{me}anderings . . .

someting pretty . . .

 
how about some pretties to get the creeptastic insects out of our minds?  i've gotten four more layouts done with october's kits.  that's 5 so far!  this one uses lots from the antiquarian add-on.  the vintage bits this month are SO inspiring.  i'm happy i still have two more of those gorgeous buttons left and must come up with an idea for the vintage drafting pages.

 
this one is a fun mix of just about everything, but minimalistic at the same time, lol.  you might notice i've been scrapping lots of older photos since the cat peed on my printer.  did i just mention that in public?  or maybe i already did.  life is such a blur lately.  i'll call the incident my fault.  i left the printer on the floor after our last trip to florida knowing how photo processing chemicals are so darn aromatic to cats.  esp my cats.  one licks photos and apparently the other pees on them? tmi.  wheee.

 
this one might be my favorite.  it's of a scene i see and photograph quite often, but hadn't found an angle to scrap it from.  i'm working on material for october's seminar at masterful scrapbook design and this idea just came to me.  i learn so much from debbie hodge.  she's so inspiring.  btw, that little dino scene was drawn by the gman.  total cuteness.  it would be my favorite for that alone.

 
and one of my kitties with the project kit.  yellow and pale blue.  hello love.  and it comes with a studio calico woodgrain mini-album.  i'm so using it for my october daily.  yep!  starting another mini-album right after doing shimelle's "learn something new every day."  hope i don't get burned out before december daily season, lol.  but i'm sure having fun.  i love minis and i've found a fun group of ladies to chat about it with over on the mercantile message boards.  happy times.  full reveal at midnight CST tomorrow!  more happy times ahead!  :)

even tomboys have their limits . . .

 
 i've captured and brought home all manner of creepy crawlies . . . crawdads, crickets, snakes, lizards, toads . . . even the praying mantis . . . but THIS . . . or should i say THOSE . . . sorry buddy . . . the mating stickbugs aren't getting in my car . . . shudder . . . i'm kinda even grossed out by having their antics imortalized on my new smartphone . . . she's too young to see stuff like this.  :P

hello world . . .

 
well, so . . . i never mean to miss out on a whole week in the online world . . . it's just i get all these little responsiblilities that pile up on me and i feel guilty doing things for myself till i get them all caught up . . . that never happens to you, does it?  ha!  i knew i wasn't the only one!  i'm not the only one who has a good hair day once a year and decides to photograph it either, right?  :)

 
 on to the good stuff!  i've gotten four and a half layouts done so far with the october jbs kits.  blue, orange, and yellow . . . lalalove!  more peeks on the jbs inspiration blog!  and the full reveal coming this friday at midnight!  woot!

 
have you read this month's jbs mercantile gazette?  it's packed with useful information.  and seriously . . . i'm so proud to be a part of such a generous and talented group of women.  i have a step-by-step write-up in it based on the layout below.  hope you like it!

 

in moving pictures . . .

well. so. here i am. i'm southern, so there's that. i'm not sure where the tiny childlike voice and slight lisp come from. apparently the camera adds more than just the proverbial ten pounds. the camera angle could also use some work.  overall though, i'm giving myself a B. as in not too bad.  hope you like it. the majority of the product is from the september jbs mercantile artisan add-on, including julie balzer's new chevron stencil from the crafter's workshop. i'm in love with it as evidenced by the fact that i've made three layouts with it already this month. here are the two layouts from the video. i'll share the third tomorrow as it's featured in the september issue of the jbs mercantile gazzette that's set to hit the stands later today. yay! and enjoy! :)

 
 

newsflash!

 
i just ran two miles!  without stopping!  i think it's been about four years since i ran one mile, and i ran two!  it wasn't pretty, but i did it!  go me!

 
you know i just can't post without a picture.  in perusing my files for a suitable one, i came across this layout i made back in february for an article at masterful scrapbook design.  i think i never got around to posting it here, but now feels like the perfect time.  :)

Balzer Designs and The Crafter's Workshop Stencil Hop!

 
 
welcome to the Balzer Designs and The Crafter's Workshop Stencil Hop!

i've been an avid blog reader of Julie Balzer for quite a while now and was so excited to see that she was coming out with a line of stencils.  i LOVE stencils!  i was so honored to be asked to participate in her first blog hop with the crafter's workshop.  the stencil i worked with was the "triangle plaid."  how fun is that?  i had fun misting my tags with random colors and then embellishing them with fun bits from my scrappy stash.  i think the edgy new york vibe of the triangle plaid print kept the layout from being too country fresh.  all the florals with my stenciled tags come together in the perfect mix of country meets city.  just the look i was going for with my title, "vogue."

 
be sure to check out all the other fabulous stops in today's blog hop!

Ronda Palazzari
Nathalie Kalbach
Paula Phillips
Julie Fei-Fan Balzer

thanks for the inspiration julie!  and keep it coming!  :)

 

learn something new everyday . . .

 
sept 1st - "it's amazing how much housework one can tackle with a half an hour and the proper motivation." - photo: dirty dorm room at fsu circa 1990 - journaling: tidying up for an unexpected dinner guest.

I'm having so much fun with my mini-album for shimelle's class, "learn something new every day."  i started out by cutting a bunch of my favorite paper scraps down to 5x7.  some are double-sided and i like both sides.  some are single-sided or i don't like the flip side.  i just grab one (or two) that work into each day.

 
sept 2nd - "motherhood demands bravery." - photo: tarantula chasing in tikal, guatemala circa 1993 - journaling: catching a praying mantis for gabriel.

we all know i'm super lazy about editing and printing pics which makes these daily tasks annoying.  pair that with a dead photo printer and they become daunting.  somehow i came up with this idea to use old pictures from the pre-gabriel era.  i flip through my old albums and find one that matches my day's "lesson."  it's so much fun going through my old pics!

 
sept 3rd - "work is fun when friends cheer you on." - photo: dorm buddies at gilchrist hall circa 1989 - journaling: scrappy races with the jbs girls.

the premise is to reflect on each day and glean at least one nugget of truth from it.  i'm writing these in one sentence on the left hand side along with my photo and a label with the location and date of the photo.

 
sept 4th - "hold onto childhood creativity." - photo: ling festival parade, mexico beach, florida circa 1986 - journaling: watching g built boats out of salvaged goods.

my journaling for each day is on the right hand side on journaling spots.  i've got a lot of those and i'm enjoying putting so many of them to good use.

 
sept 5th - "home is where the kitty is." - photo: home circa 1996 - journaling: love our kitties.

i've mentioned before how i like continuity in my mini-albums, so far each spread also has a phrase sticker and a circular embellishment somewhere on it.

 
sept 6th - "when friends are thoughtless, you should still remain thoughtful." - photo: postcard from puerto rico circa 1996 - journaling: coworkers not being as thoughtful as they should.

oh! i'm also using a library date stamp to stamp the date on each page.

 
sept 7th - "there's nothing wrong with purple." - photo: high school powderpuff game circa 1987 - journaling: buying the wrong shampoo and conditioner just to avoid a purple bottle (so silly!).

i'm sticking to stickers, patterned paper, and very thin embellishments for once and am pleased with how nice and flat my little book is (not that i don't love the chubby ones too, lol).

 
sept 8th - "i love my new phone more than i thought i ever would." - photo: late night phone coversations in college circa 1989 - journaling: my new beloved smartphone that i've named precious.

really tickled by how much older product i'm clearing out of my stash!

 
sept 9th - "i need to play more." - photo: playing soccer in our townhouse in nc circa 1998 - journaling: watchign some teens playing outside and missing the days when i used to play like that.

this really is a wonderful exercise in self-reflection.  i highly recommend it!

 
sept 10th - "i need to cook more; it's enjoyable when it's appreciated." - photo: thanksgiving dinner with friends in nc circa 1995 - cooking french toast for gabriel and he was so impressed.

planning on updates next weekend!

september gallery updates . . . part two

 
the jbs gallery is updated again!  check it out!  there are so many pretty things.  this is #9 for me.  yep!  you read that right!  NINE!  i had a little challenge going with briana.  i thought she was going to beat me, but i managed to throw this one together in under an hour yesterday and get it photographed before the light faded.  go me!  it's made from a combination of the august and september artisan add-on kits.  i still have layouts 6, 7, and 8 to share with you too.  i am starting to get my technology under control, so i'm hoping to have scrappy shares for you every day this week.  :)

september gallery updates . . . part one

 
i'm not gonna lie.  this one gave me fits.  i was so glad to finally be done with it.

 
then, as is usually the case, the next several came together effortlessly. don't fall off your chair or anything, but i actually have a two pager to share.  you can see it in the gallery now if you want.  i have a few thoughts i want to share about the whole two pager thing; i'll hopefully get to that sometime this week.  i have to wait till i've got all my techno buddies with me though.  currently my laptop is at dr. staples and my internet is getting a housecall from dr. comcast tomorrow.  they've both been feeling under the weather for quite some time now.  unlike my cell phone who was feeling fit as a fiddle until yesterday when he woke up and got himself checked into the funny farm.  la.  at least i am now the proud owner of a new smartphone!  "mommy! i just killed two pigs with one bird!"  g is happy with our new friend too.  rambling.  more scrappy shares saturday too!  we're having two gallery updates this month and i've already got two more done for that and another on my mind.  :)