Mmmm Hot Chocolate

How's it going?

Just dropping in with another well overdue (to be blogged anyhow!) layout!

This one is the second from my Two Scrapbook Friends DT Kit using the Cozy collection by Authentique so as you may guess, it's a Wintery kinda page.  The title sort of gives things away, and although I'm guessing most of us wouldn't settle down with a steaming hot mug at this time of year, in my book, you can enjoy something sweet all year round.

So here we go:

Mmmmm Hot Chocolate

The background started off with a layer of clear Gesso, then mist smudged with a watery paintbrush.

There's also texture paste stencilled on there and some stamped coffee mug stains.  A little collection of embellies in the top corner, and I do love that 'knitted' print paper.

More layers of punched papers and Gesso splattered chipboard behind the photo's, and a little journalling printed onto vellum.

Finally, a small cluster of flowers and chipboard snowflakes.....all dabbed with more Gesso.

That's about all folks so I'll try to get back again over the weekend with another page.

Have a good week,
Jayne.x.

Inspiration Elevator - A Fond Farewell!

After some thought and consideration, the time has come to retire Inspiration Elevator. But before we go, we need to hold a big retirement party, so we've invited everyone who's been involved with Inspiration Elevator back for one last reveal, and to our delight most were able to accept! We are so delighted to have so many IE alumni along this month! Thank you to each of you for helping us end our elevator ride with so much fun and creative energy!

This month's challenge is posed by one of IE's co-creators and team admin, Ann.

This month's challenge is simple, but I hope, challenging as well. 
Here's the challenge: Inspiration Elevator launched on May 15, 2012 and at that time, we explained our purpose as, "Welcome to Inspiration Elevator! What a thrilling day! Today is the launch of Inspiration Elevator (IE), a challenge blog created by my dear friend Christa Uttley and me. We chose the name Inspiration Elevator because it is our intent to raise our creativity to heights through challenges issued every month. We want to raise our designs from the ordinary to the extraordinary. We hope you'll join us on our journey!

IE is a group of like minded scrappy friends who want to raise the bar in their own creative process through unique challenges that we issue to each other once a month. These won't be run of the mill challenges and we hope you'll join us each month and be inspired by the creative designs we've created." 
That vision has remained unchanged over the last (almost) 3 years. The challenge this month is to just create - no holds barred. Take some time, or challenge yourself to do it in 1/2 hour if time is tight, but think about what you'd like to create if there were no agenda, no design team requirement. In other words, create for you, and enjoy the process!

So there you have it.....one final no holds barred challenge from Inspiration Elevator!

So that's exactly what I did with my page.  
One totally messy, just for the fun of it, no worries about using a particular paper or product, just a get down and dirty kinda page.

And I had a blast!

Just Imagine

It all started with the photo I've hoarded for the last couple of years not quite knowing exactly what to do with it, and a challenge that was issued on the Scrap Around The World blog.  I'll get to that later.

I think the photo was taken by my youngest daughter whilst I was lying on my bed, and after a little play around with editing, it always gave me the impression of being underwater....the hair floating across the bed sheets!

So that was the start that inspired me to get creating with some absolutely gorgeous new beach/water themed papers I'd picked up a couple of weeks ago....the Sandy Toes collection from Kaisercraft.

I began with the background.....

I scrunched up a plastic bag and dabbed white Gesso here and there, followed by a layer of texture paste applied through a burlap stencil.  I then stamped in brown with a cross hatch kinda stamp, all around the paper placement.

Layers then came into play......

All of the papers and my photo were brushed with a little Gesso to create that whitewashed look.  I cut a lace trim using my Silhouette then tore chunks from it to distress a little.

The chicken wire chipboard was also attacked (in a loving way!) by cutting sections from it, brushing with Gesso then layered between the papers.

Finally, the embellies......

Lots of flowers, wooden leaves, Silhouette cut vines, dew drops, cheesecloth and more chipboard all finished with a covering of brushed Gesso and splatters of mist.

Love it!  So much fun.

We hope you'll take the time to hop through and visit each of our participant's blogs, beginning with our guests, then our current team, and finishing off with our co-founders. Feel free to leave comments and lavish each one with appreciation for all that they each brought to the Inspiration Elevator challenge over the last 3 years!

Audrey Yeager

Christy Riopel

Denise Morrison

Jodi Wilton

Laura Whitaker

Laurel Seabrook

Shelby Dwyer

             Jayne Morgan - that's me!

Joanne Burton

Katherine Sutton

Lisa Moen

Lisa Spiegel

Michelle Hernandez

Wendi Robinson

Christa Uttley

Ann Jobes

I would personally like to thank Ann and Christa for all their hard work over the last 3 years, and to the rest of my team mates who have continually challenged and inspired me to create to my limits.

Finally, a big thank you to YOU......everyone who has visited and encouraged me on my journey with IE, through comments and 'pins' etc.  I do hope you'll stick around in the future.

Before I go there's a few more deets I need to cover regarding a fabulous challenge over at Scrap Around The World, but needless to say.......have a great day,

Jayne.x.

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Challenge Entered:

Scrap Around The World - Mood Board

So obviously my inspiration was not the colour green.....I am not a big 'green' fan!

However, my starting point was the hair (cue hoarded photo!)followed by the water, then all that lovely texture jumping right out of each and every photograph.

Finally.....the quote, which seemed to trigger the perfect title!

Together

Good morning.

I'm a little later than intended with today's post, as Scrapmuch? combined forces with Stuck?! Sketches on Saturday to create a Colour/Sketch Challenge.

As a member of the Scrapmuch? DT, I was given the opportunity along with the rest of the team to create a page using the current Sketch at Stuck?! combined with the current Colour Challenge from Scrapmuch?

Make sense?

You can check out all of the creations from the Scrapmuch? DT over on the Stuck?! blog (lovely they are too!), but here's my effort.

Together

Before I continue with the deets, here is the Sketch......

and here's the colour combination.....

Pretty nice huh?

So for my page I went a little 'artsy', in other words I had a little play with some mixed media......more so than usual I guess.

The background started with a subtle wash of blue watercolour, followed by stencilled modelling paste, stamping and some paint splatters.

I managed to get a little wood on there and some of my recent chipboard winnings from Creative Embellishments, which I covered with a pale pink embossing powder.

A stand alone cluster of pretties here.....

And the main group around the photo.....flowers, die cut, clothes pin, cheesecloth and more chipboard.

I finished the whole thing with some pencil drawn circles and a few dew drops here and there.

So, do you feel like a challenge?  If you combine the two challenges and link up on both the Stuck?! and Scrapmuch? blogs, you could be in with a chance of winning two prizes!

Can't beat that!

I'll be back again sometime this week so till then have a good one,
Jayne.x.

Inspiration Elevator #26 - Time(d) To Change

Our main purpose here at IE is to challenge ourselves, each other and YOU to take the creative process to the next level;  to inspire growth and change in our scrapbooking beyond the mundane.

You can see all of Inspiration Elevator's previous challenges at our blog and catch us on Facebook .
We are thrilled to welcome back as a guest designer with our team, the uber creative and wonderfully artsy Misty Russell!

This month's challenge is issued by the amazing Jayne Morgan. Jayne mixes classic styling with fun and funky embellishments and artistic mixed media touches. Here is her challenge for us, in her own words:

Time(d) to Change
It's no secret amongst my crafty friends that my biggest hang up when scrapbooking is procrastination. Being a perfectionist can certainly benefit the end result, but quite often, we worry so much about the outcome that we forget to enjoy the process! On a couple of occasions when I've had to complete a tight deadline for DT calls or assignments, I've been forced to throw caution aside and complete a page within an hour. This for me in itself is a miracle, but the most surprising part was that I not only thoroughly enjoyed the carefree process, but the end results have been some of my most favourite pages. Here's lies the inspiration for this months challenge - I'd like you to gather your photo's, papers and a collection of supplies you think you may need, hibernate to your creative space and take 30 minutes to create whatever you like.........not a minute more! Contrary to what you may think, the pressure is off here. Chances are the final result will not be your best ever project as the time constraint is a little extreme (!), but it's a well known saying that creativity flourishes when we are willing to take risks! Enjoy the process.

Ok......so I did say all of that at some point in my madness!
I then took the next couple of weeks to panic - too scared to start my own challenge!  I think this was my way of allowing my quota of procrastination before I even started! Lol

Anyhow, when I did eventually jump in, it was with two feet, paint, Molding paste, stencils, Glimmer Mist, ink and stamps!

No point doing anything by halves right?

Here's the result......

The Eye's Have It.

This page was inspired by the slightly odd (scary!) photo. I'm constantly finding stuff like this on my phone and camera, courtesy of my youngest DD.

As mentioned previously, I threw as much stuff as I could on here in a short space of time......watercolours, Molding Paste and stencils......

My heat gun and iron were kept in constant use trying to dry things quicker, and keep the page workable.

The basic design is fairly simple - mostly just rough cut strips of patterned paper. There's also a variety of random stamping, messy thread and definitely no time for any Silhouette cuts, so alpha stickers all the way for the title.

I clustered one final group of embellies in the lower corner, then drizzled with a little mist.

So.....the verdict?

32 minutes!

Tut tut, but in all fairness the last two minutes were mostly a bout of self indulgent procrastination - moving things around, then putting them back to where they were!

As hoped, the whole process was pretty liberating.  There's definitely something to be said for throwing caution to the wind and going with the flow.

Most importantly, I really did enjoy the process (although a little manic at times!), and my page will definitely take it's place in 'the book'.

Here's a complete list of this month's participating designers!  We encourage you to check out each designer's creation this month, then come on back and give the challenge a try yourself!

Jayne Morgan  -  that's me!

Wendi Robinson

Katherine Sutton

Lisa Moen

Lisa Speigel

Ann Jobes

Christa Uttley

Guest designer: Misty Russell

Meantime, if you've wanted to participate as a guest designer with Inspiration Elevator, just contact team lead, Ann at ann jobes at bell dot net

Now it's your turn to start the clock and get creating.  Don't forget to share your blog link at the IE blog. We would love to see what you were inspired to make!

Have a wonderful day,
Jayne.x.

Inspiration Elevator #24 (Michelle Hernandez) - A Public Page

It's that time...........

Welcome to another month of Inspiration Elevator!

Our main purpose here at IE is to challenge ourselves, each other and YOU to take the creative process to the next level;  to inspire growth and change in our scrapbooking beyond the mundane.
You can see all of Inspiration Elevator's previous challenges at our blog and catch us on Facebook and Instagram (soon!) too.

This month's challenge is issued by the innovative Michelle Hernandez. Michelle's style is about telling the story with a clean and simple, yet artsy approach, an awareness of current trends, and garnished with her use of chipboard and often neutral colours. Here is her challenge for us, in her own words:
The challenge for June 15th is- make a public scrapbook page. You are making a page to go up at work or to give away to a family member to put up in their space. In your blog post you will tell us how knowing this page isn't going in a book or in your home changed your style. Did you go all out and make something that is 3D? Did you suppress your love of a particular color or product? How do you feel about the page being public- outside your regular audience of scrapbook lovers who read your blog or open your books at home?

OK so I had to think long and hard about this one, mainly because the majority of my pages are created for the public eye.  My DT work for a local Scrapbook store and a couple of other Design Teams means that I'm constantly creating with a particular goal in mind.......to promote a certain paper collection/embellishments, or to interpret a Sketch as creatively as possible to hopefully inspire others.

My point is, these days I rarely scrap just for the pleasure of accomplishing another page for the scrapbook........that's not to say I don't enjoy these regular methods of scrapping - far from it!

I just struggled with coming up with something different to my norm for this challenge.

Then, whilst I was stalking perusing Facebook one day and in conversation with a scrappy friend, I noticed a gorgeous photo in her album.

Inspiration finally struck and I started on a page as a gift for her.

But before I reveal that, let me fill you in on the inspiration behind it.

I've known Dee for approximately 5 years since she welcomed me into a close knit community of fellow crafters, and nurtured my like minded love of Scrapbooking.

She's one of the good ones.....both creatively and in Spirit.

Unlike some crafters in their Golden years, she is definitely not your 'Old Fashioned' scrapper......always receptive to trying new techniques and idea's, especially when it comes to Art Journalling......her secret love.

This is where her real personality shines through and I believe what she enjoys the most.

We've often talked about our wish to incorporate more and more of the mixed media techniques into our scrapbook pages.

I for one dabble here and there, trying to introduce more 'artsy' stuff into a layout, as does she, but she's said more than once that she often feels a little nervous about going 'full out' on a layout in case she doesn't like it.

That's the purpose of my page.

It's not a perfect work of art by any means (I'm my worst critic!) but I'm hoping it will at least serve as a little encouragement for her to 'go for it' and more than anything......enjoy the process!

Here goes:

Beautiful Bermuda

I started by layering strips of burlap behind a second sheet of PP, then got to work with mists, a whitewash of Gesso, Molding Paste and stencils, stamps and ink and just a touch of Inca Gold (in Silver) to give that pearlescent look.

Another stencil and texture paste up here, together with Gelato's and a paintbrush to create a little water coloured shading.

I printed the photograph onto a textured cardstock, then sanded the edges a little as I wanted to create the look of canvas.

There's also feathers, some inked florist wire, lots of flowers and a pretty little collection of embellies clustered here....

It's now all framed and ready to go.....I'm a little nervous as I hope she likes it.....

......but if nothing else, I thoroughly enjoyed making it.

And now back to some important deets....

Here's a complete list of this month's participating designers!  We encourage you to check out each designer's creation this month, then come on back and give the challenge a try yourself!

We also have the wonderfully talented Christy Riopel joining us as Guest Designer this month so please stop by and say Hi.

 Michelle Hernandez

Jayne Morgan
Wendi Robinson

Katherine Sutton

Lisa Moen
Lisa Spiegel
Ann Jobes

We have a couple of regular artists taking a summer hiatus and look forward to the return of Joanne Burton and Christa Uttley in the fall.
Meantime, if you've wanted to participate as a guest designer with Inspiration Elevator, just contact team lead, Ann at ann jobes at bell dot net
Now it's your turn to get creating about art you share publicly, and share your blog link at the IE blog. We would love to see what you were inspired to make!

So there you have it!

I'm off to check out some fabulous creations from this inspiring group, in amongst trying to clean my house......my parents are flying in later this afternoon from across the pond.

Woo hoo......babysitters!! Lol

Take care and have a great day,
Jayne.x.

Golden Girl

Good morning.

Thought I'd stop by with a layout today, although I should be doing plenty of other stuff......if I can keep my eyes open!

I started watching the Oscars last night but kept having to pause the action for one thing or another - getting the kiddo's to bed etc, so all in all it was WAY past midnight when I finally finished viewing!

Makes for a grumpy Momma, especially when I must have slept like a log in one postion all night and woke up with a stiff shoulder.....oh the joys of having a good nights sleep! Lol

Anyhow, today's page is all about my Momma and a snapshot taken during their visit last Summer.

Golden Girl

She will probably smile over the title, or be getting ready to chew my ear out over the phone!

During our Canadian Summers my Mom's head get's hot, so although she needs the shade, she doesn't like to wear a hat covering the top of her head.  Hence the mission to find her a visor......... then everyone's happy!

Consequently, it proved to be a great source of entertainment for us as you couldn't help but look at her without thinking she'd just stepped foot of the set of an episode of 'The Golden Girls'!

We're easily amused!

Anyhow, as far as the page goes it's a little 'artsy' again, with a taste of mixed media.

The paper collection is from Pink Paislee but I covered most of the background with a mixture of Gesso, watercolours and Molding Paste.

There's also cheesecloth, Washi tape ( I have to thank Carola for the loan.....again!) and sequins in there.

Now that should get us in the mood for Summer!

Have a great start to the week and I'll be back Wednesday with a new Little Red Wagon challenge as it's my turn to be the 'hostess with the mostess'! (a little Brit humour!)

See you then,

Jayne.x.

Little Red Wagon #225 - Anything But A Card

Hello.

We have sickness in the house AGAIN!

I tell ya, I think I'm going to invest in a bulk load of Vitamin C next year just to make sure the friendly germs my kiddo's seem to welcome home on a regular basis, get the hint!

Anyhow this means of course that today's Little Red Wagon post is yet again.....late! At least I'm still posting on the correct day though so here goes........

It's Jan's turn to host this week's challenge and we must have been particularly bad (in my book anyway!) because she wants to see 'anything but a card' as long as it involves paper.....not my favourite challenge I'll admit even though there are plenty of options to choose from.

I wanted to do something different - a bookmark, a tag, an altered item came closest but after trawling the Silhouette store for quite some time I couldn't shake the feeling that I was cheating by letting the machine do all the work for me.

So eventually I decided to stick with what I know best and create a scrapbook layout.......it involves paper and is definitely not a card!

I also decided to have a little fun.

After scrapbooking for almost 7 years I still have absolutely no clue what my style is, or if I even have one!  I just like to try different stuff......whatever makes me happy, and this page is vastly different from my usual layouts I guess......and it makes me happy!

There's a magazine I LOVE, a British publication called Scrap 365 and recently they teamed together with Mixed Media Place for a Blog Hop.  I was transfixed for a couple of hours 'ooohing' and 'aaahing' over this talented bunch of ladies and knew I'd have to take the plunge sometime.

I quite often dabble in a little mixed media on my layouts but never full out, and although this one is by no means 'extreme' mixed media, it's probably as far as I'll go.

For more reasons than one, here's Brave.

So, what's going on in the background here?

Scrunched pieces of Washi tape and a layer of Gesso together with some stencilled moulding paste and a little random stamping........

 Messy thread and a chipboard heart, altered with Moulding Paste and Gelato's.........

Various embellies thrown on top and finished with another layer of Gesso, then drizzled with splotches of Glimmer Mist.

And finally the journalling, printed onto vellum, explains all.

So, why not be 'brave' yourselves and venture away from a card, for this weeks challenge. 

Link up over on the blog and check out a little 'non card' inspiration from the rest of the girlfriends.

In the mean time this baby will be heading into a couple of challenges itself.

The layout for this page was inspired by the current sketch over at Stuck?!Sketches.

You might say I took it and ran with it, but the basic arrangement is there.

Also the current 'What Are You Feeling' challenge over on the Mixed Media Place blog.......

.....happens to be for your interpretation of the word 'Courage'.

How convenient!

I'll be back again later this week with.....who knows what?

Have a great evening and I'll see you soon,
Jayne.x.