Keeping Calm & Carrying On

Memorial Day

Today's blog post is my own little twist on Memorial Day. Because it is a day of Memory, I thought it fitting to share this layout with you honoring my brother-in-law. The story of this day was beautiful and something that I wanted to remember forever

--when our local high school called our family for a special chapel service dedicated to Chris where they also wanted to pass along Chris's high school football jersey to Carson.

There's a combination of several different manufacturer's products here. Mixing and matching is one of my favorite things to do and this color scheme seemed perfect: not to loud, but also not too soft. The layout is supposed to uplifting like the day was, while also somber too.

The day of the chapel service there was SO MUCH LOVE. It was one of those times in my life where I just felt overwhelmed and taken aback with the love and compassion that other people felt for our family. A simple heart punch, a couple of them actually helped remind me of that feeling.

Here's a look at the entire page.

Wishing you a happy Memorial Day today, no matter who you are remembering and honoring. There are so many people that have fought out there for our freedom, our life and integrity. We are an incredibly blessed nation, that's for sure. And I'm proud to live here.

Side Note: Don't forget to leave a comment on Friday's post to enter to win a box of Bella scraps from the studio! The giveaway is still open and you have until tonight at midnight to comment. Winners will be announced at Bella and here tomorrow!

Happy Mother's Day

Today we are celebrating Mother's Day at The Grain Exchange as Bartalotta's puts on a spectacular Mother's Day Brunch! Steven and I actually visited this venue as a prospect for our wedding reception, but decided we wanted something more rustic. None the less, this ballroom is beautiful and I'm sure the food is going to be amazing!

Happy Mother's day to all those fabulous, hard working, organized, cooking mom's out there!

Being a mom is the hardest job in the world, but the best job in the world.

So I've been told.

Let's celebrate!

Monday's Random Fact About Me

I wish so badly that I was a gardener. I wish I loved all the outdoorsy work associated with beautiful gardens, flowers and gorgeous green grass. But the truth is, while I definitely appreciate it all, 

I am NOT the Gardener Type.

I honestly don't know why, because if genetics had anything to do with it, I would be a gardening machine like my Nana and Nano (Grandparents). They have even won the City of Wauwatosa's Beautification Award presented by the city's Mayor for their spectacular landscaping and yard.

Well, Steven and I have been hoping to do something with this deshevled looking flower bed in front of the  house....

(haha-don't mind all the yellow "flowers" in the front yard...that's another post for a different day---remember I said I'm not a gardener!)

So, anyways, back to the point: Nana, Nano and I went to Home Depot a few weeks back and bought some bushes to plant and some other things too. The Saturday before Easter we spent the day together hoeing, digging, de-weeding, planting and watering!

There they are...in they're element. It was wonderful to spend the day outside with them, and learn from them---after all, how the heck else would I know how far to dig the whole to plant, to pull of the rocks out of the soil, and how to pull the roots apart at the bottoms of the bushes ;)

Even though I'm not in any of these photos, I did work right alongside them ;) I just had to step back every once in a while to grab a photo. This is no joke. Hard work. Physical Labor. We laid those nice stones for the hose.

Nana and Nano always recommend keeping the tags on the bushes for a while to make sure they don't die within the first three months while they are still guaranteed....even though I can honestly never imagine myself digging up a dead bush and returning it to the store ;)

So...one day of pretending I am a gardener wasn't so bad. And spending time with these two is priceless, that's for sure. The front flowerbed looks beautiful and I've been watering everyday (Nana says for the first 10 days at least to water). Now, we are by no means finished with the yard because the project-list goes on and on. 

But...one at a time...we will get these projects tackled.

Such a great Spring day making wonderful memories with Nana & Nano.

Single Page Layout: Birthday Brunch

I started this 12x12" layout while croppin' in Puerto Rico at The Scrapbook Gallery. I was inspired by a layout that one of my Design Team girls created with the new Baby Girl and Button market products. This layout was my inspiration; created by Becky Williams.  

I love how Becky created a heart with the wooden and plastic buttons....so I made one too!

I wanted to focus on the wooden buttons, and so I used several packages of the Green Burst buttons. I threw in a couple wooden Snowflake buttons because the layout is of my birthday which is in the middle of winter (December).

The layout documents what we did on my twenty-seventh birthday: after church we all went out for brunch and pie at our local Baker's Square. And even though I'm not in this photo, all my favorite guys are (dad, Carson, my Uncle and Steven). 

The patterned papers are were selected from my stash from October Afternoon (stripe), Kraft numbers (Jillibean Soup) and Vintage text (Echo Park). All the other embellishments including chipboard, flags and letters are Bella Blvd's.

I just love this photo and how handsame they all are ;)

I sure did "junk it up" as I like to say---meaning I put a whole bunch of product on there! I do love all the colors and dimension though. What are you doing this last Sunday in April,...scrapbooking???

Birthday Baby: Lauren

Today is Baby Lauren's first birthday! One year ago it was Easter Sunday and my first neice on the Smokovich side of the family was born. Just this past weekend we celebrated at her bowling party!

She was all dolled up: beads, tierra, sash and all! Lookin' super cute!

She bowled with all the big kids,

clapped when she kocked down pins,

and cracked us all up with those dimples and little baby teeth!

Check out that cute Barbie cake!

Mommy and cousins helped her open gift after gift, toy after toy!

Happy birthday sweet baby LuLu!

Happy Easter & Happy Birthday

(Photo Credit)

Today is a family day. A church day. A day of happiness and prayer. Hope you enjoy your Easter Sunday, no matter where you are in this moment!

(Photo Credit)

Today is also a bitter sweet day as we Remember my brother-in-law's birthday. Today Chris would have turned 31 years old. 

On this Easter Sunday I have confidence that he is rejoicing in Heaven, watching all of us and we remember him and celebrate Jesus resurrection.

Oh how we wish you were here, especially today. 

I love you, we all love you and will never forget your fun-loving attitude and how wonderful of a father you are.

Happy 31^st Birthday Chris!

 

 

 

 

 

Stricken, Smitten & Afflicted

(Photo Credit: Turn Back to God)

Listen to My favorite Good Friday Hymn here.

St. Patty's Confessions & Cuties

St. Patty's Confession No. 1: I am not a beer drinker.

Never have been, never will be. It's very bubbly and makes me feel full...which I do not like. So on days like St. 

St. Patty's Confession No. 2: I (almost) hate the color green.

Hate is a very strong word, so I prefer not to use it. But seriously if one could hate a color---for me it's green. You won't find nearly a single piece of green clothing in my closet. None. I know it's weird. It's nothing I've pre-meditated or planned, but rather just happened.

St. Patty's Confession No. 3: I don't have a lick of Irish in me. Sono Italiana. ;)

So on days like St. Patty's Day, what does a girl like me have going on? Family, BBQ & NCAA basketball. I invited the kiddos to sleepover on March 17^th and we picked up baby Lauren for a couple hours too. Who could have guessed she would be all dolled up and super cute in green?!

Being the proud Godmother & Auntie that I am I couldn't resist some fun St. Patty's Day photos.

At 11 months she's got two little chick-let teeth on her bottom gum line and one big-honker breaking through up top.

And Carson just can't seem to get enough of her. He loves on her non-stop, talks to her, snuggles and plays!

Baby Lauren loves it! She laughs at him and lets him feed her her "num-nums".

So cute. For real. Just cheers me  up and makes me happy. 

Happy belated St. Patty's Day everyone! Hope you've recovered by now ;)

Together: A Winter Wonder Layout

Bringing you one more Christmas Tree-cutting layout today. I recently shared a couple coordinating layouts from the same day in 2010. You can see those layouts by clicking here and also here.

The Miniatures stickers in the Bella collections make for fun little "tags" and embellishments.

More playing with Bella's new Designer Tapes. Have you bought yours yet? Now that the new products are hitting stores be sure to stock up! (I know 2Peas has them here).

I love the photographs on this one. Steven looks so "strong" carrying that big-ol' tree. And Carson took the other photo of Angela and I all by himself----with my Canon 50D. What a awesome shot for a then four-year-old, don't you think?

Products used are all Bella Blvd: Winter Wonder Collection, Designer Tapes, chipboard and Sophisticates. The blue twine, from The Twinery.

For more Winter Wonder scrapbooking ideas visit the Winter Wonder Collection Gallery here.

Ciao Ciao for now!

 

 

Ring Bearer Invitation

Three wedding-posts in one-week. Sorry. I just can't help myself. ;) Earlier this week I shared the faux book invitations I sent out to my soon-to-be Maid of Honor and Bridesmaids. Before shipping out the boxes to my girls, I realized a problem:

My 2 neieces & sister would be receiving "fun mail" & poor Carson (my five-year-old nephew) who lives in same house (obviously) wouldn't get anything!

Well, that's just sadness, don't you think? 

So I whipped him up his own little invitation and shipped it out too.

Steven and I knew we wanted Carson to be our ring-bearer all along, but didn't intend to send any invitations out to the boys....because....boys are boys. They prefer to just say, "hey dude, wanna be in my wedding?" ha! Isn't that the truth?! But I just knew Carson would be sad if didn't get anything. He'd ask, "Am I going to be in the wedding mom? What about me?!" And I just couldn't have that.

One more time, I must give credit where credit is due. This invitation was inspired by Bethany of Rinse & Repeat. I discovered her bridal invitations via Wedding Chicks a few weeks ago and I just couldn't resist making my own version.

I started with this naked wooden cigar box I bought at Michael's craft store. I didn't want carson's invitation to be half as girly or detailed as the bridesmaids so I personalized it just for him, adding Bella chipboard letters to the front, after adhering patterned paper (Sophisticates Sprinkles & Lace Oreo patterned from Bella Blvd). I bought those fun little faux diamond rings at Michael's too and knotted them with the blake tulle wrap.

Because for little boys invitations like this are more about the fun and the "presents" than anything else, I bought him some candies and randomness for inside the box. I had to include pink somewhere to coordinate with the wedding colors, so I adhered another Sprinkles & Lace (peep) Patterned paper to the inside of the lid.

I used the same style invite/detail cards for Carson, but narrowed them down to three instead of four like the girls. The differences between his & the Bridesmaid's cards are that this one is from ME & STEVEN, including a photo of Steven and Carson on the "From the Bride & Groom" tab.

Here's an up-close of the three cards. If you click on the photo above, it will enlarge for your reading pleasure ;) Steven & I had fun making a clever little list of things under "Your Role" for Carson on our big day. Gosh, I can't wait to see him in a tux. He's going to be so stinkin' handsome.

Inside we included some wedding-related puns (Ring-Pop suckers & Pop Rocks candy) and some of Carson & Steve's favorite things-like Big League Chew (gum).

Other random goodies included a fresh set of markers, a funky red pencil and some more faux wedding rings. (Who knows maybe they'll come in handy for him when he discovers that the girls in Kindergarten don't have cuties and proposes too ;)

Bridesmaids Invites: Part 2 - Contents

Are you ready to see what's inside the faux box Bridesmaids Invitations?

(First I want to remind you the inspiration for these Bridesmaids invitations came from Bethany via Wedding Chicks. You can visit her blog by clicking here.)

I must admit I wish I had installed a miniature camera inside each one of these babies. I would have paid money to see the girls faces as they received and discovered these Bridal Party invites.

Inside the faux boxes are several artifacts, handmade gifts, details and more. To begin I trimmed some of my favorite word/heart script patterned paper from my Lovey Dovey collection to fit inside the books perfectly, as a background pattern. (Bethany's original had fabric hanker-chiefs).

The main purpose of this gesture: To Invite Each Girl to be in My Wedding Party.

Therefore, I wanted these elements to be the largest in the box, in hopes they would be spotted first. (Of course, all this depended on how tossed they were during shipping & delivery.)

Next, I spent a couple nights writing out what I wanted to say to the girls and about the girls. 

Thank you to Bethany for the prompts and sentence-starters. I used her style to generate my messages. Here's a glimpse of Bethany's invitations:

(Photo Credit: Bethany of Rinse & Repeat.)

You can see I mimicked the staggered-style and tab design with my cards as well. I thought this was a great idea by Bethany because it didn't reveal all the information at once.

The top card, "From the Bride..." gets straight to the point: Will you be my Bridesmaid?

The only varied element is the Polaroid-style photo & text underneath. In each girls box I added a recent or favorite photograph of me and her--a personal touch that I love.

The second card, "Our Wedding Day..." includes the details that we know of so far.

Yes, we've picked a day and a place! I wanted my girls to be the first to know...and they were! I actually took a couple of them with me to see the reception venue recently & fibbed a little saying, "we're still trying to decide between this & another one...and we have a few different dates we're looking at"--all the while it was secured and booked ;) 

(Only my mom & dad were aware of the date a couple weeks ago already!)

The third card, "Your Role" is 100% inspired by Bethany. I agreed with her when she wrote on her invites, "I know weddings can become a lot of work for Bridesmaids." Therefore I started off the same way. The other important piece for me was that I know my creativity and attention to details can be a bit intimidating so I wanted to reassure them not to worry!

The fourth & last card, "My Favorite Girls" is 100% inspired by Bethany.

I loved how she included short blurbs about each of the girls-both serious & humorous. The tidbits allowed each girl to learn a bit about the others, and at the same time, be informed as to who else is being invited into the wedding party. All the answers are contained on this card!

It was important for me to also include contact information for each girl (email & phone number), so that they can chat and have all the information they need right here in one place. (If you'd like to read more of the details, view the larger image by clicking on it below.)

After removing the invitation and detail cards from the faux book, the box holds lots of fun little treasures, gifts and artifacts I put together just for them!

Here's a photograph of the contents:

1. SWATCHES

I've been working on colors for a couple weeks now--knowing that pink will be in charge I wanted to select a palette with a couple more hints of color. I create a this wallet-size "color chart" for the girls by printing on photo paper, trimming, then folding and adhering closed.

Then I snuck off to Home Depot with my Pantone color book and selected the coordinating swatches. (Confession: I may or may not have helped myself to 9 of each swatch. I'm sorry Home Depot I know this is NOT what they are meant for).

I trimmed them so they'd be cute & bite-size, then punched them with my Crop-A-Dile and bound them with a tine .75" silver key-ring.

Next up are some vintage elements...

2. VINTAGE GIFT TAG

A girl couldn't help but create a scrapbooking-style element for the box. With a shipping tag, a pink Prima paper flower - say that three times fast! ha! (Same flower style as on the box's front cover) and a doily I whipped up these "love-themed" gift tags.

I printed and added another sweet & romantical quote for the tag, "He & she were meant to be...brought together by destiny." The girls can save the tag as a wedding artifact or re-gift it on a wedding, anniversary or love gift in the future.

3. POLAROID- STYLE INSPIRATION ELEMENTS

After pinning several hundred ideas already on Pinterest, I selected a few of my favorites, then created faux Polaroids out of them, added a blurbs, printed and trimmed. 

I hope these inspiration elements will help the girls invision what I'm thinking and the direction we are taking for the wedding. 

4. HANDMADE FRIEND MAGNET

This idea came to me out of the blue. Steven & I are remodeling the bathroom and we have selected these petite white-wash bricks for the shower surround mosaic. I just love the stones and so I took one of the 12x12" square feet pieces and ripped it apart.

I added some twine, a Bella wooden button and the "friends" cardstock flag (I printed). To the back I glued a heavy duty magnet...

What a fun little favor/gift for the girls to keep on their fridge! 

And last but not least, inside the boxes are these

5. TEXTURED FRIENDSHIP CARDS

Inspired by ATC cards, I created these with the remnant paint swatches (Home Depot), a snippet of burlap, and a swatch of pink lace ribbon. Another printed quote and a toothpick later, the friendship card is complete.

These cards serve as a pleasant reminder of how much I value my girls and our friendships. The texture including burlap and lace are elements that I hope to incorporate all over the wedding decor as the decor evolves.

If you've stayed with me this long, congratulations! You've made it to the end!

I also designed a "Ring Bearer" invitation (a lot less involved) for my nephew....

Because how could my two nieces receive such fun mail and nothing for him?! I had too. I'll share that with you on Saturday....I presume you're overwhelmed by now!

Thanks for reading along! And thank you, again to Bethany of Rinse & Repeat for sparking this idea. The project took me about 10 days from start to finish (shopping & all). I stayed up way too late as I "got in the groove" and was inspired.

Bridesmaids Invites: Part 1

First things first, I take absolutely no credit for this invitation idea. It was not born in my brain. I was inspired by Bethany of "Rinse and Repeat" (check out her blog it's awesome---she's an amazing writer), after I saw her "Will You Be..." feature over at Wedding Chicks. Here's a peek of the cigar boxes she created and shipped to her soon-to-be wedding Bridesmaids:

(Visit the links above to see the entire feature! Photo credit: Bethany of Rinse & Repeat)

Now do you see why and how I was overcome with ideas and knew I had to "scrap-lift" the idea in my own way. All the credit belongs to Bethany though, for sure!

As I mentioned on Monday, I have narrowed down the theme/look of mine and Steven's wedding: Vintage Chic. Pink (of course)! Think pretty, lacey, rustic. oooh, I'm so excited just saying it!

First things first:

Why do this?

Well, I really wanted to find a creative way to invite my girls to stand next me at the altar on my big day. They're important to me, and I want them to feel important. I know what it takes to be in a wedding party & I want them to know that I am willing to go the extra mile for them too! Also, I know my sisters expect to be in the wedding (as they should) and so somehow I wanted to "surprise" them & change it up a bit. But mostly, I want the girls to have a preview of what's the come. I enjoy all the little details, and I think this invitation will make them feel special and more importantly, give them a glimpse into my mind so that they can see what I want and where I'm headed. Plus, who doesn't love to receive "fun mail"?? 

Part 1 of "Bridemaids Invites" I'll be Showing You:

"The Invite Box" and How I Altered It.

I found these boxes in the seasonal section at my local Michael's craft store a couple weeks ago. I've been working on this "top secret project" ever since then! These boxes are faux books that are actually meant for decorative home storage. The cover is secured closed magnetically, and the inside is lined with velvet fabric.

I love them because they are the perfect fit: weathered, brown and the perfect size (not too big and not too small ;). I wanted to customize the boxes to make them my own. So I bought some printable 8.5x11" canvas paper. (at my local JoAnn Fabrics store). Each canvas sheet is backed with paper so it's easy to feed into an ink-jet printer. 

After printing, simply peel away the paper backing and wha-la! (I also frayed the edges of my canvas by peeling apart the edges). I printed the exact same photo of Steven and I in two different sizes: one for the front cover and one for the spine of the faux books/boxes. 

Next, I used my favorite Scotch liquid glue & a cheapy paintbrush to adhere & seal the canvas photo to the faux books. Here's a visual step-by-step.

Step and repeat, step and repeat (in my case x8 for the girls that I have invited to be in my wedding party). What do you think??? You like?

Now for the fun part: embellishing the cover!

I've been thrifting around town on the weekends (Goodwill, USA Family Thrift, Antiques on Second and more awesome shops in Milwaukee's Historic Third Ward). I found this super awesome lacey tablecloth at USA Thrift for $2.50

SCORE! Seriously, only two dollars and fifty cents. (I wish they had 50 of them!) I cut the tablecloth into strips: wrapped and then tied a knot around the entire front and inside covers. 

Then I printed a sweet, romantical quote (for the front cover) onto cardstock, cut it into strips and adhered with the same Scotch glue. I finished the boxes by embellishing with Prima paper roses, a hand-cut paper leaf and some of Bella's wooden buttons.

Lovin' me some texture!

Don't you want to see what's inside? What the girls saw when they opened their happy mail?! Later today I'll show you the contents in detail! Be sure to stop back!!

Star Support: A Basic Grey Layout

I have so much product in my Basic Grey stash, that I must admit I haven't pulled out very much in the recent months. I love the soft color palette of these papers. On this layout I've coordinated patterns, textures and products from Basic Grey, Bazzill, Crate Paper and of course (my personal fave), Bella Blvd ;)

What is your definition of family? How many "families" do you have? Over the past several years I feel blessed to have new members to my family and also to have established more "families". I'm talking about Bella Blvd, friends, church and so much more.

It felt great to use up some "older" products on this layout including that "FAITH" quote sticker that was probably purchased in 2002. I adhered it to the solid pink pattern and cut it into strips, tucked it under the circle punched florals and buttons to create the handmade embellishment. I'm just loving the natural color of The Button Market's wooden buttons by Bella. 

Star of Bethlehem is my home church, hence the page title "STAR SUPPORT".

This layout reminds me of how wonderful it is to have a Christ-centered family. It's the tough times that my "church family" is there to remind me of the important things in life and the greater reason for our existence.

Have you documented your "not biological family" recently? If so, who are they...?? I'd love to hear more about them!

A Sentimental Layout: Priceless Gift

Once in a while I still make two-page layouts that look great side-by-side! Gotta love that! As I continue to scrapbook Christmas 2010 (which seems like it takes forever because I take so many photos each year), I love playing with so many different Christmas colored & Christmas themed products. There is NEVER a shortage of it in the paper crafting world, that's for sure.

Last year I wrote about how sappy I was at Christmas time when my sister asked me & Steven help her and the kids decorate the tree. It was such a traditional thing that she didn't want to do alone after losing her husband. It was really emotionally exhausting....and I did not see that coming. "Why?", you might be asking. Well, let's take a closer look...

Because, little did I know how sentimental and timeless ornaments really are. I noticed my sister pausing and just losing herself in space as she grabbed this ornament and hug it near the top of the tree. Even though it had seen it's better days (notice, the little girl's leg is broken off), she reminded the kids that daddy had bought her the ornament when they were really young & dating in high school. I can only imagine the memories that flooded her heart & mind in that moment.

This is why last year I flooded friends & family with ornament gifts. I really wasn't trying to be morbid, but honestly, what a cool way to remember someone year after year as life changes and time heals. Ornaments are such great, inexpensive (for the most part) gifts to give to those you love that will stay around forever.

I wanted to document the story and my thoughts as I am sharing them here today onto a layout. 

Once again, I played with my new Designer Tapes (now available at stores)!

I used a ruler to create my journaling lines and then mixed and matched my handwriting with the sticker alphabets from the new High Fives^tm alpha sheets (Bella Blvd).

The coordinating page (right side) holds the rest of the photos I chose for the theme. It was hard to narrow them down because I snapped so many, but I thought these were the most important:

1) My neices having fun hanging their handmade ornaments from school

2) Angela rewarding Carson as the new "man of the house" the job each year of putting the star on top of the tree-just like Daddy used too

3) and all of us together (Stella & Mio pups too) when it was all finished.

I repeated the border strips of Designer Tapes and the paper tearing on this side as well, to help pull the two-page spread together.

After adding some flowers (Prima and Bazzill) and Twine, I called it a day. I'm really happy with how this one turned out and will definitely remember this moment for years to come, if not forever. If nothing else, it's a gentle reminder not to take advantage of the redunancy each year that can become of the holiday season.

Double Page Layout: What are You Thankful For?

I must admit....I'm super excited to share this next double-page layout with you. It's from Thanksgiving 2010 when I created these business-card size die-cuts with each guests name. The dinner guests had to find their card and then complete the phrase, 

"I am thankful for..."

So I have been sitting on all these little cards wanted to make a layout and I've finally completed it! 2010 was the first year I hosted Thanksgiving all on my own and I wanted to start a tradition for the guests to participate in...and this was it!

2010's Thanksgiving was just days, literally, after my brother-in-law died in a car accident so I thought it would be beautiful for everyone to document what they were thankful for amidst a sad holiday. Not to my surprise at all almost everyone mentioned Chris or the important of family.

The layout came together quite quickly as I wanted to put the cards and everyone's handwriting on full display. I just added a bit of Bakers Twine and bows here and there to separate the cards a bit.

Because I ran out of room.....there were a lot of guests....I added mine and Steve's cards to the coordinating page:

I loved this picture of the kids helping me prepare the turkey on Thanksgiving morning. But I didn't realize Madelyn's eyes were closed until I had it enlarged and printed....oh well ;)

And here's the layout side-by-side as it will be put into my 2010 Album:

As plenty of you know I offered a new style of documenting Thanksgiving Gratitude by offering several free digital downloads for 2011's Thanksgiving. You can check them out here......I'm already brainstorming ideas for 2012!