Mix it Up Challenge

This is my first MIX IT UP Challenge! I'm very excited to be joining Dona over at the Paper Issues blog with her Mix it Up Challenges. This is a challenge where we encourage you scrappers to get MESSY! And for April we're talking all about TEXTURE. 

I really hope you aren't sick of the Dear Lizzy "Happy Place" collection because, well.... I'm not. Anyways I have a little photo tutorial for how I created the background using texture paste, Distress Ink pads, and a Crafter's Workshop stencil.

I started by smudging some red Distress Ink on my craft mat, then a little scoop of texture paste, and mixed them around until my paste turned red. I also did the same thing to get a pink and an orange texture paste...

Next I placed my Crafter's Workshop "Doodled Pattern" stencil on my blank scrapbook paper. I covered a third of the page in the red texture paste, the middle portion in the pink texture paste, and the last third in orange texture paste. While the pastes were still wet, I ran over all of the stencil with my clean palette knife. This helps blend the colors into each other...

And here's what it looks like once all the paste has dried...

You can see that all the colors blend into one another when you go back over the pastes with your palette knife. I love it!

Thanks for stopping by! I hope you play along with our TEXTURE Mix it Up challenge!

As always, you can get all of your paper goodies at the Paper Issues online store for 20% off with the code RWKRAFTS :) !!!!!!

Scraplift Sunday

Happy Sunny Sunday! The weather is so beautiful (finally!) and I'm in the mood to scrap some summer photos. Here's what I created today... I'm playing along with the Paper Issues 'Scraplift Sunday' challenge over at their Facebook group.

This layout is so much fun, and what a great way to use some wood veneers I've been hoarding for more than a year (or 2)! Here is the lovely layout by Tegan that we're lifting...

And now some more close ups...

I used a mix of products from Simple Stories "Carpe Diem" and "I Am" collection. I also added some wood veneers from the Pink Paislee "Citrus Bliss" collection. 

The photo is of Matt and I in Baltimore's inner harbor. The pic was taken not long after we had just moved to Baltimore and bought our first house.

And just so you know... Meeko insists on being in every. single. photo. I ever take. So he has no shame stepping on my layouts!

Remember you can always get 20% off your entire order at Paper Issues using the code RWKRAFTS at checkout! The Carpe Diem line was just restocked so make sure to grab some before it's gone again!

Cabin {Theater} in the Woods

I'm so excited to be a part of this month's Paper Issues "issue"!!! The issue is Into the Woods which can be interpreted in a lot of ways like using wood veneers, wood grain patterns, scrapping a photo of a hiking or camping trip... there are so many ideas! 

I had a lot of fun with my Into the Woods inspired layout...

I used the theme in a lot of different ways. I scrapped a photo of a theater in the woods, used 'woods' in my title, incorporated birch tree and woodgrain papers, and also added wood veneer stars. 

 This vintage one-screen theater is tucked away in the trees of the Chautauqua Institution (my favorite place). Every year I visit I make it a point to sit in the little balcony of this theater and watch whatever movie they decided to play that week.

The embellishments I used are from the Crate Paper "Wonder" collection, which is still available in the Paper Issues store!

Remember, you can always get 20% off your entire order at Paper Issues when you use the code RWKRAFTS at checkout! 20% off! EVERYTHING! Thanks for stopping by!

Mom and Me

If you aren't in summer mode yet, my layout will definitely help ya get started! I'm playing along with the new April Take 5 Challenge over at Paper Issues! Have you joined this challenge yet? It just started in January and it's such a great way to get your creative juices flowing.

I love this photo of my mommy and me in our favorite place... Chautauqua, NY. Here is our attempt at a selfie while on the docks at Lake Chautauqua.

There are a lot of items in the challenge for you to pick from, but the five I used are: the color pink, a sticker, solid paper, a die cut, and glitter. I hope you'll play along! Make sure you join the Paper Issues Friends and Fans page on facebook to enter the April challenges!

and OF COURSE all of the products used in this layout are available in the Paper Issues online store! I'm clearly still obsessed with the Dear Lizzy Happy Place collection... pick yours up before it's all gone!

Use code RWKRAFTS for 20% off your ENTIRE ORDER at Paper Issues!

April Pinspire Me Mood Board

If you need some spring inspiration look no further! The April Pinspire Me mood board is here and sure to kick start your creative mojo!

I was inspired by the baby image, that big floral bouquet, and the bold pops of yellow. I used the Crate Paper "Wonder" collection for my cards, it was such a perfect match to the mood board!

I hope you play along this month! Click to the original post HERE to get all the details on how to enter! You could win a Paper Issues gift card woohoo!

You can find this Crate Paper line along with so many other paper goodies over at the Paper Issues store! Use your code RWKRAFTS at checkout to get 20% off your ENTIRE ORDER!

Live Colorfully + Free Cut File

April showers bring May flowers, and the folks at Paper Issues have the perfect FREE spring cut file for you! 

I enlarged the floral cut file so it covered almost a full 12x12 page. Then I painted the floral cut paper with gesso, let it dry, and watercolored it with light pastel colors.

My photo is from last summer in Chautauqua, my favorite summer vacation! If you know the name of these flowers please tell me!! The embellishments from Dear Lizzy Happy Place match my colors perfectly... I'm a little obsessed with that collection if you haven't noticed yet!

Thank you Mary-Ann for helping me with this layout at Crop on the Cape!

Remember to use the code RWKRAFTS at the Paper Issues store for 20% off your ENTIRE order! Make sure to pick up some Dear Lizzy while you're there ;)

Mixed Media Monthly Challenge - Dimension

Hello April! A brand new month is always something exciting, especially when you can look forward to a new Mixed Media Monthly Challenge! We've made April EXTRA special with a fantastic sponsor and a super talented guest designer. They're all taking part in our April Dimension challenge.

Our awesome sponsor this month is STAMPERS ANONYMOUS! They are generously giving away TWO prize packs that include a Wendy Vecchi stamp set AND stencil... so did you guess who our Guest Designer is?! The talented WENDY VECCHI! Make sure you visit the Mixed Media Monthly Challenge blog to see her gorgeous creation! :)

I was feeling super 80's Baby with my canvas this month. I wanted black paint and neon pinks and blues! 

I started with a messy coat of black chalkboard paint for the background. Then I used modeling paste over a new The Crafter's Workshop stencil called 'Overlapping Stripes'. I colored my Texture Paste with a drop of Dina Wakley acrylic paint in Fushia and Ocean to use over the stencil.

I added some texture with microbeads and Liquitex Resin medium. Then I stamped the butterflies from Unity's December 2015 SMAK kit with white acrylic paint.

The wings and the dressing form are both stamps from Unity's December 2015 SMAK. I heat embossed the images in different shades of blue embossing powder, then colored them in with watercolors. I attached them to my canvas with thick foam adhesive.

Thanks for joining me on this lovely April morning! I can't wait to see all of your creations filled with DIMENSION in our Mixed Media Monthly Gallery! Good luck!