Wow, has it really been that long since my last post?

3 months ago I said I would be back with my Scrapbooking Memories Masters entries from 2013... to be honest it has been soooooo long since I scrapped these that I was wondering if there was any point in sharing them on my blog, but I got the layouts out and started taking pictures and decided that I still like what I created, so here it is ;)

I'm not really sure why I continue to torture myself with the whole Masters process because despite quite a few Honourable Mentions I am far from 'Master' status, but I have to admit that I enjoy the challenge of coming up with something to meet the criteria, then trying to finish it all before the deadline... I don't like the waiting but love getting a copy of the mag to see what everyone else has created :D

The layout that got me an honourable mention was for the unique background challenge where you had to use various techniques and mediums to create your own background.

I used a combination of mists, layered washi tape and texture paste to create the base for my layout. It was fun to try something different and I was really happy with the results.

This next layout was for the 5x7" photo challenge, and I went with a fun pic of little Cayden playing in the garden.

It's a bit hard to see in these photos but I created a large vellum pocket to hold a mix of sequins and confetti on the base of the page.

The double layout criteria was to document a journey.  

here's a closer look at the left hand side

I began the story with a photo of the highway we travel on from one of our trips to the beach

I tucked a little map of our favourite summer destination behind some vellum as memorabilia from our journey.

 moving onto the right hand side

 I dressed up one of my beach snapshots to create the title.

The last challenge was to create a 2014 calendar - I definitely don't do many off the page items and it took me a long time to figure out how to tackle the challenge. I wanted something practical and simple in design so it wouldn't clash with my decor and decided to put some of my shadow box frames to use. 

Two of the frames were actually white, so I spray painted them all with a glossy black, and used some dark grey cardstock to contrast with the bright colours. I was influenced by some of my Project Life cards for the calendar deign and so I used a 3x4" polaroid die to create the cards, then die-cut each of the months before using foam dots to place them on the base. 

I also typed up and printed my own calendars and use a few simple embellishments to dress up each month.

 

I also used B&W polka dot washi tape to cover the front of each frame and added a few quotes to fill in the extra polaroids.

Thanks for stopping by and looking back at my entries with me. I have been busy playing with my project life album and am also in the process of working with a super gorgeous kit as a guest designer from a fabulous Aussie kit store.. but you'll have to come back to find out which one ;)

Tweet

masters entries in may?

Hi there! I know it's been a long time since I posted, and even longer since I shared anything scrappy but life has been busy and I kind of fell out of my scrap routine once all of my DT commitments finished up. I have slowly been getting back into the swing of things though and have a few projects on the go that I will share soon, but in the meantime I've heard that the criteria is out for this years Scrapbooking Memories Masters Competition, so I thought it was about time I shared what I created for last year's entry.... and although I wasn't in the top 10, I ended up with two honourable mentions for my efforts which was pretty awesome too :)

The first task was to create a single layout using a 5x7" photo with eye contact and I decided to scrap a page using one of my favourite pics of my happy little guy ♥

I love this photo of my happy boy and wanted to create a ‘happy’ page to match Cayden's carefree personality and went with soft shades with just a few pops of bright colour.

I created a few clusters for added detail but mainly used the photo as my main focus.

I felt a bit out of my comfort zone for the 12x12" canvas challenge, but was very happy with the end result (this was one of my honourable mention projects)

I created my canvas to feature one of Cayden's favourite bedtime songs 'You are my Sunhine' and I went with a distorted chevron background that I pieced together from various materials.

I used a grey background to reflect the part of the song that says ‘when skies are grey’ and liked the contrast it gave to the bright turquoise and yellow. I created the raised polka dots with gel medium over a stencil for a bit of depth and used yellow nail enamel for the splatters.

Next up was another single layout that had to feature 3 or more photos, journalling of 25 words or more and one piece of memorabilia... easy right?

This page is all about Fluffy the Bear, who has been my Cameron's buddy since he was just 6 year old. The photos were taken at the Build a Bear Workshop where Cameron got to create his own bear. 

I added several felt elements and hand stitching to try and recreate the texture of Fluffy's fur

and included a copy of Fluffy's birth certificate as memorabilia which tucks into a pocket behind the main photo.

The last challenge was to create a double layout that reflected on your childhood... I hardly ever do doubles and rarely devote a page to myself not to mention that I have very few photos from my early childhood so I knew this was going to be a tricky challenge - but it all came together in the end and got me another honourable mention in the mag!

I managed to gather up a handful of pics but noticed that they were set on two completely different sides of the world and as the title describes I decided to tell my story of growing up on different sides of the world.

the left hand side of the layout highlights my early years of living in the heart of a busy city in Poland before moving to the beautiful Austrian countryside which I have described on a journal card tucked behind the first photo.

the other side of the page includes a photo of myself wearing a traditional Polish costume to represent my heritage, then shows my first experience of the gorgeous Aussie beaches and ends with an old school photo taken in the suburbs we now call home.

It feels a little strange going back to what I scrapped almost a year ago but I guess it is good to see how things have evolved... I can definitely see that my use of clean lines and detailed clusters hasn't changed although I might have made a few different choices if I had to do the same tasks over again ;) Thanks for stopping by!

Tweet

Easter Decorating...

I was feeling a bit 'Martha' inspired this Easter and took on a few decorating projects for the occasion. To begin with I gathered a collection of twigs and and other bits and pieces and built myself a nest :)

I decided to fill my nest with speckled eggs after seeing these little beauties {not by Martha...but still so pretty} To make my eggs I sponged on layers of acrylic paints in shades of blue onto blown eggs, allowing each layer to dry in between. I then watered down a little brown acrylic and used an old toothbrush to flick on the speckles. I skipped the painting stage for the brown eggs but did add the speckles as well as a few sprays of iridescent glimmer mist for a bit of shine and it's a good thing that I made a few spares because some little guy (Cayden ) broke a few when he tried to eat them ;)

On Saturday we had an Easter lunch at my mum's place and I created a few cute napkin bunnies to dress up her table using this tutorial.

I was very inspired by this gorgeous Martha cake, and used the same concept to decorate my layered chocolate and cream cake with a nest made of shaved chocolate.

I also got the idea of making a cake border from here but changed it up a bit and drew up my own template onto plain paper then traced the design onto a sheet of long of cardboard (the type you get at the newsagents) and used a craft knife to cut out my design.

I went with a simple grass design and added a few bunnies and chicks along with some scattered eggs amongst the grass and love how it turned out. The cake lost a bit of it's icing during the drive but here's the other side of the border ;)

I'd love to hear your thoughts... perhaps you made something creative too that you'd like to share?
Aga xx

Tweet

34 weeks, a birthday and a baby shower...

This week has been a busy one - starting with a 34 weeks check up at the hospital, all appears to be going well with baby which is great news, and while I'm really excited I am also starting to feel a bit freaked out at how little time is left before our baby arrives :0 On Thursday I celebrated my 34th birthday, and yesterday my sister and mum put on a baby shower for me :) and while they took care of most of the food and preparations I was still able to get a bit creative with some of the decorating... starting with the invitations
and these cute cupcake toppers

little toadstool appertisersand I even had a go at these Martha style pom poms

It was a great day shared with family and friends, loads of yummy food and plenty of wine (not for me of course) and I wanted to say a big thanks to everyone for your genoristy with all the gorgeous gifts - I will have plenty more pics on facebook soon ;)
Aga xx

Tweet