Pink Paislee and PageMaps

The Pink Paislee design team had the fantastic opportunity to contribute to PageMaps this month - happy June, by the way! Using the Atlas collection, we all created layouts in various sizes. You can see the gallery here, and win the Atlas collection for yourself here. This is the sketch I was lucky to work with:

I've had the chance to contribute a few times before, and every time I find PageMaps so easy to work with! Even if a particular PageMap doesn't scream my style, it still works. And that's the sign of a great sketch :). Here's my take:

I started with a white cardstock background, then used the gold foil map overlay on the left and a patterned paper (same design as the overlay) on the right. I used tickets for some of the banner strips, as well as ephemera pieces. The Atlas ephemera is the best. I love every little piece!

I didn't quite place my photos in the same positions as the sketch, but where they fell worked for my pictures. I put my title in the same place, but decided that I didn't want to cover up any more of the overlay with a circular base.

I love the boyish charm Atlas can have, so I knew from the beginning I wanted to work with photos of my boys. When I was planning my page, the two oldest were reading. At that moment I decided to include one of my favorite quotes about books and travel and to take photos of the boys the next time we went to the library.

Thanks to Becky at PageMaps for the opportunity to design with another fabulous sketch! Be sure to check out the gallery and details on winning the Atlas prize! Have a great day! Tessa

Scrapbook Circle Blog Hop and PageMaps

Hello! Welcome to my stop on the Scrapbook Circle blog hop! We are getting to know the new 2014-2015 design team, as well as showing off the August kit, Island Paradise. If you've just arrived from Jenni's blog, then you are in the right place. If you're lost, or you'd like to join in on all the fun from the beginning, start at the Scrapbook Circle blog. Besides inspiration, we are also giving away five August kits to random hoppers who leave comments along the way. Will one of those kits be going to you?

My name is Tessa Buys and I am a blog coordinator for Scrapbook Circle (along with the lovely Diana Fisher). I write the One Item Wonder posts and set the technique and kit-inspired challenges each month. I started as a subscriber several years ago, then joined the design team in 2010. It has been an amazing four years and I am excited to see how much this fantastic kit club has grown. I'm also excited to share with you a page I created with Island Paradise:

This layout is based on a PageMaps sketch by Becky Fleck. Scrapbook Circle has paired up with PageMaps this month to contribute samples for the August PageMaps newsletter and site update. You can find all of our sketches and samples here (as well as throughout this hop). Many thanks to Becky and PageMaps for the opportunity!

I loved that this sketch was so easy. A grid is a great go-to design option, and this one was fun because it allowed me to use several gorgeous papers (I love all the Basic Grey Grand Bazaar goodies in this kit!) without overwhelming the page. I also love the mix of squares and rectangles.

To match my photos a bit better, I used peach cardstock from an earlier kit, as well as a white tag (an awesome yellow one comes in the kit!) and pink/peach twine from my stash. Otherwise, everything you see comes from the main kit and add-ons. I really love the Grand Bazaar chipboard, as well as the Chic Tags wood veneer sequins!

Remember, if you'd like to get your hands on the Island Paradise kit...

...simply leave a comment on each blog as you hop along! You have until Monday, August 4th, 9:00 pm Pacific time to leave your comments. I have the honor of announcing the five lucky winners on Tuesday at the Scrapbook Circle blog.

Scrapbook Circle's lovely owner, Lisa, is your next stop (and last designer) on the hop. I hope you've enjoyed getting to know our new team and checking out the August kit. Thanks for hopping along and happy scrapping! Tessa

PS - If you are interested in subscribing in August and getting a free kit, see this post. I've also got some Scrapbook Circle challenge inspiration there, too :).

Carnival = Family Time

I had a lot of photos that I wanted to scrap from our recent trip to the carnival.  When Becky Fleck asked me to create a layout based on a PageMaps sketch for the July newsletter and her website that included several photos, I knew exactly which pictures to use!

I loved the tiny little thumbnail photos.  I opted for black and white pictures there so that they didn't compete too much for attention.  I used my favorite shot from the day for the main photo, and the only photo I have of all three of my big boys for the supporting picture.  I just had to use Hello Sunshine papers by Lily Bee for this one - they were the perfect colors for that wheel!

Did you notice the format?  8.5 x 11, double pager.  That's two things I don't do often.  I loved it!  I think I might do this size more often :).  With all the different size page protectors out there from different scrapbooking companies, I can definitely see various sized pages in an album soon.

Thank you to Becky for the opportunity to contribute!  And thank you for stopping by!  Tessa

So excited!

I woke up this morning to an email from Becky Fleck of PageMaps fame.  And what did she have to tell me?  I won the PageMaps Couture Cardstock contest!!!!   Eeek!  So excited!!!  This is the layout that I submitted:

I struggled with this layout - no, battled with this layout.  I was getting really frustrated with the things I had chosen to work with, and just about gave up.  I'm so glad I didn't!  Now I get to choose 50 sheets of cardstock from Couture Cardstock.  Oh. My. Goodness.  Where do I begin???  Any suggestions?

Happy Tuesday!  Tessa

My Baby is ONE!

A year ago this moment, Jaxon and I were cuddling in our hospital room, resting after a long night, and oh-so-happy to finally meet each other.  Later, family would come to visit - a lot of family - so for then we were enjoying quiet, peaceful moments.  I can't believe it has already been a year.  Happy birthday, Jaxon.

The next day we would go home, and a few days after that we would move to Wyoming.  We never intended things to go this way - they just did.  Hard as it was, it all worked out in the end.  I had a difficult time balancing my recovery, supervising the move, and tending to my new little one.  Needless to say, I didn't take any photos during this time.  Which brings me to a new challenge at The Studio!

The challenge is to scrap an event you have no photos for.  I chose to go photo-less and to focus on the journaling.  Inside the misted/stitched flowers are details and facts about the move, and the main journaling space records my feelings about it all.  I decided to use flowers to symbolize how our life in one place was ending but blooming in our new home.

By the way, The Studio is undergoing some exciting changes!  The challenge blog will now be hosted on Blogger, here.  Hopefully you will find that easier and be able to join us more often.

Last night as I was pondering Jaxon's first birthday, I decided to do a scrapbook layout about him.  I chose these photos from this past winter and followed a PageMaps sketch.  And, of course, I had to use my favorite color palette.  Oh, how I love this boy :). 

Well, off to tidy up the house and get ready for church.  We're having some friends over for a birthday dinner, the same friends who helped us move in the day we arrived in Riverton, Wyoming.  I think I have too many blessings to count :).

Have a wonderful Sunday! Tessa