December Challenge SOS Mask Up Challenge

 

These are the photos I plan to print as a collage to put in place of the brown leaf paper and tie with the embroidery floss. 

SOS Mask Up Challenge to use a phrase from a list of many pandemic related ones. I chose "Is it over yet?" and need to include a photo of mask wearing. I also was playing along with Scrap Academy's winter break challenge to do a white on white layout. 

December Challenge SOS Layout Sketch

 

SOS December Challenge

CSI December Challenge

This page I used for two different group challenges. I wanted to document about a very special rock that used to belong to my grandpa but now is a running gag with my Dad and uncle at Christmas time. I had fun paper piecing the mushrooms and working through a big stash of die cut squares I was gifted many years ago.

One challenge required following a layout sketch to scraplift and include Christmas paper (red Christmas trees) and something sparkly (I used glitter brads).

The other challenge used a photograph of a home decor type spread that I took some elements from like text patterns, cursive font, plaid, wood.

The photo for the layout is pending, I had to ask my family to look through their files and send me their best shots of the rock. 

November challenge: SOS sketch challenge

The sketch challenge  on SOS asks us to follow a layout pattern and include chipboard and watercolor paper. I ended up making my own water color bunting as I had NO papers in my stash that used water color. Goes right along with learning to paint water color during this pandemic. 

Do you have any family treasures sitting around that you can ask someone about? If I found this stuff I would never know the story behind it but luckily the story came out when I asked my dad if he had any road trip memories growing up. Original fast food! 

November Challenges: SOS "Thankful" and CSI #337

 

Sketches of sloths to get in the mood for the page embellishment

Also used reference photos of people sitting on meditation stool

For the CSI challenge, I used the evidence of : woodgrain, solid paper (in 2 colors from swatch), used gray from color swatch, triangles, silver metal (one brad)/crystal, frame, transparent elements, white on white, florals. 

For SOS November #1, needed to use 1 of 3 phrases. I used "Incredibly grateful". Also needed to include a doily, which I ended up making from flower die cuts and a hole punch since I don't have any pre-made doily embellishments. 

Scrapbook October Challenges: Moodboard and Mixed Media

I started with Scrap Academy's challenge for Term 2, week 3 to use 4 ways of mixed media on a page. Started with a water color tree on water color paper since I don't have gesso or another barrier to paint on scrapbook paper. Looked up a tutorial on drawing an oak tree on Pinterest in pencil and combined with another article on water color painting trees and water dam technique learned from Facebook artist who gives painting lessons.

The other mixed media for the page is : Acrylic paint on tag and chipboard sprays, ink to stamp date, colored pencil. 

 SOS Moodboard Challenge I found inspiration to do a page with trees with colorful foliage, patterned paper with triangles, wood elements (paper pattern, embellishment), dark blue/teal and browns were another main color for the layout. 

September Scrapbook Challenge "Learning"

 I followed the SOS September challenge for 123 Challenge (1 word title, 2 photos, 3 of same embellishment-3 chipboard circles). The theme included "learning" which was lessons we learned while going hiking at a trail that was new to us. 

This is also part of the CSI Challenge in September and Scrap Academy Term 2 challenge. 

SOS Challenge August Sketch

 

Here's the challenge sketch and rules at SOS.

The items needing to be included was striped paper and ink. Happy to use the ScrapMatts chipboard florals I won from another scrapbooking challenge group and try my hand at making tassels from leftover embroidery floss used for stitching from another page. Scrapbooking helps me keep some goals in focus and then I can document which ones I can complete and when! I like doing this as a topic periodically during the year.

SOS August Challenge: Dog Days

 

Celebrating some cool drinks that I've come to enjoy over the years. For the SOS Challenge, I used a hand made sun embellishment. My photos will be ordered at a later time. My journaling notes where I first tried that drink if it wasn't the time in the photos. Plenty of drinks I may not have tried if not for spending time with others. 

July Scrapbook Challenges SOS Sketch and Scrap Academy Scraplift: Pandemic topics

After: adding paint splatters

Before: Close up of text

Sketch Challenge for July at SOS
This challenge for SOS required use of star paper (created my own doodle strip from a Pinterest post as the model) and star embellishments (die cuts with added jewel/sparkly/pearl stickers or brads) I pulled out the hidden journaling and still have to order the photos it will sit behind.

Other than documenting life changed since the pandemic, since COVID-19 has limited travel options, I am asking family journaling prompts via text or email periodically to add to a family album.
It's a good time to ask those in your life for the stories we often don't seem to have time to sit down and listen to.

Prompt: What concerts have you gone to as a kid to now that are memorable? Who did you go with?
Related pages: Are there certain songs or albums you associate with a person or time in your life?

The prompt came from a layout I made to celebrate fun things I got to do over the last year with a friend, two of which were concerts. The layout is a scraplift for the Facebook group Scrap Academy due end of July post 

SOS June Recipe Challenge, Scrap Academy May 30 and CSI challenge # 321

Check out the SOS June Recipe Challenge here

SOS June Recipe Challenge: I used 5 paper patterns (wood, stripes, lace, dots and floral/words), 4 embellishment types (eyelets, brad, chipboard and twine), 3 letter title (Feed Your Soul), 2 alphas (F sticker, C sticker) and 1 photo. 

For it being CSI's June challenge #321 the stash busting challenge, I used vintage looking paper (floral), circular elements, metal accents, shiny glitter and jewel on the chipboard sticker, ornate decorations, striped paper.

To make it Scrap Academy's Week 1 in Term 1 (start date May 30) challenge I was to use 3 tools on the page-I used an eyelet hole punch/setter, decorative edge scissors and as usual, a paper trimmer. If you count the paper scrap that has the negatives from the circle coluzzle that is 4 tools. Extra credit ?

I was glad to finally go to a Sing A Long event. I had meant to go to the Rocky Horror one when I was in El Paso as a grad student but it didn't happen. Singing usually gets my energy up and even more so when it's with someone I love.

March 2020 SOS sketch challenge

The second challenge of the month at SOS 
Asked us to use plaid and wood in the layout in addition to use their sketch as an inspiration point.

Had these photos sitting around for at least a year and a half. Hooray for challenges for getting the creative juices going.

March 2020 Challenge SOS Color Combo

The challenge posted for March at SOS gave a color pallet to use, I opted to go for the two yellow shades, teal and managed to get pink in there for the tag sitting in the envelope pocket.

The challenge was also to use an embellishment that starts with each letter of your first name. So I used K = knots (in the embroidery thread on the left), E = envelope pocket for more journaling, I = ink stamped on the envelope, O = orange tiger on the paper square.

Decided to find all photos that had a yellow theme and they all happened to be from my fall travels in 2019 to two different cities.

CSI Challenge #310 February 2020: "Stick Together"-Celebrating a best friend

 The top layout is the one for CSI Challenge #310 but I made a follow on page below. The evidence/elements included plaid, folding something, chipboard, woodgrain, phrase, hearts, cactus stickers and to inspire the title Stick Together, a house paper, string and silver elements.

I wanted to find my earliest photo with my friend and one of the more recent ones. It almost fits last year (or the year before?) 10 year challenge that I failed to participate in one Facebook.

On the second layout, I made a pocket to hold journaling cards after my friend called me to answer my interview questions of What experience made us feel close and also what is your earliest memory of me. We decided that should be impressionable memory. I used photos from various years of some of my favorite travels and experiences with my friend.

January 2020 : SOS Sketch challenge

The sketch based challenge can be found here. It required the use of chevron patterned paper and something gold. I didn't have any chevron paper, so I turned to Google search and found this easy to follow video by Andrea.

To make the chevron: using a strip of paper, I folded it in half twice, then cut at a slant to make relatively even sized pieces of paper

Open your paper to reveal the chevron. Use plenty of glue and tack it down to your paper. 

I included hearts with gold on it and had to use the little shiba die cut that my friend sent me as a souvineer from Japan. It just fit perfectly. It's a good feeling when I can use alpha negatives and packaging (the paw prints) to throw less into the landfill. 

January 2020 SOS Challenge "Bingo"

This month, SOS has creative a bingo card where you pick a row and try to incorporate those elements into your page. I used the far right vertical row which is stitching (asterisk), chipboard (striped frame, matte @ symbols), sticker (Sparkly orange @ symbol), a punch (heart in the photo), and bling (my oldest stash piece, another San Diego Scrapbook Expo splurge that has been probably sitting there for....10 years?! luckily the adhesive is still good!)

This page is a companion to the one I made for SOS November Challenge. I may add a journaling tag later hat explains the context of these photos as well, but they aren't necessarily the "rough spots" as last time. More just with goals that I had at the time- like going on hikes once a week, traveling to a new city because of a concert, and spending time with my parents.  Or how my dad has a balancing pose he tries to do when we travel and now I have one too.

I also got inspiration from Bea Valint, "Good Times" layout with American Crafts for the half circle shape and I did pie slices instead of the tile look.