Summer Scraplifts with Scrap Squad - Part 1

The Scrap Squad group on Facebook generally post a scraplifting challenge once a week, but sometimes they do longer seasonal events and this month they ran '12 Days of Summer Scraplifts'. These series are great for getting me out of a scrapbooking rut and making some 'different' pages. 

I won't be doing them all, and I'm just sharing the first four today. Please follow the links over to the group if you want to see the original inspiration pages.

61 & 62. Getaway - Scotland (2023)

The first lift was a double page, which enabled me to make one of the last two pages for my 2023 album, a summary of our three week road trip around Scotland. I stuck to a single travel collection, trying to use up as many stickers and die-cuts as I could.

Supplies: Cardstock - The Craft Place; Paper - Photoplay Boarding Pass; Letters - Unknown; Stickers - Photoplay, Simple Stories; Die-Cuts - Photoplay; Enamel Dots - Carta Bella, Simple Stories

63. Easter Engines (2024)

The second page was based on a diagonal line of hexagons, and I've long thought about cutting up this hexagon patterned paper as I found it too busy to use whole. This was my chance, with two photos from the Bluebell Railway on Easter Sunday.

Supplies: Cardstock - Bazzill, DCWV; Paper - DCWV Linen Closet; Filmstrip - 49 & Market; Washi Tape - Stampin' Up!; Ticket & Puffy Sticker - Unknown; Enamel Dots - My Mind's Eye

64. Southend Half (2024)

Day 3's page featured a giant chevron, which I thought gave a sense of movement, well-suited to documenting my husband's first half marathon.

Supplies: Paper - Cocoa Vanilla Studio No Limits, Bo Bunny Little Wonders; Letters - American Crafts; Acetate Filmstrips - 49 & Market; Die-Cuts - 49 & Market; Star Stickers - Unknown; Enamel Dots - Carta Bella, Altenew

65. Out for the Count (2024)

I concentrated on the patterned border from Day 4's page, and used inks and stamps to create something similar. I went off-piste in the middle, replacing the original trio of photos with eight pictures from election night when we were involved in the local count. I used the Filmstrip cut-file from Twilight Crafts and Jenny Wren Cut-Files so this doubled up as my second DT page of the month.

Supplies: Cardstock - First Edition; Letters - American Crafts; Puffy Stars - Rosie's Studio; Acetate Filmstrip - 49 & Market; Washi Tape - American Crafts

Disclosure - I receive cut-files free of charge from Twilight Crafts as part of my DT role. All other supplies are my own.

Pages from Copenhagen

I've switched from monthly round-ups to subject round-ups now, so today I'm sharing all the pages from Copenhagen on our Scandinavian cruise last summer. I've shown you the first one before, but I'm  posting it again now for completeness.

Each port of call has a 12x12 sub-title page in the album, all based around a 6x8 initial letter backed with a photo. The rest of the album is a mix of 12x12 and pocket pages.

(The numbers below are my page count for the year.)

54. Waterside Wander

This one has to be a 12x12 too as it sits back-to-back in the album with the one above. It has photos of some of the statues and memorials that we saw while walking from the quay to the town.

Supplies: Cardstock - UK Crafts, Bazzill; Paper - Pinkfresh Studio Tourist Mode;  Vellum - My Mind's Eye; Letters - Violet Studio; Stickers - 49 & Market; Enamel Dots - Altenew, My Mind's Eye, Marianne Designs

From here on, it's all pocket pages, but they gave me some trouble and I had to go for 'best fit' of photos and pockets, rather than strict chronological order (which I would normally choose).

55. Amalienborg

This royal residence is made up of four separate palaces arranged around an octagonal courtyard.

Supplies:  Paper - Pinkfresh Studio Tourist Mode; Vellum - My Mind's Eye; Letters - American Crafts; Labels - Teresa Collins; Glitter Tape - Unknown; Enamel Dots - Pinkfresh Studio, Carta Bella, My Mind's Eye, Altenew

56. Christiansborg / Børsen

A split page, with the top four pockets for Christiansborg, the Danish parliament, and the bottom two for Børsen, the old stock exchange. At one point I was going to miss out Børsen, but it burnt down earlier this year so I decided to include it as it looked last summer and also mention the fire.

Supplies: Paper - Pinkfresh Studio Tourist Mode, Pinkfresh Studio Life Right Now;  Enamel Dots - My Mind's Eye

57. Rosenborg / The Marble Church

Another split page, but a change in page protector style as I needed some vertical pockets. Rosenborg is a fairy-tale castle which used to be a royal residence and is now a museum. The Marble Church isn't made of marble; it was abandoned part-built for 150 years before being finished in limestone. 

Supplies: Paper - Pinkfresh Studio Tourist Mode, Pinkfresh Studio Out and About; Letters - Unknown; Stickers - 49 & Market, Heidi Swapp, Pinkfresh Studio; Enamel Dots - My Mind's Eye

58. & 59. Rundetaarn

I'm counting this as a double page, even though it's all pockets, as all the photos are from the same place - The Round Tower, an early 17th century astronomical observatory. It was part of the Trinitatis complex - the observatory, a library for the university and a church (though the old library is now an exhibition space).

Supplies: Cardstock - Bazzill; Paper - Pinkfresh Studio Tourist Mode, Amy Tangerine Shine On, Pinkfresh Studio Life Right Now; Stickers - Pinkfresh Studio, 49 & Market; Labels - Teresa Collins; Glitter Tape - Unknown; Enamel Dots - My Mind's Eye, Altenew

60. Rådhus / Nyhavn / Gefion Fountain

Last page from Copenhagen, and it's a bit of a mash-up of what's left - the Town Hall, a statue of Hans Christian Andersen, the coloured houses of Nyhavn and a fountain.

Supplies: Paper - Pinkfresh Studio Tourist Mode; Letters - Violet Studio; Stickers - 49 & Market, Pinkfresh Studio; Enamel Dots - Pinkfresh Studio

I have one more port left now. That's Stockholm, but I'm still pondering how to tackle it so I'll be scrapbooking other subjects in my next post.

Tote Bag Makeover

If you are a regular around here, you'll know that we like a cruise for our main holiday each year. Our sea days have a fairly predictable timetable and there are certain things that I like to carry around the ship with me, but I don't have a suitable bag and I've been 'making do' for years. This summer I started to look for something that would suit my needs, a bag with enough pockets to organise my paraphernalia, including a spot to keep a drink bottle upright. I failed to find anything I liked and was planning to make my own when I went to a conference and was given a tote bag that was about the right size, but was branded and still lacked the pockets I wanted. 

However, I decided that this bag was a good basis for what I wanted and that it would be much easier to adapt this one than to make a new one from scratch.

I raided my fabrics box and found an offcut of cotton canvas which I could use for the internal pockets, and the quilt cover that I made for our son when he was a toddler (he's now 27), which I decided to cut up and repurpose. The farmyard print may have been bought for a child's room but I don't feel that the colours and pattern are themselves childish.

Internally, the bag already had one pocket, shown at the bottom of the photo above. I added a large one suitable for my puzzle book and kindle with a small one for pen and pencil on the opposite side, and a sleeve at one end to hold my drink bottle. The main body of the bag still has space for a jumper or cardigan, something that didn't fit in my previous bag and I often ended up carrying separately.

At this point, the stitching for the pockets showed through to the outside of the bag, but that didn't matter as I intended to cover it. I used the original bag as a template for the cover and attached the two together with a double line of stitching around the top.

My sewing is a bit wonky in places, but overall I am very happy with my new tote bag and looking forward to using it this summer. 

A Birthday Selfie

Just a single page to share today, my first project of the month for Twilight Crafts and Jenny Wren Cut-Files.

The photo is a selfie that a friend took when a group of us went out for breakfast recently to celebrate her birthday, and the page will go in this year's annual album.

I used the Butterfly Wreath cut-file, chose a pre-printed mixed media style background paper, and backed the butterflies with papers to match the colours on the background. I then stitched a circle within the butterfly wreath to provide an anchor for my title letters. 

Supplies 

Paper - Vicki Boutin Let's Wander, Vicki Boutin Storyteller, Carta Bella Flower Garden, My Mind's Eye Collectable

Letters - Violet Studio

Stickers - Simple Stories, Vicki Boutin

Enamel Dots - 49 & Market, Simple Stories

Disclosure - I receive cut-files free of charge from Twilight Crafts as part of my DT role. All other supplies are my own.

(Page 53 for 2024)

A Few Cards

A quick post sharing the cards I've made in the last month or so. 

I'll kick off with one that I made using a Jenny Wren cut-file called Criss Cross Grid from Twilight Crafts which I backed with pieces from a 6x6 pad for my second DT post this month.

One based on the May card sketch from Stick It Down,

and another for June's sketch:

Then two for Sketch 'n' Scrap - this was card sketch #266,

followed by card sketch #267, where I made the happy discovery that this stamp fits nicely in this die.

Finally, I made a Thank You card with another Jenny Wren cut-file, this time I used one of the cakes from Cupcake Elements in an aperture card.

Disclosure - I received the digital cut-file free of charge from Twilight Crafts as part of my Design Team role. All other supplies are my own.

Brighton Belles

Today I'm sharing the first of my June pages for Twilight Crafts using a Jenny Wren cut-file. I've started making pages for my 2024 annual album now, including this one from a Sunday last month when I took my mum down to Brighton to visit my daughter.

I split my background up using the Large Circles Background cut-file in white cardstock layered over a floral paper at the bottom and a darker starry paper at the top. I printed two photos at 3x4 and built up a paper stack behind them over the join.

Supplies

Paper - Maggie Holmes Round Trip, Bo Bunny Little Wonders, Maggie Holmes Chasing Dreams, Amy Tangerine Shine On
Letters - Elle's Studio

Flowers - Docrafts
Enamel Dots - Carta Bella

Disclosure - I received the digital cut-file free of charge from Twilight Crafts as part of my Design Team role. All other supplies are my own.

(Page 52 for 2024)

Pages for Annual Albums

I'm changing up my monthly posts to be posts on a theme, and losing the schedule so I'll post whenever I switch from one subject or album to another. Last week I shared ten 8x8 pages for my parkrun continued album, and now I'm turning my attention to the rest of the pages I've made recently, which have all been for my annual albums. I made most of these at the Twilight Weekend Crop mid-month, though few were completely finished then and I brought them home with notes about what else I needed to add or finish off, which has taken me until now.

47. Dave Gorman - Powerpoint to the People (2022)

I let the background paper do most of the work on this page, with a paper stack behind my photo and a scattering of paper circles, enamel dots and mist on the printed stripes.

Supplies: Paper - Heidi Swapp Hello Today; Enamel Dots - My Mind's Eye

48. Croppin' at the DAF Crop (2022)

A page from the last crop I went to before Twilight, with a title piece and crafty embellishments from JD3DPrint.

Supplies: Paige Evans Whimsical, Pinkfresh Studio The Best Day; Die-Cuts - Paige Evans; Stickers - Paige Evans #Stickerbook; Puffy Stars - Rosie's Studio

49. Follow the Otter (2022)

One of four pages from a weekend camping in Devon, for a walk from East Budleigh to Budleigh Salterton beside the River Otter.

Supplies: Cardstock - UK Crafts; Paper - Cocoa Vanilla Studio Storyteller; Stickers - Pinkfresh Studio, Maggie Holmes; Nuvo Dots

50. Basildon 10k (2024)

Turning to the current year, this was my husband's first organised 10k running event, on Easter Monday.

Supplies: Paper - Pinkfresh Studio Lovely Blooms, Amy Tangerine Brave+Bold, Vicki Boutin Fernwood; Letters - American Crafts; Stickers - Amy Tangerine, Tim Holtz; Enamel Dots - Simple Stories

51. The Odd Squad (2024)

That was our team name when we won the local Chamber of Commerce quiz. I used an older sketch from Scrap a Sketch for the page and bashed some ancient stash.

Supplies: Paper - October Afternoon Apple Cider, Bazzill Basics; Journal Cards - October Afternoon 9 to 5; Stickers - October Afternoon, Paige Evans; Puffy Stars - Bo Bunny; Enamel Dots - Twilight Crafts