Law & Order Back in The Day: Retro Days 4

Continuing with my retro obsession during the summer of 2011:

One look at a car like this, and I'm thinking malt shops, ponytails, poodle skirts, and Happy Days.
I really had fun with this one.  I enjoyed the contrast of the big, serious vintage police car with the flowers, polka dots and lacy trims on this l/o.

I did a little sewing around the edges and added a stencilled flower with acrylic paint.

The black frame is a Kaiser Craft piece, covered with Enamel Accents.  The centre frame is Dusty Attic chipboard, covered with distress inks and crackle paint.  I tucked some lace in behind the frame for contrast.
Hope you enjoyed this little retrospective of a by-gone era that surfaced in my life that summer in My Little Town!
If you have some spare moments, feel free to leave a brief comment - each one is most appreciated!

Materials List:
Paper: Crate Paper Emma's Shop
Hanging Sign: Kaiser Craft
Baroque Frame: Dusty Attic
Tim Holtz Enamel Accents

Autobiography of a Bird: CCG Challenge 201

The colour palette at CCG this week inspired me to create the cover for a little book that has been living in my head for a long time.  (You can read about the colour challenge here.)

I cut the cover from an old packing box, and covered it with patterned paper from my stash. The bird and bird cage were cut from canvas fabric using a Tim Holtz Alterations die. (Before cutting, I adhered the fabric to grungeboard to prevent fraying of the fabric. ) The the cage was coloured very simply using dabber paint. 
I couldn't make myself put the bird IN the cage - it just felt too trapped!  So the little bird was placed on her pearl-covered perch outside the cage. 
Hanging from the bottom of the cage are three TH Muse Tokens: Inspire, Altered, and Wander.
I added some pink tulle edging for fun, and used a Martha Steward paper punch for the top edge.
The stamp for the title comes from a gorgeous art stamp set by Tweety Jill.
I'm glad that the cover is finally done.  And now to get around to completing the pages of the book!
Thanks for stopping by!

Materials Used:
Stamps: Tim Holtz flourish; Tweety Jill title
Die Cuts: Tim Holtz Alterations
Metal Embellishments: Tim Holtz

For the Record: Retro Days 3

I'm fascinated with the way time has speeded up recently. Seems like you just get dressed and then  it's time to put on your pajamas and go back to bed again. Or is that just me?

But in My Little Town, time is gracious and stately.  There's a beautiful century house by the water, with a black rotary-dial telephone....and it still works!

Yes, the telephone still works!

So the receiver weighs a few pounds and talking into it is like speaking into a medieval device...it is still communication! It makes me realize how much time we spend (waste?) on the phone back in the Real World.
Here's a close-up of the patterned paper and the embellishments from For the Record:

We spent a very pleasant few weeks here last summer.  Long, luscious days when my whole to-do list was just one item:
 Buy an onion.

Time spent in My Little Town soothes all the frayed nerves and jagged edges.  When I'm here, all is right with the world.  It's  good for the soul to spend some time like this.

It's not that I wish to live in the past, but I do love the retro thing, and there are some fantastic pp lines available right now.  

Thanks for looking!  

Have a wonderful day, and if you have a spare nannosecond, I love reading your sweet comments.

Materials:

Crate Paper:  Emma's Shop

Stickers: For the Record 

Book Page: Glitz Designs

Retro Days

I have been on a real retro roll this summer.  
The 50's colours and the simplicity of the patterned paper available recently are completely perfect for my photos from last summer, spent north of here in a beautiful little town on the lake.

Because my whole theme for this series is simplicity, I purposely kept everything extra-simple, and stayed away from lavish embellishments.
Summer is my favourite time of year.  This layout is a small collection of summer symbols for me.  I chose a photo of my favourite ballet flats, (which just happened to match the red patterned paper).  Walking down the shade-dappled sidewalks of town always makes me feel happy - as if I am in another world, where time is slower and the days have a certain grace to them.
There is a photo of my husband at the Friday-night Cruise, standing beside a very spiffy and shiny vintage blue car. And there's a b&w photo of me beside the sesquicentennial banner at the top of Main Street.
I'll be posting the rest of my retro series over the next little while.
Have a wonderful day!

Main Street: ST July Challenge

Oh, it's been a wild time around here as regards paint.  I have spattered, splattered, dripped, and sprayed paint for my last two layouts.  My laundry room will never be the same!
This layout I did for the Scrap That! July Challenge:

I took this beautiful October Afternoon pp and just splattered white paint with abandon.  I HATED to do it, but rules are rules...and I ended up being quite happy with the result.  I think it looks just as if it's been kept around the house for a long time, even while the house was painted.
The photograph was taken at the Sesquicentennial Parade at my favourite little getaway place just a few years ago.  (You'll note the modern-era people sitting in lawn chairs on the side of the street).
Here's some close ups of my favourite spatters (big smile):

I've been going through a big retro phase recently - I'll be posting the whole series over the next little while.  Stay tuned!
If you have a moment, I do love reading your sweet comments. Thanks for stopping by!

Where Angels Dance: Color Combos Galore 200

There's an anniversary blog hop happening at Color Combos Galore, in combination with their Challenge #200.  Prepare yourself for a real in-depth and learning experience, with lots of prizes and blog candy involved.

The technique for this challenge was to create drips or a melting effect.  Not my comfort zone at all!
I used watercolour paper and sprayed glimmer mists through cardboard tubes onto the paper.  End result - balloons with long strings!  (which was quite a surprise result). I also used a Prima mask, most of which ended covered up.

Challenge was to create a drip effect on the page.

The surprise ballon effect actually made it easy for me to select a photo - it had to be this one of my daughter and her friend before their first dance recital.  With their shining hair, lovely homemade costumes, and their glowing faces, they made me think of angels.
I popped some flowers onto the balloons for a festive, sunny effect, and added some paper punched strips for balance and colour.


Deadline for participating in the CCG blog hop is Sunday, July 24.  Have fun!
Thanks for stopping by.

Marseille 2h.: Let's Get Shabby Challenge 25

Here is the challenge photo at Let's Get Shabby:

We were limited to using two elements from: lace. chipboard, fabric, and book/music page. (Quite difficult, because I often use all four out of habit!) I used fabric and chipboard.

Inspiration Photo for the challenge

I thought of a place setting, and the cutlery and the numbers on the plate made me think of train travel, club cars, and good living.  If only I had a picture of me eating a meal on the Orient Express, it would have been perfect!

Marseille 2h.: using fabric and chipboard

I settled on two pictures of me and my husband in Marseille.  While there, 2 o'clock became our designated hour to have lunch.  By 2 o'clock, it was time to seek shelter from the fierce sun.  We would sit at one of the charming cafes under an awning or umbrella and order a glass of rose wine, followed by a leisurely lunch.


To emphasize my French theme, I chose papers from the Parisian Anthology, and inked them a little with a steel gray ink. I edge punched some blue cardstock and tucked it in behind to incorporate the blue colour from the napkin.
1. FABRIC
To represent the vertical placement of the knife and fork, I ran long strips of Webster's bloomers to frame the photos:

2. CHIPBOARD
I used the numeral 2 to designate the hour (2 heures). The chipboard is covered thickly in white and black Enamel Accents to give it the look of a French address plaque.  
The butterflies and floral wreath are also chipboard, and I made the letter packet by covering chipboard pieces with stickers from Tim Holtz, and tying it with string.
This challenge really appealed to me and yet stumped me at the same time: it definitely stretched my creative brain.  It was fun to scrap these photos and remember that wonderful week in Marseille just two years ago. There's still time to enter this challenge - it ends July 20. Here's the link:  Let's Get Shabby Challenge 25.
Thanks so much for stopping by.  A votre sante, and have a wonderful day!

BLOOM: Color Combos Challenge #199

Color Combos Galore is hosting a colour challenge that combines all the summer colours I love best!

 

So I pulled out my favourite ice-cream coloured papers and came up with this layout.  Thanks to my daughter, who happened to be wearing just the right colours that day!

Part of what makes this one so much fun is the focus on typography: we were meant to re-create the mis-matched/slightly askew lettering on the bowls in the picture.  Being something of a font geek, I generally get upset when my letters don't match or if they don't line up perfectly.
 ( Don't you hate it when you pull out your favourite set of sticker letters and the one key letter, the one you need most, missing?)  Anyway, this time I got to mix and match on purpose -very liberating! The retro rectangles were cut on my Cricut with George and Shapes cartridge.
Thanks so much for stopping by.  Have a wonderful day.



Materials Used:
Patterned Papers:  BoBunny, Crate Paper
Chipboard Letters: from my stash of mis-matched letters
Flowers: Prima, Recollections,and one hand-made blossom
Embellishments:  butterfly (Recollections); mystery stickers (unknown)

Once Upon A...Sketch July Challenge: CIRCLE OF LIFE

The July Challenge at Once Upon A...Sketch is to use a sketch and accompany the photo with some journalling.  Here is the sketch:

And here is my layout:

The photo is my beautiful daughter in her ninth month of pregnancy.  She is just blooming with health and life, don't you agree?  Here is a close-up of the journalling:

This is her first baby.  I am as excited about this upcoming birth as I was about the birth of my own first child - who is now the lovely young mother-to-be in this photo.
Thanks for stopping by.  Have a wonderful day!

Materials List:

Patterned Paper: Fancy Pants Design, Baby Mine

Lace Trim: Recollections

Yellow Cording: Michaels

Chipboard Tags: We R Memory Keepers, White Out

Butterfly: Kaiser Craft

Flower: Prima

Chipboard Letters: 7 Gypsies

Butterfly Card

I made this card for my daughter's birthday using Parisian Anthology Papers.

My goal was to create something vintage and elegant, with an old French style.  I kept the colours very simple and die-cut all the layered shapes on my Cricut. I added some lace, some bling, and some liquid pearls.


 I have neglected my stamps and inks of late. My recent focus has been on scrapping photos and layouts - but making cards used to be my favourite thing!  It was fun to do this card; everything seemed to come together much more quickly than it does when I work on a layout. 


Thanks for stopping by.

Materials List;

Papers: Parisian Anthology

Lace Trim: Recollections

Stamp: Darcee's

Bling: Prima

Webster's Pages: All About Me collection

Webster's Pages is launching a fabulous new line of papers and embellishments today.   Head on over to Webster's Pages Blog to check it out.