Christmas Tags....

Last week I took a class from Nichole at Urban Scrapbook. Her Christmas tags were amazing and I could not resist. I have never done Christmas tags before and now I think I am hooked!! It could be a little project you could do if you have that itch to scrapbook but do not have lots of time. On these tags we used fine and thick embossing powder, distress inks and Stamps of course. Very fun!!

 

Designed by Nichole and Put together

by Rhonda Witzke



Princess...

Almost December...you wouldn't know it by the temperatures outside. Yesterday +7..unreal. So unusual for Edmonton but I am definitely not complaining. The kids get to enjoy the snow and not freeze! I'm sure it won't last though. Yesterday Raydn got to make his first snowman (there was to much snow last year right off the start)..he was a little upset when the head fell off the first time though.  A little funny for me but probably traumatic for him.

This layout is of my "little princess", my niece Tiana. I used the new prima paper line. This picture was taken for my brothers wedding. I styled her hair, put some makeup on her face and bought her some fancy jewelery. That night she said she "felt like a princess".

On the chipboard, I painted it with mushroom dimensional pearls first, then embossed it with iridescent embossing powder, inked the whole thing with lots of fired brick distress ink and lastly inked the edges with walnut stain distress ink. I loved how it turned out glimmery and all blended. For my flowers, I first inked the edges but the pink didn't match; so I ended up chalking the flowers which turned out to be a more sutle, soft look. For my photo matts I used tissue paper, initially it was to pink so I glimmer misted it with marshmallow and tattered rose. Under the flowers, I actually used a mask. I embossed it again with the clear embossing powder, chalked the edges with pink and lastly blended it lightly with a cream chalk.

In this picture, I love that

Tiana's eye lashes look a mile long :) 

Below: The sun captured the embossing.

Designed and created by

Rhonda Witzke

A Night to Remember...

Have you checked out the new BoBunny line "Enchanted" and the accessories?? OMG! So beautiful. The minute I saw it, I knew what pictures I was using....Vegas baby! These pictures remind me of the fabulous time I had in Las Vegas with my sister-in-law and great friend. My favourite memories were dressing up and going out for amazing suppers (I don't get to dress up to much these days with a 2 year old..) and NOTHING says Vegas though.....than celebrating your great time on a roof top bar that overlooks the strip. A moment that I will never forget for the rest of my life :) The elegant black and white BoBunny paper line was perfect to capture our amazing night out.
In my layout I used the big flower I just learned in my last class and also created a shasta daisy using the Tim Holtz "tattored florals".....my absolute favourite die cut!! The paper layering (3 main pages) I saw on a layout at Urban. I used to layer my pages ALL the time when I first started scrapbooking a while back (when layering was very popular) and I thought I would try it again. I also added some dangling pearls from Tim Holtz as well....a perfect touch. I am actually very pleased with how this layout turned out. While photographing this layout though, I realized it is very hard to photograph black :(



Designed and created by Rhonda Witzke

Frightfully Delightful...

This class was by far one of the best I have attended so far. I was so inspired by this layout that I want to hit my scrapbook room right away and start creating. These flowers we made were amazing, lots of detail, lots of time and totally worth it. They turned out beautifully, the black stickles were a perfect added touch to make them pop. The black on black was pure genius giving you the Halloween feel but with some elegance. There was nothing "ordinary" about this layout, the way Roxanne layered the transparencies gives a cool 3D look and feel AND page two leaves you just breathless..... The collage of the three different kinds of flowers with the black brads, black ribbon and the iridescent embossed stamping gives that special added touch to the page. LOVED IT, LOVED IT, LOVED IT!!!!!!! Such a fun class :) Hats off to Roxanne!

 Above: Transparencies

 Above: Cluster black on black

Designed by Roxanne Olsen and put together

by Rhonda Witzke

When Dinos Roamed the Earth....

This was a VERY fun day! These pictures were taken at Jurassic forest, located by Gibbons, Alberta. This was Raydns first time seeing Dinos and to say the least he had a blast!!! He is now in-love. If your child loves Dinos, this place is a must see for sure. They have everything from walking paths with motion censored moving dinos to a huge sand area for the kids to play in and dig up "fossils". Super fun!!
When I saw this paper by basic Grey I knew it was a must buy to show how special this day really was. I always tend to use flowers in my layout...I can't help it...and I was really trying not to. I tried using buttons, didn't look right, I tried wood veneer, didn't like that either. I was stuck....so I used my some of my decorative grasses from my vases :) Bingo, I loved it. I just love layouts with lots of 3-dimension. You can almost keep any piece of ribbon, saying or button and incorporate in into your layout; Imagination is limitless when scrapbooking, Pretty cool!
Tonight I have Roxannes class and its gorgeous...I am so excited to learn how to make some new flowers ;) I will hopefully post it soon for all of you.

Designed and Created by Rhonda Witzke

Memories...

Feels great to be finally scrapbooking again, did two classes and finished a layout of my own in the last month and a half. For this one page layout, I used the Prima paper line "Printery Collection"; such beautiful paper. I scored the filmstrip chipboard from the Scrapbook fair this past weekend in Edmonton. (Even though the fair was a quarter of the size from last year, it still never stopped me from finding some great products....but that's never hard, I can always shop). On the chipboard filmstrip, I used perfect pearls..... I LOVE using perfect pearls. I made the flowers using kraft glassine, I then used alcohol inks to colour them. The folds on the kraft glassine really hold the colour, super neat. I learned this technique last weekend from Roxanne. I coloured the brads with alcohol ink and touched the flower edges with smooch pearlized accent ink. Under all the layered cardstock I also embossed the paper with iridescent embossing powder for a added touch.

Designed and created by

Rhonda Witzke

Finding Fall Colors

HAPPY OCTOBER 1ST everyone, it is definitely looking like fall outside with all the reds, oranges, browns and golds. I just love Autumn...... its one my favorite seasons of the year (the other is summer)! Recently, I had a very optimistic friend question my love for this time of year, "Why would you like fall, it only means that the most wonderful season is over and that winter is on its way? It's always dark and dreary and you can't  garden and camp any more..."  Yes, so maybe there are some down sides, like night arriving much, much earlier but to me fall means a whole lot more. I love that the crisp weather does not require a big winter coat, just a sweater or a light coat will be enough to keep warm. I also love sipping my favourite fall tea:  gingerbread  and making sugar cookies with my little man.  Lastly, Autumn also means putting away my flower pots and setting up my hay bails, scarecrows and pumpkins on my front steps. Overall, its just a beautiful season.

I loved the fact that the September layout for my monthly scrapbook class was based on Autumn. This is one of the very few layouts that I have completed in 2 years that does not contain any photos of Raydn. Its actually the first layout where there are not any people in it at all. I focused on the fall colours that were in my yard, the red vines, the golden leaves and my red and orange coloured lilies.
The technique we used this month was alcohol inking and glimmer misting with perfect pearls (I just love them..), all on kraft glassine, vellum, acrylic and foil leaves. We used the memory keepers paper line "Autumn Splender", very, very beautiful paper. I actually changed the layout a bit but accidentally. I made a wrong cut and ended up loving the change. I was one that used to worry about making mistakes in classes but now I'm much more slacked. You end up being the only one who knows there even was one. I loved working on this layout, it wasn't as much detail as we usually do but I think it is definitely one of my favourites. My next post will be something by me, I found the most beautiful paper the other day and am super excited to get started.

Below and above:

The alcohol inks used were rust, butterscotch and cranberry.

They were then misted with copper perfect pearls.

Created by Roxanne Olsen and Put together

by Rhonda Witzke

Autumn Greetings......

With the change of the seasons...comes the change of my outside decor :)

Happy Trails.....

Good morning everyone!! Well I guess we can say now that Fall has officially arrived. The grass is turning brown and crunchy and the flowers are wilting away. As much as I love summer with the heat (well not this year anyways...) and the outdoor activities; fall is probably my most favourite season. The changing colours and the nice crisp mornings are amazing!!! The only downside is, it means winter is on its way..BOO! Well I guess there is always snowmen, snowmobiling and sleigh rides to keep Raydn entertained. This has been one busy summer for him for being outside, so I think winter may be torture for him if its to cold to go outside. I guess time will tell.

With fall comes scrapbooking again, no flowers to keep me busy until bedtime. I actually cleaned my scrapbook desk off yesterday so I can start; I have SO many ideas and pictures that I want to scrapbook. Lots of camping, Raydns 2 year birthday party, family reunion, Raydns 2 year pictures, girls trip to Las Vegas, quading and lots of pictures at grandmas house with cousins!!  Many, many, many great memories and great times.

This layout here that I did is a Roxanne Olsen creation. It was her August layout and her technique this month was wood. We used my favourite products...Tim Holtz stains and alcohol inks :) Very fun class!! This is paper I would normally not have used because its very bright and not distressed but I LOVED the end product. Being in this class pushes me to go outside my comfort zone and create some things new. Its good to be pushed a bit, I think it makes you a better scrapbooker. Unfortunately I DO NOT have the last 3 months of Roxannes classes completed...just the kits in my room. My summer was way to busy to attend the classes but never less great winter projects.

I also was nominated for a blogger award from my good friend Roxanne eons ago it seems. I actually typed it out twice (a very long post) and blogger erased it....twice. I am going to redo it again and get it posted as well, perhaps I will use Microsoft word first..lol. Just like today........ I went to add pictures to this post and it booted me out of blogger. Thank gosh this time it actually saved it!!! Technology can be so frustrating!!!!

I also just want to thank you all for still keeping in touch with my blog (Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!!) and not forgetting me throughout the summer months. Now that's its cooler out, I will be in my room much, much more (that means I am going to have a lonely husband again...lol). Happy scrapbooking all!!

These pictures were taken at Drayton Valley on one of our quad trips. This was taken early August and the leaves were already starting to change. The couple on the top left are great friends of ours, Betty and Carl...

one of the many times we were stuck that day. The top right is Timm and Raydn throwing rocks in the river. Great Day!!!!!

The top bottom picture is of Timm and Raydn in the ranger. We have created a monter...Raydn cries when he is NOT in the ranger!! The top right picture is of all the men that we quad and camp with.

Happy Trails created by Roxanne Olsen

and put together by Rhonda Witzke

Hipstamatic

Wow! It sure has been a long time since I wrote on my blog but not for the sake of trying. My computer booted me out and shut down about 3 times in the last couple of months. I thought computers were supposed to make our lives easier. Now I type it out in word and transfer it all.  

This summer has been one of the busiest ones since we have moved here four years ago. So far just in the last 2 months involved camping, a family trip to Winnipeg, a trip to Las Vegas (the temperature in the middle of the night was 38 degrees…hotter than any given summer day so far here), a very busy 2^nd birthday party for my little prince and of course the duties of yard work and housework (which never seems to end as a mother). In fact I have been so busy that I have not attended the May, June or July’s scrapbook class with Roxanne. I am really hoping to make it to Augusts. Nothing planned so far and I am REALLY happy about that!!!!

I wanted to share this new app on my phone called Hipstamatic for any of you iPhone lovers out there. It is truly a great photo app for taking really neat pictures. My sister-in-law got my hooked on it. I believe you initially pay $1.99 for the app and if you would like additional lenses and films each cost $0.99. Here is a list of some of my favourites:

1.    Lens: John S

Film: Kodot XGrizzled with the flash off.

……This adds a vintage “just out of the dryer” look to your prints

2.    Lens: John S

Film: Float with the flash off

……This adds a pleasant warm tone to your prints.

3.    Lens: John S

Film: Ina’s 1935 with the flash off

…….This film is clean and beautiful.  Needless to say the photograph speaks for itself. Another favourite of Ina’s is 1969…this also adds a vintage look to your photos.

4. Lens: Lucifer VI

    Film: Kodot XGrizzled

    .....Makes it a little rough around the edges

These are just a few of 10 films that you can choose from, I save the pictures and email them to myself and print them on my photo printer instead of sending them away to get printed….it is cheaper to do it yourself.  It’s a neat app if you want to add something different to your photos.

Well I thought I would share this with everyone and if you have an IPhone try it, you won’t be disappointed…..I promise!!!!

Katelyns Shadow Box

Hello everyone!! Yes I am still alive!! It has been SO long since I posted anything but this summer has been insanely busy and has not left much (or any) time for scrapbooking. So far the summer has involved two trips to Medicine Hat to visit family, lots of gardening, quading and lots and lots playing outside. In my yard I have lots of 5 perennial beds and roughly 20 pots of annuals, so that alone keeps me pretty busy. Yes my other addiction......my flowers!!! Here is a peek of my last years flowers (this is what keeps me busy)..... these are just a few.

As you can see I LOVE lilies!

A while back now, I did a shadowbox project for my friends little girl for her birthday. It was such a fun day, we used such pretty pink paper. I had a station set up for her and we put in a movie. Katelyn decided to do her shadowbox theme about her sisters and her. She did such a great job for been almost 10 years old.

Designed and created by Katelyn

I am hoping to get in my scrapbook room soon and start creating.....I promise...don't give up on me. I have got some great pictures to use though. My friend Roxanne nominated me for a stylish blogger award...thank you so much Roxanne. A couple of weeks ago, I created a long blog (it took me about 2 hours)  for it and my computer erased it. So sad. .....and mad lol. I have to work on it again so that will be posted soon too. Until then, happy sunshine days!!

..Raydns Shadow Box....

Last night ,I finished Raydns shadow box for his room, I had started it quite a while ago but never got around to completing it. They are a bit addicting I must say, I wanted to add more gadgets to it but I finally ran out of room. I must have rearranged the picture's about a hundred times, I originally wanted to have a single picture in the top middle and 2 pictures on the 2 bottom corners but I wanted to add some flowers in the middle and they didn't look right going in the down direction, so it ended up this way....up so all the ribbon and clumped flowers were around the same square. If that just made any sense at all. For my embellishments I used all silver (the keyhole, brads, key, clock, clip and paper clip)  instead of brass to match the handle.

 I used the Stella and Rose line from BoBunny, the oranges fit perfectly with the leaves and Raydns jacket in the pictures.  I used the Rangers Distress Stains for the wooden bird cage and bird. Amazing product, the applicator is a dabber which allows you to paint and blend it on. Very cool. I used the colours  antique linen, wild honey and of course walnut stain (walnut stain is my favourite distress ink too). The stains match the distress inks perfectly. Lately I have been addicted to alcohol inks and colour wash and now I think I found my newest addiction.

 I borrowed the bottom left section from Roxanne, she just had a shadow box featured on the cover of "Simply Homemade" for Scrapbook Trends Magazine. You should check it out, it is absolutely amazing....so, super talented. Roxanne used words that stood out on a alphabet piece of paper,and seeing this paper in the Stella Rose collection, I wanted to do the same. It makes the paper stand out a tad more, I used 8-18-9, Raydns birthday. Very cool idea Roxanne!! Hope you don't mind :)

 As you can see I used some gadgets and such from Tim Holtz, 7 Gypsy's and Maya Road. My favourite are the little bottles with the corks. Inside them I have music paper (left over from a class of Roxanne's, last February), the paper is VERY old, I think 100 years old or something like that. The paper would rip while I was rolling it. The only thing I wished I did diferently was used my border punch that had a bunch of little circles to match this paper instead of the one I used. (I bought it after I had this one punched and then had no more paper left. I love to use border punches in my layouts, I now finally own 3).

Designed and created by Rhonda Witzke

I know I have used this quote numerous times in past layouts. "Between the innocence of babyhood and the dignity of manhood, we find a delightful creature of a boy" but it is my favourite.....and the writing matched the background paper. The flowers I made using Timm Holts Tattered flowers die cut....looking on blogs this die cut is actually used LOTS and you can make so many variations using the flowers. I coloured the flowers with dabs of mushroom alcohol ink and sprayed them with espresso color wash. I was originally going to use butterscotch  color wash but I forget to pick it up at Urban...and that's why I went there, hehehe.  I then used the Stella Rose accessory brads to match.
It was a nice change to work on a shadow box and not a layout, if you have a chance you should try it....its super, super fun!!!

....Raydn: Happy Spring....

Happy spring everyone! Its starting to feel like spring again yesterday after that last snowfall we had last week. Gross!!! All the kids in the neighbourhood were so disappointed to wake up to snow especially after all the fun we have been having outside lately. We were all super sad to see all our sidewalk chalk disappear but never less very happy to have more puddles to splash in again. I'm sure that will not be the last time that are going to see snow, especially here in Edmonton...even though it wouldn't hurt my feeling if we didn't. The best thing about spring/summer weather in our neighbourhood is that we have big court parties. This weekend we are having one (suppose to be + 11) which involves deep frying chicken wings, lots of food, beverages and a fire which the whole neighbourhood  participates in. So much fun!!! All the kids have a blast! We live in a very, very social neighbourhood and it rocks!!!

This picture was taken before the last snowfall, Raydn has been so excited that he gets to wear his rubber boots outside. It must be a boy thing because he wants to wear them ALL the time, even in the house! With this layout, I just wanted to keep it simple!! I didn't add much detail at all. I just added a touch of stitching on the corners of the picture and actually sprayed the paper with the Color wash colour "bottle" from the outside in. Color wash is my new favourite product!!! I love it but I have learned to wear gloves, I didn't like having pink nails last week!! I used the Stella Rose line from BoBunny, love this paper the colours are absolutely amazing and I though the blues were perfect for Raydns rubber boots and puddles too of course. The one thing I love about this paper is the texture of it and its very thick, its very forgiving if you want to move your paper once it taped down. I rearranged this layout a week after it had already been put together. Very forgiving, even the glue dots on the back of the buttons.

I am currently working on a shadowbox using the Stella Rose line but with the oranges. I am super excited about this project because my die cut"tattered florals" by Tim Holtz just arrived and I can't wait to use it! . I am also using the color wash "butterscotch" on the flowers which matches perfectly!!!!  (Roxanne used it on her flowers in the last class: Memories"). I am having so much fun with this project!! I can't wait to show it.

Created and designed by Rhonda Witzke

The Best Day Ever.....

After working with the new products in Roxannes class at Urban, I had to buy some of the color wash and experiment with it myself. I used the paper line from Glitz....beautiful paper!! I don't know why but lately I am really drawn to pink..which is really odd because as a kid I HATED it but that's probably because my mom always dressed me in it. For the paper flowers I randomly dropped cranberry and rose alcohol inks onto the pedals and then sprayed them with espresso color wash. They turned out super cool but by mistake. I originally was going to use the alcohol inks but it looked to bold. I wanted to see what the color wash would look like so I sprayed it on that flower (I was going to toss it anyways) but when it dried it looked so cool...the color wash didn't take on some parts of the alcohol ink and it lightly absorbed into the white...all I can say is I loved how it turned out.
I also used the same process with my ribbon as the flowers. For anyone who has ever used alcohol inks on acrylic you know how it looks when it is applied???..very bold.. and you can remove it by just using windex and start over???? Well by mixing the ink with color wash that doesn't happen...the coming off part I mean but on gel. My gel finger nails are BRIGHTLY coloured  red and blotchy. Yikes!!! Yup...I have been scrapbooking!!! and my next appointment isn't for two weeks :s 
I also got to use my cuddlebug, I embossed the paper matts with handwriting (it just added that little touch)..love, love, love it!!!! 
I got to do this one page layout while my great little boy slept for 4 hours today.....he must have known that mommy had the scrapbook bug  :) but after we went outside and played for 2 hours with the neighbour kids....and of course went puddle jumping.

These pictures were of Raydns first stampede in Medicine Hat. We went on the carousal, went to the petting zoo and watched the diving dogs. While we were there it poured then turned out to be the nicest, hottest day. A great first experience to have with his Grandma. I altered the pictures in Picnik, I loved how they tured out!!

Designed and created by Rhonda Witzke.