Life's Trivialities

Blogging Along!!

Just because we get the week off from Sketch Support and I don't have anything to post for TaDa this week, doesn't mean I can't just share, right?! LOL!! Here's a little something I did at the retreat this past weekend.

I love this new line from Authentique!! The colors are so bright and just right up my alley. Perfect for these pictures of Nikolas in his fort. This kid can make a whole day of playing in the forts he builds. It's not just the fort that gets built but whole elaborate scenes and stories develop as a result. His imagination is amazing!

It's difficult to tell but that black background piece is actually a piece of the Coredination's Black Magic. Sanding to reveal the same turquoisey blue that is behind it is the perfect "mwah" to finish off this layout! The Scenic Route circles are a conveted item from my stash that I save for THE perfect layout. They coordinate so well with this Authentique, don't you think?

Fun! Thanks for stopping by!

Call Me Phyllis

This layout is titled as such because that's exactly what I was told. Upon picking The Midget up from after school care and seeing this lovely head topper but not knowing quite what it was, I asked. My reply was something akin to "It's Groundhog's day Mummy! This is Punksa... Punksat... Just call me Phyllis!" And, so, here is Phyllis the groundhog in her colorful glory!

The layout was upon the sketch challenge at Lily Bee with the caveat that one was to use two Lily Bee products. In my case, the Memorandum paper and journal cards from a 3 Scrappy Boys kit. With my own add ons added here and there. Do you see the resemblence? Sort of?! I flipped it 90 degrees to the right and used two photos with my journal card standing in as the third rectangle.

This is one of a few layouts I made at my all weekend crop with my scrappy pals this weekend. I really only had Friday afternoon evening and Saturday as Nikolas and Michael were up in Manassas at the second of his 3 championship meets. Mia being there for Friday and Saturday was plenty sufficient so she and I had the day to while away together.

 

Sketch Support 1pg

I have had these pictures sitting on my desk for quite some time now... They had been trimmed down to their 3x3 square size for another Sketch Support layout and I got waylaid by something better suited to the sketch at the time. Or, perhaps the pictures knew that a more suitable sketch would come along for them... However you want to look at it, they look great on this sketch. This week's single page sketch at Sketch Support was made for these pictures! Be sure to check out the Sketch Support blog for the download.

I love that wood veneer that mimics my Dad pointing to the fish in the water that he wanted Mia to throw her fish food to. She, however thought it better to slowly divy up the wealth and drop the pellets in one by one.

Looking at the white mist on the navy blue, it would make a cool background for a starry night layout, don't you think? It always amazes me the other perspective I get of my own layouts through the camera lens...

 

A Wish

Another fantastic add on sketch up at Sketch Support this week. It's funny how certain sketches just speak to me. The minute I lay eyes on some of them, the pictures just jump out at me screaming to be used, the papers come to mind and it's smooth sailing. This was another one of those moments. I knew that instead of hearts I wanted to use stars and a moon with a picture of a baby sleeping. As I was surfing around looking for a great title, I found this quote. Funnily enough, it was a quote I had in my scrappy notebook that I was saving for a special occasion. Guess I found it, eh?!

I still get a kick out of the "Halloween" paper for my rather serene scene. Sure, there were scary moments (a newborn, my first, breastfeeding, sleep deprivation) but you don't get that sense from this picture.

If you haven't already, be sure to visit the Sketch Support blog download the sketch and see all the other masterpieces on display! Just when I think Allison has outdone herselft, she goes and does it again! And again, and again! She is a star with sketches!!

 

First Day

This one is based on the latest Little Yellow Bicycle sketch challenge. I can never turn a sketch challenge down!! I just love the primary colors in Head of the Class and all the matching embellies! The big white star (outlined in black) is from the packaging of the fabric banners. I love to re-purpose the packaging!

Just a little close up... The punctuation that the black gives the bright, primary colors really makes this page stand out. I still always think of Christine Middlecamp when I do this, it is so classically HER. A trademark of hers, of sorts...

I am hoping to be selected as one of the three finalists!! Fingers crossed, eyes crossed, nose crossed!! LOL!! Maybe?! I don't know... Would be awesome... And IF I am, I'm going to need your vote!! IF...

Thanks for stopping by!

Splashy

This layout came together lickity split!! My box from TaDa arrived Friday afternoon and an hour later, this layout was complete. Having previewed the lines online, I knew, the instant I saw the Poolside collection which pictures I was going to use for my first layout. A sketch from Allison, these pictures of Nikolas on one of his first swim lessons and I was off!! It's up on the TaDa Blog today, be sure to check out the post!

I cut into every sheet and went to town! Or, rather, went to the pool!! Not that it's been all that cold or wintery around here but I could use a little Vitamin D and warmth right now. This was a fair substitute! I mean, who could resist Cannonballs, Ball of Fun and Line Dry?! Mary and Annette always come up with the cutest names for their papers!

A Girl and Her Granny

When my parents came for Thanksgiving this past year, I got this fantastic shot of Mia and my Mum. The picture speaks volumes to me. And what better way to showcase it than with the lovely colors from the latest Color Combos Galore palette?

The inspiration for this month's palette is a tribute; to create a project focusing on paying tribute to a very special female in your life. It's clear the mutual admiration in the picture. My Mum will always be very special to me. No matter what. As will Mia be. They both inspire me and drive me to be the best person I can be. Each in differing ways.

The bonus inspiration is to draw your own challenge and let you know what I did. Easy enough; there are hearts, just as there are in the picture. The scallop trim is to mimic the edge of the plate.

I love how the dots and the chevron work so well in punctuating the picture with that purple and white vertical stripe in Mia's shirt.

 

Snow... Ever So Briefly

If you blinked, you might have missed it!! We had snow here yesterday!! And all whopping five minutes of it were absolute bliss for this little girl. We were at the VMFA, celebrating a belated Chinese New Year celebration, having a snack in the cafe when big fat white flakes started chucking it down! We wolfed down the remainder of our profiteroles, wrapped ourselves in our coats and headed out for a brief play.

Catching snow on her tongue was the first order of events!!

Next item on the agenda, picking up the snow in clumpfulls in order to attempt to "pack it and smack it" into snowballs.

Winding up her pitchers arm, armed with a small ball of ice...

Watch out Mum!! Coming at you!!! Fortunately, she missed the lens... Wise enough to know that that is off limits! One of the activities at the CNY celebration was face painting. You could choose any of the twelve zodiac animals. Appropriately, being born in the year of the dog, she had a dog painted on her face.

This was the absolute highlight of her day! For weeks she's been expressing her desire for snow and how she would really like to have a snowball fight with Nikolas. Nikolas was with Michael fighting traffic getting out of the mall having just seen Star Wars in 3D... No snow play for him...

Tea For 2

I warned you, I did. I remember! Yup, another layout of Mia's little tea party. This one is based upon the February sketch challenge at Paper Secrets. It's been so fun to be back in challenges again! I love that Tattered Angels mask for this layout. You don't see much of it but the few whisps peeking out of the edges are just sublime!

I tried to find a better font for the title but after an hour of searching, abandoned my quest. I just used a very fine tipped brown American Crafts pen to outline the letters that were in the Simple Stories Year-O-Graphy kit that I used for this layout. It's difficult to tell from the pictures but it mimics the use of typography in the little banners on the 4x6 behind the pictures.

While distressing that lace, I discovered a cool technique that I will have to share another time! The lace is very white. Left "as is" it was rather an eye sore on the shabby, oldy worldy looking kraft and other elements from Simple Stories. I used some distress ink and stain to kind of "age" it a bit. Make it become one with the rest of the layout.

Challenge isn't due until Feb 29th, why don't you play along?!

 

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I don't have enough pictures printed of any one event right now to do a two page spread so, I went with what I had and just used the left hand page of the two page sketch up at Sketch Support this week. Be sure to head to the site HERE and check out what all the other gals have done. Today, along with yours truly's, are all the single page takes.

I love this line from American Crafts!! It's perfect for boy pages. Anything masculine but not cutesy. The cutesy pages are becoming useless for me. This fellow of mine is growing up and cute dump trucks and airplanes are not suitable for him anymore!

Check out that embossed Core in amongst all the tags on the left! Doesn't it go perfectly with the paper?! I had a good little chuckle at my brilliance!! LOL!! Eye spy some Ormolu in there too!! It's been funny to observe the things that I have in my stash which I use sparingly. Such as the Ormolu. The things that I really, really like and aren't easy to come by. Or my Aussie chipboard.

These pictures were taken during Spring Break last year. The morning after the big hurricanes swept through the mid-Atlantic states. We had narrowly missed being involved. We weren't so sure we were getting into this museum as it was closed the first time we went to the door. I can't quite remember how it played out but we did end up there, obviously. And we had a blast!! Do you remember the sock hockey layout I did for a Sketch Support blog hop? That was at this same place!! Good times, good memories!

Thanks for stopping by!! Until next time...