Nichol Spohr LLC

Journal Your Christmas 2009 (a giveaway)

I know, I know...TWO posts in one day but this post is for a giveaway! The very sweet Shimelle has graciously offered me a chance to give away a spot in her Journal Your Christmas class. I have done this class for the past 3 years and the result is a lovely seasonal album I can look through time and time again. It really is worth the bit of extra effort to have a wonderful keepsake year after  year. :) To see my albums  please see the right sidebar on my blog.

The class starts this Tuesday (1st of December) and runs right through the Christmas season, finishing on the 6th of January.

 

To learn more about it go HERE. 

And want to know the most amazing thing about this class? After you have participated once, it's free to play along every year following! Now, isn't that an amazing offer?!!!

To win a spot in this class, please leave a comment by 11:59 CST TONIGHT (November 30, 2009) on this post telling me your favorite Christmas tradition.

I am looking forward to reading all of your comments!

Have a fabulous day!

November Super Sketches (with Kelly Purkey)

I have mentioned before how much I love Kelly Purkey's Super Sketches Class at Two Peas. Her sketches are always such great layout starters. I played along with her November Class over the weekend. I needed to get my scrapping mojo going and this class was just the inspiration I needed.

I had these older photos of my daughter and my mom and after seeing the "Grandma: My *Heart* Belongs To You" Die Cut for the Silhouette + Kelly's sketch the layout just came together. So easy. 

I really love this new patterned paper line from My Mind's Eye (Be Loved). I have a thing for hearts anyway but I really, really love the pink/red/aqua/light yellow combination. Great not only for upcoming (or past Valentine's photos but for really anything. I love to be able to take a "theme" patterned paper line and use it for everyday photos.

As in a lot of my projects I did incorporate a lot of die cutting into this design. The title is die cut as well as the vellum flourish (it is very subtle but I really like the effect). This flourish is a new design from one of Silhouette's new partners, House of 3! How cool is that! I also die cut the hearts. I was originally going to punch the hearts but I didn't have a punch big enough to fit the area I needed to embellish (the top right square is 6"x 6"). So, I used a heart design for the Silhouette to create my hearts. The design I used is actually pretty elaborate with lots of circle cutouts but I used the "ungroup" feature to remove all parts of the design I didn't want cut. Easy peasy. :)

Silhouette Designs Used:

phrase_grandma_my_heart_belongs_to_you_C20091113134545_20509

 

swirled_vines_C20091124125231_23444 

 

heart_1439

 Supplies:

• Beautiful Branched Be-Loved Paper by My Mind's Eye
• Dearest Dots Be-Loved Paper by My Mind's Eye
• Lovely Loops Be-Loved Paper by My Mind's Eye
• Passionate Paisley Be-Loved Paper by My Mind's Eye
• Smitten Stripes Be-Loved Paper by My Mind's Eye
• Sweet Hearts Be-Loved Paper by My Mind's Eye
• Be-Loved Paper & Accessories Kit by My Mind's Eye
• White 12x12 AC Cardstock Pack by American Crafts
• Vellum
• Grandparents 97% Complete Cardstock Stickers by 7Gypsies
• Cherry Hill Word Stickers by October Afternoon
• Clear Frame (Making Memories)
• Clear Buttons (CTMH)
• Small Accent Pearls by Hero Arts
• Heart Pins (Heidi Grace)
• Rub-ons (Crate Paper)
• White Mini Jewel Brads by American Crafts
• Silhouette SD Digital Craft Cutting Tool
• Silhouette $25 Prepaid Download Card
• Tiny Attacher by Tim Holtz
• Making Memories Slot Punch

Get ready for a new Garden tomorrow...lots of fun new layouts and projects coming your way!

 
 

Happy Thanksgiving (remember to record those memories!)

I am the worst at remembering to use my camera on Thanksgiving. Usually the photos are rather poor (crowded house, in a hurry, hosting & cooking dinner like I am today, etc). But...as I look back on the photos I do remember to take, I am grateful for the memories. So, with this in mind, I have my camera loaded and ready to go and I will be taking photos today. :)

Here is a layout featuring some photos from last year's Thanksgiving, celebrated at my mom & dad's. I used some fun October Afternoon papers + die cuts + a photo collage = a quick page that I love. And this one-page layout feature nine photos. Don't be afraid to resize and crop your photos to make them more interesting, get rid of distracting backgrounds and make them work with your own design.

 (c) Two Peas in a Bucket

Supplies:

• Autumn 12x12 AC Cardstock Pack by American Crafts
• White 12x12 AC Cardstock Pack by American Crafts
• New Pencils Weathervane Patterned Paper by October Afternoon
• Weathervane Die Cut Shapes by October Afternoon
• Weathervane Stickers by October Afternoon
• Rub-on (for title) by Scenic Route
• Clear Button by CTMH
• Slot Punch by Stampin' Up
• Mini Paper Clips by Tim Holtz
• Tiny Attacher by Tim Holtz
• White 1/4Inch Foam Squares 176/Pkg
• White 1/2Inch Foam Squares 88/Pkg

To add interest and dimension to the October Afternoon diecuts I used foam adhesive squares underneath several of the pieces. 

For more information on this layout, click HERE.

Wishing all my American friends a very Happy Thanksgiving!

New Silhouette Designs (a Christmas layout)

As I work on preparing and organizing myself for cooking our big Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow I am reminded at just how thankful I am to have found this hobby. It fills a space in my heart, motivates me and inspires my creative soul.

As for the day after Thanksgiving I am not a Black Friday shopper but I do love a good deal/sale. And Silhouette will be offering great deals in the coming days! You won't want to miss it. 

I created the following layout for the Silhouette Blog with some brand new (and a few newer) Silhouette designs. A simple layout, mostly paper + photos + words. I love that with easy die cuts out of your own patterned paper or cardstock you can create a lovely page with hardly any other embellishment. I love my paper. 

(c) Silhouette Blog

Just a side note about the papers I chose for this layout: none of them are "Christmas themed". I had this stack of My Mind's Eye papers laying on my desk and I had even cut up a couple of the sheets for another project that I didn't end up using. As I was searching for paper to use I noticed that the lime/pink/blue combination really looked like the fun and whimsical patterns we see in in some Christmas themed product and paper so I utilized what I had instead of going and buying something specific.

The layered tree and title are both brand new, coming soon (as in the next few days) designs! 

The stars and other two trees are available now. :)

Silhouette Die Cut Designs:

opening_presents_phrase_C20091122004736_22157

 

christmas_tree_layered_C20091121152301_20509

 

Christmas_tree_2297

 

phrase_Christmastree_2302

 

dot_star_C20090824234735_20509

 
 
 Supplies:

• "Sunshine Girl" Soaring Stripes Abbey Road Paper by My Mind's Eye
• "Shine" Spunky Spots Abbey Road Paper by My Mind's Eye
• "Shine" Whirlybird Abbey Road Paper by My Mind's Eye
• "Just The Girls" Illuminate Abbey Road Paper by My Mind's Eye
• Summer Days Ooh La La Paper by My Mind's Eye
• Beautiful Morning Ooh La La Paper by My Mind's Eye
• Between The Lines Ooh La La Paper by My Mind's Eye
• White 12x12 AC Cardstock Pack by American Crafts
• Slice 12x12 Metallic Silver by Making Memories
• Silver Metallic Decor by Hero Arts
• Silhouette SD Digital Craft Cutting Machine
• Silhouette $25 Prepaid Download Card
• Apron Lace Border Punch by Fiskars

Lots to do today plus I have had a child home sick all week. Fun... 

Better get started on that mile-long to-do list. :)

Have a fabulous Wednesday!

Stampin' Fun Friday (Surprise!)

It's been forever since I've shared a Stampin' Fun Friday project, right?!

I don't have a video to go with today's stamped card share but I do have some additional photos + instructions. :)

I needed some thank you cards for my daughter to mail out after her birthday a few weeks ago and this is the design I came up with. Very simple but it uses my favorite new butterfly cling stamp + that great cloud background stamp that I just can't get enough of!

Supplies:

• Butterflies Remountable Rubber Cling Stamps by Hero Arts
• 4x4.5 Inch Cling Block by Hero Arts
• Clouds Wood Mounted Stamp by Hero Arts
• Thank You Sayings Clear Design Stamp Set by Hero Arts
• Black Memories Dye Ink Pad by Hero Arts
• Soft Pool Shadow Ink by Hero Arts
• Colored Pencils by Prismacolor
• Gamsol (for blending colored pencils)
• Tiny Attacher by Tim Holtz
• Corner Chomper Crop-a-dile

Instructions:

1. Trim cream smooth cardstock (Stampin' Up) to 8" x 4", fold in half, score and round corners.
2. Stamp Hero Arts Cloud Background Stamp on front of card using Soft Pool Shadow Ink.
3. Stamp Butterfly Cling Stamp on front of card (over background stamping) using Black Memories Ink.
4. Stamp greetings below butterfly using Black Memories Ink.
5. Stamp butterfly again on additional sheet of cream cardstock and color in both stamped butterflies as follows:

• Color in tips of butterfly wings using Dahlia Purple Prismacolor pencil.

• Color in the inside of each wing section and small dots using Aquamarine Prismacolor Colored Pencil.

• Blend the two colors together using Gamsol and a Blending Stump. I started with the purple and shaded down, then shaded up to meet the purple with the aquamarine, blending them together really well in the middle for a really nice shaded look. For the very top section of the wing, I didn't add any aquarmarine and only shaded the purple all the way down so it looks lighter the closer it gets to the center of the butterflies body.

• Color in the butterfly body with French Grey Prismacolor Colored Pencil and blend with Gamsol and a Blending Stump. Color in the outline of the butterfly body with the Aquamarine colored pencil.

 

• Cut out the second butterfly and layer right over the one stamped on the front of the card. Secure top butterfly by stapling to the card and tying a string to the center.

The layered effect is so pretty and easy to create.

Have a super weekend!

Christmas Calendar (a Silhouette Print & Cut project)

Ever since I saw these darling December Calendar Print & Cut designs for the Silhouette I knew I wanted to create some sort of a wall project with them. I could have just used 1-25 for an advent calendar but I loved all 31 designs so I included the whole month in this custom frame I created for the Silhouette Blog. Add a vinyl die cut design to the wall and this is the final result. 

 

• Each of the squares is 2" x 2" (I cut 48 - 2" squares from different Making Memories patterned papers) and I simply adhered them to the back of the frame.
• I wanted to be able to use this frame year after year so in the Craft Robo software, I removed the optional days of the week from each Print & Cut design before printing. This is a great option if you want to customize these designs year after year...they aren't for this year only!
• I adhered each of the Silhouette Print & Cut designs using foam dot adhesive. The dimension in real life really just makes the designs "pop"!
• I added a few gems and rub-ons to several of the squares.

• I used a MM die cut in the center of the piece, adhered directly to the background. There's quite a bit going on in this design so I kept the "extra's" to a minimum.

 

• I added just a few clear buttons to some of the squares with poinsettias.

This entire project only took me about an hour and a half to complete. 

I broke it down into steps:

1. Open Print & Cut designs in Craft Robo software (no resizing was necessary for this project).
2. Print designs (I use Epson Luster Photo Paper for a nice crisp, clean image with no bleed).
3. Cut designs (I run mine through twice to get a nice clean cut through the photo paper). *tip* Use a new (or clean) cutting mat for best results.
4. Cut 48 - 2" squares from patterned papers (see list below for papers used).
5. Adhere squares to background of frame (the opening of my frame is 16"x 20". The actual frame is bigger.
6. Adhere dates using foam adhesive for dimension.
7. Apply rub-ons (I just added a flourish and a couple of snowflakes to 3 of the number shapes).
8. Add gemstones (I used several round ones and a couple of stars) to several of the designs.
9. Thread string through clear buttons and adhere to paper squares.
10. Put frame/glass back together and hang on the wall.
11. Die cut "Merry & Bright" using black and cream vinyl and adhere above frame on the wall.

Silhouette Print & Cut Designs:

Christmas_calendar_1_2281

 

Christmas_calendar_2_2282

 

Christmas_calendar_3_2283

 

Christmas_calendar_4_2284

 

Christmas_calendar_5_2285

 

Christmas_calendar_6_2286

 

Silhouette Die Cut Design:

phrase_merry_2291

Supplies:

• Poinsettia Flocked Mistletoe Paper by Making Memories
• Icon Dot Mistletoe Paper by Making Memories
• Argyle Mistletoe Paper by Making Memories
• Cardinal Mistletoe Paper by Making Memories
• Slice 8x8 Ledger Pad by Making Memories
• Rub-ons (Making Memories)
• Die Cut (Making Memories)
• Clear Gemstones by Hero Arts
• Star Gemstones (KI Memories)
• Clear Buttons (CTMH)
• String
• Black 1/2Inch Foam Squares 88/Pkg
• Cream Adhesive Vinyl by Silhouette
• Black Adhesive Vinyl by Silhouette
• SD Digital Craft Cutting Tool by Silhouette

I hope this has inspired you to start planning and creating some Christmas decorations of your own!

Have a great Thursday!

Silhouette News + Halloween Costume Photos (just a wee bit late)

I had every intention of sharing a Christmas project here today but I need to push that back until tomorrow when the project goes up on the Silhouette Blog. Bummer. The good news is that it's just one more day. :)

However, I it's not all bad news today. :) To see a super cute Silhouette die cut project featuring Silhouette's newest partnership, click HERE. Hero Arts is now part of the Silhouette family! How amazing is that! I couldn't be more thrilled. Two of my very favorite companies working together. I just downloaded a bunch of the new Hero Arts designs and I will be sharing my own projects featuring the HA die cut designs soon. 

How about a peek at some of my favorites? 

Well, there's this guy. Um, THIS butterfly stamp is quite possibly my most favorite HA stamp ever. Ever. 

Check out THIS project and THIS one too.

And now I can cut it out and stamp it. No scissors involved? Happiness, my friends. Pure happiness!

butterfly_heart_winged_C20091115193057_23067

 

And how about this cute birdie?

bird_standing_C20091115200345_23067
 

And this flourish:

flower_flourish_C20091115203912_23067
 

Want even more happy Silhouette news? Silhouette will be releasing a small group of new designs every Tuesday. Here are some of my fav's from yesterday's release + this week's freebie download (get it now before next Tuesday's all new free design comes out and this one will be $1.99!).

Freebie:

phrase_go_2337

 

I love this one. I am going to make a home decor project from this one. A frame, I think. I just love the message. 

phrase_goodlife_2345

 

And there are a couple of new filmstrips & frames to choose from. I love these and use them all the time. Love the rounded corners on this one. :)

negative_strip_3_2339

Now for some Halloween costume shares. Nothing like waiting until almost Thanksgiving to share Halloween pic's, right?

The very cute, er, scary dragon:

Another real scary character: the Phantom (with red glowing eyes...).

And then there was Wonder Woman. She had to fight off these scary characters. 

I will be back with a Christmas home decor project tomorrow. That's right...jumping right from Halloween onto Christmas. See you soon!

Webkinz Collection (a sticker layout)

Stickers, specifically American Crafts stickers, made this layout about my daughter's Webkinz collection come together so nicely. From the cute little pet stickers to the alpha stickers, this layout has lots and lots of stickers!

(c) Two Peas in a Bucket

One of my favorite things about this layout? I punched the thought bubbles and used an Ali Edwards stamp and then Payton filled in the information about each Webkinz. I love that this will be a record of her handwriting at 9 plus the fact that we worked on this together. I also think I need to remember to scrap more layouts like this: focusing on the kids' collections and what they are into at the moment. Phases come and go and it's fun to look back and see what they were into at the time.

For more information on this layout, click HERE.

Supplies:

• White 12x12 AC Cardstock Pack by American Crafts
• Summer Season Collection Paper by Crate Paper 
• Shower Season Collectino Paper by Crate Paper
• Winter Season Collection Paper by Crate Paper
• Rainbow Season Collection Paper by Crate Paper
• Fall Season Collection Paper by Crate Paper
• Friendly Season Collectino Paper by Crate Paper
• Spring Season Collection Paper by Crate Paper
• Slice 8x8 Ledger Pad by Making Memories
• Black Getty Remarks Letter Stickers by American Crafts
• Black Moma Remarks Letter Stickers by American Crafts
• Dog Bone Glitter Accents & Phrases Remarks Stickers by American Crafts
• Fish Bowl Glitter Journaling Remarks Stickers by American Crafts
• Ali Edwards Today You Storyteller Stamps by Technique Tuesday
• Black Memories Dye Ink Pad by Hero Arts
• Lg My Funny Valentine Squeeze Punch by Fiskars
• XLG My Funny Valentine Squeeze Punch by Fiskars
• Leave it to Weaver Border Punch by Fiskars
• Scallop Sentiment Border Punch by Fiskars
• Upper Crest Border Punch by Fiskars
• Circle Caption 1.5Inch Paper Shapers Punch by EK Success
• Rectangular Caption Punch (Punch Studio @ Hobby Lobby)
• Tiny Attacher by Tim Holtz
• Slot Punch by Making Memories (to make the notches)
• White 1/2Inch Foam Squares 88/Pkg
• White 1/4Inch Foam Squares 176/Pkg
• Other (ribbon, mini brads, heart stick pin, clear button & string)

To make the layered hearts, I punched two hearts from the same color of patterned paper: one from the LG My Funny Valentine and one from the XLG My Funny Valentine. Then I simply just stapled them together in the center and attached them to my layout. 

For added dimension, I added pop dots behind some of the stickers. Love the simple but effective look of dimensional stickers. :)

I'll be back tomorrow with a fun Christmas project that is just in time for the upcoming holiday season. :)

November Garden Theme: Stickers

I am so incredibly behind this month. Just when I think I'm caught up I realize...I'm not. ;)

My youngest celebrated his fourth birthday on Saturday. Four years. He is not a baby anymore. He is totally into dinosaurs so I found a cute cake online and I attempted to duplicate it. It actually tasted great. I could have done a bit better job decorating it but I was doing it super late at night (we had to be out of town most of the day on his birthday so I was trying to get a lot done...last minute.) but Ethan loved it. He jumped up and down and was beaming. So worth the late hours. :)

 

The theme for November's Garden is: Stickers.

We've all got 'em. They make creating easy. Here is one of my layouts:

(c) Two Peas in a Bucket

• I used stickers for the title "Route 66". The number stickers are some older MM stickers (I love them. I will be so sad when my stash is gone!). "Route" is American Crafts Moma stickers. Love this alpha. And love these Remarks sticker books. So many stickers in one book. :)
• I used October Afternoon Road Map circle stickers behind the large MM grommets for a "framed sticker" accent.
• Even the tab ("observations") is a sticker "attached" with a tiny staple.

Supplies:

• Black 12x12 AC Cardstock by American Crafts
• Vacationer Motel Road Map Paper by October Afternoon
• Blue & White Motel Road Map Paper by October Afternoon
• Skyline Motor Inn Road Map Paper by October Afternoon
• Vellum
• White Moma Remarks Letter Stickers by American Crafts
• White Number Stickers by Making Memories
• Road Map Word Stickers by October Afternoon
• Road Map Label Stickers by October Afternoon
• Road Map Image Rub-ons by October Afternoon
• White Rub-ons (CK KOTM)
• Clear Plastic Arrow Accent (CK KOTM)
• Clear Mini Jewel Brads by American Crafts
• Earth Tones Large Brads by American Crafts
• Other brad (Making Memories)
• Scallop Sentiment Border Punch by Fiskars 
• Corner Chomper Crop-a-dile 
• Slot Tool by Making Memories (notches)
• Tiny Attacher by Tim Holtz

I'll have more sticker layout shares this week plus a Christmas project (that I'm super excited) about using some of the Silhouette print & cut calendar designs. More soon!

Adhesive Vinyl (it's not just for wall art)

I am only 12 days behind but I wanted to share this layout from the November 1st Garden: a layout featuring Teal Quickutz Adhesive Vinyl. You may look at the vinyl rolls and think "wall art" but I wanted to share how you can create your very own stickers and embellishments for your scrapbooking with this super versatile vinyl as well.

(c) Two Peas in a Bucket

I created the butterfly embellishments on the above layout by using a Silhouette die cut design and cut them from the teal vinyl. Then I ungrouped the design, removed the "inside cut lines" and cut the butterfly again using vellum. This gave me a solid vellum butterfly and then an intricately cut vinyl butterfly. I simply adhered the vinyl butterfly right over the vellum one for a beautiful layered embellishment for my page.

(c) Two Peas in a Bucket

Not only does the adhesive vinyl work great with the Silhouette (as well as other electronic die cutting machines. I use mine with the Cricut as well) but you can easily use traditional dies with the vinyl too. To create the year number "stickers" on my layout I ran the teal vinyl through my Epic Six die cutting machine using the Mary Jane Grand Alphabet. Imagine, never running out of that often used letter or number sticker again because you can make as many as you want using adhesive vinyl!

(c) Two Peas in a Bucket

For more information on this layout, click HERE.

Supplies:

• Silhouette SD Digital Craft Cutting Machine
• Teal Adhesive Vinyl by Silhouette
• Epic Six Die Cutting Tool by Quickutz
• Mary Jane Cookie Cutter Grand Alphabet Complete by Quickutz
• White 12x12 AC Cardstock by American Crafts
• Butter Dotted Swiss 12x12 Cardstock by Bazzill
• Heirloom 12x12 Paper Pad by KI Memories
• Months Clear Stamps by Heidi Swapp
• Foam Stamps (flourishes) by CK KOTM
• Versamark Ink Pad by Hero Arts
• Zing! Mustard Opaque Embossing Powder by American Crafts
• Zing! Rouge Opaque Embossing Powder by American Crafts
• White Moma Remarks Letter Stickers by American Crafts
• Buttons (Stampin' Up)
• Leave it to Weaver Border Punch by Fiskars
• Corner Chomper Crop-a-dile
• Doily Lace Edge Craft Punch by Martha Stewart
• Tiny Attacher by Tim Holtz
• Other: Ribbon, Stick Pin, Flat Top Eyelets (hello blast from the past!)

Another note regarding this layout: I used a KI Memories Paper Pad (see THIS post on the Weekly Challenge I'm hosting at Two Peas). I incorporated the techniques I discussed in that post: using white cardstock (to help break up the patterned paper designs and vellum over one of the patterned papers). There are so many great paper pads out there that make creating a coordinated and eye-pleasing design so simple (and KI Memories has several of my absolute favorites a the moment!).

Have a great Thursday everyone. :)