My Art Loft!

Back in 2007 when we started talking about adding an addition on to our house, I never dreamed it would include my own scrap space. We were adding about 600 square feet of living space which included a family room and additional bathroom. But, after talking to the architect, it also included an art loft for my daughter & I! Turns out that the roof line had to be redesigned which would mean having tons of attic space. I was actually excited about that because our storage space is limited. But during that meeting, my husband (love him!) asked the architect if that space could be opened up and be a loft instead of an attic! I was on cloud 9! From that moment on, I began to create my space in my mind and collect ideas and stuff from garage sales and thrift stores. By the time the remodel was complete in 2008, I was ready for my space!

The stairs to the loft are right off the kitchen/dining room area so I am still right in the heart of my family while I create!  I just finished going through my space and purging supplies, so I still need to reorganize and put stuff in better spaces --- but that will have to wait!

Here you go -- mess and all!

View from the top of the stairs - the back wall of the loft:

View from the sofa looking at my work space and over the edge of the loft - brown wall goes all the way downstairs in to the entry way hall of the house:

One wall - this wall has a large tall art table on it with shelving above:

The other wall - this wall has most of my daughter's painting supplies on it along with her canvases:












My to do list --- with a love note from my daughter:




Baskets of mini books:




and the view of the wall from the stairs:

Ok, now it's my turn to show my little scrappin' haven.  It's very compact, but it's also in the heart of our home so I can always be in the action!

I work at the table, I store most of my paper in a drawer of the desk, most of my supplies are kept either in my XXL tote or my 3 drawer iris cart by the computer.  My favorite albums are stored on the self of the couch table along with layouts waiting to be put into albums.  On the easel stand is where I display favorite layouts (and sometimes in progress layouts that I need to think on for a while). 

My most used smaller supplies, pens, inks, rub-on letters, scissors, etc. are on the corner of the table, always within easy reach, along with my "scraps" trash can a friend gave me.

And last, but not least, my constant scrappin' companion, Toby.  He's usually laying on his blanket at my feet while I'm creating but today while I was taking these photos he just couldn't resist mugging for the camera.  He thinks he's a scrapper too (I'm not going to tell him he's just a dog).

Thanks for taking the time to look at my scrap space.  I know it's small.  I know I don't offer any great storage solutions, but I hope it helps show that whatever your space, wherever you scrap, if you're comfortable and it brings you joy that's all you need.

My Scrappin' Space :)

Happy Easter everyone!!  I hope you are all having a blessed day filled with lots of good food and family.  I know I will be spending the day very close to the Cadbury's chocolate, which I have not had since the beginning of the Lenten season :)

Like Carolyn, I too had reservations about sharing my creative space. My room is shared with the kids’ computer and the piano (or should I say dust magnet, since no one actually plays it!) It may not be something that shows up in a magazine, but it does have everything that I need. I have my computer, my TV and all my scrapping' items within a short reach. On my desk I keep a few essentials, my little green paisley box that houses my chalk inks, my Sizzix, sidekick and my cutter.

Off to the left of my desk is a wall of cubes that house all my punches, cardstock, paper and some easy to grab embellishments. The frames have been up on the wall for quite some time and probably should be changed out, but sometimes I like to see how far I have come :)

My back wall includes more goodies, lots of rub-ons, letter stickers, chipboard letters & best of all, my finished albums.  Unfortunately, I am still waiting for my last 3 black frames to make it to the wall :)  Maybe next week!!

At last but not least, the first altered item I made quite a few years ago. It was my first assignment on a Design Team at my local scrapbook store. I really didn't think I would be chosen and I was over the moon with this first assignment.

That's it...short & sweet.  Stayed tuned this week for the rest of the design teams' scrapping spaces. 

My Scrap Room!

That's right - in our upcoming posts, the Scrappin' Sports and More's Design Team Members are going to share their scrappin' spaces with you!

I will be honest, I was stressin' about sharing my scrap room with the public eye - lol!  I had way too much stuff and I was not using my space or my storage to the best of their abilities!  This blog post  kicked my butt into gear!  I cleaned, purged, painted, rearranged - whew - the end result is SO WORTH IT!  My room has needed this for quite some time now!

The green paint is new - isn't it lovely?  I was holding on to a piece of cardstock for a few years now and I found the exact color of paint from Martha Stewart Living -Oolong Tea!

My scrap room was the opposite, my scrap area and computer area were swapped.

My scrap room / office is our formal dining room, a big space shared with our formal living room, which is my son's game room. :)  The few views are standing in the formal living room looking into my scrap room:

I share both of these areas with my DS, he is very artsy and craft too - he loves to draw, so I love that both of my tables are big enough to share space with him:

This view is walking into my scrap room from our kitchen, you see now that I cleaned & purged I actually have empty shelves & drawers - whoooo-whooo:

The cheerleader stickers are very old - my son, then about 4, bought a sheet of stickers, used all of the sports guys and thought I would like the cheerleaders lol!  They have been on the drawers for about 4 -5 years now!

The largest part of this reorganization was convincing my DH that my shelves & MM boards needed to be moved from the wall my computer desk is now on to this wall, but I need to have this stuff within reach when scrapping:

and this stuff within reach LOL:

This wall hasn't changed in the past few years, occasionally I swap out the layouts, but I love having layouts on display!  These layouts are in album frames from Michael's:

There you have it!  This is where I create!  This is where I spend a lot of my free time!  I love that I am in the middle of the family happenings (I used to be upstairs in a spare bedroom!).  I don't have any new or great storage solutions ... only that I hope (and so does my DH!) that I can keep this place lookin' this good! :)

~Carolyn

Using those scraps!!

Every scrapbooker has the dilemma of deciding if it's worthwhile keeping those extra scraps of paper, especially if you're not a card maker.  On this layout, I used several small scraps of paper left over from previous projects.  The result is a time & money saving project, that still incorporates 3 pictures and room for journaling.  So next time your short on time and/or money, put those scraps to good use.

Scrappin' Sports Product Used:
#1176 Defining Winter Sports
#1233 Defining Winter
#1234 Winter Fun
#1170 Defining Homecoming

Title Trouble?

With seven kids and tons of sports photos -- I am always on the lookout for a new and creative title for my layouts.  I found that I was reusing titles for my sports pages --- most frequently -"SCORE" - "PLAY BALL" - "TIME TO PLAY" - you get the idea! 

So I decided I needed a change and that my sports layouts needed a bit of creative title work so I went on an internet search!

These are some of my favorite sites for sports quotes:

http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/topics/topic_sports.html - The Brainy Quote with a search for SPORTS. This is where I found the title for my page today --- it's a quote for sports legend Vince Lombardi.

http://www.simplysentiments.com/sentiments/index.php?cat=89 - Simple Sentiments with a search for SPORTS.

http://www.scrapbook.com/titles/cat/38.html - Scrapbook.com titles with a search for SPORTS.

http://www.scrapbook.com/quotes/cat/38.html - Scrapbook.com quotes with a search for SPORTS.

http://www.quoteland.com/topic.asp?CATEGORY_ID=224 - Quoteland with a search for SPORTS.

Bookmark these great sites and never be lost for words again!

#1253 - Volleyball Game Paper

#1133 - Baseball on Fire Paper

#5501 - Baseball Player Cardstock Sticker

#1045 - Defining Volleyball Paper

#1015 - Defining Cycling Paper

#5544 - Baseball Cardstock Sticker

Racing Thank You Cards

Since my son had his 9th birthday party at  a local Go-Kart racing place, I thought it would be fun to make his Thank You cards from Scrappin' Sports & More's Racing Game paper and Checkered Flags cardstock stickers.

For three of the cards (for Grandparents), I used Racing Game paper as the background, layered with two of the Checkered Flag cardstock stickers, stamped 'thank you' on the yellow side of the Racing game paper and added a red brad.  Easy & Fun!

For the boys that attended the party, I used these old photo cards to add a photo of each boy riding in his Go-Kart, stamp 'thank you' and then added two Checkered Flag stickers on the inside.

Products used:

Racing Game Paper #1247

Checkered Flags Stickers #5545

Pets and Sports

Many of us have family pets.  In our family, we have 2 sweet beagles that often find their way into my scrapbooks.  Our youngest dog, Annee, LOVES to play catch with a tennis ball.  It's probably a good thing we don't actually play tennis around her!  :) 

When scrapping some of my pictures of Annee the tennis playing dog, I turned to Scrappin Sports & More paper.  Not only do they have sports papers, the new release for this year included ANIMAL papers!! 

Scrappin Sports and More products used:

#5554 dog stickers
#1263 tennis paper

Last Project 12 Layout for February

Can I say just how much I loved the sketch this month from Becky Fleck?  It was so fun to work with and my layout came together easily.  I also love how I was able to capture so much about our month in one 2-page spread.  If you want to play along, check out the Scrapbook & Cards Today blog.

Here is my layout....

Scrappin' Sports Product Used:
Down on the Farm #1299 Steer (Background Red)
Down on the Farm #1300 Pigs (Pink)
#1148 Classic Cheerleading (Black Polka Dot)

 

Project 12 - February!

My goal with my Project 12 layouts this year is to focus on the month as a whole -- about what that month in general means to me. For January it was a special event, CHA, that I attend every January and look forward to all year. For February, it's more about the month in general -- the end of the long Winter season. Living in the Pacific Northwest, the months of January & February can be pretty dreary! So, I am always on the lookout for little things to brighten my day and bring a smile to my face. One thing that always does that for me is a trip to Starbucks for a Cinnamon Dulce Latte! Then I bring it home and pour it into one of my cute mugs and I have instant happiness! Funny how the little things in life can help you get through a long, dreary winter!

Here is areminder of what the February Project 12 Sketch looks like from over at Scrapbook & Cards Today.



I focused on the right side of the two-page spread:



The fun products that I used from the Scrappin' Sports & More Store are:

#1237 Baseball Game
#1148 Classic Cheerleading
#1015 Defining Cycling
#1171 Defining Dance
#1300 Pigs
#1299 Steers
#1308 Camping

February...focus on Friends & Family

February is known as the month of love so why not spend it with those friends and family you love most? As I looked back on the photos I'd taken over the course of the month, that's what I found I'd done and enjoyed most of all. Here's my layout using the February sketch - thanks for looking!

products used:

# 1237 - Baseball Game Day 12 x 12 paper
# 1221 - In the Garden 12 x 12 paper
#1269 - Mother/Mom 12 x 12 paper
#1297 - Rabbit, Down on the Farm 12 x 12 paper

Project 12: February Sketch

I am having a lot of fun with the sketches for Project 12 at the Scrapbook Cards & Today blog.

Here is the fabulous February sketch:

Here is my take on it - so much fun with all of the hearts & different borders!

Here are a few detail shots:

Products used:

Defining Volleyball paper #1045

Down on the Farm - Pigs #1300

Down on the Field Football Rub-ons #7506

February 2010

Journaling:

February brings us a lot of birthdays - mine, Seth's, both of my parents, Angi & Lance. We found out Angi is expecting #4!  Seth's basketball ended and baseball began.  Seth is still doing Speedstacks at school.  Seth's 9th birthday party was at Action Go-Karts with Peyton, Michael & Rudy.  And just a few great photos of Rick & Seth, Seth & Oswald and Seth with Legos.

Project 12 February Sketch

Yes...it's that time again!! The Scrappin Sports and More team has completed another month of Becky Fleck's wonderful Project 12 Sketches!! Here is Shannon's take on it this month. Rather than staying with the traditional reds and pinks, Shannon added a touch of tan to bring out the elements of her pictures.  And guess what?  The papers used on this page are SPORTS themed!  Gotta love the versatility of our papers!!

Scrappin Sports & More Products Used:

#1251 Tennis Game Paper

#1237 Baseball Game Paper

Last Day of March Madness

It took me a long time to decide what March Madness meant to me.  It is the one month from fall until summer that we are not slammed with sports.  We still have basketball and indoor soccer and track starts at the end of the month, but it's not crazy busy with sports.  So, since I have more time at home during March, I get ready for Spring.  Yes, you guessed it, cleaning.  While I was cleaning my son's room, I decided to take a picture of his diverse task in reading.  Then I decided I should capture his entire space at age eleven and the result is the 2 page spread you see below.

Scrappin' Sports Papers Used:

#1296 Horses from Down on the Farm

#1271 Brother from the Family Line

#1240 Cheerleading Game from the Game Day line

#1237 Baseball Game from the Game Day line

 

Make sure you stop back on Thrusday as the Design Team takes on the Project 12 February Sketch from Scrapbook & Cards Today.

More March Madness!

March Madness only means one thing at our house --- the start of Baseball Season! We are so excited this year for the season to get underway - we have new milestones in our house! My youngest is starting in Farm Level this year which means he will get to hit pitching from kids his own age. My middle son is starting his Junior Level and that means "real" baseball with 90 foot bases and metal cleats. My next son has a couple new things happening this year. He not only is playing his first year on a select team but he made the JV team at the local High School and those are some intense training sessons. All in all, we are in for some fabulous baseball over the next 5 months!

My March Madness layout is another layout documenting all the fun years of baseball that we have had around here!



I love all the versatile baseball product in the Scrappin' Sports & More Store. Check out the link and you can see it all!

Products that I used:

#1004 - Dotted Baseball
#1237 - Baseball Game Paper
#1035 - Defining Soccer
#5501 - baseball Player Cardstock Stickers
#5544 - Baseball

Play Ball! Happy March to you all!
Kim :)

For Love of the Game

Bracket-ology, Diaper Dandies, conference tournaments and the NCAA basketball tournament all come to mind when sports fans think of March Madness. In our house we too think of the NCAA and tournament play but we are thinking more about the start of the college softball season. The season kicks off for our daughter and her teammates on Saturday.

This spring's pre-sason ratings have the team ranked 5th nationally. There are some big expectations on these kids. They are anxious to get started chasing after that D-III National title. The kids on this team truely are student-athletes. They don't receive athletic scholarships. They play

For Love of the Game

If you love the game, you'll love everything from SS&M, whatever your favorite sport. I was able to combine a couple of paper lines, stickers and rub-ons for this layout. The diversity of their products amaze me every time I pull them out to do a layout. I know you'll love it all too.

Supplies:
#1260 Softballs
#5531 Softball Cardstock Stickers
#1038 Defining Softball
#7510 Girls at Bat Rub-on
#5510 Softball Player Cardstock Sticker
#640 Softball Rub-on

March Madness

What does March Madness mean for me - I sure did a lot of thinking on this topic ... the obvious reply is basketball but I don't really follow any basketball and my son's basketball season ended in February ... March is definitely does not symbolize spring for us since I think it's our snowiest month! lol!! But usually baseball starts for my son in March ... so that brings me to my layout "it's baseball season". Although this year they had three practices in February, they don't start a regular three times a week practices until March. Hopefully we won't have a long cold late winter and we can enjoy the baseball practices, because I love to watch the boys develop their skills!

This layout was a lot of fun mixing the papers, stickers and rub-ons! I also want to add, that I LOVE LOVE LOVE Scrappin' Sports & More's rub-ons! They go on as smooth as butter! I had actually quit using rub-ons for a while out of frustration of non-working rub-ons ... but now I reach for Scrappin' Sports & More's rub-ons FIRST and make sure I work them in on my layouts!!

Journaling: on your way to your second practice of the 2010 baseball season. Feb. 20, 2010.

Products used:
Dotted Baseball paper #1004
Baseball on Fire paper #1133
Baseballs cardstock stickers #5526
Baseball cardstock stickers #5501
Baseball rub-ons #636

Who's ready for March Madness week on the Scrappin Sports and More Blog!

Up first, Shannon Blinn.....
Not many basketball players in March for us, but it is tournament time for my son, Logan. How lucky am I that Scrappin Sports and More carries Karate paper and rubons to help me scrap the many pictures I take of my little guy in full fighting mode! Add some awesome paper from the Family and More collection (one of my favorite collections) and that's a layout with KICK! Hi-yah!!!

Products:
#877 Karate Rub on
#1272 Grandma/Nana
#1032 Defining Karate