It's the Small Things

Creative Imaginations Show Work

Creative Imaginations is a huge company. They do just about everything and have a ton of artists creating products for them. The had a huge release this show. Their booth is really large and usually I don't get to see pictures of it, unless someone was interested in a particular collection. I've always wanted to see the full booth, so I was pretty estatic when Amy Coon did a video tour for her company The Paper Life.

Creative Imagination's Booth Tour Part 1

Creative Imaginations Booth Tour Part 2

Luminarte Tour

The Luminarte tour is really awesome. There is actually more to CI than what was shown, but as you can see there was a ton to see with what was shown as it was. I have watched these a few times to see the booth. I really loved seeing the tour.

I was told we can share our show work, so here goes:

This layout and card were created using the new IOD Provencial collection. It's incredibly yummy, but I am majorly biased and love all things IOD. They came out with four new collections this show.

These were created using the new IOD Wild Spirit collection. It's colors are really earthy and work well for cowboys and cowgirls alike.

These were created using Art Warehouse's Baseball collection. Actually this was done using the new add-ons to the original collection. That's something I love about Art Warehouse. Danelle is always adding on to her collections, so you can easily work with the stash you currently have.

Marah Johnson has come out with a fabulous collection of neutrals called, The Monarch Collection, and is made to be colored in any way you can think up. I used a paint brush and the Luminarte mist "persimmon" to paint hearts onto the purse and the layout, then ran my sewing machine around the edges. The heart on top of the heart on the Bare Elements purse was made out of quick drying clay and and painted with the luminarte, as well.

They have another collection coming out called Bazaar Noir, which is black and white and intended to be colored, as well. I cut out some of one of the pattern of one of the papers and colored it in a few spots. The collection has really fun frames, as well as patterned papers, which I used on the card.

Thanks for stopping by, today. I hope you enjoyed the videos as much as I did. Have a great rest of the weekend!

Lori

 

 

 

Breathless Heart Book Class

The super sweet and lovely Marah Johnson created this gorgeous paper collection for Creative Imaginations called "Breathless". Believe me, when you see it, you will feel breathless. It's stunning! She was inspired by Twilight. Nothing says love these days like vampires, yes? :) Well, her collection with it's stunning reds and blacks made me want to make a book dedicated to my love. 

The book will hold up to ten 2" x 3" or Wallet sized photos, uses my favorite May Arts Ribbon and tons of embellishments. We'll be making a ribbon flower, and using Luminarte and alcohol inks. It's packed with fun techniques and has a ton of texture. 

You can dedicate this book to your love, your kids, a wedding, a prom, a graduation, your favorite collections, or anything you love and want to record. You'll cherish this book and not want to give it away! 

If you are interested in taking this class with me, the details are below:

Memories Live On - 408-446-9901
Sunday, September 19th
10:00-1:00 p.m.   

$35

Supplies Needed:

• Scissors
• Crop-a-dile
• Strong Wet Glue (I recommend Helmar 450 Quick Dry)
• X-acto Knife
• Rub-on tool (popsicle stick or bone folder)
• Favorite adhesive 
• Black Pen (I use ultra fine Sharpies)

I hope to see you in class!   

Creative Imaginations

Have you been checking out the Creative Imaginations blog lately? They are posting their summer releases daily. They have so many wonderful new things coming out in the next few months. I made this layout with Renae Lindgren's Happy Camper line. It's a fun camping collection. I love the wood grain.

   

We went camping two years in a row and it was very fun. We skipped this year, but plan to go next year.  The boys really love going, although the youngest doesn't love sleeping in a tent. Hopefully, next year that will be different.

Creative Imaginations has a new Luminarte blog and facebook page. They are both worth checking out if you love shimmery, misty, painty-type stuff.

Have a great day!

Some Layouts to Share...

We have just returned from vacation. We went to visit the Grandparents and hang out on the lake. My Father-in-law lives in a cottage on a small lake and it's wonderful. This year, the boat wasn't working, so no water skiing or tubing for the boys, but they did go sailing and rafting and had a blast. I'm processing pictures and will upload a bunch soon.

Creative Imaginations June layout sketch challenge is quickly coming to an end. This is my take on the sketch.

   

I used the new Christine Adoph Boho Collection. It's a baby collection, but it is super versatile. The backside of all the papers are non-babyish, so they can be used in any way you can dream up if you. I still have baby pages to scrapbook, and I'm thrilled to be able to use this line for that, too.

On this layout, I wanted to scrapbook my son's T ball experience. He really enjoyed playing this year. It was his first time playing and he wants to play next year, too. He wants to move up and be pitched to, so it will be interesting. Baseball is a huge commitment. I had no idea, but we did enjoy it. On this layout I used Crate Paper and October Afternoon.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Lori

June Card Sketch

Creative Imaginations June card sketch is up. It's a cute one, too! The winner this month will receive a prize package worth over $25. If you like the sketch and want to participate, simply create a card using CI products and post it to the gallery. The winner is picked at the beginning of July and announced on the blog. 

I was able to make a card this month and I chose to use the new Christine Adolph Boho Boy and Girl lines. There are several designers from CI that I'm a tad bit obsessed with and Christine is one of those. Before I was on the team, I purchased almost everything she came out with. I love her artsy style.

The Boho line is a baby line, but I'm using it in an upcoming class for a non-baby theme. The reverse side of every paper is non-themey and oh so lovely. 

For the card, I did use the Boho line as intended, by creating a baby card. Welcome to the world baby!

 

I love the punch of orange in the lines. It's an unexpected twist and makes the line really versatile. I know I say that a lot, but really once you've used any line in a way other than it was intended, it's pretty easy to use any line that way.

Have a wonderful day!

Sketches, Sketches, Get Your Sketches

Creative Imaginations started monthly sketch contests in January. It's been wonderful to see everyone's take on the sketches in the gallery. One super, cool thing that Creative Imaginations is, also, doing is giving away prizes to the winners. And, to appeal to more of us, they are running not one but two sketch contests each month; a card sketch contest and a layout sketch contest.

This month's layout sketch can be found here. The sketch is wonderful! Even better the prize is $50 worth of CI products AND a blog feature!

This month's card sketch can be found here. There is a prize package for this, too.

So, what are you waiting for? Get thee to CI and play along!

Last month, I did an example for both the card sketch and the layout sketch. For the layout, I used some pictures of my youngest playing in a Spring rain storm. He refused to wear a hood, but insisted on his dinosaur rain boots, so I went with a little humor. The journaling reads "Real men do not wear hoods in the rain, but they do wear dinosaur rain boots". I used the Real Wood for the background and sprayed it with Luminarte, which will be in stores very soon! I, also, used a bunch of Petaloo's fun glitter flowers and their glitter paper.

For the card sketch, I just did a simple "hey" card. I love having these simple cards around to send out for no other reason than to say "Hey!".

If you love sketches, I highly recommend checking into CI's sketch contests each month.

Thanks for the feedback on what you love to see on blogs. I've got my thinking cap on.

My Next Class

I have been wanting to make myself a card planner for a very long time. I am always scrambling last minute to get cards in the mail, so I wanted to organize the process and make it simple. I created a fun card planner that has tons of my favorite photos. It's for me, so I have filled it with all of my favorite photos of our family. 

It is a mini book that is broken into months and includes addresses and lists. It, also, has two pockets for cards and stamps. I love my little book! I think it would make a great gift idea, as well. Below are just a few images. The inside pages are filled with photos and lots of fun details. 

 

We will be working with canvas, luminarte, gel bead medium, gesso, micro beads and more. I went technique heavy this time around. The book features the brand new Creative Imaginations IOD Loolah collection, shipping to stores soon, Christine Adolph Chipboard and Creative Cafe! We will, also, get to play with some of the gorgeous new bloomers ribbon from Webster's Pages. 

Here are the class details:

Memories Live On
Saturday, June 5
10 a.m - 1 p.m.
$45

• Supplies needed:
• Fabric Glue – Helmar 450 Quick Dry
• Personal Trimmer
• Tape runner
• Foam dots or squares
• Scissors
• Favorite Border Punch – I used Martha Stewart “Double Scallop”
• Red ink – Colorbox fluid chalk ink catseye “warm red”
• 2 Foam brushes
• Ranger Glossy Accents
• Skinny paintbrush (about ¼ inch)
• Black Sharpie extra/ultra fine pen
• White paint
• Sand paper or nail file
• Photos - twelve 4"x6" horizontal and nine 3"x5" horizontal or vertical. 

Have a wonderful Mother's Day weekend! 

Happy National Scrapbook Day

I want to thank Memories Live On for having me there to teach my By the Beautiful Sea class. I had the BEST time. I was really nervous, but once the customers started walking in, I got over it quickly. The gals that took my class were so nice and really, really fun. The best part for me, was watching them mix things up and show me a thing or two. I love that. I really did feel right at home in the store and am so grateful for that. I am excited to be coming back in a month or so to teach another class. Unfortunately, I did not take any photos, but my friends in the class did. When they send me their pictures, I'll post them. 

For those that are interested, there are a few kits available. I included full color photo step by step directions and sketches for converting the page to vertical photos. I, also, put my email address in there. I am always available to answer any questions or for any feedback.  The kits are really full of product and there is enough left over to add to your stash or create a few layouts. 

 

It's National Scrapbook Day this weekend (technically it's Saturday) and there are events happening everywhere. If  you are wanting to get involved in some fun, here are a few things you can join:

1. A Cherry On Top is hosting a weekend long online crop. Sally and Josie of IOD will be teaching a FABULOUS shadow box class at 4pm EST on Saturday. It's absolutely darling and they are even giving a kit away. 

2. Crate Paper has some fun up their sleeves on their blog. Read the fine print, ladies! There is a giveaway on there, you do not want to miss, not to mention the inspiration they plan to share. It's going to be a great time.  

This is the latest layout I did with Crate Paper and October Afternoon. The two mix really well and I thought went perfectly with my son's t-ball photos. He isn't much of a sports fan. Turns out he's really into piano and learning music and I'm all good with that, but he did want to try out baseball and he seems to enjoy it. It's really cool now that I've seen him actually LOVE something. That's all I want for both boys. I want to put them in a bunch of things until they find "the" thing they love. Now that I know what his "love" is, it's so nice to not have to worry about doing what he's ok with. If he wants to do it, great, if not, great. He seems to enjoy t-ball mostly because he doesn't have to run around as much as in soccer. This makes me laugh, because I would have thought he might get bored standing around, but what do I know? Kids are funny!

Happy NSD. I hope you find time to create at least one little thing in the spirit of the day. Enjoy! 

Beautiful by the Sea Class Details

I promised to share the inside of the book and here is the whole thing. 

The class will be held at Memories Live On in Cupertino.

Sunday, April 25th  from 1-4 p.m. 

$30

The kit is packed full of product. You will definitely be bringing home extra goodies for any other creations you can think up. I tried really hard to keep the price low, yet fill the kit. I think I was able to accomplish that. :)

What you will need to bring (please call the store for any items you may need):

1. Black Pen
2. White Pen (I love the ranger white pen)
3. Strong Tape Runner
4. Clear, fast-drying, strong wet glue (I highly recommend Helmar Quick Dry 450 Adhesive) This is really important for doing the ribbon work on the spine.
5. Dark blue and teal ink pads
6. Personal Trimmer
7. Scissors
8. Your favorite border punch - I used EK Success' Upper Crest punch and will bring mine.
9. Circle Cutter or Xlarge Circle punch (2.5 - 3"). I will bring mine.
10. Tweezers (If you have a hard time with little rhinestones)
11. Photos - I layer on top of and underneath my photos, so you will want to bring these to class. You will need six photos total. If you can print from home the size is 4.5" x 3" horizontal. If you purchase your photos, please bring 4" x 6" vertical photos and I'll show you how to convert the page to fit your photos. 
12. Journaling - I used stickers for my journaling, but you may want to do more, so print your journaling onto 8.5" x 11" white cardstock with a space in between each line and we can cut them into strips.

There will be kits left over and the store will be selling them in their online store after the class. The kits will include full color photos and instructions.

The book is really versatile and I'm excited about that. The Oceana collection has been a huge success and I'm so grateful I was able to get the product and create a class with it. The colors are so rich and vibrant, they make my "everyday" photos look great. I look forward to meeting some new friends and seeing some old ones on the 25th.

Beautiful by the Sea Class

Here are a two quick pictures of my class on April 25th at Memories Live On in Cupertino. I'm really excited about  teaching this class. I love these products because they are so versatile. I'll post the inside of the accordion book in the next week or so. 

This class uses the new Christine Adolph Oceana collection from Creative Imaginations, Petaloo flowers, and May Arts ribbon. 

We will be doing some ribbon work and that means you will need a quick drying, clear, very strong adhesive. I used Helmar's 450 Quick Dry adhesive for this. I love it and I recommend it. 

 

If you are interested in taking the class, give the store a call for all the details and maybe I'll get to see you there.  

Lori