Sketch Support

About a month ago I announced on Facebook that I was just accepted as a new member of the Creative Team for the website Sketch Support. Now I know most of you aren't scrapbookers and don't quite understand what this new team is all about. Thus this blog post is about what I will be doing for the next few months.

Allison Davis is a famous scrapbooker. She was a two-year member of Creating Keepsakes magazine's Dream Team (where I first came across her work), a CK Hall of Fame member and a Scrapbooker of the Year finalist. Allison is now known for her scrapbook sketches. They are awesome! What is a scrapbook sketch? I think it would be easiest to show you.

Here is an example of a one page layout sketch. If you were to go to the Sketch Support website and print it out you would see that it tells you the dimensions of everything on this layout. A great starting place for a layout. Each month Sketch Support provides four different sketches - card, two-page layout, one-page layout and add-on. Each day ideas are shared on how different members of the Creative Team use the sketch for that week.

This website is new as of this January and Allison held a Creative Team Call at the end of last year. I got one layout completed but then my grandmother passed away. Needless to say I found that going to my grandmother's funneral was more important than trying for the team. I figured that I would try out for it again in a year. Boy was I excited when Allison announced a couple of months ago that she wanted to add to the team! I was even more excited when I got an email from Allison saying that I made the team! To think that I got an email from a famous scrapbooker! :o)

My responsibilty is to create at least two projects a month based off of two of the sketches for that month. There are basically no rules. One of my main reasons for wanting to join the team is that it would get me to scrapbook for myself. I really don't scrapbook that much and when I do half the time it is for someone else. I'm in the process of working on July's sketches so soon I will be sharing those projects as they are shared on Sketch Support.

Here are the projects that I entered and the sketches I worked off of. Hopefully it will give you a better sense of what I will be doing each month.

Example of an Add-On Sketch. The sketch tells exactly how to make this cupcake and I decided to use it to decorate a gift bag.

Here is another example of a one-page sketch. I flipped it on it's side and changed up the placement of the  embellishments a bit. This was my first time weaving on a layout and I loved how it turned out! The pictures are not of me but of my youngest sister Brittany.

This is an example of a two-page sketch. Yep I did not use it to make a two-page layout. Can you see where I used the sketch? The area of the sketch with the stars is what inspired me to make this home decor project. I had so much fun making this frame! I finally used my new butterfly punches. There is only one problem. I have no idea where I should hang it.

So if you scrapbook or have friends that do share the Sketch Support website with them. All the sketches can be printed for free and each day there are new projects shared. A fun place to find a lot of inspiration!

1000 Pins

A couple of months ago I started seeing the word Pinterest pop up on a scrapbooking message board that I visit every so often. I ignored those messages at first until I saw one that discussed what Pinterest was. I like to be in the know-how so I read up on it and visited a fellow scrapbooker's Pinterest boards. Wow! It didn't take me long to capture the vision and I wanted to join! The only problem was that you had to either request an invitiation from the Pinterest site or get a friend to invite you. I was lucky enough to get a fellow scrapbooker (stranger) to send me an invite.

Some of you may be wondering what Pinterest is all about. Pinterest is a virtual pinboard. A place for you to pin all the goodies you find on the web. You have boards which are your categories and then you can pin different links under the categories. It is such a nice way to visually organize all your bookmarks/pins. Friends and strangers can follow your boards and see what things are catching your interest. I am officially addicted!

Today I hit 1000 pins! The above picture is a screen shot of my Pinterest boards. Well at least some of them. To see all of the goodies I've pinned go HERE. You can tell a lot about a person by seeing what they pin. This is what I think my pins tell about me:

1. Yes I LOVE to scrapbook! I get a lot of my inspiration online.
2. Why a Dr. Seuss board besides the face that I'm a fan? Tom and I hope to one day have a Dr. Seuss themed nursery.
3. I love DIY home decor projects. Many of my pins are ideas for our future home if we ever get past the schooling phase of life.
4. I love to bake. So many yummy recipes online that are tempting me. So far I have made homemade twix bars, cake batter pancakes and Funfetti Sandwich Cookies. All recipes I stumbled upon via Pinterest.
5. I do not like to cook. Thus my Healthy Eats board is lacking in pins. I have made the Zucchini Fries and they are delicious! I really do need to cook more healthy meals.
6. I have always loved quotes. I have a couple of journals that I turned into quote books but they are disorganized and I hardly ever pull them out. Love that I can find a quote I heart and pin it. Plus they are more visually pleasing than my handwriting. :o)
7. I love to organize! I have come across some genius organization tips. One of my favorites is to take bread clips and us them as cord labels. Want to see a pic? Go HERE. I need to remember not to throw away my bread clips.
8. One of my goals for this year is to take better photographs and learn to use the manual mode on my camera. Haven't worked much on that but I am pinning photographs that inspire me. There are so many talented photographers out there. I'm envious!
9. I have a board titled sewing tutorials. That might lead you to believe that I sew. Well I don't. But there are so many cute patterns out there that I keep telling myself that maybe one day I will buy a sewing machine and maybe one day I will be a sewing pro. Maybe one day...
10. I'm overall a crafty person. I love to crochet, make cards, make gifts, etc.

So there you have it. Now I'm off to make a grocery list based off of all those healthy meals I've pinned.

Hello.

Thomas & Me

Welcome to my own little corner of the web. I'm excited to get this new blog rolling and to be able to share with you what I'm up to and also share with you the things I love. I thought to begin I would share with you my favorites as of right now.

Car: Mini Cooper

Color: Red

Actor: Cary Grant & Don Knotts

Actress: Doris Day & Emma Thompson

Music Artists: Josh Groban, Michael Buble, Mindy Gledhill, Glee Tunes & Doris Day

Songs: Firework-Katy Perry, Jar of Hearts-Christina Perri & All About Your Heart-Mindy Gledhill

Flowers: Daisy, Sunflower & Rose

Hobbies: Scrapbooking, Crocheting & Reading

Candy: Reese's Peanut Butter Cups

Books: To Kill a Mockingbird, Jane Eyre, Pride and Prejudice

TV Shows: The Andy Griffith Show & Hogan's Heroes

Holiday: Christmas

Smell: Fresh rain on pavement, my Grandmother Ririe's house & the smell of cookies baking

Movies: North & South, Jane Eyre, Pride & Prejudice, Calamity Jane, You've Got Mail, & Beauty & the Beast

Animals: Wolves, Dolphins & Orcas

Foods: Mexican & Chinese

Number: 4

Month: August (Anniversary & Birthday)

Seasons: I love them all for the variety they add to life.