iPhone Panorama

Thanks you, Becky Higgins, for your post on using your iPhone camera in the coolest of ways, and sharing it. The timing was perfect!

This past week, I spent some time in Chicago. This shot was taken at the Shedd Aquarium. Couldn't tell it felt like 110+ outside in this pretty photo, huh?
My family and I also spent some time at the University of Notre Dame in South Bend, Indiana. What a beautiful campus! This is from the Grotto...
And this is across from the Grotto...
And this one was taken from inside the Joy Center. Our daughter's dance team had their national competition there last week...
Camera + and AutoStitch Apps, I'm your new biggest fan!!!
Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

The Pioneer Woman's Poppers

I am here to tell you that these are amazing. Everything that the Pioneer Woman does is amazing. And this recipe is what sold me on her. I swear I thought I posted it before. But my search brought up nothing. So here goes...

You can find this incredible recipe here. Go make some for your next get-together. Triple the recipe. They're that good.

Oh, and one more important note. Wear gloves when cutting/gutting the peppers. I didn't last time and my hands burned for 2 days. Not fun. Lesson learned. So take it from me and be cautious! :)

Enjoy your Friday!

Color Palettes

I ran across this really cool website called Color Collective through a friends blog just a few days ago & I am now hooked. Not only do you get a daily dose of colorful inspiration, you also get a stunning dose of fashion photography.






Cheers!

be happy

Hello, ladies...
Jamie here with a closer look at the 'be happy' mini album I did with the July kit. I love me some mini albums these days...and this one was no exception.

The canvas cover of the Pink Paislee album is so gorgeous, it need not be covered up too much. So I took to using the colored hemp and wrapped the book a couple of times, then tied it in a couple of bows. A mini shipping tag, a flower punch of the patterned paper, and the card stock letters added to the tag made for a simple cover embellishment.

A closer look.

If you follow my mini's at all, you know I always have some sort of pattern that the book follows. In the case of the 'happiness' mini, it was the use of borders on each of the chipboard pages that complimented that pages pattern. I used card stock from my stash. I also punched tabs highlighting the theme of each page.

Each page houses a quote on the subject of happiness. Over the years these quotes have daily meaning for me, and I wanted to give them a home.

Each page inspiration came by way of lifting myself. Debbi mentioned that inspirational element a few posts back, and it works like a charm for me. I flip through past layouts, pick up on an idea, and go with it.

Each page is gradually indented from the next. So each index, border, and other elements peeks out from behind the page in front of it, and urges the reader to move to the next. This is another technique I have used a couple of times now.

A few of my favorite things: punches, unique shaped buttons, die cuts, colored hemp, textured card stock, small pattern paper. It all found a home in the happiness mini.

Hoping this little tour of my book gave you some inspiration. I know that the August kit is finding it's way into your hot little hands...so enjoy!

How Does Your Garden Grow?

Summer is in full swing and after the flowers, fruits are "everywhere" in my garden.  My primary role in my family's gardens is that of a photographer.  My thumbs are far from green and they are more needed to help steady the camera :) 
The strawberry season is officially over. We planted a couple of different varieties this year and the fruits were deliciously sweet!  The weather this year was so wonky so we didn't make it to the strawberry farm to pick as a family, but at least we had our own patch.

Our cherry trees produced abundantly this year as opposed to nothing in 2010 due to a late May frost! This year, the fruits were plump and shiny, and as tart as ever. Only DH likes to eat those!

Brand new to us this year are the blueberry bushes!!  It's so exciting to see these tiny berries sprouting forth :)  They have gotten bigger since this photo was taken and a few of them have turned blue!!!  It's so exciting :)  I must get the kids some light blue shirts and be prepared for my duties as the official photographer :)

We also added a few bushes of summer bearing raspberries and we are in the middle of overdosing on those! Roughly a pint of raspberries a day is being harvested and we are loving them! Sometimes the kids would just stand in front of the bushes and eat as fast and as many as they want. 

We also have a variety of veggies that we are enjoying this year, maybe I can share some photos of those in a future post! Thanks for visiting!

Summer Fun Layout

While looking through photo galleries for inspiration on Pinterest, I came across the coolest photo. It inspired me to recreate the shot, using my own children and their cars...
I used the June kit (yes, I'm still playing with bits from that one!) and it came together quickly. I love that it documents our son's love of cars, a true passion of his.

So here's what you do. Grab your child, as-is. Take whatever they're into--dolls, Legos, pirates, butterflies--and find a spot with good natural light. Tell the child to lay down on the ground, on their backs, like my son in the above photo. Then tell them what you're going to do. Next, fill a good area with their favorite things. Stand on a chair or a stool, and snap away! You won't be sorry you did!
Enjoy your Monday!

Where's the Mojo?

It happens to everyone at some point. The mojo goes missing, and it's frustrating, to say the least. That happened to me last month when I had some scrappy deadlines. I had lots on my mind with trying to get my house ready to put on the market, so I was blaming my lack of mojo on that, but I knew I had to get moving with my Work in Progress layouts. So after staring at the awesome July kit for several days, I decided to go to my sure-fire mojo booster. It's a method I've used lots of times before and I knew it would get me going: I'd scraplift myself.

I picked a layout I had recently done that I really liked and said I'll just scraplift that. Here's the page I picked:

This page was inspired by a Creative Scrappers sketch (working off of sketches is also a great mojo-booster) and also a challenge at Color Combos Galore:

And here's the page I made for WIP, scraplifted from my "Sweet Freedom" layout. I'd had this picture printed out for a while and knew I wanted to do the "redneck" thing for my "Book of Silly." The papers in this kit were perfect for the feel I was going for on this page. And I think the techniques I borrowed from the "Sweet Freedom" page worked equally well for this page.

In the original layout, I was working off the image on the Color Combos Galore Inspiration Board. The tearing was meant to mimic the foam on the ocean waves, and the threads I left from the stitching were meant to give my page an easy-[sea]breezy feel.

On my redneck page, the tearing and loose threads, along with the patterns--plaid and more muted shades-- gave my page a rustic, down-home country feel, I thought.

On my original page, I left the edges uninked to give it a clean, crisp feel, whereas on my scraplift, I inked the edges of the papers to give it a grungier feel.

So, the same design and techniques yielded two layouts I liked that have to very different looks and feels. And you know what? Once I got this page finished, my mojo came back and I was able to make several more pages with no problem! If you haven't tried scraplifting yourself before, give it a whirl! And I'd love to hear your best tips for getting your mojo back. :)

August 2011 WIP Kits

And here they are...

August 2011 Main WIP Kit--SOLD OUT!!
Contents of this kit include: 10 Patterned papers (1 My Storybook, 2 My Mind's Eye, 2 Echo Park, and 5 Jillibean Soup), 1 Jillibean Soup Watermelon Gazpacho Alpha/Sticker sheet, 1 Jillibean Soup Watermelon Gazpacho Die Cut Sheet, 1 My Mind's Eye die cut label, 3 Standard #5 Shipping Tags, 2 Manila envelopes, 1 Shipping Label Sticker Sheet, Cosmo Cricket die cuts, 24 Raffle Tickets in 4 colors, 2 ledger die cut labels, 3 Washi Tape Tags, 2 Dimensional crab die cuts, and 4 "I'm gonna snap/Mama's gonna snap" pin-backed buttons.
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August 2011 Add-On Kit----SOLD OUT!!


Contents of this kit include: 9 Patterned papers--Echo Park Splash collection, 1 Splash Strip Sheet, 1 Splash tag sheet, 1 Splash Alpha Sheet, 1 Splash Sticker Sheet, 18 Raffle Tickets in 3 different colors,1 Pack Basic Grey Fabric Brads, two back to school stickers, 3 Bazzill die cut flowers, 4 green label stickers, 1 mini kraft bag and tag label, 1-10 number stickers, 3 red shipping tags, 1 yard blue twine, full sheet green mini alphas and gray mini alphas-full sheet.
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August Project Kit--$20
"Be Happy" 4x8 Mini Book Kit
**This is a reproduction of the Bertram Inn's sold out "Be Happy" 4x8 chipboard book that was sold out at last year's retreat. This kit is actually cut to size and ready to assemble--simply add photos! The pages shown are part of the book, and are meant to showcase one person during different stages of growth. It is gender-neutral, bright and happy, and perfect for anyone!! The kit comes with pre-printed pages and pre-punched pages so your finished book will be ready to go!
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August Basics Kit--$20
Contents of this kit include: 17 sheets of cardstock (charcoal, red, white, squash and kraft), 10 XL shipping tags, 6 small shipping tags, 18 raffle tickets (6 each in yellow, pink and teal), 2 glycene bags, 2 shipping envelopes, 32 hole reinforcers, 3 red shipping tags, 5 jewelry tags, 14 yards of twine (red/white, yellow/white, red and white), and ten 4" square envelopes.

Please email Trish at Turay413@gmail.com if you would like to reserve one today!! The kits will be available to the public at noon on July 15th right here. :)
Enjoy your day!!

Washi Tape Fun

I have a jar filled with rolls of Washi tape. The other day, I was inspired to grab it and make 3 layouts in less than 30 minutes, using only that and a few scraps. You know, a personal challenge...
I grabbed 3 sheets of white 8.5" x 11" paper, and came up with these grids above. In no time, I had the basis of layouts...
Then, I grabbed a few of my many photographs, and a few leftovers from recent kits and went to town.
They're not involved or complicated at all. But they're heartfelt and DONE, just the same.
Grab a bunch of Washi Tapes and go to town! You'll be surprised at how quickly they evolve!
Enjoy your Wednesday!!

Broccoli Carbonera

This is a summertime staple in our home. And with my recent discovery of broccoli slaw in the produce aisle, our kids don't even know it is broccoli now! Seriously, a tried and true favorite (spoken from a true veggie-hater)...

Broccoli Carbonera

3 heads of fresh broccoli (or two bags of broccoli slaw, like in the photo above)
2 red onion, chopped
8 oz. cheddar cheese, shredded
1 lb. bacon, cooked and crumbled
Dressing:
1 cup mayo
½ cup sugar
3 Tbsp. wine vinegar

Mix well, and spread dressing over veggies. Let marinate over night, and eat cold.

Enjoy your day!