Good bye to Design Team Member Sue

Unfortunately, I received the following resignation from Design Team Member Sue Althouse:

Hi Kathy,



It's hard to believe that it has been a year since I was a Guest Designer and you so graciously asked me to stay on the Scrap Our Stash Design Team. As I am carefully considering my work load and other commitments for 2012, I have sadly come to the conclusion that it is time for me to end my term as a member of the Design Team at Scrap Our Stash. I have enjoyed working with you and posting my projects on the SOS blog. I know of at least one reader who saw an SOS challenge on my blog and entered, and is now on your Design Team!


I want to wish you and everyone at Scrap Our Stash all the best. Thank you so much for this opportunity. I will continue to check out your great monthly challenges!


Best wishes,


Sue  Althouse


http://suealthouse.blogspot.com/

January NEW Challenge by Sue

I recently purchased the We R Memory Keepers Sew Ribbon tool and some of their ribbon packs. So let's see if I can use this thing! (if I can do it, anyone can!)

Punching the design into my paper was easy enough. The magnets keep things in place nicely. It is recommended to do this on a harder mat, not the foam mat that comes with the Sew Easy tool. I agree.

You get these little pieces of plastic adhesive to create a needle at the end of your ribbon, so threading is easy. I just had to be careful not to twist my ribbon and pull gently, but the ribbon slides along easily.

With a little layering and minimal embellishing, I quickly completed this card. The ribbon adds a nice texture without a lot of bulk.

Using the additional tool I purchased, I kept the same basic design, changed the color scheme, and made a similar card. This time, the ribbon has a bit more dimension but I still would not call it bulky.

The Verdict: The tool was easy to use and the ribbon threaded nicely, but I had to pay attention! This is one of those tools I will need to keep close at hand so I remember to use it. I thought the finished result was worth the effort.

Now it's your turn! All the details can be found here. Why not give it a try?

December Challenge by Sue

Here is my challenge for December. I chose to share a Christmas card and some of the supplies I used to create it.

Basic Grey's Nordic Holiday 6x6 paper pad. You can't make a bad card with this one. Classic Basic Grey, in my opinion.

Sizzix Birds and Reindeer Embossing Folders. I used the evergreen tree background.

My card. Couldn't be easier, especially with the Basic Grey pre-made embellishment. Here's a little close-up shot so you can see the embossing. This was my first time using a Sizzix product in my Cuttlebug, and I thought the results were fantastic.

Now it's your turn! All the details can be found here. Your project will be posted on the Scrap Our Stash blog and on December 31st a winner will be chosen. That winner will be offered a spot on the Guest Design Team for the month of February. Why not give it a try?

November Recipe Challenge by Sue

Design Team Member Sue submitted this layout for the November Recipe Challenge.  She said:

For the November Challenge I chose the first option of using the following ingredients to "cook up" my layout:

• 5 embellishments
• 4 words or letters in the title
• 3 pictures
• 2 patterned papers
• 1 solid paper

Here are the supplies I gathered. The patterned papers are double-sided, so I may have stretched that ingredient, like adding a little more salt for flavor?

My finished layout. Journaling reads: "Only sisters can show up at a family gathering wearing the same color shirts without any preplanning. June 2011"

Now it's your turn! All the details can be found here. Your project will be posted on the Scrap Our Stash blog and on November 30th a winner will be chosen. That winner will be offered a spot on the Guest Design Team for the month of January. Why not give it a try?

October Quote Challenge by Sue

Boy, have I got a resource for this challenge! Just so happens I have this ongoing mini-album. How handy is that? For my project, I chose a quote about another favorite hobby, reading.

The finished layout. Since the theme of the page is reading, I incorporated some alphabet paper and stickers onto the layout, as well as plenty of colorful visual triangles.

And here's the quote I chose: 

"The first time I read an excellent work, it is to me just as if I gained a new friend; and when I read over a book I have perused before, it resembles the meeting of an old one." - Sir James Goldsmith 

Now it's your turn to take the October QUOTE Challenge. See all the details here. Be sure to scroll down the page - Scrap Our Stash posts something new everyday.

September Grid Challenge by Sue

I was more than happy to tackle this one! The grid design is one of my favorites, so I challenged myself to do something a little different...a little outside the box, so to speak.

This 7 Gypsies paper was already divided into squares, so I just cut a bunch into smaller pieces and pieced everything together like a puzzle. The result? Way too busy!

So I randomly removed some of the squares to expose more white space. The grid is still there, but some of it is now implied. I think it looks more playful this way, supporting the photos and theme of this page.

A title, a bit of journaling, and a few brads. Done!

Now it's your turn to take the September Grid Challenge. See all the details HERE. Be sure to scroll down the page - Scrap Our Stash posts something new every day.

Another Re-Do by Sue

Here's a layout I completed about six months. ago. It was for a sketch challenge, and while there's nothing wrong with the sketch, I let it totally drive my process and was never happy with the final result. Here's what I want to change....

#1 The Colors - I just don't care for the color scheme. Not really sure why. Maybe it's too dark or too busy, but it does not make me happy to look at this page.

#2 The Photos - They don't have a focus. Am I supposed to look at the people or the book display? I wish I had cropped these but I followed the sketch rather mindlessly. My bad.

#3 The Journaling - This is the biggest problem. I had a book published and dedicated two little journaling strips to telling the story. Seriously?

I finally decided to give myself a do-over on this page and am much happier with the result the second time around. Here's why....

#1 The Colors - I lightened up the color scheme and kept it pretty simple. Even though the photos are smaller, they stand out much better on this page.

#2 The Photos - I cropped the pictures and put them on a separate mat. The book display is still there, but now the focus is on the people.

#3 The Journaling - I allowed plenty of space for a fun title (think Monsters, Inc.) and lots of room for journaling. And yes, you could find this book on amazon, but unless you are a piano teacher, you really won't be interested!

I have other pages in my albums I'm not crazy about. Don't we all? But I have no intentions of getting carried away re-doing layouts. Since an important story (to me) was not being told, this page merited special consideration.

Now it's your turn to take the August Re-Do Challenge. See all the details HERE!

Be sure to scroll down the page - Scrap Our Stash posts something new everyday.

August Re-Do Challenge by Sue

Design Team Member Sue submitted these layouts for the August Re-Do Challenge.  She said:

If nothing else, this challenge showed me how my scrapping style has changed over the years!

My Old Layout: Creative Memories album, chronological (Spring 1987), photos from a time frame of a few months. Not even going to talk about design.            It is what it is.

My New Layout: Library of Memories album, thematic (grandma's house), photos from a longer time frame, at least a year. Let's just say I'm happier with the design.

There's nothing "right" or "wrong" about either approach. I love both layouts because they capture precious memories. What I'm doing has not changed, only how I'm doing it. I'm perfectly fine with showing that evolution in my albums. Who knows where I might be five or ten years from now? That's what makes this hobby so much fun!

Now it's your turn to take the August Re-Do Challenge. See all the details HERE!

Be sure to scroll down the page - Scrap Our Stash posts something new everyday.

July Red, White and Blue Challenge by Sue

I knew right away what to do with this challenge!  I'm all about the red, white and blue when it comes to summer decorating.  I've showcased a few of my favorite kitchen decor items on this layout.

Not only are these fun accessories, but they remind me to be thankful for the sacrifices others have made so I can enjoy my freedom.

Now it's your turn to take the July Red, White and Blue Challenge. See all the details HERE!

Be sure to scroll down the page - Scrap Our Stash posts something new everyday.

June Something Challenge by Sue

My layout represents Something Old and Something Blue. The blue in the photos is obvious, while the barnstormer theme takes you back in time. We saw this plane at the Air Show last summer and were amazed by the pilot's daring maneuvers. 

Here's what I read about barnstorming in Wikipedia: 

"Barnstorming was a popular form of entertainment in the 1920s in which stunt pilots would perform tricks with airplanes. Barnstorming was the first major form of civil aviation in the history of flight. The term barnstormer was also applied to pilots who flew throughout the country selling airplane rides, usually operating from a farmer's field for a day or two before moving on. "Barnstorming season" ran from early spring until after the harvest and county fairs in the fall."

Now it's your turn to take the June Something Challenge. See all the details HERE!

Be sure to scroll down the page - Scrap Our Stash posts something new everyday.

May Flowers Challenge by Sue

This challenge was the perfect opportunity to play with my stash from Little Yellow Bicycle's Twig Collection and create a fun layout about the Signs of Spring. Journaling reads: "When we see and hear the Canadian geese, we know that warmer weather is just around the corner!"

Eight flowers pop off the page in this row.......

Two chipboard flowers balance the design.......

Three smaller flowers add interest around the title.......

And one flowered brad sits on top of my journaling. That's a a total of 14 flowers!

Now it's your turn to take the May Flower Challenge. See all the details HERE! Be sure to scroll down the page - Scrap Our Stash posts something new everyday.

March Dust it Off Challenge by Sue

Design Team Member Sue submitted this layout for the March Dust it Off Challenge.  She said:

Here is my contribution to the March Challenge. These are some older papers from my stash, and the swirl stamp has been hiding out for some time in my supplies. I recently moved my stamps closer to my work area to help me remember to use them!  Even though these are recent photos of my dad fishing, they triggered an old memory, so that is the story I told.  Journaling reads: "I grew up knowing my dad loved to fish. When he had a little free time, he'd head out to Krieger's pond or up to his boat on Lake Erie. Fishing in the surf at Holden Beach was another favorite. I remember one time on vacation, he took us to a trout farm that had just been re-stocked. He spent the day baiting our hooks and we reeled 'em in! I don't think he had any time to fish at all on that day!

"Suehttp://suealthouse.blogspot.com/

Now it's your turn to take the March Dust it Off Challenge. See all the details HERE!

Be sure to scroll down the page - Scrap Our Stash posts something new everyday.

Show N' Tell Sunday by Sue

Welcome to the Before and After edition of Show and Tell Sunday! I've completed a minor rearranging of my craft space to create a better work flow. Here are the results.

Before - my main work space had tools within easy reach, but most of my Slice stuff was stowed away and a pain to pull out in the middle of making a layout. A major creativity bummer, and an expensive tool was gathering dust. Unacceptable! 

After - not only are my must-have scrapping supplies and tools in this area, I relocated some items to make room for a.......

Slice Station - now everything is out and ready to go! Just looking at this new work station is inspiring me. I've used it already and it's so much easier.

Before - embellishments sorted by color and stored in ten containers, mostly leftover odds and ends from kits. Lots of fun to look at, but not getting much use. I think in color, but tend to look for embellishments by type or size. It's just time to admit that. 

After - a seriously paired down embellishment center, no longer sorted by color (gasp). Ten containers reduced to six!

Disclaimer: these are not ALL the embellishments in my stash. Not even close. I scrap by manufacturer and keep coordinating embellishments with the paper line.

Pairing down and re-grouping my embellishments freed up four containers for my stamp sets! Now I don't have to get up and rummage around my scrap room to find a stamp for a layout or card. I'm reaching for these more often.

Before - three containers filled with leftover brads, buttons, odds and ends that I rarely used. Again, they look good but most of these are pretty old and just don't fit the way I'm scrapping these days.

After - down to one container of buttons I will use!

Before - bulletin board used as inspiration and ideas for layouts. Looks good, but I was constantly re-working this space more than I was using it. Most of these pages eventually ended up in the trash.

After - bulletin board is now used to hang scrap paper, lists of what I want to scrap, how-to articles. It's more of an information center, right above my main work area.

Ideas from magazines, sketches and design inspiration now have a separate station at the end of my L-shaped desk and on my bookshelf that you can see in the background. Close to my main space, but not in the way. Have you done any tweaking to your craft space lately?

February Challenge by Sue

Guest Design Team Member Sue submitted this layout for the February Love Challenge.  She said:

Here is my layout for the February Challenge of something to do with Love. I'm really loving everyday life right now, getting through the winter months and taking advantage of indoor activities. This layout depicts a typical winter weekend afternoon at our house. It isn't very exciting, but it reminds me of my grandparents. In their retirement years, lunch was followed by a game of gin rummy while watching golf on TV. Now we are following in their footsteps with our own version. Since we're not retired yet, this is something we look forward to on cold winter weekends. Gotta love that!

Journaling reads: playing Scrabble + watching college basketball = a perfect winter afternoon!


Sue
http://suealthouse.blogspot.com/

Now it's your turn to take the February Love Challenge - see all the details HERE!

Be sure to scroll down the page - Scrap Our Stash posts something new everyday.

Meet Guest Design Team Member Sue

Hi, my name is Sue and I live with my husband and two cats in southeastern Michigan. I'm a piano teacher with a home studio, but when I'm not at the piano I love to be in my craft room. I started scrapping in 1999 when we returned from a trip to Israel and Egypt with so many wonderful photos that I knew needed a special home. That was my first album and I've been scrapping strong ever since. I also enjoy reading, knitting, beating my husband at Scrabble (okay, sometimes he wins) and watching NCIS.

Thanks for this great opportunity!

Sue
http://suealthouse.blogspot.com/

December Challenge by Sue

Reader Sue submitted this layout for the December Birthday Challenge.  She said, "Hello!  This is my first submission, but I've been following your site for awhile now.

Here is my layout about my 50th birthday this past July. I actually
celebrate a birthmonth, which means using the entire month to party, dine out and just generally pamper myself. So my actual birthday can be pretty quiet, which is fine with me.

The journaling reads:

Phone calls from family...flowers from Phil...lunch in Depot Town...an evening at Comerica Park...a perfect 50th birthday.

Thanks for considering my layout in your monthly challenge!

Suehttp://suealthouse.blogspot.com/
Thanks Sue - now it's your turn to submit your Birthday project for the December Birthday Challenge.  See all the details in the December Challenge (link).  And don't miss both our Pagerize This Challenge (click on link) and our Design Team Call (see link or the sidebar).  Both end in just a few days. 

Don't miss your chance to Share anything tomorrow for Show N' Tell Sunday (link).  Just send a picture of whatever you would like to share to scrappinpsycho@live.com.  It will post on Sunday!  Looking forward to seeing what you have to share!