A Sister Is A Forever Friend

 

This layout was made using my Scraps Of Darkness July Kit-Marrakesh Express, and features some photos that my son-Draven took at my Niece, Megan's wedding. They are of her and her little sister, Hailey. Since I don't have any girls, they have been the princesses in my life, and it was so sweet to see Megan head off to her happily ever after. I started with one of the kit pps, and then punched some stash cardstock to look like lace backing. I then took another piece of cardstock from my stash, inked and distressed the edges and then stamped it for added interest. Next came a piece of this month's cardstock add on that I inked and distressed the edges of. I then took a Prima stencil and created a background trellis using gel medium and acrylic paint. I then punched a strip for the side using a kit pp and Martha Stewart punch, then took another strip of kit pp scallop cut it and used it for the bottom border.

 I took white cardstock from my stash and made photo mats by embossing and inking them, then placed the photos on top. I took a piece of the kit chipboard and painted it with gesso then used colored gel medium to add the accents, and applied heat to give the gel medium depth. I then took the metal pieces from the kit added some stash pearls and used them to "hang" the 2nd photo. This was actually inspired by Natasha's (Luv.my.babiez),  "You Are My Strength" layout. I loved the way she used the photo hangers and duplicated that look here. Thanks for your inspiration, Natasha!  I then took a piece of Dusty Attic Wrought Iron Trim and used the same paint technique on it as the frame and added some stash pearls and attached it as a border.

I then hand made some flowers and took the Prima vine from the Romance add on, cut off the flowers and added mine. I tucked in some beautiful white feathers that were a gift to me from my friend ChattyCathy at SB.com, and attatched the piece to the trellis I created with gel medium. I then took the Prima butterfly from the Romance add on and used gesso to paint and tone down the color to match the layout and attatched it to the top corner of the photo. I then used some stickers to place the word Sister and journaled with "A Sister Is A Forever Friend."

I love the way this turned out so Fairy Tale pretty, befitting two beautiful princesses ! Thanks for letting me share them with you! ~Renea

A Child's Laughter Is The Spice Of Life-The Darkest Side Challenge

I love a good challenge, and Celina, our Mistress of Mayhem over at Scraps Of Darkness always comes up with something fun and creative to get us thinking outside the box. This month’s challenge topic is The Spice of Life. We could interpret this any way that we liked. We could use anything related to spices or what makes your life "spicy." The following is my layout for that challenge.

I love these pics of my son and some of his friends playing dress up, laughing and have a ball!! I have always said that there is nothing more beautiful than the sound of children's laughter, so I titled my layout "A Child's Laughter Is The Spice Of Life." I wanted to make my layout look like Spanish Tiles look with all those beautiful bright colors and patterns.  I used cardstock as my base layer and then layered on another piece of card stock from this month's add on for the second layer. I then cut paper strips from the colorful kit pps and a circle from another piece of add on cardstock. This got my placement for the pics down so that I could start adding the layers of color.

 

I used gel medium and some of the Twinkling H2Os  from the color add on to paint the border around the cardstock. I then used a stencil and created the big bright butterfly with gel medium and all the different colors in the H2O kit. I made the butterfly's body from a piece of the trim that was in the kit.

I took some bling from my stash and painted it up colorfully using Tattered Angels Glam and used it for a border. I took some chipboard frames that my friend Cindy Gay had sent me and painted them and then Stickled them for emphasis and placed them over the kids in the photos.

 
I used some of the beautiful coin trim in the kit and trimmed the bottom of the smaller photo with it.  I took some of the Marrakesh Die Cuts from the kit and stacked and layered them placing them around the layout for "flowers". I made a water-colored tag using the H2Os and stamped it with The Spice Of Life, adding a brad and one of the coin pieces from the kit trim.

 

I created the first part of the title using some stash Tim Holtz framents and some stickers that I outlined with black marker. For the finishing touch, I took some of the bling that I painted and placed it around the border.

I hope you have something in your life that adds a "little spice" to it! Thanks for coming by, and checking out mine!  ~Renea

SCRAPS OF DARKNESS AUGUST KIT-ENVY

It's the 15th, and you know what time it is, reveal time at Scraps Of Darkness. This month's kit is packed with girlie-girl deliciousness!  The kit is called "Envy", but us girl's over at Scraps Of Darkness have been calling it the Jewelry Box, because it is packed full of some of the most gorgeous gems out there. I love that Mel puts together kits that are so versatile and never take on the same old same old look. I am always amazed at all the different types of layouts that can come out of one kit!

This kit is so lovely and the add ons are equally as beautiful. The kit features papers from the Robin's Nest and Kaisercraft in romantic pinks, greens and blues. There are also some rich browns, and yellows.  The colors are all soft, beautiful and so perfect for  a vintage or shabby chic look, and the way the papers work together with the embellishments and add ons make scrapping, one gorgeous page after another a breeze.

The Main Kit; includes 10 sheets of premium patterned paper, as well as embellishments that will coordinate with those papers, along with new sketch each month, specially designed by Suepup for that kit. 

So get your girlie-girl side on and join us before these kits are sold out ( I promise you it won't take long). ~Renea

Marrakesh

One of the things I love about the Scraps Of Darkness Kits, is that I  get to work with one of Charlotte's (aka Suepup) sketches each month. Every month she come up with a fabulous design based on the kit, and instant inspiration gets delivered right to your door.  The following is the Sketch that she designed based on this month's kit-Marrakesh Express:

And here is my interpretation of that sketch, using this month's kit:

I started with a piece of the cardstock add on, and then made the second layer from one of the kit foil pps (these foil pps are so stunning in real life-photos just can not do them justice) that I inked and distressed the edges of, and did some machine sewing on. I used another piece of cardstock add on  and another piece of kit pp to make the double frame backing for the photo (courtesy of  Google images). I then applied those frames with layered foam tape to get enough dimension to tuck in the sequined Prima pieces.

I then created the photo corner flourish by cutting out some chipboard with my Sizzix, painting it, applying some stickles (from the June Kit) and adding some bling from my stash. I then took one of the Prima flowers from this month's kit and added one of those Prima accents (from the Romance Add On) onto the center. I then created another flower, using the exact same technique and added it to the bottom photo corner. I created the large circle using cardstock from this month's add on, and punching the edges to add a decorative touch. I then used the H2O watercolors from the color add on to paint one of the Fancy Pants Filter Paper decos (from May's kit) attatched it to the punched circle then laced copper wire through the holes, pulled apart one of the Prima Candy Gems( from the Romance add on) and attatched them randomly to the copper wire.

For the medium circle, I spritzed and watercolored one of the filters with the spritz and watercolors from this month's color add on, circle cut a piece of one of the pps, distressed, and inked the edges, and then took one of the metal jewel pieces from the kit that I embossed and added bling to, and popped it in the middle.



The smaller circle is one of the filter papers that I spritzed and watercolored using the color add on. I then cut a circle from one of the pps, distressed and inked the edges, and then took one of the elephants that came in the kit and stickled him up, adhering all the pieces with foam tape for dimension. I then created one of those Prima flowers with the Prima centers and popped it on the corner.



I then made a strip using one of the pps, distressed and inked the edges, and then attatched it to the beautiful coin trim that was in the Romance kit, and added it to the bottom of the layout. I used some of the chipboard alphas from May's kit, embossed them and then added the title.

Suepup's sketches are always so inspirational and I just loved working with this one to create this bright, vibrant layout! Thanks for looking! ~Renea



Baby Boy

This Scraps Of Darkness layout features a photo that is so precious to my heart. It is one that my DH took just a few days after our son, Draven, was born in June of 1995. It was actually taken with Kodachrome film before digital ever came along. I started with a piece of the kit pp for the background, then took a stash, Dusty Attic frame and painted it with Tattered Angels Glitter Glam. I then took a piece of the card stock add on, and using some TA masks, misted with the Coloringz mist that was in the color add on.

 
I then stamped one of the corners, wiping my stamp at random places to get the varied print.

I positioned the picture and added some stash photo corners. Then took one of the K & Company rub ons from the kit and and placed it over the masking and added the included bling.

I took the same card stock and stamped it with the same writing print that is in the corner, punched it out and added the black trim piece that came with the kit. I then cut out 2 of the canvas flowers from the Prima mistable canvas that came in the color add on, misted them with the Coloringz mist that came in the color add on,  embossed, inked and punched the flower shapes from white cardstock, punched the centers from black cardstock and rolled them to make the flower centers. I took a Spare Parts clock piece from my stash added a white brad and stamped the word boy onto it. I then took a stash metal piece with Baby on it and adhered it to the punched trim.

I cut the canvas butterfly from the Prima canvas sheet in the color add on, misted it with the Coloringz mist, and inked the edges. I then painted a Dusty Attic butterfly with white acrylic paint and stamped it with the same stamp as the corner and trim, and attatched it to the canvas piece. I then took some chipboard, I purchased from the Scraps Of Darkness store, painted it with black acrylic paint. and placed them around the butterfly.

I can't believe that sweet baby boy in the photo is now 16 and so grown up. Somedays, my heart aches for the time that has gone by so fast. Thanks for stopping by and taking a peek and for letting me reminisce for just a few! ~Renea

True Beauty Lies Within

 

This is a layout I made using the fabulous Scraps Of Darkness  July Kit-Marrakesh Express. I find it so amazing that one can take the kits that Mel puts together and come up with so many different types of layouts. This one is a soft feminine layout that I did featuring a photo I took of my niece Megan and two of her friends at her bridal shower. I started with a piece of the kit pp for the background. I then took another piece of kit pp and cut it into a circle, distressed and inked the edges. I then took a doilie from my stash and dry brushed it with a gesso and paint mixture. I layered some pp strips behind the photo and then made a photo mat from a piece of the card stock from the card stock add on and stitched the ends.

I then took some more of the kit pp and created the background strips. One of my friends from SB.com ChattyKathy sent me some crocheted pieces and I cut the flower from one of the pieces, misted it and added a Prima center from my stash and attatched it to the first strip. I then set eyelets and laced the second strip and used a butterfly bead that was also sent to me by Kathy and attatched it to the bow.

 

Next came the flower layer featuring a Prima flower from the Romance add on and 2 other Prima flowers from the Flora & Fona add on. 

 

I then took one of the chipboard windows from the kit, painted it with gesso and Tattered Angels Glam, popped on another one of the crochet flowers from Kathy, and slid the gorgeous pin that Mandy Harrel created for the Romance add on behind the crochet flower. 

I took a Dusty Attic piece from my stash and painted it up with gesso and TA glam, and then used a Prima Rub On to create the title. I made some butterflies from cardstock and gussied them up with colored Glitter Dust and bling. For the finishing touch I took some ZVA flourishes and added one to the top corner of the photo and used another for a butterfly trail.

My niece and her friends are so beautiful both inside and out! I hope I captured the essence of that beauty in this layout. Thanks for letting me share with you! ~Renea

ART-Stalker Challenge Layout

Each month, I try to host a Stalker Challenge over at Scraps Of Darkness.com .  I just love a good challenge, and I try to come up with an idea that not only challenges the other members, but myself as well. This month, the challenge is to stalk the internet, or your personal photo stash and find a photo that inspires you to scrap using an element that you have never used before. I chose this photo of  Kerli Koiv ( an artist that Mandy aka Craftysprinkles turned us on to), because it inspired me to use something I had never used before in a layout and that was bubble wrap.

 The rules include that it has to be scraped-clean & simple, which was also a huge challenge for me, because I tend to go corner to corner with embellies or paper product until every square inch is covered, lol! The other rule is to use a  handmade embellishment. I want to invite all of you over to the Scraps Of Darkness forum to check out all of our unique and amazing challenges.

 

I started with a piece of the fab Scraps Of Darkness, July Kit pp for the background. I then took some card stock from the add on and using the Prima stencil from the color add on and some mist created the 2nd layer. 

 

I then made a layer from a piece of bubble wrap. Using  a piece of the same cardstock that I misted with the Coloringz mist from the color add on, I created the photo mat. I then took the photo, and using a stencil brush and gesso splatter painted the background of the photo for added texture. I then took some corrugated packaging and cut out the flower pattern with my Sizzix. I used gesso and the Coloringz mist to paint the flower and then sprinkled it with colored Diamond Dust. I then popped one of the Foil Stickers from the kit into the center.

 

I then took a piece of chipboard that my SB.com friend Cindy Gay (aka Cndgay), sent me, colored it using the color add on mist and then stamped it with silver pigment ink and dry brushed it with gesso and added bling that was in the stickers in the kit.

 

I layered a piece of Prima bling from the june kit, under some hand dyed ribbon that I crinkled and twisted. I then took the paintable canvas word ART, colored it with the mist from the color add on, and inked the edges with silver pigment ink.

I can't believe I made it through this challenge without going back and throwing more "stuff" on, but that clean & simple style is not as easy as it seems. It takes attention to detail and placement to pull it off.  Kudos to those of you who scrap that way most of the time! I have nothing but admiration for you! ~Renea

Leaping Lizards-Birthday Card

This is a birthday card that I made using up some of the remaining remnants of my June, Scraps Of Darkness kit. I started with a piece of packaging, that I had saved out of my waffle cones. I don't know about you, but one of my favorite things about summer is ice-cream! I layered on gel medium and then painted it randomly with Tattered Angels Glam to get that grungy distressed look that I love.

I took a Dusty Attic Bracket and traced around it onto a leftover piece of BB pp from the kit to get the center shape, distressed and inked the edges with some of the color add on stain. I then set eyelets in the corners for added texture and interest.

I took leftover pieces of the kit pps, distressed and inked the edges with some Tim Holtz ink from the color add on. I then took some of the little square stickers and added them to the corners.

I added a piece of burlap to the center of the bracket shape and touched some spots with that gel medium colored with the TA Glam. I took a Dusty Attic Lizard I purchased from the Scraps Of Darkness store, painted him with white acrylic paint, then stamped him with black ink to get the crackled look and popped on some stash bling.

The Leaping Lizards Sentiment is one of the kit BB stickers, layered on top of leftover pp that I distressed and inked. Everything was attatched using foam to create dimension. I then attatched the card face to a piece of the cardstock in this month's add on.

For the inside, I stamped the whole area with a clear stamp and the Tim Holtz Ink from the color add on. Fussy cut one of the cutouts from the kit, stickled the edges, added 2 eyelets, used the BB stickers for the sentiment, and made a texture piece from the pieces that I pulled from the front burlap piece and tied them together with rafia.

There you have it! A fun, creative card made from mostly leftovers,  that is sure to put a smile on the recipient's face! ~Renea

Shoot For The Moon Card

I created this card, using this month's Scraps Of Darkness kit. It is a card version of my Shoot For The Moon layout. We are heading to a family cookout, where we will be celebrating my Nephew Zachary's High School Graduation, and I wanted to create a card with a money holder to give to him.

I started with a stash piece of corrugated black paper that I distressed and inked the edges on.

Next came a layer of the kit BoBunny Zoology pp that I inked and distressed the edges of, and then machinge sewed around the border. I then sized my City Scape that I had digitally created to fit a the smaller venue. I then colored it in with a Black Sharpie and outlined it with a silver metallic marker, and filled in the windows. I fussy cut it out and then took a second image and repeating the steps on  3 of the outer buildings and attached them with foam tape for dimension.

 I used a circle cutter to cut a moon shape from the BB pp, and then inked and distressed the edges. I adhered it with foam tape for dimenison. I then popped on some little sticker stars that I colored with the silver metallic marker. I then adhered the first part of the sentiment "Shoot For The Moon".

I cut the complete card from a piece of stash, white cardstock, and then glued the card face to it. For the inside, I attatched the second part of the sentiment "Even if you miss, you'll land among the stars".

The stars are ones that I hand draw and cut from chipboard then I glued them down, painted them with gel medium and then went back over the stars with black acrylic paint.

I cut a "pocket" from the same white cardstock, inked and distressed the edges, I then stamped it with my LaBlanche Crow stamp and added some Prima for the eye, then set some eyelets in the corners.

I adhered the pocket, placing glue on 3 outside edges so that it could hold a card or money.

I then painted around the pocket and top of the card with gel medium and black acrylic paint.

I hope he likes his grunged up card! I thought it turned out pretty cool!  ~Renea

Wish-Birthday Card

O.K. I am squeezing my Scraps Of Darkness June Kit down to the last drop!! I love to use up as much of my kit as possible and I have found that cards are a beautiful way to use up most of the scraps and to brighten someone else's day. This is a birthday card I came up with, using those left overs. I used a piece of the BB pp to create the background,  distressed and stained the edges, then machine stitched a border.

I took a piece of corrugated cardboard and painted it with gel medium then used Tattered Angels Glam and some of the color add on stains to add blended spots of color.

I took some Dusty Attic pieces that I purchased from the Scraps Of Darkness store and gussied them up with that awesome Tim Holtz Distress Powder from the kit. The flower was from the kit and I stickled the edges with the spiced marmalade that came in the kit, then popped on a center from a Flora & Fauna flower that I had removed to use in a previous layout.

The framed piece was one of the BB stickers from the kit, that I distressed, inked and  stuck to a piece of cardstock from this month's add on.  I took one of the kit BB trinkets added some bling to it and pop dotted it to the center.

I created a cardstock butterfly and then stickled him up and popped him on. The "Wish" letters were from my stash and I randomly inked the edges and pressed them into the gel medium and added a bling dot to the "i". I then attatched the card face to the card body that I created from the same cardstock as the framed piece.

For the inside, I took a Chipboard piece from the color add on and used it as a mask. The misting was done with some stash Moon Mist. I then used the kit BB alpha stickers for the sentiment, and popped on some more of those cardstock, and stickle butterflies.

There you have it! Something beautiful  and personal to give away, from the pieces that most people throw away!  ~Renea

Wild About You!

This is another layout from the fabulous Scraps Of Darkness, "Welcome To The Jungle" kit. It features some photos of my son, Draven and our little dog, Jack. I took these photos for our Christmas card back in 2005. As you can see, Draven and Jack are like two peas in a pod, so that is where the title "Wild About You!" came from.

The first layer is a piece of white cardstock from my stash. I took a Prima Stencil and created the the edges by first applying a layer of gel medium over the stencil and then taking a stencil brush and dabbing red acrylic paint  onto the top for color and texture.

I then created the center strip using the same technique on a piece of black cardstock from the May add on, and then fussy cut it out.

Next I took and cut out frame layers from 2 different kit Bo Bunny pps and a piece of red cardstock from my stash. I then distressed and inked the edges and stacked them using foam tape for dimension. I then took my photo of Draven & Jack into Photo Shop and painted the edges to get the look I wanted for the layout, and added it on top of the pp layers with foam tape.

 I took a smaller photo of those wild boys and cut it out inked the edges, cut a piece of corrugated white paper and inked it's edges then attatched the photo onto it and then added a Dusty Attic Hinge that I painted and stamped to attatch it to the large photo.

I took some of the Art Parts leaves from the color add on and painted them with red acrylic paint and then painted some stripes onto them with white acrylic paint. I took the Black Prima flowers from the kit and layered them in with the leaves to create the flower layer.

I took some of the chipboard flowers from the kit and painted them black then stamped them with white staz on ink and layered them into the pp layers.

I took some thickers and stamped them with white staz on to create the "Wild". I stamped the word "about", and used some glitter thickers for the "you". I took a piece of chipboard from the Scraps Of Darkness store, inked it with red ink, then stamped it with black ink and attatched it under the word "Wild" for added interest.

I enjoyed doing this fun and creative layout, and I hope you enjoyed it as well! ~Renea