Pinoy Scrapbookers Kaya Challenge

I've been wanting to join the Kaya Challenge. Once, I actually did but wasn't able to submit my entry because I was also waiting for the layout to appear at the Daisy Bucket blog first. Unfortunately, the layout was posted a month after the month's challenge.

Anyway, when I read Janis' June Kaya challenge (she's celebrating her bday this month!), I told myself this is not for me because I don't remember buying any pearl embellishment. But lo and behold as I was recalling my stash, I remember having a few (I think!) from Chatterbox as part of my prize kit hehehe. How many did I find? 3! Dami no?! So, since I was racking my brain how to use the three pearl brads that I have, I overlooked the challenge rules that was to use a photo of myself! So there, I was able to make one pero mali naman! LOL!

I'm proud to say that I used 11 manufacturers in this layout (Yay I mixed them!) - Making Memories (postage stamp paper, letter stickers and yellow paint), Bazzill Kraft cs, BasicGrey (butterly), My Mind's Eye (green, stripes), Ki Memories (pink border stickers) , Creative Imaginations (dotted black border stricker), Chatterbox (pearl brads , green crochet flower and photo frame), Fancy Pants (white and blue crochet flowers), American Crafts (Thickers), Zig (pen), Clearsnap (ink). Also, I was able to use some stash that are more than 2 years old!

I used #24 sketch from Inspired Blueprints in making this layout (another yay becoz I find it hard to follow a sketch!). I tried distressing, layering and even splattering paint (and I intend to do it again!) I painted the cardboard before attaching it at the back of my layout.

Check out the other creations posted at the blog. If you are a member of Pinoy Scrapbookers Yahoo group, you are most welcome to join. Challenges are posted every first day of the month!

-Pia

XOXO

... means Hugs and Kisses

I created this layout using Scrappinkids Sketch #3. . I find it hard to follow a sketch so it's a little tweaked. I'm not sure if the letters XOXO can still be seen from my design. I'm confused as to how I can manage to put so much details on the entire page when my initial plan was to use white space! I'm getting a little frustrated on white space now hehehe.

Anyway, I love this layout so much because it has one of the most precious photos of me and Ethan. I guess the pictures say it all. I was also able to put into words the sweet things my son and I share like holding hands while sleeping, kissing and hugging many times before we part, and so on.

title: XOXO
matls used: Fancy Pants Splendid and Making Memories papers, Ki Memories border stickers, Fancy Pants & American Crafts felt shapes, buttons, American Crafts Thickers, Zig pen and Crayola (my son's crayons). The animal felt shape is a pre made one. I bought that from Lasting Impression (LSS), I only added the flower on his head
Photography by Jeff Lopez

-Pia

Sharing some girl layouts ...

I made these layouts for my inaanak (god daughter), Anika Lucia.

I tried two things here that I don't usually do. The first one is distressing. I'm not really a fan of distressed layouts but wanted to give it a try again anyway. To distress the edges of the papers, I used my cutter : ) I found out that a cutter can be an alternative for an edge scraper. It produces the same effect less the cost especially that I won't really use this a lot.

I love the Prima lace used as the stem of the flower. Maybe I should try to think of ways on how to use that (in boy pages I mean).

I was able to use white space here, something I wish I can do more often.

Second thing I tried is to scrap simply and in color blocks.

It's too simple, my hands are itching to touch that layout again. But doing so will defeat the purpose so I hurriedly gave it to my kumare, Arlene. Now, I can't do anything about it : )

-Pia

Shabby Green Door

Sharing with you a happy news from Daisy Bucket Designs!

Daisy Bucket has a new division called Shabby Green Door. Debuting as its' first paper line is Farmer's Market. I can't tell you how much I adore this new line. I'm not a shabby chic person but seeing this line for the first time made me change my mind.

Just take a look at the new acrylic stamps, papers, twine and even Jam jars! Aren't they adorable? I can't wait to see these in flesh (which I really hope will be sooner!)

To view the rest of the collection, drop by Shabby Green Door.

-Pia

Scrap the Boys

I did it! I'm part of Scrap the Boys new Creative Team. Check out the full announcement here.

Thanks to Susan Longman for this wonderful oppurtunity! Susan is the "Inkredible" woman behind Scrap the Boys.

And here are the rest of the team.

Wendy Smith – Australia
Amy Welch - Arkansas USA
Kerryn Fry - Australia
Anna Koziarek - Poland
Leanne Triggs - Australia
Hayley Turner - Australia
Aphra Bolyer - Louisiana USA
Pia Salem–Lopez - Philippines
Hannah Blair - New Zealand
Wendela Lam – The Netherlands
Nadhrah Maidin – Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Linda Eggleton – Australia
Monique Follet – Australia

I recently found this blog through Scrapbook Calls. What I liked most about Scrap the Boys is that it's a challenge blog dedicated ONLY to boy layouts! Yup you read it right, no girls allowed here hehehe! I just love to be part of a group who shares the same passion that I have ... it's not just scrapbooking but scrapping boy layouts! The monthly challenge is posted every first day of the month.

So, calling all those moms who have boys like me, this is our blog, drop by and let's have fun!

P.S. Thanks for all those who sent in their greetings for my new DT stints!

-Pia

Scrappin Kids Crew

I'm so happy and excited to be a part of the new SK crew!

I hope you'll join me as we share our layouts every month at the SK blog. Do check out the challenges posted every 1st day of the month and send in your layouts.

Also, Scrappin Kids has a forum. Come and register, we would love to chat with you!

-Pia

Ethan is in Junior Kindergarten

Should my question be, "When???" or maybe "How?" When did he become a Kindergarten? Ok, I know, "just today". But how? Of course, I know the answer again, "he's already 4 1/2 and he finished Nursery last schoolyear!" Oh well, maybe I just have to accept the fact that my baby has really grown ...

... so today Ethan is officially in Junior Kindergarten! He's under Teacher Yohan's class and still at Section D. Ethan's classroom is right across his Nursery classroom. He was still pointing to his old room when we entered the school (although he knows that he has a new one). Luckily, most of Ethan's friends are still his classmates like Chinny, Andrei and Nicole. But there was one missing, Sancho, his best bud in Nursery class who is now in JK-C : ( Ethan was looking for Sancho this afternoon. I explained to him that they are no longer classmates but we can set up a playdate for them so they can still be together once in awhile.

Anyway, since last night Ethan has been telling me how excited he was to go back to school. He has been telling me how he misses his classmates and friends. I, on the otherhand, feel quite the same. I also missed my co-mommies at Rosemont hehehe!

How was Ethan inside the classroom? I had the privilege to take a few peeks while classes are going on. I saw that he would sit on his designated line and was listening to his teacher. He was playing with a new classmate. He packed away when the teacher said playtime was over. He sat on his chair, did his art work and finished it without standing and roaming the classroom : ) Sometimes, he sees me looking at him and I'll give him a thumbs up sign! I'm really hoping this behavior is for good and not only for today!

One thing I was quite disappointed for today was the fact that Ethan's uniforms are too small for him, especially his shorts. He has been complaining about it when were dressing up this morning, masikip na daw. I was hoping to buy a new set of uniform for him. He used to wear a small sized polo shirt and shorts when he was in Nursery level. I'm just disappointed that boy uniforms were unavailable even before the opening of classes. We were told that they ran out of stocks and they still don't know when the new ones are coming in : ( Perhaps, I'd be taking photos again when I have a new set of uniform para maganda sa scrapbooks ko LOL! Anyway, before we left for school, I was quite happy that we got medium sized shorts. I'll be eagerly waiting for a medium or large sized polo shirt and hoping it'll be soon.

Top: Ethan's first day in Nursery; Bottom: Ethan on his first day in Junior Kindergarten
One thing I noticed this morning was that Ethan was not as cooperative when it comes to picture taking. I wasn't able to get as much photos as I want. Add to that the fact that it was raining this morning till afternoon. I couldn't get a good shot. Plus another fact that Jeff, our official and better photographer was looking for a parking space near the school which leaves me no choice but to take photos of Ethan. My photography skills are a no match for his!

Tomorrow is another day for all of us here. We are adjusting again. I just hope that there will be lesser tantrums in the morning and there will be a little need to push Ethan to wake up, take a bath and eat : D

-Pia

Pink Paislee

I saw a Pink Paislee contest posted at Create My Keepsake a few days ago. I know I only have one Pink Paislee paper that is the Vintage Moon. But thanks to my dear friend Liza, I was able to make a layout for the said contest! How? Liza is so generous that she shared her Pink Paislee papers with me! I asked Liza for her scraps (I don't have problems dealing with scraps coz I'm a certified scavenger; you can ask my friends about it!) : D I also asked her (I can be abusive you know hehehe) if I can have some letter stickers and one die cut for my journaling and she agreed! She's really heaven sent. Check out her entry at the same contest ... it's gorgeous!

The contest rules says use "only" Pink Paislee products. I tried my best to do that. I uploaded my layout awhile ago but I couldn't really resist to add one more element on my layout. So to pacify myself, I added that one element on my layout and took another set of pictures! Can you tell what?

I know how I can be so obssesive compulsive at times. But I guess the newer version looks better. The orange and brown buttons just added the right amount color that I was looking for.

I did a lot of doodling here. I doodled around the owl, the tree branch, the scalloped papers, the photo mat and the journaling die cut! And again, I'm so proud this layout is made purely of scraps except for the background paper of course.

materials used: Pink Paislee Vintage Moon - Night Owl, Harvest Moon, Blue Moon; Spring Fling - Green Lace and Spring Flowers; Holly Doodle Alphabet Stickers - Chocolate and Aqua; Office Lingo - Die cut shape; Bazzil cardstock; Fancy Pants (brown button); googly eyes; Zig and Uniball Signo pen; Photography by Jeff Lopez

Pink Paislee is available locally at Lasting Impression Store.

-Pia

Look what I've found ...

... a bug at the garden! : )

I did this a couple of months ago when I was so bored and couldn't do a layout. I saw Ethan's baby book (it's where his pedia appointments are logged, as well as check ups, immunizations record and schedule, growth chart etc.) and thought that I could alter it a bit. I saw this photo of Ethan taken for his school ID. I then dug through my stash to look for papers that would match Ethan's shirt on the photo and found these old papers from Imagination Project. Little did I know when I was surfing these papers again in the net that the company manufacturing these cute boy papers have already closed! : (

Anyway, this was pretty simple to make and I was finished in less than an hour. I used a bookplate too (perhaps a long forgotten scrapbook embellishment nowadays) and Lil Davis letter rub ons. I added Making Memories button brads to embellish the quote. All of the materials used for this layout except for the brads are from Scrapbukan. Which reminds me how much I missed designing for Scrapbukan ... and how I missed chatting with Sahrie, my co-DTs, Ria and Iris. Sigh!

-Pia

Lasting Impression layout

Here's a layout I did for Lasting Impression using Sandy Lion Sea Serpent paper. I can say I love this cool dude errr I mean serpent.

At first, I cannot think of photos I'll use for this paper. I'd like to think I have always tried to be logical with my layouts or maybe too literal that I want to use photos that kinda have the same theme with the paper. Perhaps swimming photos since it's a sea serpent anyway? Or maybe Ethan's favorite toys? Or scrap about Ethan's "monstrous" acts hehehe. Anyway, I was too lazy to unearth, more so edit pictures. I just want to scrap what I already have with me. So, here's what I came up with ...

I decided to scrap Ethan's birthday photo! Clearly, the photo has nothing to do with the paper but I love it! And the "groovy" chipboard at the bottom has nothing to do with Ethan, I think it has more to do with the serpent hehehe. Honestly, I put it there because it matches the brown cardstock base hehehe. I also left more white space this time. I used my collection of brads (Queen &Co., Making Memories and All About Scrapbooking) to embellish the scallop border at the bottom. The scalloped borders are scraps from my Scenic Route Metropolis papers (super old na, hindi pa din ubos hahaha!).

To add more monsters in the layout, I cut these from October Afternoon Night Light paper and made them look like they're peeking from the inside.

Other matls used: Fancy Pants-True rub ons; Ki Memories chipboard (Groovy) and sticker borders; Scenic Route chipboard and sticker (candles); Making Memories letter stickers; American Crafts Thickers (no.4) and photo corner chipboard; embroidery floss; buttons; Queen & Co., Making Memories, AAS brads; Zig pen

Now for the title, I am choosing between: True (as the rub ons say hehehe) or 4 Today (the one written at the bottom). What do you think? : )

By the way, since Mr. Sun finally showed up today, I was able to take photos of my layouts. Will be sharing them this week : )

Now off to singing, "Mr. Sun, Sun, Mr. Golden Sun, please shine down on meeee!!!!!!!!"

-Pia

Meeting Diego

Remember singing, "Rain, rain go away" when you were younger? I feel like singing that song again hehehe. I hate it when it rains ... it's bad for our business LOL!

Kidding aside, everything seems difficult when it rains. We can't go out; we have a hard time drying the laundry and most of all I can't take photos outside! : D

Speaking of photos, my only 3 layouts since last month have not been photographed because of the weather (as mentioned already, kulit ko!) I was able to finish one layout today for Lasting Impression. I'm really enjoying my Sandy Lion papers especially the Sea Serpent paper.

Since I can't share my DT layout yet, here's one of my favorite layouts to date. I finished this one early this year. I hoarded the layout because I was hoping it'll be accepted for publication but 4 months is already too long, I guess the waiting is enough.

Meeting Diego: Scenic Route, Fancy Pants overlay, Prima and BasucGrey pps, Prima and Daisy bucket rub ons, buttons, DMC floss, Heidi Swapp chipboard, Making Memories letter stickers, Uniball Signo pen, Zig pen; Photography by Jeff Lopez

The base paper is from Scenic Route. I then layered it with Fancy Pants overlay. The overlay originally has the words, 'Groovy Baby' but I covered it with my picture. I then added Prima and Daisy Bucket rub ons around the photo. I applied the rub ons on the base paper not on the overlay because I think it will be scratched off (not sure about this). I then cut the "dinosaurs" from BasicGrey Archaic Dino. Funny that Jeff thinks the cut outs are "iguanas" hehehe. He was asking me where I got those papers when I told him that they are not iguanas but dinosaurs hehehe.

Now, I'm off to singing ... rain rain go away ... come again another day ...

-Pia