SFTIO Featured On The Lily Bee Blog Today!!!!

Hey guys! Happy Friday!!! SFTIO is being featured on the Lily Bee Design blog today!!!! AND they are giving away one of the 'Courage' kits from SFTIO!!! That is an awesome prize! Remember all the pix I posted last week??!!! Yep, that's the kit they are giving away!!! Check it out HERE.

Happy Scrappin'!

Happy Fall Yall

Hi everyone! I know, what is Aymee thinking....a fall card in the middle of the summer?! LOL. Well, I was working on things to submit for publication and decided to make a card too. So I put a new spin on an idea I had back in the day. I think I had been scrapbooking maybe about 6 months before I talked my hubby into buying me a Cricut machine. After he did, I knew I had to have the Home Accents cart and this 'caramel apple' is one of the first things I had to make. I had the idea in my head for some time, but wasn't sure how to make it on my own. Thank goodness for the Cricut machine, right?! Love that thing! So anyways, I used my Cricut to cut this apple out. I then cut the apple out again on the 'blackout' function and cut it in half. After cutting in half, I used my Martha Stewart drippy goo punch to make the 'caramel' look like it was dripping down the apple. I then added a stick made out of raffia and tied the whole thing up with some leftover clear wrapping that I had. Last, I tied it all together with a bow and added a price tag. After I finished the apple, I created a simple easel card (yall know they are my fave...hope you aren't getting tired of looking at them...tee hee) to mount it on. I used the Helmar Quick Fix Adhesive Runner to adhere all of my paper and I used Helmar Liquid Scrap Dots to adhere the apple....believe me, the apple is not going anywhere! It is solid as a rock...gotta love Helmar! I also incorporated a bit of stitching, embossing, the use of a punch, and rhinestones into my card. The sentiment is rub on's from American Crafts. Here it is....Happy Fall Yall! (Click on the pic to make it bigger if ya want)

My apple
Love to add some bling!

Well, that is all for me today. I hope yall have a fabulous day!! Thanks for stoppin' by and Happy Scrappin'!!!!

***KIT GIVEAWAY ON THE GCD STUDIOS BLOG TODAY!!!!!***

Hey guys! I wanted to let you know to hop on over to the GCD Studios blog today because they are giving away a SFTIO kit!!!!! Go HERE to check it out! Good luck!!!!!!

I have a new layout going up today too and it is below this post if you are interested. Now, I'm off to run some errands. Brandon and I decided to drive down to Bama to visit our families for the weekend. It will be a short trip, but we are super excited! So if I go quiet this weekend, that is where I am. So yall have a fabulous rest of the week and weekend! Big hugs and Happy Scrappin'!

Trim The Tree

Good Morning!!! I wanted to take a minute to blog this morning. I have been working on some fall and winter themed pages in order to submit to publications and wanted to share one with you today. For this page, I used a combination of My Mind's Eye papers. I punched the edge of the cream colored paper using a Martha Stewart Punch Around the Page set....a new toy, which I adore!!! I also brought in some embossing using my Cuttlebug, alphabet stickers from American Cafts and Making Memories, pearls from Queen & Co, and a cute little Christmas tree cut with my Cricut die cutting machine. Oooh, and I stitched on this page some and added some buttons. This layout was inspired by a sketch I found online. Now, I am not completly postivive, but I think it was from Scrapsketch. Here is my page..."Trim The Tree."

Thanks for dropping by my blog today! Have a marvelous day and Happy Scrappin'!

Fall Fun

Hey guys! How are ya doing today? I hope each of you are enjoying a wonderful day so far! I have a layout to share with you today. This layout is title 'Fall Fun.' This is my Daddy and Carter out enjoying the fall weather a few years ago. I used my Cricut and SCAL Software to cut the shaped paper on this page, as well as the banner. These papers are from My Mind's Eye. The alphabet stickers are American Craft Thickers. The calendar die cut is from Jenni Bowlin and the ribbon is from Hobby Lobby. I used the Helmar Quick Fix Adhesive Runner to adhere all the paper, Helmar Liquid Scrap Dots to secure my ribbon bows, and Helmar Zap Dots to pop up my banner pieces.

Thanks for stopping by! Yall have a fabulous rest of the day! Happy Scrappin'!

SFTIO Design Team Reveal #5

Hey guys! Happy Monday! Today, I have the last of my Scrapbooking From The Inside Out July DT layouts to share with you. If you didn't catch my first post, go HERE to read the scoop on SFTIO. As you already know, this months theme is courage. This last page was probably my favorite to scrap because it was a page about my hero....my husband, Brandon. He is everything to me and I hope he will like this page. All that you see on the page, with the exception of the die cut card, is from the kit. I used the Helmar Quick Fix Adhesive Runner to adhere all the paper, Helmar Liquid Scrap Dots to adhere the flower, and Helmar Zap Dots to pop up the chipboard stars. I also used a Martha Stewart punch on this one. Here is my page...'Gallant'

The journaling reads....."When I think of my charming husband, the first word I think of is gallant! He is audacious, bold, and totally courageous!! He is not afraid of anything and is truly my hero! He is so attentive and respectful towards not only me, but ever woman! I just adore how chivalrous he is! I fall in love with him all over again any time he looks in my eyes! So I would like to say to my darling...Thank You! You are truly an inspiration! I love you!"

I hope you have enjoyed all of these 'courage' based pages and that they have inspired you to scrap about what courage means to you!

As always, thanks for stoppin' by! Have a beautiful day and Happy Scrappin'!!!

Just Be

Hey yall! I just wanted to hop on right quick to let you know I have a new post going up on the Helmar Blog today featuring these awesome adhesives....

Here is my page that I created and if you would like to read more about it, go HERE.
Hope you are enjoying your holiday! Take care! Happy Scrappin'!

SFTIO Design Team Reveal #4

Happy 4th of July everyone!!!! LOL...I'm sharing my 'fourth' SFTIO DT Reveal on the 'fourth' of July! It worked out perfect! Tee Hee! Anywho, I hope you all are having a magnificent holiday with your friends and family. I'm not sure if Brandon and I will do much of anything since all of our family is 800 miles away. We may go see fireworks tonite, but that is all. So yall have fun for me! :)

Here is my next layout using the 'Courage' July kit from Scrapbooking From The Inside Out. If you did not catch my first post on SFTIO, go HERE, to get the info on that. I just love all the papers in this kit. They are all so festive! All that you see is from the kit. I used Helmar adhesives for the entire page as well. I used the Quick Fix Adhesive Runner for the papers and Helmar Zap Dots to pop up my stars. This is a pretty simple page, but was fun to create!!!

I found this pic online and opened it up in Adobe Photoshop to add one of my favorite quotes about courage.

Okie dokie, that's all for me today. I have one last 'courage' layout for you tomorrow, so be sure to check back if ya can! Thanks guys!

Happy Scrappin'! AND Happy 4th of July! God Bless America!!!!

SFTIO Design Team Reveal #3

Hey yall! I hope you are having a great weekend! I wanted to take a minute to blog and share my 'Scrapbooking From The Inside Out' DT layout #3. As you may know from the posts below, this months kit is based on 'Courage.' If you missed my first post about SFTIO, you may read that HERE.This layout was a hard one for me to do. The layout is about my father. He was diagnosed with cancer a few months ago and has started radiation therapy. I created this page on day one of his treatments. All papers and embellishments were from the July SFTIO kit. I also incorporated some stitching, red dotted ribbon, and added the brown alphas, all from my own scrappy stash. I used a Martha Stewart border punch for the punched edge. I used Helmar adhesives to glue everything down....yall know I adore my Helmar glues!!!! Here is my page...."Hear My Prayer"
The journaling reads: "Please, I beg of you, please hear my prayer!! Daddy begins his radiation treatments today! Please give him the courage he needs to endure these next few weeks!!! I know it is such a difficult thing and give him strength! Let him know that we are all here for him!!!"
Thank you for stoppin' by today! Enjoy this beautiful weekend!
Happy Scrappin'!

Just a bit of a sneaky peeky....

Howdy again yall! Two blog posts in one day...I'm doing pretty good today! LOL. Now, I have to tell you I worked my little booty off for two straight weeks working on all of the SFTIO DT work, Scrapstreet DT work, getting ready to send in stuff for submissions, etc. I worked from the time I got up until I went to bed. I was literally exhausted when I finished up all my work. It was fun, but tiresome at the same time. But I just had to post a little sneeky peek on some layouts I worked on for Scrapstreet. Now, I can't show you the whole thing since it will debut in the September issue of Scrapstreet (in the Showcase section), but I wanted to share a peek.

Layout #1

Layout #2

If ya wanna see the full reveal, keep your eyes peeled on the Scrapstreet mag. The mag. debuts a new issue on the first of each month. I always go and check it during the first week of the month....some awesome inspiration!!!!

Have a great afternoon! Happy Scrappin'!

SFTIO Design Team Reveal #2

Hey guys! TGIF! I am so glad it's Friday!!! Woot Woot! Today I wanted to share my second layout for 'Scrapbooking From The Inside Out' with you. If you did not read yesterday's post, you may want to scroll down a bit and check that out to see all about SFTIO.

This month, we are scrapping about 'courage.' Well, when I first sat down and started thinking about courage, one of the first things that popped into my mind was all of our brave men and women who are serving their country overseas. So I knew I wanted to scrap a page to express my gratitude to each and every one one of them. I started out with a base of some 'Whitewash' Core'dinations cardstock. I stamped on several stars to create my own patterned background. I then added a strip of embossed Core'dinations cardstock that I had sanded and cut out. I added some rhinestones to the center of a few of the stars for some added interest. I also incorporated some flowers from the kit and some alphas from my own scrappy stash. Last, I found a poem online and wrote it down on the journaling strips. Here is my page...'Home of the Brave.'

This poems reads:

"Courage is doing what is right without having to be told. Courage is manning up when you know you've done something wrong. Courage is having fear but still staying strong. Courage is facing adversity, but being able to over come it. Courage is leaving your family behind to defend the country you love. Courage is being a soldier. Thank you for this courage that lets us live free! May God bless you and come home safe to your family! -James Elston"

Thanks for stoppin' in today! I will have another layout to share with ya tomorrow! Yall have a fabulous day and take care!

Happy Scrappin'!!!

It's Reveal Day for 'Scrapbooking From The Inside Out!!!!!'

Happy Thursday to all of your fabulous crafters out there!!! I hope you are having a spectacular day! Are we ready for a long weekend?!! Whoo hooo! I know I am! Well, have I got the thing to start off this patriotic weekend with....the reveal of the July kit from Scrapbooking From The Inside Out!!!!

Now, I want to back up a bit....as you may remember, a few weeks ago I had shared the news of a new design team...well this is it. Scrapbooking From The Inside Out, or SFTIO, is all about scrapping your emotional life-using color, design, and journaling to create pages and projects that explore your inner world. It is a wonderful source of what is known as 'scrappy therapy.' This form of scrapbooking is really starting to take the scrappy world by storm and I think it's just great!!!! I'm starting to see these types of pages on every site I visit and I am always drawn to them. Now, if you are not an emotional scrapper, that is ok too, the kits still provide some of the best mix of papers, embellishments, etc. out there. I have to say that these are some of the BEST kits I have ever worked with!!!! Each kit is themed on a certain emotion. For example, this months emotion is 'Courage.' This kit is filled with all sorts of yummy papers in yellows, reds, blues, creams, browns, and white. It is just luscious!!!! It also has some of the most gorgeous flowers, alphabet stickers, buttons, stamp, a wax seal, and other various embellishments!!! I wanted to share some pix with ya so you can see what I mean...now this is a bit pic heavy, but I wanted to show you every detail....

July 2010-"Courage"

Aren't those vintage buttons yummy???!!!!!

There is a mix of chipboard and felt stars....

These resin wings from Melissa Francis are to die for!!!!

Some Core'dinations cardstock goodies...including 2 embossed sheets.

Now, it's time for me to share my design team layouts with you. I have created 5 and will share one today and the rest over the next 4 days. Of course, several of these SFTIO layouts will be a bit more personal than what I am accustomed to posting, but I am ready to share more of my thoughts and feelings with the rest of the world. This first layout hits a really touchy subject with me....trying to conceive our first child. As many may know, this road has not been easy for Brandon and I. I won't go in to details, but just know that having babies is not easy for all of us out there. It is a tough and emotionally draining road, but we have faith and whatever will be, will be. I think for me, the idea of becoming a mother has almost been a mission. It seems to be all I ever think about. I focus so hard on achieving that one goal that I have been denied and it has been so hard on me. There are days when I want to throw my hands up at the whole thing and quit. There are days when I cry. There are days when I want to scream at the top of my lungs. There are days when the thoughts send me into depression. But scrapbooking these feelings has helped me out tremendously. With this page, I make a vow to not stress over it any more. I cannot change what will or will not be. I'm just going to forget it and see what happens. Here is my page...."Set Free"

Oh, a little about the page. I started out with a base of embossed Core'dinations cardstock and lightly sanded the edges for a bordered effect. I then simply layered patterned papers in a pleasing pattern. For the blue circle, I cut a circle out of some Core'dinations cardstock, wrinkled it up several times, and then sanded. I love the distressed feel this gives to my page. I also incorporated a bit of stitching. I adhered all of my paper with the Helmar Quick Fix Adhesive Runner. I used Helmar 450 Quick Dry for my ribbon and Helmar Liquid Scrap Dots for my wings, buttons, and flowers.

Of course, the major portion of SFTIO is journaling, so I want to share that to. I will type it here in case you cannot read it:

"I can't begin to tell you how many of these I have stared at as tears steam down my face....negative pregnancy tests! So I make it my goal to have a baby. It's always on my mind and to be frank, I think I'm trying too hard! I'm stressing so much over something I can't really control. So today, I will set myself free! I will muster the courage to get over it and relax! I'm going to have to dig deep inside, but I know that courage is there and I will get my life back!"

Ahhhh! I can't tell you how empowered I feel today! I feel more brave than I ever have! It is such a wonderful feeling not to hide what I'm thinking and to be able to have the courage to stand up and say it, well, it's just fabulous! I am planning to put all of these layouts in a special album for me. I want to keep it for me always as a reminder of what I was feeling at a particular point in my life. I hope this will inspire you to scrap any emotions you might be having. Scrap about courage and what it means to you. Again, if you are not this type of scrapper, I hope you can gleam some inspiration from the design of this layout or the colors, anything really.

Now, if you are into this style of scrapping, I highly recommend that you hop on over to the gallery at SFTIO. My fellow DT sisters have done a phenomenal job with this kit! There is so much to see! Go HERE if you would like to check that out! I promise you WILL BE inspired!!!

I hope all of you have a fabulous weekend! Be sure to check back to see my other reveals if ya want! Yall have a safe, wonderful 4th of July!

And as always, thank you for taking the time to stop by my blog! Happy Scrappin'!!!!!

PS!!!! I almost forgot! Today is the first! I have a new article going up in the July issue of Scrapstreet!!! Go HERE to check it out if ya want! While you are there, check out the whole issue...it is super yummy!!!!!

My Big Brother Is Turning 28!!!

Hey yall! Happy Tuesday to ya! I wanted to take a minute to share a card I created yesterday with ya. I created this for a Helmar DT blog post. Our preferred partners for the week are My Stamp Box, Elle's Studio, and Upsy Daisy Designs. I had so much fun working with all of these products!

Here is my card for my brother. I used the Helmar Quick Fix Adhesive Runner for adhering all of my paper, Helmar 450 Quick Dry Adhesive to adhere my brown trim, and Helmar Liquid Scrap Dots to pop up my flower. I also pulled out my Martha Stewart punch around the page set to cut the shaped paper. This is a new toy and I love it!!! I also incorporated a bit of embossing and rhinestones. The patterned paper is from Upsy Daisy designs. The stamped image is from My Stamp Box and the die cut cards are from Elle's Studio. I just love anything Elle's Studio! It is always super duper cute!!!!

Just a little up close shot...

Thanks for stoppin' by today! Yall have a fabulous day and take care of yourselves!

Happy Scrappin'!

Celebrating the 4th at The Cuttlebug Spot

Hi everyone! Happy Monday! Enjoying a good day so far? I hope so! As for me, doing great with no plans except scrappin'. But first, I wanted to blog about our challenge this week at The Cuttlebug Spot. This week we are celebrating the 4th of July. Well, I knew when I saw this challenge what I wanted to do. I was inspired last week by one of my fellow Helmar DT Members, Cathy. She created this gorgeous card, which you can view HERE. Isn't it so festive and lovely?! Leave her some luv if ya want.

Here is my card that was inspired by Cathy....of course, another easel card, my fave! Giggle! I started with some Coredinations cardstock for the blue portion of the flag. I embossed it with the 'Stars' embossing folder. I then sanded over it so that the embossing would show up a bit better. Next, I took strips of red and white cardstock and tore one edge of each. I embossed the red strips with the 'Victoria' embossing folder and the white strips with the 'Swiss Dots' embossing folder. I adhered all of that using the Helmar Quick Fix Adhesive Runner. I then created some lollipop flowers with leftover Coredinations cardstock and patterned paper. I made the brads for each center with my Imaginisce I-Top brad maker tool. I popped these up a tad for dimension using Helmar Liquid Scrap Dots. Next, I added some patriotic themed paper to the inside and buttons to keep the card open. I adhered the buttons with Helmar 450 Quick Dry. Last, I pulled out my Imaginisce I-Rock tool and used it to add the silver metal studs to the card. I am totally loving this new tool! It is just neato!!

Here is a close up of the flowers....

If you can, hop on over to The Cuttlebug Spot this week to check out the other DT's creations. I am sure you will be inspired!!!

I hope you all have a fabulous week and Happy 4th of July!!!! Happy Scrappin'!

God Bless America!!!

Havin' A Blast

Hey guys! TGIF!!! Are we ready for the weekend?! Oh yeah! I know I am! I am not sure if Brandon and I are doing anything, but the weekend is always so fun! I hope we can at least go on a 'date' before buying groceries. Fun, fun, right?! LOL. I have a card that I created this week that I wanted to share with you today. This is another easel card....yall know how I love 'em! Just in case too, HERE is the link to a tutorial on creating easel cards. These are so easy and super fun to make! All of these patterned papers and embellishments are from Fancy Pants Designs. I believe the line is called 'Rusted Sun.'

Up close shot of the ribbon, ball fringe, and buttons. I adhered these embellishments with Helmar 450 Quick Dry. I used the Helmar Quick Fix Adhesive Runner for the rest of the card.

Yall have a fabulous weekend!

Thanks for stopping by my blog! Happy Scrappin'!!!