colloseum, they suggested I Photoshop that in afterwards.

The Amy Tangerine Yes Please Kit is available today at AC Digitals.



(Supplies: America Crafts Amy Tangerine Yes Please, April Coordinates by Simply Tiffany, In Stitches Neutral Basics by Robyn Meierotto)

After a really busy week with work travel for both of us we had a nice couple of hours on Friday night with dinner outside and watching the sun set. A glass, or two, of wine while we relaxed and talked was extra nice.


(Supplies: T+Mini Vol. 5 Work Of Art, Needs & Wants Frame Basics Full Pack, This & That Sticker Pack, Shabby Chevs Paper Pack, Photo Stories Dymo Labels, Photo Stories Everyday Pebbles, Splatters Vol. 1, I Sing For Spring Kit, Needs & Wants Stitchies Vol. 3 all by Liv.e Designs, Winter Wonderland Collection by Heidi Swapp and JessicaSprague)

I really like the quote in this layout. It really hits home with me. I have a tendency to get hung up on not being good enough no matter what I do, and I frequently need a reminder that the person that I am can actually be good enough sometimes too.

I really stepped out of the box with this layout. If you follow my blog, you know that I like to create layouts with smaller photos, a layered look, shadows, and stuff like stitches and staples to make it realistic. The blended look doesn't come natural to me and I have to really work hard to make it feel finished.


(Supplies: Loopies Vol. 4, T+Mini Vol. 2 Adoration, T+Mini Vol. 4 So Blessed, Paint Swashes Vol. 4, Splatters Vol. 1 all by Liv.e Designs)

You can pick up the T+Mini Vol. 5 and Loopies Vol. 4 by Liv.e Designs right now at Jessica Sprague

p52 | brighter and greener

Things have certainly been brighter and greener the last four weeks. I cannot express how much I love spring; the light, the lush greens everywhere, the cherry trees that explode with pretty little blooms, the warmer winds. It's so amazing.

I know you've seen this photo before, in my layouts. But how can it not be a photo of the week?
We were dressed up as clowns so that we could follow along with the boy's favourite clown routine on Youtube.


How is it possible for cherry trees to be so amazingly beautiful? I just think it's sad that it's over in such a short time. They should bloom for a longer period if you ask me. This one is right outside my workplace and I had the chance to snap a few shots one day when I was waiting for the husband to come and pick me up.


Friday nights in the garden, good food on the grill. Can it get any better? This was our first dinner outside (actually sitting outside and eating it) of the year. It was also the first time we tried Seabream. It was quite lovely.


Our rhubarb is alread giving us lots of delicious fruit. Today we also noticed this odd bloom in the center. I haven't ever seen that before and felt it needed documenting.

laying it out | fresh

This layout is devoted to spring. To new beginnings, to growth, to green, to fresh air, to garden work (even though I actually hate that).


(Supplies: Daydream Kit by American Crafts at AC Digitals, Photo Clusters by Wild Blueberry Ink at Pixels & Co, Life 365 Buttons by Karla Dudley at Pixels & Co)

We had the good fortune to spend a few hours this weekend watching one of our boys play sports. It's his first season playing, and this was his second game ever. Lots of fun to see little six year olds chase eachother around on the pitch.


(Supplies: The Good Life Collab Kit by Wild Blueberry Ink and Scotty Girl Design, Photo Clusters and Wanderlust Stamps by Wild Blueberry Ink at Pixels & Co)

You can pick up the new and very colourful and vibrant Daydream Kit by American Crafts at AC Digitals today!

laying it out | two new pages

I dream about traveling quite a bit. Of course I don't have the time or the money to go everywhere I want to. But dreaming about it doesn't kill anybody, right? So what does my bucket list look like? Well, it's a long list, but I have been wanting to create a page about it for a while, and in the end decided to just choose a few of them (in no particular order).


(Supplies: Painted Alpha Rounds, Frame Basics Full Pack, Shabby Chevs, Gentle Morn Kit, Texture Magic, Needs & Wants Stitchies Vol. 3 all by Liv.e Designs, Take Me Away Kit by Dani Mogstad, Homebody by Pixels and Co, pictures from Google)

We had our first outdoor dinner of the year, as in actually sitting outside to eat, last weekend. It was the first time we grilled Seabream and it was so lovely. I really wanted to capture that feeling of fun that we had, and the look of the delicious food. I think you can guess which of the photos is supposed to represent the fun!


(Supplies: Painted Alpha Brush Set, Winter Breeze Kit, Shabby Chevs, Roll Over Brushes all by Liv.e Designs, Homebody by Pixels & Co, Becky Higgins Project Life Cinnamon Edition, iNSD Grab Bag Template by Crystal Livesay)

You can pick up the Painted Alpha and Painted Alpha Rounds Brush Sets by Liv.e Designs today at JessicaSprague.com!

laying it out | en masse

It's been a while, but I've been busy while I've been away! I have given myself some much needed time offline. I needed to turn the computer off a little earlier in the night and allow myself to decompress and let the brain relax enough so that I could actually fall alseep. I think I hit the low point this weekend; I fell asleep on the sofa on Friday night, and again on Saturday night. Last night I went to bed at 8.30. It did me good though because I feel a ton better today.

But please allow me to share the layouts I have created as of late. There are a few!

These two first layouts are about the boy's love of clowns, and how he loves to dress up as one, mimic a certain clown's routine. He obviously has me tightly wound round his finger as he got me, despite my great fear of clowns, to get in on the action.


(Supplies: Carefree Kit by Dawn by Design, Kraft Essentials by Karla Dudley)


(Supplies: Carefree Kit by Dawn by Design, Kraft Essentials by Karla Dudley, Now That's Sweet Templates by Simply Tiffany)

I made this layout over the weekend, when I was feeling the most tired and worn out. I love our bedroom for more reasons than just getting some much needed sleep. It's also the place where I feel the most secure and where I can retract into darkness and quiet when I suffer from one of my massive migraines.


(Supplies: iNSD 2013 Grab Bag Templates by Crystal Livesay, P&Co Homebody Collab Kit, P&Co More Or Less Collab Kit, Kraft Essentials by Karla Dudley, In Stitches Neutral Basics by Robyn Meierotto)

We usually grow a couple of different veggies each year, in addition to herbs. This is zucchini from last year. I think zucchini is my favourite veg to grow. We like to take the fruit when it's small, before it goes all soft and spongy, and either grill it or slice very thinly and dress with lemon for a delicious salad. I never thought, growing up or as a young adult that I would feel so good about this part of being a house owner.


(Supplies: T+Mini Vol. 4 So Blessed by Liv.e Designs)

2013 iNSD Pixels & Co Creative Team Blog Hop

Hello and welcome to stop number 17 of the Pixels & Co iNSD Creative Team Blog Hop!

If you are participating in the hop you have come from Jennifer.
In case you came to this blog first, and would like to participate, then please go to the Pixels&Co blog to get a fresh start!

I am so excited to be part of the blog hop today! You will be rewarded greatly for participating that is for sure. You will get a huuuuuge kit of absolutely beautiful journaling cards (59 cards included) created by the CT using the gorgeous More Or Less Collaboration by the über talented Pixels & Co designers.

But before we get to that, I want to share with you more eye candy from Pixels & Co. These four kits are among my very favourites and get used over and over in my layouts.


Life Cards by Karla Dudley is just beyond gorgeous. Not only are the cards themselves fab, Karla has also included brushes of the wordart that is featured in the cards. Amazing.
Here is a layout that I have created with this kit: Important Details

Snippets Real Life by Robyn Meierotto are just super fun. Robyn has included som really funny words and expressions. These snippets are perfect for adding that little extra spunk to the layout.
I used the snippets in this layout: Epic Awesomeness

Kraft Essentials by Karla Dudley is my favourite go to paper pack. I looooove neutral papers. I love kraft. Karla's papers have just the right texture and pattern, and the tones of the papers are spot on.
Here is one of my layouts with Karla's papers: Life-I love you

Grow With Love Letters February Templates by Crystal Livesay is so versatile. I think I have used these templates in a million different ways. Ok, so maybe not but a whole bunch at least. I love that there is so much white space but still plenty of yummy layers to put fun stuff on.
I created this layout with one of the templates in the kit: Good Stuff

You really want to check these out, and especially now as every single product at Pixels & Co is 35% off to celebrate iNSD!

OK, so let us get right to the prize you are after! It's gorgeous! Just look!

In order to get your hands on it, you need to visit every blog of the hop. At each stop you want to collect a letter or number that will form a word. This word is the coupon code that you need to enter in order to get the kit. Now, to be sure that you have gathered all the letters and numbers you need to visit the blogs in the right order. I have added the whole list at the bottom of this post in case you feel a little lost.
Once you have all your letters and numbers, you will want to go HERE to download your kit.

This is the letter that you want to write down from this stop:
O

The next stop on this blog hop is Christy. Tell her I said hi when you get there!

Now, don't miss out the fun things over on the site tomorrow! We have both chats and speed scraps scheduled. You can see the times in the image at the very top! Come and join in the fun!

Be well everyone!


This is the full bloghop list:
Pixels & Co Blog
Sarah
Kat
Mandi
Kate
Rachel
Anna
Jan
Carey
Emilie
Ronnie
Amy
Jennifer H.
Celeste
Melanie R.
Aria
Jennifer E.
Linda  <--- that's me
Christy
Barbara
Mary
Arielle
Jeryn
Indah
Melanie C.
Jen P.
Erin
Kelly
Kim
Wendy