Inspiration Sunday - May 27

Alright, scrappin' babes. I got quite a bit to share with you this fine Sunday, so let's get started.

First, Jen Lemen's blog, which I discovered this week, I don't remember how. I love the photos and the words, and the whole tone of it, too.

Posie Gets Cozy is another blog I discovered, so full of breathtaking images, I feel nourished just looking.

Vintage Street Market is a nifty site with lots of vintage treasures. Talk about inspiration! I’m inspired to break out the credit card.

This post at Van Laar Designs demonstrates a very cool technique for making watercolor paper flowers. I love the colors.

And here is a great tutorial on creating hand embroidered tags. So cute, and I have been thinking of making some of these myself.

I've also been inspiring myself with plans for 30 in 30 Scrapbooking, which is getting off the ground in just a few days. Starting on June 1st, it's going to be scrapbooking central at LaLa's house. I'm assembling photos, jotting some journaling, thinking about supplies I want to use. I feel the engines revving for a whole lot of creativity.

If you're looking for a great way to get lots of scrappin' done in the month of June, check out the details on this post and take the plunge with me.

Inspiration Sunday - May 20th

Just two things to share today.

Alexandra at Art, Scrap and More made adorable little flags with washi tape. I'm thinking cupcakes could be adorned with those, or even scrapbook pages. Neat idea!

Becky at One Scrappin' Mama created this lovely page, and hey, are those flags that could be made out of washi tape? ;)

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In other news, stay tuned for an announcement of a fun project coming up in June. I'm pretty excited...

Inspiration Sunday - May 13

First on the list, this project by Elise Blaha. I love learning new techniques, and this one is way cool. I make mini books, so I could definitely do something similar, but I think it could work for a title block on a scrapbook page, or even for a greeting on a card.

Next, Shimelle Laine created this video for the National Scrapbooking Day event at Two Peas in a Bucket, and there's miles to go before the inspiration runs out. I'm thinking it might be fun to try what Shimelle did in the video, either gathering my own supplies from my stash into a kit, or using my next Cocoa Daisy kit and seeing how many pages/layouts I can create with just those supplies.

And last, I was infused with lots of inspiration attending the Mega Meet convention yesterday. My friend Hope finally got to go, and we had such a good time together, looking at all the wonderful things for sale on the show floor. People are so innovative, so creative, and it just makes my heart happy to walk around absorbing all that inspiring goodness. I bought three stamp sets from Stamps of Life and got to meet Stephanie Barnard and her husband. I scored a bunch of pearls and gems from the Queen and Co. booth, and in another booth, I grabbed a sampler pack of embossed paper that I can't wait to tear into and play with. Oh, the inking possibilities! (Of course, I'll be sure to share my projects in future posts.)

Inspiration Sunday - May 6

For National Scrapbooking Day, Two Peas in a Bucket posted some challenges to their blog that definitely inspire me. I just haven't had the chance to work on them just yet. Take a look right here. There are prizes to be had, and we've got a whole week to get our layouts posted. Thankfully!

Another thing inspiring me right now is Echo Park Paper. So many incredibly creative and versatile collections with so many yummy patterned papers. I've bought two collection packs within the past week or so. A Boy's Life is for photos of Daniel and the nephew, and Hello Summer is for so many different projects, perhaps even my 12 Days of Summer mini-book coming up in June. I'm still using the Country Drive collection, probably my favorite ever, and last week, I used that new summer collection, as well as the Victoria Gardens collection on pages. Almost every collection is right up my alley, and I've noticed that I have very few leftovers of any EP collection. I tend to use up every delicious bite.

Cocoa Daisy Kits have also been inspiring me lately. I spent some time yesterday matching up papers and embellishments from the March and April kits with photos I want to scrapbook. The May kit will be in my hot little hands soon, too. Check it out here. I can't wait to see what goodies will dazzle me in the June kit!

What's inspiring you?

Inspiration Sunday - April 29

First up, I love this adorable heart garland from Francine Clouden. I imagine other shapes might be cute, too, like stars, especially if they're colored yellow.

This post just made me long to wander Paris even more than I already did! The photos are beautiful. I'm going to take my own someday. I'm determined!

This past week, I rediscovered Scraptime after listening to an episode of Paperclipping Roundtable with the host, Christine, who creates videos demonstrating a variety of paper-crafting products and techniques. Check out her blog, with all the videos, right here.

What's really inspired my creativity directly since I bought them on Thursday...

...the new special edition inks by Tim Holtz. I'll have photos of a project or two I created with these posted soon.

Inspiration Sunday - April 22

What a whirlwind of scrapping productivity I had last week. Wow! Those challenges at Shimelle Laine's blog for the scrapbooking weekend, which turned out to be an entire week for me, really got my creative engines running.

Inspiration galore!

So, the first thing I want to share for Inspiration Sunday is the challenge that inspired me most.

That's the page I created in response to challenge number 3: mix your style with a look you haven't tried. I loved all the challenges, and I like all the pages I made for them, but this one stretched my creative comfort zone, and I think doing that makes me a better artist.

Another thing that really inspired me this past week was a blog post by Elise Blaha. I so often skim blog posts, but this one I read carefully, and I'm glad I did. What are the ways that you stay inspired? I'd sure love it if you posted a comment to share.

There's a new sketch site in the UK that I discovered in the past couple of days, Sketchbook 365 by Scrap 365. There's one nifty sketch posted there already that I think I'll take for a spin, see what I can do with it. I really dig sketches that provide dimensions.

What's inspiring you these days?

Inspiration Sunday - April 15

Last weekend, the cold virus that was flirting with me finally settled in for a three-four day romance, so my energy and inspiration levels were in a lull most of the week.

Until Friday, when Shimelle Laine's Scrapbooking Weekend started and a whirlwind of inspiration with it. The challenges really got my creative engines up to cruising speed, so be sure to check all of those out on Shimelle's blog. You have until sometime next week to play along.

In the course of working on some of those challenges, I came across some layouts that I really like. This one on Two Peas is simple and elegant, and I'm in the process of brainstorming how I'm going to scraplift it--you know, for a challenge!--and make it my own.

Then there are these layouts by Amy Tan that are so different from my style and inspiring me to think outside of my box, the whole point of that particular challenge. :) I just bought a package of Amy Tangerine embellishments at the sale at Archivers Thursday, just because I thought they were cool, and I wanted to stretch my creative muscles a bit. So what serendipity!

And speaking of inspiring challenges, I love this one at Burlap and Buttercups. I love to use lots of different patterned papers together, one of my favorite things about scrapbooking. Look for my entry for that challenge soon.

Inspiration Sunday - April 8

Two Peas in a Bucket is always a wealth of inspiration, but now they've got a new blog! Weekly challenges are posted there, as well as the weekly videos that are so full of great projects to get the crafty mojo going. There's announcements, like the one about the brand new Amy Tan class, and there's even a badge you can add to your blog. Check out all that Two Peas yumminess right here.

And speaking of Two Peas, I've been checking out the Memory Keeping Mondays videos, and there's awesomeness going on there. A new video is posted every week, each one hosted by different Two Peas Garden Girls, who are all talented and generous with tips and ideas. Talk about firing up the crafty mojo! Go there and see for yourself!

Over at My Scrappy Life, Aphra Bolyer posted a great layout I can't wait to scraplift, except I want to use it as a Starting Point, maybe rotating the linear design for a totally different look. I'm impressed that she was able to create a page with photos of a boy, using shades of pink so reminiscent of spring and Easter, and it all works so well together.

Another great source of inspiration for me right now is a book called Everyday Creative Writing. It's full of clever prompts designed to get writers writing, which is awesome enough, but I've been thinking some of the prompts could be used as jumping off points for scrapbook pages, too.

Now all I have to do is find time for both!

Inspiration Sunday - April 1

Five things that are inspiring me right now:

First, the Purple Mailbox, a blog full of great projects, lots of creativity, and I just adore the personality. I also like that Ashli shows the steps from start-to-finish, including the things that don't quite work out and how she gets around those. Click right here to spend some time flipping through the last several posts and get inspired.

Another blog that's really inspiring me right now is Live.Teach.Create. You can tell Jennifer loves what she's doing and has a lot of creativity to share. I'm looking forward to what she does next!

Over at A Beautiful Mess, there's a tutorial about a great little notebook to make, using a magazine page as the cover. Check that out here. Nifty, no? And it doesn't look like it would be difficult or time-consuming. That's the kind of projects I like best. :)

This layout at Just Me and My Little World is so lovely, so adorable. I just want to get out supplies and scraplift it! The colors and grid design and all the little details work so well together!

And last, I spent a few minutes searching for videos about how to use Tim Holtz Distress Stain in Picket Fence. I got a bottle from my little Mommy for Christmas, and I'm eager to play with it, but I didn't know where to start. I watched this video by the man himself, and wow! I not only can't wait to get busy with the bottle of stain I already have, I want to buy more. (That's the idea, right??)

So thankful for the wealth of inspiration so readily available to me every day. I hope you're inspired to create something, too.

Inspiration Sunday - March 25

So much inspiration everywhere I look!

First, October Afternoon posted an awesome tutorial using string and spray mist that could be used in so many projects, and I really dig OA's spray mist. So far, it's my favorite, especially the buttery yellow color I use so often. I love that this techniques could be used to color eggs. That just makes me smile.

Art, Scrap and More is a blog I newly discovered last week, and I enjoyed flipping through some of the latest posts. Lots of creativity, there. A distinct and appealing style. Click here to see for yourself.

Monika Wright created a dazzling mini-book called 30 Days of Lists, and looking at just some of the pages caused me inspiration overload. What a great project! I love all the interactive bits. I'd love to do something similar. Maybe for the next 12 Days book...

Another mini-book I really like is this one by Paula Gilarde. So many possibilities, and it looks easy-peasy to make.

And finally, Suzy Plantamura created some lovely cards showcased on the American Crafts blog with the Dear Lizzy Neopolitan collection so popular right now. They're all gorgeous, but I especially like the one with the jars. Such cuteness! Check those out right here.

What's inspiring you? Leave me a comment and share.

Inspiration Sunday - March 18

Lucky us, we live in a world where inspiration is plentiful and easily available. I love the Internet! :)

Here are some links to things inspiring me right now:

Starting Points - Shimelle Laine

Because I've taken Shimelle's class at Two Peas in a Bucket, I've become more familiar with her Starting Points, and it's one of the most inspiring concepts that I've ever used. The possibilities are endless, truly. (I'll be sharing more than one layouts I made with the same Starting Point in a future post.) I'm hoping to try the latest one on her blog this week.

DCWV Layout by May Flaum

I love all that green. What a tasty shade that is! I love how it's balanced by both the photos and the other elements May added. Those flowers at the bottom--cut in half!--what a cool idea. I totally intend to scraplift the design of this page because it is awesome! Oh, and speaking of awesome...there's a giveaway on that post, too, so go check it out.

Scrap With Suzy - What Little Girls Are Made Of


My friend Suzy made an adorable layout based on a sketch that's part of a challenge. Go check out all the details, as well as all the other inspiring projects on her blog.

Francine Clouden - Denim Capri’s with Lace

Oh, wow...I LOVE these pants! I'm going to make a pair (at least one!) for myself.

Paperclipping Roundtable - Categories of Amazingness

I listen to the Paperclipping Roundtable often, usually when I'm walking on the treadmill or taking my long walks around the neighborhood. This episode is especially inspiring to me, and I'm seriously considering the class the panel is talking about, Heidi Swapp's The Art of Observation at Big Picture. Listen at the link or subscribe to the Paperclipping Roundtable on iTunes.

So, what's inspiring you right now? Share with me in the comment section, or if you blog, share your blog link in the comments, and I'll check it out.