Scrap.Cats.Love.

Today is my last reveal with Let's Get Sketchy! Six months sure went by fast! Here's the pretty sketch we had to work with.

I made a layout about life in Trinidad, from our trip to Cuba in the winter of 2011. I used a bunch of papers from Basic Grey's Nook & Pantry collection. I love the soft colors. I also stitched around the pieces of papers.

Go check out the rest of the team's work here. You have until next Sunday to link up your creation for a chance to win our monthly prize!

Happy scrapping!

Martine 

Posted in Basic Grey, Cuba, layouts, Let's Get Sketchy, sketches

That's the theme at Scrapbooking from the Inside Out for August. The first challenge this month was to scrap about how we sometimes wish we could disappear somewhere and just escape from it all!

The title of my layout means "Escape". The picture is from the incredible beach of Cayo Ensenachos in Cuba, where we went in 2011. I wouldn't mind escaping there a few more times! lol! The picture flips open to reveal some journaling. I kept embellishments to a minimum. My layout is based on a sketch from Let's Capture These Sketches.

Hope you can "escape" and join in the fun at Scrapbooking from the Inside Out!

Martine

Posted in Cuba, layouts, Let's Capture These Sketches, Scrapbooking From the Inside Out

The new monthly challenge at Scrap Your Crap is all about twine! I'm sure you have some in your stash... it's been so popular lately!

Here's my layout. I wrapped twine around one of the photos, and threaded a button with it.

It's based on a sketch by Becky Fleck. I used a collection from My Mind's Eye.  It's about all the dogs we saw during our trip to Cuba in the winter of 2011. It was sad to see them begging in the streets!

Check out here what the rest of the DT did with twine and let them inspire you! Hope you join us and use of some of your stash with us!

Scrap Your Crap is looking for the next batch of "Queens of Crap"! lol! There's a DT call going on. You can check out all the details here. It's a great team to be on! You should give it a try!

Happy scrapping!

Martine

Posted in Cuba, DT call, layouts, Scrap Your Crap

I have a couple of layouts to share about our trip down south in the winter of 2011. I made the first one for a challenge at Let's Capture Our Memories' Birthday Bash. It's based on this sketch by Nicole Nowosad. We had to use the number 3 somewhere on the layout (for LCOM's 3rd birthday).

My layout is about three things I'll never forget about Cuba. I used some Fancy Pants papers and transparency.

My second layout is based on this sketch by Kristine Davidson for a challenge at My Scraps and More.

The title means: From This to That, with a picture from the plane leaving Montreal and the snow, and another one arriving in Cuba. Quite the contrast! It was my first time going down south during the winter and experiencing that difference! I used some My Mind's Eye papers for this one.

Finally, one last Cuba layout.  This one is a scraplift from Anna Mills for a challenge at My Scraps and More. I hadn't used paper tearing in a layout for a long time. It was fun to do!



Happy scrapping!

Martine

Posted in Cuba, layouts, Let's Capture Our Memories, My Scraps and More, sketches

So I've been working all week on Basic Grey layouts with their NSD challenges! How fun! This is the latest I finished, a layout about my cat Bear who is totally and exclusively in love... with me! This one was made for the "shape" challenge at BG (I used triangles) and is based on sketch 294 from Scrapbook Challenges. I used one of my favorite collections, Periphery, which I had been hoarding!

Here are a couple more pages I completed about our trip to Cuba in 2011. This is a day trip on a big catamaran that we did on a perfect sunny day (still hard to believe that this was in January, me that had never gone south for winter before!). I did the first page for the Basic Grey + Core'dinations challenge and used the Marrakesh collection.  This one is based on sketch 81 by Susan Stringfellow at Sketch Savvy.

I did the second page for the layering challenge, again with the Marrakesh collection. It is based on a sketch by Cherie Averill, of Sassy Lil' Sketches.

I'm hoping to squeeze out a couple more pages before the deadline for the NSD challenges tomorrow if I can!

Happy scrapping!

Martine

Posted in Basic Grey, cats, Cuba, layouts, sketches

Hi there!

It's a new sketch and a new reveal today at Let's Get Sketchy! Here's the sketch we had to work with. Lot's of fun layers!



And here's the layout I made. Everytime I go on a trip, I always take pictures of the cats that I see. These were the two kitties I saw during our trip to Cuba in February 2011. I used an old collection of My Mind's Eye papers for this one.



If you live in the Montreal area, I just wanted to let you know that Scrapbook Quebec (in Laval) will be having a scrappy garage sale on Saturday April 28th, from 11am to 4pm. I'll be there selling some of my "overstock"! lol! I'm sure there will be great deals to be had!

Hope you have a creative week!

Martine

Posted in cats, Cuba, layouts, Let's Get Sketchy, sketches

Hi!

I have a few layouts to share that I've done for different challenge blogs. First up, this page about our trip to the UK in 2009. On our last day, we visited Blenheim Palace. I made a layout based on this sketch from My Sketch World.





I also did two pages on "The Beauty of Christmas in Nuremberg" from our trip this past december. The first page is based on a sketch by Liz Chidester from Practical Scrappers.





The second page was based on this sketch from Scrap Gal. I rotated the sketch to fit my landscape picture.





This other page, "The Good Life!", about our trip to Cuba last winter, was made for another challenge at Scrapgal. We had to use colors that we normally would not. I went for turquoise and lime green, as I don't usually use bright colors like that (although the picture doesn't seem that bright because of the bad winter light for taking photos!)



Finally, this last page was done for a monochromatic challenge at Let's Capture Our Memories. It's based on a sketch from Sassy Lil' Sketches. That was me, 43 years ago...



Ok, I think I'm all caught up now! Hope you have a great weekend!

Happy scrapping!

Martine

Posted in Christmas Markets, Cuba, layouts, Let's Capture Our Memories, My Sketch World, Sassy Lil' Sketches, ScrapGal, sketches, UK

Hi there!

I want to share my last three layouts of 2011. My very last one is this one from the Basic Grey blog. This is the sketch.


And this is my layout. It's the "East Side Gallery", which is a 1.3km stretch of the Berlin Wall covered with paintings from international artists. We were in a hurry, so we didn't get to walk all along it, but I would have loved to! I used the "Oliver" collection by Basic Grey, as well as label stickers from the "Basic White" collection and ribbon from the "Mellow" line. I added a bit of inked grunge board as well as chipboard embellies.


Then there's this one by a sketch from Cherie Averill from Sassy Lil' Sketches. It was done for a challenge at Scrapbooking from the Inside Out. I used an older line of K & Company for this one.


Finally, this is a companion page to one I did earlier, about our interaction with dolphins when we went down south last winter. It's based on this sketch from WeScrap. I used Basic Grey's "Marrakesh" line. Love the orange and the blue together!





Well, hope you had a great 2011, and wishing you an even better 2012!

Martine

Posted in Basic Grey, Cuba, Germany, layouts, Scrapbooking From the Inside Out, sketches

Hello!

I have two new layouts to share with you today. I did the first one for the November Sketchy Challenge over at Canadian Scrapbooker using this sketch.



While we were in Cuba last winter, we had the chance to interact with dolphins on one of our excursions. I fell in love with them! Their kisses and snuggles were so soft! I hope to get the chance to swim with dolphins one day!



My second layout is about saying goodbye to my 18 year old kitty last winter. I did it for a challenge about "Connections" over at Scrapbooking From the Inside Out. I had so much to say that it wouldn't all fit if I wrote it by hand, so for the first time I actually printed out my journaling! The page is based on a sketch by Cherie Averill from the Sassy Lil' Sketches ebook.



Martine

Posted in cats, Cuba, Sassy Lil' Sketches, Scrapbooking From the Inside Out, sketches

Hi!

I have a few more layouts to share. I did these for challenges at WeScrap. The first one is a companion page to one I've done before for Sassy Lil' Sketches. It's about the beautiful Conservatory at Volunteer Park in Seattle. There were so many gorgeous flowers! Everything was so lush! Here's the new page (the purple one, for a "Colours of Fall" challenge) along with the first one I did.





The other two pages I did were for a double layout, for a sketch and a fabric challenge. It's based on this sketch by Sue Sykes.



I used a twisted fabric strip to make the flower at the bottom right of the second page. (Sorry, you'll have to imagine them side by side... it won't post that way!) It's about all the smiling faces that we met during our trip to Cuba last winter.



There's still time if you want to participate in the November WeScrap challenges. You have the chance to win a WeScrap kit of your choice!

Happy scrapping!

Martine

Posted in Cuba, layouts, Seattle, sketches

Hi!

I've got two new layouts to share today. The first one is based on a sketch from WeScrap and was made for a recipe challenge over there. It's the companion page for the "Beach Girl?" page I made not long ago. I layered, inked and clustered. I distressed the letters because the blue ones were much too bright, so I had to tone them down. The little fishy was a last minute addition!


My second layout is about the beautiful flowers growing at our hotel in Cuba last winter. I couldn't believe the hedges of bougainvillea! I had problems here keeping a tiny one alive for a year! For the base of my layout, I misted an embossed cardstock, then sanded it to make the pattern show through the mist colors. The butterfly was stamped and colored with Copics. I've just started playing with those! I had wanted to stay away from them because I didn't need another addiction (lol!), but I finally gave in!


And now for the giveaway! Head out to Purple Pumpkin for a chance to win one of FOUR vouchers for some really cute embellies!


Happy scrapping!

Martine

Posted in Cuba, giveaway, Maine

Hi!

Check out the Fabulous Fall Contest that is going on at WeScrap! It's ongoing until October 28th, and on the 31st, a Vagabond machine will be randomly given to a lucky winner! Challenges are issued every Monday, and there are many opportunities to win bonus ballots along the way! If you want to join in the fun, sign up on the WeScrap forum then post in this thread, and mention that I referred you. You'll be getting an extra ballot just for doing this! It's a great contest, an amazing prize, and lots of fun too!

I've completed two LOs so far for the contest. The first one was a scraplift (from "Kimmer"). That's my cat Câlin, who takes the cutest poses when he sleeps!


For the second one, we needed to use fall colors (yellow, orange, rust...). It's about the beautiful architecture of Trinidad, Cuba.


I hope you'll join us for some fun challenges and the chance to win an awesome prize at WeScrap!

Happy scrapping!

Martine

Posted in cats, Cuba, layouts, WeScrap

Hello!

I have two new layouts to share today that I did for the "Deal or No Deal" contest going on at WeScrap! Every week we get to pick a suitcase for a unique challenge. For week 1, I had to use 2 cardstocks, 3 papers, ribbon, stamps, journaling spot, ink/pens and nothing else! It was this last part which was hard for me! This is what I came up with, my first experience snorkeling last winter. I stamped the blue ribbon with the fish, as well as all the embellies (I did chalk them for a bit of color...). It's fun to get to use the new "tropical" stamp sets that I bought after our trip to Cuba. (I'm just *slightly* addicted to stamps! lol!)



For the 2nd week, I had to scrap a weakness. Hmmmm... Since I always seem to have a tendency to "see the glass half-empty", I decided to use part of the lyrics of this song ("I can see clearly now the rain is gone...") with this picture of me on the beach, on our last day there. I was truly relaxed! I have a hard time scrapping with vivid colors. Add a white cardstock background, and it's really a challenge for me!



Now, let's see who's the lucky person who'll be getting a free copy of the new Sassy Lil' Sketches E-book!


The random number generator picked #1, which means that Repositório won! Congrats!! Please contact Cherie at sassylilsketches@gmail.com for your copy of the e-book. Use the subject "Winner of the e-book giveaway" and let her know that you've won the book at my blog.

Don't forget to go check out the Sassy Lil' Sketches blog today! Since there are five weeks in August, it's a "Sketch Rerun" with two additional sketches that you can work on before September 5th to be in the running for a prize from our sponsors!

Happy scrapping!

Martine

Posted in Cuba, layouts

Hi!

Here's my latest LO. It's my first page about our trip to Cuba last winter. It was my first time going south for the winter... and I loved it! I've never been a "beach person", so I didn't think it would be my thing. Don't get me wrong, I knew that I was going to enjoy it, but I didn't think I was going to REALLY like it! It felt pretty surreal swimming in the ocean in January when you just left snow behind you at home!

It's based on this sketch from Sassy Lil' Sketches. I love muli-photo sketches!



I went with bright colors to go with the gorgeous color of the water over there! I used Tattered Angels "Glimmer Glass" as black accents. I faux-stitched around the page in black also. I stamped little tags for my journaling. I used bling to simulate waves under the palm tree, and added a few cute fish glass beads that I found on clearance at an art store.



Now for my toot! Sassy Lil' Sketches will be producing an e-book, and I've been chosen as a designer! I'm very excited to be part of this project! I'll keep you posted when it's all done and ready to go!

And the giveaway... Purple Pumpkin is having a huge giveaway to celebrate their first year! There's a total of $100 in vouchers to the store to be won! The winners will be announced on July 22nd, so go check it out! You know you can't resist these cute buttons and embellies!



Thanks for stopping by! Happy scrapping!

Martine

Posted in Cuba, giveaway, layouts, Let's Capture These Sketches, Sassy Lil' Sketches

Posted in Cuba, DT call, photos