Only two days until...

The Scrap That! November kit reveal takes place this Friday, Oct. 28th.


Please join us this weekend for the November "Putting on the Glitz" kit blog hop. We have FIVE terrific prizes up for grabs, and we promise you a ton of inspiration and some beautiful blogs. The fun all starts on Friday Oct. 28^th at 10 am MST at http://www.scrapthatchat.blogspot.com

5 AMAZING PRIZES THIS MONTH:

A Dusty Attic Prize Pack generously provided by owner Jennifer Hedger

A Glitz Design Prize Pack generously provided by the Glitz Girls

A Scrap That! Paper Crafting Kit

A Scrap That! Store Gift Certificate

A Package of Prima

Now, we are excited to share with you our sneak peek for this month from the design team creations! This kit is divine - sheer elegance for Fall.

Step by Step Layout Tutorial

I am posting a step by step on how I made my "That is Love" layout with the very gorgeous Oct. Bella Rosa kit, featuring the Prima Romantique papers.

Some people find the romantic/vintage style intimidating to create. The key is layers. I like structure and distressing. I do admire all those heavily torn, painted and deeply shabby layouts with masking and all sorts of bits and pieces... but that's not my style. So, I keep the lines a little "cleaner". Let's get started!

1. Cut off 1/2 inch off the patterned paper (save the strips for later), heavily distress the edges (I used my Zutter) and adhere to plain cardstock.

2. Cut a large circle (8-9 inches) out of the coordinating floral paper, a 5.5 x 7.5 rectangle out of the soft yellow paper (you want the floral vine print to be at one narrow end of the rectangle). I rounded the corners.

3. Hand distress everything, including your strips and start layering. Glue the circle first, then the strips (leave the last half inch of these without adhesive) and then the photo mat and your picture.

 4. Slightly roll the strip ends and adhere half of a Prima lace/bling band to the bottom of the picture.

5. Use green chalk ink on your sweet pea chipboard (also available in my shop) and cut it into 3 pieces to form around the inside of the circle.

6. Make some lace flowers using Robin's awesome video tutorial or my no sew lace flowers.

 7. Add a butterfly to the corner.

8. Add your title and you're already done (you can also journal on the back).

Since the main paper has such a pretty border, I accented with more floral paper in the middle but then broke it up with the wide yellow photo mat to give focus to the picture. All the shapes flow and the page looks "filled-in" but there isn't anything truly complicated about this layout. The paper does most of the romantic/vintage "look" for you. Thanks for joining me today and I hope you give my style a go either with these papers or any other. I can think of many beautiful papers this design would go well with :)

117 Dusty Attic Styles!

It is like Christmas came early!!! New Dusty Attic chipboard has been listed in my shop at http://www.etsy.com/shop/vickyalberto. As of right this second I have 117 styles to choose from in various quantities (ranging from 1-6 of each style). There was a glitch uploading so the Christmas and Halloween is all mixed in there (was all supposed to be listed on the first page - sorry!). I do have some of the larger frames too not listed in my shop due to oversized shipping  - just convo me :)

Happy Shopping!

Scrap That! Reveal and Blog hop

Welcome to the Scrap That! October "Bella Rosa" kit reveal and blog hop. If you have arrived from Shona's blog you are in the right place and this is your last stop today. This hop officially ends on Sunday at midnight MST. This kit features the Prima Romantique and Creative Imaginations (IOD) Ddevotion papers. OK, now let's dig right in to this reveal!

My first layout "That is Love" is of my two youngest last summer playing in the shade. I just LOVE these Prima papers! Only the background cardstock is from my stash on this, everything else was in the kit - including the new sweet pea border DA chipboard!

Here I made some flowers using the technique item Glubers and lace and added the Kaiser flowers are centres.

Design Tip: Simply use my no sew lace flower tutorial, minus the messy glue to make these flowers.

My second layout "caress" was taken on the day we brought my daughter home. Such a tender sibling moment. Again, I just LOVE these Prima papers and the gorgeous flowers in this kit. The background cardstock was from my stash and the doilies were featured in last month's kit. Isn't the Prima lace/bling divine?

Design Tip: Simply use two tones of green chalk ink on the chipboard for an easy vine (I cut mine in 3 pieces).

This was TCR palette I used as inspiration for this layout:

... and guess what? Thanks to Lori for letting me post it two days early, it got featured at TCR - chosen by Solange Marques (she's SOOO talented!)

For my last layout "Bubbles", I wanted to show that you can easily use this kit for a boy layout. I added dark orange cardstock and DA chipboard from my stash on this one, along with the berries in the middle of the flower. I just loved the Prima branch/vine in the kit, so perfect for a fall layout. This layout has a mix of the perfectly paired Prima and CI papers.

Design Tip: Make a distressed flower using my vintage style flower technique and flower punches/dies instead of circles - I used 3 large and 2 medium.

Here is the gorgeous kit sketch I used designed by our very own DT member Robin Shakoor.

Here is a peek at the kit (the DA border will be added to the kit too!):

Here is a peek at the yummy add-on:

**Remember, that there are THREE prizes to win, and THREE ways for you to enter.

1. First of all, you will need to visit all EIGHT blogs and leave a comment on each blog :) **This is important so we know you have been to all the blogs **.  (Please note:  Dusty Attic does not have a blog but just follow the link leave a comment on the forum thread in their community.)  Dusty Attic will choose a comment winner from their forum.

2. If you want to enter to win the Grand Prize of a Scrap That! Paper Crafting Kit, then head over to our NING COMMUNITY for details on our monthly challenge.  The challenge will run from Oct 10th to 24th, so you have LOTS of time to post your creations.  You can enter as many times as you like.  You do not need to be a subscriber to participate.  The more entries, the more chances you have to win!

3. Finally, if you post our blinkie on your blog you will be entered to win a Scrap That! Store Gift Certificate - super easy right?  Just post a link to your blog on the Scrap That! Blog so we can come visit :).


We hope you all had good fun hopping with us today, thank you so much for playing along!  Watch the Scrap That! newsletter on October 22nd to see if you are one of the lucky winners!


Blog rotation in case you got lost:
Scrap That! - http://scrapthatchat.blogspot.com

Dusty Attic - http://dustyattic.ning.com

Jeni O’Connor - http://jocmomentsoftime.blogspot.com

Karen- http://agirlsscrapobsession.blogspot.com

Lisa - http://kaye2222.blogspot.com

Robin - http://robinshakoor.blogspot.com

Shona - http://suchawonderfulmess.blogspot.com

Vicky - YOU ARE DONE!

3 WINNERS - Dusty Attic Chipboard

It's finally time to announce the 3 winners from my Dusty Attic Giveaway...

WINNER # 1 - Congrats to Theresa who won the Creative Scrappers draw (here is her entry http://scrappyartcrafters.blogspot.com/2011/09/lifes-full-of-happiness.html). This will be coming your way in the mail Theresa...

WINNER #2 - Congrats to Patricia Grace who won the random draw from my shop's September orders. This will be coming your way...

WINNER #3 - Congrats to follower Renee for the random blog candy draw:

 Renee VanEpps said...
Hi Vicky! My fave DA in your Etsy store is "Wrought Iron Decal DA0574" Thanks for another awesome giveaway, I shared on my blog @ http://luvthisscrap.blogspot.com/2011/09/vicky-from-simply-papers-blog-candy.html And I'm already a follower! Have a great day!!

Renee please e-mail me (vickya@shaw.ca) your address so I can send you this...

Thanks again to everyone for playing along with Creative Scrappers, ordering chipboard from my Etsy and for your continued support on my blog (your comments always overwhelm me!). To the three winners, enjoy the goodies and please share what you create - can't wait to see!

BTW - Halloween and Christmas chipboard should be arriving and listed in my shop in just over a week and I will be restocking too (only 20 listings in there right now - you guys bought it ALL last month, LOL!)

Scrap That! OCT Sneak

Please join us for our "Bella Rosa"kit reveal and blog hop starting on Friday. We have FOUR terrific prizes up for grabs this month and this kit is REALLY gorgeous (just as great as last month!). We also have an amazing guest designer - Jeni O'Connor, who is joining in the fun.

It all starts on Friday Oct. 7th at 10 am MST - see you then!

Christmas Display - Pion Design

I've been playing with more of the Waiting for Santa 2 collection from Pion Design. Seriously the best holiday paper collection in the last decade!

I ALWAYS have a layout displayed on my mantle so I decided to make a layout for display in December that perfectly matches my Christmas decor. So much complementary goodness on this layout - Dusty Attic chipboard from my Etsy shop (http://www.etsy.com/shop/vickyalberto), ZVA pearl flourishes, flowers, ribbon, doilies, and holiday berry cluster too! I just love that image of the little girl and her dog from one of the gorgeous papers.

I used a handmade Lily Flower from my tutorial and frosted the tips with diamond dust. Kinda looks like a pink poinsettia.

Here is a close-up of the cluster and you can see I used crackle paint and stickles on the chipboard.

Thanks for taking a peek! BTW - Halloween and Christmas Dusty Attic chipboard will be arriving soon :)

Be @ Home Feature

I was featured on Best of the Web: Be @ Home  - check it out here http://pocketchange.become.com/2011/09/best-of-the-web-be-home-42.html. The post was last week but I was so sick, I've just gotten around to posting this now. Every Wednesday they post featured bloggers, and last week was an amalgamation of art, crafts, DIY's and food. They also have great top ten lists, check this one out... Top Ten Rainy Day Crafts.

Thank you Kim for contacting me for this fabulous feature!

Green Tara Design Team

Ribbons and flowers and lace - oh my! I was thrilled to receive notice this week that I made the Green Tara DT. Have you seen their new gingham frills, organza twisted pearl strands, gardenia and aster flowers? GORGEOUS! They even make silk flowers with crystals, paper roses... and did I mention every shade of mulberry paper imaginable? Oh yeah - scrappy heaven! Looking forward to playing with some of my favorite things. Take a peek...

Congratulations to the other ladies who made the "green team" too, can't wait to work with you!

Amanda Kitchen - Australia

Geraldine Pasinati - Australia

Mistra Hoolahan - Australia

Tina Dalton - Australia

JJ Sobey - Canada

Adore

I decided to play along with the September Prima BAP sketch challenge and the Let's Get Shabby challenge #27. The papers are from Prima's Shabby Chic and Nursery Tales collections and all the flowers and bling are Prima too! The Dusty Attic chipboard is from my shop.

For this layout I also drew on inspiration from this image from http://www.etsy.com/shop/TallulahBelles - the sponsor this month for the Let's Get Shabby Challenge. Kris' gorgeous selection of hand-dyed doilies is called Paris Blooms Vintage. I was most inspired by the colors and texture and tried to capture the vintage/shabby essence of these beautiful doilies on my layout (I want these sooooo bad!).

Here is the beautiful sketch I used.

Thanks for stopping by again this week!

Hope - Pion Design

I had a little bit of extra time on the weekend to scrap so I decided to give TCR palette #75 a go with my Pion Design papers. The Dusty Attic is also having a style challenge until September 18th and I gave Maiko Kosugi's flower clustering style a try on this page too!

I really adore the Studio of Memories collection - perfect colors for both genders. This is a photo of my daughter as a newborn. After two boys it was our greatest HOPE that we would have a girl to complete our family. I paired the papers with some doilies, a chipboard frame from my shop (http://www.etsy.com/shop/vickyalberto) and tons of flowers.

Here is the gorgeous palette I used as inspiration from The Color Room challenge site. Love these colors!

Thanks for stopping by today! I'm really having fun participating in so many challenges this month. Stay tuned for one or two more!

Dec 10, 2006 Layout

I was so inspired by the new Pion Design Waiting for Santa 2 papers and the Once Upon A Sketch site I discovered, that I decided to give the current challenge a go.

These are my sons at the age of 1 and 3 sitting on Santa's lap together for the first time. The photo was a perfect match for the paper colors. The journaling behind the largest postcard tag reads:

"You were so nervous to sit on Santa's lap, not only because you were in awe of him... but you were also a little uncertain if you were on his naughty or nice list after the sibling squabble that Saturday morning. Christmas morning was sheer delight to see he had listened to your wishes and you both were on his good list that year"

Here is the wonderful sketch I used.

Thanks for stopping by!

A non-layout

I just love this Bo Bunny paper from the Scrap That! Somewhere in Time - August kit. I wanted to create a simple "non layout" and more of a scene to be displayed as artwork for my den. I used a heap of Dusty Attic chipboard from my Etsy shop, gorgeous Prima flowers and vines, plus the Prima September palette as inspiration.

 I used this Prima September palette as inspiration.

Here is a close-up of half the package of DA French Window with a Pion Design image from one of their gorgeous vintage image sheets.

Here is a close-up of the pretty flowers.

Thanks for stopping by and don't forget to enter my Dusty Attic chipboard giveaway!

Pion Design and 3 challenges!

I received my Pion Design "Waiting for Santa" 2 papers last week and online surfing noticed a whole bunch of terrific challenges so I decided to give a few a go - all at the same time LOL (see details below). This layout "memories"is of my boys as toddler/pre-schoolers. Let me just say that this Christmas collection is THE BEST since Cosmo Cricket's "Be Good" one (that I am still hoarding since I only have one sheet of each :)

Here is a close up of the Dusty Attic holly flourish from my Etsy shop http://www.etsy.com/shop/vickyalberto

Here is a close-up of the Prima flowers and the lacing. The holly under the title chippie was actually cut from the longer flourish near the photo.

This is TCR palette I used for color inspiration. I think it was fate that this was released 2 days after I received my DT papers.

This the the Dusty Attic sketch I used for layout inspiration. I just flipped the sketch.

This is the "Let's get Shabby"blog challenge #27 image I used (from http://www.etsy.com/shop/TallulahBelles) for texture inspiration. Since doilies weren't going to work on this layout, I used burlap in the same tan tone and used white ribbon and a winter white snowy picture. Here is a link to the image (http://img1.etsystatic.com/il_fullxfull.265692949.jpg - Snow White Vintage White and Cream Doilies to Delight).

I have to say, I am pretty happy that I managed to cram 3 challenges onto one layout that I did for DT work too!

Don't forget to enter my giveaway!