I'm a Guest Sketcher at Scrapbook Steals!

I was beyond thrilled when Kristy Lee invited me to be a guest sketcher at Scrapbook Steals.  I've played along with their weekly sketch challenges for over a year and have been inspired, motivated, and challenged along the way.  In addition to scoring  great deals on scrapbook supplies, I've made some great friends and have received tons of encouragement from the fans and staff at Scrapbook Steals.  Before I found this site, I must confess that I had never ever worked from a sketch.  If you'd look at my old scrapbooks, you'd see what I mean.....I was the queen of busy patterned paper, covered with a zillion matted photos cut into crazy shapes with deco scissors.   Now I've come so far, looking forward to every Wednesday when the new sketch is revealed. 

I was thrilled to learn that I would get to use the Note to Self collection from Echo Park, one of my favorite manufacturers.  The papers looked fabulous on-line, but I was absolutely blown away when I saw them in person.  The colors are great, with neutral browns, camel and creams, along with soft blues and grays, and fun pops of red.  The hardest part for me was deciding which side of the double sided paper to use.  There are so many great patterns!  There are great journaling cards, fun viewmaster images, and super cute stickers to finish off your masterpieces.   My absolute favorite thing about this collection is the emphasis on family, memories, and moments.  That's what I'm all about!  As a busy mom working full time outside of the home, I truly cherish the time I spend with my family.  I love that this collection helps document "everyday life" in such an amazing way. 

I had so much fun creating this sketch!  I love two page multi-photo layouts featuring 4x6 photos, so I knew that I had to go big.  But for those of you who are intimidated by two pagers, never fear!  I created this sketch with you in mind, as you'll notice that you can easily modify this into a single page layout by simply doing either half.   Feel free to modify, adjust photo sizes, and add different shapes to suit your fancy.  Here's the sketch to get you started:  

With all of those beautiful papers, I couldn't help but make a few more things.  I do not consider myself a card maker, but I was able to put some scraps to good use and came up with a few thank you cards.  I love the paper that looks just like cork and  I think this collection is perfect for making "masculine" cards!

Big thanks to Kristy Lee and the fabulous folks at Scrapbook Steals for giving me this opportunity!  I loved the product and had a great time getting crafty.  The hardest part was not telling any of my scrappy pals what I was up to.  I'm so grateful for everyone's support and encouragement!  For those of you finding my blog for the first time, I'd love for you to be a "follower".  I'm planning a bloggy giveaway in July, so you'll want to check back in!