SCRAPS OF DARKNESS REVEALS IT'S JANUARY KIT-ESCAPE

 It's Reveal Day again, and there is a lot going on at Scraps of Darkness! Before I get started with the reveal of our January kit and a few new tutorials, I want to share some news that I am really excited about.

On February 1st, we will reveal a new line of kits, Scraps of Elegance. These kits will be a little different from what you are used to seeing from Scraps of Darkness, and we are honored to have a very talented surprise guest designer who will be helping us to show off our first Scraps of Elegance kit. In addition to that (as if that isn't a lot!), we'll be having a blog hop to kick it all off, so set your calenders to stop back on February 1, 2012!

Today we are revealing the Scraps Of Darkness January Kit-Escape, and that is exactly what it is-a sweet escape. Through this kit, we are escaping the cold throws of winter, and turning time back to days of summer's gone by. This kit is so amazingly beautiful and offers up every opportunity to capture those memories of family vacations, dreamy places and magical moments. I loved pulling out my photo albums, sifting through them and collecting those special memories of the freedom and fun that summer days bring. Thank you Mel, for pulling us out of reality, if only through our imaginations, such a wonderful reprieve to get us through the next few months of Winter's embrace.

When you sign up for a Scraps of Darkness kit you not only get the chance to create with one of the most amazing, versatile and totally different kits out there, you get the chance to work with the most talented Charlotte's (aka Suepup) sketches.  The following is her lovely Escape Sketch:

And this is my interpretation of that sketch, titled "Tropical Paradise". It features a photo of my God Daughter Michelle and her family on vacation. I loved the colors in the photo, so perfect for the Graphics 45 papers in the kit.

 I started by creating a Textured Tissue Paper Background using the January Color Add On featuring Lindy's products. If you would like to view how to create this background for yourself, check out the tutorial on the Scraps Of Darkness Blog, or follow the You Tube link on my blog. I then took a Dusty Attic chipboard frame and misted it using the Lindy's mist in this month's Color add on, and painted accents on it using the Color Shots from the add on.

Next I took layers layers of paper from the kit and card stock add on, cut them to graduating sizes, distressed and inked the layers and then staked them at an off angle and popped my photo on top.

I then fussy cut one of the images out of the Graphic 45 paper,accented it with Stickles,  added a flower from the Flora and Fauna A.O.  to her hair, and (o.k. I am really excited about this!) I popped one of the Lemonade Crush Butterflies from my Etsy Store that Mel, included in the Flora & Fauna A.O.  this month onto the cut out flowers!! I took a piece of the Graphic 45 chipboard from the kit and ran it across the bottom of the layout as a border, then created a flower piece using some of the Prima flowers from the Flora & Fauna A.O.

 

I then created floral layers on the opposite side by cutting out more foliage, flowers and leaves from the G45 pps, accenting them with Stickles and layering them in with more of the Prima Flowers, another Lemonade Crush Butterfly, and a chipboard tag from the kit that I created a ribbon for and tied onto it.

I loved how colorful and happy this layout turned out! Makes me hear Caribbean music, and long for a quick dip into the ocean! 

This next layout is titled "Footprints", and features a photo of my son walking on the beach. He is walking away from the camera and you can see the footprints he is leaving as he walks away. I actually Photoshopped this photo and gave it a canvas textured feel and then added the sentiment "Our Memories Of The Ocean Will Linger On, Long After His Footprints In The Sand Are Gone", so appropriate for that sweet photo.

I started out with a piece of the card stock from this month's add on, then layered on a piece of the Authentique paper from coordinating paper add on.

I grunge punched some place randomly, inked and distressed the edges, then took some stash glass beads and adhered them in the corners.

I cut and punched another piece of pp with the same punch  and ran it down the middle of my layout. I then took and tore out a piece of corrugated board in the size I needed, and did my Grunged Up Corrugated Board Technique using gel medium, stips of cheesecloth, and some of the Lindy's Mists, Color Shots and Embossing Powders from this month's color add on. If you would like to view the tutorial for this technique just head over to the Scraps Of Darkness Blog, or follow my YouTube link on this blog.

I then attached my photo and began building on the details.

I cut out a Tim Holtz Weathered Clock, misted it with some Tattered Angels and tucked it into the upper, left hand corner. I added on some of the Kaisercraft Flowers from the Flora and Fauna add on, cut apart the Prima Crystal and Stars piece and tucked a piece of it behind the flowers, inked some Dusty Attic Chicken Wire and tucked it in the flowers. I then took a Graphic 45 Chipboard Tag and tucked it in. I gussied up a chipboard Sea Turtle from the Romance add on using some Lindy's Micas and adhered him on.

I used the same technique and layering in the bottom right hand corner.

I used one of the Graphic 45 envelope tags from the kit that I inked up to hold some journaling about the photo, and tucked it behind the photo, leaving it loose so that it can be pulled out to reveal the journaling.

I took some of the Fish Net from the kit and added it to the bottom corner of the photo, then layered on some more D.A. chicken wire, the super fragile and sweet, real sanddollar  from the kit and popped one of the Nantucket Chipboard pieces from the Romance Add on top of it. I then adhered some of the little sea shells from the kit onto my corrugated board piece, and tucked some corrugated board pieces behind the grunge punched places for interest and texture.

I love this kit, and the memories that it is helping me to preserve. Time has a way of letting memories slip from your mind, but scrapping them always brings them back to life. Don't forget you are not just pursuing a hobby, you are a Memory Keeper. 

This next layout has turned out to be one of my all time favs. It features a photo, that no,  is not perfectly shot, in fact it is a bit grainy and old, but it captures one of those precious memories that brings tears to this mother's eyes. It shows me and my son, at the sweet age of 5 on the beach. We are collecting shells, and I am holding one up for him to see. You can see the anticipation in his body language and his hurry to get to where I am. What seems like a simple moment in time, is actually a precious moment in time, me making memories with my son, and my sweet husband who had the sense to capture it with that one click. I titled this one "Fragile", because that is how I feel when I look at it. Like time is a fragile thing that each of us must "handle with care".

I started with a piece of the Pink Paislee paper from the kit, and then layered on a background that I created using the same Grunged Up Corrugated Board Technique that I used on the previous layout. If you would like to view the tutorial for that technique, please check it out at the Scraps Of Darkness Blog or through the YouTube link on this blog.

Close up view of that technique. Created with this month's Color Add On.

I then took some more layers of the Pink Paislee papers, distressed, water distressed inked and staked together, and then put the precious photo on top of them. I took one of the Nantucket Chipboard pieces from the Romance Add On, left it raw and added it to the bottom of the photo.

I took a piece of burlap, cut it into a triangle, pulled the edges, then cut it in half. I then laced it up using the Tim Holtz Pin Hinges from the kit, rolled back the edges and pinned them, then added a little stash, seashell metal charm. Where I rolled the edges back I formed a flower spray using one of the Prima flowers from the kit that I tucked some Prima leaves from my stash in, some foliage I created by stamping some of the paper with a Heartfelt Creations stamp then cutting it out with the matching die, and by misting some of the Petaloo Color Me Crazy Orchids from last month's kit with the Lindy's mist from this month's color add on ( I have now used almost the whole bottle of that stuff-absolutely love it).

I had tore out some huge gaps in my corrugated board, because when I saw the Pink Paislee paper with the fish on it, I had the idea to create little tide pools on my layout. So, I tucked in some pieces of the Fish Net from the kit, popped on some little stash sticker sea embellies that I inked up, and then fussy cut out those little fish, gave them some Prima pears for accent and then adhered them with foam into the "tide pools" for dimension. I love how they turned out. To finish out the layout I took a Graphic 45 Chipboard tag attached it to the net at the top with one of the Tim Holtz pins with a little metal seashell strung on it, and then added the stash Bo Bunny "fragile" piece to the top of the tag.

Oh, if I could only go back to that time and know what I know now. I would hold onto those moments forever, but unfortunately they are gone, but through the amazing art of scrapbooking and with fabulous kits like the one's Melinda puts together for us, I can hold on to a piece of those moments. I really appreciate you stopping by for reveal, and hope that you have some time this month to capture time onto a page, and create something you love! Hugs, ~Renea