Scrap.Cats.Love.

Hi there! 

It's seems like it's been a while since I've updated my blog... I've been really busy with school this past month, with end-of-cycle government tests among other things... Two more weeks of testing (and yes, that's for 2nd graders!), then another two weeks to wrap up everything and we're done with the school year! I did manage to squeeze in a bit of scrapping on the weekends though.

The first one was actually done at the weekend crop I went to in April with a friend. We always bring a lot of Diet Pepsi as part of our stash, as that is what keeps us "energized" throughout the weekend! This page was done for a full-page bingo challenge where there were 24 criteria to follow...  a real challenge! It's based on a sketch by Brenda Ragsdale.

I made this second layout when I came back from the crop. The picture was taken at the end of the crop, not long before we left. The title means "48 Hours and 15 Bottles Later...". We like to goof off and have fun with our love for Pepsi! Both pages are done with the "Kioshi" collection at Basic Grey. The page is based on this NSD sketch at 2 Broke Girls Challenges.

This page was scraplifted from Marie-Josée at the blog "Un peu fleur bleue". It's the story of my very first kitty, when I was six years old. He was such a love bug! I was a "cat lady" even back then!

This next page is scraplifted from Barbara at Scrapbook Nerd. I used Basic Grey's "Lucille" collection. It's a Disney page, when we had tea at the Grand Floridian Resort. Ever since our trip to the UK in 2009, I always try to find a place where we can have tea when we travel. I just think it's fun and feel like a little girl again, having a tea party! (and Mike is nice enough to indulge me! lol!)

Finally, this is a layout about me as a teacher. It's based on NSD sketch #3 at 2 Broke Girls Challenges. I mixed a bunch of old papers from different manufacturers for this one! (Daisy D's, My Mind's Eye, Basic Grey and Memento) Love it when I can pull this off! Feels great to use the old stash!

Oh, and then there's this page, that I actually made last fall but completely forgot to post. The title means "Léonide's Fashion" and it's about my beautiful grandma. She had a great sense of style! It's based on sketch #136 by Valerie Salmon at Got Sketch?

Ok, I think I'm up to date now... Hopefully I'll  be able to squeeze in a bit of scrapping despite the hectic last four weeks of school! 

Have a scrappy weekend!

Martine

Posted in 2 Broke Girls, Basic Grey, cats, Disney, family, layouts, sketches

Hi! I've got two layouts to share with you today! I made them at the weekend crop I went to a couple of weeks ago. The first one is a Disney layout. We went to Disney World last Christmas to celebrate Mike's 50th birthday. Even though it was just the two of us and I didn't have the excuse of having a little one traveling with us, I wanted to meet the Disney gang anyway! So we booked several character dinners. We had a lot of fun talking and taking pictures with Mickey and his friends. Even Mike got into it! (and even though he's young at heart, he's still a pretty serious, no-nonsense kind of guy!) I dipped into my old Basic Grey stash for this one and used some flashy "June Bug" papers. I also created a grid of faux-stitching for the squares of papers and pictures (piercing holes with a Scor-Bug and drawing with a pen).

The next layout is based on this sketch by Kristine Davidson at Creative Scrappers. 

The title says "Cat Man... Despite Himself". It's about my poor dad, who has never particularly liked cats, but has been almost "forced" to become a cat man because of all the cats I've brought into his life, one way or the other! (Although I take no responsibility for the one in the picture (their neighbor's new, cute little kitten) other than "forcing" him to hold her for a while!) I  used another old Basic Grey collection for this one, "Boxer". A lot more white space than I'm used to in this one, and some more faux-stitching too!

That's it for tonight! Hope you're having a scrappy weekend!

Martine

Posted in Basic Grey, Creative Scrappers, Disney, family, layouts, sketches

Hi there!

I have a layout to share today that I did for a challenge over at Scrapbooking from the Inside Out. This month's theme is "Fortune" and the first challenge was to scrap something that was precious to us. So of course, I had to do a page about my kitties! Sleeping with my cats is one of my little pleasures in life! I copied the famous credit card ads and did this "Priceless" page.

It's based on sketch #26 by Susan Stringfellow at Sketch Savvy.

I used some Restoration Crate Paper, which I still love. Love the richness of the colors! I also stamped and heat embossed a few images from the Basic Grey "Max & Whiskers" clear stamps.

I'm happy about how this one turned out. Gotta love a kitty layout!

Have a scrappy week and a happy Earth Day tomorrow!

Martine

Posted in layouts, Scrapbooking From the Inside Out, Sketch Savvy, sketches

Hi there!

Just finished the first sketch challenge over at 2 Broke Girls Challenges! I wish I'd had time for more of their challenges, but for now, the sketch will have to be it. This is the sketch:

I used an old picture of me when I was 7 years old. The layout is called "False Ballerina" because after having taken 1 year of "real" ballet at my school in 1st grade, my mom registered me in 2nd grade with a little neighbor girl who supposedly took ballet lessons. Well, turns out we did get to wear a ballet "costume" but it really was a diction and model class! Never learned one ballet move, but I did learn to speak well and did a little fashion show at the end of the semester! I was disappointed but never took up ballet again...

I dug into my stash for this layout and used papers from five different manufacturers (Fancy Pants, Cosmo Cricket, 7 Gypsies, Glitz and Scrap Mode). Love it when I manage to pull off that kind of thing and everything matches! Used some gesso to distress the title. Also used some behind the photo and the cluster up top, but it didn't turn out like I had imagined it. Wished I could take it back but it was too late! Oh well!

Looking forward to April and spring, no more snowpants to deal with at school (yay!), days getting lighter in the morning and only three months to go until summer break!

Have a creative week!

Martine

Posted in 2 Broke Girls, BOM, layouts, sketches

Hi there!

I just finished a layout today. It's a picture from the summer of 2001, when my mom and I returned from a cross country trip in my little, red pick-up, from Fairbanks, Alaska, to Montreal, Quebec. 9,700 kilometers in 11 days (plus a few days to visit some friends of mine along the way). My mom had often dreamed about doing that, so it was a perfect opportunity when I had to fly back to Fairbanks to bring back my pick-up. I used to live there but had moved back to Montreal in December 2000. I wasn't going to drive cross country during the winter, so I left it in storage with a friend until the following summer. It was a fun trip back! Lots of beautiful scenery and a good time with my mom!

I used the March 2013 sketch from Paperhaus Magazine's blog.

This is my take on it. I used some pre-embossed Core'dinations cardstock as the base. I combined some old paper with my new Lucille collection from Basic Grey. The blue background paper and the paper embellies are from an American Traditional Designs "Road Trip" paper pack that I've had for a long time. The flowery paper and the alpha stickers are from the Lucille Basic Grey collection. I used some wooden buttons from Prima (LOVE those!) and some chipboard birds colored with Gelatos (finally used them!) I even used my red Gelato to muddy up the pretty Purple Pumpkin fabric button that was perfect for my layout but too pink.

Oh, I added a Bloglovin' button on my sidebar, which is a way to keep track of the blogs you like, as I learned that Google Reader will be "retired" on July 1st. I had seen those pop up on several of the blogs I follow but didn't know why. Now I know... So please follow me on Bloglovin' if you want to stay updated with my scrapping!

Well, that's it for now. Easter break is coming up next week (four days off with the weekend) so hopefully I'll get to scrap a little bit more quickly!

Have a scrappy week!

Martine

Posted in Basic Grey, family, layouts, Paperhaus, sketches

So I've had a hard time getting back to my scrap desk but I think I'm finally there! I have two layouts to share with you today. The first one is a Disney page. Donald Duck has been my dad's favorite since forever and he's mine too! (I like that he's not perfect and has a temper! lol!) So of course I had to make a layout about my meeting him!

It's based on this sketch by Jana Eubank for Basic Grey. I used some old "Oh Baby Boy!" from Basic Grey for this page. Love to use my old stuff!

The second layout I have to share is for a DT call at a new sketch challenge site called 2 Broke Girls Challenges. I love sketches (as you know!) and I'm happy I found out about this blog and forum! This is the sketch we had to follow for the DT application.

I made a page about my newest kitty (yes... that makes four... good thing I have a tolerant boyfriend!). He's another rescue cat who walked into my life (literally) and I just couldn't turn away. He's the sweetest cat and is an amazing "purrer" (is that a word?). I really don't understand how somebody could have abandonned him like that. Well, he's got a good home now, is neutered, is receiving plenty of love from us and is getting along with the other cats better than we expected! I called him "Bajoue" which in French means "chubby cheeks". It's easy to see where he got his name from!

That's it for now. Thank you so much for stopping by! Hopefully I'll have something new to show you soon!

Have a scrappy day!

Martine



Posted in 2 Broke Girls, Basic Grey, cats, Disney, layouts, sketches