scrapbooking again!

it's been a loooong hiatus... but, once again, i am back. i've learned to appreciate the fact that there will always be times when life will get too hectic or i will get too lazy to blog. i almost always bounce back though, so here i am again.

My good friends, Tin and Mitch, organized a Scrap Laureat fairly recently and this has helped enormously to reboot my sleeping scrapbooking mojo. She also sent me a new Studio Azul kit to guest as part of the DT (design team) for one of her latest kits, along with Nita as a scrap-buddy. Will post those layouts/mini album when i'm done, hopefully soon. for now, i am posting some layouts i've finished these past couple of months but have not posted yet.

this layout was done to test run the Scrap Laureat table. the photo came off my iPhone and was printed impromptu because Tin also generously provided us with a printer (Tin does EVERYTHING generously!) for the testing day. i think it turned out pretty well for someone who hasn't touch glue and paper in a really long time :-)

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the two layouts above are all about my analog obsessions: collecting typewriters and vinyl records. they are supposed to be part of a series of 4, the others being vintage cameras and fountain pens. i also love old rotary telephones and--a recent offshoot of collecting typewriters-- vintage typewriter ribbon tins. but that's a recent "thing" for me and it's for another story.

i also tried doing, for the first time, some technique on this layout that i picked up from friends Ime Oranga and Cabbie Lopez. it's sort of a masking technique with molding paste. the effect is those 3D ornate borders you see on the layout. thanks Ime for lending me some Liquitex molding paste too! :-)

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i have a friend and fellow scrapbooker i admire a lot, Christine Villacarlos, we playfully dubbed CV. she scrapbooks very fast and and makes painless and refreshing, elegantly designed layouts. she is practically a complete opposite to me. i do fussy pages and usually with not a lot of white space. on this layout, it tried (very hard!) to do it her way. lo and behold, i did finish very quickly and i liked the result too!

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i've unearthed a project that i wanted to do just before i dropped scrapbooking for the nth time. it was these photo of my youngest daughter and son getting acquainted with a catterpillar from our small front yard. though i'd finally finish it up.

i've added a hidden journaling message for them. i like little surprises like these. hopefully, they will appreciate sometime in the future. it reads:

we found this catterpillar--among a few others--right on our front garden. you guys were a little apprehensive to touch it at first but after i handled it and showed you how, you became braver and even found it cute!

i hope you always keep that sense of wonder and curiosity of the things in your world, my babies. because, just like that little caterpillar you held in your hand, you are a future butterfly and will spread you wings, far and wide!

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found this picture among our lot of vacation photos when we went to Baguio. when i took the snapshot, i didn't plan to capture my little boy, Raj, as he was bickering at Reine about some little thing. but i thought his facial expression was so funny, i just had to get it printed and scrapbooked! the journaling reads:

it's really funny how you two silly kids carry on. you probably fight at least 10 times a day, saying all sorts of ridiculous things you likely picked up from Spongebob. yet, you always make up 5 mins. later, playing like nothing happened. i hope you keep this spirit of resilience and your good humor till you grow up because no matter what you do or say, you are irrevocably, undeniably and inevitably, FAMILY.

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used the Studio Azul Blue Mumushka kit for this layout. journaling reads:

two teeth fell out, almost one after the other, leaving you with a couple of gaps on your...well, not-so-pearly whites. But even with this gaps, you still gamely pose for me without a trace of self-consciousness. i love this about you. you were never overly vain anyway. besides, there's really no need to be. even with two front teeth missing, you are still so pretty.

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so there's a rundown of my scrapbooking goings-on these past few weeks. i am definitely back. hopefully, the mojo stays for a long, long time this cycle. i will be posting (hopefully soon) about the great weekend i just had with my scrappin' girlfriends at Tagaytay and the uber nice Studio Azul kit called Picture Perfect i'm scrapping with this past week! till next!

juju's back...

for now, at least... and i hope it doesn't leave soon. nothing like good ole pressure for the juju to come back to life. i was already getting worried because the scrapping juice has been dry for so long it was getting ridiculous! but with the Scrapfest coming up, i knew Tin needed some more layouts for the Studio Azul booth display. good thing also that the midweek holiday came up at an opportune time. below are couple of layouts i finally got around to complete with the kit Thisaway.

the idea to do this layout just hit me when Raj came up for his saturday morning snuggle. there are no early morning weekday snuggles since he started schooling and morning have since been filled with crying for more sleep or coaxing a sleepy boy to finish breakfast. anyway, the camera was right there sitting on the desk that morning. so i paused for a while from my furious typing on the computer to take out the camera's remote. i approximated our position and voila! and oh yeah, big thanks to Nita too for lending me her Embellish mag to get me going. the inspiration for this one came from a layout there. i'll check tomorrow for the appropriate credits.

Materials used: Studio Azul Thisaway kit, white cardstock, stamp from the kit with Colorbox ink and copper embossing powder, MM acrylic paints to color chipboard letters, buttons, eyelets, Cropadile II, MM dater

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i just love the vibrant colors of this particular Studio Azul kit. just perfect for my 2 young and perky boys: Raj and Tashi. you can click on the photos to enlarge and read the journaling.

Materials used: Studio Azul Thisaway kit, MM acrylic paint to color chipboard letters from the kit, MM metal tag ring, computer and Eras font for journaling.

popping in...

been a while friends!... i have to admit my absence has been mostly due to playing just as much as working these past few weeks. my little free time is now divided between the MM cutter+ UHU glue combo and my well-loved Nikon. yup, i'm still crazy infatuated with photography. as a matter of fact, i have gotten daring lately and tried my mettle at shooting nudes. my experience on that here at my other blog.

since the photos are piling up and scrapbooking was my initial motivation for winging it with photography anyways, i always go back to my scrappin' toys even if i occasionally get distracted with other things. sharing with you here are the few pages i have completed lately (thanks to Studio Azul) that i am so belatedly posting.

Again, this is one of the rare layouts for hubby. i was quite happy to find the chance to document their friendship. just like Nita and I, these guys have been good friends since high school and we saw each other through all those years, from the time we were all single, through marriage, and raising children. long time friendships are indeed good reasons to celebrate and document.

Materials used: Studio Azul April Kit Going Postal, Autumn Leaves stamps, Collage Press stamps, Versacolor inkpads, Quickutz dies.

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yup! Reine had hair so thin she didn't get her first haircut till she was 4!

Materials used: Studio Azul May Kit Spring Shower, Quickutz dies Beauty Queen, computer font Impact, sewing machine, buttons

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Nita's daughter Sam and my Reine romping around with our shih tzu, Tashi.

Materials used: Studio Azul May Kit Spring Shower, kraft cardstock, MM foam stamps, Distress Crackle paint, buttons

a mini for Kara

my elder daughters sometimes feign tampo, whenever i make layouts for their 2 younger siblings. "lagi na lang sila!", they would kid me. "well", i would retort, "mas cute sila e..." however, it was just time to make one for Kara especially since she just graduated from elementary. with great grades too--which totally inspires this proud mama for this project. below is the result:









Materials used: Studio Azul April Kit Going Postal, Simply Scrappy acrylic mini album (Visual Creations carry them) organza ribbons, Sizzix filmstrip and ticket dies, Stampin Up label and spiral punches, EK Corner punch, Fiskars border punch, ATB labelmaker and Dymo tape, Autumn Leaves stamps, Collage Press stamps, Catslife Press stamps, Ancient Page dye inks, Distress Inks, Pebble Inc. chalks

going simple

i've always had an appreciation for the clean and crisp style such as that of my scrapbooking idol Cathy Zielski. locally, i also have quite an admiration for Studio Azul "blue lady" Christine V. and i've always wanted to emulate their streamlined scrapbooking style. even my magazine subscription is with Simple Scrapbooks rather than Creating Keepsakes. yet it's funny that even if i start out intending to do clean and simple, i usually end up with cluttered, colorful, highly embellished layouts. so i eventually traded my Zielski books for the collage ones because i have since embraced that i might always be the cluttered person i really am.

however, since life has been reaaaaally busy these past months and yet scrapping has to go on (of course scrapbooking HAS to go on!), it gives me more reason to go simple and graphic. perhaps it is also an expression of my gut reaction to simplify life. and why not, maybe eventually, i would finally win the battle with clutter.

layouts using Studio Azul's April Kit "Going Postal"

SA scrap a master challenge

big, big congratulations to Lee and Me-Anne for winning the latest challenge by Studio Azul: the Scrap-A-Master challenge! the challenge was to scraplift this layout by Making Memories Master Iris Uy. their layouts are just as wonderful inspirations as the master's layouts herself.


here is my version of the my idol Iris's layout using SA's February kit.

this is a layout for daughter Gabey who just graduated high school and is moving on to bigger and better things in her life.

style?!?

i am always stumped when asked with the question: what is your scrapbooking style? i have tried analyzing what mine is but i quickly realized i don't really have one. i often envy people who have clearly defined styles because i think that is the hallmark of a good designer. after all, the divas i adore all have distinct styles. we all know Elsie Flannigan's fun and funky look, Cathy Zielski's clean and crisp style, even Iris Uy's romantic and highly detailed signature. i'd like to emulate them but somehow, i just can't stick to one style. perhaps i like playing with my big girl toys too much. or maybe i am reading too many 'look' books at once such that i get influenced by all of them. then again, maybe doing the work i do just made me too malleable to the design whims of our customers. whatever it maybe, i have to admit i enjoy constantly switching flavors be it with the food i eat or the creative things i do. it's just that it stumps me when i have to answer the question, what is your scrapbooking style? so to this, i just answer "eclectic"... heehee... whatever that means!

among the 'styles' i enjoy are:

vintagey/shabby/collageyMaterials used: Studio Azul kit (Prima Paintables, Prima notepad, Daisy Ds rubons and paper, buttons, American Crafts Thickers), Twinkling H2Os, metallic embossing powders, Versamark ink refill, printed butterfly, MM brad, Around the Block labeller

with lots of sewing or fabrics
Materials used: Studio Azul kit (all patterned papers used here, AC Thickers, buttons), rickracks and ribbons from Divi, Sizzix letter dies, sewing machine and variegated thread.

linear/graphic
Materials used: Studio Azul kit (patterned paper, AC Thickers), Quickutz letter dies, computer and printer for journaling and white letter printing.

fun/funky
Materials used: Studio Azul January kit (patterned papers, AC Thickers, grid clear stamp), Sizzix die (heart), foamies, ATB labeller, Image Tree letter rubberstamps

clean and crisp/graphic

{Pinoyscrapbookers' Kaya blog entry for March}

Materials used: Bazzill cardstock, AC patterned paper(stripes), handcut letters, Quickutz letter dies, computer and printer, blings from Divisoria, glitter glue

among these, i have fun with the messy styles the most but love the crisp look best of all. i think it will be a long time before i can settle on just one style...or maybe it will never happen. one thing is for certain though, scrapbooking will always be a fun, mercurial journey for me.

a couple of sneaks

i have a couple more Studio Azul LO's unposted yet. one for the Jan kit and the other for the Feb kit. here are the sneak peeks:



i hope to share with you the full LO sometime soon... :-D

layouts with the Studio Azul February kit

i am so attracted to simple, graphic lines these days so i gave it a whirl here. what's funny is that i find it soooo difficult not to fill up space with embellishment! does this mean that i am a naturally messy person?!

Journaling reads: you little babies are my second shot at motherhood. when i first had your elder siblings, mama was quite young. it was eight years after your di-tsi was born that i had you Reine, and then you Raj, only less that 2 years after that. i must admit, i am a different mother from the one who raised Kiko, Gabey and Kara. being older has brought more maturity, more involvement. i breastfed you both longer that the few short months that i did my first three children. although, your siblings are good kids themselves, i am hoping to do a better job with the both of you. although i still work a lot, i’d like to think i give more attention to you now because i realize that time will not wait for me. i have to be here...now... because you simply grow up too fast. I love you, my babies.

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i think we will definitely have to stop breastfeeding by the time the next school year hits becauseRaj will have start schooling already. this is why these moments are so precious now and are must-scrap moments for me.

Journaling reads: Since Raj nonw only breastfeeds at night, he would often "negotiate" with me and say this line when he needs comforting. It means he will snuggle up to me, suckle at the breast then, i count 1,2,3. At 3, he releases the nipple. That shor moment calms him down and he give me a grateful smile. I find this totally cute and funny!

colorful

i still needed to do one more Studio Azul project but i was just too excited. so i emailed these to Tin and Mia and i was happy they liked it. these projects are not my usual stuff because the papers were...well...different! in a good way that is. but it was nonetheless a challenge. it reminded me of my BG Obscure papers which i excitedly bought as soon as they came out but have never touched yet. i'm that way when i like the papers a lot. i'm too afraid to use them lest i ruin them.

but since this is a DT project, i can hardly put it off, of course. i just had to be brave enough to cut. one of the papers that i like a lot but didn't know what to do with is this Andy Warhol-ish print. i simply couldn't get myself to cut it. so i decided to play it up instead. and this is the result.

materials used: Quickutz Metro SkinniMini and Studio Classic, Provocraft Rolling Stamp Circa 18pts, Luxe Designs Bustier Bowie from the Studio Azul kit

being this colorful, it reminded me of the Cyndi Lauper song. if i were to dedicate it to anyone, it would be my best friend Nita. and since i met her in 1978, come June of this year, we would be 30 years together. i pretty much know her inside out and she knows me as well. so yes, this song fits the bill on how i feel about her. and it's also totally worth the 3 nights i worked on cutting sticking all those letters...geeez, and i thought it would be a simple LO!

the next project was totally a fluke. i didn't exactly know it would turn out this well. i wanted to do a project with no pictures so i thought it would be a great time to break out that clock i bought (more like ambushed) from Cookie at the last PS EB where she did a demo on altering clocks. for this one i used just one back-to-back patterned paper. i thought the rub-on from the kit would be perfect for the center of the clock to set-off the hands. i was also happy to ffinally find use for my Making Memories grommet tool. the big eyelets were a perfect accessory to make the number markers.

materials used: Tinkering Ink Spin paper and Luxe Designs There's the Rub rubons from the Studio Azul kit, bling and buttons also from the kit, Making Memories grommets and grommet tool, Quickutz Metro SkinniMini

one thing i can really say about kits is that they are soooo much fun to use. kits make you go out of your comfort zone and try out new things. couple that with the surprise of getting a package every month gives me the exciting, tingly feeling of opening a Christmas present everytime.

getting sketchy

a few weeks ago, Tin mentioned Studio Azul is going to do a sketch challenge and asked if i can do one. cool idea, i thought. i often do sketches for myself with pencil and paper just before embarking on an LO. i also usually stray from my own sketch as the LO gets done. so when asked to do both a sketch and an LO to match, i felt a bit nervous. but i thought hey, i think it would be fun to assemble one digitally too, and not just on paper with pencil. here is the result which you can also find here.

did this sketch based on the materials inside Studio Azul's January kit, SuperNova. i tried hard not to stray too far from my own sketch. below is the resulting LO.

the 4-month old baby monkey is my nephew Mike's pet. it is soooo cute!
Raj was so intrigued by it but was afraid of it and wouldn't even touch it.
Journaling reads: Raj was so afraid of the monkey but liked the little plush toy. Little did he know, the real one was sneaking up behind him...
Incidentally, Raj was born in the Chinese zodiac year of the Monkey. :-D

i had fun doing this LO and excitedly submitted it to Tin and Mia. before, i heard comments from them, i saw the LO and sketch posted. i suddenly had an anxiety attack. oh my! my little sketch is now officially challenge material. would people like it? i really, truly hope my scrapping friends would find it useful. and i'd love to see people use it and tweak it around to come up with LOs i haven't even thought of with it. good luck to all who join! surely, the SA prizes at stake would be worth it! Challenge mechanics here.

xmas LO teasers...

whew! finally accomplished 3 LOs for Studio Azul...and these are actually my first 3 for the year. thanks heavens for these kits! if i didn't have it, i doubt i could accomplish these at all this quick. makes me wonder if i really can accomplish my resolution of 2 layouts a week if i was working on non-kit papers. sigh. i really must re-examine my scrapping habits. i take too long deciding to paste things down, i think. but i am really happy and excited to share this nonetheless. watch out for the entire LOs soon at the Studio Azul blogsite along with Mia and Tin's beautiful work!