May 28th - Operation Write Home Challenge

Due to some computer challenges Jillian is having this week, this challenge is a little delayed in being posted. As soon as the issues are resolved, the challenge will be posted. Thank you for your understanding.

Animal challenge by Debby Visser

As Cari mentioned; this week our challenge was to scrapbook with the theme animals.
As soon as I saw the challenge I went straight to my stamp collection. I have so many zoo and farm stamps, I knew I was going to do something with them. I brought them out and set them on the desk and this little lion jumped out at me.




I stamped him on the yellow, then stamped his head on the orange. I cut out the entire lion from the yellow and only cut out the mane and little nose from the orange. Then pop dotted him to stand out. He is so cute! I have a few more animal stamps I want to do this with as well.

The papers are Basic Grey and the stamp set is from Close to My Heart.

This layout I did awhile back, but it features our feathered friends.
These little birds live in this house right outside my scrapbook room, I have loved watching them year after year. I used Cloud 9 products on this, with the little Maya Road scallop chipboard circles to draw attention to the little photos.


This layout was featured in Creating Keepsakes, March 2009.

I hope you get a chance to play along! We would love to see your animal layouts and projects!

This week's Mr. Linky for the 'All Things Animal' challenge - show us your stuff!

"All Things Animal" by Cari Locken

Hi there!

Hope you've had a great week. I admit that I'm thankful that it's Friday because I love the weekends. I like all of us being together especially after a busy weekend.

My challenge this month was to create a project about animals. So as I was tidying up the boys' bedroom and making their beds I came across a gazillion stuff animals everywhere and thought that I would document on a layout about just a few of them.

Here's my layout about my youngest child's 1st stuffed animals and how he has become very fond of one in particular. (and believe me, it shows!!!)

Supplies used: October Afternoon papers, Core'dinations Cardstock, Basic Grey chipboard alpha, other chipboard (flowers, large label & heart) by Fancy Pants, buttons (Chatterbox), Fiskars border punch, corner rounded punch (EK Success)

I'd love to see what you come up with using the theme of animals. The possibilities are truly endless so have fun!! And ... have a great long weekend!!!

Thank You!

I have to say, wholeheartedly and humbly - thank you to all the amazing, creative, talented people who have responded to our Design Team Call. I started out trying to respond to each applicant in order to acknowledge that their application had reached us, but it soon became a lot to keep up with! So, if you haven't heard anything, I apologize for not contacting you yet!

On a personal note, I am in the midst of moving as my husband and I have bought our first house, and so I am a bit more swamped than usual. I would like to announce at least two new designers by June 1st and will be working toward that. Thank you all again for your interest in The Inspired Scrapper and for taking the time to apply. We are all working behind the scenes to improve and grow The Inspired Scrapper and we would love for you to be a part of our community!

Happy Crafting!
~ Jillian.

This Week's Challenge - A Sketch!

Hello everybody - TGIF! This week's challenge is a sketch borrowed from Becky Fleck at Pagemaps. Sketches have long been a scrapper's best friend, and it's always so fun to see how one sketch can be interpreted so many different ways by different people. Below you will find wonderful examples by three of our lovely designers, and of course, I've added a Mr. Linky so you can share yours with us! Wishing you all a crafty and creative week!

Sketch Challenge by Erica Perkins

This week, Karen, Debby and I played with this sketch from Becky Fleck. It is a realy fun sketch of double 8x10 page. But as you'll see, you can modify it to your size preference.

It's a two page sketch that Karen and Debby went with and aren't their layouts gorgeous ? (see previous posts) I've done a bunch of 2-pagers lately and was due for a one page layout, so I modified the sketch by dropping one of the photos and shrinking up some of the elements. Here's what I came up with.

Supplies used: Basic Grey patterned paper, Bazzill cardstock, American Crafts thickers and alpha stickers, Bo Bunny rub-ons, Making Memories, Prima and misc, flowers, Basic Grey brads, and Kelly Panaci stitching stickers

Make some time this weekend to play along and link your creation to the Mr.Linky, we'd love to see what you come up with.

Extreme Attitude by Debby Visser

It's Friday! Time for a challenge! We were given a Becky Fleck Sketch from Pagemaps. This sketch was made for a double page 8.5 x 11. I usually always scrap 12 x 12, but decided to give this size a try. I really like it! Here is the sketch:


And here is my take on the sketch. I love the sketch, my finished layout and I really love that I used up older products!!!




Supplies: Junkitz, Bazzill and Jenni Bowlin.

Thanks for stopping by! Hope you get a chance to play along!

Friday May 14 Sketch Challenge by Karen

This week the challenge is to use a sketch to inspire a layout. 

It is a 8.5"X11" double page sketch.  This was a fun sketch to try since I usually scrap 1 page 12X12 layouts.  So doing a two page layout and changing the size was challenging :)  I ended up changing the orientation of the page to fit my pictures better.

Supplies: patterened paper by Bo Bunny, Prima, Kaiser Kraft.  gems, Martha Stewart butterfly punch, Image Tree stamps.

Thanks for looking, and I look forward to seeing your interpretation of the sketch.

Happy scrapping.

Drumroll please...

Good evening! I'm here to announce the winners of this past week's contests/draws. Without further ado -

For becoming a Follower of The Inspired Scrapper:
'Just Rhonda'!

For adding The Inspired Scrapper to their blogroll:
Hayley G!

Colour Challenge participant:
Bronwyn!

Congratulations to our three winners! Please send your mailing info to us via the 'Contact Us' form at the bottom of the page (scroll down) and we'll send you out a little somethin' somethin' ASAP!

Thank you to all our participants!!

Honour Thy Mother Challenge...

Hello, and welcome to another Friday challenge at The Inspired Scrapper! This week, how could we not go with 'Mothers Day' as the theme?! A layout, a mini album, a card - about your mother, your grandmother, your sister, yourself...share your Mom-themed projects with us here!



“Creativity is contagious. Pass it on.” — Albert Einstein

They Call Me Mom By Susan Tutt

As far back as I can remember I have always wanted to be a mother. Little did I know this would be the hardest but most wonderfully fulfilling job I would ever have! I feel so lucky to have these three little people in my life and that they look up to me as their mother. And to my mother who I love dearly, thank you for being such a great role model and helping me become who I am today.

Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers out there. Take some time this weekend to relax and do something for yourself, you deserve it!

Happy Mother's Day by Virginia

It's the first week in May ... and there is still snow outside my house (I am not kidding!) It is also Mother's Day this weekend.

When I was younger, Mother's Day meant spoiling my Mom with handmade gifts and cards. My Dad would make a super special breakfast before church. I was appreciative of my Mom but I truly I didn't really grasp the significance of the day. Now that I am a Mom, I understand...all of it.

Being a Mom has been the most frustrating, toughest, tiring and uplifting role I have ever had...and I would not have it any other way. So when hear, "Mom..." I smile, turn around and say, "Yes?"

Here is a layout on the day my youngest daughter was born. I don't vividly remember all the details but what I won't ever forget is the whirlwind of emotions and how I thought my heart would burst open with all the love I had for this little peanut.

Supplies:  Bazzill (cardstock); American Crafts (pattern paper, alphas, flare badge, ribbon, rub on, brads); EK Success (scallop border punch);  

So all you Mom's out there, take some time this weekend to scrap a layout about you as a Mom, or your Mom or a Mom that you admire. You deserve it! I hope you have a wonderful Mother's Day, celebrating with the special Mom in your life!

Don't forget to link me up to your project, ok?
-Virginia

Introducing The Inspired Scrapper

Hello, and welcome to the inaugral Blogger post for The Inspired Scrapper! We decided to make the move here from Typepad and the first day of a new month seemed appropriate for moving day, especially since today also happens to be National Scrapbooking Day!

We have several topics to cover today and I think that the best way to do this is to write separate posts for each, so - here is a 'Table of Contents' for today:

Introducing Our Designers
Design Team Call
Opportunities To Win Some Goodies!
Colour Challenge

Lots of good reading so be sure to either scroll through the blog to read each entry, or click on the individual post listings above to link directly to them.

One of my favorite benefits of scrapbooking/paper crafting is the community involved - I have met so many people online and in person who have become dear friends of mine. SO, on behalf of myself and the rest of the team, welcome to The Inspired Scrapper! We look forward to meeting you, getting to know you, and forming a community of like-minded people to share inspiration and creativity with!

Happy National Scrapbooking Day!

Cheers,
Jillian.

Introducing Our Designers...

Meet Susan Tutt:
I found the great world of scrapbooking 15 years ago when my first daughter was born and I have been addicted ever since. I am a mom to two girls and a boy (14, 11 and 7 ) and wife to a very scrap supportive husband. My family and our everyday life is my inspiration for many of my projects/layouts. I love how scrapbooking has changed over the years and evolved into an art.

A favorite layout of Susan's:




Meet Erica Perkins:
My name is Erica Perkins, I'm the mom of two smart little people and married to a great man that makes me laugh. I wear a lot of hats and one of those is "scrapbooker". Just over four years ago, my bff talked me into going to a crop night, then she invited me to go to a class taught by Sonja McLean. Well, I was hooked. I always collected stationary (paper, pencils, erasers, and other pretty things), so getting to do that again combined with my other interest was a perfect match. I'm a story teller, well, actually I'm a story listener...I love to hear peoples stories. I'll happily share mine too, but I really love to hear about other people's lives. That's the biggest part of this craft to me, the stories. Preserving mine and my family's for my kids and future generations, listening to others share theirs as they put together a project. I love it.

Here's a fav layout of mine. Love Over the Years. I chose it becuase it's one of my newish ones...but more importantly I love that it shows how our lives have changed over the years. It also touches on the reality of our life (it ain't always rosy). It's real, it's my story and it's me.



Meet Cari Locken:
I started scrapbooking in 1997. You know that era - stickers galore, paper dolls, totally cropping and cutting ones' photos into all sorts of sizes & shapes - ah yes! You do remember! ;) My first album was all about me from a baby until the day I got married. I thought it was a work of art. But, oh! how the styles & trends have changed over the years. This hobby has become a love of mine! I must admit that I do something scrapbook related every single day. For me, it's an outlet of my thoughts, emotions, memories and creativity. I love that my children enjoy looking through the albums and reading about completely insignificant events - even though they will remember them now forever because of the layouts. I am thrilled at the many friendships that I've made through this hobby and the various opportunities that it has brought into my life.

A layout of Cari's (as Cari says, "It's way too hard to pick a favorite!"):



Meet Debby Visser:
I am an avid scrapper/crafter living in Chilliwack BC, with my husband who fully supports my scrapping hobby, and our 4 children; 1 girl and 3 boys.
I am the worst morning person, drink too much coffee and love reality TV.
Scrapbooking is my creative outlet and is very much a part of who I am. I enjoy capturing and documenting through pictures and pages the fun and not so fun moments in our lives that we might otherwise forget years down the road. I have been known to grab the camera before the first aid kit!!
I have always been crafty in one way or another. I bounced from craft to craft till I stumbled upon scrapbooking. When my daughter turned 10, I put together an album '10 years with Kimmee'. It was at her party, when someone was going through the album and said to me 'you must scrapbook?'. My response was 'what is that?' Well I found out and have been hooked every since.
My favourite part of scrapbooking – besides the memories I document for my family – is sharing, teaching and learning. I have met so many wonderful people through this hobby that I have learned from; and in return been able to share with! I love teaching, and teach a wide variety of classes, from cards and pages to anything I think I can alter.
I have been extremely fortunate to have my work featured in many print and online magazines, which the kids just love to see themselves in.

One of my favourite layouts is this one of my son Jaxon.



I have it on the wall in my scrapbook room. This one came together kinda by accident. The 2 pieces of pattern paper were all I had left from a kit of Pink Paislee papers, they were just sitting on the table when I dropped these photos down. Those 2 strips were all those cute photos needed.

Meet Jillian Lewarne:
I have been scrapbooking since about 1999. I have always loved paper, office stuff, and crafts. My parents owned a printing shop and I used to scavenge through the garbage cans in the shop for any and all leftover bits and pieces of paper I could get my hands on. They also made rubber stamps so I would hang out in their front office and gleefully stamp away with plain ol’ industrial black ink on reclaimed scrap paper for hours whenever I could! Then, after I had my daughter, I saw an ad in a local parenting magazine for a scrapbook store that just happened to be near my daughter's preschool. The day I walked in there was like coming home! I've been at it ever since.

I’ve been involved with The Inspired Scrapper in some capacity or another since it started in December 2008, and I’ve been ‘at the helm’ here since February of this year. For me, calling scrapbooking a ‘hobby’ doesn’t quite cut it (pun intended!). It’s so much more than that! One of the most enjoyable aspects of scrapbooking has been meeting so many wonderful people along the way – online and in person! I do something crafty/scrappy almost every day, even if it’s just a very simple or quick thing, like jot down some notes or sketches for card/layout ideas. I’ve got a notebook with me everywhere I go because inspiration strikes throughout the day, every day!

A favorite layout of mine:



Meet Virginia Wong:
I ventured into scrapbooking shortly after the passing of my Dad. I wanted a special place to keep all the photos, cards and special notes that I received from the funeral. To date, I have not completed an album on my Dad but that was my first foray into scrapbooking. Things were put on hold for a few months as I prepared for the arrival of my first daughter. After she was born, I just had to take a million pictures and print duplicates for all the relatives. Then all the relatives started wanted me to write a few words about each of the photos. Plus, I wanted to remember all those precious firsts, seconds, thirds and fourths in my own way and that is how I found scrapbooking. I know I am completely smitten with scrapbooking because I google scrapbook stores and events before leaving on any vacation these days. And my husband and girls now save memorabilia for me...they always say, "Mommy can scrapbook this!"

My favorite layout is constantly changing. One of my most recent layouts that I love is titled "Right Now."



Meet Karen Thind:
I am a mom to three darling daughters and have been married for 13 years! I have always loved taking pictures and keeping mementos in photo albums. It all came together with scrapbooking after I had my first daughter. Now almost 8 years later, I still love how creative and challenging scrapbooking is. I love taking the time to focus on the little things in our lives, and it has been great to see my daughters take an interest and start to make their own scrapbook pages!
Choosing a favourite layout is hard. I have some that I love the photo, or I love the story, or some that I love the design, and all this changes quite regularly. Right now I love this one. I just love how springy it feels.

Colour Challenge, from April 30th to May 6th...

Here is this week's challenge (carried over from the Typepad site):

This Friday, we are featuring a colour challenge based on this inspiration piece:

Here is Susan's take on the challenge:

Happy Friday everyone!! So this is our last challenge for Arpil. Wow I can't believe we are through April already.

This is the layout that I created.

The journaling for this layout is hidded under the photo.



Play along with us! Upload your challenge to your blog or gallery, link back to us here, and add your name and url to our Mr. Linky. This challenge closes in one week, at 9 pm PST on Thursday, May 6th. Show us your stuff!

Design Team Call...

Exciting news! The Inspired Scrapper is looking to expand our design team - would you like to join us? Here's what you need to know:

The Inspired Scrapper posts challenges every Friday. We ask that you sign up for at least one challenge per month. Of course, you are more than welcome to sign up for more! Also, we encourage you to participate in some challenges other than the ones you are signed up for. Challenges are posted at least one month in advance on our private Facebook page. It's basically as simple as that!

If you are interested in becoming part of our team, here is what we'd like from you:

Please email us using the form at the bottom of this blog. Tell us about yourself, add a link/address for any blogs or online galleries you have, and/or provide samples of your work. That's it! We appreciate your interest in The Inspired Scrapper and we will respond to every applicant.

This Design Team Call will close on May 15th at 9:oo pm, PST.

Opportunities To Win Some Goodies...

Who doesn't like to win stuff?! In order to kick off our Blogger launch, and in honour of National Scrapbooking Day, we have some giveaways for you! Here's how to enter:

1. Become a Follower of The Inspired Scrapper by 9 pm PST Thursday, May 7th and have your name entered into a draw to win some goodies. Name will be drawn after 9 pm PST on Thursday, May 7th and the winner will be announced here on the blog on Friday, May 8th. No need to contact us to let us know you're a Follower - we'll get that info from the Followers widget.

2. Participate in our Colour Challenge, post your contribution on your blog or in your gallery, post a link back to us, and add your name and URL to our 'Mr. Linky' widget found at the bottom of the Colour Challenge post, and we will add your name to our second prize draw to be done after the challenge closes at 9 pm PST, Thursday, May 7th. The winner's name will be announced here on the blog on Friday, May 8th.

3. Add our blog to your blogroll/favorite sites list on your blog, leave us a comment on this post to let us know you've added us, and - you guessesd it - we'll include your name in another prize draw.

That's it! Three easy ways to win! Good luck!