MERRY & BRIGHT with Guest Designer AMANDA BALDWIN

 

Hi there!

Today, our lovely Guest Designer, Amanda Baldwin, is sharing more of her December Documenting preparation using our Merry & Bright kit,  exclusive stamp sets, and her Cranberry Life Crafted album.

You can find all the products Amanda is using in our shop.     

Thank you so much Amanda for all these beautiful entries.

XO

MERRY & BRIGHT with Guest Designer AMANDA BALDWIN

 

 Hi CTK Friends & Fans! 

Amanda here, & I can't begin to tell you how delighted I am to be back on the Citrus Twist Kits blog! I adored my time on the CTK Design Team a few years ago, and am so thrilled to be invited back to share some Merry & Bright Christmas Kit inspiration with you all! 

f you're not familiar with my creating, I'd describe it as modern & contemporary with a feminine twist! I love color and repetition in design, and my favorite thing about the Holiday Season is gathering together with family and friends. Nothing is more precious to me than time with the ones I love! 

Sharing our December Stories is really important, but the Season of Giving is also the Hustle & Bustle Season! The best way for me to record it all is to complete my foundation and cover pages before December starts. 

Here's a sneak peek of what's been on my desk this week...

So.much.gorgeousness! Isn't the Cranberry Life Crafted Album just divine?! Such a beautiful color for a Christmas Album! The Merry & Bright Christmas Kit is just brimming with pretty things to tell your stories and turn some beautiful memories into treasured pages!

Speaking of pages, let's look inside my Life Crafted Album...

 

How stunning! I wanted a really classical opening to my December Album, so I used white vellum as my base paper & mixed it with pine green, soft gray and gold accent embellishments. The vintage feel of the Merry & Bright Die Cuts combined with the luxury of the Gold Puffy Stickers really enhanced this elegant look! Here's a closer view...

 

 

Such a simple cover page, and yet so impressive! 

Following on from my opening pages, I have crafted my 2021 title page...

 

 

What could be more fun than a Christmas tree crafted from Chipboard Star and Gold Puffy Stickers?! 

To keep with the elegant look of the cover pages, I opted for a delicate white and gray pattern paper from the October Flea Market Findings Kit for the background. This softer look ensured that my star tree was the focal point! 

  

 

For added emphasis, and the notion of opening up something really special, I wrapped the star tree in a candy cane twine bow! Again, really simple and elegant creating for a timeless look! 

 

Speaking of timeless, here's a couple more of my album preparation ideas to save you time in December...

 

 

Craft your numeral features & or, book marks in advance! 

 

If you like to document daily from 1-25 then this little tip will save you hours of time! I couldn't resist using the fabulous CTK Stamps to ink up a bunch of my numerals.

For Day #1, I have maximized the awesome Citrus Twist Kits Sophie Alphabet, Luna Nos, and Merry & Bright Christmas 2021 Stamps to make a super cool page marker. Using a similar font, I also fussy cut a larger number 1 from the Crate Paper Busy Sidewalks 6 x 8 Paper Pad and foam mounted it onto this stamped page marker. Love it!

 

 

Not a big stamper? Or perhaps you just like to mix things up a bit? 

Well, why not try the Citrus Twist Digital products! I edited one of the Journal Cards in a software editing app (PicMonkey) to include the day number and the text, 'today's story'. To add a pop more color and bit of dimension, I embellished with FA LA LA using the CTK Soft Mint Puffy Alphabet Stickers. Between the super awesome stamps, and the very cool digital products, my pages are numbered and ready to go! 

 

Create fun page dividers to organize your album! 

 

 My final tip for today is to craft as many page dividers as you can in November so all you need to do in December is add your photos, memorabilia and a quick spot of story telling! I created this fun pocket page to hold those sweet passport photos  you get when you visit Santa. The pocket is another of the CTK Merry & Bright Digital Journal Cards that I printed and machine stitched onto one of the Busy Sidewalks papers. I've stuffed the pocket with a couple tags for journaling, & adding my photos to.

So that's me being all organized and ready for the Season! (Or really, that's one awesome Christmas kit that's inspired me to get my act together!) I hope my post has given you some ideas on preparing your December album, and inspired you! You're going to love documenting December with this beautiful kit!

Thanks so much for visiting, 

Happy Arty Days, Amanda xo

 

August Life Crafted with Amanda Baldwin

Hi CTK Friends & Fans!

Amanda here, sharing some more August Life Crafted: Chasing Rainbows Kit inspiration!
If you missed my scrapbook layout post earlier this month, you can go back and check it out HERE.

For today's post,  I am totally focusing on documenting the everyday stories in my Life Crafted Album. Nothing fancy or time consuming - just simple, beautiful everyday moments recorded!

Here's what I have created with the Chasing Rainbows Kit....

"This Kid"

How sweet is this?!

I've been going to scrap these photos for sometime now, but never really found the right collection to do it with. Until now! The designs on the exclusive pattern papers are similar to the one on my son's shirt, and partner perfectly! The cool blues & teal with the white base create such a refreshing, and modern look. A light & fun color palette for Summer pages. Love it! 

Here's how these pages look in my Life Crafted Album.....

To add emphasis to my photographs, I layered both of them on 3 x 4 note cards, and kept embellishments to a minimum. You'll spy a few tabs and hearts, and of course, those incredible printed cork stickers. The cork adds a touch of warmth & balance, and connects the color photograph to both pages. 

I used the vellum tape stickers for a tiny spot of journaling, and finished with the Turquoise Puffy Alphabet Stickers title.

Simple, but so effective! 

Next up, I created a page for my darling daughter, using some of the gorgeous florals in this month's kit....

Sigh! SO pretty! 

Another really simple design that only takes a minute to create. 

Here's how.....

Simply trim the pink floral pattern paper to 5" x 8". 

Adhere the 3" x 8" bookmark onto the pink floral paper, about half an inch from the left hand side. 

Next, back your photograph onto the yellow bloom 3" x 4" note card, and mount it to the bookmark with thick foam tape. 

Embellish with an acrylic heart, sentiment from the Digital Printable Cutapart Sheet, and that awesome Printed Cork adornment. 

Voila! 

Super pretty & with minimum fuss!

The Life Crafted Kits make memory keeping a breeze, especially for those of us who are time poor! 

Here's another double pager from my Life Crafted Album, recording the simple things in life....

Life's little pleasures, indeed! I absolutely LOVE the colors in this month's kit! So much variety, and a perfect mix of Summer blending into Fall! 

For the page on the left, I have used a 5" x 8" sheet of smooth white cardstock and layered it with note cards. I used the acetate ephemera for my title at the base of my page, and then embellished with printed cork, a chipboard sticker, and a vellum tape sentiment. 

For the page on the right, I  opted for a pattern paper base, which I mostly covered with smooth white cardstock. I oversized the bloom pattern tag from the Digital Printable Cutapart Sheet, & created a book mark to layer my photograph and embellishments onto. Here's a closer look for you.....

Such a simple, but oh so pretty page! 

And there you have it! 

Daily documenting made super easy, and really beautiful with the Life Crafted Kits & Albums!

I hope I have inspired you to dive into your kits, and start documenting those important everyday stories! 

Thanks so much for visiting, 

Happy Arty Days, 

Amanda xo 

3-to-Inspire with Amanda!

Hi Citrus Twist Kit Friends & Fans! 

Amanda here, & welcome back for another inspirational installment of our favorite 3-to-Inspire challenge post! The August Kits are simply STUNNING! & I just had to use both of them for my layout today! (If you don't know what I'm talking about, you better head over to the CTK store now before they're completely sold out!)
Before I share my layout, here's the 3 things you'll need to feature in your projects to play along too....

1. Use floral pattern paper  I love a good floral & to be completely honest, both kits are sporting some very pretty designs! Infact, it was hard to pick which floral paper to use!

2. Put a heart on it  There are a myriad of heart embellishments, digtial items and even stamps  for August. Show us how you like to feature hearts on your creations.

3. Make it messy  Feature any form of mixed media on your project - be it stamping and inks (the stamps this month are aaah-mazing!!!), watercolors, or even some texture paste. Whatever medium takes your fancy - just be sure to include it on your finished project.

Now with the formalities outta the way, here's my layout to inspire you with...

"Hello"

Isn't this dreamy & divine?!

As I mentioned previously, I couldn't decide on which gorgeous August Kit to create with, so in the end I combined both the Life Crafted Chasing Rainbows Kit with the Scrapbook Add-On Kit. I think they coordinated pretty well together! You'll also spy that I used this months Traveler's Notebook Stamp, and some of our wonderful Digital Cut Apart Elements too! Simply stunning!

Here's a closer look for you....

I used the divine floral pattern paper, New Thoughts from Pinkfresh Studio that was included in this month's Scrapbook Add-On Kit. I just LOVE the colors in this pretty floral paper - they complimented my photograph beautifully, & became the color scheme for my entire design. I used the white cardstock as my layout base, and then created a painty, watercolor background using the Pinkfresh Studio Liquid Watercolors. The colors I used were Lavender, Sapphire, Bubblegum & Sky Blue and you can find them all in the shop HERE! To this background, I also repeat stamped the heart icon from the Life Crafted Traveler's Notebook Stamp. Gorgeous!!!

In keeping with my color scheme, I decided to print & fussy cut a number of the Digital Cut Apart Elements. Believe it, or not, my larger lilac banner base is actually the same banner as the tiny one with the blue rose on it (simply enlarged and printed singularly).

 So cool! I just love how versatile the Digitals are! 

Over this banner, I built my photo cluster using lots of lovelies from the Life Crafted Chasing Rainbows Kit. If you look carefully, you'll even notice that I fussy cut the Kit Title Note Card, & used it both above, and to the side, of my sweet photo! To complete this cluster, I adorned my photo with that fabulous printed cork embellishment. 

The hello acrylic word included in the Chasing Rainbows Kit was too amazing not to use! I positioned mine over my mixed media base so that it was more visible on the white cardstock. 

For a finished look, I added cotton floss & sequins from my stash, as well as the blue puffy alphas & acetate hearts from the Life Crafted Kit. Voila!

There you have it! My take on this week's 3-to-Inspire challenge! 

Now it's your turn! I can't wait to see what you'll create! 

Be sure to upload your creations to the Citrus Twist Kits Fan Page HERE.

Haven't shopped your kits yet? If you're super fast there *might* be one or two still available in the store HERE but, to avoid disappointment be sure to sign up for a subscription & never miss a kit again - YAY!!!

Happy Creating!

Thanks so much for visiting, 

til next time, 

Happy Arty Days, 

Amanda xo 

Sunday Sketch with Amanda Baldwin

Hi CTK Friends!

Amanda here, and I am so happy to be joining you for this week's installment of the
Citrus Twist Kits Sunday Sketch feature!
Today's sketch is tons of fun, and I hope I can inspire you to play along!

So, without further ado, here's what this week's Sunday Sketch looks like...

Told you it was a fun one! Such a cool design, and really easy to take inspiration from!

Here's my twist on it...

"Weekend Happiness"

Isn't this pretty?!! 

As you can see, I have altered the sketch (Or kinda trimmed the right hand side off) to create an 8" x 11" layout page. That's the wonderful thing about sketches, you can edit them to suit your creative style! Plus, after creating quite a few projects this month I really didn't have any 3"x 4" cards left over to 'perfectly' follow the sketch. Realistically, I could have cut my own 3" x 4" card from one of the Best Of This Life Pattern Papers, or used one of the July 2019 digital printable 3 x 4 Journaling Cards but I still needed to fit the sketch into a smaller page size. So, I decided to use the 2nd photo as the card, and replaced the paper clip with an embellishment or 4! 

Here's a better look at my page...

Happiness, indeed! Ain't nobody loves the weekend like my sweet girl! In her own words, "Mondays be like, Meh! & when FriYAY calls I'm like, so there!" Ummm... yeah, teen lingo and whatever that means, lololol! Seriously though, such a super fun and playful page! 

I've used the Best Of This Life July Life Crafted Kit, the Life Crafted July 2019 Digital Cut Aparts & the Joyful Day Phrase Stickers (Pinkfresh Studio) from the July 2019 Scrapbooking Add On Kit. 

I have foam mounted the photo cluster to add a little more interest and some dimension to the design. 

Speaking of clusters, how fantastic are all those embellishments in the top right of my photo?!

The puffy stickers in this month's kit are so fab! I'm loving the bright Summer colors and the sentiments are totally on point!

And let's not forget to mention my mixed title....

I have combined the bright colored WEEKEND ephemera with the Pinkfresh Studio Joyful Day phrase sticker, happiness to create my title. I love how effective this looks! 

You'll spy that I foam mounted the ephemera for added 'pop' against the phrase sticker. 

And there you have it!

Simple. Pretty. Lazy Sunday creating!

I wonder how you'll interpret this sketch?

Please be sure to add your projects to the Citrus Twist Kits Fan Page HERE so we can be inspired by your awesomeness too! We LOVE seeing what everyone creates with their Citrus Twist Kits! 

Thanks so much for stopping by today, 

til next time, 

Happy Arty Days, 

Amanda xo 

Best Of This Life with Amanda Baldwin

Hi CTK Friends & Fans! 

Welcome back for more July Life Crafted Kit inspiration!
Amanda here, & let me tell you, I honestly swooned when I opened my Best Of This Life Kit. So.much.gorgeousness!!! But rather than rave about how amazing the Life Crafted Kits are, let's allow my projects to do all the talkin'....

First up is this fresh & fun Summer layout, "Summer Days"

So cool & refreshing! 

Summer Days documented to perfection with the Best Of This Life Kit!

Let's take a closer look....

The colors in the pattern papers, combined with those fabulous woodgrain alphas are simply the BEST for scrapbooking our fave Summer moments! From the mid blues to the aqua marines, this page takes me to the beach! 

And just look at all those amazing embellishments! The Life Crafted stamp, and the chipboard & puffy stickers are definitely my faves!!!

Speaking of chipboard stickers, here's a better look at them!  Best ever, for sure!

As usual the clear stamp sentiments are really crisp and add the right amount of journaling to your pages! With so many beautiful products in the kit, I just couldn't resist creating lots of luscious layers with both the papers, journal cards and labels. 

And for added interest, I fussy cut around the florals on one of the journal cards - see below....

Simple, subtle but so effective!

The shell die cut ephemera pieces are a cute adornment for my beachy page. Sometimes it's the smallest details that really add that finishing touch! Gorgeous!

For my second project, I am sharing this pretty layout, "LOVE"...

Sigh! Talk about ALL the pretty things!!! This is so super sweet! 

This time I am combining the Best Of This Life Kit with the July Traveler's Notebook Stamp and the Best Of This Life Cut Aparts. Love it!

Like my previous layout, I have created more luscious layers so that I could tuck in lots of ephemera and showcase those pretty papers, cut aparts & journal cards. Infact, it was the folk art style 6" x 4" journal card that inspired the color scheme for my page. You'll spy that I snipped the card in half, and butted it together to create the appearance of a 12" x 2" strip of paper. You'll spot two more cards in my photo stack too....

Swoon! Those layers are really somethin'! Florals always have my heart! And those Cut Apart labels (lovely & happy) are a sweet addition to the layered goodness!

Let's not forget the journal card that I snipped into three to create the fun 'love' tabs on my pattern paper strips - such a fun way to use this card if pocket pages aren't your thing!

With such a delightful color palette, I opted to repeat stamp my sentiments in similar color inks instead of the usual black. I love how soft & pretty this looks! The CTK stamps are always the best!

Did you see how I've incorporated the tiny kit name label card? I loved the sentiment on the kit name card and had to tuck it into my photograph layers. I snipped it into half so I could also include it in my paper strip feature. Perfect!

*Note: the sequins featured on my layout are from my personal stash*

Beautiful! Such a pretty page for my darling daughter! 

Next up is some Life Crafted Album love! 

Here's a super cute back to school page from my album with this month's kit....

How cute & fun is this?!

I just adore those woodgrain alphas - perfect for adding some warmth to my cool color scheme!

I also love the use of labels in this design too! 

Here's a better look at my page...

Super cool! The puffy stickers and enamel dots really add that extra something, don't they?

The mix of colors and patterns in the Best Of This Life exclusive papers is nothing short of awesome! I love the variety of designs, making the kit super versatile! 

And there you have it! My first few projects with the gorgeous July Life Crafted - Best Of This Life Kit! I hope I have inspired you to get creating with these stunning products!

Shop the latest Citrus Twist Kits HERE. 

Thanks so much for stopping by today!

til next time, 

Happy Arty Days, 

Amanda xo