The Constant Scrapper

If I'm not scrapbooking I'm thinking about scrapbooking!

Sketches

Don’t stop me now ’cause I’m having such a good time!

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Today sketch #103 has gone up at the Twisted Sketches site. The twist for this one is “stop.”

twistedsketches_103

Twisted Sketch #103

Here’s what I put together based on that sketch (click the image for a larger view):

Don'tStopMe3_Daquila-Pardo

Sing my title to the tune "Don't stop me now" by Queen

When I thought of the twist for this sketch I immediately heard Queen’s “Don’t stop me now.” It’s one of those songs that always makes me smile. I love the racing pace and fun feeling of it.

So I used that as my title for this layout, which features me and my younger bro, Phil, back in 1992. We’re out front of our home in Willoughby, Ohio, with Spenser (who was just a little over a year old), ready to head out on a bike ride. It’s a simple memory—for I don’t remember our route or how long we rode or what we talked about on the ride—but I love that I can capture evidence of our family home, our precious dog, a healthy hobby and our close sibling relationship all in one shot.

Sketches for Scraps: First overalls

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Today’s sketch for using scraps or 6×6 paper pads follows a well-established grid structure: nine of any shape. In the sketch (and my example) I’ve used three-inch circles. I filled one of my circles with a photo and the rest with patterned paper. Of course, the beautiful thing about a sketch like this is that you could use more than one photo in the grid.

The really fun part comes in sprinkling little embellishments strategically abound the page to amplify your theme. I hope you enjoy this sketch, and please link up any pages you make using it.

TheConstantScrapper_Sketch03

I created this sketch, which you can use with one or more photos.

I followed this sketch to complete a layout of a photo of me in my first pair of overalls. 🙂

FirstOveralls_Daquila-Pardo

I used this sketch to do a page about me in my first overalls.

Cats make Sleeping Beauty look like an amateur

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Our beautiful Lucy is a Maine Coon, and she adds joy to our lives each day she is with us.

She shares many characteristics attributed to her breed:

  • friendly and playful temperament
  • affectionate nature and clown-like personality
  • seeks out the company of people (loyally follows people from room to room)
  • lifelong kittenish disposition
  • very talkative

And she’s a cat, so you know, she really likes to sleep.

We love to catch her napping on her back, with belly exposed and legs splayed. So cute. That’s when we call her Loosey Goosey. Get it? Loosey Goosey Lucy!

My layout captures a more modest shot of her sleeping this way. 😉 She deserves a bit of privacy, I think! I have also tried to capture what I presume she may be dreaming about. I based my design on a sketch on the My Mind’s Eye blog.

LooseyGooseyLucy_Daquila-Pardo

This layout is based on My Mind's Eye sketch challenge #23.

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This is the My Mind's Eye sketch

Gosh, now I really feel a nap coming on…

Sketches for Scraps Thursday: Easter duds

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I found a sketch by Shimelle that I just love for using up some of our patterned paper scraps. It’s for one photo, and I like its versatility for embellishing.

shimelle1948

Find this sketch at http://www.shimelle.com/paper/949/scrapbooking-sketch-of-the-week/

Here is the layout I completed with it, all from scraps 6×6 or smaller.

EasterDuds_Daquila-Pardo

My mom is an excellent seamstress and made many an outfit for me, including this tulip dress for Easter 1990

It’s a photo of my family (sans Dad, the photographer) right after Easter Mass in 1990.

It’s one of those photos that was taken from too far away and includes distracting background details. But I love it because it reminds me of important things. Like that my Mom, who is an excellent seamstress and has made me many, many special outfits over the years, made the dress I’m wearing in this photo. The fabric featured bright-colored tulips scattered across a black background. I wore that thing to death because I really felt good in it and loved that it was homemade.

I also like that Phil, having fun being a bit uncooperative, insisted on eating his after-church snack even though I’m sure my mom moaned at him to get rid of it. And don’t you love to be reminded of the cars your family drove at certain periods?

Yeah, this photo isn’t good; it’s great. Because technically good photos just cannot trump great memories.

How can you resist?

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Twisted Sketches launches its 98th sketch today, and the twist this time is “paint.” The sketch and the design team’s interpretations are awaiting you at Twisted Sketches’ site…and here is my design team contribution using the new sketch:

We'llDoLunch_Daquila-Pardo

That's me, wearing Daddy's clip-on sunglasses and enjoying the Ohio sunshine.

This is the sketch:

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Twisted Sketch #98 calls for 2 photos

For the “paint” twist I was inspired to try a resist technique on the talk bubble using white shimmer paint. I have done resist techniques with ink and embossing powder before but had not yet tried paint resist, so I thought I would show a quick step-by-step just in case it might inspire you to try it on a future layout.

  1. Gather your supplies: Acrylic paint, rubber stamp, Distress Inks and foam applicators.

    PaintResistSupplies

    This technique doesn't take much in the way of supplies.

  2. Apply paint (shimmer paint in my example) to the stamp image and stamp it carefully (don’t smear it) on a spare bit of cardstock.
  3. Immediately take your rubber stamp to a sink and clean it well with soap and water. It’s best not to let the acrylic paint dry on the stamp as it may be harder to remove.
  4. If you’re patient wait until the paint thoroughly dries. If not, hit it with your heat tool for a minute or two.
  5. Start applying the Distress Inks with a circular motion and blend your colors a little where they meet. I used the three colors shown in the photo, but of course there are no rules about how many you use.
  6. Slightly mist a paper towel with water and gently buff off the extra ink from the painted areas to reveal the true color!

Here is a close-up of the final effect. I think I like it!

CloseUp

This close-up photo shows how the shimmer paint resisted the inks.

If you decide to try this quick technique after reading my post, have your people call my people please leave a comment and a link so I can see what you’ve done!