Create the Dream | Jackie Ashton | Vertical Design

Hi Crafters,

Jackie here, with March theme - design a vertical layout.

For my layout, I decided to have my vertical detail in the centre of the page, and keep everything within the main column.

I added some extra details to the white cardstock by using a stencil and stamps from my stash.

I machined stitched the piece of patterned paper down the center on my cardstock. 

I added 3D foam to my photograph and added several patterned papers behind it.

Finishing the layout with word stickers and chipboard stickers

Please join us on our Facebook page, and share your layouts with us, we would love to see them.

Thanks for stopping by

Till next time

Happy scrapping

Chatsworth Selfies | Jackie Ashton | Hidden photos/Journalling

Hi Scrappers, Merry Christmas to you all - I really doubt anyone will be tearing themselves away from family and friends today (25th) to read this, so I hope you have had a great day celebrating this season and got loads of lovely goodies including craft supplies.

The theme this month is hidden photos / journalling so I’ve done a combination for my layout, adding a vellum envelope to my page with tags which includes photos and journalling.

Chatsworth Selfies - Joy 

I recently visited Chatsworth which was all decorated for Christmas, and I took the opportunity to take a few selfies as we walked around.

As it Christmas I used the lovely Crate Paper - Snowflake collection.

After deciding where I was going to add my patterned papers.  I added some splatters of ink and stamping to the cardstock.  I tore one edge of the patterned papers and adding them to the cardstock, before adding my photograph to the left hand side of the page.

For my hidden journalling I added a vellum envelope to the right side of the page, and die cuts 4 tags large from white cardstock and one vellum tag the same size, and 3 small tags from patterned papers that I added between each of the large ones.

I attached the vellum tag, to the top of the stack of tags and added some word phases and a chipboard shape.

For each of the large tags I added a piece of patterned paper the the  bottom of each tag, with a piece of glitter paper at the top.

Underneath each photograph I added some colours thread on top of a punched vellum circle and added some puffy accents to each large tag.

For the small tags, I added some small chipboard pieces to each.

For the final tag I add my typed journalling and assembled the tags using some twine to hold it together.

I added embellishments to the front of the vellum envelope and added my title between my photograph and the vellum envelope.

We would love you to share your layouts over on our Facebook page.

Till next time

Happy scrapping and a Happy New Year

See you in 2020

4th July | Jackie Ashton | Sketch

Hi Scrappers, Jackie here with my take on the sketch the team is using this month.  I love working with a sketch, whether it is to follow the layout exactly or to have one as a starting point, I think a sketch is so versatile and can be easily adapted to whatever size of layout you want to scrap.

I decided to do a 9x12 layouts for this month, and used a few of the photographs from 4th July celebrations in New York.

4th July Fireworks

I wanted to keep to the sketch as best I could, so kept everything to the left hand side of the page.  

I started by stamping some firework style designs onto the background in blue and overlapped with a few red star, adding a few splatters of blue ink over it all.

Then I die-cut stars in different sizes, which I added down the page, and added some 3D foam to a few to give them added dimension.

I backed the acrylic word onto some striped paper, and added 3D form to raise it above the two photographs.

I finished the layouts with some puffy alphabets and stars.

I have really enjoyed working with this sketch and changing the design to a 9x12 and not my normal 12x12 format.

Don’t forget to share your layouts using this sketch over on our Facebook group (here), we would love to see them.

Till next time 

Happy Scrapping

Looking Fabulous | Jackie Ashton | Mixed Media

Hi scrappers, Jackie here with my layout for this month theme - mixed media.  

When people think of mixed-media it either scares them, as they think that they need to add all sort of colours and textures to the pages to get a result, that is just ‘not them’, or they love it and use the ‘more is more’ approach.  I’m on the fence with this - I love the look of ‘adding it all’ but find it hard to do it myself for my own pages, so I prefer to stay true to my style of scrapbooking, and add it, but in my way. 

I started by adding blue distress oxide ink to the background along with a few splatter, then I added some texture paste through a stencil and added red ink using a different stencil with stamped details over the top.

Most of this as ended up being covered over, but I’m ok with that as you can still see the details around the outside of the photographs.

For my title, I used a large puffy word as part of the title, which I was able to fit around my journalling label, without it taking over the whole page.

So adding mixed media to your layouts doesn’t have to be a masterpiece with colours in all directions, it can be something as simple as adding texture paste using a stencil, stamping designs on the background, or even adding some machine stitching to add interest  to your layout.  So why not, give it a try, if the ‘more is more’ approach is for you - then do it, if not try adding different textures to your background that is more your style and something that you are comfortable doing, I’m sure you will be pleasantly surprised at the results.

Don’t forget to share your layouts over on our Facebook page, we would love to see them.

Till next time

Friends | Jackie Ashton | Fussy Cutting

Hi scrappers, Jackie here with my layout this month using fussy cutting.

Im not a big fan of fussy cutting, but I always love seeing this technique on other layouts.  So when I sat down and started to cut out the flowers, I found the process came together really quickly, and I love the end result.

Friends ...

For my layout I used a lovely sheet of patterned paper from Maggie Holmes - Sunny Days collection, and cut out several of the flowers.  

I also used this patterned paper also from the same collection, to cut out some of the butterflies.

I started my layout by adding ink to my white cardstock. and added some stamped details over the inked area.

Then I added a few different sheets of patterned paper behind my photograph, which I added to the centre of the page and then arranged the fussy cut flowers and butterflies around the photograph, adding 3D foam under some of the flowers to give them some depth on my page.

To finish the page I added two torn strips of patterned paper to the bottom of my page, and added a small cluster of the cut flowers and a butterfly to this areas.

I hope you can join us this month and give fussy cutting a try, and share your layouts in our Facebook group, or tag is on on Instagram, we would love to see them.

Thanks for stopping by, till next time.

Happy scrapping

Night Time Sparkle / Jackie Ashton / Sequins

Hi crafters, Jackie here with my take on this months challenge - Sequins and Glitter.

For this month my layout is very minimalistic for me.

Night Time Sparkle

The photograph is of the first time I saw the Eiffel Tower - not only at night, but it was on the hour and it was sparkling - the photographs didn’t capture the actual sparkle, as it was over very quickly - but I managed to get the spot light beaming from the top.

I wanted the background paper to be slightly distressed, so added a thin layer of white gesso and added some squeezed lemonade oxide ink over the top using the packaging technique.

I added some sequins to thread, which I criss-crossed on the page, adding a few sequins to each thread.

I printed 2 copies of my photographs and added 3D foam to them, adding a die cut frame, which I cut in half to the edges of the photograph and added 2 label under my photographs to add some journalling.

For the title I used some mini alphabets from my stash and the ‘sparkle’ word is from PinkFresh Studio Joyful Day collection.

Don’t forget to share your layouts over on our Facebook page, we would love them using months challenge.

Thats all from me this month, till next time.

Happy scrapping

Disney Selfies / Jackie Ashton / Small Photos

Hi scrappers, Jackie here, with my layout for this month theme ‘using small photographs’ - something that I love to do if I have a few of the same theme of photographs.

I decided for this months layout I would used a selection of selfies from my last visit to Disneyland Paris earlier this year.

The collection I used is Echo Park - Wish Upon a Star collection, which is a non-Disney collection  but the colours, phases, ephemera, die cuts, chipboard etc all work well with Disney photographs.

I used a patterned paper as my background and added a strip of patterned paper down the left hand side.  Added a punched border strip, and a ‘star’ border sticker down the opposite side.

I printed off a few selfies photographs, which are approximately 2.75 inch square and then decided which ones to use on my layout.  I ended up with 6 cascading down the page and added some 3D foam to a few of them to given a bit of dimension to the page.

I kept my embellishments simple and using stickers, chipboard, enamel dots from 'Wish Upon a Star' collection and a  few punched Mickey head in black cardstock, and added some  mouse wood veneer which I purchased from Pretty My Page, which are just so cute and perfect for my page.

For my title I used two different set of Thickers from my stash and added some wood veneer chevrons.

This layouts came together quickly and it is a great way to add loads of photographs to one 12x12 page.

Don’t forget to share your layouts over on our Facebook page, we would love to see them.

Till next time ....

Carpe Diem / Jackie Ashton / 6x6 Pads

Hi UK Scrappers,

I don’t know about you, but I love getting 6x6 pads with the collections, I tend to use them to layer behind my photographs or to die cut, but then I do end up with either bits cut out of a sheet, or an irregular piece that I don’t know what to do with it. As this months theme is to use 6x6 pads, I decided that not to do my usual thing with them, but to make a ‘messy’ jumble of papers as a background to my photograph.

Carpe Diem ...

I used the Crate Paper - Good Vibes collection, and randomly choose several sheets of patterned paper, distressed the edges and added to my cardstock - which I had previously added some distressed ink using the packaging technique to the background and stamped a few word phases over the ink.

I mounted my photograph on to some patterned paper, and placed this over the top of the messy pile of papers.

I finished the layouts with chipboard pieces, stickers and die-cuts from the collection.   As the photographs was taken in Disney I punched some ‘mickey heads’ in patterned paper, and added three clusters to my page.  

I also added some cute ‘mickey head’ wood veneer.

For the title I used two perspextives from Bramble Fox.

How do you use your 6x6 pads? please share with us what you do, we would love to see them on our Facebook group.

Till next time ...