Schwab Wedding

 

 

With these pages.....our 2013 scrapbook is complete!!!!! Yay! I finished it before the end of the year! It feels so wonderful to be "almost" up-to-date!!!!  To think that I could start designing our 2014 scrapbook -- IN 2014 -- is just awesome!!!! LOL!

In December 2013, my little brother got married the Saturday after Christmas.  It was great for us, since we came out for Christmas....we could just extend our trip to be there for the wedding.

In designing the first two pages, I used a sketch I found on the Sweet Shoppe website.  Here is the sketch:

Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies Used (on the first 4 pages):

Background paper - Very Vanilla

Embellishments - Taffeta Ribbon (Real Red); Glimmer Kit (word 'Love' and hearts); Basic Pearls; Designer Rosettes (Real Red)

Stamp Brush Set - Decorative Overlays (More Mustard)

Punch - Square (Very Vanilla); Flag (Glimmer DSP)

Font - Chancellor (More Mustard)

Supplies Used (on the last page):

Background paper - Whisper White

Stamp Brush Sets - Presto Patterns Overlays (Basic Black); Love Story (heart - Basic Black; Basic Gray; words 'You & Me' - Basic Black)

Punch - Square (Basic Gray, Love Impressions recolored Basic Gray); Perfect Pennants (Basic Black)

Christmas 2013

 

 

Wow! I have to say that I am so very pleased to be completing last years Christmas photos BEFORE this Christmas! Such a wonderful feeling!  When my family (my side) gets together, we always have a great time.....and there are so many photos.... it's hard to just choose a few.  Especially since we do so much -- Family photo, opening presents and games!

I wanted to highlight our family photo (and the photo with almost all our eyes closed too!). As you can tell we are a funny bunch! lol! I decided to use a template/layout I saw on the Sweet Shoppe Blog.  Here's the photo:

Hmmm... ok, well....that's a puny photo, but you can definitely see that's what I used to create the first page - right?

It did take me quite a while to figure out what colors/papers to use. But I believe the ones I chose work great for the photos.  One thing I want to share is how I created my background paper.  The background, itself, is Real Red.... I added the Natural Composition Overlay in White, but brought the opacity down to 10%.  <---See, creating your own DSP (Designer Series Paper) is a breeze! 

Thanks for taking a peek!

Supplies Used:

Background - Real Red

Embellishments(on page 2) - Hodgepodge Hardware (Jumbo Brad); Narrow Polka Dot Grosgrain Ribbon (Soft Suede)

Stamp Brush Sets - Natural Composition Overlays (Whisper White at 10% opacity); Watercolor Winter (snowflake and snowflake border - Whisper White)

Punch - Square (Soft Suede, Christmas Cocoa II DSP #1, Whisper White); Circle (Soft Suede)

Punch(on page 2) - Circle (Christmas Cocoa II DSP #1); Tag (Whisper White)

Font - Lovers' Quarrel (Whisper White and Soft Suede)

Christmas 2013

 

Working again on our 2013 photobook with our Christmas photos.  We celebrated early at home since we knew we would be traveling to Ohio to celebrate Christmas with my family, as well as to celebrate the wedding of my little brother.  Family is so important....and life is way too short not to get together.

Thanks for looking!

Supplies Used:

Background - Always Artichoke

Embellishments - Stitched Grosgrain Ribbon (Cherry Cobbler)

Stamp Brush Sets - Natural Composition Overlays (cloth background - Mellow Moss); Modern Medley (stripes - Whisper White); Earth Laughs (flower - Whisper White)

Punch - Square (Cherry Cobbler behind stripes); Flower (Cherry Cobbler)

Font - Matura (Whisper White)

Kauai Trip

 

 

 

 

Continuing work on our 2013 photobook with our trip we took to Kauai Hawaii in October.  I decided to complete all the pages of our trip before posting any of them, so that you would be able to see the grouping all at once.

We really enjoyed our time on the island of Kauai.... although, we LOVE every time we get to see the Hawaiian islands!!! We stayed at the Courtyard Marriott at Coconut Beach this time.  We did enjoy a luau too, at the Sheraton hotel, but do not have photos of that event. =)

Thanks for looking!

Supplies Used:

Background - My Sweet Pea DSP #29

Embellishments - Grosgrain Ribbon (Tempting Turquoise and So Saffron); Paradise Found (flowers - recolored Tempting Turquoise and Pumpkin Pie); Flower Brads (So Saffron and Tempting Turquoise)

Stamp Brush Sets - Paradise Found (leaves - Old Olive)

Punch - Scallop Border (Pumpkin Pie); Scallop Square (Pumpkin Pie); Square (My Sweet Pea #25)

Font - Lucinda Calligraphy (So Saffron)

Purplelight

 

Our 2013 photobook is coming together nicely.  I'm working on October 2013 now, with my trip to Cleveland.  Back in June, we all brought awareness and support to those who have/or died from Pancreatic Cancer through the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network walk.  Although, we couldn't all be together (as we lived in different states) -- we still walked together.  So, while I was there in October, the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network raised awareness throughout the country with 'PurpleLight'..... a night to remember by lighting glow stick of purple to show our support.  It was an emotional night with many speaking about their disease and how it's effected them and their loved ones.  My Mom was not able to attend, but she was with us in spirit! 

Thanks for taking a look!

Supplies Used:

Background - Whisper White

Stamp Brush Sets - Ribbon of Hope (Concord Crush); Celeste Knight Watercolor Overlays (Non-SU, Concord Crush)

Punch - Fun Flower (filled w/Concord Crush); Square (filled w/Concord Crush DSP)

Font - Freehand (Concord Crush)

Mom Birthday

 

Another two-page spread complete in our 2013 photobook! YES!

I do have to admit that in creating these two pages.... it was very emotional for me (as my Mom passed away Feb 2014).  I miss her so very much!

I saw this sketch on the Splitcoaststampers website, and it intrigued me with all it's layers.  Now, I'm sure I didn't add as many layers as the sketch shows, but I didn't want my page elements to diminish the photos I wanted to showcase.

Here is the sketch I used:

The name on .jpeg file is: "InstaMeWeekly1 - template3".

I did create my own Designer Series Paper to fill in the square punches.  It's relatively easy to do with My Digital Studio, and so very helpful when trying to match colors.  The DSP papers that I created are the Modern Medley white arrows on Lost Lagoon paper and the Wild Wasabi Happy Birthday text on Whisper White paper. To create your own DSP papers: 1) open a new 12x12 page; 2) add your background color; 3) add the stamp [ie:Modern Medley arrows in white]; 4) save file as a .jpeg on your desktop; 5) add this .jpeg file to the My Digital Studio software as a background [my computer/ program files/ My Digital Studio/ components/ backgrounds/ Designer Series Paper].

Thanks for taking a look!

Supplies Used:

Background - Lost Lagoon

Stamp Brush Set - Decorative Overlays (Whisper White); Modern Medley (arrows - Whisper White)

Embellishments - Festive Blooms (Whisper White and Old Olive recolored Wild Wasabi)

Punch - Square (filled w/Wild Wasabi DSP, Lagoon Arrows DSP, Wasabi Birthday DSP)

Font - Franciscan (Whisper White); Engaged (on the DSP -Wild Wasabi)

Virginia trip

 

Continuing work on our 2013 photobook..... still with our trip to Richmond Virginia.  There's so much to see here! We went to where the "White House" of the Confederacy was, and took a guided tour by one of the descendants of Jefferson Davis.  We also went to the museum which housed many artifacts from the Civil War.  From there, we walked to the State Capitol of Virginia.  

Thanks for taking a peek!

Supplies Used:

Background - Textured Cardstock (Not Quite Navy)

Punch - Square (filled w/Cherry Cobbler)

Stamp Brush Set - Modern Medley (quatrefoil - Whisper White at 30% opacity); Extreme Elements (stars - Whisper White)

Embellishments - Taffeta Ribbon (Whisper White)

Font - Freehand (Whisper White and Cherry Cobbler); Galant (Whisper White)

Lewis Ginter Gardens

 

Working again on our 2013 photobook with our trip to the Lewis Ginter Botanical Gardens in Richmond, Virginia.  Such a beautiful place.... it was lovely just walking around, but we also got to see the butterfly exhibit too -- FUN!!!

I loosely used a sketch I saw on the Sweet Shoppe website.  Here's the sketch:

Now, I know this sketch has a ton of embellishments and whatnot, but I wanted to keep mine simple and showcase the lovely DSP (Designer Series Paper).... along with the photos, of course! =)

The DSP is from the paper pack 'Cottage Wall', and although the light purple color was nice....it didn't quite go with my photos.  I was able to darken the paper up to the color you see here.  Within My Digital Studio, here are the steps to change the color of any DSP: 1) Insert a Photo Box to encompass your entire page 2) Select the DSP and bring it in your photo box 3) Choose 'Recolor' in the Design Center (right-hand side of the page) 4) Choose the color you'd like to change your DSP to 5) Select 'ok'.  I chose Concord Crush for my color choice.

Thanks for taking a peek!

Supplies Used:

Background - Cottage Wall DSP #3 recolored Concord Crush

Punch - Flag (filled w/Concord Crush)

Embellishments - Festive Blooms (Whisper White); Bright Blooms (Daffodil Delight)

Font - Long Island (Whisper White); Amaze D and Lucinda Handwriting (Concord Crush)

Mike's Milestone

 

Upon seeing this sketch on the Sweet Shoppe website..... I wanted to see if I could recreate something similar for my husband's birthday scrapbook page.  The hardest part for me was to create the strips of paper with the angled tips.

In creating the angled strips, I used the flag punch.  I cropped the punch (lengthwise), to create the angled edge you see.  I copied and pasted another strip, so that it looked like it continued under the photo on the opposite side.  Aligning them was a challenge, but so worth it!

Thanks for taking a peek!

Supplies Used:

Background - Textured Cardstock (Night of Navy)

Stamp Brush Sets - Lemonade Stand (words Happy Birthday - Tempting Turquoise and Basic Black); A Cute Christmas (Tempting Turquoise)

Punch - Square (Basic Black and Textured Cardstock Whisper White); Flag (cropped lengthwise - Glimmer DSP Gold, Textured Cardstock Tempting Turquoise and Textured Cardstock Basic Black) 

Font - Cooper Black (Whisper White)

PanCan Walk 2013

 

Continuing work on our 2013 photobook with our walk to raise funds for the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network (June 2013).  As many people know.... my Mom was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in May 2012.  She passed away February 2014, and we miss her so very much still.

As a family, we never got together for a cause before, so this walk was new to us.  At the time, my Mom thought she would be able to join in the walk..... but with her extreme fatigue, she was unable to do so.  Many friends and family members joined in on the walk though.  As both Deb and I don't reside in Cleveland, we chose to walk at the same day/time from where we were (Hutto and Seattle). Our Team "Mom Schwab Team" raised over $2000. Wow! What an accomplishment!

We all enjoyed our experience, and felt that it would be something that we could do each year. Unfortunately, this year....since my Mom passed away.... we all felt too heartbroken to do the walk. Maybe in time we can find something to do as a family (in memory of our Mom).

Thanks for looking!

Supplies Used:

Background - Lap of Luxury DSP #6

Stamp Brush Set - Ribbon of Hope (Concord Crush)

Punch - Square and Dotted Scallop Ribbon (Whisper White)

Font - Bradley Hand ITC (Concord Crush and Whisper White)

Historic Tredegar

Continuing work on our 2013 photobook. This was part of our trip to Richmond, VA seeing the Iron Works 'Tredegar', who provided ammunition to the Confederate soldiers of the Civil War. Such rich history in Richmond.....as I said before, we definitely need to take another trip there.... there is so much to see.

I did not have a 'bomb' stamp, so I created one using a circle punch, a square punch and the 'July Fourth' stamp (cropping just the fuse). In creating the reflection on the bomb (the crescent shape), I custom-made it starting with a circle punch in the My Digital Studio program. FUN!

Thanks for taking a peek!

Supplies Used:

Background - Basic Black with 'Well Worn DSP' #11 overlaying it at 60% opacity

Stamp Brush Set - July Fourth (stars - Basic Black and fuses - Basic Black)
Punch - Square (Basic Black and Textured Cardstock - Basic Gray); Circle (Basic Black); Crescent (Basic Gray)
Font - Wide Latin (Basic Black and Basic Gray); Cooper Black (Basic Black)

Maymont Gardens

 

Working on another double-page spread for our 2013 Scrapbook.  I'm still working on May 2013, but I'm excited that I'm only 1 year behind being up-to-date!

These two-pages are from our day at Maymont Gardens in Richmond, VA.  Beautiful place..... Richmond has a lot of things to do.  I know we didn't see all of it when we went on this trip.  We will need to plan to come back.

Thanks for taking a look!

Supplies used:

My Digital Studio, Stampin' Up! products

Background - Wild Wasabi

Stamp Brush Sets - Decorative Overlays (flourish - Lucky Limeade); Walk in the Park II (flowers - Island Indigo)

Embellishments - Walk in the Park II (leaf border); Basic Pearls

Punch - Square (Whisper White)

Font - Majestic (Whisper White and Island Indigo) and Bliss (Whisper White)

Disneyland - July Progressive Challenge

 

These two pages were created using the July Progressive Digi-Scrap Challenge found on the Splitcoaststampers website.  Every week new steps are added, so at the end of each month -- you have a completed scrapbook page(s).  You may view the first week challenge here: 

http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/forums/digital-scrapbooking-tuesdays-f253/july-2014-progressive-page-26-task-4-07-22-14-a-t590028.html

Background paper - Small Polka Dots DSP (Real Red)

Punch - Square (filled w/Textured Cardstock - Basic Black); Flag (filled w/Whisper White); Circle (filled w/Whisper White, Basic Black, Blush Blossom); Butterfly (minnie's bow - filled w/Rose Red small dots DSP)

I used the corner round feature on all photos and the black background.

Embellishments - Grosgrain Ribbon (Daffodil Delight); Basic Rhinestones; Brad (Daffodil Delight); Flower Brad (Real Red)

Stamp Brush Set - July Fourth (Whisper White and Daffodil Delight at 60% opacity); Enjoying Everything (nature frame - Daffodil Delight)

Font - Cuckoo and Walt Disney Script (Basic Black)

Hollywood Cemetery

 

I'm really liking how these two pages came out with the background I created. Here's what I did to create the background piece:  I started with Night of Navy cardstock as my base.  I then layered the Night Owl DSP #3 ontop (using a photo box), and changed the opacity to 20% to bring out the hazy blue you see here. 

Now, to get the hazy moon:  Add a circle punch to your image. Now fill it with any DSP (doesn't matter which one as you won't see it in the finished image).  Double-click on the circle to show the 'punch image editor' and zoom out of your DSP image to make it very small. Now.... with your mouse take the DSP completely out of the circle punch (so white appears in the shape). Select 'OK'.  Lastly, click on the Drop Shadow properties box (for the circle punch), and change the color to Daffodil and the opacity to 50%.  Select 'OK'.

I placed the moon behind the Night Owl DSP layer to make the moon a bit more hazy and to view the branches on the tree better.

Thanks for taking a look!

Supplies Used:

Background - Night of Navy

Punch - Square (filled w/Night Owl DSP #3 at 20% opacity); Circle (filled w/Daffodil Delight drop shadow)

Stamp Brush Set - Spooky Things (crow- Basic Black)

Font - Chiller (Daffodil Delight)

Dana Point and Laguna Beach

 

Another double-page spread completed! Yay! Our 2013 photobook is really coming together.  Mike and I took a trip to Southern California with Mike's parents.... this is part of our trip with them.  We enjoyed our time together.

Thanks for taking a peek!

Supplies Used:

Background - Whisper White

Embellishments - Grosgrain Ribbon (Cherry Cobbler)

Stamp Brush Sets - The Open Sea (anchor - Chocolate Chip)

Punch - Square (filled w/Nautical Expedition DSP #2, Textured Cardstock - Not Quite Navy and Whisper White)

Font - Nouveau (Not Quite Navy)

The Alamo and RiverWalk

 

Continuing work on our 2013 scrapbook with our trip to San Antonio with Deb's family.  We went to where the Alamo was fought and took a boat tour of the RiverWalk.  Such rich history here.  We had a lot of fun!  I made the background to resemble the Texas flag (even though you can hardly see the star on the blue part!)! =)

Thanks for looking!

Supplies Used:

Background - Real Red

Punch - Square (filled w/Whisper White and Textured Cardstock - Night of Navy); Star (filled w/Whisper White)

Embellishments - Staples and Stitches (zigzag - Whisper White)

Font - Cerebral (Night of Navy); Sliver (Real Red)

So-Cal Horse Show and Farm

 

Continuing work on our 2013 photobook with our trip to Southern California to visit Mike's family. His sister, Karen, and her husband, Michael, competed in the So-Cal Miniature Horse Show while we were there.  It was fun to see what they both enjoy.... Karen racing in the carriage race and Michael being the MC (the guy who announced the competitions and the winners).  Afterward, we took a tour of their farm, where they board horses -- both miniature and regular size; keep ducks, goats and dogs and cats....as well as parakeets and frogs. We had a great time!

Thanks for taking a look!

Supplies Used:

Background - Textured Cardstock (Crumb Cake)

Punch - Square (filled w/Basic Black)

Stamp Brush Sets - Modern Medley (quatrefoil reversed - Elegant Eggplant); Spring Fever (border - Basic Black); Frames with a Flourish (swirl - Basic Black)

Embellishments - Satin Ribbon (Basic Black); Flower Brad (Basic Black)

Font - Cuckoo (Basic Black)