Write. Click. Scrapbook.

With It Wednesday

Not to be confused with Whip It Wednesday as my husband suggested I entitle this post. Don't worry. No Devo here.

Nope, With It Wednesday is all about finding fresh inspiration online. Easy schemes, fabulous color palettes and fun new font ideas are just a click away on the web.

For instance, the other day I was perusing design books online and the cover of the following caught my eye. I decided to convert the book cover layout into a simple digital scrapbook page and I quite liked the result (despite my walls being much less exciting than those on the book cover.)

The original:

My take:

Someone else coming up with the design & color scheme for me?

Yes, thank you!

Makeover Monday

Coming to you live...

(er, kind of )

from Oklahoma City is your WCS blogging pal of the week…

Name: Candice K. Palmer

Collector of children’s literature, sheet music, and vintage wrapping paper.

Admirer of anyone who can get their children to school on time.

Wife of Ben (FAA instructor and dad extraordinaire).

and Mom to Sam (teenager in a ten-year-old body), Owen (child obsessed with the Magic School Bus and putting everything in the house under his microscope), and Nate (AKA “the curly headed one”).

Happy to be here blogging to you all, although I must admit I’m a bit intimidated to host the week after marvelous Marnie and her Olympic scrapbooking endeavors.

For our adventures today I thought I’d talk about keeping journaling in our scrapbooking. I’ll admit, I love a pretty page just as much as the next girl, but looking at my pages over the past several years, I’ve realized that although they’re lovely to look at, they’re going to be a bit macramé-y (if you will), if they are only pretty and don’t have a story to tell.

Exhibit A:

 

Fun page featured in a special issue of Simple Scrapbooks ages ago.

Pros: happy photo, fun colors, good design

Cons: Where is that kid? Who is that kid? What’s up?!

I loved this photo, but pretty much the only information I gave the observer is that my child is a boy. Hmm. To remedy the problem, I added a hidden journaling card beneath my photo by re-gluing the photo to a 4x6 white cardstock folded card that I attached to the page where the only the photo had been before.

Exhibit B:

 

Thus, the scrapbook makeover and your challenge for today…

1 - Find a scrapbook page on which you jotted down only a cute slogan or title.

2 -  Add a journaling tag and tell the real story.

3 - Post your layouts - old and new - to our Flickr Gallery and show us how you added the story to your scrapbooking!

Ready?

Set…

GO!! 

Speed Scrapping Relay

Welcome to Speed Scrapping Relay, our final team event of our

This event requires endurance, speed, and an ability to work well under pressure. Often team members accept a place on the relay team as incentive to push themselves to not just create something quickly, but also to finish something. If you are comfortable with half-done projects this may not be the sport for you.

Teams: Teams consist of a minimum of two players, but it most fun with 5 - 6. Team members needn't know each other well, but must all have a commitment to the project, specifically committed to following through with their leg of the relay. A team captain is preferred--someone to decide the order of the relay and who can keep the players on task.

Equipment: the standard. plus an ability to forward a scan/photo of your layout.

Rules:
1. create a team. decide upon a time frame. 2 days for turnaround should be sufficient. it is a SPEED scrapping relay after all...
2. player 1 creates the original layout, and sends a visual to player 2.
3. within 2 days (or the otherwise decided upon time frame) player 2 creates a layout inspired by that of player 1.
4. at the end of the 2 days, this second layout is sent to player 3, who then has 2 days to be inspired, and create a new layout which will then be forwarded to player 4.
5. and so on. and so on. until the final leg of the relay has been completed.

The fun? Really? What's not fun??!! First, you have the heart-racing excitement of knowing that you only have two days to finish a project. Second, you have incentive (and pressure) to actually finish a layout. Third, you have a place to go for inspiration. Fourth, well, you get to be a part of greatness. Take a look!

Our team is comprised of four greats and me, the captain! What fine company I keep! Oooh, and we have a special guest on our relay team! Guess who I wooed with my good looks and promises of chocolate! It's Margaret, er,I mean, Swift! Welcome, Margaret!

 

I had the good fortune of the opening leg. I opted for the oh so very current banners and some new stamps from American Crafts! (Look at that cute little birdie!) When I was done, I sent mine to Speed.
Speed liked the banners, too, and incorporated them into her sweet sweet layout. I must say, I was happy to see them go on! And Candice? Well, her layouts always get me in my mamaheart. Her photos capture such emotion, apparently even when she is in them and not just taking them!! And for this assignment, she went back to paper. Aren't we glad she did? Love this one.

Next up? Swift!

And the banner lives on... Woohoo! Swift rocked the house and the speed track with this one. Were we in a stadium, the crowd would be on their feet for this one! So honored to have Margaret with us for this one. Making me weak in the knees, for me, Margaret is all about the color combinations, and how her little details are just so right. Like the hedgehog. And the extra flag. Mmm good.

And now, off to Rebecca, or rather, Racer!

Rebecca ditched the banner, opting instead to keep Swift's three photos, and the right hand placement. Another little detail that is mimicked is the overlapping strips on the flowers. Reminiscent of the single word strip on the flag in Margaret's layout. And what can one say of Rebecca? Her soft muted colors are so peaceful. So kind. Her little touches, like tiny flowers and varied stitches, give her layouts a very finished, put together feel. Simple never looks so good.

And the final handoff goes to Blur!

Blur takes the last leg of our relay and crosses the finish line with gold medal glory! Maintaining the soft colors, Beth also kept the photostrip, but went from three to four photos and turned it to a vertical strip and horizontal photos. Beth, for me is peaceful balance. Her layouts are soothing to my sense of symmetry and my need for perfect measurements. She is masterful at combining patterns and for making it look so easy.

So if you are ready, grab some friends, some photos, and get started. Scrapbooking doesn't have to be an individual sport. And crops are not the only way to make it a team sport. I promise. All it takes is a few friends, a few days, and a whole lot of fun.

Thank you for visiting today and please keep working on your scrapolympic events! Everyone that loads a challenge layout to the Flickr gallery will be considered for a bitty giveaway! I'll wait til noon tomorrow! Also up tomorrow, our final event! See you then!

Skeleton Scrapping

Welcome back to another fun day of

Man, I really need to clean up that logo. I digress...

Welcome to Skeleton Scrapping. Skeleton Scrapping is not for the faint of heart. You must be able to look past the accessories (think patterned paper and embellishments) to see what lies beneath (think design). If you love sketches, then Skeleton Scrapping is for you!

Equipment: standard equipment plus x-ray vision for seeing past the colors, the layers, and the other distracting items.

Rules:
1. Find a layout that speaks to you.
2. Take it down to its bones, its skeleton. If need be, draw it out with your mouse, or your paper and pencils (those are those skinny wooden things with pretend lead inside!)
3. Build your layout on top of the skeletal remains, creating something that looks a little or a lotta like the original.
4. Sit back and smile realizing how much time you just saved. (And money as you don't cut and toss three or four patterns of paper before getting it right...)

Our Gold Winning Skeleton team for today hails from our own Collective. Using layouts from our February Gallery, they stripped them down, then rebuilt them into these beauties.

May I present, for your viewing pleasure...

We have two layouts based upon the original layout by the lovely and talented Stacy Julian:

layout by MoonBoots Marnie

I remained pretty true to the original bones, omitting embellishments but not trading out any of the basic design. I even borrowed the black, white, and green, loving the mood they created, and opting to find a photo that would coordinate with the colors, rather than the other way around.

layout by Krafty Kim

Kim also began with Stacy's layout, though changed up the one photo for three, and placed her journaling in list format. The light color scheme, grouped embellishments, and soft nature of the layout transform a Stacy layout into a Kim layout, where you might be hardpressed to recognize the skeleton.

Next up, two paper layouts based upon Candice Palmer's digital layout:

layout by Blocked + Balanced Beth

The skeleton of Candice's layout is evident in Beth's design, with the only change up being the double matting. Keeping the list format for journaling, selecting a striped patterned paper, and creating a white font title, Beth got additional accessorizing mileage out of Candice's inspiring layout.

layout by Asymmetrical Aly

Aly on the other hand, left behind many of the original accessories, though the title, photo and journaing are similarly located to those in Candice's layout. However, by moving the title up significantly, and placing the photo on an asymmetrical shaped matte, Aly creates a much different look and feel for a layout that is built on the same bones as those of Beth and Candice.

Next up, Moon Ko's Boy layout:

layout by MemoryKeeper Marnie

Always one to take the easy way, I stayed a close to the original design as I could: from photo orientation, to placement, to the cutout half circle. By opting for a color scheme that is as different as can be from that which Moon used, the two layouts become unique, even though nearly identical in basic design.

And Moon's The Boys layout inspired another:

layout by Journaling Jody

Jody stayed very true to the basic design of Moon's layout, though cropped the paper and photo to a size that would permit her to include more lengthy journaling. Interestingly, while Moon's layout focuses on her new son, and Jody's her teenage daughter, Jody's layout discusses all the firsts Jody's firstborn provided to her. Including thoughts of her as a new baby. Sometimes as we look to the design of a layout, journaling ideas sink in, too.

Jody Dent-Pruks inspired two diverse layouts with her February layout:

layout by the Awesome Ann

Even though Ann's layout mimics Jody's in many ways (photo, title, & journaling placement, wide side margin, and small upper embellishment), by using a mirror image of the original, the skeleton is tricky to see, even when hunting for it.

layout by Autumn Loves Both Paper and Pixels

Going digital on this one, Autumn has reworked the original enough that you may want to click back and forth a few times to see the similarities. Again, a bottom title, horizontal main photo, blocked journaling, and a small supporting photo are all in place. However, using an enlarged photo in place of the background cardstock, Autumn effectively uses a cosmetic change to camouflage the similarity of the skeleton. Tricky!

Our next prizewinning layout is based upon the original layout of Jamie Waters:

layout by Mysterioso Marnie

Again, why stray from perfection? I tried to leave as much as I could in place with Jamie's layout, not only the skeleton, but also the journaling, the background color, and the heart embellishment. I left off the minititle as I do not have Jamie's beautiful handwriting, and I liked the cleanliness of having a title-less layout.

Lastly, but not leastly, is another incredible layout designed according to Autumn Baldwin's original:

layout by Mademoiselle Marnie

Once the photos and patterned paper were place, the title begged to be moved. Or really, the dolly begged me to move the title off her face. Once the title was relocated to the upper left, the journaling block began whining that it wasn't very legible on the pink circles. What? Really? Fine. So I moved it up to the green patterned paper in the upper right corner. But, wait, you say! There is no green patterned paper in that corner. Aha, Watson! You are so smart! The green was also not an appropriate background, so it became grey. At which point we are all agreeing that it is a good thing this was a digital layout, or I would have wasted many papers and much ink (colored blocks of journaling are not usually in my budget...). So though I tried to stick closely to Autumn's original, the layout dictated some changes and when photos and paper speak, I listen.

The long and the short of Skeleton Scrapping is it saves time, is fun, and can help you get your pages done. And crossing the finish line is sometimes what it is all about.

Help yourself to some sketches out of our February gallery. Don't forget to post your work in the Flickr gallery! It might be fun and prizeworthy!

The train is about to leave the station and it's full steam ahead to the beach...

I hope you all enjoyed your stop over and are well rested and ready to get back to the tour. And thanks for the give away Ali, what a great "souvenir" from our trip (yes, that may be stretching the travel theme a little to far, but indulge me!)

Today we are heading to the coast (and there is plenty of coastline to be found around this island of ours) and we will take our colour inspiration from the "BEACH".

1. Inspiration Photo - East Coast of Australia

 

Australia boasts some of the world’s best beaches and the huge coastline stretches for nearly 37,000 km, which includes 11,011 beaches, more than any other nation. Most of Australia's cities and towns are situated on the coast, within a few kilometres of the ocean, which amounts to about 85% of Australia's population living within one hour's drive of the coastline. I am one of the lucky ones and have always lived about 5 minutes from the beach.

2. The Colour Board:

 

The colours of the beach are pale: creams, beiges, and yellows. This colour palette is calm and neutral and works well with many themes. 

3. The Layouts:

This photo was taken from a very brief photo shoot I did with my son Oscar when he turned 17 (and no, I can't believe that he will be "officially" an adult - 18 years old - towards the end of this year). When I say brief you must understand that this 17 year old would rather do chores than pose for photos, but he indulged me and I wanted to make a layout to celebrate.

The colours in this photo were very strong, so I decided that a neutral background would put all the focus on the photo (and those green eyes).

For this layout it was my photos that contained the beach colours from our colour board and I chose complimentary cardstock and patterned papers, keeping a large white border for needed white space.

4. Cultural Lesson:

"On the Beach" – a poem by Michael Williams

At dawn, bare footed, viewing as far as eyes can reach,

the water's edge advances and recedes along the beach. 

Before me I see a carpet of half-buried shells of sea-creatures,

tide washed and rippled in sodden sand along the beach. 

I move, exploring, sodden sand oozing between my toes,

beyond me the wavelets breaking on the sand along the beach. 

Behind me, my wandering trail is blurred and indistinct,

as the water's edge advances and recedes along the beach. 

At mid-day, on the soft dry sand behind the water's edge,

undressed worshippers lie in the sun that beats down along the beach.

At night, the moon's reflection at the water's edge

resembles sea serpents playing in the wavelets along the beach.

This poem is simple, contemporary and perfectly captures the essence of the beach; I know it makes me want to bury my feet in the sand and chase the waves at the waters edge.

5. Australia 101:

First, we say lolly instead of candy and I have to tell you this lolly is a hard minty chewy treat that has been responsible for pulling out many a filling from people's teeth and my dentist is always warning me not to chew them. Like that is going to stop me. Ha! 

After living in London for a few years in the late 80s, I remember touching down at Sydney airport and buying a nice big bag of these at the duty free shop. Yes, I missed this classic Aussie treat.

So today you can head back to your stash and see if you can put together a buttery, pale layout inspired by the beach. We will be back on the road again tomorrow as we say goodbye to the beach and head off on our next colour adventure.

 

Readers Speak!

You guys are really rocking the lifts! I was so impressed with what you came up with. Here's a handful of reader-submitted scraplifts.

First, Margie Scarpignato lifted the esteemed Ali Edwards:

Ali's original:

 

And Margie's lift:

 

I'm lovin' how Margie adapted the design for her number of photos. She writes, "I love to scraplift. Sometimes I do it more literally than others. This one was a pretty straight forward scraplift. I didn't change much out besides the photos, journaling and the stamp. I love how it turned out. I find I learn alot by scraplifting. It helps me step outside of my comfort zone and learn techniques as well as aspects of design I might not discover on my own. Often after scraplifting I then find I can incorporate new things into my own original designs.

In some cultures & art disciplines students learn by copying the masters. In Japan students even take on the name of their master." Impressive job, lady (and can I change my name to Lain WenkeSmithSimickFloresWinnickCostenDillowDickinsonOvertonPalmer... oh, you get the picture!)

Next, MargotMacG lifted Brenda Arnell.

Here's Brenda's layout:

 

And here's Margot's spin:

 

I like how she changed the title just a nudge, and used the edges for journaling. Woohoo, chica!

Now, guess which layout from Wednesday Kate lifted?

 

You got it! She lifted my lift of Celeste Smith's layout... how's that for six degrees of separation! 

Here's another Ali inspiration from Meastmanak (originally in CK 9/09):

 

...and her spin:

 

Once again, NO ONE would ever have guessed these two were "the same." 

Finally, another reader, Agata, shares my Jody love. Here's Jody Wenke's original layout:

 

And Agata's adaptation:

 
 

Now, if I haven't inspired you to give scraplifting a try, then I have failed... and I hate failing! So go give it a try. Save me some angst, will ya? ;) 

Thanks for spending the week with me!

 
 

Birds Do It, Bees Do It...

...even your favorite Write.Click.Scrapbook. ladies do it! Scraplift, that is!

Hard as it may be to believe, even the "professionals" run out of ideas at times. The jiggy juice runs low, the mojo takes a vacay, and we're left with a deadline and a blank piece of 12x12 cardstock in front of us!

Now, I would NEVER suggest that any designer submit a project for publication that relies heavily on someone else's design. After all, our readers and audiences are expecting fresh content. But inspiration can come from the smallest page element -- the combination of two patterned papers, for instance, or the angle of a photo. The spark of creativity is ignited, and we're off!

If you are scrapping for your own purposes exclusively -- for your personal scrapbooks, for instance -- scraplift away with abandon! But as I mentioned the other day, if you are posting your creations in a public forum (like a gallery or on a public blog), please do the courtesy of mentioning the source of your creation. Likely, your "liftee" will be honored to have inspired you!

Speaking of inspiration, I asked some more of the WCS team to share pages they'd lifted from each other (we're just one big happy family around here!). Here's what we came up with.

First, from the talented Cheryl Overton, who found inspiration in this layout of darling Candice Palmer:

 

(I told you she was adorable!). 

Now, here's Cheryl's take on it:

 

If you saw these two layouts several pages apart in a magazine, I bet you'd never notice they were the same design! The different subject matter, the varying color schemes, and the color photo vs. the B/W photo on the original are all ways Cheryl made Candice's original design "her own." 

Next, Melanie Louette found inspiration from Elizabeth Dillow. This layout is from Elizabeth's wonderfully inspiring book, "The Scrapbooker's Almanac:"

Melanie created this:

 

Once more, these pages are so different that the uninformed would never pick up on their shared origins! But you, Gentle WCS Reader, now know the truth. 

The moral of this story? Scraplifting can be pure imitation, and that's fine! But it also can be the first step in creating art of your own. Don't knock it or write it off as "cheating." After all, all those magazines, galleries, and blogs (including this one!) are out there to HELP you. Use them. Enjoy them. And Scrap Happy!
 

Banishing Perfectionism

So, several of you mentioned that you face the demon called PERFECTIONISM. I think this goes hand-in-hand with product overload. It goes something like this:

Because you HAVE 1000 buttons, you think you HAVE to find "the perfect one" to use on any given layout. You know it's there, in the stash, if you could just find it. Or maybe a brad would be better. You have a few hundred of those... or perhaps you should try a silk flower? Or an epoxy sticker? Or some staples... or some ribbon... and that's just for the embellishments! You go through the same thing for the letter stickers (red looks good -- but maybe orangey-red would be better... or maybe you should stamp it... or cut it out on your Cricut... but what font should you use? And what size???). And for the photos. And for the patterned paper. On and on it goes, and the next thing you know, it's 1 AM and you haven't even selected your cardstock yet!

I will tell you right now: NO ONE CARES IF YOUR SCRAPBOOK PAGES ARE PERFECT. In fact, there's no such thing as "perfect." There's "done" and "not done." And I know which one I want!

So how can scraplifting help you with this particular onus? By helping you narrow your field of vision. Once you pick a design to follow, you know how many different patterned papers you need, how many buttons, how many photos, etc. (NOTE: In general, I encourage people to adjust scraplifts to their tastes, but if you are suffering from perfectionitis, you may want to stick with the design as-is. As soon as you start messing with it, you'll fall into the same trap all over again!)

Still need convincing? To show you how easy and versatile scraplifting is, I asked two of my fave Write.Click.Scrapbook. sistahs to help me out.

First, the incomparable Emily Pitts lifted a page by Kendra McCracken. Here's Kendra's:

 

And here's what Emily did with it:

 

I love how she converted the 12x12 to an 8 1/2x11. And the different background paper gives the page a totally different look, even though she used many of the same basic design elements and title. Emily says, "It was SO fast and easy. Scraplifting takes all the thought out of designing. I needed that this week!" 

Next, the oh-so-talented Jody Wenke lifted another one of my fave scrappers -- herself!

The original:

 
And the lift, with the exact same title:

 

What a great way to track time and show the changes! In this case, Jody was showcasing the difference between the time when her daughter was diagnosed with cancer, and now that it's a year that she's been cancer free. 

Yesterday's assignment was to pick a design to lift. Today, get cracking! Don't let yourself be bogged down in choices. Pick the first photo, paper, etc., that matches the design and goes with your other page elements. Don't forget your new mantra: "There is only done and not done -- perfection doesn't exist." Upload your results to our WCS flickr gallery, and tag it as "scraplift." Can't wait to see what you've done!

give.away.day. featuring STUDIO CALICO

It is truly our/your lucky day. for 

is back! And for our

today we are featuring their very own Home Front line.

Look at see what our very own Beth and Elizabeth did with this great line.

 

With a new Studio Calico release coming round the corner, we are happy to be able to offer you a sampling of the Home Front line before it has all been scooped up. Don't the layout possibilities seem so endless with those yummy papers and embellishments that represent what we wear and where we live? And the fabrips have my curiosity piqued like none other! And don't forget to visit the Studio Calico gallery and blog if you need additional inspiration!

If you would like to be considered for today's giveaway leave us a comment telling us your solution for beating the cold chill of winter (I like to curl up by the fire, or on the heat register/vent, with a cup of wassail and a big thick lambie blanket). Or for those of you on the other side of the globe, tell us how you beat the heat (really can't imagine having to beat the heat right now... oooh, please may I come visit you all?).

Two last, but not least, items. No, you don't have to be a Studio Calico subscriber to buy the Home Front line. (But, really, why wouldn't you want to be?). Home Front is available at your local retail store, or try here! And finally, don't forget it is your responsibility to check back to see if you are the lucky number!

Meanwhile...

So we've covered the "year in review" page and the "resolutions" page, and meanwhile, our brains were likely in overdrive doing some scrapbooking multi-tasking, am I right? We scrapbookers never stop thinking up new projects to work on, and staring down the entire year tends to inspire some exciting projects:

Project 365-Scrapbooking: This photo-a-day project has been around for a while, but it hit the scrapbooking scene with full force last year. If you want to document the daily activities of life, then this is the project for you! There are a multiple ways to document your daily life, but the simplest I've seen is the new Project Life kit by Becky Higgins. Don't be afraid to customize Project 365 into Project 1, Project 7, or Project 31. Dedicating a single day, week, or month to taking photos of your life can be rewarding in its own right and if we are honest (and easier on ourselves) probably a lot more manageable.

I scraplifted an idea of Elizabeth's and made a daily photo + journaling album about my daughter the month she turned one. It was a lot of work, but it's still one of my favorite albums.

 

 

Project 365-Photography:Maybe you're not especially interested in scrapbooking the mundane details of everyday life, but you do want to focus on your photography or simply get in the habit of taking more photos, then you can still adapt Project 365 to suit you. Read How to Take a Photo a Day and See Your Life in a Whole New Way. Or check out our very own Elizabeth Dillow's Project 365 +1: 2008 for her year long photo project that lives happily on her blog. And if you simply want to see some inspiring photos from photojournalists around the world, take a peek at the A Photo a Day site.

Monthly Review: Maybe you find any version of Project 365 particularly daunting, and a monthly review page is more your style? Last year, Two Peas sponsored a class called A Year of You, which showcased a different summary page for each month of the year. I love the idea of compiling a collage of photos along with written highlights from the month. It frees up precious scrapbook time for those extra-special photos. :)

Here was my interpretation of Robyn Werlich's January page:

During 2010, the first weekly challenge of every month over at Two Peas is a "Month in Review" page, so there's some motivation for you! 

Monthly Photo: A combination and twist of the Project 365 and Monthly Review ideas is to take a photo of the same thing (your child, yourself, your backyard, etc.) on the same day of every month to document the changes that occur throughout the year. Once you have twelve photos, you can make a layout or a mini-album and have a really cool record of something or someone that is important to you.

Favorite Photo:While you are shutterbugging, keep a folder titled "Favorites," where every month you store a copy of that one photo from the month that really spoke to you. These could be random photos or photos of each of your kids. At the end of the year, you can make a quick digital album or scrapbook something a little more elaborate like Elizabeth's 12 album in The Scrapbooker's Almanac. Last year, I created a mini-album of eight favorites (for 2008):

 
One Little Word: And for those among us who appreciate the words, Ali Edward's One Little Word project might be just what you are looking for. Every year, she selects a word to focus on throughout the 12-month period. The beauty of her idea is that you can keep it simple or make it as detailed as you want. As she says, "a single word can be a catalyst for enriching your life as well as your scrapbook layouts." 

So now you have lots of ideas and even less time! Back tomorrow with some enabling for all your scrapbooking projects! :)