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The brunch bunch: DT layout for Stuck?! Sketches

July 1, 2015 By Janice Daquila-Pardo 2 Comments

Today Stuck?! Sketches is revealing its first sketch challenge of July, and the design team layouts for this one are awesome. Please join us over at the blog and allow the sketch and the design team inspire you to play along. We have great sponsor prizes up for grabs.

These photos show my friend, Audrey (wearing pink), with the group of friends she invited to attend the May Ladies for Life brunch held by the Coalition for Life. She hosted us all and decorated the table really beautifully. It was a great way to spend a Saturday morning—surrounded by sweet women and listening to an impassioned speaker on an important topic. For added fun there was also a photo booth with a pile of crazy hats and props, so we took a bunch of kooky photos together.

Product/technique notes

If I have items in my scrapbook stash that I still like and they go with my photos, I don’t care how old they are—I’m going to use them! I’m not ashamed to admit that the papers and stickers on this layout are from the BasicGrey Euphoria collection from 2008!

El Niño layout and card using leftover scraps

June 29, 2015 By Janice Daquila-Pardo 4 Comments

2015 is an El Niño year, and boy, have we felt its effects in Texas! We have seen far more rain than usual so far, but May and June have had epic rainfall numbers (and lots of flooding).

We took these post-thunderstorm photos down at Rattan Creek Park at the end of our street on June 14th. In other summers this creek has been just about nonexistent because we get so little rain here.

I’ve heard a lot of people grumbling about “too much rain,” but I really don’t understand that mentality. When you live through several years of extreme drought conditions, how can you “get sick” of rain? Believe me when I say that we are truly grateful for every raindrop.

I am participating in the Scrap Our Stash sketch challenge #27, which requires you to follow the sketch and then create a card out of the scraps from your layout project. Here is my card, which I will be sending to a college friend of mine:

Product/technique notes

LAYOUT: Following is the Scrap Our Stash sketch #27. I used patterns from the BasicGrey Kelly Purkey Mon Ami 6×6 paper pad, cut the clouds with my Silhouette and hand-stitched the circle.
CARD: The stamps are Hero Arts, and I hand-stitched the edges.

Long Branch Beach

June 25, 2015 By Janice Daquila-Pardo Leave a Comment

Most of my summer vacations as I grew up were sweet and simple and family-centered. They included playing tennis and reading and going to the city pool and on family trips. When I got older they also included part-time jobs so I could save up for college.

But the summer of 1988 was epic for me. And if I may speak for him, it was for my brother as well. That’s because we spent it living and working in New York City at magazines that participated in the American Society for Magazine Editors internship program. What an amazing opportunity to learn about our industry (we were both studying magazine journalism in college) and about ourselves.

I probably have more stories from that one summer than from all my other summers combined! The story told in these photos is one of new friends, warm sunshine and easy laughter. But most importantly for me, it’s a memory full of feelings of belonging.

Susan (on the far left in the left photo) was the older sister of a grade school classmate of ours. We found out that she was living in NYC, and motivated by the desire to have a connection with someone from our past in this vast newness around us, Phil and I called her. Rather than blow us off—which I think a lot of people might have done—Susan, her boyfriend and two of their friends made plans to pick us up on a Saturday morning and drive us out of the city for a day at Long Branch Beach on the Jersey Shore.

We had such a day—so fun and relaxing!

Some people just have a wonderful way about them. They make others feel like old, valued friends right away. And that’s a feeling that stays with you long after the sun goes down.

Product/technique notes

I created this page using patterns from the Crate Paper “The Pier” collection. The title is based on a Silhouette banner cut file to which I added the lettering. The flair is by American Crafts.

The reception

May 25, 2015 By Janice Daquila-Pardo 4 Comments

My mom’s cousin, Tom, was married in September 1977, and these photos are from his wedding reception. I seem to remember that Phil and I were looking forward to being old enough to really participate in the celebratory atmosphere (because 9- and 10-year olds are such party animals). 😉

I love Phil’s 70s style and my long dress (which Mom sewed). And I particularly remember wanting to touch the ribbons on Aunt Mary Lou’s dress. It’s all quite groovy.

Product/technique notes

I followed this sketch from Stuck?! Sketches and used patterned papers from the Basic Grey “Curio” collection. I created the title on the Silhouette and hand stitched several times around the background circle.

Date night

May 2, 2015 By Janice Daquila-Pardo Leave a Comment

Sometimes it’s just fun to capture a few selfies while you’re out on a date. Am I right?

Although when I jumped over to Matt’s side of the table for the shot of the two of us, an older man at a nearby table gave me a dirty look. I wanted to yell over, “At least I’m not too old to have fun, you grump!” But you’ll be proud of me; I was good and just smiled at him.

Product/technique notes

Most of the elements on my page are from Simple Stories “Snap Life” collection, and the paper bag is from Jillibean Soup. I decided I wanted an arrow to connect the title to the “good stuff” card, so I doodled a quick guide and stitched away. I like how it brought it all together.

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