Happy Days | Sue Plumb

Hi everyone!

It's Sue Plumb here with you today and I am so excited to be joining Kylie and the rest of the Scrapping Clearly team as this month's guest designer.

For my first project I thought I would start with what I know best - a 12x12" scrapbook layout to document some photos that were taken at the Cocoa Vanilla Studio retreat back in May.

I began my page with a sheet of Bazzill 'Marshmallow' Smooth Heavyweight cardstock; choosing the heavier weight cardstock because I was going to be applying wet media to add some subtle watercolour detail to my background.

I started with Ranger 'Stormy Sky' and 'Tumbled Glass' Distress Oxide ink pads, which I swiped onto my non-stick craft then spritzed with water until large droplets had formed. I then used my fingertip to swirl the water through the inks, blending them together in a few places before laying the cardstock over the top and smoothing it down to absorb the ink.

I set my background aside to dry whilst I turned my attention to the patterned papers. The ones I had chosen to work with were all from the gorgeous 13Arts 'Blue Magnolia' collection. I cut a large piece of the striped Evening Letters paper and added it to the right hand side of my page, leaving my watercolour work visible on the left side of the page.

Next, I added a small piece of teal paper as a mat for my photos. I used the reverse side of the Forever in My Heart paper from the Simple Stories Heart collection and then added my photos on top using some cardboard underneath to pop them up from the page. 

Now it was time for some fussy cutting! I took the Flowery Day paper (also from the 13Arts Blue Magnolia collection), which is full of gorgeous elements to cut out. I cut a few floral pieces and added them to my page with foam tape so that they formed a "visual triangle" around my photos. I also used black cotton thread in each cluster to add some soft texture to my page. 

In the bottom right corner I added a fussy cut branch with a sweet little bird perched on it; then three butterflies (also cut from the same sheet) which I placed around my page to form a secondary visual triangle.

For my title piece, I used the happy days die cut from the Pinkfresh Studio 'Boys Fort' Collection Ephemera Pack, which I also applied using foam tape for dimension.

Next, I added a simple doodled border using a black Fude Ball pen; a small strip of paper along the bottom edge to record the details about my photos; and finally, a scattering of black and white sequins from the Teresa Collins Urban Market Sequins. To finish off, I couldn't resist a few tiny black splatters of Indian Ink.

Thanks so much for stopping by, I will be back next week with another project to share with you.

Christmas Eve Traditions and a Step by Step Tutorial by Leonie Neal-Dawson

Merry Christmas Eve to all of our Scrapping Clearly family. 

Leonie Neal-Dawson with you today. 

It's Christmas Eve 2017 and I'm sharing a scrapbook layout with my 2016 Christmas Eve photo!

For many years now I have been taking a picture of my family of six on Christmas Eve.

I try to find different ways to photograph us all but it gets harder and harder each year to think of something new and with three teenagers, and a tween, cooperation as you can imagine is quite a feat!

Hence last year there were no faces just the six of us standing in our Santa Sacks. No need to worry about who is smiling, whose eyes are closed etc.

Do you take an annual Christmas photo? Or have any little Christmas traditions in your family?

I think they're fun and these are the types of memories that stick in my mind when I think of family events.

I've prepared a step-by-step showing the process involved in creating my background for you below.

I began by sketching some trees on Bazzill Marshmallow cardstock. I knew I was going to be adding ink and wet mediums to my page so I wanted a thick cardstock that would withstand lots of wet mediums

and not end up too buckled.

I started adding some colour with different shades of Distress Ink Stains.

Just tapping them inside the boundaries of the trees I had sketched. I used Peeled Paint, Bundled Sage, Shabby Shutters, and Cracked Pistachio. I wasn't too happy with the immediate result and knew that more layers were definitely needed so I added some gesso with a sponge and then some texture paste with a spatula.

I added some more colour on top of the gesso and Texture paste with Twisted Citron Distress Oxide Re-inker and some water to spread it over the trees. Finishing touch was with a Fude Ball pen to outline the trees.

This pen is fantastic to use over mediums like texture paste, ink and gesso.

My photo has been matted on papers from the Bella Blvd Illustrated Faith collection. 

More Distress stains were used to add some colour to the sky, and the tree trunks were coloured with a quick smudge of brown Gelatos.

My Christmas trees have been decorated with enamel dots from Cocoa Vanilla Studios, some sequins and wood veneer stars from my stash.

Well, that's last Christmas Eve's photo scrapped.

I wonder if I can come up with something different for todays' photo?

Wish me luck with getting those teens to cooperate!

Merry Christmas and a peaceful New Year from me.

Cheers,

Leonie Neal-Dawson.