Guest Design Team Roundup: September 2010

Welcome to our first ever Guest Design Team roundup!!  We want to take the time every month to share with you some of the fabulous work from all of our Guest Design Team.  So at the end of every month, usually the last day, we will do a little roundup and show you lots of fabulous layouts and projects from these fabulously talented ladies.  We hope you enjoy!!


Up first, Cindy made these two beautiful layouts this month in addition to all her fabulous posts this month:

From Flamingo Scraps: Prima (patterned papers)

Other Supplies: Mrs. Grossman's (white cardstock); Zig pen; K&Company (glittery letters & dots)

Products Used:  Paper Company (cardstock); Moxxie (patterned papers); Paper House Productions (bowling pins); Heidi Swapp(letters)

More of Cindy's work can be seen here in her gallery!

This month Diana was busy!!   Check it these gorgeous layouts and altered canvas Diana created:

From Flamingo Scraps:  Pink Paislee 365 degrees collection (patterned papers)

From Flamingo Scraps: Maya Road Dressform album and sewing mini pieces; Prima ("dream")

From Flamingo Scraps: Pink Paislee 365 degrees collection (patterned papers)

From Flamingo Scraps: Websters Pages (patterned papers)

From Flamingo Scraps: Pink Paislee Queen Bee collection (patterned papers & embellishments)

More of Diana's work can be seen here on her blog and make sure you swing by Sketchy Thursdays to play along with her fantastic weekly sketch challenge!

Cute Genie has this fabulous layout to share with us this month!  She used the fabulous new Steampunk Debutante from Graphic 45:

From Flamingo Scraps:  Graphic 45 Steampunk Debutante; Steampunk Grab Bag; Tim Holtz Distress Ink; Gold Glimmer Mist

Other Supplies: Basic Grey Bittersweet collection (background patterned paper) and Dark Chocolate Chip letters

Look again... Genie's background paper was masked with a square of scrap and misted with gold Glimmer Mist!  More of Genie's work can be seen here on her blog!
This month Janet made these two adorable layouts of her Grandnephew Ryan at the park:

From Flamingo Scraps:  Fancy Pants Kraft Kuts II (patterned papers)

From Flamingo Scraps: Maya Road Bethany (chipboard alphabet)

More of Janet's work can be seen here on her blog!

Aside from her fabulous posts this month, Jill has made this super cute card!

From Flamingo Scraps: Pink Paislee 365 Degrees collection (patterned paper) and Webster's Seaside Retreat (patterned paper)

Other Supplies: DCWV (cardstock); Fiskars Apron Lace border bunch; pop dots; twine; ribbon; ink and an image from Google.
 

Jill combined her leftover scraps from some of her other projects for Flamingo Scraps this month to make this fun wedding card!  More of Jill's work can be seen here on her blog! 

This month Jolaine made this absolutely beautiful layout:

From Flamingo Scraps: Websters Lullabye Lane patterned papers; Prima flowers and recycled packaging

More of Jolaine's work can be seen here on her blog!

This month Tiffany made this super cute layout:

From Flamingo Scraps: Glimmer Mist; Pink Paislee Cork embellishments; Prima flower

More of Tiffany's work can be seen here on her blog/gallery or here on her youtube channel!

And last, but of course not least... Tonya!!  Tonya made the coolest mini album!!  Here's a picture, but make sure you check out the video!!

From Flamingo Scraps: Graphic 45 Hallowe'en in Wonderland (patterned papers)

The box is decorated like a book cover, and when you open it up, there is a mini album. Tonya scanned pieces of the book to include in the album. Make sure you go check out the video that walks through the entire album. More of Tonya's work can be seen here on her website or here on her youtube channel!

We hope you've enjoyed this roundup and go leave all these fabulous ladies some love!!  We'll be back tomorrow with an introduction of our October Guest Design Team members, Diana and Genie!!

Flamingo Scraps is turning 2!!

Clear your calendars!   October is Flamingo Scraps Anniversary month - we are celebrating all month long and you are invited to join us!

Here's what's happening......

• At the store:  A month long sale at Flamingo Scraps on selected items with discounts ranging from 10-70% off.  Additionally, we are offering a $5 maximum shipping charge on all orders place between October 1st and 31st.  We still offer Free Shipping on orders over $70*
• On Facebook:  Every Monday, check the Flamingo Scraps Facebook page for Scavenger Hunts.  Just follow the clues and post your answer for a chance to win prizes.
• Also on Facebook:  We are still trying to get to the 500th Friend on Facebook!  If we reach that goal by October 31st,  we will randomly draw from our friends for a $25 gift certificate.  You can help by suggesting our Facebook page to your paper crafting friends and asking them to "Like" us
• On our blog:  Every Wednesday we will be asking some questions and receiving your comments.  We will randomly draw from the commenters and award prizes.  Detailed information on this below.
• Read our Newsletters:  The 10th reader of every newsletter or postcard that we send out in October will receive Free Shipping on their next Flamingo Scraps order placed on or before December 31, 2010.
• On Halloween:  Stay tuned for a special Halloween Treat from Flamingo Scraps!  Look for more information on the October 27th Newsletter.

Follow that blog!  Yes, you definitely want to be a Flamingo Scraps blog follower because we will be giving away some fabulous prizes for our anniversary!  Every Wednesday in October will be a Prize blog.  We will ask a question, you reply with a comment (by the deadline) and you are entered - it's that simple!  What are the prizes you ask?  Well.... we have a boatload of them!  So many in fact that we will give away two or three every Wednesday!  Pssst!  a little Flamingo told me that one of the prizes is a Teresa Collins Stamp Machine!!!

  

Flamingo Scraps would not be possible without the extraordinary support of family and friends, especially our FABULOUS Design Team members, most especially Amanda (who cannot be thanked enough here!) who manages the Blog and Guest Design Team and has contributed so much in terms of ideas and the success of the business's social networking system.  We are so blessed to be able to do something we love so much.  It is hard work,  even overwhelming at times, but then we remember how much fun we are having and everyone who has supported us over the last two years -- ESPECIALLY our incredible customers.  Flamingo Scraps just wants to say THANK YOU!

 

and

*Discounted and Free Shipping offers available only in the Continental USA.

September Guest Design Team Summary: Cindy & Jill

I don't know about you, but we've really enjoyed Cindy and Jill's blog posts this month!!  Every month, we will post a summary just in case you missed anything and to thank these talented ladies for all their fabulous work!!  Up first is Cindy:

This month Cindy taught us how to master multi-photo layouts, stretch our scrappy supplies & use our own handwriting on our layouts and for September's Flamingo Five, she made the cutest halloween sign!! 

More of Cindy's work can be seen here in her gallery!

This month Jill shared with us some tips for recycling product packaging, hybrid scrapping & how to colour spot your photos and for September's Flamingo Five, she made the cutest Halloween layout!!

More of Jill's work can be seen here on her blog! 

So we hope you have enjoyed everything that Jill and Cindy have shared here on our blog... and that you'll leave them some love!!  As for the rest of this week....

Tomorrow, we will be giving you all the details on our big 2nd birthday bash... Thursday, we will be sharing some fabulous layouts and projects from our entire guest design team... and Friday.... we will be kicking off October with Diana and Genie, our next two guest design team members!!

Basic Grey Curio

Have you seen Basic Grey's new collection Curio yet?

BG Curio Logo

This gorgeous collection incorporates several trendy designs such as birds, butterflies and antique labels.  Reminiscent of a Victorian Biology textbook, Curio really delivers on Vintage.  Full of rich colors and images, this is a paper collection that makes me want to hoard it for that perfect layout.

BG Curio - Chiffonier

Additionally, this collection achieves something very difficult – both the papers and the embellishments are absolutely exquisite. In most collections, one element or the other is stronger. This collection is the rare “must buy” in both areas.

BG Curio Sticker Sheet

We are excited to tell you that Flamingo Scraps will be carrying Curio!!  BG is good at building anticipation though, - Curio won't begin shipping until October 1st. 

BG Curio Chipboard Elements

So keep checking back as I know Curio won't last long!   It should be here really soon!

NEW -- Weekend Wisdom!

Well, Weekend Wisdom is our working title for right now!!  We are going to experiment with a little something different in our posts on Saturdays.  It is the weekend -- time to relax, scrap, spend time with your family, OR maybe run yourself ragged catching up from the week.  Regardless, our rythms are a little different on the weekend, so we are going to post brief, hopefully fun, fluffy blogs on Saturdays.  Maybe they will make you smile, maybe you won't have time to get by -- either way we understand!!!  SOOOOOO.....

Weekend Wisdom #1

This is per Marion Smith who suggested I try it.  When the MOJO is MOGONE -- stare at a piece of yellow paper for ten minutes, walk away, and think.  Marion swears by this, yellow, she says stimulates the brain!!!

READY SET GO!!!!

Now walk away!

Did it work???  Let us know!

Scrapbook Jewelry!

When I first saw these I was so excited!! About darn time!! :) 

Even better once I got my hands on it... oh, the possibilities!

At first I thought of how cute it would be around the bottom of a jar or candle... 

Would definitely be great around a larger canning jar... all I had laying around were jelly jars filled with strawberry jam!

But then I had a lightbulb moment and decided it had to be on my niece Abby's baby book!  At first I put it across the front.  So fabulous!

But then the practical side of my brain kicked in as I realized it would certainly get smashed and the album could never sit on the shelf!  So I moved it to the spine of the album.

I have it tied on there for now and once the album is finished, I'll add some hot glue to hold it down the center of the spine.  Isn't it cute and girly?!  I love it!

So as I was playing with this fabulous new scrappy goodie I realized two things.  First, while the flowers are glued to the ribbon, the beads are not!  You can pull them off, space them... so cool!

Second?  The material the flowers are made out of is not paper.  It feels like a stiff fabric... and most definitely will take the mists!  I may just have to get another to try it out!

So go check out this fabulous new goodie in the store.  I think you're going to love it too!!

Guest DT Cindy deRosier: Using Your Handwriting

My grandmother was a scrapper (long before such a word existed!). She died in 2004, just six weeks before my wedding. I miss her very much and am sad that my son Trevor never got to know her. However, through her scrapbooks, Trevor can learn about the lives of his great-grandparents. Her scrapbooks are a true treasure - not only for the amazing pictures, but because she journaled in her own handwriting.

Your handwriting, love it or hate it, is unique to you. There is no better way to include yourself on your scrapbook page than using your own handwriting. I'd like to share a few tips to make it easier to include your own handwriting on your layouts.

Use a light box
If you have difficulty writing in a straight line, you could obviously draw or stamp lines directly onto your page and follow those. But there's another very easy way to get lines on the page that won't show and don't need to be erased. Simply put a lined index card (or any other lined paper) under your project, turn on the light box, and the lines will easily show through.

This picture shows how well the lines show through when the light box is turned on.

And here is the completed layout.

Products used: pp- Moxxie, cs-Basic Grey, pen-Stampin' Up

Journal on paper strips
I've heard a lot of people say they don't like journaling by hand because they're afraid of messing up their layout. The great things about using paper strips is that since you're not journaling directly on your layout, you can't mess it up. If you happen to make a mistake on a paper strip, you only have to rewrite that one strip.

By the way, this 2-pager has 33 pictures on it. That's a new personal record!

Products used: pp-BoBunny, cs- Bazzill, leaf-Prima, pen-Zig, paint-Folk Art, ink- Color Box, grungeboard- Tim Holtz

Journal individual words
If you like the idea of paper strips, but want something even easier that you absolutely cannot mess up, try journaling individual words.

Products used: cs-Bazzill, pp and ribbon- unknown (very old kit from Costco), pen-Zig, ink- Color Box, grungeboard- Tim Holtz

I hope you're inspired to try a few of these ideas. Happy scrapping!

To see more of Cindy's work, please visit her gallery!

Suzanne's Go To Tools & Products!

We all have certain products, tricks and techniques that we turn to time and time again -- the tried and true (for us) things that make scrapping easier and more fun!  Here are a few of mine --

Tim Holtz Distress Ink    I have always loved using ink on my pages, especially to define and/or distress the edges of paper.  But I was always intimidated by Tim Holtz Distress Inks, I never seemed to be able to get the hang of them.  And though they can be used for the direct to paper inking I favored, the effect was never what I was looking for.  Well thanks to a friend whose inked pages I had always admired and to acquiring a Tim Holtz Ink Applicator Tool, not to mention Flamingo Scraps adding them to our inventory -- these fabulous inks are probably my favorite staple product!!!  The lucious colors can be blended and layered to distess and define papers and they are FABULOUS for altering and coordinating paper, lace, ribbon, flowers -- well, I'd probably use them on the dog if she would stay still long enough!!  Getting a Distress Ink Blending Tool really added to my obsession -- I know people swear by cosmetic sponges and eyeshadow applicators, and to each his own, but I love the control I get from the Blending Tool.  I wash my foam pads with soap and warm water, and though they are stained with the previous colors, they clean up nicely for use with another color!

Tim Holtz Distress Inks and Applicator

3-D Pop Dots and Mounting Tape    I am a self-professed lumpy scrapper, I love to layer and add dimension and depth to my pages with paper, trims, and embellies.  I also love to raise elements like flowers and pictures above the base page.  I am therefore a pop dot addict.  I also find pop dots and tape useful for layering over other dimensional elements like ribbons, trims and laces.  Frankly, this prediliction can get expensive, especially since I favor stacking mounting tape for depth.  Recently, however, my friend (and scrapper extraordinaire) Kathleen shared a genius tip with me.  She uses scrap chipboard layered with adhesive to achieve the same raised effect.  Thanks Kathleen!!!

Sizzix Big Shot and Dies   Susan and I tend to go in together on the bigger toys and one of our first investments was an original sizzix machine.  We still have it, though these days it is mostly relegated to smashing bottle caps.  Later, we moved up to a Sizzix Big Shot and, though we have a Klic N Kut machine, that Big Shot is one of the most used tools in our Flamingo Scraps arsenal.  We have found that we can use it with dies from other manufacturers and it is still the quickest and easiest way to cut that perfect tag.  Long experimentation has led us to use die shapes for much more than their original purposes -- one of my favorites is making flowers for layouts and cards from coordinating paper (only when I can't find the perfect Prima!),  layering the shapes and giving them depth with pop dots and highlighting or altering them with  distress inks (do you see a pattern emerging here?)

The Sizzix Center at Flamingo Scraps

Basic Grey Magnetic Mat  I just love this genius tool!!!  Before I got it, I was really bad about gluing things down and then being really sorry.  With the mat and those amazingly strong little magnets, I can now lay out a layout,  play around with the pieces, even stand it upright to mull over the design without making so many mistakes, uh, I mean, creating too many embellishment opportunities!  And the magnets are great to play with when my mojo is on the fritz!!

Basic Grey Magnetic Layout Mat

Silicone Mat  I don't know how I got along before I had silicone mats!  They are FABULOUS for inking, painting, and gluing.  And they clean right off!!!  Even the toughest adhesive comes off with a little elbow grease and nail polish remover!!

What are your favorite tools and products?

Guest DT Jill Sarginson: How to Colour Spot your Photos

Hello fellow scrappers,

It's Tuesday again and today I am here to show you how to colour spot your photographs. Sometimes when you are using paper that is very bold and colourful, black and white photographs are the best option. Other times you may just want to accent your paper just a bit with the photographs and you can achieve that with colour spotting. In my layout below, you will notice that my photographs are black and white but I have colour on the paddle and kayak. The colours blend perfectly with the paper but everything else remains neutral.

From Flamingo Scraps: Websters Seaside Retreat patterned papers

Photoshop instructions:

1. Open one of your existing colour images. To be safe, you should do a "save as" and rename it or you run the risk of overwriting your original photograph.

2. Go to Layer> New> Layer Via Copy (you will now see 2 layers, each layer has the same photograph on it)

3. Choose Image> Adjustments> Desaturate (this makes the top layer black and white)

4. With the new layer highlighted, click on the Add Layer Mask icon (see example below: the rectangle with a circle in the middle) at the bottom of the Layers palette.

5. Click on the Layer Mask thumbnail in the Layers palette to activate it.The layer mask thumbnail is this:

6. In the Toolbox, make sure the foreground color is black (press X or click on the little curved arrows to the top right of the large color swatches in the toolbox).

7. Using the pencil (or brush) tool, go over the parts of the picture that you want the colour to show up on. In my example above, I chose to colour the paddle's and boat.

TIPS!

a) Blow up your photo. I typically blow it up to at least 200%, if not more (ctrl ++). The pencil/brush tool can be played with a bit. For example, if I am doing a larger area (i.e. the shirt), I will use a "master diameter" of 30 (this is big so I can cover a larger area very quickly). For the edges, you can either reduce the master diameter or leave it if you have a steady hand. With it blown up, you will quickly realize what you are comfortable with.

b) You can adjust the hardness on the pencil/brush tool as well - this softens your edges.

c) Yo undo something, press Ctrl+Alt+Z. It will undo your last step. To erase something (i.e. restore it), just click on the eraser tool.

8. Save the file.

If you do not have Photoshop, you can easily do this by downloading Google's free image editing software: Picasa. You can colour spot your photos with their tools. Just open Picasa, click on the photo you want to edit and then select effects. All of your options will be there! (Just a note that it's not as precise as Photoshop - you can do an area, but not specific elements.)

Have a great Tuesday!

To view more of Jill's work, please visit her blog!