Living an Inspired Life: February 2019

Feb 25, 2019

Fun Day

Scrapbook Layout created for Simple Stories - FUN DAY-

Hello Simple Stories Friends and Fans!

Nathalie with you today with a super fun layout that features the new Say Cheese 4 collection. What can i say!, Simple Stories has created the perfect collection as it can be used to document your memories at the theme park as well as your every day memories. There are so many embellishments, papers, and designs to chose from that it makes is so easy and fun to create projects.

The inspiration for this page of my Goddaughter ready to visit the most magical place on the world was her head band.

used the stencil as a guide to create the silhouette of the mouse head on white paper. Next i used a few paper edge punches to create the scalloped paper strips out of all the black color papers that i found in the SAY CHEESE 4 collection, basic paper pack and 6x8 paper pad. I glued the strips together on the paper silhouette and stitched around the edge of the silhouette to hold them all together. All the extra pieces were trimmed so that the silhouette can be easily recognized.

To keep the focus on the head band, i drew and cut the image of the bow onto the b side of the 4x6 Element paper of the Say Cheese 4 collection, and use some white thread to hand stich it to a piece of white cardstock. Once the image was completely stitched and detailed, i fussy cut the cardstock leaving a small offset around the image, and glued it straight onto the head silhouette.

The B side of the Make a Wish paper serves as the base for the page. A bit of white acrylic paint was added as a background for the head silhouette. Once the piece was glued to the page, i used some of the Sn@p cards to back and pictures and glued to the layout. There are so many embellishments to chose from that it was so easy to create clusters of stickers, ephemera around the pictures.

Now, to complete this page, i used the new Fun Large Words Metal Die to cut part of the title from 6x8 paper - i used some white cardstock die cuts to create depth on the die cut-, and then used the Happy Words Stamp and Dies to create the word "day". To just finish this page, i added a matching bow clip to the title, and a few lines of journal around the mouse head silhouette.

I am totally in love with this collection, and the possibilities (trust me i have created a few layouts with it already). Whether you love the theme park or just want a fun colorful collection, the new SAY CHEESE 4 is definitely one of the funnest releases from Simple Stories this year, and a must for your documenting. You can always contact me if you have questions on how this came together.

XO

Feb 21, 2019

Altenew Live Your Dream Scrapbook collection Release Blog Hop + Giveaway

Hi there!

Welcome to the Altenew Live Your Dream Scrapbook Collection Release Blog Hop and Giveaway. You should be arriving from Altenew Card Blog...

As a paper lover, nothing makes me happier than to take part on today's blog as Altenew is releasing a new Scrapbook collection, LIVE YOUR DREAM. This collection is bright, elegant and so versatile, you can use it to document all those special moments and also the lovely everyday moments. This collection is filled with beautiful patterns, designs and color, and it contains:

16 sheets of 12x12 double-sided patterned papers (2 of each/16 different designs)
2 6"x12" sheets of puffy alphabet stickers (220 pieces)
2 6"x12" sheets of chipboard stickers (38 pieces)
2 6"x12" sheets of clear stickers (31 pieces)
1 pack of wood epoxy buttons (20 pieces)
1 pack of die-cut cardstock embellishments (32 pieces)

Let me show you what i put together with the beautiful LIVE YOUR DREAM scrapbook collection:

I wanted to use all the papers and colors of the collection, so what better way that to showcase them in a large tittle that serves as the focal point of the page.

A cut file and the Silhouette Cameo were used to cut the word "Smile" from papers from the LIVE YOUR DREAM collection. Each letter was hand stitched to an offset so that they can stand out and be combined in the title.

A bit of Altenew Watercolor -black- was used to create the background of this page. To bring a new layer of interest of the background, the Wavy Grid stencil and a bit of art crayon was used to create a shadow impression for the title.

The stitched title was attached to the background with a bit of foam adhesive, and then it was time to add the picture of my three babies.

All the colorful die cuts, chipboard stickers and epoxy wooden buttons from the LIVE YOUR DREAM collection were used to frame the picture. I added a few sentiments to the clusters using the Dream Big and Botanical Silhouette stamp sets.

To complete my visual triangle, a small slit was created in the bottom of the page. Once the edges were folded, i used a piece of the LIVE YOUR DREAM collection paper was used to back the space, and then i repeated the elements in the clusters along with a stamped image from the Trendy Circles stamp set. A few Altenew enamel dots complete the clusters and create movement on the page, all that was left to add were a few lines of journal and drops of Altenew pure white ink spray. The following video will showcase how this page came together:

I really hope this has inspired you to check the new LIVE YOUR DREAM collection from Altenew. Remember to , and now on to the fun part of this blog hop...

>>>>> Giveaway<<<<

To celebrate this release, Altenew is giving away a $50 gift certificate to 6 lucky winners! Please leave a comment on the Altenew Card Blog and/or Altenew Scrapbook Blog by 2/28/2019 for a chance to win. 6 winners will be announced on the Altenew blogs on 3/3/2019.

~~I will also be giving away a $30 gift certificate to the Altenew store to a lucky commentary. The winner will be announced on 2/28/2019.~~

GIVEAWAY CLOSED

Thank you so much for all your lovely comments, they are greatly appreciated it!. The lucky winner is:

Congratulations Melissa, please email winner@altenew.com by 3/10/2019 with the subject line Altenew Live Your Dream Scrapbook Collection Release Blog Hop Winner from Nathalie DeSousa's blog.

Thank you all so much!

Now it is time to continue admiring all the beautiful projects created with the LIVE YOUR DREAM collection, your next stop is Kimona Tracey's blog! Remember you can always come back here to join in the hop, or stop at the Altenew Scrapbook or Altenew Card blogs. A list of all the participants has been added for your convenience

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Feb 19, 2019

Hello Love

Scrapbook Layout created for Scrapbok Nerd - HELLO LOVE -

Hello there!

This week, Scrapbook Nerd is hosting an online crop, and we have issued challenges to the followers using our weekly project. My challenge is all about creating a monochromatic layout.

it all started with a color cardstock background, a bit of white acrylic paint was added to first followed by ink in the same color family as the cardstock. While the background set, floral images were fussy cut from the Blissful paper from the Kaisercraft's Blessed collection.

The picture was matted and layered with papers that have the same tones as the background, and attached to the background with foam adhesive. All the florals were then glued to create clusters around the page. Small embellishments were then added to clusters, keeping the same colors as the background.

For the title, i used a large chipboard phrase stickers and brought accents of shine using gold stickers, and inks. A few drops of white ink complete this page.

This came together so easily, and i love the soft look of the page. Remember to check the Scrapbook Nerd store for all the materials used, and do not hesitate to contact me if you have questions about how this came together.

XO

Feb 14, 2019

Altenew February 2019 Stamp/Die/Stencil Release Blog Hop + Giveaway

HI there!
Welcome to the Altenew February 2019 Stamp/Die/Stencil Release Blog Hop and Giveaway. You must arrived from Virginia's blog.

I am always so floored when i am invited to be part of these amazing blog hops, especially cause i get to work with the awesome new Altenew products. This new set of stamps, dies and stencils that Altenew is releasing today are gorgeous, and super versatile, so it was hard to pick a favorite. Let me show you what i have created with some of the products:

As soon as i saw the new Dotted Blooms stamp and die set, i was in love! The design was delicate and perfect to document our cherry blossom festival memories. The flowering branches with the delicate buds gave me the idea of creating a wreath for the page. I used Altenew Crisp inks to stamp the flowers -in black and grey- and then chose colors from the Altenew inks to match the colors in my kids's clothing. I have created a small video to show you how it all came together.

This circular design of this layout is so easy to put together; truly the Dotted Blooms stamp and die set is a must in this release. But since we are talking circles, let me show you set of simple cards created with the new Trendy Circles Stamp set.

The sentiments on the stamp set gave me the idea to create birthday cards for my kids. It is amazing what you can create with this small set.

For my boy card, i decided to use cool colors of Altenew Crisp Inks to stamp a few of the circles. My mistake was not getting the coordinating die, so i had to fussy cut them out. I stamped a few of the grid circles onto the card, and then some foam adhesive was used to glue the fussy cut circles thus creating dimension in the card; a few enamel dots complete this card!

Now for the girl's card, i was inspired by my daughter's love for ice cream! This time, i started by stamping some of the circle images on pink and white cardstock with Altenew inks, then fussy cutting them. Next i used the Trigonometry stamp set to create the ice cream cone, I had to trim the image a bit so that it fit the size of the circles. I used a bit of Altenew ink to create a soft color shadow in the background, and then used foam adhesive to create the ice cream cone. The Altenew enamel heart and the sentiment complete this card. So Sweet!

For the next card, i used the beautiful Botanical Silhouettes stamp and die set. This stamp is beautiful, and perfect to create dimensional cards or frames. In this case, the image was stamped with pink ink and embossed with clear embossing powder.

The sentiment from the Beautiful Peony stamp set was gold embossed in the negative circle die. For the background of the card, i reached for the Leaf Canopy stamp set and some grey Altenew inks to create those leafy shadows. A bit of foam adhesive attachs the frame to the card, then a few pink jewels complete the card. Love the soft look of this card!

Speaking of sweet things, the next project is all about this beautiful shot of my cousin a few weeks before having my new Goddaughter. For this, i used the Altenew Frilled Petals stamp set and die set with the coordinating Altenew Inks.

The beautiful blooms are rthe perfect size to complement the picture and create a bold statement in my Family album (Citrus Twist Kits Life Crafted album) . I paired the blooms with an embossed heart created using the Magnolia heart stamp and die set a sentiment from the Wonderland stamp set. LOVE!!

Now onto my last project for this blog hop ( i think i have kept you long enough here). The Beautiful Peony stamp and Die set are just so gorgeous that i couldn't stop coloring the images with the Altenew watercolor pan set. So i decided to use lots of the images to create this page about our Mother's Day portrait from a few years ago. You can see how this page came all together in the upcoming video:

Like I mentioned at the beginning of this long post, there are so many beautiful stamps, dies and stencils being released by Altenew you are going to have a hard time passing up on some of them! Now it is time to get to the fun part of the blog hop... GIVEAWAYS!!!

GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED

Thank you all for your lovely comments, the winner of the Gift Certificate to Altenew is:

Congratulations Carmela Hubler, you have won a gift certificate to Altenew. To claim your prize, please email winner@altenew.com by 2/28/2019 with the subject line Altenew February 2019 Stamp/Die/Stencil Release Blog Hop Winner from Nathalie DeSousa's Blog

Now it is time to continue the hop, and be inspired by all these amazing designers. Your next stop is Lydia Evans' blog! Remember you can always come back here to start the loop, or check the Altenew Card and Scrapbook blogs to join in the blog. For your convenience a list of all the blog participants has been added :

Nathalie DeSousa <<< You are here

Lydia Evans<<<<<YOUR NEXT STOP>>>>>>