My top 10 favorite projects of 2014

Hi there friends. Today I thought of doing a recap of my favorite projects from this year. You can click on the specific blog posts for that project on the title and I will share a little bit of why I consider them as my faves from 2014. Here we go...

Altered Canvas Tote

This is one of my fave altered projects for this year because it not only is super cute but it's also practical. I use this bag as my scripture carrier and it just brings a smile on my face every time I pick it up. 

Great Outdoors

I chose this layout because I got it done pretty quick plus it showed some of cuts from my Silhouette. It's an evidence that I'm finally getting a hang of my "new" toy.

Square tile frame

Love this altered frame too. I love how simple yet full of texture and dimension this project has. Plus the quote is perfect. 

With Best Wishes card

I chose this card because it shows some of the things that I've tried to incorporate stamps in my card. I also like my attempt for coloring. I've definitely tried lots of techniques this year. 

 Spring mini album

This is one of the few mini albums I made this year. I love how super easy this all came together plus the vintage items in it are so cute.

Daddy-Daughter dance

I treasure this layout because of the story and how easy it came together. This also shows the recurring theme of my pages this year....lots of layers and handwritten journaling. 

Jewelry Holder

I chose this as one of my faves because it was one of those projects that I've been wanting to do and it helps bring some cute craftiness in my home.

Pre School Cutie

I love, love, love this layout because a. all the papers here are from my scrap stash; b. love those owl stickers; and c. I finally used some gesso. It was definitely fun to play with that medium. I'll have to do it more.

Beautiful card

This one was also a favorite because it shows my love for color. I gravitate towards bold, fun colors and this card shows that.

Scripture Advent Calendar

And finally, a project that is both adorable and had a purpose. We definitely enjoyed doing our Advent calendar this way. It has helped us bring the true meaning of Christmas into our countdown.

Thank you for joining me today. I hope you continue to stop by my blog in 2015.

Happy New Year.

Till next time,
Grace

Family Update- December 2014

Hi guys. I hope you all had a great Christmas. I wanted to get this recap of the month posted but unfortunately, I have not uploaded all of my photos from my cameras. Yes you read it right, I have been using multiple cameras to capture the month and I haven't had the time to load up the pictures. So for today, you will get stories that were captured through my phone's camera. 

I made the kids decorate the trees this year. The larger one (above) was put together by Maddie and the smaller one (bottom) was decorated by Marcus. It's not the most perfect trees but I feel so happy that the older kids are putting their handmade touch to our Christmas this year.

I am enjoying my two week break from school and soaking up all the little moments with this little guy. He sure is growing up fast. A lot of people tell me that he looks like me and this photo kinda does show that. He has rounder eyes than the two older ones.

We watched the first presidency's Christmas devotional in the beginning of this month to get our season off on the right track.

 Lots of traditions happen during this month. One of them is our annual gingerbread house decorating. I got my kit from Walmart and I have to say, I will NEVER do that again. Such cheap quality.

I got this photo of the finished house (decorated mostly by the kids themselves)

and not long after, it collapsed on us.

This month was also busy for the kiddos. They both had performances ( no photos of it but we do have videos that again are still in my cameras) and Marcus came home with this artwork that he said was displayed in the school's art gallery this month. So proud of both of them.

We taught the kids the Phase 10 card game and we have been playing it on Sunday nights. The kids are seeing how competitive their parents are through these games. I'm just a little embarrassed about that. 

And finally a recap of our growing little dude....

this month...
He cried when dad holds him. We are not sure why he acts like this.
He is drooling a lot. We are thinking that he is teething way earlier than the other two kiddos.
He always like to be carried. My friend calls it "altitude sickness". Always wants to be up and walking around, exploring the surroundings.
He is a yapper, especially when he hears everyone talk at dinner time.
(second photo on the top) There was one night where I was making dinner and he cried and cried in his bouncer then all of a sudden it was quiet. When I turned around, I found him sleeping with feet dangling off of the chair. I have a picture of Marcus when he was a little baby that he fell asleep inside his high chair. It would be a fun scrapbook page to put the two photos together.
(third photo on the top) He loves to smile and show us his big grin. So adorable.
(left photo on the bottom) He is always with me, even when I'm doing laundry.
(right photo on the bottom) I made him some suspeder/bow tie onesies and he looked adorable in his Sunday's best.

So that is what's been going on around here. How about you?

Happy New Year.

Till next time,
Grace

Giveaway Time!

Hello there friends. As we say goodbye to 2014, I thought I'd say thank you to my lovely blog readers by doing a giveaway. Here's what I'm giving away....

All of these items are new, never been used or opened items and as you can see, there's a bunch of pocket scrapbooking cards that can be used for project life or for layering on your page.

To enter the giveaway, please leave a comment telling me what you would like to see more of in this blog in 2015. The giveaway will run from today till January 2nd (Friday, midnight, mountain time) I will announce the winner on Jan. 5th, the following Monday.

Also, check out my You Tube channel and my latest video (scrapbook giveaway) for another chance to win something from me.

Goodluck!

Till next time,
Grace

Not So Happy Holidays layout *Inspired By Stamping*

Hello my crafty friends. We all have favorite holiday stories. Some funny, others heartwarming and there are a few that we use to bribe our kids in the future. The story I documented in this layout can be put in all of those categories. 

Not so happy holidays

When my daughter was little, she was super excited about Christmas. At three years old, she had grasped the idea of a special day where we open presents, presents that we had wished for. Well the one thing that she wasn't too keen about was the idea of Santa. The photo I used in this layout was of her clinging very tightly on my shirt while we talked with Santa Claus during a church Christmas party. I can still remember her hesitation while we were in line to meet the big fella. 

For this page, I used the Christmas tree, snowflake and deer images from the Build a Stocking Stamp set of Inspired By Stamping. I wanted my Christmas tree to have more depth to them so I heat embossed them with green powder.

I added a few snowflakes on the empty parts of my layout, just to give it more design.

I also did a lot of sticker and paper layering, something I'm enjoying a lot lately. Plus it lets me use up a lot of my stash.

So there you have it. Thank you for stopping by.

Till next time,
Grace

Cheyenne Mountain layout

Advance Merry Christmas my dear friends. 

Today I'd like to share my last layout from my homemade scrapbook kit for this month. It's a two page spread! I haven't done that in a while. 

Cheyenne Mountain State Park

This layout boasts of 15 pictures. How awesome is that? And because most of the pictures are printed at 2x3" there's room to add embellishments and pattern papers.

Here's a video of how this page was made...

And here are a few more detail shots...

I wish you all a very merry Christmas tomorrow.

Till next time,
Grace

Winter Ribbon Wreath *Ribbons Unlimited Inc*

 Hello ribbon friends. Today I’d like to share with you a very fun way to showcase some of your favorite trims in a home décor project. Winter is just around the corner and so why not celebrate it with a winter themed wreath. The best part of this project is it doesn’t need adhesive.

Instructions:

Gather your supplies. Because this is a winter themed project, I pulled mostly blue trims with the exception of the Dazzle Ivory and the Edinburgh trim. I didn’t want it to look so monotonous so I added those two to spice it up a bit. I also used different shades of blue so my wreath wouldn’t look too predictable. 

Plan a pattern of the ribbons on your wreath and start tying them down. I used a double knot on the project to make sure that my trims won’t unravel on me. 

Repeat the process until you’ve reached your pattern. Once you’re pleased with the pattern, repeat it until you have filled up the entire wreath with ribbon. This might take a while. I did this project while watching some TV. 

Once you’ve filled up your wreath with ribbon, Cut a 12” ribbon (of your choice) wrap around the wreath and tie the ends. Add a bow on one side and this will be your piece that will allow you to hang up your wreath. 

And here are some more details of my project….

I really liked how this turned out. The cuts are all different lending to a homemade feel plus the colors will definitely bring cheer to those cold wintery days ahead of us.

If you have scraps, like I did, make sure to save them for other crafty projects such as what I did with the cards I shared earlier this month.

Thank you for stopping by.

-Grace 

Supplies Used:

Dazzle ribbon, Ivory, 7/8”, Ribbons Unlimited Inc.

Ombre wired, Sky Blue, 1 ½”, Ribbons Unlimited Inc.

Country check, Royal, 5/8”, Ribbons Unlimited Inc.

Edinburgh, Dress Stewart, 1”, Ribbons Unlimited Inc.

Grosgrain, Copen, 3/8”, Ribbons Unlimited Inc.

Foam wreath- Styrofoam

Scissors

Sliding Down layout

And it's another layout share from me today. 

I have been loving putting together scrapbook kits from my own stash and this one was the fourth layout from the kit that I had put together this month. You can check the video of the supplies I've gathered here...

Sliding down layout

These pictures are from four years ago. I love looking at them as they show a "younger" version of the kiddos. Not that they're super old now but their facial features have definitely changed.

I have to admit to you that I don't like my title. I was trying to be clever and use up some letter stickers but I really don't like the idea of sliding down to joy. I will change the word "to" to "with" before I slip this layout into my album.

And here's a process video showcasing this layout...

And here are a few more close up pics....

Do you ever get stumped with titles? What's your trick to overcome that? I would really like to know.

Till next time,
Grace

Pirate's Cove layout

Hi there crafty friends. Today I'm sharing a layout I created with some of my stash and was inspired by this sketch from the Stuck?! challenge blog. 

Pirate's Cove layout

These are pictures from our first trip to Pirate's Cove, up in the Denver area. We loved it so much that we've been going to it for the last three summers. Our summer won't be the same without a trip to this water park.Thankfully, each year we manage to score some awesome deals on entrance fee so we are able to go year after year.

I know that I should be thinking of Christmas colors and themes this season but I just love how bold and vibrant colors brings me back to summer, one of my favorite seasons.

Here's a video on how I created this layout...

and here's a few more detail shots...

Thank you for stopping by and hope you have a great day.

Till next time,
Grace