big sketch contest @ my creative scrapbook - part II

hello everybody!

i'm finally ready with my 2nd layout for the big sketch challenge at my creative scrapbook:-)

the sketch was designed by the very TALANTED julie bonner. she created a very CHALLENGING sketch. you can use so many techniques on it! for me it was pretty difficult to decide when to stop adding new things and finally finish my layout:-)

here is the result from all the "hard" work i did:

i took these pictures when SWEET LITTLE THEO was almost 3 months old. it was almost impossible to make him look at the camera and "sit" in his sheep-bucket at the same time. from about 50 shots i have only 4 nice ones! on this layout you can see two of them.

the background paper is tailor-made from me. i cut a lot of 1" circles and stitched them to a blue cardstock. then i  punched them in the middle and i squeezed the ribbon through. finally, i added the rhinestones, which were originally clear, but with a little help from my FAVOURITE copic ciao markers i gave them the colour i wanted:-)

the note lines are made with PRIMA clear stamp.

i used the SWEET "lullaby lane" paper line from webster's to add romantic paper cuts. and some more lambs of course:-)

and more lambs...

and because it is a boyish layout - a little toy train:-)

thank you for taking the time to visit my blog! 

best wishes for the NEW 2011 YEAR and HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

i'm off to catch my plane now. we are leaving for our CHRISTMAS cruise in about 4 hours. YAY!:-)

hugs 'n smiles,

Emmy

Tim Holtz' 12 tags of Christmas... day 11

WOW!! Already day 11! And yet again - another amazing tag from Tim Holtz.

His technique and style are absolutely amazing! Love everything up to now.
What will tomorrow bring?...

Tim Holtz' 12 tags of Christmas... day 10

Here we are - tag Nr 10 - packaging.

Finally I found out how to use the snow cap dabber to create a dry brush effect! The result is fantastic!

The snowman comes from the winter wonder die - one white snowman and the coloured pieces are coming from a second snowman - very creative idea:-) 

The see through snowflake sheet is coming from an old packaging, embossed with the snowflurries texture fade. I have to start saving my old packages!

Tim Holtz' 12 tags of Christmas... day 9

WOW!!! The latest Tim Holtz' Christmas tag looks completely different than the previous ones. Just have a look:

His inking and distressing techniques, used to prepare the background paper for his this tag, are absolutely amazing. The Rosette die cut with the little heart in the middle fits perfectly with the look and feel of tag Nr 9.

Tim Holtz' 12 tags of Christmas... day 8

He never ceases to amaze me! His newest tag is absolutely GORGEOUS!!! Look for yourselves:

His double masking technique is incredible. I have so many masks and it was always difficult to decide how to use them... Not anymore! After Tim's last tutorial my head is exploding with new ideas:-)

And of course - the obligatory for all his tags die cut. Today he used the Townscape edge die - absolutely adorable little houses. I still don't have them, but not for long:-)

Enjoy his creativity for 4 more days!

Emmy

Tim Holtz' 12 tags of Christmas... day 7

New day and a new tag is coming from Tim Holtz creative kitchen:

Just look at the poinsettia - you would never guess how he made it! Let me give you a hint - he used his tattered florals die and some canvas. And after some misting, inking, scratching and glittering you get the perfect hand-made poinsettia for all your Christmas craft projects! It is really not that difficult. Just follow his tutorial and enjoy the result!

Emmy

Tim Holtz' 12 tags of Christmas... day 6

So, here it is - the latest tag from Tim Holtz:

I just love the way he used the Branch tree die to create antlers for his grungeboard reindeer.

Embossing the grungeboard, on the other hand, is absolutely amazing technique. But so far my favourite one (on this tag) is the texture fade stamping technique (check out his newest YouTube movie for more information on this subject).

Emmy

Tim Holtz' 12 tags of Christmas... day 5

Christmas is all around us and new tag Nr 5 from Tim Holtz proves it!

Just check out the painted numbers and the textured enamel metal flowers. Tim's technique on the letters is a MUST this Christmas - the effect (as you can see) is stunning!

Emmy

Tim Holtz' 12 tags of Christmas... day 4

Tag Nr 4 is absolutely amazing! I love the vintage look, the use of jewelery, the blings, the pearls... I just LOVE everything about it!

As usual when I look st the first picture the whole creation looks so awesome and difficult to copy. But when I go through the steps and out of a sudden it feels so easy and simple to make.

You should definitely NOT miss this one!

Can't wait to see Nr 5!

Emmy

Tim Holtz' 12 tags of Christmas... day 3

Day 3... Just when I thought, that it can't get better:-) And then Tim created this:

I have just discovered the Tim Holtz' Tissue Tape and I had no idea how to use it. Until now:-) He has a great   tutorial about how to make a flower from a tissue tape (the white flower on the tag Nr 3). It's worth checking it out!

Emmy

Prima's December Pick & Palette

December's PPP is a gorgeous mix of holiday products and traditional colors! Just look at the fun ornaments, sparkling vines and fluttering butterflies. Any of these products will add glamor to your projects.

• Mini Roses
• Raja Centers
• Grand Dame Flowers
• Holiday Lights Ornaments
• Glitter Transparecies
• Christmas Fancy Paper Line
• Antique Holly Picks
• Monarch Green Centers
• Holiday Celebration Vines
• Winter Branches
• Christmas Fancy Letters
• Andorra Butterfly and Flower
• Songbird Vine

Tim Holtz' 12 tags of Christmas... day 2

Yep... He did it again! The 2nd magical Christmas tag is finally online and it was worth waiting!!!

Look for yourself:

Make sure to check Tim Holtz' blog for an explanation about his amazing stamp techniques. His newest post has it all - stamping on a cut n' dry felt, using distress reinkers, clear embossing powder, adding enamel accents and much more.

I hope this will give you enough ideas to last you until Friday:-)
Have a very creative Thursday everybody!

Tim Holtz' 12 tags of Christmas... day 1

WOW!!! Isn't it amazing?!!!

Tim Holtz will bring us into his magical creative world this year again with his 12 tags of Christmas. The first one is FABULOUS!!! Using his Rickety House Die (I have it - YAY!:-) from his Alterations line, he managed yet again to amaze us!

Enjoy his creativity over the next 12 days!

finally they are here!!!

hello bloggers!

webster's pages and unity stamps have come together to create a FABULOUS holiday stamps collection!!

my personal favourite one is the "believe in miracles" set. with CHRISTMAS around the corner you cannot just leave this darling reindeer sitting all alone in a shop:-) and SANTA's list is a MUST for every christmas scrapper!

i can't wait until they are available in the shops! what an AMAZING result from this partnership!

hugs 'n smiles,

Emmy

big sketch contest at my creative scrapbook

hello bloggers,

i just finished my entry for the big sketch contest at my creative scrapbook:

on the picture are my two darlings:-) i've used tattered rose background paper and some PRIMA embellishments. i've painted the rhinestone swirls with copic ciao, as the rest of the elements.

i've stitched the loops-frame and the frames around the blue circles. the circles are made from a special fabric with a slight touch of glitter on it. there is just a little bit of cotton wool under the circles to make them puffy.

the LOVELY ribbon roses are from american crafts. they were white originally, but i rubbed tattered rose distress ink on them.

the quote says "it is all SIBLINGS. you can't ask much more than that!" (chase westfall). i think it is the PERFECT saying about what it means to have a sister or a brother:-)

i always felt INCREDIBLY lucky to have a big sister and a best friend beside me!

thank you for taking the time to look at my work!

i hope to see you all at my creative scrapbook!

hugs 'n smiles

Emmy

november prima product pick and a NEW twist

hello bloggers!

are you ready for a GORGEOUS selection of PRIMA products hand-picked just for you?

each month PRIMA brings us some of their FINEST products hand-picked to coordinate with one another!

just look at those DEEP, RICH flowers; sparkly golden temple leaves; BEAUTIFULLY-patterned fairy flora papers; beaded caravan blooms; color-filled autumn leaves and exquisitely-detailed vines!

on top of all this they have added a fun little twist this month!

along with their new product picks PRIMA are including a coordinating color swatch that you can use to create a project.

sounds like a lot of FUN to me:-)

hugs 'n smiles,
Emmy

october prima product pick

hello crafty friends!

October's PPP is FILLED with delightfully  spooky products which are perfect for your Halloween (and fall) projects!

just look a the gorgeous flowers offered in purples, oranges and black...the whimsical chandelier-patterned little boo paper...smoky black E-Line pearls and alphas, creepy, crawling vines, and sparkly orange sultan centers!

PRIMA has a wide variety of perfectly coordinating embellishments to go on your next project! Make sure to check these out for all your crafting needs.

hugs 'n smiles,
Emmy

little angry strawberry

hello scrappy friends!

i finally managed to finish this layout. i started it almost an year ago, but due to lack of inspiration, rebuilding the living room, moving my scrap supplies in boxes, etc. :-) it stayed in a pizza box, locked up for the last 10 months...

on the picture is my little niece WILLY, when she was about 1 month old and very very very hungry. every time, when she got angry, her face just turned red and she looked so sweet, that my sister called her strawberry shortcake, hence the title.

i used some making memories rub ons for her name. the 'W' comes from k & company chipboard alphabet {berry sweet paper line}, as well as the papers.

i've painted and glittered the letters myself. it was a bit of a mess, but i quite like the result:-)

for the butterfly i used inkadinkado stamp and martha stewart glitter pens - they are absolutely fabulous!!!

thank you so much for taking the time to read my post!

have a creative week!:-)

hugs 'n smiles,

Emmy

thankful for YOU {MME}

hello lovely friends!

it's been awhile... but I've been busy busy busy with my kids and friends back in NL:-) having good time mainly:-)

finally, i've found some spare moments and inspiration and decided to play along in this month MME Blog challenge. the lovely sketch was provided by anam stubbington and the challenge was to create a THANK YOU layout.

i have so many things to be thankful for, but the choice was clear from the begging - my kids are the best thing that ever happened to me! i've created two layouts - one for a girl and one for a boy, with the new paper line - alphabet soup - from MME. the papers are gorgeous and they are perfect for both boys and girls and i couldn't resist:-)

so, here is my take on this amazing sketch:

first is the pink layout, since ELISE is the bigger sister. i used alphabet soup papers, some embellishments from the same line, i stitched, inked, stamped and everything else that goes with creating a layout!

the big flower is hand-made. i've added some glitter to the small one.

again, glitter everywhere:-)

the second layout is with adorable THEO's picture - almost the same age as ELISE - about a month old. i thought of adding many stars, since he is my little baby star:-)

  glitter, glitter, glitter:-)

the flowers are hand-made and the brads are from the same collection - alphabet soup.

thanks for for stopping by!

have a great weekend!

hugs 'n smiles,

Emmy

PRIMA product pick - september

this month's PPP is FILLED with gorgeous Jack and Jill products including:

the splendid patterned papers, delightful text stamp, 6x6 paper pad, crystal-framed pebbles, canvas chipboard shapes, fun rub-ons, die-cut journaling cards and glittery chipboard shapes!

there are also perfectly coordinating embellishments to go with the line: delicate white lace, craftable flowers, bronte blooms in pink and clementine roses in charcoal!

hugs 'n smiles,

Emmy

LEGO minotaurus game (3841)

hello bloggers!

we (me, hubby and Elise) love Lego and we play board games regularly. so naturally, when our box with MINOTAURUS came in, we had no other option but to try it out... immediately!:-)

the first thing that caught our attention was the buildable LEGO dice and changeable rules! you have to put the game together and then you can play it, which is absolutely brilliant and loads of fun.

the goal is to get your LEGO hero to the center of the board first. but there are hedges and walls making a maze that you have to wade through. you roll the die and go that amount of spaces. if the die lands on black, then you can move the minotaur 8 spaces, hopefully taking out one of your opponents and sending him back to start. if the die lands on grey, then you move a grey wall brick - you can block your opponents' path, or keep the minotaur from reaching you, etc.

the basic game has you win when you have one hero reach the center, but it's actually way more fun when you require all three heros to be there. then you have time to really mess up people's pathways and get the minotaur action going. there is also a variation with the addition of a green die option, which enables your hero to jump over a hedge.

the game is fantastic and we had great time playing it! it is "must-have" from the new LEGO sets.

if you want to find out about another FABULOUS game from LEGO, read my latest post about SHAVE THE SHEEP.

hugs 'n smiles,

Emmy

august's PPP

hello scrappy friends!

each month PRIMA marketing pick out a few special products to showcase. 

this month they have a lovely collection of smooth chocolate and soft blue that work harmoniously together to add gorgeousness to any project.

included in their picks are:

• sweet Taffy crocheted flowers 542580 - a huge trend right now
• magnolia 543006 - large flowers with delicate feathers attached
• sugarplum roses 543693 - vintage roses in deep chocolate tones
• bronte blooms-powder blue-542870 - an amazing flower in sheer and solid fabrics
• roosevelt-543914 - complete flowers in rich hues made from gorgeous fabrics
• faience-542931 - blue fabric flowers with a say it in pearl center
• vivian-542856 - brown mulberry paper flowers with a natural center
• cottage blossom-544096 - sweet white blooms with a colored center
• gwendolyn-542542 - fabric flowers with pearl centers
• rossetti roses-542344 - layers of luscious fabrics topped with a jewel center and edged with glitter
• bronte blooms-bisque-542900 - delicate chocolate flowers in solids and sheers
• kalanchoes-542481- felt and pearls combined to create a boy-friendly flower
• poetic whispers-542412 - sheer lace topped with twirled fabric for a gorgeous flower
• paper butterflies that are simply delightful-543815 - use these on any project for instant movement

and of these picks would work fabulously on a masculine page, as well as fall layouts and baby boy projects. some picks have feminine touches, but in subtle colors that have a vintage hue to them. 

these picks are guaranteed to make your projects look amazing!

hugs 'n smiles,

Emmy

little miss SANTA

hello scrappy friends!

i know it is AUGUST and the sun is shinning, and it is 40C outside, but i couldn't resist when i found these pictures from my daughter ELISE first christmas party:-) 

she looks so adorable in her reindeer pj's, that i just had the urge to cut some christmasy papers and goods:-)

here is the final result:

i used plain blue cardstock for the background. i've inked the edges with TIM HOLTZ' tea dye distress ink pad and used a lot of different stamps and glitter. 

the pattern paper comes from few old MY MIND EYE collections - "the mary days of christmas" and "frost signature christmas". 

some close ups:

i hope you like it!

have a scrappy week!

hugs 'n smiles,

Emmy