Gossamer Blue The Sweet Life Baby

This is one of those layouts that I thought about a lot.  I finished it before bed and woke up thinking about it, wondering if I did too much.  Raise your hand if you can overwork a layout like nobody's business (raises hand).

The card is from the Jen Hadfield cut apart paper in the Gossamer Blue April Main Kit and I chose it because I love the colors and the saying; my girly is wearing a navy striped onesie in the photo and navy is a big favorite of mine for kiddos, so it was just perfect for what I wanted on the page.

I think a better choice would have been a softer patterned paper in the background, and I attempted to soften the colors by using texture paste through one of the Life Pages cut file exclusives from Gossamer Blue (I love that we get both the Main Kit and Life Pages cut files when you subscribe!), then layered on some gesso.  

While I like this layout a lot, the embellishments I chose get a bit lost when you look at the page as a whole.

I won't rework this page, but wanted to share what I learned from making it:  1)  Use a smaller print for the background paper; white would have been a fab choice in this situation; 2)  Try to choose embellishments that will stand out yet won't detract from the photo;  3)  Not every layout needs mixed media ;)

I could have just shared this page, end of story.  But I think sharing my lessons learned is a great way for others to learn, too!  Thanks for stopping by today, hope your Monday is not a typical Monday!

Gossamer Blue: Magical

The last of the June layouts made with the pretty, colorful and delightful Gossamer Blue June kits. This one is all about my girly and her obsession with my high heels (for the record, I haven't worn high heels since before I was pregnant with this kiddo!).  

That floral paper is so dreamy, isn't it?  And the vellum, it spoke to me on many levels.  The majority of this layout came from the June Main Add-on Kit, which you can still purchase.  If I were you, I would head HERE and buy it right away.  

I've been getting some pretty awesome photos with my iPhone lately, taking inspiration from my dear friend Rebekah at Life of B.  Rebekah has a way of framing a photo and catching a moment... she's pretty amazing and whenever I get a good pic I know it's because I channeled my inner RB.

I use the PicTapGo app for filters and cropping.  There are many great phone apps for filters but this is the one I got and I am very pleased with the results.  

You'll be seeing these photos, and more, on some layouts soon.  Stay happy my friends.

Gossamer Blue: We Kick Butt

I have a great group of girlfriends that I met through MOMS Club, and this Spring we took on a health-incentive challenge called Walk Kansas.  The final day of Walk Kansas was our local Susan G. Komen 5k, so we formed a team and did the race together.

So, this was one of those layouts that, in my opinion, worked out better in my head than on paper. And that's ok!  I really wanted to get these photos scrapped and I really wanted to include multiple photos on my page.  I liked the GB exclusive camera paper because the colors go with the photos, plus a few of the photos were taken selfie-style.

I won't tear this layout apart and re-do it, but I may scrap a few of the photos again on a new page (I tend to do that anyway).

What I Learned:

• a grid-style would have probably worked better for this size and orientation of photos
• less is more; a large strip of the photo paper would probably have been a better choice
• walk away; I didn't love it and kept working it.  A break would have given me new perspective

Do you get that feeling of >blah< when you're done with a page?  What's your solution?

Happy Creating

xoxoxo