Vacation memories

I just returned from a wonderful vacation with my husband. It was the first vacation we have taken together without children since our honeymoon. I came back relaxed, sporting a sunburn and with a camera filled with photos.

I knew I would be taking lots of photos of water, since we were going to Lake Michigan. When scrapbooking water photos, I always find it difficult to match the paper. The blues always seem to clash.

So, when I saw the new Travel Light line from We R Memory Keepers, which uses a lot of yellow, green and red, I knew they would be perfect for my pictures and I bought quite a few of the papers before I left.

Here is the first page I made from our vacation ... it features a photo of my husband and I taken by a stranger at the Sleeping Bear Dunes.

The papers are all from We R Memory Keepers. I cut the ones in the middle to 8x8. Then I inked the edges of each paper with Walnut Distress Ink. For the background paper, I folded the corner and used a Craft Glue Dot to secure.

For the smaller papers, I used a distress tool to add a bit of texture and added a few tears here and there. Then, I layered them and used Ultra Thin Glue Dots to hold them in place.

I cut a piece of white card stock to serve as my photo mat and then inked it with Distress Ink and attached my photo and then attached it to the page.

Next, I added twine from My Mind's Eye. I wrapped it around the back of the page, secured it with a Glue Dot and then cut out a small piece of leftover paper and layered it over the top.

For the title charm, I attached a clear charm by Tim Holtz to one of my photos of the dunes with Glossy Accents. This takes a long time to dry -- I let mine dry over night. Then, I trimmed the charm, added a bit of twine and attached it to my page with Craft Glue Dots. Finally, I used the Zig Photo Writer Pen to write the title on top.

For the final touches, I used metal flowers by 7 Gypsies. The one at the bottom features a button from Tim Holtz, which is attached with Craft Glue Dots to the flower and then I used Craft Glue Dots to adhere the flower to the page. The top one is adhered with a brad from Bo Bunny. The little coin is also from Tim Holtz and is also attached with a brad.

I like how the page turned out ... simple, rustic and relaxed -- just like my trip!

Accu-Cut Gifts

Did you know that Scrap Tales has a HUGE Accu-Cut die center?

There are envelopes and cards, boxes, frames, mini albums, alphabets and much, much more. All are available for your use at no charge -- as long as you buy your paper at Scrap Tales.

Accu-Cut dies can cut through chipboard, grungeboard, shrink plastic and multiple sheets of cardstock.

Here is one of the projects Candy recently created ...

The chipboard letters are from Maya Road. The dog tags are made with a QuicKutz (Now Lifestyle Crafts) die and metal adhesive paper, cardstock and Alcohol Ink. The stars are made with cardstock, a gold Paint Dabber and a QuicKutz die. The paper is from Creative Imaginations and the doily inside (under the cookies) is from Little Yellow Bicycle. It is all held together with Glue Dots.

The sample, minus the cookies, will be in the store soon ...

It doesn't have to be new

There are tons and tons of new products arriving daily at Scrap Tales right now.

But, you don't always have to use the newest products to make a nice project.

For this card, I used several Riley stamps. I love Riley. I can't help it. He's just so adorable. So, I use his stamps every chance I get. And, since they are still available at the store, I thought it was OK to show you.

This card is for my son whose 20th birthday was yesterday. It shows his dream life -- surfing with two lovely ladies ready to wait on him.

To make it, I tore a piece of brown cardstock and then used Distress Ink to add a bit of dimension. I stamped each character with Momento ink on Cryogen paper and then colored them with Copic markers.

I then cut each one out and attached them with Pop-Up Glue Dots.

Then, I went in with Stickles and added them to the flowers, the suns on Riley's shorts and the water because everything needs to sparkle!

Of course, I couldn't let my son have everything he wants for his birthday, so I included a Riley that is a little more "real" on the inside ...

Easy, easy, easy

Candy is back with another idea ...

I love Graphic 45 papers. They are both beautiful and versatile.

In each collection, there seems to be one paper that is perfect for quick and easy cards that are still elegant. This card, for example, is made from an image cut from the Once Upon A Springtime collection. (Click on the photo for a larger image).

I cut out the picture, leaving a bit of the green border on. Then, I attached it to a plain white card, added a little flower I had in my room and a couple of Dew Drops and it's done. I think it took less than 5 minutes, but it is so beautiful anyone would be pleased to receive it.

To attach Dew Drops and the flower, you could use Art Glitter Glue, but I used Micro Glue Dots for this one. They are tiny versions of the Mini Glue Dots and have just been released. As a member of the Glue Dots Design Team, I have had them for a few months and have tested them on a variety of projects. Despite their tiny size, they have excellent staying power!

Happy Creating!