Living an Inspired Life: 2021

Jan 25, 2021

ME & YOU - Simple Stories

Hello Simple Stories friends!

Nathalie with you today to share a new layout that celebrate love! I found my best friend 21 years ago, and within a month we had our wedding planned. The adventure we embarked has shown us the meaning of true love, and I wanted to document us using the new Sweet Talk collection from Simple Stories.

I love the papers in this collection, lots of pinks, hearts with a hint of tealish blue. So, I decided to play with paper for the background of this page.

My starting point was the b side of ALL MY HEART paper, I love simple striped paper. Next, I pulled the floral paper from the 6x8 PAPER PAD; here I needed to find a plain and contrasting paper, so I reached into the SIMPLE PAGES set and cut a piece of the teal paper. In order to tie all the colors together, I cut a piece from the b-side of LOVE'S IN THE AIR. I glued them all together so that they add movement on the background.

I added the pictures to the center of the papers in a soft diagonal line. Here is where I had fun with all the embellishments that I could find in the DIE CUT packs, STICKERS, SIMPLE CARD Set and SIMPLE PAGES set.

I pulled as many flowers as I could find and used to create clusters following the diagonal line of the design. I added a few extra CHIPBOARD, PUFFY and FOAM stickers to each of the clusters making sure that there was a balance of color and details.

I love Scrabble, so when I saw the small letter tile FOAM STICKERS, I knew that I had found my title. Since, I needed to balance my page, I added the title to the top right corner of the papers, then used enamel dots to tie all the clusters together.

I love how this turned out. The SWEET TALK collection from Simple Stories is beautiful and perfect to bring some fun to your documenting. Remember to check it out, you will love it, too!

'Til next time.

Jan 22, 2021

Altenew Paint-A-Flower: Camellia Outline Stamp Set Release Blog Hop + Giveaway

Hi there!

Welcome to ALTENEW PAINT-A-FLOWER: CAMELIA OUTLINE STAMP SET RELEASE BLOG HOP + GIVEAWAY. You are arriving from Laura Jane's blog - a list of all the participants is available at the bottom of this post for your convenience-.

Today we are welcoming the newest member of the PAF family. The new PAINT-A-FLOWER: CAMELLIA is simply gorgeous. The design is delicate and detailed, which makes it the perfect flower to color in with your favorite medium. Let me show you what I created with it:

I made a card!!! I truly love the design of this month's PAF: CAMELLIA, and had some ideas on how to color it; however, I had just finished working on some documenting and had my Altenew Fine Liner pens at hand, so I decided to color them with black ink.

Since we were little, my mom always gave us pen and paper to play with, especially when we were on the phone. I love to doodle on pads, and use points to create shadows, etc. So, I am using the same idea to detail the card.

It all started with the finer pen, slowly adding dots around the edge of each of the petals and leaves. Along the way, I switch to the medium tip to shade in large areas, but always using dots. The process is so relaxing, but does take quite a bit of time- time well spent in my book!-.

Once I was happy with the shading, and before I cover the entire image, I fussy cut it from the cardstock ( Neenah 110lb Solar Crest white cardstock). I used the Ink Blending tool, and some Lapis Lazuli ink to create the background. Then, added the sentiment from the stamp set to the top corner of the panel. A bit of foam adhesive add dimension to the card, then a few sequin and gems add a bit of sparkle.

Just love how it turned out, but I am still finding the areas that I missed coloring with my liner! Remember you can receive your PAINT-A-FLOWER: CAMELLIA as part of the monthly subscription program. Check all the details here:

Of course we are celebrating the release with a GIVEAWAY:

Altenew will draw 11 random winners from the comments left on each stop of this blog hop and announce the winners on the Altenew Winners Page on 01/30/2021.

Good Luck everyone!

Let's continue the inspiration, and now you are off to visit Jessie Bank's blog to check her creations. Remember you can always start the hop in the Altenew Card Blog. Here is the list of all the participants for your convenience:

Nathalie DeSousa <<< YOU ARE HERE

Thanks for stopping by!

Jan 7, 2021

1,2,3 HELLO EVERYDAY LIFE - Simple Stories

Hello friends!

Happy New Year to you all! Nathalie with you today to share a new project featuring the gorgeous HELLO TODAY collection. Let's talk about the perfect collection: it must have pretty paper, lots of functional embellishments, a colorful palette, lots of cut aparts, and an awesome stamp... well then we you are going to love this collection as much as I do. So versatile that you can document all your memories and create cards, pocket pages, etc.

I love the new HELLO TODAY collection, and luckily I received the entire collection and add ons, so I was able to pick pieces from all the things to create this simple but colorful page!

As soon as I saw the chipboard frame with the paper clip on top, the idea for my layout just came to mind, a group of papers held together by a paper clip. So, I backed the frame with a black and white picture, and then layer pieces of paper from the 6x8 paper pad, Simple Card kit and Simple Pages kit. I glued this together messily and then attached them to the B side of the October paper.

To balance the papers, I wanted a very bold title. I found the large numbers in the Simple Pages kit, and decided to prop them with a bit of foam adhesive on a vertical line next to the papers. I love the colors and size of the ephemera!

To complete the title, I used a combination of foam stickers, chipboard stickers and alphas from the sticker tablet ( a bit of foam adhesive helps to prop them from the page). The combination of colors, textures and sizes works great in this design. Once the title was down, I created a few more clusters of embellishments around the layout and tied them all together with butterfly stickers and die cuts.

Did I mention the collection has a awesome stamp! I journal everyday, so this stamp is perfection! This time, I used the word, "Today", to bring the page together. Along the way, I also added small pops of color with some enamel dots.....

I just love how easy this page came together in a short amount of time. The messy papers, and the bold title just complement each other. I hope you check the new Simple Stories' HELLO TODAY collection, you are going to love it ( and even hoard it!)

Altenew Craft-A-Flower: Morning Glory Layering Die Set Release Blog Hop + Giveaway

Hi there!

Welcome to ALTENEW CRAFT-A-FLOWER: MORNING GLORY LAYERING DIE SET RELEASE BLOG HOP + GIVEAWAY. You are arriving from Zsoka's blog. A list of all the participants is available at the bottom of this post for your convenience.

It is the 7th of the month, which means time for a new CRAFT-A-FLOWER release. The new CRAFT-A-FLOWER: MORNING GLORY Layering Die Set is beautiful! Not sure how they do it, but this month's flower design is gorgeous, super easy to put together, and versatile! I love the movement you can create with the florals, and decided to create a set of cards for today's release... I know, I made cards!!!

First thing I did to create my cards was actually look for some images of the flower to make sure of the color of it. Then it was all about cutting the pieces for the florals, and I just love how the dies come together in one plate, so it makes the cutting of the layers a breeze!

For my first card, I used the Feeling Dotty Stencil and Teal Shimmer glaze to create the card panel. While this dried, I created the word, "You", from teal cardstock with the Mega You die ( to give the word dimension, a few die cuts were glued together!).

Once the texture paste dried, I used a bit of foam adhesive to attach the panel to the card base, then glued the large "you" die cut to the panel. Here, I started attaching the CAF: Morning Glory floral die cuts so that they swept to the right of the card. Finally, I added a sentiment from the Botanical Silhouette stamp set. Just love the textures in this card!

For my next card, I wanted to make the flowers pop on card, that meant bring a contrast color on the background. I created the card panel from Yellow smooth cardstock (Scrapbook.com). I used the Layered Geo Cover Die -A- to create a soft frame for the card out of white cardstock.

I used the length and width of the panel to extend the floral cluster, a bit of foam adhesive help to add dimension to the floral arrangement. Finally, I added a small stamped sentiment from the BAF: Cora Louise Peony stamp set.

Remember you can always sign up for the monthly Craft-A-Flower subscription program to secure the new die delivery at your doorstep for a lower price

Of course, we are celebrating this release with a GIVEAWAY

$200 in total prizes! To celebrate this release, Altenew is giving away a $50 gift certificate to 1 lucky winner and a $15 gift certificate to 10 winners! Please leave a comment on the Altenew Card Blog and/or each designer’s blog post on the blog hop list below by 01/12/2021 for a chance to win. Altenew will draw 11 random winners from the comments left on each stop of this blog hop and announce the winners on the Altenew Winners Page on 01/15/2021.

Good Luck everyone!

Now, it is time to continue the inspiration, you are off to visit Seeka's blog. You can always go the the Altenew Card blog to start the fun. Here is a list of all the participants for your convenience

Nathalie DeSousa <<< YOU ARE HERE

Thanks for Visiting!

Jan 5, 2021

Altenew Fresh Start Stamps/Dies/Stencils/Embossing Folders Collection Release Blog Hop + Giveaway

Hello there!

Welcome to ALTENEW FRESH START STAMPS/DIES/STENCILS/EMBOSSING FOLDERS COLLECTION RELEASE BLOG HOP + GIVEAWAY. You are arriving from Tenia's blog. A list of all the hop's participants is available at the bottom of this post for your convenience.

It is time for the first collection release of 2021, and Altenew never disappoints!!! This month's release is amazing, versatile and so beautiful. As always, it is hard to pick a selection to work with form the release, but let me show you what I created with my choices:

The new VINTAGE GARDEN Stamp/Die/Stencil Set is probably one of my favorite stamps from Altenew ever. The large detail florals are perfect for all sorts of paper crafting, and can be used as stamped (there is so much detail in each design) or colored with your favorite medium. I chose to color the florals with the simple stencil and then used them to create this layout.

I used the images as clusters on the corners of the page, and then used the new ENCHANTED ROSES stamp set to create the title for this layout. Very simple design, and easy to put together.

For the next project, I combined the new ENCHANTED ROSES stamp set with a bit of watercolor ( Autumn Festival - Brush Markers-) to create the background for this page.

Since the background us rather busy, I kept the rest of the page simple. First, I cut a piece of paper to serve as s mat using the new GRID COVER DIE. Then decided to embellish this page using sentiments from the BLOCK SENTIMENTS stamp set. I added my journal lines after the picture of the layout was taken!

Another favorite from this release is the new BLOCK SENTIMENTS stamp set. The design in each of the sentiments in this stamp set is clean and linear, which make them ideal for cards and memory keeping. Here is have used them to create a title and also decorate my simple pocket page.

The new ALL THINGS A stamp set is probably a surprise favorite of this release. I was amazed at all the ideas that flooded my brain once I started working with it.

For my first card, I stamped the image with a soft brown tone to heavy cardstock, and used Watercolor pencils to color in each of the small blooms. I used the matching die to cut the letter out, and also a few others and stacked them together .

I created this flap style card using a smaller piece of color cardstock draped around the card pannel. I am using sentiments from the new AIRBRUSHED FLOWERS stamp set to add the sentiment to the card.

I just love the negative impression the die cut created; I decided to use it to create a sort of bonus card.

First, I used Shades of Purple mini cube set to ink blend a card pannel so that they create an ombre effect. Here, I heat embossed with crisp white powder the image of the ALL THINGS A stamp set.

I stacked all the negative die cuts together, and trimmed them to create the front panel. I glued these to the colored panel and then accented the card with a small sentiment strip using the AIRBRUSHED FLOWERS stamp set.

Remember to take advantage of these offers when ordering any products from the shop:

Here are THREE ways to get a FREEBIE to kickstart your creativity!

Get a FREE brand new Fresh Start Stamp & Die Release Inspiration Guide (worth $5.99) with every order of high-value Fresh Start release bundles. Shop HERE! *Exclusions apply.
Get a FREE brand new online cardmaking class with every order from the new Fresh Start Stamp & Die Release collection from 01/05/2021 through 01/11/2021. Shop HERE!
Get a FREE brand new Fresh Start Stamp & Die Release Mini Inspiration Guide with every order from 01/05/2021 through 01/07/2021. Shop HERE!

Of course no celebration is complete with out a GIVEAWAY:

$300 in total prizes! To celebrate this release, Altenew is giving away a $50 gift certificate to 2 lucky winners and a $20 gift certificate to 10 winners! Please leave a comment on the Altenew Card Blog and/or each designer’s blog post on the blog hop list below by 01/11/2021 for a chance to win. Altenew will draw 12 random winners from the comments left on each stop of this blog hop and announce the winners on the Altenew Winners Page on 01/13/2021.

Good Luck Everyone!

Now, it is time to continue the hop. You are off to visit Laura Jane's blog. Remember you can always return to the Altenew card blog to start the hop. Here is a list of all the participants for your convenience:

Thanks for visiting, and have fun hoping!