Finished!

I was hired to make a scrapbook for a friend's wedding. The scrap book was to be used as the "guest book." Intimidated and a bit stressed about this book and doing a good job - I agonized over the designs, colors, style and content.

What came out of this was getting to know them better through their photos they left me to insert sporadically throughout the album and scrapbooking (which is something I haven't been able to do for a while).

- - - - The beautiful couple - - - -

---- Jen and Mike ----

I just love her dress. She was breathtakingly beautiful at her wedding (which is what a bride should be).

The wedding itself was fun as well. A nice relaxing time well deserved after the creation of this album AND all the other things that go on in life.....

NOW THE ALBUM.....

The cover...... BTW - I made the album out of chipboard and bound it with my friend Sesil's (thank you!!!!) binder. I played with one of these at the Scrapbook Expo - but never acquired one. Now I feel as if I need to acquire one....

(for all the books I have yet to start much less finish......)

I made the first page of the book available for a picture of the couple on the wedding day.
The inside cover will have some sort of "quote" from their wedding.

The idea - take a picture of the guests and then have them sign the book.....

Some had tags and some had tabs........

We went with Autumn colors and the majority of the pages were all unique styles and layouts.....
I hate repetitiveness......

There will be more fall embellishments......
but I wanted to wait til after the wedding to finish the final touches of embellishments....

Throughout the album are sporadically placed pictures of the couples or their "kids" (cats.)

I also left room for candids of the wedding........

It's funny how pictures tell you alot about the couple. Mike and Jen are definitely in love with each other..... so refreshing to see these days....

The center of the book has two whole pages dedicated to candids.

The ribbons have not been added. I have yards and yards of ribbons yet to add.

But for all intent and purposes - the album is complete.

It was fun to do and rewarding when I saw how much they loved it.

I will get it back from them after their honeymoon. I am excited about finishing it - which is the most emotion I have felt about scrapbooking in a long time......

Proof

I don't know why I feel the compulsion to PROVE that I am scrap booking or being creative but here it goes......



This is my table that was set up a lil over two weeks ago. It doesn't look like that now..... Now it looks like a flat version of my scrap room. Paper, stamps, pictures and tools all over it!

What have I been creating?

Well - since my girls have been gone I have been making them cards each day and sending them in the mail to them........

(I am such a sentimental blech.....)

Here is my latest - oopse I need to get back into practice - card.



This is one of Nat's favorite stamp sets that I have so I wanted to send her a card using it. IF you can't figure it out - the two girls on the left are symbolic of my girls and the one girl on the top right is me.

Friday my DH and I are heading to the Scrap book Expo in St. Charles. I have tickets to the crop at nite for both of us. I am excited - because I actually have a few mini albums to work on!

I have been creating

I have tried to keep up with at least one card a day or something creative that isn't knitting or making up new excel spread sheets at work.... (ha ha).

I have created two cards in the last two days but I can not post them because my children are avid readers of my blog - in Michigan they are.

The Cards have NOT made it to Michigan yet......

BUT I have taken pictures and uploaded them - but can't post til Nat gives me the....

"Hey mom - "

On another note - I can't wait for SCRAPBOOK EXPO in St. Charles.

My hubby and I are doing a crop night and I am taking one of the cosmo cricket classes.

It's the last yipee before our girls get back......

Now I am going to curl up with one of my books from library. You have got to go to the this place and check it out. I have created a group in mine with our family's summer reading challenge. Check it out!

More Card Making

I went to a Card swap tonight and had a BLAST! It really got me motivated to scrap and create....



Basically - everyone who comes makes a card to bring and everything to make that card. I love this card - but of course I had to add a twist to all my cards. I think I phunkified the colors on these animals and left them in tag format.

Such a kid card! I might send it to my girls in MI....



The card that I posted yesterday is the card that I took - which apparently took up the most time. I was a wee bit embarassed...... but I had fun creating it.


I love this card set up but then again - I couldn't copy completely - I had to ad my own twist. I put "friend" on it and added the dots. The scallops started out as a mistake - and - I just kept doing the mistake over and over again....


I love this set and wouldn't normally use this - but I kinda like the elegance of it.




And again - this one - I can't put anything on straight even in I had a ruler. Therefore - I purposely gave it a slant. I like this simple layout - you could do alot of different things with this.

Tomorrow - I have to finish my daughter's birthday mini album/card.

You say it's your birthday......

A new blog????????

Look

My FAVORITE Scrapbooking store has a BLOG now!!!!!

BREEZE BLOGGERS

How exciting!!!!!!

I need to get in there and buy some supplies!!!!!

Scrapbook baby book

My latest creation! A Baby book for a friend who's shower I was invited to.

Unfortunately I have like FIVE more to finish.... before (hopefully) their kids are in college.

Oiy and ouch....

I have severely neglected my blog..... for reasons why too numerous to post here.

One thing good about the last month (that FLEW by) is my ability to CREATE and FINISH my Christmas cards - which got me BACK in the Scrapbooking MOOD! (much to my DH's delight as well as my girls..... they were starting to worry.....)

I also gave (as presents) four hand made date books. I got the idea from HERE! They made GREAT gifts.... I have one myself that is a work in progress. I dis'd my PDA a two years ago when it died. The first year a didn't have a Date Planner (imagine how lost I was.....) and last year I made the one by Donna Downey and took the class here. So this year I made one of these for myself. Every month there is a slot for the beginning of the month and end of the month layouts. I am hoping I can track the months through the year 2007 this way. It's just the right size for me.


I love the size and I love the ability to adapt it to anything!!!!! I have had several people write down the website to order these! They were developed by Lisa Flanigan. She is just sooooooo darn cute!!!!

I like how the weeks are mapped out and before the start of every month there is an insert page that you can decorate front and back. This is the End of Decembers page.....



This is a blank page that my lil girl Rowan put pictures in. She just slid them in. She was the one that took these photos.... my lil photographer in training. Here birthday is in February (Ground Hogs day to be exact) and I am hoping to get her THIS!


This is the back page... this just happened to be the first day of school 2006 for them. The beads on the end are beads from my hubby's efforts at making stitch markers for my friends and I. I attached two to the end of this ribbon in hopes that he will make me a more appropriate (hint hint) I made one for my dad loaded with tons of pictures of the girls. I made three others with base pages waiting for the owner to put in photos and more embellishments. What a way to enable others to become a "scrapbooker." It feels good to get this going again....

Christmas went by fast BUT was good to us. (As you can tell from these pictures....)


It's amazing what a trip to the dollar store and sample isle of Target can do for Santa when he stuff's his stocking. These girls were VERY happy with their stockings that Santa stuffed!!!


This is a wonderful SOHO loft kit. The girls get to build, decorate and accessorize a model sized SOHO loft. That will reside in our NEW guest/play room. They have already started building..... it's so cute.....


They could hardly WAIT to tear into each gift. Occasionally they would stop and want to investigate further their present.... but with me having to get to work at 1100 (hopefully my last official year to work a HOLIDAY much less Christmas) I was pushing to hurry them along......

Of course CLOTHES were a major part of their christmas collection of gifts... and thankfully Santa had GOOD taste this year.... who knew pleasing a 9 year old and a 5 year old would be so difficult?????


Rowan - begging to explore her creative side more - LOVED this gift from Santa.....



And what is a Christmas WITHOUT slippers?????? Hello Kitty to boot!!!!!! AWESOME!!!!

And the MESS!!!! What is a Christmas morning without the mess???? luckily..... I was off to work at 1100.... next year I might not be so lucky......

There are some awesome scrapbooking photos here are there not? I can't believe I am even uttering these words after my long absence from scrapbooking.....

Before Christmas the girls hung out at the Navy Pier at Winter Wonderland


The girls had a blast exploring this.... they thought it was very way cool.....



Many different trees many different decorations to explore... and they did.......

All inside - warm and cozy.... a perfect place to hide away for the day.......

They were all dressed to see.......

NOT THIS GUY........


But this guy........




Santa AND MRS CLAUS of course....... (okay I know.... the girls said this guy was a bad imitiation as well.....) NOT THE MARSHALL FIELDS Claus by any standards......

We MISS the Marshall Fields Claus..... Macy's just doesn't cut it.......

BUT - What's Christmas without a visit with Santa???????

And here..... the girls Official Christmas photo included in ALL Christmas cards......




and the SHED......

This was really a nice day - we started at the wee hour of 0900 (which after getting home from work at 0500 - this was THE WEE HOUR!!!!

Lotsa informational things to look at...... There was no one there so they could take their time and read!!!!!

And Make and Takes...... something to keep them busy!!!!!!

These pictures describe it to a tee..... a GREAT break from the holiday madness.....

Stay tuned for more scrapbooking posts and general posts about us...... Hope all had a GREAT Christmas and a Happy New Year!!!!!

BTW - if anyone has SNOW they would like to send our way.... we would be much obliged..... We have seen very little to no snow this season and the girls and I are getting quite ansy.......