School and Scrapping Updates

Wow. I've been absolutely swamped during the past month! I defended my proposal on August 12 and it passed! Woo hoo!!! I'm so excited. Now on to all the other things that will lead to the next step. :/

School started back almost immediately after my defense. Actually, I went to work the day after. School is hectic, but I think we are starting to get into a groove. I have a lot to do. I'm adjuncting at TJC (did I mention that?) and it's very busy trying to keep up with my school and my work, and that too.

On the other hand, I scrapbooked last week. I was actually a hostess on SCS for the August 09 VSBN. I completed my page as well as a few others. It was so much fun. I remjmbered why I love doing it so much.

I've never hosted a VSBN before and I've really had a good time preparing for it. It was so hard to come up with a sample because I rely on all of you so much to cheat!

I used (more than!) three of my favorite things:
* a sketch (I used Pencil Lines #126 for this and made a coordinating facing page)
* metal (brads, in this case)
* ribbon
* Pretties kit
* chipboard
The technique I don't use enough is heat embossing. I love it but just don't do it as often as I should!

I sponge-dyed the pretties flower with crushed curry and then sponged the tips with melon mambo for dimension and gradation.

Stamps: baroque motifs, circle circus

Paper: whisper white, razzleberry lemonade dsp

Ink: versamark, rich razzleberry, melon mambo, crushed curry, soft suede

Accessories: crushed curry polka dot ribbon, melon mambo polka dot ribbon, flower designer brads, another SU designer brad that wasn't in the correct container so I don't remember which it is offhand!, embossing powder,on board batch of blooms chipboard

Techniques: sanding, heat embossing, sponging

This page is for Jennifer's challenge in the August 09 VSBN. My name acrostic is:
H - hectic
E - encouraging
A - attitude
T - thankful
H - honest
E - enigma
R - ready to graduate
I got finished and realized that I forgot to do any kissing! Durn. :) Well, other than the first picture. Let's agree there is no STAMP kissing!

Paper: kraft, bermuda bay, soft suede, textured white, Tiding/Winterming, Fruitcake, Basic Grey

Ink: bermuda bay, soft suede

Accessories: pretties kit, big shot, serif essentials, assorted buttons

These pages are for the August 2009 VSBM. I used the Pencil Lines sketch 150. There is a flower on the right page that is a little hard to see. I made it with the You make Me Happy set and used "you make the world special just by being in it" as the stem. The journaling says: Two baby brothers. Pesky, Always in my business. Warts. "Dogging" me. Successful. Honorable. I wouldn't trade them for the world!

Stamps: jumble alphabet, you make me happy

Paper: bashful blue, whisper white, to the nines specialty designer paper

Ink: close to cocoa, bashful blue

Accessories: dimensionals, two way glue pen, dazzling diamonds

These pages are for the August 2009 VSBN, "Color My World". I used one of my favorite colors, ruby red, and some paper I've been hoarding for too long.

I've recently began a love affair with taking photos of nature. I think there are so many beautiful things around us that I take for granted too often. You are going to think I'm weird, but I even like dead trees - I think they are full of grace and character.

So I pulled out my nature photos and combined them with all the beautiful colors I could pull in. The layout for the left page is sketch #14 from Pencil Lines. The right page is a fairly generic layout I've used before with some tying elements to the sketch.

There are two hidden journaling tabs on the left and one on the right. Each journaling tab is secured with a rhinestone brad. From left to right they read:

(with a hidden photo I couldn't fit on the page!) I have recently become enamored with taking nature photos. I love the colors and amazing intricacies found in nature, clean and unblemished, pure and holy.

I think this is a fabulous picture. Eva Grace and I were at the Children's Park in Tyler. The photo was not staged, but it is reminiscent of Picasso's Hand with Flowers.

The final journaling tab is a Stampabilities stamp with the Bible verse: "For the Lord is great and greatly to be praised. Psalm 96:4"

Stamps: Stampabilities, Psalm 96:4

Paper: ruby red, very vanilla, so saffron, bashful blue, mellow moss, MME tan/red stripes, wild asparagus maroon floral

Ink: mellow moss, bashful blue, soft suede

Accessories: pretties kit, so saffron grosgrain ribbon, bazzill flowers

Techniques: hidden journaling