Happy NSD!!

Welcome to the NSD Prima Blog Hop! Scrapbooking is a hobby that caught my eye shortly after I got married in the 80s. (YEAH! That long ago!) I scrapped my wedding photos, cutting many of them out with decorative scissors. OUCH!) Then life swept over me with it's craziness of having six babies in a row and I had to set the hobby aside for a bit. I picked it up again a few years before I had my last baby and couldn't believe how much the product selection had grown. I was a gonner! (Is that even a word? Well, you know what I mean!) I have been immersed in it every since. Isn't it the best hobby ever?

And....I am so thrilled you made it to my blog! You most likely came from Keren Tamir's blog and will be going down the list to Patricia Fernandez's next! I am so very blessed to be working with everyone on Prima's blog hop list today. Prima has a fun-packed day planned with the wonderful Ambassadors, the talented Design Team, and their amazing Educators! I hope the projects inspire you to dig out your crafty supplies and have fun along with me.

I have a sweet, feminine project to show off today, along with a cute prize to give-away. So make sure you scroll ALL the way to the bottom to catch it all! The complete blog hop list is also included for you. Prima will also be giving prizes away on ALL of their social media outlets, along with a stunning main prize hosted on the Prima blog, so make sure you hop around and then comment on Prima's blog!

Prima is offering free classes today as well! Want to learn new techniques? Chat with other scrappers? Join in on the marathon of "Live With Prima" classes filled with gorgeous projects kicking off at 7 am PT! The first class will be taught by ME showing off a few techniques for art journaling! Click here to watch!

Now on to my project for NSD! Each of us created a 6x6 page with an inspirational quote. With Mother's Day coming up I wanted to create something to let moms know how wonderful, important, and unique they are to their children!


I lost my own mom three years ago so Mother's Day is bittersweet now. It's hard to celebrate the day knowing your own mom isn't here, but God always knows my needs. He gave me the most amazing mother-in-law! She has always been there for me. She doesn't pry, or push, or try to have her own way. And she is adventurous! My hubby really respects her, and I agree 100% with him. She's the kindest, most giving person I have ever met. I'm so glad she's a part of my life, and my children's lives. So I made her this piece, as the quote inspires me to be more like her:

"To the world you are a mother, but to your family you are the world!"

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 The project was simple to put together! I started with a 6x6 paper from the Meadow Lark Collection, added a bit of cheesecloth to it, then added a resin butterfly in the corner.

I printed out my saying (multiple times as I kept printing it slightly TOO large!) Glued it to the back of one of our new resins. And then started decorating the page with flowers and leaves.

 I think it's the perfect way to show her how much we all love her. And her favorite color is purple! (I sure hope some day my children will feel the same way about me!)

And here is my give-away! All you have to do is leave a comment right here and I will pick a winner on May 12th to receive these gorgeous products! Open to all countries! (I would love it if you found me on Facebook, Pinterest, and Instagram as well!)




Now here is the Blog Hop Line-Up! Hop along, be inspired,  and find some give-aways!

Prima Marketing
Olga Vasilieva
Adrienne Ford
Magda Bolinska
Kasia Krzyminska
Kasia Tomaszewska
Felicity Wilson
Delaina Burns
Louise Nelson
Brit Sviggum
Jennifer Snyder

Solange Marques
Kelly Foster
Keren Tamir
Sharon Laakkonen-You are HERE!
Patricia Fernandez
Elena Olinevich
Alberto Juarez
Frank Garcia
Maiko Miwa
Trina McClune
Janine Koczwara
Misty Olsen
Sarinda Jones
Ramona Downing
Candace Hagler
Erin Reed
Sam Ho

(inter)National Scrapbooking Day!

 

Today is National Scrapbooking Day in the states and Prima is having an AMAZING blog hop! So if you are working your way down their list, welcome! You are at the right place! (Make sure you scroll all the way down for the blog list and a GIVE-AWAY!)

Prima also has a wonderful line-up of LIVE classes, including my layout class shown here at 9 AM eastern time!

Here is a direct link to the Prima ustream channel. Hop on over and watch a class or two today. The classes go ALL day long. There will be prizes and lots of fun to be had on the chats.

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The layouts shown above don't have a lot of my normal feminine touches. And that's cool. Since I have a few older boys I thought I would play around with some of our newest metals, stencils, gesso, stamps, and so on. (My boys REALLY appreciate me NOT adding flowers to their layouts. Imagine that!)

I love the cleaner graphic & bright effect on this layout of Billy using Lady Bird.  It totally fits his personality and his photo!

You can achieve this bright look with PanPastels and a stencil! (Use a neutral backdrop paper like this one in the Lady Bird line so your attention is on the photo and techniques.)

Just set the stencil on the paper (I use washi tape on the sides to help secure it to the paper. When you are done coloring you can pull it up easily and it will not tear your paper.)

Start with the lightest color of PanPastel first, then work your way through to the darkest color.

(Just make sure you seal it once you are happy with the colors. I use SpectraFix which is safe to spray inside and has no nasty fumes.)

Next add a photo mat with foam squares, chipboard shapes, stickers and crystals. Add the photo with foam adhesive to pop it up off the page a bit.


Staple some twine to the page with a Tim Holtz Tiny Attacher to mimic the chevron pattern for a nice GUY touch.

Create a banner flag with our stickers (and a toothpick!) and tuck it under the photo.

Stamp all your important dates and sayings on the stickers with these cool roller stamps by Smash and Dear Lizzy! I use them ALL the time.

 That's it!


My other layout is about my 16 year old,  Brayden. It definitely has a different look than the first layout.  You can see the whole layout created in my class so check it out! (All shows are recorded in case you cannot catch them live.)

Prima Supplies

• 922375, 922351 DD Art Stencil
• 891671, 891633 Tiny Junkyard Findings
• 562861, 562908 Alphas
• 890995, 891003, 891015 Comfort Craft Chalk Fluid Edgers
• 960353, 960261 Mechanicals by Finnabair
• 960124 Clear Stamp- Sunrise, Sunset
• 564377 Washi Tape Stamp
• 563042 Clear Stamp-Engraver
• 564896 Lifetime Washi Tape

Other:

• Fiskars Star Punch
• Ranger Studio Gesso
• Ranger Archival Black & Brown Ink
• shipping tag
• orange twine
• Color Shine: BlackVelvet
• Glimmer Mist: Dark Denim
• Fabri-Tac by Beacon

Here's the video!



Video streaming by Ustream


So what do you think? Ready to try a few of these techniques on your next project? Leave me a comment and I will pick one person to win this fabulous prize on May 13th. Open to all countries.

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Here is the list for the blog hop!

Prima Blog
Sharon Laakkonen (You are here!)

Cari Fennell
Jamie Dougherty 
Frank Garcia 
Nic Howard
Janine Koczwara  
Heidi Kelley 
Brit Sviggum
Trina McClune 
Gerry van Gent
Lene Bjornerud 
Magda Bolinska  
Anna Dabrowska
Maiko Kosugi  
Felicity Wilson  
Larissa Albernaz 
Marie-Nicolas Alliot 
Louise Nelson  
Juliana Montoya  
Steph Devlin
Stephanie Miller
Solange Marques
Lea Lawson