More Scrappin' from Challenges

Let me explain why I like challenges so much (when I try them) - it is the CHALLENGE of MAKING them work with what you have. 

Similar to the challenge of making punches into something with the limits of available shapes.

Limited supply but "must get to your goal"- that's the challenge I like.

(See, that doesn't apply to house cleaning because there is an infinite supply of mess...)

I am stubborn enough that when I pick photos for a sketch challenge, I'm GONNA MAKE 'EM WORK!  (determined look on my face here)

So I saw this cute sketch on Twisted Sketches:

I picked my photos - two oldies from summer 1998. (I'm pretty sure - hard to tell with no hair-dos to go by) 

Then I picked the pattern paper because the "twist" required with this sketch is PAPER. 

Then I went looking for other paper/cardstock to go with it and the photos.  Everything in my stash was too dark or too busy and took away from the photos.  But I was determined to use this sketch, these photos and that paper. 

And I like the results - by using the thin strips to suggest the paper in the sketch - things stayed light and airy. 

And don't they kinda remind you of the edges of a pool? 

The stripes on the paper circles are supposed to remind you of beach towels and beach balls. 

And the bird is on there just 'cause he is cute.

Heard you were under the weather...

It is a Splish Splash Flash Back...

I don't do a lot of challenges.  This is primarily because I'm usually a week behind on my blog reading and the due dates are past. But I have turned over a new leaf and hope to do someones challenge each week. 

This week I bought into the Color Combos Galore Inspiration 187.  I've been following this site for YEARS with good intentions yet this is my first time to play.  They "requested" more cards so that is what I did.  A get well card - "Heard you were under the weather"  is the inside sentiment -  yep, it's my usual corny stuff!  And since they required WET - I glazed up the umbrella, drops, and puddles. 

Changed the duck a little from the Splish Splash version:
Same butterfly punch feet and bill
1.25 inch circle for the body
Owl punch with ears and feet cut off for the head
And since it was already laying there on my desk - I cut the owl breast in half for wings (weird end is behind his body)
Eyes are the circles from the owl punch in white and black

Umbrella is the 1.75 circle punched near a scallop oval hole - this is the way to get the "scallops" inverted on the umbrella.

Umbrella handle is the word window around the slot hole - trimmed.  Like this:

U are on My Mind

This weeks challenge on VC Rocks is to create a punch art animal or bird.

 Duh? 

Did anyone think I'd skip this challenge?

 I didn't think so!

Plenty of punched penguins out there - I have even done a dancing one before - but this is what the Inspiration Fairy sent me, so this is what you get.

White face is butterfly punch repunched with small oval (all this just to get that little indent above his eyes) - draw eyes
White belly is 1 3/8 inch circle - add sponging for shadow
Black head - large oval
Black wings - small ovals
Feet  - scallop square repunched with 3/4 inch circle
Beak - small oval - repunched one end with a circle for part nearest his face (draw a line and outline in black)

For "ice burgs" - large ovals - draw on crooked line - crookedly trim bottom - draw lines to connect - sponge slightly

For "U" - 3/4 inch square - rounded corners by poking in the middle of a 1/2 inch circle (couldn't hold onto it and get it in the normal corner rounder) - Stamped with U from Just Perfect Alpha -  finish off like the "ice burgs"

This was inspired by some clipart I saw - with the sentiment "You are on my Mind" but their penquin had an octopus on his head.   Feel free to try that - but the ice cube is much easier!

Scrappin the Art again

After sitting out a couple of challenges on Scrap the Art, I'm back using them for inspiration.  This time the painting is Senecio by Paul Klee. 

I went for the cubism style and the colors plus the large circle from the head.  You can't see it in the photos but I ran the texture wheel over each of the "cubes" to mimic the texture in the painting.  Could have distressed it a bit more now that I see the photo. 

Kid still at home was really tired of me snapping photos of her new hair-do to send to college girl.  I admit I went a bit overboard - if I scrapped them all I would be doing at least two 2 page layouts. And some of them are alot more.....uhm.... VISUAL about how I was pushing her too far because of course, it is so much fun getting on your teens nerves that I just had to keep going.  Naughty, evil mommy.

Thanks Scrap the Art ladies! I always have fun when I give your challenges a whirl.  I would never have picked up the pink color to go with these photos but I really like it. 

Challenges = Stretching out of the comfort zone = Good for me to try!

My little Boo Boo

When I did Yogi Bear, someone commented that Boo Boo might be next - well, kinda.

This is MY little Boo Boo.  Don't really know why I started calling my youngest that - but I did  - and it stuck. 

Sometimes I call her Boo Boo.
Sometimes it is Boo. 
Sometimes Boo is her middle name. 

She answers to them all. 

Occasionally I remember to use her real name.

(I try really hard not to call her by the dog's name)

This was for a color challenge on Challenge Masters - I love using challenges to get some OLD photos scrapped.

I used a sketch from Sketchy Thursdays for this page.  Using "current" sketches seems to make my older photos look better.

Scrapping Vroom Vroom

Sorry Punch Fans - it is a scrapbook day on the blog.  And I am recycling a past punch project.

Remember Boss on a Motorcycle?  I rebuilt his bike for a scrapbook page...

I made this for a scrap-lift challenge on Challenge Masters.  The page I was lifting was by Mandy Dodd  - a fabulous layout and great fun to borrow from!

I originally was going to have a goofy character on this bike but decided it would take away from the goofy characters in the photos.

I printed the title on my computer (well, actually on my printer but you knew what I meant).  I opened PAINT - filled a rectangle with black - added my text in white then printed on white paper.  Easy Peasy. 

Scrap the Art - Scrapping Usher

I am loving Scrapping the Art's challenges.  For one, they are fun.  Two, they are challenging to me.  And three, I am giving myself a tiny bit of art education when I research the featured piece.

The current challenge inspiration at Scrap the Art is Daybreak by Joan Miro - a Spanish artist. I suspect most of the entries will be inspired by the colors - how could they not be?  I followed the links to the first few entries - They are WOW cards! Wow Wow Wow. 

I will, however, stick to trying to use the art to inspire my scrapbooking.  (Sorry punch fans - but you can't have copied EVERYTHING I've shown you - you can live without a punch project today.)

Here's what I came up with:

The yellow in the inspiration piece made me immediately think of this photo from the stage of the NBA All Star game last month. The burst of light around Usher as he takes the stage is even a little reminiscent of the star-burst in the art piece. I also used the colors, the thin black lines, a diagonal feature and the black dots. I decided there was enough red in the photos and that red paper would be distracting from the story I was telling so I didn't add any.

Don't get all jealous - these photos look like we had FANTABULOUS seats - and while our seats were good they weren't on the floor.  These photos are courtesy of Jerry Jone's SIXTY YARD WIDE BIG SCREEN in his fantabulous new football stadium.  I mean that baby is HUGE. 

(Fantabulous = fantastic plus fabulous)

The journaling is in black on the blue paper - hard to read in the photo so here it is if you're interested:

The NBA All-Star game was in town this year – on Valentine’s Day. Randy and Scott decided it was the place to be, so they made it a ‘couples’ evening instead of inviting some of the guys to go with them to the game.


While neither Jan nor I would have picked a basketball game as our Valentine’s entertainment, we had a REALLY fun time- dinner at Mariano’s, of course, and then the game.

All I knew going in were the names of a few of the players that no doubt would be there – and which Mavericks had made the All Star team. No clue about anything else that would go on.

I was thrilled when Usher was the opening entertainment. While I am too old and uptight to “approve” of some of his song lyrics, I am not DEAD. This guy is young and Hot and talented and Hot and energetic and Hot.

And did I mention…? HOT!

My Girls

I really do have a couple more baby ideas in work but I'm still on that Scrappin' Challenge jag and need to make hay while the sun shines (That is a weird phrase to come out of this city girl - must have come from Mom - her dad was a farmer)

This is for the February Sketch challenge at Challenge Masters - it was a darling sketch - the row of circles was suggested as a row of varied sizes all mixed up - but I had so much going on with the pattern paper I simplified the sketch.  Then all the circles I had already punched were in a pile on the corner of the page and  I decided I liked them there so I glued them down.

Confession - I have been hoarding this paper since 2006.  I bought an extra pack just as it was retiring because I loved it and then I couldn't bring myself to cut into it.  Is that the most ridiculous scrappers habit there is?  Well, I'm guilty but trying to reform.

More Paper Flowers

I tried yet another challenge layout from Challenge Masters - this time for the Technique group.  We are supposed to make at least 3 homemade embellishments from vintage paper - and the challenger showed a very cool flower that we could make. 

I found a different flower to make on another blog - click here - then go ahead and poke around on Valita's blog - she also has some cute punch projects AND she just became an SU demonstrator.

My vintage paper isn't very vintage - I had two old hymnals that I will NEVER part with - but I had a current one that I bought several years back when I was taking piano lessons.  Well, it is now missing a few pages. 

I made two flowers, matting, photo corner (inked a bit) and title (stamped on) from hymnal pages.   I stamped Sense of Time and some 'other' clock stamps for a subtle background.

This is a photo of my parents when they had been married about a year.  I wasn't even thought of yet - and I sure don't remember my dad with this much dark hair.

Pensive?

I did this for the color challenge on Challenge Masters but I also used the new sketch from Sketchy Thursdays (this is Thursday so I went hunting for it - so fun!)  The color challenge was fire, blush, chocolate and vanilla.  My fire is really more pumpkin but hey - you work with what you have.

Journaling reads:

Pensive? I think not…

I know that little mouth. It is just about to burst into a contagious giggle. Haley, in borrowed shades,
age three, April 1997.

Don't ask me why I chose this one old photo - it just reached out and begged to be scrapped.  Heck it was probably tired of being crushed in the two ton pile of other photos sitting on top of it.  That's right - this is the child that is 16 and she was only 3 in this photo.  Taken by hubby's best friend on their back porch (I can see him and his camera reflected in the sunglasses)

Simple page but I like it - No time for all pages to be complex works of art.  It is easy to get a page done when you have a great sketch and your colors chosen for you!

Family Foolishness

Hi, my name is Ellen and I am a challenge addict. 

This time it is a color challenge with a twist.  Must use Red and Black with 2 other colors AND have the word 'family' in your title.  This challenge came from Scrapbook Challenges.

The colors were no challenge for me - easy peasy to find photos for red and black (and white and pink). 

But finding photos to go with those colors and the title FAMILY was hard and THAT is why they call them 'challenges'!

My fave part of this layout (besides the photo) is the little "funny" hanging on the beaded wire.  I just like it!

And my un-fave part is that I used my own awful printing.  That was challenging.  But someday my girls will appreciate seeing their old mom's sloppy scrawling.  (Ick)

5 Heart Challenge

Sorry punch fans - it is another scrappin' day.  I am on a challenge jag. 

This was for Challenge Masters Recipe Challenge - which was to do a layout using 5 different and unique hearts - I have my hearts: punched and embossed, punched and stamped, chipboard, rub-on, stamped, die-cut on pattern paper and just plain punched. 

Hubby doesn't like his photo taken but I occasionally sneak one in - this reminds me of Wilson, the TV neighbor to Tim 'the tool man' Taylor who ALWAYS had his face hidden.  Eventually you all will get to see hubby - but I have lots of this type photo.

Our dog adores my husband - and yes, the dog plays "rebound".  If hubby is outside, TJ is right beside him and his basketball is a favorite toy.

The you&me stamp was one I bought at a clearance store a year or so back and promptly forgot.  Glad I stumbled across it for this layout.

I will try to come up with a new Heart Punch project soon for all you punch fans as your reward for wading through my challenge stuff.

Book of He - Love your Uniform

I don't have to feel guilty about showing you punch addicts my scrapbooking - if I make it the second post of the day....  And I really am trying to get my scrapbook groove going again.  It was my love long before cards and punch art consumed me.

I did this for a challenge on yet another scrapbook challenge group I joined.  The challenge was to scrapbook about your "significant other" and use the word 'love' in the title.  Pretty good challenge for the month of February right?

Well, my hubby isn't that fond of having his photo taken (although he is a terribly handsome fella) so a BOOK OF HE will have to be very creative. 

I really like the way this turned out.

I journaled on a transparency - new for me and attached it with some fabulous clips that SU sells.  You probably can't read what I wrote- so you don't have to strain yourselves to figure out what I could possibly write about my hubby's closet, here it is:

Starched shirt, suit and tie - it has been the 'uniform' for over 30 years and comes off within moments of arriving home.  This is a big loss for me, because you look so FINE with it on.  Yeah, I know you look fine all the time... but I love those days when we have a meeting or award program for the girls and you don't have time to change.  I like to be seen with my own personal GQ guy.

At Sixteen

One more scrapbook share and then I'll do some more punching.  I bet you can make it another day without your punch fix.  If you can't, pull out your punches and see what you can come up with - might surprise yourself!

This is for another challenge on the group I talked about yesterday.  This is for the color challenge.   You were supposed to use teal, brown, yellow and orange.  Neutrals allowed.

I used those colors AND a sketch from this blog from January 21st.  Wow - layouts are so much easier when you chose a starting point and the possibilities aren't TOTALLY endless.

Here is what I did using a photo of  "kid still at home"

I used the new Sweet Pea designer series paper stack from the Occasions Mini Catalog.  The @ and the 16 are coasters covered in paper and run through the Big Shot using the SU Alphabet Simple Numbers Die.

I'd like to impress you with some fancy design talk about the colors and the circle showing energy blah blah blah but.... do you care? and would you believe my B.S.?

I really did make the teal line into an arrow to represent how this feisty red head has life by the tail and is ready to move on into whatever the world holds for her.  I'll probably add some journaling to that effect on the teal border on the left side and the top.

Back in the Scrappin' Saddle

Warning - No Punch Art this post.

I want to get back to my scrapbooking ways because
1) I think telling my "stories" is important
2) I have a gazillion photos in boxes and on the computer
3) I enjoy it

But I usually have to do a few layouts before I get my groove back.  This was my first page back and I like it but I don't love it.  That is OK because if I had to LOVE every page - well, that would be too much pressure and I'd stop enjoying the whole process.  And I like it In Real Life much better than I like this picture of it - I guess I need to work on taking photos of layouts.

I joined an online group that has monthly challenges and this was for the Recipe Challenge for January.  BRRRR - which meant it had to have
B - Blue
R - Rounded corners
R - Rhinestones
R - Rub-ons
R - Rick Rack

And it had to have lots of white space  (Empty area, not necessarily white)

I am so not a rhinestone girl.  And I had no rick rack in the colors I wanted to use - so I made some from paper and the scallop border PUNCH (of course).  My rub-ons match the One of a Kind stamp set but they are retired (Urban West).  Buttons and Rhinestones from my stash.

I love this photo of college girl but it has no specific story associated with it so I thought it would be good for a layout without journaling.

And after using the rhinestones I decided I like them and will use them more in the future - and that is the purpose of challenges - to stretch yourself and grow a little in your craft.

Check out this Challenge Group if you are a scrapbooker and interested in playing along.